Latest! Boston Dynamics launches Multipick, a stretching robot

Boston Dynamics' stretch robot can now pick up multiple boxes at the same time.

The new feature, which the company calls Multipick, will help increase the robot’s productivity to keep up with busy warehouses.

When approaching a trailer to unload, Stretch will decide how many boxes it can multipick. It makes these decisions on a case-by-case basis, taking into account the size, individual attributes, and location of the boxes.

Stretch also takes into account properties of the box groups, such as how well they are aligned. The robot will then determine whether it is best to pick one, two or even three boxes at a time.

To ensure that Stretch can safely pick up each individual box, Boston Dynamics must ensure that the grip on all boxes is exactly right and that all of the suction cups on Stretch’s gripper are engaged. Once the robot has determined a grasping plan based on the box it wants to pick, that information is passed to the gripper controller so that it knows which suction cups it needs to engage.

When the gripper comes into contact with a group of boxes, the gripper controller evaluates whether it has enough suction for each box it is trying to pick up. This information is used again when placing the boxes so that the robot knows which cups to close to release each box.

Boston Dynamics began developing Stretch in 2018, and the robot was unveiled in 2021. Stretch has an 8-hour battery life, but a 16-hour battery option will be available, with the ability to plug in Stretch for continuous power. Stretch uses the Pick vision system, which Boston Dynamics acquired when it acquired Kinema Systems in February 2019. Pick uses high-resolution 3D vision and machine learning algorithms for robotic depalletizing.

One of the keys to success is Stretch's ability to handle a wide variety of boxes.