How to teach a accurate TCP for industrial robot?

Sep 05, 2008 5 Replies

Hello,



I want to use a vision system with industral robot for assemblying application. So the accurate TCP is very important for this applition.



Does anyone know some ways to teach a accurate TCP?



Thank you.



bruce


You must be using TCP in a way I'm not familiar with -- what are you using it to mean?

He means "Tool Center Point".

The camera and the robot end effector aren't usually at the same position, and determining the distance between them to

0.001 or so is hard. See U.S. Patent #6,434,449 for a discussion.

Usually, the answer is some kind of alignment target in the workspace, one that can both be seen and can sense the end effector A simple solution is a plate with a hole. The camera finds the hole, and moves the end effector carefully to the hole, then moves it around to touch the sides of the hole, which is wired to sense electrical contact.

Fanuc calls this "TCPmate".

John Nagle

John, is there anything you don't know? :)

Thanks -- it was indeed a meaning of TCP that this computer geek wasn't familiar with!

I had to look it up, but I've had to deal with robot manipulator calibration. You usually need something in the workspace that can be used as a reference point.

John Nagle

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