FANUC Programming & Software Integration 5 — Questions and Answers
Question 1: What is the purpose of the FANUC 'Soft Float' motion option in TP programming?
- It reduces servo stiffness along specified Cartesian axes to allow compliant contact force control (Correct answer)
- It enables the robot to decelerate smoothly when approaching singularity configurations
- It filters high-frequency vibrations from the robot's base using active damping
- It allows the robot to execute paths defined by floating-point register arithmetic
Correct answer: It reduces servo stiffness along specified Cartesian axes to allow compliant contact force control
Soft Float temporarily reduces servo gain along user-specified Cartesian axes, making the robot compliant in those directions to absorb contact forces during assembly or insertion tasks.
Question 2: In FANUC TP, the instruction 'UTOOL_NUM=3' has what effect on subsequent motion instructions?
- It restricts motion to only Tool Frame 3's coordinate directions
- It switches the active tool frame to UTOOL[3], changing how TCP position and orientation are calculated (Correct answer)
- It sets the tool payload to the value stored in schedule 3
- It copies UTOOL[3] into UTOOL[1] for use as the default
Correct answer: It switches the active tool frame to UTOOL[3], changing how TCP position and orientation are calculated
UTOOL_NUM= selects which user tool frame (UTOOL[]) is active; all subsequent motion calculations will use the TCP definition stored in that tool frame.
Question 3: A FANUC R-30iB controller is configured with PROFINET IO. What role does the robot controller typically take in this network?
- PROFINET IO Controller (master) initiating cyclic data exchange with IO Devices
- PROFINET IO Device (slave) responding to a PLC acting as the IO Controller
- Either IO Controller or IO Device depending on which option is purchased (Correct answer)
- PROFINET Supervisor only, monitoring network traffic without I/O exchange
Correct answer: Either IO Controller or IO Device depending on which option is purchased
FANUC offers both PROFINET IO Controller and IO Device options; the controller can act as either master or slave depending on the purchased software option and cell architecture.
Question 4: When editing a FANUC TP program on the teach pendant, what is the function of the 'EDCMD' key menu option 'RENUMBER'?
- It renumbers all line numbers sequentially and updates all JUMP LBL references accordingly (Correct answer)
- It reassigns all position register indices to eliminate gaps in numbering
- It resets all register values to zero and renumbers them
- It renumbers only the comment lines without affecting logic
Correct answer: It renumbers all line numbers sequentially and updates all JUMP LBL references accordingly
RENUMBER sequentially renumbers all program lines and automatically updates any JUMP LBL[], CALL, or other line-number references to match the new numbering.
Question 5: In FANUC's Remote TCP (RTCP) motion, what remains stationary while the robot moves?
- The robot's wrist flange stays fixed in space while the base and arm links move
- The tool center point stays fixed in world space while the robot repositions the workpiece held in the end effector (Correct answer)
- The robot base is repositioned externally while all joints hold still
- The end effector stays fixed and only the robot's J1 axis rotates
Correct answer: The tool center point stays fixed in world space while the robot repositions the workpiece held in the end effector
In Remote TCP motion, the programmed TCP (located at a fixed external point such as a laser or dispenser) remains stationary in space while the robot moves the workpiece held in its gripper around that fixed point.
Question 6: What is the significance of the 'Group Mask' field when configuring a FANUC TP program?
- It specifies which motion groups the program is allowed to control during execution (Correct answer)
- It defines which operator groups have permission to run the program
- It sets a bit mask to filter which I/O signals the program can read
- It limits the program to executing only on specific days or shifts
Correct answer: It specifies which motion groups the program is allowed to control during execution
The Group Mask field in a TP program header designates which motion groups (1–8) the program has authority to command motion for, preventing unintended control of other groups.
Question 7: In FANUC Karel, which built-in routine is used to send a string message to the teach pendant's user display area?
- WRITE_TP
- POST_ERR
- UI_SET_MENU
- WRITE (using the TP device) (Correct answer)
Correct answer: WRITE (using the TP device)
In Karel, output to the teach pendant's user display is achieved by opening and writing to the 'TP:' device using the standard WRITE statement directed to the TP file descriptor.
FANUC Programming & Software Integration 5
What is the purpose of the FANUC 'Soft Float' motion option in TP programming?