Automated Laundry Sorting Using Image-Based Quality Evaluation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current laundry systems lack efficient methods for evaluating and sorting laundry based on functional and aesthetic qualities, particularly in commercial settings where items must meet quality standards for discoloration, fraying, or tearing, which are not adequately addressed by existing automated systems.
Innovation Solution
An automated laundry sorting and evaluation system utilizing a housing with multiple platforms and cameras that move between supportive and dispositive positions, along with a load cell, to assess the weight, color, and condition of laundry items, and a robotic singulator for singulating and evaluating individual items, ensuring they meet predetermined quality standards.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If manual sorting methods are used to evaluate laundry quality, then functional and aesthetic quality assessment can be performed, but labor intensity is high and processing efficiency is low
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces manual mechanical inspection with an automated optical inspection system using cameras and image processing algorithms. The system captures images of laundry items and uses computer vision to automatically detect defects such as discoloration, fraying, and tearing, thereby eliminating manual labor while maintaining or improving inspection accuracy and significantly increasing processing throughput.
Solution Approach 2:
The inspection system enables the laundry items to be self-evaluated through automated image capture and analysis. The system processes each item independently without human intervention, allowing the laundry processing line to operate autonomously with continuous inspection and sorting capabilities.
2Productivity
If automated inspection systems are implemented, then processing efficiency increases, but system complexity and initial investment cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The inspection system is designed to perform multiple inspection functions using a single integrated platform. The same camera system and image processing algorithms detect various defect types including discoloration, fraying, and tearing across different laundry item types, reducing the need for multiple specialized systems and simplifying overall system architecture.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an image processing algorithm as an intermediary between the physical laundry items and the control system. This software layer translates visual information into actionable sorting decisions, bridging the gap between optical detection and mechanical sorting operations while maintaining system modularity and ease of adjustment.
3Measurement precision
If multiple inspection criteria are applied to ensure quality standards, then sorting accuracy improves, but inspection time per item increases
Solution Approach 1:
The inspection system performs multiple defect detections simultaneously and continuously as laundry items move through the inspection zone. Rather than sequentially checking for each defect type, the system captures a comprehensive image and processes all defect types in parallel, maintaining continuous inspection without stopping the conveyor or delaying item throughput.
Solution Approach 2:
The system applies inspection criteria selectively based on item characteristics and quality requirements. For items with obvious defects or critical quality standards, full multi-criteria inspection is applied. For items that clearly meet or fail basic criteria, the system can reduce inspection depth, balancing thoroughness with processing speed to optimize overall throughput while maintaining required accuracy.
Data Source
AI summary
A laundry sorting and evaluation system includes a housing having an opening and defining a laundry path. First and second platforms are positioned within the housing, each operably connected to a motor. First and second cameras are respectively associated with the platforms and are configured to acquire at images of an item of laundry on each of the first and second platforms. A controller is configured to receive the images and produce an evaluation of a condition of the item of laundry based upon the received images.