AUTOMATED TOOL MONITORING-SYSTEM USING VISION SYSTEM FOR A ROBOTIC CELL

Unattended machining of manufacturing parts is not attainable without the assistance of some type of automated tool monitoring capabilities. This paper describes the elements of an integrated manufacturing cell consisting of a vision system and a robot equipped with a drill. The vision system has a two-fold function: tool monitoring and part recogn ition. The developed algorithms and methodology for tool monitoring ha ve been described with actual results of a drilling operation. In addi tion, a summary of the part recognition procedure is also included.