Safety Fieldbus and Robots at BMW

摘要

The changing characteristics of robot processes, with increasing payloads, work ranges, and cycle times necessitate a more flexible approach to safety, which cannot be addressed with traditional methods. Conventional safety relay technology has also restricted functionality of safety systems, particularly in terms of flexibility and diagnostics. Kuka Roboter GmbH have developed a safety system for industrial robots incorporating the safety-related fieldbus, SafetyBUS p, in co-operation with Pilz GmbH. The Electronic Safety Circuit (ESC) coupled with SafetyBUS p and Pilz PSS safety controllers are now being used by BMW at their "Body in White" line in Dingolfing, Germany Conventional fieldbus technology is generally prohibited for safety-related use, unless the bus system is designed to meet the requirements of a safety system. Safety systems benefit from the simplification that fieldbus can provide, along with other generic benefits such as ease of maintenance, faster installation and reduced downtime. Further advantages can be realised when fieldbus is utilised in a sophisticated manner, as in the BMW application, where the changes in technology enable flexible approaches to safety engineering.