Outcome 1: Investigate the key elements of industrial robots
Content
Manipulator elements: electrical and fluid drive systems (harmonic, cycloidal, shaft, rod,
screw, belt, chain), sensors (absolute and incremental encoders, potentiometers, resolvers,
tachometers), brakes, counterbalance devices.
Control elements: CPU, system and user memory, interface units, power units,
Intelligence: relating to proximity, range, position, force, temperature, sound, gas.
Sources of error or malfunction: environmental contamination (smoke, arc-flash, dirt, fluids,
heat), parallax, wear, data corruption, accessibility, sensitivity, accuracy, design.
Assessment Criteria
To achieve this outcome a student must demonstrate the ability to:
- investigate the key elements of a robot manipulator and their principles of operation
- describe the main control elements of a robot system and their functions
- describe devices and methods used to improve the intelligence of a robot
- investigate the possible sources of error or malfunction in an industrial robot system.
