JP6157336B2 - Electric mobile vehicle - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an electric mobile vehicle that changes a moving direction by individually controlling rotation of a pair of drive wheels that are separated from each other in the width direction and disposed on a main body.

  It has a pair of left and right drive wheels that are spaced apart in the width direction at the bottom of the main body. When the left and right drive wheels are rotated in the same direction at the same speed, they can move straight forward and backward, and each drive wheel Various electric mobile vehicles are known that can turn left and right forward and turn left and right backward by individually controlling rotation to generate a speed difference (Patent Document 1). For example, as an electric mobile vehicle, there is a barge that carries a large number of people in a facility such as a hospital. The distribution vehicle includes a main body that can accommodate a large number of tableware trays on which dishes are placed, a driving unit such as a motor, and a driving device that has a pair of left and right driving wheels that are individually controlled to rotate by the driving unit. It has. The arrangement vehicle can individually control the rotation of each drive wheel by an operator performing arbitrary operations on operation means (bar handle or the like) provided at the front of the main body.

  FIG. 12 is a schematic explanatory diagram of a control mode in a conventional trolley. Here, the longitudinal direction of the layout wheel 10 is defined as the front-rear direction, and the direction orthogonal to the front-rear direction is defined as the left-right direction. Further, the forward speed of the layout vehicle 10 is “+”, the reverse speed is “−”, the rotational speed in the counterclockwise direction (counterclockwise direction) when viewed from above the layout vehicle 10 is “−”, The rotation speed in the direction (clockwise direction) is defined as “+”. Furthermore, the driving wheel located on the left side when viewed from above is referred to as the left driving wheel 44, and the driving wheel located on the right side is referred to as the right driving wheel 46. When an operation signal based on the movement of the bar handle 36 provided on the front surface of the distribution vehicle 10 is input to the drive control device 22 in FIG. 7, the drive control device 22 requests the required speed in the front-rear direction based on the operation signal. The “required travel speed V5” is calculated, and the “revolution required speed V6” is calculated as the lateral speed.

ここで、Ｖ７は、左駆動輪実速度、Ｖ８は、右駆動輪実速度である。 In FIG. 12, the drive control device 22 has a left drive wheel 44 and a right drive wheel 46 corresponding to each drive motor 48, 50 based on the rotation speed (rotation speed) of the left drive motor 48 and the rotation speed of the right drive motor 50. By receiving and calculating a signal related to the number of rotations (rotation speed), an actual speed corresponding to straight forward or backward straight (hereinafter referred to as “travel actual speed V1”), turning left and right forward, or backward An actual speed corresponding to the left / right turn (hereinafter referred to as “turn actual speed V2”) can be obtained. Here, the actual traveling speed V1 and the actual turning speed V2 are calculated by the following formulas 1 and 2.

Here, V7 is the left driving wheel actual speed, and V8 is the right driving wheel actual speed.

ここで、Ｖ５は、進行要求速度、Ｖ６は旋回要求速度である。 Based on the actual traveling speed V1 and the actual turning speed V2, the left driving wheel required speed V3A required for the left driving wheel 44 and the right driving wheel required speed V4A required for the right driving wheel 46 are expressed by the following Equation 3 and Calculated by Equation 4.

Here, V5 is the required travel speed, and V6 is the required turn speed.

JP 2008-114630 A

  In the wheeled vehicle 10 of the type that includes a pair of drive wheels 44 and 46 that are separated from each other on the left and right, and the left and right drive wheels 44 and 46 are driven independently, the required speed for the left drive wheel is calculated based on Equations 1 to 4 above. V3A and right drive wheel required speed V4A can be calculated, and straight forward, backward straight, forward left / right turn and backward left / right turn can be performed. Here, since the conventional layout vehicle 10 generally does not have a suspension structure, if the layout vehicle 10 tilts to the left or right due to waviness, unevenness, or other inclination of the floor surface, the left driving wheel 44 or One of the right driving wheels 46 may be displaced upward from the ground contact surface and idle, and the driving force may not be applied to the floor surface. In particular, when the driving force of one drive wheel is lost during the left-right turn to the front or the left-right turn to the rear, only the driving force of the other drive wheel is utilized. There is a problem that the vehicle turns to the side of the drive wheel where the driving force is lost, so-called “feeling of being picked” occurs, and smooth turning is impaired. For example, to describe a left turn to the front, if the right drive wheel 46 on the outside of the turn idles during a left turn to the front, only the driving force of the left drive wheel 44 becomes effective. It comes to turn. Further, when the left drive wheel 44 on the inner side of the turn idles during the left turn of the front, only the driving force of the right drive wheel 46 becomes effective, so that the distribution vehicle 10 turns left so as to be wound to the front left side. When such a phenomenon occurs, not only does the problem arise that the stable running of the layout vehicle 10 cannot be maintained, but also the operator feels uncomfortable or uneasy.

  SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide an electric mobile vehicle that can maintain stable traveling during a left-right turn forward and a left-right turn backward.

In order to solve the problem and achieve the intended purpose, the invention according to claim 1
A first drive unit and a second drive unit that are driven by the drive control unit in response to an operation signal from the operation unit are disposed apart from each other in the left-right direction of the main body, and the rotation is controlled by the first drive unit. A first driving wheel and a second driving wheel whose rotation is controlled by the second driving means, wherein the first driving wheel and the second driving wheel are individually controlled by driving the first driving means and the second driving means. In an electric mobile vehicle capable of performing straight forward, backward straight, left / right turn to the front and left / right turn to the rear by individually controlling the rotation,
The drive control means has a first drive current applied to the first drive means and a second drive current applied to the second drive means when turning left and right forward and left and right. Detect the amount of current,
The drive control means determines the current deviation when a current deviation occurs between the first current amount and the second current amount due to idling of either the first drive wheel or the second drive wheel. Based on the amount of current applied to the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel during turning, as a division ratio,
The drive control means increases the amount of current applied to one drive means for rotating one of the idle drive wheels based on the division ratio, and current applied to the other drive means for rotating the other drive wheel. The gist is that the driving force of both driving wheels is redistributed by reducing the amount.

  According to the first aspect of the present invention, the current deviation that occurs when one of the first drive wheel and the second drive wheel is idled when the electric mobile vehicle turns left or right forward or left and right backward. Based on the division ratio set based on the driving force of both driving wheels, the amount of current applied to one of the idling driving wheels is increased and the amount of current applied to the other driving wheel not idling is decreased. Is redistributed, so that stable running can be maintained even if one of the drive wheels idles when turning left or right forward or turning left or right backward. As a result, the electric vehicle can be prevented from suddenly changing direction or traveling in an unexpected direction when turning left and right forward and turning left and right, and safety during turning can be improved. Does not give the operator discomfort or anxiety.

前記数式５および数式６において、Ｖ５は進行要求速度、Ｖ６は旋回要求速度、Ｐ２は制御分割比である。
請求項２に係る発明によれば、電動式移動車の前方への左右旋回時または後方への左右旋回時に、第１駆動輪および第２駆動輪の一方が空転した場合に、制御インターバルで実行されるモータ駆動処理において、第１電流値および第２電流値の間に生じた電流偏差に基づいて設定された分割比に漸近するよう更新される制御分割比を用いて、第１駆動輪に要求される第１駆動輪要求速度および第２駆動輪に要求される第２駆動輪要求速度を算出する。そして、第１駆動輪を第１駆動輪要求速度で回転するよう第１電流量を変化させると共に、第２駆動輪を第２駆動輪要求速度で回転するよう第２電流量を変化させることで、第１駆動輪および第２駆動輪の速度が徐々に変化して両駆動輪の駆動力が再配分されるので、前方への左右旋回時または後方への左右旋回時に第１駆動輪または第２駆動輪の何れか一方が空転しても安定走行を維持することができる。 In the invention according to claim 2,
The drive control means includes
Based on the operation signal from the operation means, the required travel speed in the front-rear direction and the required turn speed in the left-right direction of the main body are calculated, and the motor drive process executed at a predetermined control interval allows the previous motor drive process to be performed. Update the calculated control split ratio asymptotically to the split ratio,
In the motor drive process, a first drive wheel required speed required for the first drive wheel is calculated by the following Formula 5 based on the required travel speed, the required turn speed, and the control division ratio, and the first The second driving wheel required speed required for the two driving wheels is calculated by the following formula 6, and the amount of current applied to the first driving means and the second driving means is gradually increased and decreased to increase the first driving wheel and the second driving wheel. The gist is that the driving force of both driving wheels is redistributed by changing the speed of the two driving wheels.

In Equations 5 and 6, V5 is the required traveling speed, V6 is the required turning speed, and P2 is the control division ratio.
According to the second aspect of the present invention, when one of the first driving wheel and the second driving wheel idles when the electric mobile vehicle turns left or right forward or left and right backward, it is executed at a control interval. In the motor drive process that is performed, the first drive wheel is controlled using the control division ratio that is updated to approach the division ratio that is set based on the current deviation that occurs between the first current value and the second current value. The required first drive wheel required speed and the second drive wheel required speed required for the second drive wheel are calculated. Then, the first current amount is changed so that the first driving wheel rotates at the first driving wheel required speed, and the second current amount is changed so that the second driving wheel rotates at the second driving wheel required speed. Since the speeds of the first driving wheel and the second driving wheel are gradually changed and the driving force of both driving wheels is redistributed, the first driving wheel or the second driving wheel is turned when turning forward left and right or turning left and right. Stable running can be maintained even if either one of the two driving wheels idles.

  According to the electric vehicle according to the present invention, even if the floor surface is uneven, the left and right turn forward and the left and right turn can be stably and smoothly performed. Anxiety can be resolved.

FIG. 4 is a right side view showing the distribution vehicle according to the embodiment of the present invention with a part broken away. It is a front view of the allocation vehicle of an Example. It is a partial front view of the bumper sensor unit arrange | positioned at the bumper of the layout vehicle. It is a bottom view which shows roughly the bottom part of the allocation vehicle of an Example. It is explanatory drawing which shows the relationship between operation of a bar handle, and operation | movement of a layout vehicle, (a) shows the state which makes a layout vehicle go straight forward and back straight, (b) turns a layout vehicle forward left, It shows a state of turning right backward, turning right forward, and turning left backward. It is a circuit diagram which shows the connection state of a bumper sensor unit. It is a block diagram which shows the electric control system of a layout vehicle. It is a graph which shows the relationship between the target division ratio by control of a bar handle, and control division ratio. It is a flowchart which shows a motor drive process with time. It is a flowchart which shows the process step of the drive wheel request | requirement speed calculation performed in the case of a motor drive process. (a) is a diagram showing the correspondence between the remaining battery level and the remaining battery level, and (b) is a battery estimated from the battery voltage when usage process data is lost and redefinition is required. It is the figure which showed the capacity | capacitance. It is explanatory drawing which shows the concept of the advancing direction and turning direction of a layout vehicle.

  Next, preferred embodiments of the electric vehicle according to the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The embodiment shows a layout vehicle as an electric mobile vehicle, and the left, right, front, back, and up and down directions are in the state of the layout vehicle viewed from the rear upper side.

(Overall structure of the distribution vehicle)
1 includes a main body 12 capable of storing a plurality of tableware trays 31 on which food is placed, and a machine room 14 defined in an upper portion of the main body 12 and containing an air conditioner unit (not shown). And a driving device 18 disposed on the main body base 16 disposed on the bottom of the main body 12, and an operation unit 20 disposed on the front of the main body 12. In addition, the layout vehicle 10 is provided in the operation unit 20 as drive control means for controlling rotation of a left drive motor (first drive motor) 48 and a right drive motor (second drive motor) 50 that constitute the drive device 18. A control device 22 is disposed, and a battery 24 that supplies electric power to the left and right drive motors 48 and 50 is housed below the control device 22. The control device 22 and the battery 24 may be disposed at different positions on the main body 12.

(Body)
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the main body 12 is disposed on an upper portion of a main body base 16 on which the driving device 18 is disposed, and is formed in a rectangular box shape in which a heat insulating material is filled between an outer box and an inner box. The left side surface and the right side surface are greatly opened. The main body 12 has three partition walls 26 (a front partition wall 26A, a central partition wall 26B, and a rear partition wall 26C) that are spaced apart at a required interval in the front-rear direction, and the interior of the main body 12 has four storage chambers. It is divided into 28. On the front surfaces of the front partition wall 26A and the rear partition wall 26C, a plurality of mounting members 30 (5 in the embodiment) are arranged vertically at a required interval in the vertical direction. On the rear surfaces of the wall 26A and the rear partition wall 26C, a plurality of mounting members 30 (5 in the embodiment) are disposed vertically at a predetermined interval in the vertical direction. The tableware tray 31 is placed (in FIG. 1, each placement member provided on the front partition wall 26A is not shown). A plurality (four in the embodiment) of doors 32 hinged to the upper and lower portions of the main body 12 are arranged on the left and right sides of the main body 12 so that the corresponding storage chambers 28 can be opened and closed. (FIG. 1 omits the two doors 32 arranged on the rear side among the four doors 32 arranged on the right side of the main body 12).

  Each storage chamber 28 of the main body 12 can be individually heated or cooled by an air conditioner unit disposed in the machine room 14, and food stored in a warm state and food stored in a cooled state are Each storage chamber 28 can be distributed and stored. As shown in FIG. 1, an air conditioner operation panel 34 for controlling the air conditioner unit is disposed on the wall portion defining the machine room 14.

(Operation section)
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the operation unit 20 serves as an operation means for causing the ration wheel 10 to move straight forward, backward straight, forward left turn, forward right turn, backward left turn, and backward right turn. A bar handle 36 and a drive operation panel 38 for controlling the drive device 18 are provided. The drive operation panel 38 includes various operation means such as buttons and operation switches for performing ON / OFF operations of the left drive motor 48 and the right drive motor 50 of the drive device 18, and a battery remaining amount meter 21 that indicates the remaining amount of the battery 24. Etc. are arranged.

(Bar handle)
2 and 5, the bar handle 36 is a rod-like member formed in a substantially U shape when viewed from the front side, and extends in the left-right direction and can be gripped by an operator 36A. The left vertical bar portion 36B extends downward from the left end of the gripping portion 36A, and the right vertical bar portion 36C extends downward from the right end of the gripping portion 36A. As shown in FIG. 2, the lower end portion of the left vertical bar portion 36B of the bar handle 36 is rotatably supported on the left side portion of the operation unit 20, and the lower end portion of the right vertical bar portion 36C of the bar handle. Is supported rotatably on the right side of the operation unit 20. The operation unit 20 is provided with a left operation signal output device 40 at the portion of the bar handle 36 that supports the lower end portion of the left vertical bar portion 36B, and also supports the lower end portion of the right vertical bar portion 36C of the bar handle 36. A right operation signal output device 42 is disposed in the portion. Here, the left operation signal output device 40 and the right operation signal output device are so-called rotary variable resistors (potentiometers), and the left vertical bar portion 36B rotates when the bar handle 36 is operated. While the operation signal output device 40 rotates following the rotation, the right operation signal output device 42 rotates following the rotation of the right vertical bar portion 36C. The left operation signal output device 40 and the right operation signal output device 42 output an operation signal corresponding to the amount of rotation based on the operation of the bar handle 36 to the control device 22.

  The bar handle 36 includes an urging means (not shown) such as a spring, and the left and right vertical bar portions 36B and 36C are in a neutral state (FIG. 1). Then, the bar handle 36 is moved to the neutral state in which the gripping portion 36A moves forward, and the left vertical axis portion 36B and the right vertical axis portion 36C are tilted forward (2 in FIG. 5A). In the second operation state (1 in FIG. 5A) in which the gripping portion 36A is moved backward with respect to the neutral state and the left vertical axis portion 36B and the right vertical axis portion 36C are tilted backward. The posture can be changed in the direction indicated by the dotted line. Further, as shown in FIG. 5 (b), the bar handle 36 is disposed so as to be capable of rotational displacement about the axis C, and tilted by rotating to the left about the axis C. The third operation state (indicated by a two-dot chain line in FIG. 5B) and the fourth operation state rotated to the right about the axis C and tilted (indicated by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 5B) ) Can be displaced.

  Here, the first operation state of the bar handle 36 is a mode in which the distribution vehicle 10 moves straight forward, and the left operation signal output device 40 and the right operation signal output device 42 rotate as the operation amount from the neutral state increases. The amount increases, and the set value of the required travel speed V5, which is the required forward straight speed, is increased. The second operation state of the bar handle 36 is a mode in which the wheeled vehicle 10 moves straight backward, and the rotation amounts of the left operation signal output device 40 and the right operation signal output device 42 respectively increase as the operation amount from the neutral state increases. The required travel speed V5, which is a required speed for going straight backward, is increased. The third operation state of the bar handle 36 is a mode in which the wheeled vehicle 10 is turned leftward forward or rightward backward, and the required speed in the left front turn and the right rear turn as the operation amount from the neutral state increases. The set value of the required turning speed V6 is increased. The fourth operation state of the bar handle 36 is a mode in which the ration wheel 10 is turned rightward forward or leftward backward, and the rotation amount of the left operation signal output device 40 increases as the operation amount from the neutral state increases. In addition, the set value of the required turn speed V6 in the forward right turn or the backward left turn is increased.

  That is, the bar handle 36 can be turned leftward (turning left by untrusted turning) while moving the laying wheel 10 forward by simultaneously operating so as to be in the first operation state and the third operation state. By operating simultaneously so that it may become a 1st operation state and a 4th operation state, it can be made to turn right (turning right by untrusted turning), moving the layout wheel 10 forward. Further, by operating the bar handle 36 at the same time so as to be in the second operation state and the third operation state, the bar handle 36 can be turned right (turning right by untrusted turning) while moving the layout wheel 10 backward, By operating the second operation state and the fourth operation state at the same time, it is possible to make the left turn (left turn by untrusted turn) while moving the layout vehicle 10 backward.

(Driver)
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, the drive device 18 is a pair of left and right first and second drives disposed rearwardly from the front and rear center of the main body base 16 in the left and right direction (width direction). Wheels 44, 46 (hereinafter, the first driving wheel is referred to as “left driving wheel 44” and the second driving wheel is referred to as “right driving wheel 46”), fixed to the main body base 16 and linked to the left driving wheel 44. A left drive motor (first drive means) 48 and a right drive motor (second drive means) 50 fixed to the main body base 16 and linked to the right drive wheel 46 are provided. The left drive motor 48 includes a gear box 46A, and is fixed to the main body base 16 with a drive shaft 48B of the gear box 48A extending in the left-right direction and extending leftward. The left drive wheel 44 is provided with a hard rubber or the like on the outer periphery thereof, and is fixed to a drive shaft 48B extending in the left-right direction, and rotates in a fixed state in the front-rear direction. The right drive motor 50 includes a gear box 50A, and a drive shaft 50B of the gear box 50A extends in the left-right direction and is fixed to the main body base 16 in a state of extending to the right side. The right drive wheel 46 is provided with a hard rubber or the like on the outer periphery thereof, is fixed to a drive shaft 50B extending in the left-right direction, and rotates in a fixed state in the front-rear direction. The drive shaft 48B of the left drive motor 48 and the drive shaft 50B of the right drive motor 50 are located on the same axis extending in the left-right direction, and the left drive wheel 44 and the right drive wheel 46 are always held in parallel. Rotate with.

(Left drive motor and right drive motor)
The left drive motor 48 is a servo motor controlled by a left drive motor control board (see FIG. 7) 52 connected to the control device 22, and the right drive motor 50 is a right drive motor connected to the control device 22. These servomotors are controlled by a control board (see FIG. 7) 54, and all are rotated by power supplied from the battery 24. The left drive motor control board 52 is provided with an encoder 53 that can identify the rotation direction, rotation speed, and rotation angle of the left drive motor 48, whereby the left drive motor control board 52 receives a control signal from the control device 22. And the rotation direction and the rotation speed of the left drive motor 48 are controlled based on the information obtained by the encoder 53. Similarly, the right drive motor control board 54 is provided with an encoder 55 that can identify the rotation direction, rotation speed, and rotation angle of the right drive motor 50, so that the right drive motor control board 54 is connected to the control device 22. Based on the control signal and information obtained by the encoder 55, the rotational direction and rotational speed of the right drive motor 50 are controlled.

(Driven wheel)
As shown in FIGS. 1 to 4, a plurality of (two in the embodiment) driven wheels 56, 56 are disposed on the front left side and the front right side of the main body base 16. The left and right driven wheels 56, 56 are disposed on a support member 58 that is rotatable about a vertical axis with respect to the main body base 16, and is rotatable about a horizontal axis. That is, in each driven wheel 56, 56, the support member 58 appropriately rotates around the vertical axis in accordance with the displacement of the layout vehicle 10, so that when the layout vehicle 10 travels straight forward or rearward straight, When turning forward left, turning backward left, turning right forward, and turning right backward, they turn in an oblique direction with respect to the left-right direction.

(About the control unit)
As shown in FIG. 7, the control device 22 in the allocation vehicle 10 of the embodiment includes a drive control CPU 60, a drive control ROM 62, and a drive control RAM 64. In the drive control ROM 62, a motor drive processing program (described later) for calculating the left drive wheel required speed V3 and the right drive wheel required speed V4 related to the traveling speed control of the layout vehicle 10, and left and right drive motors 48, 50 are calculated. Various data and the like related to the control are stored. The drive control CPU 60 executes the motor drive processing program stored in the drive control ROM 62 to calculate the left drive wheel request speed V3 and the right drive wheel request speed V4, and calculates the calculated left drive wheel request speed V3 and the right drive wheel request speed V3. Based on the required drive wheel speed V4, a control signal is transmitted to the left drive motor control board 52 and the right drive motor control board 54. Here, the drive control CPU 60 is configured to execute the motor drive processing shown in FIG. 9 at every controlled interval (2 ms (0.002 seconds) in the embodiment). Further, when executing the motor drive processing program, the drive control CPU 60 uses the rotational speed of the left drive motor 48 transmitted from the left drive motor control board 52 to determine the left drive wheel actual speed V7 that is the actual speed of the left drive wheel 44. And the right driving wheel actual speed V8, which is the actual speed of the right driving wheel 46, is calculated from the rotation speed of the right driving motor 50 transmitted from the right driving motor control board 54, and the calculated left driving wheel actual speed is calculated. Data of the speed V7 and the actual right driving wheel speed V8 is stored in the drive control RAM 64. Further, the drive control CPU 60 drives the drive current value (hereinafter referred to as “first current value”) G1 applied to the left drive motor 48 and the drive current value applied to the right drive motor 50 (hereinafter “second current value”). A current detection unit that acquires G2 (referred to as “current value”) and calculates a current deviation G3 described later is provided.

  The drive control RAM 64 is a requested speed in the front-rear direction calculated by the drive control CPU 60 based on the operation signal from the left operation signal output device 40 and the operation signal from the right operation signal output device 42 by the operation of the bar handle 36 of the operation unit 20. The required travel speed storage unit that stores the required travel speed V5 and the required turn speed storage unit that stores the required turn speed V6 that is the required speed in the left-right direction. The drive control RAM 64 temporarily stores data of the left drive wheel request speed V3 and the right drive wheel request speed V4 obtained by executing the motor drive processing program in the drive control CPU 60 and can update the drive wheel request that can be updated. A speed storage unit and an actual speed storage unit that temporarily stores and updates data of the actual left drive wheel speed V7 and the actual right drive wheel speed V8 calculated by the drive control CPU 60 are provided. Further, the drive control RAM 64 updates an operation signal from the left operation signal output unit 40 and an operation signal from the right operation signal output unit 42 and stores an operation signal storage unit and a division ratio P (target division ratio (described later)). A division ratio storage unit is provided for storing the division ratio) P1 and the control division ratio P2 calculated by executing the motor driving process.

  Next, motor drive processing executed by the drive control CPU 60 in the control device 22 of the embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. In the control device 22 of the embodiment, the drive control CPU 60 executes a motor drive processing program at every control interval (2 ms) described above. Then, when executing the motor drive process, when one of the left drive wheel 44 or the right drive wheel 46 is idle during the right turn at the front, the left turn at the rear and the right turn at the rear, the idle rotation is caused. The left driving wheel required speed V3 and the right driving wheel required speed V4 can be calculated so that the driving force of the driving wheel and the driving force of the driving wheel that is not idling are redistributed. The term “idling” as used herein refers to a state in which one of the left drive wheel 44 or the right drive wheel 46 is completely separated (floated) from the floor surface, and the drive wheel separated from the floor surface rotates. Although both the driving wheel 44 and the right driving wheel 46 are in contact with the floor surface, the driving wheel whose press against the floor surface is weakened due to unevenness of the floor surface and the like is in a state of rotating while being in contact with the floor surface. Including.

  In the following description, as shown in FIG. 12, the longitudinal direction of the layout vehicle 10 is the front-rear direction, the short direction that intersects the front-rear direction horizontally is the left-right direction, and the speed when traveling straight forward is “+”, The speed when traveling straight backward is “−”, the turning speed in the counterclockwise direction (counterclockwise direction) is “−”, and the turning speed in the clockwise direction (clockwise direction) is viewed from the rear upper side of the allocation vehicle 10. It is defined as “+”.

(Advance actual speed and actual rotation speed)
The control device 22 according to the embodiment calculates the actual left drive wheel speed V7 of the left drive wheel 44 based on the relationship between the rotation speed (number of rotations) of the left drive motor 48 and the gear ratio of the gear box 48A of the left drive motor 48. At the same time, the right driving wheel actual speed V8 of the right driving wheel 46 is calculated based on the relationship between the rotational speed (number of rotations) of the right driving motor 50 and the gear ratio of the gear box 50A of the right driving motor 50, and the front in the front-rear direction is calculated. It is possible to obtain the actual traveling speed V1 corresponding to straight or backward straight traveling and the actual turning speed V2 corresponding to forward left turn, backward left turn, forward right turn and backward right turn in the left-right direction. Here, the actual traveling speed V1 and the actual turning actual speed V2 are calculated by Expressions 1 and 2 shown in the paragraph [0004].

ここで、前記Ｐ２は、後述する制御分割比である。 (Left drive wheel required speed and right drive wheel required speed)
In the embodiment, the left driving wheel required speed V3, which is the speed required for the left driving wheel 44, is calculated by the following formula 5, and the right driving wheel request, which is the speed required for the right driving wheel 46, is calculated. The speed V4 is calculated by the following formula 6.

Here, the P2 is a control division ratio described later.

(Split ratio)
In the embodiment, the “division ratio” is introduced when calculating the required left driving wheel speed V3 and the required right driving wheel speed V4. In the embodiment, the control division ratio P2 in the formulas 5 and 6 is a real number in the range of +500 to -500. This split ratio P determines the participation ratio of the left driving wheel 44 and the right driving wheel 46 during forward left turning, forward right turning, backward left turning and backward right turning of the allocation vehicle 10. This is for distributing the driving force of the drive wheels 44 and 46. That is, the left and right independent drive type distribution vehicle 10 that travels while individually rotating and controlling a pair of left drive wheel 44 and right drive wheel 46 that are separated in the left and right direction does not have a suspension function. The ground contact force of the left drive wheel 44 or the right drive wheel 46 may decrease due to unevenness and inclination, etc., and the idling may occur, and when the idling occurs, the drive to the first drive wheel 44 and the second drive wheel 46 is performed. The power can be redistributed.

なお、制御装置２２は、前述した制御インターバル(２ｍｓ)毎に、第１電流値Ｇ１および第２電流値Ｇ２を検知して、電流偏差Ｇ３の数値を更新するようになっている。 Here, in the left and right independent drive type allocation vehicle 10, when the left and right turn to the front and the left and right turn to the rear are performed stably and smoothly, the left drive wheel 44 and the right drive wheel 46 are equal to each other. A right driving force that is applied to the left driving motor 48 that controls rotation of the left driving wheel 44 (hereinafter referred to as “first current amount G1”) and a right driving wheel 46 that rotates. The amount of current G2 applied to the motor 50 (hereinafter referred to as “second current amount G2”) is the same. However, when the left drive wheel 44 idles, the load of the left drive motor 48 decreases, so that the first current amount G1 applied to the left drive motor 48 decreases and the right drive wheel 46 idles. As the load of the right drive motor 50 decreases, the second current amount G2 applied to the right drive motor 50 decreases. That is, when any one of the left and right drive wheels 44 and 46 idles, a difference occurs between the first current amount G1 and the second current amount G2, and the current detection unit of the control device 22 The difference between the first current amount G1 and the second current amount G2 is calculated as “current deviation G3”. That is, the current deviation G3 is calculated by the following formula 7.

Note that the control device 22 detects the first current value G1 and the second current value G2 and updates the numerical value of the current deviation G3 every control interval (2 ms) described above.

  According to Equation 7, when the left driving wheel 44 idles and the first current amount G1 decreases, the first current amount G1> the second current amount G2 so that the current deviation G3 is a negative numerical value ( The sign is minus “−”). On the other hand, when the right driving wheel 46 idles and the second current amount G2 decreases, the first current amount G1 <the second current amount G2, and thus the current deviation G3 is a positive numerical value (the sign is plus “+ ]).

(Setting of target division ratio by current deviation)
Then, the drive control CPU 60 in the control device 22 corrects the numerical value obtained by correcting the current deviation G3 caused by the idling of the left drive wheel 44 or the right drive wheel 46 based on a predetermined correction method, as “target”. The division ratio P1 ”is set. Here, when the left driving wheel 44 idles and the first current amount G1 <the second current amount G2 and the current deviation G3 is a negative value, the target division ratio P1 is a negative value (the sign is minus “−”). )). Further, when the right drive wheel 46 idles and the first current amount G1> the second current amount G2 and the current deviation G3 becomes a positive numerical value, the target division ratio P1 is a positive numerical value (the sign of “+” is a plus sign “+”). )).

(Control division ratio)
Further, the drive control CPU 60 executes a driving force distribution process (described later) shown in FIG. 10 at each control interval (2 ms), so that the drive wheels 44 that are idled when turning left and right forward and turning left and right backward, 46 is gradually increased, and a division ratio (hereinafter referred to as “control division ratio P2”) is set for gradually decelerating the non-idling drive wheels 44 and 46. As shown in FIG. 8, the control division ratio P2 is updated by the motor driving process executed at each control interval, and gradually changes to the set target division ratio P1 while the time T elapses. ing. That is, the control division ratio P2 that is updated every time the motor drive process is performed during forward left turn, forward right turn, backward left turn, and backward right turn is applied to the above Equation 5 and Equation 6. The left drive wheel required speed V3 and the right drive wheel required speed V4 are calculated, respectively, and the first current amount G1 applied to the first drive motor 48 that drives the drive wheels 44, 46 and the second drive motor 50 are provided. By changing the two current amounts G2, the left drive wheel actual speed V7 of the left drive wheel 44 and the right drive wheel actual speed V8 of the right drive wheel 46 can be gradually changed. The specific calculation mode of the left driving wheel required speed V3 and the right driving wheel required speed V4 will be described later.

(Motor drive processing)
Next, motor drive processing executed by the drive control CPU 60 will be specifically described with reference to FIGS. 9 and 10. The drive control CPU 60 of the embodiment executes the motor drive process shown in FIG. 9 at every control interval (2 ms). In this motor driving process, first, based on the operation of the bar handle 36, it is determined whether an operation signal is input from the left operation signal output device 40 and the right operation signal output device 42 (step S11). If the determination result in step S11 is negative (when no operation signal is input from both the left operation signal output device 40 and the right operation signal output device 42), the motor driving process is terminated.

  The drive control CPU 60 stores the drive control RAM 64 in the drive control RAM 64 when the determination result in step S11 is affirmative (when an operation signal from at least one of the left operation signal output device 40 and the right operation signal output device 42 is input). The obtained left driving wheel actual speed V7 and right driving wheel actual speed V8 are acquired, and the actual traveling speed V1 and the actual turning actual speed V2 are calculated (step S12). Further, the drive control CPU 60 reads out the control division ratio P2 stored in the drive control RAM 64 (step S13). Then, the drive control CPU 60 executes the driving force distribution process shown in FIG. 10 based on the actual traveling speed V1 and the actual turning speed V2 calculated in step S12 and the control division ratio P2 read in step S13. The drive wheel required speed V3 and the right drive wheel required speed V4 are calculated (step S14). When the left driving wheel required speed V3 and the right driving wheel required speed V4 are calculated in the driving force distribution process in step S14, the drive control CPU 60 includes information on the left driving wheel required speed V3 in the left driving motor control board 52. While transmitting a control signal, the control signal containing the information of right drive wheel required speed V4 is transmitted to the right drive motor control board 54 (step S15), and the said motor drive process is complete | finished.

  The left drive motor control board 52 drives and controls the left drive motor 48 based on a control signal from the drive control CPU 60 to rotate the left drive wheel 44 at a predetermined rotational speed. The right drive motor 50 is drive-controlled based on a control signal from the drive control CPU 60 to rotate the right drive wheel 46 at a predetermined rotation speed. Therefore, the allocation vehicle 10 turns straight forward, backward straight, forward left turning, forward right turning, backward left turning, or backward right turning as the left driving wheel 44 and the right driving wheel 46 rotate at a predetermined rotational speed. .

(About driving force distribution processing)
The driving force distribution process executed in step S14 of the motor driving process shown in FIG. 9 will be described with reference to FIG. In the driving force distribution process, first, based on the actual running speed V1 and the actual turning speed V2 calculated in step S12 of the motor driving process by the drive control CPU 60, the absolute value of the actual traveling speed V1 is the absolute value of the actual turning speed V2. It is determined whether or not it is twice or less (step S21). If the determination result in step S21 is negative (when the absolute value of the actual traveling speed V1 is not less than twice the absolute value of the actual turning speed V2), the distribution vehicle 10 goes straight ahead at the start of execution of the motor driving process. Or, the vehicle is traveling in any one of the traveling modes of straight backward traveling, and is not traveling in traveling modes of forward left turning, backward left turning, forward right turning, and backward right turning. Accordingly, the target division ratio P1 is set to “0” (step S22), and after step S27 and later described are executed, the left drive wheel required speed V3 is calculated by the equation 5 and the right drive is calculated by the equation 6. The required wheel speed V4 is calculated (step S29). The contents of control after step S27 will be described later.

  On the other hand, if the determination result in step S21 is affirmative (if the absolute value of the actual traveling speed V1 is less than or equal to twice the absolute value of the actual turning speed V2), the allocation vehicle 10 is at the start of execution of the motor driving process. Is a traveling mode of any one of left front turning, left rear turning, right front turning, and right rear turning. Therefore, the control device 22 calculates the first current value G1 and the second current value G2 according to Equation 7 based on the detected first current value G1 of the left drive motor 48 and second current value G2 of the right drive motor 50. It is determined whether or not a current deviation G3 has occurred in the meantime (step S23). If the determination result of step S23 is negative, the current deviation G3 has not occurred between the first current value G1 and the second current value G2, so the target division ratio P1 is set to “0” (step S22 ) After step S27 described later is executed, the left drive wheel required speed V3 is calculated by the equation 5 and the right drive wheel required speed V4 is calculated by the equation 6 (step S29).

  On the other hand, if the determination result in step S23 is affirmative, a current deviation G3 has occurred between the first current value G1 and the second current value G2, so whether or not the current deviation G3 is a positive value. (Step S24). Here, when the determination result of step S24 is affirmative (when the current deviation G3 is a positive value), the second current value G2 of the right drive motor 50 decreases, and the second current value G2 becomes the first current. Since this means that the value is smaller than the value G1, the right drive wheel 46 whose rotation is controlled by the right drive motor 50 is idling. Therefore, the control device 22 sets a numerical value obtained by correcting the numerical value of the current deviation G3 as the target division ratio P1 (step S25). That is, when the current deviation G3 is a positive numerical value, the target division ratio P1 is a positive numerical value.

  On the other hand, when the determination result of step S24 is negative (when the current deviation G3 is a negative value), the first current value G1 of the left drive motor 48 decreases and the first current value G1 becomes the second current value. This means that the left drive wheel 44 whose rotation is controlled by the left drive motor 48 is idling. Therefore, the control device 22 sets a numerical value obtained by correcting the numerical value of the current deviation G3 as the target division ratio P1 (step S26). That is, when the current deviation G3 is a negative value, the target division ratio P1 is a negative value.

(About Step S27 and after)
In the driving force distribution process, the target division ratio P1 is set to “0” in step S22, the target division ratio P1 is set to a positive value in step S25, or the target division ratio P1 is negative in step S26. If the numerical value is set, it is determined whether or not the control division ratio P2 read from the drive control RAM 64 in step S13 of the motor drive process is smaller than the target division ratio P1 set in the drive force distribution process (step S27). . If the determination result in step S27 is affirmative (if the control division ratio P2 is smaller than the target division ratio P1), "1" is added to the control division ratio P2 (step S28), and the updated control division ratio P2 Is written in the drive control RAM 64. Then, the drive control CPU 60 calculates the left drive wheel required speed V3 and the right drive wheel required speed V4, respectively, using the updated control division ratio P2 (step S29).

  On the other hand, when the determination result of step S27 is negative (when the control division ratio P2 is greater than or equal to the target division ratio P1), it is determined whether or not the control division ratio P2 is greater than the target division ratio P1 (step S30). If the determination result in step S30 is affirmative (if the control division ratio P2 is greater than the target division ratio P1), "1" is subtracted from the control division ratio P2 (step S31), and the updated control division ratio P2 Is written in the drive control RAM 64. Then, the drive control CPU 60 calculates the left drive wheel required speed V3 and the right drive wheel required speed V4, respectively, using the updated control division ratio P2 (step S29).

  If the determination result of step S30 is negative (step S27 is also negative, so that control division ratio P2 = target division ratio P1), the drive control CPU 60 does not update the control division ratio P2, and the drive control CPU 60 The left drive wheel required speed V3 and the right drive wheel required speed V4 are calculated using the control division ratio P2 read from the control RAM 64 (step S29).

  When the left driving wheel required speed V3 and the right driving wheel required speed V4 are calculated in step S29, the driving force distribution process in step S13 in the motor driving process is completed.

  Therefore, in the allocation vehicle 10 according to the embodiment, one of the left driving wheel 44 and the right driving wheel 46 is idle in each of the traveling modes of front left turn, front right turn, rear left turn, and rear right turn. Thus, when a current deviation G3 occurs between the first current value G1 and the second current value G2, in the driving force distribution process of the motor driving process in which the generation of the current deviation G3 is determined, Based on this, the target division ratio P1 is set. Then, in the motor drive process executed at each control interval after the motor drive process, the left drive wheel request speed V3 and the right drive wheel request speed V4 are obtained using the control division ratio P2 updated asymptotically to the target division ratio P1. By calculating, the left drive wheel actual speed V7 of the left drive wheel 44 and the first current amount G1 applied to the first drive motor 48 and the second current amount G2 applied to the second drive motor 50 are gradually increased or decreased. The right driving wheel actual speed V8 of the right driving wheel 46 is gradually changed to redistribute the driving forces of the first driving wheel 44 and the second driving wheel 46.

(When the left drive wheel is idle)
When the left driving wheel 44 idles, the first current value G1 with respect to the left driving motor 48 decreases, and thus the generated current deviation G3 becomes a negative value. Therefore, in the driving force distribution process in the motor driving process, A negative target division ratio P1 obtained by correcting the current deviation G3 is set. Therefore, the control division ratio P2 calculated by the driving force distribution process of the motor driving process executed at each control interval becomes small so as to approach the negative target division ratio P1. As a result, the required left drive wheel speed V3 calculated by the equation 5 increases every time it is updated by the motor drive process, so the first drive wheel 48 added to the left drive motor 48 in order to increase the speed of the left drive wheel 44. Control is performed to gradually increase the amount of current G1, and the left driving motor 48 gradually increases the driving force as the left driving wheel actual speed V7 increases. On the other hand, the right drive wheel required speed V4 calculated by the equation 6 becomes smaller every time it is updated by the motor drive process, so the second current amount applied to the right drive motor 50 to decelerate the right drive wheel 46. Control for gradually reducing G2 is performed, and the right drive motor 50 gradually decreases the actual driving speed V8 and the driving force gradually decreases.

(When the right drive wheel is idle)
When the right drive wheel 46 idles, the second current value G2 with respect to the right drive motor 50 decreases and the generated current deviation G3 becomes a positive numerical value. Therefore, in the drive force distribution process in the motor drive process, A positive target division ratio P1 obtained by correcting the numerical value of the current deviation G3 is set. Therefore, the control division ratio P2 calculated by the driving force distribution process of the motor driving process executed at each control interval increases so as to approach the positive target division ratio P1. As a result, the required right drive wheel speed V4 calculated by the equation 6 increases every time it is updated by the motor drive process, so the second drive wheel 50 added to the right drive motor 50 to increase the speed of the right drive wheel 46 is added. Control is performed to gradually increase the amount of current G2, and the right drive motor 50 gradually increases the drive force as the right drive wheel actual speed V8 increases. On the other hand, the left drive wheel required speed V3 calculated by the equation 5 becomes smaller every time it is updated by the motor drive process. Therefore, the first current amount applied to the left drive motor 48 to decelerate the left drive wheel 44 is reduced. Control for gradually decreasing G1 is performed, and the left drive motor 48 gradually decreases the drive power of the left drive wheel actual speed V7.

  Therefore, when the left drive wheel 44 idles during the left turn of the front wheel 10 of the embodiment, the driving force of the left drive wheel 44 inside the turn is gradually increased and the right drive wheel 46 outside the turn is driven. Since the force is gradually reduced, it is possible to prevent the allocation vehicle 10 from being caught to the front left side. On the other hand, when the right driving wheel 46 is idle during the left turn, the driving force of the right driving wheel 46 outside the turning is gradually increased and the driving force of the left driving wheel 44 inside the turning is gradually reduced. It is possible to prevent the layout vehicle 10 from turning right forward.

  In addition, when the left drive wheel 44 idles during the right turn of the front wheel 10 of the embodiment, the driving force of the left drive wheel 44 on the outer side of the turn is gradually increased and the right drive wheel 46 on the inner side of the turn is increased. Since the driving force of the vehicle is gradually reduced, it is possible to prevent the allocation vehicle 10 from turning leftward. On the other hand, when the right drive wheel 46 is idled during the forward right turn, the drive force of the right drive wheel 46 is gradually increased and the drive force of the left drive wheel 44 outside the turn is gradually reduced. 10 can be prevented from being caught to the front right side.

  In addition, when the left drive wheel 44 idles during the left rear turn, the layout vehicle 10 of the embodiment gradually increases the driving force of the left drive wheel 44 on the outer side of the turn and drives the right drive wheel 46 on the inner side of the turn. Since the force is gradually decreased, it is possible to prevent the allocation vehicle 10 from turning right and backward. On the other hand, when the right driving wheel 46 is idle during the left turn, the driving force of the right driving wheel 46 inside the turning is gradually increased and the driving force of the left driving wheel 44 outside the turning is gradually reduced. It is possible to prevent the layout vehicle 10 from being caught to the rear right side.

  In addition, when the left drive wheel 44 idles during the right turn of the rear wheel 10 of the embodiment, the driving force of the left drive wheel 44 on the inner side of the turn is gradually increased and the right drive wheel 46 on the outer side of the turn is increased. Since the driving force is gradually reduced, it is possible to prevent the ration wheel 10 from being caught in the rear left side. On the other hand, when the right drive wheel 46 is idled during the backward right turn, the drive force of the right drive wheel 46 outside the turn is gradually increased and the drive force of the left drive wheel 44 inside the turn is gradually reduced. Thus, it is possible to prevent the layout vehicle 10 from turning leftward.

  Therefore, the allocation vehicle 10 of the embodiment is in the case where one of the left driving wheel 44 or the right driving wheel 46 is idled during the front left turn, the front right turn, the rear left turn and the rear right turn. The amount of current G1 (G2) applied to the drive motor 48 (50) for rotating the idling drive wheel 44 (46) is increased to increase the driving force of the idling drive wheel 44 (46). The amount of current G2 (G1) applied to the drive motor 50 (48) for rotating the drive wheel 46 (44) that is not idling is reduced to reduce the driving force of the drive wheel 46 (44) that is not idling. By controlling in this way, it is possible to prevent the layout vehicle 10 from changing its direction unexpectedly and to prevent the layout vehicle 10 from traveling in an unexpected direction. Thereby, the front left turn, the front right turn, the rear left turn, and the rear right turn can be performed stably and smoothly, and the ration wheel 10 comes into contact with the surrounding wall or article or the surrounding pedestrian. Thus, safety can be improved and the operator who operates the trolley 10 is not uncomfortable or uneasy. In addition, when either one of the first drive wheel 44 and the second drive wheel 46 idles, the control division ratio P2 that is updated so as to approach the target division ratio P1 in the motor drive process executed at each control interval is used. Thus, by calculating the left driving wheel required speed V3 required for the left driving wheel 44 and the right driving wheel required speed V4 required for the right driving wheel 46, the left driving wheel actual speed V7 and the right driving wheel required for the left driving wheel 44 are calculated. Since the actual speed V8 of the right driving wheel of the driving wheel 46 gradually changes, it is possible to prevent the allocation vehicle 10 from suddenly moving.

(Bumper sensor unit)
As shown in FIGS. 1, 3 and 4, a bumper 66 is attached to the rear end surface of the main body base 16, so that in the unlikely event that the distribution vehicle 10 contacts a wall or an article, the shock is buffered. It has become. A bumper sensor unit 70 that detects deformation of the bumper 66 is disposed inside the bumper 66. The bumper 66 is a molded member made of a synthetic resin that can be elastically deformed. The bumper 66 can be elastically deformed when the trolley 10 comes into contact with a wall surface or an article. As shown in FIG. 6, the bumper sensor unit 70 constitutes a circuit that is electrically connected to the AD converter 23 provided in the control device 22, and, as will be described later, the bumper sensor unit 70 is in the middle of the circuit based on the deformation of the bumper 66. By short-circuiting, the voltage across the circuit changes. And the control apparatus 22 which detected the short circuit of the bumper sensor unit 70 stops provision of the drive electric power to the left drive motor 48 and the right drive motor 50, and stops the layout vehicle 10. FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 6, the bumper sensor unit 70 of the embodiment includes a plurality (four in the embodiment) of bumper sensors 72 (first to fourth bumper sensors 72a, 72b, 72c, 72d) and a plurality (three in the embodiment). Two resistors 74 (first resistor 74a, second resistor 74b, and third resistor 74c), and a first detection line 76 and a second detection line 78 arranged to extend in the left-right direction inside the bumper 66. Are connected in the following order to form a circuit. That is, one end of the first resistor 74a is connected to the positive power source, one end of the first bumper sensor 72a is connected to the other end of the first resistor 74a, and the other end of the first bumper sensor 72a is connected to the bumper 66. It is connected to one end of the arranged first detection line 76. One end of the second bumper sensor 72b is connected to the other end of the first detection line 76, one end of the second resistor 74b is connected to the other end of the second bumper sensor 72b, and the other end of the second resistor 74b is connected to the second end. One end of the third bumper sensor 72 c is connected, and the other end of the third bumper sensor 72 c is connected to one end of the second detection line 78 disposed in the bumper 66. The other end of the second detection line 78 is once connected to the fourth bumper sensor 72d, the other end of the fourth bumper sensor 72d is connected to one end of the third resistor 74c, and the other end of the third resistor 74c is connected to the other end. -Connected to a power source. The AD converter 23 generates a first voltage E1 that is a circuit voltage between one end of the first resistor 74a and the other end of the third resistor 74c, and a second voltage E2 that is a voltage between both ends of the third resistor 74c. It can be detected. The first detection line 76 and the second detection line 78 are arranged in parallel and close to the bumper 66, and do not come into contact with each other in the inelastically deformed state of the bumper 66, and the elasticity of the bumper 66 It comes into contact in the deformed state.

ここで、Ｒ１は第１抵抗７４ａの抵抗値、Ｒ２は第２抵抗７４ｂの抵抗値、Ｒ３は第３抵抗７４ｃの抵抗値である。 The bumper sensor unit 70 configured as described above has an input voltage to the AD converter 23 when the bumper sensors 72a, 72b, 72c, 72d are not connected or when an appropriate part of the circuit is disconnected. Is equal to -potential (0V). When the bumper sensors 72a, 72b, 72c, 72d and the resistors 74a, 74b, 74c are connected and the first detection line 76 and the second detection line 78 are not in contact with each other, the resistors 74a, 74b, 74c The voltage dividing circuit works and the second voltage E2 input to the AD converter 23 is a voltage calculated by the following Expression 8.

Here, R1 is the resistance value of the first resistor 74a, R2 is the resistance value of the second resistor 74b, and R3 is the resistance value of the third resistor 74c.

ここで、Ｒ１は第１抵抗７４ａの抵抗値、Ｒ３は第３抵抗７４ｃの抵抗値である。 In addition, with the bumper sensors 72a, 72b, 72c, 72d and the resistors 74a, 74b, 74c connected, the first detection line 76 and the second detection line 78 come into contact with the elastic deformation of the bumper 66. When the circuit is short-circuited, the voltage dividing circuit of the first resistor 74a and the third resistor 74c works, and the second voltage E2 input to the AD converter 23 is a voltage calculated by the following Expression 9.

Here, R1 is the resistance value of the first resistor 74a, and R3 is the resistance value of the third resistor 74c.

The actual resistance value of the bumper sensor unit 70 needs to take into account the circuit current, the ON resistances of the bumper sensors 72a, 72b, 72c, and 72d, noise immunity, and the like. For example, when the first voltage E1 = 5V, the resistance value R1 of the first resistor 74a = 1kΩ, the resistance value R2 of the second resistor 74b = 4.7kΩ, and the resistance value R3 of the third resistor 74c = 4.7kΩ. The voltage of the second voltage E2 and the current flowing through the bumper sensor unit 70 are as follows.
・ When disconnected: 0.0V, 0.0mA
・ Normal (non-short-circuit): 2.3V, 0.5mA
・ When in contact (short circuit); 4.1V, 0.9mA

  Therefore, the control device 22 can determine that the bumper 66 of the layout vehicle 10 has contacted the wall or the article by monitoring the second voltage E2 of the bumper sensor unit 70. In the embodiment, as the determination threshold value of the second voltage E2 by the control device 22, the disconnection determination voltage of the bumper sensor unit 70 is less than 1.5V, the normal voltage of the bumper sensor unit 70 is 1.5 or more and less than 3.5V, The bumper collision determination voltage is set to 3.5 V or higher. Thereby, when the second voltage E2 of the bumper sensor unit 70 is less than 1.5 to 3.5 V, it is determined that the bumper 66 is not elastically deformed by the contact of the bumper 66, and the second voltage E2 is increased to 3.5 V or more. In this case, it is determined that the bumper 66 is elastically deformed by contact, and when the second voltage E2 is reduced to less than 1.5 V, it can be determined that the bumper sensor unit 70 is disconnected.

  Therefore, according to the bumper sensor unit 70 of the embodiment, the deformation of the bumper 66 due to the collision and the disconnection of the bumper sensor unit 70 can be distinguished, and the maintenance can be facilitated. Moreover, since it can be comprised by three resistances of the 1st-3rd resistance 74a, 74b, 74c, manufacture is easy and manufacturing cost can be held down. Further, the collision of the bumper 66 can be determined by the second voltage E2, and the linkage with the control device 22 is easy. In addition, the conventional bumper sensor unit that drives the relay coil to exhibit normally closed characteristics increases power consumption by always attracting the relay at normal times, and has a protective resistor to prevent power overload. Although necessary, the bumper sensor unit 70 according to the embodiment does not require such a relay or a protective resistor, and thus can reduce the manufacturing cost. The second voltage E2 may be detected by using a comparator or the like instead of the AD converter 23.

(Battery management)
The arrangement vehicle 10 of the embodiment is configured to cover the traveling by driving the left driving motor 48 and the right driving motor 50 of the driving device 18 with the power supplied from the battery 24 that is charged when not in use. The charge / discharge management is important. Therefore, the control device 22 in the allocation vehicle 10 according to the embodiment uses the fact that the battery capacity is known in addition to the charging / discharging function (coulomb counter function) in addition to the charging / discharging function of the battery 24. And configured to estimate the remaining usable charge. That is, the control device 22 obtains information on (1) the capacity of the battery 24 mounted on the distribution vehicle 10, (2) the discharge charge of the battery 24, and (3) the charge charge of the battery 24.

  The current flowing into the battery 24 includes a drive current (drive current) for driving the left drive motor 48 and the right drive motor 50 (represented as a negative value) and a charged current (charge current (positive value)). ) That is, the current value of the battery 24 at an arbitrary time is a total value of the drive current and the charging current, and if this total value is a negative value, it is a discharge and is added to the discharge charge. However, since the charge efficiency differs between charge and discharge, in the case of a negative value, the charge is not directly added to the discharge charge, but is converted into a charge charge once stored in another location. ing. The left drive motor 48 and the right drive motor 50 are on the discharging side during normal travel, but are on the charging side with regenerative power during braking.

(Display of remaining battery level according to battery level)
The capacity of the battery 24 mounted on the distribution vehicle 10 of the embodiment is set to 20.0 Ah as a system specific value. Thereby, the battery remaining amount is obtained as the sum of the capacity of the battery 24 and the discharge charge, and as the remaining amount level, a graph display, a digital display, a lamp display or the like is displayed on the battery remaining amount meter 21 provided in the operation unit 20. It is displayed in the form of. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 11A, when the remaining battery level is 17.5 Ah or higher, “level 5” (full charge), and when the remaining battery level is 15.0 Ah or higher, “level 4”. When the remaining battery level is 12.5 Ah or higher, “Level 3” is displayed. When the remaining battery level is 10.0 Ah or higher, “Level 2” (requires charging) is displayed. Further, when the voltage of the battery 24 becomes 18.0 V or less, it is determined that battery capacity = discharge charge, that is, complete discharge.

(Battery redefinition)
As described above, the capacity of the battery 24 is set to 20.0 Ah as a system specific value, but the capacity may be reduced depending on the situation. As a result, the operating point of the remaining battery level is adjusted to maintain the flexibility of the system. When the use process data (coulomb counter value) is lost and the battery needs to be redefined, the battery capacity is estimated from the voltage of the battery 24. That is, in the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 11B, when the battery voltage is 25.5V or more, the battery capacity is estimated as 18.0 Ah, and when the battery voltage is 25.0V or more and less than 25.5V. The battery capacity is estimated as 15.5 Ah, and when the battery voltage is 24.5 V or more and less than 25.0 V, the battery capacity is estimated as 13.0 Ah. In addition, when the battery voltage is 24.0V or more and less than 24.5V, the battery capacity is estimated to be 10.5Ah, and when the battery voltage is 23.5V or more and less than 24.0V, the battery capacity is 6.0Ah (requires charging). When the battery voltage is less than 23.5 V, the battery capacity is estimated to be 0.0 Ah (requires charging), and the battery is redefined. Then, the battery 24 is charged with the redefinition of the battery, and the capacity of the battery 24 is again defined as 20.0 Ah upon completion of the charging operation based on the full charge determination. Thereby, the battery 24 can be appropriately charged to a fully charged state.

  Further, in the embodiment, during the backup operation in which the operation switch is in the OFF state, the preset value is integrated with the discharge charge every certain period, and when the operation switch is in the ON state, the discharge charge is It is designed to calculate the remaining battery power.

  Therefore, according to the battery management method of the embodiment, when the battery 24 is incompletely charged, when the use process data (coulomb counter value) is lost, the remaining battery level is clearly shown. In consideration of various situations that may occur in actual use, such as inconsistencies or when the battery 24 self-discharges due to long-term standby, it is possible to accurately grasp the remaining battery level. That is, even when charging / discharging of the battery 24 is repeated, it is difficult for the battery remaining amount error to be accumulated, so that an appropriate remaining battery amount is displayed on the battery remaining amount meter 21, The administrator can appropriately grasp the remaining amount of the battery 24. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the battery 24 from being completely discharged during use of the layout vehicle 10 and to prevent the layout vehicle 10 from becoming unrunnable.

(Example of change)
The electric mobile vehicle according to the present invention is not limited to the embodiment, and various modifications can be made.
(1) The electric mobile vehicle targeted by the present application is not limited to the layout vehicle exemplified in the embodiment, and is a mobile vehicle that individually controls rotation of a pair of left and right drive wheels by individual drive means.
(2) The setting range of the target division ratio in the division ratio is not limited to “+500” to “−500” in the embodiment, and can be appropriately changed based on the control interval or the like.
(3) In the embodiment, the current deviation is set by subtracting the second current amount applied to the second drive wheel from the first current amount applied to the first drive wheel. It may be set by subtracting the first current amount. However, when the current deviation is a positive numerical value, the division ratio set based on the current deviation is a negative numerical value with the opposite sign, and when the current deviation is a negative numerical value, it is set based on the current deviation. The division ratio is a positive numerical value with the opposite sign.
(4) The left drive motor and the right drive motor may be any motor that can control the rotation direction and the rotation speed, and may be a DC brush motor, a DC brushless motor, an AC induction motor, a stepping motor, or the like.
(5) The resistance values of the first to third resistors of the bumper sensor unit are not limited to those illustrated in the embodiments, and can be variously changed.
(6) Although the system specific value related to the battery capacity in the battery management is 20.0 Ah in the embodiment, since the mounted battery 24 is different for each electric mobile vehicle, it is based on the battery capacity of each battery 24. A system specific value is set. Thereby, the value of the battery voltage and the estimated battery capacity in the redefinition of the battery are appropriately changed based on the system specific value.
(7) The temperature adjustment relating to heating or cooling in the storage chamber 28 by the air conditioner unit may be provided by the power supplied from the battery 24. In this case, the current flowing into the battery 24 is the sum of the drive current for driving the left and right drive motors 48 and 50, the current for operating the air conditioner unit (operating current), and the charging current by charging.

12 body, 22 control device (drive control means), 36 bar handle (operation means)
44 Left drive wheel (first drive wheel), 46 Right drive wheel (second drive wheel)
48 left drive motor (first drive means), 50 right drive motor (second drive means)
G1 first current amount, G2 second current amount, G3 current deviation, P1 target division ratio (division ratio)
P2 Control division ratio, V3 First drive wheel required speed, V4 Second drive wheel required speed V5 Advance required speed, V6 Turn required speed

Claims (2)

The first drive means (48) and the second drive means (50) driven by the drive control means (22) in response to the operation signal from the operation means (36) are separated from the main body (12) in the left-right direction. A first drive wheel (44) that is disposed and controlled in rotation by the first drive means (48) and a second drive wheel (46) that is controlled in rotation by the second drive means (50), The first drive means (48) and the second drive means (50) are individually driven and controlled, and the first drive wheel (44) and the second drive wheel (46) are individually controlled to rotate forward, In an electric vehicle that can move straight forward, turn left and right forward, and turn left and right backward,
The drive control means (22) includes a first current amount (G1) for driving applied to the first drive means (48) and the second drive means when turning left and right forward and turning left and right. The second current amount (G2) for driving given to (50) is detected,
The drive control means (22) is configured to cause the first current amount (G1) and the second current amount (G2) in accordance with the idling of either the first drive wheel (44) or the second drive wheel (46). When a current deviation (G3) occurs during this time, the amount of current applied to the first drive wheel (44) and the second drive wheel (46) during turning is divided based on the current deviation (G3) Set as the ratio (P1)
The drive control means (22) increases the amount of current applied to one drive means (48, 50) for rotating one idled drive wheel (44, 46) based on the division ratio (P1). By reducing the amount of current applied to the other drive means (50, 48) that rotates the other drive wheel (46, 44), the drive force of both drive wheels (44, 46) is redistributed. An electric mobile vehicle characterized by that. The drive control means (22)
Based on the operation signal from the operation means (36), the main body (12) calculates the forward and backward required travel speed (V5) and the left and right turn required speed (V6), and is executed at a predetermined control interval. By the motor drive process, the control division ratio (P2) calculated in the immediately preceding motor drive process is updated so as to approach the division ratio (P1),
In the motor driving process, the first required driving wheel speed required for the first driving wheel (44) based on the required traveling speed (V5), the required turning speed (V6), and the control division ratio (P2). (V3) is calculated by the following equation (5), and the second drive wheel required speed (V4) required for the second drive wheel (46) is calculated by the following equation (6) to obtain the first drive means (48 ) And the second drive means (50) are gradually increased / decreased to change the speeds of the first drive wheel (44) and the second drive wheel (46). The electric vehicle according to claim 1, wherein the driving force of 46) is redistributed.

In Equations 5 and 6, V5 is the required traveling speed, V6 is the required turning speed, and P2 is the control division ratio.

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