Method and system for automatically organizing and achieving a pre-given task by means of robot functionalities

• US 20070129847A1
• Filed: 12/05/2006
• Published: 06/07/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Gomez, Laurent, Wrona, Konrad, Montagut, Frederic, Hebert, Cedric, Ulmer, Cedric
• Granted Patent: US 8,548,627 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 700/245
• CPC Class Codes: B25J 9/1669 characterised by special application, e.g. multi-arm co-operation, assembly, grasping
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4186 by protocol, e.g. MAP, TOP
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/39109 Dual arm, multiarm manipulation, object handled in cooperation
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

Systems and methods for automatically organizing and achieving a pre-given task by means of plurality of robots, each robot having a robot specific set of functionalities, are described. In an example implementation, a method can include the following steps: providing and exposing, for each robot, a semantic description of the robot'"'"'s robot specific functionalities by respective semantic web services; providing a semantic description of the pre-given task; matching the semantically described task with the semantic web services describing the robot specific functionalities; and combining automatically a coordinated set of the plurality of robots according to the matching result, such that the task is achieved when the robots are sequentially working upon invocation.

Claims

1. A method for automatically organizing and achieving a pre-given task by means of a plurality of robots, each robot having a robot specific set of functionalities, the method comprising:

providing and exposing for each robot a semantic description of the robot'"'"'s robot specific functionalities by respective semantic web services;

providing a semantic description of the pre-given task;

matching the semantic description of the pre-given task with the semantic web services describing the robot specific functionalities; and

combining automatically a coordinated set of the plurality of robots according to the matching result, such that the task is achieved when the robots are sequentially working upon invocation.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of combining the set of robots further comprises:

deriving a workflow from the matching result and generating the coordinated set of robots according to that workflow.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the step of combining the set of robots further comprises:

providing at least one coordination service that allows a handoff from one robot to another of the coordinated set of robots and inserting that coordination service whenever such a handoff is to be performed so that the robots are enabled to work sequentially and seamlessly together upon invocation.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the at least one coordination service is specifically composed depending on the handoff to be performed.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the robots of the coordinated set of robots are connected via a wireless connection.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein the semantic web services describing the respective robot specific functionalities are each accessible via a specific URL.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the semantic web services describing the robot functionalities are each provided with an appropriate linkage, linking them to at least one of the corresponding robots of the plurality of robots, respectively.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein the pre-given task relates to a handling of goods.

9. The method of claim 8, wherein the at least one coordination service is configured to allow a first robot of the coordinated set of robots to hand over an asset to be transported to a second robot of the coordinated set of robots , the second robot sequentially following the first robot within the coordinated set of robots.

10. The method of claim 9, wherein the at least one coordination service is a combination of a service allowing robots to move next to each other and a service allowing a handover of an asset from one robot to another robot.

11. The method of claim 1, wherein the robots are invoked via calling the semantic web services describing their respective robot specific functionalities.

12. A method for automatically organizing and achieving a pre-given task by means of a plurality of robot specific functionalities, the method comprising:

providing and exposing a semantic description of the robot specific functionalities by respective semantic web services;

providing a semantic description of the pre-given task;

matching the semantically described task with the semantic web services describing the robot specific functionalities; and

combining automatically a coordinated set of the plurality of robot functionalities of the matching result, such that the task is achieved when the robot functionalities are sequentially employed upon invocation.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the plurality of robot specific functionalities is incorporated within one single robot.

14. A system for automatically organizing and achieving a pre-given task with a number of robots, the system comprising:

a plurality of robots, each robot having a robot specific set of functionalities;

a repository of semantic web services;

at least one component configured to provide and expose for each robot a semantic description of its robot specific functionalities by respective semantic web services of said repository;

at least one component configured to provide a semantic description of the pre-given task inputted via an input unit;

matching logic configured to match the semantically described task with the semantic web services describing the robot specific functionalities;

combining logic configured to combine automatically a coordinated set of robot functionalities of the number of robots according to a matching result provided by the matching logic, such that the task can be achieved when the robot functionalities are sequentially employed upon invocation, and

a controller configured to control the number of robots.

15. The system of claim 14, further comprising a component configured to derive a workflow from a matching result, wherein robot functionalities are combined to the coordinated set of robot functionalities according to said workflow.

16. The system of claim 14, wherein the coordinated set of robot functionalities is assigned to a coordinated set of robots.

17. The system of claim 16, further comprising a coordinating component configured to provide at least one coordination service that allows a handoff from one robot to another of the coordinated set of robots and that allows inserting that coordination service whenever such a handoff is to be performed, so that the robots are enabled to work sequentially and seamlessly together upon invocation.

18. The system of claim 14, further comprising coupling logic configured to link the semantic web services of the repository describing the robot specific functionalities to the corresponding robots via appropriate linkages.

19. The system of claim 14, wherein the robots are configured to communicate with each other via a wireless connection.

20. The system of claim 15, wherein the coordinated set of robots can be invoked via respective service calling.

21. A computer-readable medium with a computer program stored thereon, the computer program comprising a program code which is suitable for carrying out a method for automatically organizing and achieving a pre-given task by means of a plurality of robots, each robot having a robot specific set of functionalities, when the computer program is run on a computer, wherein the method includes:

providing and exposing for each robot a semantic description of the robot'"'"'s robot specific functionalities by respective semantic web services;

providing a semantic description of the pre-given task;

matching the semantic description of the pre-given task with the semantic web services describing the robot specific functionalities; and

combining automatically a coordinated set of the plurality of robots according to the matching result, such that the task is achieved when the robots are sequentially working upon invocation.