EP2647591B1 - Industrial truck with a display - Google Patents

Description

The invention relates to an industrial truck with a display for visualizing the maximum permissible load capacity of the truck in dependence on a maximum permissible shelf load capacity.

Usually, on a truck, in particular on a forklift, a sign attached, which informs the operator about the maximum load capacity of the truck for different load center distances and different maximum lift heights. WO 99/02445 discloses such an industrial truck.

If different load parts, in particular different load handling devices, used on a truck, so many signs, in particular stickers, are often mounted on the truck.

A variety of such labels can quickly cause operator confusion and erroneous reading. An accidental reading error can lead to personal injury or material damage to the truck.

Also, the maximum permissible shelf load bearing capacity plays an important role when loading a rack with pallets and / or loose goods. Signs on the shelves inform the operator about the maximum permissible load capacity of the respective shelf.

In order to avoid dangers, the personnel operating the truck must observe both the maximum permissible load capacity of the truck and the maximum permissible shelf load capacity. Failure to do so may, for example, result in the truck overturning or overturning or overturning the loaded rack. As a result, personal injury and property damage can occur.

The present invention has for its object to provide an industrial truck with a display that indicates the maximum permissible load capacity of the truck as a function of the maximum permissible shelf load capacity obvious.

This object is achieved by a truck of the type mentioned above with the features of claim 1. Preferred embodiments are specified in the dependent claims.

According to the invention, the truck is equipped with a display, a drive part and a load part. The indicator on the truck is in contact with a control unit. The display can be integrated in the control unit or separate. The control unit is designed such that it identifies a rack which is to be loaded with a load or from which a load is to be unloaded, and determines its maximum permissible shelf load capacity mRT. In addition, the control unit determines the maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the truck. From these two values - the maximum permissible shelf capacity mRT and the maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the truck - the control unit determines the minimum. The determined minimum is then transmitted from the control unit to the display where it is visible to the operator operating the truck. Advantageously, confusion or erroneous reading of the maximum permissible load capacity of the truck depending on the maximum permissible shelf load capacity can be avoided and thus personal and property damage during the work can be reduced, without specifying the maximum load capacity of the truck depending on the maximum permissible shelf-load capacity more than necessary. Rather, a truck with such a display helps to load a warehouse with shelves efficiently and safely and / or to unload.

According to one embodiment, the control unit is arranged on or in the industrial truck. In an arrangement of the control unit in the truck, the control unit may be connected to the drive part of the truck, for example, solid or difficult detachable and powered by this with energy. In an arrangement of the control unit on the truck, the control unit may for example be releasably connected to the truck. Preferably, a guide may be provided on the truck, on which the control unit is pushed and connected to the power supply of the truck. Furthermore, the control unit can be operated with a rechargeable power source. In a portable control unit, the flexibility in use on different trucks is significantly increased.

According to a further embodiment, the control unit is arranged outside of the truck. If the control unit is mounted outside the truck, i. For example, installed externally near or in the warehouse, the power supply of the control unit does not claim the power supply of the truck or a rechargeable power source. With an external control unit, for example, several displays can be controlled on various industrial trucks in the warehouse and receive information transmitted. With this variant, the number of control units and thus the economic effort can be reduced.

According to a further embodiment, the load part on a load-receiving means. Loads can be lifted up to a lifting height with a load handling attachment. The maximum lifting height varies from load handler to load handler and is a variable that characterizes the load handler.

According to one embodiment, the control unit determines the maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the industrial truck as a function of a maximum permissible lifting height HBH and / or as a function of a load center of gravity distance LSP a load picked up on the load section attached to the truck. Based on the load center distance LSP, material handling equipment is classified according to the maximum permissible load capacity. The center of gravity distance LSP is the distance from the load arm heel to the center of gravity of the load. By taking into account the dependence of the maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the truck on the maximum lift height HBH and / or the load center distance LSP, the maximum permissible load capacity for a charged load can be determined more precisely and at the same time the maximum permitted lift height for the load to the operating personnel in the truck are displayed. Lifting the load higher than the maximum lift height can be avoided. Thus, the risk of tipping over of the truck can be reduced and the safety of the staff can be increased.

According to one embodiment, different load-receiving means are attachable to the truck, the different maximum allowable capacities mFT depending on the maximum lift height HBH and / or depending on the load center of gravity distance LSP can be determined by the control unit. The fact that different load handling devices can be attached to the truck, the truck can be retrofitted for in volume and mass different loads. In order nevertheless to provide the improved safety for the operating personnel, the control unit is designed such that it identifies different load handling devices and determines their maximum permissible load capacities mFT. The maximum permissible load capacity mFT can be determined precisely by determining it as a function of the maximum permissible lifting height HBH and / or as a function of the load center of gravity distance LSP. For this purpose, values of the maximum permissible load capacities mFT as a function of the maximum permissible lifting height HBH and / or as a function of the load center of gravity distance LSP are stored in a corresponding memory which can be accessed by the control unit. Such a memory can, for example, in the control unit or in a Transponder or another electronic transmitter and / or receiver module to be integrated. Preferably, the information about the shelf types or the shelf types is stored in a transponder that is positioned on a shelf or near several shelves. The control unit is transmitted by the transponder of the rack type and the control unit then determines the maximum permissible load capacity mFT.

According to one embodiment, the maximum permissible load capacities mFT are stored in the control unit as a function of the lift height HBH and / or as a function of the load center distance LSP for different load parts on an internal memory of the control unit. This ensures safe and quick access to the values for the maximum permissible load capacities mFT.

According to one embodiment, a transponder or transmitter is attached to each attachable load-carrying means of a truck, which transmits the information about the maximum permissible load capacities mFT depending on the maximum lift height HBH and / or depending on the load center of gravity distance LSP for the corresponding attached load-receiving means. By the transponder or transmitter each load-receiving means for the control unit is uniquely identifiable. In addition, such a load-receiving means with different control units or different load-receiving means can be combined with a control unit. The load-receiving means can also be coded by connectors with different resistances and / or by a varying assignment of pins, so that when establishing the electrical connection between the load-receiving means and the control unit immediately the maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the load-receiving means in dependence of the maximum lift height HBH and / or depending on the load center of gravity distance LSP can be determined.

According to one embodiment, the position of the industrial truck in the warehouse by means of RFID transponders in the ground and / or on the shelves can be determined. RFID ( radio-frequency identification) transponders enable the automatic identification and localization of objects. Furthermore, an RFID transponder can be easily attached to the corresponding object such as a shelf and / or on the floor, for example, by gluing it on. RFID transponders can be designed as stickers. If the truck drives past an RFID transponder, the response of the RFID transponder is detected by the control unit and the position can be identified by the control unit on the basis of a storage card.

In accordance with a further embodiment, the position of the industrial truck in the warehouse can be determined by means of WLAN and / or odometry and / or with other positioning systems. A WLAN transmitter allows to send information to the control unit so that the control unit identifies the position of the truck based on the internal storage card. Odometers are used in ground-based vehicles such as industrial trucks. Here, the position is determined by the number of Radumdrehungen the truck and transmitted to the control unit.

According to one embodiment, the control unit determines the maximum permissible shelf load capacity mRT of a rack to be loaded or unloaded as a function of the maximum permissible lifting height HBH by means of an RFID tan-pager or a WLAN transmitter. The maximum permissible shelf capacity mRT of a shelf depends on the maximum permissible lifting height HBH of a rack, which is also called stacking height. In connection with the present invention, the stacking height is preferably designated by the maximum permissible lifting height HBH of a shelf, since it is in connection with a truck to maximum lift heights for a corresponding shelf. The maximum permissible lifting height HBH of a shelf is for a load with weight G increasing Height from shelf to shelf does not increase. Rather, the stacking height is constant for a number of shelves and decreases from a certain height. This avoids that particularly heavy loads are stored higher than less heavy loads in a rack. A resulting instability of the shelf due to incorrect loading is thereby avoidable. The consideration of the maximum permissible lifting height HBH in determining the maximum permissible shelf load capacity mRT of a rack to be loaded or unloaded makes it possible to carry out the loading and unloading of a rack efficiently and safely. Incorrect loading and / or unloading can be avoided by transmitting the RFID tan ponder or the WLAN transmitter to the shelf types and thus the maximum permissible load for the relevant maximum permitted lifting height of the control unit and the control unit transmits them to the display.

According to one embodiment, the maximum permissible shelf load capacity mRT of the racks as a function of the maximum permissible lifting height HBH are stored in an internal memory in a storage unit in the control unit. This internal memory can be accessed by the control unit. For example, the internal memory is integrated in the control unit itself or in an RFID transponder and / or in a WLAN transmitter.

According to one embodiment, the information about the maximum permissible shelf load capacity as a function of the maximum permissible lifting height of a shelf in a transponder or a WLAN transmitter are stored on the corresponding shelf and transferable to the control unit.

According to one embodiment, a rack to be loaded or unloaded is identified by means of WLAN and / or by means of at least one RFID transponder on the respective shelf, and the maximum permissible shelf capacity mRT is determined from an internal memory of the control unit or the transponder or the transmitter. The Prior identification of a rack reduces the risk of incorrect loading.

According to one embodiment, a shelf is identifiable by means of the position of the truck in the warehouse. For example, the shelves may be noted on an internal storage card so that upon identification of the position of the truck in the hall, the shelf and its maximum allowable shelf capacity mRT are determined at the same time.

gilt. Dabei ist die maximal zulässige Tragfähigkeit mFT des Flurförderzeugs in Abhängigkeit der maximal zulässigen Hubhöhe HBH und des Lastschwerpunktabstandes LSP in Form einer tabellarischen Matrix (Tabelle 1) angegeben. Tabelle 1 maximal zulässige Tragfähigkeit mFT des Flurförderzeugs Hubhöhe [mm] Max. Last [kg] Bei LSP 600 mm Max. Last [kg] Bei LSP 700 mm Max. Last [kg] Bei LSP 800 mm 7400 1950 1740 1570 6200 2290 2040 1840 5000 2500 2230 2010 In the following, an example value for the minimum to be determined by the control unit is given as the maximum permissible load capacity of the industrial truck as a function of the maximum permissible shelf load capacity. The minimum is calculated by the control unit with
min (mFT (HBH, LSP), mRT (HBH)), where $$\min \left(a,b\right):=\{\begin{array}{l}a;a\le b\\ b;a>b\end{array}$$

applies. The maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the truck is specified as a function of the maximum permissible lifting height HBH and the load center of gravity distance LSP in the form of a tabular matrix (Table 1). Table 1 Maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the truck Lifting height [mm] Max. Load [kg] For LSP 600 mm Max. Load [kg] For LSP 700 mm Max. Load [kg] For LSP 800 mm 7400 1950 1740 1570 6200 2290 2040 1840 5000 2500 2230 2010

The maximum permissible shelf load capacity mRT is given as a function of the maximum permissible lifting height HBH in the form of a tabular vector (Table 2). Table 2 maximum permissible shelf load capacity mRT Lifting height [mm] Max. Load shelf [kg] 7400 1000 6200 2000 5000 3000

As a result, the control unit calculates the minimum as a function of the maximum permissible lifting height in the form of a tabular vector (Table 3). Table (3) minimum Lifting height [mm] Max. Load [kg] For LSP 600 mm Max. Load [kg] For LSP 700 mm Max. Load [kg] For LSP 800 mm 7400 1000 1000 1000 6200 2000 2000 1840 5000 2500 2230 2010

Table 3 shows that, for example, with a lifting height of 6200 mm and a center of gravity distance of 600 mm, the smaller value, ie the minimum, of the maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the truck of 2290 kg and the maximum permissible shelf load capacity mRT of 2000 kg is the maximum permissible Shelf capacity mRT is limited to 2000 kg. On the other hand, with a lifting height of 6200 mm and a load center distance of 800 mm, the minimum is the maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the truck of 1840 kg and the maximum permissible shelf capacity mRT of 2000 kg limited by the maximum permissible load capacity mFT of the truck with 1840 kg.

• Fig. 1 ein Flurförderzeug mit einem Hubmast und einer Last,
• Fig. 2 ein Flussdiagramm zur Erläuterung der Funktionsweise des Systems aus Hubmast, Regal, Steuereinheit und Anzeige,
• Fig. 3 ein Flussdiagramm in einer Variante zu Fig. 2.

The invention will be described below with reference to FIG FIGS. 1 to 3 explained in more detail. It shows purely schematically:

• Fig. 1 an industrial truck with a lifting mast and a load,
• Fig. 2 a flow chart for explaining the operation of the system of mast, shelf, control unit and display,
• Fig. 3 a flowchart in a variant to Fig. 2 ,

FIG. 1 schematically shows an industrial truck 1 with a drive part 2 and a load-receiving means 4. According to FIG. 1 the load-receiving means 4 is a lifting mast for lifting a load 3 to a lifting height HBH. The maximum lift height HBH depends on the center of gravity LSP. The center of gravity distance LSP is the distance from the load arm of the load receiving means 4 to the center of gravity of the load 3. The larger the load center distance LSP, the smaller the maximum lift height HBH. Further shows FIG. 1 an industrial truck with a control unit 10, according to FIG. 1 with the truck firmly or is difficult to detachably connected. The display 12 is in the field of view of the truck 1 serving staff. As in FIG. 1 shown, the display 12 is integrated into the operating board 15 of the truck 1.

The display shown only schematically is preferably an electronic picture or flat screen. The display of the flat screen may be formed with LEDs (Light Emitting Diode), liquid crystal (LCD - liquid crystal display) or plasma technology (PDP - plasma display panel). Furthermore, the display can be clipped to the truck or welded or screwed or glued. Likewise, the display could be integrated in the operating board of the truck. Also, the display in a mounted on the truck guide be plugged so that the display is easily removable and transportable. In this way, a display can be used on various industrial trucks. In a portable display also used defined display modes such as font size and font, or even the language can be selected.

FIG. 2 schematically shows a flow chart that visualizes the occurrence of information transfer from the control unit to the display. The lifting mast 4 attached to the truck 1 specifies the maximum permissible load capacity mFT 14 of the industrial truck 1. This is transmitted to the control unit SE 10. Each shelf also has a maximum permissible shelf capacity mRT 18. This is also transmitted to the control unit SE 10. If the control unit has received both values - mFT 14 and mRT 18 - the minimum is calculated from both values 14 and 18. The minimum calculated by the control unit 10 is transmitted to the display 12. The display 12 visualizes the determined minimum for the operating personnel who can easily read the value.

FIG. 3 shows a variant of the flowchart FIG. 2 , Herein, the maximum permissible load capacity mFT 14 of the truck 1 is not a number but a matrix. For example, the entries of a column of the matrix indicate the maximum load capacity mFT as a function of discrete lift heights, while the rows of the matrix indicate the maximum allowable load capacity mFT as a function of discrete load center distances LSP. Thus, each entry of the matrix indicates the maximum permissible load capacity mFT as a function of a lift height HBH and a load center distance LSP. This matrix is transmitted to the control unit SE 10. Furthermore, the maximum permissible shelf load capacity mRT is transmitted to the control unit as a function of the maximum permissible lifting height HBH. This is therefore a vector.

The control unit determines the minimum of the values mFT 14 and mRT 18 for each discrete lifting height HBH. Consequently, the operating personnel can easily read whether they can transport the load with the attached load handling device 4 to a certain lifting height and if and up to which maximum permissible Lifting height, the load is in the appropriate shelf inviting.

Claims (15)

1. An industrial truck (1) with a display (12), a drive part (2) and a load lifting means (4), wherein the display (12) is in contact with a control unit (10), wherein the control unit (10) is designed to:

   • determine the maximum permissible load bearing capacity mFT (14) of the industrial truck (1), characterized in that the control unit (10) is furthermore designed to:

   • identify a shelf to be loaded or unloaded (20) and its maximum permissible shelf load bearing capacity mRT (18),

   • determine the minimum of the determined values (14, 18) and, depending on the maximum permissible shelf load bearing capacity, transmit the minimum as the maximum permissible load bearing capacity of the industrial truck to the display (12) which is arranged in the field of vision the operating personnel for the sake of visualization.
2. The industrial truck (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit (10) is arranged on or in the industrial truck (1).
3. The industrial truck (1) according to claim 1, characterized in that the control unit (10) is arranged outside of the industrial truck (1).
4. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that the load lifting means (4) has a lift mast.
5. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that the control unit (10) determines the maximum permissible load bearing capacity mFT (14) of the industrial truck (1) depending on a maximum permissible lifting height HBH and/or depending on a load centre distance LSP of an assumed load (3) on the attached load lifting means (4).
6. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that different load parts (4) are attachable to the industrial truck (1) whose different maximum permissible load bearing capacities mFT (14) are determinable depending on the maximum permissible lifting height HBH and/or depending on the load centre distance LSP from the control unit.
7. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, depending on the maximum permissible lifting height HBH and/or depending on the load centre distance LSP for different load parts (4), the maximum load bearing capacities mFT (14) can be saved in an internal memory in the control unit that is accessed by the control unit (10).
8. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that a transponder or transmitter or a plug-side code is attached to each attachable load lifting means (4) of an industrial truck, and transmits the information about the maximum permissible load bearing capacities mFT (14) to the control unit (10) depending on the maximum permissible lifting height HBH and/or depending on the load centre distance LSP for the corresponding attached load lifting means (4).
9. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the position of the industrial truck (1) in the warehouse is determinable by means of RFID transponders in the floor and/or on the shelves (20).
10. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that the position of the industrial truck (1) in the warehouse is determinable by means of WLAN and/or odometry, and/or with other position determining systems.
11. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that the control unit (10) determines the maximum permissible shelf load bearing capacity mRT (18) of a shelf (20) to be loaded or unloaded depending on the maximum permissible lifting height HBH by means of an RFID transponder or a WLAN transmitter.
12. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the maximum permissible shelf load bearing capacity mRT (18) of the shelves (20) is saved in an internal memory in the control unit depending on the maximum permissible lifting height HBH within a warehouse.
13. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 11, characterized in that the information on the maximum permissible shelf load bearing capacity depending on the maximum permissible lifting height of a shelf (20) is saved in a transponder or a WLAN transmitter on the corresponding shelf (20) and is transmittable to the control unit (10).
14. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 13, characterized in that a shelf (20) to be loaded or unloaded is identified by means of WLAN and/or by means of at least one RFID transponder on the respective shelf, and the maximum permissible load bearing capacity mRT is determined from an internal memory of the control unit or the transponder/transmitter.
15. The industrial truck (1) according to one of claims 1 to 14, characterized in that a shelf (20) and its maximum permissible shelf load bearing capacity mRT (18) is determinable by means of the identified position of the industrial truck (1) in the warehouse.

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