Provided are a system, method(s), and apparatus for automatically harvesting mushrooms from a mushroom bed. The system, in one implementation, may be referred to herein as an automated harvester, having at least an apparatus/frame/body/structure for supporting and positioning the harvester on a mushroom bed, a vision system for scanning and identifying mushrooms in the mushroom bed, a picking system for harvesting the mushrooms from the bed, and a control system for directing the picking system according to data acquired by the vision system. Various other components, sub-systems, and connected systems may also be integrated into or coupled to the automated harvester.

A robot configured to use a gripper to grasp one or more tools is disclosed. In various embodiments, the robot comprises a robotic arm having a gripper disposed at a free moving end of the robotic arm, and a set of two or more tools configured to grasped or otherwise engaged by the gripper. Each tool in the set of two or more tools may be disposed in a corresponding tool holder, optionally attached to the robot or situated near the robot. The robot is configured to use the gripper to retrieve a selected tool from its tool holder to perform a task; use the tool to perform the task; and return the tool to its tool holder.

The invention relates to a method and to a device for producing a robot with a robotic arm. Said method can be carried out using an assembly robot wherein first housing segments are arranged in an intended sequence for the robotic arm, drive units are inserted into the first housing segments and the respective complimentary second housing segments are placed on the first housing segments comprising the drive units.

A method for operating a gripper includes determining a first transport attachment of a plurality of transport attachments to use for moving a piece good and determining whether the first transport attachment is fixed in a first gripping jaw of the gripper, wherein the gripper includes a drop table having at least one storage and dispensing end face; the first gripping jaw and a second gripping jaw each arranged above the drop table and fastened to a gripping jaw guide arrangement, wherein the first gripping jaw has a gripper coupler at an end portion opposite the gripping jaw guide arrangement; and a transport attachment of the plurality of transport attachments with an attachment coupler, wherein the gripper coupler and the attachment coupler interact with one another so that the transport attachment is releasably fixed at the end portion of the first gripping jaw. Grippers and transport systems are also provided.

A touchscreen remote input device, according to one embodiment of the present invention, comprises: a conductive vacuum attachment member vacuum-attached to a touchscreen; a relay switch electrically connected to the conductive vacuum attachment member; and a microcontroller unit configured to control an on/off operation of the relay switch.

The present application relates to improvements in support systems for holding one or more robotic actuators, particularly soft robotic actuators. Because soft robotic actuators tend to push away from a base to which they are fixed upon inflation, they must be hold to the base securely. However, this may render it more difficult to remove the actuator from the base (e.g., when the actuator fails, when the actuator and/or base must be cleaned or serviced, or when a user wishes to switch out one style or size of actuator for another). Exemplary embodiments herein relate to improved designs for hubs, including interlocking and quick-release mechanisms that allow the actuator to be held firmly to the hub, but also allow the actuator to be quickly and efficiently released, when needed.

Exemplary embodiments pertain to soft robotic actuators configured to receive modular fingertips. The fingertips may be provided at the distal end of a standardized actuator. The actuator's distal tip may be sized and shaped to correspond to a proximal end of the modular fingertip. A backing plate may be provided in a reservoir of the actuator in order to spread the load of a fastener that can be inserted through the reservoir and backing plate and into one or more holes that pass through the material of the actuator and into the modular fingertip. For purposes of reducing bacterial harborage points, the holes may extend only partway through the modular fingertip without extending entirely through it. In other embodiments, the fastener may be inserted into the fingertip and secured to the actuator. A sealing bead may be provided between the distal tip of the actuator and the fingertip.

Exemplary embodiments relate to improvements in robotic systems to reduce biological or chemical harborage points on the systems. For example, in exemplary embodiments, robotic actuators, hubs, or entire robotic systems may be configured to allow crevices along joints or near fasteners to be reduced or eliminated, hard corners to be replaced with rounded edges, certain components or harborage points to be eliminated, shapes to be reconfigured to be smoother or flat, and/or or surfaces to be reconfigurable for simpler cleaning.

The present invention discloses a tool holder. Specifically, the tool holder comprises an executing end and a tool end. The executing end comprises a linear motion module and a rotating motion module. Furthermore, a first clutch and a second clutch are used for switching the operating mode therebetween the linear motion module and the rotating motion module. Hence, the present invention can provide different operating modes in a single executing end to the tool end.

Techniques for fingertip design are disclosed that leverage how most grasp contacts can share a few classes of local geometries. In order to maximize the contact areas for achieving more robust grasps, contact primitives, which represent a set of contacts of similar local geometries, are identified. A uniform cost algorithm, which can be formulated as a decision making process in a tree structure, can be utilized to cluster a set of example grasp contacts into a finite set of one or more contact primitives. Fingertips can be designed by optimization to match the local geometry of each contact primitive, and then fingertips can be 3D printed using soft materials to compensate for optimization residuals. For novel objects, an approach to generate grasp contacts that match the fingertip geometries while together forming stable grasps can be utilized.