Staübli work-cell: Embedded controller

Abstract

This technical report describes the design (both hardware and software) of an embedded controller for the Staüli work-cell available at the Perception and Manipulation Laboratory at IRI. This system is based on a commercial embedded computer (Beaglebone Black [3]) and it is capable of managing all the work-cell devices. This includes a custom planar XY robot, two simple grippers at the end effector of each Staübli robot, a six degrees of freedom force and torque sensor and optionally the two Staülbi robots themselves. This embedded system also monitors all the safety features integrated into the work-cell to provide updated information about the current state of the work-cell to all the device drivers and control programs. The safety features available at the Staübli work cell include several emergency stop buttons, a laser curtain surrounding the perimeter of the work-cell and two mechanical fuses at the last joint of the Staübli robot. See [6] for a more detailed description of the Staübli work-cell. This document is intended as a complete reference manual of the embedded system, both from a software and a hardware points of view, for maintinance purposes and also to alow the addition of new features and upgrades in the future.