Article Storage Facility

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2023415994-A1
Application number	US-202118037424-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Nov 18, 2021
Priority date	Nov 18, 2020
Publication date	Dec 28, 2023
Grant date	—

Abstract

An article storage facility includes a first multilevel rack including first shelves; a second multilevel rack including second shelves; a standby station that is disposed between the first multilevel rack and the second multilevel rack and include a standby conveyor; a transfer shuttle that transfers articles between the standby conveyor, the first shelves, and the second shelves; a first raising and lowering apparatus that is disposed between the first multilevel rack and the standby station and includes a first raising and lowering mechanism that raises and lowers a first raising and lowering conveyor that transfers the articles to and from the standby conveyor- and a second raising and lowering apparatus that is disposed between the second multilevel rack and the standby station and includes a second raising and lowering mechanism that raises and lowers a second raising and lowering conveyor that transfers the articles to and from the standby conveyor.

First claim

1 . An article storage facility comprising:
a first multilevel rack comprising first shelves on a plurality of levels, with the first shelves on the respective levels disposed along a first direction across a horizontal plane; a second multilevel rack comprising second shelves on a plurality of levels, with the second shelves on the respective levels disposed along the first direction and closer to one side in the first direction than the first multilevel rack; a standby station disposed between the first multilevel rack and the second multilevel rack in the first direction and comprising standby conveyors on a number of levels that is at least equal to whichever of the first shelves and the second shelves has a lower number of levels; a plurality of transfer shuttles disposed for respective levels of the standby conveyors or disposed for the standby conveyors on a plurality of levels, and configured to travel along the first direction and to transfer articles between the standby conveyors and the first shelves and the second shelves; a first raising and lowering apparatus comprising a first raising and lowering conveyor disposed between the first multilevel rack and the standby station in the first direction and configured to transfer the articles to and from the standby conveyors, and a first raising and lowering mechanism configured to raise and lower the first raising and lowering conveyor between every level of the standby conveyors; and a second raising and lowering apparatus comprising a second raising and lowering conveyor disposed between the second multilevel rack and the standby station in the first direction and configured to transfer the articles to and from the standby conveyors, and a second raising and lowering mechanism configured to raise and lower the second raising and lowering conveyor between every level of the standby conveyors.

2 . The article storage facility according to claim 1 , further comprising:
a loading conveyor configured to convey the articles to be loaded into the first multilevel rack or the second multilevel rack; and an unloading conveyor configured to convey the articles to be unloaded from the first multilevel rack or the second multilevel rack, wherein the first raising and lowering mechanism also moves the first raising and lowering conveyor to a position where the first raising and lowering conveyor receives the articles from the loading conveyor, and wherein the second raising and lowering mechanism also moves the second raising and lowering conveyor to a position where the articles are passed from the second raising and lowering conveyor to the unloading conveyor.

3 . The article storage facility according to claim 2 ,
wherein the loading conveyor is disposed at a position that coincides with the first multilevel rack as viewed from above or below along an up-down direction, and wherein the unloading conveyor is disposed at a position that coincides with the second multilevel rack as viewed from above or below along the up-down direction.

4 . The article storage facility according to claim 2 ,
further comprising a discharging conveyor configured to discharge the articles, which have been received by the first raising and lowering conveyor from the loading conveyor, without passing the standby conveyors.

5 . The article storage facility according to claim 1 ,
wherein (i) a side in the first direction where the first shelves are disposed relative to the second shelves is a first direction-first side, and (ii) a side where the second shelves are disposed relative to the first shelves is a first direction-second side, and wherein the transfer shuttle is configured to run in the first direction between an end portion at the first direction-first side of the first shelves to an end portion at the first direction-second side of the second shelves and transfers the articles between the first shelves, the standby conveyor, and the second shelves.

6 . The article storage facility according to claim 1 , wherein:
the first raising and lowering mechanism comprises a first mast configured to guide the first raising and lowering conveyor in the up-down direction, the second raising and lowering mechanism comprises a second mast configured to guide the second raising and lowering conveyor in the up-down direction, and the first mast and the second mast are disposed at positions that do not coincide with travel paths of the transfer shuttles as viewed from above or below along the up-down direction.

7 . The article storage facility according to claim 1 ,
wherein each standby conveyor includes loading regions where the articles are loaded in a row along the first direction and moves the loaded articles along the first direction, and wherein at least one loading region of the loading regions is used as a position where the transfer shuttle transfers the articles to the standby conveyor, and at least one other loading region of the loading regions is used as a position where the transfer shuttle receives the articles from the standby conveyor.

8 . The article storage facility according to claim 1 ,
each standby conveyor includes loading regions where the articles are loaded in a row along the first direction and moves the loaded articles toward a second side in a conveying direction, which is one side in the conveying direction along the first direction, the loading regions are provided with a stopper configured to stop movement of the articles by the standby conveyor by contacting the articles from a second side in the conveying direction, at least one loading region of the loading regions positioned on the second side in the conveying direction of the stopper is used as a loading region where the transfer shuttle passes the articles to the standby conveyor, and at least one other loading region of the loading regions positioned on a first side in the conveying direction, which is an opposite side to the second side in the conveying direction, of the stopper is used as a loading region where the transfer shuttle receives the articles from the standby conveyor.

9 . The article storage facility according to claim 8 ,
wherein the stopper is configured to be changeable between (i) a contacting posture where movement of the articles is stopped by contacting the articles and (ii) a non-contacting posture where the stopper is retracted in such a manner as to not contact the articles.

10 . The article storage facility according to claim 1 ,
wherein a direction perpendicular to the first direction as viewed from above or below along the up-down direction a second direction, wherein the first multilevel rack, the second multilevel rack, the standby station, the first raising and lowering apparatus, and the second raising and lowering apparatus are all disposed in pairs that face each other in the second direction with travel paths of the transfer shuttles in between.

11 . The article storage facility according to claim 1 ,
further comprising equal numbers of the standby conveyors, the first shelves, and the second shelves.

Assignees

• Daifuku Kk

Inventors

• Ueda Yuichi
• Iwata Masashige

Classifications

• B65G1/065 Primary

  with self propelled cars · CPC title

• B65G2207/14

  Combination of conveyors · CPC title

• B65G37/00

  Combinations of mechanical conveyors of the same kind, or of different kinds, of interest apart from their application in particular machines or use in particular manufacturing processes (series of co-operating belt conveyor units B65G15/22; series of co-operating chain conveyor units B65G17/26; sequence control of combined conveyors B65G43/10) · CPC title

• B65G1/0485 Primary

  Check-in, check-out devices · CPC title

• B65G47/643

  in a vertical plane · CPC title