Intelligent distribution vehicle and control method thereof

Abstract

The intelligent distribution vehicle comprises a fork arm, a pallet fork, an electromagnet and a control unit. The pallet fork is jointed to the fork arm and extends forwards from the fork arm; the electromagnet is mounted on the front side of the fork arm; the control unit determines whether the object has magnetism and controls whether to supply current to the electromagnet when the object is placed on the yoke.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an intelligent delivery vehicle capable of stably fixing a pallet on a loading portion and a control method for the intelligent delivery vehicle. Background Art

[0002] Not only in ordinary distribution warehouses and factories, but also in smart factories that use various components to manufacture products of different specifications, smart delivery vehicles are being introduced to achieve flexible and efficient supply and transportation of components, etc.

[0003] Smart delivery vehicles are a general concept for autonomous mobile robots (AMRs), automated guided vehicles (AGVs), unmanned forklifts, etc. This type of smart delivery vehicle can move and operate according to the control system.

[0004] In smart factories, etc., smart delivery vehicles transport pallets carrying various goods. The pallets need to be fixed to the loading part of the smart delivery vehicle to prevent the pallets from shaking, thereby preventing safety accidents in advance.

[0005] Since pallets used in smart factories and the like have various shapes and materials depending on their types, a method of simply mechanically fixing the pallet to the loading portion of a smart delivery vehicle may result in a safety accident.

[0006] Therefore, there is a need for a method for stably fixing pallets having various shapes and materials to a loading portion of a smart delivery vehicle.

[0007] The above content is only intended to help understand the background technology of the present invention, and is not intended to mean that the present invention falls within the scope of the prior art known to those skilled in the art. Summary of the invention

[0008] Technical issues

[0009] Accordingly, an object of the present invention is to provide a method for stably fixing a pallet to a loading portion regardless of the shape and material of the pallet loaded on an intelligent delivery vehicle.

[0010] The technical problems to be solved by the present invention are not limited to the above problems, and those skilled in the art will clearly understand other problems not mentioned from the following description.

[0011] Technical Solution

[0012] In order to achieve the purpose of the present invention, according to one aspect of the present invention, there is provided an intelligent delivery vehicle, which includes: a fork arm, a fork, an electromagnet and a control unit; the fork is coupled to the fork arm and extends toward the front of the fork arm; the electromagnet is installed on the front side of the fork arm; the control unit is configured to: when an object is placed on the fork arm, control whether current is supplied to the electromagnet by determining whether the object is magnetic.

[0013] In addition, in order to achieve the purpose of the present invention, according to another aspect of the present invention, a control method for an intelligent delivery vehicle is provided, the control method comprising: loading an object on a fork extending toward the front of a fork arm; when the object is loaded on the fork, detecting whether the object is placed on the fork arm; when the object is placed on the fork arm, controlling whether current is supplied to an electromagnet installed on the front side of the fork arm by determining whether the object is magnetic.

[0014] Beneficial effects

[0015] According to various aspects of the present invention as described above, a pallet can be stably fixed to a loading portion regardless of the shape and material of the pallet loaded on a smart delivery vehicle.

[0016] Effects obtainable according to the present invention are not limited to the above-mentioned effects, and other effects not mentioned herein will be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the following description. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a smart factory that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 2 : is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a control device that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a smart delivery vehicle that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Figure 4 is a stereoscopic diagram showing an example of the appearance of a smart delivery vehicle that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0021] Figure 5 is a flowchart showing an example of a driving process of a smart delivery vehicle that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0022] Figure 6 is a perspective view showing an example of the appearance of a smart delivery vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 7 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a smart delivery vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0024] Figure 8 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a process in which the placement detection sensor detects whether a tray is placed on a fork arm according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0025] Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating the operation of a placement detection sensor implemented as a push button switch according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] Fig.10 is a circuit diagram showing an example of an electromagnet control system included in a smart delivery vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0027] Fig.11 : is a schematic diagram showing an example of a process in which a clamp clamps the lower end surface of a tray according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0028] Fig.12 is a flow chart illustrating a control method for a smart delivery vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0029] Description of Reference Numerals

[0030] 100: Smart Factory

[0031] 110: Intelligent delivery vehicles

[0032] 120: Production equipment

[0033] 130: Detection device

[0034] 140: Control device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0035] Hereinafter, the exemplary embodiments disclosed in this specification will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. In this specification, the same or similar components will be represented by the same or similar reference numerals, and their repeated description will be omitted. In the following description, only considering the convenience of writing the following description, the expressions "module" and "component" contained in the terms of the constituent elements will be selected or used together, and the expressions "module" and "component" do not necessarily have different meanings or functions. If it is determined that the detailed description of the known technology obscures the embodiment of this specification, the detailed description of the known technology will be omitted. In addition, the accompanying drawings are only intended to easily describe the embodiments of this specification, but the spirit and technical scope of this specification are not limited by the accompanying drawings. It should be understood that this specification is not limited to the specifically disclosed embodiments, but includes all modified embodiments, equivalent embodiments, and alternative embodiments that fall within the spirit and technical scope of the present invention.

[0036] Terms including ordinal numbers (such as "first" or "second") used herein may be used to describe various elements, but these elements are not limited by these terms. These terms are used only for the purpose of distinguishing one constituent element from another constituent element.

[0037] When a component is referred to as being "connected" or "in contact with" another component, it should be understood that the component can be directly connected or in contact with the other component, but other components may exist between them. On the other hand, when a component is referred to as being "directly connected" or "in direct contact with" another component, it should be understood that other components do not exist between them.

[0038] Unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, a singular expression includes a plural expression.

[0039] It should be understood that terms such as “including”, “having”, etc. are intended to indicate the presence of features, values, steps, actions, elements, components, or combinations thereof disclosed in the present specification, and are not intended to exclude the possibility that one or more other features, values, steps, actions, elements, components, or combinations thereof may exist or may be added.

[0040] In addition, the "unit" or "control unit" included in the name of the internal configuration of the intelligent delivery vehicle or control system generally refers to a controller that controls a specific function, rather than a general functional unit. For example, each controller may include: a modem / transceiver, a memory, and at least one processor, wherein the modem / transceiver is used to communicate with other controllers or sensors to control the assigned functions; the memory is configured to store an operating system, logic instructions, input / output information; and the at least one processor is configured to perform the determination, calculation, and decision-making required to control the assigned functions. Depending on the implementation scheme, a single processor may be responsible for the operation of multiple controllers.

[0041] First, refer to Figure 1 The configuration of a smart factory in which a smart delivery vehicle according to the implementation scheme is arranged and operated is described.

[0042] Figure 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a smart factory that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0043] refer to Figure 1 The smart factory 100 may include a smart delivery vehicle 110 , a production device 120 , a detection device 130 , and a control device 140 .

[0044] The smart factory 100 may be provided with a plurality of smart delivery vehicles 110, a plurality of production devices 120, and a plurality of detection devices 130 according to the production process and target production speed of the product. Each component will be described below.

[0045] First, the intelligent delivery vehicle 110 may include an autonomous mobile robot (hereinafter, for convenience, referred to as "AMR"), an automatic guided vehicle (hereinafter, for convenience, referred to as "AGV"), and an unmanned forklift. In the smart factory 100, according to the operation strategy of the intelligent delivery vehicle 110, only one type of AGV or AMR may be operated, and AGV and AMR may be operated together in a single smart factory 100.

[0046] Typically, the AGV performs the required operations (movement, direction change, stop, etc.) within the smart factory 100 by identifying and following the guidance facilities arranged on the floor for guiding the AGV. Here, the guidance facilities may refer to optically recognizable marks (dots, 2D codes, etc.), tags that can be identified in a non-contact manner within a short distance (e.g., NFC tags, RFID tags, etc.), magnetic strips, wires, etc., but these are exemplary and not necessarily limited to this. The guidance facilities may be arranged continuously on the floor, or may be arranged discontinuously and spaced apart from each other. Since the AGV basically performs operations by identifying and following the guidance facilities, the guidance facilities need to be pre-installed before the operation. Therefore, when the AGV needs to move to a new path or needs to modify an existing path, it is necessary to actually perform a new installation or modification of the guidance facilities. In addition, the AGV will not deviate from the path set by the guidance facilities. Therefore, typically, when an obstacle is detected on or around the path, the AGV stops until the detected obstacle disappears or the AGV is controlled separately. In the operation of the AGV, since the control device 140 needs to control the AGV based on the guidance facilities, the control device 140 can send instructions to the AGV such as "drive from the current position until the third mark is recognized", "change the forward direction 90 degrees when the third mark is recognized", etc. These instructions can be sent to the AGV as a separate instruction unit or as a task unit including multiple instructions (for example, return, replenishment, charging, patrol, etc.).

[0047] The fact that AMR can determine the current position (i.e., positioning) through surrounding detection, and that AMR can perform self-setting (path planning) by using the position and map is the biggest difference between AMR and AGV. Therefore, when a coordinate-compatible map is shared between the AMR and the control device 140, the control device 140 can control the AMR in a manner in which the control device 140 indicates the path to the AMR based on the coordinates. In addition, when the AMR detects an obstacle while driving, the AMR can set an avoidance path, avoid the obstacle, and return to the existing path. The function of the control device 140 to set the path of the AMR by using one or more passing coordinates can be called global path planning, and the function of the AMR to set a moving path or set an avoidance path between passing coordinates according to the global path planning can be called local path planning.

[0048] Will refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4 A more detailed description of the configuration of the intelligent delivery vehicle 110 is provided below with reference to Figure 5 The driving control process of AMR is described.

[0049] Next, the production device 120 may refer to a device (e.g., a robotic arm, a conveyor belt, etc.) that performs the production process of a product in the smart factory 100. In addition, in a broader sense, the production device 120 may refer to a device that is arranged to assist in performing tasks such as enabling the smart delivery vehicle 110 to enter and leave when the production process is performed by a person. The device arranged to assist in the performance of a task may be a device that detects the state of a designated location (a pallet transported by the smart delivery vehicle 110 can be placed or collected at the designated location) in an area where a specific production process is performed, a device that determines the progress of the process, a mechanism that prevents entry and exit from the area, etc., but is not limited thereto.

[0050] For example, the production device 120 may be controlled by a programmable logic controller (PLC) and may communicate with the control device 140 regarding process progress.

[0051] The detection device 130 may perform a function of acquiring information for determining a condition in the smart factory 100 and then transmitting the information to the control device 140. For example, the detection device 130 may include a camera, a proximity sensor, etc., but is not necessarily limited thereto.

[0052] The control device 140 may obtain information required for the operation of the smart factory 100, or may control each component by communicating with the above components 110, 120, and 130. For example, the control device 140 may perform tasks such as dispatching the smart delivery vehicle 110, setting routes, assigning tasks, managing the process of each product, managing materials, and the like.

[0053] In an embodiment of the control device 140, the control device 140 may include a local control system (ACS: AMR / AGV control system), which is configured to control surrounding process facilities based on the position of the AGV / AMR and is configured to perform task-based control of the AGV / AMR, and the control device 140 may include an integrated control device (MoRIMS: Mobile Robot Integrated Monitoring System), which is configured to integrate and control at least two local control systems. Through each of the multiple local control devices, the integrated control device can control the status and path of all smart delivery vehicles 110 in the smart factory 100, and can control the distribution flow setting and traffic. For example, when the local control system (ACS) is set to a unit of smart delivery robots of the same manufacturer or the same type, the integrated control system can perform integrated control for preventing collisions based on information obtained through multiple local control systems (ACS) by controlling traffic distribution between different types, such as analyzing the bottleneck level of the intersection / overlapping area, controlling the acceleration / deceleration of driving, recreating the avoidance path, etc.

[0054] In addition, the integrated control device may also have a manufacturing execution system (MES), which serves as a superior control entity of the integrated control device. The MES may be linked with an automated scheduler (APS: Advanced Planning and Scheduling).

[0055] In addition to the above-mentioned components 110, 120, 130 and 140 of the smart factory 100, devices for realizing mutual communication between components such as beacons, repeaters, access points (APs), chargers for charging smart delivery vehicles 110, loading spaces for storing or loading parts, traffic lights, roadblocks, waiting spaces for idle smart delivery vehicles 110, etc. can be appropriately arranged in the smart factory 100.

[0056] Below, we will refer to Figure 2 The components of the control device 140 applicable to the embodiment of the present invention are described.

[0057] Figure 2 : is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a control device that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 2 Each component shown is a component mainly shown to be related to the embodiment of the present invention, and more or less components may be included in the actual implementation of the control device 140.

[0058] refer to Figure 2 The control device 140 may include: a firmware management unit 141, a traffic control unit 142, a process management unit 143, a production / distribution management unit 144, an inventory management unit 145, a communication unit 146, a vehicle monitoring unit 147 and a map management unit 148.

[0059] The firmware management unit 141 can obtain the latest firmware of the smart delivery vehicle 110 through the communication unit 146, and can send the firmware to the smart delivery vehicle 110 to perform a firmware update, so that the firmware of the smart delivery vehicle 110 can be kept up to date.

[0060] Traffic control unit 142 may control traffic lights and roadblocks based on the path of smart delivery vehicle 110, and may also redetermine the path of smart delivery vehicle 110 according to traffic.

[0061] The process management part 143 may define a process for each product and may manage tasks such as process progress, process location, and the like.

[0062] The production / distribution management unit 144 may dispatch the smart delivery vehicles 110 based on the tasks.

[0063] The inventory management unit 145 can manage the location and quantity of each material, and such information can be used for more efficient process operations, such as pre-dispatching the smart delivery vehicle 110 to the destination for pallet pickup or return before the actual assembly / consumption of the material is detected.

[0064] The communication unit 146 can communicate with internal components of the smart factory 100 (such as the smart delivery vehicle 110, the production device 120 and the detection device 130) and with external objects (such as a firmware update server).

[0065] The vehicle monitoring unit 147 can monitor the location, path, battery status, communication status, powertrain status, etc. of each smart delivery vehicle 110. Here, the path is a concept including a global path based on waypoints and a real-time local path. In addition, the battery status may include voltage, current, temperature, peak values ​​of voltage and current, state of charge (SOC), state of health (SOH), etc. The communication status may include information about the currently activated communication protocol (Wi-Fi, etc.), the connected AP, the distance to the AP, the channel being used, etc. In addition, the powertrain status may include the load, temperature, RPM, etc. of the drive system.

[0066] In addition, the vehicle monitoring unit 147 can check the tasks, operating modes, firmware versions, etc. currently assigned to each smart delivery vehicle 110.

[0067] The map management unit 148 can obtain the map data of the grid map type acquired by the AMR in the smart delivery vehicle 110 when the AMR is driving in the smart factory 100, and can provide a tool that enables the factory manager to edit the acquired map data. By editing the map data, it is possible to set an area, a virtual lane, an intersection, a prohibited entry area, etc., in which the smart delivery vehicle 110 performs at least one preset operation when entering, but these are examples and are not necessarily limited thereto. In addition, the map management unit 148 can distribute the map to the remaining smart delivery vehicles 110 other than the smart delivery vehicle 110 that initially acquired the grid map through actual driving through the communication unit 146.

[0068] Next, we will refer to Figure 3 and Figure 4 Describe the smart delivery vehicle.

[0069] Figure 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a smart delivery vehicle that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0070] refer to Figure 3 , the intelligent delivery vehicle 110 may include: a driving unit 111, a sensing unit 112, a loading unit 113, a communication unit 114, and a control unit 115. Each component will be described below.

[0071] The driving unit 111 may include a driving source, wheels, suspensions, etc., which participate in the movement, steering, and stopping of the intelligent delivery vehicle 110. A motor powered by an embedded battery (not shown) may be used as a driving source. The wheel may include at least one driving wheel supplied with a driving force from a driving source, and may include a non-driving wheel that rotates without receiving a driving force by the movement of the vehicle body. According to an embodiment of the wheel, when a plurality of driving wheels are provided, the driving source is matched with each driving wheel so that the rotation of each driving wheel can be independently controlled. In this case, the driving wheel may be configured so that the rotation directions of different driving wheels are different from each other, so that steering can be performed without a separate steering mechanism. At least some of the non-driving wheels may be configured as caster-type wheels, but these are exemplary and not necessarily limited thereto.

[0072] The sensing unit 112 is configured to detect the environment around the smart delivery vehicle 100 or the operating state of the smart delivery vehicle 100. In addition, the sensing unit 112 may include at least one selected from the following: a 2D laser scanner (e.g., LiDAR), a 3D vision (stereo) camera, a multi-axis gyroscope sensor, an acceleration sensor, a wheel encoder, and a proximity sensor.

[0073] The encoder can use light emitted from a light emitting element (e.g., a light emitting diode) and can output information that can be used to determine how much the wheel rotates. For example, the encoder can count the number of slits arranged on the wheel or on a disk that rotates with the wheel in a circumferential direction per unit time. The control unit 115 is capable of performing an odometer that estimates displacement by analyzing changes in position relative to time using data acquired by the encoder and the gyro sensor. However, due to slippage or wear of the wheel (changes in the moving radius of the wheel), the displacement estimated based on the encoder data may have errors with the actual displacement. Therefore, when performing odometer, the control unit 115 can perform noise and error correction on the information collected from the wheel and the gyro sensor by using a predetermined algorithm (e.g., EKF: Extended Kalman Filter), and can output a result with a trend close to the actual value. This odometer may be particularly useful when the current position determination (positioning) cannot be performed using the 2D laser scanner described below.

[0074] 2D laser scanners can scan the surrounding environment by rotating the reflector to radiate laser light near the surrounding area and detect the reflected and returned signals. At this time, the detection results in the form of point clouds can be output by analyzing the time difference between radiation / reception and the intensity of the reflected signal.

[0075] The 3D vision camera can calculate the distance to the object based on the time difference between two cameras spaced a predetermined distance apart from each other (i.e., the pixel distance between the images captured by each camera). At this time, a texture projector can be provided that is capable of projecting infrared light of a predetermined pattern so that a plane body of the same color (e.g., a white wall) can be detected.

[0076] Typically, 2D laser scanners may be used for mapping, navigation, object recognition, etc., and 3D cameras may be particularly useful for avoiding obstacles during navigation, but this is an example and is not necessarily limited thereto.

[0077] The loading section 113 is a mechanism for loading items to be transported. In addition, the loading section 113 may include an upper plate as an upper portion of the vehicle body or a workbench arranged on the upper portion of the vehicle body, a lift, a turntable configured to rotate along a vertical axis, a forklift arranged, and a conveyor, or may be a combination thereof. The forklift may support a telescopic function and a tilting function, similar to a conventional forklift.

[0078] The communication unit 114 can communicate with other components in the smart factory 100 (for example, the production device 120 and the control device 140), and can also support communication between smart delivery vehicles 110, and can also communicate with the charger when performing a charging task.

[0079] The control unit 115 is the main body that performs overall control of each of the above-mentioned components 111, 112, 113 and 114, and can perform control of the current task, current position, destination determination, path planning, loading unit, etc. based on the information obtained from the control device 140 through the communication unit 114.

[0080] Figure 4 is a stereoscopic diagram showing an example of the appearance of a smart delivery vehicle that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0081] refer to Figure 4 , an example of AMR is shown as a smart delivery vehicle 110. The vehicle body may have a track-type planar shape having a long axis extending along the 1-axis direction. One drive wheel 111-1 may be arranged in the middle of the vehicle body along the 1-axis direction, may be arranged on the first side along the 2-axis direction, and another drive wheel (not shown) may be arranged on the second side along the 2-axis direction so that the other drive wheel is opposite to the drive wheel 111-1. This arrangement of drive wheels may be referred to as "differential drive (DD)". Although in Figure 4 Although not shown, at least two non-driven wheels may be arranged at the lower part of the vehicle body. In this case, when the two driving wheels rotate at the same speed in the same direction, the driving wheels can move forward or backward along the 1-axis direction, and when the driving wheels rotate at the same speed in opposite directions to each other, the driving wheels can rotate relative to the rotation axis passing through the center C of the plane of the vehicle body. In addition, the sensing unit 112 may be arranged on the front surface portion of the vehicle body, and the loading unit 113 may be arranged on the upper surface portion of the vehicle body. The loading unit 113 may be configured so that the loading unit 113 can be raised along the 3-axis direction, and a bracket, a tray, etc. may be fixed to the upper surface of the loading unit 113 by a guide 113-1.

[0082] However, Figure 4 The shapes of the AMRs in FIG. 1 are exemplary, and obviously, the AGV may have a similar shape, or the AMR may have a different shape.

[0083] Next, we will refer to Figure 5 The driving process of the intelligent delivery vehicle 110 is described.

[0084] Figure 5 1 is a flow chart showing an example of a driving process of a smart delivery vehicle 110 that can be applied to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 5 In the figure, for convenience, it is assumed that the intelligent delivery vehicle 110 is an AMR capable of performing positioning and setting a local path.

[0085] refer to Figure 5,First, when the AMR is driving in the smart factory 100, the AMR can obtain the actual grid map (S501) through LiDAR and the like.

[0086] When the AMR sends the acquired grid map to the control device 140, a grid map editing and matching process (S502) may be performed in the map management unit 148 of the control device 140. Here, the editing process may include a process of setting the above-mentioned various areas in the grid map, a process of assigning a cost to each grid, and the like. Here, the cost assignment may be performed so that as the AMR gets closer to an obstacle or a prohibited entry area, the assigned cost is higher, so that the AMR does not move near an obstacle or move to an area that the AMR should not enter. This is because, when setting a local path, the AMR selects a unit set with the lowest cost between waypoints as the path.

[0087] In addition, the map matching process may refer to a process of matching coordinates between a CAD map used in the design of the smart factory 100, an actual grid map (LiDAR map), and an edited topology map.

[0088] Subsequently, the control device 140 may share the topology map with all AMRs in the factory through the communication unit 146 ( S503 ).

[0089] The subsequent process may be a process applied to each AMR.

[0090] The AMR may determine (position) the current position of the AMR on the map by using the sensor data of the sensing unit 112 and the acquired map (S504). For example, the AMR may determine the current position by comparing the surrounding terrain with the map acquired by LiDAR based on feature points.

[0091] The control device 140 may select a specific AMR and assign a task to the specific AMR. Typically, in a task, at least one waypoint determined by global path planning may be given. A waypoint may be defined as a coordinate on a map, and may be accompanied by information about the direction (i.e., heading) in which the AMR is pointed at the coordinate. Based on such task assignment, a destination may be set in the AMR (S505 is yes), and the AMR may perform local path planning for the waypoint based on the cost in the topological map (S506).

[0092] When the path is determined, the AMR starts driving (S507). In addition, when an obstacle is detected by the sensing unit 112 during driving (S508 is yes), the AMR can perform an avoidance operation by performing a local path search to bypass the detected obstacle (S509). The control device 140 can update the task of the corresponding AMR according to the situation, the avoidance operation, or the failure of the avoidance operation.

[0093] In addition, the AMR may correct the position error during movement by using the aforementioned odometer method while traveling until the AMR reaches the destination ( S510 ).

[0094] Then, when the AMR arrives at the destination (S511), the AMR can perform task-based operations (S512). For example, the AMR can determine whether the conditions for entering a specific process area are met, can collect an empty pallet at the destination, or can drop off the goods loaded on the loading unit 113.

[0095] In an embodiment of the present invention, an intelligent delivery vehicle is proposed, which is capable of stably fixing a pallet to a loading portion regardless of the shape and material of the pallet.

[0096] Below, we will refer to Figure 6 and Figure 7 A smart delivery vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention is described.

[0097] Figure 6 is a perspective view showing an example of the appearance of a smart delivery vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 7 is a block diagram showing an example configuration of an intelligent delivery vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 6 In the figure, the 1-axis direction, the 2-axis direction, and the 3-axis direction correspond to the front-rear direction, the left-right direction, and the up-down direction of the intelligent delivery vehicle 110a, respectively.

[0098] Also refer to Figure 6 and Figure 7 , the intelligent delivery vehicle 110a may include: a loading unit 610, a loading fixing unit 620, a sensing unit 630 and a control unit 640. The intelligent delivery vehicle 110a may be implemented as an unmanned forklift. However, Figure 6 The shape of the unmanned forklift in the figure is an example, and the smart delivery vehicle 110a can have different shapes.

[0099] The loading part 610 may be implemented as a forklift positioned at the front side of the smart delivery vehicle 110a and configured to transport a pallet, and may include a bracket 610-1, a fork arm 610-2, and a fork 610-3.

[0100] The bracket 610-1 can move up and down along the three-axis directions based on the driving force of the driving source provided in the smart delivery vehicle 110a.

[0101] The fork arm 610-2 may be coupled to the front side of the bracket 610-1 so that the fork arm 610-2 supports the side of the pallet, may extend downward by a predetermined length, and may be located at both sides of the bracket 610-1 relative to the central portion of the bracket 610-1. The fork arm 610-2 may move up and down along the 3-axis direction along with the movement of the bracket 610-1 according to the forklift operation, and may move left and right along the 2-axis direction relative to the central portion of the bracket 610-1 according to the fork shift operation.

[0102] The fork 610 - 3 may be coupled to each fork arm 610 - 2 such that the fork 610 - 3 supports the lower end surface of the pallet, and may extend toward the front side of the fork arm 610 - 2 by a predetermined length.

[0103] The loading and fixing part 620 may include an electromagnet 621 for electrically fixing the tray loaded on the loading part 610, and the loading and fixing part 620 may include a clamp 622 for mechanically fixing the tray loaded on the loading part 610. In the present embodiment, the electromagnet 621 may be configured to enable a metal type tray to be stably fixed to the loading part 610, and the clamp 622 may be configured to enable a lower end surface of the tray to be physically fixed, regardless of whether it is a metal type tray or a non-metal type tray.

[0104] The electromagnet 621 is installed at the front side of each fork arm 610-2. In addition, when the metal type pallet is loaded on the loading part 610, the electromagnet 621 is magnetized so that the metal type pallet is pulled. In addition, when the loaded metal type pallet is unloaded from the loading part 610, the electromagnet 621 can return to the original state of the non-magnetized state. The electromagnet 621 can move with the bracket 610-1 during the fork shifting operation and the forklift operation, so that the metal type pallet can be fixed.

[0105] The clamp 622 may be arranged adjacent to the fork arm 610-2. For example, the clamp 622 may have a clamp 622a that is coupled to the rear side of the bracket 610-1 and extends downward by a predetermined length and is positioned on the outside of each fork arm 610-2. The clamp 622 may move up and down along the 3-axis direction together with the bracket 610-1, or may move up and down along the 3-axis direction independently of the bracket 610-1. The clamp 622a may include a first contact portion t that contacts a first side of the lower end surface of the tray and a second contact portion b that contacts a second side of the lower end surface of the tray, the first contact portion t and the second contact portion b being configured to limit the movement of the lower end surface of the tray loaded on the loading portion 610. The distance between the first contact portion t and the second contact portion b may be adjusted by a motor according to the thickness of the lower end surface of the tray.

[0106] The sensing part 630 may include a placement detection sensor 631 and a magnetic detection sensor 632 , and may be disposed at the front side of each fork arm 610 - 2 .

[0107] The placement detection sensor 631 may be implemented as a switch-type push button switch that detects whether the pallet is loaded on the fork arm 610 - 2 .

[0108] In order to distinguish whether the pallet loaded on the loading portion 610 is a metal type pallet or a non-metal type pallet, the magnetic detection sensor 632 may detect whether the pallet located at the front side of the fork arm 610 - 2 has magnetism.

[0109] When the pallet is loaded on the fork 610-3 (which extends toward the front side of the fork arm 610-2 coupled to the bracket 610-1), the control unit 640 can determine whether the pallet is placed on the fork arm 610-2 according to the on and off of the placement detection sensor 631. More specifically, when the placement detection sensor 631 is turned on, the control unit 640 determines that the pallet is placed on the fork arm 610-2. In addition, when the placement detection sensor 631 is turned off, the control unit 640 determines that the pallet is not placed on the fork arm 610-2, so that the position of the pallet can be adjusted by the loading unit 610.

[0110] When the control part 640 determines that the pallet is placed on the fork arm 610-2, the control part 640 can determine whether the pallet has magnetism by using the magnetic detection sensor 632 located at the front side of the fork arm 610-2, and can control whether the control part 640 supplies current to the electromagnet 621 installed at the front side of the fork arm 610-2 according to the determination result. More specifically, when the control part 640 determines that the pallet has magnetism through the magnetic detection sensor 632 (that is, when it is determined that the pallet is a metal type pallet), the control part 640 can magnetize the electromagnet 621 by supplying current to the electromagnet 621 so that attraction acts on the electromagnet 621 and the metal type pallet. On the contrary, when the control part 640 determines that the pallet does not have magnetism through the magnetic detection sensor 632 (that is, when it is determined that the pallet is a non-metal type pallet), the control part 640 can block the current supplied to the electromagnet 621.

[0111] In addition, when the control unit 640 determines that the pallet is placed on the fork arm 610-2, the control unit 640 can control the clamping of the clamp 622a (which is provided on the clamp 622 coupled to the bracket 610-1) so that the movement of the pallet is restricted. In order to control the clamping of the clamp 622a, the control unit 640 can adjust the distance between the first contact portion t and the second contact portion b provided on the clamp 622a based on the torque of the motor (not shown), thereby physically fixing the lower end surface of the pallet.

[0112] On the other hand, since the thickness of the lower end surface of the tray varies depending on the type of the tray, the controller 640 may adjust the distance between the first contact portion t and the second contact portion b provided in the clamper 622a according to the thickness of the lower end surface of the tray.

[0113] In order to adjust the distance between the first contact portion t and the second contact portion b provided in the clamper 622a according to the thickness of the lower end surface of the tray without a separate sensor to detect the thickness of the lower end surface of the tray, the control portion 640 according to this embodiment can detect the torque of the motor.

[0114] The control unit 640 can determine whether the clamper 622a performs normal clamping by detecting whether the torque of the motor reaches the target torque. Here, when the clamper 622a performs clamping normally, the torque of the motor may have the same value as the target torque corresponding to the thickness of the lower end surface of the tray. In addition, when the clamper 622a performs clamping abnormally, the torque of the motor may have a value lower than the target torque.

[0115] That is, when the torque of the motor reaches the target torque, the control unit 640 can determine that the clamping of the clamp 622a is performed normally. On the other hand, when the torque of the motor does not reach the target torque, the control unit 640 can determine that the clamping of the clamp 622a is performed abnormally, and can adjust the position of the clamp 622 up and down along the 3-axis direction, and then can control the clamping of the clamp 622a again.

[0116] Figure 8 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a process in which the placement detection sensor detects whether a tray is placed on a fork arm according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0117] Figure 8 The diagram shows a situation where any one of the two placement detection sensors 631 fails to detect whether the pallet is placed on the fork arm 610 - 2 due to deviation of the pallet loaded on the loading unit 610 . Figure 8 The left side of FIG. 1 shows a situation where the placement detection sensor 631 located on the first side in the 2-axis direction fails to detect whether the tray is placed. Figure 8 The right side of FIG. 6 shows a case where the placement detection sensor 631 located on the second side in the 2-axis direction fails to detect whether the pallet is placed. In these cases, the control unit 640 determines that the pallet is not placed on the fork arm 610-2, and the control unit 640 can readjust the position of the pallet through the loading unit 610.

[0118] Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram illustrating the operation of the placement detection sensor 631 implemented as a push button switch according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0119] Fig. 9 The left side corresponds to the case where the placement detection sensor 631 is turned off because the pallet p is not placed on the fork arm 610-2. Fig. 9 The right side of corresponds to a case where the placement detection sensor 631 is turned on because the pallet p is placed on the fork arm 610-2.

[0120] Fig.10 is a circuit diagram showing an example of an electromagnet control system included in a smart delivery vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0121] refer to Fig.10 The smart delivery vehicle may include an electromagnet 621, a control unit 640, a power supply device 650, and an electronic switch sw. The power supply device 650 may be implemented as a battery, and the electronic switch sw may be implemented as a transistor, but is not necessarily limited thereto.

[0122] When the electronic switch sw is turned on, the power supply device 650 may supply current to the electromagnet 621 .

[0123] The electronic switch sw is connected between a first end of the power supply device 650 and a first end of the electromagnet 621 , so that the on state of the electronic switch sw can be controlled by the control part 640 .

[0124] The control part 640 may determine whether the tray has magnetism through the magnetism detection sensor 632 , and may control the on state of the electronic switch sw according to the determination result.

[0125] More specifically, when the control portion 640 determines that the tray has magnetism, the control portion 640 may control the electronic switch sw so that the electronic switch sw is in an on state. Accordingly, the power supply device 650 may supply current to the electromagnet 621 .

[0126] On the contrary, when the control part 640 determines that the tray does not have magnetism, the control part 640 may control the electronic switch sw so that the electronic switch sw is in an off state. Accordingly, the current supplied from the power supply device 650 to the electromagnet 621 may be cut off.

[0127] Fig.11 : is a schematic diagram showing an example of a process in which a clamp clamps the lower end surface of a tray according to an embodiment of the present invention. Fig.11 The clamper 622a provided on the fixture 622 includes a first contact surface t and a second contact surface b, and the control unit 640 can adjust the distance d between the first contact surface t and the second contact surface b according to the thickness th of the lower end surface 660-1 of the tray 660. Accordingly, the lower end surface 660-1 of the tray 660 can be physically fixed by the clamper 622a.

[0128] Fig.12 is a flow chart illustrating a control method for a smart delivery vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0129] refer to Fig.12 The loading unit 610 may load the pallet onto the fork 610 - 3 through the control unit 640 ( S1201 ).

[0130] When the pallet is loaded on the fork 610-3, the control unit 640 can determine whether the pallet is placed on the fork arm 610-2 (S1202) by using the placement detection sensor 631. As described above, the placement detection sensor 631 can be implemented as a button switch arranged on the front side of the fork arm 610-2, and the control unit 640 can determine whether the pallet is placed on the fork arm 610-2 according to the on and off of the placement detection sensor 631.

[0131] When the placement detection sensor 631 is turned off (S1202: No), the control unit 640 determines that the pallet is not placed on the fork arm 610-2, and the position of the pallet can be adjusted by the loading unit 610 (S1203). Then, the process of S1202 can be performed again.

[0132] When the placement detection sensor 631 is turned on (Yes in S1202 ), the control unit 640 may determine that the pallet is placed on the fork arm 610 - 2 .

[0133] When it is determined that the tray is placed on the fork arm 610-2 (S1202 is yes), the control unit 640 can determine whether the tray has magnetism by using the magnetic detection sensor 632 arranged on the front side of the fork arm 610-2, and control whether the control unit 640 supplies current to the electromagnet 621 installed on the front side of the fork arm 610-2 according to the determination result (S1204). As described above, by controlling the on state of the electronic switch sw (which is connected between the electromagnet 621 and the power supply device 650) according to the magnetism of the tray, the control unit 640 can supply current to the electromagnet 621 or block the supply of current to the electromagnet 621.

[0134] When it is determined that the tray has magnetism (Yes in S1204 ), the control part 640 may magnetize the electromagnet 621 by supplying current to the electromagnet 621 so that an attractive force acts on the electromagnet 621 and the metal type tray ( S1205 ).

[0135] When it is determined that the tray does not have magnetism ( S1204 : No), the control portion 640 may block the current supplied to the electromagnet 621 .

[0136] When it is determined that the pallet is placed on the fork arm 610-2 (S1202 is yes), the control unit 640 can control the clamping of the clamp 622a provided on the clamp 622 (which is arranged adjacent to the fork arm 610-2) so that the movement of the pallet is restricted (S1206). As described above, in order to control the clamping of the clamp 622a, the control unit 640 can adjust the distance between the first contact portion t and the second contact portion b provided on the clamp 622a based on the torque of the motor, thereby physically fixing the lower end surface of the pallet.

[0137] Thereafter, the control portion 640 may determine whether the clamper 622a performs normal clamping by detecting whether the torque of the motor reaches the target torque (S1207).

[0138] When the torque of the motor reaches the target torque (Yes in S1207 ), the control portion 640 may determine that the clamping of the clamper 622 a is normally performed.

[0139] When the torque of the motor does not reach the target torque (No in S1207), the control part 640 determines that the clamping of the clamper 622a is abnormally performed, and the 1206 process may be performed again after adjusting the position of the clamper 622 up and down.

[0140] The present invention described above can be embodied as a computer-readable code on a medium recording a program. Computer-readable media include all types of recording devices storing computer system-readable data. Examples of computer-readable media include hard disk drives (HDDs), solid-state drives (SSDs), silicon disk drives (SDDs), read-only memories (ROMs), random access memories (RAMs), CD-ROMs, magnetic tapes, floppy disks, optical data storage devices, and the like. Therefore, the foregoing detailed description should not be interpreted as limiting, but should be considered to be illustrative in all aspects. The scope of the present invention should be determined by a reasonable interpretation of the appended claims, and all modifications within the equivalent scope of the present invention are considered to be included within the scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An intelligent delivery vehicle, comprising: Wishbone; a fork coupled to the fork arm and extending toward the front of the fork arm; an electromagnet mounted on the front side of the fork arm; as well as The control unit is configured to control whether to supply current to the electromagnet by determining whether the object has magnetism in response to the object being placed on the fork arm.

2. The intelligent delivery vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a button switch, wherein the button switch is arranged on the front side of the fork arm; in, The control unit is configured to determine whether the object is placed on the fork arm according to the on and off of the button switch.

3. The intelligent delivery vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a magnetic detection sensor, wherein the magnetic detection sensor is arranged on the front side of the fork arm; in, The control unit is configured to determine whether the object has magnetism through the magnetism detection sensor.

4. The intelligent delivery vehicle according to claim 1, wherein: The control section is configured to, in response to determining that the object has magnetism, supply current to the electromagnet to magnetize the electromagnet, thereby causing an attractive force to act on the electromagnet and the object.

5. The intelligent delivery vehicle according to claim 4, further comprising: Power supply unit; and an electronic switch connected between the electromagnet and the power supply device; The control unit is configured to: in response to determining that the object has magnetism, control the electronic switch to put the electronic switch in an on state.

6. The intelligent delivery vehicle according to claim 5, wherein: The control unit is configured to, in response to determining that the object does not have magnetism, control the electronic switch to turn off the electronic switch.

7. The intelligent delivery vehicle according to claim 1, further comprising a clamp, the clamp being arranged adjacent to the fork arm and having a clamp, the clamp being used to restrict movement of an object loaded on the fork; in, The control unit is configured to control the clamping of the clamper in response to the object being placed on the fork arm.

8. The intelligent delivery vehicle according to claim 7, wherein: The holder comprises: a first contact portion that contacts a first side of a lower end surface of the object; and a second contact portion that contacts a second side of the lower end surface of the object; The control part is configured to adjust the distance between the first contact part and the second contact part based on the torque of the motor in response to the object being placed on the fork arm, thereby controlling the clamping of the clamper.

9. The intelligent delivery vehicle according to claim 8, wherein: The control unit is configured to determine whether the clamper performs clamping normally by detecting whether the torque of the motor reaches the target torque; The control unit is configured to adjust the position of the clamp in response to the torque of the motor failing to reach the target torque.

10. A method for controlling an intelligent delivery vehicle, the method comprising: Loading the object on the forks extended toward the front of the fork arm; In response to the object being loaded on the fork, detecting whether the object is placed on the fork arm; In response to an object being placed on the fork arm, whether current is supplied to an electromagnet installed at the front side of the fork arm is controlled by determining whether the object has magnetism.

11. The method according to claim 10, wherein: Testing includes: Whether the object is placed on the fork arm is determined by turning on and off a button switch arranged on the front side of the fork arm.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein: Controlling whether to supply the current includes determining whether the object has magnetism through a magnetism detection sensor disposed at a front side of the fork arm.

13. The method according to claim 10, wherein: Controlling whether to supply current includes: In response to determining that the object has magnetism, magnetizing the electromagnet by supplying current to the electromagnet so that an attractive force acts on the electromagnet and the object; In response to determining that the object is not magnetic, current supplied to the electromagnet is interrupted.

14. The method according to claim 10, wherein: Controlling whether to supply the current further includes controlling a turn-on state of an electronic switch connected between the electromagnet and the power supply device according to the magnetism of the object.

15. The method according to claim 10, further comprising: The gripping of a gripper provided at a fixture disposed adjacent to the fork arm is controlled in response to an object being placed on the fork arm.

16. The method according to claim 15, wherein: Controlling the clamping includes adjusting a distance between a first contact portion and a second contact portion based on a torque of a motor, wherein the first contact portion and the second contact portion are disposed on the clamper.

17. The method according to claim 16, further comprising: determining whether the gripper performs gripping normally by detecting whether the torque of the motor reaches the target torque; The position of the clamp is adjusted in response to the torque of the motor failing to reach the target torque.

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