CN114269510B - Gripper for actuating a twist lock - Google Patents

Abstract

A gripper (1) for manipulating a twist-lock (2), the twist-lock (2) comprising a body (20), a first taper (21) and a second taper (22). The holder (1) comprises: a flange (10) comprising a first surface (100), a second surface (102) opposite the first surface (101) and a side surface (103) located between the first surface (101) and the second surface (103); a twister (11) arranged on a first surface (101) of the flange (10) and configured to twist a first cone (21) of the twist-lock (2) during mounting or dismounting of the twist-lock (2); a pair of brackets (12) coupled to a side surface (103) of the flange (10) opposite to each other and configured to be rotatable along the side surface (103) with respect to the flange (10); a pair of clamps (13) supported by respective brackets (12) and configured to clamp a body (20) of the twist-lock (2) during mounting or dismounting of the twist-lock (2); and a clutch (14) configured to allow rotation of the carrier (12) relative to the flange (10) in the disengaged condition and to prevent rotation of the carrier (12) relative to the flange (10) in the engaged condition.

Description

Gripper for actuating a twist lock

Technical Field

Embodiments of the present disclosure relate generally to the field of twist-lock manipulation, and more particularly to a gripper for manipulating twist-locks for securing containers, a robot including the gripper, a method of removing twist-locks from containers by using the gripper, and a method of installing twist-locks onto containers by using the gripper.

Background

Twist-locks are devices used in transportation and are commonly used with transportation containers that comply with ISO regulations (international standards organization). Such twist-locks are mainly used in shipping where the twist-lock is interlocked between the corner castings of two adjacent containers, or in shipping where a container is secured to a stationary casting provided on the deck of a ship. Modern ports aim to achieve efficient and automated container installation and removal. However, twist lock manipulation becomes a stumbling stone for such automated processes.

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a conventional twist-lock 2 for use with a shipping container. As shown in fig. 1, the twist-lock 2 includes a body 20, a first taper 21 (also referred to as a lower taper) and a second taper 22 (also referred to as an upper taper). During use, the first cone 21 or the second cone 22 may be fixed to a corresponding container. Fig. 2 shows a conventional method of removing twist-locks 2 from a container 3. When removing the twist-locks 2 from the container 3, the operator needs to hold the body 20 of the twist-lock 2 with one hand and twist the first cone 21 with the other hand to unlock and pull the twist-lock 2 from the container 3, as shown in fig. 2. The process of installing the twist-locks 2 on the container 3 is reversed. Manual operation of the twist-lock 2 makes the twist-lock manipulation process laborious and time consuming.

CN patent publication No. CN208391402U discloses a multifunctional twist lock operating device. As shown in fig. 3, the twist-lock manipulation device includes a pair of clamps for holding the body of the twist-lock, a pair of drive means for driving the respective clamps in translation, a twister for twisting the first cone of the twist-lock, a motor or cylinder for driving the twist-lock in rotation, and some other components. The twist-lock operator is complex in construction, heavy and bulky. Furthermore, due to the complex construction, robotic control techniques may not be available in the twist-lock manipulation devices described above. Thus, directly twisting the lower cone of the twist-lock without any feedback may significantly reduce the success rate of twist-lock manipulation.

Disclosure of Invention

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a gripper for manipulating twist-locks for use with a container, a robot comprising the gripper, a method of removing twist-locks from a container by using the gripper, and a method of mounting twist-locks onto a container by using the gripper.

In a first aspect, a gripper for manipulating a twist-lock is provided. The twist-lock includes a body, a first taper and a second taper. The holder includes: a flange including a first surface, a second surface opposite the first surface, and a side surface between the first surface and the second surface; a twister disposed on the first surface of the flange and configured to twist the first cone of the twist-lock during installation or removal of the twist-lock; a pair of brackets coupled to a side surface of the flange opposite to each other and configured to be rotatable along the side surface with respect to the flange; a pair of clamps supported by the respective brackets and configured to clamp a body of the twist-lock during installation or removal of the twist-lock; and a clutch configured to permit rotation of the carrier relative to the flange in the disengaged condition and to prevent rotation of the carrier relative to the flange in the engaged condition.

In some embodiments, the holder further comprises a bearing connecting the bracket to a side surface of the flange.

In some embodiments, the clamp further includes a force sensor disposed between the torque converter and the first surface of the flange and configured to detect a force condition of the torque converter.

In some embodiments, the gripper further comprises a pair of drive means arranged on the respective support and configured to drive the respective gripper.

In some embodiments, each of the drive devices is selected from the group consisting of a motor and a cylinder.

In some embodiments, each of the brackets is generally L-shaped.

In some embodiments, the flange is a flange of an end rotation axis of the robot.

In a second aspect, a robot is provided. The robot comprises a gripper according to the first aspect of the present disclosure.

In a third aspect, there is provided a method of removing a twistlock from a container by using a clamp according to the first aspect of the present disclosure. The method comprises the following steps: causing the clamp to grip a body of the twist-lock when the clutch is in the engaged state, wherein a second cone of the twist-lock is locked in the container; and after the clutch is switched to the disengaged state, causing the twister to twist the first cone of the twistlock so that the twistlock is unlocked from the container.

In some embodiments, the method further comprises: after the clutch is switched to the engaged state, causing the gripper to pull the twist-lock out of the container and insert the second cone of the twist-lock into the storage device; after the clutch is switched to the disengaged state, causing the twister to twist the first cone of the twist-lock such that the twist-lock is locked to the storage device; and causing the clamp to release the body of the twist-lock after the clutch is switched to the engaged state.

In a fourth aspect, there is provided a method of mounting a twist-lock to a container using a clamp according to the first aspect of the present disclosure. The method comprises the following steps: causing the clamp to grip a body of the twist-lock when the clutch is in the engaged state, wherein a second cone of the twist-lock is locked in the storage device; causing the twister to twist the first taper of the twist-lock after the clutch is switched to the disengaged state such that the second taper of the twist-lock is unlocked from the storage device; after the clutch is switched to the engaged state, causing the gripper to pull the twist-lock out of the storage device and insert the second cone of the twist-lock into the container; after the clutch is switched to the disengaged state, causing the twister to twist the first cone of the twistlock so that the twistlock is locked to the container; and causing the clamp to release the body of the twist-lock after the clutch is switched to the engaged state.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the clamps are rotatably coupled to side surfaces of the flange via respective brackets, and the clutches are to allow rotation of the brackets relative to the flange in a disengaged state and to prevent rotation of the brackets relative to the flange in an engaged state. With this arrangement, when the clutch is in the engaged state, the clamp and the twist-lock may rotate together, and when the clutch is in the disengaged state, the twist-lock may rotate relative to the clamp to twist the first cone of the twist-lock. The clamp of the present disclosure is simple in construction, small in volume, and light in weight due to its specific structure, as compared to the conventional twist-lock manipulation device described above. Furthermore, the twist-lock manipulation process is more intelligent and reliable.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are described herein, are provided to further explain the present disclosure and to constitute a part of the disclosure. The exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure and their explanations are intended to explain the present disclosure, rather than to unduly limit the present disclosure.

Fig. 1 shows a perspective view of a conventional twist-lock for use with a shipping container;

fig. 2 illustrates a conventional method of removing a twistlock from a container;

fig. 3 shows a schematic view of a gripper for manipulating a twist-lock according to one embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 4 shows a schematic view of a gripper for manipulating a twist-lock according to another embodiment of the present disclosure; and

fig. 5-14 illustrate an example process of removing a twistlock from a container by using a gripper according to one embodiment of this disclosure.

Throughout the drawings, the same or similar reference numerals are used to designate the same or similar elements.

Detailed Description

The principles of the present disclosure will now be described with reference to a number of exemplary embodiments shown in the drawings. While the illustrative embodiments of the present disclosure have been shown in the drawings, it is to be understood that they have been described herein only for the purpose of promoting a better understanding of, and enabling those of ordinary skill in the art to practice, the present disclosure, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure in any way.

The terms "include" or "include" and variations thereof are to be understood as open-ended terms that mean "including, but not limited to". The term "or" should be understood as "and/or" unless the context clearly dictates otherwise. The term "based on" should be understood as "based at least in part on". The term "operable to" refers to a function, action, motion, or state that may be achieved through an operation induced by a user or an external mechanism. The terms "one embodiment" and "an embodiment" should be understood as "at least one embodiment". The term "another embodiment" should be understood as "at least one other embodiment". The terms "first," "second," and the like may refer to different or the same object. Other definitions (explicit and implicit) may be included below. The definitions of the terms are consistent throughout the description, unless the context clearly dictates otherwise.

Unless specified or limited otherwise, the terms "mounted," "connected," "supported," and "coupled" and variations thereof are used broadly and encompass both direct and indirect mountings, connections, supports, and couplings. Further, "connected" and "coupled" are not restricted to physical or mechanical connections or couplings. In the following description, like reference numerals and labels are used to describe the same, similar or corresponding parts in the figures. Other definitions (explicit and implicit) may be included below.

As described above, the conventional twist-lock manipulation device is complicated in construction, heavy, and bulky. Furthermore, due to the complex construction, robotic control techniques may not be available in conventional twist-lock manipulators. According to an embodiment of the present disclosure, to simplify the configuration of the clamp, the clamps are rotatably coupled to the side surfaces of the flange via the respective brackets, and the clutch is for allowing the bracket to rotate relative to the flange in the disengaged state and preventing the bracket from rotating relative to the flange in the engaged state. As will be described in detail in the following paragraphs, the above idea can be implemented in various ways.

Hereinafter, the principles of the present disclosure will be described in detail with reference to fig. 3 to 14. Referring first to fig. 3, fig. 3 shows a schematic view of a gripper 1 for manipulating a twist-lock 2 according to one embodiment of the present disclosure. The twist-lock 2 may have various known configurations. For example, the twist-lock 2 may include a body 20, a first taper 21 (also referred to as a lower taper), and a second taper 22 (also referred to as an upper taper). The first cone 21 and the second cone 22 are linked to each other. That is, when one of the first cone 21 and the second cone 22 is driven to rotate, the other of the first cone 21 and the second cone 22 also rotates. During use, the first cone 21 and the second cone 22 may be fixed to the corresponding container. It should be noted that the present disclosure relates to a novel holder 1 for manipulating a twist-lock 2, rather than an improvement to the twist-lock 2 itself. Therefore, the internal construction of the twist-lock 2 and its working principle will not be described in detail hereinafter.

As shown in fig. 3, the holder 1 generally includes a flange 10, a twister 11, a pair of brackets 12, a pair of clamps 13, and a clutch 14.

The flange 10 serves as a base for supporting the other parts of the holder 1. As shown in fig. 3, the flange 10 includes a first surface 101, a second surface 102 opposite the first surface 101, and a side surface 103 between the first surface 101 and the second surface 102. The second surface 102 of the flange 10 may be coupled to an arm (not shown) of a robot. In some embodiments, the flange plate 10 is a flange of an end rotation axis of the robot. For example, in a conventional six-axis robot, the end rotation axis is the sixth axis of the robot. The flange 10 can be rotated with the components arranged thereon, driven by the end rotation axis of the robot. In other embodiments, the flange plate 10 may be connected to a flange of the end rotation axis of the robot. Similarly, the flange 10 and the components arranged thereon can also be driven for rotation by the end rotation axis of the robot.

A twister 11 is arranged on the first surface 101 of the flange plate 10 for twisting the first cone 21 of the twistlock 2 during mounting of the twistlock 2 on the container 3 or dismounting of the twistlock 2 from the container 3. In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 3, the twister 11 comprises two portions spaced from each other on the first face 101 of the flange 10, which portions can cooperate with each other to twist the first taper 21 of the twist-lock 2. It should be noted that the configuration of the twister 11 is not limited to the configuration shown in fig. 3. In other embodiments, the twister 11 may comprise more than two portions arranged in various forms on the first surface 101 of the flange 10. Similarly, these portions may cooperate with each other to twist the first cone 21 of the twist-lock 2.

The brackets 12 are coupled to the side surfaces 103 of the flange 10 opposite each other to support the respective clamps 13. Each of the brackets 12 is rotatable along the side surface 103 relative to the flange 10. In some embodiments, each of the brackets 12 is generally L-shaped. In other embodiments, each of the brackets 12 may have other shapes. The scope of the present disclosure is not intended to be limited in this respect.

In some embodiments, the bracket 12 may be attached to the side surface 103 of the flange 10 via bearings 15. The holder 12 and thus the clamp 13 are free to rotate relative to the flange 10 by means of bearings 15. In other embodiments, the bracket 12 may be attached to the side surface 103 of the flange 10 by other attachment mechanisms, such as slide rails, so long as the bracket 12 can rotate relative to the flange 10. The scope of the present disclosure is not intended to be limited in this respect.

The clamp 13 is used to clamp the body 20 of the twist-lock 2 during installation of the twist-lock 2 onto the container 3 or removal of the twist-lock 2 from the container 3. In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 3, the gripper 1 further comprises a pair of driving means 17 arranged on the respective support 12 and connected to the respective gripper 13. The clamps 13 may be translated relative to each other to clamp or release the body 20 of the twist-lock 2 under the drive of the respective drive means 17. The drive means 17 may be implemented in various forms. For example, each of the driving devices 17 may be a motor or a cylinder or other driving mechanism.

In some embodiments, the gripper 1 may comprise only one drive means 17 for driving one of the grippers 13. For example, the driving device 17 on the right side of fig. 3 may be omitted, and the clamp 13 on the right side of fig. 3 may be directly mounted on the bracket 12. With such an arrangement, the gripper 13 on the left side of fig. 3 can be driven by the drive means 17 to translate towards or away from the gripper 13 on the right side of fig. 3.

The clutch 14 is used to control relative rotation between the carrier 12 and the flange 10. Specifically, when the clutch 14 is in the disengaged state, the clutch 14 may allow the carrier 12 to rotate relative to the flange 10, and when the clutch 14 is in the engaged state, the clutch 14 may prevent the carrier 12 from rotating relative to the flange 10. In other words, in the disengaged state, the clutch 14 may allow the torque 11 to rotate relative to the clamp 13, and in the engaged state, the clutch 14 may allow the clamp 13 and the torque 11 to rotate together under the drive of the robot.

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, the clamps 13 are rotatably coupled to the side surfaces 103 of the flange 10 via the respective brackets 12, and the clutches 14 are used to allow the brackets 12 to rotate relative to the flange 10 in the disengaged state and to prevent the brackets 12 from rotating relative to the flange 10 in the engaged state. With this arrangement, when the clutch 14 is in the engaged state, the clamp 13 and the twist-lock 11 may rotate together, and when the clutch 14 is in the disengaged state, the twist-lock 11 may rotate relative to the clamp 13 to twist the first cone 21 of the twist-lock 2. The clamp 1 of the present disclosure is simple in construction, small in volume, and lightweight as compared to conventional twist-lock manipulation devices. Furthermore, the twist-lock manipulation process is more intelligent and reliable.

Fig. 4 shows a schematic view of a gripper 1 for manipulating a twist-lock 2 according to another embodiment of the present disclosure. The gripper 1 shown in fig. 4 and 3 has a similar construction, with the difference that the gripper 1 of fig. 4 further comprises a force sensor 16. A force sensor 16 is arranged between the twister 11 and the first surface 101 of the flange 10 to detect the force condition of the twister 11. The robot may use robot force control techniques depending on the force applied to the twister 11. In particular, the robot may adjust the position of the flange plate 10 so that the lower cone 21 of the twist-lock 2 may be twisted appropriately.

In an embodiment of the present disclosure, a robot is provided comprising the gripper 1 described with reference to fig. 3 and 4. The gripper 1 may be mounted on the end rotation axis of the robot and form part of the robot. As described above, in the conventional six-axis robot, the end rotation axis is the sixth axis of the robot.

Embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a method of removing a twistlock 2 from a container 3 by using a gripper 1. Fig. 5-14 illustrate an example process of removing the twistlock 2 from the container 3. The method may be performed by a robot provided with a gripper 1 according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

As shown in fig. 5, when the clutch 14 is in the engaged state, the robot causes the gripper 13 to grip the body 20 of the twist-lock 2. At this point, the second cone 22 of the twist-lock 2 is locked in the container 3. Fig. 6 shows the current relative positional relationship between the twister 11 and the clamp 13.

As shown in fig. 7, after the clutch 14 is switched to the disengaged state, the robot causes the twister 11 to twist the first cone 21 of the twistlock 2 in the direction indicated by the arrow, so that the twistlock 2 is unlocked from the container 3. Fig. 8 shows the current relative positional relationship between the twister 11 and the clamp 13.

As shown in fig. 9, after the clutch 14 is switched to the engaged state, the robot causes the gripper 1 to pull the twistlock 2 out of the container 3 and rotate relative to the container 3.

With the clutch 14 still engaged, the robot causes the gripper 1 to insert the second taper 22 of the twist-lock 2 into the storage device 4, as shown in figure 10. The storage means 4 is used to collect twist-locks 2 unloaded from the container 3. Fig. 11 shows the current relative positional relationship between the twister 11 and the clamp 13.

As shown in fig. 12, after the clutch 14 is switched to the disengaged state, the robot causes the twister 11 to twist the first cone 21 of the twist-lock 2 in the direction indicated by the arrow, so that the twist-lock 2 is locked to the storage device 4. Fig. 13 shows the current relative positional relationship between the twister 11 and the clamp 13.

As shown in fig. 14, after the clutch 14 is switched to the engaged state, the robot causes the gripper 13 to release the main body 20 of the twistlock 2. By this point the removal process of the twistlock 2 from the container 3 is completed and the gripper 1 is ready to remove another twistlock.

Embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a method of mounting a twist-lock 2 to a container 3 by using a holder 1. The installation process of the twist-lock 2 is in reverse order to the removal process of the twist-lock 2 discussed above with reference to fig. 5-14. In particular, the installation process of the twist-lock 2 may include the following actions: when the clutch 14 is in the engaged state, causing the clamp 13 to grip the body 20 of the twist-lock 2, wherein the second cone 22 of the twist-lock 2 is locked in the storage device 4; after the clutch 14 is switched to the disengaged state, the twister 11 is caused to twist the first cone 21 of the twist-lock 2, so that the second cone 22 of the twist-lock 2 is unlocked from the storage device 4; after the clutch 14 is switched to the engaged state, the gripper 1 is caused to pull the twist-lock 2 out of the storage device 4 and to insert the second cone 22 of the twist-lock 2 into the container 3; after the clutch 14 is switched to the disengaged state, the twister 11 is caused to twist the first cone 21 of the twistlock 2, so that the twistlock 2 is locked to the container 3; and causing the clamp 13 to release the body 20 of the twist-lock 2 after the clutch 14 is switched to the engaged state. At this point the process of installing the twistlock 2 onto the container 3 is complete and the gripper 1 is ready to install another twistlock.

While several inventive embodiments have been described and illustrated herein, those of ordinary skill in the art will readily envision a variety of other means and/or structures for performing the function and/or obtaining the results and/or one or more of the advantages described herein, and each of such variations and/or modifications is deemed to be within the scope of the inventive embodiments described herein. More generally, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that all parameters, dimensions, materials, and configurations described herein are meant to be exemplary and that the actual parameters, dimensions, materials, and/or configurations will depend upon the specific application or applications for which the teachings of the present disclosure are used. Those skilled in the art will recognize, or be able to ascertain using no more than routine experimentation, many equivalents to the specific inventive embodiments described herein. It is, therefore, to be understood that the foregoing embodiments are presented by way of example only and that, within the scope of the appended claims and equivalents thereto, the inventive embodiments may be practiced otherwise than as specifically described and claimed. Inventive embodiments of the present disclosure are directed to each individual feature, system, article, material, kit, and/or method described herein. In addition, any combination of two or more such features, systems, articles, materials, kits, and/or methods, if such features, systems, articles, materials, kits, and/or methods are not mutually inconsistent, is included within the scope of the present disclosure.

Claims (11)

1. A holder (1) for manipulating a twist-lock (2), the twist-lock (2) comprising a body (20), a first taper (21) and a second taper (22), the holder (1) comprising:

a flange (10), the flange (10) comprising a first surface (101), a second surface (102) opposite the first surface (101), and a side surface (103) between the first surface (101) and the second surface (102);

a twister (11), said twister (11) being arranged on said first surface (101) of said flange plate (10) and being configured to twist said first cone (21) of said twist-lock (2) during mounting or dismounting of said twist-lock (2);

a pair of brackets (12), the pair of brackets (12) being coupled to the side surface (103) of the flange (10) opposite to each other and configured to be rotatable along the side surface (103) with respect to the flange (10);

a pair of clamps (13), the pair of clamps (13) being supported by respective brackets (12) and configured to clamp the body (20) of the twist-lock (2) during mounting or dismounting of the twist-lock (2); and

a clutch (14), the clutch (14) being configured to allow rotation of the carrier (12) relative to the flange (10) in a disengaged state and to prevent rotation of the carrier (12) relative to the flange (10) in an engaged state.

2. Holder (1) according to claim 1, further comprising a bearing (15), the bearing (15) connecting the bracket (12) to the side surface (103) of the flange (10).

3. The clamp (1) according to claim 1, further comprising a force sensor (16), said force sensor (16) being arranged between said twister (11) and said first surface (101) of said flange (10) and being configured to detect a force condition of said twister (11).

4. Gripper (1) according to claim 1, further comprising a pair of driving means (17), said pair of driving means (17) being arranged on a respective support (12) and configured to drive a respective clamp (13).

5. Gripper (1) according to claim 4, wherein each of the driving means (17) is selected from the group consisting of a motor and a cylinder.

6. Gripper (1) according to claim 1, wherein each of said legs (12) is generally L-shaped.

7. Gripper (1) according to claim 1, wherein the flange plate (10) is a flange of an end rotation axis of the robot.

8. Robot comprising a gripper (1) according to any of the claims 1 to 7.

9. A method of removing a twistlock (2) from a container (3) by using a gripper (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, comprising:

-when the clutch (14) is in the engaged state, causing the clamp (13) to clamp the body (20) of the twist-lock (2), wherein the second cone (22) of the twist-lock (2) is locked in the container (3); and

-after the clutch (14) is switched to the disengaged state, causing the twister (11) to twist the first cone (21) of the twist-lock (2) so that the twist-lock (2) is unlocked from the container (3).

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising:

-after the clutch (14) is switched to the engaged state, causing the gripper (1) to pull the twist-lock (2) out of the container (3) and insert the second cone (22) of the twist-lock (2) into a storage device (4);

-after the clutch (14) is switched to the disengaged state, causing the twister (11) to twist the first cone (21) of the twist-lock (2) such that the twist-lock (2) is locked onto the storage device (4); and

-causing the clamp (13) to release the body (20) of the twist-lock (2) after the clutch (14) is switched to the engaged state.

11. A method of mounting a twist-lock (2) onto a container (3) by using a gripper (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 7, comprising:

-causing the clamp (13) to clamp the body (20) of the twist-lock (2) when the clutch (14) is in the engaged state, wherein the second cone (22) of the twist-lock (2) is locked in a storage means (4);

-after the clutch (14) is switched to the disengaged state, causing the twister (11) to twist the first cone (21) of the twist-lock (2) such that the second cone (22) of the twist-lock (2) is unlocked from the storage device (4);

-after the clutch (14) has been switched to the engaged state, causing the gripper (1) to pull the twist-lock (2) out of the storage device (4) and to insert the second cone (22) of the twist-lock (2) into the container (3);

-after the clutch (14) is switched to the disengaged state, causing the twister (11) to twist the first cone (21) of the twist-lock (2) such that the twist-lock (2) is locked onto the container (3); and

-causing the clamp (13) to release the body (20) of the twist-lock (2) after the clutch (14) is switched to the engaged state.

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