JPH0326612A - Raw material stowing device in raw material yard - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To save labor force and improve stowage efficiency for a raw material stowing device in a raw material yard for an iron mill, etc., by monitoring a stack growth condition with a camera and predicting a stack bottom position in completion in accordance with image data so that the stowage position of a yard machine can be modified to match to an estimated bottom position. CONSTITUTION:A stack growth condition involved in stowage is monitored with a stack monitoring camera to detect a real stack bottom position in the direction of the stowage width of a stack with a real stack bottom position detecting means in accordance with stack image data. A stack bottom position judging means compares the real stack bottom position with an estimated stack bottom position for a preset stowage width and judges the matching of the real stack bottom position in stowage completion to the estimated stack bottom position. If mismatching occurs, a stowage position modifying means modifys the stowage position of a yard machine to allow the matching of the bottom position in completion.

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a raw material stacking device in a raw material yard such as a steelworks or a power plant, and in particular, the present invention relates to a raw material stacking device in a raw material yard such as a steel mill or a power plant. The present invention relates to an automatically operating raw material stacking device that is controlled according to a set stacking pattern.

[Conventional technology]

Generally, in steel works and power plants, ore, coal, etc.
Various raw materials, such as coke, are stacked by brand at designated yard locations, temporarily stored, and discharged to the next process as needed.

Conventionally, the above-mentioned raw material stacking is carried out by predicting the angle of repose of the raw material depending on the raw material properties, and based on this predicted value, setting is made in advance so that the positions of the bases of the piles in the width direction of the pile coincide with the predetermined stowage position. The boom rotation position of yard machines such as stackers according to the stowing pattern. This is done by controlling the elevation height. However, the angle of repose of the raw material is water. Particle size structure.
Because it is greatly affected by viscosity and changes easily, the angle of repose predicted at the beginning of loading may differ from the actual angle of repose, and in such cases various problems occur. That is, when the actual angle of repose is larger than the predicted angle of repose, the actual stowage width becomes narrower than the predetermined yard stowage width, and the stowage efficiency with respect to the entire yard area decreases. On the other hand, if the actual angle of repose is smaller than the predicted angle of repose,
The hem of the pile in the direction of yard stowage protrudes from the predetermined stowage width, causing problems in the work of discharging raw materials.

Conventionally, in order to avoid such inconveniences due to the difference between the predicted value and the actual value of the angle of repose, visual information from workers patrolling the raw material yard and ITVs installed to allow a view of the raw material yard have been used. Video information obtained by remotely controlling the camera (for example, Tokuko Sho 5B-44272, 60-
(Refer to No. 58134), the loading position by the boom of the yard machine was manually corrected and controlled. (Problem to be Solved by the Invention) However, as described above, information on the difference between the predicted angle of repose and the actual angle of repose is relied on manually or by a camera, and the stowage position is manually corrected and controlled based on the information. With this method, there is a delay in correcting the stowage position due to manual intervention,
The position of the hem of the pile does not necessarily match the planned hem position of the stowage, and if it does not match, there still remains the problem that the stowage efficiency and other work efficiencies are reduced as described above. ．． Also, of course, the amount of manpower needed to patrol the raw materials yard and command and operate correction controls will be reduced.
There was a problem in that the cost of the entire stowage work also increased.

The present invention was made in view of the problems of the prior art, and it automatically prevents overflowing of the stack and insufficient stacking when stacking raw materials, and loads the predetermined stacking range with maximum efficiency. The problem to be solved is to carry out stowage work and to save labor in the stowage work.

[Means to solve the problem]

In order to solve the above problems, the device of the present invention, as shown in FIG. automatic operation means that automatically adjusts the stacking position of the yard machine; a pile monitoring camera that monitors the status of the pile stacked by the yard machine; and an image of the pile obtained from the pile monitoring camera. Actual pile hem position detection means detects the actual pile hem position in the stacking width direction of the pile based on data, and based on the detection value of this actual pile hem position detection means and the planned pile hem position corresponding to a predetermined stowage width set in advance. , a mountain foot position determining means for predicting and determining a state in which the actual mountain foot position at the time of completion of stowing and the planned mountain foot position do not match; The present invention is provided with a stowage position correcting means for correcting the stowage position of the yard machine in a direction in which the actual hem position and the planned hem position match when stowing is completed, when the state is predicted and determined. [Operation] The automatic operation means of the present invention stacks raw materials by automatically adjusting the stacking position of the yard machine in accordance with a preset stacking pattern, such as a triangular or trapezoidal cross section. At this time, as shown in FIG. 1, based on the image data of the pile obtained from the pile monitoring camera, the actual pile hem position detection means detects the position of the hem of the actual pile in the stacking width direction. The mountain foot position determination means detects a state in which the actual mountain foot position and the planned mountain foot position at the time of completion of stowage do not match, based on the detection value of the actual mountain foot position detection means and the planned mountain foot position corresponding to a predetermined stowage width set in advance. Predict and judge. Then, when it is predicted that the actual mountain hem position and the planned mountain hem position at the time of the completion of the stowing are predicted to be in a consistent state, the stowage position correction means is configured to adjust the actual mountain hem position and the planned mountain hem position at the time of the stowing completion. Correct the stowage position of the yard machine in the matching direction.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 11. In FIG. 2, 1 indicates a raw material yard, and 2 indicates a raw material loading device. The raw material stacking device 2 controls a stacker 6 as a yard machine that can run on running rails 4, . It has a stowage control mechanism 8.

The stacker 6 includes a machine body 6A that runs on traveling rails 4, . 6C, bulk raw materials are loaded onto this belt conveyor 6C, are conveyed to the tip position (stacking position) of the boom 6B, and are dropped at this tip position. Therefore, the bulk raw material gradually grows at the falling point as it falls, forming a mountain-shaped pile M that corresponds to the angle of repose of the raw material. In addition, the movement of the entire stacker 6, the elevation and rotation of the boom 6B, and the belt conveyor 6C
The conveyance of the stacker 6 is carried out by driving and controlling a travel motor 6D, an elevation motor 6E, a swing motor 6F, and a conveyance motor 6G, which are installed at predetermined positions of the stacker 6, respectively.

The stacking control mechanism 8 has a stacker controller 10, which includes an arithmetic processing section 12 equipped with a computer, an A/D converter. An image input/output unit 14 equipped with a D/A converter, memory, etc., and an arithmetic processing unit 12
The camera drive circuit 16 and motor drive circuits 18, 19, 20, and 21 are provided to receive output signals from the camera drive circuit 16 and motor drive circuits 18, 19, 20, and 21, respectively. Of these,
The arithmetic processing unit 12 contains in advance programs corresponding to several types of stacking patterns for stacker automatic operation, and performs the processing shown in FIG. 3, which will be described later.

This arithmetic processing unit l2 includes a body traveling position sensor 22, a boom elevation height sensor 24, and a boom elevation sensor 24, which are installed at a predetermined position of the stacker 6. Detection signals from the boom rotation angle sensor 26 and the level switch 28 are manually generated.

Of these, the aircraft running position sensor 22 magnetically or optically detects a pulse signal The number of revolutions including the number of rotations, that is, the traveling distance in both directions of movement are integrated from the initial position, and the traveling position from the initial position is calculated. Additionally, the boom elevation height sensor 24 receives a signal θ which is an analog voltage value corresponding to the elevation angle of the boom 6B, and the boom rotation angle sensor 26 receives a signal φ which is an analog voltage value corresponding to the rotation angle of the boom 6B.
This outputs the following. Further, the level switch 28 is provided near the tip of the boom 6B, and the level switch 28 is provided near the tip of the boom 6B.
When the stack M reaches a certain height corresponding to the limit height of
is turned on and outputs a switch signal SW of a predetermined voltage value.

The output side of the arithmetic processing unit 12 is individually connected to the ITV camera 30 and each motor 6D to 6G via a camera drive circuit 16 and motor drive circuits 18 to 21. The ITV camera 30 functions as a pile monitoring camera, is mounted at a fixed position overlooking both foot positions of the pile M, and outputs its video signal to the image input/output section 14. Image person output section 1
4 converts the input video signal into a predetermined signal and outputs it to the arithmetic processing section 12, and can also be reproduced on the monitor 32. A mouse 34 is connected to the monitor 32, and positional information specified by the mouse 34 is provided to the monitor 32 and the arithmetic processing unit 12. moreover,
A keyboard 36 as a human-powered device and a CRT 38 as an output device are connected to the arithmetic processing unit 12, and initial values etc. can be inputted via the keyboard 36.
Necessary information and commands can be displayed on the T38.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be explained.

Upon activation, the image input/output unit 14 of the stacker controller 10 processes the video signal from the ITV camera 30 and displays the photographed image on the monitor 32.
Output to.

Further, the arithmetic processing section 12 performs the processing shown in FIG. 3 upon activation. In other words, in step ■, the CRT
3 Display the basic stowage pattern menu on B and let the operator select and translate the desired pattern. Next, in step (2), a command is displayed on the CRT 38, and the operator inputs the predicted angle of repose of the material to be stowed and the stowage range L in the longitudinal direction (see Fig. 9.10) using the keyboard 36. Specify via Next, the process moves to step (2), where a command is displayed on the CRT 38 and the operator is asked to specify the left and right hem positions A and B that form the predetermined stacking width W, as shown in FIG. This designation is performed by operating the mouse 34 on the monitor 32 so that the stacking width W is achieved.

Next, in step (2), the arithmetic processing unit 12 determines the aircraft traveling position according to the initial values set in steps (2) to (2). The boom elevation height and boom rotation position are calculated, and the control signals S1 to S3 are applied to the motor drive circuits 18 to 20 until the detection signals X, θ, and φ of each sensor 22, 24, and 26 match the calculated values (target values). are output to the travel motor 6D, elevation motor 6E, and swing motor 6F, respectively. This results in
The aircraft traveling position, boom elevation height, and boom rotation position are positioned at the calculated initial values. At this time, the initial position C in the longitudinal direction of the stowage is set at the boom 6 when the stowage is based on the predicted angle of repose.
Assuming that the height of pile B has been reached to the specified height, the actual hem position B' on the near side of pile M is the planned hem position B on the near side (reference hem position)
is positioned to match. Next, in step (2), the arithmetic processing unit l2 outputs a drive signal S4 to the transport motor 6G via the drive circuit 21 to start stacking. As a result, the belt conveyor 6
The raw materials transported by C from a predetermined position to a stacking position at the tip of the boom fall at the stacking position to form a pile M. This pile M gradually grows as the amount of fall increases. In Fig. 4, P is the stacker track bed and Q is the reclaimer track bed. As mentioned above, the prestige situation of this Tsukiyama M is shown on the ITV camera 3.
0 on the monitor 32, the arithmetic processing unit 12 repeats the processing from step (2) onwards, and fine adjustment of the stacking position of the pile M is performed. That is, after starting the stacking, the arithmetic processing unit 12 reads the detection signal SW of the level switch 28 provided at the stacking position in step (3), and the stacking pile M is
Whether or not it has reached a predetermined height, which is the limit elevation height of
The determination is made based on whether the level switch 28 is on or not. If this judgment is rNOJ, it is assumed that the pile M has not yet reached a certain height, and the process moves to step (2). In step 2, a built-in software timer determines whether a preset time T (for example, several seconds) or more has elapsed since the start of loading. , the process moves to step 0, which will be described later, but when rYEs, the timer is cleared in step 2, and then the process moves to steps 2 to 0. In step (2), the video data of the ITV camera 30 that is constantly output from the video input/output unit 14 is read.
Next, in step [phase], based on the read video data, the actual protrusion position A' of the pile M is calculated using a well-known image processing method (for example, the above-mentioned conventional example, see Japanese Patent Publication Nos. 5B-44272 and 60-58134). , B' (see FIG. 5). This calculation calculates the mountain foot positions A' and B with respect to the current traveling position specified in the basic stowage pattern.
' is required. Furthermore, move to step ■ and initially set the mountain foot position A.
, B and the calculated actual mountain foot positions A', B', and find that both actual mountain foot positions A', B' are the planned mountain foot positions A, B.
Determine whether or not it is protruding. This judgment is made by calculating the interval a = A'-A, b = B-B' (with the planned mountain foot position A as the origin in the width direction).
If a≧0 and b≧0, it is assumed that there is no overflow and the process moves to step @. However, if a<O and b<o, it is assumed that the hem position has protruded (the stacking has reached its limit due to the limit of the hem position), and the process moves to step (2), which will be described later.

In step @, by using the calculated values a and b in step ■ to determine whether a<O or b<Q and whether or not a=b, the actual mountain foot position A'B' is determined. It is determined whether either one of them is protruding from the planned hem position A or B, or whether such protrusion is expected (that is, there is a deviation in the width direction in the current stacking position). As a result, for example, as shown in Fig. 6, the actual angle of repose differs from the expected angle of repose due to moisture, etc., and the pile M grows biased toward the fuselage 6C side as shown by the solid line, and in the future, the pile M will grow toward the fuselage 6C side. It can be seen that some protrusion is expected.

Therefore, when the predicted angle of repose and the actual angle of repose are equal and the above-mentioned deviation of the pile M does not occur, rNOJ is determined in step @, and the step [phase] described below is reached. When bias occurs, it is judged as rYEsJ. In this case, in the example of FIG. 6, it is necessary to finely adjust the stacking position so that the ridgeline of the pile M becomes a virtual line. Therefore, the arithmetic processing unit l
Step 2 moves to step (2), in which the stacking position is moved by a preset minute distance to the opposite side (or opposite side) with respect to the current position. This movement control uses the detection signals X and φ of the body travel position sensor 22 and the boom rotation angle sensor 26 as feedback signals, and sends control signals S1 and S3 to the travel motor 6D and rotation until the stowage position moves by a predetermined minute value. This is done by outputting the motor 6F. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7, for example, the position of the fuselage 6A is returned to the initial value side by a very small distance, the turning position of the boom 6B is shallowed by a very small angle, and the stowage position is moved to the opposite side (or the opposite side). side) position.

After this fine correction of the stowage position is completed, the process moves to step O, and it is determined whether the stowage is completed. Then, if the loading is not completed, the process moves to step [phase]. The process in step (2) is performed based on the basic stowage pattern selected in advance.At this stage, when the level switch 28 is not turned on, the elevation height of the boom 6B at the commanded stowage position is It is increased by a predetermined value, and the shift in the stowage position due to this increase is corrected by adjusting the traveling position. That is, after driving the elevation motor 6E until the detected value θ of the boom elevation height sensor 24 matches the calculated elevation target value, the vehicle travels until the adjustment of the calculated travel position target value and swing position target value is obtained. The motor 6D and the swing motor 6F are driven.

After the processing in step (2), the process returns to step (2) again.

On the other hand, when the pile M has grown to a predetermined height, rYES is determined in step (2), and steps (2) to (2) are sequentially performed. The processing of steps ■ and ■ is the step ■
, is the same as [phase]. Therefore, move to step ■,
Although it has been lengthened to a certain height, due to the difference between the expected value and the actual value of the angle of repose, the actual mountain foot position A' or B' has not reached the planned mountain foot position A or B. >0 or b>o. This judgment is made to ensure that the planned stowage range W is completely stacked to its maximum limit.In step ①, for example, as shown in Figure 8, if there is a stowage margin at one hem A', rYE
S is determined, and the process moves to step (2), where the traveling position of the aircraft 6A and the turning position of the boom 6B are controlled so that the stowage position moves by a predetermined minute distance to the margin side (planned hem position A side). . This control uses the detection signals X and φ from the body traveling position sensor 22 and the boom rotation angle sensor 26 as feedback signals, and sends the control signals S and S3 to the traveling motor 6 until the stowage position moves a predetermined minute distance in the width direction.
This is done by outputting D and the rotation motor 6F. This process is performed sequentially in both width directions if there is room on both sides of the mountain (however, if a stacking pattern with a trapezoidal cross section is selected, it is performed only on the base side of the standard mountain). ).

As a result, the work of stowing up to the allowable limit of the stowage range W is carried out, and additional stowage is performed, for example, as shown by the phantom line in FIG. After this, step 0 is reached.

On the other hand, in step ■, when there is no stowage margin, that is, the maximum stowage is carried out to the full stowage range W, rN
OJ, and the process moves to step O. Step O
If the loading is not completed, move to step [phase],
This time, based on the preselected basic stowage pattern, the body 6A is moved to the next stowage position in the stowage direction, and the boom elevation height and boom rotation position are returned to the basic positions. This position control uses a target value XO+θ depending on the stowage pattern. ,φ. The control signal 31 + SR + S3 until the deviation between the detection signal X, θ, φ of each sensor 22, 24, 26, which is a feedback signal, becomes zero.
This is done by outputting to each motor 6D, 6E, 6F.

After the processing of this step [phase], the process returns to step (2) again, and the above-mentioned processes are repeated. Therefore, when rYESJ is determined in step [phase], the process moves to step [phase], the supply of the drive signal S4 to the conveyance motor 6G is stopped, the belt conveyor 6C is stopped, and the stacking work is completed. As described above, in this embodiment, stacking is performed while making fine adjustments to the basic stacking pattern. For this reason, for example, if a triangular cross-section (same brand) is selected as the basic stacking pattern, the first stacking position 1 [
．． The basic stowage positions are sequentially set and stowed from N7 to the final stowage position N7, and during this stowage, the above-mentioned fine adjustments (steps @, ■ and ■ in Figure 3) are carried out.
(See [Phase]) is also carried out at the same time, so the actual hem positions A' and B' of the pile M almost match the planned hem positions A and B, and the stacking is carried out within the planned range of the raw material yard without wasting or overflowing. will be done. As a result, the efficiency of yard stowage is greatly improved, and the drawback that the stowage range protrudes beyond the planned range, which hinders the unloading work, etc., is also eliminated.

Furthermore, when a trapezoidal cross section (same brand) is selected as the basic stowage pattern, the first stowage position Nl is set as shown in Figure 10, and the second stowage position tNz is the same as the first stowage position Nl. , the turning angle φ is made smaller by a predetermined value and the running position is set back by a predetermined distance, and thereafter, the same position setting is repeated. In other words, as shown in FIG. 11, after the pile M+ with a triangular cross section on the near side (airframe 6A side) is made taller to a predetermined height by the stacking for the lth position setting Nl, the second position setting N2 Due to the stowage involved, a pile M8 with a triangular cross section on the opposite side of the fuselage 6A
By lengthening it to a certain height (if necessary,
By the third position setting N3 after the second position setting N2, an intermediate pile M may be formed), and an overall trapezoidal pile M is formed. At this time, the initial position N is determined such that the base position B' of the mountain based on the initially set predicted angle of repose coincides with the reference base position WB.

Moreover, since the fine adjustments mentioned above are also carried out during the stacking of this trapezoidal cross-section, the same advantages as mentioned above can be obtained. Furthermore, according to this embodiment, the operator only needs to perform the initial settings (steps ■ to ■ in Figure 3), and after that, the process is carried out unattended until the stowage is completed. This has the effect of significantly lowering the stowing cost by saving labor and speeding up the stowing work without requiring any manpower.

In this embodiment, each sensor 22, 24, 26, 28, drive circuit 18-21. and Fig. 3 steps ■～■, @), [
phase], @l constitutes the automatic operation means, and the processing of step ■, [phase] in Fig. 3 is performed. (1!!). The process of (2) constitutes the actual mountain foot position detection means, and the steps (2) and @ of FIG. ■ Processing and mouse 34. The monitor 32 serves as a foot position determination means, and each sensor 22, 24, 26, 28, drive circuit 18-
20 and steps @ and (2) in FIG. 3 constitute the stowage position correction means, respectively.

In addition, in this invention, a plurality of mountain pile monitoring cameras may be installed to mutually complement blind spots.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, in this invention, the actual hem position of the pile in the stowage width direction is detected based on the video data of the pile obtained from the pile monitoring camera, and this detected value and the predetermined stowage width are used. Based on the corresponding planned hem position, the actual hem position at the time of stowage completion and the planned hem position do not match is predicted and determined, and when this predicted determination is made, the Since we decided to correct the current stacking position of the yard machine in the direction of correcting the mismatched position at the base of the pile, the actual angle of repose of the bulk materials differed from the predicted value, resulting in the position of the base of the pile when the stacking was completed. In other words, the situation in which the stack does not reach the planned hem position, that is, the stack protrudes from the predetermined stowage range or falls short of the predetermined stowage range, is automatically prevented in advance. As a result, the yard stacking efficiency is significantly improved compared to conventional methods, and the influence of protrusion on other work is eliminated, and the hem position is automatically corrected unattended. Various effects can be obtained, including a marked reduction in work costs for attachment and an increase in speed.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is a diagram corresponding to the claims of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 3 is a schematic flowchart showing the processing procedure of the stacker controller, and Fig. 4 is a raw material Explanatory diagram showing the planned stowage range in the yard, No. 5
6 and 6 are respectively perspective views showing examples of monitor images taken by the ITV camera, FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing fine correction control for the stacking position in FIG. 6, and FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing an example of the monitor image taken by the ITV camera. FIG. 9 is a perspective view showing an example; FIG.
FIG. 0 is a plan view showing a pile according to a basic stacking pattern with a trapezoidal cross section, and FIG. 11 is a sectional view in the stacking longitudinal direction showing the formation or process of a pile according to a basic stacking pattern with a trapezoidal cross section. In the figure, l is a raw material yard, 2 is a raw material stacking device, 6 is a stacker as a yard machine, 10 is a stacking force controller, 12
14 is an arithmetic processing unit, 14 is an image output unit, 18 to 2l are motor drive circuits, 22 is a body traveling position sensor, 24 is a boom elevation sensor, 26 is a boom rotation altitude sensor, 2 is a level switch, and 30 is an ITv Camera, 32 is a monitor,
34 is the mouse, A and B are the planned mountain foot positions, A' and B' are the actual mountain foot positions, and M is the pile. Figure 1 Figure 9 (Bingi loading 1-cho bar 7-7) 6 Figure 1O (+Kyuzan soul imposition) Figure 11 A B Sunku ↑-“ 沫

Claims (1)

[Claims] (1) A yard machine that can change the stacking position for dropping bulk materials into a raw material yard, and an automatic operation means that automatically adjusts the stacking position of the yard machine in accordance with a preset basic stacking pattern. , a pile monitoring camera that monitors the growth status of the pile stacked by the yard machine, and a pile hem monitoring camera that detects the position of the foot of the pile in the stacking width direction of the pile based on video data of the pile obtained from the pile monitoring camera. Based on the position detection means, the detection value of the actual pile hem position detection means, and the planned pile hem position corresponding to a predetermined stacking width set in advance, it is possible to detect a state in which the actual pile hem position and the planned pile hem position at the time of completion of stowing do not match. A mountain foot position determining means that performs a predictive determination; and when the mountain foot position determining means predicts and determines that the actual mountain foot position at the time of completion of stowage and the planned mountain foot position do not match, the actual mountain foot position and the planned mountain foot position are determined at the time of completion of stowage. 1. A raw material loading device for a raw material yard, comprising: a loading position correcting means for correcting the loading position of the yard machine in a direction that matches the position.