Full-automatic material carrying system and method for square freeze dryer

Abstract

The invention discloses a full-automatic material carrying system for a square freeze dryer. The system comprises the square freeze dryer, a material transfer trolley, an automatic guide transport vehicle, a butt joint auxiliary device, a vehicle-mounted locking mechanism and a fleet management system. The automatic guided vehicle is a low-temperature-resistant condensation-preventing AGV, a hybrid navigation mode with two-dimensional code navigation as a main part and laser radar as an auxiliary part is adopted, the working part of the automatic guided vehicle is provided with an active temperature control cabin, self-adaptive switching between a low-temperature mode and a normal-temperature mode can be achieved according to the environment temperature, and the problem that the automatic guided vehicle carries out transportation across an ultra-low-temperature area is solved. Seamless butt joint between the butt joint auxiliary device and a guide rail arranged in the drying box is achieved. And the AGV is changed from carrying to pushing in front of the drying box, so that the interference of narrow gaps between the heating plates in the freeze-drying box on the movement and unloading of the AGV is well solved. Through cooperative control of the motorcade management system, the whole-process unmanned carrying of the material transfer trolley in the loading area, the pre-freezing warehouse, the drying box and the packaging area is achieved.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of food and drug freeze-drying, in particular to a material automatic handling system and method for a square freeze dryer. BACKGROUND

[0002] Vacuum freeze-drying is the core process for preparing high-end freeze-dried food and drugs, and the material transfer link directly affects the production efficiency and product quality. Traditional freeze dryers are mostly cylindrical in design, and the material is transferred between the tray, pre-freezing library, drying room and packaging area by relying on the overhead rail and hanging system. However, this system has significant drawbacks: high investment cost, low workshop space utilization, easy interference when multiple devices operate in parallel, and difficulty in achieving automation upgrades.

[0003] In recent years, square freeze dryers (such as the structure disclosed in patent CN222104100U) have provided the possibility for ground automation handling due to their high space utilization and flexible layout. However, there are still four major challenges to achieving full automation: first, the material transfer vehicle weighs several hundred kilograms, making it difficult for manual pushing and posing a safety hazard; second, the freeze-drying process involves a -40℃ pre-freezing library, a 5-15℃ drying room, and a normal temperature zone, with a large temperature and humidity difference, requiring strict environmental performance of the automated equipment; third, the heating plate spacing in the drying chamber is only 60-70mm, and the lifting mechanism of traditional automated guided vehicles cannot reliably dock and place materials in such a narrow space; fourth, in the ultra-low temperature environment, the navigation sensors (laser radar, industrial camera) of the automated guided vehicle perform poorly or even fail, and the performance of the battery storage and discharge is also severely affected, leading to transfer interruption.

[0004] Therefore, there is an urgent need for a full-automatic material handling solution that can overcome the above challenges and deeply adapt to square freeze dryers. SUMMARY

[0005] The present application aims to provide a full-automatic material handling system for square freeze dryers to solve the problems existing in the prior art. The specific structure is as follows.

[0006] A full-automatic material handling system and method for square freeze dryers, including a square freeze dryer, a material transfer vehicle, an automated guided vehicle, a docking auxiliary device, a vehicle-mounted locking mechanism, and a vehicle fleet management system.

[0007] The drying chamber of the square freeze dryer is rectangular in cross-section, and the inside of the drying chamber is provided with an internal guide rail.

[0008] The material transfer vehicle is used to load material trays, and the bottom of the material transfer vehicle is provided with wheels that match the internal guide rail.

[0009] The automatic guided vehicle is used for transporting the material transfer vehicle in each process section, and adopts a carrying mode when transferring in each process section, and adopts a pushing mode when entering the drying box;

[0010] The vehicle-mounted locking mechanism is a mechanical or electromagnetic automatic locking mechanism, which is installed on the automatic guided vehicle and can releasably engage with the material transfer vehicle;

[0011] The docking auxiliary device is an automatic lifting bridge plate, which can cover the gap between the ground and the inner bottom plate of the drying box after the drying box door is removed; a guiding mechanism capable of guiding and centering the wheels of the material vehicle is arranged on the bridge plate, so that the material vehicle can smoothly transition from the bridge plate to the built-in guide rail of the drying box; the lifting action of the automatic lifting bridge plate is linked with the opening and closing signal of the drying box door;

[0012] The vehicle fleet management system is in communication linkage with the freeze-drying machine control system, and automatically guided vehicles are dispatched to transport the material transfer vehicles in each process section according to the freeze-drying process requirements.

[0013] Further, the automatic guided vehicle is a low-temperature resistant and condensation-proof automatic guided vehicle, and the navigation system thereof is a hybrid navigation mode mainly using two-dimensional code navigation and supplemented by laser radar navigation; the two-dimensional code is arranged on the material transfer path between the tray loading area, the pre-freezing warehouse, the drying box and the packaging area. The navigation system mainly uses two-dimensional code navigation and is supplemented by laser radar because the automatic guided vehicle is prone to navigation deviation due to slipping or the influence of low temperature on the laser radar in the low-temperature environment of the pre-freezing warehouse, while the two-dimensional code navigation is accurate and can assist in correcting the deviation of the automatic guided vehicle, and the main function of the laser radar is obstacle avoidance, which can greatly reduce its configuration.

[0014] Further, the working components of the automatic guided vehicle include an industrial camera, a battery and a laser radar.

[0015] Further, the industrial camera is used for recognizing two-dimensional codes, and the industrial camera is arranged at the bottom of the vehicle body of the automatic guided vehicle and is packaged in a positive temperature control cabin; the positive temperature control cabin includes a heating unit, a heat insulation layer and a temperature control unit; the lens of the industrial camera is provided with an anti-condensation device.

[0016] Further, the laser radar is provided with an anti-condensation device, which is an electrothermal film or resistance wire attached around the lens. The anti-condensation device is not limited to heating, but can also be other ways familiar to those skilled in the art, such as but not limited to: a gas path system for blowing dry gas to the optical window, a sealable cabin door for isolating the internal and external environments, and a hydrophobic anti-fog coating coated on the optical window, etc. Any structure or method that can effectively prevent condensation on the optical window in a temperature changing environment should be included in the protection concept of the present patent.

[0017] Further, the automatic guided vehicle is provided with a temperature control unit, the temperature control unit is used for keeping the working parts of the automatic guided vehicle warm, and the working parts are industrial cameras, batteries or laser radars;

[0018] The temperature control unit automatically adjusts the working state according to the ambient temperature of the automatic guided vehicle. The working state of the temperature control unit includes: when entering or being in a low-temperature environment, starting the heating function of the temperature control cabin; when entering or being in a normal-temperature environment, closing or reducing the heating function, and starting the heat dissipation function as needed. The battery is packaged in the active temperature control cabin, and the active temperature control cabin includes a heating and heat dissipation unit, a heat insulation layer and a temperature control unit, which are used to maintain the working environment temperature of the battery within its allowable working range.

[0019] Further, the docking auxiliary device is pneumatically or electrically driven, and the action is linked with the opening and closing signal of the drying box door.

[0020] The pneumatic drive has the advantages of fast response speed and strong load capacity, and the electric drive has the characteristics of high control precision and low maintenance cost. The two driving modes can be adapted to different workshop gas / electricity configuration scenes. The linkage design with the opening and closing signal of the drying box door can avoid the manual operation mistakes of “lowering the bridge plate before the door is opened” or “closing the door before the bridge plate is reset”, which not only prevents equipment collision and damage, but also ensures the synchronization of the docking process and the operation of the drying box, lays a foundation for the precise docking of the subsequent automatic guided vehicle and the stable entry and exit of the material vehicle, reduces the process waiting time, and improves the single-batch material transfer efficiency.

[0021] The method comprises the following steps:

[0022] S1: The vehicle fleet management system controls the drying box door to open in advance according to the production plan before the automatic guided vehicle transporting the material transfer vehicle reaches the drying box door, and triggers the action of the docking auxiliary device to automatically lower the bridge plate, so that the guide rail on the bridge plate is seamlessly docked with the built-in guide rail in the drying box;

[0023] S2: The automatic guided vehicle completes the loading of the material transfer vehicle in the pre-freezing warehouse, and locks the start. The automatic guided vehicle carrying the material transfer vehicle drives to the drying box area, directly and accurately positions on the lowered docking auxiliary device bridge plate by means of its navigation system, and at this time, the material transfer vehicle is located above the starting end of the guide rail;

[0024] S3: The automatic guided vehicle lowers its carrying platform, so that the wheels of the material transfer vehicle stably fall on the guide rail;

[0025] S4: The automatic guided vehicle moves forward, and pushes the material transfer vehicle into the designated station in the drying box along the guide rail and the built-in guide rail stably and accurately;

[0026] Along the track push by the guide rail and the built-in guide rail of the coordinated guidance, reduce the deviation of the material car pushing, ensure the material car to stop accurately in the designated station in the drying box, avoid the uneven freezing of the material caused by the deviation of the station.

[0027] Smooth pushing through the automatic guided vehicle speed control, prevent the inertia impact when the material car slides on the guide rail, further protect the material integrity, at the same time, adapt to the process requirements of light load operation in the drying box, avoid interference to the precise parts in the box.

[0028] S5: the vehicle-mounted locking mechanism of the automatic guided vehicle releases the material transfer trolley, and then the automatic guided vehicle moves backward and separates from the material transfer trolley;

[0029] S6: the automatic guided vehicle drives away from the drying box door, the system confirms that all the material transfer trolleys are in place and the automatic guided vehicle has safely left, the bridge plate of the auxiliary device is automatically raised and reset, the drying box door is closed, and the drying process starts.

[0030] Further, after the drying process is completed, the system controls the automatic guided vehicle to drive to the drying box door again, takes out the material transfer trolley and transports it to the packaging area, completing the discharging process. The "symmetrical design" of the discharging process and the feeding process (only the moving direction of the material car is opposite) can reduce the complexity of the control program of the automatic guided vehicle and reduce the maintenance cost.

[0031] Further, it is applied to the automatic handling of the material transfer trolley between the tray loading area, the pre-freezing warehouse, the drying box and the packaging area. It covers the complete freeze-drying process chain of "tray loading (initial placement of materials) - pre-freezing (pre-treatment of materials) - drying (core process) - packaging (finished product packaging)", realizing the whole process without manual handling.

[0032] Beneficial effects:

[0033] I. Full-process unmanned, significant cost reduction and labor reduction effect: covering the complete process chain from loading, pre-freezing, drying to discharging and packaging, realizing full-link unmanned handling of materials, greatly reducing labor cost investment, and reducing labor intensity and safety risk of manual handling.

[0034] II. Breakthrough of narrow space problem, high reliability of connection: innovative adoption of "automatic guided vehicle transportation + ground pushing" combined mode, directly avoiding the precision lifting technical bottleneck of the automatic guided vehicle in the narrow space (heating plate spacing 60-70mm) of the drying box; matched with the automatic lifting bridge plate and the horn-shaped guide rail, greatly reducing the final positioning accuracy requirement of the automatic guided vehicle, ensuring seamless connection of the material transfer trolley and the built-in guide rail of the drying box, and improving the handling feasibility.

[0035] Third, solve the problem of ultra-low temperature core, navigation and stable power supply: based on the mixed navigation of "two-dimensional code as the main, laser radar as the auxiliary", combined with industrial camera, laser radar, battery exclusive active temperature control cabin and anti-condensation device, the navigation interruption problem caused by sensor failure in ultra-low temperature environment is completely solved, and the working performance of the battery is maintained, and the long-term reliable operation of the system is ensured.

[0036] Fourth, strong adaptability to extreme environment and high running stability: from the selection of low-temperature resistant materials of core components (cable, gear, bearing, tire), to the application of low-temperature resistant lubricating grease, to the power thermal management (temperature control cabin) and sensor protection (anti-condensation), a full-dimensional extreme environment adaptation design is formed, which can stably cope with cross-temperature zone, ultra-low temperature and high humidity working conditions.

[0037] Fifth, system deep integration to realize intelligent production: through the linkage and integration of automatic guided vehicle scheduling, drying box door opening / closing and drying process control, and docking auxiliary device lifting three core modules of fleet management system (FMS), the information barriers of each link are broken, the full-process chain collaborative operation is realized, and the intelligent production is achieved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0038] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the overall layout of the system of the application.

[0039] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the process of pushing the material transfer vehicle into the drying box.

[0040] Figure 3 It is a structural schematic diagram of a single drying box.

[0041] Figure 4 It is a partial enlarged view of part A in Figure 3

[0042] Figure 5 It is a partial enlarged view of part B in Figure 3

[0043] Figure 6 It is a schematic diagram of the internal structure of the drying box.

[0044] Figure 7 It is a structural schematic diagram of the material transfer vehicle.

[0045] In the figure: 1. Drying box, 2. Built-in guide rail, 3. Material transfer vehicle, 4. Automatic guided vehicle, 5. Vehicle-mounted locking mechanism, 6. Docking auxiliary device, 7. Guide rail, 8. Drying box door, 9. Two-dimensional code, 10. Guide wheel, 11. Guide rail. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0046] ​​In order to deepen the understanding of the present application, the present application will be further described below in conjunction with the embodiments and drawings, which are only used to explain the present application and do not constitute a limitation on the protection scope of the present application.

[0047] Embodiment one: the embodiment includes a square freeze dryer, which is provided with two built-in guide rails 2 in the drying box 1. A low-temperature-resistant automatic guided vehicle 4 is responsible for transporting the material transfer trolley 3.

[0048] Outside the drying box door 8, a set of pneumatic butt joint auxiliary device 6 is installed, the bridge plate of which can be lifted and lowered under the drive of the air cylinder, and the guide rail 7 on the bridge plate is seamlessly butt jointed with the guide rail on the bottom plate in the drying box. A set of mechanical automatic buckle is installed on the carrying platform of the automatic guided vehicle 4 as a vehicle-mounted locking mechanism 5.

[0049] The navigation system of the automatic guided vehicle 4 is a hybrid mode. A large number of two-dimensional code labels are arranged on its running path. The industrial camera 9 at the bottom of the automatic guided vehicle 4 is packaged in an active temperature control cabin 10, which contains a heating unit and a heat insulation layer, and the temperature in the cabin is maintained between 5-20℃ by a temperature control unit, and the lens is equipped with an electric heating anti-fog piece.

[0050] The automatic guided vehicle 4 is also equipped with a laser radar for obstacle avoidance, which is also equipped with a simple heating device. The automatic guided vehicle is provided with a storage battery, which is packaged in an active temperature control cabin, which contains a heating and cooling unit, a heat insulation layer and a temperature control unit, for maintaining the working environment temperature of the storage battery within its allowable working range. The automatic guided vehicle also has an environment adaptive control system, which automatically switches between low temperature mode and normal temperature mode according to the real-time detection of internal and external temperature information:

[0051] When entering or being in a low temperature environment, the system starts the low temperature mode: the heating functions of the camera temperature control cabin, the battery temperature control cabin and the sensor lens are activated to prevent component failure and condensation freezing.

[0052] When entering or being in a normal temperature environment, the system switches to the normal temperature mode: the heating function is turned off or reduced, and the cooling unit of the battery temperature control cabin is started as needed to prevent condensation and battery overheating, achieving energy-saving operation.

[0053] The working process is as follows: the FMS system issues an instruction, the drying box door 8 is opened, and the butt joint auxiliary device 6 is actuated to lower the bridge plate, so that the horn mouth guide rail on the bridge plate is precisely butt jointed with the built-in guide rail 2.

[0054] The automatic guided vehicle 4 carries the material transfer trolley 3 in the low-temperature pre-freezing warehouse, the vehicle-mounted locking mechanism 5 is engaged with the material transfer trolley, and the low-temperature mode is adopted for operation; the material transfer trolley is transported from the pre-freezing warehouse to the drying area, and whether to switch to the normal temperature operation mode is determined according to the set temperature.

[0055] The automated guided vehicle 4 stops at the preset position in front of the drying box door 8 by accurately positioning through recognizing the two-dimensional code 9. The platform of the automated guided vehicle 4 is lowered, and the wheels of the material transfer vehicle 3 are placed on the ground.

[0056] The automated guided vehicle 4 slowly advances, and the material transfer vehicle 3 is easily pushed into the drying box 1 at the predetermined position along the inner guide rail of the drying box 1 by using the guiding effect of the horn mouth of the guide rail 7.

[0057] Subsequently, the automated guided vehicle 4 controls the buckle 5 to be unlocked and retreats to be separated. When all the material transfer vehicles are in place, the automated guided vehicle 4 drives away, the bridge plate of the docking auxiliary device 6 is automatically raised and reset, the drying box door 8 is closed, and the drying process is started.

[0058] After the drying process is completed, the system controls the automated guided vehicle to drive to the front of the drying box door again, repeats the similar steps to take out the material transfer vehicles and transport them to the packaging area, and completes the discharging process.

[0059] Finally, it should be noted that the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present application and are not limiting. Although the present application has been described in detail with reference to the preferred embodiments, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the technical solutions of the present application can be modified or replaced equivalently without departing from the purpose and scope of the present application, and they should be covered in the scope of the claims of the present application.

Claims

1. A fully automated material handling system and method for a square freeze dryer, characterized by, The application relates to a square freeze-drying machine, a material transfer trolley, an automatic guided vehicle, a docking auxiliary device, a vehicle-mounted locking mechanism and a vehicle fleet management system. The drying box of the square freeze-drying machine is rectangular in cross section, and the inside of the drying box is provided with built-in guide rails. The material transfer trolley is used for loading material trays, and the bottom of the material transfer trolley is provided with wheels matched with the built-in guide rails. The automatic guided vehicle is used for transporting the material transfer trolleys between process sections, adopts a carrying mode when transporting between process sections, and adopts a pushing mode when entering the drying box. The vehicle-mounted locking mechanism is a mechanical or electromagnetic automatic locking mechanism, which is installed on the automatic guided vehicle and can releasably engage with the material transfer trolley. The docking auxiliary device is an automatic lifting bridge plate which can cover the gap between the ground and the inner bottom plate of the drying box after the drying box door is removed. The docking auxiliary device is an automatic lifting bridge plate which can cover the gap between the ground and the inner bottom plate of the drying box after the drying box door is removed.

2. A fully automated material handling system for a square freeze dryer as claimed in claim 1, wherein, The docking auxiliary device is an automatic lifting bridge plate which can cover the gap between the ground and the inner bottom plate of the drying box after the drying box door is removed.

3. A fully automated material handling system for a square freeze dryer as defined in claim 1, wherein, The vehicle fleet management system communicates with the freeze-drying machine control system and dispatches the automatic guided vehicle to transport the material transfer trolleys between process sections according to freeze-drying process requirements.

4. A fully automated material handling system for a square freeze dryer as defined in claim 1, wherein, The automatic guided vehicle is a low-temperature-resistant and condensation-preventing type, and the navigation system adopts a hybrid navigation mode mainly based on two-dimensional code navigation and supplemented by laser radar navigation. The working components of the automatic guided vehicle include an industrial camera, a battery and a laser radar.

5. A fully automated material handling system for a square freeze dryer as claimed in claim 4, wherein, The industrial camera is used for recognizing two-dimensional codes, and is arranged at the bottom of the vehicle body of the automatic guided vehicle and is packaged in a positive temperature control cabin.

6. A fully automated material handling system for a square freeze dryer as defined in claim 4, wherein, The temperature control unit automatically adjusts the working state of the automatic guided vehicle according to the ambient temperature of the automatic guided vehicle.

7. A fully automated material handling system for a square freeze dryer as defined in claim 1, wherein, The temperature control unit includes the following working states: when entering or being in a low-temperature environment, the heating function of the temperature control cabin is started; when entering or being in a normal-temperature environment, the heating function is closed or reduced, and the cooling function is started as needed.

8. A fully automated material handling method using the system of any one of claims 1-7, characterized by, The inner bottom plate of the drying box is horizontal to the ground. The docking auxiliary device is pneumatically or electrically driven, and the action of the docking auxiliary device is linked with the opening and closing signal of the drying box door. The guide mechanism is a horn-shaped guide rail. The method comprises the following steps: S1: The vehicle fleet management system controls the drying box door to be opened in advance before the automatic guided vehicle transporting the material transfer trolley arrives at the drying box door according to a production plan, and triggers the docking auxiliary device to automatically lower the bridge plate, so that the guide rail on the bridge plate is seamlessly docked with the built-in guide rail in the drying box. S2: The automated guided vehicle finishes loading the material transfer vehicle in the pre-freezing warehouse and locks the start, and drives to the drying box area with the material transfer vehicle, and directly and accurately positions on the bridge plate of the docking auxiliary device by the navigation system. At this time, the material transfer vehicle is above the starting end of the guide rail; S3: The automated guided vehicle lowers the carrying platform to make the wheels of the material transfer vehicle smoothly fall on the guide rail; S4: The automated guided vehicle moves forward to smoothly and accurately push the material transfer vehicle into the designated station in the drying box along the guide rail and the built-in guide rail; S5: The on-board locking mechanism of the automated guided vehicle releases the material transfer vehicle, and then the automated guided vehicle moves backward to separate from the material transfer vehicle; S6: The automated guided vehicle drives away from the drying box door, and after the system confirms that all the material transfer vehicles are in place and the automated guided vehicle has safely left, the bridge plate of the docking auxiliary device automatically rises and resets, the drying box door is closed, and the drying process starts.

9. A fully automated material handling method according to claim 8, characterized in that, After the drying process is completed, the system controls the automated guided vehicle to drive to the drying box door again, take out the material transfer vehicle, and transport it to the packaging area to complete the discharging process.

10. The fully automated material handling method of claim 8, wherein, It is applied to the automatic transfer of the material transfer vehicle between the tray loading area, the pre-freezing warehouse, the drying box, and the packaging area.

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