JPH0211486B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to a three-dimensional shelf having a large number of shelves, and a stacker crane that travels along the three-dimensional shelf and transports items at a storage entrance to the shelves of the three-dimensional shelf. The present invention relates to an automatic warehouse storage device consisting of the following.

As is well known, in order to reduce the length of the three-dimensional shelf in the running direction of the stacker crane, the stacker crane is configured to stop precisely at a predetermined position relative to each shelf and storage entrance of the three-dimensional shelf. There is.

For this reason, it is necessary that the goods (hereinafter referred to as pallets) entering the warehouse entrance also arrive at a predetermined position in the warehouse entrance. That is, it is necessary that the center of the storage entrance and the center of the pallet in the traveling direction of the stacker crane coincide.

However, since the pallets are fed to the warehouse entrance using a transport vehicle, a forklift, a conveyor, etc., it is often inaccurate.

Therefore, a centering device is provided at the warehouse entrance to align the center of the pallet with the center of the warehouse entrance.

This centering device is attached to a roller conveyor provided at the warehouse entrance. That is, a pushing device is provided on the roller conveyor for moving the pallet in a direction perpendicular to the direction of transportation by the roller conveyor at the storage entrance.

According to such a conventional method of centering work, since the direction in which the pallet is transported by the rollers of the roller conveyor and the direction in which the pallet is pushed are perpendicular to each other, the pallet is forced to slide on the rollers in the longitudinal direction of the roller axis of the roller conveyor. Ru. For this reason, a large force is required as a centering force to overcome the sliding friction, and there is also the disadvantage that the pallet may be damaged.

The object of the invention is to accomplish the centering operation with low power and without damaging the load.

In the present invention, the conveyor at the storage entrance whose transportation direction is perpendicular to the running direction of the stacker crane is divided into two, an upstream conveyor and a downstream conveyor, and each of the two divided conveyors is The upstream conveyor is supported by a cart that moves in a direction perpendicular to the transportation direction, and the shift from the center of the load passing on the upstream conveyor is detected. Detectors are installed on both sides of the upstream conveyor, and a piston moves the cart to a position where both of the detectors are activated during the period when the load passes over the upstream conveyor. It is characterized by the installation of a cylinder device.

An embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to FIGS. 1, 2, and 3.

FIG. 1 shows the overall configuration of an automated warehouse. There are two rows of three-dimensional shelves 1 having a large number of shelves, and a stacker crane 2 runs between them. The stacker crane 2 receives a pallet from the storage entrance consisting of a roller conveyor 5, stores it on a desired shelf of the three-dimensional shelf 1, and also takes out the pallet from the three-dimensional shelf according to a command and outputs it to the roller conveyor 6 for unloading. . 7
is a truck that transports the pallets 9 to be stored and the pallets that have been taken out.

The centering device for the storage entrance will be described below. The stopping point of the truck 7 during storage and the storage entrance to the stacker crane 2 are connected by roller conveyors 4 and 5. The pallet 9 of the truck 7 is transported to the roller conveyor 4, where it is centered and then transported to the roller conveyor 5. The pallets on the roller conveyor 5 are then received by the stacker crane 2.

As will be clear from the description below, the roller conveyors 4 and 5 have a size that allows them to each carry one load.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, rails 10 are laid on the floor below the roller conveyor 4, perpendicular to the direction indicated by the arrow A in which the pallets 9 are transported. On this rail 10, running wheels 11a of a truck 11 are mounted. A roller conveyor 4 is fixedly supported on this truck 11. A piston/cylinder device 12 is installed on the floor, and its piston rod portion is connected to the truck 11. Therefore, when the piston/cylinder device 12 is operated to expand or contract,
The cart 11 can reciprocate together with the roller conveyor 4 in a direction perpendicular to the transportation direction A of the pallet 9,
Moreover, since the movement is caused by the rolling of the wheels 11a of the truck 11, the output of the piston-cylinder device 12 can be small.

Posts 13 arranged on both sides perpendicular to the transport direction of the pallet 9 are fixed to the floor. This post 1
3 is attached with a sensor arm 14 that rotates horizontally around a shaft 13a. This sensor arm 14 has a roller 14a at its rotating end, and can grip the pallet 9 with this roller 14a portion without damaging it. Further, limit switches 15 and 16 employed as detection switches are fixed to the post 13, and switch levers 15a and 16a of the limit switches are placed in contact with the sensor arm 14.

The lengths of both sensor arms 14 are such that the pallet 9 can be held between the rollers 14a of both sensor arms only when the pallet 9 is at the center.

In this embodiment, when the pallet 9 is transferred from the cart 7 to the roller conveyor 4 at the center of the roller conveyor 4, the pallet 9 is transferred to the roller 14a.
contact, and both sensor arms 14 rotate in the direction of pushing the switch levers 15a, 16b. Thus, both limit switches 15 and 16 work together to signal that there is no need for centering.

Next, if an error occurs in the stopping position of the cart 7 relative to the roller conveyor 4, and the pallet 9 is shifted from the center of the roller conveyor 4 and transferred to the roller conveyor 4, the roller 14a on the opposite side to the direction of the shift occurs.
does not come into contact with the pallet 9, and one sensor arm 14 no longer rotates in the direction that pushes the switch lever 15a, for example. For this reason, the limit switch 15 does not work, and only the limit switch 16 works. In this case, the pallet 9 has shifted toward the limit switch 16, so the extension force of the piston/cylinder device 12 moves the truck 11 toward the limit switch 15, and when the limit switch 15 operates, the truck 11 is moved toward the limit switch 15.
Stop the movement of 1. In this way, the pallet 9 is delivered to the roller conveyor 5 side with the center 9a of the pallet 9 aligned with the center 5a of the roller conveyor 5 that receives the pallet 9 from the roller conveyor 4. Once the pallet 9 has been delivered to the roller conveyor 5 side, the carriage 11 is moved to the right by the contraction force of the piston/cylinder device 12, and both roller conveyors 4 and 5 are returned to a straight line.

Pallet 9 shifts to the opposite side and rolls onto roller conveyor 4.
If the pallet is moved to , the operation is performed in the opposite direction to align the center 9a of the pallet 9 with the center 5a of the roller conveyor 5.

As mentioned above, since the rolling of the cart wheels is used to align the center, the action of causing the load to slide on the conveyor is not used at all, so the large force required to cause the load to slide is not required as a centering force. ,
Moreover, the effect of not causing any damage to the objects to be handled can be obtained.

In addition, the conveyor at the warehouse entrance is divided into two parts, the upstream part and the downstream part, and only the upstream conveyor is moved by a trolley in the direction of travel of the stacker crane, so the downstream conveyor does not need to be moved at all. There isn't.

Therefore, the length of the storage entrance (width of the roller conveyor) in the running direction of the stacker crane 2 may be the same length as the width of the shelf of the three-dimensional shelf. Therefore, there is no need to increase the length of the three-dimensional shelf, and it can be made smaller.

As described above, according to the present invention, the centering operation can be performed with a small amount of power without damaging the load, and the length of the three-dimensional shelf can be prevented from increasing.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

1 is a top plan view of an automated warehouse according to an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is an enlarged top view of the main part of FIG. 1, and FIG. 3 is a front view of FIG. 2. 1...Three-dimensional shelf, 2...Statuka crane, 4,
5...Roller conveyor, 9...Pallet, 10...
...Rail, 11...Dolly, 12...Piston/cylinder device, 13...Post, 14...Sensor arm, 15, 16...Limit switch.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An automatic system comprising a three-dimensional shelf having a large number of shelves, and a stacker crane that travels along the three-dimensional shelf and transports the cargo at the storage entrance to the shelves of the three-dimensional shelf. In a warehouse warehousing device, the conveyor at the warehouse entrance whose transportation direction is perpendicular to the running direction of the stacker crane is divided into two, an upstream conveyor and a downstream conveyor, and each of the two divided conveyors is divided into two. The conveyors are each of a size capable of carrying one load, and the upstream conveyor is supported by a truck that moves in a direction perpendicular to the transport direction, and the center of the load passing on the upstream conveyor is Detectors are installed on both sides of the upstream conveyor to detect deviation from the cart, and both detectors are in operation during the period when the load passes on the upstream conveyor. A warehousing device for an automated warehouse, characterized in that a piston-cylinder device is installed to move the device to a certain position.