Knapp integrates vision-guided robotic picking with pocket sorter

A pocket sorter integrated with vision-system guided robotic picking and a streamlined conveyor system were showcased by Kevin Reader, director of business development and marketing at Knapp Logistics Automation (Booth S1223), in a Monday press conference.

“The vision system has been recently updated,” he explained. “It evaluates the stock keeping units (SKUs) in the totes as they travel along the conveyor, directing the robotic gripper to properly pick up the required SKU. Additionally, the robotic component is faster.”

The pocket sorter and robotic picking system are among several Knapp technologies targeting the challenges faced by e-commerce, multi-channel and omni-channel retailers, Reader said. He also debuted a patent-pending system that integrates pocket sorters into light-directed manual picking operations.

“It’s a system that is in use at Recreational Equipment Incorporated (REI), which is picking and packing individual items within six-second windows,” he noted, pointing to a video loop of the system in operation at REI’s Goodyear, Ariz., facility.

Reader concluded the discussion by announcing Knapp’s new sponsorship of the Retail Industry Leaders Association (RILA)’s Distribution Council, and a new partnership with Takeoff Technologies, a Boston-area startup building micro-fulfillment grocery e-commerce distribution centers that deploy sorting robots.