Material picking and placing device, robot and picking and placing method

Abstract

The present invention relates to a material picking and placing device, a robot and a picking and placing method, which extracts materials according to the handling information of at least one material; lifts and lowers the extracted materials to a temporary storage unit, wherein the temporary storage unit includes at least one group of support components, and the support components can be switched between a supporting state and a non-supporting state; lifts and lowers the materials to above a group of support components in a non-supporting state, and switches the support components from a non-supporting state to a supporting state; and lowers the materials onto the support components in the supporting state. The present invention provides a material picking and placing device, a robot and a picking and placing method that occupy a small space, have simple material picking and placing steps, are flexible in shape, and are convenient to use in narrow passages.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of logistics handling technology, and in particular to a material picking and placing device, a robot and a picking and placing method. Background Art

[0002] Modern logistics systems, storage systems or industrial production lines have higher and higher requirements for intelligence. In intelligent storage systems, logistics systems or industrial production factories, materials are often stacked or stacked together, and turnover devices are needed as carriers to transport materials. Through the cooperation of control systems and other mechanisms, it replaces the traditional loading and unloading work, which is beneficial to protect workpieces, improve movement efficiency, save manpower and handling, and is suitable for loading and unloading work of assembly lines with multiple specifications.

[0003] Currently, fixed transfer racks are often installed on turnover devices, and a lifting unit is set on one side of the transfer rack. Materials need to be transferred from the lifting unit to the transfer rack. The lifting unit and the transfer rack occupy a large space in the site, and the steps of taking and placing materials are cumbersome. The material taking and placing device is not flexible enough and is limited in use in narrow passages. Summary of the invention

[0004] In view of the problems existing in the above-mentioned existing products, the present invention provides a material picking and placing device, a robot and a picking and placing method which occupy a small space, have simple material picking and placing steps, are flexible in shape, and are convenient for use in narrow passages.

[0005] The present invention relates to a material taking and placing method.

[0006] Extract materials according to the handling information of at least one material;

[0007] Lifting the extracted material to a temporary storage unit, wherein the temporary storage unit includes at least one set of support components, and the support components can be switched between a supporting state and a non-supporting state;

[0008] Lifting the material to above a set of support components in a non-supporting state includes the following steps, and switching the support components from the non-supporting state to the supporting state;

[0009] The descending material is placed on the supporting assembly in the supporting state.

[0010] Preferably, after the descending material is placed on the supporting assembly in the supporting state, the following steps are also included:

[0011] Lifting the material away from the supporting component in the supporting state, and switching the supporting component from the non-supporting state to the supporting state;

[0012] The materials are unloaded according to the handling information of at least one material.

[0013] Preferably, lifting the material to above the supporting assembly in a non-supporting state comprises the following steps: when the temporary storage unit comprises a plurality of supporting assemblies of different heights, lifting the material to above the supporting assembly in the highest non-supporting state.

[0014] Preferably, the handling information includes an extraction order and an unloading order of multiple materials; the extraction order is opposite to the unloading order.

[0015] The present invention relates to a material taking and placing device, comprising

[0016] A base frame, wherein the base frame includes a lifting space;

[0017] A lifting unit, comprising a lifting assembly and a first driving assembly, wherein the lifting assembly is installed in the lifting space of the base frame, and the first driving assembly can drive the lifting assembly to move up and down relative to the base frame;

[0018] The temporary storage unit includes at least one set of supporting components and a second driving component; the supporting components can be movably installed on the side of the lifting space of the base frame, the supporting components have a supporting state or a non-supporting state, and the second driving component is used to drive the supporting components to switch between the supporting state and the non-supporting state.

[0019] Preferably, a group of the support assemblies comprises at least two movable support members, and the movable support members in a group of the support assemblies are installed in the same plane, which is perpendicular to the lifting direction of the lifting assembly.

[0020] Preferably, a group of the support assemblies includes two pairs of movable support members, and the two pairs of movable support members are arranged oppositely on both sides of the lifting channel.

[0021] Preferably, the movable support is rotatably connected to the base frame, and the movable support can rotate in a plane perpendicular to the lifting direction of the lifting assembly.

[0022] Preferably, the support assembly further comprises a screw pair and a support shaft;

[0023] The screw rod pair comprises a screw rod and a nut which cooperate with each other, and the second driving assembly is drivingly connected to the screw rod;

[0024] The support shaft is fixedly mounted on the base frame;

[0025] The movable support member comprises a first slide groove and a second slide groove;

[0026] Wherein, the movable support is slidably connected to the nut through the first sliding groove, and the movable support is slidably connected to the support shaft through the second sliding groove.

[0027] Preferably, the movable support is rotatably connected to the base frame, and the movable support can rotate in a plane parallel to the lifting direction.

[0028] Preferably, the support assembly further comprises a connecting rod and a moving member, wherein the connecting rod connects the movable support member and the moving member via a rotating pair, and the moving member and the base frame form a moving pair; the second driving assembly is drivingly connected to the moving member;

[0029] The movable support is hinged to the base frame;

[0030] Wherein, the second driving assembly can drive the moving member to move relative to the base frame, thereby causing the movable support member to rotate relative to the base frame.

[0031] Preferably, the movable support member and the base frame form a moving pair, and the movable support member can translate relative to the base frame in a plane perpendicular to the lifting direction.

[0032] Preferably, the support assembly comprises a translation assembly, the translation assembly is installed between the movable support and the base frame, and the translation assembly is drivingly connected to the second driving assembly.

[0033] The invention relates to a material picking and placing robot, comprising a robot body, on which a material picking and placing device is installed.

[0034] After adopting the above structure, the present invention has the following advantages compared with the prior art:

[0035] The present invention adopts a lifting type automatic temporary storage method, which replaces the prior art method that requires lifting the material to the corresponding height of the transfer shelf through the lifting unit after taking the material, and then horizontally moving the material to the transfer shelf. The present invention directly lifts the material to the top of the corresponding group of support components in the temporary storage unit through the lifting unit, drives the support component to switch from a non-support state to a support state, and the lifting unit descends and separates from the material, and the material is supported by the support component to complete the extraction process. Not only does it reduce the space occupied by the site, the steps of taking and placing materials are simple, and the material taking and placing device is more flexible in size, which is convenient for use in narrow channels. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0036] Figure 1 It is a structural schematic diagram of a material taking and placing device according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention.

[0037] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the support assembly structure of embodiment 1 of the present invention.

[0038] Figure 3 The supporting component of the first embodiment of the present invention Figure 2 Center A view.

[0039] Figure 4 It is a schematic diagram of the support assembly structure of the second embodiment of the present invention.

[0040] Figure 5 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the first supporting assembly of the third embodiment of the present invention.

[0041] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the second support assembly of the third embodiment of the present invention.

[0042] Figure 7 It is a structural schematic diagram of the material picking and placing robot of the present invention.

[0043] 1. Base frame;

[0044] 2. Lifting unit; 21. Lifting assembly; 22. First driving assembly;

[0045] 3. Temporary storage unit; 31. Support assembly; 311. Movable support member; 312A. Screw pair; 313A. Support shaft; 312B. Connecting rod; 313B. Moving member; 312C. Translation assembly; 32. Second driving assembly;

[0046] 4. Robot body. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0047] The present invention will be further described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0048] In the prior art, after picking up the material, the lifting unit 212 is used to lift it to the corresponding height of the transfer rack, and then the material is moved to the transfer rack by translation. The lifting unit 212 and the transfer rack are respectively provided to lift and temporarily store the material. The space occupied by the site is large, the steps of taking and placing the material are cumbersome, the size of the material taking and placing device is not flexible enough, and the use in narrow passages is limited.

[0049] Extract materials according to the handling information of at least one material;

[0050] Lifting the extracted material to the temporary storage unit 3, wherein the temporary storage unit 3 includes at least one set of support components 31, and the support components 31 can be switched between a supporting state and a non-supporting state;

[0051] Lifting the material to above a group of support components 31 in a non-support state, and switching the support components 31 from a non-support state to a support state;

[0052] The descending material is placed on the supporting assembly 31 in the supporting state.

[0053] The present invention adopts a support assembly 31 arranged in the lifting channel of the lifting unit 212, and the support assembly 31 can be switched between a supporting state and a non-supporting state. In the supporting state, it replaces the fixed shelf in the prior art, and in the non-supporting state, it does not affect the passage of the lifting unit 212 in the lifting channel. Only through the lifting action, the lifting and temporary storage of materials can be completed. The space occupied is small, the steps of taking and placing materials are simple, and the material taking and placing device is flexible in size, which is convenient for use in narrow channels.

[0054] After the descending material is placed on the supporting assembly 31 in the supporting state, the following steps are also included:

[0055] The lifting material is separated from the supporting component 31 in the supporting state, and the supporting component 31 is switched from the non-supporting state to the supporting state;

[0056] The materials are unloaded according to the handling information of at least one material.

[0057] The lifting and unloading of materials can be completed simply by lifting and lowering actions.

[0058] Among them, lifting the material to above the support component 31 in a non-support state includes the following steps: when the temporary storage unit 3 includes multiple groups of support components 31 with different heights, lifting it to above the support component 31 in the highest non-support state.

[0059] Multiple groups of materials can be temporarily stored by using multiple groups of support components 31 of different heights. The materials are lifted to the top of the support component 31 in the highest non-support state, and the support component 31 is switched from the non-support state to the support state without affecting the passage of the lifting channel of the support component 31 in the non-support state installed below.

[0060] Preferably, the handling information includes an extraction order and an unloading order of multiple materials; the extraction order is opposite to the unloading order.

[0061] When the material is lifted to the top of the support assembly 31 in the highest non-support state, for example, temporarily stored on the support assembly 31 of the material loading and unloading device, the material is extracted according to the extraction sequence and placed on the support assembly 31 from top to bottom through the lifting unit 212. The extraction sequence is opposite to the unloading sequence, and the material is unloaded from bottom to top through the lifting unit 212 according to the unloading sequence.

[0062] The present invention relates to a material taking and placing device, comprising

[0063] A base frame 1, wherein the base frame 1 comprises a lifting space;

[0064] The lifting unit 212 includes a lifting assembly and a first driving assembly 22. The lifting assembly is installed in the lifting space of the base frame 1. The first driving assembly 22 can drive the lifting assembly to move up and down relative to the base frame 1.

[0065] The temporary storage unit 3 includes at least one set of support components 31 and a second drive component 32; the support components 31 can be movably installed on the side of the lifting space of the base frame 1, and the support components 31 have a supporting state or a non-supporting state. The second drive component 32 is used to drive the support components 31 to switch between the supporting state and the non-supporting state.

[0066] The support assembly 31 can support materials when in a supporting state, and does not affect the passage of the lifting channel when in a non-supporting state.

[0067] As an embodiment, a group of the support assemblies 31 includes at least two movable support members 311, and the movable support members 311 in a group of the support assemblies 31 are installed in the same plane, which is perpendicular to the lifting direction of the lifting assembly.

[0068] As an embodiment, a group of the supporting components 31 includes two pairs of movable supporting members 311 , and the two pairs of movable supporting members 311 are arranged oppositely on both sides of the lifting channel.

[0069] The pair of movable support members 311 includes two movable support members 311. A plurality of movable support members 311 can be installed at various positions inside the lifting channel to place materials more stably from various positions.

[0070] In addition, the support assembly 31 may include a sensor to sense whether the lifted material has reached a specified height.

[0071] Embodiment 1

[0072] The movable support member 311 is rotatably connected to the base frame 1 , and the movable support member 311 can rotate in a plane perpendicular to the lifting direction of the lifting assembly.

[0073] More specifically, if Figure 1-3 As shown, the support assembly 31 further includes a screw pair 312A and a support shaft 313A;

[0074] The screw rod pair 312A includes a screw rod and a nut that cooperate with each other, and the second driving assembly 32 is drivingly connected to the screw rod;

[0075] The support shaft 313A is fixedly mounted on the base frame 1;

[0076] The movable support member 311 includes a first slide groove and a second slide groove;

[0077] The movable support member 311 is slidably connected to the nut through the first sliding groove, and the movable support member 311 is slidably connected to the support shaft 313A through the second sliding groove.

[0078] During the implementation, materials are extracted according to the handling information of at least one material;

[0079] Lifting the extracted material to the temporary storage unit 3, wherein the temporary storage unit 3 includes at least one set of support components 31, and the support components 31 can be switched between a supporting state and a non-supporting state;

[0080] When in a non-supporting state, the supporting assembly 31 is at the edge of the lifting channel, and does not affect the passage of the lifting unit 212 and materials in the lifting channel.

[0081] When the non-support state is switched to the support state, the second drive assembly 32 drives the screw to rotate, and the nut moves as the screw rotates. The nut slides in the first slide groove, the support shaft 313A does not move, the second slide groove slides along the support shaft 313A, the movable support member 311 rotates, and the movable support member 311 extends into the lifting channel of the base frame 1. When the movable support member 311 is perpendicular to the inner wall of the lifting channel, the extension reaches the maximum value, and the second drive assembly 32 stops driving.

[0082] Lift the material to above a group of supporting components 31 in a non-supporting state, and switch the supporting components 31 from a non-supporting state to a supporting state; and lower the material to be placed on the supporting components 31 in the supporting state.

[0083] Embodiment 2

[0084] The movable support member 311 is rotatably connected to the base frame 1 , and the movable support member 311 can rotate in a plane parallel to the lifting direction.

[0085] More specifically, if Figure 4 As shown, the support assembly 31 further includes a connecting rod 312B and a moving member 313B, the connecting rod 312B connects the movable support member 311 and the moving member 313B through a rotating pair, and the moving member 313B and the base frame 1 form a moving pair; the second driving assembly 32 is drivingly connected to the moving member 313B;

[0086] The movable support member 311 is hinged to the base frame 1;

[0087] The second driving assembly 32 can drive the moving member 313B to move relative to the base frame 1 , thereby causing the movable support member 311 to rotate relative to the base frame 1 .

[0088] During the implementation, materials are extracted according to the handling information of at least one material;

[0089] Lifting the extracted material to the temporary storage unit 3, wherein the temporary storage unit 3 includes at least one set of support components 31, and the support components 31 can be switched between a supporting state and a non-supporting state;

[0090] When in a non-supporting state, the support assembly 31 is at the edge of the lifting channel and does not affect the passage of the lifting unit 212 and materials in the lifting channel.

[0091] When the non-support state is switched to the support state, the second drive assembly 32 drives the moving member 313B to move. More specifically, the second drive assembly 32 can be a motor, and the moving member 313B can be a structure of a screw nut. The second drive motor can also be a cylinder or a hydraulic cylinder. The connecting rod 312B connects the movable support member 311 and the moving member 313B through a rotating pair. More specifically, the two ends of the connecting rod 312B are hinged to the movable support member 311 and the moving member 313B respectively. The movement of the moving member 313B drives the connecting rod 312B to rotate, thereby driving the movable support member 311 to rotate along the base frame 1. When the movable support member 311 is perpendicular to the inner wall of the lifting channel, it reaches the maximum extension, and the second drive assembly 32 stops driving.

[0092] Lift the material to above a group of supporting components 31 in a non-supporting state, and switch the supporting components 31 from a non-supporting state to a supporting state; and lower the material to be placed on the supporting components 31 in the supporting state.

[0093] When the supporting state is switched to the non-supporting state, the second driving assembly 32 drives the moving member 313B to move. The movement of the moving member 313B drives the connecting rod 312B to rotate, thereby driving the movable supporting member 311 to rotate along the base frame 1 until the movable supporting member 311 does not affect the passage of the lifting channel.

[0094] Embodiment 3

[0095] The movable support member 311 and the base frame 1 form a moving pair, and the movable support member 311 can translate relative to the base frame 1 in a plane perpendicular to the lifting direction.

[0096] More specifically, if Figure 5-6 As shown, the support assembly 31 includes a translation assembly 312C, and the translation assembly 312C is installed between the movable support member 311 and the base frame 1 , and the translation assembly 312C is drivingly connected to the second driving assembly 32 .

[0097] A translation assembly 312C may be installed between the movable support 311 and the frame, the translation assembly 312C may be a telescopic member, and the second drive assembly 32 may be a push cylinder. The translation assembly 312C may be in the form of a gear rack, a sprocket chain, a worm gear, or a screw nut, and the second drive assembly may be a motor.

[0098] When in a non-supporting state, the movable support member 311 is at the edge of the lifting channel, and does not affect the passage of the lifting unit 212 and materials in the lifting channel.

[0099] When switching from the non-support state to the support state, the second drive assembly 32 drives the translation assembly 312C to drive the movable support member 311 from the edge of the lifting channel to the center. Until the movable support member 311 is located in the lifting channel and can hold the material. The material is lifted to the top of a group of support assemblies 31 in the non-support state, and the support assembly 31 is switched from the non-support state to the support state; the lowered material is placed on the support assembly 31 in the support state.

[0100] When the supporting state is switched to the non-supporting state, the second driving assembly 32 drives the translation assembly 312C to move. The translation assembly 312C moves the movable support member 311 from the center of the lifting channel to the edge, until the movable support member 311 does not affect the passage of the lifting channel.

[0101] Embodiment 4

[0102] When used to implement a shelf with N layers, the temporary storage unit 3 includes N+M layers of support components 31, where N and M are both non-negative integers. When the material picking and placing device of the present invention is picking up materials, the materials can be placed in order on the support components 31 of the top Mth layer of the temporary storage unit 3.

[0103] During the implementation of the present invention, placing materials on the support assembly 31 will affect the liftable height of the lifting unit 212. In order to solve this problem, in this embodiment, the lifting space is higher than the height of the shelf. In order to achieve flexible access, any height layer of the shelf can be accessed, and the top Mth layer of the temporary storage unit 3 is at a position higher than the highest height of the shelf, and M≥N-1. Therefore, when taking materials from the shelf on the Nth layer for less than or equal to N times, even if it is the last time to take materials, the liftable height of the lifting unit 212 is greater than or equal to the height of the shelf, so it does not affect the flexible passage of the lifting unit 212.

[0104] like Figure 7 As shown, the present invention relates to a material picking and placing robot, including a robot body 4, on which the material picking and placing device is installed. A control system is installed in the robot body 4, which can respectively control the actions of the first drive component 22 and the second drive component 32. The control system of the robot body 4 can realize the functions of the robot and its material picking and placing device, such as fixed point and navigation.

[0105] In the description of this specification, the description with reference to the terms "one embodiment", "some embodiments", "examples", "specific examples", or "some examples" means that the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described in conjunction with the embodiment or example are included in at least one embodiment or example of the present invention. In this specification, the schematic representation of the above terms does not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Moreover, the specific features, structures, materials or characteristics described may be combined in any one or more embodiments or examples in a suitable manner.

[0106] Although the embodiments of the present invention have been shown and described above, they cannot be understood as limiting the claims. The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and its specific structure is allowed to be changed. All changes made within the protection scope of the independent claims of the present invention are within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A material taking and placing method, characterized in that: Extract materials according to the handling information of at least one material; Lifting the extracted material to a temporary storage unit (3), wherein the temporary storage unit (3) comprises at least one set of support components (31), and the support components (31) can be switched between a supporting state and a non-supporting state; Lifting the material to above a group of supporting components (31) in a non-supporting state comprises the following steps, and switching the supporting components (31) from the non-supporting state to the supporting state; The descending material is placed on the supporting assembly (31) in the supporting state; Used to implement a shelf with N layers, the temporary storage unit (3) includes N+M layers of support components (31), wherein N and M are both non-negative integers, and M≥N-1; When the material taking and placing device is taking materials, the materials are placed in order on the support assembly (31) of the top Mth layer of the temporary storage unit (3); When taking materials from a shelf on the Nth layer for N times or less, even if it is the last time to take materials, the liftable height of the lifting unit (2) is greater than or equal to the shelf height.

2. The material handling method according to claim 1, characterized in that: After the descending material is placed on the supporting assembly (31) in the supporting state, the following steps are also included: Lifting the material away from the supporting component (31) in the supporting state, and switching the supporting component (31) from the non-supporting state to the supporting state; The materials are unloaded according to the handling information of at least one material.

3. The material handling method according to claim 1, characterized in that: Lifting the material to above the support assembly (31) in a non-support state comprises the following steps: when the temporary storage unit (3) comprises a plurality of groups of support assemblies (31) of different heights, lifting the material to above the support assembly (31) in the highest non-support state.

4. The material handling method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The handling information includes an extraction order and an unloading order of multiple materials; the extraction order is in the opposite order of the unloading order.

5. Material taking and placing device, characterized in that: include A base frame (1), wherein the base frame (1) comprises a lifting space; The lifting unit (2) comprises a lifting component (21) and a first driving component (22), wherein the lifting component (21) is installed in the lifting space of the base frame (1), and the first driving component (22) can drive the lifting component (21) to move up and down relative to the base frame (1); The temporary storage unit (3) comprises at least one set of supporting components (31) and a second driving component (32); the supporting components (31) are movably mounted on the side of the lifting space of the base frame (1); the supporting components (31) have a supporting state or a non-supporting state; and the second driving component (32) is used to drive the supporting components (31) to switch between the supporting state and the non-supporting state; Used to implement a shelf with N layers, the temporary storage unit (3) includes N+M layers of support components (31), N and M are both non-negative integers, and M≥N-1; the top Mth layer of the temporary storage unit (3) is located at a position higher than the highest height of the shelf.

6. The material taking and placing device according to claim 5, characterized in that: A group of the support assemblies (31) comprises at least two movable support members (311), and the movable support members (311) in a group of the support assemblies (31) are installed in the same plane, which is perpendicular to the lifting direction of the lifting assembly (21).

7. The material taking and placing device according to claim 5, characterized in that: A group of the support components (31) comprises two pairs of movable support members (311), and the two pairs of movable support members (311) are arranged opposite to each other on two sides of the lifting space.

8. The material taking and placing device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The movable support member (311) is rotatably connected to the base frame (1), and the movable support member (311) can rotate in a plane perpendicular to the lifting direction of the lifting assembly (21).

9. The material taking and placing device according to claim 8, characterized in that: The support assembly (31) further comprises a screw rod pair (312A) and a support shaft (313A); the screw rod pair (312A) comprises a screw rod and a nut that cooperate with each other, and the second drive assembly (32) is drivingly connected to the screw rod; The support shaft (313A) is fixedly mounted on the base frame (1); The movable support member (311) comprises a first sliding groove and a second sliding groove; Wherein, the movable support member (311) is slidably connected to the nut via the first sliding groove, and the movable support member (311) is slidably connected to the support shaft (313A) via the second sliding groove.

10. The material taking and placing device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The movable support member (311) is rotatably connected to the base frame (1), and the movable support member (311) can rotate in a plane parallel to the lifting direction.

11. The material taking and placing device according to claim 10, characterized in that: The support assembly (31) further comprises a connecting rod (312B) and a moving member (313B), wherein the connecting rod (312B) connects the movable support member (311) and the moving member (313B) via a rotating pair, and the moving member (313B) and the base frame (1) form a moving pair; the second driving assembly (32) is drivingly connected to the moving member (313B); The movable support member (311) is hinged to the base frame (1); wherein the second driving assembly (32) can drive the movable member (313B) to move relative to the base frame (1), thereby causing the movable support member (311) to rotate relative to the base frame (1).

12. The material taking and placing device according to claim 6, characterized in that: The movable support member (311) and the base frame (1) form a moving pair, and the movable support member (311) can translate relative to the base frame (1) in a plane perpendicular to the lifting direction.

13. The material taking and placing device according to claim 12, characterized in that: The support assembly (31) comprises a translation assembly (312C), the translation assembly (312C) is installed between the movable support member (311) and the base frame (1), and the translation assembly (312C) is drivingly connected to the second driving assembly (32).

14. A material picking and placing robot, characterized in that: It comprises a robot body (4), on which is mounted a material picking and placing device as claimed in any one of claims 5 to 13.

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