Data specification and structure to build a complete model for robot calibration. Edited periodic progress report 1992 of ESPRIT project CAR-5220

Though modeling is a most important and complex task of robot calibration, a user of a robot-calibration system must not be required to understand kinematic modeling-convention theories if such a system is to be accepted by industry. This requirement is avoided by programming modeling conventions into calibration software. For such software to construct an appropriate robot model however, robot descriptions and nominal data must be thoroughly specified in a form which can be interpreted and used. Presented in this paper is a description of a robot specification and data structure which allows construction a complete model for static calibration of robots. The specification is performed in a simplified and logical manner treating kinematic, actuator, and elastic-deformation models separately. Specified data is then represented in a similar clear data-file structure. This work offers a timely contribution to ISO's current efforts to standardize formal data-model specifications for robots .