Collaborative robots have been widely used due to their advantages such as safety, user-friendliness, ease of use and deployment, and strong versatility. Powerful force control capability is an important feature of collaborative robots. High-performance force control function can significantly improve the accuracy and effectiveness of functions and processes such as drag teaching, collision detection, load identification, assembly inspection, grinding and polishing.
Force control is a crucial feature of collaborative robots, and it has been of paramount importance since the very first day of their creation. Dedicated force/torque sensors can greatly improve the accuracy of force detection, and the presence of dedicated force/torque sensors is a prerequisite for high-end collaborative robots.
While joint-mounted torque sensors offer numerous advantages, their complex structure, large size, and weight significantly impact the overall load and speed performance of the machine, and their high cost greatly hinders widespread adoption. External six-dimensional force/torque sensors at the tool end can achieve a balance between force control accuracy and overall load, speed, and size; however, independent six-dimensional force/torque sensors occupy valuable space, weight, and I/O interface resources on the tool end, and are also prohibitively expensive, preventing widespread adoption to date. Therefore, these factors highlight industry pain points and multiple constraints that remain unresolved.
Elite Robotics has taken a forward-looking approach and independently developed force sensor technology, successfully solving the above problems by configuring a six-dimensional force/torque sensor inside the robot tool end.
The first product of this technology, the Elite CS66F force-controlled collaborative robot, has officially launched. As the first affordable force-controlled collaborative product, it is not a trial run, but a mass-producible, official product, and is now officially accepting orders.
[Comparison image: CS66F (left), CS66 (right)]
The CS66F is based on the CS66 collaborative robot and has all the features of the basic CS series. Compared with the CS66, the tool end flange weight increases by only 80g and the thickness increases by only 12mm. The impact on weight and volume is almost negligible.
However, it can provide force/torque ranges of 150N and 10Nm, with an overall accuracy of 2% and precision of 0.5%. Compared with force detection relying on joint current, the robot tool end force/torque detection accuracy is improved by more than one order of magnitude, and more than double the accuracy of major foreign competitors.
Furthermore, the tool flange has built-in attitude and acceleration sensors, and uses a sensor fusion algorithm to compensate for load motion, further improving the accuracy of force/torque detection under robot acceleration/deceleration and vibration conditions.
Based on Elite's understanding of collaborative robots and its long-term experience in the collaborative robot market, it places particular emphasis on overload protection and protection level. The CS66F has an overload capacity of over 400% and a standard protection level of IP65, with a maximum of IP68, making it perfectly adaptable to the diverse working scenarios and environments of collaborative robots.
The CS66F is Elite's first model of the CSF force-controlled collaborative robot. In the near future, the CS63F, CS612/616F, and CS620/625F will be launched successively, continuously improving and expanding the CSF family. Let's wait and see.
How to better empower industries through collaborative robots and achieve the full-chain integration of technologies, services and solutions required for intelligent transformation has always been a key focus of Elite Robotics' product development.
After in-depth research into typical application areas of force sensors, Elite has targeted market pain points and efficiently released productivity. The CSF series force-controlled collaborative robots will create unlimited possibilities for you.
Collaborative robots typically suffer from poor collision detection and are prone to false triggering, especially during full-load operation, posing safety risks. The Elite CS66F force-controlled collaborative robot, however, boasts collision detection sensitivity superior to the 3N model under full load.
Elite CSF series force-controlled collaborative robots have more sensitive force feedback capabilities. Only 1~2N of external force is needed to drag the robot. No matter how heavy the tools are, they can be easily dragged to the desired position. This effectively reduces the teaching workload and the barrier to robot use, allowing you to quickly start using the robot.
Elite CSF series force-controlled collaborative robots can achieve a constant force tracking accuracy of 0.5N. Combined with the CS series' comprehensive force control instructions and force control process packages, they can perform precise grinding and polishing of complex curved surfaces.
Robots operating in position control mode often cannot meet the requirements of high-precision assembly tasks. Force sensors give robots precise "tactile senses," allowing them to adjust their motion posture and position based on feedback from the force sensors, achieving compliant assembly and greatly improving the robot's assembly accuracy.
When the joint torque sensor malfunctions, the entire robotic arm needs to be disassembled to replace the joint or the torque sensor inside. However, when the six-dimensional force/torque sensor inside the tool flange malfunctions, only the lightweight and compact tool flange integrated assembly needs to be replaced, allowing maintenance to be completed more quickly.
Driven by application needs, the CSF series force-controlled collaborative robots offer a safer and more intelligent interactive experience, higher adaptability, and lower-cost scenario-based application modes, enabling Elite Robotics to improve quality through intelligence and break through innovation.
"Independent research and development, innovation and creation" are the genes of Elite and the foundation of its existence. The release of the CSF model with a six-dimensional force/torque sensor in the tool end further highlights Elite's self-sufficiency advantage in high-end products and its ability to continuously provide customers with high-performance, cost-effective products.
During the development of the sensor, the R&D team repeatedly optimized and iterated on multiple parameters such as load stress range, safety factor, stiffness, frequency, and manufacturability. They also closely followed the international forefront of force sensors and the development trend of collaborative robots, and further improved the sensor's environmental and working condition adaptability through multi-sensor fusion technology.
At the same time, Elite has always maintained a sense of awe for technology, knowing that as a measurement component, the production and calibration of high-precision force/torque sensors are more important than design and debugging. Therefore, it has developed a complete set of force sensor testing and calibration systems in tandem.
Based on the testing and calibration system, the sensor components underwent nearly a thousand performance, reliability, protection, temperature, and vibration tests during the prototype verification phase. Each prototype iteration underwent hundreds of calibration re-verifications, and the finalized products underwent hundreds of thousands of load durability tests and high and low temperature cycling tests from 0 to 90°C.
After the sensor was integrated with the robot body, it underwent thousands of hours of testing on the robot's force control performance, functionality, and reliability. Through more than a dozen iterations and optimizations, the sensor itself and the integrated hardware and software design have been updated by over 90%.
Looking back at the development path of the built-in six-dimensional force/torque sensor: research, optimization, integration, innovation, and verification, each step represents Elite's courageous innovation, arduous exploration, and rich accumulation in the field of technology.
The CSF series is the first "pioneer" in the deep serialization plan of the CS series collaborative robots. Elite will launch more new products based on CS in the future, redefining the development path of collaborative robots.
In the future, with the advancement of collaborative robots, force sensor technology, as a key support for intelligent manufacturing, will inevitably bring about revolutionary changes to the development of various industries and fields.
