A system has a virtual-world (VW) controller and a physical-world (PW) controller. The pairing of a PW element with a VW element establishes them as corresponding physical and virtual twins. The VW controller and/or the PW controller receives measurements from one or more sensors characterizing aspects of the physical world, the VW controller generates the virtual twin, and the VW controller and/or the PW controller generates commands for one or more actuators affecting aspects of the physical world. To coordinate the corresponding virtual and physical twins, (i) the VW controller controls the virtual twin based on the physical twin or (ii) the PW controller controls the physical twin based on the virtual twin. Depending on the operating mode, one of the VW and PW controllers is a master controller, and the other is a slave controller, where the virtual and physical twins are both controlled based on one of VW or PW forces.

A method and system for picking or put-away within a logistics facility. The system includes a central server and at least one mobile manipulation robot. The central server is configured to communicate with the robots to send and receive picking data which includes a unique identification for each item to be picked, a location within the logistics facility of the items to be picked, and a route for the robot to take within the logistics facility. The robots can then autonomously navigate and position themselves within the logistics facility by recognition of landmarks by at least one of a plurality of sensors. The sensors also provide signals related to detection, identification, and location of a item to be picked or put-away, and processors on the robots analyze the sensor information to generate movements of a unique articulated arm and end effector on the robot to pick or put-away the item.

Specialized robot motion planning hardware and methods of making and using same are provided. A robot-specific hardware can be designed using a tool that receives a robot description comprising a collision geometry of a robot, degrees of freedom for each joint of the robot, and joint limits of the robot; receives a scenario description; generates a probabilistic roadmap (PRM) using the robot description and the scenario description; and for each edge of PRM, produces a collision detection unit comprising a circuit indicating all parts of obstacles that collide with that edge. The hardware is implemented as parallel collision detection units that provide collision detection results used to remove edges from the PRM that is searched to find a path to a goal position.

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate to a method and apparatus of scheduling welding operations. In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the method includes identifying seams on a welding object in a three-dimensional model for the welding object based on geometry of bodies contained in the welding object. The method also includes determining a welding sequence based on the seams, welding parameters and welding process requirements. The method further includes generating an operation procedure for a welding robot based on another three-dimensional model for the welding robot, the welding sequence, robot path parameters and the welding parameters to schedule the welding operations of the welding object. With embodiments of the present disclosure, the welding procedure could be generated in an automatic way and thus a robot can be used in welding huge and complex structures or structures manufactured in a small batch so that the automatic level can be increased remarkably and the production cost can be reduced accordingly.

Disclosed herein are systems and methods for controlling an industrial robot. The system can include an industrial robot having a plurality of axes and a saw and water jet end effector. The system can also include an off-line program for controlling the industrial robot. The off-line program can include creating a tool path based on a prescribed cut pattern, then analyzing the tool path for kinematic singularity occurrences. If a kinematic singularity is found, it is avoided by creating corrected sub-paths. The corrected sub-path is then reanalyzed for kinematic singularity occurrences and corrected if needed. The tool path is then analyzed for collisions that occur between cutting motion segments, and avoiding those collisions by creating new paths of travel between cutting motion segments. Once the corrected sub-path is complete, the system includes translating and sending the corrected sub-path to the industrial robot.

According to one embodiment, a monitor apparatus includes a memory and processing circuitry. The processing circuitry acquires first information indicating a position and a moving direction of a target, acquires second information indicating a position of each of moving objects and sensors which are provided in the moving objects, selects at least one of a first moving object for monitoring the target from among the moving objects or a first sensor for monitoring the target from among the sensors, based on the first information and the second information, and transmits third information indicating the target and at least one of the first moving object or the first sensor.

An automatic program-correction device includes: a clearance detecting unit that detects an amount of clearance between a robot and a peripheral device in an operation program; a near-miss detecting unit that detects a near-miss section; a closest-point detecting unit that detects a pair of closest points, in the near-miss section; and a program updating unit that generates a new operation program having an intermediate teaching point to which the closest points have been moved, along a straight line passing through the detected pair of closest points, until the amount of clearance becomes greater than a minimum amount of clearance and equal to or less than the threshold. While gradually reducing, from the threshold, the amount of clearance at the intermediate teaching point, the program updating unit obtains an intermediate teaching point that provides a maximum amount of clearance at which a new near-miss section is not detected.

Systems and a method for programming for a plurality of cells of an industrial environment. A physical cobot is provided within a lab cell comprising lab physical objects. A virtual simulation system with a user interface is provided. The virtual simulation system receives information inputs on the virtual cobot, on the virtual lab cell comprising lab virtual objects, and on a plurality of virtual industrial cells comprising virtual industrial objects. The virtual cobot and the physical cobot are connected together. A superimposed meta-cell is generated by superimposing the plurality of virtual cells and the virtual lab cell so as to obtain a single superimposed meta cell including a set of superimposed virtual objects. The virtual cobot is positioned in the superimposed meta cell. Inputs are received from the physical cobot's movement during teaching whereby the physical cobot is moved in the lab cell to the desired position(s) while providing, via the user interface, a visualization of the virtual cobot's movement within the superimposed meta cell so that collisions with any object are minimized. A robotic program is generated based on the received inputs of the physical cobot's movement.

A machining system has a machine tool, a numerical controller which moves a machining table of the machine tool according to a machining program, a robot which performs a process to a work on the machining table, and a robot control unit, and the numerical controller is configured to send a current position coordinate of the machining table, a prefetched position coordinate of the machining table, which is calculated by prefetching the machining program and carrying out an acceleration and deceleration interpolation, and time information, which corresponds to the current position coordinate and the prefetched position coordinate, to the robot control unit, and the robot control unit controls the robot so that the distal end portion of the robot follows the movement of the machining table by using the current position coordinate, the prefetched position coordinate, and the time information, which are received from the numerical controller.

A control system including a selective compliance assembly robot arm (SCARA) robot is provided. The SCARA robot includes a first arm configured to be rotatable around a first rotation shaft, a second arm configured to be rotatable around a second rotation shaft arranged parallel to the first rotation shaft and provided on the first arm, and a main shaft configured to be drivable in a direction parallel to the second rotation shaft and provided on the second arm. The control system includes a setting unit providing a user interface for receiving a setting of a two-dimensional operation prohibition region with respect to a point of interest on the SCARA robot. The operation prohibition region corresponds to an area on a plane orthogonal to the main shaft. The control system includes an extension unit two-dimensionally extending the operation prohibition region through an extension in a direction of the main shaft.