PS-ENGINE-RobotStudio launched by Prosolvia Systems

Citation

(1998), "PS-ENGINE-RobotStudio launched by Prosolvia Systems", Industrial Robot, Vol. 25 No. 4. https://doi.org/10.1108/ir.1998.04925dad.001

PS-ENGINE-RobotStudio launched by Prosolvia Systems

[PS-ENGINE]-RobotStudio launched by Prosolvia Systems

Keywords Prosolvia, Robots, Simulation

Prosolvia Systems releases [PS-ENGINE]-RobotStudio^tm a new software tool for complete off-line programming and station design of industrial robots. The software is part of the company's industrial simulation concept, Digital Plant Technology.

[PS-ENGINE]-RobotStudio opens up new dimensions within industrial simulation by enabling faster and easier robot programming as well as improved robot program quality. The benefits for industry are cost and time savings resulting from shorter lead times between conception and production, minimal production disruption and reduced changeover times.

The software enables users to plan and build a complete 3D model of a robot production plant ­ a Digital Plant ­ which links to and interacts with the real robot plant it represents. From within this Digital Plant, the robotic manufacturing process can be designed, optimised and off-line programmed.

"The software generates robot programs with outstanding quality and performance ­ without demanding programming skills of the user," says Roland Wester, director of Prosolvia Inc., the US sales arm of Prosolvia Systems. "By using drag and drop, even very advanced robot programs are easily created. For industry, this new way of creating programs will result in an increase in robot precision and productivity."

"Using the software, a company can at an early stage evaluate the impact of a new product on the robot production plant," continues Roland Wester. "This speeds up the design and upgrading of robot facilities and dramatically shortens the lead times from conception to actual production something we all know industry depends upon in order to stay competitive."

[PS-ENGINE]-RobotStudio is part of the [PS-ENGINE]^® family, which is based on Windows NT. The software is designed to support all users in the creation of robot programs. For the novice, wizards facilitate the creation of programs with no need to write code, while for the experienced programmer a streamlined environment provides the full power of a robot controller system with, uniquely, full support for the complete program syntax. Templates, wizards, intelligent functions, an extensive library of robot types and models ­ and such Windows functionality as drag and drop ­ make the software extremely productive. Simply dragging process instructions ­ which are created in the 3D graphics window ­ into the program is one example of the powerful yet simple programming methods provided by [PS-ENGINE]-RobotStudio.

Simulation in [PS-ENGINE]-RobotStudio is based on a simulated robot, which ensures that the robot seen in the 3D window behaves exactly like its real counterpart. The software allows service staff, operators and others working with real robots to tune programs, monitor production and perform "what-if" analyses off-line without interfering with production. Many possibly hazardous tasks conducted in the real robot station can be accomplished within [PS-ENGINE]-RobotStudio.

Direct communication with the real robot allows most operations to be invoked through a dedicated interface. The user can create 3D geometry and kinematics (pure motion) as well as import models created in other systems such as AutoCAD, Catia, Pro/E and RobCad. Modelling is supported by layout and analysis functions provided within the program.

Practical tasks carried out by [PS-ENGINE]- RobotStudio include:

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  designing and simulating new robot stations, concepts and layouts;

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  creating or optimising programs for robots;

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  calculating the cost and time of producing a part;

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  involvement in the fixturing and tooling process of the station;

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  performing program touch-ups;

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  generating instructions for robot operators or other workers;

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  preparing system documentation.

[PS-ENGINE]-RobotStudio includes full data recovery routines that ensure no data are lost in the event of a power-out. The program integrates fully and interacts with other software tools that make up the [PS-ENGINE] family, the core of Prosolvia Systems' Digital Plant Technology. This unique technology brings together for the first time all the disciplines needed to design, test, optimise, schedule and operate a modern manufacturing plant from within a state-of-the-art 3D simulation ­ a Digital Plant.

[PS-ENGINE]-RobotStudio hardware and software requirements are:

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  PC with 200 MHz Pentium processor (dual processors recommended);

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  64 MB of RAM (128MB recommended);

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  200 MB of hard disk space;

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  Open GL 3D accelerator card strongly recommended;

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  High-resolution display;

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  CD-ROM drive;

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  Microsoft-compatible mouse;

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  Windows NT 4.0 with Service Pack 3 or higher.

For more information, please contact: Cecilia Guetavsson, Prosolvia Systems Headquarters, Gothenburg, Sweden. Tel: +46 31 703 5200.