JP2008102939A - Article carrying facility and article carrying method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an article carrying facility capable of opening/closing an automatic door without using a magnetic tape. <P>SOLUTION: A carrier truck 3 obtains a residual travel distance to the automatic door 6 by position information on a travel route 4 detected by a detection means and preset position information of the automatic door 6, obtains an addition value of a distance by which the carrier truck 3 travels for a time wherein the automatic door 6 changes over from a closed state to an open state and a necessary stop distance from a travel speed after the changeover time, makes the automatic door 6 in the open state when the residual travel distance reaches the addition value, and outputs a closing instruction signal to the automatic door 6 to make the automatic door 6 in the closed state when confirming passage of the automatic door 6 of the carrier truck 3. Thereby, it eliminates the need for the conventional magnetic tape to do away with difficult work on site. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an article transport facility using a transport cart that moves along a travel route in which an automatic door (auto door) is arranged, and transports and transfers articles between stations, for example.

  In the conventional article transport equipment, an opening request area is set in the front / rear direction of the automatic door along the travel route, and a magnetic tape is continuously applied to the area along the travel route. When entering the opening request area and detecting the magnetic tape, the conveyance carriage main body sends an automatic door opening request to the automatic door controller to open the automatic door, and passes through the opening request area and the magnetic tape is not detected. The transmission of the automatic door opening request is stopped and the automatic door is closed.

  However, in the above article transport facility, the work of attaching magnetic tape to the traveling rail, for example, must be performed on-site continuously in the opening request area, and when it is necessary to change the opening / closing timing of the automatic door, Therefore, it was necessary to change the length of the magnetic tape, which forced difficult work.

  In addition, since the automatic door opening request area is set regardless of the traveling speed of the transport carriage, if the traveling speed is slow, the automatic door will open earlier than the intended timing, and the traveling speed will be slower, so the opening time will be There was a problem of becoming longer. In addition, if the opening time is long, the efficiency of air conditioning deteriorates when the automatic door separates the air-conditioning area from the area that does not, and if the automatic door is shut off from the outside air, it will cause intrusion of dust and the like It will be.

  Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an article transport facility that can open and close an automatic door at an optimal timing without using a magnetic tape.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the invention according to claim 1 of the present invention includes a transport vehicle that travels along a travel route and conveys an article, and the transport vehicle can pass along the travel route. An article transfer facility provided with automatic opening and closing means that can be switched between an open state and a closed state in which the transport vehicle cannot pass,
A traveling interference range of the transport vehicle is set before and after the automatic opening and closing device, the transport vehicle includes detection means for detecting a position on the travel route, and the transport vehicle is detected by the detection device. The remaining travel distance to the automatic opening / closing means is obtained from the position information on the traveling route and the position information of the automatic opening / closing means set in advance, and the transport vehicle is at a time when the automatic opening / closing means switches from the closed state to the open state. An added value of the distance traveled and the required stop distance from the travel speed after the switching time is obtained, and when the remaining travel distance reaches the added value, an opening request for the automatic opening / closing means is output, and the detection When the passage of the travel interference range is confirmed based on position information on the travel route detected by the means, a request for closing the automatic opening / closing means is output .

According to the above configuration, the transport vehicle obtains an added value of the distance traveled by the transport vehicle at the time when the automatic opening / closing means switches from the closed state to the open state and the necessary stop distance from the travel speed after the switch time. Then, the current position on the travel route is confirmed by the position information of the detection means, the remaining travel distance to the automatic opening / closing means is obtained from the preset position information of the automatic opening / closing means, and the remaining travel distance is added to the added value. When it reaches, an opening request for the automatic opening / closing means is output. That is, when the automatic opening / closing means is opened at the timing when the automatic opening / closing means is opened when the transport vehicle reaches the required stop distance, even if the automatic opening / closing means does not open, When the transport vehicle decelerates from the required stop distance position, it stops without colliding before the automatic opening / closing means, and collision is avoided. Further, when the transport vehicle confirms the passage of the travel interference range based on the current position information detected by the detection means, the transport vehicle outputs a request for closing the automatic open / close means, and the automatic open / close means is closed immediately after the transport vehicle passes. Thus, the time during which the automatic opening / closing means is open most can be reduced.

The invention according to claim 2 is the invention according to claim 1, wherein the automatic opening / closing means includes an open limit detector for detecting that the automatic opening / closing means is in an open state, When the vehicle confirms the open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the opening limit detector until the remaining travel distance reaches the required stop distance, the transport vehicle travels without executing a deceleration operation, and the remaining travel distance When the open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the open limit detector cannot be confirmed before the required stop distance is reached, a deceleration operation is executed .

According to the above configuration, the transport vehicle checks the open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the open limit detector until the remaining travel distance reaches the required stop distance, and travels as it is without executing the deceleration operation. When the open state of the automatic open / close means detected by the open limit detector cannot be confirmed by passing through the automatic open / close means position and the remaining travel distance reaches the required stop distance, the deceleration operation is executed. Therefore, the danger of the transport vehicle colliding with the automatic opening / closing means is avoided.

The invention according to claim 3 is the invention according to claim 2, wherein the transport vehicle confirms an open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the opening limit detector during a deceleration operation. It is characterized by accelerating .

According to the above configuration, when the open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the open limit detector is confirmed during the deceleration operation, that is, when the danger of a collision with the automatic opening / closing means disappears, the transport vehicle is accelerated and decelerated. Delayed time can be shortened.

The invention according to claim 4 is the invention according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the position information on the travel route detected by the detection means is the travel interference range. When the automatic opening / closing means detected by the open limit detector cannot be confirmed, the stop operation is executed immediately .

According to the above configuration, when it is determined that the current position information of the transport vehicle is within the travel interference range, if the open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the open limit detector cannot be confirmed, the transport vehicle immediately Execute stop operation. Therefore, the danger that the transport vehicle will collide with the automatic opening / closing means is reduced.

According to a fifth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an article in which a transport vehicle is caused to travel along a travel route provided with automatic opening / closing means that is switched between an open state in which the transport vehicle can pass and a closed state in which the transport vehicle cannot pass. An article conveying method for carrying out
When the traveling interference range of the transport vehicle is set before and after the automatic opening / closing means, and the transport vehicle is traveled and the article is transported, if the automatic opening / closing means is on the travel route, the transport vehicle travels. The current position information on the route is obtained, the remaining travel distance to the automatic opening / closing means is obtained from the current position information and the preset position information of the automatic opening / closing means, and the automatic opening / closing means is in the open state from the closed state. The automatic opening / closing means obtains an added value of the distance traveled by the transport vehicle at the time of switching to the required stop distance from the travel speed after the time of switching, and when the remaining travel distance reaches the added value The automatic opening / closing means is closed when it is confirmed that the transport vehicle has passed the travel interference range based on the current position information on the travel route of the transport vehicle.

As described above, according to the present invention, the transport vehicle has a distance between the travel distance of the transport vehicle at the time when the automatic opening / closing means is switched from the closed state to the open state and the necessary stop distance from the travel speed after the switch time. An addition value is obtained, the current position on the travel route is confirmed by the position information of the detection means, the remaining travel distance to the automatic opening / closing means is determined by the preset position information of the automatic opening / closing means, and the remaining travel distance is When the addition value is reached, by outputting a request to open the automatic opening / closing means, even if the automatic opening / closing means does not open when the transportation vehicle reaches the required stop distance, Since the vehicle decelerates from the necessary stop distance position and stops without colliding before the automatic opening / closing means, the collision can be avoided.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[Embodiment 1]
FIG. 1 is a travel route and operation explanatory diagram of an article transport facility according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the main part of the article transport facility.

  1 and 2, reference numeral 1 denotes a pair of traveling rails installed on the floor 2, and 3 is a four-wheel transportation carriage (of the transportation vehicle) that is guided by the traveling rail 1 and that travels by itself and transports the article R. An example).

  The travel rail 1 constitutes a transport route (an example of a travel route) 4, and a plurality of stations (an example of article receiving means) 5 are arranged along the transport route 4. Further, each station 5 is provided with a transfer conveyor device (transfer means; for example, a roller conveyor) 10 for carrying the article R into and out of each transfer carriage 3.

  In addition, an automatic door (an example of an automatic opening / closing means) 6 that can be switched between an open state that allows passage of the transport carriage 3 and a closed state that prevents passage thereof is disposed on the transport path 4. As shown in FIG. 6, the automatic door 6 is provided with an opening / closing drive mechanism 7 for driving the door, an open limit detector 8 for detecting that the door is in an open state, and a door in a closed state. A closing limit detector 9 is provided for detecting that the opening / closing drive mechanism 7, the opening limit detector 8, and the closing limit detector 9 are connected to a ground controller 71 described later.

  As shown in FIG. 1, a travel interference range (interference check zone) Z of the transport carriage 3 is set on the transport path 4 before and after the automatic door 6 (front and rear in the travel direction of the transport carriage 3). The travel interference range Z is a range (L + 2y) obtained by adding the total length L of the transport carriage 3 to the distance margin value y before and after the automatic door 6, and the start position of the travel interference range Z, that is, the front position (y + L) of the automatic door 6. / 2) is set to a dummy stop position (conveyor stop position set before the automatic opening / closing means; an example of the position of the automatic opening / closing means) D of the conveyance carriage 3. The dummy stop position D is a stop position at which the transport carriage 3 can be safely stopped without contacting the automatic door 6 by the above setting. In addition, the distance between the dummy stop position D (start position of the travel interference range Z) and the end position from the origin (described later) is set in advance in the transport carriage 3 and the ground controller 71. In addition, a stop distance K required to stop at the dummy stop position D at a predetermined deceleration α from the maximum speed (an example of a predetermined traveling speed) is obtained in the transport carriage 3, and the automatic door 6 to which the stop distance K is added is calculated. The travel distance from the origin of the forward position (y + L / 2 + K) (hereinafter referred to as a deceleration start position) F is preset.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 5, the transport cart 3 includes a vehicle body 11 and a conveyor device (transfer means; for example, a roller conveyor) 12 for transferring and placing an article R installed on the vehicle body 11. And two swivel driven wheel devices 13 attached to the lower part of the vehicle body 11 for supporting 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 traveling rail Two turning / sliding driving wheel devices 14 that can follow one bending shape and are movable (slidable) with respect to the turning driven wheel device 13 are provided.

  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 is movably supported in a left-right direction (a perspective direction to the swivel driven wheel device 13), and a front-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 these frames 21, 22, 23, 24, and the article transfer / loading conveyor device 12 is installed in the box 25 Is done.

  Each of the swivel driven wheel devices 13 includes a swivel body 31 that can swivel about the vertical axis with respect to the right frame 21, and a pair corresponding 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 idler wheel 34 supported by the axle 33 so as to be freely rotatable, and both legs of the bracket 32 The four guide rollers 35 (an example of a guide device) 35 that are respectively provided on the lower, front, rear, left and right ends of the rail and are in contact with both side surfaces of the travel rail 1. The swivel body 31 is rotated about the longitudinal axis through the bracket 32 in response to the bending, so that the idle wheel 34 is positioned with respect to the traveling rail 1 and the idle wheel 34 is It may traveling along the traveling rail 1 above without wheels.

  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 A traveling motor 45 having a driving shaft connected to a rotating shaft of the driving wheel 44 and lower and front left and right ends of the leg portions of the bracket 42, respectively, are freely rotatable 4 that contact both side surfaces of the traveling rail 1. The guide roller 46 is an example of a guide device. The four guide rollers 46 rotate around the vertical axis through the bracket 42 in response to the bending of the traveling rail 1. When the body 41 rotates and the revolving body 41 moves to the left and right via the bracket 42 corresponding to the width between the pair of travel rails 1, the drive wheel 44 moves on the travel rail 1 without taking off the wheel. The carriage 3 can be guided and traveled by the traveling rail 1 when the driving wheel 44 is rotated by driving the traveling motor 45.

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

  In addition, a current collecting rail 51 is provided on the outer side surface of one traveling rail 1 along the traveling direction along the entire length, and a current collector 52 is disposed outside the bracket 32 of the one swivel driven wheel device 13.

  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.

  Further, 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 traveling motors 45. ing.

  Further, as the sensor, a transfer unit detector 61 including a photoelectric switch for detecting the presence / absence of the article R on the article transfer / placement conveyor device 12 and a fixed position (protrusion) of the article R is provided on the box body 25. In addition, a bumper switch 62 that detects a rear-end collision is provided before and after the vehicle body 11, and an encoder 63 that detects the number of rotations of the traveling motor 45 is provided on the drive shaft of one traveling motor 45.

  An origin 64 composed of a reflector (mirror or the like) indicating the starting point of the travel position is installed along the travel rail 1 on the transport path 4, and this origin 64 is detected by the bracket 32 of one of the swiveling driven wheel devices 13. An origin detector 65 composed of a reflective photoelectric switch is provided.

Further, an optical sensor transmitter 69 and a receiver 70 are provided as data transmitting / receiving means for transmitting / receiving data between the front and rear transport carts 3.
For these optical sensor transmitter 69 and receiver 70, a flat plate 59 serving also as a blocking member for blocking the downward leakage of light is provided below the box 25 of the vehicle body 11 and at the front and rear center positions. The optical sensor transmitter 69 and the receiver 70 are mounted on a flat plate 59 facing rearward and forward, respectively. Further, the mounting position of the optical sensor transmitter 69 and the receiver 70 is set between the upper surface level and the lower surface level of the traveling rail 1.

FIG. 6 shows a control block for the equipment and the carriage 3.
In FIG. 6, reference numeral 71 denotes a microcomputer, which controls the plurality of transport carts 3 to control the transport of the article R and further controls the opening / closing of the automatic door 6 (an example of a control means; a ground controller). When the article R is transported, the transfer information of the article R from the host computer (hereinafter abbreviated as the host computer) 74 (the number of the transfer source station 5 where the request for transporting the article R has occurred) (Transfer data consisting of the number of the destination station 5 that transports the article R) and a feedback signal for each transport carriage 3 from the ground modem 72 described later, for example, transport receipt data of transport data (described later), current position The address data is input and judged, and control is performed such as whether to carry out the destination for each transport carriage 3 and whether to perform transfer. . The ground controller 71 receives detection signals from the opening limit detector 8 and the closing limit detector 9 of the automatic door 6 and outputs an opening command signal and a closing command signal to the opening / closing drive means 7 (details will be described later). ).

  The ground controller 71 manages each transport cart 3 by a transport management list (memory) shown in FIG. The conveyance management list L includes, for each conveyance carriage 3, data indicating whether “conveying cycle is being performed”, data indicating whether “moving” is performed in order to change the position without mounting the article R, current position address, conveyance data. (Formed from the number of the transfer source station 5, the transfer start time, the transfer destination station 5 number and the transfer end time), total transfer cycle execution time, movement data (movement destination address, movement start time and movement end) It consists of the total travel time). The current position address is sequentially updated by the address A of the travel section of the current position data transmitted from the main body controller 73 of each transport cart 3.

  Further, the ground controller 71 uses the ground modem 72 corresponding to a transmitter / receiver as an antenna and an antenna to transmit signals to / from the transport carriage 3, and the feeder is installed on the travel rail 1 as a route along the travel direction of the transport carriage 3 over the entire length. This is done via line 54. The main body controller 73 of each transport carriage 3 transmits signals to and from the ground controller 71 via the wireless modem 55 installed close to and opposed to the feeder line 54.

  A main body controller 73 is housed in the control box 57, a power box 58 is connected to an inverter 76 and a changeover switch 77, which will be described later, and a power supply device (not shown) connected to the current collector 52 to supply power to devices in the transport carriage 3. Is stored.

  The main body controller 73 of the transport carriage 3 is connected to the sensors, that is, the transfer unit detector 61, the bumper switch 62, the encoder 63, the origin detector 65, the optical sensor transmitter 69, and the receiver 70. Based on the signal from the sensor and the transport data from the ground controller 71 inputted from the wireless modem 55, the article 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 placing conveyor device 12 is controlled to control the self-propelled carriage 3 and the transfer of the article R.

A block diagram of the main body controller 73 of the transport carriage 3 is shown in FIG.
As shown in FIG. 8, the main body controller 73 includes a communication control unit 81, a travel distance calculation unit 82, a current address calculation unit 83, a transfer control unit 84, a travel control unit 85, and an automatic door passage control unit 86. Yes.

  The communication control unit 81 is a control unit that is connected to the wireless modem 55 and transmits / receives data to / from the ground controller 71. Data transmission / reception between each unit of the main body controller 73 and the ground controller 71 is performed by the communication control unit. 81. In addition, a unique number (cart number) unique to the transport carriage is set in advance in the communication control unit 81, and it is determined whether the data is its own data based on the carriage number attached to the received data. Attach

  The travel distance calculation unit 82 counts pulses output from the encoder 63 after being reset by the detection of the origin 64 by the origin detector 65, and present travel distance M (distance from the origin 64 of the travel rail 1). , And the measured current travel distance M is transmitted to the transport carriage 3 followed by the optical sensor transmitter 69, transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the communication control unit 81, and the current address It outputs to the calculation part 83, the travel control part 85, and the automatic door passage control part 86. The travel distance calculation unit 82, the origin detector 65, and the encoder 63 form detection means for detecting the position of the transport vehicle on the travel route.

  The current address calculation unit 83 is preset with the address A of each travel section corresponding to the travel distance from the origin 64 of the travel rail 1, and the travel distance M input from the travel distance calculation unit 82 based on this setting. The address A of the corresponding traveling section is recognized, and the address A of the recognized traveling section of the current position is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the communication control unit 81. The communication control unit 81 is assigned a unique cart number and becomes address position data consisting of “cart number + travel section address A”.

  The transfer control unit 86 is connected to the transfer unit detector 61 and receives transfer data (data consisting of the address A of the transfer source station 5 and the address A of the transfer destination station 5) input from the communication control unit 81. At the transfer source station 5, the transfer motor 78 of the transfer / loading conveyor device 12 is positively driven through the inverter 76 to execute the scooping cycle operation of the article R. At the transfer destination station 5, Then, the transfer motor 78 of the transfer / loading conveyor device 12 is reversely driven via the inverter 76 to execute the scooping cycle operation of the article R.

  That is, at the time of a scooping cycle operation for scooping the article R onto the transport carriage 3, when a transport source arrival signal (described later) that the transport carriage 3 has arrived at the “station for picking up the article R” is input from the travel control unit 85, Communicating arrival at the station 5 and driving the transfer motor 78 via the inverter 76 to transfer the article R from the station 5 to the transport carriage 3 and confirming the transfer by the operation of the transfer unit detector 61. The transfer motor 78 is stopped. Then, a scooping cycle completion signal is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the communication control unit 81 to notify the scooping cycle completion.

  Further, when the article R is wholesaled onto the station 5 during the wholesale cycle operation, when a transport destination arrival signal (to be described later) that the transport carriage 3 has arrived at the “destination station for the article R” from the travel control unit 85 is input, the station 5 When the transfer motor 78 is driven via the inverter 76 and the article R is transferred from the transport carriage 3 to the station 5, and the transfer completion data is confirmed from the station 5, the transfer motor 78 is transferred. To stop. Then, a wholesale cycle completion signal is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the communication control unit 81 to notify the completion of the wholesale cycle.

The communication between the transport cart 3 and the station 5 can be performed by providing a communication sensor facing the transport cart 3 and the station 5, for example.
`` Driving control ''
The traveling control unit 85 is set with the characteristics of the traveling rail 1 at each address A, that is, whether the traveling rail 1 is a straight portion or a curved portion and the vicinity of its entrance and exit. Based on the address, the characteristics of the traveling rail 1, that is, the straight portion of the traveling rail 1 or the curved portion and the vicinity of its entrance and exit are determined. Further, the travel speed is obtained by differentiating the travel distance M input from the travel distance calculation unit 82.

Then, traveling control is executed based on the conveyance data input from the communication control unit 81.
That is, the distance (target value) C from the origin 64 obtained from the address A of the target position of the station 5 is obtained, the vehicle starts to travel, and is set at a predetermined high speed constant speed (travel speed). the upper limit value of) to accelerate until V _H, travels at a high speed constant velocity V _H. Further, during traveling, if the vehicle is traveling on the straight portion of the traveling rail 1 based on the above determination of the characteristics of the traveling rail 1 in the current traveling section, the high-speed constant speed V _H is set to a high speed, for example, 100 m / min. When running a curve section and near its inlet and outlet, the set speed constant velocity V _H slow 1, for example 40 m / min, running at high speed was set constant speed V _H.

  Then, the difference between the distance C to the station 5 that is the target position and the current travel distance M is calculated, and when the difference becomes shorter than a certain distance g, that is, when the target stop position is approached, the upper limit value of the travel speed Is set to a low speed 2 before stopping, for example, 20 m / min, slower than the low speed 1, and is decelerated by the acceleration / deceleration speed α and travels at the traveling speed of the low speed 2, and the difference in the distance is a constant distance k (<g) When it becomes shorter, that is, immediately before the target stop position, the traveling is stopped.

Further, the current travel distance M _B of the front conveyance carriage 3 being received by the optical sensor receiver 70, calculates the following distance J by the current position travel distance M of itself, followed by a minimum inter-vehicle distance J is given It is determined whether the distance is shorter than the distance Jmin. When the inter-vehicle distance J is shorter than the predetermined minimum distance Jmin, it is determined that the conveyance carriages 3 have approached each other, and the travel is temporarily stopped. Send “eject data”. In the communication control unit 81, the unique number of the carriage is attached and the “eject data” is transmitted. When the forward carriage 3 moves forward and the inter-vehicle distance J becomes longer than the predetermined minimum distance Jmin, the traveling is resumed.

  Upon arrival at the target station 5, the transfer source arrival signal is output to the transfer control unit 84 in the case of the transfer source station 5, and the transfer destination arrival signal is output to the transfer control unit 84 in the case of the transfer destination station 5. 84. Further, an arrival signal including the address A of the station 5 that has arrived is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the communication control unit 81 to notify the arrival at the station 5 at the target position.

In addition, when the traveling is started based on the movement data, a movement start signal is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the communication control unit 81.
When a deceleration command signal is input from an automatic door passage control unit 86 described later, the traveling speed is reduced by a preset acceleration / deceleration α, and when a stop command signal is input, an emergency stop is performed.
"Auto door passage control"
A block diagram of the automatic door passage control unit 86 is shown in FIG.

  An automatic door passage notification signal and an open limit detection signal for the automatic door 6 described later are input from the ground controller 71 via the communication control unit 81, and a traveling distance M is input from the traveling distance calculation unit 82.

  An RS flip-flop 91 that is set by the automatic door passage notification signal is provided. When the RS flip-flop 91 is set by the automatic door passage notification signal, the automatic door passage mode (output signal) is turned on (set). In this automatic door passing mode, a first comparator 92 is provided for detecting whether the travel distance M is equal to or greater than the distance of the deceleration start position F, that is, whether the transport carriage 3 has reached the deceleration start position F. In the pass mode, a second comparator 93 is provided for detecting whether the travel distance M is equal to or greater than the distance of the start position of the travel interference range Z, that is, whether the transport carriage 3 has entered the travel interference range Z. In this case, a third comparator 94 is provided for detecting whether the travel distance M is equal to or greater than the distance of the end position of the travel interference range Z, that is, whether the transport carriage 3 has passed through the travel interference range Z.

  In the automatic door passing mode, the conveyance carriage 3 has reached the deceleration start position F (the output of the first comparator 92 is on), and the conveyance carriage 3 has not passed the travel interference range Z (third When the output of the comparator 94 is OFF) and the open limit detection signal of the automatic door 6 is OFF, that is, when the automatic door 6 passes through, the automatic door 6 of the automatic door 6 is in spite of having reached the deceleration start position F. When the open state cannot be confirmed, a deceleration command signal is output to the travel control unit 85. In the automatic door passing mode, the transport carriage 3 has reached the travel interference range Z (the output of the second comparator 93 is on), and the transport carriage 3 has not passed the travel interference range Z (third comparison). When the opening limit detection signal of the automatic door 6 is OFF, that is, when the automatic door 6 passes through the automatic door 6, the open state of the automatic door 6 cannot be confirmed while the transport carriage 3 passes the travel interference range Z. At this time, a stop command signal is output to the travel control unit 85.

  When the transport carriage 3 passes through the travel interference range Z (the output of the third comparator 94 is on), the RS flip-flop 91 is reset to turn off the automatic door passing mode, and the operations of the comparators 92, 93, 94 are performed. The monitoring of the travel position of the automatic door 6 is terminated.

Hereinafter, the opening / closing operation of the automatic door 6 by the ground controller 71 will be described in detail according to the flowchart of FIG. At the same time, the opening / closing operation of the automatic door 6 by the main body controller 73 of the conveyance carriage 3 and the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 of the automatic door 6 and the passing traveling operation of the automatic door 6 of the conveyance carriage 3 will be described. In addition, the conveyance trolley 3 shall be performing driving | running | working control and transfer control as mentioned above based on conveyance data or movement data.
Step-1
First, the ground controller 71 passes through the automatic door 6 when the transport cart 3 currently executing the scooping cycle operation or the wholesale cycle operation moves to the station 5 set to the next wholesale cycle operation or scooping cycle operation. Confirm whether to do.

  That is, the ground controller 71 selects the transport cart 3 by arriving at the transport source station 5 among the transport carts 3 that are executing the transport data managed by the transport management list L and executing a scooping cycle operation. When the address of the auto door 6 exists between the address of the transfer source station and the address of the transfer destination station of the transfer carriage 3, it is determined that the auto door 6 has passed.

  Further, of the transport carts 3 executing the transport data managed by the transport management list L, the transport cycle arrives at the transport destination station 5 and executes the wholesale cycle operation to select the transport cart 3, and the wholesale cycle operation is completed. After that, transport data for transporting the next article R is assigned, and the automatic door 6 is set between the address of the transport source station 5 of the transported data and the address of the station 5 currently performing the wholesale operation. When the address exists, it is determined that the automatic door 6 has passed.

When moving data is set to move an empty transport cart 3 (a transport cart that is not executing a transport cycle), the address of the destination station 5 set for the transport cart 3 and the address of the current transport cart 3 are set. When the address of the automatic door 6 exists between them, it is determined that the automatic door 6 has passed.
Step-2
When the ground controller 71 confirms whether or not the vehicle passes through the automatic door 6, the ground controller 71 outputs an automatic door passage notification signal to the conveyance carriage 3 that is determined to have passed through the automatic door 6.

Thereby, as described above, the automatic door passage mode is set in the automatic door passage controller 86 of the main body controller 73 of the transport carriage 3. Further, a transfer cycle timing signal is transmitted from the transfer controller 84 of the main body controller 73 to the ground controller 71. The timing signal of the transport cycle is the above-described scoop cycle completion signal in the case of the transport cart 3 by executing the scoop cycle operation, and the above-mentioned wholesale cycle completion signal in the case of the transport cart 3 by executing the wholesale cycle operation. In the case of the empty transport carriage 3, the movement start signal output from the travel controller 85 of the main body controller 73 is used as a transport cycle timing signal.
Steps 3,4
The ground controller 71 outputs an opening command signal to the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 of the automatic door 6 when a conveyance cycle timing signal is input from the conveyance carriage 3 determined to pass through the automatic door 6.

When the automatic door 6 is driven to open by the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 in response to the opening command signal and is in the open state, the detection signal of the open limit detector 8 of the automatic door 6 is turned on.
Steps 5, 6, 7
The ground controller 71 confirms the detection signal of the opening limit detector 8 of the automatic door 6 and transmits the state (ON or OFF) of the confirmed opening detection signal to the transport carriage 3 determined to pass through the automatic door 6.

In such a state, when the travel distance M from the current origin reaches the deceleration start position F, the automatic door passage control unit 86 of the main body controller 73 confirms whether or not the opening limit detection signal has been input. When the detection signal is confirmed, the vehicle continues to travel without deceleration (no deceleration command is output), and when the input of the open limit detection signal cannot be confirmed, a deceleration command signal is output to the traveling control unit 85, and the transport carriage 3 Deceleration is started at a predetermined acceleration / deceleration α. Further, when an open limit detection signal is input during this deceleration, the deceleration command signal is turned off, and the transport carriage 3 travels at a predetermined acceleration / deceleration α to a high speed constant speed V _H by the travel control unit 85. When there is no input of an open limit detection signal, the transport carriage 3 stops at the dummy stop position D due to the above deceleration. Further, the automatic door passage control unit 86 continues to check whether the open limit detection signal is input while passing the travel interference range Z according to the current travel distance M, and opens the travel interference range Z while traveling. When it becomes impossible to confirm the input of the detection signal (when the open limit detection signal is turned off), a stop command signal is output to the traveling control unit 85, and the transport carriage 3 is urgently stopped.
Step-8, 9
When the ground controller 71 confirms the passage of the travel interference range Z based on the current travel distance M of the transport carriage 3 determined to pass through the automatic door 6, the ground controller 71 outputs a close command signal to the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 of the automatic door 6.

  In response to this closing command signal, the automatic door 6 is driven to close by the opening / closing drive mechanism 7, the detection signal of the open limit detector 8 of the automatic door 6 is turned off, and when the automatic door 6 is closed, the detection signal of the close limit detector 9 of the automatic door 6 is detected. Is turned on.

When the automatic door passage control unit 86 confirms the passage of the traveling interference range Z based on the current traveling distance M, the automatic door passage control unit 86 ends the automatic door passage mode (stops confirmation regarding the automatic door 6).
FIG. 1 shows an opening command signal output from the ground controller 71 to the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 of the automatic door 6 during the opening / closing operation of the automatic door 6 and the passing operation of the automatic door 6 of the transport carriage 3. The time limit detection signal in the automatic door passage control part 86 of the main body controller 73 of the conveyance carriage 3 is shown.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, when the automatic door 6 is located on the transport path 4 from the ground controller 71 to the station 5 where the article R is transferred from the transport cart 3 next time, the current transport cart. 4, based on the confirmation of the transfer cycle end signal 4 (based on the current delivery operation to the article receiving means of the transport vehicle), an open command signal (open request) is output to the automatic door 6 to be opened, and the transport cart 3 On the basis of the confirmation of the travel interference range Z, the close command signal (close request) is output to the automatic door 6 and the automatic door 6 is closed. As described above, when the ground controller 71 requests opening / closing of the automatic door 6 according to the conveyance cycle, the conventional magnetic tape becomes unnecessary, and difficult work on the site can be eliminated. Further, although the opening / closing timing of the automatic door 6 cannot be set finely, the automatic door 6 can be opened / closed relatively easily and is suitable for the case where the automatic door 6 can be opened and closed during the transfer cycle.

  Further, according to the first embodiment, when the transport carriage 3 reaches the deceleration start position (required stop distance from the maximum speed) F in front of the dummy stop position D of the automatic door 6, that is, the transport carriage 3 on the transport path 4. The remaining travel distance to the automatic door 6 is obtained from the current travel distance M (current position information of the transport vehicle) and the preset position information of the automatic door 6, and the remaining travel distance is the maximum travel speed (predetermined travel speed). If the open state of the automatic door 6 cannot be confirmed when the required stop distance from the vehicle is reached, the conveyance carriage 3 is decelerated, and the danger of the conveyance carriage 3 colliding with the automatic door 6 can be avoided.

  In addition, according to the first embodiment, when the open state of the automatic door 6 is confirmed during the deceleration operation of the transport carriage 3, that is, when the danger of a collision with the automatic door 6 is eliminated, the transport carriage 3 is accelerated to reduce the speed. Therefore, the delayed time can be shortened.

  Further, according to the first embodiment, the current travel distance M (position information) of the transport carriage 3 is transmitted to the ground controller 71, and the ground controller 71 causes the transport carriage 3 to pass through the travel interference range Z based on the position information. If it confirms that, the close command signal is output to the automatic door 6, the automatic door 6 is closed, and the automatic door 6 is closed simultaneously with the passage, so that unnecessary opening of the automatic door 6 can be avoided.

  Further, according to the first embodiment, when it is determined that the current travel distance M (position information) of the transport carriage 3 is within the travel interference range Z, if the open state of the automatic door 6 cannot be confirmed, the transport carriage 3 By directly executing the stop operation, the danger of the transport carriage 3 colliding with the automatic door 6 can be reduced.

In the first embodiment, the transfer cycle signal is generated when the scooping cycle operation is performed and the transport cart 3 performs the scoop cycle completion signal (the scooping execution end), and the wholesale cycle operation is performed when the transport cart 3 Is the above-mentioned wholesale cycle completion signal (whose wholesale execution is completed), but the conveyance cycle signal may be the arrival at the station 5, the start of the article R or the start or execution of the wholesale operation. In addition, the transfer cycle signal can be selected at the end of a scoop cycle, when a scoop cycle is completed, when a scoop cycle arrives, or when a scoop cycle movement starts, or when a wholesale cycle is operated (during wholesale) Then, it may be selected from any of the start of the wholesale cycle, the completion of the wholesale cycle, and the start of the wholesale cycle movement.
[Embodiment 2]
In the first embodiment, the automatic door 6 is opened based on the confirmation of the current conveyance cycle end signal. However, the automatic door 6 can be opened based on the current position information of the conveyance carriage 3.

  FIG. 11 is a travel route and operation explanatory diagram of the article transport facility according to Embodiment 2 of the present invention, and FIG. 12 is a block diagram of the automatic door passage control unit 86 'of the main body controller 73 in the transport cart 3 of the article transport facility. In addition, the whole structure of an article conveyance equipment is the same as that of Embodiment 1, and attaches | subjects the same code | symbol and omits description.

  As shown in FIG. 11, as in the first embodiment, a travel interference range Z of the transport carriage 3 is set before and after the automatic door 6 on the transport path 4. The travel interference range Z is a range (L + 2y) obtained by adding the total length L of the transport carriage 3 to the distance margin value y before and after the automatic door 6, and the start position of the travel interference range Z, that is, the front position (y + L) of the automatic door 6. / 2) is set to a dummy stop position (conveyor stop position set before the automatic opening / closing means; an example of the position of the automatic opening / closing means) D of the conveyance carriage 3. The dummy stop position D is a stop position at which the transport carriage 3 can be safely stopped without contacting the automatic door 6 by the above setting. In addition, the distance between the dummy stop position D from the origin 64 (the start position of the travel interference range Z) and the end position are preset in the transport carriage 3 and the ground controller 71.

The travel controller 85 of the main body controller 73 has the following functions added to the functions described in the first embodiment. That is, the distance between the address A of the automatic door 6 and the dummy stop position D from the origin 64 is set in advance, and when the transfer data is input, the address A of the current transfer carriage 4 and the address of the transfer source station 5 of the transfer data If the address A of the auto door 6 is located between the address A and the address A of the transport destination station 5 and the address A of the transport destination station 5 of the transport data, it is determined that the auto door 6 is passed and the target position is determined. , The dummy stop position D (the distance of the dummy stop position D from the origin 64). In addition, when a deceleration cancellation command signal is input from an automatic door passage control unit 86 ′ described later, the target position is changed to the target station 5 that moves according to the conveyance data. Further, the currently set high speed constant speed V _H and acceleration / deceleration α are output to the automatic door passage control section 86 ′.

As shown in FIG. 12, the automatic door passage control unit 86 ′ is provided with a differentiator 101 that calculates the current travel speed V from the travel distance M from the origin 64 input from the travel distance calculation unit 82. The current traveling speed V obtained by the differentiator 101, the time t required for the automatic door 6 to be opened from the closed state to the opened state, taking into account the response delays caused by various communications, are input from the traveling control unit 85. fast constant speed V _H and acceleration α that, as shown in FIG. 13, calculates a travel distance P (FIG. 11) the transport carriage 3 advances during the running speed V _T and the time t after the time t A travel distance calculation unit 102 is provided.

Also as an execution condition that open request to be described later is not output, as shown in FIG. 13, until the stop is decelerated by acceleration α input from the cruise control unit 85 from the running speed V _T after said time t A stop distance calculator 103 is provided for calculating a distance Q (hereinafter referred to as a stop distance) Q (FIG. 11). In addition, the stop distance Q becomes a constant value because the calculation of the stop distance calculator 103 is not executed when an opening request described later is output.

By adding the stop distance Q and the travel distance P with the adder 104, the remaining distance G to the front of the automatic door 6 is obtained in front of the dummy stop position D as shown in FIG.
Further, by subtracting the current travel distance M of the transport carriage 4 by the subtracter 105 from the set distance of the dummy stop position D from the origin 64 (start position of the travel interference range Z), the current transport carriage 4 And the remaining distance E to the dummy stopping position D is obtained, and the remaining distance E and the remaining distance G to the front of the automatic door 6 are compared by the fourth comparator 106 to compare the distance E, When it is detected that G matches, the RS flip-flop 107 is set, and an opening request for the automatic door 6 is transmitted as an output signal to the ground controller 71 via the communication control unit 81.

  Further, the deceleration start position (distance) obtained by subtracting the stop distance Q by the subtractor 108 from the set distance of the dummy stop position D from the origin 64 (start position of the travel interference range Z) and the travel distance M are obtained. By comparing with the fifth comparator 109, it is detected that the transport carriage 3 has passed the deceleration start position. At this time, an opening request for the automatic door 6 is output and the opening detection signal cannot be confirmed (opening detection signal). When is off), a deceleration command signal is output to the travel control unit 85. When the opening request for the automatic door 6 is output and the opening limit detection signal is confirmed (when the opening limit detection signal is ON), a deceleration release command signal is output to the travel control unit 85.

  In addition, a request to open the automatic door 6 is output, the transport carriage 3 has reached the travel interference range Z (the output of the second comparator 93 is on), and the transport cart 3 has not passed the travel interference range Z. (When the output of the third comparator 94 is OFF) and the open limit detection signal of the automatic door 6 is OFF, that is, when the automatic door 6 passes, the automatic door 6 opens while the transport carriage 3 passes the travel interference range Z. When the state cannot be confirmed, a stop command signal is output to the travel control unit 85.

  When the transport carriage 3 passes through the travel interference range Z (the output of the third comparator 94 is on), the RS flip-flop 107 is reset to turn off the opening request. That is, a request for closing the automatic door 6 is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the communication control unit 81.

  Hereafter, the opening / closing operation | movement of the automatic door 6 by the ground controller 71 is demonstrated in detail according to the flowchart of FIG. At the same time, the opening / closing operation of the automatic door 6 by the main body controller 73 of the conveyance carriage 3 and the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 of the automatic door 6 and the traveling operation of the automatic door 6 of the conveyance carriage 3 will be described with reference to FIGS. Note that the traveling control unit 85 of the main body controller 73 determines that the vehicle passes through the automatic door 5 as described above based on the conveyance data or the movement data, and performs a dummy stop with the traveling pattern shown in FIG. 14 (1). It is assumed that traveling control is being executed with the position D as a target position.

Further, as described above, when the remaining distance E to the current dummy stop position D coincides with the remaining distance G to the front of the automatic door 6, the automatic door passage control unit 86 ′ of the main body controller 73 sends the above opening request to the ground controller 71. Send.
Step-1, 2
First, the ground controller 71 outputs an opening command signal to the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 of the automatic door 6 when the opening request is input from the transport carriage 3.

When the automatic door 6 is driven to open by the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 in response to the opening command signal and is in the open state, the detection signal of the open limit detector 8 of the automatic door 6 is turned on.
Moreover, as shown in FIG. 14, the conveyance trolley | bogie 4 has started the deceleration according to the running pattern shown by (1).
Steps 3, 4, and 5
The ground controller 71 confirms the detection signal of the opening limit detector 8 of the automatic door 6 and transmits the state (ON or OFF) of the confirmed opening detection signal to the transport carriage 3 determined to have passed through the automatic door 6.

In such a state, the automatic door passage control unit 86 ′ of the main body controller 73 outputs an opening request and outputs a deceleration release command signal to the traveling control unit 85 when the opening limit detection signal is confirmed. When the deceleration control command signal is input, the traveling control unit 85 changes the traveling pattern shown in (2) in FIG. 14 to the traveling pattern indicated by (2) in FIG. to travel to accelerate to a constant velocity V _H.

Further, when the travel distance M from the current origin reaches the deceleration start position, the automatic door passage control unit 86 ′ of the main body controller 73 confirms whether or not the opening limit detection signal is input, and inputs the opening limit detection signal. Is not confirmed, a deceleration command signal is output to the traveling control unit 85, and the traveling control unit 85 decelerates the transport carriage 3 at a predetermined acceleration / deceleration α. Further, when the opening limit detection signal is input during this deceleration, the deceleration command signal is turned off and the deceleration release command signal is turned on, so that the transport carriage 3 is (2) by the travel control unit 85 as described above. It accelerated to high speed constant velocity V _H of the running pattern travels shown by. When there is no input of the open limit detection signal, the transport carriage 3 stops at the dummy stop position D as indicated by a virtual line. Further, the automatic door passage control unit 86 ′ continues to check whether the open limit detection signal is input while the vehicle travels through the travel interference range Z according to the current travel distance M, and opens the travel interference range Z while traveling. When it becomes impossible to confirm the input of the limit detection signal (when the opening limit detection signal is turned off), a stop command signal is output to the traveling control unit 85, and the transport carriage 3 is urgently stopped.

Then, when the automatic door passage control unit 86 confirms the passage of the traveling interference range Z based on the current traveling distance M, the automatic door passage control unit 86 turns off the opening request.
Step-6, 7
When the open request is turned off, the ground controller 71 outputs a close command signal to the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 of the automatic door 6.

  In response to this closing command signal, the automatic door 6 is driven to close by the opening / closing drive mechanism 7, the detection signal of the open limit detector 8 of the automatic door 6 is turned off, and when the automatic door 6 is closed, the detection signal of the close limit detector 9 of the automatic door 6 is detected. Is turned on.

The transport carriage 3 travels based on the travel pattern shown in (2) and stops at the target station 5.
FIG. 11 shows an open command signal output from the ground controller 71 to the opening / closing drive mechanism 7 of the automatic door 6 during the opening / closing operation of the automatic door 6 and the passing operation of the automatic door 6 of the transport carriage 3. The time limit detection signal in the automatic door passage control part 86 of the main body controller 73 of the conveyance carriage 3 is shown.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, an open / close request is transmitted from the main body controller 73 of the transport carriage 3 to the ground controller 71 according to the target position, current travel position, and current travel speed of the transport carriage 3, The automatic door 6 is opened and closed. This eliminates the need for conventional magnetic tape and eliminates difficult work on site. The number of hardware devices for automatic door control can be reduced, and the cost can be reduced.

Further, according to the second embodiment, the travel distance P traveled by the transport carriage 3 at the time t when the automatic door 6 switches from the closed state to the open state based on the current travel speed V, and the time t after the switch time t. An additional value G with the required stop distance Q from the travel speed V _T is obtained, and the remaining travel distance E is obtained by subtracting the current travel distance M from the dummy stop position D (distance). Are matched, a request to open the automatic door 6 is transmitted, that is, at a timing at which the automatic door 6 is opened when the transport carriage 3 reaches the deceleration start position ahead of the required stop distance Q from the dummy stop position D. By transmitting the opening request of the automatic door 6, even if the automatic door 6 is not opened, the conveyance carriage 3 can be stopped at the dummy stop position D by decelerating from the deceleration start position. Further, since the switching time t takes into account the opening time of the automatic door 6 and various response delays, the automatic door opening request can be transmitted at the optimal automatic door opening / closing timing. Further, when the traveling speed V is low or when the station 5 is in the vicinity of the automatic door 6, it is possible to prevent the automatic door 6 from opening early, and the time during which the automatic door 6 is open can be minimized.

  According to the second embodiment, when the remaining distance E becomes the required stop distance Q, that is, when the transport carriage 3 reaches the deceleration start position ahead of the required stop distance Q from the dummy stop position D (transport). When the current travel distance M of the carriage 3 reaches the distance of the deceleration start position), if the open state of the automatic door 6 cannot be confirmed, the conveyance carriage 3 is decelerated so that the conveyance carriage 3 collides with the automatic door 6. Risk can be avoided.

  Further, according to the second embodiment, when the open state of the auto door 6 is confirmed during the deceleration operation of the transport carriage 3, that is, when the danger of a collision with the auto door 6 is eliminated, the transport carriage 3 is accelerated and decelerated. Therefore, the delayed time can be shortened.

  Further, according to the second embodiment, when the carriage 3 passes through the travel interference range Z, the opening request is turned off, and by this turning off, a closing command signal is output to the automatic door 6 and the automatic door 6 is closed. Thus, the automatic door 6 is closed simultaneously with the passage, and unnecessary opening can be avoided.

  Further, according to the second embodiment, when it is determined that the current travel distance M (position information) of the transport carriage 3 is within the travel interference range Z, if the open state of the automatic door 6 cannot be confirmed, the transport carriage 3 By directly executing the stop operation, the danger of the transport carriage 3 colliding with the automatic door 6 can be reduced.

  In the second embodiment, the travel distance P traveled by the transport carriage 3 is obtained at the time t when the automatic door 6 is switched from the closed state to the open state by the current travel speed V of the transport carriage 3. The travel distance P may be a preset distance regardless of the current travel speed V. For example, it may be set by multiplying the maximum speed of the transport carriage 3 by the switching time t.

  In the first and second embodiments, the number of automatic doors 6 is one, but there may be a plurality of cases such as two. At this time, it is selected whether to open / close the plurality of automatic doors 6 at the same time or to open / close the rear automatic doors 6 after a time interval from the front automatic door 6.

  In the first and second embodiments, the conveyance path 4 is formed in a straight line, but may be formed in a loop. Moreover, even if there are a plurality of automatic doors 6, the automatic door 6 can be opened and closed by applying the present invention.

  In the first and second embodiments, the characteristics of the traveling rail 1 in the traveling section of the transport carriage 3, that is, whether the traveling section is a straight portion or a curved portion, and its entrance and exit are set in advance by the traveling section address A. However, it may be obtained by learning during a test run.

  Further, in the first and second embodiments, data in which a unique number is attached to the address A of the travel section corresponding to the recognized travel distance M (position data consisting of “cart number + travel section address A”). Is transmitted to the ground controller 71 via the wireless modem 55, the feeder line 54, and the ground modem 72, and only the address A of the travel section of the current position is notified. It is also possible to transmit current position data composed of “cart number + travel section address” to all transport carts 3 via the ground modem 72 and feeder line 54.

  At this time, each transport cart 3 can recognize the address A of the travel section of the transport cart 3 traveling ahead from the cart number of the received current position data, and the optical sensor transmitter 69, the receiver 70, Outside the communication area, the traveling speed control can be performed by the inter-vehicle distance J calculated by the address A of the traveling section of the forward carriage 3 input from the ground controller 71 and the address A of the own traveling section. In addition, since the inter-vehicle distance J between the front conveyance carriage 3 can be always grasped even outside the communication area between the optical sensor transmitter 69 and the receiver 70, it is possible to decelerate in advance even during high-speed traveling and to safely carry the front. It is possible to approach the carriage 3, and therefore, it is possible to secure an optimum distance (inter-vehicle distance) between the conveyance carriages 3 and to travel safely, thereby improving the conveyance efficiency. The data of the address A in the travel section has a smaller data amount than the data of the travel distance M itself, and this transmission interval can be longer than the transmission interval by optical transmission, so the communication load can be reduced and the load on the main body controller 73 can be reduced. Can be reduced. In addition, when the distance between the optical sensor transmitter 69 and the receiver 70 is outside the communication area, that is, when there is a sufficient distance from the front transport carriage 3, the upper limit of the traveling speed of the straight portion of the traveling rail 1 may be switched at a higher speed. It becomes possible to catch up with the transport carriage 3 in the front, and the inter-vehicle distance can be set to an optimum distance.

  Further, in the first and second embodiments, a transport rail that travels along the travel route and transports articles across the article receiving means arranged along the travel route is installed on the floor 2. 1 is a self-propelled transport cart 3, but it can also be a suspended transport cart guided by a traveling rail suspended from the ceiling, and is also guided by the traveling rail 1. Instead, it may be a self-propelled transport cart (railless transport vehicle) that travels while transporting an article while detecting a guide zone installed on the floor 2 along the travel route. Moreover, although the transport cart 3 is four wheels, it can also be three wheels.

It is a travel route and operation | movement explanatory drawing of the article conveyance equipment in Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is a principal part block diagram of the goods conveyance equipment. It is a side view of the running rail of the same article conveyance equipment, and a conveyance cart. It is the cross section of the traveling rail of the article conveyance equipment, and the principal part front view of a conveyance trolley. It is a partial top view of the conveyance trolley of the article conveyance equipment. It is a control block diagram of the article conveyance facility. It is a conveyance management list figure of the main body controller of the article conveyance facility. It is a block diagram of the main body controller of the article conveyance equipment. It is a block diagram of the automatic door passage control part of the main body controller of the same article conveyance equipment. It is a flowchart which shows the automatic door opening / closing operation | movement of the ground controller of the goods conveyance equipment. It is a driving | running route and operation | movement explanatory drawing of the article conveyance equipment in Embodiment 2 of this invention. It is a block diagram of the automatic door passage control part of main part controller 73 in the conveyance cart of the article conveyance equipment. It is explanatory drawing for calculating | requiring the remaining distance to the dummy stop position in the main body controller 73 in the conveyance trolley | bogie of the article conveyance equipment. It is explanatory drawing of driving | running | working operation | movement of the article conveyance equipment. It is a flowchart which shows the automatic door opening / closing operation | movement of the ground controller of the goods conveyance equipment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Traveling rail 2 Floor 3 Conveying cart 4 Conveying route 5 Station 6 Automatic door 7 Opening / closing drive mechanism 8 Open limit detector 9 Closed limit detector 12 Conveyor device 13 for transfer / placement Swiveling driven wheel device 14 Swing / sliding drive Wheel device 45 Traveling motor 54 Feeder line 55 Wireless modem 63 Encoder 64 Origin 65 Origin detector 71 Ground controller 72 Ground modem 73 Main body controller R Article

Claims (5)

An automatic opening and closing means is provided that includes a transport vehicle that travels along the travel route and conveys articles, and that is switched between an open state in which the transport vehicle can pass and a closed state in which the transport vehicle cannot pass along the travel route. Goods transport equipment,
Set the traveling interference range of the transport vehicle before and after the automatic opening and closing means,
The transport vehicle includes detection means for detecting a position on the travel route,
The transport vehicle obtains a remaining travel distance to the automatic opening / closing means based on position information on the travel route detected by the detecting means and preset position information of the automatic opening / closing means, and the automatic opening / closing means is closed. When the distance traveled by the transport vehicle at the time when the state is switched to the open state and the required stop distance from the travel speed after the switching time is obtained, and when the remaining travel distance reaches the additional value, Outputting an opening request for the automatic opening and closing means ;
The article transporting facility , wherein when the passage information is detected based on the position information on the travel route detected by the detection means, a request for closing the automatic opening / closing means is output . The automatic opening / closing means includes an open limit detector that detects that the automatic opening / closing means is in an open state,
When the transport vehicle confirms the open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the open limit detector until the remaining travel distance reaches the required stop distance, the transport vehicle travels without executing a deceleration operation, and the remaining travel The deceleration operation is performed when the open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the opening limit detector cannot be confirmed before the distance reaches the required stop distance . Goods conveying equipment. The article conveyance facility according to claim 2, wherein the conveyance vehicle accelerates when the open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the opening limit detector is confirmed during a deceleration operation . When the position information on the travel route detected by the detection means is within the travel interference range, the transport vehicle immediately becomes unable to confirm the open state of the automatic opening / closing means detected by the open limit detector. The article conveying facility according to any one of claims 1 to 3 , wherein a stop operation is executed at the same time . In this article transporting method, the transporting vehicle is transported along a travel path on which automatic opening / closing means that can be switched between an open state allowing passage of the transporting vehicle and a closed state disabling passage is provided, and transporting the goods. And
Set the traveling interference range of the transport vehicle before and after the automatic opening and closing means,
When the conveyance vehicle travels and conveys the article, if the automatic opening / closing means is on the travel route, current position information on the travel route of the transport vehicle is obtained, and the current position information and preset The remaining travel distance to the automatic opening / closing means is obtained from the position information of the automatic opening / closing means, the distance traveled by the transport vehicle during the time when the automatic opening / closing means switches from the closed state to the open state, and the switching time Obtain an additional value with the required stop distance from the subsequent traveling speed, and when the remaining traveling distance reaches the additional value, open the automatic opening and closing means,
An article transporting method comprising: closing the automatic opening / closing means when confirming that the transport vehicle has passed the travel interference range based on current position information on the travel route of the transport vehicle.

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