JP2018115070A - Stacker crane and transfer device for case - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To make a conveyance structure of a stacker crane used for an automated warehouse flexibly changeable as necessary.SOLUTION: A suspended type stacker crane 11 comprises an upper travelling carriage 12, a mast 31, a lift table 37, a slide fork 71 for pallet, and a transfer device 73 for case. The mast 31 is provided to the upper travelling carriage 12. The lift table 37 is elevated/lowered along the mast 31. The slide fork 71 for pallet is supported by the lift table 37. The transfer device 73 for case is detachably placed on the slide fork 71 for pallet.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 6

Description

  The present invention relates to a stacker crane and a case transfer device, and more particularly to a stacker crane having a pallet slide fork and a case transfer device used therefor.

A conventional automatic warehouse has a plurality of racks. Each rack is arranged in parallel and has a plurality of shelves arranged in the extending direction and the vertical direction.
The automatic warehouse has a stacker crane as a transfer device for loading or unloading a load on a rack shelf. The stacker crane includes a traveling device that travels along the rail, a transfer device, and an elevating device that moves the transfer device in the vertical direction. A part of the rail is arranged side by side on the side of the rack, and the stacker crane places a transfer device near the target shelf on the side of the rack, and transfers the load in that state.
Although it is not a stacker crane, there has been proposed an article transport vehicle that realizes an article transfer device adapted to transport and carry in / out an article using a single traveling carriage (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Utility Model Publication No. 06-59186

  In patent document 1, the structure which has two types of goods transfer apparatuses in a general goods conveyance vehicle is disclosed. However, a problem that requires such a configuration in an automatic warehouse has not been pointed out, and a specific structure for realizing such a configuration has not been proposed.

  An object of the present invention is to make it possible to flexibly change the transport structure of a stacker crane used in an automatic warehouse as required.

  Hereinafter, a plurality of modes will be described as means for solving the problems. These aspects can be arbitrarily combined as necessary.

A stacker crane according to an aspect of the present invention includes a traveling carriage, a mast, a lift, a pallet slide fork, and a case transfer device.
The mast is provided on the traveling carriage.
The elevator platform moves up and down along the mast.
The pallet slide fork is supported by a lifting platform.
The case transfer device is detachably mounted on the pallet slide fork.
In this stacker crane, when the case transport capability is insufficient, the case can be transported by placing the case transfer device so as to be mounted on the pallet slide fork. In addition, by removing the case transfer device from the pallet slide fork, the stacker crane can be returned to the state of transporting the pallet in a short time.

The case transfer apparatus may have a plurality of transfer machines arranged in the vertical and horizontal directions.
In this stacker crane, a plurality of cases can be simultaneously conveyed by a plurality of transfer machines by using a space for pallets and luggage.

The case transfer device may have a side arm that extends to the side of the case and engages the case.
In this stacker crane, the case transfer device transfers the case by the side arm, that is, the case transfer operation does not require a lifting operation, so loading and unloading are performed simultaneously when transporting multiple cases. be able to. That is, the degree of freedom of the transfer operation of the case transfer device is high.

The stacker crane may further include a protruding member that is detachably mounted on the upper surface of the pallet slide fork. In this case, a recess into which the protruding member is inserted is formed on the lower surface of the case transfer device.
In this stacker crane, the case transfer device is mounted on the pallet slide fork by the protruding member. When the case transfer device is not used, the protruding member is removed from the pallet slide fork.

The stacker crane may further include a power feeding connector that is provided on the lifting platform and is connectable to the case transfer device.
In this stacker crane, the case transfer device can be supplied with power by being connected to the power supply connector.
The case transfer device according to another aspect of the present invention is used for a stacker crane. The stacker crane includes a traveling carriage, a mast provided on the traveling carriage, a lifting platform that moves up and down along the mast, and a pallet slide fork supported by the lifting platform.
The case transfer device is detachably mounted on the pallet slide fork.
In this apparatus, when the case carrying capability is insufficient, the case can be carried by placing the case transfer device so as to be mounted on the pallet slide fork. In addition, by removing the case transfer device from the pallet slide fork, the stacker crane can be returned to the state of transporting the pallet in a short time.

  In the stacker crane and the case transfer device according to the present invention, the transport structure can be flexibly changed as necessary.

1 is a schematic plan view of an automatic warehouse in which an embodiment of the present invention is adopted. The schematic front view of an automatic warehouse. The schematic plan view of a stacker crane. The schematic perspective view of a lifting platform. The front view of the raising / lowering stand at the time of using the slide fork for pallets. The front view of the raising / lowering stand at the time of use of the transfer apparatus for cases. Sectional drawing of the mounting part of the transfer apparatus for cases. Sectional drawing of the mounting part of the transfer apparatus for cases. Sectional drawing of the mounting part of the transfer apparatus for cases.

1. 1st Embodiment (1) Automatic warehouse The automatic warehouse 1 is demonstrated using FIG.1 and FIG.2. FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of an automatic warehouse in which an embodiment of the present invention is adopted. FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of the automatic warehouse.

The automatic warehouse 1 has a plurality of racks 5. The rack 5 has a plurality of shelves 5a. In FIG. 1, the plurality of racks 5 extend in the left-right direction and are arranged in parallel. The shelf 5a can store the collection shelf member 25 or the pallet P as shown in FIG. A load 28 is placed on the pallet P.
The collection shelf member 25 has a shelf structure having a plurality of stages of support portions, and can store a plurality of cases C. Case C is a container that can store products. The bottom surface of the collection shelf member 25 has the same structure as the bottom surface of the pallet P, and is thereby supported and transported by the stacker crane 11. Further, in FIG. 1, alphabets are attached to the pallet P stored in the rack 5. Further, a case C is stored in another rack 5 (not shown).

The automatic warehouse 1 has a ceiling rail 7 provided along the rack 5. Specifically, the ceiling rail 7 is disposed above the passage 5 b between the racks 5. The ceiling rail 7 is provided at a position higher than the rack 5, that is, a position higher than the plurality of shelves 5a. Further, the ceiling rail 7 has a plurality of circulation routes having curved portions in a planar layout, and further has a branching portion and a merging portion.
The automatic warehouse 1 has a lower guide rail 9 provided along the rack 5. Specifically, the lower guide rail 9 is disposed on the floor surface of the passage 5 b between the racks 5.

The automatic warehouse 1 has a suspended stacker crane 11 (hereinafter referred to as “stacker crane 11”). “Suspension type” means that the upper structure travels and branches and further suspends the lower structure. As shown in FIG. 2, the stacker crane 11 travels while being suspended from the ceiling rail 7.
Note that the traveling direction of the stacker crane 11 is referred to as a “traveling direction” and is represented by an arrow X in FIG. Further, the horizontal direction orthogonal to the traveling direction is referred to as “left-right direction” and is represented by an arrow Y in FIG.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 3, the stacker crane 11 has an upper traveling carriage 12. The upper traveling carriage 12 is a device that travels along the ceiling rail 7 by generating a driving force. The upper traveling carriage 12 has a plurality of driving carriages 13 arranged side by side in the traveling direction. In this embodiment, eight drive carts 13 are provided. FIG. 3 is a schematic plan view of the stacker crane.
The stacker crane 11 has a transfer device (described later) suspended from a plurality of drive carriages 13 so as to be lifted and lowered.
As shown in FIG. 2, the stacker crane 11 has a lower traveling carriage 17. The lower traveling carriage 17 is guided along the lower guide rail 9.

(2) Stacker crane As shown in FIG. 3, the eight drive trolleys 13 are arranged side by side in the traveling direction. Furthermore, the drive carriage 13 has a bogie structure 29 as shown in FIG. By the bogie structure 29, the stacker crane 11 can stably travel on the curve of the orbit.

  The stacker crane 11 has a pair of masts 31 arranged in the traveling direction, that is, the front-rear direction. The pair of masts 31 extends long in the vertical direction.

  The stacker crane 11 includes a lifting platform 37 supported by the mast 31 and a lifting unit (not shown) for lifting the lifting platform 37 as a lifting device for lifting a transfer device (described later). ing. The elevating unit is provided in each of the pair of masts 31 and is a known device including an elevating drive motor, a chain, a sprocket, and the like.

(3) Lifting table The lifting table 37 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 4 is a schematic perspective view of the lifting platform.
The lifting platform 37 has a rectangular parallelepiped shape composed of a plurality of frames. For this reason, the weight of the lifting platform 37 is reduced and the rigidity is increased. In the following description, since a known technique is applied to the material of each member, connection (coupling, fixing) means, and the like, the description thereof is omitted.

  The lifting platform 37 has four upper and lower frame members 61A to 61D. The four upper and lower frame members 61A to 61D are made of a hollow material. The four upper and lower frame members 61 </ b> A to 61 </ b> D are arranged on both sides of the stacker crane 11 in the traveling direction and the left-right direction, that is, the transfer direction, and extend in the up-down direction. More specifically, the upper and lower frame members 61A and 61B are arranged side by side in the transfer direction on one side in the traveling direction, and the upper and lower frame members 61C and 61D are arranged side by side in the transfer direction on the opposite side of the traveling direction. .

  The lifting platform 37 has transfer direction frame members 63A to 63D. It consists of sheet metal materials, and the transfer direction frame members 63A to 63D extend in the transfer direction, and connect the upper and lower portions of the upper and lower frame members 61A to 61D arranged in the transfer direction. Specifically, the transfer direction frame member 63A connects the upper end of the upper and lower frame member 61A and the upper end of the upper and lower frame member 61B, and the transfer direction frame member 63B is connected to the lower end of the upper and lower frame member 61A and the upper and lower frame member 61B. The transfer direction frame member 63C connects the upper end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61C and the upper end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61D, and the transfer direction frame member 63D is connected to the lower end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61C. The lower end of the frame member 61D is connected.

  The lifting platform 37 includes travel direction frame members 65A to 65D. The running direction frame members 65A to 65D are made of a hollow material. The traveling direction frame members 65A to 65D extend in the traveling direction and connect the upper and lower portions of the upper and lower frame members 61A to 61D arranged in the traveling direction. The traveling direction frame members 65A and 65B are upper traveling direction frame members, and the traveling direction frame members 65C and 65D are lower traveling direction frame members. Specifically, the traveling direction frame member 65A connects the upper end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61A and the upper end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61C. The running direction frame member 65B connects the upper end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61B and the upper end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61D. The traveling direction frame member 65C connects the lower end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61A and the lower end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61C. The running direction frame member 65D connects the lower end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61B and the lower end portion of the upper and lower frame member 61D.

(4) Transfer device A transfer device is demonstrated using FIGS. FIG. 5 is a front view of the lifting platform when using the pallet slide fork. FIG. 6 is a front view of the lifting platform when the case transfer device is used.
The lifting table 37 is provided with two types of transfer devices, and any one of them can be used as necessary. The two types of transfer devices are a pallet slide fork 71 and a case transfer device 73.
The pallet slide fork 71 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5. The pallet slide fork 71 is a device for transferring the pallet P. The pallet slide fork 71 is supported by the lifting platform 37. Specifically, the pallet slide fork 71 is supported by the traveling direction frame members 65C and 65D. The pallet slide fork 71 can extend and retract the fork 71a in the transfer direction. The fork 71a is movable toward the racks 5 on both sides, and the pallet P can be transferred between the shelves 5a on both sides.

The case transfer device 73 will be described with reference to FIG. The case transfer device 73 is a device for transferring the case C. The case transfer device 73 is detachably mounted on the pallet slide fork 71.
The case transfer device 73 has a plurality of transfer machines 73a arranged vertically and horizontally. The transfer machine 73a is provided in two stages in two stages, upper and lower, by a frame assembly 73b. Each transfer machine 73a is a rear hook type transfer apparatus. Specifically, the case transfer device 73 includes a side arm 75 that extends to the side of the case C, and a rear hook 76 that is disposed on the side arm 75 and engages the case. The side arm 75 is movable toward the racks 5 on both sides, and the case C can be transferred between the shelves 5a on both sides or the collection shelf members 25 placed on the shelves 5a.
For this reason, the case transfer device 73 transfers the case C by the side arm 75, that is, the case C transfer operation does not require a lifting / lowering operation. Can be done simultaneously. That is, the degree of freedom of the transfer operation of the case transfer device 73 is high.

A structure for mounting the case transfer device 73 to the pallet slide fork 71 will be described with reference to FIGS. 7-9 is sectional drawing of the mounting part of the transfer apparatus for cases.
The stacker crane 11 further includes a protruding member 77 that is detachably mounted on the top surface of the fork 71a of the pallet slide fork 71. On the upper surface of the fork 71a, a base portion of a protruding member 77 is inserted and a first recess 78 is provided. A plurality of first recesses 78 are formed as shown in FIG. In this case, a second recess 79 into which the tip of the protruding member 77 is inserted is formed on the lower surface of the case transfer device 73.
The case transfer device 73 is attached to the pallet slide fork 71 by a protruding member 77. When the case transfer device 73 is not used, the protruding member 77 is removed from the pallet slide fork 71 as shown in FIG.

As shown in FIG. 6, the stacker crane 11 further includes a power feeding connector 81. The power supply connector 81 is provided on the lifting platform 37 and can be connected to the case transfer device 73. The case transfer device 73 is supplied with power by being connected to the power supply connector 81. The power feeding connector 81 is connected to a power source (not shown) by a power feeding cable 83.
In addition, the case transfer device 73 is connected to a controller (not shown) of the stacker crane 11 through a signal line, and each transfer device 73a is controlled by a control signal from the controller.

2. Features of Embodiment A suspended stacker crane 11 (an example of a stacker crane) includes an upper traveling carriage 12 (an example of a traveling carriage), a mast 31 (an example of a mast), an elevator base 37 (an example of an elevator base), and a pallet. Slide fork 71 (an example of a pallet slide fork) and a case transfer device 73 (an example of a case transfer device). The mast 31 is provided on the upper traveling carriage 12. The lifting platform 37 moves up and down along the mast 31. The pallet slide fork 71 is supported by the lifting platform 37. The case transfer device 73 is detachably mounted on the pallet slide fork 71.
In this stacker crane 11, when the case carrying capacity is insufficient, the case transfer device 73 is placed so as to be mounted on the pallet slide fork 71 as shown in FIG. become able to. Furthermore, by using the pallet P and the space for luggage, a plurality of cases C can be simultaneously conveyed by the plurality of transfer machines 73a.
Further, by removing the case transfer device 73 from the pallet slide fork 71, the stacker crane 11 can be returned to the state in which the pallet P is conveyed as shown in FIGS.

3. Other Embodiments Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. In particular, a plurality of embodiments and modifications described in this specification can be arbitrarily combined as necessary.
The type of stacker crane is not limited to the suspension type. A stacker crane having a driving carriage that travels on a rail on the ground may be used.

The configuration of the case transfer device is not particularly limited. The number, arrangement, and type of transfer machines are not limited to the above embodiment. For example, a side clamp type transfer machine may be used.
The structure for mounting the case transfer device to the pallet slide fork is not limited to the above embodiment. The number, position, and shape of the protruding members are not limited. Other structures may be used, and in addition to the structure of the above embodiment, another fixing structure (for example, a lock structure that prevents the case transfer device from being detached) may be included.
The number of drive carts is not limited to eight.

  The present invention is widely applicable to stacker cranes having a pallet slide fork.

1: Automatic warehouse 5: Rack 5a: Shelf 5b: Passage 7: Ceiling rail 9: Lower guide rail 11: Suspended stacker crane 12: Upper traveling carriage 13: Drive carriage 17: Lower traveling carriage 25: Collection shelf member 28: Cardboard box 29: Bogie structure 31: Mast 35: Lifting device 37: Lifting platform 61A: Upper and lower frame member 61B: Upper and lower frame member 61C: Upper and lower frame member 61D: Upper and lower frame member 63A: Transfer direction frame member 63B: Transfer direction frame Material 63C: Transfer direction frame member 63D: Transfer direction frame member 65A: Travel direction frame member 65B: Travel direction frame member 65C: Travel direction frame member 65D: Travel direction frame member 71: Pallet slide fork 71a: Slide fork 73 : Case transfer device 73a: Transfer machine 75: Side arm 77: Projection member 79: Recess 81: Power supply connector P: Pallet C: Case

Claims (6)

Traveling cart,
A mast provided in the traveling carriage;
A lifting platform that moves up and down along the mast;
A pallet slide fork supported by the lifting platform;
A case transfer device detachably mounted on the pallet slide fork;
A stacker crane.   The stacker crane according to claim 1, wherein the case transfer device includes a plurality of transfer machines arranged vertically and horizontally.   The stacker crane according to claim 1, wherein the case transfer device has a side arm that extends to a side of the case and engages the case. A protrusion member detachably mounted on the top surface of the pallet slide fork;
The stacker crane according to claim 1, wherein a concave portion into which the protruding member is inserted is formed on a lower surface of the case transfer device.   The stacker crane according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising a power supply connector that is provided on the lifting platform and is connectable to the case transfer device. A case transfer device for use in a stacker crane comprising: a traveling carriage; a mast provided on the traveling carriage; a lifting platform that moves up and down along the mast; and a pallet slide fork supported by the lifting platform. There,
A case transfer device that is detachably mounted on the pallet slide fork.

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