A picking strategy for circular conveyor tracking

Abstract

The automatic part feeding is one of the most crucial tasks in modern assembly lines. Such a task consists in the separation of parts delivered in bulk and their presentation in a certain amount and orientation at the pick-up location. The traditional Vibratory Bowl Feeder (VBF) is no longer suitable for the modern plants which require high velocity and increasing flexibility. In this work the Ars FlexiBowl has been identified as one of the most innovative flexible feeders. In order to take full advantage from this feeder, a proper path planning algorithm is proposed and implemented. Its application to a robotic workcell, employed as an experimental setup, allows proving the usefulness of the proposed algorithm.