JPH06312809A - Picking method and picking device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To provide a picking device, which can be applied for a stock room provided with shelf groups, which are respectively formed of plural continuous shelves, and which can perform the picking per unit of single plate and the picking per unit of pallet separately. CONSTITUTION:A picking device is provided with a truck 20 for traveling between plural shelf groups 10, in which plural shelves 5 are arranged three- dimensionally, and a carriage elevatably loaded on the truck 20. Furthermore, the device is also provided with a first supporting means, which can be expanded and contracted freely in relation to the shelves 15 arranged in both sides of the traveling direction of the truck 20 and which can support the articles stacked on the shelf 15 per unit of single plates in order from the upper position, and a second supporting means, which can be expanded and contracted freely in the same direction with the first supporting means in relation to the shelf 15 separately from the first supporting means and which can support the articles per unit of plural plates in order from the lower position.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a picking method and device for picking out plate-like articles stored on shelves.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Generally, in storage warehouses, plate-like objects such as steel plates or wooden boards are classified and stored in a plurality of shelves according to material and size. These plate-like objects are extracted by a picking device mounted on a trolley that moves along shelves lined up in a warehouse. As the picking device,
For example, a plate-shaped material storage facility disclosed in Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-51108 is known. FIG. 5 shows a schematic view of the plate-shaped material storage facility. The lift carriage 103 mounted on the traveling body 102 moving along the warehouse shelf 101 is provided with the suction device 105 on the upper portion and the lower surface on the lower portion. A U-shaped mount 104, which is a pallet mounting base for plate-like objects, is mounted via a loading / unloading device 106.

The picking device having such a structure is used for the traveling body 1.
02 back and forth movement, raising and lowering of the raising and lowering carriage 103, and moving in and out of the loading and unloading device 106 in the left and right direction make it possible to move the plate-shaped pallet unit between the target storage space and the cargo handling area. Picking is possible. In addition, picking in a single plate unit is also possible using the suction device 105.

[0004]

However, in the above-mentioned picking device, the U-shaped mount 104 is provided in one of the warehouses 101.
Since it is configured to move in and out of the side,
If there are warehouses and loading / unloading stations on both sides, it is necessary to install two picking devices symmetrically.

Further, since the suction device 105 on the upper portion of the U-shaped frame 104 and the pallet mounting table on the lower portion are interlocked with each other, picking in single plate units and picking in pallet units cannot be performed at the same time. Further, when performing picking for each single plate, first, the U-shaped mount 104 is inserted so as to be sandwiched between the plate-like objects placed and stored on the pallet of the warehouse shelf 101, and then the elevating carriage. 10
It is necessary to lower 3 to operate the adsorption device 105, which complicates the operation.

An object of the present invention is to be applicable to a warehouse provided with a shelf group in which a plurality of shelves are arranged in series, and the picking in single plate unit and the picking in pallet unit can be performed independently. And to provide a device.

[0007]

A picking method according to the present invention is a first method capable of supporting an article in a single unit from above.
Picking method in which the supporting means and the second supporting means capable of supporting the article from below are integrally moved to put the article in and out of a plurality of shelves three-dimensionally arranged along the movement path. In the above, in the plurality of shelves arranged three-dimensionally on both sides of the movement path, the first supporting means capable of supporting the article in a single unit from the above direction, and capable of supporting the article from below The second support means and the second support means are controlled so that they can be independently driven, and the articles contained in the shelves are sequentially extracted by the first support means in a single unit and placed on the second support means. The article placed by the second supporting means is associated with a required process in a plurality of units.

Further, the picking device according to the present invention is
A carriage that travels between a plurality of shelves in which a plurality of shelves are three-dimensionally arranged, a carriage that can be lifted and lowered on the carriage, and the shelves located on both sides in the traveling direction of the carriage, First support means that is expandable and contractible and is capable of supporting articles stacked and accommodated in the shelves from above in a single-sheet unit; and independently of the shelves in the same direction as the first support means. In addition to being expandable and contractible, it is provided with a second supporting means capable of supporting the article in units of a plurality of sheets from below.

[0009]

[Operation] According to the above-described picking method and picking apparatus of the present invention, the self-propelled carriage travels up and down along the shelf group and moves to the desired shelf position. Then, with respect to the articles stacked and accommodated on the shelves, the first supporting means is extended and supported (picking) in single-sheet units from above, and the articles are stacked on the pallet supported by the second supporting means.

The above picking operation is sequentially repeated for the articles contained in each shelf, whereby the articles are sequentially loaded on the pallet. When a required number of articles are loaded on the pallet, the self-propelled carriage moves to a predetermined position and accommodates the pallet loaded with the articles. Further, the articles loaded on the pallets and accommodated in the shelves are supported (picked) by the second support means that supports the plurality of sheets. After that, the self-propelled carriage moves to another position to accommodate the pallet loaded with the articles.

The first and second support means independently expand and contract to perform the required support. That is, the first supporting means is expanded / contracted when supporting a single sheet, and the second supporting means is expanded / contracted when supporting a plurality of sheets. Further, the first and second supporting means extend and contract with respect to the articles housed in the shelves facing each other, and support the articles.

Examples of the above-mentioned article include a plate-shaped article, a bag-shaped article, and a box-shaped article.

[0013]

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. 1 and 2 are respectively a schematic top view and a schematic side view of a warehouse to which the picking method according to the present invention is applied. That is, in the warehouse, a plurality of shelves 10 having a plurality of shelves 15 defined by columns 11 and brackets 12 provided at appropriate positions of the columns 11 are provided side by side at predetermined intervals. Further, the shelf group 10 on one side is provided with a loading / unloading station 16 which is in communication with a work process at a predetermined position.

A track rail 13 and a guide rail 14 are laid on the floor surface and the ceiling surface between the shelves 10, and the self-propelled carriage 20 travels while being guided by the track rail 13 and the guide rail 14. . The self-propelled carriage 20 includes a lower beam 21, an upper beam 22, wheels 26a that sandwich the track rail 13, wheels 26b that sandwich the guide rail 14, a post 23, and a sprocket wheel 36.
And an elevating stand 30 supported by.

The lifting platform 30 will be described below with reference to FIG. The lifting platform 30 has a frame structure in which a lower frame 31 and an upper frame 32 are connected by a connecting frame 33. The lifting platform 30 uses the point A of the upper beam 22 of the self-propelled carriage 20 as a fulcrum, and the sprocket wheel 36b attached to the sprocket wheel mounting base 35 provided on the upper frame 32 of the self-propelled carriage 30 and the self-propelled carriage 2
0, the sprocket wheel 36c provided on the upper beam 22, the sprocket wheel 36d provided on the rear side of the upper beam 22, and the upper frame 3 of the lifting platform 30.
2, a sprocket wheel 36e attached to a sprocket wheel mounting base 35 provided at the rear of the vehicle 2, sprocket wheels 36f and 36g provided at the rear of the upper beam 22 of the self-propelled carriage 20, and a rear post middle stage of the rear post 23. Sprocket wheel 36h and drive source M
It is supported by a sprocket chain 37 that is stretched through a sprocket gear 38 that is driven by 2, and is lifted and lowered by rotationally driving the sprocket gear 38.

Further, the guide wheel 3 is mounted on the lifting platform 30.
4 is provided so as to support the front and rear, left and right of the post 23 of the self-propelled carriage 20, whereby the elevating / lowering platform 30 moves up and down smoothly with respect to the self-propelled carriage 20. Further, below the sprocket gear 38, a sprocket chain rocker 39 is provided so as to store the sprocket chain 37 that hangs down as the lifting platform 30 rises.

Further, the lower frame 31 of the lifting platform 30
A claw 40 that supports the article 42 from below is provided on the upper side, and a suction device 50 that supports the article 42 from above is provided below the upper frame 32. The picking device including the self-propelled carriage 20, the lifting platform 30, the claw 40, and the suction device 50 functions as a so-called stacker crane.

The claws 40 expand and contract in the respective shelves of the shelves 10 provided on both sides, and support the pallets 41 arranged on the respective shelves. Articles 42 are loaded on the pallet 41. The suction device 50 drives the suction cup mounting base 52, in which a plurality of suction cups 53 are arranged, to move up and down by the lifting device 54, and
By expanding and contracting in each direction of the shelf group 10 by the expansion and contraction device 51,
The articles 42 stacked on the top of the pallet 41 are suction-supported.

The claw 40 and the suction device 50 can be expanded and contracted, respectively, and can also be moved in a direction orthogonal to the shelf direction to be moved in a plane. The lifting platform 30 includes the claw 4
0 and the suction device 50 are driven to expand and contract, and move along the shelf 10 and move up and down as the self-propelled carriage 20 travels. In this way, the articles on the shelves are picked by moving in the directions of three axes that are orthogonal to each other.

The operation of the lifting platform 30 will be described below with reference to FIG. The elevating platform 30 moves to a desired shelf position of the shelf group 10 as the self-propelled carriage 20 travels. First, when loading an article, the claw 40 provided on the lower frame 31 of the elevating stand 30 is placed below the pallet 41 with respect to the pallet 41 on which the unpacked article stored in the loading / unloading station 16 is loaded. After extending to the
0 is raised, and then the claw 40 is contracted so that the lifting platform 30
The claw 40 is accommodated in. After that, the self-propelled carriage 20 moves from the loading / unloading station 16 to the desired shelf position and stores the articles loaded on the pallet 41.

Next, when the articles are to be unloaded, the articles stacked on the top of the pallet 41 are picked in single plate units. That is, after the suction device 50 provided below the upper frame 32 of the lifting platform 30 is extended into the gap between the shelves, it is lowered to suck the suction cup 53 onto the article, and then the suction device 50 is contracted to lift the lifting platform. The adsorption device 50 is housed in 30. The articles sucked by the suction device 50 are stacked on the pallet 41 supported by the claws 40 after the suction is released.

The above-mentioned picking in units of single sheets is sequentially repeated for a desired shelf. Then, when a predetermined number of articles are loaded on the pallet 41, the self-propelled carriage 20 moves to a predetermined position of the loading / unloading station 16, and the pallet 41 is moved.
Take out the articles loaded in. When the articles loaded on the pallet 41 stored in the shelves are to be delivered in units of pallets, the claws 40 provided on the lower frame 31 of the elevating platform 30 are extended below the pallet 41 and then the elevating platform is installed. Raise 30. After that, the claws 40 are contracted, and the claws 40 are housed in the lifting platform 30. After that, self-propelled carriage 20
Moves to the specified position of the loading / unloading station 16,
The articles loaded on the pallet 41 are unloaded.

[0023]

According to the invention described above, the traveling of the self-propelled carriage back and forth, the raising and lowering of the elevating and lowering platform, the elevating and lowering of the suction device provided on the elevating and lowering platform, and the suction device and the claws further provided on the elevating and lowering platform. Can be expanded and contracted with respect to each shelf group provided on both sides of the self-propelled carriage, so that picking can be performed on each shelf located on both sides of the self-propelled carriage. In addition, since the claw and the suction device can independently operate, picking of a single unit can be sequentially repeated to be housed in a plurality of units, or picking and housing of a plurality of units can be performed.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a schematic top view showing a warehouse to which a picking method according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 2 is a schematic side view showing a warehouse to which the picking method according to the present invention is applied.

FIG. 3 is a front view showing a picking device according to the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a schematic top view for explaining the operation of the picking device.

FIG. 5 is a schematic side view showing a conventional picking device.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Shelf Group 11 Struts 12 Brackets 13 Track Rails 14 Guide Rails 15 Guide Racks 16 Shelving Stations 20 Self-propelled Carts 21 Lower Beams 22 Upper Beams 23 Posts 26a, 26b Wheels 30 Elevating Stands 31 Lower Frames 32 Upper Frames 33 Connecting Frames 34 Guide Wheels 35 Sprocket Wheel Mounting Base 36, 36b to 36h Sprocket Wheel 37 Sprocket Chain 38 Sprocket Gear 39 Sprocket Chain Rocker 40 Claw 41 Pallet 42 Article 50 Adsorption Device 51 Stretching Device 52 Sucker Mounting Base 53 Sucker 54 Lifting Device

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[Procedure amendment]

[Submission date] May 19, 1993

[Procedure Amendment 1]

[Document name to be amended] Statement

[Correction target item name] 0010

[Correction method] Change

[Correction content]

The above picking operation is sequentially repeated for the articles contained in each shelf, whereby the articles are sequentially loaded on the pallet. When the required number of items are loaded on the pallet, the self-propelled carriage will move to the predetermined position (station
Etc.) to transfer the pallet loaded with the articles. Further, the articles stacked on the pallet and accommodated in the station or the like are supported (picked) by the second supporting unit that supports the plurality of sheets. After that, the self-propelled carriage moves to a shelf or the like to transfer the pallet loaded with the articles.

Claims (2)

[Claims] 1. A first supporting means capable of supporting an article in a single unit from above and a second supporting means capable of supporting an article from below integrally move to form a solid body along a movement path. In the picking method of putting the articles in and out of a plurality of shelves arranged in a uniform manner, the first support means and the second support means are provided for the plurality of shelves provided on both sides of the movement path. Are controlled so that they can be independently driven, and the articles contained in the shelves are sequentially extracted by the first supporting means in a single unit and placed on the second supporting means, and the second supporting means is used. A picking method, wherein a plurality of mounted articles are associated with a required process. 2. A dolly (20) traveling between a plurality of shelves (10) in which a plurality of shelves are three-dimensionally arranged, and a carriage (30) mounted on the dolly (20) so as to be able to move up and down. A first unit that is extendable and retractable with respect to the shelves located on both sides of the carriage (20) in the traveling direction, and that can support the articles (42) stacked and accommodated in the shelves from above in single-piece units.
Support means (53) and second support means capable of independently expanding and contracting with respect to the shelf in the same direction as the first support means, and capable of supporting the article in a unit of a plurality of sheets from below. (40) A picking device comprising: