Operation device

Abstract

To reduce burden on an operator who operates a blooming mill 100.SOLUTION: An operation device 10 for operating a blooming mill 100 includes a laser projector 12 for projecting an image including at least part of the data of at least two degrees of freedom of the blooming mill 100 to a predetermined position of the blooming mill 100 so that an operator of the blooming mill 100 can view the image and the of the blooming mill 100 at the same time.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an operating device for operating machinery, and more particularly to an operating device for operating machinery such as blooming mills, steelmaking equipment, rolling equipment, and refining equipment. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, blooming mills are used to process steel ingots such as slabs, blooms, and billets, which are supplied from a continuous casting facility or heated in a heating furnace, into steel pieces of a predetermined size by rolling them with rolls (see Patent Document 1). Regarding blooming mills, a technology has been provided in which an operator uses a handheld controller to control the reduction of the rolling rolls and the movement of the rolled material with a manipulator (see Patent Document 2). In addition, a technology has been provided in which an image of the blooming mill data is superimposed on the blooming mill data within the field of view of smart glasses worn by the operator (see Patent Document 3). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 61-67501 [Patent Document 2] JP 2023-082469 A [Patent Document 3] JP 2023-160061 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] There is a need for an operating device that reduces the burden on an operator who operates a blooming mill.

[0005] The present invention has been proposed in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and has an object to provide an operating device which reduces the burden on an operator who operates a blooming mill. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the operating device of this application is an operating device for operating a machine having at least two degrees of freedom, and includes a laser projector that projects an image including at least a portion of data of at least two degrees of freedom of the machine onto a predetermined position on the machine so that an operator of the machine can view the image simultaneously with the machine.

[0007] The machine may be a blooming mill and include rolls that press down and roll the rolled material, a roller table that supports the rolled material and transports it toward the rolls, and a manipulator that moves the rolled material supported on the roller table in a direction intersecting the transport direction of the roller table, and the at least two degrees of freedom of the machine may include selection of the caliber of the rolls by the manipulator in accordance with a pass schedule and the amount of reduction of the rolls.

[0008] The predetermined position of the machine may include at least one of a connecting member and an upper roll of a blooming mill. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, the burden on the operator who operates the blooming mill can be reduced. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an operation device. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view of a blooming mill. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a left side view of the blooming mill. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a blooming mill as viewed from the operator's compartment. [Diagram 5] 1 is a flow chart showing a series of steps for operating a blooming mill using an operating device. [Figure 6] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an operating device according to a modified example. [Figure 7]FIG. 11 is a plan view of a blooming mill in a modified example. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a blooming mill as viewed from an operator's compartment in a modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the operating device will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, a blooming mill is taken as an example of a machine to be operated, but this embodiment is not limited to blooming mills and can be applied to the operation of other types of machines having at least two degrees of freedom, such as steelmaking equipment, rolling equipment, and refining equipment.

[0012] 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of an operation device 10 that operates a blooming mill 100. In the operation device 10, a video projector 11 is connected to a display personal computer (hereinafter, personal computer will be referred to as PC) 14, and the display PC 14 is further connected to a programmable logic controller (hereinafter, programmable logic controller will be referred to as PLC) 18. The video projector 11 projects and displays image data supplied from the display PC 14 onto an appropriate object such as a screen. The display PC 14 converts general data provided from the PLC 18 into image data suitable for display by the video projector 11, and provides the image data to the video projector 11.

[0013] In addition, in the operation device 10, the handheld controller 15 is connected to a controller PC 16, which is further connected to a PLC 18. The handheld controller 15 is a handheld controller that is operated with both hands of the operator and can accept input of data relating to at least two degrees of freedom. The controller PC 16 converts the input signal received by the handheld controller 15 into a general data signal and provides it to the PLC 18. The PLC 18 is connected to the blooming mill 100, which is the object of operation of the operation device 10, and generates control signals for operating the blooming mill 100. In addition, the PLC 18 receives signals from the blooming mill 100 informing it of its operating status, etc.

[0014] FIG 2 is a plan view of the blooming mill 100. FIG 3 is a left side view of the blooming mill 100. The left side view of FIG 3 shows only the reduction mechanism 120 of the blooming mill 100. As shown in FIG 3, the reduction mechanism 120 of the blooming mill 100 has a set of rolling rolls consisting of a lower roll 101 and an upper roll 102. The lower roll 101 and the upper roll 102 are supported by a set of columnar members 124, and the upper parts of the columnar members 124 are connected by a connecting member 125. The lower roll 101 and the upper roll 102 rotate and transport the steel ingot 200, which is the rolling material that they hold, and the upper roll 102 reduces the steel ingot 200 to roll it. The lower roll 101 and the upper roll 102 have groove-like calibers 101a, 102a extending in the circumferential direction and having a predetermined width and depth, which are arranged in parallel at corresponding positions in the axial direction so that the steel ingot 200 can be rolled to a predetermined width. The reduction amount of the upper roll 102 is displayed on a dial gauge on a reduction amount display panel 121 attached to the top of the reduction mechanism 120.

[0015] As shown in FIG. 2, the blooming mill 100 is provided along a blooming line. A substantially rectangular parallelepiped steel ingot 200, such as a slab, bloom, or billet, is supplied from the upstream side of the line, transported with the line as the transport direction, and processed by the blooming mill 100. A front feed roller 103, a first front roller table 104, and a second front roller table 105 are provided in front of the reduction mechanism 120, which is on the upstream side of the line, in the order of progression upstream of the line. A rear feed roller 106 and a rear roller table 107 are provided in the order of progression downstream of the line, on the rear side of the reduction mechanism 120, which is on the downstream side of the line. The first front roller table 104, the second front roller table 105, and the rear roller table 107 support the steel ingot 200 and can transport the steel ingot 200 in the upstream or downstream direction of the line. The front feed rollers 103 and the rear feed rollers 106 each support the steel ingot 200 and supply the steel ingot 200 toward the reduction mechanism 120. The blooming mill 100 may further include another roller table upstream of the line of the second front roller table 105, and may further include another roller table downstream of the rear roller table 107.

[0016] Provided above the first front roller table 104 are a front workside manipulator 111 extending from the workside and pushing the steel ingot 200 supported on the first front roller table 104 toward the drive side, and a front driveside manipulator 112 extending from the drive side and pushing the steel ingot 200 supported on the first front roller table 104 toward the workside. Here, the workside is the working side with respect to the line center of the blooming mill 100, and is the lower side in the drawing. The drive side is the side where a drive unit is installed with respect to the line center, and is the upper side in the drawing. The front workside manipulator 111 and the front driveside manipulator 112 face each other above the first front roller table 104, and are each driven in a direction transverse to the line, i.e., a direction transverse to the conveying direction of the steel ingot 200. The front work side manipulator 111 and the front drive side manipulator 112 then set the position of the steel ingot 200 so that the steel ingot 200 faces the desired calibers 101a, 102a of the lower roll 101 and upper roll of the rolling mechanism 120.

[0017] Front workside manipulator 111 is provided with a hook 119 for turning steel ingot 200 supported by first front roller table 104. This hook 119 constitutes a turning device that brings front workside manipulator 111 into contact with steel ingot 200, which has a substantially rectangular parallelepiped shape, and hooks onto and lifts up a corner of steel ingot 200 extending in the conveying direction, thereby turning steel ingot 200 by approximately 90 degrees around the conveying direction as an axis for the substantially rectangular cross section of steel ingot 200 to change the rolling direction.

[0018] Provided above the rear roller table 107 are a rear workside manipulator 113 which extends from the workside and pushes the steel ingot 200 supported on the rear roller table 107 to move it toward the drive side, and a rear driveside manipulator 114 which extends from the drive side and pushes the steel ingot 200 supported on the rear roller table 107 to move it toward the workside. The rear workside manipulator 113 and the rear driveside manipulator 114 face each other above the rear roller table 107 and are each driven in a direction transverse to the conveyance direction of the steel ingot 200. The rear workside manipulator 113 and the rear driveside manipulator 114 set the position of the steel ingot 200 so that the steel ingot 200 is directed toward the desired calibers 101a, 102a of the lower roll 101 and upper roll of the reduction mechanism 120.

[0019] FIG. 2 also shows an operator's room 50. The operator's room 50 is located immediately above the upstream side of the line including the first front roller table 104 and the second front roller table 105 through which the steel ingot 200 is supplied to the blooming mill 100. In the operator's room 50, a work bench 56 and an operator's seat 55 are provided facing a window 51 fitted with glass so that the left side of the rolling mechanism 120 can be viewed down. A transparent screen 52 is attached to the surface of the glass of the window 51, and displays an image projected from the video projector 11 on the front side of the operator's seat 55. The screen 52 is interposed between the operator's seat 55 and the blooming mill 100, allowing the operator to see the blooming mill 100 through the screen 52. A handheld controller 15 is provided on the work bench 56 and is operated by the operator sitting in the operator's seat 55.

[0020] 4 is a diagram showing the blooming mill 100 as seen down from a window 51 in the operator's room 50. The left side of the reduction mechanism 120 facing the blooming mill 100 can be seen from the front, and the lines upstream of the reduction mechanism 120, such as the first front roller table 104, extend from directly below the window 51 toward the reduction mechanism 120. The reduction amount of the upper roll 102 is displayed on a reduction amount display panel 121 of the reduction mechanism 120. A steel ingot 200 is placed on the first front roller table 104 with the direction of the lines as its longitudinal direction. The position of the steel ingot 200 is set by the front work side manipulator 111 and the front drive side manipulator 112 in a direction transverse to the conveying direction of the steel ingot 200 so that the steel ingot 200 faces the desired calibers 101a, 102a of the lower roll 101 and upper roll of the reduction mechanism 120.

[0021] An operator sitting at the operator's seat 55 in the operator room 50 can see the blooming mill 100 through the screen 52, and an image projected by the video projector 11 is also seen superimposed on the screen 52. More specifically, a roll reduction amount image 301 indicating the reduction amount of the top roll 102 is displayed on the screen 52 in a position adjacent to the top roll 102 so as to partially overlap with the blooming mill 100. The roll reduction amount image 301 displays the title "Roll reduction amount" and the numerical value of the roll reduction amount. In addition, a pass schedule image 302 indicating the pass schedule is displayed in a position adjacent to the associated bottom roll 101 and top roll 102 so as to partially overlap with the blooming mill 100. The pass schedule image 302 displays the title "Pass schedule", the corresponding pass number, caliber number, and the thickness of the steel ingot 200 in a table. The positions of the roll pressure reduction amount image 301 and the pass schedule image 302 on the screen can be moved up and down and left and right, respectively, by operating the handheld controller 15.

[0022] The screen 52 further displays an image list 303 which is a menu of types of images to be displayed. In the image list 303, two types of images that can be displayed, a roll reduction amount image and a pass schedule image, are displayed with check boxes indicating their selection or non-selection. By selecting or non-selecting the corresponding check box, the display or non-display of the corresponding type can be switched, but both the roll reduction amount image and the pass schedule image are selected by checking the check box, and all of these types are displayed. The selection or non-selection in the image list 303 can be input by operating the handheld controller 15. The position of the image list 303 on the screen 52 can also be moved up and down and left and right by operating the handheld controller 15.

[0023] 5 is a flow chart showing a series of steps in blooming in which the blooming mill 100 is operated using the operating device 10. When operating the blooming mill 100 using the operating device 10, the operator sits at the operator's seat 55 in the operator's room 50 facing the workbench 56, and operates the handheld controller 15 held with both hands while looking down at the blooming mill 100 to be operated through the window 51 to check the status of the work. An image projected from the video projector 11 is displayed on a transparent screen 52 attached to the glass of the window 51 so as to be superimposed on the blooming mill 100, and the operator operates the blooming mill 100 while simultaneously looking at both the blooming mill 100 and the image displayed on the screen 52.

[0024] In the first step S1, the first front roller table 104 and the second front roller table 105 are driven to receive the steel ingot 200 transported from the continuous casting equipment or heating furnace located upstream of the line. The operator operates the handheld controller 15 to receive the steel ingot 200 from the upstream side of the line, transporting it in order by the second front roller table 105 and the first front roller table 104 so that it is supported between the opposing front work side manipulator 111 and front drive side manipulator 112 on the first front roller table 104.

[0025] In step S2, the steel ingot 200 is turned. The operator operates the handheld controller 15 to advance the front work side manipulator 111 toward the steel ingot 200 supported between the opposing front work side manipulator 111 and front drive side manipulator 112 on the first front roller table 104 in step S1, so that the front work side manipulator 111 abuts one face of the substantially rectangular parallelepiped steel ingot 200. The front drive side manipulator 112 may be retracted at the same time as the front work side manipulator 111 advances. Then, the hook 119 provided on the front work side manipulator 111 abutting one face of the steel ingot 200 is inserted under the steel ingot 200 and hooked onto a lower corner of one face of the steel ingot 200 to lift it up, and the steel ingot 200 is rotated by approximately 90 degrees around an axis in the conveyance direction along the line, and turned so that one face faces up.

[0026] In step S3, the steel ingot 200 is positioned. The steel ingot 200 was turned in step S2 and is supported by the first front roller table 104. The positioning is performed by moving the steel ingot 200 to a predetermined position in a direction intersecting the line, i.e., in a direction intersecting the conveying direction, by advancing the front work side manipulator 111 or the front drive side manipulator 112. The operator confirms that the first pass is the second caliber by looking at the pass schedule image 302 displayed on the screen 52 so as to be superimposed on the blooming mill 100, and uses the handheld controller 15 to move the steel ingot 200 to a position corresponding to the second caliber among the multiple calibers 101a, 102a formed on the bottom roll 101 and the top roll 102.

[0027] In step S4, the top roll 102 is moved to a predetermined position for the first pass of rolling. The operator looks at the pass schedule image 302 displayed on the screen 52 superimposed on the blooming mill 100 to confirm that in the first pass, the steel ingot 200 will be rolled to a thickness of 310.0 mm with the second caliber, and while looking at the roll reduction amount image 301, operates the handheld controller 15 to raise and lower the top roll 102 so that the top roll 102 has an appropriate reduction amount. The reduction amount of the top roll 102 is also displayed on the reduction amount display panel 121, but is displayed as a numerical value in the roll reduction amount image 301.

[0028] In step S5, the first pass of rolling is performed. The operator operates handheld controller 15 to transport steel ingot 200, which was positioned on first front roller table 104 in step S3 so as to correspond to the second caliber, downstream of the line at a predetermined speed by first front roller table 104, front feed roller 103, rear feed roller 106, and rear roller table 107 past rolling mechanism 120. In rolling mechanism 120, lower roll 101 and upper roll 102 rotate in a predetermined rotation direction to feed steel ingot 200 supplied from adjacent front feed roller 103 in the upstream direction downstream of the line, and steel ingot 200 is rolled to a predetermined thickness by the second caliber and advances to adjacent rear feed roller 106 in the downstream direction. Steel ingot 200 which has completed the first pass of rolling is transported downstream of the line past rear feed roller 106 to rear roller table 107.

[0029] In step S6, the upper roll 102 is moved to a predetermined position for the second pass of rolling. The operator looks at the pass schedule image 302 displayed on the screen 52 so as to be superimposed on the blooming mill 100, and confirms that in the second pass, the steel ingot 200 will this time be rolled to 250.0 mm at the second caliber, just like in the first pass. While looking at the roll reduction amount image 301, the operator uses the handheld controller 15 to raise and lower the upper roll 102 to the appropriate reduction amount.

[0030] In step S7, a second pass of rolling is performed. The steel ingot 200 that was rolled in the first pass in step S5 is transported on the rear roller table 107 to a position corresponding to the second caliber. The operator operates the handheld controller 15 to transport the steel ingot 200 at a predetermined speed by the rear roller table 107, rear feed rollers 106, front feed rollers 103, and first front roller table 104 past the rolling mechanism 120 toward the upstream direction of the line. In the rolling mechanism 120, the lower roll 101 and the upper roll 102 rotate in a predetermined rotation direction to feed the steel ingot 200 supplied from the adjacent rear feed roller 106 in the downstream direction toward the upstream direction of the line, and the steel ingot 200 is rolled to a predetermined thickness by the second caliber and provided to the adjacent front feed roller 103 in the upstream direction. The steel ingot 200 that has completed the second pass of rolling is transported upstream of the line past the front feed roller 103 to the first front roller table 104.

[0031] Following the second pass of rolling in step S7, rolling may be continued up to a desired number of passes, for example up to a ninth pass, as shown in the pass schedule image 302 displayed so as to be superimposed on the blooming mill 100 on the screen 52 in Fig. 7. Once the desired number of passes have been completed, the process proceeds to the next step S8.

[0032] In step S8, the steel ingot 200 is unloaded. After rolling, the steel ingot 200 is supported by the first front roller table 104 or the rear roller table 107. The operator operates the handheld controller 15 to unload the steel ingot 200 by the first front roller table 104, the front feed rollers 103, the rear feed rollers 106, and the rear roller table 107 toward the next process downstream in the line. In the rolling mechanism 120 located between the front feed roller 103 and the rear feed roller 106, the upper roll 102 is raised so that the steel ingot 200 supported by the first front roller table 104 can pass through.

[0033] In the operating device 10 of this embodiment, a roll reduction amount image 301 and a pass schedule image 302 are displayed on the screen 52 in front of the operator. On the screen 52, the roll reduction amount image 301 and the pass schedule image 302 are arranged so as to be adjacent to the associated components of the blooming mill 100. In detail, the roll reduction amount image 301, which indicates the reduction amount of the top roll 102, is displayed partially overlapping with the blooming mill 100 so as to be adjacent to the corresponding top roll 102. In addition, the pass schedule image 302, which indicates the pass schedule, is displayed partially overlapping with the blooming mill 100 so as to be adjacent to the associated bottom roll 101 and top roll 102.

[0034] In this way, by displaying the roll reduction amount image 301 and the pass schedule image 302 on the screen 52 adjacent to the relevant components of the blooming mill 100 that are visible through the screen 52, the operator can easily grasp the overall blooming operation and can carry out the blooming operation without referring to anything else, thereby reducing the burden on the operator.

[0035] Fig. 6 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration of a modified operating device 10. The modified operating device has the same configuration as the operating device shown in Fig. 1, except that the operating device 10 shown in Fig. 1 is provided with a laser projector 12 instead of the video projector 11. As the other configurations are the same as those of the operating device 10 shown in Fig. 1, the same reference numerals are used to indicate the correspondence between the corresponding components.

[0036] The laser projector 12 projects and displays an image created by raster scanning the laser beam onto an appropriate target such as a wall surface in accordance with image data supplied from the display PC 14. In a modified example, the laser projector 12 projects an image onto the blooming mill 100.

[0037] Figure 7 is a plan view of a blooming mill 100 in a modified example. In this modified example, the operator room 50 does not have the video projector 11 and screen 52 of Figure 2, but instead has a laser projector 12 that projects an image onto the blooming mill 100. As other configurations are similar to those of the operating device 10 shown in Figure 2, common reference numbers are used to indicate the correspondence between corresponding components. In the roll down mechanism 120 in Figure 7, numbers 311 indicating the roll down amount of the upper roll 102 projected from the laser projector 12 are displayed on the upper roll 102.

[0038] Figure 8 is a diagram showing a blooming mill 100 in a modified example as viewed down from a window 51 of an operator's room 50. In comparison with the diagram showing the blooming mill 100 as viewed down from the operator's room shown in Figure 4, the difference is that instead of the roll reduction amount image 301 and the pass schedule image 302 projected and displayed on the screen 52 by the video projector 11, numbers 311 of the reduction amount are projected by the laser projector 12 onto the upper rolls 102 of the reduction mechanism 120 of the blooming mill 100, and letters and numbers 312 of the corresponding portion of the pass schedule are projected and displayed onto the connecting member 125 that connects a pair of columnar members 124 of the reduction mechanism 120. As the other configurations are the same as those in Figure 4, the corresponding components are given the same reference numerals to indicate the correspondence.

[0039] In this modification, various pieces of information are displayed on the blooming mill 100 by the laser projector 12. That is, in the rolling mechanism 120, numbers 311 indicating the rolling amount are displayed on the top roll 102, and letters and numbers 312 of the pass schedule are displayed on the connecting member 125. In addition, a rotation direction 313 of the bottom roll 101 is displayed on the housing 101b of the bottom roll 101, and a rotation direction, rotation speed, and rolling speed 314 of the top roll 102 are displayed on the housing 102b of the top roll 102. A rotation direction 318 is displayed on each roller of the front roller table 104, and the position and distance 315 of the gap between the bottom roll 101 and the top roll 102 are displayed on the columnar members 124. The positions and distances 316 of these gaps are displayed on the front work side manipulator 111 and the front drive side manipulator 112, and the position and dimension 317 of the width of the ingot 200 are displayed on the front work side manipulator 111, the front drive side manipulator 112 and the ingot 200. Furthermore, a message 321 such as "Welcome Mr. / Ms. XX" is displayed on the upper housing of the rolling mechanism 120.

[0040] Thus, in this modified example, various pieces of information are displayed on the blooming mill 100 by the laser light source 12. For example, in the reduction mechanism 120, numbers 311 indicating the reduction amount are displayed on the top roll 102, and letters and numbers 312 of the pass schedule are displayed on the connecting member 125. This makes it easier for the operator to grasp the entire blooming operation and enables the operator to carry out the blooming operation without referring to anything else, reducing the burden on the operator.

[0041] In the modified example, the housing on the top of the roll-down mechanism 120 displays "Welcome Mr. / Ms.", but any other desired message can be displayed. The laser light projected by the laser projector 12 onto the roll-down mechanism 120 of the blooming mill 100 can be of any desired type, such as white light or color.

[0042] In this modification, an image is projected onto the blooming mill 100 by the laser projector 12, but an image may also be simultaneously displayed on the screen 52 by the video projector 11 as shown in Figures 2 and 4. In this case, the operator can view the image projected onto the screen 52 by the video projector 11 as well as the image projected onto the blooming mill 100 by the laser projector 12, and obtain more information. [Industrial Applicability]

[0043] The present invention can be utilized in the operation of machinery such as blooming mills, steelmaking equipment, rolling equipment, and refining equipment. [Explanation of symbols]

[0044] 10 Operating device 11 Video projector 12 Laser projector 14 Display PC 15 Handheld Controller 16 Controller PC 18 PLC 100 blooming mill 101 Lower Roll 102 Upper roll 120 Lowering mechanism 125 Connecting member 200 Steel ingot

Claims

1. 1. A control device for operating a machine having at least two degrees of freedom, comprising: a laser projector for projecting an image containing data of at least a portion of at least two degrees of freedom of the machine at a predetermined location on the machine so that the image can be simultaneously viewed by an operator of the machine. An operating device including:

2. The machine is a blooming mill, A rolling roll for pressing and rolling the rolled material; a roller table that supports the rolled material and transports it toward the rolling rolls; a manipulator that moves the rolling material supported on the roller table in a direction intersecting with a conveying direction of the roller table; Including, 2. The manipulation device of claim 1, wherein the at least two degrees of freedom of the machine include a selection of a caliber of the rolls by the manipulator according to a pass schedule and an amount of reduction of the rolls.

3. 3. The operating device of claim 2, wherein the predetermined position of the machine includes at least one of a connecting member and an upper roll of the blooming mill.

Images