Waste medicine bottle manipulator

Abstract

The application provides a waste medicine bottle manipulator, and relates to the technical field of medical equipment. The waste medicine bottle manipulator comprises a driving assembly, a pair of clamping claws and a pair of suction accessories. The driving assembly comprises a clamping claw driving part and a mechanical arm. The clamping claw driving part is in transmission connection with the two clamping claws and can drive the two clamping claws to move close to or away from each other. The mechanical arm is in transmission connection with the two clamping claws and can drive the two clamping claws to move in the horizontal and vertical directions. A clamping channel is formed between the two clamping claws. The suction accessories are in one-to-one correspondence with the clamping claws. Each suction accessory is arranged on the side of the corresponding clamping claw close to the clamping channel. When the two clamping claws move close to each other, each suction accessory can be adsorbed on the bottle body in the clamping channel. The application has the effect that the medicine bottle is not easy to be scratched or clamped.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of medical equipment technology, and in particular to a robotic arm for waste medicine bottles. Background Technology

[0002] Currently, in the medical field, especially in the drug preparation process for oncology machines, it is often necessary to place multiple solutions in vials for shaking and mixing. This process typically uses a robotic arm to transfer the vials to a rotating shaking mechanism. After the medication has been extracted, the empty vials are removed and placed in a waste collection mechanism. Existing robotic arms generally include a vertical drive mechanism, a horizontal rotation mechanism, and a gripper assembly, enabling them to grasp, lift, rotate, and place vials.

[0003] However, when existing robotic arms grip and transfer medicine bottles, especially when the diameter of the gripped portion of the bottle is larger than the diameter of the portion above it (e.g., straight-necked or constricted-necked bottles where the body diameter is larger than the neck), the gripping claws can only maintain their gripping position through friction with the bottle's outer wall. To prevent the bottle from slipping during transfer, the rigid gripping claws on the robotic arm need to apply significant clamping force, which can easily scratch the bottle's surface or even cause it to crack under pressure, affecting operational safety and potentially generating glass shards for contamination.

[0004] In view of this, there is a need to provide a robotic arm for handling waste medicine bottles. Utility Model Content

[0005] To address the problem that existing robotic arms easily scratch or even damage medicine bottles when gripping and transferring them, this application provides a waste medicine bottle robotic arm.

[0006] This application provides a waste medicine bottle robot, which adopts the following technical solution: it includes a drive assembly, a pair of gripping claws and a pair of suction elements. The drive assembly includes a gripping claw drive and a robotic arm. The gripping claw drive is transformed with the two gripping claws and can drive the two gripping claws to move closer or further away from each other. The robotic arm is transformed with the two gripping claws and can drive the two gripping claws to move in the horizontal and vertical directions. A gripping channel is formed between the two gripping claws. The adsorption element corresponds one-to-one with the clamping claw. Each adsorption element is located on the side of the corresponding clamping claw near the clamping channel. When two clamping claws approach each other, each adsorption element can be adsorbed onto the bottle body located in the clamping channel.

[0007] By adopting the above technical solution, the gripper drive component in the drive assembly can drive the two gripping claws to move closer or further apart, realizing the gripping and releasing of the bottle. The robotic arm can drive the gripping claws to move in the horizontal and vertical directions, facilitating the transfer of the bottle into the waste bottle recycling device. Simultaneously, the suction component is correspondingly arranged with the gripping claws. When the gripping claws approach each other, the suction component can adhere to the bottle, enhancing the stability of the gripping. Compared with existing technologies that rely solely on the friction between the gripping claws and the outer wall of the bottle to maintain the gripping state, this waste medicine bottle robotic arm does not require a large gripping force from the hard gripping claws to maintain the friction between the gripping claws and the bottle. Instead, it uses the suction force of the soft suction component to maintain the friction between the suction component and the bottle. Since the suction force on the bottle is directed away from the center of the bottle, the surface of the bottle will not be scratched or even broken under pressure, improving operational safety and preventing glass shard contamination.

[0008] Specifically, the gripper drive component is a cylinder.

[0009] By adopting the above technical solution, using a cylinder as the gripper drive component, the two grippers can be driven to move closer or further apart in a stable and efficient manner, realizing reliable gripping and releasing operations on the bottle, and providing stable power support for the waste medicine bottle robot to accurately grasp and transfer the bottle.

[0010] Furthermore, the adsorption component includes a suction cup and a suction component. The suction cup is disposed on the side of the corresponding clamping claw near the clamping channel. An air extraction hole is provided on the inner wall of the suction cup. The suction component communicates with the air extraction hole. When the two clamping claws approach each other, the suction component can extract the gas in the suction cup.

[0011] By adopting the above technical solution, when the two gripping claws are close together, the suction component can draw gas from the suction cup, causing the suction cup to adhere to the bottle body. This enhances the adhesion force to the bottle body, reduces the situation where the bottle body is held by friction alone, reduces the risk of the bottle body slipping during the transfer process, avoids the problem of the bottle surface being scratched or even cracked due to the application of large clamping force, improves operational safety, and reduces the possibility of glass shard contamination.

[0012] Furthermore, the suction component includes a fixed base, an airbag, an inlet one-way valve, and an exhaust one-way valve. The fixed base is located on the side of the corresponding clamping claw away from the clamping channel. One end of the airbag is connected to the fixed base, and the other end of the airbag is connected to the corresponding clamping claw. The fixed base has an exhaust hole leading to the airbag. The exhaust one-way valve is located in the exhaust hole and can restrict gas from passing through the exhaust hole into the airbag. The clamping claw has a connecting air passage. One side of the connecting air passage is connected to the suction through hole, and the other side of the connecting air passage communicates with the interior of the airbag through a through hole. The inlet one-way valve is located in the connecting air passage and can restrict gas from flowing through the inlet one-way valve to the suction cup. When the two gripping claws approach each other, the two ends of each airbag move away from each other and draw the gas in the suction cup into the airbag. When the two gripping claws move away from each other, the two ends of each airbag move closer together and discharge the gas in the airbag through the exhaust port.

[0013] By adopting the above technical solution, and utilizing the structure of the fixed base, airbag, inlet one-way valve, and exhaust one-way valve, when the two gripping claws approach each other, the two ends of the airbag move away from each other, allowing the gas in the suction cup to be drawn into the airbag, so that the suction cup adheres to the bottle, enhancing the gripping stability of the bottle and preventing the bottle from slipping during the transfer process; when the two gripping claws move away from each other, the two ends of the airbag approach each other, allowing the gas in the airbag to be discharged out of the airbag through the exhaust port, facilitating the next gas suction.

[0014] Furthermore, the adsorption element also includes a compression spring, which is disposed inside the airbag along the moving direction of the clamping claws. When the two clamping claws approach each other, the side wall of the compression spring can abut against the inner wall of the airbag and restrict the middle part of the airbag from contracting inward.

[0015] By adopting the above technical solution, when the two gripping claws approach each other, the compression spring located inside the airbag and arranged along the direction of movement of the gripping claws has its side wall abutting against the inner wall of the airbag. This can restrict the inward contraction of the middle part of the airbag, ensuring that the airbag can stably suck in the gas in the suction cup, enhancing the adsorption effect of the adsorption component on the bottle, and enabling the waste medicine bottle robot to grasp the bottle more reliably.

[0016] Furthermore, the portion of the bottle body that is attracted by the suction cup is a clamping area, and the cross-section of the suction cup in the direction perpendicular to the clamping channel is an arc shape, the radius of which is not greater than the radius of the portion of the bottle body located within the clamping area.

[0017] By adopting the above technical solution, the cross-section of the suction cup in the direction perpendicular to the clamping channel is set to an arc shape with a radius not greater than the radius of the bottle clamping area. This ensures that the two ends of the suction cup in the direction perpendicular to the clamping channel can abut against the bottle before the middle of the suction cup, ensuring that the edge of the suction cup can be firmly attached to the bottle and is not prone to air leakage.

[0018] Furthermore, the drive assembly also includes a rotary table, the top of which is connected to the forearm end of the robotic arm, and the bottom of the rotary table is provided with a plurality of gripper drive components around its own axis of rotation, each of which is provided with a gripping claw and an adsorption component.

[0019] By adopting the above technical solution, the top of the rotary table is connected to the forearm end of the robotic arm, which can move horizontally and vertically. Multiple gripper drive components are set around the bottom of the rotary table around its own axis. Each gripper drive component is equipped with a gripping claw and an adsorption component, which can grab multiple bottles at once, increasing the efficiency of grabbing and disposing of waste medicine bottles.

[0020] Furthermore, the drive assembly also includes a plurality of swing cylinders, each swing cylinder corresponding to one of the gripper drive members. Each gripper drive member is hinged to the rotary table. Each swing cylinder is connected to the corresponding gripper drive member and can drive the gripper drive member to swing the gripper in a direction from approaching to moving away from the rotary table axis.

[0021] By adopting the above technical solution, the swing cylinder and the gripper drive are one-to-one and can drive the gripper drive to swing the gripper in the direction of approaching to and away from the rotating axis of the rotary table. The position and angle of the gripper can be flexibly adjusted, so that the waste medicine bottle robot can more accurately grasp bottles in different positions and postures, improve the flexibility and adaptability of bottle grasping operation, and facilitate the accurate transfer of bottles into the waste bottle recycling device.

[0022] In summary, this application includes the following beneficial technical effects: The system includes a drive assembly, a pair of gripping claws, and a pair of suction components. The drive assembly includes a gripping claw drive and a robotic arm. The gripping claw drive is kinetically connected to the two gripping claws and can drive the two gripping claws to move closer or further apart. The robotic arm is kinetically connected to the two gripping claws and can drive the two gripping claws to move horizontally and vertically. A gripping channel is formed between the two gripping claws. Each suction component corresponds to one of the gripping claws, and each suction component is located on the side of the corresponding gripping claw closest to the gripping channel. When the two gripping claws approach each other, each suction component can adhere to the bottle located within the gripping channel. Compared to existing technologies that rely solely on the friction between the gripper and the outer wall of the bottle to maintain the gripping state, this waste medicine bottle robot does not require a large gripping force from the hard gripper to maintain the friction between the gripper and the bottle. Instead, it uses the suction force of the soft suction element to maintain the friction between the suction element and the bottle. Since the suction force on the bottle is directed away from the center of the bottle, the surface of the bottle will not be scratched or even broken under pressure, thus improving operational safety and preventing glass shard contamination. Attached Figure Description

[0023] Figure 1 This is a perspective view of a waste medicine bottle robot according to this application, in which only part of the robot arm is shown; Figure 2 This is a rear view of a waste medicine bottle robot according to this application; Figure 3 It is along Figure 2 A schematic cross-sectional view taken along the AA direction; Figure 4 It is along Figure 3 A schematic cross-sectional view taken along the BB direction, showing only a portion of the rotary table; Figure 5 It is along Figure 4 A schematic cross-sectional view taken along the CC direction.

[0024] Reference numerals: 1. Drive assembly; 11. Gripper drive component; 12. Robotic arm; 13. Rotary table; 131. Rotary cylinder; 14. Swing cylinder; 2. Gripper; 3. Adsorption component; 31. Suction cup; 32. Suction component; 321. Fixing base; 322. Airbag; 323. Inlet one-way valve; 324. Exhaust one-way valve; 325. Compression spring; 4. Waste bottle recycling device; 5. Bottle body. Detailed Implementation

[0025] The following is in conjunction with the appendix Figure 1-5 Further explanation: See Figure 1 , Figure 2 , Figure 4 and Figure 5This application provides a waste medicine bottle manipulator for transferring empty medicine bottles 5 into a waste bottle recycling device 4. The manipulator specifically includes: a drive assembly 1, a pair of gripping claws 2, and a pair of suction components 3. The drive assembly 1 includes a robotic arm 12, a rotary table 13, two gripping claw drive components 11, and two swing cylinders 14. A rotary cylinder 131 is located at the forearm end of the robotic arm 12. The rotation shaft of the rotary cylinder 131 is connected to the top of the rotary table 13. The two gripping claw drive components 11 are spaced apart around the rotation shaft of the rotary cylinder 131. Each swing cylinder 14 corresponds to one gripping claw drive component 11. Each gripping claw drive component 11 is hinged to the rotary table 13. The output shaft of each swing cylinder 14 is connected to the rotation shaft of the corresponding gripping claw drive component 11 and can drive the gripping claw 2 to move from near to far from the rotation shaft of the rotary table 13. The gripper swings upwards; the gripper drive 11 is a cylinder, which is connected to the two gripping claws 2 and can drive the two gripping claws 2 to move closer or further apart. A gripping channel is formed between the two gripping claws 2, so that the robotic arm 12 can drive the rotary table 13 to move each gripping claw 2 in the horizontal and vertical directions. The setting of the rotary table and the rotary cylinder 131 can enable this waste medicine bottle robot to grab multiple bottles 5 at one time, increasing the efficiency of grabbing and placing waste medicine bottles. Finally, the setting of the swing cylinder 14 can drive the gripper drive 11 to swing the gripping claws 2 in the direction of moving closer to or away from the rotating axis of the rotary table 13. The position and angle of the gripping claws 2 can be flexibly adjusted, so that the waste medicine bottle robot can more accurately grab bottles 5 in different positions and postures, improving the flexibility and adaptability of the bottle grabbing operation, and facilitating the accurate transfer of bottles 5 into the waste bottle recycling device 4.

[0026] See Figure 3 and Figure 4The suction element 3 corresponds one-to-one with the clamping claw 2. The suction element 3 includes a suction cup 31 and a suction component 32. The suction cup 31 is located on the side of the corresponding clamping claw 2 near the clamping channel. An air extraction hole is opened on the inner wall of the suction cup 31. The suction component 32 includes a fixed base 321, an airbag 322, an inlet one-way valve 323, an exhaust one-way valve 324, and a compression spring 325. The fixed base 321 is located on the side of the corresponding clamping claw 2 away from the clamping channel. One end of the airbag 322 is connected to the fixed base 321, and the other end of the airbag 322 is connected to the corresponding clamping claw 2. An exhaust hole leading to the airbag 322 is opened on the fixed base 321. The exhaust one-way valve 324 is located in the exhaust hole and can restrict gas from passing through the exhaust hole into the airbag 322. A connecting air passage is opened on the clamping claw 2. One side of the connecting air passage is connected to the suction hole. The other side of the air passage is connected to the inside of the airbag 322 through a through hole. An air inlet one-way valve 323 is located in the air passage and can restrict the flow of gas through the air inlet one-way valve 323 to the suction cup 31. A compression spring 325 is located inside the airbag 322 along the moving direction of the gripper 2, so that when the two gripper 2 approach each other, the side wall of the compression spring 325 can abut against the inner wall of the airbag 322 and restrict the middle of the airbag 322 from contracting inward, thereby ensuring that the airbag 322 can stably suck in the gas in the suction cup 31, enhance the adsorption effect of the adsorption element 3 on the bottle 5, and enable the waste medicine bottle robot to grasp the bottle 5 more reliably. When the two gripper 2 move away from each other, the two ends of the airbag 322 approach each other, and the gas in the airbag 322 can be discharged from the airbag 322 through the exhaust hole, which is convenient for the next gas suction.

[0027] Specifically, the suction cup 31 can be configured to have an arc-shaped cross-section in the direction perpendicular to the clamping channel, and the part of the cylindrical bottle body 5 that is attracted by the suction cup 31 is the clamping area. The radius of the arc is not greater than the radius of the part of the bottle body 5 located in the clamping area, so as to ensure that the two ends of the suction cup 31 in the direction perpendicular to the clamping channel can abut against the bottle body 5 before the middle part of the suction cup 31, and ensure that the edge of the suction cup 31 can be firmly attached to the bottle body 5, making it less prone to air leakage.

[0028] The working principle of the waste medicine bottle robot of this application is as follows: The gripper drive component 11 in the drive assembly 1 can drive the two gripping claws 2 to move closer or further apart, thereby gripping and releasing the bottle 5. The robotic arm 12 can drive the gripping claws 2 to move horizontally and vertically, facilitating the transfer of the bottle 5 into the waste bottle recycling device 4. At the same time, the adsorption component 3 is correspondingly arranged with the gripping claws 2. When the gripping claws 2 move closer together, the adsorption component 3 can adhere to the bottle 5, enhancing the gripping stability of the bottle 5. Compared with existing technologies that rely solely on the friction between the gripper 2 and the outer wall of the bottle to maintain the gripping state, this waste medicine bottle robot does not require the hard gripper 2 to apply a large gripping force to the bottle to maintain the friction between the gripper 2 and the bottle 5 when gripping the bottle 5. Instead, it maintains the friction between the suction member 3 and the bottle 5 through the suction force of the soft suction member 3 on the bottle 5. Since the suction force on the bottle 5 is directed away from the center of the bottle, the surface of the bottle will not be scratched or even broken by pressure, which improves the safety of operation and prevents glass shard contamination.

[0029] It should be noted that the above are all preferred embodiments of this application and are not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, all equivalent changes made in accordance with the structure, shape and principle of this application should be covered within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A waste medicine bottle robot for transferring bottles (5) into a waste bottle recycling device (4), characterized in that: The device includes a drive assembly (1), a pair of gripping claws (2) and a pair of suction elements (3). The drive assembly (1) includes a gripping claw drive (11) and a robotic arm (12). The gripping claw drive (11) is connected to the two gripping claws (2) and can drive the two gripping claws (2) to move closer or further away from each other. The robotic arm (12) is connected to the two gripping claws (2) and can drive the two gripping claws (2) to move in the horizontal and vertical directions. A gripping channel is formed between the two gripping claws (2). The adsorption element (3) corresponds one-to-one with the clamping claw (2). Each adsorption element (3) is located on the side of the corresponding clamping claw (2) near the clamping channel. When the two clamping claws (2) approach each other, each adsorption element (3) can be adsorbed onto the bottle body (5) located in the clamping channel.

2. The robotic arm for handling waste medicine bottles according to claim 1, characterized in that: The gripper drive (11) is a cylinder.

3. The robotic arm for handling waste medicine bottles according to claim 1, characterized in that: The adsorption component (3) includes a suction cup (31) and a suction component (32). The suction cup (31) is located on the side of the corresponding clamping claw (2) near the clamping channel. An air extraction hole is provided on the inner wall of the suction cup (31). The suction component (32) communicates with the air extraction hole. When the two clamping claws (2) are close to each other, the suction component (32) can extract the gas in the suction cup (31).

4. The robotic arm for handling waste medicine bottles according to claim 3, characterized in that: The suction component (32) includes a fixed base (321), an airbag (322), an inlet check valve (323), and an exhaust check valve (324). The fixed base (321) is located on the side of the corresponding clamping claw (2) away from the clamping channel. One end of the airbag (322) is connected to the fixed base (321), and the other end of the airbag (322) is connected to the corresponding clamping claw (2). The fixed base (321) has an exhaust hole leading to the airbag (322). The exhaust one-way valve (324) is located in the exhaust hole and can restrict gas from passing through the exhaust hole into the airbag (322). The clamping claw (2) has a connecting air passage. One side of the connecting air passage is connected to the suction through hole, and the other side of the connecting air passage is connected to the inside of the airbag (322) through the through hole opened on the airbag (322). The intake one-way valve (323) is located in the connecting air passage and can restrict gas from passing through the intake one-way valve (323) to flow to the suction cup (31). When the two gripping claws (2) move closer to each other, the two ends of each airbag (322) move away from each other and draw the gas in the suction cup (31) into the airbag (322). When the two gripping claws (2) move away from each other, the two ends of each airbag (322) move closer to each other and discharge the gas in the airbag (322) out of the airbag (322) through the exhaust port.

5. The robotic arm for handling waste medicine bottles according to claim 4, characterized in that: The adsorption member (3) also includes a compression spring (325), which is located inside the airbag (322) along the moving direction of the clamping claw (2). When the two clamping claws (2) approach each other, the side wall of the compression spring (325) can abut against the inner wall of the airbag (322) and restrict the middle part of the airbag (322) from contracting inward.

6. The robotic arm for handling waste medicine bottles according to claim 3, characterized in that: The portion of the bottle body (5) that is attracted by the suction cup (31) is the clamping area. The cross-section of the suction cup (31) in the direction perpendicular to the clamping channel is an arc shape, and the radius of the arc shape is not greater than the radius of the portion of the bottle body (5) located in the clamping area.

7. The robotic arm for handling waste medicine bottles according to claim 2, characterized in that: The drive assembly (1) further includes a rotary table (13), the top of which is connected to the forearm end of the robotic arm (12), and the bottom of the rotary table (13) is provided with a plurality of gripper drive components (11) around its own axis of rotation. Each gripper drive component (11) is provided with a gripping claw (2) and an adsorption component (3).

8. The robotic arm for handling waste medicine bottles according to claim 7, characterized in that: The drive assembly (1) further includes a plurality of swing cylinders (14), each swing cylinder (14) corresponding to a gripper drive (11). Each gripper drive (11) is hinged to the rotary table (13). Each swing cylinder (14) is connected to the corresponding gripper drive (11) and can drive the gripper drive (11) to swing the gripper (2) in a direction from approaching to moving away from the axis of rotation of the rotary table (13).

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