Software Architecture for Safety, Ergonomics, and Interaction for Industrial Mobile Robotic Platforms

Abstract

Robots in industrial scenarios are having growing roles. Industrial scenarios are the most applied scenarios in the robotics field. Among the different scenarios of robots, many of them are having different interactions with human workers. Industrial robotics offers a very competitive economic advantage as it can perform a wide range of tasks. However, the main challenge comes to insure the safety and engagement of the human worker in the context of human-robot interaction. In this paper we propose a novel software architecture to monitor and analyze the safety, ergonomics, and social interaction of the human worker and the surrounding environment. And based on the analyzed scenario, the architecture is executing the required action to optimize and achieve the designed behavior for the required task. The architecture is using the state of the art visual sensory (neuromorphic cameras) and is designed for a mobile robotic platform that interacts physically with a human worker in different scenarios. Safety, ergonomics, and social interaction are three crucial factors that insures the workers’ well-being and avoid injuries in the work environment. The paper is presenting the overall designed architecture and the software implementation of the communication system that processes multiple visual processes to get a high-level understanding of the situation and further execute actions by the robot.