Conveying device

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12264494-B2
Application number	US-201917621239-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Aug 27, 2019
Priority date	Aug 27, 2019
Publication date	Apr 1, 2025
Grant date	Apr 1, 2025

Abstract

There is provided a conveying device that can support a car weight with a mechanism lighter in weight. A driving device ( 6 ) of a conveying device that lifts and lowers a loading-weight support along a rail ( 3 ) includes a wheel unit ( 13 ) and a link ( 14 ). The wheel unit ( 13 ) drives to rotate a driving wheel ( 15 ) in contact with a guide surface ( 11 ) to lift and lower the loading-weight support. The link ( 14 ) includes a first joint ( 17 ) connected to the wheel unit ( 13 ) and a second joint ( 18 ) rotatably supported by the loading-weight support. The second joint ( 18 ) is arranged in a position further apart from the guide surface ( 11 ) than the first joint ( 17 ), and above the first joint ( 17 ). The link ( 14 ) is arranged such that a straight line connecting the first joint ( 17 ) and the second joint ( 18 ) is tilted smaller than 45 degrees.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A conveying device comprising:
a loading-weight support that supports a load of an object to be conveyed and moves up and down in a shaft to convey the object to be conveyed; and
a first driving device that is provided on the loading-weight support and lifts and lowers the loading-weight support along a first rail extending in a lifting and lowering direction of the loading-weight support in the shaft, wherein
the first driving device includes:
a first wheel unit including:
a first wheel in contact with a guide surface extending in a longitudinal direction of the first rail;
a sub-wheel that is arranged side by side with the first wheel in the lifting and lowering direction and is in contact with the guide surface; and
a wheel coupling support that rotatably supports the first wheel, the first wheel unit driving to rotate the first wheel to lift and lower the loading-weight support; and

a first coupling link including:
a first connecting joint connected to the first wheel unit; and
a second connecting joint rotatably supported by the loading-weight support, wherein the second connecting joint is arranged in a position further apart from the guide surface than the first connecting joint, and

the second connecting joint is arranged above the first connecting joint,

wherein the first coupling link is arranged such that a tilt angle from a horizontal plane of a straight line connecting the first connecting joint and the second connecting joint is smaller than 45 degrees, and
wherein the first wheel unit is rotatably connected to the first connecting joint of the first coupling link, independently of a second wheel which contacts with the first rail at a position on a side of the first rail, and the position is on an opposite side of the first rail where the first wheel contacts, in a state that the wheel coupling support rotatably supports the first wheel and the sub-wheel.

2. The conveying device according to claim 1 , wherein the first driving device further includes:
a posture restraining mechanism including:
a first auxiliary wheel in contact with the guide surface;
a first posture restraining link having a first end connected to the first auxiliary wheel and second end connected to the loading-weight support; and
a first posture restraining spring having a first end connected to the loading-weight support and a second end connected to the first posture restraining link, the first posture restraining spring maintaining, with an elastic force, the contact of the first auxiliary wheel with the guide surface.

3. The conveying device according to claim 2 , wherein the first driving device includes:
a second wheel unit that is arranged symmetrically to the first wheel unit across the first rail and includes the second wheel; and
a second coupling link that has a first end connected to the second wheel unit and a second end connected to the loading-weight support to be rotatably supported by the loading-weight support, the second coupling link being arranged symmetrically to the first coupling link across the first rail.

4. The conveying device according to claim 3 , further comprising a rotation restraining transmitter assembly including:
two first links respectively coupled to the first coupling link and the second coupling link; and
a second link connected to the loading-weight support and to the two first links, and
the rotation restraining transmitter assembly causing the first wheel unit and second wheel unit to maintain a same tilt angle.

5. The conveying device according to claim 3 , wherein the rotation restraining transmitter causes the first coupling link to rotate in a first direction and the second coupling link to rotate in a second direction opposite to the first direction.

6. The conveying device according to claim 3 , further comprising:
a posture detector that detects a posture of the loading-weight support;
a second driving device that is provided on the loading-weight support and lifts and lowers the loading-weight support along a second rail extending in parallel to the first rail on an opposite side of the first rail across the loading-weight support; and
processing circuitry that controls the first driving device and the second driving device, wherein
the second driving device includes:
a third wheel unit including a third wheel, the third wheel being in contact with the second rail and driven to rotate based on the control by the processing circuitry; and
a fourth wheel unit including a fourth wheel, the fourth wheel being in contact with the second rail, the fourth wheel unit being positioned symmetrical to the third wheel across the second rail, and driven to rotate based on the control by the processing circuitry, and

the processing circuitry is configured to control the first driving device and the second driving device to rotate each of the first wheel, the second wheel, the third wheel, and the fourth wheel according to the posture detected by the posture detector to maintain the posture of the loading-weight support.

7. The conveying device according to claim 3 , wherein the first driving device includes a second return spring having a first end connected to the first coupling link or the first wheel unit and a second end connected to the second coupling link or the second wheel unit, the second return spring maintaining, with an elastic force, contact of the first wheel with the guide surface.

8. The conveying device according to claim 1 , wherein the first driving device includes a third return spring having a first end connected to the loading-weight support and a second end connected to the first coupling link, the third return spring maintaining, with an elastic force, contact of the first wheel with the guide surface.

9. The conveying device according to claim 8 , wherein the first driving device includes a fourth posture return spring having a first end connected to the loading-weight support and a second end connected to the first wheel unit, the fourth return spring maintaining, with an elastic force, contact of the first wheel with the guide surface.

10. The conveying device according to claim 1 , wherein the first driving device includes:
an angle detector that detects the tilt angle of the first coupling link; and
processing circuitry to detect, based on the angle detected by the angle detector, that the first wheel is worn.

11. The conveying device according to claim 1 , wherein the first driving device includes:
a pressing-force detector that detects a pressing force for pressing the first wheel against the guide surface; and
processing circuitry to detect, based on the pressing force detected by the pressing-force detector, that the first wheel is worn.

12. The conveying device according to claim 10 , further comprising:
a distance detector that measures a lifting and lowering distance of the loading-weight support; and
a rotation detector that detects a rotation amount of the first wheel, wherein
the processing circuitry is configured to:
calculate an estimated moving distance of the loading-weight support from an outer diameter of the first wheel based on a wear amount detected by the processing circuitry and the rotation amount detected by the rotation detector, and
compare the estimated moving distance and a distance detected by the distance detector to estimate a slip amount of the first wheel.

13. A conveying device comprising:
a loading-weight support that supports a load of an object to be conveyed and moves up and down in a shaft to convey the object to be conveyed; and
a first driving device that is provided on the load

Assignees

• Mitsubishi Electric Corp
• Tokyo Inst Tech

Inventors

• Sugahara Yusuke
• Takeda Yukio
• Matsuura Daisuke
• Ishii Takahiro
• Matsumoto Takeshi
• Kakio Masayuki
• Nakazawa Daisuke

Classifications

• B65G1/0492

  with cars adapted to travel in storage aisles · CPC title

• E04H6/12

  with mechanical means for shifting or lifting vehicles · CPC title

• E04H6/22

  characterised by use of movable platforms for horizontal transport {, i.e. cars being permanently parked on palettes} · CPC title

• B65G1/04

  mechanical · CPC title

• E04H6/18 Primary

  with means for transport in vertical direction only or independently in vertical and horizontal directions (E04H6/14 takes precedence) · CPC title