Performance Work Statement.pdf

PERFORMANCE WORK STATEMENT

TITLE: Scientific Services to Support Smart Target Electronics and Hardware Design

LAB REQUESTING SERVICE: Engineering Laboratory

I. BACKGROUND INFORMATION

Robots wear down over time which can lead to degraded accuracy that negatively influences robot performance. Some errors in performance, such as a performance slip in the robot arm, may not be apparent to the human eye but could have detrimental consequences for the quality of the parts or products operated upon by the robot. The industry’s current best practice to address degradation is to perform local calibrations or perform in-process/final part inspection to ensure that degradation has not occurred that would compromise a part’s quality. These practices add complexity to the manufacturing process and increase the maintenance costs to leverage applications.

The industry would benefit from a way to measure the degradation of translation and orientation accuracy. Such measurement capability would raise the awareness of robot health thereby supporting more timely maintenance actions that will ultimately lower maintenance costs.

The National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST) has developed a novel smart target to support the precise measurement of a robot’s position and orientation.

The novel smart target is patented under U.S. Patent US010885368B2 which may be found at https://www.nist.gov/system/files/documents/2020/03/27/18- 034US1_Publication_11-21-19.pdf. The goal of this technology is to support a test method that manufacturers can use to detect unknown performance changes to avoid compromised quality and unplanned downtime.

NIST requires contractor support to develop an improved prototype. This support will assist NIST in furthering smart target research, including pilot activities in industrial environments.

II. SCOPE OF WORK

a. OBJECTIVES/PURPOSE

The purpose of this requirement is to procure contractor design services to develop an improved smart target prototype design. Only design is required, not fabrication.

All deliverables associated with this requirement shall be provided in accordance with FAR 52.227-17: Rights in Data - Special Works.

b. GENERAL:

The Contractor shall provide all support for project oversight, administration, and the https://www.nist.gov/system/files/documents/2020/03/27/18-034US1_Publication_11-21-19.pdf https://www.nist.gov/system/files/documents/2020/03/27/18-034US1_Publication_11-21-19.pdf technical execution of this requirement. The Contractor shall maintain accurate records of project activities. The contractor shall be available also for ad-hoc telephone or email updates as needed.

c. SPECIFIC REQUIREMENTS:

The existing NIST prototype smart target is 152 mm x 152 mm x 152 mm in size and has a weight of one kilogram. The prototype has a maximum velocity of one meter per second and the difference between the smart target’s taught poses and its actual poses does not exceed +/- 5 degrees. The power system is designed such that the smart target can continuously operate for at least 3 hours.

The existing NIST prototype smart target consists of fixed-wavelength light pipes and two rotary gimbals driven by motors. An orientation sensor is mounted on the elevation gimbal and sends signals to the control board that drives the motor to rotate the gimbals maintaining the defined pose. The smart target is mounted on the object (e.g., end effector or tool of a robot arm) whose accuracy is to be assessed using the smart target to measure the object’s dynamic, six-dimensional (6-D) position and orientation. The smart target system can measure both position (x, y, z) and orientation (roll, pitch, and yaw) information.

Figure 1 below provides an annotated image of the existing smart target prototype.

[Note: the light-pipes and their power supplies are already determined by NIST; A set of light-pipes (including a cross light-pipe, and two cylindrical light-pipes) and their power supplies will be made available to the contractor by the Government].

The contractor shall design an improved smart target prototype in accordance with the following requirements.

1) Project Management

Azimuth motor

Cross light-pipe

Green light-pipe

Blue light-pipe

Elevation motor

Orientation sensor control board

Figure 1 Smart target prototype

a) Detailed Project Work Plan All work to be accomplished under this purchase order shall be managed through a detailed project work plan (PWP). The detailed PWP shall be submitted to the NIST Technical Point of Contact (TPOC) for review within three (3) weeks after contractor receipt of order. The detailed PWP shall align with the deliverables’ deadlines identified in this Statement of Need and shall include annotations that outline the schedule of development, the goal of each step, resources needed, team members involved in the project, and team responsibilities. NIST will provide feedback on the detailed PWP within five business days after receipt.

The contractor shall revise the detailed PWP as appropriate within five business days thereafter for NIST approval. The detailed PWP may be revised by mutual agreement between the contractor and NIST during the award period of performance.

b) Bi-weekly Project Meetings The contractor shall participate in bi-weekly program status meetings to be held via video or telephone conference at a regular and mutually agreeable time.

During these meetings, project status will be discussed. This shall include detail regarding activities accomplished, deliverables completed, outstanding deliverables, any delays, reasons for delays and proposed resolutions, and recommendations.

2) Preliminary Design Draft The contractor shall develop a preliminary design draft for the improved smart target prototype within six weeks after the effective date of award. The preliminary design draft shall address the minimum preliminary feature requirements identified below.

Specific electronic and mechanical design features are not required for this initial design draft.

• The cross light-pipe shall be mounted on the elevation (EL) shaft.

• An orientation sensor shall be mounted on the cross light-pipe.

• A Printed Circuit Board (PCB) and a battery to power the cross light-pipe and EL motor shall be mounted on the EL shaft.

• The cross light-pipe rotation range shall be at least +/- 160 degrees.

• An EL alignment mechanism shall be included which enables the adjustment of the EL shaft positions. Adjustment translation range shall be approximately 2 to 3 mm.

• The blue and green light-pipes shall be mounted on the azimuth (AZ) shaft.

• The AZ motor and a battery shall also be on the AZ shaft.

• The AZ rotation shall be an unlimited 360 degrees.

• An AZ alignment mechanism is required that enables the adjustment of the AZ shaft positions. Adjustment translation range shall be approximately 2 to 3 mm.

• The bottom of the AZ shaft shall have a design of mounting holes for adaptors

(may vary depending on the different robot) to install the target on the robot.

• The design shall allow for battery replacement

• The battery mounting design shall ensure the battery will be firmly held in place and may also be replaced with either no tools or with readily available tools such as a flathead or Philips head screwdriver.

• The power system shall be designed such that the smart target can continuously operate for at least 3 or more hours.

• The improved prototype shall remain 152 mm x 152 mm x 152 mm in size, or smaller, and with a weight of one kilogram or less. The prototype shall retain a maximum velocity of one meter per second or faster and the difference between the smart target’s taught poses and its actual poses shall not exceed +/- 5 degrees.

The preliminary design draft will be reviewed by NIST and feedback provided.

The contractor shall revise the draft as needed for NIST approval. Following approval of the preliminary design draft, detailed design – the following tasks – may begin.

3) Electronic Design The contractor shall improve upon the electrical design of the existing smart target prototype by adding features that enable the control board needs to work in three modes. The three work modes shall be:

a) Teach mode. When this mode is enabled, the orientation sensor’s current reading shall become a saved pose.

b) Pose maintenance mode. When this mode is enabled, the orientation sensor’s reading shall be obtained and used to compare with the saved pose. Deviations shall be calculated between the current reading and the saved reading. Deviation calculations are used to drive the motors rotating back to maintain the taught pose; and

c) Remote control mode. When this mode is enabled, it shall be possible to use a wireless joystick to send signals to motors and to drive the motor using the joystick’s input wirelessly.

Additionally, the contractor shall address the following requirements as part of the electronic design:

i. The design shall provide a solution for the existing prototype’s problem in which the orientation sensor’s signal interferes with the motor signals.

ii. The design shall incorporate a wireless joystick into the prototype. The contractor shall recommend a wireless joystick and provide a design for the integration of the recommend wireless joystick into the control board. The joystick shall enable motor jogging and switch of control modes. There are no restrictions on the wireless protocols (e.g., Bluetooth) that can be used.

iii. The design shall include customized the Proportional, Integral, Derivative (PID) control for the brushless motors.

iv. The design shall include cable management to avoid cables dangling around the gimbal.

v. The design shall be battery-powered to meet the requirement of a minimum of 3 hours of continuous operation.

vi. The design shall have a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface to a computer. The operating system for the computer shall be Windows 10 and above.

The contractor shall deliver a document with detailed design for improvement upon the electrical design of the existing smart target prototype as a result of this task area. The schematic shall serve as a blueprint for laying out the traces and placing the components on the existing PCB modification. The document shall have an appendix which identifies recommended electronics design components and the rationale for their recommendation. The design will be reviewed by NIST and feedback provided. The contractor shall revise the draft as needed for NIST approval.

4) Mechanical Design The contractor shall improve upon the mechanical design of the existing smart target prototype by adding the following features:

a) The contractor shall add a mechanism to align the center of the cross light-pipe to the intersection of AZ and EL rotation axes.

b) The cross-light-pipe center shall be aligned with the intersection of the rotational axes of the AZ and EL.

c) The contractor shall incorporate features which allow for fine-tuning of the position for the alignment. Specifically, the design shall enable an adjustment range of 2mm in in increments of 20um. The design shall enable positions to be locked after fine alignment adjustments are performed.

d) The contractor shall use anodized aluminum parts for the gimbal assembly.

The contractor shall submit mechanical design drawings, capable of supporting full operational assembly with precision machined parts. The design drawings shall include an appendix which identifies recommended components and the rationale for their recommendation. The design draft will be reviewed by NIST and feedback provided. The contractor shall revise the draft as needed for NIST approval.

5) Final Design Report with Detailed Component Recommendations and Estimated Schedule

Following NIST review and approval of the above-described tasks, the contractor shall create a final design report which includes all approved design information as well as detailed component recommendations for the final design.

This report shall include a complete list of recommended materials (Bill of Materials).

The components that shall be recommended include, at minimum, motors, orientation sensors, batteries, and control-board-related parts. The Bill of Materials shall include estimated costs for materials. As a reminder, all deliverables associated with this requirement are subject to FAR 52.227-17: Rights in Data

Special Works.

III. PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE

The period of performance shall be seven months from date of award.

IV. PLACE OF PERFORMANCE

The place of performance shall be the contractor’s facility or work location.

V. GOVERNMENT FURNISHED PROPERTY

Following award, NIST will provide the contractor with documentation of the existing prototype for reference.

VI. DELIVERABLES

Task

Description Format Quantity Due Date 1a Detailed Project Work Plan MS Word Document

1 3 weeks after effective date of award

1b Bi-weekly Project Meetings Telephone or Video Conference

1 Bi-weekly following effective date of award

2 Preliminary Design Draft

MS Word Document 1 6 weeks after effective date of award

3 Final Electronic Design Design drawings 1 set No later than one week prior to the end of the contract period of performance

4 Final Mechanical Design Design drawings 1 set No later than one week prior to the end of the contract period of performance

5 Final Design Report with Detailed Component Recommendations and cost breakdown

MS Word Document 1 No later than one week prior to the end of the contract period of performance

Standards for Acceptance of Deliverables:

The NIST TPOC and the contractor should have discussions during the Bi-weekly review meeting. The contractor shall perform adjustments if comments are made within the scope of the contract. The NIST TPOC will provide comments on each deliverable within 14 calendar days from receipt of a given deliverable. The Contractor shall make any needed changes to the reports within 14 calendar days from receipt of electronic or written comments from the TPOC.

VIII. TRAVEL

None. While local travel may be required for the limited activities to take place at the NIST Gaithersburg Campus, no travel costs will be reimbursed.

IV. KEY PERSONNEL REQUIREMENTS

It is expected that this work will require the contractor to assign a minimum of one key personnel, meeting the minimum requirements shown below.

Level IV (Senior Scientist/Engineer): Experienced, specialized scientist or engineer with a minimum of a Ph.D. degree, from an accredited college or university, in the related field appropriate for the work required. The person must have experience in sensor development in the field of mechanical design and electronic design OR, a demonstrated equivalent combination of education, training, and experience can be used to meet the minimum qualifications.

• Mechanical design for advanced sensors with compact design and long-term running sensor systems.

• Electronic design expertise in power (including battery) management, wireless communication, and remote-control design.

• Experiences in sensor system design and integration.

• Expertise in portable 3D measurement devices is a plus.

V. ATTACHMENTS

None