BLOCK STORAGE ARRANGEMENT AND METHOD FOR OPERATING A BLOCK STORAGE ARRANGEMENT

Abstract

A block storage arrangement that includes multiple container receiving chambers; at least one container; and at least one loading vehicle, which is movable in a loading direction to the multiple container receiving chambers, includes a container receiver for the at least one container. Upstream of the multiple container receiving chambers in the loading direction, a container loading center of gravity of the at least one container is determined.

Claims

1. A block storage arrangement comprising: multiple container receiving chambers; at least one container; at least one loading vehicle, which is movable in a loading direction to the multiple container receiving chambers, includes a container receiver for the at least one container; and wherein, upstream of the multiple container receiving chambers in the loading direction, a container loading center of gravity of the at least one container is determined.

2. The block storage arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the determination of the center of gravity of the at least one container includes determining a loading eccentricity of the at least one container.

3. The block storage arrangement according to claim 1, wherein the determination of the center of gravity of the at least one container includes a determination of a mass of the at least one container.

4. The block storage arrangement according to claim 1, wherein one of the multiple container receiving chambers is selected for loading with the at least one container as a function of the determined container loading center of gravity.

5. The block storage arrangement according to claim 1, further comprising a device for determining the container loading center of gravity, which is arranged upstream of the container receiving chambers in the loading direction.

6. The block storage arrangement according to claim 5, wherein the device for determining a container loading center of gravity is configured to determine a loading eccentricity of the at least one container.

7. The block storage arrangement according to claim 5, wherein the device for determining a container loading center of gravity is configured to determine a mass of the at least one container.

8. The block storage arrangement according to claim 5, further comprising a control device that is coupled to the device for determining a container loading center of gravity, the control device being configured to select a container receiving chamber as a function of an output signal from the device for determining a container loading center of gravity.

9. The block storage arrangement according to claim 5, wherein the device for determining a container loading center of gravity comprises at least three weighing devices arranged at a distance from one another.

10. The block storage arrangement according to claim 9, wherein the device for determining a container loading center of gravity comprises four weighing devices, which are assigned to corners of the at least one container.

11. The block storage arrangement according to claim 5, wherein the device for determining a container loading center of gravity is arranged one of in a work or transfer station or on the loading vehicle.

12. The block storage arrangement according to claim 5, wherein the device for determining a container loading center of gravity comprises an optical recording device.

13. A method for operating a block storage arrangement having multiple container receiving chambers and at least one loading vehicle, which is moved in a loading direction to the container receiving chambers, comprising: transporting at least one container into one of the multiple container receiving chambers; and determining a container loading center of gravity of the at least one container before the at least one container is stored in the one container receiving chamber.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein the one container receiving chamber is selected as a function of the determined container loading center of gravity.

15. The method according to claim 13, wherein, before each at least one container is transported to the multiple receiving chambers, the container loading center of gravity of each at least one container is determined.

16. The method according to claim 13, wherein the determining of the container loading center of gravity comprises determining a weight force at multiple different positions on the at least one container.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein, from the determining of the weight force at multiple positions on the at least one container, a total mass of the at least one container is determined.

18. The method according to claim 13, wherein the container loading center of gravity of the at least one container load is determined optically.

19. The method according to claim 13, further comprising: determining an eccentricity of the container loading center of gravity of the at least one container; and selecting the one container receiving chamber as a function of the determined eccentricity.

Description

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0037] The invention is described below with reference to preferred embodiments in conjunction with the drawings. In the figures:

[0038] FIG. 1 shows a schematic representation of a stacking storage arrangement;

[0039] FIG. 2 shows a schematic plan view of a stacking storage arrangement; and

[0040] FIG. 3 shows an alternative embodiment of a work station.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0041] The particulars shown herein are by way of example and for purposes of illustrative discussion of the embodiments of the present invention only and are presented in the cause of providing what is believed to be the most useful and readily understood description of the principles and conceptual aspects of the present invention. In this regard, no attempt is made to show structural details of the present invention in more detail than is necessary for the fundamental understanding of the present invention, the description taken with the drawings making apparent to those skilled in the art how the several forms of the present invention may be embodied in practice.

[0042] FIG. 1 shows, in schematic form, a stacking storage arrangement 1 with multiple container receiving chambers 2, in which containers or bins 3 can be stored in stacks. The stacking storage arrangement 1 has multiple such container receiving chambers 2, which may be arranged in the form of a matrix having rows and columns. For example, live columns and sixteen rows can be provided to accommodate a total of eighty stacks of containers 3.

[0043] The containers 3 are inserted into the respective container receiving chamber 2 from below and are also removed from the respective container receiving chamber 2 from below. A loading chamber 4 is arranged below the container receiving chambers 2 in the direction of gravity. A holding arrangement 5 is provided between the loading chamber 4 and the container receiving chambers 2, of which only one frame is shown here. The holding arrangement 5 has a holding device for each container receiving chamber 2, which can, for example, have multiple holding pawls, which hold the respective lowermost container of a stack and prevent the movement of the lowermost container and thus the movement of the stack in the loading chamber 4.

[0044] If a container 3 is to be stored in a container receiving chamber 2, such container 3 is moved into the loading chamber 4 by a loading vehicle 6. If the loading vehicle 6 has reached a position below a container receiving chamber 2 into which the container 3 to be stored is to be stored, a container receiver 7 of the loading vehicle 6 is raised, and this until the container 3 to be stored comes into contact with the lowermost container of a stack. The container receiver 7 is further raised and then lifts not only the container 3 to be stored, but also the stack of the remaining containers held within the respective receiving chamber 2. Such lifting takes place until the container 3 to be stored has been moved past the holding device. Subsequently, the entire stack, including the container to be stored, is lowered until the holding device engages with the newly stored container and holds it in place.

[0045] When a container is removed, the loading vehicle 6 is moved again to a position below the container stack. The container receiver 7 is lifted until it comes into contact with the container to be removed. The container receiver 7 is further raised and then lifts the entire stack within the respective receiving chamber 2, and continues to do so until the container to be removed is released from the holding device. The holding device is then released, for example by pivoting holding pawls of the holding device up and out of the path of movement of the container, in other words into a release position. The holding device is then held open until the container to be removed has been moved into the loading chamber 4 by lowering the container receiver. The holding device is then reactivated, such that the holding device can again hold the lower container of the remaining stack within the respective receiving chamber 2. The loading vehicle 6, three of which are shown in FIG. 1, then conveys the containers 3 in a lowered position from the loading chamber 4 to a work station 8.

[0046] A work station 8 is arranged outside the container receiving chambers 2. The work station 8 has a transfer region 9 in which at least one transport device 10 is arranged, which is guided in a circulation and has multiple driven rollers 11. The loading vehicle 6 can then transfer the respective container 3 to the transport device 10 or take over a container 3 from the transport device 10, for which transfer fingers 12, 13 are provided. It is possible to move the respective container 3 on the transport device 10 over the entire circulation. This makes it possible to transport the container 3 to a handling station 14, which is a component of the work station 8, and in which an operator 15 has access to the container 3 in order to, e.g., remove goods or objects therefrom or to insert such goods or objects into the container 3. The work station 8 can also be used to store a container 3 in the block storage arrangement 1 for the first time.

[0047] The work station 8 can also be constructed in other ways. If containers are loaded and unloaded at a different position, the work station 8 can also be replaced by a transfer station, in which containers are transferred from a conveyor system to the block storage arrangement. In the following discussion, reference to a work station 8 can also be understood as reference to a transfer station.

[0048] If one or more objects or products are stored in the container 3, there is a risk that they will be unevenly arranged/distributed in the container 3, such that the center of gravity of the container, which is hereinafter referred to as the container loading center of gravity, does not coincide with the center of mass of the container 3 and therefore will be off-center. In general, this is not yet critical when considering only a single container 3. However, if multiple containers are stacked on top of one another in the direction of gravity and the container loading center of gravity in all containers deviates in the same direction from the horizontal center of the container 3, there is a risk that the container stack 3 will tilt and act with impermissibly high lateral forces on the posts 16, which are arranged at the corners of the container stacking chambers 2 and delimit the container stacking chambers, if necessary with cross members located between the posts 16. On the other hand, there is a risk that the holding device 5 of a container stacking chamber 2 will be unevenly loaded. For example, if the holding device 5 of a container stacking chamber 2 has four holding pawls arranged in the region of the four corners of the container stacking chamber 2 and the container loading centers of gravity of all containers are arranged in one corner, then most of the weight force exerted by the container stack on the holding device 5 acts on the holding pawl in such corner. This can lead to the holding pawl being overloaded and ultimately losing its function or being damaged. In such a case, there is also a risk that the lower container of a stack will be overloaded and damaged at an edge or corner.

[0049] To minimize the risk of damage to or malfunction of the block storage arrangement 1, a device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity is provided, as shown schematically in FIGS. 2 and 3, which is arranged in front of the container receiving chambers 2 in a loading direction from the work station 8 to the container receiving chambers 2. Thus, the device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity can detect or sense a container loading center of gravity before the container 3 is stored in the container receiving chamber 2.

[0050] Thereby, the device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity can be arranged in the work station 8, for example in the region of the transport device 10, as shown in FIG. 2. However, it can also be arranged on the loading vehicle 6 or at any other location through which a container 3 must pass before being stored in a container receiving chamber 2.

[0051] In the present case, the device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity has multiple weighing devices in the form of load cells 18. In the present case, four load cells 18, which are assigned to the four corners of a container 3, are provided. Each of the load cells 18 determines a part of the weight force exerted by the container 3, such that the sum of such weight force also allows a statement to be made regarding the mass of the container. Thus, the device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity preferably also determines a mass of the container 3. The device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity is connected to a control device 19, which determines the position of the container loading center of gravity from the signals of the load cells 18. Thereby, the control device 19 can also determine the distance from the center of gravity of the container 3 and the direction in which the center of gravity of the container load is away from the horizontal center point of the container 3. Typically, the center of gravity of the container 3 is at the center point in the horizontal direction. One can also use the device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity to check, when a container 3 is stored in the block storage arrangement 1 for the first time, whether or not the center of gravity of the container 3 is arranged within permissible limits around the center point of the container 3 in the horizontal direction. Control device 19 can include a processor and one or more memory/storage units, provided in control device 19 or externally thereto, can store a set of instructions for determining the distance from the center of gravity of container 3 and the direction in which the center of gravity of the container load is away from the horizontal center point of the container 3 from the container loading center of gravity determined from device 17, such that the processor of the control device 19 is configured to execute the instructions stored in the one or more memory/storage units.

[0052] The control device 19 can determine an eccentricity of the container loading center of gravity from the distance, magnitude and the direction of the container loading center of gravity from the center of gravity or center point of the container 3. If the eccentricity exceeds a predetermined limit value, the control device 19 can generate an alarm signal, such that the operator 15 can check the loading of the container 3. The one or more memory/storage units can further include a set of instructions to determine the eccentricity of the container loading center of gravity from the distance, magnitude and the direction of the container loading center of gravity from the center of gravity or center point of the container 3 that is executable by the processor of control device 19.

[0053] Preferably, however, the control device 19 is also used for a further object. The control device 19 stores the eccentricities of all containers 3 in a container receiving chamber 2 and can then determine whether or not the eccentricity of a new container 3 to be stored is still permissible. If there are already many containers 3 in a container receiving chamber 2, the eccentricities of which all point in the same direction, the control device 19 will no longer be able to store the new container to be stored in such container receiving chamber 2, but the control device 19 gives the loading vehicle 6 the command to move to another container receiving chamber 2 and store the container 3 there, wherein the newly selected container receiving chamber 2 has a container stack with a permissible total eccentricity that is not changed in an impermissible manner by the eccentricity of the new container 3 to be stored.

[0054] Thus, one proceeds as follows:

[0055] If a container 3 is loaded or unloaded in the work station, i.e., if a product or an object is stored in or removed from a container 3, the container 3 is passed over the device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity, and there, with the aid of the control device 19, the position and magnitude of the container loading center of gravity, in other words the eccentricity, are determined. Furthermore, the total mass of the container 3 is determined.

[0056] The holding device at the lower end of a container receiving chamber 2 in the direction of gravity is designed for a maximum load, for example 750 kg. Thereby, there is also a maximum displacement of the load center of gravity of the stack of, for example, 75 mm for a dimension of the containers 3 in plan view of 450650 mm.

[0057] The container 3 is thus guided over the device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity, and there the center of gravity and the mass of the container 3 are determined with the aid of the load cells 18. A possible eccentricity per container 3 can be allowed as function of its weight at the work station 8. The smaller the payload of the container 3, i.e., the mass of the stored objects or products, the greater the permitted eccentricity.

[0058] Based on the determined mass and the determined eccentricity, the control device 19 now determines a container receiving chamber 2 into which the container 3 can be moved, without the sum of the eccentricities in relation to the stack weight being outside a certain permissible range. The greater the total stack weight, the smaller the load-specific eccentricity.

[0059] A single container is approved for an eccentric center of gravity of approximately 150 mm at maximum loading. If, with the aid of the device 17 for determining a container loading center of gravity, it is determined that, in the case of a container 3, its center of gravity exceeds such value, the operator 15 receives an error message that the loading of the container 3 must be changed.

[0060] FIG. 3 shows a modified embodiment. Here, in addition to the load cells 18, an optical recording device 20 is provided, which can look in at a container that is open at the top in the direction of gravity and optically determine how the load of the container 3 is arranged. The optical recording device 20, which can be a digital camera or digital sensor for determining the load distribution by image processing, see, e.g., a 2D machine vision inspector (see https://www.sick.com/de/en/machine-vision/2d-machine-vision/inspector/c/g114860) by Sick AG, can be provided in addition to or as an alternative to the weighing device.

[0061] The connection between the control device 19 and the loading vehicle 6 can be made without a wire or with the aid of a signal wire.

[0062] In many cases, one will determine the container loading center of gravity of the container 3 prior to each time the container 3 is stored in a container receiving chamber 2, with the exception of so-called restacking operations. with which a container 3 is removed from one container receiving chamber 2 and stored in another container receiving chamber 2. This is possible because the control device 19 already has information regarding the eccentricity of the container 3 to be transferred or restacked. The control device 19 can then ensure that an impermissibly high eccentricity of the loading center of gravity of the total stack in a container receiving chamber 2 does not occur, even during a restacking operation. However, it is also possible to provide that a container loading center of gravity is also determined during each restacking operation.

[0063] It is noted that the foregoing examples have been provided merely for the purpose of explanation and are in no way to be construed as limiting of the present invention. While the present invention has been described with reference to an exemplary embodiment, it is understood that the words which have been used herein are words of description and illustration, rather than words of limitation. Changes may be made, within the purview of the appended claims, as presently stated and as amended, without departing from the scope and spirit of the present invention in its aspects. Although the present invention has been described herein with reference to particular means, materials and embodiments, the present invention is not intended to be limited to the particulars disclosed herein; rather, the present invention extends to all functionally equivalent structures, methods and uses, such as are within the scope of the appended claims.