Picking device and picking robot

Abstract

The application discloses a picking device and a picking robot, which comprise a base, an upper cover, a lower cover and a cutting piece, the rear ends of the upper cover and the lower cover are rotationally connected with the base to form an open state and a closed state, the cutting piece is arranged at the front end of the upper cover and protrudes from the lower edge of the upper cover to cut fruits when the upper cover and the lower cover are switched from the open state to the closed state. Through the technical scheme, the repeated lifting and placing action of the traditional mechanical arm is avoided, the picking efficiency is improved, and the risk of knocking other fruits is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of harvesting, and more specifically, to a harvesting device and a harvesting robot. Background Technology

[0002] With the development of agricultural modernization, the mechanization and intelligentization of agricultural equipment are inevitable trends. Harvesting robots, as an important type of agricultural robot, can reduce labor intensity and costs for workers, improve labor productivity and product quality, and ensure efficient fruit harvesting, thus possessing great development potential.

[0003] Traditional fruit-picking robots typically consist of a transport vehicle and a robotic arm mounted on it. The robotic arm picks the fruit from the tree, and the robotic arm then places the picked fruit into the transport vehicle to complete the harvest. However, the harvesting process is time-consuming, with low efficiency due to the robotic arm taking a long time to pick and place the fruit. Furthermore, the frequent lifting and lowering of the robotic arm can easily cause other fruits to fall.

[0004] Therefore, how to reduce the amplitude of the picking action and provide a picking device with high picking efficiency and small picking action amplitude has become a technical problem that needs to be solved in this field. Summary of the Invention

[0005] In view of this, this application proposes a harvesting device and a harvesting robot to solve the above-mentioned technical problems.

[0006] According to the technical solution of this application, a harvesting device is proposed, including a base, an upper cover, a lower cover, and a cutting component. The rear ends of the upper cover and the lower cover are rotatably connected to the base to form an open state and a closed state, respectively. The cutting component is disposed at the front end of the upper cover and protrudes from the lower edge of the upper cover so as to cut the fruit when the upper cover and the lower cover switch from the open state to the closed state.

[0007] Preferably, the upper cover is hinged to the base at a first hinge point, the base is provided with a telescopic device, and the telescopic device is hinged to the upper cover at a third hinge point, so as to drive the upper cover to rotate around the first hinge point through the telescopic device.

[0008] Preferably, the lower cover is hinged to the base at a second hinge point, the upper cover has a first toothed portion arranged around the first hinge point, and the lower cover has a second toothed portion arranged around the second hinge point, wherein the first toothed portion and the second toothed portion engage.

[0009] Preferably, the device includes a picking mechanism having an extended state and a bent state. The picking mechanism is installed inside the lower cover. In the extended state, the picking mechanism can extend out of the front side of the lower cover. In the bent state, the picking mechanism can retract to pick up the fruit and hold it in the space formed by the inner walls of the upper cover and the lower cover.

[0010] Preferably, the picking mechanism includes a fixing part, an arm, a claw, and a driving part. The fixing part is mounted on the lower cover, the arm is a flexible structure, the claw has teeth for capturing fruit, the claw is connected to the fixing part through the arm, and the driving part is used to drive the bending of the arm.

[0011] Preferably, the arm includes multiple connecting arms, and the multiple connecting arms and the connecting arms are hinged to each other and to the claw via connectors to achieve bending of the arm.

[0012] Preferably, the connector has a limiting structure to limit the rotation range of the connector.

[0013] Preferably, the picking mechanism includes a traction rope and an elastic element, the elastic element being mounted on the claw and arm to resist rotation of the connector so that the arm is biased toward an extended state, one end of the traction rope being connected to the tooth, and the other end being pulled by the drive unit to bend the arm and claw.

[0014] Preferably, the drive unit includes a rotary driver and a winding roller, the rotary driver driving the winding roller to rotate, and the traction rope being wound around the winding roller.

[0015] According to another technical solution of this application, a harvesting robot is also proposed, including a conveying device for conveying fruit, a moving part, a storage part for storing fruit, and a harvesting device as described above. The storage part and the conveying device are installed on the moving part, and the harvesting device is installed on the top of the conveying device. The space formed by the inner walls of the upper cover and the lower cover is connected to the storage part through the conveying device.

[0016] According to the technical solution of this application, the picking device replaces the robotic arm to pick the fruit. The cutting part facilitates the separation of the fruit from the branch, and the fruit is transported through the throat, avoiding the repeated lifting and lowering of the robotic arm, improving picking efficiency and reducing the risk of knocking down other fruits.

[0017] Other features and advantages of this application will be described in detail in the following detailed description section. Attached Figure Description

[0018] The accompanying drawings, which form part of this application, are used to provide a further understanding of this application, and the illustrative embodiments and descriptions thereof are used to explain this application. In the drawings:

[0019] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of a harvesting device according to one embodiment of this application;

[0020] Figure 2 This is a partial schematic diagram of a harvesting device according to one embodiment of this application;

[0021] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of a pickup mechanism according to one embodiment of this application.

[0022] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures

[0023] 21: Base;

[0024] 22: Top cover;

[0025] 23: Bottom cover;

[0026] 24: Pick-up mechanism;

[0027] 25: Cut parts;

[0028] 26: Throat;

[0029] 27: Telescopic device;

[0030] 211: First hinge point;

[0031] 212: Second hinge point;

[0032] 213: Third hinge point;

[0033] 241: Fixing part;

[0034] 242: Claw;

[0035] 243: Connecting arm;

[0036] 244: Connector;

[0037] 245: Elastic element;

[0038] 246: Rotary actuator;

[0039] 247: Winding roller;

[0040] 248: Tow rope;

[0041] 2421: Teeth. Detailed Implementation

[0042] The terms "first" and "second" used in this application are for distinguishing different features and are not intended to limit this application. These terms may be used interchangeably under different operating conditions.

[0043] The technical solution of this application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0044] According to one aspect of this application, a harvesting device is provided, including a base 21, an upper cover 22, a lower cover 23, and a cutting member 25. The rear ends of the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23 are respectively rotatably connected to the base 21 to form an open state and a closed state. The cutting member 25 is disposed at the front end of the upper cover 22 and protrudes from the lower edge of the upper cover 22 to cut the fruit when the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23 switch from the open state to the closed state.

[0045] In this technical solution, such as Figure 1 The upper cover 22 and lower cover 23 define the internal space. The rear ends of the upper cover 22 and lower cover 23 are rotatably fixed to the base 21 via a pivot or similar means. Rotation moves the front ends of the upper cover 22 and lower cover 23 away from each other, opening the internal space and placing the fruit to be picked in an open state. Rotation brings the front ends of the upper cover 22 and lower cover 23 closer together, closing them. A cutting element 25 located at the front end of the upper cover 22 can cut the fruit's stem. The cutting element 25 can be a blade or other component with a sharp cutting edge, separating the fruit from the tree and allowing it to enter the harvesting device. The fruit can then enter a conveying device through a throat 26 located within the internal space for transport, such as via a conduit, to a storage location, thus completing the harvesting process. Unlike traditional robotic arms, the harvesting process does not require repeatedly raising and lowering the robotic arm to transfer the fruit from the tree to the storage location, which greatly improves harvesting efficiency and reduces the risk of knocking down other fruits.

[0046] The opening and closing of the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23 can be achieved through various suitable methods to facilitate fruit retrieval. According to a preferred embodiment, the upper cover 22 is hinged to the base 21 at a first hinge point 211. The base 21 is provided with a telescopic device 27, which is hinged to the upper cover 22 at a third hinge point 213, thereby driving the upper cover 22 to rotate around the first hinge point 211. With this technical solution, the telescopic device 27 can be a telescopic device such as a pneumatic rod or a hydraulic rod, with its telescopic portion hinged to the third hinge point 213 at the rear end of the upper cover 22. This forms a lever with the telescopic device 27 and the upper cover 22, using the first hinge point 211 as a fulcrum. The extension and retraction of the telescopic device 27 drives the third hinge point 213 to rotate around the first hinge point 211, thereby controlling the opening and closing of the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23.

[0047] To enable the telescopic device 27 to achieve a greater opening degree for the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23 under the same telescopic stroke, according to a preferred embodiment, such as Figure 2 As shown, the lower cover 23 is hinged to the base 21 at the second hinge point 212. The upper cover 22 has a first tooth 221 arranged around the first hinge point 211, and the lower cover 23 has a second tooth 231 arranged around the second hinge point 212. The first tooth 221 and the second tooth 231 mesh. Through this technical solution, the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23 are linked by the meshing of the first tooth 221 and the second tooth 231. Specifically, when the upper cover 22 rotates around the first hinge point 211, the first tooth 221 also rotates around the first hinge point 211, and the second tooth 231, which meshes with the first tooth 221, rotates in the opposite direction, thereby driving the lower cover 23 to rotate around the second hinge point 212 in the opposite direction of rotation to the upper cover 22. Compared with rotating the upper cover 22 alone, this provides a larger opening and makes it easier to pick up the fruit.

[0048] To improve the efficiency of fruit harvesting, according to a preferred embodiment, such as Figure 1 and 3As shown, the harvesting device includes a picking mechanism 24, which has an extended state and a bent state. The picking mechanism 24 is installed inside the lower cover 23. In the extended state, the picking mechanism 24 can extend beyond the front side of the lower cover 23. In the bent state, the picking mechanism 24 can retract to pick up the fruit and hold it within the space formed by the inner walls of the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23. Through this technical solution, at least a portion of the picking mechanism 24 has a variable shape. When the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23 are open, the picking mechanism 24 can extend beyond the lower cover 23. The picking mechanism 24 can contact the fruit through various methods such as grasping and hooking to pick up the fruit. After picking up the fruit, the picking mechanism 24 is bent to bring the fruit into the internal space. When the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23 are closed, the fruit is cut. The fruit is pulled inward by the picking mechanism 24, so that the stem of the fruit is under tension and in a taut state, which makes it easier for the cutting piece 25 to cut. Furthermore, the bent picking mechanism 24 can move the fruit towards the throat 26, which facilitates the transport of the fruit and improves the picking efficiency.

[0049] The picking mechanism 24 can be in a suitable form to facilitate picking up the fruit, according to a preferred embodiment, such as... Figure 2 As shown, the picking mechanism 24 includes a fixing part 241, an arm, a claw part 242, and a driving part. The fixing part 241 is mounted on the lower cover 23. The arm is a flexible structure. The claw part 242 has teeth 2421 for capturing fruit. The claw part 242 is connected to the fixing part 241 through the arm. The driving part is used to drive the bending of the arm. In this technical solution, the teeth 2421 can have a curved shape to hook the fruit. The claw part 242 can have multiple teeth 2421. In actual operation, the claw part 242 extends close to the fruit to be picked, hooks the fruit with the teeth 2421, and embeds the fruit stem into the gaps between the multiple teeth 2421, thus fixing the fruit. The arm can be extended and bent by drive components such as motors and hydraulic rods to send the fruit picked up by the claw 242 into the internal space. During the process of sending the fruit into the internal space, the fruit moves from the teeth 2421 to the arm and then to the fixing part. Finally, the fruit enters the throat 26 and is transported to the storage position by the conveying device.

[0050] The arm can be in a suitable form to achieve its bending and stretching deformation, according to a preferred embodiment, such as Figure 3As shown, the arm includes multiple connecting arms 243. The connecting arms 243 are hinged to each other and to the claw 242 via connectors 244, enabling the arm to bend. With this technical solution, the connectors 244 can rotate along an axis perpendicular to the extension direction of the picking mechanism 24 and parallel to the width direction of the arm. Both ends of the connectors 244 are connected to different connecting arms 243 or claws 242, forming hinges between the connecting arms 243 and between the claws 242 and the connecting arms 243, thus allowing bending between the connecting arms 243 and between the claws 242 and the connecting arms 243.

[0051] If the arm is excessively bent, for example, in an extended state, the fruit-picking claw 242 may bend downwards due to gravity, causing the fruit to fall off. To avoid this, according to a preferred embodiment, the connector 244 has a limiting structure to restrict the rotation range of the connector 244. Through this technical solution, the opening and closing of the connector 244 is limited, with an opening angle, for example, between 0° and 180°. Multiple connectors 244 are fixed to the connecting arm 243 and the claw 242 in the same opening and closing direction, so that the arm, from its bent to fully extended state, can resist further deformation through the limiting mechanism, preventing excessive bending that could cause the fruit to fall off.

[0052] The picking mechanism 24 can be controlled to bend in a suitable manner. According to a preferred embodiment, the picking mechanism 24 includes a traction rope 248 and an elastic element 245. The elastic element 245 is mounted on the claw portion 242 and the arm portion, resisting the rotation of the connecting member 244 to bias the arm portion towards an extended state. One end of the traction rope 248 is connected to the tooth 2421, and the other end is pulled by the drive unit to bend the arm portion and the claw portion 242. To achieve a tongue-like retraction motion, the elastic element 245 can be mounted below the axis of rotation of the connecting member 244 (based on the extended state), for example, it can be mounted at the bottom of the picking mechanism 24. Specifically, one end of the elastic element 245 is connected to the bottom of the claw 242, and the other end is connected to the bottom of the connecting arm 243 closest to the fixed part 241. The tension generated by the stretching deformation of the elastic element 245 keeps the connecting arm 243 and the claw 242 biased towards the extended state. When deforming from the extended state to the bent state, the claw 242 and the connecting arm 243 retract from the top to achieve a tongue-like action. In addition, one end of the traction rope 248 is connected to the tooth 2421, and the other end is connected to the drive unit. The connection position of the traction rope 248 and the claw 242 is higher than the rotation axis of the connecting member 244 (based on the extended state). The drive unit can pull the traction rope 248 by means of rotation, traction, etc. By pulling the traction rope 248, the claw 242 and the connecting arm 243 resist the elastic force of the elastic element 245 to deform from the extended state to the bent state.

[0053] The drive unit can be in a suitable form to facilitate the manipulation of the traction rope 248. According to a preferred embodiment, the drive unit includes a rotary driver 246 and a winding roller 247. The rotary driver 246 drives the winding roller 247 to rotate, and the traction rope 248 is wound around the winding roller 247. With this technical solution, the rotary driver 246 controls the winding and unwinding of the traction rope 248 by controlling the direction of rotation, thereby controlling the bending and stretching of the entire pickup mechanism 24.

[0054] To increase the flexibility of the picking mechanism 24, according to a preferred embodiment, such as Figure 3 As shown, the connector 244 can have multiple axes of rotation, for example, in addition to a horizontal axis of rotation, it can also include a vertical axis of rotation. Based on this, the picking mechanism 24 can swing within a certain range in addition to its original bending and stretching deformation. To control the movement of the picking mechanism 24, multiple traction ropes 248 can be included, each connected to multiple teeth 2421, for example... Figure 3The two traction ropes 248 shown are respectively controlled by multiple rotary actuators 246. Multiple elastic elements 245 can be installed on both sides of the arm below the arm along the extension direction of the pickup mechanism 24. The arm can be biased in the extension direction by the tension of the elastic elements 245. By pulling or releasing the different traction ropes 248 to different degrees by multiple rotary actuators 246, the pickup mechanism 24 can achieve different postures.

[0055] According to another aspect of this application, a harvesting robot is also provided, comprising a conveying device for transporting fruit, a moving part, a storage part for storing fruit, and a harvesting device as described above. The storage part and the conveying device are mounted on the moving part, and the harvesting device is mounted on top of the conveying device. The space formed by the inner walls of the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23 communicates with the storage part through the conveying device. With this technical solution, during the harvesting process, the harvesting robot first moves on the ground to the approximate area of ​​the fruit to be harvested via the moving part, then adjusts the conveying device to move the harvesting device to the fruit to be harvested, picks up the fruit, opens the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23 to hold the fruit in the internal space, closes the upper cover 22 and the lower cover 23, and cuts the stem of the fruit using the cutting member 25 to complete the harvest. The harvested fruit is then transported from the harvesting device to the storage part through the transmission conduit of the conveying device to complete one harvest. Unlike traditional robotic arms, it does not require repeated lifting and lowering movements, greatly improving harvesting efficiency and reducing the risk of knocking over other fruits.

[0056] The appearance of the harvesting robot can be customized to resemble that of an animal (such as a giraffe), and the harvesting device can be designed to resemble the animal's mouth, thus creating an effect similar to an animal eating while harvesting, thereby increasing its entertainment and visual appeal.

[0057] The preferred embodiments of this application have been described in detail above. However, this application is not limited to the specific details of the above embodiments. Within the scope of the technical concept of this application, various simple modifications can be made to the technical solution of this application, and these simple modifications all fall within the protection scope of this application.

[0058] It should also be noted that the various specific technical features described in the above specific embodiments can be combined in any suitable way without contradiction. In order to avoid unnecessary repetition, this application will not describe the various possible combinations separately.

[0059] Furthermore, various different implementations of this application can be combined in any way, as long as they do not violate the spirit of this application, they should also be regarded as the content disclosed in this application.

Claims

1. A picking device, characterized in that The fruit picking machine comprises a base (21), an upper cover (22), a lower cover (23) and a cutting member (25), the rear ends of the upper cover (22) and the lower cover (23) are rotatably connected with the base (21) to form an open state and a closed state, and the cutting member (25) is arranged at the front end of the upper cover (22) and protrudes from the lower edge of the upper cover (22) to cut the fruit when the upper cover (22) and the lower cover (23) are switched from the open state to the closed state; The fruit picking machine further comprises a picking mechanism (24) having an extended state and a bent state, the picking mechanism (24) is installed in the lower cover (23), in the extended state, the picking mechanism (24) can extend from the front side of the lower cover (23), and in the bent state, the picking mechanism (24) can be retracted to pick the fruit and hold it in the space formed by the inner walls of the upper cover (22) and the lower cover (23); The picking mechanism (24) comprises a fixed part (241), an arm part, a claw part (242) and a driving part, the fixed part (241) is installed in the lower cover (23), the arm part is a bendable structure, the claw part (242) has a tooth (2421) for capturing the fruit, the claw part (242) is connected to the fixed part (241) through the arm part, and the driving part is used for driving the bending of the arm part; The arm part comprises a plurality of connecting arms (243), the connecting arms (243) are hinged through connecting pieces (244) to realize the bending of the arm part; The connecting pieces (244) have a limiting structure to limit the rotation amplitude of the connecting pieces (244); The picking mechanism (24) comprises a traction rope (248) and an elastic member (245), the elastic member (245) is installed on the claw part (242) and the arm part, and is used for resisting the rotation of the connecting pieces (244) to bias the arm part towards the extended state, one end of the traction rope (248) is connected with the tooth (2421), and the other end is pulled by the driving part to bend the arm part and the claw part (242); The driving part comprises a rotary driver (246) and a winding roller (247), the rotary driver (246) drives the winding roller (247) to rotate, and the traction rope (248) is wound on the winding roller (247).

2. The picking device according to claim 1, characterized in that The upper cover (22) and the base (21) are hinged at a first hinge point (211), the base (21) is provided with a telescopic device (27), the telescopic device (27) and the upper cover (22) are hinged at a third hinge point (213) to drive the upper cover (22) to rotate around the first hinge point (211) through the telescopic device (27).

3. The picking device according to claim 2, characterized in that The lower cover (23) is hinged to the base (21) at a second hinge point (212), the upper cover (22) has a first tooth portion (221) arranged around the first hinge point (211), and the lower cover (23) has a second tooth portion (231) arranged around the second hinge point (212), the first tooth portion (221) and the second tooth portion (231) being engaged.

4. A picking robot, characterized in that The picking device as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the picking device is installed on the top of the conveying device, and the space formed by the inner walls of the upper cover (22) and the lower cover (23) is in communication with the storage portion through the conveying device.

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