JP2011105500A - Article conveying device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an article conveying device capable of charging the power storage device of a working platform unit without reducing the operating efficiency of the working platform unit by charging. <P>SOLUTION: This article conveying device 1 includes traveling rails 3 disposed along a conveying path and the working platform unit 4 having traveling working platforms 6 capable of running on the traveling rails 3 while suspending a conveyed article support member 5. The article conveying device conveys an article 2 placed on the conveyed article support member 5 along the conveying path. The traveling working platform 6 comprises a drive means 7 for traveling the traveling working platform 6 on the traveling rails 3. The working platform unit 4 comprises a storage device 15 for supplying electric power to the drive means 7. Charging devices 16, 17 which are connected to the storage device 15 when the working platform unit 4 is stopped for charging the storage device 15 are installed in at least a part of the conveying path. The charging devices comprise guide means 16c for guiding the connection of the charging device 17 and the storage device 15, respectively. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2011,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention includes a traveling rail disposed along a transportation path, and a carriage unit having a traveling carriage capable of traveling on the traveling rail in a state in which a conveyance support member is suspended, and conveys an article. The present invention relates to an article conveyance device that is loaded on an object support member and conveyed along the conveyance path.

  Conventionally, a lifting body that moves up and down via a suspension member with respect to the body of a ceiling-type transport vehicle driven by a mounted battery is lowered to a ground station that performs load transfer work, and is provided on the lifting body. There is a transport system for charging a battery by connecting a charging connector connected to a power connector provided on a ground station (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent No. 3674065 (page 5, FIG. 1)

  However, in the transport system described in Patent Document 1, when charging the battery (power storage device) of the ceiling-type transport vehicle (cart unit), the ceiling-type transport is slightly performed with respect to a predetermined stop position. If the car is shifted and stopped, the connectors may not be able to connect to each other.In that case, it is necessary to adjust the stop position precisely by moving the ceiling-type transport vehicle slightly in the front-rear direction. There is a problem that it takes time to align the stop position and the operation efficiency of the ceiling-type transport vehicle is lowered.

  The present invention has been made paying attention to such problems, and provides an article transport device that can charge the power storage device of the cart unit without lowering the operation efficiency of the cart unit by charging. With the goal.

In order to solve the above-described problem, an article transporting apparatus of the present invention includes:
A traveling rail disposed along the transportation path; and a carriage unit having a traveling carriage capable of traveling on the traveling rail in a state in which the transportation object support member is suspended. In the article transport apparatus that loads and transports along the transport path,
The traveling carriage has a driving unit that causes the traveling carriage to travel on the traveling rail, and the carriage unit includes a power storage device that supplies electric power to the driving unit. And a charging device connected to the power storage device to charge the power storage device when the cart unit stops, and a guide means for guiding the connection between the charging device and the power storage device. .
According to this feature, even if the cart unit does not stop precisely at a predetermined stop position and is stopped in a slightly deviated state, the guide means guides the connection between the charging device and the power storage device. As a result, the charging device and the power storage device can be smoothly connected, and the positioning of the stop position of the cart unit does not take time, and the operation efficiency of the cart unit is not reduced. The power storage device can be charged.

The article conveying apparatus of the present invention is
The charging device includes a charging side moving unit that is moved while being guided by the guiding means, and the charging device and the power storage device are connected via the charging side moving unit.
According to this feature, when the carriage unit does not stop precisely at a predetermined stop position and is stopped in a slightly deviated state, the carriage unit is moved again by moving the charging side moving unit with the guide means. There is no need to move and precisely adjust the stop position, and the power storage device of the cart unit can be charged without lowering the operation efficiency of the cart unit.

The article conveying apparatus of the present invention is
The charging device is supported by the traveling rail.
According to this feature, the charging device can be installed in any part of the conveyance path where the traveling rail is provided, and even if the traveling rail is bent by the load of the carriage unit, the movement due to the bending is transmitted to the charging device. Therefore, the relative positional relationship between the carriage unit and the charging device can be hardly changed, and the charging device and the power storage device can be smoothly connected.

It is a top view which shows the whole image of the articles | goods conveying apparatus in an Example. It is a side view which shows a trolley | bogie unit. It is a rear view which shows the trolley | bogie unit in a charging station. It is a top view which shows a traveling cart. It is a perspective view which shows a connection socket. (A) is a schematic diagram showing a charging plug and a connection socket of a cart unit that travels toward the stop position, and (b) is a schematic diagram showing the cart unit stopped beyond the stop position. c) is a schematic view showing a state in which the arm portion is extended toward the connection socket, and (d) is a schematic view showing a state in which the terminal is connected to the insertion port.

  EMBODIMENT OF THE INVENTION The form for implementing the goods conveying apparatus which concerns on this invention is demonstrated below based on an Example.

  An article conveying apparatus according to an embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6. Hereinafter, the left side of FIGS. 2 and 4 is the front side (front side) of the cart unit, the left side of FIG. 3 is the left side of the cart unit, and the upper side of FIG. 6 is the front side (front side) of the cart unit. ).

  Reference numeral 1 in FIG. 1 denotes an article to which the present invention is applied for transporting a container 2 (see FIG. 2) as an article in the present invention in which automobile parts are housed, for example, in a factory that manufactures automobiles and the like. It is a transport device.

  As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the article transporting apparatus 1 is mainly composed of two traveling rails 3 and a plurality of cart units 4 that can travel these traveling rails 3 clockwise in plan view. The container 2 storing the manufactured automobile parts is transported along a transport path toward a next process line (not shown).

  Although not particularly illustrated, each cart unit 4 includes a control device and a transceiver for wireless communication such as a wireless LAN. This control device can transmit the amount of charge in the power storage device 15 to be described later to the operator via the transmitter / receiver, and also controls the running and stopping of the carriage unit 4 by receiving commands from the operator via the transmitter / receiver. ing.

  As shown in FIG. 3, the two traveling rails 3 are pipes made of a metal material such as aluminum or steel, the upper surface 3 a of which is formed in a horizontal plane, along the transport path of the container 2 in the factory. And suspended from the ceiling in the factory. Moreover, as shown in FIG. 1, these two traveling rails 3 are formed in an endless shape by combining a plurality of straight roads 3b and a curved road 3c formed to the right.

  As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, the cart unit 4 includes a front and rear traveling carts 6, and a carrier as a transported object supporting member in the present invention that holds the container 2 while being suspended from each traveling cart 6. 5. These two traveling carts 6 will be described with respect to the same configuration. In this embodiment, the cart unit 4 is described as having two running carts 6. However, the cart unit 4 has three or more or only one running cart 6 depending on the weight of the article to be conveyed. You may comprise so that it may be provided.

  The traveling carriage 6 has a substantially U-shape when viewed from the front, and a main body portion 6a formed so as to form an H-shape when seen in plan view, and driving means in the present invention for traveling the traveling carriage 6. The motor 7 is mainly composed of a plurality of (four in this embodiment) wheels 8 that rotate in contact with the upper surface 3a of the traveling rail 3 by driving the motor 7.

  The motor 7 is supplied with electric power by being connected to a power storage device 15 to be described later, and the carriage unit 4 is temporarily stopped at a predetermined position on the traveling rail 3 to charge the power storage device 15. A charging station C is provided (see FIG. 1). Note that the carriage unit 4 that has been temporarily stopped at the charging station C is driven along the traveling rail 3 again by driving the motor 7 when the charging of the power storage device 15 is completed.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the main body 6a is made of a resin material, a metal material, or the like, and the motor 7 is accommodated in the main body 6a. The motor 7 is disposed in the main body 6 a so that the shaft 7 a faces the back side of the traveling carriage 6. A bevel gear 9a is attached to the tip of the shaft 7a.

  Furthermore, each wheel 8 is pivotally supported by the shaft 8a at the left and right end portions of the front portion and the rear portion of the main body portion 6a. Of these wheels 8, the tip of the shaft 8a of the wheel 8 pivotally supported at the right end of the rear portion of the traveling carriage 6 is disposed so as to protrude into the main body 6a.

  A bevel gear 9b that engages with the bevel gear 9a is attached to the tip of the shaft 8a. That is, the wheel 8 pivotally supported at the right end of the rear portion of the traveling carriage 6 constitutes a drive wheel 8b that is driven to rotate independently of the other wheels 8 when the motor 7 is driven. Furthermore, the other wheels 8 constitute a driven wheel 8c.

  As shown in FIG. 3 to FIG. 4, two guide rollers 10 are juxtaposed in the left and right direction at the lower end of the main body 6 a at the front and rear. These guide rollers 10 are pivotally supported so as to be rotatable in the horizontal direction. When the traveling carriage 6 is placed on the traveling rail 3, the guide rollers 10 are arranged in the gap 11 between the traveling rails 3. ing. For this reason, each guide roller 10 is in contact with the side end portions of the two traveling rails 3 while the traveling carriage 6 is traveling, and guides the traveling carriage 6 so as not to be detached from the traveling rail 3.

  Moreover, as shown in FIGS. 2-4, the hanging rod 12 which faces the downward direction is attached to the approximate center of the horizontal direction of the lower end part of the main-body part 6a. An intermediate member 13 formed in a U-shape facing downward in a front view is further attached to the lower end portion of the hanging rod 12 (see FIG. 3). Although not specifically shown, the suspension bar 12 is attached to the intermediate member 13 so as to be relatively rotatable in the horizontal direction.

  And between the front-and-rear intermediate members 13, a connecting rod member 14 facing in the front-rear direction is attached. The front and rear traveling carts 6 are connected to each other through the connecting rod 14, the intermediate members 13, and the suspension rod 12. Furthermore, the upper end portion of the carrier 5 is attached to the lower end portions of these intermediate members 13.

  Specifically, the carrier 5 includes an upper saddle member 5a facing in the front-rear direction, a vertical saddle member 5b extending downward from a front end portion and a rear end portion of the upper saddle member 5a, It is comprised from the mounting plates 5c and 5d for mounting the container 2 attached to the upper part and lower end part between the eaves 5b, and the upper eaves 5a is attached to both the intermediate members 13. It is suspended from the front and rear traveling carts 6. In the present embodiment, the container 2 is placed only on the placing plate 5d attached to the lower end between the vertical saddle members 5b. However, depending on the size of the container 2, the container is placed on the placing plate 5c. 2 may be placed.

  A power storage device 15 for driving the motor 7 of the traveling carriage 6 is attached to the lower end portion of the mounting plate 5d attached to the lower end portion between the vertical saddle members 5b. The power storage device 15 can be charged in an extremely short time. Note that the power storage device 15 in this embodiment can be charged in an almost instantaneous charging time of several seconds to several minutes.

  And each motor 7, the electrical storage apparatus 15, and the control apparatus are connected by the wiring which is not shown in figure. Furthermore, a connection socket 16 connected to the power storage device 15 and the control device by wiring (not shown) is attached to the left end portion of the connecting rod 14 (see FIG. 3).

  Next, the charging station C will be described. As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the charging station C is provided on a straight road 3b that travels immediately after the carriage unit 4 that travels on the travel rail 3 travels on the curved path 3c. It is possible to charge the power storage device 15 of the cart unit 4 that has stopped traveling by the stop control.

  On the straight path 3b in the charging station C, a plurality of (three in this embodiment) charging plugs 17 for charging the power storage device 15 are extended from the left end portion of the traveling rail 3 and are supported brackets. 18 is attached. In this embodiment, the charging plug 17 constitutes a charging device.

  Specifically, the charging plug 17 includes a slider 17a attached to the support bracket 18, an electric cylinder 17b attached to the slider 17a so as to be slidable in the front-rear direction, and a left-right direction by driving the electric cylinder 17b. And an upper and lower two terminals 17d attached to the tip of the arm portion 17c. The terminal 17d is disposed so as to face the connection socket 16 of the carriage unit 4.

  The charging plug 17 includes a transceiver (not shown) for wireless communication such as a wireless LAN, and is connected to a predetermined power source installed in the factory. Further, although not particularly illustrated, a spring is attached between the slider 17a and the electric cylinder 17b, and when the electric cylinder 17b slides in the front-rear direction with respect to the slider 17a, the spring is urged, and the electric cylinder 17b is slid to the initial position (center position) with respect to the slider (see FIG. 6).

  On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 5, a connection recess 16 a that opens toward the left side is formed in a substantially central portion in the front-rear direction of the connection socket 16. Two upper and lower insertion ports 16b are formed at a substantially central portion in the front-rear direction of the connection recess 16a.

  The insertion port 16b of the connection socket 16 and the terminal 17d of the charging plug 17 are arranged to face each other in the left-right direction when the carriage unit 4 stops at the charging station C. The charging plug 17 extends the arm portion 17c toward the insertion port 16b, whereby the terminal 17d attached to the tip of the arm portion 17c is connected to the insertion port 16b, and the power storage device 15 of the cart unit 4 is connected to the power storage device 15 of the carriage unit 4. Charging is done.

  In addition, a guide surface 16c as a guide means in the present invention is formed at a position forward and rearward from the insertion port 16b of the connection recess 16a so as to spread outward from the insertion port 16b.

  Next, the connection between the terminal 17d and the insertion port 16b when charging the power storage device 15 of the carriage unit 4 will be described. As shown in FIG. 6A, when the cart unit 4 enters the charging station C, the driving of the motor 7 is stopped by the control device described above, and the cart unit 4 stops in the charging station C.

  The connection socket 16 of the carriage unit 4 may stop without error at a predetermined stop position where the terminal 17d and the insertion port 16b face each other. However, the inertial force acting on the cart unit 4 may cause the connection socket 16 of the cart unit 4 to stop at a position slightly beyond the predetermined stop position without stopping at the original stop position (FIG. 6 ( b)).

  Then, as shown in FIG. 6C, the control device drives the electric cylinder 17 b to extend the arm portion 17 c toward the connection socket 16, and the terminal 17 d is connected to the guide surface 16 c on the rear side of the connection socket 16. Abutted. When the electric cylinder 17b continues to be driven, the terminal 17d is slid forward along the guide surface 16c.

  As shown in FIG. 6D, when the arm portion 17c is extended and the terminal 17d is slid on the guide surface 16c, the electric cylinder 17b is slid forward along the slider 17a. Along with the sliding of the electric cylinder 17b, the terminal 17d is moved forward while sliding on the guide surface 16c. When the terminal 17d is moved to a position facing the insertion port 16b, the terminal 17d is connected to the insertion port 16b and charging of the power storage device 15 is started. The electric cylinder 17b constitutes a charging side moving part in the present invention.

  As described above, the power storage device 15 in the present embodiment can be charged in an almost instantaneous charging time of about several seconds to several tens of seconds. Therefore, it is possible to shorten the stop time in which the cart unit 4 stops at the charging station C, and the power storage device 15 of the cart unit 4 can be charged without reducing the operation efficiency of the cart unit 4.

  Further, at least a part of the transport path is provided with a charging plug 17 that is connected to the power storage device 15 and charges the power storage device 15 when the cart unit 4 stops, so that the cart unit 4 temporarily stops charging. The plug 17 and the power storage device 15 can be easily connected.

  In addition, since the charging plug 17 is supported by the traveling rail 3, the charging plug 17 can be installed at any location on the conveyance path where the traveling rail 3 exists, and the traveling rail is driven by the load of the carriage unit 4. 3 is bent, the movement due to the bending is also transmitted to the charging plug 17, so that the relative positional relationship between the carriage unit 4 and the charging plug 17 is hardly changed. 15 can be smoothly connected.

  Moreover, by providing the guide surface 16c for guiding the connection between the charging plug 17 and the connection socket 16, the connection between the charging plug 17 and the connection socket 16 can be performed smoothly when the cart unit 4 is stopped (or just before stopping). be able to.

  Although not particularly illustrated, when charging of the power storage device 15 is completed, the control device drives the electric cylinder 17b to pull back the arm portion 17c, and the connection between the terminal 17d and the insertion port 16b is released. The electric cylinder 17b is slid to the initial position (center position) with respect to the slider 17a by the biasing force of the spring. Further, the control device re-drives the motor 7 of the carriage unit 4 on the condition that the connection between the terminal 17d and the insertion port 16b is released, and causes the carriage unit 4 to travel along the traveling rail 3 again.

  As described above, in the power storage device 15 in the article transporting apparatus 1 in the present embodiment, the traveling carriage 6 has the motor 7 that causes the traveling carriage 6 to travel on the traveling rail 3, and the carriage unit 4 supplies power to the motor 7. A charging plug 17 connected to the power storage device 15 and charging the power storage device 15 when the carriage unit 4 is stopped. By providing the guide surface 16c that guides the connection with the power storage device 15, the cart unit 4 does not stop precisely at a predetermined stop position, and even if it is stopped in a slightly deviated state, the guide The connection between the charging plug 17 and the power storage device 15 is guided by the surface 16c, and the connection between the charging plug 17 and the power storage device 15 can be performed smoothly. It is possible to charge the power storage device 15 of the cart unit 4 without taking time to align the stop positions of the cart unit 4 and without lowering the operation efficiency of the cart unit 4.

  In addition, the charging plug 17 has an electric cylinder 17b that is guided and moved by the guide surface 16c. The charging plug 17 and the power storage device 15 are connected via the electric cylinder 17b, so that the cart unit 4 can be connected in advance. When the electric cylinder 17b is moved by the guide surface 16c without stopping at a predetermined stop position precisely and stopped slightly, the carriage unit 4 is moved again and the stop position is precisely adjusted. The power storage device 15 of the cart unit 4 can be charged without reducing the operation efficiency of the cart unit 4.

  Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to these embodiments, and modifications and additions within the scope of the present invention are included in the present invention. It is.

  For example, in the said Example, although this invention is applied to the article conveyance apparatus 1 provided with the trolley | bogie unit 4 which can drive | work along the traveling rail 3 in the state which suspended the carrier 5, this invention is based on another form. The present invention can also be applied to a transport cart.

1 article transport device 2 container (article)
3 traveling rail 4 cart unit 5 carrier (conveyance support member)
6 Traveling cart 7 Motor (drive means)
15 power storage device 16 connection socket 16a connection recess 16b insertion port 16c guide surface (guide means)
17 Charging plug (charging device)
17a Slider 17b Electric cylinder (Charging side moving part)
17c Arm part 17d Terminal

Claims (3)

A traveling rail disposed along the transportation path; and a carriage unit having a traveling carriage capable of traveling on the traveling rail in a state in which the transportation object support member is suspended. In the article transport apparatus that loads and transports along the transport path,
The traveling carriage has a driving unit that causes the traveling carriage to travel on the traveling rail, and the carriage unit includes a power storage device that supplies electric power to the driving unit. A charging device that is connected to the power storage device and charges the power storage device when the cart unit is stopped is provided; and a guide unit that guides the connection between the charging device and the power storage device is provided. Article conveying device.   The charging device includes a charging side moving unit that is moved by being guided by the guiding unit, and the charging device and the power storage device are connected via the charging side moving unit. 2. The article conveying apparatus according to 1.   The article conveying apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the charging device is supported by the traveling rail.

Images