Material box warehouse-in and warehouse-out system and material box warehouse-in and warehouse-out method

Abstract

The invention discloses a workbin in-out warehouse system and a workbin in-out warehouse method. The workbin in-out warehouse system comprises a goods shelf unit, a carrying robot and a workbin transfer unit. A plurality of goods shelf units extending in the first direction are arranged in parallel to form a goods shelf area, a walking roadway extending in the first direction is formed between every two adjacent goods shelf units, the carrying robot is arranged on the walking roadways and walks along the walking roadways, and the material box transfer unit is arranged at one end, in the first direction, of the goods shelf area. Wherein a warehouse-in conveying line and a warehouse-out conveying line are arranged beside each walking roadway, the warehouse-in conveying lines and the warehouse-out conveying lines are communicated to the material box transfer units respectively, and the warehouse-in conveying lines and the warehouse-out conveying lines are located below the projection of the storage position layer on the bottommost layer of the goods shelf unit; thus, by arranging the two conveying lines, a box carrying robot in butt joint with the carrying robot is omitted, the area of a goods shelf area in a warehouse is enlarged, the walking environment of the box carrying robot does not need to be constructed, and the operation efficiency is improved.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of warehousing technology, and in particular to a material box storage-in and -out system and a material box storage-in and -out method. Background Art

[0002] With the development of logistics technology, the application of smart warehouses is becoming more and more extensive. In smart warehouses, there are two basic operations for material boxes, namely, warehousing operation and outbound operation; warehousing operation refers to the transfer of sorted and packed material boxes to the warehousing storage location of the shelf, and outbound operation refers to the transfer of material boxes at the outbound storage location to the outbound workstation or workbench to pick out the required materials.

[0003] In the relevant scheme, the above-mentioned warehousing and outbound operations of material boxes are usually completed by two types of handling robots, namely, box-picking robots and box-moving robots. The box-picking robots work at the shelves and along the height direction of the shelves, and the box-moving robots work in the horizontal direction of the warehouse floor; that is, for example, for warehousing operations, the box-moving robot first obtains the material box from the warehousing workstation or workbench and transfers the material box to the shelf by walking, and then the box-moving robot transfers the material box to the box-picking robot, and the box-picking robot then transfers the material box to the warehousing storage position of the shelf.

[0004] It can be seen that in the above-mentioned solution of using two types of robots to complete the entry and exit of material boxes, since it involves the walking operation of the box-moving robot in the warehouse, it is necessary to reserve walking areas and walking passages for the box-moving robot, and it is also necessary to build a walking environment for the box-moving robot. For example, QR codes for auxiliary walking need to be posted on the ground, and a virtual map needs to be created and run on the software side. There are technical problems such as reduced inventory area and low operating efficiency. Summary of the invention

[0005] In response to at least one aspect of the above-mentioned technical problems, an embodiment of the present application provides a material box warehousing-in and -out system and a material box warehousing-in and -out method. The material box warehousing-in and -out system and method are implemented by setting an inbound conveyor line and an outbound conveyor line next to each walking lane of the shelf unit. In this way, the inbound and outbound operations of the material box can be completed by cooperating with the conveyor line through a box-picking robot operating along the height direction of the shelf unit, thereby eliminating another box-moving robot, thereby solving the technical problem of reduced inventory area and low operating efficiency caused by the use of two types of handling robots for the inbound and outbound operations of the material box.

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a material box storage and unloading system, the material box storage and unloading system comprising:

[0007] Shelf units extending along a first direction, a plurality of the shelf units being arranged in parallel to form a shelf area, and a walking lane extending along the first direction being formed between adjacent shelf units;

[0008] A transport robot is arranged in the walking lane and walks along the walking lane;

[0009] A material box transfer unit, provided at one end of the shelf area along the first direction;

[0010] Wherein, a storage conveyor line and a storage conveyor line are arranged beside each of the walking lanes, and the storage conveyor line and the storage conveyor line extend along the first direction and are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit;

[0011] The shelf unit includes a plurality of storage layers, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are located below the projection of the storage layer at the bottom layer;

[0012] The inbound conveyor line is used to convey the material box in a direction away from the material box transfer unit, and the outbound conveyor line is used to convey the material box in a direction toward the material box transfer unit;

[0013] The transport robot is used to transport the material boxes on the inbound conveyor line to the storage layer of any layer, and to transport the material boxes of the storage layer of any layer to the outbound conveyor line;

[0014] The material box transfer unit is used to allocate material boxes to the inbound conveyor line and receive material boxes conveyed by the outbound conveyor line.

[0015] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box storage and unloading system further includes:

[0016] A material box detection device, along the extension direction of the storage conveyor line, the material box detection device is fixedly installed and arranged beside a predetermined section of the storage conveyor line;

[0017] Wherein, the material box detection device is used to trigger the generation of a detection signal when the material box on the storage conveyor line is transmitted to the predetermined interval;

[0018] Furthermore, the storage conveyor line is braked due to the triggering of the detection signal.

[0019] In one embodiment, preferably, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged on both sides of the walking lane and are arranged at the same height;

[0020] The material box transfer unit includes a circular conveyor line extending along the parallel arrangement direction of the plurality of shelf units, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the same side of the circular conveyor line;

[0021] The circular conveyor line is respectively installed with a transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the end of the inbound conveyor line and at a position corresponding to the end of the outbound conveyor line;

[0022] The transfer mechanism corresponding to the end position of the incoming conveyor line is used to transfer the material box that is transferred to the end position of the incoming conveyor line on the circular conveyor line to the incoming conveyor line, so as to complete the material box allocation to the incoming conveyor line;

[0023] Furthermore, the transfer mechanism corresponding to the end position of the outbound conveyor line is used to transfer the material box transferred to its end position on the outbound conveyor line to the circular conveyor line to complete the reception of the material box on the outbound conveyor line.

[0024] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box transfer unit further comprises a sorting conveyor line, which is arranged on the other side of the circular conveyor line and has the same transmission direction as that of the other side;

[0025] The material box storage and unloading system further includes at least one storage and unloading operation area arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveying line;

[0026] Wherein, the sorting conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the downstream of the warehousing operation area, so that the transfer mechanism there is used to transfer the material box transferred to its position on the sorting conveyor line to the ring conveyor line;

[0027] The circular conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the upstream of the outbound operation area, so that the transfer mechanism there is used to transfer the material box transmitted to its position on the circular conveyor line to the sorting conveyor line.

[0028] In one embodiment, preferably, the annular conveyor line comprises two roller conveyor lines extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel;

[0029] The transfer mechanism includes a transfer device and a camera arranged next to the transfer device;

[0030] Wherein, the transfer device comprises a plurality of conveyor belts arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line, each of the conveyor belts is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belts are configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers;

[0031] The camera is used to detect the material box transmitted to its position and generate a transfer signal based on the detection result. The conveyor belt is driven by the triggering of the transfer signal and is raised from a first position hidden in the roller to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

[0032] In one embodiment, preferably, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged on the same side of the walking lane and are arranged up and down;

[0033] The material box transfer unit includes a first circular conveyor line and a second circular conveyor line arranged vertically, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the same side of the first circular conveyor line and the second circular conveyor line;

[0034] Wherein, at a position corresponding to the end of the inbound conveyor line, the first circular conveyor line is installed with a transfer mechanism, so that the transfer mechanism is used to transfer the material box that is transferred on the first circular conveyor line to a position close to the end of the inbound conveyor line to the inbound conveyor line, so as to complete the material box allocation to the inbound conveyor line;

[0035] The second circular conveyor line is installed with the transfer mechanism at the position corresponding to the end of the outbound conveyor line, so that the transfer mechanism is used to transfer the material box transferred to its end position on the outbound conveyor line to the second circular conveyor line to complete the reception of the material box on the outbound conveyor line.

[0036] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box transfer unit further includes a sorting conveying line which is at least arranged on the other side of the second circular conveying line and has the same transmission direction as that of the other side;

[0037] The material box storage and unloading system further includes at least one storage-in operation area arranged along the extension direction of the first circular conveyor line, and at least one storage-out operation area arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveyor line;

[0038] The second circular conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the upstream of the outbound operation area, so that the transfer mechanism is used to transfer the material box transmitted to its position on the second circular conveyor line to the sorting conveyor line.

[0039] In one embodiment, preferably, the first annular conveyor line and the second annular conveyor line respectively include two roller conveyor lines extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel;

[0040] The transfer mechanism includes a transfer device and a camera arranged next to the transfer device;

[0041] Wherein, the transfer device comprises a plurality of conveyor belts arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line, each of the conveyor belts is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belts are configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers;

[0042] The camera is used to detect the material box transmitted to its position and generate a transfer signal based on the detection result. The conveyor belt is driven by the triggering of the transfer signal and is raised from a first position hidden in the roller to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

[0043] In a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a material box storage and unloading method, wherein the material box storage and unloading method is applied to a material box storage and unloading system, wherein the material box storage and unloading system comprises:

[0044] Shelf units extending along a first direction, a plurality of the shelf units being arranged in parallel to form a shelf area, and a walking lane extending along the first direction being formed between adjacent shelf units;

[0045] A transport robot is arranged in the walking lane and walks along the walking lane;

[0046] A material box transfer unit, provided at one end of the shelf area along the first direction;

[0047] Wherein, a storage conveyor line and a storage conveyor line are arranged beside each of the walking lanes, and the storage conveyor line and the storage conveyor line extend along the first direction and are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit;

[0048] The shelf unit includes a plurality of storage layers, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are located below the projection of the storage layer at the bottom layer;

[0049] Wherein, the material box storage and unloading method includes:

[0050] Material box storage method:

[0051] The material box to be stored is allocated to the storage conveyor line corresponding to its storage location through the material box transfer unit;

[0052] Driving the transport robot corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage location;

[0053] Material box outbound method:

[0054] Driving the handling robot corresponding to the outbound storage location to transfer the material box to be outbound placed in the outbound storage location to the outbound conveying line corresponding to the outbound storage location;

[0055] The material box to be shipped out conveyed by the outbound conveying line is received by the material box transfer unit.

[0056] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box in-and-out storage system further includes a material box detection device, and along the extension direction of the storage conveyor line, the material box detection device is fixedly installed and arranged beside a predetermined section of the storage conveyor line;

[0057] In the material box storage method, before the step of driving the handling robot corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage location, the method further includes:

[0058] Receiving a detection signal generated by the material box detection device when the material box to be stored on the storage conveyor line where the material box is located is transmitted to a predetermined section;

[0059] The storage conveying line on which the material box detection device that generates the detection signal is fixedly installed is braked according to the detection signal.

[0060] In one embodiment, preferably, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged on both sides of the walking lane and are arranged at the same height;

[0061] The material box transfer unit includes a circular conveyor line extending along the parallel arrangement direction of the plurality of shelf units, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the same side of the circular conveyor line; the circular conveyor line is respectively installed with a transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the end of the inbound conveyor line and at a position corresponding to the end of the outbound conveyor line;

[0062] Among them, in the material box storage method, the step of allocating the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to its storage location through the material box transfer unit includes:

[0063] Obtain the material box to be stored through the circular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit;

[0064] Drive the transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line at the end of the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location;

[0065] Among them, in the material box outbound method, the step of receiving the material box to be outbound conveyed by the outbound conveyor line through the material box transfer unit includes:

[0066] The transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line located at the end of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position is driven to transfer the to-be-outbound material box output by the outbound conveyor line to the circular conveyor line.

[0067] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box transfer unit further comprises a sorting conveyor line, which is arranged on the other side of the circular conveyor line and has the same transmission direction as that of the other side;

[0068] The material box storage and unloading system further includes at least one storage-in operation area and at least one storage-out operation area arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveyor line; the sorting conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the downstream of the storage-in operation area, and the circular conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the upstream of the storage-out operation area;

[0069] Among them, in the material box storage method, the step of obtaining the material box to be stored through the ring conveyor line of the material box transfer unit includes:

[0070] Obtain the material box to be stored in the storage operation area of ​​the sorting conveyor line;

[0071] The material box to be stored is transferred to the circular conveyor line by a transfer mechanism provided on the sorting conveyor line and located downstream of the storage operation area;

[0072] Wherein, in the material box outbound method, the step of receiving the material box to be outbound conveyed by the outbound conveyor line through the material box transfer unit further includes:

[0073] The transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line and located at the upstream position of the outbound operation area corresponding to the outbound material box continues to be driven to transfer the outbound material box to the sorting conveyor line.

[0074] In one embodiment, preferably, the annular conveyor line comprises two roller conveyor lines extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel;

[0075] The transfer mechanism includes a transfer device and a camera arranged next to the transfer device; the transfer device includes a plurality of conveyor belts arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line, each of the conveyor belts is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belts are configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers;

[0076] The step of driving the transfer mechanism to transfer the material box to be stored or the material box to be shipped includes:

[0077] A transfer signal generated by a camera of a receiving transfer mechanism due to detection of a material box transmitted to its position and based on the detection result;

[0078] The conveyor belt of the transfer mechanism is driven to run according to the transfer signal and rise from a first position hidden in the roller of the roller conveyor line to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

[0079] In one embodiment, preferably, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged on the same side of the walking lane and are arranged up and down;

[0080] The material box transfer unit includes a first circular conveyor line and a second circular conveyor line arranged vertically, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the same side of the first circular conveyor line and the second circular conveyor line; the first circular conveyor line is installed with a transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the end of the inbound conveyor line, and the second circular conveyor line is installed with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the end of the outbound conveyor line;

[0081] Among them, in the material box storage method, the step of allocating the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to its storage location through the material box transfer unit includes:

[0082] Obtain the material box to be stored through the first circular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit;

[0083] Drive the transfer mechanism on the first circular conveyor line at the end of the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location;

[0084] Among them, in the material box outbound method, the step of receiving the material box to be outbound conveyed by the outbound conveyor line through the material box transfer unit includes:

[0085] The transfer mechanism on the second circular conveyor line located at the end of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position is driven to transfer the to-be-outbound material box output by the outbound conveyor line to the second circular conveyor line.

[0086] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box transfer unit further includes a sorting conveying line which is at least arranged on the other side of the second circular conveying line and has the same transmission direction as that of the other side;

[0087] The material box storage and unloading system further comprises at least one storage-in operation area arranged along the extension direction of the first circular conveyor line, and at least one storage-out operation area arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveyor line; the second circular conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the upstream of the storage-out operation area;

[0088] Wherein, in the material box outbound method, the step of receiving the material box to be outbound conveyed by the outbound conveyor line through the material box transfer unit further includes:

[0089] The transfer mechanism on the second circular conveyor line and located at the upstream position of the outbound operation area corresponding to the outbound material box continues to be driven to transfer the outbound material box to the sorting conveyor line.

[0090] In one embodiment, preferably, the first annular conveyor line and the second annular conveyor line respectively include two roller conveyor lines extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel;

[0091] The transfer mechanism includes a transfer device and a camera arranged next to the transfer device; the transfer device includes a plurality of conveyor belts arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line, each of the conveyor belts is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belts are configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers;

[0092] The step of driving the transfer mechanism to transfer the material box to be stored or the material box to be shipped includes:

[0093] A transfer signal generated by a camera of a receiving transfer mechanism due to detection of a material box transmitted to its position and based on the detection result;

[0094] The conveyor belt of the transfer mechanism is driven to run according to the transfer signal and rise from a first position hidden in the roller of the roller conveyor line to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

[0095] In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an electronic device for loading and unloading a material box, wherein the electronic device for loading and unloading a material box is applied to a material box loading and unloading system, and the material box loading and unloading system comprises:

[0096] Shelf units extending along a first direction, a plurality of the shelf units being arranged in parallel to form a shelf area, and a walking lane extending along the first direction being formed between adjacent shelf units;

[0097] A transport robot is arranged in the walking lane and walks along the walking lane;

[0098] A material box transfer unit, provided at one end of the shelf area along the first direction;

[0099] Wherein, a storage conveyor line and a storage conveyor line are arranged beside each of the walking lanes, and the storage conveyor line and the storage conveyor line extend along the first direction and are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit;

[0100] The shelf unit includes a plurality of storage layers, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are located below the projection of the storage layer at the bottom layer;

[0101] Wherein, the electronic device for loading and unloading the material box includes:

[0102] A material box allocation unit is used to allocate the material boxes to be stored to the storage conveyor lines corresponding to their storage locations through the material box transfer unit;

[0103] A material box storage transfer unit is used to drive a handling robot corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage location;

[0104] The material box outbound transfer unit is used to drive the handling robot corresponding to the outbound storage location to transfer the material box to be outbound placed in the outbound storage location to the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage location;

[0105] The material box receiving unit is used to receive the material box to be shipped out conveyed by the outbound conveying line through the material box transfer unit.

[0106] In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, which stores instructions, and when the instructions are executed by a processor, the processor executes the steps in the material box warehousing and unloading method as described above.

[0107] One or more technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application have at least the following technical effects or advantages:

[0108] The embodiment of the present application provides a material box in-and-out storage system and a material box in-and-out storage method, wherein the material box in-and-out storage system comprises a shelf unit, a handling robot and a material box transfer unit; a plurality of shelf units extending in a first direction are arranged in parallel to form a shelf area, a walking lane extending in the first direction is formed between adjacent shelf units, the handling robot is arranged in the walking lane and walks along the walking lane, and the material box transfer unit is arranged at one end of the shelf area along the first direction; wherein, an in-warehouse conveyor line and an out-warehouse conveyor line are arranged beside each walking lane, the in-warehouse conveyor line and the out-warehouse conveyor line extend in the first direction and are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit, and the in-warehouse conveyor line and the out-warehouse conveyor line are connected to the material box transfer unit, and The warehouse conveyor lines are all located below the projection of the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit; in this way, it can be understood that, on the one hand, since the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are both located below the projection of the bottom storage layer, that is, they are hidden relative to the walking aisle, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line will not hinder the walking of the transport robot, and the transport robot can smoothly transfer material boxes between the inbound conveyor line and the inbound storage location, and between the outbound storage location and the outbound conveyor line; on the other hand, the material box transfer unit located at one end of the shelf area can simultaneously complete the material box allocation to the inbound conveyor line and the material box reception to the outbound conveyor line, thereby completing the material box in and out of storage operations.

[0109] That is to say, this embodiment sets up an inbound conveyor line and an outbound conveyor line beside each walking aisle and below the projection of the bottom storage layer. In this way, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line can be used to complete the inbound and outbound transfer of material boxes respectively, and the box-moving robot docked with the handling robot (i.e. the box-picking robot mentioned above) is eliminated, thereby expanding the area of ​​the shelf area in the warehouse, and there is no need to construct a walking environment for the box-moving robot such as an auxiliary walking QR code, a virtual map, etc., thereby improving the working efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0110] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments of the present invention will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other accompanying drawings can be obtained based on these accompanying drawings without paying creative labor.

[0111] Figure 1This is a side structural schematic diagram of the material box warehousing and unloading system described in one embodiment of the present application, wherein the shelf unit is a single-depth shelf, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged in a single layer on both sides of the walking lane.

[0112] Figure 2 It is a schematic diagram of the top structure of the material box transfer unit described in one embodiment of the present application, wherein the annular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit is a single-layer arrangement.

[0113] Figure 3 This is a structural schematic diagram of a material box detection device provided on the warehousing conveyor line described in an embodiment of the present application.

[0114] Figure 4 This is a structural schematic diagram of the roller conveyor line described in the embodiment of the present application equipped with a transfer mechanism.

[0115] Figure 5 This is a side structural schematic diagram of the material box warehousing and unloading system described in another embodiment of the present application, wherein the shelf unit is a double-depth shelf, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged in a double layer on one side of the walking lane.

[0116] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the top structure of the material box transfer unit described in another embodiment of the present application, wherein the first annular conveyor line and the second annular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit are double-layered.

[0117] Figure 7 It is a structural schematic diagram of the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line in the embodiment of the present application, which are arranged in double layers on one side of the walking lane.

[0118] Figure 8 Schematic diagram of the structure of the handling robot described in the embodiment of the present application.

[0119] Fig. 9 It is a schematic diagram of the process of the material box storage and unloading method described in the embodiment of the present application.

[0120] Fig.10 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the electronic device for loading and unloading material boxes described in an embodiment of the present application.

[0121] Wherein, the reference numerals are:

[0122] 10-shelf unit, 11-shelf area, 12-walking aisle, 13-inbound conveyor line, 14-outbound conveyor line, 15-storage layer,

[0123] 20- handling robot, 21- power chassis, 22- lifting gantry, 23- box-taking mechanism,

[0124] 30- material box transfer unit, 31- ring conveyor line, 32- sorting conveyor line, 33- transfer mechanism, 34- roller conveyor line,

[0125] 312- Second circular conveyor line,

[0126] 331- conveyor belt, 332- camera,

[0127] 40-Material box detection device,

[0128] 50-Warehousing operation area,

[0129] 60-Outbound operation area,

[0130] 70-Material box,

[0131] 81- material box distribution unit, 84- material box storage transfer unit, 85- material box storage transfer unit, 86- material box receiving unit,

[0132] X - first direction. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0133] In order to better understand the above technical solution, the example embodiments of the present application will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments of the present application. It should be understood that the present application is not limited to the exemplary embodiments described here.

[0134] Figure 1 This is a side view of the structure of the material box in and out storage system. Figure 2 This is a top view of the structure of the material box transfer unit. Figure 1 and Figure 2 A material box storage and retrieval system includes a shelf unit 10, a handling robot 20 and a material box transfer unit 30; the shelf unit 10 extends along a first direction X, and a plurality of shelf units 10 are arranged in parallel to form a shelf area 11, and a walking lane 12 extending along the first direction X is formed between adjacent shelf units 10; the handling robot 20 is disposed in the walking lane 12 and walks along the walking lane 12; the material box transfer unit 30 is disposed at one end of the shelf area 11 along the first direction X.

[0135] Among them, an inbound conveyor line 13 and an outbound conveyor line 14 are arranged beside each walking lane 12, and the inbound conveyor line 13 and the outbound conveyor line 14 extend along the first direction X and are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit 30; the shelf unit 10 includes a plurality of storage layers 15, and the inbound conveyor line 13 and the outbound conveyor line 14 are located below the projection of the bottom storage layer 15.

[0136] The inbound conveyor line 13 is used to convey the material boxes in a direction away from the material box transfer unit 30, and the outbound conveyor line 14 is used to convey the material boxes in a direction toward the material box transfer unit 30; the handling robot 20 is used to transport the material boxes on the inbound conveyor line 13 to any layer of the storage layer 15, and to transport the material boxes on any layer of the storage layer 15 to the outbound conveyor line 14; the material box transfer unit 30 is used to allocate material boxes to the inbound conveyor line 13, and to receive material boxes transported by the outbound conveyor line 14.

[0137] In general, the material box warehousing and out-of-warehouse system of this embodiment sets up an in-warehouse conveyor line and an out-of-warehouse conveyor line next to each walking aisle of the shelf unit. In this way, the material box warehousing and out-of-warehouse operations can be completed by a handling robot operating along the height direction of the shelf unit (i.e., the box picking robot mentioned above) in cooperation with the two conveyor lines, eliminating the other box moving robot, thereby solving the technical problem of reduced inventory area and low operating efficiency caused by the use of two handling robots for the material box warehousing and out-of-warehouse operations.

[0138] Specifically, the shelf unit extends along a first direction (see Figure 3 ), and it can include several storage layers along the height direction. In this way, it can be understood that several shelf units arranged in parallel at a predetermined interval can form a shelf area, and the predetermined interval between adjacent shelf units can form a walking aisle.

[0139] Among them, corresponding to each walking lane, this embodiment is respectively provided with an inbound conveyor line and an outbound conveyor line, and both the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are located below the projection of the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit.

[0140] That is to say, one walking lane corresponds to one inbound conveyor line and one outbound conveyor line. In this way, for one walking lane, the storage layers on the two sides of the two shelf units on the opposite sides can correspond to the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line; conversely, for any storage layer, there is a walking lane and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line next to the walking lane.

[0141] The above-mentioned transport robot is arranged in the walking lane and can walk along the walking lane, wherein, see Figure 8 The transport robot 20 includes, for example, a power chassis 21, a lifting mast 22 fixed to the power chassis 21, and a box-taking mechanism 23 installed on the lifting mast 22 to be lifted up and down.

[0142] Among them, it can be understood that when the handling robot lifts the box-taking mechanism to the height of any storage layer, it can transfer the material boxes between the storage position of the storage layer and itself; when the handling robot lifts the box-taking mechanism to the height of the incoming conveyor line, it can transfer the material boxes between the incoming conveyor line and itself; when the handling robot lifts the box-taking mechanism to the height of the outgoing conveyor line, it can transfer the material boxes between the outgoing conveyor line and itself.

[0143] The material box transfer unit is arranged at one end of the shelf area formed by a plurality of shelf units along the first direction, and the above-mentioned inbound conveyor line and outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit.

[0144] In other words, the material box transfer unit is connected to an inbound conveyor line and an outbound conveyor line at each corresponding walking lane.

[0145] At this point, it can be understood that, for example, for the warehousing operation of material boxes, first, the material box transfer unit can assign the material boxes to be entered to the warehousing conveyor line corresponding to its warehousing storage position; then, drive the handling robot corresponding to the warehousing storage position to transport the material boxes to be entered to the warehousing storage position; similarly, for the outbound operation of material boxes, first, drive the handling robot corresponding to the outbound storage position to transport the material boxes to be outbound to the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position; then, the material boxes to be outbound transported by the outbound conveyor line can be received by the material box transfer unit.

[0146] The embodiment of the present application provides a material box in-and-out storage system and a material box in-and-out storage method, wherein the material box in-and-out storage system comprises a shelf unit, a handling robot and a material box transfer unit; a plurality of shelf units extending in a first direction are arranged in parallel to form a shelf area, a walking lane extending in the first direction is formed between adjacent shelf units, the handling robot is arranged in the walking lane and walks along the walking lane, and the material box transfer unit is arranged at one end of the shelf area along the first direction; wherein, an in-warehouse conveyor line and an out-warehouse conveyor line are arranged beside each walking lane, the in-warehouse conveyor line and the out-warehouse conveyor line extend in the first direction and are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit, and the in-warehouse conveyor line and the out-warehouse conveyor line are connected to the material box transfer unit, and The warehouse conveyor lines are all located below the projection of the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit; in this way, it can be understood that, on the one hand, since the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are both located below the projection of the bottom storage layer, that is, they are hidden relative to the walking aisle, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line will not hinder the walking of the transport robot, and the transport robot can smoothly transfer material boxes between the inbound conveyor line and the inbound storage location, and between the outbound storage location and the outbound conveyor line; on the other hand, the material box transfer unit located at one end of the shelf area can simultaneously complete the material box allocation to the inbound conveyor line and the material box reception to the outbound conveyor line, thereby completing the material box in and out of storage operations.

[0147] That is to say, this embodiment sets up an inbound conveyor line and an outbound conveyor line beside each walking aisle and below the projection of the bottom storage layer. In this way, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line can be used to complete the inbound and outbound transfer of material boxes respectively, and the box-moving robot docked with the handling robot (i.e. the box-picking robot mentioned above) is eliminated, thereby expanding the area of ​​the shelf area in the warehouse, and there is no need to construct a walking environment for the box-moving robot such as an auxiliary walking QR code, a virtual map, etc., thereby improving the working efficiency.

[0148] In one possible implementation, the material box in and out of the storage system also includes a material box detection device 40, which is fixedly installed along the extension direction of the storage conveyor line 13 and is arranged next to a predetermined section of the storage conveyor line 13; wherein the material box detection device 40 is used to trigger the generation of a detection signal when the material box on the storage conveyor line 13 is transmitted to the predetermined section; and the storage conveyor line 13 is braked due to the triggering of the detection signal.

[0149] That is, for the warehousing operation process of the material box to be stored, after the material box to be stored is allocated to the corresponding warehousing conveyor line by the material box transfer unit, the warehousing conveyor line can transport the material box to be stored.

[0150] Among them, see Figure 3 In the process of transporting the material box to be stored, the present embodiment has a material box detection device fixedly installed in a predetermined section of the storage conveyor line; it can be understood that the material box detection device can be, for example, an infrared sensor or the like, so that when the material box to be stored is transported to the predetermined section, the material box detection device will be triggered to generate a detection signal due to the detection of the material box to be stored; then, the storage conveyor line can be braked according to the triggering of the detection signal, or the operation of the storage conveyor line can be stopped.

[0151] Then, the transport robot corresponding to the storage location can be driven to transport the material box to be stored to the storage location.

[0152] That is to say, before the handling robot carries the material box to be stored on the storage conveyor line, the storage conveyor line needs to be braked to facilitate the handling robot to obtain the material box to be stored from the storage conveyor line.

[0153] In one possible implementation, the incoming conveyor line 13 and the outgoing conveyor line 14 are arranged on both sides of the walking lane 12 and are arranged at the same height; the material box transfer unit 30 includes a circular conveyor line 31 extending along the parallel arrangement direction of a plurality of shelf units 10, and the incoming conveyor line 13 and the outgoing conveyor line 14 are respectively connected to the same side of the circular conveyor line 31; at the position corresponding to the end of the incoming conveyor line 13 and at the position corresponding to the end of the outgoing conveyor line 14, the circular conveyor line 31 is respectively installed with a transfer mechanism 33.

[0154] The transfer mechanism 33 at the end of the storage conveyor line 13 is used to transfer the material box on the ring conveyor line 31 to the end of the storage conveyor line 13 to the storage conveyor line 13, so as to complete the material box allocation to the storage conveyor line 13;

[0155] In addition, the transfer mechanism 33 at the end position of the outbound conveyor line 14 is used to transfer the material box transferred to its end position on the outbound conveyor line 14 to the circular conveyor line 31 to complete the reception of the material box on the outbound conveyor line 14.

[0156] That is, see Figure 2 , this embodiment provides a possible structure of the material box transfer unit.

[0157] The material box transfer unit includes, for example, a circular conveyor line, and the incoming conveyor line and the outgoing conveyor line are arranged at the same height on both sides of the walking lane, and the incoming conveyor line and the outgoing conveyor line can be connected to the same side of the circular conveyor line; then, the circular conveyor line is respectively provided with a transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the end of the incoming conveyor line and at a position corresponding to the end of the outgoing conveyor line, and the transfer mechanism is used to transfer material boxes between the circular conveyor line and the incoming conveyor line, and between the outgoing conveyor line and the circular conveyor line.

[0158] Thus, it can be understood that, on the one hand, the transfer mechanism at the end position of the incoming conveyor line can transfer the material boxes on the circular conveyor line that are allocated to a certain incoming conveyor line to the incoming conveyor line, that is, complete the allocation of the material boxes to the incoming conveyor line.

[0159] On the other hand, the transfer mechanism at the end of the outbound conveyor line can transfer the material box on the outbound conveyor line to the circular conveyor line, that is, complete the reception of the material box on the outbound conveyor line.

[0160] It can be seen that the material box transfer unit of this embodiment can respectively complete the material box distribution on the incoming conveyor line and the material box reception on the outgoing conveyor line through the ring conveyor line and the transfer mechanism, and has a simple structure.

[0161] In a specific embodiment, the material box transfer unit 30 also includes a sorting conveyor line 32, which is arranged on the other side of the circular conveyor line 31 and has the same transmission direction as that of the side; the material box in-and-out storage system also includes at least one in-warehousing operation area 50 and at least one out-warehousing operation area 60 arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveyor line 32.

[0162] Among them, the sorting conveyor line 32 is provided with a transfer mechanism 33 at a position downstream of the corresponding warehousing operation area 50, so that the transfer mechanism 33 at this position is used to transfer the material box transmitted to its position on the sorting conveyor line 32 to the circular conveyor line 31; the circular conveyor line 31 is provided with a transfer mechanism 33 at a position upstream of the corresponding outbound operation area 60, so that the transfer mechanism 33 at this position is used to transfer the material box transmitted to its position on the circular conveyor line 31 to the sorting conveyor line 32.

[0163] That is, continue to see Figure 2 For the convenience of operation, the present embodiment further provides a sorting conveyor line on the other side of the circular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit to facilitate the setting of the warehousing operation area and the outbound operation area, wherein the number of the warehousing operation area and the outbound operation area is not limited in the present embodiment.

[0164] In addition, it can be understood that when the operator in the incoming operation area places the incoming material box on the sorting conveyor line, the present embodiment is provided with a transfer mechanism at the downstream position of the incoming operation area of ​​the sorting conveyor line, so that the transfer mechanism can transfer the incoming material box on the sorting conveyor line to the circular conveyor line, and then the circular conveyor line can transfer it to the assigned incoming conveyor line; similarly, when the circular conveyor line obtains the outgoing material box of the outgoing conveyor line, the present embodiment is provided with a transfer mechanism at the upstream position of the outgoing operation area corresponding to the circular conveyor line, so that the transfer mechanism can transfer the outgoing material box obtained by the circular conveyor line to the corresponding outgoing operation area, and then the operator in the outgoing operation area can sort it.

[0165] In a specific embodiment, the annular conveyor line 31 includes two roller conveyor lines 34 extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel; the transfer mechanism 33 includes a transfer device and a camera 332 arranged next to the transfer device; wherein the transfer device includes a plurality of conveyor belts 331 arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line 34, each conveyor belt 331 is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belt 331 is configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers; the camera 332 is used to detect the material box 70 transmitted to its position and generate a transfer signal based on the detection result, and the conveyor belt 331 is driven due to the triggering of the transfer signal and is raised from a first position hidden in the roller to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

[0166] That is, combined Figure 2 and Figure 4 , this embodiment provides a possible structure of a ring conveyor line and a transfer mechanism.

[0167] The annular conveyor line may be realized, for example, by two roller conveyor lines arranged in parallel. It can be understood that the conveying directions of the two roller conveyor lines arranged in parallel should be opposite.

[0168] Among them, the conveyor belt of the transfer device can be arranged between adjacent rollers of the roller conveyor line and configured to be liftable relative to the rollers. In this way, it can be understood that the camera of the transfer mechanism can detect the material box transmitted to its position, and when the detection result shows that it is a material box that needs to be transferred, the material box entry and exit system will generate a transfer signal according to the detection result. At this time, the conveyor belt can be driven to run and raised from a first position hidden in the roller to a second position protruding relative to the roller; it can be understood that at this time, the transfer device (that is, a plurality of conveyor belts) can drive the material box for transfer, for example, it can complete the transfer of the material box between the sorting conveyor line and the circular conveyor line, it can complete the transfer of the material box from the circular conveyor line to the warehousing conveyor line, and it can complete the transfer of the material box from the outbound conveyor line to the circular conveyor line.

[0169] It can be seen that the inbound conveyor line, outbound conveyor line, circular conveyor line and sorting conveyor line mentioned in the above embodiments are all single-layer settings.

[0170] In one possible implementation, the inbound conveyor line 13 and the outbound conveyor line 14 are located on the same side of the walking lane 12 and are arranged vertically; the material box transfer unit 30 includes a first circular conveyor line and a second circular conveyor line 312 arranged vertically, and the inbound conveyor line 13 and the outbound conveyor line 14 are respectively connected to the same side of the first circular conveyor line and the second circular conveyor line 312.

[0171] Among them, at the position corresponding to the end of the incoming conveyor line 13, the first circular conveyor line is installed with a transfer mechanism 33, so that the transfer mechanism 33 is used to transfer the material box that is transferred on the first circular conveyor line to the position close to the end of the incoming conveyor line 13 to the incoming conveyor line 13, so as to complete the material box allocation to the incoming conveyor line 13.

[0172] At the position corresponding to the end of the outbound conveyor line 14, the second circular conveyor line 312 is installed with a transfer mechanism 33, so that the transfer mechanism 33 is used to transfer the material box transmitted to its end position on the outbound conveyor line 14 to the second circular conveyor line 312, so as to complete the reception of the material box on the outbound conveyor line 14.

[0173] That is, combined Figure 5 , Figure 6 and Figure 7 , this embodiment provides another possible structure of the material box transfer unit.

[0174] The material box transfer unit of this embodiment includes a first annular conveyor line and a second annular conveyor line arranged up and down ( Figure 6The top view shows the second circular conveyor line on the upper layer, and the first circular conveyor line on the lower layer is covered), for example, the first circular conveyor line is located on the lower layer, and the second circular conveyor line is located on the upper layer; then, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged at the same height on both sides of the walking lane, the inbound conveyor line is located on the lower layer, and the outbound conveyor line is located on the upper layer; and, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the first circular conveyor line and the second circular conveyor line.

[0175] In this way, it can be understood that, on the one hand, the material boxes to be entered into the warehouse can be placed on the first circular conveyor line on the lower layer, and then transferred to the corresponding entry conveyor line by the transfer mechanism arranged on the first circular conveyor line, thereby completing the allocation of material boxes on the entry conveyor line; on the other hand, the material boxes to be left out of the warehouse can be transferred to the second circular conveyor line on the upper layer by the transfer mechanism, thereby completing the reception of the material boxes on the exit conveyor line.

[0176] It can be seen that the material box transfer unit of this embodiment can specifically complete the material box distribution on the incoming conveyor line and the material box reception on the outgoing conveyor line through the first circular conveyor line and the second circular conveyor line arranged up and down and the transfer mechanisms arranged thereon, and the structure is simple.

[0177] In a specific embodiment, the material box transfer unit 30 also includes a sorting conveyor line 32 which is at least arranged on the other side of the second circular conveyor line 312 and has the same transmission direction as that of the side; the material box in-and-out storage system also includes at least one in-warehouse operation area 50 arranged along the extension direction of the first circular conveyor line, and at least one out-warehouse operation area 60 arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveyor line 32; wherein, the second circular conveyor line 312 is provided with a transfer mechanism 33 at a position upstream of the corresponding out-warehouse operation area 60, so that the transfer mechanism 33 is used to transfer the material box transferred to its position on the second circular conveyor line 312 to the sorting conveyor line 32.

[0178] That is, unlike the above-mentioned single-layer setting of the warehousing operation area and the outbound operation area, the present embodiment can set up a sorting conveyor line next to the second circular conveyor line used for the outbound storage of the material box, so as to facilitate the setting of the outbound storage operation area; and as for the warehousing operation area, it can be directly set on the first circular conveyor line, and the structure is simple.

[0179] In a specific embodiment, the first circular conveyor line and the second circular conveyor line 312 respectively include two roller conveyor lines 34 extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel; the transfer mechanism 33 includes a transfer device and a camera 332 arranged next to the transfer device; wherein the transfer device includes a plurality of conveyor belts 331 arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line 34, each conveyor belt 331 is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belt 331 is configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers; the camera 332 is used to detect the material box transmitted to its position and generate a transfer signal based on the detection result, and the conveyor belt 331 is driven due to the triggering of the transfer signal and is raised from a first position hidden in the roller to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

[0180] That is, the transfer mechanism of this embodiment can be the same as the transfer mechanism described above for the single-layer setting, and will not be described in detail.

[0181] It should be noted that for the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line, no matter whether it is located on both sides of the walking aisle and is arranged in a single layer or is located on one side of the walking aisle and is arranged in a double layer, the shelf unit can be a single-depth shelf or a double-depth shelf, which has no effect on the specific inbound and outbound process.

[0182] Based on the above-mentioned material box storage and unloading system, this embodiment also discloses a material box storage and unloading method, see Fig. 9 , the material box storage and retrieval method includes:

[0183] Material box storage method:

[0184] S1, allocating the incoming material box to the incoming conveying line corresponding to its incoming storage location through the material box transfer unit;

[0185] S4, driving the transport robot corresponding to the storage location to transport the material box to be stored to the storage location;

[0186] Material box outbound method:

[0187] S5, driving the handling robot corresponding to the outbound storage location to transfer the material box to be outbound placed in the outbound storage location to the outbound conveying line corresponding to the outbound storage location;

[0188] S6. Receive the material boxes to be shipped out conveyed by the outbound conveyor line through the material box transfer unit.

[0189] That is, for the warehousing operation of the material box, the material box warehousing and unloading system will first assign a warehousing storage location to the material box to be stored. Then, the material box warehousing method first needs to assign the material box to be stored to the warehousing conveyor line corresponding to the warehousing storage location through the material box transfer unit; then, drive the handling robot corresponding to the warehousing storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the warehousing storage location.

[0190] For the outbound operation of the material box, the material box in and outbound system will first assign an outbound storage location to the material box to be outbound. Then, the material box outbound method first needs to drive the handling robot corresponding to the outbound storage location to transfer the material box to be outbound placed at the outbound storage location to the corresponding outbound conveyor line; then, through the transportation of the outbound conveyor line, the material box transfer unit can receive the material box to be outbound transported by the outbound conveyor line.

[0191] In a possible implementation manner, the method for warehousing a material box further includes, before step S4:

[0192] S2, the receiving material box detection device generates a detection signal triggered by the material box to be stored on the storage conveyor line where it is located being transmitted to the predetermined section;

[0193] S3. Braking the storage conveyor line fixedly installed with the material box detection device that generates the detection signal according to the detection signal.

[0194] That is, for the warehousing operation of the material box, before driving the handling robot to carry out the transportation, it is necessary to wait for the warehousing conveyor line to transport the material box to be stored to the predetermined interval; then, after the material box to be stored is transported to the predetermined interval, the material box detection device can detect the material box to be stored and generate a detection signal; the material box entry and exit system then brakes the corresponding warehousing conveyor line according to the detection signal, that is, stops the warehousing conveyor line that transports the material box to be stored; this can facilitate the handling robot to obtain the material box to be stored on the warehousing conveyor line.

[0195] In a possible implementation manner, in the material box warehousing method, step S1 includes:

[0196] S111, obtaining the material box to be stored through the circular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit;

[0197] S112, driving the transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line at the end of the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location.

[0198] In the material box outbound method, step S6 includes:

[0199] S611, driving the transfer mechanism at the end of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position on the circular conveyor line to transfer the material box to be outbound outputted by the outbound conveyor line to the circular conveyor line.

[0200] That is, when the incoming conveyor line and the outgoing conveyor line are located on both sides of the walking aisle and are arranged in a single layer, for the warehousing operation of the material box, the material box to be entered can be first placed on the end of the circular conveyor line, and then, the material box to be entered can be transferred to the incoming conveyor line through the transfer mechanism at the end position of the incoming conveyor line corresponding to the incoming storage position on the circular conveyor line.

[0201] For the outbound operation of material boxes, the material boxes to be outbound on the outbound conveyor line can be transferred to the circular conveyor line by a transfer mechanism at the end of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position on the circular conveyor line.

[0202] In a specific embodiment, in the material box warehousing method, step S111 includes:

[0203] S1111, obtaining a material box to be stored in the storage operation area of ​​the sorting conveyor line;

[0204] S1112. The material boxes to be stored are transferred to the circular conveyor line by a transfer mechanism which is arranged on the sorting conveyor line and located downstream of the storage operation area.

[0205] In the material box out-of-warehouse method, step S6 also includes:

[0206] S612, continue to drive the transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line and located at the upstream position of the outbound operation area corresponding to the material box to be outbound to transfer the material box to be outbound to the sorting conveyor line.

[0207] In a possible implementation manner, in the material box warehousing method, step S1 includes:

[0208] S121, obtaining a material box to be stored through the first circular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit;

[0209] S122, driving the transfer mechanism on the first circular conveyor line at the end of the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location.

[0210] In the material box outbound method, step S6 includes:

[0211] S621, driving the transfer mechanism on the second circular conveyor line at the end of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position to transfer the material box to be outbound outputted by the outbound conveyor line to the second circular conveyor line.

[0212] That is, when the incoming conveyor line and the outgoing conveyor line are located on one side of the walking alley and are arranged in a double-layer configuration, for the warehousing operation of the material box, the material box to be entered can be first placed on the first circular conveyor line on the lower layer, and then the material box to be entered can be transferred to the incoming conveyor line through the transfer mechanism at the end position of the incoming conveyor line corresponding to the incoming storage position on the first circular conveyor line.

[0213] For the outbound operation of the material box, the material box to be outbound on the outbound conveyor line can be transferred to the circular conveyor line through the transfer mechanism at the end position of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position on the second circular conveyor line on the upper layer.

[0214] In a specific embodiment, in the method for unloading a material box, step S6 further includes:

[0215] S622, continue to drive the transfer mechanism on the second ring conveyor line and located at the upstream position of the outbound operation area corresponding to the material box to be outbound to transfer the material box to be outbound to the sorting conveyor line.

[0216] In a specific embodiment, the step of driving the transfer mechanism to transfer the incoming material box or the outgoing material box includes:

[0217] S701, receiving a transfer signal generated by a camera of a transfer mechanism due to detection of a material box transmitted to its position and based on the detection result;

[0218] S702, driving the conveyor belt of the transfer mechanism to run according to the transfer signal and rising from a first position hidden in the roller of the roller conveyor line to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

[0219] Based on the above-mentioned material box storage and unloading system, this embodiment also discloses a material box storage and unloading electronic device, see Fig.10 The electronic device for loading and unloading the material box includes:

[0220] A material box allocation unit is used to allocate the material boxes to be stored to the storage conveyor lines corresponding to their storage locations through the material box transfer unit;

[0221] The material box storage transfer unit is used to drive the handling robot corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage location;

[0222] The material box outbound transfer unit is used to drive the handling robot corresponding to the outbound storage location to transfer the material box to be outbound placed in the outbound storage location to the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage location;

[0223] The material box receiving unit is used to receive the material boxes to be shipped out conveyed by the outbound conveying line through the material box transfer unit.

[0224] In a possible implementation manner, the electronic device for loading and unloading a material box further includes:

[0225] A material box entry detection unit, used to receive a detection signal generated by a material box detection device when a material box to be entered on the entry conveyor line where the material box is located is transmitted to a predetermined section;

[0226] The storage braking unit is used to brake the storage conveying line fixedly installed with the material box detection device that generates the detection signal according to the detection signal.

[0227] In one possible implementation, the bin allocation unit includes:

[0228] A first material box acquisition module is used to acquire the material boxes to be stored through the circular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit;

[0229] The first material box distribution module is used to drive the transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line located at the end position of the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location.

[0230] The container receiving unit includes:

[0231] The first initial receiving module is used to drive the transfer mechanism at the end of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position on the circular conveyor line to transfer the to-be-outbound material box output by the outbound conveyor line to the circular conveyor line.

[0232] In a specific embodiment, the first material box acquisition module includes:

[0233] The first acquisition submodule is used to acquire the material boxes to be stored in the storage operation area of ​​the sorting conveyor line;

[0234] The second acquisition submodule is used to transfer the material boxes to be stored to the ring conveyor line through a transfer mechanism arranged on the sorting conveyor line and located at a downstream position of the storage operation area.

[0235] The container receiving unit also includes:

[0236] The first receiving module is used to continue to drive the transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line and located at the upstream position of the outbound operation area corresponding to the outbound material box to be outbound to transfer the outbound material box to the sorting conveyor line.

[0237] In one possible implementation, the bin allocation unit includes:

[0238] A second material box acquisition module is used to acquire the material box to be stored through the first circular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit;

[0239] The second material box distribution module is used to drive the transfer mechanism on the first circular conveyor line at the end position of the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location.

[0240] The container receiving unit includes:

[0241] The second initial receiving module is used to drive the transfer mechanism at the end position of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position on the second circular conveyor line to transfer the to-be-outbound material box output by the outbound conveyor line to the second circular conveyor line.

[0242] In a specific embodiment, the material box receiving unit further includes:

[0243] The second receiving module is used to continue to drive the transfer mechanism on the second circular conveyor line and located at the upstream position of the outbound operation area corresponding to the outbound material box to be outbound to transfer the outbound material box to the sorting conveyor line.

[0244] Based on the above-mentioned material box storage and unloading system, this embodiment also discloses a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, which stores instructions. When the instructions are executed by the processor, the processor executes the steps in the above-mentioned material box storage and unloading method.

[0245] The basic principles of the present application are described above in conjunction with specific embodiments. However, it should be noted that the advantages, strengths, effects, etc. mentioned in the present application are only examples and not limitations, and it cannot be considered that these advantages, strengths, effects, etc. are required by each embodiment of the present application. In addition, the specific details disclosed above are only for the purpose of illustration and ease of understanding, not for limitation, and the above details do not limit the present application to being implemented by adopting the above specific details.

[0246] The block diagrams of the devices, apparatuses, equipment, and systems involved in this application are only illustrative examples and are not intended to require or imply that they must be connected, arranged, and configured in the manner shown in the block diagram. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, these devices, apparatuses, equipment, and systems can be connected, arranged, and configured in any manner. Words such as "including", "comprising", "having", etc. are open words, referring to "including but not limited to", and can be used interchangeably with them. The words "or" and "and" used here refer to the words "and / or" and can be used interchangeably with them, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The words "such as" used here refer to the phrase "such as but not limited to", and can be used interchangeably with them.

[0247] It should also be noted that in the apparatus, device and method of the present application, each component or each step can be decomposed and / or recombined. Such decomposition and / or recombination should be regarded as equivalent solutions of the present application.

[0248] The above description of the disclosed aspects is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present application. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects without departing from the scope of the present application. Therefore, the present application is not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but rather to the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

[0249] The above description has been given for the purpose of illustration and description. In addition, this description is not intended to limit the embodiments of the present application to the forms disclosed herein. Although multiple example aspects and embodiments have been discussed above, those skilled in the art will recognize that some variations, modifications, changes, additions and sub-combinations thereof should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A material box storage and retrieval system, characterized in that: The material box storage and unloading system comprises: Shelf units extending along a first direction, a plurality of the shelf units being arranged in parallel to form a shelf area, and a walking lane extending along the first direction being formed between adjacent shelf units; A transport robot is arranged in the walking lane and walks along the walking lane; A material box transfer unit, provided at one end of the shelf area along the first direction; Wherein, a storage conveyor line and a storage conveyor line are arranged beside each of the walking lanes, and the storage conveyor line and the storage conveyor line extend along the first direction and are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit; The shelf unit includes a plurality of storage layers, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are located below the projection of the storage layer at the bottom layer; The inbound conveyor line is used to convey the material box in a direction away from the material box transfer unit, and the outbound conveyor line is used to convey the material box in a direction toward the material box transfer unit; The transport robot is used to transport the material boxes on the inbound conveyor line to the storage layer of any layer, and to transport the material boxes of the storage layer of any layer to the outbound conveyor line; The material box transfer unit is used to allocate material boxes to the inbound conveyor line and receive material boxes conveyed by the outbound conveyor line.

2. The material box storage and retrieval system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The material box storage and unloading system also includes: A material box detection device, along the extension direction of the storage conveyor line, the material box detection device is fixedly installed and arranged beside a predetermined section of the storage conveyor line; Wherein, the material box detection device is used to trigger the generation of a detection signal when the material box on the storage conveyor line is transmitted to the predetermined interval; Furthermore, the storage conveyor line is braked due to the triggering of the detection signal.

3. The material box storage and unloading system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged on both sides of the walking lane and are arranged at the same height; The material box transfer unit includes a circular conveyor line extending along the parallel arrangement direction of the plurality of shelf units, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the same side of the circular conveyor line; The circular conveyor line is respectively installed with a transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the end of the inbound conveyor line and at a position corresponding to the end of the outbound conveyor line; The transfer mechanism corresponding to the end position of the incoming conveyor line is used to transfer the material box that is transferred to the end position of the incoming conveyor line on the circular conveyor line to the incoming conveyor line, so as to complete the material box allocation to the incoming conveyor line; Furthermore, the transfer mechanism corresponding to the end position of the outbound conveyor line is used to transfer the material box transferred to its end position on the outbound conveyor line to the circular conveyor line to complete the reception of the material box on the outbound conveyor line.

4. The material box storage and retrieval system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The material box transfer unit also includes a sorting conveyor line, which is arranged on the other side of the circular conveyor line and has the same transmission direction as that of the other side; The material box storage and unloading system further includes at least one storage and unloading operation area arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveying line; Wherein, the sorting conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the downstream of the warehousing operation area, so that the transfer mechanism there is used to transfer the material box transferred to its position on the sorting conveyor line to the ring conveyor line; The circular conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the upstream of the outbound operation area, so that the transfer mechanism there is used to transfer the material box transmitted to its position on the circular conveyor line to the sorting conveyor line.

5. The material box storage and unloading system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The annular conveyor line includes two roller conveyor lines extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel; The transfer mechanism includes a transfer device and a camera arranged next to the transfer device; Wherein, the transfer device comprises a plurality of conveyor belts arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line, each of the conveyor belts is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belts are configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers; The camera is used to detect the material box transmitted to its position and generate a transfer signal based on the detection result. The conveyor belt is driven by the triggering of the transfer signal and is raised from a first position hidden in the roller to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

6. The material box storage and unloading system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged on the same side of the walking lane and are arranged up and down; The material box transfer unit includes a first circular conveyor line and a second circular conveyor line arranged vertically, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the same side of the first circular conveyor line and the second circular conveyor line; Wherein, at a position corresponding to the end of the inbound conveyor line, the first circular conveyor line is installed with a transfer mechanism, so that the transfer mechanism is used to transfer the material box that is transferred on the first circular conveyor line to a position close to the end of the inbound conveyor line to the inbound conveyor line, so as to complete the material box allocation to the inbound conveyor line; The second circular conveyor line is installed with the transfer mechanism at the position corresponding to the end of the outbound conveyor line, so that the transfer mechanism is used to transfer the material box transferred to its end position on the outbound conveyor line to the second circular conveyor line to complete the reception of the material box on the outbound conveyor line.

7. The material box storage and unloading system according to claim 6, characterized in that: The material box transfer unit further includes a sorting conveying line which is at least arranged on the other side of the second circular conveying line and has the same transmission direction as that of the other side; The material box storage and unloading system further includes at least one storage-in operation area arranged along the extension direction of the first circular conveyor line, and at least one storage-out operation area arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveyor line; The second circular conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the upstream of the outbound operation area, so that the transfer mechanism is used to transfer the material box transmitted to its position on the second circular conveyor line to the sorting conveyor line.

8. The material box storage and unloading system according to claim 6, characterized in that: The first annular conveyor line and the second annular conveyor line respectively include two roller conveyor lines extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel; The transfer mechanism includes a transfer device and a camera arranged next to the transfer device; Wherein, the transfer device comprises a plurality of conveyor belts arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line, each of the conveyor belts is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belts are configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers; The camera is used to detect the material box transmitted to its position and generate a transfer signal based on the detection result. The conveyor belt is driven by the triggering of the transfer signal and is raised from a first position hidden in the roller to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

9. A material box storage and unloading method, characterized in that: The material box storage-in and storage-out method is applied to a material box storage-in and storage-out system, and the material box storage-in and storage-out system comprises: Shelf units extending along a first direction, a plurality of the shelf units being arranged in parallel to form a shelf area, and a walking lane extending along the first direction being formed between adjacent shelf units; A transport robot is arranged in the walking lane and walks along the walking lane; A material box transfer unit, provided at one end of the shelf area along the first direction; Wherein, a storage conveyor line and a storage conveyor line are arranged beside each of the walking lanes, and the storage conveyor line and the storage conveyor line extend along the first direction and are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit; The shelf unit includes a plurality of storage layers, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are located below the projection of the storage layer at the bottom layer; Wherein, the material box storage and unloading method includes: Material box storage method: The material box to be stored is allocated to the storage conveyor line corresponding to its storage location through the material box transfer unit; Driving the transport robot corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage location; Material box outbound method: Driving the handling robot corresponding to the outbound storage location to transfer the material box to be outbound placed in the outbound storage location to the outbound conveying line corresponding to the outbound storage location; The material box to be shipped out conveyed by the outbound conveying line is received by the material box transfer unit.

10. The material box storage and unloading method according to claim 9, characterized in that: The material box in-and-out storage system further includes a material box detection device, which is fixedly installed along the extension direction of the storage conveyor line and arranged beside a predetermined section of the storage conveyor line; In the material box storage method, before the step of driving the handling robot corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage location, the method further includes: Receiving a detection signal generated by the material box detection device when the material box to be stored on the storage conveyor line where the material box is located is transmitted to a predetermined section; The storage conveying line on which the material box detection device that generates the detection signal is fixedly installed is braked according to the detection signal.

11. The material box storage and unloading method according to claim 9, characterized in that: The inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged on both sides of the walking lane and are arranged at the same height; The material box transfer unit includes a circular conveyor line extending along the parallel arrangement direction of the plurality of shelf units, the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the same side of the circular conveyor line; the circular conveyor line is respectively installed with a transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the end of the inbound conveyor line and at a position corresponding to the end of the outbound conveyor line; Among them, in the material box storage method, the step of allocating the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to its storage location through the material box transfer unit includes: Obtain the material box to be stored through the circular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit; Drive the transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line at the end of the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location; Among them, in the material box outbound method, the step of receiving the material box to be outbound conveyed by the outbound conveyor line through the material box transfer unit includes: The transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line located at the end of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position is driven to transfer the to-be-outbound material box output by the outbound conveyor line to the circular conveyor line.

12. The material box storage and unloading method according to claim 11, characterized in that: The material box transfer unit also includes a sorting conveyor line, which is arranged on the other side of the circular conveyor line and has the same transmission direction as that of the other side; The material box storage and unloading system further includes at least one storage-in operation area and at least one storage-out operation area arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveyor line; the sorting conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the downstream of the storage-in operation area, and the circular conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the upstream of the storage-out operation area; Among them, in the material box storage method, the step of obtaining the material box to be stored through the ring conveyor line of the material box transfer unit includes: Obtain the material box to be stored in the storage operation area of ​​the sorting conveyor line; The material box to be stored is transferred to the circular conveyor line by a transfer mechanism provided on the sorting conveyor line and located downstream of the storage operation area; Wherein, in the material box outbound method, the step of receiving the material box to be outbound conveyed by the outbound conveyor line through the material box transfer unit further includes: The transfer mechanism on the circular conveyor line and located at the upstream position of the outbound operation area corresponding to the outbound material box continues to be driven to transfer the outbound material box to the sorting conveyor line.

13. The material box storage and unloading method according to claim 11, characterized in that: The annular conveyor line includes two roller conveyor lines extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel; The transfer mechanism includes a transfer device and a camera arranged next to the transfer device; the transfer device includes a plurality of conveyor belts arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line, each of the conveyor belts is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belts are configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers; The step of driving the transfer mechanism to transfer the material box to be stored or the material box to be shipped includes: A transfer signal generated by a camera of a receiving transfer mechanism due to detection of a material box transmitted to its position and based on the detection result; The conveyor belt of the transfer mechanism is driven to run according to the transfer signal and rise from a first position hidden in the roller of the roller conveyor line to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

14. The material box storage and unloading method according to claim 9, characterized in that: The inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are arranged on the same side of the walking lane and are arranged up and down; The material box transfer unit includes a first circular conveyor line and a second circular conveyor line arranged vertically, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are respectively connected to the same side of the first circular conveyor line and the second circular conveyor line; the first circular conveyor line is installed with a transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the end of the inbound conveyor line, and the second circular conveyor line is installed with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the end of the outbound conveyor line; Among them, in the material box storage method, the step of allocating the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to its storage location through the material box transfer unit includes: Obtain the material box to be stored through the first circular conveyor line of the material box transfer unit; Drive the transfer mechanism on the first circular conveyor line at the end of the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage conveyor line corresponding to the storage location; Among them, in the material box outbound method, the step of receiving the material box to be outbound conveyed by the outbound conveyor line through the material box transfer unit includes: The transfer mechanism on the second circular conveyor line located at the end of the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage position is driven to transfer the to-be-outbound material box output by the outbound conveyor line to the second circular conveyor line.

15. The material box storage and unloading method according to claim 14, characterized in that: The material box transfer unit further includes a sorting conveying line which is at least arranged on the other side of the second circular conveying line and has the same transmission direction as that of the other side; The material box storage and unloading system further comprises at least one storage-in operation area arranged along the extension direction of the first circular conveyor line, and at least one storage-out operation area arranged along the extension direction of the sorting conveyor line; the second circular conveyor line is provided with the transfer mechanism at a position corresponding to the upstream of the storage-out operation area; Wherein, in the material box outbound method, the step of receiving the material box to be outbound conveyed by the outbound conveyor line through the material box transfer unit further includes: The transfer mechanism on the second circular conveyor line and located at the upstream position of the outbound operation area corresponding to the outbound material box continues to be driven to transfer the outbound material box to the sorting conveyor line.

16. The material box storage and unloading method according to claim 14, characterized in that: The first annular conveyor line and the second annular conveyor line respectively include two roller conveyor lines extending in a straight line and arranged in parallel; The transfer mechanism includes a transfer device and a camera arranged next to the transfer device; the transfer device includes a plurality of conveyor belts arranged in parallel with the rollers of the roller conveyor line, each of the conveyor belts is arranged between adjacent rollers, and the conveyor belts are configured to be raised and lowered relative to the rollers; The step of driving the transfer mechanism to transfer the material box to be stored or the material box to be shipped includes: A transfer signal generated by a camera of a receiving transfer mechanism due to detection of a material box transmitted to its position and based on the detection result; The conveyor belt of the transfer mechanism is driven to run according to the transfer signal and rise from a first position hidden in the roller of the roller conveyor line to a second position protruding relative to the roller.

17. An electronic device for loading and unloading material boxes, characterized in that: The material box in and out electronic device is applied to the material box in and out system, and the material box in and out system comprises: Shelf units extending along a first direction, a plurality of the shelf units being arranged in parallel to form a shelf area, and a walking lane extending along the first direction being formed between adjacent shelf units; A transport robot is arranged in the walking lane and walks along the walking lane; A material box transfer unit, provided at one end of the shelf area along the first direction; Wherein, a storage conveyor line and a storage conveyor line are arranged beside each of the walking lanes, and the storage conveyor line and the storage conveyor line extend along the first direction and are respectively connected to the material box transfer unit; The shelf unit includes a plurality of storage layers, and the inbound conveyor line and the outbound conveyor line are located below the projection of the storage layer at the bottom layer; Wherein, the electronic device for loading and unloading the material box includes: A material box allocation unit is used to allocate the material boxes to be stored to the storage conveyor lines corresponding to their storage locations through the material box transfer unit; A material box storage transfer unit is used to drive a handling robot corresponding to the storage location to transfer the material box to be stored to the storage location; The material box outbound transfer unit is used to drive the handling robot corresponding to the outbound storage location to transfer the material box to be outbound placed in the outbound storage location to the outbound conveyor line corresponding to the outbound storage location; The material box receiving unit is used to receive the material box to be shipped out conveyed by the outbound conveying line through the material box transfer unit.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium stores instructions, which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform the steps in the container storage and retrieval method according to any one of claims 9 to 16.

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