| Abstract: |
Automation and robotics technologies have been used and adopted in logistic and supply chain industries for a period of time. Nowadays, warehouses are facing new customer paradigm “big demand of small quantity but vast variety of options in products”. This becomes ineffective to use robot to handle such products because of high programming overhead and lack of flexible manipulator technologies for robotic hands. To overcome aforesaid problem, an agility robotic system compiling with a hand (or end-effector) and eye (vision) co-ordination control is important to cope with different shape, size, colour, and stiffness objects in the same process. In this project, it aims to carry out an explorative research investigation in designing a multi-camera vision coordination control system and a flexible end-effector applying to commercially available robotic arms. The deliverables are able to manipulate objects in different shapes, colours, sizes and surface textures moving along conveyor belts. The developed technologies are foundations to a subsequent platform project titled “smart warehousing for the e-commerce industry” which needs to handle numerous unstandardized items. |
