"Open" robotics

Manufacturing Engineering, Jul 1998 by Zywiol, Gary

In robotics, open means interfacing

System integrators and end users can bring robotic manufacturing systems into production in a timely and cost-effective manner using standard components. The real value of "open" systems, we believe, is in interfacing to external cell devices and the information systems they provide.

Typical robotic systems use industry-standard I/O interfaces like our own Genius, Allen-Bradley's RIO, DeviceNet, ControlNet, and ProfiBus. Robot, CNC, and PLC control vendors supply whatever interface the customer specifies. These bus implementations connect virtually all the discretely controlled devices found in a manufacturing environment. Robot programs written by the customer or systems integrator can directly access any discrete I/O point using standard programming tools provided with the robot.

Our new robot controller has Ethernet hardware on the motherboard, with standard FTP, TCP/IP, and BOOTP protocols communicating with the robot. An integral Pentium PC comes with expansion slots for third-party devices. Integral or external PCs and their software can monitor robot systems and call objects from customerdeveloped Visual Basic or C software. In combination, these products allow users to develop their own Graphical User Interfaces for robotic applications.

"Open" stops, however, with motion and process control. We believe the vast majority of robot users cannot and do not want to develop advanced motion or process control algorithms. Robotic suppliers can and do supply these algorithms and guarantee the integrity, reliability, and safety of the robot motion control system. To guarantee the performance of the robot in advanced applications, and to minimize the risk that an errant task or hardware malfunction will affect the motion and/or safety of the robot, we believe the robot manufacturer must limit access to the real-time motion and process control processor.

Robot control suppliers have invested heavily in a strategy that "opens" the controller to external peripheral devices and PCs while maintaining the integrity and safety of the motion control system. Users get the reliability and safety they expect along with the flexibility that PCs and commercial hardware and software can offer.

Gary Zywiol

Vice President, Application Product Development, Fanuc Robotics North America Inc. Rochester Hills, MI

Want More Information?

Gary Zywiol can be reached at 248-377-7000 or e-mailed from the company's Web site: www. marketing@fanucrobotics.com.