Test Bench for the Evaluation of Sensor Technologies and Control Strategies for Human-Robot Contact

Abstract

Industrial robots equipped with power and force limiting safety functions are increasingly deployed in shared human–robot workspaces, making reliable collision detection a critical requirement. Among the established sensing approaches used for this purpose, motor current measurement, joint torque measurement, and base force/torque measurement are particularly relevant. However, their comparative performance is difficult to assess because they are often studied under different experimental conditions and on different robots. To address this limitation, this paper proposes a dedicated experimental test bench that enables simultaneous and time-synchronized acquisition of all three sensing technologies during identical impact events. Preliminary findings confirm the functionality of the test bench.