US 12,251,837 B2
Intelligent gripper with individual cup control
John Aaron Saunders, Waltham, MA (US); Christopher Everett Thorne, Waltham, MA (US); Matthew Paul Meduna, Waltham, MA (US); and Joshua Timothy Geating, Waltham, MA (US)
Assigned to Boston Dynamics, Inc., Waltham, MA (US)
Filed by Boston Dynamics, Inc., Waltham, MA (US)
Filed on Jul. 15, 2022, as Appl. No. 17/865,882.
Application 17/865,882 is a division of application No. 17/124,812, filed on Dec. 17, 2020, granted, now 11,407,103.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/949,424, filed on Dec. 17, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2022/0371189 A1, Nov. 24, 2022
Int. Cl. B25J 9/16 (2006.01); B25J 9/20 (2006.01); B25J 15/06 (2006.01)
CPC B25J 9/1612 (2013.01) [B25J 9/1694 (2013.01); B25J 9/20 (2013.01); B25J 15/0633 (2013.01)] 18 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method of selectively activating cup assemblies of a robotic gripper, the method comprising:
applying a vacuum pulse to each of the cup assemblies;
determining for each of the cup assemblies, while the vacuum pulse is applied to the cup assembly and using one or more pressure sensors, a pressure measurement for the cup assembly, wherein the pressure measurement comprises a rate of change of a pressure signal measured by the one or more pressure sensors and/or a peak pressure value of a pressure signal measured by the one or more pressure sensors; and
selectively activating one or more of the cup assemblies based, at least in part, on the determined pressure measurements for the cup assemblies by sequentially activating cup assemblies until a target pressure drop is detected.