Operation regulation apparatus for high-place work vehicle

Abstract

To provide an operation regulation apparatus for regulating an operation of entering a prescribed region performed by a bench of a high-place work vehicle.SOLUTION: The operation regulation apparatus for a high-place work vehicle including a travelable vehicle body, a boom provided in the vehicle body to turn, derrick and extend / contract, and a bench provided at the tip of the boom comprises: an imaging device that is provided in the vehicle body and that acquires image information about surroundings of the vehicle body; an image recognition unit that recognizes, from the image information acquired by the imaging device, a region setting article installed around the vehicle body from a peripheral image; and a regulation region setting unit that sets a work regulation region with respect to vehicle body for regulating work of the high-place work vehicle on the basis of the region setting article recognized by the image recognition unit.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 5

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an operation restriction device for a high altitude work vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] A vehicle is known as an aerial work vehicle, which includes a boom arranged on a travelling vehicle body so as to be freely rotatable, hoisted, and telescopic, and a work platform for a worker provided at the tip of the boom, and which is configured so that the work platform can be moved to any desired high position by a worker riding on the work platform and operating the boom by operating an operating device provided on the work platform, and is used for various high-altitude work such as electric line construction, building and ship construction, and highway construction. Since the work platform is moved by operating the boom when using an aerial work vehicle, when working on a road with traffic, a protective fence such as a safety cone or safety bar must be installed to distinguish between the passable road and the work area of ​​the aerial work vehicle, and the worker must work carefully to ensure that the boom or work platform does not go beyond the protective fence and enter the passable road outside the work area.

[0003] Therefore, an invention of a surroundings confirmation device is known that can check the surroundings of a work vehicle by using a surrounding image obtained by synthesizing images from cameras attached to the front, back, left and right of the vehicle body (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] JP 2022-12669 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Such a surrounding confirmation device is known as a surround view system, but this system only displays the surroundings and cannot prevent the boom or work platform from entering a restricted work area set outside the work area set by a protective fence. Therefore, even when applied to a high-altitude work vehicle, the worker must visually check the position of the boom or work platform and operate the boom or work platform carefully so as not to enter the restricted work area outside the work area, and the burden on the worker to operate safely remains large.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of such problems, and aims to provide an operation restriction device for an aerial work vehicle that can restrict the operation of a boom or work platform entering a work restriction area set based on an area setting object such as a protective fence. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] In order to achieve such an object, the operation restriction device for an aerial work vehicle according to the present invention is an operation restriction device for an aerial work vehicle that includes a travellable vehicle body (e.g., vehicle body 2 in the embodiment), a boom (e.g., boom 30 in the embodiment) that is provided on the vehicle body so as to be able to rotate, rise and fall and extend freely, and a work platform (e.g., work platform 40 in the embodiment) provided at the tip of the boom, and includes imaging devices (e.g., front camera 71, rear camera 72, left side camera 73, and right side camera 74 in the embodiment) that are provided on the vehicle body and acquire image information about the surroundings of the vehicle body, and an image recognition unit (e.g., image recognition unit 72 in the embodiment) that recognizes area setting objects (e.g., area setting objects in the embodiment, safety cones, safety bars, ropes, etc.) installed around the vehicle body from the image information acquired by the imaging devices. 62), and a restriction area setting unit (e.g., restriction area setting unit 66 in the embodiment) that sets a work restriction area (e.g., a restriction area in the embodiment) for the vehicle body to restrict operation of the boom by the aerial work vehicle based on the area setting object recognized by the image recognition unit.

[0008] In the above-mentioned operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle, it is preferable that the restriction area setting unit sets a vertical plane obtained by extending vertically upward from the area setting object recognized by the image recognition unit as the work restriction area.

[0009] In the above-mentioned operation restriction device for aerial work vehicle, it is preferable to comprise an operation amount detection unit (e.g., boom rotation angle detector 120, boom hoisting angle detector 121, boom extension amount detector 122 in the embodiments) that detects the boom's rotation angle, hoisting angle and extension amount, a position calculation unit (e.g., position calculation unit 63 in the embodiments) that calculates the position of the work platform relative to the vehicle body based on the detection information by the operation amount detection unit, a position comparison unit (e.g., position comparison unit 61 in the embodiments) that compares the position of the work platform calculated by the position calculation unit with the position of the work restriction area set by the restriction area setting unit, and a restriction control unit that restricts the operation of the boom such that the work platform enters the work restriction area based on the comparison result of the positional relationship by the position comparison unit.

[0010] In the above-mentioned operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle, it is preferable that the work platform is provided at the tip of the boom so as to be freely rotated horizontally, and the restriction control unit restricts the operation of the boom and the horizontal rotation operation of the work platform such that the work platform enters the work restriction area based on the comparison result of the positional relationship by the position comparison unit.

[0011] In the above-mentioned operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle, it is preferable that the restriction control unit restricts the operation of the boom and the horizontal rotation operation of the work platform in such a direction that the work platform enters the work restriction area and allows the operation of the boom and the horizontal rotation operation of the work platform in such a direction that the work platform moves away from the work restriction area based on the comparison result of the positional relationship by the position comparison unit.

[0012] In the above-mentioned operation restriction device for aerial work vehicle, it is preferable to provide a display device (e.g., display device 80 in an embodiment) having a display screen that shows a planar image of the aerial work vehicle based on the image information acquired by the imaging device, and to display on the display screen the shapes of the body, boom and work platform of the aerial work vehicle in a planar view, as well as the area setting object and the work restriction area, and to display the positional relationship between the work platform and the work restriction area.

[0013] In the above-mentioned operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle, it is preferable that the display device is a touch panel type, and is configured so that the work restriction area can be set by directly touching the display screen.

[0014] In the above-mentioned operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle, it is preferable that the display device is provided on the work platform. Effect of the Invention

[0015] The operation restriction device for a vehicle for working at height according to the present invention includes an image recognition unit that recognizes area setting objects from image information acquired by an imaging device, and a restricted area setting unit that sets a work restricted area for restricting work by the vehicle for working at height, so that the image recognition unit recognizes area setting objects such as safety cones and safety bars installed around the vehicle body from an image captured by the imaging device, and the restricted area setting unit sets the work restricted area. Therefore, the operator can easily recognize the work restricted area during work. There is no need to check the area, which improves work efficiency and safety.

[0016] In addition, the operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle according to the present invention is preferably configured to include an operation amount detection unit that detects the operation of the boom, a position calculation unit that determines the position of the work platform based on information detected by the work amount detection unit, a position comparison unit that compares the position of the work platform with the position of the work restriction area set by the restriction area setting unit, and a restriction control unit that restricts the operation of the boom such that the work platform enters the work restriction area. With this configuration, the position of the work platform calculated from the operation amount of the boom and the work platform is compared with the position of the work restriction area, and when the position of the work platform reaches the boundary of the work restriction area, the operation of the boom that enters the work restriction area can be restricted, so that the worker does not need to visually check the position of the work platform and it is possible to improve the safety of the work without relying on the worker's attention.

[0017] In addition, the operation restriction device for the aerial work vehicle according to the present invention is preferably provided with a display device having a display screen showing a planar image of the aerial work vehicle based on image information acquired by the imaging device, and the display screen shows the shapes of the vehicle body, boom and work platform of the aerial work vehicle in a planar view, as well as the area setting object and the work restriction area, to show the positional relationship between the work platform and the work restriction area. By configuring in this way, the positional relationship of the boom, work platform and work restriction area to the vehicle body can be confirmed on the display device, so that the worker does not need to visually check the area setting object on the ground during work, and it is possible to improve work efficiency.

[0018] In addition, in the operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle according to the present invention, it is preferable that the display device is a touch panel type and configured so that the work restriction area can be set by directly touching the display screen. By configuring in this way, it is possible to set the work restriction area through the display device, and the worker can directly fine-tune the work restriction area set by the image recognition unit recognizing the area setting object, or set a new work restriction area.

[0019] In addition, in the operation restriction device for the high-altitude work vehicle according to the present invention, it is preferable that the display device is provided on the work platform. With this configuration, the worker can check the positional relationship of the boom, the work platform, and the work restriction area with respect to the vehicle body on the display device while working on the work platform, thereby improving safety and work efficiency. Furthermore, if the display device is a touch panel type, the worker on the work platform can set the work restriction area. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1] 1 is a side view showing the appearance of a high-altitude work vehicle equipped with an operation restriction device according to the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a plan view showing the appearance of the aerial work vehicle. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a functional block diagram of an embodiment of the operation restriction device for the aerial work vehicle. [Figure 4] 4 is a diagram showing an example of a surrounding image relating to the operation restriction device of the aerial work vehicle. FIG. [Diagram 5] 13 is a diagram showing an example of an area display image relating to the operation restriction device of the aerial work vehicle. FIG. [Figure 6] 4 is a conceptual diagram illustrating control in the operation restriction device of the aerial work vehicle. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0021] A preferred embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. A front-storing type vehicle for high-altitude work 1 is shown in Figures 1 and 2 as a work vehicle equipped with an operation restriction device according to this embodiment. First, the overall configuration of the vehicle for high-altitude work 1 will be described with reference to these figures.

[0022] As shown in FIG. 1, the vehicle 1 has a driver's cabin 7 at the front of the vehicle body 2. The vehicle is based on a truck vehicle that can run on a pair of left and right tires and wheels 5 (front wheels 5f and rear wheels 5r) arranged at the front and rear. The vehicle body 2 is configured with a vehicle body frame consisting of a chassis frame that supports a driver's cabin 7 and the like, and a subframe attached to the chassis frame, and a mounting area is formed behind the driver's cabin 7 on the vehicle body frame.

[0023] Jack devices 10 are provided on the front, rear, left and right sides of the vehicle body 2 to lift and support the vehicle body 2 during high-altitude work. The jack devices 10 are configured with a pair of left and right front jacks 10f disposed behind the front wheels 5f, and a pair of left and right rear jacks 10r disposed behind the rear wheels 5r. Each jack 10f, 10r lifts and supports the vehicle body 2 by driving a jack cylinder 11 provided therein to extend downward, thereby stabilizing the entire vehicle. A lower operating device 27 is provided at the rear end of the vehicle body 2 to operate each jack 10f, 10r and a boom 30 (described later), etc.

[0024] A swivel base 20 configured to be freely rotatable about a vertical axis by the rotational drive of a swivel motor 24 is provided in the mounting area of ​​the vehicle body 2 behind the driver's cabin 7. A base end of a boom 30 is attached to a support column 21 extending upward from the swivel base 20 via a foot pin 22 so as to be freely swingable (raised and lowered) in the vertical direction. In addition, a plurality of tool boxes 26 for storing work tools, work equipment, etc. are provided on the left and right sides of the mounting area of ​​the vehicle body 2.

[0025] The boom 30 has a configuration in which, from the swivel base 20 side, a base end boom 30a, an intermediate boom 30b, and a tip end boom 30c are nested together, and the boom 30 can be extended and retracted in the axial direction (longitudinal direction) by the extension and retraction drive of a telescopic cylinder 31 provided inside. In addition, a hoisting cylinder 23 is provided between the base end boom 30a and the support 21, and by driving this hoisting cylinder 23 to extend and retract, the entire boom 30 can be raised and lowered in the upper and lower planes (vertical planes).

[0026] A vertical post (not shown) is pivotally supported at the tip of the tip boom 30c so as to be swingable up and down. This vertical post is swing-controlled (leveling-controlled) by an upper leveling cylinder (not shown) straddling between the tip of the tip boom 30c and the base boom 30a and a lower leveling cylinder 25 straddling between the base boom 30a and the support 21 so as to be always kept in a vertical position regardless of the elevation of the boom 30. A work platform 40 for an operator to sit on is attached to this vertical post via a work platform bracket (not shown). A swivel motor 34 (see FIG. 3) is provided inside this work platform bracket, and the entire work platform 40 can be swung around the vertical post by rotating the swivel motor 34. Here, the vertical post is always kept in a vertical position as described above, and as a result, the floor surface of the work platform 40 is always kept horizontal regardless of the elevation angle of the boom 30.

[0027] The work platform 40 is provided with an upper operation device 45 equipped with various operation means such as operation levers, operation switches, operation dials, etc., which are operated by a worker on the work platform 40. Therefore, by operating the upper operation device 45, a worker on the work platform 40 can perform various operations such as the rotation operation of the swivel platform 20 (operation caused by the rotational drive of the swivel motor 24), the raising and lowering operation of the boom 30 (operation caused by the extension and retraction drive of the hoisting cylinder 23), the extension and retraction operation of the boom 30 (operation caused by the extension and retraction drive of the telescopic cylinder 31), and the swing operation of the work platform 40 (operation caused by the rotational drive of the swing motor 34).

[0028] Next, the drive of the boom 30 and the work platform 40 and other controls in the operation restriction device according to this embodiment will be described with reference to the functional block diagram of FIG.

[0029] The upper operating device 45 and the lower operating device 27 are configured to perform the swing and raising operation of the boom 30. The boom 30 is operated to extend and retract, and the boom extension / retraction operation lever 32b is operated to extend and retract the boom 30. The boom extension / retraction operation lever 32c is operated to swing the work platform 40.

[0030] The actuators corresponding to the operation of each control lever are controlled to operate. Specifically, each actuator is controlled so that the boom 30 is rotated and hoisted in response to the operation of the boom rotation / hoisting control lever 32a, the boom 30 is extended and retracted in response to the operation of the boom extension / retraction control lever 32b, and the work platform 40 is swung in response to the operation of the swing control lever 32c.

[0031] Here, in order to operate the swivel table 20, boom 30, and work platform 40, a controller 100 is provided which receives operation signals from the upper operation device 45 or the lower operation device 27 to control the operation of the swivel motor 24, hoisting cylinder 23, telescopic cylinder 31, and swing motor 34 (hereinafter collectively referred to as "hydraulic actuators"), and a hydraulic unit 50 is provided which supplies hydraulic oil to drive the hydraulic actuators. Note that, although hydraulic actuators such as hydraulic cylinders and hydraulic motors are used in this embodiment, electric actuators may be used instead.

[0032] An operation signal output by operating the operation levers 32a to 32c of the upper operation device 45 or the lower operation device 27 is input to the controller 100. The controller 100 outputs a command signal corresponding to the operation signal to the hydraulic unit 50 (control valve 53).

[0033] The hydraulic unit 50 includes a hydraulic pump 52 that discharges hydraulic oil, and a control valve 53 that controls the supply direction and supply amount of hydraulic oil supplied from the hydraulic pump 52 to each hydraulic actuator. The hydraulic pump 52 is driven by power taken from the engine E of the vehicle via the power take-off mechanism PTO. The control valve 53 includes an electromagnetic proportional control valve V1 for controlling the operation of the swing motor 24, an electromagnetic proportional control valve V2 for controlling the operation of the hoisting cylinder 23, an electromagnetic proportional control valve V3 for controlling the operation of the telescopic cylinder 31, and an electromagnetic proportional control valve V4 for controlling the operation of the swing motor 34. Based on a command signal from the controller 100, the control valve 53 electromagnetically controls the opening degree of each of the electromagnetic proportional control valves V1 to V4 to control the supply direction and supply amount of hydraulic oil supplied from the hydraulic pump 52 to each hydraulic actuator, thereby controlling the operation direction and operation speed of each hydraulic actuator. In other words, it controls the operation direction and operation speed of the swing table 20, the boom 30, and the work platform 40.

[0034] The above-described vehicle for working at height 1 is equipped with an operation restriction device according to the present invention. The configuration and operation of this operation restriction device will be described below.

[0035] The controller 100 is electrically connected to various detectors such as a boom rotation angle detector 120, a boom hoisting angle detector 121, a boom extension amount detector 122, and a work platform swing angle detector 123.

[0036] The boom rotation angle detector 120 is provided on the vehicle body 2 and detects the rotation angle of the rotating platform 20. The boom hoisting angle detector 121 is provided inside the base end boom 30a and detects the hoisting angle of the boom 30. The boom extension amount detector 122 is provided at the base end of the base end boom 30a and detects the length (extension amount) of the boom 30. The work platform swing angle detector 123 is provided on the work platform 40 and detects the swing angle of the work platform 40. Detection information detected by these detectors 120-123 is output to the controller 100.

[0037] The controller 100 has a position calculation unit 63 that calculates the position of the work table 40 based on the detection information detected by each of the detectors 120-123.

[0038] The position calculation unit 63 calculates the position of the work platform 40 at the tip of the boom 30 relative to the vehicle body 2 based on the detection information from the boom rotation angle detector 120, the boom hoisting angle detector 121, the boom extension amount detector 122, and the work platform swing angle detector 123, and information such as the dimensions of each mechanism. The position of the work platform 40 is preferably calculated as coordinates in a coordinate system used in an area display image IMG described later based on the detected rotation angle, boom hoisting angle, extension amount, swing angle, and dimensions of each mechanism. In other words, the position of the work platform 40 is preferably calculated as the position of the work platform 40 projected vertically onto the road surface as coordinates in a coordinate system with the center of rotation of the boom 30 swing operation as the origin. The position of the work platform 40 is preferably calculated for all positions on the outer shape of the work platform 40. The coordinate information of the work platform 40 calculated by the position calculation unit 63 is output to a position comparison unit 61 described later.

[0039] The controller 100 includes an operation control section 65 that operates each actuator in response to the operation of each of the operating levers 32a to 32c.

[0040] The operation control section 65 independently operates each hydraulic actuator in response to the operation of each operation lever 32a to 32c. Specifically, when the boom rotation / hoisting operation lever 32a is tilted forward (front / back / left / right directions based on the operator operating the boom: the same applies below), the hoisting cylinder 23 is contracted to lower the boom 30, and when the boom rotation / hoisting operation lever 32a is tilted backward, the hoisting cylinder 23 is extended to raise the boom 30. When the boom telescopic operation lever 32b is tilted forward, the telescopic cylinder 31 is extended to extend the boom 30, and when the boom telescopic operation lever 32b is tilted backward, the telescopic cylinder 31 is contracted to retract the boom 30. When the boom rotation / hoisting operation lever 32a is tilted to the left, the rotation motor 24 is operated to rotate in the forward direction, causing the boom 30 (rotation base 20) to rotate counterclockwise, and when the boom rotation / hoisting operation lever 32a is tilted to the right, the rotation motor 24 is operated to rotate in the reverse direction, causing the boom 30 (rotation base 20) to rotate clockwise.

[0041] Next, a control for setting a restricted area using area setting objects such as safety cones and safety bars installed around the vehicle for high altitude work 1 will be described.

[0042] The worker sets area setting objects such as safety cones and safety bars around the vehicle for working at height 1 to set a work area around the vehicle for working at height 1. As a result, a work restricted area that restricts the boom 30 and the work platform 40 of the vehicle for working at height 1 from entering is set in an area outside the work area. Hereinafter, the area that restricts the entry of the boom 30 and the work platform 40 of the vehicle for working at height 1 will be described as a "restricted area". At that time, by using the operation restricting device according to this embodiment, it is possible to restrict the operation of at least the work platform 40 attached to the tip of the boom 30 of the vehicle for working at height 1 from entering this restricted area.

[0043] The area setting objects are installed around the vehicle for work at height 1 to separate the work area around the vehicle for work at height 1 from the restricted area. The area setting objects do not have to be installed in a straight line. The area setting objects may be safety cones, safety bars, ropes, etc. Also, any object that can distinguish areas and can be image-recognized, such as side strips, shrubbery, and guardrails that are originally installed on the road, may be used.

[0044] The work platform of the aerial work vehicle moves in a three-dimensional space including the height direction in response to the operation of the boom, and the restricted area is a three-dimensional area extending in the height direction, but in the following explanation, the restricted area is described as an area extending vertically upward separated by an area setting object, and the position of the work platform and the position of the restricted area can be compared and determined in a plan view. By setting the restricted area as an area extending vertically upward separated by an area setting object, it is easy to set the restricted area. It is possible.

[0045] The restricted area is set with a straight line or curve including the area setting object (hereinafter referred to as "area setting line") as the boundary. If the area including the aerial work vehicle 1 surrounded by the area setting line is called the work area, the restricted area is set outside the work area. If the area setting object has a continuous shape such as a safety bar or rope, it is preferable that the area setting line is set by the area setting object itself. Also, if each area setting object is installed discontinuously such as a safety cone, it is preferable that the area setting line is set as a shape connecting each area setting object with a straight line. Here, it is stated that the area setting line is set, but specifically, the word "set" is used to mean that the shape of the area setting line calculated as the boundary of the restricted area is determined after image recognition of the area setting object displayed in the area display image IMG described later.

[0046] Next, the control for acquiring image information around the vehicle for aerial work 1 will be described.

[0047] The operation restriction device according to this embodiment includes a front camera 71 and a camera body 2, one each on the front, rear, left and right sides of the vehicle body 2. The vehicle body 2 is provided with a rear camera 72, a left side camera 73, and a right side camera 74. The cameras 71 to 74 are attached to the front, rear, left and right sides of the vehicle body 2 via support brackets (not shown). Each of the cameras 71 to 74 is provided with a lens having a wide angle of view (for example, an angle of view of 180 degrees or more), such as a fisheye lens or a super wide angle lens. These cameras capture images including the area setting object, and the images are output to the controller 100. The installation positions of the cameras will now be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2.

[0048] 1, the front camera 71 is disposed in the front grill 18 at the front of the vehicle body 2, and is installed so that the optical axis of the lens faces diagonally downward with respect to the ground. The front camera 71 has an imaging range (field of view range) mainly in front of the vehicle among the surroundings of the vehicle, and obtains an image (forward image) of the area in front of the vehicle as a moving image or a still image. The front camera 71 may be disposed at another position in the front of the vehicle body 2, for example, on the front bumper at the front of the vehicle body 2.

[0049] 1 and 2, the rear camera 72 is disposed above the tail lamp 19 at the rear of the vehicle body 2, and is installed so that the optical axis of the lens faces diagonally downward with respect to the ground. The rear camera 72 has an imaging range (field of view) mainly behind the vehicle among the surroundings of the vehicle, and obtains an image (rear image) of the rear of the vehicle captured as a moving image or a still image. The rear camera 72 may be disposed at another position at the rear of the vehicle body 2, for example, near the lower operating device 27 at the rear of the vehicle body 2.

[0050] 1 and 2, the left side camera 73 is disposed on the upper side of the driver's cabin 7 (on the left side of the rear end side of the upper surface of the driver's cabin 7) and is installed so that the optical axis of the lens faces diagonally downward with respect to the ground. This left side camera 73 has an imaging range (field of view range) that is mainly the left side of the vehicle among the surroundings of the vehicle, and obtains an image (left side image) that captures the left side of the vehicle as a moving image or a still image.

[0051] 2, the right side camera 74 is disposed on the upper side of the driver's cabin 7 (on the right side of the rear end side of the upper surface of the driver's cabin 7) and is installed so that the optical axis of the lens faces diagonally downward with respect to the ground. This right side camera 74 has an imaging range (field of view range) that is mainly the right side of the vehicle among the surroundings of the vehicle, and obtains an image (right side image) that captures the right side of the vehicle as a moving image or a still image.

[0052] The four cameras mentioned above capture images in four directions: the front, rear, left side, and right side of the vehicle 1. A wide range of video is captured by the cameras, and a captured image corresponding to the captured video is output to the controller 100. The captured image from each camera may be transmitted by wired communication via a cable or wireless communication.

[0053] The controller 100 includes an image processing unit 60 that performs predetermined image processing on the captured images from the cameras to generate an image of the surroundings around the vehicle body 2.

[0054] The image processing unit 60 performs predetermined image processing such as image synthesis, distortion correction, and viewpoint conversion processing on the captured images transmitted from the cameras 71-74, and generates a surrounding image by superimposing the captured images on basic image data stored in the image processing unit 60. The basic image data includes image data that shows a schematic representation of the vehicle body 2 in a plan view (hereinafter referred to as "vehicle image data"), "scale line data" created based on the distance on the road surface, and the like.

[0055] The generation of the surrounding image in the image processing unit 60 will be described in detail. As shown in Fig. 4, the image processing unit 60 performs a predetermined image processing (for example, viewpoint conversion processing) on ​​the four captured images captured by the cameras 71-74 to generate partial overhead images PH1-PH4 (front overhead image PH1, rear overhead image PH2, left side overhead image PH3, and right side overhead image PH4), and synthesizes these partial overhead images PH1-PH4 with the host vehicle image VC as vehicle image data stored in the image processing unit 60 to generate an overall overhead image PH showing the aerial work vehicle 1 and its surroundings (the entire surroundings of the aerial work vehicle 1) as viewed from directly above. The image processing unit 60 outputs the generated overall overhead image PH and partial overhead images PH1-PH4 to the image recognition unit 62. The surrounding images may be output to a display device 80.

[0056] Next, the control for recognizing an area setting object from the obtained surrounding image will be described.

[0057] The controller 100 includes an image recognition unit 62 that recognizes an area setting object from a surrounding image.

[0058] The image recognition unit 62 performs image recognition of the area setting object included in the surrounding image generated by the image processing unit 60. The image recognition unit 62 has a learning result in which the image recognition unit 62 has previously learned the shape and color, etc., of a plurality of different images of the area setting object by AI, machine learning, etc. Using this learning result, the image recognition unit 62 performs image recognition of the area setting object and the position of the area setting object from the surrounding image. Note that the surrounding image is developed by developing an image taken with a fisheye lens or a super wide-angle lens based on the height of the road surface, so that the surrounding three-dimensional object appears as an elongated image that stands up from the road surface on the image. Therefore, in the image recognition, it is preferable to recognize the contact surface with the road surface as the position of the area setting object. For example, in the case of a safety cone, it is preferable to recognize the contact surface of the safety cone with the road surface. In the case of a rope, the shape of the rope may be image recognized. Note that, although it has been stated that the image recognition is performed from the surrounding image, image data from each camera may also be used. By using image data from each camera, image recognition can be performed with high accuracy because image recognition is performed using clear images before image processing.

[0059] The position of the area setting object may be recognized as coordinates on the surrounding image. However, using coordinates as the position of the area setting object is just an example, and is not limited to this. In the description of this embodiment, an example using coordinates will be described. These coordinates are preferably coordinates in a coordinate system that has the center of the rotation operation of the boom 30 based on the distance on the road surface as its origin. The coordinate system will be described in detail later.

[0060] Next, the control for setting a restriction area based on the position of an area setting object recognized by the image recognition unit 62 will be described.

[0061] The controller 100 sets a restricted area from the area setting object recognized by the image recognition unit 62. A restriction area setting unit 66 is provided.

[0062] The restricted area setting unit 66 sets a restricted area based on the position of the area setting object recognized by the image recognition unit 62. At this time, the restricted area is set with a straight line or curve including the area setting object as a boundary as described above. This boundary is superimposed on the surrounding image as an area setting line and output to the display device 80. When the area setting line is recognized as a coordinate, the coordinate information is output to the position comparison unit 61. The area setting line may be obtained by calculation processing or image processing, or may be set manually by an operator. When setting manually, the surrounding image may be displayed on the display device 80, and the operator may draw the area setting line on the screen with a dedicated pen to set the area setting line.

[0063] The controller 100 may also include an area adjustment unit 67 that finely adjusts the area setting line set by the restricted area setting unit 66. The area adjustment unit 67 may be able to select a point on the area setting line displayed on the display device 80 and change the coordinate value or position of the point. Such a change may be realized by a button or a dial, or, in the case where a touch panel is adopted as the display device 80, may be realized by a switch displayed on the screen or an input from the screen. The result of the change of the area setting line by the area adjustment unit 67 is output to the display device 80. In addition, in the case where the position of the area setting line is recognized as a coordinate, the changed coordinate information is output to the position comparison unit 61.

[0064] An image in which the area setting line is superimposed on the surrounding image is called an area display image. Fig. 5 shows an area display image IMG in which the area setting line is set by the restricted area setting section 66 after the area setting object is recognized by the image recognition section 62 and then displayed on the display device 80.

[0065] In the area display image IMG, the area setting object recognized by the image recognition unit 62 is displayed as an area setting line RL from the overall overhead image PH as a surrounding image generated by the image processing unit 60 based on the images from each camera and the basic image data. In this embodiment, the vehicle image VC as the vehicle image data and the scale line ML (vertical axis, horizontal axis) as the scale line data corresponding to the distance on the road surface are displayed as basic image data, and the safety cone SA is displayed as the area setting object. FIG. 5 shows a state in which the vehicle image VC is located at the center of the screen, a wall WL is on the left side of the vehicle image VC, safety cones SA are installed on the road surface in front, behind, and to the right to distinguish the work area, and a state in which vehicles CR are passing on the roadway to the right of the vehicle image VC with the safety cone between them. The outside of the area surrounded by the area setting line RL is the regulated area. The worker checks this area display image IMG, and if necessary, fine-tunes the coordinates and position of the area setting line by the area adjustment unit 67. 5, the area setting lines are shown as dashed lines, but this is only an example and other line types or colored lines may be used in the case of a color image. The shapes of the boom 30 and the work platform 40 indicating the positions of the boom 30 and the work platform 40 calculated by the position calculation unit 63 may be superimposed and displayed on the area display image IMG, making it possible to visually confirm the positions of the boom 30 and the work platform 40 in real time or almost in real time.

[0066] In this embodiment, as an example, a coordinate system is set in the area display image IMG. The center of rotation O of the boom 30 of the vehicle 1 is set as the origin of the coordinate system. The scale lines ML are set based on the actual distance on the road surface so that the distance on the coordinate system can be converted into the distance on the road surface. The coordinate system is used in a calculation process performed by the position comparison unit 61 (described later) to compare the position of the work platform 40 with the position of the area setting line. The scale lines ML are displayed as a guide on the display device 80, and do not necessarily have to be displayed. In the following description, the coordinate system is set with the center of rotation O of the boom 30 as the origin, but the origin of the coordinate system is not limited to the center of rotation O. It is preferable that the origin of the coordinate system is any position on the vehicle body 2, and it may be set to any other position on the vehicle body by taking into account the dimensions of each mechanism of the vehicle body 2. The location of may be set as the origin.

[0067] The display device 80 is provided near the upper operation device 45, inside the driver's cabin 7, or near the lower operation device 27, and is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal display panel having a touch panel function. The display device 80 displays an area display image IMG in which the area setting line set by the restricted area setting unit 66 is superimposed on a surrounding image. When the operation restriction device is not used, the display device 80 is used as a surrounding confirmation device that displays a surrounding image to check the surroundings, and when the operation restriction device is used, the display device 80 may be used for multiple purposes, such as displaying an area display image. The display device 80 may be a dedicated liquid crystal display, or may be a liquid crystal display of a car navigation system. In addition, the display device 80 may be displayed on a portable terminal such as a tablet.

[0068] Next, a control for restricting the work platform 40 of the vehicle for working at height 1 from entering the restricted area will be described.

[0069] The controller 100 includes a position comparison unit 61 and a restriction control unit 64 .

[0070] The position comparison unit 61 compares the position of the area setting line received from the regulated area setting unit 66 with the position of the work platform 40 received from the position calculation unit 63. When recognizing the position as coordinates, the coordinate information of the area setting line is compared with the coordinate information of the work platform 40. As the position of the work platform 40 is displaced by the operation of the boom 30 and the work platform 40, the magnitude relationship of each coordinate (the coordinate of the work platform and the coordinate of the area setting line) is compared to see if the coordinate of the work platform 40 exceeds the coordinate of the area setting line, and when the coordinate of the work platform 40 reaches the coordinate of the area setting line, the information is transmitted to the regulation control unit 64. At this time, it is desirable to compare all positions on the outer shape of the work platform 40 with the coordinate of the area setting line and regulate so that no part of the work platform 40 will exceed the area setting line and enter the regulated area. FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the calculation contents in the comparison of coordinates performed by the position comparison unit 61. 6 shows a plan view of the vehicle body 2, boom 30, and work platform 40 of the aerial work platform 1, and illustrates the case where the position of the work platform 40 moves from coordinate BP to coordinate BQ between time P and time Q in coordinate system M with the rotation center O of the boom 30 as the origin. In Fig. 6, an arbitrary coordinate A on the area definition line is indicated by a dashed line. The coordinates BP and BQ are used as symbols to represent arbitrary coordinates on the work platform 40 at time P and Q, respectively.

[0071] When the restriction control unit 64 receives information from the position comparison unit 61 that the coordinate of the work platform 40 has reached the coordinate A of the area setting line, the restriction control unit 64 analyzes the operation signals from the boom rotation / hoisting operation lever 32a, the boom extension / retraction operation lever 32b, and the swivel operation lever 32c, and controls the operation restriction unit 65 of the controller 100 not to output a valve drive signal except for operations in a direction in which the coordinate of the work platform 40 moves inwardly away from the coordinate A of the area setting line. In FIG. 6, at time P, none of the coordinates BP on the work platform 40 have reached the coordinate A of the area setting line, and from this position, any operation such as rotation, hoisting, extension, and swivel operation is performed, and the boom 30 and the work platform 40 move to the position of coordinate BQ at time Q. At time Q, the point 40a (coordinate Bq) on the coordinate BQ has reached the point 40A (coordinate Aq) on the area setting line, and the coordinate Bq and the coordinate Aq are equal. At this time, for example, when the boom 30 is rotated clockwise from time Q or when the boom 30 is extended, these are operations in a direction beyond the zone setting line, so control is performed so that no drive signal is output to the control valve of each actuator and no operation is performed. Also, when the boom 30 is rotated counterclockwise from time Q or when the boom 30 is retracted, these are operations in a direction returning to the working zone, so the command signal to each hydraulic actuator is executed as is. By performing such control, after restricting the operation of the work platform entering the restricted zone, the boom and work platform can be returned to the working zone where work is possible, improving safety and preventing a decrease in work efficiency. It becomes Noh.

[0072] As described above, the restricted area may be not only one that extends vertically upward from the area setting line, but also one that extends into the vehicle body side above the road surface in a three-dimensional shape. In this case, the position calculation unit 63 determines the position of the work platform 40 in three-dimensional space, and controls the operation of the boom 30 and the work platform 40 so that the position enters the restricted area at a certain height, and also controls the operation of returning to a work area where work can be performed.

[0073] Next, the operation of the operation restriction device according to this embodiment will be described.

[0074] The aerial work vehicle 1 may be configured to use the surrounding image generated by the image processing unit 60 as a surrounding confirmation image for checking the surroundings during normal driving, and may be configured so that the function of the operation restriction device is activated by a trigger such as the following.

[0075] First, it is considered that the operation restriction device is activated when the PTO operation lever 55 is turned ON. As shown in FIG. 3, a power take-off mechanism PTO is incorporated in a transmission that changes the speed of the power of the engine E and transmits it to the tire / wheel 5. The PTO operation lever 55 that turns the power take-off mechanism PTO ON / OFF is disposed inside the driver's cabin 7. When the PTO operation lever 55 is operated from the OFF position to the ON position, the power take-off mechanism PTO switches the drive destination of the engine E from the tire / wheel 5 to the hydraulic pump 52, and the hydraulic pump 52 is driven by the power of the engine E. This makes it possible to operate the boom 30. On the other hand, when the PTO operation lever 55 is operated from the ON position to the OFF position, the power take-off mechanism PTO switches the drive destination of the engine E from the hydraulic pump 52 to the tire / wheel 5, and the tire / wheel 5 is rotationally driven by the power of the engine E. That is, it is considered that the operation restriction device is configured to be activated by turning the PTO operation lever 55 ON when starting work using the boom 30 or the work platform 40.

[0076] The operation restriction device may be configured to operate when the parking brake of the vehicle for high-altitude work 1 is applied or when a dedicated switch for activating the operation restriction device is turned ON. The operation restriction device may also be configured to operate when the jack cylinder 11 of the jack device 10 (front jack 10f and rear jack 10r) touches the ground. In this case, the vehicle for high-altitude work 1 is preferably configured so that a ground detector that detects the jack cylinder 11 touching the road surface is installed on the vehicle body 2 and connected to the controller 100.

[0077] As described above, when the operation restriction device starts to operate, the image recognition unit 62 starts to recognize the surrounding image, and the display device 80 displays the area display image.

[0078] Image recognition of area-defining objects such as safety cones and safety bars has been described above, but it is also possible to attach a unique marker or a two-dimensional code such as a QR code (registered trademark) to the area-defining object, photograph it with a camera, and perform image recognition by the image recognition unit 62. In this case, the distance from the camera can be calculated based on the size and inclination of the figure of the photographed two-dimensional code. This makes it possible to more accurately calculate the correspondence between the distance on the road surface and the distance on the surrounding image. This method is also effective in cases where image recognition of area-defining objects is difficult.

[0079] In addition, in this embodiment, an example has been described in which four cameras are used to capture images in four directions, namely, the front, rear, left side, and right side of the vehicle, but a single omnidirectional camera capable of capturing 360-degree images of the surroundings may be provided to capture the surrounding images. Also, a work position relative to the vehicle body may be limited, and an image from a single dedicated camera that captures the work position may be used. If a live recorder is installed, the video from the drive recorder may be used. [Explanation of symbols]

[0080] 1. Aerial work platform 2. Body 7 Driver's Cabin 20 Swivel table 23. Dinghy cylinder 24 Swing motor 30 Boom 31 Telescopic cylinder 34 Swing motor 40 Workbench 60 Image Processing Unit 61 Position comparison section 62 Image Recognition Unit 63 Position calculation section 64 Regulatory Control Section 65 Operation control section 66 Regulatory domain setting unit 67 Area adjustment section 80 Display device 71 Front Camera 72 Rear Camera 73 Left side camera 74 Right side camera 100 Controller 120 Boom rotation angle detector 121 Boom hoisting angle detector 122 Boom extension detector 123 Worktable Swing Angle Detector

Claims

1. An operation restriction device for an aerial work vehicle including a travelable vehicle body, a boom provided on the vehicle body so as to be capable of rotating, raising and lowering, and extending, and a work platform provided at a tip of the boom, an imaging device provided on the vehicle body and configured to acquire image information of the surroundings of the vehicle body; an image recognition unit that recognizes area setting objects installed around the vehicle body from the image information acquired by the imaging device; and a restriction area setting unit that sets a work restriction area for the vehicle body to restrict operation of the boom by the aerial work vehicle based on the area setting object recognized by the image recognition unit.

2. The operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle as described in claim 1, characterized in that the restriction area setting unit sets a vertical plane obtained by extending vertically upward from the area setting object recognized by the image recognition unit as the work restriction area.

3. an operation amount detection unit that detects a rotation angle, a hoisting angle, and an extension amount of the boom; a position calculation unit that calculates a position of the work platform relative to the vehicle body based on information detected by the operation amount detection unit; a position comparison unit that compares a positional relationship between the position of the work platform calculated by the position calculation unit and the work restriction area set by the restriction area setting unit; The operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle as described in claim 1, further comprising a restriction control unit that restricts operation of the boom such that the work platform enters the work restriction area based on the comparison result of the positional relationship by the position comparison unit.

4. The work platform is provided at the tip of the boom so as to be horizontally rotatable, The operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle as described in claim 3, characterized in that the restriction control unit restricts the operation of the boom and the horizontal rotation operation of the work platform so that the work platform enters the work restriction area based on the comparison result of the positional relationship by the position comparison unit.

5. The restriction control unit is An operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle as described in claim 4, characterized in that, based on the comparison result of the positional relationship by the position comparison unit, operation of the boom and horizontal rotation of the work platform are restricted in such a way that the work platform enters the work restriction area, and operation of the boom and horizontal rotation of the work platform in a direction away from the work restriction area are permitted.

6. a display device having a display screen for displaying a planar image of the aerial work vehicle based on the image information acquired by the imaging device; An operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle as described in claim 1, characterized in that the display screen displays the shapes of the vehicle body, the boom and the work platform of the high-altitude work vehicle in a planar view, as well as the area setting object and the work restriction area, thereby displaying the positional relationship between the work platform and the work restriction area.

7. 7. The operation restriction device for a high-altitude work vehicle according to claim 6, wherein the display device is a touch panel type, and the work restriction area can be set by directly touching the display screen.

8. 8. The operation restriction device for a vehicle for working at height according to claim 6 or 7, wherein the display device is provided on the work platform.

Images