Sensors

Sensors
Sensors changes a robot from dumb
to intelligent.
The ability to adapt to particular
surroundings is one definition of
intelligence.

Classes of Sensors
Sensors for robots can be divided
into three classes:
internal sensors,
external sensors,
interlocks

Most sensors are some type of

transducer.
E.g. The ear converts sound energy into
electrical signals.

Internal Sensors

Limit switches
Haptic perception
Governor
Lead screws
Shaft-encoder
Direct-readout encoders or absolutereadout encoders

External Sensors
Microswitch or pressure sensor
Photoelectric device

Interlocks
Interlocks are devices that do not
allow an operation to be performed
until certain conditions exists.
Can be internal or external.

Sensor Areas for Robots

Vision
Touch
Range and proximity detection
Navigation
Speech output
Speech input
Smell

Vision
Present-day industrial robots use
vision to locate and orient parts.

Limits of Robot Vision

The robot grasps a part or parts from
the bin.
The robot places the parts on a table
that has an artificial skin surface.
The skin locates the orientation of
the parts.
The robot is instructed in how to
grasp the part with the part with
proper orientation for the rest of
task.
Week No 10

Touch
Tactile sensing, the
sense of touch for
robots, is needed if a
robot is to perform
delicate assembly
operations.
When a robot touches
something, force is
reflected back through
each joint.
In screwing nut and
bolt, touch is more
imp then vision.

Types of Touch Detection

Single-point detection
Simple edge detection
A multiple-point shape detector

Range and Proximity Detectors

Range Detector detects objects

situated at some distance from the
robot.
Non-contact devices

Laser, radar, sonar, vision and infrared

devices.

A proximity detector detects objects

in the immediate vicinity of the
robots.
can be contact or non-contact devices.
E.g. A magnetic detector

Speech Output
Speech output is not handled by
sensor.
It allows the robot to communicate
with us through additional sensor of
our hearing.
Voice output is often used in
conjunction with voice input to
confirm that the robot understands a
voice commands.
Week No 10

13

Speech Output (Contd...)

A robot using voice output may not
even be heard.
Voice output is a valuable safety
feature when robots are used in
offices or hospitals.
The use of robots by disabled people
is easier if a robots has a voice.

Week No 10

14

Speech Output (Contd...)

Voice output is also useful in medical
robots for the disabled people who
cannot speak.
Voice output, voice synthesis or
speech synthesis for a robot can be
accomplished by three different
methods.

Week No 10

15

Speech Output (Contd...)

The oldest method is to have a human
record the desired words, phrases, or
sentences on individual pieces of magnetic
tape.
A computer or robot then plays back the
appropriate piece of tape to produce the
desired message.
Because this method plays back the real
human speech, the individual words sound
very natural.
Week No 10

16

Speech Output (Contd...)

The second method of voice output
involves having a human speak the words
into a microphone.
A computer stores each word digitally, and
this digital information is then converted
back into analog speech one word at a
time, as the computer or robot speaks.
This method tend to sound very much like
a human speaker.
Week No 10

17

Speech Output (Contd...)

The third method of voice output
constructs speech from stored phonemes
for the English language.
This method tends to sound very
mechanical.
There is no emotion or inflection in the
speech.
The frequency of the speech can be
changed as though it were being said by
man, or woman.
Week No 10

18

Speech Output (Contd...)

Adding an inflection or emotion
content circuit to the speech
synthesizer would make it much
more acceptable to human..

Week No 10

19

Speech Input
Voice input commands is not
practical in noisy factory.
Voice input has become highly
desirable.
The area of sensory input
interpretation is one that will benefit
with the advances greatly in artificial
intelligence.
Week No 10

20

Speech Input (Contd...)

Robots can use speech input by the
use of microphone.
This speech information can be
converted into digital forma nd
stored in robots memory.
Most speech recognition systems
now in use recognize a very small
vocabulary.
Week No 10

21

Smell
Industrial robots of today do not have the
sense of smell.
Sensors already exist that can detect
nitrates and explosives.
Smoke detectors can react to the particles in
the air.
Exhaust gas analyzers are available for
checking car exhaust emissions.
The military has sniffers, for detecting
unauthorized people.
Week No 10

22

Smell
Domestic robots could use synthetic
noses for detecting natural gas
leakage from a water heater or owen
or a freon leak from a refrigerator or
air conditioner.

Week No 10

23

Noise Issues
Real sensors are noisy
Origins: natural phenomena + lessthan-ideal engineering
Consequences: limited accuracy and
precision of measurements
Filtering:
software: averaging, signal processing
algorithm
hardware tricky: capacitor

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

Generally robot works with a high level of
noise.
This noise is created by the machinery around
the robot and by robot itself

Week No 10

25

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
The memory and control circuits in a robots
controller respond to a signal which is
millionth of a second.
A burst of electrical noise lasts long enough to
change the controllers memory and mislead
what is supposed to be doing.

Week No 10

26

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
What can we do to eliminate this electrical
noise?

Week No 10

27

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
The power supply of the motors should be
separate from power supply of controller and
sensor.
The wiring for the motors should be separate
from and round separately from the wiring for
controller and sensor.
We can use shielded cable or wires for all
wiring of the controller, signals and the sensors.
Week No 10

28

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
If controller and manipulator are not contained
in the same area connecting wires must be run
between the two devices.
The farther apart the two devices are
physically, the better antenna the wiring makes
for picking up electrical noise from the robot
and from surrounding machinery.

Week No 10

29

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
The noise problem will be greatest, if point to
point wiring is used.
Point to point wiring uses individual wires
from one point on the circuit to the other point
on the circuit.

Week No 10

30

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
The noise is decreased by using twisted pairs
of wires, wires run on pairs from one point to
another in a circuit with one of the two wires
in each pair grounded.

Week No 10

31

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
The noise is lowest if shielded wires are used.
Each wire have a grounded shield surrounding
the wire.

Week No 10

32

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
Signals transmitted at low level of voltages.
The lower the voltage level the greater will be
the noise effect.

Week No 10

33

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
A signal can be send over a distance by using
differential signal.
This uses differential drivers and receiver
circuits.
The signal is sent over two wires.
Voltage level is not what it sensed on either
wires, but the difference in the voltages
between the two wires.
Week No 10

34

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
This type of transmission also tends to cancel
the electrical noise, because such noise is
picked up equally in both wires.
Another form of signal transmission that is
unaffected by electrical noise is fiber optics.
The signals are light beams sent along an
optical fiber.

Week No 10

35

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
Noise in a signal can cause serious safety
problems, some type of signal error detection
should be used.
This may mean adding extra information to a
signal to determine weather it has been
changed.

Week No 10

36

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
We can check the signal, by sending it more
than once.
A human being reduces the probability of
information errors by sending information
over more than one path.

Week No 10

37

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
It is easier to obtain sensor information, than
to interpret it. Why?

Week No 10

38

Electrical Noise and Sensor Information

(Contd...)
Most sensor interpretation is currently done
through the software of an electronic
computer.
The robots controller is not yet powerful
enough to do its own interpreting.
Especially for vision system.

Week No 10

39