METHOD OF LOADING/UNLOADING CONTAINERS IN A PORT FACILITY

Abstract

There is the method of loading and unloading containers in a port facility. The facility includes quayside cranes, automated gantries for stacking/unstacking containers, vehicles for transporting containers, communication lanes for vehicles including transit lanes under each quayside crane and parallel circulation lanes situated between the quayside cranes and access lanes to the automated gantries. The method includes managing journeys of the vehicles as a function of the container removal and placement requirements, in particular the allocating to each vehicle of a task and of a destination and the selecting of a provisional parking site for the vehicles in transit in buffer zones provided for this purpose. The vehicles are assigned to provisional parking sites under the cranes and/or in the proximal circulation lane of the cranes, which are used as a buffer zone.

Claims

1. A method for loading and unloading containers in a harbor facility, said harbor facility being comprised of ship-to-shore cranes, automated container stacking/unstacking gantries, vehicles for transporting containers between the cranes and the gantries as well as communication lanes for said vehicles including passageways under each ship-to-shore crane and parallel traffic lanes located between the ship-to-shore cranes and access roads to the automated gantries, the method comprising the steps of: managing paths of the vehicles depending on the needs of removal or deposition of the containers, and assigning to each vehicle of a task and a destination and the selection of a temporary parking location for the vehicles in transit in buffer areas provided for this purpose, wherein container transport vehicles in transit are assigned to temporary parking locations under the cranes and/or on the traffic lanes proximate to the cranes, used as a buffer area.

2. The method for loading and unloading containers in a harbor facility, according to the preceding claim, wherein, for parking in a location of the buffer area located under a crane, the path assigned to a vehicle, depending on the exact location under the crane assigned to same, is calculated so as to cover a minimal distance compatible with the capacities and characteristics of the vehicle, in particular its steering radius and its length and without passing under an adjacent crane.

3. The method for loading and unloading containers in a harbor facility, wherein the path assigned to an empty vehicle is calculated taking into consideration the possibility of entering into/leaving a location under a crane on both sides of said crane.

4. The method for loading and unloading containers in a harbor facility, according to claim 2, wherein the path assigned to a vehicle loaded with a container is calculated taking into consideration the possibility of entering into a location under a crane on one side and of leaving on either side.

5. An arrangement of the functional elements of a harbor facility comprising: a plurality of ship-to-shore cranes placed perpendicular to the direction of the quay, automated container stacking/unstacking gantries, communication lanes for container transport vehicles including passageways under each ship-to-shore crane, parallel traffic lanes located between the cranes and access roads to the automated gantries, as well as buffer areas for parking the container transport vehicles in transit, wherein the cranes are spaced apart so that the container transport vehicles placed under a crane and leave it without passing under the adjacent crane, and wherein said buffer areas are formed by locations arranged under the cranes and/or on the traffic lane proximate to the cranes.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS

[0023] The invention will now be described in more detail by means of the following figures.

[0024] FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a harbor facility according to the invention.

[0025] FIG. 2 shows a schematic view of a facility, shown in the same way, which represents the prior art.

[0026] FIG. 3 shows a schematic view of two distinct diagrams the phases of entering and leaving, respectively, of a container transport vehicle traveling empty, according to the method of the invention.

[0027] FIG. 4 shows a schematic view of an exemplary operation particularly optimized thanks to the contribution of the invention.

[0028] FIG. 5 is a schematic view of the counterpart of FIG. 3, for a vehicle loaded with a container.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0029] When referring to FIG. 1, the harbor facility includes cranes (1) located essentially perpendicular to the quay (2) and covering passageways (3). The harbor cranes (1) are conventionally in the form of lifting platforms, and include a portion (4) located above the basin, and hence of a ship when one is at dock, and a portion (5) located above the passageways (3), which is potentially located above the container transport vehicles (6) or temporarily parked at this location, according to an original feature of the invention, or during loading/unloading.

[0030] Automated gantries (7), which also permit the loading/unloading of vehicles (6), organize the storage by stacking of containers proceeding from ships and hence from the cranes (1). Conversely, they are also used for unstacking containers they take from the inventories formed for loading empty transport vehicles (6), which then transship them to the cranes (1).

[0031] Between the crane area (1), on the one hand, and the storage area comprising the gantries (7), on the other hand, traffic lanes (8) parallel to the passageways (3) and more generally to the quay (2) are provided in order to permit the vehicles (6) to move between the aforementioned two areas. The proximal lane (8a) can be assigned to a temporary parking. These lanes (8) are for a single direction of circulation, in particular in order to facilitate the automation of the loading/unloading method, as shown by the arrows on the lines, which symbolize them.

[0032] Access lanes (9) to the automated gantries (7) end on the said traffic lanes (8). At their end, container deposition/removal stations, the number of which is equal to that of the access lanes (9), are provided for cooperating with a gantry (7).

[0033] The facility of the prior art, shown in FIG. 2, includes in practice the same functional elements, and is only partially shown in order to highlight the differences with the invention. Thus, in FIG. 2, the crane area (1′) at the level of the quay (2′) is represented as a principal, as well as only two traffic lanes (8′), the main structural difference being at this level. It essentially consists in the existence, in the prior art, of a buffer area (10′) for parking the so-called container transport vehicles (6′) in transit when they are not assigned to a specific task or when they cannot access their destination. In other words, all the vehicles that are not in use temporarily or cannot access a ship-to-shore crane, for example, must be parked to avoid congesting the traffic lanes of these vehicles, unless they impede the progress of other vehicles having an assigned task and are likely to perform it. This buffer zone (10′) separates in practice the passageways (3′) from the traffic lanes (8′), requiring the vehicles (6′) in transit to go to the end of the ones in order to have access to the others. This obligation of circulating on the full length of the lanes (3′) has several consequences, which is prejudicial to the possibilities of optimization, because, besides a significant increase in processing time, it permits only one vehicle per lane (3′) to be loaded/unloaded by a crane (1), and the other lanes (3′) must be left free for the circulation of the other vehicles (6′). Finally, the system should provide for shifting the processing locations from one crane (1′) to another, which requires for the automated system a constant scanning of the activity of each crane (1′) in order to obtain this information, and a sequencing of the operations. This causes multiple and repeated losses of time and significantly increases the overall processing of the information in a method for automating the operation of a harbor facility. Mainly the sequencing due to the necessity of processing only one vehicle (6′) per crane (1′) results into the need for a temporary parking area.

[0034] On the other hand, in the operation of the invention, such as for example shown in FIG. 3 for empty vehicles (6) in transit, i.e. to which the processing system has assigned the task of going empty to a predetermined location for a container, the number of transfer locations is multiplied by 5 per crane (1), and it is no longer necessary to proceed to a sequencing. The possible paths of the vehicles (6) are represented by the grey shaded loop, the arrows symbolizing the paths for entering and leaving, respectively, from and to the traffic lanes (8), while respecting their direction of circulation. The operations for reaching/leaving a location under a crane (1) are the same for the 5 locations under each crane (1), as depicted in the drawing.

[0035] FIG. 4 shows a particular case in that the path between the automated gantry (7) and the crane (1), which path is assigned by the facility management program, is the shortest possible one in an arrangement such as shown in FIG. 1. Whenever possible, this path is programmed by the automated operating system, for optimization purposes, i.e. in practice in order to obtain a time gain, to which is added an energy saving, etc.

[0036] FIG. 5 shows the procedure that a vehicle (6) loaded with a container follows to reach an assigned location: in this case, due to the presence of the container on the trailer, it must comply with a direction of entering, namely due the configuration of the extraction system of the crane (1), and which may require a half turn if the traffic lane (8) of arrival requires so. In order to leave, as shown in the lower part of FIG. 5, and according to the direction of circulation of the lane (8) assigned by the system, the displacement may occur in two different directions.

[0037] The examples of configuration described with reference to Figures are not exhaustive of the invention, which also encompasses the variants which fall within the scope of the claims.