JPH09315519A - Article storing facility - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an article storing facility capable of storing many kinds of articles while restraining the facility from being enlarged. SOLUTION: In an article storing facility, a conveying device 3 for conveying an article held by an article holding body 8 between the carrying in/out part in relation to an article storing rack and respective article housing parts of the article storing rack is provided, the article is housed in the article housing part in a state where it is held by a stevedoring tool SP capable of holding a plurality of articles, and a housing part transfer means 12 for transferring the stevedoring tool SP between a stevedoring tool supporting part PH provided on the article holding body 8 and the article housing part, and a holding part transfer means BT for transferring the article between an article temporarily placing part TH provided on the article holding body 8 and the stevedoring tool SP transferred to the stevedoring tool supporting part PH are provided on the conveying device 3. A plurality of articles to be held by the stevedoring tool SP are held in a state where they can be taken out by the holding part transfer means BT.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an article storage shelf configured by arranging a plurality of article storage sections vertically and horizontally to store a plurality of types of articles, and a carry-in / out section for the article storage rack and each of the article storage sections. And a control device for controlling the operation of the transportation device, the transportation device for transporting the article while being held by the article holder, and the article is a cargo handling tool capable of holding a plurality of articles. In the state of being held by the article storage section, the article storage section stores the article, and the transport device transfers the cargo handling tool between the article handling tool support section provided in the article holder and the article storage section. Transfer means for parts, transfer means for holding parts for transferring the articles between the article temporary placement section provided in the article holder and the cargo handling tool transferred to the cargo handling tool support section, And the article is provided between the article temporary storage section and the carry-in / out section. An article storage facility that unloading join the club for transfer means for transferring are provided.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Such an article storage facility stores a plurality of articles in each article storage section of an article storage shelf while holding a plurality of articles in a cargo handling tool, and uses a carrying device to carry in / out the section from each storage section to the article storage shelf. The articles stored in the article storage section are taken out, and the articles in the carry-in / out section are stored in the respective article storage sections. The conveying device holds and conveys the article in the article holder. In the conveyance, the cargo handling tool holding a plurality of articles from each article storage section is held by the transfer section for the storage section. It is transferred to the cargo handling tool support section of the body, and the article held by the transferred cargo handling tool is transferred to the article temporary placement section of the article holder by the holding section transfer means. The cargo handling tool of the cargo handling tool support portion that has been transferred is stored in the original article storage portion by the storage portion transfer means. That is, instead of directly taking out the articles stored in the article storage section to the loading / unloading section as they are, it is possible to take out only a necessary number of articles out of the plurality of articles stored in the article storage section (for example, (See Japanese Patent Publication No. 51-31669). By the way, conventionally, a plurality of articles stored in one article storage unit are all the same article, and it is not necessary to distinguish each article, and a required number of articles can be taken out from the plurality of the same articles. there were.

[0003]

Therefore, in the above-mentioned conventional configuration, the types of articles to be stored in the article storage rack (for convenience, the articles that need to be distinguished and managed even if they are the same article are:
The number of articles of different types) will increase, so that it is necessary to provide as many article storage units as that, and there is a disadvantage that the article storage rack becomes large. The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an article storage facility capable of storing various types of articles while suppressing an increase in the size of the facility.

[0004]

With the configuration according to the above-mentioned claim 1, the cargo handling tool holding a plurality of articles is transferred from the article storage section to the cargo handling tool holding section by the storage section transfer means. In this state, the holding unit transfer means can take out any of the articles held by the cargo handling tool. In this state, by the control operation of the control means that has received the instruction of the article to be taken out from the instruction means, the holding section transfer means takes out the article to be taken out from the cargo handling tool and transfers it to the article temporary placement section. The cargo handling tool for which the transfer of all the articles to be taken out is completed is transferred to the article storage section by the storage section transfer means. The article holder conveys the article to the carry-in / out section while holding the article in the article temporary storage section, and completes the removal of the article from the article storage rack. That is, it is possible to store a plurality of types of articles in one article storage unit, specify the plurality of types of articles, and take them out from the article storage unit. Therefore, even if there are many types of articles to be stored in the article storage shelf, it is not always necessary to increase the number of article storage units accordingly, and it is possible to store many types of articles while suppressing an increase in the size of equipment. We have been able to provide storage facilities for goods.

Further, by providing the structure according to claim 2, the cargo handling tool is transferred from the article storage section to the cargo handling tool support section of the article holder, and the article of the cargo handling tool is moved to the article temporary storage section. At the time of loading, the article is transferred to the loading / unloading tool of the article temporary storage section. The article holder conveys the articles to the loading / unloading section while holding the articles in the loading / unloading section, and transfers the loading / unloading section with the articles held from the temporary article placement section of the article holder to the loading / unloading section. Transfer by mounting means. Therefore, the article taken out from each article storage section can be handled while being held in the article handling implement, and the article can be handled more easily than when handling the article alone, and the article storage facility is more convenient. Can be

Further, by providing the configuration according to claim 3, when an article that has once been unloaded from the article storage shelf is re-stored in the article storage shelf, the article is stored by the instruction means as the storage destination of the article. Is a cargo handling tool that was held before the product was unloaded, and the position at which the article was held before the product was unloaded in the cargo handling tool is specified. That is,
When the storage position on the storage rack is set for each item, and some machine parts need to be replaced according to the work target, such as a general-purpose manufacturing device or machine tool. As described above, the article storage facility can be used to store articles when a part of the articles is selected from a plurality of types and used. Therefore, by utilizing the article storage facility for the purpose of selectively using a large number of types of articles, the function of the article storage facility can be effectively used to make the entire facility compact.

Further, by providing the configuration according to the above-mentioned claim 4, since the instructing means is instructed by specifying the articles held in different cargo handling tools in one transportation operation by the transportation device, Instead of moving to the carry-in / out section each time an article is taken out from one article storage section, it is possible to take out articles from multiple article storage sections continuously, and then put out to the carry-in / out section. The work efficiency of taking out the article is improved. Further, by providing the configuration according to claim 5, in the article holder that holds and conveys the article, the cargo handling tool support portion and the article temporary storage portion are arranged side by side in the lateral width direction of the article storage rack, and The temporary item holder is
Since it is located closer to the carry-in / out section provided on the side of the article storage shelf, the cargo handling tool support section and the article temporary storage section are stored side by side in comparison with the article storage shelf viewed sideways. While making it possible to reduce the width of the transfer facility when viewed from the widthwise direction of the shelf, the temporary article placement section for transferring articles between the loading and unloading section is located on the side close to the loading and unloading section. At this time, it is possible to suppress the article holder from protruding laterally of the article storage rack, and it is possible to reduce the occupied area of the article storage facility in the lateral direction of the storage rack.

Further, since the article storage rack has the structure according to the sixth aspect, the article stored in the article storage rack is formed in a long shape, and the long article is held by the cargo handling tool. Regarding the storage in each article storage unit, the articles are stored in a state where the longitudinal direction of the articles faces the lateral width direction of the article storage rack and the articles are arranged in the depth direction. Therefore, as compared with the case where a long article is stored with the longitudinal direction facing the depth direction,
The storage unit transfer means shortens the distance for transferring the cargo handling tool, and the configuration of the storage unit transfer means can be simplified.

Further, by providing the structure according to the above-mentioned claim 7, there are a plurality of types of long articles stored in the article storage section which have different lengths in the longitudinal direction. The articles of the same length are held in. Goods storage shelves,
If the size of the article storage unit is set according to the maximum length of the article and the article storage units of the same size are arranged vertically and horizontally, the article storage rack becomes unnecessarily large. Therefore, in order to store articles of plural types of lengths, it is reasonable to provide plural types of dimensions of the article storage section in the lateral width direction of the article storage rack. Here, when storing articles of a plurality of types of lengths in the article storage section, it is assumed that articles of the same length are stored in the vertical direction of the article storage shelf, and the article storage section that stores articles of different lengths. By placing the article storage shelves in the lateral width direction, the article storage units having the same lateral dimension in the article storage shelves can be arranged in the vertical direction. Therefore, even when storing articles of plural lengths, it is possible to suppress the complication of the configuration of the article storage rack as much as possible.

Further, by providing the structure according to the above-mentioned claim 8, there are a plurality of types of articles stored in the article storage shelves which are different in not only the length in the longitudinal direction but also the cross-sectional area. There are many types. In such a case, since the take-out cargo handling tool for holding the article in the article temporary placement section of the article holder is configured to be able to simultaneously hold a plurality of types of articles having different cross-sectional areas, the article storage section and the unloading section can be carried out. It is possible to take out articles having different cross-sectional areas in a single carrying operation of the article holder that moves in and out of the entry section, and it is possible to improve the article taking-out work efficiency. Further, by providing the configuration according to claim 9, in the article receiving unit that holds the article in the article storage unit and is transferred to and from the article holder by the storage unit transfer means, and the article temporary storage unit. It is possible to increase the number of types of cargo handling tools, because the cargo handling tools for holding articles and transferred to and from the loading / unloading section by the loading / unloading section transfer means have the same shape. In addition, the equipment can be prevented from being complicated and the cargo handling tool and the unloading cargo handling tool can be used without distinction, and the article storage facility can be made more convenient.

Further, by providing the structure according to the tenth aspect, the transfer means for the loading / unloading section for transferring the loading / unloading tool between the article temporary placing section and the loading / unloading section of the article holder is on the transport device side. It can be used for transfer of the cargo handling tool between the article storage section and the article temporary storage section. In other words, the operation of taking out an article from the article storage shelf is performed by transferring the cargo handling tool of the article storage unit to the cargo handling tool support section of the article holding body, and then transferring the article of the cargo handling tool to the article temporary storage section. The basic operation is to return the tool to the article storage section and then the article holder holds the article and moves to the carry-in / out section.For example, take out all the articles stored in one article storage section. If necessary, the loading / unloading section transfer means can transfer the cargo handling tool in the article storage section to the temporary article placement section of the article holder, and the entire cargo handling tool can be transported to the loading / unloading section. Can be made more convenient. Further, by comprising the structure according to claim 11, the holding unit transfer means for transferring the article in the article holder grips both longitudinal end portions of the elongated article to be transferred. Since the articles are transferred, the articles can be transferred with good stability and the reliability of the transfer operation can be improved.

[0012]

BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION Embodiments of an article storage facility to which the present invention is applied will be described below with reference to the drawings. The article storage facility BS stores replacement parts of the manufacturing apparatus (not shown), raw materials of the manufacturing apparatus, and finished products. As shown in the plan view of FIG. 4, the article storage facility BS stores the replacement parts of the manufacturing apparatus. A plurality of storage shelves 1 and article storage shelves 2 for storing raw materials and finished products are arranged side by side. Article storage shelves 1, 2
Stacker cranes 3 and 4 that run along the width direction of the article storage shelves 1 and 2 are installed between them, and the stacker cranes 3 and 4 are on both sides of the article storage shelves 1 and 2, and the article storage shelves 1 and 2. The article is conveyed to and from the article carry-in / out section IO provided on the side of the lateral side.

The article B, which is a replacement part of the manufacturing apparatus to be stored in the article storage shelf 1, the storage mode of the article B, the configuration of the article storage shelf 1 and the stacker crane 3 corresponding to the conveyor device will be described below. Stacker crane 3
And the article storage shelves 1 on both sides thereof operate as a set, so only this set will be described, and the article storage shelf 2 for storing the raw materials and finished products of the manufacturing apparatus and the corresponding The structure of the stacker crane 4 to be used is the same as the conventional one, and the description thereof is omitted.

The article B, which is a replacement part of this manufacturing apparatus, is
As shown in FIG. 6 (a), there are three long cylindrical shapes that are long, medium, and short in the longitudinal direction. There are three levels of area, large, medium and small, and even if they have the same diameter and the same length, the types are different. As shown in FIGS. 6A and 6B, the article B having such a shape is held by the pallet P which is the cargo handling tool SP and stored in the article storage rack 1. A plurality of pedestals 5 each having a concave upper surface are attached near the ends of the opposite sides of the pallet P.
Both ends of the article B in the longitudinal direction are supported by the cradle 5, and the plurality of articles B are supported on the pallet P side by side. The pedestal 5 is formed of a rubber member,
Absorbs an impact when the article is placed and functions as a cushioning material, and also functions to prevent the article B placed on the article from slipping.

In the pallet P, there are three levels of the length of the article B in the longitudinal direction: long, medium and short.
There are three types of side lengths corresponding to the longitudinal direction of 3 types: large, medium, and small. However, as shown in FIG.
For the large, medium, and small diameters of the cross section of the article B, the pallet P itself can be shared although the number of articles B that can be held is different. It should be noted that the pallets P are arranged in the article arranging direction on the pedestal 5 in such a manner that the articles B having small and medium cross-sectional diameters can be arranged on all the pedestals 5, but the articles having large cross-sectional diameters. B is set so as to be intermittently arranged in the direction of arrangement of the articles B by using the pedestal 5, so that the articles B can be arranged on the pallet P having a limited mounting area as high as possible. Can be placed.

As shown in FIG. 5, the article storage rack 1 is constructed by arranging a plurality of article storage units 6 vertically and horizontally. Each article storage unit 6 has a pallet P at both ends in the width direction of the article storage rack 1.
A support frame 6a for supporting both edges of the is attached. As shown in FIG. 2, in the pallet P, each article storage unit 6 is arranged such that the longitudinal direction of the articles B to be held faces the lateral width direction of the article storage rack 1 and the articles B are arranged in the depth direction of the article storage unit 6.
Since each of the article storage sections 6 has three types of side lengths of the pallet P corresponding to the longitudinal direction of the article B: long, medium, and short, the article storage shelves There are three types of width in 1 in the width direction: long, medium, and short. Article storage shelf 1
Since the article storage units 6 having the same width are arranged in the up-down direction, the article storage units 6 having different widths are arranged in the width direction of the article storage rack 1. Further, in the up-down direction of the article storage rack 1, an article B having a small cross-section diameter is stored in the article storage section 6 on the lower side, and an intermediate section of the article storage section 6 has a medium cross-section diameter. The articles B are stored, and the articles B having a large cross-sectional diameter are stored in the article storage section 6 on the upper side, and the width of each article storage section 6 in the up-down direction is also large accordingly.
There are three types, medium and small, and they are arranged in the vertical direction.

The stacker crane 3 is a transporting device for transporting the articles B, and as shown in FIG. 3, a traveling frame body 7 traveling in the lateral width direction of the article storage rack 1, and a traveling frame body 7 guided up and down. And a lift table 8 that operates as a main part.
The traveling frame body 7 is guided by a floor-side guide rail GR laid on the floor surface FL and a ceiling-side guide rail CR arranged near the upper end of the article storage rack 1 and attached to the lower portion of the traveling frame body 7. The traveling motor 9 thus driven drives traveling wheels (not shown) to travel.

The elevating table 8 functions as an article holder that holds and conveys the article B, and as shown in FIG. 1, a bottom frame 8a, which is the base of the elevating table 8, and a bottom frame. 8
a pair of side frame bodies 8b extending upward from both ends in the width direction of the article storage shelf in a are configured as main parts,
A guide roller 8 for guiding the mast 7a of the traveling frame body 7 is provided on the outer side of the lifting table 8 in the pair of side frame bodies 8b.
While c is attached, one end of the wire 11 driven to be wound by the lifting motor 10 is attached and fixed to the upper ends of the pair of side frame bodies 8b.

On the lift table 8 having the above-described structure, a storage unit fork which is a transfer unit transfer unit for transferring the pallet P holding the article B between the lift table 8 and each article storage unit 6 is installed. Mechanism 12, loading / unloading fork mechanism 13, which is a loading / unloading section transfer means for loading / unloading the pallet P mainly between the lift 8 and the loading / unloading section IO, the storage section fork mechanism 12, and the loading / unloading section fork. When the pallet P is transferred by the mechanism 13, the pallet size detecting device PS for confirming the size of the pallet P and the presence or absence of load collapse, and the pallet P transferred on the lift 8 A load height detection device HS for detecting the load height of the article B, that is, the size of the diameter of the cross section of the article B, the fork mechanism 12 for the storage section and the fork mechanism for the loading / unloading section in the state of being retreated to the lifting table 8 side. Pallet P on 13 Load presence detector L for detecting whether or not Luke
S, an article transfer device B which is a holding section transfer means for transferring the article B between the pallet P on the storage section fork mechanism 12 and the pallet P on the loading / unloading section fork mechanism 13.
T and are provided.

The storage unit fork mechanism 12 and the loading / unloading unit fork mechanism 13 are attached to the upper surface of the bottom frame 8a of the elevating table 8 so as to be aligned in the lateral width direction of the article storage rack 1.
The loading and unloading motors 12a and 13a are driven so that the loading surfaces 12b and 13b on the upper surfaces of the storage unit fork mechanism 12 and the loading / unloading unit fork mechanism 13 can freely move in and out in the depth direction of the article storage unit 6. The mounting position of the loading / unloading unit fork mechanism 13 is located closer to the loading / unloading unit IO provided on the lateral side of the article storage rack 1 than the storage unit fork mechanism 12. The storage unit fork mechanism 12 and the loading / unloading unit fork mechanism 13 have the same structure as described above except that the mounting positions are different and the transfer mode of the pallet P is different. The storage unit fork mechanism 12 and the loading / unloading unit fork mechanism 13 are directly controlled by a main controller 32 on the ground side, which will be described later.

The storage unit fork mechanism 12 and the loading / unloading unit fork mechanism 13 both indicate the pallet P on the respective loading surfaces 12b and 13b in the state of being retracted to the lift table 8, so that the storage unit fork is used. The installation location of the mechanism 12 functions as the cargo handling tool support portion PH, and the loading / unloading fork mechanism 1
The installation location of 3 functions as an article temporary storage part TH. still,
When taking out the article B from the article storage rack 1, as a general rule, the pallet P on the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 is transferred from the pallet P transferred from the article storage section 6 to the elevating table 8 by the storage section fork mechanism 12. The pallet P supported on the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 functions as the unloading cargo handling tool TP because the pallet P is transferred to the P and taken out.

The article transfer device BT is provided with a frame body 14 which is provided between the upper ends of a pair of side frame bodies 8b of the lift table 3.
The frame 14 is held in a suspended state at the frame frame 14 and extends from an intermediate portion of the article storage shelf 1 in the lateral width direction thereof to be connected between the frame frame 14 and the bottom frame frame 8a of the lifting table 8. Body 14a
It is reinforced by. The article transfer device BT includes a lateral moving body 15 that moves in the lateral width direction of the article storage rack 1 by using a pair of frame bodies 14 arranged in the depth direction of the article storage unit 6 as guide rails, and a lateral moving body thereof. Item storage section 6 at 15
The vertical moving body 16 is attached so as to be movable in the depth direction, the elevating moving body 17 is attached to the vertical moving body 16 so as to be able to move up and down, and the vertical moving body 17 is attached to the vertical moving body 17 in the lateral width direction of the article storage rack 1. A pair of movably attached arm 18 for grasping an article is configured as a main part.
The lateral moving body 15, the vertical moving body 16, and the lifting / lowering moving body 17 are driven by a driving force of the motors 21, 22, and 23 via a ball screw mechanism or the like, respectively, and a pair of article holding arms 18 are provided.
Are independently driven by motors 24 and 25.

The motors 21, 22, 23, 24 and 25 are
It is controlled by the elevator controller 20 provided in the control box 19 based on the detection signals of various positioning sensors (not shown). The articles B are held side by side on the pallet P as shown in FIG.
Since the moving range of the pair of article gripping arms 18 is configured to cover the entire width of the pallet P, the article transfer device BT can be used for any article B held on the pallet P on the fork mechanism 12 for the storage section. Can also be taken out by transferring.

The pallet size detecting device PS is mounted on a side surface of the bottom frame 8a and on both sides of the fork mechanism 12 for the storage section and the fork mechanism 13 for the loading / unloading section on both sides of the fork mechanism 12 when viewed from the exit direction. A light emitting unit 26,
The pallet P to be transferred is composed of a pair of light receiving units 27 which are positioned vertically above the pair of light emitting units 26 and to which the frame body 14 of the article transferring apparatus BT is attached. The size of the pallet P passing therethrough is detected by passing it between the pallets 27 and the like. The storage unit fork mechanism 12 transfers the left and right article storage units 6 and the pallet P in the lateral direction of the article storage rack 1, and the loading / unloading unit fork mechanism 13 moves left and right in the lateral direction of the article storage rack 1. Loading / unloading part IO and pallet P
The pair of light emitting units 26 and the pair of light receiving units 27 are provided on the left and right sides of the storage unit fork mechanism 12 and the loading / unloading unit fork mechanism 13, respectively, as viewed in the widthwise direction of the article storage rack 1. Thus, a total of four pairs of light emitting units 26 and light receiving units 27 are provided.

The principle such as the detection of the size of the pallet P is common to these four sets, and will be explained by the one provided on the side of the storage section fork mechanism 12. From one light emitting unit 26, as schematically shown by a one-dot chain line in FIG. 7, three light beams are projected vertically upward in a state of being aligned in the width direction of the article storage rack 1, and the vertical direction of the light emitting unit 26. The light receiving unit 27 located above detects the three light beams separately. The pair of light emitting units 26 are attached so that the three light beams thereof are located at symmetrical positions with the fork mechanism 12 for the storage section sandwiched therebetween, and the light beams located at the symmetrical positions form a pair and the size of the pallet P. To be used for detection. That is, the interval between the innermost light beams (the light beams indicated by “S” in FIG. 7) across the storage portion fork mechanism 12 is the side of the pallet P having the smallest size among the pallets P having three sizes. Is slightly wider than the length of the innermost pallet P and is shorter than the length of the side of the pallet P having an intermediate size, and the light beam is positioned slightly outside the innermost light beam pair (indicated by "M" in FIG. 7). The intervals between the indicated beam lights are slightly wider than the length of the side of the pallet P having the intermediate size among the pallets P of three sizes and shorter than the length of the side of the largest pallet P, Further, the distance between the outermost light beams (the light beams indicated by “L” in FIG. 7) is slightly wider than the side length of the largest pallet P among the three pallets P. At intervals A.

As a result, if no light beam is blocked when the pallet P is transferred, it is the smallest pallet P and the beam light indicated by "M" is not blocked and the beam indicated by "S" is When the light is blocked, it can be determined that the palette P has an intermediate size, and when the light beams indicated by "M" and "S" are blocked, the palette P is the largest, and further, "L" When the beam light indicated by "is blocked,
It can be determined that the pallet P is displaced in the lateral direction of the article storage rack 1 and the load collapse occurs.

As shown in FIG. 8, the load height detecting device HS projects an article light emitting unit 28 which projects a beam of light so as to obliquely traverse a long article B transferred to the lifting table 8.
And an article light receiving unit 29 that receives the light beam projected from the article light emitting unit 28. The load height detection device HS includes the fork mechanism 12 for the storage section.
And the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13. The load height detection device HS provided on the fork mechanism 12 side of the storage section will be described.
As shown in FIGS. 7 and 8, 8 projects three beam lights at the same position in plan view and different in height in side view,
The light receiving unit 29 for articles receives the three light beams separately.

Of the three light beams, the lowermost light beam (the light beam indicated by "α" in FIG. 7) has a height passing above the upper surface of the pallet P and is held by the pallet P. The beam light having a diameter of the cross section which is smaller than the load height of the article B having a “small” size and having an intermediate height (the beam light indicated by “β” in FIG. 7) is held by the pallet P. The light beam has a height higher than the load height of the article B whose cross-section diameter is “small” and lower than the load height of the article whose cross-section diameter is “medium”, and is the highest beam light (“γ” in FIG. 7). (Light beam indicated by) is higher than the load height of the article B having a cross section diameter of "medium" held on the pallet P and lower than the load height of an article having a "large" cross section diameter. . With this, when the light beam at the bottom is not blocked,
It is determined that the article B is not held, and when the lowermost beam light is blocked and the middle beam light is not blocked, it is determined that the article B having a “small” cross-sectional diameter is held. If the intermediate light beam is blocked and the light beam at the highest position is not blocked, it is determined that the article B having a cross section of “medium” in diameter is held, and the beam at the highest position is determined. Article B with a "large" cross-section diameter when light is blocked
Can be determined to be held.

The presence detection device LS projects the beam light obliquely across the elongated article B similarly to the article light emitting unit 28, and a direction intersecting with the beam light projecting direction of the article light emitting unit 28. The pallet light-emitting unit 30 that projects the beam light onto the pallet and the pallet light-receiving unit 31 that receives the beam light projected from the pallet light-emitting unit 30 are included. The presence detection device LS includes a fork mechanism 12 for the storage section and a fork mechanism 13 for the loading / unloading section.
It is equipped with both. Explaining the presence detection device LS provided on the storage unit fork mechanism 12 side, the height of the beam light (the beam light indicated by “δ” in FIG. 7) projected from the pallet light emitting unit 30 is determined by the storage unit. The height is set so as to be blocked by the pallet P placed on the load placing surface 12b of the fork mechanism 12 for use. The detection information of the pallet size detection device PS, the load height detection device HS, and the presence detection device LS is transmitted to the main controller 32 and used in the control of the transfer operation of the pallet P, as shown in FIG. It

The stacker crane 3 having the above structure manages and controls the overall operation of the stacker crane 3 by the main controller 32 provided on the ground side as shown in FIG. 9, and the elevator controller 20 is the main controller. 32
The transfer of the article B between the pallets P is executed according to the command. Hereinafter, the operation of the stacker crane 3 by the main controller 32 and the elevator controller 20 will be described in a flowchart showing the control operation of the main controller 32 of FIGS. 10 to 12 and a flowchart showing the control operation of the elevator controller 20 of FIG. A brief description will be given based on this.

When the article B to be taken out is instructed to the main controller 32 by an input from the console 33 or via the communication interface 34 (step #
1) The storage position of the article B designated based on the storage information of the storage device 35 in the main controller 32 is specified (step # 2). All goods B stored in the goods storage shelf 1
Are given different identification codes, and the identification codes are recorded on the surface of the article B by a bar code or the like. The storage position of the article B in the article storage shelf 1 is specified in the storage device 35 by the position information of the article storage section 6 and the arrangement position of the articles on the pallet P in the article storage section 6, and the storage location of the article. And the identification code of the article B are stored in a corresponding state, and in addition, information on the length of the article B in the longitudinal direction and information on the diameter of the cross section are also stored. When the storage position is specified, the main controller 32 controls the traveling motor 9 and the elevating motor 10 so that the storage unit fork mechanism 12 of the elevating table 8 faces the article storage unit 6 specified as the storage position (FIG. 2). The elevating table 8 is moved so as to be in the state (1) (step # 3). When this movement is completed, the loading surface 12b of the storage unit fork mechanism 12 is advanced to the lower side of the pallet P of the article storage unit 6, and then the lifting platform 8 is raised to scoop up the pallet P, and the pallet P is further moved. Loading surface 1 of storage unit fork mechanism 12 on which is mounted
2b is pulled toward the lift table 8 and the pallet P of the article storage unit 6 is transferred to the lift table 8 (step # 4).

When the pallet P is transferred, the abnormality detection process shown in the flowchart of FIG. 12 is executed (step #
5). That is, when the presence detection device LS fails to detect the pallet P and fails to transfer the pallet P (step # 6).
0) displays an abnormality (step # 61), and stops the work of carrying the article B. Furthermore, the pallet size detection device P
The size of the pallet P is determined based on the detection signal of S,
It is determined whether or not the size of the pallet P corresponding to the length in the longitudinal direction of the article B designated as the object to be taken out coincides and whether or not a load collapse has occurred, and when they do not coincide, the load collapse is detected. Even when the load height of the article B detected by the load height detection means HS does not match the load height of the article B to be taken out (step # 63), that effect is obtained. Is displayed (Step # 6)
1) Stop the transportation work.

If there is no abnormality as described above, a pallet P transfer instruction is transmitted to the elevator controller 20 (step # 6), and then the elevator controller 2
It waits until the transfer completion signal is received from 0 (step # 7). When the elevator controller 20 receives the transfer instruction of the pallet P from the main controller 32 in the flowchart of FIG. 13 (step # 50),
According to the transfer instruction, the storage unit fork mechanism 12
The article B is transferred between the upper pallet P and the pallet P on the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 (step # 5).
1).

The transfer instruction from the main controller 32 is sent from one of the pallets P of the pallets P placed on the storage unit fork mechanism 12 and the loading / unloading unit fork mechanism 13 to the other pallet P. The transfer of B is instructed by specifying the position where the article P to be transferred is present and the position of the transfer destination by the arrangement position of the articles B on the pallet P.
In some cases, the transfer of instructions is instructed. Item B at this point
1 is carried out, the transfer instruction is an instruction to transfer the article B of the pallet P on the storage unit fork mechanism 12 to the pallet P on the carry-in / out unit fork mechanism 13. As shown in FIG. 1, first, the operations of the motors 21 and 22 are controlled to move the horizontal moving body 15 and the vertical moving body 16 in the horizontal plane, and the lifting / lowering moving body 17 is moved to the pallet P on the storage unit fork mechanism 12. Of the article B to be transferred, that is, the article B to be taken out, the motor 23 is driven to lower the elevating / lowering moving body 17, and the motors 24 and 25 are driven to move the pair of article holding arms. 18 is moved in the approach direction. Since the article B has a long cylindrical shape, the article gripping arm 1 described above is used.
By the approaching movement of 8, the pin 1 of the article holding arm 18
8a sinks into the through hole in the longitudinal direction of the article B, and the article grasping arm 18 grasps both longitudinal end portions of the article B.

After that, the elevating / lowering body 17 is raised and the pallet P placed on the fork mechanism 13 for the loading / unloading section.
The article B is moved to the designated position above, and the article B is placed on the pedestal 5 of the pallet P in the reverse operation. The pallet P on the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 has the same shape as the pallet P for storing the articles B in the article storage rack 1. Pallet P on the storage unit fork mechanism 12
When there are a plurality of articles B to be taken out to be transferred from, the above operation is repeated. Storage mechanism fork mechanism 12
When the transfer of the articles B from the pallet P placed on the top to the pallet P on the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 is completed, the elevator platform controller 20 sends a transfer completion signal to the main controller 32. Is transmitted (step # 52) and waits until a new transfer instruction is received (step # 50).

Upon receiving the transfer completion signal from the elevator platform controller 20 in step # 7 of the flowchart of FIG. 10, the main controller 32 actuates the storage unit fork mechanism 12 to move the pallet on the storage unit fork mechanism 12. Return P to the original article storage unit 6 (step #
8). The main controller 32 can specify an article B held on a different pallet P, that is, stored in a different article storage section 6 and perform a take-out operation in one transport operation, as described above. When the removal of the article B from one article storage unit 6 is completed,
If the article B that has been instructed to be taken out is not taken out and remains (step # 9), the article B is moved to the article storage unit 6 that stores the article B (step # 3), and the same operation as above is performed. repeat. Further, since the pallet P can hold the articles B having different cross-sectional diameters and the articles B having different diameters at the same time, it is possible to take out the articles B having different diameters at the same time by one carrying operation. .

The pallet P on the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 is provided for all the articles designated as objects to be taken out.
When the transfer to the
The lifting / lowering table 8 is moved to a position at which the loading / unloading section fork mechanism 13 and the loading / unloading section IO of FIG.
0), the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 is operated to transfer the pallet P holding the article B to be taken out to the loading / unloading section IO on the instructed side (step # 11).

The above operation is performed by the pallet P of the article storage unit 6.
The operation of taking out some of the articles B from the
If the articles B to be taken out are all the articles B held in one pallet P (step # 15), the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 is placed at a position facing the article storage unit 6 storing the pallet P. After moving the lift table 8 (step # 16), the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 is operated to transfer the pallet P to the lift table 8 (step # 16).
17). Also during this transfer, the abnormality detection processing shown in the flowchart of FIG. 12 is executed in the same manner as described above (step # 18). If there is no abnormality, then, as described above, the pallet P is moved to the loading / unloading section IO (step # 10).
Is transferred to the carry-in / out section IO (step # 11). The pallet P transferred to the carry-in / out section IO is transported to the installation location of the manufacturing apparatus where the article B is used by an unmanned transport vehicle, a forklift, or the like.

When the article B is returned to the article storage shelf 1 after use in the manufacturing apparatus, the pallet P holding the article B to be returned to the article storage shelf 1 is placed in the carry-in / out section IO,
When the storage of the article B is instructed to the main controller 32 by an input from the console 33 or via the communication interface 34 (step # 22), a bar code reader (not shown) or the like is used in the loading / unloading section IO. The identification code of the article B to be stored, which is recorded by a code or the like, is read, and the article B is stored by the storage information of the storage device 35.
Specify the storage position where was stored (Step # 2
3). The operation of storing the article B is almost the reverse of the operation of taking out the article B. The elevating table 8 is moved to the loading / unloading section IO, and the pallet P of the loading / unloading section IO is moved up and down by the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13. After transfer to the table 8 (step # 24) and execution of the same abnormality detection processing as described above (step # 2)
5) The elevator 8 is moved to a position where the storage unit fork mechanism 12 faces the storage unit 6 in which the product B was stored (step # 26). When this movement is completed, the pallet P of the article storage unit 6 is transferred to the lift 8 (step # 27). Also during this transfer, the same abnormality detection processing as described above is executed (step # 28).

If there is no abnormality, the elevator platform controller 2
0, a pallet P transfer instruction is transmitted (step # 29), and then the process waits until a transfer completion signal is received from the elevator platform controller 20 (step # 3).
0). When the lift controller 20 receives the transfer instruction of the pallet P from the main controller 32 in the flowchart of FIG. 13 (step # 50), the lift controller 20 carries out the pallet P on the storage unit fork mechanism 12 according to the transfer instruction. Pallet P on the entry fork mechanism 13
The article B is transferred between and (step # 51). At this point, since the storage operation of the article B is being performed, the content of the transfer instruction is an instruction to transfer the article B of the pallet P on the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 to the pallet P on the storage section fork mechanism 12. Therefore, the operation is the reverse of the operation shown in FIG. When there are a plurality of articles B to be transferred from the pallet P on the loading / unloading section fork mechanism 13 to the pallet P on the storage section fork mechanism 12, the above operation is repeated.

When the transfer of the articles B is completed, the elevator board controller 20 transmits a transfer completion signal to the main controller 32 (step # 52), and waits until a new transfer instruction is received. Yes (Step # 5
0). The main controller 32, which has received the transfer completion signal from the elevator platform controller 20 in step # 30 of the flowchart in FIG. 11, operates the storage unit fork mechanism 12 to restore the pallet P on the storage unit fork mechanism 12. Return to the article storage section 6 (step # 31).
When there are a plurality of articles B to be stored and the storage positions thereof also cover a plurality of article storage units 6 (step # 32), the operations of step # 24 and subsequent steps are repeated, and when the storage of all the articles is completed, the storage work is performed. finish.

The above operation is for storing the individual articles B in the article storage unit 6, but all the articles B to be stored.
When it is determined that the articles B have been taken out together with the pallet P (step # 33), the lifting platform 8 is moved to the loading / unloading section IO, and the pallet of the loading / unloading section IO is detected. After the P is transferred to the lift table 8 by the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 (step # 34) and the same abnormality detection processing as described above is executed (step # 35), the article B storing the article B is stored. The elevating table 8 is moved to a position where the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 faces the section 6 (step # 36), and the loading / unloading fork mechanism 13 is operated to store the pallet P in the article storage section 6 (step # 36). 37).

Therefore, the elevator board controller 21 functions as a part of the article transfer device BT, and the main controller 32 functions as the control means CC for controlling the operation of the stacker crane 3 and is held on the pallet P. Indicating means B for specifying and indicating the article B to be taken out
Functions as C. In addition, when the above-mentioned article take-out work is summarized by the operations of the control means CC and the instruction means BC, the control means CC, based on the instruction of the instruction means BC,
The pallet P holding the article B to be taken out is transferred from the article storage section 6 to the cargo handling tool support section PH, and the article B to be taken out is transferred from the transferred pallet P to the article temporary placing section TH. Then, the stacker crane 3 is operated so as to be transferred to the pallet P article storage unit 6 whose transfer has been completed and to take out the article B to be taken out that has been transferred to the temporary article placement section TH to the loading / unloading section IO. And the indicating means BC
When the article B that has once been unloaded is again loaded into the article storage rack 1, the pallet that has been held before the article B is put out based on the identification information (identification code) of the article B to be loaded. The position where the article B is held on the pallet P before the delivery from the pallet P is instructed to the control means CC as the storage position.

[Other Embodiments] Other embodiments will be listed below. In the above-described embodiment, the lifting / lowering table 8 is provided with the loading / unloading section fork mechanism 13 for loading / unloading section transfer means for transferring the article B between the lifting / lowering table 8 and the loading / unloading section IO. A multi-joint type manipulator may be provided in the loading / unloading section IO as the loading / unloading section transfer means. In the above embodiment, the article temporary storage portion TH of the lift 8 is
Although the pallet P is positioned as the loading / unloading tool TS on the pallet, the article temporary storage section T
The article B may be placed directly on the H. In the above-described embodiment, the stacker crane 3 is illustrated as the transporting device. However, an elevating rail having a length that extends over substantially the entire width of the article storage shelf 1 in the widthwise direction is provided so that the article holding body is mounted on the elevating rail. May be configured to run in the lateral direction of the article storage rack 1.

In the above-described embodiment, as the article B to be stored in the article storage shelf 1, a replacement part of the manufacturing apparatus is illustrated, and a usage mode in which the article B after being used in the manufacturing apparatus is returned to the article storage shelf 1 will be described. However, it may be used as a normal automatic warehouse that does not perform processing such as returning the once shipped article B to the article storage rack 1 again. In the above-described embodiment, the article transfer device BT is composed of the vertical moving body 15, the lateral moving body 16, the elevating moving body 17, and the like. However, the article transferring device BT is configured as an articulated manipulator to place the article B in the pallet P. You may comprise so that it may transfer between. In the above embodiment, the article B to be stored has a long cylindrical shape, but it can be used to store articles B having various shapes. In the above-described embodiment, the pallet P is used as the cargo handling tool to store the article B in the article storage unit 6, but
The form of the cargo handling tool can be variously changed, such as using a container that can store a plurality of articles B.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a front view of an article holder according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a plan view of an article holder according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 3 is a front view of the transfer device according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a layout diagram of equipment according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 5 is a front view of the article storage shelf according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory view of an article and a cargo handling tool according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 7 is a layout explanatory diagram of a pallet size detection device and the like in a front view according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a layout explanatory view of a pallet size detection device and the like in plan view according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram according to an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 11 is a flowchart according to the embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 12 is a flowchart according to the embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 13 is a flowchart according to the embodiment of the present invention.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 article storage shelf 3 conveying device 6 article storage section 8 article holder 12 article transfer means for storage section 13 transfer section for loading / unloading section B article BC instructing means BT transfer section for holding section CC control means IO loading / unloading section PH cargo handling tool Supporting part SP Cargo handling tool TH Temporary article storage part TP Extracting cargo handling tool

Claims (11)

[Claims] 1. An article storage shelf configured by arranging a plurality of article storage sections vertically and horizontally to store a plurality of types of articles, and an article holder between the carry-in / out section of the article storage shelf and each of the article storage sections. And a control device for controlling the operation of the transportation device, wherein the article is held by a cargo handling tool capable of holding a plurality of articles. And a storage unit transfer means that transfers the cargo handling tool between the cargo handling tool support portion provided in the article holding body and the article storage unit, and is stored in the article storage unit. And a holding section transfer means for transferring the article between the article temporary placement section provided in the article holder and the cargo handling tool transferred to the cargo handling tool support section. Carry-in / carry-out for transferring the article between the temporary storage section and the carry-in / carry-out section Article storage facility provided with a transfer means for use, wherein the plurality of articles held by the cargo handling tool are held in a state in which any of the articles can be taken out by the transfer means for the holding part. An instruction means for specifying an article to be taken out of the articles held in the cargo handling tool and outputting a take-out instruction of the control means is provided, and the control means is an instruction of the instruction means. Based on the above, the cargo handling tool holding the article to be taken out is transferred from the article storage section to the cargo handling tool support section, and the article to be taken out is transferred from the transferred cargo handling tool to the article temporary storage section. Listed,
The cargo handling tool that has been transferred is transferred to the article storage section,
An article storage facility configured to operate the transfer device so that the article to be taken out that has been transferred to the article temporary storage section can be delivered to the carry-in / out section. 2. The article is held by a unloading cargo handling tool in the article temporary placing section of the article holder, and the loading / unloading section transfer means transfers the unloading cargo handling tool holding the article. The article storage facility according to claim 1, wherein the article storage facility is configured to transfer the article between the temporary article placing section and the carry-in / out section by placing the article. 3. The instructing means, when the article that has once been unloaded is again loaded into the article storage rack, based on the identification information of the article to be loaded, the article is held before it is unloaded. The article storage facility according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the article handling equipment is configured to instruct the control means as a storage position of a position where the article is held in the article handling tool before being unloaded. . 4. The instructing means is configured to be able to specify and instruct the articles held in different cargo handling tools in one transportation operation by the transportation device.
Item 3. The article storage facility according to any one of items 3 to 3. 5. The carry-in / carry-out section is provided at a lateral side part of the article storage shelf, and the cargo handling tool support section and the article temporary placing section of the article holder are the carry-out section. The article storage equipment according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the article storage equipment is arranged side by side in a lateral width direction of the article storage shelf in a state of being located on a side close to the insertion section. 6. The article is formed in an elongated shape, and is stored in the cargo handling tool with the longitudinal direction of the article facing the lateral width direction of the article storage rack and aligned in the depth direction. Item storage facility according to any one of items 1 to 5. 7. There are a plurality of types of articles having different lengths in the longitudinal direction, one of the cargo handling tools holds the articles of the same length, and the article storage rack has In the up-down direction, the article storage units for storing the articles of the same length are arranged in a line,
7. The article storage facility according to claim 6, wherein the article storage units for storing the articles having different lengths are arranged in a state of being aligned in a width direction of the article storage rack. 8. The article according to claim 6, wherein there are a plurality of types of articles having different cross-sectional areas, and the cargo handling implement is configured to be able to simultaneously support a plurality of types of articles having different cross-sectional areas. Item storage facility according to 7. 9. The article storage facility according to claim 8, wherein the cargo handling tool and the unloading cargo handling tool are formed in the same shape. 10. The loading / unloading section transfer means is provided in the transfer device, and is configured to transfer the cargo handling tool between the article temporary storage section and the article storage section.
Article storage facility as described. 11. The article according to any one of claims 6 to 10, wherein the holding part transfer means is configured to grip and transfer each of both longitudinal end portions of the article. Storage device.