Thesis (M. Tech. (Engineering: Electrical)) -- Central University of technology, Free State, 2013 / In the industry, automation is used to optimize production, improve product quality and increase profitability. By properly implementing automation systems, the risk of injury to workers can be minimized. Robots are used in many low-level tasks to perform repetitive, undesirable or dangerous work. Robots can perform a task with higher precision and accuracy to lower errors and waste of material. Machine Vision makes use of cameras, lighting and software to do visual inspections that a human would normally do. Machine Vision is useful in application where repeatability, high speed and accuracy are important. This study concentrates on the development of a dedicated robot vision system to automatically place components exiting from a conveyor system onto Automatic Guided Vehicles (AGV). A personal computer (PC) controls the automated system. Software modules were developed to do image processing for the Machine Vision system as well as software to control a Cartesian robot. These modules were integrated to work in a real-time system. The vision system is used to determine the parts‟ position and orientation. The orientation data are used to rotate a gripper and the position data are used by the Cartesian robot to position the gripper over the part. Hardware for the control of the gripper, pneumatics and safety systems were developed. The automated system‟s hardware was integrated by the use of the different communication protocols, namely DeviceNet (Cartesian robot), RS-232 (gripper) and Firewire (camera).

Industri 4.0 är idag ett omtalat koncept inom industrin som innebär att fabriker ska digitaliseras och automatiseras för att kunna uppnå effektiva produktionsfördelar. Intern transport är ett av områdena som går att automatisera där man kan ersätta de traditionella truckarna med förarlösa truckar, så kallade Automated Guided Vehicles. Syftet med arbetet var att få en förståelse för vilka faktorer som är viktiga vid implementering av självkörande truckar. För att uppnå syftet använde studien sig av följande frågeställning: • Vilka viktiga faktorer behöver man ta hänsyn till vid implementering av självkörande truckar? Genom litteraturstudie, studiebesök, empiriskt material och ostrukturerade intervjuer kom studien fram till att följande huvudrubriker med tillhörande underrubriker är viktiga faktorer att ta hänsyn till vid implementering av självkörande truckar: System/IT Underhåll Batteri och laddning Support och service Förutsättningar i produktionen Övrigt Kostnader Målet med fallstudien var att ta fram en rekommendation angående vilken leverantör som är mest lämplig för applikationen utifrån specificerade krav och behov som möjliggör implementering av självkörande truckar i Electrolux’ produktion, med avseende på att förbättra arbetsmiljö och resurseffektivitet.

Automated Guided Vehicles, AGV:er, används i huvudsak som monteringsplattform inom tung fordonsindustri. En AGV kan användas vid montering av motorer, växellådor och chas-sin. AGV:n transporterar produkten genom en slinga i fabriken, där produkten monteras. Idag säljs AGV:n med ett löfte om femfaldig säkerhet mot brott för alla de ingående komponenter-na. AGV:n är konstruerad för att bära upp en last på maximalt 1800 kg, med säkerhetsfaktorn inkluderad. Lastens tyngdpunkt tillåts ligga en meter ut från infästningen som kopplar sam-man AGV:n med lasten. I arbetet illustreras lasten av en fiktiv motor, som väger 1800 kg med tyngdpunkten placerad en meter ut från infästningen. I detta arbete undersöks om konstruktionen av kopplingen, som kopplar samman motorn med AGV:n, lever upp till utlovad säkerhet. De delar som, i huvudsak, utgör kopplingen mellan AGV och motor är fixtur, kamskiva samt adapterplatta. Fixturen och kamskiva är monterade på AGV:n, adapterplattan monteras temporärt på motorn. Adapterplattan har tre klackar som sammanlänkar den med fixturen. För att avgöra hur väl kopplingen lever upp till femfaldig säkerhet mot brott, kartläggs de krafter som verkar i kopplingen. Dessa krafter ligger till grund för de FE-analyser som utreder kopplingens spänningsfördelning. Utifrån FE-analyser och analytiska beräkningar av kopp-lingen bestäms hållfasthetsegenskaperna. Kopplingens komponenter har, generellt, goda hållfasthetsegenskaper som lever upp till fem-faldig säkerhet mot brott. Resultaten visar att vissa komponenter har tiofaldig säkerhet mot brott vid belastning med den 1800 kg tunga motorn. Dock visar beräkningar av skruvför-banden i kopplingen på brister som bör åtgärdas. Skruvförbanden i fixturens klackar understi-ger de krav, som baseras på säkerhetsfaktorn. Under förstudien uppdagas det att fixturen, på vissa AGV:er, monterats med skruvar med lägre hållfasthetsklass än vad som står angivet på ritningsunderlaget. Detta medför en allvar-ligt sänkt säkerhet för kopplingen. Orsaken till att fel skruvar använts är inte känd. Ett arbets-sätt för att förhindra fel skruv vid montering bör finnas. I arbetet studeras Arbetsmiljöverkets föreskrift ”AFS 2008:3 – Maskiner” vilken har legat till grund vid val av säkerhetsfaktor för konstruktionen. Utifrån studien av AFS 2008:3 genom-förs ett försök till att tolka den säkerhetsfaktor som gäller för kopplingen. Resultaten av denna rapport kan ligga till grund för ett fortsatt arbete, då en vidareutveckling av kopplingen blir aktuell. / Automated Guided Vehicles, AGV´s, are mainly used as a mounting platform in the heavy vehicle industry. An AGV is commonly used in the assembly process of; engines, gearboxes and chassis. The AGV transports the product through a predefined trail in the plant where the product is mounted. Today the AGV is being sold with a promise, from the manufacturer, that the construction is engineered with a safety factor five, against fracture, for any component in the AGV. It is engineered to support loads to a maximum of 1800 kg, with this safety factor included. The center of gravity is allowed to be one meter out from the mount that connects AGV with the supported load. This work investigates if the coupling, which connects the supported engine with the AGV, meets safety requirements. The coupling consists three main parts; fixture, cam-disk and an adapter plate. The fixture and cam-disk is mounted on the AGV, and the adapter plate is tem-porarily mounted on the engine. The adapter plate has three so called “heels” that links it with the fixture. To determine how well the coupling meets the safety requirements, the forces acting in the structure, while the AGV is loaded, is calculated. The work load is illustrated by a fictional engine, weighing 1800 kg with its center of gravity placed one meter out from the mount. These forces form the basis for the FE-analyzes, investigating the coupling strength proper-ties. Knowing the couplings strength properties, conclusions if the coupling meets the safety requirements can be adopted. The coupling component has, in general, good strength properties that meet the safety re-quirement of five-times security. The results show that some components have tenfold safety, while the AGV carries a load of 1800 kg. Calculations show that the screw connections of the fixture don’t meet the safety requirement and needs to be further investigated. The pilot study revealed that the fixture, for some AGVs, has been assembled with wrong screws. Instead of 10.9-screws, 8.8-screws were used. This leads to a serious consequence of reduced security for the construction. The cause of why fault screw was used is not known. One approach to prevent wrong screw is highlighted as suggestions for improvement. To understand why such a high security factor as five is chosen, the regulations “AFS 2008:3 – maskiner” that formed the basis for selecting the safety factor is studied. The study has been a basis for the conclusions for this work. The results of this survey may serve as a basis for further work, when further development of the coupling is relevant.

Submitted by Izabel Franco (izabel-franco@ufscar.br) on 2016-10-05T12:59:30Z No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseVFC.pdf: 9165002 bytes, checksum: bb98f82058344c51fda9b34979b8a524 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Marina Freitas (marinapf@ufscar.br) on 2016-10-20T18:15:16Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseVFC.pdf: 9165002 bytes, checksum: bb98f82058344c51fda9b34979b8a524 (MD5) / Approved for entry into archive by Marina Freitas (marinapf@ufscar.br) on 2016-10-20T18:15:22Z (GMT) No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseVFC.pdf: 9165002 bytes, checksum: bb98f82058344c51fda9b34979b8a524 (MD5) / Made available in DSpace on 2016-10-20T18:15:28Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 TeseVFC.pdf: 9165002 bytes, checksum: bb98f82058344c51fda9b34979b8a524 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2016-05-02 / In recent years, manufacturers are increasingly applying automation techniques with the aim of increase their efficiency to remain competitive. The material handling is an essential activity in any process of production and its effectiveness has severe impacts on production costs. Systems of automated guided vehicles (AGVs) have become an important strategic tool for factories and automated warehouses. In a very competitive business scenario, they can increase productivity and reduce costs. The management of these AGVs is the key to a transport system that ensures the improvements envisioned by the industry. One of the main problems encountered in the management of AGVs is the dispatch decision. This paper proposes a vehicles dispatch model based on a fuzzy cascade system for consideration of multiple attributes of the factory and a structure based on state space that enables the extraction of information of future states of the industrial production system. The objective is to reduce makespan and tardiness values of the production system. Two factory scenarios are simulated and tests are performed of the model and five other methods of dispatch. A statistical validation is realized of the results in which corroborates with 97% confidence the hypotheses of the work. / Nos últimos anos, as indústrias vêm cada vez mais aplicando técnicas de automação com o objetivo de aumentar sua eficiência para manterem-se competitivas. O manuseio de materiais é uma atividade essencial em qualquer processo de produção e sua eficácia tem impactos severos sobre os custos de produção. Sistemas de veículos autoguiados (AGVs) tornaram-se uma ferramenta estratégica importante para fábricas e armazéns automatizados. Em um cenário de negócio muito competitivo, eles podem aumentar a produtividade e reduzir os custos. O gerenciamento desses AGVs é a chave para um sistema de transporte que garanta as melhorias vislumbradas pelas indústrias. Um dos principais problemas encontrados no gerenciamento dos AGVs é a decisão de despacho. Esse trabalho propõe um modelo de despacho de veículos baseado em um sistema fuzzy cascata para ponderação de múltiplos atributos da fábrica e em uma estrutura baseada em espaço de estados que permita a extração de informações de estados futuros do sistema de produção fabril. O objetivo é reduzir valores de makespan e tardiness do sistema de produção. Dois cenários de fábrica são simulados e são realizados testes do modelo proposto e cinco outros métodos de despachos. É realizada uma validação estatística dos resultados em que se corrobora com 97% de confiança as hipóteses do trabalho

Orientador: Fernando Jose Von Zuben / Acompanha CD-ROM / Tese (doutorado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Eletrica e de Computação / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-13T02:48:36Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Cazangi_RenatoReder_D.pdf: 8716830 bytes, checksum: 272657e08f1aeb5622ebeb4412c49048 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008 / Resumo: Novas técnicas de navegação autônoma de robôs móveis visam suprir a crescente demanda pelo emprego de robôs em diversos setores da sociedade e junto a uma ampla gama de tarefas. Os desafios envolvidos no desenvolvimento do sistema que controla o robô permitem afirmar que a inteligência embarcada em robôs atuais ainda encontra-se em um nível incipiente e limitado. Neste trabalho, cinco frentes de pesquisa complementares são propostas visando estudar, teórica e praticamente, aspectos fundamentais de projeto e implementação de controladores autônomos inteligentes para robótica móvel. Metodologias de computação bio-inspirada e de robótica evolutiva provêem os conceitos e ferramentas que fundamentam as cinco propostas, as quais são validadas com base em sistemas de navegação concebidos e aplicados a problemas relevantes da área. Uma série de simulações computacionais em ambientes virtuais e experimentos com robôs reais é realizada, permitindo medir o alcance das contribuições e apontar as principais frentes de atuação que se abrem como perspectivas futuras da pesquisa. / Abstract: Novel techniques for autonomous robot navigation aim at fulfilling the growing demand for mobile robots in multiple segments of society and in a plethora of tasks. The challenges involved in developing the system which controls the robot allow to say that the intelligence embedded in the current robots is found to be still incipient and limited. In this work, five complementary research fronts are proposed intending to study, theoretical and practically, aspects which are fundamental to the design and implementation of intelligent autonomous controllers for mobile robotics. Bio-inspired computing and evolutionary robotics methodologies provide the concepts and tools underlying the five proposals, which are validated through navigation systems devised and applied to important problems. Numerous real robot experiments as well as computational simulations taking place in virtual environments are carried out, allowing for the evaluation of contributions and also the discussion of future possibilities. / Doutorado / Engenharia de Computação / Doutor em Engenharia Elétrica

Orientador: Fernando José Von Zuben / Dissertação (mestrado) - Universidade Estadual de Campinas, Faculdade de Engenharia Elétrica e de Computação / Made available in DSpace on 2018-08-18T14:21:13Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Azzolini_AlissonGusatti_M.pdf: 3567259 bytes, checksum: 633eb00350cdfa625d0e628fdf1f247e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011 / Resumo: Há uma demanda crescente por soluções avançadas de navegação autônoma em robótica móvel. Apresenta-se então um sistema de síntese e aprendizagem de controladores com tal finalidade. Propõe-se um controlador probabilístico, consistindo no acoplamento de um processo de decisão de Markov parcialmente observável (POMDP) com um classificador logístico multinomial. A parametrização empregada para o POMDP inspira-se numa proposta anterior de controle de robô por meio de redes imunológicas artificiais, que mostrou apresentar flexibilidade e capacidade de representação de conhecimento na execução de tarefas desafiadoras de navegação autônoma. A aprendizagem dos parâmetros do classificador logístico é efetuada através de um algoritmo de aprendizagem por reforço baseado em gradiente de política, e os do POMDP, atráves de um algoritmo de maximização de verossimilhança. Três experimentos computacionais são efetuados, dois deles utilizando somente o classificador logístico, e o terceiro utilizando o acoplamento entre POMDP e classificador logístico. Os resultados permitem a constatação de pontos fortes e algumas deficiências das duas abordagens. O trabalho aponta também para uma potencial reinterpretação do controlador baseado em rede imunológica em termos de um modelo probabilístico similar ao proposto / Abstract: There is an increasing demand for advanced solutions in autonomous navigation of mobile robots. A system is presented for the synthesis and learning of controllers for such purpose. A probabilistic controller is proposed, consisting of the coupling of a partially observable Markov decision process (POMDP) with a multinomial logistic classifier. The parametrization used for the POMDP draws on an earlier proposal of robot control based on artificial immune networks, that has shown to present flexibility and knowledge representation capability in the execution of challenging autonomous navigation tasks. Learning the logistic classifier parameters is accomplished through a reinforcement learning algorithm based on policy gradient, while the POMDP parameters are learned by a likelihood maximization algorithm. Three computational experiments are performed, two of them using only the logistic classifier, and the third one using the coupling of a POMDP with a logistic classifier. The results show some strong points and drawbacks of both approaches. The work also points torwards a potential reinterpretation of the immune network based controller in terms of a probabilistic model similar to the one proposed / Mestrado / Engenharia de Computação / Mestre em Engenharia Elétrica

Many different autonomously driving mobile robots are used for industrial transports of materials or  oods in the context of internal logistic processes because of different use cases. The problem for the users that need to monitor the robots is that each manufacturer provides its own graphical user interface (GUI) wi th different operating modes and visual designs, which requires different trainings and constant swi tching between software. Therefore, this paper shows the design and development process of a graphical user interface in the form of a web application for the monitoring process of a fleet of automated guided vehicles from different manufacturers and answers the following question: "What are the main criteria when designing a graphical user interface with high usability for the monitoring process of manufacturer-independent automa ted guided vehicle f leets?” To answer the question, existing graphical user interfaces from different manufacturers were analyzed and interviews with developers and end-users of the GUIs were conducted. Requirements were then derived, on whose basis sketching, wireframing and high-fidelity prototyping have been performed. Usability testing and a heuristic evaluation were chosen to improve the application and its usability continually. As a result, the following six main criteria could be derived that summarize the most essential points to consider when designing such a GUI: administrabi lity, adaptiveness, observability, analyzability, robot and job awareness, and intervention. / Många olika autonomt körande mobila robotar används för industriell transport av material eller varor i samband med interna logistiska processer till följd av olika användningsfall. Problemet för de användare som behöver övervaka robotarna är att varje tillverkare tillhandahåller sitt eget grafiska användargränssnitt (GUI) med olika driftsätt och visuella utformningar, vilket kräver olika  utbildningar och ständig växling mellan mjukvara. Denna uppsats visar därför design- och utvecklingsprocessen för ett grafiskt användargränssnitt i form av en webbapplikation för övervakningsprocessen för en samling av automatiserade guidade fordon från olika tillverkare, och svarar på följande fråga: "Vilka är de viktigaste kriterierna vid utformningen av ett grafiskt användargränssnitt med hög användbarhet för övervakningsprocessen av automatiserade guidade  fordonsamlingar, oboeroande av tillverkare?” För att svara på frågan analyserades befintliga grafiska användargränssnitt från olika tillverkare, samt intervjuer med utvecklare och slutanvändare av GUI:erna utfördes. Krav härleddes sedan, baserat på vilka skisser, wireframing och hifi -prototyper som har utförts. Användbarhetstest och en heuristisk utvärdering valdes för att kontinuerligt förbättra applikationen och dess användbarhet. Som ett resultat kan följande sex huvudkriterier härledas, de sammanfattar de viktigaste punkterna att tänka på när man utformar ett sådant GUI: förmåga att administrera, anpassningsförmåga, observerbarhet, analyserbarhet, robot- och jobbmedvetenhet och intervention.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-02T19:05:32Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 2127.pdf: 1371924 bytes, checksum: 9875e1d607356e12cb2a118b33474a4e (MD5) Previous issue date: 2008-09-12 / The production scheduling problem of products with simultaneous use of machines and transportation systems in manufacturing systems invloves the system modeling task and the application of a technique to solve it. This scheduling type is characterized by the great amount of possible solutions and several researches indicates the Adaptive Genetic Algorithms as search method to solve this problem, where these algorithms have the capacity of globally explore the search space and to find good solutions quickly. In this dissertation, it is proposed a method that uses an adaptive genetic algorithm to solve this scheduling problem. The aim of this dissertation is to obtain good scheduling of product production, in order to reach good makespan values and response obtaining time. The makespan values are obtained by adaptive genetic algorithm and the response obtaining time is the processing time of the adaptive genetic algorithm. The results were validated in small and large scenerios and compared with the results of two other approaches. These results are presented and discussed in this dissertation. / O problema da programação da produção de produtos com uso simultâneo de máquinas e sistemas de transporte em sistemas de manufatura envolvem questões como a modelagem do problema e a técnica utilizada para resolvê-lo. Este tipo de programação é caracterizado pela grande quantidade de soluções possíveis, em que várias pesquisas apontam para o uso de Algoritmos Genéticos Adaptativos como método de busca, uma vez que estes algoritmos possuem a capacidade de percorrer de forma global o espaço da busca, a fim de encontrar boas soluções rapidamente. Neste trabalho, é proposto um método com uso de um algoritmo genético adaptativo para resolver este tipo de problema de programação. O objetivo deste trabalho é obter uma boa programação da produção de produtos, a fim de atingir um bom compromisso entre valores de makespan e de tempo de obtenção da resposta. Os valores de makespan são obtidos a partir da aplicação do algoritmo genético adaptativo e o tempo de obtenção da resposta é referente ao tempo de processamento do algoritmo genético adaptativo. Os resultados deste trabalho foram validados para cenários pe quenos e grandes e comparados com os resultados de outras duas abordagens. Estes resultados são apresentados e discutidos neste trabalho.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-06-02T19:05:50Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 3678.pdf: 5394148 bytes, checksum: 4abd3e7ce4acac9d5890eae3620c06d3 (MD5) Previous issue date: 2011-06-14 / Financiadora de Estudos e Projetos / In recent years, most companies apply techniques of industrial automation with the goal of increasing its efficiency. Increasingly Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) are used to transport work in factories and warehouses. The management of these AGV is the key to an efficient transport system. One of the main problems encountered in the management of AGV is the dispatching decision. This work proposes a method of dispatching of AGV with the ability to optimize the performance of flexible manufacturing systems (FMS) in real time. In the dispatching deciding can be chosen to optimize two objectives: makespan or tardiness. When the goal is to optimize the makespan are evaluated variables: distance, number of nodes, the input buffer and output buffer of the workstation. When the goal is to optimize the tardiness are evaluated variables: distance, number of nodes, task chaining, date of delivery. In both cases are also considered the time of the AGVs and the processing times of the workstations, so you can anticipate some decision-making. To perform the tests we used the softwares: Matlab, CPNtools and Automod, which allow simulations of how the method works dispatching AGVs before the method is implemented in factories. Based on the tests, we analyzed the improvement in makespan and tardiness compared to other studies, but also the flexibility of the method in which it is possible to exchange goals in operating time. / Nos últimos anos, mais empresas aplicam técnicas de automação industrial com o objetivo de aumentar sua eficiência. Cada vez mais Veículos Auto Guiados (AGVs) são usados para tarefa de transporte em indústrias e armazéns. O gerenciamento desses AGVs é a chave para um sistema de transporte eficiente. Um dos principais problemas encontrados no gerenciamento dos AGVs é a decisão de despacho. Esse trabalho propõe um método de despacho de AGV com capacidade de otimizar o desempenho de Sistemas Flexíveis de Manufatura (FMS) em tempo real. Na tomada de decisão do despacho podem ser escolhidos dois objetivos para otimização: makespan ou tardiness. Quando o objetivo é otimizar o makespan são avaliadas as variáveis: distância, número de nós, buffer de entrada e buffer de saída das estações de trabalho. Quando o objetivo é otimizar o tardiness são avaliadas as variáveis: distância, número de nós, encadeamento de tarefas, data de entrega do produto. Em ambos os casos também são considerados os tempos dos AGVs e os tempos de processamento das estações de trabalho, para que seja possível adiantar algumas tomadas de decisões. Para realizar os testes foram usados os softwares MatLab, CPNtools e Automod, os quais permitem que simulações do funcionamento do método de despacho de AGVs antes que o método seja implementado em fábricas. Com base nos testes realizados, analisou-se as melhoras no makespan e tardiness em comparação com outros trabalhos, como também a flexibilidade do método no qual é possível a troca de objetivos em tempo de operação.

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