JP3154284U - Air levitation transport device with tiltable dividing track - Google Patents

Abstract

An air levitation transfer apparatus having a divided runway that can be tilted so that gravity can be used without any constraints on layout such as height difference. At a time (a), a carrier for transportation 8 is stopped, but at a time (b), a tilting mechanism 5 is actuated in response to a command from a control device 7 to give a predetermined gradient to a divided track 1, and the gradient The carrier for transportation is accelerated by the gravitational acceleration component in the direction and starts moving in the direction of the arrow. The speed of the carrier 8 is detected by the sensor 6-1 before the transfer carrier 8 moves from the runway 1 to the runway 2. If the predetermined speed has not been reached, the runway 2 is further moved as shown in time (c). Tilt to increase the speed of the carrier 8 in the direction of the arrow. As a result, if it is determined that the predetermined speed has been reached, as shown at time (d), the runway 3 does not tilt and remains in a horizontal state, and the carrier 8 continues inertial running at a constant speed. Next, when stopping, a gradient in the direction of decelerating the carrier 8 is given to the runway 4 as shown at time (e), and if it is judged that the stop speed has been reached, as shown at time (f), The carrier 8 is stopped by returning the gradient to a horizontal level and using a mechanical stopper or the like together. [Selection] Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to an air levitation transport device that drives an air levitation transport carrier by tilting a divided horizontal runway.

  In recent years, for the purpose of reducing cost and energy consumption, as shown in an example in Patent Document 1, there is a reconsideration of a conveyance method for driving a conveyance work using gravity. However, since they use a fixed height difference, the conveyance direction is one direction, and in order to drive the conveyance work reliably, an inclination angle corresponding to the frictional resistance of the conveyance unit is necessary, In addition, since it is driven at a constant acceleration due to gravity, there is a problem that the speed is excessive when the transport distance is long, and therefore, it is used for transport over a relatively short distance.

  In addition, as shown in an example in Patent Document 2, the starting point and the arrival point are mainly connected for a long-distance transportation outdoors, and the transportation path is slanted in a sawtooth shape, and the transportation path is lifted by a lifting device on the way to give a height difference. On the other hand, an apparatus that conveys using an inclined drop has been proposed. However, since this apparatus is also basically composed of a conveyance path having a fixed inclination, it is suitable for one-way conveyance, but when used for two-way conveyance, the conveyance path lifting device There is a problem that becomes large scale.

  JP-A-8-85624

  JP-A-6-40542

  As shown in an example in Patent Document 1 or Patent Document 2, a conventional conveyance device using gravity is basically for unidirectional conveyance between two points having a difference in height, and the conveyance path is a frictional resistance of conveyance. Therefore, for long-distance conveyance, it is necessary to give a large height difference or raise the conveyance path in the middle to give the height difference. For this reason, when the conveyance distance is relatively long and has a plurality of stop stations as in the inter-process transfer in the manufacturing process, and there is almost no difference in height between the stop stations, the transfer device using gravity is Due to many layout restrictions, it has not been used much in the past, despite the low cost and energy saving benefits.

  The present invention uses a non-contact air levitation type carrier capable of almost ignoring the frictional resistance of conveyance as a carrier for conveyance, and a conventional tiltable runway for traveling the carrier. This solves the problem of elevation difference between two points, which was an indispensable condition for transport devices using gravity, and as a result, removes constraints on the layout of conventional transport devices using gravity and uses gravity. This realizes a transport device that utilizes the advantage of energy saving at low cost. In other words, the non-contact air levitation type carrier has almost no frictional resistance, and once it gives the required initial speed, it has the feature that it can travel over a relatively long distance without reducing the speed even if there is no inclination. Then, as a method of giving the required initial speed to the carrier, a part of the traveling path on which the carrier travels is temporarily tilted, and a method of accelerating the carrier using gravitational acceleration is adopted. It realizes a transfer device that uses the advantage of energy saving at low cost by using gravity without any restrictions

As described above, in the transport apparatus having the structure according to the present invention, the transport carrier does not consume energy because it travels inertially in the horizontal section that occupies most of the travel path. Therefore, the energy required for traveling is only energy consumed for tilting the traveling path on which the carrier is placed, regardless of the traveling distance. Moreover, since the tilting of the runway can be realized with a simple mechanism, the difference in height between the two points, which is necessary for a conventional transfer device using gravity, is also unnecessary. As described above, by using the transport apparatus having the structure according to the present invention, it is possible to realize a transport apparatus utilizing the advantage of gravity utilization that is low-cost and energy-saving without constraints on layout such as height difference.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 shows components of the present invention. In the figure, (2), (3) and (4) are a part of the divided tiltable air levitation runway. In addition, (5) is a tilting mechanism that imparts a gradient to the divided track (2), (3), (4), and (6) is an air levitation transport carrier that travels on the divided tracks (2), (3), (4) (see FIG. (Not shown) is a sensor for detecting the position and speed. (7) is a control device for operating the tilting mechanism (5) based on the signal from the sensor.

  Next, the transport principle of the transport apparatus according to the present invention will be described with reference to FIG. In the figure, (1), (2), (3), and (4) are part of the divided tiltable air levitation runway, and (8) is an air levitation transport carrier that runs on the runway. Reference numeral 6 denotes a sensor for detecting the position and speed of the carrier. The position and quantity of the sensor (6) may be determined as appropriate. Symbols (a) to (f) written on the left side of the figure represent the passage of time. That is, at time (a), the carrier for conveyance (8) is stopped, but at time (b), a tilting mechanism (5) (not shown) is received in response to a command from a control device (7) (not shown). Is activated to give a predetermined gradient to the divided traveling path (1), and the carrier for conveyance is accelerated by the gravitational acceleration component in the gradient direction and starts moving in the direction of the arrow. The speed of the carrier (8) is detected by the sensor (6) -1 before the transfer carrier (8) is transferred from the runway (1) to the runway (2). As shown in c), the runway (2) is further tilted to accelerate the carrier (8) in the direction of the arrow. As a result, if it is determined that the predetermined speed has been reached, as shown at time (d), the runway (3) does not tilt and remains in a horizontal state, and the carrier (8) continues inertial running at a constant speed. Next, when stopping, as shown at time (e), a gradient in the direction of decelerating the carrier (8) is given to the runway (4), and if it is judged that the stop speed has been reached, it is shown at time (f). Then, the slope of the runway (4) is returned to the horizontal direction, and the carrier (8) is stopped by using a mechanical stopper or the like (not shown). Since the present invention adopts an air levitation conveyance system and friction resistance can be almost ignored, if the gravitational acceleration component is obtained from the tilt angle of the divided running path, the speed and movement distance of the conveyance carrier can be accurately determined regardless of the weight of the conveyance load. Can be calculated. As an example, when the gradient is 1/100, a speed of about 1 m / second is reached 10 seconds after the start, and the moving distance is about 5 m. Thus, the motion of the carrier (8) can be easily analyzed and predicted by the control device (7) from the signal given by the sensor (6) and the gradient given by the tilt mechanism (5). The rough stop position of the carrier for conveyance (8) can be controlled only by adjustment. The final stop position obtains a predetermined stop accuracy by using external means such as a mechanical stopper or a local linear motor (not shown).

  As an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 3 shows an example in which an eccentric cam is used in a tilting mechanism that gives a gradient to a divided track. In the figure, (2), (3), and (4) are parts of the divided running roads, and (6) is a sensor that detects the position and speed of an air levitation carrier (not shown) running on the running road. (9) indicates an eccentric cam that is the main body of the tilting mechanism, and (10) indicates a motor that drives the eccentric cam. The eccentric cam shown in FIG. 3 is an example of a tilting mechanism until it gets tired, and it goes without saying that linear actuators such as a small air cylinder are also included in the category of the tilting mechanism in the present invention.

  By using the air levitation transfer device related to the present invention, the advantages of air levitation transfer, which is almost silent and quiet, and the advantage of gravity-based transfer, which is low cost and energy saving, can be used in various manufacturing industries. For transportation in clean rooms in the library, loading and unloading of books in the library, transportation of dishes and foods in the service industry, transportation in areas where cleanliness is most required, such as food, pharmaceuticals, and medical care If used, it is possible to obtain effects that are not found in conventional transfer apparatuses in terms of environmental friendliness, maintainability, energy saving, and the like.

The component of the air levitation conveyance apparatus which has the division | segmentation track which can be tilted is shown. Only a part of the divided runways constituting the runway is shown. The conveyance principle of the conveyance apparatus concerning this invention is shown. As an embodiment of the present invention, an example in which an eccentric cam is used for a tilting mechanism that gives a gradient to a divided track is shown.

▲ 1 ▼ Part of split runway for air levitation transport ▲ 2 ▼ Part of split runway for air levitation transport ▲ 3 ▼ Part of split runway for air levitation transport ▲ 4 ▼ Part of split runway for air levitation transport ▲ 5 ▼ Tilt mechanism to give gradient to air levitation transport split runway ▲ 6 ▼ Sensor for detecting position and speed of air levitation transport carrier traveling on air levitation transport split runway ▲ 6 ▼ -1 Air levitation transport split (6) Sensor provided on runway (1) (7) Control device for operating tilt mechanism (5) based on sensor (6) signal (8) Air floating carrier (9) Air floating Eccentric cam for tilting divided runway for conveyance (10) Motor for driving the eccentric cam of (9) above

Claims (2)

  In a transport apparatus using a transport carrier supported in a non-contact manner by an air levitation method, the travel section of the transport carrier is divided into a plurality of travel paths, and the travel path end is moved up and down on the travel path to tilt the travel path. Conveying device, characterized by providing a mechanism that makes it possible   2. The mechanism according to claim 1, wherein sensors for detecting the position and speed of the carrier for conveyance are provided on the plurality of divided traveling paths, and the mechanism for enabling the tilting of the traveling path according to claim 1 is operated based on the signals of the sensors. Conveying device, characterized in that a control device is provided

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