JP2002199511A - Device and method of power failure automatic detection and power supply automatic cutoff for automated guided vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a system of a battery-powered automated guided vehicle which is able to restore a plant's electric power and to activate the automated guided vehicle by automatically cutting power supply of the automated guided vehicle and retaining electricity of the power supply when power failure occurs. SOLUTION: An AGV control unit 50 is connected with multiple wireless transmitting/receiving modules 40' via a wireless communication interface 60, and the AGV control unit is connected with a UPS equipped with an automatic power failure detection means 722. The automated guided vehicle is equipped with a battery, the wireless transmitting/receiving modules, and a power supply cutting means 14 to cut power supply of the automated guided vehicle. When the power supply is stopped, the automatic power failure detection means 722 transmits information on the power failure to the AGV control unit, the AGV control unit generates a power supply cutting signal and transmits the signal to the automated guided vehicle by the wireless transmitting/receiving modules, and the automated guided vehicle receives the power supply cutting signal and automatically cuts the power supply.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic power outage detection and automatic power-off device for a battery type automatic guided vehicle and a method for automatically detecting a power outage and automatic power off of a battery type automatic guided vehicle.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art AGV (Automatically Guided Vehic)
le), a so-called battery-driven automatic guided vehicle (hereinafter simply referred to as an unmanned guided vehicle) is used as a power source in a wafer production factory or a TFT-LCD production factory employing an AGV system as a power source. An AGV unit that controls the operation of the automatic guided vehicle is arranged and used. By the way, when the power supply of the automatic guided vehicle, whose operation is controlled by the AGV unit, is cut off, the power supply is cut off manually. That is, when the power supply of the automatic guided vehicle is turned off, not the control by the AGV unit, but the worker at the site operates the power switch of the automatic guided vehicle to turn off the power supply.

[0003] Therefore, if an emergency situation such as an earthquake or a fire occurs and a power outage occurs, control by the AGV unit stops, and operation of the automatic guided vehicle stops, workers at the site first evacuate. It is impossible to turn off the automatic guided vehicle immediately when an emergency occurs. For this reason, when the worker returns to the site to recover the work, the automatic guided vehicle runs out of power stored in the battery without being able to obtain timely charging due to a power outage. Therefore, when the power supply to the factory is restored and production is to be resumed, the automatic guided vehicle must be charged and cannot be immediately put into the production line at the same time as the power supply is restored. The line will remain out of production and the machinery and equipment must be idle.

[0004] In the control of the known automatic guided vehicle, the automatic guided vehicle (10) is controlled by an AGV control unit (50) serving as a power supply (70) for transmitting power to a factory, as disclosed in FIG. The AGV control unit has, for example, an AGV number (Ve
hicle No.), destination of travel (Destination), or commands such as permission to enter (Permission to Enter), the infrared communication interface (6
0), an infrared signal is emitted through the infrared emitting / receiving module (30) and transmitted to the automatic guided vehicle (10). In addition, the automatic guided vehicle (10) uses an infrared emitting / receiving module (30) to control the AGV control unit (50).
Receives the command signal output from. If the received command is to transfer the cassette (not shown) to the automatic guided vehicle to the mechanical equipment (80), the automatic guided vehicle (10) removes the cassette from the stocker (Stocker), and removes the cassette from the stocker (Stocker). 80) Convey to upper Loader.

[0005] In addition, the automatic guided vehicle (10) is, for example, a job complete (Job Complete), an entry request (Inquire to Enter).
r), the state of the automatic guided vehicle such as a low battery (Battery Low) is transmitted to the AGV control unit (50) via the infrared emitting / receiving module (30).

An infrared (I / R) emitting / receiving module (3) provided on a general automatic guided vehicle according to a well-known technique.
As disclosed in FIG. 2, the effective communication distance for 0) is 12 to 13 meters in the longitudinal direction and 2 meters in the lateral direction. Due to the insufficient communication distance, the ceiling (42) is provided with an infrared (IR) emitting / receiving module (4) at a distance of 24 meters in the vertical direction.
0) must be provided. In the horizontal direction, at intervals of about 4 meters, infrared (IR)
A launch / receive module (40) must be provided.

[0007] If the AGV exhibits a low battery state, the AGV control unit instructs the AGV to move to the high-speed charging station (90), and instructs the AGV to proceed with charging. In this case, when receiving the command, the automatic guided vehicle (10) moves to the high-speed charging station (90) and advances the charging by the power switch (20) mounted on the automatic guided vehicle.

[0008] However, when a power failure occurs in a factory, a well-known AG
V control unit (50), infrared interface (6
0) and an infrared (IR) launch / receive module (3
0), the command cannot be received by the automatic guided vehicle (10) because the supply of electricity is stopped. In this case, the automatic guided vehicle (10) is left in place, but the power of the battery (12) is continuously consumed. In the case of an automatic guided vehicle in which a unit is driven by using a commonly used battery as electric power, charging must be performed every 10 to 30 minutes. Therefore, if the unmanned guided vehicle left behind by the power failure is not charged, the power is always consumed and the power is lost. If the unmanned guided vehicle that has lost power is used again, the unmanned guided vehicle must be recharged,
Due to this charging, work return after a power failure must be extended, which causes a reduction in production capacity.

[0009]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been developed in view of the above-mentioned drawbacks found in the known art, and has an automatic power failure detection and automatic power-off method for an automatic guided vehicle.
And its system. That is,
When a power outage occurs at a production plant and the power is turned off, the automatic guided vehicle automatically detects the power failure and automatically cuts off its own power, thereby exhausting the battery power. Automatic detection of power outage and automatic power supply of automatic guided vehicles, which can prevent the production equipment from being left unattended until the newly-charged automatic guided vehicles are operated, and enable automatic operation of the automatic guided vehicles at the same time that power supply is restored to the factory. It is an object to provide a cutting method and a system thereof.

[0010]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An automatic power outage detection and automatic power off system for an automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention comprises an AGV.
Control unit and UPS (Uninterrupted Power Supp
ly), automatic power failure detection means, a wireless communication interface, a plurality of wireless transmission / reception modules, and an automatic guided vehicle. The AGV control unit connects to at least a plurality of wireless transmission / reception modules via the wireless transmission / reception interface and issues commands. The UPS (U
ninterrupted Power Supply) is automatically activated when power supply is interrupted, and provides the AGV control unit with the required power. The AGV has a battery that provides power for moving the AGV, a wireless transmission / reception module for transmitting / receiving data to / from the AGV control unit, and a power source for the AGV itself. Power-off means. Automatic power failure detection means (means)
Is to automatically generate power failure information when power supply is interrupted. That is, when the power of the system is cut off, the automatic power failure detection means automatically outputs the power failure information to the AG.
To the V control unit, based on which the AGV control unit generates a power-off signal, and transmits the signal to the automatic guided vehicle by the wireless transmission / reception module, and the automatic guided vehicle receives the power-off signal and The power of the electrical equipment, that is, the automatic guided vehicle is automatically cut off.

According to the automatic power outage detection and automatic power off method of the automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention, when the power supply is interrupted,
Automatic power failure detection means (means) automatically generates power failure information and transmits it to the AGV control unit. Based on this, the AGV control unit generates a power-off signal, and the wireless transmission / reception module sends unmanned information. This signal is transmitted to the carrier, and the automatic guided vehicle receives the power-off signal and automatically cuts off the power supply of the electric device, that is, the automatic guided vehicle.

[0012]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS The features, effects, and the like of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to specific examples and drawings. FIG. 3 discloses an automatic power outage detection and automatic power off system for an automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention. The system is applied to a battery type automatic guided vehicle (hereinafter, simply referred to as an automatic guided vehicle). As shown in the drawing, a power supply (70) for supplying power to a production factory includes an uninterruptible power supply. The first said
And the second UPS (Uninterrupted Power Supply) (7
2) and (74) are connected. The first UPS (72) includes a power failure automatic detection means (722). The first UPS (72) connected to the power supply (70) is connected to an AGV control unit (50), which is an automatic guided vehicle control unit, and the AGV control unit (50) connected to the first UPS (72) is It is electrically connected to the wireless communication interface (60). Second UPS connected to the power supply (70)
(74) connects to the power supply (70) and the wireless communication interface (60). Further, the wireless communication interface (60) is electrically connected to a plurality of ultra-high frequency wireless transmission / reception modules (40 '). The plurality of ultra-high frequency radio transmission / reception modules (40 ') include an automatic guided vehicle (10).
Is provided on the ceiling plate (42) along the traveling path of the vehicle.

The automatic guided vehicle (10) uses a battery (12) as a power source, includes a power switch (20) for turning off the power source, and an automatic power-off means (14). An ultra-high frequency radio transmission / reception module (30 ') for communicating with the reception module (40') is provided.

In the automatic power outage detection and automatic power-off system of the automatic guided vehicle having the above configuration, the automatic guided vehicle (1
When the normal operation is performed by the AGV control unit, the AGV control unit transmits the automatic guided vehicle (1) via the wireless wireless communication interface (60) and the very high frequency wireless transmission / reception module (40 ′).
0), the automatic guided vehicle (10) automatically travels to the mechanical equipment (80), which is a FROM station, based on the command received by the ultra-high frequency radio transmission / reception module (30 '), and Travel to the TO station (not shown) to complete the work.

Further, when the automatic guided vehicle (10) exhibits a battery low state, the AGV control unit (50)
Command the unmanned transport vehicle to move to the high-speed charging station (90) and instruct the charging to proceed. In this case, when receiving the command, the automatic guided vehicle (10) moves to the high-speed charging station (90) and advances the charging by the power switch (20) mounted on the automatic guided vehicle (10).

When the power of the automatic guided vehicle (10) is turned off in a normal state, an operator operates the power switch (12).

The present invention is effective when a power failure occurs in a production factory and the supply of power (70) is interrupted. When this occurs, the first UPS (7
The automatic power failure detection means (722) provided in 2) generates a power failure signal and notifies the AGV control unit (50). When the AGV control unit (50) receives the power failure signal, the AGV control unit (50) uses the wireless communication interface (60) and the ultra-high frequency wireless transmission / reception module (4).
A power-off command is transmitted to the automatic guided vehicle (10) via 0 '). In this case, the first and second UPSs (Uninterrupte
d Power Supply) (72) and (74) start the system at the same time as the occurrence of the power failure signal, and the AGV control unit (50), the wireless communication module (60), and the ultra-high frequency wireless transmission / reception module (40 ') are activated. The required power is supplied for a predetermined time so that the operation can be continuously performed.

The automatic guided vehicle (10) is adapted to transmit /
When the power-off command transmitted by the AGV control unit (50) is received via the receiving module (30 '), the power supply from the battery (12) is automatically turned off by the automatic power-off means (14).

In the automatic power outage detection and automatic power-off system of the automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention, the radio transmission / reception module for performing communication between the AGV control unit (50) and the automatic guided vehicle (10) includes an ultrashort wave transmission. / Reception modules (30 ') and (40') are applied. As a matter of course, even if an infrared (IR) wireless transmission / reception module according to a well-known technology is used, the automatic power failure detection and the automatic power-off effect of the automatic guided vehicle can be obtained in the same manner. However, as shown in FIG. 2, the infrared (IR) transmission / reception module has a communication effective distance of 12 to 13 meters each in the vertical direction and 2 meters in the horizontal direction. Due to the insufficient communication distance, the ceiling panel is placed at a distance of 24 meters vertically in the infrared (IR)
A launch / receive module must be provided. Also,
Infrared (IR) emitting / receiving modules must be provided on the ceiling plate 42 at intervals of about 4 meters in the lateral direction. However, the effective communication distance of the microwave emitting / receiving module is about 70 mm in diameter as disclosed in FIG.
Meters. Because of the long effective communication distance,
When this is installed on the ceiling plate (42), it may be installed at an interval of about 70 meters each in the vertical and horizontal directions, the blind spot of the communication effective range is extremely small, and the number required for installation is small, The mounting process can be saved, and the cost can be reduced.

FIG. 4 discloses a flowchart relating to steps of a method for controlling an automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention. As shown, the method for controlling an automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention includes the following steps. That is, the control is started in the step 10 and the automatic guided vehicle works in the step 11.
In the twelfth process, the power failure detection means (722) provided in the first UPS (72) detects whether there is a power failure phenomenon. If a power failure does not occur, the power failure detection means (722) provided in the first UPS (72) continuously performs detection, and if a power failure occurs, the process proceeds to step 13.

In step 13, the first UPS (72) transmits a power failure signal to the AGV control unit (50). In this case, the first and second UPSs (72) and (74) execute the operation of immediate power supply, and supply power to the AGV control unit (50) and the ultra high frequency (SS) control unit, respectively.

Then, proceeding to the step 14, the AGV control unit (50) connects the wireless communication interface (60) with
A power-off command is transmitted to the automatic guided vehicle via the ultra-high frequency radio transmission / reception module (40 '). In the fifteenth step, the power supply disconnecting means (14) of the automatic guided vehicle (10)
As a result, the power supply of the automatic guided vehicle is turned off, and all the processes are completed in 16 processes.

[0023]

Second Embodiment FIG. 5 shows a second embodiment of the automatic power failure detection and automatic power-off system of the automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention according to the present invention. As disclosed in the illustration, the second
The second embodiment is an automatic guided vehicle (10) according to the first embodiment.
And a second control unit (50 ').
When the second control unit (50 ') receives the power-off command transmitted by the AGV control unit (50), the control unit (50') completes the operation of the automatic guided vehicle (10) according to the command received before the power-off command. After making a determination, if the work is completed, the power supply of the automatic guided vehicle (10) is directly turned off. If it is determined that the work is not completed, the work is completed and then the power supply is turned off. However, if the command received before the power-off command supports the charging, the power is directly turned off without waiting for the completion of the charging.

FIG. 6 discloses a flowchart relating to steps of a method for controlling an automatic guided vehicle according to the second embodiment. As shown, the method for controlling an automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention includes the following steps. That is, the control is started in the process of 100, and the automatic guided vehicle works in the process of 110. Power failure detection means (722) in step 120
The UPS (72) having the above detects whether there is a power failure phenomenon. If no power failure occurs, the UPS (72) continuously performs detection, and if a power failure occurs, the process proceeds to step 130.

In the step 130, the power failure detecting means (72
The first UPS having (2) transmits the power failure signal to the AGV control unit (50). In this case, the first and second UPS
(72, 74) execute the power supply operation immediately,
AGV control unit (50), wireless communication interface (60), ultra-high frequency (SS) transmission / reception module (4
0 ') to supply power to the control unit.

Next, proceeding to step 140, the AGV control unit (50) sets the radio communication interface (60).
Then, a power-off command is transmitted to the automatic guided vehicle via the ultra-high frequency radio transmission / reception module (40 '). In step 150, the automatic guided vehicle (10) determines, by the second AGV control unit (50 '), whether or not the operation based on the command received before receiving the power-off command is completed, and completes the operation. If not, the process proceeds to step 160, and the operation is continuously performed and completed, and then the process proceeds to step 16. If it is determined that the work has been completed, the process directly proceeds to step 16. And in step 170,
The automatic power-off means (14) cuts off the power supply of the automatic guided vehicle and completes all the steps in step 180.

The above is a description of a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and does not limit the scope of the present invention. Therefore, any change, modification, or the like having the same effect as the description of the claims of the present invention shall be included in the claims of the present invention.

[0028]

According to the automatic power outage detection and automatic power off method and the system of the automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention,
When a power outage occurs at a production plant and the power is turned off, the automatic guided vehicle automatically detects the power failure and automatically cuts off its own power, thereby exhausting the battery power. In addition, it is possible to prevent the production equipment from being left unattended until the unmanned transport vehicle is newly charged and the automatic guided vehicle can be operated at the same time when the power supply is restored to the factory. For this reason, it is possible to minimize the reduction in the production amount of the production plant that is secondary to the power failure.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an explanatory view showing a control system of a known automatic guided vehicle.

FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram showing an effective communication range of infrared rays by an infrared emitting / receiving module.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing an automatic power outage detection and automatic power off method system for an automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating a method for automatically detecting a power failure and automatically turning off a power supply of an automatic guided vehicle according to the present invention.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a system for automatically detecting a power failure and automatically turning off a power supply of an automatic guided vehicle according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart illustrating a method for automatically detecting a power failure and automatically disconnecting a power supply of an automatic guided vehicle according to a second embodiment.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing an effective communication range of ultrasonic waves by the ultrasonic wave emitting / receiving module.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10 Automatic guided vehicle 12 Battery 14 Automatic power-off means 20 Power switch 30, 30 'Infrared emitting / receiving module 40 Infrared emitting / receiving module 42 Ceiling panel 50 Automated guided vehicle control unit 60 Infrared interface 70 Power supply 72 First uninterruptible power supply Device 722 Power failure detection means 74 Second uninterruptible power supply 80 Mechanical equipment 90 High-speed charging station

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A power supply for supplying power to a production plant, and a power supply from the power supply is connected to a high-speed charging station, and the other is electrically connected to a wireless communication interface to which a wireless transmission / reception module is electrically connected. An unmanned guided vehicle that is electrically connected to an unmanned guided vehicle control unit, including a battery, and a power switch that receives a charge from the high-speed charging station, and that includes a wireless transmission / reception module. An automatic transfer control system comprising: an uninterruptible power supply having an automatic power failure detection means between the power supply and the automatic guided vehicle control unit; and an uninterruptible power supply between the power supply and the wireless interface. Wherein the automatic guided vehicle is provided with an automatic power-off means. Your system. 2. The automatic guided vehicle according to claim 1,
Further, a second control unit is provided. When the second control unit receives the power-off command transmitted by the automatic guided vehicle control unit, the automatic guided vehicle performs an operation based on the command received before the power-off command. It is detected whether the work is completed. If the work is completed, the power supply of the automatic guided vehicle is directly turned off by the automatic power-off means, and if it is detected that the work is not completed, the work is completed. The automatic power failure detection and automatic power-off device of the automatic guided vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the power is automatically cut off by the automatic power-off means. 3. The automatic power outage detection and power supply of an automatic guided vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the wireless transmission / reception module according to claim 1 is an ultrasonic wireless transmission / reception module. Automatic cutting device. 4. The automatic power outage detection and automatic power supply of the automatic guided vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the wireless transmission / reception module described in claim 1 is an infrared wireless transmission / reception module. Cutting device. 5. An automatic guided vehicle comprising an automatic guided vehicle control unit, at least one or more uninterruptible power supply devices, automatic power failure detection means, a wireless communication interface, a plurality of wireless transmission / reception modules, and an automated guided vehicle. An automatic power outage detection and automatic power off method for an automatic guided vehicle using a vehicle control system, comprising the following steps:
(1) When the power supply from the power supply is interrupted, the power failure detection means generates a power failure signal and transmits the power failure signal to the automatic guided vehicle control unit, and at the same time, the uninterruptible power supply is connected to the automatic guided vehicle control unit. Supplies the power required for the wireless communication interface and the wireless transmission / reception module,
(2) A power-off command is transmitted to the automatic guided vehicle based on the power failure signal received by the automatic guided vehicle control unit. (3) The automatic guided vehicle transmits the power-off command transmitted by the automatic guided vehicle control unit. The automatic power failure detection and automatic power-off method of the automatic guided vehicle, wherein the automatic power-off means provided in the automatic guided vehicle receives the received power and automatically cuts off the power supply of its own battery. 6. The automatic guided vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a second automatic guided vehicle control unit, wherein the second automatic guided vehicle control unit receives the power-off command transmitted from the automatic guided vehicle control unit.
The automatic guided vehicle control unit determines whether or not the work by the command received before the power-off command is ongoing or completed.If the work is ongoing, the work is completed and the power is turned off. 6. The automatic power outage detection and automatic power off method for an automatic guided vehicle according to claim 5, wherein the power supply is directly cut off when the operation is completed.