A mini cotton picking robot for precision work

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of miniaturized cotton picking robots of precision operation.The universal wheel walking mechanism of cotton picking robot is installed on the bottom surface of chassis, cotton storage box, two laser positioning devices, mechanical arm picking mechanism, binocular camera, single-chip microcomputer circuit board, edge computing device and power supply are installed on the top surface of chassis;The root end of mechanical arm picking mechanism is installed in the middle of the top surface of chassis, two laser positioning devices are respectively installed on the opposite two sides of the top surface of chassis, the cotton storage box is installed on the side of the top surface of chassis between two laser positioning devices, and binocular camera is towards the advancing direction of cotton picking robot.The application provides a kind of miniaturized cotton picking robot of intelligentization and precision picking, combines the accuracy of deep learning target identification and binocular ranging, the flexibility of four-axis mechanical arm movement and the high efficiency of autonomously designed end effector, realizes the detection and positioning of cotton, and accurately and efficiently picks cotton.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a harvesting robot, specifically a small cotton harvesting robot based on artificial intelligence and mechanical control for precision operations. Background Technology

[0002] Cotton is an essential commodity for the textile industry. Currently, cotton is widely cultivated and yields are high. Manual harvesting is labor-intensive and inefficient; therefore, the development direction of modern cotton harvesting is mechanization, automation, and intelligentization. Existing cotton harvesting mostly uses large-scale machinery; however, large machinery is only suitable for harvesting large, flat cotton fields and is difficult to use in mountainous areas and smaller plots. Furthermore, large machinery does not distinguish between leaves and stems when harvesting cotton, easily resulting in a large amount of impurities in the harvested cotton. Therefore, this application proposes a small, precision cotton harvesting robot. Summary of the Invention

[0003] To address the problems existing in the background technology, the present invention provides a precision-operating small cotton picking robot, which provides the cotton picking industry with an intelligent and precise small cotton picking robot. It combines the accuracy of deep learning target recognition and binocular ranging, the flexibility of four-axis robotic arm movement, and the high efficiency of self-designed end effector to achieve cotton detection and positioning, and precise and efficient cotton picking.

[0004] The technical solution adopted in this invention is:

[0005] This invention relates to a cotton harvesting robot, comprising a chassis, a cotton storage box, two laser positioning devices, a caster wheel mechanism, a robotic arm harvesting mechanism, a binocular camera, a microcontroller circuit board, an edge computing device, and a power supply. The caster wheel mechanism is mounted on the bottom surface of the chassis, while the cotton storage box, the two laser positioning devices, the robotic arm harvesting mechanism, the binocular camera, the microcontroller circuit board, the edge computing device, and the power supply are mounted on the top surface of the chassis. The root end of the robotic arm harvesting mechanism is mounted in the middle of the top surface of the chassis. The two laser positioning devices are respectively mounted on opposite sides of the top surface of the chassis, and the cotton storage box is mounted on one side of the top surface of the chassis between the two laser positioning devices. The binocular camera faces the side of the cotton harvesting robot in its direction of travel. The microcontroller circuit board is electrically connected to the power supply, the two laser positioning devices, the caster wheel mechanism, the robotic arm harvesting mechanism, the binocular camera, and the edge computing device. A cover plate is horizontally arranged directly above the chassis, and the microcontroller circuit board and the power supply are mounted between the cover plate and the chassis. The binocular camera is mounted on the top surface of the chassis via a connector, with one camera positioned directly above the other.

[0006] The robotic arm harvesting mechanism includes a four-axis robotic arm and a roller-type end effector. The root end of the four-axis robotic arm is installed in the middle of the top surface of the chassis, and the end of the four-axis robotic arm is connected to the roller-type end effector. The four-axis robotic arm and the roller-type end effector are electrically connected to a microcontroller circuit board.

[0007] The four-axis robotic arm includes a first joint servo motor, a second joint servo motor, a third joint servo motor, a fourth joint servo motor, a rotating base, a large arm, and a small arm. The rotating base is horizontally mounted on the center of the top surface of the chassis. A rotating disk is movably arranged in the center of the top surface of the rotating base. The body of the first joint servo motor is mounted on the bottom of the rotating base. The rotation axis of the first joint servo motor is vertically upward and synchronously connected to the center of the bottom surface of the rotating disk of the rotating base. The rotating base rotates around the center point. The second joint servo motor is mounted on the center of the top surface of the rotating disk. The large arm is an H-shaped connecting arm. The two ends of one side of the large arm are movably connected to the opposite sides of the second joint servo motor. The output shaft of one side of the opposite sides of the second joint servo motor is horizontally and synchronously connected to one end of one side of the large arm. The body of the other side of the opposite sides of the second joint servo motor is movably connected to the other end of one side of the large arm. One side of the large arm rotates in a vertical plane around the output shaft of the second joint servo motor. The two ends of the other side of the large arm are movably connected to the third joint servo motor. On opposite sides, the output shaft of one side of the third joint servo is horizontally and synchronously connected to one end of the other side of the upper arm. The body of the other side of the third joint servo is movably connected to the other end of the other side of the upper arm. The third joint servo rotates in a vertical plane around its own output shaft. The body of the third joint servo is fixedly connected to one side of the forearm. The other side of the forearm is divided into two ends, which are movably connected to opposite sides of the fourth joint servo. The output shaft of one side of the fourth joint servo is horizontally and synchronously connected to one end of the other side of the forearm. The body of the other side of the fourth joint servo is movably connected to the other end of the other side of the forearm. The fourth joint servo rotates in a vertical plane around its own output shaft. A roller-type end effector is installed on the body of the fourth joint servo away from the forearm. The first joint servo, the second joint servo, the third joint servo, and the fourth joint servo are electrically connected to the microcontroller circuit board.

[0008] The output shafts of the second, third, and fourth joint servo motors are parallel to each other.

[0009] The roller-type end effector includes an actuator bracket, a barbed roller, a filter frame, a second DC motor, and two gears. The second DC motor is electrically connected to a microcontroller circuit board. The actuator bracket is mounted on the side of the fourth joint servo motor away from the forearm. The bodies of the barbed roller, filter frame, and second DC motor are mounted on the actuator bracket. The filter frame is installed between the barbed roller and the fourth joint servo motor without contact. The barbed roller is horizontally arranged, and both ends of the central rotation shaft of the barbed roller are movably connected to the actuator bracket. One end of the central rotation shaft of the barbed roller is synchronously connected to the center of one gear. One gear meshes with the other gear, and the gear faces of the two gears are located in the same plane. The two gears are located between the second DC motor and the barbed roller, and the output shaft of the second DC motor is vertically and synchronously connected to the center of the other gear.

[0010] The filter frame includes several filter plates, which are evenly spaced and vertically arranged. The plane on the side of each filter plate is perpendicular to the central rotation axis of the barbed roller. The upper part of each filter plate is a curved strip, which bends away from the barbed roller. The lower part of the filter plate is a triangular plate, which protrudes towards the barbed roller. The center of the triangular plate is through, and a temporary cotton storage groove is formed between the barbed roller and the filter frame.

[0011] The barbed roller has several rows of barbs evenly spaced along its side along the axial direction. Each row of barbs has several barbs evenly spaced, and each barb is bent toward the central axis of the barbed roller. The bending direction of the ends of each barb is the same. The distance between two adjacent barbs in each row is greater than the thickness of the filter plate of the filter frame. The width of each barb is less than the distance between two adjacent filter plates of the filter frame. When the barbed roller rotates around its own rotation axis, the barbs in each row of barbs of the barbed roller intersect at the intervals between the lower parts of the filter plates in the filter frame.

[0012] When the barbed roller is not rotating, the filter frame is located to the side of the barbed roller. The barbs in the row of barbs on the upper part of the barbed roller bend toward the filter frame, and the ends of the barbs in the row of barbs on the lower part of the barbed roller bend toward the filter frame.

[0013] When the cotton picking robot picks cotton, the barbed roller is located directly below the cotton. The barbs on the upper part of the barbed roller hook the cotton. The microcontroller circuit board controls the second DC motor to rotate, which in turn drives two gears to rotate, thereby driving the barbed roller to rotate in the forward direction. The barbed roller rotates and hooks the hooked cotton into the various intervals of the filter rack for temporary storage.

[0014] Each laser positioning device includes a laser positioning side plate and several laser sensors. The laser positioning side plate is vertically arranged on the top surface of the chassis, and the laser sensors are evenly spaced on the laser positioning side plate, with each laser sensor facing the outer side of the laser positioning side plate vertically. The laser positioning side plates of the two laser positioning devices are parallel to each other. Each laser sensor is electrically connected to a microcontroller circuit board.

[0015] The cotton storage box is a box with an opening on the top. The bottom surface of the cotton storage box does not contact the top surface of the chassis. A first DC motor is also installed on the top surface of the chassis. The first DC motor is close to one side of the cotton storage box, and the output shaft of the first DC motor is synchronously connected to one side of the cotton storage box.

[0016] The aforementioned omnidirectional wheel travel mechanism includes four omnidirectional wheel devices, which are respectively installed at the four top corners of the chassis bottom surface; each omnidirectional wheel device includes a stepper motor and an omnidirectional wheel, the body of the stepper motor is installed on the bottom surface of the chassis, and the output shaft of the stepper motor is connected to the central shaft of one of the omnidirectional wheels; each stepper motor is electrically connected to a microcontroller circuit board.

[0017] When the cotton-picking robot is picking cotton, it first uses a binocular camera to capture real-time images of the surrounding environment and transmits them to a microcontroller circuit board, which then transmits the images to an edge computing device. The microcontroller circuit board controls the stepper motors of the four omnidirectional wheels of the omnidirectional wheel walking mechanism to drive the omnidirectional wheels to rotate, thus moving the cotton-picking robot. During the movement, the laser sensors of the two laser positioning devices measure the distance between the cotton-picking robot and obstacles on both sides. When the omnidirectional wheel walking mechanism is controlled by the microcontroller circuit board, the distance between each laser sensor and the nearest obstacle is greater than a preset distance.

[0018] When the binocular camera captures an image of the cotton to be harvested and transmits it to the edge computing device, the microcontroller circuit board controls the omnidirectional wheel mechanism to stop moving. The edge computing device measures the three-dimensional coordinates of the center point of the cotton to be harvested captured by the binocular camera based on the binocular ranging principle, thereby obtaining the distance between the cotton harvesting robot and the cotton to be harvested and transmitting it to the microcontroller circuit board. The microcontroller circuit board then controls the omnidirectional wheel mechanism to continue moving, driving the cotton harvesting robot to the vicinity of the cotton to be harvested. The microcontroller circuit board controls the output shafts of the first joint servo motor, the second joint servo motor, the third joint servo motor, and the fourth joint servo motor to rotate. The first joint servo motor drives the rotating base to rotate. The turntable rotates, driving the second joint servo motor to rotate, which in turn drives the main arm to rotate, the third joint servo motor drives the forearm to rotate, and the fourth joint servo motor drives the roller-type end effector. This positions the barbed roller and filter frame of the roller-type end effector directly below the cotton to be picked, with the upper part of each filter plate of the filter frame directly below the cotton to be picked. The barbs on the top of the barbed roller hook the cotton to be picked. The microcontroller circuit board controls the output shaft of the second DC motor to rotate, which in turn drives two gears to rotate, thereby driving the barbed roller to rotate in the forward direction. The barbed roller rotates the hooked cotton to be picked into the temporary cotton storage groove between the barbed roller and the filter frame for temporary storage.

[0019] After the cotton-picking robot picks cotton, the microcontroller circuit board controls the output shafts of the first, second, third, and fourth joint servo motors to rotate, which in turn drives the roller-type end effector to move directly above the cotton storage box. The microcontroller circuit board then controls the output shaft of the second DC motor to rotate, which in turn drives the barbed roller to rotate in the opposite direction. The barbs on the barbed roller push the cotton from the temporary cotton storage groove into the cotton storage box, completing a single cotton picking. The above process is repeated to achieve multiple cotton picking and storage.

[0020] When the cotton picking is finished, the microcontroller circuit board controls the omnidirectional wheel walking mechanism to drive the cotton picking robot to the final cotton storage location. The microcontroller circuit board then controls the output shaft of the first DC motor to rotate, which drives the cotton storage box to rotate, so that the cotton falls out from the opening of the cotton storage box to the final cotton storage location, completing the dumping and collection of the cotton.

[0021] Before the cotton-harvesting robot picks cotton, it first takes several pictures of cotton. Each cotton picture is then input into a YOLOv5 neural network model for training until the YOLOv5 neural network model converges, resulting in a trained YOLOv5 neural network model. The trained YOLOv5 neural network model is then stored on a microcontroller circuit board, specifically an NVIDIA Jetson Nano. The images captured by the binocular camera are transmitted in real time to the trained YOLOv5 neural network model on the microcontroller circuit board. The trained YOLOv5 neural network model outputs the cotton recognition result in the image. When cotton is recognized, the microcontroller circuit board performs distance measurement based on the recognition result.

[0022] The beneficial effects of this invention are:

[0023] This invention relates to a small cotton-picking robot that uses a stepper motor to achieve its walking target. The control is simple and flexible, and with the addition of omnidirectional wheels, the robot can easily move straight, turn, and rotate. This small cotton-picking robot uses a four-axis robotic arm and a roller-type end effector to flexibly and efficiently collect cotton. The robot can detect cotton and measure distance using a binocular camera, and then a microcontroller circuit board controls the four-axis robotic arm to move to the cotton. The spikes on the roller-type end effector effectively pull the cotton and clamp it onto the filter rack, achieving precise cotton picking. Attached Figure Description

[0024] Figure 1 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the small cotton harvesting robot of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 2 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the four-axis robotic arm in this invention;

[0026] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the roller-type end effector in this invention;

[0027] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the filter plate structure in this invention;

[0028] In the diagram: 1. Chassis, 2. Cover plate, 3. Cotton storage box, 4. Laser positioning device, 5. Stepper motor, 6. Caster wheel, 7. Four-axis robotic arm, 8. Roller-type end effector, 9. Binocular camera, 10. Connector, 14. First DC motor, 15. First joint, 16. Second joint, 17. Third joint, 18. Fourth joint, 19. Rotating base, 20. Upper arm, 21. Lower arm, 22. Barbed roller, 23. Filter plate, 24. Second DC motor. Detailed Implementation

[0029] The present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0030] like Figure 1 As shown, the cotton harvesting robot of the present invention includes a chassis 1, a cotton storage box 3, two laser positioning devices 4, a caster wheel walking mechanism, a robotic arm harvesting mechanism, a binocular camera 9, a microcontroller circuit board, an edge computing device, and a power supply. The caster wheel walking mechanism is installed on the bottom surface of the chassis 1, and the cotton storage box 3, the two laser positioning devices 4, the robotic arm harvesting mechanism, the binocular camera 9, the microcontroller circuit board, the edge computing device, and the power supply are installed on the top surface of the chassis 1. The root end of the robotic arm harvesting mechanism is installed in the middle of the top surface of the chassis 1. The two laser positioning devices 4 are respectively installed on opposite sides of the top surface of the chassis 1. The cotton storage box 3 is installed on one side of the top surface of the chassis 1 between the two laser positioning devices 4. The binocular camera 9 faces the side of the cotton harvesting robot in the direction of its movement. The microcontroller circuit board is electrically connected to the power supply, the two laser positioning devices 4, the caster wheel walking mechanism, the robotic arm harvesting mechanism, the binocular camera 9, and the edge computing device. A cover plate 1 is horizontally arranged directly above the chassis 1. The microcontroller circuit board and power supply are installed between the cover plate 1 and the chassis 1. The binocular camera 9 is installed on the top surface of the chassis 1 through the connector 10, with one of the binocular cameras 9 located directly above the other camera.

[0031] Each laser positioning device 4 includes a laser positioning side plate and several laser sensors. The laser positioning side plate is vertically arranged on the top surface of the chassis 1, and each laser sensor is evenly spaced on the laser positioning side plate, with each laser sensor facing the outer side of the laser positioning side plate vertically. The laser positioning side plates of the two laser positioning devices 4 are parallel to each other. Each laser sensor is electrically connected to a microcontroller circuit board.

[0032] The cotton storage box 3 is a box with an opening on the top. The bottom surface of the cotton storage box 3 does not contact the top surface of the chassis 1. The top surface of the chassis 1 is also equipped with a first DC motor 14. The first DC motor 14 is close to one side of the cotton storage box 3, and the output shaft of the first DC motor 14 is synchronously connected to one side of the cotton storage box 3.

[0033] The omnidirectional wheel travel mechanism includes four omnidirectional wheel devices, which are respectively installed at the four top corners of the bottom surface of the chassis 1. Each omnidirectional wheel device includes a stepper motor 5 and an omnidirectional wheel 6. The body of the stepper motor 5 is installed on the bottom surface of the chassis 1, and the output shaft of the stepper motor 5 is connected to the central shaft of one of the omnidirectional wheels 6. Each stepper motor 5 is electrically connected to a microcontroller circuit board.

[0034] The robotic arm harvesting mechanism includes a four-axis robotic arm 7 and a roller-type end effector 8. The root end of the four-axis robotic arm 7 is installed in the middle of the top surface of the chassis 1, and the end of the four-axis robotic arm 7 is connected to the roller-type end effector 8. The four-axis robotic arm 7 and the roller-type end effector 8 are electrically connected to a microcontroller circuit board.

[0035] like Figure 2As shown, the four-axis robotic arm 7 includes a first joint servo motor 15, a second joint servo motor 16, a third joint servo motor 17, a fourth joint servo motor 18, a rotating base 19, a large arm 20, and a small arm 21. The rotating base 19 is horizontally mounted in the center of the top surface of the chassis 1. A rotating disk is movably arranged in the center of the top surface of the rotating base 19. The body of the first joint servo motor 15 is mounted on the bottom of the rotating base 19. The rotation axis of the first joint servo motor 15 is vertically upward and synchronously connected to the center of the bottom surface of the rotating disk of the rotating base 19. The rotating base 19 rotates around the center point; the top surface of the rotating disk... The arm is equipped with a second joint servo motor 16. The main arm 20 is an H-shaped connecting arm. One end of one side of the main arm 20 is movably connected to the opposite sides of the second joint servo motor 16. The output shaft of one side of the second joint servo motor 16 is horizontally and synchronously connected to one end of one side of the main arm 20. The other side of the second joint servo motor 16 is movably connected to the other end of one side of the main arm 20. One side of the main arm 20 rotates in a vertical plane around the output shaft of the second joint servo motor 16. The other end of the main arm 20 is movably connected to the third joint... On opposite sides of the third joint servo 17, the output shaft of one side of the opposite sides of the third joint servo 17 is horizontally and synchronously connected to one end of the other side of the upper arm 20. The fuselage of the other side of the opposite sides of the third joint servo 17 is movably connected to the other end of the other side of the upper arm 20. The third joint servo 17 rotates in a vertical plane around its own output shaft. The fuselage of the third joint servo 17 is fixedly connected to one side of the forearm 21. The other side of the forearm 21 is divided into two ends, which are movably connected to opposite sides of the fourth joint servo 18. The output shaft of one side of the fourth joint servo 18 is horizontally and synchronously connected to one end of the other side of the forearm 21. The other side of the fourth joint servo 18 is movably connected to the other end of the other side of the forearm 21. The fourth joint servo 18 rotates in a vertical plane around its own output shaft. A roller-type end effector 8 is mounted on the side of the fourth joint servo 18 away from the forearm 21. The first joint servo 15, the second joint servo 16, the third joint servo 17, and the fourth joint servo 18 are electrically connected to the microcontroller circuit board. The output shafts of the second joint servo 16, the third joint servo 17, and the fourth joint servo 18 are parallel to each other.

[0036] like Figure 3As shown, the roller-type end effector 8 includes an actuator bracket, a barbed roller 22, a filter frame, a second DC motor 24, and two gears. The second DC motor 24 is electrically connected to a microcontroller circuit board. The actuator bracket is mounted on the side of the fourth joint servo motor 18 away from the forearm 21. The bodies of the barbed roller 22, the filter frame, and the second DC motor 24 are mounted on the actuator bracket. The filter frame is mounted between the barbed roller 22 and the fourth joint servo motor 18 without contact. The barbed roller 22 is horizontally arranged, and both ends of the central rotation shaft of the barbed roller 22 are movably connected to the actuator bracket. One end of the central rotation shaft of the barbed roller 22 is synchronously connected to the center of a gear. One gear meshes with the other gear, and the gear faces of the two gears are located in the same plane. The two gears are located between the second DC motor 24 and the barbed roller 22. The output shaft of the second DC motor 24 is vertically and synchronously connected to the center of the other gear.

[0037] The filter frame includes several filter plates 23, which are evenly spaced and vertically arranged. The plane containing the side of each filter plate 23 is perpendicular to the central rotation axis of the barbed roller 22. The upper part of each filter plate 23 is a curved strip, curving away from the barbed roller 22. The lower part of the filter plate 23 is triangular, protruding towards the barbed roller 22. Figure 4 As shown, a triangular plate-shaped central through-hole forms a temporary cotton storage groove between the barbed roller 22 and the filter frame.

[0038] The side of the barbed roller 22 is provided with several rows of barbs evenly spaced along the axial direction. Each row of barbs is provided with several barbs evenly spaced. Each barb is bent toward the central axis of the barbed roller 22, and the bending direction of the ends of each barb is the same. The distance between two adjacent barbs in each row of barbs is greater than the thickness of the filter plate 23 of the filter frame. The width of each barb is less than the distance between two adjacent filter plates 23 of the filter frame. When the barbed roller 22 rotates around its own rotation axis, the barbs in each row of barbs of the barbed roller 22 pass through the gaps between the lower parts of the filter plates 23 in the filter frame in an alternating manner.

[0039] When the barbed roller 22 is not rotating, the filter frame is located to the side of the barbed roller 22. The barbs in the row of barbs on the upper part of the barbed roller 22 bend towards the filter frame, and the ends of the barbs in the row of barbs on the lower part of the barbed roller 22 bend in the opposite direction to the filter frame. When the cotton picking robot picks cotton, the barbed roller 22 is located directly below the cotton. The barbs on the upper part of the barbed roller 22 hook the cotton. The microcontroller circuit board controls the second DC motor 24 to rotate, which in turn drives the two gears to rotate, thereby driving the barbed roller 22 to rotate in the forward direction. The barbed roller 22 rotates and hooks the hooked cotton into the intervals of the filter frame for temporary storage.

[0040] The specific implementation method of cotton harvesting by the harvesting robot of this invention is as follows:

[0041] When the cotton-picking robot is picking cotton, it first uses a binocular camera 9 to capture real-time images of the surrounding environment and transmits them to a microcontroller circuit board, which then transmits them to an edge computing device. The microcontroller circuit board controls the stepper motors 5 of the four omnidirectional wheel devices of the omnidirectional wheel walking mechanism to drive the omnidirectional wheels 6 to rotate, thus driving the cotton-picking robot. During the movement, the laser sensors of the two laser positioning devices 4 measure the distance between the cotton-picking robot and the obstacles on both sides. When the omnidirectional wheel walking mechanism is controlled by the microcontroller circuit board, the distance between each laser sensor and the nearest obstacle is greater than a preset distance.

[0042] When the binocular camera 9 captures an image of the cotton to be harvested and transmits it to the edge computing device, the microcontroller circuit board controls the omnidirectional wheel mechanism to stop moving. The edge computing device, based on the binocular ranging principle, measures the three-dimensional coordinates of the center point of the cotton to be harvested captured by the binocular camera 9, thereby obtaining the distance between the cotton harvesting robot and the cotton to be harvested and transmitting this information to the microcontroller circuit board. The microcontroller circuit board then controls the omnidirectional wheel mechanism to continue moving, propelling the cotton harvesting robot to the vicinity of the cotton to be harvested. The microcontroller circuit board then controls the output shafts of the first joint servo motor 15, the second joint servo motor 16, the third joint servo motor 17, and the fourth joint servo motor 18 to rotate. The first joint servo motor 15 drives the rotating disk of the rotating base 19 to rotate, bringing... The second joint servo motor 16 rotates, which in turn drives the main arm 20 to rotate. The third joint servo motor 17 drives the forearm 21 to rotate, and the fourth joint servo motor 18 drives the roller-type end effector 8, so that the barbed roller 22 and the filter frame of the roller-type end effector 8 are located directly below the cotton to be picked. The upper part of each filter plate of the filter frame is located directly below the cotton to be picked, and the barbs on the top of the barbed roller 22 hook the cotton to be picked. The microcontroller circuit board controls the output shaft of the second DC motor 24 to rotate, which in turn drives the two gears to rotate, thereby driving the barbed roller 22 to rotate in the forward direction. The barbed roller 22 rotates the hooked cotton to be picked into the temporary cotton storage groove between the barbed roller 22 and the filter frame for temporary storage.

[0043] After the cotton-picking robot picks cotton, the microcontroller circuit board controls the output shafts of the first joint servo motor 15, the second joint servo motor 16, the third joint servo motor 17, and the fourth joint servo motor 18 to rotate, thereby driving the roller-type end effector 8 to move directly above the cotton storage box 3. The microcontroller circuit board then controls the output shaft of the second DC motor 24 to rotate, thereby driving the barbed roller 22 to rotate in the opposite direction. The barbs on the barbed roller 22 push the cotton in the temporary cotton storage groove into the cotton storage box 3, completing a single cotton picking. The above process is repeated to achieve multiple cotton picking and storage.

[0044] When the cotton picking is finished, the microcontroller circuit board controls the universal wheel walking mechanism to drive the cotton picking robot to the final cotton storage location. The microcontroller circuit board then controls the output shaft of the first DC motor 14 to rotate, which drives the cotton storage box 3 to rotate, so that the cotton falls out from the opening of the cotton storage box 3 to the final cotton storage location, completing the dumping and collection of cotton.

[0045] Before the cotton-picking robot picks cotton, it first takes several pictures of cotton. Each cotton picture is then input into a YOLOv5 neural network model for training until the YOLOv5 neural network model converges, resulting in a trained YOLOv5 neural network model. The trained YOLOv5 neural network model is then stored on a microcontroller circuit board, specifically an NVIDIA Jetson Nano. The images captured by the binocular camera 9 are transmitted in real time to the trained YOLOv5 neural network model on the microcontroller circuit board. The trained YOLOv5 neural network model outputs the cotton recognition result in the image. When cotton is recognized, the microcontroller circuit board performs distance measurement based on the recognition result.

[0046] This invention relates to a small cotton-harvesting robot. The robot uses a stepper motor for movement, offering simple and flexible control. With omnidirectional wheels, it can easily move straight, turn, and rotate. The robot uses a four-axis robotic arm and a roller-type end effector to efficiently and flexibly harvest cotton. It can detect cotton and measure distance using a binocular camera, and then a microcontroller circuit board controls the movement of the four-axis robotic arm. The spikes on the roller-type end effector have been adjusted to the appropriate size, shape, and number through multiple experiments, effectively pulling the cotton and securing it to the filter screen. The filter frame of the roller-type end effector has a concave side and a flat side. The concave side can hold the cotton during harvesting, while the flat side engages with the roller in reverse when placing the cotton into the storage box, pushing the cotton out and achieving effective cotton harvesting.

Claims

1. A precision-operated small cotton-harvesting robot, characterized in that: The system includes a chassis (1), a cotton storage box (3), two laser positioning devices (4), a caster wheel walking mechanism, a robotic arm picking mechanism, a binocular camera (9), a microcontroller circuit board, an edge computing device, and a power supply. The caster wheel walking mechanism is installed on the bottom surface of the chassis (1), while the cotton storage box (3), two laser positioning devices (4), robotic arm picking mechanism, binocular camera (9), microcontroller circuit board, edge computing device, and power supply are installed on the top surface of the chassis (1). The root end of the robotic arm picking mechanism is installed in the middle of the top surface of the chassis (1), the two laser positioning devices (4) are installed on opposite sides of the top surface of the chassis (1), and the cotton storage box (3) is installed on one side of the top surface of the chassis (1) between the two laser positioning devices (4). The binocular camera (9) faces the direction of the cotton picking robot's movement. The microcontroller circuit board is electrically connected to the power supply, the two laser positioning devices (4), the caster wheel walking mechanism, the robotic arm picking mechanism, the binocular camera (9), and the edge computing device. The robotic arm harvesting mechanism includes a four-axis robotic arm (7) and a roller-type end effector (8). The roller-type end effector (8) includes an actuator bracket, a barbed roller (22), a filter frame, a second DC motor (24), and two gears. The filter frame includes several filter plates (23), which are evenly spaced and vertically arranged. The plane on the side of each filter plate (23) is perpendicular to the central rotation axis of the barbed roller (22). The upper part of each filter plate (23) is a curved strip, which is bent away from the barbed roller (22). The lower part of the filter plate (23) is a triangular plate, which protrudes towards the barbed roller (22). A temporary cotton storage groove is formed between the barbed roller (22) and the filter frame. The side of the barbed roller (22) is provided with several rows of barbs evenly spaced along the axial direction. Each row of barbs is provided with several barbs evenly spaced. Each barb is bent toward the central axis of the barbed roller (22), and the bending direction of the ends of each barb is the same. The distance between two adjacent barbs in each row of barbs is greater than the thickness of the filter plate (23) of the filter frame. The width of each barb is less than the distance between two adjacent filter plates (23) of the filter frame. When the barbed roller (22) rotates around its own rotation axis, each barb in each row of barbs of the barbed roller (22) passes through the gap between the lower parts of each filter plate (23) in the filter frame in an alternating manner.

2. The precision-operating small cotton-harvesting robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The root end of the four-axis robotic arm (7) is installed in the middle of the top surface of the chassis (1), and the end of the four-axis robotic arm (7) is connected to the roller-type end effector (8); the four-axis robotic arm (7) and the roller-type end effector (8) are electrically connected to the microcontroller circuit board. The four-axis robotic arm (7) includes a first joint servo motor (15), a second joint servo motor (16), a third joint servo motor (17), a fourth joint servo motor (18), a rotating base (19), a large arm (20), and a small arm (21). The rotating base (19) is horizontally installed in the middle of the top surface of the chassis (1). A rotating disk is movably arranged in the middle of the top surface of the rotating base (19). The body of the first joint servo motor (15) is installed at the bottom of the rotating base (19). The rotating shaft of the first joint servo motor (15) is vertically upward and synchronously connected to the center of the bottom surface of the rotating disk of the rotating base (19). The rotating base (19) rotates around the center point. A second joint servo motor (16) is installed in the center of the top surface of the rotating disk. The upper arm (20) is an H-shaped connecting arm. The two ends of one side of the upper arm (20) are movably connected to the opposite sides of the second joint servo motor (16). The output shaft of one side of the opposite sides of the second joint servo motor (16) is horizontally and synchronously connected to one end of one side of the upper arm (20). The fuselage of the other side of the opposite sides of the second joint servo motor (16) is movably connected to the other end of one side of the upper arm (20). One side of the upper arm (20) rotates around the output shaft of the second joint servo motor (16) in the vertical plane. The two ends of the other side of the upper arm (20) are movably connected to... On opposite sides of the third joint servo (17), the output shaft of one side of the third joint servo (17) is horizontally and synchronously connected to one end of the other side of the upper arm (20), and the fuselage of the other side of the third joint servo (17) is movably connected to the other end of the other side of the upper arm (20). The third joint servo (17) rotates around its own output shaft in the vertical plane. The fuselage of the third joint servo (17) is fixedly connected to one side of the forearm (21), and the other side of the forearm (21) is divided into two ends. The two ends of the other side of the forearm (21) are movably connected to opposite sides of the fourth joint servo (18). The output shaft of one side of the fourth joint servo (18) is horizontally and synchronously connected to one end of the other side of the forearm (21). The body of the other side of the fourth joint servo (18) is movably connected to the other end of the other side of the forearm (21). The fourth joint servo (18) rotates in the vertical plane around its own output shaft. The roller-type end effector (8) is installed on the body of the fourth joint servo (18) away from the forearm (21). The first joint servo (15), the second joint servo (16), the third joint servo (17) and the fourth joint servo (18) are electrically connected to the microcontroller circuit board.

3. The precision-operating small cotton-harvesting robot according to claim 2, characterized in that: The output shafts of the second joint servo motor (16), the third joint servo motor (17), and the fourth joint servo motor (18) are parallel to each other.

4. The precision-operating small cotton-harvesting robot according to claim 2, characterized in that: The second DC motor (24) is electrically connected to the microcontroller circuit board; the actuator bracket is mounted on the side of the fourth joint servo motor (18) away from the forearm (21), and the bodies of the barbed roller (22), filter frame and the second DC motor (24) are mounted on the actuator bracket; the filter frame is mounted between the barbed roller (22) and the fourth joint servo motor (18) without contacting each other, the barbed roller (22) is arranged horizontally, and the two ends of the central rotation shaft of the barbed roller (22) are movably connected to the actuator bracket, one end of the central rotation shaft of the barbed roller (22) is synchronously connected to the center of a gear, one gear and another gear mesh with each other, and the gear surfaces of the two gears are located in the same plane; the two gears are located between the second DC motor (24) and the barbed roller (22), and the output shaft of the second DC motor (24) is vertically and synchronously connected to the center of another gear.

5. The precision-operating small cotton-harvesting robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: Each laser positioning device (4) includes a laser positioning side plate and several laser sensors. The laser positioning side plate is vertically arranged on the top surface of the chassis (1). Each laser sensor is evenly spaced on the laser positioning side plate and each laser sensor is perpendicular to the outside of the laser positioning side plate. The laser positioning side plates of the two laser positioning devices (4) are parallel to each other. Each laser sensor is electrically connected to the microcontroller circuit board.

6. The precision-operating small cotton-harvesting robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The cotton storage box (3) is a box with an opening on the top side. The bottom surface of the cotton storage box (3) does not contact the top surface of the chassis (1). The top surface of the chassis (1) is also equipped with a first DC motor (14). The first DC motor (14) is close to one side of the cotton storage box (3). The output shaft of the first DC motor (14) is synchronously connected to one side of the cotton storage box (3).

7. The precision-operating small cotton-harvesting robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The omnidirectional wheel walking mechanism includes four omnidirectional wheel devices, which are respectively installed at the four top corners of the bottom surface of the chassis (1); each omnidirectional wheel device includes a stepper motor (5) and an omnidirectional wheel (6). The body of the stepper motor (5) is installed on the bottom surface of the chassis (1), and the output shaft of the stepper motor (5) is connected to the central shaft of one of the omnidirectional wheels (6); each stepper motor (5) is electrically connected to a microcontroller circuit board.

8. The cotton picking method of the cotton picking robot according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that: When the cotton picking robot picks cotton, it first uses a binocular camera (9) to take real-time pictures of the surrounding environment and transmits them to the microcontroller circuit board and then to the edge computing device. The microcontroller circuit board controls the stepper motor (5) of the four universal wheel devices of the universal wheel walking mechanism to drive the universal wheel (6) to rotate, thus driving the cotton picking robot to move. During the movement, the distance between the cotton picking robot and the obstacles on both sides is measured by the laser sensors of the two laser positioning devices (4). When the universal wheel walking mechanism is controlled by the microcontroller circuit board to move, the distance between each laser sensor and the nearest obstacle is greater than the preset distance. When the binocular camera (9) captures images of the cotton to be picked and transmits them to the edge computing device, the microcontroller circuit board controls the universal wheel walking mechanism to stop moving. The edge computing device measures the three-dimensional coordinates of the center point of the cotton to be picked captured by the binocular camera (9) according to the binocular ranging principle, thereby obtaining the distance between the cotton picking robot and the cotton to be picked and transmitting it to the microcontroller circuit board. The microcontroller circuit board controls the universal wheel walking mechanism to continue moving, driving the cotton picking robot to the vicinity of the cotton to be picked. The microcontroller circuit board controls the output shafts of the first joint servo motor (15), the second joint servo motor (16), the third joint servo motor (17), and the fourth joint servo motor (18) to rotate. The first joint servo motor (15) drives the rotation of the rotating base (19). The disc rotates, driving the second joint servo motor (16) to rotate. The second joint servo motor (16) drives the upper arm (20) to rotate. The third joint servo motor (17) drives the lower arm (21) to rotate. The fourth joint servo motor (18) drives the roller-type end effector (8), so that the barbed roller (22) and the filter frame of the roller-type end effector (8) are located directly below the cotton to be picked. The barbs on the top of the barbed roller (22) hook the cotton to be picked. The microcontroller circuit board controls the output shaft of the second DC motor (24) to rotate, thereby driving the two gears to rotate, thus driving the barbed roller (22) to rotate in the forward direction. The barbed roller (22) rotates the hooked cotton to be picked into the temporary cotton storage groove between the barbed roller (22) and the filter frame for temporary storage. After the cotton picking robot picks cotton, the microcontroller circuit board controls the output shafts of the first joint servo motor (15), the second joint servo motor (16), the third joint servo motor (17) and the fourth joint servo motor (18) to rotate, thereby driving the roller-type end effector (8) to move directly above the cotton storage box (3). The microcontroller circuit board controls the output shaft of the second DC motor (24) to rotate, thereby driving the barbed roller (22) to rotate in the opposite direction. The barbs on the barbed roller (22) push the cotton in the temporary cotton storage groove into the cotton storage box (3), completing a single cotton picking. The above process is repeated to achieve multiple cotton picking and storage. When the cotton picking work is finished, the microcontroller circuit board controls the universal wheel walking mechanism to drive the cotton picking robot to the final cotton storage location. The microcontroller circuit board then controls the output shaft of the first DC motor (14) to rotate, driving the cotton storage box (3) to rotate, so that the cotton falls out from the opening of the cotton storage box (3) to the final cotton storage location to complete the dumping and collection of cotton.

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