CN219928918U - Transfer robot and pick-and-place assembly - Google Patents

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a transfer robot and a pick-and-place assembly, the transfer robot comprising: chassis subassembly, portal subassembly and get and put the subassembly. The mast assembly is arranged on the chassis assembly and is configured to extend in the height direction; the picking and placing assembly is arranged on the portal assembly and is configured to move along the portal assembly in the height direction; the picking and placing assembly comprises a base and two telescopic arm mechanisms which are arranged on the base at intervals; wherein the two telescopic arm mechanisms are configured to rotate relative to the base to adjust the angle of deflection of the telescopic arm mechanisms. The transfer robot disclosed by the utility model can compensate the angle deviation between the transfer robot and the container through the rotation of the telescopic arm mechanism, so that the transfer robot is high in movement precision and quick in response.

Description

Transfer robot and pick-and-place assembly

Technical Field

The disclosure relates to the technical field of warehouse logistics, in particular to a transfer robot; the present disclosure also relates to a pick-and-place assembly.

Background

The transfer robot is an important component for realizing 'goods to people' in the intelligent storage field, and the transfer robot generally comprises a chassis assembly, a portal assembly and a picking and placing assembly, and can realize picking and placing of containers through the picking and placing assembly. The bin is typically sized to fit the pick and place assembly, which needs to be aligned with the bin when picking and placing the bin, thereby avoiding pick and place failures.

In the prior art, in order to accurately align the pick-and-place assembly with the bin, the transfer robot needs to be controlled to integrally rotate to compensate for the angular deviation between the bin and the pick-and-place assembly. Because the transfer robot is higher in height, the stand column is longer, and when rotation of the chassis is transferred to the picking and placing assembly positioned at the top end of the robot, the defects of slow response and poor precision exist.

Disclosure of Invention

The utility model provides a transfer robot and get and put subassembly in order to solve the problem that exists among the prior art.

According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a transfer robot comprising:

a chassis assembly;

a mast assembly disposed on the chassis assembly and configured to extend in a height direction;

a pick-and-place assembly disposed on the mast assembly and configured to move in a height direction along the mast assembly; the picking and placing assembly comprises a base and two telescopic arm mechanisms which are arranged on the base at intervals;

wherein the two telescopic arm mechanisms are configured to rotate relative to the base to adjust a deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanisms.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, both of the telescoping arm mechanisms are configured to be controlled to rotate by an angle adjustment mechanism.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the two telescopic arm mechanisms are configured to be controlled by respective angle adjustment mechanisms to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise by the same or different angles to compensate for angular misalignment between the telescopic arm mechanisms and the container; alternatively, the two telescopic arm mechanisms are configured to be controlled by the same angle adjustment mechanism to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise by the same angle to compensate for angular misalignment between the two telescopic arm mechanisms and the container.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the telescoping arm mechanism is configured to be rotatably coupled to the base; the angle adjusting mechanism comprises a driving motor arranged on the base and a connecting rod structure connected to the driving motor; the connecting rod structure is configured to be controlled by the driving motor to drive the telescopic arm mechanism to deflect.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the link structure includes a first link connected to the driving motor and a second link hinged to the first link, and the telescopic arm mechanism is configured to be hinged to the second link.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the angle adjusting mechanism further includes a rotating connection member provided on the base, both ends of the rotating connection member being configured to rotate relatively, one end of the rotating connection member being configured to be fixedly connected with the base, and the other end being configured to be fixedly connected with the telescopic arm mechanism.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the upper end of the swivel connector is configured to be fixed in a middle position of the telescopic arm mechanism; one end of the telescopic arm mechanism is configured to be connected to the linkage structure.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, an image acquisition device is provided on the base, the image acquisition device being configured to acquire a pose of a container; the telescopic arm mechanism is configured to deflect based on the pose to compensate for angular misalignment between the telescopic arm mechanism and the container.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a free end of the telescopic arm mechanism is provided with an obstacle avoidance sensor configured to detect whether an extension path of the telescopic arm mechanism is blocked; the telescopic arm mechanism is configured to extend when a path detected by the obstacle avoidance sensor is unobstructed; and deflecting the angle when the path detected by the obstacle avoidance sensor is shielded.

According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a pick-and-place assembly comprising a base and two telescopic arm mechanisms disposed on the base at intervals; the two telescopic arm mechanisms are configured to extend or retract in a pick-and-place direction to pick and place a container, and are further configured to rotate relative to the base to adjust a deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanisms.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, two of the telescoping arm mechanisms are configured to be rotatably coupled to the base and configured to be controlled to rotate by an angle adjustment mechanism; the angle adjusting mechanism comprises a driving motor arranged on the base and a connecting rod structure connected to the driving motor; the connecting rod structure is configured to be controlled by the driving motor to drive the telescopic arm mechanism to deflect.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the link structure includes a first link connected to the driving motor and a second link hinged to the first link, and the telescopic arm mechanism is configured to be hinged to the second link.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the angle adjusting mechanism further includes a rotating connection member provided on the base, both ends of the rotating connection member being configured to rotate relatively, one end of the rotating connection member being configured to be fixedly connected with the base, and the other end being configured to be fixedly connected with the telescopic arm mechanism. One beneficial effect of the present disclosure is that the transfer robot is able to rotate two telescoping arm mechanisms such that the telescoping arm mechanisms are aligned with the container. Therefore, the deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanism is flexibly adjusted, and the power required for driving the original is low due to the small volume and weight of the telescopic arm mechanism, so that the carrying cost is saved; in addition, the transfer robot disclosed by the utility model compensates the angle deviation between the transfer robot and the container through the rotation of the telescopic arm mechanism, so that the transfer robot is high in movement precision and quick in response.

Other features of the present disclosure and its advantages will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the disclosure, which proceeds with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the disclosure and together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural view of a transfer robot of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a schematic structural view of the lift platform of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of the pick-and-place assembly of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of the structure of the angle adjustment mechanism of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the drive motor and connecting rod of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a schematic structural view of a rotary joint of the present disclosure;

fig. 7 is a partial schematic view of the telescopic arm mechanism of the present disclosure.

The one-to-one correspondence between the component names and the reference numerals in fig. 1 to 7 is as follows:

1. chassis subassembly, 2, portal subassembly, 3, get and put the subassembly, 31, base, 311, image acquisition device, 32, angle adjustment mechanism, 321, driving motor, 3211, output shaft, 322, first connecting rod, 323, second connecting rod, 324, swivelling joint spare, 3241, upper end, 3242, lower end, 3243, rotation portion, 33, telescopic arm mechanism, 331, plectrum, 332, obstacle avoidance sensor, 34, elevating platform.

Detailed Description

Various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that: the relative arrangement of the components and steps, numerical expressions and numerical values set forth in these embodiments do not limit the scope of the present disclosure unless it is specifically stated otherwise.

The following description of at least one exemplary embodiment is merely illustrative in nature and is in no way intended to limit the disclosure, its application, or uses.

Techniques, methods, and apparatus known to one of ordinary skill in the relevant art may not be discussed in detail, but are intended to be part of the specification where appropriate.

It should be noted that: like reference numerals and letters denote like items in the following figures, and thus once an item is defined in one figure, no further discussion thereof is necessary in subsequent figures.

In this document, "upper", "lower", "front", "rear", "left", "right", and the like are used merely to indicate relative positional relationships between the relevant portions, and do not limit the absolute positions of the relevant portions.

Herein, "first", "second", etc. are used only for distinguishing one another, and do not denote any order or importance, but rather denote a prerequisite of presence.

Herein, "equal," "same," etc. are not strictly mathematical and/or geometric limitations, but also include deviations that may be appreciated by those skilled in the art and allowed by fabrication or use, etc.

The present disclosure provides a transfer robot including a chassis assembly, a gantry assembly, and a pick-and-place assembly. The chassis assembly can support the transfer robot on the working surface and drive the transfer robot to walk to a corresponding position, for example, a driving wheel and/or a universal wheel matched with the driving wheel can be arranged on the chassis assembly, and the driving wheel and the universal wheel are matched to drive the transfer robot to integrally walk and steer on the working surface, so that subsequent picking and placing actions are facilitated.

The portal assembly is arranged on the chassis assembly, the portal assembly can be extended from the chassis assembly along the height direction, and the extended height of the portal assembly can be consistent with the height of the carrier or exceed the height of the carrier.

The picking and placing assembly is arranged on the portal assembly and is configured to move along the extending direction of the portal assembly so as to pick and place containers with different heights on the carrier. For example, the transfer robot moves to a corresponding position of the container through the chassis assembly, and then the pick-and-place assembly moves to a height corresponding to the container along the extending direction of the gantry assembly to pick and place the container. The containers of the present disclosure are primarily those used in the logistics field to load goods, including but not limited to bins, trays, packing cases, and the like, and the present disclosure is not limited thereto.

The picking and placing assembly comprises a base and two telescopic arm mechanisms arranged on the base at intervals, wherein the telescopic arm mechanisms can extend or retract along the picking and placing direction so as to pick and place a container. The telescopic arm mechanism may for example be used to effect the removal and placement of the containers by clamping, hooking, magnetic attraction, vacuum attraction, forking or in a manner known to those skilled in the art.

The two telescoping arm mechanisms of the present disclosure are configured to rotate relative to the base to adjust the angle of deflection of the telescoping arm mechanisms to compensate for angular misalignment between the telescoping arm mechanisms and the container.

Specifically, the telescopic arm mechanism of the present disclosure may rotate relative to the base, which may enable the angular deviation between the telescopic arm mechanism and the container to be compensated for by rotation of the telescopic arm mechanism when the angular deviation exists between the telescopic arm mechanism and the container, thereby ensuring that the pick-and-place assembly may be aligned with the container between pick-and-place actions, avoiding a failure in picking a box due to the angular deviation.

The transfer robot disclosed by the utility model can rotate the two telescopic arm mechanisms, so that the telescopic arm mechanisms aim at the container, and the container is accurately and stably taken and placed. Therefore, the deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanism is flexibly adjusted, and the power required for driving the original is low due to the small volume and weight of the telescopic arm mechanism, so that the carrying cost is saved; in addition, the transfer robot disclosed by the utility model compensates the angle deviation between the transfer robot and the container through the rotation of the telescopic arm mechanism, so that the transfer robot is high in movement precision and quick in response.

For ease of understanding, the transfer robot of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to fig. 1 to 7 in conjunction with specific embodiments. It should be noted that, for the sake of brevity, the pick-and-place assembly is also provided herein, and the pick-and-place assembly is introduced together when describing the handling robot, and will not be described separately.

Example 1

Referring to fig. 1, the transfer robot of the present disclosure includes a chassis assembly 1, a mast assembly 2, and a pick-and-place assembly 3. The chassis assembly 1 is supported on a work surface and is used for carrying the mast assembly 2, and the chassis assembly 1 can be configured to be supported on the ground and have a certain length and width with the ground so as to ensure the stability of the self-movement. The chassis assembly 1 may be provided with a driving wheel which is in contact with the ground and which drives the chassis assembly 1 to move over the ground. The mast assembly 2 may be configured to be disposed on the chassis assembly 1, e.g., a bottom of the mast assembly 2 is fixedly coupled to a top of the chassis assembly 1, and the mast assembly 2 may be configured to extend in a height direction to correspond to a height of the vehicle.

With continued reference to fig. 1, the pick-and-place assembly 3 is disposed on the mast assembly 2 and is configured to move in a height direction along the mast assembly 2 such that the pick-and-place assembly 3 can be moved to correspond to storage locations of different heights to effect pick-and-place of containers of different heights.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to fig. 2, the pick-and-place assembly 3 includes a lift platform 34 disposed on the mast assembly 2. The lift platform 34 is configured for guided attachment to the mast assembly 2 and for supporting the remaining structure of the pick-and-place assembly 3. The lifting platform 34 can move along the gantry assembly 2 in the height direction so as to drive the whole picking and placing assembly 3 to move along the gantry assembly 2 in the height direction together, thereby realizing picking and placing of containers with different heights.

Referring to fig. 3, the pick-and-place assembly of the present disclosure includes a base 31 and two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 spaced apart on the base. The telescopic arm mechanism 33 may be extended or retracted along a picking and placing direction, as shown in fig. 3, to pick and place the container, the picking and placing direction is the extending direction of the telescopic arm mechanism 33. The telescopic arm mechanism 33 may be configured as a primary telescopic fork structure, a secondary telescopic fork structure, or a telescopic fork structure of more stages to accommodate storage positions of various depths. The telescopic arm mechanism 33 in the present disclosure achieves taking and placing of containers through the fingers 331.

In detail, referring to fig. 3 and 7, the free ends of both telescopic arm mechanisms 33 have fingers 331 thereon, the fingers 331 being configured to move between a vertical position and a horizontal position. When the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 extend toward the container, the two fingers 331 are kept in the vertical position, that is, the position state of the fingers 331 shown in fig. 3, so that the telescopic arm mechanisms 33 can be ensured to extend smoothly without touching the container. When the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are extended to both sides of the container, the two fingers 331 are moved and maintained in the horizontal position, that is, the position state of the fingers 331 shown in fig. 7, so that the container frame column can be horizontally moved. When the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are retracted in the pick-and-place direction, the two fingers 331 continue to remain in a horizontal position to hook the container onto the base 31 of the pick-and-place assembly 3.

The two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 of the present disclosure are configured to rotate relative to the base 31 to adjust the angle of deflection of the telescopic arm mechanisms to compensate for angular misalignment between the telescopic arm mechanisms 33 and the container. When there is an angular deviation between the telescopic arm mechanism 33 and the container, the angular deviation between the telescopic arm mechanism 33 and the container can be compensated by rotating the telescopic arm mechanism 33, so that the picking and placing assembly 3 can be aligned with the container between the picking and placing actions, and the case picking failure caused by the angular deviation is avoided.

The deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is flexibly adjusted, and the power required for driving the original is low due to the small volume and weight of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, so that the carrying cost is saved; in addition, the transfer robot of the present disclosure compensates for the angular deviation between the transfer robot and the container by the rotation of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, and has high movement accuracy and quick response.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, with continued reference to fig. 3, the pick-and-place assembly 3 further includes an image capture device 311 located on the base 31, the image capture device 311 being configured to capture the pose of the container after the pick-and-place assembly 3 is raised to the target height. The image capturing device 311 may be a common image capturing device 311 such as a video camera or a still camera. In the present disclosure, the image pickup device 311 is a depth camera. The depth camera shoots the container in real time, so that the information of the horizontal position, the height position, the storage depth, the size and the deflection attitude of the container are determined; the depth camera can also shoot the carrier in real time, so that the information such as the horizontal position, the height position, the storage depth and the like of the storage position on the carrier can be obtained. The transfer robot can adjust the deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 based on the above information, so that the telescopic arm mechanism 33 rotates to a position corresponding to the container or the storage position, so as to compensate the angular deviation between the telescopic arm mechanism 33 and the container, and facilitate the telescopic arm mechanism 33 to take and put the container.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to fig. 3 and 4, the pick-and-place assembly 3 further includes an angle adjustment mechanism 32. The two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are configured to be controlled to rotate by the angle adjustment mechanism 32, specifically, the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 may be configured to be controlled to rotate independently by the respective angle adjustment mechanisms 32, i.e., the telescopic arm mechanisms 33 may be rotated individually with respect to the base 31; the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 may also be configured to be controlled to rotate synchronously by the same angle adjustment mechanism 32, i.e. the telescopic arm mechanisms 33 may rotate together relative to the base 31.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the two telescoping arm mechanisms 33 are configured to be controlled by respective angle adjustment mechanisms 32 to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise through the same or different angles to compensate for angular misalignment between the telescoping arm mechanisms 33 and the container. For example, when the container is taken and placed by the taking and placing assembly 3, the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 may be controlled to be rotated by a predetermined angle with respect to the base 31 based on the angular deviation between the telescopic arm mechanisms 33 and the container, so that the telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are aligned with the container or the storage position. During movement, since the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 can be independently controlled, the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 can be controlled to rotate clockwise or anticlockwise by the same or different angles according to actual conditions, so that the aim of alignment is achieved. For example, in a specific embodiment of the present disclosure, if the angular deviation of the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 is calculated to have the same magnitude between the whole and the container, the adjustment purpose can be achieved only by controlling the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 to rotate in the same direction by the same angle.

For example, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, if the angular deviation between the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 and the container is calculated to be different, the respective telescopic arm mechanisms 33 may be controlled to be rotated by respective angles, so that the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 may be ensured to be rotated to the aligned positions.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 may also be configured to be controlled by the same angle adjustment mechanism 32 to rotate the same angle clockwise or counterclockwise to compensate for angular misalignment between the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 and the container. For example, in a specific embodiment of the present disclosure, if the angular deviation between the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 and the container is calculated to be the same, the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 may be simultaneously controlled to rotate together by the same angle by one angle adjustment mechanism 32, so that it may be ensured that the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are rotated to the aligned position. In the above embodiment, the relative positional relationship between the telescopic arm mechanism 33 and the container or the storage position is determined based on the image information acquired by the image acquisition device 311. The telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are configured to deflect based on the container pose acquired by the image acquisition device 311 so that both telescopic arm mechanisms 33 can be aligned with the container for easy access.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to fig. 3 to 6, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 and the angle adjustment mechanism 32 are both configured on the base 31, wherein the angle adjustment mechanism 32 includes a driving motor 321 and a link structure. The linkage structure is configured to be controlled by a driving motor 321 to drive the telescopic arm mechanism 33 to deflect.

Specifically, the link structure includes a first link 322 and a second link 323. As shown in fig. 4 and 5, the first link 322 is connected to the driving motor 321 via an output shaft 3211, and the second link 323 has one end hinged to the first link 322 and the other end hinged to the telescopic arm mechanism 33. When the driving motor 321 works, the output shaft 3211 can be driven to rotate by a predetermined angle, and the first connecting rod 322 connected to the output shaft 3211 can rotate together with the output shaft 3211 by a predetermined angle; the first link 322 rotates to drive the second link 323 hinged thereto to deflect, thereby driving the telescopic arm mechanism 33 hinged to the other end of the second link 323 to deflect.

As shown in fig. 3 and 4, the linkage structure is small and not sufficient to support the telescopic arm mechanism 33. Further, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is hinged to the end of the second link 323, and the telescopic arm mechanism 33 cannot be supported only by means of an unstable hinge point. In order to stably support the telescopic arm mechanism 33 on the base 31, it is necessary to provide the telescopic arm mechanism 33 with a support other than the link structure.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to fig. 4 and 6, the angle adjustment mechanism 32 further includes a rotational connection 324. The rotational link 324 is configured to rotate relative to each other at both ends thereof, with one end configured to be fixedly connected to the base 31 and the other end configured to be fixedly connected to the telescopic arm mechanism 33. As shown in fig. 6, the end of the rotary link 324 fixedly connected to the base 31 is a lower end portion 3242, the end fixedly connected to the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is an upper end portion 3241, and the upper end portion 3241 and the lower end portion 3242 are connected together by a rotation portion 3243, thereby realizing relative rotation. The upper end portion 3241 and the lower end portion 3242 may be solid cylinders having the same shape and volume, and the rotation portion 3243 may be a rotation shaft rotatably connected between the upper end portion 3241 and the lower end portion 3242, and the rotation shaft may have a short length so that the upper end portion 3241 and the lower end portion 3242 are closely spaced. Such a configuration allows the swivel connection 324 to be adapted for support, and the upper end 3241 to follow the telescopic arm 33 when the second link 323 rotates the telescopic arm 33, to provide support for the telescopic arm 33.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the upper end of the swivel connection 324 is configured to be fixed in a central position of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, and one end of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is configured to be connected with a link structure. As shown in fig. 4, the link structure is located at the end of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, so that the link structure can push the telescopic arm mechanism 33 with less effort. The upper end portion 3241 of the swivel connection 324 is fixed at a middle position of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, thereby providing stable support for the telescopic arm mechanism 33. As shown in fig. 4, the volume of the rotary link 324 is larger than that of the link assembly, and the telescopic arm mechanism 33 can be stably fixed to the upper end portion 3241 so as to be suspended from the base 31.

When the second link 323 drives the telescopic arm mechanism 33 to rotate, the angle of rotation cannot exceed the range of support provided by the rotary connecting piece 324. In a practical application scenario, the angle adjustment mechanism 32 is only used to fine tune the angle of the telescopic arm mechanism 33. When the carrying robot moves to the container, the container or the storage position can be basically aligned, and the angle adjusting mechanism 32 can further finely adjust the angle of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 under the condition that the container or the storage position is basically aligned, so that the container can be taken and placed more accurately. Therefore, the second link 323 can only drive the telescopic arm mechanism 33 to rotate by a small angle, and the rotary connecting member 324 can always provide support for the telescopic arm mechanism 33 during fine adjustment.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to fig. 3, when two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are configured to rotate independently, two angle adjustment mechanisms 32 are provided on the bases 31 outside the respective telescopic arm mechanisms 33, respectively. The two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are respectively controlled by the corresponding angle adjusting mechanisms 32 to rotate, the two angle adjusting mechanisms 32 are not interfered with each other, and the movement process is completely independent. This arrangement allows the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 to be rotated independently relative to the base 31 without interfering with each other.

When the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are controlled to synchronously rotate by the same angle adjusting mechanism 32, the angle adjusting mechanism 32 may include a driving motor 321 and link structures respectively provided on the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33. The driving motor 321 may be configured to simultaneously drive the two link structures to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise by the same angle. This realizes that the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are simultaneously controlled to rotate in the same direction by the same angle through one angle adjusting mechanism 32 to compensate for the angular deviation between the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 and the container.

Because the telescopic arm mechanism 33 has smaller volume and weight, the power of the required driving element is also lower, compared with the scheme that the whole transfer robot rotates to align the container by rotating the chassis assembly 1, the transfer cost is greatly saved, the precision of the deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is improved, and the response speed in the control process is accelerated. In addition, the angle adjusting mechanism 32 is very space-saving, and does not additionally increase the height and width of the pick-and-place assembly 3.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, referring to fig. 7, the free end of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is provided with an obstacle avoidance sensor 332, the obstacle avoidance sensor 332 being configured to detect whether the extension path of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is blocked. When no shielding exists on the path detected by the obstacle avoidance sensor 332, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 stretches out and performs the task of taking the container back; when there is a shade on the path detected by the obstacle avoidance sensor 332, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is deflected by an angle to avoid an obstacle.

In the process of taking and returning the container, the transfer robot can detect whether the extending path of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is blocked or not through the obstacle avoidance sensor 332, and further acquire the relative position of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 and the container. When the container is caught on the extending path of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, or when other obstacle exists near the container and is caught on the extending path of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, the obstacle avoidance sensor 332 can recognize that the telescopic arm mechanism 33 collides with the container or other obstacle. Only when the obstacle avoidance sensor 332 detects that the extending path of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is not blocked, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is allowed to extend, so that the container on the material rack is hooked on the transfer robot, or the container on the transfer robot is pushed onto the carrier for storage. This prevents the telescopic arm mechanism 33 from colliding with the container during the extension process, so that serious dislocation of the container or other adjacent containers occurs, and the safety of the container taking and returning process is ensured.

The obstacle avoidance sensor 332 may be a photoelectric sensor such as a laser sensor or an infrared sensor, and is capable of detecting whether an obstacle exists in front within a set detection depth range. For example, the laser sensor may emit a laser beam in a detection direction, and when an obstacle is present in front of the sensor, the emitted laser beam may strike the obstacle, and may be detected by the laser sensor at this time, and at this time, it may also be understood that the laser sensor or the infrared sensor is triggered, and emits a triggered electrical signal. When no obstacle is detected within the detection range of the obstacle avoidance sensor 332 or the detected obstacle exceeds the extension distance of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, the extension path of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is considered to be unobstructed.

Since the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are simultaneously telescopic, the obstacle avoidance sensors 332 are provided at the free ends of the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33. When no shielding exists on the paths detected by the two obstacle avoidance sensors 332, the telescopic arm mechanisms 33 can only extend, and when any one obstacle avoidance sensor 332 is triggered, the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 do not extend.

The obstacle avoidance sensor 332 is also configured to enable real-time detection during extension of the telescopic arm mechanism 33. If the bin is offset or otherwise caused by various factors during the extension of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, the obstacle avoidance sensor 332 can be triggered immediately as soon as an obstacle appears on the extension path of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, and the telescopic arm mechanism 33 stops the extension action so as not to collide with the obstacle. In this process, the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 keep the movement synchronized, and when any one of the obstacle avoidance sensors 332 is triggered, the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 stop the extending movement at the same time.

When the transfer robot disclosed in the present disclosure is used to transfer containers, it is first necessary to control the chassis assembly 1 to move on the ground, so as to drive the whole transfer robot to move to the position of the carrier corresponding to the target container. The pick-and-place assembly 3 is then moved to the corresponding height position of the target container by controlling the lifting platform 34 to move in the height direction along the mast assembly 2. At this time, the pose of the target container can be acquired by the image acquisition device 311, so that the angles at which the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 need to deflect, respectively, are determined. The two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are each rotated under the control of the respective angle adjustment mechanisms 32 until the angular deviation from the target container is compensated.

After the adjustment, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 can be extended in the direction in which the target container is located. During the extension of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, the obstacle avoidance sensor 332 can monitor in real time whether the extending path of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 has an obstacle, and if the obstacle is encountered, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 can deflect further by an angle to avoid the obstacle.

When the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are extended smoothly, the two fingers 331 can be put down, and the telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are retracted to hook the target container onto the picking and placing assembly. Finally, the chassis assembly 1 is controlled to move, and the current carrier position is left until the transfer robot transfers the target container to the end position.

Example two

In comparison with the first embodiment, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 in the present embodiment is also capable of taking and placing containers in two directions. In order to ensure brevity of text, this distinction point is described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

Referring to fig. 3, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is configured to extend or retract in a first direction to take and put a container located in the first direction; and is also configured to extend or retract in a second direction to access containers located in the second direction. As shown in the view direction of fig. 3, the arrow at one end of the dashed line points in a first direction and the arrow at the opposite end points in a second direction. The first direction and the second direction in the present disclosure are defined for clearly explaining the picking and placing operation of the telescopic arm mechanism 33, and the first direction and the second direction may be opposite directions.

As shown in fig. 3, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 has a multi-stage fork plate structure in which the last stage fork plate is the fork plate that protrudes to the outermost side. In some embodiments, the telescopic arm mechanism 33 may be configured to extend only in a single-sided direction, thus requiring only the finger 331 to be provided on one free end of the last-stage fork plate; in this embodiment, the fingers 331 are provided at both free ends of the last fork plate to pick and place containers in the first and second directions. The operation of the finger 331 is described in detail in the first embodiment, and will not be described here again.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, with continued reference to fig. 3, the pick-and-place assembly 3 further includes two image capture devices 311 located on the base 31, the two image capture devices 311 being configured to capture the pose of the container in the first and second directions after the pick-and-place assembly 3 is raised to the target height. The specific operation of the image capturing device 311 is described in detail in the first embodiment, and will not be described herein.

As shown in fig. 3, the image capturing device 311-1 is configured to obtain the pose of the container located in the first direction after the pick-and-place assembly 3 is lifted to the target height, so that the telescopic arm mechanism 33 can adjust the deflection angle based on the pose information of the container, so as to compensate the angular deviation between the telescopic arm mechanism 33 and the container located in the first direction, and facilitate the telescopic arm mechanism 33 to pick and place the container located in the first direction. The image capturing device 311-2 is configured to obtain the pose of the container located in the second direction after the pick-and-place assembly 3 is lifted to the target height, so that the telescopic arm mechanism 33 can adjust the deflection angle based on the pose information of the container, so as to compensate the angle deviation between the telescopic arm mechanism 33 and the container located in the second direction, and facilitate the telescopic arm mechanism 33 to pick and place the container located in the second direction. The manner of adjusting the deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanism 33 is exactly the same as that of the first embodiment, and will not be described here again.

Example III

Referring to fig. 3, the present embodiment provides a pick-and-place assembly, and the pick-and-place assembly 3 includes a base 31 and two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 disposed on the base 31 at intervals; the two telescopic arm mechanisms 33 are configured to be extended or retracted in the pick-and-place direction to pick and place the container, and are also configured to be rotated relative to the base 31 to adjust the deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanisms 33 to align the container.

The picking and placing assembly 3 in this embodiment is identical to the picking and placing assembly 3 in the above two embodiments, and the picking and placing assembly 3 can be applied to other types of transfer robots or other devices that need to pick and place containers, and can also be used as a separate picking and placing device to pick and place containers, besides the transfer robots in the above embodiments.

The specific structure and connection relationship of the pick-and-place assembly 3 of this embodiment and the specific movement process thereof are identical to those of the pick-and-place assembly 3 of the above two embodiments, and the description thereof will not be repeated.

The foregoing description of the embodiments of the present disclosure has been presented for purposes of illustration and description, and is not intended to be exhaustive or limited to the embodiments disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the various embodiments described. The terminology used herein was chosen in order to best explain the principles of the embodiments, the practical application, or the technical improvements in the marketplace, or to enable others of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims.

Claims (13)

1. A transfer robot, comprising:

a chassis assembly (1);

a mast assembly (2), the mast assembly (2) being arranged on the chassis assembly (1) and being configured to extend in a height direction;

-a pick-and-place assembly (3), the pick-and-place assembly (3) being arranged on the mast assembly (2) and being configured to move in a height direction along the mast assembly (2); the picking and placing assembly (3) comprises a base (31) and two telescopic arm mechanisms (33) which are arranged on the base (31) at intervals;

wherein the two telescopic arm mechanisms (33) are configured to rotate relative to the base (31) to adjust the deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanisms (33).

2. The transfer robot according to claim 1, characterized in that both telescopic arm mechanisms (33) are configured to be controlled to rotate by an angle adjustment mechanism (32).

3. The transfer robot according to claim 2, characterized in that two of the telescopic arm mechanisms (33) are configured to be controlled by respective angle adjustment mechanisms (32) to rotate clockwise or counter-clockwise by the same or different angles to compensate for angular deviations between the telescopic arm mechanisms (33) and the container; alternatively, the two telescopic arm mechanisms (33) are configured to be controlled by the same angle adjusting mechanism (32) to rotate clockwise or counterclockwise by the same angle so as to compensate for angular deviation between the two telescopic arm mechanisms (33) and the container.

4. The transfer robot according to claim 2, characterized in that the telescopic arm mechanism (33) is configured to be rotatably connected to the base (31); the angle adjusting mechanism (32) comprises a driving motor (321) arranged on the base and a connecting rod structure connected to the driving motor (321); the connecting rod structure is configured to be controlled by the driving motor (321) to drive the telescopic arm mechanism (33) to deflect.

5. The transfer robot according to claim 4, characterized in that the link structure comprises a first link (322) connected to the drive motor (321) and a second link (323) hinged to the first link (322), the telescopic arm mechanism (33) being configured to be hinged to the second link (323).

6. The transfer robot according to claim 4, wherein the angle adjusting mechanism (32) further includes a rotary connector (324) provided on the base, both ends of the rotary connector (324) being configured to rotate relatively, one end thereof being configured to be fixedly connected with the base (31), and the other end thereof being configured to be fixedly connected with the telescopic arm mechanism (33).

7. The transfer robot according to claim 6, characterized in that an upper end of the swivel connection (324) is configured to be fixed in a middle position of the telescopic arm mechanism (33); one end of the telescopic arm mechanism (33) is configured to be connected to the link structure.

8. The transfer robot according to claim 1, characterized in that an image acquisition device (311) is provided on the base (31), the image acquisition device (311) being configured to acquire the pose of a container; the telescopic arm mechanism (33) is configured to deflect based on the pose to compensate for an angular deviation between the telescopic arm mechanism (33) and the container.

9. The transfer robot according to claim 1, characterized in that a free end of the telescopic arm mechanism (33) is provided with an obstacle avoidance sensor (332), the obstacle avoidance sensor (332) being configured for detecting whether the extension path of the telescopic arm mechanism (33) is blocked; the telescopic arm mechanism (33) is configured to extend when a path detected by the obstacle avoidance sensor (332) is unobstructed; and deflecting an angle when a path detected by the obstacle avoidance sensor (332) is occluded.

10. The picking and placing assembly is characterized by comprising a base (31) and two telescopic arm mechanisms (33) which are arranged on the base (31) at intervals; the two telescopic arm mechanisms (33) are configured to extend or retract in a pick-and-place direction to pick and place a container, and are further configured to rotate relative to the base (31) to adjust a deflection angle of the telescopic arm mechanisms (33).

11. Pick-and-place assembly according to claim 10, characterized in that two telescopic arm mechanisms (33) are configured to be rotatably connected to the base (31) and to be controlled to rotate by an angle adjustment mechanism (32); the angle adjusting mechanism (32) comprises a driving motor (321) arranged on the base and a connecting rod structure connected to the driving motor (321); the connecting rod structure is configured to be controlled by the driving motor (321) to drive the telescopic arm mechanism (33) to deflect.

12. The pick-and-place assembly according to claim 11, characterized in that the linkage structure comprises a first link (322) connected to the drive motor (321) and a second link (323) hinged to the first link (322), the telescopic arm mechanism (33) being configured to be hinged to the second link (323).

13. The pick-and-place assembly of claim 11, wherein the angle adjustment mechanism (32) further comprises a rotational connector (324) disposed on the base, the rotational connector (324) being configured for relative rotation at both ends, one end being configured for fixed connection with the base (31) and the other end being configured for fixed connection with the telescopic arm mechanism (33).