Pick-up method, pick-up device and pick-up system

Abstract

The invention provides a pickup method, a pickup apparatus and a pickup system. In the pick-up method, a plate (31) having a columnar protrusion (310) on the upper surface thereof is brought close to the lower surface of a tray (40), the protrusion (310) is brought into contact with a rod (502), a head (501) is pushed upward above the upper surface of the tray (40), and the head (501) is held by a manipulator (33).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a picking method, a picking device, and a picking system. Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a component conveying system that adjusts the posture of a component during the conveyance of a component having a rod portion and a head portion. Patent Document 2 discloses a workpiece holding device that is fixed to an arm of a picking robot and holds a tube stored in a tube rack by a finger member.

[0003] Prior Art Documents

[0004] Patent Documents

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2016 - 23079

[0006] Patent Document 2: Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2004 - 223674 Summary of the Invention

[0007] Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0008] In addition, depending on the component having a rod portion and a head portion, there is a case where the head does not sufficiently protrude from the storage portion in a state where the component is stored in the storage portion, and it is difficult to hold the head.

[0009] An object of one aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a picking method capable of easily holding the head of a component.

[0010] Means for Solving the Problems

[0011] In order to solve the above problems, in a picking method according to one aspect of the present disclosure, a robot hand picks up a component from a tray based on the control of a control device. In the component, a rod portion extends from a head. The tray has a recess on an upper surface that can internally store the head, and has a through hole that penetrates from the recess to a lower surface and can store the rod portion. The picking method includes a first step in which a plate having a columnar protrusion on an upper surface is brought close to a lower surface of the tray, the protrusion is brought into contact with the rod portion, and the head is pushed upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray. In addition, the picking method includes a second step in which the robot hand holds the head that has been pushed upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray.

[0012] In order to solve the above problems, a pick-up device according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a control device, a tray, a plate, a lifting unit, and a robot hand. The tray has a concave portion on its upper surface that can accommodate the head of a component inside, and has a through-hole that penetrates from the concave portion to the lower surface and can accommodate the stem portion of the component. In the component, the stem portion extends from the head. The plate is disposed at a position below the lower surface of the tray and has a columnar protrusion on its upper surface. The lifting unit moves the plate or the tray up and down. The control device controls the lifting unit to bring the plate close to the lower surface of the tray, bring the protrusion into contact with the stem portion, and push the head upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray. The control device causes the robot hand to hold the pushed-up head.

[0013] Effect of the Invention

[0014] According to an aspect of the present disclosure, it is possible to easily hold the head of a component. Description of the Drawings

[0015] Figure 1 It is a system configuration diagram schematically showing an example of a pick-up system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0016] Figure 2 It is a top view of the tray.

[0017] Figure 3 It is a flowchart showing the process of a pick-up method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0018] Figure 4 It is a diagram for explaining the preparation process.

[0019] Figure 5 It is a diagram for explaining the pick-up process. Detailed Description of the Embodiment

[0020] (Structure of the Pick-up System)

[0021] Figure 1 It is a system configuration diagram schematically showing an example of a pick-up system according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 1 The shown pick-up system 1 is a system for picking up the screw 50 accommodated in the tray 40 from the tray 40.

[0022] The screw 50 has a head 501 and a stem portion 502, and the stem portion 502 extends from the head 501. The tray 40 is formed of a relatively soft raw material such as resin, and even if the screw 50 collides with the tray 40, the screw 50 is not easily damaged. The tray 40 has a plurality of storage portions 41 on its upper surface, and the screw 50 can be stored in the storage portion 41. The tray 40 will be described in detail later.

[0023] The picking system 1 includes a storage device 10, a conveying device 20, a picking device 30, and a control device 60. The storage device 10 has a feeder 11, a vibrating conveyor 12, and a scraper 13. The feeder 11 supplies screws 50 to the upper surface of a tray 40 disposed on the vibrating conveyor 12. The vibrating conveyor 12 vibrates the tray 40 up and down. By the vibration generated by the vibrating conveyor 12, the screws 50 move above the tray 40. A part of the screws 50 supplied from the feeder 11 is stored in the storage portion 41. In addition, the vibrating conveyor 12 conveys the tray 40 to the conveying device 20. A scraper 13 is disposed at the downstream portion of the vibrating conveyor 12. The scraper 13 scrapes off the screws 50 remaining on the upper surface of the tray 40 and not stored in the storage portion 41 from the upper surface of the tray 40.

[0024] The conveying device 20 has a conveying conveyor 21, a conveying elevator 22, and a conveying conveyor 23. The conveying conveyor 21 conveys the tray 40 storing the screws 50 in the storage portion 41 to the conveying elevator 22. The conveying elevator 22 can hold a predetermined number of trays 40 conveyed by the conveying conveyor 21. The conveying elevator 22 sends out a part of the trays 40 held by it to the conveying conveyor 23.

[0025] The conveying conveyor 23 conveys the tray 40 from the conveying elevator 22 to a specified placement portion A. The placement portion A is the position where the screws 50 are picked up from the tray 40. In Figure 1 it, the placement portion A is a hole with a rectangular opening.

[0026] Hereinafter, as shown by the arrow in Figure 1 the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction are defined. The X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction are directions parallel to both sides of the opening of the placement portion A. The Z-axis direction is the direction orthogonal to the opening of the placement portion A and is the so-called up-and-down direction. The placement portion A is a through-hole penetrating in the up-and-down direction. The tray 40 is conveyed to the placement portion A along the X-axis direction. The dimension of the tray 40 in the Y-axis direction is longer than the dimension of the opening of the placement portion A in the Y-axis direction, and the tray 40 conveyed along the X-axis direction does not fall inside the placement portion A. The tray 40 is disposed on the placement portion A so as to cover the opening of the placement portion A. At this time, in a top view, all the storage portions 41 of the tray 40 are located inside the opening of the placement portion A.

[0027] The picking device 30 picks up the screws 50 from the tray 40 conveyed to the placement portion A. The picking device 30 has a plate 31, a lifting portion 32, a manipulator 33, a force sensor 34, and a robotic arm 35.

[0028] On the upper surface of the plate 31, columnar protrusions 310 are arranged. The upper surface of the plate 31 has a shape that can be inserted into the placement portion A from below. The protrusions 310 are arranged in the same manner as the storage portions 41 in the tray 40. For example, when 4×3 storage portions 41 are arranged two-dimensionally on the upper surface of the tray 40 at a prescribed interval, 4×3 protrusions 310 are arranged on the upper surface of the plate 31 at the same prescribed interval as the storage portions 41. The lifting portion 32 has the plate 31 corresponding to the tray 40 placed on its upper part, and moves the plate 31 placed on the upper part of the lifting portion 32 in the Z-axis direction (vertical direction).

[0029] The robot hand 33 is provided at the front end of the robot arm 35. The robot arm 35 is, for example, a multi-joint arm and is supported in such a way that the position and posture of the robot hand 33 can be changed. The robot hand 33 has a gripping portion 330 and a screwdriver 331. The gripping portion 330 can grip the head 501 of the screw 50. The screwdriver 331 is an example of a tool, and is, for example, a cross screwdriver provided so as to be rotatable relative to the gripping portion 330. The force sensor 34 detects the force applied to the robot hand 33 from the screw 50.

[0030] The robot hand 33 rotates the screwdriver 331 relative to the head 501 of the screw 50 gripped by the gripping portion 330, and at the same time uses the force sensor 34 to detect the force applied to the robot hand 33 from the head 501, and mounts the screwdriver 331 on the head 501 of the screw 50. Mounting the screwdriver 331 on the head 501 of the screw 50 means, for example, making the cross-shaped front end of the screwdriver 331, which is a cross screwdriver, fit into the cross hole provided in the head 501. When the screwdriver 331 is mounted on the head 501 of the screw 50, for example, when the front end of the screwdriver 331 fits properly into the cross hole of the head 501, the force F in the Z-axis direction applied to the robot hand 33 detected by the force sensor 34 is below a prescribed threshold value Th. When the front end of the screwdriver 331 does not fit into the cross hole of the head 501, the force F detected by the force sensor 34 exceeds the threshold value Th.

[0031] The control device 60 includes a processor 61, a primary memory 62, and a secondary memory 63. The processor 61 is constituted by, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The processor 61 may also be constituted by a GPU (Graphic Processing Unit), a DSP (Digital Signal Processor), an MPU (Micro Processing Unit), an FPU (Floating point number Processing Unit), a PPU (Physics Processing Unit), a microcontroller, or a combination thereof. The primary memory 62 is constituted by, for example, a semiconductor RAM (Random Access Memory). The secondary memory 63 is constituted by, for example, a flash memory, an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), an ODD (Optical Disk Drive), or a combination thereof.

[0032] The processor 61 expands the program P stored in the secondary memory 63 on the primary memory 62. Then, the processor 61 controls each part of the storage device 10, the conveyance device 20, and the pickup device 30 according to the commands included in the program P expanded on the primary memory 62. In addition, in the present embodiment, a configuration in which each part of the pickup system 1 is controlled by a single processor (processor 61) is adopted, but it is not limited thereto. That is, a configuration in which each part of the pickup system 1 is controlled by a plurality of processors may also be adopted. In this case, the plurality of processors that cooperatively control each part of the pickup system 1 may be provided in a single computer and configured to be able to communicate with each other, or may be dispersedly provided in a plurality of computers and configured to be able to communicate with each other via a network. As an example, consider a form in which a processor built into a computer constituting a cloud server and a processor built into a computer owned by a user of the cloud server cooperatively execute the program P.

[0033] Figure 2 It is a top view of the tray. In Figure 2 In the shown tray 40, the storage portions 41 are two-dimensionally arranged at a predetermined interval such that there are 4 in the X-axis direction and 3 in the Y-axis direction. Each of the plurality of storage portions 41 has a recess 411 and a through hole 412. The diameter of the recess 411 of the storage portion 41 is, for example, larger than Figure 1The diameter of the head 501 of the screw 50 shown. The through-hole 412 penetrates through the tray 40 from the recess 411 to the lower surface of the tray 40. The diameter of the through-hole 412 is, for example, smaller than the diameter of the head 501 of the screw 50 and larger than the diameter of the shaft portion 502. In a state where the screw 50 is received in the tray 40, the head 501 is received inside the recess 411, and the shaft portion 502 is received inside the through-hole 412. The head 501 of the screw 50 is located at a position lower than the upper surface of the tray 40 in a state of being received inside the recess 411. Therefore, the screw 50 received inside the recess 411 will not be removed from the tray 40 by the wiper 13. In a state where the head 501 is not received inside the recess 411, for example, in a state where the shaft portion 502 of the screw 50 is caught by the recess 411, the screw 50 is removed from the tray 40 by the wiper 13. The receiving portion 41 of the tray 40 is configured to be able to receive the screw 50 in such a manner that the head 501 of the screw 50 is located at a position lower than the upper surface of the tray 40. Therefore, the receiving device 10 of the picking system 1 can remove the screw 50 remaining on the upper surface of the tray 40 without being received in the receiving portion 41 by the wiper 13.

[0034] (Picking method)

[0035] Figure 3 It is a flowchart showing the process of the picking method according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 3 The picking method shown is executed by controlling each part of the picking system 1 by the control device 60 executing the program P. Figure 3 The picking method shown has a receiving process S100, a conveying process S200, a preparation process S300, and a picking process S400.

[0036] (Receiving process S100)

[0037] In the receiving process S100, the receiving device 10 receives the screw 50 in the receiving portion 41 of the tray 40. When the tray 40 is disposed on the vibrating conveyor 12, the feeder 11 supplies the screw 50 to the upper surface of the tray 40. The vibrating conveyor 12 vibrates the tray 40 for a predetermined time to move the screw 50 on the tray 40. When the screw 50 moves toward the position of the receiving portion 41 by the vibration generated by the vibrating conveyor 12, the shaft portion 502 is guided along the recess 411 to the through-hole 412, and the shaft portion 502 is inserted into the through-hole 412. The head 501 of the screw 50 with the shaft portion 502 inserted into the through-hole 412 is received inside the recess 411.

[0038] After the tray 40 has been vibrated for a specified time, the vibrating conveyor 12 conveys the tray 40 toward the conveying device 20. A wiper 13 is disposed at a downstream portion of the vibrating conveyor 12. The wiper 13 scrapes off the screws 50 that are not stored in the storage portion 41 but remain on the tray 40 from the tray 40. The screws 50 scraped off by the wiper 13 fall, for example, into a storage box (not shown) disposed under the vibrating conveyor 12. The screws 50 that have fallen into the storage box are sent back to the feeder 11. The tray 40 is sent out from the vibrating conveyor 12 to the conveying device 20. Hereinafter, a case where all the screws 50 are stored in the storage portion 41 provided on the upper surface of the tray 40 will be described.

[0039] (Conveying process S200)

[0040] In the conveying process S200, the conveying device 20 conveys the tray 40 toward the placing portion A. The transfer conveyor 21 conveys the tray 40 sent out from the vibrating conveyor 12 to the transfer elevator 22. The transfer elevator 22 holds a specified number of trays 40. The transfer elevator 22 sends out some of the trays 40 held thereby to the transfer conveyor 23. The transfer conveyor 23 conveys the tray 40 from the transfer elevator 22 to the placing portion A.

[0041] (Preparation process S300)

[0042] Figure 4 FIG. is for explaining the preparation process S300. The preparation process S300 is an example of the first process. In the preparation process S300, preparations for picking up the screws 50 using the robot 33 are made. For example, when the tray 40 is conveyed to the placing portion A, the lifting portion 32 moves the plate 31 upward, so that the plate 31 approaches the tray 40. The plate 31 enters the placing portion A from below, and its protruding portion 310 abuts against the rod portion 502 of the screw 50. After the protruding portion 310 abuts against the rod portion 502, the lifting portion 32 further raises the plate 31, thereby lifting the screw 50 upward. As a result, the head 501 of the screw 50 is pushed out from the recess 411 of the tray 40.

[0043] (Picking-up process S400)

[0044] Figure 5 FIG. is for explaining the picking-up process S400. The picking-up process S400 is an example of the second process. In Figure 5Among them, the head 501 of the screw 50 is pushed out from the recess 411 of the tray 40. In the picking process S400, the robot hand 33 picks up the screw 50 from the tray 40. The control device 60 drives the robotic arm 35 to move the robot hand 33 to the position of one of the storage parts 41 in the tray 40. Then, the control device 60 grips the head 501 of the corresponding one of the screws 50 by the gripping part 330 of the robot hand 33. The control device 60 makes the screwdriver 331 abut against the head 501 of the screw 50 and rotates the screwdriver 331 relative to the gripping part 330. The control device 60 detects the force F in the Z-axis direction applied to the robot hand 33 from the screw 50 by the force sensor 34. The control device 60 stops the screwdriver 331, for example, at a position where the force F detected by the force sensor 34 is equal to or less than a specified threshold Th. When the force F detected by the force sensor 34 is equal to or less than the specified threshold Th, the control device 60 determines that the screwdriver 331 is installed on the screw 50, moves the robot hand 33 upward, and pulls out the screw 50 from the storage part 41. When the force F detected by the force sensor 34 exceeds the specified threshold Th, the control device 60 determines that the screwdriver 331 is not installed on the screw 50. In the case where the force F detected by the force sensor 34 does not become equal to or less than the specified threshold Th even after the screwdriver 331 is rotated for more than one week, the control device 60 determines that the screw 50 is not properly stored in the storage part 41, and the picking of the screw 50 can be aborted. The case where the screw 50 is not properly stored in the storage part 41 is, for example, a state where the rod part 502 of the screw 50 has fallen into the recess 411. The screws 50 that are not picked up and remain on the tray 40 can be returned to the feeder 11 by using a return conveyor or the like, for example.

[0045] 〔Modification example〕

[0046] In the above-described embodiment, twelve storage parts 41 are two-dimensionally arranged on the upper surface of the tray 40 in the X-axis direction and the Y-axis direction. It is sufficient that at least one storage part 41 is provided on the tray 40, and the number of the storage parts 41 is not limited to twelve. In addition, the positions where the storage parts 41 are provided do not necessarily need to be arranged at equal intervals, and can be arranged in an arbitrary shape on the upper surface of the tray 40.

[0047] In the above-described embodiment, it has been described that the screws 50 are all stored in the storage portions 41 of the tray 40 in the storage process S100, but it is not limited thereto. In the storage process S100, the control device 60 controls the storage device 10, and it may be set that the screws 50 are stored in all the storage portions 41, or it may be set that even when the screws 50 are not stored in all the storage portions 41 at the moment when the tray 40 reaches the downstream of the vibrating conveyor 12, the tray 40 is sent to the conveying device 20. In the conveying process S200 and the preparation process S300, the control device 60 can detect whether the screws 50 are stored at each position of the storage portion 41 of the tray 40. For example, infrared light or the like can be irradiated from below the tray 40, and for a position where infrared light or the like can be received through the storage portion 41, it is determined as a position where the screw 50 is not stored. The light source for irradiating infrared light or the like can be provided, for example, at the front end of the protruding portion 310, or can be provided around the protruding portion 310. A light source can also be provided on the robot 33, and a light receiving portion can be provided on the plate 31. In addition, a sensor for detecting the contact of the rod portion 502 of the screw 50 can be provided at the front end of the protruding portion 310.

[0048] In the above-described embodiment, the feeder 11 supplies the screws 50 to the upper surface of the tray 40 disposed on the vibrating conveyor 12. However, the place where the feeder 11 supplies the screws 50 to the upper surface of the tray 40 is not limited to the vibrating conveyor 12. For example, the feeder 11 can also supply the screws 50 to the upper surface of the tray 40 at a place more upstream than the vibrating conveyor 12.

[0049] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, after the vibrating conveyor 12 supplies the screws 50 to the tray 40 from the feeder 11, the tray 40 is vibrated for a predetermined time at this place, and then the tray 40 is conveyed to the conveying device 20. However, after the vibrating conveyor 12 supplies the screws 50 to the tray 40 from the feeder 11, the tray 40 can be conveyed to the conveying device 20 while vibrating the tray 40.

[0050] In the above-described embodiment, in the preparation process, by raising the plate 31 by using the elevating portion 32, the plate 31 and the tray 40 are brought closer, and the protruding portion 310 is brought into contact with the rod portion 502 of the screw 50. However, the method of bringing the protruding portion 310 into contact with the rod portion 502 is not limited to raising the plate 31 by using the elevating portion 32. For example, the relative position of the plate 31 with respect to the tray 40 can be changed by lowering the tray 40 with respect to the plate 31 fixed at a predetermined position of the mounting portion A by the elevating portion provided on the mounting portion A.

[0051] In the above-described embodiment, the protrusions 310 of the plate 31 are arranged in the same manner as the storage portions 41 of the tray 40, but it is not limited thereto. For example, it may be arranged such that one protrusion 310 corresponds to a plurality of storage portions 41. In the case where one protrusion 310 corresponds to a plurality of storage portions 41, a recess that fits with the protrusion may be provided on the lower surface side of the tray 40.

[0052] In the above-described embodiment, it is assumed that the picking device 30 picks up the screw 50 from the tray 40. However, the component picked up by the picking device 30 from the tray 40 may be any component having a rod portion extending from the head, and is not limited to a screw. The component picked up by the picking device 30 may be, for example, a screw rod, a bolt, a crimp terminal, etc. In the case where the component picked up by the picking device 30 is a crimp terminal, the head is a connecting portion that can be riveted to wiring or the like, and the rod portion is the front end portion inserted into a connector or fixed to a terminal block. The tool provided on the robot hand 33 is not limited to the screwdriver 331 and can be changed according to the component to be picked up. For example, in the case where the component to be picked up is a bolt, the robot hand 33 may have a wrench corresponding to the head shape of the bolt as a tool. Further, in the case where the component to be picked up is a crimp terminal, the robot hand 33 may have a crimping tool for riveting the crimp terminal to a wire or the like. The robot hand 33 can switch the tool according to the component to be picked up under the control of the control device 60.

[0053] In the above-described embodiment, the force sensor 34 detects the force F in the Z-axis direction that the robot hand 33 receives from the screw 50. However, the force sensor 34 may also detect the force in the X-axis direction and the force in the Y-axis direction that the robot hand 33 receives from the screw 50. When the force sensor 34 detects the forces (FX, FY, FZ) in the X-axis direction, the Y-axis direction, and the Z-axis direction, it may be that in the picking process S400, when the forces (FX, FY, FZ) each become equal to or less than the thresholds (ThX, ThY, ThZ) in their respective directions, the control device 60 determines that the screwdriver 331 is attached to the screw 50. When at least one of the forces (FX, FY, FZ) exceeds the thresholds (ThX, ThY, ThZ) in their respective directions, the control device 60 may determine that the screwdriver 331 is not attached to the screw 50. When the forces (FX, FY, FZ) detected by the force sensor 34 after the screwdriver 331 has been rotated more than one full turn still do not become equal to or less than the thresholds (ThX, ThY, ThZ) in their respective directions, the control device 60 determines that the screw 50 is not properly stored in the storage portion 41 and may abort the picking of the screw 50. In addition, the force sensor 34 may detect the magnitudes of the torques (MX, MY, MZ) about the axes of the X-axis, the Y-axis, and the Z-axis. When the tip of the screwdriver 331 is properly engaged with the cross-hole of the head 501 of the screw 50, it is detected that the torque MZ about the Z-axis is large. Thus, it may be that in the picking process S400, when the torque MZ about the Z-axis exceeds a specified threshold, the control device 60 determines that the screwdriver 331 is attached to the screw 50.

[0054] In the above-described embodiment, in the storage process S100, the storage device 10 stores the screw 50 in the storage portion 41 of the tray 40. However, the method of storing the screw 50 in the tray 40 is not limited to the method using the storage device 10, and any method can be used.

[0055] In the above-described embodiment, in the conveying process S200, the conveying device 20 conveys the tray 40 to the placement portion A. However, the method of conveying the tray 40 to the placement portion A is not limited to the method using the conveying device 20, and any method can be used.

[0056] 〔Solution〕

[0057] (Solution 1) A picking method, in which a mechanical arm picks up components from a tray based on the control of a control device. Among the components, a rod portion extends from the head. The tray has a recess on the upper surface that can receive the head inside, and has a through hole that penetrates from the recess to the lower surface and can receive the rod portion. This picking method includes: a first step, in which a plate having a columnar protrusion on the upper surface is brought close to the lower surface of the tray, the protrusion is brought into contact with the rod portion, and the head is pushed upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray; and a second step, in which the mechanical arm grips the head that has been pushed upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray.

[0058] According to the above embodiment, since the head of the component is pushed upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray, the head of the component can be easily gripped by the mechanical arm.

[0059] (Solution 2) The picking method according to Solution 1, wherein the mechanical arm has a gripping portion for gripping the component and a tool corresponding to the component. In the second step, the control device rotates the tool relative to the head gripped by the gripping portion while using a force sensor to detect the force applied to the mechanical arm from the head, and installs the tool on the head based on the force detected by the force sensor.

[0060] According to the above embodiment, since the tool is installed on the head of the gripped component, after transporting the gripped component to a specified position, the installation operation can be performed quickly. Thus, the man-hours for the installation operation of the component can be reduced.

[0061] (Solution 3) A picking device, which includes: a control device; a tray, which has a recess on the upper surface that can receive the head of the component inside, and has a through hole that penetrates from the recess to the lower surface and can receive the rod portion of the component. Among the components, the rod portion extends from the head; a plate, which is arranged at a position below the lower surface of the tray and has a columnar protrusion on the upper surface; a lifting portion, which moves the plate or the tray up and down; and a mechanical arm. The control device controls the lifting portion to bring the plate close to the lower surface of the tray, bring the protrusion into contact with the rod portion, push the head upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray, and make the mechanical arm grip the pushed-up head.

[0062] According to the above embodiment, since the head of the component is pushed upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray, a picking device can be provided that can easily grip the head of the component by the mechanical arm.

[0063] (Solution 4) A picking system, wherein the picking system includes: the picking device described in Solution 3; and a storage device that supplies components to the upper surface of the tray and stores the components in the tray.

[0064] According to the above-described embodiments, a picking system can be provided in which, since the head of the component is pushed upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray, the head of the component can be easily grasped by the robot hand.

[0065] The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications can be made within the scope shown in the claims. Embodiments obtained by appropriately combining technical means separately disclosed in different embodiments are also included in the technical scope of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A picking method, in which a robot picks up a component from a tray based on control of a control device, wherein: In the component, a stem portion extends from the head portion, The tray has a recessed portion on the upper surface capable of receiving the head portion therein, and has a through hole penetrating from the recessed portion toward the lower surface and capable of receiving the rod portion. The picking method includes: a first step in which a plate having a columnar protrusion on its upper surface is brought close to the lower surface of the tray, the protrusion is brought into contact with the rod, and the head is pushed upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray; and and a second step of causing the robot hand to grip the head portion that has been pushed up to a position above the upper surface of the tray.

2. The picking method according to claim 1, wherein: The robot arm has a gripping portion for gripping the component and a tool corresponding to the component. In the second step, the control device rotates the tool relative to the head gripped by the gripping portion while detecting a force applied from the head to the robot arm using a force sensor, and mounts the tool on the head based on the force detected by the force sensor.

3. A picking device, wherein: The pickup device has: Control devices; A tray having a recessed portion on the upper surface capable of accommodating a head of a component therein, and having a through hole penetrating from the recessed portion toward the lower surface and capable of accommodating a rod of the component, wherein the rod extends from the head; a plate disposed below the lower surface of the tray and having a columnar protrusion on the upper surface; a lifting part that moves the plate or the tray up and down; and Robotic arm, The control device controls the lifting part to bring the plate closer to the lower surface of the tray, to make the protrusion abut against the rod, to push the head upward to a position above the upper surface of the tray, and to make the robot grip the pushed head.

4. A picking system, wherein: The picking system has: The pickup device according to claim 3; and A storage device supplies components to an upper surface of the tray and stores the components in the tray.

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