CN113135408A

CN113135408A - Container transferring system and method, container transferring device and robot

Info

Publication number: CN113135408A
Application number: CN202110541968.5A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 闫杰; 刘凯; 汪旭; 王梦迪
Original assignee: Beijing Jizhijia Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Beijing Jizhijia Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-05-18
Filing date: 2021-05-18
Publication date: 2021-07-20
Also published as: WO2022242442A1; TW202246149A

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a container transfer system, method, container transfer device and robot, the system comprising at least one robot and at least one container transfer device; the robot is provided with a plurality of layers of temporary storage mechanisms, and the temporary storage mechanisms are used for temporarily storing the containers; the container transfer device comprises an external conveying mechanism; the robot is configured to move to a first container docking position, wherein the first container docking position is a position where the robot is located when the robot is docked with the container transfer device; the container transfer device is configured to acquire all containers on different layers of temporary storage mechanisms of the robot, which are moved to the first container butt joint position, and transfer all the containers to the same external conveying mechanism in batches; wherein the number of batch transfer times is less than the number of all containers; or transferring a plurality of containers on the same external conveying mechanism to the temporary storage mechanism on different layers of the robot. The container transfer device can improve the efficiency of butt joint of the container between the robot and the container transfer device.

Description

Container transferring system and method, container transferring device and robot

Technical Field

The disclosure relates to the technical field of storage logistics, in particular to a container transfer system, a container transfer method, a container transfer device and a robot.

Background

A robot can carry a plurality of containers at a time, and respectively place the containers on a multi-layer temporary storage mechanism of the robot. When the robot arrives the destination and realizes that the packing box shifts, need utilize the robot to take out the packing box from different temporary storage mechanisms one by one, put to the destination (for example conveying mechanism, mutual goods position etc.), lead to the robot can't high-efficiently drop into in the packing box access flow, and then cause the waste of robot's mobility, in order to realize high-efficient transport goods, need drop into more robots, but can increase the individual input cost of robot.

Therefore, how to improve the transfer efficiency of the container becomes a problem to be solved urgently in the field.

Disclosure of Invention

The embodiment of the disclosure at least provides a container transfer system, a container transfer method, a container transfer device and a robot.

In a first aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure provide a container transfer system comprising at least one robot and at least one container transfer device; the robot is provided with a plurality of layers of temporary storage mechanisms, and the temporary storage mechanisms are used for temporarily storing containers; the container transfer device comprises an external conveying mechanism;

the robot is configured to move to a first container docking position, wherein the first container docking position is a position where the robot is located when the robot docks with the container transfer device;

the container transfer device is configured to acquire all containers on different layers of the temporary storage mechanism of the robot, which are moved to the first container butt joint position, and transfer all containers to the same external conveying mechanism in batches; wherein the number of batch transfers is less than the number of full containers; or transferring a plurality of containers on the same external conveying mechanism to the temporary storage mechanism on different layers of the robot.

In an alternative embodiment, the container transfer device includes at least one first lifting mechanism; the first lifting mechanism comprises a plurality of layers of first conveying mechanisms, and the first conveying mechanisms are used for temporarily storing and transferring containers;

the container transfer apparatus is configured to transfer all containers in batches onto the first conveying mechanism on different levels of the first lifting mechanism, wherein the number of batches is less than the number of all containers; and transferring a plurality of containers on different layers of the first conveying mechanism to the same external conveying mechanism.

In an alternative embodiment, the container transfer apparatus further comprises at least one second lifting mechanism; the second lifting mechanism comprises a plurality of layers of second conveying mechanisms, and the second conveying mechanisms are used for temporarily storing and transferring containers;

the first lifting mechanism being configured to transfer a plurality of containers on different levels of the first conveyor mechanism to different levels of the second conveyor mechanism;

the second lifting mechanism is configured to transfer a plurality of containers on different levels of the second conveyor to the same external conveyor.

In an alternative embodiment, the container transfer device includes at least one container transfer mechanism, a multi-tier container transport mechanism;

the container transfer mechanism is configured to lift all containers on different layers of the temporary storage mechanism of the robot and transfer the containers to preset areas on different layers of the container conveying mechanism;

the container transport mechanism is configured to transfer the container from a predetermined area onto the first transport mechanism of the first lifting mechanism;

the first lifting mechanism is configured to move the plurality of layers of the first conveying mechanism to a second container docking position to access the containers provided by the container conveying mechanisms of different layers; moving the plurality of tiers of the first conveyor mechanism into a third container docking station to transfer the plurality of containers onto the second conveyor mechanism of the second lifting mechanism; the second container butt joint position is the position of each layer of the first conveying mechanism when the first lifting mechanism and the container conveying mechanism carry out container butt joint; the third container butt joint position is the position of each layer of the first conveying mechanism when the first lifting mechanism and the second lifting mechanism carry out container butt joint;

the second lifting mechanism is configured to move the second conveying mechanism to a fourth container docking position to transfer the containers on each layer of the second conveying mechanism to the external conveying mechanism respectively; the fourth container butt joint position is the position where the second conveying mechanism is located when the second lifting mechanism and the external conveying mechanism carry out container butt joint.

In an alternative embodiment, the second lifting mechanism is further configured to move the second conveyor mechanism to the fourth container docking station to access a container provided by the external conveyor mechanism;

the first lifting mechanism is further configured to move the plurality of tiers of the first conveyance mechanism to the third container docking station to access the plurality of containers provided by the second lifting mechanism; moving the plurality of layers of the first conveying mechanism to the second container docking station to transfer the plurality of containers to different layers of the container conveying mechanism;

the container conveying mechanism is further configured to transfer a container provided by the first lifting mechanism to the preset area;

the container transfer mechanism is also configured to lift all containers in a preset area of the container conveying mechanism with multiple layers and transfer the containers to the temporary storage mechanism with different layers of the robot.

In an alternative embodiment, the robot is further configured to move to the first container docking station to receive the containers after the container transfer mechanism lifts all of the containers at a predetermined area of the multi-level container transport mechanism.

In an alternative embodiment, the container transfer apparatus further comprises a controller;

the controller is configured to respond to a first container transfer instruction, control the container transfer mechanism to lift all containers on different layers of the temporary storage mechanism of the robot and transfer the containers to preset areas on different layers of the container conveying mechanism; controlling the multiple layers of the container conveying mechanisms to transfer the containers from the preset area to a parking area; controlling the first conveyor mechanism to move to the second container docking station; controlling the plurality of tiers of container transfer mechanisms to transfer a plurality of containers from the docking area to different tiers of the first transfer mechanisms already in the second container docking station; controlling the plurality of layers of the first conveying mechanism to move to the third container butt joint position, and transferring the plurality of containers temporarily stored on the first conveying mechanism to the second conveying mechanism on different layers of the second lifting mechanism; and controlling the second conveying mechanism to move to the fourth container butt joint position, and respectively transferring the containers temporarily stored on the second conveying mechanism to the external conveying mechanism.

the controller is configured to control the second conveyor mechanism to move to the fourth container docking station and to control the external conveyor mechanism to transfer the container to the second conveyor mechanism already in the fourth container docking station in response to a second container transfer instruction; controlling the plurality of layers of the first conveying mechanism to move to a third container docking position, and controlling the plurality of layers of the second conveying mechanism to transfer the plurality of containers temporarily stored on the plurality of layers of the second conveying mechanism to different layers of the first conveying mechanism which are already positioned at the third container docking position; controlling the plurality of layers of the first conveying mechanism to move to the second container butt joint position, and controlling the plurality of layers of the first conveying mechanism to transfer the plurality of containers to the container conveying mechanisms on different layers; controlling the multiple layers of container conveying mechanisms to respectively transfer the multiple containers to preset areas of the container conveying mechanisms on different layers; and controlling the container transfer mechanism to lift all containers which are already positioned in the preset area and transfer the containers to the temporary storage mechanism on different layers of the robot.

In an alternative embodiment, the direction in which the container is transported by the container transport mechanism is perpendicular to the direction of movement of the robot into the first container docking station.

In an alternative embodiment, the container transfer mechanism includes a plurality of jacking fork mechanisms; the temporary storage mechanism is a comb-shaped mechanism; the jacking fork mechanism is a comb-shaped mechanism; the container conveying mechanism is a comb-shaped mechanism; the comb mechanism comprises comb teeth;

the projections of the comb teeth of the temporary storage mechanism and the comb teeth of the jacking fork mechanism on the horizontal plane are not overlapped;

the comb teeth of the jacking fork mechanism are not overlapped with the projections of the comb teeth of the container conveying mechanism on the horizontal plane.

In an alternative embodiment, each layer of the container conveying mechanisms corresponds to one jacking fork mechanism;

the jacking fork mechanism is configured to move to the initial position of the jacking fork mechanism after all containers on different layers of the temporary storage mechanism of the robot are lifted so as to transfer all the containers to different layers of the container conveying mechanism; the height of the initial position of the jacking fork mechanism is lower than the height of the surface of the container conveying mechanism for placing the container on the corresponding layer.

In an alternative embodiment, the container transfer mechanism further comprises a first drive unit and a track assembly; the first driving unit is connected with the guide rail assembly; the plurality of jacking fork mechanisms are assembled on the guide rail assembly in a sliding mode; each layer of temporary storage mechanism corresponds to one jacking fork mechanism;

the first driving unit is configured to drive the guide rail assembly to rotate;

the guide rail assembly is configured to drive the jacking fork mechanism to move along the vertical direction under the driving of the first driving unit so as to lift the container on the temporary storage mechanism of the corresponding layer.

In an alternative embodiment, the first lifting mechanism further comprises a second drive unit and a drive assembly; the second driving unit is connected with the driving assembly; the multiple layers of the first conveying mechanisms are fixedly assembled on the driving assembly;

the first conveying mechanism is configured to transfer the temporarily stored containers onto the second lifting mechanism;

the second driving unit is configured to drive the driving assembly to rotate;

the driving assembly is configured to drive the multiple layers of the first conveying mechanism to move along the vertical direction under the driving of the second driving unit so as to transfer the containers temporarily stored on the first conveying mechanism to the second lifting mechanism.

In a second aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a container transfer device, including the container transfer device described in the first aspect.

In a third aspect, embodiments of the present disclosure also provide a robot, which includes the robot described in the first aspect.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a container transfer method, which is applied to the container transfer apparatus in the second aspect, and includes: the robot is provided with a plurality of layers of temporary storage mechanisms, and the temporary storage mechanisms are used for temporarily storing the containers; the container transfer device comprises an external conveying mechanism;

responding to a first container transfer instruction, acquiring all containers on different layers of the temporary storage mechanism of the robot, and transferring all containers to the same external conveying mechanism in batches; wherein the number of batch transfers is less than the number of full containers; alternatively, the first and second electrodes may be,

and responding to a second container transfer instruction, and transferring a plurality of containers on the same external conveying mechanism to different layer temporary storage mechanisms of the robot.

In an alternative embodiment, the container transfer device includes at least one first lifting mechanism; the first lifting mechanism comprises a plurality of layers of first conveying mechanisms, and the first conveying mechanisms are used for temporarily storing and conveying containers;

the transferring all containers to the same external conveying mechanism in batches comprises:

transferring all containers in batches onto the first conveying mechanism at different levels of the first lifting mechanism, wherein the number of batches is less than the number of all containers;

and transferring a plurality of containers on different layers of the first conveying mechanism to the same external conveying mechanism.

In an alternative embodiment, the container transfer apparatus further comprises at least one second lifting mechanism; the second lifting mechanism comprises a plurality of layers of second conveying mechanisms, and the second conveying mechanisms are used for temporarily storing and conveying containers;

the transferring a plurality of containers on different layers of the first conveying mechanism to the same external conveying mechanism comprises:

transferring a plurality of containers on different levels of the first conveyor to a different level of the second conveyor of the second lift mechanism;

and transferring a plurality of containers on different layers of the second conveying mechanism to the same external conveying mechanism.

In an alternative embodiment, the container transfer device includes at least a first container transfer mechanism, a multi-tier container transfer mechanism;

the responding to the first container transfer instruction, acquiring all containers on different layers of the temporary storage mechanism of the robot, and transferring all containers to the same external conveying mechanism in batches, and the method comprises the following steps:

responding to a first container transfer instruction, controlling the container transfer mechanism to lift all containers on different layers of the temporary storage mechanism of the robot, and transferring the containers to preset areas on different layers of the container conveying mechanism;

controlling the multiple layers of the container conveying mechanisms to transfer the containers from the preset area to a parking area;

controlling the first conveying mechanism to move to the second container butt joint position; the second container butt joint position is the position of each layer of the first conveying mechanism when the first lifting mechanism and the container conveying mechanism carry out container butt joint;

controlling the plurality of tiers of container transfer mechanisms to transfer a plurality of containers from the docking area to different tiers of the first transfer mechanisms already in the second container docking station;

controlling the first conveying mechanism to move to a third container butt joint position in multiple layers, and transferring the containers temporarily stored on the first conveying mechanism to the second conveying mechanism on different layers of the second lifting mechanism; the third container butt joint position is the position of each layer of the first conveying mechanism when the first lifting mechanism and the second lifting mechanism carry out container butt joint;

controlling the second conveying mechanism to move to a fourth container butt joint position, and respectively transferring the containers temporarily stored on the second conveying mechanism to the external conveying mechanism; the fourth container butt joint position is the position where the second conveying mechanism is located when the second lifting mechanism and the external conveying mechanism carry out container butt joint.

In an alternative embodiment, the transferring multiple containers on the same external transport mechanism to different level buffer mechanisms of the robot in response to a second container transfer instruction comprises:

in response to a second container transfer instruction, controlling the second conveyor mechanism to move to the fourth container docking station and controlling the external conveyor mechanism to transfer the container to the second conveyor mechanism already in the fourth container docking station;

controlling the plurality of layers of the first conveying mechanism to move to a third container docking position, and controlling the plurality of layers of the second conveying mechanism to transfer the plurality of containers temporarily stored on the plurality of layers of the second conveying mechanism to different layers of the first conveying mechanism which are already positioned at the third container docking position;

controlling the plurality of layers of the first conveying mechanism to move to the second container butt joint position, and controlling the plurality of layers of the first conveying mechanism to transfer the plurality of containers to the container conveying mechanisms on different layers;

controlling the multiple layers of container conveying mechanisms to respectively transfer the multiple containers to preset areas of the container conveying mechanisms on different layers;

and controlling the container transfer mechanism to lift all containers which are already positioned in the preset area and transfer the containers to the temporary storage mechanism on different layers of the robot.

the lifting of all containers on the temporary storage mechanism of different layers of the robot comprises:

and controlling the first driving unit to drive the guide rail assembly to rotate and drive the jacking fork mechanism to move along the vertical direction so as to lift the container on the temporary storage mechanism of the corresponding layer.

and controlling the second driving unit to drive the driving assembly to rotate and drive the multiple layers of the first conveying mechanisms to move along the vertical direction so as to transfer the containers temporarily stored on the first conveying mechanisms to the second lifting mechanism.

The disclosed embodiment provides a container transfer system, a container transfer method, a container transfer device and a robot, wherein the container transfer system comprises at least one robot and at least one container transfer device; the robot is provided with a plurality of layers of temporary storage mechanisms, and the temporary storage mechanisms are used for temporarily storing the containers; the container transfer device comprises an external conveying mechanism; aiming at the situation that the robot puts goods, the robot moves to a first container butt joint position, and the first container butt joint position is the position of the robot when the robot is in container butt joint with a container transfer device; then, the container transfer device can acquire all containers which are moved to the first container butt joint position and are on different layers of temporary storage mechanisms of the robot, and transfer all the containers to the same external conveying mechanism in batches; wherein the number of batch transfers is less than the number of full containers. According to the robot goods taking scene, the container transfer device can transfer a plurality of containers on the same external conveying mechanism to different layers of temporary storage mechanisms of the robot, compared with the prior art that the containers are transferred to destinations one by one from the different layers of temporary storage mechanisms, the container transfer device can transfer all the containers from the different layers of temporary storage mechanisms of the robot at one time, or a plurality of containers are placed for the robot at one time, in the robot goods taking and storing scene, the butt joint time of the robot and the container transfer mechanism can be reduced, and the carrying efficiency of the robot in the goods taking and storing process is improved; meanwhile, the total number of the robots in the same scene can be reduced, and the total cost of the robots is saved.

Further, the container transfer system, method, container transfer device and robot provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure may further include transferring a plurality of containers on different layers of the first conveying mechanism to different layers of the second conveying mechanism by using the first lifting mechanism; and transferring the containers on the second conveying mechanism of different layers to the same external conveying mechanism by using the second lifting mechanism. The mode that this kind of application two hoist mechanism mutually support and shift the packing box for only a hoist mechanism's packing box transfer device now, can more quick realization packing box shift, improve packing box transfer efficiency.

Further, the container transfer system, the container transfer method, the container transfer device and the robot provided by the embodiment of the disclosure, wherein the direction in which the container is conveyed by the container conveying mechanism is perpendicular to the movement direction in which the robot enters the first container butt joint position, and compared with the parallel butt joint position layout mode, the vertical butt joint position layout mode can save the floor area of the warehouse and improve the space utilization rate of the warehouse.

In order to make the aforementioned objects, features and advantages of the present disclosure more comprehensible, preferred embodiments accompanied with figures are described in detail below.

Drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure, the drawings required for use in the embodiments will be briefly described below, and the drawings herein incorporated in and forming a part of the specification illustrate embodiments consistent with the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the technical solutions of the present disclosure. It is appreciated that the following drawings depict only certain embodiments of the disclosure and are therefore not to be considered limiting of its scope, for those skilled in the art will be able to derive additional related drawings therefrom without the benefit of the inventive faculty.

Fig. 1 illustrates a schematic view of a container transfer system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 2 shows a schematic structural view of a robot and a container transfer device when the robot is docked with the container transfer device according to an embodiment of the disclosure;

fig. 3 illustrates a schematic layout of a plurality of robots as provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure docked with a container transfer device;

fig. 4 shows a schematic structural diagram of a robot provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

fig. 5 shows a schematic structural view of a container transfer mechanism provided by an embodiment of the disclosure;

FIG. 6 illustrates a flow diagram for transferring a cargo box from a robot to a fork lift mechanism provided by embodiments of the present disclosure;

fig. 7 illustrates a schematic structural view of a container conveying mechanism provided by an embodiment of the disclosure;

fig. 8 shows a schematic structural diagram of a first lifting mechanism provided in an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed Description

In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present disclosure more clear, the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present disclosure will be described clearly and completely with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure, and it is obvious that the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, not all of the embodiments. The components of the embodiments of the present disclosure, generally described and illustrated in the figures herein, can be arranged and designed in a wide variety of different configurations. Thus, the following detailed description of the embodiments of the present disclosure, presented in the figures, is not intended to limit the scope of the claimed disclosure, but is merely representative of selected embodiments of the disclosure. All other embodiments, which can be derived by a person skilled in the art from the embodiments of the disclosure without making creative efforts, shall fall within the protection scope of the disclosure.

Furthermore, the terms "first," "second," and the like in the description and in the claims, and in the drawings described above, in the embodiments of the present disclosure are used for distinguishing between similar elements and not necessarily for describing a particular sequential or chronological order. It will be appreciated that the data so used may be interchanged under appropriate circumstances such that the embodiments described herein may be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated or described herein.

Reference herein to "a plurality or a number" means two or more. "and/or" describes the association relationship of the associated objects, meaning that there may be three relationships, e.g., a and/or B, which may mean: a exists alone, A and B exist simultaneously, and B exists alone. The character "/" generally indicates that the former and latter associated objects are in an "or" relationship.

Research shows that the robot can carry a plurality of containers at a time and place the containers on a multi-layer temporary storage mechanism of the robot respectively. When the robot arrives the destination and realizes that the packing box shifts, need utilize the robot to take out the packing box from different temporary storage mechanisms one by one, put to the destination (for example conveying mechanism, mutual goods position etc.), lead to the robot can't high-efficiently drop into in the packing box access flow, and then cause the waste of robot's mobility, in order to realize high-efficient transport goods, need drop into more robots, but can increase the individual input cost of robot.

Based on the research, the present disclosure provides a container transfer system, a method, a container transfer device and a robot, which can transfer a plurality of containers at a time from different layers of temporary storage mechanisms of the robot by using the container transfer device, or place a plurality of containers for the robot at a time, and can reduce the docking time of the robot and the container transfer mechanism and improve the carrying efficiency of the robot in the container access process in a scene where the robot accesses the plurality of containers; meanwhile, the total number of the robots in the same scene can be reduced, and the total cost of the robots is saved.

The above-mentioned drawbacks are the results of the inventor after practical and careful study, and therefore, the discovery process of the above-mentioned problems and the solutions proposed by the present disclosure to the above-mentioned problems should be the contribution of the inventor in the process of the present disclosure.

It should be noted that: like reference numbers and letters refer to like items in the following figures, and thus, once an item is defined in one figure, it need not be further defined and explained in subsequent figures.

To facilitate understanding of the present embodiment, an application scenario of the container transfer system disclosed in the embodiments of the present disclosure is first described, and the container transfer system provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to a docking process of the robot 11 and the container transfer device 12. As shown in fig. 1, the robot 11 may be a robot capable of carrying a plurality of containers at a time, for example.

In a warehouse logistics scenario, in one possible implementation, the cloud server 13 may issue a movement control instruction for the robot 11, where the movement control instruction may be an instruction for controlling the robot 11 to put goods; alternatively, the instruction may be an instruction for controlling the robot 11 to pick up the goods. For example, in a cargo picking scenario, the cloud server 13 may control the robot 11 to move to a first cargo box docking position where the cargo box docking of the cargo box transferring device 12 can be achieved (where the first cargo box docking position may be a position where the robot is located when the robot 11 docks the cargo box transferring device 12), at this time, the cargo to be picked is stored in a plurality of cargo boxes on the robot 11, the cargo boxes may be transferred out by using the cargo box transferring device 12 to achieve picking of the cargo, at this time, the robot 11 may leave the first cargo box docking position, and wait for the cloud server 13 to send a next instruction. For another example, in a cargo warehousing scenario, the cloud server 13 may control the robot 11 to move to the first cargo box docking station to pick up the cargo when the cargo box has been transferred to the preset area by the cargo box transfer device 12.

Here, the cloud server 13 stores an order pool of warehouse goods, and the robot 11 is called to select goods according to information to be selected of the goods in the order pool; or, the robot 11 is called to realize warehousing of the goods through the information to be warehoused of the goods in the order pool.

In some embodiments, the robot may also complete tasks in different scenarios, such as racking and racking, of containers based on the container transfer system provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure, and the case where there is a cargo in a container may also be designed according to a specific application scenario, which is not specifically limited in the embodiments of the present disclosure.

In another possible embodiment, the controller in the robot 11 may also be used to complete the docking process between the robot 11 and the container of the container transfer device 12, so as to achieve efficient handling in the cargo access process.

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a container transfer system that includes at least one robot and at least one container transfer device. As can be seen in fig. 2, which is a schematic view of the robot and the container transfer apparatus when the robot is docked with the container transfer apparatus, the robot and container transfer apparatus includes at least one robot 11, a container transfer apparatus 12, and a plurality of containers 21; the container transfer device 12 may include, among other things, at least one container transfer mechanism 121, a multi-level container transfer mechanism 122, at least one first lifting mechanism 123, at least one second lifting mechanism 124, an external transfer mechanism 125, and a controller.

In one possible embodiment, the robot and the container transfer device may be arranged in a plurality of positions when being docked, wherein one position of the robot and the container transfer device when being docked may be arranged in a manner that the conveying direction of the conveying mechanism is perpendicular to the moving direction of the robot into the first container docking position. For example, see fig. 3, which is a schematic diagram of the position layout of a plurality of robots when the robots are docked with the container transfer device. Where the direction in which the container is transported by the container transport mechanism is indicated at 31 in the figure, the direction of movement of the robot into the first container docking station may be indicated at 32 in the figure. According to the position layout mode of the vertical butt joint, compared with the position layout mode of the parallel butt joint, the warehouse floor area can be saved, and the warehouse space utilization rate is improved.

Here, the container transfer device 12 may be docked with a plurality of robots 11 simultaneously. Illustratively, referring to fig. 3, the container transfer device 12 may be simultaneously docked with two robots 11, wherein different container transfer mechanisms 121 are controlled to transfer containers from different robots 11. For example, a plurality of containers on the robot 11-a are transferred by the container transfer mechanism 121-a, and a plurality of containers on the robot 11-B are transferred by the container transfer mechanism 121-B, at this time, the container transfer mechanism 121-a and the container transfer mechanism 121-B may be juxtaposed on one side of the container transfer device 12 in the direction in which the containers are conveyed by the multi-layer container conveying mechanism 122, the robot 11-a may dock the containers at the first container docking station 33-a, and the robot 11-B may dock the containers at the first container docking station 33-B.

In addition, a plurality of first lifting mechanisms 123 and a plurality of second lifting mechanisms 124 may be provided in the container transfer device 12, for example, a set of double lifting mechanisms (including the first lifting mechanism 123 and the second lifting mechanism 124) may be provided at both ends of the container conveying mechanism 122, and the second lifting mechanism 124 may be abutted to the external conveying mechanism 125.

Here, the number of layers of the container conveying mechanism 122 in the container transfer device 12 may be arranged according to a specific application, and is not particularly limited herein.

Reference can be made to fig. 4, which is a schematic structural diagram of the robot. The robot 11 comprises a robot body 111, a gantry 112 and a multi-layer temporary storage mechanism 113; the gantry 112 is mounted on the robot body 111; a multi-deck buffer 113 is mounted to one side of the gantry 112, and the buffer 113 may be used to buffer containers.

The robot 11 is configured to move to the first cargo box docking station. Here, the first container docking position is a position where the robot is located when the robot docks the container with the container transfer device. The first container docking station may be plural.

The container transfer device 12 is configured to take all containers on different layers of temporary storage mechanisms of the robot which are moved to the first container butt joint position, and transfer all containers to the same external conveying mechanism in batches; wherein the number of batch transfer times is less than the number of all containers; or transferring a plurality of containers on the same external conveying mechanism to the temporary storage mechanism on different layers of the robot.

Detailed description is made below for the butt joint of the robot and the container transfer device in the robot container placing scene to realize the container transfer:

first, the container temporarily stored in the temporary storage mechanism 113 of the robot 11 may be transferred to a preset area on the container conveying mechanism 122 by the container transfer mechanism 121; thereafter, in the event that the container transport mechanism 122 determines that a container is present at the predetermined area, the container transport mechanism 122 may transfer the container to the first lifting mechanism 123; thereafter, in the event that the first lifting mechanism 123 determines that a container is present, the first lifting mechanism 123 may transfer the container to the second lifting mechanism 124; thereafter, in the event that the second lifting mechanism 124 determines that a container is present, the second lifting mechanism 124 may transfer the container to the external transport mechanism 125; the external transport mechanism 125 then transports the container to the next link.

For example, a sensor may be disposed in a preset area of each layer of container conveying mechanism, and a plurality of sensors may be used to detect whether there is a container in the preset area of each layer of container conveying mechanism. The container conveying mechanism determines that a container is arranged, and the feedback result of the sensor can be used for determining that the container is arranged at the preset area of one layer or a plurality of layers of container conveying mechanisms.

In some embodiments, the container transfer mechanism 121 may transfer all containers on different layers of temporary storage mechanisms of the robot to a preset area of the container conveying mechanism, so as to transfer all containers in one operation, reduce the docking time of the robot and the container transfer mechanism, and improve the carrying efficiency of the robot in the container storing and taking process; meanwhile, the total number of the robots in the same scene can be reduced, and the total cost of the robots is saved.

Here, the size of the predetermined area may be a bottom surface size of the cargo box.

In one possible embodiment, the container transfer device 12 may be configured to transfer all containers in batches onto different levels of the first conveying mechanism of the first lifting mechanism, wherein the number of batches is less than the number of all containers; and transferring a plurality of containers on the first conveying mechanism of different layers to the same external conveying mechanism.

Specifically, the container transport mechanism 122 is configured to transfer a container from a predetermined area onto the first transport mechanism of the first lifting mechanism. The first lifting mechanism 123 is configured to move the multi-level first conveyor mechanism into the second container docking position to access containers provided by different levels of container conveyor mechanisms. Here, the number of containers to be picked up at a time is the same as the number of layers of the first conveying mechanism. The second container butt joint position is the position of each layer of the first conveying mechanism when the first lifting mechanism and the container conveying mechanism carry out container butt joint. When the first lifting mechanism and the container conveying mechanism carry out container butt joint, the container conveying mechanism corresponds to a second container butt joint position, and the first conveying mechanism can obtain the container conveyed by the container conveying mechanism at the second container butt joint position.

In some embodiments, the multi-level container transport mechanism 122 may transfer all containers of a predetermined area in batches onto the first transport mechanism of the first lifting mechanism. Here, the first lifting mechanism 123 includes a multi-layer first conveying mechanism 1231, as can be seen in fig. 8. The first conveying mechanism 1231 is used for temporarily storing and transferring the containers, for example, the first conveying mechanism 1231 includes a plurality of rollers, and when the function of transferring the containers is realized, the rollers can be driven by a motor to rotate so as to transfer the containers. Here, the number of batch transfers is less than the number of full containers.

Illustratively, the multi-layer container conveying mechanism and the first lifting mechanism shown in fig. 2 comprise a six-layer container conveying mechanism, and the first lifting mechanism comprises a two-layer first conveying mechanism. Because the first lifting mechanism comprises two layers of first conveying mechanisms, all containers can be transferred to the containers on the two layers of container conveying mechanisms at one time in the batch transfer process, and each layer of container conveying mechanism can be divided into groups, for example, the first layer of container conveying mechanism, the second layer of container conveying mechanism, the third layer of container conveying mechanism, the fourth layer of container conveying mechanism, the fifth layer of container conveying mechanism and the sixth layer of container conveying mechanism are arranged in sequence from bottom to top, the first layer of container conveying mechanism and the second layer of container conveying mechanism are arranged into a first group, the third layer of container conveying mechanism and the fourth layer of container conveying mechanism are arranged into a second group, and the fifth layer of container conveying mechanism and the sixth layer of container conveying mechanism are arranged into a third group. Here, two layers of the first conveying mechanism may be provided to move synchronously. In the initial state of the first lifting mechanism, namely two layers of first conveying mechanisms which are parallel in the vertical direction are positioned at the lowest part of the first lifting mechanism, and the two layers of first conveying mechanisms are respectively in one-to-one correspondence with the first layer of container conveying mechanisms and the second layer of container conveying mechanisms. Therefore, in the initial state of the first lifting mechanism, the first group of container conveying mechanisms can be controlled firstly, two containers are respectively transferred to the first conveying mechanisms on different layers, and at the moment, the first conveying mechanisms temporarily store the containers; after the containers are transferred out by the first conveying mechanism, the two layers of first conveying mechanisms move to the second container butt joint positions corresponding to the third layer of container conveying mechanism and the fourth layer of container conveying mechanism, the second group of container conveying mechanisms are controlled, and the two containers are respectively transferred to the first conveying mechanisms on different layers; and controlling the third group of container conveying mechanisms until all containers on the multi-layer container conveying mechanism are transferred out. In the process, the two layers of first conveying mechanisms in the first lifting mechanism synchronously move and reciprocate up and down twice, and all containers on the six layers of container conveying mechanisms are transferred out.

In some embodiments, the first lifting mechanism 123 is further configured to transfer a plurality of containers on different levels of the first conveyor to different levels of the second conveyor of the second lifting mechanism. Here, the plurality of containers may be containers on the entire tier first conveyor mechanism, or may be containers on the partial tier first conveyor mechanism. Specifically, the first lifting mechanism 123 is further configured to move the multi-tiered first conveyor mechanism to the third container docking station to transfer the plurality of containers onto the second conveyor mechanism of the second lifting mechanism after receiving the containers conveyed by the multi-tiered container conveyor mechanism. Here, the third container butt joint position is a position where the first conveying mechanism is located at each layer when the first lifting mechanism and the second lifting mechanism perform container butt joint. Here, the second lifting mechanism 124 includes a multi-layer second conveying mechanism. The second conveying mechanism is used for temporarily storing and transferring containers, for example, the second conveying mechanism comprises a plurality of rollers, and when the function of transferring the containers is realized, the rollers can be driven by a motor to rotate so as to transfer the containers.

For example, under the condition that the number of layers of the first conveying mechanism in the first lifting mechanism is the same as that of the second conveying mechanism in the second lifting mechanism, the first conveying mechanism and the second conveying mechanism can be in one-to-one correspondence, when the containers are butted, all the containers in the first conveying mechanism can be directly conveyed to the second conveying mechanism on the corresponding layer together, and at the moment, the second conveying mechanism temporarily stores the containers.

For example, in the case of a number of layers of the first conveying means in the first lifting device being greater than a number of layers of the second conveying means in the second lifting device, temporarily stored containers on the multi-layer first conveying means can be conveyed in batches onto the second conveying means. For example, there are three layers of first conveying mechanisms and two layers of second conveying mechanisms, the containers temporarily stored on the first layer of first conveying mechanisms and the second layer of first conveying mechanisms are conveyed to the first layer of second conveying mechanisms and the second layer of second conveying mechanisms together, and after the containers on the two layers of second conveying mechanisms are conveyed away, the two layers of second conveying mechanisms are moved, so that any one layer of second conveying mechanism is in butt joint with the third layer of first conveying mechanism to receive the containers conveyed by the third layer of first conveying mechanism. The number of layers of the first conveying mechanism can be arranged in sequence from bottom to top, the bottommost layer is the first layer, and the second layer, the third layer, … … and the Nth layer are sequentially arranged upwards, wherein N is a positive integer.

In some embodiments, the second lifting mechanism 124 is configured to transfer multiple containers on different levels of the second conveyor to the same external conveyor. Specifically, the second lifting mechanism is configured to move the second conveying mechanism to the fourth container docking station after receiving the containers conveyed by the first conveying mechanisms on different layers, and respectively transfer the containers on the second conveying mechanisms on different layers to the external conveying mechanism. The fourth container butt joint position is the position where the second conveying mechanism is located when the second lifting mechanism and the external conveying mechanism carry out container butt joint. It should be noted that one external transport mechanism is only in alignment with one fourth container.

Here, the first conveying mechanism, the second conveying mechanism and the container conveying mechanism may be the same as the mechanism for transferring the container, such as a roller or a belt, and the specific transferring mechanism is not limited herein.

In other embodiments, the first lifting mechanism 123 is further configured to move the multi-level first conveyor mechanism to the fifth container docking station a plurality of times after receiving a container conveyed by the multi-level container conveyor mechanism to transfer the container on each level of the first conveyor mechanism to the external conveyor mechanism. Here, the fifth container docking position is a position where the first conveying mechanism is located when the first lifting mechanism performs container docking with the external conveying mechanism.

Above-mentioned mode that utilizes two hoist mechanism to mutually support and shift the packing box for only a hoist mechanism's packing box transfer device now, can be more quick realize the transfer of packing box, improve packing box transfer efficiency.

Detailed description is made below for the case transfer by the robot in the case taking scene by the robot to be butted with the case transfer device:

first, the second lifting mechanism 124 may be transported with the external transport mechanism 125; thereafter, in the event that the second lifting mechanism determines that a container is present, the second lifting mechanism 124 may transfer the container to the first lifting mechanism 123; thereafter, in the event that the first lifting mechanism 123 determines that a container is present, the first lifting mechanism 123 transfers the container onto the container transport mechanism 122; in the event that the container transport mechanism 122 determines that a container is present, transporting the container to a predetermined area; when the container transfer mechanism 121 determines that a container exists in the preset area, the container in the preset area is lifted, and then the dispatching robot 11 moves to the first container docking position; the container transfer mechanism 121 then places the container onto the buffer mechanism 113 of the robot 11.

For example, each layer of second conveying mechanism can be correspondingly provided with a sensor, and a plurality of sensors can be utilized to detect whether each layer of second conveying mechanism is provided with a temporarily stored container or not, so as to determine whether a container is arranged on the second lifting mechanism or not. Every layer of first conveying mechanism can correspond and set up the sensor, can utilize a plurality of sensors to detect whether have the packing box of keeping in on every layer of first conveying mechanism, and then confirm whether have the packing box on the first hoist mechanism.

And in the case that the second lifting mechanism determines that the container is arranged, the conveying link is executed again under the condition that the second conveying mechanism on each layer has the container. Similarly, under the condition that the first lifting mechanism determines that the container is arranged, and under the condition that the first conveying mechanism on each layer is provided with the container, the conveying link is executed, so that the container can be more quickly transferred, and the container transfer efficiency is improved.

The following is a detailed description of the configuration process of each mechanism in the container transfer device in the scenario where the robot and the container transfer device take and dock containers:

the external transport mechanism 125 is configured to transfer the external container to the second lifting mechanism. Here, the external container includes a container provided by other means, which may have cargo therein or, alternatively, be an empty container. The cargo container can be designed according to specific application scenarios under the condition that whether cargos exist in the cargo container or not, and the embodiment of the disclosure is not particularly limited.

The second lifting mechanism 124 is configured to move the second conveyor mechanism into the fourth container docking position to access a container provided by the external conveyor mechanism. Here, the plurality of layers of second conveyance mechanisms may be provided to move in synchronization. Because the multi-layer second conveying mechanism moves synchronously, the second conveying mechanism can be moved to the butt joint position of the fourth container for multiple times so as to obtain a plurality of containers.

The first lifting mechanism 123 is configured to move the multi-level first conveyor mechanism into the third container docking position to access the plurality of containers provided by the second lifting mechanism. And moving the multiple layers of the first conveying mechanisms to the second container butt joint position to transfer the multiple containers to the container conveying mechanisms on different layers. Generally, the number of layers of the multi-layer first conveying mechanism is greater than or equal to the number of layers of the second conveying mechanism, so that the multi-layer first conveying mechanism can acquire all containers in the second lifting mechanism at the third container butt joint position. Here, the number of layers of the container conveying mechanism is greater than that of the first conveying mechanism, so that the first lifting mechanism can transfer all temporarily stored containers to the container conveying mechanisms of different layers.

The container transport mechanism 122 is configured to transfer a container provided by the first lifting mechanism to a predetermined area.

The container transfer mechanism 121 is configured to lift all containers at a predetermined area of the multi-layer container conveying mechanism and transfer them to the different-layer buffer mechanism of the robot.

The robot 11 is configured to move to the first container docking station to receive a container after the container transfer mechanism lifts all containers at a predetermined area of the multi-level container transport mechanism.

Because each mechanism used by the container transfer device in the container taking and butting scene by the robot and the container transfer device is the same as each mechanism used by the container transfer device in the container placing and butting scene by the robot and the container transfer device, and only the motion flows of the mechanisms are opposite, the specific details of the container taking and butting scene by the robot and the container transfer device can be referred to the container placing and butting scene by the robot and the container transfer device, and repeated parts are not repeated.

The following is a detailed description of the specific structure and movement process of each mechanism in the container transfer device:

as for the container transfer mechanism 121, reference can be made to fig. 5, which is a schematic structural diagram of the container transfer mechanism. Wherein the container transfer mechanism 121 includes a plurality of fork lift mechanisms 1211, a first drive unit 1212, and a rail assembly; the first driving unit 1212 is connected to the rail assembly; a plurality of lift fork mechanisms 1211 are slidably mounted on the rail assembly by support brackets 1213.

It should be noted that the temporary storage mechanism 113 may be a comb mechanism; the fork lift 1211 can be a comb mechanism; the container transport mechanism 122 may be a comb mechanism, i.e., the transport mechanism 1221 (shown in fig. 7) on the container transport mechanism 122 is a comb mechanism; the comb mechanism comprises comb teeth; the comb teeth of the temporary storage mechanism 113 and the projection of the comb teeth of the jacking fork mechanism 1211 on the horizontal plane do not overlap; the comb teeth of the lifting fork 1211 do not overlap with the projections of the comb teeth of the conveying rail 1221 on the horizontal plane. Each layer of temporary storage mechanism 113 corresponds to one of the fork lift mechanisms 1211. Each of the plurality of lift fork mechanisms 1211 corresponds to a tier of container transport mechanisms 122.

Illustratively, the broach of transfer rail can be a plurality of cylinder, and when the jacking fork mechanism was used for shifting the packing box, the broach of jacking fork mechanism can pass the gap between a plurality of cylinder of transfer rail of corresponding layer packing box conveying mechanism, can also pass the gap between the broach of this jacking fork mechanism corresponding layer temporary storage mechanism simultaneously. Specifically, the positional relationship among the temporary storage mechanism 113, the fork lift 1211 and the conveying rail 1221 may be seen in fig. 6, which is a structural view of a process of transferring a container from a robot to the fork lift 1211, where a represents that the fork lift 1211 is in an initial position, b represents that the fork lift 1211 is separated from a gap of the conveying rail 1221 and passes through a gap between comb teeth of the temporary storage mechanism 113, and c represents that the fork lift 1211 lifts the container.

For example, taking the motion process of placing boxes by a robot as an example, the first driving unit 1212 may be used to drive the rail assembly to rotate in a predetermined direction (e.g. clockwise or counterclockwise), and the rail assembly may rotate in the predetermined direction to drive the lifting fork 1211 to move to a position where a box is located along a vertical direction, at this time, since the comb teeth of the lifting fork 1211 may pass through the gaps between the rollers of the conveying track 1221 and the gaps between the comb teeth of the temporary storage 113 corresponding to the layer of the lifting fork 1211, the box may be lifted from the temporary storage 113, after the robot 11 is moved out of the first box butt-joint position, the first driving unit 1212 is used to reversely drive the rail assembly to rotate in a predetermined reverse direction, and the rail assembly may rotate in the predetermined reverse direction to drive the lifting fork 1211 to move to an initial position along the vertical direction, the transfer of all containers on the robot to different layers of container transport mechanisms 122 can be achieved.

As for the container conveying mechanism 122, reference may be made to fig. 7, which is a schematic structural diagram of the container conveying mechanism, wherein the container conveying mechanism 122 includes a conveying mechanism 1221 for temporarily storing and transferring containers, for example, the conveying mechanism 1221 includes a plurality of rollers, and when the container transferring function is implemented, the rollers may be driven by a motor to rotate so as to transfer containers.

Additionally, the conveyor 1221 may temporarily store containers at a docking area or a predetermined area. Here, the docking area may be an area on the conveyor near the container access of the first lifting mechanism. Illustratively, the container conveying mechanism may further include at least one stop block. One sensor corresponding to each limiting block; each layer of the conveying mechanism 1221 may be correspondingly provided with at least one limiting block for limiting the position of the container, for example, the container may be limited to a predetermined area, or the container may be limited to a parking area.

Specifically, the conveying mechanism 1221 is a comb mechanism; the comb mechanism includes comb teeth. Under the condition that the comb teeth of the conveying mechanism 1221 are a plurality of rollers, the limiting blocks can be arranged between the comb teeth gaps of the conveying mechanism 1221.

Here, the length of the conveying mechanism 1221 is adjustable. Specifically, the length of the multi-layer conveying mechanism 1221 may be adjusted according to a specific application scenario, so as to set a plurality of preset areas in parallel, that is, to enable simultaneous docking with containers of a plurality of robots.

The stop block may be configured to define the container at a parking area on the transport mechanism 1221 corresponding to the stop block. Here, the height of the second initial position of the limit block is lower than the height of the comb teeth of the conveying mechanism 1221 corresponding to the layer away from the surface for placing the containers, the second initial position of the limit block is set so that the containers can not be influenced to move on the conveying mechanism 1221 corresponding to the limit block when the limit block is in the second initial position, the containers can be limited to be in a parking area when the limit block moves upwards and leaves the second initial position, and after the first conveying mechanism corresponding to the conveying mechanism 1221 moves to the second container butt joint position, the limit block moves back to the second initial position, and then the conveying mechanism 1221 can transfer the containers in the parking area to the first conveying mechanism. Alternatively, a movable limit stop may be provided on the first lifting mechanism for stopping a container that has been delivered to the docking area without the first conveyor mechanism having moved into the second container docking position.

For example, in a situation that a robot takes a container, the conveying mechanism 1221 may convey the container by driving the multiple wedge belts to rotate the multiple rollers by using the motor to drive the multiple wedge belts, so as to transfer the container placed on the surfaces of the multiple rollers in the conveying direction, and at this time, after the sensor detects that the container reaches the preset area, the conveying mechanism 1221 is controlled to stop rotating, and the limiting block is controlled to rise to the preset height, so as to limit the container conveyed by the conveying mechanism to the preset area, and wait for the transfer of the container transfer mechanism.

As for the first lifting mechanism 123, see fig. 8, which is a schematic structural diagram of the first lifting mechanism, wherein the first lifting mechanism 123 further includes a second driving unit 1232 and a driving assembly 1233; the second driving unit 1232 is connected with the driving assembly 1233; the multi-stage first transport mechanism 1231 is fixedly mounted to the drive assembly 1233. Taking a robot box-placing scene as an example, the configuration process of each component is as follows:

the first transport mechanism 1231 is configured to transfer the temporarily stored containers to the second lifting mechanism.

The second driving unit 1232 is configured to drive the driving assembly to rotate.

The driving assembly 1233 is configured to drive the multi-layer first conveying mechanism to move along the vertical direction under the driving of the second driving unit, so as to transfer the temporarily stored containers on the first conveying mechanism to the second lifting mechanism.

Based on the robot box placing scene, the configuration and the motion condition of each component of the first lifting mechanism, the robot box taking scene, the configuration and the motion condition of each component of the first lifting mechanism can be determined. Specifically, the first conveying mechanism is configured to transfer the temporarily stored containers onto the container conveying mechanism; the second driving unit is configured to drive the driving assembly to rotate; the driving assembly is configured to drive the multiple layers of first conveying mechanisms to move along the vertical direction under the driving of the second driving unit so as to transfer the multiple containers temporarily stored on the first conveying mechanisms to the container conveying mechanisms on different layers.

Illustratively, the drive assembly includes, for example, a motor, a plurality of timing belts (or rack and pinion, sprocket chain, ball screw, etc.).

For the specific structure of the second lifting mechanism 124, reference may be made to a specific structural schematic diagram of the first lifting mechanism shown in fig. 8, and repeated descriptions are omitted. The internal components in the first lifting mechanism are the same as those in the second lifting mechanism, and the driving mode is the same. The number of layers of the first conveying mechanism in the first lifting mechanism and the number of layers of the second conveying mechanism in the second lifting mechanism may be different, and the moving height of the first conveying mechanism and the moving height of the second conveying mechanism may be different.

The assembly for transferring the containers for the external transport mechanism 125 may be a number of rollers driven in a manner that is referred to the specific manner of transferring the containers of the transport mechanism 1221 of the container transport mechanism. The repetition is not described in detail.

For the container transfer device provided in the embodiment of the disclosure, the execution main body is a controller inside the container transfer device, and the controller controls the movement of each mechanism to realize the transfer of the container.

In one possible embodiment, the container transfer device includes a controller, and the controller can control the container transfer device to realize the transfer of the container, including a scene of transferring the container from the robot to the external conveying mechanism, or a scene of transferring the container from the external conveying mechanism to the robot.

In one embodiment, for a scenario in which containers are transferred from the robot to the external transport mechanism, the controller may be configured to control the container transfer mechanism to lift all containers on different levels of the temporary storage mechanism of the robot and transfer the containers to a predetermined area on different levels of the container transport mechanism in response to a first container transfer instruction; under the condition that a container is determined to exist in the preset area, controlling a multi-layer container conveying mechanism to transfer a plurality of containers from the preset area to a parking area; controlling the multi-layer first conveying mechanism to move to the second container butt joint position; after the multi-layer first conveying mechanism is determined to move to the second container butt joint position, controlling the multi-layer container conveying mechanism corresponding to the second container butt joint position to transfer the plurality of containers temporarily stored in the stopping area to the first conveying mechanism of different layers which are already positioned in the second container butt joint position; under the condition that the containers exist on each layer of the first conveying mechanism, the multiple layers of the first conveying mechanisms are controlled to move to a third container butt joint position, and the containers stored temporarily on the first conveying mechanisms are transferred to different layers of second conveying mechanisms of the second lifting mechanism; and controlling the second conveying mechanism to move to the fourth container butt joint position, and respectively transferring the containers temporarily stored on the second conveying mechanism to the external conveying mechanism.

For the transfer of a plurality of containers temporarily stored on the first conveying mechanism to the second conveying mechanism of the second lifting mechanism at different layers, the following different conditions can be provided: under the condition that the number of layers of the first conveying mechanism is equal to that of the second conveying mechanism, all containers temporarily stored on the multiple layers of the first conveying mechanisms can be directly transferred to the second conveying mechanisms on different layers. Under the condition that the number of layers of the first conveying mechanism is larger than that of the second conveying mechanism, the controller can firstly control the number of partial layers of the first conveying mechanism which is the same as that of the second conveying mechanism, the containers which are temporarily stored on the partial layer number first conveying mechanism are transferred to the second conveying mechanism of different layers, after the second conveying mechanism transfers the containers which are temporarily stored on the partial layer number first conveying mechanism to the external conveying mechanism, the positions of the multiple layers of the second conveying mechanism can be determined, the first conveying mechanism is controlled to move to a third container butt joint position which can be in butt joint with the current second conveying mechanism, the containers are transferred to the second conveying mechanism again, and the process is circulated until the containers on all layers of the first conveying mechanism are transferred out.

Here, the first container transfer instruction may be a container transfer instruction sent to the controller when the robot reaches the first container docking station; alternatively, the container transfer instruction sent to the controller when the sensor assembly detects that the robot is in the first container docking position can be also sent; or, the container transfer instruction may be issued by the cloud server to the controller. The first container transfer instruction may also select a suitable sending subject according to a specific application scenario, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present disclosure. Various substitutions and modifications may be made by those skilled in the art to the body of the first container transfer instruction without departing from the scope of the present disclosure, and such substitutions and modifications are intended to be within the scope of the present disclosure.

Here, the sensor assembly may be a sensor mounted at the first container docking station for detecting whether the robot exists at the first container docking station, and the sensor assembly may be, for example, a different type of signal transmission assembly such as a camera or a photoelectric sensor.

In another embodiment, for a scenario in which a container is transferred from the external transport mechanism to the robot, the controller may be configured to, in response to a second container transfer instruction, control the second transport mechanism to move to a fourth container docking station and control the external transport mechanism to transfer the container to the second transport mechanism already in the fourth container docking station; under the condition that the second conveying mechanism is determined to have the containers, the multi-layer first conveying mechanism is controlled to move to a third container butt joint position, the multi-layer second conveying mechanism is controlled, and the plurality of containers temporarily stored on the multi-layer second conveying mechanism are transferred to the first conveying mechanisms on different layers which are already located at the third container butt joint position; under the condition that the containers are determined to be arranged on the first multi-layer conveying mechanism, controlling the first multi-layer conveying mechanism to move to the second container butt joint position, and controlling the first multi-layer conveying mechanism to transfer the containers to the container conveying mechanisms on different layers; under the condition that the containers are determined to be arranged on the multi-layer container conveying mechanism, controlling the multi-layer container conveying mechanism to respectively transfer the containers to preset areas of container conveying mechanisms on different layers; and under the condition that a container is arranged in the preset area, controlling the container transfer mechanism to lift all containers already positioned in the preset area and transfer the containers to different layers of temporary storage mechanisms of the robot.

For example, in the case of only one external conveying mechanism, because there are multiple layers of the second conveying mechanism, the external conveying mechanism transfers only one container at a time when transferring the container to the second conveying mechanism, so the controller will respond to the second container transfer command for multiple times to move the second conveying mechanism until the container transferred by the external conveying mechanism is temporarily stored on each layer of the second conveying mechanism.

For example, in the case that the number of layers of the second conveying mechanism is smaller than or equal to that of the first conveying mechanism, the containers temporarily stored on the second conveying mechanism of all the layers can be transferred to the first conveying mechanism of different layers at one time.

For example, the number of layers of the plurality of first conveying mechanisms of the first lifting mechanism is smaller than that of the plurality of layers of container conveying mechanisms, so that the first lifting mechanism needs to transfer containers to the container conveying mechanisms in batches, in order to meet the requirement that the robot carries enough containers at one time, the carrying capacity of the robot is utilized to the maximum extent, after the container conveying mechanisms transfer the containers to the preset area, whether containers exist in the preset area of all the layers of container conveying mechanisms is detected in real time, and in the presence of the containers, the controller can be used for controlling the container transferring mechanisms to transfer all the containers in the preset area to the robot, so that the robot can carry all the containers at one time. Specifically, jacking fork mechanisms on the container transfer mechanism synchronously move, namely lift up once, can lift up containers on all layers of container conveying mechanisms, can control the container transfer mechanism again under the condition that containers exist in the preset area of each layer of container conveying mechanism, lift up the containers temporarily stored on each layer, and after the robot moves to the first container butt joint position, put all containers on different layers of temporary storage mechanisms of the robot. Or, under the condition that an application scene has a demand, the container transferred to the preset area can be directly transferred to the temporary storage mechanism of the robot, and the embodiment of the disclosure is not limited.

Based on the concept of the system, the disclosed embodiment also provides a container transfer device, which can be considered as including the container transfer device 12 in the above embodiment. The structure of the container transfer device can be seen in fig. 2, and repeated parts are not described herein.

Based on the concept of the system, the embodiment of the present disclosure further provides a robot, which may be considered as including the robot in the above embodiment. The structure of the robot may refer to the structure of the robot 11, and the work tasks performed by the robot may refer to the tasks performed by the robot 11, and repeated parts are not described herein again.

Based on the container transfer device in the container transfer system, the embodiment of the disclosure also provides a container transfer method, and the controller of the container transfer device is implemented as the main body of the container transfer method.

The robot is provided with a plurality of layers of temporary storage mechanisms, and the temporary storage mechanisms are used for temporarily storing the containers; the container transfer device comprises an external conveying mechanism;

The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and these embodiments are based on different implementations of the overall concept of the embodiments of the present disclosure, and the scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure is not limited thereto, and any changes or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure should be covered by the scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure.

Claims

1. A container transfer system, the system comprising at least one robot and at least one container transfer device; the robot is provided with a plurality of layers of temporary storage mechanisms, and the temporary storage mechanisms are used for temporarily storing containers; the container transfer device comprises an external conveying mechanism;

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the container transfer device includes at least one first lifting mechanism; the first lifting mechanism comprises a plurality of layers of first conveying mechanisms, and the first conveying mechanisms are used for temporarily storing and transferring containers;

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the container transfer device further comprises at least one second lifting mechanism; the second lifting mechanism comprises a plurality of layers of second conveying mechanisms, and the second conveying mechanisms are used for temporarily storing and transferring containers;

4. The system of claim 3, wherein the container transfer device includes at least one container transfer mechanism, a multi-tier container transport mechanism;

5. The system of claim 4, wherein the second lifting mechanism is further configured to move the second conveyor mechanism to the fourth container docking station to access a container provided by the external conveyor mechanism;

6. The system of claim 4, wherein the direction in which the container is conveyed by the container transport mechanism is perpendicular to the direction of movement of the robot into the first container docking station.

7. The system of claim 4, wherein the container transfer mechanism includes a plurality of jacking fork mechanisms; the temporary storage mechanism is a comb-shaped mechanism; the jacking fork mechanism is a comb-shaped mechanism; the container conveying mechanism is a comb-shaped mechanism; the comb mechanism comprises comb teeth;

8. A container transfer apparatus comprising a container transfer apparatus as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7.

9. A robot, characterized in that it comprises a robot according to any of claims 1 to 7.

10. A container transfer method applied to the container transfer apparatus according to claim 8, comprising: the robot is provided with a plurality of layers of temporary storage mechanisms, and the temporary storage mechanisms are used for temporarily storing the containers; the container transfer device comprises an external conveying mechanism;