JP5707833B2 - Transport vehicle and transport system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a technical field of a transport vehicle that transports an object to be transported such as a container in which various substrates for manufacturing a semiconductor device and the like are accommodated on a track, and a transport system including the transport vehicle.

  As this type of transport vehicle, for example, a suspension type vehicle (so-called OHT: Overhead Hoist Transport) that transports a transported object such as a FOUP (Front Opening Unified Pod) by traveling on a track laid on the ceiling is known. ing. Such a transport vehicle may be provided with an obstacle sensor for preventing a collision with an obstacle present in the travel area (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

JP 2009-237866 A

  However, in the above-described technique, if the scanning range of the obstacle sensor is set in the horizontal direction, there is a possibility that the obstacle sensor provided in another transport vehicle may cause a false detection. That is, there is a possibility that the obstacle sensors interfere with each other when the laser light emitted from the obstacle sensor of one transport vehicle is incident on the obstacle sensor of another transport vehicle.

  In order to prevent such interference, for example, a method of shifting the scanning range of the obstacle sensor slightly upward from the horizontal direction is conceivable. Obstacles that are located will be difficult to detect. Since the obstacle is often located on the lower side of the transport vehicle, such a configuration is not preferable.

  On the other hand, when using the method of shifting the scanning range of the obstacle sensor downward from the horizontal direction, the scanning range reaches a relatively low position. There is a risk of detection. That is, there is a possibility that even objects that should not be detected as obstacles may be detected as obstacles.

  Furthermore, the laser beam used for scanning by the obstacle sensor is typically emitted from the inside of about 2 to 3 cm from the lower end of the sensor. Therefore, there is a possibility that the range of 2, 3 cm below the obstacle sensor becomes a dead space where no obstacle can be detected.

  As described above, the above-described technique has a technical problem that it is difficult to accurately detect an obstacle that interferes with traveling of the transport vehicle.

  This invention is made | formed in view of the problem mentioned above, for example, and makes it a subject to provide the conveyance vehicle and conveyance system which can detect suitably the obstruction which exists in a driving | running | working area | region.

In order to solve the above problems, the transport vehicle of the present invention travels along a track, the transport unit is attached to the travel unit, and can load and transport an object to be transported, and the transport unit. And a pair of obstacle sensors provided around the edge of the front or rear surface of the pair of obstacle sensors, the pair of obstacle sensors being arranged so as to be in a C shape when viewed from the front. In addition, the scanning ranges are arranged such that the scanning ranges intersect with each other when viewed from the front , and the intersection lines of the scanning ranges are parallel to the traveling direction of the traveling unit .

  In the transport vehicle of the present invention, the travel unit travels on the track, and the transport unit attached to the travel unit transports the object to be transported. In addition, when the track is laid on the ceiling, the transport unit is attached in a form suspended from the traveling unit. In addition, when the track is laid on the ground, the transport unit is attached on the traveling unit. The transport unit includes, for example, a gripping unit that grips the object to be transported. The gripping unit grips the object to be transported and loads the object to be transported.

  Further, the transport vehicle of the present invention is provided with a pair of obstacle sensors around the front portion or the rear portion of the transport portion. In addition, the "front part or rear surface part" here refers to the part located in the front side and the rear side when it sees in the advancing direction of a conveyance vehicle. In addition, the “end portion” here is an end portion on the side opposite to the track (that is, a lower end portion in a transport vehicle traveling on a track laid on the ceiling, a track laid on the ground). It points to the upper end of a traveling vehicle. The obstacle sensor is provided as a pair on the front surface portion, a pair on the rear surface portion, or a pair on each of the front surface portion and the rear surface portion. The obstacle sensor is configured to detect an obstacle existing in a range irradiated with the laser beam by detecting the reflected laser beam while irradiating the laser beam, for example.

  Here, particularly in the present invention, the pair of obstacle sensors are arranged so as to be inclined so as to form a square shape when viewed from the front. For example, when a pair of sensors are provided on the front part, the obstacle sensor located on the left side is slightly tilted clockwise while the obstacle sensor located on the right side is counterclockwise when the front part is viewed from the front. Slightly inclined to. The “tilt” here is based on the state in which the scanning range of the obstacle sensor is along the horizontal direction, and the scanning range of the obstacle sensor with respect to the horizontal direction is the amount by which the obstacle sensor is tilted. Will be inclined. The inclination angle of the obstacle sensor is a design matter and can be set as appropriate. For example, each obstacle sensor is inclined by 5 degrees.

  In the present invention, the pair of obstacle sensors are further arranged so that their scanning ranges intersect each other. That is, as described above, the pair of obstacle sensors are arranged in a letter C shape, so that each scanning range is inclined in the opposite direction from the horizontal direction (in other words, the letter C becomes an inverted letter C shape) It intersects in an X shape near the midpoint of the pair of obstacle sensors.

  According to the above-described configuration, the scanning range of the pair of obstacle sensors is a portion that is substantially horizontal in the mutual line portion (that is, a portion that intersects in an X shape), and is a portion that deviates laterally from the transport unit. In this case, the height is significantly different from that of the obstacle sensor itself. In addition, since the pair of obstacle sensors are arranged in a C shape, the intersecting line portion of the scanning range exists at a position slightly closer to the end side than the height at which the pair of obstacle sensors are arranged. Become. As a result of the above, in the front direction when viewed from the transport vehicle, scanning is performed along the horizontal direction with reference to the position shifted to the end side from the obstacle sensor. Scanning is performed at a position that is relatively large and different from the sensor.

  If it is such a scanning range, it will become possible to detect the obstacle located in front of a conveyance vehicle (namely, traveling area which a conveyance vehicle passes) very suitably. More specifically, since the intersection portion is on the end side with respect to the obstacle sensor, it is possible to detect the obstacle located on the front end side of the transport vehicle with high accuracy. Specifically, since the suspension type transport vehicle travels on a track laid on the ceiling, it is considered that an obstacle is often located below the transport vehicle. On the other hand, it is considered that a transport vehicle traveling on the ground often has an obstacle positioned above the transport vehicle. Therefore, such an effect is extremely useful in practice.

  Furthermore, in the direction deviating from the transport vehicle to the side, the scanning range has a height that is significantly different from that of the obstacle sensor. For example, laser light emitted from the obstacle sensor of the transport vehicle traveling on an adjacent track, etc. Can be prevented from being detected. That is, it is possible to effectively prevent erroneous detection due to incidence of light that should not be incident on the obstacle sensor.

  As described above, according to the transport vehicle of the present invention, the pair of obstacle sensors arranged in a letter C shape can detect an obstacle that may interfere with the travel of the transport vehicle. Is possible.

  In one aspect of the transport vehicle of the present invention, the pair of obstacle sensors are arranged such that the line of mutual scanning range extends along the horizontal direction.

  According to this aspect, since the intersection line of the scanning range extends in the horizontal direction, it is possible to suitably detect an obstacle that interferes with the traveling of the transport vehicle. Note that the intersecting line of the scanning range does not need to be completely along the horizontal direction, and the above-described effects can be obtained correspondingly even if the scanning range is only close to the horizontal direction.

  In another aspect of the transport vehicle of the present invention, the pair of obstacle sensors is set such that a portion where the scanning ranges overlap each other is wider than the width of the transport unit.

  According to this aspect, it is possible to detect an obstacle existing in the traveling region of the transport vehicle by each of the pair of obstacle sensors. Note that the “width” in the present embodiment means a width in the horizontal direction and a wide concept including a size in the direction that affects the travel area of the transport vehicle. In this aspect, since the obstacle which exists in a driving | running | working area | region is each detected by two obstacle sensors, an obstacle can be detected more correctly.

  In another aspect of the transport vehicle of the present invention, the pair of obstacle sensors may be configured such that the scanning range of one obstacle sensor is closer to the end portion than the position where the other obstacle sensor is provided. It arrange | positions so that it may be located in the outer side rather than the edge part or this edge part of a rear surface part.

  According to this aspect, scanning (that is, detection of an obstacle) can be performed to the end side of the transport unit or to the outside of the end portion on the end side of the obstacle sensor.

  It is extremely difficult for the obstacle sensor to scan the end side of itself due to its structure. However, according to this aspect, it is possible to scan a portion of one obstacle sensor that cannot be scanned by the other obstacle sensor. That is, an obstacle can be detected so as to cover each other's dead space. Therefore, the obstacle can be detected more suitably.

  In another aspect of the transport vehicle of the present invention, the pair of obstacle sensors are arranged such that a line of mutual scanning range is positioned at an end portion of the front surface portion or the rear surface portion or outside the end portion. Has been.

  According to this aspect, since the intersection line of the scanning range of the pair of obstacle sensors is located at the end of the transport unit or outside the end, the obstacle located on the front end side of the transport vehicle is extremely It can detect suitably.

  In order to solve the above-described problems, the transport system of the present invention includes a plurality of the transport vehicles of the present invention described above (including various aspects thereof).

  According to the transport system of the present invention, since a plurality of transport vehicles are provided, if no measures are taken against the obstacle sensor, the laser beam emitted from the obstacle sensor of one transport vehicle is There is a possibility that an obstacle sensor of another transport vehicle may detect it.

  However, the transport vehicle provided in the transport system of the present invention is the transport vehicle according to the present invention described above, and the pair of obstacle sensors are provided in a C shape. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the erroneous detection caused by the interference of the obstacle sensors between the transport vehicles and to detect the obstacles very preferably.

  The effect | action and other gain of this invention are clarified from the form for implementing invention demonstrated below.

It is a top view which shows the whole structure of the conveyance system which concerns on embodiment. It is a side view which shows the structure of the conveyance vehicle which concerns on embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the transfer operation | movement of the conveyance vehicle which concerns on embodiment. It is a perspective view which shows the horizontal transfer operation | movement of the conveyance vehicle which concerns on embodiment. It is a front view which shows arrangement | positioning and a scanning range of an obstruction sensor. It is a side view which shows the arrangement | positioning and scanning range of an obstruction sensor. It is a top view which shows arrangement | positioning and a scanning range of an obstruction sensor. It is a top view which shows the some conveyance vehicle which drive | works the mutually adjacent track | orbit. It is a front view which shows the scanning range of the obstacle sensor in the conveyance vehicle which concerns on a comparative example. It is a front view which shows the scanning range of the obstacle sensor in the conveyance vehicle which concerns on embodiment. It is a side view which shows the scanning range of the obstruction sensor in the conveyance vehicle which concerns on a comparative example. It is a side view which shows the scanning range of the obstacle sensor in the conveyance vehicle which concerns on embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  First, the overall configuration of the transport system according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 1 is a top view showing the overall configuration of the transport system according to the embodiment.

  In FIG. 1, the transport system according to the present embodiment includes a track 100, a transport vehicle 200, and a controller 300.

  The track 100 is laid on the ceiling, for example, and is made of a metal such as aluminum or stainless steel.

  A plurality of transport vehicles 200 are arranged on the track 100, and can travel FOUPs, reticles, and the like that are transported objects by traveling on the track 100.

  The controller 300 includes, for example, an arithmetic circuit and a memory, and is configured to be able to issue a conveyance command to the conveyance vehicle 200. A travel control unit (not shown) provided in the transport vehicle 200 receives the transport command from the controller 300 and causes the transport vehicle 200 to travel to a predetermined position.

  Although not shown here, a plurality of temporary storage shelves for temporarily storing FOUPs are provided at positions along the track 100. The configuration of this temporary storage shelf will be described in detail later.

  Next, the configuration of the transport vehicle 200 traveling on the track 100 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 2 is a side view showing a configuration of the transport vehicle according to the embodiment.

  In FIG. 2, the transport vehicle 200 includes a traveling unit 210, a main body unit 220, a moving unit 230, a lifting belt 240, a gripping unit 250, and a pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262.

  The transport vehicle 200 travels along the track 100 while the traveling roller 215 rolls as the traveling unit 210 applies a propulsive force by, for example, a linear motor. A main body 220, which is an example of the “conveying unit” of the present invention, is attached to the lower surface of the traveling unit 210 so as to hang.

  A moving part 230 is attached to the main body part 220. The moving unit 230 can move to the side of the track 100 (that is, the horizontal direction in the drawing). A holding part 250 that holds the FOUP is attached to the lower surface of the moving part 230 by a lifting belt 240. The gripping part 250 can be raised and lowered with respect to the main body part 220 by unwinding or winding up the lifting belt 240.

  The pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 perform scanning, for example, by irradiating laser light, and detect obstacles existing in a scanning range (that is, a range where laser light can be irradiated). The pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 are provided on the front surface of the transport unit 220, respectively. That is, it is provided at a position where an obstacle located in the traveling direction of the transport vehicle 200 can be detected. Note that the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 may be provided on the rear surface of the transport unit 220.

  In particular, the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 are arranged in a C shape by being inclined in opposite directions. The effects unique to this embodiment obtained by such an arrangement will be described in detail later.

  Next, a method for transferring FOUP using a transport vehicle will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 3 is a perspective view illustrating the transfer operation of the transport vehicle according to the embodiment, and FIG. 4 is a perspective view illustrating the lateral transfer operation of the transport vehicle according to the embodiment.

  In FIG. 3, when the transport vehicle 200 transfers the FOUP 400 on the temporary storage shelf 510 (that is, the under buffer) positioned immediately below the track 100, the transport vehicle 200 first travels on the track 100 and temporarily Stop above the FOUP 400 installed on the storage shelf 510.

  Subsequently, as shown in the drawing, the lifting belt 240 is unwound and the gripping portion 250 is lowered to the position of the FOUP 400. And the fine adjustment of the position of the holding part 250 and the FOUP 400 is performed, and the FOUP 400 is held.

  When the FOUP 400 is gripped, the elevating belt 240 is wound up, and the grip portion 250 and the gripped FOUP 400 are raised to the position of the main body portion 220. Then, the transport vehicle 200 travels again on the track 100, and the FOUP 400 is transported.

  In FIG. 4, when the FOUP 400 is installed on the temporary storage shelf 520 (that is, the side buffer) located at the side of the track 100, after the moving unit 230 moves to the side of the track 100. The elevating belt 240 is unwound and the gripping part 250 is lowered to the position of the FOUP 400. By operating in this way, the FOUP 400 can be laterally transferred from the track unit 100.

  Next, the scanning range of the obstacle sensor in the transport vehicle according to the present embodiment will be described in detail with reference to FIGS. FIG. 5 is a front view showing the arrangement and scanning range of the obstacle sensor. FIG. 6 is a side view showing the arrangement and scanning range of the obstacle sensor. Further, FIG. 7 is a top view showing the arrangement and scanning range of the obstacle sensor.

  In FIG. 5, in the transport vehicle 200 according to the present embodiment, since the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 are arranged in a letter C shape, the scanning range is an X letter as shown in the figure. Specifically, A1 that is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 261 and A2 that is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 262 intersect each other.

  According to such a configuration, the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 can cover each other's dead space (that is, an area that cannot be scanned). For example, like the area surrounded by a circle in the figure, the area immediately below the obstacle sensors 261 and 262 cannot be scanned by itself. However, this dead space is eliminated by arranging the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 in a square shape. Specifically, A1 which is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 261 can scan an area immediately below the obstacle sensor 262, and A2 which is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 262 is an area immediately below the obstacle sensor 261. Can be scanned.

  In FIG. 6, an intersection line Ax between A1 which is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 261 and A2 which is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 262 extends in the horizontal direction when viewed from the side. As can be seen from FIG. 5, the position of the intersection line Ax is lower than the position where the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 are provided (more specifically, the obstacle sensors 261 and 262). (Below the laser beam irradiation part for scanning). Therefore, an obstacle located on the lower front side of the transport unit 220 can be detected suitably. 5 and 6, the position of the light beam Ax exists at a position overlapping the main body 220. However, the angle of the obstacle sensors 261 and 262 may be adjusted to be a position below the main body 220. Good.

  In FIG. 7, the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 are arranged to face different directions when viewed from above. Thereby, A1 which is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 261 and A2 which is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 262 partially overlap and cover an extremely wide area. Specifically, if the obstacle sensors 261 and 262 are arranged in the opposite direction by 20 degrees each, a total scanning area of 220 degrees can be realized. Although the scanning ranges A1 and A2 in FIG. 7 are each fan-shaped, the scanning range for detecting such an obstacle can be arbitrarily changed by programming or the like.

  Next, further effects of the pair of obstacle sensors described above will be described with reference to FIGS. FIG. 8 is a top view showing a plurality of transport vehicles traveling on tracks adjacent to each other. FIG. 9 is a front view showing the scanning range of the obstacle sensor in the transport vehicle according to the comparative example, and FIG. 10 is a front view showing the scanning range of the obstacle sensor in the transport vehicle according to the embodiment. Further, FIG. 11 is a side view showing the scanning range of the obstacle sensor in the transport vehicle according to the comparative example, and FIG. 12 is a side view showing the scanning range of the obstacle sensor in the transport vehicle according to the embodiment.

  In FIG. 8, the transport vehicles 200a, 200b, and 200c travel on the track 100a, and the transport vehicle 200d travels on the track 100b adjacent to the track 100a so as to face the transport vehicles 200a, 200b, and 200c. And In this case, the laser light emitted from the obstacle sensor 262 of the conveyance vehicles 200a, 200b, and 200c is also emitted in the direction of the obstacle sensor 262 of the conveyance vehicle 200d. That is, when the transport vehicles 200 are traveling so as to face each other on the tracks 100 adjacent to each other, the laser light emitted from the obstacle sensor of the transport vehicle traveling on one track is traveling on the other track. Irradiation also occurs in the direction of the obstacle sensor of the traveling vehicle that is traveling.

  In FIG. 9, if the transport vehicle 200 has only one obstacle sensor 261, the scanning area A1 of the obstacle sensor 261 in the transport vehicle 200a traveling on the track 100a travels on the track 100b. It will overlap with the obstacle sensor 261 in the transport vehicle 200d. That is, the laser light emitted from the obstacle sensor 261 of the transport vehicle 200a enters the obstacle sensor 261 of the transport vehicle 200b. In such a case, the obstacle sensors may interfere with each other and cause erroneous detection.

  In FIG. 10, however, in the transport vehicle 200 according to the present embodiment, as described above, the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 are arranged in a letter C shape. For this reason, A1 which is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 261 in the transport vehicle 200a and A2 which is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 262 are shifted in the vertical direction and do not overlap with the obstacle sensor 262 in the transport vehicle 200d. Therefore, it is possible to prevent the obstacle sensors from interfering with each other.

  In FIG. 11, it is considered that the interference of the obstacle sensor as described above can be prevented by making the direction of the obstacle sensor 261 slightly upward, for example. However, in such a method, since the scanning area A1 of the obstacle sensor 261 is shifted upward, an obstacle such as the worker 600 as shown in the figure cannot be detected. The height of the head of the worker 600 has reached the height of the transport vehicle 200 as can be seen from the figure. For this reason, if the worker 600 cannot be detected as an obstacle, they may collide with each other, which is extremely dangerous.

  In contrast to this, in the transport vehicle 200 according to the present embodiment in FIG. 12, an intersection line Ax of A1 that is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 261 and A2 that is the scanning range of the obstacle sensor 262 extends in the horizontal direction. . In particular, the intersection line Ax of the scanning range is located below the obstacle sensors 261 and 262. Therefore, it is possible to reliably detect the worker 600 existing in the traveling area of the transport vehicle 200 as an obstacle.

  As described above, according to the transport system according to the present embodiment, the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 in the transport vehicle 200 are arranged in a letter C shape, and therefore exist in the travel region of the transport vehicle 200. Obstacles can be suitably detected.

  In the above-described embodiment, the case where the transport vehicle 200 travels on the track 100 laid on the ceiling has been described as an example. However, the transport vehicle 200 travels on the track 100 laid on the ground (for example, OHS: Over). The present invention is also applicable to Head Shuttle). In this case, the same effect can be obtained if the pair of obstacle sensors 261 and 262 are arranged in the shape of an inverted C near the upper end of the main body 220.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and can be appropriately changed without departing from the scope or spirit of the invention that can be read from the claims and the entire specification. The transport system is also included in the technical scope of the present invention.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 ... Track, 200 ... Conveyor vehicle, 210 ... Traveling part, 215 ... Traveling roller, 220 ... Main part, 230 ... Moving part, 240 ... Lifting belt, 250 ... Gripping part, 261, 262 ... Obstacle sensor, 300 ... Controller , 400 ... FOUP, 510, 520 ... Temporary storage shelf, Temporary storage shelf, 600 ... Worker

Claims (5)

A traveling section that travels along the track,
A transport unit that is attached to the traveling unit and capable of stacking and transporting a transported object;
A pair of obstacle sensors provided around the edge of the front part or rear part of the transport part,
The pair of obstacle sensors are arranged so as to be in the shape of a letter C when viewed from the front, and so that the scanning ranges intersect with each other when viewed from the front . It is arrange | positioned so that an intersection line may become an intersection line parallel to the running direction of the said travel part . The conveyance vehicle characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. The transport vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein the pair of obstacle sensors is set such that a portion where the scanning ranges overlap each other is wider than the width of the transport unit. In the pair of obstacle sensors, the scanning range of one obstacle sensor is closer to the end portion than the position where the other obstacle sensor is provided, and is more than the end portion of the front surface portion or the rear surface portion or the end portion. It is arrange | positioned so that it may be located outside, The conveyance vehicle of Claim 1 or 2 characterized by the above-mentioned. 2. The pair of obstacle sensors are arranged such that a line of mutual scanning range is located at an end portion of the front surface portion or the rear surface portion or outside the end portion. The conveyance vehicle as described in any one of 3 to 3 . A transport system comprising a plurality of transport vehicles according to any one of claims 1 to 4 .

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