JPH10236770A - Stop position detecting device of transport vehicle - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To simplify a facility equipped with a transport vehicle and enable quick and sure measurement to be carried out by computing the position of the transport vehicle from a signal obtained by scanning a target plate fitted to a fixed position of the transport vehicle by means of a scanning type distance/angle measuring device equipped with a crane. SOLUTION: A target plate 02 of width corresponding to the length of a container 06 is equipped with a transport vehicle, meanwhile a laser beam scanning type distance/angle measuring device 01 is provided so that the beam scanning center line is perpendicular or at a fixed angle to the passing road of the transport vehicle such as a crane leg part 03. The distance to an object reflecting the scanned beam together with the beam scanning angle at the time are output as measured signals to a data processing device 05, and hereat a target transport vehicle stop position detected signal is generated. For example the position in the right and left direction of the transport vehicle 04 based on the fitted position of the distance/angle measuring device 01 is detected from the scanning angle and the distance of an end part when the end part in the width direction of the target plate 02 is detected.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a system in which a crane for handling a load such as a container automatically loads cargo on a transfer vehicle for a load such as a container. The present invention relates to a vehicle stop position detecting device.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, when detecting the relative position between a container handling crane and a transport vehicle, as shown in FIG. 9, laser beams from fixed laser beam distance meters 010, 011, and 012 are emitted in a certain direction and transported. The relative distance to the vehicle 04 is detected, or, as shown in FIG. 10, a light emitting device 21 is mounted on the transport vehicle 04 side, and the light emitting device 21 is mounted on the crane side to measure the distance by the TV cameras 22 and 23 and the image processing device. There is a method to check the stop state.

In the method shown in FIG. 9, fixed laser beam distance meters 010, 011, and 012 mounted on a crane can measure the relative distance between the crane leg 03 and the transport vehicle 04 in the crane longitudinal direction and the lateral direction shown in FIG. It is arranged as follows. By measuring the relative distance between the crane and the transport vehicle in the front-rear and left-right directions of the crane, data for automatically positioning the hanging position of the crane at a predetermined position in the plane of the transport vehicle is obtained. In the figure, reference numerals 013 and 014 are laser beam reflectors.

[0004] In the method shown in FIG. 10, the position of a light emitting device 21 mounted on a transport vehicle is set to a television camera 2 mounted on a crane.
The angle is measured as an angular deviation with respect to the crane reference line azimuth at 2 and 23, and the distance between the two TV cameras 22 and 23 (known) and the angular deviation of the position of the light emitting device 021 are measured in the front-rear direction of FIG. This is a method for measuring relative distance. In this method, the relative position in the horizontal direction in FIG. 8 can be calculated using the measured value of the angular deviation of the light emitting device 21 measured by the television cameras 22 and 23 described above. No light emitter or TV camera is required.

[0005]

By the way, the above-mentioned transport vehicle 04 has a structure in which containers 06 having different lengths are usually mounted at predetermined positions corresponding to the respective vehicles, as shown in FIG. Therefore, the stop position of the transport vehicle 04 with respect to the crane differs depending on the length of the container to be loaded.

However, in the method shown in FIG. 9, there is little problem in detecting the distance in the front-rear direction of the crane, but in the left-right direction, the fixed laser beam distance meter 010 is used to transport the vehicle
Must be installed on the passageway where the crane enters the crane, and must be installed above the passageway so as not to obstruct the passage of the transfer vehicle, and the stop position of the transfer vehicle 04 in the left and right direction depending on the length of the container to be loaded For detection, it is necessary to change the beam emission direction of the fixed laser beam distance meter 010 for measuring the distance in the left-right direction or to install another distance meter corresponding to the container length, which is complicated and expensive.

In the method shown in FIG. 10, it is necessary to install the light emitters 021 on the transport vehicle 04. In general, the number of transport vehicles 04 used is extremely large. Expensive and problematic.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide a transport vehicle stop position detecting device which can simplify installation of the transport vehicle and can easily install a small number of measuring devices on the crane.

[0009]

In order to achieve this object, a transport vehicle stop position detecting device according to the present invention is a scanning distance / angle measuring device installed on a crane for loading cargo such as containers on the transport vehicle. And a control device for calculating a position of the transport vehicle by inputting a signal obtained by scanning the target plate by the scanning distance / angle measuring device and a target plate attached to a predetermined position of the transport vehicle. It is characterized by having.

Further, in the stop position detecting device for a transport vehicle, a target plate having a width corresponding to the length of a load such as a container is provided.

Further, in the stop position detecting device for a transport vehicle, a target plate having a specific pattern according to the length of a load such as a container is provided.

[0012] Further, in the stop position detecting device for a transport vehicle, a fixed distance measuring device is provided in addition to the scanning distance / angle measuring device.

[0013]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a transport vehicle stop position detecting apparatus according to the present invention.

<First Embodiment> FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view (FIG. 1A) and a front view (FIG. 1B) of a transport vehicle stop position detecting apparatus showing a first embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is an explanatory view of the operation, and FIG. 2 (a) is a perspective view of a transport vehicle, FIG. 2 (b) is a measurement image in a data processing device, FIG. 2 (c) is an explanatory view of a triangular calculation method, and FIG. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the detection apparatus, and FIG. 4 is a flowchart in the data processing apparatus. In these figures, the same members as those in FIGS. 9 and 10 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and detailed description thereof will be omitted.

As shown in FIG. 1, a crane leg 03 is provided with a laser beam scanning type distance / angle measuring device 01.
Is to output the distance to the object reflecting the scanned beam together with the beam scanning angle at that time as a measurement signal to the data processing device 05 as a control device.

The data processing device 05 processes the measurement signal of the laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01,
This is to generate a target transport vehicle stop position detection signal.

On the other hand, the transport vehicle 04 is provided with a target plate having a width corresponding to the length of the container 06 or a target plate group having a specific pattern formed by combining target plates (hereinafter referred to as a target plate including these). ) 02 is installed.

Laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 0
Reference numeral 1 denotes a position, such as a crane leg 03, at which a laser beam can be emitted substantially horizontally to the target plate 02.
The beam scanning center line is installed at a right angle or a fixed angle with respect to the traffic path No. 4.

Laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 0
The relationship between 1 and the installation position of the target plate 02 is such that the transport vehicle 04 stops correctly in the lateral direction of the crane (transport vehicle traveling direction), corresponding to the container mounting location of the transport vehicle 04 that differs depending on the type of container of various lengths. Be detectable.

For example, in FIG. 1, if the container lifting position of the crane is at the center line of the crane, and the laser beam scanning type distance / angle measuring device 01 is installed in line with the center line of the crane, the target plate 02 is transported. It is installed at the center of the range in which containers 06 of various lengths of the vehicle 04 are mounted.

As shown in FIG. 2, the target plate 02 is installed at the position closest to the laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01 on the side of the transport vehicle 04 (FIG. 2A).
reference). Therefore, the laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01 measures the distance to each part of the transport vehicle 04 in the laser beam scanning range (each scanning angle and the value of the distance to the object reflecting the beam at that angle). ) Is processed by the data processing device 05 to obtain data representing an image of the target plate 02 as shown in FIG.

In the image of the target plate 02 in FIG. 2B, the width of the plate in the width direction is determined by the scanning angle when the width direction end of the target plate 02 is detected and the width of the target plate 02 in the width direction. Laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 0
It is obtained by performing a triangular calculation by the data processing device 05 from the distance measurement value obtained by the calculation (1) (see FIG. 2C).

Further, the scanning angle when the width direction end of the target plate 02 having a specific width or pattern is detected, and
Similarly, the lateral position of the transport vehicle 04 with reference to the mounting position of the laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01 can be detected from the distance at the end.

On the other hand, the position of the transport vehicle in the longitudinal direction of the crane can be measured as the distance to the target plate 02.

It is determined whether or not the transport vehicle 04 is stopped when the distance measurement value does not change in the front-rear direction when the laser beam scanning is repeatedly performed, and when the width direction end of the target plate 02 is detected in the left-right direction. This is performed by detecting that there is no change in the scanning angle of the laser beam.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram of the detection apparatus according to this embodiment. According to this, first, the measurement signal from the laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01 is sent to the data processing device 05, and the signal is set in advance for the laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01. The laser beam scanning angle is output to the data processing device 05 every time a certain amount of change occurs. The signals received by the data processing device 05 are a laser beam angle signal S1 and a distance signal S2 to the object measured using reflection by the object facing the laser beam emitted at that angle.

The measurement signals S1 and S2 are sent, for example, at a scanning angle of 0.01 degree. These time-series distance measurement values are compared with each other by a target plate edge / plane detection unit S3, and are identical. If the distances are consecutive, the same plane exists, and if a change is found in the distance, it can be detected that the plane has been disconnected. The target plate end / plane detecting unit S3 sends a timing signal for detecting the disconnection of the plane to the target plate end direction detecting unit S4, and the laser beam scanning angle at that time is detected by the target plate end direction detecting unit S4. It is stored as the direction in which the disconnection occurred. Further, the timing at which the plane break occurs is sent to the target plate plane distance detection unit S5, and the distance measurement signal one timing before the plane break occurrence stored in the target plate plane distance detector S5 is stored in the target vehicle plane distance detection unit S5. It is sent to the operation unit S6.

The position deviation calculating section S6 of the transport vehicle in the left-right direction.
Indicates the occurrence of a plane break using the laser beam scanning angle at the time of occurrence of the plane break provided by the target plate edge direction detection unit S4 and the distance to the plane provided by the target plate plane unit distance detection unit S5. The horizontal position of the point is calculated.

The above description is directed to the step of detecting the end line on the target plate plane in the scanning direction when the object detected as the plane is the target plate 02. When detecting the line at the beginning of the target plate 02, the target plate flat portion distance detecting unit S5 stores the distance at the time of the occurrence of the disconnection of the distance measurement value, and the transport vehicle left-right positional deviation amount calculating unit S6 stores the distance. Is used to calculate the lateral position of the starting end of the plane.

In this manner, the end positions of the start side and the end side of the plane are calculated, and the difference between them is calculated to calculate the width of the plane and compare it with the width data of the target plate 02. It is determined whether the detected plane is the target plate 02. Such determination is also performed by the transport vehicle left / right direction positional deviation amount calculation unit S6.

The calculation result is output as a stop position signal S7 in the front-rear direction of the transport vehicle and a stop position signal S8 in the left-right direction. It is confirmed that the distance to the plane and the detected value of the lateral position do not change, it is confirmed that the transport vehicle 04 is stopped, and the transport vehicle longitudinal direction stop position signal S7 and the transport vehicle lateral direction stop position signal S8 are output. Include and output.

Next, the operation of the data processing device 05 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG. (1) In step P2, an angle signal input at every constant change of the laser beam scanning angle is fetched, and in step P1, a distance measurement value to the target object is fetched. (2) The distance measurement value input in the previous data capture is stored in M2. In step P3, a comparison is made between M2 and the distance measurement value M1 input this time, and the difference is determined as a predetermined determination value K.
In the following cases, it is determined that the same plane is being monitored, and the process is terminated (see step P4). (3) If the difference between M1 and M2 exceeds k, step P
If P ≠ 1 at 5, a change in distance measurement has occurred for the first time. P is set to 1 and the current distance measurement value is stored in M2 at steps P10 and 11 and the current laser beam scanning angle is stored at TH1 at step P7, and Finish the process. (4) When the difference between M1 and M2 exceeds k, and if P = 1 in step P5, a change in the distance measurement has already occurred in the past, and the end end in the scanning direction of the detection target object. Can be determined to have been detected. In this case, the current laser beam scanning angle is stored in TH2. (Note) TH1 is the laser beam scanning angle when the distance change is first detected. (5) In step P8, (TH2-TH1) × M2 is W
That is, it is determined whether the width is equal to the width of the target plate 02. T
H1 and TH2 are radians. The equation used for the determination in step P8 corresponds to the attached diagram and includes an error. However, in an actual application of the present invention, TH1 and TH2 are extremely small compared to M2, so that sufficient accuracy is provided in practical use. (6) If the determination in step P8 is No, P and Q are reset, while if Yes in step P9, the detected object is the target plate. Therefore, step P1
Z2 = (TH1 + TH) where Z1 is the displacement of the center position of the target plate viewed from the laser beam scanning measurement device
2) Calculate as / 2 × M2. The distance in the front-rear direction is determined as MZ1 and MZ1 = M2. (7) In Step P13, it is determined whether Q = 1. Q
# 1 indicates that the process of step P12 has been performed for the first time. In this case, in step P16, Z1 is changed to Z2, and MZ1
Is stored in MZ2, Q is set to 1 in step P18, and the process ends this time. (8) If Q = 1 in step P13, the previous target plate has been detected, and in step P14, it is determined whether or not the distance to the target plate and the lateral deviation calculated this time are equal to the previous values. If the value is the same as the previous value, the fact that the transport vehicle is stopped, the distance, and the amount of deviation are output in step P17. If it has changed from the previous time, P, Q in step P15
Reset. The above data processing is performed each time for the input data for each change in the predetermined angle of the laser beam (see step P19).

In the above description, the target plate 02 is measured by using one laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01.
The width or arrangement shape of the transport vehicle 04 is determined by identifying the width or arrangement shape of the transport vehicle 04, but a plurality of laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring devices 01 are installed on the crane,
The same effect can be obtained by arranging each of them so that the target plate 02 can be observed at the stop position of the transport vehicle corresponding to the length of the loaded container of the transport vehicle 04.

<Second Embodiment> FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view of a stop position detecting device for a transport vehicle according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

This is an example in which the torsional deviation at the stop position of the transport vehicle 04 in the lateral direction as well as the crane longitudinal direction and the lateral direction of the transport vehicle 04 is measured.
That is, the second laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 0
1b is a first laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 0
The crane is installed apart from the crane 1a in the left-right direction, and the amount of twist is measured based on the difference between the distance measurement values to the transport vehicle 04 by the first and second measurement devices 01a and 01b. The stop position of the transport vehicle 04 in the front-rear direction and the left-right direction of the crane is determined by the first laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01.
A is detected in the same manner as in the first embodiment using a.

<Third Embodiment> FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view of a stop position detecting device for a transport vehicle according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

This is an example in which the container length can be determined when containers of different lengths are mounted with their longitudinal centers aligned at the same position on the transport vehicle 04.

That is, a target plate 02a for detecting the position in the front-rear, left-right direction is located at the center position of the container mounted on the transporting vehicle 04.
The first laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01a is installed at the position of the corresponding crane to detect the stop position of the transport vehicle and stop the transport vehicle 04 in the same manner as in the first embodiment. Transport vehicle 0 in a state where it stops at the position
When a short-length container is mounted on 4, the wall of the container is not detected, and when a longer container is mounted,
A second laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01b for detecting the wall surface is installed on the crane, and the length is determined depending on whether the measuring device 01b detects or does not detect the container wall.

It should be noted that the second laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 01b in the second and third embodiments does not necessarily require laser beam scanning, and can be replaced with a fixed laser beam distance meter. .

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiments, and it goes without saying that various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

[0041]

In summary, according to the transport vehicle stop position detecting device of the present invention, a scanning distance / angle measuring device installed on a crane that loads cargo such as containers for the transport vehicle, and a predetermined position of the transport vehicle And a control device for calculating a position of the transport vehicle by inputting a signal obtained by scanning the target plate by the scanning distance / angle measuring device, In addition, a detector that can simplify the installation of equipment on the crane and can easily install a measuring device with a small number of cranes, enables quick and reliable measurement, and brings great utility to automatic crane operation. For example, the target plate may be a simple iron plate or the like, and only one scanning distance / angle measuring device may be used.

Further, since the target plate having a width corresponding to the length of the cargo such as the container is provided, it is possible to easily cope with containers having different lengths.

Further, since a target plate having a specific pattern is provided according to the length of the cargo such as the container, it is possible to easily handle containers of different lengths.

Further, since a fixed distance measuring device is provided in addition to the scanning distance / angle measuring device, versatility is enhanced, for example, a twist deviation of a transport vehicle and a container length can be separately detected.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view (FIG. 1 (a)) and a front view (FIG. 1 (b)) of a stop position detecting device for a transport vehicle according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

2 (a) is a perspective view of a transport vehicle, FIG. 2 (b) is a measurement image in a data processing device, and FIG. 2 (c) is an explanatory diagram of a triangular calculation method.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the same detection device.

FIG. 4 is a flowchart in the data processing apparatus of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a schematic plan view of a transport vehicle stop position detecting device according to a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is a schematic plan view of a transport vehicle stop position detecting device according to a third embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram of various containers.

FIG. 8 is a perspective view showing a positional relationship between a container handling crane and a transport vehicle.

FIG. 9 is a perspective view of a conventional detection device.

FIG. 10 is a perspective view of another conventional detection device.

[Explanation of symbols]

01 (01a) (first) laser beam scanning distance
Angle measuring device 01b Second laser beam scanning distance / angle measuring device 02 (02a, 02b) Target plate 03 Crane leg 04 Transport vehicle 05 Data processing device 06 Container

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. A scanning distance / angle measuring device installed on a crane for handling cargo such as containers for a transport vehicle, a target plate attached to a predetermined position of the transport vehicle, and the scanning distance / angle measuring device. And a control device for calculating a position of the transport vehicle by inputting a signal obtained by scanning the target plate. 2. The stop position detecting device for a transport vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a target plate having a width corresponding to a length of the load such as the container. 3. The stop position detecting device for a transport vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a target plate having a specific pattern according to the length of the load such as the container. 4. The stop position detecting device for a transport vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a fixed distance measuring device in addition to the scanning distance / angle measuring device.