Electronic seal assembly, electronic seal automatic sealing management system and automatic sealing management method

Abstract

The invention provides an electronic seal assembly, an electronic seal automatic sealing management system and an automatic sealing management method. The method comprises the following steps: setting an electronic seal to record traceability information and an on-off state of a nuclear material container; an on-off locking assembly is arranged to be connected to an installation position of the electronic seal, the electronic seal is connected in the state that the nuclear material container is locked, and the electronic seal is disconnected in the state that the nuclear material container is loosened, so that the storage information and the storage state of the nuclear material can be automatically supervised, the harm of the nuclear material to workers is reduced, and the working efficiency is improved. And the sealing state of the nuclear material container is monitored in real time, stability and reliability are achieved, manual stocktaking is not needed, and the management efficiency is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to the field of nuclear material supervision technology, and in particular to an electronic sealing component, an automatic electronic sealing management system, and an automatic sealing management method. Background Technology

[0002] In the field of nuclear material regulation, nuclear material containers are very important nuclear material storage devices, and sealing is a very important tool for ensuring the safety of nuclear materials.

[0003] However, current nuclear material management units use metal drums to store nuclear materials, which are then sealed manually and placed in warehouses. Due to the large number of metal drums, the traditional sealing method not only consumes a lot of manpower and resources, but also poses a series of safety issues due to the prolonged contact of staff with nuclear materials. It is difficult to supervise the storage information and storage status of nuclear materials without avoiding manual contact. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this invention is to provide an electronic sealing component, an automatic electronic sealing management system, and an automatic sealing management method to solve the problem mentioned in the background art that traditional nuclear material supervision methods are difficult to implement supervision of nuclear material storage information and storage status without human contact.

[0005] To achieve the above objectives, the present invention provides the following technical solution: an electronic seal assembly, comprising: an electronic seal for recording traceability information and on / off status of a nuclear material container; and an on / off locking assembly, which is respectively connected to the mounting position of the electronic seal and the nuclear material container, for connecting the electronic seal when the nuclear material container is locked, and disconnecting the electronic seal when the nuclear material container is released.

[0006] Optionally, the electronic seal may contain an ultra-high frequency passive electronic tag.

[0007] Optionally, the outer surface of the electronic seal may also be provided with a QR code label.

[0008] Optionally, the on / off locking assembly includes: two conductive spring contacts, which are respectively connected to the positive and negative pins of the UHF passive electronic tag and extend to the mounting position inside the electronic seal; a pin, which is movably inserted into the mounting position inside the electronic seal and connected to the two conductive spring contacts; a spring, which is coaxially disposed on the outside of the pin, with one end abutting the mounting position of the electronic seal and the other end pushing the pin away from at least one of the conductive spring contacts; a barrel hoop, which surrounds the nuclear material container and seals and fits the barrel-to-lid connection of the nuclear material container; a steel needle and a locking member, wherein the steel needle passes through both ends of the barrel hoop and the mounting position of the electronic seal in sequence and is locked by the locking member. In the locked state of the steel needle and the locking member, the locking member presses against the pin to connect the pin to the two conductive spring contacts.

[0009] On the other hand, the present invention also provides an automatic electronic seal application management system, including several of the above-mentioned electronic seal components, a control module, and connected to the control module: an automatic sealing mechanism for encapsulating the electronic seal and the on / off locking component onto the corresponding nuclear material container; a stacking mechanism for receiving the nuclear material container on the automatic sealing mechanism and stacking the nuclear material container according to a preset position; and a seal reading mechanism installed on the stacking mechanism for reading the traceability information and sealing status information of the electronic seal.

[0010] Optionally, the automatic sealing mechanism includes: several conveyor belts for conveying nuclear material containers; a turntable platform located between two of the conveyor belts for receiving nuclear material containers conveyed by the preceding conveyor belt, rotating the nuclear material containers, and conveying the nuclear material containers to the subsequent conveyor belt; a feeding mechanism and a sealing robot, located on opposite sides of the turntable platform. When the turntable platform rotates to an angle corresponding to the feeding mechanism, the feeding mechanism installs the corresponding electronic seal and on / off locking components onto the nuclear material container. After the turntable platform rotates to an angle corresponding to the sealing robot, the sealing robot locks the corresponding electronic seal and on / off locking components onto the nuclear material container.

[0011] Optionally, the stacking mechanism includes: a stacking trolley for transporting nuclear material containers and stacking them in a preset position; a trolley lane, one end of which is located near the end of the conveyor belt so that the stacking trolley can receive nuclear material containers from the end of the conveyor belt; and an automated storage and retrieval system located near the trolley lane for storing the nuclear material containers transported by the stacking trolley.

[0012] Optionally, the vehicle lane includes: a transverse lane and a plurality of longitudinal lanes arranged at intervals connected to the transverse lane; the automated warehouse includes: a plurality of first storage spaces arranged longitudinally on both sides of the longitudinal lane, and a second storage space located on the side of the first storage space away from the longitudinal lane, wherein the height of the second storage space is higher than that of the first storage space.

[0013] Optionally, the seal reading mechanism includes: a barcode scanning camera, which is used to scan the QR code label on the electronic seal and the code of the nuclear material container to complete the binding of the electronic seal and the corresponding nuclear material container; and a seal host, which is used to send ultra-high frequency signals and receive feedback signals from the electronic seal to read the traceability information and on / off status of the nuclear material container recorded by the electronic seal.

[0014] On the other hand, the present invention also provides an automatic electronic seal application management method, applied to the aforementioned automatic electronic seal application management system. The steps include: conveying a nuclear material container loaded with nuclear reaction material to a turntable platform via a conveyor belt; controlling the turntable platform to rotate sequentially to correspond with the feeding mechanism and the sealing robot, so as to install the electronic seal and the on / off locking assembly onto the nuclear material container; controlling a barcode scanning camera to scan the QR code label on the electronic seal and the code of the nuclear material container to complete the binding of the electronic seal and the corresponding nuclear material container; controlling a stacking mechanism to receive the nuclear material container on the automatic sealing mechanism and stacking the nuclear material container in a three-dimensional warehouse according to a preset position; controlling a stacking trolley to slide in the trolley lane in a preset order, and reading the traceability information and sealing status information of each electronic seal through a seal host reading mechanism.

[0015] Compared with the prior art, the beneficial effects of the present invention are:

[0016] By setting up electronic seals to record the traceability information and on / off status of nuclear material containers, and by setting up on / off locking components connected to the installation position of the electronic seals, the electronic seals can be connected when the nuclear material containers are locked and disconnected when the nuclear material containers are released. This enables automatic monitoring of the storage information and storage status of nuclear materials, reduces the harm of nuclear materials to personnel, and monitors the sealing status of nuclear material containers in real time. It is stable and reliable, eliminates the need for manual inventory checks, and improves management efficiency. Attached Figure Description

[0017] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the three-dimensional structure of the electronic seal of the present invention.

[0018] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the on / off locking assembly structure of the present invention.

[0019] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the automatic sealing management method of the present invention.

[0020] In the diagram: 1-Electronic seal, 2-Steel needle, 3-Locking component, 4-Pin, 5-Spring, 6-Conductive spring. Detailed Implementation

[0021] The present invention will now be clearly and completely described in conjunction with the accompanying drawings of the embodiments of the present invention. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present invention, and not all embodiments.

[0022] It should be noted that the terms "first," "second," etc., in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such data can be interchanged where appropriate for the embodiments of this application described herein. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion; for example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that comprises a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not explicitly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, products, or apparatus.

[0023] Those skilled in the art will understand that, unless explicitly stated otherwise, the singular forms “a,” “an,” “the,” and “the” used herein may also include the plural forms. It should be further understood that the term “comprising” as used in the specification of this application means the presence of features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and / or components, but does not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof. It should be understood that when we say an element is “connected” or “coupled” to another element, it can be directly connected or coupled to the other element, or there may be intermediate elements. Furthermore, “connected” or “coupled” as used herein can include wireless connections or wireless coupling. The term “and / or” as used herein includes all or any units and all combinations of one or more associated listed items.

[0024] It will be understood by those skilled in the art that, unless otherwise defined, all terms used herein (including technical and scientific terms) have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this application pertains. It should also be understood that terms such as those defined in general dictionaries should be understood to have the same meaning as in the context of the prior art, and should not be interpreted in an idealized or overly formal sense unless specifically defined as herein.

[0025] It should be understood that the sequence number and size of each step in this embodiment do not imply the order of execution. The execution order of each process is determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of this application embodiment.

[0026] It should be noted that, unless otherwise specified, the embodiments and features described in this application can be combined with each other. This application will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments.

[0027] Please refer to Figures 1-3 An electronic sealing assembly of the present invention includes: an electronic seal 1 for recording traceability information and on / off status of a nuclear material container; and an on / off locking assembly, which is respectively connected to the mounting position of the electronic seal 1 and the nuclear material container, for connecting the electronic seal 1 when the nuclear material container is locked and disconnecting the electronic seal 1 when the nuclear material container is released.

[0028] Specifically, the electronic seal 1 includes a seal body and a connecting rod. The seal body and the connecting rod are arranged in a T-shape. The end of the connecting rod away from the seal body has a hole for installing a steel needle 2. A mounting cavity is formed on the part of the connecting rod near the hole. The mounting cavity is used to install a pin 4 and a spring 5. The pin 4 is movably inserted into the mounting position inside the electronic seal 1 and connected to two conductive springs 6. The spring 5 is coaxially disposed on the outside of the pin 4 and supports it at one end. The electronic seal 1 is installed at one end, and the other end pushes the pin 4 away from at least one of the conductive springs 6. The steel needle 2 passes through both ends of the barrel hoop and the installation position of the electronic seal 1 in sequence, and is locked by the locking member 3. When the steel needle 2 and the locking member 3 are locked, the locking member 3 presses against the pin 4 to connect the pin 4 to the two conductive springs 6. The electronic seal 1 can be connected or disconnected by locking or releasing the locking assembly, thereby monitoring the sealing status of the nuclear material container in real time.

[0029] It is understandable that by setting up an electronic seal 1 to record the traceability information and on / off status of nuclear material containers, and by setting up an on / off locking component connected to the installation position of the electronic seal 1, the electronic seal 1 can be connected when the nuclear material container is locked and disconnected when the nuclear material container is released. This enables automatic monitoring of the storage information and storage status of nuclear materials, reduces the harm of nuclear materials to personnel, and monitors the sealing status of nuclear material containers in real time. It is stable and reliable, eliminates the need for manual inventory, and improves management efficiency.

[0030] In some embodiments, the electronic seal 1 contains an ultra-high frequency passive electronic tag.

[0031] Specifically, the electronic seal 1 uses a passive UHF chip, eliminating concerns about battery life and eliminating the need for charging or battery replacement. Furthermore, using lithium batteries in automated storage and retrieval systems containing nuclear materials is not very safe. The passive UHF chip has a continuity detection function, with its continuity detection pins connected to a circuit board and a continuity locking assembly. The seal itself does not require battery power; a unique serial number is written into the electronic seal 1 at the factory. When the seal host scans the seal, it emits an UHF signal. In the continuity state, the electronic seal 1 generates an induced current, powering the UHF passive electronic tag, thereby completing the reading of the seal number and continuity status.

[0032] In some embodiments, the outer surface of the electronic seal 1 is further provided with a QR code label.

[0033] Specifically, a black QR code is silkscreened on the surface of the seal. The QR code number matches the seal number, and each seal number is unique, which facilitates the automatic binding of the seal number and the container number. By scanning the QR code label on the electronic seal and the code of the nuclear material container with a barcode scanner, the binding of the electronic seal and the corresponding nuclear material container is completed.

[0034] In some embodiments, the on / off locking assembly includes: two conductive springs 6, which are respectively connected to the positive and negative pins of the UHF passive electronic tag and extend to the mounting position inside the electronic seal 1; a pin 4, which is movably inserted into the mounting position inside the electronic seal 1 and connected to the two conductive springs 6; a spring 5, which is coaxially disposed on the outside of the pin 4, with one end abutting the mounting position of the electronic seal 1 and the other end pushing the pin 4 away from at least one conductive spring 6; a barrel hoop, which surrounds the nuclear material container and seals and fits the barrel and lid connection part of the nuclear material container; a steel needle 2 and a locking member 3, wherein the steel needle 2 passes through both ends of the barrel hoop and the mounting position of the electronic seal 1 in sequence, and is locked by the locking member 3. In the locked state of the steel needle 2 and the locking member 3, the locking member 3 presses against the pin 4 to connect the pin 4 to the two conductive springs 6.

[0035] Specifically, the electronic seal 1 has both sealing and material barrel locking functions. The steel needle 2 can be made of steel, and the locking element 3 can be made of nylon. Nylon plugs are easier to automate and have lower costs. The steel needle 2 is made of 45# steel rod with barbs at the front end for anti-retraction and to ensure sufficient strength to tighten the barrel hoops. The nylon plug is made of nylon rod, which has high hardness and strength. The steel needle 2 is automatically inserted through both ends of the barrel hoop and the mounting position of the electronic seal 1, and locked by the locking element 3. With the steel needle 2 and locking element 3 locked, the locking element 3 presses against the pin 4 to connect the pin 4 to the two conductive springs 6. The electronic seal 1 includes two conductive springs 6. The system includes components such as conductive springs 6, pins 4, and springs 5. Two conductive springs 6 are connected to the continuity detection pins inside the UHF electronic tag chip. Pins 4 and conductive springs 6 are kept in a constant connection. When pins 4 are squeezed externally, the end of pins 4 makes contact with at least one conductive spring 6, thus connecting the two conductive springs 6. When the external force is removed, springs 5 ​​spring back pins 4, disconnecting pins 4 from at least one conductive spring 6, thus breaking the connection between the two conductive springs 6. This achieves continuity detection of the electronic seal 1, ensuring reliable contact and low cost. The unique sealing method of the electronic seal 1 cleverly combines the electronic seal 1, steel needle 2, nylon plug, and barrel hoop, integrating the locking and sealing functions into one, and making it easier to automate the operation.

[0036] On the other hand, the present invention also provides an automatic electronic seal application management system, including several of the above-mentioned electronic seal components, and further including a control module and connected to the control module: an automatic sealing mechanism, which is used to encapsulate the electronic seal 1 and the on / off locking component onto the corresponding nuclear material container; a stacking mechanism, which is used to receive the nuclear material container on the automatic sealing mechanism and stack the nuclear material container according to a preset position; and a seal reading mechanism, which is installed on the stacking mechanism and is used to read the traceability information and sealing status information of the electronic seal 1.

[0037] In some embodiments, the automatic sealing mechanism includes: a plurality of conveyor belts for conveying nuclear material containers; a turntable platform located between two of the conveyor belts for receiving nuclear material containers conveyed by the preceding conveyor belts, rotating the nuclear material containers, and conveying the nuclear material containers to the following conveyor belts; a loading mechanism and a sealing robot, located on opposite sides of the turntable platform. When the turntable platform rotates to an angle corresponding to the loading mechanism, the loading mechanism installs the corresponding electronic seal 1 and on / off locking assembly onto the nuclear material container. After the turntable platform rotates to an angle corresponding to the sealing robot, the sealing robot locks the corresponding electronic seal 1 and on / off locking assembly onto the nuclear material container.

[0038] In some embodiments, the stacking mechanism includes: a stacking trolley for transporting nuclear material containers and stacking them at a preset position; a trolley lane, one end of which is located near the end of the conveyor belt so that the stacking trolley can receive the nuclear material containers at the end of the conveyor belt; and an automated storage and retrieval system located near the trolley lane for stacking the nuclear material containers transported by the stacking trolley.

[0039] In some embodiments, the vehicle lane includes: a transverse lane and a plurality of longitudinal lanes arranged at intervals connected to the transverse lane; the automated warehouse includes: a plurality of first storage spaces arranged longitudinally on both sides of the longitudinal lanes, and a second storage space located on the side of the first storage space away from the longitudinal lanes, wherein the height of the second storage space is higher than that of the first storage space.

[0040] In some embodiments, the seal reading mechanism includes: a barcode scanning camera, which is used to scan the QR code label on the electronic seal 1 and the code of the nuclear material container to complete the binding of the electronic seal 1 and the corresponding nuclear material container; and a seal host, which is used to send ultra-high frequency signals and receive feedback signals from the electronic seal 1 to read the traceability information and on / off status of the nuclear material container recorded by the electronic seal 1.

[0041] On the other hand, the present invention also provides an automatic electronic seal application management method, applied to the aforementioned automatic electronic seal 1 application management system. The steps include: conveying a nuclear material container loaded with nuclear reaction material to a turntable platform via a conveyor belt; controlling the turntable platform to rotate sequentially to correspond with the feeding mechanism and the sealing robot, so as to install the electronic seal 1 and the on / off locking assembly onto the nuclear material container; controlling a barcode scanning camera to scan the QR code label on the electronic seal 1 and the code of the nuclear material container, so as to complete the binding of the electronic seal 1 and the corresponding nuclear material container; controlling a stacking mechanism to receive the nuclear material container on the automatic sealing mechanism and stacking the nuclear material container in a three-dimensional warehouse according to a preset position; controlling a stacking trolley to slide in the trolley lane in a preset order, and reading the traceability information and sealing status information of each electronic seal 1 through a seal host reading mechanism.

[0042] Specifically, each electronic seal 1 is pre-numbered at the factory and can be placed on a customized shelf. The steel needle 2, nylon plug, and seal body can be individually packaged and then packed into a carton containing ten shelves. After receiving the labels, the user removes the carton and places the ten electronic seal 1 shelves into the feeding mechanism of the automatic sealing management system. Once the automatic sealing equipment identifies the shelf, it activates a picking robot to sequentially grab one electronic seal 1 and a set of on / off locking components from the shelf for automatic sealing. After automatic sealing, the barcode camera reads the barrel number and the seal number, binds them, and sends the binding information to the electronic seal 1 management software for warehousing. When the seals on one shelf are sealed, a lifting device lifts the new shelf, and the empty shelf is removed by the picking robot until all shelves are sealed. The electronic seal 1 main unit is an ultra-high frequency reader / writer, capable of simultaneously connecting four... An ultra-high frequency antenna transmits the read seal number and on / off status back to the electronic seal management software via a network interface. The seal host and its antenna are installed on the stacker crane of the automated warehouse. The stacker crane moves horizontally and vertically in the aisles of the automated warehouse. By controlling the movement of the stacker crane, the seal number and status reading of the entire automated warehouse can be completely covered, realizing inventory and seal status reading functions. Each electronic seal can realize traceability information and on / off status reading without the need for batteries. It can be used effectively for a long time, and its structure is simple, compact, stable and reliable. The electronic seal management software is mainly used to manage all the electronic seal hosts in the automated warehouse. It communicates and works collaboratively with the warehouse management system, stacker crane control system and automatic sealing system in the automated warehouse. Ultimately, it realizes the automatic binding of seal number and barrel number for warehousing, automatic sealing of seals, and daily inventory and seal status reading functions.

[0043] The above are merely embodiments of the present invention and do not limit the patent scope of the present invention. Any equivalent modifications made based on the content of the present invention's specification and drawings, or direct or indirect applications in related technical fields, are similarly included within the patent protection scope of the present invention.

Claims

1. An electronic sealing assembly, characterized in that, include: Electronic seals are used to record traceability information and on / off status of nuclear material containers; A switching locking assembly is connected to the mounting position of the electronic seal and the nuclear material container, respectively, for connecting the electronic seal when the nuclear material container is locked and disconnecting the electronic seal when the nuclear material container is released.

2. The electronic sealing assembly according to claim 1, characterized in that, The electronic seal contains an ultra-high frequency passive electronic tag.

3. The electronic sealing assembly according to claim 2, characterized in that, The outer surface of the electronic seal is also provided with a QR code label.

4. The electronic sealing assembly according to claim 3, characterized in that, The on / off locking assembly includes: Two conductive spring contacts are respectively connected to the positive and negative pins of the UHF passive electronic tag and extend to the mounting position inside the electronic seal; A pin, which is movably inserted into the mounting position inside the electronic seal and connected to the two conductive springs; A spring is coaxially disposed on the outside of the pin, with one end abutting the mounting position of the electronic seal and the other end pushing the pin away from at least one of the conductive spring pieces. A barrel hoop, which surrounds the nuclear material container and seals the connection between the barrel and the lid of the nuclear material container; The steel needle and locking element are provided. The steel needle passes through both ends of the barrel hoop and the mounting position of the electronic seal in sequence, and is locked by the locking element. In the locked state, the locking element presses against the pin to connect the pin to the two conductive springs.

5. An automatic electronic seal application management system, characterized in that, The system includes several electronic sealing components as described in any one of claims 1-4, and further includes a control module and a component connected to the control module. An automatic sealing mechanism for encapsulating electronic seals and on / off locking components onto corresponding nuclear material containers; A stacking mechanism is used to receive nuclear material containers on the automatic sealing mechanism and stack the nuclear material containers in a preset position; A seal reading mechanism, installed on the stacking mechanism, is used to read the traceability information and sealing status information of the electronic seal.

6. The electronic seal automatic sealing management system according to claim 5, characterized in that, The automatic sealing mechanism includes: Several conveyor belts used for conveying containers of nuclear materials; The turntable platform, located between two conveyor belts, is used to receive nuclear material containers conveyed by the preceding conveyor belt, rotate the nuclear material containers, and transport the nuclear material containers to the subsequent conveyor belt. The feeding mechanism and the sealing robot are located on both sides of the turntable platform. When the turntable platform rotates to the angle corresponding to the feeding mechanism, the feeding mechanism installs the corresponding electronic seal and on / off locking components on the nuclear material container. After the turntable platform rotates to the angle corresponding to the sealing robot, the sealing robot locks the corresponding electronic seal and on / off locking components on the nuclear material container.

7. The electronic seal automatic sealing management system according to claim 5, characterized in that, The stacking mechanism includes: Stacking trolley, used to move containers of nuclear materials and stack them in a preset position; The trolley lane is located at one end near the end of the conveyor belt so that the stacking trolley can receive the nuclear material container at the end of the conveyor belt; An automated storage and retrieval system, located near the vehicle lane, is used to store containers of nuclear materials transported by the stacking trolleys.

8. The electronic seal automatic sealing management system according to claim 7, characterized in that, The vehicle lanes include: Transverse lanes, and several longitudinal lanes arranged at intervals that connect to the transverse lanes; The automated warehouse includes: A plurality of first storage spaces are arranged longitudinally on both sides of the longitudinal lane, and a second storage space is located on the side of the first storage space away from the longitudinal lane, wherein the height of the second storage space is higher than that of the first storage space.

9. The electronic seal automatic sealing management system according to claim 5, characterized in that, The seal reading mechanism includes: A barcode scanning camera is used to scan the QR code label on the electronic seal and the code of the nuclear material container to complete the binding of the electronic seal and the corresponding nuclear material container; The sealing host is used to send ultra-high frequency signals and receive feedback signals from the electronic seal in order to read the traceability information and on / off status of the nuclear material container recorded by the electronic seal.

10. An automatic electronic seal application management method, applied to the automatic electronic seal application management system according to any one of claims 5-9, characterized in that the steps include... include: The nuclear material container loaded with nuclear reaction material is transported to the turntable platform via a conveyor belt; The control turntable platform rotates sequentially to correspond with the feeding mechanism and the sealing robot, so as to install the electronic seal and on / off locking assembly onto the nuclear material container; The camera is controlled to scan the QR code label on the electronic seal and the code of the nuclear material container to complete the binding of the electronic seal and the corresponding nuclear material container; The stacking mechanism receives the nuclear material containers from the automatic sealing mechanism and stacks them in the automated storage and retrieval system according to a preset position. The stacking trolley is controlled to slide in the trolley lane in a preset order, and the traceability information and sealing status information of each electronic seal are read by the sealing host reading mechanism.

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