An automatic feeding method, device and automatic feeding detection equipment

Abstract

This application relates to an automatic feeding method, device and automatic feeding detection equipment. Among them, the automatic feeding method includes the following steps: S1. Obtain the image information of the board; S2. Determine whether there is a board with a predetermined orientation; S3. If so, obtain the displacement parameters of the board with the predetermined orientation; S4. Based on the displacement parameters of one of the boards with the predetermined orientation, pick up and place it at the target position; S5. After the previous board with the predetermined orientation is placed at the target position, return to step S2; S6. When there is no board with the predetermined orientation, send a control command to control the board to vibrate, and return to step S1. This application forms an efficient automatic feeding operation by obtaining the image information of the board, identifying whether there is a board with a predetermined orientation; if so, obtaining the displacement parameters of the board with the predetermined orientation and placing all the boards with the predetermined orientation at the target position; if not, controlling the board to vibrate, turning the board over by vibration, and then returning to restart the above steps.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the processing field of PCB board production, and particularly relates to an automatic feeding device, method and automatic feeding detection equipment. Background Art

[0002] In the PCB board production industry, quality inspection is usually required during or after the production of PCB boards. For large PCB boards, it is more convenient to stack them, and they are usually stored or packed in a neatly stacked posture; before quality inspection, it is usually only necessary to pick up from the neatly stacked PCB boards, and then use a robot to grab and place or transport them to the inspection area for inspection. However, for small PCB boards, it is not convenient to stack them neatly, and even if they are stacked neatly in a unified posture, they are prone to collapse; therefore, in order to save packaging costs, they are usually stored in a bagged form. When inspecting small PCB boards, it is necessary to stack the PCB boards neatly in a unified posture first, and then use a robot to grab them, which is time-consuming and inefficient. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In order to improve the inspection efficiency of PCB boards, this application provides an automatic feeding method, device and automatic feeding detection equipment.

[0004] In a first aspect, an automatic feeding method provided by this application adopts the following technical solution:

[0005] An automatic feeding method includes the following steps:

[0006] S1. Obtain the image information of the board;

[0007] S2. Determine whether there is a board with a predetermined orientation;

[0008] S3. If so, obtain the displacement parameters of the board with the predetermined orientation;

[0009] S4. Based on the displacement parameters of one of the boards with the predetermined orientation, pick up and place it at the target position;

[0010] S5. After the previous board with the predetermined orientation is placed at the target position, return to step S2;

[0011] S6. When there is no board with a predetermined orientation, send a control command to control the board to shake, and return to step S1.

[0012] By adopting the above technical solution, by obtaining the image information of the board, it is identified whether there is a board with a predetermined orientation; if so, the displacement parameters of the board with the predetermined orientation are obtained, and all the boards with the predetermined orientation are placed at the target position; if not, the board is controlled to shake, and the board is turned over by shaking, and then return to start executing the above steps again; thus forming an efficient automatic feeding operation.

[0013] Optionally, the displacement parameter in step S3 includes a movement parameter.

[0014] By adopting the above technical solution, by obtaining the movement parameter of the plate in a predetermined orientation, it is convenient to move the plate in the predetermined orientation to the target position.

[0015] Optionally, the displacement parameter in step S3 further includes a rotation parameter.

[0016] By adopting the above technical solution, by obtaining the rotation parameter of the plate in a predetermined orientation, it is convenient to correct the plate in the predetermined orientation so that the plate in the predetermined orientation is aligned with the target position.

[0017] Optionally, when there are multiple target positions, step S4 further includes:

[0018] S41. Determine whether all the target positions are filled. If not, execute step S5;

[0019] S42. If so, send a control instruction to pause picking up.

[0020] By adopting the above technical solution, by obtaining the rotation parameter of the plate in a predetermined orientation, it is convenient to correct the plate in the predetermined orientation so that the plate in the predetermined orientation is aligned with the target position.

[0021] Optionally, step S5 further includes a judgment step: based on the image information obtained in step S1, count the plates in the predetermined orientation picked up, and judge whether all the plates in the predetermined orientation are placed.

[0022] By adopting the above technical solution, by obtaining an image once, count the plates in the predetermined orientation in the image until the plates in the predetermined orientation in the image are grabbed completely, which is convenient to judge whether there are plates in the predetermined orientation that can be picked up.

[0023] Optionally, step S5 further includes a judgment step: return to step S1 to obtain the plate image again, and judge whether all the plates in the predetermined orientation are placed.

[0024] By adopting the above technical solution, image acquisition is performed every time before picking up, judge whether there are plates in the predetermined orientation in the image, and the judgment accuracy is higher.

[0025] Optionally, a first threshold for the number of plates in a predetermined orientation is preset, and step S6 further includes:

[0026] When the number of plates in the predetermined orientation is lower than the first threshold, control the plate to vibrate, and return to step S1 to obtain the image again until the number of plates in the predetermined orientation reaches or exceeds the first threshold, and then execute step S3 downward.

[0027] By adopting the above technical solution, the displacement parameters of the plates in the predetermined orientation are obtained only when the plates in the predetermined orientation reach the first threshold, thereby improving the jitter efficiency.

[0028] Optionally, a second threshold for the number of times of plate jitter is preset, and the step S6 further includes:

[0029] When the number of jitter times reaches the second threshold after the last grasping of the plates in the predetermined orientation is completed and the number of plates in the predetermined orientation is still lower than the first threshold, the jittering stops.

[0030] By adopting the above technical solution, the special situation where the images of the plates in the predetermined orientation cannot be obtained even after multiple jitters is reduced, which is convenient for timely inspection and adjustment of the equipment.

[0031] In a second aspect, an automatic feeding device provided by the present application adopts the following technical solution:

[0032] An automatic feeding device includes: a machine base having a target position; a material shaking mechanism mounted on the machine base, including a shaking motor and a material shaking disk connected to the shaking motor, the material shaking disk being used for carrying one or more plates, and the shaking motor driving the material shaking disk to shake so as to turn over the plates; a picking mechanism mounted on the machine base, including a robot and a picking part connected to the robot, the picking part being used for picking the plates in the predetermined orientation, and the robot being used for driving the picking part to place the plates in the predetermined orientation at the target position; and a visual recognition mechanism mounted on the machine base, including an image acquisition component and a visual processing module connected to the image acquisition component, the image acquisition component being used for acquiring the plate image information in the material shaking disk, and the image information including the number of plates in the predetermined orientation and the initial positions of the plates in the predetermined orientation.

[0033] By adopting the above technical solution, the visual recognition mechanism can acquire the image information of the plates in the predetermined orientation, the picking mechanism can pick the plates in the predetermined orientation and place them at the target position, the shaking structure can shake the plates to turn them over, and after obtaining the plates in the predetermined orientation, the mechanism picks them up and then picks and places them, thereby forming an efficient automatic feeding operation.

[0034] In a third aspect, an automatic feeding detection device provided by the present application adopts the following technical solution:

[0035] An automatic detection device includes: a conveying device which successively has a loading area, a detection area and a discharging area along the conveying direction of the conveying device. The conveying device includes a carrier and a conveying mechanism, and the carrier has a placement position for placing the board. The above-mentioned automatic loading device is close to the loading area and places the board with a predetermined orientation onto the placement position on the carrier that reaches the loading area. A detection device, close to the detection area, is used for detecting the quality of the board that reaches the detection area. A storage device, close to the discharging area, has storage boxes separated from each other and is used for classifying and storing the boards. And a discharging device, close to the discharging area, is used for picking up the board that reaches the discharging area and placing the board into the storage box.

[0036] By adopting the above technical solution, the conveying mechanism can convey the board on the carrier along the conveying direction to the loading area, the detection area and the discharging area. The loading device can place the board with a predetermined orientation onto the carrier, the detection device can detect the board that reaches the detection area, and the discharging device can classify and place the board that reaches the discharging area into the storage box; thus forming an efficient automatic loading, automatic detection and automatic classification and discharging automatic assembly line operation.

[0037] In summary, the present application includes at least one of the following beneficial technical effects:

[0038] 1. The present application can improve the loading efficiency of small PCB boards, form an efficient automatic loading operation, and thus effectively improve the detection efficiency.

[0039] 2. The jitter-type turning method in the present application is very suitable for small PCB boards, which is beneficial to obtaining the board with a predetermined orientation. Placing the board according to the predetermined orientation is very beneficial to detection.

[0040] 3. The automatic loading and detection device can form an efficient fully automatic assembly line operation of automatic loading, automatic detection and automatic classification and discharging. Description of the Drawings

[0041] Figure 1 It is a schematic structural diagram of the automatic loading device of the embodiment of the present application.

[0042] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the mechanism of the automatic loading and detection device of the embodiment of the present application.

[0043] Figure 3 It is an overall flowchart of the automatic loading method of the embodiment of the present application.

[0044] Figure 4 It is a flowchart of step S4 of the automatic loading method of the embodiment of the present application.

[0045] Explanation of the reference numerals in the accompanying drawings: 1. Plate; 2. Loading device; 21. Machine base; 22. Material shaking mechanism; 221. Shaking motor; 222. Material shaking tray; 23. Picking mechanism; 231. Robot; 232. Picking part; 24. Visual recognition mechanism; 241. Image acquisition component; 25. Feeding mechanism; 251. Feeding motor; 252. Belt; 3. Conveying device; 31. Loading area; 32. Detection area; 33. Unloading area; 34. Carrying part; 35. Conveying mechanism; 351. Turntable; 4. Detection device; 41. First detection device; 42. Second detection device; 5. Unloading device; 6. Classification and storage device; 61. Storage box. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0046] The present application is further described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0047] PCB boards generally have two sides, including the front side and the back side, that is, when the PCB board is placed horizontally, it is either facing up with the front side or facing up with the back side. When the PCB board is tested, the front side or the back side is generally set as the predetermined orientation, and the PCB board is placed in the test area for testing according to the predetermined orientation.

[0048] For large PCB boards, they are usually stacked neatly in the same direction because they are convenient for stacking. During the inspection process, it is convenient to place the PCB boards in the receiving slots manually, by a robot, or by other means.

[0049] However, it is very difficult to stack small PCBs. Even if they are neatly stacked in the same direction, they are prone to collapse. In order to reduce packaging costs, bags are usually used. Placing a pile of PCBs that are not stacked in the same direction at the target location is extremely inconvenient, whether it is done manually or by a robot, or by other methods.

[0050] In order to facilitate placing the small pieces of board 1 at the target position in the same orientation, the present application is disclosed through the following three aspects.

[0051] In a first aspect, the present application discloses an automatic loading device 2 .

[0052] Reference Figure 1, the feeding device 2 includes a machine base 21, a vibrating mechanism 22, a picking mechanism 23 and a vision recognition mechanism 24. Among them, the vibrating mechanism 22, the picking mechanism 23 and the vision recognition mechanism 24 are all installed on the machine base 21. The vibrating mechanism 22 vibrates to carry the board 1 and turn the board 1 over; the vision recognition mechanism 24 is used to obtain the image information of the board 1 carried by the vibrating mechanism; the picking mechanism 23 is used to pick up the board 1 with a predetermined orientation carried by the vibrating mechanism and place the board 1 at the target position. The target position can be one or multiple; the target position can be preset in advance or obtained by a camera or a webcam.

[0053] In this embodiment, the vibrating mechanism 22 includes a vibrating motor 221 and a vibrating tray 222 connected to the vibrating motor 221; in other embodiments, a vibrating cylinder can also be used instead of the vibrating motor 221 for vibration. The vibrating tray 222 is used to carry one or more boards 1. The board 1 can be a PCB board or small electronic components with a plate-like structure, as long as the vibrating mechanism can vibrate it to turn it over. The vibrating motor 221 drives the vibrating tray 222 to vibrate so that the board 1 in the vibrating tray 222 is turned over. The vision recognition mechanism 24 includes an image acquisition component 241 and a vision processing module. The image acquisition component 241 can be a camera or a webcam or other components capable of acquiring images; the best position of the image acquisition component 241 is directly above the vibrating tray 222 to obtain the image information of the board 1 in the vibrating tray 222, and the image information includes the initial position of the board 1 with a predetermined orientation and the number of boards 1 with a predetermined orientation. The picking mechanism 23 includes a robot 231 and a picking part 232 connected to the robot 231. Specifically, the robot can be a four-axis or five-axis or six-axis robot, as long as it can pick up the board 1 from the initial position and place the board 1 at the target position; the picking part 232 can specifically be a vacuum suction nozzle or a clamping piece that can tighten and open, as long as it can pick up and release the board 1.

[0054] In order to realize the feeding of the board 1 in the vibrating tray 222, the automatic feeding device 2 further includes a feeding mechanism 25 for putting the board 1 into the vibrating tray 222. The feeding mechanism 25 is installed on the machine base 21 and close to the vibrating tray 222. In this embodiment, the feeding mechanism 25 is of a conveyor belt type, specifically including a feeding motor 251 and a belt pulley 252 driven by the motor, and a belt 252 wound around the belt pulley 252; the feeding motor 251 drives the belt pulley 252 to rotate, thereby driving the belt 252 to move back and forth linearly to send the board 1 into the vibrating tray 222. In other embodiments, the feeding mechanism 25 can also be a hopper motor and a hopper installed on the hopper motor. The hopper is used to hold the board 1. The hopper has an opening facing the vibrating tray 222, and the hopper motor drives the hopper to vibrate so that the board 1 falls into the vibrating tray 222 from the opening.

[0055] The implementation principle of an automatic feeding device 2 disclosed in this application is as follows: The image acquisition component 241 acquires the image information of the sheet 1 in the vibrating tray 222. The visual recognition module determines whether there is a sheet 1 with a predetermined upward orientation in the vibrating tray 222 based on the image information. If so, it acquires the initial position of the sheet 1 with the predetermined orientation, and places the sheet 1 with the predetermined orientation at the target position based on the initial position and the target position of the sheet 1 with the predetermined orientation. After all the sheets 1 with the predetermined orientation in the vibrating tray 222 are picked up, the vibrating motor 221 drives the sheets 1 in the vibrating tray 222 to vibrate for a period of time and then stops. The visual recognition mechanism 24 acquires the image information of the sheets 1 in the vibrating tray 222 again, and so on in a cycle to form an efficient automatic feeding operation.

[0056] In a second aspect, this application discloses an automatic feeding detection device.

[0057] This automatic feeding detection device includes a conveying device 3, a detection device 4, a discharging device 5, a sorting and storage device 6, and the automatic feeding device 2 disclosed above. Along the transportation direction of the conveying device 3, there are successively a feeding area 31, a detection area 32, and a discharging area 33.

[0058] The conveying device 3 includes a receiving member and a conveying mechanism 35 for driving the carrier 34 to move. The carrier 34 has a placement position for placing the sheet 1. When the carrier 34 is conveyed to the feeding area 31 by the conveying mechanism 35, the placement position on the carrier 34 is the target position pointed out in the above automatic feeding device 2. In this embodiment, the conveying device 3 is a rotary conveying device. Specifically, the conveying device 3 includes a conveying motor and a turntable 351 driven by the conveying motor. The carrier 34 is installed or directly placed on the turntable 351, or there is a placement position on the tabletop of the turntable 351 to form the carrier 34. In another embodiment, the conveying device 3 can also be a linear conveying device. Specifically, the conveying device 3 includes a conveyor motor and a conveyor belt driven by the conveyor motor. The carrier 34 is placed on the conveyor belt, as long as the above carrier 34 can be conveyed from the feeding area 31 to the detection area 32, from the detection area 32 to the discharging area 33, and from the discharging area 33 to the feeding area 31 in sequence, and can cycle in this way.

[0059] Specifically, the automatic loading device 2 is close to the loading area 31, and places the plate 1 with a predetermined orientation on the carrier 34 in the loading area 31. The detection device 4 is close to the detection area 32, and is used to detect the quality of the plate 1 reaching the detection area 32. There can be multiple detection areas 32 arranged along the transportation direction of the transportation device 3. Correspondingly, there are also multiple detection devices 4. In this embodiment, the number of detection areas 32 is two, specifically the first detection area 32 and the second detection area 32. Correspondingly, the detection device 4 is specifically the first detection device 41 and the second detection device 42. The classification and storage device 6 is close to the unloading area 33 and has storage boxes 61 separated from each other. In this embodiment, the classification and storage device 6 includes a first storage box, a second storage box, a third storage box, and a fourth storage box. The unloading device 5 is also close to the unloading area 33. Specifically, the unloading device 5 may include a three-axis or four-axis or five-axis or six-axis manipulator, as long as it can pick up the plate 1 in the unloading area 33 and place it in the corresponding storage box 61 based on the quality index of the plate 1.

[0060] In this embodiment, the quality index of the above-mentioned plate 1 takes the coil inductance value and the line conduction value in the PCB board as examples. If both the coil inductance value and the line conduction value meet the standards, the unloading device 5 picks it up and places it in the first storage box; if the coil inductance value meets the standard while the line conduction value does not meet the standard, the unloading device 5 picks it up and places it in the second storage box; if the coil inductance value does not meet the standard while the line conduction value meets the standard, the unloading device 5 picks it up and places it in the third storage box; if both the coil inductance value and the line conduction value do not meet the standards, the unloading device 5 picks it up and places it in the fourth storage box.

[0061] The implementation principle of an automatic loading and detecting device disclosed in this application is as follows: The automatic loading device 2 places the plate 1 with a predetermined orientation on the placement position of the carrier 34 in the loading area 31. The transportation device 3 transports the plate 1 on the carrier 34 from the loading area 31 to the first detection area 32, and the first detection device 41 detects the plate 1 on the carrier 34 in the first detection area 32; the transportation device 3 transports the plate 1 on the carrier 34 from the first detection area 32 to the second detection area 32, and the second detection device 42 detects the plate 1 on the carrier 34 in the second detection area 32; the transportation device 3 transports the plate 1 on the carrier 34 from the second detection area 32 to the unloading area 33, and the unloading device 5 picks up the plate 1 on the carrier 34 in the unloading area 33 and places the plate 1 in the corresponding storage box 61 based on the quality index of the plate 1. The transportation device 3 transports the carrier 34 without the plate 1 from the unloading area 33 to the loading area 31; and so on in a cycle, forming an efficient assembly line operation of automatic loading, automatic detection, and automatic classification and storage. Thirdly, this application discloses an automatic loading method.

[0062] The automatic loading method includes the following steps:

[0063] S1. Obtain the image information of the board; by analyzing the image information, the number of boards in a predetermined orientation and the initial positions of the boards in the predetermined orientation can be obtained, which is convenient for determining whether there are movable boards, and by obtaining the initial positions of the movable boards, it is convenient for subsequent movement.

[0064] S2. Determine whether there are boards in a predetermined orientation; that is, based on the number of boards in the predetermined orientation obtained, determine whether the number of boards in the predetermined orientation is zero.

[0065] S3. If so, obtain the displacement parameters of the board in the predetermined orientation; among them, the displacement parameters include the movement parameters required for the board in the predetermined orientation to move to the target position, or the displacement parameters include the movement parameters and rotation parameters required for the board in the predetermined orientation to move to the target position; the target position can be set in advance or directly obtained through a camera or a webcam, etc.; by obtaining the movement parameters, the position of the board in the predetermined orientation can be adjusted, and by obtaining the rotation parameters, the board in the predetermined orientation can be aligned with the placement position in the above-mentioned automatic loading and detection device.

[0066] S4. Based on the displacement parameters of one of the boards in the predetermined orientation, pick up and place it at the target position; among them, the picking up and placing are completed by the picking mechanism in the above-mentioned automatic loading device, and the picking mechanism includes a robot and a picking part connected to the robot, and the robot drives the picking part to pick up and place the board in the predetermined orientation at the target position.

[0067] S5. After the previous board in the predetermined orientation is placed at the target position, return to step S2.

[0068] S6. When there are no boards in the predetermined orientation, send a control command to control the board to vibrate, and return to step S1.

[0069] By adopting the above method, obtain the image information of the board, judge whether there are boards in a predetermined orientation based on the appearance of the boards in the image information. If so, based on the displacement parameters of the boards in the predetermined orientation in the image information, the picking mechanism picks up the boards in the predetermined orientation and reaches the target position; after the previous board in the predetermined orientation is placed, then place the next board in the predetermined orientation; until all the boards in the predetermined orientation are picked up, send a control command to control the board to vibrate, and after vibration, pick up and place the boards in the predetermined orientation again according to the above steps in a cycle until all the boards are placed at the target position.

[0070] To obtain the displacement parameters in the image information, a spatial coordinate system is established to obtain the initial coordinates of the plate with a predetermined orientation in space. By obtaining the coordinates of the target position, the displacement parameters of the plate with a predetermined orientation are obtained. Since the vibrating tray has a first plane for placing the plate and the carrier has a second plane for placing the plate, in this embodiment, a spatial coordinate system is established with a point origin in the first plane. In other embodiments, a spatial coordinate system can also be established with a fixed point in other planes, as long as it is a fixed point in space. Specifically, the spatial coordinate system includes mutually perpendicular X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis in space.

[0071] To be able to move the plate with a predetermined orientation from the initial position to the target position, the displacement parameters in step S3 include movement parameters.

[0072] By establishing a spatial coordinate system, the initial coordinates of the plate with a predetermined orientation in space are obtained. By obtaining the coordinates of the target position, the movement parameters of the plate with a predetermined orientation are obtained. In one embodiment, the movement parameters include a first movement parameter for moving along the X-axis direction, a second movement parameter for moving along the Y-axis direction, and a third movement parameter for moving along the Z-axis direction. Among them, the acquisition of the first movement parameter, the second movement parameter, and the third movement parameter is to place the plate at the target position. The specific application scenario can be: the first plane of the vibrating tray is parallel to the second plane of the carrier, and when the plate reaches the target position on the second plane from the first plane, it does not need to be aligned and placed at the target position. Specifically, a three-axis robot can be used, and the picking part connected to the three-axis robot can move along the mutually perpendicular X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and Z-axis direction in space.

[0073] In another embodiment, when moving and picking up the plate from the initial position and placing it at the target position, it is also necessary to align the plate with a predetermined orientation with the target position. If only the first movement parameter, the second movement parameter, and the third movement parameter in the above embodiment are obtained, the plate with a predetermined orientation cannot be aligned with the target position. Therefore, the displacement parameters in step S3 also include rotation parameters.

[0074] By establishing a spatial coordinate system and analyzing the plate image, the rotation parameters required for the plate to correct and align itself can be obtained. The rotation parameters include a first rotation parameter for rotating around the X-axis and / or a second rotation parameter for rotating around the Y-axis and / or a third rotation parameter for rotating around the Z-axis. The acquisition of these rotation parameters is to align and place the plate with a predetermined orientation.

[0075] When the displacement parameters include a first movement parameter, a second movement parameter, and a third movement parameter, and also include a first rotation parameter and / or a second rotation parameter and / or a third rotation parameter, the specific application scenario can be that the first plane of the vibrating tray is parallel to the second plane of the carrier, but the plates with a predetermined orientation need to be aligned and placed at the target position. Specifically, a four-axis robot can be used. The picking part connected to the four-axis robot can move along the X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and Z-axis direction that are perpendicular to each other in space, and can rotate around the X-axis, Y-axis, or Z-axis.

[0076] When the displacement parameters include a first movement parameter, a second movement parameter, and a third movement parameter, and also include a first rotation parameter and a second rotation parameter, or a first rotation parameter and a third rotation parameter, or a second rotation parameter and a third rotation parameter, the specific application scenario can be that the first plane of the vibrating tray is perpendicular to the second plane of the carrier, and the plates with a predetermined orientation need to be aligned and placed at the target position. Specifically, a five-axis robot can be used. The picking part connected to the five-axis robot can move along the X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and Z-axis direction that are perpendicular to each other in space, and can rotate around the X-axis and Y-axis, or the X-axis and Z-axis, or the Y-axis and Z-axis.

[0077] When the displacement parameters include a first movement parameter, a second movement parameter, and a third movement parameter, and also include a first rotation parameter, a second rotation parameter, and a third rotation parameter, the specific application scenario can be that the first plane of the vibrating tray is neither parallel nor perpendicular to the second plane of the carrier, and the plates with a predetermined orientation need to be aligned and placed at the target position. Specifically, a six-axis robot can be used. The picking part connected to the six-axis robot can move along the X-axis direction, Y-axis direction, and Z-axis direction that are perpendicular to each other in space, and can rotate around the X-axis, Y-axis, and Z-axis.

[0078] Based on the above specific application scenarios, a suitable robot is selected. The picking part picks up the plates with a predetermined orientation, and the robot moves the plates with a predetermined orientation to the target position according to the movement parameters, and rotates the plates with a predetermined orientation according to the rotation parameters so that they are aligned and placed at the target position.

[0079] In this embodiment, the displacement parameters are correspondingly obtained by obtaining the coordinates of the target position. In a specific embodiment, the target position may be one or multiple. When there is only one target position, it is placed according to the method of the foregoing embodiment; when there are multiple target positions, in order to realize the feeding of multiple plates, step S4 further includes: S41. Determine whether all the target positions are placed. If not, execute step S5; S42. If so, send a control instruction to pause picking. By adopting the above technical solution, by obtaining the rotation parameters of the plates with a predetermined orientation, it is convenient to correct the plates with a predetermined orientation so that the plates with a predetermined orientation are aligned with the target position.

[0080] In order to determine whether there is an empty space at the target position, in this embodiment, step S5 further includes a judgment step: based on the image information obtained in step S1, count the picked plates with a predetermined orientation, and judge whether all the plates with the predetermined orientation have been placed. By adopting the above technical solution, through one-time image acquisition, count the plates with a predetermined orientation in the image until the picking of the plates with the predetermined orientation in the image is completed, which is convenient for judging whether there are plates with a predetermined orientation that can be picked up.

[0081] Similarly, in order to determine whether there is an empty space at the target position, in another embodiment, step S5 further includes: returning to step S1 to re-acquire the plate image, and judge whether all the plates with the predetermined orientation have been placed. By adopting the above technical solution, image acquisition is performed every time before picking up, judge whether there are plates with a predetermined orientation in the image, and the judgment accuracy is higher.

[0082] In order to improve the working efficiency of the feeding device, a first threshold can be preset. The first threshold is the number of plates facing upward, and the size of the first threshold can be fixed or adjustable. Based on the first threshold, judge the number of plates with a predetermined orientation. When the number of plates with a predetermined orientation is lower than the first threshold, control the plate to vibrate.

[0083] In this embodiment, a first threshold for the number of plates with a predetermined orientation is preset. The step S6 further includes: when the number of plates with a predetermined orientation is lower than the first threshold, control the plate to vibrate, and return to step S1 to re-acquire the image until the number of plates with a predetermined orientation reaches or exceeds the first threshold, and then proceed to step S3 below. By setting the first threshold, only when the number of plates with a predetermined orientation reaches the first threshold, the displacement parameters of the plates with a predetermined orientation are acquired. Furthermore, the displacement parameters of multiple plates with a predetermined orientation can be acquired at one time, which is convenient for the robot to continuously pick up and improves the picking efficiency.

[0084] For example, the first threshold is 3. If the number of plates with a predetermined orientation obtained is 2 or 1 or 0, then control the plate to vibrate for a period of time; re-acquire the number of plates with a predetermined orientation. If the number of plates with a predetermined orientation is 3, then stop vibrating. Then the displacement parameters of three plates with a predetermined orientation can be acquired at one time, and 3 plates with a predetermined orientation can be continuously picked up, improving the picking efficiency.

[0085] For another example, if the number of sheets of the predetermined orientation obtained after the first jitter is 0; the number of sheets of the predetermined orientation obtained after the second jitter is also 0; the number of sheets of the predetermined orientation obtained after the third jitter is 1; the number of sheets of the predetermined orientation obtained after the fourth jitter is 5. Without setting the first threshold, the sheets are jittered three times and 1 sheet of the predetermined orientation is picked up. When the first threshold is set to 5, the sheets are jittered four times and 5 sheets of the predetermined orientation are picked up. By comparison, the situation with the first threshold set is significantly higher than that without setting the first threshold. Therefore, the jitter efficiency can be improved by setting the first threshold.

[0086] To avoid some special situations in the above steps, for example, no matter how many times the sheet shaking mechanism shakes, the number of sheets of the predetermined orientation in the sheet shaking tray cannot reach the first threshold. Step S6 further includes:

[0087] When the previous grasping of the sheets of the predetermined orientation is completed and the number of jitter times reaches the second threshold, if the number of sheets of the predetermined orientation is still lower than the first threshold, stop jittering.

[0088] Among them, the second threshold is the number of times the sheets are jittered, and the second threshold can be fixed or adjustable. When the previous grasping of the sheets is completed and the number of jitter times reaches the second threshold, if there are still no sheets of the predetermined orientation or the number of sheets of the predetermined orientation is lower than the first threshold, stop jittering. This is convenient for timely checking and adjusting the equipment.

[0089] For example, when the sheets being jittered are specifically PCB boards, if there are holes or openings on the PCB boards, several PCB boards are very likely to get stuck together. When jittering, it is very difficult to turn over the PCB boards, that is, it is very difficult to obtain images of the sheets of the predetermined orientation. Even if the turned-over PCB boards meet the predetermined orientation, due to being stuck together and having overlapping or mutually occluding parts, it is also very difficult to obtain the images of the predetermined orientation of these PCB boards. Another example is that if there are only 2 sheets in the jitter mechanism and the first threshold is 3, no matter how many times it is jittered, the threshold cannot be reached. Therefore, by setting the second threshold, the time taken when special situations occur can be reduced, which helps to improve the efficiency of the automatic feeding operation.

[0090] The implementation principle of an automatic feeding method according to an embodiment of the present application is as follows: A space coordinate system is established with a fixed point in space, the number of sheets of a predetermined orientation is obtained, and it is determined whether the number of sheets of the predetermined orientation in the vibrating tray reaches a first threshold. If so, the initial position and the target position of the sheets of the predetermined orientation are obtained, the movement parameters of the sheets of the predetermined orientation are determined, and based on the images of the sheets of the predetermined orientation, the rotation parameters for correcting the sheets of the predetermined orientation are obtained, and the sheets are picked up and rotated and placed at the target position after correction; After the placement of the sheets of the previous predetermined orientation is completed, the sheets of the next predetermined orientation are then placed until all the sheets of the predetermined orientation are picked up. A control instruction is sent to control the vibration of the sheets, and it is determined whether the number of vibrations reaches a second threshold. If so, the vibration is stopped. If not, it is determined again whether the sheets of the predetermined orientation reach the first threshold, and so on in a loop, thereby forming an efficient automatic feeding operation.

[0091] The above are all preferred embodiments of the present application, and the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereby. Therefore, all equivalent changes made according to the structure, shape, and principle of the present application should be covered within the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. An automatic feeding method, characterized in that, It includes the following steps: S1. Obtain the image information of the sheet material; S2. Determine whether there is a sheet material with a predetermined orientation; S3. If so, obtain the displacement parameters of the sheet material with the predetermined orientation; S4. Based on the displacement parameters of one of the sheet materials with the predetermined orientation, pick up and place it at the target position; S5. After the previous sheet material with the predetermined orientation is placed at the target position, return to step S2; S6. When there is no sheet material with a predetermined orientation, send a control instruction to control the sheet material to vibrate, and return to step S1; Wherein, a first threshold value for the number of sheet materials with a predetermined orientation is preset, and step S6 further includes: When the number of sheet materials with a predetermined orientation is lower than the first threshold value, control the sheet material to vibrate, and return to step S1 to re-obtain the image until the number of sheet materials with a predetermined orientation reaches or exceeds the first threshold value, and then proceed to step S3; Wherein, a second threshold value for the number of vibrations of the sheet material is preset, and step S6 further includes: When the number of vibrations reaches the second threshold value after the previous picking up of the sheet material with the predetermined orientation is completed and the number of sheet materials with a predetermined orientation is still lower than the first threshold value, stop vibrating.

2. The automatic feeding method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The displacement parameters in step S3 include movement parameters.

3. The automatic feeding method according to claim 2, characterized in that The displacement parameters in step S3 further include rotation parameters.

4. The automatic feeding method according to claim 1, characterized in that When there are multiple target positions, step S4 further includes: S41. Determine whether all the target positions are placed. If not, execute step S5; S42. If so, send a control instruction to pause picking up.

5. The automatic feeding method according to claim 1, wherein Step S5 further includes a judgment step: Based on the image information obtained in step S1, count the picked-up sheet materials with a predetermined orientation, and judge whether all the sheet materials with a predetermined orientation are placed.

6. The automatic feeding method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Step S5 further includes a judgment step: Return to step S1 to re-obtain the image of the sheet material, and judge whether all the sheet materials with a predetermined orientation are placed.

Images