Fish / shellfish gripping device

Abstract

The present invention relates to a fish / shellfish gripping device capable of safely gripping soft-bodied and irregularly-shaped fish / shellfish without damaging same. The present invention comprises: a body unit; a pair of grippers which are installed under the body unit to be able to move back and forth within a certain section and approach each other so as to grip fish / shellfish; a driving unit for applying force to drive the grippers to move back and forth; and separation prevention films made of a flexible material, mounted on the grippers to prevent the gripped fish / shellfish from being separated from the grippers.

Description

Fish and shellfish holding device

[0001] The present invention relates to a fish and shellfish gripping device, and more specifically, to a fish and shellfish gripping device capable of safely gripping fish and shellfish without damaging them.

[0002] Due to the flexible and irregular nature of seafood, the processing of fish, shellfish, and mollusks is difficult to automate; therefore, all stages of the manufacturing process, including pretreatment, sorting, processing, and packaging, rely on manual labor by workers.

[0003] However, due to factors such as the decline and aging of the fishing population, the sustainability of the workforce and processed seafood products is gradually decreasing.

[0004] In response to this, active technological development is currently underway to automate the processing of seafood using robots and IoT technology.

[0005] In particular, the development of a shellfish gripping device capable of safely gripping shellfish and safely transferring them to subsequent processes is essential.

[0006] However, existing shellfish gripping devices have limitations in that they grip by applying pressure to both sides of the shellfish, which causes problems such as the soft tissues of the shellfish being easily compressed, torn, or slipping off, making it difficult to grip the shellfish stably without damage.

[0007] The present invention was devised to solve the aforementioned problems and aims to provide a fish and shellfish gripping device capable of stably gripping fish and shellfish without damaging them.

[0008] The problems of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other unmentioned problems will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.

[0009] To achieve the above objective, the fish and shellfish gripping device of the present invention comprises a body portion, a pair of grippers installed at the lower part of the body portion to enable reciprocating movement over a certain distance and approaching each other to grip fish and shellfish, a driving unit that provides reciprocating movement force to the grippers, and a detachment prevention barrier made of a flexible material mounted on the grippers to prevent the gripped fish and shellfish from detaching from the grippers.

[0010] The above gripper may be equipped with a slider that reciprocates along the body portion by receiving left-right movement force from the drive unit, a frame portion with a closed cross-section coupled to the lower part of the slider, and an elastic coupling portion that connects the frame portion to the slider so as to be movable up and down.

[0011] In this case, the bottom surface of the frame portion may be provided with a scooping portion formed to slope downward toward the gripping direction.

[0012] In addition, an uneven surface may be formed on the bottom surface of the frame portion to prevent shellfish passing through the scooping portion from flowing down to the scooping end.

[0013] According to the present invention, the gripper may further comprise a coupling member that detachably fixes a detachment prevention film to a frame portion.

[0014] The above coupling member may include a slit hole for mounting a detachment prevention film formed in a frame portion, a plurality of detachment prevention film assembly holes formed in the slit hole for mounting the detachment prevention film, and a plurality of fixing bolts that penetrate the detachment prevention film mounted in the slit hole for mounting the detachment prevention film and are fastened to the detachment prevention film assembly holes.

[0015] In addition, the gripper may further be provided with a cover member that is fitted into the frame portion to prevent external exposure of the coupling member.

[0016] In addition, the elastic coupling part may comprise a fixed bracket coupled to the lower end of the slider, a vertical fitting projection formed vertically at the upper end of the frame part and penetrating the fixed bracket, a support member coupled to the upper end of the vertical fitting projection to support the vertical fitting projection so as not to detach from the fixed bracket, and an elastic member fitted into the vertical fitting projection to provide elastic force to the frame part in the vertical direction.

[0017] Meanwhile, the above-mentioned anti-detachment may be made of a silicone mesh.

[0018] Additionally, the above-mentioned anti-slip device may be equipped with a pressure sensor that detects pressure transmitted from the grasped fish or shellfish in real time. In this case, the drive unit stops operating when the pressure value input from the pressure sensor exceeds a set value.

[0019] The shellfish gripping device of the present invention configured as described above includes a flexible material anti-escape barrier that prevents the gripped shellfish from escaping from the gripper, thereby having the effect of stably gripping even flexible and irregularly shaped shellfish.

[0020] In addition, unlike conventional devices that grip by applying pressure to both sides of the fish or shellfish, the present invention performs gripping by having a pair of grippers support the bottom of the fish or shellfish from both sides and lift the fish or shellfish in a wrapping manner, thereby having the effect of minimizing damage to the fish or shellfish.

[0021] The effects of the present invention are not limited to those mentioned above, and other unmentioned effects will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description in the claims.

[0022] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the use state of a fish and shellfish grasping device according to the present invention.

[0023] FIG. 2 is an exploded perspective view of a fish and shellfish holding device according to the present invention.

[0024] FIG. 3 is an exploded perspective view of a gripper constituting the present invention.

[0025] FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view along line IV-IV of FIG. 1, showing the operating state of the gripper.

[0026] Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view along V-V of Figure 1.

[0027] FIGS. 6 and 7 are drawings for explaining the spraying unit of a fish and shellfish grasping device according to the present invention.

[0028] The features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of preferred embodiments based on the accompanying drawings.

[0029] Prior to this, terms and words used in this specification and claims must be interpreted in a meaning and concept consistent with the technical spirit of the invention, based on the principle that the inventor can appropriately define the concept of the terms to best describe his invention.

[0030] Furthermore, the terms and words used in this specification and claims are used merely to describe specific embodiments and are not intended to limit the invention.

[0031] For example, a singular expression includes a plural expression unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. Furthermore, terms such as "include," "equip," or "have" are intended to specify the existence of the features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof described in the specification, and should be understood as not precluding the existence or addition of one or more other features, numbers, steps, actions, components, parts, or combinations thereof.

[0032] Furthermore, when a part such as a layer, membrane, region, or plate is said to be "above" another part, this includes not only the case where it is "directly above" the other part, but also the case where there is another part in between. Conversely, when a part such as a layer, membrane, region, or plate is said to be "below" another part, this includes not only the case where it is "directly below" the other part, but also the case where there is another part in between.

[0033] In addition, terms including ordinal numbers, such as "first," "second," etc., used in this specification may be used to describe various components, but said components are not limited by said terms, and said terms are used solely for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another.

[0034] Hereinafter, in describing an embodiment of the present invention in detail with reference to the drawings, the same reference numerals are used for identical components, and for clarity, only the different parts are described primarily to avoid duplication as much as possible.

[0035] The shellfish grasping device of the present invention can be applied to a grasping robot that grasps shellfish moving sequentially along a conveyor and moves the grasped shellfish to a sorting pallet.

[0036] In this specification, seafood may include, for example, fish, shellfish, and mollusks.

[0037] In particular, the shellfish gripping device of the present invention may be advantageous for gripping oyster meat from which the shell has been removed among shellfish.

[0038] As illustrated in FIGS. 1 to 5, the fish and shellfish gripping device (100) of the present invention comprises a body part (110), a pair of grippers (120), a driving unit (130) that provides reciprocating movement force to the grippers (120), and a detachment prevention barrier (140) mounted on the grippers (120) to prevent the gripped fish and shellfish from detaching from the grippers (120).

[0039] The body part (110) is fixed to the gripping robot (R), and a gripper (120) is installed at the bottom.

[0040] The shape, size, material, and detailed structure of the above body part (110) may be varied depending on the method of connection with the gripping robot (R), the mounting environment, or the type and size of the fish and shellfish to be gripped.

[0041] These modifications do not limit the technical concept or scope of the present invention.

[0042] As a more detailed example, the body part (110) may be provided as a frame structure in which a plurality of spaces are formed.

[0043] And, the body part (110) is provided with a rail so that the gripper (120) can be installed to move back and forth.

[0044] According to this configuration, a pair of grippers (120) may be installed so that they can reciprocate a certain distance in the left and right directions from the lower part of the body (110).

[0045] Accordingly, when the grippers (120) approach each other, the fish and shellfish are grasped, and when they return to their original positions, the grasping state is released.

[0046] Specifically, the gripper (120) may be provided with a slider (121) that moves back and forth along the body part (110) by receiving left and right movement force from a driving unit (130), a frame part (122) with a closed cross-section coupled to the lower part of the slider (121), and an elastic coupling part (123) that allows the frame part (122) to be coupled to the slider (121) so as to be movable up and down.

[0047] The above slider (121) can be connected to the drive unit (130) and coupled to the left or right end of the body part (110), respectively.

[0048] And, the above slider (121) has a guide groove (121a) formed in the left and right directions that moves along the body part (110).

[0049] Accordingly, a guide rail (111) is formed in the body part (110) to correspond to a guide groove (121a) formed in the slider (121), thereby helping to ensure stable left-right reciprocating movement of the slider (121).

[0050] The above-mentioned frame portion (122) is a closed-circle cross-section member with an open center, like a picture frame, and has a bottom surface (122a) that supports the captured fish and shellfish, and a front surface (122b), a top surface (122c), and a rear surface (122d) that extend from the bottom surface (122a).

[0051] The bottom surface (122a) of the above-mentioned frame part (122) may be provided with a scooping part (122e) formed to slope downward toward the gripping direction.

[0052] Additionally, at least one uneven surface (122f) may be formed on the bottom surface (122a) of the frame portion (122) to prevent shellfish that have passed through the scooping portion (122e) from flowing back down toward the scooping portion (122e).

[0053] The above anti-detachment (140) is fixed to the frame part (122) to close the space part (S) formed in the center of the frame part (122).

[0054] Therefore, the captured fish and shellfish can be stably maintained in a fixed state inside the frame part (122) without falling off the gripper (120) through the anti-fallout barrier (140).

[0055] The above-described anti-detachment (140) having the above-described configuration is formed of a flexible material so as not to damage fish and shellfish that are flexible and have irregular shapes.

[0056] Specifically, the above-mentioned anti-detachment (140) may be made of a silicone mesh that is non-corrosive, harmless to the human body, and has its own elasticity, and it is preferable that the average size of the mesh gaps does not exceed the range of 0.2mm to 0.3mm so as to prevent the captured fish and shellfish from getting stuck and damaged in the mesh gaps while allowing for smooth moisture drainage.

[0057] The above gripper (120) may further be provided with a coupling member (124) that detachably fixes the anti-detachment (140) to the frame part (122) so that the anti-detachment (140) fixed to the frame part (122) can be replaced if the anti-detachment (140) is contaminated.

[0058] Specifically, the coupling member (124) may be provided with a slit hole (124a) for mounting a detachment prevention film formed on the front (122b) and rear (122d) of the frame part (122), a plurality of detachment prevention film assembly holes (124b) formed in the slit hole (124a) for mounting a detachment prevention film, and a plurality of fixing bolts (124c) that penetrate the detachment prevention film (140) mounted in the slit hole (124a) for mounting a detachment prevention film and are fastened to the detachment prevention film assembly holes (124b).

[0059] A fixing bolt through hole (141) may be formed in the above anti-detachment (140).

[0060] Accordingly, the above anti-detachment (140) is inserted into the slit hole (124a) for mounting the anti-detachment and is detachably coupled to the frame part (122) through a fixing bolt (124c) with its edge supported.

[0061] Additionally, a protruding ridge (122h) may be formed along the front and rear directions on the bottom surface (122a) of the frame portion (122) to support the bottom of the anti-detachment (140).

[0062] The above protruding jaw (122h) supports the lower end of the anti-detachment (140) to prevent the anti-detachment (140) from detaching from the frame part (122) or being deformed and damaged by gripping pressure.

[0063] At the bottom of the above anti-detachment (140), a stepped portion (140a) that engages with the protruding ridge (122h) may be formed to improve support.

[0064] Since the above fixing bolt (124c) is exposed to the outside of the frame part (122), there is a high risk that it will corrode and have an adverse effect on hygiene.

[0065] To prevent such hygiene problems, a cover member (125) that prevents the external exposure of the fixing bolt (124c) may be attached to the frame part (122).

[0066] Specifically, the cover member (125) may be made of an elastic material and configured to be detachably coupled to the frame part (122) by an external force-fit method so that the anti-detachment (140) can be replaced smoothly.

[0067] The above elastic coupling part (123) may be provided with a fixed bracket (123a) coupled to the lower end of the slider (121), a vertical fitting projection (123b) formed vertically on the upper end of the frame part (122) and penetrating the fixed bracket (123a), a support member (123c) coupled to the upper end of the vertical fitting projection (123b) penetrating the fixed bracket (123a) to support the vertical fitting projection (123b) so as not to detach from the fixed bracket (123a), and an elastic member (123d) fitted into the vertical fitting projection (123b) to provide elastic force in the vertical direction to the frame part (122).

[0068] By including the above-described configuration of the elastic coupling part (123), when an abnormal load or impact is applied to the frame part (122) due to operational errors of the gripping robot (R) or various unintended reasons during the gripping process, the elastic member (123d) is compressed.

[0069] Accordingly, as the fixed bracket (123a) descends vertically along the vertical fitting projection (123b), any abnormal load or impact applied to the frame part (122) is absorbed.

[0070] As a result, the gripper (120) is able to stably hold shellfish while maintaining a constant posture at all times.

[0071] The above driving unit (130) may include a forward / reverse motor (131) installed in a body part (110), a power transmission member (132) coupled to the rotation shaft (131a) of the forward / reverse motor (131) to convert the rotational motion of the forward / reverse motor (131) into linear reciprocating motion of the gripper (120), and a control unit (not shown) that controls the driving of the forward / reverse motor (131).

[0072] In this embodiment, a pair of crank arms connecting the side of the rotation axis (131a) of the forward / reverse motor (131) and the gripper (120) as the power transmission member (132) is illustrated and described as an example, but it is not limited thereto.

[0073] According to the present invention, the anti-detachment (140) may further be equipped with a pressure sensor (142) to detect pressure transmitted from the grasped fish and shellfish in real time.

[0074] For example, the pressure sensor (142) can output a gripping stop signal when the pressure value is greater than or equal to a set value.

[0075] The control unit of the above-mentioned drive unit (150) stops the operation of the above-mentioned forward / reverse motor (131) only when a gripping stop signal is output from the pressure sensor (142), thereby preventing the phenomenon in which seafood attached to the anti-detachment (140) is compressed and damaged due to excessive gripping pressure.

[0076] The fish and shellfish holding device (100) of the present invention having the configuration described above can be operated as follows.

[0077] First, when the grasping robot (R) moves the shellfish grasping device (100) of the present invention to a grasping position, the control unit of the driving unit (130) drives the forward / reverse motor (131).

[0078] Accordingly, as the rotation axis (131a) of the forward / reverse motor (131) rotates at a certain angle, the power transmission member (132) moves the grippers (120) on both the left and right sides in the gripping direction.

[0079] As the above grippers (120) move in the gripping direction, the fish and shellfish are introduced into the inside of the frame (122) through the bottom surface (122a) of the frame (122) and are gripped.

[0080] In this process, the gripper (120) performs the gripping not through a simple gripping motion of pressing both sides of the fish or shellfish, but through a scooping motion of scooping the fish or shellfish through a scooping portion (122e) formed on the bottom surface (122a) of the frame portion (122).

[0081] Accordingly, the above-mentioned seafood flows smoothly into the inside of the frame part (122) without damage through the scooping part (122e), and after passing through the scooping part (122e), it settles on the uneven part (122f) and does not flow down to the scooping part (122e).

[0082] If, during the gripping process, an abnormal load or impact is applied to the frame due to operational errors of the gripping robot (R) or various unintended reasons, the load or impact applied to the frame is absorbed by the elastic coupling part (123).

[0083] Accordingly, the gripper (120) can stably grip shellfish while maintaining a constant posture at all times.

[0084] In this process, the pressure sensor (142) installed on the anti-detachment (140) detects that the shellfish is being excessively gripped during the gripping operation and outputs a gripping stop signal to the control unit of the driving unit (130).

[0085] In response to this, the control unit stops the operation of the forward / reverse motor (131) to stop further gripping operations, thereby preventing damage to the shellfish.

[0086] Finally, when the gripping robot (R) moves to the sorting pallet, the control unit of the drive unit (130) drives the forward / reverse motor (131) in the opposite direction to move the gripper (120) back in the gripping release direction, and the fish and shellfish gripped by the gripper (120) are fed into the sorting pallet.

[0087] In addition to the configuration described above, the fish and shellfish holding device (100) of the present invention may further include a spraying unit (150).

[0088] The injection unit (150) may be provided to inject air from one side of the gripper (120).

[0089] The above spray unit (150) may be configured to spray air toward the lower part of the fish when the gripper (120) moves to a preset position adjacent to the gripping position where the fish is located, as shown in FIG. 6.

[0090] Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the case where the injection unit (150) is positioned on the side of the scooping part (122e) is described as follows.

[0091] First, when the gripper (120) moves to a preset position, the spray unit (150) sprays air so that at least a portion of the fish and shellfish located at the gripping position can be lifted.

[0092] For example, if at least a portion of the seafood can be lifted by the spraying unit (150) spraying air toward the lower part of the seafood, the air spraying angle, pressure, time, pattern, etc. may vary, and the scope of the present invention is not limited by this.

[0093] For further explanation, for example, the spraying unit (150) may apply high pressure toward the bottom of the fish and shellfish through a pulse method, i.e., an intermittent spraying method, which has a higher instantaneous pressure compared to continuous spraying from the side of the scooping part (122e), which may be effective in easily lifting at least a portion of the fish and shellfish.

[0094] At the same time, the gripper (120) can move laterally to the gripping position and perform a scooping motion to grip the fish and shellfish as if wrapping around them.

[0095] Accordingly, contact between the scooping part (122e) and the lower part of the fish and shellfish can be minimized to minimize damage.

[0096] Although preferred embodiments of the present invention have been illustrated and described above with reference to the drawings, various modifications and changes may be made without departing from the spirit or scope of the invention as defined by the following claims, and such changes should also be included within the scope of the present invention.

[0097] [Explanation of the symbol]

[0098] 100: Fish and shellfish grasping device 110: Body part

[0099] 120: Gripper 121: Slider

[0100] 122: Frame section 122a: Bottom surface

[0101] 122e: Scooping section 122f: Uneven section

[0102] 123: Elastic joint 123a: Fixing bracket

[0103] 123b: Vertical insertion projection 123c: Support member

[0104] 123d: Elastic member 124: Connecting member

[0105] 124a: Slit hole for mounting anti-slip barrier

[0106] 124b: Anti-slip assembler

[0107] 124c: Fixing bolt 125: Cover member

[0108] 130: Drive unit 140: Anti-detachment

[0109] 142: Pressure sensor

Claims

1. Body part; A pair of grippers installed at the lower part of the above body so as to be able to reciprocate over a certain distance and approach each other to grasp fish and shellfish; A driving unit that imparts reciprocating movement force to the above-mentioned gripper; and A fish and shellfish gripping device comprising a flexible material anti-escape barrier mounted on the gripper to prevent the gripped fish and shellfish from escaping from the gripper.

2. In Paragraph 1, The above gripper is, A slider that moves back and forth along the body part by receiving left and right movement force from the above-mentioned driving unit; A frame portion with a closed cross-section coupled to the lower part of the above slider; and A fish and shellfish gripping device characterized by having an elastic coupling part that allows the above-mentioned frame part to be movably connected to a slider in an up-and-down manner.

3. In Paragraph 2, A fish and shellfish gripping device characterized by having a scooping portion formed downwardly inclined toward the gripping direction on the bottom surface of the above-mentioned frame portion.

4. In Paragraph 3, A shellfish gripping device characterized by having an uneven surface formed on the bottom surface of the above-mentioned frame portion to prevent shellfish passing through the scooping portion from flowing down to the scooping end.

5. In Paragraph 1, A fish and shellfish holding device characterized in that the above-mentioned anti-slip film is formed of a silicone mesh.

6. In Paragraph 2, The above gripper further comprises a coupling member that detachably fixes a detachment prevention film to a frame part; A fish and shellfish holding device characterized by the above-mentioned coupling member comprising a slit hole for mounting a detachment prevention barrier formed in a frame portion, a plurality of detachment prevention barrier assembly holes formed in the slit hole for mounting the detachment prevention barrier, and a plurality of fixing bolts that penetrate the detachment prevention barrier mounted in the slit hole for mounting the detachment prevention barrier and are fastened to the detachment prevention barrier assembly holes.

7. In Paragraph 6, A fish and shellfish gripping device characterized by the above-mentioned gripper further comprising a cover member fitted into the frame portion to prevent external exposure of the coupling member.

8. In Paragraph 2, The above elastic coupling part is, A fixed bracket attached to the bottom of the slider; A vertical insertion projection formed vertically at the top of the above frame portion and penetrating the above fixing bracket; A support member coupled to the upper end of the vertical fitting projection to support the vertical fitting projection so as not to detach from the fixing bracket; and A fish and shellfish gripping device characterized by having an elastic member that is fitted into the vertical fitting projection and provides elastic force in the vertical direction to the frame portion.

9. In Paragraph 1, The above-mentioned anti-slip barrier is equipped with a pressure sensor that detects pressure transmitted from the grasped fish or shellfish in real time; The above-described drive unit is characterized by stopping operation when the pressure value input from the pressure sensor is greater than or equal to a set value, in a fish and shellfish grasping device.

10. In Paragraph 1, The apparatus further includes a spray unit provided on one side of the gripper to spray air toward the lower part of the fish or shellfish when the gripper is adjacent to a preset position of the fish or shellfish, and A fish and shellfish gripping device characterized by the gripper supporting and gripping the lower part of the fish and shellfish, at least a portion of which is lifted by the spraying unit.

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