System and method for sorting items

• US 8,383,977 B2
• Filed: 08/12/2011
• Issued: 02/26/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 10/26/2006
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Align Technology Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Align Technology Incorporated
• Inventors: Culp, James Clete, Sankaran, Stanley E.
• Primary Examiner(s): Rodriguez, Joseph C
• Assistant Examiner(s): KUMAR, KALYANAVENKA K
• Application Number:
  US13/209,222
• Publication Number:
  US 20110301745A1
• Time in Patent Office: 564 Days
• Field of Search: 209/509, 209/552, 209/900, 209553-599
• US Class Current: 209/577
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 3/02 Apparatus characterised by the means used for distribution
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/34 Sorting according to other particular properties material testing per se G01N; quality control G07C3/14
• CPC Class Codes: B07C 5/3412 according to a code applied to the object which indicates a property of the object, e.g. quality class, contents or incorrect indication sorting according to size measured by light-responsive means B07C5/10; sorting according to optical properties B07C5/342; for packages B65D79/02; for information carriers G06K7/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/41865 characterised by job scheduling, process planning, material flow
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: Y02P 90/02 Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]

Abstract

A system and associated method is provided for sorting parts, which includes a conveyor system for receiving and circulating a plurality of randomly presented parts, a sorting buffer for accumulating selected parts from the plurality of randomly presented parts in an assigned buffer location, and a sequencing system for sequencing the accumulated selected parts.

Claims

1. A sorting and sequencing system for mass-produced, customized objects, each of the objects being marked with a code that includes group data and sequence data indicating a sequence within a group, the system comprising:

a plurality of object carriers, each of the object carriers configured to hold one of the objects, and each of the object carriers including an RFID device operable to provide a unique identity for the object carrier;

a code-reading mechanism, operable to read the code on each of the objects and to associate each of the objects with one specific object carrier based on the group data and the sequence data;

a sorting mechanism responsive to the identity provided by the RFID device on each of the object carriers and operable to direct each of the object carriers holding its associated object into one of a plurality of buffer locations based on an association of the identity of each of the object carriers with the group data of the object carried thereon, thereby sorting the object carriers into a plurality of carrier groups by buffer location; and

a sequencing mechanism responsive to the identity provided by the RFID device on each of the object carriers and operable to place the object carriers in each of the carrier groups into a sequence based on an association of each of the object carriers in each of the carrier groups with the sequence data of the object carried thereon.

2. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 1, further comprising:

an indexing table operable to receive a plurality of randomly presented objects;

an orientation mechanism operable to orient each of the objects on the indexing table into a desired orientation; and

a placement mechanism is operable to receive the oriented objects from the indexing table and to place each of the oriented objects onto the one specific object carrier with which it has been associated.

3. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 2, wherein the orientation system comprises:

a vision station operable to determine whether the objects on the indexing table are in the desired orientation; and

an orienting device responsive to the vision station and operable to manipulate into the desired orientation objects that are determined not to be in the desired orientation.

4. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 3, wherein the indexing table includes a plurality of object holders, each of the object holders being configured to hold one of the objects, and wherein the orienting device is operable to (a) remove from an object holder of the indexing table an object that is determined not to be in the desired orientation, (b) manipulate the removed object into the desired orientation, and (c) replace the manipulated object into the same object holder from which it was removed.

5. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 1, further comprising a storing mechanism configured to receive an incomplete group of object carriers from the sorting mechanism, to store the incomplete group of carriers until a complete group is formed by further carriers received from the sorting mechanism, and to send the complete group to the sequencing mechanism.

6. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 5, wherein the storing mechanism comprises:

a loading mechanism operable to load the incomplete group of carriers received from the sorting mechanism onto a pallet; and

a routing mechanism operable to route the pallet to a storage location.

7. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 1, wherein the sorting mechanism comprises:

a sorting RFID reader responsive to the RFID device on each of the object carriers, the sorting RFID reader being operable to identify each of the object carriers and to assign each of the object carriers to one of the buffer locations based on the association of the identity of each of the object carriers with the group data of the object carried thereon; and

a carrier grouping mechanism operable to move each of the object carriers to its assigned buffer location.

8. The sorting and sequencing system claim 7, wherein the carrier grouping mechanism comprises:

a buffer location selection device operable to place each of the object carriers into one of the buffer locations selected in accordance with the assignment provided by the RFID reader, whereby each of the buffer locations contains a single carrier group.

9. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 1, wherein the sequencing mechanism comprises:

a sequencing RFID reader responsive to the RFID device on each of the object carriers, the sequencing RFID reader being operable to identify each of the object carriers in each of the carrier groups and to assign each of the object carriers in each of the carrier groups to a sequencing location based on the association of the identity of each of the object carriers in each of the carrier groups with the sequence data of the object carried thereon; and

a carrier sequencing device operable to move each of the object carriers to its assigned sequencing location until the object carriers in each of the carrier groups are positioned in a predetermined sequence in accordance with the sequencing data of the objects carried thereon.

10. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 1, further comprising:

a conveyor operable to receive a plurality of randomly-presented objects;

an indexing table having a plurality of object holders, each of the holders being configured to receive one of the objects;

a vision system operable to identify the objects by their location on the conveyor;

a robot picker operable to pick objects identified by the vision system from the conveyor and to place each them into one of the object holders; and

a placement mechanism operable to unload the objects from the object holders and to place each of the objects onto the one specific object carrier with which it has been associated.

11. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 10, wherein the vision system is further operable to identify the objects on the conveyor by their orientation, and wherein the robot picker is operable to pick only objects from the conveyor that are identified by the vision system as having an orientation that conforms to a desired orientation.

12. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 10, wherein the vision system is further operable to determine whether the objects on the conveyor have an orientation that conforms to a desired orientation, and wherein the robot picker is operable to manipulate into the desired orientation objects determined not to be in the desired orientation before placing the objects onto the object holders.

13. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 1, further comprising:

a conveyor operable to receive a plurality of randomly-presented objects;

a vision system operable to identify the objects by their location on the conveyor; and

a placement system operable to pick the objects identified by the vision system from the conveyor and to place each of the identified objects onto the one specific object carrier with which it has been associated.

14. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 13, wherein the vision system is further operable to identify the objects on the conveyor by their orientation, and wherein the placement system is operable to pick only objects from the conveyor that are identified by the vision system as having an orientation that conforms to a desired orientation.

15. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 13, wherein the vision system is further operable to determine whether the objects on the conveyor have an orientation that conforms to a desired orientation, and wherein the placement system is operable to manipulate into the desired orientation objects determined not to be in the desired orientation before placing the objects onto the object carriers.

16. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 2, further comprising:

a bulk supply feeder operable to dispense a batch of the objects;

a conveyor system operable to receive a metered quantity of the objects from the bulk supply feeder;

a sensor operable to sense spacing gaps between the objects on the conveyor system and to cause the bulk supply feeder to dispense additional objects onto the conveyor system in response to the spacing gaps exceeding a predetermined size; and

a pick-and-place mechanism operable to remove the objects from the conveyor system and to place them on the indexing table.

17. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 16, further comprising:

an object distribution device operable to distribute the objects into a single layer on the conveyor system.

18. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 16, wherein the pick-and-place mechanism is operable to take less than all of the objects from the conveyor system, and wherein the sorting and sequencing system further comprises:

a return conveyor operable to receive the objects from the conveyor system that are not removed by the pick-and-place mechanism; and

a return bucket assembly operable to receive the objects from the return conveyor and to transport the objects back to the conveyor system so as to be removable therefrom by the pick-and-place mechanism.

19. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 17, wherein the object distribution device comprises a plurality of rotating spokes that are engageable with the objects on the conveyor system.

20. The sorting and sequencing system of claim 17, wherein the object distribution device comprises a dispenser on the bulk supply feeder that is operable to dispense the objects on the conveyor system in a single layer.