Robotic Block Laying Machine With Direct Pallet Picking
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing robotic block laying machines face inefficiencies due to additional brick handling operations, such as dehacking rows of bricks from pallets, which reduce throughput and reliability, and generate construction waste from cutting operations.
Innovation Solution
A robotic block laying machine with a vehicle chassis, base frame, and robotic arm that directly picks blocks from pre-sequenced pallets, eliminating the need for dehacking and on-board cutting, using grippers with fingers or vacuum systems to handle blocks of varying sizes, and a block conveying system with a tower and carousel to efficiently transport blocks to the laying head.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Extent of automation
If dehacker robots are used to remove entire rows of bricks from pallets, then brick handling is automated, but the number of brick handling operations increases and reliability decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention extracts and eliminates the dehacker robot component from the system. Instead of using a dehacker robot to remove rows of bricks from pallets, the system directly picks individual bricks from the pallet face using a single robotic arm, thereby removing the source of reliability issues associated with multiple handling operations.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of the conventional approach where dehacker robots remove entire rows from pallets face-first, the invention inverts the approach by having a single robotic arm pick individual bricks directly from the pallet face in the required sequence, eliminating the need for row removal and reorientation.
2Adaptability or versatility
If on-board saw is used for cutting bricks to size, then brick size adjustment is achieved, but construction waste increases and laying rate decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention applies preliminary action by pre-cutting bricks to the required sizes before they are loaded onto pallets. This means bricks are cut to exact dimensions in advance at a centralized location, then stacked in the precise sequence needed for construction. When the robotic arm picks bricks from the pallet, they are already the correct size, eliminating the need for on-site cutting operations and associated waste.
3Ease of manufacture
If multiple brick handling operations are performed, then bricks are processed through various stages, but throughput is reduced and complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The invention merges multiple separate handling operations into a single integrated robotic picking operation. Instead of having dehacker robots remove rows, transfer robots move bricks, and laying robots place them, the system uses one robotic arm to directly pick bricks from the pre-sequenced pallet and deliver them to the laying position, combining selection, transfer, and placement functions.
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
Improves throughput and reliability by simplifying block handling, reduces waste, and enhances machine efficiency by allowing direct block pickup and near-zero waste operations.
Implementation Method 1
the at least one robotic arm is configured with a vacuum gripper to pick up a block directly from the pallet
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure provides a vehicle which incorporates a robotic block laying machine for use in constructing a block structure, the vehicle including: (a) a vehicle chassis: (b) a base frame mounted to the chassis; and, (c) a robotic block laying machine mounted from the base frame, the machine including: (i) one or more loading bays for receiving pallets of blocks stacked with one or more courses of blocks wherein each course comprises a plurality of rows of blocks; (ii) at least one robotic arm configured to pick any individual block directly from a course of the pallet; and, (iii) a block conveying system that receives blocks from the at least one robotic arm and transports them to a laying head of the machine that lays the blocks in order to create the block structure.