JP3171359B2 - Transfer device - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a transport device using a self-propelled transport train supported and guided by a pair of left and right guide rails.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art As this type of transfer device, for example, a transfer device for an automatic warehouse, which comprises a guide rail provided on a train traveling passage between shelves and a train for carrying in and out of the vehicle running on the guide rail, is known. As is known, in such a conventional transport device used for, for example, an automatic warehouse, a drive wheel type drive device in which wheels are rotationally driven by an electric motor is used as a traveling drive unit of a transport train, and As a power supply means for the transport train, a contact power supply system including a power supply line extended along a train traveling route and a current collecting unit slidably contacting the power supply line has been used.

[0003]

A conventional transfer apparatus using the above-mentioned driving means for driving the driving wheel system and the power supply means of the contact power supply system is inferior in quietness and high-speed performance due to the characteristics of both means. In addition, due to the characteristics of the power supply means, there are problems such as generation of dust and power supply failure caused by foreign matter. Thus, as means for solving such a problem, it was considered to use a linear motor type driving drive unit and use a non-contact power supply type power supply unit. A truly practical transport device has not been proposed.

[0004]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and its features are indicated by parenthesized reference numerals in the embodiments described later. As shown, the transfer device of the present invention includes a pair of left and right guide rails.
(1A, 1B), a transport train (2) supported and guided by the guide rails (1A, 1B) via wheels (6), and a driving means for traveling.
(9) and power supply means (10), and guide rails (1A, 1A).
B) has an outer vertical mounting part (4) and a horizontal rail part (5) extending horizontally inward, and the driving means for traveling (9)
Is attached to the secondary conductor (16) mounted horizontally on the horizontal rail (5) of one guide rail (1B), and to the transport train (2) facing this secondary conductor (16). And a linear motor main body (17) supported, and the power supply means (10) is arranged in parallel with the horizontal rail portion (5) of the other guide rail (1A) in the left-right horizontal direction and along the rail length direction. An attached pair of non-contact power feeding guide paths (21), and an induction coil (22) supported by the transport train (2) so as to be located between the pair of guide paths (21).
Which has the following features.
You.

That is, the transport train (2) is provided with a pair of front and rear positioning vertical shaft rollers (7a to 7d) abutting on the inner vertical end surfaces (4b, 5a) of each guide rail (1A, 1B). The roller (7) adjacent to the guide rail (1A) on the side where the power supply means (10) is located
a, 7b) are fixed in position, and the rollers (7c, 7d) adjacent to the guide rail (1B) on the side where the driving means for traveling (9) is located are supported so as to be movable within a certain range in the horizontal direction. The most characteristic feature is that the spring (26) urges the guide rail (1A) so as to be pressed against the guide rail (1A) .

[0006] Each guide rail (1A, 1B) is a horizontal rail section.
(5) is an L-shaped section extending from the lower end of the outer vertical mounting portion (4), and the secondary conductor (16) of the driving means (9) for traveling is used.
And the guide path (21) of the power supply means (10), each guide rail (1A,
1B) above the horizontal rail (5)
The wheel (6) of (2) rolls on the upper end surface (4a) of the vertical mounting part (4) of each guide rail (1A, 1B), and the transport train
The vertical shaft rollers (7a to 7d) for positioning in (2) correspond to the inner vertical surface (4b) of the vertical mounting part (4) of each guide rail (1A, 1B).
Can be contacted.

On the contrary, each guide rail (1A,
1B) The horizontal rail section (5) has an inverted L-shaped section with the vertical rail extending from the upper end of the outer vertical mounting section (4), and the secondary conductor (16) of the driving means (9) is connected to the power supply. Means (10) taxiway (21)
Means that it is arranged below the horizontal rail (5) of each guide rail (1A, 1B), and the wheels (6) of the transport train (2) are horizontal rails of each guide rail (1A, 1B). Roll the upper surface of the part (5), and use the vertical axis rollers for each positioning of the transport train (2).
(7a ~ 7d) are horizontal rails of each guide rail (1A, 1B)
It is also possible to contact the vertical inner surface (5a) of the tip of (5).

[0008]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS One embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In FIGS. 1 and 2, 1A, 1B
Is a pair of left and right guide rails, and 2 is a transport train. The guide rails 1A and 1B are horizontally provided at the same level on the side of the train traveling passage of the shelves 3A and 3B standing upright across the traveling passage of the transport train 2, and the outer vertical mounting portion 4 and the It has an L-shaped cross section, and the horizontal rail portion 5 extends horizontally inward from the lower end of the vertical mounting portion 4, and is formed of aluminum or the like.

The transport train 2 has two guide rails 1A,
There are provided four wheels 6 rolling on 1B, four positioning vertical shaft rollers 7a to 7d, a load transfer means 8, a traveling drive means 9, and a power supply means 10. The load transfer means 8 is provided on the load receiving plates 11 of the shelves 3A and 3B.
In this embodiment, the load W is transferred in a horizontal direction at right angles between each of the load support sections 13 defined by the section 2 and the load support section 14 of the transport train 2. And a pair of up-and-down movable arms 15 which reciprocate in the transfer direction with the intermediary is used.

The traveling drive means 9 includes a secondary conductor 16 laid horizontally on the horizontal rail portion 5 of one of the guide rails 1B, and a transfer train 2 of the transport train 2 facing the secondary conductor 16. This is a primary linear motor type on a vehicle constituted by a linear motor main body 17 disposed at the bottom. As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 4A, the secondary conductor 16 in this embodiment is composed of a number of rectangular flat magnets 16a having upper and lower end faces serving as NS poles, and a belt-like magnet 16a whose upper surface is alternately arranged in NS. Although it is arranged side by side in the rail length direction on the substrate 16b, it has a laminated structure of a non-magnetic conductive layer such as aluminum and a magnetic conductive layer such as iron instead of the secondary conductor provided with the magnet. There may be.

The linear motor body 17 is shown in FIGS.
As shown in the figure, a primary unit 17c, in which a number of coils 17a are juxtaposed in the rail length direction below a coil yoke plate 17b, is connected to a strip-shaped substrate 1 long in the rail length direction.
8, a plurality (three in the illustrated example) are attached in series in the rail length direction, and on both sides of the substrate 18, rolling on the horizontal rail portion 5 of the guide rail 1B is performed. The moving horizontal shaft rollers 19 are supported at appropriate intervals, and
Elevating guide rods 20 project vertically upward from two places in the length direction of the rod 8. This elevating guide rod 20
Is penetrated so as to be able to go up and down with respect to the frame 2a of the transport train 2, and has a stopper ring 20a for retaining at a free end. Therefore, the linear motor main body 17 is lowered by gravity, and each horizontal shaft roller 19 abuts on the horizontal rail portion 5 of the guide rail 1B, thereby leaving a predetermined small gap with respect to the secondary conductor (magnet upper surface) 16. You will meet.

The power supply means 10 is connected to the other guide rail 1A.
A pair of non-contact power feeding guide paths (Litz wires) 21 arranged in parallel on the horizontal rail portion 5 at predetermined intervals in the left-right width direction of the rail and continuous in the rail length direction.
A non-contact power supply system comprising an induction coil 22 disposed at two positions before and after the transport train 2 so as to be located between the guide paths 21. Reference numeral 23 denotes a guideway support hanger disposed at appropriate intervals in the length direction of the guideway 21. The hanger 23 is fixedly erected on the horizontal rail portion 5 of the guide rail 1A, and 24 is provided with the induction coil 22. It is a coil yoke and is attached to the bottom of the frame 2a of the transport train 2.

The four wheels 6 of the transport train 2 roll on the upper end surface 4a of the vertical mounting portion 4 of the guide rails 1A and 1B, and the four positioning vertical shaft rollers 7a to 7d It is in contact with the upper end inside vertical surface 4b of the vertical mounting portion 4 of 1A, 1B. Thus, the rollers 7a and 7b abutting on the guide rail 1A on the side where the power supply means 10 is located are:
The rollers 7c and 7d which are supported at a fixed position on the frame 2a of the transport train 2 and which abut on the guide rail 1B on the side where the traveling drive means 9 is located are fixed in the lateral width direction with respect to the rail length direction. The movable arm 25 is pivotally supported so as to be able to swing horizontally within the range, and is pressed against the upper inner vertical surface 4b of the guide rail vertical mounting portion 4 by a spring 26 for urging the movable arm 25 outward. It has been impatient.

Therefore, the transport train 2 is urged toward the guide rail 1A on the side where the power supply means 10 is located, and the positioning vertical shaft rollers 7a and 7b on the guide rail 1A side are attached to the vertical mounting portion of the guide rail 1A. 4 top inside vertical surface 4
b. As a result, even if the distance between the two guide rails 1A and 1B is slightly varied, and the transport train 2 swings slightly in the left and right direction, the guide rail 1A on the side where the power supply means 10 is located. Does not swing in the left-right direction, and therefore, the relative positional relationship between the guide path 21 and the induction coil 22 in the power supply means 10 in the horizontal direction does not change.

For the above reasons, as shown in FIG. 4, the detected plate 27 and the limit switch actuating cam 28 provided on the guide rail side for controlling the traveling of the transport train 2 have the power supply means 10. It is desirable to attach to the side guide rail 1A. Reference numeral 29 denotes a photoelectric sensor for detection attached to the transport train 2 so as to face the detected plate 27 in the horizontal and horizontal directions.

The same guide rails 1A and 1B are used symmetrically in the left-right direction. As shown in FIG. 4B, the guide rails 1A and 1B are provided outside the vertical mounting portion 4 when the guide rails themselves are mounted on the shelf side. Grooves 30 for fitting a tap plate or a nut into which a bolt is screwed in at an arbitrary position in the rail length direction are formed in a plurality of upper and lower stages. The secondary conductor 16 of the driving means 9, the guide path support hanger 23 of the power supply means 10, the tap plate or nut for screwing a bolt for mounting the detection plate 27, the cam 28, or the like can be arbitrarily set in the rail length direction. A groove 31 for fitting at the position is formed, and a horizontal inward groove 32 for fitting one side of the magnet substrate constituting the secondary conductor 16 is formed on the base upper side of the horizontal rail portion 5.
Is also formed.

According to the above configuration, a high-frequency current is supplied to the guide path 21 in the power supply means 10 to form a magnetic field around the guide path 21, so that the induction coil 22 on the side of the transport train 2 is activated. Electric power is generated, and non-contact transmission of electric power is performed from the induction path 21 to the transportation train 2 via the induction coil 22. By feeding power to the linear motor main body 17 of the traveling drive means 9 with this electric power, a thrust in a predetermined direction acts on the transport train 2 due to a magnetic action between the secondary conductor 16 and the transport train 2 to guide rails. The vehicle can travel along 1A and 1B.

As shown in FIG. 5, the guide rails 1A and 1B can be used upside down so that the horizontal rail 5 extends from the upper end of the vertical mounting portion 4 to the inside. In this case, the wheels 6 of the transport train 2 roll on the upper side surface of the horizontal rail portion 5, and the positioning vertical shaft rollers 7 a to 7 d are brought into contact with the tip vertical surface 5 a of the horizontal rail portion 5. Will be. Further, since the secondary conductor 16 of the driving means 9 and the guide path 21 of the power supply means 10 are attached to the lower side of the horizontal rail portion 5 of the guide rails 1A and 1B, they are provided below the guide rails 1A and 1B. Frames 2b and 2c extending in a holding state are provided on the transport train 2, and the linear motor main body 17 and the induction coil 22 of the power supply means 10 are supported on the frames 2b and 2c.
Also in this case, the linear motor main body 17 of the traveling drive means 9 is urged upward by the magnetic attraction between the secondary conductor 16 and the linear motor main body 17, so that the substrate supporting the linear motor main body 17 is provided. The roller 19 of 18 contacts the lower surface of the horizontal rail portion 5 of the guide rail 1B, so that the gap between the linear motor main body 17 and the secondary conductor 16 is kept constant. However, when the power supply to the linear motor main body 17 is cut off, the linear motor main body 17 is lowered to the lower limit level by gravity.

In the above embodiment, the transport train 2 provided with the undulating arm 15 as the load transfer means 8 has been described. However, the transport train of the present invention is not limited to a running fork and other types of load transfer. It may be a transport train equipped with means,
A transport train of a stacker crane type provided with a lifting carriage may be used. Of course, a transportation train that does not include the load transfer means may be used.

[0020]

The operation and effect of the present invention can be carried out as described above. According to the apparatus of the present invention,
The driving means for traveling of the transport train is a linear motor system,
A non-contact power supply system is used for the transport train, so it can be used as a highly reliable transport device that is excellent in quiet life and high-speed performance, effective in maintaining a clean environment, and highly reliable. Since the driving means for traveling of the motor type and the power supply means of the non-contact power supply method using the induction path and the induction coil are separately arranged on the left and right, it is possible to prevent the two from magnetically interfering with each other and causing adverse effects. At the same time, the secondary conductor of the linear motor is horizontally supported by the horizontal rails of the guide rails, and the pair of guide paths of the power supply means are supported by the horizontal rails of the guide rails in parallel in the horizontal direction. Therefore, the entire transfer device including the guide rails can be configured to be low and compact, and can be effectively used as a transfer device for entering and exiting an automatic warehouse.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a plan view.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway longitudinal front view.

FIG. 3 is a plan view showing a configuration of a main part of the transport train.

4A is an enlarged detailed view of FIG. 2, and FIG. B is an enlarged detailed view of only the guide rail.

FIG. 5 is a partially cutaway longitudinal front view showing another embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1A Guide rail 1B Guide rail 2 Transport train 3A shelf 3B shelf 4 Vertical mounting part of guide rail 5 Horizontal rail part of guide rail 6 Wheel of transport train 7a Vertical axis roller for positioning of transport train 7b Positioning of transport train Vertical axis roller 7c Vertical axis roller for positioning of transport train 7d Vertical axis roller for positioning of transport train 8 Load transfer means 9 Driving means for traveling 10 Power supply means 16 Secondary conductor (magnet) of linear motor 17 Linear motor Main body 21 Non-contact power supply induction path (Litz wire) 22 Induction coil 26 Spring

Claims (3)

(57) [Claims] 1. A pair of left and right guide rails (1A, 1B), a transport train (2) supported and guided by the guide rails (1A, 1B) via wheels (6), and a traveling drive means ( 9) and power supply means
(10), and the guide rails (1A, 1B) have an outer vertical mounting part (4) and a horizontal rail part extending horizontally inward.
(5), the traveling drive means (9) comprises a secondary conductor (16) mounted horizontally on a horizontal rail portion (5) of one guide rail (1B), and the secondary conductor (16) and a linear motor body (17) supported by a transport train (2) facing the transport train (2) .The power supply means (10) is connected to the horizontal rail (5) of the other guide rail (1A). A pair of non-contact power feeding guide paths (21) which are parallel to the left and right horizontal sides and are mounted along the rail length direction
And a guide coil (22) supported by a transfer train (2) so as to be located between the pair of guide paths (21).
And the transport train (2) is positioned vertically inside each guide rail (1A, 1B).
A pair of front and rear positioning vertical axes that contact the end faces (4b, 5a)
A guide provided with rollers (7a to 7d) and having a power supply means (10)
The rollers (7a, 7b) adjacent to the drain (1A) are fixed in position.
And the guide rail (1B) on the side where the driving means (9) for traveling is located.
Adjacent rollers (7c, 7d) are within a certain range horizontally and horizontally.
It is supported so that it can move inward, and by the spring (26)
The guide rail (1B) is urged to press against it.
That, conveying device. 2. Each of the guide rails (1A, 1B) has a horizontal rail portion.
(5) extends from the lower end of the outer vertical mounting (4).
A secondary conductor of the driving means (9) having an L-shaped surface
(16) and the guide path (21) of the feeding means (10)
(1A, 1B) above the horizontal rail (5)
The wheels (6) of the train (2) are perpendicular to the guide rails (1A, 1B).
Roll the upper end surface (4a) of the mounting section (4) to move the transport train (2).
Each positioning vertical axis roller (7a to 7d) is
Abuts on the inner vertical surface (4b) of the vertical mounting part (4) of the
The transport device according to claim 1 , wherein 3. Each of the guide rails (1A, 1B) has a horizontal rail portion.
(5) is extended from the upper end of the outer vertical mounting (4).
It is of a face-inverted L type, and has a secondary drive means (9).
The conductor (16) and the guide path (21) of the feeding means (10) are
(1A, 1B) below the horizontal rail (5)
The wheels (6) of the train (2) are connected to the guide rails (1A, 1B).
Roll the upper side of the horizontal rail (5) to move the transport train (2).
Each positioning vertical axis roller (7a to 7d) is
(1A, 1B) on the inner vertical surface (5a) of the tip of the horizontal rail (5).
The transport device according to claim 1, which is in contact with the transport device.