JPH0338036Y2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] This invention relates to a collision sensing device suitable for use in sensing when a vehicle, particularly an unmanned vehicle, collides with an obstacle.

[Prior art]

In recent years, unmanned vehicles have been introduced in many factories, automated warehouses, etc., and are playing a role in saving labor.

In general, unmanned vehicles require a device that promptly detects a collision with an obstacle and stops the vehicle in order to minimize the damage caused by a collision.

FIGS. 5 and 6 are a horizontal sectional view and a vertical sectional view, respectively, showing the configuration of essential parts of a conventional collision sensing device. In these figures, 1 is a vehicle body of an unmanned vehicle, wheels 2 are attached to the lower surface of the vehicle body 1, and a bumper 4 is fixed to the front surface of the vehicle body 1 with bolts 3, 3. The bumper 4 includes a rectangular parallelepiped cushion material 6 fixed to the mounting plate 5.
It is covered with an exterior material 7, and between the cushion material 6 and the exterior material 7, strip-shaped tape switches 8, 8 are provided.
is laid horizontally from one side of the cushion material 6 to the other side so as to pass through the front surface of the cushion material 6. Here, the cushion material 6 is
Made of a soft elastic material such as sponge rubber or urethane foam, it easily deforms in response to the impact of a collision and cushions the impact. The exterior material 7 is made of a non-steel material such as synthetic leather. The tape switch 8 is made up of a plurality of contact switch groups arranged in its longitudinal direction, and when it is bent, the switches near the bent portion are turned on.

Next, FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of an unmanned vehicle using the above-mentioned collision sensing device. In the figure, one end of each contact switch of the tape switch 8 is connected to a vehicle controller 9. When the tape switch 8 is off, the vehicle controller 9 brakes the drive device 10 to make the unmanned vehicle run, and when the tape switch 8 is on, it supplies a stop command to the drive device 10 to make the unmanned vehicle run. to stop.

[Problem that the invention attempts to solve]

By the way, the above-mentioned collision sensing device has the following drawbacks. That is, the sensitivity of the tape switch 8 is generally poor, and the switch will not turn on unless the bumper 4 is considerably depressed. Therefore, if the unmanned vehicle is running at a high speed, even if you stop the switch after it is turned on, it will be too late and the unmanned vehicle will
In some cases, damage was caused to both obstacles.

Due to its structure, the tape switch 8 will not turn on if the wire is cut or there is a collision.

If a large number of tape switches 8 are arranged in the height direction and the intervals between adjacent tape switches 8, 8 are not made close, for example, if a collision occurs with a sharp obstacle, it may not be possible to detect it. be.

In view of the above-mentioned circumstances, an object of this invention is to provide a collision sensing device that can reliably and highly sensitively sense an obstacle colliding with any position on the front surface of a bumper.

[Means to solve the problem]

The collision sensing device of the present invention is a collision sensing device that detects when a vehicle has collided with an obstacle, and has a front plate and side plates extending from both ends of the front plate, and the front plate is attached to one side of the vehicle. a bumper body mounted so as to cover one side of the bumper with the inner wall surfaces facing each other; a floodlight disposed on one side between the side plates and emitting a light beam toward the other side between the side plates; a light receiver arranged on the other side of the bumper to receive the light beam emitted from the light projector; The bumper body includes a light blocking plate that allows the light to pass only in certain cases, and the bumper body and the light blocking plate are formed of an elastic material.

[Effect]

When an obstacle approaches one side of the vehicle on which the collision sensing device of the present invention is installed, the obstacle hits the bumper body, and only a part of the bumper body deforms, causing the light beam shielding plate near this deformed part to block the light beam. Since the light is blocked and no longer enters the light receiver, a collision can be immediately detected and damage to the vehicle itself can be reliably avoided.

That is, since the bumper body and the light shielding plate are made of an elastic material, and the light shielding plates are provided at multiple locations on the inner surface of the bumper body, no matter where on the bumper body the obstacle hits, Furthermore, even if the bumper body is partially and slightly deformed, the light beam is immediately blocked, making it possible to detect a collision with high sensitivity. In addition, the direction in which an obstacle approaches is not limited to the direction perpendicular to the front plate of the bumper body, but even if the obstacle approaches from the side, the bumper body will be deformed by hitting the side plate, so the same problem occurs. Collisions can be detected with high sensitivity.

Furthermore, since the bumper body is made of an elastic material, it has cushioning properties, so that neither obstacles nor the collision sensing device itself are damaged in the event of a collision.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of this invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

FIGS. 1 and 2 are a horizontal cross-sectional view and a vertical cross-sectional view, respectively, showing the structure of a main part of a collision sensing device according to an embodiment of the present invention. In these figures,
20 is a vehicle body, 21 is a wheel, and 22 is a bumper.
This bumper 22 includes a top plate 23a and a bottom plate 23b.
, the front plate 23c, the left side plate 23d, and the right side plate 23.
The bumper body 23 is made up of a box-shaped bumper main body 23 consisting of a front plate 23c, and a plurality of light shielding plates 24, 24, . In this case, the light shielding plate 24 has a rectangular shape as shown in FIG. 2, its size is slightly smaller than the inner dimension of the bumper body 23, and a circular hole 25 is formed at its rear end. There is. Further, the center lines of the circular holes 25 of each of the light shielding plates 24, 24, . . . coincide with each other. In addition, the bumper body 23 mentioned above
and the light shielding plates 24, 24... are sponges,
It is made of soft elastic material such as urethane foam.
It is designed to easily deform when subjected to impact.
The bumper 22 described above has side plates 23d, 2
It is attached to the side surface of the vehicle body 20 by bolts 26, 26 through attachment holes formed in 3e. Further, a light emitter 27 and a light receiver 28 are attached to both widthwise ends of the front surface of the vehicle body 1 so as to face each other on the center line of the circular hole 25 described above, and the light beam emitted from the light emitter 27 is Round hole 2
5, 25, . . . and is received by the light receiver 28.

Next, FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of an unmanned vehicle according to an embodiment of this invention. In this figure, the photoelectric switch 30 outputs an on signal when the light receiver 28 is receiving the light beam emitted from the light emitter 27, and an off signal when the light receiver 28 is not receiving the light beam.
Each is supplied to the vehicle controller 31. When the ON signal is supplied from the photoelectric switch 30, the vehicle controller 31 controls the drive device 10 to drive the unmanned vehicle, and also controls the photoelectric switch 30.
When an off signal is supplied from the driver, a stop command is supplied to the drive device 10 to stop the unmanned vehicle from running.

In the above configuration, when the unmanned vehicle is running, the light beam emitted from the floodlight 26 is transmitted to the light shielding plate 2.
The light passes through the circular holes 25, 25... of 4, 24... and is received by the photodetector 28, and as a result, the photoelectric switch
An on signal is output from. In this state,
When the wiring is cut and the light projector 27 goes out, the photoelectric switch 30 outputs an off signal, so the unmanned vehicle will not run in a state where the wiring is defective.

Next, suppose that the unmanned vehicle collides with obstacle B shown in FIG. When the bumper 22 collides with the obstacle B, the bumper 22 is recessed to absorb the impact and minimize damage caused by the collision. Also, bumper 2
At the same time as 2 is recessed, the light shielding plates 24, 24...
hits the front of the vehicle body 1 and is bent, whereby the light rays emitted from the projector 27 are blocked by the bent light shielding plate 24 and do not reach the light receiver 28. When the light receiver 28 no longer receives the light beam, the photoelectric switch 30 outputs an off signal, which is supplied to the vehicle controller 31.
As a result, a stop command is output from the vehicle controller 31, and the unmanned vehicle immediately stops.

If the unmanned vehicle is to be driven again, the obstacle B may be removed. That is, by removing the obstacle B, the bumper 22 is restored to its normal shape,
The light beam emitted from the light projector 27 is received by the light receiver 28.

In this way, when the bumper 22 deforms during a collision, the light beam is always blocked by the light beam blocking plate 24, so that the collision can be reliably detected.

Note that, of course, the shape of the hole formed in the light shielding plate 24 is not limited to a circle, and may have another shape. Furthermore, instead of forming holes, slits or notches may be provided.

Furthermore, the sensitivity can be changed by changing the elasticity of the bumper. For example, using a very soft bumper will increase the sensitivity, and using a hard bumper will decrease the sensitivity.

[Effect of idea]

According to the collision detection device of the present invention, no matter from which direction an obstacle approaches one side of the vehicle in which the device is installed, it will detect the collision with high sensitivity and ensure that the vehicle will not be damaged by the collision. can be avoided. Another advantage is that no damage occurs to either the device itself or any obstacles.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

1 and 2 are a horizontal sectional view and a longitudinal sectional view, respectively, showing the configuration of the main parts of a collision sensing device according to an embodiment of this invention, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a horizontal cross-sectional view showing the unmanned vehicle colliding with obstacle B, and FIGS. 5 and 6 each show the configuration of the main parts of a conventional collision sensing device. FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of an unmanned vehicle using the same collision sensing device. 1, 22...Bumper, 23...Bumper body, 2
3c...Front plate, 23d, 23e...Side plate, 24...
...Light blocking plate, 27... Emitter, 28... Light receiver, B... Obstacle.

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] This is a collision sensing device that detects when a vehicle has collided with an obstacle, and includes a front plate and side plates extending from both ends of the front plate. a bumper body attached to cover the side surfaces; a floodlight disposed on one side between the side plates to emit a beam of light toward the other side between the side plates; and a floodlight disposed on the other side between the side plates. a light receiver that receives the light beam emitted from the projector; and a light receiver that is provided so as to extend from a plurality of locations on the inner wall surface of the front plate toward one side of the vehicle, and that the light beam passes through only when the bumper body is in the original state. What is claimed is: 1. A collision sensing device comprising: a light shielding plate that causes a collision to occur, the bumper body and the light shielding plate being made of an elastic material.