JP2005352862A - Carrying device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make simple an operation to let a carrying truck travel to avoid a collision of the carrying truck against an article carrying vehicle while carrying an article by the carrying truck. <P>SOLUTION: Provided are the article carrying vehicle 2 which travels among a plurality of transfer places 1, and a current position detecting means which is provided with a travel control means 3 provided on the article carrying vehicle 2 and a managing means 5 of managing the operation of the article conveying vehicle 2 and so configured to control the article carrying vehicle 2 by the travel control means 3 based upon operation command information from the managing means 5 to travel an article transfer place 1 as a destination along a travel path 4, and detects the current position of the carrying track traveling through a manual operation to the article trasfer place 1, the managing means 5 commanding operation command information to the travel control means 3 to inhibit the article carrying vehicle 2 from entering an area 26 for the carrying truck based upon the current position of the carrying truck detected by the current position detecting means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention includes an article transport vehicle that travels between a plurality of article transfer locations, a travel control unit that is provided in the article transport vehicle and controls the travel, and a management unit that manages the operation of the article transport vehicle. And the travel control means is configured to cause the article transport vehicle to travel along the travel route with respect to the destination article transfer location based on the operation command information commanded from the management means. The present invention relates to a transport device configured to control.

  For example, the transfer device as described above may be used for information on a destination target location where an article transfer location of a transfer source or an article transfer location of a transfer destination is an item transfer location of a destination target, or for a destination target location. Information including information on the travel route that specifies whether the travel route is traveled is the operation command information, the management means commands the travel command information to the travel control means, and the travel control means is the management means. Based on the operation command information instructed from the vehicle, the article transportation vehicle travels along the commanded travel route with respect to the commanded destination object article transfer location, thereby conveying from the article transfer location of the transport source. The article is transported to the previous article transfer location.

  A plurality of article transport vehicles are provided, and the management means manages the current positions of the plurality of article transport vehicles by exchanging information with the travel control means of the plurality of article transport vehicles. In order to avoid a collision between the article transport vehicles, there is one configured to instruct operation command information to the traveling control means of the plurality of article transport vehicles (see, for example, Patent Document 1). ).

  Conventionally, in such a transport apparatus, a transport carriage that travels manually by manipulating an article transfer location is provided, and when a request for transporting an article that has priority over a request for transporting an article by an article transport vehicle has occurred. In some cases, an article is configured to be transported to an article transfer location to be transferred by running the carriage by an artificial operation.

JP-A-6-208413

In the above-described conventional transport device, since the transport cart is simply provided, the transport cart is moved by human operation during the transport of the article by the article transport vehicle and The article is transported to the article transfer location.
Therefore, when transporting an article with a transport cart, the transport cart must be driven by human operation while avoiding a collision between the transport cart and the article transport vehicle. It is difficult.
In particular, when an article to be transported by the transport cart is heavy or large, it is difficult to travel the transport cart itself, so that it is difficult to operate the transport cart. Become.

  Therefore, when carrying an article with a carriage, it is possible to avoid a collision between the carriage and the article carrier by temporarily stopping the article carriage, but in this case, Until the conveyance of the article by the conveyance carriage is completed, the conveyance of the article by the article conveyance vehicle must be interrupted, and the conveyance of the article cannot be performed efficiently.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to such a point, and the object thereof is to make the transport cart run in order to avoid collision between the transport cart and the article transport vehicle while transporting the article by the transport cart. It is in the point which provides the conveying apparatus which can aim at simplification of operation.

In order to achieve this object, the first characteristic configuration of the transport device according to the present invention is an article transport vehicle that travels between a plurality of article transfer locations, and is provided in the article transport vehicle to control the travel. A travel control means and a management means for managing the operation of the article transport vehicle are provided, and the travel control means applies to the destination article transfer location based on the operation command information commanded from the management means. A transport device configured to control the travel of the article transport vehicle to travel along a travel route,
Current position detection means for detecting a current position of a transport carriage that travels by hand with respect to the article transfer location is provided, and the management means detects the current position of the transport carriage detected by the current position detection means. The operation command information is instructed to the travel control means to prohibit the article transport vehicle from entering the transport cart area based on the position.

That is, since the management means commands the operation command information to the travel control means so as to prohibit the article transport vehicle from entering the area for the transport carriage, the travel control means may collide with the transport carriage. The article transport vehicle can be made to travel along the travel route with respect to the destination article transfer location in a state where it does not invade the transport cart area.
Therefore, while the article transport vehicle can travel and avoid the collision with the transport carriage and can transport the article, the transport carriage simply travels to the article transfer location to be transferred. It is possible to avoid a collision with the article transport vehicle simply by making the transport cart run in order to avoid a collision between the transport cart and the article transport vehicle while transporting the article by the transport cart. A transport device capable of simplifying the operation has been provided.

According to a second characteristic configuration of the transport device according to the present invention, a plurality of reflectors for position detection are arranged corresponding to the travel route, and the article transport vehicle is scanned with measurement light in a horizontal or substantially horizontal plane. Then, a light projecting / receiving unit for receiving the light reflected by the reflector is provided,
The travel control means detects the current position of the article transport vehicle based on scanning angle information when the light projecting and receiving means receives reflected light and arrangement position information about the plurality of reflectors, and the travel The article transport vehicle is configured to travel along a route,
The current position detecting means is provided with the light projecting and receiving means on the transport carriage, and the light projecting and receiving means receives scanning light information based on scanning angle information and arrangement position information about the plurality of reflectors. It is in the point comprised so that the present position of a conveyance trolley may be detected.

In other words, by arranging a plurality of reflectors corresponding to the travel route and providing the light projecting and receiving means on the article transport vehicle and the transport carriage, the travel control means causes the article transport vehicle to travel along the travel route. The current position of the article transport vehicle can be detected, and the current position detection means can also detect the current position of the transport carriage.
Therefore, the configuration for detecting the current position of the article transport vehicle and the configuration for detecting the current position of the transport cart can be made common, and the configuration can be simplified accordingly. .

  In addition, the present position of the article transport vehicle and the current position of the transport carriage are simply provided by providing a plurality of reflectors, providing a light projecting / receiving unit, and without providing a member for guiding the article transport vehicle to the travel route. From this point, the configuration can be simplified.

An embodiment of a transfer device according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the transfer device is provided in the article transport vehicle 2 that travels between a plurality of stations 1 serving as article transfer locations, and the article transport vehicle 2 controls the travel thereof. The vehicle body control unit 3 is provided as a traveling control means for performing the above operation, and a transport cart 6 that travels by hand to the station 1 is also provided.

  Then, by the article transport vehicle 2 autonomously traveling along the travel route 4, the article transport vehicle 2 transports the article B to each station 1, for example, from the request of the article transport by the article transport vehicle 2. In the case where there is a request for transporting an article that should also be given priority, the transport carriage 2 can be transported to the station 1 to be transferred by an artificial operation so that the transport of the article B by the transport carriage 2 can be performed. It is configured.

The article transport vehicle 2 is provided with, for example, a plurality of articles such as three, and a plurality of articles are transferred while exchanging information with the vehicle body control units 3 of the plurality of article transport cars 2 by wireless communication or the like. A management unit 5 that manages the operation of the transport vehicle 2 is provided.
Incidentally, although communication between the management unit 5 and the vehicle body control unit 3 of the plurality of article transport vehicles 2 is not illustrated, for example, an antenna that relays communication between the management unit 5 and the vehicle body control unit 3 A plurality of relay communication devices are provided, and the management unit 5 and the vehicle body control units 3 of the plurality of article transport vehicles 2 are configured to exchange information by communication via the relay communication devices.

The travel path 4 of the article transport vehicle 2 includes two linear portions 4a arranged in parallel so that the article transport vehicles 2 can face each other and a connecting portion 4b that connects the linear portions 4a. A plurality of stations 1 are arranged at intervals corresponding to the straight line portion 4a.
Then, the article transport vehicle 2 travels forward and backward on the straight portion 4a or traverses the connecting portion 4b to travel to a position corresponding to the station 1 to be transferred among the plurality of stations 1. It is configured.
Incidentally, this travel route 4 is a virtual route on which the article transport vehicle 2 should travel, and members such as guide rails are not actually provided on the floor or the like. It is something that is remembered.

As shown in FIG. 3, which is a front view of the article transport vehicle 2, the article transport vehicle 2 is provided with a transfer device 7 such as a fork device that can be moved back and forth on the vehicle body. An article is transferred between itself and the station 1 while stopped at a position corresponding to each station 1 on the travel route 4.
As shown in FIG. 4, which is a plan view of the article transport vehicle 2, a pair of left and right drive wheels 9 that are rotationally driven by the traveling electric motor 8 are provided on the vehicle body of the article transport vehicle 2. The driven wheel 10 is provided on the left side and the right side of the vehicle body.
The pair of left and right drive wheels 9 are supported so as to be rotatable around the vertical axis, and by turning the drive wheels 9 with a steering device (not shown), the article transport vehicle 2 can be moved forward and backward. , It is configured to switch whether to run transversely.

The article transport vehicle 2 is provided with a gate-shaped support frame 11 extending upward from the body of the article transport vehicle 2, and the measurement light is scanned in a horizontal or substantially horizontal plane on the support frame 11. A transport vehicle light projecting / receiving unit 13 is provided as a light projecting / receiving device for receiving the light reflected by the reflector 12.
The plurality of reflectors 12 are arranged corresponding to the travel route 4 as shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 2, the article transport vehicle 2 includes a distance detection unit 14 such as a rotary encoder provided on the drive wheel 9 for detecting the travel distance of the article transport vehicle 2, and the direction of the article transport vehicle. An orientation detection unit 15 such as a rate gyro for detection is also provided.

As shown in FIG. 5, the transport cart 6 is provided with traveling wheels 25 a and 25 b at four locations in the front, rear, left and right at the bottom of the L-shaped base 16 in side view, A liftable fork device 17 for transfer is provided, and a handle 18 is provided on the base 16.
Then, the operator pushes and pulls the handle 18 to move the transport carriage 6 forward and backward to travel to a position corresponding to the station 1, and stops the transport carriage 6 at a position corresponding to the station 1. By moving up and down, the article B is transferred to and from the station 1.

  Incidentally, although not shown in the figure, a pair of left and right guides for positioning the transport carriage 6 at a set position with respect to the station 1 is provided on the floor surface at the position where the station 1 is disposed. The carriage 6 is caused to run so as to slide the bottom side surface of the base 16 and the carriage 6 is stopped at the set position with respect to the station 1 by the guide action of the guide.

A carriage light projecting / receiving unit 19 as a light projecting / receiving unit 19 is provided on an upper portion of the base 16 of the transportation cart 6, and the current position of the transportation cart 6 is determined based on information acquired by the carriage projecting / receiving unit 19. A box body 22 provided with a detection unit 20 for detection and a cart side wireless communication device 21 for exchanging information with the management unit 5 is also provided.
The current position detecting means for detecting the current position of the transport carriage 6 includes a carriage light projecting / receiving unit 19 and a detection unit 20, and the detection unit 20 receives the reflected light from the carriage light projecting / receiving unit 19. The current position of the transport carriage 6 is detected based on the scanning angle information and the arrangement position information about the plurality of reflectors 12.

  In addition, as shown in FIG. 6, the light projecting / receiving unit 19 for the carriage is configured to scan measurement light (for example, laser light) in the horizontal direction around the vertical axis, 20 is configured to store arrangement position information about a plurality of reflectors in advance as a layout map, and to detect the current position of the transport carriage 6 based on the layout map and scanning angle information.

Further, the cart side radio communication device 21 is configured to be able to communicate with a management side radio communication device 23 provided in the management unit 5, and the detection unit 20 includes the cart side radio communication device 21 and the management side radio communication device. It is configured to exchange information with the management unit 5 via 23.
The detection unit 20 is configured to communicate the detected current position of the transport carriage 6 to the management unit 5 via the carriage-side wireless communication device 21 and the management-side wireless communication device 23.

As shown in FIG. 2, the article transport vehicle 2 is provided with a transport vehicle-side wireless communication device 24 that can communicate with the management-side wireless communication device 23, and the vehicle body control unit 3 performs transport vehicle-side wireless communication. Information is exchanged with the management unit 5 via the device 24 and the management-side wireless communication device 23.
Then, the management unit 5 commands the operation command information to the vehicle body control units 3 of the plurality of article transport vehicles 2, and the vehicle body control unit 3 of the plurality of article transport vehicles 2 It is configured to communicate information such as the current position of the article transport vehicle 2.

The vehicle body control unit 3 is configured to control the travel of the article transport vehicle 2 so as to travel along the travel route 4 with respect to the destination target station 1 based on the operation command information commanded from the management unit 5. ing.
When the description is added, the management unit 5 first sets, for example, the article transport vehicle 2 located closest to the destination target station 1 among the plurality of article transport vehicles 2 as the travel target article transport vehicle 2. With respect to the vehicle body control unit 3 of the article transport vehicle 2 to be traveled, a destination target location having a transport source station 1 or a transport destination station 1 as a destination target station among a plurality of stations 1 And the operation command information including the information about the travel route that specifies which travel route 4 is traveled to the destination target station 1.

When the operation command information is instructed from the management unit 5, the vehicle body control unit 3 controls the traveling of the article transport vehicle 2 so as to travel to the designated destination target station 1 along the commanded travel route. Is configured to do.
For example, when the management unit 5 gives a description of a case where the information about the destination target location in the operation command information is instructed to travel from the transport source station 1 to the transport destination station 1, the vehicle body control unit 3 First, the article transport vehicle 2 is traveled to the transport source station 1 and stopped, and in this stopped state, the transfer device 7 is operated to receive the article B from the transport source article transfer location 1, and the transport destination station The article transport vehicle 2 is configured to start traveling toward the vehicle 1.
After that, the vehicle body control unit 3 causes the article transport vehicle 2 to travel to the transport destination station 1 and stops it. In the stopped state, the body control unit 3 operates the transfer device 7 to place the article B at the transport destination article transfer location 1. Configured to wholesale.

  When the article transport vehicle 2 travels along the travel route 4, the vehicle body control unit 3 scans information on the scanning angle when the transport vehicle light projecting / receiving unit 13 receives reflected light and the plurality of reflectors 12. The current position of the article transport vehicle 2 is detected based on the arrangement position information, and the article transport vehicle 2 is caused to travel along the travel route 4.

In other words, the carrier light projecting / receiving unit 13 scans the measurement light (for example, laser light) in the 360-degree horizontal direction around the vertical axis similarly to the cart light projecting / receiving unit 19 shown in FIG. The vehicle body control unit 3 stores the arrangement position information about the plurality of reflectors 12 and the position information of the travel route 4 in advance as a layout map.
The vehicle body control unit 3 detects the current position of the article transport vehicle 2 based on the stored layout map and the scanning angle information by the transport vehicle light projecting / receiving unit 13, and the current position and distance detection unit 14 From the detection information and the detection information of the azimuth detection unit 15, the operation of the traveling electric motor 8 and the steering device is controlled so that the article transport vehicle 2 travels along the traveling route 4. .

And since the management part 5 does not receive the present position of the conveyance trolley 6 from the detection part 20 of the conveyance trolley 6 when the conveyance of the goods B by the conveyance trolley 6 is not performed, a plurality of articles The operation command information is commanded to the vehicle body control unit 3 of the transport vehicle 2 so that the article transport vehicles 2 do not collide with each other and travel along the shortest travel route to the destination target station 1. It is configured as follows.
For example, as illustrated in FIG. 7, the management unit 5 includes information on a destination target location in which the destination target location is the destination target station 1 and a travel route that is the shortest travel route T with respect to the destination target station 1. It is comprised so that the operation command information containing the information about may be instruct | indicated with respect to the vehicle body control part 3. FIG.

Moreover, since the management part 5 will receive the present position of the conveyance trolley 6 from the detection part 20 of the conveyance trolley 6 when conveying the articles | goods B by the conveyance trolley 6, the management part 5 In order to prohibit the article transport vehicle 2 from entering the transport cart area 26 based on the current position of the transport cart 6 detected by the detection unit 20, the operation command information is sent to the vehicle body control unit 3. Are configured to command.
Incidentally, the management unit 5 repeats the operation command information to the vehicle body control unit 3 so as to prohibit the article transport vehicle 2 from entering the transport cart area 26 at all times or every time the set time elapses. It is configured to command.

  In addition, when the management unit 5 receives the current position of the transport carriage 6 from the detection unit 20, as shown in FIG. 7, the area based on the current position of the transport carriage 6 is set as the transport carriage area 26. The information about the destination target location in the operation command information is not the destination target station 1 but a position outside the transport cart area 26 (for example, the position of point P in FIG. 7), or the travel in the operation command information Information on the route is used as a travel route (for example, travel route Q in FIG. 7) that avoids the area 26 for the transport carriage, and operation command information is commanded to the vehicle body control unit 3.

Incidentally, since the management unit 5 manages the current position of the plurality of article transport vehicles 2 and which travel route to travel, the operation command information is sent to the vehicle body control unit 3 of one article transport vehicle 2. When commanding, it is possible to grasp the current position of the other article transport vehicle 2 and which travel route it is traveling.
Therefore, the management unit 5 conveys information about the destination target location based on the operation status of the article transport vehicle 2 other than the command target such as the current position of the other article transport vehicle 2 and which travel route it is traveling. The operation command information set to a position outside the cart area 26 (for example, the position of the point P in FIG. 7) and the travel route information (for example, the travel route Q in FIG. The operation command information is selected, and the selected operation command information is commanded to the vehicle body control unit 3 of the article transport vehicle 2 to be commanded.

And the vehicle body control part 3 is the operation command information from the management part 5 including information on the destination target part whose position is the position outside the conveyance carriage area 26 (for example, the position of the point P in FIG. 7). Is commanded, the travel of the article transport vehicle 2 is controlled so as to stop at a position outside the transport cart area 26 (for example, the position of point P in FIG. 7).
In addition, when the vehicle body control unit 3 is instructed by the management unit 5 for operation command information including information on a travel route that is a travel route that avoids the transport cart area 26 (for example, a travel route indicated by Q in FIG. 7). The travel of the article transport vehicle 2 is controlled so as to travel to the destination target station 1 on a travel route (for example, a travel route indicated by Q in FIG. 7) that avoids the transport cart area 26.

  Incidentally, in FIG. 7, the area 26 for the transport carriage has a circular shape with the current position of the transport carriage 6 as the center. Of course, the shape or size of the transport carriage area 26 can be changed as appropriate.

  In this way, while the article transport vehicle 2 can travel so as to avoid a collision with the transport cart 6 and transport the article B, the transport cart 6 is simply a transfer target station. 1 to avoid collision with the article transport vehicle 2 and avoid collision between the transport cart 6 and the article transport vehicle 2 while transporting the article B by the transport cart 2. In addition, it is configured to simplify the operation of causing the transport carriage 6 to travel.

[Another embodiment]
(1) In the above-described embodiment, the current position detection means is configured by the cart light projecting / receiving unit 19 and the detection unit 20, and the scanning angle information and the plurality of reflectors 12 when the cart light projecting / receiving unit 19 receives reflected light. The current position of the transport carriage 6 is detected based on the arrangement position information about the above, but the configuration for detecting the current position of the transport carriage 6 can be appropriately changed.
For example, a plurality of laser rangefinders that project a laser beam onto the floor surface to detect the distance to the conveyance carriage 6 by projecting a laser are provided. Position information and laser distance measurement information of the plurality of laser rangefinders Based on the detection information of the meter, the current position of the transport carriage 6 can be detected.

(2) In the above-described embodiment, the carriage light projecting / receiving unit 19 and the detection unit 20 as the current position detection unit are provided in the transport carriage 6, and the carriage side wireless communication device 21 and the management side wireless communication device 23 are provided. The management unit 5 is configured to receive the current position of the transport carriage 6 from the current position detection unit by wireless communication between the carriage side wireless communication device 21 and the management side wireless communication device 23. Can be provided in a fixed state on the floor or the like, and wired communication can be performed between the current position detection means and the management unit 5.

(3) In the above embodiment, the article transport vehicle 2 provided with the transfer device 7 is illustrated, but for example, an article transport vehicle provided with a transfer device on the station side and not provided with the transfer device is applied. The configuration of the article transport vehicle can be changed as appropriate.

(4) In the above embodiment, an example in which a plurality of article transport vehicles 2 are provided has been described. However, it is also possible to provide only one article transport vehicle 2, and the number of article transport vehicles 2 to be provided is as follows. Changes can be made as appropriate.

(5) In the above embodiment, the management unit 5 sends information about the destination target location to a location outside the transport cart area 26 (in order to prohibit the article transport vehicle 2 from entering the transport cart area 26 ( For example, the operation command information, which is the position of point P in FIG. 7, and the operation command information, which is information on the travel route, which is a travel route (for example, travel route Q in FIG. 7) that avoids the transport cart area 26. Any one is selected and the selected operation command information is instructed to the vehicle body control unit 3. For example, the management unit 5 enters the article transport vehicle 2 into the transport cart area 26. In order to prohibit this, the vehicle control unit 3 is always instructed with operation command information in which the information about the destination target location is a position outside the transport carriage area 26 (for example, the position of point P in FIG. 7). Can be configured and implemented Yes, the contents of the operation command information is capable of being modified as appropriate.

Plan view of transfer device Control block diagram of transfer device Front view of goods transport vehicle Top view of goods transport vehicle Perspective view of transport cart Explanatory drawing when detecting the current position of the transport cart Enlarged plan view of the main part of the transport device

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Goods transfer location 2 Goods conveyance vehicle 3 Travel control means 4 Travel route 5 Management means 6 Carriage carriage 12 Reflector 13, 19 Light projection / reception means 19, 20 Current position detection means

Claims (2)

An article transporting vehicle that travels between a plurality of article transfer locations, a travel control unit that is provided in the article transporting vehicle to control the travel, and a management unit that manages the operation of the article transporting vehicle,
The travel control means controls the travel of the article transport vehicle so as to travel along the travel route with respect to the destination article transfer location based on the operation command information commanded from the management means. A transport device configured,
A current position detecting means for detecting a current position of a transport cart that travels by an artificial operation with respect to the article transfer location;
The management means sets the operation command information to prohibit the article transport vehicle from entering the transport cart area based on the current position of the transport cart detected by the current position detection means. A conveying device configured to instruct the traveling control means. Corresponding to the travel route, a plurality of reflectors for position detection are disposed,
The article transport vehicle is provided with light projecting and receiving means for scanning the measurement light in a horizontal or substantially horizontal plane and receiving the light reflected by the reflector,
The travel control means detects the current position of the article transport vehicle based on scanning angle information when the light projecting and receiving means receives reflected light and arrangement position information about the plurality of reflectors, and the travel The article transport vehicle is configured to travel along a route,
The current position detecting means is provided with the light projecting and receiving means on the transport carriage, and the light projecting and receiving means receives scanning light information based on scanning angle information and arrangement position information about the plurality of reflectors. The transport apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transport apparatus is configured to detect a current position of the transport carriage.

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