CapSen Robotics was asked to automate a bin picking process that involves one of machine vision’s toughest tasks – the localization of randomly piled and entangled objects in a bin.

The objects that posed the challenge, in this case, were metallic, entangled hooks. The application required a high-end 3D vision system, which led CapSen Robotics to decide for Photoneo PhoXi 3D Scanner model S.

The process looks as follows: the PhoXi 3D Scanner makes a scan of a bin filled with metal hooks, localizes the hook to be picked, a six-axis collaborative robot picks it using a specially designed gripper, disentangles the hook by rotating its arm and letting other hooks fall back into the bin, and then places the hook onto a peg fixture to allow to reorient and properly grip the hook for placement into the press, where one end of the hook is pressed for further processing.

This task was performed manually before and its automation led to a productivity increase of 25%. Not only can a robot work faster and more efficiently, but also non-stop in contrast to people who require periodic breaks.

Find out more about this project and the challenges that needed to be overcome in the article published in Vision Systems Design.