JP6520752B2 - Article conveying apparatus and article conveying apparatus - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to an article conveying apparatus provided with a movable body having a support for supporting an article, and a first drive unit for moving the movable body, and an article conveying facility provided with the article conveying apparatus. .

A conventional example of such an article transport apparatus is described in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-300608 (Patent Document 1). In the article conveying apparatus of Patent Document 1, the movable body (transfer device) is provided with a receiving plate, a picking unit and a movable frame, the article is supported by the receiving plate, and the pair is moved by the picking unit. The movable frame of is configured to guide the article.
Moreover, in the article conveying apparatus of patent document 1, four sets of the above-mentioned receiving board, picking unit, and movable frame were provided, and four articles were put in order by the several receiving board with which the moving body was equipped. Support in the state. Then, when the picking unit moves one of the four articles, guidance of the articles is performed by a pair of movable frames positioned on both sides in the lateral direction with respect to the articles to be moved.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2003-300608

In the article transport apparatus described above, when the transfer mechanism moves a part of the plurality of articles, the article is guided by the pair of guide members positioned on both sides in the lateral direction with respect to the article to be moved Therefore, when moving the article by the transfer mechanism, the article can be properly moved in the front-rear direction.
However, in the article conveying apparatus of Patent Document 1, by supporting the plurality of articles in the lateral direction on the support portion, the pair of guide members are laterally corresponded to the plurality of articles supported by the support portion. It is necessary to provide a plurality of sets side by side, and the moving body tends to be large in the lateral direction. For this purpose, compactification of the moving body in the lateral direction is required.

  Therefore, an article conveying apparatus and an article conveying apparatus that can achieve compactification in the lateral direction of the movable body while being able to appropriately move the article by the transfer mechanism are required.

A characterizing feature of an article conveying apparatus according to the present invention is an article conveying apparatus comprising: a movable body provided with a support for supporting an article; and a first drive part for moving the movable body.
The moving body is a transfer mechanism for moving an article between the support portion and the transfer target portion in a state in which the support portion and the transfer target portion to which the object is transferred are arranged. And a guide member for guiding the article when the transfer mechanism moves the article, and the transfer mechanism moves the article when moving the article between the support portion and the transfer target portion. The position to be stopped is the target stop position, and when the movable body is positioned at the target stop position when viewed in the up and down direction, the direction in which the movable body and the transfer target portion are aligned is the front and back direction. An article group including a plurality of articles supported by the support section, with the support section supporting the plurality of articles in the horizontal direction with the direction intersecting with the front-rear direction as the lateral direction As a first group of articles, wherein the guide member Provided on both sides of the first group of objects to be transferred, and the transfer mechanism transfers the object to be transferred which is a part of the first group of items in the longitudinal direction to support the object to be transferred When moving the transfer target unit from the unit to the transfer target unit, guidance of one side in the lateral direction of the transfer target object is performed using an article other than the transfer target object in the guide member or the first item group, It is in the point which performs guidance of the other side of the transverse direction of the article for transfer and loading with articles other than the article for transfer and loading in the 1st article group.

According to this feature configuration, in the case where the first group of articles is constituted by two articles aligned in the lateral direction, the transfer mechanism mounts one article of the first group of articles as a transfer target article from the support portion When moving to the transfer target part, the guidance of one side of the transfer target article in the lateral direction is performed by the guide member, and the other side of the transfer target article in the lateral direction is the transfer target of the first article group It is performed on an item other than the item, that is, the remaining item not to be transferred. As described above, since both lateral sides of the transfer target article are guided by the guide member and one article which is not the transfer target article, the transfer target article is appropriately transferred from the support portion to the transfer target section. it can.
In addition, in the case where the first group of articles is constituted by three articles aligned in the lateral direction, the transfer mechanism transfers the article positioned at the center of the three articles aligned in the lateral direction of the first article group. When moving from the support section to the transfer target portion as the load target article, the guidance on one side in the lateral direction of the transfer target article and the guide on the other side are articles other than the transfer target article in the first article group, that is, , It is performed with the articles located on both sides of the transfer target article. As described above, since both lateral sides of the transfer target article are guided by the two articles that are not transfer target articles, the transfer target article can be appropriately transferred from the support unit to the transfer target section.
In the case where the first group of articles is composed of three articles aligned in the lateral direction, the transfer mechanism transfers the article located at the end of the three articles aligned in the lateral direction of the first article group. When moving from the support part to the transfer target part as the target article, the transfer mechanism transfers one article that is a part of the first article group in the case where the transfer mechanism includes two articles aligned in the lateral direction. As in the case of moving from the support portion to the transfer target portion as the target article, both sides in the lateral direction of the transfer target article are guided by the guide member and one other article.

Then, when a part of the first group of articles is transferred from the support unit to the transfer target part as a transfer target article by the transfer device, the article other than the transfer target article in the first article group is transferred By using for guidance of an object article, even if it does not provide a guide member between articles which constitute the 1st article group, a transfer object article can be transferred appropriately from a supporter to a transfer object part.
That is, since the guide member does not need to be provided between the articles constituting the first article group, the articles constituting the first article group can be supported by the support portion in a state in which they are in close contact with each other. . Therefore, the lateral width of the support portion can be made compact, and as a result, the moving body provided with the support portion can be made compact in the lateral direction.
In this manner, the moving body can be configured to be compact in the lateral direction while appropriately moving the article by the transfer mechanism.

The characteristic configuration of the article transport facility according to the present invention is an article transport facility including a storage rack in which storage sections for storing articles are arranged in the vertical direction, and the article transport apparatus according to claim 1;
Each of the plurality of storage sections includes a plurality of storage areas corresponding to the transfer target section arranged in the lateral direction so that a plurality of articles can be stored in a state of being arranged in the horizontal direction. The loading mechanism includes a second guide member that contacts the article in the lateral direction and moves the article in the front-rear direction when the loading mechanism moves the article, and the second guide member includes the movable body at the target stop position. A second article group including a plurality of articles disposed on the storage section side in the front-rear direction with respect to the guide member provided on the movable body in the state of The point is provided only on both outer sides in the lateral direction of the above.

According to this configuration, in the case where the second group of articles is configured of two articles aligned in the lateral direction, and the storage portion is provided with two storage areas in the lateral direction, the transfer mechanism is laterally disposed. When the transfer target article is moved to one of the two storage areas arranged in the direction, the second guide member guides the lateral side of the transfer target article by the second guide member, and the lateral direction of the transfer target article Guidance on the other side of the direction is provided by articles stored in other storage areas. In this manner, on the storage unit side relative to the location where the guide member is provided in the front-rear direction, both sides in the lateral direction of the transfer target article are guided by the guide member and the article already stored in the storage section. Therefore, the transfer target article can be properly transferred from the support unit to the transfer target unit.
In addition, in the case where the second group of articles is constituted by three articles aligned in the lateral direction, and the storage section is provided with three accommodation areas in the lateral direction, the transfer mechanism is arranged in the lateral direction 3 When moving the transfer target article to the storage area located at the center of the two storage areas, the guide on one side in the lateral direction of the transfer target article and the guide on the other side are stored in the other storage area Done with the goods. As described above, since the lateral sides of the transfer target article are guided by the article already stored in the storage section on the storage section side relative to the location where the guide member is provided in the front-rear direction, the transfer target Articles can be properly transferred from the support unit to the transfer target unit.

Then, when the transfer target article is moved to a part of the plurality of storage areas of the storage section by the transfer device, the article already stored in the storage section is used for guiding the transfer target article. Even if the second guiding member is provided only on both sides of the second group of articles in the lateral direction, the article to be transferred can be properly transferred from the support portion to the storage area.
And since the 2nd guidance member is not provided between the articles which constitute the 2nd article group, it can be made to store in the storage part in the state where the 2nd article group was closely contacted in the cross direction. Therefore, the width of the storage portion can be made compact, and as a result, the storage shelf provided with the storage portion can be made compact in the lateral direction.

  Here, the transfer mechanism includes a locking portion that locks the article in the front-rear direction, a first guide portion that guides the locking portion in the front-rear direction, and the locking portion in the front-rear direction A second driving unit for moving the locking unit in the front-rear direction by the second driving unit in a state where the moving body is stopped at the target stop position; An article is moved between the transfer target portion, and the movable body is configured such that a distance between the pair of guide members in the lateral direction is a first distance and a distance in the lateral direction is larger than the first distance. The article transport apparatus includes a control unit that controls the second drive unit and the third drive unit, and the control unit is configured to store the articles from the support unit. In the case of movement to a part, movement of the locking part is started at the first interval to move the article The distance between the guide members is set from the first distance before the movement of the object to the transfer target portion is completed and the front end of the object is located within the longitudinal width of the second guide member. It is preferable to control the second drive unit and the third drive unit so as to switch to the second interval.

According to this configuration, when the article is transferred from the support section to the storage section, the movement of the locking section is started at a narrow interval between the pair of guide members, and the movement of the article is started. Can be guided by the guide member, and lateral displacement of other articles in the first article group used for guiding the article to be transferred can be restricted.
In addition, before the movement of the article to the transfer target portion is completed, and the front end of the article is located within the front and rear width of the second guide member, the distance between the pair of guide members is from the first distance to the second distance In this state, the guide by the guide member and the lateral deviation of the other articles in the first group of articles are not properly controlled. In this state, the front end of the article is already positioned within the front and rear width of the second guide member. Therefore, the transfer target article can be guided by the second guide member.

  And, for example, when the arrangement of the guide member and the second guide member is not aligned in the front-rear direction, the direction in which the guide member guides the transfer target article is different from the direction in which the second guide member guides There is. Even in such a case, before the movement of the article to the transfer target portion is completed and the tip of the article is positioned within the front and rear width of the second guide member, the distance between the pair of guide members is set to the first distance In order to switch from the second interval to the second interval, the part on the storage section side of the transfer target article is guided by the second guide member, and the lateral movement of the part on the opposite side to the storage section side of the transfer target article is Being acceptable, damage to the item can be avoided.

  Further, the transfer mechanism includes a locking portion that locks the article in the front-rear direction, a first guide portion that guides the locking portion in the front-rear direction, and the locking portion in the front-rear direction. And a second drive unit for moving the lock unit in the front-rear direction by the second drive unit in a state where the movable body is stopped at the target stop position, and the support unit and the support unit. The first group of articles and the second group of articles are two articles aligned in the lateral direction, and the transfer mechanism is configured to move the locking section to the first position. In the case of moving two articles constituting the first article group from the support section to the transfer target section, the second drive section is provided with a pair corresponding to each of two articles in one article group. By moving the pair of locking portions integrally, the one side and the other in the lateral direction of the two articles Performing both the guide in the guide member, it is preferable to move the transfer target portion together two articles to be supported by the support portion.

According to this configuration, by moving one of the pair of locking portions by the second drive unit, only one of the two articles constituting the first article group is the transfer target article as the transfer target article. An article (one article) can be moved from the support unit to the transfer target unit. Further, by moving both of the pair of locking portions integrally in the second drive unit, both of the two articles constituting the first article group can be used as the articles to be transferred and their transfer target articles. The (two articles) can be moved from the support unit to the transfer target unit.
Then, when the transfer mechanism moves two articles constituting the first group of articles as the transfer target article from the support portion to the transfer target part, one side and the other side of the transfer target article in the lateral direction Guidance is provided by the guide member and the second guide member. As described above, since the lateral sides of the transfer target article are guided by the guide member and the second guide member, the transfer target article is supported even when all the articles constituting the first article group are collectively moved. Transferable from the department to the transfer target department appropriately.

  Further, in a state where the article is supported by the support portion, the width in the lateral direction becomes narrower as at least one end of the one end in the front-rear direction and the other end in the front-rear direction It is suitable that it is formed in shape.

  According to this configuration, when the transfer mechanism moves the transfer target article to the storage area of the storage section, the end portion on the storage section side of the transfer target article and the item already stored in the storage section At least one of the end portion on the transfer device side and the end portion on the transfer device side have a shape in which the width in the lateral direction becomes narrower toward the tip end side. Therefore, even if the transfer mechanism and the storage section are relatively shifted in the lateral direction, the transfer target article is placed between the second guide member and the article already stored in the storage section or in the storage section. It is easy to move between articles already stored.

Further, the transfer mechanism includes a locking portion for locking the article in the front-rear direction, and the article is supported by the support portion in a direction in which the storage shelf is present in the front-rear direction. The opposite end is provided with a locked portion to which the locking portion is locked, and at least a portion of the locking portion to be locked to the locked portion is formed in a round rod shape extending in the vertical direction Is preferable.

  According to this configuration, for example, the storage rack is inclined with respect to the moving direction of the locking portion in the transfer mechanism when viewed in the vertical direction, so that the transfer portion is transferred by moving the locking portion of the transfer mechanism. The direction in which the target article moves and the direction in which the second guide member of the storage rack guides the transfer target article may be shifted. Even in such a case, since the locked portion of the article is locked to the round bar portion of the locking portion, the article is likely to pivot about the locking portion, and the article is the locking portion. By swinging about the center, it is easy to change the posture of the article to a posture suitable for the second guide member, and it is possible to avoid breakage of the article when the article is guided by the second guide member.

Top view of goods conveyance facility The perspective view which looked at the storage shelf obliquely from the front A perspective view of the server viewed obliquely from above A perspective view of the server viewed obliquely from below Perspective view of the locking mechanism Side view of the locking mechanism Front view of the lock mechanism Top view of the storage unit Side view of stacker crane Side view of elevating body Front view of the elevating body Top view of the article transfer device Control block diagram Action diagram for storing or removing two servers by the article transfer device Action diagram for storing or removing two servers by the article transfer device Action diagram for storing or removing two servers by the article transfer device Action diagram for storing or removing two servers by the article transfer device Action diagram for storing or removing one server by the item transfer device Action diagram for storing or removing one server by the item transfer device Action diagram for storing or removing one server by the item transfer device Action diagram for storing or removing one server by the item transfer device Front view of the locking portion and the locked portion in another embodiment 6 The top view which shows the state which the server inclined with respect to the transfer equipment in another Embodiment 6 Operation view when storing or removing two dummy articles by the article transfer device according to another embodiment 7 Operation view when one dummy article and one server are stored or taken out by the article transfer device according to another embodiment 7 Operation view when storing or taking out one dummy article by the article transfer device according to another embodiment 7

Hereinafter, an embodiment of an article transfer facility provided with an article transfer apparatus according to the present invention will be described based on the drawings.
As shown in FIG. 1, in the article transport facility, a stacker crane 2 as an article transport apparatus for transporting articles 1, a storage rack 4 in which storage sections 3 for storing articles 1 are arranged in parallel in the vertical direction Y, and unloading A conveyor 5 and a receiving conveyor 6 are provided. A plurality of storage racks 4 are arranged in parallel in the lateral direction X, and the stacker crane 2 moves in the lateral direction X along the storage racks 4 arranged in parallel.
The direction in which the stacker crane 2 travels when viewed in the vertical direction Y is the lateral direction X, and the direction orthogonal to the lateral direction X when viewed in the vertical direction Y is described as the longitudinal direction Z. Further, as shown in FIG. 2, in the longitudinal direction Z, a direction in which the storage rack 4 is present with respect to the traveling path is a backward direction Z1 with respect to the traveling path along which the stacker crane 2 travels. Explain as.

  In the article transport facility of the present embodiment, the storage rack 4 in which the article 1 is stored is installed. Then, when a failure or the like occurs in the article 1 stored in the storage rack 4 and needs to be replaced, the stacker crane 2 takes out the article 1 to be replaced from the storage unit 3 and the article 1 to be replaced Is transported to the delivery conveyor 5 and the new article 1 stored in the storage conveyor 6 is transported by the stacker crane 2 to the storage section 3 (the storage section 3 from which the article 1 to be replaced has been taken out).

[Articles]
In the present embodiment, the server 1 s as the article 1 is stored in the storage rack 4 and transported by the stacker crane 2. Further, in the article transport facility, there is a dummy article 1d (see FIG. 18 and the like) in which the shape viewed in the up-down direction Y as the article 1 is formed in the same shape as the server 1s. In this embodiment, the stacker crane 2 transports the two servers 1s together and transports the server 1s and the dummy article 1d together. While the dummy article 1d is not stored in the storage unit 3.
Next, although the server 1 s will be described, the longitudinal direction Z and the lateral direction X of the server 1 s are specified and described based on the posture of the server 1 s stored in the storage unit 3.

As shown in FIG. 2, the server 1 s is formed so that the width in the front-rear direction Z is wider than the width in the lateral direction X, and the server 1 s is stored in the storage shelf 4 with the long side along the front-rear direction. .
As shown in FIGS. 3 and 4, the server 1 s includes a housing 8 and a substrate (not shown) on which a CPU, a memory, a hard disk, and the like are mounted. The housing 8 is formed of a bottom surface 9 and a wall 10 vertically erected from the bottom 9, and the housing 8 is formed in a box shape having an open top and a rear. The substrate is fixed on the bottom portion 9.

The bottom portion 9 includes a rear end 9a on the rear side and a front portion 9b which is a portion on the front direction Z2 side of the rear end 9a.
The front portion 9 b is formed in a rectangular shape when viewed in the vertical direction Y. The rear end portion 9a is located between a rectangular portion formed in a rectangular shape whose width in the lateral direction X is narrower than that of the front portion 9b, and the rectangular portion and the front portion 9b. And a tapered portion formed in a tapered shape in which the width in the lateral direction X is narrower toward the side. Thus, the rear end 9a of the bottom surface 9 is formed so that the end on the rear side of the article 1 has a shape in which the width in the lateral direction X narrows toward the front end.
In the present embodiment, although a part of the rear end of the article 1 is formed in a tapered shape, all of the rear end of the article 1 may be formed in a tapered shape.

The wall 10 is provided with a lateral wall 10a located at an end in the lateral direction X and extending in the front-rear direction, and a front wall 10b located at an end in the forward direction Z2 and extending in the lateral direction X .
The server 1 s is provided with bar-shaped first and second engagement portions 11 and 12 for positioning, a lock mechanism 13 and a locked portion 16. As shown in FIG. 3, the first engagement portion 11 is disposed at the rear end of the article 1 so as to project upward from the bottom portion 9, and as shown in FIG. The portion 12 is disposed at the front end of the article 1 so as to project downward from the bottom portion 9. The locked portion 16 is disposed on the front surface of the front wall portion 10 b of the article 1 and is formed in a U-shape as viewed in the vertical direction Y. The locked portion 16 of the locked portion 16 is configured to be locked from above with a locking portion 37 of the transfer mechanism 32 described later between the locked portion 16 and the front wall portion 10 b. Further, the locked portion 16 is disposed in each of a portion on one side and a portion on the other side from the center in the lateral direction X in the front wall portion 10 b of the article 1. A unit 16 is provided.

As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the locking mechanism 13 is disposed at the front end of the article 1.
The lock mechanism 13 is composed of an engaging body 14 constituted by a plate spring, and a swinging body 15 swinging around an axial center along the front-rear direction.
The engaging body 14 protrudes downward from a fixing portion 14 a fixed to the upper surface of the bottom surface 9, an abutting portion 14 b operated upward by the rocking body 15, and a hole penetrating in the vertical direction Y of the bottom surface 9. And a third engaging portion 14c. The rocking body 15 is connected to the front wall portion 10b so that the middle portion in the longitudinal direction can rockably move around the axis along the front-rear direction, and one longitudinal end portion of the rocking body 15 corresponds to the front and back of the front wall portion 10b It projects forward from a hole penetrating in the direction Z. A portion to be operated 15a is formed by a portion of the rocking body 15 that protrudes from the front wall 10b. The operated portion 15 a protrudes forward from the central portion in the lateral direction X of the front wall portion 10 b of the article 1.

  As shown in FIGS. 5 to 7, the lock mechanism 13 is in a locked state in which the third engagement portion 14 c protrudes downward from the bottom surface portion 9 when the operated portion 15 a is not operated. Then, in the lock mechanism 13, the operating portion 38 moves downward from the state shown in FIG. 7, and the operated portion 15 a is pushed downward, whereby the other end of the rocking body 15 in the longitudinal direction abuts The portion 14 b is pushed upward, whereby the engaged portion 15 b is switched to the unlocked state in which the engaged portion 15 b does not protrude downward from the bottom portion 9. The lock mechanism 13 switches from the unlocked state to the locked state by the restoring force of the leaf spring as the pressing operation on the operated portion 15a is released.

〔Storage rack〕
The storage rack 4 is composed of a shelf structure 17 and a shelf board 20. The shelf structure 17 is composed of a base frame 18 frame-formed of a frame material and a flat plate 19. A plurality of storage sections 3 aligned in the vertical direction Y are formed in the storage shelf 4 by dividing the storage space formed in the shelf structure 17 into a plurality of spaces aligned in the vertical direction Y by the plurality of shelf boards 20. It is done.
Incidentally, the storage section 3 at the uppermost level is formed between a portion covering the upper side of the storage space in the shelf structure 17 and the uppermost shelf board 20 in the plurality of shelf boards 20. The lowermost storage section 3 is formed between a portion of the shelf structure 17 that covers the lower side of the storage space and the shelf board 20 located at the lowermost position of the plurality of shelf boards 20.

As shown in FIG. 8, each of the plurality of storage sections 3 provided in the storage rack 4 stores a plurality of storage areas E arranged in the lateral direction X in a state where the plurality of articles 1 are arranged in the lateral direction X It is configured to be possible.
Specifically, the distance between a pair of side walls 17a covering both lateral sides of the storage space in the shelf structure 17 is several millimeters larger than twice the lateral width of the article 1 (the width in the lateral direction X of the front portion 9b) It is an interval.
The distance between the pair of shelf boards 20 adjacent in the vertical direction Y in the vertical direction Y is larger by about several millimeters than the largest part of the product 1 in the vertical direction, and the lower surface of the product 1 is a shelf board It is stored in a state of being supported from below at the upper surface of 20.

Each of the plurality of storage sections 3 is configured to be able to store the storage area E in a state in which the storage areas E are arranged in the lateral direction X and the pair of articles 1 are arranged in the lateral direction X. The pair of side walls 17 a functions as a second guide member 24 which abuts the article 1 in the lateral direction X when the article 1 is moved by the transfer mechanism 32 described later and guides the article 1 in the front-rear direction Thus, the second guiding member 24 is provided in each of the pair of storage portions 3.
The second guide member 24 provided in this manner is located on the rear direction Z1 side in the front-rear direction Z relative to the guide member 33 provided on the elevating body 28 in a state where the elevating body 28 is positioned at the target stop position It arrange | positions on the part 3 side), and it is provided only in the both sides in the cross direction X of the 2nd article group comprised by the 2 articles | goods 1 accommodated in the accommodating part 3. In FIG.
The target stop position of the elevating body 28 is a position at which the elevating body 28 is stopped when moving the article 1 between the support portion 31 and the storage area E of the storage portion 3. Further, in the state where the elevating body 28 is positioned at the target stop position, the elevating body 28 and the storage area E are aligned in the front-rear direction Z.

The first engaged portion 21 is provided at the rear end of the shelf plate 20, and when the article 1 is stored in the storage area E of the storage section 3, the first engagement section of the article 1. 11 engages with the first engaged portion 21. In addition, the second engaged portion 22 is provided at the front end of the shelf plate 20, and when the article 1 is stored in the storage area E of the storage section 3, the second engagement of the article 1 is performed. The mating portion 12 engages with the second engaged portion 22.
The third engaged portion 23 is provided at the front end of the shelf plate 20, and the locking mechanism 13 of the article 1 is stored in the storage area E of the storage section 3 in a state in which the article 1 is stored. By switching to the locked state, the third engagement portion 14 c of the lock mechanism 13 engages with the third engaged portion 23.
As in the case of the shelf board 20, the first engaged portion 21, the second engaged portion 22, and the third engaged portion 23 are provided in a portion covering the lower side of the storage space in the shelf structure 17 ing.

  The storage racks 4 are installed on both sides in the front-rear direction with respect to the traveling path of the stacker crane 2, and the storage areas E are installed on both sides in the front-rear direction with respect to the movable body stopped at the target stop position. The storage area E corresponds to the transfer target unit.

[Stacker crane]
As shown in FIGS. 1 and 9, the stacker crane 2 includes a lift 28 having a support 31 for supporting the article 1 from below and a travel drive as a drive to move the lift 28. A motor M1 (see FIG. 13) and a second motor M2 (see FIG. 13), which is an elevation driving unit, are provided.
In addition to the description, the stacker crane 2 includes a traveling carriage 26 as a traveling unit traveling along a traveling path, a support 27 as a second guide unit erected on the traveling carriage 26, and a support 27. An elevating body 28 moving in the vertical direction Y, a first motor M1 for moving the traveling carriage 26, and a second motor M2 for moving the elevating body 28 in the vertical direction Y along the support 27 are provided. Then, the traveling carriage 26 travels by the driving of the first motor M1, and the elevating body 28 moves in the lateral direction X, and the elevating body 28 moves in the vertical direction Y by the driving of the second motor M2.
As described above, the elevating body 28 is configured to move in the lateral direction X and the vertical direction Y by driving the first motor M1 and the second motor M2, and the elevating body 28 is movable in the vertical direction Y and the lateral direction X. Corresponds to a mobile moving to the Further, the first motor M1 and the second motor M2 correspond to a first drive unit for moving the movable body.

  The traveling carriage 26 travels along the lateral direction X on the pair of guide rails 25. The pair of guide rails 25 extend in the lateral direction X and are arranged side by side in the longitudinal direction Z. The support 27 is provided upright on the traveling carriage 26 to guide the elevating body 28 in the vertical direction Y.

As shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, the elevating body 28 includes a support portion 31, a transfer mechanism 32, and a guide member 33.
The support portion 31 is configured by arranging two pairs of support bodies 31 a aligned in the lateral direction X in the lateral direction X. The pair of supports 31a is configured to support one article 1 from below. That is, the support portion 31 supports the two articles 1 in the lateral direction X by arranging two pairs of the supports 31 a in the lateral direction X. The plurality of articles 1 supported by the support portion 31 will be referred to as a first article group. Also, the two articles 1 supported by the shelf board 20 of the storage rack 4 are referred to as a second article group. The first article group and the second article group are two articles 1 aligned in the lateral direction X.

  The transfer mechanism 32 moves the article 1 between the support unit 31 and the transfer target unit in a state in which the support unit 31 and the transfer target unit to which the item 1 is to be transferred are arranged in the front-rear direction Z. . The transfer mechanism 32 is supported by a fork device 35 which can move in the longitudinal direction Z, a slide 36 supported movably in the longitudinal direction Z by the primary fork 35a of the fork device 35, and an article supported by the slide 36 And a control unit 38 supported by the slide body 36 for switching the lock mechanism 13 of the article 1 from the locked state to the unlocked state. Further, the transfer mechanism 32 is a third motor M3 which is a drive unit for moving the fork device 35 in and out, and an interlocking mechanism for moving the slide body 36 in the front-rear direction Z in conjunction with the movement of the fork device 35. The fourth motor M4 is configured to move the fork device 35 in the vertical direction Y with respect to the support portion 31 and to move the locking portion 37 and the operation portion 38 in the vertical direction Y with respect to the support portion 31.

  Thus, the transfer mechanism 32 is provided with the locking portion 37 and the fork device 35. The fork device 35 (specifically, the primary fork 35a and the fork base 35b) corresponds to a first guide for guiding the locking portion 37 in the front-rear direction, and the third motor M3 moves the locking portion 37 in the front-rear direction Z It corresponds to a second drive unit that Then, the transfer mechanism 32 moves the locking portion 37 in the front-rear direction Z by the third motor M3 in a state where the elevating body 28 is positioned at the target stop position, thereby the support portion 31 and the transfer target portion Move the item 1 between. The locking portion 37 is composed of a pair of locking bodies 37a, and the pair of locking bodies 37a is simultaneously locked separately to a pair of locked portions 16 provided in one article 1 Do. The locking portions 37 (each of the pair of locking members 37a) are formed in a plate shape extending in the vertical direction Y and the lateral direction X. The operation portion 38 is formed in a plate shape extending in the vertical direction Y and the lateral direction X similarly to the locking portion 37. The operation portion 38 is provided between the pair of locking members 37 a in the lateral direction X.

By driving the third motor M3, the primary fork 35a moves in the front-rear direction Z with respect to the fork base 35b, and the fork device 35 moves out in the front-rear direction Z. Further, interlocking with the movement of the fork device 35, as the primary fork 35a protrudes in the backward direction Z1, the slide body 36 moves to the end of the primary fork 35a in the backward direction Z1, and the primary fork 35a The slide body 36 is configured to move to the end of the primary fork 35a in the forward direction Z2 as it retracts in the forward direction Z2. The third motor M3 corresponds to a second drive unit that moves the locking unit 37 in the front-rear direction Z.
The fork device 35 moves in the vertical direction Y with respect to the support portion 31 by the drive of the fourth motor M4. The first height, which is the height at which the locking portion 37 is locked to the locked portion 16 of the article 1 by the movement of the fork device 35 in the vertical direction Y, and the locking portion 37 from the locked portion 16 The locking portion 37 is moved to a second height which is a height at the time of being separated and retracted upward.

The transfer mechanism 32 moves the locking portion 37 in the front-rear direction by the third motor M3 in a state where the elevating body 28 is stopped at the target stop position, and between the support portion 31 and the storage area E of the storage portion 3 Move the item 1 at.
To add the description, when the transfer mechanism 32 moves the article 1 from the storage area E of the storage section 3 to the support section 31, the locking section 37 is not moved to the target stop position while the elevating body 28 is stopped at the target stop position. The fork device 35 is protruded from the retracted state in the backward direction Z1 in a state of being raised to 2 heights, and the locking portion 37 is in the front-rear direction Z between the locked portion 16 of the article 1 and the front wall 10b. Position. Thereafter, the fork device 35 is lowered to lower the locking portion 37 to the first height and the locking portion 37 is locked to the article 1, and then the fork device 35 is retracted to the retracted state. By lowering the fork device 35 in this manner, the operated portion 15a is pushed downward by the operation portion 38 and the lock mechanism 13 is switched from the locked state to the unlocked state, and then the locking portion 37 is moved forward. By moving in the direction Z2, the locked portion 16 of the article 1 is pulled by the locking portion 37, and the article 1 moves in the backward direction Z1. In this manner, the article 1 moves from the storage area E of the storage section 3 to the support section 31.
Further, when the transfer mechanism 32 moves the article 1 from the support section 31 to the storage area E of the storage section 3, the article supported by the support section 31 with the elevating body 28 stopped at the target stop position In a state in which the locking portion 37 is locked to 1, the fork device 35 is caused to project in the backward direction Z1 from the retracted state. As a result, the front wall 10b of the article 1 is pushed by the locking section 37, the article 1 moves in the backward direction Z1, and the article 1 is moved from the support 31 to the storage area E of the storage section 3. Thereafter, the fork device 35 is raised to raise the locking portion 37 to the second height to separate the locking portion 37 from the article 1, and then the fork device 35 is retracted to the retracted state. By thus raising the fork device 35, the downward pushing operation of the operated portion 15a by the operation portion 38 is released, and the lock mechanism 13 is switched from the unlocked state to the locked state.

The transfer mechanism 32 sets a plurality of sets of the fork device 35, the slide body 36, the locking portion 37, and the operation portion 38 in accordance with the number of the articles 1 of the first article group (two in the present embodiment) In this embodiment, two sets are provided, and the transfer mechanism 32 is provided with a pair of locking portions 37 corresponding to each of the two articles 1 in the first article group.
The transfer mechanism 32 moves the pair of locking portions 37 integrally with the third motor M3 to combine the two articles 1 supported by the support portion 31 into the storage area E of the storage portion 3. It can be moved. Thus, when moving two objects 1 together by the transfer mechanism 32 and moving them from the support portion 31 to the storage area E of the storage portion 3, both sides of one side and the other side of the two articles 1 in the lateral direction X Guidance is performed by the pair of guide members 33.
In addition, the transfer mechanism 32 moves one of the pair of locking portions 37 with the third motor M3 so that one of the two articles 1 of the two articles 1 supported by the support portion 31 (first A part of the articles 1) of the article group can be moved to the storage area E of the storage section 3. Thus, when one article 1 is moved from the support section 31 to the storage area E of the storage section 3 by the transfer mechanism 32, the guide of one side in the lateral direction X of the one article 1 to be transferred is Guided by the guide member 33, the other side of the lateral direction X of the article 1 to be transferred is guided by the other article 1 of the first article group.

As described above, in the case of moving one article 1, one article 1 (one article 1 of a first article group) of the two articles 1 supported by the support portion 31 is When moving to the storage area E of the storage section 3, the dummy article 1 d is supported by the support section 31 as another article 1 of the first article group. In short, the first group of articles is constituted by the server 1 s which is the article 1 to be transferred and the dummy article 1 d not to be transferred.
Then, with respect to the article 1 to be transferred in the lateral direction X, the side on which the dummy article 1 d is present is the other side, and the opposite side is one side. When moving the object 1 to the storage area E of the storage unit 3, the guide member 33 guides the lateral direction X of the article 1 to be transferred, and the other of the lateral direction X of the article 1 to be transferred The side guidance is performed by the dummy article 1d.

Further, as described above, when moving one article 1 (one article 1 of the first article group) of the two articles 1 supported by the support section 31 to the storage area E of the storage section 3 One of the second group of articles is the article 1 to be transferred, and the other of the second group of articles is the article 1 already stored in the storage unit 3.
The lateral side X supports the article 1 to be transferred by the transfer mechanism 32 with the side on which the stored article 1 is present with respect to the article 1 to be transferred as the other side and the opposite side as one side. When moving from the part 31 to the storage area E of the storage part 3, guidance of one side in the lateral direction X of the article 1 to be transferred is performed by the side wall 17a, and the lateral direction X of the article 1 to be transferred is Guidance on the other side is performed by the stored item 1.

  A pair of guide members 33 for guiding the article 1 in the front-rear direction Z when the transfer mechanism 32 moves the article 1 to the elevating body 28 and a distance between the pair of guide members 33 in the lateral direction X And a fifth motor M5 that changes the distance in the lateral direction X to a second distance that is wider than the first distance. Each of the pair of guide members 33 is provided only on both sides of the first article group in the lateral direction X. By driving the fifth motor M5, the pair of guide members 33 move in the opposite direction to each other in the lateral direction X, and the distance between the pair of guide members 33 in the lateral direction X is slightly The first interval, which is a wide interval of about mm, and the second interval, which is wider in the lateral direction X than the first interval, are changed. In the second interval, an interval in which both of the pair of guide members 33 are moved apart from each other (interval between the pair of guide members 33 shown by a solid line in FIG. 17) and only one of the pair of guide members 33 And the distance between the pair of guide members 33 shown by a solid line in FIG. 21). The fifth motor M5 corresponds to a third drive unit that changes the distance between the pair of guide members 33 to a first distance and a second distance. Further, the pair of guide members 33 corresponds to a third guide portion that contacts the article 1 from the lateral direction X when the transfer mechanism 32 moves the article 1 and guides the article 1 in the front-rear direction Z.

The elevating body 28 includes a connecting portion 41, a swinging portion 42, a swinging mechanism 43, a slide mechanism 44, and a rotating mechanism 45.
The support 27 is erected at one end of the traveling carriage 26 in the lateral direction X, and the connecting portion 41 is vertically arranged on the support 27 so that the support 27 is positioned on one side in the lateral direction X. Y is movably engaged. The elevator body 28 in which the connecting portion 41 is engaged with the support 27 in this manner is located on one side in the lateral direction X with respect to the support 27, and the article transfer device 30 including the support 31 is vertically It is disposed at a position not overlapping the traveling carriage 26 as seen in Y.

The swinging portion 42 is formed in an L shape as viewed in the front-rear direction Z, and the upper end of the swinging portion 42 is connected to the connecting portion 41 so as to be swingable around a swing axis along the front-rear direction Z There is. The swinging portion 42 supports the support portion 31, the transfer mechanism 32, and the guide member 33 via the slide mechanism 44 and the rotation mechanism 45.
The swing mechanism 43 swings the swing portion 42 around the swing axis with respect to the connection portion 41 by the drive of the eighth motor M8, whereby the support portion 31, the transfer mechanism 32, and the guide member 33 are It is configured to swing integrally. The support portion 31, the transfer mechanism 32, and the guide member 33 are integrally moved by the swing mechanism 43, the slide mechanism 44, and the rotation mechanism 45. Hereinafter, the support portion 31, the transfer mechanism 32, and the guide The members 33 and the members connecting them may be collectively referred to as an article transfer device 30.

The rotation mechanism 45 is supported by the rocking portion 42 so as to be located below the rocking portion 42, and rotatably supports the slide mechanism 44 around a rotation axis along the vertical direction Y. The slide mechanism 44 movably supports the article transfer device 30 in the lateral direction X.
The rotation mechanism 45 rotates the slide mechanism 44 relative to the swing unit 42 about the rotation axis by driving the sixth motor M6 to rotate the article transfer device 30 supported by the slide mechanism 44. It is configured to rotate around an axis. Thus, by rotating the article transfer device 30 around the rotation axis, the support portion 31, the transfer mechanism 32, and the guide member 33 rotate integrally around the vertical axis.
The slide mechanism 44 is configured to move the article transfer device 30 in the lateral direction X with respect to the rocking portion 42 by driving of the seventh motor M7. By moving the article transfer device 30 in the lateral direction X in this manner, the support portion 31, the transfer mechanism 32, and the guide member 33 integrally move in the lateral direction X.

The support portion 31 is disposed between the pair of guide rails 25 in the front-rear direction Z as shown in FIG. 11 and in a position not overlapping the traveling carriage 26 as viewed in the up-down direction Y as shown in FIGS. It is done.
Further, the pair of guide members 33 is disposed between the support portion 31 and the fork device 35 and the third motor M3 in the vertical direction Y. To add the description, the upper ends of the pair of guide members 33 are located above the upper surface (the surface on which the article 1 is placed) located at the upper end of the support portion 31 and below the lower ends of the fork device 35 and the third motor M3. It is located in The lower ends of the pair of guide members 33 are located between the upper end and the lower end of the support portion 31 in the vertical direction Y.
The connection portion 41, the swing portion 42, the swing mechanism 43, the slide mechanism 44, the rotation mechanism 45, and the fork device 35 are located above the upper end of the support portion 31 and the upper end of the article 1 supported by the support portion 31. It is located in

  The rotation mechanism 45 can change the direction in which the transfer mechanism 32 moves the article 1 by rotating the transfer mechanism 32 by 180 degrees by the sixth motor M6. Therefore, even if the storage racks 4 are installed on both sides of the moving path of the stacker crane 2 in the front-rear direction Z and the storage areas E of the storage unit 3 exist on both sides in the front-rear direction Z with respect to the elevating body 28 The transfer mechanism 32 can move the article 1 between the support area 31 and the storage area E of the storage section 3 present on both sides thereof.

  Further, the elevating body 28 is provided with an imaging device 47 and a distance measuring sensor 48. The imaging device 47 and the distance measuring sensor 48 are supported by the article transfer device 30 so as to move integrally with the fork device 35 and the support portion 31.

〔Control device〕
The stacker crane 2 is provided with a control device H that controls the traveling of the traveling carriage 26, the elevation of the elevating body 28, and the operation of the transfer mechanism 32. The control device H may be mounted on the stacker crane 2 so as to move integrally with the stacker crane 2, or may be installed on the floor surface F or the like so as not to move integrally with the stacker crane 2. Good. The control device H corresponds to a control unit that controls the first drive unit and the second drive unit.

The control device H executes movement control and transfer control. Further, after the execution of the movement control is completed, the control device H executes the correction control before starting the transfer control.
The movement control is control for moving the elevating body 28 to the target stop position. The transfer control is control for moving the article 1 between the support portion 31 and the storage area E of the storage portion 3. As transfer control, both-side removal control, both-side storage control, one-side removal control, and one-side storage control There is.

  The both-side removal control is control for moving the pair of articles 1 (a pair of servers 1s) stored in the storage portion 3 from the storage area E to the support portion 31 as shown in FIGS. In the both-side storage control, as shown in FIG. 16, FIG. 17, FIG. 15, and FIG. 14 in order, the pair of articles 1 (a pair of servers 1s) supported by the support portion 31 is moved from the support portion 31 to the storage area E Control. On the other hand, as shown in FIGS. 18 to 20, the removal control supports one article 1 (server 1s) of the pair of articles 1 (pair of servers 1s) stored in the storage unit 3 from the storage area E. It is control to move to the section 31. On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 20, FIG. 21, FIG. 19, and FIG. 18 in order of storage control, one article 1 (server 1s and dummy article 1d) of the pair of articles 1 (server 1s and dummy article 1d) supported by the support portion 31. It is control to move the server 1 s) from the support portion 31 to the storage area E.

  Next, movement control, transfer control, and correction control will be described, but the case where the transfer target unit is the storage area E of the storage unit 3 will be described as an example, and the transfer target unit is the delivery conveyor 5 or warehousing conveyor In the case of 6, the operation of the stacker crane 2 is the same as the case where the transfer target location is the storage area E of the storage section 3 and thus the description is omitted.

  The control device H stores information indicating a target stop position. The target stop position is set for each of the plurality of storage sections 3 in each of the plurality of storage shelves 4. The target stop position is a stop position of the elevator body 28 at which the article 1 can be transferred between the storage section 3 and the support section 31 with respect to the storage section 3, and one target stop with respect to the storage section 3 The position is set. Then, in the movement control, the operation of the first motor M1 and the second motor M2 is controlled to move the elevating body 28 to the target stop position, and the transfer target is transferred in the direction in which the transfer mechanism 32 protrudes as needed. The operation of the sixth motor M6 is controlled so that the storage portion 3 of the second motor exists.

In the correction control, the sixth motor M6 and the seventh motor M7 are used to correct the posture of the article transfer device 30 based on the imaging information imaged by the imaging device 47 and the distance information detected by the distance measurement sensor 48. And the eighth motor M8.
Specifically, in the correction control, the posture of the article transfer device 30 is appropriate for the storage section 3 based on the imaging information imaged by the imaging device 47 and the distance information detected by the distance measurement sensor 48. When it is determined that the motor is displaced around the longitudinal axis along the longitudinal direction, the eighth motor M8 of the swing mechanism 43 is controlled so that the posture around the longitudinal axis becomes an appropriate posture.
Further, in the correction control, the position in the lateral direction X with respect to the storage unit 3 of the article transfer device 30 is appropriate based on the imaging information imaged by the imaging device 47 and the distance information detected by the distance measurement sensor 48 When it is determined that the position is shifted in the lateral direction X from the normal position, the seventh motor M7 of the slide mechanism 44 is controlled so that the position in the lateral direction X becomes an appropriate position.
Further, in the correction control, the position in the vertical direction Y with respect to the storage unit 3 of the article transfer device 30 is appropriate based on the imaging information imaged by the imaging device 47 and the distance information detected by the distance measurement sensor 48 When it is determined that the position is shifted in the vertical direction Y from the normal position, the second motor M2 is controlled so that the position in the vertical direction Y becomes an appropriate position.

Next, transfer control will be described.
When the both-parts removal control is started, as shown in FIG. 14, the article 1 is not supported by the support portion 31, and two servers 1 s are stored in the storage portion 3. Further, the pair of guide members 33 is at a second interval.
Then, in the both-side take-out control, as shown in FIG. 15, after the pair of fork devices 35 are made to project until the locking portion 37 contacts the front wall portion 10b of the server 1s stored in the storage portion 3, The locking portion 37 of the pair of fork devices 35 is lowered from the first height to the second height to lock the locking portion 37 to the locked portion 16 of the server 1s and the lock mechanism in the operation portion 38 The lock mechanism 13 is switched from the lock state to the lock release state by operating the 13 operated portions 15a. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 16, the pair of fork devices 35 are withdrawn to the withdrawal position, and the two servers 1s stored in the storage unit 3 are collectively moved from the storage unit 3 to the support unit 31, The pair of guide members 33 is switched from the second interval to the first interval.

When the both-side storage control is started, as shown in FIG. 16, two servers 1 s are supported by the support portion 31, and the server 1 s is not stored in the storage portion 3. Further, the pair of guide members 33 is at a first interval.
Then, in the both-side storage control, as shown in FIG. 15, after the pair of fork devices 35 are made to project until the first engagement portion 11 of the server 1s to be stored abuts on the first engaged portion 21, The locking portion 37 of the fork device 35 is raised from the second height to the first height, and the locking portion 37 is separated upward from the locked portion 16 of the server 1s and the operated portion by the operation portion 38 The operation of 15 a is released to switch the lock mechanism 13 from the unlocked state to the locked state. Further, while moving the two servers 1s in this way, specifically, as shown in FIG. 17, between the rear end of the rear end 9a and the front end of the rear end 9a in the server 1s being moved. The pair of guide members 33 is switched from the second interval to the first interval with the front end of the side wall 17a positioned in the front-rear direction. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 14, the pair of fork devices 35 are retracted to the reference position.

On the other hand, when starting the removal control, as shown in FIG. 18, one dummy article 1 d is supported by the support portion 31, and two servers 1 s are stored in the storage portion 3. Further, the pair of guide members 33 is at a second interval.
Then, in one-side take-out control, as shown in FIG. 19, one of the pair of fork devices 35 is made to project until the locking portion 37 abuts on the front wall portion 10b of the server 1s stored in the storage portion 3. After that, the locking portion 37 of the fork device 35 is lowered from the first height to the second height, and the locking portion 37 is locked to the locked portion 16 of the server 1s and at the operation portion 38. The operated portion 15a of the lock mechanism 13 is operated to switch the lock mechanism 13 from the locked state to the unlocked state. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 20, both of the pair of fork devices 35 are retracted to the pullout position, and the two servers 1s stored in the storage unit 3 are collectively moved from the storage unit 3 to the support unit 31 Afterward, the pair of guide members 33 is switched from the second interval to the first interval.

On the other hand, when the storage control is started, as shown in FIG. 20, the server 1 s and the dummy article 1 d are supported by the support portion 31, and one server 1 s is stored in the storage portion 3. Further, the pair of guide members 33 is at a first interval.
Then, in the one storage control, as shown in FIG. 19, one of the pair of fork devices 35 is protruded until the first engagement portion 11 of the stored server 1s abuts on the first engaged portion 21. After that, the locking portion 37 of one of the fork devices 35 is raised from the second height to the first height, and the locking portion 37 is separated upward from the locked portion 16 of the server 1 s and the operation portion 38 The lock mechanism 13 is switched from the unlocked state to the locked state by releasing the operation of the operated part 15a by the In addition, while moving one server 1s in this way, specifically, as shown in FIG. 21, between the rear end of the rear end 9a and the front end of the rear end 9a in the server 1s being moved. The interval between the pair of guide members 33 is switched from the second interval to the first interval while the front end of the side wall 17a is positioned in the front-rear direction. Thereafter, as shown in FIG. 18, one fork device 35 is retracted to the reference position.

Thus, in the case where the transfer mechanism 32 moves the two articles 1 constituting the first group of articles as the transfer target articles from the support portion 31 to the storage area E, one of the lateral directions X of the transfer target articles The guidance on the side and the guidance on the other side are provided by the guiding member 33. As described above, since both sides in the lateral direction X of the transfer target article are guided by the guide members 33, the transfer target article can be appropriately transferred from the support portion 31 to the storage area E.
In addition, when the transfer mechanism 32 moves one article 1 in the first group of articles as the transfer target article from the support portion 31 to the storage area E, one side of the transfer target article in the lateral direction X The guidance is performed by the guide member 33, and the guidance on the other side in the lateral direction X of the transfer target article is performed by the other article 1 of the first article group. As described above, since the both sides of the transfer target article in the lateral direction X are guided by the guide member 33 and the other article 1 of the first article group, the transfer target article is properly transferred from the support portion 31 to the storage area E Transferable.

[Another embodiment]
(1) In the above embodiment, each of the plurality of storage sections is configured to be storable in a state in which the plurality of articles are arranged in the lateral direction, but some or all of the plurality of storage sections are single It may be configured to be able to store only items of In this case, when moving the article to be transferred between the support unit and the storage unit by the transfer device, both the guidance on the one side in the lateral direction of the article to be transferred and the guide on the other side are It is guided by the 2nd guidance member.

(2) In the above embodiment, when the article is moved from the support section to the storage section, the front end of the side wall in the front-rear direction between the rear end of the rear end and the front end of the rear end of the article to be transferred While the pair of guide members are switched from the first interval to the second interval in the state where the is positioned, the front end of the rear end portion of the article to be transferred is positioned within the longitudinal width of the side wall in the longitudinal direction, The pair of guide members may be switched from the first interval to the second interval. That is, when moving the article from the support section to the storage section, the movement of the locking section is started at the first interval to start the movement of the article, and before the movement of the article to the transfer target section is completed The distance between the pair of guide members may be switched from the first distance to the second distance when the leading end of the article is located within the front and rear width of the second guide member.
In addition, the pair of guide members may be switched from the first interval to the second interval immediately before the rear end of the rear end of the article to be transferred is positioned within the longitudinal width of the side wall in the longitudinal direction. The first interval may be maintained until the movement of the object to the transfer target portion is completed.

(3) In the above embodiment, only one end in the front and rear direction of the article is formed in a shape in which the width in the lateral direction becomes narrower toward the tip end side. Both the end portions may be formed in a shape in which the width in the lateral direction becomes narrower toward the distal end side. In addition, the shape of the article seen in the vertical direction may be formed into a rectangular shape.

(4) In the above embodiment, although the first article group is two articles aligned in the lateral direction, the first article group may be three or more articles aligned in the lateral direction. In this case, the support portion supports the three or more articles in the lateral direction.
Further, although the second article group is two articles aligned in the lateral direction, the second article group may be three or more articles aligned in the lateral direction. In this case, three or more storage areas are set in the lateral direction in the storage section.

  Then, for example, in the case where the first article group is three articles arranged in the lateral direction, only one article located at the center in the lateral direction in the three articles in the first article group is used as the article to be transferred. In the case where the transfer target article is moved in the front-rear direction by the transfer mechanism and moved from the support portion to the storage area, the transfer mechanism guides the one side of the transfer target article in the lateral direction of the first article group. Of the other articles, one of the articles (an article located on one side with respect to the article to be transferred), and the other side of the lateral direction of the article to be transferred is guided among the other articles of the first article group The other object (the object positioned on the other side with respect to the transfer target item) is moved to move the transfer target object in the front-rear direction.

(5) In the above embodiment, a plurality of storage units are arranged in parallel in the vertical direction and in the lateral direction, but a plurality of storage units may be arranged in parallel only in the vertical direction or only in the lateral direction.
Further, in the above embodiment, although the article is a server and a dummy article, the article may be changed as appropriate. For example, a pallet supporting a load or a container storing a load may be used.

(6) In the above embodiment, the locking portion is constituted by a pair of locking bodies, but the locking portion may be constituted by only one locking body, and three or more locking bodies It may be composed of Moreover, according to this, the article may have only one locked portion, and may have three or more locked portions. Incidentally, the number of locking portions may be different from the number of locked portions. For example, a plurality of locking portions may lock to one locked portion.
In the above embodiment, the locking portion (each of the pair of locking members) is formed in a plate shape extending in the vertical direction and the lateral direction, but the shape of the locking portion is a shape that can be locked to the locked portion If there is, you may change suitably, for example, you may form the shape of a latching | locking part in the round rod shape extended in an up-down direction.

That is, for example, the locking portion may be configured with only one locking body, and the locking body may be formed in a round rod shape extending in the vertical direction. Specifically, the locking portion may be configured as follows.
As shown in FIG. 22, the locked portion 16 is disposed only at the central portion in the lateral direction X of the front wall portion 10 b of the article 1. The locking portion 37 is constituted by one locking body 37a formed in a round bar shape extending in the vertical direction Y. Further, the locked portion 16 and the locking body 37a are formed such that the inner dimension of the U-shaped locked portion 16 in the lateral direction X is larger than the outer dimension of the locking body 37a in the lateral direction X. The locking body 37 a locks the locked portion 16 in a state where it can move in the lateral direction X with respect to the locked portion 16.
Thus, by forming the locking body 37a in a round bar shape extending in the vertical direction, as shown in FIG. 23, even in the state where the locking portion 37 is locked to the locked portion 16 of the article 1 The article is easily oscillated around the locking body 37a.

Further, as shown in FIG. 22, the operated portion 15 a of the lock mechanism 13 in the article 1 protrudes from a portion on one side of the front wall 10 b of the article 1 from the center in the lateral direction X. The operation portion 38 is formed in a plate shape extending in the vertical direction Y and the lateral direction X. The operation portion 38 is provided on both the one side and the other side in the lateral direction with respect to the locking body 37a.
Thus, in addition to the case where the operated portion 15a protrudes from a portion on one side from the center in the lateral direction X in the front wall portion 10b of the article 1, by providing the operation mechanism 38 in the transfer mechanism 32 as a pair Even when the operated portion 15a protrudes from the other side of the front wall 10b of the article 1 from the center in the lateral direction X, the lock mechanism 13 of the article 1 can be unlocked. In the case where the operated portion 15a projects only from a portion on one side of the front wall 10b of the article 1 from the center in the lateral direction X, the operation portion 38 is set transverse to the locking body 37a. It may be provided only on one side of the direction.

(7) In the above embodiment, the dummy article is not stored in the storage unit, but the dummy article may be stored in the storage unit. As described above, when a dummy article is stored in the storage unit instead of the server, the first engagement portion, the second engagement portion, and the lock mechanism are added to the locked portion in the dummy article as in the server. May be provided.
Specifically, as shown in FIG. 24, with the two dummy articles 1d as transfer target articles, by carrying out both-side storage control, a pair of dummy articles 1d supported by the support portion 31 of the elevating body 28 is supported. Alternatively, the pair of dummy articles 1 d stored in the storage area E of the storage section 3 may be moved from the storage area E to the support section 31 by the both-side removal control.
Further, as shown in FIG. 25, one server 1s supported by the support portion 31 of the elevator 28 by executing both storage control with one server 1s and one dummy article 1d as transfer target articles. And one dummy article 1d may be moved from the support section 31 to the storage area E, and one server 1s and one dummy article 1d stored in the storage area E of the storage section 3 by the both-side take-out control. May be moved from the storage area E to the support portion 31.
Also, as shown in FIG. 26, with one dummy article 1d as the transfer target article, one server 1s supported by the support portion 31 of the elevator 28 and one dummy article 1d by execution of storage control. And one dummy article 1d may be moved from the support section 31 to the storage area E, and one server 1s and one dummy article stored in the storage area E of the storage section 3 by the takeout control. Only one dummy article 1d of 1d may be moved from the storage area E to the support portion 31.

1 article 1s server (article)
1d dummy article (article)
2 Stacker crane (article transfer device)
3 storage part 4 storage shelf 17a side wall (second guide member)
28 Lifting body (moving body)
31 support portion 32 transfer mechanism 33 guide member 35 fork device (first guide portion)
37 Locking part E Storage area (transfer target part)
H control unit (control unit)
M1 1st motor (1st drive part)
M2 Second motor (first drive unit)
M3 Third motor (second drive unit)
M5 Fifth motor (third drive unit)
X Horizontal Y Vertically Z Horizontally

Claims (6)

An article conveying apparatus comprising: a movable body having a support portion for supporting an article; and a first drive portion for moving the movable body,
The moving body is a transfer mechanism for moving an article between the support portion and the transfer target portion in a state in which the support portion and the transfer target portion to which the object is transferred are arranged. And a guide member for guiding the article when the transfer mechanism moves the article.
A position at which the moving body is stopped when the transfer mechanism moves an article between the support portion and the transfer target portion is a target stop position, and the moving body is the target stop position when viewed in the vertical direction The direction in which the movable body and the transfer target portion are arranged is referred to as the front-to-rear direction in the state of
The support portion supports the plurality of articles in the lateral direction in a row.
An article group constituted by a plurality of articles supported by the support portion is a first article group,
The guide members are provided only on both outer sides of the first group of articles in the lateral direction,
The transfer mechanism moves the transfer target article which is a part of the first group of articles in the front-rear direction to move the transfer target article from the support unit to the transfer target unit. The guidance on the one side in the lateral direction of the article to be transferred is performed with an article other than the article to be transferred in the guide member or the first article group, and the other side of the lateral direction of the article to be transferred An article conveying apparatus which performs an article with an article other than the article to be transferred in the first article group. An article transport facility comprising: a storage shelf in which storage sections for storing articles are arranged in parallel in the vertical direction; and the article transport apparatus according to claim 1;
Each of the plurality of storage sections includes a plurality of storage areas corresponding to the transfer target section arranged in the lateral direction so that a plurality of articles can be stored in a state of being arranged in the horizontal direction. When the loading mechanism moves an article, a second guide member is brought into contact with the article in the lateral direction to guide the article in the front-rear direction.
The second guide member is disposed closer to the storage portion in the front-rear direction than the guide member provided to the movable body in a state where the movable body is positioned at the target stop position, and the storage portion An article transport facility provided only on both outer sides in the lateral direction of a second article group constituted by a plurality of articles stored in. The transfer mechanism moves a locking portion for locking the article in the front-rear direction, a first guide portion for guiding the locking portion in the front-rear direction, and the locking portion in the front-rear direction And a second drive unit, wherein the locking unit is moved in the front-rear direction by the second drive unit in a state where the movable body is stopped at the target stop position, and the support unit and the transfer unit are mounted. Move the goods between the target part,
The movable body includes a third drive unit configured to change the horizontal interval of the pair of guide members into a first interval and a second interval in which the horizontal interval is wider than the first interval.
The article transport apparatus includes a control unit that controls the second drive unit and the third drive unit.
When moving the article from the support section to the storage section, the control section starts moving the locking section at the first interval to start moving the article, and moves the article to the transfer target section. So that the distance between the pair of guide members is switched from the first distance to the second distance before the movement of the object is completed and the front end of the article is located within the front and rear width of the second guide member; The article transport facility according to claim 2, wherein the second drive unit and the third drive unit are controlled. The transfer mechanism moves a locking portion for locking the article in the front-rear direction, a first guide portion for guiding the locking portion in the front-rear direction, and the locking portion in the front-rear direction And a second drive unit, wherein the locking unit is moved in the front-rear direction by the second drive unit in a state where the movable body is stopped at the target stop position, and the support unit and the transfer unit are mounted. Move the goods between the target part,
The first article group and the second article group are two articles aligned in the lateral direction,
The transfer mechanism includes a pair of the locking portions corresponding to each of two articles in the first article group, and the two objects constituting the first article group are transferred from the support section to the transfer target section When the second drive unit moves the pair of the engaging portions integrally, the guide member guides the two articles on one side and the other side in the lateral direction. The article transport facility according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the two articles supported by the support portion are collectively moved to the transfer target portion.   The article has a shape in which the width in the lateral direction becomes narrower as at least one end of the one end in the front-rear direction and the other end in the longitudinal direction is supported by the support portion toward the tip end. The article transport facility according to any one of claims 2 to 4, which is formed. The transfer mechanism includes a locking portion that locks the article in the front-rear direction,
The article is provided with a locked portion which is locked by the locking portion at an end opposite to the direction in which the storage shelf is present in the front-rear direction in a state of being supported by the support portion.
The article conveyance facility according to any one of claims 2 to 5, wherein the locking portion is formed in a round bar shape in which at least a portion locked to the locked portion extends in the vertical direction.

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