Mobile Safety Input Control for Proximity-Based Machine Shutdown
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increased mobility of machines and operators in industrial systems creates hazards that existing safety measures, such as fences and safety systems, fail to adequately address, particularly in dynamic working environments with mobile machines and safety input devices.
Innovation Solution
A method and control system that dynamically associate mobile safety input devices with machines in proximity, using sensors to determine positions and proximity, allowing operators to bring machines to a safe state through a single human action, thereby providing adaptive protective configurations and overriding or complementing existing safety functions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If traditional fixed safety systems with fences are used, then safety is ensured in static environments, but mobility of machines and operators is restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the safety system mobile rather than fixed. The portable safety input device can be moved to different locations and dynamically associated with different machines based on proximity, allowing the safety system to adapt to changing positions of machines and operators while maintaining protective functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The portable safety input device serves multiple functions: it can be associated with different machines depending on proximity, it provides emergency stop functionality, and it enables dynamic reconfiguration of safety zones. This multi-functionality allows a single device to protect multiple machines throughout the working area.
2Reliability
If multiple safety input devices are provided for multiple machines, then each machine can be controlled safely, but device complexity and cost increase
Solution Approach 1:
A single portable safety input device can be dynamically associated with multiple different machines based on proximity detection. This eliminates the need for dedicated safety devices for each machine, reducing overall device complexity and cost while maintaining safe control capability across all machines.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent merges the functionality of multiple safety input devices into a single portable device. By combining proximity detection, machine association, and emergency stop control into one device, the system reduces the total number of safety devices needed while maintaining comprehensive safety coverage.
3Adaptability or versatility
If safety systems are made mobile and dynamic, then adaptability to changing environments is improved, but reliability and predictability of safety responses may deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system continuously monitors proximity and pre-associates the portable safety device with machines before actual contact or hazard occurs. This preliminary association ensures that when a hazard is detected, the safety response can be immediately activated without delay, maintaining predictability despite the dynamic nature of the system.
Solution Approach 2:
The system uses continuous feedback from proximity detection to dynamically adjust associations between the safety device and machines. This real-time feedback mechanism ensures that the safety system reliably responds to changing conditions while maintaining predictable behavior through automated association rules based on detected proximity.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of handling safety in a working area of an industrial system, wherein at least one machine is arranged to operate in the working area, at least one manually operable safety input device is provided in the working area, and one or more of the at least one machine and the at least one safety input device is movable to different positions in the working area, the method including continuously or repeatedly determining whether one or more of the at least one the machine is in proximity to one or more of the at least one safety input device; and associating at least one machine with the at least one safety input device upon determining that one or more of the at least one machine is in proximity to one or more of the at least one safety input device, such that the at least one associated machine can be brought to a safe state by means of the at least one safety input device.