Transfer apparatus

Abstract

To provide a transfer apparatus that is transferable to a transfer destination by identifying a specific side face as one side face in a specific direction of an article.SOLUTION: There is provided a transfer apparatus 10 for transferring an article 11 to a transfer destination 13 from a transfer source 12 where the article 11 is arranged in such a manner that a specific side face 11a is directed outside an area of the transfer source 12, that is provided with the specific side face 11a on one side face in a specific direction A of the article 11. The transfer apparatus 10 comprises a hand device 30 for gripping the article 11, a transfer mechanism 31 for moving a position of the hand device 30, and a control part for controlling operations of the hand device 30 and the transfer mechanism 31. The control part that acquires gripping information including gripping coordinates and a gripping posture for gripping the article 11 with the hand device 30 determines the specific direction A of the article 11 based on the gripping posture, and determines the specific side face 11a of the article 11 from evaluation coordinates based on the specific direction A and the gripping coordinates.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a transfer device that transfers an article from a source to a destination. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as described in, for example, Patent Document 1 below, there is known a transfer device that uses a hand device to grasp articles stacked on a pallet in a predetermined stacking pattern and transfers the articles to a transfer destination.

[0003] This transfer device acquires information on the stowage pattern, and based on this information, moves a hand device in accordance with the shape and orientation of the article to be transferred to grasp the article and transfer it to the destination. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2003-237943 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The above-mentioned transfer device is capable of recognizing the planar shape of the item to be transferred from stowage pattern information, and transferring the item in a specific direction, such as the longitudinal direction, according to the shape of the item in a predetermined direction at the destination. However, if the stowage pattern information does not allow one side and the other side of the item in a specific direction to be identified, it becomes difficult to transfer one side of the item in a specific direction in a fixed direction at the destination.

[0006] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a transfer device that can identify a specific side, which is one side of an article in a specific direction, and transfer the article to a destination. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The transfer device of the present invention is a transfer device that transfers an item from a source where the item has a specific side on one side in a specific direction that can be specified in a planar view of the item, and the item is positioned so that the specific direction faces in one direction at the source and the specific side faces outside the source area, to a destination, and is equipped with a hand device that grasps the item, a moving mechanism that moves the position of the hand device, and a control unit that controls the operation of the hand device and the moving mechanism, and the control unit has an acquisition unit that acquires grasping information including grasping coordinates and grasping posture at which the item at the source is grasped by the hand device, a specific direction judgment unit that judges the specific direction of the item at the source based on the grasping posture, and a specific side judgment unit that judges the specific side of the item from evaluation coordinates based on the specific direction and the grasping coordinates. Effect of the Invention

[0008] According to the transfer device of the present invention, a specific side surface, which is one side surface in a specific direction of an article placed at a transfer source, can be identified and transferred to a transfer destination. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a plan view of an article transport system including a transfer device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing articles to be transferred by the transfer device being stacked on a pallet. [Figure 4] FIG. [Diagram 5] 10 is an explanatory diagram showing how the transfer device identifies a specific side of an article whose specific direction is in a first direction. FIG. [Figure 6] 13 is an explanatory diagram showing how the transfer device identifies a specific side of an article whose specific direction is in a second direction. FIG. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the transfer device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0010] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0011] An article processing system is shown in Figures 1 and 2. The article processing system is a depalletizing system that includes a transfer device 10 and unloads stacked articles 11 from a transfer source 12 and transfers them to a transfer destination 13 using this transfer device 10.

[0012] As shown in Figs. 1 to 3, the article 11 is, for example, a container for containing an item, and has a rectangular parallelepiped shape such as an A-type or wrap-around type cardboard box, case, or container.

[0013] The shape of the top surface of the article 11 in the position in which it is placed at the transfer source 12 is a rectangle having a longitudinal direction and a lateral direction, and is a rectangle having a pair of long sides and a pair of short sides. The longitudinal direction of the article 11, which is a direction that can be specified in a plan view, is a specific direction A, and the article 11 has a specific side surface (first specific side surface) 11a on one side surface of the one side surface and the other side surface in this specific direction A. The specific side surface 11a is provided with a first information display section 11b on which a label that displays information about the contained item, for example, in the form of an identification code such as a barcode or characters is attached or directly printed.

[0014] In this embodiment, the upper surface of the article 11 in the placement posture is flat, and can be adsorbed and held by the transfer device 10. As long as the shape of the upper surface of the article 11 in the placement posture is rectangular, the side surface in the specific direction A may be square, for example. The dimensions of the article 11 may be of a single type or of multiple types.

[0015] The articles 11 are stacked on a pallet 15 that has a square or rectangular shape in a plan view. A plurality of articles 11 are stacked in multiple tiers on the pallet 15, with a plurality of articles on each tier. In some cases, the plurality of articles 11 are stacked on the pallet 15 in a predetermined stacking pattern, and in other cases, the articles are stacked in a random manner regardless of the stacking pattern.

[0016] The articles 11 are stacked on the pallet 15 such that one side in the specific direction A faces the outside of the side of the pallet 15 (the outside, which is the outer periphery of the side of the area of ​​the transfer source 12), and the one side in the specific direction A facing the outside of the side of the pallet 15 becomes the specific side 11a. This is to enable information about the articles 11 and their contents to be confirmed from the first information display unit 11b provided on the specific side 11a of the articles 11 when multiple articles 11 are stacked on the pallet 15.

[0017] The specific direction A of the article 11 may be the short side direction, and one side surface in the short side direction may be the specific side surface 11a. In this case, the article 11 is loaded so that the specific side surface 11a faces the outer side surface of the pallet 15 (the outer side surface of the area of ​​the transfer source 12).

[0018] 1 and 2, a pallet 15 on which goods 11 are loaded is placed at the source 12. The source 12 is equipped with a pallet transport device 17 that can carry the pallet 15 on which goods 11 are loaded to the source position and carry the empty pallet 15 from the source position after the goods 11 have been unloaded by the transfer device 10. The source 12 is equipped with a positioning mechanism that positions the pallet 15 carried to the source position by the pallet transport device 17 at the source position.

[0019] As shown in FIG. 2, a camera 19 is installed above the transfer source 12 to photograph the articles 11 stacked on the pallet 15 arranged at the transfer source position from above. Image data photographed by the camera 19 is processed by an image processing device 41 (see FIG. 4). The image processing device 41 identifies the coordinates and position and attitude of each article 11 located at the top of the pallet 15, and provides gripping information including gripping coordinates and gripping attitude for gripping the article 11 by the transfer device 10 to a control unit 40 (see FIG. 4) of the transfer device 10. Here, the gripping coordinates are, for example, coordinates that are a movement target for a hand device 30 described later to grip the article 11 to be gripped, and are specified by three-dimensional coordinate values. Also, the gripping attitude is, for example, a horizontal attitude when the hand device 30 described later grips the article 11, and is specified by a horizontal rotation angle of the hand device 30 when gripping the article 11 by upper surface suction.

[0020] The transfer destination 13 receives the article 11 by the transfer device 10. The transfer destination 13 is equipped with a receiving device 21 that receives the article 11 at the transfer destination position and transports the article 11 downstream from the transfer destination position. The article 11 is transferred to the transfer destination 13 by the transfer device 10 such that a specific direction A of the article 11 intersects with the transport direction of the receiving device 21 and a specific side surface 11a of the article 11 faces the right side in FIG. 1, which is a predetermined fixed direction at the transfer destination 13.

[0021] An article transport device 22 is installed downstream in the transport direction of the receiving device 21, which receives the article 11 sent out from the receiving device 21 and transports it downstream. This article transport device 22 transports the article 11 sent out from the receiving device 21 in its original position, and transports the article 11 with the specific side 11a facing the right side in Fig. 1, which is one side in a direction intersecting the transport direction.

[0022] On the other side of the direction intersecting the conveying direction of the article conveying device 22, a label sticking device 23 is disposed, which is an information imparting device that imparts information to a side (second specific side) of the article 11 opposite to the specific side 11a in the specific direction A. The label sticking device 23 sticks a label that displays, for example, an identification code such as a barcode or characters indicating the delivery destination of the article 11, on the side opposite to the specific side 11a on which the first information display unit 11b is already provided. When sticking a label by the label sticking device 23, the article conveying device 22 stops the article 11 at a label sticking position by the label sticking device 23, and after sticking the label, the article conveying device 22 resumes conveying the article 11. The information imparting device may directly print an identification code, characters, or the like on the side of the article 11. In this way, the second information display unit 11c is provided by sticking or printing a label on the side opposite to the specific side 11a on which the first information display unit 11b is provided of the article 11.

[0023] The transfer device 10 also includes a hand device 30 that grips the article 11, and a movement mechanism 31 that moves the position of the hand device 30.

[0024] The hand device 30 includes a base 32 attached to the moving mechanism 31, and a suction unit 33 attached to the lower side of the base 32 and configured to suction and grip the upper surface of the article 11. Note that the hand device 30 is not limited to gripping by suction alone, and may be configured to clamp the article 11 with a pair of palms protruding below the base 32, or to combine suction and clamping.

[0025] The moving mechanism 31 is an articulated robot, and includes a robot arm 35 rotatably mounted on a base 34. The robot arm 35 has a plurality of rotatable shafts, and the tip of the robot arm 35 can be moved to any position. The tip of the robot arm 35 has a rotation shaft 36, and the base 32 of the hand device 30 is attached to the lower end of the rotation shaft 36. The robot arm 35 is controlled so that the rotation shaft of the rotation shaft 36 is kept vertical, thereby adjusting the horizontal rotation angle of the hand device 30 around the rotation shaft 36. The moving mechanism 31 is not limited to an articulated robot, and may be, for example, an orthogonal moving mechanism configured with three orthogonal slide shafts.

[0026] 1, the transfer device 10, the source 12, and the destination 13 are installed in a layout that allows the operation of the transfer device 10 to transfer the item 11 placed at the source 12 to the destination 13. Note that the source 12 may be in one location, but by providing the transfer device 10 and the destination 13 in two locations on both sides, while an empty pallet 15 is being replaced at one source 12, an item 11 may be transferred from the pallet 15 placed at the other source 12, thereby making it possible to improve the efficiency of the transfer process.

[0027] Next, as shown in FIG. 4, the transfer device 10 includes a control unit 40 that controls the operations of the hand device 30 and the moving mechanism 31.

[0028] An image processing device 41 that processes image data captured by the camera 19 is connected to the control unit 40 .

[0029] The image processing device 41 analyzes image data captured by the camera 19, and identifies a first direction X and a second direction Y perpendicular to the first direction X in a plan view of the area of ​​the transfer source 12, and the position and posture of the article 11 including the shape of the top surface of the article 11, the position coordinates and angles of the article 11 in the first direction X and the second direction Y, and the height (z-axis coordinate) of the top surface of the article 11. Then, the image processing device 41 provides the control unit 40 with gripping information including gripping coordinates and gripping posture for gripping the article 11 to be transferred by the hand device 30, based on the identification information of the article 11 to be transferred.

[0030] The gripping coordinates include coordinates in the first direction X, the second direction Y, and the height direction, and indicate the coordinates of a predetermined reference point of the hand device 30 when gripping the item 11 to be transferred. By moving the reference point of the hand device 30 to the gripping coordinates, the item 11 to be transferred can be sucked and gripped.

[0031] The gripping posture includes information on the angle of the hand device 30 for matching the orientation of the hand device 30 with the shape (longitudinal and lateral directions) of the top surface of the article 11 to be transferred.

[0032] In the image processing device 41, the camera 19 does not capture an image of the label attached to the specific side surface 11a of the article 11, and therefore the gripping information provided does not include position information of the specific side surface 11a of the article 11.

[0033] The control unit 40 also includes an acquisition unit 42, a specific direction determination unit 43, a specific side surface determination unit 44, a robot controller 45, a memory unit 46, and the like.

[0034] The acquisition unit 42 acquires gripping information including gripping coordinates and gripping posture when the item 11 at the transfer source 12 is gripped by the hand device 30 from the image processing device 41 .

[0035] The specific direction determination unit 43 determines the specific direction A of the article 11 at the transfer source 12 based on the acquired gripping posture information. The gripping posture information includes information on the angle of the hand device 30 for matching the orientation of the hand device 30 in accordance with the shape (longitudinal and lateral directions) of the top surface of the article 11 to be transferred, so that it is possible to determine the specific direction A of the article 11 from the information on the angle of the hand device 30. Note that, as a condition for determining the gripping posture, when the suction unit 33 of the hand device 30 is composed of multiple suction members (e.g., vacuum pads), which suction member was used to grip the article 11 may be used as a condition for determining the gripping posture, or the gripping posture may be determined by combining the angle of the hand device 30 and the use state of the suction member.

[0036] 5 (a top view of the source 12, an explanatory diagram for identifying the specific side 11a of the article 11), the specific side determining unit 44 uses a first reference position X0, which is a reference position (reference line) in a first direction X, which is one direction of the source 12 corresponding to the specific direction A of the article 11, as a reference, to determine an area in which a gripping coordinate P is located as an evaluation coordinate among areas (1), (3) and areas (2), (4) separated by the first reference position X0, and determines the specific side 11a of the article 11 from the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located. The first reference position X0 is a preset position, for example, the center position in the first direction X of the source 12. In addition, by using the gripping coordinate P as the evaluation coordinate, apart from determining a specific side 11a of the article 11 from the areas (1) to (4) in which the gripping coordinate P is located, it is also possible to use the evaluation coordinate obtained by combining the gripping coordinate P with other conditions based on the gripping coordinate P as a reference, for example, by deriving coordinates corresponding to a specific position such as the center of the article 11 from the gripping coordinate P and the position and number of suction members (e.g., vacuum pads) used for gripping and suction among the multiple suction members (e.g., vacuum pads) that constitute the suction section 33.

[0037] 6 (a top view of the source 12, an explanatory diagram for identifying the specific side 11a of the article 11), the specific side determination unit 44 uses a second reference position Y0, which is a reference position (reference line) in the second direction Y, which is one direction of the source 12 corresponding to the specific direction A of the article 11, as a reference, to determine the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located among areas (1), (2) and areas (3), (4) separated by the second reference position Y0, and determines the specific side 11a of the article 11 from the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located. The second reference position Y0 is a preset position, for example, the center position in the second direction Y of the source 12.

[0038] Therefore, the specific side determination unit 44 determines the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located from at least four areas (1), (2), (3), and (4) separated by the first reference position X0 and the second reference position Y0 at the transfer source 12, and determines the specific side 11a of the item 11 from the specific direction A of the item 11 and the area (1), (2), (3), and (4) in which the gripping coordinate P is located.

[0039] The robot controller 45 controls the operation of the hand device 30 and the robot arm 35. The control unit 40 controls the operation of the transfer hand device 30 and the moving mechanism 31 through the robot controller 45 so that the specific side surface 11a of the article 11 held by the hand device 30 at the transfer source 12 is transferred to the transfer destination 13 so as to face a predetermined direction.

[0040] The memory unit 46 stores item information including the shape and dimensions of the item 11, information regarding the determination of a specific side 11a of the item 11, information regarding the operation of the hand device 30 and the robot arm 35, information regarding the transfer of the item 11, and the like.

[0041] The information regarding the determination of the specific side surface 11a of the article 11 includes information such as a first reference position X0 in the first direction X and a second reference position Y0 in the second direction Y.

[0042] The information on the operation of the hand device 30 and the robot arm 35 includes transfer information including transfer coordinates and transfer posture when the article 11 grasped by the hand device 30 is transferred to the transfer destination 13. The transfer coordinates include fixed coordinates in the first direction X and the second direction Y and a height coordinate according to the type (height) of the article 11, and are the coordinates of a predetermined reference point of the hand device 30 when transferring the article 11 to the transfer destination 13. The article 11 can be transferred to the transfer destination 13 by moving the reference point of the hand device 30 to the transfer coordinates. The transfer posture also includes information on the angle of the hand device 30 for transferring the article 11 with the specific side surface 11a facing a predetermined direction at the transfer destination 13.

[0043] Next, the transfer operation by the transfer device 10 will be described with reference to the flowchart of FIG.

[0044] The camera 19 photographs the article 11 on the pallet 15 arranged at the transfer source 12 from above, and the image data photographed by the camera 19 is processed by the image processing device 41. The image processing device 41 generates gripping information including the gripping coordinates P and gripping posture at which the article 11 is gripped by the hand device 30.

[0045] The control unit 40 of the transfer device 10 acquires gripping information including gripping coordinates P and gripping posture when the article 11 is gripped by the hand device 30 from the image processing device 41 (step S1).

[0046] Based on the acquired gripping posture, the specific direction A of the article 11 is determined (step S2). Since the gripping posture includes information on the angle of the hand device 30 for matching the orientation of the hand device 30 with the shape (longitudinal and lateral directions) of the article 11 to be transferred, it is possible to determine the specific direction A of the article 11 from the information on the angle of the hand device 30.

[0047] It is determined whether the specific direction A of the article 11 is in the first direction X or the second direction Y (step S3).

[0048] 5 is a diagram of the transfer source 12 seen from above, illustrating how to identify the specific side surface 11a of the article 11 whose specific direction A is in the first direction X. When the specific direction A of the article 11 is in the first direction X, based on a first reference position X0 in the center of the first direction X in the area of ​​the transfer source 12, the areas (1) and (3) where the grip coordinate P is located are determined (step S4) out of the left areas (1) and (3) and the right areas (2) and (4) separated in the first direction X by the first reference position X0 (step S4).

[0049] The articles 11(X1) and 11(X3) whose gripping coordinate P is in the left-side areas (1) and (3) are determined to have the specific side 11a on the left side of the specific direction A (step S5). On the other hand, the articles 11(X2) and 11(X4) whose gripping coordinate P is in the right-side areas (2) and (4) are determined to have the specific side 11a on the right side of the specific direction A (step S6).

[0050] 6 is a diagram of the transfer source 12 viewed from above, illustrating how to identify the specific side surface 11a of the article 11 whose specific direction A is in the second direction Y. When the specific direction A of the article 11 is in the second direction Y, a second reference position Y0 in the center of the area of ​​the transfer source 12 in the second direction Y is used as a reference, and the area in which the grip coordinate P is located is determined among the upper areas (1), (2) and the lower areas (3), (4) that are separated in the second direction Y by the second reference position Y0 (step S7).

[0051] The articles 11(Y1) and 11(Y2) whose gripping coordinate P is in the upper areas (1) and (2) are determined to have the specific side 11a on the upper side in the specific direction A (step S8). On the other hand, the articles 11(Y3) and 11(Y4) whose gripping coordinate P is in the lower areas (3) and (4) are determined to have the specific side 11a on the lower side in the specific direction A (step S9). Note that although the article 11(Y3) straddles the four areas (1), (2), (3), and (4), its gripping coordinate P is located in area (3), so it is determined to be in area (3).

[0052] Then, the transfer device 10 moves to a gripping coordinate where the hand device 30 grips the identified article 11 on the specific side surface 11a, grips the article 11 with the hand device 30, and moves it toward the transfer destination 13. At the transfer destination 13, the specific direction A of the article 11 intersects with the conveying direction of the receiving device 21, and the specific side surface 11a of the article 11 is transferred so that it faces the right side in FIG. 1, which is a predetermined fixed direction at the transfer destination 13 (step S10).

[0053] When the transfer of the article 11 to the transfer destination 13 is completed, the transfer device 10 moves on to the movement operation of the next article 11, and at the transfer destination 13, the transferred article 11 is sent from the receiving device 21 to the article conveying device 22.

[0054] The item conveying device 22 conveys the item 11 sent out from the receiving device 21 in the original position, with the specific side 11a facing the right side in FIG. 1, which is one side in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, to a label attachment position by the label attachment device 48.

[0055] The label attachment device 23 attaches a label to the side surface of the article 11 opposite to the specific side surface 11a on which the first information display portion 11b is already provided, thereby providing the second information display portion 11c.

[0056] Then, the article 11 provided with the second information display unit 11c is transported to the downstream area of ​​the article transport device 22 and sorted, for example, by delivery destination. Since the first information display unit 11b and the second information display unit 11c are provided on the side surface of the article 11 in the specific direction A intersecting the transport direction of the article transport device 22, it becomes possible to read the information on the first information display unit 11b and the information on the second information display unit 11c by reading devices disposed on both sides of the article transport device 22 while the article 11 is being transported, and the article can be processed efficiently.

[0057] As described above, the transfer device 10 can determine the specific direction A of the article 11 placed at the transfer source 12, and can determine the specific side surface 11a of the article 11 based on this specific direction A and the grip coordinates.

[0058] Specifically, based on a first reference position X0 in a first direction X of the transfer source 12 corresponding to the specific direction A of the article 11, the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located can be determined from the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located among areas (1), (3) and areas (2), (4) separated by the first reference position X0 as a boundary, thereby making it possible to determine the specific side surface 11a of the article 11 from the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located. Also, based on a second reference position Y0 in a second direction Y of the transfer source 12 corresponding to the specific direction A of the article 11, the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located can be determined from the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located among areas (1), (2) and areas (3), (4) separated by the second reference position Y0 in the second direction Y as a boundary. Therefore, the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located can be determined from at least four areas (1), (2), (3), and (4) separated by the first reference position X0 and the second reference position Y0 at the transfer source 12, and the specific side 11a of the item 11 can be determined from the specific direction A of the item 11 and the area in which the gripping coordinate P is located.

[0059] Therefore, even if position information of the specific side 11a of the article 11 is not provided from the image processing device 41, the transfer device 10 can determine the specific side 11a of the article 11, and the article 11 held by the hand device 30 can be transferred so that the specific side 11a of the article 11 faces a predetermined direction at the transfer destination 13.

[0060] This allows a different label to be attached to the side opposite the specific side 11a of the article 11 to provide a second information display section 11c, preventing a different label from being attached over the first information display section 11b of the specific side 11a, thereby covering the first information display section 11b and making the information unreadable.

[0061] In addition, the first direction X and the second direction Y are shown as directions for determining the specific direction A of the item 11 at the transfer source 12, but in addition to the first direction X and the second direction Y, a direction oblique to the first direction X and the second direction Y may be used, and the specific direction A of the item 11 can be determined in any direction. For example, even if the specific direction A of the item 11 faces an oblique direction to the first direction X and the second direction Y because the items 11 are stacked indefinitely regardless of the stacking pattern, the specific direction A of the item 11 can be identified and transferred as long as the items 11 are stacked so that the specific direction A faces the outside of the area of ​​the transfer source 12. In addition, if the specific direction A of the item 11 is inclined with respect to the first direction X or the second direction Y at the transfer source 12, it may be determined that the item faces the first direction X or the second direction Y using a predetermined inclination angle as a threshold value.

[0062] Although the embodiment of the present invention and its modified examples have been described above, various combinations of configurations, partial omissions, substitutions and modifications are also possible. [Explanation of symbols]

[0063] 10 Transfer equipment 11 Goods 11a Specific aspects 12 Source 13 Transfer destination 30 Hand Device 31 Moving mechanism 40 Control section 42 Acquisition Department 43 Specific direction judgment unit 44 Specific Aspect Judgment Department A Specific direction P gripping coordinates X 1st direction X0 is the first reference position Y Second direction Y0 is the second reference position (1),(2),(3),(4) Area

Claims

1. A transfer device that transfers an article from a transfer source, in which the article has a specific side surface on one side surface in a specific direction that can be specified in a planar view of the article, and the article is arranged so that the specific direction faces one direction at the transfer source and the specific side surface faces outside an area of ​​the transfer source, A hand device that grips the object; a moving mechanism for moving the position of the hand device; a control unit for controlling operations of the hand device and the moving mechanism, The control unit is an acquisition unit that acquires gripping information including gripping coordinates and a gripping posture of the article at the transfer source being gripped by the hand device; a specific direction determination unit that determines the specific direction of the article at the transfer source based on the gripping posture; a specific side determining unit that determines the specific side of the article from evaluation coordinates based on the specific direction and the grip coordinates. A transfer device characterized by:

2. The specific side determining unit determines an area in which the evaluation coordinates based on the grip coordinates are located among areas separated by the reference position based on the reference position in the one direction of the transfer source corresponding to the specific direction of the article, and determines the specific side of the article from the area in which the evaluation coordinates are located.

2. The transfer device according to claim 1 .

3. A transfer device that transfers an article from a source, in which an article has a specific side surface on one side surface in a specific direction that can be specified in a planar view, and the article is arranged so that the specific direction faces a first direction and the article is arranged so that the specific direction faces a second direction intersecting the first direction, and the specific side surface of the article faces outside an area of ​​the source, to a destination, A hand device that grips the object; a moving mechanism for moving the position of the hand device; a control unit for controlling operations of the hand device and the moving mechanism, The control unit is an acquisition unit that acquires gripping information including gripping coordinates and a gripping posture of the article at the transfer source being gripped by the hand device; a specific direction determination unit that determines the specific direction of the article at the transfer source based on the gripping posture; and a specific side determining unit that determines an area in which the gripping coordinates are located among areas separated by the first reference position in the first direction or the second reference position in the second direction based on a first reference position or a second reference position in the first direction or the second direction of the transfer source corresponding to the specific direction of the article, and determines the specific side of the article from the area in which evaluation coordinates based on the gripping coordinates are located. A transfer device characterized by:

4. The specific side surface determination unit determines an area in which the evaluation coordinates based on the grip coordinates are located from at least four areas separated by the first reference position and the second reference position at the transfer source, and determines the specific side surface of the article from the specific direction of the article and the area in which the evaluation coordinates are located.

4. The transfer device according to claim 3.

5. The control unit controls the operation of the transfer hand device and the moving mechanism so that the specific side of the article held by the hand device at the transfer source is transferred to the transfer destination so as to face a predetermined direction.

5. The transfer device according to claim 1, wherein the transfer device is a transfer device for transferring a material to a substrate.

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