JP4815067B2 - Automatic warehouse - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to an automated warehouse equipped with unloading for lifts apparatus vertical circulation, and it has the characteristics to output box control.
[0002]
[Prior art]
In an automatic warehouse, a vertical circulation type lift device (conveyance device) in which a large number of lifters move in the vertical direction has been proposed as a loading / unloading means (for example, Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 64-22708 and Japanese Patent No. 3125090). No. publication).
[0003]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
By the way, the delivery order of the cargo varies depending on each shelf, and the takeout order is fixed, for example, the third shelf, the seventh shelf, the sixth shelf, and the ninth shelf. Not.
[0004]
When the vertical circulation lift device is used to unload from the shelves at each stage, conventionally, the loading is performed in the order of the third shelf, the seventh shelf, the sixth shelf, and the ninth shelf. On the lifter.
[0005]
Therefore, when looking at the load placed on the lift device, there are a number of empty lifters between the lifters on which the adjacent loads are placed according to the number of steps of the shelves on which the loads are placed. That is, conventionally, the number of lifters that pass in front of each shelf remains empty, and the performance of the vertical circulation lift device has not been fully utilized.
[0006]
The present invention has been made in order to improve such a current situation, and an object of the present invention is to fully draw out the capacity of the vertical circulation lift device to improve the delivery efficiency.
[0007]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
In the first aspect of the invention, the automatic warehouse is loaded with a hangar in which shelves provided with temporary storage units for delivery at one end are arranged in multiple stages, and one load discharged from the temporary storage unit for delivery at any stage. and a large number are unloading for lifts device arranged lifters that may lowered Te, a payout conveyor than unloading for temporary portion lowermost to receive a load placed downward from the respective lifter, the goods issue for temporary And a control device that sets (assigns) a load transfer order from the placement unit to each lifter. The unloading lift device has a configuration in which the groups of lifters are attached to the endless chains wound around the upper and lower sprockets at a vertical interval of the shelves. The group repeats a cycle of ascending and descending, and in the process in which each of the lifters descends, the load can be discharged from each temporary storage unit to each of the lifters, and the conveyor that is discharged from each of the lifters. The load is transferred to
[0008]
And the said control apparatus is in the state which has secured the lifter on which the load with a small shipping sequence number is placed, when the load with a large shipping sequence number is located in the temporary storage part for shipping above the load with a small shipping sequence number. In addition, it is set so that a load with a large delivery sequence number is placed on the lifter in advance, and the load can be discharged simultaneously from a plurality of temporary placement units for delivery to a plurality of lifters, and the temporary placement for each delivery while the lifters remain empty. It is possible to circulate through the section.
[0009]
According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, a plurality of loads can be placed side by side on each of the temporary placement units for shipping, and the loads are continuously discharged from the single temporary storage unit for shipping to the lifter. obtain.
[0010]
[Operation and effect of the invention]
According to the present invention, since a load having a large shipment number can be placed on the lifter in advance while securing the shipping order, the use efficiency of the lifter can be improved. As a result, the shipping efficiency of the load can be improved.
[0011]
In addition, since the vertical interval of the lifter is the same as the vertical interval of the temporary storage part for unloading, for example, when the load with the shipping number continues vertically, these multiple loads are placed on the lifter at the same time. In addition, since it is easy to control the discharge timing of the load from each temporary storage part for delivery to the lifter, the shipping efficiency can be further improved.
[0012]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
Next, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
[0013]
1 is a schematic perspective view of the automatic warehouse as viewed from the warehousing part, and FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of the automatic warehouse near the warehousing part. Based on these drawings, an outline of the automatic warehouse excluding the delivery part will be described.
[0014]
(1) .Outline The automatic warehouse has a hangar 2 provided with multiple shelves 1 in which loads W can be arranged side by side in the frontage direction, a cart traveling unit 3 arranged so as to overlap the front surface of the hangar 2, and the hangar 2 and a plane. The temporary storage part 4 for warehousing arrange | positioned so that it may rank in a line in line with the view is provided. FIG. 1 shows a state in which two automatic warehouses are arranged back to back.
[0015]
The hangar 2 is composed of a large number of front and rear columns 5 and a front frame 6 and a rear frame 7 arranged for each shelf to constitute a main frame. On the other hand, each trolley travel unit 3 is composed of a column 5 and front and rear rails 6 and 8 arranged for each shelf, and a self-propelled trolley 9 is mounted on the pair of rails 6 and 8. Is going to run.
[0016]
The front frame 6 of the hangar 2 and the front rail 6 of the cart traveling unit 3 are the same members and are therefore denoted by the same reference numerals.
[0017]
The temporary storage unit 4 for warehousing is composed of front and rear support columns 5 and front and rear rails 10 arranged for each shelf, and a main frame is constituted by a pair of rails 10. 11 (which may be referred to as a temporary storage shelf) is movably disposed.
[0018]
The cart traveling unit 3 extends to a substantially middle portion of the temporary storage unit 4 for warehousing. Therefore, the load W can be transferred from the temporary cart 11 to the self-propelled cart 9. In addition, the temporary storage part 4 for warehousing is not restricted to a cart system, but may be a roller conveyor system or the like.
[0019]
(2). Warehousing Section A storage pedestal (reservoir) 13 is disposed in a position along the front surface of the temporary storage section 4 for warehousing and on the side of the cart traveling section 3 via a pair of columns 12 so as to be movable up and down. is doing. A temporary storage conveyor 15 for warehousing connected to the terminal end of the warehousing conveyor 14 is provided below the temporary storage section 4 for warehousing.
[0020]
As shown in the schematic perspective view of FIG. 3, the goods receipt for the lifting platform 13 is provided with a present body frame 16 is provided with the main body frame 16 to the five sets of transfer unit 17. Each lifting / lowering unit 17 includes a large number of forks 18, and the five transfer units 17 as a whole move up and down after moving forward in the lowered state, or move forward and lowered after moving forward in the raised state. Or retreat.
[0021]
Elevating guide bodies 19 are provided at both left and right ends of the main body frame 16, and guide rollers 20 for moving up and down along the columns 16 are provided on the elevating guide bodies 19. The elevating guide body 19 is suspended from a chain 21 wound around a sprocket that is pivotally supported on the upper end of the column 12, and by driving the chain 21, the elevator platform 13 is raised and lowered to an arbitrary height. be able to.
[0022]
The temporary storage conveyor 15 is a roller conveyor system, and a fork 18 of the storage elevator 13 is inserted between adjacent rollers. Therefore, by moving the transfer unit 17 forward in the lowered state and then raising and retreating, the five loads W can be simultaneously transferred to the warehousing platform 13.
[0023]
(3). Temporary storage unit and temporary storage cart As shown in FIG. 4, the temporary storage cart 11 includes a vehicle body frame 23 having a rectangular shape in plan view. A large number of support bodies 24 formed by bending in a letter shape are arranged side by side.
[0024]
Five loads W can be placed side by side on the temporary carriage 11. And since the loading part of the temporary carriage 11 is comb-shaped with a large number of supports 24, the transfer unit 17 is advanced in the raised state after the warehousing platform 13 is raised. Then, the five loads W can be simultaneously transferred to the temporary placing cart 11 by being lowered and then retracted.
[0025]
Although not shown, the body frame 23 includes a plurality of pairs of wheels that travel on the rail 10 of the temporary storage unit 4 for warehousing. As shown in FIG. 2, a sprocket 25 is rotatably attached to a column 5 (not shown) provided at an end of the temporary storage part 4 for storage and a bracket (not shown) provided on the rear rail 10, respectively. A chain 26 is wound around 25. The chain 26 is driven by a motor 27 disposed at the end of the temporary storage part 4 for warehousing.
[0026]
As shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the end of the body frame 23 is fixed to a part of the chain 26 via a bracket 28. Therefore, by rotating the motor 27 forward and backward, the temporary placing carriage 14 can be moved forward or backward to the carriage traveling unit 3.
[0027]
(4). Shelves Structure As shown in FIG. 5, the shelves 1 are provided with a large number of supports 24 extending in the depth direction, like the temporary carriage 11.
[0028]
The front and rear ends of each support 24 are fixed to a support frame 29, the front support frame 29 is fitted in the upward concave groove 6 a of the front frame 6, and the rear support frame 29 is formed on the inner surface of the rear frame 7. It is fixed.
[0029]
(5) Self-propelled cart As shown in FIG. 6, the self-propelled cart 9 includes a main body frame 30 formed in a rectangular shape in plan view, and a pair of runs driven by a motor 31 on the main body frame 30. A wheel 32 and five transfer units 33 each having a fork 18 are provided.
[0030]
Each transfer unit 33 includes a drive motor 34. When the motor 34 is rotated forward, the transfer unit 33 moves forward and then moves upward and then moves backward. Thus, it is possible to reloaded the load W from receipts for temporary placing vehicle 13. Conversely, when the motor 34 is reversed, the transfer unit 33 moves forward and then moves downward and then moves backward. As a result, the load W can be transferred to the shelf 1.
[0031]
The reason why each transfer unit 33 can be independently driven in the self-propelled carriage 9 is that the shelf 1 does not necessarily have a vacant space for storing a plurality of loads W in the shelf 1, This is because the loads W to be delivered are not necessarily lined up.
[0032]
(6). Outline of Dispatching Unit Next, an outline of the leaving unit to which the present invention is applied will be described based on FIG. 7 and FIG.
[0033]
As shown in both figures, for a delivery of a length that allows the loading of five loads W from the self-propelled carriage 9 to a part located on the opposite side of the temporary storage part 4 with the hangar 2 in between. A temporary conveyor 36 is provided for each shelf. The temporary storage conveyor 36 is an example of a temporary storage section, and is a roller conveyor system in which a number of rollers 37 are driven by a chain 38.
[0034]
A belt conveyor type discharge conveyor 39 is disposed on the opposite side of the shelf 1 across each temporary storage conveyor 36, and on the opposite side to the temporary storage conveyor 36 with the group of discharge conveyors 39 interposed therebetween. the site of are arranged goods issue for lifts device 40 of circulation.
[0035]
The unloading lift device 40 includes a pair of guide frames 41 extending vertically, a sprocket 42 rotatably attached between the upper end and the lower end thereof, an endless chain 43 wound around the upper and lower sprockets 42, a shelf 1 and a plurality of lifters 44 attached to the chain 43 with the same distance as the vertical distance of 1. When the chain 43 circulates, each lifter 44 repeats circulation that rises and then descends, and the load W is discharged from the discharge conveyor 39 to the lifter 44 in the descending process.
[0036]
The guide frame 41 is held by a support frame 45 so as not to fall down. Although not shown, a motor for driving the chain 43 is attached to the lower end portion of the guide frame 41. Each lifter 44 includes a comb-shaped receiving fork 44a.
[0037]
A comb-shaped delivery conveyor 46 and a relay conveyor 47 connected thereto are arranged below the discharge conveyor 39 and the temporary delivery conveyor 36 at the bottom.
[0038]
The receiving fork 44a of the lifter 44 passes through the groove of the discharge conveyor 47, whereby the load W is transferred from the lifter 44 to the discharge conveyor 46 and the relay conveyor 47, and then moved laterally like a pusher. By means (not shown), it is transferred to the delivery conveyor 49 via the relay stand 48.
[0039]
(7). Delivery Control Next, the delivery control method will be described based on FIG.
[0040]
9A shows the shipment order of the load W in the temporary storage unit 36 for delivery at each stage. In this figure, five Ws are temporarily placed in each temporary placement part 36 for delivery, and 50 loads W are shipped according to the numbers. Needless to say, when the top load W is released, the next load W becomes the top.
[0041]
In addition, for the sake of convenience, the lifter 44 corresponding to the temporary storage part 36 for the first stage is set as the first for the sake of convenience, and the number is set so as to increase sequentially upward for convenience. (Since the lifter 44 circulates, the same lifter 44 can have a plurality of numbers . )
[0042]
When the self-propelled carriage 9 transports the load W from the shelf 1 to the temporary storage unit 36 for unloading, the load W is transferred to the five transfer units 33 from the end close to the temporary storage unit 36 for unloading according to the shipping order. By transferring in line, the load W can be efficiently transferred to the temporary placement unit 36 for delivery. Of course, the number of loads W carried to the temporary storage unit 36 for delivery by one run of the self-propelled carriage 9 is not limited to five, and can be set as appropriate.
[0043]
Prior to the description of the present embodiment, a shipping order according to a conventional method is shown based on FIG. 10 for comparison.
[0044]
That is, in this conventional example, in the same shipping order as FIG. 9A, 1) The first load W is taken out by the third lifter 44. 2) The second load W is taken out by the seventh lifter 44. 3) retrieve the 8 th to the lifter 44 in the third load W, 4) in 12 th re Futa 44 retrieves the fourth load W, it is controlled to say.
[0045]
That is, when the m-th load W is taken out from the o-th temporary placement unit 36 by the n-th lifter 44, the (m + 1) th load W is positioned below the p-th temporary placement unit 36 for delivery. The (m + 1) th load W is taken out by the (n + 1) th lifter 44, and if the (m + 1) th load W is positioned at the upper stage by k stages, the (m + k) th load W is taken out. It is taken out by the lifter 44.
[0046]
In many cases, the (m + 1) th load W is positioned above the o-th temporary storage unit 36 for delivery, so that the number of lifters 44 that circulate in an empty state is large, and the delivery efficiency is high. It ’s bad.
[0047]
FIG. 9B shows an embodiment of the present invention. In this embodiment, while continuously lifting the lifter 44,
1) . At the same time that the first load W is placed on the third lifter 44, the fourth load W is placed on the tenth stage lifter 44.
2) . Place the second load W on the seventh lifter 44,
3) . Place the third load W on the first lifter 44,
4) . At the same time when the sixth load W is loaded on the twelfth lifter 44, the seventh load W is loaded on the thirteenth lifter 44.
5) . Place the fifth load W on the eleventh lifter 44,
6) . Preload the 9th load W on the 15th lifter 44,
7) . Place the 10th load W on the 16th lifter 44,
8) . Place the 14th load W on the 20th lifter 44,
9) . Place the 8th load W on the 4th lifter 44,
10 ) The 11th load W is placed on the 17th lifter 44 and the 12th load W is placed on the 18th lifter 44.
11 ). Place 13th load W on 19th lifter 44,
As described above, the relationship between the empty state of the lifter 44 and the load W that has been released and the standby load W is calculated, and the load W is loaded on the lifter 44 in advance in a state of filling the empty space.
[0048]
That is, when generalized, if the m-th load W is taken out from the o-th temporary storage unit 36 to the n-th lifter 44, the load W with a shipment number greater than (m + 1) is the o-th level. If the m-th load W is taken out, or if the m-th load W is taken out and the lifter 44 is run after the m-th load W is located above the temporary storage unit 36 for delivery, the shipment order of the load W is taken. The load W located on the upper stage is discharged to the lifter 44 in advance within a range that does not impair it.
[0049]
Therefore, it is possible to remarkably suppress the lifter 44 from circulating while it is empty, and to significantly improve the delivery efficiency.
[0050]
In that case, if the order of shipment of too many loads W is controlled at a time, the calculation formula becomes extremely complicated and the calculation speed becomes slow. Therefore, it is preferable to assign a corresponding relationship to the lifter 44 by an appropriate number (for example, about 20 to 50 loads W) by the badge processing method.
[0051]
(8). Others The present invention can be embodied in various ways other than the above embodiment. For example, the lifter is not limited to the comb-tooth system as in the embodiment, but may be a plate shape. Of course, the shelf need not be formed in a comb shape.
[0052]
Further, the delivery conveyor and the discharge conveyor are not limited to the belt type but may be a roller type.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of an automatic warehouse according to an embodiment of the present invention as viewed from a warehousing unit side.
FIG. 2 is a schematic plan view of a portion near the warehousing part in the automatic warehouse.
FIG. 3 is a schematic perspective view of a lifting platform for warehousing.
FIG. 4 is a partial perspective view of a temporary storage unit for warehousing.
FIG. 5 is a partially separated perspective view of a shelf.
FIG. 6 is a schematic perspective view of a self-propelled carriage.
FIG. 7 is a perspective view of a delivery part in an automatic warehouse.
FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional plan view of a shipping part.
FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a delivery control method.
FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a delivery control method according to a conventional example.
[Brief description of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Shelf 2 Hangar 3 Carriage traveling unit 4 Temporary storage unit for storage 9 Self-propelled vehicle 11 Temporary storage vehicle for storage 13 Lifting platform for storage 15 Temporary conveyor for storage 36 Temporary storage conveyor for discharge 37 Discharge conveyor 38 Circulating lift device 44 Lifter 46 Delivery conveyor 47 Relay conveyor 49 Delivery conveyor

Claims (2)

There are provided a hangar with shelves with temporary storage parts for delivery at one end in multiple stages, and a number of lifters that can be lowered with a single load released from the temporary storage part for delivery at any stage. transfer and lifts apparatus for unloading, the a payout conveyor arranged below the unloading for temporary portion lowermost to receive a load from the lifter, from the unloading for temporary part of the load of each lifter has And a control device for setting the order,
The unloading lift device has a configuration in which the groups of lifters are attached to the endless chains wound around the upper and lower sprockets at a vertical interval of the shelves. The group repeats a cycle of ascending and descending, and in the process in which each of the lifters descends, the load can be discharged from each temporary storage unit to each of the lifters, and the conveyor that is discharged from each of the lifters. The load is transferred to
The structure
When the load having a large delivery order number is positioned above the temporary placement part for delivery, the control device secures the lifter on which the load with the small delivery order number is placed. Loads with a large sequence number are set in advance on the lifter, and loads can be discharged simultaneously from a plurality of temporary storage units to a plurality of lifters. It is possible to circulate through,
Automatic warehouse. A plurality of loads can be placed side by side on each temporary placement unit for delivery, and the load can be discharged continuously from one temporary placement unit for delivery to a lifter.
The automatic warehouse according to claim 1.

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