Safe human robot collaboration — Operation area segmentation for dynamic adjustable distance monitoring

A core challenge of human robot collaboration is to ensure safety. By renouncing guards potential hazards raise. In this paper an approach is presented where the actual used operating area of an industrial robot gets segmented out of his whole workspace. Therefore an industrial robot gets monitored with a time of flight sensor. Subsequently the recorded 3D data gets processed and the operating area segmented by applying an octree algorithm. The information thus determined about the hazard zone can be used for an application specific adjustment of safety periphery systems. This is exemplary realized by ultrasound distance sensor modules which get individually parametrized depending on the pre-segmented operating area.