JPH1035829A - Automatic warehouse system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To correctly store inventory control data even in a work such as a manual pickup. SOLUTION: When a work is delivered on a station of an automatic warehouse, a pickup screen is displayed on an inventory control computer display of the automatic warehouse. When a station number is specified to ST No.11, a shelf number 12 where the delivered work has been stored, and the purpose of delivery or a classification 13 are displayed, and further, data for the work are displayed in a data table 15. An operator may operate on function keys to input a work classification 14, and rewrite a correct item by specifying an object number using an input number 16.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an automatic warehouse for storing a plurality of articles, and more particularly to an automatic warehouse system which can easily rewrite data when picking up articles from the automatic warehouse.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art In a factory or a warehouse, two racks having a plurality of shelves arranged side by side in a matrix for temporarily storing products and workpieces, and a loading / unloading machine arranged near an edge of the racks. 2. Description of the Related Art An automatic warehouse including a station and a stacker crane that travels and moves up and down between two racks and conveys articles between a shelf and a loading / unloading station is used. The operation of the stacker crane is controlled by a stacker crane on-board control panel attached to the stacker crane, and a transport command is given to the stacker crane on-board control panel from a stock management computer on the ground. The transfer command is created based on the data of the articles stored in the respective shelves stored in the inventory management computer by operating the inventory management computer or by an instruction from a higher-level computer. For example, it is a transfer command that receives an article from a shelf storing articles loaded with a certain product type, and leaves the article to a delivery station.

[0003]

Such an automatic warehouse system is completely constructed such that an automatic picking device such as a picking robot or a stratified picker performs picking, and the stocking is performed under the control of a host computer. If they are part of an automated transport system, the data is sent from these devices to the inventory management computer, so that the data of the articles is also largely adapted to the actual situation.
However, even if it is automated, if the picked-up / paid-out / added goods are manually performed temporarily, or if the picking-up is configured only manually manually from the beginning, the quantity and the type of the goods are not changed. It no longer matches the actual shelf contents. Even if the data is corrected by operating the inventory management computer after picking, etc., reading the data is troublesome and inefficient. In some cases, picking could not be performed due to differences from the above, and this had an adverse effect on operating efficiency.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is therefore an object of the present invention to provide an automatic warehouse system capable of easily and in real time correcting the data quantity of picked articles when picking is performed manually.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an automatic warehouse system which can easily and in real time add data including the kind and quantity on the data of the added articles when manually adding the articles. is there.

It is still another object of the present invention to provide an automatic warehouse system in which, when a user manually pays out, an article which has been paid out can be simply and in real time paid out on data.

[0007]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 includes inventory management means for storing data of articles stored in each shelf and giving a transport command to a stacker crane. In an automatic warehouse system, the inventory management means automatically displays data of articles released on a display at the time of unloading work as a picking screen, and rewrites data by inputting a correction of the number of articles on the picking screen. Configured the warehouse system.

According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automatic warehouse system including an inventory management means for storing data of articles stored in each shelf and giving a transport command to a stacker crane. The automatic warehouse system is configured to display data of articles taken out on a display as a picking screen and to rewrite data by inputting additional data including the kind and quantity of articles on the picking screen.

According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided an automatic warehouse system including an inventory management means for storing data of articles stored in each shelf and giving a transport command to a stacker crane. The automatic warehouse system is configured so that the data of the articles released on the display is displayed as a picking screen, and the data is rewritten by inputting the dispensing of the articles on the picking screen.

Since the present invention has the above-described configuration, the following operations are provided.

[0011] In the automatic warehouse system according to the first aspect of the present invention, the inventory management means includes data of articles stored in each shelf of the automatic warehouse, that is, quantity, product number, type,
Data generally including a lot, a storage date and time, and the like are stored. Based on this data, a transfer command is given to the stacker crane in order to take out a necessary article or put in a new article. At the time of unloading a required article and manually picking it, or performing inventory, etc., the inventory management means displays the data on the article as a picking screen on a display when the article is unloaded. The displayed data includes the quantity of the article. The worker operates the inventory management means before and after the work,
At the time of picking or stocktaking, etc., the actual quantity of goods delivered is compared with the quantity on the displayed data, and if they do not match, the corrected quantity is input on the picking screen. In response to this input, the inventory management means rewrites data on the article and corrects the quantity of the article. As a result, the quantity of articles can be corrected simply and in real time.

In the automatic warehouse system according to the second aspect of the present invention, the inventory management means stores data of articles stored in each shelf and gives a transport command to the stacker crane. Necessary goods are unloaded and manually added (including not only quantities but also varieties. Therefore, "articles" here means "units that are put in and taken out in an automated warehouse". When carrying out pallets, buckets, or cassettes), the inventory management means takes out the articles and displays data on the articles to be added as a picking screen on a display. The displayed data includes the quantity and type of the article. The operator operates the inventory management means before and after the operation, adds the added type and / or quantity, and inputs it on the picking screen. In response to this input, the inventory management means rewrites the data for the article and adds the type and / or quantity. As a result, it is possible to easily and in real time add data of additional articles.

[0013] In the automatic warehouse system according to the third aspect of the invention, the inventory management means stores data of the articles stored in each shelf and gives a transport command to the stacker crane. When you take out the necessary goods and pay out manually,
When the article is unloaded from the inventory management means, the data on the article to be paid out is displayed on a display as a picking screen. The operator operates the inventory management means before and after the operation, and inputs on the picking screen that the article has been paid out. In response to this input, the inventory management means rewrites data on the article. That is, the data of the dispensed article is deleted, and the shelf in which the article is stored is handled as an empty shelf. This makes it possible to easily and in real time correct data by paying out articles.

[0014]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG.

FIG. 1 shows a picking screen displayed on the display of the inventory management means in the first embodiment of the automatic warehouse system according to the present invention. Picking screen 1
Is a screen displayed on the display 33 of the inventory management computer 3 as will be described later, and displays data of articles delivered to the delivery station. In this automatic warehouse system, articles are placed on pallets, and data is managed in pallet units. A plurality of types of articles or a single type of article is placed on the pallet. STNo. 11 at the top of the screen is used for inventory management for specifying one delivery station when there are a plurality of automated warehouses managed by the inventory management computer 3 or when a plurality of delivery stations are provided in the automated warehouse. Operate the computer 3 to input. By inputting a number here, data as described below is read out from the storage device and displayed for the pallet currently being delivered to the specified delivery station. A shelf number 12 below the shelf number 12 is a number for specifying a shelf in which the unloaded pallets are stored. The delivery category 13 below the display indicates the purpose of the delivery, and specifically includes “picking”, “inventory”, and the like. Data table 15 below
Is the No., product number, product name,
Lots, warehousing date and time, remaining number, number of warehousing, and number of accumulations are displayed in a table. The input No. 16 further below specifies the No. of the article to be input in the data table 15. The function of each function key is displayed near the lower end further below, and a master inquiry 171, a pick 172,
Payout 173, Clear 174, Confirm 175, Menu 1
76 functions are F1, F4, F5, F8, F9, F12
Is executed by pressing each of the function keys. The master inquiry 171 is a key for retrieving data stored in the inventory management computer 3 by inputting a part number. The clear 174 is a key for clearing a screen during or after input and returning to STNo. Input. Menu 176 is a key for returning to the main menu.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a part of an automatic warehouse of the same automatic warehouse system. The automatic warehouse 2 includes two racks 22 and 22 each having a plurality of shelves 21 arranged in a matrix, and a stacker crane that travels and moves up and down between the racks 22 and 22 to convey articles W placed on pallets. 23, and a loading / unloading station 24, 25 arranged near the end of the rack 22, 22. The operation of the stacker crane 23 is controlled by an on-crane machine control panel 26 mounted on the stacker crane 23.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing the inventory management computer 3 of the same automatic warehouse system. The inventory management computer 3 is a personal computer,
A picking screen 1 is displayed on the display 33. The keyboard 32 includes a display 33. The external storage device in the main body 31 includes the respective shelves 2 of the racks 22, 22.
Data regarding each of the articles stored in the storage unit 1 is stored. The inventory management computer 3 is connected to the on-crane machine control panel 26 via optical communication, and transmits a transfer command and receives a work status. The transport command is created based on the stored data of the article by operating the keyboard 32 or by an instruction from a higher-level computer (not shown). For example, when an instruction is given to pick a certain type of product in a certain quantity, the shelf 21 storing the articles W containing the required quantity of the product is used as a starting point, and the loading / unloading station 2
A transfer command with 5 as the end point is given to the on-crane machine control panel 26.

This automatic warehousing system is for manually handling the articles W delivered to the loading / unloading stations 24 and 25. For example, as shown in FIG. The picking operation shown in FIG. 5, the payout of paying out the article W as shown in FIG. 5, and the additional work of adding up the quantity and type of articles designated to the article W as shown in FIG. Other designated shelf 2
Inventory taking out of the articles W stored in the storage area 1 and checking the articles is also performed.

Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described.

When it is confirmed that the stacker crane 23 has ejected the article W to the loading / unloading station 25 in accordance with the transfer command to eject the article W, the inventory management computer 3
Can display a picking screen as shown in FIG. The operator uses the keyboard 32
First, the number of the entry / exit station is input to STNo.11. Then, the shelf in which the article W is stored is specified by the display of the shelf number 12, and the purpose (pick-up, pay-out, increase, inventory, etc.) of the delivery in the delivery section 13 is displayed, and the data table 15 shows the purpose. A product number, a product name (may be a single product), a lot, and the like included in the article W are displayed. Next, the worker specifies the work section 14 using the function keys. The work section 14 is usually the same as the outgoing section 13, but other works may be added. More specifically, it is as if the articles taken out for picking work are added.

In the case of a picking operation as shown in FIG.
The character “Picking” is displayed in the retrieval section 13, and the number of items to be picked is displayed in the column “Number of retrievals” of the item specified by each No. in the data table 15. Usually, the operator picks the item by the indicated number and confirms it.
When the user presses 5, the article is re-entered into the automatic warehouse. Although the number of each item released is represented by the sum of the number of remaining items and the number of items left out of the data table 15, the worker trying to pick up notices that the actual number of items does not match the number on the data. Sometimes. In that case, enter the No. of the item that does not fit N
Specify by inputting in o.16, move the cursor and input the correct numerical value. When the correction is completed, press the confirm button 175 to re-stock. Even when the number of pickings is changed, the number of deliveries can be corrected. In order to increase the number of items to be added after picking, the number of the item to be added is specified by input No. 16 and the number of additional items is input to add data. Further, when performing payout, the payout 173 is pressed. When all the items are picked, the empty pallet is automatically re-stocked without pressing the confirmation 175.

In the case of the payout operation as shown in FIG. 5, "payout" is displayed in the outgoing section 13, so that the worker takes out all the articles W. In the case of dispensing, the corresponding pallet is removed out of the station by the operator. In this regard,
Different from 100% picking. Even after the confirmation 175 is pressed, the re-entry operation by the stacker crane is not performed, and the presence data is not required, so that the data is deleted.

When the additional work as shown in FIG. 6 is performed, the character "addition" is displayed in the outgoing section 13 and the number of additional goods is displayed for each item, and the worker performs the additional work in accordance therewith. If the actual number of articles is different from the number on the data, the remaining number is corrected as described above. The same data correction is performed when the number of piles is changed or when picking is performed. The dispensed article will no longer be present, so all data will be erased and the existing shelf will be treated as an empty shelf.

When the worker inputs data on the picking screen as described above, the inventory management computer 3 rewrites the data of the corresponding article stored in the external storage device. Thus, inventory management can be performed with correct data.

According to the above-described embodiment, when picking / adding / dispensing manually, it is possible to easily and in real time rewrite the quantity, type, and presence data on the data of the target article. it can.

FIG. 7 shows a picking screen of an inventory management computer according to another embodiment of the automatic warehouse system according to the present invention. The picking screen 7 is a touch panel, and inputs are performed by operating keys on the touch panel. The picking screen 7 includes a station No. key 71, a shelf number 72, a delivery category 73, a work category 74, and a data table 75. The cancel key 761 is a clear button 174 shown in FIG. 1 and the confirm key 762 is a confirm button 175 shown in FIG.
Reference numeral 3 denotes keys having the same functions as those of the menu 176 in FIG. The operation on the picking screen 7 is almost the same as the operation on the picking screen 1 in FIG.
In the case of picking / addition, the fields of the number of stocks, the number of deliveries, and the number of additions in the data table 75 are depressed, and ten keys are displayed on the screen and input. In the case of payout, a payout key 77 is pressed.

FIG. 8 shows a picking screen of an inventory management computer according to still another embodiment of the automatic warehouse system according to the present invention. The picking screen 8 is a touch panel, and includes a station No. key 81, a shelf number 82,
3, a work section 84, a data table 85, a cancel key 861, an enter key 862, a menu key 86
3. It has a payout key 77, and performs the same operation as the operation on the picking screen 7.

The embodiment of FIG. 7 and the embodiment of FIG. 8 are almost the same, but a stacking key 88 is provided in the embodiment of FIG. Here, “stacking” is a kind of stacking, but refers to placing a new type on a pallet, instead of increasing the number of types already placed. Pallets to be stacked include pallets already loaded with other types and empty pallets. When stacking on empty pallets, new article data is additionally created. The stacking is performed by pressing a blank field of the data table 75 in the embodiment of FIG. 7 or by pressing the stacking key 88 in the embodiment of FIG. Data is added.

The stacking picking screen 9 has a product number key 9
1, a storage date / time key 92, a number-of-accumulation key 93, a cancel key 94, and a confirmation key 95 are provided. A cancel key 94 cancels the input contents, and a confirm key 95 fixes and stores the input contents. First, when a part number key 91 is pressed, a soft keyboard is displayed (not shown), and data can be input by directly touching the screen with a finger. In addition, a bar code reader attached to an inventory management computer can read and input a bar code attached to an item.
Next, when the storage date / time key 92 is pressed, a date / time setting screen is displayed, and the current date / time can be input. Next, the multiplying key 93 is pressed to display a numeric keypad and input the number to be stacked.

As described above, when the worker inputs data on the picking screen, the data of the corresponding article stored in the inventory management computer is rewritten, and the inventory management is performed by the correct data and the data added by stacking. Is performed.

As described above, according to the embodiment shown in FIG. 7 or FIG. 8, when picking, adding, paying out, and stacking manually, the quantity, variety, and attendance in the data of the target article. Rewriting of data can be performed easily and in real time.

Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it goes without saying that the present invention can be appropriately modified and implemented within the scope of the present invention.

[0033]

As described above, according to the automatic warehouse system according to the first aspect of the present invention, when picking is manually performed, the quantity on the data of the picked article can be corrected simply and in real time. .

According to the automatic warehousing system according to the second aspect of the present invention, in the case where manual reloading is performed, data including the type and quantity on the data of the added articles can be easily and in real time added. .

According to the automatic warehouse system according to the third aspect of the present invention, in the case of manual dispensing, it is possible to simply and in real time dispose of the dispensed article on data.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a picking screen in one embodiment of an automatic warehouse system according to the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a part of an automatic warehouse of the same automatic warehouse system as FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a perspective view showing an inventory management computer of the same automatic warehouse system as in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view showing a state of a picking operation by the automatic warehouse of FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view showing a state of a payout operation by the automatic warehouse of FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view showing a state of a stacking operation by the automatic warehouse of FIG. 2;

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a picking screen in another embodiment of the automatic warehouse system according to the present invention.

FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a picking screen in still another embodiment of the automatic warehouse system according to the present invention.

FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a picking screen for stacking setting in the embodiment of FIGS. 7 and 8;

[Explanation of symbols]

 1 Picking screen 11 STNo. 12 Storage bin 13 Outgoing classification 14 Work classification 15 Data table 16 Input No.

Claims (3)

[Claims] In an automatic warehouse system including an inventory management means for storing data of articles stored in each shelf and giving a transfer command to a stacker crane, the inventory management means is configured to store the articles ejected on a display during an unloading operation. An automatic warehouse system that displays data as a picking screen and rewrites data by inputting corrections to the quantity of goods on the picking screen. 2. An automatic warehouse system including an inventory management means for storing data of articles stored in each shelf and giving a transfer command to a stacker crane, wherein the inventory management means is configured to store the articles ejected on a display during an unloading operation. An automatic warehouse system that displays data as a picking screen and rewrites data by inputting additional data including the type and quantity of goods on the picking screen. 3. An automatic warehouse system including an inventory management means for storing data of articles stored in each shelf and giving a transport command to a stacker crane. An automatic warehouse system that displays data as a picking screen and rewrites data by inputting the dispensing of goods on the picking screen.