Tag - Introduction

Unlock the world of robotics with our comprehensive curriculum, designed for students and educators looking to explore the fundamentals of automation, programming, and robotic applications. This course takes learners from the basics of robotics history to hands-on programming and industrial automation using the NED2 collaborative robot (cobot) and Blockly programming.

Who Is This Course For?

✔️ High school and college students in CTE or STEM programs
✔️ Educators looking for a structured robotics curriculum
✔️ Beginners eager to learn robotic automation with a no-code approach
✔️ Anyone interested in industrial robotics and automation

Join today and take your first step toward mastering robotics and automation! 🚀

Scenario

We want to carry out an assembly that involves arranging specific manipulable objects (shape and color) in the ALPHA and BETA zones, in a pattern defined by the user. In order to carry out this assembly, manipulable objects are fed to the robotic arm NED2 by a conveyor. The robotic arm NED2 then identifies the parts before picking them up. If the manipulable object picked up is not required for the pattern, it will be deposited it in the waste area (rejects), otherwise it will be placed it in the ALPHA or BETA zones, following the given pattern.

Lab Contents

Chapter 1: Pick and place

• Define reference points and points of interest in the robotic arm NED2 workspace.
• Create the sequence of movements for a pick-and-place operation.
• Perform a palletizing operation.

Chapter 2: Defining a pattern

• Create an operator input and pattern creation function.
• Determine whether a manipulable object belongs to an existing pattern.
• Trigger the corresponding action for a manipulable object according to the following cases: not belonging to a pattern, belonging to a pattern and already processed, belonging to a pattern and not processed.

Chapter 3: Vision

• Feed the manipulable object via the conveyor
• Master the results of camera object detection: shape, color and position of a manipulable object in a defined workspace.
• Pick up a manipulable object identified by the camera.

Chapter 4: Integration

• Automatically produce a pattern entered by an operator, using manipulable objects supplied by the conveyor.

Prerequisite knowledge

Python: Basic syntax + simple data and control structures + loops + simple function calls

Required components

Scenario :

The student discovers how to connect and communicate simple instructions between an Arduino and the Ned2’s Raspberry Pi. In this exercise, the Ned2 robotic arm, depending on the gesture made by the operator, carries out
different operations with bottles. The Robotic Arm is programmed with Blockly and the Arduino is programmed in C++.

This exercise simulates the interaction of an assembly line operator with a robot to optimize “TAKT TIME”.

The operator works on an assembly line which prepares 3 products: Perfume, Cologne and Eau de Toilette. Depending on the preparation, the Ned2 robotic arm (B) must:

• In the case of perfume: take the bottle from position 1 and position it to the left of the operator in position 4.
• In the case of Cologne: take the bottle from position 1, move it from right to left and turn it several times, then position it to the right of the operator in position 2.
• In the case of an Eau de Toilette: take the bottle from position 1, shake it with the bottle horizontally and place it in the rear right corner of the table in position 3.

To indicate to the NED2 robotic arm to perform one of the three operations, the operator makes a hand gesture in front of the gesture sensor located on the NED2 robotic arm, a gesture which is interpreted by Ned2 Robotic Arm.

The gesture sensor is connected to an Arduino Nano and the Arduino Nano is connected to the digital pins on the back panel of the Ned2 robotic arm.

The gesture sensor is capable of interpreting 9 gestures:

• Up
• Down
• Left
• Right
• Forwards
• Backwards
• Clockwise rotation
• Counterclockwise rotation
• Undulation
   

In this exercise, we will only use 4 gestures:

• Up
• Down
• Left
• Right

There are two gestures, up and down, that we are going to use for the same movement of the NED2 robotic arm, since, during the tests, the operators did not remember whether they should move their hand upward or downwards.

Laboratory Content

Chapter 1: Discovering Blockly

• Blockly overview

Chapter 2: Creating the gesture recognition module

• Create an accessory for the NED2 robotic arm capable of giving orders to the NED2 Robotic Arm using an Arduino microcontroller and a PAJ7620 sensor

Chapter 3: Creating movement sequences for the NED2 robotic arm

• Create a sequence of trajectories

Required equipment

Ned 2

Adaptative Gripper (or other)

NiryoStudio
Arduino Nano

Other tools:

• 400 point prototype board (30 rows)
• Piezo Buzzer
• PAJ7620 motion sensor
• Male-male and male-female electric cables

Prerequisite knowledge:

The installation of the Arduino programming environment, as well as the uploading of the Arduino program is not explained in this document.
It is strongly recommended to complete the Blockly getting started lab and the Ned2 control lab with Arduino box before completing this lab if you are not used to using Blockly.

Setup:

• Place the Ned2 robotic arm on a table.
• The Ned2 robotic arm must have an obstacle-free perimeter of approximately 60 centimeters in radius.
• Connect the Ned2 robotic arm to the NED2 robotic arm safety box
• Connect the safety box of the NED2 robotic arm to the power supply of the NED2 robotic arm
• Connect the power supply of the NED2 robotic arm to the electrical network
• Connect the Ned2 robotic arm to NiryoStudio
• Connect the Arduino box to the Ned2 robotic arm (Once the box is mounted)

The student discovers the concept of the 6 axes and how it applies to Ned2.

In this exercise, the Ned2 robotic arm will be used to move an object, and will be positioned in a singularity.

Laboratory Content

Chapter 1 :  The Six-Axis Robotic Arm: An Imitation of the Human Arm

• Understand the concept of the 6 axes and how it applies to Ned2.

Chapter 2 : Activities: The 6 axes of the Ned2 Robotic Arm

• Discover direct movements

Chapter 3: The Work Envelope and Singularities

• Discover the concepts of work envelope and singularity.

Chapter 4: Activity: Creating a Singularity

• Have the NED2 Robotic Arm make an “unnecessary” movement.

Required equipment

Ned 2
Adaptative gripper (or other)
NiryoStudio

Setup

1. Place the Ned2 robotic arm on a table.
2. The Ned2 robotic arm must have an obstacle-free perimeter of approximately 60 centimeters in radius.
3. Connect the Ned2 robotic arm to the NED2 robotic arm safety box.
4. Connect the safety box of the NED2 robotic arm to the power supply of the NED2 robotic arm.
5. Connect the power supply of the NED2 robotic arm to the electrical network.
6. Connect the Ned2 robotic arm to NiryoStudio.