JPH05262499A - Cargo base with id-tag and delivery/receipt system for signal thereof - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To fit an ID tag to a position where communication troubles are not caused and injury is hardly generated by arranging the ID tag having information to be read by means of the bar antenna of a fork lift vehicle on the back face of a beam viewing from a fork inserting port. CONSTITUTION:When the fork 4 of a fork lift vehicle is inserted into the opening part of a pallet 5, current flows in a bar antenna 6 by the function of a controller 16 so as to generate a magnetic field. Inducing by variation with time of the magnetic field, primary or secondary electromagnetic induction is generated, magnetic flux is passed through a front horizontal beam 19 so as to make the beam 19 to be a magnetic path, and hence induction electro motive force is generated in a bar antenna 14 for an ID tag. By this induction electro motive force, information for identifying respective pallets stored in an IC circuit 15 or the positions of the respective pallets are transmitted from the bar antenna 14 for the ID tag to the bar antenna 6. Thus, the signals can be delivered and received even if there is an iron beam between the bar antenna 6 and the ID tag 12.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a loading platform such as a pallet or a fixed rack to which an ID tag is attached, which is used for inventory management in a distribution warehouse or other systems, and the ID.
The present invention relates to a signal transfer system between a tag and an antenna provided on a forklift truck.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as a method of identifying a loading platform such as a pallet or a fixed rack, a loop antenna is provided on the side of a forklift truck and a signal current of several hundreds kHz is applied to the loop antenna while the loading platform is installed on the loading platform side. , An ID incorporating a coil and a circuit having a function of a repeater that generates an electromotive force by an induction electromagnetic field generated by the signal current and sends back a signal
An electromagnetic induction method is used in which signals are exchanged between the loop antenna and the ID tag using a tag or an ID card (hereinafter collectively referred to as an ID tag).

By the way, since the loop antenna has an air core inside, the axis core of the loop antenna and the coil of the ID tag are coaxial so as to obtain a sufficient magnetic flux density when magnetic coupling is achieved for signal transmission / reception. It had to be placed so that it was on top. Also, due to the space limitation of the fork on which luggage is loaded, the loop antenna is mounted so that its plane is oriented in the vertical direction. Therefore, when exchanging a signal between the loop antenna of such a forklift truck and the ID tag of the cargo handling platform by the electromagnetic induction method, a magnetic path portion passing through the axis of the loop antenna and the coil of the ID tag is magnetically coupled. If the beam of the iron handling platform is interposed so as to be orthogonal to the path, the magnetic path is shielded by it, which becomes an obstacle to communication. Therefore, it is necessary to attach the ID tag to the front surface of the beam of the cargo handling platform when viewed from the front of the fork insertion port of the cargo handling platform. Alternatively, another special mounting member is used behind the beam at a predetermined interval so as not to hinder communication.

[0004]

However, as described above, when the ID tag is attached to the front of the beam of the cargo handling platform, the fork of the forklift truck or the vehicle body is applied to the ID tag to damage the ID tag. It may happen. Further, it is not easy to magnetically couple the loop antenna and the coil of the ID tag side by coaxially aligning them with each other, and the work therefor requires a long time and is troublesome. Further, attaching the ID tag using a special attaching member is also inferior in workability. Furthermore, if the frequency of the electromagnetic wave is raised too high in order to increase the reading sensitivity of the loop antenna, there is a problem that the regulation of the Radio Law will be exceeded.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned problems, and in transmitting and receiving a signal between the antenna on the forklift truck side and the ID tag on the cargo handling side by the electromagnetic induction method, it should not cause a communication failure. , The positional relationship between the antenna and the ID tag can be easily determined, which eliminates the troublesome work, shortens the working time, facilitates the attachment adjustment, and is less susceptible to damage, and the cargo handling table with the ID tag. The purpose is to provide a signal transfer system.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention of claim 1 is such that a frame of a cargo handling platform such as a pallet or a fixed rack on which articles are loaded is made of an iron beam, and Information for identifying each cargo handling platform, which is read by electromagnetic inductive coupling by a bar antenna provided on the front side of the beam of the forklift truck when viewed from the front of the fork slot where the fork of the forklift truck is inserted. Is provided with an ID tag that holds.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, a bar antenna is provided in front of a vehicle body of a forklift truck, and a frame of a cargo handling platform such as a pallet or a fixed rack on which articles are loaded is made of an iron beam. , An ID tag that holds information for identifying each loading platform, which is read by electromagnetic induction coupling by the bar antenna, on the back side of the beam when viewed from the front of the fork insertion slot into which the fork of the forklift truck is inserted. It is arranged to exchange signals between the bar antenna and the ID tag.

[0008]

According to the above structure, since the ID tag is attached to the back side of the beam of the cargo handling platform, the bar antenna on the forklift truck side and the information for identifying each cargo handling platform on the cargo handling platform side are held. An iron beam exists between the ID tag and the coil, for example, but since the bar antenna has a magnetic core, the magnetic flux density can be made higher than that of the air core loop antenna, and It is possible to cause magnetic coupling by primary or secondary electromagnetic induction between the bar antenna, the iron beam, and the coil of the ID tag. This enables stable signal exchange between the bar antenna and the ID tag attached to the back surface of the beam. As described above, since the iron beam can be used as a magnetic path for electromagnetic induction, the axes of both are coaxially aligned as in the case of transmitting and receiving a signal between the conventional loop antenna and the ID tag described above. Such a troublesome work is not required, and it is possible to easily determine the mounting position of the ID tag that does not interfere with communication. In addition, the ID tag is prevented from being damaged by accidentally hitting the fork of the forklift truck or the vehicle body.

[0009]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, a forklift truck that transports the ID-tagged pallet of this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. In front of the body 1 of a forklift truck,
An upright mast 2, a lift bracket 3 that moves up and down along the mast 2, and a fork 4 that is locked to the lift bracket 3 are provided. The fork 4 is inserted into the pallet 5 on which articles are loaded, and the lift bracket 3 is moved up and down to carry the work. A bar antenna 6 is attached to a lower portion of the lift bracket 3 so that an axis of the lift bracket 3 is oriented in the horizontal direction of the vehicle body. The bar antenna 6 receives information for identifying each pallet 5. An on-board machine 7 that wirelessly transmits / receives signals to / from a host computer is installed above the vehicle body 1 of the forklift truck.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a post pallet with an ID tag according to an embodiment of the present invention. This post pallet 5
Is a beam 11 whose frame is made of iron (main member that receives a direct load)
It is configured with, and carries luggage by carrying luggage here.
An opening 19a is formed in the lower portion of the front horizontal beam 19 on the front surface of the post pallet 5 so that the fork 4 of a forklift truck can be inserted therein. Figure 2 shows this front horizontal beam 19
The ID tag is arranged on the back side of the central part of the. ID tag 1 that holds information for identifying each pallet 5
2 is embedded in a holder 13, which is a resin molded body formed of resin, and this holder 13 is fixed to the back side surface of the central portion of the front horizontal beam 19 in the horizontal direction by screwing or bonding. As a result, the ID tag 12 is parallel to the ground.

FIG. 3 shows a holder 13 having an ID tag 12 built therein.
FIG. The ID tag 12 comprises an ID tag bar antenna 14 and an IC circuit 15. In the IC circuit 15, information for identifying each pallet 5 or the position of each pallet is stored. ID tag 12 is holder 1
3 is embedded in a position parallel to the mounting surface of the holder 13 on the front horizontal beam 19 and apart from the mounting surface on the front horizontal beam 19. By fixing this holder 13 to the front horizontal beam 19 by screwing or bonding,
The axis of the ID tag 12, particularly the bar antenna 14, and the front horizontal beam 19 are parallel to each other. The size of the holder 13 is about 10 mm in length, 45 mm in width, and 30 mm in depth.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a hardware configuration for the pallet identifying operation. This configuration and its operation will be described. A work start signal is transmitted from a host computer (not shown), and the onboard machine 7 receives the work start signal and the controller 1 receives the signal.
When notified to 6, the controller 16 drives the forklift truck to start the work. When the fork 4 of the forklift truck is inserted into the opening 19a of the pallet 5, the controller 16 operates to identify the pallet 5. That is, a current is passed through the bar antenna 6 and a magnetic field is generated. ID is induced by the temporal change of this magnetic field
An induced electromotive force is generated in the ID tag bar antenna 14 in the tag 12. That is, the magnetic flux passes through the front horizontal beam 19 by the primary or secondary electromagnetic induction (mainly the secondary electromagnetic induction), and the front horizontal beam 19 serves as a magnetic path, so that an induced electromotive force is generated in the bar antenna 14 for the ID tag. Occurs.

The IC circuit 15 is operated by this induced electromotive force, and the information for identifying each pallet stored in the IC circuit 15 or the position of each pallet is transmitted from the ID tag bar antenna 14 to the bar antenna 6. To be done.
Thus, even if there is an iron beam between the bar antenna 6 and the ID tag 12, it is possible to exchange signals. The bar antenna 6 receives the transmitted information, transmits it to the controller 16, identifies the pallet 5, and then carries out a predetermined transportation operation. After that, when the work is completed, a work completion signal is transmitted from the onboard machine 7 to a host computer (not shown).

The above secondary electromagnetic induction action will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 6 is a view of the bar antenna 6, the beam 11 and the ID tag 12 as viewed from above. The bar antenna 6 is energized, and the electromagnetic wave from the bar antenna 6 is, for example, 134 k.
In the case of a relatively low frequency band around Hz, secondary electromagnetic induction is likely to occur. Primary electromagnetic induction occurs between the bar antenna 6 and the front horizontal beam 19 made of iron, and based on this, secondary electromagnetic induction is further caused between the front horizontal beam 19 made of iron and the ID tag 12. Due to this action, signals can be exchanged between the bar antenna 6 and the ID tag 12.

In the above embodiment, the bar antenna 6 and the ID tag 12 are arranged in a horizontal direction so that they are parallel to each other. However, the present invention is not limited to this.
Even when the tag 12 and the tag 12 are arranged with their axis directions oriented in the vertical direction, a secondary electromagnetic induction action is similarly obtained and signals can be exchanged.

In the above embodiment, the opening 19a shown in FIG.
The fork of a forklift truck is inserted in the forklift truck, but the forklift truck fork may be inserted in the opening below the side horizontal beam 11 of the pallet 5. In that case, the ID tag 12 is placed on the back side of the side horizontal beam 11. You can install it on. Further, in the above embodiment, the case of the post pallet was described, but not limited to the post pallet, various pallets such as a flat pallet, a box pallet and the like, and even when the ID tag is provided on the back side of the beam of the fixed rack,
The same effect can be obtained without the ID tag hitting the fork tip of the forklift or the vehicle body. Also, the configuration in which the ID tag is provided on the back side of the beam can be modified in various ways other than using a holder. For example, a configuration in which a bracket is attached to the back side of the beam and the ID tag is held on this bracket However, the same effect can be obtained.

[0017]

As described above, according to the present invention, the ID tag holding the information for identifying each loading platform read by the bar antenna of the forklift truck has the back side of the beam when viewed from the front of the fork insertion port. Since the iron beam does not hinder communication by arranging the antenna on the antenna, magnetic coupling by primary and secondary electromagnetic induction occurs between the bar antenna, the iron beam, and the coil of the ID tag. The information for identifying each cargo handling platform can be accurately transmitted to the forklift truck. Further, unlike the conventional case of transmitting and receiving a signal between the loop antenna and the ID tag, the troublesome work of aligning the axes of both of them on the same axis is not required, and the working time can be shortened. Then, the fork of the forklift truck and the vehicle body are not physically damaged by hitting the ID tag, and the ID tag can be used semipermanently. The signal transfer system can be used as an operation system for unmanned forklift trucks for a reliable processing support system for pallet inventory management information and a positioning system for stable cargo handling.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a post pallet with an ID tag according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state where an ID tag is arranged on the back side surface of the beam of the pallet.

FIG. 3 is a sectional view of the vicinity of a holder having an ID tag built therein.

FIG. 4 is a side view of a forklift truck that conveys pallets.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of a hardware configuration for a pallet identification operation.

FIG. 6 is a plan view for explaining a secondary electromagnetic induction action.

[Explanation of symbols]

 4 fork 5 pallet 6 bar antenna 11 beam 12 ID tag 13 holder 14 ID tag bar antenna 15 IC circuit 19 front horizontal beam

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A pallet on which articles are loaded, a frame of a cargo handling platform such as a fixed rack is composed of an iron beam, and the back side of the beam is viewed from the front of a fork insertion slot into which a fork of a forklift truck is inserted. On the surface, an ID tag holding information for identifying each loading platform, which can be read by electromagnetic induction coupling by a bar antenna provided in front of the body of a forklift truck, is provided. Stand. 2. A bar antenna is provided in front of a vehicle body of a forklift truck, and a frame of a cargo handling platform such as a pallet or a fixed rack on which articles are loaded is made of an iron beam, and the fork of the forklift truck is Information for identifying each loading platform, which is read by electromagnetic inductive coupling by the bar antenna, is held on the back side of the beam when viewed from the front of the fork insertion port to be inserted I
A signal transmission / reception system using an ID tag, wherein a D tag is provided and signals are exchanged between the bar antenna and the ID tag.