Introducing Robot-to-Robot Communication: How Chef Robots Coordinate to Maximize Throughput

Chef robots automate high-speed meal assembly lines in food manufacturing by matching worker speeds with consistent ingredient deposits. Multiple robots are often deployed on a shared conveyor line when several workers handle the same ingredient. This setup creates a coordination challenge where robots must observe conveyor speed and behavior, agree on tray positions and orientations, and determine which robot deposits into which tray to avoid overlaps. Several methods were tested to address the coordination issue. Per-ingredient computer vision classifiers and pan-and-tray similarity models faced scaling and reliability problems at production speeds. Operational approaches such as offset tray positioning and color-coded conveyor patches also showed limitations. Robot-to-robot communication was selected as the most reliable and flexible solution. Chef robots use built-in wireless radios to share real-time tray position and orientation data directly between units. The first robot to deposit into a tray immediately transmits that information to the next robot, enabling precise targeting without duplication. Each robot maintains its own perception system to track trays independently while benefiting from the shared data for synchronization. The approach avoids dependence on wires, which reduce flexibility, or standard Wi-Fi, which can face outages. It functions without requiring changes to existing production lines or ingredient-specific models. Robots using the system can reach speeds of up to 150 trays per minute in certain setups. The coordination reduces spillage and missed trays while supporting quick additions of robots to increase capacity on current lines.