Clauses
The following clauses refer to various aspects of the invention.
Clause 1. A Method of picking and placing bulbs, comprising:
• supplying a plurality of bulbs on a supply surface of a bulbs supply system;
• identifying a bulb as suitable for pick up, • picking said identified bulb from the supply surface with a pick-andplace head;
• reorienting the picked bulb; and • placing the reoriented bulb into a holder, preferably a pin bearing holder, characterized in that the method comprises:
• identifying a major axis of the identified bulb, • identifying and selecting a minor axis of the identified bulb, said minor axis being substantially perpendicular to the major axis, and wherein the step of picking said identified bulb comprises the pick-and-place head gripping said identified bulb at opposed ends of said minor axis, and the step of reorienting the picked bulb comprises shifting the major axis.
Clause 2. The method of clause 1 wherein the step of reorienting the picked bulb comprises shifting the major axis toward a substantially vertical orientation.
Clause 3. The method of any preceding clause wherein the step of reorientation of the picked bulb, comprises rotation of the picked bulb about said minor axis, while gripped by the pick-and-place head.
Clause 4. The method of any preceding clause wherein the picked bulb is reoriented to a substantially inverted orientation, while gripped by the pickand-place head.
Clause 5. The method of any of any preceding clause further comprising the step of placing said gripped bulb, shoot-first and roots-last, into a transferreceptable, said transfer-receptacle comprising a support surface abutting and supporting the bulb adjacent a shoot of the bulb.
Clause 6. The method of clause 5 wherein the transfer-receptable comprises an aperture defined by an edge, wherein the aperture is sized to receive the bulbshoot and abut an upper surface of the bulb adj acent to the shoot, preferably about the shoot.
Clause 7. The method of any of clauses 6 to 7 wherein the transfer-receptacle applies an internal negative pressure to hold the bulb in said aperture and in abutment with said edge and/or wherein the transfer-receptacle is provided with compressive gripping elements to hold the bulb in said aperture.
Clause 8. The method of any of clauses 5 to 7 wherein the picked bulb is placed into the transfer-receptacle in a substantially inverted orientation, optionally wherein the method further comprises the step of reorienting the transferreceptacle to upright the bulb, and preferably the step of impaling a rooted base of the bulb onto upstanding pins in said pin bearing holder.
Clause 9. The method of any of clauses 5 to 7 wherein the picked bulb is placed into the transfer-receptacle in a substantially upright orientation, optionally wherein the method further comprises the step of reorienting the transferreceptacle to invert the bulb, and preferably the step of impaling a rooted base of the bulb onto upstanding pins in said pin bearing holder.
Clause 10. The method of any of clauses 1 to 4 wherein the picked bulb is reoriented to a substantially upright orientation, while gripped by the pick-andplace head.
Clause 11. The method of any of clauses 1 to 4 or 10, wherein the holder is a pinberaing holder, and further comprising the step of moving the pick-and-place head with gripped bulb toward said pin-bearing holder, and impaling the bulb onto upstanding pins in the pin-bearing holder, wherein the method comprises providing a shoot-side support to the picked and reoriented bulb during impalement, preferably wherein the shoot-side support comprises a bulb abutment surface adjacent but spaced from the shoot, preferably the abutment surface comprises a partial ring, a full ring, a frame or a scaffold.
Clause 12. A pick-and-place head for picking and placing bulbs, comprising a grasper wherein said grasper comprises opposed grasping surfaces for grasping a bulb therebetween, at least one of said grasping surfaces being actively rotatable to rotate a grasped bulb about a minor axis of said bulb.
Clause 13. The pick-and-place head of clause 12, further comprising at least one bulb-support element against which a grasped bulb abuts, at least during an impalement upon pins.
Clause 14. The pick-and-place head of clause 13 wherein said bulb-support element comprises one or more selected from the group consisting of a partial ring, a full ring, a frame or a scaffold.
Clause 15. The pick-and-place head of any of clauses 13 to 14 wherein the bulbsupport element has a bulb engagement configuration and a bulb nonengagement configuration.
Clause 16. The pick-and-place head of any of clauses 13 to 15, wherein the pickand-place head comprises a grasper comprising two opposed grasper members for grasping upon a portion of the identified bulb; preferably wherein the grasper comprises at least one elongate member, and one of the two opposed grasping surfaces forms an inner surface of the elongate member, preferably wherein the grasper comprises two opposed, elongate members the two opposed grasping surfaces being provided on the opposed elongate members.
Clause 17. A robotic carrier comprising a pick-and-place head according to any of clauses 12 to 16, preferably wherein the robotic carrier is a robotic arm.
Clause 18. A Method of picking and placing bulbs, comprising:
• supplying a plurality of bulbs upon a supply surface of a bulbs supply system;
• identifying a bulb as suitable for individual pick up, • picking said identified bulb from the supply surface, with a pick-and-place head;
• reorienting the picked bulb; and • placing the reoriented bulb, roots-first, into a holder, preferably wherein the holder is a pin-bearing holder and the reoriented bulb is impaled rootsfirst, onto pins in the pin-bearing, characterized in that the method comprises: transferring the picked bulb from the pick-and-place head, shoot-first and roots-last, to a transfer-receptacle comprising at least one bulb-receptor, wherein said bulb-receptor temporarily clutches said bulb.
Clause 19. The method of clause 18, comprising the steps of: providing the transfer-receptacle in a first orientation and placing said picked bulb into said at least one bulb-receptor, shoot-first and roots last;
rotating said transfer-receptacle in a vertical plane to a second orientation in which the bulb clutched in the bulb-receptor is at an attitude from substantially horizontal to substantially upright, prior to the impaling step; and wherein the method comprises the step of impaling the bulb in said holder while the bulb is the bulb-receptor.
Clause 20. The apparatus of any of clauses 18 to 19 wherein said at least one bulbreceptor comprises an aperture defined by a rim, and a negative pressure is applied in the aperture to clutch the bulb against the aperture rim, preferably wherein the bulb-receptor is a suction cup; and/or wherein said at least one bulb-receptor comprises an aperture defined by a rim and a compressive gripping elements are provided to hold the bulb in said aperture.
Clause 21. The method of any of clauses 18 to 20 wherein the picked bulb is transferred in a substantially inverted orientation, and placed atop the transferreceptable, and the method comprises the steps of reorienting the transferreceptacle to upright the bulb, and thereafter placing the upright bulb into a holder, preferably impaling the upright bulb onto upstanding pins in a pinbearing holder; while the bulb is clutched in said bulb-receptor.
Clause 22. The method of any of clauses 18 to 21, wherein a plurality of bulbreceptors are provided, and a plurality of bulb-receptor apertures are occupied with bulbs prior to impaling those bulbs.
Clause 23. The method of any of clauses 18 to 22, comprising repetition of the picking and placement steps to arrange more than one bulb in the holder, preferably 5 or more bulbs, preferably 10 or more bulbs, preferably 50 or more bulbs.
Clause 24. The method of any of clauses 1 to 11 or 18 to 23 wherein the picked bulb is rotated to have its major axis within 50° of vertical, preferably within
40°, preferably within 30°, preferably within 20°, preferably within 10°, more preferably within 10° and most preferably substantially vertical.
Clause 25. A transfer-receptable for receiving bulbs, comprising:
an array of bulb-receptors configured to temporarily clutch a plurality of bulbs, characterised in that said bulb-receptors are each configured to receive a bulbshoot and abut an upper surface of the bulb adjacent to the shoot, preferably about the shoot.
Clause 26. The transfer-receptacle of clause 25 further comprising a source of negative pressure, preferably a pump, in communication with the bulbreceptors, to clutch said bulbs in abutment with the edges of the apertures; and/or comprising one more compressive gripping elements to hold said bulbs.
Clause 27. The transfer receptacle of any of clauses 25 to 26, wherein the array of bulb-receptors is vertically rotatable, preferably rotatable between an orientation in which clutched bulbs are inverted, to an orientation in which clutched bulbs are upright.
Clause 28. Apparatus for picking and placing bulbs, comprising:
a bulbs supply system for supplying a plurality of bulbs;
a camera system for identifying the orientation of supplied bulbs using pattern recognition; and at least one of:
a robotic carrier in accordance with clause 24; and/or a transfer-receptacle in accordance with any of clauses 25 to 27.
Clause 29. The apparatus of clause 28 comprising both of a robotic carrier in accordance with clause 24 and a transfer receptacle in accordance with any of clauses 25 to 27; further comprising a supply of pin bearing hydroponic holders; and wherein the transfer-receptacle and the holder supply system are configured for relative movement to impale bulbs in the pin bearing holders.
Clause 30. The method of any of clauses 1 to 11 and 18 to 24 wherein the pickand-place head is in accordance with any of clauses 12 to 17.
Clause 31. The method of any of clauses 6 to 9 and 18 to 24 wherein the transferreceptacle is in accordance with any of clauses 24 to 27.
Conclusies
1. Een bol aanvoersysteem, omvattende:
een langwerpige transportband omvattende een bol dragend volume voor het doorvoeren van bollen;
een veelvoud van gescheiden afgrenzingsbladen aangrenzend aan en binnendringend in het genoemde bol dragende volume;
een bolaanvoer ingericht voor het zijdelings aanvoeren van bollen aan de langwerpige transportband.