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Article
Publication date: 1 March 1993

R. Benhadj, B. Dawson and M.M.A. Safa

The mainstream of current research work in array tactile sensors concentrates on using a soft compliant membrane as a means of transmitting the effect of variable external stimuli…

Abstract

The mainstream of current research work in array tactile sensors concentrates on using a soft compliant membrane as a means of transmitting the effect of variable external stimuli to the discrete sensing elements. The soft compliant devices are usually made of a thin flexible substrate such as pressure sensitive pads, conductive materials, conductive coatings, piezoelectric polymers or elastomers. A large number of tactile sensor designs using these types of materials have been investigated by researchers. These include the use of anisotropically conductive silicone rubber (ACS), sponges containing carbon particles or felted carbon fibres, piezoelectric polymers such as polyvinylidene fluoride (PVF2) and conductive elastomers such as Dynacom materials consisting of silicone rubber mixed with metallic compounds.

Details

Sensor Review, vol. 13 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0260-2288

Article
Publication date: 1 April 1993

R. Benhadj, S. Sadeque and B. Dawson

Recognition of a tactile image independent of position, size and orientation has been a goal of much recent research. Many tasks (e.g. parts identification) often give rise to…

Abstract

Recognition of a tactile image independent of position, size and orientation has been a goal of much recent research. Many tasks (e.g. parts identification) often give rise to situations which demand a more generalized methodology than the derivation of a single forward measurement, such as the computation of part area and perimeter from its run‐length‐coding representation. In this situation, an interpretation procedure generally adopts the techniques and methodology of a pattern recognition approach. To achieve maximum utility and flexibility, the methods used should be sensitive to any image change in size, translation and rotation, and should provide good repeatability. The algorithm used in this article generally meets these conditions. The results show that recognition schemes based on these invariants are position, size and orientation independent, and also flexible enough to learn most sets of parts. Assuming that parts can vary only in location, orientation and size, then certain moments are very convenient for normalization. For instance, the first moments of area give the centroid of a part, which is a natural origin of co‐ordinates for translation invariant measurements. Similarly, the eigenvectors of the matrix of second central moments define the directions of principal axes, which leads to rotation moment invariant measurements.

Details

Sensor Review, vol. 13 no. 4
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0260-2288

Article
Publication date: 1 March 2000

R. Benhadj and R.L. Roome

This paper describes the development and the performance characteristics of a pneumatic proximity‐to‐tactile sensing device for automated recognition of manufacturing parts within…

Abstract

This paper describes the development and the performance characteristics of a pneumatic proximity‐to‐tactile sensing device for automated recognition of manufacturing parts within flexible manufacturing environments. This tactile sensing device utilises a densely packed line array of IC piezoresistive pressure sensors, providing continuous variable back pressure output. The sensing elements incorporate a corresponding line matrix of air jets which form an air cushion between the sensing plane and the target when striking the object of interest. The back pressure output levels form the basis for the tasks of object detection and recognition. The system described is a research prototype and has been evaluated on a simple test rig: in this form it is not at a stage where it can be applied to a recognition situation on the shop floor.

Details

Sensor Review, vol. 20 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0260-2288

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 September 2002

A.K. Ouazzane and R. Benhadj

The sensitivity of differential‐pressure flow meters to the quality of the approaching flow continues to be a cause for concern to flow meter manufacturers and users. Distortions…

1326

Abstract

The sensitivity of differential‐pressure flow meters to the quality of the approaching flow continues to be a cause for concern to flow meter manufacturers and users. Distortions to the approaching velocity profiles generated by pipe fittings and installations located upstream of a flow meter, can lead to considerable errors in flow metering. This cannot be ignored because of the likely cost and process efficiency implications. This paper describes the effects of various entrance flow velocity profiles on the performance of an orifice flow meter with and without flow conditioning. Asymmetric swirling velocity profiles were generated by a ball valve. These caused significant shifts to the meter’s calibration. The use of a vaned‐plate flow conditioner, consisting of six vanes attached to a 70 per cent porosity plate, greatly improved the performance of the meter. Thus, the device can be used as part of a flow metering package that will have considerably reduced installation lengths. The less‐sophisticated NEL plate proved to be a good flow straightener, i.e. a good swirl remover, but was not an efficient flow conditioner.

Details

Sensor Review, vol. 22 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0260-2288

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 9 September 2013

Ahmad ‘Athif Mohd Faudzi, Khairuddin Osman, Mohd Fua'ad Rahmat, Koichi Suzumori, Nu'man Din Mustafa and Muhammad Asyraf Azman

Intelligent pneumatic actuator (IPA) is a new generation of actuator developed for Research and Development (R&D) purposes in the academic and industrial fields. The purpose of…

Abstract

Purpose

Intelligent pneumatic actuator (IPA) is a new generation of actuator developed for Research and Development (R&D) purposes in the academic and industrial fields. The purpose of this paper is to show the application of optical encoder and pressure sensor in IPA, to develop a real-time model similar to the existing devices, and to assess the position control performance using a proportional-integrative (PI) controller and a bang-bang controller in real-time.

Design/methodology/approach

A micro optical encoder chip is used to detect cylinder rod position by reading constructed laser stripes on a guide rod, whereas a pressure sensor is used to detect the chamber pressure reading. To control the cylinder movements by manipulating pulse-width modulation (PWM) cycles, two unit valves of two ports and two positions were used. A PI controller and a bang-bang controller are used with suitable gain value to drive the valve using PWM to achieve the target actuator position.

Findings

The results show the experimental results of the closed-loop position tracking performance of the system using a data acquisition (DAQ) card over MATLAB software.

Originality/value

This paper presents a real-time model used to replace the microcontroller-based system from previous IPA design. The paper proposes two control strategies, PI and bang-bang, to control position using encoder and pressure reading.

Article
Publication date: 6 September 2021

Akram Bedeoui, Riadh Ben Hadj, Moncef Hammadi and Nizar Aifaoui

During the design of a new product, the generation of assembly sequences plans (ASPs) has become one of the most important problems taken into account by researchers. In fact, a…

Abstract

Purpose

During the design of a new product, the generation of assembly sequences plans (ASPs) has become one of the most important problems taken into account by researchers. In fact, a good mounting order allows the time decrease of the assembly process which leads to the reduction of production costs. In this context, researchers developed several methods to generate and optimize ASP based on various criteria. Although this paper aims to improve the quality of ASP it is necessary to increase the number of criteria which must be taken into account when generating ASPs.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, an ASP generation approach, which is based on three main algorithms, is proposed. The first one generates a set of assembly sequences based on stability criteria. The obtained results are treated by the second algorithm which is based on assembly tools (ATs) workspace criterion. An illustrative example is used to explain the different steps of this proposed approach. Moreover, a comparative study is done to highlight its advantages.

Findings

The proposed algorithm verifies, for each assembly sequence, the minimal required workspace of used AT and eliminates the ASPs non-respecting this criterion. Finally, the remaining assembly sequences are treated by the third algorithm to reduce the AT change during the mounting operation.

Originality/value

The proposed approach introduces the concept of AT workspace to simulate and select ASPs that respect this criterion. The dynamic interference process allows the eventual collision detection between tool and component and avoids it. The proposed approach reduces the AT change during the mounting operations.

Details

Assembly Automation, vol. 41 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-5154

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 1 March 2005

A. Ahmadi and S.B.M. Beck

The sensitivity of orifice plate metering to poorly conditioned and swirling flows are subjects of concerns to flow meter users and manufacturers. The distortions caused by pipe…

1222

Abstract

Purpose

The sensitivity of orifice plate metering to poorly conditioned and swirling flows are subjects of concerns to flow meter users and manufacturers. The distortions caused by pipe fittings and pipe installations upstream of the orifice plate are major sources of this type of non‐standard flows. These distortions will alter the accuracy of metering up to an unacceptable degree.Design/methodology/approach – The design of orifice plate meters that are independent of the initial flow conditions of the upstream is a major object of flow metering. Either using a long straight pipe or a flow conditioner upstream of an orifice plate usually achieves this goal. The effect of cone swirler flow conditioner for both standard and non‐standard flow conditions has been carried out in the experimental rig. The measuring of mass flow rate under different conditions and different Reynolds numbers were used to establish a change in discharge coefficient relative to a standard one.Findings – The experimental results using the cone swirler flow conditioner showed that the combination of an orifice plate and cone swirler flow conditioner is broadly insensitive to upstream disturbances. The results clearly show that this flow conditioner can attenuate the effect of both swirling and asymmetric flows on metering to an acceptable level.Originality/value – Previous work on the orifice plate has shown that the concept has promise. The results of using a combination of a cone swirler and orifice plate for non‐standard flow conditions including swirling flow and asymmetric flow show this package can preserve the accuracy of metering up to the level required in the standards, providing that a new discharge coefficient is used for the combined swirler and orifice plate.

Details

Sensor Review, vol. 25 no. 1
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0260-2288

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 2 June 2020

Zhongxiang Zhou, Liang Ji, Rong Xiong and Yue Wang

In robot programming by demonstration (PbD) of small parts assembly tasks, the accuracy of parts poses estimated by vision-based techniques in demonstration stage is far from…

Abstract

Purpose

In robot programming by demonstration (PbD) of small parts assembly tasks, the accuracy of parts poses estimated by vision-based techniques in demonstration stage is far from enough to ensure a successful execution. This paper aims to develop an inference method to improve the accuracy of poses and assembly relations between parts by integrating visual observation with computer-aided design (CAD) model.

Design/methodology/approach

In this paper, the authors propose a spatial information inference method called probabilistic assembly graph with optional CAD model, shorted as PAGC*, to achieve this task. Then an assembly relation extraction method from CAD model is designed, where different assembly relation descriptions in CAD model are summarized into two fundamental relations that are colinear and coplanar. The relation similarity, distance similarity and rotation similarity are adopted as the similar part matching criterions between the CAD model and the observation. The knowledge of part in CAD is used to correct that of the corresponding part in observation. The likelihood maximization estimation is used to infer the accurate poses and assembly relations based on the probabilistic assembly graph.

Findings

In the experiments, both simulated data and real-world data are applied to evaluate the performance of the PAGC* model. The experimental results show the superiority of PAGC* in accuracy compared with assembly graph (AG) and probabilistic assembly graph without CAD model (PAG).

Originality/value

The paper provides a new approach to get the accurate pose of each part in demonstration stage of the robot PbD system. By integrating information from visual observation with prior knowledge from CAD model, PAGC* ensures the success in execution stage of the PbD system.

Details

Assembly Automation, vol. 40 no. 5
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 0144-5154

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 7 September 2022

Abdul Wahab Hashmi, Harlal Singh Mali and Anoj Meena

The purpose of this paper is to study the functionality of additively manufactured (AM) parts, mainly depending on their dimensional accuracy and surface finish. However, the…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to study the functionality of additively manufactured (AM) parts, mainly depending on their dimensional accuracy and surface finish. However, the products manufactured using AM usually suffer from defects like roughness or uneven surfaces. This paper discusses the various surface quality improvement techniques, including how to reduce surface defects, surface roughness and dimensional accuracy of AM parts.

Design/methodology/approach

There are many different types of popular AM methods. Unfortunately, these AM methods are susceptible to different kinds of surface defects in the product. As a result, pre- and postprocessing efforts and control of various AM process parameters are needed to improve the surface quality and reduce surface roughness.

Findings

In this paper, the various surface quality improvement methods are categorized based on the type of materials, working principles of AM and types of finishing processes. They have been divided into chemical, thermal, mechanical and hybrid-based categories.

Research limitations/implications

The review has evaluated the possibility of various surface finishing methods for enhancing the surface quality of AM parts. It has also discussed the research perspective of these methods for surface finishing of AM parts at micro- to nanolevel surface roughness and better dimensional accuracy.

Originality/value

This paper represents a comprehensive review of surface quality improvement methods for both metals and polymer-based AM parts.

Graphical abstract of surface quality improvement methods

Details

Rapid Prototyping Journal, vol. 29 no. 3
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2546

Keywords

Article
Publication date: 23 August 2021

Iván La Fé-Perdomo, Jorge Andres Ramos-Grez, Gerardo Beruvides and Rafael Alberto Mujica

The purpose of this paper is to outline some key aspects such as material systems used, phenomenological and statistical process modeling, techniques applied to monitor the…

Abstract

Purpose

The purpose of this paper is to outline some key aspects such as material systems used, phenomenological and statistical process modeling, techniques applied to monitor the process and optimization approaches reported. All these need to be taken into account for the ongoing development of the SLM technique, particularly in health care applications. The outcomes from this review allow not only to summarize the main features of the process but also to collect a considerable amount of investigation effort so far achieved by the researcher community.

Design/methodology/approach

This paper reviews four significant areas of the selective laser melting (SLM) process of metallic systems within the scope of medical devices as follows: established and novel materials used, process modeling, process tracking and quality evaluation, and finally, the attempts for optimizing some process features such as surface roughness, porosity and mechanical properties. All the consulted literature has been highly detailed and discussed to understand the current and existing research gaps.

Findings

With this review, there is a prevailing need for further investigation on copper alloys, particularly when conformal cooling, antibacterial and antiviral properties are sought after. Moreover, artificial intelligence techniques for modeling and optimizing the SLM process parameters are still at a poor application level in this field. Furthermore, plenty of research work needs to be done to improve the existent online monitoring techniques.

Research limitations/implications

This review is limited only to the materials, models, monitoring methods, and optimization approaches reported on the SLM process for metallic systems, particularly those found in the health care arena.

Practical implications

SLM is a widely used metal additive manufacturing process due to the possibility of elaborating complex and customized tridimensional parts or components. It is corroborated that SLM produces minimal amounts of waste and enables optimal designs that allow considerable environmental advantages and promotes sustainability.

Social implications

The key perspectives about the applications of novel materials in the field of medicine are proposed.

Originality/value

The investigations about SLM contain an increasing amount of knowledge, motivated by the growing interest of the scientific community in this relatively young manufacturing process. This study can be seen as a compilation of relevant researches and findings in the field of the metal printing process.

Details

Rapid Prototyping Journal, vol. 27 no. 10
Type: Research Article
ISSN: 1355-2546

Keywords

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