JPH0223131B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention is disclosed in, for example, Japanese Patent Application No. 57-140021
The present invention relates to a fruit harvesting method using a fruit harvesting robot hand used in a fruit harvesting device as previously proposed by the applicant in No. 59-31614).

In this type of robot hand, it is necessary to cut the stalk of the fruit, and various cutting means have been proposed, but all of them are configured to actually cut the stalk of the fruit using a cutter or the like.

However, in the case of fruits such as apples and pears, the fruit stalks are left uncut to some extent when harvested.

In the case of the above type of fruit, as shown in Fig. 1, the tip of the fruit stem A covers the tip of the stem B, and it cannot be removed by simply pulling the fruit C downward. , there is a characteristic that if the fruit stem A is lifted upwards by twisting around the joint P between the fruit stem A and the resultant branch B, the fruit stem A will easily come off from the resultant branch B, and the actual manual work is also similar to this. Harvesting is done without using scissors or cutters based on the characteristics of the crops.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to reliably cut the fruit while leaving the stalk of the fruit without using a cutting tool such as a cutter. Our goal is to provide the following.

In order to achieve the above object, a fruit harvesting method using a fruit harvesting robot hand according to the present invention involves moving a fruit harvesting robot hand, which is equipped with a fruit catching section consisting of a plurality of swinging fingers that can be freely opened and closed, toward the fruit. and after gripping the fruit with the fingers, rotate the fruit catching part upward so that a bending force is applied to the joint between the fruit stalk and the fruit branch, and separate the joint. Features.

Because of the above method, the following excellent effects have been achieved.

That is, the fruit stalk can be automatically cut while leaving a suitable length of the fruit stalk without using a fruit stalk cutting tool such as a cutter, and is particularly suitable for harvesting fruits such as apples and pears. We have now been able to provide a robot hand that is unique.

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 2, the fruit harvesting device has a movable main body (not shown) attached to an arm 1 having a joint 2, and a fruit harvesting robot hand 3 is installed at the tip of the arm 1 through a joint 4 so that the direction can be changed freely. It is constructed according to the following.

The robot hand 3 has a fruit introduction port 6 at one end of the fruit catching section 5, and a fruit conveyance shooter 7 connected to the other end, and the fruit captured by the shooter 7 is transferred to the robot hand 3. It is configured to be transported to a storage section (not shown).

To explain the structure of this robot hand 3 in detail, a plurality of bendable finger members 8 are provided at the periphery of the opening 6.
... are erected, wires 9 are provided that loosely fit through the tips of these finger members 8, and by pulling the wires 9, each of the finger members 8...
The finger members 8 are configured to automatically extend by bending them inward and loosening the wires 9.

Furthermore, strain gauges 10 as pressure sensors are provided inside each of the finger members 8, and the strain gauges 10 detect a predetermined pressure or higher, that is, the finger members 8 capture the fruit. When this fruit is detected, the catching section 5 is rotated to pick off the fruit.

That is, as shown in FIG. 3, the fruit catching section 5 is rotated upward so that a bending force is applied to the joint P between the fruit stalk A and the resulting branch B shown in FIG. The fruit is rotated upward by a predetermined angle θ around the joint P, which is a predetermined distance l apart above the grip center of the fruit, that is, the center X of the space surrounded by the finger members 8.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of the fruit harvesting method using the robot hand for fruit harvesting according to the present invention, in which FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of a fruit handle, FIG. It is an explanatory view of cutting the handle. 5... Fruit catching part, 8... Finger,... Fruit grasping center, l... Predetermined distance, A... Fruit stem, B... Resultant branch, P...
joint.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A fruit harvesting robot hand equipped with a fruit catching section 5 consisting of a plurality of fingers 8 that can be swung open and closed is moved toward the fruit, and after gripping the fruit with the fingers 8, the fruit stem is removed. A fruit harvesting method using a robot hand for fruit harvesting, in which the fruit catching part 5 is rotated upward so that a bending force is applied to the joint P between A and the resulting branch B, and the joint P is separated.