Today, there is a conspicuous upward trend for the development of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), especially in the field of multirotor drones. Their advantages over fixed-wing aircrafts are that they can hover, which allows their usage in a wide range of remote surveillance applications: industrial, strategic, governmental, public and homeland security. Moreover, because the component market for this type of vehicles is in continuous growth, new concepts have emerged to improve the stability and reliability of the multicopters, but efficient solutions with reduced costs are still expected. This work is focused on hexacopter UAV tests carried out on an original platform both within laboratory and on unrestricted open areas during the start–stop manoeuvres of the motors to verify the operational parameters, hover flight, the drone stability and reliability, as well as the aerodynamics and robustness at different wind speeds. The flight parameters extracted from the sensor systems’ comprising accelerometers, gyroscopes, magnetometers, barometers, GPS antenna and EO/IR cameras were analysed, and adjustments were performed accordingly, when needed. An FEM simulation approach allowed an additional decision support platform that expanded the experiments in the virtual environment. Finally, practical conclusions were drawn to enhance the hexacopter UAV stability, reliability and manoeuvrability.

This paper proposes a methodology for creating simplified structural schemes and forward geometric models for industrial robots with serial architecture, with the goal of reducing thermal deformation errors that negatively impact positioning accuracy during operation. Unlike classical approaches, the proposed methodology introduces modifications to the order of matrix multiplication and incorporates new parameters to create a forward geometric model that better corresponds to the deformation characteristics of these robots. Details are presented on how to build and employ this extended model and integrate it into a thermal error compensation algorithm. The implementation of the algorithm in a software application is presented along with experimental results that demonstrate its effectiveness. This work addresses a real phenomenon that occurs in industrial robot operation and has implications for improving the performance of robots in manufacturing applications.

This article presents the results of applied research focused on the development of a hybrid software solution, which is based on the ABB RobotStudio 2021 suite, because even in the latest version, RobotStudio 10 does not have a dedicated virtual commissioning module. The aim of the study is to explore the potential communication capabilities between ABB RobotStudio and Siemens Simatic Robot Integrator and to unify control systems for performing virtual commissioning tasks. The proposed solution offers valuable procedures for any end user responsible for implementing robotic cell virtual commissioning tasks and ensures the compatibility between hardware and software components from ABB and Siemens manufacturers integrated into any robotic cell type. Siemens, one of the leading PLC manufacturers, offers the complex PLM platform Process Simulate, which can be integrated with the Totally Integrated Automation (TIA) Portal and Mechatronics Concept Designer (MCD) for developing virtual commissioning (VC) applications. The TIA Portal is recognized by robotics application integrators as the most efficient work environment for VC. However, there is currently no direct compatibility between the ABB RobotStudio (RS) platform and Siemens TIA Portal. To address integration challenges, Siemens has introduced the Simatic Robot Integrator (SRI) platform, which ensures compatibility with certain proprietary software from various robot manufacturers, including KUKA, Motoman, and Staubli. While Siemens has collaborated with manufacturers like KUKA and Kawasaki, major industry manufacturers such as ABB and Fanuc have yet to establish a standardized interface within the Siemens SRI platform. A mathematical model was also developed, which serves as a key perspective and a valuable tool for the future integration of double-portal-type robots into the working environments of ABB and Siemens. This integration aims to facilitate virtual commissioning in scenarios where such robots need to be implemented. Currently, ABB’s library does not include double-portal-type robots, despite the fact that leading manufacturers of double-portal robot types utilize ABB’s IRC5 controllers.

This research investigates the feasibility of manufacturing stamping devices using Material Extrusion (MEX) Additive Manufacturing (AM) technology, traditionally fabricated from metal, to reduce production costs and time. This study examines polymer-based devices subjected to Finite Element Analysis (FEA) to evaluate their performance in stamping metal sheets of varying thicknesses. The findings reveal that ABS polymer devices, while demonstrating potential, operate near the material’s limit under compression forces, particularly for sheet thicknesses up to 1 mm. Specifically, differences of 0.7 mm were observed at the connection radii of 0.25 mm sheets and 1.4 mm for 0.5 mm sheets, with angular deviations of 1.5 degrees for 0.25 mm sheets and 4 degrees for 0.5 mm sheets. Additionally, devices made of Nylon were deemed suitable for reduced-thickness sheets (0.25 mm), performing better than those made of ABS. These results suggest that while ABS devices exhibit significant deviations (up to 45 degrees for 1 mm sheets), the method shows promise for small batch production and prototyping. Further optimisation through material enhancements and mechanical improvements is recommended to minimise deformations and enhance precision.