Robot calibration system and method of determining a position of a robot relative to an electrically-charged calibration object

A robot calibration system comprising:

• a ground defining a return for an electrical circuit;
• a robot electrically connected to said ground, said robot including at least one robot arm having a tool surface operating within a robot workspace;
• a robot controller that defines a source for the electrical circuit to provide an electrical charge and a calibration reference voltage to said calibration system, and that detects a variation in at least one of said electrical charge and said calibration reference voltage;
• and
• a calibration object electrically insulated from said ground and electrically connected to said robot controller wherein said calibration object receives said electrical charge and said calibration reference voltage from said robot controller such that a position of said robot relative to said calibration object can be determined when said tool surface of said robot electrically interacts with said calibration object for calibrating said robot.

A method of determining a position of a robot relative to a calibration object external to the robot for calibrating the robot wherein the robot is electrically connected to a ground and an electrical supply and includes at least one robot arm having a tool surface operating within a robot workspace, said method comprising the steps of:

• electrically connecting the calibration object to the electrical supply for providing an electrical charge and a calibration reference voltage to the calibration object;
• moving the robot from an initial position where the tool surface is spaced from the calibration object toward the calibration object such that the tool surface electrically interacts with the calibration object;
• and
• detecting a variation in at least one of the electrical charge and the calibration reference voltage due to the electrical interaction of the tool surface with the calibration object as the robot moves between the initial position and the calibration object to determine the position of the robot for calibrating the robot.