3D-Guided Picking Robot Trajectory for Dense Container Packing
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current picking robots with suction grippers face challenges in achieving high packing density due to pendulum movements, which lead to collisions with container walls or adjacent items, resulting in reduced throughput and lower packing efficiency.
Innovation Solution
A picking robot equipped with a 3D camera and a control system that determines a trajectory allowing the article to gently touch or approach the boundary wall, maintaining a calculated lowering distance to avoid collisions, and using a pivoting end member to absorb and dampen pendulum movements, enabling precise placement without safety gaps.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If items are placed with a safety distance from container walls or adjacent items, then collision risk is reduced, but packing density decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary detection of the item's pendulum motion characteristics before placement, and pre-calculates the optimal placement position that accounts for the expected swing trajectory, allowing the item to be placed closer to walls while still avoiding collisions
Solution Approach 2:
The system dynamically adjusts placement parameters (position, orientation, velocity) based on real-time detection of item properties and pendulum characteristics, optimizing the balance between collision avoidance and packing density
2Manufacturing precision
If the gripper trajectory is perfectly vertical, then placement precision is improved, but pendulum motion causes collisions with container walls
Solution Approach 1:
The system applies a counteracting force or trajectory adjustment before placement to compensate for the expected pendulum swing, making the item approach the target position against its natural swing direction to ensure accurate and safe placement
Solution Approach 2:
The control system acts as an intermediary that detects pendulum motion characteristics and translates them into compensated trajectory commands, mediating between the vertical gripper motion and the item's natural pendulum behavior
3Stability of the object's composition
If stabilization waiting time is increased, then oscillation damping is improved, but throughput decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses the item's own pendulum motion characteristics (detected during the transfer process) to determine the optimal stabilization time, allowing each item to self-regulate its placement timing based on its natural oscillation pattern rather than using a uniform waiting period
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
This approach allows for higher packing density and improved throughput by safely placing articles close to container walls and adjacent items, reducing oscillations and maintaining contact pressure to compact the stack.
Implementation Method 1
picking robot with a suction gripper for gripping an article
Implementation Method 2
the gripper's inherent elasticity inevitably causes the item to swing on the gripper
Implementation Method 3
pendulum movements, which lead to collisions with container walls
Implementation Method 4
the gripper's inherent elasticity inevitably causes the item to swing on the gripper
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2a~2b
Figure 3
AI summary
The invention relates to a picking robot with a suction gripper (18) for gripping an article (16), with at least one 3D camera for detecting a target container (32) and a control (12) for determining a trajectory (24) of the suction gripper (18) for picking up an article (16) from a source container (30) and for placing the article (16) in the target container (32).It is proposed that the control (12) is designed to determine, from the data of the 3D camera (28) using image processing software, a storage location of the article (16) in the target container (32) and at least one boundary wall (20) in the target container (32) and to determine the trajectory (24) such that the article (16) moves vertically downwards in a lowering section (24a), so that the article (16) is horizontally offset from the storage location by a lowering distance (A) in the lowering section (24a), and approaches the boundary wall (20) in a final section (24b) of the trajectory (24) following the lowering section (24a), or that the article (16) touches the boundary wall (20) in a settling section (24c) of the trajectory (24).