Putting It All Together

Throughout this Unit, you learned about:

• Signal towers and how they communicate operational status in a workcell.
• How controlled stops function in industrial robotics as well as on the CTE Workcell.
• How different safety mechanisms and precautions used in industrial robotics keep workers safe.
• The controlled stop functionality with the Brain CTE 6-Axis Arm Base template project.

This Unit began with an exploration of signal towers, and progressed through a discussion of emergency stops and other safety mechanisms. You learned about the Brain CTE 6-Axis Arm Base template project and how it works. Now you will put all of this together to complete the final activity in this Unit.

Putting it All Together Activity

In this activity, you will be asked to apply your learning in two ways. First, you will read vignettes that take place in an automobile manufacturing plant. These vignettes describe safety situations that could be encountered in real world industrial settings. You will read the vignettes, then discuss and answer the related questions with your group. 

Next, you will be asked to imagine and sketch a plan for adding additional safety protocols to the CTE Workcell.

Activity:

Use what you have learned in this Unit to respond to the questions and prompts in your engineering notebook.

1. In your group, read each vignette or prompt.
2. Discuss the related questions with your group, and come to consensus on answers to the questions.
3. Record your answers in your engineering notebook.
4. Be ready to share your answers with the class.

Vignette 1

In a bustling automotive manufacturing plant, a robotic assembly machine, equipped with a sophisticated 6-Axis Arm, operates within a dedicated workcell. This workcell is an enclosed area designed to streamline the installation of car doors onto vehicle frames. A signal tower is affixed to the top of the robotic assembly machine. As the morning shift begins, the 6-Axis Arm picks up doors from a conveyor belt and attaches them to the vehicle frames. The signal tower light is green, indicating that everything is functioning as expected. Suddenly, a  potential misalignment in the workcell's welding unit has been detected.

What do you think will happen next? What would workers see on the signal tower? How could this situation be resolved? Discuss with your group and record your answers in your engineering notebook.

Vignette 2

Now that the welding misalignment has been resolved, assembly has returned to normal levels. However, towards mid-day, the signal tower begins to flash blue.

What condition could this indicate? What actions could be taken? Discuss with your group and record your answers in your engineering notebook.

Vignette 3

Towards the end of the day, the signal towers suddenly turn red, and an alarm sounds.  This signals a serious issue: an emergency stop has been triggered due to a mechanical failure in the arm's servo motor. Human operators on the assembly line begin initiating their emergency protocol.

What kind of emergency stop should occur in this situation? Why? Discuss with your group and record your answers in your engineering notebook.

Vignette 4

A visitor to the plant is part of a group touring the factory floor. Despite being asked to stay with the group, he wanders towards the 6-Axis Arm. Fortunately, there are several safety mechanisms in place to prevent him from being injured, or interfering with operations.

What kinds of safety mechanisms and precautions could be in place to prevent injury and operational downtime in this situation? Discuss with your group and record your answers in your engineering notebook.

Prompt

Using what you have learned about safety mechanisms and precautions through the Unit, imagine your CTE Workcell was part of the workcell in the automotive manufacturing plant in the vignettes. In your group, brainstorm:

What additional safety features do you think the CTE Workcell would have in this setting, and why? Create a labeled sketch in your engineering notebook showing the safety features, their placement, and explaining why each feature was chosen.

Wrap Up Reflection

Now that you have responded to the questions in your engineering notebook, it is time to reflect on what you have learned and done in this Unit. 

Rate yourself as a novice, apprentice, or expert on each of the following concepts in your engineering notebook. Provide a brief explanation for why you gave yourself that rating for each concept:

• Identifying the purpose and function of signal towers in industrial robotics and on the CTE Workcell.
• Identifying standard safety features, such as emergency stops, that keep workers safe.
• Describing how the controlled stop functions on the CTE Workcell.
• Explaining how the Brain CTE 6-Axis Arm template project functions.

Use this table to help you determine which category you fall under.

Then, reflect on the learning targets you co-created with your teacher for this Unit. Have you learned what you set out to learn? Why or why not? What were you most successful with? Why? How do you think you can build on your progress moving forward?

Each person in your group should complete their self-reflections in their engineering notebooks. Once everyone in your group has completed their self-reflections, check-in with your teacher and let them know you are ready for your debrief conversation.

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