Autonomous Picking Robot With Removable Shelf and Telescopic Reach
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current warehouse picking systems rely heavily on human intervention, which is prone to errors, costly, and inefficient, especially in reaching high shelves and maintaining consistent capacity utilization, and existing automation solutions require significant investment and are not flexible or reliable.
Innovation Solution
A robot equipped with a base plate, drive unit, and pick-up unit, capable of autonomously navigating and picking up individual objects, featuring a telescopable bar system for reaching high locations and a removable shelf unit for transporting different-sized objects, with sensors for obstacle detection, allowing for flexible operation in various environments.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If human workers manually pick objects from shelves, then flexibility and adaptability are maintained, but error rate increases and productivity decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The robot autonomously navigates to shelf locations, identifies objects using sensors, picks objects with the pick-up unit, and transports them to destinations without human intervention, making the system self-sufficient and eliminating human error while maintaining continuous operation
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces the human mechanical picking system with an automated robotic system that uses sensors for detection, motors for movement, and a mechanical pick-up unit for object handling, thereby improving both accuracy and efficiency through consistent automated operations
2Volume of stationary object
If warehouse shelves are made taller to increase storage capacity, then volume utilization improves, but accessibility and ease of operation deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The robot introduces vertical movement capability through its extendable pick-up unit, allowing it to access objects at various heights on tall shelves by adjusting the vertical position of the pick-up unit, thereby making high storage locations accessible without requiring human workers to reach high places
3Productivity
If automated picking systems are implemented to improve productivity, then transport efficiency increases, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic system is divided into distinct functional modules: a base unit for movement, a pick-up unit for object handling, sensors for detection, and a control unit for coordination. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and simplifies maintenance and operation while achieving high productivity through coordinated automated operation
Data Source
AI summary
A robot is adapted to pick up and transport objects and comprises a base plate, a drive unit, a pick up unit and a shelf unit, wherein the drive unit, the pick up unit and the shelf unit are positioned on the base plate. In addition, a method of transporting at least one object, comprising: providing the robot, the robot going to a first storing location where a first object is stored, the robot picking up the first object, and the robot transporting the first object to a first destiny location.