An autonomous bulk unloading robot and method of operation thereof

Abstract

The application discloses an autonomous batch unloading robot and a working method thereof. The robot comprises a tracked chassis, an upper loading frame system, a mechanical arm, an end effector, a lifting belt system, a belt scraper system, a material conveying system and a visual identification system. The mechanical arm is arranged on the upper loading frame system, and the end effector is connected to the tail end of the mechanical arm. The lifting belt system is respectively connected with the belt scraper system and the material conveying system at the front and rear. The belt scraper system with large batch scraping function, the mechanical arm and the end effector with accurate positioning and grabbing capacity, and the lifting belt system and the material conveying system for realizing the flow transfer are integrated on the same tracked chassis platform, so that the problem that the existing carrying robot has low system integration degree, lacks an integrated structure of the material collection, grabbing function and the continuous conveying mechanism, and leads to high cost of multi-logistics equipment collaborative operation and low unloading efficiency in batch unloading is solved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention belongs to the field of industrial robot technology, and more specifically, relates to an autonomous batch unloading robot and its working method. Background Technology

[0002] In the fields of modern industrial automation and logistics handling, automated handling robots have gradually become common unloading equipment in scenarios such as warehousing and logistics, intelligent manufacturing, and assembly workshops due to their advantages such as improving operational efficiency, reducing labor costs, and adapting to high-intensity continuous operations. Currently, most handling robots on the market use wheeled or tracked chassis as mobile platforms and are equipped with actuators such as robotic arms or load-bearing platforms.

[0003] However, existing automated material handling robots suffer from insufficient system integration when handling batch unloading operations of complex materials. In actual batch unloading operations, unitized or grouped goods need to be processed, requiring a high level of integration in the loading, collecting, conveying, and transferring modules of automated material handling robots. Existing robots often only possess single gripping or pushing functions, lacking a structural platform that effectively integrates front-end material collection, precise gripping of large items, and continuous downstream conveying. When faced with diverse packaging and scattered stacking of various goods, they cannot independently form a complete continuous unloading chain, typically requiring the coordinated operation of individual logistics equipment with different functions (such as gripping vehicles with robotic arms at the front end and belt conveyors at the rear). This fragmented operation mode leads to complex inter-equipment actions, significant time losses, and low overall unloading efficiency. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the problem that existing handling robots suffer from low system integration and lack an integrated structure that combines material collection, gripping, and continuous conveying functions, resulting in high costs and low unloading efficiency during batch unloading due to the lack of coordinated operation of multiple logistics devices, this invention provides an autonomous batch unloading robot and its working method.

[0005] According to a first aspect of the present invention, an autonomous batch unloading robot is provided, comprising: Tracked chassis; The upper frame system is mounted on the tracked chassis; A robotic arm is mounted on the upper surface of the upper frame system; An end effector is attached to the end of the robotic arm; A lifting belt system is installed at the lower part of the upper frame system; The belt bucket system is connected to the front end of the lifting belt system and is used to autonomously collect materials in batches and passively receive materials grabbed by the terminal actuator. A material conveying system is connected to the rear end of the lifting belt system; Visual recognition system; And the electrical system, which is located inside the superstructure frame system; The upper frame system is used to support the robotic arm, the lifting belt system, and the electrical system; the lifting belt system is used to support the belt bucket system and to receive and transfer materials conveyed by the belt bucket system; the material conveying system is used to receive materials conveyed by the lifting belt system and convey them to the outside; the visual recognition system is used to collect point cloud information of the robot's surroundings and the materials. The electrical system is configured to provide power to each electrical component and receive and process point cloud information collected by the vision recognition system. Based on this, it issues control commands to the tracked chassis, the robotic arm, the lifting belt system, and the belt bucket system to achieve coordinated operation of multiple mechanisms. It is also configured to interact with external systems for data exchange.

[0006] Optionally, the superstructure frame system includes an integrated frame and a shell, with the shell disposed on the left and right sides of the integrated frame and the lower end of the integrated frame disposed on the tracked chassis.

[0007] Optionally, the belt bucket system includes a bucket support, small shovel teeth, a short belt, a transverse belt, and a vertical conveyor belt; The small shovel teeth are located at the foremost end of the bucket support; The short belt is located at the front side of the bucket support; The vertical conveyor belt is located in the middle of the bucket support; The transverse belt is located on the side and rear of the bucket support and is used to transport materials from the short belt laterally onto the vertical conveyor belt.

[0008] Alternatively, the short belt, the transverse belt, and the vertical conveyor belt are configured to be independently driven and differentially controlled by the electrical system. The number of short belts and transverse belts are both two, with two short belts symmetrically arranged on both sides of the vertical conveyor belt, and two transverse belts symmetrically arranged on both sides of the vertical conveyor belt; The transverse conveyor belt is perpendicular to the conveying direction of the vertical conveyor belt, and is configured to gather and guide materials scattered on the sides toward the vertical conveyor belt in the middle, so as to prevent material from overflowing at the edges when it is collected in batches.

[0009] Optionally, the visual recognition system includes a first visual recognition module, a second visual recognition module, a third visual recognition module, and a fourth visual recognition module; The first visual recognition module and the second visual recognition module are mounted on the belt bucket system; The third visual recognition module and the fourth visual recognition module are located on the upper part of the upper frame system.

[0010] Optionally, the third and fourth visual recognition modules are configured to collect global environmental point cloud information and pass it to the electrical system to generate a navigation path to guide the movement of the tracked chassis. The first and second visual recognition modules are configured to acquire local point cloud information of materials in the near space to compensate for the blind spot of the lower field of view of the robotic arm, and the electrical system guides the terminal actuator and the belt bucket system to perform actions accordingly.

[0011] Optionally, the lifting belt system is internally equipped with a height and tilt adjustment mechanism controlled by the electrical system. The height and tilt adjustment mechanism is configured to adjust the overall height and pitch angle of the belt bucket system so that the belt bucket system is in contact with the working ground.

[0012] Optionally, the robotic arm is used to adjust the angle and position of the end effector; The end effector is configured to maintain consistency with the material's posture during operation and, driven by the robotic arm, place the material onto the belt bucket system. The robotic arm and the belt bucket system are configured to work in a collaborative mode under the unified scheduling of the electrical system: when collecting easily dumpable irregularly shaped materials, the electrical system controls the terminal actuator to abut against the upper part of the target material to provide a position holding force, while simultaneously controlling the belt bucket system to cut in from the bottom of the target material to scoop it up synchronously.

[0013] According to a second aspect of the present invention, a method for operating any of the above-described autonomous batch unloading robots is provided, comprising the following steps: The visual recognition system scans the global environment to determine the location, shape, and size of the target material. The electrical system plans a navigation route based on global environmental data and controls the tracked chassis to move to the designated work location; The visual recognition system acquires point cloud information of the near space and confirms whether the correct working position has been reached. The visual recognition system identifies the target material and its surrounding details, and the electrical system determines the grasping method and motion route accordingly. The electrical system issues instructions to execute corresponding material collection operations according to the determined gripping method. The material collection operations include: using the belt bucket system to scoop up small and medium-sized materials; and / or using the end effector to grip large materials and placing the materials onto the belt bucket system via the robotic arm; and / or using the electrical system to control the end effector to abut against the upper part of irregularly shaped materials to provide position holding force, while simultaneously controlling the belt bucket system to cut into the materials from the bottom for synchronous scooping. The target material collected by the belt bucket system is transferred to the lifting belt system, and the material information is identified on the lifting belt system. The electrical system then exchanges the identified material data with an external system. The target material is conveyed to the material conveying system by the lifting belt system; The target material is transported to the outside by the material conveying system.

[0014] Optionally, the steps of issuing instructions to perform the corresponding material collection operation specifically include: The electrical system determines the size type and stacking status of materials based on point cloud information; If the material is determined to be small to medium-sized or in a scattered and stacked state, the belt bucket system is controlled to perform batch scooping from the bottom. If the material is determined to be large or individually packaged, the robotic arm is controlled to drive the terminal actuator to independently grasp it. If the material is determined to be an irregularly shaped material with an unstable center of gravity or prone to tipping, the collaborative working mode is triggered. The terminal actuator is controlled to abut against the top of the material to provide support and assistance, and the belt bucket system is controlled to simultaneously scoop up the bottom.

[0015] The beneficial effects of this invention are as follows: The autonomous batch unloading robot of this invention integrates a belt-driven bucket system with large-volume shoveling capabilities, a robotic arm and end effector with precise positioning and gripping capabilities, and a lifting belt system and material conveying system for downstream transfer onto a single tracked chassis platform, constructing an independent working architecture that integrates shoveling, gripping, and conveying. This integrated design avoids the alignment time and physical connection losses associated with the collaborative operation of multiple independent logistics devices in existing technologies. It directly establishes an automated material discharge link on a single logistics device, effectively improving overall unloading efficiency in complex material environments.

[0016] Other features and advantages of the present invention will be described in detail in the following detailed description section. Attached Figure Description

[0017] The present invention can be better understood by referring to the following description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which the same or similar reference numerals are used throughout the drawings to denote the same or similar parts.

[0018] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the overall structure of the autonomous batch unloading robot according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown; Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the upper frame system according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown; Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the structure of a belt-driven bucket system according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown; Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the distribution of a visual recognition system according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0019] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached figures 1- Tracked chassis; 2- Robotic arm; 3- Terminal actuator; 4- Upper frame system; 41- Integrated frame; 42- Shell; 5- Belt-driven bucket system; 51- Small shovel teeth; 52- Short belt; 53- Lateral belt; 54- Vertical conveyor belt; 55- Bucket support; 6- Lifting belt system; 7- Material conveying system; 8- Vision recognition system; 81- First vision recognition module; 82- Second vision recognition module; 83- Third vision recognition module; 84- Fourth vision recognition module. Detailed Implementation

[0020] To enable those skilled in the art to more fully understand the technical solutions of the present invention, exemplary embodiments of the present invention will be described more comprehensively and in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the one or more embodiments of the present invention described below are merely one or more specific ways to implement the technical solutions of the present invention, and are not exhaustive. It should be understood that other ways belonging to a general inventive concept can be used to implement the technical solutions of the present invention, and should not be limited to the embodiments described exemplary. Based on one or more embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort should fall within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0021] Example: Figure 1 This diagram illustrates the overall structure of the autonomous batch unloading robot according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the upper frame system according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the belt-driven bucket system according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown. Figure 4 A schematic diagram of the distribution of the visual recognition system according to an embodiment of the present invention is shown.

[0022] like Figures 1 to 4 As shown, the autonomous batch unloading robot of this invention adopts a highly integrated structural layout, mainly including: a tracked chassis 1, a robotic arm 2, an end effector 3, a superframe system 4, a belt-driven bucket system 5, a lifting belt system 6, a material conveying system 7, a vision recognition system 8, and an electrical system. All the above-mentioned physical actuators and sensing components interact with each other under the unified scheduling and control of the electrical system, thereby achieving overall coordinated operation and electromechanical linkage.

[0023] like Figure 1 As shown, the tracked chassis 1 serves as the mobile platform for the entire machine, supporting the upper frame system 4. The tracked chassis 1 is configured to rotate and translate under the control of the electrical system. The lower end of the upper frame system 4 is fixed to the tracked chassis 1, serving as the main load-bearing structure. Combined with... Figure 2 As shown, the upper frame system 4 includes an integrated frame 41 and a housing 42. The housing 42 is fixed to the left and right sides of the integrated frame 41, providing structural protection. In this structural layout, the counterweight and center of gravity of the integrated frame 41 are set at a low position, ensuring the stability of the entire vehicle when the robotic arm 2 extends forward over a large range to grab heavier materials.

[0024] To ensure the smooth operation of the aforementioned highly integrated hardware, the electrical system is housed within the integrated frame 41 of the upper frame system 4, specifically including: (1) Power supply module: It is equipped with a power battery pack and a power distribution unit to provide stable and safe working power to the walking motor of the tracked chassis 1, the servo joints of the robotic arm 2, the drive motors of the belt drive components at all levels, and the vision recognition system 8 and other power-consuming components. (2) Main control module: As the core of computing power (such as an industrial computer or PLC), it is configured to receive and process the environmental and material point cloud information collected by the vision recognition system 8, execute SLAM mapping and path planning algorithms, and perform operation strategy calculations after recognizing the material shape. Based on the calculation results, the main control module coordinates the chassis walking, robotic arm movement, belt conveying and belt lifting, and sends power signal commands to each mechanism. This is the basic premise for realizing multi-mechanical electromechanical linkage (such as the "upward support and downward shovel" collaborative working mode of the robotic arm and bucket described later); (3) Communication module: used to realize data interaction between the robot and network nodes such as external warehouse management system (WMS). After the lifting belt system 6 performs secondary identification of material information, the electrical system uploads the extracted cargo type and batch data in real time through the communication module, and receives task scheduling instructions issued by external systems, truly connecting physical operations with information management.

[0025] At the physical execution level, the robotic arm 2 is fixed to the upper surface of the superstructure frame system 4, and can change the angle and position of the end effector 3 connected to its end. Under the control of the electrical system, the end effector 3 can adapt to the non-destructive gripping of different packaging materials, and work with the robotic arm 2 to move the work target to the belt bucket system 5 behind it.

[0026] like Figure 1 and Figure 3 As shown, the lifting belt system 6 is fixed to the lower part of the upper frame system 4, and its front end is used to support the belt bucket system 5. Since the bottom of trucks or containers often has slopes or potholes, the height and tilt adjustment mechanism configured inside the lifting belt system 6 is controlled by the electrical system, which can dynamically adjust the ground clearance and pitch angle of the belt bucket system 5, so that the bucket can smoothly conform to the actual working ground and avoid missing any parts or getting stuck.

[0027] The belt-driven bucket system 5 is used for bulk collection of small to medium-sized materials and has a flat bearing surface to support large materials. The belt-driven bucket system 5 includes small shovel teeth 51, a short belt 52, a transverse belt 53, a vertical conveyor belt 54, and a bucket support 55. The small shovel teeth 51 are used to insert into the bottom of scattered materials for scooping. The short belt 52 is used to collect materials from both sides; the transverse belt 53 is used to laterally transfer the materials collected by the short belt 52 to the central vertical conveyor belt 54.

[0028] To further improve the smoothness of batch unloading, the main control module of the electrical system implements independent differential speed control for the short belt 52, the transverse belt 53, and the vertical conveyor belt 54. The short belt 52 and the transverse belt 53 are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the vertical conveyor belt 54, forming an active funnel-shaped centripetal converging and guiding structure. By implementing differential speed control, edge overflow or congestion that occurs when a large amount of material converges simultaneously is effectively prevented, and the material entering the belt bucket system 5 is ultimately conveyed to the rear in a concentrated manner.

[0029] The material conveying system 7 is connected to the rear end of the lifting belt system 6, and receives materials and continuously discharges them to the outside under the drive of the electrical system. For example... Figure 4 As shown, the visual recognition system 8 comprises four modules. The third and fourth visual recognition modules 83 and 84 are fixed at a high position, collecting global point cloud information and providing it to the electrical system to generate the chassis's navigation path. The first and second visual recognition modules 81 and 82 are fixed to the belt-driven bucket system 5, acquiring high-precision point cloud information in the near-field space. The fusion of high and low-level visual data effectively compensates for the blind spots below the robotic arm 2, providing collision avoidance data for the electrical system to precisely guide and fine-tune the grasping and ground-level cutting.

[0030] In actual operation, the working method of this autonomous batch unloading robot includes the following steps: (1) First, the high-level vision module scans the global environment, and the electrical system determines the working objectives and establishes an environmental map and plans the navigation route accordingly; (2) The electrical system controls the tracked chassis 1 to move in front of the designated work target; (3) The low-position vision module obtains the near-field point cloud information, the electrical system confirms whether it has reached the correct position, and dynamically controls the lifting belt system 6 to adjust the bucket's ground clearance and pitch angle; (4) The material details are identified by the visual recognition system 8, and the electrical system intelligently determines the grasping method accordingly: If the material is determined to be small or medium-sized or in a scattered and stacked state, a batch shovel command is issued to control the tracked chassis 1 to move forward as a whole to collect the bottom. If the material is determined to be large or individually packaged, an independent gripping command is issued to control the robotic arm 2 to move and grip the terminal actuator 3. Furthermore, when faced with irregularly shaped material stacks that are unstable and prone to tipping over, the electrical system triggers a global collaborative working mode: controlling the robotic arm 2 to drive the terminal actuator 3 to pre-apply to the upper part of the irregularly shaped material to provide posture holding force, while controlling the belt bucket system 5 to cut in from the bottom from the small shovel teeth 51 to scoop up the material synchronously. (5) The belt bucket system 5 conveys the material backward to the lifting belt system 6. During the conveying process, the material information is identified again by sensors, and the electrical system then wirelessly uploads the data to the external warehouse management system; (6) The material is conveyed to the material conveying system 7 by the lifting belt system 6; (7) Finally, the material is continuously transported to the outside by the material conveying system 7.

[0031] The autonomous batch unloading robot of this invention establishes a continuous material unloading chain of "shoveling, grabbing, and conveying" in terms of hardware. In practical applications, the electrical system uniformly schedules multi-source vision, robotic arms, tracked chassis, and multi-level belts, which not only eliminates perception blind spots under harsh working conditions but also achieves adaptive multi-strategy flexible processing and networked management, fundamentally improving the batch unloading efficiency of complex and bulk materials.

[0032] While one or more embodiments of the present invention have been described above, those skilled in the art will recognize that the present invention can be implemented in any other form without departing from its spirit and scope. Therefore, the embodiments described above are illustrative and not restrictive, and many modifications and substitutions will be apparent to those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the appended claims.

Claims

1. An autonomous batch unloading robot, characterized in that, include: Tracked chassis; The upper frame system is mounted on the tracked chassis; A robotic arm is mounted on the upper surface of the upper frame system; An end effector is attached to the end of the robotic arm; A lifting belt system is installed at the lower part of the upper frame system; The belt bucket system is connected to the front end of the lifting belt system and is used to autonomously collect materials in batches and passively receive materials grabbed by the terminal actuator. A material conveying system is connected to the rear end of the lifting belt system; Visual recognition system; And the electrical system, which is located inside the superstructure frame system; The upper frame system is used to support the robotic arm, the lifting belt system, and the electrical system; the lifting belt system is used to support the belt bucket system and to receive and transfer materials conveyed by the belt bucket system; the material conveying system is used to receive materials conveyed by the lifting belt system and convey them to the outside; the visual recognition system is used to collect point cloud information of the robot's surroundings and the materials. The electrical system is configured to provide power to each electrical component and receive and process point cloud information collected by the vision recognition system. Based on this, it issues control commands to the tracked chassis, the robotic arm, the lifting belt system, and the belt bucket system to achieve coordinated operation of multiple mechanisms. It is also configured to interact with external systems for data exchange.

2. The autonomous batch unloading robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The upper frame system includes an integrated frame and a shell. The shell is disposed on the left and right sides of the integrated frame, and the lower end of the integrated frame is disposed on the tracked chassis.

3. The autonomous batch unloading robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The belt-driven bucket system includes a bucket support, small shovel teeth, a short belt, a horizontal belt, and a vertical conveyor belt; The small shovel teeth are located at the foremost end of the bucket support; The short belt is located at the front side of the bucket support; The vertical conveyor belt is located in the middle of the bucket support; The transverse belt is located on the side and rear of the bucket support and is used to transport materials from the short belt laterally onto the vertical conveyor belt.

4. The autonomous batch unloading robot according to claim 3, characterized in that, The short belt, the transverse belt, and the vertical conveyor belt are configured to be independently driven and differentially controlled by the electrical system. The number of short belts and transverse belts are both two, with two short belts symmetrically arranged on both sides of the vertical conveyor belt, and two transverse belts symmetrically arranged on both sides of the vertical conveyor belt; The transverse conveyor belt is perpendicular to the conveying direction of the vertical conveyor belt, and is configured to gather and guide materials scattered on the sides toward the vertical conveyor belt in the middle, so as to prevent material from overflowing at the edges when it is collected in batches.

5. The autonomous batch unloading robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The visual recognition system includes a first visual recognition module, a second visual recognition module, a third visual recognition module, and a fourth visual recognition module; The first visual recognition module and the second visual recognition module are mounted on the belt bucket system; The third visual recognition module and the fourth visual recognition module are located on the upper part of the upper frame system.

6. The autonomous batch unloading robot according to claim 5, characterized in that, The third and fourth visual recognition modules are configured to collect global environmental point cloud information and pass it to the electrical system to generate a navigation path to guide the movement of the tracked chassis. The first and second visual recognition modules are configured to acquire local point cloud information of materials in the near space to compensate for the blind spot of the lower field of view of the robotic arm, and the electrical system guides the terminal actuator and the belt bucket system to perform actions accordingly.

7. The autonomous batch unloading robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The lifting belt system is internally equipped with a height and tilt adjustment mechanism controlled by the electrical system. The height and tilt adjustment mechanism is configured to adjust the overall height and pitch angle of the belt bucket system so that the belt bucket system is in contact with the working ground.

8. The autonomous batch unloading robot according to claim 1, characterized in that, The robotic arm is used to adjust the angle and position of the end effector; The end effector is configured to maintain consistency with the material's posture during operation and, driven by the robotic arm, place the material onto the belt bucket system. The robotic arm and the belt bucket system are configured to work in a collaborative mode under the unified scheduling of the electrical system: when collecting easily dumpable irregularly shaped materials, the electrical system controls the terminal actuator to abut against the upper part of the target material to provide a position holding force, while simultaneously controlling the belt bucket system to cut in from the bottom of the target material to scoop it up synchronously.

9. A method for operating an autonomous batch unloading robot according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: The visual recognition system scans the global environment to determine the location, shape, and size of the target material. The electrical system plans a navigation route based on global environmental data and controls the tracked chassis to move to the designated work location; The visual recognition system acquires point cloud information of the near space and confirms whether the correct working position has been reached. The visual recognition system identifies the target material and its surrounding details, and the electrical system determines the grasping method and motion route accordingly. The electrical system issues instructions to execute corresponding material collection operations according to the determined gripping method. The material collection operations include: using the belt bucket system to scoop up small and medium-sized materials; and / or using the end effector to grip large materials and placing the materials onto the belt bucket system via the robotic arm; and / or using the electrical system to control the end effector to abut against the upper part of irregularly shaped materials to provide position holding force, while simultaneously controlling the belt bucket system to cut into the materials from the bottom for synchronous scooping. The target material collected by the belt bucket system is transferred to the lifting belt system, and the material information is identified on the lifting belt system. The electrical system then exchanges the identified material data with an external system. The target material is conveyed to the material conveying system by the lifting belt system; The target material is transported to the outside by the material conveying system.

10. The working method of the autonomous batch unloading robot according to claim 9, characterized in that, The steps for issuing instructions to execute the corresponding material collection operation specifically include: The electrical system determines the size type and stacking status of materials based on point cloud information; If the material is determined to be small to medium-sized or in a scattered and stacked state, the belt bucket system is controlled to perform batch scooping from the bottom. If the material is determined to be large or individually packaged, the robotic arm is controlled to drive the terminal actuator to independently grasp it. If the material is determined to be an irregularly shaped material with an unstable center of gravity or prone to tipping, the collaborative working mode is triggered. The terminal actuator is controlled to abut against the top of the material to provide support and assistance, and the belt bucket system is controlled to simultaneously scoop up the bottom.

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