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MODULE 4 - AUTOMATION - Coggle Diagram
MODULE 4 - AUTOMATION
WHAT IS AUTOMATION
(page 120)
AUTOMATION
= the use of technology to carry out tasks that involve minimal or no human input (different from mechanisation = replacing human workers with machines). It is the integration of machines into a self-controlling system
The machine can regulate itself through a
FEEDBACK LOOP
: 1-
MEASUREMENT
: the system measures the physical variables of the environment (dimensions, weight, temeperature, pressure, colours) through sensors
2-
EVALUATION
: the measured information is evaluated by a controller to decide if a corrective action is necessary
3-
CONTROL
: if the desired values are not obtained, the controller modifies the actuators' parameters to bring the output into line with the programmed values.
PROCESS CONTROL
= the application of automation to the control of manufacturing operations
ADVANTAGES OF AUTOMATION
(page 122)
RAPID DECISION-MAKING TASKS
- example: high-speed military aircrafts
HIGHLY REPETITIVE TASKS
- example: machines for assembling, inspecting & packaging
HIGHLY COMPLEX TASKS
- example: traffic lights
DANGEROUS TASKS
- examples: repairing underwater pipelines, defusing bombs, carrying out space research, working with chemicals and/or corrosive and poisonous gases
Automated systems, once designed and set up, work more cheaply than people and enable businesses to cut costs
!
Automated systems can fail with dramatic consequences. More automation means more training
PROGRAMMABLE LOGIC CONTROLLER
(page 123)
PLC
= specialised device for controlling machines and industrial processes.
Used in many industries, enabling all the different elements in the system to operate together
It contains delicate electronic circuits but it is designed to be robust enough to survive in tough industrial environments
It comes in many shapes and sizes (pocket-sized or large racks)
Its components are divided into 3 basic areas
POWER SUPPLY
: provides AC or DC current
CENTRAL PROCESSING UNIT (CPU)
: microprocessor, memory chip and integrated circuits
PLC = DEDICATED CONTROLLER
= it follows only one program over and over again. One cycle is called
SCAN TIME
and lasts a few milliseconds
The most common form of programming is called
LADDER LOGIC
(it uses symbols of an equivalent electric circuit and looks like a ladder)
INPUT / OUTPUT SECTION
: provides a physical connection between the external components and the PLC
Both inputs and outputs can be digital or analogue
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ReTtgzN-Dmc
VARIETIES AND USES OF ROBOTS
(page 128)
Robots are used in many fields:
industry
science and medicine
transportation
space
submarine exploration
military applications
domestic uses
HUMANOIDS
- they replicate human behaviour. Now used for entertaiment, in the future they may have applications in social tasks providing services interacting with people
INDUSTRIAL ROBOTS
- controlled by computers, they carry our highly repetitive tasks in industries (car manufacturing, textile production, food processing). They are accurate, reliable, fast and they have more endurance.
MOBILE ROBOTS
- they transport material aound large areas (warehouses, container ports, hospitals
AUTOMATED GUIDED VEHICLES (AGVs)
- they follow tracks (coloured / magnetic lines on the floor) and move through stations like a train
AUTONOMOUS MOBILE ROBOTS (AMRs)
- they use maps and sensors to move inside an area amd they can go around people and obstacles and choose the fastest path
LASER GUIDED VEHICLES
- most common type of AMR. They uses laser beams and sensors as the main system to orientate themselves
REMOTE-CONTROL ROBOTS
- they are not strictly autonomous because they need to be partially operated by a human controller. They are used by the military (unexploded bombs), by space scientists, by surgeons
APPLIANCE ROBOTS
- they are used in the home to carry out very specific tasks without human control (vacuum cleaners, lawnmowers). They can move independently around a designated area and use sensors to avoid obstacles and control their work
ROBOTS IN MANUFACTURING
(page 129)
Robots are employed in 4 main categories of tasks
PROCESSING
- the robot manipulates a tool (end-effector) to carry out work on a part (welding. paint-spraying)
ASSEMBLY
- fitting various components together to make a final product. 'Snap-fit' technique (one step)
MOVEMENT
- loading / unloading of materials and their transfer (pallets with robots equipped with a gripper)
INSPECTION
- the robot is used for quality control (sensors)
TYPES OF INDUSTRIAL ROBOTS
(page 130)
SCARA ROBOT
mainly used in assembly
three-axis robot with 2 rotating joints and 1 linear joint
it's also used in packaging and pick and place tasks
cylindrical reach
designed to lift and manipulate small parts
CARTESIAN ROBOT
three linear joints that use the classic coordinate system (x, y, z)
used for heavy load movement in warehouses or in transportation
often the backbone of a 3D printer, milling machine or automated drilling
ARTICULATED ROBOT
most common in manufacturing
6 or more axes
spherical volume
it lifts over 1,000 kg
used in assembly lines for processing tasks (welding, spraying, assembling, palletising)
PARALLEL / DELTA ROBOT
based on 3 joints that connect rigid rods
the end-effector is a platform attached at the end of the rods and can have additional degrees of freedom
it manipulates light and small objects at a very high speed
very common in food packaging - some 3D printers use the delta structure to increase print speed
COLLABORATIVE ROBOTS
(page 131)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Qo7HK9mLALQ
COBOTwo
double-arms
lightwieght (10 kg)
can be mounted in any orientation
twelve axes which replicate every human movement with great accuracy
two servo grippers with built-in cameras boost accuracy and dexterity -
new programming learn-mode (operators can directly teach tasks to the robot by moving its arms and tools; motions and positions will be saved into the robot memory
used for complex assembly tasks, quaility control movement and handling small parts
