JPH07175951A - Instruction slip printer - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To simplify the constitution of devices, to simplify operations and to reduce the cost by directly connecting an assembly operation instruction slip printer to a LAN inside a factory layed in an automobile production line or the like and omitting a terminal controller and an enquiry terminal using a personal computer or the like required before. CONSTITUTION:The assembly operation instruction slip printer 4 for instructing the operation is connected to a branch line LAN 2 inside the factory, instruction slip data from a host computer 1 are received in a LAN communication interface part 12, printing is controlled in a printing control part 13 and an instruction slip is printed in a printing mechanism part 14. When an abnormality occurs inside the device, it is detected in an abnormality detection part 15 and informed by an alarming lamp 5, a buzzer 6 and a liquid crystal display panel 9. When the abnormality is recovered, a command is issued by a reissuance input switch 7, the instruction slip data for reissuance are received from the host computer 1 and the instruction slip is printed and issued.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an instruction slip printing device for issuing an instruction slip for printing and giving an instruction. For example, in an assembly process of an automobile production line, an assembly for instructing an operator to a vehicle assembly part is assembled. The present invention relates to an instruction slip printing device that prints a work instruction slip.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art FIG. 6 is a system configuration diagram of a conventional assembly work instruction slip printer for issuing an assembly work instruction slip for instructing an assembly operation on a production line, and FIG. 7 is a block diagram of FIG. In FIG. 6, 1 is a host computer, 2 is a branch line LA
N and 3 are backbone trunk LANs, 21 is an assembly work instruction slip printing device, 22 is a terminal control device that connects the host computer 1 and a terminal (assembly work instruction slip printing device 21), and a personal computer main body is used. Reference numeral 24 denotes an inquiry terminal for inputting a request for reissue to the host computer 1 when a printing error occurs, which has a keyboard 25 and is composed of a personal computer main body and a display.

Although an example of an automobile production assembly line is shown here and not shown in FIG. 6, there is a vehicle body assembly line near the assembly work instruction slip printing device 21, and an assembly worker gives an assembly work instruction. The vehicle body is assembled according to the assembly work instruction slip issued by the slip printing device 21. A plurality of the assembly work instruction slip printing devices (including the assembly work instruction slip printing device 21, the terminal control device 22, and the inquiry terminal 24) are arranged along the assembly line of the vehicle body according to the progress of the assembly. An assembly work instruction slip is issued and each assembly work instruction is issued.

In FIG. 7, reference numeral 23 is an RS-2 for receiving the instruction slip data of the assembly work instruction slip printer 21.
In the 32C communication interface unit, R of the terminal control device 22
The S-232C communication interface unit (not shown) is connected to each other. 13 is a communication data printout control unit, 14 is a printing mechanism unit that prints an instruction slip, and 15 is an abnormality detection unit that detects an abnormality in the assembly work instruction slip printer 21. Reference numeral 9 denotes a liquid crystal display panel that displays an abnormal state or the like according to an abnormal signal from the abnormality detection unit 15.

Next, the operation will be described. Host computer 1
The RS-232C communication interface unit 23 receives the assembly data for each vehicle edited in step 1 through the branch LAN 2 via the terminal control device 22. The output of the received assembly data is controlled from the print output control unit 13 to the print mechanism unit 14, and the assembly work instruction slip is printed. When the assembling work instruction slip printer 21 is abnormal, the abnormality detecting section 15 detects it and displays the abnormality code on the liquid crystal display panel 9. If normal printing cannot be performed due to a paper jam or printer error,
After recovery of the assembly work instruction slip printer 21, the inquiry terminal 24
Input the reprint request data and reprint.

[0006]

Since the conventional production line assembly work instruction sheet printer is constructed as described above, a terminal control which is composed of a personal computer body in addition to the assembly work instruction sheet printer body 21 is provided. The device 22 is required, and also the personal computer of the inquiry terminal 24 for requesting the host computer 1 to issue a command for reissuing the instruction slip when an abnormality occurs.
Although there is a merit that a commercially available personal computer can be used immediately, an assembly work instruction slip printing device 21 can be installed on one terminal.
However, the configuration was complicated and costly. Also, three connection cables were required for each terminal. Further, when the production line is changed and added, there is a problem that extra labor and cost are required for the addition and relocation because the number of the above-mentioned devices is large.

Further, since the transmission data of the host computer 1 is not checked on the assembly work instruction slip printer 21 side, if one message is lost due to an error such as noise when the host computer 1 receives the transmission data, after that, In some cases, the vehicle body to be instructed to perform the work instruction was misaligned, leading to incorrect assembly until a person noticed. Even when the reprint request data is transmitted from the terminal side and the reissue data is transmitted from the host computer 1, an error may occur due to the same cause.

The present invention has been made in order to solve the above problems, and simplifies the configuration without using a terminal control device or an inquiry terminal, and only the instruction slip printing device has all the functions. The purpose is to simplify the operation and reduce the cost. Further, when an instruction slip different from the actual instruction target is issued due to an error such as noise, the content is checked to prevent misassembly.

[0009]

An instruction slip printing apparatus according to the present invention is an interface section for receiving instruction slip data from a master station via a transmission line, and a print control for performing print control based on the received signal. Section, a printing mechanism section for printing an instruction slip controlled by the print control section, an abnormality detecting means for detecting and reporting an abnormality when an abnormality occurs between the reception and the printing, desired instruction slip data from the master station Issuance instruction means for issuing an issuance instruction so as to transmit.

Further, the reading means for reading the indication object information displayed on the indication object, comparing the read indication object information with the indication object information in the instruction slip data received from the master station, determines whether or not they are the same indication object. It is provided with a comparison / verification unit that verifies whether or not there is a difference between the two and sends an abnormal signal.

Further, when an abnormal signal is sent from the comparison and verification section, the issuing command means issues an issuing command to the master station so as to transmit the instruction slip data corresponding to the instruction target information read by the reading means. Is.

[0012]

The instruction slip printer according to the present invention receives the instruction slip data from the master station, prints and issues the instruction slip in accordance with the received signal, and notifies the abnormality detection means that there is an abnormality from reception to printing, and issues it. The master station transmits desired instruction slip data in response to an issuing instruction from the instruction means.

The instruction target information displayed on the instruction target is read by the reading means, and the comparison verification unit compares the read instruction target information with the instruction target information in the instruction slip data received from the master station, and the same. Whether or not it is an instruction target is verified, and if there is a difference between the two, an abnormal signal is sent. The abnormality detecting means detects the abnormality signal and reports the abnormality.

[0014]

【Example】

Example 1. A first embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. Note that the same reference numerals as those of the conventional one are the same as those of the conventional one, and the description thereof will be omitted. FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of an assembly work instruction slip printing apparatus. In the figure, 1 is a host computer for editing instruction slip data, and 2 is a branch line LA in a factory.
N and 3 are backbone trunk LANs in the factory.
N is a factory LAN (IEEE802.3 compliant). Reference numeral 4 denotes an assembling work instruction slip printing device for giving an instruction for assembling work.

FIG. 2 is an external view of the assembling work instruction slip printing apparatus. In the figure, 5 is a two-stage type alarm light for notifying an abnormality, a red light (major failure display) and a yellow light (light failure). Is. 6 is a buzzer which gives an alarm with two kinds of tones, and changes the tones of a major failure and a minor failure. 7 is a reissue request switch, 8
Is an assembling work instruction slip in which a part number of the assembling work is printed. After printing, one sheet is attached to each vehicle and used for instructing the assembling work. The two-stage warning light 5, the buzzer 6, the liquid crystal display panel 9, and the abnormality detecting unit 15 in FIG. 3 constitute abnormality detecting means.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the assembly work instruction slip printing apparatus. In FIG. 3, reference numeral 10 is instruction slip data of the assembly work instruction slip edited by the host computer 1, and 11 is reprinting input by the reissue request switch 7. Request data, 12 is a LAN communication interface unit that receives a signal via the branch line LAN 2, and TC for connecting directly to the branch line LAN.
P / IP (Transmission Control)
Protocol / Internet Protoco
l) method is used.

This TCP / IP system was developed in the United States,
Connection between different models is easy, it is standard equipment on UNIX machines, no special software or hardware is required, and it is possible to connect from a personal computer to a general-purpose computer with a TCP / IP conversion tool. Especially, there is a merit that it can be easily used as a LAN. It is possible to communicate directly with a host computer by directly connecting to a LAN (IEEE802.3 compliant) without using a terminal control device by using a communication interface function in which this communication protocol is implemented in ROM.

Next, the operation will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. The instruction slip data 10 of the assembly work instruction slip edited by the host computer 1 is transmitted via the branch line LAN2 (step S1). The transmitted instruction slip data 10 is directly received by the communication function (TCP / IP) of the LAN communication interface unit 12 (step S2). The received signal is checked for any abnormality (step S3), and the print output controller 13 is checked for any failure (step S4). If no abnormality is found, the instruction slip data 10 is printed output control. The printing control is performed by the printing unit 13 by the printing unit 13 (step S
5) If there is no failure in the printing mechanism unit 14 (step S
6), the printing mechanism unit 14 prints the assembly work instruction slip 8 (step S7).

If there is an abnormality in steps S3, S4 and S6, a signal is sent to the abnormality detecting section 15 to determine whether the failure is a major failure or a minor failure (step S8), and the failure code is displayed on the liquid crystal display panel 9. An alarm lamp 5 and a buzzer 6 are used to identify and report a major failure and a minor failure (steps S9 and S10).
After the abnormality is recovered (step S11), the reprint request data 11 input by the reissue request switch 7 is transmitted to the host computer 1 via the branch line LAN2 by the communication function of the LAN communication interface unit 12 (step S12). Check whether or not it was possible (step S13),
When the data is normally transmitted, the host computer 1 executes the editing process again to transmit the instruction slip data 10 to the printing device (step S1). After that, step S2 and the subsequent steps are similarly executed. If the transmission is not normal in step S13, the abnormality detection unit 15 detects an abnormality in the LAN communication interface unit 12, and steps S8 and thereafter are executed.

Here, the major failure and the minor failure are distinguished from each other. The major failure is a hardware failure that requires maintenance. The minor failure is an operational failure and there is no print sheet, a print sheet jam, etc. It can be dealt with in the field.

As described above, the personal computer which is the conventional terminal control device 22 and the personal computer which is the inquiry terminal 24 for the reissue request are omitted, and the instruction slip printing device alone can issue and issue the instruction slip. Therefore, the structure can be simplified, the operation can be simplified, and the cost can be reduced. In addition, it can be easily moved or added. Furthermore, since only one connection cable is required, the configuration can be simplified and the work for moving or adding can be further simplified.

Further, since the TCP / IP system is used, the communication interface function in which the communication protocol capable of communicating via the in-plant LAN is ROM is directly connected to the LAN without the terminal control device to communicate with the host computer. You can

Further, the detection at the time of abnormality is not limited to the display only on the liquid crystal display panel. The warning light provides visual notification and the buzzer provides auditory notification, so the assembly worker can immediately detect it, and distinguish between major and minor failures according to the nature of the failure. Since the notification is made, the assembling worker can grasp the contents of the notification more accurately and can deal with the restoration of the failure.

Example 2. In the second embodiment, a function of checking the assembly work instruction slip 8 is provided. FIG. 5 shows its block diagram. In the figure, 16 is a comparison / verification unit, which compares and verifies the read output of the reader 17 and the information of the instruction slip data transmitted from the host computer 1, and verifies whether or not the information is the same instruction target. If they are not the same, an abnormality signal is output and the abnormality detection unit 15 issues an alarm according to this output. In this case, the reader 17
It uses an optical reader. Reference numeral 18 is a vehicle body, and 19 is a display label attached to the vehicle body. (Instruction target information) is displayed.

Next, the operation will be described. When the vehicle body 18 comes to the work position by the production assembly line, the reader 17 reads the vehicle body sequence number. The (instruction target information) is read and input to the comparison verification unit 16. On the other hand, the instruction slip data 10 transmitted from the host computer 1 is input to the comparison verification unit 16 via the LAN communication interface unit 12, and the comparison verification unit 16 inputs the sequence number of the vehicle body in the instruction slip data 10. And the sequence number of the vehicle body read by the reader 17. It is checked whether and match, and if they do not match, an abnormal signal is sent. The abnormality signal is detected by the abnormality detection unit 15, and the alarm lamp 5, the buzzer 6 and the liquid crystal display panel 9 give an alarm.

Example 3. The reading by the reader 17 may be automatically read when the vehicle body 18 flows through the production line. Alternatively, the assembling operator may operate the reader 17 to read the data. Also,
Sequence number of the car body read by the reader. (Instruction target information) and the sequence number of the vehicle body in the instruction slip data 10 received. Unlike the above, when the comparison / verification unit 16 sends an abnormal signal, the reissue request switch is automatically operated based on this abnormal signal to read the sequence number of the vehicle body read by the reader. The instruction slip data corresponding to the above may be transmitted from the host computer 1.

In the second and third embodiments, an optical reader is used as the reader. However, if the instruction target information is a bar code, a bar code reader is used and a character code of numbers or characters can be used. For example, a number or character reader may be used. Further, when the instruction target information is a symbol of unevenness attached to the target product, or when the shape of the target product itself is the instruction target information, it may be read by a sensor corresponding to the instruction target information.

Example 4. In the above-described embodiment, the reissue request switch is used to instruct the reissue of the instruction slip, but an issue instruction means for requesting the host computer to transmit not only the reissue but also the desired instruction slip data may be used. Further, although the host computer 1 is used in the above-described embodiment, it may be a workstation or the like, in short, it may be a master station that has a database of instruction slips and issues an instruction to issue an instruction slip. Further, in the above embodiment, the instruction slip for the assembling work has been described, but the present invention can also be applied to works other than the assembling work, inspection, and other work that performs some work according to the instruction of the slip.
In addition, it goes without saying that the instruction slip includes an instruction form, an instruction slip, and other instructions.

Example 5. In the above embodiment, the assembly line of the car body has been described.
It may be an inspection target or an instruction target that is instructed by other instruction slips and performs some work or operation based on the instruction.

[0030]

As described above, according to the present invention, since only the instruction slip printing device is used as a terminal, a terminal control device using a personal computer and an inquiry terminal are not required, and the configuration is simplified and the operation is simplified. It has the effect of reducing cost and cost.

Further, since the instruction target information of the instruction slip and the instruction target information displayed on the actual instruction target read by the reader are compared and verified to check whether they are the same, erroneous assembly or the like is erroneous. There is an effect that can prevent the work and work.

Further, when the instruction target information read by the reader is different from the instruction target information in the received instruction slip data, the instruction slip data corresponding to the instruction target information read by the reader is transmitted. , It is effective to automatically prevent wrong work / work.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of an assembly work instruction slip printer according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is an external view of the assembly work instruction slip printer of FIG.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the assembly work instruction slip printing apparatus of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an operation of the assembly work instruction slip printing apparatus of FIG.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an assembly work instruction slip printer according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a system configuration diagram of a conventional assembly work instruction slip printing device.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of a conventional assembly work instruction slip printing device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Host computer (master station) 2 Branch line LAN 3 Backbone trunk line LAN 4 Assembly work instruction slip printer 5 Warning light 6 Buzzer 7 Reissue request switch 8 Assembly work instruction slip 9 Liquid crystal display panel 10 Instruction slip data 11 Reprint request data 12 LAN communication interface unit 13 Print output control unit 14 Printing mechanism unit 15 Abnormality detection unit 16 Comparison verification unit 17 Reader 18 Car body 19 Display label 21 Assembly work instruction slip printer 22 Terminal control device 23 RS-232C communication interface unit 24 Inquiry terminal 25 keyboard

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. An interface unit for receiving instruction slip data from a master station via a transmission line, a print control unit for performing print control based on the received signal, and printing of the instruction slip controlled by this print control unit. A printing mechanism section for performing, an abnormality detecting means for detecting and reporting an abnormality when an abnormality occurs between the reception and the printing, and an issuing instruction means for issuing an issuing instruction to transmit desired instruction slip data from the master station Instruction slip printing device. 2. A reading unit for reading the instruction target information displayed on the instruction target, comparing the read instruction target information with the instruction target information in the instruction slip data received from the master station, and determining whether or not they are the same instruction target. 2. The instruction slip printer according to claim 1, further comprising a comparison / verification unit that verifies whether or not there is a difference between the two and sends an abnormal signal, and the abnormal signal is detected by the abnormality detection means to notify the abnormality. 3. The issuing command means issues an issue command to the master station so as to transmit the instruction slip data corresponding to the instruction target information read by the reading means when an abnormal signal is sent from the comparison and verification section. The instruction slip printer according to item 2.