Plant for packaging articles to be filled with a product and closed with a closing element, comprising at least two modular apparatus for filling and closing randomly fed articles, each configured with a filling station and a closing station; the plant further comprising an extraction system for transporting the filled and closed articles, with an extraction plane on which the filled and closed articles are transported in a longitudinal direction and are arranged with a predefined extraction orientation and/or position and in an extraction sense from upstream to downstream; wherein said at least two modular filling and closing apparatus are arranged in series from upstream to downstream along the longitudinal direction and are configured to position the respective filled and closed articles on the same extraction plane in order to obtain a common flow of articles being extracted.

An end-effector system is disclosed for use with a programmable motion device. The end-effector system includes an arm attachment portion for attachment to an arm of the programmable motion device, an end-effector attachment portion for attachment to an end-effector for grasping objects, a rotational shaft portion for rotational attachment to the arm attachment portion, said rotational shaft portion being coupled to the end-effector attachment portion at a distal end thereof, and a motor system providing rotation of the rotational shaft portion as well as the end-effector attachment portion with respect to the arm attachment portion.

An attaching mechanism includes a fastening member, a first member, a second member including an insertion portion through which the fastening member passes, and a third member configured to enable the fastening member to pass through the insertion portion when the third member is located at a first position, and engage with the fastening member and disable the fastening member from passing through the insertion portion when the third member is located at a second position. When the third member is located at the second position, and the fastening member is moved toward a predetermined direction, the third member is pressed by the fastening member toward the predetermined direction, and the second member is attached to the first member.

An end effector adaptor device for a robotic arm may have a body adapted to be secured to a working end of a robotic arm at a proximal face, the body having a distal face configured for connection of an end effector thereto. A proximal connector is in the proximal face, the proximal connector configured to be connected to a complementary connector at the working end of the robotic arm for signal and power transmission between the robotic arm and the body. A distal connector is in the distal face, the distal connector configured to be connected to a complementary connector at the end effector connected to the distal face for signal transmission and/or power transmission between the body and the end effector. Circuitry is between the proximal connector and the distal connector.

A robot head for withdrawing and transferring glass containers between two different conveyor groups includes a series of gripping members for withdrawing the glass containers carried by a first conveyor and releasing the containers on a second conveyor, wherein the gripping members of the robot head withdraw together all the glass containers carried by the first conveyor when the movement of the conveyor is stopped so as to enable a withdrawal of the containers. The robot head further includes a mechanism for the movement and variation in position of the gripping members with respect to each other, wherein the mechanism moves the gripping members of the glass containers from a first distance corresponding to the extraction distance from the first conveyor to a second depositing distance of the containers on the second conveyor.

A screwing device includes a screwdriver and a connection element for coupling the screwdriver to a robot arm. The connection element has a first robot-side transmission element, a second tool-side transmission element, a restoring element arranged between the first and second transmission elements, and a distance measuring element. The two transmission elements can be moved towards each other against a restoring force of the restoring element in an actuation direction. The distance measuring element measures a distance that represents the spacing between the transmission elements in the actuation direction and is used to control the actuating force acting on the screwdriver.

A screwing device includes a screwdriver and a connection element for coupling the screwdriver to a robot arm. The connection element has a first robot-side transmission element, a second tool-side transmission element, a restoring element arranged between the first and second transmission elements, and a distance measuring element. The two transmission elements can be moved towards each other against a restoring force of the restoring element in an actuation direction. The distance measuring element measures a distance that represents the spacing between the transmission elements in the actuation direction and is used to control the actuating force acting on the screwdriver.

A method for picking objects is specified, in which at least one object is removed from a source loading aid and placed into a target loading aid using a robot. After the operation of removing the object, a first sensor system of the robot is used to check whether at least one object is held by the robot. A number and/or a type of the at least one removed object is ascertained using the second sensor system. The operation of placing the at least one object into the target loading aid is aborted or modified if no object is held by the robot or the number and/or the type of the at least one removed object does not contribute to completing the picking order, which defines a desired number and/or desired type of objects in the target loading aid. Furthermore, a device and a computer program product for performing the presented method is specified.

A tool changer device for a robotic arm comprising a robot adapter (1) particularly adapted to be connected to a robotic arm (5) and to a tool (6). The robot adapter (1) comprises a pneumatic cylinder (117) inside which a piston (116) is slidably arranged for activating a coupling and uncoupling mechanism (120) of the robotic arm (5) to the tool (6). On one of the walls of the robot adapter (1) at least four through conduits (24, 25, 26, 27) are arranged, one end of which opens into the pneumatic cylinder (117) and another end of which opens outside of the pneumatic cylinder (117). The device further comprises a first differential pressure sensor (18) connected to at least two of the through conduits (24, 25), and a second differential pressure sensor (19) connected to another two of the through conduits (26, 27).

A tool changer device for a robotic arm comprising a robot adapter (1) particularly adapted to be connected to a robotic arm (5) and to a tool (6). The robot adapter (1) comprises a pneumatic cylinder (117) inside which a piston (116) is slidably arranged for activating a coupling and uncoupling mechanism (120) of the robotic arm (5) to the tool (6). On one of the walls of the robot adapter (1) at least four through conduits (24, 25, 26, 27) are arranged, one end of which opens into the pneumatic cylinder (117) and another end of which opens outside of the pneumatic cylinder (117). The device further comprises a first differential pressure sensor (18) connected to at least two of the through conduits (24, 25), and a second differential pressure sensor (19) connected to another two of the through conduits (26, 27).