JP4750957B2 - A position / posture detection system for containers for container handling cranes or container transport vehicles. - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a container terminal of a container handling crane or a container transportation vehicle that efficiently detects the position and posture of a container and a container transportation device such as a chassis or an unmanned carriage at a container terminal. The present invention relates to an attitude detection system.
[0002]
[Prior art]
Conventionally, there has been known a chassis position display facility for positioning the chassis on which the container is mounted while checking a color marker image on the side surface of the chassis photographed by a color camera attached to the transfer crane on a color monitor mounted on the crane. (JP-A-10-36070).
[0003]
In addition, the laser beam is scanned toward the coil, the reflected light is processed by the coil position detection unit to obtain a signal for detecting the position of the coil, and the coil is obtained from the signal, coil data and carry-in data provided in advance. There is known a workpiece position detecting device for measuring the correct position (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 6-298489).
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
However, in the former case, it is necessary to attach a color marker to each side surface of the chassis that carries the container, which is not suitable for handling a large number of chassis. Further, when sunlight or the like is reflected on the color marker, there is a problem that it is difficult to distinguish the color marker.
[0005]
On the other hand, in the latter case, a laser beam is scanned toward the coil, and the reflected light is processed by the coil position detector to obtain a signal for detecting the position of the coil. Since the correct position of the coil is measured from the carry-in data, there is a problem that data processing in the coil position detection unit becomes complicated.
[0006]
By the way, a polygon mirror may be used as the three-dimensional laser sensor, but the polygon mirror has a narrow laser scanning angle. For example, a four-sided polygon mirror has a scanning angle of 90 degrees. Further, it is impossible to arbitrarily set the scanning angle. Further, even when only a limited range is scanned, since the portion outside the range is scanned, the scanning time becomes long. Polygon mirrors are expensive.
[0007]
Therefore, when considering the high efficiency of container handling in the container yard, it is necessary to scan any limited place in a short time. Further, it is necessary to reduce the cost of the sensor itself.
[0008]
The present invention has been made in view of the above-described conventional problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a container or container for a container handling crane that can detect the position and posture of the container or container transport device with high efficiency. It is to provide a position / posture detection system for a transport vehicle.
[0009]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
To solve the above problems, the present onset Ming, consists of three-dimensional laser sensor and a controller provided on the legs of the crane for container handling, the three-dimensional laser sensor comprises a one-dimensional laser rangefinder and a plane mirror The flat mirror is supported by a horizontal axis rotatably provided on a concave frame at the tip of the vertical axis, and a second motor for rotating the flat mirror is provided on the concave frame, and a plane by the second motor is provided. A second encoder for measuring the rotation of the mirror; and a first motor for rotating the vertical axis; and a second encoder for measuring the rotation of the plane mirror by the first motor. A sensor controller for controlling a motor of a three-dimensional laser sensor and a data processing unit, the data processing unit including distance data c input from a one-dimensional laser distance meter; The three-dimensional data of the container or the container transport vehicle is obtained from the rotation angle data d and e input from the encoder, and the edge or center of gravity of the container or the container transport vehicle is calculated from the three-dimensional data, and the calculated container or A traverse carriage on the girder is controlled by a crane control device that inputs an edge or a center of gravity position of the container transport vehicle .
[0010]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a position / posture detection system for a container of a container handling crane or a container transporting vehicle according to the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a laser sensor system.
[0011]
As shown in FIG. 1, the three-dimensional laser sensor system A includes a three-dimensional laser sensor 1 and a controller 2, and an object, that is, a three-dimensional laser sensor 1 installed on a land-side leg 4 of a container crane 3, that is, The container 5 or a container transport device 6 such as a chassis or an unmanned carriage that transports the container is scanned from above, and the controller 2 processes the three-dimensional data of the container 5 or the container transport device 6 obtained from the three-dimensional laser sensor 1. Thus, the position and orientation of the container 5 or the container transport device 6 are detected.
[0012]
The controller 2 includes a sensor controller 7 that controls a motor of the three-dimensional laser sensor 1 and a data processing unit 8 that calculates an edge and a gravity center position of the container 5 or the container transport device 6 that are objects.
[0013]
As shown in FIG. 2, the three-dimensional laser sensor 1 includes a one-dimensional laser distance meter 9, a plane mirror 10 for scanning laser light, two motors 11 and 12 for rotating the mirror 10, and rotation of the mirror. It comprises two encoders 13 and 14 that measure the angle.
[0014]
For example, in the case of the roll-pitch type three-dimensional laser sensor 1, the plane mirror 10 is supported by a pair of X-axis direction axes 16, 16 that are rotatably attached to a concave frame 15. A second motor 12 for rotating the mirror 10 as indicated by a double-headed arrow a is attached to one side of the second encoder, and a second encoder 14 for detecting the rotation angle of the mirror 10 is attached to the other side. ing.
[0015]
Further, the shaft 17 in the Y-axis direction attached to the end surface of the frame body 15 is rotated by the first motor 11 as indicated by a double-headed arrow b. That is, the belt 20 is wound between the belt wheel 18 provided on the shaft 17 in the Y-axis direction and the belt wheel 19 attached to the rotation shaft (not shown) of the first motor 11. The rotation is transmitted to the Y-axis direction shaft 17 via the belt 20. In addition, the first encoder 13 is attached to one of the supports 21 that support the shaft 17 in the Y-axis direction.
[0016]
Further, the data processing unit 8 of the controller 2 receives distance data c from the one-dimensional laser rangefinder 9 and mirror angle data d and e from the first and second encoders 13 and 14, respectively. Commands f, g, and h from the sensor controller 7 are input to the second motors 11 and 12 and the crane control device 22, respectively.
[0017]
The data processing unit 8 obtains the three-dimensional data of the object from the distance data c input from the one-dimensional laser rangefinder 9 and the rotation angle data d and e input from the encoders 13 and 14. It has a function of calculating the edge and the center of gravity position of an object from three-dimensional data. Further, the data processing device 8 issues a command to the sensor controller 7 to control the rotation of the first and second motors 11 and 12, in other words, the rotation angle of the mirror 10.
[0018]
Next, the operation of the container position / posture detection system configured as described above will be described.
[0019]
As shown in FIG. 3, when the container transport device 6 with the container 5 mounted below the three-dimensional laser sensor 1 is stopped, the three-dimensional laser sensor 1 is activated and the plane mirror 10 is indicated by two-headed arrows a and b. , The laser beam i is emitted from the one-dimensional laser rangefinder 9 and the container 5 is scanned.
[0020]
The laser beam i emitted from the one-dimensional laser rangefinder 9 is reflected by the plane mirror 10 and reaches the container 5. The reflected light reflected on the container 5 is reflected again by the plane mirror 10 and returned to the one-dimensional laser rangefinder 9 to detect the distance to the container. The distance data c is input to the data processing unit 8. (See FIG. 2). Further, since the rotation angles d and e of the plane mirror 10 are input from the first and second encoders 13 and 14 to the data processing unit 8, distance data d input from the one-dimensional laser distance meter 9; The three-dimensional position data of the container in the orthogonal coordinate system can be obtained from the rotation angle data d and e of the mirror 10 input from the first and second encoders 13 and 14.
[0021]
The input of the distance data d by the one-dimensional laser distance meter 9 and the input of the rotation angle data d and e of the mirror 10 by the first and second encoders 13 and 14 are performed at every sample time.
[0022]
The data processing unit 8 matrixes the three-dimensional position data with respect to the horizontal plane, and obtains the edge of the container upper surface by performing differentiation in the X-axis and Y-axis directions, and calculates the area of the container upper surface from the obtained edge. To obtain the center of gravity of the upper surface of the container.
[0023]
Since the obtained edge and center of gravity of the container upper surface are input to the crane control device 22 as a signal h from the data processing unit 8 (see FIG. 1), the crane control device 22 that has input the edge and center of gravity of the container upper surface is Based on the edge of the upper surface of the container and the position of the center of gravity, the traveling motor, the traversing motor, the hoisting motor, and the like mounted on the traversing carriage 24 on the girder 23 are controlled to transport the container 5 on the container transporting device 6.
[0024]
As described above, since the present invention has applied the three-dimensional laser sensor system using the laser distance meter and the roll-pitch type plane mirror, the position of the container is compared with the conventional method that does not employ these devices. And the posture can be detected quickly and with high accuracy. As a result, the cycle time can be shortened and the container can be transported efficiently.
[0025]
In the above description, the case where the position and orientation of the container are detected has been described. However, the position and orientation of the container transport device on which the container is mounted can be similarly detected.
[0026]
In the above description, the method for calculating an edge has been described as a method for obtaining an edge by matrixing three-dimensional data. However, the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the least square method, that is, the three-dimensional data in the obtained orthogonal coordinate system It is also possible to use a method of extracting edge portion data from the data and calculating a straight line of the edge from the extracted data using the least square method.
[0027]
In the above description, the case where the roll pitch method is applied as the driving method of the flat mirror has been described. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and for example, a yaw pitch method may be adopted. Further, as examples of the arrangement of the plane mirror and the laser distance meter, five examples can be further considered. However, the same reference numerals are assigned to the same components, and detailed description thereof is omitted.
[0028]
【The invention's effect】
As described above, the present invention includes a laser distance meter, a plane mirror supported by two mutually intersecting shafts, a motor that rotates each of the shafts, and an encoder that detects each rotation angle of the shaft. A three-dimensional laser sensor,
A sensor controller for controlling each of the motors;
Data processing for obtaining three-dimensional data of an object from distance data input from the laser distance meter and rotation angle data input from the encoder, and calculating an edge and a gravity center position of the object from the three-dimensional data Therefore, the position and posture of the container can be detected quickly and with high accuracy as compared with the conventional method.
[0029]
Further, since a plane mirror is used for the three-dimensional laser sensor, the scanning range is wider than that of the conventional polygon mirror system. Further, it is possible to scan only a limited range within the scanning range.
[0030]
Therefore, by scanning only the necessary part, the position and orientation of the container and the container transport device can be quickly detected, and the cycle time can be shortened.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a position / posture detection system for a container of a container handling crane or a container transport vehicle according to the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a schematic view of a three-dimensional laser sensor system.
FIG. 3 is an operation explanatory diagram of a three-dimensional laser sensor.
FIG. 4 is a perspective view including a partial cross-section of a yaw / pitch type three-dimensional laser sensor.
FIG. 5 is a layout view of a laser sensor and a rotating mirror.
FIG. 6 is a layout diagram of a laser sensor and a rotating mirror.
FIG. 7 is a layout diagram of a laser sensor and a rotating mirror.
FIG. 8 is a layout view of a laser sensor and a rotating mirror.
FIG. 9 is a layout diagram of a laser sensor and a rotating mirror.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Three-dimensional laser sensor 7 Sensor controller 8 Data processing part 9 One-dimensional laser rangefinder 10 Flat mirror 11, 12 Motor 13, 14 Encoder c Distance data d, e Rotation angle data

Claims (1)

Consists of a three-dimensional laser sensor and controller provided on the legs of a container handling crane,
The three-dimensional laser sensor includes a one-dimensional laser rangefinder and a plane mirror, and the plane mirror is supported by a horizontal axis rotatably provided on a concave frame at the tip of a vertical axis, and the concave frame A second motor for rotating the plane mirror, a second encoder for measuring the rotation of the plane mirror by the second motor, a first motor for rotating the vertical axis, and a plane mirror by the first motor A second encoder for measuring the rotation of
The controller includes a sensor controller that controls a motor of a three-dimensional laser sensor and a data processing unit. The data processing unit includes distance data c input from a one-dimensional laser distance meter, rotation angle data d input from an encoder, e. Obtain the three-dimensional data of the container or container transport vehicle from e, and calculate the edge or center of gravity of the container or container transport vehicle from this three-dimensional data,
A position / posture detection system for a container of a container handling container or a container transporting vehicle that controls a traverse carriage on a girder by a crane control device that receives the calculated edge or center of gravity position of the container or the container transporting vehicle.

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