Intelligent loading and unloading robot and working method thereof

Abstract

An intelligent loading and unloading robot comprises a storage part, a moving assembly, an interaction assembly and a control assembly, the storage part can load workpieces in an object loading area A, a weighing sensor is preferably installed at the bottom of the storage part, and the weighing sensor is connected with the control assembly; the moving assembly comprises a laser radar and a wheel type chassis, the laser radar, the storage part, the interaction assembly and the control assembly are all installed on the wheel type chassis, the laser radar and the interaction assembly are connected with the control assembly, and the wheel type chassis is connected with the control assembly through a driver; the interaction assembly comprises a display screen, an operation key and a job number verification module, the interaction assembly allows workers to manually input the pick-up job number, the number of picked-up items and the number of non-picked-up items, and each worker is provided with a response module bound with the job number of the worker. According to the invention, workpieces can be automatically lifted and conveyed to each station and accurately arrive at each station, and the number of the workpieces taken by the station is detected; and due to multiple interaction functions, the number of parcels taken by each worker can be conveniently counted.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of robots, and in particular to an intelligent loading and unloading robot and a working method thereof. Background Art

[0002] Workers in the workshop manufacture or assemble products in batches. Products are often composed of multiple workpieces. When skilled workers operate, their progress is similar. Therefore, it is very easy for multiple people to need to obtain the same workpiece at the same time. If each person takes the workpiece by himself, production efficiency will be greatly reduced. Therefore, it is considered to uniformly deliver workpieces to each workstation and workers take workpieces as needed.

[0003] Therefore, a method has been developed to centrally load one type of workpiece from the item loading area A and transport it to each workstation. However, round-trip transportation alone cannot meet the collection needs of all workers. If a worker takes too much, the following workstation may not be able to obtain the workpiece, but this situation may not be discovered until it is the turn of the following workstation. Therefore, they have to return to reload the workpiece, which will result in a long round-trip journey. Currently, there is an urgent need for an intelligent loading and unloading robot that can automatically load and transport workpieces and has the function of recording and analyzing the quantity taken by each workstation, so as to select the best transportation method according to the remaining number of workpieces. Summary of the invention

[0004] To solve the above problems, the present invention proposes an intelligent loading and unloading robot and a working method thereof, which can automatically deliver workpieces to each workstation and improve work efficiency; through laser radar and weighing sensors, it can accurately reach each workstation and detect the number of items picked up at the workstation; it provides a variety of interactive functions, and corresponds the number of items picked up at each workstation with the work number of the person picking up the items, so as to facilitate the counting of the number of items picked up by each worker.

[0005] The technical solution of the present invention is as follows:

[0006] A loading and unloading intelligent robot, comprising a storage part, a moving component, an interactive component and a control component.

[0007] The storage part can load workpieces in the article loading area A. The storage part is preferably equipped with a weighing sensor at the bottom, and the weighing sensor is connected to the control component;

[0008] The mobile component includes a laser radar and a wheeled chassis, the laser radar, the storage part, the interactive component and the control component are all installed on the wheeled chassis, the laser radar and the interactive component are respectively connected to the control component, and the wheeled chassis is connected to the control component through a driver;

[0009] The interactive component includes a display screen, operation buttons and a work number verification module. The interactive component allows workers to manually enter the pickup work number, the number of items picked up and the number of items not picked up. Each worker is equipped with a response module bound to his or her own work number, and the work number verification module can read the response module information.

[0010] Furthermore, the work number verification module includes an NFC card reader, and the response module includes an NFC tag, and the NFC tag only stores the work number information of the carrier.

[0011] Furthermore, the laser radar adopts a two-dimensional laser radar.

[0012] A working method based on the above-mentioned intelligent loading and unloading robot comprises the following steps:

[0013] Step 1: The intelligent loading and unloading robot scans the loading area A and the workstation area in advance with a laser radar, draws a map and marks the loading area A and the positions of each workstation, and formulates a transportation route passing through all marked positions;

[0014] Step 2: The intelligent loading and unloading robot loads the workpieces in the item loading area A, and the weighing sensor detects the total weight and calculates the number of loaded workpieces. When the number of loaded workpieces exceeds the expected number of workpieces, the loading is stopped;

[0015] Step 3: The intelligent loading and unloading robot stops at the marked positions in sequence according to the transportation path, waiting for the worker to directly take out the workpiece. The control component continuously collects the weighing sensor data. If the weighing sensor data does not change for a period longer than T, the weight change from the last marked position to the current position is calculated to obtain the number of workpieces taken out at the current station and the number of remaining workpieces, and to determine whether the remaining number of workpieces can be fully allocated to the nth station. If it can, it will continue to go to the next marked position. If not, it will return to the item loading area A to replenish the workpiece, skip the station where the workpiece has been taken, and go to the next marked position;

[0016] Step 4: Repeat step 3 until the worker at the nth workstation takes out the workpiece, and then the intelligent loading and unloading robot returns to the item loading area A to wait.

[0017] As described above, when a worker goes to another workstation to pick up a piece, the following method A can be used to pick up the piece:

[0018] After the off-site worker takes out the workpiece, he manually enters the work number and the number of pieces taken through the interactive component, and then leaves. The normal picking up of workers at the current workstation is not affected.

[0019] According to the working method of the loading and unloading intelligent robot described above, the response of the loading and unloading intelligent robot to the pickup method A includes:

[0020] While the intelligent loading and unloading robot is running according to step 3, it obtains the number of items picked up by the offside worker from the input data of the interactive component, and records the work number of the offside worker and the work number of the current workstation.

[0021] As described above, when workers go to other workstations to pick up items, they can also adopt the following pickup method B:

[0022] The worker at the current workstation stops picking up items, and the off-site worker first touches his or her response module to connect with the work number verification module for the first time, then takes out the workpiece and leaves directly; the worker at the current workstation then touches his or her response module to connect with the work number verification module for the second time and continues picking up items.

[0023] According to the working method of the loading and unloading intelligent robot described above, the response of the loading and unloading intelligent robot to the pickup method B includes:

[0024] The intelligent loading and unloading robot runs according to step 3. At the first touch connection, step 3 is suspended. At the second touch connection, it continues to run according to step 3. During the time period of two touch connections, the control component obtains the number of items picked up by the offside worker based on the weighing sensor data and records the work numbers bound to the two response modules.

[0025] As described above, in the working method of the intelligent loading and unloading robot, if the number of remaining workpieces is insufficient when the worker takes the workpiece, the following taking method C is adopted:

[0026] Take out all the workpieces, manually enter the pickup number and the number of unpicked pieces through the interactive component, and wait for the intelligent loading and unloading robot to deliver again.

[0027] As described above, the working method of the intelligent loading and unloading robot, the response of the intelligent loading and unloading robot to the pickup method C includes:

[0028] The intelligent loading and unloading robot runs according to step 3. If the interactive component reads that the number of unpicked items is greater than 0 and the weighing sensor data is 0, step 3 is suspended, and the weight change from the last marked position to the current position is calculated to obtain the number of workpieces taken out at the current station, record the work number of the station, return to the item loading area A to replenish the workpieces, and then continue to run according to step 3 from the station.

[0029] The beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0030] 1. Provides an intelligent loading and unloading robot that can automatically deliver workpieces to each workstation, shortening the workers' pickup time, avoiding unnecessary physical exertion, and reducing the workers' pickup burden, thereby improving work efficiency;

[0031] 2. Through laser radar and weighing sensors, it can accurately reach each workstation and detect the number of items picked up at that workstation;

[0032] 3. Provide a variety of interactive functions, and correspond the number of items picked up at each workstation to the work number of the pick-up person, so as to facilitate the statistics of the number of items picked up by each worker;

[0033] 4. A working method for an intelligent loading and unloading robot is provided, which can not only improve the conveying efficiency of workpieces, but also handle various unconventional picking situations including off-site picking, covering most of the picking scenarios;

[0034] 5. The recorded data can be used to further analyze the number of parts picked up at each workstation, making it easier to predict the total demand for workpieces over a period of time. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0035] By reading the detailed description of the preferred embodiments below, the scheme and advantages of the present application will become clear to those skilled in the art. The accompanying drawings are only used to illustrate the preferred embodiments and are not to be considered as limitations of the present invention. In the accompanying drawings:

[0036] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a working scenario of an intelligent loading and unloading robot provided in an embodiment of the present invention.

[0037] Figure 2 for Figure 1 A schematic diagram of a double-row workstation form.

[0038] The meanings of the reference numerals are:

[0039] IR, intelligent loading and unloading robot; A, item loading area. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0040] The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Although the exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure are shown in the accompanying drawings, it should be understood that the present disclosure can be implemented in various forms and should not be limited by the embodiments described herein. On the contrary, these embodiments are provided in order to enable a more thorough understanding of the present disclosure and to fully convey the scope of the present disclosure to those skilled in the art.

[0041] See also Figure 1 , Figure 1 A typical example is used to show a plan view of the article loading area A and n workstations in the working scene of the intelligent loading and unloading robot provided in this embodiment. Although n is not limited in principle, it is generally ≥ 5, which is an advantageous condition for applying this implementation scheme.

[0042] A loading and unloading intelligent robot of the present embodiment is represented by IR, and includes a storage part, a moving component, an interactive component and a control component. The storage part can load workpieces in the article loading area A. The storage part is preferably equipped with a weighing sensor at the bottom, and the weighing sensor is connected to the control component; the moving component includes a laser radar and a wheeled chassis, and the laser radar, storage part, interactive component and control component are all installed on the wheeled chassis, and the laser radar and interactive component are respectively connected to the control component, and the wheeled chassis is connected to the control component through a driver.

[0043] Furthermore, the interactive component includes a display screen, operation buttons and a work number verification module. The interactive component allows workers to manually input the pickup work number, the number of items picked up and the number of items not picked up. Each worker is equipped with a response module bound to his or her own work number, and the work number verification module can read the response module information. If the pickup work number and the number of items picked up are input through the operation buttons, and the number of items not picked up is missing, it is judged as offside pickup; if the pickup work number and the number of items not picked up are input through the operation buttons, and the number of items picked up is missing, it is judged as insufficient workpieces.

[0044] Furthermore, the work number verification module includes an NFC card reader, and the response module includes an NFC tag. The NFC tag only stores the work number information of the carrier, and is evolved from the integration of contactless radio frequency identification (RFID) and interconnection technology, and information can be transmitted by touching. The laser radar uses a two-dimensional laser radar for regional obstacle scanning, and then draws an accurate map, thereby marking the item loading area A and the location of each workstation, and formulating a reasonable transportation path.

[0045] in addition, Figure 2 yes Figure 1 A double-row workstation form is described in detail.

[0046] Further, in order to illustrate the purpose and principle of the present invention in detail, this embodiment provides a working method of the above-mentioned loading and unloading intelligent robot, comprising the following steps:

[0047] Step 1: The intelligent loading and unloading robot scans the item loading area A and the workstation area in advance with a laser radar, draws a map and marks the item loading area A and the locations of each workstation, and develops a transportation route that passes through all marked locations.

[0048] Step 2: The intelligent loading and unloading robot loads the workpieces in the item loading area A. The weighing sensor detects the total weight and calculates the number of loaded workpieces. When the number of loaded workpieces exceeds the expected number of uses, loading is stopped.

[0049] Step 3. The intelligent loading and unloading robots stop at the marked positions in sequence according to the transportation path, waiting for the workers to take out the workpieces directly. The control component continuously collects the weighing sensor data. If the time when the weighing sensor data does not change is greater than T, the weight change from the last marked position to the current position is calculated to obtain the number of workpieces taken out at the current station and the number of remaining workpieces, and determine whether the remaining number of workpieces can be fully allocated to the nth station. If it can, it will continue to go to the next marked position. If not, it will return to the item loading area A to replenish the workpieces, skip the station where the workpieces have been taken, and go to the next marked position.

[0050] Step 4: Repeat step 3 until the worker at the nth workstation takes out the workpiece, and then the intelligent loading and unloading robot returns to the item loading area A to wait.

[0051] The above steps can realize that each workstation can take workpieces as needed and record the number of workpieces taken by each workstation. Based on the pre-drawn map, the intelligent loading and unloading robot can know which marked position it is currently located at and record the number of workpieces taken out at the marked position accordingly.

[0052] Of course, it cannot be guaranteed that every worker has enough time to wait for the workpiece to be delivered. Inevitably, the present invention also focuses on handling abnormal behaviors such as off-site pickup. When a worker goes to another workstation to pick up a workpiece, the following pickup method A can be adopted:

[0053] After the off-site worker takes out the workpiece, he manually enters the work number and the number of pieces taken through the interactive component, and then leaves. The normal picking up of workers at the current workstation is not affected.

[0054] The response of the intelligent loading and unloading robot to the pickup method A includes:

[0055] While the intelligent loading and unloading robot is running according to step 3, it obtains the number of pieces picked up by the offside worker from the input data of the interactive component, and records the work number of the offside worker and the work number of the current workstation. The work number of the workstation is also the work number of the worker at that workstation. Recording the work numbers of both is convenient for later analysis of the worker's behavior trajectory. When counting the pickup data, the number of workpieces taken out at the current workstation (including the offside worker and the worker at this workstation) is calculated through step 3, and then the number of pieces picked up input by the offside worker is subtracted to obtain the number of pieces picked up by the worker at the current workstation, and then the number of pieces picked up by the offside worker during the offside pickup period is calculated to the name of the offside worker.

[0056] When workers go to other workstations to pick up items, they can also use the following pickup method B:

[0057] The worker at the current workstation stops picking up the workpiece, and the offside worker first touches his own answering module with the work number verification module for the first time, then takes out the workpiece and leaves directly; the worker at the current workstation then touches his own answering module with the work number verification module for the second time and continues to pick up the workpiece. That is, the offside worker has the priority to pick up the workpiece, and the worker whose workpiece is picked up by the offside worker stops picking up the workpiece and waits until the offside worker leaves.

[0058] The response of the intelligent loading and unloading robot to the pickup method B includes:

[0059] The intelligent loading and unloading robot runs according to step 3. At the first touch connection, step 3 is suspended. At the second touch connection, it continues to run according to step 3. During the two touch connection time periods, the control component obtains the number of items picked up by the offside worker based on the changes in the weighing sensor data, and records the work numbers bound to the two response modules, thereby determining the work numbers of the offside worker and the worker at the current workstation as a mark of offside pickup. When the second touch connection continues to run according to step 3, the number of workpieces taken out at this workstation is calculated, and then the number of items picked up by the offside worker is subtracted to obtain the number of items picked up by the worker at the current workstation, thereby statistically analyzing the pickup data.

[0060] If the number of remaining workpieces is insufficient when the worker takes the workpieces, the following method C is used for taking the workpieces:

[0061] Take out all the workpieces, manually enter the pickup number and the number of unpicked pieces through the interactive component, and wait for the intelligent loading and unloading robot to deliver again.

[0062] The response of the intelligent loading and unloading robot to the pickup method C includes:

[0063] The loading and unloading intelligent robot runs according to step 3. If the interactive component reads that the number of unpicked items is greater than 0 and the weighing sensor data is 0, step 3 is suspended, and the weight change from the last marked position to the current position is calculated to obtain the number of workpieces taken out of the current station. The work number of the station is recorded, which can be used as a position mark when the number of remaining workpieces is insufficient. After the loading and unloading intelligent robot returns to the item loading area A to replenish the workpieces, it continues to run according to step 3 from the station. When the pickup data is counted, the number of items picked up at the station can be combined based on the number of items picked up twice.

[0064] In addition, the automatic recognition system can also be used to identify abnormal behaviors such as off-site pickup, so as to promptly prompt the person who performs the abnormal behavior, thereby preventing the operator from accidentally or intentionally ignoring the work number verification and information interaction with the robot. For example, a second radar system different from the aforementioned radar system or an image acquisition device can be used to collect the behavior action subject information of each workstation in real time, and the collected behavior action subject information can be compared with the behavior action subject information of each workstation predefined by the system. After determining that it is an abnormal operation that is not the current behavior action subject, a corresponding prompt is issued, thereby preventing the operator from accidentally or intentionally ignoring the work number verification and information interaction with the robot.

[0065] The intelligent loading and unloading robot provided by the present invention can automatically deliver workpieces to each workstation, shorten the workers' pickup time, avoid unnecessary physical exertion, and reduce the workers' pickup burden, thereby improving work efficiency; through laser radar and weighing sensors, it can accurately reach each workstation and detect the number of items picked up at the workstation; it provides a variety of interactive functions, and corresponds the number of items picked up at each workstation to the work number of the picker, so as to facilitate the statistics of the number of items picked up by each worker;

[0066] The working method of the intelligent loading and unloading robot provided by the present invention can not only improve the conveying efficiency of workpieces, but also handle various unconventional picking situations including off-site picking, covering most of the picking scenarios; the recorded data can further analyze the number of pick-ups at each workstation, so as to facilitate the prediction of the total demand for workpieces within a period of time.

[0067] The above is only a preferred specific embodiment of the present invention, but the protection scope of the present invention is not limited thereto. Any changes or substitutions that can be easily thought of by a person skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed by the present invention should be included in the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention shall be based on the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. An intelligent loading and unloading robot, characterized in that: It includes storage parts, mobile components, interactive components and control components. The storage part can load workpieces in the article loading area (A), and the storage part is preferably equipped with a weighing sensor at the bottom, and the weighing sensor is connected to the control component; The mobile component includes a laser radar and a wheeled chassis, the laser radar, the storage part, the interactive component and the control component are all installed on the wheeled chassis, the laser radar and the interactive component are respectively connected to the control component, and the wheeled chassis is connected to the control component through a driver; The interactive component includes a display screen, operation buttons and a work number verification module. The interactive component allows workers to manually enter the pickup work number, the number of items picked up and the number of items not picked up. Each worker is equipped with a response module bound to his or her own work number, and the work number verification module can read the response module information.

2. The intelligent loading and unloading robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The work number verification module includes an NFC card reader, and the response module includes an NFC tag, and the NFC tag only stores the work number information of the carrier.

3. The intelligent loading and unloading robot according to claim 1, characterized in that: The laser radar adopts a two-dimensional laser radar.

4. A working method of the intelligent loading and unloading robot according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The following steps are involved: Step 1: The intelligent loading and unloading robot scans the loading area (A) and the workstation area in advance with a laser radar, draws a map and marks the loading area (A) and the positions of each workstation, and formulates a transportation route passing through all marked positions; Step 2: The intelligent loading and unloading robot loads the workpieces in the article loading area (A), and the weighing sensor detects the total weight and calculates the number of loaded workpieces. When the number of loaded workpieces exceeds the expected number of workpieces, the loading is stopped; Step 3: The intelligent loading and unloading robot stops at the marked positions in sequence according to the transportation path, waiting for the worker to directly take out the workpiece. The control component continuously collects the weighing sensor data. If the weighing sensor data does not change for a period longer than T, the weight change from the last marked position to the current position is calculated to obtain the number of workpieces taken out at the current station and the number of remaining workpieces, and to determine whether the remaining number of workpieces can be fully allocated to the nth station. If it can, it will continue to go to the next marked position. If not, it will return to the item loading area (A) to replenish the workpiece, skip the station where the workpiece has been taken, and go to the next marked position; Step 4: Repeat step 3 until the worker at the nth workstation takes out the workpiece, and then the intelligent loading and unloading robot returns to the item loading area (A) to wait.

5. The working method of the loading and unloading intelligent robot according to claim 4, characterized in that: When a worker goes to another workstation to pick up a piece, he can use the following method A: After the off-site worker takes out the workpiece, he manually enters the work number and the number of pieces taken through the interactive component, and then leaves. The normal picking up of workers at the current workstation is not affected.

6. The working method of the loading and unloading intelligent robot according to claim 5, characterized in that: The response of the intelligent loading and unloading robot to the pickup method A includes: While the intelligent loading and unloading robot is running according to step 3, it obtains the number of items picked up by the offside worker from the input data of the interactive component, and records the work number of the offside worker and the work number of the current workstation.

7. The working method of the loading and unloading intelligent robot according to claim 4, characterized in that: When workers go to other workstations to pick up items, they can also use the following pickup method B: The worker at the current workstation stops picking up items, and the off-site worker first touches his or her response module to connect with the work number verification module for the first time, then takes out the workpiece and leaves directly; the worker at the current workstation then touches his or her response module to connect with the work number verification module for the second time and continues picking up items.

8. The working method of the loading and unloading intelligent robot according to claim 7, characterized in that: The response of the intelligent loading and unloading robot to the pickup method B includes: The intelligent loading and unloading robot runs according to step 3. At the first touch connection, step 3 is suspended. At the second touch connection, it continues to run according to step 3. During the time period of two touch connections, the control component obtains the number of items picked up by the offside worker based on the weighing sensor data and records the work numbers bound to the two response modules.

9. The working method of the loading and unloading intelligent robot according to claim 4, characterized in that: If the number of remaining workpieces is insufficient when the worker takes the workpieces, the following method C is used for taking the workpieces: Take out all the workpieces, manually enter the pickup number and the number of unpicked pieces through the interactive component, and wait for the intelligent loading and unloading robot to deliver again.

10. The working method of the loading and unloading intelligent robot according to claim 9, characterized in that: The response of the intelligent loading and unloading robot to the pickup method C includes: The intelligent loading and unloading robot runs according to step 3. If the interactive component reads that the number of unpicked items is greater than 0 and the weighing sensor data is 0, step 3 is suspended, the weight change from the last marked position to the current position is calculated, the number of workpieces taken out of the current station is obtained, the work number of the station is recorded, and the robot returns to the item loading area (A) to replenish the workpieces, and then continues to run according to step 3 from the station.

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