JP2006202041A - Automated guided vehicle system - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automated guided vehicle system capable of reducing the electric power consumed by a guided vehicle in each zone of a feeder line without increasing the cost of equipment. <P>SOLUTION: In the automated guided vehicle system, a feeder is divided into a plurality of zones 4, 5 and a high-frequency current of a predetermined frequency is supplied from a feeder device 2 to the feeder in each zone, is extracted from each guided vehicle 13 without contact, and is converted into DC power, which is then fed to the drive means 15 of each guided vehicle so that the plurality of guided vehicles are driven. A signal superimposing means 50 is provided for superimposing high-frequency currents of different frequencies on the plurality of feeders 4, 5 as pilot signals. The guided vehicle is provided with a reception means 52 for detecting the pilot signals, a comparison means 53 for comparing the level of the pilot signals detected by the reception means with a predetermined threshold, and a control means 16 for controlling the drive means according to the result of the comparison by the comparison means. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2006,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to a non-contact power feeding automatic guided vehicle system that supplies power in a non-contact manner to a vehicle or the like that transports luggage in a factory or a warehouse.

  The conventional automatic guided vehicle system supplies power from the power supply provided for each zone by dividing the power supply line into a plurality of zones, and the power consumption of each power supply zone does not exceed the power supply capacity. Is calculated by multiplying the number of transported vehicles by unit power consumption, and when the calculated power consumption exceeds the power capacity, the speed and acceleration are adjusted so as to suppress the power consumption of each transported vehicle. Was in control. (For example, refer to Patent Document 1).

JP 2002-351546 A

  As described above, the conventional automatic guided vehicle system calculates the power consumption and adjusts the speed and acceleration using the power consumption calculation means and the control means of the main controller. Therefore, processing other than the operation management of the transport vehicle is added to the main controller, and the control circuit of the main controller is required to have high functionality and complexity, and the control procedure for realizing the power consumption calculation means and the control means is also provided. It was complicated.

  On the other hand, in communication between the main controller and each transport vehicle, power consumption is reduced in addition to collection of position information for specifying the current position of the transport vehicle and control communication for instructing operation such as travel and stop of the transport vehicle. In order to provide speed and acceleration adjustment instructions, the frequency and number of communications increase and the responsiveness decreases, so high-speed communication means are required for accurate control, and equipment costs are high. There was a problem to say.

  This invention was made in order to solve the above problems, and it aims at providing the automatic guided vehicle system which can suppress the power consumption of a conveyance vehicle, without making an installation cost etc. high. To do.

  The automatic guided vehicle system according to the present invention divides a power feeding line into a plurality of zones, supplies a high frequency current of a predetermined frequency from a power feeding device to the power feeding line of each zone, and uses a power receiving pickup mounted on the carrier car. In the automatic guided vehicle system that drives the plurality of transport vehicles by extracting the high-frequency current in a non-contact manner, converting it into DC power, and feeding the driving means of the transport vehicle, to each of the plurality of feed lines A signal superimposing unit that superimposes a high-frequency current having a frequency different from the frequency as a pilot signal is provided, and the carrier vehicle has a receiving unit that detects the pilot signal and a level of the pilot signal detected by the receiving unit. Comparing means for comparing with a predetermined threshold and control means for controlling the operation of the driving means based on the comparison result of the comparing means are provided. It is intended.

  The automatic guided vehicle system according to the present invention is configured as described above, and it is possible to grasp the number of transported vehicles in the power feeding zone by detecting a pilot signal in each transported vehicle. Power-saving operation with good responsiveness is possible, system down due to power rating overload in the current feeding zone can be prevented, and each carrier can autonomously switch to power-saving operation, Since a small amount of communication is sufficient for the collection of position information signals from the main controller that gives control instructions and the conveyance instructions, a high-speed data transmission means is unnecessary.

Embodiment 1 FIG.
Embodiment 1 of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the automatic guided vehicle system according to the first embodiment.
As shown in the figure, the automatic guided vehicle system 1 has feed lines 4 and 5 divided into a plurality of zones, and the feed line 5 in the first zone where the transport vehicle 13 is currently located is connected to the feed power source 2. For example, a high frequency current of 9 kHz is supplied.

  Reference numerals 50 and 51 denote signal superimposing means. The pilot signal source 50 superimposes a high frequency current of 300 kHz, for example, higher than the frequency of the power supply 2 on the power supply line 5 in the first zone via the signal injection pickup 51 as a pilot signal. Yes. The power supply 2, the pilot signal source 50, and the signal injection pickup 51 are similarly disposed on the power supply line 4 in the second zone.

  The main controller 6 serving as the main control means sends a transport command signal 17A as indicated by an arrow to a later-described transmitting / receiving device 14 of the transport vehicle 13 using the transmitting / receiving device 17 serving as a connected communication means. The position information signal 17B is received from the control device 8 and the operation control operation of the plurality of transport vehicles 13 is performed by the built-in control device 8.

  The feed line 4 in the second zone is laid adjacent to the feed line 5 in the first zone so that the carriage 13 can enter and leave the feed lines in both zones.

  The transport vehicle 13 is supplied with power from the power supply line 5 in the first zone, and the transmission / reception device 14 receives the transport command signal 17A from the transmission / reception device 17 of the main controller 6 and travels along the power supply line 5 in the first zone. Has been. That is, a high frequency current is extracted from the power feeding line 5 in the first zone by the power receiving pickup 54, converted into DC power by the power receiving unit 9, which is energy supply means, and supplied to the driving means 15. The driving unit 15 is a traveling motor, and the speed and acceleration are controlled by a controller 16 that is a driving control unit.

  The controller 16 is a part for making a control decision. The controller 14 communicates with the main controller 6 by the transmission / reception device 14, receives the conveyance command signal 17A, controls the driving means 15, performs the running / stopping of the conveyance vehicle 13, and the conveyance. A position information signal 17B of the car 13 is transmitted to the main controller 6.

  The pilot signal detector 52 as a receiving means detects the pilot signal from the feed line 5 in the first zone via the signal detection pickup 55, processes it into a predetermined signal, and then compares the pilot signal level with the comparing means. The determination is made by a determination circuit 53 and is input to the controller 16.

  FIG. 2 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the transport vehicle in the automatic guided vehicle system according to the first embodiment, and shows the operation switching operation of the controller 16. That is, the controller 16 detects the pilot signal injected from the pilot signal source 50 into the first zone feed line 5 in step S1 with the signal detection pickup 55, measures the level of the detected pilot signal, and then in step S2. It is confirmed whether the level of the pilot signal is less than a predetermined threshold set by the determination circuit 53.

  The threshold value of the determination circuit 53 is obtained by experimentally determining in advance a correlation between the number of the transporting vehicles 13 and the detection level of the pilot signal, and based on this correlation, transport exceeding the power consumption that can be supplied in the zone in the normal operation state. It is set as a detection level of a pilot signal corresponding to the number of cars 13.

If the detection level of the pilot signal is less than the threshold value, the controller 16 determines that the power consumption of the feed line 5 in the first zone currently located is likely to exceed the rating, and in step S3, the transport vehicle. 13 speed / acceleration is limited, and the power consumption of the transport vehicle is suppressed.
If the detection level of the pilot signal is equal to or greater than the threshold value in step S2, it is determined that the power consumption of the feeder line 5 in the first zone is within the rating, and the speed / acceleration limitation of the transport vehicle 13 is limited in step S4. Abolish and return to normal operation.

  As described above, the automatic guided vehicle system according to the first embodiment uses the pickup 55 that superimposes a high-frequency pilot signal other than the feeding frequency on the feeding lines 4 and 5 in each zone and can detect the high frequency in each feeding vehicle 13. A pilot signal is detected from the feed lines 4 and 5, and a change in the high frequency impedance of the feed lines 4 and 5 is detected by confirming the level of the detected pilot signal.

  As the number of transport vehicles 13 located in each power feeding zone increases, the number of signal detection pickups 55 coupled to the power feed lines 4 and 5 increases, and the high frequency impedance increases. When the number of 13 is reduced, the high frequency impedance is lowered. Further, since the current of the pilot signal flowing through the line is attenuated when the high-frequency impedance is increased, the level of the pilot signal detected by the controller and each carrier 13 is decreased, and conversely, when the high-frequency impedance is decreased, the feed lines 4 and 5 are decreased. Therefore, the level of the pilot signal detected by each carrier 13 increases.

  Confirming the decrease in the detection level of the pilot signal in each transport vehicle 13 is to detect that the number of transport vehicles 13 in the zone in which the transport vehicle 13 is located exceeds a certain amount. When control is performed so as to change the operation to power saving operation, and when an increase in the detection level of the pilot signal is confirmed and it is detected that the number of transport vehicles 13 in the zone where the vehicle is located has fallen below a certain amount. Controls to change the transport vehicle from power saving operation to normal operation.

  According to the first embodiment, the power consumption in the zone is quickly suppressed without the communication control of the main controller 6, and it is possible to avoid the operation stop due to the excessive power consumption.

  In addition, since the transport vehicle 13 can autonomously switch to the power saving operation and the collection of the position information signal 17B from the main controller 6 that gives a control instruction and the transport command signal 17A may require a small amount of communication, This data transmission means becomes unnecessary.

Embodiment 2. FIG.
Next, a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the automatic guided vehicle system according to the second embodiment. In the first embodiment, the pilot signal detector 52 and the determination circuit 53 are provided in the transport vehicle 13. However, in the automatic guided vehicle system 100 according to the second embodiment, as shown in FIG. A main controller 6 is provided in each of the lines 4 and 5, and a pilot signal detector 52 and a determination circuit 53 are provided in the main controller 6, and a pilot signal is extracted from the feed line in each zone and the level is determined Thus, power consumption is determined. Since other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted.

  In this embodiment, the switching between the normal operation and the power saving operation of the conveyance vehicle 13 is instructed to each conveyance vehicle 13 via the transmission / reception device 17 of the main controller 6 and the transmission / reception device device 14 of the conveyance vehicle 13. However, since it is not necessary to detect the pilot signal and compare the threshold values in each carrier 13, the system cost can be reduced at a low cost when the number of carriers 13 is large.

  In addition, a main controller 6 is disposed in each of the plurality of power supply lines 4 and 5, and communicates with the transport vehicle 13 via the transmission / reception devices 17 and 14 to control the driving means 15 of the transport vehicle 13. Therefore, accurate drive control is possible.

Embodiment 3 FIG.
Next, a third embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the automatic guided vehicle system according to the third embodiment.
In the first or second embodiment described above, the method of limiting the speed / acceleration is adopted for the power saving operation of the transport vehicle 13, but in the third embodiment, the transport vehicle 13 of the automatic guided vehicle system 101 is shown in FIG. 4. As described above, the storage battery 41, which is an energy storage means for storing energy, the charge control circuit 40, and the power supply switching circuit 42 are provided and transported by supplying power from the storage battery 41 when the number of transport vehicles 13 increases. This is so that the transport capability of the vehicle 13 is not limited.

That is, the conveyance vehicle 13 extracts a high-frequency current from the power supply line 5 by the power receiving pickup 54 and converts it into DC power by the power receiving unit 9. The converted DC power charges the storage battery 41 via the charge control circuit 40. Reference numeral 42 denotes a power supply switching circuit having a switch for selecting whether the power supplied to the driving means 15 is directly supplied from the power receiving unit 9 or supplied from the storage battery 41 according to an instruction from the controller 16. Is configured so that the switch is connected to the power receiving unit 9 and directly supplied from the power receiving unit 9.
Since other configurations are the same as those of the first embodiment, description thereof is omitted.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the transport vehicle in the automatic guided vehicle system according to the third embodiment, and shows the operation switching operation of the controller 16.
The controller 16 measures the level of the pilot signal in step S <b> 11, and checks whether the level is less than the threshold set in the determination circuit 53 in step S <b> 12.

  If the detection level of the pilot signal is less than the threshold value, the controller 16 determines that the current consumption in this zone is likely to exceed the rating, connects the switch of the power supply switching circuit 42 to the storage battery 41 in step S13, and drives it. The power from the storage battery 41 is supplied to the means 15.

  As a result, the power received from the feeder line is only the charging power of the storage battery 41, and the driving means 15 is supplied with power from the storage battery 41. If the detection level of the pilot signal is greater than or equal to the threshold value in step S12, the switch of the power supply switching circuit 42 is connected to the power receiving unit 9 in step S14, and the power from the power receiving unit 9 is supplied to the driving means 15.

  The third embodiment is configured as described above, and since the transport vehicle 13 can perform rated operation within the capacity range of the storage battery 41, the system can be reduced due to temporary power consumption over the zone without deteriorating the transport capacity of the system. Can be prevented.

In the above description, the third embodiment has been described as a configuration in which the storage battery 41 is mounted on the transport vehicle 13 of the first embodiment. However, the storage battery 41 is mounted on the transport vehicle 13 of the second embodiment. Needless to say.
Further, if the transport vehicle 13 not equipped with the storage battery shown in the first embodiment is mixed with the transport vehicle 13 shown in the third embodiment, the transport capability of the transport vehicle 13 can be made different.

It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the automatic guided vehicle system by Embodiment 1 of this invention. 5 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the transport vehicle in the automatic guided vehicle system according to the first embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the automatic guided vehicle system by Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the automatic guided vehicle system by Embodiment 3 of this invention. 12 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the transport vehicle in the automatic guided vehicle system according to the third embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

1,100,101 Automated guided vehicle system, 2 Power supply,
4 Feed line of the second zone, 5 Feed line of the first zone,
6 main controller, 8 control device, 9 power receiving unit,
13 transport vehicle, 14, 17 transmission / reception device, 15 drive means,
16 controller, 17A conveyance command signal, 17B position information signal,
40 charge control circuit, 41 storage battery, 42 power supply switching circuit,
50 pilot signal source, 51 signal injection pickup,
52 pilot signal detector, 53 determination circuit,
54 Receiving pickup, 55 Signal detection pickup.

Claims (4)

  The feeder line is divided into a plurality of zones, a high-frequency current of a predetermined frequency is supplied to the feeder line of each zone from the feeder, and the high-frequency current is extracted in a non-contact manner by a pickup for power reception mounted on the carrier vehicle. In the automatic guided vehicle system configured to drive a plurality of transport vehicles by converting the power into electric power and supplying power to the driving means of the transport vehicle, a high-frequency current having a frequency different from the frequency is applied to each of the plurality of power supply lines. In addition to providing signal superimposing means for superimposing as a pilot signal, the carrier vehicle includes a receiving means for detecting the pilot signal, a comparing means for comparing the level of the pilot signal detected by the receiving means with a predetermined threshold value, And a control means for controlling the operation of the drive means based on the comparison result of the comparison means.   The automatic guided vehicle system according to claim 1, further comprising main control means for controlling driving means of the transport vehicle using communication means for communicating with the transport vehicle.   The feeder line is divided into a plurality of zones, and a high-frequency current of a predetermined frequency is supplied to the feeder line of each zone from the feeder, and the high-frequency current is extracted in a non-contact manner by a pickup for power reception mounted on the carrier vehicle. In the automatic guided vehicle system configured to drive a plurality of transport vehicles by converting the power into electric power and supplying power to the driving means of the transport vehicle, a high-frequency current having a frequency different from the frequency is applied to each of the plurality of power supply lines. A signal superimposing means for superimposing as a pilot signal and a communication means for communicating with the carrier, a receiving means for detecting the pilot signal, a pilot means for detecting the pilot signal detected by the receiving means. Comparing means for comparing the level with a predetermined threshold value, and controlling the operation of the driving means via the communication means based on the comparison result of the comparing means. Automated guided vehicle system, characterized in that it comprises a main control means and a control means for.   The energy storage means adapted to store the DC power in the transport vehicle, and the output selected from either the output of the energy storage means or the DC power based on the comparison result of the comparison means, and the driving The automatic guided vehicle system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, further comprising a power supply switching circuit that supplies power to the means.

Images