Flexible and continuous execution of real-time critical robotic tasks

Today, industrial robots are usually programmed using specialised programming languages, different for every robot manufacturer. These languages provide good usability, because they are tailored to the functionality traditionally offered by robots. However, these languages are reaching their limits with the growing integration of sensors or multiple robot systems. Therefore, we propose an architecture based on the separation of application control and the execution of real-time robotic tasks. This article describes a flexible and extensible interface for the specification and continuous execution of robotic tasks.