[7thAxis]

New to RobotDk, been using it for a week or two. 

I need help with the following please:

- Mating components together.

Is there a easy way to generate mates between two objects? Most CAD packages allow the user to select planes/surfaces on an object so they can be made concentric, coincident, parallel, tangent, etc to each other.

Does RobotDK support this? I can move the Object Position, but its slow, clumsy and I'm never truly sure if I am where I want to be.

- Establishing a Reference Frame on a part that has a corner radius.

I'm trying to establish a reference frame on a part that has a corner radius like the one pictured, see attachment. I understand having the origin of the CAD model in that location would be a quick solution, but it's not always possible. 

I've watched the YT videos about reference frames and how to move them, but I can't figure out how to use the Measure tool in conjunction to make accurate adjustments to move the reference frame to that location. What does the Measure tool use as a reference, the active frame?

Any help is greatly appreciated.

[Albert]

In RoboDK you can define your coordinate system exactly at the location you are showing by right clicking on a coordinate system and selecting Define Reference Frame. Make sure to touch the 3 points using a calibrated tool.
   

You can find more information here:
https://robodk.com/doc/en/General.html#CalibrateFrame

[7thAxis]

Hi Albert,

Thank you for your reply. 

I still don't understand. Can a reference frame not be defined or established without setting a tool? 

Am I approaching this incorrectly by thinking of a reference frame like a Work Coordinate System in CAM? One can set a WCS,  arrange and establish the work area before even selecting a tool, then proceed to select the correct tooling for the job.

My application is pick and place, but my grippers may differ, so I would like to set up the station first before selecting a gripper. 

This is what I am currently doing to achieve the results I am after, but its slow and won't work if the origin is not at the center of the model or if its an odd shape:

1. Click +Reference Frame
   
2. Import the rectangle box CAD model into the new Reference Frame
   
3. Double click on the Rectangle box, adjust rotation and orientation
   
4. Use the measure tool to the measure the length, width and height of the box
   
5. Adjust Box Geometry by half the length, width, height to move the Reference Frame to the corner.
   

Thanks for the help
Hi Albert,

Thank you for your reply. 

I still don't understand. Can a reference frame not be defined or established without setting a tool? 

Am I approaching this incorrectly by thinking of a reference frame like a Work Coordinate System in CAM? One can set a WCS,  arrange and establish the work area before even selecting a tool, then proceed to select the correct tooling for the job.

My application is pick and place, but my grippers may differ, so I would like to set up the station first before selecting a gripper. 

This is what I am currently doing to achieve the results I am after, but its slow and won't work if the origin is not at the center of the model or if its an odd shape:

- Click +Reference Frame
- Import the rectangle box CAD model into the new Reference Frame
- Double click on the Rectangle box, adjust rotation and orientation
- Use the measure tool to the measure the length, width and height of the box
- Adjust Box Geometry by half the length, width, height to move the Reference Frame to the corner.

Thanks for the help

[Albert]

Your understanding of a reference frame is correct. This is the same as a Work Coordinate system. In short, you may see the following terms as a synonym of a reference frame:

1. Reference frame
   
2. Frame
   
3. Coordinate system
   
4. UFRAME, or User Frame (Fanuc)
   
5. Work Object, Workobject or wobjdata (ABB)
   
6. Work Coordinate System (or WCS, it is common to see this with CAD/CAM software)
   

In short this is the position of something with respect to something else. In robotics, this is usually the position of the part with respect to the robot base. You can find more information about reference frames here:
https://robodk.com/doc/en/Basic-Guide.html#RefFrames

You can create the Reference frame by only using points and the Measure tool (select Tools-Measure Tool) within RoboDK (purely simulation). However, if you want to know the exact location of your object with respect to your robot base it is better if you take those points using the real robot. To know the location of these points, you need to use a well defined tool (TCP), therefore, it is recommended to calibrate the tool first.

If you can share your project we may be able to help you better.

[7thAxis]

Hi Albert,

I attached a station. The object is a simple box with its CAD origin offset.

All I want to do is align the Reference Frame so that it can be located on the corner of the box like the picture above. 

It looks like RobotDK doesn't support/approach Mates like most CAD packages do. So this was my approach, but I am not getting the results I want. Open the Measure tool, select a plane on the object, somehow select the Reference Frame, and get the distance between the Frame and the plane. Move the object that distance so the selected plane can be coincident with the Reference Frame. Then repeat this process two more times on two planes to establish the Reference Frame on the corner. 

I've attempted to do this, with multiple Measure tool configurations, and still no luck. 

This is a ridiculously simple task, so clearly I am doing something wrong. Can you please enlighten me with a step by step explanation.

Any help is appreciated. 

Thanks

[Sergei]

Please take a look at the following video

[Albert]

You can follow these steps to place a coordinate system based on points from the 3D model in RoboDK:

1. Select Program-Add Reference Frame.
   
2. Place the reference frame attached to the same coordinate system as the 3D model (drag and drop it within the tree).
   
3. Right click on the new reference frame and select Define Reference Frame.
   
4. Set Calibrate using: Points.
   
5. Set the reference right beside points to the parent reference (same parent coordinate system as the new coordinate system or the object).
   
6. Select Tools-Measure to open the Measure tool.
   
7. Remove the Absolute option (press the Absolute button if it is selected).
   
8. Measure the 3 points as required by the method chosen in the Define Reference Frame menu. Use the Measure Tool to get the coordinates of the points with respect to the object reference. You can copy/paste the 3D coordinates with the copy/paste buttons.
   
9. Select Update once you have the 3 points. You should then see the coordinate system placed in the right location.
   

I attached the result of this procedure.

[7thAxis]

Sergei, 

Thank you for the video. This is exactly what I wanted to do, I guess my error was not inversing the values, as shown in your video. This was causing the Frame to shift in the opposite direction.

Albert, 

I also could not get this to work until I inversed the X, Y, Z values that where output from the Calibration. 


Thanks again for the help.

[Albert]

Great, thank you for your feedback.