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REPORTED BY: AAR

ROBOT SAFETY

OBJECTIVES:
BE ACQUAINTED WITH ROBOTIC SAFETY.
UNDERSTAND SAFETY STANDARD.
RECOGNISE SAFETY RELIABILITY.
BE FAMILIAR WITH HUMAN FACTOR ISSUES.
BE AWARE OF SAFETY SENSORS AND MONITORING.
REALIZE SAFEGUARDING.
PERCEIVE THE IMPORTANT FACTORS OF TRAINING.
APPREHEND SAFETY GUIDELINES.
UNDERSTAND DEFINITIONS.

ROBOT SAFETY

SAFETY

METHOD AND TECHNIQUE USED FOR

AVOIDING ACCIDENTS. IT INCLUDES THE

USUAL CONSIDERATIONS OF MAN, MACHINE
AND WORKSTATIONS, ENVIRONMENT, AND
THE INTERDFACE BEHAVIOUR, BUT IT MUST
ALSO CONSIDER SOFTWARE.

ROBOTS AND CONVENTIONAL MACHINERY

THREE MAJOR DIFFERENCES BETWEEN ROBOTS AND

CONVENTIONAL MACHINERY CAN BE IDENTIFIED THAT

ARE CONCERN OF SAFETY PERSONNEL.
SPEED OF MOVEMENT.
PREDICTABILITY OF MOVEMENT.
HAZARD ZONES.

IN CONVENTIONAL MACHINERY HAZARD ZONES MAY BE

DIFFICULT TO RECOGNIZE, BUT ARE FIXED WITH TIME.

ROBOTS AND CONVENTIONAL MACHINERY

ALSO THE MAIN DIFFERENCE BETWEEN CONVENTIONAL

MACHINERY AND ROBOT IS THAT A ROBOT CAN BE :
PROGRAMMED TO DO DIFFERENT JOBS.
REACT TO CHANGES IN THE PROCESS, EVEN
MAKING DECISIONS FROM A LIMITED NUMBER OF
CHOICES.

SAFETY ENGINEERING SHOULD BE APPLIED TO ROBOT

SAFETY, PARTICULARLY IN THE HUMAN FACTORS
ASPECTS AND SYSTEMS SAFETY APPROACHES.

ROBOTS AND CONVENTIONAL MACHINERY

ROBOT SAFETY MUST INCLUDE THE USUAL

CONSIDERATIONS OF MAN, MACHINE AND
WORKSTATIONS, ENVIRONMENT, AND THE
INTERFACE BEHAVIOR, BUT IT MUST ALSO
CONSIDER SOFTWARE

CAUSES OF ACCIDENTS

ENGINEERING DEFICIENCY
LACK OF PROPER PROCEDURES
INADEQUATE PROGRAMMING
WAYS TO AVOID ACCIDENTS

EMERGENCY STOP SWITCHES MUST APPEAR ON THE

CONTROL PANEL AND ALSO BE ADDED TO THE PENDANT

USED IN THE TEACH MODE WHERE THE OPERATOR OR
PROGRAMMER MAY BE MOVING IN THE ROBOTS WORK
ENVELOPE.

COMPREHENSIVE INSTRUCTION AND OPERATION

PROCEDURES MUST ALSO BE INCORPORATED THROUGH

TRAINING PROGRAMS.

SAFETY STANDARDS

SAFETY IS AN IMPORTANT CONSIDERATION IN

INSTALLING, PROGRAMMING, OPERATING, AND

MAINTAINING ROBOT SYSTEMS.

SAFETY CAN ALSO BE CONSIDERED AS A JUDGMENT OF

THE ACCEPTABILITY OF DANGER, WHERE DANGER IS
THE COMBINATION OF HAZARD AND RISK.

SAFETY STANDARDS

HAZARD IS DEFINED AS INJURY PRODUCER, AND RISK IS

DEFINED AS THE PROBABILITY THAT AN INJURY WILL
OCCUR.

THE CAUSES OF EMPLOYEE INJURY IN ROBOTIC

ENVIRONMENT INCLUDES:

PARTS OF THE BODY BEING CAUGHT.

BEING STRUCK BY A PART OR ROBOT GRIPPER.
FALLING FROM THE EQUIPMENT OR STRUCTURE.
SLIPPING OR TRIPPING ON WALKING OR WORKING
SURFACES.

EXPOSURE TO DANGEROUS LEVELS OF HEAT OR

ELECTRICITY

EXCESSIVE PHYSICAL STRAIN

 SAFETY STANDARDS ARE VERY IMPORTANT IN THE

WORKPLACE. ALL THE PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS

HAVE DEFINED THE FOLLOWING PRIORITIES FOR
ELIMINATING HAZARDS.

ELIMINATE THE HAZARD THROUGH THE MACHINE

DESIGN STAGE.

APPLY SAFEGUARDING TECHNOLOGY.

USE WARNING SIGNS AND LABELS.
TRAIN AND INSTRUCT THE WORKER, PROGRAMMER,
AND MAINTENANCE PERSONNEL.

PRESCRIBE PERSONAL PROTECTIVE EQUIPMENT AND

DEVICES.

HUMAN FACTOR ISSUES

HUMAN FACTOR(ERGONOMICS) ISSUES OR ENGINEERING

IS THE STUDY OF THE HUMAN-MACHINE INTERACTION
AND IS DEFINED AS AN APPLIED SCIENCE THAT
COORDINATES THE DESIGN OF DEVICES, SYSTEMS AND
PHYSICAL WORKING CONDITIONS WITH THE CAPACITIES
AND REQUIREMENTS OF THE WORKER.

A MACHINE OR ROBOT SYSTEM DESIGNED WITH POOR

ERGONOMICS WILL BE UNCOMFORTABLE AND TIRING TO

USE, MAY EVEN BE DANGEROUS.

HUMAN FACTOR ISSUES

BESIDES THE SIZE OF A ROBOTS WORK ENVELOPE, ITS

SPEED, ITS PROXIMITY TO HUMANS, AND INTERACTION

WITH OTHER MACHINERY, MANY OTHER FACTORS
SHOULD BE CONSIDERED AND INVESTIGATED SUCH AS:

THE LAYOUT OF CONTROL PANELS.

TEACH-PENDANT ACCURACY.
PERSONNEL TRAINING
BARRIER GUARDS.
SAFETY DEVICES.
INTERLOCKS.
WARNINGS

HUMAN FACTOR ISSUES

IN ADDITION HUMAN FACTOR ISSUES SHOULD INCLUDE

EVALUATION OF A ROBOT WORKSTATIONS WHEN AN
OPERATOR ENTERS THE WORKSTATIONS FOR
MAINTENANCE, PROGRAMMING, AND THE LIKE.

SAFETY SENSORS AND MONITORING

SAFETY MONITORING INVOLVES THE USE OF SENSORS TO

INDICATE CONDITIONS OR EVENTS THAT ARE UNSAFE OR
POTENTIALLY UNSAFE.

THE OBJECTIVE OF SAFETY MONITORING INCLUDES NOT

ONLY THE PROTECTION OF HUMANS WHO HAPPEN TO BE IN

THE CELL, BUT ALSO THE PROTECTION OF THE
EQUIPEMENT IN THE CELL.

SAFETY SENSORS AND MONITORING

THE SENSORS USED IN THE SAFETY MONITORING RANGE

FROM THE SIMPLE LIMIT SWITCHES TO SOPHISTICATED

VISION SYSTEM THAT ARE ABLE TO SCAN THE WORKPLACE
FOR INTRUDERS AND OTHER DEVIATIONS FROM THE
NORMAL OPERATING CONDITIONS.

GREAT CARE MUST BE TAKEN IN WORKCELL DESIGN TO

ANTICIPATE ALL POSSIBLE MISHAPS THAT MIGHT OCCUR

DURING THE OPERATION OF THE CELL, AND TO DESIGN
SAFEGAURDS TO PREVENT OR LIMIT THE DAMAGE
RESULTING FROM THESE MISHAPS.

LEVELS OF ROBOT SAFETY

THE NATIONAL BUREAU OF STANDARDS DEFINES THREE

LEVELS OF SAFETY SENSOR SYSTEMS IN ROBOTS.

LEVEL 1 --- PERIMETER PENETRATION DETECTION.

LEVEL 2 --- INTRUDER DETECTION INSIDE THE WORKCELL
LEVEL 3 --- INTRUDER DETECTION IN THE IMMEDIATE VICINITY OF THE ROBOT.

LEVELS OF ROBOT SAFETY

LEVEL 1 SYSTEMS ARE INTENDED TO DETECT THAT AN

INTRUDER HAS CROSSED THE PERIMETER BOUNDARY OF

THE WORKCELL WITHOUT REGARD TO THE LOCATION OF
THE ROBOT.

LEVEL 2 SYSTEMS ARE DESIGNED TO DETECT THE

PRESENCE OF AN INTRUDER IN THE REGION BETWEEN

THE WORKCELL BOUNDARY AND THE LIMIT OF THE
ROBOT WORK VOLUME.

LEVEL 3 SYSTEMS PROVIDE INTRUDER DETECTION

INSIDE THE WORK VOLUME OF THE ROBOT.

 THERE ARE TWO COMMON MEANS OF

IMPLEMENTING A ROBOT SAFETY SENSING

SYSTEM

1.PRESSURE SENSITIVE FLOOR MATS --- ARE AREA PADS

PLACED ON THE FLOOR AROUND THE WORKCELL THAT

SENSE THE WEIGHT OF SOMEONE STANDING ON THE MAT.
THESE CAN BE USED FOR EITHER LEVEL1 OR LEVEL2
SENSING SYSTEMS.

2.LIGHT CURTAIN --- CONSISTS OF LIGHT BEAMS AND

PHOTSENSITIVE DEVICES PLACED AROUND THE WORKCELL

THAT SENSE THE PRESENCE OF AN INTRUDER BY AN
INTRRUPTION OF THE LIGHT BEAM. USE OF LIGHT CURTAINS
WOULD BE MORE APPROPRIATE AS LEVEL1 SYSTEMS.

 PROXIMITY SENSORS LOCATED ON THE ROBOT ARM

COULD BE UTILIZED AS LEVEL 3 SENSORS.

THE SAFETY MONITORING STRATEGIES THAT MIGHT BE

FOLLOWED BY THE WORKCELL CONTROLLER WOULD
INCLUDE THE FOLLOWING SCHEMES.

COMPLETE SHUTDOWN OF THE ROBOT UPON DETECTION OF AN INTRUDER.

ACTIVATION OF WARNING ALARMS.
REDUCTION OF THE SPEED OF THE ROBOT TO SAFE LEVEL.
DIRECTING THE ROBOT TO MOVE ITS ARM AWAY FROM THE INTRUDER TO
AVOID COLLISION.

DIRECTING THE ROBOT TO PERFORM TASKS AWAY FROM THE INTRUDER.

 NOTE: THERE IS ANOTHER SAFETY MONITORING

CALLED A FAIL-SAFE HAZARD DETECTOR. THE

CONCEPT OF THIS DETECTOR IS BASED ON THE
RECOGNITION THAT SOME COMPONENT OF BASIC
HAZARD SENSOR SYSTEM MIGHT FAIL AND THAT THIS
FAILURE MIGHT NOT BE FOUND OUT UNTIL SOME
SAFETY EMERGENCY OCCURRED. THE FAIL-SAFE
HAZARD DETECTOR IS DESIGNED TO OVERCOME THIS
PROBLEM.

SAFEGUARDING

MOST INDUSTRIAL ACCIDENTS OCCUR ARE THE RESULTS OF UNSAFE ACTS

BY THE WORKER. UCH ACTS CAN OCCUR DUE TO:
IMPROPERLY TRAINED OPERATORS.

CARELESS PROGRAMMERS ACTIVATING THE WRONG CONTROLS.

COMPONENT FAILURE OR OTHER UNSAFE CONDITIONS IN THE PLANT.

MAJOR CONCERN IN SAFETY OF ALL PERSONNEL INVOLVED WITH

INDUSTRIAL ROBOTS IS VERY IMPORTANT.

ACCORDING TO THE NATIONAL SAFETY COUNCIL(1991) THE PRINCIPAL

HAZARDS ASSOCIATED WITH ROBOTS ARE AS FOLLOWS:

1.

BEING STRUCK BY A MOVING ROBOT WHILE INSIDE THE WORK

ENVELOPE.

2.

BEING TRAPPED BETWEEN A MOVING PART OF A ROBOT AND

ANOTHER MACHINE, OBJECT, OR SURFACE.

3.

BEING STRUCK BY A WORKPIECE, TOOL, OR OTHER OBJECT DROPPED

OR EJJECTED BY A ROBOT.

SAFEGUARDING (CONTD.)

ROBOT SAFEGUARD:

TO ERECT A PHYSICAL BARRIER AROUND THE ENTIRE

PERIMETER OF A ROBOTS WORK ENVELOPE.

A GUARD CONTAINING A SENSING DEVICE THAT

AUTOMATICALLY SHUTS DOWN THE ROBOT IF ANY
PERSON OR OBJECT ENTERS ITS WORK ENVELOPE CAN BE
EFFECTIVE.

TO PUT SENSITIZED DOORS OR GATES IN THE PERIMETER

BARRIER THAT AUTOMATICALLY SHUT DOWN THE
ROBOTS MOVEMENT WHEN THEY ARE OPENED.

SAFEGUARDING (CONTD.)

EVEN THOUGH IT IS DIFFICULT TO GO TO A RISK-FREE

ENVIRONMENT BECAUSE THER IS ALWAYS THE POSSIBILITY
OF A MALFUNCTION OR THE VIOLATION OF GOOD SAFETY
PRACTICES. HOWEVER, THERE ARE WAYS TO MINIMIZE THE
POTENTIAL OF THESE ERRORS:

SAFETY TRAINING
DEPENDABLE MACHINE DESIGN
HIGH-RELIABILITY CONTROLS
PROPER LAYOUT WORK AREA.
SAFE POSITION AND CLEAR VISIBILITY FOR PROGRAMMING.
ESTABILISHING PROPER MAINTENANCE PROCEDURES.
ADEQUATE INSTALLATION PERFORMED IN THE PRESENCE OF SAFETY PERSONNEL.
OBEYING SAFETY RULES AND REGULATIONS OF AUTHORITATIVE ORGANIZATIONS.

SAFETY GUIDLINES

THE UNEXPECTED ROBOT MOVEMENTS ARE THE

CONCERN OF EMPLOYEES FOR OBTAINING FURTHER
GUIDELINES ON ROBOTICS SAFETY.

RESEARCHERS HAVE DEVELOPED MANY GUIDELINES

PERTAINING TO SAFETY ISSUES IN ROBOTS.

FOLLOWING GUIDELINES ARE FOR SAFE USE OF

ROBOTS IN A PRODUCTION ENVIRONMENT:

IF THE ROBOT IS NOT MOVING, DO NOT ASSUME IT IS NOT GOING TO MOVE.

IF THE ROBOT IS REPEATING PATTERN, DO NOT ASSUME IT WILL CONTINUE.
ALWAYS BE AWARE OF WHERE YOU ARE IN RELATIONSHIP TO THE POSSIBLE
POSITIONS THAT THE ROBOT MAY REACH.

SAFETY GUIDELINES (CONTD.)

4. BE AWARE IF THERE IS POWER ACTUATORS. INDICATOR LIGHTS WILL BE ON

WHEN THERE IS POWER TO THE ACTUATORS.

5. TEACHING, PROGRAMMING, SERVICING, AND MAINTENANCE ARE THE ONLY

AUTHORIZED REASONS FOR ENTRY INTO THE WORK ENVELOPE

6. BEFORE ACTIVATING POWER TO THE ROBOT, EMPLOYEES SHOULD BE AWARE

OF WHAT IT IS PROGRAMMED TO DO, THAT ALL SAFEGUARDS ARE IN PLACE, AND

THAT NO FOREIGN MATERIALS ARE PRESENT WITHING THE WORK ENVELOPE.

7. NOTIFY SUPERVISION IMMEDIATELY WHEN AN UNEXPECTED INTERRUPTION TO

THE NORMAL ROBOT WORK CYCLE OCCURS.

8. REPORT ANY MISSING OF DEFECTIVE SAFEGUARD TO SUPERVISION

IMMEDIATELY. CHECK ALL SAFEGUARDS AT THE BEGINNING OT EACH SHIFT.

SUMMARY

SAFETY IS AN IMPORTANT COMPONENT IN INDUSTRIAL AUTOMATION.

SAFETY SENSORS AND MONITORING PROVIDE THE CAPABILITY OF THE

WORKCELL CONTROLLER AND ITS SENSORS TO MONITOR THE
OPERATION DURING UNSAFE CONDITIONS IN THE CELL.

SAFEGUARDING IS THE PREVENTION OF INJURY OR ACCIDENT IN THE

WORKPLACE.

TRAINING IS A MAJOR FACTOR IN THE SUCCESSFUL IMPLEMENTATION

OF ANY ADVANCED TECHNOLOGY IN A COMPANY OR OPERATION.

SAFETY GUIDELINES HAVE BEEN DEVELOPED BY RESEARCHERS

PERTAINING TO SAFETY ISSUES IN ROBOTS TO REDUCE OR ELIMINATE
ACCIDENTS IN A PRODUCTION ENVIRONMENT.

ROBOT SAFETY DEPENDS ON THE SIZE OF THE ROBOTS WORK

ENVELOPE, ITS SPEED, AND ITS PROXIMITY TO HUMANS.