JP2005339568A - Goods conveyance facility - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a goods conveyance facility capable of improving conveyance efficiency. <P>SOLUTION: The facility includes a controller 71 that outputs a command to start running when a succeeding self-travelling bogie 3 approaches a stopping self-travelling bogie 3. The controller 71 outputs the command to start running to the stopping self-travelling bogie just before the succeeding self-travelling bogie 3 reaches a position where running speed has to be reduced to avoid a collision against the self-travelling bogie 3 stopping ahead. This allows the succeeding self-travelling bogie 3 not to reduce the running speed to avoid elongation of conveying time and prevent reduction of conveyance efficiency. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention is directed to a plurality of self-propelled carts that are guided by a travel route and that each carry a load, and a plurality of load transfer positions that are arranged along the travel route and transfer the load to and from the self-propelled cart. The present invention relates to a cargo transport facility provided with (station).

  In a conventional load transport facility, each self-propelled carriage transports a load according to transport data instructed from a ground controller that controls the transport of the load between the stations. The conveyance data is composed of data of “station for picking up (receiving the load)” and data of “station for unloading (dispensing the load)”.

  When self-propelled carriages input the transport data, they first run to the "loading station", and when they arrive, they pick up the goods at this station, and then self-run to the "unloading station". Unload the load. The self-propelled carriage has a function to measure the distance from the origin of the travel route, and the distance from the origin of each station is stored in advance, and the distance from the origin of the station set in the conveyance data is targeted. The running control is performed while feeding back the measured distance.

  When the ground controller inputs a load transport request from the station, the station that issued the load transport request is set as a “loading station”, and the transport destination station of the transport request is set as a “loading station”. The transfer data is set and formed, and the transfer data is output to the self-propelled carriage in a state where the load can be loaded on the upstream side closest to the station that issued the load transfer request.

Also, the ground controller, when a self-propelled carriage ready to load a load is waiting, and a subsequent self-propelled carriage of this self-propelled carriage picks up a load (receives the load), as shown in FIG. ,
1. When there is a load transfer request from a station downstream of the “loading station” that is the destination of the subsequent self-propelled cart load, this downstream station is set as the “loading station” and the transfer of the transfer request is made Set the previous station as the “unloading station” and form the transfer data, and output this transfer data to the waiting self-propelled carriage,
2. If there is no request to transport the load from the station downstream of the “loading station” that is the destination of the subsequent self-propelled cart load, one of the stations downstream from the “unloading station” of the subsequent self-propelled cart A temporary “loading station” is set, and transport data including only this temporary “loading station” is output to the waiting self-propelled carriage.

  If there is a request for transporting the load from the station downstream of the “unloading station” of the subsequent self-propelled cart, the waiting self-propelled cart transports the load according to the input transport data, and the subsequent self-propelled cart “ If there is no load transfer request from a station downstream of the “loading station”, it will self-run to wait for a temporary “loading station” of the input transfer data.

  However, as described above, when there is a load transport request from a station downstream from the station where the following self-propelled cart unloads the load, this downstream station is set as a station for picking up the load. As shown, even if there is a request to transport the load before the self-propelled carriage passes from the station upstream from the station that picks up the load, it will pass, so it can not pick up the load, and the next self-propelled carriage Since the load cannot be transported until it arrives, the transport efficiency (actual vehicle rate) is deteriorated.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 12B, when a self-propelled carriage in a state where a load can be loaded is on standby, if a subsequent self-propelled carriage of this self-propelled carriage picks up a load, it immediately moves to a temporary station. Starting from the waiting station, that is, even if there is a request for transporting the load before the self-propelled carriage passes from the station downstream from this waiting station, it will pass through Since the load cannot be transported until the next self-propelled carriage arrives, the transport efficiency (actual vehicle rate) is deteriorated.

  Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide a load transport facility that can improve transport efficiency.

  In order to achieve the above-mentioned object, the invention according to claim 1 of the present invention is directed along a traveling route, and is self-propelled by a traveling route, each carrying a load, and along the traveling route. It is a load transport facility having a plurality of load transfer positions that are arranged and transfer the load to and from the self-propelled cart, and when the following self-propelled cart approaches the stopped self-propelled cart , Including a controller that outputs a travel command, the controller immediately before the subsequent self-propelled cart arrives at a point where the travel speed needs to be reduced to avoid a rear-end collision with the self-propelled cart that has stopped in front In addition, a travel command is output to the stopped self-propelled carriage.

  With the above configuration, a travel command is output for the first time when a subsequent self-propelled carriage approaches the stopped self-propelled carriage. Therefore, if a new load transfer request is generated at the load transfer position near this self-propelled carriage during the time until the following self-propelled truck approaches, the new load transfer position can be set as the travel destination. it can. Therefore, the ratio of passing through the load transfer position where a new load transfer request is generated is reduced, and the load transfer efficiency is improved.

  In addition, just before the following self-propelled bogie arrives at a point where the traveling speed needs to be reduced to avoid a rear-end collision with the self-propelled bogie that stops ahead, the vehicle runs against the stopped self-propelled cart. By outputting the command, it is not necessary to lower the traveling speed of the subsequent self-propelled carriage, and therefore, it is avoided that the conveyance time is extended, and the conveyance efficiency is prevented from being lowered.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, wherein the vehicle body length, the moving speed, the acceleration / deceleration of the self-propelled carriage, and the traveling command to the stopped self-propelled carriage are determined. It is obtained from the delay time from the input of “1” to the start of traveling.

  With the above configuration, a point where the traveling speed needs to be reduced in order to avoid a rear-end collision with a self-propelled cart that has stopped in advance is required, so that the self-propelled cart that is stopped immediately before passing this point In response, a travel command is output.

  The load carrying facility according to the present invention is such that the following self-propelled cart is stopped immediately before arriving at a point where the traveling speed needs to be reduced in order to avoid a rear-end collision with the self-propelled cart that has stopped ahead. By outputting the traveling command to the traveling carriage, it is not necessary to lower the traveling speed of the following self-propelling carriage, thereby preventing the transportation time from being extended and preventing the transportation efficiency from being lowered.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
FIG. 1 is a layout diagram of a load carrying facility according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a main part configuration diagram of the load carrying facility.

  1 and 2, reference numeral 1 denotes a pair of travel rails (an example of a travel route) installed in a loop on the floor 2, and 3 is guided by the travel rail 1 and travels in one direction indicated by an arrow. This is a four-wheeled self-propelled carriage that transports loads. A plurality of self-propelled carts 3 are provided.

  Reference numeral 5 denotes a plurality of stations (an example of a load transfer position) that are arranged along the traveling rail 1 and transfer loads to and from the self-propelled carriage 3. To the transporting station 5 where the cargo is picked up, and when it arrives, it picks up the load from this station 5 and then self-propels to the transporting station 5 where the cargo is unloaded. It has a function to wholesale.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the self-propelled carriage 3 includes a vehicle body 11, a load transfer / placement device (for example, a roller conveyor or a chain conveyor) 12 installed on the vehicle body 11, and a vehicle body 11. The two swivel driven wheel devices 13 that support the vehicle body 11 with respect to one traveling rail 1 and the vehicle body 11 with respect to the other traveling rail 1 and the curved shape of the traveling rail 1 And two swiveling / sliding driving wheel devices 14 that can follow the slewing wheel and can move in the distance (slidable) with respect to the swiveling driven wheel device 13.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the vehicle body 11 includes a right frame 21 that supports two swivel driven wheel devices 13 so as to be pivotable about a vertical axis, and two swivel / slide drive wheel devices 14 that are A left frame 22 that is pivotable around the center and that is movably supported in a lateral direction (a perspective direction to the swivel driven wheel device 13), and a front and rear frame 23 that fixes the front and rear ends of the right frame 21 and the left frame 22 , 24 and a box 25 fixed on a frame formed by the frames 21, 22, 23, 24, and the load transfer / placement device 12 is installed in the box 25 .

  Each of the swivel driven wheel devices 13 includes a revolving body 31 that can swivel around the longitudinal axis with respect to the right frame 21, and a pair that is connected to the lower surface side of the revolving body 31 and that corresponds to the side surface of the traveling rail 1. A bracket 32 having a plurality of legs, an axle 33 provided at the center of both legs of the bracket 32, an idle wheel 34 rotatably supported by the axle 33, and both legs of the bracket 32 The four guide rollers (an example of a guide device) 35 that are provided at the front, rear, left and right ends of the rail and are in contact with both side surfaces of the traveling rail 1, are formed by the four guide rollers 35. When the turning body 31 is rotated about the longitudinal axis through the bracket 32 in response to the bending, the free wheel 34 is positioned with respect to the traveling rail 1 and the free wheel 34 is not removed. Can run on the running rail 1

  Each turning / sliding drive wheel device 14 is connected to a turning body 41 that can turn about the longitudinal axis with respect to the left frame 22 and can move in the left-right direction, and a lower surface side of the turning body 41. , A bracket 42 having a pair of legs corresponding to the side surfaces of the traveling rail 1, an axle 43 provided at the center of both legs of the bracket 42, a drive wheel 44 supported by the axle 43, and The motor 45 having the drive shaft connected to the rotation shaft of the drive wheel 44, and four freely-movable four wheels which are provided at the lower front, rear, left and right ends of the both legs of the bracket 42 and contact both side surfaces of the traveling rail 1, respectively. A guide roller (an example of a guide device) 46, and the four guide rollers 46 cause the revolving body 41 to rotate about the longitudinal axis via the bracket 42 in response to the bending of the traveling rail 1, and To the width between a pair of running rails 1 Correspondingly, the revolving body 41 moves left and right via the bracket 42, so that the driving wheel 44 can travel on the traveling rail 1 without being removed, and the driving wheel 44 is rotated by driving the motor 45. Accordingly, the self-propelled carriage 3 can travel while being guided by the travel rail 1.

  In this way, the two-wheel drive wheel 44 can be turned and slidable (movable to and away from the idle wheel 34), and positioning is performed by the two idle wheels 34. The traveling of the self-propelled carriage 3 is performed smoothly without any trouble, and the main body 11 is prevented from swinging in the left-right direction. Further, the burden on the motor 45 of the drive wheel 44 is reduced, and the configuration of the idle wheel 34 and the drive wheel 44 can be simplified as compared with the case where positioning is performed by the drive wheel 44.

  Further, a current collecting rail 51 is laid along the traveling direction on the outer side surface of one traveling rail 1, and a current collecting 52 is disposed outside the bracket 32 of one swivel driven wheel device 13, so that it is self-propelled. Electric power is supplied to the carriage 3 from the current collector rail 51 via the current collector 52.

  Also, a feeder line 54 is laid along the running direction on the outer side surface of the other running rail 1, and the wireless modem approaches the feeder line 54 and faces the outside of the bracket 42 of the turning / sliding drive wheel device 14. 55 is installed.

A control box 57 and a power box 58 are fixed to the lower part of the box body 25 of the vehicle body 11 in a frame formed by the frames 21, 22, 23, and 24 and in an empty space of the two motors 45. .
As a sensor, a transfer unit detector 61 composed of a photoelectric switch that detects the presence / absence of a load on the load transfer / placement device 12 and a fixed position of the load, and a bumper switch 62 that detects a rear-end collision as sensors. Further, an encoder 63 for detecting the number of rotations of the motor 45 is provided on the drive shaft of one motor 45.

Further, an optical sensor transmitter 65 and a receiver 66 are provided as data transmission / reception means for transmitting / receiving data between the front and rear self-propelled carriages 3.
For these optical sensor transmitter 65 and receiver 66, a flat plate 67 is provided below the box body 25 of the vehicle body 11 and at the front and rear central positions, which also serve as a blocking member for blocking light leakage downward. The optical sensor transmitter 65 and the receiver 66 are mounted on a flat plate 67 with the rear and the front facing, respectively. Further, the mounting positions of the optical sensor transmitter 65 and the receiver 66 are set between the upper surface level and the lower surface level of the traveling rail 1.

  1, 2, and 4, an origin 70 </ b> A formed of a magnet is provided at one point on the side surface of the linear traveling rail 1, and the other swivel driven wheel device 13 of the self-propelled carriage 3 is provided. The bracket 32 is provided with an origin detector 70 composed of a magnetic sensor for detecting the origin 70A.

FIG. 6 shows a control block of the self-propelled carriage 3.
In FIG. 6, reference numeral 71 denotes a microcomputer, which is a ground controller (control means on the ground; corresponding to the controller in the claims) that controls the transportation of the load between the stations 5. A judgment is made by inputting a transport request signal and a feedback signal for each self-propelled carriage 3 from the ground modem 72, which will be described later, such as a current position (travel distance or address) signal and a load presence / absence signal. It controls to carry the load between the stations 5.

  The ground controller 71 is configured to transmit a signal to and from the self-propelled carriage 3 over the entire length along the traveling direction of the self-propelled carriage 3 on a traveling rail 1 that is a path as a ground modem 72 corresponding to a transceiver and an antenna. This is done via feeder line 54.

  The main body controller 73 of the self-propelled carriage 3 performs signal transmission with the ground controller 71 via the wireless modem 55 installed close to and opposed to the feeder line 54. The main body controller 73 is connected to the above-mentioned sensors and communication devices, that is, the transfer unit detector 61, the bumper switch 62, the encoder 63, the optical sensor transmitter 65, the receiver 66, and the origin detector 70. Judgment based on the signal from the communication device and the control signal from the ground controller 71 input from the wireless modem 55, and the load is transferred and loaded by the traveling motor 45 or the changeover switch 77 via the inverter 76 and the changeover switch 77. The transfer motor 78 of the mounting device 12 is controlled to execute the travel control of the self-propelled carriage 3 and the load transfer control by the self-propelled carriage 3.

A control block diagram of the main body controller 73 is shown in FIG.
The main body controller 73 includes an overall control unit 81, a travel control unit 82 that drives the traveling motor 45 based on a command (travel destination) of the overall control unit 81 and executes the traveling of the self-propelled carriage 3, and It is composed of a transfer control unit 83 that drives the transfer motor 78 of the load transfer / placement device 12 forward / reversely based on the command to transfer the load.

  The overall control unit 81 inputs the “travel destination” of the self-propelled carriage 3 and the transfer data for instructing the transfer of the load input from the ground controller 71 via the wireless modem 55 (transfers the station 5 that issued the load transfer request). Data set with the original “loading station” and the transfer destination station 5 of the transfer request set as the “loading wholesale station” of the transfer destination) or eviction data (data set only with the destination station 5; Based on the details described later, a command is output to the travel control unit 82 and the transfer control unit 83 to control the entire self-propelled carriage 3. The travel control unit 82 is instructed the travel destination, the travel control unit 82 inputs an arrival signal to the travel destination, and the transfer control unit 83 is instructed to pick up or unload the load, and transfer control is performed. A transfer end signal is input from the unit 83.

  When the overall control unit 81 inputs the transfer data, it first outputs the “loading station” as the travel destination to the travel control unit 82, and inputs the arrival signal at the travel destination to the transfer control unit 83. When a load order is commanded and a transfer end signal is input, the “loading station” is output to the travel control unit 82 as the travel destination, and when an arrival signal at the travel destination is input, the load control unit 83 is loaded. When the wholesale is instructed and a transfer end signal is input, the end of conveyance is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the wireless modem 55.

  When the eviction data is input, the data station 5 is output as the travel destination to the travel control unit 82. When the arrival signal at the travel destination is input, the end of conveyance is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the wireless modem 55. .

The travel control unit 72 will be described in detail.
In FIG. 7, reference numeral 91 denotes a counter that is reset by the origin detection signal of the origin detector 70 and counts the pulses output from the encoder 63. The count value of the counter 91 is input to the travel distance calculation unit 92 and travels. In the distance calculation unit 92, the driving shaft of the motor 45, that is, the cumulative rotational speed of the driving wheel 44 is obtained, and the traveling distance Mf from the origin 70A is measured by the cumulative rotational speed of the driving wheel 44. The travel distance Mf is output to a travel control unit 93 (details will be described later), and is output to the following self-propelled carriage 3 via the optical sensor transmitter 65. Further, the wireless modem 55, the feeder line 54, and the ground modem 72 are output. The current traveling position is fed back to the ground controller 71.

  94 is a memory in which the distances K1 to Kn from the origin 70A of each station 5 are stored in advance, and the travel target value setting unit 95 inputs the travel destination composed of the data (number etc.) of the station 5 from the overall control unit 81. Then, the memory 94 is searched with the data of the station 5, and the traveling target value Ms composed of the distance K from the origin 70A of the station 5 is set. The travel target value Ms is output to the travel control unit 93 and also output to the subtractor 96.

  The subtracter 96 subtracts a distance Q (details will be described later) required for stopping at the travel destination station 5 and a margin value α from the travel target value Ms to start the deceleration Md from the origin 70A. Is output to the comparator 97. A point Z (FIG. 8) upstream of the distance Q from the destination station 5 is a point where the self-propelled carriage 3 needs to reduce the traveling speed (a point where deceleration starts). The comparator 97 compares this distance Md with its own travel distance Mf, and when Mf becomes larger than Md, that is, it passes through a point α upstream from the point where deceleration starts (a point immediately before starting deceleration). At this time, the passing signal is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the wireless modem 55.

  The travel control unit 93 is preset with the moving speed v and the distance Q, and outputs a rotational speed command value to the inverter 76 while feeding back the travel distance Mf with the travel target value Ms as a target value. That is, when the difference between the travel target value Ms and the travel distance Mf is equal to or greater than the distance Q, a rotation speed command value corresponding to the moving speed v is output, and the difference between the travel target value Ms and the travel distance Mf is less than the distance Q. Then, the rotational speed command value 0 is output. Further, the traveling distance of the front traveling cart 3 input via the optical sensor receiver 66 is compared with the traveling distance Mf of the traveling front vehicle 3. Decrease the speed. When the travel target value Ms matches the travel distance Mf, that is, when the vehicle arrives at the travel destination station 5, an arrival signal is output to the overall control unit 81.

  Further, the inverter 76 executes the rotational speed control of the traveling motor 45 based on the rotational speed command value input from the main body controller 73 when controlling the traveling motor 45, and is preset when the rotational speed command value is changed. The rotational speed is changed by the acceleration / deceleration speed a of the self-propelled carriage 3.

  A main body controller 73 is housed in the control box 57, a power box 58 is connected to the inverter 76, the changeover switch 77, and the current collector 52, and a power supply device (not shown) for supplying power to the devices in the self-propelled carriage 1. Is stored.

  As shown in FIG. 8, the minimum distance L at which the stopped self-propelled carriage 3 that has stopped traveling without starting the rear-end collision of the following self-propelled carriage 3 that is traveling at the moving speed v is obtained by Equation (1). . S is the vehicle body length of the self-propelled cart 3, a is the acceleration / deceleration of the self-propelled cart 3, T is a delay time from when a travel command is input to the stopped self-propelled cart 3 to the start of travel (ground Including the time during which the command is transmitted from the controller 71 to the main body controller 73).

L = S + v {T + v / (2a)} (1)
Further, the distance that the self-propelled carriage 3 travels from the moving speed v to the speed 0, that is, the distance Q that is necessary to stop is obtained by the equation (2).

Q = v ² / (2a) (2)
Next, the traveling control of the self-propelled carriage 3 in a state in which it is possible to load a standby (stopped) load by the ground controller 71 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. It is assumed that the ground controller 71 stores data of distances K1 to Kn from the origin 70A of each station 5 in advance.

  First, the travel distance Mf from the origin 70A input from the waiting self-propelled carriage 3 is subtracted from the travel distance Mb from the origin 70A input from the subsequent self-propelled carriage 3 of the self-propelled carriage 3 to the self-propelled carriage. 3 is calculated, and it is confirmed whether this distance is smaller than the distance obtained by adding the margin value α to the minimum distance L (step -1). A search is performed (step-2), the station 5 closest to the waiting self-propelled carriage 3 among the searched stations 5 is obtained, and transfer data including a transfer request of the station 5 is set (step-3). Thereby, conveyance data is formed when the following self-propelled carriage 3 has traveled to a position just before the position where the margin value α is added to the distance L until it collides with the waiting self-propelled carriage 3.

  As described above, the transfer data is data in which the station that issued the load transfer request is set as the “loading station” and the transfer destination station of the transfer request is set as the “unloading station”.

  Next, it is confirmed whether there is another station 5 between the “loading station” set as the conveyance data and the self-propelled carriage 3 that is on standby (step -4). Is output to the self-propelled cart 3 (step-5). The self-propelled carriage 3 having input the conveyance data travels under the control of the main body controller 73 and conveys the load.

  When the other stations 5 are confirmed in step-4, eviction data for setting these stations 5 as "temporary destinations" is set in order from the station 5 close to the waiting self-propelled carriage 3 (step-6). When there are n stations 5 on the way, n eviction data (1) to (n) are set.

Next, N = 1 is set (step -7). This N is for counting the number of times the eviction data has been output.
Next, the eviction data (N) is output to the waiting self-propelled cart 3 (step-8). Since N = 1 at first, the station 5 (no transfer request) closest to the waiting self-propelled carriage 3 is output as eviction data. The self-propelled carriage 3 that has received the eviction data travels toward the destination of the eviction data (N) by the travel control of the main body controller 73.

  Next, it is confirmed whether or not a passing signal passing immediately before the point Z is input from the self-propelled cart 3 (hereinafter referred to as the front self-propelled cart 3) that has started traveling (step-9). It is confirmed whether or not there is a station 5 for which a transport request has occurred between the position of the travel distance Mf of the front self-propelled carriage 3 and the “loading station” of the transport data (step −10). When the presence is confirmed, the transfer data is reset and changed by the transfer request of the station 5 (step-11), and the process returns to step-4.

  When the existence is not confirmed in Step-10, 1 is added to N (N = N + 1) (Step-12), and it is confirmed whether this N is larger than the number of eviction data, that is, other eviction data exists. (Step-13), the process returns to step-8 and the next eviction data is output to the front self-propelled carriage 3. Thus, the vehicle travels to the next station 5 without stopping at the speed of the station 5 of the previous eviction data.

When the next eviction data does not exist in Step-13, the transport data is output in Step-5.
When the end of conveyance is input from the self-propelled carriage 3 (step-14), the conveyance request of the station 5 that formed the conveyance data is deleted (step-15), and the process is terminated.

Hereinafter, the traveling operation of the self-propelled cart 3 on standby with the above configuration will be described.
When the following self-propelled carriage 3 approaches the standby self-propelled carriage 3 to a distance obtained by adding the margin value α to the minimum distance L, the ground controller 71 outputs a load transfer request. The station 5 closest to the waiting self-propelled carriage 3 is obtained, and transport data consisting of the transport request of the station 5 is set. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 10, the conveyance data is formed immediately before the distance L until the succeeding self-propelled carriage 3 collides with the waiting self-propelled carriage 3.

  Subsequently, the ground controller 71 confirms whether there is another station 5 between the “loading station” of the transport data and the waiting self-propelled carriage 3 and confirms the other station 5 as shown in FIG. Then, the eviction data for these stations 5 is set in order from the stations 5 close to the waiting self-propelled carriage 3, and as shown in FIG. 11A, the stations close to the waiting self-propelling carriage 3 are set. 5 is output to the main body controller 73 of the self-propelled cart 3 that is on standby.

  When the main body controller 73 of the self-propelled carriage 3 inputs the eviction data, the following self-propelled trolley 3 collides with the waiting self-propelled trolley 3 as shown in FIG. The vehicle starts traveling immediately before the distance L until the vehicle travels, and outputs a passing signal immediately before passing through the point Z of the distance Q at which the vehicle 5 ahead of the traveling destination starts deceleration.

  When the ground controller 71 inputs this passing signal, the transfer is performed between the position of the travel distance Mf of the self-propelled carriage 3 (front self-propelled carriage 3) that has started traveling and the “loading station” of the conveyance data. It is confirmed whether or not the station 5 where the request has occurred exists. If the station 5 does not exist, the next eviction data is output as shown in FIG. 11B. The eviction data is output, the travel destination of the front self-propelled cart 3 is updated, and the front self-propelled cart 3 continues traveling without decelerating.

  When the existence of the station 5 where the transfer request is generated is confirmed, the transfer data is reset and changed according to the transfer request of the station 5. After this, it is confirmed whether there is another station 5 between the “loading station” of the reconveyed transport data and the self-propelled carriage 3 ahead, and if it is confirmed, the station close to the waiting self-propelled carriage 3 The eviction data with these stations 5 as the movement destination is set in order from 5, and the eviction data of the nearest station 5 is output to the main body controller 73 of the front self-propelled carriage 3.

  If there is no other station 5 between the “loading station” of the conveyance data and the front self-propelled carriage 3, the conveyance data is output to the front self-propelled carriage 3 as shown in FIG. Then, the self-propelled carriage 3 carries the load including the transfer of the load based on the transfer data {FIG. 11 (d)}.

  In this way, as shown in FIG. 10, the transport data or the eviction data is formed immediately before the distance L until the succeeding self-propelled carriage 3 collides with the self-propelled carriage 3 on standby, and the self-propelled carriage on standby is formed. 3, and when the traveling is started, a new load transport request is made to the station (load transfer position) 5 near the self-propelled carriage 3 until the following self-propelled carriage 3 approaches. When this occurs, this new station 5 can be set as the travel destination (conveyance data), and therefore the rate of passing through the station 5 where a new load transport request has occurred can be reduced, improving the load transport efficiency. be able to. This is particularly effective when the distance between the stations 5 is sufficiently long.

  Further, as shown in FIG. 11, a plurality of stations 5 (temporary destinations) are set as eviction data between the self-propelled carriage 3 and the “loading station” set as the travel destination. The eviction data (travel destination command) is output in order from the nearest destination with respect to 3 and a new load is sent to the station 5 between the self-propelled carriage 3 and the destination station 5 immediately before arriving at each destination. When the transport request is generated, the transport data is changed according to the transport request of the station 5 where the request is generated, so that after the self-propelled carriage 3 starts moving to the travel destination, When a new load transport request is generated in the station 5 in the meantime, it becomes possible to transfer the load from the station 5 where the request is generated, and the transport efficiency can be improved.

  In addition, since the self-propelled carriage 3 arrives at the point Z where the self-propelled carriage 3 needs to decelerate (lower the traveling speed) to stop at the destination, the next destination command is given, The self-propelled carriage 3 does not need to reduce the traveling speed, and therefore it is possible to avoid an increase in the conveyance time and prevent a decrease in the conveyance efficiency.

Further, a point Z that needs to be decelerated in order to stop the self-propelled carriage to the destination can be obtained in advance.
In this embodiment, the temporary destination (evicted data) is set to station 5, but is not limited to station 5, and may be provided in the middle of the travel route (travel rail 1). .

  In the present embodiment, the self-propelled carriage 3 has only one load mounted thereon and can be transferred. However, a plurality of loads can be mounted and transferred. At this time, the self-propelled carriage in a state in which a load can be loaded becomes a self-propelled carriage in a state in which at least one load can be mounted.

  In the present embodiment, the load transfer position is set as the station 5, but is not limited to the station 5, and may be a robot device or the like arranged along the traveling rail 1. At this time, parts processed by the robot apparatus are conveyed by the self-propelled carriage 3.

  Further, in the present embodiment, in the self-propelled carriage 3, the passage of the point Z where deceleration starts before the target station 5 (movement destination) is detected, and a passage signal is output to the main body controller 71. The main body controller 71 subtracts the travel distance Mf from the origin 70A input from the self-propelled carriage 3 that has started traveling from the distance Kn from the origin 70A of the station 5 of the eviction data (N). And calculating the distance between the destination station 5 and the self-propelled carriage 3, and confirming that this distance is smaller than the distance Q required for stopping and adding the margin value α. You may make it judge.

It is an arrangement plan of load transportation equipment in an embodiment of the present invention. It is a principal part block diagram of the cargo transportation equipment. It is a side view of the traveling rail and self-propelled cart of the cargo transportation equipment. It is a section of a traveling rail of a cargo transportation facility, and a principal part front view of a self-propelled cart. It is a partial top view of the self-propelled cart of the cargo transportation facility. It is a control block diagram of the self-propelled cart of the cargo transportation facility. It is a block diagram of the traveling control of the main body controller of the cargo transportation equipment. It is explanatory drawing of the traveling control of the self-propelled carriage of the cargo transportation equipment. It is a flowchart of traveling control of the ground controller of the cargo transportation equipment. It is explanatory drawing of the traveling control of the main body controller of the cargo transportation equipment. It is explanatory drawing of the traveling control of the self-propelled carriage of the cargo transportation equipment. It is explanatory drawing of the traveling control of the self-propelled cart of the conventional load conveyance equipment.

Explanation of symbols

1 Traveling rail 3 Self-propelled cart 5 Station (load transfer position)
13 Swivel driven wheel device
14 Turning / sliding drive wheel system
45 Travel motor
55 Wireless modem
63 Encoder
65 Optical sensor transmitter
66 Optical sensor receiver
70 Origin detector
70A origin
71 Ground controller
73 Main unit controller
76 Inverter

Claims (2)

A plurality of self-propelled carts that are guided by the travel route and each transport a load, and a plurality of load transfer positions that are arranged along the travel route and transfer the load to the self-propelled cart. Load handling equipment,
A controller that outputs a running command when the following self-propelled cart approaches the stopped self-propelled cart,
The controller is configured to stop the self-propelled cart that has stopped immediately before the subsequent self-propelled cart arrives at a point where the traveling speed needs to be reduced to avoid a rear-end collision with the self-propelled cart that has stopped in front. A cargo transport facility that outputs a traveling command to the vehicle. The point is obtained from a vehicle body length, a moving speed, an acceleration / deceleration of a self-propelled carriage, and a delay time from when a running command is input to the stopped self-propelled carriage until the start of running. 1. The load carrying facility according to 1.

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