Automatic ladle hanging system and method for slow cooling field of metallurgical crane

Abstract

An automatic ladle hanging system and method for a metallurgical crane slow cooling field comprises a main lifting mechanism and a gantry hook located below the main lifting mechanism, and a weighing system is arranged on the gantry hook; a video system and a radar imaging system are further arranged at the position of the cinder ladle, the video system comprises cameras which are located at a cinder ladle lifting lug and a cinder ladle tail hook respectively, and the cameras transmit shot ladle hanging state images to the AI processor; the radar imaging system comprises radar sensors which are respectively positioned at a cinder ladle lifting lug and a cinder ladle tail hook, all the radar sensors are connected with the radar analysis system, and the radar analysis system generates a point cloud image according to data transmitted by the radar sensors; the main lifting mechanism, the weighing system, the video system and the radar imaging system are all connected with the automatic control system. After the method is adopted, the automation of the slow cooling field has a perfect automatic bag hanging solution, the safety is high, the operability is high, and the success rate is high.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to an automatic bag hanging system and method for a slow cooling field of a metallurgical crane. Background Art

[0002] Currently, in the slow cooling project, the environment is harsh and metallurgical cranes require high safety, stability and sustainability. They are all manually operated with low automation and low efficiency.

[0003] There are two situations for the operation of metallurgical gantry crane hanging bags. The first is the transfer of slag bags from flat cars to slow cooling yards, or empty bags to flat cars. It is only for transfer, and the auxiliary hook does not need to be involved in the whole process. The auxiliary hook can be raised to the upper limit safety position. The second is the bag turning operation. Not only the main hook needs to automatically hang the bag, but also the auxiliary hook needs to automatically hang the bag and participate in the turning. In addition, the height difference between the two hooks needs to be automatically detected to ensure safe bag turning.

[0004] During the bag turning process, the auxiliary hook is subject to the weight of the slag bag or the main hook is unhooked, which may cause the bag to over-tilt easily. At the same time, it is also necessary to avoid the problem that the slag bag is not tilted enough, resulting in residual slag. This reduces the efficiency of effective slag discharge in the existing bag hanging system and affects production. Summary of the invention

[0005] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is: how to enable the crane to have the functions of automatic bag identification and automatic alignment, so as to achieve the ability of fast and accurate automatic bag hanging, and therefore provide a metallurgical crane slow cooling field automatic bag hanging system and method.

[0006] To achieve the above object, the present invention is achieved through the following technical solutions: A metallurgical crane slow cooling field automatic bag hanging system, comprising a main lifting mechanism and a gantry hook located below the main lifting mechanism, a weighing system is arranged on the gantry hook; a video system and a radar imaging system are also arranged at the slag bag position, wherein the video system comprises cameras respectively located at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook, and the cameras transmit the photographed bag hanging state image to the AI ​​processor; the radar imaging system comprises radar sensors respectively located at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook, all of the above radar sensors are connected to the radar analysis system, the radar analysis system generates a point cloud image according to the data transmitted by the radar sensor, and the main lifting mechanism, weighing system, video system and radar imaging system are all connected to the automatic control system.

[0007] A method for automatically hanging bags in a slow cooling field of a metallurgical crane using the above system comprises the following steps: Step 1), the automatic control system controls the metallurgical gantry crane to automatically move to the designated slag bag position; then perform the following operations: 1.1) In the initial state: the camera of the video system obtains the slag bag images at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the radar imaging system obtains the point cloud images at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the above-mentioned video system and radar imaging system transmit the obtained slag bag images and point cloud images to the automatic control system; 1.2) The automatic control system performs data fusion on the slag bag image and the point cloud image, and pre-processes the data; 1.3) Extract features from the image data, obtain the precise location of the slag bag, and obtain the position and posture data of the slag bag; Step 2), the automatic control system controls the main lifting mechanism to carry out the main hook hanging eye operation and tail hook hanging operation: the main lifting mechanism descends to a position about 200mm below the slag bag lifting eye side, and the automatic control system controls the gantry hook head to move toward the slag bag lifting eye in the direction of the trolley. After the gantry hook head contacts the lifting eye ear axis, the trolley stops moving; then, the gantry hook is lifted upward for an appropriate distance. Due to the gravity of the gantry hook itself, the hook head will be close to the lifting eye ear axis. After the lifting eye enters the interior of the gantry hook, it stops rising and waits for remote manual confirmation; When the tail hook needs to be hung, the process of the auxiliary hook hanging the tail hook and the main hook hanging the lifting eye is as follows: the auxiliary hook is lowered to a position about 200mm below the tail hook of the slag bag, and then moved to the lower part of the tail hook of the slag bag with the hook head of the gantry hook, the auxiliary hook is lifted to an appropriate distance, and the chain of the tail hook automatically hangs on the tail hook of the slag bag; Step 3) The video system provides the bag hanging status image near the on-site lifting eye, and the bag hanging status image is identified through AI technology. The bag hanging status is judged and the judgment result is clearly given; at the same time, the radar imaging system will also judge the point cloud image near the lifting eye and the tail hook to determine whether the hook is successful; the operator confirms whether the bag is successfully hung according to the judgment results of the video system and the radar imaging system and the actual situation; Step 3) specifically includes the following steps: Step 3.1) The camera of the video system obtains the bag hanging state images at the slag bag lifting eye and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the radar imaging system obtains the point cloud images at the slag bag lifting eye and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the above-mentioned video system and radar imaging system transmit the obtained bag hanging state images and point cloud images to the automatic control system; at this time, the bag hanging state images and point cloud images are real-time images of the main hook hanging eye operation and the tail hook operation; 3.2) The automatic control system performs data fusion on the bag status image and the point cloud image, and pre-processes the data; 3.3) Extract features from the image data to obtain hook / unhook status data; Step 4), execute the unhooking / hooking success detection algorithm, specifically: if it is manually determined that the bag is hung successfully, click the confirmation button on the interface, and the gantry hook will continue to rise 100~150mm and then stop; at this time, the weighing system measures the gantry hook. If the weight measured by the weighing system is within a reasonable range, it is confirmed that the hook is successful and the rising operation continues; if the weight is not within a reasonable range, it is determined that the bag is hung unsuccessfully, and the system automatically alarms and waits for manual processing; Step 5), automatic bag turning and automatic unhooking: When the slag bag needs to be turned over, the gantry hook carries the fully loaded slag bag to the bag turning area, descends to the corresponding height, and then the tail hook is lifted. As the height of the tail hook is increased, the copper slag in the slag bag will be poured out one after another; when it reaches a certain height, all the copper slag is poured out, and then the tail hook is lowered to a suitable height and the slag bag becomes horizontal. The tail hook continues to descend about 200mm, and then moves horizontally to the outside to complete the automatic unhooking process.

[0008] Compared with the prior art, the present invention has the following beneficial effects: the post-slow cooling field automation of the present invention has a complete automatic bag hanging solution, high safety, strong operability and high success rate. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0009] Figure 1 It is the overall flow chart of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0010] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present invention to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present invention, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments of the present invention, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of the present invention.

[0011] In the description of the present invention, it is necessary to understand that the terms "upper", "lower", "front", "back", "left", "right", "top", "bottom", "inside", "outside", etc., indicating the orientation or position relationship are based on the orientation or position relationship shown in the drawings, and are only for the convenience of describing the present invention and simplifying the description, rather than indicating or implying that the device or element referred to must have a specific orientation, be constructed and operated in a specific orientation, and therefore cannot be understood as a limitation on the present invention.

[0012] A metallurgical crane slow cooling field automatic bag hanging system, comprising a main lifting mechanism and a gantry hook located below the main lifting mechanism, wherein a weighing system is arranged on the gantry hook; a video system and a radar imaging system are also arranged at the slag bag position, wherein the video system comprises cameras respectively located at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook, the cameras are respectively facing the lifting lug and the tail hook on the slag bag, and the cameras transmit the photographed bag hanging state image to an AI processor; the radar imaging system comprises radar sensors respectively located at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook, all of the above radar sensors are connected to a radar analysis system, the radar analysis system generates a point cloud image according to the data transmitted by the radar sensors, and the main lifting mechanism, weighing system, video system and radar imaging system are all connected to an automatic control system.

[0013] like Figure 1 As shown, a method for automatically hanging bags in a slow cooling field of a metallurgical crane comprises the following steps: Step 1), the automatic control system controls the metallurgical gantry crane to automatically move to the designated slag bag position; then perform the following operations: 1.1) In the initial state: the camera of the video system obtains the slag bag images at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the radar imaging system obtains the point cloud images at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the above-mentioned video system and radar imaging system transmit the obtained slag bag images and point cloud images to the automatic control system; 1.2) The automatic control system performs data fusion on the slag bag image and the point cloud image, and performs data preprocessing, including denoising, filtering and other operations; it should be noted that the image data fusion and data preprocessing here are both existing technologies.

[0014] 1.3) Extract features from the image data, obtain the precise location of the slag bag, and obtain the position and posture data of the slag bag; Step 2), the automatic control system controls the main lifting mechanism to perform the main hook hanging eye operation and tail hook hanging operation: the main lifting mechanism descends to a position about 200mm below the side of the slag bag lifting eye, and the automatic control system controls the gantry hook hook head to move toward the slag bag lifting eye in the direction of the trolley. After the gantry hook hook head contacts the lifting eye ear axis, the trolley stops moving; then, the gantry hook is lifted upward by an appropriate distance (about 200mm). Due to the gravity of the gantry hook itself, the hook head will be close to the lifting eye ear axis. After the lifting eye enters the inside of the gantry hook, it stops rising and waits for remote manual confirmation.

[0015] When it is necessary to hang the tail hook, the process of hanging the tail hook with the auxiliary hook is similar to that of hanging the lifting eye with the main hook: the auxiliary hook is lowered to a position about 200mm below the tail hook of the slag bag, and then moved to the bottom of the tail hook of the slag bag with the hook head of the gantry hook. The auxiliary hook is lifted to an appropriate distance, and the chain of the tail hook can automatically hang on the tail hook of the slag bag.

[0016] Step 3) The video system provides the bag hanging status image near the on-site lifting eye, and the bag hanging status image is identified through AI technology. The identified bag hanging status is judged and the judgment result is clearly given; at the same time, the radar imaging system will also judge the point cloud image near the lifting eye and the tail hook to determine whether the hook is successful. The operator confirms whether the bag is successfully hung based on the judgment results of the video system and the radar imaging system and the actual situation.

[0017] Step 3) specifically includes the following steps: Step 3.1) The camera of the video system obtains the bag hanging state images at the slag bag lifting eye and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the radar imaging system obtains the point cloud images at the slag bag lifting eye and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the above-mentioned video system and radar imaging system transmit the obtained bag hanging state images and point cloud images to the automatic control system; at this time, the bag hanging state images and point cloud images are real-time images of the main hook hanging eye operation and the tail hook operation; 3.2) The automatic control system fuses the bag status image and the point cloud image, and pre-processes the data, including denoising, filtering and other operations. It should be noted that the image near the lug is basically clear in summer, but the clarity of the image will be seriously affected by water fog in winter, so multiple filtering operations should be performed during image pre-processing; 3.3) Extract features from the image data and obtain hook / unhook status data.

[0018] Step 4) Execute the unhooking / hooking success detection algorithm, specifically: if the manual judgment is that the bag is hung successfully, click the confirmation button on the interface, and the gantry hook will continue to rise 100~150mm and then stop; at this time, the weighing system measures the gantry hook. If the weight measured by the weighing system is within a reasonable range, it is confirmed that the hook is successfully hung and the rising operation can continue. If the weight is not within a reasonable range, it is judged that the bag is hung unsuccessfully, and the system automatically alarms and waits for manual processing.

[0019] Step 5), automatic bag turning and automatic unhooking: When the slag bag needs to be turned over, the gantry hook carries the fully loaded slag bag to the bag turning area, descends to the corresponding height, and then the tail hook is lifted. As the height of the tail hook is raised, the copper slag in the slag bag will be poured out one after another. When the lifting reaches a certain height, all the copper slag is poured out, and then the tail hook is lowered to a suitable height, the slag bag becomes horizontal, and the tail hook continues to descend about 200mm, and then moves horizontally to the outside to complete the automatic unhooking process.

[0020] In the present invention, before the crane lifts the slag bag, it is necessary to use automatic control technology, automatic positioning technology, etc. to accurately locate the slag bag and then hang the bag. The video AI recognition technology and radar scanning technology are used to judge whether the slag bag is hung successfully. After the previous software realizes the successful hanging of the bag, the weighing system is used to make a final judgment on the hanging state and clearly give the judgment result. At the same time, a manual confirmation link is added to achieve the purpose of secure hanging.

[0021] It should be noted that the height of the bag flipping can be adjusted according to actual needs. If the vibration caused by the bag flipping needs to be reduced, a height of 2~3m is used. If the copper slag needs to be crushed by flipping the bag, a height of 5~6m is more reasonable. Including the tilt angle and height of the bag flipping, they can be tested and adjusted on site until they are the safest and most reliable.

[0022] For on-site safety considerations, video surveillance is introduced for fixed-point location monitoring and AI recognition and detection for the subsequent confirmation of automatic hooking, which provides the operator with a basis for judgment. The host computer pops up a window for confirmation, and confirmation instructions can also be sent manually on-site for subsequent operations.

[0023] Considering safety, operability, and project feasibility, the automatic hooking technology is subject to confirmation from the remote control room, supplemented by identification technology. The automatic hooking solution is divided into two parts: hooking control and hooking success detection. Hooking control mainly includes three key technologies: PLC automatic control, hook anti-sway, and precise positioning. Hooking success detection is mainly achieved by radar system recognition, AI camera recognition technology, and weighing system signals.

[0024] The above is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention. It should be pointed out that for those skilled in the art, several changes and improvements can be made without departing from the overall concept of the present invention, which should also be regarded as the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. An automatic bag hanging system for slow cooling of metallurgical crane, characterized by: It includes a main lifting mechanism and a gantry hook located below the main lifting mechanism, and a weighing system is arranged on the gantry hook; a video system and a radar imaging system are also arranged at the slag bag position, wherein the video system includes cameras respectively located at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook, and the cameras transmit the photographed bag hanging state image to the AI ​​processor; the radar imaging system includes radar sensors respectively located at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook, and all the above radar sensors are connected to the radar analysis system, and the radar analysis system generates a point cloud image according to the data transmitted by the radar sensor, and the main lifting mechanism, weighing system, video system and radar imaging system are all connected to the automatic control system.

2. A method for automatically hanging bags in a metallurgical crane slow cooling field using the system described in claim 1, comprising the following steps: Step 1), the automatic control system controls the metallurgical gantry crane to automatically move to the designated slag bag position; then perform the following operations: 1.1) In the initial state: the camera of the video system obtains the slag bag images at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the radar imaging system obtains the point cloud images at the slag bag lifting lug and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the above-mentioned video system and radar imaging system transmit the obtained slag bag images and point cloud images to the automatic control system; 1.2) The automatic control system performs data fusion on the slag bag image and the point cloud image, and pre-processes the data; 1.3) Extract features from the image data, obtain the precise location of the slag bag, and obtain the position and posture data of the slag bag; Step 2), the automatic control system controls the main lifting mechanism to carry out the main hook hanging eye operation and tail hook hanging operation: the main lifting mechanism descends to a position about 200mm below the slag bag lifting eye side, and the automatic control system controls the gantry hook head to move toward the slag bag lifting eye in the direction of the trolley. After the gantry hook head contacts the lifting eye ear axis, the trolley stops moving; then, the gantry hook is lifted upward for an appropriate distance. Due to the gravity of the gantry hook itself, the hook head will be close to the lifting eye ear axis. After the lifting eye enters the interior of the gantry hook, it stops rising and waits for remote manual confirmation; When the tail hook needs to be hung, the process of the auxiliary hook hanging the tail hook and the main hook hanging the lifting eye is as follows: the auxiliary hook is lowered to a position about 200mm below the tail hook of the slag bag, and then moved to the lower part of the tail hook of the slag bag with the hook head of the gantry hook, the auxiliary hook is lifted to an appropriate distance, and the chain of the tail hook automatically hangs on the tail hook of the slag bag; Step 3) The video system provides the bag hanging status image near the on-site lifting eye, and the bag hanging status image is identified through AI technology. The bag hanging status is judged and the judgment result is clearly given; at the same time, the radar imaging system will also judge the point cloud image near the lifting eye and the tail hook to determine whether the hook is successful; the operator confirms whether the bag is successfully hung according to the judgment results of the video system and the radar imaging system and the actual situation; Step 3) specifically includes the following steps: Step 3.1) The camera of the video system obtains the bag hanging state images at the slag bag lifting eye and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the radar imaging system obtains the point cloud images at the slag bag lifting eye and the slag bag tail hook respectively; the above-mentioned video system and radar imaging system transmit the obtained bag hanging state images and point cloud images to the automatic control system; at this time, the bag hanging state images and point cloud images are real-time images of the main hook hanging eye operation and the tail hook operation; 3.2) The automatic control system performs data fusion on the bag status image and the point cloud image, and pre-processes the data; 3.3) Extract features from the image data to obtain hook / unhook status data; Step 4), execute the unhooking / hooking success detection algorithm, specifically: if it is manually determined that the bag is hung successfully, click the confirmation button on the interface, and the gantry hook will continue to rise 100~150mm and then stop; at this time, the weighing system measures the gantry hook. If the weight measured by the weighing system is within a reasonable range, it is confirmed that the hook is successful and the rising operation continues; if the weight is not within a reasonable range, it is determined that the bag is hung unsuccessfully, and the system automatically alarms and waits for manual processing; Step 5), automatic bag turning and automatic unhooking: When the slag bag needs to be turned over, the gantry hook carries the fully loaded slag bag to the bag turning area, descends to the corresponding height, and then the tail hook is lifted. As the height of the tail hook is increased, the copper slag in the slag bag will be poured out one after another; when it reaches a certain height, all the copper slag is poured out, and then the tail hook is lowered to a suitable height and the slag bag becomes horizontal. The tail hook continues to descend about 200mm, and then moves horizontally to the outside to complete the automatic unhooking process.

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