Method for addressing/sequencing linearly interlinked control components of a conveying system

Disclosed is a method for addressing/sequencing at least one control component (170 . . . 177) of a group comprising multiple control components (170 . . . 177) of a conveying system (1), said components being linearly interlinked via a daisy-chain selection line (23). The addressing process starts at any point in the chain and continues to the end of the respective branch of said chain. Subsequently, in one of the two branches the numbering of the control components (170 . . . 177) is reversed. Also disclosed is a conveying system (1) on which said method can be carried out.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application is the National Stage of PCT/AT2014/050265 filed on Nov. 6, 2014, which claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 of Austrian Application No. A 50737/2013 filed on Nov. 6, 2013, the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference. The international application under PCT article 21(2) was not published in English.

The invention relates to a method for addressing at least one control component of a group of multiple linearly interlinked control components of a conveying system and for determining the position of at least one control component from a group of multiple linearly interlinked control components of a conveying system. Furthermore, the invention relates to a conveying system, on which such a method can be performed.

According to the prior art the control components of a conveying system are also addressed by means of a clear address via a bus system. In a known manner a control sends a message via the bus, which is provided with the addressee. The subscribers connected to the bus check whether an incoming message is intended for them in that they compare the said addressee with their own address. In this way it is ensured that a control component of a conveying system can be addressed specifically.

The problem here is that a bus address usually does not reveal anything about the physical location of the control component. Therefore, if control components have to be controlled in a specific sequence particular precautions have to be taken. For example, this relates to conveyor rollers arranged behind one another physically in a conveying system, the bus addresses of which are “varied” without special precautions.

To address this problem US 2004/0195078 A1 discloses a method, by means of which conveyor rollers lying behind one another can be addressed according to their physical sequence. For this purpose the controls of the conveyor rollers are connected to one another in series by a “daisy-chain line” or linearly. The addressing process now starts at one end of the chain and runs to the end of the latter, wherein a signal is passed on via the daisy-chain line successively from one control to the next. By means of this “passing on” a superordinate control is able to determine the physical sequence of the conveyor rollers.

The disadvantage of this is that the connection of a superordinate control to one end of the daisy-chain line is sometimes difficult in reality. If it is not possible to arrange the superordinate control in the immediate vicinity of one end of the daisy-chain line for example for structural reasons, an extra line has to be laid at great expense. Apart from the cost in terms of manufacturing technology, the laying of a cable is prone to error not least because of the length of the cable and interference interspersed over the latter.

One objective is therefore to provide a method or a conveying system, in which an addressing process of control components or the detection of a physical sequence thereof can be performed flexibly. In particular, the aim is to avoid the aforementioned disadvantages.

The objective of the invention is achieved by a method for addressing/sequencing at least one control component of a group of multiple linearly interlinked control components of a conveying system, comprising the stepsa) step-by-step addressing of control components, which are arranged from any control component to a first end of the said chain, by means of a daisy-chain selection line, wherein ascending/descending addresses are allocated and/or the sequence of addresses allocated without any order is saved,b) step-by-step addressing of the control components, which from the control component, which is opposite the control component mentioned in step a) relative to the first end of the linear chain, are arranged up to the second end of the said chain, by means of a daisy-chain selection line, wherein ascending/descending addresses are allocated and/or the sequence of addresses allocated without any order is saved,c1) ascending/descending addressing of the control components addressed in step a) in a reverse sequence and subsequent ascending/descending addressing of the control components addressed in step b) in an unchanging sequence orc2) ascending/descending addressing of the control components addressed in step b) in reverse sequence and subsequent ascending/descending addressing of the control components addressed in step a) in an unchanging sequence orc3) allocating all of the assigned addresses to the sequence given in step C1) or C2).

The objective of the invention is also achieved by means of a conveying system, comprisinga group of multiple control components (170. . .177) interlinked linearly by means of daisy-chain selection line (23)means for the step-by-step addressing of control components (170. . .177), which are arranged from any control component (170. . .177) to a first and a second end of the said chain, by means of the daisy-Chain selection line (23),means for allocating ascending/descending addresses to the step-by-step addressed control components (170. . .177) and/or for saving a sequence of addresses allocated without any order to the control components (170. . .177),means for ascending/descending addressing all of the control components (170. . .177) of the group according to their sequence in the said chain by way of the step-by-step addressing process or for allocating all of the assigned addresses to the said sequence.

It is advantageous to arrange a superordinate control in the immediate vicinity of one end of the daisy-chain line and that an expensive cabling to the latter is no longer necessary due to the proposed measures. An addressing process of control components or detecting a physical sequence of the latter can thus be performed flexibly. The cabling is also less prone to failure. In particular—but not exclusively—the proposed method and the proposed conveying system relate to addressing control components of a plurality of conveyor rollers of the conveying system.

Further advantageous configurations and developments of the invention are described in the subclaims and in the description in connection with the Figures.

It is advantageous if the allocation of an address to a control component or reading of an address from a control component is performed via a communication bus, to which all of the control components of the group are connected equally. Likewise, it is advantageous if the conveying system comprises a communication bus which connects the control components to one another or to the superordinate control. In this way the control components can exchange comparatively complex messages with the superordinate control or with one another. For example, the communication bus can be designed as a CAN bus.

It is advantageous if the allocation of an address and/or saving the sequence of not ordered allocated addresses during the addressing of control components is/are controlled by a superordinate control. It is also advantageous if the conveying system has a superordinate control for controlling the addressing process of the said control components. In this way the control components do not have any means of coordinating the addressing process and can thus be designed to be simpler.

For this purpose the superordinate control can also comprisemeans for allocating ascending/descending addresses to the step-by-step addressed control components and/or for saving a sequence of addresses allocated without any order to the control components andmeans for the ascending/descending addressing of all control components of the group according to their sequence in the said chain by means of the step-by-step addressing processor for allocating all of the assigned addresses to the said sequence.

It is an advantage if for the selection of a control component to be currently addressed an intended signal is sent or applied via the daisy-chain selection line to the said control component and this is converted after completion of the addressing to the adjacent control component which follows in case a) in the direction of the first end of the said chain and in case b) in the direction of the second end of the said chain. In this way the control components can be addressed successively according to their physical sequence or their sequence can be determined.

It is an advantage if the said signal is conveyed by closing a switch interrupting the daisy-chain selection line. In this way the control component does not need any means for producing the selection signal.

It is also advantageous however if the said signal is conveyed by the active generation of the latter. In this way a switch for connecting the individual parts of the daisy-chain selection line can be omitted.

It is advantageous if step a) is started by sending/applying a signals for starting an addressing process via a first branch of the daisy-chain selection line interrupted between two control components and step b) is started by sending/applying a signal for starting an addressing process via the second branch of the daisy-chain selection line interrupted between two control components. It is advantageous in this connection if the said signals are sent/applied by a superordinate control, which is connected to the two branches of the daisy-chain selection line. It is also advantageous if the daisy-chain selection line is interrupted between two control components and both ends thereof are connected to the superordinate control. In this variant the addressing process is started at a physically specified point of the chain of the control components. The addressing method can therefore be reproduced easily.

In the above connection the method for addressing/sequencing at least one control component from a group of a plurality of linearly interlinked control components of a conveying system in an advantageous variant comprises the steps:a) sending a signal for starting an addressing process via a daisy-chain selection line from a superordinate control to a specific control component of the group,b) sending a command for starting an addressing process via a communication bus, to which the said control components are connected equivalently, by the superordinate control,c) sending a confirmation of readiness for the addressing process via the communication bus, from the control component, which receives the signal for starting an addressing process at a input line-connected to the daisy-chain selection line, to the superordinate control,d) sending an address via the communication bus from the superordinate control to the control component mentioned in step c), provided that the confirmation of readiness in the superordinate control is received within a specified period, or continuing at step f), if this is not the case,e) sending a confirmation of an executed addressing process via the communication bus from the control component mentioned in step c) to the superordinate control, outputting a signal for starting the addressing process to an output at which a segment of the daisy-chain selection line is connected, which is opposite the input mentioned in step c) relative to the linear chain and continuing at step b),f) sending a signal for starting an addressing process via the daisy-chain selection line from the superordinate control to a specific control component of the group, which is opposite the control component mentioned in step a) relative to the linear chain and continuing at step b), provided that step f) has not yet been executed, or continuing at one of steps step g1) to g3), if this is not the case,g1) ascending addressing the control components addressed up to step f) in reverse sequence and then ascending addressing of the control components addressed from step f) in an unchanging sequence org2) ascending addressing of the control components addressed from step i) in reverse sequence and after this the ascending addressing of the control components addressed up to step f) in an unchanging sequence org3) allocating ail of the assigned addresses to the sequence given in step g1) or g2).

For the sake of completion it is noted that the steps a) and b) mentioned in this method do not correspond to steps a) and b) of the method defined further above.

It is also advantageous if the signal for the control component to be addressed currently is sent or applied to the latter in the form of a bit sequence, a voltage level, a current level or change in the level of voltage and/or current via the daisy-chain selection line. In this way easily available components can be used for generating the signal and/or recognizing the signal for the disclosed addressing method.

In general, it is advantageous if all of the control components of at least part of the group or also all of the control components of the group are addressed before step a) with clear addresses for the control components in a not ordered or random manner (both in the method defined by steps a) to c3) and in the method defined by steps a) to g3)). In this way the control components can also be addressed specifically before the expiry of the presented address process.

It is advantageous in this connection if step a) begins with the control component with the lowest/highest address of the said part of the group begins or if step a) begins with a randomly selected control component of the said part of the group. In both variants it is not necessary to apply a signal to the daisy-chain line. As a result a superordinate control does not need to be connected to the daisy-chain line and can therefore be positioned more flexibly.

In the above case, the method for addressing/sequencing at least one control component of a group of multiple linearly interlinked control components of a conveying system comprises in an advantageous variant the steps:a0) addressing all of the control components of the group in a random or not ordered manner with clear addresses far the control components,b0) sending a command for starting an addressing process via a communication bus, to which the said control components are connected equivalently, from the superordinate control to a specific control component which is selected by the superordinate control,c0) sending a confirmation of readiness for the addressing process via the communication bus, from the control component mentioned in step b0) to the superordinate control and continuing at step d)b) sending a command for starting an addressing process via a communication bus, to which the said control components are connected equivalently, by a superordinate control,c) sending a confirmation of readiness for the addressing process via the communication bus, from the control component, which receives the signal for starting an addressing process at an input connected to the daisy-chain selection line, to the superordinate control,d) sending an address via the communication bus from the superordinate control to the control component mentioned in step c) or c0), provided that the confirmation of readiness in the superordinate control is received within a specified period, or continuing at step f), if this is not the case,e) sending a confirmation of an executed address process via the communication bus from the control component mentioned in step c) or c0) to the superordinate control, outputting a signal for starting the addressing process to an output, at which a segment of the daisy-chain selection line is connected, which is opposite the input mentioned in step c) or c0) relative to the linear chain and continuing at step b),f) sending a signal for starting an addressing process via the daisy-chain selection line from the superordinate to a specific control component of the group, which is opposite the control component mentioned in step a) or b0) relative to the linear chain and continuing at step b), provided that step f) has not yet been executed, or continuing at one of steps g1) to g3), if this is not the case,g1) ascending addressing of the control components addressed up to step f) in reverse sequence and then ascending addressing of the control components addressed from step i) in an unchanging sequence org2) ascending addressing of the control components addressed from step f) in reverse sequence and after this the ascending addressing of the control components addressed up to step f) in an unchanging sequence org3) allocating all of the assigned addresses to the ascending sequence given in g1) or g2).

It is advantageous if a control component comprises a drive control for a conveyor roller of the conveying system, as the advantages of the proposed method or the conveying system are particularly evident.

At this point is should be noted that the embodiment variants disclosed for the proposed method and the resulting advantages relate equally to the proposed conveying system and vice versa.

First of all, it should be noted that in the variously described exemplary embodiments the same parts have been given the same reference numerals and the same component names, whereby the disclosures contained throughout the entire description can be applied to the same parts with the same reference numerals and same component names. Also details relating to position used in the description, such as e.g. top, bottom, side etc. relate to the currently described and represented figure and incase of a change in position should be adjusted to the new position. Furthermore, also individual features or combinations of features from the various exemplary embodiments shown and described can represent in themselves independent or inventive solutions.

FIG. 1shows an example of a section of a conveying system1obliquely from above. The conveying system1comprises two spaced apart frame profiles2and3as well as motorized conveyor rollers4arranged in between. By means of belts5additional non-motorized conveyor rollers6and7are also driven. Of course, it is not absolutely necessary for all of the conveyor rollers of the conveying system1to be driven directly or indirectly, but also idling rollers can be arranged between the frame profiles2and3. It would also be possible for a conveyor belt or band to be placed over the conveyor rollers4,6,7. In particular, the motorized conveyor roller4can be arranged at the end of the conveyor belt or band, as the wrapping angle of the belt or band is greater there. A separate belt5can be omitted when using a belt or band.

Furthermore, the conveying system1comprises optional guide rails8and9, which are secured by mounting brackets10to the frame profiles2and3. The latter are used for improving the lateral guiding of objects conveyed on the conveying system1, e.g. containers, trays and cardboard packaging.

The motorized conveyor rollers4are connected via connection boxes11to a power supply bus and a data bus. The conveyor rollers4are controlled by the control12. For the detection of conveyed objects photodetectors13can also be arranged over the frame profiles2and3. In this example reflectors14are also arranged opposite this.

FIG. 2shows the conveying system1already shown inFIG. 1but obliquely from the rear,FIG. 3obliquely from below.FIG. 3therefore also shows the power supply bus15placed on the inside on the frame profile2(for example with a supply voltage of 24V or 48V).

FIG. 4shows by way of example a block diagram of the conveying system1comprising a plurality of motor driven conveyer rollers4arranged behind one another. Of course, other not driven conveyor rollers6,7could be arranged between the latter, as shown inFIGS. 1 to 3.

In this example a motor controller17(as denoted inFIG. 4by “MC”) is allocated to each motorized conveyor roller4. A plurality of motor controllers170are connected (e.g. via a CAN bus) to a conveyor controller18(as denoted inFIG. 4by “CC”) or master conveyor controller19(as denoted inFIG. 4by “MCC”). The master conveyor controllers19generally have the purpose of determining from the commands of a central control20(as denoted inFIG. 4by “PLC”) the necessary instructions to the motor controller170of the individual conveyor rollers4, or to receive status messages from the latter and to direct information about status messages on to the central control20. For example, the control12shown inFIGS. 1 to 3can be formed by a conveyor controller18, a master conveyor controller19or also by the central control20.

However, not only motor controllers170, but (for example via the Ethernet) also conveyor controllers18are connected to the master conveyor controller19. The latter are completely equivalent to the master conveyor controllers19, apart from the fact that only the master conveyor controller19is connected directly (e.g. via the Ethernet or Profibus) to the central control20and communicates with the latter. In this way only the master conveyor controller19adopts commands from the central control20and if necessary generates commands to the conveyor controller18or transfers information from the conveyor controllers18to the central control20. The conveyor roller4itself comprises in this hierarchy in electrical terms only the motor, a temperature sensor and Hall sensors, and is connected to a motor controller170.

The motor controllers170of the individual conveyor rollers4are joined together by cables, which have at least one wire for a daisy-chain line, and two wires for a data bus.

FIG. 5shows an example of an arrangement in which a plurality of motors21(as denoted inFIG. 5by “M”) of the conveyor rollers4are connected respectively to a connection box11. Said connection box11comprises the motor controller170and can also comprise additional components, for example the option for connecting light barriers13, switches and the like and in particular also the option for connecting a power supply15(seeFIG. 1 to 3), which is not shown inFIG. 5for a better overview. The connection boxes11or the motor controllers170are connected to one another by a daisy-chain line23and by a data bus24. As shown inFIG. 5, the daisy-chain line23inside the connection boxes11is separated respectively by a switch250which can be controlled via the motor controller170.FIG. 5shows for a better overview a single conveyor controller18which is connected to the motor controllers170. Of course, also a master conveyor controller19could be provided as an equivalent instead of the conveyor controller18which is connected to the motor controllers170. Of course, the hierarchy shown inFIG. 4could also be implemented. The conveyor controller18is connected in this example to the daisy-chain line23and also the data bus24.

The function of the arrangement shown inFIG. 4 or 5will now be explained in more detail with reference toFIGS. 6 to 8. The conveyor controller18is shown there by way of example. Instead of this the master conveyor controller19or the central control20can be used equally (the same also applies to the embodiments according toFIGS. 9 and 10).

Each motor controller171. . .177has an effective bus address, by means of which incoming messages can be filtered and outgoing messages can be sent. In addition, each motor controller171. . .177has an allocated address, which is placed in a non-volatile memory. Said address becomes the effective address on the transition from an initial state to a normal state.

In the initial state the motor controllers171. . .177only react to a bus reset telegram and ignore all other CAN messages. At the same time they check whether there is a level transfer from “low” to “high” on the daisy-chain line23. Preferably, the relevant signal should remain “high” for a specific period to ignore disturbances on the daisy-chain line23. If the said low to high transition has taken place, the motor controller171. . .177is selected which has detected the level transition. InFIG. 6this is the motor controller171, as it is assumed that the conveyor controller18applies the said signal only to the left branch of the daisy-chain line23. The motor controller171now accepts the default address (e.g. “127”) as the effective address and then reacts to CAN messages. The switches251. . .257and in particular the switch251remain open for the time being.

Now the conveyor controller18or the master conveyor controller19can gain access normally via the default address to the selected motor controller171and query the allocated address for example or change the latter. With a falling flank on the daisy-chain line23, i.e. a transition from “high” to “low” the motor controller171accepts the allocated address as an effective address and passes into the normal state.

Of the motor controllers171. . .177, which are still in the initial state, only the first one reacts to the default address, because it is selected by the signal on the daisy-chain line23and ensures via the switch251that the remainder of the chain is not selected. Motor controllers171. . .177, which are already in the normal state and no longer in the initial state, have already accepted the allocated address as an effective address and thus no longer react to the default address.

In a normal state in which the switch251is closed the signal on the daisy-chain line23is transferred to the next motor controller172in the chain. In this way the conveyor controller18can select the next motor controller172in the chain via the daisy-chain line23and address the latter via the CAN bus with the default address (e.g. “127”). This state is shown inFIG. 7.

FIG. 8shows an additional state in which the motor controllers171,172,173have already been addressed and the switches251and252are closed. The said addressing process is repeated recursively until all of the motor controllers171. . .177in the chain have been addressed and are in a normal state.

The end of the chain can be established for example in that no motor controller171. . .177responds to an addressing command of the conveyor controller18within a predefined period (timeout). In a specific example this means that a signal on the daisy-chain line23after addressing of the motor controller174goes “nowhere” and no motor controller171. . .177responds to a command for addressing.

If this occurs the right branch of the chain is then addressed in a very similar way. By applying the signal indicated above to the right branch of the daisy-chain line23the motor controllers175,176and177are now addressed successively;

In general terms a method is performed for addressing/sequencing at least one control component170. . .177from a group of multiple linearly interlinked control components170. . .177of a conveying system1, which comprises the following steps:a) step-by-step addressing of control components171. . .174, which are arranged from any control component171to a first end of the said chain, by means of a daisy-chain selection line (23),b) step-by-step addressing of the control components175. . .177, which from the control component175, which is opposite the control component171mentioned in step a) relative to the first end of the linear chain, are arranged up to the second end of the said chain, by means of the daisy-chain selection line23.

During the addressing process generally ascending/descending addresses can be allocated and/or the sequence of not ordered allocated addresses can be saved. In specific terms this means that the motor controllers171. . .177are addressed with ascending/descending addresses or not ordered or random addresses are allocated and the position of a motor controller171. . .177(that is its rank in the sequence of the group of motor controllers171. . .177) is recorded in table for example. It should be noted at this point that with ascending/descending address processes it is not absolutely necessary to allocate addresses that are incremented/decremented by 1. Instead of this also other increments/decrements can be used. For example the addresses17,25,45,98do not necessarily increase by 1, but are still clear and also reflect a series or sequence of motor controllers171. . .177correctly. The same applies to the sequence recorded in a table.

After addressing the motor controllers171. . .177of the two branches the latter only need to be put into the correct sequence. In addition, either the sequence of the left or right branch is reversed, whereby then all of the motor controllers171. . .177are addressed or sequenced in ascending/descending or descending sequence.

In general terms, after steps a) and b) thus the following steps are performed:c1) ascending/descending addressing of the control components171. . .174addressed in step a) in a reverse sequence and subsequent ascending/descending addressing ox the control components175. . .177addressed in step b) in an unchanging sequence orc2) ascending/descending addressing of the control components175. . .177addressed in step b) in a reverse sequence and subsequent ascending/descending addressing of the control components171. . .174addressed in step a) in an unchanging sequence orc3) allocating all of the assigned addresses to the ascending sequence given in C1) or C2).

Steps C1) and C2) thereby relates to embodiment variants in which the motor controllers171. . .177are addressed directly with ascending/descending addresses. Step C3) relates to a variant in which not ordered or also random addresses are allocated and the position of a motor controller171. . .177is recorded in a table for example.

To perform the steps C1), C2) or C3) in the conveyor controller18during the addressing process it recorded for example which motor controller171. . .177belongs to which branch, by means of a status bit which is set in a table. It would also be possible to save the initial address and/or end address of a branch in the conveyor controller18.

In general, it also possible that the proposed auto-addressing can be skipped or another addressing process can be performed afterwards, provided the sequence of motor controllers171. . .177is determined in a different way than indicated. The bus reset telegram has a parameter for this which can accept the value “skip auto addressing” or “do auto addressing”. By means of said telegram each motor controller171. . .177goes back into the initial state, regardless of which state it is in at the moment. If the parameter “skip-auto-addressing” is set, each motor controller171. . .177immediately accepts the allocated address as the effective address and changes into the normal state. In this way it is possible after starting up the conveying system1to reach the normal state more quickly. Furthermore, problems occurring during the auto-addressing, which are caused for example by faults in the cabling, can be temporarily disregarded, so that the control of the conveying system1remains functional until the next maintenance interval.

The addressing of the master conveyor controller19and conveyor controller18itself can be performed manually via an Ini-File, which is saved on an SD memory card (Secure Digital Memory Card) and inserted into the conveyor controller18or master convex or controller19.

Generally, the method proposed inFIGS. 5 to 8has the following features:The allocation of an address to a control component or reading of an address from a control component170. . .177is performed via a communication bus24, to which all of the control components170. . .177of the group are equally connected.The allocation of an address and/or saving the sequence of addresses allocated without any order during the addressing of control components170. . .177is controlled by a superordinate control18,19,20.For the selection of a control component170. . .177to be currently addressed a signal provided for this is sent or applied via the daisy-chain selection line23to the said control component170. . .177, and this is conveyed after a successful addressing process to the adjacent control component175, which in case a) follows in the direction of the first end of the said chain and in case b) in the direction of the second end of the said chain.The conveying of the said signal is performed by closing a switch250. . .257interrupting the daisy-chain selection line23.Step a) is started by sending/applying a signal for starting an addressing process via a first branch of the daisy-chain selection line23interrupted between two control components170. . .177and step b) by sending/applying a signal for starting an addressing process via the second branch of the daisy-chain selection line23interrupted between two control components170. . .177.The said signals are sent/applied by a superordinate control18,19,20which is connected to the two branches of the daisy-chain selection line23.The signal for the control component170. . .177to be currently addressed is sent or applied in a level change of the voltage on the daisy-chain selection line23. It is equally possible that the signal for the control component170. . .177to be currently addressed is sent or applied to the latter via the daisy-chain selection line23in the form of a bit sequence, a voltage level, a current level or a change of level of a currentNone of the control components170. . .177of the group is addressed prior to step a) or the said control components170. . .177are addressed by addresses which are not clear. However, it is also possible that all of the control components170. . .177of at least a portion of the group are addressed prior to step a) without any order or randomly with clear addresses for the control components170. . .177.

In general, the conveying system1proposed inFIGS. 1 to 8thus has the following features. The conveying system comprises:a group of multiple control components170. . .177interlinked linearly by means of a daisy-chain selection line23,means for the step-by-step addressing of control components170. . .177, which are arranged from any control component170. . .177to a first and a second end of the said chain, by means of the daisy-chain selection line23,means for allocating ascending/descending addresses to the step-by-step addressed control components170. . .177and/or for saving a sequence of addresses allocated without any order to the control components170. . .177,means for the ascending/descending addressing of all control components170. . .177of the group according to their sequence in the said chain by means of the step-by-step addressing process or for allocating all of the assigned addresses to the said sequence.

In general the conveying system1presented inFIGS. 5 to 8also has the following features:the conveying system comprises a superordinate control18,29,20for controlling the addressing process of the said control components170. . .177,the means for allocating ascending/descending addresses to step-by-step addressed control components170. . .177and/or for saving a sequence of addresses allocated without any order to the control components170. . .177are integrated into the superordinate control18,29,20,the means for addressing in ascending/descending order all of the control components170. . .177of the group according to their sequence in the said chain with reference to the step-by-step addressing process or for allocating all of the allocated addresses to the said sequence are integrated into the superordinate control18,29,20,the daisy-chain selection line23is interrupted between two control components170. . .177and both ends of the latter are connected to the superordinate control18,29,20,the control components170. . .177are connected to one another or to the superordinate control18,19,20by a communication bus24,the control component170. . .177comprises a drive control for a conveyor roller4of the conveying system1.

In addition to the aforementioned variant another embodiment of the addressing process is also possible, which is shown schematically inFIG. 9. In this case the signal is conveyed on the daisy-chain selection line23not by closing a switch250. . .257, but the “conveying” of the said signal is performed by actively generating the latter. In specific terms the motor controller170also comprises two daisy-chain connections which can function as an input and/or output. If the motor controller170is in the initial state the daisy-chain connections are configured as the input.

In the initial state the motor controller170reacts only to the bus reset telegram and ignores all other CAN messages. At the same time it checks whether at one of the daisy-chain connections there is level transition from “low” to “high” (and also remains high for a specific period, in order to ignore disturbances on the daisy-chain line23). If the said low-high transition has occurred the motor controller170is selected which has detected the level transition. The motor controller170accepts, as already explained, the default address (e.g. “127”) as the effective address and then reacts to CAN messages. At the same time it configures the other daisy-chain connection to the output and drives the level there to “low”. Now the conveyor controller18can access the selected-motor controller170normally via the default address for example query the allocated address, or change the latter. With the falling flank on the daisy-chain input the motor controller170also accepts the allocated address as an effective address and enters into the normal state. Afterwards the level at the daisy-chain output is driven to “high”, whereby the next motor controller170receives the selection signal required for the addressing process and the process can be start all over-again. The remainder of the sequence is performed in a-similar manner to the process described inFIGS. 4 to 8.

FIG. 10shows a further variant of the addressing method. In this case the selection signal is conveyed on the daisy-chain line23as in the variant shown inFIG. 9by actively generating the latter. In specific terms the motor controller170also comprises two daisy-chain connections which can function as the input and/or output.

The motor controllers170are provided at the beginning with clear addresses, that is each motor controller170can be addressed specifically. In this case for example ascending (but unordered) addresses or even random addresses can be allocated. The motor controllers170are still in the initial state and thus configure both daisy-chain connections as inputs.

To start the method the conveyor controller18sends a start signal to one of the motor controllers170. For example this can be the motor controller170with the highest or lowest address or a randomly selected motor controller170. To select this first motor controller170it is not necessary to send or apply a signal to the daisy-chain line23, but the said motor controller170is addressed simply via its clear address.

In principle, it is also sufficient for the start of the method if a (single) motor controller170is provided with a clear address and the method is started there. The remaining motor controllers170can also be provided with unclear addresses or all of them can even have the same address.

The initially selected motor controller170now configures one of the two daisy-chain connections as an output and drives the level there to “low” The conveyor controller18can query the address assigned to the motor controller170, or change the latter. Afterwards, the conveyor controller18sets the selected motor controller170to normal, after which the latter sets the level at the selected daisy-chain output to “high”. In this way the next motor controller170receives the selection signal required for the addressing process and the addressing process can be continued op to the end of the chain in the already described manner. If the end of the chain is identified (for example as already indicated by a timeout), the conveyor controller18instructs the first addressed controller170to also configure the second daisy-chain connection as an output and generate a low-high flank there. In this way the addressing can also be performed in the other direction in the already described manner.

In general terms the disclosed method also has the following features:all the control components170. . .177of at least part of the group are addressed without any order or randomly prior to step a) with clear addresses for the control components170. . .177,step a) begins for example at the control component170. . .177with the lowest/highest address of the said part of the group,alternatively step a) begins with a randomly selected control component170. . .177of the said part of the group,alternatively at least one control component170. . .177is provided with a clear address at which step a) begins,the conveyor controller18does not need to be connected to the daisy-chain line23.

During the addressing process also in this variant ascending/descending addresses can be allocated and/or the sequence of addresses allocated without any order are saved, in particular the sequence of addresses initially allocated before step a).

After addressing the motor controllers171. . .177of the two branches the latter only need to be put in the correct sequence, which can take place in the already described manner.

To perform the steps C1), C2) or C3) as described above in the conveyor controller18daring the addressing process for example it is noted which motor controller171. . .177belongs to which branch, by means of a status bit which is put in a table. It would also be possible for the starting address and/or end address of a branch to be saved in the conveyor controller18.

If the motor controllers171. . .177have already been identified during the detection of their sequence with clear addresses, in principle there is no need to change the addresses, provided that the physical sequence is recorded in a table for example. However, it is also possible that the motor controllers171. . .177are readdressed in step C3) according to the save sequence and ascending/descending addresses are allocated.

A common feature of all of the disclosed variants is that the addressing can be started in principle at any point of the interlinked control components171. . .177and in any direction, without in this way influencing the correct sequence of the control components171. . .177. It is advantageous that during the assembly of a conveying system1it does not need to be taken into consideration that the conveyor rollers4or the conveyor controllers18or the master conveyor controllers19have to be installed or connected at a specific point over the course of the conveying system1. The structure of a conveying system1can therefore be very flexible.

FIG. 11is intended to clarify this further. Here in the upper section a variant is shown in which the motor controllers170(in the connection box11) are arranged on the right in conveying direction, which is shown by the arrow. In the lower section a variant is shown in which the motor controllers170are arranged on the left in conveying direction. The addressing process is started respectively in the “up” direction. The aim is to have descending addresses in conveying direction respectively. In the following three examples, the sequence allocated in the “down” branch, is maintained, the sequence in the “up” branch is reversed however.

In the first example (top left, first line) the “up” branch is not present, the chain of the motor controller170is therefore numbered or addressed in the “down” branch from 1 to 6. The obtained sequence corresponds directly to the desired sequence.

In the second example (top middle, second line) the numbers 1 to 3 are allocated in the “up” branch and the numbers 4 to 6 in the “down” branch. The numbers in the “up” branch are reversed according to the aforementioned rule. The obtained sequence corresponds in turn to the desired sequence.

In the third example (top right, third line) the “down” branch is not present, the chain of the motor controller170is therefore numbered or addressed in the “up” branch from 1 to 6. The obtained sequence is reversed and then corresponds to the desired sequence.

The sequence is thus completely independent of the starting point of the addressing process.

The further examples (bottom right, fourth line), (bottom middle, fifth line) and bottom left, sixth line) are completely analogous. The addressing process is started in the “up” direction respectively. However, now the sequence allocated in the “up” branch is maintained, the sequence in the “down” branch is reversed however. The aim is to have descending addresses in conveying direction.

Here too the sequence is independent of the starting point of the addressing process.

In the preceding examples a respective segment of the conveying system1is considered which is assigned to a conveyor controller18or a master conveyor controller19. Of course, the method presented can also be applied in all variants even to a greater section of a conveying system1or a complete conveying system1.

If the physical sequence of the conveyor controller18/master conveyor controller19is known, a total sequence of the conveyor rollers4is formed in that in a first step the sequence is formed in the said segments and from this the whole sequence is formed together with the sequence of the conveyor controller18/master conveyor controller19. It is also possible that multiple segments are addressed or sequenced by the disclosed addressing method. In this case the control can be transferred on changing a segment from one of the conveyor controllers18/master conveyor controllers19to another conveyor controller18/master conveyor controller19. For example said transfer can be coordinated by the central control20. It is also possible for the addressing or sequencing as such to be performed by the central control20, and the conveyor controller18/master conveyor controller19pass on the necessary messages more or less transparently.

Of course, the disclosed method is not bound to one of the show system architectures, but the conveying system1can also be organized, differently in terms of control technology. In this connection it should be mentioned that the CAN bus and the Ethernet are advantageous for said method, but are only mentioned by way of example. Of course, also other communication technologies can be used including wireless communication.

In this connection the daisy-chain line23can also be designed to be wireless, for example in that the individual sections thereof are formed by optical communication sections. It would also be possible, that a selection signal is sent via infrared from one motor controller170to the next. By shading the connection box11it is ensured that the signal is only sent to a directly adjacent motor controller170. The cost of wiring a conveying system is reduced in such a case to laying a power supply bus15.

The shown examples describe the addressing or sequencing of conveyor rollers4of a conveying system1. Of course, the disclosed method is not restricted to the addressing/sequencing of conveyor rollers4, but can be also be applied to light barriers13for example.

The example embodiments show possible embodiment variants of a conveying system1or an addressing method for such a conveying system1, whereby it should be noted at this point that the invention is not restricted to the embodiment variants thereof shown in particular, but rather various different combinations of the individual embodiment variants are also possible and this variability, due to the teaching on technical procedure, lies within the ability of a person skilled in the art in this technical field. Thus all conceivable embodiment variants, which are made possible by combining individual details of the embodiment variants shown and described, are also covered by the scope of protection.

In particular, it should be noted that the conveying system1in reality can also comprise more or fewer components than are represented.

Finally, as a point of formality, it should be noted that for a better understanding of the structure of the conveying system1the latter and its components have not been represented true to scale in part and/or have been enlarged and/or reduced in size.

The underlying problem addressed by the independent solutions according to the invention can be taken from the description.

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