Development of high precision robotic arm-based bike frame measurement system

Currently, the quality check of bike frame still heavily relies on human operation. In practice, an entire checking process usually takes more than 30 min to complete. To overcome this dilemma, this paper aims to develop a fast high-precision measurement system using robotic arm based on 3D geometry mathematical model. Instead of four points needed to find coefficients of a space sphere, only three investigation points are required to achieve the sphere axis coordinates for measurement. The personal computer (PC) works as a control core, which to perform the mathematical model and control robotic arm movement. The robotic arm combined with contact sensor (probe) is used to move to the desired inspection points in shaft length, internal diameter, verticality, and parallelism following up the designated path planning route. The experimental results confirm that the proposed system can accurately reach the measurement outcomes. The entire checking cycle can be completed in 3 min at the range of 0.15 mm error, effectively reducing the process time with a high precision.

Automated summary

This paper develops a fast high-precision measurement system for bike frame using a robotic arm and a 3D geometry mathematical model. With only three investigation points, the system can accurately measure the sphere axis coordinates of the frame. Experimental results show that the proposed system can complete the entire checking process in a short time with high precision.