Vision system with teat candidate identification

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10595498-B2
Application number	US-201815953185-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 13, 2018
Priority date	Aug 17, 2016
Publication date	Mar 24, 2020
Grant date	Mar 24, 2020

Abstract

A system that includes a robotic arm, a laser, a three-dimensional (3D) camera, and a processor. The processor is configured to send instructions to position the robotic arm adjacent to a dairy livestock, to send a signal that initiates scanning a portion of the dairy livestock, and to generate teat candidate position information based on the scan of the dairy livestock. The processor is further configured receive target teat information, identify a teat candidate within a teat location range of the target teat, and link the identified teat candidate with a teat identifier. The processor is further configured to send instructions to the robotic arm to move at least a portion of the robotic arm toward the target teat based on the teat candidate position information for the identified teat candidate that is linked with the teat identifier.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A vision system comprising:
a robotic arm;
a laser disposed on the robotic arm;
a three-dimensional (3D) camera disposed on the robotic arm; and
a processor operably coupled to the robotic arm, the laser, and the 3D camera, and configured to:
send instructions to the robotic arm to position the laser and the 3D camera adjacent to a dairy livestock;
send an electrical signal that initiates scanning at least a portion of the dairy livestock using at least one of the laser and the 3D camera;
generate teat candidate position information for a first teat candidate and a second teat candidate based on the scan of the at least a portion of the dairy livestock;
receive target teat information comprising:
a teat identifier identifying a target teat from a plurality of teats of the dairy livestock; and
a teat location range for the target teat;

identify one of the first teat candidate and the second teat candidate within the teat location range for the target teat;
link the identified teat candidate with the teat identifier; and
send instructions to the robotic arm to move a portion of the robotic arm toward the target teat based on the teat candidate position information for the identified teat candidate linked with the teat identifier.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to store in a memory:
an association between the target teat and the teat candidate position information for the identified teat candidate.

3. The system of claim 1 , wherein:
the 3D camera is configured to generate a 3D image of a portion of the dairy livestock; and
the processor is configured to process the 3D image to obtain the teat candidate position information.

4. The system of claim 1 , wherein:
the laser is configured to generate a profile signal of a portion of the dairy livestock; and
the processor is configured to process the profile signal to obtain the teat candidate position information.

5. The system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is configured to discard teat candidate position information for teat candidates that are not linked with the teat identifier after linking the target teat with the identified teat candidate.

6. The system of claim 1 , wherein receiving the teat identifier is based at least in part on identifying a teat from the plurality of teats of the dairy livestock that is closest to the first teat candidate and the second teat candidate based on the teat candidate position information.

7. The system of claim 1 , wherein the teat identifier indicates the target teat is one of a front right teat of the dairy livestock, a front left teat of the dairy livestock, a rear right teat of the dairy livestock, and a rear left teat of the dairy livestock.

8. An apparatus comprising:
a memory configured to store:
teat location information for a plurality of teats of a dairy livestock; and
teat candidate position information for a first teat candidate and a second teat candidate; and

a processor operably coupled to the memory and a robotic arm, and configured to:
send instructions to the robotic arm to position a laser and a three-dimensional (3D) camera adjacent to a dairy livestock;
send an electrical signal that initiates scanning at least a portion of the dairy livestock using at least one of the laser and the 3D camera;
generate teat candidate position information for the first teat candidate and the second teat candidate based on the scan of the at least a portion of the dairy livestock;
receive target teat information comprising:
a teat identifier identifying a target teat from the plurality of teats of the dairy livestock; and
a teat location range for the target teat;

identify one of the first teat candidate and the second teat candidate within the teat location range for the target teat;
link the identified teat candidate with the teat identifier; and
send instructions to the robotic arm to move a portion of the robotic arm toward the target teat based on the teat candidate position information for the identified teat candidate linked with the teat identifier.

9. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the processor is configured to store in the memory:
an association between the target teat and the teat candidate position information for the identified teat candidate.

10. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the processor is configured to:
receive a 3D image of a portion of the dairy livestock from a 3D camera; and
process the 3D image to obtain the teat candidate position information.

11. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the processor is configured to:
receive a profile signal of a portion of the dairy livestock from a laser; and
process the profile signal to obtain the teat candidate position information.

12. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the processor is configured to discard teat candidate position information for teat candidates that are not linked with the teat identifier after linking the target teat with the identified teat candidate.

13. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein receiving the teat identifier is based at least in part on identifying a teat from the plurality of teats of the dairy livestock that is closest to the first teat candidate and the second teat candidate based on the teat candidate position information.

14. The apparatus of claim 8 , wherein the teat identifier indicates the target teat is one of a front right teat of the dairy livestock, a front left teat of the dairy livestock, a rear right teat of the dairy livestock, and a rear left teat of the dairy livestock.

15. A teat candidate identification method comprising:
sending by a processor, instructions to a robotic arm to position a laser and a three-dimensional (3D) camera adjacent to a dairy livestock;
sending, by the processor, an electrical signal that initiates scanning at least a portion of the dairy livestock using at least one of the laser and the 3D camera;
generating, by the processor, teat candidate position information for a first teat candidate and a second teat candidate based on the scan of the at least a portion of the dairy livestock;
receiving, by the processor, target teat information comprising:
a teat identifier identifying a target teat from a plurality of teats of a dairy livestock; and
a teat location range for the target teat;

identifying, by the processor, one of the first teat candidate and the second teat candidate within the teat location range for the target teat;
linking, by the processor, the identified teat candidate with the teat identifier; and
sending, by the processor, instructions to the robotic arm to move a portion of the robotic arm toward the target teat based on the teat candidate position information for the identified teat candidate linked with the teat identifier.

16. The method of claim 15 , further comprising storing, by the processor, in a memory:
an association between the target teat and the teat candidate position information for the identified teat candidate.

17. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
receiving, by the processor, a 3D image of a portion of the dairy livestock from a 3D camera; and
processing, by the processor, the 3D image to obtain the teat candidate position information.

18. The method of claim 15 , further comprising:
receiving, by the processor, a profile signal of a portion of the dairy livestock from a laser; and
processing, by the processor, the profile signal to obtain the teat candidate position information.

19. The method of claim 15 , furth

Assignees

• Technologies Holdings Corp

Inventors

• Foresman Mark A
• Prevost Bradley J

Classifications

• G06T1/0014

  Image feed-back for automatic industrial control, e.g. robot with camera (robots B25J19/023) · CPC title

• A01J5/007 Primary

  Monitoring milking processes; Control or regulation of milking machines · CPC title

• H04N13/204

  using stereoscopic image cameras (stereoscopic photography G03B35/00) · CPC title

• A01J5/017

  Automatic attaching or detaching of clusters · CPC title

• G06T7/11

  Region-based segmentation · CPC title