Tire transport apparatus

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12378084-B2
Application number	US-202118273050-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 11, 2021
Priority date	Jan 21, 2021
Publication date	Aug 5, 2025
Grant date	Aug 5, 2025

Abstract

A tire transport apparatus includes at least three arms each having an arm main body and a protrusion disposed to protrude outward at a lower part of the arm main body to lift the tire, an arm extension/retraction mechanism configured to move the at least three arms in a horizontal extension/retraction direction, a lift mechanism configured to raise and lower the at least three arms, at least three optical reflection sensors disposed on an outer side of a circle including distal ends of the protrusions when the at least three arms are above the tire and in a retracted state to detect an object below, and a controller configured to determine that one or more arms among the at least three arms are in an inappropriate position, if one or more optical reflection sensors among the at least three optical reflection sensors detect the tire.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A tire transport apparatus comprising:
at least three arms each having an arm main body and a protrusion disposed to protrude outward at a lower part of the arm main body to lift the tire;
an arm extension or retraction mechanism configured to move the at least three arms in a horizontal extension or retraction direction;
a lift mechanism configured to raise and lower the at least three arms;
at least three optical reflection sensors disposed on an outer side of a virtual circle including distal ends of the protrusions when the at least three arms are above the tire and in a retracted state to detect an object below; and
a controller configured to determine that one or more arms among the at least three arms are in an inappropriate position, when one or more optical reflection sensors among the at least three optical reflection sensors detect the tire.

2. The tire transport apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein, when none of the at least three optical reflection sensors detects the tire, the controller performs the operation to lift the tire.

3. The tire transport apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein, when one or more optical reflection sensors among the at least three optical reflection sensors detect the tire, the controller moves the at least three arms in a direction from the optical reflection sensor that has detected the tire toward the center of a circle connecting the three optical reflection sensors.

4. The tire transport apparatus according to claim 1 , wherein
the optical reflection sensor is a laser distance sensor, and
the controller monitors distances measured by the laser distance sensors, and determines that the optical reflection sensor has detected the tire when there is a difference between distances measured by the laser distance sensors.

5. The tire transport apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the controller moves the at least three arms in the direction from the laser distance sensor that has detected a short distance toward the center of a circle connecting the three laser distance sensors, and then monitors the distances measured by the laser distance sensors.

6. The tire transport apparatus according to claim 1 , further comprising a contact sensor disposed at a bottom surface of the protrusion to detect contact between a distal end side of the protrusion and an object below, wherein
if the contact sensor detects the tire during lowering of the arm, the controller controls the lift mechanism to stop further lowering of the at least three arms.

7. The tire transport apparatus according to claim 4 , wherein the controller determines a number of tires that is configured to be transported based on a difference between the distances measured by the laser distance sensors.

Assignees

• Murata Machinery Ltd

Inventors

• Kitanishi Hiroya
• Yamagishi Hidenori
• Aoi Tomohiro

Classifications

• B29D30/00

  Producing pneumatic or solid tyres or parts thereof (producing inner tubes B29D23/24; constructional form of tyres or parts thereof B60C; connection of valves to inflatable elastic bodies B60C29/00; testing of tyres G01M17/02) · CPC title

• B65G2201/0273

  Tires · CPC title

• B66C17/04

  with lifting beams, e.g. slewable beams, carrying load-engaging elements, e.g. magnets, hooks (constructions of load-engaging elements B66C1/00, B66C3/00) · CPC title

• B66C13/46

  Position indicators for suspended loads or for crane elements · CPC title

• B66C1/66 Primary

  for engaging holes, recesses, or abutments on articles specially provided for facilitating handling thereof · CPC title