Fraunhofer IFAM researchers awarded Wright Brothers Medal for industrial robot research

 

 

Dipl.-Ing. Christian Möller, deputy leader of the Integrated Production Systems group in the Automation and Production Technology department of the Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM (Stade, Germany), has been presented with the Wright Brothers Medal 2019 at the Aerotech Americas Congress 2019 in Charleston, S.C., U.S. 

The award, presented by Dr. h.c. Paul Mascarenas, B.Sc., president of SAE International (Warrendale, Pa., U.S.), was accepted by Möller on behalf of his team for their publication “Real Time Pose Control of an Industrial Robotic System for Machining of Large Scale Components in Aerospace Industry Using Laser Tracker System.” 

The publication describes the use of an external laser tracker measuring system to improve the accuracy of industrial robots. The tracker measuring system enables the detection of path deviations during the process that naturally occur due to inherent robot errors or external influences such as process forces. A real-time control circuit allows these deviations to be fed back to the robot control system for online path correction. This innovation is intended to meet the strict accuracy requirements of the aviation industry, and to enable robots to replace inflexible, expensive special machines. These sensor-enhanced robots are also said to show promise for the manufacture of large structures such as wind turbines, rail vehicles, commercial vehicles or shipbuilding. The Fraunhofer IFAM experts have realized the first applications in these areas.

Möller's team includes Hans Christian Schmidt, M.Sc., Philip Koch, M.Sc., Christian Böhlmann, M.Eng., and Dr.-Ing. Simon Kothe of Fraunhofer Institute for Manufacturing Technology and Advanced Materials IFAM, along with PD Dr.-Ing. habil. Jörg Wollnack and Prof. Dr.-Ing. Wolfgang Hintze of Hamburg University of Technology TUHH.

The Wright Brothers Medal has been presented annually since 1927 to scientific papers on the development, design, construction or operation of aircraft. It is awarded by SAE International, a global association of engineers and technical experts in the mobility sector.