Acoustic contacting detection in robotic accurate assembly

In accurate assembly, small position uncertainties of robot end effector might result in large force and break fragile parts potentially. Contacting of assembly parts is a key information to terminate such procedure. Traditional way is to adopt strain gauge load cell to detect contacting. However, the drawbacks of this type of load cell is short lifetime and low sensitivity. In this paper, we presents an acoustic contacting detection including basic principle and feasibility studies. Finally, the proposed method is implemented in a demonstration assembly case.