Robots have it tough, performing
tasks ad nauseam to please us
humans. Most of them deal with subpar working conditions, with no bathroom breaks and total blindness. When
most of us humans either naturally or by
some corrective means have perfect
vision, why should robots suffer and work
continuously in the dark?
Let the hypocrisy end by purchasing
your robot some much-needed "glasses." In about an hour, your robot can
enjoy 20/20 sight with TrueView from
ABB Robotics, a division of ABB Inc.
This Vision Guided Robotics (VGR) system not only will enable your robots to
finally see what they're doing, but also
understand the visual information ().
This comprehension includes the ability to parse information about their environment, such as variations in part position, type, style, and quality, all in real
time. And if you thought training your dog
was easy, wait until you train a TrueView system. Poor Fido isn't
going to look so hot next to a
scalable robotic system that
obeys commands through a simple interface.
With TrueView, you get the patented SC3DT single-camera system, which is capable of 3D guidance.
You also get eVisionFactory, a software platform that allows for the
standardization of deployment, training,
and support throughout the manufacturing enterprise.
The video camera captures an image
and analyzes it to compute a 3D position
and the orientation of the part, including
roll, pitch, and yaw angles. The image is
then transmitted to a control system,
which in turn automatically adjusts the
robot's path. The communicated information includes grasp points and approach to
match the location of the given part.
TrueView is mainly intended for industrial work like automotive assembly, but robots that use it probably could assemble Legos like a champ. Flexibility isn't a
problem, as TrueView can deal with variations in part position, type, and style to
keep your line running without the need to
retool. It also improves quality by eliminating contamination caused by manual handling and by detecting defects through
inline automated visual inspection.
ABB Inc.
www.abb.com