EI8079

Robotics and Automation

[ELECTIVE]

Prepared By
Sharmila Devi.J
Assistant Professor – ICE
A.V.C. College of Engineering
Mayiladuthurai
 Unit 1 – Basic Concepts

• Definition and origin of robotics

• Different types of robotics
• Various generations of robots
• Degrees of freedom
• Asimov's laws of robotics
• Dynamic stabilization of robots
 List of Reference

Unit # Topic Text Book and

Reference Book

UNIT 1 - BASIC CONCEPTS

1 Definition and origin of robotics Mikell P Groover ( T1)
1 Different types of robotics Mikell P Groover ( T1)
1 Various generations of robots Deb S R ( R1)
1 Asimov's laws of robotics Mikell P Groover ( T1)
1 Degrees of freedom Mikell P Groover ( T1)
1 Dynamic stabilization of robots Online / Notes
 Definition of a Robot:

• Word robot was coined by a Czech novelist

Karel Capek in a 1920 play titled Rossum’s
Universal Robots (RUR).
• Robota in Czech is a word for worker
or servant
• Official definition of robot was given by
Robot Industry Association (RIA), formerly
known as Robot Institute of America,
“A robot is a reprogrammable,
multifunctional manipulator designed to
move material, parts, tools or specialized
devices through variable programmed
motions for the performance of a variety of
tasks”
 Basic Parts of a Robot

Parts of the robot

– Manipulator

– Controller

– Teach pendant
 AXES OF MANIPULATOR


6 axes

Servo motor control

Safety drives enable

Pay load of 16 kgs
 INSTRUCTION FLOW - simple

U
TEACH
S CONTROLLER MANIPULATOR
PENDANT
E
R
INSTRUCTION FLOW - detailed
 Basic Parts of a Robot
• Manipulator / Rover : This is the main body
of the Robot and consists of links, joints and
structural elements of the Robot.
 Basic Parts of a Robot
• End Effectors : This is the part that generally handles
objects, makes connection to other machines, or
performs the required tasks. It can vary in size and
complexity according to the applications / requirements.
 Basic Parts of a Robot
• Actuators : Actuators are the muscles of the
manipulators. Common types of actuators are
servomotors, stepper motors, pneumatic cylinders
etc.
 Basic Parts of a Robot
• Sensors : Sensors are used to collect information about the internal
state of the robot or to communicate with the outside environment.
Robots are often equipped with external sensory devices such as a
vision system, touch and tactile sensors etc which help to
communicate with the environment
 Basic Parts of a Robot
• Controller : The controller receives data from the
computer, controls the motions of the actuator
and coordinates these motions with the sensory
 Origin of a Robot

• The origin of industrial robots lies way

back in 1700's and have grown
tremendously over decades
 Mid 1700 – J.de vaucanson
Built several human sized mechanical dolls that plays music
1805 – h.maillardet – mechanical doll capable of
drawing pictures
1946 – GC devol – controller
device – records electrical signals
magnetically and play them back
to operate mechanical machine
1954 – cw kenward – robot design
 And many improvements

• 1959 – first commercial robot introduced by

planet corporation controlled by switches
• 1960 – first unimate robot introduced
for manipulator control
• 1966 – Trallfa, built and installed
spray painting robot
• 1968 – mobile robot named “shakey”
• 1971 – stanford arm, a small
electrically powered robot arm
 Contd…
• 1973 – first computer type robot programming
language developed. (AL , WAVE)
• 1974 – invention of all electric drive robot
• Followed by industrial implementations for
manufacturing works
• 1979 – development of SCARA type robot
• 1982 – IBM introduced Robots for assembly using
robotic arm
• 1990’s – invention of walking robots and
rehabilitation robots, space robots, defense
applications
• 2000’s – Micro and Nano robots using smart
materials, underwater and ariel vehicles
 Future robots

• Robotic engineers are designing the

next generation of robots to look, feel
and act more human, to make it easier
for us to warm up to a cold machine.
• Realistic looking hair and skin with
embedded sensors will allow robots
to react naturally in their environment.
Future robots - Personal Robots
Future robots - Professional Robots in the field of Drug Delivery
Future robots - Surgery
Future robots - Rehabilitation
 Classification of robots
Entire robots can be classified in to 2 broad categories:

Based on Applications Based on Configuration

• Industrial Robots • Polar Configuration
• Tele Robots • Cylindrical Configuration
• Explorer Robots • Cartesian Coordinate
• Laboratory Robots Configuration
• Hobbyist Robots • Jointed Arm Configuration
• Educational Robots
• Medical Robots
 Classification Based on Applications
• Industrial Robots:
– An industrial robot is a robot system used for
manufacturing. Industrial robots are automated,
programmable and capable of movement on
three or more axes.
 Defining Parameters for industrial robots
• Number of axes– two
axes are required to reach
any point in a plane;
• three axes are required to
reach any point in space.
• To fully control the
orientation of the end of
the arm(i.e. the wrist)
three more axes (yaw,
pitch, and roll) are
required.
• Some designs (e.g. the
SCARA robot) trade
limitations in motion
possibilities for cost,
speed, and accuracy.
 Defining Parameters for industrial robots

• Degrees of freedom– number of

independent motions that are allowed to
the body, this is usually the same as the
number of axes.
 Defining Parameters for industrial robots

• Working envelope– an envelope is the

region of space a robot can reach during
its normal range of motion.
 Defining Parameters for industrial robots
• Kinematics – the actual arrangement of rigid
members and joints in the robot, which determines
the robot's possible motions.
• Classes of robot kinematics include articulated,
cartesian, parallel and SCARA.

“Kinematics” the branch of mechanics concerned with the motion of objects

without reference to the forces which cause the motion.
Kinematics – articulated robot
Kinematics – cartesian robots
Kinematics – parallel robots
Kinematics – scara robots
 Defining Parameters for industrial robots
• Carrying capacity or payload – how much weight a
robot can lift.
• Speed– how fast the robot can position the end of
its arm. This may be defined in terms of the angular
or linear speed of each axis or as a compound speed
i.e. the speed of the end of the arm when all axes are
moving.
• Acceleration – how quickly an axis can accelerate.
Since this is a limiting factor a robot may not be
able to reach its specified maximum speed for
movements over a short distance or a complex path
requiring frequent changes of direction.
 Defining Parameters for industrial robots
• Accuracy – how closely a robot can reach a commanded
position. When the absolute position of the robot is measured
and compared to the commanded position the error is a measure
of accuracy. Accuracy can be improved with external sensing, for
example a vision system or Infra-Red. Accuracy can vary with
speed and position within the working envelope and with
payload.
• Repeatability – how well the robot will return to a programmed
position. This is not the same as accuracy. It may be that when
told to go to a certain X-Y-Z position that it gets only to within 1
mm of that position. This would be its accuracy which may be
improved by calibration. But if that position is taught into
controller memory and each time it is sent there it returns to
within 0.1mm of the taught position then the repeatability will be
within 0.1mm.
Accuracy vs Repeatability
 Classification Based on Applications

• Tele Robots
Tele robotics is the area of
robotics concerned with the
control of semi-autonomous
robots from a distance,
chiefly using Wireless
network (like Wi-Fi,
Bluetooth, the Deep Space
Network, and similar) or
tethered connections. It is a
combination of two major
subfields, teleoperation and
telepresence
 Classification Based on Applications

• Explorer Robots
They are used to go where
humans cannot go and fear to
go. Eg: to explore cave, in deep
under water, to rescue people
in sunken ships. Used in
Hazardous Environments. Eg:
Military application
 Classification Based on Applications

• Laboratory Robots
Laboratory robotics is
the act of using robots
in biology or chemistry
labs. For example,
pharmaceutical
companies employ
robots to move
biological or chemical
samples around to
synthesize novel
chemical entities or to
test
 Classification Based on Applications

• Hobbyist Robots
This category of robots are
generally used for
entertainment purpose and
experimenting purpose. These
robots usually equipped with
speech synthesis techniques
 Classification Based on Applications

• Educational Robots
Educational robotics is a broad term that
refers to a collection of activities,
instructional programs, physical
platforms, educational resources and
pedagogical philosophy. There are many
schools which are using the robot teacher.
 Classification Based on Applications

• Medical Robots
A medical robot is a
robot used in the
medical sciences. They
include surgical robots.
These are in most tele
manipulators, which
use the surgeon's
actions on one side to
control the "effector"
on the other side.
 Classification Based on Configuration

• Polar Configuration
Has onelinear motion and
two rotary motions. It uses a
telescoping arm that can be raised or
lowered about a horizontal pivot.(α)
.The pivot is mounted on a rotating
base.(θ). A arm also has the capability to
move in and out to provide a linear
motion(x). The various joints provide
the robot with the capability to move its
arm within a spherical space and hence
it is also referred as Spherical
coordinate robot.
 Classification Based on Configuration

Cylindrical Configuration
These robots uses a vertical
column and a slide that can
be moved up or down along the
column. The robot arm is
attached to the slide so that it
can be moved radially with
respect to the column. By
rotating the column, the robot is
capable of achieving a work
space that approximates a
cylinder.
Work Envelope: Cylinder
 Classification Based on Configuration

Cartesian Coordinate Configuration

These robots uses three
perpendicular slides to
construct the x,y and z axes.
Other names are sometimes
applied to this configuration such
as XYZ robots and rectilinear
robot. By moving the three slides
relative to one another, the robot
is capable of operating within a
rectangular work envelope.
Work Envelope: Rectangular
 Classification Based on Configuration

Jointed Arm Configuration

Jointed arm
configuration can be
classified in to 2 types:
(i) Jointed Arm
Vertical Configuration
(ii) Jointed Arm
Horizontal
Configuration (SCARA)
 Work Volume or work Envelope

• The work volume is determined by the

following physical characteristics of
the robot:
– The robot's physical configuration (type
of joints, structure of links)
– The sizes of the body, arm, and
wrist components
– The limits of the robot's joint movements
Robot Configuration: (a) Polar, (b) Cylindrical, (c)
Cartesian, (d) Jointed arm
Work Envelope: (a) Polar (b) Cylindrical, (c) Cartesian
 Various Generations of Robots
• The evolution of robotics can be
illustrated as 4 generations
 First generation @
Attended Robots
• A first-generation
robot is a simple
mechanical arm.
• These machines
have the ability to
make precise
motions at high
speed, many times,
for a long time
 Second generation @
Robotics Process and Automation
• A second-generation robot
has rudimentary machine
intelligence.
• Such a robot is equipped with
sensors that tell it things about
the outside world.
• These devices include pressure
sensors, proximity sensors,
tactile sensors, radar, sonar,
ladar, and vision systems.
• A controller processes the data
from these sensors and adjusts
the operation of the robot
accordingly
 Third generation @
Self Service and Automation
• The concept of a third-generation robot
encompasses two major avenues of evolving
smart robot technology
– The autonomous robot
• An autonomous robot can work on its own. It contains a
controller, and it can do things largely without supervision,
either by an outside computer or by a human being
– Insect robot
• There are some situations in which autonomous robots do not
perform efficiently. In these cases, a fleet of simple insect robots,
all under the control of one central computer, can be used.
• These machines work like ants in an anthill, or like bees in a hive.
Autonomous robots and insect robots
 Fourth generation @
Cognitive Robotics
• Any robot of a sort yet to be seriously put into operation is
a fourth generation robot.
• Examples of these might be robots that reproduce and evolve,
or that incorporate biological as well as mechanical components.
 Fifth Generation @
Artificial Intelligence Robotics
• Robot controller will involve complete
artificial intelligence (AI), miniature sensors,
and decision making capabilities.
Asimov's laws of robotics
 Asimov's laws of robotics
• The Three Laws of Robotics or Asimov's
Laws are a set of rules devised by the
science fiction author Isaac Asimov
First Law - A robot may not injure a human being
or, through inaction, allow a human being to come
to harm.
Second Law - A robot must obey the orders given
it by human beings except where such orders
would conflict with the First Law.
Third Law - A robot must protect its own existence
as long as such protection does not conflict with
the First or Second Laws.
 First Law - A robot may not injure a human being or, through inaction, allow a human being to
come to harm

• A tool must not be unsafe to use. Hammers

have handles and screwdrivers have hilts
to help increase grip.
• It is of course possible for a person to injure
himself with one of these tools, but that injury
would only be due to his incompetence, not
the design of the tool
 Second Law - A robot must obey the orders given it by human beings except where such orders
would conflict with the First Law

• A tool must perform its function efficiently

unless this would harm the user.
• This is the entire reason ground-fault
circuit interrupters exist.
• Any running tool will have its power cut if
a circuit senses that some current is not
returning to the neutral wire, and hence
might be flowing through the user.
• The safety of the user is paramount
Third Law - A robot must protect its own existence as long as such protection does not
conflict with the First or Second Laws

• A tool must remain intact during

its use unless its destruction is
required for its use or for safety.
• For example, Dremel disks are
designed to be as tough as
possible without breaking unless
the job requires it to be spent.
• Furthermore, they are designed
to break at a point before the
shrapnel velocity could seriously
injure someone (other than the
eyes, though safety glasses should
be worn at all times anyway).
Why this Order? Why not other orders?
 Degrees of freedom
• Industrial robots are designed to perform productive
work such as pick and place, welding, assembly, etc.,
the work is accomplished by enabling the robot to
move its body, arm and wrist through a series of
motion and positions. The individual joint motions
associated with the performance of a task are referred
to by the term Degrees of Freedom (DOF)
"Degrees of freedom, in a mechanics context,
are specific, defined modes in which a
mechanical device or system can move. The
number of degrees of freedom is equal to the
total number of independent displacements or
aspects of motion."
 Joints and its types
• The robot's motion are accomplished
by means of powered joints.
• Three joints are associated with the
action of body and arm.
• Another three joints are generally used
to actuate the wrist
• Joints used in the industrial robotics are of
two types,
– Prismatic Joints - Used for Linear Motions
– Revolute Joints - Used for Rotational Motions
 prismatic joint

• A prismatic joint provides a linear sliding

movement between two bodies, and is often
called a slider, as in the slider-crank linkage.
A prismatic pair is also called as sliding pair.
A prismatic joint can be formed with a
polygonal cross-section to resist rotation.
 revolute joint
• A revolute joint (also called pin joint or hinge
joint) is a one-degree-of-freedom kinematic pair
used in mechanisms.
• Revolute joints provide single-axis rotation function
used in many places such as door hinges, folding
mechanisms, and other uni-axial rotation devices
 types of rotating joints
• (i) Rotational joint (R Joint)
• (ii) Twisting joint (T Joint)
• (iii) Revolving joint. (V Joint)
Degrees of Freedom Associated with Arm and Body of the
Robot
• Vertical Traverse: This is
the capability to move the
wrist up or down to provide
the desired vertical attitude.
• Radial Traverse: This is
the capability to move the
wrist front and back which
provides the extension and
retraction movement.
• Rotational Traverse: This
is the capability to rotate the
arm in vertical axis.
 Degrees of Freedom associated with wrist of robot
• Wrist Roll: Also called as wrist
swivel, this involves rotation of
the wrist mechanism about the
arm axis
• Wrist Pitch: Given that the
wrist roll is in the centre
position, the pitch would involve
the up and down rotation of the
wrist. this is also sometimes
called as wrist bend
• Wrist Yaw: Given that the wrist
roll is the centre position , the
Yaw would involve the right or
left rotation of the wrist.
Joint Notation Schemes