Development and Model-Aided Performance Measure of a Sensor-Augmented Industrial Robotic System for Handling Steel Bearing Races in an Unstructured Environment

Abstract Industrial application of robotic system for material handling operations has progressively become more challenging in situations of unstructured environments, in comparison to the same under somewhat known perspectives. Gripping under an unstructured robotic workspace poses serious challenges, which are beyond the purview of traditional grasp models and those need to be tackled only through customized modeling of the robotic environment. The present paper describes the details of such an application at the shop-floor of TATA STEEL, India, encompassing installation of the four degrees-of-freedom SCARA type industrial robotic system, design and construction of the magnetic gripper, sensory and hardware interfaces, safety measures (viz. design and development of electronic guarding system), environment model, application programming and final commissioning of the system for the intended use of handling steel bearing races of various sizes. Besides technical paradigms, the paper focuses on the performance measure of this maiden application of robotics in Indian steel industries.