Vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper and suction mechanism for flexible packaging materials

Abstract

This utility model belongs to the field of robotic arm technology, specifically relating to a vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper and suction mechanism for soft-packaged materials. The gripper includes: a telescopic mechanism comprising a telescopic cylinder mounted on a support and a telescopic connector connected to the output end of the telescopic cylinder; a pair of clamping mechanisms respectively disposed at both ends of the telescopic connector; wherein the telescopic cylinder is adapted to drive the telescopic connector to rotate, thereby moving the grippers in each clamping mechanism above the goods; a drive mechanism, wherein a drive motor in the drive mechanism is adapted to drive the two grippers to move relative to each other to clamp the goods after the pair of grippers have moved above the goods; and a composite suction mechanism disposed on the telescopic connector, wherein an adsorption element in the composite suction mechanism is adapted to adsorb the upper surface of the goods when the two grippers clamp the goods.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model belongs to the field of robotic arm technology, specifically relating to a vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper and suction mechanism based on soft-packaged materials. Background Technology

[0002] Existing cargo handling devices rely on rigid grippers for mechanical gripping. In the process of handling soft-packaged powder materials, the gripping force of the mechanical gripper is difficult to adjust, which can easily cause compression of the soft-packaged materials. If the gripping force is too large, it can easily cause the soft package to deform or even produce permanent indentations. If the gripping force is too small, it will be unable to effectively grip the soft-packaged materials. Furthermore, for materials placed on pallets, it is difficult to grasp and destacking them by mechanical grippers alone. In existing technologies, vacuum suction cups are used to adsorb materials for soft packaging instead of gripping them with robotic arms. However, suction cups can only provide normal adsorption force. When turning or stopping suddenly, the material is prone to relative sliding with the suction cup due to centrifugal force. This is especially true for woven bag materials, which have high air permeability and poor suction stability. They are very easy to fall off when encountering shaking or swaying during movement.

[0003] Therefore, it is necessary to design a composite gripper and suction mechanism based on vacuum suction and mechanical clamping for flexible packaging materials to solve the technical problem of difficulty in gripping flexible packaging goods due to the difficulty in adjusting the clamping force of existing mechanical grippers.

[0004] It should be noted that the information disclosed in this background section is only for understanding the background technology of this application concept, and therefore, the above description is not considered to constitute prior art information. Utility Model Content

[0005] This disclosure provides at least one vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper and suction mechanism for flexible packaging materials.

[0006] In a first aspect, embodiments of this disclosure provide a vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper based on flexible packaging materials, comprising: A telescopic mechanism, comprising a telescopic cylinder mounted on a bracket and a telescopic connector connected to the output end of the telescopic cylinder; A pair of clamping mechanisms are respectively disposed at both ends of the telescopic connector; wherein The telescopic cylinder is adapted to drive the telescopic connector to rotate, thereby driving the grippers in each clamping mechanism to move above the goods; A drive mechanism, wherein a drive motor is adapted to drive the two grippers to move relative to each other to clamp the goods after the pair of grippers have moved above the goods; and A composite suction mechanism is provided on the telescopic connector, and the suction element in the composite suction mechanism is adapted to suction the upper surface of the goods when the two grippers hold the goods.

[0007] In one alternative embodiment, each of the clamping mechanisms includes at least one clamping connector; Each of the clamping connectors is respectively disposed at both ends of the telescopic connector and is arranged perpendicularly to the telescopic connector; wherein Each of the clamping connectors has a pair of grippers below it, and each gripper is connected to the clamping connector through a corresponding connecting plate in the drive mechanism.

[0008] In one optional implementation, the drive mechanism includes: A pair of sliding members are respectively disposed on the upper end face of the corresponding connecting plate; wherein Each of the aforementioned sliding members is slidably connected to both ends of the clamping connector; A pair of threaded connecting plates, each connected to the upper end face of a corresponding connecting plate; and A bidirectional threaded screw passes through and is threadedly connected to both threaded connecting plates, and one end of the bidirectional threaded screw is connected to the output end of the drive motor; wherein The drive motor is adapted to drive the bidirectional threaded screw to rotate, thereby driving the two connecting plates and the grippers set below each connecting plate to move relative to each other through the two threaded connecting plates.

[0009] In one optional embodiment, the upper end face of each of the connecting plates is provided with a deflection component, which includes: A clamping cylinder is disposed on the upper end face of the connecting plate; A rocker arm extends through the connecting plate and is connected to the bearing of the connecting plate. One end of the rocker arm is connected to the output end of the clamping cylinder, and the other end is connected to the corresponding gripper; and At least one connecting arm, one end of which is connected to the gripper, and the other end of which is connected to the bearing of the connecting plate; wherein The clamping cylinder is adapted to control the rocker arm to deflect around the bearing connection between the rocker arm and the connecting plate, thereby driving the gripper and the connecting arm to deflect.

[0010] In one optional embodiment, the composite suction mechanism includes: An adsorption connector is disposed on the lower end face of the clamping connector; An adsorption cylinder, the upper end face of which is connected to the adsorption connector; and The adsorption element is connected to the output end of the adsorption cylinder.

[0011] In one optional implementation, the telescopic mechanism includes: A telescopic cylinder is disposed on the upper end face of the bracket, and the output end of the telescopic cylinder passes through the bracket; The telescopic rod has its top end connected to the output end of the telescopic cylinder, and its bottom end inserted into the mounting position opened on the telescopic connector and connected to the telescopic connector.

[0012] Secondly, embodiments of this disclosure also provide a suction mechanism, comprising: An adsorption connector is disposed on the lower end face of the clamping connector; An adsorption cylinder, the upper end face of which is connected to the adsorption connector; and The adsorption element is connected to the output end of the adsorption cylinder; wherein The adsorption cylinder is adapted to control the adsorption element to move down to fit against the upper surface of the goods in order to adsorb the goods.

[0013] The beneficial effects of this utility model are that the gripper is equipped with a drive mechanism, a clamping mechanism and a composite material handling mechanism. The drive mechanism controls the two jaws in the clamping mechanism to clamp the goods. Then, the adsorption component in the composite material handling mechanism adsorbs the upper surface of the goods to be clamped. The combination of the two eliminates the need to adjust the clamping force according to the material of the goods, thus satisfying the clamping and handling effect of soft packaging materials.

[0014] Other features and advantages of this invention will be set forth in the description which follows, and will be apparent in part from the description, or may be learned by practicing the invention. The objectives and other advantages of this invention are realized and obtained through the structures particularly pointed out in the description and the accompanying drawings.

[0015] To make the above-mentioned objectives, features and advantages of this utility model more apparent and understandable, preferred embodiments are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Attached Figure Description

[0016] To more clearly illustrate the specific embodiments of this utility model or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the specific embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are some embodiments of this utility model. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained from these drawings without creative effort.

[0017] Figure 1 An overall front view provided for an embodiment of this disclosure; Figure 2 A three-dimensional structural diagram of the telescopic connector and its surrounding components provided in an embodiment of this disclosure; Figure 3 This is a three-dimensional structural diagram of the drive mechanism and composite suction mechanism provided in the embodiments of this disclosure.

[0018] In the picture: 1. Telescopic mechanism; 10. Telescopic cylinder; 100. Telescopic rod; 11. Telescopic connector; 110. Mounting position; 2. Clamping mechanism; 20. Clamping connector; 21. Gripper; 3. Drive mechanism; 30. Connecting plate; 31. Drive motor; 32. Double-ended threaded screw; 33. Sliding component; 34. Deflection assembly; 340. Clamping cylinder; 341. Rocker arm; 342. Connecting arm; 35. Threaded connecting plate; 4. Composite suction mechanism; 40. Adsorption connector; 41. Adsorption cylinder; 42. Adsorption component; 5. Bracket; 6. Goods. Detailed Implementation

[0019] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of the embodiments of this utility model clearer, the technical solutions of this utility model will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this utility model, not all embodiments. 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.

[0020] In this document, when it is mentioned that a first component is located on a second component, this can mean that the first component can be directly formed on the second component, or that a third component can be inserted between the first and second components. Furthermore, in the accompanying drawings, the thickness of the components may be exaggerated or reduced for the purpose of effectively describing the technical content.

[0021] In this document, when an element or layer is referred to as “located,” “joined to,” “connected to,” “attached to,” or “coupled to” another element or layer, it may be directly located, joined, connected, attached to, or coupled to the other element or layer, or there may be intermediate elements or layers present. Conversely, when an element is referred to as “directly on another element or layer,” “directly joined to,” “directly connected to,” “directly attached to,” or “directly coupled to” another element or layer, there may be no intermediate elements or layers present. Other terms used to describe relationships between elements should be interpreted in a similar manner (e.g., “between” versus “directly between,” “adjacent” versus “directly adjacent,” etc.). As used herein, the term “and / or” includes any and all combinations of one or more of the related listed items.

[0022] In this document, exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. As used herein, expressions such as “at least one of…” modify the entire list of elements when following a list of elements, rather than individual elements in the list. For example, the expression “at least one of a, b, and c” should be understood to include only a, only b, only c, both a and b, both a and c, both b and c, or all of a, b, and c.

[0023] The terminology used herein is for the purpose of describing specific exemplary configurations only and is not intended to be limiting. As used herein, the singular articles “a,” “an,” and “the” may also be intended to include plural forms unless otherwise clearly stated herein. The terms “comprising,” “including,” and “having” are inclusive and thus specify the presence of features, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or combinations thereof. The method steps, processes, and operations described herein should not be construed as requiring them to be performed in the specific order discussed or shown, unless specifically identified as such. Additional or alternative steps may be employed.

[0024] As used herein, the phrases “in one embodiment,” “according to one embodiment,” “in some embodiments,” etc., generally refer to the fact that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic following the phrase can be included in at least one embodiment of this disclosure. Therefore, a particular feature, structure, or characteristic can be included in more than one embodiment of this disclosure, such that these phrases do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment. As used herein, the terms “example,” “exemplary,” etc., are used to “serve as an example, instance, or illustration.” Any implementation, aspect, or design described herein as “example” or “exemplary” is not necessarily to be construed as preferred or superior to other implementations, aspects, or designs. Rather, the use of the terms “example,” “exemplary,” etc., is intended to present concepts in a specific manner.

[0025] Research has revealed that existing mechanical grippers in cargo handling devices rely on rigid clamping. When handling soft-packaged powder materials, the gripping force of these grippers is difficult to adjust, easily causing compression of the materials. Excessive gripping force can deform the soft packaging and even create permanent indentations, while insufficient force will prevent effective gripping. Vacuum suction cups are sometimes used to absorb soft materials instead of grippers, but these only provide normal suction force. During turns or sudden stops, the material is prone to slipping relative to the suction cup due to centrifugal force, especially with woven bags which have high permeability and poor suction stability. They are easily dislodged during movement or shaking.

[0026] The shortcomings of the above solutions are the result of the inventor's practical experience and careful research. Therefore, the discovery process of the above problems and the solutions proposed in this disclosure should be considered as the inventor's contribution to this disclosure.

[0027] It should be noted that similar labels and letters in the following figures indicate similar items. Therefore, once an item is defined in one figure, it does not need to be further defined and explained in subsequent figures.

[0028] The following detailed description, with reference to the accompanying drawings, describes some embodiments of the present invention. Unless otherwise specified, the following embodiments and features can be combined with each other.

[0029] Based on the above research, this disclosure provides a vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper and suction mechanism for flexible packaging materials. By setting up a driving mechanism, a clamping mechanism and a composite material picking mechanism, the driving mechanism controls the two grippers in the clamping mechanism to clamp the goods, and then the adsorption component in the composite material picking mechanism adsorbs the upper surface of the goods to be clamped. The combination of the two eliminates the need to adjust the clamping force according to the material of the goods, thus achieving the desired clamping and handling effect for flexible packaging materials.

[0030] In some embodiments, such as Figures 1 to 2 As shown, the worker moves the stacked goods 6 to below the support 5, activates the telescopic cylinder 10, and its output end drives the telescopic rod 100 and the telescopic connector 11 fixed to the bottom of the telescopic rod 100 to move down, controlling the two claws 21 at each end of the telescopic connector 11 to move to both sides of the stacked goods 6 to form a clamping tendency.

[0031] In some embodiments, such as Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, the adsorption cylinder 41 is activated, and its output end drives the adsorption element 42 to move down until the adsorption element 42 adheres to the upper surface of the goods 6 to achieve adsorption. Then, the adsorption cylinder 41 is reset, and the adsorption element 42 drives the soft packaged goods 6 adsorbed thereon to move up, so as to meet the subsequent gripping needs of the gripper 21 and avoid the problem that the gripper 21 cannot grip the goods 6 when the goods 6 is placed on the pallet. When the adsorption element 42 adsorbs and lifts the goods 6, the staff controls the drive motor 31 to start, and its output end drives the bidirectional threaded screw 32 to rotate. The corresponding threaded connecting plates 35 fixed on the upper surface of the two connecting plates 30 respectively engage with the two sections of threads on the bidirectional threaded screw 32 (the threads on the outer wall of the bidirectional threaded screw 32 are not shown in the figure). As the bidirectional threaded screw 32 rotates, it drives the two connecting plates 30 to move closer to each other, and drives the corresponding grippers 21 connected to each connecting plate 30 through the connecting arm 342 to move closer to each other to clamp the goods 6. After the two grippers 21 grip the goods 6, the gripping cylinder 340 is activated. Its output end drives the rocker arm 341 to deflect around the bearing connection between the rocker arm 341 and the corresponding connecting plate 30. When the rocker arm 341 deflects, its bottom end pushes the gripper 21 connected to it to deflect slightly, thereby realizing the gripper 21 of the two grippers 21 to grip and hook the goods 6. During the subsequent movement of the gripper 21, if the adsorption component 42 and the goods are displaced and the adsorption fails when the gripper 21 starts and stops, the gripper 21 will support the goods to prevent them from falling. The presence of the adsorption component 42 eliminates the need to adjust the gripping force of the gripper 21. The gripper 21 only needs to support the goods 6. The combination of the two achieves stable gripping of the goods 6.

[0032] It should be noted that the above-mentioned grippers are flexible grippers (silicone contact surface, pressure controllable range 0.5~2.5N / cm²), and have anti-slip texture design, with a friction coefficient μ≥0.6; The adsorption component 42 includes, but is not limited to, a suction cup.

[0033] As another feasible implementation, a vacuum suction cup is provided on the lower end face of the adsorption cylinder 41, and the vacuum suction cup is connected to the air extraction device. When it is necessary to adsorb soft packaged materials, the adsorption cylinder 41 attaches the vacuum suction cup to the surface of the soft packaged materials. The operator controls the air extraction device to start and extract the air between the lower end face of the vacuum suction cup and the surface of the soft packaged materials. When a negative pressure is formed in the chamber between the two and the vacuum degree reaches the preset value, the air extraction is stopped to achieve the adsorption of the soft packaged materials.

[0034] In the description of the embodiments of this utility model, 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 utility model based on the specific circumstances.

[0035] In the description of this utility model, it should be noted that the terms "center," "upper," "lower," "left," "right," "vertical," "horizontal," "inner," and "outer," etc., indicating orientation or positional relationships, are based on the orientation or positional relationships shown in the accompanying drawings and are only for the convenience of describing this utility model and 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, and therefore should not be construed as a limitation of this utility model. Furthermore, terms such as "first," "second," and other numerical terms used herein do not imply order or sequence unless expressly indicated herein. Therefore, without departing from the teachings of the exemplary embodiments, the first element, component, region, layer, or segment discussed above may be referred to as the second element, component, region, layer, or segment.

[0036] Spatially relative terms, such as “inside,” “outside,” “below,” “below,” “down,” “above,” “up,” etc., may be used herein to describe the relationship between one element or feature illustrated in the figures and another element or feature. In addition to the orientations depicted in the figures, spatially relative terms may be intended to cover different orientations of the device in use or operation. For example, if the device in the figure is flipped, an element described as “below” or “below” other elements or features would be oriented as “above” other elements or features. Thus, the example term “below” can cover both above and below orientations. The device may be oriented in other ways (rotated 90 degrees or in other orientations), and the spatially relative descriptors used herein are interpreted accordingly.

[0037] In the above discussion, unless otherwise stated, when used to describe numerical values, the terms “about,” “approximately,” “basically,” etc., indicate a change of + / - 10% in that value.

[0038] Based on the above-described preferred embodiments of this utility model, and through the foregoing description, those skilled in the art can make various changes and modifications without departing from the technical concept of this utility model. The technical scope of this utility model is not limited to the contents of the specification, but must be determined according to the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper based on soft material, characterized in that, include: The telescopic mechanism (1) includes a telescopic cylinder (10) mounted on a bracket (5) and a telescopic connector (11) connected to the output end of the telescopic cylinder. A pair of clamping mechanisms (2) are respectively disposed at both ends of the telescopic connector (11); wherein The telescopic cylinder (10) is adapted to drive the telescopic connector (11) to move downward, thereby driving the grippers (21) in each clamping mechanism (2) to move above the goods (6); Drive mechanism (3), wherein the drive motor (31) in drive mechanism (3) is adapted to drive the two grippers (21) to move relative to each other to clamp the goods (6) after the pair of grippers (21) have moved above the goods (6); and A composite suction mechanism (4) is provided on the telescopic connector (11), and the suction element (42) in the composite suction mechanism (4) is adapted to suction the upper surface of the goods (6) when the two grippers (21) hold the goods (6).

2. The vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper based on flexible packaging materials as described in claim 1, characterized in that, Each of the clamping mechanisms (2) includes at least one clamping connector (20); Each of the clamping connectors (20) is respectively disposed at both ends of the telescopic connector (11) and is arranged perpendicular to the telescopic connector (11); wherein Each of the clamping connectors (20) is provided with a pair of grippers (21) below it, and each gripper (21) is connected to the clamping connector (20) through a corresponding connecting plate (30) in the drive mechanism (3).

3. The vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper based on flexible packaging materials as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The drive mechanism (3) includes: A pair of sliding members (33) are respectively disposed on the upper end face of the corresponding connecting plate (30); wherein Each of the sliding members (33) is slidably connected to both ends of the clamping connector (20); A pair of threaded connecting plates (35) are respectively connected to the upper end face of the corresponding connecting plate (30); and A bidirectional threaded screw (32) passes through both threaded connecting plates (35) and is threadedly connected to both threaded connecting plates (35), and one end of the bidirectional threaded screw (32) is connected to the output end of the drive motor (31); wherein The drive motor (31) is adapted to drive the bidirectional threaded screw (32) to rotate, and then drive the two connecting plates (30) and the grippers (21) provided below each connecting plate (30) to move relative to each other through the two threaded connecting plates (35).

4. The vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper based on flexible packaging materials as described in claim 3, characterized in that, Each of the connecting plates (30) has a deflection assembly (34) on its upper end surface, which includes: A clamping cylinder (340) is disposed on the upper end face of the connecting plate (30); A rocker arm (341) passes through the connecting plate (30) and is connected to the bearing of the connecting plate (30); One end of the rocker arm (341) is connected to the output end of the clamping cylinder (340), and the other end is connected to the corresponding gripper (21); and At least one connecting arm (342) is connected at one end to the gripper (21) and at the other end to the bearing of the connecting plate (30); wherein The clamping cylinder (340) is adapted to control the rocker arm (341) to deflect around the bearing connection between the rocker arm (341) and the connecting plate (30), thereby driving the gripper (21) and the connecting arm (342) to deflect.

5. The vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper based on flexible packaging materials as described in claim 2, characterized in that, The composite suction mechanism (4) includes: An adsorption connector (40) is disposed on the lower end face of the clamping connector (20); An adsorption cylinder (41) has its upper end face connected to the adsorption connector (40); and The adsorption element (42) is connected to the output end of the adsorption cylinder (41).

6. The vacuum suction and mechanical clamping composite gripper based on flexible packaging materials as described in claim 1, characterized in that, The telescopic mechanism (1) includes: A telescopic cylinder (10) is disposed on the upper end face of the bracket (5), and the output end of the telescopic cylinder (10) passes through the bracket (5). The telescopic rod (100) has its top end connected to the output end of the telescopic cylinder (10) and its bottom end inserted into the mounting position (110) opened on the telescopic connector (11) and connected to the telescopic connector (11).

7. A pick-up mechanism characterised in that, include: An adsorption connector (40) is disposed on the lower end face of the clamping connector (20); An adsorption cylinder (41), the upper end face of which is connected to the adsorption connector (40); and The adsorption element (42) is connected to the output end of the adsorption cylinder (41); wherein The adsorption cylinder (41) is adapted to control the adsorption element (42) to move down to fit against the upper surface of the cargo (6) to adsorb the cargo (6).

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