Robotics

Modular Platforms for Multi-Axis, Vision-Guided, and Safety-Enabled Intelligent Robotics

Overview

Robotics are the ultimate expression of industrial automation systems. Industrial control, communications, machine vision, machine learning, human-machine interfaces, cybersecurity and safety can be key technology considerations when building cobots, industrial robots, or other commercial applications of robotics. Xilinx SoCs, FPGAs, and Versal ACAPs enable a modular approach to robotics by providing a common embedded hardware and software platform that can be reused and scaled to dramatically reduce time-to-market, form-factor, total cost of ownership while maximizing intelligence and adaptability of these assets. Specifically, Xilinx SoCs, FPGAs, and Versal ACAPs enable:

Precise, deterministic control over a scalable number of axes of motion via parallel processing of control loops
Connectivity over diverse Industrial Ethernet standards including support for Time-Sensitive Networking (TSN)
Support for numerous and diverse sensor inputs, enabling sensor fusion and high-level sensors techniques
Real-time analytics and machine learning supporting predictive maintenance and control, remote diagnostics, digital twin, and additional edge intelligence use cases
Integrated human machine interface (HMI)
Compliance for IEC 61508 SIL 3 functional safety and IEC 62443 cybersecurity
Smaller physical footprint and power through highest levels of integration

Design Examples	Description	Device Support
Click to enlarge	Fully Integrated Robotics Control Meta data processing from vision and non-vision Sensors Robot Motion Planning & Safe Motion Motion controller Sensor bus management Camera bus management, GigE Vision etc. or Ind.Ethernet like EtherCAT, Profinet, Powerlink HMI Safe motion safety requirements: PLe CAT3 Multi-Axis Motion Control Embedded Safe Motion EtherCAT Master stack (or other Industrial Ethernet) with Safety Layer Safety Requirements: Ple CAT 4 Multi Axis power stage with minimum drive capabilities and safety MOS FET or SiC driver stage Digital Encoder Safety requirements: Ple CAT 4 Machine Vision Camera Sensor Interface Image Signal Processing with Machine Learning Network Connectivity	Versal ACAP Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC Zynq-7000 SoC Spartan-7 FPGA Artix-7 FPGA

Design Examples

Description

Device Support

Click to enlarge

Fully Integrated Robotics Control

Meta data processing from vision and non-vision Sensors
Robot Motion Planning & Safe Motion
Motion controller
Sensor bus management
Camera bus management, GigE Vision etc. or Ind.Ethernet like EtherCAT, Profinet, Powerlink
HMI
Safe motion safety requirements: PLe CAT3

Multi-Axis Motion Control

Embedded Safe Motion
EtherCAT Master stack (or other Industrial Ethernet) with Safety Layer
Safety Requirements: Ple CAT 4

Multi Axis power stage with minimum drive capabilities and safety

MOS FET or SiC driver stage
Digital Encoder
Safety requirements: Ple CAT 4

Machine Vision Camera

Sensor Interface
Image Signal Processing with Machine Learning
Network Connectivity

Versal ACAP

Zynq UltraScale+ MPSoC

Zynq-7000 SoC

Spartan-7 FPGA

Artix-7 FPGA

Documentation

Intelligent IIoT Edge Platform

Edge Analytics with Python on Zynq (PYNQ)

Functional Safety Solution Brief

Drives & Motor Control Solution Brief

Solution Stack

Some Industrial IoT products need all elements of the Xilinx IIoT Solutions Stack, all need some. The Xilinx IIoT Solutions Stack is comprised of optimized Xilinx and Ecosystem building blocks and solutions used across Industrial and Healthcare IoT platforms. Starting from scratch is never something you will have to do with a Xilinx-based Industrial IoT system. Minimize development time and cost and maximize design reuse on your next Industrial IoT platform by exploring the different elements of the Xilinx IIoT Solutions stack.