Patent ID: 8738180

Claim:
A system for use in a work cell having a carrier that moves a product along an assembly line, the system comprising: an assembly robot having a robotic arm, a platform which transports the robotic arm, and a motor for moving the platform; a tracking sensor positioned with respect to the carrier that measures a changing position of the carrier and encodes the changing position as a position signal; and a controller in communication with the assembly robot and the tracking sensor; wherein the controller is configured to: receive the position signal from the tracking sensor; calculate a lag value of the assembly robot with respect to the carrier as a function of the position signal; detect a requested emergency stop (e-stop) event of the assembly robot when the arm and the product are in mutual contact; and selectively transmit a speed signal to the motor only when the calculated tracking position lag value is above a calibrated threshold, wherein the speed signal causes a calibrated deceleration of the platform to occur which minimizes contact forces between the robotic arm and the product during the e-stop event.