CN221070867U

CN221070867U - Fork type carrying robot

Info

Publication number: CN221070867U
Application number: CN202322751651.1U
Authority: CN
Inventors: 张东东; 杨宁宁; 汪旭
Original assignee: Beijing Jizhijia Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Beijing Jizhijia Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2023-10-13
Filing date: 2023-10-13
Publication date: 2024-06-04
Anticipated expiration: 2033-10-13

Abstract

The embodiment of the application provides a fork type carrying robot, which comprises: a chassis; the portal structure is arranged on the chassis; the fork structure is configured to bear articles, is movably arranged on the portal structure and can be lifted close to or far away from the chassis, and the orthographic projection of the fork structure in the lifting direction is positioned on the chassis; the chassis is provided with a plurality of driving steering wheels which are arranged at intervals along the circumferential direction, so that the chassis can walk in multiple directions and revolve in situ, the turning radius is reduced, the running channel of a warehousing system can be reduced, and the warehousing density is improved.

Description

Fork type carrying robot

Technical Field

The application belongs to the technical field of storage logistics equipment, and particularly relates to a fork type carrying robot.

Background

Along with the development and progress of science and technology, in the logistics field, automatic handling equipment such as forklifts, fork robots and the like are widely applied, so that the automation degree of factories is higher and higher.

Fork-type transfer robots are usually arranged in the running channel of a warehouse system to finish the work of transferring and stacking objects such as trays, material racks and the like. In practice, the dimensions of the operating channels of the warehouse system, such as the stacking channels or the main channels, are subject to stringent requirements in order to ensure the storage density of the warehouse system, such as the stacking density.

In the related art, fork type transfer robots are mostly of single steering wheel driving structures, and have larger requirements on operation channels of the warehousing system, so that the storage density of the warehousing system, such as stacking density, is reduced.

Disclosure of utility model

The embodiment of the application provides a fork type carrying robot which can walk in multiple directions and revolve in situ, and the turning radius is reduced, so that the running channel of a warehousing system can be reduced, and the warehousing density is improved.

The embodiment of the application provides a fork type carrying robot, which comprises:

A chassis;

The portal structure is arranged on the chassis;

The fork structure is configured to bear articles, is movably arranged on the portal structure and can be lifted close to or far away from the chassis, and the orthographic projection of the fork structure in the lifting direction is positioned on the chassis;

the chassis is provided with a plurality of driving steering wheels, and the driving steering wheels are arranged at intervals along the circumferential direction.

In some implementations, the chassis has two drive steering wheels, the connection of the two drive steering wheels passing through a center point of the chassis.

In some implementations, the chassis has two drive steering wheels and two universal wheels;

The two driving steering wheels are respectively arranged at one pair of opposite angles of the chassis, the two universal wheels are arranged at the other pair of opposite angles of the chassis, and the driving steering wheels and the universal wheels form supporting wheels of the chassis together.

In some implementations, the chassis has at least three drive steering wheels;

The center point of the chassis is positioned in an area surrounded by at least three driving steering wheels.

In some implementations, at least three drive steering wheels are spaced apart along the peripheral edge of the chassis, each drive steering wheel forming a support wheel for the chassis.

In some implementations, the at least one driven steering wheel includes a first drive structure, a second drive structure, a first wheel body, and a second wheel body;

the first driving structure is connected with the first wheel body and is configured to drive the first wheel body to rotate;

The second driving structure is connected with the second wheel body and is configured to drive the second wheel body to rotate;

When the first wheel body and the second wheel body rotate at the same speed, the steering wheel is driven to roll along a straight line, and when the first wheel body and the second wheel body rotate at a differential speed, the steering wheel is driven to turn towards.

In some implementations, the at least one driving steering wheel further includes a first speed change structure and a second speed change structure, two ends of the first speed change structure are respectively connected with the first driving structure and the first wheel body, and two ends of the second speed change structure are respectively connected with the second driving structure and the second wheel body;

The first speed changing structure is configured to change the rotation speed of the first driving structure output to the first wheel body, and the second speed changing structure is configured to change the rotation speed of the second driving structure output to the second wheel body so as to enable the first wheel body and the second wheel body to rotate at the same speed or at different speeds.

In some implementations, the chassis has at least four support wheels disposed in sequence at four corners of the chassis, and the at least four support wheels include at least one of a drive steering wheel and a universal wheel;

orthographic projection of fork teeth of the fork structure in the lifting direction is positioned in an area surrounded by at least four supporting wheels.

In some implementations, an avoidance cavity and a bearing platform positioned at the periphery of the avoidance cavity are formed on the chassis;

at least a portion of the fork structure is extendable into the evacuation lumen, and the load-bearing platform is configured to support an item positioned on the fork structure when at least a portion of the fork structure is positioned in the evacuation lumen.

In some implementations, the gantry structure includes an inner gantry, an outer gantry, a third drive structure, and a fourth drive structure;

The third driving structure is connected with the inner door frame and is configured to drive the inner door frame to move relative to the outer door frame; the fourth drive structure is coupled to the fork structure and is configured to drive the fork structure in movement relative to the inner mast.

In some implementations, the fourth drive structure is disposed on the third drive structure, and the third drive structure is further configured to move the fourth drive structure to move the fork structure relative to the inner mast.

In some implementations, the third driving structure includes a hydraulic cylinder, a movable portion of the hydraulic cylinder being connected to the inner gantry such that the movable portion moves the inner gantry;

The fourth driving structure comprises a driving chain wheel and a driving chain, the driving chain wheel is rotatably arranged on the movable part, the driving chain is erected on the driving chain wheel, one end of the driving chain is connected to the outer portal, and the other end of the driving chain is connected to the fork structure; the driving chain is configured to move under the driving of the movable part so as to drive the fork structure to move relative to the inner door frame.

In some implementations, a first chute is formed on a side of the outer mast facing the inner mast, at least a portion of the inner mast being positioned within the first chute to move the inner mast along the first chute;

And/or a second chute is formed on the inner door frame, and at least part of the fork structure is positioned in the second chute so as to enable the fork structure to move along the second chute.

In some implementations, the mast structure further includes at least one of a first roller and a second roller;

The first roller is arranged on one of the inner door frame and the outer door frame and is positioned in the first sliding groove, and the inner door frame and the outer door frame are in rolling connection through the first roller;

The second roller is arranged on one of the inner door frame and the fork structure and is positioned in the second sliding groove, and the fork structure and the inner door frame are in rolling connection through the second roller.

According to the fork carrying robot provided by the embodiment of the application, the fork structure for carrying the objects is arranged on the chassis in the projection manner in the lifting direction, for example, the chassis and the fork structure are arranged on the same side of the portal structure, and the orthographic projection in the lifting direction is completely positioned on the chassis.

In addition, in the embodiment of the application, the driving steering wheels of the chassis are arranged in a plurality, and the driving steering wheels are arranged at intervals along the circumferential direction, compared with the case that the circle center of the steering of a single driving steering wheel is positioned at one end of the chassis in the prior art, the whole chassis has a larger sweeping area when in turn due to the turning radius, the embodiment of the application can realize the multi-directional switching walking in the front-back direction, the left-right direction, the oblique direction and the like of the original place, the chassis and the whole fork handling robot do not need to turn, so that the turning radius of the fork handling robot in the reversing process is reduced, the sweeping area of the fork handling robot in the reversing process is reduced, the circle center of the turning of the fork handling robot in the circumferential layout is positioned at one point in the area formed by the circle centers of the driving steering wheels in the original place, the part of the chassis is used as the turning radius, the sweeping area when in the original place of the fork handling robot is smaller than the sweeping area when in the related art, the storage system is suitable for being used for narrowing a narrow running channel in the storage system, the turning angle is reduced, and the storage system can be lifted, for example, the storage system storage density can be increased.

Drawings

The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of the application and are incorporated in and constitute a part of this specification, illustrate embodiments of the application and together with the description serve to explain the application and do not constitute a limitation on the application.

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural view of a fork-type transfer robot according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 2 is a view of a fork lift robot provided in accordance with one embodiment of the present application during the handling of an item;

FIG. 3 is a top view of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a schematic view of the structure of one of the views of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is an internal schematic view of a chassis provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 6 is a schematic view of one of the chassis provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 7 is a schematic view of another chassis provided in an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 8 is a schematic view of yet another chassis provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 9 is a schematic view of a lateral movement of a chassis provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 10 is a schematic view of a longitudinal movement of a chassis provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 11 is a schematic view illustrating a chassis moving obliquely according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 12 is a schematic view of the in-situ rotation of a chassis provided by an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 13 is a schematic view of a steering wheel driving structure in a chassis according to an embodiment of the present application;

FIG. 14 is a schematic view of a gantry structure provided in accordance with an embodiment of the present application;

Fig. 15 is a partial enlarged view at B in fig. 14;

FIG. 16 is an enlarged view of a portion of FIG. 4 at A;

FIG. 17 is a schematic view of a fork lift robot from another perspective according to one embodiment of the present application;

fig. 18 is a schematic view of a fork structure according to an embodiment of the present application.

Reference numerals illustrate:

100-chassis; 200-portal frame structure; 300-fork structure; 400-article;

100 a-avoiding cavity; 100 b-a load-bearing platform; 110-chassis body; 120-supporting wheels; 210-an outer portal; 220-an inner portal; 230-a third drive structure; 240-a fourth drive structure; 250-a first roller; 260-a second roller; 310-fork; 320-tines;

111-a frame assembly; 112-a power cell; 113-a hydraulic pump; 114-an electrical system assembly; 121-driving a steering wheel; 122-universal wheels; 211-a first chute; 212-connecting piece; 221-an extension; 222-a second chute; 231-fixing part; 232-a movable part; 241-drive sprocket; 242-driving a chain;

1211 a-a first wheel; 1211 b-a second wheel; 1212-drive structure; 1213-a variable speed configuration; 1214-slewing bearing.

Detailed Description

In order to make the technical solution of the present application better understood by those skilled in the art, the technical solution of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings in the embodiments of the present application, and it is apparent that the described embodiments are only some embodiments of the present application, not all embodiments. All other embodiments, which can be made by those skilled in the art based on the embodiments of the present application without making any inventive effort, shall fall within the scope of the present application.

Fig. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a forklift according to an embodiment of the present application, and fig. 2 is a schematic view of a forklift according to an embodiment of the present application during a process of transporting an article 400. Referring to fig. 1 and 2, an embodiment of the present application provides a fork-type transfer robot for transferring and stacking articles 400 such as pallets and shelves in a warehouse system. It is understood that the tray comprises Tian Zituo discs, a Chinese character 'Chuan' type tray, a nine-foot type tray and the like, and the tray is provided with fork holes. The bottom of the material rack is provided with a gap, and a fork in the fork type carrying robot stretches into a fork hole of the tray or the gap of the material rack so as to lift and transfer the tray or the material rack.

In practice, the warehouse system in the logistics field may include a stacking area and a temporary storage area, where the stacking area is used to store trays and racks in a stacking manner, where the trays and racks in the stacking area may store goods or be empty. A fork-type handling robot (e.g., a first handling robot) may stack trays or racks within a stacking area or remove trays or racks from the stacking structure and transfer from the stacking area to a staging area.

The staging area is used to temporarily stock racks or trays for transfer between the staging area and a workstation (picking or sorting station) by a handling robot (e.g., a second handling robot). For example, the second transfer robot transfers a pallet or rack carrying the goods to a picking station for picking the goods.

In other examples, a fork-lift robot may also transfer trays or racks from a staging area to a stacking area for stacking.

In some examples, the second transfer robot may also transfer the pallet or rack removed by the fork-lift robot directly from the stacking area to a workstation for picking or sorting operations.

Wherein the fork lift robot operates within an operating aisle of the warehouse system, such as a main aisle or a stacking aisle, it is understood that the main aisle or the stacking aisle may be located in a stacking area and formed by a partial area outside of the stacking structure in the stacking area.

Specifically, the fork-type handling robot provided by the embodiment of the present application may include a chassis 100, a mast structure 200, and a fork structure 300.

Wherein the chassis 100 is movable along the aisle of the warehouse system to move the entire fork-lift robot.

The gantry structure 200 is disposed on the chassis 100, the fork structure 300 is configured to carry the article 400 (such as a tray or a material rack), the fork structure 300 is movably disposed on the gantry structure 200 and can be lifted close to or far away from the chassis 100, for example, the fork structure 300 can move along the z direction, so that the fork structure 300 can lift the article 400 to be separated from the supporting surface after being inserted into an insertion hole (such as a fork hole of the tray or a bottom gap of the material rack) of the article 400 along the z direction, and then the chassis 100 is driven to move, so that the chassis 100 drives the fork structure 300 to move through the gantry, and the article 400 on the fork structure 300 is transferred.

Illustratively, the bottom temporary storage beam of the stack may have a leg extending below the bottom temporary storage beam, and a receptacle is formed between the leg and the bottom temporary storage beam for inserting the fork structure 300.

Referring to fig. 1, exemplary fork structure 300 includes a fork 310 and tines 320, fork 310 being coupled to door frame structure 200, and tines 320 being coupled to fork 310 and configured to carry an item 400. The tines 320 may be two spaced-apart tines 320, so as to ensure that the two tines 320 may be inserted into two spaced-apart insertion holes in the article 400 such as a field tray, a Chuan tray or a material rack. It will be appreciated that there is a cross beam between two spaced apart receptacles.

It should be noted that, the fork structure 300 of the embodiment of the present application may be connected to the door frame structure 200 only through the fork frame 310, and there is no connection structure between the fork teeth 320 and the door frame structure 200 and between the fork teeth 320 and the chassis 100, so that when the fork structure 300 ascends a certain distance from the chassis 100, there is a space between the fork teeth 320 and the chassis 100 for other structures to enter, for example, the fork-type handling robot may be used to fork or put the articles 400 with the cross beams at the bottom of Tian Zituo trays.

For example, the pan is placed on a second support surface at a height position a first distance from a first support surface, such as the ground, with a space between the first and second support surfaces for the chassis 100 to extend. In this way, when the fork-type handling robot of the embodiment of the application is used for forking an article 400, such as a pallet, the fork teeth 320 of the fork structure 300 can be lifted to a height position at a first distance from the ground in the z direction, the steering wheel 121 is driven to drive the chassis 100 to move into the space at the bottom of the pallet (for example, move along the x direction), the fork teeth 320 are driven by the chassis 100 and the portal structure 200 to be inserted into the jacks of the Tian Zituo discs until the fork teeth 320 are stably inserted into the jacks of the pallet, the fork structure 300 is lifted to lift the Tian Zituo discs, so that the pallet is separated from the second supporting surface, and then the steering wheel 121 is driven to drive the chassis 100 to exit the space below the second supporting surface in the opposite direction of the x direction and move along the movement channel.

When the fork-type handling robot of the embodiment of the application is used for fork-placing an article 400 such as a Chinese character 'tian' shaped tray, the fork teeth 320 of the fork structure 300 carrying the Chinese character 'tian' shaped tray can be lifted to a height position which is at a first distance from the ground, the steering wheel 121 is driven to drive the chassis 100 to move into the space at the bottom of the Chinese character 'tian' shaped tray, the fork teeth 320 carry the Chinese character 'tian' shaped tray to move onto the second supporting surface until the Chinese character 'tian' shaped tray is completely positioned above the second supporting surface, the fork structure 300 descends until Tian Zituo discs are supported on the second supporting surface, the fork structure 300 continues to descend so that the fork teeth 320 are separated from the top cross beam of the Chinese character 'tian' shaped tray, and then the steering wheel 121 is driven to drive the chassis 100 to withdraw from the space below the second supporting surface until the fork teeth 320 extend out of the jacks of the Chinese character 'tian' shaped tray, and the fork of the Tian Zituo tray is completed.

For articles 400 without a cross beam at the bottom, such as a Chinese character 'Chuan' shaped tray, a nine-foot tray or a material rack, the articles 400 can be directly supported on a first supporting surface without a space at the bottom, such as the ground, and can also be supported on a second supporting surface. When the article 400, such as a rack, is supported on the second support surface, the process of picking and placing is similar to the picking and placing process of the Tian Zituo trays described above, and will not be repeated here.

When the article 400, such as a material rack, is supported on a first supporting surface, such as the ground, the fork structure 300 can be lowered to a height lower than the height of the bottommost temporary storage beam of the material rack, so as to ensure that the fork teeth 320 of the fork structure 300 can extend into the jack formed below the bottommost temporary storage beam, then the steering wheel 121 is driven to drive the chassis 100 to the jack of the material rack, the fork teeth 320 are also inserted into the jack of the material rack under the driving of the chassis 100 and the portal structure 200, that is, the chassis 100 and the fork teeth 320 are both inserted into the jack of the material rack, and the work of forking or forking the material rack is realized.

For example, when the fork-type handling robot in the embodiment of the application forks and takes an article 400 without a beam at the bottom, such as a material rack, the fork structure 300 can be lowered to a height lower than the height of the temporary storage beam at the bottommost layer of the material rack, the steering wheel 121 is driven to drive the chassis 100 to move towards the jack of the material rack along the x direction, the fork teeth 320 are driven by the chassis 100 and the portal structure 200 to be inserted into the jack of the material rack until the fork teeth 320 are stably inserted into the jack of the material rack, the fork structure 300 is lifted to lift the material rack, so that the supporting legs at the bottom of the material rack are separated from the first supporting surface, and then the steering wheel 121 is driven to drive the chassis 100 to retract along the opposite direction of the x direction so as to withdraw from the position of the first supporting surface for supporting the material rack and move along the movement channel.

When the fork-type handling robot of the embodiment of the application is used for fork-placing articles 400 such as a material rack, the steering wheel 121 is driven to directly drive the chassis 100 to move to the position on the first supporting surface for temporarily storing the material rack until the material rack carried by the fork teeth 320 is positioned right above the temporary storage position, the fork structure 300 descends until the support legs of the material rack are supported on the first supporting surface, the fork structure 300 continues to descend, so that the fork teeth 320 are separated from the temporary storage beams at the bottommost layer of the field material rack, and then the steering wheel 121 is driven to drive the chassis 100 and the fork teeth 320 to withdraw from the material rack, so that the fork of the material rack is completed.

In this way, the fork structure 300 is set to freely lift along the portal structure 200, so that the carrying, stacking or stacking of any type of articles 400 such as a field tray, a Chuan tray and a material rack can be realized, and the adaptability of the fork carrying robot in the embodiment of the application is improved.

Fig. 3 is a top view of fig. 1. Referring to fig. 3, in order to ensure that the storage density of the warehouse system, such as stacking density, the main channel or the stacking channel is narrower, so that the overall size of the fork-type handling robot according to the embodiment of the present application needs to be smaller. For example, an orthographic projection of the fork structure 300 in the direction of motion (i.e., the z-direction) may be located on the chassis 100, in other words, a projection of the fork structure 300 onto the ground is located within an orthographic projection area of the chassis 100 onto the ground.

In some examples, the mast structure 200 may be disposed at one of the ends of the chassis 100, and the chassis 100 and the fork structure 300 may be disposed on the same side of the mast structure 200 with the orthographic projection in the elevation direction entirely on the chassis 100.

In other examples, the mast structure 200 may be positioned in any area between the ends of the chassis 100, the fork structure 300 may be positioned on any side of the mast structure 200, for example, the mast structure 200 may be positioned 1/3 way between the ends of the chassis 100, the fork structure 300 may be positioned on the more extended side of the chassis 100, or on the less extended side of the chassis 100, to ensure that the center of gravity of the article 400 is positioned on the chassis 100 when the article 400 is supported on the fork structure 300.

Compared with the forward forklift and the balance forklift in the related art, the overall size of the forklift truck is reduced, the stability of the forklift truck is good, and when the pallet fork structure 300 carries the article 400, the gravity center of the article 400 can fall on the chassis 100, so that the balance weight of the article 400 is not needed, the size and the weight of the forklift truck can be reduced when the forklift truck is arranged, a narrower operation channel in a narrower storage system is adapted, and the forklift truck is lighter to operate.

It should be noted that, when the fork structure 300 of the forward forklift is used for picking and placing the article 400, the front end of the chassis 100 needs to be extended, so that the overall size of the forklift is increased, and when the article 400 is placed on the fork structure 300, since the portion of the fork structure 300 supporting the article 400 is located outside the chassis 100, the chassis 100 or the gantry structure 200 needs to be weighted, that is, the center of gravity of the forklift needs to be guaranteed to be located in the orthographic projection area of the chassis 100, so as to avoid the forklift from toppling over, which requires that the chassis 100 or the gantry structure 200 has a large weight.

The chassis 100 and the fork structure 300 of the counter-balanced forklift are located on different sides of the mast structure 200, so that the overall width is larger, and the stability of the counter-balanced forklift is poor, and when the object 400 is placed on the fork structure 300, the fork structure 300 and the object 400 are located outside the chassis 100, so that the chassis 100 or the mast structure 200 needs to be balanced, so that the fork-type carrying robot is prevented from toppling over, and the chassis 100 or the mast structure 200 needs to be heavy.

In an embodiment of the present application, the width of the article 400, such as a rack, is greater than the width of the chassis 100 (the width along the y-direction) such that the article 400, such as a rack, on the tines 320 of the fork structure 300 may contact a supporting surface, such as the ground, when the tines 320 are lowered to the lowest height, enabling the fork return process.

In the related art, in order to implement the multi-directional movement of the fork-type carrier robot, the chassis 100 has a single driving steering wheel structure, in other words, the chassis 100 has one driving steering wheel, which is located at one end of the chassis 100, such as the front end, and two directional wheels are disposed at the other end, such as the rear end, of the chassis 100, and the driving steering wheel has a driving and steering function, i.e., the driving steering wheel can drive the chassis 100 to move, and after the driving steering wheel rotates, the driving steering wheel can drive the chassis 100 to steer, so that the chassis 100 moves along other directions. The universal wheels 122 provide support to the chassis 100 as a whole and convert the dynamic friction of the chassis 100 with a support surface, such as the ground, into rolling friction.

It will be appreciated that when the fork-type handling robot of the related art turns, the center of the turning circle is on the line connecting the two universal wheels 122 at the rear end of the chassis 100, for example, when the fork-type handling robot turns 360 °, the whole chassis 100 rotates 360 ° with any point on the line connecting the two universal wheels 122, for example, the center point, as the center point, and the radius of rotation is the length of the whole chassis 100. For another example, when the fork-type transfer robot turns 90 °, the entire chassis 100 is rotated 90 ° around any point on the connection line of the two universal wheels 122, for example, the center point, and the radius of rotation is also the length of the entire chassis 100. It can be seen that the turning radius of the fork-handling robot is large when turning, which requires a large width of the running channel of the warehouse system, such as the main channel or the stacking channel, which affects the storage density of the whole warehouse system, such as the stacking density.

Based on this, the chassis 100 of the fork-type handling robot provided in the embodiment of the present application reduces the turning radius of the chassis 100 by providing a plurality of driving steering wheels 121, reduces the running channel of the warehouse system, and improves the storage density, such as the stacking density.

Fig. 4 is a schematic view of the structure of one of the view angles of fig. 1, fig. 5 is a schematic view of the interior of the chassis 100 according to an embodiment of the present application, fig. 6 is a schematic view of one of the chassis 100 according to an embodiment of the present application, fig. 7 is a schematic view of another one of the chassis 100 according to an embodiment of the present application, and fig. 8 is a schematic view of another one of the chassis 100 according to an embodiment of the present application.

Referring to fig. 4 to 8, in the forklift robot according to the embodiment of the present application, the chassis 100 has a plurality of driving steering wheels 121. For example, the chassis 100 includes a chassis body 110 and a driving steering wheel 121, the driving steering wheel 121 is connected to the chassis body 110 and rolls along a supporting surface such as the ground, and the driving steering wheel 121 moves the chassis body 110 during the rolling process, thereby moving the entire fork-lift robot.

It will be appreciated that each driven steering wheel 121 has the functions of driving and steering, so that when steering is required, steering of the chassis 100 and the whole fork-lift robot can be achieved by driving a plurality of driven steering wheels 121 to steer accordingly. In other words, the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 may be arranged at intervals around any point on the chassis 100, that is, the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 may be located on the same circumference. In this way, by controlling the orientation of the plurality of drive steering wheels 121, the fork-lift robot can be steered in place, for example, in a multidirectional travel mode such as lateral, vertical, oblique, or the like. The in-situ steering means that the direction of the chassis main body 110 and other components on the chassis main body 110 is not changed, and only the direction of the steering wheel 121, that is, the rolling direction is changed, so that the straight traveling direction of the fork-type transfer robot is changed.

Referring to fig. 9 to 11, for example, when the rolling directions of the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 are all lateral (for example, referring to the direction a in fig. 9), the chassis 100 is moved in the direction a by the driving of the plurality of driving steering wheels 121, so that the fork-type carrier robot is moved in the direction a.

For another example, when it is necessary to shift the chassis 100 from the lateral direction to the longitudinal direction (for example, refer to the direction b in fig. 10), the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 are all turned by 90 °, and then the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 roll in the longitudinal direction b, so that the chassis 100 and the entire fork-type carrier robot are moved in the longitudinal direction. When the chassis 100 needs to be shifted from the lateral direction to the oblique direction (for example, refer to the direction c in fig. 11), the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 are all turned to any angle smaller than 90 ° such as 45 °, 60 ° or 30 °, and then the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 roll along the oblique direction, so that the chassis 100 and the whole fork-type carrier robot move along the oblique direction.

In the process of switching the uploading running direction, the direction of the fork-type transfer robot is not changed (namely, the direction of the vehicle body is not changed), and only the direction of the driving steering wheel 121 on the chassis 100 is changed, the fork-type transfer robot can run in different directions.

Compared with the prior art that when the fork-type transfer robot needs to turn and run, one point at the rear end of the chassis 100 is required to be used as a turning circle center, the length of the whole chassis 100 is required to be used as a turning radius to rotate, and the whole chassis is required to drive the whole fork-type transfer robot to sweep a certain area to steer when facing the specified running direction, the fork-type transfer robot in the embodiment of the application does not need to steer when turning and running, only the steering wheel 121 is regulated, so that the turning radius of the fork-type transfer robot in the turning process is reduced or even removed, the sweeping area of the fork-type transfer robot in the turning process is reduced, the in-situ turning function is realized, the application can adapt to a narrower running channel in a storage system, the running channel of the storage system can be reduced when the angle is changed, and the storage density such as stacking density is improved.

In addition, as shown in fig. 12, in contrast to the related art, the fork-lift robot according to the embodiment of the present application can pivot the fork-lift robot in place by controlling the orientations of the plurality of driving steering wheels 121. The center of the circle of the in-situ rotation of the fork-type transfer robot is located at the center point of the region surrounded by the plurality of drive steering wheels 121.

The region surrounded by the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 refers to an inner region formed by sequentially connecting the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 in the circumferential direction, for example, the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 are arranged along the circumferential direction of the first circle, and the region surrounded by the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 is the inner region of the first circle. For example, when there are two driving steering wheels 121, the region surrounded by the two driving steering wheels 121 refers to the region formed by connecting the two driving steering wheels 121 along the first circle. When the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 is three or more, the area surrounded by the three or more driving steering wheels 121 refers to an inner area formed by sequentially connecting the three or more driving steering wheels 121 along the first circle.

Referring to fig. 12, in order to implement in-situ rotation of the fork-lift robot, a plurality of driving steering wheels disposed along a circumferential direction may be controlled to face a tangential direction of a point where the driving steering wheels are located, so that when the plurality of driving steering wheels roll, in-situ rotation of the fork-lift robot is implemented, for example, the plurality of driving steering wheels are disposed along a first circle at intervals, each driving steering wheel is disposed at one of the points of the first circle, and the direction of each driving steering wheel, that is, the rolling direction, is controlled to be parallel to the tangential direction of the point, so that in-situ rotation of the fork-lift robot is implemented.

Referring to fig. 12, taking two driving steering wheels 121 as an example, when the two driving steering wheels 121 are respectively located at two ends of one diameter of the first circle, the two driving steering wheels 121 are oriented in the same direction (i.e., parallel), and by driving the two driving steering wheels 121 to roll reversely, the fork-type transfer robot can rotate around the center of the first circle by any angle. The center of the first circle is the center of the connecting line of the two driving steering wheels 121.

Referring to fig. 7, when the driving steering wheels 121 are four, the four driving steering wheels 121 may be disposed at intervals along the first circle, for convenience of description, the four driving steering wheels 121 may be respectively referred to as a first driving steering wheel, a second driving steering wheel, a third driving steering wheel and a fourth driving steering wheel clockwise along the first circle, the first driving steering wheel is located at a first point of the first circle, the second driving steering wheel is located at a second point of the first circle, the third driving steering wheel is located at a third point of the first circle, and the fourth driving steering wheel is located at a fourth point of the first circle, the direction of the first driving steering wheel is rotated to be consistent with the tangential direction of the first point, the direction of the second driving steering wheel is rotated to be consistent with the tangential direction of the second point, and the direction of the fourth driving steering wheel is rotated to be consistent with the tangential direction of the fourth point, so that the first driving steering wheel, the second driving steering wheel, the third driving steering wheel and the fourth driving steering wheel are controlled to rotate clockwise along the first circle or the fourth driving steering wheel to rotate counterclockwise around the circle, thereby realizing the transfer of the machine.

For example, the direction of the first driving steering wheel is in the horizontal direction, the direction of the second driving steering wheel is in the vertical direction, the direction of the third driving steering wheel is in the horizontal direction, the fourth driving steering wheel is in the vertical direction, the first driving steering wheel is controlled to roll leftwards, the second driving steering wheel is controlled to roll upwards, the third driving steering wheel rolls rightwards, the fourth driving steering wheel rolls downwards, and therefore the whole fork-type transfer robot is driven to rotate anticlockwise around the circle center of the first circle; or the first driving steering wheel is controlled to roll rightwards, the second driving steering wheel is controlled to roll downwards, the third driving steering wheel rolls leftwards, and the fourth driving steering wheel rolls upwards, so that the whole fork type carrying robot is driven to rotate clockwise along the circle center of the first circle.

Referring to fig. 8, when the driving steering wheels 121 are three, the three driving steering wheels 121 may be disposed at intervals along the first circle, and for convenience of description, the three driving steering wheels 121 are respectively referred to as a first driving steering wheel, a second driving steering wheel, and a third driving steering wheel clockwise along the first circle, the first driving steering wheel is located at a first point of the first circle, the second driving steering wheel is located at a second point of the first circle, and the third driving steering wheel is located at a third point of the first circle, the direction of the first driving steering wheel is rotated to coincide with the tangential direction of the first point, the direction of the second driving steering wheel is rotated to coincide with the tangential direction of the third point, so as to control the first driving steering wheel, the second driving steering wheel, and the third driving steering wheel to roll clockwise or counterclockwise along the first circle, thereby realizing the rotation of the fork-type handling robot around the center of the first circle.

For example, the first driving steering wheel is oriented in the horizontal direction, the second driving steering wheel is oriented in the oblique left direction, the third driving steering wheel is oriented in the oblique right direction, the first driving steering wheel is controlled to roll leftwards, the second driving steering wheel is controlled to roll downwards in an oblique manner, and the third driving steering wheel is controlled to roll upwards in an oblique manner, so that the whole fork type carrying robot is driven to rotate anticlockwise around the circle center of the first circle; or the first driving steering wheel is controlled to roll rightwards, the second driving steering wheel is controlled to roll upwards obliquely, and the third driving steering wheel rolls downwards obliquely, so that the whole fork-type carrying robot is driven to rotate clockwise along the circle center of the first circle.

In some examples, when the center point of the area surrounded by the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 is located at the center point of the chassis 100 (shown as O in fig. 8 to 12), the center of rotation of the chassis 100 and the entire fork-type transfer robot is located at the point O, and the turning radius is the farthest distance from the chassis 100 at the point O. It will be appreciated that when the cross-sectional shape of the chassis 100 is a rectangular configuration, the turning radius is half of the diagonal of the rectangle, i.e., the distance between the O-point and the furthest corner. That is, the chassis 100 rotates around its center in situ during turning, thereby further reducing the area of the sweep area involved during turning, effectively reducing the running path of the warehouse system, and improving storage density such as stacking density.

In some examples, the center point of the area surrounded by the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 (i.e., the center of the first circle) may deviate from the center point of the chassis 100 (as shown in fig. 8 to 12) so that when the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 drive the entire forklift to turn in place, the center of the turning circle of the forklift is closer to the center of the chassis 100 than in the related art, and the turning radius is the farthest distance between the center of the first circle and the chassis 100 than the length of almost the entire chassis 100 in the related art, and the part of the length of the chassis is the turning radius, so that the sweeping area is smaller when the forklift turns in place than when the forklift turns in the related art, thereby being suitable for a narrower running path in the warehouse system.

The chassis 100 of the embodiment of the application can realize the running modes such as transverse, longitudinal, front and back, oblique, in-situ rotation and the like by arranging a plurality of driving steering wheels 121, so that the chassis can adapt to different environments based on different running modes, and the universality of the fork carrying robot of the embodiment of the application under different environments is improved.

Referring to fig. 6, as one example, the chassis 100 may have two driving steering wheels 121, and a line connecting the two driving steering wheels 121 passes through a center point (e.g., O-point) of the chassis 100.

Taking the cross section of the chassis 100 as a rectangle as an example, the two driving steering wheels 121 may be disposed at intervals on any diagonal line of the chassis 100, and of course, in some examples, the two driving steering wheels 121 may also be disposed on an axis symmetry line (horizontal axis symmetry line or vertical axis symmetry line) of the chassis 100, so that when the fork-type handling robot rotates in situ, the turning circle center of the two driving steering wheels 121 may be close to the center point (e.g. O point) of the chassis 100, thereby reducing the turning radius of the chassis 100, or when the distance between the two driving steering wheels 121 and the center point of the chassis 100 is equal, i.e. the center point of the two driving steering wheels 121 coincides with the center point of the chassis 100, the turning circle center of the chassis 100 may be the center point of the chassis 100 when the two driving steering wheels 121 rotate in situ, so that the turning radius of the chassis 100 is effectively reduced.

When the two driving steering wheels 121 are disposed at any diagonal of the chassis 100 at intervals, the two driving steering wheels 121 may be disposed at any position between the two diagonal of the chassis 100, in other words, the two driving steering wheels 121 are disposed at the inner region of the chassis 100, and the universal wheels 122 are disposed at the four corners of the chassis 100 to serve as the supporting wheels 120 of the chassis 100.

It should be noted that the supporting wheel 120 in the embodiment of the present application refers to a driving steering wheel 121 or a universal wheel 122 disposed at a circumferential edge of the chassis 100.

In other examples, two drive steering wheels 121 may be provided directly at two opposite corners of the chassis 100, supporting the wheels 120 as part of the chassis 100. Referring to fig. 6, the chassis 100 illustratively has two driving steering wheels 121 and two universal wheels 122, the two driving steering wheels 121 are respectively disposed at one pair of opposite corners of the chassis 100, the two universal wheels 122 are disposed at the other pair of opposite corners of the chassis 100, and the driving steering wheels 121 and the universal wheels 122 together form the supporting wheels 120 of the chassis 100.

With continued reference to fig. 6, for example, two driving steering wheels 121 are respectively located at an upper right corner and a lower left corner of the chassis 100, and two universal wheels 122 are respectively located at an upper left corner and a lower right corner of the chassis 100, so that when the fork-type transfer robot needs to perform in-situ steering, the two driving steering wheels 121 are respectively steered by a designated angle, so that the chassis 100 is driven by the two driving steering wheels 121 to perform in-situ steering around an O-point by the designated angle, and the two universal wheels 122 are driven by the chassis 100 to also perform in-situ steering by the designated angle, and then the chassis 100 is driven by the two driving steering wheels 121 to move along the designated direction.

Through setting up two drive steering wheels 121 in the corner of chassis 100 to as supporting wheel 120, compare in setting up drive steering wheel 121 in the inside region of chassis 100, increased the drive wheel to the supporting region of chassis 100, improved the structural stability of chassis 100 and the structure on chassis 100, and shared the bearing capacity on every drive steering wheel 121 and reduced, thereby guaranteed the structural stability of every drive steering wheel 121, prolonged the life of drive steering wheel 121.

Referring to fig. 7, as another example, the chassis 100 has at least three driving steering wheels 121, the at least three driving steering wheels 121 are circumferentially spaced around the center point of the chassis 100, and the center point O of the chassis 100 is located in an area surrounded by the at least three driving steering wheels 121, so that the turning circle centers of the at least three driving steering wheels 121 are closer to the center point O of the chassis 100, to further reduce the turning radius of the chassis 100. Illustratively, the center point of the combined area of the at least three drive steering wheels 121 may just coincide with the center point of the chassis 100, further reducing the sweep area where the chassis 100 turns in situ.

For example, referring to fig. 7, the chassis 100 has four driving steering wheels 121, the four driving steering wheels 121 are spaced around the O-point and arranged in a rectangular or forward direction, and the center of a rectangular area surrounded by the four driving steering wheels 121 coincides with the O-point, so that when the fork-handling robot turns around in situ, the four driving steering wheels 121 can drive the chassis 100 to rotate around the O-point, and realize in-situ turning around the center of the chassis 100, so as to further reduce the turning radius, thereby reducing the additional space outside the chassis 100 during turning, and further reducing the size of the running channel.

By arranging the chassis 100 into the structure of at least three driving steering wheels 121, the stable support of the at least three driving steering wheels 121 and the ground can be ensured, the chassis 100 can not be separated from the ground, and the driving, steering and supporting stability of the driving steering wheels 121 to the chassis 100 is improved.

For another example, referring to fig. 8, the chassis 100 has three driving steering wheels 121, and the three driving steering wheels 121 are arranged at intervals around the O-point and in a triangular layout, and the center point O of the chassis 100 is located in a triangular area surrounded by the three driving steering wheels 121. For example, the center of the triangle area surrounded by the three driving steering wheels 121 may coincide with the O point, so that when the three driving steering wheels 121 steer, the chassis 100 may be driven to rotate around the O point, so as to realize the in-situ turning of the fork-type carrying robot around the center of the chassis 100.

In a similar manner to the arrangement of the two drive steering wheels 121 described above, at least three drive steering wheels 121 of the chassis 100 may be arranged in an inner region between the outer circumferences of the chassis 100. In some implementations, at least three drive steering wheels 121 may also be arranged at intervals along the circumferential edge of the chassis 100, each drive steering wheel 121 being formed as a support wheel 120 of the chassis 100.

Referring to fig. 7, when the chassis 100 has four driving steering wheels 121, the four driving steering wheels 121 may be disposed at four corners of the chassis 100, respectively, so that the at least three driving steering wheels 121 may be stably supported on the ground during the operation of the chassis 100, thereby ensuring that at least two diagonal driving steering wheels 121 are stably contacted with the ground, and thus achieving the purpose of in-situ steering of the chassis 100.

Referring to fig. 8, when the chassis 100 has three driving steering wheels 121, two of the driving steering wheels 121 may be disposed at two corners of one end of the chassis 100, respectively, and the other driving steering wheel 121 is disposed at a central position of the other end such that the three driving steering wheels 121 have an isosceles triangle or an equilateral triangle.

With this arrangement, the three driving steering wheels 121 can be stably supported on the ground during the operation of the chassis 100, thereby ensuring stable support of the chassis 100 by the three driving steering wheels 121, and driving force and steering torque stability of the chassis 100 by each driving steering wheel 121.

According to the embodiment of the application, the plurality of driving steering wheels 121 in circumferential layout are arranged, so that the center of a circle for turning, for example, the in-situ turning of the fork-type carrying robot is positioned at one point in an area surrounded by the plurality of driving steering wheels 121, and the part of the length of the chassis 100 is used as the turning radius, so that the in-situ turning sweeping area of the fork-type carrying robot is smaller than that of the turning in the related art, the application can adapt to a narrower running channel in a storage system, and in terms of changing, the running channel of the storage system can be reduced, and the storage density, for example, the stacking density can be improved.

In some examples, the drive steering wheel 121 may be a single wheel drive steering wheel 121, and the single wheel drive steering wheel 121 may include a wheel body, a drive motor, a steering gear, and a slewing bearing, wherein an output shaft of the drive motor is connected to the wheel body to drive the wheel body to roll, the steering motor is connected to the steering gear, the steering gear is meshed with the slewing bearing, and the slewing bearing is connected to the chassis body 110. When steering is needed, the steering motor drives the steering gear to rotate, and the steering gear drives the chassis body 110 to rotate through the slewing bearing, so that the steering of the whole chassis 100 and the fork-type transfer robot is realized.

It will be appreciated that the friction between the wheel body and the ground during steering of the single-wheel drive steering wheel 121 is a sliding friction, and the steering torque for driving the steering wheel 121 is provided by a slewing bearing.

Fig. 13 is a schematic structural view of one of the steering wheels 121 of the chassis 100 according to an embodiment of the present application. Referring to fig. 13, in other examples, at least one drive steering wheel 121 may be a differential drive steering wheel 121, and the differential drive steering wheel 121 may include a drive structure 1212 and two wheels, wherein the drive structure 1212 includes a first drive structure and a second drive structure, the two wheels being a first wheel 1211a and a second wheel 1211b, respectively.

The first driving structure is connected to the first wheel 1211a and configured to drive the first wheel 1211a to rotate, for example, the first driving structure may be a first driving motor, and a power output shaft of the first driving motor is connected to the first wheel 1211a to drive the first wheel 1211a to rotate. The second driving structure is connected to the second wheel 1211b and configured to drive the second wheel 1211b to rotate, for example, the second driving structure may be a second driving motor, and a power output shaft of the second driving motor is connected to the second wheel 1211b to drive the second wheel 1211b to rotate.

When the first wheel 1211a and the second wheel 1211b rotate at the same speed (i.e. the rotation speed is the same), the whole driving steering wheel 121 rolls along a straight line, and when the first wheel 1211a and the second wheel 1211b rotate at different speeds (the rotation speeds are different), the driving steering wheel 121 changes direction, that is, the corresponding wheels are respectively driven by the first driving structure and the second driving structure, so as to drive the driving steering wheel 121 to walk along a straight line, and the steering of the driving steering wheel 121 is realized by controlling the rotation speeds of the two wheels to be different.

For example, when the rotation speed of the first wheel 1211a is smaller than the rotation speed of the second wheel 1211b, the rolling path of the second wheel 1211b is larger than that of the first wheel 1211a, so that the entire driving steering wheel 121 rolls to the side close to the first wheel 1211a, and steering of the driving steering wheel 121 is achieved. Similarly, when the rotation speed of the second wheel 1211b is smaller than that of the first wheel 1211a, the rolling path of the first wheel 1211a is larger than that of the second wheel 1211b, so that the whole driving steering wheel 121 rolls towards the side close to the second wheel 1211b, and steering of the driving steering wheel 121 is achieved.

In this example, during steering of the differential drive steering wheel 121, both the first wheel body 1211a and the second wheel body 1211b are in a rolling state, so that friction force of the differential drive steering wheel 121 with the ground is rolling friction force, and the differential drive steering wheel 121 reduces steering resistance moment compared to the case where the drive steering wheel 121 is a single wheel drive steering wheel 121.

In addition, by setting the driving steering wheel 121 to include two wheels, compare in single wheel body structure, the bearing capacity that shares on every wheel body reduces, and two wheel body interval sets up, has increased area of support, has guaranteed whole bearing capacity to can reduce the diameter of every wheel body, make the height of driving steering wheel 121 reduce, practiced thrift the occupation space of driving steering wheel 121 in chassis 100, more be convenient for chassis 100 structural design.

Illustratively, one of the drive steering wheels 121 may be configured as a differential drive steering wheel 121, although in some examples at least two drive steering wheels 121, or each drive steering wheel 121 may be configured as a differential drive steering wheel 121, to reduce the size of the entire drive steering wheel 121, and further to reduce friction with the ground by the chassis 100, such that the entire chassis 100, as well as the entire fork-lift robot, moves efficiently.

In some implementations, to achieve more controllable output speeds of the driving structures 1212 to the respective wheels, the at least one driving steering wheel 121 may further include a speed change structure 1213, the speed change structure 1213 including a first speed change structure and a second speed change structure, two ends of the first speed change structure being connected to the first driving structure and the first wheel 1211a, respectively, and two ends of the second speed change structure being connected to the second driving structure and the second wheel 1211b, respectively;

The first speed change structure is configured to change the rotational speed of the first driving structure output to the first wheel 1211a, and the second speed change structure is configured to change the rotational speed of the second driving structure output to the second wheel 1211b, so that the first wheel 1211a and the second wheel 1211b rotate at the same speed or at different speeds.

For example, the first speed change structure and the second speed change structure may be reduction boxes, wherein one reduction box precisely controls, e.g., reduces, the speed output by the first driving structure so that the speed output to the first wheel 1211a reaches a first preset speed, and the other reduction box precisely controls, e.g., reduces, the speed output by the second driving structure so that the speed output to the second wheel 1211b reaches a second preset speed, thereby enabling the difference between the first preset speed and the second preset speed to reach a preset difference, and realizing a preset steering angle.

It will be appreciated that the reduction gearbox may be a reduction structure and a corresponding reduction distance in the related art, for example, the reduction gearbox may be a pulley transmission, etc., which will not be described herein, and reference may be made to related contents in the related art.

In some examples, the at least one driven steering wheel 121 may further include a slewing bearing 1214, where the slewing bearing 1214 has an outer ring and an inner ring, where the outer ring and the inner ring are rotatable relative to each other, and where the outer ring is connected to the chassis body 110 of the chassis 100, and where the inner ring is connected to the transmission structure, the driving structure 1212, the transmission structure, or the like, so that when any one of the wheels 121 is steered with the driving structure 121 or the transmission structure, the chassis body 110 does not rotate, so that the fork-handling robot switches between a transverse mode, a vertical mode, and a diagonal mode of travel while the vehicle body is stationary.

Referring to fig. 5, the chassis 100, such as the chassis body 110, may include a frame assembly 111, and the gantry structure 200 is disposed on the frame assembly 111, and the steering wheel 121 is connected to the frame assembly 111 to move the frame assembly 111. It will be appreciated that the carriage assembly 111 is located in the mast structure 200 and the drive steering wheel 121 to provide mounting support. The chassis body 110 may also include a power cell 112 and an electrical system assembly 114. The power battery 112 and the electrical system assembly 114 are both disposed on the frame assembly 111, and the power battery 112 is configured to provide electrical power to a drive structure 1212, such as a drive motor, for driving the steering wheel 121. The electrical system assembly 114 mainly includes a power supply system, electric wires for driving a motor, a reduction gearbox, and the like.

When provided, to ensure that the center of gravity of the chassis 100 is balanced in the middle region, the electrical system assembly 114 and the power battery 112 may be disposed on either side of the frame assembly 111.

In some implementations, the chassis 100 has at least four support wheels 120, the at least four support wheels 120 are disposed in sequence at four corners of the chassis 100, and the at least four support wheels 120 include at least one of a drive steering wheel 121 and a universal wheel 122, and referring to fig. 6, two drive steering wheels 121 and two universal wheels 122 are illustrated as the four support wheels 120 of the chassis 100. The area enclosed by the four support wheels 120 is understood to be the load-bearing area of the chassis 100, as shown by the dashed box M in fig. 3 and 6.

The orthographic projection of the fork teeth 320 of the fork structure 300 in the lifting direction is located in the area surrounded by at least four supporting wheels 120, for example, the orthographic projection of the fork teeth 320 in the z direction on the ground is located in the orthographic projection area of the area M surrounded by four supporting wheels 120 on the ground, so that the structural stability of the fork-type carrying robot can be improved.

In addition, in the process of fork taking or fork placing, the fork teeth 320 and the articles 400 on the fork teeth 320 only have displacement in the lifting direction z, so that the orthographic projection of the gravity center of the articles 400 in the z direction can be ensured to be always positioned in the area M surrounded by the four supporting wheels 120, and thus, the fork handling robot can be free from counterweight for the articles 400, thereby ensuring smaller volume and weight and saving the occupied space of the fork handling robot in a storage system. In addition, the fork type carrying robot has smaller off-load than the existing stacking forklift when the fork type carrying robot forks the higher articles 400, namely, the carrying weight when the higher articles 400 are fetched is ensured.

When provided, the width of the region M enclosed by the four support wheels 120 (e.g., the width shown in the y-direction in fig. 3) may be greater than the width of the tines 320 in the y-direction to increase the support area of the support wheels 120 to the chassis 100. Of course, in other examples, the width of the region M may be exactly equal to the width of the tines 320.

Referring to fig. 1-3, in some implementations, an avoidance cavity 100a and a load-bearing platform 100b located at the outer periphery of the avoidance cavity 100a are formed on the chassis 100. For example, the avoidance cavity 100a may be disposed in a middle area of the chassis 100, and two bearing platforms 100b are formed on two sides of the avoidance cavity 100 a. It will be appreciated that the surface height of the load platform 100b is greater than the inner bottom wall height of the relief cavity 100 a.

The tines 320 of the fork structure 300 may extend into the evacuation lumen 100a, for example, the fork structure 300 may be lowered into the evacuation lumen 100a along the mast structure 200. The load platform 100b is configured to support the item 400 positioned on the tines 320 when the tines 320 are positioned in the avoidance cavity 100 a.

Illustratively, when the fork lift robot forks or returns an item 400, the fork structure 300 may be raised to an area outside of the chassis 100 (e.g., the tines 320 are at a first height), i.e., out of the avoidance cavity 100a, such that the tines 320 of the fork structure 300 may extend into the receptacles of the item 400 without interference from the chassis 100. When the fork-type carrier robot carries the object 400 along the running path, the tines 320 of the fork structure 300 can be lowered into the avoiding cavity 100a (e.g., the tines 320 are at the second height), so that a portion of the object 400 is supported on the tines 320 and another portion is supported on the carrying platform 100b, and thus, the stability of the object 400 during movement of the fork-type carrier robot can be improved.

When the avoidance cavity 100a is specifically provided, the avoidance groove may be located on the chassis 100, or may be an avoidance hole penetrating through the chassis 100 along the z direction. The embodiment of the present application does not limit the structure of the avoidance cavity 100a, so long as it is ensured that the tines 320 can extend into the chassis 100, so that a portion of the article 400 is supported on the carrying platform 100 b.

When the gantry structure 200 of the embodiment of the present application is set, the first-stage gantry structure 200 may be set, that is, the height of the gantry does not change, and the fork structure 300 may be lifted up and down along the gantry.

Fig. 14 is a schematic view of a gantry structure 200 according to an embodiment of the present application, fig. 15 is a partially enlarged view of fig. 14B, fig. 16 is a partially enlarged view of fig. 4 a, fig. 17 is a schematic view of a fork-type carrier robot according to an embodiment of the present application at another view, and fig. 18 is a schematic view of a fork structure 300 according to an embodiment of the present application. Referring to fig. 14-18, in some implementations, the mast structure 200 may be a multi-stage mast structure 200, for example, the mast structure 200 may include an inner mast 220, an outer mast 210, a third drive structure 230, and a fourth drive structure 240.

Wherein the third drive structure 230 is coupled to the inner gantry 220 and is configured to drive the inner gantry 220 to move relative to the outer gantry 210; the fourth drive structure 240 is coupled to the fork structure 300 and is configured to drive the fork structure 300 relative to the inner mast 220. In this manner, the elevation height range of the fork structure 300 can be increased to accommodate stacking, forking, etc. of articles 400 of different heights. In addition, the lifting speed of the fork structure 300 is increased, thereby improving the work efficiency of the fork-lift robot.

Wherein the number of inner gantries 220 may be 1, the gantry structure 200 is a two-stage gantry. In other examples, the number of inner gantries 220 may be 2 or more, and two adjacent inner gantries 220 may be relatively movable to form an upper gantry and a lower gantry, where the fork structure 300 is movably disposed on the lower-most gantry to lift along the lower-most gantry.

Referring to fig. 14 and 15, in the embodiment of the present application, two-stage gantries are taken as an example, that is, 1 inner gantries 220, the inner gantries 220 can be lifted up and down along the outer gantries 210, and the fork structure 300 is movably disposed on the inner gantries 220 and can move up and down along the inner gantries 220.

In some examples, the third drive structure 230 and the fourth drive structure 240 may be independently disposed, e.g., one end of the third drive structure 230 may be coupled to the inner mast 220 to drive the inner mast 220 to move relative to the outer mast 210, and the fourth drive structure 240 may be disposed on the inner mast 220 and coupled to the fork structure 300, e.g., the fork carriage 310, such that the fourth drive structure 240 may be moved when the inner mast 220 is moved, such that the fourth drive structure 240 moves the fork structure 300 relative to the inner mast 220.

Referring to fig. 16 and 17, in other examples, the fourth drive structure 240 may be disposed on the third drive structure 230, the third drive structure 230 further configured to directly move the fourth drive structure 240 to move the fork structure 300 relative to the inner mast 220. The direct arrangement on the inner mast 220 is prevented from being affected by the operating factors of the inner mast 220, thereby ensuring the driving reliability of the fourth driving structure 240 to the fork structure 300.

Referring to fig. 14, when the third driving structure 230 is provided, the driving structure may include a hydraulic cylinder, an electric push rod, a servo motor, a sprocket chain structure, etc., and the driving manner of the third driving structure 230 is not limited in particular according to the embodiment of the present application.

For example, the third driving structure 230 is a hydraulic cylinder, the hydraulic cylinder has a fixed portion 231 and a movable portion 232, and the movable portion 232 can extend or retract relative to the fixed portion 231 under the pressure in the fixed portion 231, wherein the movable portion 232 of the hydraulic cylinder is connected with the inner gantry 220, so that the movable portion 232 drives the inner gantry 220 to move. The fixed part 231 may communicate with the hydraulic pump 113 provided on the chassis 100 to control the pressure inside the fixed part 231, providing driving force to the movable part 232.

The fourth driving structure 240 may include a driving sprocket 241 and a driving chain 242, where the driving sprocket 241 is rotatably disposed on the movable portion 232, for example, a rotating shaft may be connected to the movable portion 232, the driving sprocket 241 is movably sleeved on the rotating shaft, the driving chain 242 is erected on the driving sprocket 241, and one end (fixed end) is connected to the outer gantry 210, and the other end (movable end) is connected to the fork structure 300; the drive chain 242 is configured to move under the drive of the movable portion 232 to move the fork structure 300 relative to the inner mast 220.

For example, the movable portion 232 of the third driving structure 230 moves upward to drive the mast upward on one hand, and the driving chain 242 moves upward through the driving sprocket 241 on the other hand, so that the movable end of the driving chain 242 drives the fork structure 300 upward relative to the inner mast 220 to raise the fork structure 300 to the first designated height.

The movable portion 232 of the third drive structure 230 moves downward to drive the mast downward, and the drive sprocket 241 and the drive chain 242 can move downward under the force of gravity such that the movable end of the drive chain 242 drives the fork structure 300 downward relative to the inner mast 220 to lower the fork structure 300 to a second designated height.

For example, referring to fig. 17, a link 212 may be provided on the outer gantry 210 (e.g., the back of the outer gantry 210), and a fixed end of the drive chain 242 may be connected to the link 212. The movable end of the drive chain 242 is attached to the fork carriage 310 of the fork structure 300.

Referring to fig. 14 to 16, a side of the outer door frame 210 facing the inner door frame 220 may be formed with a first sliding groove 211, the first sliding groove 211 extending in a height direction (referring to a z direction in fig. 15) of the outer door frame 210, and a portion of the inner door frame 220 may be located within the first sliding groove 211 and may move along the first sliding groove 211 with respect to the outer door frame 210. The first sliding groove 211 plays a role of guiding and limiting the movement of the inner gantry 220, ensures that the inner gantry 220 moves vertically along the z direction, and ensures that the inner gantry 220 does not deviate from the outer gantry 210 along the x direction.

For example, the outer gantry 210 may be formed of two spaced apart "C" shaped channels, with the interior cavity of each "C" shaped channel forming the first runner 211.

Similarly, referring to fig. 16 and 17, a second runner 222 may be formed on a side of the inner mast 220 facing the fork structure 300, for example, a second runner 222 may be formed on a side of the inner mast 220 facing away from the first runner 211, the second runner 222 extending along a height direction (shown with reference to the z-direction in fig. 15) of the inner mast 220, and a portion of the fork structure 300, such as a portion of the fork carriage 310, may be positioned within the second runner 222 and may be movable along the second runner 222 relative to the inner mast 220. The second chute 222 serves as a guiding and limiting function for the movement of the fork structure 300, ensures that the fork structure 300 moves vertically in the z-direction, and ensures that the inner mast 220 does not fall out of the inner mast 220 in the x-direction.

With continued reference to fig. 15-18, in some implementations, the mast structure 200 can further include at least one of a first roller 250 and a second roller 260.

The first roller 250 is disposed on one of the inner door frame 220 and the outer door frame 210, and the first roller 250 is disposed in the first sliding groove 211, so that the inner door frame 220 and the outer door frame 210 are in rolling connection through the first roller 250, and a friction force between the inner door frame 220 and the outer door frame 210 is a rolling friction force, thereby reducing a friction resistance between the inner door frame 220 and the outer door frame 210, and enabling the inner door frame 220 to stably move along the first sliding groove 211 of the outer door frame 210.

In some examples, an extension 221 (e.g., a first extension 221) may be disposed on the inner gantry 220, the extension 221 protruding into the first sliding slot 211 and may be disposed opposite the other sidewall of the first sliding slot 211, and a first roller 250 disposed in the first sliding slot 211 and connected to the outer gantry 210, e.g., the first roller 250 may be connected to the outer gantry 210 via a connection shaft, and when the inner gantry 220 moves relative to the outer gantry 210, the extension 221 contacts the surface of the first roller 250 to rotate the first roller 250 to reduce friction between the inner gantry 220 and the outer gantry 210.

In still other examples, the first roller 250 may be disposed on the inner gantry 220 and within the first sliding slot 211, e.g., the first roller 250 may be coupled to the inner gantry 220 via a coupling shaft such that the first roller 250 may roll along a slot wall of the first sliding slot 211 as the inner gantry 220 moves relative to the outer gantry 210 to reduce friction between the inner gantry 220 and the outer gantry 210.

In addition, the second roller 260 may be disposed on one of the inner gantry 220 and the fork structure 300, and the second roller 260 is disposed in the second sliding groove 222, and the fork structure 300 and the inner gantry 220 are in rolling connection through the second roller 260, so that the friction force between the fork structure 300 and the inner gantry 220 is rolling friction force, thereby reducing the friction resistance between the fork structure 300 and the inner gantry 220, and enabling the fork structure 300 to stably move along the second sliding groove 222 of the inner gantry 220.

In some examples, an extension 221 (e.g., a second extension 221) may be disposed on the fork carriage 310 of the fork structure 300, where the extension 221 extends into the second chute 222 and may be disposed opposite to another side wall of the second chute 222, and a second roller 260 is disposed in the second chute 222 and is connected to the inner mast 220, e.g., the second roller 260 may be connected to the inner mast 220 via a connection shaft, and when the fork structure 300 moves relative to the inner mast 220, the extension 221 contacts a surface of the second roller 260 and drives the second roller 260 to rotate, so as to reduce friction between the fork structure 300 and the inner mast 220.

In other examples, the second roller 260 may be coupled to the fork carriage 310 of the fork structure 300 via a coupling shaft such that the second roller 260 may roll along the slot wall of the second slot 222 as the fork structure 300 moves relative to the inner mast 220 to reduce friction between the fork structure 300 and the inner mast 220.

The fork type carrying robot provided by the embodiment of the application can realize automatic navigation in a mode of laser slam, two-dimensional codes and the like so as to move in a movement channel according to a set path until reaching a specified position. In addition, the control operation mode of the fork type carrying robot can be realized through control equipment such as a direct connection handle, a wire control connection handle or a wireless connection handle, and the embodiment of the application is not limited.

The direct connection handle is a control device directly provided on the forklift, for example, the portal structure 200 or the chassis 100, and when the forklift is controlled in speed and steering, a control command can be directly input through the direct connection handle.

The wire control connecting handle refers to control equipment connected to the fork type carrying robot through a wire, and when the fork type carrying robot is subjected to speed and steering control, a control instruction can be directly input through the wire control handle.

The wireless connection handle is connected with control equipment on the fork type carrying robot through wireless equipment such as an antenna, and when the speed and the steering of the fork type carrying robot are controlled, a control command can be directly input through the wireless connection handle.

It can be understood that the wire control connecting handle and the wireless connecting handle can realize that an operator does not need to follow the action of the fork type carrying robot, so that the personal safety of the operator is improved.

The foregoing detailed description of the embodiments of the present application further illustrates the purposes, technical solutions and advantageous effects of the embodiments of the present application, and it should be understood that the foregoing is merely a specific implementation of the embodiments of the present application, and is not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present application, and any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc. made on the basis of the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application should be included in the scope of the embodiments of the present application.

Claims

1. A fork transfer robot, comprising:

a chassis (100);

a gantry structure (200) disposed on the chassis (100);

A fork structure (300) configured to carry an article (400), the fork structure (300) being movably disposed on the gantry structure (200) and being capable of being lifted close to or away from the chassis (100), an orthographic projection of the fork structure (300) in a lifting direction being located on the chassis (100);

The chassis (100) is provided with a plurality of driving steering wheels (121), and the driving steering wheels (121) are arranged at intervals along the circumferential direction.

2. A fork-handling robot according to claim 1, wherein the chassis (100) has two of the drive steering wheels (121), a line connecting the two drive steering wheels (121) passing through a centre point of the chassis (100).

3. A fork-handling robot according to claim 2, wherein the chassis (100) has two said drive steering wheels (121) and two universal wheels (122);

Two drive steering wheels (121) set up respectively in one pair of diagonal of chassis (100) two universal wheel (122) set up in another pair of diagonal of chassis (100), drive steering wheel (121) with universal wheel (122) jointly form supporting wheel (120) of chassis (100).

4. A fork-handling robot according to claim 1, wherein the chassis (100) has at least three of the drive steering wheels (121);

The center point of the chassis (100) is located in an area surrounded by the at least three driving steering wheels (121).

5. A fork-lift robot according to claim 4, characterized in that the at least three drive steering wheels (121) are arranged at intervals along the circumferential edge of the chassis (100), each drive steering wheel (121) being formed as a support wheel (120) of the chassis (100).

6. The fork-lift robot of claim 1 wherein at least one of the drive steering wheels (121) comprises a first drive structure, a second drive structure, a first wheel body (1211 a) and a second wheel body (1211 b);

The first driving structure is connected with the first wheel body (1211 a) and is configured to drive the first wheel body (1211 a) to rotate;

the second driving structure is connected with the second wheel body (1211 b) and is configured to drive the second wheel body (1211 b) to rotate;

When the first wheel body (1211 a) and the second wheel body (1211 b) rotate at the same speed, the driving steering wheel (121) rolls along a straight line, and when the first wheel body (1211 a) and the second wheel body (1211 b) rotate at a differential speed, the driving steering wheel (121) turns towards.

7. The forklift robot of claim 6, wherein at least one of said driven steering wheels (121) further comprises a first speed change structure and a second speed change structure, both ends of said first speed change structure being connected to said first driving structure and said first wheel body (1211 a), respectively, and both ends of said second speed change structure being connected to said second driving structure and said second wheel body (1211 b), respectively;

The first speed change structure is configured to change a rotational speed of the first drive structure output to the first wheel body (1211 a), and the second speed change structure is configured to change a rotational speed of the second drive structure output to the second wheel body (1211 b) so as to rotate the first wheel body (1211 a) at the same speed or at a different speed from the second wheel body (1211 b).

8. A fork-lift robot according to any of claims 1-7, characterized in that the chassis (100) has at least four support wheels (120), at least four of the support wheels (120) being arranged in turn at four corners of the chassis (100), and at least four of the support wheels (120) comprising at least one of the drive rudder wheels (121) and universal wheels (122);

Orthographic projections of the fork teeth (320) of the fork structure (300) in the lifting direction are positioned in an area surrounded by the at least four supporting wheels (120).

9. A fork-type transfer robot according to any one of claims 1-7, characterized in that the chassis (100) is formed with an avoidance cavity (100 a) and a carrying platform (100 b) located at the periphery of the avoidance cavity (100 a);

At least a portion of the fork structure (300) is extendable into the relief cavity (100 a), the load-bearing platform (100 b) being configured to support an item (400) located on the fork structure (300) when at least a portion of the fork structure (300) is located in the relief cavity (100 a).

10. The fork-lift robot of any of claims 1-7 wherein the mast structure (200) comprises an inner mast (220), an outer mast (210), a third drive structure (230) and a fourth drive structure (240);

The third drive structure (230) is connected to the inner gantry (220) and configured to drive the inner gantry (220) in relation to the outer gantry (210); the fourth drive structure (240) is coupled to the fork structure (300) and is configured to drive the fork structure (300) in movement relative to the inner mast (220).

11. The fork-handling robot of claim 10, wherein the fourth drive structure (240) is disposed on the third drive structure (230), the third drive structure (230) further configured to move the fourth drive structure (240) to move the fork structure (300) relative to the inner mast (220).

12. The fork-lift robot of claim 11 wherein the third drive structure (230) comprises a hydraulic cylinder, a movable portion (232) of which is connected to the inner mast (220) such that the movable portion (232) moves the inner mast (220);

The fourth driving structure (240) comprises a driving chain wheel (241) and a driving chain (242), the driving chain wheel (241) is rotatably arranged on the movable part (232), the driving chain (242) is erected on the driving chain wheel (241), one end of the driving chain is connected to the outer portal (210), and the other end of the driving chain is connected to the fork structure (300); the drive chain (242) is configured to move under the drive of the movable portion (232) to drive the fork structure (300) to move relative to the inner mast (220).

13. The fork-handling robot according to claim 10, wherein a side of the outer mast (210) facing the inner mast (220) is formed with a first chute (211), at least part of the inner mast (220) being located within the first chute (211) to move the inner mast (220) along the first chute (211);

And/or, a second chute (222) is formed on the inner gantry (220), and at least part of the fork structure (300) is located in the second chute (222) so as to enable the fork structure (300) to move along the second chute (222).

14. The fork-handling robot of claim 13, wherein the mast structure (200) further comprises at least one of a first roller (250) and a second roller (260);

The first roller (250) is arranged on one of the inner door frame (220) and the outer door frame (210) and is positioned in the first sliding groove (211), and the inner door frame (220) and the outer door frame (210) are in rolling connection through the first roller (250);

The second roller (260) is disposed on one of the inner gantry (220) and the fork structure (300) and is located in the second chute (222), and the fork structure (300) and the inner gantry (220) are in rolling connection through the second roller (260).