EP4520708A1 - Chariot industriel avec un contrôle amélioré du mouvement du dispositif de levage - Google Patents

Chariot industriel avec un contrôle amélioré du mouvement du dispositif de levage Download PDF

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Publication number
EP4520708A1
EP4520708A1 EP24188908.8A EP24188908A EP4520708A1 EP 4520708 A1 EP4520708 A1 EP 4520708A1 EP 24188908 A EP24188908 A EP 24188908A EP 4520708 A1 EP4520708 A1 EP 4520708A1
Authority
EP
European Patent Office
Prior art keywords
light beam
lifting device
industrial truck
control means
mast
Prior art date
Legal status (The legal status is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the status listed.)
Pending
Application number
EP24188908.8A
Other languages
German (de)
English (en)
Inventor
Bruno Deliallisi
Current Assignee (The listed assignees may be inaccurate. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation or warranty as to the accuracy of the list.)
Toyota Material Handling Manufacturing Italy SpA
Original Assignee
Toyota Material Handling Manufacturing Italy SpA
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Toyota Material Handling Manufacturing Italy SpA filed Critical Toyota Material Handling Manufacturing Italy SpA
Publication of EP4520708A1 publication Critical patent/EP4520708A1/fr
Pending legal-status Critical Current

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Classifications

    • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
    • B66—HOISTING; LIFTING; HAULING
    • B66F—HOISTING, LIFTING, HAULING OR PUSHING, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR, e.g. DEVICES WHICH APPLY A LIFTING OR PUSHING FORCE DIRECTLY TO THE SURFACE OF A LOAD
    • B66F9/00—Devices for lifting or lowering bulky or heavy goods for loading or unloading purposes
    • B66F9/06—Devices for lifting or lowering bulky or heavy goods for loading or unloading purposes movable, with their loads, on wheels or the like, e.g. fork-lift trucks
    • B66F9/075—Constructional features or details
    • B66F9/0755—Position control; Position detectors

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to an industrial truck provided with improved control of the lifting device.
  • the forks of the lift truck After the lift truck has been positioned in proximity to the load to be picked up by driving the truck, in order to pick up the load from the respective section in the shelving system, the forks of the lift truck must be brought into the correct position aligned with the load (for example aligned with the pallet carrying a load) by activating specific actuators designed to raise the forks and if necessary translate them horizontally, in the event that the lift truck is endowed with this function.
  • one object of the present disclosure is to provide an industrial truck that allows for facilitating the manoeuvre of picking up a load by means of the lifting device.
  • a further object is to provide a system that makes it possible to increase the efficiency and speed of performing loading/unloading operations by means of a lifting device;
  • a further object is to provide a system that makes it possible to increase the reliability and safety of the loading/unloading operations.
  • the emitting device is a laser rangefinder configured to measure a distance from a point of arrival of the light beam on a strike surface of a target object, wherein the control means are configured to control the movement of the lifting device also based on the measured distance.
  • the lifting device is mounted on the mast so as to be able to translate horizontally along a direction transverse to the mast; preferably the control means are configured to control the movement of horizontal translation and/or the movement along the mast based on a position of the light beam following the variation of the position of the light beam in accordance with the aiming command.
  • the control means are configured to determine a horizontal and/or vertical movement of the lifting device with respect to the mast based on a position of the light beam following the variation of the position of the light beam in accordance with the aiming command.
  • the user interface is further configured to receive a confirmation command from the user, wherein the control means are configured to control the movement of the lifting device based on the position of the light beam and/or on the distance measured at the time the confirmation command is entered.
  • control means are configured to control the movement of the lifting device until a position of loading/unloading from/to a storage compartment pointed at by the light beam or a storage compartment accommodating a load pointed at by the light beam is reached.
  • control means are configured to set limit stop positions of the lifting device based on the position of the light beam and/or on the distance measured following the variation of the position of the light beam in accordance with the aiming command.
  • the emitting device is mounted on a support so as to be able to rotate about a horizontal axis under the action of the actuating means.
  • the support is fixedly mounted with respect to the lifting device, preferably fixedly mounted on a fork carriage sliding on the mast.
  • the emitting device is mounted on the support so as to be able to rotate about a vertical axis under the action of the actuating means.
  • the support is mounted on the industrial truck so as to be horizontally translatable with respect to the lifting device, in a direction parallel to the direction of horizontal translation of the lifting device.
  • a method for controlling the movement of a lifting device of an industrial truck up to a desired position for loading/unloading a load from/to a storage compartment wherein the industrial truck comprises a mast, the lifting device sliding along the mast and being adapted to manipulate a load, and an emitting device configured to emit a light beam along an orientation direction, the method comprising:
  • FIGS. 1-3 show an industrial truck 10 comprising a mast 11 and a lifting device 12 which is able to slide along the mast and which is adapted to manipulate a load 13.
  • the industrial truck 10 can include a driver's cabin, in which a seat and a control interface, such as, for example, a steering wheel and/or other user interfaces for controlling the truck, are arranged.
  • the load 13 can be any object whatsoever, an object 13a supported by a pallet 13b ( fig. 3 ), a package, a material on a reel, or anything else.
  • the industrial truck 10 can be equipped with three or four wheels, which can be driven by a drive system comprising, for example, an internal combustion engine or an electric motor or a hybrid system. Any known system of locomotion can be used in an industrial truck according to the present disclosure.
  • the industrial truck 10 is a lift truck; preferably, the lift truck 10 comprises a pair of forks 12a, 12b, which constitute the lifting device 12.
  • the forks 12a, 12b are mounted on a fork carriage 40, which in turn is slidingly mounted along the mast 11.
  • other types of lifting devices can be used in conjunction with the industrial truck according to the present disclosure, such as, for example, an arbour for lifting a material on a reel, a gripper, or for example any other equipment mountable on the mast of a lift truck.
  • the mast 11 is positioned in the front portion of the industrial truck 10.
  • the mast 11 can be able to pivot, i.e. rotate about a vertical axis, located in proximity to the front axle of the industrial truck.
  • the mast 11 has a substantially vertical position and, preferably, can pivot in an interval of angular positions around a vertical position.
  • the lifting device 12 is mounted on the mast 11 so as to be able to translate horizontally in a direction transverse to the mast.
  • the fork carriage 40 can be mounted so as to be able to horizontally translate with respect to the mast 11 and in a direction transverse to the direction of travel of the truck 10.
  • the lift truck 10 includes specific actuators, for example hydraulic ones, to cause the movement of vertical and/or horizontal translation of the lifting device 12.
  • the industrial truck 10 further includes an emitting device 15 configured to emit a light beam 14 (shown in figures 2 and 3 ) along an orientation direction.
  • the light beam 14 can be a laser beam.
  • the emitting device 15 can be preferably made as a laser rangefinder configured to measure a distance from a point of arrival 80 of the light beam on a strike surface of a target object.
  • a target object could be a pallet 13b that supports an object 13a (see figure 3 ), or a shelf that supports the load, or even the load itself.
  • the emitting device 15 is positioned in the front part of the industrial truck 10 so as to emit the light beam in a forward direction relative to the industrial truck.
  • the emitting device 15 is mounted on the fork carriage 40 of the truck, for example in a position substantially equidistant from the two forks 12a, 12b.
  • the industrial truck 10 comprises control means 51 configured to control the movement of the lifting device 12 relative to the mast 11.
  • the control of the movement of the lifting device 12 can take place automatically, semi-automatically or manually, in the manners described below.
  • Figure 4 schematically shows the control means 51, connected to a user interface 50 and to actuating means 53, 54, which include actuating means configured to impart a vertical and/or horizontal movement to the lifting device 12.
  • the control means 51 can be made with any hardware and/or software configuration; the control means 51 can include a single controller device or a plurality of devices connected together in a distributed architecture.
  • the industrial truck 10 further comprises actuating means 52 associated with the emitting device 15 and configured to vary the position of the light beam 14 relative to the lifting device 12.
  • the actuating means 52 are connected to the control means 51; the actuating means 52 can be configured to be activated based on the commands for aiming the light beam entered by a user via the user interface 50.
  • the industrial truck 10 in fact comprises a user interface 50 configured to receive an aiming command from a user to aim/direct the light beam 14;
  • the user interface 50 can be made in any form, for example a joystick, a touchscreen, a keypad, or other devices.
  • the user interface 50 is connected to the control means 51 in order to provide an input entered by the user, based on which the control means 51 gives a command to the actuators 52 associated with the emitting device 15.
  • the user interface 50 can also include a plurality of input devices, configured to receive also other commands from the user besides that of aiming the light beam.
  • the user interface 50 can also be configured to receive a command input for the movement of the lifting device and/or a command for driving the industrial truck.
  • separate user interfaces can be provided to perform the different driving and/or load manipulation functions.
  • the control means 51 are configured to command the actuating means 52 so as to vary the position of the light beam 14 in accordance with the aiming command received from the user interface 50.
  • the control means 51 are further configured to control the movement of the lifting device 12 based on a position of the light beam 14 following the variation of the position of the light beam in accordance with the aiming command.
  • the control means 51 are configured to control the movement of the lifting device 12 also based on the distance measured by the laser rangefinder, i.e. a distance equal to the length of the light beam 14 from the emitting device 15 to the point of incidence 80 of the light beam on a target object.
  • the control means 51 can thus command the horizonal translation of the lifting device 12 and the raising of the lifting device 12 along the mast based on the orientation (or more in general the position) of the light beam 14 and/or the length thereof after the position has been varied by the user.
  • the control means 51 can command the movement of the lifting device 12 to align it with a compartment 20 for loading/unloading the load 13 in a storage unit, for example a storage unit with shelves.
  • the user of the industrial truck 10 can initially drive the industrial truck into a position in proximity to the load 13 to be picked up.
  • the load 13 can be positioned on a shelving structure 30, for example in a section (or compartment) 20 of a shelving structure 30 which includes a plurality of sections arranged in a matrix.
  • the load 13 is an object 13a positioned on a pallet 13b, which is in turn supported by the shelf 21 of the shelving structure 30, i.e. a flat element constituting the rest surface for the load 13 when it is accommodated in the compartment 20.
  • the truck 10 After having reached a position in proximity to the load 13, the truck 10 remains in a fixed position (i.e. without further locomotion of the truck on wheels) with the front portion thereof facing towards the load 13 to be picked up and, more in general, towards the shelving structure 30 in which the load is stored.
  • the user of the truck 10 can activate the emitting device 15.
  • the emitting device 15 emits a light beam that strikes the shelving structure 30 in front of the truck 10 or one of the loads stored therein.
  • the user interface 50 for example a joystick or a keypad
  • the user can give a command to aim the light beam 14 until pointing at a position 80 (or point of incidence) associated with the load 13 to be picked up.
  • the position 80 can correspond to a central portion of the pallet 13b which supports an object 13a and is part of the load 13 to be picked up.
  • the position 80 could also be a central portion of the shelf 21 of the shelving structure that supports the load 13.
  • the position of the light beam 14 can be changed by varying the orientation of the emitting device 15.
  • the emitting device 15 is mounted so as to be able to rotate about a vertical axis and about a horizontal axis relative to the lifting device 12.
  • the emitting device 15 can have a substantially fixed absolute position relative to the lifting device 12, as it is connected to the fork carriage 40, but with the possibility of varying its orientation relative to the fork carriage 40.
  • the control unit 51 After having varied the orientation (or more in general the position) of the light beam 14, the control unit 51 detects the position of the light beam relative to the lifting device 12, for example by measuring the angles ⁇ and ⁇ . In particular, the user can enter a confirmation command via the user interface 50 to confirm that the light beam 14 is correctly pointed towards the load 13 to be picked up.
  • the confirmation command is received by the control means 51, which detects the position of the light beam 14 and/or the distance measured by the laser rangefinder 15 in the instant in which the confirmation command is entered.
  • the measured distance corresponds to the length of the light beam 14, starting from the emitting device 15 up to the point of incidence 80, i.e. the position associated with the load to be picked up that is pointed at by the light beam 14.
  • the distance measured by the laser rangefinder is designated as "d".
  • control means 51 can automatically give a command to the actuators 53, 54 which control the movement of the lifting device 12 so as to align it with the load 13. Therefore, the control means are configured to control the movement of the lifting device until it reaches a position of loading/unloading from/to a storage compartment 20 pointed at by the light beam or a storage compartment 20 accommodating a load 13 pointed at by the light beam.
  • the support 16 can preferably comprise two elements 17 and 18, as shown in figure 5 .
  • the element 17 supports the emitting device 15 by means of hinging on a horizontal axis to allow rotation about the axis 71.
  • the element 17 is in turn mounted so as to be able to rotate about an axis 70 that is vertical relative to the base 18.
  • the base 18 is advantageously fixed with respect to the lifting device 12, and/or to the fork carriage 40.
  • the above-described rotations for varying the orientation of the emitting device are imparted by actuating means 52 associated with the emitting device 15, for example by means of a motorised electrical drive of any known type.
  • the support 16 could be mounted on the industrial truck so as to be horizontally translatable relative to the lifting device 12, along a direction parallel to the direction of horizontal translation of the lifting device. In such a case, it is possible that the possibility of rotating about a vertical axis is omitted for the emitting device 15, since the horizontal translation of the support 16 can replace a variation of the angle ⁇ as shown in figure 2 in order to point at the target object via the light beam.
  • the user interface intended to receive the command to aim the beam 14 can be connected to the bus 61 by means of a joystick board 50a to enter commands, for example to impart an orientation of the light beam or to enter a confirmation command to confirm that the load to be picked up has been correctly pointed at with the light beam.
  • Other devices can be connected to the bus 61 by means of a specific interface and/or control board 62.
  • the laser meter board 60 of the laser rangefinder 15 can be connected to the bus 61.
  • the laser meter board 60 has the task of communicating via software (or via hardware if so desired) the lifting and lateral translation parameters.
  • the fork height and sideshift (horizontal translation) values are possible optionally shared with the laser meter board 60; in this manner, the sensor 15 will know its position in space and can integrate these measurements into the operation thereof in order to carry out feedback measurements during the alignment.
  • the reference numbers 53, 54 indicate the actuators that impart movements to the lifting device 12, for example a pump inverter and an oil distributor which constitute the hydraulic actuators for the activation of the forks 12.
  • control means 51 and the above-described functions of the control means could be implemented also outside main control board and/or the control board of the laser rangefinder in an architecture with a bus.
  • another type of light emitter could be used as opposed to a laser rangefinder.
  • other sensors could be intended to measure a distance of the industrial truck (and in particular of the fork carriage) from the load to be lifted. In this manner, knowing the orientation of the light beam pointed towards the load target and knowing the distance of the forks (or of the fork carriage) from the load (or from a shelving unit), it is possible to calculate the movement of the forks for alignment with the load even without knowing the length of the light beam, i.e. without a measurement of the distance of the light emitter from the point of incidence of the beam on the load pointed at.
  • the emitting device 15 could be horizontally and slidably mounted with respect to the fork carriage 40, for example along a support guide 41 shown in figure 2 .
  • the guide 41 can be fixed onto the fork carriage 40 so as not to interfere with the space for loading onto the forks 12.
  • a hydraulic jack or hydraulic actuator that imparts the horizontal movement of the emitter 15; this further hydraulic actuator can be controlled by means of an input entered by the user via the user interface 50 to point the light beam at the load to be picked up.
  • the system can again point the light beam towards the load to be picked up automatically based on the information relating to the part of the movement already completed; the user can thus verify whether the light beam is still pointed at the load to be picked up and enter a confirmation input via the user interface 50; in such a case, by means of the user feedback it is verified that the control of alignment is proceeding correctly, and the alignment can proceed automatically.
  • the present disclosure can also be applied to the case in which the load must be unloaded in a certain position, for example into a section or compartment of a storage unit.
  • the light beam can be pointed by the operator towards the section or the supporting shelf of a section in a storage unit with a shelf structure and the control means of the lift truck can be configured to automatically align the lifting device with the pre-selected section.

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  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Transportation (AREA)
  • Structural Engineering (AREA)
  • Civil Engineering (AREA)
  • Life Sciences & Earth Sciences (AREA)
  • Geology (AREA)
  • Mechanical Engineering (AREA)
  • Forklifts And Lifting Vehicles (AREA)
EP24188908.8A 2023-09-06 2024-07-16 Chariot industriel avec un contrôle amélioré du mouvement du dispositif de levage Pending EP4520708A1 (fr)

Applications Claiming Priority (1)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
IT102023000018297A IT202300018297A1 (it) 2023-09-06 2023-09-06 Carrello industriale con un controllo migliorato del movimento del dispositivo di sollevamento

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EP4520708A1 true EP4520708A1 (fr) 2025-03-12

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EP24188908.8A Pending EP4520708A1 (fr) 2023-09-06 2024-07-16 Chariot industriel avec un contrôle amélioré du mouvement du dispositif de levage

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EP (1) EP4520708A1 (fr)
IT (1) IT202300018297A1 (fr)

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CA2144886A1 (fr) * 1995-03-17 1996-09-18 William J. Doherty Systeme de guidage a camera video pour chariot elevateur a fourches
US20080011554A1 (en) * 2003-05-26 2008-01-17 Ralf Broesel Movable sensor device on the loading means of a forklift
US20220089420A1 (en) * 2020-09-24 2022-03-24 Ocme S.R.L. Automatic guided vehicle for the handling of shuttles and/or loading units in automatic warehouses and related control method
US11650074B2 (en) * 2019-09-04 2023-05-16 Sick Ag Method of creating a map, method of determining a pose of a vehicle, mapping apparatus and localization apparatus

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
CA2144886A1 (fr) * 1995-03-17 1996-09-18 William J. Doherty Systeme de guidage a camera video pour chariot elevateur a fourches
US20080011554A1 (en) * 2003-05-26 2008-01-17 Ralf Broesel Movable sensor device on the loading means of a forklift
US11650074B2 (en) * 2019-09-04 2023-05-16 Sick Ag Method of creating a map, method of determining a pose of a vehicle, mapping apparatus and localization apparatus
US20220089420A1 (en) * 2020-09-24 2022-03-24 Ocme S.R.L. Automatic guided vehicle for the handling of shuttles and/or loading units in automatic warehouses and related control method

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Publication number Publication date
IT202300018297A1 (it) 2025-03-06

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