Virtual robots module: an effective visualization tool for robotics toolbox

An introductory level robotics course mainly comprises the topics like geometry, kinematics, and dynamics of serial-chain robots. The description of the robot geometry using the Denavit-Hartenberg parameters and the kinematic and dynamic analyses require advanced mathematical concepts and are computationally intensive for robots with higher degrees-of-freedom. This calls for the use of robotics learning software, which would effectively aid the instructor to explain the concepts lucidly, and help the students in analyzing the mechanics of the robot. Robotics Toolbox is one such commonly used software, which is a collection of MATLAB-based functions that support various dedicated mathematical operations required in mechanical analysis of robots. RoboAnalyzer is another attempt towards the same goal, which focuses on the learning of robotics concepts from the physics of the robot motion. In this paper the integration of the Virtual Robots Module of RoboAnalyzer with the Robotics Toolbox is presented. With multiple number of industrial robot models, the Virtual Robots Module acts as an effective visualization add-in for the analysis performed using the Robotics Toolbox. The proposed visualization add-in can be used from software like MATLAB, MS-Excel, etc. The Virtual Robots Module allows improved visualization and easy simulation of industrial robot models for robotics research and education.