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A virtual sensor implementation for a flexible assembly machine

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  09 March 2009

J. J. Rowland
Affiliation:
Centre for Intelligent Systems, Department of Computer Science, University of Wales, Aberystwyth, Dyfed SY23 3BZ, (U.K.)
H. R. Nicholls
Affiliation:
Centre for Intelligent Systems, Department of Computer Science, University of Wales, Aberystwyth, Dyfed SY23 3BZ, (U.K.)

Summary

We describe a sensor integration system which we have designed and implemented for a large fully-integrated flexible assembly machine. The machine was developed by a consortium to explore the design and implementation issues involved. The sensor integration system was designed for execution on a multiple transputer architecture, and co-ordinates all the sensory information in the machine. It uses the concept of virtual sensing to provide sensory data at an appropriate level of abstraction to the machine supervisor, which controls execution of the assembly tasks.

Type
Articles
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 1995

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