Article transport facility

An article transport facility comprising:

• at least one transport vehicle configured to transport an article;
• a travel route along which the at least one transport vehicle and provided with a plurality of specific sections each including at least one of a branch point and a merge point;
• a section control device provided in correspondence with each of the specific sections and configured to control the at least one transport vehicle traveling through the specific section for which the section control device is responsible;
• and
• a higher-level control device configured to control the at least one transport vehicle and the section control devices,
• wherein:
• the at least one transport vehicle, the section control devices and the higher-level control device are configured to communicate with each other,
• the article transport facility has a normal control mode and a substitute control mode, as control modes that are executed by a control system including the higher-level control device and the section control devices,
• the normal control mode is a mode in which control of the at least one transport vehicle in each of the specific sections is performed by the section control device responsible for the specific section,
• the substitute control mode is a mode in which control of the at least one transport vehicle in each of the specific sections is performed by the higher-level control device instead of the section control device responsible for the specific section,
• the normal control mode is executed while communication between the higher-level control device and the section control devices and communication between the section control devices and the at least one transport vehicle are normal,
• the substitute control mode is executed in response to at least one of an anomaly occurring in communication between the section control devices and the higher-level control device and an anomaly occurring in communication between the section control devices and the at least one transport vehicle,
• the at least one transport vehicle is configured to transmit a signal in a prescribed communication cycle to the higher-level control device and to the section control devices, and
• the communication cycle between the at least one transport vehicle and the higher-level control device is a first communication cycle that is longer than a second communication cycle, which is the communication cycle between the at least one transport vehicle and the section control devices.

An article transport facility comprising:

• at least one transport vehicle configured to transport an article;
• a travel route along which the at least one transport vehicle and provided with a plurality of specific sections each including at least one of a branch point and a merge point;
• a section control device provided in correspondence with each of the specific sections and configured to control the at least one transport vehicle traveling through the specific section for which the section control device is responsible;
• and
• a higher-level control device configured to control the at least one transport vehicle and the section control devices,
• wherein:
• the at least one transport vehicle, the section control devices and the higher-level control device are configured to communicate with each other,
• the article transport facility has a normal control mode and a substitute control mode, as control modes that are executed by a control system including the higher-level control device and the section control devices,
• the normal control mode is a mode in which control of the at least one transport vehicle in each of the specific sections is performed by the section control device responsible for the specific section,
• the substitute control mode is a mode in which control of the at least one transport vehicle in each of the specific sections is performed by the higher-level control device instead of the section control device responsible for the specific section,
• the normal control mode is executed while communication between the higher-level control device and the section control devices and communication between the section control devices and the at least one transport vehicle are normal,
• the substitute control mode is executed in response to at least one of an anomaly occurring in communication between the section control devices and the higher-level control device and an anomaly occurring in communication between the section control devices and the at least one transport vehicle,
• in any of the specific sections in which the normal control mode is being executed, the section control device responsible for the specific section controls travel of the at least one transport vehicle, and the higher-level control device executes assist control for assisting control by the section control device, and
• in the assist control, in response to the section control device not subsequently receiving a response from a target transport vehicle, which is the transport vehicle from which the passage request signal is received, the higher-level control device notifies the section control device as to whether the target transport vehicle is present in the specific section.