The PUMA/VS-100 Robot Vision System

A third-generation robot system with integrated visual sensing is described. It is composed of Unimation’s PUMA robot and Machine Intelligence Corporation’s VS-100 vision system, and is controlled by Unimation’s VAL language. With the ability to determine the position and orientation of objects, this advanced robot system can significantly reduce the cost associated with precise indexing. Technical details of the PUMA robot, the vision system, and the interface are described. Calibration procedures and the vision-to-robot transformation are discussed. The necessity for robot accuracy is explained and overall system accuracy is specified. A brief example program is included.