US 12,304,751 B2
Bidirectional air conveyor device for material sorting and other applications
Cameron D. Douglas, Boulder, CO (US); Mark Baybutt, Superior, CO (US); and Matanya B. Horowitz, Golden, CO (US)
Assigned to AMP Robotics Corporation, Louisville, CO (US)
Filed by AMP Robotics Corporation, Louisville, CO (US)
Filed on Jul. 19, 2023, as Appl. No. 18/355,281.
Application 18/355,281 is a continuation of application No. 17/122,917, filed on Dec. 15, 2020, granted, now 11,753,257.
Claims priority of provisional application 62/948,401, filed on Dec. 16, 2019.
Prior Publication US 2023/0365352 A1, Nov. 16, 2023
Int. Cl. B07C 5/36 (2006.01); B07C 5/342 (2006.01); B65G 47/91 (2006.01)
CPC B65G 47/917 (2013.01) [B07C 5/342 (2013.01); B07C 5/368 (2013.01); B65G 2203/0233 (2013.01); B65G 2203/041 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A sorting system, comprising:
an object recognition device configured to capture information about one or more objects being conveyed on a conveyor mechanism;
a processor coupled to the object recognition device and configured to:
receive an input signal from the object recognition device;
use the input signal to determine attribute information associated with a target object; and
use the attribute information associated with the target object to send an airflow control signal to a pneumatic control system, wherein the airflow control signal is configured to cause the pneumatic control system to supply an airflow to a bidirectional air conveyor device, wherein the bidirectional air conveyor device is configured to cause the airflow to apply a suction force on the target object to extract the target object, wherein the airflow control signal includes a dynamically determined pressure parameter associated with the airflow, wherein the dynamically determined pressure parameter is determined based at least in part on the attribute information associated with the target object and a speed of the conveyor mechanism; and
suction ducting configured to, after the extracted target object passes through the bidirectional air conveyor device, route the target object into a first receptacle, wherein the suction ducting is reconfigurable to route a subsequently extracted object into a second receptacle.