Article transport facility

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10023205-B2
Application number	US-201615090787-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 5, 2016
Priority date	Apr 6, 2015
Publication date	Jul 17, 2018
Grant date	Jul 17, 2018

Abstract

First travel rail pair provided along a first path has a first discontinuous section. And second travel rail pair provided along a second path has a second discontinuous section. First guide members allow movement of guided members along a travel direction and restrict vertical movement of one or more of the guided member when the article transport vehicle travels through a crossing portion along the first path. Second guide members allow movement of the guided members along the travel direction and restrict vertical movement of one or more of the guided members when the article transport vehicle travels through a crossing portion along the second path.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An article transport facility comprising: an article transport vehicle configured to travel along travel paths to transport an article;
a travel rail pair on which the article transport vehicle travels, the travel rail pair including two rail members arranged in parallel and spaced apart from each other at a constant distance along a width direction which is perpendicular to a direction along which a corresponding travel path extends;
first guide members whose positions are fixed with respect to the travel rail pair;
second guide members whose positions are fixed with respect to the travel rail pair;
wherein the article transport vehicle includes a first travel wheel pair including a pair of right and left travel wheels which roll on travel surfaces of the travel rail pair, a second travel wheel pair located on one side with respect to the first travel wheel pair along a vehicle body fore and aft direction which is along a travel direction of the article transport vehicle, the second travel wheel pair including a pair of right and left travel wheels which roll on the travel surfaces of the travel rail pair, guided members whose vertical positions can be fixed with respect to the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair,
wherein the travel paths include a first path, a second path that crosses the first path, and a crossing portion in which the first path and the second path cross each other,
wherein a first travel rail pair which is the travel rail pair provided along the first path has, in the crossing portion, a first discontinuous section in which the rail members are discontinuous,
wherein a second travel rail pair which is the travel rail pair provided along the second path has, in the crossing portion, a second discontinuous section in which the rail members are discontinuous,
wherein the first guide members allow movement of the guided members in the travel direction and restrict vertical movement of one or more of the guided members, in a first traveling state in which the first travel wheel pair is in the first discontinuous section and in a second traveling state in which the second travel wheel pair is in the first discontinuous section, when the article transport vehicle travels through the crossing portion along the first path, and
wherein the second guide members allow movement of the guided members in the travel direction and restrict vertical movement of one or more of the guided members, in a third traveling state in which the first travel wheel pair is in the second discontinuous section and in a fourth traveling state in which the second travel wheel pair is in the second discontinuous section, when the article transport vehicle travels through the crossing portion along the second path.

2. The article transport facility as defined in claim 1 , wherein the guided members are a pair of right and left auxiliary wheels which rotate about one or more axes extending along a vehicle body lateral direction of the article transport vehicle, and
wherein the pair of auxiliary wheels are located at a middle position between the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair along the vehicle body fore and aft direction.

3. The article transport facility as defined in claim 2 , wherein, in addition to the first path and the second path, the travel paths include a first primary path, and a second primary path which extends along the first primary path,
wherein the crossing portion is located between the first primary path and the second primary path along a paths spaced-apart direction in plan view, with the paths spaced-apart direction being defined to be a direction along which the first primary path and the second primary path are spaced apart from each other in plan view,
wherein the first path is connected to a first connecting portion of the first primary path and to a second connecting portion of the second primary path,
wherein the second path is connected to a third connecting portion of the second primary path and to a fourth connecting portion of the first primary path,
wherein the first path is formed to have such a length that, when the article transport vehicle travels along the first path from the first connecting portion to the second connecting portion; and when one of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair that is located forward of the other of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair along the vehicle body fore and aft direction is in the first discontinuous section, one travel wheel on a side in which the first primary path exists is located between the travel rail pair installed along the first primary path along the paths spaced-apart direction, the one travel wheel being one of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair that is located rearward of the other of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair; and when one of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair that is located rearward of the other of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair along the vehicle body fore and aft direction is in the first discontinuous section, one travel wheel on a side in which the second primary path exists is located between the travel rail pair installed along the second primary path along the paths spaced-apart direction, the one travel wheel being one of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair that is located forward of the other of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair,
wherein the second path is formed to have such a length that, when the article transport vehicle travels along the second path from the third connecting portion to the fourth connecting portion; and when one of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair that is located forward of the other of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair along the vehicle body fore and aft direction is in the second discontinuous section, one travel wheel on a side in which the second primary path exists is located between the travel rail pair installed along the second primary path along the paths spaced-apart direction, the one travel wheel being one of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair that is located rearward of the other of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair; and when one of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair that is located rearward of the other of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair along the vehicle body fore and aft direction is in the second discontinuous section, one travel wheel on a side in which the first primary path exists is located between the travel rail pair installed along the first primary path along the paths spaced-apart direction, the one travel wheel being one of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair that is located forward of the other of the first travel wheel pair and the second travel wheel pair,
wherein, when the article transport vehicle travels along the first path from the first connecting portion to the second connecting portion, the first guide members: support, in the first traveling state, only an auxiliary wheel of the pair of auxiliary wheels that is on a side in which the first primary path exists in the paths spaced-apart direction; and support, in the second traveling state, only an auxiliary wheel of the pair of auxiliary wheels that is on a side in which the second primary path exists in the paths spaced-apart direction, and
wherein, when the article transport vehicle travels along the second path from the third connecting portion to the fourth connecting portion, the second guide members: support, in the third traveling state, only an auxiliary wheel of the pair of auxiliary wheels tha

Assignees

• Daifuku Kk

Inventors

• Kinugawa Tomotaka
• Ogawa Daisuke

Classifications

• B61B3/02 Primary

  with self-propelled vehicles · CPC title

• B65G35/00

  Mechanical conveyors not otherwise provided for · CPC title

• B65G2201/0297

  Wafer cassette · CPC title

• B65G2812/99

  Conveyor systems not otherwise provided for · CPC title

• B65G49/061

  Lifting, gripping, or carrying means, for one or more sheets forming independent means of transport, e.g. suction cups, transport frames (suction means as load-engaging elements attached to the lifting or lowering gear of cranes B66C1/02; suction cups for attaching purposes F16B47/00; suction cups on gripping heads B25J15/0616; suction cups in general B65G47/91; suction cups combined with cutting means on vertical conveyors C03B33/00 - C03B33/10; devices for turning sheets B65G49/067; suspending devices B65G49/066) · CPC title