A new graphics simulator for RCCL and its use in undergraduate robotics instruction

Wilkes University employs the public domain package RCCL (Robot Control C Language) to control a PUMA 760 robot. This paper describes the use of RCCL in an undergraduate Robotics course for mechanical engineers offered in the Fall of 1996. This paper also describes the substitution of a graphics model created using the Inventor package of Silicon Graphics Inc. This package provides the ability to create a high quality graphics image of both the robot and its environment. Performance of the simulation and a description of its use in the robotics course are presented.