Periodic light projecting sensor control device and sensor system ensuring mutual interference does not occur

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10705248-B2
Application number	US-201715818766-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 21, 2017
Priority date	Feb 8, 2017
Publication date	Jul 7, 2020
Grant date	Jul 7, 2020

Abstract

A sensor control device and a sensor system are provided through which it is possible to automatically detect whether mutual interference occurs for a plurality of sensor units, and it is possible to automatically set periodic light projection timings for preventing mutual interference. A sensor control device includes a light projection control part configured to instruct a light projection operation for each of a plurality of sensor units and a light projection timing setting part configured to set periodic light projection timings when each of the sensor units is periodically operated based on results of light projection control for each of the sensor units and detection results of each of the sensor units.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A sensor control device comprising:
a light projection controller configured to instruct a light projection operation performed by a light projection part for each of a plurality of sensor units including the light projection part and a light reception part; and
a light projection timer configured to obtain combinations of the sensor units in which mutual interference caused when light projected from a certain sensor unit is received by another sensor unit occurs among the plurality of sensor units based on results of light projection control performed by the light projection controller with respect to each of the sensor units and detection results obtained by the light reception part of each of the sensor units,
wherein the light projection timer sets different delay times for the sensor units in each of the combinations by the way that mutual interference does not occur, thereby setting periodic light projection timings to each of the sensor units when each of the sensor units is periodically operated.

2. The sensor control device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the light projection controller detects a number of the plurality of sensor units, and
wherein the light projection timer sets the periodic light projection timings corresponding to the number in a range in which mutual interference does not occur.

3. The sensor control device according to claim 2 ,
wherein the light projection controller arbitrarily sets an entire light projection period of the plurality of sensor units in the range in which mutual interference does not occur.

4. The sensor control device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the light projection timer sets the periodic light projection timing based on a situation of the sensor unit when mutual interference occurs.

5. The sensor control device according to claim 1 ,
wherein the plurality of sensor units include sensor units of a plurality of types, and
wherein the periodic light projection timing set for each of the sensor units is set based on at least a type of the sensor unit.

6. The sensor control device according to claim 1 , comprising
a communication-unit-side controller that functions as a sensor controller that is communicatively connected to the plurality of sensor units and performs an operation instruction for each of the sensor units.

7. A sensor system comprising:
the plurality of sensor units including the light projection part and the light reception part; and
the sensor control device according to claim 6 .

Assignees

• Omron Tateisi Electronics Co

Inventors

• Matsushima Takuya
• Ozaki Koyo
• Iida Yusuke

Classifications

• G01D21/02 Primary

  Measuring two or more variables by means not covered by a single other subclass · CPC title

• G01V8/20 Primary

  using multiple transmitters or receivers · CPC title