JP6313088B2 - Manufacturing / shipping system and manufacturing / shipping method - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention includes a manufacturing / shipping system and a manufacturing / shipping method including a manufacturing facility, an automatic warehouse, and a truck berth, wherein the manufacturing facility, the automatic warehouse, and the automatic warehouse and the truck berth are connected by a transfer system outside the automatic warehouse. About.

  Due to the Great East Japan Earthquake on March 11, 2011, many automated warehouses, mainly in the North Kanto and Tohoku regions, stopped functioning. For this reason, even if the manufacturing equipment and the truck berth function, the automatic warehouse does not function, so there are many cases where the manufacturing and shipping are interrupted. In addition, the cause of the loss of the function of the automatic warehouse was because the product fell from the rack, and the transport device in the warehouse such as a stacker crane could not run.

  Related prior art is shown. Patent Document 1 (Patent 5015750) discloses that an emergency delivery mode is provided in an automatic warehouse, and the stored articles are delivered using an entry / exit cart and an entry lifter. However, when the in-warehouse transfer device does not function due to an earthquake or the like, the configuration of Patent Document 1 is not effective.

Patent 5015750

  An object of the present invention is to make it possible to continue manufacturing and shipping by utilizing manufacturing equipment and truck berths even if an automatic warehouse has a trouble in the loading and unloading function due to an earthquake or the like.

The present invention relates to an automatic warehouse, a first transfer system that connects a manufacturing facility and an automatic warehouse, a second transfer system that connects a track berth and an automatic warehouse, an automatic warehouse, a first transfer system, and a first transfer system. A manufacturing and shipping system having a transport controller that controls the transport system of
The first transfer system and the second transfer system are connected so as to be able to deliver products,
The transport controller
The product manufactured at the manufacturing facility is received into the automatic warehouse via the first transfer system, and the product discharged from the automatic warehouse by the transfer device in the automatic warehouse is transferred to the truck berth via the second transfer system. Automatic warehouse transfer mode for controlling the first transfer system, the second transfer system and the transfer device in the automatic warehouse,
Control the first and second transport systems so that products manufactured at the manufacturing facility are transported to the truck berth without going through the automatic warehouse by the first and second transport systems. A payout mode .

In the manufacturing / shipping method of the present invention, the first warehouse system for connecting the automated warehouse, the manufacturing facility and the automated warehouse, the second conveyor system for connecting the truck berth and the automated warehouse, the automated warehouse and the first warehouse A manufacturing and shipping system having a transport controller for controlling the transport system and the second transport system,
The first transfer system and the second transfer system are connected so as to be able to deliver products,
Normally, the transfer controller automatically controls the first transfer system, the second transfer system, and the transfer device in the automatic warehouse by using the first transfer system. In addition to entering the warehouse, the product is unloaded from the automatic warehouse by the transfer device in the automatic warehouse and transferred to the truck berth via the second transfer system.
In the event of an emergency, the transfer controller controls the first transfer system and the second transfer system, so that the product manufactured by the manufacturing facility passes through the automatic warehouse by the first transfer system and the second transfer system. Transport to truck berth without.

  The transfer device in the automatic warehouse is, for example, a stacker crane, and the first transfer system and the second transfer system are configured by, for example, a tracked carriage and a conveyor. The first transport system and the second transport system are connected by a vertical conveyor, a lifter, a conveyor, an automatic guided vehicle, or the like. When the first transport system and the second transport system are provided with different floors, the vertical conveyor and the lifter are suitable for connection between the systems. The first transfer system and the second transfer system are preferably connected at a plurality of locations. In other words, while ensuring the ability to transfer products between systems, even if some connection locations are damaged by earthquakes, etc., the first transfer system and the second transfer system are connected at other connection locations. It is preferable to be able to do this. Note that the first transport system and the second transport system may include a device that serves both, and is not limited to a mechanically separate system. Manufacturing equipment and truck berths are supported by the manufacturing and shipping system and may or may not be considered part of the manufacturing and shipping system.

  When affected by an earthquake or the like, the transfer device in the automatic warehouse often fails due to the product falling from the rack. In the present invention, the shipment of the product from the manufacturing facility to the truck berth can be continued by controlling the transfer controller by connecting the first transfer system and the second transfer system without going through the automatic warehouse. Therefore, it is possible to continue manufacturing at the manufacturing facility without waiting for the recovery of the automatic warehouse, and it is possible to construct a social infrastructure that is not easily affected by the earthquake disaster in terms of the manufacturing and shipping system. In this specification, the description related to the manufacturing / shipping system also applies to the manufacturing / shipping method as it is, and the description related to the manufacturing / shipping method applies to the manufacturing / shipping system as it is.

In the present invention, a plurality of track berths are provided, and the transport controller controls the first transport system and the second transport system so that the product can be transported to an arbitrary track berth in the payout mode. That is, when a product can be transported only to a limited track berth, the function of the manufacturing / shipping system is limited by the track berth. This problem can be solved by making the product freely transportable to any track berth.

In the present invention, the transfer controller further controls the first transfer system and the second transfer system so that an empty pallet can be transferred from any track berth to the manufacturing facility in the payout mode. Many of the products are shipped on pallets and empty pallets are returned to the truck berth. If the empty pallet cannot be returned to the manufacturing facility, shipping will eventually stop. If the product can be shipped to any truck berth, an empty pallet can be transported from any truck berth to the manufacturing facility.

The manufacturing and shipping system of the present invention includes an automatic warehouse, a first transport system that connects the manufacturing facility and the automatic warehouse, a second transport system that connects the truck berth and the automatic warehouse, the automatic warehouse, and the first warehouse. In a manufacturing and shipping system having a transport controller for controlling the transport system and the second transport system,
The first transfer system and the second transfer system are connected so as to be able to deliver products,
The transport controller
The product manufactured at the manufacturing facility is received into the automatic warehouse via the first transfer system, and the product discharged from the automatic warehouse by the transfer device in the automatic warehouse is transferred to the truck berth via the second transfer system. Automatic warehouse transfer mode for controlling the first transfer system, the second transfer system and the transfer device in the automatic warehouse,
Control the first and second transport systems so that products manufactured at the manufacturing facility are transported to the truck berth without going through the automatic warehouse by the first and second transport systems. A payout mode, and
The first transport system is provided on the second floor of the building, and the second transport system is provided on the first floor of the building so as to overlap vertically .
In the automatic warehouse, the first station on the second floor of the building provided with the first transfer system and the second station on the first floor of the building provided with the second transfer system overlap in the vertical direction. In preparation for
The first station and the second station each have a conveyor,
Furthermore, a lifter that moves up and down between a position connected to the conveyor of the first station and a position connected to the conveyor of the second station is provided in the automatic warehouse.

  If a lifter for connecting the first station and the second station is provided in the automatic warehouse, the first transfer system and the second transfer system can be connected even in the automatic warehouse. In the present invention, the first transfer system and the second transfer system are connected to each other, and the lifter additionally connects the first transfer system and the second transfer system.

Block diagram of the manufacturing and shipping system of the embodiment The principal part top view of the 1st floor of the manufacture shipment system of an Example The principal part top view of the 2nd floor of the manufacture shipment system of an Example Block diagram of the transport controller in the manufacturing and shipping system of the embodiment The flowchart which shows the control algorithm of the payment mode at the time of shipment in the manufacture shipment system of an Example The flowchart which shows the control algorithm of the payout mode at the time of pallet return in the manufacture shipment system of an Example. Vertical sectional view of an automated warehouse used in a modified example

  In the following, an optimum embodiment for carrying out the present invention will be shown. The scope of the present invention should be determined according to the understanding of those skilled in the art based on the description of the scope of the claims, taking into account the description of the specification and well-known techniques in this field.

  1 to 7 show examples, examples, and modifications thereof. FIG. 1 shows an outline of a manufacturing / shipping system 2. A manufacturing facility 4 manufactures products and loads them into an automatic warehouse 6 by a first transport system 8 including, for example, a tracked carriage, a conveyor and the like. . The product is delivered from the automatic warehouse 6 to the second transport system 9 including a tracked carriage, a conveyor and the like, transported to the truck berth 10 and shipped. The empty pallet returned to the truck berth 10 is returned to the manufacturing facility 4 through the reverse route. The automatic warehouse 6 includes a rack for storing products, a transfer device in the automatic warehouse 6 such as a stacker crane, and a station. The automatic warehouse 6 includes a station for the first transfer system 8 and a station for the second transfer system 9. For example, on different floors.

  The manufacturing equipment 4 is controlled by the manufacturing controller 14, the transport systems 8, 9 and the automatic warehouse 6 are controlled by the transport controller 12, and instructions from the terminal 16 are input to the transport controller 12 in addition to requests from the manufacturing controller 14. it can. The transfer controller 12 transfers the product between the “automatic warehouse transfer mode” in which the transfer systems 8 and 9 are connected via the automatic warehouse 6, and the automatic warehouse 6 between the first transfer system 8 and the second transfer system 9. There are two types of operation mode, “payout mode”, which sends directly without going through. The automatic warehouse transfer mode is always used, and the payout mode is used in an emergency when the transfer device in the automatic warehouse 6 cannot be used due to an earthquake or the like.

  FIG. 2 shows the layout of the manufacturing facility 4, the first transport system 8 and the automatic warehouse 6, and FIG. 3 shows the layout of the automatic warehouse 6, the second transport system 9 and the truck berth 10. The manufacturing equipment 4 and the first transport system 8 are provided on the second transport system 9 and the track berth 10 and on different floors of the building, for example. Here, the manufacturing equipment 4 and the first transport system 8 are on the second floor. The second transport system 9 and the truck berth 10 are provided on the first floor.

  The automatic warehouse 6 includes, for example, a plurality of automatic warehouse units 20, and each automatic warehouse unit 20 includes, for example, a pair of left and right racks 21, a stacker crane 22, a second floor station 26, and a first floor station 27. The stacker crane 22 moves up and down along the mast 23, passes products and empty pallets between the rack 21 and the stations 26 and 27, and travels along the rail 25.

  The first transport system 8 includes a tracked cart system 30 and is provided with conveyors 34 to 38 so that, for example, a plurality of tracked carts 32 can be run and products can be transferred to and from the tracked cart 32. . The second transport system 9 includes a tracked cart system 31 and is provided with conveyors 41 to 43 so that, for example, a plurality of tracked carts 32 can be run and products can be transferred to and from the tracked cart 32. . In the transport systems 8 and 9, the tracked carriage 32 can deliver products and the like to the stations 26 and 27. A plurality of track berths 10 are provided.

  In the first transport system 8, vertical conveyors 40 are provided at a plurality of locations so as to be connected to the conveyors 37 and 38, and products and empty pallets can be exchanged with the conveyor 42 of the second transport system 9. is there. The vertical conveyor 40 is provided at a plurality of locations and connected to the tracked cart systems 30 and 31 via the conveyors 37, 38 and 42, so that an arbitrary point of the first transfer system 8 and the second transfer system are connected. Products, empty pallets, raw materials, etc. can be transported between 9 arbitrary points.

  FIG. 4 shows the configuration of the transport controller 12. The transport controller 12 is connected to the terminal 16 and the manufacturing controller 14 via the input / output unit 50, and is connected to the local controller 56 such as a stacker crane or the tracked cart systems 30, 31 via the input / output unit 51. The automatic warehouse transfer mode control unit connects the manufacturing equipment and the truck berth via the automatic warehouse 6, and the payout mode control unit 54 does not pass through the automatic warehouse 6 but uses the vertical conveyor 40 to transfer the transfer system 8. , 9 to deliver products etc. directly between the manufacturing equipment and the truck berth.

  FIG. 5 shows the shipment of the product in the payout mode. In Step 1, the truck berth for paying out the product from the second transport system and the from position that is the starting point of the product are input from the terminal or the manufacturing controller. In step 2, a transport route from the from position to the payout destination is determined, and a transport command corresponding to this route is created.

  For example, the first transfer system side is conveyor → tracked carriage → conveyor → vertical conveyor, and the second transfer system side is vertical conveyor → conveyor → tracked carriage → conveyor. The product may be directly conveyed to the track berth by the last conveyor or may be conveyed from the conveyor via a forklift. Such a transport command is disassembled for each transport device and assigned to each transport device (step 3), the execution status is monitored, and a plurality of transport devices are synchronized as necessary (step 4). Since the first transfer system 8 and the second transfer system 9 are connected between any points in the systems 8 and 9, products can be shipped to any track berth.

  FIG. 6 shows the return of an empty pallet from the truck berth to the manufacturing facility or the like in the payout mode. In step 11, the track berth (from position) which is the starting position of the empty pallet and the to position (position in the manufacturing facility or pallet place) of the transfer destination are input from the terminal or the manufacturing controller. In step 12, a transfer command is created in the same manner as in step 2 of FIG. 5, and in step 13, the transfer command is disassembled for each transfer device and assigned to each transfer device. In step 14, the execution status of the transfer command is monitored, and a plurality of transfer devices are synchronized as necessary. Again, empty pallets can be returned from any truck berth to the production facility and pallet yard. Similarly, raw materials can be transported from any truck berth to a production facility, for example, on a pallet.

  As described above, a product can be shipped from the manufacturing facility 4 to the truck berth 10 and an empty pallet and raw material can be conveyed from the truck berth 10 to the manufacturing facility 4. Therefore, manufacturing and shipping can be continued while waiting for the recovery of the automatic warehouse 6. The first transfer system and the second transfer system are not limited to mechanically separate systems. For example, in the case of a system in which the conveyor 34 is connected to the track berth, the first transport system includes the tracked cart system 30 and the conveyors 35 to 38, and the second transport system includes the tracked cart system 30 and the conveyor 34. In this case, the tracked cart system 30 is shared by the first transfer system and the second transfer system.

  FIG. 7 shows a modified automatic warehouse 7 which is the same as the embodiment of FIGS. 1 to 6 except that a lifter 60 is provided. The stacker crane 22 includes an upper carriage 58 and an upper rail 59. Further, a lifter 60 is provided so as to connect the stations 26 and 27. The lifter 60 lifts and lowers a pair of conveyors 62 and 63, for example, and connects to the conveyors 65 and 66 of the stations 26 and 27. For example, in the state of FIG. 7, the conveyor 65 of the station 26 is connected to the conveyor 62, and the conveyor 66 of the station 27 is connected to the conveyor 63. When the conveyors 62 and 63 are moved up and down, the conveyor 62 can be connected to the conveyor 66, and the conveyor 63 can be connected to the conveyor 65. W is a product and is mounted on the pallet 64.

  In the modification of FIG. 7, the vertical conveyor 40 of FIGS. 2 and 3 can be backed up by the lifter 60. Furthermore, since the transport systems 8 and 9 are configured to be connected via the automatic warehouse 6, if the lifter 60 is provided, the transport systems 8 and 9 can be efficiently connected.

2 Manufacturing / shipping system 4 Manufacturing equipment 6, 7 Automatic warehouse 8 First transport system 9 Second transport system 10 Truck berth 12 Transport controller 14 Manufacturing controller 16 Terminal 20 Automatic warehouse unit 21 Rack 22 Stacker crane 23 Mast 24 Lift platform 25 Rails 26, 27 Stations 30, 31 Tracked cart system 32 Tracked carts 34-38 Conveyor 40 Vertical conveyor (transfer device between the first and second transport systems)
41-43 Conveyors 50, 51 Input / output unit 52 Automatic warehouse transfer mode control unit 54 Dispensing mode control unit 56 Local controller 58 Upper carriage 59 Upper rail 60 Lifter 62, 63 Conveyor 64 Pallet 65, 66 Conveyor (station conveyor)
W products

Claims (3)

A first transport system that connects an automatic warehouse, a manufacturing facility, and an automatic warehouse; a second transport system that connects a track berth and an automatic warehouse; an automatic warehouse, a first transport system, and a second transport system; A manufacturing and shipping system having a transport controller for controlling
The first transfer system and the second transfer system are connected so as to be able to deliver products,
The transport controller
The product manufactured at the manufacturing facility is received into the automatic warehouse via the first transfer system, and the product discharged from the automatic warehouse by the transfer device in the automatic warehouse is transferred to the truck berth via the second transfer system. Automatic warehouse transfer mode for controlling the first transfer system, the second transfer system and the transfer device in the automatic warehouse,
Control the first and second transport systems so that products manufactured at the manufacturing facility are transported to the truck berth without going through the automatic warehouse by the first and second transport systems. A payout mode, and
A plurality of the track berths are provided ,
The transfer controller controls the first transfer system and the second transfer system so that the product can be transferred to an arbitrary track berth in the payout mode, and transfers an empty pallet from the arbitrary track berth to the manufacturing facility. A manufacturing / shipping system characterized by freely controlling the first transport system and the second transport system. A first transport system that connects an automatic warehouse, a manufacturing facility, and an automatic warehouse; a second transport system that connects a track berth and an automatic warehouse; an automatic warehouse, a first transport system, and a second transport system; A manufacturing and shipping system having a transport controller for controlling
The first transfer system and the second transfer system are connected so as to be able to deliver products,
The transport controller
The product manufactured at the manufacturing facility is received into the automatic warehouse via the first transfer system, and the product discharged from the automatic warehouse by the transfer device in the automatic warehouse is transferred to the truck berth via the second transfer system. Automatic warehouse transfer mode for controlling the first transfer system, the second transfer system and the transfer device in the automatic warehouse,
Control the first and second transport systems so that products manufactured at the manufacturing facility are transported to the truck berth without going through the automatic warehouse by the first and second transport systems. A payout mode, and
The first transport system is provided on the second floor of the building, and the second transport system is provided on the first floor of the building so as to overlap vertically .
In the automatic warehouse, the first station on the second floor of the building provided with the first transfer system and the second station on the first floor of the building provided with the second transfer system overlap in the vertical direction. In preparation for
The first station and the second station each have a conveyor,
Furthermore, a lifter that moves up and down between a position connected to the conveyor of the first station and a position connected to the conveyor of the second station is provided in the automatic warehouse, . A first transport system that connects an automatic warehouse, a manufacturing facility, and an automatic warehouse; a second transport system that connects a plurality of truck berths and the automatic warehouse; an automatic warehouse, a first transport system, and a second Using a manufacturing and shipping system having a transfer controller that controls the transfer system,
The first transfer system and the second transfer system are connected so as to be able to deliver products,
Normally, the transfer controller automatically controls the first transfer system, the second transfer system, and the transfer device in the automatic warehouse by using the first transfer system. In addition to entering the warehouse, the product is unloaded from the automatic warehouse by the transfer device in the automatic warehouse and transferred to the truck berth via the second transfer system.
In the event of an emergency, the transfer controller controls the first transfer system and the second transfer system, so that the product manufactured by the manufacturing facility passes through the automatic warehouse by the first transfer system and the second transfer system. It conveys the arbitrary track berths without, by a first transport system and the second transport system, characterized by conveying the empty pallets to production facilities of any track berths, manufacturing shipping method.

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