US 11,753,256 B2
Conveyor system with multiple robot singulators
Madhav Devidas Patil, Louisville, KY (US); Michael Alan McCue, Louisville, KY (US); Brandon Wayne Coats, Jeffersonville, IN (US); Thomas Anthony Hillerich, Jr., Louisville, KY (US); and Varun Gandhi Mukesh Gandhi, Louisville, KY (US)
Assigned to Material Handling Systems, Inc., Mt. Washington, KY (US)
Filed by Material Handling Systems, Inc., Mt. Washington, KY (US)
Filed on May 20, 2021, as Appl. No. 17/325,719.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/042,145, filed on Jun. 22, 2020.
Prior Publication US 2021/0395023 A1, Dec. 23, 2021
Int. Cl. B65G 47/90 (2006.01); B65G 47/53 (2006.01); B25J 9/00 (2006.01); B25J 9/06 (2006.01); B25J 9/16 (2006.01)
CPC B65G 47/905 (2013.01) [B25J 9/0087 (2013.01); B25J 9/0093 (2013.01); B25J 9/1679 (2013.01); B25J 9/1697 (2013.01); B65G 47/53 (2013.01); B65G 47/907 (2013.01); B65G 2201/0285 (2013.01); B65G 2203/041 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A conveyor system, comprising:
a first robot singulator;
a second robot singulator;
a picking area from which parcels of a bulk flow of parcels can be engaged and transferred by the first robot singulator or the second robot singulator;
a place conveyor positioned downstream of the picking area and including a place area for receiving parcels transferred by the first robot singulator or the second robot singulator; and
a vision and control subsystem operably connected to the first robot singulator, the second robot singulator, the vision and control subsystem including
a first camera for acquiring one or more images of the picking area and any parcels located in the picking area, and
a controller including a processor for executing instructions stored in a memory component to (i) receive and process image data corresponding to an initial image of the picking area acquired by the first camera, and (ii) selectively communicate instructions to the first robot singulator and the second robot singulator which cause the first robot singulator and the second robot singulator to successively engage and transfer parcels of the bulk flow of parcels positioned in the picking area to the place area of the place conveyor;
wherein the picking area is defined by a pick conveyor with a conveying surface that can be indexed and advanced forward, and wherein the memory component further includes instructions, which, when executed by the processor, cause the controller to communicate instructions which cause the pick conveyor to index a predetermined distance to move a parcel of the bulk flow of parcels into the picking area of the pick conveyor immediately following removal of another parcel of the bulk flow of parcels from the picking area of the pick conveyor.