A pneumatic conveyor robot for color detection and sorting

Abstract

Despite numerous research works on conveyor robots, few works can be found on electropneumatic conveyor belt robots with two separated lines. The unique feature of this study is a combination of various systems to develop an electropneumatic robot. In this work, an automated and intelligent mechatronic conveyor system is designed and developed for transporting and positioning circular objects that can be used in the manufacturing and packaging industries. In addition to moving and positioning, timing can also be controlled on this conveyor belt robot. All control operations are handled by an electrical and programmable relay called a mini programmable logic controller (PLC), color sensor, gripper arm, and electronic switches. An electropneumatic system is used to control the robot for placing objects. The main goal of this study is to develop a novel 3D structural design which make the procedure unique for better efficiency and accuracy. The novelty of this work lies within the 3D design of two belts and assembly of all electropneumatic components which are helpful for manufacturing assembly lines. Also, TCS230 sensor and AVR microcontroller are used to identify the colors within the operation. The results show the accuracy of the developed system is reliable in terms of color and positioning detection. The system is able to work non-stop for more than 1 hour without any issues.