Background
Packaging is concerned with protecting products for distribution, storage, sale and use. Currently, parts are identified, inspected, and then placed in a crate manually by a trained technician through a time-intensive process. The goal of this project was to develop a hybrid cell using collaborative robots to reduce manual labor in inspection and packaging of aircraft engine parts, in turn improving operator accuracy and reducing operator risk.
Objective
This project aims to improve packing productivity by 50%, classification accuracy by 20%, and reduce cost by 20-50%.
Technical Approach
This project resulted in the development of a hybrid robotic cell to reduce manual labor in inspection and packaging of aircraft engine parts by addressing parts identification, the manipulation of complex geometry parts, and parts placement. Resulting CDIP focused on:
- Perception
- Optimal grasp
- Bimanual manipulation
The expected system will be adaptable to a wide range of robotic manipulators and developed on open architecture software, enabling a commercial system that can be achieved an order of magnitude lower cost versus proprietary systems.
Participants
Raytheon Technologies Research Center (Principal Investigator), RE2, University of California, Los Angeles