MXPA01010328A

MXPA01010328A - Inverted power and free storage system.

Info

Publication number: MXPA01010328A
Application number: MXPA01010328A
Authority: MX
Inventors: Phil Rees
Original assignee: Webb Co Jervis B
Priority date: 1999-04-13
Filing date: 2000-04-11
Publication date: 2002-03-27
Also published as: WO2000061425A1; CN1352608A; GB2341375A; HUP0200905A2; KR20020016618A; JP2002541022A; EP1169212A1; GB9908357D0; AU756326B2; BR0010202A; AU4328600A; PL356158A1; GB2341375B; ZA200107860B; CA2371966A1

Abstract

A conveyor system provides a series of storage aisles for receiving articles in a plurality of storage lanes. A selected article moving along the conveyor line can be directed to a shuttle station where it is loaded onto a shuttle for movement along a storage aisle. The article is then moved along the storage aisle for placement in one of many storage lanes. The article can be retrieved from the storage lane and again placed on the conveyor system for discharge.

Description

INVERTED STORAGE SYSTEM TYPE DRIVE AND RELEASE TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to conveyor systems. In particular, the invention relates to conveyor systems capable of storing and retrieving articles.

BACKGROUND OF INVENTION Transport systems that move articles along a path are known. It is often desired to store the articles in such a way that they can be selected to reenter the conveyor path. Previous systems that have tried this have required excessive use of drive chains and the like, resulting in complex and expensive systems.

S? MARIO OF THE NINE In accordance with the invention, a previous conveyor system known as an inverted "drive and release" system is modified to provide storage and retrieval characteristics, but the concepts of the invention could be applied to others. types of conveyor systems. Furthermore, while this invention finds particular relevance in the automotive industry, where it is often desired to store the bodies that are arriving, perhaps of different colors, in such a way that a particular body can be recovered and placed in an exit conveyor lane. , will be useful also in other industries. The conveyor system of the invention uses a known conveyor system for moving a carrier, having for example a body on it, along a fixed rail in a generally known manner. In accordance with the invention, one or more launching stations are provided along the path of the conveyor to store or retrieve the articles. Each launch station includes a separate mobile rail section, the mobile section of the rail initially aligns with the fixed rail. The movable rail is mounted on a slide and, in turn, the slide is mounted on one or more floor rails extending in a direction transverse to the direction of the fixed rail. Located on one or both sides of the path defined by the floor rails are the storage areas, each zone being defined by a particular section of a series of sections of parallel rails of the conveyor. For this arrangement, known conveyor components can be used to provide a conveyor system having a total plan including a conveyor infeed line, one or more storage aisles defined by a plurality of storage areas and an associated launch station with a storage corridor.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS Figure 1 is a plan view of a conveyor system in accordance with the invention. Figure 2 is a plan view of a launching station. Figure 3 is a side view of a launch station of Figure 2 showing a carrier with a body mounted thereon. Figure 4 is a view of the end of the station shown in Figure 3. Figures 5a to 51 schematically illustrate the operation of the launcher.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED MODE With reference to Figure 1, a conveyor system according to the invention adapted to transport, store and retrieve bodies includes: an entrance station 2 and a plurality of storage halls 4. The entrance station includes one or more fixed conveyor rails 6, which are well known in this technical area. In the preferred embodiment, the fixed rails are the "free" rail sections of an inverted conveyor system "boost and release". The impulse chain for the system is located below the fixed rails and is not illustrated. The articles to be transported, shown here as bodies 8, are secured to the carriers in the known manner. The rail lines 6 are connected to an entry rail line 10 by means of a series of switches 12, thus known in this technical area, where the bodies are directed to travel along the entrance rail 10. The line of the entrance rail 10 is connected with one or more launching stations 14. The rail lines of passage 16 they are provided to allow a selected body to be driven around any launching station by operating the switches, thus known in this technical area. Figure 1 illustrates the operation of the pass lines in the first corridor. Figure 1 illustrates the operation of the storage feature of the invention in the second aisle. There, a body 8 'is shown moving along the aisle to a selected area of the storage areas 17 after being loaded onto a moving conveyor rail, as will be described below with reference to Figures 2 through 5. Figure 1 also illustrates the operation of the recovery feature of the invention in the first aisle. There, a body 8 'is shown in a second launch station 18, where the body is being passed to an exit conveyor rail 20 after it has been retrieved from a storage area. It will be appreciated that the exit rail includes passage lines 22, which are similar in function to the lines of passage 16. When operating, the conveyor system according to the invention allows the bodies to reach the entrance station 2 to be stored in a selected area of the storage areas 17 and a body is collected from a selected area of the storage areas and passed to the outlet line 22. The operation of the launching stations will now be described with reference to Figures 2 5. Each launch station 14 is provided with a movable conveyor rail 26, which is mounted on the slide 28. The slide 28 is mounted on floor rails 30, which are shown as parallel rails, but which can be a Simple rail or other configurations. The floor rails extend transverse to the entry rail line 10 to define the storage areas 4. The operation of the storage feature is initiated when a carrier 32 on the entry rail line 10 moves on a moving rail 26, the movable rail at that time is aligned with the entry line 10. After the carrier has been placed on the moving rail 26, the slide can be moved along the floor rails, thus the slide moves the body hooked to it along the storage aisle. The slide can be moved in any known manner, here an electric drive motor 34 is illustrated. After the movable rail has aligned with the selected storage area 17, the carrier moves within the zone in a manner similar to that described. with respect to Figures 2 to 4, and the slider and the movable rail are moved to another position to continue this operation. The recovery of a carrier from a zone and on the movable rail is essentially the reverse of that described with respect to the loading of a carrier on the movable rail. The preferred method for moving the carrier with respect to the movable rail will be described with reference to Figures 5a to 51. Figure 5a illustrates the situation when a carrier has moved on the movable rail 26. The carrier moves in and out of the movable rail 26 by means of the operation of two auxiliary thrusters 36 and 38. These are positioned on opposite sides of the rail 26 and extend beyond the ends of the rail to allow the pusher elements to engage the pulleys of the carrier 40, when the carrier is on the fixed rails 10 or on the zone rails 17. As illustrated in Figure 5a, a carrier is stationed on the moving rail 26 and is aligned with a fixed rail 10 or a storage area 17. Pusher elements 38 of the plunger 38 are hooked to the intermediate pulley to move the carrier to the left and on a rail 10 or 17, as shown in Figure 5b. Figure 5c shows the gradually slower movement of the pushers and Figure 5d shows the exit of the pusher elements of the intermediate pulley. Figure 5e shows how the pusher elements recover the pulley from the back and Figure 5f shows the carrier completely within line 10 or 17. Figure 5g illustrates how the movable rail 26 is rotated to obtain the necessary clearance for the protrusion of the thrusters 36 and 38. This rotation is carried out in the preferred embodiment providing a pivot connection between the rail 26 and the slider 28. When it is in the turning position shown in Figure 5g, the mobile rail it can be moved along the corridor to the desired position and then rotated to align with a zone 17 rail or a rail 10 as shown in Figure 5. The recovery of a carrier is illustrated in Figure 5i, where the pusher elements have been hooked to the back pulley to push the carrier out of a storage zone 17. Then, the pusher elements engage the intermediate pulley to complete the movement of the carrier on the mobile rail 26, as shown in Figure 5j. The carrier is then parked on the moving rail as shown in Figure 5k. Figure 51 illustrates the rotation of the mobile rail with a body on it, to move along a corridor to a storage position or to a second launch station for unloading. It will be appreciated that the operation of the second launch station is essentially the same as that of the launch station 14. Also, the launch stations 22 and the exit lines 22 can be eliminated and assign their functions to line 10. This is, launch stations 14 could be used as entry and exit stations. In addition, the structure by which the carriers move in and out of the movable rail 26 need not be limited to the pushers 36 and 38. Alternate arrangements may be employed, such as frame and pinion structures, hydraulic pushers, endless screw arrangements , and similar. An alternate arrangement that does not require a protrusion will dispense with the need to rotate the rail for movement along the storage aisle. Other modifications within the scope of the claims will be apparent to those persons with relevant knowledge in this technical field.

Claims

CLAIMS: 1. A conveyor system has a conveyor line that includes a release rail, a drive rail and a plurality of carriers, the carriers are driven along the release rail by a driver on the driver rail, characterized by: a) a plurality of storage halls; and b) a mobile launch station linked to the conveyor line and at least one of the storage aisles, the launch station includes: i) a rail adapted to align with the conveyor line release rail and with each storage aisle; ii) a pusher assembly mounted to the mobile launch station and adapted to move a carrier between the conveyor line and the lane of the launch station and between the lane of the launch station and one of the storage aisles, to either store a load on the carrier in one of the storage aisles or recover a load on a carrier stored in one of the storage aisles. The system according to claim 1, wherein the mobile launch station is mounted on Pl358 rails, the rails extend along the storage aisles. The system according to claim 1, wherein the carrier includes a plurality of pulleys, the pusher / squeegee assembly engages at least one of the pulleys for movement between the conveyor line and the lane of the launch station and between the lane from the launch station and one of the storage aisles. The system according to claim 1, wherein the mobile launch station is mounted on the rails, the rails extend along the storage aisles, the storage aisles are placed on either side of the rails. The system according to claim 1, wherein the conveyor line includes a switch for directing a carrier to a launching station. 6. The system according to claim 1, wherein the conveyor line has at least one entry line and at least one exit line, the storage aisles are placed between the entry lines and the exit lines. The system according to claim 1, wherein each storage line has a lane aligned with the lane of the mobile launch station where Pl358 a carrier can travel between the lane of the launch station and a lane of a storage aisle using the push / pull assembly. 8. A method for transporting carriers on a conveyor line, the carriers propelled on a release rail on the conveyor line by means of an impeller on a driver rail of the conveyor line, characterized by: a) launching one or more carriers between the rail releasing the conveyor line to a lane of a mobile launch station; and b) releasing one or more carriers between the lane of the mobile launch station and one of a plurality of storage halls for either storing a carrier or recovering a carrier. The method according to claim 8, wherein the carrier is pushed from the lane of the mobile launch station to an empty storage aisle for storing or pulling from a storage aisle to an empty lane at the launch station for recovery . 10. The method according to claim 8, includes driving the mobile launch station on the rails along the storage aisle. The method according to claim 8, wherein the carriers are launched from the conveyor line to a storage position and are thrown to the conveyor line to another position when it is to be recovered. The method according to claim 8, wherein the carriers are thrown to and from the conveyor line in a position for storage and retrieval. P1358