Installation method for setting up conveying devices

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10556754-B2
Application number	US-201615567737-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 20, 2016
Priority date	Apr 20, 2015
Publication date	Feb 11, 2020
Grant date	Feb 11, 2020

Abstract

The invention relates to an installation method for setting up a control unit in a conveying device, wherein a first control unit controls an upstream first conveyor segment and a second control unit controls a downstream second conveyor segment. The method according to the invention comprises the steps of: placing an object on a first conveyor segment; activating a learning mode in a first and second control unit; activating a first and second conveyor drive by means of the respective first and second control unit; automatically conveying the object in the direction of the second conveyor segment; and storing an installation parameter in the second control unit depending on the triggering of the first or second sensor signal.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for setting up a control unit in a conveying device, wherein a first control unit controls an upstream first conveyor segment and a second control unit controls a downstream second conveyor segment spatially adjacent the first conveyer segment in a conveying direction, said first conveyor segment comprising:
a first conveyor drive for conveying an object through the first conveyor segment;
a first sensor unit for detecting an object at a position within the first conveyor segment;
wherein said second conveyor segment comprising:
a second conveyor drive for conveying an object through the second conveyor segment, wherein the second conveyor drive is downstream of the first conveyor drive;
a second sensor unit for detecting an object at a position within the second conveyor segment, wherein the second conveyor sensor is downstream of the first conveyor sensor; and
wherein the first conveyor drive and the first sensor unit are in signal communication with the first control unit in order to control the first conveyor drive and to receive a first sensor signal from the first sensor unit, and
the second conveyor drive and the second sensor unit are in signal communication with the second control unit in order to control the second conveyor drive and to receive a second sensor signal from the second sensor unit; and
wherein the first and the second control unit are in signal communication with each other via bus communication, said method comprising the following steps:
placing an object onto the first conveyor segment;
activating a learning mode in the first and second control unit;
activating the first and second conveyor drive by means of the respective first and second control unit;
automatically conveying the object in the direction of the second conveyor segment; and
storing an installation parameter in the second control unit depending on the triggering of the first sensor signal above or in combination with the second signal.

2. The method pursuant to claim 1 , wherein conveying parameters are assigned to the first conveyor segment in a first parameterising step, wherein respective conveying parameters are stored in the first control unit.

3. The method pursuant to claim 1 , wherein conveying parameters of the first control unit are stored in the second control unit after the second sensor signal is triggered by the object.

4. The method pursuant to claim 1 , wherein the second control unit signals:
termination of the learning mode;
incorrect detection of the direction of rotation visually and/or acoustically, in that the control unit of the conveyor segment emits optical signals which are generated by light-emitting components of the control unit of the conveyor segment;
controls a predetermined sequential pattern of activating and deactivating the conveyor drive of the conveyor segment; and/or
activates an electroacoustic sound transducer which is integrated in the control unit.

5. The method pursuant to claim 1 , wherein storing an installation parameter in the second control unit further comprises:
generating in the first control unit a delivery message containing bus address information,
sending the delivery message from the first to the second control unit by means of the bus communication, and
assigning an individual bus address derived from the bus address information to the second control unit by storing the individual bus address as an installation parameter in the second control unit when a second sensor signal is triggered by the object.

6. The method pursuant to claim 5 , wherein an individual bus address of the first control unit is manually defined in the form of a digit sequence by the user beforehand.

7. The method pursuant to claim 5 , wherein an individual bus address of the first control unit was defined by a preconfigured original number.

8. The method pursuant to claim 1 , wherein a central processing unit can exchange data with the first and second control unit via bus communication;
wherein the central processing unit performs the following steps:
fetching individual bus addresses from the control units via bus communication;
determining neighbourhood relationships of the control units on the basis of the sequence of individual bus addresses;
storing the neighbourhood relationships in the central processing unit; and
visualising the neighbourhood relationships by means of a graphical user interface.

9. The method pursuant to claim 8 , wherein a control unit is assigned an individual plaintext name.

10. The method pursuant to claim 8 , wherein a control unit is assigned an individual plaintext name which was manually defined in the form of a character string or a digit string by the user beforehand.

11. The method pursuant to claim 8 , wherein a control unit was predefined by a preconfigured original plaintext name.

12. The method pursuant to claim 8 , wherein a plurality of control units is addressed simultaneously via bus communication using one sub-address, wherein the plurality of control units having an identical sub-address is put into the learning mode simultaneously; and
wherein the sub-address is manually defined in the form of a digit sequence by the user beforehand, or was defined by a preconfigured original number.

13. The method pursuant to claim 12 , wherein the sub-address was defined by a preconfigured original number.

14. The method pursuant to claim 1 , wherein the second control unit comprises:
a first program unit which is in signal communication with the second conveyor drive and the second sensor unit of the second conveyor segment, and
a second program unit that is in signal communication with a third conveyor drive and a third sensor unit of a third conveyor segment.

15. The method pursuant to claim 14 , wherein the first and second program units are in signal communication with a common electric store.

16. The method pursuant to claim 14 , wherein the first control unit is put into the learning mode by triggering a switch.

17. The method pursuant to claim 14 , wherein the first control unit is put into the learning mode by triggering a Reed contact or a Hall sensor with a magnetic signal.

18. The method pursuant to claim 14 , wherein the first control unit is put into the learning mode by receiving a command in the first control unit via bus communication.

19. The method pursuant to claim 1 , wherein a preferred direction of rotation of the first and/or second conveyor drive such that the object conveyed to the downstream second conveyor segment is detected, said detection comprising the following steps:
conveying the object,
triggering of the first and/or second sensor signal by the object,
detecting by means of the first control unit that the first and/or second sensor signal has been triggered,
if necessary, reversing the direction of rotation of the first and/or second conveyor drive, depending on the first and/or second sensor signal, and
storing in the first control unit a first or second direction of rotation of the first conveyor drive as a downstream direction of rotation.

20. The method pursuant to claim 19 , wherein the direction of rotation of the first or second conveyor drive is reversed by triggering of the first or second sensor signal.

21. The method pursuant to claim 19 , wherein the reversal of the direction of rotation of the first conveyor drive is triggered on the basis of the first sensor signal, and the reversal of the direction of rotation

Assignees

• Interroll Holding Ag

Inventors

• Henze Herbert

Classifications

• G05B2219/25204

  Translate between different communication protocols · CPC title

• G05B2219/2621

  Conveyor, transfert line · CPC title

• B65G43/10 Primary

  Sequence control of conveyors operating in combination · CPC title

• B65G43/00

  Control devices, e.g. for safety, warning or fault-correcting · CPC title

• G05B2219/23193

  Memory stores lifetime, different settings, configurations of controlled device · CPC title