# US 12,119,250 B2 · Transport system and grid system

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- Number: US 12,119,250 B2
- Document ID: US12119250B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 17/772,284
- Filed: 2020-07-27
- Published: 2022-12-01
- Granted: 2024-10-15
- Earliest claimed: 2019-11-07
- Assignees: Murata Machinery, Ltd.
- Applicants: Murata Machinery, Ltd.
- Inventors: Wataru Kitamura; Eijiro Aoki; Toshikazu Nakagawa
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US12119250B2

## CPC

- H10P 72/3214: {by means of a cart or a vehicle}
- B65G 1/0457: {with suspended load carriers}
- G05D 1/0287: {involving a plurality of land vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling (traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00, particularly anticollision systems G08G1/16)}
- G05D 1/0289: {with means for avoiding collisions between vehicles (vehicle fittings for automatically controlling speed including means for detecting potential obstacles B60K31/0008; avoiding obstacles by action on the steering system B62D; radar, sonar, lidar systems designed for anti-collision purposes G01S13/93, G01S15/93, G01S17/93)}
- G05D 1/0297: {by controlling means in a control room}
- G05D 1/692: involving a plurality of disparate vehicles
- G06Q 10/08: Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
- H10P 72/0612: {Production flow monitoring, e.g. for increasing throughput}
- H10P 72/3216: {using a general scheme of a conveying path within a factory}
- H10P 72/3218: {Conveying cassettes, containers or carriers}
- H10P 72/3221: {Overhead conveying}
- B65G 2201/0297: Wafer cassette
- H10P: GENERIC PROCESSES OR APPARATUS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OR TREATMENT OF DEVICES COVERED BY CLASS H10
- B65G: TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS (packaging B65B; handling thin or filamentary materials, e.g. paper sheets or thread, B65H; cranes B66C; portable mobile or lifting or hauling appliances, e.g. hoists, B66D; devices for lifting or lowering goods for loading or unloading purposes, e.g. fork-lift trucks, B66F9/00; emptying bottles, jars, casks, barrels or similar containers, not otherwise provided for, B67C9/00; delivering or transferring liquids B67D; filling or discharging vessels for liquefied, solidified or compressed gases F17C; pipe-line systems for fluids F17D)
- G05D: SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES
- G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR

## Abstract

A transport system includes a plurality of transport vehicles and a controller. The transport vehicle includes a travel unit and transfer unit. The controller performs a blocking control to prohibit transport vehicles other than the transport vehicle from entering a blocking zone corresponding to the area occupied by the transport vehicle when transferring an article in a plan view. To transfer an article from/to a placement table, the transport vehicle travels along the route to the placement table in a first direction. An area of the blocking zone when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction is equal to or less than an area of the blocking zone identified when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the second direction different from the first direction.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A transport system comprising:
a plurality of transport vehicles; and
a controller that controls the plurality of transport vehicles,
wherein the transport vehicle comprises:
a travel unit that causes the transport vehicle travel; and
a transfer section that moves substantially horizontally to the travel unit and transfers an article from/to a placement table,
wherein, when the transport vehicle transfers an article from/to the placement table, the controller performs a blocking control that prohibits transport vehicles other than the transport vehicle from entering a blocking zone corresponding to an area occupied by the transport vehicle at the time of the article transfer in a plan view,
the transport vehicle travels along the access route to the placement table in a first direction when transferring an article from/to the placement table, and
an area of the blocking zone when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction is equal to or less than an area of the blocking zone when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in a second direction different from the first direction.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The transport system according to claim 1,
wherein the transport vehicle is movably provided along a travel path arranged in a grid pattern in a plan view,
the first direction is perpendicular to the second direction,
the blocking zone is defined by a cell corresponding to a square space formed by the travel path, and
a size of an area of the blocking zone corresponds to the number of cells that define the blocking zone.

### Claim 3 (depends on 2)

The transport system according to claim 2,
wherein the travel path is a rail extending horizontally and suspended,
the travel unit includes a travel wheel that rolls on the rail, and
the transfer section includes an article holder that holds an article below the rail.

### Claim 4 (depends on 1)

The transport system according to claim 1,
wherein the controller memorizes a map in which a plurality of the placement tables and information on an area of the blocking zone defined for each of a plurality of access directions toward the placement table are associated with each other, and
the controller determines the access direction that minimizes the area of the blocking zone as the first direction using the map.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The transport system according to claim 1, wherein, after determining the placement table to be accessed by the transport vehicle, the controller calculates information on an area of the blocking zone for each of a plurality of access directions toward the placement table and determines the access direction that minimizes the area of the blocking zone as the first direction on the basis of the calculated information.

### Claim 6 (depends on 1)

The transport system according to claim 1,
wherein the transfer section of the transport vehicle moves relative to the travel unit in a direction perpendicular to a travel direction of the transport vehicle within horizontal plane,
an area of the blocking zone when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction is smaller than an area of the blocking zone when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the second direction,
when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction, the transfer section does not protrude from the travel unit in a plan view at the time of the article transfer, and
when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the second direction, the transfer section protrudes from the travel unit in a plan view at the time of the article transfer.

### Claim 7 (depends on 1)

The transport system according to claim 1,
wherein a plurality of placement tables including the placement table are arranged in parallel in a predetermined arrangement direction,
an area of the blocking zone when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction is equal to an area of the blocking zone when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the second direction, and
the first direction is more parallel to the predetermined arrangement direction than the second direction.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The transport system according to claim 7, wherein, when there is no predetermined arrangement direction, the arrival time required until the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction and arrives at a position that allows the transport vehicle to transfer an article from/to the placement table is shorter than the arrival time required until the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the second direction and arrives at a position that allows the transport vehicle to transfer an article from/to the placement table.

### Claim 9 (depends on 1)

The transport system according to claim 1,
wherein an area of the blocking zone when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction is equal to an area of the blocking zone when the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the second direction, and
the arrival time required until the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction and arrives at a position that allows the transport vehicle to transfer an article from/to the placement table is shorter than the arrival time required until the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the second direction and arrives at a position that allows the transport vehicle to transfer an article from/to the placement table.

### Claim 10 (depends on 1)

The transport system according to claim 1, wherein the arrival time required until the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction and arrives at a position that allows the transport vehicle to transfer an article from/to the placement table is longer than the arrival time required until the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the second direction and arrives at a position that allows the transport vehicle to transfer an article from/to the placement table.

### Claim 11 (depends on 1)

The transport system according to claim 1, wherein the controller transmits a command to travel along the route to a transport vehicle of which the arrival time required until the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction and arrives at a position that allows the transport vehicle to transfer an article from/to the placement table is the shortest of a plurality of the transport vehicles.

### Claim 12

A grid system comprising:
a rail extending horizontally and arranged in a grid pattern;
a plurality of transport vehicles capable of traveling along the rail; and
a controller that controls the plurality of transport vehicles,
wherein the transport vehicle comprises a travel unit that causes the transport vehicle travel and a transfer section that moves relative to the travel unit in a direction perpendicular to a travel direction of the transport vehicle within a substantially horizontal plane and transfers an article from/to a placement table,
wherein, when the transport vehicle transfers an article from/to the placement table, the controller performs a blocking control to prohibit transport vehicles other than the transport vehicle from entering a blocking zone that corresponds to an area occupied by the transport vehicle at the time of the article transfer in a plan view and is defined by a cell corresponding to a square space formed by the rail, and
when there is a first direction which is an access direction that prevents the transfer section from protruding to other cells adjacent to the cells occupied by the travel unit when the transfer section is moved to transfer an article, the transport vehicle accesses to the placement table in the first direction.