This project involves the establishment of a simulated factory as a laboratory for automation and robotics. This automated factory simulation would involve industrial robots in an actual manufacturing production environment wherein the complex interrelationships between pieces of automated equipment on a factory floor could be taught. The equipment required includes industrial robots and robot trainers to be used as lab equipment on the production floor of the factory. This equipment will be integrated with existing robotic equipment to produce a unique laboratory for undergraduate students. As a result of this lab, students will learn not only the discrete and specialized tasks of different types of automation systems, but also how those different systems fit together in a computer-integrated manufacturing environment.
