REDUCED-COMPLEXITY DUAL-ARM ROBOTIC MANIPULATOR FOR COMPACT SUBSTRATE-HANDLING PLATFORMS

摘要

The design of a reduced-complexity dual-arm robotic manipulator for compact substrate handling platforms is presented. The manipulator utilizes a common component, which forms the left upper-arm link and right upper-arm link of the robot arm, and two forearm links, each of which carries an end-effector and can move substrates in the radial as well as circumferential directions. A unique feature of the design is that a novel transmission mechanism is used to couple a single drive motor to the two forearm links. The advantage of using such a transmission mechanism is that one less motor is required to achieve the desired motion. This article outlines the concept of the robotic manipulator and the transmission mechanism, presents a kinematic and dynamic model of the combined system, and discusses a design methodology so as to satisfy the motion requirements in a compact substrate-handling platform. The feasibility of the proposed concept is demonstrated on a fully functional prototype.