JP7699094B2 - Air shower device and method for controlling air shower device - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to industrial equipment, and in particular to emergency stop operations for industrial equipment.

General industrial equipment is equipped with an emergency stop switch to ensure the safety of the user by stopping the equipment immediately if an abnormality occurs in the equipment or if the user feels danger. When the emergency stop switch is pressed by the user, the operation of the equipment immediately stops, and when the user operates the emergency stop switch again, the emergency stop state is released and the equipment returns to normal operation in most cases.

Examples of industrial equipment that has emergency stop switches include air shower equipment, automatic doors, and electric drills.

Air shower devices are installed at the entrances of clean rooms where semiconductors, precision machinery, etc. are manufactured, or food is processed, and use an air jet to remove dust, pollen, etc. that has adhered to the user. In addition to the industrial devices mentioned above, many air shower devices are also equipped with an emergency stop switch.

The air shower device is controlled so that the door will not open while the air jet is operating so that the user can be showered with an air jet for a specified period of time. If an abnormality occurs in the air shower device while the air jet is operating, or if the user senses danger, the emergency stop switch can be pressed to stop the air jet operation and unlock the door. This ensures the safety of the user, and the air shower device can also be used as an aisle in the event that evacuation from the clean room is required due to a disaster or other reason. An air shower device that performs such control is disclosed, for example, in Patent Document 1.

Utility Model Registration No. 3230108

However, with the control method described in Patent Document 1, even if no abnormality occurs in the air shower device or the user does not sense danger, the user can press the emergency stop switch to stop the air jet and enter the clean room without being exposed to the air jet for a certain period of time. In such cases, a so-called "slip-through" occurs, bringing dust and other particles into the clean room. Furthermore, if the user presses the emergency stop switch to switch to the emergency stop state when an abnormality occurs in the air shower device or the user senses danger, and then mistakenly releases the emergency stop state due to misalignment of the hand, the device will not operate again and the user's safety cannot be ensured.

In this way, Patent Document 1 only describes an emergency stop switch, and does not take into consideration how to prevent the emergency stop switch from being pressed intentionally, or how to ensure safety even if the emergency stop state is released by mistake.

The object of the present invention is to provide an industrial device and a control method thereof that can prevent a user from pressing an emergency stop switch when no abnormality has occurred in the device or when the user does not sense danger, and can ensure the safety of the user even if the emergency stop state is released by mistake.

One example of the present invention is an industrial device that includes a control unit that controls each mechanism of the industrial device, and an emergency stop means, and the control unit is configured to extend the emergency stop state for a certain period of time in response to a user's action to release the emergency stop state when the emergency stop means causes the state to be in an emergency stop state.

The present invention provides an industrial device and a control method thereof that can prevent a user from pressing an emergency stop switch when no abnormality has occurred in the device or when the user does not sense danger, and can ensure the safety of the user even if the emergency stop state is released by mistake.

FIG. 1 is a cross-sectional plan view showing an air shower device according to an embodiment. 1 is a time chart for explaining a conventional emergency stop state. 5 is a time chart for explaining an emergency stop state in the embodiment. 4 is a flowchart of an emergency stop process in the embodiment.

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiment, an air shower device will be used as an example of an industrial device.

Figure 1 is a cross-sectional plan view of the air shower device in this embodiment. In Figure 1, the air shower device 1 has an air shower room 2, and is composed of an antechamber door 3, a clean room door 4, side walls 21 and 22 on both sides, and a ceiling (not shown). Air jet mechanisms 21a and 22a are installed on the side walls 21 and 22 of the air shower room 2, respectively, and the air jet mechanisms are driven and controlled by the control unit 7 to spray air jets.

The sensor 5 is provided to detect a user 100 who has entered the air shower room 2. The control unit 7 inputs the detection signal of this sensor 5 and can determine whether or not a user 100 is in the air shower room 2 (presence or absence of a user).

Here, the person using the air shower device is referred to as the "user," the person waiting in the anteroom to use the air shower device is referred to as the "follower," and the person who manages the air shower device and allows the user to use it optimally is referred to as the "manager."

The emergency stop switch 6 is provided both inside and outside the air shower room 2, and can be pressed by the user 100, or by a follower 101 or manager 102 (not shown) waiting to use the air shower device from outside the room.

The emergency stop switch 6 is an emergency stop means used by the user 100 or the like to stop the air shower, and although any type of switch will do, it is preferable that it be one that is clearly marked as an emergency switch.

The control unit 7 is provided to control each mechanism of the entire air shower device 1, and receives detection signals from the front room door switch (not shown), the clean room door switch (not shown), the sensor 5, and the emergency stop switch 6 to determine whether a user has entered or left the room, and controls the operation of the air jet mechanisms 21a and 22a to operate the air jets. In this embodiment, the control unit 7 is provided inside the side wall 21 to make the entire device compact, but it may be provided on the other side wall 22 or externally. This control unit 7 can be realized by a device with the functions of a normal computer, such as a PLC or a microprocessor.

The display setting unit 8 is installed on the side wall 21 of the air shower room 2, and is provided for making settings related to the operation of the air shower device 1, and for displaying precautions (guidance) for the user, etc.

Although not shown, the air shower device is equipped with a notification means such as a buzzer or rotating light to notify those in the vicinity of the status of the air shower device.

Next, the operation of a typical air shower device will be described. In the case of normal entry, the user 100 passes through the detection area of the sensor 5 after the front room door 3 is closed (after the opening and closing time has elapsed) and moves towards the clean room door 4. During this movement, the sensor 5 turns ON and detects the user 100. In this case, the control unit 7 determines that the user 100 is someone entering the clean room, and activates the air jet.

The air jet continues to operate for a predetermined time to blow away dust adhering to the user 100, during which time the front room door 3 and the clean room door 4 are locked. This prevents the user 100 from opening the doors, allowing the user 100 to be exposed to the air jet for a predetermined time, but during this time the user 100 cannot freely exit the air shower room 2.

If an abnormality occurs in the air shower device or the user 100 feels danger and needs to stop the air shower device urgently, the air shower device is put into an emergency stop state by pressing the emergency stop switch 6 installed inside and outside the air shower room. In addition, the following person 101 or the manager 102 who senses something wrong with the air shower device or the user 100 can also put the air shower device into an emergency stop state by pressing the switch. As soon as the air shower device is put into an emergency stop state, the air jet of the air shower device stops, and the front room side door 3 and the clean room side door 4 are unlocked, allowing the doors to be opened. The emergency stop state must be continued until it is confirmed that the air shower device is normal and the safety of the user 100 has been ensured. Therefore, after the emergency stop switch 6 is pressed once to put the air shower device into an emergency stop state, it is often controlled so that the emergency stop state can be released by pressing it again, or, if a self-holding switch is used, the emergency stop state can be released when the self-holding switch is released.

The above is a typical way to use an air shower device, but some users 100 are in a hurry to enter the clean room or dislike being exposed to the air jet. Such users 100 may press the emergency stop switch 6 to stop the air jet from operating or to stop the air jet without waiting the specified time, even when there is no abnormality in the air shower device or they do not feel that they are in danger. In this case, they will enter the clean room without being exposed to the air jet for the specified time, which is a "slip-through" operation, and the cleanliness of the clean room cannot be ensured. Even if the emergency stop state caused by pressing the emergency stop switch is notified to those around by a notification means such as a buzzer or rotating light, if the emergency stop state is released in an instant by pressing the emergency stop switch 6 again, the operation of the notification means will be short, making it difficult to notify those around.

In addition, when the user 100 presses the emergency stop switch 6 to transition to an emergency stop state when an abnormality occurs in the air shower device or when the user 100 feels in danger, the user 100 may lose control of his or her hand and accidentally release the emergency stop state before the user 100 can ensure safety. In this case, if the device restarts or the user 100 is unconscious, it will not be possible to notify those around. In addition, even if you try to notify those around with a notification means such as a buzzer or rotating light, if the emergency stop state lasts for a short time, it will be difficult to notify those around because the operation of the notification means will also be short.

Figure 2 is a time chart for explaining a conventional emergency stop state. Note that in Figure 2, the emergency stop switch 6 is pressed once to enter the emergency stop state, and pressed again to release the emergency stop state, but the same applies to a self-holding switch that is used and releases the emergency stop state by releasing the self-holding switch. In Figure 2, pressing the emergency stop switch 6 transitions to the emergency stop state, and pressing it again immediately releases the emergency stop state. If the conditions for air jet operation are met at the same time that the emergency stop state is released, the front room door 3 and clean room door 4 are locked again and the air jet is operated. Since the notification means only notifies the user during the emergency stop state, the shorter the emergency stop state, the shorter the time for notification.

Thus, in the past, the "slip-through" of the user 100 was undesirable behavior for the administrator 102, but the user 100 could use this mechanism to perform the "slip-through" without being discovered by people around, including the administrator 102. In addition, if the user 100 accidentally released the emergency stop state, it was not possible to inform those around them of the abnormality.

Therefore, in this embodiment, the air shower device is controlled to extend the emergency stop state for a certain period of time even if the user performs an action to cancel the emergency stop state. In addition, in the emergency stop state, the emergency stop state is notified to those around the device by notification means such as a speaker or rotating light.

Figure 3 is a time chart for explaining the emergency stop state in this embodiment. Note that, like Figure 2, Figure 3 shows a case where the emergency stop switch 6 is pressed once to enter the emergency stop state, and pressed again to release the emergency stop state. In Figure 3, pressing the emergency stop switch 6 transitions to the emergency stop state, and even if the emergency stop switch 6 is pressed again, the emergency stop state is not immediately released but is extended. As a result, even if the conditions for air jet operation are met, the front room side door 3 and the clean room side door 4 are not locked and the air jet does not operate. Also, because the emergency stop state is extended, the time that can be notified by the notification means can be extended.

With this configuration, the emergency stop state continues even after the user 100 performs the "slip-through operation", so the following person 101 cannot use the air shower device for a certain period of time, causing congestion and inconvenience. In addition, the emergency stop state is notified to the surroundings for a certain period of time by the notification means, so that the pressing of the emergency stop switch 6 is discovered by people nearby and the manager 102. Both of these situations are undesirable for the user 100, so the user 100 can be made to hesitate and refrain from pressing the emergency stop switch 6 to perform the "slip-through operation".

In addition, even if the user 100 mistakenly cancels the emergency stop state before confirming that there is nothing wrong with the air shower device and that he or she is safe, the emergency stop state is extended for a certain period of time, so that people in the vicinity can be informed that there is an abnormality in the air shower device and that the user 100 is in danger, thereby ensuring the safety of the user 100.

The time for which the emergency stop state is extended may be set in advance as a setting value of approximately 10 seconds to 10 minutes and stored in the control unit 7, or may be stored and set in the control unit 7 by operating the display setting unit 8. It may also be possible to set it so that a conventional control method that does not extend the emergency stop state can be used. In addition, when the emergency stop state is released after a certain period of time has elapsed without the emergency stop state being released, it may be possible to control so that the emergency stop state is not extended, assuming that the emergency stop switch was used correctly. This function may also be settable in the display setting unit 8.

In addition, since it is anticipated that the user 100 will become confused if the emergency stop state is not immediately released when the user 100 performs an action to release the emergency stop state, the display setting unit may display that the emergency stop state is being extended.

In addition, since an emergency stop of the device by the user 100 is considered by the manager 102 to be a serious action that could lower the cleanliness of the clean room and affect the safety of the user 100, the device may have a function to notify a higher-level monitoring device, such as a central control computer, of the emergency stop state and have it notify the manager 102.

Next, we will explain the processing flow of the emergency stop state performed by the control unit 7 in this embodiment. Figure 4 is a flowchart of the emergency stop processing in this embodiment.

In FIG. 4, first, the air shower device in standby state in step S1 checks the state of the emergency stop switch 6 in step S2. If the emergency stop switch 6 has not been pressed, step S2 is repeated and the device waits until the emergency stop switch 6 is pressed. Here, the standby state in step S1 includes a state in which the user is using the air shower device to open and close the door or operate the air jet. The emergency stop switch 6 is the switch with the highest priority in the air shower device, so that any operation being performed by the air shower device can be immediately ended and the present operation flow can be started. If it is determined in step S2 that the emergency stop switch 6 has been pressed, the process proceeds to step S3. In step S3, the emergency stop state is started and notification to the surroundings is started by the notification means, and at the same time, a notification is sent to the administrator via the higher-level device. Then, in step S4, a timer is started to count the duration of the emergency stop state.

In step S5, the emergency stop state is released by pressing the emergency stop switch again while in the emergency stop state, and here the timer value that has elapsed in step S6 is compared with the set value. If the timer value is greater than the set value, the timer is initialized in step S7, and in step S8 the emergency stop state and notification to the surrounding area are terminated, and the process returns to the standby state of step S1. Proceeding to steps S7 and S8 means that the emergency stop switch was pressed for a valid reason, such as an abnormality in the air shower, and then the abnormality was resolved after a reasonable amount of time, releasing the emergency stop state.

In step S6, if the timer value is not greater than the set value when comparing the elapsed timer value with the set value, the process proceeds to step S9, the emergency stop extension state is started, and the display unit displays that the emergency stop is being extended. Proceeding to this step S9 means that the user has attempted a "slip-through" operation, or that the user has mistakenly performed an operation to release the emergency stop state in a short time.

Next, in step S10, the state of the emergency stop switch 6 is detected. If the emergency stop switch 6 is pressed, in step S11, the timer is initialized, and in step S12, the emergency stop state and notification to the surrounding area is terminated. Then, the process moves to step S3, and the emergency stop state is started again. In this way, pressing the emergency stop switch in the emergency stop extension state extends the emergency stop state.

If the emergency stop switch 6 is not pressed in step S10, the timer value is compared with the set value in step S13. If the timer value is greater than the set value, the timer is initialized in step S14, and the emergency stop state and notification to the surrounding area is terminated in step S15. Then, the process returns to the standby state of step S1. If the timer value is not greater than the set value in step S13, the process returns to step S10 and proceeds to checking the state of the emergency stop switch 6.

As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to provide an industrial device and a control method thereof that can prevent a user from pressing an emergency stop switch when no abnormality has occurred in the device or when the user does not sense danger, and can ensure the safety of the user even if the emergency stop state is released by mistake.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiment, but includes various modified examples. For example, the above-mentioned embodiment has been described using an air shower device as an example of industrial equipment, but the present invention can also be applied to equipment having an emergency stop switch, such as an automatic door or an electric drill. In addition, the above-mentioned embodiment has been described in detail to explain the present invention in an easy-to-understand manner, and the present invention is not necessarily limited to having all of the configurations described.

1: Air shower device, 2: Air shower room, 3: Front room side door, 4: Clean room side door, 5: Sensor, 6: Emergency stop switch, 7: Control unit, 8: Display setting unit, 21, 22: Side wall, 21a, 22a: Air jet mechanism, 100: User, 101: Follower, 102: Administrator

Claims (11)

An air shower apparatus having a control unit that controls each mechanism of an industrial device and an emergency stop means,
The control unit extends the emergency stop state caused by the emergency stop means for a certain period of time in response to a user's action to release the emergency stop state. 2. The air shower apparatus according to claim 1,
said emergency stop means extends the emergency stop state for a fixed period of time if the time from when the emergency stop state is initiated by said emergency stop means to when an operation to release the emergency stop state is performed is within a predetermined period of time. 2. The air shower apparatus according to claim 1,
2. The air shower apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the operation for releasing the emergency stop state is an operation for executing the emergency stop means again. 2. The air shower apparatus according to claim 1,
The emergency stop means is an emergency stop switch,
2. The air shower apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the emergency stop state is released by pressing the emergency stop switch again. 2. The air shower apparatus according to claim 1,
Equipped with a means for notifying
The control unit notifies the surrounding area of the emergency stop state by the notifying means. 2. The air shower apparatus according to claim 1,
The air shower apparatus further comprises a function of notifying a host monitoring device of the emergency stop state. A method for controlling an air shower apparatus having a control unit and an emergency stop means, comprising the steps of:
a control unit for controlling an air shower apparatus , the control unit extending the emergency stop state caused by the emergency stop means for a fixed period of time in response to a user's action to release the emergency stop state. 8. The method for controlling an air shower apparatus according to claim 7 ,
said control unit extends the emergency stop state for a fixed period of time if the time from when the emergency stop state is initiated by the emergency stop means to when an operation to release the emergency stop state is performed is within a predetermined period of time. 8. The method for controlling an air shower apparatus according to claim 7 ,
2. The method for controlling an air shower apparatus, wherein the emergency stop means is an emergency stop switch. 8. The method for controlling an air shower apparatus according to claim 7,
2. A method for controlling an air shower apparatus , comprising: a control unit notifying people in the vicinity that the air shower apparatus is in the emergency stop state. 8. The method for controlling an air shower apparatus according to claim 7,
a control unit for notifying a host monitoring device of the emergency stop state,

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