JPS582119A - Tracking method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To correct a tracking code by detecting the type of an article and sequentially storing the output to draw up the detected type code column which is compared with a corresponding type code column corresponding to the track code column of an article passed through a downstream spot. CONSTITUTION:Working machines 51-54 positioned at the uppermost stream are adapted to work kinds A-D of articles to be put out onto conveyers 61- 64. Each transport path is provided with article passing detectors 101-104 which are adapted to detect passing of the artiles by a change in output of a photocell. Subsequently, the articles go into a joining apparatus 120 where kinds A-D of articles are joined to be driven away to a conveyer 121. The joining apparatus comprises an area for sequentially storing articles classified by kinds and a mechanism for driving away the articles to the conveyer 121 in response to a command of a processor. Passing detectors 106, 110 are located downstream of the conveyer 121 to detect the type of an article from difference in height of the articles.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a method for tracking information on multiple articles flowing on the same conveyor over a certain period.

In general, when conveying a wide variety of goods on a conveyor or other conveyor, and downstream of the conveyor, the goods are sorted by type, or mixed and sorted as specified, the goods are transported by the conveyor. From the time it enters to the time it is sorted,
Tracking is often performed according to the movement of an article. Tracking information can be used to improve sorting efficiency by knowing in advance the items to be transported. In addition, if a defective product is detected in the later inspection process, sorting is used as information to analyze which manufacturing process input the product to the conveyance device as a defective product and to control that manufacturing process. It will be done.

The gt diagram shows a general conventional example in which articles are transported by a conveyor and sorted by type.

An identification device 3 installed at a certain point P identifies the product 2 transported by the conveyor 1 by its type and, if necessary, by its serial number. Here, the identification device is an optical one, and the other is a magnetic one, but there are many cases in which the identification device is optically scanned and read by displaying the product type in black and white on the surface of the article. The identified results are sequentially stored in the memory of a control device (not shown), and when the photoelectric detector 4 detects that the article has reached the inlet Q of the downstream sorting device 5, the control device responds to the type. A sorting command is output to the sorting device 5. When the sorting device 5 receives this command,
When article 2 comes to the specified sorting in front of conveyor 7,
For sorting, a shovel 6 installed corresponding to the conveyor 7 is operated, and articles 21 are pushed onto the conveyor 7 for predetermined sorting.

The reason for this configuration, that is, the reason why the identification device gold film cannot be placed at the entrance of the sorting device 5, is that the identification device is relatively expensive and cannot be installed in many locations.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of a conventional circuit for tracking identification results. The identification result S from the identification device 3 is input to a first-in first-out register 8 (hereinafter referred to as FIFO) by a timing signal S outputted at the same time.
It is input to the f1 stage of.

The FIFO 8 is composed of N+1 registers, and the information S input to the first stage is shifted sequentially if the next stage is empty, and the tracking interval P to Qt shown in FIG.
If there is no article 2 already, that is, all registers θ to N are empty, the input information 81 is shifted to register N at the final stage. Therefore, the next input identification information S
1 is shifted to the N-1st stage register. Maku FI
When the FO receives a readout signal 81 from the optical device 4 installed at the tracking terminal Q, the information in the subsequent stage is incremented by 7 feet. This is the identification information of 2.

FIFO8 is commercially available from various IC manufacturers (e.g.
1502 (manufactured by Western Digital, USA), if the tracking section is long and the storage capacity is insufficient, these ICs may be connected in cascade. The output S4 of the FIFO is inputted to a sorting selection circuit 9, and the sorting is converted into a command Sl.

If the conveyor 7 has one-to-IK correspondence between the type and sorting of the articles 2, this selection circuit can be configured with a ROM or the like. The sorting command 8- is the FIFO 8 bladder output signal 8. The detection signal of the photoelectric detector 4, which is also the same as that of the photodetector 4, is stored in the output register 10. This output 8 passes through the tocking terminal Q and is outputted to the device 5 as a command for sorting the friend articles 2.

In this method, if there is an abnormality in the flow of article 2 within the tracking section,
For example, if item 2 falls off the conveyor on the way, %211!
l Parallel or the later one overtakes the front, and furthermore, the article 2 is deformed and the terminal detector 4 for 1 +1ffi
This is an extremely cheap method unless a situation arises where the machine works twice and then stops. However, depending on the articles 2 to be conveyed, completely preventing this may make the conveyor 1 expensive. To make matters worse, even if the frequency of tracking abnormalities is low, once an abnormality occurs, all subsequent articles 2 will be sorted out of alignment, resulting in extremely large damage.

Therefore, conventionally, as shown in Japanese Patent Application Laid-open No. 53-51865, a detection device that detects only a specific item of the article is installed at the end point of tracking to check for disturbances in tracking, and in some cases automatically Attempts have also been made to improve tracking accuracy by making corrections. FIG. 3 shows a conventional method for detecting articles of a specific type. In this example, among the articles 2 conveyed on the conveyor 1, article 2a is different from other articles 2b and 2c.

It is assumed that it is thinner than... In such a case, if we consider 2 m as the specific type of article 2, it can be easily detected. That is, as shown in FIG. 3, in addition to the photodetector 11 that detects all the articles 2 at the tracking end Q, another photodetector 12 is installed at a height that can detect only the articles 2m. Just set it up. This is because when the article 2 passes through the terminal 4Q, both detectors 11 and 12 are activated for the article 21, but only the detector 11 is activated for the other items.

With this configuration, when an article of a specific type is detected at the tracking end Q, it is checked whether the tracking coat corresponding to this article is a code for the article of the specific type. If this is a specific product code, tracking is normal; otherwise, it is abnormal. If it is abnormal,
Furthermore, it is checked whether the tracking code with the first tracking code is a specific product code, and if this is the code for a specific product, the tracking has shifted by 1 til at the terminal Q (% 1 til in the middle of the tracking section in the article row in front of
il items have been inserted into the conveyor line)
. If not, from now on, we will check whether the tracking coat that precedes the tracking code for this item is a tracking coat for a specific product, and if this is the tracking code for a specific product, the tracking will be shifted forward by one. (This means that one article in front of the specific type of article fell off the conveyor line during the tracking section.)

According to this correction method, dropping and insertion of articles in the tracking section can be corrected, but there is a drawback that correct correction cannot be made when the order of the preceding and succeeding articles is reversed. The specific explanation is as follows. Specified types of goods @A'
, other items are designated as 1B', "C" @1) #.

Assume that the arrangement order of the articles detected at point P and the order of the tracking codes are "ABCABCD." From point P to terminal Q, the third and fourth articles are exchanged, and actually at point Q. The article code (hereinafter referred to as the true code) passing through is "ABACBCD".Point Qk
The code (detection code) actually detected at point Q for the first passing article is A, and the racking code is also A. Since both match, tracking is normal, and the tracking code at point Q is becomes a person. Point Qt
For the second article that escapes, the detection code is other than A, no abnormality check is performed, and the tracking code at point Q is B. The third point passing through point Q
For the th article, the detection target becomes a person and an abnormality check is performed. The third tracking code is a non-human code (code C) and does not match the detected code, so a tracking abnormality is detected. Therefore,
As mentioned above, check whether the next code, that is, the @4th tracking code, is a person. In this case, since the person is a person, the tracking is shifted one position forward by nine. Therefore, the following code is 1
Move it forward one by one. That is, point Qt - the fourth point to pass
The fifth tracking code corresponds to the fifth article, the sixth tracking code corresponds to the fifth article passing through point Q, and so on. For the fourth article passing through point Q, the detection code will be other than A, and the fifth tracking code B will be assigned. Comparing the code modified in this way with the true code, the modified code A
BABCD The true code becomes ABCBC, and it is clear that the modification is not appropriate.

The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, and includes problems such as falling off of articles in the tracking section,
In addition to insertion, a tracking method is provided that allows accurate tracking correction even when the order of the preceding and succeeding articles is changed.

For this reason, a tracking code sequence corresponding to the arrangement order of various types of articles at an upstream point on the conveyance path is detected, the type of article is detected at a point downstream from this upstream point, and the type of article detected sequentially is detected. A detection type code string is created by sequentially storing the codes, and a corresponding type code string corresponding to the tracking code string of a predetermined number of articles passing through the lower i1L@ point, and a detection type code corresponding to the predetermined number of articles. The tracking code was modified based on the results of this comparison.

The aA of the present invention will be explained in detail below using Examples.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the production process. Most upstream processing machine 5
1.52, 53.54 are breed people, B.

The articles C and D are processed one after another on the conveyor 61.
, 62, 63, and 64.

Each item of type A, B, C, and D is conveyor 61°62.6
3.64 are conveyed downward from the top of the figure. Each of the conveyance paths 61 to 64 has article passage detectors 101 to 64, respectively.
104 is provided.

The article passage detector consists of a light emitter and a light receiver that face each other across a conveyance path. The transported article temporarily blocks the light being emitted from the light emitter to the light receiver.

Therefore, passage of the article can be detected from a change in the output of the light receiver.

Reference numeral 120 denotes a separation device that combines the articles of types A to D conveyed by the conveyors 61 to 64 and delivers them to the conveyor 121. This device consists of a storage area for storing articles input by type in the order of input, and a known mechanism for discharging articles from the storage area onto a conveyor 121 in accordance with instructions from a processing device. Reference numeral 106 is provided downstream of the conveyor 121 and represents a nine article passage detector.

Suppose that the heights of products of types A and B are high, and the heights of products of types C and D are low.In other words, the products of types A and B are tall, so the products of type h, types C, Since the article D is short in height, it will be referred to as a type L article. The article passing detector 11G is installed at a predetermined height so that it operates when a type H article passes, and does not operate when a type L article passes. In other words, 11 in Figure 3! , 11b and 128.12b, passage detectors 106 and 110 are installed. 130 is a distribution device that transfers and branches articles conveyed by the conveyor 121 to buffer lines 131 to 134. The buffers 131 to 134 are for temporarily storing a predetermined number of articles. Reference numeral 150 denotes a ninth input/output device for notifying tracking correction requests and inputting correction tracking codes. 140 is
This is a selective dispensing device for dispensing nine articles temporarily stored in the buffer lines 131 to 134 to a conveyor 141.

FIG. 5 is a block diagram of the tracking device of the present invention. The operation of the present invention will be explained next using FIGS. 4 to 8.

(1) Detection of a tracking code indicating the article arrangement at an upstream point of the conveyor 121 A product type identification device may be provided at an upstream point of the conveyor 121 to detect and store a tracking code indicating the article arrangement. In the example, this is memorized as follows.

The processing device 200 executes a process 60G shown in FIG. Areas 301, 303 to 306, 35 of memory 300
1 to 354.361 to 364°370.371 are set to O clear state, H is stored in area 35G, and a correspondence table of types and types is stored in area 302.

Clear address counters 2G1 and 202t to zero. Types A to D discharged from processing machines 51 to 54, respectively
The articles are conveyed to the conveyors 61 to 64 and detected by the detector 101.
104 and enters the merging device 120. Detectors 101 to 104 detect passage of articles of types A to D, and output the detection signals to processing device 200 .

The processing device 200 uses the memory 300 based on this ejection signal.
A process 601 is executed to count up the values tl in the count areas 351 to 354. Nine points are that when the detection signal 4 of article passage is output from the detector 101, the value NA of the area 351 is counted up by 1, and the article of type A is stored in the article storage area of the article collector in the merging device 12G. One piece is inserted.

When the article passage detection signal is output from the detector 102,
1st shift NB in area 352 is counted up,
Articles of type B are thrown into the article storage area of type B in the merging device 12G at 11tlA. Area 3 of memory 300
The same applies to 53,354.

Swapping of articles before and after the conveyor during conveyance in the tracking section from the upstream side to the downstream side of the conveyor 121 cannot be detected if the articles are of the same type before and after, but can be detected if the articles before and after the articles are of different types. Therefore, it is desirable to prevent articles of the same type from being of different types in succession.
The types of articles before and after being dispensed are different from each other or the same type, as follows. In the initial state, the value of the flag area 350 is set to H. Since the value of the flag area 350 of the processing device 200 is H, the determination in the process 602 is YB2, and the process 316
Move to 03. Count values NA and NBt of areas 351 and 352 are compared. If the count value N of the area 351 is greater than or equal to the count value NB of the area 352 and is 2 or more, the count value NAt-2 is counted down, the value of the area 350 is set to L, and the merging device 120
A process 608 is executed to control the merging device 120 so that the two items of type A located at the most downstream side of this area are delivered to the conveyor 121 from the storage area for the items of type A in this area. If the count value NB is larger than Nmu and is 2 or more, processing! 1603.605 is executed, the count value NB is counted down by 2 to the value t-L of 1 area 350, and the article 2 of type B located at the most downstream of this area is transferred from the storage area for the article of type B in the merging device 120 Conveyor 1
The process moves on to process 607 in which the merging device 120 is controlled so as to pay out the merging device 120 at 21. In the initial state, the address counter 20
The values of 1 and 202 are set to 0. Thereafter, the processing device 20G determines the type of good article to be dispensed, for example, tjAll.
-Memory area 30 of the value indicated by the address counter 201
After executing the process 11611 that writes to the address within 1 and the next zero address and counts up by 2 above that value, process 601
Return to

Next, the processing device 20G executes the process 1 after executing the hair coral 601t.
Execute on i602'. Since the value of area 350 is L, the process moves to process 604. Area 3530 count value NC is compared with area 354 count value NDt. Count value NO is greater than or equal to count value ND,
If the number is 2 or more, count down by the count value NCt2fe, set the value in the area 350 to H, and turn on the merging device 12.
A process 609 for controlling the merging device 120 so as to deliver article 2 Er1A of type C located at the most downstream of this area from the storage area for articles of type C in G to the conveyor 121.
Execute. If the count value ND is larger than the count value NC and is 2 or more, processes 604 to 606 are executed, the count value ND is counted down by 2, m in the area 350 is set to H, and the payout i is issued to the coin bearer 121. Then, a process 1161G for controlling the merging device 12G is executed. Thereafter, the processing device 200 writes the type of the dispensed article, for example, to the address in the memory area 301 indicated by the Ct address counter 201 and the next address.
A process 611 for counting up the value is executed, and the process returns to process 601. (9) If the determination in steps 605 and 606 is NO, the process returns to step 601.

In this way, the conveyor 1 is placed on the upstream side of the conveyor 121.
The items before and after being paid out in 21 can be of different types or the same type, and an example of a tracking code indicating the arrangement order of the i item, for example, A.
ACCBBDD... can be detected and stored.

Note that the number of articles discharged from the processing equipment is type i.
If there is a normal run between the type L type and the type L type, but there is an imbalance, there is a possibility that a large amount of one type or more has accumulated in the merging device 120. , a predetermined number of articles of one type of this type are allowed to flow down, another type of item is allowed to flow down, and a predetermined number of items of the other type of this type are allowed to flow down in succession. .

(Iwa) Detection of tracking abnormality and its automatic correction The article whose type is stored in the memory area 301 is conveyor 1.
21 and enters the dispensing device 130. Detectors 106 and 110 are provided at the most downstream point of the conveyor 121. As mentioned above, the detector 106
,B,C.

No matter which type of article D passes through this point O, the detector 110 outputs an article passing output; Even if an object passes through, the object passing detection output is not output. Therefore, when both detectors 106 and 110 output article passing outputs, it means that the type H article has passed this point.

If the detector 106 outputs an article passing output and the detector 110 does not output an article passing output, it is determined that an article of type L has passed this point.

When the article passes through the most downstream point, this is detected in process 701 and process 702 is executed. That is, the detector 10
Based on the outputs of 6 and 11G, the processing device 200 finds out whether the type of the article that passed the most downstream point is H or L, and stores it in the nth storage area in the area 304 indicated by the counter value n of 303. .

The initial value of the counter value n is 0. Area 304-30
6 has 16 storage areas numbered 0 to 15.

Memory area 301 indicated by the value of address register 202
The product type stored at the address in is retrieved and stored in the n-th unique area in the area 306 indicated by the counter value n, and read out according to the preset product type and type correspondence table 302. The type corresponding to the product type is read, and the read type is stored in the nth storage area in the area 305 indicated by the counter value n. Thereafter, the counter value nt-1 is counted up. The above processes 701 and 702 for areas 303 to 306 are repeated until n becomes 16 due to passage of the article at the most downstream point.

When it is detected in the determination process 703 that the counter value n has become 16, the 916th storage area detected by the detectors 106 and 110 is stored in the 0th to 15th storage areas of the area 304.
The types of articles are stored in the order of detection. Area 3
The 0-15th storage areas of area 306 store the types of tracking codes corresponding to these 16 items.The 0-15th storage areas of area 306 store this 1611! A tracking code string corresponding to the item 1 is stored. After executing processing 800, which will be described later, the processing device 200 performs tracking abnormality detection and tracking correction at the time of abnormality detection as follows.

First, process 704 is executed. Areas 304 and 30
The types stored in the 0th to 7th storage areas of 5 are compared. For example, 0 to 305 in areas 304 and 305
Each type stored in the 7th storage area (detection type and tracking code compatible type)
Let be the following.

Detection type - HHLLHHLL Corresponding type - HHLLHHLL In this case, since the detection type and the corresponding type match, no tracking abnormality has occurred, and O to 7 in area 304
The tracking code of the th storage area, for example, A
ACCBBDD is normal and no modification is necessary. Therefore, the process moves to process j1706. The tracking code read from the 7th storage area of area 306 is written into one of the buffer areas 361 to 364 specified by area 3700 value m. Area 304,305゜30
The information of the 8th to 15th storage areas of 6 is stored in area 304,
305 and 306, the counter value is set to fit-3, and the process returns to step 701. The value m will be described later.

If the detection type and the correspondence type do not match, it is determined that tracking is abnormal, and the process moves to step 705.

There are three types of tracking abnormality: item drop, item addition, and replacement of the previous and following items.How these are determined and how the tracking code is automatically corrected will be explained below.

(JR) Assume that the fourth type L article from the one before the article falls off. In this case, the detection type...HHLHHLLH and the pair type...HHLLHHLL. Processing device 200 executes geography 704t.

Compare the detection type with the corresponding type. In this case, there is a mismatch and a tracking abnormality is detected. Therefore, the process moves to preprocessing 705, and it is detected at what number from the front of the detected type and the corresponding type there is a mismatch for the first time. In this case, 4 from the front
Next, the 8 types from the 4th one before the first mismatch are stored in areas 304 and 305, respectively.
Read each from The read detection type and corresponding type are respectively HHLLHHLL LHHLLHHL. Next, the judgment also moves to step 706. In this case, the 1st to 7th positions of this read detection type match the 2nd to 8th positions of this read corresponding type, so there is a possibility that the article falls off, and it is the 4th one from the front. can be detected. Therefore, the process moves to dropout processing 708, counts down by the counter value nt1, and areas 305.
For each of 3060, the storage information from the 4th storage area onward, that is, from the 3rd storage area to the 15th storage area, is shifted forward by 1 bit, so that the information in the 4th storage area is shifted forward by 1 bit. In the storage area, the information in the 5th storage area is stored in the 4th storage area, etc.
, and so on, and then move the area 306 from 0 to 7.
The tracking code read from the th storage area is stored in one of the buffer areas 361 to 364 indicated by the value m.
write to.

The information in the 8th to 14th storage areas of areas 304, 305, and 306 is transferred to the 0th to 6th storage areas of areas 304.30j and 306. Count down the counter value n (currently 15) by 8, set it to 7, and process 7
Return to 01.

(b) Suppose that a type L article is added between the third and 4'4 articles from before the addition of the article. In this case, the detection type: HHLLLHHL and the corresponding type: -HHLLHHLL. According to 6-san 704, it is determined that the two characters do not match, and the process moves to [1705]. Processing 705 is executed in the same manner as in the case of falling items.) It is detected that a defect occurs for the first time in the fifth item from the front, and eight types of items from the fifth item from the front are detected for the first time. Area 304
and 305 respectively. The read detection type and corresponding type are respectively LHHLLHHL HHLLHHLL. In determination processing 706, the first to seventh read detection types from the front are compared with the read corresponding types 02 to 8@. In this case as well, there is a mismatch, so the process moves to step 709. 2~ than before this detection type
Compare whether the 8th matches the 1st to 7th from the front of the corresponding type (shift the detected type by 1 to the left and compare it with the corresponding type). In this case, since they match, it can be detected that the article has not been added, and the process moves to process 71G.

As mentioned above, a mismatch was detected for the first time in the pth (here, 4th) storage area between areas 304 and 305.

Therefore, one of the buffer areas 361 to 364 corresponding to the tracking code of the 0th to (p-1) storage areas of interest in the area 306 and the tracking code sound of the 9th to 6th storage areas of 100 million m. 0~(p-1
)th and (p+i) to 77th storage areas. Also, in this buffer area, add my)
t-write. In addition, since the tracking information stored in the 0th to 7th honors of this buffer area and the addition of the article were added, command information instructing to partially modify the ζO information and the display screen of the value mt input/output device 150 (Incidentally, the maintenance worker looks at the Ryj-plane of the input/output device 150 and learns that an item has been added to the buffer line 1 indicated by the value m9, and goes to this buffer twin and adds the item. 51 of the buffer areas 361 to 364 whose value m indicates corrected tracking information based on this inspection information.
01 and add this buffer area)
2g ADDt - Clear to zero. ). Area 304,3
The information in the 7th to 15th storage areas of 05.306 is transferred to the 0th to 9th storage areas of areas 304, 305, and 306, a counter value at-9 is set, and the process returns to process 701.

(C) Before replacing the previous and previous items 71. ．． ．． jth t□. 1.4 Suppose that 8 changes occur. In this case, detection type-HHL HL HL L Corresponding type-HHLLHHLL. As before, the two do not match, and processing 704 is performed.
The process then moves to process 705. In this case, a mismatch occurs for the first time in the fourth from the front. Both types for the 41st + 8th pieces from the front are detection types...HLHL/'LHHL compatible types - L
In process 706, which is HHLLHHL, it is determined that the article has fallen off.

That is, this detection type is shifted to the right by one and the corresponding type is compared. In this case, since the two do not match, the process moves to escape ff 1709 and it is determined whether to add the article. That is, this detection type is compared with the corresponding type shifted by one to the left.

In this case, since the two do not match, the replacement p determination process f! Move on to A711. Detection type Al1 and 2
Compare the analogy of the 11th and the corresponding type. In this case, since both items match, it can be detected that the previous and subsequent items have been swapped, and the process moves to swapping processing 712. As mentioned above, the place p (0≦
In this example, since p≦7, it is the fourth from the front, so p=3
) has been detected. Therefore, p#I in area 306
and (p+1)th information are exchanged. Next, area 30
The value m specifies the corrected tracking code read from the 1st to 7th memory areas of 6 - (sofa area 3
Write to one of 61-364. Area 304,
The information in the 8th to 15th storage areas of areas 305 and 306 is transferred to the 0th to 7th storage areas of areas 304, 305, and 306, and the counter value n is set to 8. Return to process 701.

When it is determined in the replacement process 711 that the replacement is not performed, the process moves to the process 713 when the cause of abnormality is unknown.

The tracking code and abnormality code MY read from the 0th to 7th areas of the area 306 are written into one of the buffer areas 361 to 364 specified by the value m. In order to output this tracking code, value m and abnormality code MY to the input/output device 150, areas 304, 305, 30
The information in the 8th to 15th storage areas of 6 is stored in area 304.
Move to the 0th to 7th memory areas of 305 and 306. The counter value is set to nt-H, and the process returns to [1701]. The input/output device 150 sounds an alarm with the abnormality code MY, and displays this tracking code and the value m on the display device of the device t150.
and error code MY are displayed. Note that when the maintenance worker inputs a command to stop dispensing articles from the merging device 120 to the processing device 200 from the input/output device 150, all items on the conveyor 121 are sent from the conveyor 121 to the buffer line via the distribution device 130. Wait for the goods to be sent, write the tracking code of the goods in each path sofa line into the buffer areas 361 to 364 from the input device 150, clear the value of the area 303 to zero, and the value m corresponds to the empty buffer sea/. Set things up.

Thereafter, a command to restart dispensing of articles from the merging device 120 is inputted from the input device 11150.

FIG. 8 is a detailed flow diagram of process 800 of FIG.

The process 800 is a process for finding an empty buffer line, controlling the dispensing device 130 so that the articles from the conveyor 121 enter the buffer line, and setting the value m to the value corresponding to the empty buffer line. It is. Processes ff1801 to ff803 are processes in which m is counted up by 1 and only when m becomes 4, it is set to O. This is the second case where the buffer area and buffer size only correspond to values O to 3. In step 1804, it is determined whether the buffer area corresponding to the value m is a square. If not empty 11801 Kj! j) If s is empty, process 805
Move to. Buffer 2 corresponding to s- by processing j1805
1) Command the dispensing device 130 to sequentially dispense the articles from the 4C conveyor 121 of the inputs 131-134. Based on this command, the distribution device 130 distributes the articles subsequently sent from the conveyor 121 to the buffer line corresponding to m.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart for explaining the control of dispensing articles from the buffer input to the conveyor line 141 and the method of outputting the tracking code of the dispensing articles. Processes 901, 904 to 906 are for detecting the buffer area in which the normal tracking code i9 and the corrected tracking code are stored. As a result of process 901, an additional 72g AD is added to the buffer area corresponding to q.
It is determined whether Di or the abnormality code MY is not stored and only the tracking code is stored. If it is not memorized, please refer to the location in FIG. 8 [same location as 1801 to 803! 1
After executing steps 904 to 9'06 and updating the value q, process [9'
Return to 01. If it is stored, select the command to pay out the article from one of the pazza twins 131 to 134 corresponding to $ and QK in the place 11902 and the payout device 14
Output to 0.

The selective dispensing device 14G sequentially dispenses all the articles on the buffer line corresponding to the bin q onto the conveyor 141. In process j11903, the tracking code is read from the buffer area corresponding to the shift value q, outputted to the outside as a signal 400, and the buffer area is cleared to zero.

In the above-described embodiment, there are two types of articles, focusing on their heights. That is, there are two types of articles: high and low articles, but if the types of articles are made more detailed, the ability to detect tracking errors p will increase. for example,
The height distribution of the article shall be in the range of 100 to 1000.

Articles of type I whose height is from 10 to 20 countries...
- If the height of a Type 9 article is 90 to 1003 cm, it would be possible to track the article in nine types.

In addition, in the above embodiment, articles were classified by type by focusing on the height of the article, but this can be done most easily depending on the width, weight, color, shape, etc. of the article. Any available means may be used.

As explained above, according to the present invention, even a relatively inexpensive identification device can detect whether an article is dropped, inserted, or replaced on a conveyance path, and it is possible to detect whether an article has been dropped, inserted, or replaced on a conveyance path. can be made extremely small.

Furthermore, the present invention makes it possible not only to detect tracking errors 9 but also to correct them, making it an extremely effective means for logistics systems and the like.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Figure 1 is a diagram showing an example of a layout in which articles are transported on a conveyor and sorted by type, Figure 2 is a block diagram of a conventional example of a tracking circuit, and Figure 3 is a conventional example of a tracking circuit for detecting articles of a specific type. A diagram showing the method, FIG. 4 is a block diagram of a production process of the present invention, FIG. 5 is a block diagram of an apparatus for carrying out the tracking method of the present invention, and FIGS. 6 to 9 are process flow diagrams of the present invention. It is. 101N104, 105.110...Detector, 150
...I/O device, 200--Processing device, 300--
・Memo +1 Illustration 2 Illustration 3 Illustration 4 dent 10 S Illustration 6 +7F'% +8 Illustration 03 704＼ Age 9 Continuation of illustration 1st page 0 Inventor Yoshio Mitsui 5 Marunouchi-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo No. 1 Inside Hitachi, Ltd. 0 Inventors Kunio Yamanaka 5-2-1 Hitachi Daimikacho 5-2-1 Hitachi Ltd. Inumika Factory 0 Inventors Kunio Haseyo Hitachi Daimikacho 5-2-1 Stock Company: Hitachi, Ltd., Inumika Factory ■Applicant: Hitachi, Ltd., 5-1 Marunouchi-chome, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. [Detecting the type of article at an upstream point of the transport route;
a step of creating a first type code string corresponding to a predetermined number of articles that have passed through the upstream point; and detecting the types of articles at a downstream point of the conveyance path, and detecting the types of articles that have passed through the nuclear downstream point. the second corresponding to the article;
a step of comparing the first and second type code strings; and a step of dropping and inserting the article from the upstream point to the downstream point of the conveyance path based on the result of the comparison step; A tracking method comprising the step of detecting a swap. 2. A first step of detecting tracking code strings corresponding to the arrangement order of various types of articles at the upstream point of the conveyance path, and a second step of creating a Jll type code string corresponding to the tracking code string. and a third step of detecting the type of article at a point downstream from the upstream point, and comparing the type code string of a predetermined number of articles that have passed through the downstream point with the second type code string. and a fifth step of modifying the tracking code string based on the comparison result of step a14. 3. In the method of item 2, the first step includes the steps of: detecting the order in which the various kinds of articles are delivered to an upstream point of the conveyance device; and detecting a tracking code string based on the order of articles. Consist of! ! # Tracking method with characteristics. 4. In the method of item 2, in the first step, the order in which the various types of articles are delivered to an upstream point of the conveying device is determined such that two consecutive items to be delivered are of the same type and different types. 1. A tracking method comprising: a step of controlling the tracking code to prevent the tracking code from occurring; and a step of detecting the tracking code string based on the payout order. 5. In the method of item 2, the fifth step is based on the comparison result of the step of successively distributing a predetermined number of articles that have passed through the downstream point to a plurality of buffer lines, and the fourth step. If the tracking code can be corrected, the tracking code is corrected; if the tracking code cannot be corrected, the tracking code of the article on which pack alignment cannot be corrected is notified based on the comparison result and the υ distribution result. A tracking method characterized by: