JPH01294116A - Carrying-in type assorting method - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To dispose of the large and small-sized articles by one equipment by forming a transport passage from a number of transport bodies in endless form in circulation and installing a plurality of carrying-in parts and assorting parts for the small and large-sized articles in the transport passage and disposing of the large and small-sized articles in each carrying-in part and assortment part. CONSTITUTION:A small-sized article S is transferred onto a circulating transport dolly 3 from the first carrying-in part 11 and transported into the first assortment part 21. In the first assortment part 21, the small-sized article S to be assorted is taken out onto a prescribed receiving board 23 from the transport dolly 3, and assortment is carried out for each delivery destination. The small- sized articles S assorted for each delivery destination are collected to a large- sized collected article L1, which is sent into the second carrying-in part 12 by a collecting conveyor 17, and transferred onto a vacant transport dolly 3. In the second assortment part 22, the dolly 3 performs assortment for each delivery destination onto a delivery conveyor 24.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Object of the Invention] (Industrial Field of Application) The present invention relates to a transport sorting method for sorting articles by shipping destination or product type.

(Prior Art) The distribution of goods includes, at the manufacturer and wholesaler stage, distribution as a set of goods, in which the same goods are distributed in units of one dozen or several dozen, packed in boxes, etc.; As at the retail store stage, there is distribution of individual goods, where one or several individual items are distributed, but with the recent diversification of products, especially food, clothing, daily necessities, books, etc. In the case of small items, there is a tendency for the number of distribution units per type to decrease, and in the distribution stage, distribution as a collective item and distribution as individual items of various types are often mixed.

In this case, even if the aggregated items are small as individual items, they are packed in boxes, etc. to a certain size, so they are easy to handle, and even if some protection measures are taken in packaging, etc. However, since individual items are small, they are difficult to handle, and the packaging is often simple, such as bags or gift boxes, so there is a lot of worry about damage.

Therefore, in a distribution center that handles a wide variety of goods, when ordering goods are grouped by shipping destination, collective goods are
As for large items, the sorting system set up for large items is sorted by destination using a device and then loaded onto a truck, etc. However, small individual items of various types are classified as small items.
Order picking by workers, distribution work by workers (a task called sowing in industry terminology), or separate transport sorting for small items are carried out using equipment that sorts them by shipping destination. Then, the items are packed together in boxes for each shipping destination.
This boxed item is treated as a large item, and the previous large item is sorted by device using a device to be shipped to each destination.
I'm trying to put it on a truck, etc.

(Problems to be Solved by the Invention) As described above, in a distribution center that handles a wide variety of products, when shipments are mixed as collective products and as individual products, it is difficult to sort the collective products into large-sized products. In addition, the order picking of individual items as small items by workers, the distribution work (seeding work) by workers, and the transportation and sorting of small items are carried out separately, which takes up space, equipment, and workers. There was a problem that there was a lot of waste in distribution.

The present invention has been made in view of these points, and an object of the present invention is to efficiently carry out the transportation and sorting of small articles and the transportation and sorting of large articles using one piece of equipment.

(Structure of the Invention) (Means for Solving the Problems) The conveying and sorting method according to claim 1 of the present invention is such that small articles S one or more first carry-in sections 11 for large articles L1 formed from a plurality of small articles S; one or more second carry-in sections 12 for large articles L1 formed by collectively forming a plurality of small articles first place
A section 21 is set for sorting the large articles L1, and a section 22 is set for second sorting at multiple locations for large articles L1, and the small articles S are transferred to the conveyor 3 on which no articles are placed in the first carrying-in section 11. They are carried in and conveyed along the conveyance path 1 by the circulation movement of the conveyance body 3, and the first sorting at the plurality of places is selectively carried out from the conveyance body 3 and sorted in the section 21. In the sorting process, a plurality of small articles S sorted in the section 21 are combined to form a large article L1, and the large article L1 formed by combining the plurality of small articles S is transferred to the second carrying-in section 12. are carried into the conveyor 3 which is not loaded, and conveyed along the conveyance path 1 by circulating movement of the conveyor 3, and the second sorting at the plurality of places is selectively carried out from the conveyor 3 in the section 22. The feature is that the sorting is carried out using the

The conveyance sorting method according to claim 2 of the present invention is the conveyance sorting method according to claim 1, and the first sorting is a large article L1 formed by collectively forming a plurality of small articles S sorted in the section 21. transports another large article L2 into the conveyor 3 on which no article is placed in the same second loading section 12 as the large article, and conveys it along the conveyance path 1 by circular movement of the conveyor 3; The second sorting at the same plurality of locations as the large articles L1 is characterized in that the articles are selectively taken out from the conveyor 3 and sorted in the section 22.

Further, the conveyance sorting method according to claim 3 is the conveyance sorting method according to claim 1, wherein one or more third carrying-in sections 41 for large articles L2 are set on the conveyance path 1; The sorting is carried out by carrying a large article [2], which is different from the large article L1 formed by combining the plurality of small articles S sorted in the section 21, into the conveyor 3 on which no articles are placed in the third carrying-in section 41. The conveyor 3 is conveyed along the conveyance path 1 by circulating movement, and the second sorting at the same plurality of locations as the large articles L1 is carried out in the section 2.
2, the paper is selectively taken out from the carrier 3 and sorted.

Furthermore, the conveying and sorting method according to claim 4 of the present invention is the conveying and sorting method according to claims 1 to 3.
1 are arranged along the section 21, and the tip of this collection conveyor 17 is arranged at the second carrying-in section 12, and the first sorting is carried out at the section 21. This is characterized in that a large article L1 formed by collectively forming a plurality of small articles S is conveyed to the second carrying-in section 12 by the collection conveyor 17.

(Function) According to the method of conveying and sorting according to claims 1 to 4 of the present invention,
The transportation and sorting of the small articles S and the transportation and sorting of the large article L1 formed by combining the sorted small articles S can be carried out using one facility.

In addition to this, according to the method, the conveyance and sorting according to claims 2 and 3 of the present invention includes conveyance and sorting of small articles S, conveyance and sorting of large articles L1 formed by collectively forming the sorted small articles S, and the like. Then, another large item [2.
It can be done with one equipment.

Furthermore, according to claim 4, it is possible to convey the large article L1, which is formed by collectively forming the sorted small articles S, by the collection conveyor 17, and immediately begin conveyance and sorting as the large article L1.

(Example) An example of the transportation and sorting method according to claim 1 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

Reference numeral 1 denotes an endless conveyance path formed by rails 2. On the rails 2 of this conveyance path 1, conveyance carts 3 as a large number of conveyance bodies are supported via a plurality of wheels (not shown) provided at the lower part thereof. At the same time, the large number of transport vehicles 3 are connected endlessly on the transport path 1 via connectors 4.

In addition, a truck drive mechanism (not shown) is provided in a part of the conveyance path 1, and this truck drive mechanism drives a portion of the conveyance truck 3.
is driven and travels, thereby causing a large number of endlessly connected conveyance carts 3 to circulate as a whole along the conveyance path 1 in a clockwise direction in the figure.

Each of the transport vehicles 3 is constructed of a part of a conveyor belt 7 whose upper surface is wide for supporting the article, and this conveyor belt 7 has a transport direction perpendicular to the moving direction of the transport vehicle 3. However, it is configured to be driven in both directions of the conveyance path 1 by a belt drive mechanism (not shown).

Furthermore, three first carry-in sections 11 and one second carry-in section 12 are set in the conveyance path 1, and each of the first carry-in sections 11 has a carry-in conveyor for small articles S. 13 is connected to the second carrying-in section 12, and a carrying-in conveyor 14 for large-sized articles L1 is connected to the second carrying-in section 12.

A collection conveyor 11 is connected to the carry-in conveyor 14 for the large articles L1, and the collection conveyor 17 is connected to receiving stands 23 on both sides of a first sorting section 21 at a plurality of locations, which will be described later.
It is located along the

Further, in the conveyance path 1, a section 21 is set for a first sorting of 10 or more places, a section 22 is set for a second sorting of 10 or more places, and the first sorting is set on both sides of the section 21. Each small item S
A receiving stand 23 is disposed therein, and a shipping conveyor 24 for large articles [1] is disposed in the second sorting section 22, respectively.

Note that this shipping conveyor 24 is capable of temporarily retaining a predetermined number of large articles [1].

Then, for example, when sorting articles to be shipped by shipping destination, the above-mentioned cart drive mechanism (not shown) circulates a large number of transport carts 3 on the transport path 1 in a clockwise direction in the figure. Let's move it.

When transporting and sorting the small articles S, the small articles S are supported on the carry-in conveyor 13 in the first carry-in section 11 and are kept waiting at the tip of the carry-in conveyor 13. When the unloaded transport vehicle 3 arrives, the tip of the carry-in conveyor 13 is driven to send the small article S onto the transport vehicle 3, and the conveyor belt 7 of the arrived transport vehicle 3 is driven by a belt drive mechanism (not shown). Then, the small article S is carried onto the conveyance platform 113, and the small article S is moved along the conveyance path 1 by the circulating movement of the conveyance vehicle 3. The sorted items are transported to section 21.

Then, each first sorting is carried out in the section 21, where when the conveyance carriage 3 carrying the small articles S to be sorted arrives, the conveyance carriage 3 that has arrived is operated by a belt drive R mechanism (not shown).
The conveyor belt 7 is driven toward a predetermined receiving table 23 to deliver the small articles S to the predetermined receiving table 23, and the small articles S are carried out to the predetermined receiving table 23 and sorted by shipping destination.

Incidentally, each first sorting is carried out in the section 21, and when the W1 carriage 3 carrying the small articles S that are not to be sorted arrives, the next first sorting is made to pass through the section 21 as it is.

By performing such a first sorting operation in each of the first sorting sections 21, the small articles S carried into the transport cart 3 by the first carrying-in section 11 are sorted into predetermined receiving stands 23 for each shipping destination.

The small articles S sorted into predetermined receiving trays 23 for each shipping destination in this manner are boxed together for each shipping destination to form a large article [1] which is a collection of a plurality of small articles S.

Next, the first sorting is carried out by packaging a plurality of small articles S sorted by shipping destination in the section 21 into boxes for each shipping destination. transports this large article L1 to the collection conveyor 17.
and conveyed to the carry-in conveyor 14 of the second carry-in section 12.

Then, in the second carry-in section 12, the large article [1] is kept on standby on the carry-in conveyor 14, and when the conveyance cart 3 on which no articles are loaded arrives, the carry-in conveyor 14 is driven and the large article [1] is placed on the conveyor conveyor 14. At the same time, the conveyor belt 7 of the conveyance vehicle 3 that has arrived is driven by a belt drive 173 m structure (not shown) to convey the large article [1] onto the conveyance vehicle 3.
By this, the large article [1] is pulled into the transport vehicle 3.
This large article [1 is transported to the second sorting section 22 along the transport path 1 by the circulation movement of the transport vehicle 3.

Then, in the second sorting section 22, when the transport vehicle 3 carrying the large articles L1 to be sorted arrives, the conveyor belt 7 of the arrived transport vehicle 3 is moved toward the shipping conveyor 24 by a belt drive mechanism (not shown). The large articles [1] are delivered to a shipping conveyor 24, and the large articles [1] are conveyed to a predetermined shipping conveyor 24 and sorted by shipping destination.

Incidentally, each of the second sorting is carried out in the second sorting section 22, and when the transport cart 3 carrying the large articles [1 that are not to be sorted arrives], the large articles [1] are passed through the second sorting section 81122 as they are.

By performing such an operation in each of the second sorting sections 22, the large articles L1 carried into the transport vehicle 3 by the second carrying-in section 12 are transferred to a predetermined shipping conveyor 24 for each shipping destination.
Sort into.

If a truck for shipping has arrived, the large items 1 that have been sorted onto a predetermined shipping conveyor 24 for each shipping destination are loaded directly onto the truck from the tip of the shipping conveyor 24, and then loaded onto the truck from the tip of the shipping conveyor 24. If the truck has not arrived yet, the truck will wait on the shipping conveyor 24 until the truck arrives.
Load it onto the truck from the tip.

In addition, the above-mentioned sorting of small articles S and this small article S
Big 5′ that summarizes! The articles L1 can be sorted independently, but they can also be sorted in parallel.

In addition, the above-mentioned sorting may be carried out during work if for some reason, for example, if the receiving table 23 or the shipping conveyor 24 are all used for sorting other shipping destinations, small items S or large items may be removed from the transport vehicle 3. Although there is no place to sort the articles L1, in such a case, the receiving table 23 and the shipping conveyor 24 can be used to circulate the small articles S and the large articles [1] on the transport cart 3.

An embodiment of the transportation and sorting method according to claim 2 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

Note that this embodiment has all the configurations and functions of the embodiment of the transportation and sorting method of claim 1, which was previously explained with reference to FIG. The explanation will be omitted, and the redundant explanation of the operation will also be omitted.

In this embodiment, in the first sorting, large articles E1, which are formed by collectively forming a plurality of small articles S sorted in the section 21, are
The sorting is carried out on the collection conveyor 17 that transports the goods from the section 21 to the second carrying-in section 12. Conveyor 3 for article L2
A large article 12, which is different from the large article 1 formed by combining a plurality of small articles S, is conveyed by the conveyor 31 to the collection conveyor 11 from an automated warehouse (not shown), etc. via conveyor 17
The small 5''!
In addition to sorting the articles S and sorting large articles L1 made up of small articles S, another large article L2 is transported and sorted.

That is, when transporting and sorting this large article L2, use this arm! The article [2 is transported from an automated warehouse (not shown) or the like to the carry-in conveyor 14 of the second carry-in section 12 by the conveyor 31 and the collection conveyor 11, and is then transported in the same way as the large article L1 which is a collection of small articles S. Trolley 3
The second sort is conveyed to section 22 via shipping conveyor 2
4 and sorted by shipping destination.

In addition, the above-mentioned sorting of small articles S and this small article S
The sorting of the large 31j article L1 and the sorting of another large article L2 can be performed independently, but they can also be done in parallel at the same time.

An embodiment of the transportation and sorting method according to claim 3 of the present invention will be described with reference to FIG.

Note that this embodiment also has all the configurations and functions of the embodiment of the method for conveying and sorting according to claim 1, which was previously explained with reference to FIG. The explanation will be omitted, and the redundant explanation of the operation will also be omitted.

In this embodiment, the transport path 1 includes a first loading section 11 and a second loading section 11.
In addition to the carrying-in section 12, one third carrying-in section 41 is set, and a carrying-in conveyor 42 for large articles L2 is connected to this third carrying-in section 41, and a transport conveyor 43 is connected to this carrying-in conveyor 42. The conveyor 43 transports a large article [2, which is different from the large article 1, which is formed by combining a plurality of small articles S] from an automated warehouse, etc. (not shown) to the second carrying-in section 12. In addition to the sorting of the small articles S and the sorting of the large articles L1 made up of the small articles S, another large article [2] is transported and sorted.

In other words, when transporting and sorting this large item [2], this large piece! The article L2 is conveyed from an unillustrated automated warehouse or the like to the carry-in conveyor 42 of the third carry-in section 41 by the conveyor 43, and then the small articles are transported via the conveyor cart 3 in the same way as the large article L1, which is a collection of small articles S. Then, the second sorting is carried to the section 22, carried out to the shipping conveyor 24, and sorted by shipping destination.

In addition, the above-mentioned sorting of small articles S and this small article S
The sorting of large articles [1] and the sorting of another large 3yl article L2 can be performed independently, but they can also be done in parallel at the same time.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As described above, according to the method of conveying and sorting according to claims A to 4 of the present invention, the conveying and sorting of small articles and the conveying and sorting of large articles formed by collectively forming the sorted small articles can be carried out in one equipment. It can be done efficiently, and
The transportation and sorting of small articles and the transportation and sorting of large articles can be performed independently or in parallel.In addition, according to claims 2 and 3, the transportation and sorting of small articles In addition to transporting and sorting large items that are formed by combining small items that have been sorted, one facility can also transport and sort other large items, which saves space, equipment, and worker placement. can eliminate waste.

Furthermore, according to claim 4, it is possible to collect large articles, which are a collection of sorted small articles, on a collection conveyor and immediately start sorting them into large articles.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

FIGS. 1 to 3 are plan views showing the outline of equipment for carrying out the conveyance and sorting method corresponding to claims 1 to 3 of the present invention, respectively. S: Small article, Ll: Large article formed by combining small articles S, L2: Large article, 1: Conveyance path, 3:
Conveyance truck as a conveyance body, 11...first loading section, 12
...Second loading section, 17..Collection conveyor, 21..First sorting section, 22..Second sorting section, 41..Third sorting section.
loading department.

Claims (4)

[Claims] (1) One or more first loading sections for small articles on a conveyance path in which a large number of endlessly connected conveyance bodies circulate;
one or more second loading sections for large articles formed by collectively forming a plurality of small articles; first sorting sections at a plurality of locations for small articles; and second sorting sections at a plurality of locations for large articles. A sorting section is set up, and the small articles are carried into a conveyor on which no articles are placed in the first carry-in section, and are conveyed along the conveyance path by circular movement of the conveyor, and the small articles are transferred to the plurality of places mentioned above. selectively carried out from the carrier and sorted in a first sorting section, a plurality of small articles sorted in the first sorting section are collectively formed to form a large article, and the plurality of small articles are collectively formed. A large article is carried into a conveyor not loaded with articles at the second carrying-in section, is conveyed along the conveyance path by circular movement of the conveyor, and is selectively sorted at the plurality of second sorting sections. A conveying and sorting method characterized by carrying out the conveyance from a conveying body and sorting. (2) In the conveying and sorting method according to claim 1, a large article different from a large article formed by collectively forming a plurality of small articles sorted in the first sorting section is transferred to the second carrying-in section. Conveyance characterized by being carried into a conveyance body that is not loaded, conveyed along the conveyance path by circular movement of the conveyance body, and selectively carried out from the conveyance body and sorted at a plurality of second sorting sections. Sorting method. (3) In the conveying and sorting method according to claim 1, one or more third loading sections for large articles are set on the conveying path, and the plurality of small articles sorted in the first sorting section are grouped together. A large article different from the large article formed by the above-mentioned method is carried into a conveyor on which no articles are placed in the third loading section, and is conveyed along the conveyance path by circular movement of the conveyor, and is transported to a plurality of locations. A transport and sorting method characterized by selectively unloading from a transport body and sorting in a second sorting section. (4) In the conveying and sorting method according to any one of claims 1 to 3, the collection conveyor is disposed along the first sorting section at a plurality of locations, and the tip of the collection conveyor is connected to the second sorting section. A conveying and sorting method, characterized in that a large article formed by collectively forming a plurality of small articles sorted in the first sorting section is conveyed to the second carrying-in section by the collection conveyor.