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US 7,597,257 B2Granted
Overhead traveling vehicle and system therefor
AssigneeMurata Kikai Kabushiki Kaisha
InventorHiroki Sone
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
An ID reader 53 is provided at a fall prevention cover 50 of an overhead traveling vehicle 20 for reading an ID 76 on the back surface of an article 70. The ID reader 53 can be protruded from or retracted into the fall prevention cover 50. When the article 70 is elevated/lowered, the ID reader is retracted into the cover 50. When the ID 76 is read, the ID reader 53 is advanced to a position under the article 70.
Claims3
An overhead traveling vehicle, having a hoisting frame holding an article with an ID, and transporting the article along a traveling rail, the vehicle comprising:
- an ID reader for reading the ID;
- a moving means for moving the ID reader between an ID reading position in an article transfer route and a retracted position outside of the article transfer route, and
- a pair of covers on front and back sides of the overhead traveling vehicle in a traveling direction, the covers having fall prevention pieces for preventing the article from being dropped,
- wherein the ID reader is supported by one of the covers such that, in the retracted position, the ID reader is hidden by the one of the covers,
- wherein the ID reader is supported by the one of the covers such that, in the ID reading position, the ID reader is protruded from the one of the covers to be arranged at approximately a center position of the overhead traveling vehicle in the traveling direction, and
- wherein when the article is held by the hoisting frame and pulled into the overhead traveling vehicle, the moving means moves the ID reader to the ID reading position for reading the ID of the article.
3 more elements
An overhead traveling vehicle system comprising:
- a traveling rail, an overhead traveling vehicle adapted to travel along the traveling rail, said overhead traveling vehicle including an ID reader for reading an article with an ID and a means for moving the ID reader between an ID reading position in an article transfer route and a retracted position outside of the article transfer route;
- a load port used for transferring said article with said ID between the load port and the overhead traveling vehicle, and
- a controller for controlling the overhead traveling vehicle, said controller including a reservation assignment means for designating a transportation departure point without designating a transportation destination point, requesting the overhead traveling vehicle to travel to the transportation departure point, and notifying the overhead traveling vehicle of the transportation destination point based on reception of the ID of the article read by the overhead traveling vehicle at the transportation departure point.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.