Pick-up Tool Integrated Light Source for Substrate Silhouette
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Manual assembly methods in manufacturing, such as those used in footwear production, are resource-intensive and prone to variability, leading to non-functional and aesthetically pleasing products.
Innovation Solution
An automated pick-up tool with a light source integrated into a pick-up surface, capable of creating silhouettes of substrates for image capture, utilizing electro-adhesive or vacuum forces to acquire and position shoe parts or other substrates for precise identification and processing.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual assembly methods are used, then operational flexibility is maintained, but productivity is low and manufacturing precision is poor
Solution Approach 1:
The pick-up tool integrates a light source that automatically creates silhouettes of substrates for vision systems, enabling the system to self-identify and locate substrates without manual intervention. This automated self-service capability increases productivity while managing complexity through functional integration.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual visual inspection and positioning with an automated vision system that captures silhouettes of substrates. This substitution of mechanical/manual operations with optical detection systems significantly increases assembly speed and precision.
2Measurement precision
If integrated light source is added to pick-up tool, then measurement precision is improved, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The light source is merged with the pick-up tool body, creating an integrated assembly where the lighting system and substrate acquisition system work as one unified device. This merging improves measurement precision by ensuring consistent lighting conditions while managing complexity through consolidation rather than separate components.
Solution Approach 2:
The pick-up tool serves multiple functions: it acquires substrates using electro-adhesive or vacuum forces and simultaneously provides illumination for vision systems to capture silhouettes. This multi-functionality improves measurement precision without requiring separate dedicated lighting equipment, thereby managing overall device complexity.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enhances the accuracy and efficiency of substrate acquisition and assembly by providing clear silhouettes for vision systems, enabling precise determination of location, size, shape, and orientation, thereby improving the consistency and quality of the assembly process.
Implementation Method 1
Activation of the light source may create a silhouette of the shoe part relative to the pick-up surface
Implementation Method 2
an acquisition or pick-up tool having a pick-up surface (e.g., a substantially planar surface of a plate or foam layer that may or may not be insulated) that is adapted to interface with the individual shoe parts and that includes a light source integrated therewith. Upon the pick-up surface of the pick-up tool interfacing with an individual shoe part and application of an appropriate force (e.g., an electro-adhesive force or a vacuum force)
Implementation Method 3
US 6 380 537 B1 describes a holding head with a vacuum suction nozzle for holding an object
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~4
Figure 5
AI summary
Acquisition or pick-up tools that themselves aid in improving the ease with which images of an acquired substrate may be captured are provided. The pick-up tools may include a pick-up surface adapted to interface with a foreign substrate and a light source integrated with the pick-up tool such that light emitted from the light source passes through the pick-up surface to the foreign substrate when the foreign substrate is temporarily coupled with the pick-up surface to create a silhouette of the foreign substrate. A vision system may be adapted for capturing the silhouette of the foreign substrate when the foreign substrate is temporarily coupled with the pick-up surface. The substrate pick-up surface may be formed of one of a transparent, a semi-transparent, or a translucent material such that light may at least partially pass there through.