Implementation of pick-and-place algorithms for the purposes of wafer handling robotics simulations

Abstract

An approach for efficient pick-and-place robotics simulations based on 3D CAD software has been proposed in the paper. Oriented specifically towards wafer handling robots, the development requires the implementation of several algorithms, whose main tasks are associated with determining the proximity between the robot's end-effector and the silicon wafers, as well as checking the end-effector's vacuum state. As a result, realistic object manipulations, closely matching the real-world substrate handling process can be performed, analyzed and evaluated in a completely virtual environment. The proposed approach has been successfully adapted to an already existing robot simulator based on SolidWorks API and Visual Basic.NET programming.