Control method of gantry loader

Abstract

A plurality of gantry loaders, machine tools and peripheral devices are arranged on one guide beam to form an automatic production line, and the gantry loader control device controls the plurality of gantry loaders according to a priority without mutual interference by sharing information of the plurality of gantry loaders, the machine tools and the peripheral devices. When the gantry loader or the machine tool breaks down, failure processing is carried out on the gantry loader or the machine tool which breaks down, and the gantry loader or the machine tool is eliminated from operation, so that the automatic production line can continuously operate without interruption, and the production efficiency of the automatic production line is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to a gantry loader for supplying and discharging workpiece material to a machine tool, and more specifically, to a method for controlling multiple gantry loaders mounted on a guide beam. Background Technology

[0002] Usually, such as Figure 1 As shown, a gantry loader is mounted as an auxiliary device on a machine tool 60, such as a turning center, and is linked with a peripheral device 70 for material supply or loading. It supplies material to the machining section of the machine tool 60, or discharges machined material from the machining section and loads it. The gantry loader 10 has a horizontal guide beam 20 mounted on the upper part of the machine tool 60 along the rotation axis of the machining section. A slidable robotic arm 11 is mounted on the guide beam 20, and the front end of the robotic arm 11 has grippers for clamping material during supply and discharge. Furthermore, a peripheral device 70 for loading material is provided on one side of the machine tool 60 and the gantry loader 10.

[0003] The aforementioned gantry loader 10 can be installed on each machine tool 60, or in some cases, a gantry loader 10 can be installed in an extended form above two or more machine tools 60 arranged consecutively, in order to supply or discharge materials to each machine tool 60.

[0004] However, setting up a separate gantry loader 10 for each machine tool 60 would increase the installation area and cost. In addition, when one gantry loader 10 covers more than two machine tools 60, the movement of the gantry loader 10 often cannot match the material discharge and supply cycle of the machine tools 60, resulting in delays in the movement of the machine tools 60 and reduced production efficiency of the automated production line.

[0005] On the other hand, to overcome the above problems, it is also conceivable to set up and operate two or more gantry loaders 10 on a guide beam 20. However, when two or more gantry loaders 10 are set up on a guide beam 20 and linked with multiple machine tools 60, in order to avoid collisions or interference between the multiple gantry loaders 10 set on a guide beam 20, the range of motion of each gantry loader 10 must be limited.

[0006] As a result, even if multiple gantry loaders 10 are installed on a single guide beam 20, there are no other advantages besides each gantry loader 10 sharing a single guide beam 20.

[0007] Furthermore, in an automated production line consisting of continuous processing steps, when multiple gantry loaders 10 are set on a guide beam 20 and controlled independently, in order to avoid collisions or interference between the gantry loaders 10, sufficient spacing must be maintained between them during setup. This not only increases the overall size of the automated production line, but also reduces the production efficiency of the continuous automated production line due to unnecessary control such as waiting time and stopping actions based on the predetermined speed and work sequence.

[0008] Furthermore, in an automated production line where multiple gantry loaders 10 are mounted on a guide beam 20, if one of the gantry loaders 10 or machine tools 60 malfunctions, the overall operation of the multiple gantry loaders 10 and machine tools 60 constituting the automated production line must be stopped, resulting in a shutdown of the automated production line.

[0009] On the other hand, Patent Document 1 discloses a structure in which a gantry loader is installed in each of a plurality of machine tool groups consisting of two machine tools 60. Furthermore, Patent Document 1 achieves an automated system that reduces operator intervention in a series of continuous processing lines by controlling the movement of the gantry loader along the workpiece processing direction. However, as mentioned above, because one gantry loader is responsible for at least two machine tools, this system is prone to problems where the gantry loader's movements cannot match the material discharge and supply cycles of the machine tools, resulting in machine tool operation delays.

[0010] Furthermore, Patent Document 2 Figure 1 One disclosed structure involves mounting multiple gantry loaders on a guide beam, multiple reciprocating tables on a transverse transfer platform (guide beam), and independently controllable gantry loaders on each reciprocating table. However, Patent Document 2 primarily concerns the wireless communication transmission of control commands between a main control cabinet located on the ground and a secondary control cabinet located on the reciprocating table via a TCP / IP module, merely involving multiple independently controllable gantry loaders mounted on a guide beam. To avoid collisions or interference between the gantry loaders, control still needs to be performed according to a predetermined speed and work sequence, resulting in unnecessary waiting times and stops. This not only reduces the production efficiency of the continuous automated production line but also necessitates stopping the automated production line when a gantry loader or any of the machine tools constituting the automated production line malfunctions.

[0011] [Preliminary Technology Documents]

[0012] (Patent Document 1) Korean Patent Registration No. 10-2308542

[0013] (Patent Document 2) Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2008-0099075 SUMMARY

[0014] TECHNICAL PROBLEM

[0015] To solve the above problems, the present application aims to improve the production efficiency of an automated production line by sharing basic information such as the working state, position, path, target point, speed, etc. among a plurality of gantry loaders provided on one guide beam and the machine tools, peripheral devices, etc. and controlling the entry order or speed, etc. of each gantry loader in the order of the working sequence and in accordance with the priority order in the machine tool processing area.

[0016] Another object of the present application is to minimize the downtime of the automated production line by excluding the gantry loaders or machine tools that cannot be used due to a malfunction, etc. and continuing to operate the automated production line using only the normally operating gantry loaders and machine tools when a plurality of gantry loaders or machine tools cannot be used due to a malfunction, etc.

[0017] Still another object of the present application is to reduce the size of the automated production line by optimizing the control of a plurality of gantry loaders provided in accordance with the priority order and reducing the spacing between the gantry loaders.

[0018] TECHNICAL SOLUTION

[0019] To solve the above problems, the gantry loader control method of the present application is as follows.

[0020] In a preferred embodiment, a gantry loader control method is provided for an automated production line including a plurality of machine tools 60 for processing materials, a plurality of peripheral devices 70 for loading materials, and a plurality of gantry loaders 10 reciprocally moving on one guide beam 20 provided in a manner capable of supplying or discharging materials between the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70, wherein a control device 30 shares information with the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70 and controls each of the gantry loaders 10, characterized by comprising the following steps:

[0021] a priority order setting step (S10) of setting a control priority order for the working state of each of the gantry loaders 10, the machine tools 60, and the peripheral devices 70;

[0022] an information acquisition step (S20) of acquiring information of each of the gantry loaders 10, the machine tools 60, and the peripheral devices 70 from the control device 30 for controlling the plurality of gantry loaders 10 and sharing the information with the control device 30 of an adjacent gantry loader 10 through a communication line 40;

[0023] A priority order assigning step (S30) in which priority order values set in the priority order setting step S10 are assigned to respective variables corresponding to the gantry loader 10, the machine tool 60, and the peripheral device 70, based on the information acquired in the information acquiring step S20;

[0024] A gantry loader priority order value comparing step (S40) in which it is compared whether the priority order of the gantry loader 10 is the same as that of the machine tool 60 or the peripheral device 70;

[0025] A machine tool priority order value comparing step (S41) in which, when the priority order of the gantry loader 10 is not the same as that of the machine tool 60 or the peripheral device 70 in the gantry loader priority order value comparing step S40, the priority order of the machine tool 60 is compared with that of the peripheral device 70;

[0026] A gantry loader movement instruction step (S50) constituted by a machine tool entry instruction step (S51) for instructing the gantry loader 10 to move to the machine tool 60, or a peripheral device entry instruction step (S52) for instructing the gantry loader 10 to move to the peripheral device 70;

[0027] When the gantry loader 10 receives the movement instruction and moves from the gantry loader current position A n to the gantry loader target position B n , a movement range interference judging step (S60) is performed in which it is judged whether the movement range of the adjacent gantry loader current position A n-1 is included in the movement range of the current gantry loader 10;

[0028] In the movement range interference judging step S60, when the movement range of the adjacent gantry loader current position A n-1 is included in the movement range of the current gantry loader 10, the priority order values of the current gantry loader 10 and the adjacent gantry loader 10 assigned in the priority order assigning step S30 are compared and judged, and based on the judgment result, a work priority order judging step (S70) is performed in which the gantry loader 10 having a lower priority order is instructed to avoid to a safety region set in advance in which the movement of the gantry loader 10 having a higher priority order to the target position B n does not interfere, or to wait;

[0029] In the movement range interference judging step S60, when the current gantry loader 10 and the adjacent gantry loader 10 do not interfere, the current gantry loader 10 is instructed to move to the gantry loader target position B nWhen the current gantry loader 10 interferes with the adjacent gantry loader 10, based on the result of comparing the priority values ​​of the current gantry loader 10 and the adjacent gantry loader 10 in the operation priority determination step S70, the gantry loader 10 with the higher priority is instructed to move to the target gantry loader position B. n The process involves moving the device, and following the movement instruction, a job execution step (S80) is performed, returning to the information acquisition step S20.

[0030] In a preferred embodiment, the gantry loader control method is characterized in that, in the priority setting step S10, the control priority order for each operating state is set according to the content of the control signals used to drive the gantry loader 10 and the machine tool 60 or peripheral device 70: when the gantry loader 10 is in a waiting state to feed or discharge materials to the machine tool 60, it is set as a first priority order; when the gantry loader 10 is in a state of receiving a pre-call for processing materials, it is set as a second priority order; when the gantry loader 10 is in a state of discharging materials from the peripheral device 70, it is set as a third priority order; and when the gantry loader 10 is in a state of loading materials into the peripheral device 70, it is set as a fourth priority order.

[0031] In a preferred embodiment, the information acquired in the information acquisition step S20 includes the current position A of the gantry loader. n Target location B of the gantry loader n Machine tool status G n Peripheral device status H n and gantry loader status I n information.

[0032] In a preferred embodiment, the information acquired in the information acquisition step S20 further includes gantry loader alarm information J. n Machine tool alarm information K n And bypass on / off information L n .

[0033] In a preferred embodiment, in the priority assignment step (S30), when the gantry loader 10 is clamping material, according to the gantry loader state I... n The gantry loader 10 is assigned a priority value of 1; when the machine tool 60 is in a waiting state after completing material processing, the priority value is determined according to the machine tool state G. n The machine tool 60 is assigned a priority value of 1; when the peripheral device 70 is in a waiting-for-material-discharge state, the priority is determined according to the peripheral device state H. n The assigned priority value is 3.

[0034] In a preferred embodiment, the priority comparison step S40 of the gantry loader assigns the priority value assigned in step S30, based on the gantry loader state I. n Priority value and machine tool status G n Priority value and peripheral device status H n The priority values ​​are compared to compare the machine tool status G. n Does the priority value correlate with the gantry loader's state I? n The priority values ​​are the same, or the peripheral device status H n Does the priority value correlate with the gantry loader's state I? n They have the same priority value.

[0035] In a preferred embodiment, the priority order value comparison step S41 of the machine tool is performed in machine tool state G. n Priority value and gantry loader status I n The priority values ​​are different, or the status H of the peripheral device is different. n Priority value and gantry loader status I n When the priority values ​​are different, compare the machine tool status G. n Is the priority value greater than or less than the status H of the surrounding device? n The priority value.

[0036] In a preferred embodiment, the machine tool entry instruction step S51 is performed in the priority order value comparison step S40 of the gantry loader, where the machine tool state G... n Priority value and gantry loader status I n The priority values ​​are the same, or the machine tool state G is in the priority value comparison step S41 of the machine tool. n The priority value is less than the status H of the peripheral device. n When the priority value is set, an action command is applied to the servo motor 12, causing the gantry loader 10 to enter the machine tool 60;

[0037] The peripheral device entry command step S52 is in the priority order value comparison step S40 of the gantry loader, where the peripheral device status H... n Priority value and gantry loader status I n The priority values ​​are the same, or the machine tool state G is in the priority value comparison step S41 of the machine tool. n The priority value is greater than the status H of the surrounding devices. n When the priority value is set, an action command is applied to the servo motor 12, causing the gantry loader 10 to enter the peripheral device 70.

[0038] In a preferred embodiment, in the operation priority determination step S70, the priority value of the current gantry loader 10 assigned in the priority assignment step S30 is compared with that of the adjacent gantry loaders 10 to determine the current gantry loader state I of the gantry loader 10. n Priority value and machine tool status G n Priority value or peripheral device status H n Is the sum of priority values ​​less than the gantry loader status I of the adjacent gantry loader 10? n-1 Priority value and machine tool status G n-1 Priority value or peripheral device status H n-1 The sum of priority values.

[0039] In a preferred embodiment, the operation priority determination step S70 includes: when the current gantry loader 10 has a higher operation priority than the adjacent gantry loader 10, instructing the adjacent gantry loader 10 to avoid the current gantry loader 10 to a pre-defined safe area avoidance instruction step (S71), which will not interfere with the current gantry loader 10's movement path; and

[0040] When the priority of the current gantry loader 10 is lower than that of the adjacent gantry loader 10, the current gantry loader 10 is instructed to wait in a pre-defined safe area within a safe area where it does not interfere with the movement path of the adjacent gantry loader 10 (S72).

[0041] In a preferred embodiment, the safety zone preset in the safety zone avoidance instruction step S71 and the safety zone waiting instruction step S72 is set by the sum of the non-contact distance α between the mechanical parts that can prevent contact between the current gantry loader 10 and the mechanical parts of the adjacent gantry loader 10 and the braking distance β when the gantry loader 10 stops at maximum speed.

[0042] In a preferred embodiment, after the information acquisition step S20, the method further includes: determining the gantry loader alarm information J acquired in the information acquisition step S20. n Whether it is an emergency stop depends on the alarm information J of the gantry loader. n If it is not an emergency stop, the control steps are returned to the gantry loader alarm information judgment step (S110) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0043] In the gantry loader alarm information judgment step S110, when the gantry loader alarm information J nIn case of emergency stop, the corresponding gantry loader 10 is moved to a parking position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders 10. (S120)

[0044] Cut off the alarm information of the gantry loader J n The power supply to the servo motor 12 of the gantry loader 10 is switched off for emergency stop, and the information of the gantry loader 10 obtained in the information acquisition step S20 is simultaneously invalidated, thereby invalidating the gantry loader alarm information J. n The gantry loader 10, which was stopped in an emergency, was excluded from the control scope, and the control steps were then returned to the information acquisition invalidation step (S130) of the information acquisition step S20; and

[0045] By eliminating the cause of the emergency stop signal of the gantry loader 10 that was invalidated in the information acquisition invalidation step S130, the invalidated gantry loader 10 is normalized, and the control step is returned to the gantry loader normalization step (S140) of the information acquisition step S10.

[0046] In a preferred embodiment, the gantry loader failure processing step S120 includes: a gantry loader servo motor availability determination step (S121) that determines whether the servo motor 12 used to drive the gantry loader 10 to move generates an encoder signal.

[0047] In the gantry loader servo motor availability determination step S121, if it is determined that an encoder signal is generated in the servo motor 12, then the gantry loader alarm information J is sent. n The servo motor 12 of the gantry loader 10, which is in emergency stop mode, is switched to manual mode for control, causing the gantry loader 10 to move to a stopping position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders 10; if it is determined that the servo motor 12 is not generating an encoder signal, the gantry loader alarm information J is forcibly sent. n To stop the gantry loader 10 in an emergency, move it to a parking position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders 10, and after forcibly moving it to the parking position, disable the current position A of the gantry loader that needs to be deactivated. n Input the gantry loader parking position movement step (S122) to the control device 30 as the parking position.

[0048] In a preferred embodiment, after the information invalidation step S130, the current position A of the gantry loader 10 to be invalidated is... n The information has been reset to the parking location.

[0049] In a preferred embodiment, after the information acquisition step S20, the machine tool alarm information K acquired in the information acquisition step S20 is determined. n Is it an emergency state? When the machine tool alarm information K is received... n In an emergency, the control steps are returned to the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0050] In the machine tool alarm information judgment step S210, when the machine tool alarm information K n In an emergency, a machine alarm message K is generated to determine whether the gantry loader 10 should detour through the emergency. n The machine tool 60 determines the bypass on / off information L of the control device 30. n Whether the bypass function is selected as on is determined step (S220);

[0051] In the bypass function selection determination step S220, when the bypass on / off information L... n When selected as "on", the bypass function of the gantry loader 10 is activated, causing the gantry loader 10 to omit the alarm message K indicating that material is entering the machine tool. n The process involves bypassing the machine tool 60 in an emergency, while simultaneously initializing the information acquired in the information acquisition step S20, and returning the control step to the information acquisition step S20; when the bypass on / off information L... n When selected as off, the machine tool alarm information K will be displayed. n The signal is transmitted to the control device 30 of the gantry loader 10, and the machine alarm information K is stopped. n The machine tool failure step (S230) corresponding to the actions of the gantry loader 10 and the machine tool 60; and

[0052] In the machine tool failure step S230, the machine tool alarm information K is generated. n The machine tool 60 is repaired to restore the failed machine tool 60 to normal, and the control steps are returned to the machine tool normalization step (S240) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0053] In a preferred embodiment, after the information acquisition step S20, the machine tool alarm information K acquired in the information acquisition step S20 is determined. n Is it an emergency? When the machine tool alarm information K... n In an emergency, the control steps are returned to the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0054] In the machine tool alarm information judgment step S210, when the machine tool alarm information Kn In an emergency, the bypass function of the gantry loader 10 is activated, causing the gantry loader 10 to omit the alarm message K indicating that material is entering the machine tool. n The process involves rerouting the machine tool 60 in an emergency, simultaneously initializing the information acquired in the information acquisition step S20, and returning the control step to the machine tool failure step (S230) of the information acquisition step S20; and

[0055] In the machine tool failure step S230, the machine tool alarm information K is generated. n The machine tool 60 is repaired to restore the failed machine tool 60 to normal, and the control steps are returned to the machine tool normalization step (S240) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0056] In a preferred embodiment, another method for controlling a gantry loader is as follows.

[0057] A gantry loader control method, which, on an automated production line comprising multiple machine tools 60 for processing materials, multiple peripheral devices 70 for loading materials, and multiple gantry loaders 10 reciprocating on a guide beam 20 arranged in such a way as to supply or discharge materials between the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70, shares information with the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70 and controls each of the gantry loaders 10 via a control device 30, is characterized by comprising the following steps:

[0058] Gantry loader alarm information for each of the plurality of gantry loaders 10 is obtained from the control device 30 used to control the plurality of gantry loaders 10. n The information acquisition step (S20) involves sharing information with the control device 30 of the adjacent gantry loader 10 via the communication line 40.

[0059] In the information acquisition step S20, the acquired alarm information J of the gantry loader is determined. n Whether it is an emergency stop depends on the alarm information J of the gantry loader. n If it is not an emergency stop, the control steps are returned to the gantry loader alarm information judgment step (S110) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0060] In the gantry loader alarm information judgment step S110, when the gantry loader alarm information J n In case of emergency stop, the corresponding gantry loader 10 is moved to a parking position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders 10. (S120)

[0061] Cut off the alarm information of the gantry loader J nThe power supply to the servo motor 12 of the gantry loader 10 is switched off for emergency stop, and the information of the gantry loader 10 obtained in the information acquisition step S20 is simultaneously invalidated, thereby invalidating the gantry loader alarm information J. n The gantry loader 10, which was stopped in an emergency, was excluded from the control scope, and the control steps were then returned to the information acquisition invalidation step (S130) of the information acquisition step S20; and

[0062] By eliminating the cause of the emergency stop signal of the gantry loader 10 that was invalidated in the information acquisition invalidation step S130, the invalidated gantry loader 10 is normalized, and the control step is returned to the gantry loader normalization step (S140) of the information acquisition step S10.

[0063] In a preferred embodiment, the gantry loader failure processing step S120 includes: a gantry loader servo motor availability determination step (S121) that determines whether the servo motor 12 used to drive the gantry loader 10 to move generates an encoder signal.

[0064] In the gantry loader servo motor availability determination step S121, if it is determined that an encoder signal is generated in the servo motor 12, then the gantry loader alarm information J is sent. n The servo motor 12 of the gantry loader 10, which is in emergency stop mode, is switched to manual mode for control, causing the gantry loader 10 to move to a stopping position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders 10; if it is determined that the servo motor 12 is not generating an encoder signal, the gantry loader alarm information J is forcibly sent. n To stop the gantry loader 10 in an emergency, move it to a parking position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders 10, and after forcibly moving it to the parking position, disable the current position A of the gantry loader that needs to be deactivated. n Input the gantry loader parking position movement step (S122) to the control device 30 as the parking position.

[0065] In a preferred embodiment, after the information invalidation step (S130), the current position A of the gantry loader 10 to be invalidated is... n The information has been reset to the parking location.

[0066] In a preferred embodiment, another method for controlling a gantry loader is as follows.

[0067] A gantry loader control method, which, on an automated production line comprising multiple machine tools 60 for processing materials, multiple peripheral devices 70 for loading materials, and multiple gantry loaders 10 reciprocating on a guide beam 20 arranged in such a way as to supply or discharge materials between the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70, shares information with the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70 and controls each of the gantry loaders 10 via a control device 30, is characterized by comprising the following steps:

[0068] Information acquisition step (S20) whereby information about each of the gantry loaders 10 and the machine tool 60 is acquired from the control device 30 for controlling the plurality of gantry loaders 10 and shared with the control device 30 of the adjacent gantry loaders 10 via the communication line 40.

[0069] Determine the machine tool alarm information K obtained in the information acquisition step S20. n Is it an emergency state? When the machine tool alarm information K is received... n In an emergency, the control steps are returned to the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0070] In the machine tool alarm information judgment step S210, when the machine tool alarm information K n In an emergency, a machine alarm message K is generated to determine whether the gantry loader 10 should detour through the emergency. n The machine tool 60 determines whether the bypass function selection is selected as on in the control device 30 by determining whether the bypass on / off information Ln is selected as on (S220).

[0071] In the bypass function selection determination step S220, when the bypass on / off information L... n When selected as "on", the bypass function of the gantry loader 10 is activated, causing the gantry loader 10 to omit the alarm message K indicating that material is entering the machine tool. n The process involves bypassing the machine tool 60 in an emergency, while simultaneously initializing the information acquired in the information acquisition step S20, and returning the control step to the information acquisition step S20; when the bypass on / off information L... n When selected as off, the machine tool alarm information K will be displayed. n The signal is transmitted to the control device 30 of the gantry loader 10, and the machine alarm information K is stopped. n The machine tool failure step (S230) corresponding to the actions of the gantry loader 10 and the machine tool 60; and

[0072] In the machine tool failure step S230, the machine tool alarm information K is generated. nThe machine tool 60 is repaired to restore the failed machine tool 60 to normal, and the control steps are returned to the machine tool normalization step (S240) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0073] In a preferred embodiment, another method for controlling a gantry loader is as follows.

[0074] A gantry loader control method, which, on an automated production line comprising multiple machine tools 60 for processing materials, multiple peripheral devices 70 for loading materials, and multiple gantry loaders 10 reciprocating on a guide beam 20 arranged in such a way as to supply or discharge materials between the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70, shares information with the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70 and controls each of the gantry loaders 10 via a control device 30, is characterized by comprising the following steps:

[0075] Information acquisition step (S20): Information on each gantry loader 10 and the machine tool 60 is obtained from the control device 30 for controlling the plurality of gantry loaders 10, and shared with the control device 30 of the adjacent gantry loader 10 via the communication line 40.

[0076] Determine the machine tool alarm information K obtained in the information acquisition step S20. n Is it an emergency state? When the machine tool alarm information K is received... n In an emergency, the control steps are returned to the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0077] In the machine tool alarm information judgment step S210, when the machine tool alarm information K n In an emergency, the bypass function of the gantry loader 10 is activated, causing the gantry loader 10 to omit the alarm message K indicating that material is entering the machine tool. n The process involves rerouting the machine tool 60 in an emergency, simultaneously initializing the information acquired in the information acquisition step S20, and returning the control step to the machine tool failure step (S230) of the information acquisition step S20; and

[0078] In the machine tool failure step S230, the machine tool alarm information K is generated. n The machine tool 60 is repaired to restore the failed machine tool 60 to normal, and the control steps are returned to the machine tool normalization step (S240) of the information acquisition step S20.

[0079] The effects of the invention

[0080] The present invention provides a method for setting up multiple gantry loaders 10 on a guide beam 20. In an automated production line that operates in conjunction with a machine tool 60 and peripheral devices 70, the actions of the gantry loaders 10 can be executed according to the priority order of operations, thereby improving the production efficiency of the automated production line. Furthermore, even if the gantry loaders 10 or the machine tool 60 malfunction, the automated production line can continue to operate without interruption using only the normally operating gantry loaders 10 or the machine tool 60, thus minimizing downtime of the automated production line.

[0081] Furthermore, by optimizing the control of multiple gantry loaders 10, the present invention can minimize the distance between each gantry loader 10, thereby optimizing the size of the automated production line. Attached Figure Description

[0082] Figure 1 As an embodiment of the present invention, this is a conceptual diagram showing an automated production line in which multiple gantry loaders mounted on a guide beam are linked together with machine tools and peripheral devices.

[0083] Figure 2 As an embodiment of the present invention, a control concept diagram is shown for multiple gantry loaders mounted on a guide beam.

[0084] Figure 3 As an embodiment of the present invention, a flowchart illustrating the movement sequence control of multiple gantry loaders mounted on a guide beam is provided.

[0085] Figure 4 As an embodiment of the present invention, a control flowchart is shown to perform failure processing on a malfunctioning gantry loader or machine tool and remove it from the operation of an automated production line in a plurality of gantry loaders or machine tools that cooperate with these gantry loaders.

[0086] Figure 5 Another embodiment of the present invention is shown as a control flowchart for excluding faulty machine tools in machine tools that cooperate with a gantry loader. Detailed Implementation

[0087] The following will refer to Figures 1 to 5 The preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described below.

[0088] Figure 1 As an embodiment of the present invention, a conceptual diagram of an automated production line is shown, illustrating the linkage configuration between multiple gantry loaders 10 mounted on a guide beam 20, a machine tool 60, and peripheral devices 70.

[0089] Reference Figure 1The automated production line of this embodiment includes: multiple machine tools 60 for processing materials, multiple peripheral devices 70 for carrying materials, and multiple gantry loaders 10 that reciprocate on a guide beam 20 arranged horizontally above the machine tools 60 in a manner that allows materials to be supplied or discharged between the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70. Each gantry loader 10 is provided with a control device 30, which contains information about the gantry loader 10 itself as well as information about the machine tools 60 and the peripheral devices 70, and the control device 30 of each gantry loader 10 is configured to share information with the control device 30 of adjacent gantry loaders 10 via a communication line 40.

[0090] More specifically, the gantry loader 10 has a guide beam 20 arranged in the horizontal direction. A robotic arm 11 is arranged vertically on the guide beam 20, and multiple gantry loaders 10 driven by servo motors 12 are mounted on the robotic arm 11, capable of reciprocating horizontally on the guide beam 20. Furthermore, the multiple gantry loaders 10 include a control device 30, which communicates with the servo motors 12 to exchange motor command signals and feedback signals, thereby controlling the servo motors 12.

[0091] On the other hand, the control device 30 can also be a single control device 30 that can uniformly manage and control multiple gantry loaders 10.

[0092] In addition, the various control devices 30 of this gantry loader 10 are connected to each other via communication lines 40 to share control information, and are also connected to the machine tool 60 and peripheral devices 70 to share control information.

[0093] On the other hand, each of the control devices 30 acquires or generates the following information and shares it among the control devices 30: the current position A of the gantry loader 10, the machine tool 60, and the peripheral devices. n Target location B n Speed ​​C n Execution of job information D n Maximum speed parameter E n Synchronization control command F n Machine tool status G n Peripheral device status H n Gantry loader status I n Gantry loader alarm information J n Machine tool alarm information K n Bypass on / off information L n wait.

[0094] Figure 2As an embodiment of the present invention, a control concept diagram of a plurality of gantry loaders 10 arranged on a guide beam 20 is shown.

[0095] Reference Figure 2 The control devices 30 of each gantry loader 10, by sharing the above information, perform anti-collision control, synchronization control and movement sequence control between each gantry loader 10 moving on a guide beam 20.

[0096] More specifically, the anti-collision function is to perform the transfer axis interlock, deceleration, transfer waiting and emergency stop functions of the servo motor 12 during the process of controlling the servo motor 12 to move the gantry loader 10 from the current position information to the target position information, so as to avoid collision with the adjacent gantry loader 10.

[0097] Furthermore, the synchronization control function provides information including the current and target positions of the leading gantry loader 10, maximum speed, and speed control parameters such as time constant to the trailing gantry loader 10, so as to control the trailing gantry loader 10 to follow the action commands of the leading gantry loader 10. At this time, the leading gantry loader 10 activates the interlock function according to the movement command to prevent collision with the trailing gantry loader 10; the trailing gantry loader 10 activates the interlock function according to the movement command to maintain a safe distance during synchronized operation with the leading gantry loader 10.

[0098] Furthermore, the movement sequence control function controls the priority sequence of the gantry loader 10's actions by sharing information among the gantry loader 10, machine tool 60, and peripheral devices 70, and according to the working status.

[0099] Figure 3 As an embodiment of the present invention, a flowchart of the movement sequence control of multiple gantry loaders 10 mounted on a guide beam 20 is shown.

[0100] Reference Figure 3 Each control device 30 controls each gantry loader 10 to move to the machine tool 60 or peripheral device 70 in priority order to supply or discharge workpieces, while avoiding collisions with adjacent gantry loaders 10. The specific control process is as follows.

[0101] First, the priority setting step (S10) is performed.

[0102] This step sets the control priority order according to the operating status of the gantry loader 10, machine tool 60, and peripheral device 70. The priority order of each operating status is set according to the content of the control signals that are instructed to drive the gantry loader 10 and machine tool 60 or peripheral device 70, as follows.

[0103] Preferably, the first priority is set when the gantry loader 10 is in a waiting state to feed or discharge materials to the machine tool 60. Furthermore, the second priority is set when the gantry loader 10 is in a state of receiving a pre-call instruction for material processing. Furthermore, the third priority is set when the gantry loader 10 is in a state of discharging materials from the peripheral device 70. Furthermore, the fourth priority is set when the gantry loader 10 is in a state of loading materials into the peripheral device 70.

[0104] On the other hand, the above priority order can be further refined based on the degree of interference between the gantry loader 10 and the machine tool 60 or peripheral device 70 when the gantry loader 10 supplies or discharges materials to the machine tool 60 and peripheral device 70, as well as the requirements for operation optimization.

[0105] Next, the information acquisition step (S20) is performed.

[0106] In this step, the control devices 30 of the multiple gantry loaders 10 mounted on a guide beam 20 acquire and identify the current position A of the gantry loader 10. n Target location B n Machine tool status G n Peripheral device status H n Gantry loader status I n Gantry loader alarm information J n Machine tool alarm information K n Bypass on / off information L n Information such as...

[0107] The above information can be generated by the control device 30 of each gantry loader 10, or by the CNC device of the machine tool 60, or by an independent control device (such as PMC) that is linked with the CNC device to control the machine tool 60 and peripheral devices 70. In the absence of instructions, it can be set to a value corresponding to the origin position of the gantry loader 10.

[0108] In addition, each control device 30 also shares the above information with the control devices 30 of other gantry loaders 10 installed on the guide beam 20 via the communication line 40.

[0109] Then, the priority assignment step (S30) is performed.

[0110] In this step, each control device 30 is based on the machine tool status G obtained in the information acquisition step S20. n Peripheral device status H n Gantry loader status I nInformation such as these are used to assign priority values ​​set in priority setting step S10 to the corresponding variables of the gantry loader 10, machine tool 60 and peripheral device 70.

[0111] For example, when the gantry loader 10 is holding materials, according to the gantry loader state I n The priority value assigned to the gantry loader 10 is 1; when the machine tool 60 is in a waiting state after completing material processing, the priority value is determined according to the machine tool state G. n The machine tool 60 is assigned a priority value of 1; when the peripheral device 70 is in a state of waiting to discharge material, the priority is determined according to the state H of the peripheral device. n The assigned priority value is 3.

[0112] Subsequently, the priority value comparison step of the gantry loader is performed (S40).

[0113] This step involves comparing the priority order of the gantry loader 10 with that of the machine tool 60 or peripheral device 70 in each control device 30. Specifically, it assigns the priority order based on the gantry loader state I, as assigned in step S30. n Priority value and machine tool status G n Priority value and peripheral device status H n The priority values ​​are compared to compare the machine tool status G. n Does the priority value correlate with the gantry loader's state I? n If the priority values ​​are the same, or if the peripheral device status H is... n Does the priority value correlate with the gantry loader's state I? n They have the same priority value.

[0114] Subsequently, the priority value comparison step of the machine tool is performed (S41).

[0115] This step is part of the priority comparison step S40 for the gantry loader. When the priority of the gantry loader 10 differs from the priority of the machine tool 60 or the peripheral device 70, the priority of the machine tool 60 is compared with the priority of the peripheral device 70. Specifically, when the machine tool state G... n Priority value and gantry loader status I n The priority values ​​are different, or the status H of the peripheral device is different. n Priority value and gantry loader status I n When the priority values ​​are different, compare the machine tool status G. n The priority value is greater than or less than the status H of the surrounding devices. n The priority value.

[0116] Subsequently, the gantry loader movement command step (S50) is executed.

[0117] The steps include: a machine tool entry command step (S51) for instructing the gantry loader (10) to issue a movement command to the machine tool 60, and a peripheral device entry command step (S52) for instructing the gantry loader (10) to issue a movement command to the peripheral device 70.

[0118] In the machine tool entry instruction step S51, when the machine tool state G is in the priority order value comparison step S40 of the gantry loader... n Priority value and gantry loader status I n The priority values ​​are the same, or the machine tool state G is in the priority value comparison step S41 of the machine tool. n The priority value is less than the status H of the peripheral device. n When the priority value is set, the control device 30 applies an action command to the servo motor 12 of the gantry loader 10, causing the gantry loader 10 to enter the machine tool 60.

[0119] Furthermore, in the peripheral device entry command step S52, when the peripheral device status H is in the priority value comparison step S40 of the gantry loader... n Priority value and gantry loader status I n The priority values ​​are the same, or the machine tool state G is in the priority value comparison step S41 of the machine tool. n The priority value is greater than the status H of the surrounding devices. n When the priority value is set, the control device 30 applies an action command to the servo motor 12 of the gantry loader 10, causing the gantry loader 10 to enter the peripheral device 70.

[0120] Next, the movement interval interference judgment step (S60) is executed.

[0121] This step involves the gantry loader 10 receiving a movement command and moving from its current position A. n Towards target position B of the gantry loader n During movement, specifically when moving towards machine tool 60 or peripheral device 70, the step of determining whether interference occurs with the adjacent gantry loader 10 is performed; specifically, determining whether interference occurs from the current position A of the current gantry loader. n Towards target position B of the gantry loader n Does the movement range include the current position A of the adjacent gantry loader? n-1 .

[0122] Next, the job priority determination step (S70) is performed.

[0123] This step is in the interference judgment step S60 of the moving interval, when the gantry loader 10 moves from the current position A n Move to target location B n The interval includes the current position A of the adjacent gantry loaders. n-1 When interference occurs with an adjacent gantry loader 10, the priority order value corresponding to each working state of the current gantry loader 10 and the adjacent gantry loader 10, which was assigned in the priority order assignment step S30, is compared and judged.

[0124] That is, determine the current gantry loader status I of the gantry loader 10. n Priority value and machine tool status G n Priority value or peripheral device status H n Is the sum of priority values ​​less than the gantry loader status I of the adjacent gantry loader 10? n- 1. Priority value and machine tool status G n-1 Priority value or peripheral device status H n-1 The sum of priority values.

[0125] Based on the judgment result, the gantry loader 10 with lower priority is instructed to avoid moving towards the target position B, so as not to interact with the gantry loader 10 with higher priority. n Movement is allowed within a pre-defined safe zone without interference, or while waiting within that safe zone.

[0126] In the priority determination step S70 of this operation, the steps for the gantry loader 10 with a lower instruction priority to avoid or wait in the safe area include the safe area avoidance instruction step (S71) and the safe area waiting instruction step (S72).

[0127] First, the safe zone avoidance instruction step S71 is performed in the current operation priority order determination step S70. When the priority order of each operation state of the current gantry loader 10 is higher than the priority order of each operation state of the adjacent gantry loader 10, the adjacent gantry loader 10 is instructed to avoid to a pre-set safe zone that will not interfere with the current gantry loader 10's movement path.

[0128] More specifically, in the safety zone avoidance instruction step S71, in the current gantry loader state I of the gantry loader 10 n Priority value and machine tool status G n Priority value or peripheral device status H n The sum of priority values ​​is less than the gantry loader status I of the adjacent gantry loader 10. n-1 Priority value and machine tool status G n-1 Priority value or peripheral device status H n-1When the priority values ​​are summed, the control device 30 of the adjacent gantry loader 10 instructs the adjacent gantry loader 10 to avoid to a pre-set safe area that will not interfere with the current movement path of the gantry loader 10.

[0129] Furthermore, the safe zone waiting instruction step S72 is performed in the current operation priority determination step S70. When the priority of each operation state of the current gantry loader 10 is not higher than the priority of each operation state of the adjacent gantry loader 10, the current gantry loader 10 is instructed to wait in a pre-set safe zone where there will be no interference on the movement path of the adjacent gantry loader 10.

[0130] More specifically, in the safe zone waiting instruction step S72, the gantry loader 10 is in its current gantry loader state I. n Priority value and machine tool status G n Priority value or peripheral device status H n The sum of priority values ​​is greater than the gantry loader status I of the adjacent gantry loader 10. n-1 Priority value and machine tool status G n-1 Priority value or peripheral device status H n-1 When the priority values ​​are summed, the control device 30 of the current gantry loader 10 instructs the current gantry loader 10 to wait within a pre-defined safe area that will not interfere with the movement path of adjacent gantry loaders 10.

[0131] On the other hand, the safety zone preset in the safety zone avoidance instruction step S71 and the safety zone waiting instruction step S72 is set by the sum of the non-contact distance α between the mechanical parts that can prevent contact between the current gantry loader 10 and the mechanical parts of the adjacent gantry loader 10 and the braking distance β when the gantry loader 10 stops at maximum speed.

[0132] Next, the job execution step (S80) is performed.

[0133] In this step, if the interference judgment step S60 determines that there is no interference between the current gantry loader 10 and the adjacent gantry loader 10, the current gantry loader 10 is instructed to move towards the gantry loader target position B. n If, in the interference judgment step S60 of the movement interval, it is determined that there is interference between the current gantry loader 10 and the adjacent gantry loader 10, then, based on the result of comparing the priority values ​​of the current gantry loader 10 and the adjacent gantry loader 10 in the operation priority judgment step S70, a movement to the gantry loader 10 with the higher priority is ordered to move to the target gantry loader position B. nThe instruction is given, and after issuing the movement instruction, the process returns to the information acquisition step S20.

[0134] As shown in the above embodiments, multiple gantry loaders 10 mounted on a guide beam 20 can move along the guide beam 20 toward the machine tool 60 or peripheral device 70 to supply or discharge materials without colliding or interfering with each other, according to the order of work priority, thereby improving the processing efficiency of the automated production line.

[0135] On the other hand, as another embodiment of the present invention, in a plurality of gantry loaders 10 mounted on a guide beam 20, or in a machine tool 60 cooperating with a gantry loader 10, a situation may occur where the gantry loader 10 cannot operate normally due to malfunctions or other reasons. In this case, the control device 30 of the gantry loader 10 can disable the gantry loader 10 or machine tool 60 that cannot operate normally and remove it from the operation of the automated production line, so that the automated production line can continue to operate using only the gantry loaders 10 or machine tools 60 that can operate normally, thereby achieving uninterrupted operation of the automated production line.

[0136] Figure 4 As an embodiment of the present invention, a control flowchart is shown for the failure treatment of a gantry loader 10 or machine tool 60 that fails in one of the plurality of gantry loaders 10 or in a machine tool 60 that cooperates with these gantry loaders 10 and is removed from the operation of the automated production line.

[0137] Reference Figure 4 After the information acquisition step S20 in the embodiment, the malfunctioning gantry loader 10 or machine tool 60 can be excluded, and the automated production line can continue to operate using only the normal gantry loader 10 or machine tool 60.

[0138] In this embodiment, in the information acquisition step S20, each control device 30 of the multiple gantry loaders 10 mounted on a guide beam 20 not only acquires and identifies the current position A n Target location B n Machine tool status G n Peripheral device status H n Gantry loader status I n Information such as these is also obtained and identified, as well as alarm information from the gantry loader. n Machine tool alarm information K n Bypass on / off information L n .

[0139] The alarm information J of the gantry loader nThese can be categorized into alarm messages for warning purposes, cycle stops, and emergency stops. In this embodiment, for ease of explanation, only the gantry loader alarm message J will be used. n It was identified as an emergency stop signal.

[0140] On the other hand, the gantry loader alarm information J added in the information acquisition step S20 n Machine tool alarm information K n and bypass on / off information L n In the middle, the alarm information J of the gantry loader n Bypass on / off information L n Generated by the control device 30 of the gantry loader 10, while machine tool alarm information K n The control unit of the machine tool 60, such as the CNC device, can generate and provide the control unit 30 of the gantry loader 10.

[0141] In addition, the information obtained by the control device 30 of each gantry loader 10 is also shared with the control devices 30 of other gantry loaders 10 installed on the guide beam 20 via the communication line 40.

[0142] After the information acquisition step S20, it can be divided into gantry loader failure control in the control device 30 to eliminate the failure of the gantry loader 10, and machine tool failure control to eliminate the failure of the machine tool 60.

[0143] The failure control process of the gantry loader 10 will be explained below.

[0144] The failure control of the gantry loader 10 performed after the information acquisition step S20 includes the following steps.

[0145] First, execute the alarm information judgment step for the gantry loader (S110).

[0146] In this step, the alarm information J of the gantry loader obtained in the information acquisition step S20 is determined. n Is it an emergency stop? When the gantry loader alarm message J... n When it is not an emergency stop, that is, when the gantry loader 10 is in normal operation, the control to return to the information acquisition step S20 is executed.

[0147] Next, the gantry loader failure handling procedure (S120) is executed.

[0148] In the gantry loader alarm information judgment step S110, when the gantry loader alarm information J nIn case of emergency stop, the corresponding gantry loader 10 is moved to a stopping position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders 10.

[0149] More specifically, the gantry loader failure processing step S120 can be divided into a gantry loader servo motor availability judgment step (S121) and a gantry loader parking position moving step (S122) based on whether the gantry loader 10, which has experienced an emergency stop, can be moved to a parking position by the servo motor 12 that drives the gantry loader 10.

[0150] First, the availability determination step S121 of the gantry loader servo motor is to determine the gantry loader alarm information J in the gantry loader alarm information determination step S110. n In the event of an emergency stop, it is determined whether the servo motor 12, which drives the gantry loader 10 to move to the parking position, is generating an encoder signal. This is to determine whether the gantry loader 10 can be moved by manual control of the servo motor 12 if the servo motor 12 is generating an encoder signal normally.

[0151] Next, the gantry loader parking position movement step S122 is executed. When it is determined in the gantry loader servo motor availability judgment step S121 that the servo motor 12 generates an encoder signal, the gantry loader alarm information J is monitored. n To stop the gantry loader 10 in an emergency, the servo motor 12 encoder signal is simultaneously activated, and the gantry loader 10 is moved to a stopping position where it will not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders 10. If it is determined that the servo motor 12 is not generating an encoder signal, the gantry loader alarm information J is forcibly activated. n To stop the gantry loader 10 in an emergency, move it to a parking position that will not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders 10, and after forcibly moving it to the parking position, disable the current position A of the gantry loader that needs to be deactivated. n The parking position is input to the control device 30.

[0152] Subsequently, the information invalidation step (S130) is performed.

[0153] This step involves cutting off the alarm information J from the gantry loader. n The power supply to the servo motor 12 of the gantry loader 10 is switched off for emergency stop, and the information of the gantry loader 10 obtained in the information acquisition step S20 is simultaneously invalidated, thereby invalidating the gantry loader alarm information J. n The gantry loader 10, which is under emergency stop, is excluded from the control scope, and the control flow returns to the information acquisition step S20.

[0154] That is, the disabled gantry loader 10 is moved to a parking position to prevent collision or interference with adjacent gantry loaders 10, and the relevant information obtained in the information acquisition step S20 is initialized for invalidation processing. However, it should be noted that the current position A of the disabled gantry loader 10 is... n The information is reset to the parking position. This is done to prevent the control device 30 from continuing to use the acquired information of the gantry loader 10 that has malfunctioned and moved to the parking position, thereby avoiding collisions or interference with other adjacent gantry loaders 10 and preventing malfunctions.

[0155] As described above, in this failure processing step S130, an emergency stop signal J is generated. n The gantry loader 10 is rendered unusable, so that the automated production line can continue to operate using only the remaining gantry loaders 10.

[0156] Next, the gantry loader normalization procedure (S140) is performed.

[0157] In this step, after repairing the gantry loader 10 to eliminate the cause of the emergency stop signal failure in the information acquisition invalidation step S130, and normalizing the failed gantry loader 10, the control flow returns to the information acquisition step S10. Thus, the previously failed gantry loader 10 is normalized and can be linked with adjacent gantry loaders 10 to ensure the normal operation of the automated production line, thereby improving process efficiency.

[0158] As shown in the above embodiment, when one of the multiple gantry loaders 10 installed on the guide beam 20 malfunctions, by moving the malfunctioning gantry loader 10 to a parking position and performing a failure treatment, it can be prevented from colliding or interfering with the adjacent gantry loaders 10. Thus, without stopping the entire automated production line, the automated operation can continue to be performed using only the normally operating gantry loaders 10.

[0159] Therefore, even if one of the gantry loaders 10 malfunctions, the automated production line can continue to operate using only the normally functioning gantry loaders 10 without stopping the entire automated production line containing multiple gantry loaders 10, thus significantly improving the production efficiency of the automated production line.

[0160] As another embodiment, refer to Figure 4 After the information acquisition step S20 in the above embodiment, the machine tool 60 failure control for excluding the failed machine tool 60 can also be performed in the following manner.

[0161] First, the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210) is executed.

[0162] In this step, the machine tool alarm information K obtained in the information acquisition step S20 is determined. n Is it an emergency state? When the machine tool alarm message K... n When it is not an emergency, that is, when the machine tool 60 can normally perform material supply or discharge operations with the gantry loader 10, the control to return to the information acquisition step S20 is executed.

[0163] Next, the bypass function selection step (S220) is executed.

[0164] In this step, the machine tool alarm information K is determined in step S210. n In an emergency, to determine whether to move the gantry loader 10 from the machine tool alarm information K... n The machine tool is bypassed at point 60, and the information of the bypass switch L in the control device 30 is determined. n Whether it is selected as on.

[0165] Subsequently, the machine tool failure procedure (S230) is performed.

[0166] In this step, the bypass switch information L in the bypass function selection determination step S220 n When selected as "on", the bypass function of the gantry loader 10 is activated, causing the gantry loader 10 to skip the alarm message K indicating that material is entering the machine tool. n For the process of machine tool 60 in an emergency, bypass control is performed, and the acquisition information of machine tool 60 acquired in the information acquisition step S20 is initialized, and the control flow is returned to the information acquisition step S20.

[0167] As mentioned above, when machine tool alarm information K n Emergency status but bypass switch information L n When selected as "on", the gantry loader 10 can be made to bypass the machine tool 60 that has generated an emergency signal, thereby allowing the automated production line to continue operating without interruption.

[0168] Furthermore, in the bypass function selection determination step S220, the bypass switch information L n When selected as off, the machine tool alarm information K will be displayed. n The signal is transmitted to the control device 30 of the gantry loader 10, and the machine alarm information K is stopped. n The operation of the corresponding gantry loader 10 and machine tool 60.

[0169] Next, the machine tool normalization procedure (S240) is performed.

[0170] In this step, the machine tool alarm information K of the machine tool 60 that has failed in the machine tool failure step S230 is eliminated. n The cause of the occurrence, and the occurrence of machine tool alarm information K n After repairing the machine tool 60 and normalizing the failed machine tool 60, the control flow returns to the information acquisition step S20.

[0171] As a result, the previously malfunctioning machine tool 60 was restored to normal operation and, in conjunction with the gantry loader 10, enabled the automated production line to operate normally.

[0172] As shown in the above embodiments, when a machine tool 60 that works in conjunction with multiple gantry loaders 10 mounted on the guide beam 20 malfunctions, the gantry loaders 10 can be stopped and allowed to bypass the malfunctioning machine tool 60, thereby preventing collisions or interference between the gantry loaders 10 and the machine tool 60. Furthermore, by stopping only the malfunctioning machine tool 60 and allowing the gantry loaders 10 to bypass it, the automated production line processing the same material can continue to operate without stopping the entire automated production line, by stopping only the malfunctioning machine tool 60, thereby improving the production efficiency of the automated production line.

[0173] On the other hand, as another embodiment, Figure 5 Another embodiment of the invention is shown, namely a control flowchart for excluding failed machine tools among machine tools that work in conjunction with a gantry loader.

[0174] Reference Figure 5 In the process of excluding the failure control of the already failed machine tool 60, the bypass switch information L is not acquired in the information acquisition step S20. n Alternatively, it can be always set to the on state, and the bypass function selection determination step S220 can be omitted.

[0175] Therefore, in the machine tool failure step S230, when the machine tool alarm information K is determined in the machine tool alarm information determination step S210... n In an emergency, the bypass function of the gantry loader 10 can be directly activated, allowing the gantry loader 10 to skip sending alarm information K to the machine tool. n During the process of feeding material into the machine tool 60 in an emergency state, bypass control is performed. At the same time, the acquisition information of the machine tool 60 acquired in the information acquisition step S20 is initialized, and the control flow is returned to the information acquisition step S20.

[0176] Furthermore, in the machine tool normalization step S240 following the machine tool failure step S230, similar to the above embodiment, in order to eliminate the machine tool alarm information K of the failed machine tool 60... n The cause of the alarm was determined by repairing the machine tool alarm message K. n After the machine tool 60 is deactivated, the deactivated machine tool 60 is restored to normal, and the control flow returns to the information acquisition step S20.

[0177] As shown in the above embodiment, multiple gantry loaders 10 are set on a guide beam 20, and on the automated production line that operates in conjunction with the machine tool 60 and peripheral devices 70, the actions of the gantry loaders 10 can be executed according to the priority order of operations, thereby improving the production efficiency of the automated production line; furthermore, even if the gantry loaders 10 or the machine tool 60 malfunction, the automated production line can be kept running without interruption using only the normally operating gantry loaders 10 or the machine tool 60, thus minimizing the downtime of the automated production line.

[0178] Furthermore, by optimizing the control of multiple gantry loaders 10, the present invention can minimize the distance between each gantry loader 10, thereby optimizing the size of the automated production line.

[0179] As described above, although the invention has been illustrated in conjunction with preferred embodiments, those skilled in the art should understand that various modifications and alterations can be made to the invention without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention as defined in the following claims.

[0180] Symbol Explanation

[0181] 10: Gantry loader, 11: Robotic arm, 12: Servo motor, 20: Guide beam, 30: Control device, 40: Communication line, 60: Machine tool, 70: Peripheral device, S10: Priority setting step, S20: Information acquisition step, S30: Priority assignment step, S40: Gantry loader priority value comparison step, S41: Machine tool priority value comparison step, S50: Gantry loader movement command step, S51: Machine tool entry command step, S52: Peripheral device entry command step, S60: Movement interval interference judgment step, S70: Operation priority judgment step, S7 S72: Safe zone avoidance instruction step; S80: Safe zone waiting instruction step; S110: Gantry loader alarm information judgment step; S120: Gantry loader failure handling step; S121: Gantry loader servo motor availability judgment step; S122: Gantry loader parking position movement step; S130: Gantry loader failure handling step; S140: Gantry loader normalization step; S210: Machine tool alarm information judgment step; S220: Bypass function selection / disability judgment step; S230: Machine tool failure step; S240: Machine tool normalization step.

Claims

1. A gantry loader control method, wherein on an automated production line comprising multiple machine tools (60) for processing materials, multiple peripheral devices (70) for loading materials, and multiple gantry loaders (10) reciprocating on a guide beam (20) arranged in such a way as to supply or discharge materials between the machine tools (60) and the peripheral devices (70), a control device (30) shares information with the machine tools (60) and the peripheral devices (70) and controls each of the gantry loaders (10) by means of information sharing with the machine tools (60) and the peripheral devices (70), characterized in that, Includes the following steps: The priority setting step (S10) is to set the control priority order according to the working status of the gantry loader (10), machine tool (60) and peripheral device (70). Information acquisition step (S20) which obtains information about each gantry loader (10), machine tool (60) and peripheral device (70) from the control device (30) for controlling the plurality of gantry loaders (10) and shares it with the control device (30) of the adjacent gantry loader (10) via the communication line (40). Based on the information obtained in the information acquisition step (S20), a priority assignment step (S30) assigns priority values ​​set in the priority order setting step (S10) to each variable corresponding to the gantry loader (10), machine tool (60) and peripheral device (70). A priority comparison step (S40) comparing whether the priority order of the gantry loader (10) is the same as the priority order of the machine tool (60) or the peripheral device (70). In the priority order value comparison step (S40) of the gantry loader, when the priority order of the gantry loader (10) is different from the priority order of the machine tool (60) or the peripheral device (70), the priority order value comparison step (S41) compares the priority order of the machine tool (60) with the priority order of the peripheral device (70). The gantry loader movement command step (S50) consists of a machine tool entry command step (S51) for instructing the gantry loader (10) to move toward the machine tool (60), or a peripheral device entry command step (S52) for instructing the gantry loader (10) to move toward the peripheral device (70). When the gantry loader (10) receives a movement command and moves from its current position (A) n Towards the target position (B) of the gantry loader n When moving, determine whether the moving range of the gantry loader (10) includes the current position of an adjacent gantry loader (A). n-1 The moving section interference judgment step (S60); In the movement interval interference determination step (S60), the current position (A) of the adjacent gantry loaders is included within the current movement interval of the gantry loader (10). n-1 When the priority order is assigned in the priority order assignment step (S30), the priority order value of the current gantry loader (10) and the adjacent gantry loaders (10) is compared and determined. Based on the determination result, the gantry loader (10) with the lower priority is instructed to avoid the gantry loader (10) with the higher priority as it moves towards the target position (B). n (S70) The priority order of operations is determined by the pre-set safe zone or the waiting process, which involves the movement of objects that interfere with the operation. In the interference judgment step (S60) of the moving section, when there is no interference between the current gantry loader (10) and the adjacent gantry loader (10), the current gantry loader (10) is instructed to move towards the gantry loader target position (B). n If the current gantry loader (10) interferes with the adjacent gantry loader (10), then based on the result of comparing the priority values ​​of the current gantry loader (10) and the adjacent gantry loader (10) in the operation priority determination step (S70), the gantry loader (10) with the higher priority is instructed to move to the gantry loader target position (B). n The process moves and then returns to the job execution step (S80) of the information acquisition step (S20) after the movement instruction.

2. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the priority setting step (S10), the control priority for each working state is set according to the control signal content used to drive the gantry loader (10) and the machine tool (60) or peripheral device (70): when the gantry loader (10) is in a waiting state to feed or discharge materials to the machine tool (60), it is set as the first priority; when the gantry loader (10) is in a state of receiving a pre-instruction for processing materials, it is set as the second priority; when the gantry loader (10) is in a state of discharging materials from the peripheral device (70), it is set as the third priority; and when the gantry loader (10) is in a state of loading materials into the peripheral device (70), it is set as the fourth priority.

3. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The information acquired in the information acquisition step (S20) includes the current position of the gantry loader (A). n ), gantry loader target location (B) n ), machine tool status (G) n ), peripheral device status (H) n ) and gantry loader status (I n )information.

4. The gantry loader control method according to claim 3, characterized in that, The information acquired in the information acquisition step (S20) also includes gantry loader alarm information (J). n Machine tool alarm information (K) n ) and bypass on / off information (L n ).

5. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the priority assignment step (S30), when the gantry loader (10) is holding material, according to the gantry loader state (I n The priority value assigned to the gantry loader (10) is 1; when the machine tool (60) is in a waiting state after completing material processing, the priority value is determined according to the machine tool status (G). n The machine tool (60) is assigned a priority value of 1; when the peripheral device (70) is in a waiting state for material discharge, the priority value is determined according to the peripheral device state (H). n The priority value assigned is 3.

6. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The priority comparison step (S40) of the gantry loader assigns the priority value assigned in step (S30) based on the gantry loader state (I). n The priority value of ) and the machine tool status (G) n Priority values ​​of ) and status of peripheral devices (H) n The priority values ​​of ) are compared to compare the machine tool status (G) n Does the priority value of ) correspond to the gantry loader status (I)? n The priority values ​​are the same, or the status of the peripheral device (H) is the same. n Does the priority value of ) correspond to the gantry loader status (I)? n The priority values ​​are the same.

7. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The priority value comparison step (S41) of the machine tool is performed in the machine tool state (G n The priority value of ) and the gantry loader status (I) n The priority values ​​of the peripheral devices (H) are not the same, or the status of the peripheral devices (H) is different. n The priority value of ) and the gantry loader status (I) n If the priority values ​​of the machine tool status (G) are different, compare the machine tool status (G) n Is the priority value of ) greater than or less than the status of the peripheral device (H)? n The priority value of ).

8. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The machine tool entry command step (S51) is in the priority order value comparison step (S40) of the gantry loader, where the machine tool status (G) is... n The priority value of ) and the gantry loader status (I) n The priority values ​​of the machines are the same, or the machine tool status (G) in the priority value comparison step (S41) of the machine tool is the same. n The priority value of ) is less than that of the peripheral device status (H) n When the priority value of ) is reached, an action command is applied to the servo motor (12) to cause the gantry loader (10) to enter the machine tool (60). The peripheral device entry command step (S52) is performed during the priority order value comparison step (S40) of the gantry loader, where the peripheral device status (H) is... n The priority value of ) and the gantry loader status (I) n The priority values ​​of the machines are the same, or the machine tool status (G) in the priority value comparison step (S41) of the machine tool is the same. n The priority value of ) is greater than that of the peripheral device status (H) n When the priority value of ) is reached, an action command is applied to the servo motor (12) to cause the gantry loader (10) to enter the peripheral device (70).

9. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, In the operation priority determination step (S70), the priority value of the current gantry loader (10) assigned in the priority assignment step (S30) is compared with that of the adjacent gantry loaders (10) to determine the gantry loader status (I) of the current gantry loader (10). n Priority value and machine tool status (G) n Priority value or peripheral device status (H) n The sum of priority values ​​is less than the gantry loader status (I) of the adjacent gantry loader (10). n-1 Priority value and machine tool status (G) n-1 Priority value or peripheral device status (H) n-1 The sum of priority values.

10. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The task priority determination step (S70) includes: When the current gantry loader (10) has a higher priority than the adjacent gantry loader (10), the adjacent gantry loader (10) is instructed to avoid the adjacent gantry loader (10) to a pre-defined safe zone avoidance instruction step (S71) that will not interfere with the current gantry loader (10)'s movement path; and When the priority of the current gantry loader (10) is lower than that of the adjacent gantry loader (10), the current gantry loader (10) is instructed to wait in a pre-defined safe area within a safe area where it does not interfere with the movement path of the adjacent gantry loader (10) (S72).

11. The gantry loader control method according to claim 10, characterized in that, The safety zone, which is preset in the safety zone avoidance instruction step (S71) and the safety zone waiting instruction step (S72), is set by the sum of the non-contact distance (α) between the mechanical parts that can prevent contact between the current gantry loader (10) and the mechanical parts of the adjacent gantry loader (10) and the braking distance (β) when the gantry loader (10) stops at its maximum speed.

12. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Following the information acquisition step (S20), the method further includes: Determine the gantry loader alarm information (J) obtained in the information acquisition step (S20). n Whether it is an emergency stop, when the gantry loader alarm information (J) is received. n If it is not an emergency stop, the control steps are returned to the gantry loader alarm information judgment step (S110) of the information acquisition step (S20). In the gantry loader alarm information judgment step (S110), when the gantry loader alarm information (J) n In case of emergency stop, the gantry loader (10) is moved to a parking position that does not interfere with the movement of the adjacent gantry loader (10) in the gantry loader failure process (S120). Cut off the alarm information of the gantry loader (J) n The power supply for the servo motor (12) of the gantry loader (10) in emergency stop is turned off, and the information of the gantry loader (10) obtained in the information acquisition step (S20) is invalidated, thereby invalidating the gantry loader alarm information (J). n The gantry loader (10) that has been brought to an emergency stop is excluded from the control scope, and the control steps are then returned to the information acquisition invalidation step (S130) of the information acquisition step (S20); and By eliminating the cause of the emergency stop signal of the gantry loader (10) that was invalidated in the information acquisition invalidation step (S130), the invalidated gantry loader (10) is normalized, and the control step is returned to the gantry loader normalization step (S140) of the information acquisition step (S10).

13. The gantry loader control method according to claim 12, characterized in that, The failure handling step (S120) for the gantry loader includes: A gantry loader servo motor availability determination step (S121) to determine whether the servo motor (12) used to drive the gantry loader (10) to move generates an encoder signal. In the gantry loader servo motor availability determination step (S121), if it is determined that an encoder signal is generated in the servo motor (12), then the gantry loader alarm information (J) will be sent. n The servo motor (12) of the gantry loader (10) undergoing emergency stop is switched to manual mode for control, causing the gantry loader (10) to move to a stopping position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders (10); if it is determined that the servo motor (12) does not generate an encoder signal, the gantry loader alarm information (J) is forcibly sent. n The gantry loader (10) to be stopped in an emergency is moved to a parking position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders (10), and after being forcibly moved to the parking position, the current position (A) of the gantry loader to be disabled is set to the parking position. n (S122) Input the gantry loader parking position movement step (S122) to the control device (30) as the parking position.

14. The gantry loader control method according to claim 12, characterized in that, After the information invalidation step (S130), the current position (A) of the gantry loader (10) to be invalidated is determined. n The information has been reset to the parking location.

15. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: After the information acquisition step (S20), the machine tool alarm information (K) acquired in the information acquisition step (S20) is determined. n Is it an emergency state? When the machine tool alarm information (K) is received... n When the situation is in an emergency, the control steps are returned to the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210) of the information acquisition step (S20). In the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210), when the machine tool alarm information (K) is determined, n When the emergency is in effect, a machine alarm message (K) is generated to determine whether the gantry loader (10) should detour through. n The machine tool (60) determines the bypass on / off information (L) of the control device (30). n Whether the bypass function is selected as open is determined step (S220); In the bypass function selection determination step (S220), when the bypass on / off information (L) is selected... n When selected as on, the bypass function of the gantry loader (10) is activated, causing the gantry loader (10) to omit the alarm information (K) indicating that material is entering the machine tool. n The process of bypassing the machine tool (60) in an emergency state is performed, and the information of the machine tool (60) obtained in the information acquisition step (S20) is initialized, and the control step is returned to the information acquisition step (S20); when the bypass on / off information (L) is activated, the machine tool (60) is bypassed. n When selected as off, machine tool alarm information (K) will be sent. n The data is transmitted to the control device (30) of the gantry loader (10) and the machine alarm information (K) is stopped. n The machine tool failure step (S230) corresponding to the actions of the gantry loader (10) and the machine tool (60); and In the machine tool failure step (S230), the machine tool alarm information (K) is generated. n Repair the machine tool (60) to normalize the failed machine tool (60) and return the control step to the machine tool normalization step (S240) of the information acquisition step (S20).

16. The gantry loader control method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: After the information acquisition step (S20), the machine tool alarm information (K) acquired in the information acquisition step (S20) is determined. n Is it an emergency? When the machine tool alarm information (K) is received... n When the situation is in an emergency, the control steps are returned to the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210) of the information acquisition step (S20). In the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210), when the machine tool alarm information (K) is determined, n In an emergency, the bypass function of the gantry loader (10) is activated, causing the gantry loader (10) to omit the alarm information (K) indicating that material is entering the machine tool. n The process involves the emergency state of the machine tool (60) and its bypass, while simultaneously initializing the information acquired in the information acquisition step (S20) of the machine tool (60) and returning the control step to the machine tool failure step (S230) of the information acquisition step (S20); and In the machine tool failure step (S230), the machine tool alarm information (K) is generated. n Repair the machine tool (60) to normalize the failed machine tool (60) and return the control step to the machine tool normalization step (S240) of the information acquisition step (S20).

17. A gantry loader control method, wherein on an automated production line comprising a plurality of machine tools (60) for processing materials, a plurality of peripheral devices (70) for loading materials, and a plurality of gantry loaders (10) reciprocating on a guide beam (20) arranged in such a manner as to supply or discharge materials between the machine tools (60) and the peripheral devices (70), the method comprises a control device (30) sharing information with the machine tools (60) and the peripheral devices (70) and controlling each of the gantry loaders (10) via the control device (30), characterized in that, Includes the following steps: The alarm information (J) of each of the gantry loaders (10) is obtained from the control device (30) used to control the plurality of gantry loaders (10). n (S20) and information acquisition steps (S30) to share information with the control device (30) of the adjacent gantry loader (10) via communication line (40); In the information acquisition step (S20), the acquired gantry loader alarm information (J) is determined. n Whether it is an emergency stop, when the gantry loader alarm information (J) is received. n If it is not an emergency stop, the control steps are returned to the gantry loader alarm information judgment step (S110) of the information acquisition step (S20). In the gantry loader alarm information judgment step (S110), when the gantry loader alarm information (J) n In case of emergency stop, the gantry loader (10) is moved to a parking position that does not interfere with the movement of the adjacent gantry loader (10) in the gantry loader failure process (S120). Cut off the alarm information of the gantry loader (J) n The power supply for the servo motor (12) of the gantry loader (10) in emergency stop is turned off, and the information of the gantry loader (10) obtained in the information acquisition step (S20) is invalidated, thereby invalidating the gantry loader alarm information (J). n The gantry loader (10) that has been brought to an emergency stop is excluded from the control scope, and the control steps are then returned to the information acquisition invalidation step (S130) of the information acquisition step (S20); and By eliminating the cause of the emergency stop signal of the gantry loader (10) that was invalidated in the information acquisition invalidation step (S130), the invalidated gantry loader (10) is normalized, and the control step is returned to the gantry loader normalization step (S140) of the information acquisition step (S10).

18. The gantry loader control method according to claim 17, characterized in that, The failure handling step (S120) for the gantry loader includes: A gantry loader servo motor availability determination step (S121) to determine whether the servo motor (12) used to drive the gantry loader (10) to move generates an encoder signal. In the gantry loader servo motor availability determination step (S121), if it is determined that an encoder signal is generated in the servo motor (12), then the gantry loader alarm information (J) will be sent. n The servo motor (12) of the gantry loader (10) undergoing emergency stop is switched to manual mode for control, causing the gantry loader (10) to move to a stopping position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders (10); if it is determined that the servo motor (12) does not generate an encoder signal, the gantry loader alarm information (J) is forcibly sent. n The gantry loader (10) to be stopped in an emergency is moved to a parking position that does not interfere with the movement of adjacent gantry loaders (10), and after being forcibly moved to the parking position, the current position (A) of the gantry loader to be disabled is set to the parking position. n (S122) Input the gantry loader parking position movement step (S122) to the control device (30) as the parking position.

19. The gantry loader control method according to claim 17, characterized in that, After the information invalidation step (S130), the current position (A) of the gantry loader (10) to be invalidated is determined. n The information has been reset to the parking location.

20. A gantry loader control method, wherein on an automated production line comprising a plurality of machine tools (60) for processing materials, a plurality of peripheral devices (70) for loading materials, and a plurality of gantry loaders (10) reciprocating on a guide beam (20) arranged in such a manner as to supply or discharge materials between the machine tools (60) and the peripheral devices (70), the method comprises a control device (30) sharing information with the machine tools (60) and the peripheral devices (70) and controlling each of the gantry loaders (10) via the control device (30), characterized in that, Includes the following steps: Information acquisition step (S20) which obtains information about each of the gantry loaders (10) and the machine tool (60) from the control device (30) for controlling the plurality of gantry loaders (10) and shares it with the control device (30) of the adjacent gantry loaders (10) via the communication line (40). Determine the machine tool alarm information (K) obtained in the information acquisition step (S20). n Is it an emergency state? When the machine tool alarm information (K) is received... n When the situation is in an emergency, the control steps are returned to the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210) of the information acquisition step (S20). In the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210), when the machine tool alarm information (K) is determined, n When the emergency is in effect, a machine alarm message (K) is generated to determine whether the gantry loader (10) should detour through. n The machine tool (60) determines whether the bypass function selection is selected as on in the control device (30) by determining whether the bypass on / off information (Ln) is selected as on (S220). In the bypass function selection determination step (S220), when the bypass on / off information (L) is selected... n When selected as on, the bypass function of the gantry loader (10) is activated, causing the gantry loader (10) to omit the alarm information (K) indicating that material is entering the machine tool. n The process of bypassing the machine tool (60) in an emergency state is performed, and the information of the machine tool (60) obtained in the information acquisition step (S20) is initialized, and the control step is returned to the information acquisition step (S20); when the bypass on / off information (L) is activated, the machine tool (60) is bypassed. n When selected as off, machine tool alarm information (K) will be sent. n The data is transmitted to the control device (30) of the gantry loader (10) and the machine alarm information (K) is stopped. n The machine tool failure step (S230) corresponding to the actions of the gantry loader (10) and the machine tool (60); and In the machine tool failure step (S230), the machine tool alarm information (K) is generated. n Repair the machine tool (60) to normalize the failed machine tool (60) and return the control step to the machine tool normalization step (S240) of the information acquisition step (S20).

21. A gantry loader control method, wherein on an automated production line comprising a plurality of machine tools (60) for processing materials, a plurality of peripheral devices (70) for loading materials, and a plurality of gantry loaders (10) reciprocating on a guide beam (20) arranged in such a manner as to supply or discharge materials between the machine tools (60) and the peripheral devices (70), the method comprises a control device (30) sharing information with the machine tools (60) and the peripheral devices (70) and controlling each of the gantry loaders (10) via the control device (30), characterized in that, Includes the following steps: Information acquisition step (S20) which obtains information about each gantry loader (10) and the machine tool (60) from the control device (30) for controlling the plurality of gantry loaders (10) and shares it with the control device (30) of the adjacent gantry loader (10) via the communication line (40). Determine the machine tool alarm information (K) obtained in the information acquisition step (S20). n Is it an emergency state? When the machine tool alarm information (K) is received... n When the situation is in an emergency, the control steps are returned to the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210) of the information acquisition step (S20). In the machine tool alarm information judgment step (S210), when the machine tool alarm information (K) is determined, n In an emergency, the bypass function of the gantry loader (10) is activated, causing the gantry loader (10) to omit the alarm information (K) indicating that material is entering the machine tool. n The process involves the emergency state of the machine tool (60) and its bypass, while simultaneously initializing the information acquired in the information acquisition step (S20) of the machine tool (60) and returning the control step to the machine tool failure step (S230) of the information acquisition step (S20); and In the machine tool failure step (S230), the machine tool alarm information (K) is generated. n Repair the machine tool (60) to normalize the failed machine tool (60) and return the control step to the machine tool normalization step (S240) of the information acquisition step (S20).

Images