JP7567726B2 - Automated Warehouse - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to automated warehouses, and in particular to automatic adjustment of shelf heights in automated multi-level warehouses.

The height of each shelf in an automated warehouse is basically the same, and generally, each shelf is set at a height that can store goods in a full pallet state. A full pallet state (all pallets) is when a specified number of goods (products) are loaded on the pallet body. In other words, the total height of the goods loaded on the pallet is the specified height.

However, automated warehouses also store items that are stored on fractional pallets. A fractional pallet state is when some of the cargo from a full pallet is removed, reducing the cargo height. In other words, the total height of the cargo loaded on the pallet is less than the specified height. If fractional pallet state cargo, with its reduced cargo height, is stored on a shelf that can store full pallet cargo, wasted space is generated above, reducing storage efficiency (Figure 8).

In order to improve storage efficiency, Patent Document 1 discloses an automated warehouse having shelves with different heights, whereby larger loads can be stored on larger shelves and smaller loads on smaller shelves.
The applicant is aware of the following documents, including the above-mentioned documents, as being relevant to the present invention:

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 6-144519 Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 4-298402

However, because the automated warehouse in Patent Document 1 has shelves of different heights prepared in advance, if the number of incoming items in fractional pallet state is greater than the number of incoming items in small shelves, the incoming items in fractional pallet state have to be stored on large shelves. Also, because there are various cargo heights for incoming items in fractional pallet state, even when they are stored on small shelves, there may be wasted space above. For this reason, it cannot be said that the storage efficiency is sufficiently high.

The present invention was made to solve the problems mentioned above, and aims to provide an automated warehouse with high storage efficiency.

The first aspect relates to an automated warehouse.
The automated warehouse includes a shelf having a plurality of shelf supports arranged in a height direction and capable of holding the lower ends of the stored items, the distance between the plurality of shelf supports being smaller than the height of the stored items.
The automated warehouse comprises a first sensor, a target shelf number calculation means, a target shelf number update means, and a storage means.
The first sensor measures the height of an item entering the automated warehouse.
The target shelf level calculation means calculates a target shelf level by adding 1 to a quotient obtained by dividing the height of the received article by the spacing between the plurality of shelf brackets.
The target shelf level update means increases the target shelf level by one when there is no vacant shelf having a level matching the target shelf level.
When there is a vacant shelf with a number of levels matching the target number of shelf levels, the storage means stores the received item on the vacant shelf.

The second aspect has the following features in addition to those of the first aspect.
The automated warehouse is equipped with a second sensor that measures the mass of the received item.
The storage means includes a first storage means and a second storage means.
The first storage means stores the received item on the lowest empty shelf among the empty shelves when there is at least one empty shelf with a number of shelves matching the target number of shelves and the mass of the received item is equal to or greater than a mass threshold value.
The second storage means stores the received item on the highest empty shelf among the empty shelves when there is at least one empty shelf with a number of shelves matching the target number of shelves and the mass of the received item is less than the mass threshold value.

The third aspect has the following features in addition to those of the second aspect.
When there are a plurality of vacant shelves at the lowest position at the same height, the first storage means stores the received item on the vacant shelf at the lowest position that is closest to an entrance of the automated warehouse.
When there are a plurality of vacant shelves at the highest position at the same height, the second storage means stores the received item on the vacant shelf at the highest position that is the farthest from the entrance.

The fourth aspect has the following features in addition to the second or third aspect.
The mass threshold is set to a larger value as the height of the stored item increases.

According to the first aspect, incoming items can be stored on vacant shelves with a number of levels as close as possible to the height of the incoming items. This can improve the storage efficiency of the automated warehouse.

According to the second aspect, depending on the mass of the items being stored, heavy items can be stored on the lower side of the shelf and light items on the upper side of the shelf. This allows the center of gravity of the shelf to be lowered, increasing stability.

According to the third aspect, heavy luggage can be stored farther away from the loading entrance, and closer luggage can be stored closer to the loading entrance.

According to the fourth aspect, the mass threshold can be appropriately changed depending on the height of the items being stored.

FIG. 1 is a diagram for explaining a configuration example of an automated warehouse according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of an incoming item in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a diagram illustrating a state in which a pallet is held by a shelf bracket of an automated warehouse according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 4 is a flowchart for explaining storage control of the automated warehouse according to the embodiment of the present invention. 4 is a flowchart for explaining storage control of the automated warehouse according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of storage of items received in the automated warehouse according to the embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a control unit according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of storage in an automated warehouse in which shelf spacing is determined according to the height of incoming items when a full pallet is loaded.

The following describes in detail an embodiment of the present invention with reference to the drawings. Note that elements common to each drawing are given the same reference numerals and duplicated explanations are omitted.

1 is a diagram for explaining a configuration example of an automated warehouse according to an embodiment. The automated warehouse 1 shown in Fig. 1 includes a group of shelves 2, a stacker crane 3, a control device 4, a height sensor 5, and a mass sensor 6.

Generally, the shelf group 2 comprises a number of shelves 7 arranged side by side. The shelves 7 are provided with a number of shelf supports 8 in the height direction on the inside of both side walls. Each shelf support 8 is positioned so that it can hold the lower end of the stored item 9.

The height sensor 5 measures the height of the item 9 entering the automated warehouse 1. The measurement value is output to the control device 4. The mass sensor 6 measures the mass of the item 9 entering the warehouse. The measurement value is output to the control device 4.

The incoming goods 9 are brought in and taken out by a stacker crane 3. The stacker crane 3 has a lifting platform. The stacker crane 3 travels in front of the shelf group 2, raising and lowering the lifting platform, and transferring the incoming goods 9 to and from the shelf 7 using a slide fork provided on the lifting platform. The stacker crane 3 also transports the incoming goods 9 between the shelf group 2 and an inlet (station) 10 provided near the end of the shelf group 2. The operation of the stacker crane 3 is controlled by a control device 4. The control device 4 includes a database in which current warehouse storage status data is stored. The warehouse storage status data includes the storage position, height, mass, etc. of the incoming goods 9 stored in the shelf group 2.

Figure 2 is a diagram for explaining the configuration of the incoming goods 9. The incoming goods 9 include a pallet 9a and luggage 9b loaded on the pallet 9a. The luggage 9b is a stack of multiple products. As an example, a state in which products are stacked in a specified number of layers (e.g., four layers) as shown in Figure 2 is called a full pallet state. Also, a state in which some of the products have been removed and the number of layers is less than the specified number (e.g., one to three layers) is called a fractional pallet state. In this specification, the total height, which is the sum of the height of the luggage 9b and the height of the pallet 9a, is called the height of the incoming goods 9.

Figure 3 is a diagram illustrating a state in which the stored goods 9 are held by the shelf brackets 8. Each shelf bracket 8 is positioned so that it can hold the bottom end of the stored goods 9 (the end of the pallet 9a). The spacing between the multiple shelf brackets 8 is equal, greater than the height of the pallet 9a, and smaller than the height of the stored goods 9 in a fractional pallet state (e.g., one tier). The stored goods 9 are stored on the shelf 7 with the ends of the pallet 9a placed on the left and right shelf brackets 8.

2. Storage control of the automated warehouse Storage control of the automated warehouse 1 according to the embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 4 and 5. Figures 4 and 5 are flowcharts of a control routine executed by the control device 4. This control routine is executed every time a storage instruction is issued for an item 9 transported to an entrance (station) 10 of the automated warehouse 1.

First, in step S01, the height sensor 5 measures the height of the incoming item 9 placed at the entrance 10 and transmits the measurement value to the control device 4. The mass sensor 6 measures the mass of the incoming item 9 placed at the entrance 10 and transmits the measurement value to the control device 4. The target shelf level calculation means 41 calculates the target shelf level H by adding 1 to the quotient obtained by dividing the height (measurement value) of the incoming item 9 by the unit interval (set value) of the multiple shelf brackets 8. Note that a value that takes likelihood into account may be used for the measurement value.

In step S01A, the control device 4 retrieves current warehouse storage status data from the database. The warehouse storage status data includes the storage position and height of the incoming items 9 stored in shelf group 2, the mass threshold MH (MHX), and the upper limit value HXmax of the target number of shelves. Empty shelves in shelf group 2 are detected from the warehouse storage status data.

Next, in step S02, the control device 4 determines whether or not there is an empty shelf with a number of levels that matches the target number of shelf levels H. If there is at least one corresponding empty shelf, the process of step S02A is executed. On the other hand, if there is no corresponding empty shelf, the process of step S04 in FIG. 5, which will be described later, is executed.

In step S02A, the control device 4 determines whether there are multiple vacant shelves with a number of levels that matches the target number of shelf levels H. If there are multiple corresponding vacant shelves, the process of step S02B is executed. On the other hand, if there is only one corresponding vacant shelf, the process of step S03 is executed.

In step S02B, the control device 4 determines whether the mass M of the stored item 9 measured in step S01 is equal to or greater than the mass threshold value MH. If the mass M of the stored item 9 is equal to or greater than the mass threshold value MH, the control device 4 performs processing in step S03A. If not, the control device 4 performs processing in step S03B. The mass threshold value MH may be a fixed value, or may be a variable value that is set to a larger value the higher the height of the stored item 9.

In step S03, the storage means 43 controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming item 9 on the only vacant shelf with the number of shelves that matches the target number of shelves H.

In step S03A, if there are multiple vacant shelves with the same number of tiers as the target number of tiers H and the mass M of the incoming item 9 is equal to or greater than the mass threshold MH, the first storage means 43a controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming item 9 on the lowest vacant shelf among the vacant shelves. Preferably, if there are multiple lowest vacant shelves at the same height in the shelf group 2, the first storage means 43a controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming item 9 on the lowest vacant shelf that is closest to the entrance (station) 10 of the automated warehouse 1.

In step S03B, when there are multiple vacant shelves with the same number of tiers as the target number of tiers H and the mass M of the incoming item 9 is less than the mass threshold MH, the second storage means 43b controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming item 9 on the highest vacant shelf among the vacant shelves. Preferably, when there are multiple highest vacant shelves at the same height in the shelf group 2, the second storage means 43b controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming item 9 on the highest vacant shelf that is farthest from the entrance (station) 10.

In step S11, the warehouse storage status data in the database is updated for the received item 9 that was stored on an empty shelf in step S03, S03A, or S03B.

Figure 5 is a flowchart for explaining the process that is executed when it is determined in step S02 of Figure 4 that there is no vacant shelf with the same number of shelves as the target shelf number H. The target shelf number H calculated in step S01 of Figure 4 described above is the optimal shelf height for storing the item 9 to be stored, but there may be cases where there is no vacant shelf with the same number of shelves as the target shelf number H. In this case, according to the process of Figure 5, an vacant shelf with a greater shelf height is selected and the item 9 to be stored.

In step S04, if there are no vacant shelves in shelf group 2 with a number of shelves that matches the target number of shelves H, the target number of shelves update means 42 increases the target number of shelves H by one. The updated target number of shelves is designated as HX.

Next, in step S05, the control device 4 determines whether or not there is an empty shelf with a number of levels that matches the target number of shelf levels HX. If there is at least one corresponding empty shelf, the process of step S05A is executed. On the other hand, if there is no corresponding empty shelf, the process of step S07 is executed.

In step S05A, the control device 4 determines whether there are multiple vacant shelves with a number of levels that matches the target number of shelf levels HX. If there are multiple vacant shelves that match, the process of step S05B is executed. On the other hand, if there is only one vacant shelf that matches, the process of step S06 is executed.

In step S05B, the control device 4 determines whether the mass M of the stored item 9 measured in step S01 is equal to or greater than the mass threshold value MHX. If the mass M of the stored item 9 is equal to or greater than the mass threshold value MHX, the control device 4 executes the process of step S06A. If not, the control device 4 executes the process of step S06B. The mass threshold value MHX may be a fixed value or a variable value that is set to a larger value the higher the height of the stored item 9.

In step S06, the storage means 43 controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming items 9 bottom-loaded in the only vacant shelf with the number of shelves that matches the target number of shelves HX.

In step S06A, if there are multiple vacant shelves with the number of tiers matching the target number of tiers HX and the mass M of the incoming item 9 is equal to or greater than the mass threshold MHX, the first storage means 43a controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming item 9 from the bottom up on the lowest vacant shelf among the vacant shelves. Preferably, if there are multiple lowest vacant shelves at the same height in the shelf group 2, the first storage means 43a controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming item 9 from the bottom up on the lowest vacant shelf that is closest to the entrance (station) 10 of the automated warehouse 1.

In step S06B, when there are multiple vacant shelves with the number of tiers matching the target number of tiers HX and the mass M of the incoming item 9 is less than the mass threshold MHX, the second storage means 43b controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming item 9 from the bottom up on the highest vacant shelf among the vacant shelves. Preferably, when there are multiple highest vacant shelves at the same height in the shelf group 2, the second storage means 43b controls the stacker crane 3 to store the incoming item 9 from the bottom up on the highest vacant shelf that is farthest from the entrance (station) 10.

In step S11, the warehouse storage status data in the database is updated for the received item 9 that was stored on an empty shelf in step S06, S06A, or S06B.

Next, a case where the determination condition in step S05 is not satisfied will be described.
In step S07, if there is no vacant shelf in the shelf group 2 with a number of levels matching the target shelf level HX, the target shelf level update means 42 increments the target shelf level HX by one.

Next, in step S08, if the target number of shelves HX has not reached the upper limit HXmax, the process returns to step S05 and continues. On the other hand, if the target number of shelves HX reaches the upper limit HXmax but there are no vacant shelves with the same number of shelves as the target number of shelves HX, the control device 4 outputs an alarm to the site and the monitoring room (steps S09 and S10).

In step S11, the warehouse storage status data in the database is updated regarding the alert output in step S10.

3. Effects As described above, according to the routines shown in FIG. 4 and FIG. 5, the incoming items can be stored on vacant shelves with the number of levels as close as possible to the height of the incoming items. Therefore, the storage efficiency of the automated warehouse can be improved. Furthermore, depending on the mass of the incoming items, heavy items can be stored on the lower side of the shelves and light items can be stored on the upper side of the shelves. Therefore, the center of gravity of the shelves can be lowered to improve stability. Furthermore, by storing items on the lower side of the shelves with ample height, energy consumption is reduced, and the center of gravity of the shelves can be lowered to contribute to stability. Furthermore, heavy items can be stored farther from the entrance and closer items can be stored closer to the entrance. Therefore, energy consumption can be reduced. Furthermore, the mass threshold can be appropriately changed according to the height of the incoming items. According to the automated warehouse 1 according to the embodiment, as shown in FIG. 6, when incoming items 9 in a full pallet state and incoming items 9 in a fractional pallet state are mixed, it is possible to realize warehousing control with high storage efficiency.

4 may be omitted, and the processes from step S03 onward may be executed when the determination condition of step S02A is satisfied. In other words, the received item 9 may be stored on any vacant shelf having a number of shelves that matches the target shelf number H.
5 may be omitted, and the processes from step S06 onward may be executed when the determination condition of step S05 is satisfied. In other words, the received item 9 may be stored on any vacant shelf having a number of shelves that matches the target shelf number HX.

4, the process of storing the incoming item 9 on the vacant shelf closest to the entrance 10 in step S03A, and the process of storing the incoming item 9 on the vacant shelf farthest from the entrance 10 in step S03B may be omitted. In other words, the mass of the incoming item 9 may be related only to the storage position in the height direction of the shelf 7.
5, the process of storing the incoming item 9 on the vacant shelf closest to the entrance 10 in step S06A and the process of storing the incoming item 9 on the vacant shelf farthest from the entrance 10 in step S06B may be omitted. In other words, the mass of the incoming item 9 may be related only to the storage position in the height direction of the shelf 7.

5. Example of Hardware Configuration Fig. 7 is a conceptual diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the processing circuit of the control device 4 described above. Each means in the control device 4 in Fig. 1 indicates a part of the function, and each function is realized by the processing circuit. In one aspect, the processing circuit includes at least one processor 91 and at least one memory 92. In another aspect, the processing circuit includes at least one dedicated hardware 93.

When the processing circuit includes a processor 91 and a memory 92, each function is realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. At least one of the software and firmware is written as a program. At least one of the software and firmware is stored in the memory 92. The processor 91 realizes each function by reading and executing the program stored in the memory 92.

When the processing circuitry includes dedicated hardware 93, the processing circuitry may be, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, or a combination of these. Each function is realized by the processing circuitry.

Although the embodiments of the present invention have been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. When the numbers, quantities, amounts, ranges, etc. of each element are mentioned in the above-mentioned embodiments, the present invention is not limited to the mentioned numbers, unless otherwise specified or clearly specified in principle. Furthermore, the structures, etc. described in the above-mentioned embodiments are not necessarily essential to the present invention, unless otherwise specified or clearly specified in principle.

1 Automated warehouse 2 Shelf group 3 Stacker crane 4 Control device 5 Height sensor (first sensor)
6 Mass sensor (second sensor)
7 Shelf 8 Shelf bracket 9 Item 9a Pallet 9b Baggage 10 Storage entrance 41 Target shelf number calculation means 42 Target shelf number update means 43 Storage means 43a First storage means 43b Second storage means 91 Processor 92 Memory 93 Hardware H, HX Target shelf number HXmax Upper limit value M of target shelf number Mass MH, MHX Mass threshold

Claims (3)

An automated warehouse comprising a shelf having a plurality of shelf supports in a height direction capable of holding lower ends of stored items, the spacing between the plurality of shelf supports being smaller than the height of the stored items,
A first sensor that measures a height of an item to be stored in the automated warehouse;
a target shelf number calculation means for calculating a target shelf number by adding 1 to a quotient obtained by dividing the height of the stored goods by the interval between the plurality of shelf supports;
a target shelf number updating means for increasing the target shelf number by one when there is no vacant shelf having a number of levels that matches the target shelf number;
a storage means for storing the received items on an empty shelf when the empty shelf has a number of levels that matches the target number of shelf levels;
A second sensor that measures the mass of the received item;
Equipped with
The storage means includes:
a first storage means for storing the received item on a lowest vacant shelf among the vacant shelves when there is at least one vacant shelf with a number of shelves that matches the target number of shelves and the mass of the received item is equal to or greater than a mass threshold value;
a second storage means for storing the received item on the highest vacant shelf among the vacant shelves when there is at least one vacant shelf with a number of shelves matching the target number of shelves and the mass of the received item is less than the mass threshold value;
An automated warehouse characterized by : When a plurality of vacant shelves at the lowest position are present at the same height, the first storage means stores the received item in an vacant shelf at the lowest position that is closest to an entrance of the automated warehouse,
the second storage means stores the received item in an empty shelf at the highest position that is farthest from the entrance when a plurality of empty shelves at the highest position are present at the same height;
The automated warehouse according to claim 1 . The mass threshold is set to a larger value as the height of the stored item increases;
The automated warehouse according to claim 1 or 2 ,

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