Transport control device, transport control method, and transport control program

Abstract

To provide a transfer control device and related others that can effectively reduce slippage between a guide roller and a transferable object.SOLUTION: A transfer control device 1 includes: a roller speed detection unit 11 that detects a rotation speed of a guide roller 23 that guides a transferable object 3; a transfer speed detection unit 12 that detects a transfer speed of the transferable object 3 guided by the guide roller 23; and a roller speed adjustment unit 13 that adjusts the rotation speed of the guide roller 23, so that a difference between the rotational speed of the guide roller 23 detected by the roller speed detection unit 11 and the transfer speed of the transferable object 3 detected by the transfer speed detection unit 12 is small. The roller speed detection unit 11 and the transfer speed detection unit 12 are constituted with a camera 10 capable of photographing the guide roller 23 and the transferable object 3 at the same time.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a transport control device and the like. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a coating device that applies a coating treatment to a substrate. Guide rollers are provided upstream and downstream of the coating treatment section to transport the substrate before and after coating in a transport direction from upstream to downstream while pressing the substrate against the coating treatment section. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2012-217947 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When such a guide roller is driven to rotate by a motor or the like, a difference can occur between its rotation speed and the conveyance speed of the substrate being guided by the guide roller. In this case, the difference in speed between the guide roller and the substrate can cause "slippage," which can result in defects such as scratches and wrinkles on the substrate. To eliminate the speed difference between the guide roller and the substrate, it is conceivable to sandwich the substrate from both sides using a pair of guide rollers. However, as shown in Figure 1 of Patent Document 1, the presence of undried coating material on the coated surface of the substrate, particularly immediately after coating, makes it impossible for the guide rollers to come into contact with the substrate.

[0005] The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and has as its object to provide a transport control device and the like that can effectively reduce slippage between guide rollers and transported objects. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] In order to solve the above problem, a conveying control device according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises a roller speed detection unit that detects the rotational speed of a guide roller that guides the conveyed object, a conveying speed detection unit that detects the conveying speed of the conveyed object being guided by the guide roller, and a roller speed adjustment unit that adjusts the rotational speed so that the difference between the detected rotational speed and the conveying speed is small.

[0007] In this embodiment, the rotational speed of the guide roller and the transport speed of the transported object are detected, and the rotational speed of the guide roller is adjusted to reduce the difference between them, thereby effectively reducing slippage between the guide roller and the transported object.

[0008] Another aspect of the present invention is a conveyance control method, which includes a roller speed detection step of detecting a rotational speed of a guide roller that guides a conveyed object, a conveyance speed detection step of detecting a conveyance speed of the conveyed object being guided by the guide roller, and a roller speed adjustment step of adjusting the rotational speed so as to reduce a difference between the detected rotational speed and the conveyance speed.

[0009] Any combination of the above components and any conversion of these expressions into methods, devices, systems, recording media, computer programs, etc. are also encompassed by the present invention. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to the present invention, slippage between the guide rollers and the transported object can be effectively reduced. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0011] [Figure 1] 1 shows a schematic configuration of a transport control device. [Figure 2] 3A and 3B are schematic diagrams illustrating images of a guide roller and a transported object captured by a camera. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0012] Hereinafter, a mode for carrying out the present invention (hereinafter also referred to as an embodiment) will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the description and / or drawings, identical or equivalent components, members, processes, etc. will be assigned the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations will be omitted. The scale and shape of each part shown in the drawings are set for convenience to simplify the explanation, and should not be interpreted as limiting unless otherwise specified. The embodiment is an example and does not limit the scope of the present invention in any way. All features and combinations thereof described in the embodiment are not necessarily essential to the present invention.

[0013] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a conveyance control device 1 that controls the conveyance operation of a conveyance device 2 that conveys a conveyed object 3. The conveyed object 3 can be, for example, a linear object such as a string or wire, or a planar or sheet-like object such as paper, cloth, film, foil, or rubber. In this embodiment, a roll-to-roll conveyance device 2 is described that conveys a sheet-like substrate as the conveyed object 3 in a conveyance direction (generally from left to right in FIG. 1). The conveyance device 2 may be part of a device that applies any processing to the conveyed object, such as a coater or coating device that applies a coating or other coating process to the conveyed object, a printing machine that prints on the conveyed object, or a stretching device that applies tension to the conveyed object to stretch it. In this embodiment, the conveyance device 2 is assumed to be part of a coating device.

[0014] The conveying device 2 includes a plurality of rollers 21 to 24 that are provided on a conveying path for the conveyed object 3 and convey or guide the conveyed object 3 in the conveying direction. The first reference roller 21 and the second reference roller 22 convey the conveyed object 3 while sandwiching it from both the front and back sides. For example, one of the first reference roller 21 and the second reference roller 22 is a drive roller that is driven to rotate by a drive motor (not shown), and the other of the first reference roller 21 and the second reference roller 22 is a driven roller that rotates in conjunction with the drive roller. By forming the outer circumferential surfaces of the first reference roller 21 and / or the second reference roller 22 from a non-slip material such as rubber, slippage between the first reference roller 21 and / or the second reference roller 22 and the conveying object 3 can be effectively prevented. In this case, the rotation speed of the first reference roller 21 and / or the second reference roller 22 is substantially equal to the conveying speed of the conveyed object 3 sandwiched and guided between the first reference roller 21 and the second reference roller 22.

[0015] The first reference roller 21 and the second reference roller 22 may form a coating processing section that coats the coating surface (upper surface in FIG. 1) of the conveyed object 3 with a coating material. In this case, the first reference roller 21 coats the coating surface of the conveyed object 3 with a coating material (not shown), similar to the "rod 23" in FIG. 1 of Patent Document 1. Meanwhile, the second reference roller 22 presses the conveyed object 3 against the first reference roller 21 from the back side of the coated surface, similar to the "center pressing roller 50" in FIG. 1 of Patent Document 1.

[0016] The guide roller 23, located after the first reference roller 21 and the second reference roller 22, guides the conveyed object 3 in the conveying direction while contacting the reverse side of the coated surface (the lower surface in FIG. 1 ). The guide roller 23 is driven to rotate clockwise around a rotation axis 231 by a drive motor 25 via a reducer 26. To eliminate speed differences or slippage between the guide roller 23 and the conveyed object 3, it is preferable to sandwich the conveyed object 3 from both sides between a pair of guide rollers, such as the first reference roller 21 and the second reference roller 22. However, as mentioned above, the guide roller cannot contact the coated surface of the conveyed object 3, which has undried coating material coated by the first reference roller 21. This can result in a difference between the rotation speed of the guide roller 23, driven by the drive motor 25 and the reducer 26, and the conveying speed of the conveyed object 3 being guided by the guide roller 23. Slippage caused by the speed difference between the guide roller 23 and the conveyed object 3 can result in defects such as scratches or wrinkles on the conveyed object 3. According to the transport control device 1 described below, slippage between the guide rollers 23 and the transported object 3 can be effectively reduced.

[0017] The guide roller 24, which is provided after the guide roller 23, guides the conveyed object 3 in the conveying direction while contacting the coated surface (the upper surface in FIG. 1). Like the guide roller 23, the guide roller 24 may be driven to rotate counterclockwise in FIG. 1 by a drive motor or a reducer (not shown). Note that the coating material coated on the coated surface by the first reference roller 21 is assumed to be dry by the time the conveyed object 3 reaches the guide roller 24. Therefore, there is no problem even if the guide roller 24 contacts the coated surface. Although not shown, the conveyance control device 1 (described later) may be applied to the guide roller 24 in addition to or instead of the guide roller 23.

[0018] The conveyance control device 1 includes a roller speed detection unit 11, a conveyance speed detection unit 12, and a roller speed adjustment unit 13. These functional blocks are realized by the cooperation of hardware resources such as the computer's central processing unit, memory, input devices, output devices, and peripheral devices connected to the computer, and software executed using these. Regardless of the type of computer or its installation location, each of the above functional blocks may be realized by the hardware resources of a single computer, or by combining hardware resources distributed across multiple computers.

[0019] The roller speed detection unit 11 detects the rotation speed of the guide rollers 23 that guide the transported object 3. The conveying speed detection unit 12 detects the conveying speed of the transported object 3 guided by the guide rollers 23. The roller speed detection unit 11 and the conveying speed detection unit 12 are configured, for example, by a camera 10 as an imaging device that can simultaneously capture images of the guide rollers 23 and the transported object 3.

[0020] 2 is a schematic diagram showing an image of the guide rollers 23 and the transported object 3 captured by the camera 10. The image captured by the camera 10 as shown in FIG. 2 may be a video or a plurality of continuous or intermittent still images. The guide rollers 23 are driven to rotate around a rotation axis 231 in the left-right direction (axial direction) by a drive motor 25 and a reducer 26. The transported object 3 is guided by the rotating guide rollers 23 and transported in the up-down direction (transport direction).

[0021] The transported object 3 includes a processing area 31 where a predetermined process such as coating or printing is performed, and a non-processing area 32 where the process is not performed. The processing area 31, which occupies most of the surface of the transported object 3, is the central area in the width direction (left-right direction) perpendicular to the transport direction (up-down direction). On the other hand, the non-processing area 32 is the area at both ends of the transported object 3 in the width direction. A typical coating device applies a coating process to the processing area 31 of the transported object 3, but does not apply any process to the non-processing area 32. In contrast, in the illustrated example, one or more transported object reference marks 33 are provided on the surface of the non-processing area 32 at at least one end of the transported object 3 in the width direction (the right end in the example of Figure 2). The transported object reference marks 33 may be formed in the non-processing area 32 with the same coating material when the coating processing unit (first reference roller 21, etc.) applies coating process to the processing area 31. Alternatively, the transported object reference mark 33 may be printed in the non-processing area 32 by a printing processing section different from the coating processing section, or may be formed in the non-processing area 32 in advance.

[0022] A plurality of transported object reference marks 33 are provided at equal intervals along the transport direction (vertical direction) on the surface of the non-processing area 32. The camera 10 constituting the transport speed detection unit 12 detects the transport speed of the transported object 3 based on one or more captured transported object reference marks 33. For example, the transport speed of the transported object 3 can be directly detected based on the movement of the transported object reference marks 33 in a video captured by the camera 10. In addition, the transport speed of the transported object 3 can be calculated by dividing the displacement of the transported object reference marks 33 in a series of still images captured by the camera 10 by the interval between captures by the camera 10.

[0023] As described above, in order to detect or calculate the conveying speed of the conveyed object 3 with high accuracy based on the image captured by the camera 10, it is preferable that at least one conveyed object reference mark 33 is captured in the image regardless of the conveying position of the conveyed object 3. Specifically, it is preferable that the interval between the conveyed object reference marks 33 in the conveying direction be equal to or less than the length of the image captured by the camera 10 in the conveying direction. The more the number of conveyed object reference marks 33 is increased and the shorter the intervals between them are, the more accurately the conveying speed of the conveyed object 3 can be detected or calculated.

[0024] In a printing press that performs printing processing on the transported object 3, marks indicating the division of each page, register marks for color matching (registration) of the printing units of each color, and the like are printed in the processing area 31 and / or non-processing area 32 along with the image of each page. Therefore, there is no need to provide additional transported object reference marks 33 as shown in Fig. 2, and these existing marks can be used as the transported object reference marks 33. On the other hand, in a general coating device, there are no page divisions and the coating processing is performed continuously and uniformly in the processing area 31 of the transported object 3, so it is preferable to additionally provide transported object reference marks 33 as shown in Fig. 2.

[0025] Similar to the transported object reference mark 33 on the transported object 3, one or more roller reference marks 232 are provided on the guide roller 23. Specifically, one or more roller reference marks 232 are provided on the outer periphery of at least one end (the right end in the example of FIG. 2) in the axial direction (left-right direction) of the guide roller 23 at a position not covered by the transported object 3.

[0026] A plurality of roller reference marks 232 are provided at equal intervals along the circumferential direction on the outer periphery of one end of the guide roller 23, which protrudes from one end (right end) in the width direction of the transported object 3 to one end side (right side) and is exposed. The camera 10 constituting the roller speed detection unit 11 detects the rotational speed of the guide roller 23 based on the captured image of one or more roller reference marks 232. For example, the rotational speed of the guide roller 23 can be directly detected based on the movement of the roller reference marks 232 in a video captured by the camera 10. The rotational speed of the guide roller 23 can also be calculated by dividing the displacement of the roller reference marks 232 in a series of still images captured by the camera 10 by the interval between captures by the camera 10.

[0027] As described above, in order to detect or calculate the rotational speed of the guide roller 23 with high accuracy based on the image captured by the camera 10, it is preferable that at least one roller reference mark 232 is captured in the image regardless of the rotational position or rotational angle of the guide roller 23. Specifically, assuming that a plurality of roller reference marks 232 are provided at equal intervals, it is preferable to provide at least two roller reference marks 232 (at intervals of "180 degrees"). The more roller reference marks 232 are provided and the shorter the intervals between them, the more accurately the rotational speed of the guide roller 23 can be detected or calculated.

[0028] Furthermore, the spacing between the transported object reference marks 33 on the transported object 3 and the spacing between the roller reference marks 232 on the guide rollers 23 can be set independently of each other, but it is preferable to make the spacing between the roller reference marks 232 smaller than the spacing between the transported object reference marks 33. In an image such as that shown in FIG. 2 captured by the camera 10, the area occupied by the guide rollers 23 is significantly smaller than the area occupied by the transported object 3, which tends to reduce the accuracy of detecting the rotational speed of the guide rollers 23. Therefore, by making the spacing between the roller reference marks 232 smaller than the spacing between the transported object reference marks 33, the accuracy of detecting the rotational speed of the guide rollers 23 can be improved.

[0029] If a rotation detector such as an encoder that detects the rotational position or rotational speed is provided on the drive motor 25 or reducer 26 that rotates the guide roller 23, or on the guide roller 23 itself, it can be used as the roller speed detector 11. In this case, there is no need to additionally provide a roller reference mark 232 as shown in FIG. 2.

[0030] The roller speed adjustment unit 13 adjusts the rotational speed of the guide roller 23 so as to reduce the difference between the rotational speed of the guide roller 23 detected by the roller speed detection unit 11 and the conveyance speed of the conveyed object 3 detected by the conveyance speed detection unit 12. Specifically, the roller speed adjustment unit 13 issues a speed command to the drive motor 25 to reduce the speed difference (i.e., "slippage") between the guide roller 23 and the conveyed object 3. As a result, the rotational drive speed of the guide roller 23 by the drive motor 25 and the reducer 26 approaches the conveyance speed of the conveyed object 3, effectively reducing slippage between the guide roller 23 and the conveyed object 3. Note that the roller speed adjustment unit 13 does not need to adjust the rotational speed of the guide roller 23 if the speed difference between the guide roller 23 and the conveyed object 3 is too large to adjust. In this case, an abnormality notification unit (not shown) notifies the administrator of the conveyance device 2 and / or the conveyance control device 1 of the abnormality. Additionally or alternatively, an abnormal stopping unit (not shown) may cause the transport device 2 and / or the transport control device 1 to stop abnormally.

[0031] The present invention has been described above based on the embodiments. Various modifications are possible to the combinations of the components and processes in the exemplary embodiments, and it will be obvious to those skilled in the art that such modifications are included within the scope of the present invention.

[0032] In the above-described embodiment, roller reference marks 232 and transported object reference marks 33 are additionally provided to assist speed detection by the cameras 10 constituting the roller speed detection unit 11 and conveyance speed detection unit 12, but advances in image processing technology or image recognition technology are expected to enable speed detection with sufficient accuracy even without such marks 232, 33. If such technology is available, there is no need to additionally provide roller reference marks 232 and / or transported object reference marks 33, and the camera 10 can detect the respective speeds of the guide rollers 23 and the transported object 3 directly from images of the guide rollers 23 and the transported object 3.

[0033] If there is slippage between the guide rollers 23 and the transported object 3, defects such as scratches or wrinkles may occur on the transported object 3. The camera 10 (roller speed detection unit 11 and transport speed detection unit 12) that detects these defects may determine that there is a speed difference that needs to be adjusted between the guide rollers 23 and the transported object 3. In this case, the roller speed adjustment unit 13 adjusts the rotation speed of the guide rollers 23 so that the defects on the transported object 3 detected by the camera 10 are eliminated.

[0034] Furthermore, in the above-described embodiment, the roller speed detection unit 11 and the conveying speed detection unit 12 are configured by the camera 10, but they may be configured by sensors based on any other principle. For example, optical sensors, electromagnetic sensors, mechanical sensors, thermal sensors, and acoustic sensors, including the camera 10, may be used as the roller speed detection unit 11 and / or the conveying speed detection unit 12. Such sensors acquire information suggesting the movement of the guide rollers 23 and / or the conveyed object 3, and detect their respective speeds by processing or calculating the information as necessary.

[0035] The configuration, operation, and function of each device and method described in the embodiments can be realized by hardware resources, software resources, or a combination of hardware and software resources. Examples of hardware resources include processors, ROMs, RAMs, and various integrated circuits. Examples of software resources include operating systems, applications, and other programs. [Explanation of symbols]

[0036] 1 conveyance control device, 2 conveyance device, 3 conveyed object, 10 camera, 11 roller speed detection unit, 12 conveyance speed detection unit, 13 roller speed adjustment unit, 23 guide roller, 25 drive motor, 26 reducer, 31 processing area, 32 non-processing area, 33 conveyed object reference mark, 231 rotation axis, 232 roller reference mark.

Claims

1. a roller speed detection unit that detects the rotation speed of a guide roller that guides the transported object; a conveyance speed detection unit that detects a conveyance speed of the conveyed object being guided by the guide roller; a roller speed adjusting unit that adjusts the rotation speed so that the difference between the detected rotation speed and the conveying speed becomes small; Equipped with The roller speed detection unit and the conveyance speed detection unit are configured by an imaging device that can simultaneously capture images of the guide roller and the conveyed object.

2. a roller reference mark is provided on an outer periphery of at least one end of the guide roller in the axial direction at a position that is not covered by the transported object; the photographing device detects the rotation speed of the guide roller based on the photographed roller reference mark; The transport control device according to claim 1 .

3. The transport control device according to claim 2 , wherein a plurality of the roller reference marks are provided on the outer periphery at equal intervals along the circumferential direction.

4. a transported object reference mark is provided on a surface of at least one end of the transported object in a width direction perpendicular to the transport direction, the photographing device detects the transport speed of the transported object based on the photographed transported object reference mark; The transport control device according to any one of claims 1 to 3.

5. the transported object includes a treatment area where a predetermined treatment is performed and a non-treatment area where the treatment is not performed, the transported object reference mark is provided in the non-processing area; The transport control device according to claim 4 .

6. the predetermined treatment is a coating treatment for the treatment area, the transported object reference mark is applied to the non-processing area during the coating process; The transport control device according to claim 5 .

7. The transport control device according to claim 4 , wherein a plurality of the transported object reference marks are provided on the surface at equal intervals along the transport direction.

8. a roller speed detection step of detecting a rotation speed of a guide roller that guides the transported object; a conveyance speed detection step of detecting a conveyance speed of the conveyed object being guided by the guide roller; a roller speed adjusting step of adjusting the rotation speed so that a difference between the detected rotation speed and the conveying speed becomes small; Equipped with The conveyance control method, wherein the roller speed detection step and the conveyance speed detection step are performed by an imaging device capable of simultaneously imaging the guide roller and the conveyed object.

9. a roller speed detection step of detecting a rotation speed of a guide roller that guides the transported object; a conveyance speed detection step of detecting a conveyance speed of the conveyed object being guided by the guide roller; a roller speed adjusting step of adjusting the rotation speed so that a difference between the detected rotation speed and the conveying speed becomes small; on the computer, The roller speed detection step and the conveyance speed detection step are executed by a photographing device capable of simultaneously photographing the guide roller and the conveyed object.

Images