JP3063487B2 - Palletizing pattern recognition device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a palletizing pattern recognizing device for recognizing a palletizing pattern and picking when a rectangular parallelepiped article such as a cardboard case is closely palletized.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a distribution center or the like, a picking device for picking a plurality of cardboard cases of the same type stacked on a pallet one by one is used.

[0003]

When picking is performed by a picking device, it is necessary to know in advance what pattern the cardboard cases are stacked in a plan view. Therefore, a camera for picking up an article from above and recognizing a palletizing pattern is attached to the picking device. The palletizing pattern is determined by extracting the size of the entire contour and the gap between the cardboard cases from the captured image data. However, when there are two or more palletizing patterns having the same size in plan view and different patterns, and the side surfaces of each cardboard case are in close contact, it is very difficult to identify.

Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a palletizing pattern recognition device capable of accurately recognizing a palletizing pattern when picking is performed.

[0005]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a palletizing pattern in which one article disposed at one corner in a plan view is shifted outwardly, and the article is shifted. An imaging unit for imaging the palletizing pattern from above, and extracting an outline of the palletizing pattern in which the article is shifted from the image data captured by the imaging unit,
A palletizing pattern recognition device is constituted by a recognition means for determining a palletizing pattern.

[0006]

The present invention has the above-described structure, and has the following effects.

In the palletizing pattern recognition apparatus according to the present invention, the shifting means shifts one article disposed at one corner in plan view of the palletizing pattern outward. As a result, a part of the outline of the rectangular shape in plan view is missing. The palletizing pattern in which the article has been shifted is imaged from above by the imaging unit, and the contour is extracted from the image data captured by the imaging unit. The outline is not rectangular in plan view but one of the four corners is missing, and the recognition means determines a palletizing pattern from the outline.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The embodiment shown in the drawings will be described below.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are a plan view and a front view, respectively, showing a picking device to which an embodiment of a palletizing pattern recognition device according to the present invention is applied.

In each of the figures, a picking robot 1 has a suction pad 3 attached to the tip of an arm 2. The arm 2 can pivot around the main body of the picking robot 1 and can extend and contract. The suction pad 3 is also rotatable about a vertical axis.

A conveyor 4 is arranged on the side of the picking robot 1, and a pallet P on which a plurality of cardboard cases W are stacked is placed on the conveyor 4. Each cardboard case W is stacked on the pallet P in three layers, and each layer is palletized in an interlock pattern in which the respective side surfaces of each cardboard case W are in close contact.

A CCD camera 5 is disposed above the conveyor 4 and images a cardboard case W on the conveyor 4 from above. The CCD camera 5 sends the captured image data to the picking robot 1, and the picking robot 1 knows the position of each cardboard case W based on the image data and performs picking.

FIG. 3 shows the structure of this embodiment. Image data captured by the CCD camera 5 is sent to an image data processing device 6 built in the picking robot 1. The palletizing pattern storage device 7 and the picking robot control device 8 are connected to the image data processing device 6.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

When the pallet P is conveyed on the conveyor 4 and reaches the picking position, the picking robot controller 8 sets the suction pad 3 at the position shown in FIG. 1 and causes the suction pad 3 to be sucked on the upper surface of the cardboard case W1. . The cardboard case W1 is a case located at a corner of a rectangular palletizing pattern.

Next, the picking robot 1 slightly moves the suction pad 3 outward as indicated by the arrow. Thereby, the cardboard case W1 is shifted, and a gap G is formed between the cardboard case W and another cardboard case. The distance by which the cardboard case W1 is displaced is a small distance at which the cardboard case W1 does not fall due to collapse of the load.

After the gap G is formed, the CCD camera 5 captures an image and sends data to the image data processing device 6. The image data processing device 6 extracts the contour of the cardboard case W from the image data, calls a palletizing pattern matching the contour from the palletizing pattern storage device 7 and determines it.

That is, since the corrugated cardboard case W is palletized with its side surfaces in close contact with each other in an interlock pattern, as shown in FIGS. There is a size palletizing pattern, and it is difficult to discriminate between them.

[0019] However, as shown in FIG. 4 (c) (d), by performing the extraction of the contour after the formation of the gap G slightly shifting the cardboard case W1, it can be easily distinguished.

When the image data processing device 6 determines the palletizing pattern, the picking robot control device 8 operates the picking robot 1 based on the determined palletizing pattern to perform a picking operation.

The embodiments of the present invention have been described above.
It is needless to say that the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be appropriately modified and implemented within the scope of the present invention.

[0022]

As described above, according to the palletizing pattern recognition apparatus according to the present invention, even if the palletizing patterns have the same size and the side surfaces of the articles are in close contact with each other, the palletizing pattern can be easily identified. Can be done accurately.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing a picking device to which an embodiment of a palletizing pattern recognition device according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a front view showing the picking device of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a structure of the palletizing pattern recognition device of FIG. 1;

[4] FIG. 4 (a) (b) are mutually contour indicates a different palletizing patterns with the same size, (c) (d) is
It is a top view showing the state where goods of one corner of each (a) and (b) were shifted.

Continuation of the front page (58) Field surveyed (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) B65G 57/00-57/32 B65G 60/00-61/00 B65G 59/00-59/12 G01B 11/00-11 / 30

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. A means for shifting one article disposed at one corner of a palletizing pattern in a plan view outward, an imaging means for imaging the shifted palletizing pattern of an article from above, and an imaging means for imaging means The contour of the shifted palletizing pattern of the article is extracted from the
A palletizing pattern recognizing device, comprising: a recognizing means for determining a palletizing pattern.