In various examples, a computer-implemented method of generating instructions for a welding robot. The computer-implemented method comprises identifying an expected position of a candidate seam on a part to be welded based on a Computer Aided Design (CAD) model of the part, scanning a workspace containing the part to produce a representation of the part, identifying the candidate seam on the part based on the representation of the part and the expected position of the candidate seam, determining an actual position of the candidate seam, and generating welding instructions for the welding robot based at least in part on the actual position of the candidate seam.

There are provided a positioning method and a positioning device that can position workpieces by a simple method and configuration. A positioning method includes: gripping at least one of first and second workpieces; obtaining point group data of the at least one gripped workpiece of the first and second workpieces; calculating a translation matrix of shape fitting point group data obtained by adjusting a position of the point group data to reference data in a position adjustment state of the first and second workpieces; calculating an inverse matrix based on the translation matrix; and positioning the first and second workpieces by moving the at least one gripped workpiece of the first and second workpieces based on at least one of the translation matrix and the inverse matrix.

A robot system including: a robot that grips one of a first and second workpiece that are disposed adjacent to each other; an illumination device that radiates light beam onto surfaces of the first workpiece and the second workpiece on either side of a border between the workpieces along a plane that intersects the border; a camera that captures an image containing a first line image of the light beam formed on the surface of the first workpiece and a second line image of the light beam formed on the surface of the second workpiece; and a robot controller that operates the robot based on a misalignment amount and direction of the second line image with respect to the first line image in the image acquired and that performs a correction of a level difference between the surface of the first workpiece and the surface of the second workpiece.

The present invention includes a reference parallel line creation step of creating a pair of parallel lines that are respectively in contact with outer edges of a workpiece cross-section without traversing the workpiece cross-section and that are located on an extension plane of the workpiece cross-section, a first determination step of comparing a width between the pair of parallel lines that have been created in the reference parallel line creation step with a maximum separation threshold of the welding electrodes, and determining whether the maximum separation threshold is larger than the width between the parallel lines, and a pull-out direction determination step of determining a direction of the parallel lines as a pull-out direction, in a case where the maximum separation threshold is larger than the width between the parallel lines in the first determination step.

Provided is a robot control device that can suppress the stoppage of operations due to the detection of a contact error. The robot control device controls a robot that implements welding in association with contact with a to-be-welded object, said device comprising: an action stoppage unit that stops the action of the robot if detected that the robot has been subjected to an external force equal to or greater than a threshold; an instructing unit that instructs a welding power supply device to start welding; and a detection sensitivity adjustment unit that lowers the sensitivity at which as external force is detected at the action stoppage unit during a period of time from the point in time at which the instructing unit instructs the welding power supply device to start welding until a prescribed wait time has elapsed.

A robot controller includes a contact detection unit that detects contact of a welding wire protruding from a welding torch with a welding target, an override-value adjustment unit that sets and changes an override value for increasing or decreasing an operating speed of the robot from a predetermined speed, and a control unit which receives an operation signal from a teaching operation device and that controls the robot according to the operation signal at the operating speed based on the override value which is set by the override-value adjustment unit. When the contact of the welding wire with the welding target is detected by the contact detection unit, the control unit temporarily stops the robot, and the override-value adjustment unit decreases the override value.

A teaching system includes a sensor that detects the intensity of reflected light and at least one processor configured to: receive inputs and perform a generation of teaching data that enables laser machining at all machining points by using a laser beam having an angle larger than or equal to the minimum value and smaller than the maximum value; determine whether or not intensities of reflected light at all the machining points include an intensity exceeding a predetermined threshold value; increase the minimum value at a corresponding machining point by a predetermined increment if the determination result indicates that the threshold value is exceeded; and repeat the generation of the teaching data using a most-recently adjusted minimum value, the determination, and adjustment of the minimum value until it is determined that the threshold value is not exceeded.

A tele-manufacturing system comprising a manufacturing environment containing equipment used for a manufacturing process; a plurality of sensors positioned within the manufacturing environment in proximity to the manufacturing equipment, wherein each sensor is configured to gather data from the manufacturing environment; at least one digitizer in communication with the sensors for receiving data from sensors and converting the data into one or more three-dimensional digital maps or point clouds; at least one processor in communication with the at least one digitizer, wherein the processor includes software for receiving and analyzing the digital maps or point clouds; and at least one manual controller in communication with the processor, wherein the manual controller receives motion input from a user, wherein the software on the processor mathematically transforms the motion input into corresponding motion commands that are sent to the manufacturing equipment by the processor, and wherein the manufacturing equipment, which is physically remote from the at least one controller, executes the motion commands in real-time during the manufacturing process.

A system and method of electric arc welding that includes a welding apparatus having an electric arc welder torch with sensors to determine the absolute position of the torch tip and the relative position of the torch tip to the weld joint during automatic welding. Combining absolute and relative positional data can be used to adjust the path of the robot during automated or robotic welding in response to variations in the weld joint.

An automatic welding system, an automatic welding method, a welding assistance device, and a program wherein the amount of correction of the welding speed is determined on the basis of the distance between an arc and the tip of a molten pool when the distance between the arc and the tip of the molten pool is within a predetermined range in arc welding performed while alternately weaving a welding torch in the front downward direction and the rear upward direction when the welding progress direction is the frontward direction with respect to a horizontally extending groove formed between two members to be welded aligned in the vertical direction.