An automated apple picking vehicle that integrates picking, sorting, packing, and transportation.

Abstract

This invention discloses an automated apple harvesting vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation. It includes a mobile chassis, a harvesting robotic arm, a sorting and packing mechanism, and a fruit box transfer mechanism. The harvesting robotic arm is equipped with a recognition camera and an end effector at its end. The sorting and packing mechanism includes fruit rollers, screening rollers, fruit chutes, and fruit box conveyor belts. Multiple screening rollers are sequentially arranged along the fruit rolling direction on the fruit rollers. Each screening roller contains a fruit chute, and a fruit box conveyor belt is located below each screening roller. Each fruit box conveyor belt contains a weight sensor. The fruit box transfer mechanism includes a fruit box transfer conveyor belt and fruit box chutes. The fruit box transfer conveyor belt is located at the end of each fruit box conveyor belt and contains a weight sensor. The fruit box chutes are located at the end of the fruit box transfer conveyor belt. This invention enables automated operations of apple harvesting, sorting, packing, and transportation, improving the efficiency of apple harvesting and reducing labor costs.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of agricultural automation equipment technology, and in particular to an automatic apple picking vehicle that integrates picking, sorting, packing and transportation. Background Technology

[0002] Traditional manual apple harvesting methods are labor-intensive, inefficient, costly, and cause significant damage to the fruit. With rising labor costs and a shortage of agricultural labor, the demand for automated harvesting technology is increasing. Currently, some automated harvesting equipment is available on the market, primarily using robotic arms in conjunction with visual recognition systems to harvest fruit. While these devices improve harvesting efficiency to some extent, their integration is low. If farmers want to use automated apple harvesting robots, they still need to manually collect, sort, pack, and transport the fruit, failing to achieve autonomous, intelligent, and diversified orchard harvesting operations. Summary of the Invention

[0003] The purpose of this invention is to provide an automated apple picking vehicle that integrates picking, sorting, packing, and transportation to solve the problems existing in the prior art. It can realize the automated operation of apple picking, sorting, packing, and transportation, improve the efficiency of apple harvesting, greatly reduce the dependence on manual labor, and lower labor costs.

[0004] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following solution:

[0005] This invention provides an automated apple picking vehicle that integrates picking, sorting, packing, and transportation, including a mobile chassis, a picking robotic arm, a sorting and packing mechanism, and a fruit box transfer mechanism;

[0006] The harvesting robotic arm is mounted on the mobile chassis, and the end of the harvesting robotic arm is equipped with a recognition camera and an end effector.

[0007] The sorting and packing mechanism includes a fruit roller, a screening roller, a fruit chute, and a fruit box conveyor belt. One end of the fruit roller is an upward-curved fruit-placement end. Multiple screening rollers are arranged sequentially on the fruit roller along the fruit rolling direction. Each screening roller is driven to rotate by a roller drive device. Each screening roller has a circular through hole. Each screening roller has a fruit chute inside it. Each screening roller has a fruit box conveyor belt below it. Each fruit box conveyor belt is driven by a first drive device and can operate independently. Each fruit box conveyor belt has a weight sensor inside it. The fruit box conveyor belt is used to place fruit boxes. The end of the fruit chute extends out of the screening roller and is located above the fruit box conveyor belt, used to guide the fruit into the fruit box under the action of gravity.

[0008] The fruit box transfer mechanism includes a fruit box transfer conveyor belt and a fruit box slide. The fruit box transfer conveyor belt is located at the end of each fruit box conveyor belt and is driven by a fruit box transfer conveyor belt drive device. A weight sensor is installed inside the fruit box transfer conveyor belt. The fruit box slide is located at the end of the fruit box transfer conveyor belt and is used to guide the fruit boxes on the fruit box transfer conveyor belt to the ground.

[0009] Preferably, the circular through holes on the same screening roller are of equal size, and the circular through holes on each screening roller gradually increase in size along the fruit rolling direction.

[0010] Preferably, the fruit roller between two adjacent screening rollers is inclined downwards from the end closer to the screening roller of the previous level to the end closer to the screening roller of the next level.

[0011] Preferably, the roller drive device includes a chain drive motor, a chain, a drive sprocket, a driven sprocket, and roller drive rollers. The chain drive motor is mounted on the mobile chassis, the drive sprocket is fixed to the output shaft of the chain drive motor, and each of the screening rollers has a roller drive roller on both sides of its bottom. One end of each roller drive roller is fixed with a driven sprocket, and the chain drive connects the drive sprocket and each of the driven sprockets.

[0012] Preferably, the roller drive wheel is rotatably connected to the support base, and the bottom of the support base is slidably fitted onto the slide rail on the movable chassis via a sliding sleeve, and the sliding sleeve and the slide rail are fixed together by locking screws.

[0013] Preferably, the first driving device includes a fruit box conveyor belt drive motor, a drive shaft, and a grading control mechanism. The output shaft of the fruit box conveyor belt drive motor is connected to the drive shaft via a coupling. The grading control mechanism includes a ratchet, a pawl, and a conveyor belt drive wheel. Each conveyor belt drive wheel is rotatably mounted on the drive shaft. Each conveyor belt drive wheel is provided with a pawl. The drive shaft is fixedly provided with a ratchet corresponding to each pawl. Each pawl is connected to a rotary motor. The rotary motor is used to drive the pawl to rotate so as to engage or disengage with the ratchet. When the corresponding pawls engage with the ratchet, the rotation of the drive shaft can drive the conveyor belt drive wheel to rotate, thereby driving the fruit box conveyor belt to operate.

[0014] Preferably, a fruit box baffle is provided on the side of the fruit box transfer conveyor belt away from the fruit box conveyor belt to prevent the fruit boxes transported by the fruit box transfer conveyor belt from falling off the fruit box transfer conveyor belt.

[0015] Preferably, the fruit box slide is connected to the movable chassis via a hinge. The movable chassis is fixedly provided with a fruit box slide support seat and a fruit box slide fixing seat. When the fruit box slide is lowered, it is supported on the fruit box slide support seat. When the fruit box slide is raised and retracted, it is fixedly connected to the fruit box slide fixing seat by bolts.

[0016] Preferably, the mobile chassis is equipped with two harvesting robotic arms, and the fruit roller is provided with three screening rollers in sequence along the fruit rolling direction.

[0017] Preferably, it also includes a central control computer, and the picking robotic arm, the recognition camera, the end effector, the roller drive device, the first drive device, each of the weight sensors and the fruit box transfer conveyor drive device are respectively electrically connected to the central control computer.

[0018] The present invention achieves the following technical effects compared to the prior art:

[0019] This invention provides an automated apple harvesting vehicle that integrates picking, sorting, packing, and transportation. Utilizing advanced machine vision systems, intelligent control algorithms, and robotic arm technology, it achieves precise apple harvesting. Simultaneously, the rotating sorting rollers sort the apples by size. After sorting, the apples roll through fruit chutes into fruit boxes. The fruit box conveyor belt contains built-in weight sensors. When the apples in a fruit box reach a certain weight, the conveyor belt transports the box to a transfer conveyor belt. The transfer conveyor belt and fruit box chutes then place the boxed apples between the rows of fruit trees, automating the apple harvesting, sorting, packing, and transportation process. This significantly improves the efficiency of apple harvesting, greatly reduces reliance on manual labor, and lowers labor costs. Attached Figure Description

[0020] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the embodiments will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0021] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the automatic apple picking vehicle that integrates picking, sorting, packing, and transportation provided by the present invention;

[0022] Figure 2 Another perspective structural schematic diagram of the automatic apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing and transportation provided by the present invention;

[0023] Figure 3This is a partial structural diagram of the fruit box slide, mobile chassis, chain, driven sprocket, roller drive wheel, support base, sliding sleeve, and slide rail in this invention.

[0024] In the diagram: 1-Mobile chassis, 2-Harvesting robotic arm, 3-Identification camera, 4-End effector, 5-Fruit roller, 6-Sorting roller, 7-Fruit chute, 8-Fruit box conveyor belt, 9-Fruit placement end, 10-Circular through hole, 11-Fruit box, 12-Fruit box transfer conveyor belt, 13-Fruit box chute, 14-Chain drive motor, 15-Chain, 16-Driven sprocket, 17-Roller drive roller, 18-Support seat, 19-Sliding sleeve, 20-Slide rail, 21-Fruit box conveyor belt drive motor, 22-Fruit box baffle, 23-Hinge, 24-Fruit box chute support seat, 25-Fruit box chute fixing seat, 26-Central control computer, 27-Fixing frame, 28-Robotic arm support plate, 601-First-stage sorting roller, 602-Second-stage sorting roller, 603-Third-stage sorting roller. Detailed Implementation

[0025] The technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0026] The purpose of this invention is to provide an automated apple picking vehicle that integrates picking, sorting, packing, and transportation to solve the problems existing in the prior art. It can realize the automated operation of apple picking, sorting, packing, and transportation, improve the efficiency of apple harvesting, greatly reduce the dependence on manual labor, and lower labor costs.

[0027] To make the above-mentioned objects, features and advantages of the present invention more apparent and understandable, the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0028] like Figures 1-3 As shown, the present invention provides an automatic apple picking vehicle that integrates picking, sorting, packing and transportation, including a mobile chassis 1, a picking robotic arm 2, a sorting and packing mechanism and a fruit box transfer mechanism;

[0029] The harvesting robotic arm 2 is mounted on the mobile chassis 1, and the end of the harvesting robotic arm 2 is equipped with a recognition camera 3 and an end effector 4;

[0030] The sorting and packing mechanism includes a fruit roller 5, a screening roller 6, a fruit chute 7, and a fruit box conveyor belt 8. One end of the fruit roller 5 is an upward-curved fruit-dispensing end 9. Multiple screening rollers 6 are arranged sequentially on the fruit roller 5 along the fruit rolling direction. Each screening roller 6 is driven to rotate by a roller drive device. Each screening roller 6 is provided with a circular through hole 10. Each screening roller 6 is provided with a fruit chute 7. Each screening roller 6 is provided with a fruit box conveyor belt 8 below it. Each fruit box conveyor belt 8 is driven by a first drive device and can run independently. Each fruit box conveyor belt 8 is provided with a weight sensor. Fruit boxes 11 are placed on the fruit box conveyor belt 8. The end of the fruit chute 7 extends out of the screening roller 6 and is located above the fruit box conveyor belt 8, and is used to guide the fruit into the fruit box 11 under the action of gravity.

[0031] The fruit box transfer mechanism includes a fruit box transfer conveyor belt 12 and a fruit box slide 13. The fruit box transfer conveyor belt 12 is located at the end of each fruit box conveyor belt 8 and is driven by a fruit box transfer conveyor belt drive device. A weight sensor is installed inside the fruit box transfer conveyor belt 12. The fruit box slide 13 is located at the end of the fruit box transfer conveyor belt 12 and is used to guide the fruit boxes 11 on the fruit box transfer conveyor belt 12 to the ground.

[0032] In this embodiment, two harvesting robotic arms 2 are mounted on the mobile chassis 1, namely a left robotic arm and a right robotic arm. Three screening rollers 6 are sequentially arranged on the fruit roller 5 along the fruit rolling direction, namely a primary screening roller 601, a secondary screening roller 602, and a tertiary screening roller 603. A fixed welding frame 27 is mounted on the mobile chassis 1, and the robotic arm support plate 28 is fixed to the fixed welding frame 27. Both harvesting robotic arms 2 are mounted on the robotic arm support plate 28.

[0033] In this embodiment, the circular through holes 10 on the same screening roller 6 are of equal size, and the circular through holes 10 on each screening roller 6 gradually increase in size along the fruit rolling direction, so as to achieve step-by-step screening of apples.

[0034] In this embodiment, the fruit roller 5 between two adjacent screening rollers 6 is inclined downward from the end closer to the previous screening roller 6 to the end closer to the next screening roller 6, ensuring that the apples can continuously roll to the next screening roller 6.

[0035] In this embodiment, the roller drive device includes a chain drive motor 14, a chain 15, a drive sprocket, a driven sprocket 16, and roller drive rollers 17. The chain drive motor 14 is mounted on a movable chassis 1. The drive sprocket is fixed to the output shaft of the chain drive motor 14. Each screening roller 6 has a roller drive roller 17 on both sides of its bottom. A driven sprocket 16 is fixed to one end of each roller drive roller 17. The chain 15 drives the drive sprocket and each driven sprocket 16. The chain drive motor 14 drives the drive sprocket to rotate, which in turn drives each driven sprocket 16 to rotate via the chain 15, thereby realizing the rotation of each roller drive roller 17. The friction between the roller drive roller 17 and the screening roller 6 drives the screening roller 6 to rotate.

[0036] In this embodiment, the roller drive roller 17 is rotatably connected to the support base 18. The bottom of the support base 18 is slidably fitted onto the slide rail 20 on the movable chassis 1 via a sliding sleeve 19. The sliding sleeve 19 and the slide rail 20 are fixed together by locking screws. The position of the roller drive roller 17 can be easily adjusted by moving the sliding sleeve 19. After adjustment, the relative position between the sliding sleeve 19 and the slide rail 20 is fixed by locking screws. When the vehicle is moving or the chain drive causes vibration, the locking screws ensure that the position of the sliding sleeve 19 remains unchanged, ensuring the transmission between the screening roller 6 and the roller drive roller 17 and preventing slippage during transmission.

[0037] In this embodiment, the first driving device includes a fruit box conveyor belt drive motor 21, a drive shaft, and a grading control mechanism. The output shaft of the fruit box conveyor belt drive motor 21 is connected to the drive shaft via a coupling. The grading control mechanism includes ratchet wheels, pawls, and conveyor belt drive wheels. Each conveyor belt drive wheel is rotatably mounted on the drive shaft, and each conveyor belt drive wheel is equipped with a pawl. A ratchet wheel corresponding to each pawl is fixedly mounted on the drive shaft. Each pawl is connected to a rotary motor, which drives the pawl to rotate to engage or disengage with the ratchet wheel. When the corresponding pawls engage with the ratchet wheel, the rotation of the drive shaft drives the conveyor belt drive wheel to rotate, thereby driving the fruit box conveyor belt to operate. When the weight sensor built into the fruit box conveyor belt 8 detects that the fruit box 11 on it has reached a certain weight, the rotary motor controls the pawl corresponding to that fruit box conveyor belt 8 to rotate and engage with the ratchet wheel. Then, after the fruit box conveyor belt drive motor 21 drives the drive shaft to rotate, it can drive the fruit box conveyor belt 8 to operate, realizing independent control of each fruit box conveyor belt 8.

[0038] In this embodiment, a fruit box baffle 22 is provided on the side of the fruit box conveyor belt 12 away from the fruit box conveyor belt 8 to prevent the fruit boxes 11 transported by the fruit box conveyor belt 8 from falling off the fruit box conveyor belt 12.

[0039] In this embodiment, the fruit box slide 13 is connected to the movable chassis 1 via a hinge 23. The movable chassis 1 is fixedly equipped with a fruit box slide support 24 and a fruit box slide fixing seat 25. When the fruit box slide 13 is lowered, it is supported on the fruit box slide support 24. When the fruit box slide 13 is raised and retracted, it is fixedly connected to the fruit box slide fixing seat 25 by bolts. When the fruit box slide 13 needs to operate, it is lowered and supported by the fruit box slide support 24. When it is not needed, it can be raised and fixed to the fruit box slide fixing seat 25 with bolts to ensure its stability during movement.

[0040] In this embodiment, a central control computer 26 is also included. The picking robotic arm 2, the recognition camera 3, the end effector 4, the roller drive device, the first drive device, each weight sensor and the fruit box transfer conveyor belt drive device are electrically connected to the central control computer 26.

[0041] Before the machine is put into operation, the staff adjusts the trajectory of the picking vehicle through the central control computer 26. Other parameters, such as the running speed, picking speed, and the start and stop of each conveyor belt, are automatically controlled by the program set by the central control computer 26.

[0042] During machine operation, the left and right robotic arms identify the fruit using a high-definition recognition camera 3. Once the fruit is identified, it is harvested via an end effector 4, achieving coordinated operation between the two arms. After harvesting, the fruit is placed on the raised fruit-feeding end 9 of the fruit roller 5. Due to gravity, the fruit rolls towards the primary screening roller 601. Fruits that fit the diameter of the circular through-holes 10 on the primary screening roller 601 fall onto the flexible fruit slide 7 inside, and then roll down into the fruit box 11 due to gravity. Fruits that do not fit the diameter of the primary screening roller 601 are caught by it and rotate with it before falling onto the fruit roller 5. Because of the distance between every two screening rollers 6... All fruit rollers 5 are inclined to ensure that the fruit can continue to roll to the next level of screening rollers. When the fruit passes through the secondary screening roller 602, it is the same as the primary screening roller 601. Fruits that meet the diameter of the circular through holes 10 on the secondary screening roller 602 will fall onto the flexible fruit slide 7 after passing through the rolling secondary screening roller 602. The fruit will then roll down to the fruit box 11 again due to gravity. The tertiary screening roller 603 works on the same principle. All the fruit passing through the tertiary screening roller 603 will fall off (because the diameter of the holes on the tertiary screening roller 603 is large enough).

[0043] The fruit box conveyor belts corresponding to the primary screening roller 601, secondary screening roller 602, and tertiary screening roller 603 are respectively the primary fruit box conveyor belt, the secondary fruit box conveyor belt, and the tertiary fruit box conveyor belt. Each of the primary, secondary, and tertiary fruit box conveyor belts is equipped with a weight sensor. When the fruit box 11 on the primary fruit box conveyor belt reaches a certain weight, it will be transported to the fruit box transfer conveyor belt 12. At the same time, the next fruit box 11 will be transported to the fruit drop point via the fruit slide 7. The fruit box 11 transported to the fruit box transfer conveyor belt 12 will be blocked by the fruit box baffle 22 to prevent it from falling. When the weight sensor built into the fruit box transfer conveyor belt 12 detects that there is a fruit box 11, it will be transported backward. The fruit box 11 slides down the fruit box slide 13 to the ground. Afterward, the workers only need to collect the graded and boxed fruits.

[0044] Specific examples have been used to illustrate the principles and implementation methods of this invention. The descriptions of the above embodiments are only for the purpose of helping to understand the method and core ideas of this invention. Furthermore, those skilled in the art will recognize that, based on the ideas of this invention, there will be changes in the specific implementation methods and application scope. Therefore, the content of this specification should not be construed as a limitation of this invention.

Claims

1. An automated apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation, characterized in that: This includes a mobile chassis, a robotic arm for harvesting, a sorting and packing mechanism, and a fruit box transfer mechanism; The harvesting robotic arm is mounted on the mobile chassis, and the end of the harvesting robotic arm is equipped with a recognition camera and an end effector. The sorting and packing mechanism includes a fruit roller, a screening roller, a fruit chute, and a fruit box conveyor belt. One end of the fruit roller is an upward-curved fruit-placement end. Multiple screening rollers are arranged sequentially on the fruit roller along the fruit rolling direction. Each screening roller is driven to rotate by a roller drive device. Each screening roller has a circular through hole. Each screening roller has a fruit chute inside it. Each screening roller has a fruit box conveyor belt below it. Each fruit box conveyor belt is driven by a first drive device and can operate independently. Each fruit box conveyor belt has a weight sensor inside it. The fruit box conveyor belt is used to place fruit boxes. The end of the fruit chute extends out of the screening roller and is located above the fruit box conveyor belt, used to guide the fruit into the fruit box under the action of gravity. The fruit box transfer mechanism includes a fruit box transfer conveyor belt and a fruit box slide. The fruit box transfer conveyor belt is located at the end of each fruit box conveyor belt and is driven by a fruit box transfer conveyor belt drive device. A weight sensor is installed inside the fruit box transfer conveyor belt. The fruit box slide is located at the end of the fruit box transfer conveyor belt and is used to guide the fruit boxes on the fruit box transfer conveyor belt to the ground. The first driving device includes a fruit box conveyor belt drive motor, a drive shaft, and a grading control mechanism. The output shaft of the fruit box conveyor belt drive motor is connected to the drive shaft via a coupling. The grading control mechanism includes a ratchet, a pawl, and a conveyor belt drive wheel. Each conveyor belt drive wheel is rotatably mounted on the drive shaft, and each conveyor belt drive wheel is provided with a pawl. The drive shaft is fixedly provided with a ratchet corresponding to each pawl. Each pawl is connected to a rotary motor, which drives the pawl to rotate to engage or disengage with the ratchet. When the corresponding pawls engage with the ratchet, the rotation of the drive shaft can drive the conveyor belt drive wheel to rotate, thereby driving the fruit box conveyor belt to operate.

2. The automatic apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation according to claim 1, characterized in that: The circular through holes on the same screening roller are of equal size, and the circular through holes on each screening roller gradually increase in size along the fruit rolling direction.

3. The automatic apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fruit roller between two adjacent screening rollers is inclined downwards from the end closer to the screening roller of the previous level to the end closer to the screening roller of the next level.

4. The automatic apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation according to claim 1, characterized in that: The roller drive device includes a chain drive motor, a chain, a drive sprocket, a driven sprocket, and roller drive rollers. The chain drive motor is mounted on the mobile chassis. The drive sprocket is fixed to the output shaft of the chain drive motor. Each of the screening rollers has a roller drive roller on each side of its bottom. One end of each roller drive roller is fixed with a driven sprocket. The chain drive connects the drive sprocket and each driven sprocket.

5. The automatic apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation according to claim 4, characterized in that: The roller drive wheel is rotatably connected to the support base, and the bottom of the support base is slidably fitted onto the slide rail on the movable chassis via a sliding sleeve. The sliding sleeve and the slide rail are fixed together by locking screws.

6. The automatic apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fruit box conveyor belt is equipped with a fruit box baffle on the side away from the fruit box conveyor belt to prevent the fruit boxes transported by the fruit box conveyor belt from falling off the fruit box conveyor belt.

7. The automatic apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation according to claim 1, characterized in that: The fruit box slide is connected to the movable chassis via hinges. The movable chassis is fixedly provided with a fruit box slide support seat and a fruit box slide fixing seat. When the fruit box slide is lowered, it is supported on the fruit box slide support seat. When the fruit box slide is raised and retracted, the fruit box slide and the fruit box slide fixing seat are fixedly connected by bolts.

8. The automatic apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation according to claim 1, characterized in that: The mobile chassis is equipped with two harvesting robotic arms, and the fruit rollers are arranged in sequence along the fruit rolling direction.

9. The automatic apple picking vehicle integrating picking, sorting, packing, and transportation according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a central control computer, and the picking robotic arm, the recognition camera, the end effector, the roller drive device, the first drive device, each of the weight sensors and the fruit box transfer conveyor belt drive device are electrically connected to the central control computer.

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