JPS58168108A - Inductive controlling method of travelling object on ground by means of optical beam - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To catch the display of the direction to be progressed surely and to avoid mis-selection of path, by irradiating a laser beam on the path of a travelling object on ground for the guide and moving the travelling object receiving the beam along the path. CONSTITUTION:A laser beam irradiating device is provided at a suitable position above the path and irradiates a modulated laser beam on the path for the travelling object on ground. Detectors 3 (e.g. 3A for right side and 3B for left side) of the modulated laser beam 3 are provided at a suitable position of the travelling object. An output from the detectors is amplified at amplifiers 4A, 4B, given to a discriminating circuit 5, signals RS, LS indicating left/right and direction of steering are outputted and given to a selecting circuit 6. Right of left steering signals are given to a steering device 11 through one of the detectors 3, a filter circuit 7, a pulse count circuit 8, a discriminating circuit 9 and AND gates 6A, 6B.

Description

[Detailed description of the invention]

The present invention relates to a method for guiding and controlling a ground moving body using a light beam, and relates to a method for guiding and controlling a ground moving body using a light beam, and a method for controlling a plurality of required meridians, each of which is irradiated with a light beam, in order to guide the traveling direction of a ground moving body by using each beam. This paper proposes a method for guiding and controlling a ground moving object using a light beam, which allows the ground moving object to reliably follow a required route by being instructed and guided. Means for instructing the route that a ground moving object should travel has already been proposed, for example, in patent application @55-141306.
r. Steering signal generation device for moving objects". That is, a ground moving body such as an automatic guided vehicle travels along a route indicated by the beam while detecting the laser beam with a laser beam detection device provided on the vehicle. However, automatic guided vehicles are generally used in highly automated factories, etc., where stages for lifting and lowering loads are installed at multiple locations.
Vehicles are requested to reach stations on each side according to instructions from the central control room. For example, in the travel route schematically illustrated in Figure 1,
In the case of moving the ground mobile object from the starting point S1 to the station run S2, in the conventional technology, 5l-A, A-II, B
-C, C-, base 2 (hereinafter referred to as division) are arranged with laser beam scanning devices that scan side by side, and the selection of which division to proceed to at branch point A is made by the destination set on the ground vehicle. This was to be done using destination data stored in advance in the setting device. However, upon arrival at branch point A, multiple laser beams are being scanned as described above, so the laser beam detection device on the ground vehicle receives multiple laser beams at the same time. is complicated,
There is a risk of making a mistake in route selection before reading the instructions in the destination data. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a method for guiding and controlling a ground mobile object that eliminates the above-mentioned drawbacks. Roofing will be explained in detail. FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing an example of the route to be traveled by the ground mobile body 1, in which the traveling route detecting means used to carry out the method of the present invention is sloped, and each route W1, W2, W3 is shown in FIG.
In the central part in one direction is ′□・, which will be described later. For example, modulated laser beam ALI as a modulated light beam in an embodiment.
, L2, and L3 are irradiated while being scanned over substantially the entire area in the longitudinal direction of each path w1 to W3. That is, FIG. 3 schematically shows an embodiment along the path w1, and the laser beam irradiation device 2 is provided at an appropriate position above the path W1, and the cough laser beam irradiation device 2 is connected to the path ( For example, the modulated laser beam L1 is scanned and irradiated onto the widthwise central part of the road surface (road) Wl over substantially the entire lengthwise area from the starting point A to the turning point l. The L/-f beam irradiation device 2 includes a laser beam generator 21 that generates a laser beam LB, a laser beam modulator 22 arranged in the passband of the laser beam generator 1, and a modulated laser that passes through the laser beam modulator 22. a laser beam scanner n disposed in the passband of the beam L1 and irradiating the modulated laser beam L1 onto the path W1 in the above-described manner; a laser beam modulator n;
A clock generator δ outputs a predetermined clock pulse to the pulse generator 24, and a clock generator δ generates the required pulse signal P1 from the clock pulses input to the pulse generator 24. The power data is stored, and this data is sent to the pulse generator 2.
For example, the period setting circuit is composed of a de-ROM, and outputs to the circuit 4. The laser beam generator 21 may be any suitable laser beam generator such as a He-Ne laser beam generator, and the laser beam modulator η may be a rectangular beam made of tellurium dioxide single crystal (TeO2), glass, etc., as shown in FIG. In order to propagate ultrasonic vibrations as mechanical vibrations into the acousto-optic medium 221 formed in a rod shape and one longitudinal end surface thereof.

[It consists of an attached ultrasonic transducer 222, etc. Ultrasonic transducer 22
2 generates ultrasonic waves of a predetermined frequency in response to pulses included in the pulse signal P1 output from the pulse generator S, and this ultrasonic wave is directed from one longitudinal end surface to the other end surface in the acousto-optic medium 221. It is now being propagated. In addition, 223 is a sound absorbing material, which causes the laser beam Llk
While passing through the acousto-optic medium 221, the modulated laser beam L1 is diffracted by the effect of the ultrasonic wave as a phase grating, and its traveling direction is changed. For example, as shown in FIG. 5, the laser beam scanner includes a rotating mirror 231 having a reflecting mirror on at least one side thereof,
It consists of a motor 232 that rotates a predetermined angle. The paths W2 and W3 are also irradiated with the modulated laser beams L2 and LS while being scanned in the same manner as the path W1 described above. In the case of a modulated laser beam L, the pulse signal P 1 bi rises from a low level to a high level three times during a predetermined period T with a pulse interval of 1 and a pulse interval of 11, as shown in FIG. 6(a). It is composed of rising pulses and is modulated by this pulse signal P1. On the other hand, the modulated laser beams L2 and L
In the case of S, for example, as shown in FIG. 6(0), e→, the Nihals width L' and ? '(Y>?'>), the pulse interval is 8', and the pulse signal P2 is composed of pulses that rise from low level to high level 4 times and 5 times at s' (s) g') s', respectively; P3 is modulated by P3. Therefore, a detector 3 made of, for example, a solar cell is installed at an appropriate position on the ground moving body 1 to detect the modulated laser beams L1, L2, and LS. 7 is a block diagram showing the traveling route detecting means. In the figure, the detector 3 is arranged in a direction intersecting the route, for example. The right detector 3A and the left detector 3B are arranged in
It consists of The detection outputs of these detectors 3A and 31 are amplified by amplifier circuits 4A and 4B, respectively, and are provided to a discrimination circuit 5. The determination circuit 5 determines whether the ground mobile object 1 should be steered to the right or left based on the detection outputs of the detectors 3A and 31 amplified by the amplifier circuits 4A and 4B. Level signals ILS and L
Generate S. That is, for example, if the right detector 3A detects the modulated laser beam L1, it will generate a signal is to steer to the right, and the left detector 3B will detect the modulated laser beam L1.
If 1 is detected, a signal LS for steering to the left is generated. In addition, the boundary 3C between the detectors 3A and 3B is modulated by the laser beam L.
When 1 is scanning, neither signals LS nor ILS are generated. The output signals LS and R5 of the discrimination circuit 5 are input to one input terminal of each of the AND gates 6A and 6B of the selection circuit 6. On the other hand, the detection outputs of the detectors 3A and 3B are added together and input to a filter circuit 7, where the DC component is removed, and a transmission signal DS made up of a plurality of pulses is input to a pulse number circuit 8. The pulse needle control circuit 8 then provides its count output to the identification circuit 9. The identification circuit 9 compares the count output of the pulse counting circuit 8 with a plurality of pulse codes corresponding to the pulse signals P1, P2, and P3 set in advance in the pulse code setting device 10, and identifies this, When this count output matches any pulse code, a high level signal is output to the AND game of the screening circuit 6) 6A, 6
1 so that they are both input to the other input terminal. The sorting circuit 6 outputs a sorting signal k or L to the steering device 11 when both input terminals of AND game 6A or 6B become high level, and the steering device 11 is configured to sort. When the signal mouse or L is input, the ground moving body 1 is steered to the right or left and the ground moving body 1 is caused to travel along the routes W1, W2, and W3. As detailed above, in the case of the present invention, ground movement is required. The modulated laser beam that is irradiated while scanning the multiple routes that the body travels is modulated based on the pulse signal that occurs for each route, and the ground moving vehicle cannot use these modulated laser beams. Since the vehicle travels while identifying the modulated laser beam L at the route change points B and C shown in Fig. 2]
Even if L2 or L2 and L33 times are complicated, it is possible to reliably grasp the direction in which to proceed and avoid making mistakes in route selection, thereby improving the reliability of guidance control for ground mobile objects. It has excellent effects. Although a laser beam is used as the light beam in the above-described embodiment, the same effect can of course be obtained by using a visible light beam or an infrared beam.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a travel route, FIG. 2 is a plan view schematically showing an example of a route that a ground mobile object should travel, and FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of the method of the present invention on route W1. Figure, 4th
The figure is an explanatory diagram of the laser beam modulator, Fig. 5 is an explanatory diagram of the laser beam scanner, and Fig. 6 (Dawn → is the pulse signal P1,
The waveform diagram of P2 and P3 and FIG. 7 are block diagrams showing the traveling route detecting means. 41... Ground mobile body, 2... Laser beam irradiation device, 21... Laser beam generator, 22... Laser beam modulator, n... Laser beam scanner, 24...
...Pulse generator, 25...Kurotsuta generator,
26... Period setting device, 3.3A, 3B... Detector,
4A, 4B...Amplification circuit, 5...Discrimination circuit, 6...
- Selection circuit, 7... Filter circuit, 8... Pulse counting circuit, 9... Identification circuit, 10... Pulse code setter, 11... Steering device, wl, w2. w3...
Path, Ll, L2. LB...Variable laser beam, LB
...Laser beam, PI, P2. P3...Pulse signal, R, L...Selection signal. Figure 1 2 ＼A Figure 3

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] (1) In a method for guiding and controlling a ground moving object using a light beam, a modulated light beam modulated based on a predetermined pulse signal is applied to a route along which the ground moving object is to travel. It irradiates while scanning to give a traveling route, and when the traveling route detecting means provided on the ground vehicle detects the direction in which the modulated light beam is irradiated, it identifies a predetermined pulse signal and proceeds. A method for guiding and controlling a ground mobile object using a light beam, the method comprising selecting a route to be taken. (2) The method for primary control of a terrestrial mobile object using a light beam according to claim 1, wherein the light beam is a laser beam. □(3) The traveling route detecting means is comprised of a detector, an amplifier circuit, a separate road circuit, a filter circuit, a pulse counting circuit, and a pulse code setting device. The method for guiding and controlling a ground moving object using a light beam according to item 1. (4) The traveling route detecting means includes a detector, an amplifier circuit 1 discrimination circuit 1 selection circuit, a filter circuit, a pulse counting circuit,
It includes a pulse code setting device and a built-in device for storing code signals or round signal modes characterizing each predetermined route, and also stores a sequential sequence of code signals for each route, and stores the code signal mode for each predetermined route. Read the corresponding route,
A method for guiding and controlling a ground mobile object using a light beam according to claim 1, characterized in that a laser guidance signal that matches this is selected.