ST Robotics R12-500 User Manual

R12 Robot Manual page 1

01.04.2017

Welcome!

to the R12-500 Firefly robot arm

We hope you enjoy your experience.

Any problems at all just contact us.

User Manual

[e-mail]

[phone]

[phone]

R12 Robot Manual page 2

System Components:

A basic R12 robot system comprises the following:­1 R12 Robot arm
Fitted with any options:

Pneumatic or electric gripper
Vacuum pickup
Incremental encoders
6th axis module

1 Controller K11R

Fitted with any options:

I/O expansion

Gripper drive module
1 Teach box
1 Cable 9-way D-type each end (M-M) - K11R to teach box
1 Motor cable - K11R MS connector to robot 25-way D-type
1 Sensor and encoder cable - 25-way each end (M-F)
1 Cable, D-type 25-way male to 9-way female - K11R to PC RS232
1 Power cable to K11R
1 Pack of CONNECTORS:

1 output connector

1 input connector
1 Disk with software and manuals.
1 optional USB/serial adaptor
1 optional Android teach console.
1 Gripper pneumatics kit

Manual Contents:

1 Introduction
2 Important Dos and Don'ts
3 Setting up
4 Computer
5 Controller
6 Preparing for Use
7 Getting Started
8 Accessories
9 Controller Settings
10 Robot Parameters
11 Calibration and full calibration from scratch
12 Connections
13 Collisions
14 Technical Support

R12 Robot Manual page 3

1. INTRODUCTION

The R12, firefly is a revolute robot arm of the vertically articulated format. This is the format
which most closely resembles the human arm and so its parts are named after the human
arm. It is more versatile than other formats but the drawback is that backlash and compliance
in each joint are added together joint by joint. Firefly has a nominal reach of 500mm i.e. it is
500 mm from the shoulder joint to the wrist, plus another 100 mm or so for the hand,
depending on the "end effector" fitted. Firefly is driven by stepping motors in micro steps of

0.18 degrees per step resulting after gearing in a nominal resolution of 0.1mm or better at the
end effector. If fitted the pneumatic gripper is operated by compressed air from 3 to 7 bar.
This may be supplied by a compressor supplied with the set, or from another air supply.

The R12 robot system comprises 3 main units:- the robot, the controller, the user supplied
computer or terminal. The computer is used to program the controller. Once programmed the
controller will run the robot independently without the need for the terminal or computer but it
is a good idea to leave a low cost terminal connected while the robot is in use.

OVERVIEW

The controller controls all movement of the robot. As the controller may be both reading
sensors and signals from and controlling associated equipment it follows that all decisions
about robot activity are usually made by the controller which is capable of running without
any host computer. The function of the computer is to (a) program the controller, (b) to copy
(back up) the contents of controller RAM to disk and optionally (c) to perform a supervisory
role sending commands to the controller through the RS232 interface. The function of a
terminal is to display information or questions and for the operator to enter answers or
commands (e.g. part type selection).

To program the controller with a computer you need to run the utility ROBWIN.EXE. When
ROBWIN is executed it immediately opens a communications window. Once communication
is established all your commands go to the controller not to the computer you are typing on.
Programming the controller involves programming the robot and the interaction with other
equipment. The robot and interfacing are programmed using ROBOFORTH II © and FORTH.
There are two manuals, ROBOFORTH covering robot programming and the system manual,
which describes the controller and interfacing. The software manuals are on disk and written
in HTML so you can use dynamic links to see connected concepts. There is also a glossary
on disk, which gives a brief description of every command. Some commands are used only
by ROBWIN or are not very useful and these are in the glossary but not in the ROBOFORTH
manual.

All FORTH and ROBOFORTH commands are in UPPER CASE (press caps lock). You can
add commands written in lower case but these would be different commands from those
spelled in upper case.

RoboForth is copyright David N Sands

R12 Robot Manual page 4

2. IMPORTANT DOS AND DON'TS

(1) HANDLING – DO take care when carrying the robot by hand or moving the arm by hand.
DON’T push the covers in when handling – this can damage wiring under the covers.

(2) DANGER - HOT – DON’T touch any of the motors. They can reach temperatures
approaching boiling point or more.

(3) DON'T ever disconnect or connect the robot while the controller is switched on. This will
result in damage to the connectors. Warranty claims will not be accepted for damage
resulting from this.

(4) DON'T back-drive the 6th axis; damage can result. Warranty claims will not be accepted
for damage resulting from this.

(5) DO be very careful not to "crash" i.e. drive any joint against a solid object so that it stalls.
Depending on the speed damage may result. At lower speeds the motors generate higher
torques so can do more damage. Avoid driving the waist against the stop.

(6) For the above reason DON’T use CALIBRATE unless you are sure the robot will not
crash into something in the workspace OR into itself, including taking into account any
complex end effector fitted.

(7) DO have your hand poised over the emergency stop button whenever testing a program.
Remember that because of its geometry a revolute arm will describe wide arcs from far apart
points, and may collide with objects within its reach.

(8) DO take appropriate measures to assess the risks and protect personnel from injury (see
next section)

(9) DON'T remove an object from an electric gripper by hand when it is gripping the object. It
may snap shut and damage the mechanism. Warranty claims will not be accepted for
damage resulting from this.

(10) DO read the section on the electric gripper before you use it.

(11) DON’T leave the robot switched on but not moving for very long periods of time (say
more than a week) as motor heat can damage the belts.

(12) DON’T try to save a project if the controller is switched off.

(13) DO make a back-up of the computer disk supplied as soon as possible.

(14) DO warm up the robot for best repeatability. After switching on from cold run the robot
some simple routine for 10-20 minutes. See note (2).

R12 Robot Manual page 5

SAFETY IS YOUR RESPONSIBILITY

Hazards

Because stepping motors raise more torque at low speeds a substantial low speed force can
be brought to bear especially on fingers which may become trapped under or between axes.
Robot end effectors typically have sharp edges or fingers made of thin metal which can
cause injury at the low speed high forces or at the higher speeds.

The biggest risk comes from the element of surprise. If the system is active and receives a
command from a supervising scheduler or a signal from an associated machine the robot will
appear to move unpredictably. A human being caught in the way can receive injury. R12 is
not particularly powerful but can still cause a minor injury especially if the end effector has a
sharp edge.

However, because the robot is stepper motor driven, once stalled the system raises an error
and does not attempt further motion.

Also do not touch any motors once the robot is powered up as they get very hot. At hottest
they will approach boiling point.

Safety measures

 If possible a robot system should be guarded. Any gate in the guarding can be fitted

with a switch, which is connected to the controller stop circuit. Another alternative is a

light curtain, easily connected to the robot controller

 Guarding is not always possible and where bench-top robots work closely with human

workers interlocks can be provided. For example if the user has access to the

workspace then he/she could be required to press a switch or keyboard key after

clearing the area.

 A good rule is that the robot should not be allowed to move outside an area

designated by the edge of the bench on which it is mounted.

 Alternatively the working area should be marked out with painted lines or black/yellow

striped tape as an awareness barrier.

 Statistically the highest incidence of contention between human and robot is when

both are accessing the same object. End effectors often have sharp edges which can

cause injury. Fitting a collision sensor can minimize this hazard.

 At the end of this manual you will find a form with which to do your own risk

assessment of the robot in your application. There are two concepts to consider:

hazard, which is the robot or robot fingers or the product etc. and risk, which is the

probability of someone being harmed by the hazard. The form enables you to identify

the hazards, the risks and ways of minimizing the risks. After completing the form and

carrying out any safety measures that the form has helped you identify, do the

assessment all over again.

R12 Robot Manual page 6

3. SETTING UP

Set the robot up in the desired location. Connect up all cables - their positions should be self­evident. Cables to the robot connect to the rear of the controller.

There are 5 basic cables:
Motor power – the metalized cable from rear of controller to robot base, 26wMS to 25wD
Sensor cable – from rear of controller to robot base (25wD male to 25wD female)
Gripper cable (if supplied) - from rear of controller to gripper valve (9wD to DIN)
Serial cable – from front of controller to computer (usually 25wD male to 9wD fem)
or USB adaptor
Teach pad cable – from front of controller to teach pad (9wD to 9wD male to male).

There is also a Stop Jack for connecting an external stop circuit. Even if there is no external
stop circuit the jackplug must be plugged in at the rear of the controller. The plug has a
shorting link, which is removed when connecting an external circuit.
The serial (RS232 null modem) cable from a computer to the controller should plug into the
25-way D connector on the front of the controller. The other end (usually 9wD) connects to
the rear COM1 serial connector of the computer or USB adaptor (see later for configuration).
If COM1 is already in use you can use any other COM port. If a USB serial adaptor is used
this can connect directly between a computer USB port and the controller or the cable may
be used to extend the adaptor.
DOS utilities only work with COM1.

Pneumatic connections

Connect the air line by pushing it into the push-fit connectors on the air valve and two from
the valve to the rear of the robot. If there is no compressor supplied then connect the shop air
supply to the air valve. The air supply must have a bowl filter and a pressure regulator.

Pneumatic gripper

If a pneumatic gripper is fitted the robot will have two airlines fitted through it, emerging on
the forearm. Two external lines loop to the gripper. The control valve is external. The valve is
operated from output port PA bit 0.

Electric gripper

This is powered and controlled from the robot controller and all wires run through the cables
and robot arm. The gripper drive module uses both PA 0 and PA 1 so PA 1 should not be
used for any other purpose.

Vacuum pickup

If a vacuum pickup is fitted the robot will have one airline fitted through it, emerging on the
forearm, looped to the pickup. If you have both gripper and vacuum there will be 3 airlines. A
separate valve connected to PA 2 selects gripper or vacuum.

If you change from one tool type to another see help sheet 23.

See more detailed information in section 8.

R12 Robot Manual page 7

4. COMPUTER

Note: Commands to computer or controller are in the form of a string of characters followed
by the enter key. In all my examples of dialog between man and machine I will underline text
typed in by the user. I won't keep mentioning the need for the enter key. A machine response
will be in upper case but not underlined. My comments will be in lower case.

Before switching on the controller switch on the terminal or computer and proceed as
follows:-

1. Create a directory (folder) ROBOT on C: drive

2. Copy all the files to your ROBOT directory

3. If you have a USB-serial converter first install its software. It should install itself as

most versions of Windows have the FTDI driver already included.

4. Plug in the USB converter and use either the serial cable or the adaptor to connect to
the controller. Windows 7 will probably want to go online for the drivers, select skip for
both drivers, USB serial converter and USB serial port. Once installed it should tell you
what port number it has selected. If less than 10 then skip step 5.

5. If you are not told what the COM number is you will need to find out. Go to control
panel, system, hardware, device manager, ports. You will see USB serial port - note
the port COM number.

6. RobWin will only work up to com9 so if your converter has been mapped to higher

than com9 then double-click that port, then go to settings, advanced. You will see
COM Port Number click the drop-down. You might see a lot of COM ports marked "in
use". It's usually incorrect unless in use by bluetooth. Pick com3 anyway (or next
available after bluetooth) up to 9 as indicated in the device manager). It will say it's in
use do you want to continue, click Yes.
Whatever com number you choose, make a note.

7. Find robwin7.1.14.msi (or later) and install RobWin 7. You may also use earlier
versions robwin6x.exe on the CD

8. Double-click robwin.exe to run.

9. RobWin defaults to COM1. If you have a computer with a regular serial port and have

been supplied with a 25/9 modem cable then COM 1 is correct. But for a USB COM
port change to the active com port (see 6 above). Click comm at the top, then
configure and make that the same number. Baud rate should be 19200.

10.Click Settings, Open file then enter R12R17.cfg

For the 6-axis versions enter R12R17-6.cfg
You are now ready to use RobWin7.

R12 Robot Manual page 8

5. POWERING UP THE CONTROLLER

To power up the controller, connect the power cord at the rear and operate the power switch,
which is integral with the power connector. You may have all other cables disconnected if you
wish. However be sure to turn off the power before you connect any rear cable, especially
the motor cable. When power is switched on the front TX light should flash which means it
has sent the opening message to the computer. You should see that in the communications
window of ROBWIN. If the light flashes but nothing appears on the screen then this indicates
a problem with the computer. Try clicking comms and select another COM port. If you have a
USB-serial converter make sure the COM port selected matches the port shown in the device
manager. Also make sure the baud rate is 19200.

The Mk5 controller CPU has Flash ROM and static RAM on the same PCB. Cold/warm/start
selection is a front panel key switch. The memory image is in flash ROM which is loaded to
RAM when you power up (or press reset). When powering up for the first time select COLD
start before you switch on. You will see a herald on screen that should include the words
COLD START.

Front panel designations:

FAIL: indicates power supply problem e.g. low mains voltage. When power is turned on it
stays lit until power supply is secure. Also lights when reset is pressed.
OK: opposite of fail, indicates good power supply.
TX: lights when serial data is passing from controller to computer
RX: lights when serial data is passing from computer to controller
STOP: stops robot motion (provided CPU is in control – see software manual)
RESET: resets CPU, DSP and other logic.
TEACH: teach pad input
COLD/WARM/AUTO switch – selects start-up mode when power is turned on or reset is
pressed. (see section 7)
RS232 – connects to computer.

Note: if neither FAIL nor OK are on the rear 12v fuse may be blown.

R12 Robot Manual page 9

If there is no message on screen press the reset button on the front panel and watch the
lights. The red led should light as you press the button. As you release the button the red led
goes out, the green light comes on and the yellow TX light should flash. If it flashes the
controller has sent characters up to the computer. Check the screen. If there is nothing there
check com port and baud rate.

Assuming you have the herald press the enter key and you should see
> OK

Press caps lock and you should now be able to type commands into the communications
window, see later.

Rear Fuses

Viewed from the rear of the controller from right to left:
Power connector has 2 fuses. These should be 6.5A anti-surge for 110v power and 3.5A ant-

surge for 220-240 power.

12v unregulated DC fuse. This should be 3 amp quick blow. The 5v logic (and lower) all

comes from the 12v regulated supply so if this fuse blows the whole controller is dead.
This supply emerges from the 9 way input and 15 way output connectors for users
sensors etc so if you are blowing 12v fuses the fault would be there.

24v unregulated DC fuse. 24v is an alternative for users external circuitry as most industrial

contactors etc are all 24v DC. Pneumatic valves can be 12v or 24v. The robot LEDs are
powered from 24v. To extinguish the LEDs remove this fuse OR to disable permanently
open the controller and remove the connector inside the rear of the cabinet. This is
identified as a single red wire into a blue HE14 connector – simply pull it off. Removing
the 24v fuse disables all 24v items such as 6th axis or electric gripper.

Stop Jack

Also on the rear panel is a jack plug. This is for the external stop circuit and has it’s terminals

linked inside the plug. If the jack plug is removed the robot will not run.