Automated Rover and Manipulator System (ARMS)

The project Automated Rover and Manipulator System aims to develop a system that can be used to aid workers/technicians, in the manufacturing industry carry heavy loads between different assembly and storage areas. The team has approached a company where the current system involves technic

Project Title

Automated Rover and Manipulator System (ARMS)

Project Area of Specialization

Robotics

Project Summary

The project Automated Rover and Manipulator System aims to develop a system that can be used to aid workers/technicians, in the manufacturing industry carry heavy loads between different assembly and storage areas. The team has approached a company where the current system involves technicians having to lift heavy switch gear equipment from ground level and then haul the equipment from the storage area to the assembly area. The process also involves the equipment being stored in buffer storage areas in bulk, and then manually retrieved from the buffer storage area and hauled to the assembly area as and when required. 

The current labour intensive process decreases productivity while leading to numerous health and safety issues. To mitigate these issues and improve the process, the team has decided to approach the problem with a two-tier solution. the first tier involves a manipulator system that will lift the heavy equipment from the ground level. The second tier involves a system that will be used to transport the equipment from the storage bay directly to the assembly area. The retrieval of the equipment will be completely autonomous and this will be achieved by integrating a communication system between the two separate tiers. The technician will have a user input terminal using which, he will be able order the required amount of equipment needed.

For the first tier of the solution, the team is opting for a SCARA class configuration robot to do the lifting while the second tier will use an automated guided rover to shuttle the equipment between the storage area and the assembly area.

Project Objectives

The project aims to tackle a number of general issues that can be found common place in manufacturing facilities while also creating a tailor-made solution for the company. 

The current factory floor layout does not allow for expansive solutions hence the Robot will be designed to be as compact as possible keeping in view the limitations of the factory layout. The solution will also require an integrated safety and obstacle avoidance system as both the robot and the rover will have to operate alongside the presence of human workers hence safety is key. The current walkways and paths are compact and do not have the capacity to handle high volumes of traffic hence the shuttle system will have to be designed in a way to transport the equipment in an efficient manner. The system will also incorporate a database management system that will be used to log the orders made my technicians.

The project also aims to increase the productivity of the technicians and simplify the current process by removing the need for buffer storages.

Project Implementation Method

The team has charted an extensive course of action to ensure timely completion of the project. the scope of work was identified into 4 main areas for which each team member is given the responsibility of. 

The flow of work for successful completion of the project has been divided into steps with some steps being carried out in parallel.

1. firstly, the mechanical design and the electrical components are thoroughly studied and decided upon. this also includes the 3D modeling of the structures and the validation of all electrical components involved for both the robot and the rover.
2. In this step the kinematic analysis and study is carried out for the robot while also the prototype of the robot is fabricated.
3. In parallel, the computer vision system and the control automation of the robot is studied and investigated to allow the use of best methods and practices to be incorporated into the final design. upon selection of the final models extensive testing and tweaking is carried out on the robot.
4. The rover system is fabricated along with all its complementary systems.
5. the final integration of all the different aspects of the project is carried out and any modifications required are made.

After the successful completion of the steps above the project will finally be successfully deployed.

Benefits of the Project

The project aims to solve a number of problems associated with the current process. firstly, the biggest problem that the current process induces is the strain on the technician's back incurred by repetitively picking heavy loads from ground level and then carrying it between storage bays and the assembly areas. This also induces fatigue and decreases the productivity of the technicians and also takes time out of their schedules that can be utilised for tasks that require more human input. The automated rover and manipulator system will solve all of the problems stated above by automating this process which will improve the workplace ergonomics while also increasing the quality of life of the technicians. the mundane and repetitive fetching of the equipment’s will be handled by the system and this will boost productivity of the technicians and even increase the output of each technician.

The system not only proves beneficial to the technicians, it also removes the need for the buffer storage area which frees up real estate on the factory floor allowing the company to utilise the space in a better and efficient manner. The system proposed will improve the logging and tracking of equipment’s being signed out by the technicians as the system will maintain a database of each order which can be referenced to later on if the need arises. Carrying heavy loads over long distances can also make the technicians more prone to accidents and drop hazards and these issues are further intensified when the equipment being carried is heavy. letting the rover shuttle the heavy equipment mitigates the risk associated with drop hazards and also makes the overall system more efficient and faster whilst also removing chances of human error.

Technical Details of Final Deliverable

The team aims to deliver a full working scaled down prototype of the concept proposed which includes:

Hardware:

• A single working 4 axis SCARA Manipulator.
• A rover with complementing capacity
• User terminal.

Software:

• Autonomous control of the SCARA with computer vision.
• Obstacle avoiding guided rover.
• Communication between SCARA and Rover.
• a database management system that will interface the user input with the system.

The above-mentioned points include all the aspects of the proposed concept that are required to deliver a proof of concept.

Final Deliverable of the Project

HW/SW integrated system

Core Industry

Manufacturing

Other Industries

Transportation

Core Technology

Robotics

Other Technologies

Artificial Intelligence(AI)

Sustainable Development Goals

Good Health and Well-Being for People, Industry, Innovation and Infrastructure

Required Resources

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