阅读说明：本技术 无人搬运车的通信系统 (Communication system of automated guided vehicle ) 是由 中川真人 长谷隆彦 于 2020-02-25 设计创作，主要内容包括：无人搬运车(10)具有用于确定自身的识别信息。与此相对地,终端(60)能够基于读取到的识别信息,与无人搬运车(10)的控制装置进行通信。即,终端(60)能够通过仅读取识别信息的简单操作,当场确定作为通信对象的无人搬运车(10)。并且,终端(60)能够与搭载于无人搬运车(10)的控制装置(80)进行直接通信,无需经由塔台(101)与确定的无人搬运车(10)进行通信。因此,作业人员能够与访问塔台(101)时的线路的拥塞等无关地,迅速掌握作为对象的无人搬运车(10)的状态。(The automated guided vehicle (10) has identification information for identifying itself. On the other hand, the terminal (60) can communicate with the control device of the automated guided vehicle (10) based on the read identification information. That is, the terminal (60) can identify the automated guided vehicle (10) to be communicated on the spot by a simple operation of reading only the identification information. The terminal (60) can directly communicate with a control device (80) mounted on the automated guided vehicle (10), and does not need to communicate with the specified automated guided vehicle (10) via the tower (101). Therefore, the operator can quickly grasp the state of the target automated guided vehicle (10) regardless of congestion of the line when accessing the tower (101).)

1. A communication system for an automated guided vehicle, comprising an automated guided vehicle having a control device mounted thereon, a communication device mounted on the automated guided vehicle and transmitting and receiving information related to the control device, and a terminal connectable to the communication device,

the automated guided vehicle has identification information about the control device,

the terminal is capable of communicating with the communication device based on the read identification information.

2. The communication system of the automated guided vehicle of claim 1, wherein,

the automated guided vehicle is provided with a plurality of the control devices,

the terminal is capable of utilizing information about each of the control devices based on the identification information.

3. The communication system of the automated guided vehicle of claim 2, wherein,

the automated guided vehicle has a plurality of pieces of identification information associated with the plurality of control devices,

the terminal can use the information on the control device associated with the identification information.

4. The communication system of the automated guided vehicle of claim 2, wherein,

the terminal can select at least one control device from the plurality of control devices identified by the identification information, and can use information about the selected control device.

5. The communication system of the automated guided vehicle of any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein,

communication between the terminal and the automated guided vehicle is performed by a short-distance connection means.

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a communication system for an automated guided vehicle.

Background

Conventionally, a communication system of the type described in patent document 1, for example, is known. This communication system is used for a conveyance apparatus that controls a plurality of devices in a warehouse. The communication system includes a console terminal capable of performing wireless communication with a control unit of a plurality of devices in a warehouse. The console terminal can communicate with each device using a network in the warehouse. The console terminal can select a device to be communicated with and display information transmitted from the device.

Documents of the prior art

Patent document

Patent document 1: japanese patent laid-open publication No. 2015-214408

Disclosure of Invention

Problems to be solved by the invention

In a system using a plurality of automated guided vehicles, communication between a console terminal and a control device of each automated guided vehicle is required. That is, there is a need for a communication system in which an operator using a console terminal can perform work and easily grasp the state of an unmanned carrier in the vicinity. Here, the automated guided vehicle is used as a vehicle that travels on a predetermined route in a bay and conveys a container unloaded from a ship to a desired position. A system using such an automated guided vehicle is a system constructed on a very wide site. Therefore, as described in patent document 1, when a communication system used in a limited space in a warehouse is applied to a system of an automated guided vehicle, the communication system becomes very complicated. In addition, in the upper management device for managing the automated guided vehicles, although the information of each automated guided vehicle can be acquired, the operator cannot directly acquire the information of the automated guided vehicles on site. Also, when accessing the information management apparatus and acquiring the information, a problem of communication state congestion may occur. Therefore, another communication system capable of communicating with an automated guided vehicle in an appropriate manner is required.

An object of the present invention is to provide a communication system for an automated guided vehicle capable of communicating with the automated guided vehicle in an appropriate manner.

Means for solving the problems

A communication system for an automated guided vehicle according to an aspect of the present invention includes an automated guided vehicle having a control device mounted thereon, a communication device mounted on the automated guided vehicle and configured to transmit and receive information related to the control device, and a terminal connectable to the communication device, wherein the automated guided vehicle has identification information related to the control device, and the terminal is configured to communicate with the communication device based on the read identification information.

In a communication system of an automated guided vehicle, the automated guided vehicle has identification information about a control device. In contrast, the terminal can communicate with the communication device based on the read identification information. That is, the terminal can identify the automated guided vehicle equipped with the communication device as a communication target on the spot by a simple operation of reading only the identification information. The terminal can communicate directly with a communication device mounted on the automated guided vehicle and transmitting and receiving information related to the control device, and does not need to communicate via an upper management device or the like. Therefore, the operator can quickly grasp the state of the control device of the target automated guided vehicle regardless of congestion of the line or the like when accessing the upper management device. Further, since the operator can communicate with the communication device of another automated guided vehicle by using the terminal, the configuration of the entire communication system can be simplified as compared with a case where the automated guided vehicle is provided with a console or the like for the control device. As described above, according to this communication system, it is possible to appropriately communicate with the automated guided vehicle.

In a communication system of an automated guided vehicle, the automated guided vehicle is mounted with a plurality of control devices, and a terminal can use information related to each control device based on identification information. Thus, the operator can use information from each of the plurality of control devices mounted on the automated guided vehicle using one terminal.

The automated guided vehicle has a plurality of pieces of identification information associated with the plurality of control devices, respectively, and the terminal can use information on the control device associated with the identification information. In this case, the operator can easily use the information to be grasped by simply reading the identification information corresponding to the control device to be grasped.

The terminal can select at least one control device from the plurality of control devices determined by the identification information, and can utilize information about the selected control device. In this case, the operator can selectively acquire information of a control device to be grasped from among the plurality of control devices in the automated guided vehicle by reading only one piece of identification information.

Communication between the terminal and the automated guided vehicle may be performed by a short-distance connection means. In this case, the operator can communicate with the nearby automated guided vehicle quickly without being affected by congestion conditions of the wide area network or the like. Further, since the operator can communicate with the nearby automated guided vehicle, erroneous communication with another automated guided vehicle can be suppressed.

ADVANTAGEOUS EFFECTS OF INVENTION

According to the present invention, it is possible to provide a communication system of an automated guided vehicle capable of communicating with the automated guided vehicle in an appropriate manner.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic plan view showing a container terminal using a communication system of an automated guided vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a schematic side view showing a state of the automated guided vehicle in the container terminal shown in fig. 1.

Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an automated guided vehicle to which identification information is given.

Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of a communication system.

Fig. 5 is a conceptual diagram illustrating a mounting state of the control device of the automated guided vehicle.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an operation screen of the terminal.

Fig. 7 is a schematic diagram showing an example of an automated guided vehicle to which identification information is given.

Fig. 8 is a conceptual diagram illustrating an automated guided vehicle according to a comparative example.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or equivalent elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant description thereof is omitted.

Fig. 1 is a schematic plan view showing a container terminal using a communication system 100 of an automated guided vehicle 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig. 2(a) and 2(b) are schematic side views showing the situation of the automated guided vehicle 10 in the container terminal shown in fig. 1. First, the structure of the automated guided vehicle 10 and the operation of the automated guided vehicle 10 in the container terminal will be described with reference to fig. 1, 2(a) and 2 (b).

As shown in fig. 1, in a container terminal in a bay, a plurality of Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) 10 travel on a predetermined travel route R in accordance with a command S1 from a tower 101 (upper management device) as an external commander. The automated guided vehicle 10 wirelessly receives a command S1 for controlling the traveling state of the automated guided vehicle 10 from the tower 101, and travels on the travel path R. Each automated guided vehicle 10 stops at the loading position of the container W in accordance with the command S1. The position of the crane 103 is controlled by the tower 101. The crane 103 moves to a loading position of the container W in a state of suspending the container W. The position information of the crane 103 is fed back to the tower 101. The container W is loaded and unloaded from the container ship 102 to each automated guided vehicle 10 by the crane 103. The container W loaded and unloaded by the crane 103 is mounted on the automated guided vehicle 10. The automated guided vehicle 10 mounted with the container W travels along the travel path R to the rubber-tired crane 104. The container W mounted on the automated guided vehicle 10 is unloaded by the rubber-tired crane 104. The automated guided vehicle 10 that has unloaded the container W and becomes empty returns to the crane 103 along the travel path R.

As shown in fig. 2(a) and 2(b), the body 11 of the automated guided vehicle 10 includes a loading platform 20, a plurality of drive wheels 30, and a plurality of motors 40. The cargo platform 20 is provided with a mounting surface 21 on which a container W suspended by the crane 103 is mounted. The mounting surface 21 is a flat surface extending horizontally. The mounting surface 21 is formed in a square shape wider than the lower surface bs of the container W. The motor 40 generates power for operating the drive wheel 30. The motor 40 includes a traveling motor 41 and a steering motor 42 as power sources. The travel motor 41 generates a driving force for causing the automated guided vehicle 10 to travel in the front-rear direction. The steering motor 42 generates power for steering the drive wheel 30 to change the traveling direction of the automated guided vehicle 10.

Next, a communication system 100 of the automated guided vehicle 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described. The communication system 100 is a system capable of communicating the control device of the specified automated guided vehicle 10 among the plurality of automated guided vehicles 10 with the terminal 60. For example, the communication system 100 according to the present embodiment is used when it is necessary to grasp the state of the control device of the automated guided vehicle 10 specified in the automated guided vehicle 10 that performs the automatic operation as described above. As shown in fig. 1, the communication system 100 includes a plurality of automated guided vehicles 10, a communication device (a short-range communication device 71 described later) mounted on the automated guided vehicles, a tower 101 that manages the plurality of automated guided vehicles 10, and a terminal 60 connectable to the communication device. Although only one terminal 60 is shown in fig. 1, a plurality of operators may have a plurality of terminals 60 by having each of the plurality of operators have a terminal 60, and the communication system 100 may have a plurality of terminals 60.

In the communication system 100, the automated guided vehicle 10 mounted with the communication device capable of communicating with the terminal 60 is specified using the identification information given to each automated guided vehicle 10. Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the automated guided vehicle 10 to which identification information is added. As shown in fig. 3, the automated guided vehicle 10 is provided with identification information about a control device of each automated guided vehicle 10. The identification information may include at least specific information given to one automated guided vehicle 10. The identification information is information that enables one automated guided vehicle 10 to be specified from among the plurality of automated guided vehicles 10. Thus, the identification information can be used to identify the control device of the automated guided vehicle 10 on which the vehicle is mounted. In the example shown in fig. 3, the identification information is represented by a mark 55 of a QR code (registered trademark). The mark 55 contains certain information by being represented in a special graphic. By reading the mark 55 as an image, specific information including the identification information can be displayed so as to be grasped. In addition to the QR code, the identification information may be directly expressed by a combination of patterns and symbols, etc., which enable the user to grasp the specified content by reading the identification information with a barcode or the like. Alternatively, the identification information may be expressed directly by characters, numbers, or the like. For example, as shown in fig. 3, the identification information may be expressed by directly recording the number assigned to the automated guided vehicle 10 on the number display unit 56 set on the vehicle body 11.

Reference numeral 55 denotes the body 11 of the automated guided vehicle 10. Here, the reference numeral 55 denotes a side surface 11a of the vehicle body 11. The car display unit 56 is also shown on the side surface 11a of the vehicle body 11. The indication positions and the number of the marks 55 and the horn display portions 56 are not particularly limited, and may be indicated on the end surface 11b of the vehicle body 11, or a plurality of the marks 55 and the horn display portions 56 may be indicated on the side surface 11a and the end surface 11 b.

Next, a system configuration of the communication system 100 of the automated guided vehicle 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a block diagram showing a system configuration of the communication system 100.

As shown in fig. 4, the automated guided vehicle 10 includes a short-range communication device 71 and a plurality of control devices 80.

The short-range communication device 71 is mounted on the automated guided vehicle 10 and transmits and receives information related to the control device 80. The short-range communication device 71 receives information on each of the control devices 80 from the plurality of control devices 80. The short-range communication device 71 is a part that exchanges signals for communicating with the terminal 60. Various kinds of information are transmitted and received between the near field communication device 71 and the terminal 60. In the near field communication device 71, when the terminals 60 to be communicated are located within a predetermined range, a communication state between the terminals is established. It is preferable that the short-range communication device 71 use a short-range connection means such as Bluetooth (registered trademark) so that a communication state can be established when the automated guided vehicle 10 approaches the terminal 60 regardless of a radio wave state. The short range and the predetermined range described herein are a distance and a range in which the terminal 60 can communicate with the short-range communication device 71 of the automated guided vehicle 10, and do not include a distance in which the terminal 60 can communicate with the short-range communication device 71 from outside the container terminal. The method of establishing the connection state of the near field communication device 71 is not particularly limited, and Wi-Fi (wireless fidelity) may be used. The predetermined range is not limited to a short distance, and a method such as 4G communication or 5G communication optimized for communication in the yard of the container terminal may be used.

The control device 80 is mounted inside the body 11 of the automated guided vehicle 10. The control device 80 is a device that is assembled to perform a predetermined function in the automated guided vehicle 10. The control device 80 has unique information indicating its own state. These pieces of information are information that the worker needs to confirm at the time of maintenance, inspection, and the like. Examples of the information indicating the state of the control device 80 include an operation time, an abnormality history, IO information of a sensor, other information, a remaining amount of energy (a stored amount of a battery), a rudder angle, an air pressure of a tire, and information on a height of an elevator (a device for lifting/lowering a load or a machine base). In fig. 4, the automated guided vehicle 10 specifically includes a drive management device 81, a navigation device 82, an electrical system management device 83, and the like as the control device 80. The automated guided vehicle 10 may also have another control device, such as a control device for an elevator, if necessary.

The drive management device 81 manages the driving of the motor of the automated guided vehicle 10 and the like. The drive management device 81 controls the drive unit so that the automated guided vehicle 10 travels in a desired direction and at a desired speed, and stores such a travel history. The navigation device 82 is a device for guiding the automated guided vehicle 10 to convey along what route when the automated guided vehicle 10 automatically travels. The navigation device 82 can communicate with the tower 101, and can perform navigation of the automated guided vehicle 10 in accordance with an instruction from the tower 101. The navigation device 82 is not a device for communicating with the terminal 60. The electrical system management device 83 is a device that manages the electrical system of the automated guided vehicle 10. For example, the electrical system management device 83 can perform management of the internal combustion engine generator.

As shown in fig. 5(a), information on these control devices 80 can be used by the terminal 60 that establishes a communication state with the short-range communication device 71. Each control device 80 is connected to the near field communication device 71, and information is used by the terminal 60 via the near field communication device 71. The short-range communication device 71 may be incorporated in the control device 80, or may be provided separately from the control device 80 in a state of being mounted on the automated guided vehicle 10.

As shown in fig. 4, the terminal 60 includes an information processing unit 61, an imaging unit 62, an input unit 63, and an output unit 64. As the terminal 60, for example, a general-purpose device such as a smartphone or a tablet terminal can be used. When a general-purpose device is used as the terminal 60, an operator installs a dedicated application program in the terminal 60. As the terminal 60, a dedicated terminal used in the communication system 100 of the automated guided vehicle 10 may be used.

The imaging unit 62 is a part that acquires an image by imaging. The imaging unit 62 is constituted by a camera or the like built in the terminal 60. An external camera may be used as the imaging unit 62. The input unit 63 is a part that receives an operation input from an operator. The input unit 63 is configured by a touch panel, a microphone for performing voice recognition, and the like. The output unit 64 is a part that outputs information to the operator. The output unit 64 is constituted by a monitor, a speaker, and the like.

The information processing unit 61 is a part that performs various processes for operating the automated guided vehicle 10. The information processing unit 61 includes a processor, an internal Memory (Memory), and an external Memory (Storage). The processor is an arithmetic Unit such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The internal Memory is a storage medium such as a ROM (Read Only Memory) or a RAM (Random Access Memory). The external memory is a storage medium such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive). The processor includes an internal memory, an external memory, a communication interface, and a user interface, and realizes the functions of the information processing unit 61 described later. In the information processing section 61, for example, various functions are realized by loading a program stored in the ROM into the RAM and executing the program loaded into the RAM by the CPU.

The information processing unit 61 includes a communication state control unit 65, an operation control unit 66, and a communication unit 67.

The communication state control unit 65 is a part that controls the communication state of the terminal 60 with respect to the specified near field communication device 71 of the automated guided vehicle 10. The communication state control unit 65 can communicate with the near field communication device 71 of the automated guided vehicle 10 based on the identification information read from the image of the image pickup unit 62. The communication state control unit 65 specifies the target automated guided vehicle 10 from the identification information in the image acquired by the imaging unit 62. The communication state control unit 65 controls the communication unit 67 so that communication with the specified near field communication device 71 of the automated guided vehicle 10 is possible. The communication state control unit 65 controls the communication unit 67 so that a communication state is established with the specified near field communication device 71 of the automated guided vehicle 10. When the communication state cannot be established due to an excessive distance or the like, or when the identification information cannot be specified due to an excessively small mark 55 or number in the image, the communication state control unit 65 gives notice to the operator through the output unit 64.

The communication unit 67 is a part that exchanges signals for communicating with another device. The communication unit 67 transmits and receives various information to and from the short-range communication device 71 of the automated guided vehicle 10. The communication unit 67 communicates with the automated guided vehicle 10 by means corresponding to the short-range connection means employed by the short-range communication device 71.

The operation control unit 66 is a part that controls the operation of the terminal 60 when information is exchanged with the near field communication device 71 of the automated guided vehicle 10 in which the communication state is established. The operation control unit 66 outputs information for facilitating the operation of the operator from the output unit 64 when communicating with the short-range communication device 71 of the automated guided vehicle 10.

Now, a control method of the operation control unit 66 will be described with reference to fig. 6(a), 6(b), and 7. As described above, the automated guided vehicle 10 is mounted with the plurality of control devices 80. Therefore, the terminal 60 can show information on the plurality of control devices 80, respectively. As shown in fig. 5(a) and 5(b), the automated guided vehicle 10 may include a mark 55 including a plurality of pieces of identification information associated with the plurality of control devices 80. At this time, the terminal 60 shows information on the control device 80 associated with the identification information.

For example, the mark 55A shown in fig. 7 may include information that identifies the drive management device 81 in addition to the identification information of the automated guided vehicle 10. The marker 55B may include information that determines the navigation device 82 in addition to the identification information of the automated guided vehicle 10. The mark 55C may include information that identifies the electrical system management device 83, in addition to the identification information of the automated guided vehicle 10. In this case, when the imaging unit 62 reads the mark 55B, the operation control unit 66 extracts information indicating the state from the navigation device 82 via the communication unit 67 and the short-range communication device 71. As shown in fig. 6 a, the operation control unit 66 displays the target control device 80 (here, the navigation device 82) on the screen 91, and also displays information of the control device 80. When the other marks 55A and 55B are read, the same processing is performed on the corresponding control device 80.

In addition, the terminal 60 can select at least one control device 80 from the plurality of control devices 80 determined by the identification information, and can utilize information on the selected control device 80. For example, as shown in fig. 3, the automated guided vehicle 10 has a single pattern of markings 55. The mark 55 includes identification information of the automated guided vehicle 10, but does not include information that identifies the control device 80. In this case, the operation control unit 66 acquires information indicating the state from each control device 80 of the automated guided vehicle 10. Next, as shown in fig. 6(b), the operation control unit 66 displays on a screen 91 the content of information for causing the operator to select which control device 80 the operator wants. After the operator selects the control device 80, the operation control unit 66 displays information corresponding to the selected control device 80 on a screen 91 as shown in fig. 6 (a). The operation control unit 66 may select the control device 80 and then acquire information of the selected control device 80.

Next, the operation and effect of the communication system 100 of the automated guided vehicle 10 according to the present embodiment will be described.

In the communication system 100 of the automated guided vehicle 10, the automated guided vehicle 10 has identification information about the control device 80. On the other hand, the terminal 60 can communicate with the short-range communication device 71 of the automated guided vehicle 10 based on the read identification information. That is, the terminal 60 can identify the automated guided vehicle 10 to which the short-range communication device 71 is mounted as a communication target on the spot by a simple operation of reading only the identification information. The terminal 60 can directly communicate with the short-range communication device 71 mounted on the automated guided vehicle 10 and configured to transmit and receive information related to the control device 80, and does not need to communicate via the tower 101. Therefore, the operator can quickly grasp the state of the control device 80 of the target automated guided vehicle 10 regardless of congestion of the line or the like when accessing the tower 101.

Further, since the operator can communicate with the short-range communication device 71 of another automated guided vehicle 10 by using the terminal 60, the configuration of the entire communication system can be simplified as compared with a case where a control console or the like for the control device is provided in the automated guided vehicle 10 itself. For example, fig. 5(b) and 8 show a schematic configuration of an automated guided vehicle 120 of a comparative example. The automated guided vehicle 120 of the comparative example is provided with a console 122 corresponding to the control device 80 mounted on the vehicle body 11. Since such a console is attached to the traveling vehicle body 11, impact resistance and vibration resistance are required, and an expensive console is used. In particular, the console 122 provided on the side surface of the vehicle body 11 and the like is required to have dust resistance, water resistance, and ultraviolet resistance, and the configuration of the control device 80 itself becomes complicated, which makes it more expensive. On the other hand, since the automated guided vehicle 10 is a vehicle that travels automatically, a person rarely operates the automated guided vehicle directly, and therefore the frequency of use of the console 122 is low. That is, the console 122 is expensive with respect to the frequency of use. A plurality of control devices 80 are mounted on one automated guided vehicle 10. In this case, a plurality of control boards 122 are required for each automated guided vehicle 120, and the price becomes further expensive. On the other hand, as shown in fig. 5(a), in the communication system 100 of the present embodiment, only one terminal 60 can communicate with the short-range communication device 71 that transmits and receives information on each control device 80, and it is not necessary to provide an expensive console 122 for each control device 80. As described above, according to the communication system 100, it is possible to appropriately communicate with the automated guided vehicle 10.

In the communication system 100 of the automated guided vehicle 10, the automated guided vehicle 10 is mounted with a plurality of control devices 80, and the terminal 60 can use information related to each control device 80 based on the identification information. Thus, the operator can use information from each of the plurality of control devices 80 mounted on the automated guided vehicle 10 using one terminal 60.

The automated guided vehicle 10 has a plurality of pieces of identification information associated with the plurality of control devices 80, respectively, and the terminal 60 can use information related to the control devices 80 associated with the identification information. In this case, the operator can easily use the information to be grasped by simply reading the identification information corresponding to the control device 80 to be grasped.

The terminal 60 can select at least one control device 80 from the plurality of control devices 80 determined by the identification information, and can utilize information on the selected control device 80. In this case, the operator can selectively acquire information of the control device 80 to be grasped from the plurality of control devices 80 in the automated guided vehicle 10 by reading only one piece of identification information.

The communication between the terminal 60 and the automated guided vehicle 10 is performed by a short-distance connection means. In this case, the operator can communicate with the nearby automated guided vehicle 10 quickly without being affected by congestion conditions of the wide area network or the like. Further, since the operator can communicate with the nearby automated guided vehicle 10, erroneous communication with another automated guided vehicle 10 can be suppressed.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments.

For example, although the automated guided vehicle 10 has a plurality of control devices 80 in the above embodiment, it may have only one control device 80 by combining a plurality of functions.

Description of the reference numerals

10: unmanned carrying vehicle

55: mark (identification information)

60: terminal device

71: near field communication device (communication device)

80: control device

100: communication system

101: tower (Upper management device)