JPH0336726B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Field of Industrial Application The present invention relates to an order picking device that picks out a desired variety of articles in small quantities from a large number of article storage boxes on an article storage shelf.

BACKGROUND TECHNOLOGY Conventionally, order picking devices suitable for taking out large quantities of various types of articles from article storage shelves include:
There is a technique as disclosed in the specification and drawings of Utility Model Application No. 1983-97445, but when order-picking a wide variety of small quantities of goods, workers place boxes for each destination in a wagon. Currently, the current system relies on manual labor, while walking between the stacks and storage shelves, checking the picking slip, picking the required number of items of the required type, and sorting them into boxes for each destination. In order to take out items from high shelves,
Manual picking work is undesirable when performing picking work in a clean room where a step stool, etc. must be used and workers must avoid entering and exiting the room, or when picking work is performed at night. Picking has the disadvantage that it is easy for human errors to occur in the type and number of items taken out.

Problems to be Solved by the Invention The present invention eliminates the drawbacks of the prior art by order-picking a wide variety of products in small quantities by robots without manual labor. In this system, a robot device is instructed to pick the shelf number where a desired product is stored and the desired quantity of the product.

Means for Solving the Problems In order to solve the problems of the prior art, the present invention maintains a plurality of article storage shelves in each row of a multi-row, multi-stage article storage shelf with a downward bias toward the outlet of the shelf. and a lifting carriage having a fork for supporting the article storage box and a swinging rod that is operated to swing in a vertical plane perpendicular to the entire surface of the extraction port is attached to a movable support that runs horizontally along the entire surface of the extraction port of the shelf, This is an order picking device in which gripping tools for articles and article storage boxes are provided at the lower end of an elevating rod attached to the swinging rod.

Operation: By means of a control means such as a known robot controller, the movable column is moved laterally to the designated take-out port of the shelf row, and the elevating carriage supporting the empty article storage box on the fork is moved to the designated shelf position. When the vertical movement is stopped, the swinging rod is tilted so that the lower end of the vertical movement rod directly faces above the opening of the product storage box in which the specified type of product is stored.

Next, the lifting lever descends to grip the item in the storage box with the gripping tool, and then the lifting lever rises again to take out the specified item from the box.
The swinging rod swings back to its original vertical position, and by releasing the gripping state of the gripper, the article is dropped into the empty storage box on the fork.

Then, the swinging rod and the lifting rod repeat the above operations according to the desired number of articles, and take out the specified number of articles of the specified type into the empty article storage box supported by the fork. .

In this way, when the movable support and elevating carriage take out the specified number of items of one type according to the specified type and number of items, they move to the ejection opening of the shelf row or shelf of the next type and do the same. Repeat the action.

When the specified quantity of goods of the specified type is stored in the empty storage boxes on the fork, the moving column moves to the actual storage box delivery conveyor position, and lifts and lowers the lifting carriage to move the actual storage boxes on the fork into the specified quantity. Transfer it onto a conveyor and carry it out to the desired location.

Next, the moving column is moved to the position of the empty storage box carrying conveyor, the lifting carriage is operated up and down, the empty storage boxes on the conveyor are transferred onto the fork, and the order picking operation is performed in the same manner as described above.

When the article storage box on the shelf becomes empty, the box is taken out from the shelf by the gripper at the lower end of the lifting lever, and transferred to the empty storage carry-out conveyor and carried out.

In the manner described above, the order picking operation for large quantities and small quantities of articles by robot operation is completed.

Embodiment FIG. 1 is a schematic perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention, and FIG.
The figure is a side view of the main part, Figure 3 is a front view of the main part,
FIG. 4 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line XX in FIG. 2 to explain how the gripper holds an article, and the article storage shelf frame 1 is provided with shelves in multiple stages and rows, and each shelf row 2 is a storage area with a gentle slope. It consists of a roller shelf in which a steeply inclined take-out shelf 2b is connected to a shelf 2a, a stopper 2c is provided protruding from the take-out opening of the take-out shelf 2b, and a flange portion supported by the roller shelf is mounted on each shelf row 2. A large number of article storage boxes 3 are urged downward along the slopes of the storage shelf 2a and the take-out shelf 2b, and are held on the shelves by stoppers 2c.

Different types of articles are stored in each shelf row 2, and a plurality of articles of the same type are stored in each article storage box 3.

The upper and lower edges of the article storage shelf frame 1 are provided with rails 5a and 5b, respectively, on which movable columns 4 run, which run horizontally along the entire surface of the multi-stage, multi-row shelf outlet. The elevating carriage 6 is attached with a forked fork 7 that supports the article storage box 3 and a swinging rod 8 that swings in a vertical plane perpendicular to the entire surface of the outlet.

Further, a suction pad 10 and a crimp holder 11 are attached to the lower end of the lifting rod 9 which is provided on the swing rod 8 so as to be able to rise and lower.
A gripper 14 is provided having a surface detector 12 and a surface detector 12 of the article to be removed. The surface detector 12 is held protrudingly and biased by a spring, and when it comes into contact with the surface of the article, it retreats against the spring and detects the surface of the article by activating a limit switch built into the gripper 14. .

Then, traverse and stop control of the moving column 4, lift and stop control of the elevating carriage 6, swing and stop control of the swinging rod 8, lifting and lowering operation of the elevating operating rod 9, and stop control based on the detection signal of the surface detector 12, The suction control of the suction pad 10 and the forward and backward movement control of the crimp holder using a solenoid electromagnet are controlled by a control built in the shelf frame 1 in response to commands from a computer or the like 15 that instructs the type and number of articles to be picked. This is done by power and signals supplied and transmitted from section 16 via cable 17.

Therefore, based on the instructions of 15 computers, etc.
The movable support 4 moves across the row of shelves where goods of the designated variety are stored, and the elevating carriage 6, which supports empty storage boxes with forks 7, moves up and down to move the shelves where the goods of the designated variety are stored. By reaching the step, the gripping tool 14 at the lower end of the swinging rod 8 is moved to the article storage box 3 in which the specified type of article is stored.
It will be located at the outlet of the

Next, after tilting the swinging rod 8 to make the gripper 14 face directly above the article storage box 3, the lifting rod 9 is moved.
When the surface detector 12 is brought into contact with the articles in the box, the operating rod 9 is stopped and the suction pad 10 is activated to suction the uppermost article.

When the suction pad 10 suctions the article, the lifting lever 9 rises and the swinging rod 8 returns to the vertical position, and when the suction pad 10 is released from suction, the suction article is moved to the empty article storage supported by the fork 7. It is dropped into box 3.

Then, the swinging rod 8 performs the above-mentioned picking operation according to the instructed quantity of the articles, and supplies the articles into the article storage box on the fork.

When the designated quantity of the article has been picked, the movable support 4 and the elevating carriage 6 move to the front of the take-out port of the article storage box 3 containing the next designated type, and repeat the same operation as described above. Then, the specified number of articles of the type are placed in the article storage box on the fork 7.

In this way, when all of the specified quantity of articles of the specified type are supplied into the article storage box on the fork 7, the movable support 4 moves sideways to the position of the real box delivery conveyor 18, and the fork 7 The upper article storage box is transferred onto the conveyor 18, and the conveyor 18 carries out to a predetermined location actual boxes containing the designated types of articles in the designated quantities.

The moving support 4 that transferred the actual boxes to the conveyor 18
The empty boxes on the empty box delivery conveyor 19 are moved to the fork 7.
, and performs the same operations as described above based on instructions from the computer.

Furthermore, when there are no articles in the article storage boxes 3 on the shelf row, the suction pad 10 suctions the bottom surface of the box 3, and the crimp holder 11 moves forward to press the inner facing wall surface of the box 3 to remove the article. The box 3 is held onto the empty box carrying conveyor 20 and carried out by the upward movement of the lifting rod 9, the vertical return of the swinging rod 8, and the downward movement of the lifting carriage 6.

In the above embodiment, the picking operation was explained from the outlet of one article storage shelf frame. By moving one movable column horizontally and swinging the swinging rod above each of the article storage boxes on the opposing shelves, a desired article can be removed from each of the article storage boxes stored in the two shelf frames. It is also possible to pick.

Effects of the Invention In the present invention, a movable column supporting an empty box and an elevating carriage move to the take-out port of a designated specific storage box among a large number of storage boxes in a multi-stage, multi-row storage shelf. Since the specified quantity of articles of the specified type in the specified storage box is picked by the operation of the swinging lever and the lifting lever and placed in the empty box, a large number of articles of various kinds are each picked in small quantities. It is possible to easily pick any desired specified quantity even if the number of items is specified, and it has an excellent effect on order picking of goods of various kinds and small quantities. Since a large number of storage boxes are held in a downward force, when the storage box at the take-out port becomes empty and is taken out from the shelf, the next storage box automatically flows down to the take-out port, making it easier to pick. The operation can be carried out continuously, and since the order picking item is placed directly into the item storage box supported by the fork of the elevating carriage, the item storage box can be taken out from the shelf and ordered. Compared to the conventional picking operation in which the boxes are returned to the shelf, the picking time is significantly reduced, and even if the storage boxes on the shelf are in a high position, they can be easily picked by raising the elevating carriage. Therefore, by raising the shelf height, it is possible to store a wide variety and quantity of goods in large quantities, and it also enables unmanned picking, which has an excellent effect on labor saving and robot work for picking a large number of products and small quantities. be.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the picking operation, FIG. 2 is a side view of the shelf row outlet, FIG. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram for taking out articles taken along the line XX in FIG. 2; 1... Goods storage shelf frame, 2... Shelf row, 3... Goods storage box, 4... Moving support, 6... Lifting carriage,
7...fork, 8...swinging rod, 9...lifting rod, 14...gripping tool.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of article storage boxes are held in each row of a multi-row, multi-stage article storage shelf in a downward force toward the outlet of the shelf, and the article storage boxes are placed on a movable support that runs horizontally along the entire surface of the outlet of the shelf. An elevating carriage having a supporting fork and a swinging rod that is swung in a vertical plane perpendicular to the entire surface of the extraction port is attached, and the lower end of the elevating operating rod attached to the swinging rod is inserted into and removed from the article storage box. An order picking device equipped with a gripper for holding articles and article storage boxes.