Suction Gripper Control for Soft Products in Flexible Packaging
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current robotic systems face challenges in handling and packaging dissimilar items, especially fragile products in flexible packaging, due to variability in size, weight, and packaging type, leading to instability and potential damage during palletization and distribution.
Innovation Solution
A robotic system equipped with 3D cameras, force sensors, and suction-based end effectors that use item type-specific models and dynamic libraries to determine grasping strategies, allowing for the identification and secure handling of non-homogeneous items, including those in plastic bags, and adapt to new items through learning and human intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If a robotic gripper is used to handle soft products in flexible packaging, then automation and productivity are improved, but the products may be crushed or damaged due to excessive gripping force
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces traditional mechanical grippers with a suction-based end effector that uses vacuum pressure to grasp items. This substitution allows for gentle handling of soft products in flexible packaging by distributing force across the entire contact surface through suction, rather than concentrated mechanical pressure points that cause crushing and damage.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent employs a suction-based end effector utilizing vacuum pressure to grasp and hold items during robotic manipulation. The pneumatic system creates a distributed holding force across the item surface, enabling automated handling of soft packaged goods without the crushing effects of traditional mechanical grippers.
2Speed
If traditional robotic systems are used for dissimilar items, then handling speed is improved, but stability and precision of palletization deteriorate due to inability to adapt to varying item attributes
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic adaptability through force sensors and control algorithms that continuously adjust gripping force based on item attributes such as weight, size, and fragility. This dynamic adjustment enables the robotic system to maintain optimal handling parameters for each specific item, ensuring both high-speed operation and stable, precise palletization of dissimilar products.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates force sensors that provide real-time feedback on contact forces during item manipulation. This feedback loop allows the control system to adjust gripping parameters dynamically, maintaining stable and precise handling of varied items while operating at high speeds, thereby achieving both speed and pallet stability.
3Stability of the object's composition
If human workers manually select and stack items, then pallet stability is improved through human judgment, but productivity and efficiency deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements an automated robotic system that independently performs item selection, grasping, and placement operations without human intervention. The system uses sensors to detect item attributes, algorithms to determine optimal stacking arrangements for stability, and precise control to execute the palletization process, thereby achieving both high productivity and stable pallet construction.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transforms the palletization process from manual judgment-based stacking to automated parameter-driven decision-making. The system measures physical parameters such as item weight, dimensions, and center of gravity, then uses these data to algorithmically determine optimal stacking sequences and arrangements that ensure pallet stability while maximizing throughput.
4Adaptability or versatility
If robotic systems handle arbitrary collections of fragile items in flexible packaging, then versatility is improved, but the risk of damage from improper grasping increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent employs a suction-based end effector with adjustable vacuum pressure and a compliant contact surface that can adapt to various item shapes, sizes, and fragility levels. This universal grasping mechanism handles diverse fragile items in flexible packaging by distributing suction force evenly across the item surface, providing versatile handling capability while minimizing damage risk through gentle, adaptable contact.
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
The system enables efficient and stable palletization and unpacking of diverse items, minimizing damage and improving handling efficiency by accurately grasping and placing items based on real-time sensor data and adaptive strategies, enhancing throughput and reducing human intervention.
Implementation Method 1
a suction-based end effectors that use item type-specific models and dynamic libraries to determine grasping strategies
Data Source
AI summary
Techniques are disclosed to perform robotic handling of soft products in non-rigid packaging. In various embodiments, sensor data associated with a workspace is received. An action to be performed in the workspace using one or more robotic elements is determined, the action including moving an end effector of one of the robotic elements relatively quickly to a location in proximity to an item to be grasped; actuating a grasping mechanism of the end effector to grasp the item using an amount of force and structures associated with minimized risk of damage to one or both of the item and its packaging; and using sensor data generated subsequent to the item being grasped to ensure the item has been grasped securely. Control communications are sent to the robotic element via the communication interface to cause robotic element to perform the action.