JP2002193411A - Facility operation monitoring device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a facility operation monitoring device capable of quickly finding abnormality generated on software of a system. SOLUTION: A large-to-medium scale physical distribution automated system having automated warehouse facilities, conveyer carrier facilities, and automatic guided vehicle facilities is provided with a loaded signal input part 7 inputting the loaded/unloaded states of system products via a facilities controller 5, a loaded signal validity determination part 6 determining the validity of the loaded states by comparing loaded and unloaded states in the system unloaded state with the presence/absence states of a product loaded signal obtained from the loaded signal input part 7, and an alarm display part 9 displaying the abnormal points of the determination result.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an equipment operation monitoring apparatus used for warehouse management of an automatic distribution system.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in this kind of distribution system, equipment for receiving, storing, and shipping a large variety of products and a large amount of products, that is, conveyors, automatic guided vehicles, and automatic warehouses for various purposes are used. Have.

In this physical distribution system, there are provided a number of sensors for recognizing the presence or absence of a product existing on the above-mentioned equipment. Based on a signal from the sensor, an equipment controller and a higher-ranking equipment controller are provided. Tracking is performed by the site management computer located.

[0004]

However, the sensor for recognizing the presence or absence of this product has a problem in the accuracy of the mounting position,
Since the optical axis shifts due to a collision due to the inclination of the conveyed product or the like, and inexpensive ones are often used, the quality of the presence signal indicating the presence or absence of the product is not high.

[0005] Therefore, only when a line stop or a line congestion occurs due to the nature of such a sensor, it is noticed that there is some kind of failure, and the cause thereof is analyzed.

In this case, if the cause of the line stop is a physical and visual abnormality of the facility, it can be quickly detected,
The cause can be eliminated, but if there is a cause in control, such as timing charts, it is difficult to identify the location or the cause of the failure, so it takes time to recover. As a result, there is a problem that the operation rate of the system is deteriorated.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a facility operation monitoring device that can quickly detect an abnormality that occurs in software of a system.

[0008]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION A facility operation monitoring apparatus according to the present invention is an apparatus for monitoring the presence / absence of a product in a logistics automation system including an automatic warehouse facility, a conveyor transport facility, an unmanned transport cart facility, and the like. The validity of the presence status is compared by comparing the presence status of the presence signal in the no-load state of the system with the presence status of the product presence signal obtained from this presence signal input unit. It is characterized by comprising a presence signal validity determination unit to be determined, and an alarm display unit that displays an abnormal part of the determination result.

Further, in the equipment operation monitoring apparatus of the present invention, in a logistics automation system including an automatic warehouse equipment, a conveyor transport equipment, an unmanned transport trolley equipment, etc., an equipment controller determines the presence / absence state of products to be systemized. Signal input section input via the PC, the path time from ON to OFF of the input signal, the pitch time from the OFF of the preceding product to the ON of the next product, and the ON from the upstream ON to the current position A stock signal time table that tabulates the transfer time up to and so forth, a stock signal validity determination unit that detects chattering during operation of the system, and an alarm display unit that displays an abnormal part of the determination result. It is characterized by the following.

Further, according to the equipment operation monitoring apparatus of the present invention, in a logistics automation system provided with an automatic warehouse equipment, a conveyor transportation equipment, an unmanned transportation trolley equipment, etc., a presence / absence state of a product to be systemized and a control signal A control signal input unit for inputting the control signal via the equipment controller, a control unit that captures a control output signal corresponding to the input stock signal, a time chart generation unit that captures a control signal from the control unit and generates a time chart, and A time chart display unit for displaying the generated time chart.

[0011]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4. First, an embodiment of a hardware configuration of a system according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 1 is a configuration block diagram showing an embodiment of a hardware configuration according to the present invention.

In FIG. 1, an upper physical distribution management computer 2 and a site management computer 3 are provided on a data transmission path 1.
And the equipment status display device 4 are connected to each other. Among them, the upper physical distribution management computer 2 is a computer that controls the overall management of the physical distribution system, and the site management computer 3 is installed at the site. A plurality of equipment controllers 5 are connected below the computer.

The equipment controller 5 detects whether or not there is a product on the system equipment by a sensor, and outputs the detection output to the site management computer 3.
To be sent to

In such a configuration, the sensor status of presence / absence presence and the control signal from the equipment controller 5 are input to the site management computer 3 and the site management computer 3
Determines the validity of the presence signal based on the input.

Then, the result of the judgment is displayed on the equipment status display device 4, and at the same time, a time chart of the control signal is displayed together with the control signal output from the site management computer 3.

Next, the function of the site management computer 3 will be described sequentially with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration for monitoring the presence status of products on the system equipment by the site management computer 3 shown in FIG. The load signal input unit 7, the presence signal no-load pattern generation unit 8, and the alarm display unit 9 are connected.
The in-stock signal input unit 7 has a function of taking in an in-stock signal from the equipment controller 5 shown in FIG. 1, and the in-stock signal no-load pattern generating unit 8 operates when the product to be conveyed does not exist in the system. The presence signal is patterned and stored in advance.

Then, the presence signal validity determination section 6 compares the presence signal no-load pattern generation section 8 with the input signal from the presence signal input section 7, and if any abnormality is detected, the abnormality is detected. Is displayed on the alarm display section 9 connected on the line layout.

In such a configuration, first, the presence signal from the equipment controller 5 is fetched from the presence signal input unit 7, and thereafter, the presence signal serving as a reference is used by the presence signal validity judging unit 6. Load signal no-load pattern generator 8
Are compared with each other, and if there is any abnormality in the comparison result, the abnormality is warned on the alarm display unit 9.

In this case, the presence signal validity judging section 6 effectively functions as equipment monitoring before the start of the operation and at the end of the operation. For example, before the start of the operation or at the end of the operation, the product to be transported is simply determined. By the definition that the pattern does not exist on the system line, it is determined that the pattern is the same as the presence signal no-load pattern.

Next, a control function for detecting chattering during operation of the system will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 3 is a functional block diagram showing a function of detecting chattering during operation of the system by the site management computer 3 shown in FIG.

In FIG. 3, the same components as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, detailed description is omitted, and portions different from the embodiment in FIG. 2 will be mainly described below.

In the figure, the configuration is such that an in-stock signal time table 10 is connected to an in-stock signal validity determination unit 6 instead of the in-stock signal no-load pattern generation unit 8 of the embodiment shown in FIG. It has a configuration. The presence signal time table 10 is a table of on / off times of presence signals generated when a conveyed product flows on the equipment of the system.

In such a configuration, first, as in the case of the embodiment of FIG. 2, the presence signal from the equipment controller 5 shown in FIG. And the contents of the presence signal time table 10 are compared by the presence signal validity determination unit 6. As a result of the comparison, if any abnormality is detected, the abnormality is displayed as a warning on the alarm display unit 9.

In this case, the stock signal time table 10
Is the pass time that is appropriate for the transported product to pass when focusing on one sensor, and the time from sensor ON to OFF and the time from when the preceding transported product passes through one sensor to the next transported product. With a pitch time between the appropriate time until the sensor is turned on, one transport product is focused on, and an appropriate transfer time from when the upstream sensor is turned on to when the downstream sensor is turned on is waited.
Thus, when the pass signal is too long, when the inter-pitch is too short, and when the transfer time is too short, the presence signal validity judging section 6 detects an abnormality.

Next, a function for visually monitoring the operation status of each sensor on the system equipment will be described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 4 is a functional block diagram for generating a time chart in which the operation state of each sensor can be monitored by the site management computer 5 shown in FIG.

Referring to FIG.
Is connected to a control signal input unit 12 and a control unit 13, and below the control unit 13 is connected the equipment controller 5 shown in FIG.

Further, a time chart display section 14 is connected to the time chart generation section 11, and this time chart display section 14 displays a monitoring time chart generated by the time chart generation section 11. It is configured.

In such a configuration, the time chart generation unit 11 receives a stock signal and a control signal from the equipment controller 5 via the control signal input unit 12. On the other hand, the control signal output from the control unit 13 which has received the signal from the control signal input unit 12 to the equipment controller 5 is taken into the time chart generation unit 11, and the time chart showing the signal transmission and reception with the equipment controller 5 Is generated. The time chart thus generated is displayed on the time chart display unit 14.

Since the comparison of the control signals can be visually grasped by the time chart displayed in this manner, it is possible to visually confirm whether the signal transmission / reception with the equipment controller 5 is realized at the time of the on-site system adjustment in the system construction stage. It will be able to be evaluated.

[0034]

According to the present invention described above, it is possible to discover whether there is any abnormality in the on / off operation of the sensor at the start of the system operation, and to check the remaining in-process products on the system transport equipment at the end of the system operation. In particular, for a system with a large facility scale, a smooth transition from before system operation to system operation and from system operation to system operation end can be made possible.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to prevent a malfunction of the product tracking during the operation of the system, so that it is possible to detect a malfunction of the sensor and a malfunction of the installation of the sensor. In a system with a large amount of material flow, it is particularly effective in improving the system operation rate.

Further, according to the present invention, it is possible to visually evaluate whether or not the signal transmission / reception with the equipment controller has been correctly realized at the time of the on-site system adjustment at the system construction stage. The efficiency of system construction can be greatly improved.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a configuration block diagram showing an embodiment of a hardware configuration according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a control block diagram showing a functional configuration for monitoring a product in-stock state by a site management computer of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a control block diagram showing a control configuration for realizing a function of detecting chattering during operation of the system on the site management computer of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a control block diagram of a time chart generation control capable of monitoring an operation state of each sensor by a site management computer of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 Reference Signs List 1 data transmission path 2 host distribution management computer 3 site management computer 4 equipment status display unit 5 equipment controller 6 inventory signal validity judgment unit 7 inventory signal input unit 1 inventory signal no-load pattern generation unit 2 alarm display unit 3 Load signal time table 4 Time chart generation unit 5 Control signal input unit 6 Control unit 7 Time chart display unit

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A logistics automation system including an automatic warehouse facility, a conveyor transport facility, an unmanned transport cart facility, and the like, wherein a presence signal input unit for inputting a presence / absence state of a product to be systemized via a facility controller, A presence signal validity determination unit for comparing the presence / absence state of the product unload signal obtained from the presence signal input unit with the presence / absence state of the system no-load state to determine the validity of the presence state, and An equipment operation monitoring device comprising: an alarm display unit that displays an abnormal part of a determination result. 2. A logistics automation system including an automatic warehouse facility, a conveyor transport facility, an unmanned transport truck facility, and the like, wherein a presence signal input unit for inputting a presence / absence state of a product to be system via a facility controller; A table containing the path time from the input signal ON to OFF, the pitch time from the preceding product OFF to the next product ON, and the transfer time from the upstream ON to the current position ON, etc. An equipment operation monitoring device comprising: a signal timetable; a presence signal validity determination unit for detecting chattering during operation of the system; and an alarm display unit for displaying an abnormal part of the determination result. 3. A control signal input for inputting a presence / absence state of a product to be systemized and a control signal via an equipment controller in a logistics automation system including an automatic warehouse facility, a conveyor transport facility, an unmanned transport truck facility, and the like. Unit, a control unit that captures a control output signal corresponding to the input stock signal, a time chart generation unit that captures a control signal from the control unit to generate a time chart, and a time chart that displays the generated time chart A facility operation monitoring device comprising a display unit.