JPH0431966B2 - - Google Patents

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION [Industrial Application Field] The present invention is characterized in that a shelf having a plurality of article storage zones in the width direction is provided, and an instruction means is provided for instructing information on taking out articles from the shelf. related to sorting equipment.

[Conventional technology]

Such article sorting equipment is capable of sorting multiple types of articles into containers destined for the same shipping destination by, for example, storing the articles taken out by a worker based on an article removal instruction into containers conveyed along a container conveyance line. It is designed to store items.

Incidentally, the shelf is generally divided into a plurality of shelf parts along the transport direction of the container transport line, that is, along the width direction, and different types of articles are stored in each partitioned shelf part. Then, instructions for taking out articles are given to each shelf section separately. In other words, a worker is assigned to each of the shelf sections, and while the containers are being transported from the shelf section on the upper side of transport to the shelf section on the lower side of transport, the shelf section that each worker is in charge of is assigned to each worker. By taking out articles from containers and storing them in containers, it is possible to store a wide variety of articles in containers destined for the same shipping destination, while reducing the responsibilities of one worker.

In addition, only one type of item can be placed on each shelf.
In the case of storage, only the amount of the article to be taken out needs to be instructed, but if a plurality of types of articles are stored on one shelf, the type of article and the amount to be taken out must be specified.

By the way, in such article sorting equipment,
As items are taken out, it is necessary to replenish the shelves with items whose remaining amount has decreased.

Conventionally, the decision to replenish the items has been made by a replenishment worker while checking the remaining amount of items at a timely manner. In addition, in actual replenishment work, as shown in FIG. 11, a plurality of article replenishment vehicles 101 are installed on the back side of the shelf 100 to store various articles in a separated state, and a replenishment worker drives the article replenishment vehicle. Articles taken out from 101 are supplied to shelf 100.
Incidentally, when the article replenishment vehicle 101 becomes empty, the replenishment worker also performs the work of replacing the article replenishment vehicle 101 with a new article replenishment vehicle 101.

However, in the example diagram, the two rows of shelves 100 are
The shelves 100 are provided with their backs facing each other, and an article replenishment vehicle 101 is arranged between the shelves 100. Further, 102 in the figure is a container conveyance line.

[Problem that the invention seeks to solve]

According to the above-mentioned conventional means, if the replenishment worker confirms the replenishment of items on the shelves, there is a risk that the replenishment worker may forget to confirm or make an incorrect confirmation, resulting in inaccurate replenishment. At the same time, the actual replenishment work is carried out by the replenishment workers themselves, supporting the goods, which requires a great deal of effort when replenishing the shelves that are far away from the replenishment vehicle. Not only is this disadvantageous, but also the disadvantage is that the work cannot be carried out efficiently, and in some cases, there is a risk that the replenishment of goods may be delayed, resulting in the inconvenience of having to interrupt the sorting work.

The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned circumstances, and its purpose is to enable accurate replenishment of goods on shelves and to perform the actual replenishment work efficiently with little effort. At the point.

[Means for solving problems]

A characteristic configuration of the article sorting equipment according to the present invention is that a remaining article management means is provided for managing the amount of articles remaining on the shelf in correspondence with the type of article, and
An article that is provided with an article replenishment command notification means for replenishing the article whose remaining amount has decreased and instructing the replenishment amount based on the information of the remaining article management means, and for transporting the article to be replenished on the shelf. A conveyance line is provided on the back side of the shelf, and a distribution supply means is provided for distributing and supplying the articles conveyed by the article conveyance line to each of the article storage zones. The action and effect are as follows.

[Effect]

That is, when the remaining amount of items stored on the shelf decreases, the worker is notified of the need to replenish the decreased amount of items and the amount of replenishment.
Based on this article replenishment command, the articles transported by the article conveyance line are distributed and supplied to each article storage zone of the shelf to replenish the shelves, and the article replenishment worker , it is only necessary to perform the work of supplying the instructed replenishment articles in the instructed replenishment amount to the article conveyance line. The work of supplying the replenishment articles to the article conveyance line can be performed efficiently with little effort, since it is sufficient to simply supply the replenishment articles onto the article conveyance line.

In other words, for example, when performing replenishment work with multiple replenishment vehicles lined up along the transport direction of an article transport line, the articles taken out from each replenishment vehicle are placed near the replenishment vehicle. This eliminates the need to carry replenishment items over a large area, such as by simply supplying them to a conveyance line, and the replenishment work can be carried out efficiently with little effort.

〔Effect of the invention〕

Therefore, it becomes possible to replenish the shelves with goods without delay and with an accurate amount of replenishment without excess or deficiency, and it also becomes possible to replenish the goods efficiently with a small amount of labor. It has become possible to perform the sorting work more efficiently without incurring the trouble of having to interrupt the sorting work due to a delay in replenishment.

〔Example〕

Embodiments of the present invention will be described below based on the drawings.

As shown in FIG. 1, the article sorting equipment includes an article replenishment work area A and an article sorting work area B.
A pair of article conveyance lines 1 are arranged between both work areas A and B.

As shown in FIG. 6, the article replenishment work area A includes a plurality of article replenishment vehicles 3 that store multiple types of boxed articles A storage stand 4 is provided which stores the items separately and in a stacked manner.

Therefore, the goods replenishment worker located in the goods replenishment work area A unpacks the goods X on the goods replenishment vehicle 3 and supplies them to the storage table 4, and stores the goods in the storage table 4 based on the replenishment command described later. The work of supplying the article Xa to the article transport line 1 and the work of replacing the empty article replenishment vehicle 3 with a new article replenishment vehicle 3 are performed.

However, 2 in the figure is a main indicator light, which will be described later.

As shown in FIG. 2, the article sorting work area B has two rows of shelves 5 for storing multiple types of articles Xa.
are arranged with their backs facing each other, and a container conveyor 6 serving as a container conveying line for conveying the containers Z for storing articles is provided at a location on the front side of each shelf 5, and the article conveying line 1 is , are respectively provided on the back side of each shelf 5, and further provided with a distribution supply means K for distributing the articles Xa conveyed by the article conveyance line 1 to the article storage zones N lined up in the width direction of the shelves 5. It is being

As shown in FIG. 3, the shelf 5 is formed in a so-called gravity rack type in which the loading surface formed by the idling rollers R is inclined so that it becomes lower toward the front side. Articles supplied to the back side can be moved to the front side by their own weight.

Further, as shown in FIG. 2, the shelves 5 are arranged along the conveyance direction of the container conveyor 6, that is,
It is divided into a plurality of sections along the width direction, and each of the sectioned shelf portions 5A is provided with upper and lower load placement sections 5a. Three article storage zones N are provided.

Therefore, a plurality of article retrieval workers are arranged on the front side of the shelf 5, one for each shelf portion 5A, and the article retrieval workers receive article retrieval information, which will be described later. The task is to store the items taken out in the container Z based on the instructions.

The article conveyance line 1 includes a pair of upper and lower belt conveyors 1A, 1A corresponding to the upper and lower loading parts 5a of the shelves 5, and the belt conveyors 1A,
A branch conveyor 1B is provided at the conveyance start end of the conveyor 1A, which is vertically swingable using a hydraulic cylinder or the like. Therefore, by swinging the branch conveyor 1B,
The article can be conveyed while switching between a state in which the article is conveyed to the upper belt conveyor 1A and a condition in which the article is conveyed to the lower belt conveyor 1A.

As shown in FIGS. 3 to 5, the distribution and supply means K pushes and supplies articles to a shelf side to each of a pair of upper and lower car bodies 19 that are movable in the conveyance direction of the belt conveyor 1A in the article conveyance line 1. It is constructed by attaching a pushing tool 20.

The vehicle body 19 runs along a guide rail 21 having a U-shaped cross section, and includes propulsion wheels 23 and idle wheels 24 driven by an electric motor 22 at the front and rear, and a steady rest. A plurality of rollers 25 are provided. Further, a current collecting unit 27 is provided which contacts the power feeding rail unit 26 attached to the guide rail 21.

The extrusion tool 20 has a pair of front and rear chains 28.
A pair of chains 28
are driven synchronously, the cover 1 of the vehicle body 19
By moving parallel to the shelf side while projecting to the front side of 9A, the article Xa is pushed out and supplied to the shelf side,
In addition, by moving in parallel to the side away from the shelf 5 while retracting the cover 19A inward,
It is designed to return to its initial position. Note that a pair of extrusion tools 20 are attached to the pair of chains 28.

Each of the pair of chains 28 includes an input gear 30 that rotates integrally with the drive sprocket 29, an interruption gear 31 that meshes with the input gear 30, a bevel gear 32 that rotates integrally with the interruption gear 31, and meshes with the bevel gear 32. , are interlocked and connected to the electric motor 33 by a gear transmission mechanism consisting of a bevel gear 34 driven and rotated by the electric motor 33, and are synchronously driven by the electric motor 33.

Therefore, the distribution supply means K moves the vehicle body 19 to a location corresponding to the desired article storage zone N, and in this state supplies the article Xa to the shelf 5 by operating the pusher 20. .

Next, an instruction means D for instructing information on taking out articles from the shelf 5, a remaining article management means E for managing the amount of articles remaining on the shelf 5 in accordance with the type of article, and information on the remaining article managing means E. On the basis of the,
A notification means F for an article replenishment command that instructs replenishment of an article whose remaining amount has decreased, a container conveying means G that drives the container conveyor 6 to convey the container Z, and the article conveying line 1 and the Each of the article replenishment means L that drives the distribution supply means K to replenish the shelves 5 with articles Xa will be explained.

First, to explain briefly based on FIGS. 8 and 9, when the contents of the order form 7 issued by a customer etc. are input to the host controller 8, the host controller 8 processes the order form 7. An order form 9 is created according to the contents, and goods are purchased according to the contents of the order form 9. Further, the host controller 8 creates work data based on the contents of the order form 7 input in advance, and sends the work data to
The work data is output to the work data storage means 10 to be stored in a storage medium such as a floppy disk.

A work controller 11 including a work data reading means 11A and an arithmetic processing unit 11B is provided corresponding to each of the shelves 5, and work data is input to this work controller 11 using the storage medium. . However, a management worker who manages the work controller 11 is provided, and this management worker inputs work data into the work controller 11 and supplies empty containers Z to the container transport conveyor 6. Work will be done.

When work data is input to the work controller 11 and work preparation is completed, the starting light 12
(see Figure 1) is lit, and based on this lighting,
As the management worker supplies empty containers Z to the container transport conveyor 6 as described above, the work controller 11 controls each of the means D, E, F, G, L.
The corresponding process will be executed.

The container conveying means G, as shown in FIG.
An electromagnetically operated egress/egress stopper 1 that receives a container Z at a location facing the front of each of the shelf portions 5A.
3 to control container transportation,
Based on information from a photo-interrupter type container detection sensor S located at a location on the downstream side of the conveyance of each stopper 13 to detect the passage of a container Z, and a reset switch 14 provided in a display H described later, the work controller 11 is adapted to operate the stopper 13 to move in and out.

In other words, when the container Z is received by the stopper 13, an article retrieval worker stores the article in the container Z, and when the reset switch 14 is operated upon completion of the article storage operation, the stopper 13 is retired and sends the container Z to the downstream side of the conveyance, and as the container detection sensor S detects the presence of a container once and then detects the absence of a container again, the stopper 13 is protruded and transports the following container Z. I will accept it.

Note that the container conveyor 6 is constructed using a roller conveyor that is constantly driven.
The stopper 13 is moved in and out through the space between adjacent rollers. In addition, 13a in the figure is
It is an electromagnetically operated entry/exit stopper that controls the conveyance of containers Z to the shelf side, that is, the work zone side, and it displays container presence/absence information on the shelf portion 5A on the uppermost side of conveyance, and on the lower side of conveyance. The work controller 11 performs entry/exit operations based on information from the photo-interrupter type container detection sensor Sa located at the location.

As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, the indicating means D includes a main indicator light 15 disposed at the top of each shelf section 5A, and a main indicator light 15 arranged at the top and bottom of each shelf section 5A. A pair of upper and lower auxiliary indicator lights 16 are provided correspondingly, and an indicator H is provided to correspond to each different type of article stored in the storage zone N of each shelf portion 5A, and the main indicator light 15 is turned on. This indicates that there is an article to be taken out on the shelf portion 5A, and the lighting of the auxiliary indicator light 16 indicates which side of the upper and lower loading parts 5a there is an article to be taken out. Further, the display H indicates the article to be taken out and the amount to be taken out.

That is, as shown in FIG. 7, the display H includes a lamp 17 indicating the article to be taken out, a numerical display section 18 indicating the amount of article to be taken out, and the reset switch 14 described above.

Further, the main and auxiliary indicator lights 15, 16 and the indicator H are connected to the work controller 1.
1. In other words, the work controller 11 manages the positions of the containers Z that are sequentially transported, and controls the shelf portion 5A where each container Z is located.
The main and auxiliary indicator lights 15, 16 and the display H provided in the main and auxiliary indicators are operated based on the work data.

Note that the lamp 17 provided in each display H will be turned off when the reset switch 14 provided in that display H is operated, and the auxiliary indicator light 16 will be turned off.
The main indicator light 15 will be turned off when all the articles have been taken out from the corresponding loading section 5a, and the main indicator light 15 will be turned off when all the articles have been taken out from the corresponding shelf section 5A. become.

The remaining article management means E performs management by calculating the difference between the amount of each article stored in the shelf 5 in advance and the amount of each article taken out from the shelf 5 by calculating the difference for each article. It is. In other words,
The amount of articles to be stored on the shelf 5 is input in advance to the work controller 11 for each article, and the work controller 11 calculates the difference between the pre-input storage amount and the amount taken out consumed during the work for each article. It will be calculated as follows.

As shown in FIGS. 1 and 6, the notification means F includes a main indicator light 2 provided in the article replenishment work area A;
and a display Ha provided corresponding to each of the plurality of types of articles stored in the storage table 4,
The display device Ha is the display device H attached to the shelf 5.
is configured the same as.

The main indicator light 2 is turned on to notify that there are articles to be replenished, and the display Ha is used to notify the article and the amount to be replenished. That is, as shown in FIG. 10, while the work controller 11 determines the remaining amount of articles based on the calculation result by the remaining article management means E,
When the remaining amount of articles is small, the main indicator light 2 and the display Ha are activated, and based on the replenishment completion information from each display Ha, it is determined that all replenishment is completed. Then, the operation of the main indicator light 2 will be stopped.

However, in order to activate the notification means F, the storage work for one container Z is treated as one order,
It is configured to be executed every time a set value order, for example 100 orders, is completed. Also, the display Ha
The belt conveyor 1 in the article conveyance line 1 notifies the articles to be replenished and the amount of replenishment thereof.
Notification is made to each of the article storage zones N lined up along the conveyance direction of A separately and in order from the article storage zone N on the upper side in the conveyance direction to the article storage zone N on the lower side in the conveyance direction. be.

The article replenishing means L is connected to the article conveyance line 1.
is operated in fixed amounts at regular intervals to move the vehicle body 19 in fixed amounts to the lower side of conveyance while performing so-called tact feeding, and at the same time, the pusher 20 is operated to convey from the article storage zone N on the upper side of conveyance. The articles Xa are sequentially distributed and supplied to the article storage zone N on the lower side, and when the distribution and supply work is completed, the body 19 is moved to the upper side of the conveyance and returned to the initial position, and the work is carried out. The controller 11 gives start commands and stop commands to the transport line 1, and uses the power supply rail unit 26 to
The work controller 11 controls the movement of the vehicle body 19 and the operation of the pushing tool 20.

However, when replenishing the plurality of loading parts 5a provided on the upper and lower sides of the shelf 5, it is necessary to complete the replenishment of the plurality of upper or lower loading parts 5a before replenishing the plurality of loading parts 5a on the other side. The branch conveyor 1B is oscillated by a command from the work controller 11 so as to replenish the article on the loading section 5a. Therefore, the notification means F also completes notification processing for the plurality of load placement sections 5a on the upper or lower side, and then performs notification processing for the plurality of load placement sections 5a on the other side.

In order to feed the article conveyance line 1 in tact, it goes without saying that information from a sensor that detects the feed amount, a timer that determines the conveyance stop time, etc. is used. 1
This is done using information from a sensor that detects the amount of movement of the car body 19 or a sensor that detects the position of the vehicle body 19 with respect to the shelf 5. Further, in order to operate the pushing tool 20, the pushing tool 20 may be operated after a set time after the vehicle body 19 has stopped, or may be operated based on detection information from the article presence/absence detection sensor 35 (see FIG. 5). It's okay.

[Another example]

In carrying out the present invention, the specific configuration of the container conveyance means G, the specific configuration of the shelf 5, the specific configuration of the notification means F, the specific configuration of the instruction means D, etc. can be changed in various ways depending on the purpose of use.

Further, the specific configuration of the article conveyance line 1 can be changed in various ways according to the configuration of the shelves 5, etc., and the configuration of the distribution supply means K can also be changed, for example, in each article storage zone N.
Various changes can be made, such as providing a push-out tool 20 corresponding to each one.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

The drawings show an embodiment of the article sorting equipment according to the present invention, FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view showing the entire article sorting equipment, FIG. 2 is a schematic front view of the shelf mounting section, and FIG. 3 is a diagram showing the distribution supply means. 4 is a cutaway rear view of the same, FIG. 5 is a cutaway plan view of the same, FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the article storage state, FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the display,
FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of the control configuration, FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing the control operation, and FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing the notification processing operation. FIG. 11 is a schematic plan view of a conventional example. DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1... Goods conveyance line, 5... Shelf, 19... Car body, 20... Extrusion tool, D... Instruction means, E...
Remaining goods management means, F... Notification means, K... Distribution supply means, N... Goods storage zone.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. An article sorting facility, which is provided with a shelf 5 having a plurality of article storage zones N in the width direction, and is provided with an instruction means D for instructing information on taking out articles from the shelf 5. , residual article management means E for managing the amount of articles remaining on the shelf 5 in accordance with the type of article;
is provided, and based on the information of the remaining article management means E, there is provided an article replenishment instruction notification means F for replenishing articles whose remaining amount has decreased and for instructing the replenishment amount. An article conveyance line 1 for conveying articles to be replenished is provided on the back side of the shelf 5, and a distribution supply system for distributing and supplying the articles conveyed by the article conveying line 1 to each article storage zone N. Article sorting equipment provided with means K. 2. According to claim 1, the distributing and supplying means K is configured by attaching a pusher 20 to a vehicle body 19 that is movable in the transport direction of the article transport line 1 and pushing out and supplying the goods to the shelf side. Article sorting equipment as described.