Updating the software on an Omron TM series cobot requires a specific procedure and strict attention to hardware compatibility. Below I’m going to walk you though the specific steps I went though on our TM5-700, and point out the specific errors you will find in specific scenarios.
Prerequisites and USB Preparation
Because the TM5 control box is typically not connected directly to the internet, you will perform the update locally using a USB flash drive.
Your USB drive must meet these exact specifications:
- Capacity: At least 4GB of storage space.
- Format: It must be formatted to NTFS. (Do not use FAT32 or exFat).
- Name: The volume label of the drive must be named exactly TMROBOT in all capital letters with no spaces.
2. Verifying Your Hardware Version
Before downloading any software, you must verify which hardware version your TM5 arm belongs to. Do not skip this step.
- Look at the manufacturer tag located on the base of the robotic arm.
- Find the hardware indicator, which will typically read HW:3.2 or HW:5.0.
TMflow version 2.x is exclusively compatible with HW:5.0. If your arm is HW:3.2, your system is limited to the TMflow 1.88.xxxx series. There is no workaround for this, as the newer software version was designed specifically for the newer hardware version, and there are physical hardware differences between the two.
3. Downloading and Prepping the Firmware
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Navigate to the Omron Robotics Resources Page. You will need to submit your email address to access the portal.
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Use the filters on the right side of the page. Under the Software category, click TMflow.
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Download the specific zip file that matches your hardware version.
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Now extract the contents and place the individual files directly onto the root directory of your TMROBOT flash drive.
4. Executing the Update on the Robot
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Plug your prepared USB drive directly into an available USB port on the control box.
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On the Teach Pendant, switch to manual mode, navigate to the Main Menu, select System, and click System Update.
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You will see your USB drive listed in the table. You must physically click the \USB\TMROBOT row in the table so that it populates the UNC path box at the bottom of the screen.
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Once the UNC box is populated, click Update.
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The system will check the files, and you should see a popup confirming your current version and target version. If everything looks correct, press okay.
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Do not touch anything. The update process can take up to 10 minutes. You will know the update is complete when the control box shuts completely off and the blinking red light indicator on the robot arm’s end module goes dark.
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Power the system back on and navigate back to system update to verify what version you are now on.
Troubleshooting Common TMflow Update Errors
The TMflow update process is notoriously picky. If you make a mistake with your file structure or hardware versions, the system will throw errors that are not always self-explanatory. Here is what they mean and how to fix them.
Error: “Invalid value. Please check it.”
- The Cause: You clicked the “Update” button too early.
- The Fix: You must click the \USB\TMROBOT row in the device table to populate the UNC text field before hitting the update button.
Error: “[Error][Com.]File not found”
- The Cause: The robot cannot read your update files. This happens for three primary reasons: the USB drive is not formatted to NTFS, the files were left in a .zip format, or the extracted files are sitting inside a folder instead of directly on the root of the drive.
- The Fix: Reformat your drive to NTFS, ensure it is named TMROBOT, and verify the four extracted update files are sitting bare on the root directory.
Error: “Certification does not match”
- The Full Error Text: “Certification does not match. Please download the latest certification file from website to start the installation process. The installation process will not proceed.”
- The Cause: This is a hardware mismatch error, completely unrelated to an actual missing certification file. You will get this specific error if you are operating on older HW:3.2 hardware and attempt to install a TMflow 2.x software version.
- The Fix: You cannot bypass this. You must download the latest software from the 1.88.xxxx series instead.
Last note: If you plan to remote in from a different computer, you need to make sure you update to the same version that you installed on your TM5-700. To do this, uninstall your current version from your computer, then use the same installer you used to update the TM5-700, and simply double click on the “exe” file, to start the installation. Once the software is updated on both the TM5 and your remote client computer, you should be able to connect again.