A method of accommodating a payload and determining a working environment in a robotic system is disclosed. The method is directed to using a motor current measurement taken at the axis motors of a robotic system to calculate various parameters including payload balance, mass, moment of inertia, friction force and traction force. This measurement is based on the known relationship between motor current and motor torque.

A system for promoting safety of a robotic appendage includes: a robot controller; and a robot controllable by the robot controller, the robot controller configured to compute an estimated power draw of a planned trajectory of the robot, the robot controller further configured to modify the planned trajectory to prevent the estimated power draw from exceeding a power limit; the robot comprising: an appendage; an appendage controller configured to control the appendage; and a breaker configured to limit power delivered to the appendage. A system for promoting safety of a robotic appendage includes a plurality of robots operably connected with each other, the robots configured to communicate with each other regarding estimated power draw characteristics.

A robot control device includes: a first acquisition unit to acquire path information relating to a path of a robot and speed information relating to a speed the robot moves on the path; a second acquisition unit to acquire specification information relating to a specification of the robot; a determination unit to determine a segment where an action time of the robot is shortened even when a waypoint is added on the path; a correction unit to correct the path of the robot so as to make inertia of the robot smaller in a segment where an action time of the robot is shortened; a computation unit to compute a load acting on a joint of the robot; and an adjustment unit to adjust a control amount for controlling an acceleration of the robot joint such that the load computed by the computation unit satisfies a target load.

A method of estimating one or more mass characteristics of a payload manipulated by a robot includes moving the payload using the robot, determining one or more accelerations of the payload while the payload is in motion, sensing, using one or more sensors of the robot, a wrench applied to the payload while the payload is in motion, and estimating the one or more mass characteristics of the payload based, at least in part, on the determined accelerations and the sensed wrench.

A robot system includes a SCARA robot including a robot arm to which an end effector is attached and a driving section configured to drive the robot arm and a control device configured to control the driving section based on a control signal. The control device determines whether being in a first case in which a predetermined condition is satisfied or a second case in which the predetermined condition is not satisfied, in the first case, controls the driving section based on the control signal, and, in the second case, determines a frequency component to be removed from the control signal using a band stop filter, removes the frequency component from the control signal using the band stop filter to generate a corrected control signal, and controls the driving section based on the generated corrected control signal.

A working method of performing work with increase or decrease in weight on an object by a robot system having a robot, a first hand with an assist device, and a second hand without the assist device, includes switching between an assisted work state in which the first hand is coupled to the robot and work is performed with assistance by the assist device and a non-assisted work state in which the second hand is coupled to the robot and work is performed without assistance by the assist device according to a weight of the object.

A method of operating a robot manipulator including: ascertaining a wrench or joint torque vector based on a weight force and/or based on an inertial force of a mass of a load on an end effector of the robot manipulator; ascertaining a maximum permissible workspace and/or a maximum permissible kinematic variable, in each case based on the wrench or joint torque vector such that the wrench or joint torque vector does not exceed a predetermined metric within the maximum permissible workspace; and activating the robot manipulator to execute a predetermined task in consideration of the maximum permissible kinematic variable, such that the end effector or the load on the end effector remains within the maximum permissible workspace if, at beginning of execution of the task, the end effector or the load on the end effector is located within the maximum permissible workspace.

A system for robot and human collaboration. The system comprises: a multi-axis robot; one or more torque sensors, each torque sensor being configured to measure a torque about a respective axis of the multi-axis robot; and a controller configured to: receive one or more torque measurements taken by the one or more torque sensors; compare the one or more torque measurements or a function of the one or more torque measurements to a threshold value; and control the multi-axis robot based on the comparison.

Robotic control systems and methods may include providing an end effector tool of a robotic device configured to perform a task on a work surface within a worksite coordinate frame. Unintended movement over time of the end effector tool with respect to the work surface and with respect to the worksite coordinate frame may be determined based on image data indicative of the work surface, first location data indicative of a first location of the end effector tool with respect to the worksite coordinate frame, and second location data indicative of a second location of the end effector tool with respect to the work surface. One or more control signals for the robotic device may be adjusted in order to counteract the unintended movements of the end effector tool with respect to the work surface and worksite coordinate frame.

A control device (120) according to the present application includes a limitation portion that is provided in a joint portion, which joins two or more links, of a robot and that physically limits motion of the links, and a control unit (122f) that limits movable ranges of the links by controlling the limitation portion corresponding to a predetermined joint portion on the basis of a task executed by the robot. With this configuration, it becomes possible to secure safety of when the robot executes a task.