Patent ID: 8571742

Claim:
An overhead traveling vehicle system comprising: overhead traveling vehicles each including an obstacle sensor configured to detect a distance to an obstacle and an orientation relative to the obstacle; a map memory configured to store a map of a travel route of the overhead traveling vehicles; a detection area generator configured to repeatedly define detection areas from the map based on current positions of the overhead traveling vehicles, the overhead traveling vehicles being decelerated if any obstacle is present in the detection areas; an interference detector configured to detect an obstacle in the detection area, among obstacles detected by the obstacle sensor; and a travel controller configured to control deceleration of the overhead traveling vehicles to prevent interference with the obstacle detected by the interference detector; wherein the detection area generator is configured to: determine interference ranges ahead of the overhead traveling vehicles where obstacles in the interference ranges may cause interference with the overhead traveling vehicles, from the map and based on the positions of the overhead traveling vehicles, determine positions of front ends of the overhead traveling vehicles when the overhead traveling vehicles stop, based on current velocities of the overhead traveling vehicles, and in the interference ranges, designate areas closer to the overhead traveling vehicles in comparison with the positions of the front ends as the detection areas, and the travel route includes diverging sections configured to allow the overhead traveling vehicles to move straight or to diverge from the diverging sections; and the detection area generator is configured to define different detection areas in the vicinity of the diverging sections into diverging directions and straight directions, according to directions in which the overhead traveling vehicles travel through the diverging sections.