JPH0714317Y2 - Bar code reader for forklift - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial application] The present invention relates to a bar code reader for reading a bar code as luggage management information in a forklift.

[Prior Art] In recent years, as shown in FIG. 8, there has been proposed a system for managing physical distribution by giving a bar code as baggage management information to a bar code reader 94 provided on a forklift 9. . The package management information includes, for example, a product number, a shelf number, and a destination.

As shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the bar code reader 94 has a fork bar 922 on the lower side of the lift bracket 92.
It is attached to.

Specifically, as shown in FIG. 8, a bar code reader bracket 93 is fixed to the fork bar 922, and the bar code reader 94 is held by the bar code reader bracket 93. Also, the bar code reader bracket 93
As shown in FIG. 9, the lift bracket 92 is disposed substantially at an intermediate position between the pair of left and right forks 95 hooked on the fork bars 921 and 922 of the lift bracket 92.

A controller is mounted on the forklift 9, and the bar code reader 94 is mounted by the controller.
Are trying to control.

On the other hand, on the side surface of the pallet 8, the bar code reader 94
A bar code label 82 that gives a bar code as luggage management information is attached to the. The barcode label 82
Is a pair of left and right fork insertion holes on the pallet 8.
It is arranged at an intermediate position in 81.

When the forklift 9 is advanced and the fork 95 is inserted into the fork insertion hole 81, the bar code reader 94 reads the bar code on the bar code label 82.

In this way, the package management information read from the barcode by the barcode reader 94 is sent to, for example, the above controller, and further wirelessly transmitted from the controller to the host computer of the central control sensor.

In FIG. 8, 91 is a mast of the forklift 9,
80 indicates luggage.

[Problems to be solved]

However, the conventional barcode reader may not be able to read the barcode. This point will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

That is, in the bar code reader 94, for example, a laser beam is emitted as a scanning pattern by a combination of a high-speed rotating mirror and a diffusion mirror. This scanning pattern forms a wide scanning area as shown by the dotted line in FIG. The laser light that has crossed the bar code on the bar code label 82 is reflected and detected by the light receiving element of the scanner.

At this time, the combination of the bar and the space in the barcode is a pattern of the intensity of reflected light. By electrically amplifying this pattern and shaping the waveform, the original combination of bars and spaces is reproduced as an electrical signal. This electrical signal is digitized and input to the microprocessor of the scanner. After checking the data format and errors, it is converted to numeric and character data and output.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 9, the bar code reader 94
, The distance L from the bar code label 82
Is large, the reading range D becomes large, but it becomes impossible to read a small barcode. On the other hand, when the distance L from the barcode label 82 is small, the reading range D becomes small, but a small barcode can be read.

Therefore, the distance L between the barcode reader 94 and the barcode label 82 is set in an appropriate range.

However, as shown by the alternate long and short dash line in FIG. 9, when the center of the pallet 8 is displaced by the distance M in the horizontal direction with respect to the barcode reader 94 due to the insertion state of the fork 95, the barcode label 82 is displayed. The barcode is also displaced by the distance M. This bug is
This also occurs when the bar code is arranged on the package and the package is displaced.

As a result, the barcode label 82 may stick out of the reading range D, and the barcode may not be read.

In view of the above conventional problems, the present invention can increase the reading range and reliably read the barcode even when the barcode is displaced in the horizontal direction.
It is intended to provide a bar code reader.

[Means for solving problems]

The present invention is a bar code reader mounted on a forklift to read a bar code on the luggage side. The bar code reader is mounted on the forklift so as to be horizontally rotatable, and the fork of the forklift should be inserted into the pallet. A bar code reader in a forklift is characterized in that a pallet sensor for detecting a bar code is provided and the bar code reader is horizontally rotated by a signal from the pallet sensor.

What is most noticeable in the present invention is that the bar code reader is horizontally swung in response to a signal from the pallet sensor in order to increase the reading range of the bar code reader.

In the present invention, the bar code reader is mounted on a lift bracket of a forklift, for example. Further, the above bar code is provided on the pallet or the package itself.

As a means for horizontally rotating the bar code reader, a method using a pendulum (see the first embodiment), a method using a spring (see the second embodiment), a method of directly driving by a motor (the first) 3 Refer to Example 3).

The pallet sensor is mechanically constructed by a sensor lever (see the first and second embodiments), electrically constructed by an optical sensor and an ultrasonic sensor (see the third embodiment). There is.

[Action]

In the present invention, by inserting the fork into the pallet, the pallet sensor detects the pallet and sends a signal to the bar code reader.

Therefore, the bar code reader rotates in the horizontal direction in response to the above signal. Therefore, the scanning pattern of the barcode reader forms a wide scanning area in the horizontal direction.

Therefore, the reading range of the bar code reader becomes large in the horizontal direction.

〔effect〕

Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to provide a barcode reader that can reliably read a barcode even if the barcode is displaced in the horizontal direction.

〔Example〕

First Embodiment A bar code reader according to the first embodiment of the present invention will be described below.
This will be described with reference to FIGS.

In this example, the bar code reader 94 is attached to the forklift 9 so as to be horizontally rotatable. Further, the pallet sensor 2 for detecting the pallet 8 into which the fork 95 of the forklift 9 should be inserted is provided. The bar code reader 94 is horizontally rotated by a signal from the pallet sensor 2.

That is, as a mechanism for rotating the barcode reader 94 in the horizontal direction, the fork bar 92 on the lower side of the lift bracket 92 is used.
Fix the support bracket 12 to 2. A box-shaped bar code reader bracket 11 is pivotally attached to the tip of the support bracket 12 via a support pin 110 so as to be horizontally rotatable. A bar code reader 94 is mounted in the bar code reader bracket 11. Further, a bar code reader trigger 119 is formed on the side wall of the bar code reader bracket 11 as shown in FIG.

On the other hand, the fork bar 921 on the upper side of the lift bracket 92
A support pin 130 is projectingly provided directly above the bar code reader bracket 11. Then, the pendulum 13 is suspended by the support pin 130 so as to be rotatable in the vehicle width direction. The pendulum 13 has a pendulum pin 131 at the bottom. As shown in FIG. 2, the lower end of the pendulum pin 131 is loosely fitted to the guide 111 arranged on the upper surface of the bar code reader bracket 11. Further, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the support bracket 12 is provided with a long hole 121 along the rotation locus of the pendulum pin 131. The amount of rotation of the pendulum pin 131 in the vehicle width direction is restricted by the inner wall surfaces of both ends of the elongated hole 121.

Further, the sensor bracket 22 of the pallet sensor 2 is fixed to the front surface of the fork bar 921 by shifting the position in the vehicle width direction with respect to the bar code reader bracket 11. A sensor lever 21 is pivotally attached to the sensor bracket 22 by a support shaft 23 so as to be rotatable in the vehicle front-rear direction. A return spring 24 is wound around the support shaft 23.

Due to the return spring 24, the lower end portion of the sensor lever 21 is always slightly forward of the fork 95. Further, a pallet sensor trigger 219 is extended rearward at the lower end of the sensor lever 21. The tip of the pallet sensor trigger 219 is
It is bent in the direction of the barcode reader 94 and can interfere with the barcode reader trigger 119.

Others are the same as the above-mentioned conventional example.

Since the bar code reader in the forklift of this example is configured as described above, the following operational effects are exhibited.

That is, as shown in FIG. 1, the forklift 9 is moved forward to move the fork 95 into the fork insertion hole 81 of the pallet 8.
Insert it inside. As a result, the pallet 8 pushes the sensor lever 21 of the pallet sensor 2 backward. As a result, the third
As shown in the figure, the pallet sensor trigger 219 and the bar code reader trigger 119 interfere with each other. That is, the pallet sensor 2 detects the pallet 8 and sends a signal to the barcode reader 94 side.

Therefore, the bar code reader bracket 11 tries to rotate horizontally in the direction A in FIG. At this time, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the pendulum 13 is swung in the E direction.

Then, when the sensor lever 21 moves by a certain amount, the interference between the pallet sensor trigger 219 and the barcode reader trigger 119 is released. Therefore, the pendulum 13 rotates in the E direction by a certain amount and then in the opposite direction (F direction), and thereafter performs this repetitive motion.

As a result, the barcode reader bracket 11 is interlocked with the repetitive motion of the pendulum 13 and repeatedly rotated in the horizontal direction. That is, the barcode reader 94 swings. As a result, the reading range of the bar code reader 94 is expanded in the horizontal direction, as indicated by the one-dot chain line R in FIG.

Therefore, as shown in FIG. 2, the barcode label 82
Even when the vehicle is displaced in the vehicle width direction, that is, in the horizontal direction, the barcode label 82 is
It is within the reading range of 94. Also, due to the swinging movement,
The barcode reader 94 can repeatedly read the barcode 820. Therefore, the barcode reader 94 can reliably read the barcode 820 on the barcode label 82.

Further, since the reading range of the bar code reader 94 is expanded in this way, it is possible to increase the number of reading digits of the bar code 820 within the range of the position shift of the pallet 8. Further, if the number of reading digits of the bar code 820 is not increased, the bar code 820 can be displayed in a large size so that the bar code reader 94 can read it more accurately.

Second Embodiment A bar code reader for a forklift according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5.

In this example, a spiral spring 3 is used instead of the pendulum 13 shown in the first embodiment. The spiral spring 3 has a fourth
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 5, the bar code reader bracket 11 is wound around the support pin 110. Then, one end of the spiral spring 3 is fixed to the support pin 110, and the other end is fixed to the support bracket 12. The bar code reader 94 in the bar code reader bracket 11 is normally urged by the spiral spring 3 so as to face forward.

Further, since the spiral spring 3 is used, the long hole of the support bracket 12 is eliminated.

Others are the same as those in the first embodiment.

Since the barcode reader of this example is configured as described above, the pallet sensor 2 detects the pallet 8 and
When the pallet sensor trigger 219 and the bar code reader trigger 119 interfere with each other and the interference is released, the bar code reader bracket 11 is repeatedly rotated in the horizontal direction by the spiral spring 3. That is, the barcode reader 94 swings. Therefore, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained.

Third Embodiment A bar code reader for a forklift according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6 and 7.

In this example, the motor 4 is used instead of the pendulum 13 shown in the first embodiment. Further, instead of the pallet sensor 2, a pallet sensor 5 such as an ultrasonic sensor is used.

The motor 4 is fixed on the support bracket 12 as shown in FIGS. 6 and 7. Then, the output shaft of the motor 4 and the support pin 110 of the bar code reader bracket 11 are connected.

Also, the pallet sensor 5 is a sensor bracket 50.
Via the fork bar 922 of the lift bracket 92.

The motor 4 and the pallet sensor 5 are connected to a controller (not shown).

Others are the same as those in the first embodiment.

Since the barcode reader of this example is configured as described above, it exhibits the following operational effects.

That is, the fork 95 is inserted into the fork insertion hole 81 of the pallet 8.
When inserted into the inside, the pallet sensor 5 detects the pallet 8 in a non-contact manner and sends the signal to the controller. The controller receives a signal from the pallet sensor 5 and sends a control signal to the motor 4.

Therefore, the motor 4 is within the preset range,
The barcode reader bracket 11 is repeatedly rotated in the horizontal direction. That is, the bar code reader 94 is caused to perform a swing motion. Therefore, the same effect as that of the first embodiment can be obtained.

[Brief description of drawings]

1 to 3 show a bar code reader in a forklift according to the first embodiment, FIG. 1 is a side sectional view thereof, FIG. 2 is a rear view thereof, FIG. 3 is a plan view thereof, and FIG. 5 and 5 show a bar code reader according to the second embodiment, FIG. 4 is a side sectional view thereof, FIG. 5 is a plan view thereof, and FIGS. 6 and 7 are bar codes according to the third embodiment. FIG. 6 shows a leader, FIG. 6 is a side sectional view thereof, FIG. 7 is a plan view thereof, FIGS. 8 and 9 show a bar code reader in a conventional forklift, and FIG. 8 is a side sectional view thereof. The figure is a plan view thereof. 11 …… Bar code reader bracket, 13 …… Pendulum, 2…
… Pallet sensor, 21 …… Sensor lever, 3 …… Spiral spring, 4 …… Motor, 5 …… Pallet sensor, 8 …… Pallet, 82 …… Bar code label, 820 …… Bar code, 9 ……
Forklift, 94 …… Bar code reader, 95 …… Fork,

Claims (1)

[Scope of utility model registration request] 1. A bar code reader mounted on a forklift for reading a bar code on the luggage side, wherein the bar code reader is mounted on the forklift so as to be horizontally rotatable, and the fork of the forklift is inserted. A bar code reader for a forklift, comprising a pallet sensor for detecting a pallet, and the bar code reader being configured to be horizontally rotated by a signal from the pallet sensor.