A Multi-Link Multi-Purpose Advanced Manipulator with a Large Handling Hemisphere for Out-Door Applications

Multi-link articulated booms have a multitude of applications in civil engineering, e.g. concrete pouring, building maintenance etc., but also firefighting. In the Kernforschungszentrum Karlsruhe (KfK) a new system with a multi-link articulated boom of 22.2 m maximum length and 6 rotary axes is under development in cooperation with Putzmeister-Werk. Our development is aimed at working the system like a large robot. Therefore a reprogrammable control system will allow for variable motions to perform a variety of preplanned handling tasks. Hierarchical control architecture was designed where the operator acts independently from machine details. This requires an elaborate man-machine interface which is based on a graphic display and a joystick. In an environment cluttered with objects which may hamper the moves of the manipulator an automatic search algorithm can be used to find a path for the tool center point (TCP) of the manipulator using a world model. This algorithm is based on a graph-method and will be described in detail. An interactive computer program was implemented to establish the world model by several methods. The paper describes mainly the basic methods for trajectory planning with collision detection and avoidance. It gives an overview over the whole project.