JPS641368B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to the improvement of multi-level warehouse equipment, which reduces the number of cranes for loading and unloading articles to and from storage compartments in rows of shelves, and centralizes home position equipment for loading and unloading items. The purpose is to make it possible to use equipment more efficiently and to significantly reduce equipment costs.

To explain an example shown in FIG. 1 in which a conventional multi-level warehouse facility is constructed with eight rows of shelves 1 having a large number of storage compartments 2, the first and eighth rows of shelves 1 are constructed vertically.
are constructed with their backs against the warehouse wall, and the second and third rows, fourth and fifth rows, and sixth and seventh rows are constructed with their backs against each other. Goods are stored between the first and second rows, between the third and fourth rows, between the fifth and sixth rows, and between the seventh and eighth rows. It forms a crane aisle 3, which is a passageway for a stacker crane 5 for loading and unloading. A crane rail 4 is laid on the basement floor and ceiling side of the crane aisle 3 from the warehouse entrance/exit side (right side in the figure) to the back side (left side in the figure). On the loading/unloading side of the warehouse basement, the stored items are sent to one stacker crane 5 for each crane aisle 3.
A home position facility 8 including a roller conveyor and the like for delivering and receiving items is provided. As shown in FIG.
The article W is delivered to and from the storage compartment 2 or the home position equipment 8.

As mentioned above, in conventional multilevel warehouse facilities,
One stacker crane is installed in one crane aisle, and home position equipment corresponding to the number of cranes is provided on the entry/exit side of this crane rail. In such a multi-level warehouse facility, if the number of stored items is large and the frequency of entry and exit is low, it is not a good idea to install one stacker crane and home position equipment for each crane aisle, as this will increase equipment costs. For this reason, as shown in FIGS. 3a, b, and c, a stacker crane is moved between crane rails to process two or more rails with one crane. That is, the third
In the one shown in Figure a, a turntable 15 and a traversing rail 16 are installed at the back end of the warehouse of adjacent crane rails, and the stacker crane 5 is moved from one crane rail to the next one. The one shown in Figure 3b is one in which adjacent crane rails are connected by a curved rail at the back of the warehouse, and the one shown in Figure 3c is a traverser with a rail that can be connected to each crane rail. It is located at the back of the warehouse. However, all of the systems shown in Figure 3 a, b, and c are designed to move stacker cranes at the back of the warehouse, and even with this arrangement, home position equipment must be provided for each crane aisle. There is no difference from the case shown in FIG. In particular, the devices shown in FIGS. 3a and 3b have the disadvantage that extra equipment such as a turntable and traverser must be provided.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned situation in conventional multilevel warehouse facilities, and is characterized by the fact that a large number of rows of shelves each having a large number of storage compartments are erected facing each other. , a three-dimensional warehouse facility in which a crane aisle is formed between opposing rows of shelves, in which each crane rail in the adjacent crane aisles is connected by a curved rail on the loading and unloading side of stored items to form a U-shaped connecting rail, and such a U-shaped
At least two connecting rails are provided, one stacker crane is disposed for each U-shaped connecting rail, and a stacker crane is provided between the two U-shaped connecting rails and close to the joint between the curved rail and the crane rail, and This is because a common centralized home position facility is provided for both U-shaped connecting rails at a position where the two stacker cranes are kept substantially parallel to each other.

Embodiments of the present invention shown in FIGS. 4 to 6 will be described in detail below.

In the embodiment of FIG. 4, the number of shelf rows 1 is
Although the figure shows the case of eight rows of shelves, the present invention can equally be applied to multi-level warehouse facilities having even more rows of shelves. In FIG. 4, the crane rails 4 _-1 and 4 -2 in the first and second crane aisles 3 _-1 and 3 _-2 which are adjacent to each other are connected to each other on the entry/exit side of the warehouse by a curved rail _{9 -1 .} , also the third
The crane rails _4-3 and _4-4 in the fourth crane aisles _3-3 and _3-4 are also connected to each other on the loading/unloading side by a curved rail _9-2 , and each has two independent U-shaped connecting rails. is forming. U
One stacker crane 5 is disposed for each of the U-shaped connecting rails, and a stacker crane 5 is provided between the two U-shaped connecting rails on the loading/unloading side of the stored articles, and close to the connecting portion between the curved rail and the crane rail. An integrated home position facility 10 that is shared by both U-shaped connecting rails is installed at a position where the two stacker cranes are kept substantially parallel to each other. If there are floors such as the second and third floors on the loading/unloading side, the same centralized home position equipment 10 as in the basement can be provided on each floor. The above centralized home position equipment 10
As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the vehicle is equipped with an incoming roller conveyor 11 and an outgoing roller conveyor 12 arranged parallel to the crane rail 4, and further arranged at right angles to the crane rail 4. The roller conveyors 11 and 12 may be provided with an elevating conveyor 13 which also serves as a storage stand and an elevating conveyor 14 which also serves as a retrieval stand, which are movable up and down. By combining the roller conveyors 11, 12 and the elevating conveyors 13, 14, loading and unloading of cargo can be carried out as shown by the arrows in the figure. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 4, only one central home positioning facility 10 is installed, and the loading and unloading operations for all eight rows of shelves can be efficiently carried out using two stacker cranes.

As is clear from the above description, the present invention connects two crane rails in adjacent crane aisles by a curved rail on the loading/unloading side of stored articles to form a U-shaped connecting rail, and One stacker crane is installed for each rail, and the two stacker cranes are located between both U-shaped connecting rails on the loading and unloading side of stored items, and close to the joint between the curved rail and the crane rail, and the two stacker cranes are located close to each other. Since the shared central home position equipment is installed for both U-shaped connecting rails in a position that is almost parallel to each other, the number of cranes and the home position equipment can be adjusted while maintaining sufficient loading/unloading capacity. Not only can the number of bases be reduced and the layout of equipment such as the loading/unloading conveyor can be simplified, making it possible to use it efficiently as a multi-level warehouse, but also home position equipment can be installed separately at the curved part of each U-shaped connecting rail. Compared to the case where the multi-level warehouse facility is installed, the area occupied by the multi-level warehouse facility is reduced, and site space can be used more effectively, which is an extremely advantageous feature compared to conventional multi-level warehouse facilities of this type.

[Brief explanation of the drawing]

Fig. 1 is a schematic plan view showing an example of a conventional multilevel warehouse facility, Fig. 2 is a perspective view showing the relationship between one shelf row and a stacker crane, and Fig. 3 a, b, and c are two or more rails. 4 is a plan view of an embodiment of the three-dimensional warehouse facility according to the present invention, and FIGS. 5 and 6 are plan views each showing an example of the centralized home position facility. FIG. 2 is a diagram and a perspective view. 1... Shelf row, 2... Storage compartment, 3... Crane aisle, 4... Crane rail, 5... Studker crane, 6... Lifting platform, 7... Telescopic fork, 9...
... Curved rail, 10 ... Centralized home position equipment, 11 ... Roller conveyor for warehousing, 12 ...
Roller conveyor for delivery, 13... Elevating conveyor that also serves as a storage platform, 14... Elevating conveyor that also serves as a delivery platform, 15... Turntable, 16... Connection rail, 17... Traverser.

Claims (1)

[Claims] 1 A multi-story warehouse facility in which a large number of rows of shelves each having a large number of storage compartments are erected facing each other, and a crane aisle is formed between the opposing rows of shelves, and each crane rail in adjacent crane aisles is used for storing stored items. At least two such U-shaped connecting rails are provided, one stacker crane is provided for each U-shaped connecting rail, and both U-shaped connecting rails are connected on the exit side by curved rails to form a U-shaped connecting rail. A central home position facility that is shared by both U-shaped connecting rails is located between the two U-shaped connecting rails, close to the joint between the curved rail and the crane rail, and where the two stacker cranes are kept almost parallel to each other. A three-dimensional warehouse facility characterized by the following: