JPS62244807A - Order picking device - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To easily pick a predetermined number of articles which is optionally determined, by attaching an elevatable carriage having a lever which is swingable in one vertical plane, to a movable support column. CONSTITUTION:A travel column 4 transversely travels in accordance with an instruction from a computer 15, and a gripping tool 14 at the lower end of a swingable lever 8 is positioned at the take-out port of an article storage box 3. When an elevatable actuating rod 9 is lowered so that a surface detector 12 makes into press-contact with an article in the box, the actuating rod 9 comes to a stop while an absorbing pad 10 is actuated to absorb the uppermost article. When the pad 10 has completely absorbed the article, the actuating rod 9 is elevated while the swingable lever 8 is returned to its vertical position. When the pad 10 releases the article which has been absorbed until then, the article drops into an empty article storage box journalled to the fork 7. Further, the swingable rod 8 carries out picking operation in accordance with an instructed number of articles, thereby all articles on the fork are fed into the article storage box 3.

Description

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

Conventional techniques/techniques Conventionally, an order pinking device suitable for taking out large quantities of various types of articles from an article storage shelf was developed in Utility Model Application No. 1986-9.
There is a technique as disclosed in the specification and drawings of No. 7445, but when order-picking a wide variety of goods in small quantities, a worker loads boxes for each destination on a wagon and places them between goods storage shelves. Currently, the current system relies on manual labor, where people walk through pinking slips, pink the required number of items of the required type, and sort and place them into boxes for each destination. It is necessary to use a step stool, etc. to pick out the items, and picking work in a clean room where workers must avoid entering and exiting, or picking work at night, etc., must be done manually. Pinking is not preferable, and manual picking also has the disadvantage that it is easy for human errors to occur in the type and number of items to be 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 using a robot without manual labor. The system attempts to perform pinking by ordering the shelf number where the 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. Several examples of elevating carriages include a fork that supports an article storage box on a movable column extending along the entire surface of the outlet of the shelf, and a swinging rod that is operated to swing in a vertical plane perpendicular to the entire surface of the outlet. This is an order picking device in which gripping tools for articles and article storage boxes are provided at the lower end of a lifting rod attached to the swinging rod.

Operation: By 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
When the lifting carriage supporting the empty goods storage box on the forks lifts and stops at the indicated shelf position, the swinging rod tilts and the lower end of the lifting lever moves to store the specified type of goods. directly above the opening of the goods storage box.

Next, the lifting rod descends and the article in the storage box is grasped by the gripping tool, and then the lifting rod rises again to take out the designated item from the box, and the swinging rod swings. iU
By returning to the original vertical position and 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 lifting carriage take out the specified quantity of one type of item according to the specified type and number of items, it moves to the ejection opening of the shelf row or shelf tier of the next type and does the same. Repeat the action.

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

Next, the moving column moves to the empty storage box carrying conveyor position,
The empty storage box on the conveyor is transferred onto the fork by the gripping tool by operating the swinging rod and the lifting rod, and the order picking operation is performed in the same manner as described above.

When the item storage box on the shelf becomes empty, the box is taken out from the shelf using the grip at the lower end of the lifting lever, and the empty storage box 11! Transfer it to the output conveyor and release it to the general public.

As described above, the order picking operation for large quantity and small quantity articles by the robot operation is completed.

Embodiment Figure 1 is a schematic perspective view of an embodiment of the present invention, Figure 2 is a side view of the main part, Figure 3 is a front view of the main part, and Figure 4 is a cross section taken along the line X-X in Figure 2. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram of an article gripping tool of a gripping tool according to
The article storage shelf frame l is provided with shelves arranged in multiple stages and rows, and each shelf row 2 is composed of roller shelves in which a storage shelf 2a with a gentle slope is connected to a take-out shelf 2b with a steep slope, and a take-out port of the take-out shelf 2b is connected to a storage shelf 2a with a gentle slope. A stopper 2c is provided protruding from the shelf row 2, and on each shelf row 2, a large number of article storage boxes 3 having flanges supported by roller shelves are flown and lowered along the ramps of the storage shelf 2a and the take-out shelf 2b. It is biased and held on the shelf by a stopper 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.

On the upper and lower edges of the article storage shelf frame l, there are rails 5 on which movable columns 4 run, which run horizontally along the entire surface of the multi-stage and multi-row shelf outlet.
a + 5 b, respectively, and the elevating carriage 6 that moves up and down along the movable support 4 has two forks 7 that support the article storage box 3 and a swinging carriage that swings in a vertical plane perpendicular to the entire surface of the outlet. Rod 8 is attached.

Further, a gripping tool 14 having a suction band 10, a crimp holder 11, and a surface detector 12 for an article to be taken out is provided at the lower end of the lifting rod 9, which is provided on the swinging rod 8 so as to be able to move up and down. The surface detector 12 is held protrudingly and biased by a spring, and when pressed against the surface of the article, it retreats against the spring and is built into the gripping tool 14 or detects the surface of the article by operating a mift switch. It is.

Then, traversing and stopping control of the moving column 4, lifting and stopping control of the elevating carriage 6, swinging and stopping control of the swinging rod 8,
Each operation control, such as the lifting and lowering operation of the lifting lever 9 and the stop control based on the detection signal of the surface detector 12, the suction control of the suction pad IO, and the forward and backward movement control of the crimp holder using the solenoid electromagnet, is performed depending on the type of article to be picked and A command from the computer 15 to display the number t is executed by power and signals supplied and transmitted via a cable 17 from a control section 16 built in the shelf frame l.

Therefore, based on the instructions from the computer 15, the movable support 4
The elevating carrier with the empty storage box supported by the fork 7 moves up and down to the shelf row where the goods of the indicated variety are stored. By reaching , the gripping tool 14 at the lower end of the swinging rod 8 is positioned at the outlet of the article storage box 3 in which the designated type of article is stored.

Next, after tilting the swinging rod 8 to place the gripping tool 14 squarely above the article storage box 3, the lifting rod 9 is lowered and the surface detector 12 is pressed against the article in the box. , the operating rod 9 is stopped and the suction band IO is activated to suction the article on the top layer.

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 IO 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 article, and supplies the article into the article storage box on the fork.

When the specified number of items have been picked, the moving support 4 and the lifting carriage 6 move forward to take out the next item storage box 3 containing the specified type, and perform the same operation as described above. Repeatedly place the specified number of articles of the type into 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 moving 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 column 4 that has transferred the actual boxes onto the conveyor 18 receives the empty boxes on the empty box carrying conveyor 19 with the fork 7, and performs the same operation 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 surfaces of the several boxes 3, and the crimp holder 11 moves forward to press the inner facing wall surfaces of the several boxes 3, thereby increasing the number of articles. Hold the box, move the lifting lever 9 upward, return the swinging lever 8 to vertical position,
By lowering the elevating carriage 6, several boxes 3 are transferred onto the empty box carrying-out conveyor 20 and carried out.

In the above embodiment, the pinking operation from the outlet of one article storage shelf frame has been described, but by arranging the outlet ports of two article storage shelf frames l and 1' to face each other at a distance, By moving one movable support horizontally across the space and swinging the swinging rod above the product storage boxes on the opposing shelves, the desired product storage boxes stored in the two shelf frames can be moved. Pinking an item is also a turn.

Effects of the Invention The present invention moves a movable column supporting an empty box and an elevating carriage 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 specific storage box is picked by operating 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. However, it is possible to easily pick any desired specified quantity, and has an excellent effect on order picking of a wide variety of goods in small quantities.In addition, the goods storage boxes in each row of shelves are 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, which prevents pinking. The operation can be performed continuously, and since the order-picked items are placed directly into the item storage box supported on the forks of the lifting carriage, the item storage box is taken out from the shelf, ordered, and then picked again. Compared to the conventional picking process of putting several boxes back on 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 lifting carriage. , which can store a large variety and quantity of goods by raising the shelf height, and enables unmanned picking, which has an excellent effect on labor saving in high-mix, small-quantity pinking work, and in converting to robot/retrieval work. It is.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of the present invention; FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the pinking 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; ■...Goods storage shelf frame 2...Shelf row 3...Goods storage box 4...Moving column 6...Elevating carriage 7...Fork 8...Swinging rod 9
... Lifting operating rod 14 ... Grasping tool agent Patent attorney Yuyosuke - 2 others Figure 1 Figure 2 Figure 3

Claims (1)

[Claims] A plurality of article storage boxes are held in each row of a multi-row, multi-stage article storage shelf in a downward bias toward the outlet of the shelf, and the article storage boxes are supported on movable columns that run horizontally along the entire surface of the outlet of the shelf. An elevating carriage having a fork and a swinging rod that is swung in a vertical plane perpendicular to the entire surface of the outlet is attached, and a gripping tool for articles and article storage boxes is attached to the lower end of the elevating rod attached to the swinging rod. An order picking device equipped with