METHOD FOR MONITORING THE ROAD PATH OF A TRUCK AND A FLOOR CONVEYOR

Abstract

Method for monitoring the travel path of an industrial truck, with the steps of: determination of a braking distance by a control device of the industrial truck on the basis of at least one operating parameter of the industrial truck, adjustment of a travel path area monitored by a monitoring device on the basis of the determined braking distance by adjusting the alignment of the monitoring device, deceleration of the industrial truck when an obstacle enters the travel path area monitored by the monitoring device.

Claims

1-8. (canceled)

9. A method for monitoring the travel path of an industrial truck, comprising the steps of: determining a braking distance of the industrial truck on the basis of at least one operating parameter of the industrial truck; adjusting a travel path area monitored by a monitoring device on the basis of the determined braking distance, by adjusting the alignment of the monitoring device; and, decelerating the industrial truck when an obstacle enters the travel path area monitored by the monitoring device.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein the step of adjusting a travel path area further comprises tilting the monitoring device about a horizontal axis for adjusting the monitored travel path area along a travel leg of the industrial truck.

11. The method according to claim 9, wherein the step of adjusting a travel path area further comprises swiveling the monitoring device about a vertical axis for adjusting the monitored travel path area to either side of the industrial truck.

12. The method according to claim 10, wherein the step of adjusting the travel path area further comprises tilting the monitoring device about a horizontal axis for adjusting the monitored travel path area along a travel leg of the industrial truck.

13. The method according to claim 9, wherein the at least one operating parameter is selected from the group of: a travel speed of the industrial truck, a steering angle of the industrial truck, a lifting height of a load part of the industrial truck, a load weight of a load transported by the industrial truck, and a load center of gravity of a load transported by the industrial truck.

14. An industrial truck, comprising: at least one monitoring device for monitoring a travel path area for the presence of obstacles therein, at least one actuator disposed in combination with the monitoring device, and a control unit configured to determine a braking distance of the industrial truck as a function of at least one operating parameter of the industrial truck, and controlling the at least one actuator to align the monitoring device such that the industrial truck decelerates when an obstacle enters the monitored travel path area.

15. The industrial truck according to claim 14, wherein the at least one actuator is configured to tilt the monitoring device about a horizontal axis in order to adjust the monitored travel path area along a travel leg of the industrial truck.

16. The industrial truck according to claim 14, wherein the at least one actuator is configured to swivel the monitoring device about a vertical axis to adjust the monitored travel path area to either side of the industrial truck.

17. The industrial truck according to claim 14, further comprising first and second actuators, the first actuator configured to tilt the monitoring device about a horizontal axis in order to adjust the monitored travel path area along a travel leg of the industrial truck, and the second actuator configured to swivel the monitoring device about a vertical axis to adjust the monitored area to the either side of the industrial truck.

18. The industrial truck according claims 14 wherein the at least one monitoring device includes a sensor for measuring an instantaneous tilt angle and wherein the control unit compares the instantaneous tilt angle to a calculated tilt angle for enhanced accuracy.

19. The industrial truck according claims 14 wherein the at least one monitoring device includes a sensor for measuring an instantaneous swivel angle and wherein the control unit compares an instantaneous swivel angle to a target swivel angle for enhanced accuracy.

20. The industrial truck according claims 14 wherein the at least one monitoring device includes sensors for measuring an instantaneous tilt and an instantaneous swivel angle and wherein the control unit evaluates the instantaneous tilt and swivel angles to a calculated tilt angle and a target swivel angle, respectively, for enhanced accuracy.

21. The industrial truck according to claim 15 wherein the monitoring device is a laser scanner.

22. The industrial truck according to claim 16 wherein the monitoring device is a laser scanner.

23. The industrial truck according to claim 14, wherein the at least one operating parameter is selected from the group of: a travel speed of the industrial truck, a steering angle of the industrial truck, a lifting height of a load part of the industrial truck, a load weight of a load transported by the industrial truck, and a load center of gravity of a load transported by the industrial truck.

24. The industrial truck according to claim 15, wherein the at least one operating parameter is selected from the group of: a travel speed of the industrial truck, a steering angle of the industrial truck, a lifting height of a load part of the industrial truck, a load weight of a load transported by the industrial truck, and a load center of gravity of a load transported by the industrial truck.

25. The industrial truck according to claim 16, wherein the at least one operating parameter is selected from the group of: a travel speed of the industrial truck, a steering angle of the industrial truck, a lifting height of a load part of the industrial truck, a load weight of a load transported by the industrial truck, and a load center of gravity of a load transported by the industrial truck.

26. The industrial truck according to claim 17, wherein the at least one operating parameter is selected from the group of: a travel speed of the industrial truck, a steering angle of the industrial truck, a lifting height of a load part of the industrial truck, a load weight of a load transported by the industrial truck, and a load center of gravity of a load transported by the industrial truck.

Description

[0017] Hereinafter, the invention will be explained with reference to Figures. Shown are:

[0018] FIG. 1 shows an industrial truck according to the invention in a lateral view,

[0019] FIG. 2 shows the industrial truck from FIG. 1 in a plan view, and

[0020] FIG. 3 shows a control for adjusting the monitoring device(s).

[0021] FIGS. 1 and 2 show an industrial truck 10 with a load part 12 and a drive part 14. The load part 12 has two load forks 16 for receiving a load acting on the load forks 16 with a load weight L. The industrial truck 10 also has a driver's cab 18 for an operator, and an operating element 19 for the control device of the industrial truck. The reference symbol 20 schematically shows a control device of the industrial truck. On the front side of the industrial truck 10, a monitoring device 22 is arranged on the drive part 14, which monitoring device 22 can be aligned via an actuator 24. The monitoring device 22 generates an in particular cone-shaped detection area which allows the travel path area 40 of the travel path 30 to be monitored.

[0022] The control device 20 monitors one or more operating parameters of the industrial truck 10 by means of one or more sensors (not shown), and calculates a required braking distance of the industrial truck based thereon. Depending on the braking distance determined, the control device 20 controls the actuator 24, which in turn aligns the monitoring device 22. On the one hand, the actuator 24 can tilt the monitoring device 22 downward or upward about the horizontal axis H by changing a tilt angle ?, and can swivel said monitoring device to the sides about the vertical axis V by varying a swivel angle ?.

[0023] The monitored travel path area 40 shown in FIG. 1 is located quite close to the industrial truck 10. This setting is selected when the at least one operating parameter yields a rather short braking distance, for example on the basis of a low travel speed. This has the advantage that the industrial truck 10 does not decelerate too early due to the obstacle 32, and stops at a rather large distance therefrom. If the evaluation of the at least one operating parameter, for example the travel speed, results in a larger braking distance being necessary, the monitored travel path area 40 is adjusted further forward in the direction of travel along the travel axis F, starting from FIG. 1. In this instance, the tilt angle ? is reduced and the obstacle 32 enters the monitored travel path area 40. The obstacle 32 is then detected by the monitoring device 22, and the industrial truck is decelerated. For decelerating, the control device 20 can, for example, control brakes (not shown) of the industrial truck 10. The industrial truck 10 can thus react to the obstacle 32 promptly even at an increased speed.

[0024] The monitoring device 22 can also be swiveled by the actuator 24 to the sides of the industrial truck 10 so that the angle ? between a leg of the monitored travel path area 40 and the travel axis F is increased or decreased. The monitoring device 22 can be swiveled in particular as a function of a steering angle of the industrial truck 10. For example, if an operator located in the driver's cab 18 steers to the right via the operating element 19, the detection area and thus the monitored travel path area 40 can likewise move to the right (i.e., upward in FIG. 2). Obstacles entering the travel path can thus be detected early. When steering to the left, the monitored travel path area 40 can likewise be adjusted to the left (that is to say downward in FIG. 2). In this instance, the monitored travel path area 40 can be adjusted so far to the left by correspondingly strong swiveling of the monitoring device 22 that the obstacle 32 is no longer located within the monitored travel path area 40. In this instance, the obstacle 32 is not relevant to the industrial truck 10 since, due to the steering movement, the industrial truck 10 drives past the obstacle 32 along a left-hand curve. Thus, undesirable stopping of the industrial truck 10 due to the obstacle 32, from which no risk of collision arises in this instance, does not occur.

[0025] In principle, it can also be provided that two actuators are used for aligning the monitoring device 22. A first actuator may then be designed to tilt and a second actuator to swivel the monitoring device 22, as explained above.

[0026] FIG. 3 shows a control scheme with input and output values of the control device 20. As operating parameters, among other things a travel speed 102, a load 104, a load center of gravity 106, a lifting height 108 of the load part 12, and/or a steering angle 110 can, for example, be used in the control device 20. The control device 20 calculates, in particular in real time, a required braking distance of the industrial truck from the vehicle parameters 102-110. Depending on the calculated braking distance, the control device 20 outputs a target value ? (reference symbol 112) for the tilt angle ? to a first actuator 114, as well as a target value ? (reference symbol 118) for the swivel angle ? to the second actuator 120. The actuators 114, 120 then align the monitoring device 22 accordingly. The current angle setting of the first actuator 114 is monitored by a sensor and provided as actual value ? (reference symbol 116) back to the control device 20. The current angle setting of the second actuator 120 is also monitored by means of a sensor, and the current actual value ? of the swivel angle (reference symbol 122) is returned to the control device 20. By evaluating the actual values ?, ?, the current alignment of the monitoring device 22 is always known to the control device 20, such that an accurate adjustment of the alignment can take place.

[0027] In deviation from FIG. 3, however, it is also possible to provide only one actuator that can adjust both the tilt angle ? and the swivel angle ?. It can then be provided that both the target value ? and the target value ? are passed on by the control device 20 to this one actuator, and the actuator in turn aligns the monitoring device 22 and returns the respective actual values for ? and ? to the control device 20.

LIST OF REFERENCE SYMBOLS

[0028] 10 Industrial truck [0029] 12 Load part [0030] 14 Drive part [0031] 16 Load forks [0032] 18 Driver's cab [0033] 19 Operating element [0034] 20 Control device [0035] 22 Monitoring device [0036] 24 Actuator [0037] 30 Travel path [0038] 32 Obstacle [0039] 40 Monitored travel path area [0040] 100 Control system [0041] 102 Travel speed [0042] 104 Load [0043] 106 Load center of gravity [0044] 108 Lifting height [0045] 110 Steering angle [0046] 112 Target value of the tilt angle [0047] 114 First actuator [0048] 116 Actual value of the tilt angle [0049] 118 Target value of the swivel angle [0050] 120 Second actuator [0051] 122 Actual value of the swivel angle [0052] F Travel axis [0053] H Horizontal axis [0054] L Load weight [0055] V Vertical axis [0056] ? Tilt angle [0057] ? Swivel angle