Coverage Path Re-planning for Processing Faults

Abstract

Currently, an automated surface treatment or finishing (e.g., abrasive blasting, cleaning or painting) is performed in two consecutive steps: first processing by tool, second quality evaluation by sensor. Often, a finished surface has defects like areas not properly processed. This is caused by path inaccuracy or errors in tool deployment. The defected areas can be detected only during a subsequent quality evaluation. As a result, a complete surface reprocessing is required which is costly and time-consuming. We propose a new approach that is a combination of surface treatment and quality evaluation processes in a single deployment. In our approach, an initial coverage path for surface treatment by a tool is given or calculated using a state-of-the-art coverage path planning algorithm. In fact, we extend an off-line generated initial coverage path with an ability to react to sensor-based defect recognitions during surface processing by a tool.