JP7331655B2 - automated guided vehicle - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to automatic guided vehicles.

In the automatic guided vehicle system disclosed in Patent Document 1, as shown in FIG. 19, the automatic guided vehicle 200 autonomously travels between the first follow section and the second follow section in the route of the automatic guided vehicle 200. An autonomous traveling section is provided, and as a pattern for returning the automatic guided vehicle 200 in the autonomous traveling section to the lead wire 201 in the second following section, the outer edges that hit both sides in the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the automatic guided vehicle 200 are autonomously traveling. A return pattern 202 that widens toward the section side is laid, and when the outer edge is detected, the autonomous traveling control is switched to the follow-up traveling control.

JP 2012-89077 A

By the way, an unmanned guided vehicle travels along a preset route, but when it travels in a certain section where a guide line cannot be installed in the middle of the travel route, the technique of Patent Document 1 is used to return to the guide line. If a return pattern that expands to the left and right in the direction of travel is provided in the vehicle, it is necessary to provide a space for the vehicle to run on both the left and right so that the vehicle can travel with a width corresponding to the return pattern. If you drive straight from the original guide line to the destination guide line without providing a return pattern that expands left and right in the direction of travel, variations in the direction of travel will occur due to mechanical errors of the vehicle. , it becomes difficult to transfer from the guide line of the transfer source to the guide line of the transfer destination.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION An object of the present invention is to provide an automatic guided vehicle that can easily transfer from a first guide line to a second guide line through a non-guide line section in which no guide line is provided in the middle of the traveling route. .

An automatic guided vehicle for solving the above problems is an automatic guided vehicle that travels along a guide line extending on the floor while detecting the guide line with an in-vehicle guide sensor, and the traveling route includes the The vehicle has a non-guide line section in which no guide line is provided, and travels while detecting the second guide line with the vehicle-mounted guide sensor from the section where the vehicle travels while detecting the first guide line with the vehicle-mounted guide sensor. Turning for detection of the second guide line by the in-vehicle guide sensor during the period from entering the non-guide line section in the non-guide line section to the section until detecting the second guide line The turning operation is a turning movement that is performed after traveling a predetermined distance. and a second turn in which the machine base is turned to a predetermined angle by turning in a direction opposite to the turning direction of the first turn, after the second turn. The gist is that straight running is performed .

According to this, the non-guide line in the non-guide line section from the section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor detects the first guide line to the section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor detects the second guide line. After entering the section and before detecting the second guide line, a turning motion for detecting the second guide line by the in-vehicle guide sensor is performed. When simply traveling straight from the first guide line to the second guide line, it is difficult to detect the second guide line due to variations in the traveling direction due to mechanical errors of the vehicle. The second guide line can be easily detected by approaching from the left and right directions with respect to the traveling direction by performing the turning motion. As a result, it is possible to easily transfer from the first guide line to the second guide line through a non-guide line section in which no guide line is provided in the middle of the travel route.

Further, in the automatic guided vehicle, when performing the meandering travel, it is preferable to perform linear travel to the extension line after the turning travel so that the extension of the first guide line becomes the meandering center line. In this case, the meandering centerline can be corrected.

Further , in the automatic guided vehicle, it is preferable to perform the turning operation after traveling a predetermined distance.
An automatic guided vehicle for solving the above problems is an automatic guided vehicle that travels along a guide line extending on the floor while detecting the guide line with an in-vehicle guide sensor, and the traveling route includes the The vehicle has a non-guide line section in which no guide line is provided, and travels while detecting the second guide line with the vehicle-mounted guide sensor from the section where the vehicle travels while detecting the first guide line with the vehicle-mounted guide sensor. Turning for detection of the second guide line by the in-vehicle guide sensor during the period from entering the non-guide line section in the non-guide line section to the section until detecting the second guide line The turning motion is a turning motion that is performed after running straight for a predetermined distance. and a second turn in which the machine base is turned to a predetermined angle by turning in a direction opposite to the turning direction of the first turn, after the second turn. The gist is that straight running is performed.
Also, in the automatic guided vehicle, turning for detection of the second guide line by the in-vehicle guide sensor performed from entering the current non-guide line section to detecting the second guide line The processing content of the operation is stored, and when the second guide line is detected in the second turn during the previous turn, the turning direction of the first turn is determined in the next turn. is the opposite side of the stored previous turning direction . In this case, the learning function can easily detect the second guide line.

According to the present invention, it is possible to easily transfer from the first guide line to the second guide line through the non-guide line section in which no guide line is provided in the middle of the travel route.

1 is a schematic plan view of an automatic guided vehicle according to a first embodiment; FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an automatic guided vehicle according to a first embodiment; FIG. 4 is a flow chart for explaining the operation of the first embodiment; (a), (b) is a schematic plan view showing the travel locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view showing the travel locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the first embodiment; (a), (b), and (c) are schematic plan views showing the traveling locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view showing a travel locus of an automatic guided vehicle in a comparative example; (a), (b), and (c) are schematic plan views showing the traveling locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view showing the travel locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the first embodiment; (a), (b), and (c) are schematic plan views showing the traveling locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the first embodiment. The block diagram of the automatic guided vehicle in 2nd Embodiment. 6 is a flow chart for explaining the operation of the second embodiment; FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view showing the traveling locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the second embodiment; FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view showing the traveling locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the second embodiment; FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view showing the traveling locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the second embodiment; (a), (b) is a schematic plan view showing the travel locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the second embodiment. FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view showing the traveling locus of the automatic guided vehicle for explaining the action in the second embodiment; FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view showing a travel locus of an automatic guided vehicle for explaining another example; Explanatory drawing for demonstrating background art.

(First embodiment)
An embodiment embodying the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1, the automated guided vehicle system 10 has an automated guided vehicle 20 . The automatic guided vehicle 20 is, for example, an automatic towing vehicle. The automatic guided vehicle system 10 runs the automatic guided vehicle 20 along the guide line while detecting the guide line extending on the floor with an in-vehicle guide sensor.

The automatic guided vehicle 20 has a machine base 21 . A machine base 21 is provided with a pair of left and right drive wheels 22 and 23 and a pair of left and right driven wheels 24 and 25 . The driving wheels 22, 23 are rear wheels and the driven wheels 24, 25 are front wheels. The drive wheels 22, 23 are fixed wheels that do not change direction.

The machine base 21 is provided with a left driving wheel motor 26 for rotating the left driving wheel 22 and a right driving wheel motor 27 for rotating the right driving wheel 23 . Driving is performed by rotating the left and right drive wheels 22 and 23 in synchronization with the driving of the motors 26 and 27 . Steering is performed by driving the left and right drive wheels (fixed wheels) 22 and 23 with separate motors 26 and 27 and using the speed difference between them.

A guide sensor 28 is mounted on the machine base 21 . A guide sensor 28 as an in-vehicle guide sensor detects guide lines 41 and 42 (see FIG. 4A) extending on the floor, which is the road surface. Magnetic tapes, for example, are used as the guide lines 41 and 42 , and a magnetic sensor is used as the guide sensor 28 . Alternatively, for example, white lines may be used as the guide lines 41 and 42 and an optical sensor may be used as the guide sensor 28 .

As shown in FIG. 6A, guide lines 41 and 42 can be used to allow the automatic guided vehicle 20 to travel along a preset route. In the travel route, certain sections in which the guide lines 41 and 42 cannot be installed are non-guide line sections.

As shown in FIG. 1, the machine base 21 is equipped with a mark sensor 29 . A mark sensor 29 detects a mark 43 (see FIG. 4A) provided on the floor. A mark 43 is provided laterally at the end of the guide line 41 . A mark 43 indicates the starting point of the non-guide line section, that is, the end point of the traveling section by the guide line 41 . A magnetic mark, for example, is used as the mark 43 , and a magnetic sensor is used as the mark sensor 29 .

As shown in FIG. 2 , the automatic guided vehicle 20 has a controller 30 . The controller 30 is mounted on the machine base 21 .
A guide sensor 28 and a mark sensor 29 are connected to the controller 30 . The controller 30 receives detection signals from the guide sensor 28 and the mark sensor 29 .

A left driving wheel motor 26 and a right driving wheel motor 27 are connected to the controller 30 . The controller 30 controls the left drive wheel motor 26 and the right drive wheel motor 27 to drive and steer the vehicle. The controller 30 can cause the automatic guided vehicle 20 to travel along the guide lines 41 and 42 while the guide sensors 28 detect the guide lines 41 and 42 extending on the floor. A left driving wheel rotation sensor 31 and a right driving wheel rotation sensor 32 are connected to the controller 30 . The controller 30 uses the signals from the left driving wheel rotation sensor 31 and the right driving wheel rotation sensor 32 to obtain the X-axis coordinate position of the machine base and the Y-axis coordinate of the machine base as odometry information for estimating the self-position. The position and attitude angle θ of the machine base can be detected.

Next, the action will be described.
The controller 30 executes the processing shown in FIG.
4(a), 4(b), and 5 show an example of the travel route of the automatic guided vehicle 20. FIG.

In the drawings, the horizontal plane is defined by orthogonal X and Y directions.
In FIGS. 4A, 4B, 5, 6A, 6B, and 6C, as the travel route of the automatic guided vehicle 20, a guide line 41 linearly extending in the Y direction is used. are formed, and a travel route is formed by a guide line 42 extending linearly in the Y direction. The guide line 41 and the guide line 42 are formed on a straight line. The traveling route of the unmanned guided vehicle 20 has a non-guide line section in which the guide lines 41 and 42 are not provided.

4(a), 4(b) and 5 show loci during running about the centers Pc of the left and right drive wheels 22 and 23 in FIG. In FIG. 4A, a trajectory is drawn from point P1 where the mark 43 is detected to point P2→point P3→. In FIG. 4B, a trajectory is drawn from point P1 where the mark 43 is detected to point P2→point P3→. From the point P1 where the mark 43 is detected in FIG. 5, a locus of point P2→point P3→point P4→point P5→is drawn.

4(a), (b), and FIG. 5, the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the first guide line 41 from the section in which the automatic guided vehicle 20 travels while the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the second guide line 41. When entering a non-guide line section in a non-guide line section up to a section traveling while detecting the line 42, the following is performed. As shown in FIGS. 6(b) and 6(c), while the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the second guide line 42 from the section where the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the first guide line 41, Turning operation for detection of the second guide wire 42 by the in-vehicle guide sensor 28 during the period from entering the non-guide wire section in the non-guide wire section to the traveling section until detecting the second guide wire 42 I do. Also, the turning motion is a meandering movement in which turning movement is continuously performed. In addition, it has a learning function that reflects the contents of the first run to the second run. 28 stores the processing contents of the turning operation for detecting the second guide line 42, and performs the process from entering the next non-guide line section to detecting the second guide line 42. This is reflected in the turning motion for the detection of the second guide line 42 by the guide sensor 28 .

Specifically, in FIG. 3, when the controller 30 detects the mark, it sets the turning direction, turning radius, and turning angle as turning parameters in step S100. In step S101, the controller 30 acquires odometry information and calculates its own position (machine base X-axis coordinate position, machine base Y-axis coordinate position, machine base attitude angle θ) from the odometry. The controller 30 issues a turning command to correct lateral deviation from the imaginary guide line Lg1 (see FIGS. 8A, 8B, and 8C) when the guide line 41 of the transfer source is extended in step S102. . In other words, the amount of deviation from the position of the guide sensor in the direction of travel calculated from the odometry is virtually calculated, and guidance is provided to reduce the amount of deviation. In step S103, the controller 30 determines whether or not the traveled distance A (see FIGS. 4A, 4B, and 5) has been traveled. If not traveled, the process returns to step S101. Move to S104. As a result, the travel in the section without the guide line ends.

In step S104, the controller 30 determines whether or not the guide line 42 of the transfer destination after the end of straight running has been detected. If not detected, the process proceeds to step S105.
In step S105, the controller 30 acquires odometry information in the same manner as in step S101, and calculates its own position (machine base X-axis coordinate position, machine base Y-axis coordinate position, machine attitude angle θ) from the odometry. In step S106, the controller 30 issues a turning command to correct the lateral shift from the imaginary guide line Lg1 when the guide line 41 of the transfer source is extended in the same manner as in step S102. In steps S102 and S106 of FIG. 3, when the mark is detected in the self-position estimation, the attitude angle θ of the machine base is assumed to be zero degrees, and then the distance by which the left and right wheels turn and the angle of the machine base caused by it are sequentially calculated. Then, the guide sensor 28 is corrected to be on the extension line of the guide line 41.

In step S107, the controller 30 determines whether or not the traveled distance B (see FIGS. 4A, 4B, and 5) has been traveled. If not traveled, the process returns to step S104. Move to S108. When the controller 30 can detect the guide line 42 of the transfer destination in step S104, the controller 30 proceeds to step S116, and returns to traveling along the guide line 42 in step S116.

In step S108, the controller 30 determines whether or not the guide line 42 of the transfer destination has been detected during turning, and if it cannot be detected, the process proceeds to step S109.
In FIG. 4A, it is possible to transfer to the guide line 42 of the transfer destination only by traveling straight from a point P2, which is a straight line traveling a distance A from the point P1 where the mark 43 is detected, to a point P3, which is a further distance B. shows the case. 4(b) and 5, from point P1 where the mark 43 is detected, a point P2 straightly traveled by a distance A to a point P3 further straightened by a distance B is transferred to the guide line 42 of the transfer destination only by traveling straight ahead. Shows cases where it was not possible.

In step S109, the controller 30 determines that it is impossible to transfer only by traveling straight ahead, and commands turning in the turning direction and turning radius calculated in step S100. The controller 30 determines whether or not the machine base posture angle θ with respect to the guide line 41 of the transfer source has become C degrees when the predetermined turning angle is reached in step S110. If there is, the process proceeds to step S111.

When the controller 30 can detect the guide line 42 of the transfer destination in step S108, the controller 30 proceeds to step S116, and returns to traveling along the guide line 42 in step S116.

FIG. 4(b) shows a case where the machine can be transferred to the destination guide line 42 before turning from the point P3 and the attitude angle .theta. FIG. 5 shows a case where it is not possible to transfer to the guide line 42 of the transfer destination before turning from the point P3 to the point P4 at which the machine base attitude angle θ becomes C degrees.

In step S111, the controller 30 determines whether or not the guide line 42 of the transfer destination has been detected during turning, and if it cannot be detected, the process proceeds to step S112.
In step S112, the controller 30 commands left-right turning to turn in the direction opposite to the turning direction in step S109. In FIG. 5, the right turn is changed to the left turn.

In step S113, the controller 30 determines whether or not the machine base attitude angle θ with respect to the guide line 41 of the transfer source has doubled to C degrees due to the predetermined turning angle. If not, the process returns to step S111. , the process proceeds to step S114.

When the controller 30 can detect the guide line 42 of the transfer destination in step S111, the controller 30 proceeds to step S116, and returns to traveling along the guide line 42 in step S116.

In step S114, the controller 30 determines whether or not the guide line 42 of the transfer destination has been detected. If not detected, the process proceeds to step S115. FIG. 5 shows a case where it is impossible to transfer to the guide line 42 of the transfer destination even at a point P5 where the machine base attitude angle θ with respect to the guide line 41 of the transfer source is twice C degrees.

In step S115, the controller 30 stops turning and commands straight running, and returns to step S114. When the controller 30 can detect the guide line 42 of the transfer destination in step S114, the controller 30 proceeds to step S116, and returns to traveling along the guide line 42 in step S116.

FIG. 5 shows a case where the vehicle can travel straight from the point P5 and transfer to the destination guide line 42 .
By storing the location where the guide line 42 is detected, the next operation of the automatic guided vehicle 20 can be corrected.

Specifically, the controller 30 determines the turning direction when the guide line 42 is detected based on the previous operation. Specifically, since there is no turning in step S104, no storage is required, but the turning start direction is stored in step S108. In step S111, the turning start direction and the opposite direction are stored.

As shown in FIG. 6B, in the first run, if the transfer to the guide line 42 is completed in step S114 in FIG. 3, the next run starts in the opposite direction. Also, as shown in FIG. 6(c), it is assumed that the transfer to the guide line 42 is completed in step S108 of FIG. 3 during the first run. In this case, the next time the vehicle travels, the turning direction will be the same as this time. In this way, it is possible to reduce the number of times of turning until transfer.

As shown in FIGS. 8A, 8B, and 8C, it is also possible to correct the virtual guide line Lg1 when traveling in the non-guide line section depending on whether or not the guide line 42 was detected during the previous operation. That is, as shown in FIG. 8(a), when the virtual guide line Lg1 is drawn on the extension line from the guide line 41 of the transfer source in the first run, it is assumed that the vehicle is transferred to the guide line 42 in step S108 of FIG. At this time, the running locus is deviated to the right from the guide line 42 of the transfer destination due to straight-ahead guidance.

As shown in FIG. 8B, in the second run, the virtual guide line Lg1 is pulled leftward from the extension of the guide line 41 from which the virtual guide line Lg1 is shifted slightly to the left as shown in FIG. Suppose that the guide line 42 is changed in step S108. The inclination of the virtual guide line Lg1 at this time is stored. In this way, the method of drawing the virtual guide line Lg1 is corrected.

As shown in FIG. 8C to shift the virtual guide line Lg1 further to the left, in the third run, when the virtual guide line Lg1 is further tilted to the left from the previous angle and drawn, in step S104 of FIG. be able to. The inclination of the virtual guide line Lg1 at this time is stored. In this way, the method of drawing the virtual guide line Lg1 can be further corrected.

FIG. 7 is a comparative example. In FIG. 7, the non-guide wire section where the guide wires 41 and 42 are not provided is linearly traveled from the time when the guide wire 41 is no longer detected by the guide sensor 28 until the guide wire 42 is detected by the guide sensor 28. Considering the case, the direction of variation is the horizontal direction. The vehicle tries to go straight in the Y direction, which is the traveling direction, but the guide line 42 cannot be detected by the guide sensor 28 due to variations in the X direction.

FIGS. 6A, 6B, and 6C show this embodiment, and the direction of variation is the front-rear direction. In this way, in the comparative example shown in FIG. 7, the variation direction is the left-right direction, but in the present embodiment shown in FIGS. The extending guide wire 42 can be detected by the guide sensor 28 .

6(a), (b), and (c), if the guide wire 41 is not detected by the guide sensor 28, the non-guide wire section in which the guide wires 41 and 42 are not provided is shown in FIG. 6(b). First turn right as shown. If the guide line 42 is still not detected, the guide sensor 28 detects the guide line 42 by first turning to the right and then to the left. That is, the guide sensor 28 can detect the guide line 41 in the Y direction when the vehicle is turning right or left, although it varies.

As described above, in a non-guide line section, simply traveling straight may not reach the target guide position due to variations in machine base straightness. In this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6(a), when the vehicle is traveling in a non-guide line section, self-position estimation and straight-line correction guidance are performed using odometry, thereby reducing variations in machine straightness. Furthermore, when it is not possible to transfer while traveling straight, that is, when it is determined that transfer is not possible while traveling straight, as shown in FIG. can be detected, and the guide line 42 can be detected before reaching the switching point of the turning direction after the start of meandering, as shown in FIG. 6(c). That is, by combining turning travel so that the guide sensor 28 passes through the right-and-left variation range, it becomes possible to transfer to the guide line 42 regardless of the variation in the straightness of the machine.

As a result, it is not necessary to construct the guide in a special shape as shown in FIG. 19, and the installation length of the guide can be reduced. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 9, it is possible to change from the guide line 41 to the guide line 42 and from the guide line 42 to the guide line 41, so that it is possible to travel back and forth.

According to the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(1) A non-guide line section from a section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the first guide line 41 to a section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the second guide line 42 . After entering the guide line section and before detecting the second guide line 42, a turning motion for detecting the second guide line 42 by the in-vehicle guide sensor 28 is performed. In particular, if the second guide line 42 cannot be detected even if the vehicle travels straight from the first guide line 41 toward the second guide line 42 and goes to a place where the second guide line 42 is supposed to be, the vehicle turns. I do.

Therefore, when the vehicle is simply driven straight from the first guide line 41 toward the second guide line 42, the second guide line 42 is displaced due to variations in the traveling direction due to mechanical errors of the vehicle. Hard to detect. The second guide line 42 can be easily detected by approaching from the right and left directions with respect to the direction of travel by performing a turning motion on the portion where the range of variation when traveling straight is widened. As a result, it is possible to easily transfer from the first guide line to the second guide line through a non-guide line section in which no guide line is provided in the middle of the travel route.

(2) The turning motion is a meandering motion in which the turning motion is continuously performed. Therefore, it becomes easier to detect the second guide line 42 .
(3) By performing a turning operation after traveling a predetermined distance (predetermined distance) A, if the turning operation is performed immediately after leaving the first guide line 41, the traveling distance increases and the vehicle passes through the non-guide line section. However, the passing time can be shortened by performing a turning motion after proceeding straight for a predetermined distance.

(4) Processing contents of turning motion for detecting the second guide line 42 by the in-vehicle guide sensor 28 during the period from entering the current non-guide line section to detecting the second guide line 42 is stored, and the rotation operation for detecting the second guide wire 42 by the in-vehicle guide sensor 28 is performed after entering the next non-guide wire section until the second guide wire 42 is detected. reflect.

For example, as shown in FIG. 6(c), when the guide line 42 is detected by turning to the right as determined in advance during the first run, it can be seen that the vehicle has deviated to the left. Further, as shown in FIG. 6(b), when the guide line 42 is detected after turning left after turning right in the first run, it can be seen that the guide line 42 is shifted to the right.

In the case of learning, the learning section is determined by detecting the mark 43 .
Embodiments are not limited to the above, and may be embodied as follows, for example.
○ As shown in FIGS. 10A, 10B, and 10C, when the virtual guide guidance fails to transfer to the guide line 42, the turning motion can be a spot turn. Specifically, if the vehicle cannot be transferred from the state shown in FIG. At this time, as shown in FIG. 10(b), if the vehicle cannot be detected even when turning right, the vehicle is turned left as shown in FIG. 10(c). In this way, when the guide wire 42 is detected during spot turning, the guidance by the guide wire 42 is resumed.

Thus, if the turning motion is spot turning, the second guide line 42 can be detected without traveling.
〇 If the self-position estimation was performed in the non-guide line section and there was a deviation, it was corrected so that the vehicle would proceed straight.

o The learning function may be omitted, in which case the mark 43 may be omitted.
(Second embodiment)
Next, the second embodiment will be described, focusing on differences from the first embodiment.

This embodiment also has the same configuration as that of FIG. Instead of FIG. 2, the automatic guided vehicle 20 includes a controller 30 as shown in FIG. 11 in this embodiment. The controller 30 is mounted on the machine base 21 . A guide sensor 28 and a mark sensor 29 are connected to the controller 30 . The controller 30 receives detection signals from the guide sensor 28 and the mark sensor 29 . A left driving wheel motor 26 and a right driving wheel motor 27 are connected to the controller 30 . The controller 30 controls the left drive wheel motor 26 and the right drive wheel motor 27 to drive and steer the vehicle. The controller 30 can cause the automatic guided vehicle 20 to travel along the guide lines 41 and 42 while the guide sensors 28 detect the guide lines 41 and 42 extending on the floor.

Next, the action will be described.
The controller 30 executes the processing shown in FIG.
13 and 14 show an example of a travel route of the automatic guided vehicle 20. FIG.

In the drawings, the horizontal plane is defined by orthogonal X and Y directions.
In FIGS. 13 and 14, as the travel route of the automatic guided vehicle 20, a travel route is formed by a guide line 41 extending linearly in the Y direction, and a travel route is formed by a guide line 42 extending linearly in the Y direction. formed. The guide line 41 and the guide line 42 are formed on a straight line. The traveling route of the unmanned guided vehicle 20 has a non-guide line section in which the guide lines 41 and 42 are not provided.

FIG. 13 shows loci during running about the center Pc of the left and right driving wheels 22 and 23 in FIG. Left turn from point P11 to point P12 where mark 43 was detected in FIG. 13, right turn from point P12 to point P13, straight running from point P13 to point P14, left turn from point P14 to point P15, point A trajectory of a right turn from point P15 to point P16 and a left turn from point P16 to point P17 is drawn.

13 and 14, the automatic guided vehicle 20 travels while detecting the second guide line 42 with the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 from the section where the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the first guide line 41. When entering a non-guide line section in a non-guide line section up to the section to be done as follows. As shown in FIGS. 13 and 14 , from a section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the first guide line 41 to a section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the second guide line 42 , the vehicle travels. After entering the non-guide wire section in the non-guide wire section of (1) until the second guide wire 42 is detected, the in-vehicle guide sensor 28 performs a turning operation for detecting the second guide wire 42 . Also, the turning motion is a meandering movement in which turning movement is continuously performed. The turning radii R11, R12, R13, and R14 are increased when meandering. When performing meandering travel, linear travel is performed from the point P13 to the point P14 in FIG. 13 to the extension line Lex after the turning travel so that the extension line Lex of the first guide line 41 becomes the meandering center line.

Specifically, in FIG. 12, when the controller 30 detects the mark 43, the initial turning direction, initial turning radius, and turning angle are set as turning parameters in step S200. In step S201, the controller 30 commands left and right wheel velocities to achieve the turning direction and turning radius calculated in step S200 as left and right turning commands. In step S202, the controller 30 determines whether or not the turning angle calculated in step S200 has reached A degrees, that is, whether or not the vehicle has traveled a desired switching distance. If so, the process proceeds to step S203.

Explaining with reference to FIG. 13, this is the process until the left turn from the point P11 to the point P12 is completed.
In step S203, the controller 30 instructs the vehicle to turn in the direction opposite to the turning direction in step S201. In step S204, the controller 30 determines whether or not the turning angle calculated in step S200 has doubled A degrees, that is, whether or not the vehicle has traveled a desired switching distance. Returning, if it is, the process moves to step S205.

Explaining with reference to FIG. 13, this is the process until the right turn from the point P12 to the point P13 is completed.
The controller 30 commands straight traveling in step S205. The controller 30 determines whether or not the vehicle has traveled on the extension line Lex, which is the attitude angle at the point where the mark 43 was detected in step S206. transition to

Explaining with reference to FIG. 13, this is the process until the straight running from the point P13 to the point P14 is completed.
The controller 30 sets the turning radius data so that the turning radius gradually increases in step S207. In step S208, the controller 30 determines whether or not the guide line 42 of the transfer destination has been detected. If not detected, the process proceeds to step S209. In step S209, the controller 30 commands left-right turning to turn in the direction opposite to the turning direction in step S203. Referring to FIG. 13, a left turn is started at point P14.

In step S210, the controller 30 determines whether or not the turning angle calculated in step S200 has doubled, that is, whether or not the vehicle has traveled a desired switching distance.
Referring to FIG. 13, the processing is from the start of turning left at point P14 to the end of turning at point P15.

In step S210, if the turning angle A calculated in step S200 is not doubled, the controller 30 returns to step S208, otherwise proceeds to step S207 to gradually increase the turning radius. Set turning radius data.

Thereafter, the direction of the turn is reversed each time the turning radius data is updated.
When the controller 30 can detect the guide line 42 of the transfer destination in step S208, the controller 30 proceeds to step S211 and returns to traveling along the guide line 42 in step S211.

Explaining with reference to FIG. 13, it is a right turn from point P15 to point P16, and then a left turn from point P16 to point P17.
In this way, left turn from point P11 to point P12, right turn from point P12 to point P13, straight running from point P13 to point P14, left turn from point P14 to point P15, point P15 to point A right turn to P16 and a left turn from point P16 to point P17 are performed.

As described with reference to FIG. 7, in the comparative example, the direction of variation is the horizontal direction.
FIG. 15 shows this embodiment. In FIG. 15 , the non-guide wire section where the guide wires 41 and 42 are not provided is meandered after the guide wire 41 is no longer detected by the guide sensor 28 and the guide wire 42 is detected by the guide sensor 28 . When the vehicle is meandering, the variation is in the Y direction, and the variation direction is the front-rear direction.

In this way, in the comparative example shown in FIG. 7, the variation direction was the left-right direction, but in the present embodiment shown in FIG. 28 can be detected.

In this way, as shown in FIGS. 16(a) and 16(b), by increasing the number of turns according to the length of the non-guide wire section, the distance to be transferred can be adjusted. You can set the route accordingly. That is, the travel distance of the non-guide line section can be changed without changing the setting data. That is, as shown in FIGS. 16(a) and 16(b), even if the length of the non-guide line section is changed, it can be dealt with without changing the operation information.

As a result, since the self-position estimation sensor dedicated to traveling in the non-guide line section becomes unnecessary, it can be realized at low cost. Moreover, it is not necessary to construct the guide in a special shape as shown in FIG. 19, and the installation length of the guide can be reduced. Furthermore, as shown in FIG. 17, it is possible to change from the guide line 41 to the guide line 42 and from the guide line 42 to the guide line 41, so that it is possible to travel back and forth.

According to the above embodiment, the following effects can be obtained.
(5) A non-guide line section from a section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the first guide line 41 to a section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor 28 detects the second guide line 42 . After entering the guide line section and before detecting the second guide line 42, a turning motion for detecting the second guide line 42 by the in-vehicle guide sensor 28 is performed. In particular, as soon as it starts running toward the second guide line 42, it runs while repeating turns.

Therefore, when the vehicle is simply driven straight from the first guide line 41 toward the second guide line 42, the second guide line 42 is displaced due to variations in the traveling direction due to mechanical errors of the vehicle. Hard to detect. The second guide line 42 can be easily detected by approaching from the right and left directions with respect to the direction of travel by performing a turning motion on the portion where the range of variation when traveling straight is widened. As a result, it is possible to easily transfer from the first guide line to the second guide line through a non-guide line section in which no guide line is provided in the middle of the travel route.

(6) The turning motion is a meandering motion in which the turning motion is continuously performed. Therefore, it becomes easier to detect the second guide line 42 .
(7) The turning radius is increased when meandering. Therefore, the second guide line 42 can be efficiently detected.

(8) When performing meandering travel, linear travel is performed up to the extension line Lex after turning travel so that the extension line Lex of the first guide line 41 becomes the meandering center line. Therefore, by traveling straight for the purpose of shifting the meandering center line, the meandering center line can be corrected, meandering along the extension line Lex of the first guide line 41 can be performed, and the second guide line 42 can be detected. easier to do.

Embodiments are not limited to the above, and may be embodied as follows, for example.
O In the second embodiment, the turning motion may be performed after traveling a predetermined distance (predetermined distance). If the turning motion is performed immediately after leaving the first guide line 41, the traveling distance increases and the time required to pass through the non-guide line section increases. be able to. In particular, even when meandering travel is performed as in the second embodiment, the passing time can be shortened by not performing turning motion for a short time.

O As shown in FIG. 18, the guide line 42 of the transfer destination does not necessarily have to be on a straight line with respect to the guide line 41 of the transfer source. By extending the straight traveling distance in step S206 of FIG. 12, it becomes possible to install the vehicle outside the straight line between the guide line 41 at the transfer source and the guide line 42 at the transfer destination.

That is, in FIGS. 4A, 4B, 5, or 13, the guide line 41 and the guide line 42 are formed on a straight line, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, as shown in FIG. 18, the guide line 41 extending in the Y direction and the guide line 42 extending in the Y direction may be shifted by a distance ΔX in the X direction, and the guide line 42 of the transfer destination is not necessarily the guide line of the transfer source. It does not have to be on a straight line with line 41 .

○ As for the undercarriage of the vehicle, the left and right fixed wheels were driven by separate motors, and the steering was performed by the speed difference (although it was a two-wheel speed difference method). You may turn with (a steering wheel method may be used). That is, it is preferable to have one or more drive wheels for driving and turning, and one or more driven wheels for stable running.

〇 An unmanned guided vehicle does not have to be an unmanned towing vehicle.

10 Automatic guided vehicle 28 On-vehicle guide sensor 41, 42 Guide line R1, R2, R3 Turning radius.

Claims (5)

An unmanned guided vehicle that travels along a guide line extending on the floor while detecting it with an in-vehicle guide sensor,
The running route has a non-guide line section in which the guide line is not provided in the middle,
The non-guide line section in the non-guide line section from the section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor detects the first guide line to the section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor detects the second guide line. performing a turning operation for detecting the second guide line by the in-vehicle guide sensor between entering and detecting the second guide line;
The turning motion is meandering running in which turning running is continuously performed,
An unmanned guided vehicle characterized in that a turning radius is increased when performing meandering travel . 2. The vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein when performing said meandering travel, straight travel is performed until said extension line after turning travels so that an extension of said first guide line becomes a meandering center line. Automated guided vehicle described. 3. The automatic guided vehicle according to claim 1 , wherein said turning motion is performed after traveling a predetermined distance. An unmanned guided vehicle that travels along a guide line extending on the floor while detecting it with an in-vehicle guide sensor,
The running route has a non-guide line section in which the guide line is not provided in the middle,
The non-guide line section in the non-guide line section from the section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor detects the first guide line to the section in which the vehicle-mounted guide sensor detects the second guide line. performing a turning operation for detecting the second guide line by the in-vehicle guide sensor between entering and detecting the second guide line;
The turning operation is a turning movement that is performed after traveling straight for a predetermined distance. and a second turn in which the machine base is turned in a direction opposite to the turning direction of the first turning until a predetermined angle is reached,
An unmanned guided vehicle, characterized in that straight travel is performed after the second turn . Stores the processing details of the turning motion for detecting the second guide line by the vehicle-mounted guide sensor during the period from entering the current non-guide line section to detecting the second guide line. When the second guide line is detected in the second turn during the previous turn, the turning direction of the first turn in the next turn is set to the stored previous turning direction. 5. The automatic guided vehicle according to claim 4 , which is on the side opposite to the turning direction .