Automatic warehousing system

Abstract

The utility model discloses an automatic warehousing system which can automatically measure the droop amount of a fork arm of a pick-and-place machine. The automatic warehousing system comprises a storage position object bearing arm, a taking and placing machine fork arm, a distance sensor and a programmable logic controller, wherein the storage position object bearing arm is provided with a storage clamping box filled with glass substrates, the taking and placing machine fork arm is movably arranged and takes out the storage clamping box filled with the glass substrates from the storage position object bearing arm, and the distance sensor is fixed to a storage position pedal of the automatic warehousing system. The distance sensor measures the value of the vertical distance between the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm and the storage position pedal in real time. And the programmable logic controller receives the numerical value from the distance sensor and calculates the droop amount of the fork arm of the pick-and-place machine based on the numerical value. In the measuring process of the automatic warehousing system, the automatic warehousing system does not need to be stopped, carrying of the storage cartridge is not affected, personnel do not need to enter the automatic warehousing system, and glass panels are not polluted.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The utility model relates to the technical field of storage of liquid crystal display substrates, and more specifically to an automatic storage system which can automatically measure the sagging amount of a pick-and-place machine fork arm during the transportation process of a storage cassette of a glass substrate. Background Art

[0002] Different production processes of substrates require different equipment and are completed in different environments. The substrates need to be moved multiple times to complete the entire production process. Most existing transportation methods use a pick-and-place machine as a transportation device for operation. During transportation, the LCD panel is carried on the fork of the pick-and-place machine.

[0003] In the automatic storage system, the pick-and-place machine (Crane) is responsible for transporting the storage cassettes of the glass substrates in the storage location within the automatic storage system. The installation structure of the fork arm is similar to the cantilever structure, and the substrate is generally made of glass, which is easy to be damaged or cracked due to the vibration of the fork arm during transportation. The vibration of the fork arm is difficult to measure, let alone monitor in real time. Only when a large number of substrates have problems during transportation will it attract the attention of the operator and adjust the transportation device. This may have caused a lot of time, manpower, material and financial resources to be consumed before the adjustment, and it will also have a great impact on the production capacity of the substrate.

[0004] On the other hand, the droop data of the pick-and-place machine fork arm (Crane Fork) is an important basis for judging whether the bearing of the pick-and-place machine fork arm is damaged. However, the traditional method of measuring the droop data of the pick-and-place machine fork arm of the automatic storage system of the LCD panel requires the automatic storage system to be stopped first, and then the personnel manually operate the Crane Fork to extend it and take the storage cassette (CST) filled with glass substrates, and then use a ruler to measure the droop data of the pick-and-place machine fork arm. Each measurement will cause the automatic storage system to stop for about 15 minutes. This measurement method not only requires a lot of manpower, but also affects the factory production capacity for the automatic storage system that transports heavier loads. Utility Model Content

[0005] The utility model is proposed in view of the above problems in the prior art, and aims to provide an automatic storage system that can improve the above shortcomings of the manual measurement method in the prior art.

[0006] The technical solution adopted by the utility model to solve its technical problems is as follows:

[0007] An automatic warehousing system for detecting the sagging amount of a fork arm of a pick-and-place machine, characterized by comprising:

[0008] The storage arm is provided with a storage cassette filled with glass substrates.

[0009] a pick-and-place machine fork arm, which is movably arranged and takes out the storage cassette filled with glass substrates from the storage position holding arm; and

[0010] A distance sensor fixed to a storage pedal of the automatic storage system; and

[0011] Programmable logic controller,

[0012] The distance sensor measures in real time the vertical distance value from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the storage pedal;

[0013] The programmable logic controller receives the value from the distance sensor and calculates the drooping amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm based on the value.

[0014] Furthermore, the automatic storage system also includes:

[0015] A serial communication module, which is arranged in an electrical box of the liquid crystal panel box automatic storage machine and is electrically connected to the programmable logic controller;

[0016] The data corresponding to the numerical value is transmitted to the programmable logic controller through the serial communication module,

[0017] The programmable logic controller converts the distance value from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the storage pedal measured by the distance sensor into the distance from the bottom frame of the storage cassette to the storage holding arm by writing an electronic control program.

[0018] Furthermore, the automatic warehousing system also includes a reflector, which is adhered to the lower surface of the front end of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to reflect the laser; the distance sensor is provided with a laser transmitter and a laser receiver, the laser transmitter emits a laser and irradiates it on the reflector, and the reflector reflects the laser back to the laser receiver.

[0019] Furthermore, the automatic storage system measures the vertical distance from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the storage pedal of the liquid crystal panel box automatic storage machine in real time by measuring the distance of the laser light path.

[0020] Furthermore, when the pick-and-place machine fork arm extends into the storage location to lift the storage cartridge to a high position, the programmable logic controller automatically captures the maximum value of the distance from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the storage location support arm.

[0021] Furthermore, the automatic warehousing system also includes a human-computer interaction screen installed on the outer surface of the liquid crystal panel box automatic storage machine; the distance sensor inputs the distance value into the programmable logic controller in real time through the serial communication module, and displays the distance value on the human-computer interaction screen.

[0022] Furthermore, the programmable logic controller includes a comparison unit, a judgment unit and an analysis unit; the comparison unit compares the distance value transmitted by the serial communication module with a preset normal interval value, and determines through the judgment unit whether the drooping amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm is lower than the normal interval value.

[0023] Furthermore, the programmable logic controller automatically captures the maximum value of the distance value each time the pick-and-place machine fork arm picks and places the storage cartridge through a program, and obtains the droop value of the pick-and-place machine fork arm through the comparison unit, the judgment unit and the analysis unit therein, and uploads the droop value to the human-computer interaction screen.

[0024] Furthermore, the human-computer interaction screen emits an alarm when the droop value is less than a specified danger value.

[0025] The automatic storage system involved in the utility model is used to detect the sagging amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm, which changes the existing manual measurement method into an automatic measurement method. In the automatic storage system of the utility model, when the pick-and-place machine fork arm goes to the storage position holding arm to take the storage cassette of the glass substrate, the distance sensor transmits the vertical distance value from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the storage position pedal measured in real time to the programmable logic controller through the serial communication module to calculate the sagging amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm, and displays the sagging amount value of the fork arm through the human-computer interaction screen. In this process, the automatic storage system does not need to be shut down, and the engineer can remotely see the sagging amount data in the office without affecting the transportation of the storage cassette. In addition, the programmable logic controller (PLC) compares the sagging amount value with the dangerous value. If a dangerous value appears, the human-computer interaction screen will sound an alarm to remind the engineer to replace the bearing of the pick-and-place machine fork arm. Therefore, the automatic storage system of the utility model does not need to consume a lot of manpower, will not affect the production capacity of the factory, and will not pollute the automatic storage system. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] In order to more clearly illustrate the implementation methods of the present application or the technical solutions in the prior art, the drawings required for use in the implementation methods or the description of the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some implementation methods of the present application. For ordinary technicians in this field, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without paying any creative work.

[0027] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the height change of the fork arm of the prior art pick-and-place machine when carrying a liquid crystal display substrate.

[0028] Figure 2 It is a module schematic diagram of the structure of the automatic storage system involved in the utility model.

[0029] Main component symbols

[0030] DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The following will be combined with the drawings in the embodiments of the present application to clearly and completely describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, not all of the embodiments. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by ordinary technicians in this field without creative work are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0032] The automatic storage system of the utility model includes a movably arranged pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 and a storage cassette (not shown) storing glass substrates. Since the storage cassette is loaded with glass substrates, the storage cassette is heavy. The pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 is easily damaged during long-term transportation of the storage cassette filled with glass substrates, resulting in a decrease in the sagging amount of the storage cassette, which makes the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 unable to accurately transport the storage cassette to the specified position. At this time, the bearing of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 needs to be replaced. It can be seen that the data of the sagging amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 can reflect the life of the bearing of the fork arm. By measuring the sagging amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1, the state of the bearing of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 can be monitored in real time.

[0033] See below Figure 1 The principle of measuring the sagging amount of the fork arm 1 of the pick-and-place machine is explained with reference to the schematic diagram of FIG.

[0034] ①. Assuming that the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 has no sagging, the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 grabs the storage card box filled with glass substrates from the storage position supporting arm, and when the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 is lifted upward and is in a high position, the storage card box is away from the storage position supporting arm, and the vertical distance between the bottom of the storage card box and the storage position supporting arm is theoretically 140 mm.

[0035] ②. In fact, when the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 takes the storage card box filled with glass substrates and is in a high position, due to the sagging of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1, the vertical distance between the bottom of the storage card box on the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 and the storage position arm is between 110mm and 125mm, and this range is also normal for the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 to have no sagging.

[0036] ③. When the pick-and-place machine fork arm takes the glass of the storage cassette filled with glass substrates and is in a high position, if the vertical distance between the bottom of the storage cassette on the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 and the storage position arm is less than 110 mm, this range belongs to the abnormal sagging range of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1, and the bearing status of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 needs to be checked.

[0037] ④. When the pick-and-place machine fork arm takes the glass of the storage card box filled with glass substrates and is in a high position, if the vertical distance between the bottom of the storage card box on the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 and the storage position arm is less than 85mm, this range belongs to the abnormal sagging range of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1, and the bearing of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 needs to be replaced.

[0038] In the prior art, when measuring the sagging amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1, a manual measurement method is usually used. Specifically, the manual measurement method includes the following steps: ① Stop the automatic storage system, and the personnel enter the automatic storage system lane; ② Use MU to operate Fork in manual mode, and take the storage cassette to the upper position; ③ Use a ruler to measure the distance from the bottom frame of the storage cassette to the storage position support arm, and manually record the data and manually calculate the sagging amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1; ④ Manually put the storage cassette back to the storage position, and manually retract the fork arm to the origin. ⑤ The personnel walk out of the automatic storage system lane and switch the automatic storage system back to automatic mode.

[0039] However, the manual measurement method has the following disadvantages: ① Each time the sagging amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 is measured, the automatic storage system needs to be stopped for 15 minutes, which will affect the transportation of the storage cassette; ② Each time the measurement is performed, two people are required to cooperate in the operation, which will waste manpower; ③ When people enter the automatic storage system, particulate contamination is easily generated.

[0040] The automatic storage system 100 involved in the utility model is used to measure the droop data of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1, and the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 is used to pick and place the storage cassette loaded with glass substrates. The storage cassette is placed on a storage position support arm, and the bottom of the storage cassette is in contact with the storage position support arm. The automatic storage system 100 determines the life of the cross roller bearing of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 by measuring the droop of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1. Specifically, for example, when the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 is extended to fill the storage cassette and is in a high position, when the vertical distance between the bottom surface of the storage cassette of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 and the storage position support arm (i.e., the droop of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1) is less than 85mm, it means that the cross roller bearing of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 has been worn and the bearing needs to be replaced to ensure the normal use of the pick-and-place machine fork arm.

[0041] Specifically, the automatic warehousing system 100 includes a pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 , a storage pedal 2 , a serial communication module 3 , a programmable logic controller (PLC) 4 , and a human-machine interaction screen 5 .

[0042] The storage pedal 2 is arranged in the automatic storage system (i.e., the automatic storage machine for liquid crystal panel boxes), and a distance sensor 20 is fixed therein. The upper surface of the distance sensor 20 is flush with the surface of the storage pedal 2. The distance from the storage holding arm to the storage pedal 2 is fixed, and the distance from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the bottom of the storage cassette is also fixed. The storage pedal 2 is lower than the storage holding arm, and personnel can stand on the storage pedal 2 during operation. The storage holding arm is about 300 to 400 mm higher than the storage pedal 2. The storage holding arm is used to carry materials such as glass substrate cassettes.

[0043] When the automatic storage system equipment is in shutdown state, personnel can enter the automatic storage system. When it is in operation state, personnel cannot enter the automatic storage system. Glass substrates are collected into storage cassettes by Robot, etc., and 54 glass substrates are contained in one storage cassette. Each storage cassette is picked up and placed by the pick-and-place fork arm 1 of the automatic storage system. The taken-out storage cassette is moved to the next automatic storage system, and then the glass substrates therein are moved out by Robot, etc. In the automatic state, the pick-and-place fork arm 1 extends to the storage position support arm and contacts the bottom frame of the storage cassette, and then the storage cassette is lifted up so that the storage cassette is away from the storage position support arm, and then the pick-and-place fork arm 1 retracts to take the storage cassette out of the storage position support arm.

[0044] The lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 is provided with a reflective member 10, and the reflective member 10 may be a reflective sticker adhered to the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 or a reflective plate fixed to the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1. In this embodiment, the reflective member 10 is a reflective sticker adhered to the lower surface of the front end of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1, which is used to reflect laser.

[0045] The pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 can extend into the space between the storage position support arm and the storage cartridge, and the upper surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 contacts the storage cartridge to remove the storage cartridge from the storage position support arm.

[0046] The distance sensor 20 is provided with a laser emitter 201 and a laser receiver 203. When the distance sensor 20 is powered on, the laser emitter 201 can emit laser. In other embodiments, the laser emitter 201 and the laser receiver 203 can also be the same component. The automatic storage system 100 measures the distance from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 to the storage pedal 2 in real time by emitting laser light from the laser emitter 201 of the distance sensor 20 and irradiating the laser light on the reflector 10 of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1. The data corresponding to the distance is transmitted to the programmable logic controller (PLC) 4 through the serial communication module 3. The programmable logic controller 4 converts the distance from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 to the storage pedal 2 into the distance from the bottom frame of the storage cassette to the storage position support arm, that is, the sagging amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 through a preset program or by writing an electronic control program in real time.

[0047] The serial communication module 3 is arranged in an electrical box, which can be communicatively connected to the automatic storage system through a network cable or the like, and is electrically connected to the programmable logic controller (PLC) 4. The electrical box is usually located outside the automatic storage system equipment. The serial communication module 3 and the programmable logic controller 4 can be connected by wired connection or Bluetooth wireless connection.

[0048] The programmable logic controller 4 includes a comparison unit 41, a judgment unit 43 and an analysis unit 45, which can analyze and process the measured data, and the threshold value of the normal range of the drooping amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 is preset by the program. The programmable logic controller 4 is also arranged in the electrical box. The comparison unit 41 compares the value of the above distance data transmitted by the serial communication module 3 with the preset threshold value of the normal range, and judges whether the drooping amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 is lower than the normal range value through the judgment unit 43. The value of the normal range is usually between 110mm and 125mm. Then, the analysis unit 45 analyzes whether there is an abnormality in the drooping amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1. If there is an abnormality, the abnormal data is transmitted to the human-machine interaction screen 5, and while the alarm sound is issued by the human-machine interaction screen 5, the abnormal data is displayed through the interactive screen of the human-machine interaction screen 5 for confirmation by the engineer.

[0049] The human-machine interaction screen 5 transmits signals with the automatic storage system through optical communication or network cable connection, and it is an independent device.

[0050] The working principle of the automatic warehousing system 100 of the present utility model is as follows:

[0051] When the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 picks and places a storage cassette from the storage position support arm of the automatic storage system, the pick-and-place machine fork arm extends into the storage position support arm to lift the storage cassette to a high position. At this time, the laser emitted by the laser transmitter 201 hits the reflector 10 on the front lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1, and then reflects to the laser receiver 203 through the reflector 10, so that the distance of the optical path can be measured. Then, the actual distance between the front lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 and the storage position pedal 2 of the automatic storage system can be obtained through the distance of the optical path, and the data of the distance value is transmitted to the programmable logic controller 4 through the serial communication module 3 in real time. When the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 extends into the storage position support arm to lift the storage cartridge at a high position, the programmable logic controller 4 automatically captures the maximum value of the distance from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 to the storage position support arm each time the storage cartridge is picked up and placed through the program, and obtains the sagging value of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 through the comparison unit 41, the judgment unit 43 and the analysis unit 45 therein, and uploads the sagging value to the human-machine interactive screen 5. The human-machine interactive screen 5 will display the sagging value through its interactive screen, and when the sagging value is less than the specified normal interval value (for example, <110mm), the red font will flash on the interactive screen to remind the engineer to check the bearing of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1; when the sagging value is less than the specified dangerous value (for example, <85mm), the human-machine interactive screen 5 will sound an alarm to warn the engineer that the bearing must be replaced to prevent the worn bearing from affecting the normal operation of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1.

[0052] In summary, the automatic storage system 100 of the utility model determines the use status of the cross roller bearing by measuring the sagging amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1, which has at least the following beneficial technical effects compared with the existing manual measurement method:

[0053] First, the droop data of the fork arm is automatically transmitted to the human-machine interactive screen 5, and the droop value of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 is displayed through the interactive screen of the human-machine interactive screen 5. During the measurement process, there is no need to stop the automatic storage system, which will not affect the transportation of the storage cassettes, and personnel do not need to enter the automatic storage system. Engineers can view the droop data remotely in the office, so as not to contaminate the glass panel. Second, the measurement accuracy of the automatic storage system in this case is relatively high, with an accuracy of approximately ±2mm, which can accurately determine the deterioration trend of the cross roller bearing of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 and whether it needs to be replaced. Third, the number of measurements and the measurement time for the droop of the pick-and-place machine fork arm 1 are not limited.

[0054] Obviously, the embodiments described above are only some embodiments of the present application, rather than all embodiments. The preferred embodiments of the present application are given in the accompanying drawings, but they do not limit the patent scope of the present application. The present application can be implemented in many different forms. On the contrary, the purpose of providing these embodiments is to make the understanding of the disclosure of the present application more thorough and comprehensive. Although the present application is described in detail with reference to the aforementioned embodiments, for those skilled in the art, it is still possible to modify the technical solutions recorded in the aforementioned specific implementation methods, or to perform equivalent replacement of some of the technical features therein. Any equivalent structure made using the contents of the specification and drawings of this application, directly or indirectly used in other related technical fields, is similarly within the scope of patent protection of this application.

Claims

1. An automatic warehousing system for detecting the sagging amount of a pick-and-place machine fork arm, characterized in that: include: The storage arm is provided with a storage cassette filled with glass substrates. A pick-and-place machine fork arm is movably arranged to take out the storage cassette filled with glass substrates from the storage position support arm; A distance sensor fixed to a storage pedal of the automatic storage system; and Programmable logic controller, The distance sensor measures in real time the vertical distance value from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the storage pedal; The programmable logic controller receives the value from the distance sensor and calculates the drooping amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm based on the value.

2. The automatic storage system according to claim 1, characterized in that: Also includes: A serial communication module, which is arranged in an electrical box of the liquid crystal panel box automatic storage machine and is electrically connected to the programmable logic controller; The data corresponding to the numerical value is transmitted to the programmable logic controller through the serial communication module, The programmable logic controller converts the distance value from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the storage pedal measured by the distance sensor into the distance from the bottom frame of the storage cassette to the storage position holding arm by writing an electronic control program.

3. The automatic storage system according to claim 1, characterized in that: It also includes a reflector, which is attached to the lower surface of the front end of the pick-and-place machine fork arm and is used to reflect the laser; The distance sensor is provided with a laser transmitter and a laser receiver. The laser transmitter emits laser light and irradiates the laser light onto the reflector, and the reflector reflects the laser light back to the laser receiver.

4. The automatic storage system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The vertical distance from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the storage pedal of the liquid crystal panel box automatic storage machine is measured in real time by measuring the distance of the laser light path.

5. The automatic storage system according to claim 3, characterized in that: When the pick-and-place machine fork arm extends into the storage position to lift the storage cartridge to a high position, the programmable logic controller automatically captures the maximum value of the distance from the lower surface of the pick-and-place machine fork arm to the storage position object-carrying arm.

6. The automatic storage system according to claim 2, characterized in that: It also includes a human-machine interactive screen installed on the outer surface of the liquid crystal panel box automatic storage machine, The distance sensor inputs the distance value into the programmable logic controller in real time through the serial communication module, and displays the distance value on the human-computer interaction screen.

7. The automatic storage system according to claim 2, characterized in that: The programmable logic controller includes a comparison unit, a judgment unit and an analysis unit; the comparison unit compares the distance value transmitted by the serial communication module with a preset normal interval value, and determines through the judgment unit whether the drooping amount of the pick-and-place machine fork arm is lower than the normal interval value.

8. The automatic storage system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The programmable logic controller automatically captures the maximum value of the distance value each time the pick-and-place machine fork arm picks and places the storage cartridge through a program, and obtains the droop value of the pick-and-place machine fork arm through the comparison unit, the judgment unit and the analysis unit therein, and uploads the droop value to the human-computer interaction screen.

9. The automatic storage system according to claim 8, characterized in that: The human-machine interactive screen emits an alarm when the droop value is less than a specified danger value.

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