End effector for picking apples

Abstract

The utility model provides an end effector for picking apples, which relates to the technical field of picking robots and is used for picking apples with the transverse diameter of 70mm-100mm. A motor is utilized to be matched with a roller and a traction rope, rotation of the roller is converted into opening and closing movement of fingers, and apple picking is completed. The grabbing device is composed of a grabbing mechanism, a supporting connecting mechanism and a driving transmission mechanism. The grabbing mechanism is composed of a near finger, a far finger and a connecting rod, and a right trapezoid mechanism is formed. The bearing connecting mechanism is composed of a base disc, a flange disc and a supporting frame. The driving transmission mechanism is composed of a motor, a roller, a traction rope, a lifting disc, a spring and a connecting rod. The utility model aims at realizing the opening and closing of the paw through the matching of the motor, the roller and the traction rope, and effectively solving the problems of heavy weight, large size, complex structure and the like of the traditional paw.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of picking robots and is suitable for picking apples with a horizontal diameter between 70 mm and 100 mm. Background Art

[0002] Agricultural fruit and vegetable picking is the most time-consuming and labor-intensive part of agricultural production, requiring a large amount of labor supply. In addition, apple picking is a kind of high-altitude operation, which is dangerous. The shape and growth direction of apple tree branches are complex, which is not easy to be picked manually, and the picking efficiency is greatly reduced. The research and production of fruit and vegetable picking robots is of great significance. The end effector is located at the front end of the robotic arm. The apple picking hand has many forms, usually divided into two-finger translation type, two-finger opening and closing type, adsorption type and three-claw opening and closing type, etc. Most of them are mainly three-claw opening and closing type, but the existing three-claw opening and closing picking claws usually use a screw nut mechanism to control the opening and closing of the claws, which has the disadvantage of bulky mechanism. Summary of the invention

[0003] The purpose of the utility model is to propose an end effector for apple picking in view of the above-mentioned problem, which utilizes an electric motor, in conjunction with a roller and a traction rope, to convert the rotation of the roller into the opening and closing movement of the fingers to complete the picking of apples and avoid damage to the apple skin. Flexible materials are added to the inner side of the fingers, and force sensors are installed to monitor the pressure applied to the apple by the claws in real time.

[0004] To achieve the above-mentioned purpose, the utility model adopts the following technical solutions: the end effector adopts a three-jaw opening and closing type, with the three jaws forming an angle of 120° between each other, the fingers are divided into two knuckles, and the distal fingers and the proximal fingers are connected by two connecting rods and a hinge to form a structure approximately in the shape of a right-angle trapezoid, which is connected to the hinge of the base disc through a third connecting rod; as for the driving mechanism, it is driven by an electric motor, and its installation method is to be fixed to the bottom of the lifting disc through a pressing plate and a screw, the drum and the motor shaft are connected through a hole shaft, the traction rope is wrapped around the drum, and the other end is connected to the hook at the lower end of the base disc; the lower end of the end effector is a flange disc, that is, a mechanism connected to the robot arm, the base disc, the lifting disc and the flange disc are connected by three support frames, and the support frame part on the upper part of the lifting disc is covered with a spring to provide pre-stress. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0005] The accompanying drawings are used to provide a further understanding of the present invention and constitute a part of the specification. Together with the embodiments of the present invention, they are used to explain the present invention and do not constitute a limitation of the present invention. In the accompanying drawings:

[0006] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the oblique two-dimensional structure of the end effector of the utility model;

[0007] Figure 2 It is a front view of the structural schematic diagram of the end effector of the utility model;

[0008] Figure 3 It is a top view of the structural schematic diagram of the end effector of the utility model;

[0009] Figure 4 It is a left view of the schematic diagram of the structure of the end effector of the utility model;

[0010] In conjunction with the accompanying drawings, the reference numerals in the embodiments of the present invention are as follows:

[0011] 1-near finger; 2-far finger; 3-connecting rod 1; 4-connecting rod 2; 5-connecting rod 3; 6-motor; 7-flange disc; 8-motor pressing plate; 9-lifting disc; 10-spring; 11-cylindrical pin; 12-base disc; 13-hexagonal head bolt; 14-drum; 15-support frame; 16-traction rope. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0012] The specific implementation of the present utility model is described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0013] As shown in the attached picture Figure 1 As shown, the utility model is generally composed of a grasping mechanism, a supporting and connecting mechanism, and a driving transmission mechanism.

[0014] The grasping mechanism is connected by a near finger 1, a far finger 2, a connecting rod 3 and a connecting rod 4. Each connection is connected by a cylindrical pin, and the four connections form an approximately right-angled trapezoidal structure.

[0015] The supporting connection mechanism is composed of a base disc 12, a flange disc 7 and a support frame 15 (three pieces). Three fixed hinge supports with an angle of 120° are installed on the base disc 12, which are used to connect three finger mechanisms. The flange disc 7 is a connecting tool for the end effector to be installed at the end of the robot arm. The openings on the flange disc 7 need to be determined according to the hole distribution of the flange disc at the end of the robot arm. The support frame 15 is a mechanism that connects the base disc 12, the lifting disc 9 and the flange disc 7 together. It not only plays the role of connecting support, but also guides the movement of the lifting disc 9. The lifting disc 9 moves up and down along the direction of the support frame 15.

[0016] The driving transmission mechanism is composed of a motor 6, a drum 14, a traction rope 16, a lifting disc 9, a spring 10 and a connecting rod 5. The motor 6 is fixedly connected to the lower end of the lifting disc 9 by a hexagonal bolt 13 through a "J"-shaped pressing plate. The drum 14 is connected to the motor 6 through a hole shaft, that is, one end of the drum 14 is connected to the motor 6 and the other end is suspended between the lifting disc 9 and the flange disc 7. One end of the traction rope 16 is wound around the drum 14, and the other end is fixed to the center hook at the lower end of the base disc 12, and the initial state is not a relaxed state. The spring 10 is sleeved on the support frame between the base disc 12 and the lifting disc 9, and is fixed at the upper end and relaxed at the lower end. The spring 10 can provide preload.

[0017] The working principle of the utility model is as follows:

[0018] 1. Crawl operation

[0019] The motor 6 rotates forward, driving the roller 14 to rotate forward, the length of the traction rope 16 is shortened, and the lifting disc 9 carries the motor 6 and the roller 14 as a whole to overcome the force of the spring 10 and move upward along the support frame 15, thereby providing the connecting rod 5 with an upward sub-motion. Through the right-angle trapezoidal mechanism, the movement of the connecting rod 15 is converted into the inward movement of the near finger 2 and the far finger 1, completing the grasping of the apple.

[0020] 2. Release the operation

[0021] The motor 6 reverses, driving the drum 14 to reverse, the traction rope 16 is loosened and lengthened, and under the elastic force of the spring 10 and the self-gravity of the motor 6 and the drum 14, the lifting disc 9 moves downward, providing a downward sub-movement to the connecting rod 5, and through the right-angle trapezoidal mechanism, the fingers are opened to complete the loosening task.

Claims

1. An end effector for apple picking, characterized in that: It consists of a grabbing mechanism, a supporting and connecting mechanism, and a driving transmission mechanism; the grabbing mechanism consists of a near finger, a far finger, and a connecting rod, forming a right-angled trapezoidal mechanism; the supporting and connecting mechanism consists of a base disc, a flange disc, and a support frame; the driving transmission mechanism consists of an electric motor, a drum, a traction rope, a lifting disc, a spring, and a connecting rod.

2. The end effector for apple picking according to claim 1, characterized in that: An electric motor is used in conjunction with a roller and a traction rope to convert the rotation of the roller into the opening and closing movement of the fingers.

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