Material supply system for a manufacturing plant

Abstract

Material supply system for a manufacturing plant (2) for providing, in particular, box-shaped load carriers (3), wherein the material supply system (1) as such is transportable, in particular by means of a driverless transport system (6), wherein the material supply system (1) comprises a racking system (8) with a front (8a) and a back (8b) and wherein the racking system (8) forms at least one magazine slot (9), preferably at least two magazine slots (9), for storing load carriers (3), wherein the at least one magazine slot (9) extends, in particular from the back (8b) of the racking system (8), to the front (8a) of the racking system (8), wherein the material supply system (1) has at the front (8a) of the racking system (8) a motorized transfer system (10) mechanically connected to the racking system (8) for transferring the load carriers (3) to the production plant (2), with which the load carriers (3) can be automatically removed from the at least one magazine slot (9) and automatically positioned along the front (8a) of the racking system (8), wherein the transfer system (10) comprises a transfer carriage (14),wherein the transfer slide (14) for removing a load carrier (3) from a magazine slot (9) can be positioned in front of the respective magazine slot (9) at a magazine position assigned to the magazine slot (9), characterized by that the transfer sled (14) can be brought into a transfer state and a transport state, that the transfer sled (14) has a receiving section (27) for the respective removed load carrier (3), that the receiving section (27) can otherwise be pivoted into a transfer position and a transport position relative to the transfer sled (14), and that in the transfer state the receiving section (27) connects to the shaft floor (28) of the respective magazine shaft (9).

Description

[0001] The invention relates to a material supply system for a manufacturing plant for providing, in particular, box-shaped load carriers according to the preamble of claim 1, a manufacturing plant with such a material supply system according to claim 9, and a use of such a material supply system according to claim 12.

[0002] In manufacturing plants, an uninterrupted flow of materials is of paramount importance. Waiting times resulting from late or faulty material delivery, especially in mass production with its high cycle rates, almost always lead to significant economic losses. This is exacerbated by today's production concepts such as "just-in-time production," which streamline the overall manufacturing process. This streamlining means a material flow closely tailored to the individual production process, minimizing buffer capacities that were previously used to compensate for irregularities in the material flow. Against this backdrop, concepts for making material flow more flexible have become established.

[0003] From DE 18 99 955 U, an attachment for overhead traveling cranes is known which enables the transport and unloading of long materials by mounting lifting devices with stacking forks using the crane hook.

[0004] DE 691 02 822 T2 discloses a system and a device for handling and moving boxes or similar items.

[0005] DE 10 2008 022 489 A1 discloses a folding fork for industrial trucks, with a fork shaft and fork back designed to hold a load, wherein the fork shaft is rotatably attached to the fork back in the lower area of ​​the fork back about a pivot axis between an extended working position and a folded rest position and can be actuated by means of a drive device.

[0006] DE 10 2008 057 665 A1 describes a forklift truck with a lifting device on which a lifting carriage equipped with a load-handling device is arranged to be movable and can be driven by means of a lifting drive, wherein the load-handling device is formed by at least one foldable load section which is pivotable about a substantially horizontal pivot axis between an unfolded working position and a folded-in rest position,

[0007] DE 10 2014 007 539 A1 describes a device for picking load carriers that can be fitted with components for supplying at least one production and / or assembly line, comprising at least one picking module which has at least one loading platform for the load carriers and a manipulation device for moving the load carriers relative to the loading platform, and at least one driverless transport vehicle by means of which the picking module can be transported from at least one component storage area to at least one installation location.

[0008] The known material supply system (DE 20 2011 003 546 U1), from which the invention is based, can be transported as such by means of a motorized transport system. This transportable material supply system comprises a racking system with magazine compartments for storing box-shaped load carriers. The transport system also includes a handling unit with which load carriers stored in the racking system can be transferred, for example, to a production cell or the like.

[0009] While the well-known material supply system does increase flexibility in terms of material flow in a manufacturing plant, this advantage comes at the cost of a complex, integrated transport and handling system.

[0010] The invention is based on the problem of designing and further developing the known material supply system in such a way that the structural design of the components involved in the material supply is simplified.

[0011] The above problem is solved in a material supply system according to the preamble of claim 1 by the features of the characterizing part of claim 1.

[0012] The fundamental consideration is to integrate a motorized transfer system into the shelving system of the material handling system itself. This system facilitates the transfer of load carriers from the shelving system to a production cell or similar. This allows for the use of cost-effective, driverless transport systems, readily available throughout a production facility, for transporting the material handling system, thus enabling a fully automated material flow. Ultimately, the only requirement is compatibility between the mechanical interfaces of the transport system and the material handling system. In the simplest scenario, it is even conceivable that the proposed material handling system could be transported semi-automatically or entirely manually, for example, using a simple pallet truck, while the transfer of the load carriers would be automated.

[0013] Specifically, it is proposed that the material supply system at the front of the racking system includes a motorized transfer system, mechanically connected to the racking system, for transferring the load carriers to the production line. This transfer system allows the load carriers to be automatically removed from at least one magazine slot and automatically positioned along the front of the racking system in transfer positions.

[0014] It is already clear here that a proposed transfer system can be exceptionally simple in design. With regard to the shelving system of the material handling system, this is because the entire transfer can be accomplished with linear handling movements. Based on this understanding, it is also appropriate to always assign a dedicated transfer system to a proposed shelving system, by mechanically connecting the motorized transfer system to the shelving system. The term "mechanically connected" is to be understood broadly here and encompasses, on the one hand, the connection of two otherwise separate components in the classical sense using a connection technology. On the other hand, it also includes the integration of a part of the transfer system into the shelving system.

[0015] The proposed solution allows for a flexible design of the racking system with magazine chutes that can be arranged one above the other and / or next to each other, particularly in magazine rows or magazine columns. The arrangement in magazine rows and magazine columns allows for a particularly simple mechanical design of the transfer system, as explained above.

[0016] The further preferred embodiments according to claims 3 to 5 relate to such a mechanically simple design of the transfer system. The transfer system is proposed to be equipped with a transfer carriage that can be positioned in front of the respective magazine slot as needed to remove a load carrier from it. The term "carriage" is to be understood in a general sense, meaning that the movement of the carriage is a displacement in a plane, which is easily implemented in the design. According to claim 3, this plane is referred to as the "travel plane," in which the transfer carriage can be moved by means of a positioning drive system.

[0017] In the particularly preferred embodiment according to claim 4, the travel plane is aligned parallel to the front of the racking system, which is designed as a flat side, so that the transfer of the load carrier from the racking system can be implemented with few degrees of freedom of movement.

[0018] In the further preferred embodiment according to claim 5, the positioning drive system for the movement of the transfer carriage manages with only two linear units, which in a preferred embodiment are arranged in a particularly compact design in the manner of a cross table, i.e. mechanically on top of each other.

[0019] The forward movement of the load carriers towards the front of the racking system within the at least one magazine shaft is, according to claim 6, gravity-driven and thus cost-effective, with the shaft floor of the at least one magazine shaft then preferably being designed as a roller conveyor or the like. Alternatively, it is also possible that a corresponding drive system is provided for this forward movement.

[0020] Advantageous variants for implementing the removal of the load carriers from the at least one magazine slot are the subject of claims 7 and 8, respectively. Here, the transfer system comprises a removal system for removing the load carriers from the at least one magazine slot and for transferring the load carriers onto the transfer carriage. In a first alternative according to claim 8, the function of the removal system is simply based on the controlled activation or deactivation of a movement limiter for the load carriers, for example, in the form of a controllable end stop. This is particularly advantageous in conjunction with the aforementioned gravity-driven advancement of the load carriers in the at least one magazine slot. Alternatively or additionally, according to a second alternative of claim 8, a removal drive system can be provided that ensures a particularly reproducible transfer of the load carriers.

[0021] Even though the proposed transfer system has a very low profile at the front of the racking system, the transfer carriage must bridge a certain distance to the production cell or similar, at least during the transfer process. To minimize the space required for the material handling system, especially during transport, the transfer carriage is designed to be movable into a transport position, preferably a space-saving one. In the simplest case, and as proposed, a section of the transfer carriage can be swung into this transport position.

[0022] According to a further teaching, as per claim 9, which has independent significance, a manufacturing plant is claimed as such, which is equipped with at least one material supply system as proposed.

[0023] In a particularly preferred embodiment, the proposed production plant is a production plant in which the proposed material supply system automatically transfers load carriers to the production cells of the plant. Reference may be made to all descriptions of the proposed material supply system.

[0024] A preferred arrangement within the proposed production plant is the subject of claim 10, according to which the production plant comprises at least one material receiving system. Such a material receiving system is advantageously part of a production cell that needs to be supplied with material for production. Accordingly, the material receiving system comprises one or more receiving units for load carriers. The proposed material supply system serves for the automated transfer of load carriers to the material receiving system. For this purpose, it is provided that the material supply system, preferably by means of an automated guided vehicle (AGV), is transported in front of the material receiving system, wherein the load carriers stored in the at least one magazine slot of the material supply system can be transferred to the at least one receiving unit of the material receiving system by means of the transfer system.A particularly advantageous aspect according to claim 11 is the fact that the load carrier removed can be flexibly positioned in the desired receiving position by means of the transfer carriage. This enables the transfer of the respective load carrier to an optimal receiving position in such a way that manual handling for the provision of the load carriers is no longer necessary.

[0025] According to a further teaching as claimed in claim 12, which also has independent significance, the use of a proposed material supply system for providing the above-mentioned load carriers in a production plant is claimed. Reference may also be made in this respect to all descriptions of the proposed material supply system and, in particular, of the proposed production plant.

[0026] The invention will now be explained in more detail with reference to a drawing that illustrates only one embodiment. The drawing shows Fig. 1. A proposed manufacturing plant with a proposed material supply system in a top view, Fig. 2 the material supply system according to Fig. 1 in a perspective view and Fig. 3 the material supply system and the material receipt system according to Fig. 1 in area III in a fanned-out view.

[0027] The material supply system 1 shown in the drawing is preferably used in a production plant 2, in particular a linked plant, and serves there to provide load carriers 3, preferably box-shaped, and in particular to transfer these load carriers 3 to production cells 4, 5 of the production plant 2. The load carriers 3 contain material that is to be supplied to the production cells 4, 5 as part of the material flow.

[0028] According to the representation Fig. It can be seen from Figure 2 that the material supply system 1 is transportable by means of an automated guided vehicle (AGV) 6. This allows for the automation of material supply with varying degrees of automation, up to and including fully automated material supply. Here, and preferably, the transport system 6 can simply be coupled to the material supply system 1 for transport purposes and is not an integral part of the material supply system 1, resulting in a cost-effective implementation of the material supply system 1. However, the transport system 6 can also be an integral part of the material supply system 1.

[0029] Production plant 2 is a Fig. 1 is assigned to a control system 7, which issues corresponding commands to the components of the production plant 2. For the sake of simplicity, in Fig. 1. Radio-based communication with the control system 7 is indicated.

[0030] Fig. Figure 2 shows that the material supply system 1 comprises a racking system 8 with a front 8a and a back 8b, which forms at least one magazine compartment 9, preferably at least two magazine compartments 9, for storing load carriers 3. In the illustrated and thus preferred embodiment, more than two magazine compartments 9, namely a total of eight magazine compartments 9, are provided. The number of magazine compartments 9 can be selected depending on the material flow constraints. When multiple magazine compartments 9 are mentioned here, these descriptions apply accordingly to an embodiment with only a single magazine compartment 9.

[0031] The magazine slots 9 extend towards the front 8a of the racking system 8, allowing the load carriers 3 to be removed from the front 8a. Preferably, the magazine slots 9 extend from the rear 8b of the racking system 8 to the front 8a of the racking system 8. This allows the magazine slots 9 to be filled with load carriers 3 from the rear 8b of the racking system 8.

[0032] The material supply system 1 is filled here, preferably via a central warehouse 11, which is also constructed like a rack system. The filling of the material supply system 1 can be automated or, as in Fig. As indicated in 1, manual operation is provided by an operator B. In addition to filling the material supply system 1, the central warehouse 11 in the illustrated embodiment also serves for the return of emptied load carriers 3 during the production process, which are collectively referred to here as "empties".

[0033] It is essential that the material supply system 1 has a motorized transfer system 10 at the front 8a of the racking system 8, mechanically connected to the racking system 8, for transferring the load carriers 3 to the production system 2. In this case, this refers to the transfer of the load carriers 3 to the production cells 4 and 5.

[0034] Specifically, the transfer system 10 has two functions. The first function of the transfer system 10 is to automatically remove the load carriers 3 from the magazine slots 9. The second function of the transfer system 10 is to automatically position the removed load carriers 3 along the front 8a of the racking system 8. This allows the removed load carrier 3 to be positioned by the transfer system 10 at a designated position within the production cell 4, 5, thus eliminating the need for manual handling.

[0035] Fig. Figure 2 further shows that the magazine slots 9 are arranged one above the other and next to the other when viewed from the front 8a of the shelving system 8, so that the magazine slots 9 form magazine rows 12 and magazine columns 13 when viewed from the front 8a of the shelving system 8.

[0036] However, it is also possible for the magazine compartments 9 to be arranged exclusively above one another or exclusively next to each other. In all these cases, it is preferable that the racking system 8 forms a cuboid shape.

[0037] It is best understood by the representation according to Fig. 2. It can be deduced that the transfer system 10 has a transfer slide 14, wherein the transfer slide 14 can be positioned in front of the respective magazine slot 9 at a magazine position assigned to the magazine slot 9 for the purpose of removing a load carrier 3 from a magazine slot 9. A first position of the transfer slide 14 is in Fig. 2 is shown in a solid line, while a second position of the transfer carriage 14 is shown in Fig. 2 is shown in a dashed line.

[0038] The transfer carriage 14 is preferably equipped with a positioning drive system 15 (in Fig. (3 not shown) for positioning the transfer carriage 14, which receives the respective load carrier 3, in a travel plane 16, which is preferably vertically oriented. Furthermore, the transfer carriage 14 is preferably movable in the travel plane 16 by means of the positioning drive system 15 in two degrees of freedom of movement, which will be explained later. The positioning drive system 15 is preferably an electric drive system.

[0039] This results from the representation according to Fig. 2, that the mobility of the transfer carriage 14 is particularly well adapted to the geometry of the racking system 8. This results in particular from the fact that the racking system 8 has a frame 17 which forms the front 8a of the racking system 8 as a flat side, and that the travel plane 16 is aligned parallel to the front 8a of the racking system 8, which is designed as a flat side. In principle, it can be provided that the transfer system 10 is arranged on the frame 17 of the racking system 8. Here, and preferably, however, the transfer system 10 forms at least a part of the frame 17 of the racking system 8.

[0040] In the illustrated and thus preferred embodiment, the positioning drive system 15 has a particularly simple design. This is because the positioning drive system 15 comprises only an X-linear unit 18 and a Y-linear unit 19, by which the transfer carriage 14 can be moved in the travel plane 16 in an X-direction 20 and perpendicular to it in a Y-direction 21. The X-direction 20 corresponds to a horizontal direction, while the Y-direction 21 corresponds to a vertical direction.

[0041] In the illustrated material handling system 1, the X-linear unit 18 is fixed relative to the racking system 8, while the Y-linear unit 19 is movable relative to the racking system 8 via the X-linear unit 18. Because the transfer carriage 14 is attached to the Y-linear unit 19, the transfer carriage 14 can move in both the X-direction 20 and the Y-direction 21. This results in a two-axis system, specifically with the linear units 18 and 19 arranged in the manner of a cross table. It should be noted that the axis arrangement described above can also be reversed.

[0042] In the illustrated and thus preferred embodiment, the forward movement of the load carriers 3, i.e., towards the front 8a of the racking system 8, is solved in a particularly simple structural manner. Here, the longitudinal axes 9a of the magazine slots 9 are inclined relative to the horizontal 22, so that the load carriers 3 move forward in the magazine slots 9 by gravity. Furthermore, it is preferably the case that the load carriers 3, as shown in Fig. Figure 2 shows that the load carriers 3 can be stored in the magazine shafts 9 in a continuous, buttress-like fashion. To reduce the susceptibility to malfunctions during the advancement of the load carriers 3, the shaft floors 28 of the magazine shafts 9 are formed by transport tracks, in particular by roller conveyors or the like. It is also possible, in principle, for the transport tracks assigned to the magazine shafts 9 to be driven in order to make the advancement of the load carriers 3 as reproducible as possible.

[0043] For the removal of the load carriers 3 from the magazine slots 9 and for the transfer of the load carriers 3 onto the transfer sled 14, the transfer system 10 is equipped with a motorized removal system 23 (in) at least one magazine slot 9 and / or at the transfer sled 14. Fig. 3 (not shown). In the illustrated and thus preferred embodiment, both variants are implemented. Each magazine slot 9 is assigned a movement limiter 24 for the load carriers 3, which limits the advance of at least the foremost load carrier 3 in the magazine slot 9, wherein the movement limiter 24 can be deactivated by means of the removal system 23 for the removal of the load carriers 3. For example, the movement limiter 24 can be an end stop that prevents excessive advancement of the load carriers 3 towards the front 8a of the racking system 8, but which can be deactivated by means of the removal system 23 for the removal of the load carriers 3 by moving it out of the movement range of the load carriers 3 by means of a motor.

[0044] In the illustrated and thus preferred embodiment, the removal system 23 is further equipped with a removal drive system 25, preferably an electric one, which allows the foremost load carrier 3 in the magazine slots 9 to be transferred to the transfer carriage 14. Here, and preferably, the transfer carriage 14 has a transport track 26, preferably a roller track, driven by the removal drive system 25, for the load carriers 3. This also makes it possible for the removed load carrier 3 to be advanced by motor towards the production cell 4, 5, thus increasing the reproducibility of the transfer of the respective load carrier 3.

[0045] Because the load carriers 3 are arranged end-to-end in the magazine slots 9, as mentioned above, it is additionally necessary that each magazine slot 9 has a singulation system (not shown) that holds back the following load carriers 3 when the foremost load carrier 3 is removed. This can be achieved, for example, by providing an additional movement limiter that prevents the load carrier 3 following the foremost load carrier 3 from advancing until the foremost load carrier 3 has been completely picked up by the transfer carriage 14.

[0046] The two detailed views according to Fig. Figure 2 shows that the transfer carriage 14 can be brought into a transfer state (left detail view) and a transport state (right detail view). Specifically, the transfer carriage 14 is provided with a receiving section 27 for the respective removed load carrier 3, which provides the transport track 26 mentioned above, as provided in the preferred embodiment. The receiving section 27 can be pivoted relative to the transfer carriage 14 into a transfer position (left detail view) and a transport position (right detail view). In the transfer state, the receiving section 27 connects to the shaft bottom 28 of the respective magazine shaft 9.This means, in general, that the receiving section 27 provides a continuation of the shaft floor 28 in the direction of the production cells 4, 5, whereby a gap may remain between the shaft floor 28 and the receiving section 27, provided that this gap is significantly smaller than the extent of the load carriers 3 in the feed direction.

[0047] The right-hand detailed view according to Fig. Figure 2 shows that the receiving section 27 is pivoted in the transport position and thus assumes an essentially vertical orientation. This is a particularly space-saving arrangement of the receiving section 27 during the transport of the proposed material supply system 1.

[0048] As explained above, the transportability of the proposed material supply system 1 can be provided in different ways. Preferably, the material supply system 1 is accessible to an automated guided vehicle (AGV) 6 and can be lifted, at least slightly, for transport. This is shown in the illustration. Fig. 2. The material supply system 1 has a series of support feet 29, so that the material supply system 1 can be set down if required, in particular for the transfer of load carriers 3, and the driverless transport system 6 can be used for other purposes.

[0049] Several advantageous variants are conceivable for the control structure of the proposed material supply system 1. In the case of the Fig. In the embodiment shown in Figure 2, which is preferred in this respect, the material supply system 1 is assigned its own control unit 30, which has at least one driver stage for the electrical drive components of the material supply system 1. In principle, the control unit 30 can also provide sequence control for the material supply system 1. Alternatively, it can be provided that a control unit of the driverless transport system 6 takes over control tasks for the material supply system 1.

[0050] The energy supply for the electrical drive components of the material handling system 1 can be derived from the fact that the material handling system 1 has an energy storage device (not shown) for storing electrical energy, such as an electric battery. Alternatively, the energy required, in particular for the drive components, can be supplied via an electrical interface from the driverless transport system 6 or from the production cells 4, 5.

[0051] In this respect, it may be advantageous that the material supply system 1 generally has an electrical interface for the transmission of electrical energy and / or for data transmission, which can be electrically engaged with a counterpart interface on the driverless transport system 6 and / or on the production cells 4, 5.

[0052] The following section examines the production plant 2, which is the subject of a separate teaching, in more detail. It is initially assumed that, in addition to the material supply system 1 shown, at least one further material supply system 1 may be provided.

[0053] Furthermore, the existence of at least one material receiving system 31, 32, which interacts with the material supply system 1, plays an important role in the production plant 2 shown and thus preferred. The production plant 2 shown has two production cells 4, 5, each equipped with a material receiving system 31, 32.

[0054] The following explanations primarily concern the material receiving system 32 of production cell 5. All related statements apply accordingly to the material receiving system 31 of production cell 4. In both cases, the material receiving system 31, 32 serves to receive the load carriers 3 from the material supply system 1, so that the respective production cell 4, 5 is supplied with the material contained in the load carriers 3 for production.

[0055] The material receiving system 31, 32 has at least one receiving unit 33, preferably at least two receiving units 33, and in the Fig. In the embodiment shown in 3, a total of eight receiving units 33 are shown. The receiving units 33 can be implemented in different ways. In the embodiment shown in Fig. In the embodiment shown in Figure 3, which is preferred in this respect, the receiving units 33 are designed as magazine shafts, as is provided for in the proposed material supply system 1.

[0056] The material supply system 1 can be transported to the material receiving system 32 by means of the driverless transport system 6, whereby the load carriers 3 stored in the magazine shafts 9 of the material supply system 1 can be transferred to the at least one receiving unit 33, here to the receiving units 33, by means of the transfer system 10.

[0057] According to the representation, Fig. It can be seen from Figure 3 that the receiving units 33, which are preferably designed as magazine chutes, are arranged one above the other and side by side when viewed from a front face 34 of the material receiving system 32, so that the receiving units 33 form magazine rows 35 and magazine columns 36, as explained above in connection with the material supply system 1. Apart from the missing transfer system 10, the basic structure of the material receiving system 32 corresponds to the basic structure of the material supply system 1.

[0058] Fig. Figure 3 shows the material supply system 1 located in front of the material intake system 32, where, in the representation according to Fig. 3 is a fanned-out view. This is in Fig. 3 indicated by arrow 37.

[0059] With the material handling system 1 located in front of the material handling system 32, the transfer carriage 14 can be positioned by means of the positioning drive system 15 into a receiving position assigned to the receiving unit 33 for transferring the load carrier 3 taken from a magazine chute 9 to a receiving unit 33 of the material handling system 32. The receiving positions are located, preferably, in a receiving plane 38 assigned to the material handling system 32, which is parallel to the aforementioned travel plane 16 of the material handling system 1. This requires that the material handling system 1 is aligned accordingly with respect to the material handling system 32.This alignment can be sensor-based, for example, by the automated guided vehicle (AGV) 6 having a sensor-based alignment control system that aligns the AGV 6 with alignment marks (not shown) of the production cells 4 and 5. Alternatively, it is also conceivable that the alignment could be based on navigation data, particularly GPS navigation data, from the AGV 6, which is compared with the CAD data of the production plant 2 stored in the control system 7.

[0060] Finally, the proposed use of the material supply system 1, which is the subject of a separate teaching, will now be explained using the example in the Fig. 1, Fig. The 3 scenarios shown are explained.

[0061] In the proposed use of the material supply system 1, it is first transported in front of the material receiving system 32. This may include alignment as described above. For example, the control system 7 specifies that the foremost load carrier 3 must be in the Fig. The material carrier 3 is to be transferred from magazine slot 9, marked with reference numeral A, to receiving unit 33, marked with reference numeral B. For this purpose, the relevant material carrier 3 is removed from magazine slot 9 by means of the removal system 23, whereby the material carrier 3 reaches the receiving section 27 of the transfer carriage 14. Subsequently, the transfer carriage 14 is moved downwards by three magazine slots 9 and sideways by one magazine slot 9 by means of the positioning drive system 15. This means, in general terms, that the transfer carriage 14 is positioned to transfer the material carrier 3 removed from the relevant magazine slot 9 to the relevant receiving unit 33 of the material receiving system 32. This can be seen in the illustration. Fig. 3 can be seen that with the proposed solution an almost unlimited distribution of load carriers 3 onto the material receiving systems 31, 32 is possible.

[0062] The proposed material supply system 1, the proposed manufacturing plant 2 and the proposed use can be modified and extended in many areas.

[0063] For example, the material supply system 1 can be filled manually or automatically with empty containers as described above, and these empty containers can be delivered to the central warehouse 11 or to a specially designated empty container storage area.

[0064] Finally, it is also possible that the material supply system 1 additionally has a motorized transfer system, as described above, on the rear side 8b of the racking system 8, with which the material supply system 1 can be automatically filled with load carriers 3. This is a preferred variant that enables a fully automated material flow in a particularly simple way.

[0065] However, automated filling of the material supply system 1 is also possible without an additional transfer system. For example, it is conceivable that an output warehouse, in particular the central warehouse 11, has magazine chutes that are arranged identically relative to each other compared to the magazine chutes 9 of the material supply system 1. In this case, filling the material supply system 1 is limited to transporting the material supply system 1 to the output warehouse, in particular the central warehouse 11, and releasing the load carriers 3 located in the magazine chutes of the output warehouse. Preferably, the subsequent transfer of the load carriers 3 takes place automatically, in particular by gravity.

[0066] Another option for the automated filling of the material supply system 1 involves arranging a handling device separate from the material supply system 1 between the output warehouse, in particular the central warehouse 11, and the material supply system 1, which is transported to the output warehouse. This handling device can be a robot, in particular a gantry robot, an articulated robot, or the like. Other options for the automated filling of the material supply system 1 with load carriers 3 are conceivable.

Claims

[1] Material supply system for a manufacturing plant (2) for providing, in particular, box-shaped load carriers (3), wherein the material supply system (1) as such is transportable, in particular by means of a driverless transport system (6), wherein the material supply system (1) comprises a racking system (8) with a front (8a) and a back (8b) and wherein the racking system (8) forms at least one magazine slot (9), preferably at least two magazine slots (9), for storing load carriers (3), wherein the at least one magazine slot (9) extends, in particular from the back (8b) of the racking system (8), to the front (8a) of the racking system (8), wherein the material supply system (1) has at the front (8a) of the racking system (8) a motorized transfer system (10) mechanically connected to the racking system (8) for transferring the load carriers (3) to the production plant (2), with which the load carriers (3) can be automatically removed from the at least one magazine slot (9) and automatically positioned along the front (8a) of the racking system (8), wherein the transfer system (10) comprises a transfer carriage (14),wherein the transfer slide (14) for removing a load carrier (3) from a magazine slot (9) can be positioned in front of the respective magazine slot (9) at a magazine position assigned to the magazine slot (9), characterized by , that the transfer sled (14) can be brought into a transfer state and a transport state, that the transfer sled (14) has a receiving section (27) for the respective removed load carrier (3), that the receiving section (27) can otherwise be pivoted into a transfer position and a transport position relative to the transfer sled (14), and that in the transfer state the receiving section (27) connects to the shaft floor (28) of the respective magazine shaft (9). [2] Material supply system according to claim 1, characterized bythat the magazine compartments (9) are arranged one above the other and / or next to the other when viewed from the front (8a) of the shelving system (8), preferably that the magazine compartments (9) form magazine rows (12) and magazine columns (13) when viewed from the front (8a) of the shelving system (8). [3] Material supply system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized by , that the transfer carriage (14) is assigned a positioning drive system (15) for positioning the transfer carriage (14) receiving the respective load carrier (3) in a travel plane (16), in particular vertically oriented, preferably, that the transfer carriage (14) is movable in the travel plane (16) by means of the positioning drive system (15) in two degrees of freedom of movement. [4] Material supply system according to claim 3, characterized by, that the racking system (8) has a frame (17) which forms the front (8a) of the racking system (8) as a flat side and that the travel plane (16) is aligned parallel to the front (8a) designed as a flat side, preferably that the transfer system (10) is arranged on the frame (17) of the racking system (8) or forms at least a part of the frame (17) of the racking system (8). [5] Material supply system according to claim 3 or 4, characterized by , that the positioning drive system (15) has an X-linear unit (18) and a Y-linear unit (19) by which the transfer carriage (14) can be moved in the travel plane (16) in an X-direction (20) and perpendicular to it in a Y-direction (21), preferably that the X-linear unit (18) and the Y-linear unit (19) of the positioning drive system (15) are arranged in the manner of a cross table. [6] Material supply system according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the longitudinal axis (9a) of the at least one magazine slot (9) is inclined relative to the horizontal (22), so that the charge carriers (3) move forward in the at least one magazine slot (9) by gravity, preferably that the charge carriers (3) can be stored one after the other in the at least one magazine slot (9). [7] Material supply system according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized by , that the transfer system (10) has a motorized removal system (23) on the at least one magazine slot (9) and / or on the transfer slide (14) for removing the load carriers (3) from the at least one magazine slot (9) and for transferring the load carriers (3) onto the transfer slide (14). [8] Material supply system according to claim 7, characterized by, that each of the at least one magazine slot (9) is assigned a movement limiter (24) for the load carriers (3), which limits the feed of at least the foremost load carrier (3) in the at least one magazine slot (9), and that the movement limiter (24) can be deactivated by means of the removal system (23) for the removal of the load carriers (3), and / or, that the removal system (23) has a removal drive system (25) with which the foremost load carrier (3) in the at least one magazine slot (9) can be transferred onto the transfer carriage (14), preferably, that the transfer carriage (14) has a transport track (26) for the load carriers (3) driven by the removal drive system (25). [9] Manufacturing plant comprising at least one material supply system (1) according to any one of the preceding claims. [10] Manufacturing plant according to claim 9, characterized by, that the production plant (2) has at least one material receiving system (31, 32) which has at least one receiving unit (33), preferably at least two receiving units (33), for load carriers (3), that the material supply system (1), in particular by means of a driverless transport system (6), can be transported in front of the material receiving system (31, 32) and that the load carriers (3) stored in the at least one magazine slot (9) of the material supply system (1) can be transferred to the at least one receiving unit (33) by means of the transfer system (10). [11] Manufacturing plant according to claim 9 or 10, characterized by, that in the case of a material supply system (1) located in front of the material receiving system (31, 32), the transfer carriage (14) for transferring the load carrier (3) taken from a magazine shaft (9) to a receiving unit (33) of the material receiving system (31, 32) can be positioned in a receiving position assigned to the receiving unit (33) by means of the positioning drive system (15), preferably that the receiving positions are located in a receiving plane (38) assigned to the material receiving system (31, 32). [12] Use of a material supply system (1) according to one of claims 1 to 8 for the provision of, in particular, box-shaped load carriers (3) in a manufacturing plant (2). [13] Use according to claim 12, characterized by, that the material supply system (1) is transported in front of the material receiving system (31, 32) and the transfer carriage (14) is positioned by means of the positioning drive system (15) in a receiving position assigned to the receiving unit (33) for the transfer of the load carrier (3) taken from a magazine shaft (9) to a receiving unit (33) of the material receiving system (31, 32).

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