Robotic picking of croissants

Partner:

IMR - Irish Manufacturing Research

Multipix Imaging Ltd.

Challenge:

Bin picking of randomly oriented parts is of great interest to manufacturers as automation of these processes can save a lot of costs and space. The market offers a large number of bin picking solutions but many of them struggle with recognizing and identifying transparent, deformable, variable , and reflective objects that may even be piled, entangled, and jumbled up. 

The Irish Manufacturing Research built a bin picking cell for the picking of 3 different types of randomly oriented bread products. 

This project presented several technical challenges: 

• Identification and picking of objects of non-symmetrical and complex shapes
• Random orientation of the objects
• Picking of 3 different types of objects
• Achieving optimal process speed

Solution:

Bin Picking Studio + PhoXi 3D Scanner

The solution comprises a bin picking cell with Photoneo robotic intelligence software for bin picking - the Bin Picking Studio, a PhoXi 3D Scanner, and a UR 5 robot. The supplier of Photoneo technology in the UK is Multipix Imaging.

Before implementation, the following setup and configuration requirements needed to be met:   

Pre-planning:  

• Defining a suitable end-of-arm tooling design 
• Mounting an EOAT gripper and testing its operation on the robot
• Ensuring correct safety requirements (Collaborative mode or Industrial mode)
• Having CAD models (in the STL file format) of:
  • The product to be picked
  • The EOAT gripper
  • The cell layout 
• Having the required software files of the UR5 robot for integration with the Bin Picking Studio
• Having the required network cables for a physical connection between Bin Picking Studio, UR5, and PhoXi 3D Scanner
• Having an HDMI cable for connection between Bin Picking Studio hardware and the monitor screen

Setup:

After all the above requirements had been met, the next implementation steps were:

• Building the cell and integrating hardware
• Integrating Bin Picking studio hardware and software 
• Planning gripper grasping, including all potential grasping orientations and picking points 
• Calibration of robot vision and the end-of-arm tooling  
• Setting parameters 
• Optimization of layout, path planning, and robot parameters 
• Repeatability testing  

The system enables repeatable picking and emptying of random bins filled with 3 different bread products of complex shapes at a picking rate of 6ppm. If the products had a symmetrical shape, the processing speed would be even faster.  

The system enables an easy changeover between different products.

Discussion:

This project provides IMR partners and customers insights into the requirements and capabilities of a typical bin picking solution. IMR has invested in a commercial bin picking solution that Irish manufacturers and IMR partners can avail of. 

The system can be further optimized by:

• Setting the robot speed to maximum
• Restricting the robot’s joint motions for shorter trajectories
• Using smart memory and fast scanning option
• Optimizing localization parameters available in the system
• Using grasp invariance feature that allows multiple possible grasp points on the product

Would you like to know more about Photoneo technology and how it can benefit your applications?

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