JP2007217102A - Automated storage and retrieval warehouse - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an automated storage and retrieval warehouse enabling an increase in storing efficiency. <P>SOLUTION: This automated storage and retrieval warehouse comprises a carrying means 3 having a lift 11 vertically movable along a mast 9 erected on a traveling vehicle 8 traveling along the lateral direction of a shelf and supporting a transfer device 10 for transferring articles 7 with the article storage shelf 2, and a control means controlling the operation of the carrying means 3. The control means controls the lateral widths of the articles 7 stored in the article storing shelf 2, stores the articles 7 with small lateral widths in the upper storage part 1a of a plurality of storage parts 1, and so controls the operation of the carrying means 3 as to store the article 7b with large lateral widths in the lower storage part 1b of the storage parts 1. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2007,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an article storage shelf provided in a state in which a plurality of storage units for storing articles are arranged in the width direction of the shelf and the vertical direction, and in the state of forming the same width in the width direction of the shelf, A transfer device capable of moving up and down along a mast erected on a traveling carriage that travels along a lateral width direction of the shelf and that transfers articles between the carry-in / out unit and the storage unit Conveying means provided with a lifting platform to support, control means for controlling the operation of the conveying means, carriage position detecting means for detecting the position of the traveling carriage in the width direction of the shelf, and Elevating position detecting means for detecting the position of the vehicle, and the control means indicates detection information of the carriage position detecting means and information indicating a carriage stop position for the carry-in / out section preset in correspondence with the carry-in / out section. And the plurality of storage units Based on the preset information indicating the carriage stop position for the storage section, the carriage stop position for the loading / unloading section and the carriage stop position for the storage section corresponding to the storage section for transferring the article are The traveling carriage is stopped, the detection information of the lift position detecting means, the information indicating the lift stop position for the loading / unloading section set in advance corresponding to the loading / unloading section, and the plurality of storage sections in advance On the basis of the information indicating the set up / down stop position for the storage unit, the up / down stop position for the loading / unloading unit and the up / down stop position for the storage unit corresponding to the storage unit to which articles are transferred are placed. The present invention relates to an automatic warehouse configured to control the operation of the conveying means so as to be stopped.

Such an automatic warehouse is used to store articles such as a container storing various items and a pallet for mounting and supporting various items in an item storage shelf. When the article to be stored in the storage unit is stored in the storage unit selected to store the article among the plurality of storage units by the transport unit, This is done by transporting the article to be delivered stored in either of them to the carry-in / out section by the transport means.
When such goods are stored or unloaded, the control means for controlling the operation of the transporting means determines whether the traveling carriage in the transporting means is the position of the carriage for the loading / unloading part or the goods based on the detection information of the cart position detecting means. The traveling of the traveling carriage is controlled so as to stop at the carriage stop position for the storage section corresponding to the storage section for storing the storage section, and the lifting platform in the transport means is carried out based on the detection information of the lifting position detection means. The lifting / lowering of the lifting platform is controlled so as to stop at the lifting / lowering stop position for the storage unit corresponding to the storage unit for storing articles, and between the carry-in / out unit and the conveying means. The transfer operation of the transfer device is controlled to transfer the article and to transfer the article between the storage unit and the conveying means.
In such an automatic warehouse, the width in the shelf width direction of the plurality of storage units is the same size in any of the storage units, and the shelf width direction of the plurality of articles stored in the plurality of storage units The horizontal width along the line is the same for all articles, and the articles to be stored are configured such that any one of the plurality of storage units is selected and stored (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Incidentally, although not described in Patent Document 1, the selection of the storage unit that stores the articles to be stored is performed, for example, under the condition that the storage unit closer to the loading / unloading unit is selected for articles that are frequently output. Various selection conditions are determined in advance, and are performed based on the selection conditions.
In addition, there are various types of article storage shelves, such as those formed by assembling plate-like bodies, but a column type, that is, a column set composed of a pair of front and rear columns is arranged in the width direction of the shelf. In many cases, a structure is used in which an article receiving frame is vertically arranged in the vertical direction and attached to the support column assembly and the storage portion is provided in a state of being arranged in the vertical direction between the adjacent support column assemblies.
Further, the width of the article storage unit along the shelf width direction is formed larger than the width of the article along the shelf width direction, and the position of the article stored in the storage unit in the shelf width direction is the shelf width of the storage unit. Even if there is a shift in the width direction of the shelf from the center position in the direction, the contact between the article and the shelf forming member can be avoided and the article can be stored.
In addition, in order to receive articles to be received from the carry-in / out section, there is a possibility that a stop error may occur when the traveling carriage of the conveying means is moved to the carriage stop position for the carry-in / out section and stopped. Corresponds to a storage unit for storing articles that hold the traveling carriage of the transport means so that the articles held by the transport means can be stored in the storage section to be stored after the articles are transferred from the loading / unloading section to the transport means side. There is a possibility that a stop error may occur even when the vehicle is stopped by moving to the carriage stop position for the storage unit. Furthermore, when the traveling carriage of the conveying means is stopped, the mast is shaken due to inertial force, etc., and the article held on the conveying means in such a state that the mast is shaken. Therefore, the position of the article in the shelf width direction with respect to the storage portion changes due to the shaking of the mast.
Therefore, due to the stop error when the traveling carriage of the transport means is moved to the carriage stop position for the loading / unloading section and stopped or when the carriage is stopped at the carriage stop position for the storage section, and due to the shaking of the mast The main factor is that the position in the shelf width direction with respect to the storage section of the article changes, so that the position of the article stored in the storage section in the shelf width direction changes from the center position of the storage section in the shelf width direction to the shelf width direction. Since there is a risk of shifting, the width of the article storage portion along the shelf width direction of the article is formed larger than the width of the article storage portion along the shelf width direction, and the position of the article stored in the storage portion in the shelf width direction is stored. Even if there is a deviation in the shelf width direction from the center position in the shelf width direction of the part, the contact between the article and the shelf forming member can be avoided.

  By the way, for example, in the case where the storage shelf is in the form of the above-mentioned column type, for example, when the carriage stop position for one storage unit is set with respect to the plurality of storage units arranged in the vertical direction with reference to the lower storage unit, for example. In addition, since the storage units arranged in the vertical direction are shifted from each other in the shelf width direction due to the inclination of the support column, the position in the shelf width direction of the articles stored in the storage unit on the upper stage side from the lower stage is also When the relative position along the shelf width direction of the plurality of storage units arranged in the vertical direction is shifted, such as shifting from the center position in the shelf width direction of the storage unit to the shelf width direction, this is also stored in the storage unit. The position of the article in the shelf width direction is shifted in the shelf width direction from the center position in the shelf width direction of the storage unit. However, by setting the storage unit stop position for each of the plurality of storage units arranged in the vertical direction, the relative positions along the horizontal width direction of the plurality of storage units arranged in the vertical direction may be shifted. In addition, it is possible to avoid that the position of the article stored in the storage unit in the shelf width direction is shifted from the center position of the storage unit in the shelf width direction in the shelf width direction.

JP 2004-002006 A

In such an automatic warehouse, it may be desired to store an article having a small width and an article having a larger width than the article in the same article storage shelf.
For example, when storing a container in a box state that can be folded into a folded state in which a side surface part is folded on a bottom part, not only the container in the box state, but also a container that is not used is folded in a folded state, In some cases, it is desired to store a stacked container in which a plurality of folded containers are stacked. Such a foldable container generally has a side part that is foldable between a bottom part and a quadrangular annular upper frame part, and in order to stack the folded containers, A plurality of folded containers are stacked in a state where the upper frame portion of the container and the bottom portion of the upper container are fitted. And even if the container in the box state and each container in the folded state have the same width in the width direction of the shelf, as a whole of the plurality of containers in the stacked state, the fitting location for fitting the upper and lower containers together Since the upper and lower containers are displaced in the shelf width direction due to the backlash, the stacked containers may be slightly larger in width than the box-like containers. In other words, when storing a container in a box state and a container in a stacked state in which a plurality of folded containers are stacked, the container in a box state becomes a small article in the width, and a container in a stacked state in which a plurality of folded containers are stacked has a width in the width. It becomes a large article.
As an example other than the container described above, a pallet having a small width and a pallet having a slightly larger width than this pallet may be stored in the same article storage shelf as an article having a smaller width and an article having a larger width than the pallet. It is done.

  In this way, the width of each storage unit arranged in the horizontal direction of the shelf and the vertical direction is adjusted to the size of the large width item so that the small width item and the large width item can be stored in the item storage shelf. If it is configured to be wide, an article having a small width and an article having a large width can be stored in an article storage shelf, but an article having a small width is formed in accordance with an article having a large width. Therefore, the article having a small width and the article having a large width cannot be efficiently stored. In particular, as described above, when storing a container in a box state and a container in a stacked state in which a plurality of folded containers are stacked, the number of containers in a stacked state in which a plurality of containers in a box state are stacked. In spite of being considerably larger, a large amount of box-like containers are stored in a storage section having a width that is larger than necessary, and articles cannot be stored efficiently.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an automatic warehouse that can efficiently store an article having a small width and an article having a large width in an article storage shelf. is there.

In order to achieve this object, the first characteristic configuration of the automatic warehouse according to the present invention is such that a plurality of storage units for storing articles are arranged in the shelf width direction and the vertical direction, and the width in the shelf width direction is the same. An article storage shelf provided in a state of being formed, a carry-in / carry-in part into which goods are carried in / out, and a carry-in / out part that is movable up and down along a mast erected on a traveling carriage that runs along the width direction of the shelf And a conveying means provided with a lifting platform for supporting a transfer device for transferring an article to and from the storage section, a control means for controlling the operation of the conveying means, and a position of the traveling carriage in the width direction of the shelf And a lift position detection means for detecting the position of the lift base in the lift direction, and the control means includes detection information of the carriage position detection means and the loading / unloading section. Corresponding preset transport Based on the information indicating the carriage stop position for the entry section and the information indicating the carriage stop position for the storage section set in advance corresponding to the plurality of storage sections, the carriage stop position and the article for the loading / unloading section are transferred. The traveling carriage is stopped at the carriage stop position for the storage section corresponding to the storage section to be loaded, and the detection information for the lift position detection means and the preset for the loading / unloading section corresponding to the carry-in / out section Storage for transferring the lifting / lowering position for the loading / unloading part and the article based on information indicating the lifting / lowering stopping position and information indicating the lifting / lowering stopping position for the storage part set in advance corresponding to the plurality of storage parts In an automatic warehouse configured to control the operation of the conveying means to stop the lifting platform at the lifting stop position for the storage unit corresponding to the section,
The control means manages a width of the article stored in the article storage shelf, stores an article having a small width in an upper storage section among a plurality of storage sections, and stores a plurality of articles having a large width in the plurality. The operation of the conveying means is controlled so as to be stored in a lower storage portion of the storage portions.

That is, the control means manages the width of the articles stored in the article storage shelf, stores the articles with a small width in the upper storage section among the plurality of storage sections, and stores the articles with a large width in the plurality of sections. The operation of the conveying means is controlled so as to be stored in the lower storage portion of the storage portions.
In this way, by storing an article having a small width in the upper side of the plurality of storage sections and storing an article having a large width in the lower side of the plurality of storage sections, an article having a small width and an article having a large width. Although the width along the shelf width direction of the plurality of storage portions is made as small as possible, the articles storage shelves can efficiently store articles having a small width and articles having a large width. Become.
In other words, the mast erected on the traveling carriage in the conveying means will sway due to inertial force when the traveling carriage in the conveying means is stopped. Since it swings around a place supported by a traveling carriage, the upper part swings with a larger amplitude than the lower part, in other words, the conveying means caused by the mast swing The change of the position of the article held in the shelf width direction is compared with the case where the elevator is positioned at the upper part of the mast corresponding to the upper storage part of the plurality of storage parts. Thus, when the lifting platform is located in the lower part of the mast, the lower one of the plurality of storage parts tends to be smaller.
The horizontal width along the shelf width direction of the storage section is generated when the traveling carriage of the conveying means is moved to the carriage stop position for the loading / unloading section and stopped or when the carriage is stopped at the carriage stop position for the storage section. The position in the shelf width direction of the article stored in the storage unit is changed from the center position in the shelf width direction of the storage unit to the shelf width by the change in the position in the shelf width direction of the article due to the stop error and the swing of the mast. In order to avoid contact between the article and the shelf forming member even if it is displaced in the direction, it will be formed larger than the width along the shelf width direction of the article. The resulting change in the position of the article in the width direction of the shelf corresponds to the upper storage portion of the plurality of storage portions, compared to when the lifting platform is positioned in the upper portion of the mast, In the lower storage section among the multiple storage sections Accordingly, when the lifting platform is located at the lower part of the mast, the tendency is to be smaller, so that the change in the position of the article in the width direction of the shelf due to the shaking of the mast is made to correspond. Thus, the required width that requires the lateral width of the storage portion to be greater than the lateral width of the article is such that the lower storage portion can be smaller than the upper storage portion. In other words, the horizontal width of the lower storage section of the storage section needs to be increased to correspond to a large width article, but it corresponds to the change in the position of the article in the shelf width direction caused by the shaking of the mast. The width required to be larger than the lateral width of the article is smaller than that of the upper storage portion. On the other hand, the lateral width of the upper storage portion of the storage portion is small. Although it can be made smaller corresponding to the article of the article, the width required to be larger than the article width in response to the change in the position of the article in the width direction of the shelf due to the shaking of the mast is the lower storage section. Since the width of the upper storage portion and the lower storage portion is larger than the article so that the contact between the article and the shelf forming member can be avoided, In forming the width, the upper side The storage section and the storage section on the lower side are larger than the width of the article in accordance with the change in the width of the article to be stored and the change in the position of the article in the shelf width direction caused by the shaking of the mast. The required width that needs to be changed is opposite to the size, and the upper storage portion and the lower storage portion are prevented from having an unnecessarily large lateral width and stored. It is possible to make the width as small as possible according to the width of the article.
Therefore, it has become possible to provide an automatic warehouse that can efficiently store articles having a small width and articles having a large width in an article storage shelf.

  A second characteristic configuration of the automatic warehouse according to the present invention is the first characteristic configuration, wherein the article storage shelf is adjacent to each other by arranging a column set composed of a pair of front and rear columns at equal intervals in the horizontal direction of the shelf. It is in the point which is provided and arranged in the state where the above-mentioned storage part was arranged in the up-and-down direction between support columns.

That is, a column set consisting of a pair of front and rear columns is juxtaposed at equal intervals in the width direction of the shelf, and an article storage unit is provided in a state of being arranged in the vertical direction between adjacent column groups, so that the article storage shelf is a column type. Such a column-type article storage shelf is configured with a simple configuration, and a plurality of storage units can be formed with the same lateral width along the lateral width direction of the shelf. By using a column-type article storage shelf, it is possible to store an article with a small width in the upper storage section and store an article with a large width in the lower storage section, thereby simplifying the overall configuration. As shown, it is possible to efficiently store an article having a small width and an article having a large width.
Accordingly, it is possible to provide an automatic warehouse that can efficiently store articles while simplifying the configuration.

  A third characteristic configuration of the automatic warehouse according to the present invention is the first or second characteristic configuration, wherein the article is a box-like container in which a side surface portion is erected on a peripheral portion of the bottom surface portion and the side surface portion is the bottom surface. A container in a folded state in which folded containers folded on a part are stacked, and the control means manages the container in a box state as the small article in width, and the container in the stacked state is an article in large width It is in the point where it is constituted to manage as.

That is, even if the horizontal width of the container in the box state and the container in the folded state is the same size, the container in the stacked state is caused by the containers in the folded state that are stacked due to the backlash of the fitting position being shifted in the horizontal direction of the shelf. Since the width of the container is slightly larger than the container in the box state, the container in the box state is managed as an article with a small width, and the container in a stacked state in which a plurality of folded containers are stacked is managed as an article with a large width. Yes.
The box-like container is stored in the upper storage section, and the stacked container is stored in the lower storage section, thereby efficiently storing the box-state container and the stacked container in the article storage shelf. It can be done.
Therefore, it has become possible to provide an automatic warehouse that can efficiently store the container in the box state and the container in the stacked state in the article storage shelf.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in an automatic warehouse, an article storage shelf 2 in which a plurality of storage units 1 for storing articles 7 are arranged in a state in which the width of the shelf is arranged in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction, and articles are carried in and out. A loading / unloading device 6 serving as a loading / unloading unit, and a stacker crane 3 serving as a conveying means for conveying articles between the loading / unloading device 6 and the storage unit 1 of the article storage shelf 2 are provided.
The article storage shelf 2 is provided with a plurality of pairs arranged in the front-rear direction of the shelf so that the article loading / unloading direction is opposed to each other, and the stacker crane 3 is arranged between the opposing article storage shelves 2. It is comprised so that it may drive | work automatically along a width direction.

As shown in FIG. 2, the article storage shelf 2 includes a column set 4 composed of a pair of front and rear columns arranged at equal intervals in the width direction of the shelf, and the storage unit 1 is disposed between adjacent column groups 4. The plurality of storage units 1 arranged in the vertical direction and the horizontal direction of the shelf are all formed in the same horizontal width. Each of the storage units 1 is configured to store the article 7 in a form in which the article 7 is placed and supported on the placement support member 5.
In addition, the stacker crane 3 can move up and down along a mast 9 erected on a traveling carriage 8 that travels in the width direction of the shelf, and carries an article 7 between the carry-in / out device 6 and the storage unit 1. A lifting / lowering base 11 that supports the transfer device 10 of the slide fork type to be transferred is provided. The elevator 11 is provided with two transfer devices 10 in the traveling direction (shelf width direction) of the stacker crane 3, and is configured to be able to transfer the articles 7 independently.
The carry-in / out device 6 picks up the article 7 by the transfer device 10 of the stacker crane 3 at the end on the side where the roller conveyor for placing and conveying the shelf in the widthwise direction and the article storage shelf 2 in the widthwise direction of the shelf are located. A lifter that can be lifted from a roller conveyor is provided.

As shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, the article 7 includes a container in a box state (see FIGS. 4A and 5A) in which a side surface portion 42 is erected on the periphery of the bottom surface portion 41. It is a container (refer FIG.5 (c)) of the stacked state which piled up the container (refer FIG.4 (c)) of the folded state which folded the said side part 42 on the said bottom face part 41. FIG. Note that the upper portions of the four side surface portions 42 of the article 7 are connected to the upper frame portion 43.
As shown in FIG. 4 (a), the container has a box state in which a side surface portion 42 is erected on the periphery of the bottom surface portion 41, and from this box state, the side surface portion 42 is moved inward as shown in FIG. 4 (b). As shown in FIG. 4 (c), the side portion 42 can be switched to a folded state in which the side portion 42 is folded on the bottom portion 41, and the upper frame portion of the container located on the lower side and the container located on the upper side It is comprised so that a bottom part can be fitted and it is comprised so that the container of the several folding state may be piled up in the state fitted.
As shown in FIG. 5, the container A in the box state and the container in the folded state have the same width A, but the container 7b in the stacked state in which a plurality of folded containers are stacked is fitted with the container in the folded state. There is a possibility that the horizontal width may be increased by the amount of the deviation a by causing the containers in the folded state, which are stacked by the joints of the joint points, to shift from each other in the shelf horizontal width direction. Therefore, the host controller H manages one box-like container as an article 7a having a small width, and manages a stacked container composed of a plurality of folded containers as an article 7b having a large width. It is configured.

When the traveling carriage 8 is stopped at the carriage stop position for the loading / unloading section or the carriage stopping position for the storage section, or when the mast 9 is shaken due to inertial force or the like when the traveling carriage 8 is stopped, the transfer is performed. The apparatus 10 may shift in the shelf width direction with respect to the loading / unloading device 6 and the storage unit 1, and due to these, when the article 7 is stored in the storage unit 1, the article 7 is in the shelf width direction of the storage unit 1. Even if it is shifted in the lateral width direction of the shelf from the central location, the storage unit can store the article 7 in the storage unit 1 without contacting the article 7 to the support column located on the lateral side of the storage unit 1. A gap B is formed on the lateral side of the article 7 located at the center position in the lateral direction of the shelf with each lateral width being made larger than the lateral width of the article 7.
The mast 9 erected on the traveling carriage 8 is largely shaken at the upper part but hardly shakes at the lower part, and the lower storage part 1b is more influenced by the lower storage part 1a than the upper storage part 1a. Since the lower storage portion 1b is less affected by the shaking of the mast 9 than the upper storage portion 1a, it can store articles larger than the upper storage portion 1a. The difference in width between the article 7a having a small width and the article 7b having a large width is based on the difference between the influence of the mast 9 of the upper storage portion 1a and the influence of the mast 9 of the lower storage portion 1b. Since the article is small, the article 7b having a large width can be stored in the storage section 1b on the lower side of the article storage shelf 2 for storing the article 7a having a small width.
That is, the horizontal width of the storage unit 1 is set so that the minimum necessary gap B is formed on the lateral side of the article 7a having a small horizontal width stored in the uppermost storage unit 1 arranged in the vertical direction. The upper storage portion 1a including the uppermost storage portion 1a having the same horizontal width as the upper storage portion 1 stores an article 7a having a small horizontal width, and the lower storage portion 1b having the same horizontal width as the upper storage portion 1 has a horizontal width. Large articles 7b are stored.

Next, the stacker crane 3 will be specifically described.
As shown in FIG. 2, the traveling carriage 8 is provided with two front and rear wheels 25 that are capable of traveling on a guide rail 24 installed on the floor surface, and one of the two wheels 25 is The propulsion drive wheel 25a is driven by a traveling electric motor 26 (see FIG. 3), and the other wheel is configured as a freely rotatable driven wheel 25b.

On one end side of the guide rail 24, a traveling laser range finder 27 that projects a ranging beam light in the traveling direction is provided, and the traveling carriage 8 includes a beam light from the traveling laser range finder 27. Is provided.
Then, the traveling laser range finder 27 projects toward the reflecting plate 28 installed on the traveling carriage 8 and detects the horizontal movement distance from the reference horizontal position with the installation position as the reference horizontal position. The traveling laser range finder 27 constitutes a cart position detecting means for detecting the position of the traveling cart 8 in the shelf width direction.

The lifting platform 11 is suspended and supported by lifting chains 12 connected to both sides in the traveling direction. The lifting chain 12 is connected to an upper guide sprocket 14 provided on the upper frame 13 of the stacker crane 3. It is wound around an intermediate guide sprocket 15 provided at the upper and lower intermediate part of one lifting mast 9 and connected to a take-up drum 16 provided at one end of the traveling carriage 8 in the traveling direction.
That is, the lifting / lowering platform 11 is moved up and down when the lifting / lowering chain 12 is fed and wound by rotating the winding drum 16 forward / reversely with the lifting / lowering electric motor 17. Yes.

The traveling carriage 8 has a lifting laser range finder 20 that projects light beams for distance measurement in the horizontal direction, and a path of the beam light projected by the lifting laser range finder 20 is bent vertically upward. The mirror 22 for irradiating the reflecting plate 21 installed on the lower surface of the elevator 11 is provided.
The lifting laser range finder 20 uses the position of the mirror 22 provided on the traveling carriage 8 as the reference lifting position in the lifting direction of the lifting platform 11, and sets the distance between the reference lifting position and the lifting platform 11. By detecting, it is configured to detect the lift movement distance from the reference lift position of the lift platform 11, and this lift laser range finder 20 detects the position of the lift platform 11 in the lift direction. The raising / lowering position detection means to be comprised is comprised.

As shown in FIG. 3, upper control means H for controlling the operation of the stacker crane 3 is provided. The upper control means H includes a fixed-side optical transmission / reception device 31 connected to the upper control device H, and By transmitting and receiving an optical signal to and from the optical transmission / reception device 31 on the moving side connected to the lower level control device h provided in the stacker crane 3, various information can be exchanged with the lower level control device h of the stacker crane 3. It is configured to transmit and receive.
That is, the host control means H inputs to the input unit 35 a warehousing request for conveying the article 7 of the carry-in / out device 6 to the article storage shelf 2, a warehousing request for conveying the article 7 of the article storage shelf 2 to the carry-in / out device 6 Then, the operation command information is transmitted to the lower control device h, and the detection information of the lifting laser rangefinder 20, the detection information of the column detection sensor 33 and the detection information of the mounting support member detection sensor 34 are transmitted from the lower control means h. It is configured to receive. Note that detection information of the traveling laser range finder 27 is input to the host control means H.
Then, the lower control means h controls the operation of the traveling electric motor 26, the elevating electric motor 17 and the transfer device 10 based on the operation command information received from the upper control means H, and elevating laser ranging. The detection information of the total 20, the detection information of the support column detection sensor 33, and the detection information of the mounting support member detection sensor 34 are transmitted to the host control device H.

  In the upper control means H, information indicating the carriage stop position for the loading / unloading section set in advance corresponding to the loading / unloading apparatus 6 and the carriage stop position for the storage section preset in the plurality of storage sections 1 are shown. Information, information indicating the lifting / lowering stop position for the loading / unloading unit set in advance corresponding to the loading / unloading device 6, and information indicating the lifting / stopping position for the storage unit set in advance corresponding to the plurality of storage units 1 Is stored, and based on the detection information of the traveling laser range finder 27, the information indicating the carriage stop position for the carry-in / out section and the information indicating the carriage stop position for the storage section, The traveling carriage 8 is stopped at the carriage stop position corresponding to the carriage stop position and the accommodation section 1 to which the article 7 is transferred, and the detection information of the lifting laser rangefinder 20 and the loading / unloading section Information indicating a lift stop position and the plurality of The storage unit corresponding to the storage unit 1 to which the lifting / lowering stop position for the loading / unloading unit and the article 7 are transferred based on the information indicating the lift stop position for the storage unit set in advance corresponding to the storage unit 1. The operation of the stacker crane 3 is controlled so as to stop the lifting platform 11 at the lift stop position.

Next, a description will be given of the control of the operation of the stacker crane 3 based on the warehousing request.
The host controller H manages the lateral width of the article 7 stored in the article storage shelf 2 and stores the article 7a having a small lateral width in the upper storage section 1a of the plurality of storage sections 1. The large-sized article 7b is configured to control the operation of the stacker crane 3 so as to be stored in the lower storage portion 1b of the plurality of storage portions 1.
That is, when inputting the warehousing request at the input unit 35, the article 7 carried into the loading / unloading device 6 together with the warehousing request is stacked in a single container or a plurality of folded containers. Information on whether the container is in the state is also input to the host controller H, and the host controller H manages the container in the box state as the article with the small width 7a, and the container in the stacked state with the article with the large breadth 7b. Is configured to manage as.

The host controller H receives an article transport request such as an entry request for entering the article 7 of the carry-in / out apparatus 6 into the article storage shelf 2 and an exit request for delivering the article 7 from the article storage shelf 2 to the carry-in / out apparatus 6. Is input to the lower control device h in the stacker crane 3 from the plurality of storage units 1 to instruct the target storage unit 1.
On the other hand, when the low order control device h in the stacker crane 3 is given the operation command information by the input of the warehousing request from the high order control means H, based on the operation command information, the traveling cart 8 is set at the cart stop position for the loading / unloading section. The operation of the traveling carriage 8 is controlled so as to be stopped, the operation of the lifting carriage 11 is controlled so that the elevator 11 is stopped at the lifting / lowering stop position for the loading / unloading section, and the traveling carriage 8 is moved to the carriage stopping position for the loading / unloading section. The operation of the transfer device 10 is controlled so that the article 7 is transferred from the loading / unloading device 6 to the transfer device 10 in a state where the lifting / lowering table 11 is stopped at the lifting / lowering stop position for the loading / unloading unit. . Thereafter, the operation of the traveling carriage 8 is controlled so that the traveling carriage 8 is stopped at the carriage stop position for the storage section, and the operation of the lifting platform 11 is controlled so that the elevator base 11 is stopped at the lifting stop position for the storage section. Then, the article 7 is transferred from itself to the storage unit 1 by the transfer device 10 in a state in which the traveling cart 8 is stopped at the cart stop position for the storage unit and the elevator platform 11 is stopped at the lift stop position for the storage unit. The operation of the transfer device 10 is controlled so as to be mounted.
Incidentally, when the article 7 is transferred by the transfer device 10, the set time elapses after the traveling carriage 8 is stopped at the carriage stop position for the carry-in / out section and the carriage stop position for the storage section, and the lifting platform 11 is moved into the carry-in / out section. It is configured to be performed in a state where it is stopped at the lifting / lowering stop position for storage or the lifting / lowering stopping position for the storage unit, and is configured to transfer the article 7 with the shaking of the mast 9 kept small. Yes.

In addition to the operation mode for controlling the operation of the stacker crane 3 so as to transport the article 7 between the carry-in / out device 6 and the storage unit 1 of the article storage shelf 2, as described above, The mode is also configured to execute. Next, the learning mode will be described.
The lifting platform 11 is provided with a supporting column detection sensor 33 for detecting the supporting column assembly 4. The lifting platform 11 is moved up and down to a height corresponding to the level to be detected in the storage units 1 arranged in the vertical direction. Then, the traveling carriage 8 is caused to travel in the horizontal width direction of the shelf at the learning traveling speed, and the portion corresponding to the storage unit 1 in the column set 4 is detected by the column detection sensor 33 for each stage of the storage unit 1 arranged in the vertical direction. Let it be detected.
Further, the lifting platform 11 is provided with a mounting support member detection sensor 34 for detecting the mounting support member 5, and the traveling carriage is positioned at a position corresponding to the detection target in the storage units 1 arranged in the horizontal direction of the shelf. 8, and then the elevator 11 is moved up and down at the learning elevating speed, and the storage units 1 arranged in the horizontal direction of the shelf are moved by the mounting support member detection sensor 34 for each series. Is detected.
And the high-order control apparatus H correct | amends the information which shows the trolley | bogie stop position about each target stop position based on the detection information of the laser rangefinder 27 for a run when the support | pillar detection sensor 33 detects the support | pillar 6. The information indicating the lift stop position for each target stop position is corrected based on the detection information of the lift laser rangefinder 20 when the placement support member detection sensor 34 detects the placement support member 5. It is configured.

[Another embodiment]
(1) In the above embodiment, the lower storage portion 1b of the plurality of storage portions 1 is configured to store only the article 7b having a large width. For example, the upper storage portion 1a is empty. As shown in FIG. 6, when the storage portion 1 b on the lower side has no space and the article 7 a having a small width is stored in the storage portion 1 b on the lower side, the article 7 a having a small width is placed on the lower side under the set conditions. You may comprise so that it may accommodate in the storage part 1b.

(2) In the above embodiment, the two kinds of articles 7 having different widths of the article 7a having a small width and the article 7b having a large width are stored in the article storage shelf 2. You may comprise so that three or more types of articles | goods 7 from which the width | variety width differs may be accommodated in the article | item storage shelf 2 by adding the articles | goods from which a magnitude | size differs.
That is, for example, when three types of articles 7 having different widths are stored, an article having the smallest width is stored in the upper storage section 1a, and an article having the largest width is stored in the lower storage section 1b. All kinds of articles 7 are stored in one shelf row so that the storage section located between the upper storage section 1a and the lower storage section 1b stores the second largest item. You may comprise. Further, for example, in a certain shelf row, the smallest article is stored in the upper storage portion 1a, and the second largest article is stored in the lower storage portion 1b. The storage section 1a is configured to store the second largest article and the lower storage section 1b to store some types of articles 7 in one shelf row. May be.

(3) In the above embodiment, in the learning mode, correction of information indicating the carriage stop position for the target stop position corresponding to the storage unit 1 is performed in the height of the special storage unit 1, that is, in the vertical direction, etc. Although it was configured to correct based on the detection information of the support column detection sensor 33 that detected the position of each of the support column groups 4 at a set height set to a plurality of intervals, a plurality of set setting heights that detect the position of the support column May not be equally spaced in the vertical direction.

(4) In the above embodiment, the article 7 is a container that can be switched between a boxed state and a folded state. For example, the article 7 is placed on the article storage shelf 2 such as a carton case or a pallet on which a load is placed and supported. Anything can be stored.

Perspective view of automated warehouse Front view of goods storage shelf Control block diagram Figure showing an article The figure which shows an article with a small width and an article with a large width Front view of an article storage shelf in another embodiment

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Storage part 2 Goods storage shelf 3 Conveyance means 4 Column set 7 Goods 7a Small width goods 7b Large width goods 8 Traveling cart 9 Mast 10 Transfer device 11 Lifting table 20 Lifting position detection means 27 Dolly position detection means 41 Bottom part 42 Side part H Control means

Claims (3)

An article storage shelf provided in a state in which a plurality of storage units for storing articles are arranged in the width direction of the shelf and in the vertical direction, and in the state of forming the same width in the width direction of the shelf;
A loading / unloading section where goods are carried in and out;
A lifting platform that can move up and down along a mast installed on a traveling carriage that runs along the width direction of the shelf and supports a transfer device that transfers articles between the loading / unloading section and the storage section. Conveying means,
Control means for controlling the operation of the conveying means;
A carriage position detecting means for detecting a position of the traveling carriage in a shelf width direction, and a lift position detecting means for detecting a position of the lift base in the lift direction;
The control means is set in advance corresponding to the detection information of the carriage position detecting means, information indicating a carriage stop position for the loading / unloading section set in advance corresponding to the loading / unloading section, and the plurality of storage sections. Based on the information indicating the carriage stop position for the storage section, the traveling carriage is stopped at the carriage stop position for the loading / unloading section and the carriage stop position for the storage section corresponding to the storage section for transferring the article, and,
Detection information of the lift position detection means, information indicating a lift stop position for the loading / unloading section set in advance corresponding to the loading / unloading section, and lifting / lowering for the storage section set in advance corresponding to the plurality of storage sections Based on the information indicating the stop position, the transport means is configured to stop the lift platform at the lift stop position for the loading / unloading section and the lift stop position for the storage section corresponding to the storage section for transferring the article. An automatic warehouse configured to control operation,
The control means manages a width of the article stored in the article storage shelf, stores an article having a small width in an upper storage section among a plurality of storage sections, and stores a plurality of articles having a large width in the plurality. An automatic warehouse configured to control the operation of the conveying means to be stored in a lower storage portion of the storage portions.   The article storage shelf is configured such that a column set composed of a pair of front and rear columns is arranged side by side in the width direction of the shelf at equal intervals, and the storage unit is arranged in the vertical direction between adjacent column groups. The automatic warehouse according to claim 1. The article is a container in a stacked state in which a container in a box state in which a side surface portion is erected on a peripheral portion of a bottom surface portion and a container in a folded state in which the side surface portion is folded on the bottom surface portion are stacked.
3. The automatic warehouse according to claim 1, wherein the control unit is configured to manage the container in the box state as the article having the small width and manage the container in the stacked state as the article having the large width.

Images