Patent ID: 11939081
Assignee: THE BOEING COMPANY
Field: Transport (Mechanical engineering)
Classification: CPC B | IPC B

Claim 16:
17. An end effector, comprising:
a first roller wheel configured to rotate in a first plane, wherein the first roller wheel is supported by a support element;
a second roller wheel configured to rotate in a second plane, wherein the second plane is non-parallel to the first plane, and wherein the second roller wheel is supported by the support element; and
a backstop supported by the support element, wherein the backstop is positioned to engage with an object when the object is captured by the first roller wheel and the second roller wheel, wherein the first roller wheel, the second roller wheel, and the backstop are arranged with respect to one another such that the end effector is configured to capture the object via the first roller wheel, the second roller wheel, and the backstop, wherein the first roller wheel, the second roller wheel, and the backstop are arranged with respect to one another such that a passive receptacle of the object is positioned about outer surfaces of the first roller wheel, the second roller wheel, and the backstop when the object is captured by the end effector, wherein the backstop comprises a lip configured to aid in retaining the passive receptacle on the end effector when the object is captured by the end effector, and wherein the end effector is further configured to selectively release the object from the first roller wheel, the second roller wheel, and the backstop.