US2996199A

US2996199A - Storage apparatus

Info

Publication number: US2996199A
Application number: US817789A
Authority: US
Inventors: Popper Otto
Original assignee: Individual
Current assignee: Individual
Priority date: 1958-06-18
Filing date: 1959-06-03
Publication date: 1961-08-15
Anticipated expiration: 1978-08-15

Description

3 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed June 3, 1959 Fig.1.

Fig.2.

1961 o. POPPER STORAGE APPARATUS I 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed June 3, 1959 Aug. 15, 1961 o. POPPER STORAGE APPARATUS Filed June 3, 1959 3 Sheets-Sheet 5 Unite Patented Aug. 15, 1961 2,996,199 STORAGE APPARATUS Otto Popper, Flat 5, Tudor House, Parson St., London NW. 4, England Filed June 3, 1959, Ser. No. 817,789 Claims priority, application Great Britain June 18, 1958 1 Claim. (Cl. 214-161) The present invention relates to storage apparatus of the kind comprising a plurality of crates for the reception of articles to be stored and mechanical handling means for manoeuvring the crates to register a selected one of the crates with a loading station for charging and discharging crates. Each crate may consist of an open framework having a platform for supporting articles, or alternatively each crate may consist of a container having an opening providing access to the interior of the crate.

Known storage apparatus of this kind operate on the socallcd Paternoster principle and comprise a plurality of crates suspended from horizontal supports which are secured to and extend between two spaced apart endless chains mounted upon upper and lower pulleys, and means for driving the pulleys to manoeuvre the crates past a loading station. The weight of the crates on one side of the pulleys approximately balances the weight of the crates on the other side of the pulleys, so that the chains together with the crates can be moved around the pulleys by a motor of small power.

The Paternoster storage apparatus has, however, the disadvantage that the crates must be spaced apart from one another to permit the necessary clearance in their semi-circular paths around the upper and lower pulleys, and for the storage of motor vehicles or other heavy articles the Paternoster apparatus requires a high and very strong supporting structure since the total weight of the crates, together with their contents, is suspended from the upper pulleys at the top of the apparatus.

The object of the invention is to provide improved storage apparatus of the kind described which makes better utilisation of available storage space than the known Paternoster apparatus, and in which the weight of the containers together with their contents may, if desired, be supported at or adjacent ground level.

According to the invention there is provided storage apparatus comprising a frame and a plurality of similar crates arranged in two adjacent vertical columns extending through holding stations in the frame, support means for supporting crates in register With said holding stations, the holding station crates supporting the weights of theremainder of the crates in said columns, means for raising one column and lowering the other column through said holding stations by a distance corresponding to the depth of one crate, means for transferring the crate at the top of said one column to the top of said other column, and means for transferring the crate at the bottom of said other column to the bottom of said one column, whereby the crates may be moved in succession through a loading station for charging and discharging the crates.

The holding stations may be at the bottom of the two columns, the bottom crates then constituting the holding station crates and supporting the weight of the remainder of the crates superimposed thereon. Each adjacent pair of crates in each column may, however, be interconnected, and the holding stations arranged above the bottom of the columns, whereby each holding station crate supports the weight of the crates superimposed thereon and also supports the weight of the crates depending therefrom. The means interconnecting adjacent crates are prefereably in the form of interlocking guides restraining relative vertical movement between the two crates but permitting relative longitudinal sliding movement in a direction to- Wards the adjacent column of crates, to facilitate transfer of the top and bottom crates between the two columns. The interconnecting means between a top or bottom crate and its adjacent crate is of course only subjected to the weight of one crate, together with its contents, in the case where the holding stations are arranged between the top and bottom crates.

A preferred construction of storage apparatus according to the invention and suitable for storing motor vehicles will now be described by way of example with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagrammatic front elevation view of'the apparatus, along the line 1-1 of FIG. 3,

FIG. 2 is a diagrammatic side elevation view of the apparatus, along the line II-II of FIG. 3,

FIG. 3 is a view along the line III-Ill of FIG. 2,

FIG. 4 is a perspective side view of part of a column of crates of the apparatus showing the construction of each crate.

FIG. 5 is a view showing, on an enlarged scale, details of the construction of the crates of FIG. 4.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the storage apparatus comprises a tall rectangular frame 19, a plurality of crates 11 arranged in two

adjacent columns

12, 13, within the frame, gearing mechanism 14 for supporting the crates designated 11a, 11b, in register with

holding stations

15a, 15b, upper transfer mechanism 16 and lower transfer mechanism 17.

The crates 11 are of similar shape and size, and each crate, as illustrated in side view in FIG. 4, comprises front and rear frames 18 interconnected by two side frames 19, and a vehicle platform 29 which projects outwardly beyond the front and rear frames 18. Each frame 18 consists of two vertical bars 21, a top bar 22 welded at its ends to the upper ends of the bars 21, and a bottom bar 23 welded at its ends to the lower ends of the bars 21. Each side frame 19 comprises a horizontal bar 24 welded at its ends to the upper end portions of the bars 21 and two supporting struts 25 welded to the

bars

21, 24. The vehicle platform 20 comprises two elongated plate members 26 which rest upon and are secured to the bottom 1 bars 23 of the frames 18, and a plate 27 welded across the rear ends of the plate members 26. The two plate members 26, which form tracks for the wheels of the vehicle to be stored in the crate, are provided with upturned side flanges and outwardly flared front ends 28 to facilitate loading and unloading of the vehicle onto the plate members 26, and the plate 27 projects above the upper surface of the plate members 26 to form a rear stop for the vehicle.

The opposing outer sides of the vertical bars 21 of each frame 18 are provided with teeth forming vertical racks 9 extending along the lengths of the bars 21.

The inner side of the top bar 22 of each frame 18 is provided with an inwardly projecting horizontal flange 39 extending along the length of the bar 22, the flanges 30 being rounded off and tapered as shown in FIG. 5, and the top of the bar 22 is provided with teeth forming an upper horizontal rack 31 extending along the length of the bar 22. The inner side of the bottom bar 23, of each frame is provided with a channel shaped lug 32 which extends along the length of the bar 23 and which projects inwardly and downwardly below the bar 23 with its trough opening horizontally outwards, and the bottom of the bar 23 is provided with teeth forming a lower horizontal rack 33 extending along the length of the bar 23.

The two flanges 39 on each crate form upper guide means and the two lugs 32 form lower guide means. The crates of each column are mounted one above the other with the flanges 30 on each crate engaged within the troughs of the lugs 32 on the adjacent superimposed crate, and the arrangement of the flanges 30 and the lugs 32 is such that the upper racks 31 of each crate are spaced from the lower racks 33 of the adjacent superimposed crate. The engagement of the flanges 3%] on one crate within the channel shaped lugs 32 of a superimposed crate thus permits relative longitudinal movement of the two crates in a direction towards the adjacent column of crates, but restrains relative vertical movement between the two crates. Roller bearings may if desired be interposed between the flanges 3t) and lugs 32, the bearings being mounted on the side walls of the lugs 32.

The gearing mechanism 14 for supporting the crates 11a, 11b in register with the holding stations 15a, 151) (FIG. 1) comprises three gear assemblies spaced transversely across the frame with the centre gear assembly positioned between the two columns of crates. Each gear assembly comprises a horizontal shaft 35 provided with two pinions 36 spaced apart a distance equal to the distance between the vertical racks 29 on each side of a crate and two pairs of upper and lower toothed gear wheels 38 meshing with each pinion 36. The gear wheels 38 of the centre gear assembly also meshes with the vertical racks 29 on the adjacent sides of the two crates 11a, 11b and the two gear wheels 38 of the two outer gear assemblies mesh with the vertical racks 29 on the outer sides of the crates 11a, 11b. The shafts 35 project outwardly in front of the two columns and are drivably connected by worm gearing 39 to a cross shaft 40. The cross shaft 40 is itself drivably connected by worm gearing 41 to an electric motor 42.

The upper transfer mechanism 16 is mounted at the top of the frame and comprises a drive shaft 43 having two pinions 44 each meshing with a pair of toothed gear wheels 45 arranged one on each side of the drive shaft 43. The two gear wheels 45 on the left-hand side of the shaft 43 (FIG. 1) are arranged to mesh one with each of the upper horizontal racks 31 on the top crate of the column 12, and the two gear wheels 45 on the right-hand side of the shaft 43 are arranged to mesh one with each of the upper horizontal racks 31 on the top crate of the column 13. The shaft 43 is drivably connected by worm gearing 46 to an electric motor 47.

The lower transfer mechanism 17 is mounted in a well 48 in the floor of the apparatus and comprises a drive shaft 49 having two pinions 50 each meshing with a pair of toothed gear wheels 51 arranged one on each side of the drive shaft 49. The two gear wheels 51 on the lefthand side of the shaft 49 (FIG. 1) are arranged to mesh one with each of the lower horizontal racks 33 on the bottom crate of the column 12, and the two gear wheels 51 on the right-hand side of the shaft 49 are arranged to mesh one with each of the lower horizontal racks 33 on the bottom crate of the column 13. The shaft 49 is drivably connected by worm gearing 52 to an electric motor 53.

The two

columns

12, 13 each comprise the same number of crates and are therefore of equal depth, but one of the columns is displaced downwardly with respect to the other column by a distance equal to the depth of one crate, and the

holding stations

15a, 15b are spaced above the floor of the apparatus by a distance equal to the depth of one crate. In FIG. 1, the column 12 is displaced downwards with respect to the column 13, with the second bottom crate 11a of column 12 in register with the holding station 15a and the bottom crate 11b of column 13 in register with the holding station 151). The crates positioned above the holding stations rest upon the crates 11a, 11b and the bottom crate of column 12 is supported by the lugs 32 of the crate 11a. The crates 11a, 111) are in turn supported by the gearing mechanism 14, the torque transmitted to the gear wheels 38 by the vertical racks 37 on the crate 1111 being counterbalanced by the opposing torque transmitted to the gear wheels 38 by the vertical racks 37 on the crate 11b. Any resultant torque acting on the gear wheels 38 due to a dilference in weight 4 between the two columns is resisted by the frictional re sistance of the

worm reduction gearing

39, 41.

The crates of each column are maintained in vertical alignment by guide plates 54 positioned between the two columns adjacent the upper and lower ends of the columns and by side plates 55 engaging the outer sides of the crates at the top and bottom of the columns.

In order to manoeuvre a selected one of the crates 11 into a loading station 56 at the bottom of the column 12, the gear wheels 38 are driven by the motor 42 in a direction to raise the crate 11a by a distance equal to the depth of one crate, thereby drawing the bottom crate of column 12 into register with the holding station 15a, and simultaneously lower the crate 1112 by a distance equal to the depth of one crate, thereby lowering the second bottom crate of column 13 into register with the holding station 15b. This movement of the crates 11a, 11b raises the column 12 to bring the upper horizontal racks 31 on the top crate of column 12 into engagement with the left-hand gear wheels 45 (FIG. 1) of the upper transfer means 16, and also lowers the column 13 to bring the lower horizontal racks 33 on the bottom crate of column 13 into engagement with the right-hand gear wheels 51 (FIG. 1) of the lower transfer means 17. The flanges 30 on the second top crate of column 12 are then in alignment with the flanges 30 on the top crate of the column 13, and the channel shaped lugs 32 on the second bottom crate of the column 13 are in alignment with the lugs 32 on the bottom crate of the column 12. The upper transfer mechanism 16 is then driven in a direction to slide the top crate of column 12 onto the top of column 13, and the lower transfer mechanism 17 is driven in a direction to slide the bottom crate of column 13 onto the bottom of column 12, the tapered ends of the flanges 30 facilitate entry of the flanges into the channel shaped lugs 32 of the superimposed or underlying crate upon transfer of a crate between the columns. The above described sequence of operations is then repeated until the selected crate is in register with the loading station 56.

The

driving motors

42, 47, 53 are, of course, reversible to enable the crates to be circulated in the opposite direction to that described with reference to FiGS. l and 2.

The holding stations may be located in the frame at any position which is spaced from the transfer mechanism by a distance not less than the depth of a crate. In general, the holding stations for apparatus designed to store heavy articles is preferably arranged adjacent the bottom of the frame, since the gearing mechanism 14 at the holding stations supports the whole weight of the two columns. The holding stations for apparatus designed to store light weight articles can conveniently be arranged near the top of the frame.

The storage apparatus according to the invention may be used, for example, as a filing cabinet, :1 kitchen cabinet, or as a show case in a shop window and, in the case of such light-weight apparatus, the vertical movements of the two columns may be utilised to charge a spring or other energy storing means suitable for operating the transfer mechanisms, or the lifting and transfer mechanisms may be operated by hand.

The apparatus may be provided with a safety lock providing an additional support for the crates and also immobilizing the operating mechanism during loading and unloading of a crate.

In the storage apparatus described with reference to the drawings, each crate is provided with flanges 30 and lugs 32 forming guide means for interlocking adjacent crates. The interlocking guide means may however be omitted in storage apparatus in which the crates of each column rest upon each other, the bottom crates of the two columns being supported in holding stations spaced from the bottom of the frame by a distance not less than the depth of a crate. For example, the bottom crates may be supported in the holding stations by releasable catches engaging the undersides of the crates, and the two columns raised and lowered by hydraulically operated vertical plungers engaging the undersides of the bottom containers. In this modified form of the storage apparatus, the bottom crate of a first column is released by initially raising the column by the associated vertical plunger to release the catches engaging the bottom crate and then lowering the first column to engage the catches with the second bottom crate. The upper transfer mechanism preferably comprises a horizontal plunger which slides the top crate of the second column onto the top of the first column, and the lower transfer mechanism preferably comprises a further horizontal plunger which slides the container released from the first column along the base of the frame and onto the head of the vertical plunger for raising the second column. The released container is then raised by the vertical plunger into the holding station for the second column, this latter container displacing the bottom container of the second column from the holding station and thereby raising the second column by a distance corresponding to the depth of a crate.

The storage apparatus according to the invention does not require a forecourt or lift shaft and therefore occupies relatively small ground area, and it is particularly suitable for use in storage buildings in which access to the higher regions of the available storage space is difiicult. Several storage units suitable for the stowage of vehicles may be arranged in a row one behind the other, acess to the unit at the back of the row being obtained by passageways formed in the other units by the spaces vacated by movement of the bottom crates under the action of the bottom transfer mechanisms. The whole volume of a garage building mays thus be occupied by storage units according to the invention, the floor of the garage preferably being substantially level with the floor of each unit to permit vehicles to be driven through the vacant space at the bottom of each unit.

I claim:

A storage garage comprising a name and a plurality of similar crates arranged in two adjacent vertical columns extending one through each of two adjacent holding stations in the frame, each crate being of a size to accommodate an automobile vehicle, upper guide means and lower guide means on each of said crates, the upper guide means on each crate being arranged to interlock with the lower guide means on a superimposed crate and the interlocking guide means being arranged to permit relative movement between two superimposed crates in a direction towards the adjacent column of crates but to restrain relative vertical movement between the two crates, spaced vertical racks on each of the two sides of each crate, a gearing mechanism mounted on the frame and comprising a centre gear assembly positioned between the two crates in register with said holding stations and including gear wheels drivably coupled to one another and meshing with the vertical racks on the adjacent sides of the holding station crates, two side gear assemblies positioned one on each side of the frame and each including gear wheels drivably coupled to one another and meshing with the vertical racks on the outer side of the associated holding station crate, and a cross-shaft drivably coupled to each of said gear assemblies, said gearing mechanism being so arranged that the torques exerted on said cross-shaft due to the weight of the two holding station crates act in opposite directions whereby the gearing mechanism acts as a support means for the whole weight of said two columns by supporting the holding station crates and the crates superimposed upon and depending from the holding station crates, power driven means coupled to said gearing mechanism and arranged to drive said mechanism to raise one column and lower the other column through said holding stations by a distance corresponding to the depth of one crate, means for transferring the crate at the top of said one column to the top of said other column, and means for transferring the crate at the bottom of said other column to the bottom of said one column, whereby the crates may be moved in succession through a loading station for charging and discharging the crates.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,593,882 Robinson July 27, 1926 1,782,410 Cook Nov. 25, 1930 1,817,237 Cook Aug. 4, 1931