Introduction to Robotics

Chapter 1. Overviews and Fundamentals

Dr. Tran Minh Thien

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering

Department of Mechatronics
Introduction to Robotics 2 C0. Preface

0.1.Personal information

• Name: Dr. Tran Minh Thien (TS. Trần Minh Thiên)

• Email: [email protected]
• Organization: Ho Chi Minh City University of Technology and Education
(HCMUTE), Faculty of Mechanical Engineering (FME) [E1], Department of
Mechatronics [#302]

Fb: follow
Phone: 0977 567 541 (zalo) https://www.facebook.com/minhthientran00

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Introduction to Robotics 3 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
Overviews of robots

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 4 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
Overviews of robots

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 5 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
Overviews of robots

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 6 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
Overviews of robots

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 7 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
Overviews of robots

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 8 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
Overviews of robots

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 9 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
What is a robot?
Robots are complex, versatile devices that contain a
mechanical structure, a sensory system, and an automatic control
system. Robots may be used in manufacturing environments, in
underwater and space exploration, in researching human and animal
behavior, for transportation and delivery, for military purposes, or
even for fun.

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 10 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
Historical Development
• The first position controlling apparatus was invented around 1938
for spray painting.

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Introduction to Robotics 11 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
Historical Development
• The first modern industrial Robot were the Unimates, made by
Joseph Engelberger (1925–2015) in the early 1960s.
• Engelberger has been called the father of Robotics.

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Introduction to Robotics 12 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
Historical Development

Asimo Humanoid Robot Evolution, Honda

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Introduction to Robotics 13 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.1. Introduction
What is a Robotics?
Robotics is the art, knowledge base, and know-how of
designing, applying, and using robots in human endeavors. Robotic
systems consist of not just robots, but also other devices and systems
that are used together with the robots.
Robotics is an interdisciplinary subject that benefits from
mechanical engineering, electrical and electronic engineering,
computer science, cognitive sciences, biology, and many other
disciplines.

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Introduction to Robotics 14 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.2. Robot Degrees of Freedom

The degrees of freedom (DOF) of a mechanical system is

the number of independent parameters that define its configuration
or state.

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1.2. Robot Degrees of Freedom

[Link video: KR240]

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1.2. Robot Degrees of Freedom

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Introduction to Robotics 17 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.3. Basic structure of Robot

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Introduction to Robotics 18 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.4. Robot Components

Link
Every individual rigid member of a robot that can move relative
to all other members is called a link.
Any two or more connected links, such that no relative motion
can occur among them, are considered a single compound link.

Study
Experiment
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1.4. Robot Components

Joint
• Two links are connected by contact at a joint where their relative
motion can be expressed by a single joint coordinate.
• Joints are typically revolute (R) (rotary) or prismatic (P)
(translatory).

Revolute joint Prismatic joint

Symbol of Revolute joint and Prismatic joint in robot model

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1.4. Robot Components

Joint
• The coordinate of an active
joint is controlled by an
actuator. A passive joint
does not have any actuator.
• The value of the coordinate
describing the relative
position of two connected
links at a joint is called joint
coordinate or joint variable.
It is an angle for a revolute
joint, and a distance for a
prismatic joint.

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 21 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.4. Robot Components

Manipulator
• The main body of a robot consisting of the links, joints, and other
structural elements is called the manipulator.
• A manipulator becomes a robot when we attach wrist and
gripper, and install its control system.
• In literature robots and manipulators are utilized equivalently and
both refer to robots.

Model of 3R manipulator
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1.4. Robot Components

Wrist
• The joints in the kinematic chain of a robot between the forearm
and end-effector are referred to as the wrist.
• It is common to design manipulators with spherical wrists. It
means three revolute joint axes intersecting at a common point
called the wrist point.

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Introduction to Robotics 23 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.4. Robot Components

Wrist
• The manipulator will possess three degrees-of-freedom for
position of the wrist point. Positioning is set by controlling three
joints of three arms.
• The number of DOF for orientation will then depend on the wrist,
having one, two, or three DOF depending on the application.

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Introduction to Robotics 24 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.4. Robot Components

End-Effector
• The end-effector is the part mounted on the last link to do the
required job of the robot, performing specific work.
• The wrist and end-effector assembly is also called a hand.

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1.4. Robot Components

Actuators
• Actuators are drivers that act as muscles of robots to change their
configuration.
• The actuators provide power to act on the mechanical structure
against gravity, inertia, and other external forces to modify the
geometric location and orientation of the robot’s hand.
• The actuators can be of electric, hydraulic, or pneumatic, and
have to be controllable.

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Introduction to Robotics 26 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.4. Robot Components

Sensors
• The elements that are utilized to detect and collect information
about internal and environmental states are sensors.
• The joints’ positions, velocities, accelerations, and forces are the
most important information to be sensed and measured.
• Sensors, integrated into the robot, send information about each
link and joint to the control unit, and the control unit determines
the configuration of the robot.

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Introduction to Robotics 27 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.4. Robot Components

Controller
The controller or control unit of a robot has three roles:
▪ Information role, which consists of collecting and processing the
information provided by the robot’s sensors.
▪ Decision role, which consists of planning the geometric motion
of the robot structure.
▪ Communication role, which consists of organizing the
information between the robot and its environment.
The control unit includes the processor and software.

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Introduction to Robotics 28 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Classification of Robot Association
• The Robot Association divides robots in 6 different classes:
▪ Class 1: Manual handling devices: A device with multi
degrees of freedom that is actuated by an operator.
▪ Class 2: Fixed sequence robot: A device that performs
successive stages of a task according to a predetermined and
fixed program.
▪ Class 3: Variable sequence robot: A device that performs
successive stages of a task according to a predetermined but
programmable method.

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Introduction to Robotics 29 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Classification of Robot Association
▪ Class 4: Playback robot: A human operator performs the
task manually by leading the robot, which records the motions
for later playback. The robot repeats the same motions
according to the recorded information.
▪ Class 5: Numerical control robot: The operator supplies the
robot with a motion program rather than teaching it the task
manually.
▪ Class 6: Intelligent robot: A robot with the ability to
understand its environment and the ability to successfully
complete a task despite changes in the surrounding conditions
under which it is to be performed.

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 30 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Classification of Robot Association
• The Robotics Institute of America (RIA) considers classes 3-6
of the following classification to be Robots.
• The Association Francaise de Robotique (AFR) combines
classes 2-4, as the same type and divides robots in 4 classes.
• The Japanese Industrial Robot Association has 6 classes.

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1.5. Robot Classifications

Robot Coordinates
Cartesian/Rectangular/Gantry Robots (3P): These robots
use three prismatic joints to position the end effector, usually
followed by additional revolute joints that orient the end effector.
That is used for pick and place, assembly operations,
application of sealant, and arc welding.

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Introduction to Robotics 32 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Robot Coordinates
Spherical/Polar Robots (P2R): Robots follow a spherical
coordinate system, which has one prismatic and two revolute
joints for positioning the part, plus additional revolute joints for
orientation.

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1.5. Robot Classifications

Robot Coordinates
Cylindrical Robots (PRP): Cylindrical coordinate robots
have two prismatic joints and one revolute joint for positioning
the part, plus revolute joints for orientation.

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Introduction to Robotics 34 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Robot Coordinates
Selective Compliance Assembly Robot Arm (SCARA):
SCARA robots have two (or three) revolute joints that are parallel
and allow the robot to move in a horizontal plane, plus an additional
prismatic joint that moves vertically.
SCARA robots are very common in assembly operations.

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Introduction to Robotics 35 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Robot Coordinates
Articulated/anthropomorphic Robots (3R): An articulated
robot’s joints are all revolute, similar to a human’s arm. They are
the most common configuration for industrial robots.

[Link video: welding robots]

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Introduction to Robotics 37 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Robot Coordinates
Parallel robots: Parallel robots is a mechanical system that
uses several serial chains to support a single platform, or end-
effector.
A delta robot is a type of parallel robot that consists of three
arms connected to universal joints at the base.

[Link video]
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1.5. Robot Classifications

Geometry
• A robot is called
▪ a serial or open-loop manipulator: its kinematic structure
does not make a loop chain.
▪ a parallel or closed-loop manipulator: its structure makes a
loop chain.
▪ a hybrid manipulator: its structure consists of both open
and closed-loop chains.
• Most industrial manipulators have six DOFs.

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Introduction to Robotics 40 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Geometry
• Using the two types of joints (P or R ):
▪ There are mathematically 72!? different industrial
manipulator configuration.
▪ The axes of two adjacent joints can be parallel (∥),
orthogonal (⊢), or perpendicular (⊥).
• Out of the 72 possible manipulators, the important ones are:
R∥R∥P (SCARA), R⊢R⊥R (articulated), R⊢R⊥P (spherical),
R∥P⊢P (cylindrical), and P⊢P⊢P (Cartesian).

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
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1.5. Robot Classifications

Geometry

[1] [2] [3]

[4] [5] [6]

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1.5. Robot Classifications

Workspace
• The workspace of a manipulator: the total volume of space the
end-effector can reach. The workspace is constrained by the
geometry of the manipulator as well as the mechanical constraints
on the joints.
• The workspace is broken into
▪ a reachable workspace: the volume of space within which
every point is reachable by the end-effector in at least one
orientation.
▪ a dexterous workspace: The dexterous workspace is the
volume of space within which every point can be reached by
the end effector in all possible orientations. The dexterous
workspace is a subset of the reachable workspace.
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1.5. Robot Classifications

Workspace

a reachable workspace & a dexterous workspace

[Link video]

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1.5. Robot Classifications

Workspace

Typical approximate workspaces for common robot configurations

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Introduction to Robotics 46 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Actuation
• Actuators translate power into motion.
• Robots are typically actuated electrically, hydraulically, or
pneumatically. Other types of actuation might be considered as
piezoelectric, magnetostriction, shape memory alloy, and
polymeric.
• Electrically actuated robots: AC or DC motors ; cleaner, quieter,
and more precise compared to the hydraulic and pneumatic
actuated.
• Hydraulic actuators: high speed and high torque/mass or
power/mass ratios; lifting heavy loads.
• Pneumatic actuated robots: inexpensive and simple but cannot
be controlled precisely.
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Introduction to Robotics 47 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Control
• Robots can be classified by control method into servo (closed
loop control) and non-servo (open loop control) robots.
• Servo (closed loop control)
▪ Point-to-point.
▪ Continuous path.
• Non-servo (open loop control)
▪ Movement is limited to predetermined mechanical stops, and
they are primarily used for materials transfer.

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien
Introduction to Robotics 48 C1. Overviews and Fundamentals

1.5. Robot Classifications

Application
• Robots can mainly be classified according to their application into
assembly and non-assembly robots.
• In the industry they are classified by the category of application
▪ Machine loading ▪ Manufacturing
▪ Pick and place ▪ Biomedical
▪ Welding ▪ Assisting
▪ Painting ▪ Remote controlled mobile
▪ Assembling ▪ Telerobot
▪ Inspecting
▪ Sampling

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C1. End!

HCMUTE, Faculty of Mechanical Engineering, Dept. of Mechatronics © Dr. Tran Minh Thien