Control of at least two mobile industrial trucks in a goods logistics facility

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10926953-B2
Application number	US-201916292424-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 5, 2019
Priority date	Mar 5, 2018
Publication date	Feb 23, 2021
Grant date	Feb 23, 2021

Abstract

A method for controlling at least two movable industrial trucks ( 30.1, 30.2, 30.3, 30.4, 30.5 ) in an area of a goods logistics facility ( 10 ). The industrial trucks each have an industrial truck drive control device for controlling the travel movements of the respective industrial truck, which is connected, preferably by wireless means, with a control apparatus ( 40 ) of the goods logistics facility, which is central and/or stationary. Individual travel movement control commands and/or individual industrial truck identifications are sent by the control apparatus to the respective industrial truck drive control devices of the industrial trucks so that in a local region ( 25 ) of the areas of the goods logistics facility, in which the industrial trucks are moved simultaneously, and preferably driven, the industrial trucks are moved or are drivable in a manner dependent on the individual travel movement control commands and/or dependent on the individual industrial truck identifications.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A method for controlling at least two driver-operated industrial trucks in a goods logistics facility, wherein each of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks has an industrial truck drive control device configured to control travel movements of the industrial truck independent of the driver, and wherein each industrial truck drive control device is connected with a control device of the goods logistics facility that is at least one of central and stationary, the method comprising:
sending at least one of individual travel movement control commands and individual industrial truck identifications from the control device of the goods logistics facility to the respective industrial truck drive control devices of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks; and
at least in a local region of the goods logistics facility where the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks are moved simultaneously, controlling movement of at least one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks independent of its driver using its respective industrial truck drive control device in a manner that is dependent on the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications.

2. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks are provided with different priority designations by the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications such that one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks provided with a higher priority designation is controlled by the industrial truck control devices independent of the drivers to be preferentially operated in the local region as compared to another of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks provided with a lower priority designation.

3. The method according to claim 2 , wherein at a narrow point in the local region where the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks are moved simultaneously, the one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks provided with the higher priority designation is controlled by the industrial control devices independent of the drivers to move with priority as compared to the another of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks provided with the lower priority designation.

4. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications sent to the respective industrial truck drive control devices of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks is displayed on a display unit of the respective at least two industrial trucks.

5. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications are deleted a predetermined period of time after being sent to the respective industrial truck drive control devices.

6. The method according to claim 1 , wherein at least one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks is braked in the local region by the industrial truck control device for at least a predetermined period of time dependent on the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications.

7. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications for a respective one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks takes into account capabilities of a vehicle driver of the respective one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks.

8. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications for a respective one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks takes into account at least one of an urgency of a conveyance task and an operation time of a respective one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks as compared to another one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks.

9. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications for a respective one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks takes into account a traffic density of industrial trucks in the local region of the goods logistics facility.

10. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications for a respective one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks takes into account blockages of conveying paths for industrial trucks in the local region of the goods logistics facility.

11. The method according to claim 1 , wherein the at least one of the individual travel movement control commands and the individual industrial truck identifications for a respective one of the at least two driver-operated industrial trucks takes into account navigation routes for industrial trucks in the local region of the goods logistics facility.

12. An industrial truck control system for a goods logistics facility having at least two driver-operated industrial trucks in an area of the goods logistics facility, wherein the industrial truck control system is operated according to a method of claim 1 .

Assignees

• Jungheinrich Ag

Inventors

• Grabbe Florian
• Ahrens Stefan
• Heise Sven-Ole
• Kopelke Jan
• Altmann Tony

Classifications

• B66F9/063

  Automatically guided · CPC title

• B66F9/24 Primary

  Electrical devices or systems · CPC title

• B65G1/0492

  with cars adapted to travel in storage aisles · CPC title

• B65G1/1373 Primary

  for fulfilling orders in warehouses · CPC title

• G05D1/0291

  Fleet control (monitoring fleets in traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/127, G08G1/127) · CPC title