Multi-door machine automation collaborative work method

Abstract

The application provides a multi-door machine automatic cooperative operation method, comprising the following steps: S1: according to scheduling arrangement, cabin position, door machine track position and unloading hopper allowed placement area, station planning and deployment of door machines and unloading hoppers are carried out; S2: for each door machine, a first running track from a starting point to an ending point is planned; S3: whether there is a collision risk in each position of the current door machine according to the planned first running track and the corresponding state of the adjacent door machine is judged, if not, the door machine directly runs, if yes, the next step is entered: S4: a cooperative-based track planning method is used to adjust the first running track of the current door machine, a second running track after adjustment is obtained, and whether there is a collision risk is judged again until there is no collision risk with the adjacent door machine; and S5: the steps S2-S4 are repeated, so that all the door machines in the region realize cooperative operation.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of port automation control technology, and in particular to a method for automated collaborative operation of multiple gantry cranes. Background Technology

[0002] With the continuous development of port automation, the level of automated port operations is constantly improving. Among the many lifting equipment in port terminals, gantry cranes, or simply gantry cranes, hold a very important position. Automated operation of gantry cranes is the current trend in port development. It is not only necessary to achieve automation of single gantry crane operations, but also to achieve automation of coordinated operations of multiple gantry cranes, improving operational efficiency while ensuring the safety of each gantry crane.

[0003] Chinese patent application CN101526617A discloses an automatic two-dimensional lidar detection method for ship loader level. However, this method is only applicable to a single hatch and a single ship loader, and is not suitable when multiple gantry cranes need to work together. Therefore, it is necessary to provide an automated collaborative operation method for multiple gantry cranes, which can improve the safety and reliability of multi-gantry crane cooperation by rationally planning the operating trajectories of each crane. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In view of this, the present invention proposes an automated collaborative operation method for multiple gantry cranes that can eliminate potential collision risks during multi-gantry crane cooperation and enable mutual avoidance among the gantry cranes.

[0005] The technical solution of this invention is implemented as follows: This invention provides a method for automated collaborative operation of multiple gantry cranes, comprising the following steps:

[0006] S1: Based on the scheduling arrangements, the location of the ship's hold, the location of the gantry crane track, and the permitted placement area of ​​the unloading hopper, plan and deploy the gantry crane and unloading hopper positions;

[0007] S2: For each gantry crane, plan its first running trajectory from the starting point to the ending point of the operation;

[0008] S3: For at least one stopped gantry crane, determine whether there is a risk of collision between the current gantry crane at each position according to the planned first running trajectory and the corresponding state of adjacent gantry cranes. If there is no risk of collision, then run the current gantry crane; if there is a risk of collision, proceed to step S4:

[0009] S4: The first running trajectory and / or start time of the current gantry crane are adjusted by adopting a collaborative trajectory planning method to obtain the adjusted second running trajectory. The second running trajectory of the current gantry crane is then judged again to determine whether there is a risk of collision with the corresponding state of the adjacent gantry crane. After there is no risk of collision with the adjacent gantry crane, the current gantry crane runs according to the adjusted second running trajectory to achieve mutual avoidance between multiple gantry cranes.

[0010] S5: Repeat steps S2-S4 above to enable all gantry cranes in the area to work together.

[0011] Based on the above technical solutions, preferably, the scheduling arrangement in step S1 refers to determining the cabins that need to be operated, and assigning at least one gantry crane to each cabin that needs to be operated; the cabin location refers to obtaining the coordinates of the four corner points of each cabin opening; the station planning refers to setting the gantry crane trolley position, the rotation direction of the gantry crane between the cabin and the unloading hopper, and the position of the unloading hopper according to the scheduling arrangement, cabin location, gantry crane track position, and the allowable placement area of ​​the unloading hopper.

[0012] Preferably, step S2, which involves planning a first running trajectory for each gantry crane from the starting position to the ending position, is to obtain the most efficient running trajectory from the starting position to the ending position of the gantry crane operation, and to obtain the outline and radius of the virtual cylinder corresponding to the first running trajectory.

[0013] In a further preferred embodiment, step S4, which involves using a collaborative trajectory planning method to adjust the first operating trajectory and / or start time of each gantry crane to obtain the adjusted second operating trajectory, involves each gantry crane using the A* algorithm to obtain its second operating trajectory based on its own motion rules and anti-sway control constraints, with efficiency and safety as the objectives.

[0014] More preferably, the machine motion rules simultaneously satisfy the following conditions: 1) Obtain the three-dimensional laser point cloud of the environment where each gantry crane is located, and construct a three-dimensional map of the gantry crane's work objects and obstacles; 2) The gantry crane and its grab bucket do not collide with any obstacles in real time during operation; 3) The number of acceleration and deceleration movements of the gantry crane's hoisting mechanism, rotating mechanism, or luffing mechanism is minimized; 4) The swaying amplitude of each gantry crane's grab bucket during operation meets the hoisting requirements; 5) If there is a possibility of collision, the hoisting mechanism or luffing mechanism of the current gantry crane that meets the operating conditions is activated first, and then the gantry crane's rotating mechanism is rotated, thereby causing the virtual cylindrical surface and its radius formed by the rotation mechanism to shift and change; 6) The cumulative value of the change in the area of ​​the virtual cylindrical surface caused by the change in the radius of the virtual cylindrical surface corresponding to each gantry crane bypassing the obstacle is minimized.

[0015] In a further preferred embodiment, the anti-sway control constraint is obtained by using an LQR linear quadratic matrix to determine the direction, speed, and acceleration of the hoisting mechanism, luffing mechanism, or slewing mechanism during rotational motion, and to minimize the deviation between the gantry crane's grab and the endpoint.

[0016] More preferably, the real-time position includes the position of the gantry crane trolley, the rotation angle of the gantry crane rotating mechanism, the amplitude of the gantry crane's amplitude change, and the height of the gantry crane's grab bucket; the gantry crane's operating status includes a stopped state and a running state; the collision refers to any part of two adjacent gantry cranes colliding with each other or the distance between any part of two adjacent gantry cranes being less than a set distance threshold, the set distance threshold being no more than 5%-10% of the sum of the amplitude changes of the rotational motion of the rotating mechanisms of the two adjacent gantry cranes.

[0017] In a further preferred embodiment, step S5, which enables all gantry cranes in the area to work in coordination, is the solution that minimizes the time required for the hoisting mechanism, slewing mechanism, and luffing mechanism to complete one round of work without collision when each gantry crane executes the first or second running trajectory.

[0018] The present invention provides an automated collaborative operation method for multiple gantry cranes, which has the following advantages compared with the prior art:

[0019] (1) This solution avoids the collision risk that may exist when adjacent gantry cranes cooperate by planning the positions of multiple gantry cranes in the port and planning the operation trajectory of multiple gantry cranes, so as to realize the cooperative operation of multiple gantry cranes at the same time and improve the overall operation efficiency and safety of multiple gantry cranes. Attached Figure Description

[0020] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of the present invention. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0021] Figure 1 This is a flowchart of a multi-gantry automated collaborative operation method according to the present invention;

[0022] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram showing the positioning of the unloading hoppers of multiple gantry cranes in the multi-gantry crane automated collaborative operation method of the present invention;

[0023] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the first trajectory adjustment of multiple gantry cranes to avoid collision risks in a multi-gantry crane automated collaborative operation method according to the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0024] The technical solutions of the present invention will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present invention, and not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by those of ordinary skill in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0025] like Figure 1 and Figure 2 As shown, the present invention provides a method for automated collaborative operation of multiple gantry cranes, comprising the following steps:

[0026] S1: Based on the scheduling arrangements, the location of the ship's hold, the location of the gantry crane track, and the permitted placement area of ​​the unloading hopper, plan and deploy the gantry crane and unloading hopper positions.

[0027] The scheduling arrangement in this step refers to determining the cabins requiring operations and assigning at least one gantry crane to each cabin. (Refer to...) Figure 2 The illustration shows the different operations of multiple gantry cranes on the same ship or multiple ships. Figure 2 This diagram shows six gantry cranes serving seven different cabins. Each gantry crane and cabin is numbered sequentially.

[0028] The cabin location in this step refers to obtaining the coordinates of the four corner points of each hatch. Figure 2 The rectangular area defined by the coordinates of the four corner points in each group at the top corresponds to the end position of the gantry crane's grab bucket. Figure 2 The diamond-shaped blocks shown correspond to the positions of the unloading hoppers. It should be noted that the positions of the gantry cranes and the ship's hold can be in a one-to-one correspondence, or multiple gantry cranes can be used to unload material at the end point of the grab bucket's operation. Figure 2 The circle symbol in the middle represents a gantry crane.

[0029] Station location planning refers to determining the gantry crane's trolley position, rotation direction between the gantry crane and the hopper, and hopper position based on scheduling arrangements, ship hold location, gantry crane track location, and permissible placement area of ​​the unloading hopper. That is, for... Figure 2 If the No. 1 gantry crane in the middle position needs to unload material from the No. 1 hopper, the grab bucket of the No. 1 crane, after loading material at the initial position, rotates counterclockwise to the No. 1 unloading hopper position to unload, and then returns clockwise to the starting position. This cycle continues until the material is transported from the hopper to the corresponding unloading hopper. Normally, the parking position of the gantry crane's trolley remains unchanged; during operation, only the hoisting mechanism, luffing mechanism, and slewing mechanism move. The starting and ending positions in this scheme correspond to the hopper and the unloading hopper, respectively. The gantry crane's maximum position, i.e., its stationary position, is set because the gantry crane's trolley position remains stationary during operation; only the slewing mechanism, luffing mechanism, and hoisting mechanism change.

[0030] S2: For each gantry crane, plan its first running trajectory from the starting point to the end point.

[0031] This step describes planning the first running trajectory from the starting point to the ending point, which is to obtain the most efficient running trajectory from the starting position to the ending position of the gantry crane operation, and to obtain the outline and radius of the virtual cylinder corresponding to the first running trajectory. The first running trajectory is as follows: Figure 3 As shown, this is an arc trajectory from the starting point to the ending point.

[0032] S3: For at least one stopped gantry crane, determine whether there is a risk of collision between the current gantry crane at each position along the planned first running trajectory and the corresponding state of adjacent gantry cranes. If there is no risk of collision, then run the current gantry crane; if there is a risk of collision, proceed to step S4. Figure 3 As shown, if the first running trajectory of the current gantry crane intersects with the running trajectory of the adjacent gantry crane at at least once at the same time, or if there is a gap but the gap size is too small and the grab bucket may be at risk of collision, then proceed to step S4 for further processing.

[0033] The gantry crane's operating status includes both stopped and running states. The gantry crane's real-time position includes the position of the gantry crane's trolley, the rotation angle of the gantry crane's rotating mechanism, the gantry crane's luffing radius, and the height of the gantry crane's grab bucket.

[0034] The assessment of gantry crane collision risk involves confirming whether two adjacent gantry cranes will collide or if there is a risk of collision at the same point in time. Collision here refers to any part of two adjacent gantry cranes colliding, or the distance between any part of two adjacent gantry cranes being less than a set distance threshold. This threshold is set to no more than 5%-10% of the sum of the amplitudes of the rotational movements of the rotating mechanisms of the two adjacent gantry cranes. For example, if the amplitude of the rotational mechanism of one gantry crane is R1 and the amplitude of the rotational mechanism of an adjacent gantry crane is R2, then the minimum distance between them is 5%-10% (R1+R2). If the distance between the positions of the two adjacent gantry cranes on their respective virtual arcs at the current moment is less than 5%-10% (R1+R2), then a collision risk is considered to exist between the two gantry cranes at that moment, and at least one of their first operating trajectories needs to be adjusted. Usually, the operating trajectory of the current gantry crane is adjusted because the current gantry crane is in a stopped state while the adjacent gantry crane is in a running state. Only when the adjustment of the current gantry crane cannot meet the collision prevention or minimum distance requirements will the first operating trajectories of both the current and adjacent gantry cranes be adjusted simultaneously.

[0035] S4: The first running trajectory and / or start time of the current gantry crane are adjusted using a collaborative trajectory planning method to obtain the adjusted second running trajectory. The second running trajectory of the current gantry crane is then judged again to determine whether there is a risk of collision with the corresponding state of the adjacent gantry crane. The current gantry crane runs according to the adjusted second running trajectory after there is no risk of collision with the adjacent gantry crane, so as to achieve mutual avoidance between multiple gantry cranes.

[0036] This step employs a collaborative trajectory planning method to adjust the initial operating trajectory and / or start time of each gantry crane, obtaining the adjusted second operating trajectory. Specifically, for each gantry crane, with efficiency and safety as objectives, the A* algorithm is used to obtain the second operating trajectory based on its own motion rules and anti-sway control constraints. The A* algorithm is a commonly used and efficient direct search method for finding the shortest path in a static road network. Its purpose is to select the shortest path to avoid obstacles, such as two or more adjacent gantry cranes, ship cranes, ship decks, and hoppers on the ground, at a given moment when a collision may occur. The A* algorithm is common knowledge to those skilled in the art and will not be elaborated upon here.

[0037] Specifically, the above-mentioned machine motion rules simultaneously satisfy the following conditions: 1) Obtain the three-dimensional laser point cloud of the environment where each gantry crane is located, and construct a three-dimensional map of the gantry crane's work object and obstacles; 2) The gantry crane and grab bucket do not collide with any obstacles in real time during operation; 3) The number of acceleration and deceleration movements of the gantry crane's hoisting mechanism, rotating mechanism, or luffing mechanism is minimized; 4) The swaying amplitude of each gantry crane's grab bucket during operation meets the hoisting requirements; 5) If there is a possibility of collision, the hoisting mechanism or luffing mechanism of the current gantry crane that meets the operating conditions is activated first, and then the gantry crane's rotating mechanism rotates, thereby causing the virtual cylindrical surface and its radius formed by the rotation mechanism to shift and change; 6) The cumulative value of the change in the area of ​​the virtual cylindrical surface caused by the change in the radius of the virtual cylindrical surface corresponding to each gantry crane bypassing the obstacle is minimized.

[0038] Regarding the aforementioned machine motion rule 3), if two or more adjacent gantry cranes are simultaneously unloading materials from the same hatch, such as gantry crane 2 and gantry crane 3, although their rotation directions are different (gantry crane 2's first unloading trajectory is counterclockwise and gantry crane 3's is clockwise), their starting positions are the same. To reduce the waiting time for either gantry crane, if gantry crane 2 starts first, the angular velocity of its rotating mechanism can be greater than that of gantry crane 3. Thus, when gantry crane 2 reaches its starting position and begins unloading, gantry crane 3 stops and waits. When gantry crane 2 completes its work and returns clockwise to its starting point along its first trajectory, gantry crane 3 reaches its ending position and begins unloading. This aims to maintain a uniform speed as much as possible, reducing the adverse effects of sudden acceleration or deceleration on the grab's attitude and shortening the time wasted adjusting the grab's attitude. In this situation, the original first trajectory does not need to be changed; only the starting time and / or the angular velocity of the rotating mechanism of the different gantry cranes need to be adjusted to achieve staggered operation and avoid the risk of collision.

[0039] like Figure 3 The following example illustrates this: the first movement trajectories of gantry cranes 5 and 6 are opposite in direction; the first movement trajectory of gantry crane 5 is clockwise, and the first movement trajectory of gantry crane 6 is counterclockwise. After gantry crane 5 passes through the area where a collision may occur using the adjusted second running trajectory with a rotation radius R1', the luffing mechanism actuates again, restoring the rotation radius of the rotating mechanism to R1, until it reaches the hatch corresponding to the endpoint position. Figure 3 As shown in the diagram below, the radius change of the luffing mechanism of gantry crane 5 creates a fan-shaped cross-sectional notch on the virtual cylindrical surface corresponding to the first operating trajectory, i.e., the fan-shaped area corresponding to the rotation radius R1'. The machine motion rule 6) requires that the sum of the fan-shaped areas generated by each gantry crane to avoid collision risk be minimized. The fan-shaped area generated by the trajectory adjustment of gantry crane 5 can be obtained based on the difference between radii R1 and R1' and the central angle corresponding to the second operating trajectory. It should be noted that when avoiding collision risk, the trajectory adjustment can be performed on one of the adjacent gantry cranes, or the radius adjustment can be performed on two adjacent gantry cranes simultaneously. After the radius adjustment, the minimum distance requirement to avoid collision must still be met.

[0040] The aforementioned anti-sway control constraints are achieved by using an LQR linear quadratic matrix to determine the direction, velocity, and acceleration of the hoisting mechanism, luffing mechanism, or slewing mechanism during rotation, minimizing the deviation between the gantry crane's grab and its endpoint. The LQR linear quadratic matrix obtains the current attitude of the gantry crane's body, hoisting mechanism, slewing mechanism, or luffing mechanism using corresponding sensors installed on these components. This serves as the state feedback for the LQR linear quadratic matrix, providing feedback signals for adjusting the direction, velocity, and acceleration of the hoisting mechanism, luffing mechanism, or slewing mechanism during rotation, thereby preventing collisions between adjacent grabs on the gantry crane that might occur due to excessive swing amplitude.

[0041] S5: Repeat steps S2-S4 above to enable all gantry cranes in the area to work collaboratively. Specifically, step S4 may yield multiple adjusted second operating trajectory schemes; when each gantry crane executes the first or second operating trajectory, it must ensure that, without collision, the hoisting mechanism, slewing mechanism, and luffing mechanism complete one operation in the shortest time, i.e., the combination scheme of the first and / or second operating trajectories that conforms to the machine's motion rules, anti-sway control constraints, and the improved A* algorithm with the highest efficiency.

[0042] When a gantry crane completes one operation, if it is a material transfer from the ship side to the shore side, it means that the gantry crane's grab bucket picks up the material from one operation point in the ship's hold, transports the material to the top of the unloading hopper and unloads it, and then the gantry crane returns to the next operation point in the ship's hold. There may be slight differences in the loading or unloading positions each time. The requirement here is that the time taken for each operation of each gantry crane is minimized.

[0043] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the present invention. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of the present invention should be included within the protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. A method for automated collaborative operation of multiple gantry cranes, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: S1: Based on the scheduling arrangements, the location of the ship's hold, the location of the gantry crane track, and the permitted placement area of ​​the unloading hopper, plan and deploy the gantry crane and unloading hopper positions; The scheduling arrangement mentioned in step S1 refers to determining the cabins that need to be operated and assigning at least one gantry crane to each cabin that needs to be operated; the cabin location refers to obtaining the coordinates of the four corner points of each cabin opening; the station planning refers to setting the gantry crane trolley position, the rotation direction of the gantry crane between the cabin and the unloading hopper, and the position of the unloading hopper based on the scheduling arrangement, cabin location, gantry crane track position, and the allowable placement area of ​​the unloading hopper. S2: For each gantry crane, plan its first running trajectory from the starting point to the ending point of the operation; Step S2 describes planning a first running trajectory for each gantry crane from the starting position to the ending position. This is to obtain the most efficient running trajectory from the starting position to the ending position of the gantry crane operation, and to obtain the outline and radius of the virtual cylinder corresponding to the first running trajectory. S3: For at least one gantry crane that has stopped running, determine whether there is a risk of collision between the current gantry crane at each position according to the planned first running trajectory and the corresponding state of the adjacent gantry cranes. If there is no risk of collision, then run the current gantry crane. If there is a risk of collision, proceed to step S4; S4: The first running trajectory and / or start time of the current gantry crane are adjusted by adopting a collaborative trajectory planning method to obtain the adjusted second running trajectory. The second running trajectory of the current gantry crane is then judged again to determine whether there is a risk of collision with the corresponding state of the adjacent gantry crane. After there is no risk of collision with the adjacent gantry crane, the current gantry crane runs according to the adjusted second running trajectory to achieve mutual avoidance between multiple gantry cranes. Step S4 describes using a collaborative trajectory planning method to adjust the first operating trajectory and / or start time of each gantry crane to obtain the adjusted second operating trajectory. This involves each gantry crane using the A* algorithm to obtain its second operating trajectory based on its own motion rules and anti-sway control constraints, with efficiency and safety as the objectives. The aforementioned machine motion rules simultaneously satisfy the following conditions: 1) Obtain the 3D laser point cloud of the environment where each gantry crane is located, and construct a 3D map of the gantry crane's work objects and obstacles; 2) The gantry crane and its grab bucket do not collide with any obstacles in real time during operation; 3) The number of acceleration and deceleration movements of the gantry crane's hoisting mechanism, rotating mechanism, or luffing mechanism is minimized; 4) The swaying amplitude of each gantry crane's grab bucket during operation meets the hoisting requirements; 5) If there is a possibility of collision, the hoisting mechanism or luffing mechanism of the current gantry crane that meets the operating conditions is activated first, and then the gantry crane's rotating mechanism rotates, thereby causing the virtual cylindrical surface and its radius formed by the rotation mechanism to shift and change; 6) The cumulative value of the change in the area of ​​the virtual cylindrical surface caused by the change in the radius of the virtual cylindrical surface corresponding to each gantry crane bypassing the obstacle is minimized. S5: Repeat steps S2-S4 above to enable all gantry cranes in the area to work together.

2. The method for automated collaborative operation of multiple gantry cranes according to claim 1, characterized in that, The anti-sway control constraint is obtained by using an LQR linear quadratic matrix to determine the direction, speed, and acceleration of the hoisting mechanism, luffing mechanism, or slewing mechanism during rotation, and to minimize the deviation between the gantry crane's grab and the endpoint.

3. The method for automated collaborative operation of multiple gantry cranes according to claim 2, characterized in that, The real-time position includes the position of the gantry crane trolley, the rotation angle of the gantry crane rotating mechanism, the amplitude of the gantry crane's rotation, and the height of the gantry crane's grab bucket; the gantry crane's operating status includes a stopped state and a running state; the collision refers to any part of two adjacent gantry cranes colliding with each other or the distance between any part of two adjacent gantry cranes being less than a set distance threshold, which is no more than 5%-10% of the sum of the amplitudes of the rotational movements of the rotating mechanisms of the two adjacent gantry cranes.

4. The method for automated collaborative operation of multiple gantry cranes according to claim 1, characterized in that, Step S5, which enables all gantry cranes in the area to work in coordination, is the solution that minimizes the time required for the hoisting mechanism, slewing mechanism, and luffing mechanism to complete one round of work without collision when each gantry crane executes the first or second running trajectory.

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