JPH02231302A - Warehousing method for automatic warehouse - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To prevent works from concentrating on one taking-out means at the time of taking-out goods by calculating the housed number of goods for every warehousing shelf to warehouse the goods in the shelf holding the minimum housed number of goods at the time of housing goods in solid housing shelves in a warehousing system comprising a plurality of automatic warehouses. CONSTITUTION:The kinds of goods are input to a calculator 31 for automatic warehouse control by an input device 34 at the time of warehousing. When the goods reach the branch decision point of a branch conveyor by means of a warehousing conveyor 1, a reaching signal is sent via a sequencer 32 for warehousing installation control to the calculator 31 for control. Then, the calculator 31 selects the class of the smallest warehoused number from the warehoused number per kind of goods memorized in the calculator 31 according to the data of input goods to decide a shelf for warehousing. In case of a plurality of the objective classes, one warehousing lane is decided. Next, a stacker crane controller 33 is driven to warehouse the objective goods. Due to this construction, it can be prevented that works are concentrated to one take-out means when goods are taken out of a warehouse.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Field of Industrial Application] The present invention relates to a system consisting of a plurality of automated warehouses.

[Conventional technology]

An automated warehouse consists of a stacker crane that loads cargo and transports it between a storage entrance and a shelf, and three-dimensional storage shelves provided on both sides of the stacker crane's travel path. This is considered as one set, and multiple sets are arranged in parallel (Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-2174
041j Publication).

The items carried into the loading entrance of the automated warehouse are supplied to each set of storage entrances by a conveyor. This is stored on a shelf using a stub crane.

When a warehouse delivery request is made, the central control device searches which set of shelves has the requested load, and issues a warehouse delivery command to the corresponding set of stub cranes.

Note that some automated warehouses use rotating shelves.

[Problem to be solved by the invention]

In the conventional technology, no consideration was given to increasing the efficiency of loading and unloading cargo into an automated warehouse, and there was a problem that unloading work was concentrated on the same stacker crane, resulting in a long unloading time.

Conventionally, when an automated warehouse consists of a plurality of sets, the decision as to which set should receive cargo is made based on equality. For example, when there are three groups, the first cargo is stored in the first group, the 21st cargo is stored in the second group, and the third grape is stored in the third group.

On the other hand, when considering shipping, multiple grapes are often handled as one set. In this case, the load of that group is 1 for each group.
If the stacker cranes are distributed and stored, each set of stacker cranes will operate individually, so the operation rate of the stacker crane will be improved and the waiting time until one set of loads will be ready will be shortened. However, when one set of grapes is stored in one set,
Since work is concentrated on one stacker crane, there is a lot of waiting time.

The purpose of the present invention is to prevent the unloading work from being concentrated on one unloading means (for example, a stacker crane) at the time of unloading.
The objective is to shorten the BV interval.

[Means for resolving issues]

In order to achieve the above objective, a function is added to the control device of the warehousing equipment of an automated warehouse to allocate works of the same warehousing group to different lanes.

[For production]

The control system of the warehousing equipment in an automated warehouse determines which group the cargo to be warehoused should be distributed to, and branches the cargo toward that group.

The judgment is made so that the goods of the caught dog and the eleven shipping groups are distributed equally to each group.

Therefore, since the cargoes of the same shipping group are equally received in each group, when the cargoes of the corresponding shipping group are to be unloaded, the conveyance means of each group can be operated simultaneously, and the unloading time can be shortened.

〔Example〕

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

Figure 3 shows three sets of automated warehouses (three stacker cranes,
(consisting of three-dimensional storage shelves, etc. on both sides of each stub crane),
The configuration of the warehousing and retrieval facility, which has a three-lane warehousing conveyor and a warehousing conveyor connected to this, is shown. Incoming MA passes through the warehousing conveyor 1 and is distributed to each warehousing station box 2, 3.4, and from each warehousing station 2, 3, 4, it is transferred to a three-dimensional storage shelf via each stacker crane 8, 9.10. 5,6.7
Stored on one or two shelves. When leaving the warehouse, each staff crane 2
, 3.4 transfers the corresponding cargo A to each shipping station
13 and exit conveyor 15, 16. 17
will be issued via.

These controls are carried out by the automated warehouse computer 31 shown in Figure 4 and the sequencer for controlling the warehousing and retrieval equipment! and Stavka crane control system [33]. A stacker crane control device is installed in each stacker crane 8l9, 10.

When the cargo A to be warehoused is carried into the entrance I of the warehousing conveyor 1, the S type of this cargo is inputted into the automatic warehouse control calculation fi31 using the input device t/ll34. The consignor enters the warehousing conveyor
When reaching the upper branch decision points 21a and 2lb, the arrival signal is sent to the sequencer for controlling the personnel exit equipment! The automatic warehouse control calculation a3l is notified via. The automatic warehouse control computer 31 determines the warehousing lane based on the data of the arrived cargo (this data is assumed to have been input into the automatic warehouse computer in advance in the order of arrival of the grapes).

This method follows the warehousing lane determination flow shown in FIG. Based on the data of the observed cargoes, the inventory quantity for each cargo type is stored in the memory of the automatic warehouse control computer 3l shown in FIG. 2, and based on this, the automatic warehouse control computer 31 calculates Understand the number of goods received by shippers. Next, based on the number of MAs in stock for each group, identify the group with the least number of people in stock (Step 1, Step 8).
1). If only one set has been identified, that set is determined as the storage shelf to be stocked (steps 83 and 85). If there are two or more lanes, one of them is determined as the warehousing lane (step 83.87).

If such control is performed at the time of warehousing, the same cargo A can be equally distributed to different three-dimensional storage shelves.

Therefore, for example, when there is a request for retrieval of a set of identical cargo, as is clear from the case where there is a set of cargo in one cave (conventional example), This can shorten the waiting time for the goods to arrive. Even when loads of different M classes are combined into a set, the probability that one item will be taken out from the bottom of the automated warehouse is reduced, so the waiting time can be reduced.

Note that the delivery conveyors 15, 16. The cargoes delivered at step 17 are collected into one set by a forklift, or are collected into one set by a conveyor (not shown).

In the above example, a stacker crane was used, but the same applies to an example using a rotating shelf.

〔Effect of the invention〕

According to the present invention, in an automated warehouse having a plurality of stacker cranes, there is an effect of shortening the unloading time. Further, the present invention is more effective in automated warehouse systems having a large number of stacker cranes.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a flowchart of an embodiment of the present invention, Fig. 2 is a configuration diagram of the memory for each item of the automatic warehouse control computer, Fig. 3 is a configuration diagram of the automatic poultry storage system, and Fig. 4 is the automatic warehouse system. FIG. 1...Incoming conveyor, 2.3.4...
Warehousing station scene, 5, 6.7...Three-dimensional storage shelf, 8l 9. lO... Stapka Crane, 11
, 12. 13...Department scene agent Patent attorney Katsuo Ogawa ゝFig. O4

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. When storing in a three-dimensional storage shelf using a carrying means,
A warehousing method for an automated warehouse characterized by determining the number of stored loads for each three-dimensional storage shelf storing the cargo to be warehoused, and storing the cargo in the three-dimensional storage shelf that has the least number of storage items. .