Method and System for Automated Surface Treatment

A method for automating the selective treatment of a working surface of a substrate, the method comprising:

• identifying a working surface of a substrate for surface treatment;
• identifying the nature of the surface treatment to be carried out on the substrate;
• deploying a robotic system to initiate a surface treatment event, the robotic system comprising a robotic arm supporting end of arm tooling supporting at least one surface treatment tool operable to remove material from the working surface, the robotic system further comprising a first sensor and a second sensor operable to sense at least one aspect of, and to provide information associated with a surface treatment event;
• removing material from the working surface using the surface treatment tool;
• measuring a force associated with the end of arm tooling as engaged with the working surface using the first sensor;
• measuring a property of the working surface using the second sensor;
• providing information associated with the surface treatment event using at least one of the first or second sensors;
• determining a change in a working surface characteristic using the information;
• and
• adjusting operation of at least one of the end of arm tooling or the robotic arm in response to the change in the working surface characteristic.

A system for automatic treatment of a working surface of a substrate, comprising:

• a robotic arm;
• end of arm tooling supported on the robotic arm, and operable with at least one surface treatment tool operable to remove material from the working surface;
• a sensor operable to sense at least one aspect of, and to provide information associated with, a surface treatment event;
• a control module operable to control the robotic arm and the end of arm tooling and the sensor, the control module comprising one or more processors operable with one or more memory devices, the control module further comprising a machine learning module, and instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the system to:
• detect the presence of the working surface,
• operate the end of arm tooling about the working surface as part of a surface treatment event comprising removing material from the working surface,
• input the information provided by the sensor into the machine learning module,
• using the machine learning module, facilitate determination of a change in a working surface characteristic using the information provided by the sensor, and
• facilitate adjustment of the operation of at least one of the end of arm tooling or the robotic arm in response to the change in the working surface characteristic.