JP6442937B2 - Transport vehicle system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a transport vehicle system including a transport vehicle capable of transporting a load, and relates to a transport vehicle system in which an imaging device is attached to the transport vehicle.

  Conventionally, in a transport vehicle system, a technique has been proposed in which a transport vehicle is provided with an imaging device, monitors obstacles in the travel route of the transport vehicle, and avoids a collision between the obstacle and the transport vehicle (for example, (See Patent Document 1)

JP 2010-67144 A

  However, when an abnormality occurs in the transport vehicle itself or a rack or a manufacturing apparatus around the traveling route of the transport vehicle, there are cases where it is desired to image and confirm the location where the abnormality has occurred. For example, in a large automated warehouse, if there is an abnormality in the baggage stored in a predetermined place on the rack, you want to check the abnormal state of the baggage, or the reason why the sensor in the entry prohibition area reacted is This is the case when it is desired to check whether or not.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above problems, and an object of the present invention is to provide a transport vehicle system capable of confirming a location where an abnormality has occurred when an abnormality has occurred around the transport vehicle itself or a route along which the transport vehicle travels. To do.

  In order to achieve the above object, a transport vehicle system according to the present invention includes a plurality of transport vehicles that travel along a predetermined route and transport loads, and a management device that manages the travel of the transport vehicles. In the transport vehicle system, the transport vehicle includes an imaging device having a direction changing unit that changes an imaging direction with reference to the transport vehicle, and the management device is arranged around the route or in the transport vehicle system. An abnormality information acquisition unit that acquires abnormality information indicating a location where an abnormality has occurred and an imaging control unit that images the occurrence location based on the abnormality information acquired by the abnormality information acquisition unit.

  According to this, the imaging direction of the imaging device mounted on the transport vehicle traveling along the route can be directed to the location where the abnormality has occurred, and the abnormal situation can be imaged and confirmed.

  The management apparatus may further include a travel control unit that directs the transport vehicle to the vicinity of the occurrence location based on the abnormality information acquired by the abnormality information acquisition unit.

  According to this, since the conveyance vehicle can travel to the vicinity of the location where the abnormality has occurred and the abnormal situation can be imaged from nearby, a more detailed image regarding the abnormality can be acquired.

  Moreover, the said travel control part is good also as enabling the reverse travel of the said conveyance vehicle in a one-way area, when directing the said conveyance vehicle to the generation | occurrence | production location vicinity based on abnormality information.

  According to this, it is possible to quickly reach the vicinity of the location where the abnormality has occurred, and it is possible to image the abnormal situation at an early stage.

  The management device further determines whether or not the occurrence location is reflected in an image captured by the imaging device based on the abnormality information, position information indicating a position captured by the imaging device, and direction information indicating an imaging direction. An imaging determination unit that determines whether the occurrence location is reflected in the imaging determination unit, and a storage unit that stores the image that is determined to be associated with the abnormality information.

  According to this, when the imaging device is imaging a location that is an occurrence location before the occurrence of an abnormality, the relevant location before and after the occurrence of the abnormality can be confirmed as an image, contributing to investigation of the cause of the occurrence of the abnormality Is possible.

  When an abnormality occurs around the transport vehicle itself or the route along which the transport vehicle travels, the location of the abnormality can be confirmed by an image.

FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a transport vehicle system. FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a part of the transport apparatus from above. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration and a mechanism configuration of the transport vehicle system. FIG. 4 is a diagram schematically illustrating a state where an abnormality occurrence location is imaged by an imaging device mounted on a plurality of transport vehicles. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the contents displayed on the display of the interface. FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration and a mechanism configuration of another transport vehicle system. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the contents displayed on the display of the interface.

  Next, an embodiment of a transport vehicle system according to the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, the following embodiment is only what showed an example of the conveyance vehicle system which concerns on this invention. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention is defined by the wording of the claims with reference to the following embodiments, and is not limited to the following embodiments. Therefore, among the constituent elements in the following embodiments, constituent elements that are not described in the independent claims indicating the highest concept of the present invention are not necessarily required to achieve the object of the present invention. It will be described as constituting a preferred form.

(Embodiment 1)
FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating a transport vehicle system.

  As shown in the figure, the transport vehicle system 100 is a system for transporting a package from a predetermined location to another predetermined location, and includes a transport device 101 and a management device 102.

  The transport device 101 is a device that can transport a package from a predetermined location to another predetermined location. In the case of the present embodiment, as shown in FIG. 2, the transport device 101 is a rack 104 that can transport and store luggage with a transport vehicle 112 that travels along a rail 111 provided on the ceiling side. Alternatively, it is an apparatus that can transfer a load between a production facility (not shown) that processes the load to produce a product and the transport vehicle 112.

  The rail 111 is a rail for determining a travel route of the transport vehicle 112 in advance. In the case of the present embodiment, the rail 111 is attached in a state of being suspended from the ceiling. The rail 111 is not limited to a specific member such as a rail, but may be a line drawn on a floor surface, or may be a path virtually formed by software.

  The transport vehicle 112 is a vehicle that can transport a load along a predetermined route such as the rail 111, and includes an imaging device 110. Further, the transport vehicle 112 includes a cart 113 and a holding table 114. In the present embodiment, the transport apparatus 101 includes a plurality of transport vehicles 112.

  The imaging device 110 is a camera that captures an abnormality occurrence point outside the transport vehicle 112, and includes a direction changing unit 119 that can change the imaging direction with respect to the transport vehicle 112.

  Here, “imaging the occurrence location” not only means that an image of only the occurrence location is obtained, but also images the occurrence location and its surroundings by imaging the imaging direction of the imaging device 110 toward the occurrence location. It includes the case of acquisition. In addition, even when an abnormality has ended when an image is captured by the imaging device 110 without an abnormal state being maintained, an image including a portion where an abnormality would have existed may be acquired. It is included in the meaning of “imagine a part”.

  In the case of the present embodiment, the imaging device 110 is attached to the holding base 114 of the transport vehicle 112, and the periphery of the rail 111 is imaged over a wide range by running the direction changing means 119 and the carriage 113 and raising and lowering the holding base 114. It has become something that can be done.

  The imaging device 110 is a so-called digital camera that can output, for example, an image acquired through a lens as an image signal.

  The direction changing unit 119 is, for example, a pan / tilt mechanism driven by a motor, and can set the imaging direction of the imaging device 110 to an arbitrary direction by an external command. The direction changing means 119 may have a function of outputting a confident pan angle or tilt angle.

  Note that the direction changing unit 119 may change not only mechanically but also by software (digital processing). Specifically, the imaging device 110 includes a wide-angle lens (including a fisheye lens) and captures a wide range of images. The direction changing unit 119 can obtain an image picked up in a predetermined image pickup direction by performing image processing on the wide range image and cutting out an arbitrary image.

  The carriage 113 is a traveling vehicle that travels along the rail 111 while being hung on the rail 111. In the case of the present embodiment, the carriage 113 travels by driving a motor with electric power supplied via a battery mounted thereon or a power supply line wired along the rail 111. Further, the carriage 113 includes a motor that can wind up the suspension member 115 for suspending the holding table 114, and is suspended by the suspension member 115 by winding or unwinding the suspension member 115. The holding table 114 can be moved up and down.

  Further, the cart 113 is a bogie cart, and includes a plurality of portions that can rotate in the horizontal direction, and can travel along the curved portion without imposing a heavy burden on the rail 111.

  The holding table 114 is a table that holds a load while being suspended from the carriage 113 by the suspension member 115. In the case of the present embodiment, a transfer device 116 is attached to the holding table 114, and a load is loaded between the holding table 114 and the rack 104 by moving the transfer device 116 toward and away from the rack 104. It can be transferred.

  The suspension member 115 is a member that connects the carriage 113 and the holding base 114 and suspends the holding base 114 from the carriage 113. The suspension member 115 is a member that is flexible enough to be wound, and is, for example, a metal wire or a chain. In the case of the present embodiment, the holding base 114 is suspended using four suspension members 115.

  As described above, the carriage 112 moves along the rail 111, and the holding stage 114 moves up and down with respect to the carriage 113, so that the holding carriage 114 is mounted on the rack 104 provided along the track of the carriage 112. 114 can be positioned, and a load can be transferred to or from the rack 104 at any position.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration and a mechanism configuration of the transport vehicle system.

  The management device 102 is a device that manages the entire transport device 101 including travel of the transport vehicle 112, transport and transfer of luggage, and includes an abnormality information acquisition unit 121 and an imaging control unit 122 as functional units. ing.

  In the case of the present embodiment, the management apparatus 102 is communicably connected to the transport apparatus 101 and the host computer 103 via a wired or wireless LAN (local area network) or the like, and includes an interface 120 and a storage 128 as a mechanism unit. The travel control unit 123 is further provided as a function unit.

  The interface 120 is a device that exchanges information with an operator. In the present embodiment, a computer such as the fixed terminal 201 and the mobile terminal 202 functions as the interface 120. The fixed terminal 201 and the mobile terminal 202 include a display 124 for visually informing information, an input unit 125 for receiving an operation by an operator, and the like. The fixed terminal 201 is a computer that is fixed and operated on a desk or the like, and the mobile terminal 202 is a portable computer that can be carried around by an operator.

  In the present embodiment, the interface 120 includes a display 124, a display unit 127 that displays an image or the like on the display 124, and an input unit 125 such as a touch pad or a keyboard arranged on the display surface side of the display 124. A graphical user interface is realized by the receiving unit 126 that receives input information.

  The storage 128 is a storage device that can store and read information. In the case of the present embodiment, the storage 128 is a data storage server connected to a wired or wireless LAN (local area network) or the like, and stores information such as images transmitted from the transport device 101 or an external device. To do.

  The abnormality information acquisition unit 121 is a processing unit that acquires abnormality information indicating a location where the abnormality occurs when an abnormality occurs in the vicinity of a route formed by the rail 111 or the transport vehicle system 100 such as the transport vehicle 112. It is.

  Here, the abnormality information is information indicating the position of the occurrence location. For example, when an abnormality occurs in one of the traveling carriages 112 that are running, the abnormality of the carriage 112 that has stopped as a result of the occurrence of the abnormality. This is information indicating the position and the like. In addition, when an abnormality has occurred in equipment other than the transport apparatus 101 (for example, industrial equipment such as a machine tool provided around the route), information on the position where the equipment in which the abnormality has occurred is installed is displayed on the upper computer 103. May be transmitted, and the abnormality information acquisition unit 121 may acquire information on the position as abnormality information. In addition, when the sensor detects that something has entered the entry prohibition area set around the route, the abnormality information acquisition unit 121 determines the position where the sensor is installed via the host computer 103 or the like. You may get as

  The abnormality information may include abnormality time information indicating the time when the abnormality has occurred, and abnormality type information for identifying the type of abnormality.

  The imaging control unit 122 is a processing unit that changes the imaging direction of the imaging device 110 included in the transport vehicle 112 by controlling the direction changing unit 119 and images an abnormality occurrence location using the imaging device 110.

  The imaging control unit 122 automatically controls the direction changing unit 119 so that the location where the abnormality occurs can be imaged based on the abnormality information and the stop position of the transport vehicle 112 or the passing position. You may change the imaging direction.

  The traveling control unit 123 is a processing unit that directs at least one of the transport vehicles 112 to the vicinity of the occurrence location based on the abnormality information acquired by the abnormality information acquisition unit 121.

  For example, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the traveling control unit 123 performs control so that the transport vehicle 112 (denoted as 011 in the drawing) faces the first position 301 and stops at the first position 301. Instead of stopping at the first position 301, the vehicle may be decelerated before the first position 301 and the transport vehicle 112 may be allowed to travel slowly to pass through the first position 301. In the present embodiment, the route of the transport vehicle 112 is regulated so that the entire route is one-way.

  Here, the first position 301 is a predetermined location on the rail 111 that is a route along which the transport vehicle 112 travels, and is, for example, the location of the rail 111 closest to the location where an abnormality has occurred (indicated by x in the figure). .

  Moreover, the traveling control unit 123 may specify at least one transport vehicle 112 to be stopped. The method of specifying is not particularly limited. For example, among the transport vehicles 112 arranged at the rear with respect to the first position 301, the transport vehicle 112 at the top, that is, the rear of the first position 301 and the closest. The transport vehicle 112 at the position may be stopped.

  Furthermore, the traveling control unit 123 may cause the transport vehicle 112 (denoted as 012 in the figure) other than the transport vehicle 112 directed to the first position 301 to be directed to the second position 302.

  Here, the second position 302 is a position in the vicinity of the first position 301, such as in the vicinity of a location where an abnormality has occurred. As described above, the traveling control unit 123 controls the plurality of transport vehicles 112 so as to be gathered in the vicinity of the abnormality occurrence location, so that the abnormality occurrence location can be imaged at a plurality of angles.

  In this case, even if the specified transport vehicle 112 is given a transport command that is a command for transporting a load, the travel control unit 123 temporarily suspends the execution of the transport command, and the first position 301 and the second The transport vehicle 112 may be directed to the position 302 or the like.

  Further, when the traveling control unit 123 moves the transport vehicle 112 to the vicinity of the generation location (the third position 303 in the case of the present embodiment) based on the abnormality information, the travel control unit 123 transports in the one-way section (the entire route in the present embodiment). The car 112 (denoted as 013 in the figure) may be allowed to run backward.

  In addition, as a condition for enabling the reverse traveling of the transport vehicle 112, the reverse travel of the transport vehicle 112 traveling immediately before is stopped only when an abnormality occurs in the transport vehicle 112 in the one-way section. You may add the condition of making it possible.

  According to this, it is possible to image and check the abnormality occurrence point at an early stage by causing the conveyance vehicle 112 to reversely run after the conveyance vehicle 112 passes through the vicinity of the abnormality occurrence point.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing the contents displayed on the display of the interface.

  As shown in the figure, images obtained from the imaging devices 110 provided in each of the plurality of transport vehicles 112 gathered in the vicinity of the location where the abnormality has occurred are displayed on the display 124 in real time via the display unit 127. Also good. In this case, one of a plurality of icons (011 to 013) indicating the transport vehicle 112 displayed on the display 124 together with the image is shown, and imaging is performed by selecting one of the icons using a graphical user interface. The device 110 may be switched and displayed on the display 124.

  Further, an operation button 129 for remotely controlling the direction changing unit 119 together with the image may be displayed on the display 124, and the imaging direction of the imaging device 110 may be arbitrarily changed by operating this button.

  The image captured by each imaging device 110 may be stored in the storage 128 in association with identification information for identifying the imaging device 110, time information indicating the time when the image was captured, or the like. Furthermore, the image stored in the storage 128 may be displayed on the display 124 of the interface 120.

  As described above, when an abnormality occurs in the transport device 101 or the periphery of the transport device 101, the transport vehicle 112 can be quickly directed to the location where the abnormality has occurred, and an image of the occurrence location can be captured by the imaging device 110. Furthermore, by imaging the location of occurrence using a plurality of transport vehicles 112, a multi-angle image can be observed, and the abnormal state can be confirmed in detail.

(Embodiment 2)
Next, another embodiment of the transport vehicle system 100 will be described. Note that components having the same structure and function as the mechanism unit and function unit described in Embodiment 1 may be denoted by the same reference numerals and description thereof may be omitted.

  FIG. 6 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration and a mechanism configuration of another transport vehicle system.

  As shown in the figure, the management apparatus 102 further includes an imaging determination unit 131 and a storage unit 132.

  The imaging control unit 122 controls the imaging device 110 and the direction changing unit 119 to capture periodic imaging, that is, a moving image. In addition, the imaging direction of the imaging device 110 is not particularly limited. For example, when the transport vehicle 112 is traveling, the front side is set to an imaging direction in which imaging can be performed, and when transferring a load, the transfer device can be imaged. Operation such as setting the imaging direction may be performed.

  The storage 128 associates position information indicating a position where the image pickup device 110 is picking up an image (moving image) picked up by the image pickup device 110 mounted on the transport vehicle 112, and direction information indicating the image pickup direction and the image. Remember. In addition, the storage 128 stores identification information for identifying the imaging device 110 and time information indicating the time when the image is captured and the image in association with each other, and is associated with the same identification information in order to avoid a shortage of storage capacity. It is assumed that images over a certain capacity are erased sequentially from the old image.

  The imaging determination unit 131 detects abnormality in the image captured by the imaging device 110 based on the abnormality information acquired by the abnormality information acquisition unit 121, the position information indicating the position captured by the imaging device 110, and the direction information indicating the imaging direction. It is a process part which determines whether the generation | occurrence | production location is reflected.

  Specifically, an image corresponding to the time including the time when the abnormality occurred is extracted from the image stored in the storage 128, and the location where the abnormality occurs is based on the position information and the direction information. Is included.

  The storage unit 132 is a processing unit that stores an image determined to include the occurrence location in the imaging determination unit 131 in association with abnormality information.

  In the case of the present embodiment, the storage unit 132 is provided in the storage 128, and an image stored in association with abnormality information is stored for a longer period than a normal image.

  FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the contents displayed on the display of the interface.

  As shown in the figure, the image stored in the storage unit 132 is displayed on the display 124 via the display unit 127 based on an instruction from the interface 120 or the like.

  In the case of the present embodiment, the image stored in the storage unit 132 is a moving image, and the location where the abnormality has occurred is captured from a time before the time when the abnormality has occurred. Accordingly, it is possible to confirm an image of the time when the abnormality has occurred before the occurrence of the abnormality and the subsequent situation. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 7, a moving image is displayed on the display 124 of the interface 120. In addition, the seek bar 133 displayed at the bottom of the image displays the time when the abnormality occurred with a cross.

  As described above, when an abnormality occurs around the transport apparatus 101 or the transport apparatus 101, the background of the occurrence of the abnormality can be confirmed from the state before the abnormality occurs. Furthermore, when a plurality of imaging devices 110 are imaging the location where an abnormality has occurred, it is also possible to check the history of the occurrence of the abnormality based on a multi-angle image.

  In addition, this invention is not limited to the said embodiment. For example, another embodiment realized by arbitrarily combining the components described in this specification and excluding some of the components may be used as an embodiment of the present invention. In addition, the present invention includes modifications obtained by making various modifications conceivable by those skilled in the art without departing from the gist of the present invention, that is, the meaning described in the claims. It is.

  For example, in the present embodiment, the description has been made based on the overhead traveling vehicle including the carriage 113 and the holding base 114 as the transportation vehicle 112. However, the transportation vehicle 112 is a transportation vehicle such as a stacker crane that travels on a rail. It doesn't matter. The conveyance apparatus 101 may include a conveyance vehicle that travels on a route virtually provided on a flat floor surface without a rail.

  When images are acquired at a plurality of angles based on a plurality of imaging devices 110, the plurality of images may be displayed on one display 124 at a time. A three-dimensional image may be formed based on a plurality of images.

  In addition, a plurality of imaging devices 110 may be provided in the transport vehicle 112. In this case, the imaging direction can be determined depending on which imaging device 110 provided in one transport vehicle 112 is selected for imaging. Further, when the direction changing unit 119 is provided in the imaging device 110 here, it is also possible to select the imaging device 110 and further determine in detail the imaging direction of the selected imaging device 110 by the direction changing unit 119. It is.

  The present invention can be used in a transport vehicle system for transporting luggage.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 100 Conveyance vehicle system 101 Conveyance apparatus 102 Management apparatus 103 Host computer 104 Rack 110 Imaging device 111 Rail 112 Conveyance vehicle 113 Cart 114 Holding stand 115 Lifting member 116 Transfer device 119 Direction change means 120 Interface 121 Abnormality information acquisition part 122 Imaging control part 123 Traveling control unit 124 Display 125 Input means 126 Reception unit 127 Display unit 128 Storage 129 Operation button 131 Imaging determination unit 132 Storage unit 133 Seek bar 201 Fixed terminal 202 Mobile terminal 301 First position 302 Second position 303 Third position

Claims (3)

A transport vehicle system comprising a plurality of transport vehicles that travel along a predetermined route and transport a load, and a management device that manages the travel of the transport vehicle,
The transport vehicle is
Comprising an imaging device having a direction changing means for changing the imaging direction with respect to the transport vehicle;
The management device
An anomaly information acquisition unit for acquiring anomaly information indicating the position of the anomaly occurring around the route or the occurrence of an anomaly occurring in the transport vehicle system;
Imaging that determines whether or not an occurrence location is reflected in an image captured by the imaging device as a moving image based on the abnormality information, position information indicating a position captured by the imaging device, and direction information indicating an imaging direction A determination unit;
A transport vehicle system comprising: a storage unit that stores an image determined to include an occurrence location in the imaging determination unit in association with the abnormality information . The management device further includes:
The transport vehicle system according to claim 1, further comprising a travel control unit that directs the transport vehicle to the vicinity of the occurrence location based on the abnormality information acquired by the abnormality information acquisition unit. The travel controller is
The transport vehicle system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the transport vehicle can be reversely moved in a one-way section when the transport vehicle is directed to the vicinity of the occurrence location based on abnormality information.

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