Set up Standard Interface Communication with ABB (RobotWare 6)

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This topic introduces the process of setting up the Standard Interface communication with an ABB robot.

Check Controller and Software Compatibility

  • Robot: a 4-axis or 6-axis ABB robot

  • RobotWare Option: 616-1 PC Interface
    Please follow the steps as shown in the figure below to check whether the option has been installed.

check version1
check version2
check installation
The 616-1 PC Interface option must be installed to establish the Standard Interface communication.

Set up the Network Connection

Hardware Connection

Plug the Ethernet cable of the IPC into the X6 (WAN) port of the robot controller, as shown below.

port

IP Address Configuration

You can set the IP on the teach pendant or via RobotStudio.

  • Set the IP on the teach pendant:

    • Follow the steps as shown in the figures below to start boot application.

      ip setting1
      ip setting2
      ip setting3
    ip setting4
    • After restarting, you will see the interface as shown below. Follow the steps below to complete configuring the IP address. The IP addresses of the robot and the IPC must belong to the same subnet.

ip setting5
ip setting6
ip setting7
ip setting8
ip setting9
ip setting10
  • Set the IP via RobotStudio: Follow the steps as shown in the figure below to configure the robot IP address, and restart the robot after configuration.

ip setting11
  • Check if the IP configuration was successful:

ip setting12
ip setting13

Set up “Robot and Interface Configuration” in Mech-Vision

  1. Click Robot and Interface Configuration in the toolbar of Mech-Vision.

  2. Select Listed robot from the Select robot drop-down menu, and then click Select robot model. Select the ABB robot model that you use, and then click Next.

  3. In Communication Option, select Standard Interface for Interface Type, TCP Server and HEX-Little endian for Protocol, and then click Apply.

    configure communication 1
  4. Make sure the Interface Service is started: in the toolbar of Mech-Vision, the Interface Service switch on the far right is flipped and turned to blue.

configure communication 2

Load the Program Files to the Robot

Cautions

Please back up the robot system before operating the robot, so that you can restore the system if any error occurred.

  • Backup on the teach pendant

    1. Go to the home page using the menu in the upper-left corner, and then select Restart.

      backup1
    2. Select Backup Current System….

      backup2
    3. Specify the backup file name by pressing on ABC…, and specify the directory for saving the file by pressing the button below. Then, press Backup in the lower-right to start the backup process.

    backup3

Prepare the Program Files

Copy the following two program modules, i.e., the program files, from Mech-Center\Robot_Interface\ABB in the installation directory of Mech-Mind Software Suite and paste them into the flash drive.

  • MM_Module.mod

  • MM_Auto_Calib.mod

Load the Files to the Robot

You can load the program modules (i.e., MM_Module.mod and MM_Auto_Calib.mod) with the teach pendant or via RobotStudio.

  • Load the modules with the teach pendant:

    • Tap Program Editor.

      copy file1
    • Tap Tasks and Programs.

      copy file2
    • Select T_ROB1 and tap Show Modules.

      copy file3
    • Select File  Load Module.

      copy file4
    • Select MM_Module.mod in the USB flash drive and tap OK to load the module.

      copy file5
    • Select Yes in the pop-up window to confirm adding a new module.

    copy file6
    • Follow the instruction above to load MM_Auto_Calib.mod. Then you can check whether the two files have been loaded successfully under T_ROB1.

copy file7
  • Load the modules via RobotStudio:

    • Open RobotStudio and Connect to the controller.

      • If the robot controller is connected via the LAN port, click One Click Connect….

        load program1
      • If the robot controller is connected via the WAN port or a switch, click Add Controller and then select the controller and click OK. If the controller is added successfully, RobotStudio will be connected to the service port of the controller automatically.

      load program2
    • Request write access: Click Request Write Access to request the write access to the teach pendant.

      load program2 1

      Press Grant in the Request Write Access window on the teach pendant.

    • As shown in the figure below, find and right-click T_ROB1, and select Load Module in the menu.

      load program3
    • Select the program module files and click Open.

      load program4
    • Check if the two programs appear under T_ROB1.

    load program5

Further Configurations

  1. Select the MM_Auto_Calib module, and tap Show Module.

    load program6
  2. Open the MM_Calibration program.

    load program6 1
  3. Change the IP address in the program to the IP address of the IPC. If the host port number set in Mech-Vision is modified, the port number 50000 here should be modified accordingly to make it consistent with the host port number set in Mech-Vision.

    load program7

Test Robot Connection

Test Connection

  1. On the teach pendant, tap Debug  PP to Routine.

    connect robot3
  2. Select MM_Calibration, and tap OK.

    connect robot4
  3. Tap the single-step execution button on the teach pendant to execute the program until the PP moves to line 9.

    connect robot4 1
  4. If the following message appears on the teach pendant, then the robot can be connected successfully.

    connect robot5

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