LAUSR

Summary This paper investigates a battery snap-in operation performed by an industrial robot. The snap-fit phenomenon is experienced during the insertion of batteries into the battery holder. In order to understand the nature of the snap-fit phenomenon, the large displacement but small deformation theory is used to model the insertion operation. The stability of equilibrium points is analysed in order to determine the so-called trip point. The purpose of the investigation is to augment the displacement control of the robot with force feedback. A microcontroller-based measurement system is implemented to provide the force feedback. The proposed method is valid for a class of snap-fit problems not only for the investigated specific one.