Test 3D Safety Sensors in Speed and Separation Monitoring Cobot Applications

The purpose of this protocol is to validate suitability of 3D sensors, particularly LiDAR scanners, for improving the skill “Maintain Safe Distance” in advanced Speed and Separation Monitoring (SSM) cobot applications . Besides the sensors’ technical characteristics, the data processing, and decision-making abilities of an associated intelligent control system (ICS) are the subject of validation. Such ICS periodically acquires of a COBOT and an operator, eventually predicts their positions in a the positions near future, and adjusts the COBOT’s velocity to keep their mutual distance above the accordingly updated protective separation distance (PSD). The validation test checks with assistance of a high-speed high-resolution camera whether the ICS implements the SSM functionality successfully to prevent collisions between the robot and the operator in a systematically chosen repertoire of collaborative situations identified as potentially hazardous in the risk assessment. This protocol was developed in the COVR funded FSTP project “CobotSense” by FOKUS TECH, the Maribor, and FANUC ADRIA, and was published as a deliverable for that project.

COVR ROB-MSD-3