Automated Commodity Retrieval Robot for Age-Restricted Sales
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing methods for selling commodities, such as cigarettes and alcoholic drinks, are labor-intensive for employees due to the need for manual verification and retrieval from high shelves, which can be burdensome, especially for inexperienced staff, and lack automation.
Innovation Solution
A commodity take-out apparatus equipped with a camera, arm, and holding mechanism that uses image recognition and robotic arms to identify and retrieve items from shelves, verify customer age, and perform payment processing, thereby automating the sales process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If manual verification and retrieval methods are used, then employees can verify customer age and retrieve commodities, but the workload becomes heavy and the process is labor-intensive
Solution Approach 1:
The robot autonomously performs commodity retrieval, age verification, and payment processing without human intervention. The system serves itself by integrating camera-based verification, automated arm movement for retrieval, and automated payment terminal interaction, eliminating the need for employees to manually perform these tasks
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical operations with an automated robotic system. The robot uses a camera for optical verification instead of manual inspection, an automated arm for retrieval instead of hand retrieval, and automated payment processing instead of manual payment handling, thereby substituting mechanical human labor with an automated system
2Reliability
If commodities are arranged at the back of cash register for security, then theft prevention is improved, but employee work complexity increases due to retrieval difficulty
Solution Approach 1:
The robot independently navigates to the back-of-register shelf location, identifies the target commodity using camera recognition, and retrieves it automatically. This self-service capability eliminates the complexity employees would face in manually accessing and retrieving commodities from the secured back-of-register area
Solution Approach 2:
The robot acts as an intermediary between the customer's purchase request and the secured commodity storage location. It mediates the retrieval process by autonomously navigating to the back shelf, selecting the commodity, and bringing it to the cash register, thereby simplifying the process for employees while maintaining security
3Reliability
If multiple manual operations are required for commodity sale, then verification and payment can be completed, but the time required for each transaction increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges multiple discrete operations—commodity retrieval, age verification, and payment processing—into a single automated workflow performed by the robot. The camera-based verification system and payment terminal interaction are integrated into the same robotic platform, allowing sequential execution without manual transitions, thereby reducing total transaction time while maintaining verification accuracy
Solution Approach 2:
The robot performs verification and payment operations in continuous sequence without interruption. The camera captures verification data, processes it through recognition algorithms, and immediately proceeds to payment terminal interaction, maintaining continuous useful action throughout the transaction process and eliminating idle time between operations
Data Source
AI summary
In accordance with an embodiment, a commodity take-out apparatus includes a camera, an arm, a holding mechanism, and a controller. The controller determines a reference position in the take-out target commodity on the basis of the image acquired by the camera, determines positions of the both side surfaces of the take-out target commodity on the basis of a size of the take-out target commodity, using the reference position as a reference. The arm and the holding mechanism are operated by the controller to thereby move the holding member of the holding mechanism on both lateral sides of the take-out target commodity on the basis of the determined positions of the both side surfaces of the take-out target commodity and cause the holding member to hold the take-out target commodity.