Package Imaging Fusion for Stacked Parcel Detection
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Solution Overview
Problem
Traditional automated robotic conveyance systems are expensive, unreliable, and prone to errors, especially when handling multiple packages or requiring human intervention, leading to inefficiencies and breakdowns.
Innovation Solution
Integrating two-dimensional and three-dimensional imaging data sources to calculate package properties such as dimensions, type, and location of labels, providing real-time feedback for operators to prevent breakdowns and improve system efficiency.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Measurement precision
If laser line scanners are used to measure package dimensions, then measurement capability is provided, but system cost and complexity increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses 2D image copies from cameras to represent package dimensions instead of direct laser measurement. Multiple 2D images taken at different angles are processed to create a digital model of the package, providing measurement capability while using simpler, less expensive imaging equipment rather than complex laser scanners.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from 2D images to a synthesized 3D representation of packages. By combining multiple 2D images and processing them through algorithms, the system creates three-dimensional dimensional data without requiring complex 3D scanning hardware, thus reducing system complexity while maintaining measurement accuracy.
2Productivity
If traditional imaging systems are used to image packages, then imaging capability is provided, but failure rate increases when packages are adjacent or stacked
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the imaging task into multiple 2D images captured from different angles and positions. Instead of relying on a single complex 3D scan that fails when packages are stacked, the system takes multiple simpler 2D pictures and processes them separately, then combines the results to achieve accurate dimensional measurement even for adjacent or stacked packages.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent makes the imaging system universal by using standard 2D cameras that can handle various package configurations (single packages, adjacent packages, stacked packages) through software processing. The same imaging hardware performs multiple functions by capturing images from different angles and using algorithms to distinguish between single and multiple packages, eliminating the need for specialized equipment for each scenario.
3Ease of operation
If human operators intervene after breakdowns occur, then system resumption is enabled, but preventive capability is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements feedback by continuously monitoring package imaging data and providing real-time information about package dimensions, configurations, and potential issues. This ongoing feedback loop allows the system to detect problems early and alert operators before breakdowns occur, rather than waiting for failures and then reacting.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent performs preliminary action by analyzing package images and detecting potential issues before they cause breakdowns. The system proactively identifies problems such as improper package placement, dimensional mismatches, or configuration issues and alerts operators in advance, enabling preventive intervention rather than reactive response after failures.
Data Source
AI summary
A package scanning conveyance system that integrates a first two-dimensional image with at least a second two-dimensional image or a three-dimensional point clouds to calculate or estimate a package's physical properties, and/or determine if there are two or more packages in a pile. The captured imaging data is transformed by the inventive system to provide real-time feedback to a human operator to enable the operator to maintain an understanding of the system's performance. The imaging data may also be used to perform quality-checks on other parts of the package delivery and conveyance systems and document the condition of packages that have passed through the system.