JPH0456323B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Industrial Application Field] The present invention relates to an unmanned vehicle suitable for transporting goods within a factory premises, etc., and particularly relates to an unmanned vehicle that automatically turns on/off the power switch of the unmanned vehicle. The present invention relates to a control device for an unmanned vehicle that can perform the following operations.

[Prior Art] In recent years, with the rise of FA (factory automation), unmanned vehicles have become widely used.

FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing an outline of this type of unmanned vehicle. In the figure, 1 is a battery, 2 is a manual power switch, and 3 is a control circuit. Control circuit 3
Controls the current supplied to a motor (not shown), and performs control related to running, stopping, steering, etc. of the unmanned vehicle, movement control, communication control, etc. Here, in the above-mentioned steering, a magnetic field generated by an alternating current flowing through the induction wire 4 is detected by a steering sensor attached to the vehicle body, and based on this detection output, the control circuit 3 controls the motor. By changing the supply current to
This is done by changing the rotational speed of the left and right wheels 5. Furthermore, the power switch 2 is manually turned on and off when starting and ending operation of the unmanned vehicle system.

[Problems to be solved by the invention] By the way, in the conventional unmanned vehicle mentioned above,
When starting and stopping the unmanned vehicle system, the power switch 2 of each unmanned vehicle must be turned on and off manually, which is difficult to do when there are a large number of unmanned vehicles or when the unmanned vehicles are scattered all over the place. In this case, the amount of time and effort required for this operation increases, and valuable time is wasted.

This invention was made against this background, and an object thereof is to provide an unmanned vehicle control device that can turn on/off the power switches of all unmanned vehicles at once when the unmanned vehicle system is started or stopped. .

[Means for Solving the Problems] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention supplies an alternating current to an induction wire laid on the ground side, and uses a steering sensor attached to the vehicle body to absorb the magnetic field caused by the alternating current. Controls the current supplied to the motor while detecting it,
In the electromagnetic induction unmanned vehicle that runs along the induction wire, a detection means for detecting the alternating current, a determination means for determining the magnitude of the output of the detection means, and a control means for controlling the operation of the unmanned vehicle. and a power switch that is inserted between the control circuit and the battery and is turned on by the output of the determination means when the output of the detection means is larger than a preset value. shall be.

[Operation] According to the above configuration, the power switches of all unmanned vehicles are turned on as soon as an alternating current of a certain level or more flows through the induction wire, and the power switches of all unmanned vehicles are turned off as soon as the alternating current is stopped.

[Example] Hereinafter, an example of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

In FIGS. 1 and 2, 11 is an induction wire 4
This is a coil (detector) that outputs an induced voltage due to electromagnetic induction when an alternating current flows through the coil. The output of the detector 11 is supplied to a switch circuit 12,
The output of the switch circuit 12 causes the electromagnetic contactor 13 to
is controlled on/off. That is, the induction wire 4
When an alternating current is flowing through the induction wire 4, the electromagnetic contactor 13 is turned on and power is supplied to the control circuit 3, and when no alternating current is flowing through the induction wire 4, the electromagnetic contactor 13 is turned off and the control circuit is supplied with power. Power supply to 3 is stopped.

The switch circuit 12 has the configuration shown in FIG. In the figure, 21 is a transistor. One end of the excitation coil 13a of the electromagnetic contactor 13 is connected to the collector of the transistor 21, and the other end of the excitation coil 13a is connected to the positive end of the battery 1. Further, the emitter of the transistor 21 is grounded. Therefore, transistor 21
When turned on, the electromagnetic contactor 13 operates, its contact 13b closes, and power is supplied from the battery 1 to the control circuit 3. Note that a diode 22 for suppressing back electromotive force is connected in parallel to the coil 13a of the electromagnetic contactor 13.

Next, a resistor 2 is connected to the base of the transistor 21.
3 and 24 are connected to each other, and the output of the detector 11 is supplied to the other end of the resistor 23 via a constant voltage diode 25 and a changeover switch 26. The changeover switch 26 connects the constant voltage diode 25 to either the detector 11 side or the manual power switch 2 side, and when it is switched to the power switch 2 side, it is connected to the power switch 2 as in the conventional case. The power can be turned on and off manually. Note that a tuning capacitor 27 is connected in parallel to the coil of the detector 11.

In such a configuration, when the changeover switch 26 is switched to the detector 11 side and an alternating current is supplied to the induction wire 4, this is detected by the detector 11, and when the output of the detector 11 exceeds a certain voltage, The transistor 21 is turned on and the electromagnetic contactor 13 is activated. As a result, power from the battery 1 is supplied to the control circuit 3.

On the other hand, when the alternating current stops flowing through the induction wire 4, the voltage above the certain level is no longer output from the detector 11, so the transistor 21 is turned off and the electromagnetic contactor 13 is also turned off. As a result, power supply to the control circuit 3 is stopped.

In addition, if the changeover switch 26 is switched to the power switch 2 side, regardless of the presence or absence of alternating current,
Only when the power switch 2 is turned on, the transistor 21 is turned on and power is supplied to the control circuit 3.

FIG. 3 shows a modification of the switch circuit 12. In the figure, 31 is a comparator, which compares the set voltage formed by voltage dividing resistors 32 and 33 with the output voltage from the detector 11. Then, when the output voltage from the detector 11 becomes equal to or higher than the set voltage, the transistor 21 is turned on. It is clear that the same effects as above can be obtained with such a configuration as well.

Note that although current always flows through the switch circuit 12, this current is extremely small and does not pose a problem.

Further, in the above embodiment, the detector 11 is provided separately from the steering sensor, but even if a steering sensor is used in place of the detector 11, the same effect can be obtained.

Further, when the power is turned on/off, a signal exclusively for turning on/off the power may be placed on the induction wire 4 to turn the power on/off.

Furthermore, to ensure safety, it is also possible to take measures such as sounding an alarm before the power is automatically turned on and the train departs.

[Effects of the Invention] As explained above, in this invention, the power switch of an unmanned vehicle is turned on/off when an alternating current of a certain level or more flows through the induction wire. You can immediately turn on/stop the power at any time. Thereby, work efficiency can be improved. Additionally, since the work of supplying and stopping alternating current to induction wires has been a necessary work in the past, with the present invention, the user does not have to be conscious of power on/off operations when starting and stopping an unmanned vehicle system. It will be done.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing the configuration of a control device for an unmanned vehicle according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a circuit diagram showing the configuration of a switch circuit according to the same embodiment, and FIG. 3 is a modification of the switch circuit. Circuit diagram showing the configuration, No. 4
The figure is a conceptual diagram showing an outline of a conventional unmanned vehicle. 1... Battery, 2... Manual power switch, 3
... Control circuit, 4 ... Induction wire, 11 ... Detector (detection means), 12 ... Switch circuit (determination means),
13...Magnetic contactor (power switch).

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. An alternating current is passed through an induction wire laid on the ground side, and the vehicle travels along the induction wire while detecting a magnetic field caused by the alternating current with a steering sensor attached to the vehicle body. The electromagnetic induction unmanned vehicle includes: a detection means for detecting the alternating current; a determination means for determining the magnitude of the output of the detection means; a control circuit for controlling operation of the unmanned vehicle; this control circuit and a battery. 1. A control device for an unmanned vehicle, comprising: a power switch that is inserted between the detection means and turned on by the output of the determination means when the output of the detection means is larger than a preset value.