The experiment system design addressing the design of the entire experiment system including safety system, mechanical parts, user interface and robot periphery is completed.

The mechanical construction of the tool carrier includes an additional axis for changing configuration of tools without moving the robot through singularities. It connects the force sensors and the user interface with the robot and is designed to be resistant to expected moisture and dirt.

The user interface consists of an ergonomic handle, a force sensor and a control device for simple robot and tool operation control. The user will be able to move the robot by hand and manage the stone carving process with the interface system.

The robot periphery consists of a rotation table, an industrial fence, power and supply aggregate with controllable valve system for the tools and an external control computer. The rotation table is used for changing the orientation of the natural stone blocks, as the robot can access them from only one side. The industrial fence is supposed to prevent unauthorized persons from entering the robotic system working space. The power and supply aggregate provide the tools with high pressure hydraulic oil, air as well as water for cooling and greasing. The external control computer calculates the algorithms for the force controlled manual guidance, the contact process of stone carving and the user interface controls.

In the last reporting period, the project is developing from experiment conception and architecture design into the installation of the experiment prototype system. We have collected most of the equipment offers and are now initiating the orders. Due to the late official accession, orders are a bit behind the plan. We have therefore chosen to extend the theoretical exploration of the experiment.

For simulation and safety of the operator, we have introduced virtual environments into the robot control system. The virtual environment is simulated by a virtual force-sensor. The force sensor can detect virtual walls or virtual process forces and let the robot control system react on these forces. It is now possible to define a space for safe movements of the robot and to define zones inside the sculpture where no carving processes should be conducted.

In this step of the experiment conception, the robot control design took place. There is now a robot control architecture with an extended impedance controller and an open communication interface to the industrial robot control box. Further the safety system has beeing integrated into the robot control and the experiment architecture. There are several types of safety equipment planned into the system for a maximum redundant safety for the operator, the robot and even the environment. The heart of the safety system is built by a dynamic simulation of the overall robotic system.

The latest development of the RODIN project contains the conception and design of the experiment system setup. After the requirements for the natural stone carving experiments were identified, now the analysis of the sculptor and the construction of the input handle have been discussed. In addition the system theoretic modeling of the interaction cases as well as the design of the overall system with the robotic cell layout has been addressed.

The following activities will introduce the Robot Control with Safety Algorithms to complete the Experiment System Design. All functions of the Experiment System will be implemented into a simulation environment to inspect their interaction behavior. The models will be improved and unknown parameters will be identified.

The project started on 2012-02-01 and a Kickoff meeting was held on 2012-02-16 in Berlin.

We have discussed the first requirements for our experiment including

• appropriate room
• industrial robot
• measurement equipment
• mechanical tool interface

• power tools

• and workpieces.

Now we work on the motion and force requirements of the stone carving process from the view of the sculptor. From there we will formulate the design requirements for the system architecture and the robot control system and start with the conception of the experiment.