INNOVATION July-August 2016

2015 ❖ 2016 Project Highlights

Spool Welding Robot Semi-Automates the Pipe Spool Manufacturing Process Novarc Technologies's patent-pending Spool Welding Robot is a collaborative welding robot designed for 1G pipe welding. The robot increases arc-on time, reduces defects, and improves weld quality by combining operator’s knowledge and mobility with the robot’s repeatability to mechanise the pipe spool manufacturing process. The result leads to increased productivity and lower costs for pipe-fabrication shops.

The robot has a 4.5-metre reach, a minimum set up time of three minutes per weld, a 2.4-metre x 1.2-metre footprint, an ability to work with existing positioners, weld monitoring and quality assurance via camera, automatic distance control, and laser-assisted seam tracking. It also has a custom- made user-friendly pendant. This collaborative robot combines operator’s cognition and mobility with robotic repeatability to mechanise the pipe spool manufacturing process. APEGBC members: Hassan Bateni, P.Eng., Abdolreza Abdollahi, P.Eng.; Soroush Karimzadeh, P.Eng.

Software Guides Viewers’ AttentionWithin Images Ever wonder if your audience sees what you want them to see in your slides or images? Researchers with the Simon Fraser University Multimedia Ergonomics team have developed image-processing software that introduces subtle changes in colour to guide viewers’ attention towards or away from selected areas on an image. The gaze-point heat map ( L ower left ) shows that viewers tend to look at the boundary between the two walls and the hole in the tile wall near the bottom right corner. Modifying the image ( T op right ) by subtly changing the colour in its top right corner redirects visual attention while preserving image aesthetics. The resulting gaze-point heat map ( B ottom right ) shows that viewers no longer focus on the hole in the tile wall, but instead on the area where the colour has been altered. APEGBC member: Dr. Ivan V. Baji, P.Eng.

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