JPH10236611A - Flow rack device - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a flow rack capable of performing a product supplementing operation and a product picking operation from the same front side of a rack while maintaining a first-in first-out function. SOLUTION: A flow rack device is structured so that, when supplement of products is required to either of right and left storing slide members 4, a supplement direction switchover member 8 is rotated to a storage slide member side by a handle 9 and the required number of products 10 is input from an input port onto an input slide member 6. By this, the input products lower through the input side member 6, fall on the rear side of the storage slide member located under a supplement direction switchover member by the supplement direction switchover member inclined to the supplement side, further lower through the storage slide member toward the forward picking operation side, arrive at the rearmost of a group of products stocked on it, and stop there. Thus, while maintaining a first-in and first-out function, product supplement operation can be performed on the same side as for picking operation.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a fluidized shelving apparatus for first-in first-out products.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, a fluidized shelving apparatus for storing a large number of products while providing a first-in first-out function of products by using gravity without using a special drive mechanism has been used. Side, and the opposite side as the picking side, a large number of free conveyors for storage such as free roller conveyors and freewheel conveyors are arranged in a row so as to incline obliquely downward from the product input side toward the picking side, When replenishing products to the fluidized shelf apparatus, an operator turns to the product input side, which is the rear side of the shelf frame as viewed from the picking operation side, and inputs the products to the free conveyor for storage.

[0003]

However, such a conventional fluidized shelving apparatus requires a passage space for product replenishment work on the side opposite to the picking work side with the shelf frame interposed therebetween as described above. If there is an obstacle behind, such as a warehouse wall, a space for product replenishment must be secured between the obstacle and the shelf frame. There is a problem that there are many restrictions on the above, and there is a problem that the space efficiency is not good.

The present invention has been made in view of such a conventional problem, and the product replenishment operation can be performed from the same side as the picking operation, without requiring a space for the product replenishment operation behind the shelf frame. It is another object of the present invention to provide a fluidized shelf apparatus which is less subject to layout restrictions and which is excellent in space efficiency.

[0005]

According to a first aspect of the present invention, there is provided a fluidized shelving apparatus, comprising: an input slide member which is installed to be inclined downward from a front input port of a shelf frame toward a rear side; A replenishing direction switching member that is installed further to the rear of the member and switches the flow of the product sent from the loading slide member to any one of left and right directions; A replenishment direction switching operation means for instructing a switch in any direction, and a storage slide member provided on both left and right sides of the replenishment direction switching member and installed to be inclined downward toward the front outlet of the shelf frame. It is provided with.

In the fluidized shelving apparatus according to the first aspect of the present invention, when it becomes necessary to replenish the product on one of the left and right storage slide members, the worker replenishes the same side of the shelf frame as the picking work side. To supply a product for use, supply a command to switch the replenishment direction switching member to the storage slide member side by the replenishment direction switching operation means, and supply a required number of products from the loading port onto the loading slide member. To do. As a result, the input product descends on the input slide member, falls on the rear part of the storage slide member on the side designated by the replenishment direction switching member, and further moves the storage slide member to the front picking work side. It descends toward it and reaches the end of the product group on top of it and stops.

[0007] In this manner, the product replenishment operation can be performed from the same front side as the product picking operation side of the shelf frame. Therefore, no space for the replenishment operation is required behind the shelf frame.
The shelf frame can be attached to the wall, and the layout is less restricted.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, in the fluidizing shelf apparatus according to the first aspect, the input slide member and the storage slide member are formed of a free roller conveyor or a freewheel conveyor, and the replenishment direction switching member is shifted from a horizontal state. The refill direction switching operation means is provided near the front end of the loading slide member, and is connected to the refill direction switching member for rotating the refill direction switching member in each of the left and right directions. The handle consists of

In the fluidizing shelf apparatus according to the second aspect of the present invention, when it is necessary to replenish the product to the left or right storage slide member, the replenishing direction switching member is rotated by the handle toward the storage slide member. Let it tilt,
The required number of products are supplied from the input port onto the input slide member. As a result, the input product descends on the input slide member, falls on the rear part of the storage slide member located therebelow by the replenishment direction switching member inclined to the replenishment side, and further moves the storage slide member. Going down to the picking side in the front, reaching the end of the product group on top of it and stopping, and replenishing the product on the same side as the picking work while maintaining the first-in first-out function. In addition, no external power is required in the configuration, the product itself can reach the end of the stocked product by its own weight for first-in first-out using gravity, and the device can save energy.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, in the fluidizing shelf apparatus of the first or second aspect, a plurality of sets each including the charging slide member, the replenishing direction switching member, and the storage slide member are provided. Thus, a large amount of products can be stored in a limited space.

[0011]

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Embodiments of the present invention will be described below in detail with reference to the drawings. FIGS. 1 to 3 show one embodiment of the present invention. In a fluidized shelving apparatus according to this embodiment, a column 2 is arranged in a row on a shelf frame 1, and an appropriate space is provided between the columns 2 and 2. The shelf boards 3, 3,... In addition, prop 2, 2
Between them, a free roller conveyor 4 for storage is installed so as to incline obliquely upward and backward from the rear end position of each shelf 3. The left and right shelves 3 and 3 and the free roller conveyors 4 and 4 for storage are set as a set, and the upper intermediate position between them is defined as the loading port 5. A roller conveyor 6 is provided, and a replenishing direction switching member 8 in which a number of free balls 7 are embedded is provided so as to be continuous with the rear end of the replenishing free roller conveyor 6.

Each of the replenishing direction switching members 8 has a handle 9 which can be operated at the slot 5. The operation of the handle 9 causes the replenishing direction switching member 8 to rotate from the horizontal state to the left or right direction to be tilted. I can do it.

Next, the operation of the fluidized shelf apparatus having the above configuration will be described. As shown in FIG.
Is set to the home position, and the replenishment direction switching member 8 connected thereto is kept in a horizontal state.

Now, for example, when the remaining number of the products 10 on the storage free roller conveyor 4 on the right side as viewed from the front side of the shelf frame 1 where the picking operation is performed becomes small, it becomes necessary to replenish the products. When the handle 9 is tilted to the right as shown in FIG. 7, the replenishment direction switching member 8 connected to the handle 9 is rotated so as to be tilted to the right. Then, in this state, the product 10 is loaded onto the replenishing free roller conveyor 6 from the loading port 5.

The product 10 thus supplied goes down on the replenishing free roller conveyor 6 obliquely downward and rearward by its own weight, and moves onto the replenishing direction switching member 8. Since the replenishing direction switching member 8 is tilted rightward, it slides to the right under its own weight with the free ball 7 and falls on the rear part of the lower right storage free roller conveyor 4, and the storage free roller conveyor 4 4 and diagonally forward and downward to reach the end of the product 10 in stock there and stop.

Conversely, the left free roller conveyor 4 for storage
When the upper stocked product is reduced, the handle 9 is tilted to the left to rotate the replenishment direction switching member 8 from the horizontal state to the left, and the product 10 is put on the free roller conveyor 6 for replenishment. do.

The product 10 replenished in the storage free roller conveyor 4 is such that each time the product is picked from the take-out port 11, the remaining product 10 slides forward by its own weight, and the product 10 replenished first. Moves onto the shelf 3 and stocks it, waiting for the next picking. When the number of stocks decreases, the products 10 are sequentially replenished from the inlet 5 onto the free roller conveyor 4 for storage by the above-described method.

Thus, in the fluidized shelving apparatus according to this embodiment, the picking operation and the product replenishing operation can be performed from the same front side of the shelf frame 1 even though the shelf has a first-in first-out function. No space for replenishment work is required, and the rear surface of the shelf frame 1 can be installed close to the wall so that it can be installed in a place where it could not be installed in the past. Become.

In the case of the fluidized shelves of the present invention, the space efficiency can be improved for the following reasons. As shown in FIG. 5, in the case of the conventional fluidized shelves, the replenishment work is performed on the rear side of the shelf frame 20 as in the replenishment work flow line 21 and the picking work flow line 22, and the picking work is performed on the front side of the shelf frame 20. Therefore, if the width of the shelf frame 20 is L and the width of the space required for the refilling operation and the picking operation is α, these spaces are shared with the adjacent devices.
Assuming that the space is occupied by 5α, the area occupied by one set of fluidized shelves is αL.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 4, in the case of the fluidizing shelf apparatus of the present invention, the common flow line
As described above, both the replenishment operation and the picking operation can be performed on the front side of the shelf frame, so that one frontage is required for loading into the frontage of the two shelves, so that the width of the shelf frame 1 needs to be 1.5 L. The space width required for replenishment and picking can be shared with the adjacent device and is 0.5α, and the occupied area required for one set of shelf devices is 0.75αL (= 0.5α × 1.5
L), and the space efficiency can be improved.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. For example, the handle 9 is employed as a means for rotating the replenishment direction switching member 7 right and left, but is not such a manual type, and a driving mechanism using an electric motor or a hydraulic device and operation switches for starting and stopping the driving mechanism. And can be replaced by Further, instead of the free roller conveyor, a free wheel conveyor, a flat plate with good slippage, a free belt conveyor, or the like can be used. Further, instead of embedding the free ball in the replenishment direction switching member 7, it is also possible to use a slippery flat plate or to incorporate a belt conveyor and an up-down unit so as to be able to cut out.

[0022]

As described above, according to the first aspect of the present invention,
Product replenishment work can be performed from the same front side as the product picking work side while maintaining the first-in first-out function, so there is no need for space for replenishment work behind the shelf frame, and the shelf frame should be attached to the wall Is possible, the layout is less restricted, and the space efficiency can be improved.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, the product itself can reach the end of the stock product for first-in first-out using the gravity of the product without requiring external power at the time of product replenishment, Energy saving can be achieved.

According to the third aspect of the present invention, a large amount of products can be stored in a limited space while maintaining the first-in first-out function.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of one embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing a normal state of a set of a free roller conveyor for replenishment, a replenishment direction switching member, and a free roller conveyor for storage in the embodiment.

FIG. 3 is a partially cutaway perspective view showing an operation state of a set of a free roller conveyer for replenishment, a replenishing direction switching member, and a free roller conveyer for storage in the above embodiment at the time of product replenishment.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing the space efficiency of the embodiment.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing space efficiency of a conventional example.

[Explanation of symbols]

 DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Shelf frame 2 Prop 3 Shelf 4 Free roller conveyor for storage 5 Input port 6 Free roller conveyor for replenishment 7 Free ball 8 Refill direction switching member 9 Handle 10 Product

Claims (3)

[Claims] 1. A loading slide member that is installed to be inclined downward and rearward from a front loading port of a shelf frame, and is further installed behind the loading slide member, and is fed from the loading slide member. A replenishment direction switching member for switching the flow of the supplied product to one of the left and right directions, and a replenishment direction switching operation means for instructing the replenishment direction switching member to switch the flow of the product to one of the left and right directions. A fluidized shelving apparatus comprising: a storage slide member provided on each of the left and right sides of the replenishing direction switching member and inclined downward toward an outlet in front of a shelf frame. 2. The loading slide member and the storage slide member include a free roller conveyor or a freewheel conveyor. The replenishment direction switching member includes a slide member capable of rolling left and right from a horizontal state. The direction switching operation means comprises a handle installed near the front end of the loading slide member and connected to the refill direction switching member for rotating the refill direction switching member in left and right directions. Item 4. The fluidized shelf apparatus according to Item 1. 3. The fluidizing shelf apparatus according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of sets each including the input slide member, the replenishing direction switching member, and the storage slide member are provided.