Yanzheng Zhao

Development of Wall-climbing Robots with Sliding Suction Cups

This paper investigates the development of wall-climbing robots (WCRs) with sliding suction cups (SSCs) based on the authors recent research work. The merits and the challenges of the SSCs are analyzed in detail aiming at wheeled WCRs (WWCRs). The dynamic model of WWCRs is presented. It should be noted that the suction force derived from SSCs has great influence on the motion characteristics of WCRs. To utilize the merits, get over the weaknesses of SSCs and increase the service abilities of wall-cleaning robots, a series of tether supported wall sliding robots (WSRs) with large SSCs are designed. The control strategies of suction force are investigated to improve the adaptability to complex wall surfaces

Development and applications of wall-climbing robots with a single suction cup

In this paper, wall-climbing robots with a single suction cup are studied. The robots mainly consist of three parts: A vacuum pump, a sealing mechanism and a driving mechanism. Basic conditions that the robots can adhere to and move reliably on a vertical surface are first established, then the sealing mechanism with an air spring and regulating springs is analyzed, and the synthetic rigidity formula for the sealing loop is obtained. Finally, two application examples are given: One for the ultrasonic inspection of cylindrical stainless steel nuclear storage tanks, and the other for cleaning high-rise buildings.

Auto-bonding robot for space solar cells

An auto-bonding robot (ABR) that consists of the mechanism of adhesive dispensing and auto-bonding, a pneumatic system and a control system, is presented in this paper. It is designed for the bonding operation of cover-glasses and space solar cells using adhesives. An adhesive dispensing method is proposed to control the thickness and position of the adhesive layer on solar cells and to provide a satisfactory bonding accuracy. The bubble-free bonding process is realized by the leaning mechanism of a pneumatic sucker. Experimental comparison of the manual and automatic bonding methods showed that there are no fragment and air bubbles between the cover-glass and the space solar cell, and no outflow adhesive on the surface by the automatic bonding process in a non-vacuum condition. The novel automatic bonding robot greatly improved the lightweight space solar cells bonding quality and production rate.

A Prediction Model of the Adhesive Coating Thickness on a Space Solar Cell

This paper presents a prediction model of the adhesive coating thickness on a space solar cell. The model describes the non-Newtonian characteristics of the adhesive when it is bonded to the cover glass and the space solar cell in a non-vacuumed environment. The coating thickness is a function of the differential pressure inside the syringe and its relative speed. It can be indirectly controlled by the two feedbacks. Compared with other systems, the automatic one has better effect on the manufacture of the qualified space solar cell array.

Design and Implementation of an Auto Bonding Manufacturing Process for Space Solar Cells

This article presents a new manufacturing process of bonding anti-irradiation cover glasses to silicon solar cells with silicone adhesive. Due to the disadvantages of traditional manual operation, a new manufacturing process was designed considering the characteristics of solar cells, cover glasses, and silicone adhesive, and was complemented by an automatic system based on an industrial robot. Experiments indicated that the new approach could ensure the thickness of adhesive layer among 100–150 μm and effectively restrain the creation of air bubbles. The automatic system was tested to have high efficiency and reliability and it was going to make volume-produce.

Wall-climbing Robot Path Planning for Testing Cylindrical Oilcan Weld Based on Voronoi Diagram

To improve the efficiency of the weld testing for a cylindrical oilcan performed by the wall-climbing robot, this paper gives an algorithm for generating the Voronoi diagram from the points set on a cylinder by modification process. Based on this algorithm the paper also provides a method about the design of cylindrical tank wallboards and the weld testing path planning from Delaunay triangulation. A software simulation platform is also developed. The simulation results show that the method is effective to the stand cylindrical tank design and the wall-climbing robot weld testing path planning

The facial texture analysis for the automatic portrait drawing

It is important to draw the portrait by the facial textures automatically. In order to analyze the detailed textures located at the neighborhood of the eyes, the texture analyzing method is studied. Firstly, we propose the principle of selecting the feature points and the portrait drawing method by B-spline curves using the self-reference parameter. Then, the wavelet transform is used to analyze the position, the direction and the intensity of the double-fold eyelid textures. Experimental results have shown that the facial texture analyzing method is effective for drawing portraits automatically.

A NEW METHOD FOR FACIAL FEATURES QUANTIFICATION OF CARICATURE BASED ON SELF-REFERENCE MODEL

Some facial features that differ from an ordinary face should be identified by a computer when generating a facial caricature. These distinctive facial features are called self-features. Compared with traditional Mean Face Model (MFM) that is unable to quantify these self-features well, a Self-Reference Model (SRM) is presented in this paper. Firstly, based on the physiology structure of a front face, a self-reference is found, and this reference is used to measure the self-features. According to the self-reference, some standard facial parameters are worked out by collecting statistic data of many facial images. Then, in an input face image, by evaluating some differences between the input face and the standard facial parameters, the self-features are properly estimated and quantified. Finally, by analyzing some caricatures produced by caricaturists, the SRM can prove the validity of the proposed Algorithm.

Automatic coating and fastening robot of space solar module to solar panel substrate

Purpose – This paper aims to propose an automatic coating and fastening robot (ACFR) of space solar module (SSM) to solar panel substrate.Design/methodology/approach – Describes the detailed manufacturing process of space solar cell arrays (SSCA), and gives an ACFR for SSM. Designs an automatic coating and fastening mechanism and a control system. Furthermore, establishes the “zigzag”, the “umbrella” and the Voronoi‐based “ring” path models of the coating path using syringes.Findings – The robot is effective for the bubble‐free manufacture of SSCA in nonvacuum environment. The robot with three coating path models can control the thickness of adhesive layer on the back of SSM, and the fastening force to the solar panel substrate with high productivity. The experimental results have proved the validity of this robot in the SSCAs manufacture.Practical implications – The robot as a novel industrial equipment can improve the product quality and the reliability of SSCA to a certain extent.Originality/value – T...

Auto-laydown robot for space solar module

This paper discusses about auto-laydown robot (ALR), which is applied to performing the laydown process of a solar module on earth. The robot consists of an adhesive dispensing mechanism, an auto-laydown mechanism, a pneumatic system and a control system. The method of gripping solar cells is described based on pneumatic technology. Meanwhile, a new method of controlling adhesive thickness and area during dispensing is proposed in this paper. The robot realizes the automatic laydown process of solar modules and can control the laydown pressure effectively. Compared with the manual method, the robot could control the dispensing volume and the adhesive area between solar modules and panel substrates, by means of experiments. The novel ALR greatly improves the laydown quality of solar modules and meets the lightweight trend of solar cells development.