5-Axis Robot Design for Loading and Unloading Workpieces

Abstract

In this paper, a 5-axis robot capable of loading and unloading workpieces on an automatic lathe was designed and manufactured. This robot consists of 1 axis of vertical movement, 3 axes of horizontal rotation, and 1 axis of 90 degrees rotation gripper. The height of the gripper is performed by a vertical movement mechanism, the horizontal position is performed by three actuators, and the horizontal and vertical position of the workpiece is performed by a rotating gripper. Rotary gripper is used to feed and eject workpieces into and out of the lathe chuck. In order to control the 5-axis robot, the forward kinematics and inverse kinematics were derived, and simulations were conducted based on the results. Structural analysis was conducted to design the robot, and based on the results, a 5-axis robot was manufactured. A characteristic test was conducted on the fabricated 5-axis robot, and as a result, it was determined that the 5-axis robot could safely load and unload workpieces on an automatic lathe.