JP2003029837A - Unmanned carrier system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To reduce the data quantity of a carriage command from a host controller to each carrier in an unmanned carrier system. SOLUTION: An already set route 11 is preliminarily set on a traveling path, and the map of the traveling path and the information of the operating direction of a branching device for route selection to prevent a carrier 13 from deviating out of the already set route 11 in each branching part a1-a4 on the already set route 11 are stored in an on-device controller on the carrier 13. When it is necessary for the carrier 13 to deviate out of the already set route 11 in the branching parts a1-a4 on the already set route 11 for carriage, a host controller includes the position of the branching part and the operating directing of the branching device at the branching part in the carriage command to the carrier 13. The carrier 13 which receives the carriage command operates the branching control device in order to maintain the already set route 11 based on the information preliminarily stored in the on-device controller at the branching sections no instruction of which is given by the carriage command.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to travel control of an automated guided vehicle that automatically travels on a travel route.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in a clean room, such as a semiconductor manufacturing factory, where dust generation is a problem, an automatic guided vehicle system has been known in which an automatic guided vehicle automatically travels along a traveling route to convey articles. ing. This traveling route has a plurality of branch portions, and a guide wheel is projected and retracted from the transport vehicle in front of the branch portion, and the guide wheel is applied to a groove portion along one of the routes so that the route of the transport vehicle is advanced. Is oriented. Further, a plurality of stations for transferring loads are arranged along the traveling route. A host controller is installed at an appropriate position such as a corner of a clean room, and the host controller calls the on-board controller mounted on each transport vehicle by its machine number. Information such as the current position on the travel route is returned from the guided vehicle that receives the call, and based on this reply information, the host controller instructs the on-board controller of each guided vehicle to be the destination station. A transport command is transmitted to instruct the stop position at the same position or the selection of the route at the branch point.

[0003]

However, if there are many branching portions in the traveling route, the amount of data transmitted from the host controller to each transport vehicle will be considerably large. That is,
The host controller must send to each of the transport vehicles on the travel route a transport command instructing the selection of a route for each branch as well as the position of the destination station. The signal amount of the transport command becomes larger in a large-scale system having a large number of branches, and the load on the host controller increases. Further, even in the case of the onboard controller of the transport vehicle that receives the transport command, if the signal amount of the transport command increases, the load on the onboard controller for the processing increases, which is not desirable. Therefore, an object of the present invention is to solve these problems.

[0004]

The present invention uses the following means in order to solve the above problems.
First, as described in claim 1, an unmanned vehicle equipped with a traveling route having a plurality of branch portions, and a vehicle for automatically traveling along the traveling route is equipped with a branching device for selecting a route at the branch portion. In the guided vehicle system, a predetermined route is preset to the travel route, and an onboard controller mounted on the transport vehicle stores a map of the travel route in advance, and
At each branching portion included in the predetermined route, information about the direction in which the branching device should be operated in order for the vehicle to travel while maintaining the predetermined route is stored together, and the unmanned guided vehicle system is controlled and managed. When transmitting a transport command to a transport vehicle, the host controller that performs the transport is required to select a course in a direction deviating from the preset route at a branch portion on the preset route for transport. Information indicating the position of the branch portion, and information indicating the direction in which the branch device is operated at the branch portion,
The on-board controller of the transport vehicle, which is included in the transport command and receives the transport command, is based on the information stored in advance in the on-board controller in the branch section not instructed in the transport command. , Activate the branching device to maintain the predetermined route.

Further, according to a second aspect of the present invention, a timing indicating member is provided at a position before the branching portion on the traveling route, and a conveying vehicle is provided with detecting means for detecting the timing indicating member. Then, when the traveling transport vehicle detects the timing indicating member, the branching device is operated.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the branching device includes at least a pair of branching rollers, and one of the branching rollers is brought into contact with a branching guide portion provided in the branching path to select a path. The on-board controller controls the emergence of the branch roller of the branching device based on information stored in advance in the on-board controller or information on the direction instructed in the transport command. To do.

[0007]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION An embodiment of an automated guided vehicle system 1 according to the present invention will be described below. 1 is a schematic view of an automated guided vehicle system 1, FIG. 2 is a front sectional view of a guided vehicle 13, FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the same, and FIG.
3 is a plan sectional view of the carrier vehicle 13 showing the arrangement configuration, FIG. 5 is a plan view of the carrier vehicle 13 showing the arrangement configuration of the guide wheels 24, 24 ..., FIG. 6 is the main track 11 at the branch point. And secondary orbit 1
2 is a plan view showing the lower part of FIG. 2, FIG.
2 is a plan view showing the control system of the automated guided vehicle system 1. FIG.

The automated guided vehicle system 1 shown in FIG. 1 comprises a plurality of carrier systems 1A, 1B, 1C, ...
The main tracks 11, 11, ..., which are the movement routes of the automated guided vehicle 13, are laid in a loop shape in B · 1C, and the adjacent main tracks 11, 11 are connected by sub-tracks 12, 12, respectively. There is. Each main track 11 is one-way, and the transport vehicle 13 on each main track 11 is controlled to travel along the direction of the arrow shown in FIG. Multiple stations 10
···························· is arranged along the main track 11, the carrier 13 moves between the stations 10 and 10 based on a carrier command from the host controller 5 described later to move from one station 10 to the other station 10. It makes it possible to transport goods to.

.., and sub-orbits 12.12 ... branching from the main orbits 11.11 ...
.. Along with .., power supply lines 2 and 2 (FIG. 2) in which conductive wires such as copper wires are covered with an insulating material, and communication lines 8 using feeder wires
・ 8 (Fig. 2) is installed.

Next, the structure of the transport vehicle 13 will be described. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the transport vehicle 13 has pickup units 9, 9 ... For arranging electric power from the power supply line 2.2 on both front and rear sides of the vehicle body.
The track 11 (or 12) is formed in a substantially "concave" shape in a sectional view. A transport vehicle 13 traveling on the track 11 (or 12) is provided with a traveling vehicle body 21 at a lower portion thereof, and the traveling vehicle body 21 has a central main frame 31 and wheel supports located in front of and behind the main frame 31. It is composed of parts 32 and 32.

As shown in FIG. 4, the wheel supporting portions 32, 32
The main frame 31 and the main frame 31 are connected to each other via the pivots 33, 33, and the wheel support portions 32, 32 are rotatable with respect to the main frame 31.

Further, above the traveling vehicle body 21, there is provided an article support portion 22 constructed so that luggage can be loaded. The traveling vehicle body 21 and the article support portion 22 are connected to each other by a connecting body 36.
And the article support portion 22 is connected to the traveling vehicle body 21.
Supported by. The pickup units 9, 9 ... Are fixed to the left and right of the connecting body 36 in the front, rear, left and right.

One side surface of the track 11 (or 12) (see FIG. 2)
In the right side)
The feed line holder 30 is arranged so as to face the. A ferrite core 3 having a substantially “E” -shaped cross section is fixed to the pickup unit 9, and a pickup coil 4 is wound around a central protruding portion of the core 3.
In the core 3, the power supply line 2.2 held at the inner end of the power supply line holder 30 is disposed in two recessed spaces formed between the upper and lower projections and the central projection between them. , Each one is located. This power line 2
The pickup coil 4 receives the magnetic field generated by passing a high frequency current through the pickup coil 4. And
Electric power is taken out from the induced current generated in the pickup coil 4 by utilizing the electromagnetic induction phenomenon. In this manner, electric power is supplied from the power supply lines 2 and 2 to the pickup unit 9 in a non-contact manner to drive the motor 14 and electric power to control devices such as an onboard controller 20 described later.

As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, traveling wheels 23, 23, ..., 26, 26 having left and right axles are provided at the upper and lower ends on the left and right sides of the wheel supporting portion 32.
... are arranged.

The upper part of the track 11 (or 12) is provided with a portion projecting inward from the left and right to form a pair of traveling rails 40, 40. The top plate surface of the traveling rail 40 is formed to be a horizontal surface, and the traveling wheels 23, 23 ... Abut on the top plate surface of the traveling rail 40,
The transport vehicle 13 travels along the traveling rails 40.

Further, between the traveling rails 40, 40, there is provided a left-right width gap through which the traveling vehicle body 21 can pass. The gap is provided along the track 11 (or 12), and the slit 11S is formed in the track 11 (or 12).
(Or 12S) is formed.

As shown in FIGS. 2, 3 and 5, guide wheels 24, 24, ... Having vertical axles are arranged on the left and right sides of the upper portion of the wheel support portion 32.
The axle is suspended from the wheel support 32. The guide wheels 24, 24 ... Are provided on each of the left and right sides of the wheel supporting portions 32, 32 in the front and rear, and a total of eight wheels are arranged.

On both left and right sides of the track 11 (or 12), side portions 41, 41 are formed toward the side (downward) from the outer end portions of the traveling rails 40, 40. The side portion 41 is used as a guide surface for the guide wheels 24, 24 ... to prevent the lateral displacement of the transport vehicle 13.

The carrier 13 has a track 11 (or 12).
In the straight part of, all the guide wheels 24, 24 ...
・ Run in a state of being in close contact with 41. In this case, the straight line connecting the left and right guide wheels 24, 24 and the guide wheel 24
The line that is orthogonal to the tangent line of the guide surface that is in contact with is coincident. On the other hand, in the curved portion, the front wheels 26 and the rear wheels 2 of the carrier vehicle 13 are
Guide wheels 24, 24 provided before and after 6 respectively
The left and right guide wheels 2
The straight line connecting 4 and 24 is different from the straight line in the direction orthogonal to the tangent of the guide surface with which the guide wheel 24 is in contact, and a gap is created between the guide wheel 24 and the guide surface. For this reason, the curved portion is slightly moved in the horizontal direction by the centrifugal force.

In the track 11 (or 12), the lower ends of the side portions 41, 41 are connected by a lower portion 42.
The track 11 (or 12) is formed by the above configuration of the traveling rails 40, 40, the side portions 41, 41, and the lower portion 42.

A motor 14 is arranged in the front-rear center of the traveling vehicle body 21. The motor 14 is the motor 1
It is fixed to the support body 34 below 4. The support 34
Has one end supported so as to be vertically swingable with respect to the main frame 31 of the traveling vehicle body 21, and the other end is attached to the compression spring 35. Therefore, the support 34 is always urged downward, and the support 3
The drive wheels 25 provided on the No. 4 are pressed against the traveling surface 43 that is provided at the center of the lower portion 42.

A drive wheel 25 having a left-right drive shaft is rotatably provided on the support 34, and the drive wheel 25 is driven by the motor 14. The upper surface of the traveling surface 43 is formed horizontally, and the drive wheels 25 are provided in the center of the traveling vehicle body 21 on the left and right sides so as to be able to contact the traveling surface 43. Then, the driving wheel 25 is urged by the downward urging force of the compression spring 35.
Always contacts the traveling surface 43.

Traveling rails 44, 44 are provided on both sides of the lower portion 42 in a protruding manner. The upper surface of the traveling rail 44 is formed to be a horizontal surface, and the traveling wheels 26, 26 ... Abut on the upper surface of the traveling rail 44.

Further, by providing a rotation sensor on the drive shaft of the drive wheel 25, it is possible to control the position of the transport vehicle 13. For example, the position of the transport vehicle 13 can be specified based on the detection result of the rotation sensor. Also,
The number of rotations (of the drive wheels 25) required from the current position to the destination is input to the onboard controller 60 of the transport vehicle 13, and the transport vehicle 13 is driven until the input value and the detected value become equal to each other. It is also possible to control the vehicle 13 to reach the destination. The rotation sensor converts the rotation speed of the drive shaft into a pulse signal and takes out the pulse signal, and the encoder included in the rotation sensor performs pulse conversion to measure the rotation speed.

The front and rear wheel supports 32, 32 are provided with branch rollers 28, 28 for selecting whether to run the sub-track 12 or the main track 11 at a branch point branching from the main track 11. It is provided. That is, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 5, the support shafts 28a, 28a are displaced 90 degrees from each other on both left and right sides of the switching shaft 27 that is horizontally extended, and project in a direction perpendicular to the switching shaft 27. Branch rollers 28, 28 are rotatably arranged on the support shafts 28a, 28a. A bevel gear 37 is fixedly installed on the switching shaft 27 and is interlocked with a switching motor 29. By rotating the switching motor 29 forward or backward, the switching shaft 27 is rotated.
Is rotated so that one of the branch rollers 28 can be directed downward.

As shown in FIG. 6, guide grooves 11a and 12a (branch guide portions) with which the branch rollers 28 and 28 can abut are provided in the lower portion 42 of the tracks 11 and 12. The branch roller 28 is guided by the left and right walls in the groove portions of the guide grooves 11a and 12a. One guide groove 11a is on the main track 11 and the other guide groove 12 is
a is provided along the sub-track 12.

In such a structure, when the transport vehicle 13 enters the branch point from the main track 11, the switching motor 29 is driven to direct one of the left and right branch rollers 28 downward, Branch roller 2 protruding to
8 enters the guide groove 11a (or 12a), and the other branch roller 28 is retracted to the upper side.
It moves away from a (or the guide groove 11a) and runs along the guide groove in which the branch roller 28 is inserted. In this way, either the main track 11 or the sub-track 12 can be selected to travel.

That is, in the transport vehicle 13, one branch roller 28 is arranged so as to be in contact with one guide groove 11a (or 12a), and the other branch roller 28 is arranged in the other guide groove. 12a (or guide groove 11a)
Is equipped with a switching mechanism arranged so as to be in a non-contact position, and by operating the switching mechanism, the branch roller 28 is switched between the contact position and the non-contact position, and the main track 11 The sub-track 12 can be selected for traveling.

Next, the traveling control of the transport vehicle 13 will be described. The carrier vehicle 13 is equipped with receivers 51 and 52 and a transmitter 53, which are installed close to and face the communication line 8.8 stretched over each system 1A, 1B, 1C, ... Communication with the host controller 5 is being performed.

As shown in FIG. 8, in the host controller 5, the transport vehicles 13, 13 ...
A feedback signal for each, for example, an address signal of the current position and a signal such as presence / absence of a load are input to make a determination, and a control signal for the destination of each of the transport vehicles 13 ... Is output to the modem 54 via the interface of the host controller 5.

The modem 54 is a host controller 5
The digital signal of each carrier 13, 13 ... Input from the FM is FM-modulated, and the communication line 8.8 is used as an antenna via the impedance matching box 56, and the on-board controller of each carrier 13, 13. Send to.

Then, the receiver 51 (or 5 of the transport vehicle 13)
The control signal received in 2) is input to the modem 55.
The modem 55 is the modem 54 of the host controller 5.
Other than that, only the local oscillation frequency of the transceiver function is replaced, and the other configurations are the same. The signal input from the receiver 51 (or 52) is demodulated and converted into a digital signal.
On-board controller 20 which is a control means of the carrier vehicle 13 itself
Is output to.

The on-board controller 20 serves as a sensor, a package detector including a photoelectric switch for detecting the presence / absence of a load on the bed of the transport vehicle 13, a fixed position of the load, and a light receiving device for detecting the approach to the preceding transport vehicle 13. Connected to the vehicle, a bumper switch for detecting a rear-end collision, an encoder for detecting the traveling distance by the rotation speed of the traveling motor of the drive wheel 25, and signals from each sensor and the host controller 5 input from the modem 55. Is determined by the control signal, and the traveling motor and the like are controlled via an inverter to control the automatic traveling of the carrier vehicle 13.

Further, the onboard controller 20 uses a light projector to project light for detecting the approach of the trailing transport vehicle 13. The feedback signal from the onboard controller 20 to the host controller 5 is output as a digital signal to the modem 55, and the modem 55 FM-modulates this feedback signal and transmits it to the transmitter 53. The feedback signal from the onboard controller 20 transmitted from the transmitter 53 is received by the communication line 8/8, demodulated by the modem 54 via the impedance matching box 56, and output to the host controller 5. The host controller 5 grasps the condition of the carrier vehicle 13 by the feedback signal from the onboard controller 20 input from the modem 54.

As described above, the modem 54 and the modem 55 are used as the transmitting and receiving devices, and the receivers 51 and 52, the transmitter 53 and the communication line 8.8 are used as the antennas, so that the host controller 5 and the onboard controller 20 are connected. Signals are being exchanged.

Further, as shown in FIG. 7, predetermined positions of the main track 11 and the sub-track 12, for example, the station 10
Barcodes 61, 61 ... With unique position information recorded are affixed to the installation positions of 10 ..., and bar codes 62.62.
・ ・ Is affixed. Further, the bar codes 61, 61, ..., 62, 62 ,.
A bar code reader 57 for reading is attached.

When the bar code 61 (or 62) on the tracks 11 and 12 is read by the bar code reader 57, the position information is output to the onboard controller 20 mounted on the transport vehicle 13. . The on-board controller 20 stores a travel route map in which distance information between bar codes and passing speed information between the bar codes are recorded, and the bar code reader 57 of the carrier 13 causes the bar code 61 (or 62) to be stored. Is read, the onboard controller 2
At 0, the position where the vehicle is currently traveling is recognized, and traveling control is performed with reference to the traveling route map.

The transport vehicle 13 travels according to the information on the travel route map up to the position of the bar code 61 (or 62), which is one position before the bar code 61 attached to the target stop position, and the one position before the bar code 61 (or 62). When the bar code 61 (or 62) of is detected, deceleration is started. This deceleration is performed based on the distance information from the bar code 61 (or 62) position immediately before this one to the target stop position stored in the travel route map, and the transport vehicle 13 stops at the target stop position. It is controlled to stop exactly at the position.

Next, the route selection control of the present invention will be described.
First, as a premise of control, some routes of the traveling routes are preset as default routes. In this embodiment, the main orbits 11 (shown by thick lines in FIG. 1) of the systems 1A, 1B, and 1C are set as default routes. The sub-trajectory 12 is a route that deviates from the predetermined route. The method of setting the default route is arbitrary, but it is desirable that the default route is set so as to include many branching portions that can branch in a direction deviating from the default route.

Although the traveling route map is stored in the onboard controller 20 of the transport vehicle 13, in addition to the distance information between the bar codes and the passing speed information, a plurality of branch portions on the above-mentioned predetermined route are used. In order to drive the vehicle so that it does not deviate from the predetermined route, information about which of the branch rollers 28 should be projected and which should be immersed is stored.

A specific example will be described. For example, system 1B
The predetermined route (main track) 11 of FIG. 1 includes a plurality of branch portions a1, a2, a3, and a4 as shown in FIG. In order to drive so as not to deviate from the route 11, the branch part a1
Turn left at, turn straight at branch a2,
It is necessary to select one of the branching rollers 28 to be projected so that the branching portion a3 turns left and the branching portion a4 turns left. Therefore, the branching direction (which branch roller 28 is to be operated) for traveling along the normally traveling route is stored in advance in the traveling route map stored in the onboard controller 20 to define the branching direction. This reduces the amount of information that the host controller 5 has to instruct in order to drive the route.

Then, in a scene where the system is actually operating, a carrier vehicle 13 traveling on a predetermined route 11 of the system 1B is installed at a certain station 10 (reference numeral 10 in FIG. 1).
Suppose that it is necessary to move to the station (indicated by *) to transfer the luggage.

In order for the transport vehicle 13 on the default route 11 of the system 1B to reach the station 10 *, it is necessary to turn right at the branch portion a2 and deviate from the default route 11 as is apparent from FIG. There is. So in this case,
The host controller 5 that manages the system 1B instructs the position of the destination station 10 *, the position of the branch portion a2 that needs to be turned right, and the branch portion a.
A conveyance instruction including an instruction to project the branch roller 28 to make a right turn at 2 is given to a conveyance vehicle 13 (for example, a conveyance vehicle denoted by 13 * in FIG. 1) traveling on the system 1B. . Note that the instructions for the other branching portions a1, a3, and a4 are not included in the transport instruction. The on-board controller 20 of the carrier vehicle 13 * that has received the transport command stores the transport command in an appropriate storage means (for example, a memory) provided in the controller 20 and, as shown below, to the target station 10 *. Go to

First, the transport vehicle 13 * travels on the predetermined route 11 in the direction of the arrow and approaches the branch portion a4. A bar code 62 in front of the branch portion a4 (not shown in FIG. 1)
The onboard controller 20 of the carrier 13 * that reads
The branching part a is referred to with reference to the transport command stored in the storage means.
It is checked whether or not the branch instruction for 4 is included in the transport instruction. In this case, since the conveyance instruction does not include the instruction regarding the branching portion a4, the on-board controller 20
According to the information stored as described above (information indicating that the vehicle turns left at the branching portion a4), the branching device is controlled to select a route in a direction that does not deviate from the predetermined route 11. Therefore, in this case, the transport vehicle 13 * turns left at the branch portion a4.

The transport vehicle 13 * operates the branch roller 28 of the branching device by detecting the bar code 62. In other words, the bar code 62 serves as a timing indicating member for instructing the operation timing of the branching device to the carrier vehicle 13 *, and the bar code reader 57 functions as a timing indicating member on the carrier vehicle 13 side. It will serve as a detecting means for detecting. Therefore, it is not necessary to include the position information for operating the branching devices in all the branching units in the conveyance command and the movement command to be transmitted. However, the configuration is not limited to using the bar code 62 as a timing indicating member, and another member, for example, a configuration using a timing bar may be used. In this case, in addition to the bar code reader 57, detection means such as a sensor for detecting the timing bar is provided on the transport vehicle 13.

Subsequently, the transport vehicle 13 * advances on the predetermined route 11 in the direction of the arrow and approaches the branch portion a1. The carrier vehicle 13 that has read the bar code in front of the branch part a1
The on-board controller 20 of * refers again to the transport command stored in the storage means, and checks whether or not the transport command includes a branching instruction for the branch part a1. In this case, since the conveyance instruction does not include the instruction regarding the branching portion a1, the onboard controller 20 stores the information stored as described above (the left turning at the branching portion a1) as in the case of the branching portion a4. According to the information), the branch device is controlled to select a route in a direction that does not deviate from the predetermined route 11. Therefore, in this case, the transport vehicle 13 * has a branching portion a.
At 1, you will turn left.

Further, the carrier 13 * advances in the direction of the arrow,
It approaches the branch part a2. The onboard controller 20 of the transport vehicle 13 *, which has read the bar code 62 in front of the branch portion a2, refers to the transport command stored in the storage means,
It is checked whether or not the transport instruction includes a branch instruction for the branch portion a2. In this case, as described above, since the instruction regarding the branching portion a2 is included in the conveyance instruction, the onboard controller 20 follows the instruction of the conveyance instruction.
The branch roller 28 of the branching device is controlled to select the route. Therefore, in this case, the transport vehicle 13 * has the branch portion a2.
Turn right at, deviate from the default route (main orbit) 11 to the sub-orbit 12, and will soon arrive at the target station 10 *.

As described above, the carrier vehicles 13 of the present invention
The control of the route selection at each branch part a1, a2, a3, a4 of ... is performed by the predetermined route 11 at the branch part.
Except when it is necessary to deviate from the above, the on-board controller 20 mounted on each transport vehicle 13 can autonomously perform (without a command from the host controller 5) according to the information stored in advance. Therefore, on the host controller 5 side, it suffices to include a route selection instruction for only the branch part a2 that needs to deviate from the predetermined route 11 in the transport command, and the other branch parts a1, a3, a4.
Therefore, it is not necessary to include the route selection instruction for the transport instruction. As a result, the load of the host controller 5 for creating the transport command is reduced, communication between the host controller 5 and the onboard controller 20 of each transport vehicle 13 is smoothed, and the onboard controller 20 of the transport vehicle 13 is performed.
On the side as well, the burden of processing the transport command is reduced.

When the target station is on the predetermined route 11 as shown by reference numeral 10 'in FIG. 1, the carrier vehicle 13 only travels along the predetermined route 11 and the target station. Can reach 10 '. In other words, in this case, it is sufficient for the host controller 5 side to include the instruction of the position of the target station 10 'in the transportation command, and any branching part a1, a2, a3, a
It is not necessary to include the route selection instruction in 4.

[0050]

Since the present invention is configured as described above, it has the following effects. First, as in claim 1,
In an unmanned guided vehicle system having a traveling route having a plurality of branch portions, and a vehicle for automatically traveling along the traveling route is equipped with a branching device for selecting a route at the branch portion, a predetermined route is set in the traveling route. The route is set in advance, the on-board controller mounted on the transport vehicle stores the map of the travel route in advance, and the transport vehicle maintains the default route at each branch included in the default route. The host controller, which stores the information on the direction in which the branching device should be operated for traveling while also controlling the unmanned guided vehicle system, transmits the transportation instruction to the guided vehicle. When it is necessary to select a course in a direction deviating from the default route at the branch point on the default route, information indicating the position of the branch point and Information indicating a direction for operating the branch device have, included in the transport command, the machine controller of the transport vehicle which has received the transport command, at the branch portion that is not indicated in the transport instruction,
By controlling the branching device to maintain the predetermined route based on the information stored in advance in the onboard controller, the route selection control at each branching part on the predetermined route is performed by the branching part. In the above, except when it is necessary to deviate from the above-mentioned default route, the onboard controller of each carrier can autonomously perform (without a command from the host controller) according to the information stored in advance. Therefore, on the host controller side, it is sufficient to include the route selection instruction for only the branch portion that needs to deviate from the predetermined route in the transport instruction, and it is necessary to include the route selection instruction for the other branch portion in the transport instruction. There is no. As a result, the load of the host controller in creating the transfer command is reduced, communication between the host controller and the onboard controller of each carrier becomes smooth, and the onboard controller side of the carrier also processes the transfer command. The burden is reduced. In the present embodiment, the host controller is a controller for managing the automated guided vehicle system, and indicates a controller higher than the on-board controller provided in each guided vehicle. For example, a system in which a controller that manages all of the production processes is a host controller, and a guided vehicle controller that collectively manages an automated guided vehicle is hierarchically arranged below the controller is equivalent to a guided vehicle controller. of course,
A host controller that manages the production process may create a transfer command and transmit it directly to the onboard controller or by relaying it to the carrier controller.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the automatic guided vehicle system according to the first aspect, a timing indicating member is provided at a position on the traveling route before the branch portion, and the timing indicating member is provided on the conveying vehicle. And transmitting position information for operating the branching device from the host controller by activating the branching device when the traveling transport vehicle detects the timing indicating member. Instead, the branching device can be operated at an appropriate timing, and the load on the host controller side can be reduced.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, the branching device includes at least a pair of branching rollers, and one of the branching rollers is brought into contact with a branching guide portion provided in the branching path to select a path. The on-board controller controls the emergence of the branch roller of the branching device based on information stored in advance in the on-board controller or information on a direction instructed in the transport command. Thus, the transport vehicle can be guided in the target direction with a simple configuration in which the branch roller is retracted and retracted.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an automated guided vehicle system 1.

FIG. 2 is a front sectional view of a carrier vehicle 13.

FIG. 3 is a side sectional view of the same.

FIG. 4 is a plan sectional view of a carrier vehicle 13 showing an arrangement configuration of traveling wheels 23 ,.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of the carrier vehicle 13 showing the arrangement of guide wheels 24, 24 ...

FIG. 6 is a plan view showing the lower parts of the main orbit 11 and the sub-orbit 12 at a branch point.

FIG. 7 is a plan view showing a main track 11 and a sub-track 12.

FIG. 8 is a block diagram showing a control configuration of the automated guided vehicle system 1.

[Explanation of symbols]

1 Automated guided vehicle system 5 Host controller 10 stations 11 main orbit 11a guide groove 12 Secondary orbit 12a guide groove 13 Automated guided vehicles 20 Onboard controller 28 branch rollers 57 Bar Code Reader 61 barcode 62 bar code

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (51) Int.Cl. ⁷ Identification code FI theme code (reference) H01L 21/68 H01L 21/68 AF term (reference) 3F022 AA08 BB09 LL07 LL12 MM08 NN31 NN38 PP04 QQ03 QQ11 5F031 GA59 NA02 PA02 5H301 AA02 AA09 BB05 CC03 CC06 DD01 DD07 DD13 EE02 EE12 FF11 GG06 GG08 GG12 HH13 JJ01 KK02 KK03 KK12 KK13 KK18 KK20 LL03 LL11

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A travel route having a plurality of branch portions,
In an automatic guided vehicle system in which a guided vehicle that automatically travels along the travel route is equipped with a branching device that selects a route at the branching portion, a predetermined route is preset in the traveled route, and the guided vehicle is mounted on the guided vehicle. The on-board controller stores a map of the travel route in advance, and operates the branching device so that the transport vehicle travels while maintaining the predetermined route at each branch portion included in the predetermined route. The host controller, which stores the information of the direction to be performed together and controls and manages the automated guided vehicle system, transmits the transportation command to the guided vehicle at the branching section on the predetermined route for transportation. If you need to choose a course that deviates from the default route,
The transport instruction includes information indicating the position of the branch portion and information indicating the direction in which the branch device is to be operated at the branch portion, and the onboard controller of the transport vehicle that receives the transport instruction is In the branch section not instructed in the transport command, the branch device is operated to maintain the predetermined route based on information stored in advance in the onboard controller, unmanned Carrier system. 2. The automatic guided vehicle system according to claim 1, wherein a timing indicating member is provided at a position on the traveling route before a branch portion, and a detecting means for detecting the timing indicating member is provided on the conveying vehicle. An unmanned guided vehicle system, characterized in that the branching device is operated when a traveling guided vehicle detects the timing indicating member. 3. The automated guided vehicle system according to claim 1, wherein the branching device includes at least a pair of branching rollers, and one of the branching rollers is brought into contact with a branching guide portion provided in the branching path. The on-board controller is configured to select a route according to the information stored in advance in the on-board controller or the information on the direction instructed by the transport instruction, An automated guided vehicle system that controls the appearance of rollers.