Accident prevention system

Abstract

To provide an accident prevention system that minimizes occurrence of an accident even when the posture of an operator is disturbed.SOLUTION: An accident prevention system S is a system used in a forklift and comprises a posture specifying unit 303, a speed setting unit 301, and a change command unit 310. The posture specifying unit 303 specifies whether or not the posture of an operator is disturbed. The speed setting unit 301 sets, on the basis of the posture of the operator, a first operation speed that is an operation speed of the forklift at a normal time, or a second operation speed that is an operation speed when the posture of the operator is disturbed and is slower than the first operation speed. The change command unit 310 sets the operation speed of the forklift to the second operation speed when the posture of the operator is disturbed.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an accident prevention system that suppresses the occurrence of forklift accidents. [Background technology]

[0002] The operations of a forklift include a traveling operation, a lifting operation for raising and lowering the forks, a tilting operation for changing the angle of the forks, and a side movement operation for moving the forks left and right.

[0003] In order to prevent accidents during the travel of a forklift, for example, the invention disclosed in Patent Document 1 prevents contact accidents by stopping or slowing down the travel of the forklift when an obstacle is detected in a specified area.

[0004] Furthermore, in order to prevent accidents during the lifting and lowering operation of a forklift, the device disclosed in Patent Document 2 uses a sensor to detect when the driver is away from the seat, and if a lever operation signal is received while in this state, it determines that there is a danger and stops the lifting and lowering operation.

[0005] For example, drivers operate reach forklifts while standing upright, but after long periods of driving, they become tired and may no longer maintain proper posture. As a result, drivers may operate the pedals and levers slowly and perform sudden accelerations and sudden braking that would not be performed during normal driving. Furthermore, when a driver's field of vision is narrowed by the load on the forks, they may lean their body left and right or forward and backward to ensure visibility. This can cause the driver's field of vision to tilt left and right or forward and backward, which can result in an accident due to the driver's operational error. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] JP 2015-170284 A [Patent Document 2] Japanese Utility Model Application Publication No. 04-100199 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to provide an accident prevention system that can prevent accidents from occurring even when the driver's posture is disturbed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve the above problems, the accident prevention system according to the present invention is a system used in a forklift, comprising: a posture identification unit that identifies whether the driver's posture is disturbed; a speed setting unit that sets the forklift to a first operating speed, which is a normal operating speed, or a second operating speed, which is an operating speed when the driver's posture is unstable, and is slower than the first operating speed, according to the driver's posture; and a change command unit that sets the operating speed of the forklift to a second operating speed when the driver's posture is disturbed.

[0009] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: The operating speed includes the travel speed and / or the fork lifting and lowering speed.

[0010] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: The driving speed includes a maximum speed and / or an acceleration rate.

[0011] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: A foot camera is further provided to capture an image of the driver's right foot, left foot, or both feet and generate a foot image. The posture specifying unit specifies whether both feet, the right foot, the left foot, or both feet of the driver are in predetermined positions based on the foot image, and determines whether the driver's posture is disturbed.

[0012] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: Further provided is a head camera that photographs the driver's head and generates a head image, The posture specifying unit specifies whether the driver's head is facing a predetermined direction based on the head image, and specifies whether the driver's posture is disturbed.

[0013] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: A hand camera is further provided to capture an image of the driver's right hand, left hand, or both hands to generate a hand image; The posture specifying unit specifies whether the driver's hands are in a predetermined position based on the hand image, and specifies whether the driver's posture is irregular.

[0014] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: a body camera that captures at least a portion of the driver's body to generate a body image; a skeletal information acquisition unit that acquires skeletal information of the driver from the body image, The posture identifying unit identifies whether the driver's posture is disturbed based on the skeletal information acquired by the skeletal information acquiring unit.

[0015] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: The system further includes a trained model that pre-learns a correlation between an image of a driver and a likelihood score of the driver performing an undesirable operation, and outputs a likelihood score when an image of the driver is input; The posture identification unit identifies whether the driver's posture is irregular based on the output possibility score.

[0016] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: The posture specifying unit further specifies whether the posture of the driver is disturbed or not based on whether the forklift is moving forward, backward or handling cargo when specifying whether the posture of the driver is disturbed or not.

[0017] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: The posture identifying unit further identifies that the driver's posture is unstable only when the driver's posture is substantially unstable and continues for a predetermined period of time.

[0018] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: The change command unit sets the operating speed of the forklift to the second operating speed only when the driver's posture disturbance substantially continues for a predetermined time after the posture determination unit identifies the driver's posture disturbance.

[0019] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: a weight changing unit that changes the weight of a pedal and / or a lever of the forklift; When the driver's posture is disturbed, the change command unit further controls the weight change unit to change the weight of the pedal and / or lever.

[0020] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: a weight changing unit that changes the weight of a pedal and / or a lever of the forklift; When the driver's posture is unstable, the change command unit first controls the weight change unit to change the weight of the pedal and / or lever, and sets the operating speed of the forklift to the second operating speed only when the driver's posture is substantially unstable for a predetermined period of time.

[0021] The accident prevention system preferably comprises: a weight changing unit that changes the weight of a pedal and / or a lever of the forklift; When the driver's posture is unstable, the change command unit first sets the operating speed of the forklift to a second operating speed, and controls the weight change unit to change the weight of the pedal and / or lever only when the driver's posture is unstable for a predetermined period of time.

[0022] In order to solve the above problem, a forklift according to the present invention includes any one of the above-described accident prevention systems.

[0023] In order to solve the above problems, the accident prevention program according to the present invention comprises: A program used in an accident prevention system including a speed setting unit that sets a first operating speed, which is a normal operating speed of a forklift, or a second operating speed, which is an operating speed for when a driver's posture is unstable and is slower than the first operating speed, and a computer, On the computer, Identifying whether the driver's posture is disturbed; When the driver's posture is disturbed, the operating speed of the forklift is set to a second operating speed. [Effects of the Invention]

[0024] The accident prevention system according to the present invention can prevent accidents from occurring even when the driver's posture is disturbed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0025] [Figure 1] 1 is a side view of a reach forklift equipped with an accident prevention system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 is a top view of a reach forklift, showing the driver's seat and proper driver position. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a side view of a counter type forklift equipped with an accident prevention system. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an accident prevention system. [Figure 5] FIG. 1 is a side view of a reach forklift driver leaning forward improperly. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a side view showing a counter-load forklift driver leaning inappropriately to the right. [Figure 7] This is a perspective view from the rear of a counter-load forklift, where A shows the operator properly gripping the handle, and B shows the operator improperly gripping the handle. [Figure 8] FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing the operation of the accident prevention system. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of an accident prevention system according to a modified example. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of an accident prevention system according to another modified example. [Figure 11] FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the operation of an accident prevention system according to yet another modified example. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0026] An embodiment of the accident prevention system according to the present invention will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. The accident prevention system S according to this embodiment is configured to change the travel speed and the fork lifting / lowering speed (hereinafter simply referred to as "lifting / lowering speed"), but this is merely an example, and the accident prevention system S according to the present invention may be configured to change either the travel speed or the lifting / lowering speed. Furthermore, the accident prevention system S according to this embodiment is configured to change the weight of both the pedal and the lever, but this is also merely an example, and the accident prevention system S according to the present invention may be configured to change the weight of either the pedal or the lever.

[0027] <Forklift configuration> FIG. 1 is a side view of a reach forklift 1a equipped with an accident prevention system S, and FIG. 2 is a plan view of the forklift 1a. FIG. 3 is a side view of a countertop forklift 1b equipped with the accident prevention system S. FIG. 4 is a block diagram of the accident prevention system S. First, the configurations of the forklifts 1a and 1b will be described.

[0028] 1 to 4, forklifts 1a and 1b each include a plurality of wheels 10, a vehicle body 11, a driver's seat 12, a head guard 13, pedals 14, a lever 15, left and right masts 16, left and right forks 17, a lifting device 18, a traveling device 19, a camera 20, a speaker 21, a weight changing unit 22, and a control unit 30. The system including the camera 20, the speaker 21, the weight changing unit 22, and the control unit 30 is the accident prevention system S of this embodiment.

[0029] A plurality of wheels 10 are mounted on a vehicle body 11. A driver's seat 12 is mounted on the vehicle body 11, and a head guard 13 is supported by a support pillar 13a and mounted above the driver's seat 12. A grip 13b is provided on the support pillar 13a on the rear right side of the forklift 1b, which the driver H holds with his right hand when reversing.

[0030] The pedals 14 of the forklift 1a include a brake pedal and a presence pedal, while the pedals 14 of the forklift 1b include an accelerator pedal, a brake pedal, and an inching pedal. The brake pedal of the forklift 1a is a so-called deadman's brake that is released when depressed. Each pedal is provided below the driver's seat 12. The "pedal" in the present invention may include at least one of the above pedals.

[0031] The lever 15 of the forklift 1b includes a lift lever and a tilt lever, and the forklift 1a also includes an accelerator lever. Each lever is provided in front of the driver's seat 12. The lever 15 of the forklifts 1a and 1b may include a slide lever for sliding the fork 17 left and right. The "lever" in the present invention may include at least one of the above levers.

[0032] The lifting device 18 raises and lowers the left and right forks 17 along the left and right masts 16 in response to the operation of the lift lever by the operator H. In this embodiment, the lifting device 18 is configured to be hydraulic, but this is merely an example and is not limiting. The lifting device 18 is configured to be able to adjust the lifting speed by adjusting the opening of a valve provided in a hydraulic oil path or by adjusting the rotation speed of a motor that sends hydraulic oil.

[0033] The lifting device 18 also has a lifting speed detection unit that detects the lifting speed. The lifting device 18 raises and lowers the fork 17 while detecting the lifting speed, within a range that does not exceed a maximum lifting speed set in a speed setting unit 301, which will be described later. The lifting speed detection unit may be configured to be able to calculate the lifting speed by detecting, for example, the number of rotations of the motor of the lifting device 18, and the method and configuration for detecting the lifting speed are not particularly limited.

[0034] The traveling device 19 rotates the drive wheels of the plurality of wheels 10 in response to the driver H's operation of the accelerator lever or accelerator pedal. Both of the forklifts 1a and 1b in this embodiment are battery-powered forklifts, and the traveling device 19 has a traveling motor. The traveling device 19 is configured to be able to adjust the traveling speed by adjusting the rotation speed of the traveling motor. Note that the forklift of the present invention is not limited to a battery-powered forklift, and may be an engine-powered forklift or a hybrid forklift that uses a motor and an engine as a drive source.

[0035] Furthermore, the traveling device 19 has a traveling speed detection unit that detects the traveling speed and the traveling acceleration. The traveling device 19 detects the traveling speed using the traveling speed detection unit, and rotates the drive wheels within a range that does not exceed the maximum speed and maximum acceleration set in a speed setting unit 301, which will be described later. The traveling speed detection unit may be configured to be able to calculate the traveling speed and acceleration by detecting the number of rotations of the drive wheels, for example, and the method and configuration for detecting the traveling speed and acceleration are not particularly limited.

[0036] The camera 20 is fixed to the head guard 13 and captures the head, hands, feet, and entire body of the driver H to generate head images, hand images, foot images, and body images. The camera 20 corresponds to the "foot camera," "head camera," "hand camera," and "body camera" of the present invention. The positions of the camera 20 are merely examples and are not limiting.

[0037] Camera 20 may be configured with multiple cameras. When camera 20 is configured with multiple cameras, it may be configured with a head camera that captures an image of the head of driver H to generate a head image, a hand camera that captures an image of the right hand, left hand, or both hands of driver H to generate a hand image, a foot camera that captures an image of the right foot, left foot, or both feet of driver H to generate a foot image, and a body camera that captures an image of at least a part of the body of driver H to generate a body image. In this case, too, the position of each camera is not limited to head guard 13, and is provided in a position suitable for generating each image. Furthermore, each camera may also have the function of another camera.

[0038] The speaker 21 emits a warning voice to notify the driver H of a weight change, which will be described later. For example, if the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 is to be increased, the warning voice may be something like "The weight of the pedal and the lever will be increased," or if the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 is to be decreased, the warning voice may be something like "The weight of the pedal and the lever will be decreased."

[0039] Furthermore, the speaker 21 emits a warning sound to notify the driver H of a warning of a change in the operating speed V, which will be described later. The warning sound may be, for example, "The traveling speed will be limited" when the traveling speed is changed to a second speed, which will be described later, or "The traveling speed will be limited" when the lifting speed is changed to a second speed, which will be described later.

[0040] The weight change unit 22 changes the weight of the lever 15 and the pedal 14 when operated based on commands from a change command unit 310 (see FIG. 4), which will be described later. The weight change unit 22 has a pedal weight change unit that changes the weight of the pedal 14, and a lever weight change unit that changes the weight of the lever 15. Note that if the weight change unit 22 is configured to change the weight of either the pedal 14 or the lever 15, it will have either a pedal weight change unit or a lever weight change unit.

[0041] The pedal weight change unit changes the weight of the pedal 14 when the driver H presses it down, based on a command from the change command unit 310. The pedal weight change unit is configured, for example, by a device that can adjust the weight using hydraulic pressure, or a device that can adjust the weight using a spring.

[0042] Furthermore, for example, the pedal weight change unit may be an assist device that assists the depression force of the pedal 14. In this case, the pedal weight change unit may adjust the assist force based on a command from the change command unit 310, and may substantially change the weight of the pedal 14 when the driver H depresses it.

[0043] Alternatively, the pedal weight change unit may be configured to change the magnitude of the power or braking force of each device responsive to the amount of depression force on the pedal 14, for example, based on a command from the change command unit 310. In this way, the pedal weight change unit effectively changes the weight of the pedal 14.

[0044] The lever weight changing section is configured by, for example, a device that can adjust the weight of the lever 15 by hydraulic pressure, or a device that can adjust the weight of the lever 15 by a spring.

[0045] Furthermore, for example, the lever weight change unit may be an assist device that assists in the operation according to the weight of the lever 15. In this case, the lever weight change unit may adjust the assist force based on a command from the change command unit 310, and may substantially change the weight of the lever 15 when the driver H operates it.

[0046] Alternatively, the lever weight change unit may be configured to change the magnitude of the power of each device responsive to the amount of operation of the lever 15, for example, based on a command from the change command unit 310. In this way, the lever weight change unit effectively changes the weight of the lever 15.

[0047] The control unit 30 is configured by a computer arranged inside the vehicle body 11, and has an arithmetic unit, a storage device, and a memory. The storage device stores an accident prevention program that causes the computer to function as a speed setting unit 301, a skeleton information acquisition unit 302, a posture identification unit 303, a change notice unit 308, and a change command unit 310, which will be described later.

[0048] <Functional configuration> Next, a description will be given of the functional configuration of the accident prevention system S. As shown in Fig. 4, the control unit 30 has a speed setting unit 301, a skeletal information acquisition unit 302, a posture identification unit 303, a change notice unit 308, and a change command unit 310.

[0049] The speed setting unit 301 stores a first operating speed V1, which is the operating speed V of the forklift 1a (1b) under normal conditions, and a second operating speed V2, which is the operating speed V for when the posture of the driver H is unstable. The speed setting unit 301 is set to the first operating speed V1 or the second operating speed V2 by a change command unit 310, which will be described later, depending on the posture of the driver H.

[0050] The operating speed V includes both or either one of a running speed and an elevation speed. In this embodiment, the operating speed V includes both a running speed and an elevation speed. The running speed also includes both or either one of a maximum speed and a maximum acceleration. In this embodiment, the running speed includes both a maximum speed and a maximum acceleration.

[0051] The maximum traveling speed [km / h] at the second operating speed V2 is set to be slower than the maximum traveling speed at the first operating speed V1. For example, the maximum speed of the forklift 1a (1b) at the first operating speed V1 may be set to 10 km / h, and the maximum speed of the forklift 1a (1b) at the second operating speed V2 may be set to 8 km / h. These maximum speeds may be set to different values ​​indoors and outdoors. Furthermore, these maximum speeds may be set to different values ​​when traveling forward and when traveling backward.

[0052] Maximum acceleration of running at second operating speed V2 [m / s 2 ] is set lower than the maximum acceleration of travel at the first operating speed V1. These accelerations may be set to different values ​​indoors and outdoors. Also, these accelerations may be set to different values ​​when traveling straight and when turning.

[0053] The maximum ascending speed [mm / Sec] and maximum descending speed [mm / Sec] of the fork 17 at the second operating speed V2 are set lower than the maximum ascending speed and maximum descending speed of the fork 17 at the first operating speed V1.

[0054] The skeletal information acquisition unit 302 has a first trained model. The first trained model has undergone pre-supervised learning using a deep neural network with a large amount of body images as training data. As a result, when a body image is input, the first trained model outputs skeletal information of the driver H.

[0055] The skeletal information acquisition unit 302 inputs the body image into the first learned model and outputs skeletal information of the driver H. In this way, the skeletal information acquisition unit 302 acquires skeletal information of the driver H.

[0056] The posture identification unit 303 identifies the posture of the driver H based on at least one of the acquired skeletal information, body image, head image, foot image, and hand image. Then, the posture identification unit 303 identifies the driving situation of the forklift 1a (1b), and determines whether the posture of the driver H is disturbed based on the driving situation and the posture of the driver H. The operation of the posture identification unit 303 will be described in detail below.

[0057] The posture identification unit 303 identifies whether the forklift 1a (1b) is stopped or is moving forward, backward, or handling cargo.

[0058] The posture identification unit 303 identifies the position of the head of the driver H based on the head image, and determines whether the head of the driver H is in a predetermined position according to the forward movement, reverse movement or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b).

[0059] Alternatively, the posture identification unit 303 has a second trained model. This second trained model is trained in advance using training data in which a head image and the movement of the forklift 1a (1b) are input data, and a score indicating whether the head of the driver H is in a predetermined position corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b) (hereinafter referred to as the "head position score") is output data. When the head image and the movement of the forklift 1a (1b) are input, the second trained model outputs the head position score. The training method for the second trained model is not particularly limited and may be a deep neural network. The posture identification unit 303 inputs a head image to the second trained model, causes it to output a head position score, and determines whether the head of the driver H is in a predetermined position corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b) based on the head position score.

[0060] As a result, the posture identifying unit 303 identifies that the head position is not in a predetermined position when the driver H is leaning his / her body inappropriately as shown in, for example, FIGS.

[0061] Furthermore, the posture identification unit 303 identifies the position of the driver H's right hand, left hand, or both hands based on the hand image, and determines whether the driver H's right hand, left hand, or both hands are in a predetermined position corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b).

[0062] Alternatively, the posture identification unit 303 has a third trained model. This third trained model is trained in advance using training data in which a hand image and the movement of the forklift 1a (1b) are input data and a score indicating whether the right hand, left hand, or both hands of the driver H are in a predetermined position corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b) (hereinafter referred to as a "hand position score") is output data. When the hand image and the movement of the forklift 1a (1b) are input, the third trained model outputs the hand position score. The training method for the third trained model is not particularly limited and may be a deep neural network. The posture identification unit 303 inputs a hand image to the third trained model, causes it to output a hand position score, and determines whether the right hand, left hand, or both hands of the driver H are in a predetermined position corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b) based on the hand position score.

[0063] 7A and 7B are perspective views of the countertop forklift 1b from the rear, with Fig. 7A showing the driver H properly gripping the grip 13b and Fig. 7B showing the driver H improperly gripping the grip 13b. The posture identification unit 303 determines, through the above operation, that the driver H's hands are not in the proper position when the driver H is not gripping the grip 13b while reversing, for example, as shown in Fig. 7B. Additionally, the posture identification unit 303 determines that the driver H's right hand should be above the knee when the lever 15 is not being operated, as shown in Fig. 3, and that the driver H's hands are not in the proper position when the right hand is resting on the lever 15 when the lever 15 is not being operated.

[0064] Furthermore, the posture identification unit 303 identifies the position of the right foot, left foot, or both feet of the driver H based on the foot image, and determines whether the right foot, left foot, or both feet of the driver H are in a predetermined position according to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b).

[0065] Alternatively, the posture identification unit 303 has a fourth trained model. This fourth trained model is trained in advance using training data in which a foot image and the movement of the forklift 1a (1b) are input data and a score indicating whether the right foot, left foot, or both feet of the driver H are in a predetermined position corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b) (hereinafter referred to as a "foot position score") is output data. When the foot image and the movement of the forklift 1a (1b) are input, the fourth trained model outputs the foot position score. The training method for the fourth trained model is not particularly limited and may be a deep neural network. The posture identification unit 303 inputs a foot image to the fourth trained model, causes it to output a foot position score, and determines whether the right foot, left foot, or both feet of the driver H are in a predetermined position corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b) based on the foot position score.

[0066] As a result, the posture identification unit 303 identifies that the feet of the driver H are not in the correct position, for example, when the feet of the driver H are sticking out from the driver's seat 12, the angle of the feet is inappropriate in the reach forklift 1a, or the feet are placed inappropriately on the pedals 14 in the counter-mounted forklift 1b.

[0067] Furthermore, the posture identification unit 303 identifies the posture of the driver H based on the acquired skeletal information, and determines whether this posture is a predetermined posture corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b).

[0068] Alternatively, the posture identification unit 303 has a fifth trained model. This fifth trained model is trained in advance using training data in which skeletal information and the movement of the forklift 1a (1b) are input data, and a score indicating that the skeletal information of the driver H is predetermined skeletal information corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b) (hereinafter referred to as the "skeletal score") is output data. When the skeletal information and the movement of the forklift 1a (1b) are input, the fifth trained model outputs the skeletal score. The training method for the fifth trained model may be a deep neural network, and is not particularly limited. The skeletal information used in the fifth trained model includes one or more of the entire body, upper body, entire arms, forearms and hands, lower body, and entire lower legs. The posture identification unit 303 inputs skeletal information to the fifth trained model, causes it to output a skeletal score, and determines whether the skeletal information of the driver H is predetermined skeletal information corresponding to the forward movement, reverse movement, or loading / unloading movement of the forklift 1a (1b) based on the skeletal score.

[0069] As a result, in the reach forklift 1a, the posture identification unit 303 identifies that the posture of the driver H is not the predetermined posture if the driver H's body is facing left, when it is appropriate for the driver H's body to face diagonally left as shown in Figures 1 and 2. The posture identification unit 303 also identifies that the posture of the driver H is not the predetermined posture if the driver H's posture is tilted as shown in Figures 5 and 6, or if the driver H is reversing without gripping the grip 13b as shown in Figure 7B.

[0070] As explained above, the posture identification unit 303 identifies that the driver H's posture is disturbed if the driver H's head position, hand position, or foot position is not in the specified position, or if the driver H's posture is not the specified posture.

[0071] When the posture identification unit 303 identifies that the posture of the driver H is unstable, the change notification unit 308 notifies the driver H by voice via the speaker 21 that the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 will be changed. Furthermore, before the movement speed V of the forklift 1a (1b) is changed to the second movement speed V2 by the change command unit 310 (described later), the change notification unit 308 notifies the driver H by voice via the speaker 21 that the movement speed V will be changed from the first movement speed V1 to the second movement speed V2. Specifically, when the change notification unit 308 identifies that the posture of the driver H is unstable even after a predetermined time has elapsed since the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 was increased, the change notification unit 308 notifies the driver H by voice via the speaker 21 that the movement speed V will be changed to the second movement speed V2. This predetermined time may be, for example, 5 to 30 minutes.

[0072] When the posture specification unit 303 identifies that the posture of the driver H is disturbed and the change notice unit 308 gives notice of a weight change, the change command unit 310 controls the weight change unit 22 to increase the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15.

[0073] As a result, when the driver H's posture is disturbed, the change command unit 310 increases the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15, thereby suppressing operations such as sudden starts and sudden braking. In particular, when an obstacle in front of the driver H obstructs the driver H's view, causing the driver H's posture to become disturbed as shown in Figures 5 and 6, the weight of the lever 15 and the pedal 14 can be increased to cause the driver H to carefully perform loading and accelerating operations. Furthermore, the accident prevention system S can give the driver H an opportunity to correct his or her posture by making the change warning unit 308 aware of the disturbance in his or her posture.

[0074] Furthermore, if the change command unit 310 determines that the driver H's posture is still disturbed after a predetermined time has elapsed after increasing the weight of the pedal 14 and lever 15, and the change notification unit 308 notifies the driver of a change to the second movement speed V2, the change command unit 310 changes the movement speed V in the speed setting unit 301 from the first movement speed V1 to the second movement speed V2.

[0075] As a result, if the posture of the driver H does not improve for a predetermined period of time, the accident prevention system S slows down the operating speed V of the forklift 1a (1b), thereby making it possible to prevent the occurrence of an accident.

[0076] <Accident prevention system flow> Next, the operation of the accident prevention system S will be explained again with reference to the flow chart of FIG.

[0077] (1) First, the accident prevention system S takes an image of the driver H using the camera 20 and generates a head image, a hand image, a foot image, and a body image (see S (step) 1 in FIG. 8).

[0078] (2) Next, the accident prevention system S acquires skeletal information based on the generated body image by the skeletal information acquisition unit 302 (see S2 in FIG. 8).

[0079] (3) Next, the accident prevention system S identifies the driving situation, and the posture identification unit 303 identifies the head position, hand position, foot position, and posture of the driver H based on each image, and determines whether these positions and postures are the specified positions and postures according to the driving situation (see S3 in Figure 8).

[0080] (4) Next, when the accident prevention system S determines that the driver H's posture is disturbed (Yes in S4 of Figure 8) and the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 has not yet been increased (Yes in S5 of Figure 8), the change notification unit 308 notifies the driver of a change in the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 (see S6 of Figure 8).

[0081] (5) Next, the accident prevention system S increases the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 (see S7 in FIG. 8). As a result, when the driver H's posture is unstable, the accident prevention system S can suppress sudden acceleration and sudden braking, and can also encourage careful operation.

[0082] (6) Next, if the driver H's posture remains unstable even after the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 is increased (Yes in S4 of FIG. 8), and a predetermined time has elapsed (Yes in S8 of FIG. 8) since the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 was increased (No in S5 of FIG. 8), the accident prevention system S causes the change notification unit 308 to notify the driver of a change in the operating speed V (see S9 of FIG. 8).

[0083] (7) Next, the accident prevention system S changes the operating speed V from the first operating speed V1 to the second operating speed V2 (see S10 in FIG. 8). This slows down the traveling speed and lifting speed of the forklift 1a (1b), allowing the accident prevention system S to prevent the occurrence of an accident.

[0084] The timing for returning the weights of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 to their original weights may be, for example, when the posture identification unit 303 determines that the posture of the driver H is not disturbed, or when a predetermined time has elapsed since the weights of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 were changed. When returning the weights of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 to their original weights, the change notification unit 308 may notify the driver that the weights of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 will be changed to their original weights.

[0085] Furthermore, the timing for returning the movement speed V from the second movement speed V2 to the first movement speed V1 may be, for example, when the posture identification unit 303 determines that the posture of the driver H is not disturbed, or when a predetermined time has elapsed since the movement speed V was set to the second movement speed V2.

[0086] Although one embodiment of the accident prevention system according to the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. The accident prevention system according to the present invention may be implemented, for example, by combining the above embodiments, or by implementing each of the following modifications individually or in combination.

[0087] <Modification> Any of the components of the control unit 30 may be configured, for example, by a server computer provided on the cloud. In this case, the accident prevention system S changes the weight of the pedal 14 and / or the lever 15 by communicating with this server computer. Also, in this case, the accident prevention system S changes the operating speed V by communicating with this server computer.

[0088] The forklift 1a (1b) may be provided with a monitor, and the change notification unit 308 may use this monitor to notify the user of a change in weight and / or a change in operating speed V.

[0089] The posture identification unit 303 may identify that the driver H's posture is unstable only when the driver H's posture is substantially continued for a predetermined period of time. This allows the accident prevention system S to prevent frequent changes to the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 when the driver H looks around or checks the load status for a short period of time, such as three seconds. The phrase "substantially continued" means that, for example, if the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 is changed when the driver H's posture is unstable for three consecutive minutes, even if the driver H's posture temporarily improves (for example, for 10 seconds), that time will not be counted.

[0090] The posture identification unit 303 has, for example, a sixth learning model, which pre-learns the correlation between an image of the driver H (an image including at least one of a head image, a hand image, a foot image, and a body image) and a likelihood score that the driver H will perform an undesirable operation, and outputs a likelihood score when an image of the driver H (an image including at least one of a head image, a hand image, a foot image, and a body image) is input. In this case, the posture identification unit 303 identifies whether the posture of the driver H is disturbed based on the output likelihood score. Note that the learning method of the sixth learned model is not particularly limited and may be a deep neural network.

[0091] When the driver H's posture is unstable, the accident prevention system S may change the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 and set the movement speed V to a second movement speed V2 to slow down the movement speed V. In this case, as shown in the flow diagram of Fig. 9, for example, when the driver H's posture is unstable (Yes in S4 of Fig. 9), the accident prevention system S notifies the change in weight and movement speed V via the change notification unit 308 (see S5 of Fig. 9), and changes the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 via the change command unit 310 and sets the movement speed V to the second movement speed V2 (see S6 of Fig. 9).

[0092] The accident prevention system S does not necessarily have to include the weight change unit 22. In this case, as shown in the flow diagram of Fig. 10, for example, when the driver H's posture is disturbed (Yes in S4 in Fig. 10), the accident prevention system S does not change the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15, but instead notifies the change notice unit 308 of a change in the movement speed V (see S5 in Fig. 10) and sets the movement speed V to the second movement speed V2 (see S6 in Fig. 10).

[0093] When the driver H's posture is unstable, the accident prevention system S may first set the forklift's operating speed V to a second operating speed V2, and then control the weight change unit 22 to change the weight of the pedal 14 and / or the lever 15 only if the driver H's posture is substantially unstable for a predetermined period of time. In this case, as shown in the flow diagram of FIG. 11, for example, the accident prevention system S (1) first generates each image (see S1 in FIG. 11), (2) then acquires skeletal information (see S2 in FIG. 11), and (3) then identifies the driving situation and identifies the head position, hand position, foot position, and posture of the driver H based on each image, and determines whether these positions and postures are predetermined positions and postures according to the driving situation (see S3 in FIG. 11). Then, when the accident prevention system S determines that the driver H's posture is unstable (Yes in S4 of FIG. 11) and the operating speed V has not yet been changed (Yes in S5 of FIG. 11), it notifies the driver H of a change in the operating speed V (see S6 of FIG. 11) and changes the operating speed V of the forklift from the first operating speed V1 to the second operating speed V2 (see S7 of FIG. 11). Furthermore, if the driver H's posture remains unstable after the operating speed V has been changed to the second operating speed V2 (Yes in S4 of FIG. 11), and a predetermined time has passed since the operating speed V was set to the second operating speed V2 (No in S5 of FIG. 11) (Yes in S8 of FIG. 11), the accident prevention system S notifies the driver H of a change in weight (see S9 of FIG. 11) and changes the weight of the pedal 14 and the lever 15 to be heavier (see S10 of FIG. 11). [Explanation of symbols]

[0094] S Accident prevention system H Driver 1a Reach forklift 1b Countertop forklift 10 wheels 11 Body 12 Driver's seat 13 Head guard 13a Post 13b Grip 14 pedals 15 Lever 16 Mast 17. Fork 18 Lifting device 19 Running gear 20 Camera 21 Speaker 22 Weight change section 30 Control Unit 301 Speed ​​setting section 302 Skeleton Information Acquisition Unit 303 Posture identification part 308 Change Notice Section 310 Change Order Department

Claims

1. 1. A system for use in a forklift, comprising: a posture identification unit that identifies whether the driver's posture is disturbed; a speed setting unit that sets, in accordance with the driver's posture, a first operating speed, which is the operating speed of the forklift in a normal state, or a second operating speed, which is the operating speed when the driver's posture is unstable and is slower than the first operating speed; and a change command unit that sets the movement speed to the second movement speed when the driver's posture is disturbed.

2. 2. The accident prevention system of claim 1, wherein the operating speed includes a travel speed and / or a fork lifting / lowering speed.

3. 3. The accident prevention system according to claim 2, wherein the driving speed includes a maximum speed and / or an acceleration.

4. a foot camera for capturing an image of the driver's right foot, left foot, or both feet to generate a foot image; 2. The accident prevention system according to claim 1, wherein the posture identification unit identifies whether the driver's posture is disturbed by identifying whether both feet, the right foot, the left foot, or both feet of the driver are in a predetermined position based on the foot image.

5. A head camera is further provided to capture an image of the driver's head and generate a head image. The accident prevention system according to claim 1 , wherein the posture identification unit identifies whether the driver's head is facing a predetermined direction based on the head image, and thereby identifies whether the driver's posture is irregular.

6. A hand camera is further provided to capture an image of the driver's right hand, left hand, or both hands to generate a hand image.

2. The accident prevention system according to claim 1, wherein the posture identification unit identifies whether the driver's hands are in a predetermined position based on the hand image, and thereby identifies whether the driver's posture is irregular.

7. a body camera that captures an image of at least a portion of the driver's body to generate a body image; a skeletal information acquisition unit that acquires skeletal information of the driver from the body image, The accident prevention system according to claim 1 , wherein the posture identification unit identifies whether the driver's posture is irregular based on the skeletal information acquired by the skeletal information acquisition unit.

8. The system further includes a trained model that learns in advance a correlation between an image of the driver and a likelihood score of the driver performing an undesirable operation, and outputs the likelihood score when an image of the driver is input. The accident prevention system according to claim 1 , wherein the posture identification unit identifies whether the driver's posture is irregular based on the output possibility score.

9. The accident prevention system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the posture identification unit further identifies whether the driver's posture is disturbed based on whether the forklift is moving forward, backward, or loading / unloading when identifying whether the driver's posture is disturbed.

10. The accident prevention system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the posture identification unit further identifies the driver's posture as being disturbed only when the driver's posture is substantially disturbed for a predetermined period of time.

11. The accident prevention system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the change command unit sets the operating speed to the second operating speed only when the driver's posture disturbance substantially continues for a predetermined time after the posture identification unit identifies the driver's posture disturbance.

12. The forklift further includes a weight changing unit that changes the weight of a pedal and / or a lever of the forklift, The accident prevention system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the change command unit further controls the weight change unit to change the weight of the pedal and / or the lever when the driver's posture is disturbed.

13. The forklift further includes a weight changing unit that changes the weight of a pedal and / or a lever of the forklift, The change command unit When the driver's posture is disturbed, first, the weight change unit is controlled to change the weight of the pedal and / or the lever; 9. The accident prevention system according to claim 1, wherein the operating speed is set to the second operating speed only when the driver's posture is substantially disturbed for a predetermined period of time.

14. The forklift further includes a weight changing unit that changes the weight of a pedal and / or a lever of the forklift, The change command unit When the driver's posture is disturbed, first, the movement speed is set to the second movement speed; The accident prevention system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, wherein the weight change unit is controlled to change the weight of the pedal and / or the lever only when the driver's posture is substantially disturbed for a predetermined period of time.

15. A forklift truck equipped with the accident prevention system according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

16. A program used in an accident prevention system including a speed setting unit that sets a first operating speed, which is a normal operating speed of a forklift, or a second operating speed, which is the operating speed when a driver's posture is unstable and is slower than the first operating speed, and a computer, On the computer, Identifying whether the driver's posture is disturbed; and setting the movement speed to the second movement speed when the driver's posture is disturbed.

Images