Robot Calibration Helper App Calibrates Robot Tool Center Point
ENCY Software has announced Robot Calibration Helper, a new mobile companion app that helps engineers and technicians calibrate the Tool Center Point (TCP) of industrial robots and send the results directly to ENCY Robot projects.
The app is available for both iOS and Android.
Robot Calibration Helper is designed to close the gap between the robot cell and ENCY’s programming environment. Using the MachineMaker application built into ENCY Robot, users build a digital twin of their robotic cell and then use that model to generate collision-free toolpaths. Accurate TCP data is essential for keeping that digital twin in sync with the real robotic cell.
MachineMaker generates a QR code; scanning it from the phone links Robot Calibration Helper to a specific robot project.
The app follows a universal two-tool TCP calibration method that works consistently across different robot brands and can provide higher accuracy than many built-in routines on robot controllers. Technicians first touch a reference point on the real robot with a short tool and then with a long tool, recording the XYZ coordinates from the controller, the physical overhang length of each tool in millimeters and the tool inclination angle. Robot Calibration Helper guides them through these measurements and uses the data to calculate the TCP relative to the robot flange. The result is shown in a compact preview, and calibrations can be edited and recalculated at any time – without spreadsheets, notes or external utilities.
TCP Data Transfer
To transfer the robot’s TCP measurement data into the project, operators simply point the phone’s camera at the TCP values displayed on the robot controller and let the app read them automatically, which eliminates manual data entry errors. Once linked, TCP values calculated on the shop floor can be transferred to MachineMaker with a single ‘Send to ENCY’ action, instead of being retyped from the teach pendant. Even if the robot operator and the robot programmer are working in different rooms or far apart on site, MachineMaker keeps them in precise, real-time sync.
Multi-Robot Vendor Support
Robot Calibration Helper supports TCP calibration for a wide range of robot controllers used in welding, machining and handling applications, including Fanuc, Kuka, Tormach, Borunte, CRP, Denso, Dobot, Estun, Hiwin, Hyundai, Motoman, Newker, Manutec, Nachi, OTC Daihen and Turin. This allows factories running robots from multiple vendors to standardize their TCP workflow around a single mobile tool that integrates with ENCY Robot, rather than maintaining separate procedures for each vendor.
By combining QR-based project linking, a guided two-tool procedure and one-tap data transfer into ENCY Robot, Robot Calibration Helper gives production teams a faster and more reliable way to keep cells ready for work. The app is designed to speed up commissioning, reduce human error and make it easier for both technicians and engineers to keep robots in ENCY-based cells correctly calibrated throughout the life of the installation.
For more information: www.encycam.com
