The Perfect Handshake: Optimax Bridges the Gap Between Cobots and Metrology
Estimated reading time 2 minutes
The technical synchronisation between a cobot and a Metrology system relies on a robust communication protocol, referred to as the “handshake”, This ensures that the robotic motion controller and the metrology software operate in perfect harmony and is achieved through integrated I/O signals or industrial communication standards such as OPC UA, Profinet, or EtherNet/IP. The process begins when the cobot sends a “System Ready” signal to the metrology system to confirm that the workpiece is securely fixtured and the robotic arm is in a safe “home” position or clear zone. Once this digital confirmation is received the measurement software will initiate the inspection routine. This prevents any risk of collision between the high-precision probe and the robotic end-effector.
During the inspection cycle, the metrology system maintains a “Busy” status signal, this effectively locks the cobot out of the measurement volume and ensures environmental stability and operator safety. Once the measurement sequence—whether it be the tactile scanning of a CMM or the non-contact optical measurement of an Alicona µCMM or a cobot mounted optical sensor —is finalized, the software processes the dimensional data against the CAD nominals. The system then transmits a “Cycle Complete” signal along with the measurement data indicating the part’s status. The cobot then interprets this “OK/NO-OK” handshake to determine the direction of the part automatically to the conforming “OK/NO-OK” bin. Once the measured part is located in the correct OK/NOK bin the process starts again and a new part is picked and loaded into the metrology system.
Why Optimax? Optimax specialise in the integration of metrology systems such as a CMM or 3D optical metrology systems with a cobot. This eliminates human errors and ensures that every measurement captured by the system is directly tied to the physical sorting of the component.
Contact us today to arrange a visit to our UK UKAS-accredited laboratory for a demonstration of these systems and how autonomous metrology can fit into your unique production environment.
