JPH06156630A - Automated warehouse - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To reduce the number of warehousing-delivery trucks required for truck travel paths on each stage in an automated warehouse so as to reduce the cost by a large margin. CONSTITUTION:In an automated warehouse, the travel paths 3a-3d of a warehousing-delivery truck 20 movable along shelves 2b and provided with a load transfer means 26 between the shelves 2b and a shelf load supporting part 18 are disposed in plural vertical stages. This automated warehouse is additionally provided with a truck elevating conveyor device 4 provided with elevating guide rails 23 from which the truck 20 can be transferred onto the travel paths 3a-3d on each stage. A truck travel path onto which the truck 20 can be transferred from the elevating guide rails 23 at the time of the elevating guide rails 23 being on the specified level is further provided to guide the truck 20 to a loading/unloading work place.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention has a traveling route of a loading / unloading carriage which is movable along a shelf and which has means for transferring a load to and from a shelf load supporting portion arranged in a plurality of upper and lower stages. It concerns automatic warehouses.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In the conventional automatic warehouse of this type, a dedicated trolley for loading and unloading is provided for each traveling route of each tier truck. Therefore, a large number of expensive trucks for loading and unloading equipped with the load transfer means are required, and there is a drawback that the equipment cost is very high. Furthermore, in a large-scale large-scale automated warehouse consisting of a plurality of warehouse units equipped with shelves and loading and unloading truck travel paths arranged in parallel, a large number of loading and unloading trucks are required, resulting in a large equipment cost. Is significantly higher. In particular,
When the number of loading and unloading operations per unit time in the entire warehouse is small and the operating rate of each trolley is very low, there is no merit corresponding to the equipment cost, which is a bottleneck for practical use.

[0003]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION The present invention has been made to solve the above-mentioned conventional problems, and its features are shown by the reference numerals of the embodiments described later. In the automatic warehouse of the present invention, the traveling routes 3a to 3d of the loading and unloading truck 20 that are movable along the shelves 2a and 2b and that are equipped with the load transfer means 26 between the shelf load supporting portion 18 have a plurality of upper and lower stages. In the automatic warehouse installed in, each stepped truck traveling route 3a to 3d
And a carriage lifting / lowering conveyance device 4 provided with a lift guide rail 23 on which the carriage 20 can be transferred, and when the lift guide rail 23 is at a predetermined level, the carriage is connected to the lift guide rail 23. It is characterized in that a trolley 20 can be transferred and a trolley traveling route for guiding the trolley 20 between the unloading and unloading workshop is provided.

Further, in the present invention according to claim 2,
A warehouse unit in which traveling paths 3a to 3d of a truck 20 for loading and unloading, which is movable along the shelves 2a and 2b and has a load transfer means 26 between the rack and the load supporting portion 18, are arranged in a plurality of upper and lower stages. A plurality of 1A to 1C are installed in parallel, and each warehouse unit 1A to 1C
The trolley lifting / lowering conveyance device 4 is provided side by side, and when the levitation guide rail 23 of each trolley lifting / lowering conveyance device 4 is at a predetermined level in the trolley traveling route,
Between the trolley traverse transfer device 5 having the trolley guide rail 8 on which the trolley 20 can be transferred to and from the trolley 3 and the trolley guide rail 8 when the trolley guide rail 8 is at a predetermined position. Guide rails 9 to 12 for loading and unloading workplaces on which the carriage 20 can be transferred are provided.

Further, in the device of the present invention according to claim 3, at least one trolley 20 can be stored between the lift guide rail 23 and the lateral guide rail 8 of each trolley lift transport device 4. Positionally fixed relay guide rails 17a to 17c are provided.

In the hanger device according to the fourth aspect, the loading / unloading work place guide rails 9 to 12 are
It will be arranged separately for warehousing and warehousing.

[0007]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. In FIG. 1, 1A to 1C are warehouse units arranged in parallel, and each warehouse unit 1A to 1C.
Are the shelves 2a and 2b arranged side by side, the trolley traveling paths 3a to 3d of a plurality of upper and lower stages provided between the shelves 2a and 2b as shown in FIGS. 2 and 4, and the trolley traveling paths 3a to 3d. Three
It is composed of a carriage lifting / lowering transport device 4 arranged at one end of d.

In FIG. 1, reference numeral 5 denotes a carriage transverse conveying device, which is a traverse carriage 7 supported by a guide rail 6 so as to be movable laterally.
A trolley-supporting lateral-movement guide rail 8 orthogonal to the lateral-movement direction is laid on the top. 9 and 10 are guide rails for loading and unloading work place, and 11 and 12 are guide rails for loading and unloading work place, which are assigned to both ends of the traveling path of the transverse carriage 7 for loading and unloading. The lateral movement carriage 7 is connected to the carriage supporting lateral movement guide rail 8 by stopping the lateral movement carriage 7 at a predetermined position.

Reference numeral 13 denotes a warehousing carriage that automatically travels along a fixed route on the floor surface, and is a warehousing / unloading work station 14 set between the warehousing / unloading work place guide rails 9 and 10. Stop. Denoted at 15 is a delivery carriage that automatically travels on the floor surface along a predetermined route, and stops at the delivery / unloading work station 16 set between the delivery / unloading work place guide rails 11 and 12. Numerals 17a to 17c are fixed relay guide rails, each having a length capable of storing one loading / unloading carriage, and each carriage unit 1A to 1C has a carriage lifting / lowering transport device 4 and a carriage transverse transport. It is arranged between the apparatus 5 and the lateral carriage 7 and is connected to the lateral carriage guide rail 8 for supporting the carriage by stopping the lateral carriage 7 at a predetermined position.

The construction of each of the warehouse units 1A to 1C will be described in more detail. As shown in FIGS. 2 to 4, each of the shelves 2a and 2b is provided with a large number of load supporting portions 18 divided in the horizontal direction and the height direction. ing. Each load supporting portion 18 includes a pair of load receiving members 19a and 19b that support both sides of the bottom portion of the load W. 20
Is a truck for loading and unloading, and each of the tier trucks travel paths 3a to 3d.
The traveling guide rails 21 installed for each of the units, the trolley supporting lift guide rails 23 laid on the elevator platform 22 of the trolley elevator transporting device 4, the position-fixed relay guide rails 17a to 17c, and the trolley transport laterally. It is possible to travel on the trolley-supporting guide rails 8 of the device 5 and the guide rails 9 to 12 for loading and unloading loading and unloading workplaces. Thus, the loading / unloading carriage 20 is of a self-propelled train type including a pair of left and right drive wheels 24 and a pair of left and right driven wheels 25, which are driven by motors in arbitrary forward and reverse directions. A load transfer means (running fork) 26 that can be horizontally moved in and out is provided on either side of both shelves 2a and 2b in a direction orthogonal to the traveling direction, and load receiving devices 19a and 19b on the shelves 2a and 2b side.
It is mounted so that it can be moved up and down between the upper level and the lower level.

The dolly lifting / conveying device 4 is constructed by laying a trolley supporting lift guide rail 23 for supporting the loading / unloading dolly 20 on a lift pedestal 22 which can be lifted and lowered along a lift guide column 27. By elevating the elevator platform 22 and stopping it at a level corresponding to each of the stepped vehicle traveling paths 3a to 3d, the guide rails 21 in each of the stepped vehicle traveling paths 3a to 3d and the elevator guide rails 22 for supporting the carts are moved. Can be connected. Further, by stopping the lift table 22 at a level (lower limit level) corresponding to the relay guide rails 17a to 17c, the carriage supporting lift guide rail 22 can be connected to the relay guide rails 17a to 17c.

The automated warehouse constructed as described above can be used as follows. That is, if the warehousing carriage 13 supporting the load W to be warehoused stops at the warehousing / unloading work station 14 shown in FIG. 1, it waits at a predetermined position on the warehousing / unloading work place guide rail 9 or 10. Advance to the loading / unloading means 26 of the loading / unloading carriage 20 at the lower level, ascend to the upper level, retreat to the original position,
Then, the load W on the warehousing carriage 13 is transferred onto the warehousing carriage 26.

The loading / unloading trolley 20 supporting the load W is started in a state where the trolley supporting horizontal guide rail 8 of the trolley traverse carrier 5 is connected to the loading / unloading work place guide rail 9 or 10. , The carriage traverse transfer device 5 is transferred onto the carriage supporting lateral movement guide rail 8. Next, the lateral movement carriage 7 is laterally moved on the guide rails 6, and the lateral movement guide rails 8 for supporting the carriages are moved to the warehouse units 1A to 1A to be subjected to the storage work.
The relay guide rails 17a to 17c connected to 1C are connected. Then, the trolley 20 for loading and unloading is started, and the relay guide rail 17a is moved from above the trolley supporting rail 8 for supporting the trolley.
Transfer to ~ 17c.

On the other hand, the warehouse units 1A to
In 1C, the lift table 22 of the carriage lifting / lowering transport device 4 is lowered to a predetermined level, and the lift guide rail 23 for supporting the carriage is provided.
To the relay guide rails 17a to 17c. In this state, the carriage 20 for loading and unloading on the relay guide rails 17a to 17c is started, and the lift guide rails 23 for supporting the carriages.
After moving to the upper position, the lifting platform 22 is lifted to move the cart traveling path 3a at a level corresponding to the load supporting unit 18 to be stored.
The carriage supporting elevating guide rails 23 are connected to 3d (guide rails 21). Next, the loading / unloading carriage 20 is started, and the carriage 2 is moved to the carriage running paths 3a to 3d (guide rail 21) at the level corresponding to the load supporting portion 18 to be stored.
Transfer 0.

The loading / unloading carriage 20 which has been transferred onto the carriage running paths 3a to 3d (guide rails 21) of a predetermined level,
After traveling to a position corresponding to the load supporting portion 18 to be stored, the load transfer means (running fork) 26 advances to the upper level, descends to the lower level, and retreats to the original position.
By performing a series of unloading operations consisting of the rack 2a or 2b, it is possible to transfer the cargo W on the loading / unloading carriage 20 into the cargo support 18 of the rack 2a or 2b.

When the cargo W is unloaded from the warehouse units 1A to 1C and carried out by the shipping carrier 15, it corresponds to the cargo support portion 18 to be unloaded in the warehouse units 1A to 1C to be unloaded. The empty loading / unloading carriage 20 is introduced into the level carriage travel paths 3a to 3d in the same manner as described above.
Then, the loading / unloading cart 20 is loaded onto the loading support unit 18 of the loading / unloading target.
Then, the load transfer means (running fork) 26 is caused to perform the above-described load scooping operation, and the load W in the load support 18 is transferred onto the loading / unloading carriage 20. After that, the trolley 20 for loading and unloading, which supports the load W, is used for the unloading and loading / unloading workshop by using the trolley lifting / lowering transporting device 4, the relay guide rails 17a to 17c, and the trolley trolley transporting device 5 as described above. Transfer to the guide rail 11 or 12.

When the loading / unloading carriage 20 is stopped at a predetermined position corresponding to the loading / unloading work station 16, the loading / unloading carriage is set to the loading / unloading carriage 15 waiting at the station 16. By causing the load transfer means 26 on 20 to perform the above-described unloading operation, the load W on the entry and exit carriage 20 can be loaded and unloaded on the exit transport carriage 15, so that after this, The carrier W can be run to carry the load W to a predetermined place.

When the loading / unloading work place guide rails 9 to 12 are arranged on both sides of the loading / unloading work loading stations 14 and 16, respectively, the guide rails 9 and 10 are used for loading / unloading work. Or 11,12
One of the two can be used for waiting for the loading / unloading carriage 20. Of course, these guide rails 9 to 12 may have a length that allows storage of a plurality of trolleys 20 for storage and withdrawal, or a storage guide rail may be separately provided and a lateral movement guide for trolley support may be provided on this. The rail 8 may be connected.

Further, although the relay guide rails 17a to 17c can be omitted and the truck supporting lift guide rail 23 and the truck supporting lateral movement guide rail 8 can be directly connected, the relay guide rails 17a to 17c are provided. In this case, the relay guide rails 17a to 17a to stand by for waiting until the carriage lifting / lowering transport device 4 or the carriage transverse transport device 5 arrives.
17c can be utilized. In addition, loading and unloading cart 2
The load transfer means 26 on 0 is not limited to a running fork type, but a conveyor, a type for pushing and pulling a load W, or the like can also be used.

[0020]

As described above, according to the automatic warehouse of the present invention, the trolley-lifting / lowering device is used to unload and unload the trolley-carrying route of any level among the trolley-carrying routes of the upper and lower stages. Since the entry / exit cart can be freely moved to and from the work area, one entry / exit cart can be used for each entry / exit cart for each tier cart travel path, and the loading / unloading work area and shelves. It can also be used as a load carrying means in between. Therefore, even in a large-scale large-scale automated warehouse that is configured by arranging a plurality of warehouse units with shelves and a plurality of loading / unloading truck travel paths arranged in parallel, loading / unloading trucks can be loaded and unloaded per unit time. It can be reduced to the minimum required number according to the number of times of work, and combined with the fact that the trolley can also be used as a load transfer means to and from the loading and unloading work place, the cost of the entire facility is significantly reduced and it is put into practical use. Can be done easily.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall schematic plan view.

FIG. 2 is a side view of a main part.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional plan view showing a main part of one warehouse unit and a cart transverse transportation device.

FIG. 4 is a front view showing one warehouse unit.

[Explanation of symbols]

 1A Warehouse unit 1B Warehouse unit 1C Warehouse unit 2a Shelf 2b Shelf 4 Truck lift transport device 5 Truck traverse transport device 7 Rolling carriage 8 Rolling guide rail for supporting truck 9 Guide rail for loading and unloading workshop 10 Loading and unloading work area Guide rails 11 Guide rails for unloading and unloading workshops 12 Guide rails for unloading and unloading workshops 13 Carrying vehicles for warehousing 14 Warehousing and unloading work stations 15 Transporting vehicles for unloading goods 16 Dispatching and unloading work stations 17a Positioning relay guide Rail 17b Position-fixed relay guide rail 17c Position-fixed relay guide rail 18 Load support 20 Load / unload truck 22 Lift 23 Lift / lift guide rail for truck 26 Load transfer means (running fork)

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An automatic warehouse in which the traveling paths of a loading / unloading truck that is movable along a shelf and that has a load transfer means between the rack and a rack support section are arranged in a plurality of upper and lower stages. A truck elevating / conveying device provided with an elevating guide rail on which the truck can be transferred to and from each stage truck traveling path is provided together, and the truck with the elevator guide rail when the elevator guide rail is at a predetermined level. An automatic warehouse that can be transferred to and is provided with a trolley traveling route that guides the trolley to and from a loading / unloading workshop. 2. A plurality of warehouse units arranged side by side in a plurality of upper and lower traveling paths of a loading / unloading carriage that is movable along the shelves and that has means for loading and unloading between the shelving and the load supporting portion. Each of the warehouse units is provided with the trolley lifting / lowering conveyance device, and when the trolley lifting / lowering guide rail of each trolley lifting / lowering conveyance device is at a predetermined level in the trolley traveling route, the trolleys are connected to the trolleys. A trolley-carrying conveyance device having a lateral movement guide rail that can be transferred to and a guide for a loading and unloading work site at which the trolley can be transferred between the lateral movement guide rail when the lateral movement guide rail is in a predetermined position. The automated warehouse according to claim 1, further comprising a rail. 3. A position-fixing relay guide rail having a length capable of storing at least one of the carriages is arranged between the lifting guide rails and the lateral guide rails of each of the carriage lifting and conveying apparatuses. The automated warehouse according to claim 2. 4. The loading / unloading work place guide rail comprises:
The automatic warehouse according to claim 2 or 3, wherein the automatic warehouse is provided separately for warehousing and warehousing.