Storage systems for factories manufacturing panels

Abstract

A storage system for use in a plant for manufacturing panels, in particular particle panels, OSB panels or MDF panels, comprising rails (8) along the longitudinal direction of the storage section, rails (3) along the transverse direction of the storage section, at least one satellite panel trolley pair (10) arranged to move along the longitudinal rails (8), and at least one main panel trolley (2) arranged to move along the transverse rails (3) by means of rail wheels (12) mounted on the main panel trolley (2), the main panel trolley (2) comprising two longitudinal rail pairs (11) for each satellite panel trolley pair. The invention is implemented such that for at least one transverse rail (3), the main panel trolley (2) has at least three rail wheels (12, 12') resting on the rails (3).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The object of the present invention is a storage system for use in a factory for manufacturing boards, in particular particle boards, OSB boards or MDF boards, which storage system includes rails along the longitudinal direction of the storage part, rails along the transverse direction of the storage part, at least one satellite panel trolley pair (topless carriage) arranged to move along the longitudinal rails, and at least one main panel trolley (topless carriage) arranged to move along the transverse rails with the help of rail wheels mounted on the main panel trolley, the main panel trolley including two longitudinal rail pairs for one satellite panel trolley pair. Background Art

[0002] The present invention relates to a storage system for use in a plant for manufacturing boards, particularly particle boards, OSB boards, and MDF boards, in which large stacks of boards are temporarily stored. Typically, wooden boards produced on a continuous-action press line are stored for a certain period of time in an intermediate storage section before undergoing downstream processing steps such as sanding and sawing. This storage section is also used to store different grades of boards.

[0003] In factories for manufacturing particle boards, OSB boards and MDF boards, the typical mass of large stacks is 40-80 tons. The typical stack height is 3-5 meters, the width is 1.8-3.6 meters and the length is 5-9 meters. The stacks in the storage system of the object of the present invention are transported by two carts, which run on tracks in the longitudinal direction of the storage section under the stack and transfer the stacks to storage rows resting on three longitudinal supports. These carts moving in the longitudinal direction are referred to herein as "satellite carts" and they always run in pairs. The way of transferring the stack to the storage row and taking the stack out of the storage row is as follows: a pair of satellite carts lift the stack from the bottom surface (lower surface) of the stack so that the stack is disengaged from its longitudinal supports, transport the stack to the storage row, and lower the stack onto the longitudinal supports in the storage section, or when taking it out of the storage section, lower the stack onto the supports on the main cart (i.e. the cross-cart). The movement of the satellite trolley pair in the transverse direction, i.e., from one longitudinal row to another longitudinal row, is carried out by driving the satellite trolley pair onto the main trolley, which then transports the satellite trolley pair to the next work location, i.e., to the other longitudinal row.

[0004] The mainboard cart comprises a pair of rails along the longitudinal direction of the storage portion, with a space between them and a height position adapted to the longitudinal rails in the storage portion.

[0005] The mainboard trolley may comprise three fixed longitudinal support elements, onto whose supports the transported load may be lowered. These longitudinal supports may be conveyor elements, via which the load may be transferred in the longitudinal direction of the storage portion.

[0006] The mainboard trolley travels in the transverse direction of the storage section resting on two or more rails, and the height of the rails is determined by the structural height of the mainboard trolley. The above-mentioned operating height dimension is the vertical distance between the height positions of the transverse rails and the longitudinal rails of the storage section.

[0007] In the structures known from the prior art, the above-mentioned operating height dimension is relatively large, so that the longitudinal rails of the storage area must be installed high relative to the height of the transverse rails.

[0008] In conventional mainboard carts, the rail wheels that carry the structure and load are located on both edges of the cart. This results in a relatively long wheelbase (wheelbase) and thus the load-bearing span. For long spans, the structure must be increased in height or unfavorably thick and heavy steel plates must be used to minimize deflection under load. This ensures that the longitudinal rails of the mainboard cart remain at approximately the same height as the rails in the storage area.

[0009] According to the known mainboard carts in the art, they are large welded structures that cannot be transported in ordinary shipping containers due to their size. This, of course, results in higher shipping costs and limits the opportunity to choose the cheapest manufacturing location. Summary of the Invention

[0010] The object of the present invention is to provide a novel storage system for large stacks, in which the operating height dimensions of the main trolley, i.e. the cross-trolley, are as small as possible, so that the height position of the longitudinal rails of the storage area relative to the cross-rails of the storage section (on which the main trolley travels) is as low as possible, and the height and volume of the steel and / or concrete structure of the storage area are as small as possible. According to the invention, this is achieved by a storage system characterized in that the main trolley comprises at least three rail wheels for at least one cross-rail, which rest on said rails.

[0011] Preferred embodiments of the invention are characterized by what is defined in dependent claims 2-10.

[0012] The present invention can be implemented such that, for each cross-rail, the main vehicle has at least three track wheels resting on the track. Of the three track wheels resting on the cross-rail, the centermost one can be located between the two centermost longitudinal rails on the main vehicle. In one embodiment of the present invention, the centermost one of the three track wheels resting on the cross-rail is substantially located on the longitudinal centerline of the main vehicle.

[0013] One of the advantages of the present invention is that, due to the reduced operating height dimensions compared to previous models, the material requirements for the storage system structure are significantly reduced. Consequently, the construction costs of a storage unit with a large surface area remain lower than previously. In one embodiment of the present invention, in which the mainboard cart comprises two interconnected, substantially identically sized sections, one advantage is that these sections can be assembled into standard shipping containers. In this case, shipping costs are also reduced.

[0014] Two wheels of smaller diameter may be arranged instead of ordinary rail wheels. These wheels of smaller diameter are preferably arranged with pivoting or flexible bogie suspensions to carry substantially equal loads.

[0015] The mainboard vehicle can be implemented as comprising two frame modules, wherein the interface between the modules is located between the two most central tracks along the direction of movement of the mainboard vehicle. In a preferred embodiment, the mainboard vehicle comprises two frame modules, wherein the interface between the modules is substantially located on the longitudinal centerline of the mainboard vehicle.

[0016] The frame of the main trolley may preferably comprise two steel plates arranged at a distance from each other in a horizontal plane, and two longitudinal webs (laths) and transverse webs (laths) mounted therebetween. In this case, there may be at least one aperture in the longitudinal web of the main trolley frame to bring in cables from under the longitudinal rails. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] The present invention will be described in more detail below with the help of some preferred embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0018] Figure 1 Shown is an overview of a storage system of a plant for manufacturing particle boards, OSB boards and MDF boards.

[0019] Figure 2 Satellite carts are shown on a storage row.

[0020] Figure 3 Shows the longitudinal rails of the mainboard cart and storage section, as well as the determination of the operating height dimensions.

[0021] Figure 4 The mainboard cart according to the invention is shown as seen obliquely from below.

[0022] Figure 5 Shown is the mainboard car viewed in a direction across the track.

[0023] Figure 6 Shown is a side view of the mainboard cart.

[0024] Figure 7 Shows an oblique top view of the front half of the mainboard vehicle.

[0025] Figure 8A partially exploded view of a mainboard cart according to the present invention is shown.

[0026] Figure 9 Show Figure 8 Enlarged detail in A.

[0027] Figure 10 Show Figure 9 Magnified view of detail B. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0028] therefore, Figure 1 An overview of a storage system of a plant for producing particle boards, OSB boards, and MDF boards is shown. Reference numeral 1 denotes a board stack, three of which are shown here. Of course, there may be more board stacks, but for the sake of clarity, not all of them are shown. Figure 1 The stack of plates at the bottom edge is located on a plate trolley (i.e. main plate trolley 2) which moves in a transverse direction. The main plate trolley moves along a track 3. Therefore, this direction of movement is called the transverse direction.

[0029] To the right of the main board trolley 2 is shown a conveyor 4, along which the board stacks enter and leave the storage section. The main board trolley is supplied with current via a cable 6 from a current supply unit 7. As the trolley moves toward the current supply unit 7, the cable 6 is wound onto a cable reel 5. Conversely, as the main board trolley moves away from the current supply unit 7, the cable 6 is unwound from the cable reel 5.

[0030] Figure 1 Three longitudinal storage rows 8 are shown, each formed by three longitudinal supports 9. Of course, there can be many more than three such storage rows 8. Furthermore, they can be located on both sides of the mainboard trolley 2. When looking at the figure, they are now shown here only on the left side of the mainboard trolley 2.

[0031] Figure 1 Also shown is a pair of trolleys, which comprise two trolleys 10 that move side by side in the longitudinal direction. They are hereinafter referred to as satellite trolleys, and they lift and move the plate stack from below. Figure 1 The top part of the diagram shows a pair of satellite trolleys, which are moving under or away from a stack 1. The pair of satellite trolleys 10 is capable of lifting a stack into the air and transferring it from the main trolley 2 to the storage row 8 or vice versa. The pair of satellite trolleys 10 is thus arranged so that one satellite trolley is located between the centermost support 9 and one of the outermost supports 9. Correspondingly, the second satellite trolley is located between the centermost support 9 and the other outermost support 9. Thus, there are always two satellite trolleys side by side, which are referred to as a pair of satellite trolleys 10.

[0032] Figure 1A second pair of satellite trolleys is also shown and can be seen slightly below the stack 1 on the left. Thus, the main trolley 2 can be arranged to serve more than one pair of satellite trolleys 10. A second pair of satellite trolleys is not necessarily required, but it increases capacity, particularly in very large storage sections. Figure 1 A pair of satellite carts 10' can also be seen at the bottom edge, serving as spares. In other words, if a conventional satellite cart 10 malfunctions or requires repair, one or both of the satellite carts 10' can be used. In this storage system, replacing a satellite cart 10' is easy, requiring no installation or connection work.

[0033] Thus, in practice the storage system operates such that, for example, when a new plate stack is brought into the storage, it travels along the conveyor 4 to the main carriage 2, which then transfers the plate stack to the correct location in the storage row 8. A satellite carriage pair 10 is already under the main carriage 2 or is driven there from the storage row 8, lifts the plate stack slightly upwards, transfers the plate stack to the storage row, and lowers the plate stack to the correct location on the supports 9. Afterwards, the satellite carriage pair 10 can be driven back to the main carriage 2.

[0034] Figure 2 A situation is shown in which the plate stack 1 rests on supports 9 on a storage row. A satellite trolley 10 is ready to lift the stack upwards from the supports 9 and then move it in the desired direction.

[0035] Figure 3 The following diagram illustrates the structural or operational height dimension h of the mainboard cart 2. Of course, the longitudinal rails 11 of the mainboard cart 2 must be flush with the longitudinal rails 8 of the storage section to allow the satellite cart pairs 10 to be transferred between them. The smaller the height dimension h, the less the structure below the longitudinal rails 8 needs to be elevated. In other words, a smaller dimension h requires less concrete and other similar building materials.

[0036] Figure 4 The preferred embodiment of the mainboard vehicle 2 according to the present invention is shown in an oblique bottom view. It shows the track wheels at the front and rear (seen in the direction of movement), which rest on the cross rails 3. This is a solution known in the art. Instead of this, the novelty of the present invention is that the structure also includes a third track wheel 12' for each cross rail 3. Of course, Figure 4 The solution shown is only one option. It is also possible that only one or some of the cross rails 3 have a third rail wheel 12'. However, in this embodiment, there are three rail wheels 12, 12' resting on all cross rails 3. Since there are four cross rails 3 ( Figure 1), of course, there are four track wheels 12, 12' side by side. It is also obvious that there can be more than three track wheels on each cross track 3, that is, in addition to the front track wheel and the rear track wheel, there are also two or more central track wheels 12'.

[0037] exist Figure 4 In this case, the centermost track wheel 12 ′ is located between the two centermost longitudinal rails 11 on the mainboard car 2. It is also possible that the centermost track wheel 12 ′ of the three track wheels 12, 12 ′ resting on the cross rail 3 is substantially located on the longitudinal center line of the mainboard car 2.

[0038] Alternatively, two wheels of smaller diameter may be arranged instead of the ordinary rail wheels 12, 12'. These wheels of smaller diameter may be arranged with pivoting or flexible bogie suspensions to carry substantially equal loads. This solution is not shown in the drawings.

[0039] from Figure 4 It can also be seen that the mainboard vehicle 2 is assembled from two frame modules 2', 2", which are fastened to each other at the installation site by some fastening method, such as welding or bolting. The joint surface between these frame modules 2', 2" is located between the two centermost rails in the direction of movement of the mainboard vehicle 2, and may be substantially on the longitudinal center line of the mainboard vehicle, as shown in FIG. Figure 4 The solution shown is as follows.

[0040] Figures 5 to 7 The mainboard cart according to the present invention is further shown as viewed from different directions.

[0041] Figure 8 A partially exploded view of a main panel trolley 2 according to the invention is shown. The main panel trolley 2 thus comprises two frame modules 2 ′ and 2 ″. In this case, the centermost rail wheels are fastened to the frame module 2 ′, while in the other frame module there are corresponding slots for mounting them. Reference numeral 9 designates the supports 9 for the panel stacks 1 , which are three units. The longitudinal rails 11 of the satellite panel trolley pairs are mounted between them.

[0042] exist Figure 9 As can be seen in the figure, the frame of the mainboard vehicle may include two steel plates 14 ′, 14 ″ arranged at a certain distance from each other on a horizontal plane, and two longitudinal webs 15 and a transverse web 16 installed therebetween.

[0043] like Figure 10 As shown, in the longitudinal web 15 of the frame of the main vehicle, there is at least one opening to bring in the cable 17 from under the longitudinal rail 11 (the longitudinal rail 11 is Figure 10 It is not visible in the , but its location can be seen from Figure 9 (see in ).

[0044] It is obvious to a person skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the embodiments described above, but that it can be varied within the scope of the claims presented below.

Claims

1. A storage system for use in a factory for manufacturing panels, the storage system comprising a longitudinal track (11) of a storage portion, a transverse track (3) of a storage portion, at least one satellite panel trolley pair (10) arranged to move along the longitudinal track (11), and at least one main panel trolley (2), the main panel trolley (2) being arranged to move along the transverse track (3) by means of track wheels (12) mounted on the main panel trolley (2), the main panel trolley (2) comprising two pairs of longitudinal tracks (11) for one satellite panel trolley pair, characterized in that For at least one cross rail (3), the mainboard vehicle (2) has at least three rail wheels (12, 12') which rest successively on the upper surface of the cross rail (3) in the longitudinal direction.

2. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein: The factory manufactures OSB boards or MDF boards.

3. The storage system according to claim 1, wherein: For each of the cross rails (3), the mainboard vehicle (2) has at least three rail wheels (12, 12') resting on the rails (3).

4. The storage system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The centermost rail wheel (12') of the three rail wheels (12, 12') successively resting on the cross rail (3) is positioned between the two centermost longitudinal rails (11) on the mainboard vehicle (2).

5. The storage system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The centermost rail wheel (12') of the three rail wheels (12') resting on the cross rail (3) is located substantially on the longitudinal center line of the mainboard vehicle (2).

6. The storage system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: One or more of the track wheels (12, 12') include two wheels having a smaller diameter than the other track wheels.

7. The storage system according to claim 6, wherein: The smaller diameter wheels are arranged with pivoting or flexible bogie suspensions to carry substantially equal loads.

8. The storage system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The mainboard vehicle (2) comprises two frame modules (2', 2"), and the joint surface between the modules is located between two central longitudinal rails (11) in the direction of movement of the mainboard vehicle (2).

9. The storage system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The mainboard vehicle (2) comprises two frame modules (2', 2"), and the joint surface between the modules is substantially located on the longitudinal center line of the mainboard vehicle (2).

10. The storage system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, characterized in that: The frame of the mainboard vehicle (2) comprises two steel plates (14', 14") arranged at a distance from each other on a horizontal plane, and two longitudinal webs (15) and a transverse web (16) mounted therebetween.

11. The storage system according to claim 10, wherein: There is at least one aperture in the longitudinal web (15) of the frame of the mainboard vehicle (2) to bring in a cable (17) from under the longitudinal rail (11).

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