Maintenance

Warning

The customer does not need to open the rc_visard’s housing to perform maintenance. Unauthorized opening will void the warranty.

Lens cleaning

Glass lenses with antireflective coating are used to reduce glare. Please take special care when cleaning the lenses. To clean them, use a soft lens-cleaning brush to remove dust or dirt particles. Then use a clean microfiber cloth that is designed to clean lenses, and gently wipe the lens using a circular motion to avoid scratches that may compromise the sensor’s performance. For stubborn dirt, high purity isopropanol or a lens cleaning solution formulated for coated lenses (such as the Uvex Clear family of products) may be used.

Camera calibration

The cameras are calibrated during production. Under normal operating conditions, the calibration will be valid for the life time of the sensor. High impact, such as occurring when dropping the rc_visard, can change the camera’s parameters slightly. In this case, calibration can be verified and recalibration undertaken via the Web GUI (see Camera calibration).

Creating and restoring backups of settings

The rc_visard offers the possibility to download the current settings as backup or for transferring them to a different rc_visard or rc_cube.

The current settings of the rc_visard can be downloaded on the Web GUI’s System page in the rc_visard Settings section. They can also be downloaded via the rc_visard’s REST-API interface using the GET /system/backup request.

For downloading a backup, the user can choose which settings to include:

  • nodes: the settings of all modules (parameters, preferred orientations and sorting strategies)
  • load_carriers: the configured load carriers
  • regions_of_interest: the configured 2D and 3D regions of interest
  • grippers: the configured grippers (without the CAD elements)

The returned backup should be stored as a .json file.

The templates of the SilhouetteMatch module are not included in the backup but can be downloaded manually using the REST-API or the Web GUI (see Template API).

A backup can be restored to the rc_visard on the Web GUI’s System page in the rc_visard Settings section by uploading the backup .json file. In the Web GUI the settings included in the backup are shown and can be chosen for restore. The corresponding REST-API interface call is POST /system/backup.

Warning

When restoring load carriers, all existing load carriers on the rc_visard will get lost and will be replaced by the content of the backup. The same applies to restoring grippers and regions of interest.

When restoring a backup, only the settings which are applicable to the rc_visard are restored. Parameters for modules that do not exist on the device or do not have a valid license will be skipped. If a backup can only be restored partially, the user will be notified by warnings.

Updating the firmware

Information about the current firmware image version can be found on the Web GUI’s System ‣ Firmware & License page. It can also be accessed via the rc_visard’s REST-API interface using the GET /system request. Users can use either the Web GUI or the REST-API to update the firmware.

Warning

When upgrading from a version prior to 21.07, all of the software modules’ configured parameters will be reset to their defaults after a firmware update. Only when upgrading from version 21.07 or higher, the last saved parameters will be preserved. Please make sure these settings are persisted on the application-side or client PC (e.g., using the REST-API interface) to request all parameters and store them prior to executing the update.

The following settings are excluded from this and will be persisted across a firmware update:

  • the rc_visard’s network configuration including an optional static IP address and the user-specified device name,
  • the latest result of the Hand-eye calibration, i.e., recalibrating the rc_visard w.r.t. a robot is not required, unless camera mounting has changed, and
  • the latest result of the Camera calibration, i.e., recalibration of the rc_visard’s stereo cameras is not required.
Step 1: Download the newest firmware version.

Firmware updates will be supplied from of a Mender artifact file identified by its .mender suffix.

If a new firmware update is available for your rc_visard device, the respective file can be downloaded to a local computer from https://www.roboception.com/download.

Step 2: Upload the update file.

To update with the rc_visard’s REST-API, users may refer to the POST /system/update request.

To update the firmware via the Web GUI, locate the System ‣ Firmware & License page and press the “Upload rc_visard Update” button. Select the desired update image file (file extension .mender) from the local file system and open it to start the update.

Depending on the network architecture and configuration, the upload may take several minutes. During the update via the Web GUI, a progress bar indicates the progress of the upload.

Note

Depending on the web browser, the update progress status shown in the progress bar may indicate the completion of the update too early. Please wait until a notification window opens, which indicates the end of the update process. Expect an overall update time of at least five minutes.

Warning

Do not close the web browser tab which contains the Web GUI or press the renew button on this tab, because it will abort the update procedure. In that case, repeat the update procedure from the beginning.

Step 3: Reboot the rc_visard.

To apply a firmware update to the rc_visard device, a reboot is required after having uploaded the new image version.

Note

The new image version is uploaded to the inactive partition of the rc_visard. Only after rebooting will the inactive partition be activated, and the active partition will become inactive. If the updated firmware image cannot be loaded, this partition of the rc_visard remains inactive and the previously installed firmware version from the active partition will be used automatically.

As for the REST-API, the reboot can be performed by the PUT /system/reboot request.

After having uploaded the new firmware via the Web GUI, a notification window is opened, which offers to reboot the device immediately or to postpone the reboot. To reboot the rc_visard at a later time, use the Reboot button on the Web GUI’s System page.

Step 4: Confirm the firmware update.

After rebooting the rc_visard, please check the firmware image version number of the currently active image to make sure that the updated image was successfully loaded. You can do so either via the Web GUI’s System ‣ Firmware & License page or via the REST-API’s GET /system/update request.

Please contact Balluff in case the firmware update could not be applied successfully.

Restoring the previous firmware version

After a successful firmware update, the previous firmware image is stored on the inactive partition of the rc_visard and can be restored in case needed. This procedure is called a rollback.

Note

Using the latest firmware as provided by Balluff is strongly recommended. Hence, rollback functionality should only be used in case of serious issues with the updated firmware version.

Rollback functionality is only accessible via the rc_visard’s REST-API interface using the PUT /system/rollback request. It can be issued using any HTTP-compatible client or using a web browser as described in Swagger UI. Like the update process, the rollback requires a subsequent device reboot to activate the restored firmware version.

Rebooting the rc_visard

An rc_visard reboot is necessary after updating the firmware or performing a software rollback. It can be issued either programmatically, via the rc_visard’s REST-API interface using the PUT /system/reboot request, or manually on the Web GUI’s System page.

The reboot is finished when the LED turns green again.

Updating the software license

Licenses that are purchased from Balluff for enabling additional features can be installed via the Web GUI’s System ‣ Firmware & License page. The rc_visard has to be rebooted to apply the licenses.

Downloading log files

During operation, the rc_visard logs important information, warnings, and errors into files. If the rc_visard exhibits unexpected or erroneous behavior, the log files can be used to trace its origin. Log messages can be viewed and filtered using the Web GUI’s System ‣ Logs page. If contacting the support (Contact), the log files are very useful for tracking possible problems. To download them as a .tar.gz file, click on Download all logs on the Web GUI’s System ‣ Logs page.

Aside from the Web GUI, the logs are also accessible via the rc_visard’s REST-API interface using the GET /logs and GET /logs/{log} requests.