NL2003022C2 - STORAGE AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM, AND ITS CARE INSTALLATION AND USE OF THIS STORAGE AND DISTRIBUTION SYSTEM. - Google Patents

Description

P29889NL00 / YGR

Short description: Storage and distribution system, as well as the care institution provided with it and use of this storage and distribution system.

The present invention relates to a storage and distribution system, comprising: a plurality of containers for items; a plurality of storage positions for storing the plurality of containers; 5 - an elevator; at least one dispensing station arranged along the elevator for taking out one or more items from said holder; a drive for driving the elevator; and a control device connected to the drive, or at least connectable, for controlling the drive.

Such a system, however, in the form of a storage system and not so much in the form of a storage and distribution system, is known. The Kardex Systems BV company, website www.kardex.nl, markets two such systems, one under the name "Kardex Industriever®" and the other under the name "Shuttle® XP and Shuttle® XPIus with" opf / f / ex "

The "Kardex Industriever®" uses a Paternoster lift consisting of an endless chain of platforms housed in the elevator with on each platform items of the same type or different types. This system has one issue point, which in addition to issuing items is also used for inserting and storing items in the system. Various items are stored on the various trays. At the dispensing station the user can turn a tray with the desired items in order to subsequently remove the desired items from the tray.

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The "Shuttle® XP and Shuttle® XPIus with" optiflex "1 is a similar system that, although it includes a lift, but not a Paternoster type lift. There is talk here of a magazine with a plurality of one above the other and possibly also juxtaposed storage positions for storing a plurality of holders. A lift, the shuttle, is provided along this warehouse, which can be moved laterally as well as in the vertical direction.

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There may be several issue positions. When one or more items are desired at a particular dispensing station, the shuttle retrieves the containers with desired items from the magazine to bring these containers to the dispensing position where the user can take out the desired items.

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Both Kardex systems have the disadvantage that inventory management - keeping track of stocks of items in the system - is susceptible to unintended or even intended (fraud) errors when picking out items. If too many - i.e. more than intended or requested - items are removed at a dispensing station, then a stock management system that keeps track of the amount of the items present in the system will get confused, in particular indicate that stocks are too high. This in turn means that new orders are placed too late and / or that new orders are placed much earlier than necessary - while maintaining unnecessarily large stocks. If the retrieval errors are conscious, i.e. fraudulent, these inventory management problems become all the more pressing.

In the vicinity of a care institution - such as a hospital, a care home or a hotel - the problem of malfunctioning stock management as a result of fraud particularly arises, in particular also due to the open nature of such a care institution - patients, visitors and staff can usually walk in and out more or less freely -. The disappearance of items from the stock and from the care institution is therefore not easily noticed.

In such care institutions, furthermore, even with relatively small numbers of beds, the problem arises that certain items, such as the bedding, take up relatively much space during storage and moreover are used in large numbers and are often refreshed daily. Maintaining large stocks is expensive in terms of money as well as taking up space, while maintaining too small stocks can lead to major problems in the event of shortages.

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A further problem that occurs at such healthcare institutions is the distribution of items across the different floors and departments of the healthcare institution. Separate stocks are generally held on each floor and / or each department. On the one hand, this results in a lot of movement of goods through the care institution (and therefore also personnel costs) 35 in connection with distribution across departments and floors. On the other hand, this has the consequence that the total stock of the care institution will be unnecessarily high because each department / floor will maintain its own safety stock.

The present invention has for its object to provide a storage and distribution system 5 for storing and distributing items, which system enables improved stock management. A further object of the invention is to provide a healthcare facility with an improved storage and distribution system for storing and distributing items used in the healthcare facility.

According to the invention, a care institution is in particular understood to mean a building with at least 20 rooms that each have one or more beds. Examples of such care institutions include a hospital, a care home for, for example, the handicapped and / or disabled and / or rehabilitating and / or older persons, as well as a hotel.

The first object is achieved according to the invention by providing a storage and distribution system, comprising: a plurality of items holders; • a plurality of storage positions for storing the plurality of holders; • an elevator; · A plurality of dispensing station arranged distributed vertically along the elevator for taking out one or more items from said holder; • a drive for driving the lift; • a control device connected to the drive, or at least connectable, for controlling the drive; · A retrieval module per said issuing station for entering a retrieval for one or more items; wherein the control device is programmed to respond in response to: the input to a said query module; and • storage position data regarding the storage position of one or more of said items; driving the drive to bring a required, said container provided with at least a part of the retrieval from a storage position to the dispensing station that belongs to the retrieval module into which the retrieval is entered; wherein each container comprises a plurality of container positions for accommodating one or more of said items; - the storage and distribution system further comprising a plurality of dispensing closures for releasing access to one or more of those container positions, which dispensing closures are connected, or at least connectable, to the control device for either releasing or keeping those dispensing closures closed; and 5 wherein the control device is further programmed to respond in response to: the input to said query module; and • holder position data concerning the content of the holder positions of that required holder; to release one or more of the dispensing closures, which determine the access to the holder positions of the required holder when the required holder is located in the dispensing station associated with the retrieval module into which the retrieval is entered, for access to at least a part of that retrieval and keep the other dispensing closures, which determine access to the holder positions of the required holder, when the required holder is located in the dispensing station associated with the retrieval module into which the retrieval is entered, closed. Distribution according to the invention is facilitated here over different floors of a building in that the plurality of dispensing stations are arranged distributed vertically along the elevator.

According to the invention, the storage and distribution system comprises per retrieval position a retrieval module with which the user can enter the desired items, the so-called retrieval, at that release position. The control device is programmed to subsequently, in response to the query as well as in response to data regarding the storage position of one or more of the requested items, control the drive such that the lift accommodates a required aforementioned holder, in which at least a part of the 25 query can be moved from its current storage position to the dispensing station where the user has entered the query in the query module. Each holder in turn has a plurality of holder positions for accommodating one or more mentioned items. The user who has requested items will, when the container has been brought to the dispensing position, remove the desired items from one or more of this plurality of container positions. To prevent the user from deliberately or unknowingly removing wrong or too many items from the holder, the storage and distribution system according to the invention is provided with a plurality of dispensing closures with which access to the holder positions can be controlled. The dispensing closures are connected to the control device, at least connectable, such that the control device can either release the dispensing closures or keep them closed. The control device is thus capable of selectively making holder positions accessible to the user and thus regulating which items the user can remove. The items that the user can remove will be those items that the user has requested. He will not be able to remove items that the user has not requested. Furthermore, the number of items to be removed from the storage distribution system can thus be limited to the requested quantity or possibly consciously a little more if, for example, three items are stored in a single, released holder positions while only one such item has been requested. . Of a holder located at the dispensing position, only those holder positions will in each case be made accessible by releasing the associated dispensing closures, in which at least a part of the retrieval is located. The issue closures of the other holder positions will remain closed. The issue closures thus ensure that the quantity of removable items can be properly regulated. Inventory management is therefore much more accurate and much less prone to errors.

According to the invention, the dispensing closures as such can be designed in various ways. The dispensing closures can for instance comprise shutters with a lock which can be operated via the control device to release the roller shutter for manual opening. Alternatively, each roller shutter can also have a roller shutter drive which can be controlled by the control device. The dispensing closures may also comprise doors with locks or door drives that can be operated via the control device. According to the invention it is furthermore very well possible to provide a dispensing closure on each holder per holder position. The dispensing closure is then always moved with the holders. One can think here of, for example, holder positions in the form of drawers. Such drawers can be operable by means of a lock 25 connectable to the control device for release or blockage. Alternatively or additionally, such drawers may also have a drawer drive controlled by the control with which the drawers can be opened and closed automatically. It is also conceivable that the holder itself comprises a plurality of shutters or doors. Another possibility is that roller shutters, doors or other guards are provided on the dispensing station which can be selectively operated by the control device to make a part of the holder located at a dispensing station accessible. In this case the dispensing closures are then connected to the holder position and thus do not move with the holder when the holder is moved by the elevator.

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According to a further embodiment of the invention, the storage and distribution system comprises a memory with item data that are representative of which item and / or how many items are in each holder and / or holder position. The control is herein preferably arranged to read out the item data and, depending on this, to determine storage position data or holder position data and / or to carry out the stock management with the aid of the item data. On the basis of stock management, it is possible to decide in time to order items or to top up the storage and distribution system when the stock of certain items is low.

In order to further prevent unauthorized removal of items from the storage and distribution system, it is advantageous according to the invention if the retrieval module is connected, or at least connectable, to an access system which is arranged to identify the user and subsequently in response to the identified user, only make those items available for retrieval to which that user is entitled. Thus, for example, it is possible to give cleaning staff access only to items required for cleaning purposes and to provide nursing staff access to, for example, sheets and other bedding, while these cleaning agents, sheets and bedding are all stored in the same storage and distribution system. .

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For supplying the storage and distribution system it is furthermore advantageous according to the invention if the storage and distribution system comprises at least one loading station and if the control device is further programmed to drive in response to container position data concerning the contents of the container positions of the containers. to be controlled such that the elevator brings a container with empty container positions from a storage position to the loading station for loading. In order to prevent items from being loaded in wrong holder positions, it is furthermore advantageous here according to the invention if the storage and distribution system according to the invention comprises a plurality of loading closures for (selectively) releasing access to one or more of the holder positions, which loading closures are connected to the control device, are at least connectable, for either releasing or keeping those loading closures closed, and when the control device is further programmed to respond to container position data concerning the contents of the container positions of the container brought by the elevator to the container position, to release one or more of the loading closures 35 of the loading station for access to at least a portion of the empty holding positions and to keep the other loading closures closed. It is noted here that the loading closures may be the same as the dispensing closures in case they are provided on the holder and move with the holder when the holder is moved by the elevator. When the loading closures are provided at the loading station itself, it should be noted that these loading closures may be designed essentially the same as dispensing closures provided at the dispensing position.

According to the invention, the elevator used in the storage and distribution system can be a Paternoster elevator with an endless chain of a plurality of container carriers. These container carriers can form said storage positions. In the case of a Paternoster lift, it is furthermore advantageous if a position sensor connected to the control device is provided to determine the position of the endless chain relative to the fixed world, and if the storage position data is furthermore dependent on the position sensor detected by the position sensor. be determined.

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According to a further embodiment of the storage and distribution system according to the invention, this system comprises a vertical warehouse with a plurality of warehouse carriers for vertically one above the other in the warehouse along the elevator - which can be a Paternoster elevator but also an ordinary or other elevator. storing said holders, as well as a transfer device for transferring the holders from the warehouse to the elevator and vice versa. In addition to being vertically movable, the lift may also be movable horizontally. The lift then functions as a kind of shuttle system between the multitude of storage positions on the one hand and the one or more dispensing stations on the other.

According to a further embodiment of the invention, the storage and distribution system further comprises items, the items comprising one or more items from the group of: cleaning products, toilet paper, towels, sheets, pillows, pillowcases, soap, toothpaste, shampoo ... ..

The second object of the invention is achieved by providing a care institution, such as a hospital, care home or hotel, comprising a building provided with a storage distribution system according to the invention, wherein the building has a plurality, such as 20 or more, of rooms each having at least at least one bed. The building can herein comprise a plurality of floors, each of which is provided with a named dispensing station.

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According to a further aspect, the invention relates to the use of a storage and distribution system according to the invention in a care institution, such as a hospital, care home or hotel, for storing and distributing items. According to this aspect of the invention, the items may comprise one or more items from the group of: cleaning agents, toilet paper, towels, sheets, pillows, pillowcases, soap, toothpaste, shampoo, etc.

The present invention will be explained in more detail below with reference to an exemplary embodiment schematically shown in the drawing. Herein: Figure 1 shows a schematic representation of a storage and distribution system according to the invention;

Figure 2 shows a schematic representation of a dispensing station of the storage and distribution system according to Figure 1;

Figure 3 shows a schematic representation of a loading station of the storage and distribution system according to Figure 1; and

Figure 4 shows a schematic representation of a care institution according to the invention.

Figure 1 shows a storage and distribution system 1 according to the invention. The storage and distribution system 1 comprises a plurality of containers 2. Each container 2 has a plurality of container positions 11. In the exemplary embodiment shown, see in particular Figure 3, the container is designed as a container 2 with compartments 11, the so-called container positions to shape. Each box is either empty or filled with one or more items.

The storage and distribution system 1 further comprises a lift 5 with drive 6 and two warehouses 16, which are provided along the lift 5. Each magazine 16 has a plurality of superimposed storage positions 4, which in this example are each defined by a carrier 17 on which a bin 2 can be put away for storage. In the example of Figure 1, not all storage positions 4 are provided with a holder. For example, the lower three storage positions 4 of the left-hand magazine are empty, the three storage positions above them are provided with a holder 2, the two storage positions 4 located above them are empty again, etc.

The storage and distribution system 1 further comprises, in this example, four dispensing stations 7. The dispensing stations 7 are the places where a user 14 can remove items from the storage and distribution system. In this example, these dispensing stations 7 are each provided, as it were, in a storage rack 16 between holder positions 11. Figure 2 shows a dispensing station in schematic front view.

At each issuing station 7 an identification system 13, such as a card reader, is provided as well as a retrieval module 9.

When the user 14 needs one or more items from the storage and distribution system 1, the user goes to an issuing station 7 and logs on there by fetching an identification card from the card reader. The storage and distribution system then knows who the person is, or at least what the powers of the person associated with the card are. Based on this, the control device 8 controls the query module 9 in such a way that the user can only request those items for which the relevant user is authorized. The user then enters the query, i.e. the desired items.

Based on the retrieval and storage position data (these may, for example, be stored in a memory 10) concerning where the items are located in the storage and distribution system, the control device 8 determines which container 2 or containers 2 are to be retrieved from the magazine 6 to become. The control device 8 then controls the lift 5 to go to the place where the container 2 to be picked up is located. There, by means of a transfer device 19 provided on the magazine 6 and / or a transfer device 23 provided on the lift 5, the relevant holder is placed from the magazine 6 onto the holder carrier 18 of the lift 5. The transfer devices 19 and 23 can for instance be formed by drivable rollers or gears 19, 23.

The elevator 5 then brings the holder 2 to the dispensing station 7 where the retrieval has taken place. When the container 2 has arrived at the dispensing station, it is transferred to the dispensing station 7 by means of transfer devices 19 and / or 23. As soon as this is done, the lift 5 can, if desired, be used to provide a subsequent dispensing station 7 with a holder required there.

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After the holder 2 has been placed in the dispensing station 7, the control 8 releases the dispensing closures 12 of that dispensing station 7 that belong to items from the retrieval. The other dispensing closures 12 of that dispensing station 7 remain locked. In this example, the dispensing closures 12 are formed by roller shutters 12, each of which can be opened individually by the controller 8 as desired. Figure 2 shows that four roller shutters are fully closed, two roller shutters are fully open and the other four shutters are partially (to varying degrees) partially opened. The control can thus determine exactly which items 3 and how many items 3 the user 14 can remove from the compartments 11.

At the bottom, the storage and distribution system 1 is furthermore provided with a loading station 15. Here the storage and distribution system 1 can be loaded with items. Figure 3 shows the loading station in front view. Here too, a card reader 13 and input module in the form of a touch screen 9 are provided. A loader 24 can thus identify itself and then enter in the touch screen 9 which items it has for loading. The control can then determine on the basis of this input which holders have empty holder positions which are suitable for this item 3 to be loaded, to subsequently bring this holder (s) to the loading station 15 for loading.

In Fig. 3, the loading station 15 has no closures, called loading closures, 15 for the holder positions 11. These holder positions 11 are therefore all accessible in each case. In order to prevent incorrect loading, it can be advantageous according to the invention to provide such closures, known as loading closures, in accordance with the dispensing closures at the dispensing stations, also at the loading station.

Although in the example according to figures 1-3 the dispensing closures and optionally also the loading closures are each provided as part of the dispensing station 7 and loading station 15 respectively, it will be clear that these can also be provided as part of the holders themselves. In this case, the dispensing closures will go with the holder each time it is moved through the storage and distribution system.

Furthermore, when the holder is in the loading position, the dispensing closures will also function as a loading closure.

Finally, Figure 4 shows a care institution 25 comprising a storage and distribution system 1 according to the invention and a building 20. In this example, the building 20 has 30 floors with six rooms 21 each. Each room 21 here is provided with one or more beds 22 .

Claims (1)

A storage and distribution system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the dispensing closures (12) comprise doors. 12] Storage and distribution system (1) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein each dispensing station (7) comprises a plurality of said dispensing closures (12). A storage and distribution system (1) according to any one of claims 1-9, wherein each container comprises per drawer position (11) a drawer provided with a said dispensing closure (12). 14. Storage and distribution system (1) according to one of the preceding claims, further comprising items (3), wherein the items (3) comprise one or more from the group of: cleaning agents, toilet paper, towels, sheets, pillows, pillowcases, soap, toothpaste, shampoo. Care institution, such as a hospital, care home or hotel, comprising a building (20) provided with a storage and distribution system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the building (20) has a plurality, such as 20 or more rooms (21) each having at least one bed (22); and wherein the building (20) comprises a plurality of floors which are each provided with a said dispensing station (7). 16] Use of a storage and distribution system (1) according to any of claims 1-15 in a care institution, such as a hospital, care home or hotel, for storing and distributing items (3). 17] Use according to claim 17, wherein the items (3) comprise one or more from the group of: cleaning agents, toilet paper, towels, sheets, pillows, pillowcases, soap, toothpaste, shampoo. 18] Use according to claim 16 or 17, wherein the care institution comprises a multi-storey building, each with a dispensing station.