The commercialization of a low-cost, high-speed pick-and-place casepacker.

Abstract

This paper describes the automation of case-packing at the back end of a food processing plant. Such automation is motivated by the availability and cost of labour (including wages, insurance, floor space, and training), welfare of workers, reduction of risks and worker injuries, the availability of suitable labour, and the ability to meet OSHA safety requirements. A team consisting of a university research group, a commercial high-tech robotic motion control company, and a pork processing plant has developed and demonstrated a high-speed, low-cost robotic casepacker that addresses the needs of food processing companies. As designed, the robotic casepacker is able to meet the minimum packing needs (58 trays/min at one tray per move) of the package operations. The team has also developed and installed the peripheral equipment required to bring the empty totes into the work cell and to release the full totes onto a conveyor.