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Maintenance

This page covers care of the visuotactile sensors, lenses, encoders and cables, and the checks after removing and refitting a sensor. After reading it you can do the periodic checks and cleaning yourself, and know which jobs go to after-sales support.

Visuotactile sensor

The imaging surface is an elastomer / gel material. It is the most delicate part and directly determines tactile data quality.

  • Avoid: scratching with sharp objects, digging in with fingernails, impacts from hard objects, deformation from prolonged heavy pressure, oil and solvents.
  • Cleaning: blow off loose dust with an air blower first, then wipe gently with a clean lint-free soft cloth if needed. Without official instructions for your hardware batch, do not use alcohol, solvents or any other liquid cleaner.
  • Storage: out of direct light, at room temperature. When not in use, keep the tactile surface free of contact or fit the protective part shipped with the unit; do not let a hard object press on the surface.
  • Contact: normal contact during collection is fine; avoid unusually hard squeezing.

Actions that damage the sensor surface

Do not clean the surface with sharp objects, do not peel at the bonded surface, do not wipe with solvents unless confirmed. A scratch or a dent can only be fixed by replacing the sensor.

Removal and refitting

Mind static (ESD) throughout; stop collection before disconnecting the leader gripper's Type-C.

Sensor removal and refitting steps

After refitting, rerun the tactile and camera preview self-check (on the Backpack Kit, Confirm in the console before recording; on the Developer Kit, Preview before recording). If the image is clearly worse, check whether the sensor is seated firmly, dirty or fitted backwards; encoder zero calibration does not fix image problems.

Camera lenses

Clean the wrist camera and the tactile optical surfaces with an air blower plus a lint-free cloth, and avoid scratching them. Heavy dirt directly lowers image quality.

Encoder and calibration

  • Calibration is one-off: the zero and the travel limit are written to MCU flash, survive power cycles and do not need redoing on another collection unit. Day to day, only confirm that gripper.pos≈0 closed and ≈1.0 fully open; to recalibrate, use the console's System → Gripper page on the Backpack Kit, or see Gripper calibration (zero + travel) on the Developer Kit.
  • Recalibrate when: the mechanics loosen after a drop / hard impact, the encoder or mechanical limit stop has been removed or refitted, or the firmware was erased. Recalibrate the zero and the travel together; when the limit stop changes, the travel limit changes too.
  • Do a quick self-check before every collection batch: on the Backpack Kit, the views and poses on the console's "Live monitor" page; on the Developer Kit, the Quickstart self-check.

Cables and connectors

  • Do not bend USB / serial cables repeatedly or pull at the strain relief. Plug and unplug gently; on a locking Type-C, loosen the screws before pulling.
  • Route and secure the cables so nothing tugs on them during collection and causes a poor contact / dropout.

General

  • Avoid drops, liquid ingress and extreme temperature or humidity.
  • For long-term storage, power down and keep the unit in a dry place out of direct light.
Item Recommended interval What to do
Sensor surface inspection Before every batch; immediately after contact with a sharp object or a collision Look for scratches, dirt, permanent dents and image anomalies
Sensor surface cleaning When dust or dirt is found Air blower first, then wipe gently with a lint-free soft cloth; no unconfirmed liquids
Encoder zero check / recalibration Quick check before every batch; recalibrate when drift is confirmed Fully closed should read ≈0; do not recalibrate when it is normal
Wrist camera lens inspection Before every batch; clean when the image is blurry or spotted Air blower first, then wipe gently with a lens cloth if needed
Cable and locking-part inspection Before every batch; check carefully after robot motion or transport No damage, looseness, excessive bending or interference with motion

Official information and after-sales support

Cleaner models, the service life of sensor consumables and the repair / inspection process vary by hardware batch. This page only gives the practices that do not depend on the material model; do not guess on site. When you need a cleaner, a tactile surface replacement or an internal repair, contact the delivery or after-sales staff as described in the documents shipped with the unit, with the device SN and photos from the site. For feedback channels and what to include, see Support and feedback.