ROKAE Calibration Program
This topic introduces the process of automatic hand-eye calibration when a ROKAE robot communicates with Mech-Mind Vision System through Standard Interface.
| Before proceeding, please make sure that you have finished the sections in Set up Standard Interface Communication with ROKAE previous to Test Standard Interface Communication. |
Preparation before Calibration
Make preparation before calibration according to the camera mounting method.
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If the camera is mounted in the Eye to Hand method, see Preparation before Calibration in Automatic Calibration in the Eye-to-Hand Setup.
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If the camera is mounted in the Eye in Hand method, see Preparation before Calibration in Automatic Calibration in the Eye-in-Hand Setup.
Pre-calibration Configuration
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Open Mech-Vision, and click the Camera Calibration button in the toolbar. The Configuration before Calibration window will be prompted.
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Confirm that the checks are performed, click I’ve finished all checks, and then click Next.
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In the Select how to calibrate window, select the New calibration radio button, and then click the Next button.
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In the Select calibration task window, select Hand-eye calibration for listed robot from the drop-down list box, click the Select robot model button to select the robot model used by the project, and then click the Next button.
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In the Select camera setup window, select the camera mounting method in this project, and then click the Next button.
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In the Calibration method and robot control window, select Automatic and Standard Interface, and then click the Calibrate button to go to the Calibration window.
Calibration Procedure
Conduct calibration according to the camera mounting method.
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If the camera is mounted in the Eye to Hand method, see Calibration Procedure in Automatic Calibration in the Eye-to-Hand Setup.
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If the camera is mounted in the Eye in Hand method, see Calibration Procedure in Automatic Calibration in the Eye-in-Hand Setup.
Precautions
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When you proceed to the third calibration step (connecting the robot) and you click Start interface service button in the Connect the robot window, the button will change to Waiting for the robot to connect.... If the interface service is already started, you do not need to perform this operation.
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When the button displays Waiting for the robot to connect..., perform the following steps on the robot side. Then, continue the calibration in the software.
1. Teach Calibration Start Point
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Move the robot to the start point for calibration.
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In the Project Manager window on the teach pendant, select the MM_Project folder and press Load.
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Select the “MoveJ camera_capture,v1000,fine,tool0” line, press Update Position, and then select OK in the pop-up window.
If there is a 7th axis which is controlled by the robot on site, modify “IsAxis7 = false” to “IsAxis7 = true” and modify the value of Axis7 accordingly (Axis7 = XX, XX refers to the current value of the 7th axis). If there is not a 7th axis, or the 7th axis is controlled by a PLC, you can skip this step.
2. Run Calibration Program
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Please refer to Test Standard Interface Communication to run the calibration program.
When the message “MM:Init connection successfully” appears in the dialog box on the teach pendant, press the Execute button as shown below again to continue the calibration program.
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The following message is displayed in the print window of the teach pendant interface: “MMIND Calibration Start!”.
When, in the Configuration window in Mech-Vision, the current status changes to connected and the button Waiting for the robot to connect changes to Disconnect robot, click Next. Next, proceed to the fourth step of the calibration process (i.e. setting the movement path).
| If the robot does not reach the next calibration point within 60 seconds, Mech-Vision will report a timeout error and stop the calibration process. In such cases, please select and run the calibration program on the teach pendant again, and restart the calibration process in Mech-Vision. |
Change the Extrinsic Parameter File
If the camera’s extrinsic parameter file has been used by a Mech-Vision project, you need to change the extrinsic parameter file used by the Mech-Vision project to a new one after you finish the hand-eye calibration.
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Select the Capture Images from Camera Step.
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In the Step Parameters panel, click
of the Calibration Parameter Group parameter, and select the newly calibrated extrinsic parameter file.
Calibration-Related Status Codes
During automatic calibration via Standard Interface communication, the vision system returns data together with the status code to the robot. Status codes, which are categorized into error codes and normal status codes, indicate the command execution status. Calibration related status codes are listed in the tables below.