Automated Package Registration with Verified Minimum Viable Regions
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing robotic systems face challenges in efficiently registering and handling unknown or unrecognized packages, leading to potential mishandling and increased resource intensity, particularly in de-palletization processes where human workers are at risk of injury.
Innovation Solution
A robotic system that utilizes imaging sensors and Minimum Viable Regions (MVRs) to identify and manipulate unrecognized packages by generating and verifying MVRs based on point cloud data, allowing for autonomous registration and handling of packages without manual intervention.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If human workers perform de-palletization operations, then flexibility and adaptability are maintained, but safety risks and resource intensity increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables autonomous package registration and handling through self-service mechanisms. The robotic arm automatically captures images, processes them through the detection pipeline, generates MVRs, and executes pickup operations without human intervention, thereby improving safety while maintaining operational efficiency
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces human manual operations with an automated robotic system that uses imaging devices, processing systems, and robotic arms. This substitution eliminates safety risks associated with human workers handling heavy or awkward packages while maintaining continuous operational capability
2Productivity
If the system operates autonomously without manual registration, then productivity increases, but measurement precision may deteriorate for unrecognized packages
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary actions by capturing images of packages before handling operations. The imaging device records package appearance, and the processing system pre-processes these images through the detection pipeline to generate MVRs, ensuring accurate physical characteristic identification is completed before the robotic arm executes pickup operations
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces an intermediary detection pipeline that acts as a mediator between image capture and robotic execution. This pipeline includes processing systems that analyze images, generate MVRs, and translate visual data into actionable handling parameters, ensuring measurement precision is maintained throughout the autonomous operation
3Manufacturing precision
If Minimum Viable Regions are generated for unrecognized packages, then handling accuracy improves, but device complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments the package handling process into distinct functional modules: an imaging device for image capture, a processing system for image analysis, a detection pipeline for MVR generation, and a robotic arm for execution. This segmentation allows each component to specialize in its function, improving handling accuracy while managing complexity through modular architecture
Solution Approach 2:
The detection pipeline is designed as a universal system that can process various package types and generate appropriate MVRs for different geometries and orientations. The processing system handles both recognized and unrecognized packages through the same pipeline, reducing overall device complexity while maintaining handling accuracy across diverse package configurations
Data Source
AI summary
The present disclosure relates to methods and systems for generating a verified minimum viable range (MVR) of an object. An exposed outer corner and exposed edges of an object may be identified by processing one or more image data. An initial MVR may be generated by identifying opposing parallel edges opposing the exposed edges. The initial MVR may be adjusted, and the adjusted result may be tested to generate a verified MVR.