A movable intelligent garbage classification and recycling robot

Abstract

The present application relates to the field of garbage classification, and particularly relates to a movable intelligent garbage classification and recycling robot, which comprises a mobile platform and a controller, and a garbage disposal box is arranged on the mobile platform; a garbage throwing opening is arranged on the top of the garbage disposal box; a grid, a sorting cavity and a disposal cavity are arranged in the garbage disposal box; an image collector and a sorting mechanical arm are arranged in the sorting cavity; a mechanical claw is arranged on the functional end of the sorting mechanical arm; a conveying assembly is arranged on the claw body of the mechanical claw; a pulverizer is arranged on the functional end of the sorting mechanical arm; a vibration motor is arranged on the grid; a push plate is arranged in the disposal cavity; a driving element for driving the push plate to move is arranged in the disposal cavity; and a box door is arranged on one side of the disposal cavity. The technical scheme of the present application is used for reducing the influence of overlapping and shielding on machine vision observation and improving the space utilization of compression and classification structure.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of waste sorting, and specifically to a mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot. Background Technology

[0002] Waste sorting refers to a series of activities involving the sorting, collection, transportation, and treatment of waste according to certain regulations or standards, thereby transforming it into a public resource. The purpose of waste sorting is to increase the resource and economic value of waste, reduce the amount of waste requiring treatment and the use of treatment equipment, lower treatment costs, and reduce the consumption of land resources, thus providing social, economic, and ecological benefits. During the sorting and storage stage, waste is considered private property. After being sorted and disposed of by the public, waste becomes a regional public resource in the community. Once transported to a waste collection point or transfer station, it becomes a non-exclusive public resource. Looking at the methods of household waste sorting in various cities both domestically and internationally, most are based on the composition and quantity of waste, combined with local waste resource utilization and treatment methods.

[0003] Existing technologies typically employ robotic arms combined with machine vision for waste sorting and classification. For example, patent publication number CN108910365B discloses a waste sorting and recycling robot that uses cameras to capture images and robotic arms to sort, shred, and compact waste. However, the waste dumped by users is usually a mixture of multiple types, with overlapping and obstruction between the waste, which is not conducive to machine vision observation. In addition, the storage chambers for sorting and storing waste in mobile robots take up considerable space, and the waste shredding and compression functions of each storage chamber are difficult to share, resulting in low utilization and inconvenience for mobile deployment. Some small pieces of waste are themselves debris, which are difficult to effectively identify and sort, and also require effective processing. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the aforementioned issues, this invention provides a mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot, which reduces the impact of overlapping obstructions on machine vision observation and improves the space utilization rate of the compression and sorting structure.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the technical solution of the present invention is as follows: A mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot includes a mobile platform and a controller. A waste disposal box is provided on the mobile platform. A waste disposal port is provided on the top of the waste disposal box. A grid is provided inside the waste disposal box. The grid divides the waste disposal box into a sorting chamber and a processing chamber. The sorting chamber is located at the top of the grid, and the processing chamber is located at the bottom of the grid.

[0006] The sorting chamber is equipped with an image acquisition device and a sorting robotic arm. The image acquisition device is used to acquire images of the garbage on the grid. The functional end of the sorting robotic arm is equipped with a mechanical claw. The claw body is equipped with a conveying component. The functional end of the sorting robotic arm is equipped with a shredder. The conveying component is used to convey the garbage held by the mechanical claw to the shredder.

[0007] A vibration motor is installed on the grid, a push plate is installed inside the processing chamber, a drive unit is installed inside the processing chamber to drive the push plate to move, and a door is provided on one side of the processing chamber.

[0008] The controller is used to acquire garbage images collected by the image acquisition device, identify garbage images and classify garbage images, and control the sorting robot arm to sort garbage; during sorting, the controller controls the robot arm to crush a single type of garbage into fragments, and then the vibration motor vibrates to shake the fragments off the grid, and controls the drive component to drive the push plate to move to compress the fragments into garbage blocks.

[0009] The above approach has the following beneficial effects:

[0010] 1. In this solution, the user throws in a certain amount of garbage through the garbage disposal opening. The garbage will accumulate on the grid, which will hold garbage of a certain size. Smaller pieces of garbage will fall directly off the grid into the processing chamber. After cleaning up the initial garbage fragments in the processing chamber, garbage sorting begins.

[0011] 2. In this solution, waste sorting is based on image recognition. The controller analyzes the types of waste on the grid and controls the sorting robot arm to perform the sorting. Sorting is carried out according to the type of waste. Only after all waste of a single type has been sorted from the grid will the next type be sorted. During sorting, the sorting robot arm grips the waste and feeds it into the shredder via a conveying component, where it is shredded into small pieces. Because these small pieces are small, they fall into the processing chamber under the vibration of the vibrating motor. Since all waste of a single type has been removed during sorting, only that type of waste remains in the processing chamber until the next type is sorted. The drive unit then compresses the waste in the processing chamber into smaller pieces using a pusher plate.

[0012] 3. In this solution, the mobile platform enables the waste disposal container to move and travel to various waste bins or waste stations for waste disposal. Because the waste blocks are large, compact, and not easily loosened, and because the mobile platform has limited carrying capacity and a small number of waste blocks, there is no need for separate storage of the waste blocks. Waste is quickly separated based on the waste blocks picked up during unloading from the mobile platform.

[0013] In existing technologies, waste is sorted into separate storage chambers for each type of waste, requiring a dedicated chamber for each type, which takes up considerable space and results in excessively large volumes unsuitable for mobile deployment. Furthermore, to prevent the waste from mixing again after shredding, existing technologies employ separate shredding and compression structures in each storage chamber, leading to extremely low structural reuse rates and high costs. This solution integrates the shredder onto the sorting robotic arm. The sorted waste is shredded into fragments and falls off, while unsorted waste remains intact and is located on a grid, clearly distinguishing the sorted waste from the rest. Sorting and shredding share the same chamber, and different types of waste are stored in blocks, eliminating the need for additional storage chambers, reducing the overall size, and facilitating mobile deployment.

[0014] Furthermore, the controller is used to control the vibration motor to vibrate after garbage is put into the garbage disposal port, so that the debris mixed in the garbage is shaken off the grid. Then, the controller controls the drive unit to drive the push plate to move and push the debris out of the box door.

[0015] Beneficial effects: The garbage may contain small debris that is difficult to identify and sort. Therefore, a vibrating motor is used to shake it off, and a pusher plate is used to push the debris out of the processing chamber.

[0016] Furthermore, the controller is used to control the vibration motor to change the stacking state of the waste on the grid during sorting.

[0017] Beneficial effects: Waste may pile up, causing some of the waste's features to be obscured, making it difficult to effectively identify through images. The vibration motor can continuously vibrate, changing the stacking state of the waste on the grid and reducing the probability of some waste's features being obscured.

[0018] Furthermore, the controller is used to control the drive unit to drive the push plate to move and push the garbage block out of the box door after the debris is compressed into a garbage block. The moving platform is provided with a receiving groove for receiving the debris and garbage block pushed out of the box door.

[0019] Beneficial effects: The controller can compress the drive unit when the door is closed, and push the waste into the receiving slot for storage when the door is open.

[0020] Furthermore, a filter screen is installed inside the receiving tank.

[0021] Beneficial effects: The debris that is already in the garbage will be pushed into the receiving trough. After the debris falls into the receiving trough, it will fall under the filter screen, while the garbage chunks will be caught by the filter screen and kept above the filter screen.

[0022] Furthermore, an air purifier is installed inside the waste disposal bin.

[0023] Beneficial effects: Garbage produces odors, so installing an air purifier to treat the gas inside the garbage disposal bin reduces the discomfort caused by the odor.

[0024] Furthermore, the air purifier's air intake is located in the processing chamber, the air purifier's air outlet is located at the top of the sorting chamber, and the air purifier's air outlet direction is towards the bottom of the waste disposal bin.

[0025] Beneficial effects: The air purifier can generate airflow circulation in the garbage disposal bin, and this airflow has a certain driving force. Therefore, the air outlet direction is set towards the bottom of the garbage disposal bin, so that the debris on the grid can fall into the disposal chamber more easily.

[0026] Furthermore, the waste disposal bins are equipped with solar panels, and the mobile platform is equipped with batteries.

[0027] Beneficial effects: The mobile platform can travel to various garbage bins and garbage sorting stations to sort and recycle garbage. This process involves a lot of outdoor work, so solar panels are installed on the garbage disposal bins to use outdoor sunlight to supplement the power.

[0028] Furthermore, the transmission component is a track, on which several high-friction coefficient contact points are provided.

[0029] Beneficial effects: Tracks can be mounted on robotic claws, and their high coefficient of friction contact points can enhance the gripping friction of the robotic claws and also increase the clamping friction of the tracks.

[0030] Furthermore, the controller identifies garbage images based on the trained convolutional neural network, which is trained based on garbage image samples after data annotation.

[0031] Beneficial effects: Convolutional neural networks automatically extract local features such as texture, shape and color from garbage images through convolutional layers, without the need for manual feature design, and can adapt to complex and ever-changing garbage appearances.

[0032] Additional aspects and advantages of the invention will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be learned by practice of the invention. Attached Figure Description

[0033] Figure 1 This is an isometric schematic diagram of an embodiment of the mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot of the present invention;

[0034] Figure 2 This is an isometric schematic diagram from another perspective of an embodiment of the mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot of the present invention;

[0035] Figure 3 This is a cross-sectional schematic diagram of the waste disposal bin in an embodiment of the mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot of the present invention;

[0036] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the sorting robotic arm in an embodiment of the mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot of the present invention.

[0037] The reference numerals in the accompanying drawings include: 1. Moving platform; 2. Waste disposal bin; 3. Waste disposal port; 4. Screen; 5. Sorting chamber; 6. Processing chamber; 7. Image acquisition device; 8. Sorting robotic arm; 9. Mechanical gripper; 10. Conveying assembly; 11. Crusher; 12. Vibration motor; 13. Push plate; 14. Drive component; 15. Box door; 16. Receiving groove; 17. Filter screen; 18. Air purifier; 19. Solar power panel. Detailed Implementation

[0038] The technical solution of the present invention will now be clearly and completely described with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some, not all, of the embodiments of the present invention. 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.

[0039] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that the terms "center," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicate the orientation or positional relationship based on the orientation or positional relationship shown in the accompanying drawings. They are used only for the convenience of describing the invention and for simplifying the description, and do not indicate or imply that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, or be constructed and operated in a specific orientation. Therefore, they should not be construed as limitations on the invention. Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," and "third" are used for descriptive purposes only and should not be construed as indicating or implying relative importance.

[0040] In the description of this invention, it should be noted that, unless otherwise explicitly specified and limited, the terms "installation," "connection," and "linking" should be interpreted broadly. For example, they can refer to a fixed connection, a detachable connection, or an integral connection; they can refer to a mechanical connection or an electrical connection; they can refer to a direct connection or an indirect connection through an intermediate medium; and they can refer to the internal connection of two components. Those skilled in the art can understand the specific meaning of the above terms in this invention based on the specific circumstances.

[0041] The following detailed description illustrates the specific implementation method:

[0042] Example 1:

[0043] As attached Figures 1-4A mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot includes a mobile platform 1 and a controller. The mobile platform 1 is a wheeled vehicle. A waste disposal box 2 is bolted to the mobile platform 1. A waste disposal box 2 has a waste inlet 3 on its top. A grid 4 is provided inside the waste disposal box 2. The grid 4 divides the waste disposal box 2 into a sorting chamber 5 and a processing chamber 6. The sorting chamber 5 is located at the top of the grid 4, and the processing chamber 6 is located at the bottom of the grid 4.

[0044] The sorting chamber 5 is equipped with an image acquisition device 7 and a sorting robotic arm 8. The sorting robotic arm 8 is a 6-axis robotic arm. The image acquisition device 7 is used to acquire images of waste on the grid 4. The controller identifies waste images based on a trained convolutional neural network. The convolutional neural network is trained based on waste image samples with data annotation. The number of waste image samples is greater than 1500, and the learning rate of the convolutional neural network is selected as 0.5. A mechanical claw 9 is bolted to the mechanical claw 9. A conveying assembly 10 is installed on the claw body of the mechanical claw 9. The conveying assembly 10 is a track with several high-friction coefficient contact points bonded to it. A shredder 11 is installed at the functional end of the sorting robotic arm 8. The conveying assembly 10 is used to convey the waste held by the mechanical claw 9 to the shredder 11.

[0045] A vibration motor 12 is bonded and fixed on the grid 4. A push plate 13 is provided in the processing chamber 6. A driving component 14 is provided in the processing chamber 6 to drive the push plate 13 to move. The driving component 14 is a hydraulic cylinder. A box door 15 is installed on one side of the processing chamber 6. The box door 15 is an electric door.

[0046] The controller is used to control the vibration motor 12 to vibrate after garbage is put into the garbage inlet 3, so that the debris mixed in the garbage is shaken off the grid 4, and then the controller controls the drive component 14 to drive the push plate 13 to move and push the debris out of the box door 15.

[0047] The controller is used to control the vibration motor 12 to vibrate and change the stacking state of the waste on the screen 4 during sorting.

[0048] The user puts in some garbage through the garbage disposal port 3. The garbage will accumulate on the screen 4. The screen 4 will hold garbage of a certain volume. The garbage may contain small pieces. Since the pieces are small, they are not easy to identify and sort. Therefore, the vibration motor 12 shakes them off, and the push plate 13 pushes the pieces out of the processing chamber 6.

[0049] The controller is used to acquire garbage images collected by the image acquisition device 7, and to identify and classify these garbage images. The convolutional neural network automatically extracts local features of the garbage images, such as texture, shape, and color, through convolutional layers, eliminating the need for manual feature design and enabling it to adapt to complex and varied garbage appearances.

[0050] The garbage may be stacked together, causing some of the garbage features to be obscured, making it difficult to effectively identify through images. The vibration motor 12 can vibrate continuously, changing the stacking state of the garbage on the grid 4 and reducing the probability of some garbage features being obscured.

[0051] Sorting is performed according to the type of waste. Once all waste of a single type has been sorted from the grid 4, the next type is sorted. The sorting robotic arm 8 grips the waste during sorting and feeds it into the shredder 11 via the conveyor assembly 10, where it is shredded into small pieces. Due to their small size, these small pieces fall into the processing chamber 6 under the vibration of the vibrating motor 12. Because all waste of a single type has been removed during sorting, only that type of waste remains in the processing chamber 6 until the next type is sorted. The drive unit 14 drives the pusher plate 13 to compress the waste in the processing chamber 6 into waste blocks. After multiple processing steps, several waste blocks are obtained, all formed by compressing waste of a single type.

[0052] The mobile platform 1 enables the waste disposal container 2 to move to various waste bins or waste stations for waste disposal. Because the waste blocks are large, compact, and not easily loosened, and because the mobile platform 1 has limited carrying capacity and the number of waste blocks is relatively small, the waste blocks do not need to be sorted and stored. During unloading from the mobile platform 1, the waste is quickly separated based on the picked-up waste blocks. Therefore, by sacrificing the function of sorting waste blocks, the reuse rate of functional structures such as waste sorting, removal of attached debris, changing the stacking state of waste, and compression is higher. The overall size of the device can be compressed to a smaller size, making it more suitable for mobile operations.

[0053] Example 2:

[0054] The difference from the above embodiment is that, after the debris is compressed into a garbage block, the controller controls the drive unit 14 to drive the push plate 13 to move and push the garbage block out of the box door 15. The moving platform 1 is provided with a receiving groove 16, which is used to receive the debris and garbage block pushed out of the box door 15. A filter screen 17 is provided in the receiving groove 16.

[0055] The controller can control the drive unit 14 to compress when the door 15 is closed, and push the garbage into the receiving slot 16 for storage after the door 15 is opened, so as to temporarily store the garbage after sorting and compression.

[0056] The debris already present in the waste will be pushed into the receiving trough 16. After falling into the receiving trough 16, the debris will fall below the filter screen 17, while the waste block will be caught by the filter screen 17 and kept above the filter screen 17. Because the waste block is large and compact, it will not mix with the debris again.

[0057] Example 3:

[0058] The difference from the above embodiment is that an air purifier 18 is installed inside the waste disposal bin 2. The air intake of the air purifier 18 is located in the processing chamber 6, the air outlet of the air purifier 18 is located at the top of the sorting chamber 5, and the air outlet of the air purifier 18 is directed towards the bottom of the waste disposal bin 2.

[0059] The specific implementation process is as follows: Garbage produces an odor, so an air purifier 18 is installed to treat the gas inside the garbage disposal bin 2 to reduce the discomfort caused by the odor. The air purifier 18 can generate airflow circulation inside the garbage disposal bin 2, and this airflow has a certain driving force. Therefore, the air outlet direction is set towards the bottom of the garbage disposal bin 2, so that the debris on the mesh 4 can fall more easily into the processing chamber 6.

[0060] Example 4:

[0061] The difference from the above embodiment is that a solar panel 19 is bolted to the waste disposal bin 2, and a storage battery is provided on the mobile platform 1.

[0062] The specific implementation process is as follows: The mobile platform 1 can go to each garbage bin and garbage sorting station to carry out garbage sorting and recycling. This process involves a lot of outdoor work, so a solar power generation panel 19 is installed on the garbage disposal bin 2 to use outdoor sunlight to supplement power.

[0063] Obviously, the above embodiments are merely illustrative examples for clear explanation and are not intended to limit the implementation. Those skilled in the art will recognize that other variations or modifications can be made based on the above description. It is neither necessary nor possible to exhaustively list all possible implementations here. However, obvious variations or modifications derived therefrom are still within the scope of protection of this invention.

Claims

1. A mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot, characterized in that, The device includes a mobile platform (1) and a controller. The mobile platform (1) is equipped with a waste disposal box (2). The waste disposal box (2) has a waste inlet (3) on top. The waste disposal box (2) is equipped with a grid (4). The grid (4) divides the waste disposal box (2) into a sorting chamber (5) and a processing chamber (6). The sorting chamber (5) is located at the top of the grid (4), and the processing chamber (6) is located at the bottom of the grid (4). The sorting chamber (5) is equipped with an image acquisition device (7) and a sorting robotic arm (8). The image acquisition device (7) is used to acquire images of garbage on the grid (4). The functional end of the sorting robotic arm (8) is equipped with a mechanical claw (9). The claw body of the mechanical claw (9) is equipped with a conveying component (10). The functional end of the sorting robotic arm (8) is equipped with a crusher (11). The conveying component (10) is used to convey the garbage held by the mechanical claw (9) to the crusher (11). A vibration motor (12) is provided on the grid (4), a push plate (13) is provided in the processing chamber (6), a drive component (14) for driving the push plate (13) to move is provided in the processing chamber (6), and a door (15) is provided on one side of the processing chamber (6). The controller is used to acquire garbage images collected by the image acquisition device (7), to identify garbage images and classify garbage images, and to control the sorting robot arm (8) to sort garbage. During sorting, the controller controls the robot arm to crush a single type of garbage into fragments, and then the fragments are shaken off the grid (4) by the vibration motor (12), and the drive component (14) drives the push plate (13) to move to compress the fragments into garbage blocks.

2. The mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The controller is used to control the vibration motor (12) to vibrate after garbage is put into the garbage inlet (3), so that the debris mixed in the garbage is shaken off the grid (4), and then the control drive (14) drives the push plate (13) to move and push the debris out of the box door (15).

3. The mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The controller is used to control the vibration motor (12) to vibrate and change the stacking state of the waste on the screen (4) during sorting.

4. The mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The controller is used to control the drive unit (14) to drive the push plate (13) to move and push the garbage block out of the box door (15) after the debris is compressed into a garbage block. The moving platform (1) is provided with a receiving groove (16) for receiving the debris and garbage block pushed out from the box door (15).

5. The mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot according to claim 4, characterized in that, A filter screen (17) is provided inside the receiving groove (16).

6. The mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, An air purifier (18) is installed inside the waste disposal bin (2).

7. The mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot according to claim 6, characterized in that, The air intake of the air purifier (18) is located in the processing chamber (6), the air outlet of the air purifier (18) is located at the top of the sorting chamber (5), and the air outlet of the air purifier (18) is directed towards the bottom of the garbage disposal box (2).

8. The mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The garbage disposal bin (2) is equipped with a solar power generation panel (19), and the mobile platform (1) is equipped with a storage battery.

9. The mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The transmission component (10) is a track with several high friction coefficient contact points.

10. The mobile intelligent waste sorting and recycling robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The controller identifies garbage images based on a trained convolutional neural network, which is trained on garbage image samples after data annotation.

Images