JP2622394B2 - Automatic transfer table - Google Patents

Description

Description: BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic transfer device for transferring a load using a transfer table such as a pallet.

[Conventional technology]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in loading and transporting pallets on a pallet, a mark plate having a light-reflective mark on the upper surface is horizontally attached to a side surface of an upper corner which is a diagonal of the pallet, and a lifting device of a transport device for handling and transporting the pallet , An image pickup device (industrial TV camera) for picking up an image of the mark on the mark plate is attached, and the image pickup device is used to display a driver's cab (monitor TV).
The visual recognition method of recognizing the mark projected on the pallet and aligning the center of the hanging tool with the center of the pallet has been adopted.

[Problems to be solved by the invention]

In the conventional method, it is difficult to accurately detect the center of the mark, and it is difficult to align the center of the hanging tool with the center of the pallet.

Therefore, as one of the automatic operation plans for palletized conveyance, automation of conveyance by image processing has been considered.

However, in this method, although it is possible to automate the alignment between the center of the hanging tool and the center of the pallet, the field of view of the imaging device is blocked by the mark plate in the state of pallet handling. Therefore, since the positioning error of the pallet hanging point depends on the stopping accuracy of the transfer device and the stopping error increases, multi-stacking of the pallets is not possible, and the yard is provided only by securing a space in consideration of the stopping error. Inevitably, the area becomes larger than necessary.

[Object of the invention]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned problem, and has as its object to enable automatic conveyance using a conveyance table such as a pallet.

[Means for solving the problem]

The transfer table automatic transfer device of the present invention, at least two upper corner side surfaces of the transfer table, punch a mark, the lower surface facing the ground side, horizontally attached a mark plate with the upper surface as a light reflecting surface, An imaging device that images the mark plate in a state before handling the carrier, and an image of the ground side through a mark hole of the mark plate in the carrier handling state, An illumination device for illuminating the mark plate from obliquely above is mounted, and an image processing device is provided for processing the input image from the imaging device to detect the center of the mark hole and calculate the operation amount of the hanging tool. The center of the hanging tool and the center of the transfer table of the automatic transfer device are aligned by control based on an input signal from a processing device, and the above object is achieved by such a configuration. .

〔Example〕

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

In the drawing, reference numeral 1 denotes a carrier (a pallet in the embodiment), in which marks are punched out on two side surfaces of two upper corners which are diagonal to the carrier 1, the lower surface is facing the ground side, and the upper surface is a light reflecting surface. Mark plates 2, 2 'are mounted horizontally.

Reference numeral 4 denotes a suspending device of an automatic transport device for handling and transporting the transport table 1. The suspending device 4 captures an image of the mark plate 2, 2 'before handling the transport table, and displays the mark in the transport table handling state. Imaging devices 5, 5 '(in the embodiment, an industrial TV camera) for imaging the ground side through the mark holes 3, 3' of the plates 2, 2 ', and a lighting device for illuminating the mark plates 2, 2' from obliquely above 6,6 'are attached.

7 is a twist lock attached to the lower four corners of the hanging tool 4, 8 is a lock hole provided in the upper four corners of the carrier 1,
When the hanging tool 4 is hung on the carrier 1 in a state where the center of the carrier and the center of the hanging tool are aligned, they correspond to each other. When the twist lock 7 is inserted into the lock hole 8 and rotated by 90 °, the hanging member 4 is fixed to the carrier 1, and the automatic carrier device can lift the carrier 1 via the hanging member 4 to handle and carry. Becomes

Reference numeral 9 denotes an image processing device to which the two imaging devices 5, 5 'are connected. The input image from the imaging devices 5, 5' is image-processed to detect the center O 'of the mark hole 3, and displays 10, 10 ′
(In the embodiment, a monitor television), and the two positions relative to the positions of the reference mark hole centers O (images set in advance) when the center of the carrier 1 and the center of the hanging tool 4 are aligned. From the position of the mark hole center O ', the operation amount of the hanging member 4 controlled by the controller 11 provided in the automatic transport device, that is, the X-direction movement amount, the Y-direction movement amount, and the turning amount (angle θ) are calculated. The controller 11 is connected to the image processing device 9.

In the present embodiment, an example is described in which the imaging devices 5 and 5 ′ are attached to the two upper corner side surfaces that are diagonal to the hanging device 4, but the center of the transport table 1 and the center of the hanging device 4 are It is needless to say that the imaging devices 5, 5 'may be attached to the upper corner side surfaces which are not diagonal as long as the alignment is possible.

[Action]

As shown in FIG. 3, when the hanger 4 is disposed so as to face the carrier 1 placed on the ground, as shown in FIG. , 2 ′, and the video is input to the image processing device 9. In the image processing device 9, the position of each mark hole center O 'with respect to the reference mark hole center O is detected by image processing of the input video, and the operation amount of the hanging tool 4, that is, the X-direction movement amount, Y Direction movement amount and turning amount (angle θ)
Is calculated.

The controller 11 of the automatic conveyance device is
Each of the devices is controlled based on the control signal input from the control unit, thereby performing the combined operation of the X-direction movement, the Y-direction movement, or the turning of the angle θ of the hanging member 4, and the two mark hole centers O ′
Are aligned with the center O of each reference mark hole, and the center of the carriage and the center of the hanging tool are aligned. Next, the hanger 4
During the suspension, the positioning operation is repeated, the suspension 4 is suspended on the carrier 1, the twist lock 7 is inserted into the lock hole 8 and rotated by 90 °, and thus the suspension 4 is rotated.
Is fixed to the transfer table 1. In such a state, the imaging device 5,
5 'is located near the mark plate 2, 2'
The ground side is imaged through 3, 3 '.

The transfer table 1 is transferred to a predetermined position by an automatic transfer device via a hanging tool 4, and at that position, ground mark plates 12, 12 'corresponding to the mark plates 2, 2' as shown in FIG.
If 12 (not shown) is installed, the ground marking plates 12, 12 'are imaged by the imaging devices 5, 5' through the mark holes 3, 3 'of the marking plates 2, 2' as shown in FIG. Therefore, the center of the installation position of the carriage and the center of the carriage 1 suspended by the hanging tool 4 are aligned in the same procedure as described above, and the carriage 1 is defined by the ground marking plates 12, 12 '. It will be hung at the installation position. As shown in FIG.
The same applies to the case where the transfer table 1 is hung above, and the center of the transfer table 1 and the transfer table 1 hung by the hanging tool 4 are utilized using the mark plates 2, 2 'provided on the transfer table 1 installed on the ground. Alignment with the center is performed, whereby multi-stage stacking of the transfer tables 1 is performed.

In the transfer operation, the center of the transfer table and the center of the hanging tool, which are necessary for the automation, are automatically aligned.

After the transfer table 1 is set at a predetermined position on the ground or on the transfer table 1, the twist lock 7 is rotated by 90 °, pulled out from the lock hole 8, and the lifting tool 4 is lifted to complete one transfer operation, and the automatic operation is completed. The transfer device is used for the next transfer operation.

〔The invention's effect〕

As described above, the present invention uses a mark plate in which the mark is punched out, the lower surface faces the ground, and the upper surface is a light reflecting surface. The installation position on the ground side can be imaged through the mark holes of the mark plate without the device becoming blind. Also,
The image processing of the image obtained by imaging the ground-side carrier or the mark plate installed on the ground enables accurate alignment of the center of the carrier with the center of the hanger, so the controller of the automatic carrier is reliably controlled. it can. Therefore, since the transfer of the transfer table, the multi-stack and the transfer from the multi-stack transfer table can be performed,
The yard area can be used effectively, and the work efficiency can be greatly improved by automating the transfer work.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
FIG. 3, FIG. 4, FIG. 5 are perspective views showing the main part of the drawing, and FIG. 6, FIG. FIG. 7 is a front view of the display illustrating the eccentricity of the center of the mark hole before lifting of the carrier and before installation on the ground (or before stacking). 1. Carrier, 2, 2 '... Mark plate, 3, 3' ... Mark hole, 4 ... Hanging tool, 5, 5 '... Imaging device, 6 ... Illumination device, 9 ... Image processing Equipment, 10,10 '... Display, 1
1 ... Controller, 12,12 '... Ground mark board.

Continuation of the front page (56) References JP-A-53-104952 (JP, A) JP-A-62-185104 (JP, A) JP-A 1-176795 (JP, A) JP-A 50-1224078 (JP, A) , U)

Claims (1)

(57) [Claims] 1. The method according to claim 1, wherein at least two upper corner side surfaces of the carriage are provided.
Drill the mark, make the lower surface face to the ground side, attach the mark plate with the upper surface as the light reflecting surface horizontally, and attach it to the hanging device of the automatic transport device that handles and transports the transport table, in the state before handling the transport table. An image pickup device for picking up an image of the mark plate, and picking up an image of the ground side through a mark hole of the mark plate in a carrier handling state, and an illuminating device for illuminating the mark plate from obliquely above are attached, and input from the image pickup device An image processing device is provided for processing the image to detect the center of the mark hole and calculate the operation amount of the hanging device, and the center of the hanging device and the center of the transfer table of the automatic transfer device are controlled based on an input signal from the image processing device. A transfer table automatic transfer device, characterized in that the position of the transfer table is adjusted.