JPH10180667A - Robot system for selecting particular article in waste - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To determine a particular article without any congestion occurring in carrying of wastes even if the particular article exists together with other wastes by constructing a robot system for selecting the particular article in the wastes to instruct the position and the direction of the particular article with an input image of point input means. SOLUTION: A monitor 9 is installed in a work room separated from a waste carrying site and an input image 11 is inputted by the operation of point input means. From this input image 11 and a detecting signal of a pulse encoder, an inclined angle θ or the like of a particular article is calculated by a calculation part 23 based on a distance and time to reach a particular article taking-out position. Then, the position and the direction of the particular article are determined from the calculation result of the calculation part 23. Then, based on the results of these operations, the particular article is led to its taking-out position and, by driving a robot with a controller 20, control is performed to grab the particular article.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION Generally, household waste and factories
Industrial waste discharged from construction sites, etc. is carried out to specific areas such as coasts and barren land and used for landfill and land reclamation,
Crushing, burning, and other treatments are being carried out at municipal waste disposal sites. In the waste treated at the waste disposal site,
For example, dangerous substances such as gas cylinders and broken glassware in which dangerous combustible substances remain during the crushing process in the subsequent process are included. In addition to refractory resources such as resin products and empty cans, in addition to unsuitable substances for crushing metal blocks such as motors and compressors and long metal pipes, renewable resources are also mixed.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a robot system for selecting a specific substance mixed in an industrial waste or the like, and more particularly, to an unsuitable material that is not suitable for post-processing or a recyclable recyclable material at a waste disposal site. The present invention relates to a robot system for automatically selecting a specific material such as a resource from waste.

[0003]

2. Description of the Related Art An invention described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 7-040273 has been proposed as a waste sorting system of this kind, and FIGS. Is shown in 4 and 5, F is a feeder, V is a belt conveyor, and W is a specific object. Also, C
Is an industrial camera, R is a robot, H is a hand chuck,
M is a crusher. Although not shown, in a room away from the installation site such as the belt conveyor V, a controller and a tablet input by a stylus pen and a display for displaying an image of the industrial camera C are provided.

[0004] The belt conveyor V shown in Figs.
The waste is supplied almost uniformly from the feeder F and transported in a thin diffusion state. Belt conveyor V for conveying waste
The above situation is photographed by the industrial camera C, and the belt conveyor V
The video of the waste developed above is transmitted to the display. When a specific object W on the display is pointed and specified, the hand chuck H of the robot R is moved via the controller to perform a gripping / removing operation. The removed specific object W is transferred to another conveyor and discharged.

[0005] JP-A-7-0402 shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.
According to Japanese Patent No. 73, a specific object W projected on a display in a remote working room with air conditioning is instructed by an interactive point input means such as a stylus pen. Then, the robot R removes the specific object W from the waste conveyed in a state of being spread on the belt conveyor V. Therefore, it is possible to relieve the sorting worker from a bad working environment such as a bad smell caused by putrefaction mixed with the waste and provide a good workplace. In addition, it is described that, as an operator, not only a healthy person but also a person who can identify an object and can move one hand can be taken out of the conveyor V only by instructing a specific object W even for a physically handicapped person or an elderly person.

[0006]

The above-mentioned JP-A-7-040
According to the conventional sorting system described in Japanese Patent No. 273,
It is stated that a specific object W projected on a display can be designated and automatically removed by remote control in a work room with a good environment. However, in a state where a long specific object W such as a piece of wood or a metal bar is folded and mixed with other wastes on the belt conveyor V, simply specifying the position will result in a long specific object W. Is extremely difficult to remove. Further, the waste material supplied from the straight feeder F is spread and thinly transported on the belt conveyor V so as not to overlap each other. Therefore, the specific object W
However, there is a problem that the conveyance amount of the belt conveyor V for sorting the waste is easily restricted, and the conveyance of the waste may be congested.

The present invention has been made in order to solve such problems of the conventional sorting system, and is not limited to a long object such as wood or a metal rod or a specific object such as a directional metal block. Sorting out specific wastes that can be grasped and sorted out of wastes, such as long objects and metal lumps, even when they are mixed with other wastes The purpose of the present invention is to realize a robot system.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION According to the present invention, the transport state of waste conveyed by a belt conveyor is photographed by a camera installed on the belt conveyor, and the photographed image of the camera is transmitted to a monitor and projected. The input image is displayed on the photographed image by the point input means, the specific object mixed in the waste is indicated on the coordinates, and when the specified specific object reaches the takeout position, the robot is controlled by the control means and specified. In a robot system for selecting a specific object in waste to be gripped and selected, a robot system configured to select a specific object in the waste indicating a position and a direction of the specific object by an input image of a point input unit is configured. Things. Also, the control unit determines the direction of the specific object from the start point and the end point of the input image input by the point input unit, and controls the gripping hand of the robot based on the determination result to select the specific object. This is a robot system that grasps and sorts objects. Further, a robot system for selecting a specific object in the waste in which the position of the specific object indicated by the point input means is indicated by the position of the center of gravity.

[0009] The waste transferred from the receiving conveyor is deposited on the belt conveyor in the sorting step, and is conveyed at a conveying speed specified by the controller. An industrial camera is installed above the belt conveyor that conveys the waste, the state of conveyance of the waste is photographed, and the photographed image is transmitted to a monitor remote from the conveyance site. An input image indicating the position and direction of a specific object is input to the captured image on the monitor by the point input unit. Upon receiving the input of the input image, the controller calculates the position and the inclination angle of the specific object in the coordinates, and determines the position and the “direction” of the specific object.

On the other hand, the calculated distance data is transmitted to the downstream robot based on the relative position information between the industrial camera and the robot set in the control means. At this time, when the gripping hand of the waiting robot moves and the pulse encoder counts out the pulse, the hand axis reaches the designated position. Then, the gripping direction of the gripping hand is corrected so as to correspond to the instructed “direction”, and the released hand unit descends, and the work of gripping and taking out the specific object is performed. The removed specific object is discharged onto another conveyor, and the renewable resources are transferred to a processing step for regeneration.

[0011]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. Embodiment 1 FIG. 1 is a front view showing the configuration and operation of a main part of Embodiment 1 of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a side view showing the configuration of Embodiment 1, and FIG. 3 is a system block diagram of Embodiment 1. 1 to 3, reference numeral 1 denotes a robot system. 2 is a receiving conveyor in the preceding stage, 3 is a belt conveyor provided in the sorting process, 4
Is a conveyed waste, and 5 is a specific substance.

The specific substance 5 is mixed into the waste 4, and the first embodiment exemplifies a case in which a slightly long material such as wood or a metal pipe is selected. Reference numeral 6 denotes a pulse encoder which functions as a distance sensor or a speed sensor. The pulse encoder 6 is connected to a rotating shaft of a drive source such as an electric motor that drives the belt conveyor 3, and a pulse signal corresponding to a transport speed of the specific object 5 transported on the belt conveyor 3 in a transport direction indicated by an arrow. Is output.

Reference numeral 7 denotes an industrial camera disposed above the upstream side of the belt conveyor 3, and reference numeral 8 denotes a robot. In the angle-of-view area a of the industrial camera 7, a two-dimensional plane coordinate system of the X axis and the Y axis is set. Then, the conveyance state of the waste 4 on the belt conveyor 3 is photographed, and a photographed image of the waste 4 mixed with the specific object 5 in the coordinates is transmitted. Further, the robot 8 is provided on the downstream side of the belt conveyor 3 from the industrial camera 7, and faces the belt conveyor 3 from above with a gantry type as illustrated in FIG.

Reference numeral 80 denotes a gripping hand suspended from the robot 8, which is driven in a three-dimensional direction in a direction (X-axis direction) transverse to a running direction (Y-axis direction) and a vertical direction (Z-axis direction). . In the first embodiment, correction of the “direction” of the gripping hand 80 described later is specifically performed at the rotation angle of the hand shaft 81 as indicated by an arrow in FIG. The lower limit position of the gripping hand 80 in the Z-axis direction is a height above the belt conveyor 3 and is fixedly set to, for example, a position 10 mm from the upper surface of the belt conveyor 3. Reference numeral 9 denotes a monitor including a display such as a CRT or liquid crystal, and reference numeral 10 denotes point input means.

Further, reference numeral 11 denotes a monitor 9 which is displayed slightly longer.
The upper input image θ is the inclination angle of the input image 11 with respect to the transport direction (Y axis). As the point input means 10, an interactive point input means such as a mouse or a stylus pen is used. The monitor 9 is installed, for example, in a work room isolated from the transportation site of the waste 4, and an input image 11 is input by an operation of the point input means 10 by an operator in a well-conditioned room. Numeral 30 is a photographed image of the belt conveyor 3 transmitted from the industrial camera 7 to the monitor 9, images 40 and 50 are photographed images of the waste 4 and the specific object 5, and dotted lines and hollow arrows on the extensions indicate the belt conveyor. 3 shows a transport direction (Y-axis direction).

Reference numeral 20 denotes a controller, 21 denotes a storage unit of the controller 20, 23 denotes an operation unit, and 24 denotes a discrimination unit. For example, the storage unit 21 stores the reference position of the coordinate system of the industrial camera 7 and the robot 8 and the like, and the calculation unit 23 calculates the distance and the time to reach the takeout position of the specific object 5 from the detection signal of the pulse encoder 6. The inclination angle θ and the like of the specific object 5 based on the input image 11 are calculated. Also, the discriminator 24
Determines the position, orientation, and the like of the specific object 5 from the calculation result of the calculation unit 23. Then, based on these operation results, the specific object 5 conveyed after the coordinate system is aligned reaches the take-out position, and the robot 8 is driven by the controller 20 so that the specific object 5 can be gripped. .

Reference numeral 12 denotes a controller 20 and the robot 8
Interface with Reference numeral 13 denotes a hopper, 14 denotes a crusher, and 15 denotes a next-stage belt conveyor for sending the waste 4 to the next process. Hopper 13 is belt conveyor 3
The waste 4 from which the specific substance 5 has been removed in the sorting step is introduced. Input waste 4 is crusher 1
The waste 4 which has been crushed and processed into small pieces or powders and processed is transferred to the next processing step by the belt conveyor 15.

The operation of the first embodiment of the present invention having the above configuration will be described below. The traveling belt conveyor 3 accumulates the waste 4 transferred from the receiving conveyor 2 on a transport surface, and transports the waste 4 at a transport speed specified by the controller 20. The transport speed of the transported waste 4 is measured by the pulse encoder 6. As described above, the industrial camera 7 is installed near the upstream of the belt conveyor 3 that conveys the waste 4, and the state of conveyance of the waste 4 is photographed in an angle of view area a slightly wider than the belt width. A captured image 30 on the transport surface captured by the industrial camera 7 is transmitted to a monitor 9 provided in a management room or the like remote from the transport site.

In the photographed image 30 projected on the monitor 9, a photographed image 50 of the specific object 5 mixed in the waste 4 is also displayed in the coordinates. While looking at the projected captured image 50 of the specific object 5, the input image 11 is point-inputted by an operator in the management room. In the case of the monitor 9 with a touch screen function as in the first embodiment, the surface of the captured image 50 is directly touched with the fingertip of the operator or a touch pen or the like, and as shown in FIG. The input image 11 is point-input.

In response to the point input of the input image 11, the calculation unit 23 of the control controller 20 calculates the position of the specific object 5 in the coordinates and the inclination angle θ as described above. For example, the determination unit 24 sets the start point P1 in the first quadrant of the input image 11 as the position of the specific object 5, and sets the start point P1 (x
1, y1) and the end point P2 (x2, y2).
The tilt angle θ formed between P2 and the Y axis [θ = tan (x2-x
1) / (y2-y1)] is determined as the “direction” of the specific object 5. On the other hand, the distance data calculated by the calculation unit 23 is transmitted to the robot 8 via the interface 16 based on the relative position information between the industrial camera 7 and the reference position of the robot 8 set in the storage unit 21 in advance. Is done.

At this time, when the gripping hand 80 of the robot 8 waiting at the origin position of the gantry starts moving and the pulse encoder 6 counts out the pulse corresponding to the distance data, the hand shaft 81 moves to the position of the starting point P1. To reach. At the same time, the hand shaft 81 rotates (θ ± 90 °) in accordance with the “direction” of the input image 11 determined by the determination unit 24, and the gripping claws of the gripping hand 80 are corrected in the orthogonal direction of the input image 11. Lower the open hand. And
Based on a command from the controller 20, the gripping hand 8
Then, the work of gripping and taking out the specific object 5 is performed.
The extracted specific object 5 is discharged onto a chute (not shown) or another transport conveyor. Specific substances discharged 5
Among them, for example, renewable resources are reused after undergoing processing steps for regeneration.

In the above-described embodiment, a description will be given by exemplifying a case where the position and "direction" of the input image of a long object such as a pipe having a uniform thickness are designated by the starting point and the inclination. However, the present invention can also be applied to the case of sorting irregularly shaped specific objects such as bottles and bottles whose thickness is not uniform along the length direction. In this case, while inputting the input image along the contour shape of the photographed image of the indefinite specific object by the point input means, point inputting the position of the center of gravity g of the specific object obtained from the photographed image or the input image as the designated position. May be instructed.

In particular, the position of the center of gravity g of an indefinite specific object can be calculated by a geometrical method using an arithmetic unit or the like of a control controller. If the contour shape or the center of gravity g is indicated in the input image, the handling error of the robot is further reduced, and the grip rate can be improved. Also, the distance of the specific object in the vertical (Z-axis) direction is measured by a distance sensor using ultrasonic waves or infrared rays, and the height of the robot's gripping hand is added to the traversing / running direction to automatically perform three-dimensional movement. A configuration for controlling may be adopted. Further, a magnetic force or a negative pressure may be used for the gripping hand.
Furthermore, in the first embodiment, the case where one industrial camera and one gantry type robot are provided has been described. However, a configuration in which both are provided may be provided, and the gantry type may be replaced with a multi-joint type robot or the like. You can also.

[0024]

According to the present invention, the transport state of waste conveyed by the belt conveyor is photographed by a camera installed on the belt conveyor, and the photographed image of the camera is transmitted to a monitor and displayed on the photographed image projected. The input image is displayed by the point input means, the specific object mixed in the waste is indicated on the coordinates, and when the specified specific object reaches the takeout position, the robot is controlled by the control means to grasp and sort. In a robot system for selecting a specific object in waste, a robot system for selecting a specific object in waste indicating a position and a direction of the specific object based on an input image of a point input means is configured.

The control means determines the direction of the specific object from the start point and the end point of the input image input by the point input means, and controls the gripping hand of the robot based on the determination result to grip and select the specific object. The robot system which sorts out the specific thing in the waste to be made was constructed. Further, a robot system for selecting a specific object in the waste, which indicates the position of the center of gravity of the specific object by the point input means, is configured.

As a result, even in a state where a specific object such as a long object or a metal lump is folded on another waste, the gripping hand is operated in accordance with the position and the direction of the specified specific object to ensure the operation. Can be grasped and taken out. Therefore,
A plurality of robots can be installed adjacent to each other along the belt conveyor, so that a robot system that can reliably grasp a specific object in waste and has a high removal speed can be realized. In addition, since a specific object can be taken out of the waste by monitoring the monitor while sitting in a well-conditioned air-conditioned work room, the specific object is directly selected manually at the conventional transport site. Of course, the worker can be released from such an undesirable working environment.

Thus, according to the present invention, even when a long object such as wood or a metal rod or a specific object such as a metal lump having directionality is folded and mixed with other waste, the long object can be obtained. It is possible to provide a robot system for selecting a specific object in waste, which can reliably grasp and select a specific object such as a shaku or a metal lump from waste.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view showing the configuration and operation of a main part of a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a side view showing the configuration of the first embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a system block diagram of the first embodiment.

FIG. 4 is an elevation view showing a basic configuration of an application example of a conventional sorting system.

FIG. 5 is a plan view showing a basic configuration of an application example of a conventional sorting system.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Robot system 2 Front belt conveyor 3 Sorting belt conveyor 4 Waste 5 Specific object 6 Speed sensor (pulse encoder) 7 Industrial camera 8 Robot 9 Monitor 10 Point input means 11 Input image 12 Interface 13 Hopper 14 Crusher 15 Belt conveyor 20 Control controller 21 Storage unit 23 Calculation unit 24 Discrimination unit 40 Image of waste 50 Image of specific object 80 Gripping hand 81 Hand axis a Subject angle area g Center of gravity P1 Start point P2 End point v Transport speed θ Tilt angle

 ────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuing on the front page (72) Eiji Oshida, Inventor Nihon Kokan Co., Ltd. 1-2-1, Marunouchi, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A transfer state of waste conveyed by a belt conveyor is photographed by a camera installed on the belt conveyor, and a photographed image of the camera is transmitted to a monitor to input a point on the photographed image projected. Means for displaying the input image on the coordinates to indicate the specific substance mixed in the waste, and when the specified specific substance reaches the take-out position, the control means controls the robot to grasp and sort. A robot system for selecting a specific object in waste, wherein a position and a direction of the specific object are indicated by an input image of the point input means. 2. The control means determines a direction of the specific object from a start point and an end point of an input image input by a point input means, and controls a gripping hand of the robot based on the determination result to identify the specific object. 2. The robot system according to claim 1, wherein the robot sorts a specific object in the waste by grasping and sorting. 3. The robot system according to claim 1, wherein the position of the center of gravity of the specific object is indicated by the point input means.