KR102367695B1 - The end effector for harvesting and how to use it - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an end effector for harvesting, in which only a motor is used to generate a driving force, which performs standby, opening, holding, and cutting operations by controlling an angle with a drive cam, and in which the cutting operation is achieved by linear reciprocating motion of a wire saw, and to a use method thereof. Provided is the end effector for harvesting, which harvests crops by repeatedly performing standby, opening, holding, and cutting operations. The end effector comprises: a wire saw (200) which performs cutting for harvesting crops; a driving unit (100) which supplies a driving force to the wire saw (200) and controls the supply of the driving force; and a band arm (300) and a support arm (400) for fixing the stem of the crops (P).

Description

The end effector for harvesting and how to use it

The present invention uses only a motor as a driving force, and by controlling the angle with a driving cam, standby, opening, fixing, and cutting operations are performed, and the cutting operation is made by a linear reciprocating motion of a wire saw, harvesting end effector and methods of use thereof.

As a prior art related to the end effector for harvesting, Patent Publication No. 10-0667220 (registered on Jan. 04, 2007) discloses that in order to perform pruning and harvesting of fruit trees located in high places at human-level working speed, a workbench ; a manipulator comprising: a vertical arm capable of extending and contracting in a direction substantially perpendicular to the work table; and a horizontal arm connected to the vertical arm and capable of extending and contracting in a direction substantially perpendicular to the vertical arm; and an end effector disposed at one end of the horizontal arm, and an end effector having a device for attracting, binding, and cutting branches of a harvest object.

In addition, in Patent Publication No. 10-2133716 (registered on Jul. 08, 2020), a housing forming a curved housing having a curved shape; a first head coupled to the housing; a second head coupled to the housing, positioned opposite the first head with respect to the housing curved portion, and facing the first head; and a driving unit installed in the housing and coupled to at least one of the first head and the second head to provide power, wherein a head connected to the driving unit among the first head and the second head is operated by the driving unit Approaching or retreating toward the other of the first head and the second head, the first head includes: a first cutting part; and a first holder, wherein the second head is formed to correspond to the first cutting unit, and is engaged with the first cutting unit when the first head and the second head approach each other. a second cutting unit; and a second holder facing the first holder, there is disclosed a technology related to an end effector,

In addition, in Patent Publication No. 10-1999636 (registered on July 08, 2019), a frame unit; a cutting unit having a sliding body positioned on the frame unit and a blade coupled to the sliding body; a grip unit positioned on the frame unit, the grip unit having a first grip portion and a second grip portion facing each other, at least one of a rear end of the first grip portion and a rear end of the second grip portion being coupled to the cutting unit, respectively; and a driving unit coupled to the cutting unit through the frame unit and providing a driving force to the cutting unit to move the cutting unit back and forth; , is hinged to the frame unit, and the front end of the first grip part and the front end of the second grip part approach each other when the sliding body moves forward, and when the sliding body moves rearward, Disclosed is an end-effector that moves away from each other.

In addition, in Patent Publication No. 10-2019-0122227 (published on October 29, 2019), a sensor unit configured to obtain information related to data related to a fruit cluster; A closed chain of motion mechanism, the mechanism extending from a closed configuration to an extended configuration; the closed movement chain mechanism configured to be closed from an extended configuration to a closed configuration; A harvesting shear configured to cut fruit stalks, the harvesting shear coupled to a kinetic closed chain mechanism; a catch mechanism configured to catch the fruit stem after the fruit stem has been cut by the harvest shear; and an effector having a processor configured to operate the effector to cut the fruit stem.

Patent Document 1: Registered Patent Publication No. 10-0667220 (Registered on Jan. 04, 2007) Patent Document 2: Registered Patent Publication No. 10-2133716 (2020.07.08. Registration) Patent Document 3: Registered Patent Publication No. 10-1999636 (2019.07.08. Registration) Patent Document 4: Unexamined Patent Publication No. 10-2019-0122227 (published on October 29, 2019)

An object of the present invention is to provide an end effector that can be in contact with a crop to be harvested, and can be properly held and cut according to the shape of the stem of the crop to be harvested.

Another object of the present invention is to enable fixing and cutting at the same time by using a wire saw that can minimize the driving force required for cutting various crop fibers.

Another object of the present invention is to increase the fixing force by forming the support arm in a curved shape, and to prevent slippage by attaching a non-slip pad to the support arm.

Another object of the present invention is to use a servomotor as a power source, and to precisely control the position of standby, opening, fixing, and cutting by using a driving cam and a gear.

The present invention is to solve the above problems, [1] a harvesting end effector for harvesting crops while repeatedly performing standby, open, hold and cutting In the wire saw 200 for performing cutting for harvesting crops; a driving unit 100 for supplying and controlling driving force to the wire saw 200; It relates to an end effector for harvesting, characterized in that it consists of a band arm 300 and a support arm 400 for fixing the stem of the crop (P).

In addition, the present invention [2] in the above [1], the driving unit 100, the servomotor 110, and the rotational drive shaft 120 that rotates by receiving the rotational force of the servomotor 110, A drive cam gear 150 installed on the rotary drive shaft 120 to rotate, a drive cam 140 mounted on the drive cam gear 150, and a wire saw 200 installed on the rotary drive shaft 120 ) It relates to an end effector for harvesting, characterized in that it consists of a servo arm 130 for driving.

In addition, the present invention is [3] in the above [1], the band arm 300 has a U-shaped front end, the rear end is fixed to the band arm gear shaft 340, and the band arm gear shaft 340 ), the band arm gear 341 is installed, the band 310 is fixedly installed in the U-shaped opening of the front end, and the spring fixture 320 is fixedly installed at the rear end of the U-shaped, and the U-shaped A band arm sheave 330 is fixedly installed at the front end of the, and one side of the spring 321 is fixedly supported by the spring fixture 320 , and the other side of the spring 321 is one side of the wire saw 200 . By fixing, one side of the wire saw 200 is fixedly supported by the spring 321 and the other side is fixedly installed at the end of the servo arm 130 via the band arm sheave 330, for harvesting It's about end effectors.

In addition, the present invention [4] in the above [3], the support arm 400, the front end portion facing the band 310 is a convex portion to form a band contact portion (410) and the middle and rear end is rotatably installed on the support arm gear shaft 440 , the support arm gear 441 is installed on the support arm gear shaft 440 , and the rear end is in contact with the driving cam 140 . It relates to an end effector for harvesting, characterized in that it is installed to be interlocked.

In addition, the present invention [5] in the method of using the harvesting end effector made of any one of [1], [3], and [4], the drive driven by the servomotor 110 of the drive unit 100 A standby step of supporting the support arm 400 with the cam 140 (S-1); In the waiting step (S-1), by rotating the drive cam 140 clockwise by a predetermined angle a, the servo arm 130 rotates the band arm 300 clockwise, an opening step (S-2) of moving the support arm 400 and the band arm 300 away from each other; In the opening step (S-2), the servo arm 130 rotates the band arm 300 counterclockwise by rotating the driving cam 140 by a predetermined angle (b) in the counterclockwise direction. a fixing step (S-3) of bringing the support arm 400 and the band arm 300 closer to each other; In the fixing step (S-3), by repeating the rotation of the driving cam 140 by a predetermined angle (c) in the counterclockwise direction and rotating it by a predetermined angle (c) in the clockwise direction, the support arm ( 400) and the band arm 300, while maintaining the distance at the time of the fixing step (S-3), the wire saw 200 repeats a linear motion to the inside of the support arm 400 by the servo arm 130 It consists of a cutting step (S-4) of cutting crops by the It relates to a method of using an end effector for harvesting.

The present invention can provide an end effector that is configured as described above, is in contact with a crop to be harvested, and can be properly held and cut according to the shape of the stem of the crop to be harvested. .

In addition, according to the present invention, by using a wire saw that can minimize the driving force required for cutting various crop fibers, fixing and cutting can be performed at the same time.

In addition, in the present invention, by forming the support arm in a curved shape, it is possible to increase the fixing force, and to prevent slippage by attaching a non-slip pad to the support arm.

In addition, the present invention uses a servomotor as a power source, and uses a driving cam and a gear to perform precise position control of standby, opening, fixing, and cutting.

1 is a conceptual diagram omitting some configurations of the present invention;
2 is a front view and a partially opened rear view of the present invention;
3 is a conceptual diagram showing the relationship between the drive cam and the support arm according to the present invention;
4 is a conceptual diagram showing a standby state of the present invention;
5 is a conceptual diagram showing an open state of the present invention;
6 is a conceptual diagram showing a holding state of the present invention;
7 is a conceptual diagram showing a cutting state of the present invention;

The present invention is a harvesting end effector for harvesting a crop (P) while repeatedly performing standby, open, hold and cutting, to harvest the crop (P) Wire saw 200 for performing cutting; a driving unit 100 for supplying and controlling driving force to the wire saw 200; It relates to an end effector for harvesting, characterized in that it consists of a band arm 300 and a support arm 400 for fixing the stem of the crop (P). explained as

[Driver (100)]

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , the driving unit 100 of the present invention includes a servomotor 110 and a rotational drive shaft 120 that receives rotational force from the servomotor 110 and rotates, and the rotation A drive cam gear 150 installed on the drive shaft 120 to rotate, a drive cam 140 mounted to the drive cam gear 150, and a wire saw 200 installed on the rotary drive shaft 120 It consists of a servo arm 130 that drives.

The driving cam gear 150 receiving the rotational driving force of the servomotor 110 rotates together with the rotational driving shaft 120 to accurately position the driving cam 140 .

In addition, the servo arm 130 is mounted on the driving cam 140 to control the rotational driving of the servo arm 130 by the user controlling the servo motor 110 .

That is, by rotating the servo arm 130 , standby, open, hold, and cutting may be repeatedly performed.

First, the standby state is a state before the stem of the crop P enters between the band arm 300 and the support arm 400 to be described below, and the servomotor 110 does not consume power. It shows a state in which the band arm 300 and the support arm 400 are supported so as not to be shaken by vibration or impact.

Looking at the standby state shown in FIGS. 3 and 4 , in a state in which the rear end of the servo arm 130 is supported by the rotational drive shaft 120 , the front end of the support arm of the support arm 400 will be described below. It can be seen that the sheave 430 is inclined toward the side.

Looking at the open state, a crop to be harvested is determined and the servo arm 130 is waiting ( Standby) generates tension of the spring 321 described below while rotating clockwise outside the position of the band arm 300 in the state, thereby rotating the band arm 300 clockwise to spread the band As the arm 300 rotates clockwise and opens, the support arm 400 rotates counterclockwise and opens.

Looking at the open state shown in FIGS. 3 and 5 , in a state in which the rear end of the servo arm 130 is supported by the rotational drive shaft 120 , the front end portion is the rear end of the band arm 300 in a clockwise direction. When moving to, the spring fixture 320 of the band arm 300 to be described below is moved outward clockwise, and thus the band arm 300 is opened. In addition, since the band arm gear 341 described below is gear-coupled with the support arm gear 441, when the band arm 300 opens in a clockwise direction, the support arm 400 also opens in a counterclockwise direction. .

Looking at the hold state, when the stem of the crop (P) to be harvested is located between the band arm 300 and the support arm 400, by the rotation of the servo motor 110, the support arm 400 and the band arm (300) is converted to a fixed state that is adjacent to each other and parallel to each other, the band 310 is increased by the thickness of the stem of the crop (P) between the band 310 and the band contact portion 410 to be described below, and the band generated at the same time It shows the state in which the crop (P) stem is fixed with a strong fixing force by the tension of (310). At this time, as shown in FIG. 3 , the drive cam 140 and the friction plate 420 at the rear end of the support arm 400 always maintain a vertical contact to fix the stem of the crop P. Since the load of 110 requires only the friction force between the drive cam 140 and the friction plate 420 by the tension of the band 310, the fixing force is maintained with minimal power consumption.

Looking at the holding state shown in FIGS. 3 and 6 , in a state in which the rear end of the servo arm 130 is supported by the rotational drive shaft 120 , the front end of the band arm 300 has the spring fixture 320 on the side. When moving in the counterclockwise direction, the spring 321 of the band arm 300 to be described below is relaxed, thereby moving the band arm 300 in the counterclockwise direction. In addition, when the band arm 300 rotates counterclockwise, since the band arm gear 341 and the support arm gear 441 described below are gear-coupled, the support arm 400 rotates clockwise. do. In this case, the stem of the crop (P) is in a state of being fixed with a strong fixing force by the band 310 and the band contact portion (410).

Looking at the cutting state, after fixing the crop (P) stem, cutting is started, and the wire saw fixed to the front end of the servo arm 130 and the spring 321 of the band arm 300 to be described below. 200 is in contact with the crop (P) stem, the crop (P) stem is in close contact with the support arm 400, and from the position where the cam is held, the wire saw 200 is connected to the band arm 300 of the As the spring 321 repeatedly moves between the maximum tension position and the hold state position, the wire saw 200 generates a strong frictional force on the crop P stem to cut the crop P stem.

Looking at the cutting state shown in FIGS. 3 and 7 , in the hold state, the servo arm 130 is further rotated counterclockwise by a predetermined angle c. And in the state in which the servo arm 130 is rotated counterclockwise, the servo arm 130 is rotated clockwise again. In this way, when the servo arm 130 is repeatedly moved counterclockwise and clockwise at a predetermined angle C, the wire saw 200 makes a reciprocating linear motion while in contact with the crop P stem, The crop (P) stem is cut by generating a strong frictional force on the crop (P) stem.

In addition, when the cutting of the crop (P) stem is completed after going through the standby, open, hold, and cutting steps, it is switched back to the stationary state and the crop (P) crop is loaded. It remains stationary during transport, etc. In addition, after transferring the crop (P) crop to the loading box, etc., it is switched to an open state to release the fixed state of the crop (P) crop. Then, the next crop (P) is converted to a standby state to harvest the crop.

The servomotor 110 controls the rotation drive shaft 120 to rotate at a predetermined angle. 3 shows the rotation angle of the driving cam 140 by the servo motor 110, the total rotation angle is controlled to rotate counterclockwise and clockwise within a range of approximately 90-120 degrees.

One side of the servo arm 130 of the present invention, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, is fixed to the rotation drive shaft 120 and rotates.

In addition, as shown in FIGS. 3 to 7 , the other side of the servo arm 130 goes through the band arm 300 and the support arm 400 to the counterclockwise direction of the support arm 400 . Rotate in the range of approximately 90 degrees to 120 degrees.

That is, the rotation range of the servo arm 130 does not deviate to the right outside of the spring fixture 320 in an open state, and the support arm sheave ( 430) It is preferable to deviate from about 1 to 3 times the diameter.

By determining the rotation range as described above, the rotation angle of the servo arm 130 has an angle of (b + c) shown in FIG. 3 , and is preferably set to 90 degrees to 120 degrees.

[Wire So (200)]

As shown in FIG. 2 , one side of the wire saw 200 of the present invention is fixed to a spring 321 fixed to a spring fixture 320 fixedly installed in the middle portion of the band arm 300 to be described below. is fixed

In addition, the other side of the wire saw 200 is fixed to the front end of the servo arm 130 in a state in which the band arm sheave 330 fixedly installed on the front end of the band arm 300 to be described below is wound.

In the wire saw 200 installed as described above, as shown in FIG. 7 , in a state in which the band arm 300 and the support arm 400 described below are fixed, the servo arm 130 is left and right. By rotating, the crop (P) stem is cut while linearly reciprocating along the support arm 400 . Therefore, it is possible to harvest the crop (P) crop.

[Band Arm (300)]

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , the band arm 300 of the present invention has a front end in a U-shape, and a rear end is supported by the band arm gear shaft 340 .

A band 310 is formed in the U-shaped opening of the distal end and fixed to the band arm 300 . In addition, a spring fixture 320 is fixedly installed on the rear end side of the C-shape, and a band arm sheave 330 is fixedly installed on the front end side of the C-shape, and one side of the spring 321 is fixed to the spring fixture 320 . is fixed and supported, and the other side of the spring 321 fixes one side of the wire saw 200 .

A band arm gear 341 is installed on the band arm gear shaft 340, and the band arm gear 341 is gear-engaged with a support arm gear 441 to be described below, so that the band arm ( 300) and the support arm 400 are interlocked to repeat open and hold.

[support arm (400)]

As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the support arm 400 of the present invention forms a band contact portion 410 by using a portion where the tip portion faces the band 310 as a round and gentle concave convex portion. do.

The middle and rear end of the support arm 400 is supported by the support arm gear shaft 440 , and the rear end of the support arm 400 extends to a portion in contact with the driving cam 140 .

In addition, it is preferable to attach a non-slip pad (not shown) to the band contact portion 410 to prevent the crop (P) stem from sliding between the band 310 and the band contact portion 410 . Do.

In addition, it is preferable to attach a friction plate 420 to a portion in contact with the driving cam 140 of the rear end of the support arm 400 to reduce friction with the driving cam 140 .

In addition, at the rear end of the band contact portion 410 , as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2 , a support arm sheave 430 is fixedly installed. The support arm sheave 430 is, as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, to guide the wire saw 200 to maintain a tension state when the crop (P) stem is fixed and cut. .

In addition, the support arm gear 441 is installed on the support arm gear shaft 440 , and the support arm gear 441 is gear-coupled with the band arm gear 341 described above, thereby providing the band arm 300 . ) and the support arm 400 are interlocked to repeat open and hold.

Hereinafter, a method of using the end effector configured as described above will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Since the end effector of the present invention repeats the waiting step, the opening step, the fixing step, and the cutting step in order to fix and cut the crop (P) stem, each of the steps will be described in detail below.

[Standby phase (S-1)]

In the present invention, the standby step (S-1) represents the standby state of FIG. 3 . Also, as shown in FIG. 4, the drive cam 140 simply supports the support arm 400,

At this time, as shown in FIG. 4 , the band contact portion 410 of the support arm 400 maintains an equilibrium state in which the band 310 does not strongly press the band 310 , and the driving cam 140 moves the support arm 400 . ), the front end of the servo arm 130 is positioned on the support arm 400 side.

[Opening Phase (S-2)]

In the present invention, the open step (S-2) represents the Open state of FIG. 3 . That is, in the standby step ( S-1 ), the servo arm 130 rotates clockwise by the servo motor 110 . That is, it is a step in which the driving cam 140 rotates by a predetermined angle (a) in the clockwise direction.

At this time, as shown in Fig. 5, the band arm 300 and the support arm 400 are opened in a state of being apart from each other,

When the band arm 300 and the support arm 400 are opened, the servo arm 130 slightly pulls the wire saw 200 in a state in which the spring 321 is slightly elongated.

That is, as shown in FIG. 3 , in the transition from the waiting step (S-1) to the opening step (S-2), the drive cam 140 rotates clockwise, so that the servo arm 130 is It rotates clockwise in the open stage position, and thus the band arm 300 rotates clockwise in the standby stage position.

Accordingly, the spring 321 maintains an extended state as much as the servo arm 130 pulls the wire saw 200 .

[Fixing step (S-3)]

In the present invention, the fixing step (S-3) shows the Hold state of FIG. 3 . That is, in the opening step (S-2), the drive cam 140 is rotated counterclockwise by a predetermined angle (b) by the servo motor 110 .

At this time, as shown in Figure 6, the band arm 300 and the support arm 400 represent a relatively closed state compared to the opening step (S-2),

In this case, the servo arm 130 pulls the wire saw 200 in a state in which the spring 321 is stretched.

That is, as shown in Figure 3, the transition from the opening step (S-2) to the fixing step (S-3) is by rotating the driving cam 140 counterclockwise by an angle (b), As the servo arm 130 rotates counterclockwise from the opening position, the spring 160 is maintained in an extended state.

In addition, at this time, as shown in FIG. 6 , the crop (P) stem is fixed between the band 310 and the band contact portion 410 . In addition, by attaching a non-slip pad (not shown) to the band contact portion 410, the crop (P) stem is fixed between the band 410 and the non-slip pad.

[Cutting Step (S-4)]

In the present invention, the cutting step (S-4) shows the cutting state of FIG. 3 . That is, the driving cam 140 is repeatedly rotated counterclockwise-clockwise by the servo motor 110 in the fixing step S-3.

At this time, as shown in FIG. 7 , the band arm 300 and the support arm 400 maintain the same state as in the fixing step S-3, that is, as shown in FIG. 3 , the driving cam Even if 140 rotates, since the support arm 400 does not rotate, the support arm 400 maintains a fixed state.

In the state in which the support arm 400 is fixed as described above, as the spring 321 is maximally relaxed, the servo arm 130 pulls the wire saw 200, and the spring 321 is compressed to some extent. As a result, the servo arm 130 repeats the process of releasing the wire saw 200 .

That is, as shown in Fig. 3, the transition from the fixing step (S-3) to the cutting step (S-4) is by repeatedly rotating the drive cam 140 counterclockwise and clockwise, As the servo arm 130 rotates from right to left and from left to right, the spring 321 repeats the compression and relaxation state. (P) The cutting of the stem is made.

In other words, as shown in FIG. 7 , in a state in which the crop (P) stem is fixed between the band 310 and the band contact portion 410, the wire saw 200 linearly reciprocates while the crop (P) cut the stems.

P: crop
100: drive unit
110: servo motor
120: rotation drive shaft
130: servo arm
140: drive cam
150: drive cam gear
200: wire saw
300: band arm
310: band
320: spring fixture
321: spring
330: band arm sheave
340: band arm gear shaft
341 : band arm gear
400: support arm
410: band contact
420: friction plate
430: support arm sheave
440: support arm gear shaft
441: support arm gear

Claims (5)

In the harvesting end effector for harvesting crops while repeatedly performing standby, open, hold and cutting,
Wire saw 200 for performing cutting to harvest crops;
a driving unit 100 for supplying and controlling driving force to the wire saw 200;
It consists of a band arm 300 and a support arm 400 for fixing the stem of the crop (P),
The driving unit 100,
Servo motor 110 and
A rotational drive shaft 120 that rotates by receiving the rotational force of the servomotor 110, and
A drive cam gear 150 installed on the rotary drive shaft 120 to rotate and drive;
a driving cam 140 mounted on the driving cam gear 150;
End effector for harvesting, characterized in that it is installed on the rotary drive shaft (120) and comprises a servo arm (130) for driving the wire saw (200).
delete The method of claim 1,
The band arm 300 is
The front end is made in a U-shape, and the rear end is fixed to the band arm gear shaft 340,
A band arm gear 341 is installed on the band arm gear shaft 340,
A band 310 is fixedly installed on the U-shaped opening of the front end, a spring fixture 320 is fixedly installed on the rear end of the U-shaped, and a band arm sheave 330 is fixed on the U-shaped front end. installed, and fixedly supporting one side of the spring 321 to the spring fixture 320, and the other side of the spring 321 fixing one side of the wire saw 200,
One side of the wire saw 200 is fixedly supported by the spring 321, and the other side is fixedly installed at the end of the servo arm 130 via the band arm sheave 330. End effector for harvesting.
4. The method of claim 3,
The support arm 400 is
A band contact portion 410 is formed by using the front end of the portion facing the band 310 as a concave convex portion,
The middle and rear end is rotatably installed on the support arm gear shaft 440 , and the support arm gear 441 is installed on the support arm gear shaft 440 ,
End effector for harvesting, characterized in that the rear end is installed so as to be in contact with the driving cam 140 and interlock.
In the method of use using the end effector for harvesting of any one of claims 1, 3, and 4,
A standby step of supporting the support arm 400 with the drive cam 140 driven by the servo motor 110 of the drive unit 100 (S-1);
In the waiting step (S-1), by rotating the drive cam 140 clockwise by a predetermined angle (a), the servo arm 130 rotates the band arm 300 clockwise, an opening step (S-2) of moving the support arm 400 and the band arm 300 away from each other;
In the opening step (S-2), the servo arm 130 rotates the band arm 300 counterclockwise by rotating the drive cam 140 in the counterclockwise direction by a predetermined angle (b). a fixing step (S-3) of bringing the support arm 400 and the band arm 300 closer to each other;
In the fixing step (S-3), by repeating the rotation of the driving cam 140 by a predetermined angle (c) in the counterclockwise direction and rotating it by a predetermined angle (c) in the clockwise direction, the support arm ( 400) and the band arm 300, while maintaining the distance at the time of the fixing step (S-3), the wire saw 200 repeats a linear motion to the inside of the support arm 400 by the servo arm 130 It consists of a cutting step (S-4) of cutting crops by
Maintaining the constant angle (a) < constant angle (b), characterized in that to maintain 90 degrees < b + c < 120 degrees, harvesting end effector using method.

Images