Introduction to Robotics in Computer Integrated Manufacturing
Introduction to Robotics in Computer Integrated Manufacturing
James A. RehgPrentice Hall1997318 pagesISBN 0-13-238395-0£24.95Keywords Automation review, CIM, Rehg, J.,Robotics
Addressing the use of robots in flexible automation from a manufacturing systems viewpoint, this book sets out to explain where industrial robots fit into the greater scheme of process automation. Aimed more at the automation manager rather than the practising robotics engineer, the book gives an insight into the history,technology and capabilities of modern industrial robots, and how they might be integrated into workcells as part of an overall computer integrated manufacturing (CIM) approach to automation.
The book reads as having three distinct strands that run from start to finish: an overview of the contemporary industrial robot and its peripherals, the integration of robots within a CIM strategy and a fictional case study that runs the length of the book. The summary of robots is excellent, with descriptions of all the major components of a robot system including the peripheral tooling, sensing and programming issues. The level of detail is sufficient to be able to explain the major points in influencing the purchasing decisions for a manufacturing system,without descending into too much technical detail. There are photographs of significant component parts in addition to drawn illustrations, and the text is reinforced with a good number of real industrial application examples, courtesy of a number of different robot systems manufacturers. The CIM strand of the book introduces the subject in the context of how an organisation might prepare to move over to its own version of a holistic production management regime, based around automated workcells. A chapter is dedicated to the basic cost justification procedure determining the viability of the automation, and another on the safety issues involved in the implementation of robotic workcells. The text is supported by the fictional case study of a company producing gas turbine blades who wish to automate the process. Chapter by chapter, the reader follows the story as a fly on the wall in each progress meeting, monitoring the interplay between the members of the automation team as the project is implemented, visiting the salient points discussed in the text on the way. The story culminates in the evaluation of the successful new automation scheme.
As an introduction, the book's coverage of industrial robotics is notably better than many of the more technical texts on the subject, being written from a managerial "need to know"perspective over a comprehensive selection of automation technology. The CIM material is relatively basic, and the placement of the more useful information within the fictional case study might not be to everyone's taste. Not so much an academic reference, more of a subject briefing, the book offers a good introductory level text for the subject.
