A harvesting integrated end effector for chili pepper

Abstract

The application relates to a chili harvesting integrated end effector. The chili harvesting integrated end effector comprises an end mounting frame, a shell, a variable clamping device, a rotary shearing device, a collecting device, a visual identification system and a control system. The end mounting frame is arranged at the rear end of the shell and used for connecting a chili harvesting manipulator. The rotary shearing device is arranged in the shell in cooperation with the variable clamping device and penetrates through the front end of the shell, is used for clamping and rotating chilies, and shears the chilies through the rotary shearing device. The visual identification system is electrically connected with the control system and is used for detecting the growth posture of the chilies. The control system is electrically connected with the variable clamping device, the rotary shearing device and the collecting device respectively, and controls the operation of the variable clamping device, the rotary shearing device and the collecting device. The application solves the problem of high difficulty in picking chilies due to the simultaneous flowering and fruiting of the chilies, and overcomes the problems of poor effect and low efficiency of the existing chili picking end effector.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of agricultural machinery technology, and in particular to an integrated end effector for harvesting millet peppers. Background Technology

[0002] Bird's eye chili has a large consumer market and high economic value, but the labor costs involved in its harvesting are also enormous. Unlike most chilies, bird's eye chilies exhibit simultaneous flowering and fruiting, making traditional chili harvesters unsuitable for their harvesting requirements.

[0003] The robot features selective harvesting capabilities, effectively addressing the issue of simultaneous flowering and fruiting in chili peppers. While agricultural harvesting robots have been designed and developed for various fruits and vegetables, significant individual differences exist, leading to varying requirements for the robot's end effector. Existing end effectors for chili pepper harvesting robots are limited in variety and ineffective, failing to meet the harvesting requirements. Therefore, there is an urgent need to redesign and develop more adaptable end effectors specifically tailored to the characteristics of chili peppers. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address or partially address the problems existing in related technologies, this application provides an integrated end effector for harvesting small chili peppers, which solves the problem of high harvesting difficulty caused by the simultaneous flowering and fruiting of small chili peppers, and overcomes the problems of poor performance and low efficiency of existing small chili pepper harvesting end effectors.

[0005] This application provides an integrated end effector for harvesting small red chilies, including an end mounting frame 1, a housing, a variable clamping device 4, a rotary shearing device 5, a collecting device 6, a vision recognition system, and a control system. The end mounting frame 1 is located at the rear end of the housing and is used to connect to a small red chili harvesting robot. The rotary shearing device 5, in conjunction with the variable clamping device 4, is installed inside the housing and extends through the front end of the housing. It is used to clamp and rotate the small red chilies and cut them. The vision recognition system is electrically connected to the control system and is used to detect the growth posture of the small red chilies. The control system is electrically connected to the variable clamping device 4, the rotary shearing device 5, and the collecting device 6 respectively, and controls the operation of the variable clamping device 4, the rotary shearing device 5, and the collecting device 6.

[0006] Optionally, in some embodiments, the housing includes an upper housing 2 and a lower housing 3, which are fixed together by bolts.

[0007] Optionally, in some embodiments, the variable clamping device 4 includes a clamping drive motor 23, a clamping drive pulley 24, a clamping belt 25, a bidirectional lead screw 26, a clamping driven pulley 27, a clamping plate 12, a slider 28, and a lead screw fixing member 30. The clamping drive motor 23 is mounted on the lower housing 3. The bidirectional lead screw 26 is rotatably mounted on the lower housing 3 through the lead screw fixing member 30. The bidirectional lead screw 26 is axially fixed and arranged in the left-right direction. One end of the bidirectional lead screw 26 is driven and connected to the drive shaft of the clamping drive motor 23 through the clamping drive pulley 24, the clamping belt 25, and the clamping driven pulley 27. Two clamping plates 12 are provided and arranged in parallel. Their rear ends are mounted on the bidirectional lead screw 26 through the slider 28. The front end of the clamping plate 12 penetrates the housing and is located on the front side of the housing. The slider 28 is fixedly connected to the clamping plate 12 through the pin 36. The bidirectional lead screw 26 is threadedly connected to the slider 28.

[0008] Optionally, in some embodiments, guide rods 29 arranged perpendicularly to the clamping plates 12 are connected between the clamping plates 12, and the two ends of the guide rods 29 are fixed to the housing.

[0009] Optionally, in some embodiments, the rotary shearing device 5 includes a shearing drive motor 20, a large gear 21, a small gear 22, a shearing transmission shaft 32, a transmission shaft fixing member 33, a flexible clamp 17, a left shearing blade 15, a right shearing blade 18, a shearing drive pulley 31, a shearing driven pulley 16, and a shearing belt 13. The shearing drive motor 20 is mounted on the lower housing 3, and the shearing transmission shaft 32 is rotatably mounted on the lower housing 3 via the transmission shaft fixing member 33. The shearing transmission shaft 32 is arranged in the left-right direction, and the large gear 21 is mounted in its middle via a key 34. A small gear 22 is mounted on the drive shaft of the motor 20. The small gear 22 meshes with the large gear 21. Shear drive pulleys 31 are mounted at both ends of the shear drive shaft 32. A mounting shaft is provided at the front end of the clamping plate 12. The shear driven pulley 16 is mounted on the mounting shaft through the bearing 35. The shear drive pulley 31 and the shear driven pulley 16 are connected by a shear belt 13. The flexible clamping plate 17 is fixedly mounted on the opposite surface of the shear driven pulley 16. The left shearing bar 15 and the right shearing bar 18 are respectively mounted at the front end of the two clamping plates 12 and rotate synchronously with the shear driven pulley 16.

[0010] Optionally, in some embodiments, the left shear bar 15 and the right shear bar 18 are structurally opposite and arranged opposite each other. The left shear bar 15 and the right shear bar 18 are respectively fixedly installed on two shear driven pulleys 16, and the flexible clamping plate 17 extends from their inner side to form a mounting surface. A mounting turntable is provided on the outer side. The mounting turntable is rotatably installed on the outer side of the clamping plate 12 and is installed concentrically with the shear driven pulley 16.

[0011] Optionally, in some embodiments, the collection device 6 includes a push rod 10, a conveying pipe 19, a fixing frame 14, a fan 9, a collection box housing 8, and a collection box 7. The push rod 10 is fixed to the lower housing 3 by a fixing plate 11. One end of the collection port of the conveying pipe 19 is installed at the end of the push rod 10 by the fixing frame 14. The collection port of the conveying pipe 19 faces forward and is located in the middle of the two clamping plates 12. The other end of the conveying pipe 19 is connected to the collection box housing 8. The fan 9 is connected to the collection box housing 8 and provides negative pressure air to the conveying pipe 19. The collection box 7 is provided at the bottom of the collection box housing 8.

[0012] The technical solution provided in this application may include the following beneficial effects:

[0013] This invention features a long and narrow overall shape with two forward-extending clamps. This structure reduces interference from the branches and leaves of the chili peppers while increasing the harvesting depth. The variable clamping device allows for adjustment of the distance between the two clamps within a certain range, increasing its adaptability to the chili peppers. The rotating shearing device allows the flexible clamping disc to rotate and adjust its orientation to a certain extent after clamping the chili pepper fruit, reducing the number of degrees of freedom for the robotic arm. Furthermore, this invention employs an integrated harvesting structure design, using a conveying pipe to transport the chili peppers, which further improves the harvesting efficiency.

[0014] It should be understood that the above general description and the following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only, and do not limit this application. Attached Figure Description

[0015] The above and other objects, features and advantages of this application will become more apparent from the more detailed description of exemplary embodiments thereof in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, wherein the same reference numerals generally represent the same components in the exemplary embodiments thereof.

[0016] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of this application;

[0017] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the harvested portion of this application;

[0018] Figure 3 This is a side view of this application;

[0019] Figure 4 This is an exploded view of the front end of the clamping plate in this application;

[0020] Figure 5 This is a partial sectional view of this application;

[0021] Figure 6 For this application Figure 5 Enlarged view of section A in the middle;

[0022] Figure 7 For this application Figure 5 Enlarged view of section B in the middle.

[0023] Figure label:

[0024] 1-End mounting bracket, 2-Upper housing, 3-Lower housing, 4-Variable clamping device, 5-Rotary shearing device, 6-Collection device, 7-Collection box, 8-Collection box shell, 9-Fan, 10-Push rod, 11-Fixed plate, clamping plate, 12-13-Shearing belt, 14-Fixed frame, 15-Left shearing blade, 16-Shearing driven pulley, 17-Flexible clamping plate, 18-Right shearing blade, 19-Conveying pipe, 20-Shearing drive motor, 21-Large gear, 22-Small gear, 23-First drive motor, 24-Clamping drive pulley, 25-Clamping belt, 26-Bidirectional lead screw, 27-Clamping driven pulley, 28-Slider, 29-Guide rod, 30-Lead screw fixing piece, 31-Shearing drive pulley, 32-Shearing transmission shaft, 33-Transmission shaft fixing piece, 34-Key, 35-Bearing, 36-Pin. Detailed Implementation

[0025] Embodiments of this application will now be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. While embodiments of this application are shown in the drawings, it should be understood that this application may be implemented in various forms and should not be limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided to make this application more thorough and complete, and to fully convey the scope of this application to those skilled in the art.

[0026] It should be understood that although the terms "first," "second," "third," etc., may be used in this application to describe various information, this information should not be limited to these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish information of the same type from one another. For example, without departing from the scope of this application, first information may also be referred to as second information, and similarly, second information may also be referred to as first information. Thus, a feature defined as "first" or "second" may explicitly or implicitly include one or more of that feature. In the description of this application, "multiple" means two or more, unless otherwise explicitly specified.

[0027] In the description of this application, it should be understood that the terms "length", "width", "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", "vertical", "horizontal", "top", "bottom", "inner", "outer", etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship 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.

[0028] Unless otherwise expressly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," "linking," and "fixing," etc., should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral part; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; they can refer to the internal communication of two components or the interaction between two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this application according to the specific circumstances.

[0029] To address the aforementioned issues, this application provides an integrated end effector for harvesting small red chilies, which solves the problem of high harvesting difficulty caused by the simultaneous flowering and fruiting of small red chilies, and overcomes the problems of poor performance and low efficiency of existing small red chili harvesting end effectors.

[0030] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0031] See Figure 1-7 The integrated end effector for harvesting small red chilies includes an end mounting frame 1, a housing, a variable clamping device 4, a rotary shearing device 5, a collecting device 6, a vision recognition system, and a control system. The end mounting frame 1 is located at the rear end of the housing and is used to connect to the small red chili harvesting robot. The rotary shearing device 5, in conjunction with the variable clamping device 4, is installed inside the housing and extends through the front end of the housing. It is used to clamp and rotate the small red chilies, cutting them. The vision recognition system is electrically connected to the control system and is used to detect the growth posture of the small red chilies. The control system is connected to the variable clamping device 4, the rotary shearing device 5, and the collecting device 6. The rotating shearing device 5 and the collecting device 6 are electrically connected to control the operation of the variable clamping device 4, the rotating shearing device 5, and the collecting device 6. The cylindrical end of the end mount 1 is used to cooperate with the robotic arm for installation, and the other end is attached to the rear end of the housing for fastening. During operation, the end effector follows the robotic arm and approaches the chili pepper fruit using three-dimensional coordinates. After the vision recognition system detects the growth posture of the chili pepper, it transmits the signal to the control system. The control system controls the variable clamping device 4 and the rotating shearing device 5 to clamp, rotate, and shear the chili pepper, and then collects the chili pepper through the collecting device 6.

[0032] In some embodiments, the housing includes an upper housing 2 and a lower housing 3, which are fixed together by bolts.

[0033] During operation, the upper housing 2 and the lower housing 3 are connected by bolts, which allows for easy disassembly and installation of their internal mechanisms.

[0034] In some embodiments, the variable clamping device 4 includes a clamping drive motor 23, a clamping drive pulley 24, a clamping belt 25, a bidirectional lead screw 26, a clamping driven pulley 27, a clamping plate 12, a slider 28, and a lead screw fixing member 30. The clamping drive motor 23 is mounted on the lower housing 3. The bidirectional lead screw 26 is rotatably mounted on the lower housing 3 through the lead screw fixing member 30. The bidirectional lead screw 26 is axially fixed and arranged in the left-right direction. One end of the bidirectional lead screw 26 is driven and connected to the drive shaft of the clamping drive motor 23 through the clamping drive pulley 24, the clamping belt 25, and the clamping driven pulley 27. Two clamping plates 12 are provided and arranged in parallel. Their rear ends are mounted on the bidirectional lead screw 26 through the slider 28. The front end of the clamping plate 12 penetrates the housing and is located on the front side of the housing. The slider 28 is fixedly connected to the clamping plate 12 through the pin 36. The bidirectional lead screw 26 is threadedly connected to the slider 28.

[0035] During operation, when the vision recognition system detects the small chili pepper, the control system controls the movement of the robotic arm, positioning the small chili pepper between the front ends of the two clamping plates 12. The clamping drive motor 23 starts, driving the bidirectional lead screw 26 to rotate through the clamping drive pulley 24, clamping belt 25, and clamping driven pulley 27. This, in turn, drives the two clamping plates 12 to move towards each other through the slider 28, gradually reducing the distance between the clamping plates 12 until the front ends of the clamping plates 12 stably clamp the small chili pepper, at which point the clamping drive motor 23 stops working.

[0036] In some embodiments, guide rods 29 arranged perpendicularly to the clamping plates 12 are connected between the clamping plates 12, and the two ends of the guide rods 29 are fixed to the housing.

[0037] During operation, the clamping plate 12 slides along the guide rod 29, which makes the movement of the clamping plate 12 more stable.

[0038] In some embodiments, the rotary shearing device 5 includes a shearing drive motor 20, a large gear 21, a small gear 22, a shearing transmission shaft 32, a transmission shaft fixing member 33, a flexible clamp 17, a left shearing blade 15, a right shearing blade 18, a shearing drive pulley 31, a shearing driven pulley 16, and a shearing belt 13. The shearing drive motor 20 is mounted on the lower housing 3, and the shearing transmission shaft 32 is rotatably mounted on the lower housing 3 via the transmission shaft fixing member 33. The shearing transmission shaft 32 is arranged in the left-right direction, and the large gear 21 is mounted in its middle via a key 34. A small gear 22 is mounted on the drive shaft of the motor 20. The small gear 22 meshes with the large gear 21. Shear drive pulleys 31 are mounted at both ends of the shear drive shaft 32. A mounting shaft is provided at the front end of the clamping plate 12. The shear driven pulley 16 is mounted on the mounting shaft through the bearing 35. The shear drive pulley 31 and the shear driven pulley 16 are connected by a shear belt 13. The flexible clamping plate 17 is fixedly mounted on the opposite surface of the shear driven pulley 16. The left shearing bar 15 and the right shearing bar 18 are respectively mounted at the front end of the two clamping plates 12 and rotate synchronously with the shear driven pulley 16.

[0039] During operation, the clamping end of the flexible clamping plate 17 is a concave frustum made of flexible material, while the fixed end is a cylinder with two protruding thin plate structures for embedded installation with the driven large pulley 16. After the variable clamping device 4 completes the clamping step, the shearing drive motor 20 drives the flexible clamping plate 17 to rotate through gear transmission and belt transmission. The chili pepper fruit detaches from the stem due to inertial force or collision with the left shearing bar 15 and the right shearing bar 18. The rotation angle of the flexible clamping plate 17 depends on the growth posture of the chili pepper fruit, which relies on the robot's visual recognition system and is taken as the angle between the chili pepper fruit and the horizontal plane plus 360°. This ensures that the chili pepper fruit is ultimately in a horizontal position for easy collection.

[0040] In some embodiments, the left shear bar 15 and the right shear bar 18 are structurally opposite and arranged opposite each other. The left shear bar 15 and the right shear bar 18 are respectively fixedly installed on two shear driven pulleys 16, and the flexible clamping plate 17 extends from their inner side to form a mounting surface. A mounting turntable is provided on the outer side. The mounting turntable is rotatably installed on the outer side of the clamping plate 12 and is installed concentrically with the shear driven pulley 16.

[0041] During operation, the mounting turntable is rotated and installed on the outside of the clamping plate 12, and is installed concentrically with the shearing driven pulley 16. When the shearing driven pulley 16 drives the left shearing bar 15 and the right shearing bar 18 to rotate, the clamping plate 12 can limit the rotation angle of the left shearing bar 15 and the right shearing bar 18 to prevent the left shearing bar 15 and the right shearing bar 18 from damaging the chili pepper fruit.

[0042] In some embodiments, the collection device 6 includes a push rod 10, a conveying pipe 19, a fixing frame 14, a fan 9, a collection box housing 8, and a collection box 7. The push rod 10 is fixed to the lower housing 3 by a fixing plate 11. One end of the collection port of the conveying pipe 19 is installed at the end of the push rod 10 by the fixing frame 14. The collection port of the conveying pipe 19 faces forward and is located in the middle of the two clamping plates 12. The other end of the conveying pipe 19 is connected to the collection box housing 8. The fan 9 is connected to the collection box housing 8 and provides negative pressure air to the conveying pipe 19. The collection box 7 is provided at the bottom of the collection box housing 8.

[0043] During operation, after the chili peppers are in a horizontal position, the push rod 10 moves the fixing frame 14 forward, allowing a portion of the chili peppers to enter the conveying pipe 19. Due to the action of the fan 9, a pressure difference is generated between the upper and lower parts of the conveying pipe 19. Under the action of the pressure difference, the chili peppers are sucked into the collection box 7. After one collection is completed, all parts are reset step by step for the next harvesting operation.

[0044] Finally, it should be noted that in this document, relationships such as "first" and "second" are used merely to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, the terms "include," "contain," or any other variations are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus.

[0045] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0046] The various embodiments of this application have been described above. These descriptions are exemplary and not exhaustive, nor are they limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The terminology used herein is chosen to best explain the principles, practical application, or improvement of the technology in the market, or to enable others skilled in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims

1. A chili harvesting end-of-arm tool comprising: The chili harvesting integrated end effector comprises an end mounting frame (1), a shell, a variable clamping device (4), a rotary shearing device (5), a collecting device (6), a visual identification system and a control system; the end mounting frame (1) is located at the rear end of the shell and is used for connecting a chili harvesting manipulator; the rotary shearing device (5) is installed in the shell in cooperation with the variable clamping device (4) and penetrates through the front end of the shell, and is used for clamping and rotating chilies; the chilies are sheared by the rotary shearing device (5); the visual identification system is electrically connected with the control system and is used for detecting the growth posture of the chilies; the control system is electrically connected with the variable clamping device (4), the rotary shearing device (5) and the collecting device (6) respectively, and controls the operation of the variable clamping device (4), the rotary shearing device (5) and the collecting device (6); The shell comprises an upper shell (2) and a lower shell (3), and the upper shell (2) and the lower shell (3) are fixed by bolt connection; The variable clamping device (4) comprises a clamping drive motor (23), a clamping driving pulley (24), a clamping belt (25), a bidirectional screw rod (26), a clamping driven pulley (27), a clamping plate (12), a sliding block (28) and a screw rod fixing piece (30); the clamping drive motor (23) is installed on the lower shell (3); the bidirectional screw rod (26) is rotatably installed on the lower shell (3) through the screw rod fixing piece (30); the bidirectional screw rod (26) is fixed in the axial direction and is arranged in the left-right direction; one end of the bidirectional screw rod (26) is drivingly connected with the transmission shaft of the clamping drive motor (23) through the clamping driving pulley (24), the clamping belt (25) and the clamping driven pulley (27); two clamping plates (12) are arranged in parallel, the rear ends of the two clamping plates (12) are installed on the bidirectional screw rod (26) through the sliding block (28), the front ends of the clamping plates (12) penetrate through the shell and are located on the front side of the shell, the sliding block (28) is fixedly connected with the clamping plate (12) through a pin shaft (36), and the bidirectional screw rod (26) is threadedly connected with the sliding block (28); The rotating shearing device (5) comprises a shearing driving motor (20), a large gear (21), a small gear (22), a shearing transmission shaft (32), a transmission shaft fixing part (33), a flexible chuck (17), a left shearing cutter bar (15), a right shearing cutter bar (18), a shearing driving pulley (31), a shearing driven pulley (16) and a shearing belt (13), the shearing driving motor (20) is installed on the lower shell (3), the shearing transmission shaft (32) is rotatably installed on the lower shell (3) through the transmission shaft fixing part (33), the middle part of the shearing transmission shaft (32) is provided with the large gear (21) through a key (34), the transmission shaft of the shearing driving motor (20) is provided with the small gear (22), the small gear (22) and the large gear (21) are engaged, the two ends of the shearing transmission shaft (32) are provided with the shearing driving pulley (31), the front end of the clamping plate (12) is provided with a mounting shaft, the shearing driven pulley (16) is installed on the mounting shaft through a bearing (35), the shearing driving pulley (31) and the shearing driven pulley (16) are drivingly connected through the shearing belt (13), the flexible chuck (17) is fixedly installed on the opposite surface of the shearing driven pulley (16), the left shearing cutter bar (15) and the right shearing cutter bar (18) are respectively installed on the front end of the two clamping plates (12) and synchronously rotate with the shearing driven pulley (16).

2. The jalapeno harvesting end-of-arm tool of claim 1, wherein: The clamping plates (12) are connected with guide rods (29) which are arranged perpendicularly to the clamping plates (12), and the two ends of the guide rods (29) are fixed on the shell.

3. The jalapeno harvesting end-of-arm tool of claim 2, wherein: The left shearing cutter bar (15) and the right shearing cutter bar (18) are oppositely arranged, the left shearing cutter bar (15) and the right shearing cutter bar (18) are respectively fixedly installed on the two shearing driven pulleys (16), the inner side of each of the left shearing cutter bar (15) and the right shearing cutter bar (18) extends out a flexible chuck (17) mounting surface, and the outer side is provided with a mounting turntable which is rotatably installed on the outer side of the clamping plate (12) and is installed with the same center as the shearing driven pulley (16).

4. The jalapeno harvesting end-of-arm tool of claim 3, wherein: The collecting device (6) comprises a push rod (10), a conveying pipe (19), a fixing frame (14), a fan (9), a collecting box shell (8) and a collecting box (7), the push rod (10) is fixed below the lower shell (3) through a fixing plate (11), the collecting opening of the conveying pipe (19) is installed at the end of the push rod (10) through the fixing frame (14), the collecting opening of the conveying pipe (19) faces the front and is located at the middle position of the two clamping plates (12), the other end of the conveying pipe (19) is communicated with the collecting box shell (8), the collecting box shell (8) is provided with the fan (9), the fan (9) provides negative pressure wind for the conveying pipe (19), and the bottom of the collecting box shell (8) is provided with the collecting box (7).

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