A flip and grab safflower harvesting end effector and harvesting method

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of overturning and grabbing type safflower harvesting end effector and harvesting method, comprising: harvesting unit one, double-shaft complex motion type cylinder, harvesting unit two, rack, overturning driving mechanism and support frame one;Overturning driving mechanism is installed on rack, output end penetrates rack and is connected with support frame one;Harvesting unit one and harvesting unit two are respectively installed at the upper and lower ends of support frame one, double-shaft complex motion type cylinder is installed in the middle of support frame one, and the upper and lower output ends of double-shaft complex motion type cylinder are respectively drivingly connected with harvesting unit one and harvesting unit two.The application solves the problem that the existing equipment is pulled up vertically and the silk is more laborious, and the silk can be efficiently collected without forming a closed space, effectively improving the efficiency, the net rate and the collection rate of safflower picking.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of agricultural picking, in particular to a turnover and grabbing type safflower picking end effector and picking method. BACKGROUND

[0002] Safflower is an important economic crop, which has the effects of activating blood circulation, removing blood stasis and relieving pain, and is widely planted in China. However, the current safflower mechanized picking has the problems of low picking efficiency, low picking rate and high flower filament drop rate. At present, the safflower picking device mainly includes pulling type, cutting type and roller type, among which the pulling type has the advantages of high picking rate and good picking quality, and is the preferred way of safflower picking device at present. These picking devices generally first pinch the flower filament, then move the end effector vertically upward to pull the flower filament off the fruit ball, and then use the negative pressure collecting device to collect the flower filament. However, due to the large pulling force of the flower filament, the vertical upward pulling picking method is laborious. In addition, due to the limited suction force of the negative pressure device, it is not possible to completely overcome the gravity of the safflower to suck all the picked flower filaments into the collecting pipeline. Therefore, when the existing equipment collects the flower filament by using negative pressure, the end effector and the fruit ball need to form a closed space to effectively collect the flower filament, but this method still cannot effectively reduce the flower filament drop rate. SUMMARY

[0003] Therefore, the purpose of the present application is to provide a turnover and grabbing type safflower picking end effector and picking method, which solves the problem of laborious vertical upward pulling picking of flower filament, and can efficiently collect the flower filament without forming a closed space, thereby effectively improving the picking efficiency, picking rate and collection rate of safflower.

[0004] The technical problem of the present application is solved by the following technical scheme:

[0005] A turnover and grabbing type safflower picking end effector, comprising: a picking unit one, a double-shaft complex motion type cylinder, a picking unit two, a rack, a turnover driving mechanism and a support frame one; the turnover driving mechanism is installed on the rack, and the output end penetrates the rack and is connected with the support frame one; the picking unit one and the picking unit two are respectively installed at the upper and lower ends of the support frame one, the double-shaft complex motion type cylinder is installed at the middle part of the support frame one, and the upper and lower output ends of the double-shaft complex motion type cylinder are respectively in driving connection with the picking unit one and the picking unit two.

[0006] Further, the double-shaft complex motion type cylinder comprises a cylinder body and a piston rod; two piston rods are arranged at the two ends of the cylinder body, the movement directions of the two piston rods are opposite but the strokes are consistent, and the ends of the two piston rods are provided with external threads.

[0007] Further, the first picking unit is identical in structure to the second picking unit, comprising a second support frame, connecting rods, picking fingers, a flower tube, and a piston rod joint; the second support frame is fixed on the first support frame, the flower tube is installed on the second support frame and connected to the collecting device; the through hole in the middle of the piston rod joint is provided with internal threads, and the piston rod joint is connected to the piston rod through threaded connection; the piston rod joint is connected to one end of three connecting rods, and the other end of each connecting rod is connected to a picking finger; the three picking fingers are evenly distributed at an angle of 120° on the second support frame and are hingedly connected to the second support frame.

[0008] Further, the picking finger comprises a finger head and a finger body; the end of the finger body is provided with external threads, and the finger head has a threaded hole; the finger head and the finger body are fixed together through threaded connection.

[0009] Further, the turnover driving mechanism comprises a bearing, a motor, a gear, and a bearing fixing sleeve; the motor is fixed on the rack, the gear assembled on the motor is engaged with the gear assembled on the first support frame; the center of the gear assembled on the first support frame is connected to the first support frame through the bearing fixing sleeve, and the bearing fixing sleeve is rotationally connected to the rack through the bearing.

[0010] A picking method of a turnover and grabbing type safflower picking end effector, which is implemented by using any one of the turnover and grabbing type safflower picking end effectors described above, and comprises the following steps:

[0011] 1) grabbing preparation

[0012] The first picking unit moves to a position directly above the safflower fruit ball and then moves vertically downward, so that the position of the picking finger head is just stopped at the largest diameter of the safflower fruit ball;

[0013] 2) flower filament grabbing

[0014] At this time, the piston rod at the lower end starts to stretch outwards, and the picking fingers of the first picking unit will gradually close to finally pinch the flower filament;

[0015] 3) turnover

[0016] The motor of the turnover driving mechanism is in normal transmission, the gear drives the first support frame to turn clockwise by 180°, the flower filament is separated from the fruit ball by giving it a pulling force obliquely upwards during rotation, and after the turnover is completed, the first picking unit and the second picking unit also complete the exchange of spatial positions;

[0017] 4) preparation for grabbing the next safflower

[0018] The end effector continues to move to a position directly above the next safflower and then moves downward, so that the open picking fingers of the second picking unit are stopped at the largest diameter of the fruit ball of the next safflower;

[0019] 5) next red flower filament picking and previous red flower filament collection

[0020] At this time, the piston rod at the upper end begins to contract inward, the picking fingers of the first picking unit open, and the filament of the previous red flower is sucked into the filament suction pipe under the joint action of gravity and negative pressure, and finally is sucked into the collection device, thus completing the picking of a red flower; at this time, the picking fingers of the second picking unit gradually close, and the filament of the next red flower is pinched, realizing the simultaneous picking and collection of the filament.

[0021] Further, in the turning step, in order to prevent the double-shaft double-acting cylinder air inlet pipe and the filament suction pipe from winding in the turning process, the motor is turned clockwise to drive the support frame I to rotate 180 degrees clockwise after the first picking unit completes the filament picking; the motor is reversed to drive the support frame I to rotate 180 degrees counterclockwise after the second picking unit completes the filament picking, and the above process is repeated.

[0022] Compared with the existing technology, the beneficial effects of the present application are:

[0023] (1) In the turning process, the filament is separated from the fruit ball by applying an upward pulling force, which is more labor-saving than the existing pulling type red flower picking equipment.

[0024] (2) The finger body of the picking finger has external threads at the end, so the fingers installed on the finger body can be easily disassembled and replaced with different material fingers according to the picking needs, so different varieties and red flowers with different water content can also be effectively picked, and the applicability is good; in addition, long-term picking will cause the fingers of the picking fingers to wear and thus reduce the picking effect, but the present application can replace new fingers to ensure the picking reliability of the end effector.

[0025] (3) The lower end picking unit of the present application rotates to the upper end under the action of the turning driving device after picking the filament, and exchanges the spatial position with the upper end picking unit; and ingeniously utilizes the structural characteristics of the double-shaft double-acting cylinder, the picking fingers of the picking unit at the upper end open to release the just-picked filament, and the picking unit at the lower end starts to pick the filament of the next red flower, realizing the simultaneous picking and collection of the filament, and achieving process coincidence, greatly improving the efficiency of red flower picking.

[0026] (4) The present application collects the filament by turning the picking unit to the upper end, inverting it, then opening the picking fingers, allowing the filament to fall downward under the joint action of gravity and negative pressure, and being sucked into the filament suction pipe below the picking fingers to complete the collection, without the need to form a closed space before effectively collecting the filament, so the present application can effectively improve the red flower picking rate and reduce the falling of the filament during the collection process. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0027] Figure 1 Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the present application;

[0028] Figure 2 Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the harvesting unit of the present application;

[0029] Figure 3 Fig. 3 is a top view of the harvesting unit of the present application;

[0030] Figure 4 Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the picking fingers of the present application;

[0031] Figure 5 Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of the assembly structure of the double-shaft complex motion type cylinder and piston rod joint of the present application;

[0032] Figure 6 Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of the assembly structure of the overturning drive mechanism and support frame of the present application;

[0033] Figure 7 Fig. 7 is a top view of the assembly structure of the overturning drive mechanism and support frame of the present application;

[0034] Figure 8 Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the support frame of the present application;

[0035] Figure 9 Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of the state of the picking step of the present application;

[0036] Figure 10 Fig. 10 is a schematic diagram of the state of the picking step of the present application;

[0037] Figure 11 Fig. 11 is a schematic diagram of the state of the picking step of the present application;

[0038] Figure 12 Fig. 12 is a schematic diagram of the state of the picking step of the present application;

[0039] Figure 13 Fig. 13 is a schematic diagram of the state of the picking step of the present application.

[0040] In the figures:

[0041] 1, harvesting unit one; 2, double-shaft complex motion type cylinder; 3, harvesting unit two; 4, frame; 5, overturning drive mechanism; 6, support frame one; 7, collecting device; 11, support frame two; 12, connecting rod; 13, picking finger; 14, flower sucking tube; 15, piston rod joint; 21, cylinder body; 22, piston rod; 51, bearing; 52, motor; 53, gear; 54, bearing fixing sleeve; 131, finger; 132, finger body. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0042] In order to make the purposes, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present application clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0043] With reference to Figures 1-8 The present application provides a turnover and grabbing type safflower harvesting end effector, comprising: a harvesting unit one 1, a double-shaft complex motion type cylinder 2, a harvesting unit two 3, a rack 4, a turnover driving mechanism 5 and a support frame one 6; the turnover driving mechanism 5 is installed on the rack 4, and the output end penetrates through the rack 4 and is connected with the support frame one 6; the harvesting unit one 1 and the harvesting unit two 3 are respectively installed at the upper and lower ends of the support frame one 6, the double-shaft complex motion type cylinder 2 is installed at the middle part of the support frame one 6, and the upper and lower output ends of the double-shaft complex motion type cylinder 2 are respectively in transmission connection with the harvesting unit one 1 and the harvesting unit two 3.

[0044] The turnover driving mechanism is connected with the support frame one, can drive the support frame one to rotate by 180°, pull down the flower filaments, and make the spatial positions of the harvesting unit one and the harvesting unit two interchanged, the double-shaft complex motion type cylinder structure characteristics are utilized to complete the action that the lower end harvesting unit picking fingers are closed while the upper end harvesting unit picking fingers are opened, realize the flower filament grabbing and collecting simultaneously, and improve the picking efficiency, picking net rate and collecting rate of safflower.

[0045] The double-shaft complex motion type cylinder 2 comprises a cylinder body 21 and a piston rod 22; the piston rod 22 is provided with two, located at the two ends of the cylinder body 21, the movement directions of the two piston rods 22 are opposite but the strokes are consistent, and the ends are provided with external threads.

[0046] The harvesting unit one 1 and the harvesting unit two 3 are the same in structure, comprising a support frame two 11, a connecting rod 12, a picking finger 13, a flower suction pipe 14 and a piston rod joint 15; the support frame two 11 is fixed on the support frame one 6, the flower suction pipe 14 is installed on the support frame two 11 and connected with a collecting device 7; the through hole in the middle of the piston rod joint 15 is provided with internal threads, connected with the piston rod 22 in a threaded connection mode, one end of each of the three connecting rods 12 is connected with the piston rod joint 15, the other end of each of the connecting rods 12 is connected with one picking finger 13, the three picking fingers 13 are evenly distributed on the support frame two 11 at an angle of 120° and hinged with the support frame two 11, the piston rod 22 drives the piston rod joint 15 to move up and down, and then drives the picking fingers 13 to complete the opening and closing action, and the opening and closing states of the picking fingers 13 of the harvesting unit one 1 and the harvesting unit two 3 are opposite.

[0047] The picking finger 13 comprises a finger head 131 and a finger body 132; the end of the finger body 132 is provided with external threads, the finger head 131 has a threaded hole, and the finger head 131 and the finger body 132 are fixed together by threaded connection and can be easily disassembled, and different materials of the finger head 131 can be replaced according to the picking needs.

[0048] The turnover driving mechanism 5 comprises a bearing 51, a motor 52, a gear 53 and a bearing fixing sleeve 54; the motor 52 is fixed on the rack 4, the gears 53 assembled on the motor 52 and the support frame one 6 are engaged, the center of the gear 53 assembled on the support frame one 6 is connected with the support frame one 6 through the bearing fixing sleeve 54, and the bearing fixing sleeve 54 is rotationally connected with the rack 4 through the bearing 51; during equipment operation, the motor 52 drives the gear 53 assembled thereon to rotate 180°, thereby driving the support frame one 6 to rotate 180°.

[0049] A picking method of a turnover and grabbing type safflower picking end effector, comprising the following steps:

[0050] 1. Grabbing preparation

[0051] The picking unit one 1 is moved to stop above the safflower fruit ball, and then immediately moves vertically downward, so that the position of the finger head 131 of the picking finger 13 is just stopped at the largest diameter position of the safflower fruit ball;

[0052] 2. Filament grabbing

[0053] At this time, the piston rod 22 at the lower end begins to stretch outwards, and the picking finger 13 of the picking unit one 1 will gradually close, and finally pinch the filament;

[0054] 3. Turnover

[0055] The motor 52 of the turnover driving mechanism 5 is in normal transmission, the gear 53 drives the support frame one 6 to turn clockwise by 180°, and through giving the filament a pulling force obliquely upward during rotation, the filament is separated from the fruit ball, and after the turnover is completed, the picking unit one 1 and the picking unit two 3 also complete the exchange of spatial positions;

[0056] 4. Next safflower grabbing preparation

[0057] After the end effector continues to move to the upper position of the next safflower and moves downward, the picking finger 13 of the picking unit two 3 is stopped at the largest diameter position of the fruit ball of the next safflower;

[0058] 5. Filament grabbing of the next safflower and filament collection of the previous safflower

[0059] At this time, the piston rod 22 at the upper end begins to contract inwardly, the picking fingers 13 of the harvesting unit 1 open, the filaments of the previous red flower are sucked into the filament suction pipe 14 under the joint action of gravity and negative pressure, and finally are sucked into the collecting device 7, thus completing the harvesting of the red flower; at this time, the picking fingers 13 of the harvesting unit 2 gradually close, and the filaments of the next red flower are pinched, so that the filament picking and collecting are simultaneously performed.

[0060] In the turning step, in order to prevent the double-shaft double-acting cylinder 2 from being wound during the turning, the motor 52 is rotated forward to rotate the support frame 1 clockwise by 180° after the harvesting unit 1 completes the filament picking; the motor 52 is rotated reversely to rotate the support frame 1 counterclockwise by 180° after the harvesting unit 2 completes the filament picking, and the turning is repeatedly performed.

[0061] In the turning process, the filaments are separated from the fruit ball by applying an oblique upward pulling force, compared with the existing pulling type red flower picking equipment, the filaments are pulled upward to separate from the fruit ball, which is more labor-saving. The picking finger body of the picking finger has external threads at the end, so that the finger installed on the finger body can be easily disassembled, and different material fingers can be replaced according to the picking needs, so that different varieties and red flowers with different water contents can also be effectively picked, and the applicability is good; in addition, long-time picking will cause the fingers of the picking fingers to wear and thus reduce the picking effect, but the new fingers can be replaced, and the picking reliability of the end effector is ensured. The lower end harvesting unit of the present application rotates to the upper end under the action of the turning driving device after picking the filaments, and the spatial position is exchanged with the upper end harvesting unit; the structure characteristics of the double-shaft double-acting cylinder are ingeniously utilized, the harvesting unit fingers at the upper end are opened to release the just-picked filaments, and the lower end harvesting unit begins to pick the filaments of the next red flower, so that the filament picking and collecting are simultaneously performed, the processes are overlapped, and the efficiency of red flower picking is greatly improved. The filaments are collected by turning the harvesting unit to the upper end, inverting it, then opening the picking fingers, and letting the filaments fall downward under the joint action of gravity and negative pressure and be sucked into the filament suction pipe below the picking fingers to complete the collection, so that the filaments can be effectively collected without forming a closed space in advance, and thus the red flower picking rate can be effectively improved, and the filament dropping during the collection process can be reduced.

[0062] Finally, it should be noted that: the above examples are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application, but not to limit them; although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing examples, those skilled in the art should understand that: the technical solutions recorded in the foregoing examples can still be modified, or some technical features can be replaced equivalently; and these modifications or replacements do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions deviate from the spirit and scope of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A flip-grip safflower harvesting end effector, characterized in that, include: Harvesting unit one (1), dual-axis double-acting cylinder (2), harvesting unit two (3), frame (4), flipping drive mechanism (5) and support frame one (6); the flipping drive mechanism (5) is installed on the frame (4), and its output end passes through the frame (4) and is connected to the support frame one (6); the harvesting unit one (1) and the harvesting unit two (3) are respectively installed at the upper and lower ends of the support frame one (6), the dual-axis double-acting cylinder (2) is installed in the middle of the support frame one (6), and the upper and lower output ends of the dual-axis double-acting cylinder (2) are respectively connected to the harvesting unit one (1) and the harvesting unit two (3) for transmission. The dual-axis compound cylinder (2) includes a cylinder body (21) and a piston rod (22); there are two piston rods (22) located at both ends of the cylinder body (21). The two piston rods (22) move in opposite directions but have the same stroke, and their ends are provided with external threads. The harvesting unit one (1) has the same structure as the harvesting unit two (3), including a support frame two (11), connecting rods (12), picking fingers (13), flower suction tubes (14) and piston rod joints (15); the support frame two (11) is fixed on the support frame one (6), the flower suction tubes (14) are installed on the support frame two (11) and connected to the collection device (7); the through hole in the middle of the piston rod joint (15) is provided with internal threads, and is connected to the piston rod (22) by threaded connection. The piston rod joint (15) is connected to one end of three connecting rods (12), and the other end of each connecting rod (12) is connected to a picking finger (13). The three picking fingers (13) are evenly distributed on the support frame two (11) at 120° and are hinged to the support frame two (11); The flipping drive mechanism (5) drives the support frame (6) to rotate 180 degrees. The piston rod (22) at the lower end begins to extend outward, the picking fingers (13) close, and then pinch the filament. The piston rod (22) at the upper end retracts inward, the picking fingers (13) open, and the filament is sucked into the flower suction tube (14) under the combined action of gravity and negative pressure.

2. The flip-grip safflower harvesting end effector according to claim 1, characterized in that, The picking finger (13) includes a finger tip (131) and a finger body (132); the end of the finger body (132) is provided with an external thread, the finger tip (131) has a threaded hole, and the finger tip (131) and the finger body (132) are fixed together by threaded connection.

3. The flip-grip safflower harvesting end effector according to claim 2, characterized in that, The flipping drive mechanism (5) includes a bearing (51), a motor (52), a gear (53), and a bearing fixing sleeve (54); the motor (52) is fixed on the frame (4), and the gear (53) mounted on the motor (52) meshes with the gear (53) mounted on the support frame (6); the center of the gear (53) mounted on the support frame (6) is connected to the support frame (6) through the bearing fixing sleeve (54), and the bearing fixing sleeve (54) is rotatably connected to the frame (4) through the bearing (51).

4. A harvesting method for a flip-grip safflower harvesting end effector, characterized in that, The process, employing the flip-grip safflower harvesting end effector according to any one of claims 1-3, includes the following steps: 1) Catch preparation Harvesting unit 1 (1) moves to the top of the red safflower ball and stops, then immediately moves vertically downwards so that the fingertip (131) of the picking finger (13) stops at the point where the red safflower ball has the largest diameter. 2) Filament grasping At this time, the piston rod (22) at the lower end begins to extend outward, and the picking fingers (13) of the harvesting unit (1) will gradually close, eventually pinching the filaments; 3) Flip The motor (52) of the flipping drive mechanism (5) is driven forward, and the gear (53) drives the support frame (6) to rotate 180° clockwise. By giving the filament an upward pulling force during rotation, it separates it from the fruit ball. After the flipping is completed, the harvesting unit (1) and the harvesting unit (3) also exchanged their spatial positions. 4) Prepare to grab the next red flower The end effector continues to move to the top of the next red flower and then moves downward, so that the open picking fingers (13) of the second harvesting unit (3) stop at the point where the fruit ball of the next red flower has the largest diameter; 5) Grab the stamens of the next red flower and collect the stamens of the previous red flower. At this time, the piston rod (22) at the top begins to retract inward, and the picking fingers (13) of the harvesting unit one (1) open. The stamens of the previous safflower are sucked into the flower suction tube (14) under the combined action of gravity and negative pressure, and finally sucked into the collection device (7), thus completing one harvest of safflower. At this time, the picking fingers (13) of the harvesting unit two (3) gradually close together and pinch the stamens of the next safflower, realizing the simultaneous grasping and collection of stamens.

5. The harvesting method of a flip-grip safflower harvesting end effector according to claim 4, characterized in that, In the flipping step, in order to prevent the air intake pipe and the flower suction pipe (14) of the dual-shaft reciprocating cylinder (2) from getting tangled during the flipping process, after the filaments are grasped in the first harvesting unit (1), the motor (52) rotates forward, driving the first support frame (6) to rotate 180° clockwise; after the filaments are grasped in the second harvesting unit (3), the motor (52) rotates in reverse, driving the first support frame (6) to rotate 180° counterclockwise, and so on.

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