Pick ball and tennis ball collecting robot

Abstract

The utility model provides a Pick ball and tennis ball collecting robot which comprises a vehicle body, Mecanum wheels arranged on the vehicle body and a ball collecting mechanism, and the ball collecting mechanism comprises a front end ball guiding device, a bottom ball collecting mechanism, a ball collecting plate, a storage box, a lifting mechanism driving the bottom ball collecting mechanism to ascend and descend and a control system controlling the whole vehicle body to move. The bottom ball collecting mechanism comprises four sets of synchronous wheels, synchronous belts wound around the synchronous wheels and ball collecting channels formed between every two adjacent synchronous belts, ball collecting plates with radians are arranged below the ball collecting channels, and front-end ball guiding devices are arranged at the front ends of the ball collecting channels and used for guiding target balls into the bottom ball collecting channels. After the target balls are accelerated by the bottom ball collecting channel, the target balls enter the ball collecting plate with the radian, part of kinetic energy is converted into gravitational potential energy, and then the target balls enter the storage box. The ball collecting device has the advantages of being high in ball collecting efficiency, various in ball collecting variety, free of ball clamping in the ball collecting process and high in ball collecting flexibility.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to sports training equipment, specifically a pickle and tennis ball catching robot. Background Technology

[0002] In training with games like pickleball and tennis, retrieving the balls is often laborious and time-consuming. Chinese Invention Patent Specification CN109847292A discloses a tennis ball-collecting robot with visual recognition capabilities, belonging to the field of robotics. It includes a main structure, a control system, an image acquisition device, a drive device, a ball-collecting structure, and a storage structure. The drive device consists of two motor-driven rear wheels, and the robot's movement is controlled by the control system. The ball-collecting structure is a roller driven by a brushless motor at the front of the robot. The high-speed rotation of the roller drives and compresses the tennis ball, which rolls into the storage structure due to inertia after detaching from the roller. A ball-collecting device consisting of two rotating brushes is located in front of the ball-collecting structure.

[0003] A tennis ball-collecting robot is also disclosed in Chinese utility model patent specification CN202446752U, which mainly includes a vehicle body, rear wheels, a rear wheel drive motor, a lifting bracket, a ball storage box, a forearm, a ball-collecting impeller, an impeller drive motor, a camera, an impeller drive belt and pulley, casters, a forearm auxiliary ball-collecting belt, and a control circuit. The motor installed at the rear of the vehicle body drives the rear wheels. The lifting bracket is installed in the middle of the vehicle body and can be freely raised and lowered. A ball storage box is installed above the lifting bracket. Forearms are installed at both ends of the front of the vehicle body. The ball-collecting impeller is installed inside the vehicle body at the front position and is driven by the impeller drive motor via a belt. The camera is installed at the front center of the vehicle body. Casters are installed on both sides of the front of the vehicle body, supporting the front wheels. A forearm auxiliary ball-collecting belt is installed on the forearm. The robot's control circuit is installed in the middle part of the bracket at the rear of the vehicle body.

[0004] The first solution uses a motor-driven roller, which rotates at high speed to squeeze the tennis ball to collect it. However, in practice, the roller often knocks the ball away, and only a small portion of the ball can be collected. The second solution uses a motor-driven impeller to hit the ball into the collection box. However, in practice, the ball often gets stuck, and in severe cases, the impeller motor can be burned out, thus failing to achieve the goal of stable ball collection. Utility Model Content

[0005] The technical problem to be solved by this utility model is to provide a pickle and tennis ball collecting robot to address the problems of ball jamming, low ball collecting efficiency, limited ball types, and low ball collecting flexibility in existing ball collecting machines.

[0006] A pickle and tennis ball collecting robot includes a vehicle body, Mecanum wheels mounted on the vehicle body, and a ball collecting mechanism. The ball collecting mechanism includes a front ball guiding device, a bottom ball collecting mechanism, a ball collecting plate, a storage box, a lifting mechanism for driving the bottom ball collecting mechanism to rise and fall, and a control system for controlling the overall movement of the vehicle body. The bottom ball collecting mechanism includes four sets of synchronous wheels, synchronous belts wound around the synchronous wheels, and a ball collecting channel formed between two adjacent synchronous belts. A curved ball collecting plate is provided below the ball collecting channel. A front ball guiding device is provided at the front end of the ball collecting channel. The front ball guiding device is used to guide the target ball into the bottom ball collecting channel. After the bottom ball collecting channel accelerates the target ball, the target ball enters the curved ball collecting plate and converts part of its kinetic energy into gravitational potential energy before entering the storage box.

[0007] Furthermore, the four sets of synchronous pulleys include two sets of large synchronous pulleys and a first set of small synchronous pulleys and a second set of small synchronous pulleys located between the two sets of large synchronous pulleys. A first synchronous belt is wound around the two sets of large synchronous pulleys, and a second synchronous belt and a third synchronous belt are wound around the first set of small synchronous pulleys and the second set of small synchronous pulleys, respectively. The two first synchronous belts and the second and third synchronous belts respectively form a ball receiving channel.

[0008] Furthermore, the synchronous wheel of the bottom ball receiving mechanism is driven by a synchronous wheel drive motor, which is connected to the shaft via a coupling, and the shaft is connected to the synchronous wheel.

[0009] Furthermore, it also includes a timing pulley fixing mechanism, including a set screw bearing, a bearing housing, and an acrylic plate. The timing pulley is fixed on the shaft, the shaft passes through the set screw bearing, the set screw bearing fixes the vertical direction of the shaft, the set screw bearing is connected to the bearing housing, and the bearing housing is fixed to the acrylic plate by screws and nuts, thereby fixing the set screw bearing to the acrylic plate.

[0010] Furthermore, it also includes a ball-receiving channel adjustment mechanism, which includes a double-threaded screw motor, a coupling, a motor slide rail connector, a double-threaded screw, a screw nut, a shaft connector, a slider, and a horizontal slide rail. The motor slide rail connector is located on the synchronous pulley drive motor that drives two sets of large synchronous pulleys, and the motor slide rail connector is connected to the slider on the horizontal slide rail. The shaft connector is located on the shaft of the two sets of large synchronous pulleys, and the shaft connector is connected to the screw nut, which is connected to the double-threaded screw. The coupling connects the double-threaded screw to the output shaft of the double-threaded screw motor, driving the double-threaded screw motor to rotate the coupling. The coupling moves together with the double-threaded screw. Due to the counter-rotation of the threads on both sides of the double-threaded screw, the screw nuts on both sides move in opposite directions. The screw nuts on both sides carry the shaft connectors on both sides to move in opposite directions, thereby driving the synchronous pulley to move together with the slider on the horizontal slide rail, thus controlling the size of the ball-receiving channels on both sides.

[0011] Furthermore, the lifting mechanism includes a lifting motor, a coupling, a connecting member, a lead screw, a first aluminum profile, and a second aluminum profile; one end of the connecting member is connected to the second aluminum profile fixed on the bottom ball-collecting mechanism, and the other end of the connecting member is fixed to the lead screw nut. The lifting motor is connected to the first aluminum profile fixed on the vehicle body, driving the lifting motor to rotate the lead screw. The rotation of the lead screw causes the lead screw nut to move up and down, thereby driving the connecting member to move up and down, and thus driving the second aluminum profile connected to the connecting member on the bottom ball-collecting mechanism to move up and down.

[0012] Furthermore, the control system includes a lidar, a depth camera, an AI edge computing device, and an STM32 control board. The depth camera and lidar are mounted on the top of the vehicle body. The lidar, depth camera, and AI edge computing device are connected. The AI ​​edge computing device is connected to the STM32 control board. The STM32 control board is used to receive instructions from the AI ​​edge computing device to control various motors mounted on the vehicle body to cooperate with the mechanical structure of the vehicle body to achieve various actions.

[0013] This invention uses a synchronous pulley and a synchronous belt to collect the ball, and a Mecanum wheel as the moving wheel. This ball collection method has the characteristics of high ball collection efficiency, multiple ball types collected, no ball jamming during the collection process, and high ball collection flexibility. Attached Figure Description

[0014] Figure 1 This is a partial structural schematic diagram of the pickle and tennis ball catching robot of this utility model.

[0015] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the overall structure of the pickle and tennis ball catching robot of this utility model.

[0016] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the ball receiving channel in this utility model.

[0017] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram showing the structure and dimensions of the synchronous pulley in this utility model.

[0018] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram of the ball-collecting plate in this utility model.

[0019] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the transmission method connecting the central shaft and the synchronous pulley in this utility model.

[0020] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of a double-tooth lead screw drive device.

[0021] Figure 8 This is a structural diagram of a lifting device based on a lead screw motor drive.

[0022] Figure 9This is a schematic diagram of the drive and load-bearing method of a Mecanum wheel based on stepper motor control. Detailed Implementation

[0023] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this utility model clearer, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some, not all, of the embodiments of this utility model. Based on the embodiments of this utility model, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the protection scope of this utility model.

[0024] Please see Figure 1-9 This utility model provides a pickle and tennis ball collecting robot, including: a vehicle body, Mecanum wheels 36 disposed on the vehicle body, and a ball collecting mechanism. The ball collecting mechanism includes a front ball guiding device 38, a bottom ball collecting mechanism, a ball collecting plate 39, a storage box 29, a lifting mechanism for driving the bottom ball collecting mechanism to rise and fall, and a control system for controlling the overall movement of the vehicle body.

[0025] The bottom ball-collecting mechanism includes four sets of synchronous pulleys, a synchronous belt, and a ball-collecting channel formed between the synchronous belts. This utility model utilizes four sets of synchronous pulleys and corresponding synchronous belts (see...). Figure 3 The four sets of synchronous pulleys form two ball-receiving channels 37. The four sets of synchronous pulleys include two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24 and a first set of small synchronous pulleys 20 and a second set of small synchronous pulleys 22 located between the two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24. A first synchronous belt 25 is wound around the two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24. A second synchronous belt 21 and a third synchronous belt 23 are wound around the first set of small synchronous pulleys 20 and the second set of small synchronous pulleys 22, respectively. A ball-receiving channel 37 is formed between the two first synchronous belts 25 and the second synchronous belts 21 and the third synchronous belts 23.

[0026] During the ball recovery process, the target ball experiences horizontal pressure from the synchronous pulleys, preventing the generation of vertical forces. This avoids the vertical forces from balancing with the ground's support force, thus resolving the ball jamming problem. In each set of synchronous pulleys, the diameter ratio of the front synchronous pulley to the rear synchronous pulley is 1:1.1 (see...). Figure 4 This design facilitates more efficient entry of the target ball into the ball collection channel 37. As the target ball travels through the ball collection channel 37, the channel becomes increasingly narrow, thereby increasing the friction between the timing belt and the ball's surface, achieving the goal of increasing ball speed and thus improving ball collection efficiency. A curved ball collection plate 39 is fitted below the ball collection channel 37 (see...). Figure 5The ball receiving channel 37 is equipped with a front ball guiding device 38, which is made of aluminum profile. It is used to guide the target ball into the bottom ball receiving channel 37. After the bottom ball receiving channel 37 accelerates the target ball, the target ball enters the curved ball receiving plate 39 and converts part of its kinetic energy into gravitational potential energy before entering the storage box 29. This process completes the storage of the target ball.

[0027] The vehicle drive system uses front and rear wheel drive stepper motors 35 and Mecanum wheels 36 (see...) Figure 9 The car body using Mecanum 36 wheels can move laterally without turning, reducing the space required for movement. It can also turn freely in some confined spaces, making the car extremely flexible and thus solving the problem of low ball-collecting flexibility.

[0028] like Figure 1 As shown, this utility model also includes a synchronous pulley drive mechanism for driving two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24, a first set of small synchronous pulleys 20 and a second set of small synchronous pulleys 22, and corresponding first large synchronous belt 25, second small synchronous belt 21 and third small synchronous belt 23. The synchronous pulley drive mechanism includes a synchronous pulley drive motor 9, a synchronous pulley drive motor 12, a setter gear 7 and a driven setter gear 5. The synchronous pulleys (20, 22) of the bottom ball receiving mechanism are driven by the synchronous pulley drive motor 9. The synchronous pulley drive motor 9 is connected to the shaft through a coupling, and the shaft is connected to the synchronous pulleys (20, 22) (see...). Figure 6 This drives the synchronous pulleys (20, 22). The two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24 of the bottom ball receiving mechanism are driven by the synchronous pulley drive motor 12. The synchronous pulley drive motor 12 is connected to the shaft through a coupling, and the shaft is connected to the two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24, thereby driving the two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24.

[0029] In this system, the first set of small synchronous pulleys 20 and the set screw gear 7 are both fixed to the shaft driven by the synchronous pulley drive motor 9, while the second set of small synchronous pulleys 22 and the driven set screw gear 5 are both fixed to a shaft without motor drive. The drive motor 9 drives the shaft to rotate, which in turn drives the set screw gear 7 and the second set of synchronous pulleys 20 fixed on the shaft to rotate. After the set screw gear 7 rotates, it drives the driven set screw gear 5, which meshes with the set screw gear 7, to rotate. Since the driven set screw gear 5 is firmly fixed to the shaft by set screws and cannot move relative to it, the power transmitted by the set screw gear 7 also drives the shaft where the driven set screw gear 5 is located. The rotation of the shaft drives the driven set screw gear 5 and the second set of small synchronous pulleys 22 fixed on the shaft to rotate. This process allows the synchronous pulley drive motor 9 to simultaneously drive the first set of small synchronous pulleys 20 and the second set of small synchronous pulleys 22. Because this process drives the movement of the first set of small synchronous pulleys 20 and the second set of small synchronous pulleys 22, it drives the first set of synchronous belts 21 and the second set of synchronous belts 23 to move. Two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24 are fixed on the shaft driven by two sets of synchronous pulley drive motors 12. The two sets of synchronous pulley drive motors 12 drive the shaft to move, and the shaft movement drives the two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24 fixed on the shaft to move, thereby driving the two sets of large synchronous belts 25 to move.

[0030] This utility model also includes a synchronous pulley fixing mechanism, comprising a set screw bearing 4, a bearing seat 3, and an acrylic plate 28. The synchronous pulley is fixed on a shaft, the shaft passes through the set screw bearing 4, the set screw bearing 4 firmly fixes the shaft vertically, the set screw bearing 4 is connected to the bearing seat 3, and the bearing seat 3 is fixed to the acrylic plate 28 by screws and nuts, thereby fixing the set screw bearing 4 to the acrylic plate 28 for ball collection.

[0031] This utility model also includes a ball receiving channel adjustment mechanism, comprising a double-threaded screw motor 1, a coupling 26, a motor slide rail connector 13, a double-threaded screw 16, a screw nut 17, a shaft connector 2, a shaft connector 18, a slider 14, and a horizontal slide rail 15.

[0032] The motor slide rail connector 13 is located on the synchronous pulley drive motor 12 that drives the two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24. The motor slide rail connector 13 connects the synchronous pulley drive motor 12 to the slider 14 on the horizontal slide rail 15. The shaft connector 18 is located on the shaft of the two sets of large synchronous pulleys 24. The shaft connector 18 is connected to the lead screw nut 17, and the lead screw nut 17 is connected to the double-threaded lead screw 16, thereby connecting the shaft connector 18 to the double-threaded lead screw 16 (see...). Figure 7The double-threaded screw motor 1 is fixed by the motor mounting base 27. The coupling 26 connects the double-threaded screw 16 and the output shaft of the double-threaded screw motor 1, driving the double-threaded screw motor 1 to rotate the coupling 26. The coupling 26 and the double-threaded screw 16 move together. Because the threads on both sides of the double-threaded screw 16 rotate in opposite directions, the screw nuts 17 on both sides move in opposite directions. The screw nuts 17 on both sides drive the shaft connectors 18 on both sides to move in opposite directions. Since the shaft connected to the shaft connector 18 is fixed to the synchronous pulley, it drives the synchronous pulley to move together with the slider 14 on the horizontal slide rail 15. The synchronous belt meshing on the synchronous pulley also moves together. Since the synchronous belts on both sides form the ball collection channel 37, the size of the ball collection channel 37 on both sides can be controlled, thus solving the problem of collecting only one type of ball. For example, it can collect balls such as pickles and tennis balls.

[0033] like Figure 8 As shown, the lifting mechanism driving the bottom ball-collecting mechanism includes a lifting motor 40, a coupling 41, a connecting member 43, a lead screw 45, a first aluminum profile 42, and a second aluminum profile 44. One end of the connecting member 43 is connected to the second aluminum profile 44 fixed on the bottom ball-collecting mechanism, and the other end of the connecting member 43 is fixed to the lead screw nut of the lead screw 45. The lifting motor 40 is connected to the first aluminum profile 42 fixed to the vehicle body. Driving the lifting motor 40 causes the lead screw 45 to rotate, which in turn causes the lead screw nut to move up and down, thereby driving the connecting member 43 to move up and down, and thus driving the second aluminum profile 44 connected to the connecting member 43 on the bottom ball-collecting mechanism to move up and down. There are four lifting mechanisms in total, which are installed around the bottom ball-collecting mechanism to ensure the stability of the lifting and thus drive the bottom ball-collecting mechanism to move up and down.

[0034] The control system includes a LiDAR 30, a depth camera 31, an AI edge computing device 32 (e.g., NVIDIA's Jetson Nano), and an STM32 control board 33. The depth camera 31 and LiDAR 30 are mounted on top of the vehicle body. The LiDAR 30, depth camera 31, and AI edge computing device 32 are connected, and the AI ​​edge computing device 32 is connected to the STM32 control board 33. The AI ​​edge computing device 32 acquires external environmental data through the depth camera 31 and LiDAR 30, calls internal algorithms to process the data, and ultimately achieves functions such as autonomous mapping, intelligent recognition, and path planning. After the AI ​​edge computing device 32 completes the corresponding tasks through its various internal function packages, it sends instructions to the lower-level STM32 control board 33 via the UART communication protocol. Upon receiving the commands, the STM32 control board 33 controls various motors mounted on the vehicle body to cooperate with the vehicle's mechanical structure to perform various actions, ultimately completing a series of actions including mapping, ball finding, ball picking, and storage.

[0035] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this utility model, but the protection scope of this utility model is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this utility model should be included within the protection scope of this utility model. Therefore, the protection scope of this utility model should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A pickle and tennis ball collecting robot, characterized in that: The system includes a vehicle body, Mecanum wheels mounted on the vehicle body, and a ball-collecting mechanism. The ball-collecting mechanism includes a front ball-introducing device, a bottom ball-collecting mechanism, a ball-collecting plate, a storage box, a lifting mechanism for driving the bottom ball-collecting mechanism to rise and fall, and a control system for controlling the overall movement of the vehicle body. The bottom ball-collecting mechanism includes four sets of synchronous pulleys, a synchronous belt wound around the synchronous pulleys, and a ball-collecting channel formed between two adjacent synchronous belts. A curved ball-collecting plate is provided below the ball-collecting channel. A front ball-introducing device is provided at the front end of the ball-collecting channel. The front ball-introducing device is used to introduce the target ball into the bottom ball-collecting channel. After the bottom ball-collecting channel accelerates the target ball, the target ball enters the curved ball-collecting plate and converts part of its kinetic energy into gravitational potential energy before entering the storage box.

2. The pickle and tennis ball collecting robot as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The four sets of synchronous pulleys include two sets of large synchronous pulleys and a first set of small synchronous pulleys and a second set of small synchronous pulleys located between the two sets of large synchronous pulleys. A first synchronous belt is wound around the two sets of large synchronous pulleys, and a second synchronous belt and a third synchronous belt are wound around the first set of small synchronous pulleys and the second set of small synchronous pulleys, respectively. The two first synchronous belts and the second and third synchronous belts respectively form a ball receiving channel.

3. The pickle and tennis ball collecting robot as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The synchronous wheel of the bottom ball receiving mechanism is driven by a synchronous wheel drive motor, which is connected to the shaft via a coupling, and the shaft is connected to the synchronous wheel.

4. The pickle and tennis ball collecting robot as described in claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a timing pulley fixing mechanism, including a set screw bearing, a bearing housing and an acrylic plate. The timing pulley is fixed on the shaft, the shaft passes through the set screw bearing, the set screw bearing fixes the vertical direction of the shaft, the set screw bearing is connected to the bearing housing, and the bearing housing is fixed to the acrylic plate by screws and nuts, thereby fixing the set screw bearing to the acrylic plate.

5. The pickle and tennis ball collecting robot as described in claim 2, characterized in that: It also includes a ball-receiving channel adjustment mechanism, which comprises a double-threaded screw motor, a coupling, a motor slide rail connector, a double-threaded screw, a screw nut, a shaft connector, a slider, and a horizontal slide rail. The motor slide rail connector is located on the synchronous pulley drive motor that drives two sets of large synchronous pulleys, and the motor slide rail connector is connected to the slider on the horizontal slide rail. The shaft connector is located on the shaft of the two sets of large synchronous pulleys, and the shaft connector is connected to the screw nut, which is connected to the double-threaded screw. The coupling connects the double-threaded screw to the output shaft of the double-threaded screw motor, driving the double-threaded screw motor to rotate the coupling. The coupling and the double-threaded screw move together. Due to the counter-rotation of the threads on both sides of the double-threaded screw, the screw nuts on both sides move in opposite directions. The screw nuts on both sides, along with the shaft connectors on both sides, move in opposite directions, thereby driving the synchronous pulley to move together with the slider on the horizontal slide rail, thus controlling the size of the ball-receiving channels on both sides.

6. The pickle and tennis ball collecting robot as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The lifting mechanism includes a lifting motor, a coupling, a connecting member, a lead screw, a first aluminum profile, and a second aluminum profile. One end of the connecting member is connected to the second aluminum profile fixed on the bottom ball-collecting mechanism, and the other end of the connecting member is fixed to the lead screw nut. The lifting motor is connected to the first aluminum profile fixed on the vehicle body, driving the lifting motor to rotate the lead screw. The rotation of the lead screw causes the lead screw nut to move up and down, which in turn causes the connecting member to move up and down, thereby causing the second aluminum profile connected to the connecting member on the bottom ball-collecting mechanism to move up and down.

7. The pickle and tennis ball collecting robot as described in claim 1, characterized in that: The control system includes a lidar, a depth camera, an AI edge computing device, and an STM32 control board. The depth camera and lidar are mounted on the top of the vehicle body. The lidar, depth camera, and AI edge computing device are connected. The AI ​​edge computing device is connected to the STM32 control board. The STM32 control board is used to receive instructions from the AI ​​edge computing device to control the motor mounted on the vehicle body to cooperate with the mechanical structure of the vehicle body to achieve the action.

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