Traveling Vehicle Station Availability Management
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional traveling vehicle systems fail to provide precise information about station availability when a traveling-prohibited section is set, leading to confusion and potential traffic hold-ups, as they cannot designate alternative stations for the vehicle.
Innovation Solution
A management apparatus within the traveling vehicle system determines whether stations can be reached without passing the prohibited section, setting stations as available or unavailable based on this determination, and updates availability information when prohibited sections are set or canceled, or when the layout changes.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a traveling-prohibited section is set when a failure occurs or construction is performed, then the safety and integrity of the traveling path are ensured, but the system cannot provide precise information about station availability, leading to traffic hold-ups and operational confusion
Solution Approach 1:
The traveling path is divided into multiple sections, and the system calculates availability for each station individually based on whether reachable paths exist without passing through prohibited sections. This segmentation allows precise information to be provided about which stations remain accessible even when parts of the path are closed.
Solution Approach 2:
The management apparatus continuously monitors the traveling path status and dynamically updates station availability information based on current prohibited sections. This feedback mechanism ensures that the upper system receives accurate, real-time information about which stations can be reached, preventing orders from being sent to unavailable stations.
2Reliability
If the system designates all stations as unavailable when a prohibited section is set, then safety is maintained, but productivity decreases due to unnecessary operational restrictions and traffic hold-ups
Solution Approach 1:
Instead of uniformly designating all stations as unavailable, the system applies local quality by individually assessing each station's accessibility based on its specific position relative to prohibited sections. Stations that remain accessible continue to operate normally, while only those affected by the prohibited section are restricted, thereby maintaining productivity where possible.
Solution Approach 2:
The system takes partial action by restricting access only to the extent necessary - specifically to stations that cannot be reached without passing through prohibited sections. This avoids excessive restriction of all stations, allowing the traveling vehicle to continue operating efficiently to stations that remain accessible.
3Device complexity
If the conventional system only transmits that a path does not exist, then the communication protocol remains simple, but the upper system cannot designate alternative stations, causing repeated failed orders and traffic hold-ups
Solution Approach 1:
The management apparatus performs preliminary calculation of station availability before the upper system issues orders. By pre-determining which stations are reachable and communicating this information in advance, the system enables the upper system to designate alternative stations proactively, avoiding repeated failed orders and traffic hold-ups.
Solution Approach 2:
The management apparatus acts as an intermediary between the traveling path status and the upper system's order issuance. It translates physical path conditions into actionable availability information, enabling the upper system to make informed decisions about station designation without requiring complex path analysis capabilities.
Data Source
AI summary
A controller (140) included in a traveling vehicle system (100) includes: a traveling-prohibited section setting unit (145) configured to set a traveling-prohibited section which is a section of a traveling path (130) which a traveling vehicle cannot travel; a determination unit (147) configured to determine, for each of stations, when a traveling-prohibited section is set by the traveling-prohibited section setting unit (145), whether or not the traveling vehicle can return, to one of the stations from which the traveling vehicle departs, without passing the traveling-prohibited section; and an availability setting unit (148) configured to set the station as available when the determination unit (147) determines that the traveling vehicle can return to the station, and to set the station as unavailable when the determination unit (147) determines that the traveling vehicle cannot return to the station.