Light Barrier Locking for Driverless Workpiece Transfer Cells
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing manufacturing devices with driverless transport systems face safety concerns and operational disruptions due to the risk of personnel injury and system interference during the automated delivery and removal of workpieces within production cells, particularly when using driverless transport vehicles and protective partitions.
Innovation Solution
A manufacturing device with a laterally circumferential protective partition and a lock system utilizing light barrier arrangements to ensure safe operation, where the second and third light barrier arrangements are activated to create a coherent protection zone, allowing for direct communication between the conveyor and the lock without higher-level control, and a detector to monitor for obstacles, preventing collisions and injuries.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If driverless transport vehicles are used to transport workpieces to and from the production cell, then productivity and automation are improved, but safety risks increase due to potential personnel injury from moving vehicles and their load-carrying devices
Solution Approach 1:
Light barrier arrangements serve as intermediary safety devices between the driverless transport vehicle and personnel. These optical mediators detect the presence of persons in the vicinity of the vehicle and trigger safety responses (stopping the vehicle or preventing door operation) before physical contact can occur, thus resolving the contradiction between automated transport and personnel safety
Solution Approach 2:
The safety system performs preliminary detection of persons using light barriers before the driverless transport vehicle completes its loading or unloading cycle. By detecting persons in advance and preventing door operation or vehicle movement when persons are present, the system eliminates safety risks before they can materialize, allowing continuous automated operation without compromising personnel safety
2Object-affected harmful factors
If protective partitions with locks are installed at the production cell, then personnel safety is improved, but operational disruptions can still occur when driverless vehicles approach with load-carrying devices
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements feedback control where light barriers continuously monitor the area around the lock and driverless vehicle. When a person is detected in the danger zone, the system provides feedback signals to stop the vehicle or prevent lock operation. This feedback mechanism ensures both personnel protection and operational reliability by automatically preventing dangerous situations before they disrupt the process
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces purely mechanical safety systems (interlocks, physical barriers) with optical detection systems (light barriers). This substitution allows for more reliable and responsive safety monitoring that can detect persons at a distance and trigger preventive actions, thereby maintaining both personnel safety and operational continuity without mechanical contact or disruption
3Object-affected harmful factors
If light barrier arrangements are installed to monitor the lock openings, then safety is improved, but the protection zone is limited and gaps remain where persons could be injured
Solution Approach 1:
The safety monitoring system is segmented into multiple light barrier arrangements positioned at different locations: one at the lock opening and another at the vehicle approach area. This segmentation allows each light barrier to cover a specific zone, and together they provide comprehensive coverage of the entire danger area, eliminating protection gaps while maintaining focused monitoring at each critical point
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extends protection from a single-point monitoring at the lock opening to multi-dimensional coverage by positioning light barriers at multiple spatial locations and angles. This creates a three-dimensional safety zone that encompasses the entire area where persons could be at risk, including the approach path of the driverless vehicle, thereby expanding the protected area without compromising the precision of lock area monitoring
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
Enhances personal safety and maintains process integrity by preventing collisions and injuries, ensuring the secure and uninterrupted operation of the manufacturing cell by creating a unified protection zone and enabling autonomous monitoring and control of the loading process.
Implementation Method 1
A first light barrier arrangement with a first transmitter and with a first receiver assigned to the first transmitter is formed at an opening of the lock
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2~3
Figure 4~5
AI summary
The invention relates to a manufacturing device (1) comprising a manufacturing cell (2) for machining workpieces (6); a laterally peripheral protective partition (8) in which a lock (13) is provided for carrying out a loading process of the workpieces (6), a first light barrier assembly (14) being provided on the lock (13); and a driverless conveyor means (3) comprising a load receiving means (4) for transporting the workpieces (6). In order to carry out the loading process, a second light barrier assembly (27) and a third light barrier assembly (28) are provided between the conveyor means (3) and the lock (13) such that the load receiving means (4) and the workpieces (6) are laterally bordered on opposite sides by the second light barrier assembly (27) and the third light barrier assembly (28).