JP2020086764A - Suction type smoke sensing device - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a suction type smoke sensing device capable of early finding fire at a storage zone in a warehouse in which racks are provided.SOLUTION: The suction type smoke sensing device comprises: a suction tube provided so as to be able to ascend and descend together with a stacker crane for transferring a load between storage zones provided in a warehouse; an opening provided in a direction of the storage zones according to the suction tube; a suction part for suctioning gas around the opening via the suction tube; a sensing part for sensing particles included in the gas suctioned by the suction part; and an output part for outputting a sensing result sensed by the sensing part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

The present invention relates to a suction type smoke sensor.

Some conventional automatic warehouses are provided with a rack having a plurality of storage compartments and a stacker crane for transferring loads to the storage compartments of the rack (see Patent Document 1). The stacker crane consists of a truck that moves in the left-right direction along a traveling rail that is parallel to the front of the rack, an elevator that moves in the height direction along the mast section of the truck, and an elevator. It is provided with a load transfer device (for example, a slide fork that can slide in the front-back direction with respect to the front of the rack), moves to a predetermined storage compartment, and transfers the load between the storage compartments. Do the work.
On the other hand, there is a sprinkler facility as a fire extinguishing measure in a space such as a warehouse (see Patent Document 2). In such a sprinkler facility, for example, when a sprinkler head provided on the ceiling of a warehouse receives heat of a fire to operate, water discharge is started.

JP, 2003-2412, A JP, 10-179785, A

However, when a fire occurs in the warehouse, there is a risk that the heat of the fire is blocked by the luggage placed in the storage compartment and the heat sensing by the sprinkler head is delayed. In addition, a fire often produces smoke in the initial stage, and a flame is generated as the fire grows.Therefore, there is a possibility that the fire has already spread when the heat from the fire is detected, In some cases, it was difficult to detect a fire early by the detection method.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide a suction type smoke sensor that can detect a fire in a storage compartment at an early stage in a warehouse in which a rack is installed. ..

In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, an embodiment of the present invention is directed to a suction pipe that is vertically movable together with a stacker crane that transfers loads between a storage compartment provided in a warehouse, and the suction pipe. An opening provided in the direction of the storage compartment, a suction unit that sucks gas around the opening through a suction pipe, and a sensing unit that senses particles contained in the gas sucked by the suction unit. And an output unit for outputting the detection result sensed by the sensing unit.

As described above, according to the present invention, since the smoke in the air in the storage compartment can be detected by the suction type smoke detector, the fire in the storage compartment can be found early in the warehouse where the rack is installed. It is possible.

It is a partial plane part of the warehouse 10 of 1st Embodiment. It is a partial side view of the warehouse 10 of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure of the suction type smoke sensor 50 of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the example in which the suction type smoke sensor 50 of 1st Embodiment was mounted in the stacker crane 30. It is a figure which shows the example in which the suction type smoke sensor 50 of 1st Embodiment was mounted in the stacker crane 30. It is a figure which shows the structure of the sensing part 55 of 1st Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structural example of the scattering characteristic information storage part 555 of 1st Embodiment. 6 is a flowchart showing an operation example of a sensing unit 55 of the first embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure of the sensing part 55 of 2nd Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the structure of the sensing part 55 of 3rd Embodiment.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
First, the first embodiment will be described.
A warehouse 10 according to the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. 1 is a partial plan view of the warehouse 10, and FIG. 2 is a partial side view of the warehouse 10. In the present embodiment, the X-axis direction of FIGS. 1 and 2 is referred to as the left-right direction, the Y-axis direction is referred to as the depth direction, and the Z-axis direction is referred to as the height direction.
The warehouse 10 includes, for example, a rack 20, a stacker crane 30, and a stacker crane operation device 40.

The rack 20 includes a plurality of storage compartments 21 and stores the luggage N. The rack 20 is provided, for example, so that the left-right direction of the warehouse 10 is along the longitudinal direction of the rack 20. The rack 20 includes a front-side column that is erected in the left-right direction at a predetermined interval, a back-side column that is erected at a predetermined interval in the depth direction of the front-side column, and a front-side column. The storage compartment 21 is configured by a luggage support member such as a shelf plate that is arranged in the plane direction (left-right direction and/or depth direction) at a predetermined interval in the height direction between the rear pillar and the rear side pillar. ing.

The stacker crane 30 can store the luggage N in a predetermined storage compartment 21 of the rack 20 and can take out the luggage N stored in the storage compartment 21. That is, the stacker crane 30 conveys the parcel N and transfers the parcel to and from the storage compartment 21. The stacker crane 30 includes a traveling rail 31, a carriage 32, a mast portion 33, a lifting platform 34, a slide fork 35, and a sensor body storage unit 36. The traveling rail 31 is provided on the front surface of the rack 20 in the left-right direction. The carriage 32 is installed so as to be movable along the traveling rail 31. The mast portion 33 is a pillar that is erected on the carriage 32. The elevating table 34 is installed so that it can be moved up and down along the mast portion 33. The slide fork 35 is provided so as to be slidable in the depth direction with respect to the elevating table 34, moves to the storage compartment 21 together with the elevating table 34 on which the luggage N is placed, and slides in the depth direction with the luggage N in the storage compartment 21. By doing so, the load N is transferred to the storage compartment 21.

The sensor body storage unit 36 is a space for storing the suction type smoke sensor 50 (see FIG. 3). The suction type smoke sensor 50 is a suction type smoke sensor provided in the stacker crane 30. The sensor body storage unit 36 is provided, for example, below the slide fork 35 in the lift table 34.

The stacker crane operation device 40 operates the stacker crane 30. The communication between the stacker crane operation device 40 and the stacker crane 30 may be wireless communication using a short-range wireless communication network such as infrared rays or Bluetooth (registered trademark), or wired communication via wiring or the like. It may be.
The stacker crane operation device 40 moves the cart 32 of the stacker crane 30 to a predetermined position in the left-right direction along the traveling rail 31. The stacker crane operation device 40 moves the lifting platform 34 of the stacker crane 30 along the mast portion 33 to a predetermined height. The stacker crane operation device 40 operates the slide fork 35 to transfer the load N to the predetermined storage compartment 21 or transfer the load N stored in the storage compartment 21 to the lift 34.

FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the first embodiment. The suction type smoke sensor 50 is a suction type smoke sensor provided in the stacker crane 30. The suction type smoke sensor is a sensor that detects a fire based on the smoke concentration of smoke contained in the sucked air.
The suction type smoke sensor 50 includes, for example, a suction pipe 51, an opening 52, a connecting portion 53, a suction fan 54, a sensing unit 55, a communication unit 56, an output unit 57, an exhaust unit 58, A sensor body 59 is provided. In the present embodiment, the suction tube 51 and the sensor body 59 are connected via the connecting portion 53. The sensor body 59 is provided with a suction fan 54, a sensing unit 55, a communication unit 56, an output unit 57, and an exhaust unit 58. Here, the suction fan 54 is an example of a “suction unit”.

The suction type smoke sensor 50 is supplied with power from, for example, a power supply unit (not shown) of the stacker crane 30. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and the suction type smoke sensor 50 may be powered by a battery device, or may be powered by a commercial power source or the like provided in the warehouse 10. ..

The suction pipe 51 is a pipe through which air sucked from the opening 52 provided in the suction pipe 51 flows. The suction pipe 51 is installed, for example, along the longitudinal direction of the slide fork 35. Alternatively, the slide fork 35 may be formed to be hollow in the longitudinal direction, and the suction pipe 51 may be integrated with the slide fork 35 by circulating the sucked air through the hollow portion. In this case, the suction pipe 51 is wholly or partially formed of a flexible member that is expandable and contractible (for example, a bellows hose), and is installed so as to expand and contract according to the sliding operation of the slide fork 35.

Here, a method of detecting smoke when the suction type smoke sensor 50 is mounted on the stacker crane 30 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5.
4 and 5 are diagrams showing an example in which the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the first embodiment is mounted on the stacker crane 30. 4 and 5 are enlarged views of the stacker crane 30 and the storage compartment 21 of FIG. 1. FIG. 4 shows a state in which the slide fork 35 is not sliding in the direction of the storage compartment 21, and FIG. The slide fork 35 is shown slid in the direction of the storage compartment 21.

As shown in FIG. 4, the suction pipe 51 is attached to a lower portion of the slide fork 35 of the stacker crane 30 or the like such that the longitudinal direction of the suction pipe 51 is along the sliding direction of the slide fork 35.
As shown in FIG. 5, the suction tube 51 moves toward the storage compartment 21 as the slide fork 35 slides. By doing so, the opening 52 provided at the tip portion of the suction pipe 51 can be moved in the depth direction of the storage compartment 21 in accordance with the sliding operation of the slide fork 35, and the smoke floating in the storage compartment 21 can be removed. It becomes possible to sense.

Further, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the suction tube 51 and the connecting portion 53 may be connected by a flexible and deformable hollow member such as a hose or a flexible tube. By doing so, when the slide fork 35 slides, the suction tube 51 can be smoothly moved toward the storage compartment 21.

On the other hand, if the flexible member between the suction pipe 51 and the connecting portion 53 is lengthened, the stacker crane 30 comes into contact with the traveling rail 31, the carriage 32, the mast portion 33, and the like when moving in the left-right direction and the vertical direction. It may hinder movement.
Therefore, in the present embodiment, as shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the sensor body 59 is stored in the sensor body storage section 36. That is, the sensor main body 59 is moved in accordance with the horizontal movement of the carriage 32 and the vertical movement of the lifting platform 34. Thereby, the flexible member between the suction pipe 51 and the connecting portion 53 can be shortened as compared with the case where the sensor main body 59 is not moved, and the flexible member hinders the traveling of the stacker crane 30. It is possible to suppress that.

Further, in the present embodiment, the sensor main body 59 is not moved toward the storage compartment 21 with respect to the sliding operation of the slide fork 35. By doing so, it becomes possible to stabilize the sensor body 59 when sensing the presence or absence of smoke, and perform more accurate sensing.

The manner of installing the suction pipe 51 is not limited to this, and may be installed independently of the slide fork 35 and the sliding operation of the slide fork 35.

The opening 52 is provided on the side of the storage compartment 21 in the suction tube 51. For example, when the suction pipe 51 is installed along the longitudinal direction of the slide fork 35, the opening 52 is provided at the end on the storage compartment 21 side. As a result, when the slide fork 35 performs a sliding operation when the luggage N is transferred to the storage compartment 21, the air in the storage compartment 21 can be sucked from a position advanced by a predetermined distance in the depth direction. Therefore, it is possible to detect smoke generated on the depth side of the storage compartment 21. In other words, the suction type smoke detector 50 of the present embodiment can detect smoke in a recessed portion of the storage compartment 21, which is difficult to detect with the conventional sprinkler head provided on the ceiling.

The opening 52 may be formed not only on the end of the suction tube 51 but also on the side surface. Further, one opening 52 may be formed in the suction pipe 51, or a plurality of openings 52 may be formed. When the plurality of openings 52 are formed in the suction pipe 51, they may be formed uniformly at a predetermined interval, or may be formed at unequal intervals.

Further, the number of openings 52 formed in the suction pipe 51 may be arbitrarily determined according to the suction ability of the suction type smoke sensor 50, the sensitivity of sensing smoke, the size of the storage compartment 21, and the like. .
The direction of the opening of the opening 52 may be any direction, but it is a direction in which particles other than smoke contained in the air (for example, dust) are contained in the sucked air. Is desirable. For example, the opening of the opening 52 is preferably a direction other than the upward direction in the height direction (the positive direction of the Z axis), the horizontal direction, the depth direction, or the downward direction in the height direction (the negative direction of the Z axis).

The connecting portion 53 connects the suction tube 51 and the sensor main body for piping. The suction fan 54 sucks air around the area in which the opening 52 is provided and supplies the sucked air to the sensing unit 55. The sensing unit 55 senses the presence or absence (smoke concentration) of smoke in the air supplied by the suction fan 54. The exhaust unit 58 exhausts the sucked air.

The communication unit 56 communicates with the stacker crane operation device 40 and a receiver (not shown) that receives information regarding fire from the suction type smoke sensor 50. The communication unit 56 receives, from the stacker crane operation device 40, position information indicating in which storage compartment 21 the stacker crane 30 is transferring the load N. The communication unit 56 transmits, to the receiver, information in which the received position information and the detection result sensed by the suction type smoke sensor 50 are associated with each other.

The output unit 57 outputs and displays a signal according to the sensing result of the sensing unit 55. The display by the output unit 57 is a display according to the smoke density of the detected smoke. For example, when the smoke density is one of an alarm level, a warning level, and a caution level, the display is provided at the position where the level is displayed. The LED (Light Emitting Diode) is turned on to display the level.

Further, the output unit 57 may display a display indicating whether or not the power is on, and various error displays. The various error displays are, for example, displays indicating that the suction force of the suction type smoke sensor 50 has decreased, that a foreign substance has been sucked into the suction pipe 51, and the like. This allows the user who operates the suction-type smoke sensor 50 to be notified of various errors in the suction-type smoke sensor 50.

In addition, the output unit 57 may display a change in smoke density in real time. This display is, for example, a display showing the smoke density by a bar graph, and an increase or decrease in the smoke density is displayed by increasing or decreasing the length of the bar graph. This makes it easier for the user to visually recognize the change in the detected smoke density.

The communication unit 56 may transmit the content displayed by the output unit 57 described above to the receiver.

Further, the suction type smoke sensor 50 may be provided with a power button for turning on the power and a reset button for canceling the display of the alarm level and the like. In this case, the communication unit 56 receives signals for operating these buttons, which are transmitted from the receiver to the suction type smoke sensor 50.

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating a configuration example of the sensing unit 55 of the first embodiment.
The sensing unit 55 includes, for example, a light emitting element 550, a light receiving element 551, a light quantity conversion unit 552, an integration unit 553, a determination unit 554, and a scattering characteristic information storage unit 555.

The light emitting element 550 is arranged so as to emit light at a predetermined irradiation angle with respect to the traveling direction of the sucked air (hereinafter, also simply referred to as air). The light emitting element 550 irradiates a predetermined region P in a space where air flows with light of a predetermined wavelength. A lens may be provided between the light emitting element 550 and the region P. The lens focuses light on the region P. This makes it possible to increase the amount of light that is irradiated onto the region P and increase the amount of scattered light that will be described later.

The light receiving element 551 is arranged at a position where the light from the light emitting element 550 is not directly received. In the present embodiment, the light receiving element 551 is arranged so as to receive light from a direction along the air flow direction. That is, the light receiving element 551 receives the scattered light scattered at the scattering angle θ of the light emitted by the light emitting element 550 scattered by the smoke contained in the air in the region P.

The light amount conversion unit 552 converts the light amount of the light received by the light receiving element 551 into a voltage signal. The light amount conversion unit 552 is configured to include, for example, a photoelectric element that outputs a voltage signal proportional to the light amount, and outputs a signal obtained by converting the light amount into a voltage to the integration unit 553.
The integrating unit 553 integrates by adding voltage signals corresponding to the light amount from the light amount converting unit 552 in a predetermined time section (for example, several tens of seconds). The predetermined time interval used for this integration may be arbitrarily determined according to the suction ability of the suction type smoke detector 50 and the sensitivity of detecting smoke. The integration unit 553 outputs the integrated value obtained by integration to the determination unit 554.

The scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 stores information in which the integrated value and the smoke density are associated with each other.
FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 of the first embodiment.
The scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 has, for example, items of an integrated value, smoke density, and a sensing level. The integrated value indicates an integrated value obtained by integrating the light amount (voltage value obtained by converting the light amount) received by the light amount conversion unit 552 in a predetermined time interval. The smoke density indicates the smoke density corresponding to the integrated value. The relationship between the smoke density and the integrated value is defined, for example, by deriving in advance the integrated value when air with a known smoke density is sucked. For the sensing level, a level corresponding to the smoke density is indicated by, for example, three levels of a caution level, a warning level, and a warning level. Here, smoke concentration of 0.1% or more and less than 0.3% indicates a caution level, smoke concentration of 0.3% or more and less than 0.7% indicates a warning level, and smoke concentration of 0.7% or more indicates a warning level. ing.

The determination unit 554 refers to the scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 based on the integrated value from the integration unit 553. The determining unit 554 determines the smoke density corresponding to the integrated value from the integrating unit 553, based on the smoke density associated with the integrated value. For example, when the integrated value from the integrating unit 553 is M1 or more and less than M2, the determining unit 554 determines that the smoke density is 0.1% or more and less than 0.3%.

Alternatively, the determination unit 554 performs interpolation (for example, linear interpolation) between M1 and M2 to obtain an integrated value from the integration unit 553 that is between smoke density 0.1% and less than 0.3%. You may make it determine the smoke density according to it.
The determination unit 554 outputs the acquired smoke density to the communication unit 56 and the output unit 57.

FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the first embodiment.
The suction type smoke sensor 50 sucks air around the storage compartment 21 (step S1). The suction type smoke sensor 50 moves to a predetermined storage compartment 21 as the stacker crane 30 moves, and the sliding fork 35 moves the opening 52 into the storage compartment 21 for storage. The air around the compartment 21 is sucked.
In the suction type smoke sensor 50, the light sensing element 551 receives scattered light when the sensing unit 55 irradiates the sucked air with the light from the light emitting element 550 (step S2).
The suction type smoke sensor 50 integrates the amount of light received by the sensing unit 55 in a predetermined time interval (step S3).
The suction type smoke sensor 50 determines the smoke density corresponding to the integrated value in the sensing unit 55 (step S4). The determining unit 554 of the sensing unit 55 determines the smoke density corresponding to the integrated value by referring to the scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 based on the integrated value.
The suction type smoke sensor 50 transmits information in which the determined smoke density is associated with the position information of the storage compartment 21 to the receiver through the communication unit 56 (step S5).

As described above, the suction-type smoke sensor 50 according to the first embodiment is provided with the suction pipe 51 so as to be able to move up and down together with the stacker crane 30 that transfers the load between the suction compartment 51 and the storage compartment 21. When transferring, the air around the storage compartment 21 can be sucked in to detect the smoke density of the smoke contained in the air, and the storage compartment 21 that is difficult to detect with a conventional sprinkler head or the like installed on the ceiling Even if a fire occurs, it is possible to detect the fire early.

Further, in the suction-type smoke sensor 50 of the first embodiment, the suction pipe 51 is provided on the slide fork 35 of the stacker crane 30 along the sliding direction of the slide fork 35, so that the storage compartment 21 of the storage compartment 21. The suction pipe 51 can be moved to the back side, and the air on the back side of the storage compartment 21 can be sucked. Therefore, even if a fire occurs on the back side of the storage compartment 21, it is possible to detect the fire early.

In addition, in the suction-type smoke sensor 50 of the first embodiment, the opening 52 is provided at the end of the suction pipe 51 on the storage compartment 21 side, so that the suction pipe moved to the back side of the storage compartment 21. It becomes possible to suck air from the end of 51. Therefore, the same effect as the above-described effect is obtained.
Further, in the suction-type smoke sensor 50 of the first embodiment, a communication unit 56 (an example of “position information acquisition unit”) that acquires position information regarding the storage compartment 21 located around the opening 52, and position information. And a communication unit 56 that transmits information in which the detection result sensed by the sensing unit 55 is associated with the receiver. As a result, the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the first embodiment can notify the receiver of the detection result in association with the position of the storage compartment 21 where the detection result is acquired, and the receiver can It is possible to grasp where the fire occurred in the storage compartment 21 located.

Further, in the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the first embodiment, the sensing unit 55 has an integration unit 553 that integrates the amount of scattered light received by the light receiving element 551 for a predetermined time, and an integration value of the integration unit 553. And a determination unit 554 that determines the smoke concentration based on the smoke concentration. As a result, in the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the first embodiment, the smoke concentration can be determined by using the integrated value, and the smoke contained in the air sucked from the opening 52 in a predetermined time section can be detected. It is possible to detect the occurrence of fire based on the presence or absence.

(Second embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment will be described. The present embodiment is different from the above-described embodiments in that the sensing unit 55 includes a plurality of light emitting elements 550.
Generally, it is assumed that the air contains not only smoke from a fire but also particles other than smoke from a fire. Here, particles other than smoke due to fire are, for example, dust in the air, water vapor, and the like. In the present embodiment, each of the particles contained in the air utilizes the fact that the relationship between the scattering angle and the amount of scattered light is different from each other, and makes it possible to distinguish between smoke caused by fire and the other cases. To improve the accuracy of fire. In the following description, differences from the above-described embodiment will be described, and configurations similar to those in the above-described embodiment will be designated by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the sensing unit 55A of the second embodiment. The sensing unit 55A includes, for example, a light emitting device 550A, a light emitting device 550B, a separating unit 556, and two functional units 557. The functional unit 557 is a functional unit that determines smoke and particles other than smoke contained in the air, and includes a light amount conversion unit 552, an integration unit 553, a determination unit 554, and a scattering characteristic information storage unit 555. is there.

The light emitting element 550A and the light emitting element 550B are provided so as to have different irradiation angles with respect to the traveling direction of air. The light emitting element 550A and the light emitting element 550B irradiate light of different wavelengths to a predetermined region P in a space in which air flows. In the following description, it is assumed that the light emitted by the light emitting element 550A has a wavelength of λ1 and the light emitted by the light emitting element 550B has a wavelength of λ2.

The light receiving element 551 receives the light scattered at the scattering angle θ1 among the light emitted by the light emitting element 550A scattered by the particles contained in the air in the region P. Further, the light receiving element 551 receives the light scattered by the particles included in the air in the region P of the light emitted by the light emitting element 550B, which is scattered at the scattering angle θ2.

The separation unit 556 separates the light received by the light receiving element 551 into scattered light by the light emitted by the light emitting element 550A and scattered light by the light emitted by the light emitting element 550B. The separation unit 556 is configured to include, for example, a bandpass filter that passes light of a predetermined wavelength, and a signal that passes light of wavelength λ1 is passed to one functional unit 557 and a signal that passes light of wavelength λ2. Is output to the other functional unit 557.

The one functional unit 557 determines the particle concentration of specific particles (for example, smoke) contained in the air based on the amount of light of the wavelength λ1 from the separation unit 556. The scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 in the functional unit 557 stores information in which the amount of scattered light having the scattering angle θ1 when a specific particle is irradiated with light having the wavelength λ1 and the concentration of the specific particle are associated with each other. Remembered.

The other functional unit 557 determines the particle concentration of specific particles (for example, particles other than smoke) contained in the air based on the amount of light of the wavelength λ2 from the separating unit 556. The scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 of the functional unit 557 stores information in which the light amount of the scattered light having the scattering angle θ2 when the specific particle is irradiated with the light of the wavelength λ2 and the concentration of the specific particle are associated with each other. Remembered.

The specific particles determined by the one functional unit 557 and the specific particles determined by the other functional unit 557 may be different from each other. This specific particle is any particle contained in the air, and is, for example, whitish smoke, dark smoke, water vapor, dust, etc. generated by a fire. Each particle has different scattering characteristics showing the relationship between the wavelength of the irradiation light and the light amount of the scattering angle. In this embodiment, the smoke density is accurately determined by utilizing this property.

For example, the scattering characteristics of whitish smoke caused by a fire are measured by measuring the relationship between the wavelength of light irradiating air with a known smoke concentration and the amount of light at a predetermined scattering angle for smoked smoke when a cotton wick is burned. It can be derived by For the scattering characteristics of the dark smoke produced by a fire, for smoked smoke produced by burning kerosene, the relationship between the wavelength of the light that illuminates the air with a known smoke concentration and the amount of light at a predetermined scattering angle is measured. It can be derived by The scattering characteristics of dust and water vapor can be derived by the same method.

In the above description, the case where the sensing unit 55A includes two light emitting elements 550 has been described as an example, but in the present embodiment, the sensing unit 55A may include three or more light emitting elements 550. Also in this case, the smoke density can be accurately determined by distinguishing smoke from particles other than smoke by a similar method.

Further, although the case where the scattered light from the two light emitting elements 550 is separated by the separation unit 556 has been described above, in the present embodiment, the two light emitting elements 550 do not overlap with each other for emitting light. You may make it irradiate. In this case, since smoke and particles other than smoke can be distinguished according to the timing of irradiation of each light, it is not necessary to provide two functional units 557, and if one functional unit 557 is provided. Good.

As described above, in the suction-type smoke sensor 50 according to the second embodiment, in the sensing unit 55A, the plurality of light emitting elements 550 are provided and emit light of different wavelengths, and the scattering received by the light receiving element 551. The determination unit 554 further includes a separation unit 556 that separates light according to the wavelength, and the determination unit 554 determines smoke and particles other than smoke contained in the sucked gas based on each of the scattered lights separated by the separation unit 556. And the concentration of smoke contained in the sucked gas is determined. As a result, the suction-type smoke sensor 50 according to the second embodiment discriminates between smoke particles contained in the air and other particles such as dust and water vapor, and a fire that does not contain dust and water vapor. By determining the smoke density by, it becomes possible to determine the fire more accurately.

Further, in the suction type smoke sensor 50 according to the second embodiment, in the sensing unit 55A, the light emitting elements 550 emit light of different wavelengths so that the times do not overlap, and the determining unit 554 causes the light receiving element 551 to emit light. The smoke contained in the sucked gas may be distinguished from the particles other than the smoke on the basis of the scattered light received by, and the concentration of the smoke contained in the sucked gas may be determined. As a result, the suction-type smoke sensor 50 according to the second embodiment has the same effects as those described above.

(Third Embodiment)
Next, a third embodiment will be described. The present embodiment differs from the above-described embodiments in that the sensing unit 55 includes a plurality of light receiving elements 551.
In the present embodiment, as in the second embodiment described above, the fact that each of the particles contained in the air has a property that the relationship between the scattering angle and the amount of scattered light is different from each other is utilized, and smoke from a fire is used. And improve the accuracy of fire by making it possible to distinguish the other. In the following description, differences from the above-described embodiment will be described, and configurations similar to those in the above-described embodiment will be designated by the same reference numerals and description thereof will be omitted.

FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a configuration example of the sensing unit 55B of the third embodiment. The sensing unit 55B includes, for example, a light receiving element 551A, a light receiving element 551B, and two functional units 557. The functional unit 557 is a functional unit that determines smoke and particles other than smoke contained in the air, and includes a light amount conversion unit 552, an integration unit 553, a determination unit 554, and a scattering characteristic information storage unit 555. is there.

The light receiving element 551A and the light receiving element 551B are provided so as to receive lights having different scattering angles with respect to the traveling direction of air. The light receiving element 551A receives the light scattered by the particles included in the air in the region P, which is the light emitted by the light emitting element 550, scattered at the scattering angle θ3. The light receiving element 551B receives the light scattered by the particles included in the air in the region P, which is the light emitted by the light emitting element 550, scattered at the scattering angle θ4. The light receiving element 551A outputs the received light to one functional unit 557, and the light receiving element 551B outputs the received light to the other functional unit 557.

The one functional unit 557 determines the particle concentration of specific particles (for example, smoke) contained in the air based on the light amount of the light received by the light receiving element 551A. The scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 in the functional unit 557 stores the amount of scattered light having the scattering angle θ3 when specific particles are irradiated with light having a predetermined wavelength (wavelength of light emitted by the light emitting element 550), and Information in which the concentration of a specific particle is associated is stored.

The other functional unit 557 determines the particle concentration of specific particles (for example, particles other than smoke) contained in the air based on the amount of light received by the light receiving element 551B. In the scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 of the functional unit 557, information in which the light amount of the scattered light of the scattering angle θ2 when the specific particle is irradiated with the light of the predetermined wavelength and the concentration of the specific particle are associated with each other. Is memorized.

The specific particles determined by the one functional unit 557 and the specific particles determined by the other functional unit 557 may be particles different from each other, as in the second embodiment described above.

In the above description, the case where the sensing unit 55B includes two light receiving elements 551 has been described as an example, but in the present embodiment, the sensing unit 55B may include three or more light receiving elements 551. Also in this case, the smoke density can be accurately determined by distinguishing smoke from particles other than smoke by a similar method.

Further, although the case where the functional unit 557 is provided has been described above as an example, in the present embodiment, the light amount of the scattered light received by each of the two light receiving elements 551 is prevented from being simultaneously transmitted to the light amount conversion unit 552. Good. In this case, smoke and particles other than smoke can be distinguished from each other according to the timing when each scattered light is received by the light quantity conversion unit 552, and thus it is not necessary to provide the two functional units 557, and one functional unit is not required. 557 may be provided.

As described above, in the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the third embodiment, in the sensing unit 55B, the plurality of light receiving elements 551 are provided and the light emitted by the light emitting element 550 is included in the sucked gas. Each of the scattered lights scattered at different scattering angles by the particles to be received is received, and the determination unit 554 determines, based on the scattered light received by each of the light receiving elements 551, smoke contained in the sucked gas and other than smoke. Distinguish between particles and determine the concentration of smoke contained in the drawn gas. Thereby, the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the third embodiment has the same effect as the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the second embodiment.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case where one rack 20 is provided in the warehouse 10 has been described as an example, but the warehouse 10 may be provided with a plurality of racks 20. When a plurality of racks 20 are provided, one stacker crane 30 is provided between the two racks 20, and the one stacker crane 30 transfers the load N to each of the two racks 20. You may do it.
In this case, for example, in the suction type smoke sensor 50, the branched suction pipe 51 is connected to the connection portion 53. An electromagnetic valve is provided at a branched portion of each of the branched suction pipes 51. For example, the sensing unit 55 operates the opening and closing of the electromagnetic valve to suck the suction from the opening 52 provided in one of the branched suction pipes 51.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the case of sucking air has been described as an example, but the present invention is not limited to this. The suction type smoke sensor 50 may suck a gas different from air. For example, when the special warehouse 10 is filled with a gas in which nitrogen, oxygen, and other gases are mixed at a specific ratio, the gas is sucked to determine the concentration of smoke contained in the gas. You may do it.

Further, in the above-described second embodiment and third embodiment, the case where the suction type smoke sensor 50 distinguishes between smoke and particles other than smoke has been described, but non-fire such as dust in a warehouse. A function considering an environment with many factors may be provided.

For example, the suction type smoke sensor 50 may change the relationship between the smoke density to be sensed and the sensing level according to the number of times it is determined that particles other than smoke, such as dust, have a density equal to or higher than a predetermined density. Good. For example, when it is determined that particles other than smoke are detected at a predetermined concentration or more and the amount of dust is large, the alarm level leading to a fire alarm is set to 0.7% to 1.0%. As a result, in a dusty environment, it is possible to detect smoke caused by a fire after adding particles other than smoke mixed in the smoke.

In addition, the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the embodiment may have a function in consideration of the rising of dust accompanying the transfer of luggage. For example, the suction-type smoke sensor 50 may include a suction control unit that controls suction by the suction fan 54. For example, when the slide fork 35 of the stacker crane 30 stops in the storage compartment 21 after the slide fork 35 slides, the suction control unit starts suction by the suction fan 54 after a lapse of a predetermined time after the slide fork 35 stops. As a result, even if the dust particles fly up due to the transfer of luggage, the suction can be started after the dust particles that have risen up have settled down, and the smoke concentration can be detected more accurately.

In the suction-type smoke sensor 50 of the embodiment, the case where the integration unit 553 integrates the light amount of scattered light has been described as an example, but the invention is not limited to this. For example, the suction type smoke sensor 50 may calculate a moving average of the amount of scattered light.
In this case, the suction type smoke sensor 50 includes, for example, a light amount storage unit, a control unit, and a moving average calculation unit.
The light amount storage unit stores the light amount of the received light converted into the voltage signal by the light amount conversion unit 552 under the control of the control unit. The control unit causes the light amount storage unit to store the light amount of the light acquired a predetermined number of times in the latest past. The moving average calculation unit obtains a light quantity of light for a predetermined number of times from the light quantity storage unit and calculates a value obtained by dividing the total sum of the light quantity of light for the predetermined number of times acquired by the predetermined number of times as a moving average value. To do. When the light intensity of the light is newly acquired, the control unit rewrites the oldest light intensity of the light intensity of the predetermined number of times stored in the light intensity storage unit to the new one acquired this time and stores it.

As described above, the suction-type smoke sensor 50 calculates the moving average of the amount of scattered light, so that the moving average value can be obtained even when sudden noise is temporarily mixed in the amount of scattered light. Does not change significantly. Therefore, it is possible to suppress erroneous detection due to sudden noise. On the other hand, even if the smoke density actually rises sharply, the moving average value gradually changes, so the determination tends to be delayed. For this reason, it is desirable to appropriately determine which of the parameters of the moving average (the predetermined number of times used for the moving average) is set in consideration of the size of the range to be detected and the change in smoke density in a fire.
In addition, the suction type smoke sensor 50 may calculate a moving average for the integrated value calculated by the integrating unit 553.

6, FIG. 9, and FIG. 10 do not show the flow direction when the sucked air flows through the detection space (the space near the region P) formed by the light emitting element 550 and the light receiving element 551. The flow direction may be a direction toward the detection space, and is, for example, a direction perpendicular to the paper surface.
On the other hand, it is desirable that the speed at which the sucked air flows is constant. This makes it possible to quantify the relationship between the integrated value and the smoke density as shown in FIG. 7, and it becomes possible to easily determine the smoke density based on the integrated value.

In the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the embodiment, the speed at which the sucked air flows may be set by initial setting or the like. The speed at which the sucked air flows may be set arbitrarily according to the suction capacity of the suction fan 54 and the sensing accuracy of the sensing unit 55.
In this case, the scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 stores information indicating the relationship between the integrated value and the smoke density for each speed at which the sucked air flows. Then, the determining unit 554 acquires the speed at which the sucked air flows, and determines the smoke density by referring to the information indicating the relationship between the integrated value and the smoke density according to the acquired speed.

Further, an elastic member such as a bellows hose may be provided between the suction tube 51 and the connecting portion 53 instead of the hose or the flexible tube shown in FIGS. 4 and 5.
In this case, it is desirable that sensing be performed according to a change in the distance from the opening 52 to the sensing unit 55 due to the stretching of the stretchable member. For example, the scattering characteristic information storage unit 555 stores information indicating the relationship between the integrated value and the smoke density for each distance from the opening 52 to the sensing unit 55. Then, the determination unit 554 acquires the distance from the opening 52 to the sensing unit 55 according to the degree of expansion/contraction of the elastic member, and refers to the information indicating the relationship between the integrated value and the smoke density according to the acquired speed. To determine the smoke density.

Further, the sensor main body 59 may be installed at a portion that does not move up and down, such as the truck 32 of the stacker crane 30. However, as described above, the length of the path from the opening 52 to the sensing unit 55 affects the sensing result and the speed at which the sensing result is output. Further, the change in the length of the path depending on the degree of expansion and contraction of the elastic member or the like provided between the suction pipe 51 and the connection portion 53 affects the smoke density and the discrimination between smoke and particles other than smoke. It is desirable to suppress the influence of the installation location of the sensor body 59 on smoke detection. Therefore, in the suction type smoke sensor 50 of the embodiment, for example, the relationship between the integrated value and the smoke concentration as shown in FIG. 7 is prepared for each length of the path from the opening 52 to the sensing unit 55, and Use properly according to the length of.

All or part of the suction type smoke sensor 50 in the above-described embodiment may be realized by a computer. In that case, the program for realizing this function may be recorded in a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded in this recording medium may be read by a computer system and executed. It should be noted that the term “computer system” as used herein includes an OS, peripheral devices, hardware such as an electric circuit having no OS, and other hardware. Further, the “computer-readable recording medium” refers to a portable medium such as a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, a ROM, a CD-ROM, or a storage device such as a hard disk built in a computer system. Further, the "computer-readable recording medium" means to hold a program dynamically for a short time like a communication line when transmitting the program through a network such as the Internet or a communication line such as a telephone line. In this case, a volatile memory inside a computer system that serves as a server or a client in that case may hold a program for a certain period of time. Further, the program may be for realizing some of the functions described above, or may be one that can realize the functions described above in combination with a program already recorded in the computer system, It may be realized using a programmable logic device such as FPGA.

Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above with reference to the drawings, the specific configuration is not limited to this embodiment, and includes a design and the like within a range not departing from the gist of the present invention.

10... Warehouse 20... Rack 21... Storage section 30... Stacker crane 31... Traveling rail 32... Truck 33... Mast part 34... Elevating table 35... Slide fork 36... Sensor body storage 40... Stacker crane operating device 50... Suction type Smoke sensor 51... Suction tube 52... Opening 53... Connection 54... Suction fan 55... Sensing 56... Communication 57... Output 550... Light emitting element 551... Light receiving element 552... Light quantity converter 553... Integrator 554... Judgment unit 555... Scattering characteristic information storage unit

Claims (9)

A suction pipe that can be moved up and down together with a stacker crane that transfers luggage between storage compartments provided in the warehouse,
An opening provided in the suction tube in the direction of the storage compartment,
A suction unit that sucks the gas around the opening through a suction pipe,
A sensing unit for sensing particles contained in the gas sucked by the suction unit;
An output unit for outputting the sensing result sensed by the sensing unit;
Suction type smoke detector equipped with. The suction pipe is provided on the slide fork of the stacker crane along the sliding direction of the slide fork,
The suction type smoke detector according to claim 1. When the slide fork of the stacker crane stops in the storage compartment after sliding, further comprising a suction control unit for starting suction by the suction unit after a predetermined time has elapsed since the slide fork stopped.
The suction type smoke detector according to claim 2. The opening is provided at an end of the suction tube in the direction of the storage compartment,
The suction type smoke sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 3. A position information acquisition unit that acquires position information about the storage section located around the opening,
A communication unit that transmits to the receiver information in which the position information and the detection result detected by the detection unit are associated with each other;
The suction type smoke sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: The sensing unit is
A light emitting element for irradiating the gas sucked by the suction part with light,
A light-receiving element that receives scattered light scattered by smoke contained in the gas sucked by the suction unit, the light emitted by the light-emitting element,
Based on the amount of scattered light received by the light receiving element, a determination unit that determines the concentration of smoke contained in the sucked gas,
The suction type smoke sensor according to any one of claims 1 to 5, further comprising: The light emitting element is provided with a plurality of irradiating with light of different wavelengths,
Further comprising a separation unit for separating scattered light received by the light receiving element according to wavelength,
The determination unit, based on each of the scattered light separated by the separation unit, distinguishes smoke contained in the sucked gas and particles other than smoke, and determines the concentration of smoke contained in the sucked gas. To do
The suction type smoke detector according to claim 6. The light emitting element emits light of different wavelengths so that the times are not overlapped,
The determination unit, based on the scattered light received by the light receiving element, distinguishes between smoke and particles other than smoke contained in the sucked gas, and determines the concentration of smoke contained in the sucked gas,
The suction type smoke detector according to claim 6. The light-receiving element is provided with a plurality, the light emitted by the light-emitting element receives each of the scattered light scattered at different scattering angles by the particles contained in the gas sucked by the suction unit,
The determination unit distinguishes smoke contained in the sucked gas from particles other than smoke based on the scattered light received by each of the light receiving elements, and determines the concentration of smoke contained in the sucked gas. To do
The suction type smoke detector according to claim 6.

Images