The assembly sequence optimization problem is challenging as number of sequences rises staggeringly with part count making it combinatorially explosive, tedious and time consuming to solve. A Computer-Aided Process Planning (CAPP) system for robotic assembly by a discrete cuckoo search algorithm has been proposed by us to generate feasible and optimal sequences considering minimization of orien...

A method for combining dynamic force and static position measurements for the monitoring of assembly is presented. A multilayer perceptron (MLP) network is used as a classiier where the individual network outputs correspond to contact state transitions occuring during the assembly process. When a contact state transition occurs, the MLP output with the largest value is chosen. The recognised co...

A review of compliant-motion control strategies is presented, applicable to robotic assembly of industrial components. It is argued that the appropriate framework in which to exert intelligent controls is the use of a virtual attractor and a virtual impedance. In this context, multiple strategies are reviewed, including blind search, interpretation of C-space boundaries, event detection and mod...

Robot swarms provide interesting and potentially very useful examples of self-organizing systems. This chapter focuses on a specific approach, dubbed “active self-assembly”, for constructing arbitrary shapeswith swarms of identical and identically programmed robots. Important, open issues are identified in the specific context of active self-assembly, but they are of more general applicability....

Modern industrial robots are traditionally programmed to follow desired trajectories, with the only feedback coming from the internal position/angle sensors in the joints. The robots are in general very accurate in tracking the desired motion, and they have become indispensable in many applications, such as spot welding and painting in the automotive industry. In more complex tasks, such as phy...

This paper presents a European integrated project in the domain of innovative hybrid assembly the combination of self-assembly and robotics. Robotics allows for high precision and flexibility with full control of the assembly process. Self-assembly, on the other hand, offers massively parallel, unsupervised processing and thus provides high throughputs that cannot be reached with simple robotic...

Unlike robotics in the manufacturing industry, on-site construction robotics has to consider and address two unique challenges: 1) the rugged, evolving, and unstructured environment of typical work sites; 2) the reversed spatial relationship between the product and the manipulator, i.e. the manipulator has to travel to and localize itself at the work face, rather than a partially complete produ...

In this paper we describe mechanical and electronic design of a precision, 2-DOF robot manipulator. The manipulator is one of a wide variety of modular robotic agents in the minifactory, a rapidly depoyable precision assembly system under development in our laboratory. The manipulator, in cooperation with another type of 2-DOF robot, termed a courier, can perform 4-DOF assembly operations emula...

The 2112 silicon detector modules of the barrel part of the ATLAS SemiConductor Tracker (SCT) have been mounted on their carbon fibre support structure. Module insertion, placement and fixing were performed by robotic assembly tooling. We report on our experience with this assembly method. Part of the mounting sequence involves a partial survey of elements of the support structure which is need...

The number of hours of assembly and maintenance required on-orbit to construct and service space-based platforms has highlighted the important role that space robotics must play. Tasks that robots will perform on a future space platform will include assembly, repair, maintenance, and service. While a number of these anticipated tasks may be accomplished by xed-base, single end-e ector manipulat...