JPH0351873B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION (Industrial Application Field) The present invention is useful for automating safe deposit box equipment in banks, for example, in which coupons can be stored from shelves in a safe in response to a customer's call operation from a coupon booth. To automatically take out a case and automatically transport it to a predetermined coupon booth, and to automatically transport the used storage case to the vault and to effectively use it to automatically store it in the original position on the shelf. The present invention relates to a method of loading and unloading operations in an automated warehouse using article storage cases.

(Prior art and its problems) As mentioned above, as an automatic warehouse using article storage cases that can be used as a safe deposit box,
A storage device including a storage shelf for an article storage case and a case loading/unloading device, a plurality of workshops (coupon booths in a safe deposit box facility) for loading and unloading articles into the article storage case, the storage device and each of the workplaces. Automated warehouses are known that are equipped with case transport means for transporting article storage cases between A conveyor that would do this was considered.

Therefore, the case transport route by the conveyor is provided with a main line between the storage device and the vicinity of the workplace, and a branch path connecting the main line and each workplace. Set a unique number on the storage case,
The so-called so-called system reads the unique number of the article storage case that passes before each branch point, determines the preset destination (workplace number), and operates the branching means at each branch point based on this determination result. Sorting control must be performed. This not only complicates control and increases costs, but also because the article storage case itself is in direct contact with the conveyor and branching means, it is easily damaged, and there are restrictions on conveyance speed, making high-speed conveyance impossible. There were also possible inconveniences such as not having one.

(Means for Solving the Problems) In order to solve the above conventional problems, the present invention provides a storage device including a storage shelf for an article storage case and a case loading/unloading device, and a storage device for the article storage case. A plurality of workplaces for loading and unloading articles, a case transport trolley for transporting article storage cases between the storage device and each of the workplaces, a main line between the storage device and the vicinity of the workplace, and the main line. In an automatic warehouse equipped with a case transport trolley travel route consisting of a branch road connecting each work area and a branch road connecting each work area, one dedicated trolley is provided for each of the work areas as the case transport trolley, and each case transport trolley is configured to:
It is characterized in that the case transport vehicle is made to stand by in the branch path of each workshop, and only when the main line is empty, the case carrier is run between the workshop and the storage device to carry out loading/unloading work. This paper proposes a loading/unloading method for an automated warehouse using article storage cases.

(Embodiment) Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention utilized in a safe deposit box facility will be explained based on the attached illustrative diagrams. In FIGS. 1 and 2, 1a and 1b are installed in the basement of a building The storage case storage shelf 2 is a case loading/unloading device that runs in the passage 3 between the storage case storage shelves 1a and 1b. Coupon booths 4a to 4c are provided on the first floor of the building and serve as work areas for loading and unloading items into storage cases. 5 is a conveyance device between the case loading/unloading place 6 and each coupon booth 4a to 4c, 7 is a
This is a case transfer device between the transport device 5 and the case loading/unloading device 2.

The storage shelves 1a, 1b and the case loading/unloading device 2
is substantially the same as that used in conventional automated warehouses, and is capable of moving the case loading and unloading device 2 in the three directions of the passage, raising and lowering the elevating carriage 8 included in the device 2, and By the operation of the case delivery means provided on the storage shelf 1
The storage case can be put in and taken out from and to any arbitrary position of a and lb, and the case delivery means includes:
Any suitable means may be used from among various conventionally known means, but in particular, hook the front of the case inside the storage shelf and pull it out onto the elevating carriage 8, push the case on the elevating carriage 8, and lift the case to the storage shelf. A type that can be stored inside is suitable.

As shown in FIG.
0 is a wheel that fits into the pair of left and right U-shaped rail portions 10a of the guide rail 9, a motor with a brake that rotates by electric power supplied from a power supply rail installed on the guide rail 9, and a motor equipped with a brake. Therefore, it is a conventionally known motor that is equipped with a drive wheel that is driven in any forward or reverse direction, and is configured so that it cannot be lifted with respect to the guide rail 9. It is controlled by a control device on the ground side via the rail. The transport vehicle 10 is provided with a support stand 13 that supports the storage case 12.
is provided with a pair of front and rear female slide guides 14, a fixed stopper 15, and a movable stopper 16 that can move in and out. Said movable stopper 1
6 is driven in and out by a solenoid operated by electric power supplied from a power supply rail installed on the guide rail 9, and its control is performed by a ground-side control device similar to the control of the motor. It will be done.

The storage case 12 has a lock 1 which is biased in the opening direction by a spring and can be opened and closed by a key.
7, and a pair of male slide guides 19 that engage with the pair of female slide guides 14 on the carrier 10 in a non-liftable manner.

As shown in FIG. 3, the case transfer device 7 has a conveyor 20 that supports and conveys the cases 12, and a conveyor 20 that supports and conveys the cases 12, and a conveyor 10 that is stopped at the end of the conveyor 20 and the case loading/unloading area 6. The conveyor 20 is provided with a transfer means 22 for rearwardly moving the case 12 with pushers 21a and 21b, and a case moving direction turning means 23 disposed at the starting end of the conveyor 20 and capable of moving up and down. The starting end of the conveyor 20 is located right next to the elevating path of the elevating carriage 8 when the case loading/unloading device 2 is at the home position 24 at one end of the passageway 3.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, in the middle of the main line 25 of the conveying device 5, an elevating and lowering conveying means 26 is provided that connects the basement portion and the first floor portion. This elevating and lowering conveying means 26 is the same as the conventional one used in this type of conveying device, and is an elevating and lowering guide that can be selectively connected to the guide rail 9 in the basement part and the guide rail 9 in the first floor part. Equipped with rails. The main line 25 is branched via route switching means 27a, 27b, and has a terminal end connected to each coupon booth 4a to 4c.
Branch paths 28a to 2 arranged so as to be located within
8c are installed in series.

Each coupon booth 4a to 4c is equipped with a work desk 29 and a chair, as shown in FIGS. An opening 31 is provided, and the terminal ends of the branch paths 28a to 28c enter directly below this opening 31. Further, on the front side of the work desk 29, a card reader 32, a numeric keypad 33, a display device 34, a case call push button switch 35, a work completion push button switch 36, a trolley arrival indicator light 37, etc. are installed.

As shown in FIG. 7, as the conveyance vehicle 10, one conveyance vehicle 10a to 10c dedicated to each coupon booth 4a to 4c is prepared,
As shown in FIG. 4, each of these conveyance carts 10a to 10c has a detection pin (magnet) 38 protruding from one side parallel to the running direction, which indicates the cart number corresponding to the coupon booth to which it belongs. Next to the route switching means 27a and 27b from the main line 25 to each of the branch roads 28a to 28c, when the conveyance cart 10 returns to the coupon booths 4a to 4c, the position of the detection pin 38 is detected and the cart No. Detectors (reed switches) 39a and 39b are provided to read the information. Furthermore, as shown in Fig. 4, each storage case 1
2 is provided with a barcode display section 40 indicating a case number unique to each case on one side parallel to the traveling direction when supported on the transport vehicle 10, as shown in FIG. On the side of the route switching means 43 to the evacuation path 42 located near the case loading/unloading area 6 of the main line 5, a case number is displayed by reading the bar code on the bar code display section 40. A barcode reader 41 for detection is provided.

Next, the procedure and control when calling up the storage case 12 will be explained based on the flowchart shown in FIG.
Designated booth in c, for example coupon booth 4b
Enter the store and insert your magnetic card into the card reader 32.
When the recited number is entered into the numeric keypad 33, the number recorded on the magnetic card is compared with the entered recited number to check for errors. When the customer operates the case call push button switch 35 while both numbers match,
It is checked whether the entire main line 25 of the transport device 5 is empty, that is, whether there is no transport vehicle 10 on any of the main lines 25. This check is performed by a conventionally known method using the signal transfer rail described above. Immediately if the main line 25 is empty, otherwise after the waiting time until the main line 25 becomes empty, each branch road 28a to 28
Among the cart home positions 44a to 44c in c, the empty transport cart 10b was waiting at the cart home position 44b belonging to the coupon booth 4b.
starts, moves from the route switching means 27b via the main line 25 to the case loading/unloading location 6 at the end, and stops at a predetermined position.

On the other hand, the case call push button switch 3
5, the storage case 12 with the case number corresponding to the code number read by the card reader 32
It is searched at which position in the storage shelves 1a, 1b the storage case 12 is stored, and a command is output to take out the corresponding storage case 12 from the searched shelf position, and the case loading/unloading device 2 is activated to retrieve the corresponding storage case 12. The storage case 12 is carried out onto the case movement direction turning means 23 located at the upper limit position of the case transfer device 7. By lowering the turning means 23, the corresponding storage case 12 is transferred onto the conveyor 20, and conveyed by the conveyor 20 to a position adjacent to the case loading/unloading place 6.

The transport vehicle 10b reaches the case loading/unloading location 6, and the corresponding storage case 12 is transferred to the transport vehicle 1.
0b, the transfer means 22 is activated, and the pusher 21a transfers the corresponding storage case 12 on the conveyor 20 onto the transport vehicle 10b. At this time, transport vehicle 1
The movable stopper 16 on 0b is in the retracted position,
The carriage 10 is moved with the female slide guide 14 and the male slide guide 19 on the case side engaged until the case 12 comes into contact with the fixed stopper 15.
When the storage case 12 is transferred onto the carriage 10b, the movable stopper 16 protrudes and locks the storage case 12 onto the carriage 10b.

In this way, after the corresponding storage case 12 is unloaded onto the transport vehicle 10b, the transport vehicle 10
b starts from the case loading/unloading area 6 and travels along the main line 25 toward the coupon booths 4a to 4c, but at the beginning, the carrier 10b switches the route switching means 4 to the evacuation path 42.
3, the case number of the storage case 12 on the transport vehicle 10b is displayed on its barcode display section 4.
0 and the barcode reader 41, and based on the detected case number, the transport vehicle 10
It is checked whether the storage case 12 being carried out is the intended one. If it is not the intended storage case, the transport vehicle 10b is temporarily stopped on the route switching means 43,
After the means 43 is activated, the carrier 10b is sent into the escape path 42. Then, an explanation of the situation is displayed on the display device 34 in the coupon booth 4b, and the abnormality countermeasure staff at the bank is notified. Instead of evacuating the storage cases 12 that have been abnormally carried out in this way to the evacuation path 42 together with the transport vehicle 10b, the transport vehicle 10b is returned to the case loading/unloading area 6, and the case transfer device 7 and the case loading/unloading device 2 are used to store the storage cases 12. Case 12 is stored on shelf 1
It may be returned to the original shelf position within a and 1b.

If there is no error as a result of checking the storage case number, the transport work by the transport vehicle 10b continues as is. The path switching means 27a to the branch path 28a is connected to the detector 3 installed in parallel thereto.
9a is a transportation cart 10a dedicated to the coupon booth 4a.
The path switching means 27b to the branch path 28b operates only when the detected pin 38 of the coupon booth 4b is detected, and the detector 39b installed in parallel therewith detects the detected pin 38 of the carrier 10b dedicated to the coupon booth 4b. Since the transport vehicle 10 operates only when
b automatically goes from the main line 25 to the branch road 28b
The coupon is sent to the coupon booth 4b, moves to the end position in the coupon booth 4b via the home position 44b, and stops.

When the transport vehicle 10b reaches below the opening 31,
The trolley arrival indicator light 37 lights up to notify the customer. The customer uses a special key to operate the shutter 30.
or after the shutter 30 is unlocked in conjunction with the arrival of the transport vehicle 10b, the shutter 30 is opened and the storage case supported on the transport vehicle 10b is opened under the opening 31. 12
The lock 17 is unlocked using a special key, and the lid 18 is opened by a spring force.

The customer takes out or stores the desired item from the storage case 12. When this work is completed, the storage case 12 is returned to the predetermined shelf position in the storage shelves 1a and 1b.The procedure and control at this time will be explained based on the flowchart shown in FIG. Close the lid 18 of the storage case 12,
After operating and locking the lock 17 with the key, the opening 31 is closed by the shutter 30 (if it is not locked, the lid 18 will open, so the shutter 30 cannot be closed). In such a state, the opening 3 can be closed by operating the work completion push button switch 36.
The lower transport vehicle 10b starts and travels from the branch road 28b via the main line 25 to the case loading/unloading location 6. When the carrier 10b arrives at the case loading/unloading location 6, the movable stopper 16 on the carrier 10b is retracted, and then the transfer means 22 is activated, and the pusher 2
The storage case 12 on the transport vehicle 10b is carried out onto the conveyor 20 by 1b.

The storage case 12 on the conveyor 20 is conveyed by the conveyor 20 to a position above the case movement direction turning means 23, and then transferred onto the turning means 23 by the raising of the turning means 23. In such a state, the storage case 12 on the converting means 23 is
The case is loaded onto the elevating carriage 8 of the case loading/unloading device 2 located at the home position 24, and transferred to a predetermined shelf position within the storage shelves 1a, 1b by a process reverse to that used during the loading/unloading operation.

In parallel with the storage case loading operation described above, the empty transport vehicle 10b travels again to the branching path 28b, and stops at the home position 44b just before entering the coupon booth 4b, thereby completing a series of operations. Complete.

In the embodiment, a storage device is constituted by the storage shelves 1a and 1b, the case loading/unloading device 2, and the case transfer device 7, but this storage device is limited to the one shown in the above embodiment. Not done. For example, the first
As shown in FIGS. 0 to 12, a rotary storage system in which a large number of individual shelves 45 each having case storage sections in multiple stages in the vertical direction are supported so that they can be circulated in a chain in an oval horizontal circulation path. A case in which a shelf 46 is installed, and an elevating carriage 47 having the same function as the carriage 8 in the case loading/unloading device 2 is provided at an appropriate position of the rotating storage shelf 46, for example, adjacent to the U-turn portion of the single shelf 45. The loading/unloading device 48 can be installed in a fixed position.

Further, in the embodiment described above, a case transport path for transferring cases was provided between the case loading/unloading device 2 and the transport vehicle 10, but as shown in FIGS. 10 to 12, the case loading/unloading device 48, a case loading/unloading location 6 in the conveying device 5 is set,
The storage case 12 may be directly transferred between the carrier 10 located at the case loading/unloading place 6 and the elevating carriage 47 located at the same level as the carrier 10. In this case, as shown in the figure, the storage case transfer direction between the top of the lifting carriage 47 and the top of the case storage section of the shelf unit 45 and the storage case transfer direction between the top of the lifting carriage 47 and the top of the transport vehicle 10 are different. When the directions are perpendicular to each other, at least a case transfer means between the elevating carriage 47 and the transport vehicle 10 must be used in addition to the case transfer means provided on the elevating carriage 47.

(Operations and Effects of the Invention) As described above, according to the loading and unloading work method of an automatic warehouse using article storage cases of the present invention, one case transport cart is installed at each work site (each coupon booth 4a to 4c in the embodiment). A dedicated trolley for each case is provided, and each case transport trolley is connected to a branch road (branch roads 28a to 28c in the embodiment) for each workplace.
(a to 28c, a standby-only branch path may be provided for each workshop), and only when the main line is empty, run the case transport trolley between the workshop and the storage device. Since the loading and unloading work is carried out using the warehousing system, the movement route of each transport vehicle remains unchanged, and it is necessary to set the destination of each transport vehicle each time it is used (in the example, it is necessary to set which coupon booth is the destination). There are no
Since the destination can be fixedly set using a simple means such as the detection pin 38 whose position is fixed as shown in the embodiment, it is preferable that only one transport vehicle is always running during the main line. Coupled with this, the control of calling a specific article storage case to a specific work site and the reverse control of returning the specific article storage case to a specific work area using the transport vehicle becomes simple, and reliability is greatly improved. Therefore, the loading/unloading method for an automatic warehouse using article storage cases according to the present invention is as follows:
This method can be particularly effectively used as a method for loading and unloading safe deposit box equipment that is used relatively infrequently and requires high reliability.

Furthermore, according to the present invention, the article storage case is not directly supported and conveyed by a conveyor, but is conveyed by a transport vehicle, so the risk of damaging the article storage case is extremely reduced, and high-speed conveyance is also possible. As a result, the cycle time for loading and unloading can be shortened and efficiency can be increased.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Figure 1 is a cross-sectional plan showing the overall layout;
Fig. 2 is a longitudinal side view of the same, Fig. 3 is a side view of the case transfer device, Fig. 4 is a perspective view showing details of the carrier and storage case, and Fig. 5 is a longitudinal cross-section showing the configuration inside the coupon booth. Front view, Figure 6 is the same plan view, Figure 7
The figure is a diagram schematically showing the traveling route of the transport vehicle.
9 and 9 are flowcharts illustrating the control method, FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional plan view showing the layout of another embodiment, FIG. 11 is a longitudinal sectional front view of the same, and FIG. 12 is a perspective view of the main parts of the same. It is. 1a, 1b...Storage shelf, 2, 48...Case loading/unloading device, 4a-4c...Coupon booth (work area), 5...Transport device, 6...Case loading/unloading area, 7...Case transfer device , 8, 47... Lifting carriage, 9... Guide rail, 10, 10a
~10c...Transportation truck, 12...Storage case (article storage case), 14...Female slide guide,
15... Fixed stopper, 16... Movable stopper, 18... Lockable lid, 19... Male slide guide, 20... Conveyor, 22... Transfer means, 23... Case moving direction turning means, 25 ……
Main line, 27a, 27b, 43...route switching means, 28a-28c...branch road, 29...
...Work desk, 30...Accordion shutter, 31...Opening, 38...Pin to be detected for trolley number, 39a, 39b...Detector for reading trolley number, 40...Barcode for case number Display section, 41
...Case No. Barcode reader for reading, 4
2... Evacuation path, 44a to 44c... Transport vehicle home position.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1. A storage device including a storage shelf for the article storage case and a case loading/unloading device, a plurality of work stations for loading and unloading articles into and out of the article storage case, and a storage device for storing the article storage case between the storage device and each of the work stations. In an automated warehouse equipped with a case transport trolley for transporting cases, a main line between the storage device and the vicinity of the workplace, and a branch road connecting the main line and each workplace, As the case transport vehicle, one dedicated trolley is provided for each of the workplaces, and each case transport vehicle is made to stand by within the branch path of each workplace, and only when the main line is empty is it connected to the workplace and the A loading/unloading method for an automated warehouse using article storage cases, characterized in that the case transport vehicle is run between the storage device and the storage device to carry out loading/unloading operations.