Simplifying Robot Tools by Taking Advantage of Sensor Integration in Human Collaboration Robots

Currently, small scale manufacturing is limited to manual assembly due to high product specific costs for fully-automated production. Human robot collaboration (HRC) aims to overcome this problem with semi-automated production by incorporating sensor integrated robotics in more fields of human activity. One key aspect for industrial use of human-robot collaboration is cost efficient adaptability for different manufacturing scenarios. This paper introduces a method that satisfies these demands by simplifying robot tools. Algorithms leveraging the sensor integration of collaboration robots are used to reduce product specific costs. The feasibility of this method is validated by implementation into a flexible screwdriving tool.