Automatic Sorting-and-Holding for Stacking Heterogeneous Packages in Logistic Hubs

Abstract

Abstract This paper presents a novel robotic approach for stacking heterogeneous objects, specifically packages in logistic hubs. By statistically identifying that the majority of packages are small in size, the proposed approach sorts them into small and large packages. Small packages are then kicked and dropped into a bag, whereas large packages are diverted and slid to a tilted table. The proposed approach enables efficient stacking primarily by automating the picking process and stacking a large number of small packages at once. The proposed approach was implemented to a system consisting of a conveyor belt and eight storage carts to investigate its capability. Experimental studies first show highly reliable performance of the proposed automatic sorting-and-holding proposed. Deployment of the proposed approach in a realistic scenario has then demonstrated its ability to reduce the number of human workers from four to one, and only use 7.1% of the allotted time.