Tiered communication scheme to embed conveyor ZPA and routing control
US9422116B1 · kind B1 · utility
Inventor
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 10, 2015 |
| Grant date | Aug 23, 2016 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 10, 2035 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC B)Performing Operations; Transporting
- CPC primaryB65G47/261
- WIPO fieldHandling
- WIPO sectorMechanical engineering
Abstract
A two-level hierarchical communication architecture for segmented material conveyors having separate motor zones for sensing and control is presented herein. The architecture utilizes peer-to-peer serial communications among a plurality of motor zones to coordinate the article handling actions of those zones. Specific communications connectivity and message content schemes are used to better provide ZPA functionality that is performed in prior art conveyors by discrete contact-logic single bit “look-ahead” wiring. Additional features of the present invention include variations on placements of one or more barcode, tag reader or article presence sensors; a variable speed ZPA scheme; and a token-passing scheme for relaying pre-arranged article routing decisions among zone controllers.
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.