JP5413413B2 - Automatic warehouse - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an automatic warehouse that loads and unloads luggage using a transfer device.

  Conventionally, there is an automatic warehouse including a rack having a plurality of shelves and a transfer device for transferring loads. In such an automatic warehouse, a transport vehicle (for example, a stacker crane) having a transfer device performs transport of the load and delivery of the load to and from the rack.

  In such an automatic warehouse, the luggage stored in the rack may deviate from the normal position due to some factor such as an earthquake. If the package is deviated from its normal position, for example, it may be impossible or unstable for the baggage to be pulled in by the stacker crane, so it is not possible to monitor the status of each package stored in the rack in an automatic warehouse. is important.

  For example, Patent Document 1 discloses a technique for easily confirming whether or not a load collapse has occurred and the scale of the load collapse by arranging an optical sensor and a camera on a lifting platform included in a stacker crane. ing.

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 5-37713

  Here, there are cases where a plurality of loads are placed side by side in a direction along the direction of the travel route of the transport vehicle on each of the plurality of shelves included in the rack of the automatic warehouse. Furthermore, in such an automatic warehouse, a different number of packages may be placed for each shelf.

  For example, up to three large packages can be placed on one shelf, up to four medium-sized packages can be placed on other shelves, and up to five small packages can be placed on other shelves. There is a case.

  In addition, the setting of the maximum number of loads as described above is not made in advance on each of the plurality of shelves, and the loads are stored in the rack in the order in which they are received.

  That is, when a large package is received, it is placed on a shelf (a shelf on which no package is placed, or a shelf on which one or two large packages are already placed) When a medium-sized baggage is received, it is placed on another shelf (a shelf on which no baggage is placed or a shelf on which one to three medium-sized packages are already placed).

  In addition, for example, after five small packages are placed on a certain shelf, one small package is taken out from the shelf, so that four small packages are placed. In this case, when the small package is subsequently received, the small package is placed on the shelf.

  In such a rack, since a plurality of packages are placed on each of a plurality of shelves, for example, when a certain package is displaced due to an earthquake or the like, the original placement position (that is, the normal position) of the package is set. You may not understand.

  For example, it is assumed that four packages are placed on one shelf and at least one package is displaced due to an earthquake or the like.

  In this case, if the operator can determine that the shelves are essentially shelves on which up to four shelves can be placed, the shifted luggage can be returned to the normal position.

  However, even if the operator confirms the shelf directly or through a camera or the like, it is easy to determine how many pieces of luggage should be placed on the shelf. I can't.

  That is, the shelf is originally a shelf on which up to five packages are to be placed, but at that time, only four packages may be placed.

  Further, even if it can be determined that the shelf is originally a shelf on which up to five pieces of luggage are to be placed, the placement positions at the time of each of the four pieces of luggage are regular. It is difficult to determine whether it is a position. That is, at first glance, even though each of the four packages seems to be in a proper position, in reality, for example, the four packages may be shifted to the right or left as a whole.

  Under the circumstances as described above, conventionally, when an earthquake occurs, for example, all the shelves are checked by an operator.

  Specifically, the operator compares, for example, a list indicating the number of original loads placed on each shelf and the placement position of each shelf at that time with the status of all the shelves arranged in the rack, It is necessary to find and correct the misplaced package.

  Therefore, for example, in the case of an automatic warehouse having several thousand shelves and a total of tens of thousands of packages, the amount of work related to checking all shelves becomes enormous.

  The present invention is an automatic warehouse provided with a rack having a plurality of shelves, each of which can place a plurality of luggage, in consideration of the above-described conventional problems, and when the placement position of any luggage is shifted, It is an object of the present invention to provide an automatic warehouse capable of correcting the deviation efficiently.

  In order to achieve the above object, an automatic warehouse according to one aspect of the present invention is arranged along a transport vehicle having a transfer device for transferring a load, along a travel route of the transport vehicle, and by the transfer device. An automatic warehouse having a rack for loading and unloading luggage, the rack having a plurality of shelves, each of which can be loaded with a plurality of luggage arranged in a direction along the travel route The automatic warehouse includes a detector that is disposed in the transport vehicle and can detect the position of one or more packages on each of the plurality of shelves, and a controller that controls the automatic warehouse, A storage unit that stores placement information indicating which position of each of the plurality of shelves should be loaded, an instruction receiving unit that receives a predetermined instruction, and the instruction receiving unit that receives the predetermined instruction Accept A detection control unit that causes the detector to detect the position of one or more loads on each of the plurality of shelves by operating the transport vehicle, and the detection result corresponding to the predetermined instruction. A comparison unit that compares the previous position information stored in the storage unit, a result of the comparison by the comparison unit, a position indicated by the previous position information, and a position indicated by the detection result A specifying unit that specifies one or more shelves in which misaligned baggage that is a baggage whose difference is larger than a threshold value, and an output unit that outputs information indicating the positions of the one or more shelves specified by the specifying unit; Have

  According to this configuration, the comparison unit displays the original luggage loading status of each shelf indicated in the loading information stored in the storage unit, and the detection at the time of the detection, The actual loading situation of each shelf is compared.

  Further, as a result of this comparison, the specifying unit specifies the shelf on which the luggage having a positional deviation greater than the threshold is placed.

  That is, one or more shelves that need to be corrected for the positional deviation of the package are identified from among the plurality of shelves, and as a result, information indicating the positions of the identified one or more shelves is output by the output unit.

  Therefore, for example, an operator who has confirmed the information output from the output unit does not need to check all of the plurality of shelves, and only one or more shelves indicated in the information are targeted for correction of the positional deviation of the package. That's fine.

  Therefore, according to the automatic warehouse of this aspect, each of the automatic warehouses includes a rack having a plurality of shelves on which a plurality of luggage can be placed, and when the placement position of any luggage is shifted, the efficiency The deviation can be corrected well.

  In the automatic warehouse according to one aspect of the present invention, when the output unit further outputs information indicating the position of the one or more shelves specified by the specifying unit, the result of detection by the detector is used. The package information for specifying the misaligned package in each of the one or more shelves may be output.

  According to this configuration, since the output unit outputs the package information for specifying the misaligned baggage, for example, the efficiency of the work for correcting the misalignment of the baggage can be further improved.

  Moreover, in the automatic warehouse which concerns on 1 aspect of this invention, the said output part is shown as the said package information in each position of each of the said 1 or more shelf shown by the above-mentioned storage information memorize | stored in the said memory | storage part. Information indicating whether the package should be placed may be output.

  According to this configuration, a part of the placement information stored in the storage unit is output as the package information. Therefore, for example, it is possible to generate and output the package information more efficiently.

  Further, in the automatic warehouse according to one aspect of the present invention, the instruction receiving unit further receives an instruction to change the threshold value, and the specifying unit is a baggage whose difference is larger than the threshold value changed according to the instruction. One or more shelves in which a certain misaligned baggage exists may be specified.

  According to this configuration, the threshold value serving as a criterion for determining the positional deviation for each package stored in the rack is variable.

  Therefore, for example, the threshold value can be changed according to the transfer method adopted by the transfer device, the capacity of the transfer device, the characteristics of the luggage stored in the rack, and the like.

  The present invention can also be realized as a package management method including a characteristic process executed by the automatic warehouse according to any one of the above aspects. Further, the present invention can be realized as a program for causing a computer to execute each process included in the package management method, and as a recording medium on which the program is recorded. The program can be distributed via a transmission medium such as the Internet or a recording medium such as a DVD.

  According to the present invention, an automatic warehouse including racks each having a plurality of shelves on which a plurality of luggage can be placed, and when the placement position of any luggage is shifted, the correction of the deviation is efficiently performed. It is possible to provide an automatic warehouse that can perform

FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a configuration outline of an automatic warehouse in the embodiment. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an arrangement of shelves in the rack according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the lateral width of a load and the number of shelves on which the load is placed according to the embodiment. FIG. 4A is a first diagram illustrating a placement position of a load on a shelf in the embodiment. FIG. 4B is a second diagram illustrating a placement position of the luggage on the shelf in the embodiment. FIG. 4C is a third diagram illustrating a placement position of the luggage on the shelf in the embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an outline of a baggage take-in operation by the transfer device in the embodiment. Drawing 6A is the 1st figure for explaining an example of the procedure of warehousing in the automatic warehouse of an embodiment. Drawing 6B is the 2nd figure for explaining an example of the procedure of warehousing in the automatic warehouse of an embodiment. Drawing 6C is the 3rd figure for explaining an example of the procedure of warehousing in the automatic warehouse of an embodiment. Drawing 6D is the 4th figure for explaining an example of the procedure of warehousing in the automatic warehouse of an embodiment. FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the controller according to the embodiment. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of the data configuration of the placement information in the embodiment. FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining shelf specifying processing by the controller according to the embodiment. FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a first example of information output from the output unit according to the embodiment. FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a second example of information output from the output unit according to the embodiment. FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a third example of information output from the output unit according to the embodiment. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a fourth example of information output from the output unit in the embodiment.

  An automatic warehouse according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a configuration outline of an automatic warehouse 10 according to the embodiment.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram illustrating an arrangement of shelves in the rack 50 according to the embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 1, the automatic warehouse 10 in the embodiment includes a stacker crane 12, a rack 50, and a controller 100.

  The stacker crane 12 is an example of a transport vehicle, and includes a transfer device 20 that transfers loads.

  The rack 50 includes a plurality of shelves 51 each capable of mounting a plurality of loads in a direction along the travel path of the stacker crane 12.

  The automatic warehouse 10 further includes a traveling rail 16 for moving the stacker crane 12 and a station 55 on which the luggage 60 is placed when entering and leaving.

  In the automatic warehouse 10, the luggage 60 is automatically stored in the rack 50 by the stacker crane 12, and the stored luggage 60 is automatically unloaded from the rack 50.

  Specifically, the stacker crane 12 moves on the traveling rail 16 and raises and lowers the lifting platform 15 provided with the transfer device 20. In addition, the transfer device 20 includes a loading platform 21 and a pair of forks 22, and moves the pair of forks 22 in and out of an arbitrary shelf 51 of the rack 50. Thereby, the load 60 can be transferred between the rack 50 and the transfer device 20.

  In addition, the transfer device 20 can transfer the load 60 to / from the station 55. Thereby, for example, the stacker crane 12 can place the luggage 60 taken from the rack 50 on the station 55 and can place the luggage 60 taken from the station 55 on the rack 50.

  In addition, a detector 25 is disposed on the stacker crane 12. The detector 25 can detect the position of one or more loads 60 on each of the plurality of shelves 51.

  The detector 25 includes, for example, a laser beam projector and a light receiver, and detects the package by receiving the laser beam emitted from the projector and reflected by the package.

  The detector 25 can further detect the position of the load from the position of the stacker crane 12 in the traveling direction, the height position of the lifting platform 15, and the detection result. The detector 25 can determine the center position of the load by detecting the positions of the left end and the right end of the load.

  The detector 25 is disposed on the lifting platform 15, and the position of one or more loads 60 on each of all the shelves 51 of the rack 50 can be detected by operating the stacker crane 12.

  Such an operation of the stacker crane 12 is executed under the control of the controller 100. Details of the controller 100 in the embodiment will be described later with reference to FIG.

  Each of the plurality of shelves 51 included in the rack 50 is identified by a zone and a stage, as shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, for example. For example, the first shelf 51 in the A zone is identified as shelf A-1.

  Further, for example, FIG. 1 shows a state in which three packages 60 are placed on the shelf A-1 and four packages 60 are placed on the shelf B-1.

  Specifically, in each of the plurality of shelves 51, the number of loaded packages (the maximum number of packages) corresponding to the size of the package is set after the start of the loading operation of the package.

  FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating the relationship between the lateral width of a load and the number of shelves on which the load is placed according to the embodiment.

  In FIG. 3, a, b, c, and d are positive numerical values that satisfy the relationship of a <b <c <d.

  FIGS. 4A, 4B, and 4C are a first diagram, a second diagram, and a third diagram showing the placement positions of the luggage on the shelf 51 in the embodiment.

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4A, when the width W of the luggage to be stored in the rack 50 is a ≦ W ≦ b, the shelf 51 on which the luggage is placed has a maximum number of luggage of “5”. Used as a certain shelf 51.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4A, placement positions [1] to [5] are defined in the controller 100. Each load satisfying a ≦ W ≦ b is placed on the shelf 51 so that the center in the X-axis direction (lateral width direction) coincides with any of the placement positions [1] to [5].

  As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4B, when the width W of the luggage to be stored in the rack 50 is b <W ≦ c, the shelf 51 on which the luggage is placed has a maximum number of luggage of “4”. Is used as a shelf 51.

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4B, placement positions [1] to [4] are defined in the controller 100. Each load satisfying b <W ≦ c is placed on the shelf 51 such that the center in the X-axis direction (lateral width direction) coincides with any of the placement positions [1] to [4].

  Further, as shown in FIGS. 3 and 4C, when the width W of the luggage to be stored in the rack 50 is c <W ≦ d, the shelf 51 on which the luggage is placed has a maximum luggage number of “3”. Is used as a shelf 51.

  Specifically, as illustrated in FIG. 4B, placement positions [1] to [3] are defined in the controller 100. Each load satisfying c <W ≦ d is placed on the shelf 51 such that the center in the X-axis direction (lateral width direction) coincides with any of the placement positions [1] to [3].

  As described above, the loading of the load on the shelf 51 and the removal of the loaded load from the shelf 51 are performed by the transfer device 20 included in the stacker crane 12.

  FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an outline of a baggage taking-in operation by the transfer device 20 in the embodiment.

  In FIG. 5, in order to clearly describe the characteristics of the transfer device 20, only main components of the transfer device 20 such as the fork 22 are illustrated, and components such as a frame that supports the fork 22 are illustrated. The description is omitted.

  As shown in FIG. 5, each of the pair of forks 22 provided in the transfer device 20 includes a claw 23 at one end in the retracting direction and a claw 24 at the other end.

  Hereinafter, an operation when the transfer device 20 takes in the luggage 60 from the shelf 51 will be described. For the sake of clarity, the description will be given focusing on the operation of one of the pair of forks 22, but the other fork 22 performs the same operation.

  When the transfer device 20 takes in the luggage 60 from the shelf 51, first, when the fork 22 advances to the side of the luggage 60 and the claw 23 exceeds the rear end of the luggage 60 (the upper end of the luggage 60 in FIG. 5), The claw 23 rotates inward. Thereafter, the fork 22 moves backward while the claw 23 comes into contact with the rear end of the luggage 60, so that the luggage 60 is taken into the upper surface of the loading platform 21.

  In addition, when sending out the load 60 on the loading platform 21 to the shelf 51, the load 60 is moved to a predetermined position inside the shelf 51 using the claw 24, for example. Alternatively, for example, after the fork 22 is once retracted, the luggage 60 is sent to a predetermined position inside the shelf 51 using the claws 23.

  In FIG. 5, the shelf 51 (rack 50) is disposed only in front of the transfer device 20 (upward in FIG. 5). However, in the transfer device 20, the fork 22 can move back and forth (downward in FIG. 5), so that the load can be similarly placed on the rear of the transfer device 20.

  That is, when there is a load placement location such as the rack 50 behind the transfer device 20, the transfer device 20 can take in the load from the placement location and send the load to the placement location. .

  Next, an example of the warehousing procedure in the embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 6A to 6D.

  6A, FIG. 6B, FIG. 6C, and FIG. 6D are a first diagram, a second diagram, a third diagram, and a diagram for explaining an example of a warehousing procedure in the automatic warehouse 10 according to the embodiment. FIG.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 6A, it is assumed that no luggage is stored in the rack 50. In this case, the load 1 that satisfies c <W ≦ d and that is to be stored in the rack 50 first is, for example, the placement position [3] of the shelf A-1 closest to the warehousing position (see FIG. 4C). Placed on.

  Note that the procedure for selecting the shelf 51 on which a certain package 60 is to be placed from among a plurality of candidates is not limited to a specific procedure.

  When the luggage 1 is placed on the shelf A-1, the shelf 51 has the maximum number of luggage "3" until no luggage is placed on the shelf A-1, for example. Used as.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 6B, when the luggage to be stored in the rack 50 is the luggage 2 that satisfies c <W ≦ d, the shelf A-1 corresponding to c <W ≦ d is still empty. For example, it is placed on the placement position [2] (see FIG. 4C) of the shelf A-1.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 6C, when the luggage to be stored in the rack 50 is the luggage 3 that satisfies a ≦ W ≦ b, for example, the placement position of the shelf A-2 on the shelf A-1 [5 ] (See FIG. 4A).

  Thus, the shelf A-2 is used as the shelf 51 having the maximum number of packages of “5”, for example, until no packages are placed on the shelf A-2.

  Next, as shown in FIG. 6D, when the luggage to be stored in the rack 50 is the luggage 4 that satisfies b <W ≦ c, for example, the placement position [4 of the shelf A-3 on the shelf A-2 ] (See FIG. 4B).

  Thereby, the shelf A-3 is used as the shelf 51 having the maximum number of loads “4” until no load is placed on the shelf A-3, for example.

  In the automatic warehouse 10 according to the embodiment, a warehousing operation as shown in FIGS. 6A to 6D is performed, and the warehousing of the warehousing is performed. Thereby, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, each of the plurality of shelves 51 is in a state where up to five packages are placed.

  In such a loaded state, as described above, when a positional deviation of the luggage occurs due to an earthquake or the like, it is conventionally determined which shelf 51 needs to be corrected for the positional deviation of the luggage. Is not easy.

  However, in the automatic warehouse 10 according to the embodiment, it is determined by the processing of the controller 100 which shelf 51 is the shelf 51 that should be corrected for positional deviation, and as a result, the positional deviation of the luggage is corrected efficiently. Can be performed.

  FIG. 7 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a functional configuration of the controller 100 according to the embodiment.

  As illustrated in FIG. 7, the controller 100 includes a storage unit 101, an instruction receiving unit 102, a detection control unit 103, a comparison unit 104, a specifying unit 105, and an output unit 106.

  The storage unit 101 stores placement information indicating in which position of each of the plurality of shelves 51 the load should be placed. The contents of the placement information will be described later with reference to FIG.

  The instruction receiving unit 102 receives a predetermined instruction from an operator, for example.

  When the instruction receiving unit 102 receives a predetermined instruction, the detection control unit 103 operates the stacker crane 12 to detect the position of one or more loads on each of the plurality of shelves 51. Make it.

  The comparison unit 104 compares the detection result corresponding to the predetermined instruction with the placement information stored in the storage unit 101.

  As a result of the comparison by the comparison unit 104, the specifying unit 105 has one or more shelves in which there is a misaligned baggage whose difference between the position indicated by the placement information and the position indicated by the detection result is larger than a threshold. 51 is specified.

  The output unit 106 outputs information indicating the position of one or more shelves 51 specified by the specifying unit 105.

  FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a data configuration of the placement information 200 in the embodiment.

  The placement information 200 in the embodiment includes shelf information 201 and placement position information 202, as shown in FIG.

  The shelf information 201 is information indicating the maximum number of packages at the time of each shelf 51 and the presence / absence of the package data for each placement position at the time. The information can be obtained, for example, from the result of loading and unloading of the luggage based on the control of the stacker crane 12 by the controller 100.

  The placement position information 202 is information indicating a numerical value for identifying a placement position (that is, a normal position) corresponding to each of the maximum number of packages “3” to “5”. For example, the placement position [2] (see FIG. 4B) of the shelf 51 with the maximum number of packages “4” is a position 762 mm from the reference point at the left end of the shelf 51.

  That is, when focusing on a certain shelf 51, it is possible to know in which placement position of the shelf 51 the package should be placed by referring to the placement information 200.

  For example, when the placement position information 202 has the data configuration shown in FIG. 8, the shelf A-5 has the maximum number of packages “5” and the placement positions [1] to [3] and Baggage should be placed only in [5].

  However, for example, when vibration due to an earthquake or the like is applied to the rack 50, it is conceivable that at least one load placed on the shelf A-5 is displaced from the normal position.

  When the package is thus deviated from the normal position, for example, the package may not be taken out by the transfer device 20, or the baggage may be taken out in an unstable state.

  Therefore, in the present embodiment, the controller 100 identifies one or more shelves 51 on which loads that require correction of misalignment (packages whose displacement amount is larger than a threshold) are placed among the plurality of shelves 51. . Further, the controller 100 can further notify the worker or other devices of information indicating the positions of the specified one or more shelves 51.

  FIG. 9 is a diagram for explaining the process of specifying the shelf 51 by the controller 100 in the embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 9 (a), it is assumed that a load is placed only on the placement positions [1] to [3] and [5] on the shelf A-5. Each of these packages is hereinafter referred to as package [1], package [2], package [3], and package [5].

  As shown in FIG. 9A, it is assumed that, for example, an earthquake occurs in a state where each load is placed on the shelf A-5, and thereby at least one load is displaced.

  For example, as shown in FIG. 9B, it is assumed that there is no change in the position of the load [1], the load [4] and the load [5] are greatly shifted, and the load [2] is slightly shifted. To do.

  In this case, the detection control unit 103 operates the stacker crane 12 by using, for example, a predetermined instruction received by the instruction receiving unit 102 as a trigger. Thereby, the detector 25 is caused to detect the positions of a plurality of packages stored in the rack 50.

  The comparison unit 104 compares the detection result of the detector 25 with the placement information 200 stored in the storage unit 101.

  For example, as a result of the detection for the shelf A-5, the comparison unit 104 is information indicating the center position in the horizontal direction of each of the packages [1] to [3] and [5] illustrated in FIG. (Distance from the reference point at the left end of the shelf A-5) is acquired.

  Further, the comparison unit 104 reads the placement information 200 (see FIG. 8) from the storage unit 101 and refers to the placement information 200, so that the placement position ([1] to [5]) on the shelf A-5 has a package. Should be specified (in the case of this example, mounting positions [1] to [3], [5]) and the distance from the reference point of each mounting position (see mounting position information 202 in FIG. 8). . In other words, the comparison unit 104 refers to the placement information 200 to identify the original position (position on the data) of each package on the shelf A-5.

  The comparison unit 104 calculates the difference between the actual positions of the packages [1] to [3] and [5] thus acquired and the positions on the data.

  The specifying unit 105 acquires the calculation result obtained by the comparison unit 104, and determines whether or not there is a misaligned baggage in which the difference (that is, the deviation amount) between the actual position and the position on the data is larger than a threshold value.

  In the case of this example, the package [1] has a deviation amount of “0” and does not correspond to a misaligned package. The package [2] does not correspond to the misaligned package because the displacement amount is small (for example, “5 mm”) and smaller than the threshold value (for example, “15 mm”).

  However, the package [3] and the package [5] correspond to misaligned packages because the displacement amount is relatively large and larger than the threshold value.

  That is, the specifying unit 105 obtains a determination result for each package, for example, as illustrated in FIG. Note that “Y” in FIG. 9C indicates that the bag is not misaligned, and “N” indicates that the bag is misaligned.

  That is, the shelf A-5 is a shelf 51 in which one or more packages that need to be corrected for displacement are present. Therefore, the specifying unit 105 specifies that the shelf A-5 is the shelf 51 that needs to correct the positional deviation of the package, and transmits the specifying result to the output unit 106.

  Here, when it is considered whether or not a positional shift has occurred on the basis of each placement position on the shelf A-5, not the luggage, the placement position [4] should be originally loaded with the luggage. Although it is not a position, it is a position where the presence of some object is detected by the detector 25. For this reason, the specifying unit 105 can also determine that the placement position [4] is a position where a positional deviation of the load occurs (a position where the misaligned luggage exists).

  That is, according to the specifying unit 105, the placement positions [1] and [2] are positions where there is no misaligned luggage, and each of the placement positions [3] to [5] has a misaligned luggage. It can also be determined that the current position is being performed.

  Moreover, even if it is a case where it determines as mentioned above, the specific | specification part 105 can specify that shelf A-5 is the shelf 51 in which one or more misaligned luggage exists. That is, the specifying unit 105 can specify that the shelf A-5 is the shelf 51 that needs to correct the positional deviation of the package, and can transmit the specifying result to the output unit 106.

  The output unit 106 that has received the identification result from the identifying unit 105 that performs such processing outputs information including, for example, “[A-5]: NG” as illustrated in FIG.

  Further, in the example using FIG. 9, the load position detection for one shelf 51 (shelf A-5) has been described, but the controller 100 performs the same processing on all of the plurality of shelves 51 included in the rack 50. Can be performed about.

  As a result, the output unit 106 can output information indicating the position of one or more shelves 51 that need to be corrected for the positional deviation of the package among the plurality of shelves 51 of the rack 50.

  FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a first example of information output from the output unit 106 according to the embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 10, the controller 100 can output from the output unit 106 a list indicating whether or not correction of the positional deviation of the luggage is necessary for each of the plurality of shelves 51 included in the rack 50.

  As a result, for example, a paper on which the list is printed is output from a printer (not shown) connected to the output unit 106. Alternatively, for example, the list is displayed on a mobile terminal device that communicates with the controller 100.

  In FIG. 10, “OK” indicates that correction of the positional deviation of the package is not necessary, and “NG” indicates that correction of the positional deviation of the package is necessary.

  By referring to the list and, for example, the shelf information 201 shown in FIG. 8, the worker can correct the misalignment of the luggage on the “NG” shelf 51. That is, it is not necessary to check all the shelves 51.

  For example, shelf A-5, which is “NG” in the list shown in FIG. 10, according to the shelf information 201, a package should be placed at the placement positions [1] to [3], [5]. It is. However, when the operator goes to the shelf A-5, for example, and sees it, the state is actually as shown in FIG. 9B.

  That is, assuming that the order of arrangement of the packages [1] to [3] and the package [5] is not changed, for example, the rightmost package in FIG. It can be determined that it should be placed at the placement position [5].

  Therefore, for example, the worker places a mark on the placement position corresponding to the maximum number of packages “5” attached to the shelf A-5 (that is, a mark indicating each of the placement positions [1] to [5]). In addition, the positions of the luggage [3] and the luggage [5] can be corrected so that the shift amount is at least equal to or less than the threshold value.

  Further, the controller 100 may output only information indicating the position of the shelf 51 that needs to be corrected for the positional deviation of the package among the plurality of shelves 51.

  FIG. 11 is a diagram illustrating a second example of information output from the output unit 106 according to the embodiment.

  As shown in FIG. 11, the controller 100 outputs, from the output unit 106, an NG shelf list that indicates the position of only the shelf 51 that needs to be corrected for the positional deviation of the package among the plurality of shelves 51 of the rack 50. You can also

  In addition, the controller 100 can output information indicating the position of the shelf 51 that needs to be corrected for the positional deviation of the package, as well as package information for specifying the misaligned package on the shelf 51.

  FIG. 12 is a diagram illustrating a third example of information output from the output unit 106 according to the embodiment.

  In the NG shelf list shown in FIG. 12, in addition to the information (identifier such as “A-3”) indicating the position of the shelf 51 that needs to be corrected for the displacement of the package, the maximum number of packages of each shelf 51 and the data And information indicating the placement position of the upper package.

  For example, by referring to this NG shelf list, the operator can perform a work for correcting the positional deviation of the luggage on the shelf 51 shown in the NG shelf list without referring to other information.

  The output unit 106 can also output information directly indicating which package is a misaligned package as the package information for specifying the misaligned package in the shelf 51.

  FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating a fourth example of information output from the output unit 106 in the embodiment.

  In the NG shelf list shown in FIG. 13, in addition to information indicating the position of the shelf 51 that needs correction of the positional deviation of the package, information directly indicating which package is the misaligned package in each shelf 51 ( “N”) is included.

  For example, by referring to the NG shelf list, the operator can easily and reliably confirm that the luggage corresponding to each of the placement positions [3] and [5] is the misaligned luggage in the shelf A-5. Can be confirmed.

  That is, in this case, the operator does not need to confirm the left two packages (the packages [1] and [2] in FIG. 9B) on the shelf A-5, and the right two packages (FIG. 9). Only for the packages [3] and [5]) in (b) of FIG. That is, the output unit 106 outputs information directly indicating which baggage is a misaligned baggage, thereby further improving the work efficiency related to the correction of the baggage misalignment.

  The automatic warehouse according to the present invention has been described based on the embodiments. However, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. As long as the gist of the present invention is not deviated, the present embodiment includes various modifications conceived by those skilled in the art, or forms constructed by combining a plurality of the constituent elements described above. include.

  For example, in the present embodiment, each of the plurality of shelves 51 included in the rack 50 is assumed to have a maximum number of packages “3”, “4”, or “5”. However, the maximum number of luggage of each of the plurality of shelves 51 may be further subdivided as “3” to “7”, or may be more limited as “3” or “4”. Good.

  In addition, the maximum number of luggage of each of the plurality of shelves 51 may be the same. For example, when the sizes of a plurality of packages to be stored in the rack 50 are substantially the same, the maximum number of packages on all the shelves 51 may be the same (for example, all “5”). Even in such a case, according to the automatic warehouse 10 of the present embodiment, the controller 100 can specify the shelf 51 that needs to be corrected for the positional deviation of the luggage and can output the specified information. .

  Further, the information specifying the position of the shelf 51 in the rack 50 may not be an identifier such as “A-1”. For example, the position of the shelf 51 may be specified by coordinates on the XZ plane (see FIG. 2).

  Further, for example, the plurality of adjacent shelves 51 may be physically integrally formed. For example, the shelf A-1 and the shelf B-1 may be formed by a single plate.

  Further, the transport vehicle for transferring the load provided in the automatic warehouse 10 may be a transport vehicle of a type other than the stacker crane. The automatic warehouse 10 may include, for example, a plurality of transport vehicles that are arranged for each stage and can run independently of each other. That is, the specific function of the shelf 51 that needs to be corrected for the misalignment of the luggage, which the automatic warehouse 10 has, is exhibited regardless of the type and the number of transport vehicles.

  Further, the transfer method of the transfer device 20 is not limited to the method of pulling (pushing out) a load with a claw as shown in FIG. 5, and for example, a side clamp method, a scalar arm method, or a fork method is used. It may be adopted.

  Further, the threshold value that serves as a criterion for determining whether or not the bag is misaligned may be variable. For example, the instruction receiving unit 102 may receive an instruction to change the threshold value. Further, when the instruction receiving unit 102 receives an instruction to change the threshold value, the specifying unit 105 determines whether or not each baggage is a misaligned baggage with reference to the threshold value changed according to the instruction. The determination result may be used to identify one or more shelves where misaligned luggage exists.

  By making the threshold value variable in this way, for example, the criteria for determining the misaligned baggage are changed according to the transfer method employed by the transfer device 20 or the characteristics of the baggage stored in the rack 50, for example. can do.

  Further, the predetermined instruction that triggers the detection of the positional deviation of the luggage may not be a direct instruction from the operator. For example, the automatic warehouse 10 may start the detection of the positional deviation of the luggage by using a predetermined instruction transmitted from a computer that is a higher rank of the automatic warehouse 10 in the control system as a trigger. Moreover, the position detection of a package may be periodically performed by the controller 100 periodically generating a predetermined signal.

  In addition, the reception function of a predetermined instruction serving as a trigger for detecting the misalignment of the luggage and the reception function of the instruction to change the threshold value may be realized by different reception units.

  For example, although the detector 25 is arranged on the lifting platform 15, the arrangement position of the detector 25 is not limited to this. The detector 25 can be located at any position on the stacker crane 12 as long as it can detect the position of each of the plurality of shelves 51 that need to detect the positional deviation of the load by operating the stacker crane 12. Good.

  The detector 25 may not be fixed at any position of the stacker crane 12. For example, the detector 25 is normally removed from the stacker crane 12 and may be handled so as to be disposed on the stacker crane 12 when it is necessary to detect the load.

  Further, the detector 25 may detect, for example, the position of the left end or the right end of the package to be detected instead of the center position in the width direction. In this case, for example, the placement position based on the left end or the right end of the package may be recorded in the placement position information 202 (see FIG. 8).

  Further, the detector 25 may detect the rotation position of the luggage (for example, the rotation angle of the luggage around the Z axis in FIG. 9B) as the position of the luggage.

  For example, by adopting a device that can measure the two-dimensional shape or three-dimensional shape of an object using rotating laser light as the detector 25, the rotational position of each load can be detected.

  Further, in this case, information indicating the normal rotation position (posture on the shelf 51) of each package is recorded in the placement information 200 as information indicating in which position on each shelf 51 the package should be placed. Keep it.

  Thereby, the comparison unit 104 compares the detection result of the detector 25 with the placement information 200, thereby detecting the misaligned baggage that is misaligned in the rotational direction of the baggage and that is larger than the threshold value. Can be identified. As a result, the shelf 51 on which the misaligned luggage is placed is specified.

  Further, the method for detecting the position of the load by the detector 25 is not limited to the method using reflection of laser light. For example, the detector 25 may detect the position of the luggage placed on the shelf 51 by analyzing the image of the shelf 51 captured by the camera.

  The format of the information output from the output unit 106 is not limited to the list format as shown in FIG. 10 and the like, and any format may be used.

  Further, the information output from the output unit 106 may be notified to a device (for example, the stacker crane 12) that corrects the positional deviation of the load instead of or in addition to the worker.

  For example, the controller 100 specifies the load that can be corrected using the information output from the output unit 106 and controls the operation of the stacker crane 12 to correct the positional deviation of the specified load. Good. Thereby, the work of correcting misalignment of a plurality of packages is made more efficient.

  In addition, the controller 100 may acquire, for example, a count value of an encoder pulse instead of the distance from the reference point on the shelf 51 as information indicating the position of the luggage. In this case, as the placement position information 202, for example, a count value corresponding to each placement position may be recorded.

  The automatic warehouse of the present invention is an automatic warehouse having racks each having a plurality of shelves on which a plurality of luggage can be placed, and when the placement position of any of the luggage is shifted, the shift is efficiently performed. It is an automated warehouse where corrections can be made. Therefore, it is useful as an automatic warehouse for storing luggage in factories and distribution warehouses.

1, 2, 3, 4, 60 Luggage 10 Automatic warehouse 12 Stacker crane 15 Lifting platform 16 Travel rail 20 Transfer device 21 Loading platform 22 Fork 23, 24 Claw 25 Detector 50 Rack 51 Shelf 55 Station 100 Controller 101 Storage unit 102 Instruction Reception unit 103 Detection control unit 104 Comparison unit 105 Identification unit 106 Output unit 200 Placement information 201 Shelf information 202 Placement position information

Claims (4)

An automatic warehouse comprising a transport vehicle having a transfer device for transferring a load, and a rack that is arranged along a travel route of the transport vehicle and in which a load is taken in and out by the transfer device,
The rack has a plurality of shelves, each of which can be placed with a plurality of loads arranged in a direction along the travel route,
The automatic warehouse is
A detector disposed on the transport vehicle and capable of detecting a position of one or more loads on each of the plurality of shelves;
A controller for controlling the automatic warehouse,
The controller is
A storage unit for storing placement information indicating which position of each of the plurality of shelves should be loaded;
An instruction receiving unit for receiving a predetermined instruction;
A detection control unit for causing the detector to detect the position of one or more loads on each of the plurality of shelves by operating the transport vehicle when the instruction receiving unit receives the predetermined instruction; ,
A comparison unit that compares the result of the detection corresponding to the predetermined instruction with the preposition information stored in the storage unit;
As a result of the comparison by the comparison unit, one or more shelves in which a misaligned baggage in which a difference between the position indicated in the above-described position information and the position indicated in the detection result is larger than a threshold are present A specific part,
An output unit that outputs information indicating the position of the one or more shelves specified by the specifying unit;
Automatic warehouse. When the output unit further outputs information indicating the position of the one or more shelves specified by the specifying unit, the output unit is generated using a result of detection by the detector, in each of the one or more shelves. The automatic warehouse according to claim 1, wherein package information for specifying the misaligned package is output. The output unit includes, as the package information, information indicating in which position of each of the one or more shelves the package should be placed, which is indicated in the above-described placement information stored in the storage unit. The automatic warehouse according to claim 2. The instruction receiving unit further receives an instruction to change the threshold,
The automatic warehouse according to any one of Claims 1 to 3, wherein the specifying unit specifies one or more shelves on which misaligned luggage whose difference is larger than the threshold value changed according to the instruction is present. .

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