automatic sorting with barcode identification inside a refrigerator

[Kristjan Laane]

I'm endeavoring to prototype a challenging sorting mechanism inside a fridge and would appreciate any constructive tips on how to get from the specs to a plausible design.

###Problem
The aim of the game is to identify and sort food items in the limited space of a fridge

- such that a user would push their unsorted shopping into a chamber at the top of the enclosure
- and the machine inside would then try to identify the contents with help of bar-codes (first big problem)
- and then sort and move the items according to their identities into different chambers below (second big problem).

###Solution?
Are there any existing devices that already serve such functions (automatic bar-coding and sorting), the designs of which could perhaps inform the mechanics of the device I'm planning to construct?

- I'm thinking maybe manufacturing plants
- or packing factories with conveyor belts etc may use systems that already solve such problems?
- Or filtering mechanisms in candy dispensers,
- mechanized lifting forks?
- Textbook engineering mechanisms?


Ta,
K