CN115432646A

CN115432646A - Stacking machine and control method thereof

Info

Publication number: CN115432646A
Application number: CN202110617166.8A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 张耿智
Original assignee: Coretronic Corp
Current assignee: Coretronic Corp
Priority date: 2021-06-03
Filing date: 2021-06-03
Publication date: 2022-12-06

Abstract

The invention relates to a forklift and a control method thereof. The forklift comprises a forklift body, a mast member, a cargo carrying member, a distance sensor and a processor. The mast member has a bottom end and a top end. The bottom end is fixed in the automobile body, and the top is relative with the bottom. The loading member has a lifting portion and a loading portion. The lifting part is movably arranged on the mast member, and the cargo carrying part is connected with the lifting part and extends along the extending direction. The distance sensor is arranged on the lifting part and is positioned between the cargo carrying part and the bottom end. The distance sensor is used for sensing the distance of an object in the extending direction of the loading part. The processor is electrically connected with the distance sensor and is used for judging whether the distance is smaller than the warning range. The invention also provides a control method for the forklift. The invention can prevent collision caused by human judgment error and prevent collision with the front object when the fork lift truck moves forward.

Description

Stacking machine and control method thereof

Technical Field

The invention relates to a conveying device, in particular to a stacking machine and a control method for the stacking machine.

Background

Stacker machines are capable of handling and stacking heavy loads and are therefore widely used in warehousing systems. However, since the stacker itself is heavy, the impact force of its impact is also large. If the goods shelf or goods are hit due to careless operation, the goods shelf collapses, the goods are damaged and other property losses are caused, and even casualties nearby are caused seriously.

To prevent the above accidents, the known forklift is equipped with a camera at the front end, and the operator can determine the distance between the forklift and the shelf according to the images captured by the camera. However, when the forklift is close to the shelf, the camera cannot provide a clear picture due to insufficient light, which affects the judgment of the operator. In addition, the human judgment itself is easy to have errors, so that the known forklift still cannot effectively prevent the collision.

The "prior art" section is provided merely to aid in understanding the present invention, and thus the disclosure of "technology" may include techniques not well known to those of ordinary skill in the art. Furthermore, the disclosure of the prior art does not represent a prior art or problem to be solved by one or more embodiments of the present invention, or a prior art, that has been known or recognized by one of ordinary skill in the art prior to the filing of the present application.

Disclosure of Invention

The invention provides a stacking machine, which is used for accurately detecting the distance between the stacking machine and a front object when the stacking machine advances.

The invention provides a control method for a forklift, which is used for preventing the forklift from colliding with a front object when the forklift advances.

Other objects and advantages of the present invention will be further understood from the technical features disclosed in the present invention.

To achieve one or a part of or all of the above or other objects, the present invention provides a forklift including a body, a mast, a cargo carrying member, a distance sensor, and a processor. The mast member has a bottom end and a top end. The bottom end is fixed in the automobile body, and the top is relative with the bottom. The loading member has a lifting portion and a loading portion. The lifting part is movably arranged on the mast member, and the cargo carrying part is connected with the lifting part and extends along the extending direction. The distance sensor is arranged on the lifting part and is positioned between the cargo carrying part and the bottom end. The distance sensor is used for sensing the distance of an object in the extending direction of the loading part. The processor is electrically connected with the distance sensor and is used for judging whether the distance is smaller than the warning range.

In order to achieve one or part or all of the above or other objects, the control method for the forklift provided by the invention can prevent the forklift from colliding. The forklift comprises the above features, and the control method comprises the following steps. The distance sensor senses the distance of the object in the extending direction of the cargo carrying part. The processor controls the lifting part to move to a preset position along the mast part. The processor is used to determine whether the distance is less than the warning range. And when the distance is greater than or equal to the warning range, controlling the vehicle body to move towards the target object. And when the distance is smaller than the warning range, controlling the vehicle body to stop moving.

The stacker of the present invention employs a distance sensor, and the distance sensor is provided in a lifting portion of the stacker. Before the stacker is ready to pick up or unload goods from the shelves, the elevating section is moved along the mast member to a height corresponding to the shelf deck, and the distance sensor provided on the elevating section is also moved to a height corresponding to the shelf deck. Therefore, when the stacking machine moves forward, the distance sensor can detect the distance between the distance sensor and the front object (such as a goods shelf), and further collision caused by human judgment errors is prevented. On the other hand, the control method for the forklift can control the body of the forklift to stop moving when the distance is smaller than the warning range, so that the forklift can be prevented from colliding with a forward object when moving forward.

In order to make the aforementioned and other objects, features and advantages of the present invention comprehensible, preferred embodiments accompanied with figures are described in detail below.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic view illustrating a fork lift truck according to an embodiment of the present invention moving toward a target object.

Fig. 2 is a block schematic diagram of the fork lift truck of fig. 1.

FIG. 3 is a schematic view of a fork lift truck according to another embodiment of the present invention moving toward a target object.

Fig. 4 is a schematic arrangement of sensing elements of the fork lift truck of fig. 3.

Fig. 5 is a schematic arrangement diagram of sensing elements of a forklift according to another embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of a fork lift truck according to another embodiment of the present invention moving toward a target object.

Fig. 7 is a flowchart of a control method for a forklift according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 8 is a flowchart of a control method for a forklift according to another embodiment of the present invention.

Detailed Description

The foregoing and other technical and scientific aspects, features and utilities of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of a preferred embodiment thereof, which is to be read in connection with the accompanying drawings. Directional terms as referred to in the following examples, for example: up, down, left, right, front or rear, etc., are directions with reference to the attached drawings only. Accordingly, the directional terminology is used for purposes of illustration and is in no way limiting.

Fig. 1 is a schematic view illustrating a fork lift truck according to an embodiment of the present invention moving toward a target object. Fig. 2 is a block schematic diagram of the fork lift truck of fig. 1. Referring to fig. 1 and 2, the forklift 100 includes a body 110, a mast member 120, a cargo member 130, a distance sensor 140, and a processor 150. Mast member 120 has a bottom end B and a top end T. Bottom B is fixed in automobile body 110, and top T is relative with bottom B. The cargo member 130 has a lifting portion 131 and a cargo portion 132. The lifting part 131 is movably disposed on the mast member 120, and the loading part 132 is connected to the lifting part 131 and extends along the extending direction E. The distance sensor 140 is disposed on the elevating portion 131 and between the loading portion 132 and the bottom end B. The distance sensor 140 is disposed toward the extending direction E and can sense the distance D of an object O in the extending direction E of the loading portion 132, such as a layer of a shelf or an obstacle in the path. The processor 150 is electrically connected to the distance sensor 140 and can determine whether the distance D is smaller than the warning range.

With continued reference to fig. 1, the load carrying member 130 can be moved along the mast member 120 to a height suitable for pick-up or discharge. The loading portion 132 of the present embodiment is, for example, a fork (fork). Specifically, the cargo carrying member 130 may have two opposite ends E1 and E2, the end E1 is connected to the lifting portion 131, and the extending direction E is, for example, from the end E1 to the end E2. Further, the extending direction E is substantially parallel to the advancing direction of the vehicle body 110 moving toward the object O, for example, but the invention is not limited thereto.

The distance sensor 140 of the present embodiment can be an optical distance sensor to improve the detection accuracy through the feature of high directivity. The optical distance sensor includes, for example, a laser distance sensor, an infrared distance sensor, a photo sensor using an LED as a light source, or other distance sensors including an optical element, but the embodiment is not limited thereto. To further improve the detection accuracy, the distance sensor 140 of the present invention may include a plurality of sensing elements. For example, referring to the forklift 100a of fig. 3 and 4, the distance sensor 140a may include

sensing elements

141a, 142a and 143a arranged on the lifting portion 131 to provide a larger detection range. For example, the

sensing elements

142a and 143a may be closer to the bottom end B of the mast 120 than the sensing element 141a, such that the sensing element 141a can detect a distance D from an object O (e.g., a deck of a rack), and the

sensing elements

142a and 143a can detect a distance D1 from an object O1 (e.g., a pallet or goods), wherein the height of the object O1 on the rack may be different from the height of the object O on the rack. It can be understood that the arrangement of the

sensing elements

141a, 142a and 143a is not limited to that shown in the drawings. For example, the

sensing elements

141a, 142a and 143a of fig. 3 and 4 can be arranged in the Y direction to detect the objects O and O1 with different heights. In one embodiment, such as the forklift 100b shown in fig. 5, the sensing elements 141b of the distance sensor 140b may be arranged in the Z-direction to provide a different detection range from that shown in fig. 4. In another embodiment, the

sensing elements

141a, 142a and 143a (or the sensing elements 141 b) can also be arranged in a matrix or other planar shape, and the specific arrangement can be determined according to the actual requirement, which is not limited by the invention.

Similar to the embodiment of fig. 3, the distance sensor 140c of the forklift 100c of fig. 6 may include sensing

elements

141c, 142c and 143c, and the

sensing elements

141c, 142c and 143c may have a function of transmitting and receiving signals. In detail, the angle of the signal G1 sent by the sensing element 141c is different from the angles of the signals G2 and G3 sent by the

sensing elements

142c and 143c, so as to further expand the detection range. For example, the

sensing elements

142c and 143c can send out signals G2 and G3 along the extending direction E to detect the distance D from the object O (e.g., a shelf), and the sensing element 141c can send out a signal G1 toward the ground to detect the distance D2 from the object O2 (e.g., debris on the ground). Incidentally, the arrangement direction of the

sensing elements

141c, 142c and 143c in fig. 6 is only illustrative and not intended to limit the present embodiment. In addition, the number of the

sensing elements

141a, 142a, 143a, 141b, 141c, 142c and 143c in each embodiment can be changed according to the actual requirement, and the invention is not limited thereto.

Referring to fig. 1 and fig. 2 together, the processor 150 of the present embodiment may include a Micro Controller Unit (MCU), but the invention is not limited thereto. The processor 150 may control the operation of the cargo 130, the distance sensor 140, and other components, the detailed features of which will be described below.

Vehicle body 110 may move in a manner of being operated by a human or by processor 150, such as automatic driving, where vehicle body 110 of the present embodiment moves in a manner of being operated by processor 150, for example, but other embodiments are not limited thereto. In detail, the forklift 100 of the present embodiment may further include a wheel driving element 160. The wheel driving element 160 is disposed in the body 110 and electrically connected to the processor 150. The processor 150 can control the wheel driving element 160 to drive the vehicle body 110 to move, and the processor 150 can control the wheel driving element 160 to stop moving the vehicle body 110 when the distance D is smaller than the warning range, so as to further prevent the stacker 100 from colliding with the object O. In the present embodiment, the wheel driving element 160 includes, for example, a wheel driving motor, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

The fork lift 100 of the present embodiment may further include a positioning device 170. The positioning device 170 is disposed at the top end T of the mast member 120 and is capable of positioning the coordinate position of the forklift 100. The processor 150 calculates the target distance TD between the forklift 100 and the target object TO by using the coordinate positions. Specifically, the coordinate position is, for example, a position of the forklift 100 in the warehousing environment, and may change with the movement of the forklift 100. The target object TO is, for example, a shelf preset by the forklift 100 for picking or unloading, and the processor 150 can control the car body 110 TO move toward the target object TO by the coordinate position so as TO perform the actions of picking or unloading. In this embodiment, the locating device 170 may comprise a two-dimensional or three-dimensional optical radar (LiDAR). In another embodiment, the positioning device 170 may include an Inertial Measurement Unit (IMU), but the invention is not limited thereto.

Compared to the prior art, the stacker 100 of the present embodiment employs the distance sensor 140, and the distance sensor 140 is disposed on the lifting portion 131 of the stacker 100. Before the forklift 100 is ready to start picking up or unloading goods from the shelf, the elevating part 131 is moved along the mast member 120 to a height corresponding to the shelf deck, so that the distance sensor 140 located on the elevating part 131 is also moved to a height corresponding to the shelf deck. Thus, when the forklift 100 moves forward, the distance sensor 140 can detect the distance D between itself and the front object O (e.g., a layer board of a shelf), thereby preventing collision due to human error.

Fig. 7 is a flowchart of a control method for a forklift according to an embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 1, fig. 2 and fig. 7 together, the control method for the forklift of the present embodiment can prevent the forklift 100 from colliding. The forklift 100 includes the features described above, and the control method for the forklift includes the following steps. Please refer to step S1: the distance D of the object O in the extending direction E of the loading portion 132 is sensed by the distance sensor 140. The extending direction E is, for example, substantially parallel to the advancing direction of the vehicle body 110 when moving toward the object O, but is not limited thereto.

Next, please refer to step S2: controlling, by the processor 150, the lifting part 131 to move to a predetermined position along the mast member 120; wherein the predetermined position may correspond to the height of the pallet to be picked up (or unloaded). Incidentally, the distance sensor 140 of the present embodiment can be continuously operated when the lifting part 131 moves along the mast member 120, but the invention is not limited thereto.

After the lifting part 131 moves to a predetermined position along the mast member 120, step S3 is performed: the processor 150 determines whether the distance D is smaller than the warning range. The warning range may be determined according to the weight of the forklift 100 and the cargo, for example, between several centimeters and tens of centimeters, but the invention is not limited thereto.

Referring TO step S4, when the distance D is greater than or equal TO the warning range, the vehicle body 110 is controlled TO move toward the target object TO. In other words, when the distance D is greater than or equal TO the warning range, the processor 150 determines that the vehicle body 110 is not at risk of collision, and thus controls the vehicle body 110 TO move continuously toward the target object TO.

Referring to step S5, when the distance D is smaller than the warning range, the vehicle body 110 is controlled to stop moving, so as to prevent the stacker 100 from colliding with the object O. For example, the wheel driving unit 160 can be controlled by the processor 150 to stop moving the vehicle body 110. The wheel driving element 160 may include a wheel driving motor, but other embodiments are not limited thereto. Incidentally, when the distance D is smaller than the warning range, the loading portion 132 of the loading member 130 already extends above the floor of the shelf, so that the loading member 130 can start to perform the actions of picking up or unloading, but the invention is not limited to the following operations. Further, the cargo 130 may be operated by the processor 150, but the present invention is not limited thereto.

Fig. 8 is a flowchart of a control method for a forklift according to another embodiment of the present invention. Referring to fig. 1, fig. 2 and fig. 8, after step S5, the control method for the forklift may further include step S6: the distance sensor 140 is turned off by the processor 150. In detail, when the distance sensor 140 is very close TO the target object TO, some of the foreign objects that do not cause an unexpected collision, such as dust or wires, or wires of goods are used as obstacles, so the processor 150 can close the distance sensor 140 after determining that the distance D is smaller than the warning range, so as TO prevent the vehicle body 110 from stopping moving due TO the misdetection of the foreign objects. Additionally, the processor 150 may control the cargo-carrying members 130 TO perform the pickup or unloading operation after the distance sensors 140 are turned off, and control the vehicle body 110 TO leave the target object TO after the cargo-carrying members 130 complete the pickup or unloading operation.

Before performing step S1, the control method for the forklift may further include step S0: the coordinate position of the fork lift 100 is located by the locating device 170. The detailed features of the positioning device 170 and the coordinate positions are described above, and the description thereof is omitted here.

After the coordinate position of the forklift 100 is located, the control method for the forklift may further include the step S7 of: the processor 150 calculates a target distance TD between the forklift 100 and the target object TO according TO the coordinate positions. In detail, the target object TO may be a shelf TO be picked or unloaded, and the processor 150 can determine whether the stacker 100 has reached the front of the target object TO according TO the target distance TD. Before the stacker 100 reaches the front of the target object TO, the processor 150 may turn off the distance sensor 140 TO prevent the distance sensor 140 from stopping moving due TO misdetection of another object before the stacker 100 is not yet close TO the target object TO. In addition, when the storage environment is greatly changed (for example, positions of a plurality of shelves are changed), the positioning device 170 may not accurately position the coordinate position of the forklift 100. In this case, the processor 150 may turn on the distance sensor 140 and determine whether the distance D is smaller than the warning range, so as TO prevent the stacker 100 from colliding during moving toward the target object TO.

After step S7, the control method for the forklift may further include step S8: the processor 150 determines whether the target distance TD is less than or equal to the warning range. When the target distance TD is less than or equal to the warning range, the step S5 may be performed first, and then the step S6 may be performed. And when the target distance TD is larger than the warning range, performing the step S4. Incidentally, steps S7 and S8 of the present embodiment can be performed simultaneously with steps S1, S2 and S3, for example, when the distance sensor 140 detects and determines whether the distance D is smaller than the warning range, the positioning device 170 can detect and determine whether the target distance TD is smaller than or equal to the warning range, but other embodiments are not limited thereto.

Compared with the prior art, since the control method for the forklift of the embodiment can control the vehicle body 110 to stop moving when the distance D between the forklift 100 and the object O is smaller than the warning range, collision with the object O ahead can be prevented when the forklift 100 moves forward. In addition, the control method for the fork lift truck of the present embodiment can also be applied to the

fork lift trucks

100a, 100b and 100c.

In summary, the forklift of the present invention employs the distance sensor, and the distance sensor is disposed in the lifting portion of the forklift. Before the stacker is ready to pick up or unload goods from the shelves, the elevating section is moved along the mast member to a height corresponding to the shelf deck, and the distance sensor provided on the elevating section is also moved to a height corresponding to the shelf deck. Therefore, when the fork lift advances, the distance sensor can detect the distance between the fork lift and a front object (such as a goods shelf), and further collision caused by human judgment errors is prevented. On the other hand, the control method for the forklift can control the vehicle body of the forklift to stop moving when the distance is smaller than the warning range, so that the control method can prevent the forklift from colliding with the front object when the forklift moves forwards.

The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention, which is defined by the appended claims and all simple equivalent variations and modifications of the present invention as described in the following claims and their equivalents. Moreover, not all objects, advantages, or features disclosed herein are to be achieved in any one embodiment or claim of the present invention. In addition, the abstract and the title of the invention are provided for assisting the retrieval of patent documents and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention.

100. 100a, 100b, 100c fork lift truck

110 vehicle body

120 mast element

130 cargo carrying member

131 lifting part

132 cargo carrying part

140. 140a, 140b, 140c distance sensors

141a, 141b, 141c, 142a, 143a, 142c, 143c sensing elements

150 processor

160 wheel driving element

170 positioning device

X, Y, Z Direction

B, bottom end

D. D1 and D2 distance

E direction of extension

E1, E2 ends

G1, G2, G3 signals

O, O1, O2 object

S0, S1, S2, S3, S4, S5, S6, S7, S8

T is the top end

TD target distance

TO is the target object.

Claims

1. A fork lift, comprising: a body, a mast, a cargo carrying member, a distance sensor and a processor,

the mast piece is provided with a bottom end and a top end, the bottom end is fixed on the vehicle body, and the top end is opposite to the bottom end;

the loading part is provided with a lifting part and a loading part, the lifting part is movably arranged on the mast part, and the loading part is connected with the lifting part and extends along the extending direction;

the distance sensor is arranged on the lifting part and positioned between the loading part and the bottom end, and is used for sensing the distance of an object in the extending direction of the loading part; and

the processor is electrically connected with the distance sensor and is used for judging whether the distance is smaller than the warning range.

2. The forklift of claim 1, further comprising:

the processor is used for controlling the wheel driving element to drive the vehicle body to move, and the processor is used for controlling the wheel driving element to stop moving the vehicle body when the distance is smaller than the warning range.

3. The forklift of claim 1, further comprising:

and the positioning device is arranged at the top end of the mast piece and used for positioning the coordinate position of the forklift, and the processor calculates the target distance between the forklift and the target object according to the coordinate position.

4. The forklift of claim 3, wherein the processor turns off the distance sensor when the target distance is less than or equal to the warning range.

5. The forklift of claim 1, wherein the distance sensor comprises:

and a plurality of sensing elements arranged on the lifting part.

6. The forklift of claim 1, wherein the distance sensor is an optical distance sensing element.

7. The forklift of claim 1, wherein said cargo-carrying member has opposite ends, and one of said ends is connected to said lifting portion, said extending direction being directed from one of said ends connected to said lifting portion to the other of said ends.

8. A control method for a fork lift truck for preventing collision of the fork lift truck, the fork lift truck comprising a truck body, a mast member having a bottom end and a top end, a load carrying member having a lifting portion and a loading portion, a distance sensor and a processor, the control method comprising:

sensing a distance of an object in an extending direction of the loading part through the distance sensor;

controlling, by the processor, the lifting portion to move along the mast member to a predetermined position;

judging whether the distance is smaller than an alarm range through the processor;

when the distance is larger than or equal to the warning range, controlling the vehicle body to move towards a target object; and

and when the distance is smaller than the warning range, controlling the vehicle body to stop moving.

9. The control method for a forklift according to claim 8, further comprising:

turning off the distance sensor through the processor.

10. The control method for a forklift according to claim 8, wherein the step of controlling the vehicle body to stop moving when the distance is less than the warning range includes:

and controlling the wheel driving element to stop moving the vehicle body through the processor.

11. The control method for a forklift according to claim 8, further comprising:

positioning the coordinate position of the stacking machine through a positioning device;

and calculating the target distance between the forklift and the target object by the coordinate position through the processor.

12. The control method for a forklift according to claim 11, further comprising:

judging whether the target distance is smaller than or equal to the warning range through the processor; and

when the target distance is smaller than or equal to the warning range, the processor closes the distance sensor.

13. The control method for a forklift according to claim 8, wherein the distance sensor includes:

the mast piece is fixed on the vehicle body, the lifting part is movably arranged on the mast piece, and the sensing elements are arranged on the lifting part.

14. The control method for a forklift according to claim 8, wherein the distance sensor is an optical distance sensing element.