Patents Assigned to Sick AG
  • Patent number: 10803163
    Abstract: To ensure a simple and secure verification of a device, in particular of a safety controller, a method of verifying a configuration of a device, in particular of a safety controller, is provided, said method comprising the steps of subdividing the configuration of the device into at least two part configurations that are validated, of allocating the part configurations to at least one part configuration sequence in which a dependence on a verification of the part configurations on one another is predefined, of determining parameters of each part configuration, with the parameters being used for verifying the respective part configurations, of calculating a single checksum that reproduces the verification of the part configurations, with the single checksum of a preceding part configuration being recalculated in the verification of a part configuration following in the part configuration sequence and with the verification of the preceding part configuration being confirmed on an agreement of the single checksu
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 28, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Harald Fecher, Jörg Moddemann, Martin Wehrle
  • Patent number: 10802505
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a driverless transport system for transporting goods and/or persons that comprises a plurality of driverless vehicles and at least one stationary monitoring device for monitoring a respective travel path zone, wherein the monitoring device comprises at least one sensor that is configured to detect the presence of objects in the travel path zone and to output a detection signal when an object is located in the travel path zone and a control unit that is connected to the sensor and that is configured to receive the detection signal from the sensor and to generate a control signal for the at least one driverless vehicle based at least on the detection signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 5, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventor: Franz Dold
  • Patent number: 10804058
    Abstract: To enable a safe monitoring with a small cabling effort of a modular safety relay circuit, a modular safety relay circuit for the safe control of at least one machine is provided comprising a safety relay unit that has at least one forcibly guided relay for the safe switching on and off of the machine and that generates output signals in dependence on input signals, wherein the input signals are provided by at least one connected signal transmitter and the output signals are communicated to the at least one machine; and at least one expansion relay unit for providing additional output connectors so that additional machines can be connected; wherein the expansion relay unit has at least one respective forcibly guided relay for the safe switching on and off of the machine and is monitored by means of a monitoring signal.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: March 30, 2018
    Date of Patent: October 13, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Markus Saumer, Jonas Weidenmüller
  • Patent number: 10762703
    Abstract: A method for visualizing 3D image data of a 3D sensor (10) with a plurality of 3D points which form a lateral 2D arrangement with a respective depth value, wherein connected segments (32) are formed from connected 3D points and the segments (32) are displayed, and wherein two respective 3D points are connected in the same segment (32) if they are laterally adjacent and also differ in their depth value by at most a depth threshold (z).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 21, 2019
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Davide Impera, Thomas Neumann
  • Patent number: 10761505
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a safety controller for the safety-directed monitoring and control of a machine, said safety controller having at least one monitoring input that is configured to receive a detection signal from a protective device; at least one control output that is configured to output a shutdown signal to the machine to be monitored and to be controlled; at least one bypass input that is configured to receive a bypass demand from an independent control system. The invention further relates to a safety system having a safety controller and having at least one protective device connected to the safety controller.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 19, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Danilo Knab, Mathias Ams, Dennis Münich
  • Patent number: 10760738
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a safety device for securing a machine having a sensor that is configured to detect the presence of an object in a monitored zone and to output a detection signal when an object is located in the monitored zone and having an evaluation unit that is configured to receive the detection signal from the senor and to generate an output signal in dependence on the detection signal. Provision is made in accordance with the invention that the evaluation unit is adapted furthermore to generate the output signal in dependence on at least one additional criterion.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 2, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Victor Kok Heng Phay, Adrian Schwarz
  • Patent number: 10761209
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a triangulation light sensor for the detection of objects on a conveying path having a light transmitter for transmitting transmitted light into a detection zone that extends over a part region of the conveying path, having a light receiver, a reception optics arranged in an optical path between the detection zone and the light receiver, and an evaluation unit that is configured for generating an object detection signal from the received signals.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 7, 2018
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Kai Waslowski, Ingolf Hörsch, Gerhard Merettig, Matthias Götz
  • Patent number: 10761193
    Abstract: An optoelectronic sensor (10) according to the principle of triangulation for detecting an object (36) in a monitoring region (18) comprises a light transmitter (12) and a spatially resolving light receiver (26). A receiving optics (22) and an optical element (24) are arranged in front of the light receiver (26), wherein the optical element (24) comprises a converging partial region (24a) and a diverging partial region (24c) and is arranged such that a remitted light bundle (20) from an object (36) in a near range of the monitoring region (18) passes through the converging partial region (24) and a remitted light bundle (20) from an object (36) in a far range of the monitoring region (18) passes through the diverging partial region (24c).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 11, 2016
    Date of Patent: September 1, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Ingolf Hörsch, Gerhard Merettig, Friedhelm Wiethege, Angelika Hofmann
  • Patent number: 10750651
    Abstract: The invention relates to a method of preparing a setup kit for at least one placement machine, wherein the placement machine serves for the placement of components on/at assemblies, and wherein those components that are required for the assemblies for a plurality of different assemblies to be manufactured are determined by means of the placement machine; possible setup kits for the placement machine are prepared iteratively from the determined components, with each setup kit comprising a plurality of components; an optimized setup kit is selected from the setup kits by means of an electronic processing device in the method.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: October 17, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 18, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Danny Wernet, Fabian Schmidt, Bernhard Füger
  • Patent number: 10733740
    Abstract: A method of recognizing changes in a detection zone is provided in which three-dimensional image data of the detection zone are detected and evaluated to recognize changes with reference to three-dimensional reference image data. The detection zone is divided into cells in this process. Reference limit values at which heights objects are recognized are determined in a teaching phase. In an operating phase, a maximum value and/or a minimal value of the heights of currently recognized objects is/are determined from the respective detected image data and a change is recognized on a deviation with respect to the reference limit values.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 21, 2018
    Date of Patent: August 4, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Jens Silva, Uwe Hahne
  • Patent number: 10726288
    Abstract: A contrast sensor for evaluating identification markings and a method of evaluating identification markings on detecting objects using a contrast sensor, having at least one light transmitter and at least one light receiver, with the light receiver having a single photodiode; having a control and evaluation unit for evaluating the light receiver signal of the light receiver, and having an output for a sensor signal that is formed by the control and evaluation unit on the basis of the light receiver signal, wherein the identification marking has lettering or a marking; an elongate illumination field is projected by the light transmitter onto a region of the identification marking narrow in the direction of movement; and the control and evaluation unit compares a reception signal sequence having a plurality of contrast transitions with a stored reception signal sequence and outputs the sensor signal in dependence on the comparison.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 1, 2018
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Günter Hirt, Simone Schwarz, Alexander Bierbaum
  • Patent number: 10726538
    Abstract: A method of securing at least one hazard zone comprising a hazardous machine is provided, wherein objects are detected in an environment of the hazard zone from measured data of at least one 3D sensor, and wherein a safety directed reaction of the machine takes place on an impending danger. A switch is made to at least one new hazard zone to be activated during the operation of the machine and a check is made whether the new hazard zone to be secured is free of objects.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: May 23, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 28, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Ingolf Braune, Armin Hornung, Matthias Neubauer
  • Patent number: 10719108
    Abstract: A sensor (10) is provided that has at least one sensor functional group (12), a heating device (14, 22), and a heating control (14, 20) to control a heating power (Pheating) of the heating device (14, 22). In this respect, the heating control (20) is configured to adapt the heating power (Pheating) to a power consumption (Psensor) of the sensor functional group (12).
    Type: Grant
    Filed: February 28, 2017
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventor: Stefan Seitz
  • Patent number: 10719676
    Abstract: A camera is provided that comprises an image sensor for detecting image data from a detection region and a reception optics arranged in front of the image sensor, a focus adjustment unit having a thread for changing the position of focus of the reception optics by way of a rotary movement and a front screen. In this connection the reception optics has a front region having an inner contour that is accessible via the front screen in order to rotate the reception optics from the outside in the thread and to thus adjust the focus.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 17, 2019
    Date of Patent: July 21, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Florian Schneider, Thomas Pfrengle
  • Patent number: 10695908
    Abstract: An access protection system comprises a first safety sensor, a second safety sensor, and an electronic control device that is in signal connection with the first and second safety sensors. The first and second safety sensors are laser scanners that each form a safety protected field and that each form a first detection protected field in operation and that are arranged such that the first detection protected fields do not overlap at least regionally. The electronic control device is configured to trigger a safety function on a penetration of an object into the safety protected field of the first and/or second safety sensors and to change the operating state of the access protection system when a penetration of the object is determined both into the first detection protected field of the first safety sensor and into the first detection protected field of the second safety sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: December 22, 2017
    Date of Patent: June 30, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventor: Urs Dietrich
  • Patent number: 10643349
    Abstract: A method of calibrating a camera and a laser scanner for their sensor fusion is provided whereby the camera records a camera image of a scene and the laser scanner at least partly scans the scene with a scanning beam and records a remission image from the respective angular position of the scanning beam and from the intensity determined at the angular position of the scanning beam remitted from the scene, wherein an offset and/or a relative orientation between the camera and the laser scanner is determined from a comparison of the camera image and the remission image. Distances with respect to the remission image are here also determined by the laser scanner and distances with respect to the camera image are reconstructed; and in that a correspondence search of corresponding features in the camera image and in the remission image is carried out in three-dimensional space for the comparison.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: April 11, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventor: Patric Beinschob
  • Patent number: 10641894
    Abstract: A sensor (10) is provided for detecting an object (20) in a monitored zone (18), having at least one sensor element (36) for detecting a sensor signal; having a switch output (30) for outputting a binary object determination signal; and having an evaluation unit (28) that is configured to generate the object determination signal from the sensor signal in dependence on the detected object (20) and to determine, in a teaching phase, a switching point that determines the association between the sensor signal and the object determination signal. The evaluation unit (28) is further configured to detect a respective sensor signal for a plurality of detection situations in the teaching phase, with the associated object determination signal being predefined for the respective detection situation and with the switching point being derived therefrom.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: July 23, 2018
    Date of Patent: May 5, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventor: Kai Waslowski
  • Patent number: 10634785
    Abstract: An optoelectronic sensor (10) is provided for detecting object information from a monitored zone (12) having a light receiver (24); a reception optics (22) associated with the light receiver (24) for generating a light spot on the light receiver (24); and an evaluation unit (26) for generating the object information from a received signal of the light receiver (24). In this respect, a manipulation unit (30) is provided to vary the reception optics (22), the light receiver (24) and/or elements of the reception optics (22) such that the portion of the light spot that is incident on the light receiver (24) varies.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: November 17, 2017
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Christoph Hofmann, Joachim Krämer, Jörg Sigmund
  • Patent number: 10634773
    Abstract: The present invention relates to a monitoring sensor for the spatially resolved detection of objects in a monitored zone in accordance with the principle of triangulation, comprising a light transmitter for transmitting transmitted light into the monitored zone, wherein the light transmitter comprises a light source and a transmission optics that has an optical axis; a light receiver that has a plurality of receiver elements for receiving light from the monitored zone that is remitted by an object to be detected; and a reception optics arranged upstream of the light receiver. The invention further relates to a floor-bound vehicle having a monitoring sensor.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: January 10, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 28, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Fabian Jachmann, Michael Engler
  • Patent number: 10627539
    Abstract: The present invention relates to an optoelectronic sensor system for detecting objects in a monitored zone having a light transmitter for transmitting light into the monitored zone along a transmitted light path, having a light receiver for receiving received light from the monitored zone that is remitted along a received light path in the direction of the light receiver from an object to be detected in the monitored zone or a reflector bounding the monitored zone, and having an objective arrangement arranged in front of the light transmitter and the light receiver. The transmitted light path and the received light path run spaced apart from one another at least in part sections facing the light transmitter and the light receiver respectively.
    Type: Grant
    Filed: September 7, 2018
    Date of Patent: April 21, 2020
    Assignee: SICK AG
    Inventors: Roland Albrecht, Johannes Eble, Eva-Maria Kriener