JP2005047369A - Self-traveling truck system and self-traveling truck used for that - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a self-traveling truck system capable of reducing the height of a traveling path required for carrying while keeping a container at a horizontal position. <P>SOLUTION: The self-traveling truck system comprises a lower horizontal track 3, an upper horizontal track 5, a U-shaped curving track 7 integrally connecting the lower horizontal track 3 and the upper horizontal track 5 in a height direction, a self-traveling truck 10 movable along a track surface, a box-shaped container 20 having a rotation center 21 and rotatably attached to the self-traveling truck 10, and a position keeping mechanism 30 moving the rotation center 21 of the container 20 so as to ascend/descend to the self-traveling truck 10. The position keeping mechanism 30 keeps the rotation center of the container at first specified height in the horizontal tracks 3, 5, according to movement of the self-traveling truck 10, hoists the rotation center 21 of the container 20 to second specified height near one end of the curving track 7, and lowers the rotation center 21 of the container 20 to the first specified height near the other end od the curving track 7. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a self-propelled cart system and a self-propelled cart used for the self-propelled cart system, and in particular, a self-propelled cart system having a curved orbit that ascends and descends in a vertical direction while maintaining the attitude of a container horizontally, and Concerning the carriage.

  Conventionally, transported documents are stored in containers for transporting documents in high-rise buildings such as office buildings, charts in hospital facilities, transporting pharmaceuticals, etc., or transporting parts and products in factories. A self-propelled cart system that transports to a place is used. In such a self-propelled cart system, the self-propelled cart travels between predetermined stations on each floor along a traveling track laid in the ceiling or the like, and the above-mentioned various transport items accommodated in the container of the self-propelled cart. Is transported.

  In general, in such a self-propelled carriage system, since a plurality of self-propelled carriages, for example, run between stations provided on each floor in a high-rise building, a running track is laid on the back of the ceiling and the like. The traveling track includes a track for moving the self-propelled carriage in the height direction, such as a curved track and a vertical track. A self-propelled trolley in a system that requires vertical conveyance to move in the height direction employs a horizontal maintenance mechanism that maintains the container's posture horizontally in order to stably convey the conveyance in the container. Has been.

  Further, in such vertical conveyance, since the self-propelled carriage travels up and down the curved or vertical track laid in the height direction, overloading becomes a problem. In other words, if the self-propelled carriage performs vertical traveling while the conveyed product is overloaded in the container, there is a risk of overheating of the drive motor and burning of the control circuit due to overcurrent.

Therefore, in order to cope with such a problem, a mechanism for detecting acceleration / deceleration control of a driving source and detecting a loading weight by detecting a loading weight of a conveyed product in a container has been proposed (for example, Patent Document 1, Patent Document 1). 2).
JP-A-9-171408 JP 2002-104177 A

  However, even if the control method and the detection mechanism disclosed in the above-mentioned Patent Documents 1 and 2 are used, it is necessary to adopt the above-described horizontal maintaining mechanism of the container posture in order to realize the vertical conveyance by the self-propelled carriage. In order to realize such a horizontal maintenance mechanism, it is necessary to secure a turning radius of the container so that the container can be rotated with respect to the self-propelled carriage. The problem was that the effective height was high.

  This is particularly true when the self-propelled carriage system is laid in an existing building, because there are existing structures such as beams on the back of the ceiling where the track is laid. It was not possible to secure the system, and there was a problem that it was difficult to install a self-propelled cart system.

  Therefore, in view of the problems of the conventional technology as described above, an object of the present invention is to provide a self-propelled carriage system capable of reducing the height of a traveling path necessary for transportation while maintaining the attitude of a container horizontally. To do.

  In order to achieve the above object, a self-propelled carriage system of the present invention includes a lower horizontal track having a horizontal track surface, and a horizontal track surface facing the track surface and having a height higher than the lower horizontal track. A substantially U-shaped curve that integrally connects the lower horizontal track and the upper horizontal track in the height direction so that the upper horizontal track and the lower horizontal track and the upper horizontal track are continuous. A track, a self-propelled carriage straddling the track and movable along the track surface, and a box-shaped container having a rotation center and rotatably attached to the self-propelled carriage An attitude maintaining mechanism for moving the center of rotation of the container with respect to the self-propelled carriage so as to be movable up and down, and maintaining the attitude of the container horizontally, the attitude maintaining mechanism moving the self-propelled carriage According to the horizontal trajectory, the rotation center of the container The rotation center of the container is raised to a second predetermined height in the vicinity of one end of the curved track, and the rotation center of the container is set near the other end of the curved track. It is characterized by being lowered to a predetermined height.

  In the self-propelled cart system according to the present invention configured as described above, a lower horizontal track having a horizontal track surface, and an upper portion having a horizontal track surface facing the track surface and having a height higher than the lower horizontal track. A substantially U-shaped curved track in which the lower horizontal track and the upper horizontal track are integrally connected in the height direction so that the horizontal track, the lower horizontal track and the upper horizontal track are continuous, and these tracks. A self-propelled carriage that straddles and moves along the raceway surface, a box-shaped container that has a rotation center and is rotatably attached to the self-propelled carriage, and a rotation center of the container. A position maintaining mechanism that moves the self-propelled carriage so that it can freely move up and down, and maintains the attitude of the container in a horizontal position. Keep the center of motion at the first predetermined height and near one end of the curved orbit In this case, the center of rotation of the container is raised to the second predetermined height, and the center of rotation of the container is lowered to the first predetermined height in the vicinity of the other end of the curved track. The container rises to a predetermined height at one end of the curved orbit entering the container, and the container descends to a predetermined height at the other end. As a result, the horizontal trajectory keeps the height of the container low and travels horizontally, and the curved trajectory raises the height of the container to a predetermined height so that the container can rotate relative to the self-propelled carriage. Since the posture is maintained horizontally, the height required for the horizontal track can be reduced, the space can be effectively used, and the self-propelled cart system can be easily laid.

  Here, the first predetermined height is a height at which the container and the self-propelled carriage are in contact with each other substantially in parallel, and the second predetermined height maintains the attitude of the container horizontally. It may be substantially equivalent to the turning radius of the turning.

  When configured in this way, the first predetermined height that is the minimum height is defined by the height at which the container and the self-propelled carriage are in contact with each other substantially in parallel, and the second predetermined height that is the maximum height. Is defined by the minimum required container turning radius in order to keep the container posture horizontal. As a result, the maximum height is defined as the minimum height required to maintain the horizontal position of the container on the curved track, and the minimum height prevents the container from rotating on the horizontal track. In addition, since it is defined by the contact height that keeps the posture horizontal, the predetermined height for keeping the posture of the container horizontal can be set efficiently, and more effective use of space can be realized. At the same time, the laying efficiency of the entire self-propelled cart system is improved.

  In addition, the posture maintaining mechanism supports the container in a rotatable manner, and extends along both longitudinal sides of the container so as to face each other, and the support member is attached to the self-propelled carriage. A lift part that moves up and down may be provided.

  In such a configuration, the posture maintaining mechanism supports the container in a rotatable manner, and extends along the both side surfaces in the longitudinal direction of the container so as to face each other. Since the lift part which raises / lowers with respect to a running carriage is provided, the change of the container height according to the running state of a self-propelled carriage and the horizontal maintenance of a container attitude | position become easy.

  Further, the self-propelled carriage according to the present invention includes a self-propelled carriage that travels along a track extending in a height direction, a self-propelled cart that travels on the track, a container that accommodates a conveyed product, and the container And a support member extending so as to face each other along both longitudinal side surfaces of the container, and a lift part for raising and lowering the support member relative to the self-propelled carriage, The lift portion includes a drive shaft that moves the support member up and down, and a support shaft that slidably supports the support member, and the drive shaft and the support shaft have an oblique shape with the container interposed therebetween. And the support shaft is arranged to face each other in the longitudinal center of the support member, and the drive shaft is on the diagonal of the rhombic shape, and the longitudinal direction of the support member Place at the edge It is characterized in that is.

  The self-propelled cart according to the present invention configured as described above is a self-propelled cart that travels along a track extending in the height direction, a self-propelled cart that travels on the track, a container that accommodates a conveyed product, The container is rotatably supported, and includes a support member that extends so as to face each other along both longitudinal sides of the container, and a lift unit that lifts and lowers the support member relative to the self-propelled carriage. The lift portion has a drive shaft that lifts and lowers the support member, and a support shaft that slidably supports the support member. The drive shaft and the support shaft are arranged in an oblique shape with the container interposed therebetween. The support shaft is disposed so as to be opposed to each other in the longitudinal center of the support member, and the drive shaft is disposed on the diagonal end of the support member at the longitudinal end of the support member. Trolley When traveling, the bending moment due to the load of the container and the transported object is mainly borne by the support shaft arranged so as to oppose each other in the longitudinal center of the support member, and the axial direction when raising and lowering the container and the transported object This thrust force is mainly borne by the drive shaft which is arranged on the diagonal end of the support member in the diagonal direction. This allows each shaft to share the load of the container load in a balanced manner according to the traveling state of the self-propelled carriage, and keeps the container in a horizontal position with a simple configuration, while maintaining an efficient posture maintenance mechanism for raising and lowering the container. Can be realized.

  Here, a transmission shaft for transmitting power may be further arranged between the drive shafts arranged on the diagonal line, and the drive shafts may be integrally driven by the same drive source.

  In such a configuration, the drive shaft is driven integrally by the same drive source via the transmission shaft, so that the drive shaft and the support shaft are balanced to drive the drive shaft efficiently. Thus, a more efficient posture maintaining mechanism can be realized with a simple configuration.

  According to the self-propelled carriage system of the first aspect of the present invention, the horizontal running is performed while keeping the height of the container low, and the curved track is raised to a predetermined height. Since the container can be rotated with respect to the self-propelled carriage and its posture is kept horizontal, the height required for the horizontal track can be reduced, space can be used effectively, and the self-propelled carriage system can be installed. It becomes easy.

  According to the self-propelled cart system according to claim 2, the maximum height is defined as the minimum height necessary for maintaining the attitude of the container on the curved track horizontally, and the minimum height However, it is defined by the contact height that prevents the container from rotating on the horizontal trajectory and keeps the posture horizontal. Therefore, the predetermined height for maintaining the container posture horizontal is set efficiently. As a result, more efficient use of space can be realized and the laying efficiency of the entire self-propelled cart system can be improved.

  Further, according to the self-propelled cart system according to claim 3, the posture maintaining mechanism supports the container so as to be rotatable, and extends so as to face each other along both longitudinal sides of the container. Since the member and the lift part that raises and lowers the support member with respect to the self-propelled carriage are provided, it is easy to change the container height according to the traveling state of the self-propelled carriage and to maintain the container posture horizontally.

  Further, according to the self-propelled carriage according to claim 4, the self-propelled carriage traveling on the track, the container for accommodating the transported object, the container is rotatably supported, and the container is supported on both sides in the longitudinal direction of the container. A support member extending so as to face each other, and a lift part that raises and lowers the support member relative to the self-propelled carriage. The lift part slides the support shaft and a drive shaft that raises and lowers the support member. The support shaft is movably supported, and the drive shaft and the support shaft are arranged in an oblique shape with the container interposed therebetween, and the support shafts are opposed to each other in the longitudinal center of the support member. And the drive shaft is diagonally diagonal and arranged at the longitudinal end of the support member, so that when the self-propelled carriage travels vertically, the bending moment due to the load of the container and the conveyed product Are mainly borne by the support shafts arranged so as to face each other in the longitudinal center of the support member, and the axial thrust force when raising and lowering the container and the conveyed product is inclined to the longitudinal end of the support member. It is mainly borne by the drive shaft which is arranged on the diagonal of the square. This allows each shaft to share the load of the container load in a well-balanced manner according to the traveling state of the self-propelled carriage, and an efficient lift part that raises and lowers the container while maintaining the container posture horizontal with a simple configuration. Can be realized.

  According to the self-propelled carriage of claim 5, since the drive shaft is integrally driven by the same drive source via the transmission shaft, the drive shaft and the support shaft are balanced and efficient. Thus, the drive shaft can be driven, and a more efficient lift portion can be realized with a simple configuration.

  Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  First, the outline of the self-propelled cart system according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a schematic configuration of a self-propelled cart system 1 according to the present invention.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a self-propelled carriage system 1 includes a lower horizontal track 3 having a horizontal track surface 3 s and a horizontal surface that is opposed to the horizontal track surface 3 s and has a height higher than that of the lower horizontal track 3. An upper horizontal track 5 having a track surface 5s, a substantially horizontal U-shaped track 7 having a curved track surface 7s by integrally connecting the lower horizontal track 3 and the upper horizontal track 5 in the height direction; 3, 5, 7, and a self-propelled carriage 10 having a drive source that can move along the tracks 3, 5, 7, and a rotation center 21, which rotates relative to the self-propelled carriage 10 A box-shaped container 20 that can be attached, and the self-propelled cart 10 and the container 20 are interposed, and the rotation center 21 of the container 20 is moved up and down with respect to the self-propelled cart 10 to move the container. It is comprised with the attitude | position maintenance mechanism 30 which maintains 20 attitude | positions horizontally. Further, the lower horizontal track 3, the upper horizontal track 5, and the curved track 7 are integrally formed so that the respective tracks are continuous.

  When transporting, for example, by setting and instructing a self-propelled cart number and a destination number from the operation panel 50 provided in the station, the self-propelled cart 10 loaded with the container 20 can travel horizontally on the lower horizontal track 3. Then, the vehicle 20 is transported vertically along the curved track on the curved track 7, is turned upside down on the upper horizontal track 5, and travels horizontally. As will be described later, various documents, medical charts, specimens, and the like stored in the container 20 have a rotation center 21 and can be rotated with respect to the self-propelled carriage 10, and the rotation of the container 20. The attitude of the container 20 is maintained in a horizontal position by the attitude maintaining mechanism 30 that moves the moving center 21 up and down with respect to the self-propelled carriage 10 so as to move up and down.

  Next, the detail of each component apparatus of the self-propelled cart system 1 is demonstrated with reference to FIG. 2A and 2B are views showing a state in which the container 20 of the self-propelled carriage 10 is lifted up, in which FIG. 2A is a front view and FIG. 2B is a side view.

  First, as shown in FIG. 2 (a), the lower horizontal track 3 has a horizontal guide plate 3c on its upper surface, and the horizontal track 3 has a cross-sectional shape upward as shown in FIG. 2 (b). The bottom plate 3a, side plates 3b extending in the height direction from both ends of the bottom plate 3a, and parallel to the bottom plate 3a from both upper ends of the side plates 3b, The guide plate 3c is formed integrally with the guide plate 3c extending horizontally to the outside. A power supply / communication trolley 3e formed in a convex shape, for example, over the right side from the vicinity of the center of the inner surface of the bottom plate 3a extends along the longitudinal direction of the track 3, and this power supply The communication trolley 3e is connected to a power source / communication source (not shown). A rack surface 3r that meshes with a pinion gear of a self-propelled carriage 10 to be described later is formed from the vicinity of the center portion of the bottom plate 3a to the side surface opposite to the power supply / communication trolley 3e. A raceway surface 3s that comes into contact with the wheel 10s of the carriage 10 is formed. The arrangement of the power / communication trolley 3e, the rack surface 3r, and the track surface 3s can be appropriately changed according to the arrangement of the slider 10e, the pinion gear 10g, and the wheels 10s of the self-propelled carriage 10 described later.

  Further, each of the guide plates 3c on both sides is formed with a side raceway plate 3d that is orthogonal to the guide plate 3c and extends downward in the vicinity of the adjacent side plate 3b. The interval between the outer surfaces of the track plate 3d is formed to be substantially equal to the interval between the inner surfaces of the lower guide wheel 11 of the self-propelled carriage 10 described later. And the recessed part 3f in which the bottom part of the self-propelled carriage 10 is accommodated is formed in the space formed by these bottom face board 3a and side face board 3b. The upper horizontal track 5 has a guide plate 5c, a rack surface 5r, a track surface 5s, and the like facing the guide plate 3c, the rack surface 3r, the track surface 3s, etc. of the lower horizontal track 3, and the lower horizontal track 5 3 is the same structure as the lower horizontal track 3 except that the guide track 7c, the rack surface 7r, the track surface 7s and the like form a curved surface in the height direction. Since the structure is the same as that of the lower horizontal track 3, the description thereof is omitted for simplicity. In the curved track 7, the rack surface 7 r that enables stable vertical traveling is essential, but the rack surfaces 3 s and 5 s are located on the horizontal tracks 3 and 5 and do not require accurate positioning. May be omitted. Here, these raceways 3, 5, and 7 are formed of a member suitable for sheet metal processing such as an aluminum alloy, for example, in order to reduce weight and secure strength, and guide plates 3c, 5c, and 7c, raceway surfaces, and the like. The tracks 3, 5, and 7 are integrally formed so that 3s, 5s, 7s, etc. are continuous.

  Next, as shown best in FIG. 2B, the self-propelled carriage 10 is provided with a slider 10e on the bottom portion of the chassis 15 at a position in sliding contact with the power supply / communication trolley 3e. When the slider 10e and the power supply / communication trolley 3e are in sliding contact, the self-propelled carriage 10 obtains a driving power supply and transmits / receives a control signal from the system control CPU or the like. In the drawing, on the left side of the slider 10e, there is provided a pinion gear 10g that meshes with the rack surface 3r described above and is driven by a drive motor (not shown) of the self-propelled carriage 10, and is provided on the track. By engaging with the rack surface, stable vertical running and fine positioning control are possible. Furthermore, wheels 10s are provided on the outside thereof, and the self-propelled carriage 10 can travel along the track surfaces 3s, 5s, and 7s.

  In addition, on the side surface of the chassis 15 of the self-propelled carriage 10, four lower guide wheels 11 and the lower guide wheels 11 respectively correspond to the upper and lower directions, and the wheel spacing in the width direction corresponds to that of the lower guide wheels 11. Four upper guide wheels 12 arranged slightly shorter than the above are provided. Further, a clearance in the height direction is provided between the outer peripheral surface of each lower guide wheel 11 and the outer peripheral surface of the upper guide wheel 12 so that the guide plates 3c, 5c, and 7c are disposed. . The chassis 15 has a flat upper surface 15a at the top, and the chassis 15 has a drive motor and power as a drive source for traveling the self-propelled carriage 10 and for lifting and lowering a lift unit 29 described later. A part of the shafts 33 and 35 of the transmission mechanism and lift part 29 is accommodated. Further, elastic bodies having a U-shaped cross section, for example, a bumper 17 formed of rubber, are respectively attached to the front and rear side surfaces of the chassis 15 of the self-propelled carriage 10 so that the vehicle 15 travels on the track. The impact caused by the contact between the plurality of self-propelled carts 10 is alleviated. Further, a contact sensor such as a limit switch is provided in the bumper, and the impact of the collision is prevented by stopping the drive motor of the self-propelled carriage 10 at the time of contact.

  When the self-propelled carriage 10 is attached to the horizontal track, the space between the left and right lower guide wheels 11 and the upper guide wheels 12 of the self-propelled carriage 10 is input from the input station provided with the operation panel 50 as shown in FIG. The open ends of the left and right guide plates 3c of the lower horizontal track 3 that are open at the input station end, for example, between the left and right clearances in the vertical direction (see FIG. 2) formed horizontally The self-propelled carriage 10 can be mounted on the track 3 so that the guide plate 3 c is sandwiched between the lower guide wheel 11 and the upper guide wheel 12. Alternatively, the lower guide wheel 11 of the self-propelled carriage 10 can be detachable, the lower guide wheel 11 is removed at the time of attachment, the self-propelled carriage 10 is installed on the track, and then the lower guide wheel 11 is attached. The self-propelled carriage 10 may be attached at any position on the track. Then, via a system control computer (not shown), for example, in accordance with a setting instruction from the operation panel 50, the self-propelled carriage 10 travels horizontally on the track 3 with the wheels 10s and the pinion gear 10g using the guide plate 3c as a guide. On the curved track 7 that is continuous with this, the vehicle travels vertically by the rack and pinion structure of the pinion gear 10g and the rack surface 7r, and the upper track 5 can also run freely upside down in the same manner. .

  As described above, precise position control and stable in horizontal traveling are achieved by the rotation of the wheels 10s of the self-propelled carriage 10 on the raceway surfaces 3s, 5s and 7s and the engagement of the pinion gear 10g and the rack surfaces 3r, 5r and 7r. Vertical travel is possible. Further, by sandwiching the guide plates 3c, 5c, 7c of the tracks 3, 5, 7 between the lower guide wheel 11 and the upper guide wheel 12, the self-propelled carriage 10 is stably supported in the height direction, and the The distance between the inner surfaces of the lower guide wheels 11 on both sides in the width direction of the carriage 10 and the distance between the outer surfaces of the side track plates 3d, 5d, 7d formed on both sides of the tracks 3, 5, and 7 are perpendicular to each other. Since these are set to be substantially the same, it is possible to prevent the self-propelled carriage 10 from being derailed during the traveling and the blurring in the width direction, and the freedom of the self-propelled carriage 10 such as horizontal traveling, vertical traveling, and reverse traveling. Smooth running is possible.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 2, the container 20 is a box-shaped housing having a lid 23 on the top, and can be formed of, for example, reinforced plastic or the like in order to reduce weight and ensure strength. In addition, a storage rack suitable for transported objects such as documents and specimens can be accommodated inside the container 20, and the lid 23 and the container 20 are configured to be easily locked / unlocked by an operator. ing. As best shown in FIG. 2 (b), a rotation shaft 25 is provided at the center of both side surfaces of the container 20 in the longitudinal direction so that the container 20 is rotatable in the longitudinal direction. The center of the shaft 25 forms the rotation center 21 of the container 20. Of course, the lid 23 can be omitted depending on the contents of the object to be transported.

  Thus, since the container 20 is provided with the rotating shaft 25 which forms the rotation center 21, when the rotating shaft 25 is lifted up via the shaft support member 27 by the attitude | position maintenance mechanism 30 mentioned later. The container 20 can be rotated about the rotation center 21, and the attitude of the container 20 can be maintained horizontally regardless of the traveling position of the self-propelled carriage 10.

  Next, the shaft support member 27 and the lift part 29 constituting the posture maintaining mechanism 30 will be described.

  First, as shown in FIGS. 2A and 2B, the shaft support member 27 is, for example, an inverted T-shaped support member, and the rotation shaft 25 can be freely rotated via a bearing 26 at the upper end. And a shaft support portion 27b that extends to the container 20 side at a lower end and is orthogonal to the rotation shaft support portion 27a and to which a shaft of a lift portion 29 described later is attached. It is constructed integrally. Here, the shape of the shaft support member 27 may be any shape as long as it is interposed between the lift portion 29 and the rotary shaft 25 so that the rotary shaft 25 can be lifted and lowered according to the lift of the lift portion 29. Of course, it is not limited to the inverted T-shape.

  Next, the lift part 29 is demonstrated with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a perspective view schematically showing the configuration of the lift unit 29 provided in the self-propelled carriage 10.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the lift unit 29 includes a drive motor 31 disposed in the chassis 15 of the self-propelled carriage 10, two drive shafts 33 driven by the motor 31, and power between the drive shafts 33. The transmission shaft 34 for transmission and the two support shafts 35 for slidably supporting the container 20 in accordance with the raising and lowering of the drive shaft 33, and the upper end of the drive shaft 33 and the upper end of the support shaft 35 are connected, respectively. The shaft support part 27 is configured by a shaft coupling part 36 attached to the shaft support part 27 b of the shaft support member 27. Here, the two drive shafts 33 and the two support shafts 35 are disposed in a rectangular shape at the bottom of the chassis 15, and each of the drive shaft 33 and the support shaft 35 is disposed on a diagonal line of the rectangle. The transmission shaft 34 is arranged on a diagonal line formed by the drive shafts 33. Further, a downwardly facing target 38a is formed in the shaft coupling portion 36 on the drive motor 31 side, and the target 38a passes through the optical sensor 39a provided at a predetermined height, so that a predetermined portion of the lift portion 29 is obtained. Detect the minimum height. Further, a mechanical stopper 40 is provided at the lower portion of the shaft coupling portion 36 to prevent the lift portion 29 from being excessively lowered. Similarly, an upward target 38b is formed at the base of the drive shaft 33 on the drive motor 31 side, and the target 38b passes through an optical sensor 39b provided at a predetermined height, whereby the lift portion 29 is formed. The predetermined maximum height is detected.

  The operation of the lift part 29 configured as described above will be described below.

  First, when the self-propelled carriage 10 reaches a predetermined position in the vicinity of the predetermined curved track 7, the drive motor 31 is driven by a command from a control means such as a CPU, and the motor gear 31a rotates in the direction of arrow A, for example. . The drive gear 33a of the drive shaft 33 meshed with the motor gear 31a is driven to rotate in the direction of arrow B, and the drive shaft 33 formed as a ball screw on the inner diameter side of the drive gear 33a is Ascend in the direction. At the same time, the transmission gear 34a of the transmission shaft 34 meshing with the drive gear 33a rotates in the direction of the arrow D, and is disposed diagonally via the transmission gear 34a and the drive gear 33a having the same structure. The corresponding drive shaft 33 is raised. Further, the integral raising of the drive shafts 33 arranged on the diagonal lines via the transmission shaft 34 integrally raises the corresponding support shafts 35 arranged in the linear bush 37 via the shaft coupling portion 36. Let The lift part 29 is lowered by rotating the drive motor 31 in the reverse direction.

  As described above, the posture maintaining mechanism 30 supports the container 20 in a rotatable manner, and extends along the both sides in the longitudinal direction of the container 20 so as to face each other, and the support member 27. Since the lift part 29 which raises / lowers with respect to the self-propelled cart 10 is provided, the change of the height of the container 20 according to the traveling state of the self-propelled cart 10 and the horizontal maintenance of the attitude of the container 20 are facilitated. Further, since the lift unit 29 is integrally driven by the single drive source 31 via the transmission shaft 34 disposed on the diagonal line, the drive shaft 33 and the support shaft 35 are balanced to be efficient. The drive shaft 33 can be driven. Thereby, the left and right rotation center 21 of the container 20 can be lifted and lowered in a balanced manner, and the posture maintaining mechanism 30 that lifts and lowers the container 20 can be realized while maintaining the posture of the container 20 horizontally with a simple configuration. it can.

  Furthermore, another embodiment of the above-described posture maintaining mechanism 30 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing another embodiment 60 of the posture maintaining mechanism constituted by the shaft support member 57 and the lift part 59.

  The posture maintaining mechanism 60 in the present embodiment has a container support frame 61, and a support shaft 65 is disposed in the center of the shaft support members 57 on both side surfaces in the longitudinal direction of the container support frame 61 so as to face each other. A shaft connecting member 66 attached to the lower part of the support member 57 extends in the longitudinal direction beyond the shaft support member 57, and the drive shaft 63 is disposed at the end of the extending shaft connecting member 66. For the sake of simplicity, similar members are denoted by the same reference numerals.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the container support frame 61 includes an upper frame 61a, two bottom plates 61b extending in the width direction of the container 20, and the two bottom plates 61b. The side plate 61d extends obliquely toward the rotation center 61c of the 61. In this embodiment, by using such a container support frame 61, the existing container 20 can be diverted, and more stable horizontal support of the container 20 and improvement of aesthetics are achieved.

The rotation center 61 c of the container support frame 61 is supported by a plate-like shaft support member 57, and the bottom surface of the shaft support member 57 is connected to the shaft coupling member 66. The end 66e of one shaft coupling member 66 extends toward one longitudinal end of the container support frame 61, and the other shaft disposed on the opposite side across the container support frame 61. The end portion of the connecting member 66 extends toward the other longitudinal end portion of the container support frame 61. The support shaft 65 is disposed at a lower portion in the vertical direction of the rotation center 61 c of the container support frame 61, and the drive shaft 63 is disposed at an end portion 66 e of the shaft coupling member 66. That is, the drive shaft 63 and the support shaft 65 are arranged in an oblique shape with the container support frame 61 interposed therebetween, and the support shaft 65 is a lower portion in the vertical direction of the rotation center 61c. The drive shaft 63 is disposed at the longitudinal end portion 66e of the shaft coupling member 66 so as to be diagonally diagonal to each other, as described above. By arranging 63 and the support shaft 65, when the self-propelled carriage 10 travels vertically, the bending moment due to the load of the container 20 and the conveyed product is arranged so as to oppose each other in the longitudinal center of the support member 57. The supporting shaft 65 mainly bears the axial thrust force when raising and lowering the container 20 and the conveyed product. This is mainly borne by the drive shaft 63 disposed on the diagonal end of the directional diagonal 66e. Thereby, the shafts 63 and 65 share the load of the container load according to the traveling state of the self-propelled carriage 10 in a well-balanced manner, and the efficiency of raising and lowering the container while maintaining the attitude of the container 20 horizontal with a simple configuration. A good posture maintaining mechanism 60 can be realized.

  Next, operation | movement of the self-propelled cart system 1 comprised as mentioned above is demonstrated with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing operations along the tracks 3, 5, and 7 of the self-propelled carriage system 1 according to the present invention. The numbers in parentheses in the figure indicate the position on the track of the self-propelled carriage 10 on which the container 20 is mounted. From an arbitrary station (1) where the operation panel 50 is installed toward another station (11). Suppose that the self-propelled carriage 10 is transported.

  First, a conveyed product is accommodated in the container 20 of the self-propelled carriage 10 waiting at the station (1), and the lid 23 of the container 20 is locked as necessary. At this time, the posture maintaining mechanism 30 has a first predetermined height at which the container 20 cannot rotate in the longitudinal direction, that is, the bottom surface of the container 20 and the top surface 15a of the chassis 15 of the self-propelled carriage 10 are in contact with each other. The rotation center 21 of the container 20 is maintained at the height. Then, for example, the station number of the destination station (11) is input to the operation panel 50 provided in the station (1). The information input in this way is output as a travel command to the corresponding self-propelled carriage 10 via a system control computer (not shown). Then, the corresponding self-propelled carriage 10 travels horizontally on the horizontal track 3 in (2) while maintaining a horizontal posture of a predetermined height, and is an end portion of the horizontal track 3 and one end of the curved track 7. At a predetermined position (3) in the vicinity, the attitude maintaining mechanism 30 of the self-propelled carriage 10 starts to raise the rotation center 21 of the container 20 based on the signal of the switch or sensor installed on the track, At a position (4) where the track of the track 7 begins to draw a curved surface, a second predetermined height at which the container 20 is rotatable in the longitudinal direction, that is, the rotation center 21 of the container 20 and the upper surface of the self-propelled carriage 10 However, it raises to the height which becomes substantially equal to the turning radius of the container 20. While the rotation center 21 of the container 20 and the upper surface of the self-propelled carriage 10 maintain the second predetermined height, the self-propelled carriage 10 travels vertically along the curved track 7. Since the moving center 21 is maintained at the second predetermined height, the moving center 21 is rotatable around the turning center 21, and the self-propelled carriage 10 moves along the curved track 7 (5), (6 ), (7), the container 20 is maintained in a horizontal position even when it is raised in the vertical direction. In (8) near the other end of the curved track 7, the self-propelled carriage 10 is turned upside down and the attitude maintaining mechanism 30 is lowered by the signal of a switch or a sensor arranged on the track. The container 20 is lowered to the first predetermined height at a predetermined position (9) that enters the upper horizontal track 5. Thereafter, the self-propelled carriage 10 maintains the attitude of the container 20 horizontally while maintaining the inverted attitude of the suspended suspension, and reverses the upper horizontal track 5 of (10) to reach the target station (11). .

  As described above, in the self-propelled carriage system 1 according to the present invention, the lower horizontal track 3 having a horizontal track surface, and the horizontal track surface facing the track surface and having a height higher than that of the lower horizontal track 3. The lower horizontal track 3 and the upper horizontal track 5 are integrally connected in the height direction so that the upper horizontal track 5 having the upper horizontal track 5 and the lower horizontal track 3 and the upper horizontal track 5 are continuous. , A self-propelled carriage 10 straddling the tracks 3, 5 and 7 and movable along the raceway surface, and a rotation center 21. A box-shaped container 20 that is attached to the container 20 and a posture maintaining mechanism 30 that moves the rotation center 21 of the container 20 with respect to the self-propelled carriage 10 so as to freely move up and down, and maintains the posture of the container 20 horizontally. This posture maintaining mechanism 30 is used for the container in the horizontal orbits 3 and 5. The rotation center 21 of the 20 is kept at the first predetermined height, the rotation center 21 of the container 20 is raised to the second predetermined height in the vicinity of one end of the curved track 7, Since the rotation center 21 of the container 20 is lowered to the first predetermined height, the attitude maintaining mechanism 30 is at one end of the curved track 7 in which the self-propelled carriage 10 enters the curved track 7 from the horizontal tracks 3 and 5. Is raised to a predetermined height, and the container is lowered to a predetermined height at the other end. As a result, in the horizontal tracks 3 and 5, the height of the container 20 is kept low and the posture thereof is kept horizontal, and in the curved track 7, the height of the container is raised to a predetermined height, Since the container 20 can be rotated with respect to the running cart 10, the height required for the horizontal tracks 3 and 5 can be reduced, the space can be effectively used, and the self-running cart system 1 can be easily laid.

  Further, the first predetermined height is a height at which the container 20 and the self-propelled carriage 10 are in contact with each other substantially in parallel, and the second predetermined height is a rotation that maintains the attitude of the container 20 horizontally. The maximum height is defined by the minimum height necessary to maintain the attitude of the container 20 on the curved track 7 horizontally, and the minimum height is The container 20 is prevented from rotating on the horizontal tracks 3 and 5 and is defined by the contact height that keeps the posture horizontal. Therefore, the predetermined height for keeping the container 20 horizontal is efficient. Thus, more effective use of the space is realized, and the laying efficiency of the entire self-propelled cart system 1 is improved.

  As mentioned above, although the self-propelled cart system of the present invention has been described with reference to the accompanying drawings, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and various modifications can be made within the scope of the gist of the present invention. is there. For example, the numbers of the lower guide wheels 11 and the upper guide wheels 12 may be changed as appropriate, and the points at which the container 20 starts to move up and down are the traveling speed of the self-propelled carriage 10, the curvature of the curved track 7, and the raising and lowering of the container 20. It can be set appropriately according to the speed.

It is a perspective view showing an outline of a self-propelled cart system concerning the present invention. It is a figure which shows the state by which the container of the self-propelled carriage was lifted up, (a) is a front view, (b) is a side view. It is a perspective view which shows typically the structure of the lift part which comprises an attitude | position maintenance mechanism. It is a perspective view showing another embodiment of a posture maintenance mechanism. It is a figure which shows the operation | movement along the track | orbit of the self-propelled trolley | bogie system which concerns on this invention.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Self-propelled carriage system 3 Lower horizontal track 3a Bottom plate 3b Side plate 3c Guide plate 3d Side track plate 3e Power supply / communication trolley 3f Recess 3r Rack surface 3s Track surface 5 Upper horizontal track 5c Guide plate 7 Curved track 7c Guide plate 10 Self Trailer 10e Slider 10g Pinion gear 10s Wheel 11 Lower guide wheel 12 Upper guide wheel 15 Chassis 15a Upper surface 17 Bumper 20 Container 21 Rotation center 25 Rotating shaft 27 Shaft support member 27a Rotating shaft support portion 27b Shaft support portion 29 Lift portion 30 posture maintaining mechanism 31 drive motor 31a motor gear 33 drive shaft 33a drive gear 34 transmission shaft 34a transmission gear 35 support shaft 36 shaft coupling portion 37 linear bush 38a, b target 39a, b photosensor 40 stopper 50 operation panel 57 shaft support member 61 N Support frame 61a Upper frame 61b Bottom plate 61c Center of rotation 61d Side plate 63 Drive shaft 65 Support shaft 66 Shaft connecting member 66e End

Claims (5)

A lower horizontal track having a horizontal track surface;
An upper horizontal track having a horizontal track surface facing the track surface and having a height higher than the lower horizontal track;
A substantially U-shaped curved track connecting the lower horizontal track and the upper horizontal track integrally in the height direction so that the lower horizontal track and the upper horizontal track are continuous;
A self-propelled carriage that straddles the track and is movable along the track surface;
A box-shaped container having a rotation center and rotatably attached to the self-propelled carriage;
An attitude maintaining mechanism for moving the rotation center of the container so as to be movable up and down relative to the self-propelled carriage, and maintaining the attitude of the container horizontally;
The posture maintaining mechanism maintains the rotation center of the container at a first predetermined height in the horizontal track according to the movement of the self-propelled carriage, and near the one end of the curved track, the container A self-propelled cart system, wherein the center of rotation is raised to a second predetermined height and the center of rotation of the container is lowered to a first predetermined height in the vicinity of the other end of the curved track. The first predetermined height is a height at which the container and the self-propelled carriage are in contact with each other substantially in parallel, and the second predetermined height is such that the attitude of the container is maintained horizontally. The self-propelled cart system according to claim 1, wherein the cart is substantially equivalent to a turning radius of the turning. The posture maintaining mechanism rotatably supports the container, and supports members extending to face each other along both longitudinal sides of the container;
The self-propelled carriage system according to claim 1, further comprising a lift section that raises and lowers the support member with respect to the self-propelled carriage. In a self-propelled carriage that runs along a track extending in the height direction,
A self-propelled carriage traveling on the track;
A container for storing the transported goods;
A support member that rotatably supports the container, and extends so as to face each other along both longitudinal sides of the container;
A lift part that raises and lowers the support member relative to the self-propelled carriage,
The lift portion includes a drive shaft that moves the support member up and down, and a support shaft that slidably supports the support member, and the drive shaft and the support shaft have an oblique shape with the container interposed therebetween. And the support shaft is arranged to face each other in the longitudinal center of the support member, and the drive shaft is on the diagonal of the rhombic shape, and the longitudinal direction of the support member A self-propelled cart characterized by being arranged at the end. The transmission shaft for transmitting power is further arranged between the drive shafts arranged on the diagonal line, and the drive shafts are integrally driven by the same drive source. Self-propelled cart.

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