Unloading automation system using digging hopper automatically controlled based on cargo discharge detection and unloading automation method using the same

Abstract

The present invention relates to an unloading automation system using a digging hopper that can automate an unloading process and an unloading automation method using the same, and more particularly, to a technology that enables automation of the unloading process by utilizing a special digging hopper that can automatically discharge cargoes stacked in a cargo area in bulk units.

Description

UNLOADING AUTOMATION SYSTEM USING DIGGING HOPPER AUTOMATICALLY CONTROLLED BASED ON CARGO DISCHARGE DETECTION AND UNLOADING AUTOMATION METHOD USING THE SAME

[0001] The present invention relates to an unloading automation system using a digging hopper that can automate an unloading process and an unloading automation method using the same, and more particularly, to a technology that enables automation of the unloading process by utilizing a special digging hopper that can automatically discharge cargoes stacked in a cargo area in bulk units.

[0002] In domestic and international delivery logistics fields, most technologies for automatically unloading cargoes in a vehicle cargo area have limitations depending on physical properties of the cargoes that can be handled, it is difficult to sort cargoes being discharged in bulk units and link them to subsequent processes, and there are limitations to general-purpose applications due to installation space issue and level difference between the vehicle cargo area and a dock. In addition, such technologies are not suitable for application to the domestic delivery logistics environment due to inability to link with conveyors installed in existing logistics terminals, increased construction costs due to layout changes, high construction costs of robot systems, etc.

[0003] Because these problems exist, there is a continuous demand for technology that can unload cargoes from the vehicle cargo area more quickly and efficiently in the delivery logistics field, and many related companies keep working toward technology development with a focus on the unloading process.

[0004] The present invention has been created in the process of increasing the efficiency of the unloading operation, and the present invention proposes implementing an unloading automation environment using a digging hopper of an automatic control scheme based on cargo discharge detection.

[0005] The purpose of the present invention is to provide an unloading automation system using a digging hopper and an unloading automation method using the same, which can be flexibly applied to the construction of an automated line linked with existing infrastructure and subsequent processes so as to suit the operational purpose in the logistics industries, especially in the environment of a delivery logistics terminals and which replace manpower-dependent works with an automation-based process technology, thereby reducing labor costs, easing the labor intensity of the unloading process and improving work productivity.

[0006] In addition, other purpose of the present invention is to provide an unloading automation system using a digging hopper and an unloading automation method using the same, which are highly practical by overcoming the shortcomings of conventional technologies such as restrictions on handling cargoes, lack of dock spaces and high infrastructure change costs, and allowing to reflect the unloading purpose, cargo characteristics, etc. to suit the domestic delivery logistics environment.

[0007] In addition, another purpose of the present invention is to provide an unloading automation system using a digging hopper and an unloading automation method using the same, which can automatically discharge cargoes in bulk units without major restrictions on loading patterns, physical property influences, vehicle conditions, etc., and, can discharge cargoes individually using a suction-type picking stick as an operator support tool when necessary or handle them separately based on packaging material, loading condition and location, thereby minimizing physical property influences.

[0008] In addition, another purpose of the present invention is to provide an unloading automation system using a digging hopper and an unloading automation method using the same, which can be systematically interlocked with a telescopic conveyor that is designed and operated in consideration of compatibility with existing infrastructure and directly linked to subsequent processes, thereby having high usability in the delivery logistics environment.

[0009] The purpose of the present invention is not limited to the purposes mentioned above and other purposes not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the description below.

[0010] In order to achieve the above purposes, in the unloading automation system using a digging hopper according to the present invention, the digging hopper automatically discharges cargo loaded in a cargo area and may comprise a digging plate for moving forward so as to dig between the bottom surface of the cargo area and the lower surface of the cargo; an expansion feeding conveyor being arranged at the rear of the digging plate and including one or more first conveyor belts to transfer the cargo; and an expansion inclination conveyor being arranged at the rear of the expansion feeding conveyor and including one or more second conveyor belts to transfer cargo delivered from the expansion feeding conveyor.

[0011] In addition, the unloading automation system may further comprise a singulation conveyor being arranged at the rear of the expansion inclination conveyor and sequentially discharging cargoes delivered from the expansion feeding conveyor by sorting them in individual units through one or more third conveyor belts.

[0012] In addition, the unloading automation system may further comprise a link discharge conveyor being arranged at the rear of the singulation conveyor and transferring the cargoes discharged by the singulation conveyor through one or more fourth conveyor belts.

[0013] In addition, in the unloading automation system, a telescopic conveyor is arranged at the rear of the singulation conveyor so as to transfer cargoes discharged by the singulation conveyor through a fifth conveyor belt, and the telescopic conveyor is expandable or retractable to transfer the cargoes.

[0014] In addition, in the unloading automation system, the telescopic conveyor may further include a base frame fixed to the telescopic conveyor, the digging hopper is coupled to the base frame so as to be able to move relative to the base frame, and as the telescopic conveyor expands forward, the digging hopper also moves forward.

[0015] In addition, in the unloading automation system, the digging hopper may further include a hopper frame that supports the digging hopper and that has at least one of the conveyor belts installed thereon.

[0016] In addition, in the unloading automation system, the digging hopper may further include an upper and lower driving device that is installed to be interposed between the base frame and the hopper frame and that moves the hopper frame relative to the base frame to raise or lower the front end of the digging hopper.

[0017] In addition, in the unloading automation system, the digging hopper may further include a left / right driving device that is installed to be interposed between the base frame and the hopper frame and that moves the hopper frame relative to the base frame to move the front end of the digging hopper to the left or right.

[0018] In addition, in the unloading automation system, the digging hopper may further include a landing gear interposed between the rear end of the hopper frame and the bottom surface of the cargo area to support the rear end of the hopper frame, and the length of the landing gear is adjustable.

[0019] In addition, in the unloading automation system, the digging hopper may further include a lateral expansion guide plate, and the lateral expansion guide plate guides the cargo to the inside of the digging hopper.

[0020] In addition, the unloading automation system may further comprise a loaded cargo falling prevention device installed on the upper part of the feeding conveyor.

[0021] The unloading automation system may further comprise a cargo detection sensor for detecting cargoes and a falling object accident prevention auxiliary system, wherein based on cargo information detected by the cargo detection sensor and when multiple accumulated cargoes are moved, the falling object accident prevention auxiliary system controls the loaded cargo falling prevention device to arrange the cargoes so that cargoes arranged at the upper part among the cargoes are transported subsequently.

[0022] In addition, the unloading automation system may further comprise an integrated control device, wherein the integrated control device may schedule cargoes based on cargo information detected by the cargo detection sensor and control the digging hopper to discharge each cargo in the scheduled order based on the scheduled cargo information.

[0023] In addition, the unloading automation system may further comprise a vision-based discharge detection device, the vision-based discharge detection device is capable of setting detection conditions for the load and jamming of cargo, and the vision based discharge detection device determines whether the cargo corresponds to the detection conditions based on cargo information detected by the cargo detection sensor, and the integrated control device controls the digging hopper based on the cargo information detected and determined by the vision-based discharge detection device.

[0024] In addition, the unloading automation system may further comprise a vision-based singulation device, wherein the vision-based singulation device detects cargo inflowing through a path formed by the inclination conveyor, and the integrated control device controls the digging hopper based on information scheduled by the vision-based singulation device.

[0025] Meanwhile, an unloading automation method using a digging hopper according to another embodiment of the present invention may comprise (a) a moving distance calculation step in which a vision-based discharge detection device calculates a total moving distance that a conveyor belt must move forward to discharge a cargo through a path formed by a container belt on the digging hopper; (b) a cargo forward moving step in which an integrated control device drives the container belt to move the cargo forward; (c) a remaining forward moving time calculation step in which the remaining forward moving time is calculated based on the moving distance of cargo detected by the vision-based discharge detection device and the moving speed of the container belt, wherein the step (a) is performed again after the step (c).

[0026] The digging hopper system based on cargo discharge detection and the unloading automation method using the same according to the present invention can provide the advantage that can be flexibly applied to the construction of an automated line linked with existing infrastructure and subsequent processes so as to suit operational purpose in the logistics industries, especially in the environment of delivery logistics terminals and which replace manpower-dependent works with an automation-based process technology, thereby reducing labor costs, easing the labor intensity of the unloading process and improving work productivity.

[0027] In addition, the digging hopper system based on cargo discharge detection and the unloading automation method using the same according to the present invention can provide the advantage that is highly practical by overcoming the shortcomings of conventional technologies such as restrictions on handling cargoes, lack of dock spaces and high infrastructure change costs, and allowing to reflect the unloading purpose, cargo characteristics, etc. to suit the domestic delivery logistics environment.

[0028] In addition, the cargo discharge detection-based automatic control digging hopper system and the unloading automation method using the same according to the present invention can provide the advantage that can automatically discharge cargoes in bulk units without major restrictions on loading patterns, physical property influences, vehicle conditions, etc. and which can discharge cargoes individually using a suction-type picking stick as an operator support tool when necessary or handle them separately based on packaging material, loading condition and location, thereby minimizing physical property influences.

[0029] In addition, the cargo discharge detection-based automatic control digging hopper system and the unloading automation method using the same according to the present invention can provide the advantage that it is systematically interlocked with the telescopic conveyor that is designed and operated in consideration of compatibility with existing infrastructure and can be directly linked to subsequent processes, thereby having high usability in the delivery logistics environment.

[0030] The effects of the present invention are not limited to the advantages mentioned above, and other advantages not mentioned can be clearly understood by those skilled in the art from the claims.

[0031] FIG. 1 is a perspective view for showing a cargo discharge detection-based automatic control digging hopper according to one embodiment of the present invention.

[0032] FIGS. 2 to 3 are views for showing the main function portions of a cargo discharge detection-based automatic control digging hopper according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0033] FIGS. 4 to 5 are views for explaining the upper and lower driving device of a cargo discharge detection-based automatic control digging hopper according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0034] FIG. 6 is a view for explaining a lateral expansion guide plate. FIG. 7 is a view for showing the main function portions of a cargo discharge detection-based automatic control digging hopper according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0035] FIGS. 8 to 12 are views for explaining an unloading automation method using a cargo discharge detection-based automatic control digging hopper according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0036] FIG. 13 is a view for showing a device performing an expansion function of a cargo discharge detection-based automatic control digging hopper according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0037] FIG. 14 is a process flow diagram for schematically showing an unloading automation method using a cargo discharge detection-based automatic control digging hopper according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0038] The advantages and features of the present invention, and the method for achieving them, will become apparent by referring to the embodiments described in detail below together with the accompanying drawings. However, the present invention is not limited to the embodiments disclosed below and will be implemented in various different forms. These embodiments are provided only to make the disclosure of the present invention complete and to fully inform those skilled in the art of the scope of the present invention, and the present invention is defined only by the claims. Like reference numerals refer to like components throughout the specification.

[0039] When one component is referred to as being "connected to" or "coupled to" with another component, it includes both the case where it is directly connected or coupled to the other component and the case where there exists an intervening component. On the other hand, when one component is referred to as "directly connected to" or "directly coupled to" another component, it indicates that there is no intervening component. The expression "and / or" includes each one or more of the mentioned items and any combination thereof.

[0040] The terms used herein are intended to describe embodiments and are not intended to limit the invention. In this specification, the singular form includes the plural form unless specifically stated otherwise. The terms "comprise" and / or "comprising" used in this specification do not exclude the presence or addition of one or more other components, steps, operations and / or elements mentioned.

[0041] Although the terms first, second, etc. are used to describe various components, it is to be understood that these components are not limited by these terms. These terms are merely used to distinguish one component from another. Accordingly, it is to be understood that a first component mentioned below may also be a second component within the technical spirit of the invention.

[0042] Throughout this specification, when a part is said to "comprise" a component, this does not exclude other components unless specifically stated otherwise, but rather means that other components may be further included. In addition, the preposition “on” recited throughout the specification means located above or below the target portion, and does not necessarily mean being located above based on the direction of gravity.

[0043] Terms related to direction such as “front,” “rear,” “left,” “right,” “vertical,” and “horizontal” used in this specification are used in relative meanings for the convenience of explanation, and may vary depending on the direction of observation.

[0044] Unless otherwise defined, all terms, including technical and scientific terms, used in this specification may be used in a meaning that can be commonly understood by those skilled in the art. In addition, terms defined in commonly used dictionaries shall not be interpreted ideally or excessively unless explicitly specifically defined.

[0045] Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. At this time, it should be noted that the same components in the accompanying drawings are indicated by the same symbols as much as possible. Detailed descriptions of well-known functions and configurations that may obscure the gist of the present invention will be omitted. For the same reason, some components in the accompanying drawings are exaggerated, omitted, or schematically illustrated.

[0046] Before going into a full explanation, the relationship between the device and the system of the present invention is explained. The present invention relates to an unloading automation system using a digging hopper that detects the discharge of cargoes and automatically controls them, and an unloading automation method that can be implemented through such an automated system. Therefore, the unloading automation system according to the present invention may include various types of devices necessary for implementing the unloading automation method as its configuration. For example, the unloading automation system may include a digging hopper 100 as its basic configuration, and may further include a falling object accident prevention auxiliary system 200, a telescopic conveyor 300, an integrated control device 400, etc. In the following detailed description, the contents of the invention will be described based on the relationship between such unloading automation system and its dependent configurations. However, it should be understood that the unloading automation system mentioned in this detailed description is not necessarily limited to the above relationship and must be interpreted to encompass a range that can be changed in design at the level of those skilled in the art.

[0047] Referring to FIG. 1, the unloading automation system according to the present invention may include a digging hopper 100 as a basic configuration. The digging hopper 100 may be installed in conjunction with one end of the telescopic conveyor 300, and a device for auxiliarily preventing falling objects (e.g., a falling object accident prevention auxiliary system 200) may be further installed in the digging hopper 100, and an integrated control device 400 for controlling devices including the digging hopper 100 may be provided in the vicinity.

[0048] FIG. 2 and FIG. 3 are enlarged views to explain the detailed configurations of the digging hopper 100. Referring to FIG. 2 and FIG. 3, the digging hopper 100 may include an expansion digging plate 110, a multi-stage expansion feeding conveyor 120, an expansion inclination conveyor 130, a singulation conveyor 140, a lateral expansion guide plate 150, and a link discharge conveyor 160. Furthermore, the digging hopper 100 may further include a digging hopper landing gear 170, a hopper coupling and upper and lower driving device 180, and an alignment measuring device 190.

[0049] The digging hopper 100 implemented in a multi-stage expansion form forms an uphill inclination from the front to the rear so that cargoes are link-transferred through a path formed by the first to fourth conveyor belts. The multi-stage expandable digging hopper 100 which is a component that digs into the bottom of the loaded cargoes while entering the vehicle cargo area and automatically discharges the loaded cargoes, and is a loaded cargo discharge device that can allow the loaded cargoes to inflow therein in bulk units and transfer them. The multi-stage expandable digging hopper 100 is coupled to the front end of the expandable / retractable telescopic conveyor 300, so that as the telescopic conveyor 300 expands, the digging hopper 100 also moves forward and enters the vehicle cargo area, thereby enabling automatic discharge of the loaded cargoes.

[0050] The digging hopper 100 installed in front of the telescopic conveyor 300 can unload the loaded cargoes from the vehicle cargo area and link transfer them to the telescopic conveyor 300 at the rear. Meanwhile, the digging hopper 100 can be implemented to be expandable based on the width inside the cargo area and can be designed in a multi-stage expansion manner so that the lateral discharge function can be improved and the lateral interference load can be minimized in response to various inner widths of the cargo area.

[0051] The expansion digging plate 110 has an uphill inclination shape so that the first conveyor belt can dig into between the bottom surface of the cargo area and the lower surface of the cargo loaded on the cargo area. More specifically, the expansion digging plate 110 can be moved forward so as to dig into the space between the bottom surface of the cargo area and the lower surface of the loaded cargo, and due to this forward movement, the cargo can be placed in a state that it can be transferred along the inclination. The expansion feeding conveyor 120 arranged at the rear of the expansion digging plate 110 performs the function of pulling the cargoes in the opposite direction of the forward moving direction of the digging hopper 100 so that the cargoes climbing up the expansion digging plate 110 can be discharged on a conveyor belt basis. The expansion digging plate 110 has an uphill inclination shape so as to be able to dig into between the bottom surface of the cargo area and the lower guide sheet of the loaded cargo, and the rear end of the expansion digging plate 110 can structuralize the clearance between the expansion feeding conveyors 120 and the guide sheet alignment roller so that the guide sheet can pass through into the bottom of the hopper. That is, in one embodiment of the present invention, the expansion digging plate 110 forms a space at the one end of the rear thereof so that the first conveyor belt can pass through the space to the bottom of the expansion feeding conveyor 120. In addition, it can be expanded left and right to fit the inner width of the vehicle cargo area. The conventional digging hopper has a disadvantage in that the digging hopper is expanded in a bellows form at the left and right ends of the plate and the level difference between the bottom surfaces increases as the expansion length increases, resulting in an interference load occurred when discharging the cargo from the side. In contrast, the expansion digging plate 110 of the present invention adopts a slide driving method that expands from the inside to the outside, thereby minimizing the interference load and the level difference between the bottom surfaces when discharging the cargo from the side. That is, in one embodiment of the present invention, the expansion digging plate 110 expands while sliding from the inside to the outside.

[0052] The expansion feeding conveyor 120, as briefly mentioned above, is arranged at the rear of the expansion digging plate 110 and includes one or more first conveyor belts to transfer cargoes. The expansion feeding conveyor 120 can be expanded in multiple stages as much as the expanded length of the expansion digging plate 110. This can be implemented by structuralizing the frame constituting the expansion digging plate 110 to be connected to the expansion feeding conveyor 120 and further to be linked with the internal expansion driving device of the expansion feeding conveyor 120. That is, the width length of the expansion feeding conveyor 120 can be expanded in multiple stages, and the width length of the expansion feeding conveyor 120 can be expanded in conjunction with the expansion of the digging plate. The expansion feeding conveyor 120 includes a plurality of conveyor belts, and at least one of the plurality of conveyor belts can be configured to have different transfer speeds between adjacent conveyor belts, which is to control the discharge amount of cargoes and minimize the discharge load by making the difference in the transfer speed. The expansion inclination conveyor 130 is arranged at the rear of the expansion feeding conveyor 120 and includes one or more second conveyor belts to transfer the cargoes. More precisely, the expansion inclination conveyor 130 that enables a link-transfer through inclination section may be arranged following the expansion feeding conveyor 120, and the expansion inclination conveyor 130 can include a plurality of second conveyor belts. The transfer speed of the plurality of second conveyor belts may be set separately so as to control the discharge amount depending on the cargo load in the subsequent process, and the inclination angle of the expansion inclination conveyor 130 may be formed to be smaller than that of at least the expansion feeding conveyor 120 so that a level difference with the expansion feeding conveyor 120 is prevented as much as possible. The expansion inclination conveyor 130 is also expandable left and right, but it can be configured as an independent device without being connected to an expansion driving device in the expansion feeding conveyor 120. This is because the expansion inclination conveyor 130 is generally configured with a structure in which the discharge width is narrower than that of the expansion feeding conveyor 120 and there exists a difference in the opening portion and the inner width when entering the vehicle cargo area, resulting in different expansion lengths. The singulation conveyor 140 is arranged at the rear of the expansion inclination conveyor 130 and includes one or more third conveyor belts to transfer the cargoes. The singulation conveyor 140 is arranged at the rear of the expansion inclination conveyor 130 and can be configured of servo control-based, multiple conveyors and a vision system. The singulation conveyor 140 is designed to be able to sort cargoes that inflow in bulk units and sequentially discharge them, and can be controlled to recognize the cargoes through a camera, schedule the recognized cargoes and then sequentially discharge the cargoes by instantaneously controlling the speed of each of multiple-configured conveyors. It is preferable that the plurality of third conveyor belts are configured with at least three or more rows, and these can be divided into a cargo recognition and separation section, a delay and acceleration section, and a discharge section. Meanwhile, the function of recognizing and separating cargoes may be performed by utilizing existing commercialized smart camera technology, and the process of controlling a plurality of conveyor devices in real time by linking with a vision system can be controlled by an integrated control device 400 so that it can be integrated and operated with other devices in the digging hopper 100. The link discharge conveyor 160 is arranged at the rear of the singulation conveyor 140 and includes one or more fourth conveyor belts to transfer the cargo. The link discharge conveyor 160, which is a configuration to link-transfer the cargo to a telescopic conveyor 300 to be described later, may be configured of a plurality of belts and roller conveyors and is implemented to generate a necessary amount of clearance with the upper surface of the telescopic conveyor 300 in order to eliminate any structural interference when the digging hopper 100 is driven to be raised / lowered. That is, in one embodiment of the present invention, the link discharge conveyor 160 may form a predetermined distance so as not to come into contact with the upper surface of the telescopic conveyor 300. The operating speed of the link discharge conveyor 160 may be set to match the work speed of the subsequent process through the integrated control device 400 and the link discharge conveyor 160 can be bias-structuralized with a left / right directionality depending on the position of the operator. For reference, the landing gear 170, the up-down driving device 180, the left-right driving device 181, the base frame 182 and the hopper frame 183 will be described with reference to FIGS. 3 to 5.

[0053] The landing gear 170 illustrated in FIGS. 3 and 4 is interposed between the rear end of the hopper frame of the digging hopper 100 and the bottom surface of the cargo area to support the digging hopper 100. More specifically, one embodiment of the present invention may further include a base frame 182(see FIG. 4) fixed to the telescopic conveyor 300, and the digging hopper 100 is coupled to the base frame 182 so as to be able to move relative to the base frame 182, and the digging hopper 100 may include a hopper frame 183(see FIG. 4) for supporting the digging hopper 100 on which the afore-mentioned conveyor belt(s) can be installed. In addition, the digging hopper 100 may further include a landing gear 170 which is interposed between the rear end of the hopper frame 183 and the bottom surface of the cargo area and which supports the rear end of the hopper frame 183. The landing gear 170 which is extended between the rear end of the hopper frame 183 and the bottom surface of the cargo area may have an adjustable length. The driving device 175 of the landing gear 170 may be configured on a pneumatic cylinder basis, and the length adjustment of the shaft may be designed to overcome at least the level difference between the vehicle cargo area and the installation dock. The reason why the driving device 175 of the landing gear 170 is configured on a pneumatic cylinder basis is that it is possible to flexibly respond within the allowable range to the inconstant horizontality of the bottom surface of the vehicle cargo area and the compression load due to the change in height under fine unevenness and expansion. Meanwhile, as can be seen in FIGS. 3 and 4, one embodiment of the present invention may further include an upper and lower driving device 180. The upper and lower driving device 180 may be implemented to have a lifting function that when the digging hopper 100 enters, raises the hopper itself considering a level difference that exists between the vehicle cargo area and the installation dock, supports the hopper to safely enter the cargo area and then return to its original state, and to enable the digging hopper 100 to be expanded / retracted by connecting the hopper to the telescopic conveyor 300 for a subsequent process. The upper and lower driving device 180 may include at least two driving devices along the left and right directions, and each of the driving devices may be implemented to apply a differential movement distance so as to enable angle adjustment in the left and right entry directions in addition to upper and lower adjustments, thereby flexibly responding to the cargo area entry tolerance.

[0054] Meanwhile, the connecting portion of the hopper frame 183 may be configured with an upper and lower relative rotation joint with a horizontal axis as a rotation axis to enable the load reduction on the head and the position adjustment when the direction of force is changed vertically during piston movement. The hopper connecting portion may be directly connected to a telescopic conveyor 300 for a subsequent process, have a plurality of multi-stage universal joints installed therein to eliminate physical interference of the hopper rising / lowering operating mechanism, and include an LM mount-based driving device which is interposed between the connecting portion and the base frame 182 of the upper and lower driving device 180 so that the digging hopper 100 can finely move horizontally to the left / right. More specifically, in one embodiment of the present invention, the upper and lower driving device 180 is installed to be interposed between the base frame 182 and the hopper frame 183, and can move the hopper frame 183 and raise or lower the digging hopper 100 as the piston of the electric cylinder installed in the base frame 182 reciprocates. The upper and lower driving device 180 can be configured of at least two cylinder-based driving devices, and each driving device can be finely adjusted according to the horizontality of the bottom surface of the cargo area by synchronizing or differentiating the stroke distance, thereby flexibly responding to the entry tolerance of the cargo area. Meanwhile, in one embodiment of the present invention, the upper and lower driving device 180 preferably includes a first upper and lower driving device on the left and a second upper and lower driving device on the right along the left / right direction, and the first upper and lower driving device and the second upper and lower driving device can be driven and controlled so that the driving distances are the same or different. Meanwhile, in one embodiment of the present invention, a base frame 182 fixed to the telescopic conveyor 300 is further included, and the digging hopper 100 is coupled to the base frame 182 so as to be able to move relative to the base frame 182, and further includes a hopper frame 183 on which the transfer conveyor is installed, and a left and right driving device 181 is further included that is interposed between the base frame 182 and the hopper frame 183 to move the hopper frame 183 relative to the base frame and move the digging hopper 100 to the left or right with respect to the base frame 182. For reference, FIGS. 5A to 5C illustrate the structure of the left and right driving devices 181. Meanwhile, in one embodiment of the present invention, the connection portion of the upper and lower driving device 180 and the base frame 182 and the connection portion of the upper and lower driving device 180 and the hopper frame 183 may be formed as a two-axis joint that allows for an upper and lower relative rotation with the left and right horizontal axes as the rotation axe and a left and right relative rotation with the upper and lower vertical axes as the rotation axes.

[0055] Hereinafter, the lateral expansion guide plate 150 will be discussed with reference to FIGS. 2 and 6.

[0056] One embodiment of the present invention may further include two or more lateral expansion guide plates 150, each of which is rotatably connected to both sides of the upper surface of the digging hopper 100. The lateral expansion guide plates 150 can each rotate to adjust the distance between the lateral expansion guide plates 150 and guide cargoes on the digging hopper 100 toward the inside of the multi-stage expansion digging hopper 100. The lateral expansion guide plates 150 are variable expansion-based device that performs the functions of preventing cargoes discharged when the digging hopper 100 moves forward from being deviated and guiding cargoes, which are subsequently link-transferred in the expansion feeding conveyor 120, toward the inside. The lateral expansion guide plates 150 may further include a driving device or an expansion device 151 so that it can be synchronously expanded left and right along the width of the vehicle cargo area , wherein the plates can be designed to have a structure in which the front end (the direction of the loading) of the plates has an inclination surface and the rear end thereof is curved so as to minimize cargo interference and load during discharge due to the tolerance between the sides of the cargo area. The lateral expansion guide plate 150 can be structurized so that it can be directly connected to the frame of the expansion feeding conveyor 120 and be linked with the frame when expanded. However, in the case of a wing body vehicle with a large difference between the inner width of the opening of the vehicle cargo area and the inner width of the cargo area, the interference load may increase when link-expanded. Therefore, the lateral expansion guide plate is not directly connected to the frame and structuralized so that it can have a minimum amount of clearance on the frame of the expansion feeding conveyor 120 and can be variably expanded through a separate independent driving device.

[0057] More specifically explaining with reference to FIG. 6, in one embodiment of the present invention, the lateral expansion guide plate 150 performs the function of preventing the inflowing cargo from being deviated to the side, and guiding the cargo to the hopper discharge path, so it is expandable to the side in conjunction with the width of the digging hopper 100. The lateral expansion guide plate can be designed taking into account the jamming between the hopper and the side wall of the cargo area during discharge or a discharge interference of the guide front end. At least one expansion device 151 is installed in the left / right of the hopper and is driven on a pneumatic cylinder basis. The expansion device uses the principle that the piston of the pneumatic cylinder reciprocates up and down, and the lateral expansion guide plate 150 connected to the piston is pulled and extended laterally in full width, and can be implemented as an independent driving device. Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 3, one embodiment of the present invention further includes an alignment measuring device 190 installed in the digging hopper 100, and the alignment measuring device 190 can be implemented to measure the alignment degree between the digging hopper 100 and the cargo area when the digging hopper 100 is attached to the cargo area and transmit the measurement result to the integrated control device 400. The alignment measuring device 190 can be configured to measure the alignment degree between the vehicle cargo area and the equipment when the vehicle is docked, transmit the measurement result to the integrated control device 400 and measure the three-dimensional displacement by a laser. The alignment measuring device 190 may be configured with multiple displacement sensors to measure the left / right clearance and the level difference between the bottom surface of the cargo area and the expanded digging plate 110 on the basis of the hopper center and may include a mount that can semi-automatically move the position of the sensor horizontally and vertically.

[0058] Until now, the basic configurations of the digging hopper 100 have been discussed with reference to FIGS. 1 to 6.

[0059] Meanwhile, referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the telescopic conveyor 300 is arranged at the rear of the singulation conveyor 140 and includes a fifth conveyor belt. That is, the telescopic conveyor 300 is coupled to the digging hopper 100 at the front end and is expandable / retractable. As the telescopic conveyor 300 expands, the digging hopper 100 also moves forward and enters the vehicle cargo area thereby supporting automatic discharge of the loaded cargoes and enabling a link transfer to a subsequent process. A landing gear 170 may be further provided to a portion of the telescopic conveyor 300 that expands in multiple stages in order to distribute the momentum value that increases as the expansion distance increases and reduce the mechanical load. In addition, a hydraulic cylinder device that performs a tilt function to eliminate the level difference between the vehicle and the dock may be provided to the telescopic conveyor 300.

[0060] Meanwhile, referring to FIGS. 1 and 7, one embodiment of the present invention includes a falling object accident prevention auxiliary system 200 including a loaded cargo falling prevention device 210, a vision-based discharge detection device 220 and a vision-based singulation device 230. The falling object accident prevention auxiliary system 200 is installed on the upper portion of the digging hopper 100 to detect cargoes, determine an appropriate cargo progress speed and transmit it to the integrated control device 400. The falling object accident prevention auxiliary system 200 may further include a cargo detection sensor that detects cargoes as needed. For reference, in the above description, although the falling object accident prevention auxiliary system 200 is mentioned as including the loaded cargo falling prevention device 210, the vision-based discharge detection device 220, the vision-based singulation device 230, a cargo detection sensor, etc., it should be understood that the above detailed components are not necessarily limited to only components of the falling object accident prevention auxiliary system 200 and may also be included as components of an unloading automation system.

[0061] Continuing with the explanation of each of the detailed components, the loaded cargo falling prevention device 210 may be driven to move and rotate, and based on the information that the cargo detection sensor has detected the cargoes, the falling object accident prevention auxiliary system 200 controls the loaded cargo falling prevention device 210 to arrange the cargoes so that, when multiple accumulated cargoes are moved, the cargoes arranged at the upper portion among the cargoes are transferred subsequently. In addition, the loaded cargo falling prevention device 210 can be constructed to adjust the clearance distance depending on the degree of compression between the cargoes regarding the multiple accumulated cargoes. More specifically, the loaded cargo falling prevention device 210 is a structure that prevents the upper stacked cargoes from collapsing when the digging hopper 100 moves forward and the loaded cargoes are transferred through the expansion feeding conveyor 120 and that allows the middle and lower stacked cargoes to be transferred first. The loaded cargo falling prevention device 210 is installed at an appropriate height of the vertical direction on the basis of the starting point of the feeding conveyor and may be made of a transparent material so that the discharge status of the loaded cargoes can be checked, and may be implemented so that the clearance distance can be adjusted based on the degree of compression between the loaded cargoes. In addition, the contact surface with the load cargo of the loaded cargo falling prevention device 210 is configured so that the clearance distance between the cargoes can increase as it goes downward, which is to induce discharge from the lower loads. Meanwhile, the present invention may further include a vision-based discharge detection device 220 that recognizes the cargo being discharged in real time, determines the status thereof and supports automatic control. In addition, the vision-based discharge detection device may include a camera mounted on the front end of the upper structure of the digging hopper 100. More specifically, the falling object accident prevention auxiliary system 200 includes the vision-based discharge detection device 220 and a cargo detection sensor that detects the cargoes in which the vision-based discharge detection device 220 can set detection conditions for the load and jamming of cargo and determine whether the cargo meets the detection conditions based on the cargo information detected by the cargo detection sensor. In addition, the present invention further includes an integrated control device 400, and the integrated control device 400 can adjust the speed of each of the first to fourth conveyor belts based on cargo information detected and determined by the vision-based discharge detection device 220. In addition, the integrated control device 400 can control the digging hopper 100 based on the cargo information detected and determined by the vision-based discharge detection device 220. In addition, in another embodiment of the present invention, the vision-based emission detection device 220 can change the detection conditions for the load and jamming based on the operating environment of the digging hopper 100. In addition, in another embodiment of the present invention, the vision-based emission detection device 220 can change the detection conditions for load and jamming based on the properties or characteristics of the cargo. More specifically, when the digging hopper 100 is controlled to move forward / backward, the vision-based emission detection device 220 supports operation based on the load and jamming detection conditions in which the load and jamming detection conditions can be set based on the operating environment and / or the properties of the cargo. The load and jamming can be determined by gridding the upper surface of the digging hopper 100 and setting condition variables such as whether or not an area-specific cargo is recognized and its residence time. In addition, in another embodiment of the present invention, pattern conditions for patterns that may occur when the digging hopper 100 transfers cargo may have been pre-stored in the vision-based discharge detection device 220, and the vision-based discharge detection device 220 determines the load of the cargo depending on the pattern conditions based on the information detected by the cargo detection sensor. That is, the discharge detection device 220 can recognize cargoes discharged in bulk units and detect them based on specific pattern conditions, and further, the discharge detection device 220 can detect cargo jamming based on the pattern conditions at a specific location in the digging hopper 100. As such, in the present invention, detection conditions such as load detection or jamming detection can be set, and each detection condition may have been mapped to operations when cargoes are detected by the detection conditions, and the operations that have been set may be forward / backward / stop, etc. In addition, in one embodiment of the present invention, the automatic discharge of cargo is performed based on a combination of the detection conditions that have been set and it’s operating pattern (sequence pattern) can be determined. At this time, in one embodiment of the present invention, at least two operations (motions) in each pattern can be selected, and the motions may be forward / backward / stop, etc. Explaining with reference to FIGS. 8 to 12, there may be possible embodiments in the present invention in which when the forward moving operation is stopped due to a load detection, a forward moving is made as much as the remaining time based on the set pattern when forward-moving again, and when a jamming is detected, only the digging hopper is stopped, and the telescopic conveyor for the subsequent process is operated normally, etc. In addition, in the present invention, an operating pattern according to an automatic operation mode can be set based on operating variables such as whether load detection should be operated and whether jamming detection should be operated. In addition, in one embodiment of the present invention, the pattern conditions can be set for each area on the digging hopper 100. Meanwhile, when the vision-based singulation device 230 is installed at a subsequent position of the inclination conveyor at the rear end of the upper structure of the digging hopper 100 and multiple belt conveyors have been configured in multiple rows, the vision-based singulation device 230 performs the function of recognizing cargoes inflowing in bulk units through the inclination conveyor and then scheduling the operation of each conveyor configured in multiple rows thereby sequentially discharging the cargoes in individual units in a first-in, first-out manner. The discharge scheduling determines the order of the cargoes recognized with the reference line of the set inlet row among the conveyor sections configured in multiple rows as the starting point and then determines the speed of conveyors of multiple rows so that the recognized cargoes can arrive within the movement time set with the reference line of the set discharge row as the ending point. In addition, the discharge scheduling can be scheduled by reflecting the set interval between the preceding cargo and the succeeding cargo into the movement distance. More specifically, the vision-based singulation device 230 can set an inlet row reference line and an outlet row reference line on the path of the digging hopper 100, and in the case of a plurality of cargoes moving in bulk units, the speed of the first to fourth conveyor belts can be set so that all cargoes can arrive within the set movement time with the inlet row reference line as the starting point and the outlet row reference line as the ending point. At this time, the integrated control device 400 controls the first to fourth conveyor belts based on the information set by the vision-based singulation device 230. In addition, the vision-based singulation device 230 can set an interval between a plurality of cargoes and schedule the first to fourth conveyor belts so that the cargoes can be transferred while maintaining the set interval.

[0062] Meanwhile, referring to FIG. 13, in one embodiment of the present invention, the digging plate 110 may further include one or more digging plate expansion devices 111 and the expansion feeding conveyor 120 may further include one or more feeding conveyor expansion devices 121. The digging plate 110 is slidingly expanded from the inside to the outside by the digging plate expansion device 111, and the feeding conveyor 120 may be expandable in multiple stages by the feeding conveyor expansion device 121 and is expanded in conjunction with the expansion of the digging plate 110 of the expansion feeding conveyor 120. In addition, in one embodiment of the present invention, the expansion inclination conveyor 130 may further include one or more inclination conveyor expansion devices 131, and the expansion inclination conveyor 130 can be expanded in multiple stages by the inclination conveyor expansion device 131, and the expansion inclination conveyor 130 is independently driven and expanded without being linked with the expansion of the expansion feeding conveyor 120 or the expansion feeding conveyor 120. More specifically, the left / right width of the digging hopper 100 can be expanded on the basis of the inner width of the vehicle cargo area. This is for the purpose of enabling a flexible expansion to adapt to various inner width sizes of the cargo area and width changes in view that as the clearance between the digging hopper 100 and the inner width of the cargo area increases, the load and interference increase when discharging the cargo and the width of the opening of the cargo area and the width after the opening are different each other.

[0063] An unloading automation system and method according to an embodiment of the present invention use the principle that the digging hopper 100, to which the guide sheet is coupled, moves forward inside the cargo area and digs between the bottom surface of the cargo area and the lower surface of the guide sheet wherein the cargoes stacked on the sheet are seated on the upper surface of the digging hopper 100 in bulk units, sorted in individual units during transfer and then and then automatically discharged. The present invention can be applied to different types of vehicle cargo areas, handle various types of different cargoes in bulk units, and thus it can be applied to the unloading process in a delivery terminal with high labor intensity.

[0064] As an example of an embodiment of the present invention, first, when a vehicle to be unloaded docks in an unloading dock in a delivery terminal, the telescopic conveyor is expanded in order to move the digging hopper according to the present invention to the front of the cargo area, and the level difference and alignment between the vehicle cargo area and the dock are measured to thereby automatically adjust the entry position and then start the unloading process. If the guide sheet has been seated in the cargo area, the guide sheet is coupled to the digging hopper 100 and then moved forward.

[0065] Thereafter, if a minimum space where the digging hopper 100 can enter the cargo area is secured, the digging hopper 100 can enter toward the cargo area in a state that the digging hopper 100 has been raised by the level difference between the dock and the vehicle cargo area.

[0066] Thereafter, as the digging hopper 100 is automatically operated, the cargo is discharged by the feeding conveyor and the inclination conveyor of the hopper, and the digging hopper 100 expands to the left and right and moves forward with being adhered to the wall surface of the cargo area so as to ensure that no car remains on the left and right sides.

[0067] Thereafter, by detecting the discharge load and cargo jamming status in the digging hopper 100, forward / stop / reverse operations are controlled during automatic operation, and the cargoes are sorted in individual units through the singulation conveyor 140 of the digging hopper 100 and then continuously transferred to the telescopic conveyor 300.

[0068] Meanwhile, the hopper may be changed in position through up and down vertical operations and left and right horizontal operations, depending on the conditions of the cargo or docking errors, and since a weight load applied to the hopper increases during unloading as much as the expanded length of the telescopic conveyor, a landing gear 170 may be installed at the rear end of the digging hopper 100 to distribute the cargo handling weight and minimize the load on the connecting section of the telescopic conveyor. In addition, the height of the landing gear 170 is automatically determined along the bottom surface of the cargo area, so that the hopper can be seated without interference when moving forward.

[0069] The digging hopper 100 may be equipped with a shock absorber so as to relieve the impact of falling products, and in order to control quantity of cargo transferred at once and to resolve delays during continuous transfer, the quantity of cargo can be controlled using speed deviation of each conveyor

[0070] Thereafter, if all cargoes in the vehicle cargo area have been unloaded, the forward-moved digging hopper 100 is driven to retract by its expanded length so that the digging hopper 100, which moved forward, returns to its original starting position. The coupled guide sheet is released and then the hopper waits until the next vehicle docks.

[0071] Until now, the configurations of the unloading automation system according to the present invention have been discussed with reference to FIGS. 1 to 13.

[0072] Hereinafter, the unloading automation method according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail.

[0073] With reference to FIG. 14, the unloading automation method according to an embodiment of the present invention includes (a) a moving distance calculation step, (b) a cargo forward moving step, (c) a remaining forward moving time calculation step, and (d) a pattern performing step.

[0074] More specifically, in one embodiment of the present invention, (a) the moving distance calculation step is a step in which the vision-based discharge detection device 220 calculates the total moving distance that the conveyor belt must move forward in order to discharge cargoes through the path formed by the container belt on the digging hopper 100 (S100). (b) The cargo forward moving step is a step in which the integrated control device drives the container belt to move forward the cargoes (S200). (c) The remaining forward moving time calculation step is a step in which the remaining forward moving time is calculated based on the moving distance of the cargoes detected by the vision-based discharge detection device and the moving speed of the container belt (S300). Thereafter, the steps (a) to (c) are repeatedly performed until the remaining forward moving time calculated in the remaining forward moving time calculation step becomes 0. In addition, one embodiment of the present invention further includes (d) a pattern performing step of performing a pattern that has been set based on the detection conditions (S400), and the step (d) is performed after the step (c) if cargoes are detected in the set detection conditions. In addition, if cargoes are not detected in the set detection conditions, the step (a) is performed again after the step (c). The detection conditions may be condition variables, etc. such as the above-described jamming detection and load detection, and operations such as forward / stop / backward movement of the first to fifth container belts forming a path on the digging hopper and the telescopic conveyor may be determined depending on the types of the set detection conditions. The operating pattern in the present invention is determined based on a combination of these set detection conditions, and the operation of cargo discharge can be performed depending on the pattern. For example, if both load detection and jamming detection are set to the condition variables, the operation pattern of the present invention is set in a way of moving backward the cargo if the load is detected while discharging the cargo and stopping the cargo if a jamming is detected, so that the present invention can automatically operate as in the above pattern to perform cargo discharge.

[0075] Meanwhile, the embodiments of the present invention disclosed in this specification and drawings are only specific examples presented to easily explain the technical contents of the present invention and to help understand the present invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. In addition to the embodiments disclosed herein, it is obvious to those skilled in the art that other modified examples based on the technical idea of the present invention can be implemented.

Claims

1.An unloading automation system using a digging hopper, wherein the digging hopper automatically discharges cargo loaded in a cargo area and comprises:a digging plate for moving forward so as to dig between the bottom surface of the cargo area and the lower surface of the cargo;an expansion feeding conveyor being arranged at the rear of the digging plate and including one or more first conveyor belts to transfer the cargo; andan expansion inclination conveyor being arranged at the rear of the expansion feeding conveyor and including one or more second conveyor belts to transfer cargo delivered from the expansion feeding conveyor.2.The unloading automation system according to Claim 1, further comprising a singulation conveyor being arranged at the rear of the expansion inclination conveyor and sequentially discharging cargoes delivered from the expansion feeding conveyor by aligning them in individual units through one or more third conveyor belts.3.The unloading automation system according to Claim 2, further comprising a link discharge conveyor being arranged at the rear of the singulation conveyor and transferring the cargoes discharged by the singulation conveyor through one or more fourth conveyor belts.4.The unloading automation system according to Claim 3, wherein a telescopic conveyor is arranged at the rear of the singulation conveyor to transfer cargoes discharged by the singulation conveyor through a fifth conveyor belt, and the telescopic conveyor is expandable or retractable to transfer the cargoes.5.The unloading automation system according to Claim 4, wherein the telescopic conveyor further includes a base frame fixed to the telescopic conveyor,the digging hopper is coupled to the base frame so as to be able to move relative to the base frame, andas the telescopic conveyor expands forward, the digging hopper also moves forward.6.The unloading automation system according to Claim 5, wherein the digging hopper further includes a hopper frame that supports the digging hopper and that has at least one of the conveyor belts installed thereon.7.The unloading automation system according to Claim 6, wherein the digging hopper further includes an upper and lower driving device that is installed to be interposed between the base frame and the hopper frame and that moves the hopper frame relative to the base frame to raise or lower the front end of the digging hopper.8.The unloading automation system according to Claim 6, wherein the digging hopper further includes a left / right driving device that is installed to be interposed between the base frame and the hopper frame and that moves the hopper frame relative to the base frame to move the front end of the digging hopper to the left or right.9.The unloading automation system according to Claim 6, wherein the digging hopper further includes a landing gear interposed between the rear end of the hopper frame and the bottom surface of the cargo area to support the rear end of the hopper frame, and the length of the landing gear is adjustable.10.The unloading automation system according to Claim 1, wherein the digging hopper further includes a lateral expansion guide plate, and the lateral expansion guide plate guides the cargo to the inside of the digging hopper.11.The unloading automation system according to Claim 1, further comprising a loaded cargo falling prevention device installed on the upper part of the feeding conveyor.12.The unloading automation system according to Claim 11, further comprising a cargo detection sensor for detecting cargoes and a falling object accident prevention auxiliary system, wherein based on cargo information detected by the cargo detection sensor and when multiple accumulated cargoes are moved, the falling object accident prevention auxiliary system controls the loaded cargo falling prevention device to arrange the cargoes so that cargoes arranged at the top among the cargoes are transported subsequently.13.The unloading automation system according to Claim 12, further comprising an integrated control device, wherein the integrated control device schedules cargoes based on cargo information detected by the cargo detection sensor and controls the digging hopper to discharge each cargo in the scheduled order based on the scheduled cargo information.14.The unloading automation system according to Claim 13, wherein the unloading automation system further includes a vision-based discharge detection device, the vision-based discharge detection device is capable of setting detection conditions for the load and jamming of cargo, and the integrated control device determines whether the cargo corresponds to the detection conditions based on cargo information detected by the cargo detection sensor, and the integrated control device controls the digging hopper based on information detected and determined by the vision-based discharge detection device.15.The unloading automation system according to Claim 13, wherein the unloading automation system further includes a vision-based singulation device, the vision-based singulation device detects cargo flowing in through a path formed by the inclination conveyor, and the integrated control device controls the digging hopper based on information scheduled by the vision-based singulation device.16.An unloading automation method using a digging hopper, comprising:(a) a moving distance calculation step in which a vision-based discharge detection device calculates a total moving distance that a conveyor belt must move forward to discharge a cargo through a path formed by a container belt on the digging hopper(b) a cargo forward moving step in which an integrated control device drives the container belt to move the cargo forward;(c) a remaining forward moving time calculation step in which the remaining forward moving time is calculated based on the moving distance of cargo detected by the vision-based discharge detection device and the moving speed of the container belt, andwherein the step (a) is performed again after the step (c).

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