CONTAINER TRANSPORTING SYSTEM

• US 3,669,206 A
• Filed: 08/19/1969
• Issued: 06/13/1972
• Est. Priority Date: 08/21/1968
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Hans Tax, Rudiger Franke
• Original Assignee: Hans Tax, Rudiger Franke
• Inventors: Tax, Hans, Franke, Rudiger
• Primary Examiner(s): Betts, Kenneth H.
• Application Number:
  US04/851,248
• Time in Patent Office: 1,029 Days
• Field of Search: 180/98,79,79.1 318/16,547,587,607 246/63,30
• US Class Current: 180/168
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 63/004 for containers
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0265 using buried wires

Abstract

Containers transported on containerships and the like are transferred between storage and shipping areas by means of automatic vehicles which travel along guiding cables buried in the roadways connecting the several areas. The vehicles are steered and their drive systems controlled by means of steering and drive control signals generated at a central control station and transmitted by the guiding cables to sensing elements on the vehicles. A signal generator on each vehicle transmits continuous back signals to the control station through the cables and intermittent position signals through sensing elements at stopping stations along the roadways.

Claims

1. In a container handling system including two container loading areas, a roadway connecting said areas, a roadable, selfpropelled vehicle capable of traveling between said areas on said roadway while carrying a container, said vehicle including drive control means for varying the speed of movement of said vehicle, and steering means for steering the vehicle during said movement, the improvement which comprises:

a. a guiding conductor (30) extending in said roadway between said areas;

b. steering signal generating means (110) conductively connected to said conductor for transmitting steering signals to the same;

c. two steering signal sensing means (20,

     21) spaced on said vehicle transversely of the normal direction of vehicle movement for simultaneously sensing said steering signals in said conductor;

d. two steering signal receiving means (520,530) mounted on said vehicle in respective circuits with said sensing means for issuing output signals corresponding to the second steering signals;

e. comparator means (550) connected with said receiving means for receiving said output signals, and responsive to a difference in said output signals for generating an error signal;

f. steering control means (560) connected to said comparator means and responsive to said error signal for actuating said steering means and for thereby changing the magnitude of said error signal toward a predetermined value;

g. dRive control signal generating means (110) conductively connected to said conductor for transmitting drive control signals to the same;

h. drive control signal sensing means (20,

     21) on said vehicle for sensing said drive control signals; and

i. drive control signal receiving means (520,530) mounted on said vehicle in circuit with said drive control signal sensing means for issuing output signals corresponding to the sensed drive control signals, 1. said drive control means (540) being connected to said drive control signal receiving means and responsive to the output signals of the same for varying said speed, 2. said drive control signal sensing means being constituted by at least one of said steering signal sensing means.

2. said drive control signals being constituted by a sequence of pulses,

3. In a system as set forth in claim 2, said steering signals and said drive controls signals being constituted by a single sequence of signals in said guiding conductor.

4. said drive control means responding to changes in the ratio between the duration of the pulses constituting said output signals of the drive control signal receiving means and the spacing of said last-mentioned pulses for varying the speed of said vehicle.

5. In a system as set forth in claim 4, said drive control signals having a carrier frequency and being modulated with a modulating frequency, and said drive control receiving means including filter means (523, 533) for selectively passing said modulating frequency.

6. In a container handling system including a plurality of container loading areas, a plurality of connected roadways extending between said areas, a plurality of roadable, self-propelled vehicles, each vehicle being capable of traveling between said areas on said roadways while carrying a container, each vehicle including drive means for moving said vehicle on said roadways, drive control means connected to said drive means for controlling the speed of movement of said vehicle, and steering means for steering the vehicle during said movement, the improvement which comprises:

a. guiding conductor means (30) extending in each roadway between said areas for guiding said vehicles;

b. a plurality of drive control signal generating means (100, 110,

     120) conductively connected to said conductor means for transmitting thereto respective drive control signals associated with respective ones of said vehicles (81,82,83);

c. drive control signal sensing means (20,

     21) on each vehicle for sensing said drive control signals; and

d. selective drive control signal receiving means (520,

     530) mounted on each vehicle in circuit with said drive control sensing means for issuing output signals corresponding only to drive control signals sensed by said sensing means and associated with said vehicle,

7. In a system as set forth in claim 6, said drive control signals each having a carrier frequency and being cyclically modulated, the drive control signals respectively associated with said vehicles differing from each other by the modulation frequencies thereof, each of said drive control signal receiving means including filter means for selectively passing signals of the associated modulation frequency only.

8. In a system as set forth in claim 7, each of said drive control signal generating means including carrier frequency generating means (105) for generating electrical oscillations of a first carrier frequency, modulating frequency generating means (101, 111, 121) for generating electrical oscillations of a modulating frequency, modulator means (102, 112, 122) for modulating said oscillations of said carrier frequency with said oscillations of said modulating frequency, gate circuit means (103, 113, 133) for intermittently interrupting the modulated oscillations of said carrier frequency, and pulse generator means (106, 115,125) adjustable for varying the duration and the spacing of the pulses generated, and connected to said gate circuit means for operating the same.

9. In a system as set forth in claim 8, said carrier frequency generating means being common to each of said plurality of drive control signal generating means.

10. In a system as set forth in claim 6, said guiding conductor means including a plurality of elongated conductor sections, insulating means electrically insulating said sections from each other, and connecting means for selectively connecting said sections to respective ones of said drive control signal generating means.

11. In a system as set forth in claim 10, three of said sections having respective longitudinally terminal, closely juxtaposed portions, and extending from the respective terminal portions in different directions to constitute a fork.

12. In a system as set forth in claim 6, back signal generating means (510) on each of said vehicles for generating a back signal, and back signal transmitting means on said vehicle connected to said back signal generating means for transmitting said back signal to said conductor means.

13. In a system as set forth in claim 12, said back signal transmitting means being constituted by said drive control signal sensing means.

14. In a system as set forth in claim 13, the back signals generated by the respective back signal generating means on said plurality of vehicles differing from each other.

15. In a system as set forth in claim 14, each back signal having a carrier frequency and Being cyclically modulated, the back signals respectively associated with said vehicles differing from each other by the modulation frequencies thereof, each of said back signal generating means (510) including generator means (513) for generating oscillations of said carrier frequency, generator means (514) for generating electrical oscillations of said modulation frequency, and modulator means (512) for modulating said oscillations of said carrier frequency with said oscillation of said modulation frequency.

16. In a system as set forth in claim 12, said guiding conductor means including a plurality of elongated conductor sections insulated from each other, the system further including a control station (700) including said drive control signal generating means, said station further including selector means for selectively connecting said drive control signal generating means with said conductor sections respectively and, a plurality of back signal receiving means (300) connected with said conductor sections respectively for receiving a back signal transmitted to the same.

17. In a system as set forth in claim 16, each of said conductor sections being connected with said station by means of a single conductive line only, said drive control signals and said back signal being transmitted between each section and said station by said single line.

18. In a system as set forth in claim 16, the back signals generated by the respective back signal generating means on said plurality of vehicles differing from each other, and each of said back signal receiving means including selector means (303, 307, 311) for separating the back signals of said vehicles from each other.

19. In a system as set forth in claim 16, said control station further including display means (400) for pictorial representation of said conductor means, said display means including a plurality of indicating means associated with said conductor sections respectively for indicating the presence and identity of one of said vehicles within range of the associated conductor section, said indicating means being respectively connected to said back signal generating means for actuation thereby.

20. In a system as set forth in claim 10, a plurality of stopping signal transmitting means located on said roadways adjacent said conductor sections respectively, stopping signal sensing means on each of said vehicles, stopping signal generating means connected to each of said stopping signal transmitting means, stopping signal receiving means on each vehicle connected to the stopping signal sensing means on the same and responsive to a sensed stopping signal to generate an output signal, said drive control means of the vehicle being connected to said stopping signal receiving means and responsive to the output signal of the same for stopping said vehicle.

21. In a system as set forth in claim 20, said stopping signal sensing means on each vehicle including two stopping signal sensing elements spaced on said vehicle in the normal direction of movement of the vehicle, said drive control means responding to the output signal of said stopping signal receiving means generated by a stopping signal sensed by one of said sensing elements to reduce the speed of said vehicle, and said drive control means responding to the output signal of said stopping signal receiving means generated by a stopping signal sensed by the other sensing element to stop said vehicle.

22. In a system as set forth in claim 10, a control station, a plurality of position signal sensing means (33, 36) spaced from each other on said roadways, position signal transmitting means (22, 23, 24, 25, 27, 28) on each of said vehicles for transmitting a position signal capable of being sensed by said position signal sensing means when the vehicle is adjacent said sensing means for generating a position signal characteristic of said vehicle and connected to said position signal transmitting means on said vehicle for transmission of the characteristic sigNal, and a plurality of position signal receiving means (600) in said control station operatively connected with said position signal sensing means respectively.

23. In a system as set forth in claim 22, filter means (603, 608, 613) in each of said position signal receiving means for separating the position signals characteristic of said vehicles.

24. In a system as set forth in claim 23, deactivating means connected to said drive control signal generating means and to said position signal receiving means for selectively deactivating the drive control signal generating means associated with one of said vehicles in response to a selected position signal characteristic of said one vehicle.

25. In a system as set forth in claim 22, said position signal transmitting means on each vehicle including two position signal transmitting elements spaced on said vehicle in the normal direction of movement of said vehicle, and circuit means connecting said position signal receiving means with the driving control signal generating means associated with each of said vehicles for generating a drive control signal for reducing the speed of said vehicle in response to a signal transmitted by one of said position signal transmitting elements, and for deactivating said associated drive control signal generating means in response to a position signal transmitted by the other position signal transmitting element.

26. In a system as set forth in claim 10, a plurality of said conductor sections constituting a junction, the system further including collision preventing means (900) for preventing two of said vehicles respectively guided by said sections of said conductor means from simultaneously approaching said junction.

27. In a system as set forth in claim 26, said drive means of each vehicle being arrested when said drive control means thereof are deactivated, and circuit means connected to the drive control signal generating means associated with one of said two vehicles and responsive to the approach of the other one of said two vehicles to said junction for deactivating said associated drive control signal generating means and for thereby deactivating the drive control means of said one vehicle.

28. In a system as set forth in claim 6, deactivating means for deactivating said drive means on each of said vehicles, impact sensing means on the front portion of each vehicle and facing in the normal direction of vehicle movement, and connecting means connecting said impact sensing means to said drive means for deactivating the latter upon impact of said sensing means on an obstacle.