JPH02230408A - Transport controller - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To shorten the overall debugging period of a system for reduction of the load of a host computer and to improve the real time property and the transport control efficiency by using a medium computer to exclusively control the transport. CONSTITUTION:A high order computer 7 decide a general load program as well as the work load and the work contents per day and sends these decided factors to a medium order computer 6. The computer 6 grasps the working state of each machining center 1 according to the working procedure and at the same time instructs the arrangements of the next working products. The products which are through with their arrangements are directly sent to a due machine for working based on the working state of the center 1. The finished products are directly sent to a product removement place according to the busy/idle state of the removement place. As a result, the working efficiency is improved and at the same time the load of the computer 7 is reduced.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Application Field) The present invention relates to computer-based transport control in an automatic processing system for a machine tool.

(Prior Art) Normally, an automatic processing system for a machining center, as shown in FIGS.
These are managed by the host computer 7. Furthermore, the second computer 7 also manages the entire system, including transport control, schedule management, and material management.

Figure 7 is an example of a schematic flowchart 1 of conveyance control.
Materials, jigs, and NC pallets are stored in an automated warehouse 2 as shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, and are set in a setup area 4 in preparation for processing. This workpiece is checked for vacancies in the warehouse, and is once stored in the automated warehouse 2 by the unmanned conveyance device 3, where it waits until a processing instruction is issued. When a processing instruction is issued, the stored materials are transported to the machining center 1 by the unmanned conveyance device 3 and processed. After the processing is completed, the blank space in the warehouse is confirmed, and the unmanned conveyance device 3 transports the product to the automated warehouse 2, where it waits for an instruction to leave the warehouse.

Thereafter, the workpiece is delivered to a disassembly station 5 according to a delivery instruction for disassembly, the workpiece is removed, and the workpiece is transferred to the next process as a completed part. The pallet jigs are stored in the warehouse and await instructions for the next processing. FIG. 4 shows the flow of normal conveyance, and shows the conveyance between the machining center 1, setup area 4, unloading area 5, and automated warehouse 2. One end is automated warehouse 2.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) According to the above-mentioned transport control, as shown in FIG. 4, the workpieces and processed products are transported in and out of the automated warehouse 2 by the unmanned transport device 3 each time, so the transport frequency is limited. This required a lot of waiting time for the transport device. In addition, in order for the host computer to issue transport instructions between each process, it is necessary to confirm the inventory of each process, the processing information of the machining center, and the information on the next processed product before issuing transport instructions. The load was heavy and lacked real-time performance, reducing productivity. Furthermore, if the host computer stopped, transport instructions could not be issued, causing the system to stop and causing a major disruption to production.

An object of the present invention is to provide a control device that incorporates a transfer control method that can eliminate the above-mentioned drawbacks, perform processing efficiently, and reduce the load on a host computer.

[Structure of the invention]

(Means for solving the problem) A comprehensive load plan and daily workload and content are determined in the host computer. This is sent to an intermediate computer to determine the processing order for each machining center. The intermediate computer gives setup instructions for the next product to be processed while understanding the operating status of each machining center based on the processing order. Depending on the conditions of the machining center, the finished products may be directly transported to the machine for processing. Similarly, if the processed product is empty depending on the situation at the removal site, an instruction is issued to transport it directly to the removal site. If both the machining center and unloading area are not empty, we will issue instructions to have them temporarily stand by in the warehouse.

(Function) FIG. 3 shows the flow of transport made possible by specialized management of medium-level computer transport according to the present invention. It becomes possible to transport between each process without any problems.

(Example) An example of the present invention is shown in FIG. This embodiment is an automatic processing system with four machining centers 1, an automatic warehouse 2,
It consists of an unmanned conveyance device 3, a setup area 4, a removal area 5, an intermediate computer 6, and an upper computer 7.

FIG. 2 shows a schematic flowchart of transport control processing, in which a schedule is transmitted from a higher-level computer to an intermediate-level computer. The intermediate computer dispatches the workpiece from the automated warehouse 2 to the setup area 4 according to the schedule, as shown in FIG. According to the processing instructions, the parts are transported to each machining center and processed. After the processing is completed, the workpiece is directly delivered to the removal station 5, the workpiece is removed, and the workpiece is transferred to the next process as a completed part. The intermediate computer sends the completed information to the upper computer.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the present invention, the middle-level computer exclusively manages transport, which shortens the debugging period of the entire system and reduces the load on the higher-level computer.Even if the higher-level computer stops, operation can continue. Real-time performance is preferred -1.゛7. The efficiency of transport control can be improved.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a plan view showing an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a schematic flowchart of the conveyance control process (with intermediate computer) of the present invention, and FIG. 3 is an operation diagram showing the flow of conveyance of the present invention ( Figure 4 is an operation diagram showing the flow of conventional conveyance, Figures 5 and 6 are plan views showing an example of a conventional automatic processing system, and Figure 7 is a conventional conveyance control process. A schematic flowchart is shown below. 1. Machining center, 2. Automatic warehouse, 3. Unmanned conveyance device, 4. Setup area, 5. Unloading area, 6. Intermediate computer, 7. Upper computer. Agent Patent Attorney Nori Chika Ken Yudo Ken Deshimaru

Claims (1)

[Claims] In an automatic processing system consisting of a machining center, an automatic warehouse, an unmanned conveyance device, and a computer that controls these, the workpiece that has been set up outside the machine for processing is transferred directly to the machining center by the unmanned conveyance device and then processed. A transport control device that transports finished products directly to a removal site.