How do you enhance robotics design with simulation and virtual reality?

Robotics design and prototyping can be challenging, time-consuming, and costly. You need to test your ideas, validate your assumptions, and optimize your performance. But how can you do that without building and breaking multiple physical models? The answer is simulation and virtual reality. These technologies can help you enhance your robotics design process in many ways. Here are some of them.

1 Simulation benefits

Simulation is the process of creating a digital model of a physical system and running experiments on it. This technique can help you analyze the behavior, dynamics, and interactions of your robotic system under different conditions and scenarios. Simulation can be used to explore various design options, identify and fix errors, reduce the risk of accidents, save resources, and improve the quality, efficiency, and reliability of your robotic system. By using simulation, you can also avoid unnecessary physical prototyping and save time and money.

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Jake Hall

#TheManufacturingMillennial | Manufacturing | Automation | Skilled Trades | Keynote Speaker | Industry 4.0
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I see so many cool companies like Visual Components which are simplifying the simulation process of custom equipment and manufacturing processes. It allows companies to get a better grasp on cycle-time, resources involved and also can support start up times with simulated programed solutions for robotics before a teach pendant is even picked up.

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2 Virtual reality benefits

Virtual reality is the technology that creates an immersive and interactive simulation of a real or imagined environment, enabling you to visualize, manipulate, and test your robotic system in a realistic and engaging way. Through virtual reality, you can experience your robotic system from different perspectives and scales, interact with its components using natural gestures and commands, and train yourself or others on how to operate, maintain, or repair it. Additionally, it provides an opportunity to collaborate with other designers, engineers, or users in a shared virtual space. Moreover, virtual reality can enhance your creativity, intuition, and empathy for your robotic system.

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3 Simulation tools

There are numerous simulation tools available for robotics design and prototyping, such as Gazebo, ROS, V-REP, MATLAB/Simulink, and Webots. Gazebo is an open-source 3D simulation environment that supports multiple physics engines, sensors, and plugins. ROS is a framework for robotics software development that provides libraries, tools, and interfaces for simulation, communication, and control. V-REP is a 3D simulation platform that offers a graphical user interface, scripting, and remote API. MATLAB/Simulink is a commercial software for numerical computing and modeling that enables simulation, analysis, and visualization of robotics systems. Webots is a commercial software for 3D simulation of mobile robots with a graphical editor, physics engine, and web interface.

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Suraj Kumar Pandey

Data Scientist
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I personally find webots very helpful for prototyping experiments related to robotics. It allows easy set up without the need for creating any server-client communication. The easily understandable project hierarchy created under webots projects allows one to seamlessly access robot controllers externally. I have used this to extend webots for multi agent multi robot experiments.

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4 Virtual reality tools

There are a variety of virtual reality tools available for robotics design and prototyping, such as Unity, a cross-platform game engine that allows you to create 3D and 2D applications, Unreal Engine, a powerful game engine that enables you to create realistic and immersive experiences, Blender, a free and open-source 3D creation suite, Sketchfab, a web-based platform for sharing 3D models in virtual reality, and Google Cardboard, a low-cost virtual reality device that works with your smartphone. All of these tools offer unique features and capabilities for creating virtual reality experiences.

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5 Simulation and virtual reality integration

Integrating simulation and virtual reality can be incredibly exciting, allowing you to create a seamless and interactive robotics design and prototyping environment. For instance, simulation can generate realistic and dynamic data for a virtual reality application, while virtual reality can be used to control and monitor the simulation in real time. Moreover, both technologies can be used to communicate and collaborate with other stakeholders in a common virtual space, as well as create a digital twin of a robotic system that mirrors its physical counterpart. Ultimately, by combining the advantages of both technologies, you can improve your robotics design and prototyping process and achieve superior results.

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6 Here’s what else to consider

This is a space to share examples, stories, or insights that don’t fit into any of the previous sections. What else would you like to add?

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How do you enhance robotics design with simulation and virtual reality?

1

2

3

4

5

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1 Simulation benefits

2 Virtual reality benefits

3 Simulation tools

4 Virtual reality tools

5 Simulation and virtual reality integration

6 Here’s what else to consider

Robotics

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How do you enhance robotics design with simulation and virtual reality?

1

2

3

4

5

6

1 Simulation benefits

2 Virtual reality benefits

3 Simulation tools

4 Virtual reality tools

5 Simulation and virtual reality integration

6 Here’s what else to consider

Robotics

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