Implementation of Intrinsic Safety Function on A Collaborative Robot with Series Clutch Actuators by Adjustable Torque Limiters

抄録

Robot safety is the most essential element when people tried programming robot working alongside themselves. In this work, an approach to the intrinsic safety functions is introduced. Nicebot-5 has six joints, and each joint has been installed with an electrical friction clutch. Clutches have a feature that they could slip when torque exceeds a defined value of duty, which indicates that they can be used as torque limiters for robot safety. By setting minimal torque limits for different kinds of motions, the robot is expected to complete the desired trajectory unhindered. At the same time, it could immediately stop if the robot collides with objects. The experiment process section explains how I calculate the minimum torque limits for all movements by defining simplified dynamic and clutch models, measurement experiments, and data analysis. As a result, Nicebot-5 achieves intrinsic safety with the motion of all orientations.