WO2024109732A1 - Transfer robot, warehousing system, and control method - Google Patents

Abstract

A transfer robot, a warehousing system, and a control method. The transfer robot comprises a chassis assembly, a gantry assembly, and a pick-and-place assembly. The gantry assembly is arranged on the chassis assembly; the pick-and-place assembly is arranged on one side of the gantry assembly and is configured to move in a height direction along the gantry assembly; the pick-and-place assembly comprises a pick-and-place mechanism; and the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to extend in a first direction to complete the pick-and place of a container in the first direction, and configured to extend in a second direction opposite to the first direction to complete the pick-and-place of a container in the second direction. The transfer robot improves the utilization rate of a warehousing space.

Description

Transport robot, storage system and control method

This disclosure claims the priority of Chinese patent application with application number 202211476112.5 filed on November 23, 2022; the priority of Chinese patent application with application number 202223152164.5 filed on November 23, 2022; the priority of Chinese patent application with application number 202211476014.1 filed on November 23, 2022; the priority of Chinese patent application with application number 202223152163.0 filed on November 23, 2022; the priority of Chinese patent application with application number 202320659259.1 filed on March 29, 2023; all of which are incorporated by reference into this application.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to the technical field of warehousing and logistics, and in particular to a handling robot, a warehousing system and a control method.

Background technique

At present, the storage logistics system is generally composed of densely arranged carriers and multiple handling robots. The carriers are used to store goods. In addition, there are lanes between the carriers to allow the handling robots to move and perform access actions. According to the outbound or inbound instructions, the handling robots move to the storage location of the corresponding goods to pick and place them.

Summary of the invention

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a transport robot, a warehousing system, and a control method.

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a transport robot, comprising:

Chassis components;

A door frame assembly, wherein the door frame assembly is arranged on the chassis assembly;

A pick-and-place assembly, which is disposed on one side of the door frame assembly and is configured to move along the door frame assembly in a height direction; the pick-and-place assembly includes a pick-and-place mechanism, which is configured to extend in a first direction to complete the picking and placing of containers in the first direction; and/or is configured to extend in a second direction opposite to the first direction to complete the picking and placing of containers in the second direction;

The image acquisition device is configured to acquire information about the container in the first direction when the pick-and-place component picks and places the container in the first direction; and to acquire information about the container in the second direction when the pick-and-place component picks and places the container in the second direction.

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a transport robot, comprising:

Chassis components;

A door frame assembly, wherein the door frame assembly is arranged on the chassis assembly;

A pick-and-place assembly, which is disposed on one side of the door frame assembly and is configured to move along the door frame assembly in a height direction; the pick-and-place assembly includes a pick-and-place mechanism, which is configured to extend in a first direction to complete the picking and placing of containers in the first direction; and/or is configured to extend in a second direction opposite to the first direction to complete the picking and placing of containers in the second direction;

A tuned mass damper is arranged on the top of the portal assembly; the tuned mass damper is configured to move in a first direction or a second direction relative to the portal assembly when the portal assembly shakes.

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a storage system is provided, comprising:

A storage area, the storage area includes a lane surrounded by adjacent first carriers and second carriers;

Some embodiments of the present disclosure provide a transport robot; the transport robot is configured to walk into the alley and transfer containers on the first carrier and/or the second carrier.

According to some embodiments of the present disclosure, a control method of a transport robot is provided, where the transport robot is the transport robot provided in some embodiments of the present disclosure, and the control method includes:

The handling robot moves to the predetermined position based on the pick-and-place instructions issued by the control device;

The pick-and-place assembly moves to a target height relative to the gantry assembly based on the pick-and-place instruction;

The pick-and-place mechanism in the pick-and-place assembly moves in the first direction or the second direction based on the pick-and-place instruction to pick and place the container located in the first direction or the second direction;

Before the pick-and-place mechanism moves in the first direction or the second direction, the image acquisition device acquires image information of the target position based on the pick-and-place instruction.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.

FIG1 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the cooperation between a handling robot and a carrier according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG2 is a top view of a transport robot working in a lane according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG3 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a transport robot provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG4 is another schematic diagram of the structure of a transport robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG5 is a schematic diagram of a transport robot working in a lane according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG6 is a schematic diagram of a structure of a pick-and-place component in a handling robot provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

7 is a schematic structural diagram of a tuned mass damper in a handling robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG8 is a schematic diagram of a support mechanism in a handling robot in an application scenario according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG9 is a partial enlarged view of point A in FIG8 ;

10 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a lifting platform in a transport robot provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

11 is a schematic structural diagram of a first lifting mechanism in a handling robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

12 is an internal structural diagram of a first lifting mechanism in a transport robot provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG13 is an exploded view of a gantry assembly in a transport robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

14 is a schematic structural diagram of a pick-and-place mechanism in a transport robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG15 is a schematic diagram of another three-dimensional structure of a transport robot provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

16 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a chassis in a transport robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

17 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a rotating mechanism in a handling robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG18 is an exploded view of a telescopic fork in a transport robot provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

19 is a schematic structural diagram of a pick-and-place mechanism in a transport robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG20 is a schematic structural diagram of a width-changing component in a handling robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG21 is another exploded view of a telescopic fork in a transport robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

22 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an image acquisition device in a transport robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

23 is a schematic diagram of a structure of cooperation between a mounting seat and a bracket in a handling robot provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG24 is a partial enlarged view of point B in FIG23;

FIG25 is another schematic diagram of the structure of the mounting seat and the bracket in the handling robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG26 is a partial enlarged view of point C in FIG25;

FIG27 is a schematic diagram of a storage system provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 28 is a flowchart of a control method for a transport robot according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed ways

The specific embodiments of the present disclosure are described below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

In this document, “upper”, “lower”, “front”, “back”, “left”, “right”, etc. are only used to indicate the relative position relationship between related parts, rather than to limit the absolute positions of these related parts.

In this article, "first", "second", etc. are only used to distinguish each other, and do not indicate the importance and order, or the premise of each other's existence.

In this document, “equal”, “same”, etc. are not strictly limited in a mathematical and/or geometric sense, but also include errors that can be understood by those skilled in the art and are allowed in manufacturing or use.

The present disclosure provides a transport robot, which includes a chassis assembly, a gantry assembly and a pick-and-place assembly. The chassis assembly can support the transport robot as a whole on a work surface, and serve as the main supporting structure of the transport robot. The chassis assembly can also drive the transport robot to walk on the work surface or in the lanes between carriers. The carrier of the present disclosure can be a plurality of shelves arranged in a matrix, with gaps between the plurality of carriers, forming a lane for the transport robot to move. The carrier of the present disclosure can be provided with a plurality of storage locations, and the plurality of storage locations can be arranged in sequence in the height direction and/or the horizontal direction of the carrier for storing containers. The container of the present disclosure is mainly a container for loading goods in the field of logistics, including but not limited to material boxes, pallets, packaging boxes, etc., and the present disclosure is not limited here.

The chassis assembly of the present disclosure may be provided with a driving wheel and/or a universal wheel matched with the driving wheel, and the driving wheel and the universal wheel are matched together to drive the handling robot as a whole to walk and turn on the working surface to facilitate the subsequent pick-up and placement actions. The gantry assembly is arranged on the chassis assembly, and is configured to extend in the height direction on the chassis assembly, and the height of the gantry assembly extension may be consistent with the height of the carrier or exceed the height of the carrier. The pick-up and placement assembly is arranged on one side of the gantry assembly, and is configured to move in the height direction along the gantry assembly. For example, since the containers are stored in storage positions at different heights, the pick-up and placement assembly needs to move along the gantry assembly to correspond to the corresponding storage position to complete the pick-up and placement of the container on the storage position. The pick-up and placement assembly includes a pick-up and placement mechanism (in some examples, it may also be referred to as a box-taking mechanism), and the pick-up and placement mechanism may be configured to transfer the container on the storage position by clamping, pushing and pulling, sucking, etc.

In the present disclosure, the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to extend in a first direction to complete the pick-and-place of containers in the first direction, and is configured to extend in a second direction opposite to the first direction to complete the pick-and-place of containers in the second direction. For example, a handling robot is located in a lane between two rows of carriers, and the two rows of carriers respectively carry the robot in the first direction and the second direction. When the handling robot performs the action of picking and placing containers, it can rely on the pick-and-place mechanism to extend in the first direction to correspond to the carrier located in the first direction to complete the pick-and-place of containers in the first direction; it can also extend in the second direction to correspond to the carrier located in the second direction to complete the pick-and-place of containers in the second direction.

The handling robot provided by the present disclosure has a pick-and-place mechanism that can extend in the first direction or the second direction to complete the pick-and-place of containers in the two relative directions, so that the storage space in the storage system can be fully utilized, and more carriers can be arranged more densely, thereby improving the utilization rate of the storage space. In addition, the handling robot does not need to perform additional turning actions, which can improve the pick-and-place efficiency of the handling robot.

In order to more clearly illustrate the handling robot disclosed in the present invention, a detailed description will be given below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

As shown in reference figure 1, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, multiple carriers are arranged in the storage area, and aisles are left between two adjacent carriers to allow transport robots to walk and perform storage actions (for example, as shown in Figures 1 and 5). The transport robots can walk in them in one direction or two directions and move to the corresponding positions of different containers.

As shown in Fig. 1 to Fig. 3, the handling robot of the present disclosure includes a chassis assembly 1, a gantry assembly 2, a pick-and-place assembly 3, and an image acquisition device 4. The chassis assembly 1 is supported on a working surface (for example, the ground space of a storage system, or some supporting platforms in some examples), and carries the gantry assembly 2. The chassis assembly 1 can be configured to be supported on the ground and have a certain length and width to ensure the stability of its own movement.

In some examples, the chassis assembly 1 may be provided with a driving wheel, which contacts the ground and drives the chassis assembly 1 to move on the ground. The gantry assembly 2 may be configured to be provided on the chassis assembly 1, for example, the bottom of the gantry assembly 2 is fixedly connected to the top of the chassis assembly 1, and the gantry assembly 2 may be configured to extend in the height direction, and may also be configured to have a telescopic structure, through which the gantry assembly 2 can adjust its own height to correspond to vehicles of different heights, so that the gantry assembly 2 can adapt to vehicles of different heights.

In some examples, the pick-and-place assembly 3 is disposed on one side of the gantry assembly 2, and the pick-and-place assembly 3 is configured to move in a height direction along the gantry assembly 2, so that the pick-and-place assembly 3 can move to correspond to storage positions at different heights.

The pick-and-place assembly 3 of the present disclosure includes a pick-and-place mechanism, which is configured to extend in a first direction to complete the pick-and-place of a container in the first direction, and is coordinated to extend in a second direction opposite to the first direction to complete the pick-and-place of a container in the second direction. For example, referring to the viewing direction of Figures 2 to 4, the arrow at one end of the dotted line points to the first direction, and the arrow at one end in the opposite direction points to the second direction. The pick-and-place mechanism is configured to extend in the first direction or the second direction to complete the pick-and-place of a container in the first direction or the second direction.

The first direction and the second direction in the disclosed embodiment are defined to clearly illustrate the pick-and-place action of the pick-and-place mechanism, and the first direction and the second direction may be two opposite directions. When the pick-and-place mechanism needs to pick and place a container on a carrier in the first direction, it can extend in the first direction to a position corresponding to the container to complete the pick-and-place work of the corresponding container; or, when the pick-and-place mechanism needs to pick and place a container on a carrier in the second direction, it can extend in the second direction to a position corresponding to the container to complete the pick-and-place work of the corresponding container.

Based on this, when the transport robot provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure works between carriers, it can complete the picking and placing of containers on two adjacent rows of carriers. There is no need to reserve additional operating space between the two rows of carriers to support the transport robot's turning. As a result, more carriers can be arranged more densely in the storage system, the storage space can be fully utilized, and the utilization rate of the storage space is improved.

As shown in FIG6 , in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the image acquisition device 4 is configured to acquire information of the container in the first direction when the pick-and-place component 3 picks and places the container in the first direction, and to acquire information of the container in the second direction when the pick-and-place component 3 picks and places the container in the second direction. For example, referring to the viewing direction of FIG1 , when the pick-and-place component 3 picks and places the container on the first carrier 41 in the first direction, the image acquisition device 4 acquires information such as the size and position of the container on the first carrier 41 in the first direction; when the pick-and-place component 3 accesses the container on the second carrier 42 in the second direction, the image acquisition device 4 acquires information such as the size and position of the container on the second carrier 42 in the second direction.

In some examples, the handling robot may further include a control unit, which controls the pick-and-place component 3 of the handling robot to make corresponding adjustments based on the container information after receiving the container information collected by the image acquisition device 4, so as to more accurately pick and place the container. In this way, the pick-and-place component 3 can be quickly aligned with the container, thereby improving the efficiency of the pick-and-place component in picking and placing the container.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the extending direction of the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to be perpendicular to the walking direction of the transport robot, so that when the transport robot walks to the target position in the lane formed by two adjacent carriers, the pick-and-place mechanism can be directly extended in the first direction and the second direction without the need for the transport robot to turn. The pick-and-place mechanism can complete the picking and placing of containers on two adjacent rows of carriers without turning, which means that there is no need to reserve operating space between the two adjacent rows of carriers to support the transport robot to turn. The storage space in the storage system can be fully utilized, and more carriers can be arranged more densely, thereby improving the utilization rate of the storage space. In addition, the transport robot does not need to make additional turning movements, which can improve the pick-and-place efficiency of the transport robot.

In addition, the pick-and-place assembly 3 of the embodiment of the present disclosure is arranged on one side of the gantry assembly 2, which allows the pick-and-place mechanism to extend freely in the first direction or the second direction without passing through the gantry assembly 2, thereby avoiding interference between the gantry assembly 2 and the pick-and-place mechanism.

For example, referring to FIG1 , the handling robot relies on the chassis assembly 1 to walk in one direction or two directions in the lane between the carriers, and the pick-and-place mechanism extends in the direction of the carriers on both sides of the lane. That is, based on the handling robot, the first direction or the second direction in which the pick-and-place mechanism extends is perpendicular to the walking direction of the chassis assembly 1. Thus, after the handling robot moves to the predetermined position corresponding to the container through the chassis assembly 1, the pick-and-place mechanism extends in the first direction or the second direction, thereby completing the picking and placing of the containers on the carriers on the opposite sides of the handling robot.

Referring to FIG. 1 , in some embodiments of the present disclosure, a plurality of storage positions 43 and cache positions 44 are provided on the carrier 40. The storage positions 43 and cache positions 44 are located at different heights of the carrier 40. Multiple layers of storage positions 43 may be provided on the carrier 40. The storage positions 43 are used to store containers 45, and the cache positions 44 are used to temporarily store containers 45. For example, in some embodiments of the present disclosure, the cache positions 44 are provided at the bottom layer of the carrier 40, and the storage positions 43 are provided at other storage layers except the bottom layer.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to take out a container from a storage position 43 on the carrier 40 and place it on another storage position 43. The two storage positions 43 may be located at different heights or at different positions at the same height of the carrier. Thus, the container can be transferred between different storage positions 43 to complete the tally of the carrier.

In other embodiments of the present disclosure, the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to transfer containers on the storage position 43 and the cache position 44 on the carrier, for example, transferring the container on the storage position 43 to the cache position 44 for caching, or transferring the container on the cache position 44 to the storage position 43 for storage.

In some application scenarios of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the handling robot provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure can be used in conjunction with a lifting robot to transfer the container on the carrier to the workstation, thereby realizing a container-to-person handling method. The handling robot of the embodiment of the present disclosure is responsible for transferring the container on the storage position 43 on the carrier to the cache position 44 on the bottom layer. The lifting robot is located at the bottom of the carrier, and lifts up the container on the cache position 44 and transports it to the workstation for processing. When the corresponding container is processed at the workstation, the lifting robot transports it to the cache position 44 for caching. At this time, the handling robot can take out the container on the cache position 44 and place it in the upper storage position 43 for storage.

The transport robot provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure can move to the position corresponding to the storage position 43 or the cache position 44 through the chassis assembly 1 before the pick-and-place mechanism performs the pick-and-place action, and then the pick-and-place assembly 3 rises or falls relative to the door frame assembly 2 to the height corresponding to the storage position 43 or the cache position 44, and then the corresponding container 45 is transferred between different storage positions 43 or between the storage position 43 and the cache position 44 through the pick-and-place mechanism.

Referring to FIG. 2 , in one implementation of the embodiment of the present disclosure, the carrier includes a first carrier 41 located in the first direction of the transport robot, and a second carrier 42 located in the second direction of the transport robot. The transport robot provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure can not only complete the transfer of the container on the first carrier 41 in the first direction, but also directly extend in the second direction to complete the transfer of the container on the second carrier 42 without changing the direction of the transport robot and the rotation direction of the pick-and-place assembly. In addition, the transport robot of the present disclosure can also complete the transfer of the container between the first carrier 41 and the second carrier 42. That is, the pick-and-place mechanism can be configured to extend in the first direction to take out the container 45 on the first carrier 41, and then drive the container 45 to extend directly in the second direction to place the container 45 taken out from the first carrier 41 on the second carrier 42.

Referring to the direction shown in Figure 2, with the transport robot as a reference, when the transport robot needs to transfer the container on the first carrier 41 to the second carrier 42, the transport robot first extends the pick-and-place mechanism in the first direction to the corresponding position of the container 45 on the first carrier 41, drives the container 45 to move in the second direction to the pick-and-place component 3, and then the pick-and-place mechanism directly drives the container 45 to extend in the second direction to the corresponding storage position on the second carrier 42, thereby realizing the transfer of the container 45 from the first carrier 41 to the second carrier 42.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to extend in the second direction to take out the container on the second carrier 42, and then drive the container 45 to extend directly in the first direction to place the container 45 taken out from the second carrier 42 on the first carrier 41. The method of transferring the container 45 from the second carrier 42 to the first carrier 41 is the same as the above embodiment, and the present disclosure will not be repeated here.

It should be noted that the above only describes the movement process of the pick-and-place mechanism itself. Those skilled in the art should understand that when the container 45 is placed between the first carrier 41 and the second carrier 42, When the horizontal and height positions of the storage positions on the two carriers 42 are different, the movement of the chassis assembly 1 and the adjustment of the pick-and-place assembly 3 along the door frame assembly 2 in the height direction can be coordinated to complete all operations in the actual transfer work. The above only describes the action of the pick-and-place mechanism. During the movement of the above-mentioned pick-and-place mechanism itself, the pick-and-place mechanism can complete the storage and retrieval of containers in two different directions by relying on its own extension and contraction in the first direction and the second direction. In this process, the pick-and-place mechanism does not need to turn, so there is no need to set up a space in the lane to allow the pick-and-place mechanism to complete the turning action. The lane can be fully narrowed, that is, two adjacent carriers can be arranged more densely, which greatly improves the utilization rate of the storage space, thereby more carriers can be set up to increase the storage capacity of the storage space. Referring to Figures 1 and 3, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the gantry assembly 2 includes a first gantry 21 and a second gantry 22; that is, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the gantry assembly 2 may include a plurality of sub-gantry levels connected in sequence, and each level of the sub-gantry may be movable along the extension direction of the sub-gantry level connected to it, wherein, among the multiple levels of sub-gantry levels, the uppermost sub-gantry is connected to the chassis 10, and the lowermost sub-gantry is connected to the pick-and-place assembly 3.

In some examples, the gantry assembly 2 may also include a first-level gantry, and the embodiment of the present application does not specifically limit the number of sub-gantry. As a specific example, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the number of gantry is two-level. For the convenience of explanation, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, they are named as the first gantry 21 and the second gantry 22 respectively. The first gantry 21 is arranged on the chassis assembly 1. For example, the first gantry 21 can be configured to be fixedly connected to the top of the chassis assembly 1 at the bottom, and the first gantry 21 extends in the height direction. The second gantry 22 is arranged on the first gantry 21 and is configured to move in the height direction along the first gantry 21. For example, the second gantry 22 can be arranged on the inner side of the first gantry 21 and cooperate with the first gantry 21. The first gantry 21 can guide the movement of the second gantry 22. The pick-and-place assembly 3 is arranged on one side of the second gantry 22 and is configured to move in the height direction along the second gantry 22. For example, the pick-and-place assembly 3 cooperates with the inner side of the second gantry 22 and moves along the extension direction of the second gantry 22.

When the pick-and-place assembly 3 needs to adjust its own height according to the storage position of the container, the pick-and-place assembly 3 can move along the extension direction of the second door frame 22 to different heights relative to the second door frame 22, and when the storage height of the container is higher than the limit height of the first door frame 21, the second door frame 22 can move upward, thereby increasing the overall limit height of the door frame assembly 2. The pick-and-place assembly 3 relies on the movement of the second door frame 22 to increase its own limit access height.

Referring to FIG. 3 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first door frame 21 includes a first column 211 and a second column 212 arranged in parallel and at intervals, and the end faces of the first column 211 and the second column 212 can be configured as a rectangle, which is conducive to the stability of the second door frame 22. A first crossbeam 213 is arranged between the first column 211 and the second column 212, and the opposite ends of the first crossbeam 213 are respectively connected to the first column 211 and the second column 212. A plurality of first crossbeams 213 can be provided, which are arranged in sequence along the height direction of the first column 211 and the second column 212, thereby ensuring the stability of the first column 211 and the second column 212. The second door frame 22 includes a third column 221 and a fourth column 222 arranged in parallel and at intervals, and the end faces of the third column 221 and the fourth column 222 can be configured as a rectangle, which is conducive to the stability of the guide of the pick-and-place assembly 3. A second cross beam 223 is arranged between the third column 221 and the fourth column 222. The opposite ends of the second cross beam 223 are respectively connected to the third column 221 and the fourth column 222. A plurality of second cross beams 223 can be provided, which are arranged in sequence along the height direction of the third column 221 and the fourth column 222, thereby ensuring the stability of the third column 221 and the fourth column 222.

In addition, reinforcing beams may be provided at the top ends of the first column 211 and the second column 212 . The reinforcing beams may be configured to have a size larger than that of the first beam 213 . The reinforcing beams are respectively connected to the first column 211 and the second column 212 to further increase the stability between the first column 211 and the second column 212 .

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the third column 221 and the fourth column 222 of the second gantry 22 can be movably connected to the first column 211 and the second column 212 of the first gantry 21 through a pulley block 316; for example, the third column 221 is movably connected to the first column 211 through a pulley block 316, and the fourth column 222 is movably connected to the second column 212 through a pulley block 316. The handling robot of the present disclosure is a high-position robot. The movement of the second gantry 22 relative to the first gantry 21 increases the lifting height of the pick-and-place assembly 3. In order to prevent or reduce the shaking of the gantry assembly 2, in an optional embodiment of the present disclosure, a shock absorbing assembly can be provided on the top of the first gantry 21 and the second gantry 22. Exemplarily, the shock absorbing assembly can be a tuned mass damper. It can be understood that the tuned mass damper can adopt the structure of the existing tuned mass damper. In this way, the walking shaking amount of the cargo box handling robot 1 caused by the uneven ground can be reduced.

Exemplarily, referring to FIG3 and FIG7, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, a tuned mass damper 5 is provided on the top of the second gantry 22, and the tuned mass damper 5 is configured to move in the first direction or the second direction relative to the second gantry 22 when the second gantry 22 shakes. For example, when the second gantry 22 shakes, the tuned mass damper 5 can move in the opposite direction relative to the second gantry 22, that is, when the second gantry 22 shakes in the first direction, the tuned mass damper 5 lags behind the second gantry 22 due to its own characteristics, thereby causing the tuned mass damper 5 to move in the second direction relative to the second gantry 22, and/or, when the second gantry 22 shakes in the second direction, the tuned mass damper 5 moves in the first direction.

Based on this, in the handling robot provided in the embodiment of the present invention, when the second gantry 22 shakes, the tuned mass damper 5 will lag behind the second gantry 22, so that when the tuned mass damper 5 moves relative to the second gantry 22, the second gantry 22 will transfer mechanical energy to the tuned mass damper 5. The tuned mass damper 5 can convert the mechanical energy into heat energy during the movement, thereby gradually consuming the mechanical energy of the second gantry 22 until the second gantry 22 stops shaking, thereby ensuring the stability of the second gantry 22, preventing it from shaking too much and colliding with the carrier next to it, and preventing it from tipping over.

Referring to Fig. 7, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the tuned mass damper 5 includes a first damper 51 and a second damper 52 fixed to the top of the second gantry 22, and a mass block 53 located between the first damper 51 and the second damper 52. The mass block 53 can be set at the middle position of the top of the second gantry 22. When the second gantry 22 shakes, the mass block 53 will move toward the direction of the first damper 51 or the second damper 52, and transfer mechanical energy to the first damper 51 or the second damper 52, causing the first damper 51 or the second damper 52 to move. The first damper 51 and the second damper 52 can convert mechanical energy into heat energy and consume it during movement. Through the above process, the mechanical energy of the second gantry 22 is gradually consumed, reducing the shaking amplitude of the second gantry 22.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the mass block 53 is configured to push the first damper 51 to move in the first direction or the second damper 52 to move in the second direction after receiving a force. For example, referring to FIG1 and FIG7, the two ends of the gantry assembly 2 of the present disclosure are respectively oriented toward the carrier 40 in the first direction and the carrier 40 in the second direction. Since the pick-and-place mechanism of the pick-and-place assembly 3 will extend in the first direction or the second direction, the main shaking direction of the gantry assembly 2 is also the first direction or the second direction, that is, the shaking direction of the second gantry 22 is the first direction or the second direction. When the second gantry 22 shakes in the first direction or the second direction, the mass block 53 will be subjected to an external force from the second gantry 22, and then will push the first damper 51 to move in the first direction, or push the second damper 52 to move in the second direction, and push the first damper 51 or the second damper 52 back and forth in this way to gradually reduce the mechanical energy of the shaking of the second gantry 22 and reduce the shaking amplitude of the second gantry 22.

Referring to FIG. 7 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first damper 51 and the second damper 52 each include a damper body and a movable rod. The movable rod can extend into the damper body, and the friction between the damper body and the movable rod converts mechanical energy into heat energy. Exemplarily, the first damper 51 includes a first damper body 511 and a first movable rod 512, and the second damper 52 includes a second damper body 521 and a second movable rod 522. The mass block 53 is configured to be connected to the movable rods of the first damper 51 and the second damper 52, respectively. The mass block 53 can drive the movable rods of the first damper 51 and the second damper 52 to move synchronously. move.

For example, when the mass block 53 moves in the first direction, the mass block 53 will drive the movable rods of the first damper 51 and the second damper 52 to move synchronously in the first direction, the first movable rod 512 of the first damper 51 will extend into the first damper body 511 to generate friction, and the second movable rod 522 of the second damper 52 will extend out of the second damper body 521 to generate friction. Alternatively, when the mass block 53 moves in the second direction, the mass block 53 will drive the movable rods of the first damper 51 and the second damper 52 to move synchronously in the second direction, the first movable rod 512 of the first damper 51 will extend in a direction away from the first damper body 511, and the second movable rod 522 of the second damper 52 will extend into the second damper body 521. During the movement of the above movable rod and the damper body, the first damper 51 and the second damper 52 can convert mechanical energy into heat energy, and the heat energy is diffused into the surrounding environment for consumption, thereby reducing the mechanical energy of the mass block 53, and then reducing the mechanical energy of the shaking of the second door frame 22, thereby reducing the shaking amplitude of the second door frame 22.

Referring to Figure 7, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the tuned mass damper 5 also includes a first elastic device 541 and a second elastic device 542 located on opposite sides of the mass block 53. The first elastic device 541 can be configured to be connected to the second door frame 22 at one end and to the mass block 53 at the other end. The second elastic device 542 can be configured to be connected to the second door frame at one end and to the mass block 53 at the other end. The first elastic device 541, the mass block 53 and the second elastic device 542 are arranged in sequence on the top of the second door frame 22. The first elastic device 541 and the second elastic device 542 are configured to reset the mass block 53. For example, when the mass block 53 moves in the first direction, the first elastic device 541 is compressed and the second elastic device 542 is stretched. During the recovery process, the first elastic device 541 and the second elastic device 542 jointly drive the mass block 53 to move in the second direction. Since the mass block 53 moves in the first direction, the first movable rod 512 of the first damper 51 is driven to move in the direction of extending into the first damper body 511, and the second movable rod 522 of the second damper 52 is driven to extend out of the second damper body 521. Accordingly, during the recovery movement of the first elastic device 541 and the second elastic device 542 to drive the mass block 53 to move in the second direction, the first movable rod 512 of the first damper 51 is also driven to move in the direction of extending out of the first damper body 511, and the second movable rod 522 of the second damper 52 is driven to move in the direction of extending into the second damper body 521. When the mass block 53 moves in the second direction, the first elastic device 541 and the second elastic device 542 will also reset the mass block 53. This process is opposite to the above process and is not repeated here. Therefore, the external force for resetting the mass block 53 can be provided by the first elastic device 541 and the second elastic device 542, and during the resetting process of the mass block 53, the first damper 51 and the second damper 52 will also synchronously convert the mechanical energy of the mass block 53 into heat energy, and dissipate it into the external environment for consumption.

Referring to FIG8 and FIG9, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, support mechanisms 33 are respectively provided on opposite sides of the pick-and-place assembly 3, and the support mechanisms 33 are configured to extend to abut against or disengage from the carriers located on opposite sides of the handling robot. For example, taking the handling robot as a reference, there are two carriers in the first direction and the second direction of the handling robot, and the pick-and-place assembly 3 is provided with two support mechanisms 33 respectively arranged in the first direction and the second direction, and the two support mechanisms 33 extend in the first direction and the second direction respectively to abut against the carriers in their respective directions, thereby fixing the pick-and-place assembly 3 between the two carriers, improving the stability of the pick-and-place assembly 3, and further improving the stability of the pick-and-place mechanism when performing the pick-and-place action. In addition, referring to FIG2, when the pick-and-place mechanism of the pick-and-place assembly 3 completes the pick-and-place operation, the two support mechanisms 33 can be retracted to the original position and disengaged from the two carriers, and the pick-and-place assembly 3 can be released after being fixed, and subsequent work can be performed.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, two support mechanisms 33 may extend to both sides together, and/or a single support mechanism 33 may extend to one side of a single carrier. For example, when a handling robot takes and places containers on a single-sided carrier, the end of the support mechanism 33 in contact with the carrier may be provided with a magnetic device, which may be a magnet or an electromagnet, etc. One support mechanism 33 extends in the direction of the carrier and abuts against the carrier, which may also play a role in fixing the pick-and-place component 3. In addition, the end of the support mechanism 33 in contact with the carrier may also be configured as a gripper device. The support mechanism 33 extends to one side and grasps the corresponding position of the carrier, thereby preventing or reducing the shaking of the gantry assembly and improving the stability of the pick-and-place mechanism of the pick-and-place component 3.

Referring to Fig. 10, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the pick-and-place assembly 3 includes a lifting platform 30, and the lifting mechanism is disposed on the lifting platform 30. Exemplarily, the lifting platform 30 can be matched with the second gantry 22 through a guide mechanism, so that the lifting platform 30 and the pick-and-place mechanism located on the lifting platform 30 can be driven to rise or fall synchronously to a target position under the action of a corresponding driving mechanism.

The support mechanism 33 disclosed in the present invention is arranged on the lifting platform 30, for example, it can be arranged on the side walls of the lifting platform 30 located in the first direction and the second direction (in some examples, it can also be understood that the lifting platform 30 can have two first end surfaces 303 arranged opposite to each other, and each first end surface 303 can accommodate a support mechanism 33, and the support mechanism 33 can be extended and retracted in a direction perpendicular to the first end surface 43.), so that the support mechanism 33 can be extended to cooperate with the carrier in the first direction and the second direction after the lifting platform 30 rises to the target height, so as to support the gantry assembly 3 at a high position to prevent the gantry assembly 3 from shaking when the pick-and-place mechanism is in action.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the position deviation of the pick-and-place mechanism relative to the container can be adjusted by the support mechanism 33. Specifically, when picking and placing the container on the carrier, the handling robot first moves to a predetermined position, and then the pick-and-place component 3 rises or falls to a predetermined height according to the instructions pre-stored in the system. The intelligent camera or QR code camera set on the pick-and-place component 3 identifies the carrier feature information or QR code information, and the distance position information of the pick-and-place component 3 relative to the carrier is obtained by parsing, thereby obtaining the information of the displacement of the pick-and-place component 3 relative to the carrier. These displacements are often caused by various factors such as ground tilt, carrier installation error, and the error of the handling robot itself. Through the offset information obtained by parsing, the control unit can control the extension distance of the support mechanism 33, thereby enabling the handling robot to adapt to the displacement, and will not cause the body to shake due to the change of the posture of the handling robot. When accessing the lower-level container, the support mechanism 33 can not work, relying on the rigidity of the handling robot itself to ensure the stability when accessing the container.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the support mechanism 33 can be configured to extend out of the first end surface 303 when the pick-and-place assembly 3 starts to perform the box-picking action along the first direction or the second direction, and one end is clamped on the carrier. The support mechanism 33 can also be used to retract into the first end surface 303 after the pick-and-place assembly 3 completes the box-picking action. In this way, when storing and retrieving high-rise cargo boxes, the stability of the cargo box handling robot when picking up cargo can be ensured, and the shaking of the robot can be reduced.

In other examples of the present disclosure, the support mechanism 33 can also be set on the two end surfaces of the carriers (which may also be called shelves in some examples) facing both sides of the alley when the picking and placing component 3 stores and retrieves cargo boxes. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific position of the support mechanism 33, as long as it can support and stabilize the picking and placing component 3.

In the disclosed embodiment, the support mechanisms 33 provided on the two first end surfaces 303 can be controlled by independent drives to support the corresponding side or both sides according to the actual carrier position. The extension distance of the support mechanism 33 from the corresponding first end surface 43 can be determined by the control device according to the offset information of the pick-and-place assembly 3 relative to the shelf.

As shown in FIG10 , in a possible implementation, the support mechanism 33 may include a support rod 331, an elastic component 332, and a lever 333. The support rod 331 is telescopically arranged on the first end surface 303, the lever 333 is rotatably connected to the first end of the support rod 331 away from the first end surface 303, the lever 333 has a second end and a third end distributed on both sides of the rotation connection position, the second end is provided with a support portion 334, and the third end is connected to the support rod 331 through the elastic component 332.

The third end of the lever 333 is configured to rotate around the first end of the support rod 331 to an abutting position under the action of the elastic component 332 after the support rod 331 extends out of the first end surface 303, so that the support portion 334 abuts against the corresponding shelves on both sides of the task lane. The component 332 can release the elastic force, so that the lever 333 rotates around the first end of the support rod 331 to an abutting position. At this time, the lever 333 and the support rod 331 can be colinear.

After the support rod 331 is retracted to the first end surface 303 , the elastic component 332 can apply a pulling force to make the lever 333 rotate around the first end of the support rod 331 to a retracted position, at which time the lever 333 and the support rod 331 can remain parallel.

In this way, the support mechanism 33 has a simple structure and is easy to process. When storing and retrieving high-level cargo boxes, it can reduce the shaking of the cargo box handling robot caused by storing and retrieving cargo boxes. When storing and retrieving low-level cargo boxes, the support mechanism 33 can be inactive, relying on the rigidity of the cargo box handling robot itself to ensure the stability during the storage and retrieval of cargo boxes. It is very flexible and effective.

In some other examples of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the support mechanism 33 may also be an electromagnetic mechanism, which extends out of the first end surface 303 and is adsorbed on the shelf beam under the action of driving. The embodiments of the present application do not limit the specific structure of the support mechanism 33.

Referring to FIG. 11 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the second gantry 22 is guided and matched with the first gantry 21. The second gantry 22 is arranged on the first gantry 21 through the first lifting mechanism 6 (in some examples, it may also be referred to as the second driving unit). The second gantry 22 is configured to be controlled by the first lifting mechanism 6 to move relative to the first gantry 21. For example, the second gantry 22 can move upward or downward along the first gantry 21 under the drive of the first lifting mechanism 6. In this way, the limit height of the gantry assembly 2 as a whole is increased, so that the limit height of the pick-and-place assembly 3 is increased.

That is to say, when the gantry assembly 2 provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure has multiple levels (greater than two levels) of sub-gantry, the second driving unit is configured to drive each level of sub-gantry to move along the extension direction of the connected upper level sub-gantry.

As shown in FIG. 12 and FIG. 13, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first lifting mechanism 6 includes a driving device 61, a transmission belt 62 (in some examples, it may also be referred to as a second transmission unit, and the second transmission unit may be a belt, a chain, a wire rope, etc.), a transmission rod 63, gears 64 arranged at both ends of the transmission rod 63, and a chain 65 (in some examples, it may also be a belt or a wire rope) matched with the gear. The output end of the driving device 61 is connected to the transmission rod 63 through the transmission belt 62, and the driving device 61 drives the transmission rod 63 to rotate synchronously through the transmission belt 62. The gears 64 on both sides of the transmission rod 63 will drive the chain 65 to move during the rotation process. Referring to FIG. 12, a fixed block 66 is fixedly connected to one side of the chain 65, and the fixed block 66 is fixedly connected to the second door frame 22. The chain 65 can drive the second door frame 22 to move through the fixed block 66. For example, when the chain on the side of the fixed block 66 moves upward, the second door frame 22 moves upward synchronously, or when the chain on the side of the fixed block 66 moves downward, the second door frame 22 moves downward synchronously. This enables the first lifting mechanism 6 to control the movement of the second door frame 22 relative to the first door frame 21 .

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the pick-and-place assembly 3 is configured to be disposed on the second gantry 22 through a second lifting mechanism (also referred to as a third driving unit in some examples), and the pick-and-place assembly 3 is controlled by the second lifting mechanism to move relative to the second gantry 22. The pick-and-place assembly may include a lifting platform 30, the pick-and-place mechanism is disposed on the lifting platform 30, the lifting platform is disposed on the second gantry through a second lifting mechanism, and the second lifting mechanism drives the lifting platform and the pick-and-place mechanism to move synchronously.

That is, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, when the gantry assembly 2 includes multiple stages of sub-gantry, the third driving unit is configured to drive the lifting platform 30 to move along the extension direction of the sub-gantry at the lowest stage.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first lifting mechanism 6 and the second lifting mechanism are configured to move synchronously. For example, when the first lifting mechanism 6 drives the second gantry 22 to rise, the second lifting mechanism drives the pick-and-place assembly 3 to rise synchronously relative to the second gantry 22, or when the first lifting mechanism 6 drives the second gantry 22 to descend, the second lifting mechanism drives the pick-and-place assembly 3 to descend synchronously relative to the second gantry 22.

In some other examples, the lifting platform 30 and the multi-stage sub-gantry can constitute a three-stage or more lifting structure. Exemplarily, the description is carried out by taking the gantry assembly 2 as an example, including three stages of sub-gantry connected in sequence. The lifting platform 30 and the three sub-gantry can constitute a three-stage lifting structure. Among them, the lifting platform 30 is connected to a sub-gantry, the sub-gantry is connected to another sub-gantry, and the other sub-gantry is connected to the third sub-gantry. When lifting, the lifting platform 30 moves along the extension direction of the connected sub-gantry, the sub-gantry connected to the lifting platform 30 moves along the extension direction of another connected sub-gantry, and the other sub-gantry moves along the extension direction of the third connected sub-gantry, thereby realizing three-stage lifting.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the first lifting mechanism 6 and the second lifting mechanism are configured to drive the second door frame 22 and the pick-and-place assembly 3 to move independently, respectively, so as to adjust the relative height of the pick-and-place assembly. The first lifting mechanism 6 and the second lifting mechanism can use different driving devices. The first lifting mechanism 6 drives the second door frame 22 to move relative to the first door frame 21 and the second lifting mechanism drives the pick-and-place assembly 3 to move relative to the second door frame 22 independently of each other. In this way, the movement height of the pick-and-place assembly 3 can be flexibly adjusted.

In a possible implementation, the second drive unit corresponding to each level of the sub-gantry can be the same drive unit. In this way, the serial lifting of the sub-gantry at each level can be realized, the arrangement of the drive unit can be saved, and the structure is relatively compact. In other possible implementations, the second drive unit corresponding to each level of the sub-gantry can also be a different drive unit. In this way, the sub-gantry at each level uses different drive units and different transmission units, and the movement of each in the vertical direction is decoupled and independent of each other, and the parallel lifting has strong control flexibility.

In this way, the multi-level sub-gantry can form a multi-level lifting structure. Compared with the gantry components of the single-level lifting structure, for example: the gantry only includes the structure of the first-level sub-gantry, it can not only greatly improve the lifting speed and reduce the storage and retrieval time of a single cargo box, but also increase the height of the storage and retrieval cargo box, and maximize the storage density of the warehouse in the vertical space, which is very practical.

In a possible implementation, the second drive unit corresponding to each level of the sub-gantry and the third drive unit that drives the lifting platform 30 to lift and lower can be the same drive unit. In this way, the lifting platform 30 and each level of the sub-gantry can be lifted and lowered in series, saving the arrangement of the drive units and making the structure more compact. In other possible implementations, the third drive unit and each second drive unit can also be different drive units. In this way, the lifting platform and each level of the sub-gantry use different drive units and different transmission units, and their respective vertical movements are decoupled and independent of each other, and the parallel lifting has strong control flexibility.

In this way, the cargo box handling robot provided by the embodiment of the present disclosure has a lighter overall load and a relatively faster walking speed because the cargo box caching component is eliminated, which can reduce the waiting time or cross avoidance time during multi-robot operation. Referring to Figures 3 and 10, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the pick-and-place mechanism includes a base 31 fixed on a lifting platform 30 and at least one telescopic fork 32. A bearing position 311 is provided on the base 31, so that the bearing position is unobstructed at both ends in the first direction and the second direction, that is, two openings are formed at both ends of the base 31. The at least one telescopic fork 32 is guided and matched with the base 31, and is configured to be extended from one of the openings of the base 31 along the first direction by the base 31 to complete the pick-and-place of the container in the first direction, and is configured to be extended from another opening of the base 31 along the second direction by the base 31 to complete the pick-and-place of the container in the second direction.

In some examples, the carrying position 311 can pass through both ends of the base 31, so that after at least one level of telescopic fork 32 is extended in a first direction along the base 31 to take out the container, it can be directly extended in a second direction along the base 31 to place the container on a carrier in the second direction. In this process, the picking and placing mechanism can complete the storage and retrieval of the container in two directions without rotating.

Referring to FIG. 3 and FIG. 10 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the base 31 is rotatably connected to the lifting platform 30 and is configured to adjust the posture deviation of the pick-and-place mechanism by rotating. Due to the deviation of the transport robot walking or the deviation of the container, the pick-and-place mechanism may not be aligned with the container, which is not conducive to picking up the container. The base 31 rotates relative to the lifting platform 30 to adjust the posture deviation of the pick-and-place mechanism. For example, the posture angle of the pick-and-place mechanism can be adjusted to face the container, thereby compensating for the deflection caused by motion error or storage error, so that the pick-and-place mechanism can take out the container smoothly.

In an application scenario of the present disclosure, the handling robot first moves to a predetermined position, and then the pick-and-place component 3 rises or descends to a predetermined height according to the instructions pre-stored in the system. The container information at the target position can be obtained by the image acquisition device, and the position deviation of the pick-and-place mechanism relative to the container can be calculated by the control, and then the base 31 can be controlled to rotate a certain angle relative to the lifting platform 30 for fine adjustment, so that the pick-and-place mechanism is aligned with the container to avoid interference with the container when the pick-and-place mechanism is extended.

As shown in Figure 15, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, the picking mechanism is fixed on the lifting platform 30, and the lifting platform 30 has a support surface 301 facing away from the chassis assembly 1 (which may also be referred to as the chassis in some examples), and the picking mechanism can rotate along the support surface 301 of the lifting platform 30, wherein the picking mechanism (which may also be referred to as a box picking mechanism or a pick-and-place mechanism in some examples) is configured to pick up the box along a first direction when rotating to a first position, and to pick up the box along a second direction when rotating to a second position, and the first direction is different from the second direction.

For example, the first position may be a position facing a shelf on one side of the lane, and the first direction may be a direction perpendicular to the shelf on the side; the second position may be a position facing a shelf on the other side of the lane, and the second direction may be a direction perpendicular to the shelf on the other side. In this way, the pick-and-place mechanism is arranged to be rotatable on the lifting platform 30, so that the cargo boxes on the shelves on both sides of the lane can be stored and retrieved by rotating the pick-and-place mechanism, without the need for the robot to turn as a whole, so that it can adapt to narrow task lanes, and the overall operation efficiency of cargo box handling is high.

When the handling robot of the disclosed embodiment picks up goods, the chassis assembly 1 drives the gantry assembly 2, the lifting platform 30 and the pick-and-place mechanism to move to the corresponding shelf together, and the lifting platform 30 moves upward along the gantry assembly 2 to enable the pick-and-place mechanism to reach the storage position of the corresponding height, and then the pick-and-place mechanism can be rotated to the first position facing the storage position, and take out the cargo box on the storage position along the first direction, and finally the lifting platform 30 moves downward along the gantry assembly 2 to enable the pick-and-place mechanism to descend with the cargo box.

It should be noted that, due to the obstruction of the viewing angle, the support surface is blocked by the pick-and-place mechanism and is therefore not shown in FIG. 15 .

In this way, since the handling robot does not have a cargo box cache component, the overall load is smaller, which can reduce the waiting or cross-avoidance time during multi-robot operations. In addition, the pick-and-place mechanism can rotate and can store and access cargo boxes on the shelves on both sides of the aisle without the need for the robot to turn as a whole, thereby being able to adapt to narrow task aisles. The overall operation efficiency of cargo box handling is higher.

In a possible implementation, as shown in FIG. 16 , the chassis assembly 1 may include a bearing platform 11, wheels 12, radar 13, and camera 14. In other possible implementations, the chassis assembly 1 may also include other components that need to be provided. The present application embodiment does not specifically limit the structure of the chassis assembly 1. The chassis assembly 1, as a bearing base for other components, can drive the gantry assembly 2, the lifting platform 30, and the pick-and-place mechanism to complete movements such as traveling, rotating, and avoiding obstacles on the ground.

10 and 17, in a possible implementation, a rotating mechanism 302 may be provided on the support surface 301 of the lifting platform 30, and the pick-and-place mechanism may be rotatably provided on the support surface 301 through the rotating mechanism 302. In this way, the rotating mechanism 302 provided on the support surface 301 can not only conveniently drive the pick-and-place mechanism to rotate along the support surface 301, but also provide relatively stable support for the pick-and-place mechanism.

In other possible implementations, a rotating mechanism 3 - 2 may also be provided on the bottom surface of the pick-and-place mechanism facing the lifting platform 30 , which is not specifically limited in the embodiment of the present application.

In some examples, the rotating mechanism 302 may include a slewing support 3021, which may have an inner ring 30211 fixed on the support surface 301 of the lifting platform 30, and an outer ring 30212 that can rotate around the inner ring 30211. The pick-and-place mechanism may be fixed on the outer ring 30212. It can be understood that the slewing support 3021 may be a bearing.

A mounting groove 3011 may be formed on the support surface 301, and at least a portion of the swivel support 3021 may be embedded in the mounting groove 3011. In this way, the gap between the support surface 301 and the pick-and-place mechanism is smaller, which helps the rotation stability of the pick-and-place mechanism.

In addition, the rotating mechanism 302 may further include a first transmission unit 3022 and a first driving unit 3023 , wherein one end of the first transmission unit 3022 is fixed to at least a portion of the outer wall of the outer ring 30212 , and the other end of the first transmission unit 3022 is disposed on the first driving unit 3023 .

The first driving unit 3023 is configured to drive the first transmission unit 3022 to move, so as to drive the outer ring 30212 of the slewing support 3021 to rotate along the inner ring 30211 of the slewing support 3021, and at least part of the first transmission unit 3022 and the first driving unit 3023 are accommodated in the pick-and-place mechanism. In this way, the structure is more compact, the gap between the support surface 301 of the lifting platform and the pick-and-place mechanism is smaller, and the rotation stability of the pick-and-place mechanism is also facilitated.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the first transmission unit 3022 may be a belt, a chain, a steel wire rope, etc., and there is no limitation on the specific type of the first transmission unit 3022. For example, taking the first transmission unit 3022 as a belt, the inner wall of the belt has a serrated locking tooth, the locking tooth at one end of the belt is sleeved on at least part of the outer wall of the outer ring 30212 of the slewing support 3021, and the locking tooth is engaged with a first slot provided on the outer wall of the outer ring 30212 of the slewing support 3021, and the locking tooth at the other end of the belt is sleeved on the driving shaft of the first driving unit 3023, and is engaged with a second slot provided on the outer wall of the driving shaft.

When the first driving unit 3023 is working, the driving shaft of the first driving unit 3023 drives the belt to rotate along the rotation direction of the driving shaft through the second slot, and the locking teeth of the belt drive the outer ring 30212 of the slewing support 3021 to rotate along the rotation direction of the driving shaft through the first slot. In this way, the rotating mechanism 302 can drive the pick-and-place mechanism to rotate in a direction parallel to the supporting surface 301 of the lifting platform 30, and then the pick-and-place mechanism can store and retrieve cargo boxes on the shelves on both sides of the lane by rotating, and the structure of the rotating mechanism 302 is relatively simple and easy to arrange.

As another example, taking the first transmission unit 3022 as a belt, the inner wall of the belt is a flat side, one end of the belt is sleeved on at least part of the outer wall of the outer ring 30212 of the slewing support 3021, and forms contact pressure with at least part of the outer wall of the outer ring 30212, and the locking teeth at the other end of the belt are sleeved on at least part of the outer wall of the driving shaft of the first driving unit 3023, and form contact pressure with at least part of the outer wall of the driving shaft.

When the first driving unit 3023 is working, the driving shaft of the first driving unit 3023 drives the belt to rotate along the rotation direction of the driving shaft through friction, and the belt drives the outer ring 30212 of the slewing support 3021 to rotate along the rotation direction of the driving shaft through friction. In this way, the rotating mechanism 302 can drive the pick-and-place mechanism to rotate along the direction parallel to the supporting surface 301 of the lifting platform 30, and the structure of the rotating mechanism 302 is relatively simple and easy to arrange.

In other examples, the outer ring 30212 of the rotary support 3021 can be fixed on the support surface 301, and the inner ring 30211 can rotate within the outer ring 30212, or the rotating mechanism 302 can also adopt other rotatable structures, which is not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

The structure of the pick-and-place mechanism is introduced below.

Referring to FIGS. 14 and 18 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, two telescopic forks 32 are arranged in parallel and at intervals on opposite sides of a base 31. The two telescopic forks 32 have the same structure. The telescopic fork 32 is provided with at least a first finger 321 and a second finger 322. The first finger 321 and the second finger 322 are distributed in the extension direction of the telescopic fork 32. The first finger 321 and the second finger 322 can be configured to rotate toward the inside of the pick-and-place mechanism. The first finger 321 and the second finger 322 on the two telescopic forks rotate in opposite directions. The first finger 321 can be provided at one end of the telescopic fork 32 located in the first direction, and is configured to rotate with the first finger 321. The second finger 322 can be arranged on one end of the telescopic fork 32 in the second direction and configured to cooperate with the container to drive the container to move from the second direction to the first direction.

For example, when the container is located on the carrier in the first direction, the telescopic fork 32 first extends to position the first finger 321 at the rear side of the container, and the first finger 321 rotates to cooperate with the rear side of the container. When the telescopic fork 32 retracts to the second direction, the first finger 321 drives the container to move from the first direction to the second direction, for example, it can move to the bearing position of the base 31. Alternatively, when the container is located on the carrier in the second direction, the telescopic fork 32 first extends to position the second finger 322 at the rear side of the container, and the second finger 322 rotates to cooperate with the rear side of the container. When the telescopic fork 32 retracts to the first direction, the second finger 322 drives the container to move from the second direction to the first direction, for example, it can move to the bearing position of the base 31. It should be noted that when the container is located on the base 31 on the pick-and-place mechanism, the telescopic fork 32 can directly drive the container to move in the second direction through the first finger 321 to send the container to the carrier in the second direction for storage, or directly drive the container to move in the first direction through the second finger 322 to send the container to the carrier in the first direction for storage.

Referring to FIG. 14 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the telescopic fork 32 is provided with at least a third finger 323 between the first finger 321 and the second finger 322. The third finger 323 has the same structure and movement mode as the first finger 321 and the second finger 322 on the same telescopic fork 32. The first finger 321, the third finger 323, and the second finger 322 are sequentially arranged along the extension direction of the telescopic fork 32. The third finger 323 is configured to drive the container to move from the first direction to the second direction during the movement of the telescopic fork.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the first finger 321 and the second finger 322 cooperate together and are configured to pick up and place containers of a first size, that is, the size between the first finger 321 and the second finger 322 is configured to match the first size; the third finger 323 and the second finger 322 cooperate together and are configured to pick up and place containers of a second size, that is, the size between the second finger 322 and the third finger 323 is configured to match the second size. The first size is larger than the second size.

For example, when a container of the first size is located on a carrier in the second direction, the telescopic fork 32 extends in the second direction until the second finger 322 is located at a corresponding position of the container, and the telescopic fork 32 retracts in the second direction, and the second finger 322 drives the container of the first size to move from the second direction to the first direction. When the container on the base 31 needs to be pushed out in the second direction, the telescopic fork 32 moves in the second direction, so that the first finger 321 can push the container to the carrier in the second direction for storage.

When the container of the second size is located on the carrier in the second direction, the telescopic fork 32 extends in the second direction until the second finger 322 is located at the corresponding position of the container, and the telescopic fork 32 retracts in the second direction, and the second finger 322 drives the container of the second size to move from the second direction to the first direction until the container is taken to the carrying position of the base 31. When the container on the base 31 needs to be pushed out in the second direction, the telescopic fork 32 can extend in the second direction so that the third finger 323 can push the container to the carrier in the second direction for storage.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the third finger 323 is configured to drive the container to move from the second direction to the first direction during the movement of the telescopic fork. The first finger 321 and the second finger 322 cooperate together and are configured to pick up and place containers of the first size, that is, the size between the first finger 321 and the second finger 322 is configured to match the first size; the first finger 321 and the third finger 323 cooperate together and are configured to pick up and place containers of the second size, that is, the size between the first finger 321 and the third finger 323 is configured to match the second size. Wherein, the first size is greater than the second size, for example, when a container of the first size is located in the carrier in the first direction, the telescopic fork 32 extends in the first direction until the first finger 321 is located at the corresponding position of the container, the telescopic fork 32 retracts in the second direction, and the first finger 321 drives the container of the first size to move from the first direction to the second direction to the base 31 for storage. When the container on the base 31 needs to be pushed out in the first direction, the telescopic fork 32 moves in the first direction, so that the second finger 322 can push the container to the carrier located in the first direction for storage.

When the container of the second size is located on the carrier in the first direction, the telescopic fork 32 extends in the first direction until the first finger 321 is located at the corresponding position of the container, and the telescopic fork 32 retracts in the second direction, and the first finger 321 drives the container of the second size to move from the first direction to the second direction to the base 31 for storage. When the container of the second size is located on the base 31 of the pick-and-place mechanism, the telescopic fork 32 can extend in the first direction, so that the third finger 323 can push the container to the carrier located in the first direction for storage. The above process only illustrates the actions of the telescopic fork 32, the first finger 321, the second finger 322 and the third finger 323. The extension length and the position of pick-and-place need to be determined according to the actual situation, and are not illustrated here.

Referring to FIG. 14 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, at least a third finger 323 and a fourth finger 324 are provided between the first finger 321 and the second finger 322 on the telescopic fork 32. The third finger 323 and the fourth finger 324 have the same structure and movement mode as the first finger 321 and the second finger 322. The third finger 323 is configured to cooperate with the container to drive the container to move from the first direction to the second direction, and the fourth finger 324 is configured to cooperate with the container to drive the container to move from the second direction to the first direction. The first finger 321 cooperates with the second finger 322 and is configured to pick and place containers of a first size, the first finger 321 cooperates with the fourth finger 324 and is configured to pick and place containers of a second size, the second finger 322 and the third finger 323 cooperate together and are configured to pick and place containers of a third size, the first size is greater than the second size and the third size, and the second size and the third size may be the same or different.

For example, when a container of a first size is located on a carrier in a first direction, the telescopic fork 32 extends in the first direction until the first finger 321 and the second finger 322 are located at corresponding positions of the container of the first size, the telescopic fork 32 retracts in the second direction, and the first finger 321 drives the container of the first size to move from the first direction to the second direction; when the container is pushed out in the first direction, the second finger 322 can be used to push the container out. When a container of a second size is located on a carrier in the first direction, the telescopic fork 32 extends in the first direction until the first finger 321 and the fourth finger 324 are located at corresponding positions of the container of the second size, the telescopic fork 32 retracts in the second direction, and the first finger 321 drives the container of the second size to move from the first direction to the second direction; when the container is pushed out in the first direction, the fourth finger 324 can be used to push the container out.

When a container of the first size is located on the carrier in the second direction, the telescopic fork 32 extends in the second direction until the first finger 321 and the second finger 322 are located at the corresponding position of the container of the first size, the telescopic fork 32 retracts in the first direction, and the second finger 322 drives the container of the first size to move from the second direction to the first direction; when the container is pushed out in the second direction, the container can be pushed out by the first finger 321. When a container of the third size is located on the carrier in the second direction, the telescopic fork 32 extends in the second direction until the second finger 322 and the third finger 323 are located at the corresponding position of the container of the third size, the telescopic fork 32 retracts in the first direction, and the second finger 322 drives the container of the third size to move from the second direction to the first direction; when the container is pushed out in the second direction, the container can be pushed out by the third finger 323.

In the above, the “first”, “second”, “third” and “fourth” in the first finger 321, the second finger 322, the third finger 323 and the fourth finger 324 are only named to distinguish the fingers at different positions. In addition to the four fingers, more or fewer fingers can be set. The number and setting position of the fingers are related to the size of the container and need to be determined according to actual conditions. There is no limitation on this.

In addition, an independent driving unit is provided at a position corresponding to each finger on the telescopic fork 32, and each finger can be driven by its own driving unit. Movement, thereby flexibly combining to access containers of different sizes, those skilled in the art are well aware of the structure and specific movement of the dial and the drive unit, which will not be described in detail here.

Since different carriers in the storage system have different storage depths, that is, there may be storage positions with a first-level depth, a second-level depth, a third-level depth, or a higher level of depth, the structure of the telescopic fork 32 needs to be adapted to the depth of pick-up and placement in actual applications, that is, there may be a first-level telescopic fork, a second-level telescopic fork, a third-level telescopic fork, or more levels of telescopic forks adapted to the corresponding carrier. The disclosure takes a second-level telescopic fork as an example.

Referring to FIG. 18 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the telescopic fork 32 may include a fixed plate 3241 disposed on the base 31, and a first telescopic plate 3242, a second telescopic plate 3243, and a third telescopic plate 3244 extending outward in sequence and guiding the matching, the fixed plate 3241, the first telescopic plate 3242, the second telescopic plate 3243, and the third telescopic plate 3244 are sequentially connected together by a transmission mechanism, so that the first telescopic plate 3242 can be extended or retracted relative to the fixed plate 3241, the second telescopic plate 3243 can be extended or retracted relative to the first telescopic plate 3242, and the third telescopic plate 3244 can be extended or retracted relative to the second telescopic plate 3243. The fixed plate 3241, the first telescopic plate 3242, the second telescopic plate 3243, and the third telescopic plate 3244 can be connected together by a transmission mechanism well known to those skilled in the art, and the present disclosure will not be described in detail here.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the fixing plates 3241 located on opposite sides of the base 31 may also be configured to move away from or toward each other, thereby making the telescopic fork 32 suitable for taking and placing containers of different sizes.

As shown in FIG. 19 , in a possible implementation, the pick-and-place mechanism may include a box body, and a width-changing component and a telescopic component (also referred to as a telescopic fork 32 in some examples) disposed in the box body, and may also include a depth camera component 53, a QR code camera component 54, and a follower tray component 55. The number of the telescopic forks 32 may be two, and they are disposed opposite to each other.

As shown in FIG. 20 , in a possible implementation, the width-changing assembly may include two fixing seats 3012. The base 31 may be used to fix the depth camera assembly 53 and the QR code camera assembly 54. The bottom surface of the base 31 is fixed on the rotating mechanism 302, and the two fixing seats 3012 are relatively arranged on the side of the base 31 away from the rotating mechanism 302 along the width direction of the base 31, and at least one of the two fixing seats 3012 is configured to slide along the width direction so that the two fixing seats 3012 are close to or away from each other. The width direction is configured to be perpendicular to the first direction when the pick-and-place mechanism rotates to the first position, and perpendicular to the second direction when the pick-and-place mechanism rotates to the second position.

In some examples, two guide rails 3013 may be provided on the top surface of the base 31 away from the rotating mechanism 302, the extension direction of the two guide rails 3013 is parallel to the width direction, and the two fixed seats 3012 are respectively slidably connected to the corresponding guide rails 3013. In a possible implementation, there may be two guide rails 3013 corresponding to each fixed seat 3012, and the two guide rails 3013 are parallel to each other. The embodiment of the present disclosure does not specifically limit the number and position of the guide rails 3013. In this way, the distance between the two fixed seats 3012 can be adjusted to be compatible with cargo boxes of different widths.

In a possible implementation, the two fixed seats 3012 may be connected to a synchronous belt 3014, the length direction of the synchronous belt 3014 is parallel to the width direction, one end of the synchronous belt 3014 is connected to a driving element 3015, and under the drive of the driving element 3015, the synchronous belt 3014 drives the two fixed seats 3012 to slide synchronously on the corresponding guide rails 5303. In this way, the synchronization of widening can be ensured.

19 and 20, in a possible implementation, the follower tray assembly 55 can be disposed on the base 31 and located between two opposite end surfaces of the two guide rails 3013. Specifically, it can be connected to the fixing device 3051 on the base 31. In this way, when the pick-and-place mechanism takes or returns a cargo box, the follower tray assembly can play the role of docking a shelf to prevent cargo boxes with smaller specifications from falling through the gap.

FIG21 is another structural schematic diagram of a telescopic fork in a handling robot provided according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Referring to FIG21 , in a possible implementation, each telescopic fork 32 may include a telescopic plate assembly 32021, a telescopic transmission assembly 32022, and a guide rail assembly 32023. The telescopic plate assembly 32021 may include a fixed plate 3241 disposed on a corresponding side fixed seat 3012 and a plurality of sequentially connected extension plates 320212 (which may also be referred to as telescopic plates in some examples), the telescopic transmission assembly 32022 may include a transmission member 320221 corresponding to the fixed plate 3241 and the corresponding extension plate 320212, and the guide rail assembly 32023 may include a slide rail 320231 corresponding to the plurality of extension plates 320212.

Each extension plate 320212 can be driven by the corresponding transmission member 320221 to synchronously slide on the corresponding slide rail 320231 along the extension direction of the connected upper extension plate 320212. When the pick-and-place mechanism rotates to the first position, the extension direction of the extension plate 320212 is parallel to the first direction, and when the pick-and-place mechanism rotates to the second position, the extension direction of the extension plate 320212 is parallel to the second direction.

In addition, the end of the lowest extension plate 320212 among the multiple extension plates 320212 close to the shelf may be provided with a front finger assembly 32024, and the front finger assembly 32024 may include a front finger 320241 and a corresponding finger driving unit 320242. The end of the lowest extension plate 320212 among the multiple extension plates 320212 away from the shelf may be provided with a rear lever 32025. When taking a box, the front finger assembly 32024 is lowered to hold the cargo box into the pick-and-place mechanism, and when returning a box, the cargo box is pushed to the shelf storage position by relying on the rear lever 32025.

In this way, the telescopic fork 32 can be a multi-stage telescopic device, which can be telescoped along the removal direction of the cargo box, so as to realize the storage and retrieval of cargo spaces of different depths, such as single-depth cargo spaces or double-depth cargo spaces, with strong flexibility.

In the disclosed embodiment, the working principle of the pick-and-place mechanism is to use the depth camera component 53 to identify the characteristic information of the cargo box or shelf, and then analyze and obtain the width of the cargo box and the position depth relative to the shelf and other information. The QR code camera component 54 identifies the QR code information on the shelf to obtain the height information of the retrieval. The width-changing component adaptively widens the telescopic component to adapt to cargo boxes of different widths. The telescopic component can be 2-level or 3-level, and is used for access to single-depth cargo spaces or double-depth cargo spaces. When taking a box, the front lever is lowered and hugged to the cargo box into the pick-and-place mechanism. When returning a box, the rear lever is used to push the cargo box to the shelf storage position.

The image acquisition device 4 in the transport robot provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure is introduced in detail below.

As shown in FIG. 9 and FIG. 18 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the image acquisition device 4 includes a first image acquisition device 351 and a second image acquisition device 352 disposed on the pick-and-place assembly 3. The first image acquisition device 351 is configured to acquire image information in the first direction when the telescopic fork 32 extends in the first direction, and the second image acquisition device 352 is configured to acquire image information in the second direction when the telescopic fork 32 extends in the second direction. The first image acquisition device 351 and the second image acquisition device 352 may be sensors with image acquisition functions such as cameras, webcams, video cameras, scanners, and laser sensors. The image information may be information such as the position, identification, or size of the container, and may further include a control unit. The control unit controls the handling robot based on the image information sent by the first image acquisition device 351 and/or the second image acquisition device 352 to adjust the position of the pick-and-place assembly 3 relative to the container. The process of the control unit controlling the handling robot based on the image information is a prior art and will not be described in detail herein.

In some other examples of the present disclosure, the image acquisition device 4 is configured to rotate to face the first direction to collect information about the container in the first direction when the pick-and-place component 3 picks and places the container in the first direction, and to rotate to face the second direction to collect information about the container in the second direction when the pick-and-place component 3 picks and places the container in the second direction. For example, referring to the viewing direction of FIG. 5 , when the pick-and-place component 3 picks and places the container on the first carrier 41 in the first direction, the image acquisition device 4 rotates to face the first direction to collect information about the size, position, etc. of the container on the first carrier 41 in the first direction; when the pick-and-place component 3 picks and places the container in the second direction, the image acquisition device 4 rotates to face the first direction to collect information about the size, position, etc. of the container on the first carrier 41 in the first direction; When accessing the container on the second carrier 42 , the image acquisition device 4 rotates to face the second direction to obtain information such as the size and position of the container on the second carrier 42 .

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, after the control unit receives the container information collected by the image acquisition device 4, it will control the pick-up and placement components of the handling robot to make corresponding adjustments based on the container information, so as to more accurately pick up and place the container. In the above process, the image acquisition device 4 can independently perform steering work, that is, from facing the first direction to facing the second direction, or from facing the second direction to facing the first direction. The steering process of the image acquisition device 4 of the present disclosure is more convenient and quick; in addition, the present disclosure sets a separate image acquisition device 4 to complete the collection of containers in two directions by relying on its steering function, reducing the number of image acquisition devices set up and saving costs.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, before the pick-and-place assembly 3 picks up and places a container in a first direction, if the image acquisition device 4 is facing the first direction, the image acquisition device 4 does not need to turn, and can directly acquire information such as the size and position of the container. For example, referring to the viewing direction of FIG. 5 , the image acquisition device 4 faces the container of the first carrier 41 in the first direction, and the image acquisition device 4 can directly acquire image information of the container. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, before the pick-and-place assembly 3 picks up and places a container in a second direction, if the image acquisition device 4 faces the first direction, the image acquisition device 4 needs to turn to face the second direction, and then acquire information about the container in the second direction.

For example, referring to the viewing direction of FIG. 5 , before the pick-and-place assembly 3 needs to pick up and place a container on the second carrier 42 in the second direction, the image acquisition device 4 can be turned from the first direction to face the container on the second carrier 42 in the second direction, so as to collect information of the container on the second carrier 42 in the second direction. Before the pick-and-place assembly 3 picks up and places a container in the first direction, if the image acquisition device 4 faces the second direction, the image acquisition device 4 can be turned to face the first direction.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, before the pick-and-place assembly 3 picks up and places a container in the first direction or the second direction, the pick-and-place assembly 3 needs to rise/fall along the gantry assembly 2 to a position corresponding to the container. During the rising/falling process of the pick-and-place assembly 3, the image acquisition device 4 can turn to face the first direction or the second direction to adjust its own orientation in advance, thereby shortening the time for the transport robot to pick up and place the container and improving the work efficiency of the transport robot.

In some embodiments of the present disclosure, before the transport robot needs to pick up and place containers in the first direction and/or the second direction, the transport robot needs to rely on the chassis assembly 1 to move to the corresponding position of the container. During the movement of the chassis assembly 1, the image acquisition device 4 can be turned to face the first direction or the second direction to complete the turning action in advance, thereby facilitating subsequent work, thereby shortening the working time occupied by the image acquisition device 4 for turning and improving the work efficiency of the transport robot.

The turning timing of the image acquisition device 4 disclosed in the present invention may include but is not limited to the turning timing in the above embodiments. The turning timing of the image acquisition device 4 may also be determined according to actual conditions, which will not be listed here one by one.

Referring to FIG. 6 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the image acquisition device 4 is rotatably connected to the base 31 and is configured to rotate to face the first direction or the second direction. When the transport robot is located in the lane between the carriers, the opening directions of the two opposite ends of the base 31 face the first direction and the second direction, and the image acquisition device 4 is rotatably connected to the base 31 and can be rotated relative to the base 31 so that it can rotate relative to the base 31 to face the first direction, or rotate to face the second direction. The image acquisition device 4 can be configured to rotate 360° relative to the base 31, or can be configured to rotate 180° relative to the base 31.

In a specific embodiment of the present disclosure, the image acquisition device 4 is configured to be able to rotate 180° relative to the base 31, that is, the angle of the image acquisition device 4 from facing the first direction to facing the second direction is 180°. For example, the angle of the image acquisition device 4 relative to the base 31 when facing the first direction is defined as 0°, and the angle of the image acquisition device 4 relative to the base 31 when facing the second direction is defined as 180°. In this way, when the image acquisition device 4 turns to the first direction or the second direction, it can be accurately aligned with the first direction or the second direction, which reduces the time for adjusting the angle, is conducive to the control of the rotation angle, and improves the working efficiency of the handling robot.

With reference to FIG6 and FIG22, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, a bracket 34 is provided on the base 31, and the image acquisition device 4 is rotatably connected to the bracket 34 and is located above the bearing position 311, so that when the telescopic fork 32 takes the container to the bearing position 311, interference between the container and the bracket 34 can be avoided. For example, the bracket 34 can be configured as a frame structure in the form of a door frame, which has two columns extending in the height direction along the base 31, the two columns are respectively located on both sides of the base 31, and the connection line between the two columns is perpendicular to the first direction or the second direction, and the bracket also has a crossbeam spanning both sides of the base 31 and connected to the tops of the two columns respectively, and the image acquisition device 4 is rotatably connected to the crossbeam and is located above the bearing position 311.

Since the telescopic fork 32 is directly opposite to the two ends of the container when the pick-and-place mechanism picks and places the container, the position of the pick-and-place mechanism needs to be adjusted correctly before picking and placing. In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the image acquisition device 4 can be set at a central position above the base 31, thereby improving the accuracy of the container information collection, reducing the calculation amount of the control unit, and thus improving the accuracy of the pick-and-place action of the pick-and-place mechanism.

With reference to FIG. 23 and FIG. 24 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the image acquisition device 4 is configured to be rotatably connected to the bracket 34 via the mounting seat 35. The mounting seat 35 can provide support for the installation of the image acquisition device 4. By rotating the mounting seat 35 relative to the bracket 34, the image acquisition device 4 can be oriented in the first direction or the second direction. A guide mechanism is provided at a position between the bracket 34 and the mounting seat 35 that deviates from the rotation axis of the mounting seat 35. The mounting seat 35 is configured to rotate relative to the bracket 34 to the first direction or the second direction along the extension direction of the guide mechanism. By using the guide mechanism that deviates from the axis of the rotating shaft, the stability of the mounting seat 35 during rotation can be ensured, thereby improving the motion accuracy of the image acquisition device 4.

For example, when the current image acquisition device 4 faces the first direction, the mounting seat 35 rotates relative to the bracket 34, and the position of the offset axis of the rotating shaft rotates along the extension direction of the guide mechanism to make it face the second direction, and the image acquisition device 4 rotates synchronously to face the second direction. The guide mechanism can be configured to have a starting point and an end point. When the mounting seat 35 is located at the starting point of the guide mechanism, the image acquisition device 4 faces the first direction, and when the mounting seat 35 is located at the end point of the guide mechanism, the image acquisition device 4 faces the second direction. The guide mechanism can assist the mounting seat 35 to accurately rotate until the image acquisition device 4 faces the first direction or the second direction, thereby reducing the operation of adjusting the image acquisition device 4 to face the first direction or the second direction, and improving the working efficiency of the handling robot.

Referring to FIGS. 23 to 26 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the guide mechanism includes a guide groove 3501 provided on the mounting seat 35, and a guide column 3301 fixed on the bracket 34 and cooperating with the guide groove 3501. The guide groove 3501 can be configured to be opened at the bottom of the mounting seat 35, and configured to be an arc-shaped structure deviating from the position of the rotation axis of the mounting seat 35. The guide column 3301 can be configured to extend from the bracket 34 toward the guide groove 3501 of the mounting seat 35 and extend into the guide groove 3501. The guide groove 3501 can be a 180° arc groove opened around the rotation axis of the mounting seat 35, and when the image acquisition device 4 faces the first direction or the second direction, the line between the two end points in the extension direction of the arc groove is perpendicular to the first direction or the second direction.

When the image acquisition device 4 faces the first direction, the starting point of the guide groove 3501 of the mounting seat 35 is in close contact with the guide column 3301; when the image acquisition device 4 faces the second direction, the end point of the guide groove 3501 of the mounting seat 35 is in close contact with the guide column 3301. When the image acquisition device 4 needs to rotate from the first direction to the second direction, the mounting seat 35 rotates around the guide column 3301 through the guide groove 3501, and the guide groove 3501 moves from the position where the starting point contacts the guide column 3301 to the position where the end point contacts the guide column 3301 and stops moving, and the image acquisition device 4 rotates from facing the first direction to facing the second direction and stops rotating. Similarly, when the image acquisition device 4 needs to rotate from facing the second direction to facing the first direction, the mounting seat 35 rotates around the guide column 3301 through the guide groove 3501, and the guide groove 3501 moves from the position where the end point contacts the guide column 3301 to the position where the starting point contacts the guide column 3301 and stops moving, and the image acquisition device 4 rotates from facing the first direction to facing the second direction and stops rotating. The image acquisition device 4 faces the first direction and the second direction, and then rotates from the second direction to the second direction and stops rotating. That is, the guide mechanism limits the stop points of the mounting base 35 rotating in the first direction and the second direction. When the image acquisition device 4 is at the two stop points, it can face the first direction and the second direction respectively, thereby simplifying the adjustment process of the rotation angle of the image acquisition device 4 and improving the working efficiency of the handling robot.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the guide mechanism may include a guide column arranged on the mounting seat 35, and a guide groove fixed on the bracket 34 and cooperating with the guide column. The guide column and the guide groove in this embodiment are exactly the same in shape and setting position as the guide column and the guide groove in the previous embodiment. The difference is that in this embodiment, the guide groove is fixed on the bracket 34, and the guide column moves along the extension direction of the guide groove. Those skilled in the art can refer to the description in the previous embodiment to deduce the movement process of the guide column along the guide groove, as well as the corresponding change process of the image acquisition device 4 when the guide column moves along the guide groove, which will not be described in detail here.

With reference to FIGS. 23-26, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the bracket has a connecting frame extending in the height direction, the mounting seat 35 is configured to be rotatably connected at the bottom with the top of the connecting frame, and the mounting seat 35 is configured to rotate relative to the bracket 34 in the horizontal direction. With reference to FIGS. 27 and 28, in another embodiment of the present disclosure, the bracket has a connecting frame extending in the height direction, the side wall of the mounting seat 35 is rotatably connected with the side of the connecting frame, so that the mounting seat 35 is configured to rotate relative to the bracket 34 in the vertical plane. In the above two methods, the mounting seat 35 and the bracket 34 rotate relative to each other through the guide mechanism described above, which will not be described in detail here.

6 and 22, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the bracket 34 is guided and matched with the base 31, and is configured to move to a predetermined position relative to the base 31 when the telescopic fork 32 takes and places the container in the first direction or the second direction. For example, the bracket 34 can be connected to the base 31 through a motion component, so that the bracket 34 can move relative to the extension direction of the base 31, that is, move to the predetermined position in the first direction or the second direction.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the motion assembly includes a driving structure 3302, a lead screw 3303 arranged along the extension direction of the base 31 and connected to the output end of the driving structure 3302, and a nut 3304 guided by the lead screw 3303. The bottom of the bracket 34 is connected to the nut 3304. The driving structure 3302 drives the nut 3304 and the bracket 34 to move along the extension direction of the base 31 through the lead screw 3303. The predetermined position can be a position when the image acquisition device 4 can clearly acquire information of the container. Those skilled in the art know that the premise of acquiring an image is that the acquisition distance meets the specifications and settings of the image acquisition device. Therefore, when the position of the container is different, the position of the bracket 34 on the base 31 can be adjusted to adjust the distance between the image acquisition device 4 and the container, so that the image acquisition device 4 can accurately acquire information of the container. The predetermined position can be set according to actual conditions.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, the bracket 34 is configured such that when the telescopic fork 32 picks up and places a container in a first direction, the bracket 34 moves relative to the base 31 to a predetermined position in the first direction, thereby causing the image acquisition device 4 to move in the first direction to a collection position corresponding to the container. When the telescopic fork 32 picks up and places a container in a second direction, the bracket 34 moves relative to the base to a predetermined position in the second direction, thereby causing the image acquisition device 4 to move in the second direction to a collection position corresponding to the container.

For example, under normal circumstances, the bracket 34 can be located at the central position of the extension direction of the base 31. Before the telescopic fork 32 takes or places the container in the first direction, the bracket 34 moves along the base 31 in the first direction to drive the image acquisition device 4 to move to the predetermined position A, so that the image acquisition device 4 has a corresponding acquisition distance relative to the position of the container; before the telescopic fork 32 takes or places the container in the second direction, the bracket 34 moves along the base 31 in the second direction to drive the image acquisition device 4 to move to the predetermined position B, so that the image acquisition device 4 has a corresponding acquisition distance relative to the position of the container. Of course, the starting movement position of the bracket 34 can also be other positions except the central position, which are not listed here one by one. When the container positions are different, the predetermined position A for collecting the first direction and the predetermined position B for collecting the second direction can be the same position or different positions.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, when the telescopic fork 32 is configured to pick up and place a container at a first depth in the first direction, the bracket 34 is configured to move to a first position of the base 31. In the first position, the container at the first depth in the first direction is located within the image acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, thereby ensuring the image acquisition accuracy of the container at the first depth in the first direction. When the telescopic fork 32 is configured to pick up and place a container at a second depth in the first direction, the bracket 34 is configured to move to a second position of the base 31. In the second position, the container at the second depth in the first direction is located within the image acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, thereby ensuring the image acquisition accuracy of the container at the second depth in the first direction. When the telescopic fork 32 is configured to pick up and place a container at a first depth in the second direction, the bracket 34 is configured to move to a third position of the base 31. In the third position, the container at the first depth in the second direction is located within the image acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, thereby ensuring the image acquisition accuracy of the container at the first depth in the second direction. When the telescopic fork 32 is configured to pick up and place the container at the second deep position in the second direction, the bracket 34 is configured to move to the fourth position of the base 31. At the fourth position, the container at the second deep position in the second direction is located within the image acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, thereby ensuring the image acquisition accuracy of the container at the second deep position in the second direction.

In the above-mentioned embodiment, at least two of the first position, the second position, the third position, and the fourth position are the same. For example, following the previous embodiment, when the telescopic fork 32 takes and places a container at the first depth in the first direction or the second depth in the second direction, the first position and the third position can be the same, both located in the middle of the base 31, or a position adjacent to the middle of the base 31. Of course, the first position, the second position, the third position, and the fourth position can also be the same position, as long as the image acquisition device 4 can ensure the image acquisition accuracy of containers at different depths. In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the first position, the second position, the third position, and the fourth position can also be different.

In a specific application scenario of the present disclosure, referring to FIGS. 4-6 and 22 , the first carrier 41 and the second carrier 42 may be configured to have at least two storage positions with a depth, and the storage positions are used to store containers. When the telescopic fork 32 is configured to take and place the container at the first depth in the first direction or the second direction, the bracket 34 is configured to move to the middle position of the base 31. For example, the bracket 34 may be configured such that when it is located at the center position, the distance between it and the container at the first depth in the first direction and the distance between it and the container at the second depth in the second direction are both within the acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4. For example, when the image acquisition device is located at the middle position, when it faces the first direction, the distance between it and the container at the first depth in the direction is within the acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, so that it can capture images of the container at the first depth in the first direction. Based on the same principle, when it faces the second direction, the distance between it and the container at the first depth in the direction is within the acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, so that it can capture images of the container at the first depth in the second direction.

In another embodiment of the present disclosure, in addition to collecting images of containers at the first depth in the first direction and the first depth in the second direction at the middle position, the image acquisition device 4 can also move with the bracket 34 to other positions to collect image information of containers at other depths in the two directions. This is because the distance between the container at the second depth and the image acquisition device 4 is greater than the distance between the container at the first depth and the image acquisition device 4. Therefore, before the pick-and-place mechanism picks and places the container at the second depth, the position of the image acquisition device 4 can be adjusted so that the distance between the container at the second depth and the image acquisition device 4 is within the acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, thereby ensuring the acquisition accuracy of the image acquisition device 4.

For example, in one embodiment of the present disclosure, when it is necessary to pick up and place a container at the second deepest position in the first direction, the image acquisition device 4 can be moved from the central position of the base 31 to a predetermined position in the first direction, thereby shortening the distance between the image acquisition device 4 and the container. The predetermined position can be the end position of the base 31 in the first direction or any other position, as long as the distance between the container at the second deepest position and the image acquisition device 4 after the movement is within The image acquisition device 4 can be within the acquisition range, thereby ensuring the accuracy of the image acquisition device 4 in acquiring image information of the target container and avoiding the influence of large errors on the control of the pick-and-place mechanism.

Based on the same principle, when it is necessary to pick up and place the container at the second deep position in the second direction, the image acquisition device 4 can be moved from the central position of the base 31 to the predetermined position in the second direction. The predetermined position can be the end position of the base 31 in the second direction or any other position, as long as the distance between the container at the second deep position and the image acquisition device 4 after the movement is within the acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, thereby ensuring the accuracy of the image acquisition device 4 in acquiring image information of the target container and avoiding affecting the control of the pick-up and place mechanism due to large errors.

Referring to FIG. 22 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, the bracket 34 is configured to move between a first position in the first direction and a second position in the second direction, the first position and the second position are respectively located at positions of the opening ends opposite to each other of the base 31, and the first position and the second position are two stop points for the bracket 34 to move along the extension direction of the base 31. For example, as shown in FIG. 4 , a stopper 335 is respectively provided at corresponding positions at both ends of the lead screw 3303, and the bracket 34 and the nut 3304 can only move between the two stoppers 335. When the bracket 34 is located at the first position, the continued movement in the first direction will be blocked by the stopper 335 located at one end of the first direction, and when the bracket 34 is located at the second position, the continued movement in the second direction will be blocked by the stopper located at one end of the second direction, which plays a role in limiting the movement of the bracket 34 and preventing the bracket 34 from moving too long in the first direction or the second direction and falling off the base 31.

When the bracket 34 is located at the first position, the telescopic fork 32 is configured to pick up and place the container at the second deep position in the first direction. That is, when the telescopic fork 32 needs to pick up and place the container at the second deep position in the first direction, the bracket 34 can be moved to the first position. This is because the first position is the farthest position that the bracket 34 can move in the first direction. At this time, the distance between the image acquisition device 4 on the bracket 34 and the container at the second deep position in the first direction is within the acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, and the information of the container at the second deep position in the first direction can be accurately acquired. The length of the base 31 is basically slightly larger than the size of the container in this direction, so when the bracket 34 is located in the first position, the telescopic fork 32 can be configured to pick up and place the container at the first deep position in the second direction. That is, when the telescopic fork 32 needs to pick up and place the container at the first deep position in the second direction, the bracket 34 can be moved to the first position. This is because the first position is the farthest position that the bracket 34 can move in the first direction. At this time, the distance between the image acquisition device 4 on the bracket 34 and the container at the first deep position in the second direction is within the acquisition range of the image acquisition device 4, and the information of the container at the first deep position in the second direction can be accurately acquired.

When the bracket 34 is located at the second position, the telescopic fork 32 is configured to pick up and place the container at the first depth in the first direction. That is, when the telescopic fork 32 needs to pick up and place the container at the first depth in the second direction, the bracket 34 can be moved to the second position. This is because the second position is the farthest position that the bracket 34 can move in the second direction. When the bracket 34 is located at the second position, the distance between the image acquisition device 4 and the container at the first depth in the first direction meets the requirements, and the information of the container at the first depth in the first direction can be accurately acquired.

When the bracket 34 is located at the second position, the telescopic fork 32 is configured to pick up and place the container at the second deep position in the second direction. That is, when the telescopic fork 32 needs to pick up and place the container at the second deep position in the second direction, the bracket 34 can be moved to the second position. This is because the second position is the farthest position that the bracket 34 can move in the second direction. When the bracket 34 is located at the second position, the distance between the image acquisition device 4 and the container at the second deep position in the second direction meets the requirements, and the information of the container at the second deep position in the second direction can be accurately acquired.

In the above embodiment, the movement of the image acquisition device of the present invention is described in detail by taking two deep positions as an example. Based on the above disclosure, those skilled in the art can easily think that it can be applied to the movement of more deep positions, thereby improving the accuracy of image information acquisition of containers at each deep position. In the handling robot of the present invention, by adjusting the position of the image acquisition device relative to the containers, the image acquisition device of the present invention can accurately locate containers at multiple deep positions, thereby ensuring the movement accuracy of the pick-and-place mechanism during pick-and-place. In addition, by adjusting the direction of the image acquisition device, image information acquisition of containers in two directions can be achieved through one image acquisition device.

Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 27 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, a storage system is provided, which includes a control device, a storage area, and the handling robot described above. It should be noted that the control device may include but is not limited to a terminal device such as a mobile phone or a control server. The following is specifically described by taking the control server as an example.

The storage area includes an aisle surrounded by adjacent first carriers 41 and second carriers 42 . The transport robot is configured to walk in the aisle based on the pick-and-place instructions issued by the control server and transfer the containers on the first carrier 41 and the second carrier 42 .

For example, when the control server issues a storage instruction according to an order, the handling robot enters the lane through the chassis assembly 1 and moves to the position corresponding to the container based on the outbound instruction issued by the control server. The pick-and-place assembly 3 moves to the target height relative to the gantry assembly 2 according to the position information of the target container contained in the outbound instruction. In this process, the image acquisition device 4 rotates to the first carrier 41 or the second carrier 42 facing the container based on the direction information contained in the outbound instruction. After the pick-and-place assembly 3 reaches the target height, the image acquisition device 4 can collect image information of the container located on the first carrier 41 or the second carrier 42. The control unit calculates the deviation between the pick-and-place mechanism and the container based on the collected image information, and controls the handling robot or the pick-and-place mechanism to move to a suitable position to eliminate the deviation between it and the container. Finally, the pick-and-place mechanism extends in the first direction or the second direction to take the container located on the first carrier 41 or the second carrier 42 to the carrying position 311.

The process of placing the container on the first carrier 41 or the second carrier 42 by the transfer robot of the present disclosure is similar to the process described in the above embodiment, and the present disclosure will not repeat it here. The transfer robot in this embodiment is exactly the same as the transfer robot in the above text, and its operation under the control of the control server has been described in detail above, and will not be repeated here.

Referring to FIG. 28 , in one embodiment of the present disclosure, a control method for a transport robot is provided. The transport robot is the transport robot described above. The control method includes:

The handling robot moves to a predetermined position based on the pick-and-place instruction issued by the control server. The predetermined position may be the storage position of the container recorded in the server, which may include the carrier position for storing the container, and the horizontal position, height position and depth information of the container on the carrier.

The pick-and-place assembly moves to a target height relative to the gantry assembly based on the pick-and-place instruction. When the handling robot moves to a predetermined position based on the pick-and-place instruction issued by the control server, the pick-and-place assembly rises or descends to a predetermined position along the gantry assembly based on the target height of the target container contained in the pick-and-place instruction.

The pick-and-place mechanism in the pick-and-place assembly moves in the first direction or the second direction based on the pick-and-place instruction to pick and place the container located in the first direction or the second direction. Before the pick-and-place mechanism moves in the first direction or the second direction, the image acquisition device faces the first direction or the second direction based on the pick-and-place instruction. That is, if the container is on the first carrier in the first direction, the image acquisition device needs to be controlled to face the first direction before the pick-and-place mechanism extends in the first direction. For example, if the current image acquisition device faces the second direction, it is necessary to control the image acquisition device to rotate to face the first direction so as to collect image information of the target position.

The control method for the transport robot in this embodiment and the specific movement process of the transport robot in the actual application scenario have been described in detail above and will not be repeated here.

In one embodiment of the present disclosure, a control method of a handling robot includes:

The image acquisition device is configured to rotate to the direction of the target position during or before the pick-and-place assembly moves relative to the gantry assembly. For example, the handling robot moves to the corresponding position of the container through the chassis assembly according to the pick-and-place instruction. Before the pick-and-place assembly moves relative to the gantry assembly, the image acquisition device can be rotated in advance to the direction facing the target position, so as to facilitate the pick-and-place assembly to move to the height corresponding to the target position and directly start to collect the image of the target position. Alternatively, the handling robot moves to the corresponding position of the container through the chassis assembly according to the pick-and-place instruction. During the movement of the pick-and-place assembly relative to the gantry assembly, the image acquisition device can be rotated to the direction facing the target position at the same time. This omits the time occupied by waiting for the image acquisition device to rotate, shortens the time for picking and placing the container, and improves the work efficiency of the handling robot.

The embodiments of the present disclosure have been described above, and the above description is exemplary, not exhaustive, and is not limited to the disclosed embodiments. Many modifications and changes will be apparent to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The choice of terms used herein is intended to best explain the principles of the embodiments, practical applications, or technical improvements in the marketplace, or to enable other persons of ordinary skill in the art to understand the embodiments disclosed herein. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims.

Claims (44)

1. A handling robot, comprising:

   Chassis assembly (1);

   A door frame assembly (2), wherein the door frame assembly (2) is arranged on the chassis assembly (1);

   A pick-and-place assembly (3), the pick-and-place assembly (3) being arranged on one side of the door frame assembly (2) and being configured to move in a height direction along the door frame assembly (2); the pick-and-place assembly (3) comprising a pick-and-place mechanism, the pick-and-place mechanism being configured to extend in a first direction to complete the picking and placing of containers in the first direction; and/or being configured to extend in a second direction opposite to the first direction to complete the picking and placing of containers in the second direction;

   An image acquisition device (4), wherein the image acquisition device (4) is configured to acquire information about the containers in the first direction when the pick-and-place component (3) picks and places the containers in the first direction; and to acquire information about the containers in the second direction when the pick-and-place component (3) picks and places the containers in the second direction.
2. The transport robot according to claim 1, wherein the extending direction of the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to be perpendicular to the walking direction of the transport robot.
3. According to the handling robot according to claim 1, the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to take out a container on a storage position (43) on the carrier (40) and place it on another storage position (43) of the carrier (40); or is configured to transfer a container located at a storage position (43) or a cache position (44) in the carrier (40).
4. The handling robot according to claim 1, wherein the pick-and-place mechanism comprises:

   A base (31), wherein a bearing position (311) is provided on the base (31);

   At least one telescopic fork (32) is guided and matched with the base (31) and is configured to extend from the base (31) in a first direction to complete the taking and placing of containers in the first direction; and is configured to extend from the base (31) in a second direction to complete the taking and placing of containers in the second direction.
5. According to the handling robot according to claim 4, the carrying position (311) passes through both ends of the base (31) so that two openings are formed at both ends of the base (31), and the telescopic fork (32) is configured to extend from one end opening of the base (31) along the first direction to complete the taking and placing of containers in the first direction; and is configured to extend from the other end opening of the base (31) along the second direction to complete the taking and placing of containers in the second direction.
6. The handling robot according to claim 5, wherein the carrier (40) comprises a first carrier (41) located in a first direction of the handling robot, and a second carrier (42) located in a second direction of the handling robot;

   The pick-and-place mechanism is configured to extend in a first direction to take out a container on the first carrier (41), and the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to drive the container to extend directly in a second direction to place the container taken out from the first carrier (41) on the second carrier (42);

   Alternatively, the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to extend in the second direction to take out the container on the second carrier (42), and the pick-and-place mechanism is configured to drive the container to extend directly in the first direction to place the container taken out from the second carrier (42) on the first carrier (41).
7. According to the handling robot according to claim 4, the pick-and-place component (3) includes a lifting platform (30), the base (31) is rotatably connected to the lifting platform (30), and is configured to extend along the first direction when rotating to the first position to complete the picking and placing of containers in the first direction, and to extend along the second direction when rotating to the second position to complete the picking and placing of containers in the second direction.
8. According to the handling robot according to claim 7, a rotating mechanism (302) is provided on the supporting surface (301) of the lifting platform (30), and the base (31) is rotatably arranged on the supporting surface (301) by the rotating mechanism (302).
9. The handling robot according to claim 8, wherein the rotating mechanism (302) includes a slewing support (3021), the slewing support (3021) has an inner ring (30211) fixed to the supporting surface (301), and an outer ring (30212) rotatable around the inner ring (30211), and the base (31) is fixed on the outer ring (30212).
10. The handling robot according to claim 9, wherein the rotating mechanism (302) further comprises a first transmission unit (3022) and a first driving unit (3023), one end of the first transmission unit (3022) is fixed to at least a portion of the outer wall of the outer ring (30212), and the other end of the first transmission unit (3022) is arranged on the first driving unit (3023);

    The first driving unit (3023) is configured to drive the first transmission unit (3022) to move, so as to drive the outer ring (30212) to rotate along the inner ring (30211), and at least part of the first transmission unit (3022) and the first driving unit (3023) are housed in the base (31).
11. The handling robot according to claim 9, wherein a mounting groove (3011) is formed on the supporting surface (301), and at least a portion of the slewing support (3021) is embedded in the mounting groove (3011).
12. A transport robot according to any one of claims 8 to 11, wherein two fixed seats (3012) are arranged relatively along the width direction of the base (31), and the two fixed seats (3012) are located on the side of the base (31) away from the rotating mechanism (302), and at least one of the two fixed seats (3012) is configured to be slidable along the width direction so that the two fixed seats (3012) are closer to or farther away from each other, wherein the width direction is configured to be perpendicular to the first direction when the base (31) rotates to the first position, and to be perpendicular to the second direction when the base (31) rotates to the second position.
13. The handling robot according to claim 4, wherein the image acquisition device (4) comprises a first image acquisition device (351) and a second image acquisition device (352), the first image acquisition device (351) and the second image acquisition device (352) being arranged on the pick-and-place assembly (3); the first image acquisition device (351) being configured to acquire image information in the first direction when the telescopic fork (32) is extended in the first direction; and the second image acquisition device (352) being configured to acquire image information in the second direction when the telescopic fork (32) is extended in the second direction.
14. The handling robot according to claim 4, wherein the image acquisition device (4) is configured to rotate to face the first direction when the pick-and-place component (3) picks and places the container in the first direction to collect information about the container in the first direction; and to rotate to face the second direction when the pick-and-place component (3) picks and places the container in the second direction to collect information about the container in the second direction.
15. The handling robot according to claim 14, wherein the image acquisition device (4) is rotatably connected to the base (31) and is configured to rotate to face the first direction or the second direction.
16. The handling robot according to claim 14, wherein a bracket (34) is provided on the base (31), and the image acquisition device (4) is rotatably connected to the bracket (34) and is located above the carrying position (311).
17. According to the handling robot according to claim 16, the image acquisition device (4) is configured to be rotatably connected to the bracket (34) through a mounting seat (35); a guide mechanism is provided between the bracket (34) and the mounting seat (35) at a position deviating from the rotation axis of the mounting seat (35), and the mounting seat (35) is configured to rotate relative to the bracket (34) to the first direction or the second direction along the extension direction of the guide mechanism.
18. According to the handling robot according to claim 17, the guide mechanism includes a guide groove (3501) arranged on the mounting seat (35), and a guide column (3301) fixed on the bracket (34) and cooperating with the guide groove (3501); or, the guide mechanism includes a guide column arranged on the mounting seat (35), and a guide groove fixed on the bracket (34) and cooperating with the guide column (3301).
19. The handling robot according to claim 16, wherein the bracket (34) is guided and cooperates with the base (31), and is configured to move to a predetermined position relative to the base (31) when the telescopic fork (32) picks and places a container in the first direction or the second direction.
20. According to the handling robot according to claim 19, the bracket (34) is configured to move to a predetermined position in the first direction relative to the base (31) when the telescopic fork (32) picks up and places the container in the first direction; and to move to a predetermined position in the second direction relative to the base (31) when the telescopic fork (32) picks up and places the container in the second direction.
21. The handling robot according to claim 20, wherein when the telescopic fork (32) picks and places a container at a first depth position in the first direction, the bracket (34) is configured to move to a first position of the base (31);

    When the telescopic fork (32) takes or places a container at a second depth in the first direction, the bracket (34) is configured to move to a second position of the base (31);

    When the telescopic fork (32) takes or places a container at a first depth position in the second direction, the bracket (34) is configured to move to a third position of the base (31);

    When the telescopic fork (32) takes or places a container at the second deep position in the second direction, the bracket (34) is configured to move to a fourth position of the base (31).
22. The handling robot according to claim 19, wherein the bracket (34) is configured to move between a first position located in the first direction and a second position in the second direction, the first position and the second position being located at opposite opening end positions of the base (31) respectively;

    When the support (34) is located at the first position, the telescopic fork (32) is configured to pick up and place a container at the second deep position in the first direction or at the first deep position in the second direction;

    When the support (34) is located at the second position, the telescopic fork (32) is configured to pick up and place a container at a first deep position in the first direction or at a second deep position in the second direction.
23. The handling robot according to claim 4, wherein the telescopic fork (32) is provided with at least a first finger (321) and a second finger (322); the first finger (321) and the second finger (322) are distributed in the extension direction of the telescopic fork (32);

    The first finger (321) is configured to cooperate with the container to drive the container to move from the first direction to the second direction; the second finger (322) is configured to cooperate with the container to drive the container to move from the second direction to the first direction.
24. The handling robot according to claim 23, wherein at least a third finger (323) is provided on the telescopic fork (32) between the first finger (321) and the second finger (322);

    The third finger (323) is configured to drive the container to move from the first direction to the second direction during the movement of the telescopic fork (32); the first finger (321) cooperates with the second finger (322) and is configured to pick up and place containers of a first size; the second finger (322) and the third finger (323) cooperate with each other and are configured to pick up and place containers of a second size;

    And/or, the third finger (323) is configured to drive the container to move from the second direction to the first direction during the movement of the telescopic fork (32); the first finger (321) and the second finger (322) cooperate together and are configured to pick up and place containers of a first size; the first finger (321) and the third finger (323) cooperate together and are configured to pick up and place containers of a second size.
25. The handling robot according to claim 23, wherein at least a third finger (323) and a fourth finger (324) are provided on the telescopic fork (32) between the first finger (321) and the second finger (322); the third finger (323) is configured to cooperate with the container to drive the container to move from the first direction to the second direction; the fourth finger (324) is configured to cooperate with the container to drive the container to move from the second direction to the first direction;

    The first finger (321) and the second finger (322) cooperate together and are configured to pick up and place containers of a first size; the first finger (321) and the fourth finger (324) cooperate together and are configured to pick up and place containers of a second size; the second finger (322) and the third finger (323) cooperate together and are configured to pick up and place containers of a third size.
26. The handling robot according to claim 1, wherein the gantry assembly (2) comprises:

    A first door frame (21), wherein the first door frame (21) is arranged on the chassis assembly (1);

    A second gantry (22), wherein the second gantry (22) is arranged on the first gantry (21) and is configured to move in a height direction along the first gantry (21); the pick-and-place assembly (3) is arranged on one side of the second gantry (22) and is configured to move in a height direction along the second gantry (22).
27. The handling robot according to claim 26, wherein the first gantry (21) comprises a first column (211) and a second column (212) which are spaced apart and arranged in parallel; a first crossbeam (213) is provided between the first column (211) and the second column (212), one end of the first crossbeam (213) is connected to the first column (211), and the other end of the first crossbeam (213) is connected to the second column (212);

    and / or,

    The second door frame (22) comprises a third column (221) and a fourth column (222) which are arranged in parallel and at intervals; a second crossbeam (223) is arranged between the third column (221) and the fourth column (222), one end of the second crossbeam (223) is connected to the third column (221), and the other end of the second crossbeam (223) is connected to the fourth column (222).
28. According to the handling robot according to claim 26, a tuned mass damper (5) is arranged on the top of the second gantry (22); the tuned mass damper (5) is configured to move in the first direction or the second direction relative to the second gantry (22) when the second gantry (22) shakes.
29. The handling robot according to claim 28, wherein the tuned mass damper (5) comprises a first damper (51) and a second damper (52) fixed to the top of the second gantry (22), and a mass block (53) is arranged between the first damper (51) and the second damper (52); the mass block (53) is configured to push the first damper (51) to move in the first direction after receiving a force, or push the second damper (52) to move in the second direction. Two-way movement.
30. According to the handling robot according to claim 29, the first damper (51) and the second damper (52) each include a damper body and a movable rod; the mass block (53) is respectively connected to the movable rods of the first damper (51) and the second damper (52); and is configured to drive the movable rods of the first damper (51) and the second damper (52) to move synchronously.
31. The handling robot according to claim 30, wherein the tuned mass damper (5) further comprises a first elastic device (541) and a second elastic device (542) located on opposite sides of the mass block (53); the first elastic device (541) and the second elastic device (542) are configured to reset the mass block (53).
32. According to the handling robot according to claim 26, support mechanisms (33) are respectively provided on opposite sides of the pick-and-place component (3), and the support mechanisms (33) are configured to extend to abut against or disengage from carriers located on opposite sides of the handling robot.
33. The handling robot according to claim 32, wherein the pick-and-place mechanism comprises a lifting platform (30), the lifting platform (30) having two first end surfaces (303) arranged opposite to each other, each of the first end surfaces (303) receiving the supporting mechanism (33), and the supporting mechanism (33) being extendable and retractable in a direction perpendicular to the first end surfaces (303);

    The support mechanism (33) is configured to extend out of the first end surface (303) when the pick-and-place component (3) starts to perform a pick-and-place action along the first direction or the second direction, with one end clamped on the carrier, and to retract into the first end surface (303) after the pick-and-place component (3) completes the pick-and-place action.
34. The handling robot according to claim 33, wherein the supporting mechanism (33) comprises a supporting rod (331), an elastic component (332) and a lever (333);

    The support rod (331) is telescopically arranged on the first end surface (303), the shifting rod (333) is rotatably connected to the first end of the support rod (331) away from the first end surface (303), the shifting rod (333) has a second end and a third end distributed on both sides of the rotation connection position, the second end is provided with a support portion (334), and the third end is connected to the support rod (331) through the elastic component (332);

    The third end of the shifting rod (333) is configured to rotate around the first end of the support rod (331) to an abutting position under the action of the elastic component (332) after the support rod (331) extends out of the first end surface (303), so that the support part (334) abuts against the corresponding carriers on both sides of the task lane.
35. According to the handling robot according to claim 26, the second gantry (22) is guided and cooperated with the first gantry (21); the second gantry (22) is configured to be controlled by the first lifting mechanism (6) to move relative to the first gantry (21); and the pick-and-place assembly (3) is configured to be controlled by the second lifting mechanism to move relative to the second gantry (22).
36. According to the handling robot according to claim 35, the first lifting mechanism (6) and the second lifting mechanism are configured to move synchronously to jointly drive the pick-and-place component (3) to move up and down; or, the first lifting mechanism (6) and the second lifting mechanism are configured to respectively drive the second gantry (22) and the pick-and-place component (3) to move independently to adjust the relative height of the pick-and-place component (3).
37. A handling robot, comprising:

    Chassis assembly (1);

    A door frame assembly (2), wherein the door frame assembly (2) is arranged on the chassis assembly (1);

    A pick-and-place assembly (3), the pick-and-place assembly (3) being arranged on one side of the door frame assembly (2) and being configured to move along the door frame assembly (2) in a height direction; the pick-and-place assembly (3) comprising a pick-and-place mechanism, the pick-and-place mechanism being configured to extend in a first direction to complete the picking and placing of containers in the first direction; and/or being configured to extend in a second direction opposite to the first direction to complete the picking and placing of containers in the second direction;

    A tuned mass damper (5) is provided on the top of the portal assembly (2); the tuned mass damper (5) is configured to move in the first direction or the second direction relative to the portal assembly (2) when the portal assembly (2) shakes.
38. The handling robot according to claim 37, wherein the gantry assembly (2) comprises:

    A first door frame (21), wherein the first door frame (21) is arranged on the chassis assembly (1);

    A second gantry (22), wherein the second gantry (22) is arranged on the first gantry (21) and is configured to move in a height direction along the first gantry (21); the pick-and-place assembly (3) is arranged on one side of the second gantry (22) and is configured to move in a height direction along the second gantry (22); and the tuned mass damper (5) is arranged on the top of the second gantry (22).
39. According to the handling robot according to claim 38, the tuned mass damper (5) includes a first damper (51) and a second damper (52) fixed on the top of the second gantry (22), and a mass block (53) is arranged between the first damper (51) and the second damper (52); the mass block (53) is configured to push the first damper (51) to move in the first direction after being subjected to force, or to push the second damper (52) to move in the second direction.
40. According to the handling robot according to claim 39, the first damper (51) and the second damper (52) each include a damper body and a movable rod; the mass block (53) is respectively connected to the movable rods of the first damper (51) and the second damper (52); and is configured to drive the movable rods of the first damper (51) and the second damper (52) to move synchronously.
41. The handling robot according to claim 40, wherein the tuned mass damper (5) further comprises a first elastic device (541) and a second elastic device (542) located on opposite sides of the mass block (53); the first elastic device (541) and the second elastic device (542) are configured to reset the mass block (53).
42. A storage system, comprising:

    A storage area, the storage area comprising a lane surrounded by adjacent first carriers (41) and second carriers (42);

    A handling robot according to any one of claims 1 to 41; the handling robot is configured to walk into the lane and transfer containers on the first carrier (41) and/or the second carrier (42).
43. A control method for a handling robot, applied to the handling robot according to any one of claims 1 to 41, comprising:

    The transport robot moves to a predetermined position based on a pick-and-place instruction issued by a control device;

    The pick-and-place assembly moves to a target height relative to the gantry assembly based on the pick-and-place instruction;

    The pick-and-place mechanism in the pick-and-place assembly moves in the first direction or the second direction based on the pick-and-place instruction to pick and place the container located in the first direction or the second direction;

    Wherein, before the pick-and-place mechanism moves in the first direction or the second direction, the image acquisition device acquires image information of the target position based on the pick-and-place instruction.
44. According to the control method of claim 43, the image acquisition device is configured to rotate to the direction of the target position during or before the pick-and-place assembly moves relative to the gantry assembly.