KR101398929B1 - Transporting vehicle system - Google Patents

Abstract

[PROBLEMS] To reduce the cost of a transfer device in a conveyer system.
[MEANS FOR SOLVING PROBLEMS] The conveyance car system (1) includes a track (3), a conveyance car (5) and a buffer (9). The trajectory 3 is provided along a plurality of processing apparatuses 2. The transport vehicle 5 travels on the orbit 3 to transport the article. The buffer 9 is disposed on the side of the track 3 and has a loading surface made up of a roller conveyor 63. [ The conveying carriage 5 has a roller conveyor 39 as a support and a push-pull conveying device 41. The roller conveyor 39 has a support surface of the same height as the roller conveyor 63 of the buffer 9. [ The push-pull transfer device 41 moves between the buffer 9 and the transfer vehicle 5 by pushing and pulling the product.

Description

[0001] TRANSPORTING VEHICLE SYSTEM [0002]

The present invention relates to a conveyance system, and more particularly to a conveyance system having a conveyance vehicle traveling along an orbit between a plurality of processing apparatuses.

BACKGROUND ART A transporting vehicle for transporting a large-sized glass substrate or a cassette in which a plurality of the glass substrates are accommodated is known. The conveyance vehicle automatically runs in the clean room in the factory and returns the articles between the processing apparatuses.

The trajectory on which the carriage travels is, for example, a rail suspended from the ceiling or a rail installed on the ground. In this case, the space in which the rails and the conveyance vehicle travel is a clean room that is blocked from the outside.

The station is equipped with a conveyor by a SCARA arm. The conveying device by the scraper arm transfers the glass substrate or the cassette from the conveying car to the loading place of the station, and conveys the glass substrate or the cassette from the loading place of the station to the conveying car (for example, refer to Patent Document 1 .). It is also known that a conveying device of a scara arm is provided in a conveying car.

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2001-294302

On the other hand, in a conveyer system for conveying a heavy object, it is considered to dispose a side buffer in the vicinity of the processing apparatus. However, when a conveying device using a scara arm is used in the side buffer for storing heavy objects, there is a problem that the cost of the side buffer is increased or the weight of the conveying car becomes too large.

An object of the present invention is to reduce the cost of a side buffer corresponding to a heavy object in a carrier system.

A conveyance system according to the present invention is a conveyance system for conveying an article among a plurality of processing apparatuses, and is provided with a track, a conveyance carriage, and a loading stand. The orbit is installed along a plurality of processing apparatuses. The carriage carries the orbit and returns the article. The pallet is disposed on the side of the orbit and has a loading surface. The carriage has a support stand and a push pull device. The support has a support surface that is flush with the mounting surface of the table. The push-pull transfer device moves between the stack and support by pushing and pulling the product.

In this system, the carriage stops at the side of the loading stand, and moves the article between the supporting stand and the loading stand by the push-pull conveying device. The article moves on the loading and supporting surfaces when a force is applied from the push-pull transfer device. In this way, the heavy material can be transported with a simple structure. As a result, the cost of the side buffer corresponding to the heavy object in the carrier system is reduced. Further, since the conveying device provided in the conveying car is a push-pull conveying device, the weight of the conveying car is reduced.

In addition, the supporting surface of the supporting table and the loading surface of the loading table may be the same height at the time of transporting the article. In other words, the height of one or both sides can be changed, and the heights of both sides may be different during traveling or stopping of the transporting vehicle.

The stacker may further include a cover and a cleaning device for increasing the cleanliness around the article loaded in the cover.

In this system, the cleanliness around the article in the loading zone is increased. Further, the cover may be disposed only on the upper side of the article, or on the upper side, the left side and the right side of the article, or on the upper side, the left side, and the inner side of the article.

The loading surface of the loading table may be a motorized conveyor, and the supporting surface of the loading table may be a motorized conveyor.

In this system, since the conveyor is rollable, the generation of abrasion powder (wear powder) is suppressed at the time of conveyance of the article.

The orbit may have a loop adjacent to a plurality of processing apparatuses. The return vehicle may be traveling in a one-way loop. The stacker may have first and second stacking pads arranged close to both sides of the loop in at least one loop and arranged side by side in the longitudinal direction of the loop. The first stacking stage and the second stacking stage may each have a first opening opened toward one side of both sides of the loop and a second opening opened toward the opposite side of both side portions of the loop.

In this system, the loading bar has a first opening and a second opening, respectively, which are opened toward both sides of the loop in the loop. Therefore, it is possible to select a stacking zone in the vicinity of a target processing apparatus at the time of temporarily setting the article. As a result, the conveying efficiency of the article is improved.

The loading table has a supporting member capable of supporting the article by passing the loading surface in a vertical direction and a driving mechanism for driving the supporting member. When the driving mechanism drives the supporting member in a state in which the article is loaded on the loading surface, A space for placing the article on the loading surface may be secured by raising the article through the loading surface.

In this system, when the article is placed on the loading surface, the driving mechanism drives the supporting member to move up, thereby moving the article to a higher position than the loading surface. The article can be transported from the transport vehicle to the loading surface in this state. As a result of the above, the article storage capacity of the loading table is increased.

(Effects of the Invention)

In the conveyance system according to the present invention, the cost of the conveying device is reduced.

1 is a schematic plan view of a conveyer system in which an embodiment of the present invention is employed.
2 is a partial cross-sectional view of a carrier system as one embodiment of the present invention.
3 is a schematic plan view of the conveyance car.
4 is a partially enlarged view of Fig.
5 is a partial schematic plan view of a carrier system showing a modified example of the trajectory.
6 is a block diagram showing a control system of the conveyance system.
Fig. 7 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the controller in the conveyance carriage.
8 is a partial cross-sectional view of a conveyance car system as one embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 9 is a partial cross-sectional view of a carrier system as an embodiment of the present invention. Fig.
10 is a partial cross-sectional view of a carrier system as an embodiment of the present invention.
11 is a partial cross-sectional view of a carrier system as one embodiment of the present invention.
12 is a partial cross-sectional view of a conveyance car system as one embodiment of the present invention.
13 is a partial cross-sectional view of a carrier system as an embodiment of the present invention.
Fig. 14 is a partial cross-sectional view of a conveyer system for explaining a state in which a protective cover is provided on a rail. Fig.
15 is a schematic plan view of a conveyer system in which another embodiment of the present invention is employed.
16 is a partial cross-sectional view of a carrier system in which another embodiment of the present invention is employed.
Fig. 17 is a schematic plan view of a loading platform. Fig.
18 is a partial side view of the stand.
19 is a partial cross-sectional view of the conveyance car system.

(1) Car carrier system

1, a conveyance system 1 according to the present invention will be described. 1 is a schematic plan view of a conveyer system in which an embodiment of the present invention is employed. In this embodiment, the carriage system 1 is employed in a liquid crystal manufacturing factory for manufacturing a large-sized liquid crystal. A plurality of processing apparatuses 2 and inspection apparatuses 4 are arranged in a liquid crystal manufacturing factory.

The conveyance system 1 is a system for conveying an article (for example, a cassette containing a plurality of substrates) between a plurality of processing apparatuses 2 and includes a trajectory 3, a conveyance car 5, (7), and a plurality of buffers (9). In the carriage system 1, the trajectory 3 has a plurality of loops (a main circuit), and the carriage 5 is configured to run the loops one-way.

The orbit 3 has first to fourth loops 11, 13, 15, and 17. The first to third loops (11, 13, 15) extend long in one direction, and therefore have both straight portions and curves at both ends. The first to third loops (11, 13, 15) extend in parallel to each other. The fourth loop 17 is disposed so as to extend between one ends of the first to third loops 11, In this embodiment, no tracks are provided on the opposite sides of the first loop 17 of the first to third loops 11, 13, and 15. Therefore, it is easy to carry the device between the first to fourth loops 11, 13, 15, 17 or to move the device therebetween.

The first loop 11 realizes the first small loop 11a, the second small loop 11b and the third small loop 11c by providing a plurality of first shortcut connecting portions 19 . The second loop 13 realizes the fourth small loop 13a, the fifth small loop 13b and the sixth small loop 13c by providing a plurality of second short-path connecting portions 21. [ The third loop 15 realizes the seventh small loop 15a, the eighth small loop 15b and the ninth small loop 15c by providing a plurality of third short-path connecting portions 23. [

The fourth loop 17 realizes the tenth small loop 17a and the eleventh small loop 17b by providing the fourth short-path connecting portion 25. [ The tenth small loop 17a is connected to the first loop 11 and the second loop 13 by a plurality of connecting portions 27. [ The eleventh small loop 17b is connected to the third loop 15 by a connecting portion 28. [

A plurality of processing apparatuses 2 are arranged on the outside of the first to fourth loops 11, 13, 15, 17 in parallel. Since the configuration and kind of the processing apparatus 2 are known, a detailed description thereof will be omitted here.

As one type of the plurality of processing apparatuses 2, there is provided a continuous processing apparatus 29 continuously disposed between loops. The continuous processing device 29 is disposed between the first loop 11 and the second loop 13 and between the second loop 13 and the third loop 15. [ The continuous processing device 29 includes a first processing device 29a and a second processing device 29b which are arranged so as to directly move the articles. For example, the first processing device 29a is an etching device and the second processing device 29b is a peeling device. Thus, the articles are transported from the transporting carriage 5 in the first loop 11 to the inlet station 36 of the first processing apparatus 29a, and then transported to and processed by the second processing apparatus 29b , And finally to the transport vehicle 5 at the exit station 38 of the second loop 13. As described above, since the conveying trajectory is not provided between the plurality of processing apparatuses 2, the number of conveying steps in the entire conveying system 1 is reduced.

The automatic warehouse 7 is disposed between the first loop 11 and the second loop 13. The automatic warehouse (7) has a plurality of shelves capable of loading articles and a crane. Since the configuration of the automatic warehouse 7 is known, a description thereof will be omitted here. The automatic warehouse 7 has a first station 31 extending long in the direction in which the first loop 11 and the second loop 13 extend and a first station 31 extending toward the first loop 11, 13) side. Thereby, the automatic warehouse 7 can deliver and receive articles between the first loop 11 and the conveyance carriage 5 running on the second loop 13.

In this embodiment, a plurality of inspection apparatuses 4 are arranged around the automatic warehouse 7 in such a manner as to be connected to the automatic warehouse 7. However, the position of the inspection apparatus is not particularly limited.

The plurality of buffers 9 are stacked tables that serve as temporary temporary storage locations when the articles are transported between the processing apparatuses 2. The plurality of buffers 9 are arranged in the first to fourth loops 11 to 17, more specifically in each small loop. The buffer 9 is elongated along the longitudinal direction of the loop, and has a plurality of receiving portions formed with openings as will be described later. Four buffers 9 are arranged in the first to ninth small loops 11a, 11b, 11c, 13a, 13b, 13c, 15a, 15b, 15c. Six buffers 9 are arranged in the tenth small loop 17a. In the eleventh small loop 17b, four buffers 9 are arranged in a line and in a straight line.

The arrangement and structure of the first buffer 9A and the second buffer 9B will be described in detail with reference to FIG. 4 is a partially enlarged view of Fig. In each small loop, the first buffer 9A and the second buffer 9B are alternately arranged. The basic structure of the first buffer 9A and the second buffer 9B is the same, but the directions of the openings are reversed. As shown in Fig. 4, in the first small loop 11a, the first buffer 9A has three first unit buffers 85. In Fig. The first unit buffer 85 has a first opening 85a directed to an adjacent track, specifically, a linear portion of one of the first small loops 11a. The second buffer 9B has three second unit buffers 86. [ The second unit buffer 86 has a second opening 86a directed to an adjacent track, specifically, the other linear portion of the first small loop 11a. The first opening 85a of the first buffer 9A and the second opening 86a of the second buffer 9B are opposite to each other in the first small loop 11a. As a result, the first buffer 9A can be accessed from the first side of the first small loop 11a while the second buffer 9B can be accessed from the second side of the first small loop 11a Access is possible. Since a buffer accessible from either side of the small loop is secured in one small loop, the transfer between the transport vehicle 5 and the buffer 9 can be performed in a short time.

With the above arrangement, there is a buffer 9 in a loop adjacent to each processing apparatus 2, and in particular, a buffer 9 having an opening that opens toward both side portions of the loop. Therefore, when an article is transported between the two processing apparatuses 2, it is usually possible to realize transport by two commands. Concretely, the first command transfers the article from the processing apparatus 2, which is the origin of the transport vehicle 5, to the buffer 9 in the vicinity of the processing apparatus 2 which is the destination. The transport vehicle 5 carries the article from the buffer 9 to the destination processing apparatus 2 by the second command. Thus, since the conveyance of the articles is completed by the two operations of the conveyance carriage 5, the conveyance throughput of the articles in the conveyance carriage system 1 is improved.

A layout in which a stopping position is ensured as a modified example of the carriage car system 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 5 is a partial schematic plan view of a carrier system showing a modified example of the trajectory.

In Fig. 5, a part of the processing apparatus 2 is removed, and a bypass 89 extending from the seventh small loop 15a is disposed at the portion. The bypass 89 is connected at its both ends to the seventh small loop 15a, and the intermediate portion thereof is linear in a predetermined length and parallel to the linear portion of the seventh small loop 15a. A plurality of conveyance carriages (5) can be stopped in the bypass (89). The arrangement position and shape of the bypass 89 are not limited to this embodiment. Further, the number of possible stops of the bypass 89 may be one.

The conveyance carriage 5 requiring inspection or maintenance enters the bypass 89 and stops at the straight portion. In this state, the operator checks or carries out the conveyance carriage 5. As a result, the work of the conveyance carriage 5 for conveying between the processing apparatuses 2 is not stopped by the inspection or maintenance operation. In other words, it is possible to reduce or eliminate the downtime in the conveyance system 1.

(2)

The structure of the carriage 5 will be described with reference to Figs. 2 and 3. Fig. 2 is a partial cross-sectional view of a carrier system as one embodiment of the present invention. 3 is a schematic plan view of the conveyance car. In Fig. 2, the direction orthogonal to the paper is the conveying direction of the conveyance carriage 5, and the lateral direction of the paper is the conveying direction of the article. 3, the vertical direction of the paper surface is the transport direction of the transport vehicle 5, and the horizontal direction of the paper is the transport direction of the article.

2 shows the bottom surface 32 and the ceiling surface 34 and also shows the carriage 5, the buffer 9 and the station 2a of the processing apparatus 2. In FIG. The top surface of the carriage 5, the buffer 9 and the station 2a of the processing apparatus 2 are approximately the same height and close to the ceiling surface 34. [

The conveying carriage 5 is a conveying means for conveying an article such as a glass substrate or a cassette between the stations of the processing apparatus 2. [ The conveying carriage 5 has a main body 35, a running portion 37, a roller conveyor 39, a push-pull conveying device 41, and a mini-inference mechanism 43.

The main body 35 has a substantially box-like shape.

The traveling section 37 includes a wheel 45 provided on the right and left front and rear of the main body 35, a traveling motor 131 (Fig. 7) connected to the wheel 45, an encoder 139 provided on the traveling motor 131, (Fig. 7). The rail 47 on which the wheel 45 travels is arranged in the concave portion 32a formed on the bottom surface 32 and is disposed below the bottom surface 32 as is clearly shown in Fig.

As shown in Fig. 14, the protective cover 70 can be provided on the rail 47 where the conveyance carriage 5 does not run. The protective cover 70 covers the rail 47 and is disposed in parallel with the bottom surface 32. There is no fear that the rail 47 will be damaged when the operator moves beyond the rail 47 because the bottom surface 32 is flat by the protective cover 70. [

The roller conveyor 39 is provided on the upper surface of the main body 35 so as to be capable of rolling, and constitutes a support surface of the conveyance carriage 5. [ As shown in Figs. 2 and 3, the rollers 39a of the roller conveyor 39 are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the running direction, whereby the article can be easily moved in the lateral direction. The roller conveyor 39 is constituted by a pair of roller rows spaced apart in the running direction. The rollers 39a of the roller conveyor 39 are all free rollers (rollers that do not drive independently), and the rows of rollers simply constitute the guide members of the articles. Therefore, the resistance at the time of transporting the article can be reduced, and it is suitable for transporting the heavy article. Thus, the support surface of the conveyance carriage 5 is a roller conveyor 39 made of rollable rollers, so that the occurrence of abrasion is suppressed during conveyance of the article.

The push-pull conveying device 41 is a retractable device that pushes and pulls the article on the roller row of the roller conveyor 39 to move. The push-pull conveying apparatus 41 includes an arm mechanism 51 that is extendable and retractable in the left-right direction, a hook member 53 provided on the arm mechanism 51, and a push- (Fig. 7). In the state shown in Fig. 2, the push-pull conveying device 41 is disposed below the roller conveyor 39. Further, the push-pull transfer device 41 does not need to support the load of the article, so that the construction is simple. Therefore, the weight of the conveyance carriage 5 is realized.

The hook member 53 includes a first portion 53a that extends further to both sides in the left and right direction from the uppermost arm of the arm mechanism 51 and a second portion 53b that extends upwardly from the end portion of the first portion 53a, Lt; / RTI > The lateral distance between the second portions 53b is slightly longer than the lateral length of the article.

The mini inverting mechanism 43 has a housing 55, a pair of shutters 57, and an FFU (Fan Filter Unit) 59. The mini-inhaler mechanism 43 is a mechanism for improving the cleanliness of the article circumstance in the conveyance carriage 5. [ The housing 55 is provided on the upper portion and front and rear of the main body 35, and shields a predetermined space. Openings are formed on both left and right sides of the housing 55, and a pair of shutters 57 are provided in the opening. The shutter 57 can be opened and closed by the shutter drive motor 135 (Fig. 7). In the state shown in Fig. 2, the pair of shutters 57 shields the space in the housing 55 from the outside. The FFU 59 is a device for supplying clean air into the housing 55 and is driven by the FFU driving motor 137 (Fig. 7).

(3) Buffers

The structure of the buffer 9 (corresponding to the first unit buffer 85 and the second unit buffer 86 in Fig. 4) will be described with reference to Fig.

The buffer 9 is disposed, for example, close to both side portions inside the first small loop 11a. The buffer 9 has a loading table 61, a roller conveyor 63, and a mini-inhaler mechanism 65.

The pallet 61 has a substantially box-like shape. The roller conveyor 63 is provided on the upper surface of the loading table 61 so as to be able to rotate, and constitutes a loading surface of the buffer 9. The roller conveyor 63 is flush with the roller conveyor 39 of the conveyance carriage 5. The rollers of the roller conveyor 63 are arranged at right angles to the running direction, whereby the articles can be easily moved in the left and right directions. The roller conveyor 63 is composed of a pair of roller rows spaced apart in the running direction. The rollers of the roller conveyor 63 are all free rollers. Thus, since the loading surface of the buffer 9 is the roller conveyor 63 made of rollable rollers, the generation of abrasion is suppressed at the time of conveyance of the article.

The mini inverting mechanism 65 has a cover 67 and an FFU 69. The mini inhalation mechanism 65 is a mechanism for improving the cleanliness of the environment around the article in the cover 67 in the buffer 9. [ The cover 67 is provided on the upper portion of the loading table 61 and shields a predetermined space. An opening 67a (corresponding to the first opening 85a and the second opening 86a in Fig. 4) is formed on the track side of the cover 67. [ In this embodiment, the cover is disposed only above the article, but the cover may be disposed only above and to the left and right of the article, or may be disposed above, right, left, and inside of the article. In this embodiment, the shutter is not provided in the opening portion, but a shutter may be provided if necessary. The FFU 69 is a device for increasing the cleanliness around the loaded article by supplying clean air into the cover 67. [ The FFU 69 is driven by the FFU driving motor 137 (Fig. 7).

(4) Station

The station 2a of the processing apparatus 2 will be described with reference to Fig. The station 2a has a loading table 71 and a roller conveyor 73. [

The stage 71 has a substantially box-like shape. The roller conveyor 73 is installed on the upper surface of the table 71 in a rolling manner. The rollers of the roller conveyor 73 are arranged in a direction perpendicular to the running direction, whereby the articles can be easily moved in the lateral direction. The roller conveyor 73 is constituted by a pair of roller rows spaced apart in the running direction. The rollers of the roller conveyor 73 are all free rollers.

(5) Control configuration

The control system 120 of the conveyance system 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 6 is a block diagram showing a control system of the conveyance system.

The control system 120 has a manufacturing controller 121, a distribution controller 123, an automatic warehouse controller 125, and a transportation car controller 127.

The logistics controller 123 is a host controller of the automatic warehouse controller 125 and the conveyance car controller 127. The transporting car controller 127 has an allocation function for managing a plurality of transporting vehicles 5 and assigning a transporting instruction to them. The " transportation instruction " includes a command for traveling, and a command for a position for holding the cargo and a position for lowering the cargo.

The manufacturing controller 121 can communicate with the processing apparatus 2. [ The processing device 2 transmits a transport request (cargo hold request / cargo release request) of the finished product to the manufacturing controller 121.

The manufacturing controller 121 transmits a transport request from the processing apparatus 2 to the goods distribution controller 123 and the goods distribution controller 123 sends the report to the manufacture controller 121. [

When receiving a transportation request from the manufacturing controller 121, the goods distribution controller 123 transmits a goods receipt or departure order to the automatic warehouse controller 125 at a predetermined timing when goods receipt or dispatch is carried out in the automatic warehouse 7 . Then, the automatic warehouse controller 125 transmits the goods receipt or departure order to the automatic warehouse 7 accordingly. The distribution controller 123 also receives the transport request from the manufacturing controller 121, converts it into a transport instruction, and carries out a transport instruction allocation operation to the transport vehicle 5. [

The transporting car controller 127 continuously communicates with each of the transporting vehicles 5 in order to create a transport instruction and obtains the location information based on the location data transmitted from each transporting vehicle 5. [

The controller 129 in the conveyance carriage 5 of the conveyance carriage 5 will be described with reference to Fig. Fig. 7 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the controller in the conveyance carriage.

The controller 129 in the carriage car is a computer which is made up of a CPU, a RAM, a ROM and the like and executes a program. A route map is stored in the memory of the controller 129 in the carriage carriage. The carriage 5 continues the traveling while comparing the coordinates written in the route map with the coordinates of the own (internal coordinates of the own apparatus) (coordinates obtained by the encoder 139 (described later)).

A drive motor 131, a push-pull drive mechanism 133, a shutter drive motor 135, an FFU drive motor 137, and an encoder 139 are connected to the controller 129 in the conveyance.

(6) Operation of the carriage system

The operation of the conveyance system 1 will be described with reference to Figs. 2 and 8 to 13. Fig. 8 to 13 are partial cross-sectional views of a conveyance car system as an embodiment of the present invention. 2, the conveying carriage 5 is stopped between the buffer 9 and the station 2a of the processing apparatus 2 in a state in which the article C1 is loaded. An article C2 is loaded on the station 2a. From this state, the carriage 5 drops the article C1 to the buffer 9, and then loads the article C2 from the station 2a. Hereinafter, the operation thereof will be described in detail.

The shutter 57 on the side of the buffer 9 is opened by driving the shutter drive motor 135 in the conveyance carriage 5 from the state shown in Fig. Further, the elevating mechanism (not shown) of the push-pull driving mechanism 133 is driven, and the arm mechanism 51 is raised. As a result, the second portion 53b of the hook member 53 is disposed on both sides in the left-right direction of the article C1. The state after the arm mechanism 51 is raised is shown in Fig.

The slide mechanism (not shown) of the push-pull drive mechanism 133 is driven in the conveying carriage 5 from the state shown in Fig. 8 so that the arm mechanism 51 is slid toward the buffer 9 side. The article C1 is pushed by the second portion 53b of the hook member 53 and is transported into the buffer 9 from the transporting carriage 5. More specifically, the article C1 slides on the roller conveyor 39 and the roller conveyor 63 to move. The state of the article C1 after movement is shown in Fig.

The elevating mechanism (not shown) of the push-pull driving mechanism 133 is driven in the conveying carriage 5 from the state shown in Fig. 9, and the arm mechanism 51 is lowered. As a result, the second portion 53b of the hook member 53 is disposed below both sides in the left-right direction of the article C1. Then, a slide mechanism (not shown) of the push-pull drive mechanism 133 is driven to slide the arm mechanism 51 toward the conveyance carriage 5 side. As a result, the arm mechanism 51 returns to the carriage 5. Finally, the shutter drive motor 135 is driven to close the shutter 57 on the buffer 9 side. The state in which the shutter 57 is closed is shown in Fig.

As described above, the carriage 5 stops at the side of the buffer 9 and moves the article between the main body 35 and the buffer 9 by the push- The article moves on the roller conveyor 39 and the roller conveyor 63 when a force is applied from the push-pull conveying device 41. In this way, heavy materials can be conveyed with a simple structure.

When the shutter drive motor 135 is driven in the conveyance carriage 5 from the state shown in Fig. 10, the shutter 57 on the station 2a side is opened. Further, the slide mechanism (not shown) of the push-pull drive mechanism 133 is driven to slide the arm mechanism 51 toward the buffer 9 side. The state after sliding the arm mechanism 51 is shown in Fig.

The elevating mechanism (not shown) of the push-pull driving mechanism 133 is driven in the conveying carriage 5 from the state of Fig. 11, and the arm mechanism 51 is raised. As a result, the second portion 53b of the hook member 53 is disposed on both sides in the left-right direction of the article C2. The state in which the arm mechanism 51 is lifted is shown in Fig.

From the state of Fig. 12, the slide mechanism of the push-pull drive mechanism 133 is driven, and the arm mechanism 51 slides toward the conveyance carriage 5 side. As a result, the arm mechanism 51 returns to the carriage 5. The article C2 is pushed by the second portion 53b of the hook member 53 and is conveyed from the station 2a into the conveyance car 5. [ More specifically, the article C2 slides on the roller conveyor 73 and the roller conveyor 39 to move. Further, the lift mechanism (not shown) of the push-pull drive mechanism 133 is driven, and the arm mechanism 51 is lowered. As a result, the second portion 53b of the hook member 53 is disposed below the left and right sides of the article C2. Finally, the shutter drive motor 135 is driven to close the shutter 57 on the station 2a side. The state in which the shutter 57 is closed is shown in Fig.

As a result, a series of traversing operations is completed.

(7) Other embodiments

Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications are possible without departing from the gist of the invention.

In particular, a plurality of embodiments and modifications described in this specification may be arbitrarily combined as needed.

(A) In the above embodiment, the first buffer 9A and the second buffer 9B each having a plurality of openings facing to the other side are alternately provided one by one, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment.

The buffer may have any structure as long as it has a first opening and a second opening which are open toward both sides of the loop in the loop. For example, one kind of buffer may be arranged continuously. Further, a buffer having only one opening may be used. That is, the shape of the buffer and the number of consecutive buffers are not particularly limited.

According to the above structure, the buffer has the first opening and the second opening which are respectively opened toward both sides of the loop in the loop. Therefore, when bringing the article into the buffer 9, it is possible to select a buffer near the processing apparatus 2, which has an opening that is opened toward the processing apparatus 2, As a result, the conveying efficiency of the article is improved.

(B) The plurality of buffers 9 in the loop need not be arranged in a straight line. However, in order not to make the width of the loop extremely large, it is preferable that the plurality of buffers 9 are arranged in a line. Further, when the buffer 9 is arranged in a linear shape, the width of the loop can be set to a minimum.

(C) In the traction system shown in Fig. 15, the trajectory 3 has, in addition to the structure of the above-described embodiment, a fifth loop 17 on the opposite side to the fourth loop 17 of the first to third loops 11, (77).

The fifth loop 77 realizes the twelfth small loop 77a and the thirteenth small loop 77b by providing the fifth short-cut line connecting portion 79. [ The twelfth small loop 77a is connected to the first loop 11 and the second loop 13 by a plurality of connecting portions 81. [ And the thirteenth small loop 77b is connected to the third loop 15 by the connecting portion 83. [

The rails of the first to fifth loops 11, 13, 15, 17, and 77 are accommodated in the concave portion 32a of the bottom surface 32 as described in the above embodiment. In this embodiment, for example, a protective cover is put on the rails of the fifth loop 77 during normal operation. By arranging the protective cover, the bottom surface 32 becomes flat, so that it is easy to carry the device between the first to fourth loops 11, 13, 15, 17 or to carry the device out of between them. Further, there is no fear that the rail will be damaged when the operator moves beyond the fifth loop 77. [ Then, for example, in the event of an emergency, the protective cover may be peeled off and the carriage 5 may be caused to run on the fifth loop 77.

In this embodiment, no buffer is provided in the fifth loop 77. However, the buffer may be arranged as required.

(D) Another embodiment in which the article storage capacity of the buffer is enhanced will be described with reference to Figs. 16 to 19. Fig. 16 is a partial cross-sectional view of a carrier system in which another embodiment of the present invention is employed. Fig. 17 is a schematic plan view of a loading platform. Fig. 18 is a partial side view of the stand. 19 is a partial cross-sectional view of the conveyance car system.

As shown in Figs. 16 and 17, the buffer 91 has a roller conveyor 93 and a support mechanism 95. Fig.

The roller conveyor 93 is the same as the above embodiment, but a predetermined clearance is ensured between the rollers 93a. The roller conveyor 93 further has a support portion 93b for supporting the roller 93a, a support 93c, and a support bar 93d. The support portion 93b directly supports the roller 93a and extends in the direction in which the roller 93a is arranged. The support portion 93b rotatably supports the end of the roller 93a on the side opposite to the other roller row. The strut 93c holds the support portion 93b at a predetermined height. The support rod 93d extends obliquely from the strut 93c and rotatably supports an end of the roller 93a opposite to the other roller row. That is, no support is provided on the opposite side of the other roller row of the roller 93a.

The support mechanism 95 is a mechanism for moving the article on the roller conveyor 93 above the roller conveyor 93 and has a support member 97 and a drive mechanism 99. The support member 97 is a pair of members capable of supporting the article through the pair of roller conveyors 93 in the vertical direction. As shown in Fig. 17, the base frame 101 and the base frame 101 (Not shown). Each base frame 101 is disposed outside the front and rear of each roller conveyor 93 and extends in the direction in which the rollers 93a of the roller conveyor 93 are arranged. 16 and 17, the plurality of support portions 103 extend between the rollers 93a of the roller conveyor 93. As shown in Fig. The upper surface of the support portion 103 is a flat surface and is disposed below the upper surface of the roller 93a. The drive mechanism 99 is a mechanism for driving the support member 97 and has a support 105, a lift motor (not shown), and a chain (not shown). The support posts 105 are provided at, for example, four corners and extend in the vertical direction, and support both ends of the base frame 101 of the support member 97 so as to be movable up and down as shown in Fig. The elevating motor (not shown) can move the supporting member 97 up and down through a chain (not shown).

In this embodiment, the support 105 is extended so that the ceiling portion of the buffer 91 cover 67 is higher and the portion of the ceiling surface 34 corresponding to the buffer 91 is higher.

In this conveyance car system, after the article is placed on the roller conveyor 93, a lifting motor (not shown) rolls up the chain (not shown) to raise the support member 97. Then, a plurality of support portions 103 pass between the rollers 93a of the roller conveyor 93 and move upward. 18, the support portion 103 of the support member 97 lifts the article C, whereby the article C is separated from the roller 93a of the roller conveyor 93. As shown in Fig. Finally, as shown in Fig. 19, the article C is supported by the plurality of supports 103 at the highest position in the buffer 91. Fig. In this state, a space is provided on the roller conveyor 93 so that the next item can be carried. As described above, two items can be brought into the buffer 91. That is, the buffer capacity of the buffer 91 is increased.

Further, the shape of the support member for lifting the article is not limited to the above embodiment. The support member may be, for example, in the shape of a ladder.

(E) The roller conveyor 39 of the main body 35 and the roller conveyor 63 of the buffer 9 may have the same height at the time of conveyance of the article C. In other words, the height of one or both sides can be changed, and the height of both sides may be different during running or stop of the carriage carriage 5. [

(F) In the above embodiment, the buffers in the loop are arranged in a row, but the present invention is not limited to such an embodiment. For example, two rows of buffers may be arranged in a loop.

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention can be widely applied to a conveying car system having a conveying car traveling along a trajectory between a plurality of processing apparatuses.

1: Carrier system 2: Processing device
2a: station 3: orbit
4: Inspection device 5:
7: Automatic warehouse 9: Buffer
9A: first buffer 9B: second buffer
11: first loop 11a: first small loop
11b: second small loop 11c: third small loop
13: second loop 13a: fourth small loop
13b: fifth small loop 13c: sixth small loop
15: third loop 15a: seventh small loop
15b: the eighth sub-loop 15c: the ninth sub-loop
17: fourth loop 17a: 10th small loop
17b: eleventh small loop 19: connection for the first short path
21: connection portion for the second short-circuit route 23: connection portion for the third short-
25: connection part for the fourth shortcut path 27: connection part
28: connection part 29: continuous processing device
29a: first processing device 29b: second processing device
31: first station 32: bottom surface
32a: recess 33: second station
34: front surface 35: main body (support base)
36: entrance station 37:
38: exit station 39: roller conveyor (supporting surface)
39a: roller 41: push-pull transfer device
43: Mini-in-bypassing mechanism 45: Wheel
47: rail 51: arm mechanism
53: hook member 53a: first portion
53b: second part 55: housing
57: shutter 59: FFU (cleaning device)
61: Stacking table 63: Roller conveyor (stacking surface)
65: Mini-in-bypassing mechanism 67: Cover
67a: opening 69: FFU
70: protective cover 71:
73: roller conveyor 77: fifth loop
77a: twelfth small loop 77b: thirteenth small loop
79: connection part for the fifth shortcut path 81: connection part
83: connection part 85: first unit buffer
85a: first opening portion 86: second unit buffer
86a: second opening 89: bypass
91: buffer 93: roller conveyor
93a: roller 93b:
93c: column 93d: support rod
95: Support mechanism 97: Support member
99: drive mechanism 101: base frame
103: Support part 105: Support
120: Control system 121: Manufacturing controller
123: Logistics controller 125: Automatic warehouse controller
127: conveying car controller 129: controller in conveying car
131: Travel motor 133: Push-pull drive mechanism
135: shutter drive motor 137: FFU drive motor
139: Encoder

Claims (5)

A conveyance system for conveying an article between a plurality of processing apparatuses, comprising:
An orbit installed along the plurality of processing apparatuses,
A transporting vehicle traveling on the trajectory to transport the articles, and
A loading table disposed on a side of the track and having a loading surface;
Wherein the conveying carriage has a support base having a support surface at the same height as the mounting surface of the table and a push-pull conveying device for moving the article between the table and the support by pulling and pulling,
Wherein the loading table has a cover for covering the loading table and a cleaning device for supplying clean air into the cover to increase cleanliness in the cover,
The cover is disposed above, left, right, and inside of the article,
An opening is formed in the track side of the cover,
Wherein said trajectory has a plurality of loops adjacent to a plurality of processing apparatuses,
And the stacking table is disposed inside the loop. delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein said loading surface of said table is a rollable conveyor,
Wherein the support surface of the conveyance car is an electrically conductive conveyor. The method according to claim 1,
The conveyance vehicle runs on the loop in one way,
Wherein the stacking unit has a first stacking unit and a second stacking unit which are disposed in close proximity to both sides of the loop in the at least one of the loops and are arranged side by side in the longitudinal direction of the loop,
The first stacking part has a first opening portion opened toward one side of the both side portions of the loop and the second stacking portion has a second opening portion opened toward a direction opposite to one side of the both side portions of the loop And the conveyance system. The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the stacking table has a support member capable of supporting the article by passing the stacking surface in a vertical direction and a drive mechanism for driving the support member,
Wherein when the driving mechanism drives the supporting member in a state that the article is loaded on the loading surface, the supporting member secures a space for placing the article on the loading surface by raising the article through the loading surface Conveyance system.

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