Robotic Food Assembly With Vision-Guided Bulk Portion Placement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current food assembly systems in the industry face challenges in efficiently and consistently transferring bulk foodstuff into containers, particularly in high-throughput settings, due to limitations in automation and adaptability to varying food types and conveyor systems, leading to inefficiencies and increased human involvement.
Innovation Solution
A robotic foodstuff assembly system comprising a robot arm, sensor suite, and computing system that determines pick and insert targets based on image data and context, enabling precise and flexible transfer of bulk foodstuff into containers, adaptable to different conveyor systems and food types, with modular architecture for scalability and reduced labor requirements.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual food assembly is used, then flexibility in handling different food types is maintained, but productivity and consistency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic system is designed with universal capabilities to handle multiple food types and container configurations through programmable control. The robot arm can be reconfigured via software to accommodate different foodstuff characteristics, container sizes, and conveyor systems, eliminating the need for dedicated manual operations for each food type while maintaining high throughput and consistency.
2Productivity
If automated robotic assembly is implemented, then productivity and consistency improve, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic food assembly system is divided into modular functional components: robot arm for manipulation, sensor suite for detection, computing system for control, and conveyor integration. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized independently and facilitates easier maintenance, troubleshooting, and scalability, reducing the practical complexity despite the automated capabilities.
3Adaptability or versatility
If human involvement is increased, then adaptability to varying conditions improves, but loss of time and productivity deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The robotic system incorporates dynamic adaptability through programmable control that can adjust to varying conveyor speeds, different foodstuff types, and changing assembly requirements. The computing system processes sensor data in real-time to modify robot movements and positioning, enabling the system to adapt to varying conditions automatically without human intervention, thus maintaining both high productivity and flexibility.
Data Source
AI summary
The foodstuff assembly system can include: a robot arm, a frame, a set of foodstuff bins, a sensor suite, a set of food utensils, and a computing system. The system can optionally include: a container management system, a human machine interface (HMI). However, the foodstuff assembly system 100 can additionally or alternatively include any other suitable set of components. The system functions to enable picking of foodstuff from a set of foodstuff bins and placement into a container (such as a bowl, tray, or other foodstuff receptacle). Additionally or alternatively, the system can function to facilitate transferal of bulk material (e.g., bulk foodstuff) into containers, such as containers moving along a conveyor line.