Multi-dimensional object detection
REPORTING the presence of objects, classifying objects, checking contours, and controlling gripper equipment - the range of automation uses of the new LMS 400 laser measurement system, from SICK Australia , knows no limits.
The LMS 400 sets new standards.
Decreased space requirement, increased power and performance - the new LMS 400 sets new standards compared to its predecessor, the LMS 200.
This has been made possible by the completely new patented ‘Frequency Signal Processing’ measurement process and the real-time capability of the system that can be achieved via the integrated Ethernet interface.
As a result, the LMS 400 is particularly interesting for integrators involved in areas such as image processing, measurement and data technology, special machine construction for logistics, material handling, robotics, and in the automotive industry and their supplier industries.
The considerably improved precision of the new laser measurement system and a detection speed that has been increased more than six-fold are the principal reasons for the improved performance.
The angular resolution that has been increased to just 0.1° allows even more precise object detection.
The finest of structures can be recognised; objects can be detected in two and three dimensions and classified.
The reliable inspection of shells and containers on conveyor systems is now possible at high speeds because, with a scanning frequency of 500Hz, the new LMS can capture distance data more than six times faster than its predecessor.
The finer angular grid and improved distance resolutions now allow even demanding pick & place applications to be solved, e.g. during automatic palletising and depalletising, or during the reliable gripping from a mixture of objects transported with random orientation.
The new LMS 400 is as flexible in terms of connection to external evaluation systems as it is in terms of applications.
Ethernet, RS422, RS232, CANbus, and digital inputs and outputs are available for today's technologies.
LMS 400 parameters are set via a graphic user interface with browser technology giving the device a comfortable, while familiar, look and feel for users.
Apart from the particularly precise and rapid determination of distance and angular data, the possibility of also providing data on the residual energy of the transmitted laser impulse reflected by the object is a completely new feature for industrial laser measurement systems.
This is advantageous wherever distance measurement alone is unable to distinguish between individual objects. Pallets that are homogeneously loaded are a typical example of this.
As soon as, for example, a stack of boxes form a smooth surface they can no longer be singled out via the distance data for use controlling an automatic gripper system.
Instead of complicated camera solutions, it is now possible to employ the LMS 400 to detect the front edges of stacked cartons as the reflectivity energy here is significantly different from that of the box surfaces.
By processing this information, a machine's control system is now able to guide the handling system (e.g. a robot) to grip the edges or within the area formed by the edges.
14-Jan-2004