Ch-2 PPT Actuators
Ch-2 PPT Actuators
Actuator is the term used for the mechanism that drives the
robotic arm.
There are 3 main types of Actuators
• Hydraulic actuators
• Electric actuators
• Pneumatic actuators
Hydraulic and pneumatic actuators are generally suited to
driving prismatic joints since they produce linear motion
directly
Electric motors are more suited to driving revolute joints as they
produce rotation
Hydraulic Actuators
• A car makes use of a hydraulic system. If we look at the
braking system of the car we see that only moderate force
applied to the brake pedal is sufficient to produce force
large enough to stop the car.
• The underlying principle of all hydraulic systems was first
discovered by the French scientist Blaise Pascal in 1653. He
stated that “if external pressure is applied to a confined
fluid, then the pressure is transferred without loss to all
surfaces in contact with the fluid”
• The word fluid can mean both a gas or a liquid
Cont..
• Where large forces are required we can expect to find
hydraulic devices (mechanical diggers on building sites, pit
props in coal mines and jacks for lifting cars all use the
principle of hydraulics.
• Each hydraulic actuator contains the following parts:
1. Pistons
2. Spring return piston
3. Double acting cylinder
4. Hydraulic transfer value
5. And in some cases a hydraulic accumulator
Cont..
Advantages of the hydraulic mechanism
A hydraulic device can produce an enormous range of forces
without the need for gears, simply by controlling the flow of fluid
Movement of the piston can be smooth and fast
Position of the piston can be controlled precisely by a low-current
electrically operated value
There are no sparks to worry about as there are with electrical
motor, so the system is safe to use in explosive atmospheres such
as in paint spraying or near inflammable materials
Cont…
o Their disadvantage is
• Require a great deal of equipment's such as pumps, actuators, hoses, and servo valves
• friction of seals, leakage, viscosity of oil, and complex temperature dependent of the oil
• not suitable for accurate position/torque control
• Not clean
Pneumatic actuators
• A pneumatic actuator uses air instead of fluid
• Generally less expensive than an equivalent hydraulic system.
• Are relatively cleaner
• Pneumatic devices are faster to respond compared to a hydraulic
system as air is lighter than fluid.
• A pressure relief valve can be incorporated to release pressure when a
force is exceeded, for example the gripper of a robot will incorporate
a relief value to ensure it does not damage itself or what it is gripping
• Share all disadvantage of hydraulic actuators
Electric actuators
Not all electric motors are suited for use as actuators in robots
There are three basic characteristics of a motor, when combined
will determine the suitability of a motor for a particular job.
The 3 characteristics are power, torque and speed. Each of these
characteristics are interdependent, that means that you can not
alter one without affecting the others.
Two types of power: electrical and mechanical, both are
measured in watts.
Torque is how strong a motor is or how much turning force it is
able to produce and is measured in newton-meters.
The speed is measured in revolutions per minute and is rotation
of the motor
Cont..
There are 3 different types of motors
1. AC motor which operates by alternating current electricity
2. DC motor which operates by direct current electricity
3. Stepper motors which operates by pulses of electricity
DC motors and Stepper motors are commonly used in robotics
• Other Actuators
• piezoelectric
• magnetic
• ultra sound
• Inertial
Sensors and detectors
Sensors are used to supply information to the robotic control system
Provide information about the status of links and joints
Provide information about the environment
Status sensors
They are basic elements in the internal closed loop control of
the robot
Sense
• Position
• Velocity
• Acceleration
• Torque/force in joints
Degree of resolution and accuracy of status sensors
determine the accuracy of the robot
Environmental sensors
Contact type sensors
• Pressure
• Force
• Slip
• Torque
Non contact type sensors
• Vision
• Optical, acoustic
• IR and proximity switches
• temperature and chemical sensors
Position sensors
• Potentiometers
Are variable resistance devices
varies the effective length of the conductor and hence resistance of the
device
• optical encoder
Converts motion into a sequence of digital pulses
By counting a single bit or decoding a set of bits, the pulses can be converted to
absolute or relative position
Incremental encoder