Elephant Robotics

Overview

About the manual

Welcome to use MyCobot collaborative robot and thank you for your purchase. This manual describes the precautions for proper installation and use of MyCobot. Please read this manual and other related manuals carefully before installing this robot system. After reading, please keep it in a safe place so that you can access it at any time.

Reading objects of the manual

• Installer.
• Debugger.
• Maintenance staff.

Those who install/debug/maintain the MyCobot collaborative robot must be trained in Elephant Robotics and have the mechanical and electronic knowledge required for the above work.

How to use

This manual should be used when doing the following works:

• Installation work: Move the robot to the working position and fix it to the base according to the installation instructions.
• Debugging: Debugging the robot to work status.
• Maintenance work: Regular maintenance of the robot system to ensure its normal functioning.

When the robot malfunctions due to environmental influences or improper operation of the user, or a certain component of the robot system exceeds the normal service life, the robot needs to be repaired.

Note:

1. This manual is applicable to international users, as well as users in Hong Kong, Macao and Taiwan.
2. This manual is not updated regularly. The updated date is the version number. Users can download the latest version from the official website of Elephant Robot at any time.

1. Security

This chapter details general safety information for people who perform installation, maintenance, and repair work on the robots. Please read and understand the contents and precautions of this chapter before handling, installation and use.

1.1 Hazard Identification

The safety of the collaborative robot is based on the premise of proper configuration and use of the robot, and even if all safety instructions are observed, the injury or damage caused by the operator may still occur. Therefore, it is very important to understand the safety hazards of robot use, which is beneficial to prevent problems before they occur.

Tables 1-2~4 below are common safety hazards that may exist in the context of using robots:

Table 1-2 Dangerous safety hazards

Table 1-3 Warning level security risks

Table 1-4 Potential safety hazards that may result in electric shock

1.2 Safety Precautions

• myCobot is electrical equipment. Non-professional technicians cannot modify the wire, otherwise it is vulnerable to injure the device or the person.
• The DANGER ❗, WARNING ⚠️ marks in this manual are only supplemental to the security precautions.
• Please use myCobot in the specific environment scope. If not, exceeding the specifications and load conditions will shorten the service life of the product even damage the equipment.
• Before operating and maintaining myCobot, the personnel responsible for the installation, operation and maintenance must be trained to understand the various security precautions and to the correct methods of operation and maintenance.
• Do not use myCobot in damp environment for a long time in order to avoid damage; myCobot belongs to precision electronic components.
• Do not use myCobot in high temperature environment. The outer surface of myCobot is made of photosensitive resin as raw material; high temperature will damage the shell and lead to failure.
• Highly corrosive cleaning is not suited to cleaning myCobot. The anodized components are not suitable for immersion cleaning.
• Do not use myCobot without mounting base to avoid damage to the equipment or accidents.
• myCobot should be used in a fixed and unobtrusive environment.
• Do not use other power adapters to supply power to myCobot. If it is damaged due to the use of non-conforming adapter, it will not be included in after-sales service.
• Please do not disassemble or unscrew the screws and its shell. If it's opened, no warranty service can be provided.
• People cannot repair myCobot without professional training. If there is a problem with myCobot, please contact myCobot technical support engineer in time.
• Please comply with the relevant laws to deal with scrapped myCobot, and protect the environment.
• DO NOT let children play with myCobot alone. All processes need to be monitored while running.
• After processes have finished, please turn off the equipment promptly.
• It is prohibited to modify or remove the nameplates, instructions, icons and marks on the robotic arm and the related equipment.
• Do not burn other product drivers to the terminal Atom. If the device is damaged because of that, it will not be included in the after-sales service.

Please do not use the Catbot collaborative robot for the following purposes:

• Medical and life-critical applications.
• In environment that may cause an explosion.
• Used directly without risk assessment.
• Insufficient use of safety function levels.
• Inconsistent use of robot performance parameters.

If you have any question about this manual please visit and submit your feedback on: https://www.elephantrobotics.cn

2. About myCobot

2.1 Background

Upholding the mission of "Enjoy Robots World", Elephant Robotics designed and developed myCobot, the world's smallest and lightest collaborative robot, retaining most functions of industrial robots. With compact and elegant industrial design, excellent and powerful performance, and huge software and hardware development space, myCobot has unlimited possibilities in application expansion.

The design prototype of myCobot is from All-in-one Robot launched by Elephant Robot in China in 2018. As the first integrated collaborative robot in China, it has won the 2019 CAIMRS Industrial Robot Innovation Award and 2019 High-tech Robot Annual "Innovation Technology Award", and has been also sold to more than 30 countries at home and abroad, receiving unanimous praise and recognition from world's top 500 enterprises.

2.2 Introduction

myCobot is the world's smallest and lightest six-axis collaborative robot, jointly produced by Elephant Robotics and M5Stack. It is more than a productivity tool full of imaginations, can carry on the secondary development according to the demands of users to achieve personalized customization.

With a weight of 850g, a payload of 250g and an arm length of 350mm, myCobot is compact but powerful, can not only be matched with a variety of end effectors to adapt to different kinds of application scenarios also support the secondary development of multi-platform software to meet the needs of various scenarios such as scientific research and education, smart home and commercial.

myCobot - Basic Parameter

2.3 Features

• Unique Industrial Design & Extremely Compact: myCobot is an integrated modular design and only weighs 850g which is very easy to carry. Its overall body structure is compact with less spare parts and can be quickly disassembled and replaced to realize plug and play.
• High configuration & Equipped with 2 Screens: myCobot contains 6 high-performance servo motors with fast response, small inertia and smooth rotation. The body carries 2 display screens supporting fastLED library to show the expanded application scene more easily and clearly.
• Lego Connector & Thousands of M5STACK Ecological Application: The base and end of myCobot are equipped with Lego Connector, which is suitable for the development of various miniature embedded equipment. Its base is controlled by M5STACK Basic, and thousands of application cases can be use directly.
• Blocky Programming & Supporting Industrial ROS: Using UIFlow visual programming software, programming myCobot is simple and easy for everyone. You can also use Arduino, ROS, or other multiple functional modules of open source system, even RoboFlow, software of industrial robots from Elephant Robotics.

Track Recording & Learn by hand

Get rid of the traditional point saving mode, myCobot supports drag teaching to record the saved track and can save up to 60mins different Tracks making it easy and fun for new players to learn.

2.4 Patents

Related Patents about myCobot

Patents

Appearance Patents

Invention Patents

Image of a Chinese patent certificate for an appearance design, listing the patent number, applicant (Shenzhen Elephant Robotics Technology Co., Ltd.), and issue date.

3. Hardware

3.1 Controller and Actuator

3.1.1 M5STACK Basic Main Controller

M5STACK BASIC Kit, like its namesake, is a starter kit among the M5STACK development kit series. It's a modular, stackable, scalable, and portable device which is powered with an ESP-32 core, which makes it open source, low cost, full-function, and easy for developers to handle new product development on all stages including circuit design, PCB design, software, mold design and production. This Basic kit provides a friendly price and full-featured resources which makes it a good starter kit for you to explore IoT.

If you want to explore the fastest way of IoT prototyping, M5STACK development board is the perfect solution. Not like others, M5STACK development board is highly efficient, covered with industrial grade case and ESP32-based development board. It integrates with Wi-Fi & Bluetooth modules and contains a dual-core and 16MB of SPI Flash. Together with 30+ M5Stack stackable modules, 40+ extendable units and different levels of program language, you can create and verify your IoT product in a very short time.

Supportive development platforms and programming languages: Arduino, Blocky language with UIFlow, Micropython. Regardless of what level programming skill you have, M5STACK would guide you in every step of the way to realize your idea as well as to the final productization. If you ever played with ESP8266, you would realize that ESP32 is a perfect upgrade out of ESP8266. In comparison, ESP32 has more GPIOs, more analog inputs and two analog outputs, multiple extra peripherals (like a spare UART). Official developing platform ESP-IDF has transplanted with FreeRTOS. With dual-core and real time OS you can get more organized code and much high-speed processor.

M5STACK Basic is consist with two separable parts. The upside part has all kinds of processors, chips, and some other slot components. M-BUS socket, and extendable pins on both sides.

Product Features

• ESP32-based
• Built-in Speaker, Buttons, Color LCD, Power/Reset button
• TF card slot (16G Maximum size)
• Magnetic suction at back
• Extendable Pins & Holes
• M-Bus Socket & Pins
• Program Platform: UIFlow, MicroPython, Arduino

Parameter

3.1.1.1 M5STACK Basic Parameters (Continued)

3.1.2 M5STACK Atom

ATOM Matrix, which has a size of only 24*24mm, is the most compact development board in the M5Stack development kit series. It provides more GPIO pins and is very suitable for handy and miniature embedded device development.

The main control adopts the ESP32-PICO-D4 chip, which comes integrated with Wi-Fi and Bluetooth technologies and has 4MB of integrated SPI flash memory. The Atom board provides an Infra-Red LED along with the 5 * 5 RGB LED matrix on the panel, a built-in IMU sensor (MPU6886), and a HY2.0 interface. A general-purpose programmable button is providing below the RGB Led matrix to enable users to add input support to their various projects. The on-board USB interface (Type-C) enables rapid program uploading and execution. One M2 screw hole is provided on the back for mounting the board.

Note: When using the manipulator, please avoid burning the firmware to ATOM at the end of the manipulator. The device only supports our original firmware.

Please kindly understand the inconvenience brought to you.

Features

• ESP32 PICO-based
• Programmable button
• 5*5 RGB LED matrix panel (WS2812C)
• Built-in Infra-red LED
• Built-in MPU6886 Inertial Sensor
• Extendable Pins & Holes
• Program Platform: Arduino UIFlow

Specification

3.1.3 Servo Motor

myCobot shares 6 high-performance servo servos in 6 joints with the advantages of fast response, small inertia, smooth rotation, stable torque, etc.

3.2 Mechanical Structure

3.2.1 Size and working range

A) myCobot

Diagram showing the myCobot arm with dimensions for each segment (e.g., Arm span 350mm, d1=131.56mm, d2=110.4mm, d3=96mm, d4=66.39mm, d5=73.18mm) and joint ranges (e.g., J1: -165~+165 degrees, J6: -175~+175 degrees). A circular diagram indicates the working radius of r=280mm. Another diagram illustrates the coordinate system for the end-effector.

B) Base Assembly

The base is compatible with both Lego-tech component holes and through-hole screw holes.

C) End Assembly

The end is compatible with both the Lego-tech component hole and the screw thread.

3.2.2 Unpacking and Installation

3.2.2.1 Unpacking

Note: After the packaging box is in place, please confirm that the robot packaging is intact and undamaged. If there is any damage, please contact the logistics company and the local supplier in time. After unpacking, please check the actual items in the box according to the item list.

Image showing the contents of the myCobot standard set: the robot arm, power supply, cables, and user manual.

3.2.2.2 Installation

The actual weight of myCobot collaborative robot is 850g. Considering the movement of the robot, the center of gravity will move as the robot moves. Therefore, the robot needs to be fixed on a solid base to be used normally.

Interface size of robot base: The pedestal fixing hole is the interface that fixes the robot to other bases or planes. The specific hole size is shown as following. It is 4 through holes with a diameter of 4.5mm, which can be fixed with M4 bolts.

Diagram showing the mounting interface of the robot base with four 4.5mm diameter through holes, arranged in a square pattern for M4 bolts.

Make sure that there is a corresponding threaded hole on the fixed base before installing.

Before you officially install, please confirm:

• The environment to be installed complies with the requirements above.
• The installation position is not less than the working range of the robot, and there is enough space for installation, use, maintenance and repair.
• Place the stand in the proper position.
• Installation related tools are ready, such as screws, wrenches, etc.

After confirming the above, move the robot to the mounting surface of the base, adjust the position of the robot, and align the fixing hole of the robot base with the hole on the mounting surface of the base.

Note: When adjusting the position of the robot on the mounting base, please avoid pushing the robot directly on the mounting surface of the base to avoid scratches. When manually moving the robot, please try to avoid applying external force to the weak part of the robot body to avoid unnecessary damage to the robot.

3.3 Electronics and Electrical

myCobot has three external terminals. They are the external terminals of M5Stack Basic on the base, the two Grove terminals near the power socket and the external terminal pins of the M5Stack Atom J6 joint.

a) M5STACK Basic Electrical Diagram

Block diagram illustrating the electrical connections for the M5STACK Basic controller, showing GPIO pins, power inputs, and communication interfaces.

b) M5STACK Atom Circuit Diagram

Block diagram showing the M5STACK Atom circuit, including the ESP32-PICO-D4 chip, RGB LED matrix, IMU sensor, and various pins.

c) IO Interface Diagram

Diagram showing the IO interface labels for the M5STACK Basic and Atom boards, indicating pin assignments and connections.

4. Software

For software updates, please check out our Github first: https://github.com/elephantrobotics/myCobot

4.1 Firmware Upgrade and Recovery - myStudio

myStudio is a one-stop platform for robots of myRobot/myCobot. The main functions of myStudio are: 1) Update the firmware; 2) Provide video tutorials on how to use the robot; 3) Provide maintenance and repair information (such as video tutorials, Q&A, etc.).

Screenshots of the myStudio software interface, showing options for connecting the robot, selecting language, updating firmware, accessing tutorials, and managing the robot's main control.

The link to YouTube videos about myStudio is: https://youtu.be/Kr9i62ZPf4w

If you need to upgrade or maintain your myCobot, make sure that the development environment is set up. If not, please install the serial port driver first and then try to use the software.

The download link is as follows:

Github: https://github.com/elephantrobotics/MyStudio/

If you use a Windows system, please choose "mystudio-windows.exe" to download, and then unzip it into your project folder. Be careful not to use it with complex paths, which may lead to problems with unrecognized paths.

If your development environment is already set up, you can directly open the file "myCobot.exe". After opening, the interface is as follows:

Screenshot of the myStudio main window before connecting the robot, showing USB Port selection and language options.

Connect your myCobot with "Basic" or "Atom", choose "language" and then click "Connect" to enter the main interface as shown below:

Screenshot of the myStudio main interface after connecting the robot, showing application, software, tools, tutorials, and other menu options.

If you connect both Basic and Atom, Select the software you want to burn again in the Board bar in the upper right corner, and then click Basic or Tools to select the firmware you want to burn.

4.2 Built-in Track Recording

M5STACK Basic main control board has 3 buttons supporting custom programming and data writing. This program is open source, you can check our github.

Diagram showing the myCobot with three buttons labeled ButtonA, ButtonB, and ButtonC.

Drag Teaching Demonstration

1. Recording: After entering the recording mode, select the recording storage location.
2. Start Recording: Click record and select the storage location, then manually drag the robotic arm to complete your target action and remember to save it, the action will be recorded and stored.

Note: The default recording time is 100s. If the recording time is too long that will exceed the memory, you can customize it by modifying the code, or record it on the computer.

3. Play: Click Button A to play the recorded action.

Screenshots depicting the myCobot's interface for track recording, showing options like 'Recording Mode', 'Record Ram', 'Record Flash', 'Back', 'Stop Recording and Save', and 'Infinite Playing Mode' with playback controls.

4.3 Arduino Libraries

A library is a collection of codes that allows you to easily connect and use sensors, displays, modules, etc. For example, the built-in LiquidCrystal library can realize easy communication with character LCD displays.

The functions of Arduino development board can be expanded when using the library. Because of the library, we can easily realize the collaboration between Arduino and external hardware or data communication. Arduino IDE is pre-installed with a series of standard library files. At the same time, you can also install and import third-party libraries (such as open source libraries downloaded from the Internet) into Arduino IDE. You can even create libraries and import them into Arduino IDE. The existence of the library helps users to bypass more specialized content such as registers and address pointers, greatly reducing the difficulty of development.

If you need to know how to add third-party libraries for the installation of ARDUINO IDE, please refer to the driver installation address and method: https://docs.m5stack.com/#/zh_CN/arduino/arduino_development

Screenshot of the Arduino IDE download page, listing available installers for Windows, macOS, and Linux.

You can also check out our Github for more information: https://github.com/elephantrobotics/myCobot

As follows:

Screenshots of the Arduino Library Manager showing installed libraries for M5Stack development, including ESP32 Lite Pack Library, ESP32-Chimera-Core, GUIslice, M5Atom, M5Core2, M5ez, M5Stack, M5Stack-SD-Updater, and M5Stack_Avatar. (Note: This section contains Chinese text).

4.4 API Interface and Communication

• UIFlow
• Arduino
• microPython
• FreeRTOS

4.4.1 UIFlow

Use UIFlow Beta Version and Select Cooperation - myCobot

https://docs.m5stack.com/#/zh_CN/quick_start/m5core/m5stack_core_get_started_MicroPython

4.5 ROS

Install ROS

Download address: http://wiki.ros.org/ROS/Installation

An example installation under Ubuntu16.04LTS is shown here.

# set source.lis
sudo sh -c 'echo "deb http://packages.ros.org/ros/ubuntu $(lsb_release -sc) main" > /etc/apt/sources.list.d/ros-latest.list'

# add key
sudo apt-key adv --keyserver 'hkp://keyserver.ubuntu.com:80' --recv-key C1CF6E31E6BADE8868B172B4F42ED6FBAB17C654

# update software
sudo apt-get update

# install ros
sudo apt-get install ros-kinetic-desktop-full

# inital ros
sudo rosdep init rosdep update# set ros envecho "source /opt/ros/kinetic/setup.bash" >> ~/.bashrc source ~/.bashrc

# install ros dependency packages
sudo apt-get install python-rosinstall python-rosinstall-generator python-wstool build-essential

Test

# test wether install success roscore
roscore

Prove that your ROS was successfully installed, as shown in the image below.

Screenshots of the ROS (Robot Operating System) environment, displaying RViz visualization tools, terminal commands for installation and operation, and the robot model. Includes a diagram of the robot's joint states and parameters.

This is a ROS package about myCobt to help you better use myCobt in ROS.

Project address: https://github.com/elephantrobotics/myCobotROS

Preparation before Use:

Make sure the top Atom burns into Atom and the bottom BASIC burns into Transponder.

4.5.1 Installation

4.5.1.1 Precondition

To use this package, make sure the Python API is installed correctly.

pip install pymycobot --user

4.5.1.2 Download and Installation of ROS package

Install the ROS package into the src folder of Catkin.

$ cd ~/catkin_ws/src
$ git clone https://github.com/elephantrobotics/myCobotROS.git
$ cd ~/catkin_ws
$ catkin_make

4.5.1.3 You can choose to test the Python API

cd ~/catkin_ws/src/myCobotROS
python3 scripts/test.py

4.5.2 Module

4.5.2.1 Node

• display: Display nodes. Synchronize the pose of myCobot to the simulation model.
• control_slider: myCobot is controlled through the slider.
• control_marker: myCobot is controlled through interactive tags.

4.5.2.2 Theme

• joint_states - Control and record the states of myCobot
• Message_type: std_msgs/JointState
• Data: position[float, float, float, float, float, float]

4.5.3 RViz

4.5.3.1 Function

• display.launch: This function will display robot arm movement in realtime when you manually move mycobot.
• control.launch: This function will allow you use slider bar to control movement of the robot arm.

4.5.3.2 Start and Operate

Step 1: Open roscore in terminal

roscore #open another tab

Step 2: Get started

a) If it is displaying or controlling with an interactive tag, run it in the second terminal:

roslaunch myCobotROS mycobot.launch

b) If it is a slider control, run it in the second terminal:

roslaunch myCobotROS control.launch

Step 3: Open rviz (third terminal)

rosrun rviz rviz

If you use the above command, you will open a blank rviz and need to add modules manually. Alternatively, you can also use the following command to open RVIZ and load a saved myCobot model.

rosrun rviz rviz -d rospack find myCobotROS/config/mycobot.rviz

Step 4: Run the Python script (fourth terminal)

A) display the script

rosrun myCobotROS display.py

B) the slider control script

rosrun myCobotROS control_slider.py

C) interactive tags control script

rosrun myCobotROS control_marker.py

4.6 Joint Calibration

If your myCobot needs to calibrate joints, please use the firmware of myCobot or Arduino and other tools to burn Calibration first.

After uploading the firmware, the Baisc interface is shown below:

Screenshot of the myCobot calibration interface, showing prompts to press buttons A, B, or C for calibration, testing, or restarting.

At this time, rotate J1 to the standard zero position aligning with the groove, and press the A button (the left button), then the J1 will go from a dynamic motion into a static position and be fixed to this standard zero position.

Repeat the steps following this method to set up the remaining J2-J6. After J6 is set, press the A key (the left key) again to save all the Settings.

When all joints are back to the standard zero position, you also need to check whether myCobot can operate normally. Press the B button (the middle button), then myCobot will detect J1 to J6 in sequence.

Please ensure that there are no obstacles or personnel interference within the operating range in order to prevent damage to equipment and personnel during testing.

5. Visual Programming and Industrial Software

5.1 Visual Programming Software-UIFlow

For detailed usage, please get the UI Flow operation manual from the link below.

M5STACK Basic: https://docs.m5stack.com/#/zh_CN/quick_start/m5core/m5stack_core_get_started_MicroPython

M5STACK Atom: https://docs.m5stack.com/#/zh_CN/quick_start/atom/atom_quick_start_uiflow

5.2 Industrial Visualization Programming Software-RoboFlow

myCobot supports RoboFlow operating by Elephant Robotics industrial collaborative robots. The operation process of RoboFlow is simple and easy to use, and the interactive interface is clear and easy to understand, which is convenient for users to quickly master and use it, and effectively helps users to complete operations and programming tasks efficiently. Even novice users can also achieve target functions through simple operations.

For detailed usage, please get the RoboFlow operation manual from the link below.

https://www.elephantrobotics.com/download/

Download Website: https://github.com/elephantrobotics/myCobot/tree/main/Software

RoboFlow Tutorial: https://www.elephantrobotics.com/tutorials/#

6. After-sales Service

• Return service is limited to goods not opened within 7 days after the receipt date of logistics of the products. The freight or other risks incurred in return shall be borne by the customer.
• Customers should provide the purchasing invoice and warranty card as the warranty certification when a warranty is being asked.
• Elephant Robotics will be responsible for the hardware faults of products caused by the normal using during the warranty period.
• The warranty period starts from the date of purchase or the receipt date of the logistics.
• The faulty parts from the products will be owned by Elephant Robotics, and the appropriate cost will be charged if necessary.

If you need to apply for warranty service, please contact our customer service first to confirm the detailed information. The following is warranty terms of detailed components:

Note: If there is a conflict with the Product Brochure, the User Manual shall prevail.

a) Sever motor

b) Electrical Parts (M5 Hardware)

c) Structure Parts, including Shell Parts

During the warranty period of the delivered product, the company only repairs the malfunctions that occur during normal use of the robot for free. However, in the following cases, the customer will be charged for repairs (even during the warranty period):

• Damage or malfunction caused by incorrect use and improper use different from the manual.
• Failure caused by unauthorized disassembly by the customer.
• Damage caused by improper adjustment or unauthorized repairs.
• Damage caused by natural disasters such as earthquakes and floods.

Please strictly follow the instructions in this manual and related manual to operate the robot.

7. Q&A

https://docs.qq.com/sheet/DYkZFRWZOU0hhaWdK?tab=w831xv

Q: The compiler could not find the corresponding device ?

A: The device can be developed only after setting up the development environment and installing the corresponding project library.

Q: The compiler could not compile the sample program properlyfind the corresponding device ?

A: The required project library is not installed or there is a conflict with the project library. Please check that the project library is installed correctly first. If it is installed correctly but still cannot compile, please reinstall arduino development environment.

Q: The Device failed to function properly after burning the firmware to ATOM ?

A: The firmware for ATOM terminal needs to use our factory firmware. If any other firmware is accidentally burned, you can choose "myCobot固件烧录器-选择ATOM终端-选择串口-选择ATOMMAIN固件" to burn the ATOM terminal.

Q: There is a slight wobble in the vertical position but not in the motion state ?

A: Please check if myCobot is in a vertical state. myCobot is not affected by gravity in a vertical state, mechanical voidage can cause minor wobbles. But there will not be wobbles when it's out of the vertical state. The recommended speed is 400-500 in a vertical state.

Q: Will the ROS system charge later ?

A: ROS is open source and will be updated to our Github. There is no charge for firmware upgrades.

8. Contact Us

If you have any need for help, please contact us shown as following.

Shenzhen Elephant Robotics Technology Co., Ltd
Address: B7, Yungu Innovative Industrial Park 2, Nanshan, Shenzhen, China
Email: support@elephantrobotics.com
Phone: +86(0755)-8696-8565 (working day 9:30-18:30)
Website: www.elephantrobotics.com

Shop: https://shop.elephantrobotics.com

Twitter: myCobot Official@CobotMy

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/MyCobot-116558893805177

Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC68L2RaRF2Mp8fzpCTzNBfA