Track: Undergraduate Student Paper Competition

Abstract

Older generation robot-based production lines necessitate the adaptation to Industry 4.0 standards for smart manufacturing within the factory. Combining assisted reality technology with industrial internet of things (IIoT) networking systems into a robotic manufacturing cell enables communication of critical data to any individual, independently of the human’s state.  Through assisted reality, the human is unencumbered by a tablet, laptop, or Human-Machine Interface and free to navigate other tasks, while passively monitoring the progress of the production cell. This paper presents the integration of assisted reality and IIoT into an older generation robotic cell. The robustness of the IIoT application is validated through the integration of a diversified range of devices. These devices include an older generation industrial robot, a modern programmable logic controller, a Raspberry Pi embedded system, a series of external digital devices, an industrial analog weight sensor and a custom designed low-cost analog opacity sensor. A system was developed to prove the feasibility of modernizing an older generation robotic cell without altering its technology. The system was tested under multiple conditions, involving data passing through the IIoT, and was found to be reliable in reporting statistics and adapting to user input for 1 hour or 50 cycles.