Course Offerings

Study the principles of collaborative robotics, their uses and applications, and proper operation and maintenance through in class modules and hands-on lab exercises. This fascinating course includes topics such as Introduction to Circuits, Electrical Instruments, Electrical Print Reading, Basics of Ladder Logic, Basic Programming, the Forces of Fluid Power, Safety for Hydraulics and Pneumatics, Introduction to Robotics, Robot Safety and Safety Devices, Robotic Drives, Hardware, Systems and Components, Robot Initial Installation and Start Up, Robotic Control Systems, Vision Systems, Basic Robot Operations Using Teach Pendant, Basic Robot Programming, Program File Manipulations, and Robot Troubleshooting.

Course Objectives

1. Gain a more advanced understanding of how electrical circuits work. Students will become familiar with circuit components, circuit diagrams, and the rules that govern circuits. Students will be able to describe and demonstrate the use of electrical meters to safely and accurately measure electrical variables in order to determine if electricity is flowing properly and safely through devices and circuits. This course will introduce students to the types of prints and symbols that they are most likely to see which will prepare them for reading and writing their own electrical prints. These are integral skills for working with electrical systems, since almost all electrical projects, from designing a circuit to troubleshooting one, involve electrical prints.
2. Gain a working knowledge of the basic principles of ladder logic, identifying the symbols used to program a Programmable Logic Controller (PLC) and explain the primary logic functions those symbols represent. The class will identify common PLC commands and describe how those commands can be used to program a controller.
3. Gain a comprehensive overview of fluid power transmission systems, from fluid characteristics and basic energy forms to force multiplication and the effect of fluid flow rate in a system. Students will gain a knowledge of the effects of pressurizing fluid system and how these pressurized systems are able to produce tremendous power with a minimal amount of effort. Students will understand the importance of maintaining constant fluid flow and its effects on system efficiency. Students will also receive a complete overview of the best safety and injury prevention practices for fluid power systems.
4. Gain a greater understanding of industrial robotics, including types, applications, and programming methods. Students will learn the advantages and disadvantages of Industrial Robots and be able to determine whether industrial or collaborative robots are more suitable for a given application.
5. Understand the importance of "Robot Safety" by reviewing and demonstrating the different ways to prevent robot accidents. Students will learn the importance of the robot's safeguards, the two kinds of safeguarding systems that protect employees from injury when working with robots, and why robots must be installed and maintained as intended by the manufacturer. Students will demonstrate how to properly make and verify adjustments as needed. Students will demonstrate knowledge of internal robot safety devices, their function, and external safety devices.
6. Students will identify teach pendant features and function. Students will demonstrate knowledge of the function of a robot controller, the end-of-arm tool (EOAT), and axis configuration functions.
7. Gain a greater understanding of the physical components of industrial and collaborative robots, and how these components operate and allow the robot to perform work. Students will also gain a greater understanding of how to properly interface with the robot through its pendant controller.
8. Students will jog the robot using the teach pendant, master and re-master the robot, identify common keys on the teach pendant, set up coordinate frames, identify basic errors, and perform fault recovery.
9. Demonstrate the basic steps for installing and maintaining industrial and/or collaborative robots, as well perform various start up methods and software setup.
10. Gain a greater understanding of the types of control systems used in robots. In addition, students will about the effects of Proportional-Integral-Derivative (PID) control in closed-loop control systems and how to tune a robotic system in order to achieve the desired performance.
11. Students will create various robot programs, identify variables to include in motion programs, plan a motion path, program inputs and outputs, and program non-motion logic structures and macros.
12. Students will backup/restore individual and system files, and perform image backup and restore.
13. Students will establish communication to peripheral devices, configure input/output, and set end-of-arm tooling parameters.
14. Students will troubleshoot configuration errors and Dual Check Safety (DCS) errors.
15. Students will determine the function and use of simulations, their knowledge of simulator screen layout, prepare simulations for the robot model, jog the robot, define parts and fixtures within the simulation, create a robot TP program for the simulation, create the simulation, execute the simulation, match the real cell to RoboDK, and transfer this simulation to the real world.
16. Gain an understanding of how vision systems work and how they are used in robotics. Students will also gain an understanding of camera and light mounting and be able to explain potential concerns with these systems.
17. Learn the use of a systematic approach in solving issues that cause robotic malfunction. Students will develop an understanding of the complexity of robotic assemblies and how assembly components can malfunction. Students will demonstrate the ability to troubleshoot motors, end effectors, and joints. Students will learn to identify the root cause of a problem rather than simply addressing the symptoms, then identify a corrective action that will resolve the root problem.

Outline of Instruction

1. Intermediate Electrical Theory
o Lecture - Introduction to Circuits, Electrical Instruments, and Electrical Print Reading
o Lab: Students will describe how electrical circuits work and demonstrate the use of electrical measuring instruments to determine if electricity is flowing properly through devices and circuits.
2. Intermediate PLC
o Lecture - Basics of Ladder Logic and Basic Programming
o Lab: Students will identify common PLC Commands and describe how those commands can be used to program a controller.
3. Intermediate Pneumatics
o Lecture - The Forces of Fluid Power and Safety for Hydraulics and Pneumatics
o Lab: Students will discuss pneumatic safety hazards and corrective measures. Students will then build an advanced pneumatic circuit and verify it's functionality, including inputs and outputs.
4. Review of the Basics of Industrial Robotics
o Lecture - Introduction to Robotics
o Lab: Students will identify and describe the basic components of a robot's body and arm(s), including a description of the axis of movement for the robotic arm. Students will then describe the coordinate systems used to program a robot's movement, and review stationary and mobile industrial robots and appropriate applications for each.
5. Advanced Robot Safety
o Lecture - Robot Safety
o Lab: Students will identify common types of robot accidents, with a concentration on eliminating hazardous robot movement. Students will demonstrate common controls for stopping robot motion in emergencies. They will also demonstrate how to perform lockout/tag-out procedures for robots, and review NIOSH guidelines for robot safety.
6. Robotic Drives, Hardware and Components
o Lecture - Robotic Drives, Hardware and Components
o Lab: Students will describe and demonstrate items used in robots such as frames and frame material, robot joints, bearings, hydraulics drives, pneumatic drives, servomotors and encoders, transmissions, ballscrews, sensors, wiring and hoses. Students will also demonstrate the methods robotic axis control, and describe sensors for robots.
7. Robot Installation
o Lecture - Robot Installations
o Lab: Students will describe and demonstrate packing/unpacking and transporting the robot, installing the robot and the controller, making connections of power, grounding and other cables, robotic start-up, writing and loading programs, and troubleshooting the robotic assembly.
8. Robotic Control Systems
o Lecture - Robotic Control Systems
o Lab: Students will describe and demonstrate the use of position control systems, line diagrams, and PLC programming devices. Students will also describe and demonstrate the use of PID controls systems, open-loop control systems, and closed-loop control systems. Students will then describe and demonstrate the use of servo drives and servomotors, controller tuning and tuning maintenance.
9. Vision Systems
o Lecture - Vision Systems
o Lab: Students will describe and demonstrate the use of vision system for Industrial Robots including the concepts of linear array, matrix arrays, machine vision, pixel display, camera mounting, image intensity, Vidicon vs. Solid State cameras, lighting, lighting devices, laser vision and machine vision applications.
10. Robot Troubleshooting
o Lecture - Robot Troubleshooting
o Lab: Students will learn the basic troubleshooting process, useful troubleshooting tools, and common robotic malfunction root causes and corrective actions. Students will describe and demonstrate collection and organization of troubleshooting information, as well as the use of troubleshooting manuals and flow charts, assessment of troubleshooting costs, working backwards, the 5 Whys Technique, implementation of corrective actions, temporary vs. permanent corrective actions, and system testing following corrective action.

Contact Hours

132

CEUs

No

Industry Standard, State or National Certification

Certification

FANUC and Smart Automation Certification Alliance

Website

saca.org; fanucamerica.com

Certification Learning Outcomes/Requirements

- Intermediate understanding of electrical systems and circuits
- Understanding PLCs, ladder logic, and PLC commands
- Comprehensive knowledge of fluid power transmission systems
- Understanding of different robotics types, their applications, and programming methods
- Expanded knowledge of robotic safety
- Use of robotic pendants and configuration functions
- Increased knowledge of robotics components and hardware
- Demonstrated ability to have robots perform complex tasks
- Basic understanding of installing and maintaining collaborative and industrial robots
- Increased knowledge of different robotics control systems
- Creating robotic programs
- Perform file/image backups and restore files
- Establishing communication between robots and peripherals
- Determine the function and use of simulations, knowledge of simulator screen layout, prepare simulations for the robot model, define parts and fixtures within the simulation, create a program for simulations, create the simulation, and execute the simulation
- Gain understanding of how vision systems work and how they are used in robotics
- Learn robotics troubleshooting methods

CE or CU Articulation

No

Prerequisites

Completion of Collaborative Robotics Technician Level 1.

Learning Supplies Needed

Student guides, Collaborative Robots, Robotics Systems training panels and associated tools and equipment.

Clinical Site/Special Facilities

Advanced Manufacturing Center; 8 Fanuc ER-4iA industrial robots.

Requirements for Successful Completion

90% attendance
Completion of all modules with a minimum score of 75% for each module.

Accreditation/Special Approval Requirements

N/A

Intended Audience

This course is intended for personnel who wish to be employed in an industry position that utilizes Manufacturing Production Technicians, Industrial Maintenance Technicians, Electrical Technicians, and Control Technicians.

Specific Industry or Business Support Needs

Robotics Operator; Robotics Technician Level I, II, or III

Wake County Need for Industry Positions

This is a skills gap area for light manufacturing in Wake County that is dependent on skilled technicians to keep manufacturing systems operating.

Industry or Job Titles Related to Training Outcomes for Employment

Robotics Operator

Robotics Technician Level I

Robotics Technician Level II

Robotics Technician Level III

Related Courses

MEC-3010K1

Course Contact Information