Turnover mechanism, automatic blood basket loading platform and fully automatic blood storage system

Abstract

The application discloses a turnover mechanism located downstream of a conveying belt, comprising a support frame, a driving member, a rotating support plate and a position sensor; the driving member and the rotating support plate are installed on the support frame; the rotating support plate is provided with at least one accommodating groove; the driving member is in transmission connection with the rotating support plate, and is used for driving the rotating support plate to turn over the accommodating groove; the accommodating groove and the conveying belt are located on the same horizontal plane; after the position sensor detects that a blood bag enters the accommodating groove, the rotating support plate rotates by a predetermined angle. The application further discloses an automatic blood basket loading platform and a full-automatic blood storage system. The turnover mechanism is arranged downstream of the conveying belt, and the accommodating groove and the conveying belt are located on the same horizontal plane before the rotating support plate is turned over. The conveying belt conveys the blood bag to the turnover mechanism, the blood bag enters the accommodating groove under the action of inertia, the driving member drives the rotating support plate to rotate, the blood bag in the accommodating groove is turned over and stands up, the height of the blood bag in the vertical direction is increased, the blood bag is convenient for being grabbed by a mechanical hand, and a basis for realizing mechanical basket loading of blood is provided.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of blood storage technology, and in particular to a flipping mechanism, an automatic blood crate loading platform, and a fully automated blood storage system. Background Technology

[0002] In recent years, with the continuous expansion of the voluntary blood donation team and the sustained increase in blood donation volume, coupled with the continuous improvement of laws, regulations, and standards, blood bank management has gradually become more standardized, playing a vital role in ensuring blood safety. Collected whole blood is stored in a categorized manner, allowing patients to use it according to their needs, thus maximizing the value of the blood. The optimal storage temperature for red blood cells is 4℃, and the optimal storage temperature for plasma is -30℃. Therefore, blood banks classify and store donated blood in designated areas. Currently, blood banks in various cities have their own cold storage facilities to ensure the availability of blood for patients.

[0003] Cold storage facilities for blood operate at low temperatures and in harsh environments. Repeated entry into or prolonged exposure to these low temperatures is detrimental to human health. To address this, many blood banks have adopted robotic arms for transporting blood within these facilities. Blood bags, after labeling, packaging, and sorting into crates, are transported to the cold storage by robotic arms. When blood is needed, the robotic arms transfer the required amount outside the cold storage, eliminating the need for staff to enter the low-temperature environment. Because blood is a liquid, existing blood bags are flat and lie horizontally on the conveyor belt, making them difficult for robotic arms to handle. Therefore, before storage, blood bags must be manually crated, resulting in high labor costs and low automation in blood storage. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the problem of high labor costs in existing blood storage systems where robotic arms struggle to grasp blood bags and manual crating is required, this application proposes a flipping mechanism, an automated blood crating platform, and a fully automated blood storage system.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution adopted by the present invention is as follows:

[0006] A flipping mechanism, located downstream of a drive belt, includes: a support frame, a drive component, a rotating tray, and a positioning sensor;

[0007] The driving component and the rotating tray are mounted on the support frame;

[0008] The rotating pallet has at least one receiving slot;

[0009] The driving component is connected to the rotating tray in a transmission manner, and the driving component is used to drive the rotating tray to flip the receiving groove;

[0010] The receiving trough and the conveyor belt are located on the same horizontal plane. After the positioning sensor detects that the blood bag has entered the receiving trough, the rotating pallet rotates by a predetermined angle.

[0011] Furthermore, the receiving groove is a U-shaped groove composed of two side plates and a bottom plate.

[0012] Furthermore, when the notch on the side of the receiving slot is directly opposite the conveying direction of the conveyor belt, the blood bag enters the receiving slot through the notch.

[0013] Furthermore, a baffle is provided on the side of the receiving trough away from the conveyor belt.

[0014] Furthermore, when the receiving slot is positioned in the conveying direction of the conveyor belt, the blood bag enters the receiving slot from the opening.

[0015] Furthermore, a rotating shaft is provided on the back of the bottom plate of the receiving groove, and the driving member drives the rotating tray to flip through the rotating shaft.

[0016] Furthermore, there are four receiving slots, which are evenly distributed circumferentially around the rotation axis, and the included angle between the side plates of two adjacent receiving slots is 90°.

[0017] Furthermore, a positioning disk is fixedly sleeved on the rotating shaft, and a photoelectric sensor matching the positioning disk is fixed on the support frame. The positioning disk has a notch.

[0018] Furthermore, the blood bag is contained in a blood box, and the depth of the containing slot is less than the length or width of the blood box.

[0019] Furthermore, a pad is fixedly installed between the rotating pallet and the conveyor belt, and the pad and the conveyor belt are on the same horizontal plane.

[0020] In addition, this application also provides an automated blood loading platform, including a gripping robot, a blood basket, and a flipping mechanism as described above.

[0021] In addition, this application also provides a fully automated blood storage system, including the flipping mechanism described above.

[0022] The flipping mechanism provided in this application includes a support frame, a drive unit, and a rotating tray. Both the drive unit and the rotating tray are mounted on the upper end of the support frame. The rotating tray has at least one receiving slot for accommodating blood bags. The drive unit is connected to the rotating tray via a transmission mechanism. Driven by the drive unit, the rotating tray rotates, causing the receiving slot to flip by a preset angle. The flipping mechanism is located downstream of the conveyor belt. Before the rotating tray flips, the receiving slot and the conveyor belt are on the same horizontal plane. The conveyor belt transports the blood bags to the flipping mechanism, where they enter the receiving slot under inertia. The drive unit drives the rotating tray to rotate, causing the blood bags in the receiving slot to flip and stand upright. This increases the vertical height of the blood bags, facilitating gripping by a robotic arm and providing a foundation for mechanized blood crating.

[0023] Additional aspects and advantages of this application will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of this application. Attached Figure Description

[0024] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the embodiments are briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments recorded in this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings.

[0025] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the flipping mechanism in the embodiments of this application;

[0026] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the flipping structure at another angle in an embodiment of this application;

[0027] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the rotating tray in an embodiment of this application;

[0028] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of another installation position of the flip structure in an embodiment of this application;

[0029] Figure 5 This is an exploded view of the flipping mechanism in the embodiments of this application;

[0030] Figure 6 This is a top view of the structure of the automatic blood crate loading platform in this application embodiment.

[0031] Figure label:

[0032] The components include: a flipping mechanism 10, a conveyor belt 20, a blood bag 30, a blood box 40, a support frame 100, a drive component 200, a rotating pallet 300, a receiving slot 310, a side plate 311, a bottom plate 312, an opening 313, a side notch 314, a vertical plate 110, a horizontal plate 120, a base 130, a triangular rib 140, a baffle 400, a balance plate 500, a rotating shaft 600, a connecting pipe 610, a bearing 620, a positioning plate 700, a photoelectric sensor 800, a fixed seat 801, a pad 900, a gripping robot 50, a blood basket 60, and a barcode scanner 70. Detailed Implementation

[0033] The embodiments of this application are described in detail below. Examples of the embodiments are shown in the accompanying drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numerals denote the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below with reference to the accompanying drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain this application, and should not be construed as limiting this application.

[0034] In the description of this application, it should be understood that the orientation descriptions, such as up, down, left, right, front, back, etc., are based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing this application and simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of this application.

[0035] In the description of this application, "multiple" means two or more; "greater than" and "less than" are understood to exclude the number itself; and "at least," "not greater than," "above," "below," and "within" are understood to include the number itself. The terms "first," "second," and "etc." used in the description of this application are only for the purpose of distinguishing technical features and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance, or implicitly indicating the number of technical features indicated, or implicitly indicating the order of the technical features indicated.

[0036] In the description of this application, unless otherwise expressly defined, terms such as "setup" and "connection" should be interpreted broadly, and those skilled in the art can reasonably determine the specific meaning of the above terms in this application in conjunction with the specific content of the technical solution.

[0037] In related technologies, since existing blood bags are all flat and lie flat on the conveyor belt, it is difficult for robotic arms to pick them up. Before blood is stored in the warehouse, it is usually sorted and packed manually, which consumes a lot of labor and results in a low degree of automation in blood storage.

[0038] Therefore, this application proposes a flipping mechanism, an automatic blood crating platform, and a fully automated blood storage system. The flipping mechanism is located downstream of the conveyor belt. Before the rotating pallet flips, the receiving tank and the conveyor belt are on the same horizontal plane. The conveyor belt transports the blood bags to the flipping mechanism, where they enter the receiving tank under inertia. A drive unit drives the rotating pallet to rotate, causing the blood bags in the receiving tank to flip and stand upright. This increases the vertical height of the blood bags, making them easier for the robotic arm to grasp, thus providing a foundation for mechanized blood crating.

[0039] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the first aspect of this application provides a flipping mechanism 10, including a support frame 100, a drive member 200, a rotating tray 300, and a positioning sensor (not shown in the figure). Both the drive member 200 and the rotating tray 300 are mounted on the support frame 100. The rotating tray 300 has at least one receiving groove 310 for accommodating a blood bag 30. The drive member 200 is pulsatorically connected to the rotating tray 300. Driven by the drive member 200, the rotating tray 300 rotates, causing the receiving groove 310 to flip by a preset angle. The preset angle can be selected from any angle between 45° and 100°, preferably 90°.

[0040] The flipping mechanism 10 is located downstream of the conveyor belt 20. Before the rotating pallet 300 flips, the receiving groove 310 and the conveyor belt 20 are on the same horizontal plane. The conveyor belt 20 transports the blood bag 30 to the flipping mechanism 10, where it enters the receiving groove 310 under inertia. After the position sensor detects that the blood bag 30 has entered the receiving groove 310, the drive component 200 drives the rotating pallet 300 to rotate, causing the blood bag 30 in the receiving groove 310 to flip and stand upright. The vertical height of the blood bag 30 increases, making it easier for the robotic arm to grasp it, thus providing a foundation for the mechanized crating of blood. The position sensor can be a gravity sensor, a photoelectric sensor (such as an infrared sensor), an ultrasonic sensor, or other distance detection sensors. When the position sensor is a gravity sensor, it is installed on the rotating pallet 300 and detects whether the blood bag 30 has entered the receiving groove 310 by sensing the change in gravity of the rotating pallet 300. When the position sensor is a distance detection sensor, it can be installed on the support frame 100 or the end of the transmission belt 20 and determines whether the blood bag 30 has reached the receiving groove 310 of the rotating pallet 300 by measuring the distance between it and the detection blood bag 30. Other detection devices for detecting the position of objects and their corresponding inspection methods are all implementations of the position sensor in this application, and will not be described in detail here.

[0041] Specifically, such as Figure 2As shown, the support frame 100 includes an upright plate 110, a horizontal plate 120, a base 130, and triangular ribs 140. The base 130 is located on the ground downstream of the conveyor belt 20. The upright plate 110 stands upright on the base 130, and the triangular ribs 140 increase the support force of the upright plate 110. The horizontal plate 120 is installed on the upper part of the upright plate 110, increasing the installation area on the support frame 100. The rotating pallet 300 and the drive unit 200 are respectively installed on both sides of the horizontal plate 120, saving installation area. The drive shaft of the drive unit 200 passes through the horizontal plate 120 and is connected to the rotating pallet 300 for transmission.

[0042] Reference Figure 3 The receiving groove 310 for accommodating the blood bag 30 is a U-shaped groove composed of two side plates 311 and a bottom plate 312. The smooth side plates 311 facilitate the sliding of the blood bag 30, and the bottom plate 312 provides good support during rotation. Figure 1 As shown, in one embodiment, when the side notch 314 of the receiving groove 310 faces the conveying direction of the conveyor belt 20, the blood bag 30 enters the receiving groove 310 through the side notch 314. Furthermore, to avoid excessive inertia, the blood bag 30 slides out from the notch on the other side. A baffle 400 is provided at the notch on the other side of the receiving groove 310 (the side away from the conveyor belt 20). The baffle 400 also prevents the blood bag 30 from slipping during the flipping process. Further, to balance the weight on both sides of the rotating pallet 300, a balance plate 500 is provided on the side of the rotating pallet 300 closest to the conveyor belt 20. The balance plate 500 has a notch that matches the side notch 314 of the receiving groove 310, facilitating the passage of the blood bag 30. In addition, round holes can be provided on the baffle 400 and the balance plate 500 to reduce the weight of the mechanism and save raw materials.

[0043] like Figure 4 As shown, in another embodiment, the opening 313 of the receiving groove 310 is directly facing the transmission direction of the conveyor belt 20. The blood bag 30 slides into the receiving groove 310 from the opening 313. The bottom plate 312 of the receiving groove 310 blocks the blood bag 30 and prevents the blood bag 30 from continuing to move forward.

[0044] Furthermore, a rotating shaft 600 is provided on the back side of the bottom plate 312 of the receiving groove 310. The rotating shaft 600 is connected to the driving member 200, and the driving member 200 drives the rotating pallet 300 to rotate under the transmission action of the rotating shaft 600. (Refer to...) Figure 5 This application provides an embodiment in which the rotating shaft 600 includes a connecting pipe 610 and a bearing 620. The connecting pipe 610 has a through hole at its center and abuts against the center hole of the rotating support plate 300. One end of the bearing 620 is inserted into the connecting pipe 610, and the other end is connected to the drive component 200. The drive component 200 can be a motor or other power supply device.

[0045] Furthermore, the receiving slot 310 can be one, two, or four. When there is one receiving slot 310, the rotating pallet 300 rotates 90° clockwise to flip the blood bag 30, then rotates 90° counterclockwise to return to its original position, continuing to receive the next blood bag 30. When there are two receiving slots 310, the two receiving slots 310 are centrally symmetrical about the rotation axis 600. The rotating pallet 300 continuously rotates 90° clockwise, and the two receiving slots 310 relay the flipping of the blood bag 30 without needing to rotate back. Figure 3 As shown, the rotating tray has four receiving slots 310, which are distributed in a centrally symmetrical manner relative to the rotation axis 600. Every time the rotating tray 300 rotates 90°, it completes one flip of the blood bag 30 and simultaneously aligns the next receiving slot 310 with the conveyor belt 20 to receive the next blood bag 30 into the receiving slot 310.

[0046] In addition, such as Figure 5 As shown, the flipping mechanism 10 also includes a positioning disk 700 and a photoelectric sensor 800 (such as an infrared sensor) matched with the positioning disk 700. The photoelectric sensor 800 is fixed to the support frame 100 via a fixing base 801. The photoelectric sensor 800, in cooperation with the drive component 200, controls the rotation angle of the rotating pallet 300. Specifically, the positioning disk 700 is fixedly sleeved at the connection between the rotating shaft 600 and the drive component 200, and the positioning disk 700 rotates with the rotation of the rotating shaft 600. The photoelectric sensor 800 is mounted on the horizontal plate 120 of the support frame 100 and is located on the same horizontal plane as the central axis of the rotating shaft 600. The sensing range of the photoelectric sensor 800 is slightly larger than the distance between it and the positioning disk 700. The positioning disk 700 has a notch. When the photoelectric sensor 800 detects the notch, it serves as the positioning origin. The current rotation angle of the rotating pallet 300 can be obtained by using the positioning origin and the walking range of the drive component 200.

[0047] The blood bag 30 commonly used during blood collection is made of soft plastic. To increase the rigidity of the blood bag 30 and make it more secure when gripped by the robotic arm, in one embodiment of this application, the blood bag 30 is placed inside a rigid blood container 40 before entering the flipping mechanism 10. The blood container 40, with its certain rigidity, provides support when gripped by the robotic arm, improving the stability of the gripping. In addition, the height or width of the blood container 40 is greater than the depth of the receiving groove 310. After the receiving groove 310 is flipped, part of the blood container 40 protrudes from the receiving groove 310, making it easier for the robotic arm to grip. Furthermore, to prevent the blood container 40 from falling due to instability when it first enters the receiving groove 310 if the receiving groove 310 is too shallow, in one embodiment, a pad 900 is provided at a horizontal plane extending forward downstream of the conveyor belt 20 to provide support for the blood container 40. In this case, the positioning detector can be a gravity sensor installed on the pad 900, which detects whether the blood bag 30 has entered the receiving groove 310 by sensing changes in weight on the pad 900.

[0048] Reference Figure 6 In a second aspect, this application proposes an automated blood crate loading platform, comprising a gripping robot arm 50, a blood crate 60, and the flipping mechanism 10 described in the first aspect. After the flipping mechanism 10 flips the blood bag 30 or blood box 40 upright, the gripping robot arm 50 picks up the blood bag 30 and places it into the blood crate 60. The blood crate loading process requires no manual intervention, achieving automated crate loading.

[0049] Furthermore, a barcode scanner 70 is installed upstream of the flipping mechanism 10, and multiple blood baskets 60 are placed on a sorting shelf downstream of the flipping mechanism 10 to separate blood bags 30 of different blood types and categories. For example, eight blood baskets 60 are set up to separate type A, type B, type AB, and type O red blood cells and type A, type B, type AB, and type O plasma, respectively. The barcode scanner 70 scans the label on the blood bag 30 to obtain the blood type information. The flipping mechanism 10 flips the blood bag 30 upright, and the gripping robot arm 50 picks up the blood box 40 containing the blood bag 30 and places the blood box 40 into the corresponding type and type of blood basket 60. Blood of different types and categories is stored separately, and when blood is issued, the required blood can be quickly found based on the barcode information on the blood basket 60, making the issuance process faster.

[0050] A third aspect of this application proposes a fully automated blood storage system, including the flipping mechanism 10 proposed in the first aspect of this application. During blood storage, the flat blood bag 30 is flipped upright, providing a basis for a robotic arm to grasp and pack it into a basket, thus achieving full automation of blood storage.

[0051] In the description of this specification, the references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of this application. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0052] The applicant declares that the above-described embodiments merely illustrate the basic principles, main features, and advantages of this application. Those skilled in the art should understand that this application is not limited to the above embodiments; the embodiments and descriptions in the specification are only principles of this application. For those skilled in the art, various changes and modifications can be made without departing from the concept and scope of this application, and all such changes and modifications fall within the scope of this application as claimed.

[0053] Although embodiments of this application have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of this application, the scope of which is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A flipping mechanism located downstream of a conveyor belt, characterized in that, include: Support frame, drive unit, rotating tray, and positioning sensor; The driving component and the rotating tray are mounted on the support frame; The rotating pallet has at least one receiving groove, which is a U-shaped groove composed of two side plates and a bottom plate; The driving component is connected to the rotating tray in a transmission manner, and the driving component is used to drive the rotating tray to flip the receiving groove; The receiving trough and the conveyor belt are located on the same horizontal plane. When the notch on the side of the receiving trough is in the conveying direction of the conveyor belt, the blood bag enters the receiving trough through the notch. After the positioning sensor detects that the blood bag has entered the receiving trough, the rotating pallet rotates by a predetermined angle, and the vertical height of the blood bag increases to facilitate the gripping of the robotic arm. A baffle is provided on the side of the receiving trough away from the conveyor belt, and a pad is provided on the horizontal plane extending forward downstream of the conveyor belt.

2. The flipping mechanism according to claim 1, characterized in that, The bottom plate of the receiving groove is provided with a rotating shaft, and the driving component drives the rotating tray to flip through the rotating shaft.

3. The flipping mechanism according to claim 2, characterized in that, There are four receiving slots, which are evenly distributed circumferentially around the rotation axis, and the included angle between the side plates of two adjacent receiving slots is 90°.

4. The flipping mechanism according to claim 2, characterized in that, The rotating shaft is fixedly fitted with a positioning disk, and a photoelectric sensor matching the positioning disk is fixed on the support frame. The positioning disk has a notch.

5. The flipping mechanism according to any one of claims 1-4, characterized in that, The blood bag is contained in a blood box, and the depth of the containing slot is less than the length or width of the blood box.

6. An automated blood crate loading platform, characterized in that, Includes a gripping robotic arm, a blood basket, and a flipping mechanism as described in any one of claims 1-5.

7. A fully automated blood storage system, characterized in that, Includes the flipping mechanism as described in any one of claims 1-5.

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