JP2009286615A - Cargo transfer device and automated warehouse - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a transfer device capable of handling cargoes even if width dimensions of the cargoes are largely different. <P>SOLUTION: This transfer device 4 is provided with a pair of transfer units 17. The right and left transfer units 17 are adjusted in mutual space by a transverse feed motor 26. The cargoes W are moved in held states by the right and left transfer units 17. A cargo mounting part mounted with the cargoes W thereon is constituted of a fixed support 23 arranged between the right and left transfer units 17 and movable support plates 22 mounted on the right and left transfer units 17. The movable support plates 22 can be overlapped on an upper face of the fixed support 23. Due to the existence of the fixed support 23, the space between the right and left transfer units 17 can be largely extended while reducing projection dimensions L3 of the movable support plates 22 as much as possible. As a result, the cargoes W largely different in cargo widths can be handled. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a load transfer device and an automatic warehouse having the load transfer device.

  An automatic warehouse is an example of a distribution facility that processes a large amount of cargo. The automatic warehouse uses the transfer mechanism to load and unload loads into the hangar, but the transfer mechanism is roughly equipped with a mast (column) on a cart that runs horizontally in the transfer path, and a carriage can be moved up and down. It is roughly divided into a stacker crane system and a cart system in which self-propelled carts that run horizontally in the transfer passage are arranged in multiple stages.

  A transfer device that transfers the load to the hangar (shelf) is required regardless of whether it is a stacker crane method or a cart method. As an example of this transfer device, There is a nipping and feeding method that performs retraction. In other words, this transfer device of the holding and feeding method arranges left and right advancing and retreating frames that move forward and backward toward the shelf on both the left and right sides sandwiching the loading unit on the main body having the loading unit, A feed belt extending in the moving direction of the advance / retreat frame is provided (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

As a mechanism for pulling in and discharging the load, in addition to the pinching feed method, the load is pushed and pulled by a horizontal rotation type picker, or the load is pushed by a picker that rotates around a horizontal axis facing the shelf. Various structures have been proposed and implemented, such as pullers. In any case, the load must be supported by the load placing portion in a state where the load is drawn into a self-propelled carriage or a carriage. As an example of this loading section, Patent Document 1 discloses that a plurality of roller rails (a long frame material with a number of rollers attached) are arranged in parallel on the main body.
Japanese Patent No. 2871144

  Now, the materials and structures of loads vary, and some of them have extremely strong structures such as wooden boxes and resin containers, while others are not as strong as cardboard boxes. Also, the size of the load (load width / depth) varies. In the case of Patent Document 1, there is no problem when the load is high in rigidity and the size is constant like a wooden box or a resin container, but it is difficult to handle when the load is a cardboard box (use Is difficult).

  On the other hand, there is a type of transfer device in which only one of the left and right transfer units moves, in which the loading unit is formed of a flat plate (for example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2002-120993). It is possible to divert this prior art to the type in which each moves. The inventor of this application has considered this point, and the one in which the flat plate is simply attached to the movable left / right transfer unit, such as the loading unit, is located between the flat plates when the interval between the left and right transfer units increases. It has been found that problems such as a decrease in the stability of the load due to the interval occur.

  The present invention has been made to improve the current situation.

  The transfer device according to the present invention is provided with “a pair of left and right transfer units arranged so as to sandwich a load in a plan view, and the left and right transfer units are movable in a lateral direction in which the distance between them changes widely. In addition, the left and right transfer unit is provided with a load feeding means for horizontally moving the load in a vertical direction orthogonal to the horizontal direction in plan view, and the load is supported by the load placing unit. It has become a basic configuration.

  And in invention of Claim 1, the said load mounting part has a part exposed between the left and right movable support plates fixed to each of the said left and right transfer units, and the movable support plates of the left and right transfer units. The fixed support portion is fixed to a base frame disposed below the fixed support portion. According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the first aspect, the left and right movable support plates are allowed to move laterally while overlapping the upper surface of the fixed support portion.

  The invention of claim 3 is the invention according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the load feeding means of the left / right transfer unit includes an advancing / retreating frame that moves in the vertical direction in a plan view, and the transfer unit is attached to the advancing / retreating frame. A feed member that abuts and separates from the side surface of the load when laterally moved is provided. When the load feed member is driven, the load moves vertically relative to the advance / retreat frame. The movable support plate has a substantially quadrangular shape in plan view, and the fixed support portion has a substantially H shape in plan view in which both front and rear end portions facing in the longitudinal direction are protruding portions projecting in the lateral direction. The protruding portion of the fixed support portion can enter below the transfer unit.

  The invention of the present application also includes an automatic warehouse. As described in claim 4, the automatic warehouse is configured such that hangars having multistage shelves are arranged opposite to each other across a transfer passage extending in a plan view. Each of the transfer passages includes a plurality of self-propelled carriages that can move horizontally or a stacker crane that has a carriage that can move up and down horizontally. The carriage of the carriage or the stacker crane has the transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, and the load can be freely transferred between the hangar and the transfer device.

  Now, when the movable left and right transfer unit movable support plate is only attached, in order to stably support the load, for example, the left and right transfer unit movable support plates are held in a stacked state. If this is the case, the projecting dimensions of each movable support plate must be large, and then the dimensions that can adjust the distance between the left and right transfer units are restricted by the projecting dimensions of the movable support plate, and may become too large. Can not. For this reason, the range which can respond to the difference in the width dimension of a load is limited.

  On the other hand, in the present invention, even if there is a gap between the movable support plates provided in the left and right transfer units, the fixed support portion is disposed between the movable support plates, so that the projecting dimension of the movable support plate is made as small as possible. Even so, the load can be supported stably in a three-point support state. In addition, since the projecting dimension of the movable support plate can be reduced, the interval between the left and right transfer units can be reduced as much as possible. Therefore, according to the present invention, it is possible to stably support various loads having greatly different width dimensions, and as a result, the compatibility with various loads can be significantly improved.

  In this case, since the left and right movable support plates can be brought close to a state where they abut each other, the distance between the left and right transfer units can be made as small as possible. Is preferred.

  There are various types of load feeding means. However, when the nipping and feeding method as in Patent Document 1 is adopted, the distance between the left and right load feeding means can be considerably reduced, so that a load having a considerably small width can be handled. Therefore, it can be said that the present invention is more effective when applied to the nipping load feeding system as in claim 3.

  Further, in many cases, a transversal member or the like is arranged on the lower surface portion of the transfer unit. However, in the invention of claim 3, the fixed support portion is H-shaped in plan view, and only the overhang portion is present. Since it can enter below the transfer unit, the left / right transfer unit can be moved as close as possible without impairing the ease of arrangement of the members for transverse feeding, etc. Also from this point, the width dimension is small It is easy to handle the load. Further, the fact that the fixed support portion is H-shaped in plan view also contributes to an increase in strength of the fixed support portion and an improvement in the load support stability.

  Next, an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. This embodiment is applied to a self-propelled cart type automatic warehouse (or applied to a self-propelled cart of an automatic warehouse).

(1). Outline of automatic warehouse and self-propelled carriage FIG. 1 is a rough perspective view, FIG. 2 is a rough plan view, FIG. 3 is a plan view with some members omitted, and FIG. It is IV-IV sectional view. First, an outline of an automatic warehouse and a self-propelled carriage will be described based on these drawings.

  The automatic warehouse includes a pair of hangars 2 arranged opposite to each other across a transfer passage 1 that is elongated in plan view. The hangar 2 has a multi-stage shelf 3, and a self-propelled carriage 4 is disposed in the transfer passage 1 so as to be able to run horizontally corresponding to the shelf 3 of each stage.

  In the present invention (and this embodiment), the words of front and rear, left and right, horizontal direction, horizontal movement, vertical direction, and vertical movement are used as the direction words, but the front and rear direction and the vertical direction are synonymous, The horizontal direction is synonymous, vertical movement means vertical movement, and horizontal movement means horizontal movement. Basically, the direction from the self-propelled carriage 4 toward the hangar 2 is defined as a reference view (front view) as clearly shown with an arrow in FIGS. 1 and 2. However, there are cases where the forward / reverse wording and the wording such as the inner surface / side surface are not constrained by the reference vision of FIGS. 1 and 2 (for example, there may be a usage of moving forward in the left direction).

  A lift device is disposed at one or both of the end portions (one end portion or both end portions) of the hangar 2 with or without a temporary shelf, and each stage of the self-propelled carriage 4 and the lift device During this period, the load is delivered, and the load is transferred to the lift device and the loading / unloading conveyor. In the present embodiment, the shelf 3 is a solid-type flat shelf having a wide shelf plate 5, and the front end edge of the shelf plate 5 is supported by a rail 6 extending along the transfer path 1. The automatic warehouse has a large number of pillars, and a framework is composed of aggregates such as a group of pillars, a horizontal rail, and a rail 6.

  The self-propelled carriage 4 has a main body 7 extending long in the longitudinal direction of the transfer passage 1 in a plan view, and the main body 7 is provided with front and rear wheels 8 and a travel drive device 9. The travel drive device 9 is a system that meshes with a travel timing belt 10 disposed on one rail 6, and includes a drive pulley 11 and a pressing pulley 12. One rail 6 is provided with a step portion 6a on which the traveling timing belt 10 is placed. A main body 7 of the self-propelled carriage 4 has a rectangular shape in plan view with two front and rear side frames 13 extending in the longitudinal direction of the transfer passage 1 and an end frame 14 connected between the ends of the front and rear side frames 13 as main members. It has become.

  The self-propelled carriage 4 has a pair of left and right transfer units 17 that take in and out the load W. The transfer unit 17 is attached to the base frame 18 that extends in the front-rear direction (a direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of the self-propelled carriage 4), the advancing / retracting frame 19 that is attached to the base frame 18 so as to be movable back and forth, and the advancing / retracting frame 19 The auxiliary frame 20 has two front and rear endless load feeding belts 21 arranged in series as an example of the load feeding means.

  The auxiliary frame 20 is attached to the advance / retreat frame 19 by a linear guide means so as to move left and right with a slight stroke, and is urged toward the load W by a spring means (not shown). The load feeding belt 21 is an example of an endless belt.

  The loading of the load W from the shelf 3 or the temporary storage shelf 4 to the self-propelled carriage 4 is performed in a state where the distance between the left and right load feeding belts 21 is slightly larger than the load width of the load W, and in this state, the advance / retreat frame 19 is moved. And the load feeding belt 21 is moved forward in the direction of the load W, and then the distance between the left and right transfer units 17 is narrowed by the lateral feed mechanism, whereby the load W is clamped by the load feeding belt 21 against the elasticity of the spring means. Then, after the transverse feed is stopped, the load feeding belt 21 is retreated while rotating. The delivery of the load W is performed in the reverse procedure.

  A movable support plate 22 on which the load W is placed is fixed to the base frame 18 of the left / right transfer unit 17, and a fixed support portion on which the load W is placed between the left / right transfer units 17 in the main body 7. 23 is fixed. This point will be described later.

(2). Horizontal feed mechanism / longitudinal feed mechanism / loading means Next, the vertical feed mechanism and the lateral feed mechanism will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 5 is a schematic VV sectional view of FIG. A lateral feed motor 25 is disposed via a reinforcing stay 24 as a part of the vertical feed mechanism at a position on the left and right outside of one transfer unit 17 in the main body 7. When the vertical feed motor 25 is driven forward / reversely, the advance / retreat frame 19 of the left / right transfer unit 17 moves back and forth in synchronization. Further, a lateral feed motor 26 is attached to the base frame 18 of the other transfer unit 17 located on the opposite side to the vertical feed motor 25. In addition, a load feeding motor 27 for driving the load feeding belt 21 is disposed at the front and rear intermediate portions of each forward / backward frame 19 in the left / right transfer unit 17.

  As shown in FIG. 3, a left and right longitudinal rack bar 29 is fixed to the inner side surface of the side frame 13 constituting the main body 7, and a left and right longitudinal fixed linear guide 30 is fixed to the inner side surface of the rack bar 29. On the other hand, a substantially U-shaped first bracket 31 that is open to the left and right outside in a plan view is fixed to the rear surface of the front and rear ends of the base frame 18 in the left and right transfer unit 17. A movable linear guide 32 slidably attached to the fixed linear guide 30 is fixed to the lower end portion via an auxiliary plate (not shown).

  The left and right transfer units 17 need to move left and right with an accurate posture. Therefore, the left and right base frames 18 hold the front and rear longitudinal first pinion shafts 34 and 35 in a freely rotatable manner, and width-adjusting pinion gears 36 attached to the front and rear ends of the pinion shafts 34 and 35 are formed on the upper surface of the rack bar 29. It meshes with the rack teeth.

  The first pinion shaft 34 positioned on the right side in FIGS. 2 and 3 is rotatably held by a bearing 37 fixed to one first bracket 31 and a gear box 38 of the transverse feed motor 26. The gear box 38 of the lateral feed motor 26 is fixed to the first bracket 32 and the second bracket 39 fixed to the base frame 18. The second pinion shaft 35 located on the left side in FIGS. 2 and 3 is rotatably held by a bearing 37 fixed to the two first brackets 31.

  The left and right transfer units 17 can move in opposite directions in synchronization with each other. As a means for this purpose, in this embodiment, a sprocket 41 is rotatably attached to a reinforcing stay 24 fixed to the main body 7 and one end frame 14 via a third bracket 40, and endless chains 42 are attached to the left and right sprockets 41. The base frame 18 of the transfer unit 17 on one side (left in FIG. 5) is fixed to the upper part of the chain 42 via the third bracket 43, and the base of the transfer unit 17 on the other side (right in FIG. 5). The frame 18 is fixed to the lower part of the chain 42 via the fourth bracket 44.

  Therefore, when the transverse feed motor 26 is driven, the first pinion shaft 34 rotates and one transfer unit 17 moves. Then, the other transfer unit 17 is connected to one transfer unit 17 by the pulling action of the chain 42. Move in the opposite direction. The moving distance of the left / right transfer unit 17 is the same.

  For example, as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, the base frame 18 of the transfer unit 17 has a U-shaped configuration with an upward opening in a standard view, and the rising portion facing the load placement portion regulates the position of the load W. This is a guide piece 18a. The front and rear ends of the guide piece 18a are inclined in plan view. As shown in FIG. 2, the base frame 18 has a length that partially overlaps the rails 6 on both sides of the transfer passage 1 in plan view. When applied to a stacker crane, the base frame 18 has a longitudinal dimension that moves up and down in the transfer passage 1.

  The advancing / retreating frame 19 is disposed inside the base frame 18 and has a first U-shaped first member 46 that opens toward the back plate of the base frame 18 and a U-shaped front view that opens toward the loading unit. And the second member 47.

  As shown in FIG. 4, the advancing / retracting frame 20 is attached to the base frame 18 so as to be movable back and forth by a linear guide member in which two longitudinal sliders 48 and 49 are slidably fitted. Further, as shown in FIG. 4, a front / rear longitudinal rack 50 is fixed to the lower surface of the second member 47 in the advance / retreat frame 19, and the advance / retreat pinion 51 is engaged with rack teeth formed on the lower surface of the rack 50. The forward / backward pinion 51 of the left / right transfer unit 17 is mounted on a common spline shaft 52 so as to be slidable but not relatively rotatable. The advancing / retreating pinion 51 is rotatably held on a bearing 51 ′ fixed to the lower surface of the base frame 18 so as not to be separated.

  One end of the spline shaft 52 close to the longitudinal feed motor 25 is supported by a bearing 53, and the bearing 53 is fixed to a reinforcing stay 54 provided in the machine body 7. Power is transmitted to the spline shaft 52 from the longitudinal feed motor 25 by a timing belt 55.

(3). Loading Placement Next, the loading place will be described with reference to FIGS. 6A is a sectional view taken along the line VIA-VIA in FIG. 3, FIG. 6B is a sectional view taken along the line VIB-VIB in FIG. 3, and FIG. 6C is a front view showing an overlapping state of the fixed support portion and the movable support plate. FIGS. 7A and 7B are plan views in a state where the interval between the transfer units 17 is narrowed. In FIG. 7, the contour of the fixed support portion 23 is indicated by a thick solid line including the hidden portion, and the movable support plate 22 is provided with a parallel oblique line at the edge portion to clearly show the contour.

  The loading unit is composed of a fixed support part 23 and a movable support plate 22. The fixed support portion 23 is made of a plate material, and has a strip-like base portion 23a extending along a longitudinal center line 57 located in the middle of the left and right transfer unit 17, and left and right ends from the front and rear ends of the base portion 23a at the upper surface portion of the side frame 13. Thus, the fixed support portion 23 is formed in an H shape in plan view as a whole.

  The front and rear end portions of the fixed support portion 23 are inclined surfaces that are inclined downward in a side view. This is to prevent the load W from being caught. Further, obliquely downward inclined guide pieces 23c are integrally provided on both left and right edges of the base portion 23a. This is for ensuring the overlap with the movable support plate 22.

  A reinforcing member 60 extending in the front-rear direction is fixed to the lower surface of the base 23a by welding. The reinforcing member 60 has a U-shaped configuration with an upward opening when viewed from the front, and is partially cut away so as not to interfere with the spline shaft 52 and the chain 42. In addition, notches 61 are also formed on the inclined left and right side edges of the base portion 23a so as not to interfere with the chain 42.

  The movable support plate 22 is formed in a longitudinally long rectangular shape in plan view. 6A, the base of the movable support plate 22 is bent upward, and the base that is bent upward is fixed to the lower surface of the base frame 18 with bolts 58 and nuts 59. Has been. As shown in FIGS. 6A and 4, the base frame 18 is arranged in a state of being floated with a certain distance from the side frame 13 of the main body 7. Accordingly, the left and right transfer units 17 can be moved to a position where they overlap with the protruding portion 23b of the fixed support portion 23 in plan view.

  The movable support plate 22 is movable so as to overlap the upper surface of the fixed support portion 23. In order to facilitate this overlap, as shown in FIG. 8, the left and right tip portions of the movable support plate 22 are formed with inclined guide surfaces 62 directed from the bottom surface toward the top surface, and the left and right tip portions of the fixed support portion 23 are top surfaces. An inclined guide surface 63 is formed from the surface toward the lower surface.

  The protruding dimension L2 of the overhanging part 23b in the fixed support part 23 is set to be slightly shorter than the left and right width dimension L1 of the base part 23a, and the left and right width dimension L3 of the movable support plate 22 is set in the fixed support part 23. The dimension is set to be slightly smaller than the protruding dimension L2 of the projecting portion 23b. Of course, each dimension can be set arbitrarily.

(4) Summary In the state where the distance between the left and right transfer units 17 is widest, there is a slight gap between the protruding portion 23b of the fixed support portion 23 and the left and right movable support plate 22. However, since the load W is in a three-point support state by the fixed support portion 23 and the movable support plate 22, even if the load W is not as high as a cardboard box, it is supported in a stable state. In particular, when the overhanging portion 23b is provided as in the present embodiment to form an H shape in a plan view, the load W can be secured in a letter-shaped manner and a wide support area can be secured, thus ensuring extremely high stability. This is preferable.

  When the distance between the left and right transfer units 17 is reduced, the movable support plate 22 and the fixed support portion 23 overlap each other. In this case, the left and right movable support plates 22 have the same height, so that the inclination of the load W does not occur. Therefore, high stability is ensured.

  Further, although the left and right movable support plates 22 can be brought close to each other as shown in FIG. 7, the presence of the fixed support portion 23 can make the protruding dimension L3 of the movable support plate 22 as short as possible. (It can be set to a much smaller dimension compared to the case where the left and right transfer unit 17 is provided with a movable support plate.) As a result, the minimum distance between the left and right transfer units 17 can be made as small as possible. The range of the width dimension of can be increased. Specifically, in this embodiment, the difference in the width dimension between the load W having the smallest width dimension and the load W having the largest width dimension is about 1: 3.5.

(5). Others The present invention can be embodied in various ways other than the above embodiment. For example, the fixed support portion may be a simple rectangle. It is also possible to separate the fixed support part into a plurality of left and right sheets.

It is a schematic perspective view of embodiment. It is a schematic plan view. It is the schematic plan view which abbreviate | omitted a part member. FIG. 4 is a sectional view taken along line IV-IV in FIG. 2. FIG. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional view taken along the line V-V in FIG. 3. 3A is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VIA-VIA in FIG. 3, FIG. 4B is a cross-sectional view taken along the line VIB-VIB in FIG. 3, and FIG. 4C is a front view showing an overlapping state of the fixed support portion and the movable support plate. It is a top view in the state where the transfer unit was narrowed to the reference interval.

Explanation of symbols

Reference Signs List 4 Self-propelled carriage with built-in transfer device 7 Main body 17 Transfer unit 18 Base frame 19 Advance / retreat frame 20 Auxiliary frame 21 Load feeding belt as an example of load feeding means 22 Movable support plate 23 constituting load placing portion 23 Load placing portion Fixed support portion 23a Base portion 23b Overhang portion 25 Vertical feed motor constituting an example of a vertical feed mechanism 26 Horizontal feed motor constituting an example of a lateral feed mechanism 27 Load feed motor constituting a load feed unit

Claims (4)

A pair of left and right transfer units arranged so as to sandwich a load in plan view, and the left and right transfer units are movable in a lateral direction in which the distance between the left and right transfer units changes widely. Is provided with a load feeding means for horizontally moving the load in the vertical direction perpendicular to the lateral direction in plan view, and the load is supported by the load placing portion,
In the configuration
The loading unit is composed of a left and right movable support plate fixed to each of the left and right transfer units, and a fixed support unit having a portion exposed between the movable support plates of the left and right transfer units, The fixed support portion is fixed to a base frame disposed below the fixed support portion.
Load transfer device. The left and right movable support plates are allowed to move laterally while overlapping the upper surface of the fixed support portion.
The load transfer apparatus according to claim 1. The load feeding means of the left / right transfer unit includes an advance / retreat frame that moves in the longitudinal direction in a plan view, and a feed member that contacts and separates from the side surface of the load when the transfer unit moves laterally on the advance / retreat frame. While the load feeding member is driven, the load moves vertically relative to the advance / retreat frame,
The movable support plate has a substantially quadrangular shape in a plan view, and the fixed support portion has a substantially H shape in a plan view in which both front and rear end portions facing in the longitudinal direction are projecting portions projecting in the lateral direction. The shape is such that the overhanging portion of the fixed support portion can enter below the transfer unit,
The load transfer apparatus according to claim 1. Are hangars with multi-stage shelves opposite to each other across a transfer passage that is elongated in plan view, and whether or not self-propelled carts that can run horizontally are arranged in multiple stages in the transfer passage? Or a stacker crane having a carriage that can be raised and lowered is arranged to be able to run horizontally,
It has the transfer device according to any one of claims 1 to 3 in the carriage of each self-propelled carriage or stacker crane, and the load can be transferred between the hangar and the transfer device.
Automatic warehouse.

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