Part 8/10
When humans and robots work together, a number of safety requirements must be taken into account. Especially in the social sector, where robots are close to people, risks must be identified and limited in advance. We would like to explain how we dealt with this in this article.
For safe collaboration between humans and robots, there are so-called human-robot collaborations. These are robots with reduced power and performance and have safety functions, such as sensors for collision detection. In order to avoid collisions and possible injuries, the system needs to know when an intentional and when an unintentional approach to a person is taking place.
The sensors play a decisive role here. Proximity sensors can detect objects and people in the environment, strength sensors can measure the force when gripping and speed sensors can be used to limit the speed of movements in certain situations.
To ensure the safety of the robot system, the sensors must be tested during training at the University of Applied Sciences Offenburg. For example, virtual restricted areas are to be set up in which the robot is not allowed to move. And the speed of the system is to be restricted in defined safety zones in order to prevent the risk of injury to people. The system can only be used in social settings after a successful training.
The privacy protection is another security aspect that needs to be taken into account. The use of cameras also makes this an important issue. Among other things, we have decided to minimize the focus range of the camera so that people are not in focus.
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