JP2010108714A - Feeding-side connector, and automatic container warehouse - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To enable to smoothly carry out insertion coupling of a container-side terminal and a feeding-side terminal even if both terminals have deviated center axes, and to do away with high-grade positioning of a container. <P>SOLUTION: For the feeding-side connector 30 provided with a feeding-side terminal 50 connected to a feeding means and fitted at a given site where a cooling container with an electric cooling unit is arranged, and electrically connected to a container-side connector equipped with a container-side terminal electrically connected with the electric cooling unit and mounted on the cooling container with the container-side terminal and the feeding-side terminal 50 in an insertion-coupled state, an aligning mechanism 52 is also provided for supporting the feeding-side terminal 50 in free movement on a horizontal X-Y plane as well as in a Z-direction crossing the X-Y plane and for aligning the feeding-side terminal 50 based on force received from the container-side connector in insertion-coupling the container-side terminal and the feeding-side terminal 50. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a power supply side connector having a power supply side terminal provided at a predetermined location where a cooling container such as an international cargo container is arranged and connected to a power supply means, and an automatic container warehouse including a plurality of power supply side connectors. .

  The power supply side connector is electrically connected to a container side connector that is detachably attached to the cooling container. For example, a container rack having a number of container placement locations, and a container rack attached to the container rack. It is arrange | positioned at each said container arrangement | positioning location in an automatic container warehouse provided with the automatic conveyance apparatus for conveying automatically.

  As the container-side connector described above, for example, a structure in which a concave portion that is recessed upward from the lower surface of the floor plate is provided in the bottom leg portion of the cooling container and a power receiver is provided in the concave portion is known. (For example, refer patent document 1 etc.).

In contrast to the container side connector having such a configuration, a power supply side connector is provided on the container rack side where the container is arranged as described above, and the container side connector is connected to the power supply side connector by placing the container on the container rack. It is electrically connected, so that the electric cooler built in the cooling container can be operated.
JP-A-8-198383

  However, when the automatic container is automatically transported and placed in the container placement location of the container rack by the automatic container warehouse, the container side terminal provided on the container side connector and the power supply side connector are provided. If the center axis of the power feeding side terminal is deviated, the two terminals cannot be smoothly fitted together, and in some cases, the two terminals may not be fitted. Moreover, if it is going to prevent such a situation from occurring, there is another problem that the container needs to be positioned highly and the cost is greatly increased.

  The present invention has been made in order to solve such a problem of the prior art, and even if the center axis of the container side terminal and the power feeding side terminal is shifted, both terminals can be smoothly fitted. It is an object of the present invention to provide a power supply side connector and an automatic container warehouse that can eliminate the need for advanced container positioning.

  A power supply side connector according to claim 1 of the present invention has a power supply side terminal provided at a predetermined location where a cooling container having an electric cooler is disposed and connected to power supply means, and the electric cooling A power supply having a container side terminal electrically connected to the machine and electrically connected in a state where the container side terminal and the power supply side terminal are fitted to a container side connector attached to the cooling container In the side connector, the power supply side terminal is supported so as to be movable on a horizontal XY plane and a Z direction orthogonal to the XY plane, and is received from the container side connector when both terminals are fitted. An alignment mechanism is provided that aligns the power supply side terminal based on force.

  A power supply side connector according to a second aspect of the present invention is the power supply side connector according to the first aspect, wherein the alignment mechanism includes a pair of X guides parallel to each other for moving the power supply side terminals along the XY plane. The Y guide pair orthogonal to the X guide pair and parallel to each other is provided so that at least a part thereof overlaps in the Z direction.

  The power supply side connector according to claim 3 of the present invention is the power supply side connector according to claim 2, wherein the other guide pair is between one of the orthogonal X guide pair and Y guide pair. Provided, and both ends of the other guide pair are connected to a pair of slide members movably provided on the one guide pair, and a base supporting the power supply side terminal is provided in the middle part of the other guide pair. It is characterized by being supported so as to be movable along the guide pair.

  The automatic container warehouse according to claim 4 of the present invention is provided by an automatic transfer device attached to the container rack at any arrangement position of the container rack having a large number of cooling container arrangement positions in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction. In the automatic container warehouse which can arrange | position and take out the said container for cooling, the electric power feeding side connector in any one of Claim 1 thru | or 3 is provided in each of the said arrangement | positioning location, It is characterized by the above-mentioned.

  In the case of the present invention, when the container side terminal and the power feeding side terminal are fitted, the alignment mechanism based on the force received from the container side connector places the power feeding side terminal on the horizontal XY plane and the XY plane. Therefore, both terminals are smoothly fitted, and it is possible to eliminate the need for advanced container positioning.

  According to the invention of claim 2, since the X guide pair and the Y guide pair are provided so that at least a part thereof overlaps in the Z direction, the height dimension in the Z direction can be shortened. Therefore, the distance between the base and the aligning mechanism can be made closer, thereby making it possible to smoothly align the base and the power supply side terminal supported by the base along the XY plane. obtain.

  In the case of the invention according to claim 4, the cooling container is transported to a horizontal position outside the rack in the vicinity of an arbitrary arrangement position of the container rack by the automatic transport device, and then moved horizontally into the rack. After reaching the settable position, when the cooling container is lowered by the automatic transfer device, the container side connector detachably attached to the cooling container moves from the upper side to the lower side to the power supply side connector. . During this movement, even if the center axis of the container side connector and the power supply side connector are displaced, if the container side connector comes into contact with the power supply side connector, the aligning mechanism will change the power supply side terminal based on the force received from the container side connector. Since it is aligned by moving it on the horizontal XY plane and in the Z direction orthogonal to the XY plane, both terminals can be smoothly fitted and the need for advanced positioning of the container is eliminated. It becomes possible.

  Embodiments of the present invention will be specifically described below.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing an automatic container warehouse 40 according to an embodiment of the present invention. The automatic container warehouse 40 is provided in a coastal area near the bay, a container rack 41 for storing the cooling container 20, and an automatic transfer device 42 for automatically transferring the cooling container 20 to the container rack 41. And have.

  The container rack 41 has a large number of container storage portions 43 in the horizontal direction and the vertical direction, and the power supply side connector 30 according to the embodiment of the present invention is disposed in the lower part of each container storage portion 43. . Inside the power supply side connector 30, a power supply side terminal 31 to be described later, which is electrically connected to power supply means (not shown), is provided. A container mounting table 44 is provided in the vicinity of the container rack 41, and the container mounting table 44 receives the cooling container 20 before storage sent from the outside and the cooling after storage discharged from the container storage unit 43. Container 20 is placed.

  The automatic conveyance device 42 has a main body 42 a that slides along the longitudinal direction B of the container rack 41. The main body portion 42 a includes an elevating means (not shown) for raising and lowering the cooling container 20 and two arms (not shown) for raising the cooling container 20 between the main body portion 42 a and the container mounting table 44. And a moving means (not shown) for horizontally moving in the C direction between the main body portion 42a and the container storage portion 43 and moving up and down slightly.

  The movement of the cooling container 20 by the automatic transfer device 42 is performed as follows. That is, the cooling container 20 mounted on the container mounting table 44 from the outside is lifted after the moving means moves horizontally in the C direction and scooped up from the container mounting table 44, and then in the direction opposite to the C direction. It moves horizontally and moves to the main body part 42a to be lowered and put on the main body part 42a. Next, the main body portion 42a moves the cooling container 20 in front of the corresponding container storage portion 43 by the sliding operation and the raising / lowering operation by the raising / lowering means, and horizontally moves the cooling container 20 in the C direction again by the moving means. Then, it is lowered and stored in the corresponding container storage unit 43. When the payout timing comes, the automatic transfer device 42 moves the moving means to the corresponding container storage unit 43, which moves the horizontal container in the C direction and then raises the cooling container 20 stored in the container storage unit 43. After scooping up, it is moved horizontally in the direction opposite to the C direction, moved to the main body 42a, lowered, and placed on the main body 42a. Next, the main body 42 moves the cooling container 20 in front of the container mounting table 44 by a sliding operation and an elevating operation by the elevating means, and again horizontally moves the cooling container 20 in the C direction by the moving means. Lower and place on the container mounting table 44. The above-described movement of the cooling container 20 is a basic pattern. After the cooling container 20 is moved from the container mounting table 44 to the container storage unit 43 a plurality of times, the cooling container 20 is cooled from the container storage unit 43 to the container mounting table 44. A pattern for returning the container 20 once or a plurality of times is also included.

  FIG. 2 is an external perspective view showing the cooling container 20.

  The cooling container 20 is a known container having a hexahedral box 21 and an electric cooler 22 for cooling the inside of the box 21. Depending on the temperature setting of the cooler 22 or the capacity of the cooler 22, the one for freezing or the one for refrigeration is selectively used.

  A corner fitting 23 as a standard part is fixed to corners at eight locations of the box 21. The corner fitting 23 is defined in JIS Z1616-1995, has three faces parallel to the three faces constituting the corners of the box body 21, and a long hole 24 is provided on each of the three faces. ing.

  The container-side connector 1 of the present embodiment, which will be described later, is a long hole 24 formed in one of the four corner fittings 23 on the lower side of the container 20 and is attached to the side of the container 20. .

  FIG. 3 shows the shape of the long hole 24.

  The long hole 24 has an elliptical shape having a long diameter portion 24a in the vertical direction and a short diameter portion 24b in the horizontal direction. For example, the length L1 of the long diameter portion 24a is 79.5 mm, and the length L2 of the short diameter portion 24b. Is set to 51.0 mm, and the depth D is set to 20.5 mm.

  4 is a front view (partial sectional view) showing a state in which the container side connector is attached to the container, and FIG. 5 is a partial sectional view of FIG. 4 viewed from the bottom side. FIG. 6 is an exploded perspective view showing a part (attachment portion) of the container-side connector of the present embodiment. 4g in FIG. 4 shows a back cam surface, and 7 also shows a back roller.

  The container-side connector 1 includes a main body portion 2 and an attachment portion 3 whose base end side is connected to the main body portion 2.

  The main body 2 has a plurality of, for example, four female container-side terminals 4 therein, and each container-side terminal 4 is provided with the opening side of the recess 4a facing downward. A cylindrical mounting hole 4b is formed on the lower side of the container side terminal 4 in the main body 2, and further, an inclination is formed on the lower side of the mounting hole 4b so as to increase in diameter toward the lower side. An annular guide hole 4c is formed. Further, a receptacle (not shown) connected to the cooler 22 via a wiring (not shown) is connected to the upper end of the main body 2.

  The attachment portion 3 includes a shaft member 5, a roller guide 6, two rollers 7 attached to the outer periphery of the shaft member 5, a spacer 8, an outer clamping portion 9, and between the shaft member 5 and the outer clamping portion 9. Are provided with a coil spring 10 as an elastic pressing means sandwiched at both ends, and an inner clamping portion 13 fixed to the tip of the shaft member 5 with a nut 11 and a pin 12 (see FIG. 6).

  The shaft member 5 is formed such that the outer diameter of the base end side (left side) is larger and the outer diameter is gradually reduced toward the distal end side (right side), and the extra large diameter is formed from the proximal end side toward the distal end side. It has a portion 5a, a large diameter portion 5b, a medium diameter portion 5c, and a small diameter portion 5d. The large-diameter portion 5b is formed with one or more, for example, two roller mounting holes 5e in the radial direction in the radial direction, and the medium-diameter portion 5c is formed with a pin mounting hole 5f that passes through the shaft center. A male screw portion 5g is formed at the tip of 5d.

  7A is a view of the roller guide as viewed from the right side in the axial direction, FIG. 7B is a left side view thereof, FIG. 7C is a right side view thereof, and FIG. 7D is a plan view thereof. (E) is a bottom view thereof.

  This roller guide 6 is formed in a substantially annular shape, and has a large diameter portion 6a and a small diameter portion 6b in the axial direction. The large-diameter portion 6a has a constant thickness, and the large-diameter portion 6a is formed with a plurality of, in the illustrated example, eight bolt fixing holes 6h along the circumferential direction. The bolt fixing hole 6 h is parallel to the axial center direction of the roller guide 6. A shaft member through hole 6i having a constant inner diameter is formed inside the large diameter portion 6a and the small diameter portion 6b.

  On the other hand, the small-diameter portion 6b has three different thickness portions 6c, 6d, 6e in the circumferential direction, and two sets of these three thickness portions 6c, 6d, 6e are formed. For example, the thick portion 6c is formed as a thick portion 6c in the upper left part of FIG. 7A, and the thick portion 6d is formed as a cam portion 6d next to the thick portion 6c in the clockwise direction (circumferential direction). The thick portion 6e is formed as a thin portion 6e next to the cam portion 6d in the clockwise direction, and the same configuration as this is formed for another half circumference to constitute one round.

  The cam portion 6d is formed between the thick portion 6c and the thin portion 6e in the circumferential direction, and gradually becomes thinner from the thick portion 6c toward the thin portion 6e. The thick portion 6c and the thin portion 6f becomes the thinnest thinnest part (equivalent to no thickness) 6f, and after passing through the thinnest part 6f, it gradually increases in thickness and reaches the same thickness as the thin-walled part 6e. The outer surface of the cam portion 6d constitutes a cam surface 6g. Note that the boundary between the thick portion 6c and the cam portion 6d is a stepped portion having a sharp change in thickness, and the cam portion 6d gradually becomes thinner from the stepped portion toward the thin portion 6e as described above. It has gradually reached the thinnest part 6f.

  The shaft member through-hole 6 i inside the roller guide 6 is formed to have an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the large-diameter portion 5 b of the shaft member 5, and when the shaft member 6 is inserted inside the roller guide 6. The large-diameter portion 5b is fitted into the shaft member through hole 6i. Further, the portion on the tip side of the large diameter portion 5 b, the medium diameter portion 5 c and the small diameter portion 5 d are in a state of coming out of the roller guide 6. In this state, the roller 7 is attached to each of the roller attachment holes 5e provided in the large-diameter portion 5b that has come out of the roller guide 6. The roller 7 has a shaft portion 7b and a rotating portion 7a that can rotate in the forward and reverse directions. The shaft portion 7b is mounted in the roller mounting hole 5e (see CD and EF), and rotates. The part 7a rotates with its center of rotation coincident with the shaft part 7b.

  On the small diameter portion 6b side of the large diameter portion 6a, an outer clamping portion 9 is attached via a spacer 8. In this attachment, the spacer 8 and the outer clamping portion 9 are provided with bolt insertion holes 8a, 9a corresponding to the bolt fixing holes 6h, and the bolt fixing holes 6h, the bolt insertion holes 8a, and the bolt insertion holes 9a are aligned. This is done by passing the bolt 14 and screwing the tip of the bolt 14 into the bolt fixing hole 6h.

  The outer clamping portion 9 has a substantially rectangular plate-shaped main body portion 9h, and a rotation prevention portion 9b and a cylindrical portion 9c are formed on the opposite side of the spacer portion 8 of the main body portion 9h. 9 b has a cross-sectional shape that substantially matches the shape of the long hole 24 and is fitted into the long hole 24. The main body 9 h has a dimension sufficiently larger than the long hole 24 and is brought into contact with the outer surface of the peripheral edge of the long hole 24.

  A shaft member insertion hole 9d is formed in the shaft center portion of the rotation preventing portion 9b and the cylindrical portion 9c. The shaft member insertion hole 9d has a large-diameter hole portion 9e from the end surface on the spacer 8 side of the outer clamping portion 9 to the middle of the cylindrical portion 9c, and is opposite to the spacer 8 of the outer clamping portion 9 from the middle of the cylindrical portion 9c. The end surface is formed as a small diameter hole 9f. The coil spring 10 is disposed inside the large-diameter hole 9e, and the medium-diameter portion 5c of the shaft member 5 passes through the coil spring 10. The coil spring 10 is formed between a step 9g at the boundary between the large-diameter hole 9e and the small-diameter hole 9f and a step 5h at the boundary between the large-diameter portion 5b and the medium-diameter portion 5c of the shaft member 5. Both ends are sandwiched, and the coil spring 10 presses and urges the outer clamping portion 9 and the stepped portion 5h in a direction in which they are separated from each other.

  The small-diameter hole portion 9f has an inner diameter slightly larger than the outer diameter of the small-diameter portion 5d of the shaft member 5, and the small-diameter portion 5d of the shaft member 5 passes through the small-diameter hole portion 9f and protrudes outside the cylindrical portion 9c. Thus, the inner clamping portion 13 is attached to the portion where the small diameter portion 5d has come out.

  The inner clamping portion 13 is formed in a substantially elliptical shape that can be inserted into the long hole 24 when viewed from the axial direction of the shaft member 5, and has a long diameter portion 13f and a short diameter portion 13g. A through hole 13a is provided. The through-hole 13 a has a large-diameter hole 13 b on the outer clamping part 9 side and a small-diameter hole 13 c on the opposite side of the outer clamping part 9.

  The distal end side of the cylindrical portion 9c is inserted into the large diameter hole portion 13b, and the small diameter portion 5d of the shaft member 5 is inserted into the small diameter hole portion 13c. At this time, the step portion 5i between the medium diameter portion 5c and the small diameter portion 5d of the shaft member 5 contacts the step portion 13e between the small diameter hole portion 13c and the large diameter hole portion 13b. Then, the pin mounting hole 13d provided in the inner clamping part 13 and the pin mounting hole 5f provided in the medium diameter part 5c of the shaft member 5 are made to coincide with each other, and in this state, the pin 12 is connected to the pin mounting hole 13d and the pin mounting hole 13d. Insert into the mounting hole 5f (see AA'-BB ') and fix. At this time, the male screw part 5g of the small diameter part 5d protrudes outward from the inner clamping part 13, and the nut 11 is attached to the protruding part, whereby the inner clamping part 13 is fixed to the shaft member 5.

  And the attaching part 3 comprised in this way attaches the cyclic | annular cover part 2b to the plate-shaped attachment part 2a provided in the main-body part 2 with the volt | bolt 2c, as shown in FIG. 4, and the attachment part 2a and the cyclic | annular cover part 2b The peripheral part of the extra-large diameter part 5a of the shaft member 5 is clamped between and fixed to the main body part 2.

  Therefore, for example, the main body portion 2 is gripped, and the shaft member 5 (main body portion 2) is held at an angle at which the inner clamping portion 13 can be inserted into and removed from the long hole 24 as shown by a two-dot chain line in FIG. In other words, when the axis of the main body 2 is held in the horizontal direction and advanced toward the long hole 24, the inner clamping part 13 is inserted into the long hole 24 as shown in FIG. FIG. 9 is a plan view (cross-sectional view), in which 6e denotes a thin portion on the back side, and 7 denotes a roller on the back side.

  Thereafter, as shown by a solid line in FIG. 8, when the shaft member 5 (main body portion 2) is rotated to a second angle, for example, an angle different from the first angle by 90 ° (the guide hole portion 4c is positioned downward). 4 and 5, the inner clamping part 13 cannot be inserted into and removed from the long hole 24. That is, when the shaft member 5 is at the first angle, the terminal 4 of the main body 2 is horizontal, and when the shaft member 5 is at the second angle, the terminal 4 of the main body 2 is downward. The connector 1 is removed by rotating it from the second angle to the first angle in the direction opposite to the above and pulling it out from the long hole 24.

  Here, the first angle is an angle at which the long diameter portion 13 f coincides with the long diameter portion 24 a of the long hole 24 and the short diameter portion 13 g coincides with the short diameter portion 24 b of the long hole 24. The second angle is an angle that is different from the first angle by 90 °, and is an angle at which the long diameter portion 13f coincides with the short diameter portion 24b of the long hole 24 and the short diameter portion 13g coincides with the long diameter portion 24a of the long hole 24. It is said. The second angle need not be different from the first angle by 90 °, and an arbitrary angle at which the long diameter portion 13f does not come out of the long hole 24 is selected.

  And when the main-body part 2 (shaft member 5) is a 1st angle, the rotation part 7a of the roller 7 attached to the shaft member 5 is contact | abutting to the thin part 6e. Thereafter, when the main body 2 is rotated from the first angle to the second angle, the rotating portion 7a rotates (revolves) with the rotation of the main body 2, and the contact portion of the rotating portion 7a is thin. It changes from the part 6e to the cam surface 6g, and rotates by the cam surface 6g. As the roller 7 rotates, the relative position between the roller 7 and the cam surface 6g changes. In response, the relative position between the shaft member 5 provided with the roller 7 and the roller guide 6 provided with the cam surface 6g. However, by changing in the axial direction of the shaft member 5, the inner clamping part 13 and the outer clamping part 9 in which the rotation preventing part 9b is inserted into the elongated hole 24 approach each other. Thereby, the inner side clamping part 13 and the outer side clamping part 9 clamp the peripheral part of the long hole 24.

  Therefore, as described above, for example, when the main body part 2 is gripped, the inner holding part 13 is inserted into the long hole 24 at the first angle, and then the main body part 2 is rotated to the second angle, the inner holding part 13 And the outer clamping part 9 approach each other, whereby the attachment part 3 is fixed to the long hole 24, and the container side connector 1 is attached to the container 20 with the connector side terminal 4 facing downward.

  For example, in this embodiment, the connector 1 is attached in a state where the container 20 is placed on the placing table 44 and attached to the corner metal fitting 23 on the lower side of the container 20.

  Then, the container 20 to which the connector 1 is attached is transferred from the mounting table 44 to a desired storage unit 43 of the container rack 41 by the automatic transfer device 42 and stored. When the container 20 is stored, the container 20 is lowered, and the container-side connector 1 is connected to the power-feeding-side connector 30 provided in the storage unit 43 by the lowering. For example, as shown in FIG. 10, the height of the container-side connector 1 is adjusted by the automatic transport device 42 at a position disengaged from the power supply-side connector 30 fixed at a fixed height position, and then moved horizontally in the C direction. Then, an upper cover 35 described later provided in the power supply side connector 30 is slid to open the upper side of the power supply side terminal 50, and is disposed so that the container side terminal 4 is positioned above the power supply side terminal 50. , The connector structure including both connectors 1 and 30 is connected. Note that when the connector structure is separated from the connected state, the container 20 having the connector 1 is lifted upward by the automatic conveyance device 42.

  Next, the power supply side connector 30 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described.

  FIG. 11 is a front view (cross-sectional view) showing the power feeding connector, and FIG. 12 is a plan view thereof.

  The power supply side connector 30 includes an upper component 31, a middle component 32, and a lower component 33. The upper component 31 includes a guide member 34, an upper cover 35, a coil spring 36, and a cover 37 that covers the coil spring 36. The upper component 31 is supported by the lower component 33 via a support 30a (see FIG. 15).

  The guide member 34 is attached to the column 30a and is arranged almost horizontally. The guide member 34 guides the lower end portion of the container-side connector 1 and is formed in a substantially U shape in plan view, and has an opening 34a on the right side and guide pieces 34h and 34i in the front-rear direction. Inside each guide piece 34h, 34i, a tapered guide edge 34b is formed in the vicinity of the opening 34a. The tapered guide edge 34b becomes narrower toward the inner side opposite to the opening 34a. A connector set part 34c having a narrower distance from each other is provided on the inner back side, and a concave part 34d having parallel edges that are further narrowed is provided on the inner back side of the connector set part 34c.

  Each connector set portion 34c is formed with an arc portion 34e into which the connector 1 just fits. Further, on both sides of the guide member 34 in the front-rear direction, a long cover 37 is provided so as to partially overlap the guide member 34 with its longitudinal direction aligned with the left-right direction. This cover 37 is for covering the upper part of the coil spring 36, and has a length dimension that can be covered even in an extended state.

  FIG. 13A is a plan view showing the upper cover 35, and FIG. 13B is a front view thereof.

  The upper cover 35 as a cover includes a substantially rectangular cover main body portion 35a, a connector receiving portion 35b that is bent on the right side of the cover main body portion 35a, and is bent on the left side of the cover main body portion 35a. A pair of spring locking portions 35c provided at both front and rear ends of the formed portion, and a guided piece 35d that protrudes downward and is curved below the cover main body portion 35a. Each spring locking portion 35c is provided with a locking hole 35e. The width W of the connector receiving portion 35b is set to be shorter than the separation distance between the parallel edges of the concave portion 34d.

  A shaft 38 is attached to the upper cover 35. The shaft 38 passes through a bush housing 39 having a bush (not shown) fixed to the guide member 34 (see FIGS. 11 and 15). Accordingly, the upper cover 35 is provided on the lower side of the guide member 34 and between the covers 37 so as to be slidable in the left-right direction. The upper cover 35 is slid in the left direction (A direction). Thus, the gap between the pair of connector set portions 34c of the guide member 34 is opened, that is, an open state is established. One end 36a of a coil spring 36 as an elastic means is locked in the locking hole 35e, and the other end 36b of the coil spring 36 is in a locking hole 31b formed in a fixed piece 31a provided in the upper component 31. It is locked.

  The connector receiving portion 35b receives the lower end portion of the connector 1 that is horizontally moved in the A direction by the automatic conveying device 42 when connecting both the connectors 1 and 30, and when receiving the lower end portion, the connector receiving portion 35b moves in the A direction and the upper cover 35 is opened. Further, when the container 20 is moved in the direction opposite to the A direction by the automatic conveying device 42, the upper cover 35 is horizontally moved in the direction opposite to the A direction by the pulling biasing force of the coil spring 36. The space between the 34 guide pieces 34h and 34i is closed. When the upper cover 35 is moved horizontally, the guided piece 35d is guided by the upper part of the middle component 32.

  On the lower side between the guide pieces 34h and 34i, a plurality of power supply side terminals 50 in the illustrated example are arranged. These power supply side terminals 50 are connected to a power supply for power supply (not shown) and are arranged inside the middle component 32, and are attached to the base 51 with the pins 50a facing upward. Further, a drain hole 32b is provided in the bottom plate 32a of the middle component portion 32 in order to prevent, for example, rainwater or the like from being accumulated inside the middle component portion 32 and the power supply side terminal 50 from being submerged. Rainwater or the like that has passed through the drain hole 32b is drained to the outside along the ceiling plate 33a of the lower component 33. The side plate 32c of the middle component 32 is provided above the ceiling plate 33a, and a notch 32d through which water flowing along the ceiling plate 33a passes is formed at the lower end of the side plate 32c (see FIG. 11).

  The base 51 is formed at its upper end with a rounded corner 51a that is guided by the inclined guide hole 4c of the container-side terminal 4, and the lower end of the base 51 is the lower component. An alignment mechanism 52 provided inside 33 is connected via a connection member 53. The angle drop portion 51a is provided to obtain a force for aligning the aligning mechanism 52 as will be described later.

  As shown in FIG. 14 (plan view), the aligning mechanism 52 has a horizontal moving table 54 that supports the power supply side terminal 50 via a base 51 and a connecting member 53. It is supported so as to be movable in the Z-direction (see FIG. 11) perpendicular to the -Y plane and the XY plane, and protrudes upward in the vertical direction with the container-side terminal 4 having a concave shape in the vertical direction located on the upper side. A function of aligning the power supply side terminal 50, specifically, the base 51 (or the horizontal moving base 54) based on the force received from the container side connector 1 when the pin-shaped power supply side terminal 50 is fitted. Have

  Specifically, as shown in FIG. 14, the aligning mechanism 52 includes a parallel X guide pair 55 that moves the horizontal moving table 54 along the XY plane, and the X guide pair 55 is orthogonal to each other. A Y guide pair 56 parallel to each other, a slide member pair 57 movably provided on the Y guide pair 56, a pair of support members 58 that support the Y guide pair 56, and FIG. 15 (left side view of FIG. 11). A coil spring 59 that elastically supports each support member 58 in the Z direction, a rod-shaped guide member 60 that is attached to each support member 58 so as to protrude downward, and passes through the inside of the coil spring 59, As shown in FIG. 11, it has a horizontal return coil spring 61 for moving the horizontal moving table 54 in the Y direction and returning the horizontal moving table 54 to a predetermined horizontal position on the XY plane. The coil spring 61 is provided by fixing a support tool 63 a attached to one end to the lower surface of the horizontal moving table 54 and fixing a support tool 63 b attached to the other end of the coil spring 61 to the support member 58.

  As shown in FIG. 15, the coil spring 59 is arranged with the axial center direction in the vertical direction. The coil spring 59 is provided such that the lower end abuts on the horizontal base 62 and the upper end abuts below the support member 58. Yes. The upper end portion of the guide member 60 is attached to the lower portion of the support member 58, and the head portion 60 a on the lower end side is provided in a state of entering a guide hole 62 a formed in the horizontal base 62. The guide hole 62a has a large lower side and a small upper side, and the stepped portion 62b prevents the head 60a from coming out upward. The lower side of the stepped portion 62b guides the head 60a in the vertical direction.

  The X guide pair 55 and the Y guide pair 56 are provided on the same horizontal plane, the X guide pair 55 is provided between the Y guide pair 56, and both ends of the X guide pair 55 are respectively connected to the Y guide pair 56. Are respectively connected to a pair of slide members 57 that are movably provided. Further, both end portions of the Y guide pair 56 are connected to a support member 58.

  The aligning mechanism 52 configured as described above supplies power based on the force received from the container-side connector 1 when the container-side terminal 4 located on the upper side is lowered and fitted to the power-supply-side terminal 50 as described above. The side terminal 50 is aligned in the X direction, the Y direction, and the Z direction. Further, when the container-side connector 1 is raised so as to separate the container-side terminal 4 fitted to the power-feeding side terminal 50, the power-feeding-side terminal 50 in which the horizontal return coil spring 61 is supported by the horizontal moving base 54 is moved to XY. Return to a predetermined horizontal position on the surface. In addition, the coil spring 59 returns the power supply side terminal 50 to a predetermined height position in the Z direction.

  As described above, when the container 20 is lowered to store the container 20 in the corresponding connector storage portion 43 by the automatic transfer device 42 as described above, the container-side connector 1 is lowered. It is connected to the power supply side connector 30 on the side. At this time, if there is an eccentricity between the container side terminal 4 and the power supply side terminal 50, the guide hole portion 4 c of the container side connector 1 abuts on the angled portion 51 a provided in the base 51 of the power supply side connector 30, Due to this contact force, the base 51 (or the horizontal moving base 54) moves in the direction opposite to the eccentric direction. By this movement, the axis of the guide hole 4c of the container side connector 1 and the axis of the base 51 coincide with each other, the upper part of the base 51 is fitted into the mounting hole 4b of the container side connector 1, and both terminals 4 and 50 are electrically connected, and both connectors 1 and 30 are coupled. This connected state is detected by a sensor 64 such as a proximity switch provided in the middle component 32 (see FIG. 11).

  By connecting both the connectors 1 and 30 as described above, the power supply for power supply and the cooler 22 can be electrically connected, and the power supply for power supply and the cooler 22 are illustrated. The power from the power supply is sent to the cooler 22 or stopped by turning on / off the switch.

  In the case of the power supply side connector 30 according to the present embodiment configured as described above, the alignment mechanism 52 is based on the force received from the container side connector 1 when the container side terminal 4 and the power supply side terminal 50 are fitted. Since the power feeding side terminal 50 is aligned by moving it in the horizontal XY plane and in the Z direction perpendicular to the XY plane, the terminals 4 and 50 are smoothly fitted, and the container 20 It becomes possible to eliminate the need for advanced positioning. In this embodiment, since the X guide pair 55 and the Y guide pair 56 are provided on the same horizontal plane, the height dimension in the Z direction can be shortened. Therefore, the distance between the base 51 and the alignment mechanism 52 can be made closer, and thereby the base 51 and the power feeding side terminal 50 supported by the base 51 can be aligned along the XY plane. Can be performed smoothly. Note that the X guide pair 55 and the Y guide pair 56 may be configured such that at least a part thereof overlaps in the Z direction.

  Furthermore, in the case of the automatic container warehouse 40 according to the present embodiment having a plurality of such power supply side connectors 30, the automatic container 42 is used to place the cooling container 20 in the vicinity of an arbitrary arrangement location of the container rack 41. Then, after transporting to a horizontal position outside the rack 41 and then moving horizontally into the rack 41 and reaching a position where it can be set, if the cooling container 20 is lowered by the automatic transport device 42, The container side connector 1 detachably attached to the container 20 moves from the upper side to the lower side to the power feeding side connector 30. During this movement, even if the center axis of the container side connector 1 and the power supply side connector 30 is shifted, if the container side connector 1 contacts the power supply side connector 30, the alignment mechanism 52 is based on the force received from the container side connector 1. However, since the power supply side terminal 50 is aligned by moving the power supply side terminal 50 on the horizontal XY plane and the Z direction orthogonal to the XY plane, both terminals 4 and 50 are smoothly fitted, and the container Twenty advanced positionings can be eliminated.

It is a perspective view which shows the automatic container warehouse which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is an external appearance perspective view which shows the container for cooling. It is explanatory drawing of the form of a long hole. It is a front view (partial sectional view) which shows the state where the container side connector was attached to the container. It is the fragmentary sectional view which looked at FIG. 4 from the bottom face side. It is a disassembled perspective view which shows a part (attachment part) of a container side connector. (A) is the figure which looked at the roller guide from the axial direction right side, (b) is the left view, (c) is the right view, (d) is the top view, (e) is the figure It is a bottom view. An alternate long and two short dashes line indicates a state in which the shaft member (main body portion) is held at a first angle that can be inserted and removed, and a solid line indicates a state in which the shaft member (main body portion) is rotated at a second angle that cannot be inserted and removed. It is a top view (sectional view) which shows the state where the inner side clamping part was inserted in the long hole. It is explanatory drawing which connects a container side connector to the electric power feeding side connector. It is a front view (sectional view) which shows the electric power feeding side connector which concerns on one Embodiment of this invention. It is a top view which shows the electric power feeding side connector. (A) is a top view which shows an upper cover, (b) is the front view. It is a top view which shows the alignment mechanism. It is a left view of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Container side connector 4 Container side terminal 20 Cooling container 22 Electric cooler 30 Power supply side connector 40 Automatic container warehouse 41 Container rack 42 Automatic conveyance apparatus 50 Power supply side terminal 51 Base 52 Alignment mechanism 55 X guide pair 56 Y guide versus

Claims (4)

A cooling container having an electric cooler is provided at a predetermined location where the cooling container is disposed, and has a power supply side terminal connected to the power supply means, and has a container side terminal electrically connected to the electric cooler In addition to the container side connector attached to the cooling container, in the power supply side connector electrically connected in a state where the container side terminal and the power supply side terminal are fitted,
Based on the force received from the container side connector when the power feeding side terminal is supported so as to be movable in a horizontal XY plane and in a Z direction perpendicular to the XY plane, and the both terminals are fitted. A power supply side connector comprising an alignment mechanism for aligning the power supply side terminal. In the electric power feeding side connector according to claim 1,
The alignment mechanism includes at least a part of a Z guide pair parallel to each other for moving the power supply side terminal along the XY plane, and a Y guide pair orthogonal to the X guide pair and parallel to each other. A power supply side connector provided so as to overlap in a direction. In the power feeding side connector according to claim 2,
The other guide pair is provided between one guide pair of the X guide pair and the Y guide pair orthogonal to each other, and both ends of the other guide pair are slidably provided on the one guide pair. A power supply side connector, characterized in that a base connected to a member pair and supporting the power supply side terminal is movably supported along the other guide pair at an intermediate portion of the other guide pair. It is possible to arrange and take out the cooling container at an arbitrary arrangement location of a container rack having a large number of arrangement locations of the cooling container in each of the horizontal direction and the vertical direction by an automatic transfer device attached to the container rack. In automatic container warehouse,
An automatic container warehouse, wherein the power supply side connector according to any one of claims 1 to 3 is provided at each of the arrangement locations.

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