CN215945677U

CN215945677U - System for processing products in an automated manner with respect to the shelves of a rack

Info

Publication number: CN215945677U
Application number: CN202120907792.6U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 桑德罗·赛龙捷
Original assignee: Salmoiraghi SpA
Current assignee: Salmoiraghi SpA
Priority date: 2020-04-29
Filing date: 2021-04-28
Publication date: 2022-03-04
Anticipated expiration: 2031-04-28
Also published as: IT202000009400A1

Abstract

The present invention relates to a system for handling products, in particular made of soft or pliable material, in an automated manner with respect to shelves of a rack, said products possibly being of various sizes, but in particular extending mainly along their longitudinal axis, said system comprising elements movable with respect to the rack and carrying movable means adapted to move at least one of said products with respect to said shelves. Such movable device cooperates with a tray member adapted to support the products and to be supported and moved by a structure carrying said movable device, said carrying structure comprising a seat adapted to receive the tray member, processing means being associated with such carrying structure and adapted to cooperate with said tray member so as to move it with respect to said seat by moving it away from or back into the seat, so as to place the tray member carrying the products on and remove it from said shelf.

Description

System for processing products in an automated manner with respect to the shelves of a rack

Technical Field

The present invention relates to a system for automatically processing products with respect to the shelves of a rack.

Background

In particular, such products are products made of soft and pliable materials (such as pieces of cloth, whether they are pieces of a single body or pieces of cloth placed one on top of the other) and in any case having an amorphous form. Such products may be of various types, densities and sizes and may extend primarily (but not exclusively) along their longitudinal axis (e.g., to have a parallelepiped shape or a cylindrical shape with a diameter in the range of about 80mm to about 300 mm).

As is known, there are many difficulties in handling these types of products, simply because of their flexible nature and the possibility of them having various shapes. This requires the use of suitable supports, for example to prevent the product from slumping and jamming due to its consistency during the necessary steps carried out during the storage and transport cycles.

It should be added that the considerable variety of sizes, weights and densities of the products during processing, due to undesired impacts and handling, also makes it difficult to secure the materials used to manufacture the products. Finally, currently, certain difficulties are encountered in tracking the products during said storage and transport cycles, following their production.

SUMMERY OF THE UTILITY MODEL

The object of the present invention is to provide a system for handling the above-mentioned products which allows to move them in an automatic and safe manner during the storage and transport cycle and to protect and guarantee the quality of the above-mentioned products.

The utility model provides a system for processing products in an automated manner with respect to the shelves of a rack, the products being made of a soft or pliable material, wherein each product is placed for storage, the system comprising an element movable with respect to the rack and carrying a movable device adapted to move at least one of the products with respect to the rack, the movable device comprising at least one carrying structure adapted to support and to move a tray member, and thus to support the product, the carrying structure comprising a seat adapted to accommodate the tray member, processing means being provided associated with the carrying structure and adapted to cooperate with the tray member in order to move the tray member with respect to the seat by projecting or returning the tray member from or into the seat -moving so as to be able to arrange on and take out from the shelf the tray member supporting the products, the carrying structure comprising a portion comprising the seats for the tray member, the portion comprising panels parallel to each other, spaced from each other and connected to each other, delimiting the seats, characterized in that it comprises guiding and centering means for guiding and centering the tray member inside the seats, on the free edge of each panel of the portion a slat is provided, the slats of the panels being therefore opposite and operating as centering means for the tray member each time the tray member is placed on the carrying structure, each end of the opposite slats being inclined, the inclined ends of the slats, opposite each other, extend away from each other so as to operate as a guide for placing the tray member each time it is moved relative to the seat and inserted in the seat.

In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide a system of the above-mentioned type which can be used in combination with products made of soft and flexible material, in any case having dimensions in the usual size range and in any case having density and flexibility.

Another object is to provide a system of the above type which prevents the products from slumping during their handling and also prevents them from jamming in the various steps of the above storage and transport cycle, for example when placing them on the shelves of a shelf in a storage.

These and other objects of the utility model are achieved by a system according to the main claim.

Drawings

For purposes of illustration and not limitation, the following drawings are attached in order to provide a better understanding of the utility model, wherein:

figure 1 shows an overall perspective view of a system according to the utility model;

FIG. 2 shows an enlarged view of the detail indicated by the letter A in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 shows a detail of FIG. 2 from another angle;

FIG. 4 shows a cross-sectional view taken according to line 4-4 in FIG. 3;

FIG. 5 shows a view similar to that of FIG. 4, but in another step of using the system according to the utility model;

FIG. 6 shows a top view of a detail of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 shows a perspective view of a portion of the system of FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 shows a side view of the portion of FIG. 7;

FIGS. 9, 10 and 11 show perspective views of the longitudinally cross-sectioned portion of FIG. 7 from different angles;

FIG. 12 shows another perspective view of a portion of the system of FIG. 7 from a different angle;

FIG. 13 shows an enlarged view of the detail indicated by the letter B in FIG. 11;

FIG. 14 shows an enlarged view of the detail indicated by the letter C in FIG. 11; and

figure 15 shows a cross-sectional view of different parts of the system of figure 1 adapted to cooperate for storing products of the type described above.

Detailed Description

With reference to the mentioned figures, the system according to the utility model comprises a number of components, which will be described separately below. The system is suitable for handling products 1, such as, for illustrative but non-limiting purposes, products 1 such as fabric pieces made of soft and pliable material. In this example (which is given for non-limiting purposes), each product 1 has a cylindrical shape (whether wound around the central axis 2 or not), but such product may have any shape, for example parallelepiped or comprising one of the following: a body that is superimposed one upon the other, or a plurality of flat bodies that are superimposed one on top of the other, or a combination thereof.

Each product 1 is adapted to be arranged on a shelf 3 of a shelf 4 in a storage where the products 1 are (temporarily) stored after being produced and before being transported to a point of use or sale.

According to one of the features of the utility model, the product 1 is adapted to be supported by a tray member 5 (also referred to simply as "tray"), which tray member 5 is adapted to cooperate with an opposing tray 6(counter-tray) on the shelf 3 that is fastened to the structure of the shelf. Since the products 1 may have different shapes and variable sizes (if cylindrical, the diameter ranges, for example, from about 80mm to about 300 mm), the tray 5 has such a configuration as to be able to support (or contain) products having different shapes and sizes.

For example, the tray 5 (see fig. 15) is substantially in the shape of an open V and comprises a central portion 5A, the central portion 5A being substantially flat (with the lateral wings 58 of the V-shaped body rising therefrom) and adapted to contain the products 1. The member 5 has a central longitudinal corrugation 7 which stiffens the structure. The wings 58 are folded at their ends and terminate in flat end portions 10 folded in a skate-like fashion, the end portions 10 being adapted to slide on the respective outer wings 8 of the opposite tray 6. Such outer wing departs from a ridge (for example, a triangular ridge) 9, the ridge 9 defining a seat 11 on the opposite bracket for the central portion 5A of the bracket element 5.

The tray 5 thus shaped makes it possible to carry out "indirect" handling of the product 1 and at the same time protect the product 1 from impacts and deformations to which the product 1 would otherwise be subjected in direct transport. Thus, all impacts and stresses are absorbed by the tray, and the products placed on the tray are thus not directly affected.

At the same time, the counter-pallet 6 allows the pallet members 5 to be correctly centred and moved when the pallet members 5 are inserted in the shelves 3 and retrieved from the shelves 3, these actions being performed by the mobile elements 15 or service stacker cranes or S/R machines in the storage in which the shelves 4 are installed.

The movable element 15, which in practice moves each tray member 5 and its respective product, is a trolley that can move along a predetermined guide (which is resting on the floor or is very high) or an Automatic Guided Vehicle (AGV) that moves on the floor of the storage in a manner known per se.

Such movable element 15 is in turn provided with a movable device 17, the movable device 17 being adapted to cooperate directly with at least one tray member 5 in order to place said at least one tray member 5 in the shelf 3 and/or to retrieve said at least one tray member 5 from the shelf 3. In fig. 1, a movable device 17 suitable for moving two trays 5 is shown.

The movable device 17 can move in space according to a translational movement in two axes X and Y along supports 20 and 21 of movable element 15, also of known type, in any known manner: the first support 20 operates as a guide element for movement along the Y axis (double arrow F in fig. 1) of the movable device 17, while the second support 21 operates as a base for the movable element 15, and the second support 21 is arranged at 90 ° with respect to the first support 20 so as to operate as a guide element for movement along the X axis (double arrow K in fig. 1) of such a device 17.

The mobile device 17 in turn comprises at least one bearing structure 25 for supporting the tray member 5 and adapted to move the tray member 5 directly with respect to each shelf 3 of the rack 4, and for supporting such tray member 5 from/to such rack. As previously mentioned, in fig. 1, the device 17 is equipped with two structures 25 independent of each other.

In the embodiment shown in the figures, the carrying structure comprises a first portion 27, the first portion 27 being adapted to directly support the tray member 5 and being provided with handling means 28 of the tray member 5 for placing the tray member 5 in the shelf 3 of the shelf 4 and for taking the tray member 5 out of the shelf 3 of the shelf 4. The first portion 27 is advantageously movably supported for translation by a second portion 29, the second portion 29 supporting the first portion 27 and allowing the first portion 27 to be closer to the shelf 3 of the shelf 4 and further away from the shelf 3 of the shelf 4 during movement of the tray member 5.

More specifically, the first portion 27 comprises a body formed by parallel side panels 30 spaced apart from each other and connected to each other, defining a seat 31 for the tray member 5. On each panel (and in particular on the free edge of each panel) there is provided an end lath 32, the end lath 32 having an inclined end 33; a pair of slats 32 define a tray member centering element on the first portion 27 of the load bearing structure 25. The ends 33 of said slats 32 are inclined and extend away from each other to operate as lead-ins or guides for the centred seating of the tray element in the seat 31.

One of said panels 30 has fastened thereto a guide 34, and on which a transport portion (roller) 35 of the handling device 28 can be moved in a guided (and reversible) manner, and the transport portion 35 is provided with a suitably shaped portion (not shown) for cooperating with the guide 34. The transport section 35 carries an actuator member 37, the actuator member 37 comprising a pivot 38, the pivot 38 being movable, for example pneumatically, relative to an actuator cylinder 39. Such pivot is adapted to cooperate with a through hole 40 provided at each of the opposite (longitudinal) ends 5K of the tray member 5, so as to enable the member 5 to move with respect to the first portion 27 of the carrying structure 25.

The transport portion 35 moves within the seat portion 31 along the guide 34 in the following manner: the conveyor 35 is driven by a belt 43 integral with one of said two side panels 30 and is moved by a gear motor 44 (or another known actuator) arranged between said panels (and in any case associated with the first portion 27 of the carrying structure 25) and operating on a pinion or drive gear 46. Such a belt 43 moves on idle rollers 47 fastened to said panel 30.

In this way, the runner means can move longitudinally along the first portion 27 of the carrying structure 25 within the seat 31. Following this movement, the tray member 5 can move in such a seat 31 in the following manner: the tray member 5 is pushed toward or withdrawn from the shelf 3 of the shelf. Due to the movable pivot 38 (returning into the cylinder 39), the transport portion 35 and the driver member carried by it can travel from one end to the other of the portion 27, if any, without interfering with the tray member placed in the seat 31.

As mentioned above, the first portion 27 is longitudinally movable relative to the second portion 29. In the example shown in the figures, this is achieved by making the side panels 30 integral with the plate 50 sliding on the guides 51 of the flat portion 53 of the second portion 29 and rising from the plate 50. The plate 50 comprises a rack and pinion 55, with which a gear 56 moved by a gear motor 57 (or another electric motor, for example a stepper motor) fastened to the flat portion 53 cooperates with the rack and pinion 55. Operation of such gearmotor 57 causes a movement of plate 50, and therefore of first portion 27, guided along second portion 29, whereby first portion 27 is gradually moved closer to or further from shelf 3, in order to insert tray member 5 correctly on fixed opposite tray 6 of shelf 4 or to extract such member 5 from opposite tray 6. This can occur without the risk of the entire movable element 15 or movable device 17 hitting the shelf.

Thanks to the above described solution, it is possible to move products consisting of soft or flexible elements, while protecting these elements from stresses, shocks or deformations. All in a controlled and automated manner.

A particular embodiment of the utility model has been described above. However, other embodiments are also possible: for example, the moving means for moving the tray member 5 may comprise a belt system, or the means for moving the transport portion 35 or the first portion 27 with respect to the second portion 29 may be of a different type than those described above, for example oil or pneumatic means, or the actuator member 37 may be implemented in the form of a member providing a brake-shoe-like catch (cut) by other mechanical or magnetic or electromagnetic solutions which the skilled person can determine based on the previous description. Such modifications and variations to what is described with reference to the drawings cause a system having the features defined in the appended claims to be implemented in any way.

Claims

1. System for handling products (1) in an automated manner with respect to shelves (3) of a rack (4), said products (1) being made of a soft or pliable material, wherein each product (1) is placed for storage, comprising an element (15), said element (15) being movable with respect to said rack (4) and carrying movable means (17), said movable means (17) being adapted to move at least one of said products with respect to said rack (4), said movable means (17) comprising at least one carrying structure (25), said at least one carrying structure (25) being adapted to support and to move a tray member (5) and thus to support said products, said carrying structure (25) comprising a seat adapted to receive said tray member (5), being provided with handling means (28), said handling means (28) being associated with said carrying structure (25) and being adapted to cooperate with said tray member so as to move it with respect to said seat by projecting it from said seat or returning it in said seat, so as to be able to arrange said tray member (5) supporting said products (1) on said shelf (3) and to extract said tray member (5) supporting said products (1) from said shelf (3), said carrying structure (25) comprising a portion (27), said portion (27) comprising said seat for said tray member (5) and comprising panels (30) parallel to each other, spaced from each other and connected to each other so as to define said seat, characterized in that said carrying structure (25) comprises guiding and centering means for guiding and centering said tray member (5) within said seat, a slat (32) is provided on the free edge of each panel (30) of said portion (27), said slats (32) of said panels (30) being thus opposed and operating as centering means for said tray member whenever it is placed on said load-bearing structure, each end of said opposed slats (32) being inclined, said ends of said slats that are inclined opposite each other extending away from each other so as to operate as guide means for placing said tray member (5) whenever said tray member (5) is moved with respect to and inserted in said seat.

2. System according to claim 1, characterized in that said processing means (28) are located at said seats for said tray members (5).

3. System according to claim 1, characterized in that said handling device (28) comprises a transport portion (35), said transport portion (35) being movable in a guided manner within said seat adapted to accommodate said tray member (5), said transport portion (35) carrying a driver member (37), said driver member (37) being adapted to cooperate with and move said tray member within said seat.

4. A system according to claim 3, wherein the driver member (37) comprises a snap-fit means adapted to cooperate with one end of the tray member, the snap-fit means being selectively activatable.

5. System according to claim 4, characterized in that said snapping means comprise a pivot (38), said pivot (38) being movable with respect to an actuator cylinder (39), alternatively of hydraulic, pneumatic or electromagnetic type, and being adapted to enter a hole (40) provided at each opposite end of said tray member.

6. A system as claimed in claim 3, wherein the transport portion (35) is driven by a belt (43), the belt (43) being operated by an actuator member (44) integral with the portion (27) of the carrying structure (25) defining the seat for the tray member.

7. System according to claim 1, characterized in that the carrying structure (25) comprises a first part comprising seats for the tray members (5) and a second part (29), the second part (29) being associated with the first part, and the second part (29) comprising handling means for moving the first part in a guided manner relative to the second part (29).

8. System according to claim 7, characterized in that said first portion comprises a plate (50), said plate (50) sliding along guide means (51) integral with a flat portion of said second portion (29), said first portion being superimposed to said second portion, the handling means of said second portion (29) comprising a gear (56), said gear (56) being driven by an actuator member integral with said second portion (29) and cooperating with a rack and pinion (55) integral with said plate (50) of said first portion.

9. System according to claim 8, characterized in that said plate (50) supports said panel (30), said panel (30) defining said seat for said tray member (5).

10. System according to claim 1, characterized in that each shelf (3) comprises at least one counter tray (6) adapted to support the tray member (5), the counter tray and the tray member having complementary shapes to enable sliding of the counter tray and the tray member relative to each other and to enable lateral locking of the tray member (5) inside the counter tray.

11. System according to claim 10, characterized in that said tray member (5) has a substantially open V-shape and has a central portion (5A) adapted to support said products (1), said central portion (5A) being delimited by lateral wings (58) raised with respect to said central portion (5A), said lateral wings (58) terminating in flat end portions (10) folded in a skate-like fashion, said end portions (10) being adapted to slide on respective outer wings (8) of said opposite tray (6), said outer wings (8) coming away from a ridge (9), said ridge (9) delimiting a seat for said central portion (5A) of said tray member (5).