Absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method

Abstract

The application provides a material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method, which comprises the following steps: taking out empty box groups from a storage library and inputting the empty boxes in sequence, and filling the empty boxes with materials during the conveying process; sorting at least two full boxes filled with materials which are continuously output in a first horizontal direction according to the output sequence to form a full box group, storing the full box group in the storage library in a translation mode, and recording the storage time; taking out the full box group with the earliest storage time from the storage library in a translation mode and inputting the full box group in a second horizontal direction opposite to the first horizontal direction; emptying the materials in the full boxes during the conveying process of the full boxes in the currently taken-out full box group, and sorting at least two empty boxes which are continuously output after the materials are emptied to form an empty box group and storing the empty box group in the storage library; and arranging the full boxes in the current full box group in a reverse order before the full box group is stored in the storage library or after the full box group is taken out from the storage library. The application realizes the absolute first-in-first-out storage of materials.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of material buffering, and in particular to a material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method. BACKGROUND

[0002] In the production process of materials, the buffering and conveying device is an important equipment connecting the upstream and downstream machines. When the upstream material production machine and the downstream material packaging machine are out of synchronization or one of them is temporarily stopped due to failure, the buffering and conveying device can buffer or output the materials to ensure the normal operation of the production line.

[0003] The current buffering device is usually in the first-in-first-out mode, such as the method for conveying and storing rod-shaped objects provided in Chinese patent CN201810984683.7, which is a first-in-first-out buffering method. However, in the production process, if the upstream machine outputs unqualified materials due to failure, the first-in-first-out mode cannot accurately determine the position of the failure materials produced at this time on the entire conveying path, resulting in difficulty in quality traceability of the corresponding materials after the defective products are mixed. Moreover, some materials with time limit, such as new tobacco, cannot meet the quality requirements of the product on the time limit by using the first-in-first-out buffering mode. In addition, when the failure of the downstream material packaging machine cannot be eliminated in a short time, the materials in the channel connecting the packaging machine and the buffering and conveying device can only be sent back to the buffering and conveying device by manual recycling and other processing methods, which is difficult to operate and has low efficiency. Due to manual intervention, the product quality cannot be unified, and even some materials can only be discarded, causing resource waste.

[0004] In summary, there is an urgent need for a method that can buffer materials and achieve absolute first-in-first-out of the buffered materials. SUMMARY

[0005] Therefore, the present application provides a material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method to solve the problems that the existing first-in-first-out material buffering method cannot meet the requirements of the material product on the time limit, cannot accurately determine the position of the failure materials produced by the upstream on the entire conveying path, and the materials between the downstream machine and the buffering device can only be recycled manually or even discarded when the downstream machine fails.

[0006] The present application provides a material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method, which comprises the following steps:

[0007] S1: taking an empty box group from the storage and outputting the empty boxes in the currently taken empty box group to the first inlet one by one; wherein the empty box group comprises at least two empty boxes for storing materials;

[0008] S2: conveying the empty box inputted from the first inlet in a first conveying channel, and filling the empty box in the first conveying channel with material from upstream to obtain a full box conveyed to a first outlet;

[0009] S3: sorting at least two full boxes outputted from the first outlet in sequence to form a full box group, and storing the current full box group in the storage in a translational manner and recording the storage time; wherein, the output direction of the full boxes of the first outlet is a first horizontal direction; the translational manner refers to that the relative positions of the projections of each full box in the full box group on a horizontal plane do not change before and after the movement of the full box group;

[0010] S4: taking out the full box group with the earliest storage time from the storage in a translational manner, and inputting the full boxes in the current full box group from the second inlet in sequence along a second horizontal direction; wherein, the second horizontal direction is parallel to the first horizontal direction and opposite in direction;

[0011] S5: conveying the full box inputted from the second inlet in a second conveying channel, emptying the material in the full box conveyed in the second conveying channel, and outputting the emptied material to downstream through a third conveying channel, while obtaining an empty box conveyed to a second outlet;

[0012] S6: sorting at least two empty boxes outputted from the second outlet in sequence to form an empty box group, and storing the current formed empty box group in the storage;

[0013] In some embodiments, before the current full box group is stored in the storage in a translational manner in the S3, or after the full box group with the earliest storage time is taken out from the storage in the S4, the method further comprises the step of:

[0014] reversely arranging the full boxes in the current full box group.

[0015] In some embodiments, after the S6, the method further comprises the step of:

[0016] S7: when receiving a request for stopping feeding from downstream, controlling the second conveying channel and the third conveying channel to reversely convey, re-filling the residual material in the third conveying channel into the empty box reversely conveyed in the second conveying channel in the order of last-in first-out, to obtain a full box conveyed to the second inlet;

[0017] S8: after sorting at least two full boxes outputted from the second inlet in sequence to form a full box group, storing the current full box group in the storage in a translational manner, and recording the storage time of the current stored full box group as earlier than the earliest storage time corresponding to the full box group in the current storage.

[0018] In some embodiments, the S8 further comprises:

[0019] If the number of full boxes last output by the second inlet is less than 2, the full boxes last output by the second inlet are stopped on the docking channel of the storage and the second inlet.

[0020] In some embodiments, the S2 specifically comprises:

[0021] The empty boxes input by the first inlet are conveyed in the first conveying channel along a third horizontal direction, and the material conveyed in the fourth conveying channel is filled into the empty boxes conveyed in the first conveying channel by a material filling device located on the upper side of the first conveying channel, to obtain full boxes conveyed to the first outlet; wherein the fourth conveying channel is located above the first conveying channel, and the third horizontal direction is perpendicular to the first horizontal direction.

[0022] In some embodiments, the conveying direction of the fourth conveying channel is parallel to the third horizontal direction and opposite in direction.

[0023] In some embodiments, the length direction of the empty boxes conveyed in the first conveying channel is along the third horizontal direction, and the width direction of the full boxes output by the first outlet is along the first horizontal direction.

[0024] In some embodiments, the conveying of the full boxes input by the second inlet in the second conveying channel and the emptying of the material in the full boxes conveyed in the second conveying channel in S5 specifically comprises:

[0025] The full boxes input by the second inlet are conveyed in the second conveying channel along a fourth horizontal direction, and the material in the full boxes conveyed in the second conveying channel is emptied by a material emptying device located on the upper side of the second conveying channel; wherein the third conveying channel is located above the second conveying channel, and the fourth horizontal direction is perpendicular to the second horizontal direction.

[0026] In some embodiments, the conveying direction of the third conveying channel is parallel to the fourth horizontal direction and the same in direction.

[0027] In some embodiments, the length direction of the full boxes conveyed in the second conveying channel is along the fourth horizontal direction, and the width direction of the full boxes conveyed by the second inlet is along the second horizontal direction.

[0028] The application provides a material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method. Empty material boxes on a storage library are taken out and continuously output into a first conveying channel. After the empty boxes are filled with materials, the full boxes are stored in the storage library. When a downstream machine needs materials, the full boxes are taken out in a first-in-first-out mode and the materials in the full boxes are unloaded. After the unloading is completed, the empty boxes are stored in the storage library again, and the materials are continuously conveyed. Through the above process, the materials can be stored and conveyed through the continuous circulation of the material boxes between the storage library and the external material loading and unloading station. The full material boxes are stored in groups, which can improve the storage and access efficiency. On one hand, the full box groups stored first are output first, which can ensure that the full box groups are in a first-in-first-out mode in the storage library. On the other hand, the direction of the full box groups inputting and outputting the storage library is opposite, the full box groups are accessed in the storage library in a translational mode, and before the full box groups are stored in the storage library or after the full box groups are taken out, the full boxes in the full box groups are arranged in a reverse order, which can make the full boxes filled with materials first in each full box group output first. Thus, the absolute first-in-first-out storage of the materials is realized, which not only meets the time effectiveness requirement of the material products, but also can determine the position of the faulty materials in the upstream production on the entire conveying path through the tracking of the material boxes. In addition, when the downstream machine needs to be stopped for a long time, the method can return the materials in the connecting channel (the third conveying channel) between the downstream machine and the buffer library to the buffer library for storage under the premise of ensuring the material traceability, further ensuring the stability of the material storage environment and improving the material quality. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0029] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or the prior art description. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application, and for those skilled in the art, other drawings can also be obtained without creative labor.

[0030] Figure 1 A flow chart of a material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method provided by an embodiment of the present application;

[0031] Figure 2 A structural schematic diagram of a material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying device which can be used to realize the method of the present application;

[0032] Figure 3 A structural schematic diagram of a material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying device which can be used to realize the method of the present application; Figure 2 A back structural schematic diagram of the device shown in the figure;

[0033] Figure 4 A specific implementation structural schematic diagram of a sequence adjusting device of the present application;

[0034] Figure 5The top view route schematic diagram of empty box out of warehouse to full box into warehouse for example one;

[0035] Figure 6 The top view route schematic diagram of full box out of warehouse to empty box into warehouse for example one;

[0036] Figure 7 The flow chart of material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method provided by example two;

[0037] Figure 8 The top view route schematic diagram of empty box out of warehouse to full box into warehouse for example two;

[0038] Figure 9 The top view route schematic diagram of full box out of warehouse to empty box into warehouse for example two;

[0039] Figure 10 The front view of material conveyor for realizing the material backflow function in the third conveying channel;

[0040] Figure 11 The Figure 10 The top view of the transmission structure of the material conveyor;

[0041] Figure 12 The structural schematic diagram of the upstream transmission mechanism 61B;

[0042] Figure 13 The structural schematic diagram of the one-way overrunning clutch.

[0043] Reference signs:

[0044] 1, material filling device; 2, material emptying device; 3, storage warehouse; 4, material box transfer device; 5, sequence adjusting device; 6, material conveyor; 10, packaging machine; 11, first inlet; 12, first conveying channel; 13, fourth conveying channel; 14, first outlet; 21, second inlet; 22, second conveying channel; 23, third conveying channel; 24, second outlet; 31, dehumidifying device; 51, full box conveyor; 52, displacement mechanism; 53, full box buffer conveyor; 61, transmission mechanism; 62, frame body; 61A, downstream transmission mechanism; 61B, upstream transmission mechanism; 611, sprocket; 612, shaft; 613, one-way overrunning clutch; 614, gear set; 615, electric drive assembly; 6131, inner ring of one-way overrunning clutch; 6132, outer ring of one-way overrunning clutch; 100, position of material filling device; 200, position of material emptying device; T1, first horizontal direction; T2, second horizontal direction; T3, third horizontal direction; T4, fourth horizontal direction; T5, fifth horizontal direction. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0045] In order to make the objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present application clearer, the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are only used to explain the present application and not intended to limit the present application.

[0046] Embodiment one

[0047] Figure 1 A flow chart of a material absolute first-in first-out storage and conveying method provided by the embodiment one of the present application is shown in Figure 1 The method comprises the following steps:

[0048] S1: taking out an empty box group from the storage and outputting the empty boxes in the currently taken out empty box group to a first inlet one by one;

[0049] Preferably, the empty box group comprises at least two empty boxes for storing materials.

[0050] S2: conveying the empty boxes input by the first inlet in a first conveying channel and filling the materials from an upstream into the empty boxes conveyed in the first conveying channel to obtain full boxes conveyed to a second inlet.

[0051] In some optional embodiments, step S2 conveys the empty boxes input by the first inlet in the first conveying channel along a third horizontal direction and fills the materials conveyed in a fourth conveying channel into the empty boxes conveyed in the first conveying channel through a material filling device located on the upper side of the first conveying channel; wherein the fourth conveying channel is located above the first conveying channel. Preferably, the conveying direction of the fourth conveying channel is parallel to the third horizontal direction and opposite in direction.

[0052] S301: grouping at least two full boxes output by the first outlet in sequence into a full box group according to the output sequence.

[0053] Preferably, the output direction of the full boxes of the first outlet is a first horizontal direction.

[0054] For example, assuming that the first outlet outputs two full boxes numbered ① and ② in sequence along the first horizontal direction, step S301 divides the two full boxes numbered ① and ② into a group, and this grouping does not change the position sequence of the full boxes output by the first outlet in the first horizontal direction.

[0055] Preferably, the third horizontal direction is perpendicular to the first horizontal direction. Preferably, the length direction of the empty boxes conveyed in the first conveying channel is along the third horizontal direction, and the width direction of the full boxes output by the first outlet is along the first horizontal direction.

[0056] S302: arranging the full boxes in the current full box group in reverse order.

[0057] For example, assuming that the step S301 groups the full boxes, and the full boxes in the current full box group are numbered ① and ② from head to tail in the first horizontal direction, then the full boxes in the current full box group are arranged in reverse order in the step S302, and the full boxes are numbered ② and ① from head to tail in the first horizontal direction.

[0058] S303: The full box group after the current reverse arrangement is stored in the storage in a translation manner, and the storage time is recorded.

[0059] The translation manner refers to that the relative positions of the projections of the full boxes in the full box group in the horizontal plane do not change before and after the movement of the full box group.

[0060] S4: The full box group with the earliest storage time is taken out from the storage in a translation manner, and the full boxes in the current taken-out full box group are inputted from the second inlet in sequence along the second horizontal direction;

[0061] The second horizontal direction is parallel to the first horizontal direction and opposite in direction.

[0062] S5: The full boxes inputted from the second inlet are conveyed in the second conveying channel, the materials in the full boxes conveyed in the second conveying channel are emptied, the emptied materials are outputted to the downstream through the third conveying channel, and the empty boxes conveyed to the second outlet are obtained.

[0063] In some optional embodiments, the step S5 conveys the full boxes inputted from the second inlet in the second conveying channel along a fourth horizontal direction, and empties the materials in the full boxes conveyed in the second conveying channel through a material emptying device located on the upper side of the second conveying channel; wherein the third conveying channel is located above the second conveying channel, and the fourth horizontal direction is perpendicular to the second horizontal direction.

[0064] Preferably, the conveying direction of the third conveying channel is parallel to the fourth horizontal direction and the same in direction.

[0065] Preferably, the length direction of the full boxes conveyed in the second conveying channel is along the fourth horizontal direction, and the width direction of the full boxes conveyed from the second inlet is along the second horizontal direction.

[0066] S6: At least two empty boxes outputted from the second outlet in sequence form an empty box group, and the current formed empty box group is stored in the storage.

[0067] The method provided by the embodiment one is specifically described below in combination with the schematic device. Figure 2 A structure schematic diagram of a material absolute first-in first-out storage and conveying device which can be used to implement the method of the present application, Figure 3 A structure schematic diagram of the front of the device. Figure 2 A structure schematic diagram of the back of the device. As Figure 2 andFigure 3 As shown, the device includes: a material filling device 1, a material emptying device 2, a storage bin 3, a material box transfer device 4, and a sequencing device 5. The first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage principle of this device is as follows:

[0068] The material box transfer device 4 takes empty box sets from the storage warehouse 3 and inputs them through the first inlet 11 located on the lower level of the device. The empty boxes are then conveyed from left to right (i.e., in the third horizontal direction) in the first conveying channel 12. During this conveying process, the material filling device 1 located above the first conveying channel 12 fills the empty boxes conveyed in the first conveying channel 12 with material conveyed in the fourth conveying channel 13. Finally, the full boxes are sent to the first outlet 14 on the right side of the first conveying channel 12. At the first outlet 14, the full boxes are moved along a path perpendicular to... Figure 2 The front panel of the device shown is arranged horizontally from front to back (i.e., the first horizontal direction, such as...). Figure 3 (As indicated by arrow T1 in the diagram) is sent to the rear. After a full box is output at the first outlet 14 in the direction indicated by arrow T1, several consecutively output full boxes are considered as a group. Then, the sorting device 5 arranges the full boxes in each group in reverse order in the first horizontal direction. The material box transfer device 4 then sends the sorted full box group to the shelf in the storage warehouse 3 for storage by translation, and records the entry time of the currently stored full box group. To achieve first-in, first-out (FIFO) of materials in the storage warehouse 3, each time the material box transfer device 4 retrieves the full box group with the earliest entry time from the storage warehouse 3 by translation (translation in the vertical and / or horizontal direction), and places the currently retrieved full box group in the shelf as shown in the diagram. Figure 3 The second inlet 21 shown connects to the conveyor belt 32 on the rear storage tank 3. This conveyor belt 32 can then transport the currently retrieved full boxes from the full box group along a horizontal direction perpendicular to the front panel of the device from back to front (i.e., the second horizontal direction, as shown). Figure 3 (As indicated by arrow T2 in the diagram) inputs sequentially from the second entry point 21. Then, combined with... Figure 2 The full boxes input at the second inlet 21 are conveyed from right to left (i.e., the fourth horizontal direction) in the second conveying channel 22. During the conveying process, the material emptying device 2 located on the upper side of the second conveying channel 22 empties the material from the full boxes conveyed in the second conveying channel 22, resulting in empty boxes being conveyed to the second outlet 24 on the left side of the second conveying channel 22. The emptied material is output to the downstream packaging machine 10 through the third conveying channel 23 located on the upper side of the second conveying channel 22. The material filling device 1 and the material emptying device 2 are existing technologies, such as the devices disclosed in the applicant's prior applications CN115226935A and CN115969084A, or the devices disclosed in German patent DE450897C, etc. The specific implementation structure of the material filling device 1 and the material emptying device 2 will not be described in detail here.

[0069] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of a specific embodiment of the sequencing device of the present invention, as shown below. Figure 4 As shown, the sequencing device 5 may include a full-box conveyor 51, a full-box buffer conveyor 53, and a shifting mechanism 52. The full-box conveyor 51 sequentially transports full boxes A, B, C, D, and E output from the first outlet 14 along a first horizontal direction to below the shifting mechanism 52. The shifting mechanism 52 then places the full box A, which was initially transported below it, onto the full-box buffer conveyor 53 in a horizontal direction transverse to the first horizontal direction. The full-box buffer conveyor 53 then transports at least one box's width (preferably the width of one box) forward in the opposite direction to the first horizontal direction. The shifting mechanism 52 then places the next full box B onto the full-box buffer conveyor 53, and this process is repeated continuously. Assuming each full-box group consists of 5 boxes, when a full-box group EDCBA is formed along the first horizontal direction on the full-box buffer conveyor 53, the full-box group EDCBA is then transferred and stored in the storage warehouse 3 by the material box transfer device 4, thus realizing the sequencing of full boxes within the full-box group.

[0070] Figure 5 This is a top-down view of the route from empty box outbound to full box inbound in Example 1, as shown below. Figure 5 As shown, the first inlet 11 sequentially inputs empty boxes retrieved from the storage container 3, where the numbers ①②③④… represent the box numbers sequentially input into the first inlet 11. The first conveying channel 12 then transports these input empty boxes along… Figure 5 The third horizontal direction conveyed as indicated by the middle arrow T3; the empty box passes by Figure 5 At position 100, indicated by the dashed box, the container is filled with material from upstream. Clearly, the empty container at the beginning of the third horizontal direction is filled first, then becomes full. When the full container reaches the first outlet at position 14, the full container... Figure 5 The first horizontal direction is output as indicated by the middle arrow T1; assuming that two full boxes are grouped together, after the first outlet 14 outputs the full boxes numbered ① and ② in sequence along T1, the full boxes in the full box group ①② composed of ① and ② are arranged in reverse order to obtain the full box group ②① composed of the full boxes numbered ② and ① in sequence in the first horizontal direction. Then, the full box group ②① is moved to the shelf (full box storage area) of the storage warehouse 3 for storage.

[0071] Figure 6 This is a top-down view of the route from full-box outbound to empty-box inbound in Example 1, as shown below. Figure 6 As shown, in Figure 5 Based on the storage instance shown, when materials need to be supplied downstream, the earliest full box group ①② is retrieved from storage warehouse 3 in a translation manner, along... Figure 6The second horizontal direction shown by the middle arrow T2 inputs the full boxes 1 and 2 in the full box group 1 and 2 from the second inlet 21 in sequence; then the full boxes 1 and 2 are conveyed in the second conveying channel 22 along the Figure 6 The fourth horizontal direction shown by the middle arrow T4 conveys the full boxes 1 and 2 to pass through the position 200 shown by the middle dotted line box, and the material in the full boxes 1 and 2 is emptied to become empty boxes (the empty boxes are represented by the dotted line box without number in the figure) at the position 200. Figure 6 The fifth horizontal direction shown by the middle arrow T5 outputs the at least two empty boxes output in sequence to the storage library 3 (empty box storage area) to form an empty box group, and the empty box group is stored in the storage library 3 (empty box storage area). Figure 6

[0072] Obviously, in the above material storage and conveying process, the head end (the material produced first) of the material flow conveyed by the upstream machine is stored in the first empty box in the first conveying channel, the first full box filled is the first full box entering the storage library in the full box group, and the full box group taken out by the material box transfer device 4 each time is the full box group with the earliest storage time, so that the absolute first-in-first-out of the full box group can be ensured. In addition, since the first horizontal direction and the second horizontal direction are parallel to each other but opposite in direction, by adjusting the order of the head and tail of the full box group when stored in the storage library, the full box first stored in the storage library in the first horizontal direction can be ensured to be the full box first taken out of the storage library in the second horizontal direction, so that the absolute first-in-first-out of the boxes in the full box group can be ensured.

[0073] In the embodiment of the application, the material is stored in the form of a full box group each time, which can greatly reduce the number of times of transfer of the material box transfer device 4 between the first inlet 11, the first outlet 14, the second inlet 21, the second outlet 24 and the storage library 3 in a fixed time interval, and since time is required for each transfer of the material box, the mode of transferring multiple boxes at a time can significantly improve the storage and retrieval efficiency of the material. In addition, the full box group is stored or taken out by the translation mode, which can simplify the structure of the material box transfer device 4, reduce the floor area occupied by the material box transfer device 4, and is beneficial to miniaturization of the device.

[0074] Embodiment two

[0075] Figure 7 A flow chart of a material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method provided for the second embodiment of the application is shown in FIG. 2, and the method comprises the following steps: Figure 7

[0076] S1: Take out the empty box group from the storage library and output the empty boxes in the currently taken-out empty box group to the first inlet in sequence.

[0077] ​​S2: The empty box input at the first inlet is conveyed in the first conveying channel, and the material from upstream is filled into the empty box conveyed in the first conveying channel to obtain a full box conveyed to the first outlet.

[0078] In this embodiment, the specific implementation of steps S1-S2 is the same as that of steps S1-S2 in the previous embodiment, and will not be repeated here.

[0079] S3: Sort at least two full boxes that are continuously output from the first outlet into a full box group according to the output order, and store the current full box group into the storage repository in a translation manner and record the storage time.

[0080] The full box output direction of the first outlet is the first horizontal direction; the translation method means that the relative position of the projection of each full box in the full box group in the horizontal plane remains unchanged before and after the full box group moves.

[0081] Figure 8 This is a top-down view of the route from empty box outbound to full box inbound in Example 2, as shown below. Figure 8 As shown in the diagram, empty boxes are sequentially input into the first inlet 11, where the numbers ①②③④…… represent the box numbers sequentially input into the first inlet 11. The first conveying channel 12 then transports these input empty boxes along… Figure 8 The third horizontal direction conveyed as indicated by the middle arrow T3; the empty box passes by Figure 8 At position 100, indicated by the dashed box, the container is filled with material from upstream. Clearly, the empty container at the beginning of the third horizontal direction is filled first, then becomes full. When the full container reaches the first outlet at position 14, the full container... Figure 8 The first horizontal direction indicated by the middle arrow T1 is output; assuming that two full boxes are grouped together, after the first outlet 14 outputs the full boxes numbered ① and ② in sequence along the T1 direction, the full box group ①② composed of the full boxes numbered ① and ② in sequence along the T1 direction is directly moved to the shelf (full box storage area) of the storage warehouse 3 for storage.

[0082] S401: Retrieve the earliest full box group from the storage repository by translation.

[0083] Figure 9 This is a top-down view of the route from full-box outbound to empty-box inbound in Example 2, as shown below. Figure 9 As shown, in Figure 8 Based on the storage instance shown, since the entry time of full box groups ① and ② stored in storage repository 3 is earlier than that of full box groups ③ and ④, when it is necessary to supply materials to downstream, the full box group ① and ② with the earliest entry time is retrieved from storage repository 3 in a translation manner.

[0084] S402: Reverse the order of the full boxes in the currently retrieved full box group.

[0085] In this embodiment, the full box group reordering device 5 similar to that described in Embodiment One can be used to reorder the full boxes in the full box group, or other prior art such as a grabbing manipulator can be used to reorder the full boxes in the full box group, which will not be described here.

[0086] S403: sequentially output the full boxes in the full box group after the current reverse ordering to the second inlet along the second horizontal direction.

[0087] The second horizontal direction is parallel to the first horizontal direction and opposite in direction.

[0088] As shown in Figure 9 S402, the full boxes in the current full box group ① ② are arranged in reverse order to obtain full boxes numbered ①, ② in the second horizontal direction (indicated by arrow T2), and then in S403, the full boxes ①, ② are sequentially input from the second inlet 21 along the second horizontal direction indicated by arrow T2. Figure 9

[0089] S5: conveying the full boxes input from the second inlet in the second conveying channel, emptying the material in the full boxes conveyed in the second conveying channel, and outputting the emptied material to the downstream through the third conveying channel, while obtaining empty boxes conveyed to the second outlet.

[0090] S6: forming an empty box group from at least two empty boxes output consecutively from the second outlet, and storing the current formed empty box group in the storage.

[0091] As shown in Figure 9 After the full boxes ①, ② are sequentially input from the second inlet 21, the full boxes ①, ② are conveyed in the second conveying channel 22 along the fourth horizontal direction indicated by arrow T4, and the material in the full boxes ①, ② is emptied when they pass through the position 200 indicated by the dashed box in Figure 9 , becoming empty boxes (represented by dashed boxes without numbers in the figure); when the empty boxes reach the second outlet 24, they are output along the fifth horizontal direction indicated by arrow T5 in Figure 9 , and finally, at least two empty boxes output consecutively are formed into an empty box group and stored in the storage 3 (empty box storage area), which can be achieved (the storage of empty boxes does not need to guarantee absolute first-in first-out).

[0092] Embodiment Two can achieve the same technical effects as Embodiment One, which will not be described here.

[0093] Embodiment Three

[0094] On the basis of Embodiment One or Embodiment Two, the second conveying channel and the third conveying channel also have a reverse conveying function, and the method provided by Embodiment Three can further include the following steps S7-S8 after the aforementioned step S6: ​

[0095] S7: When a downstream material supply stop request is received, control the second and third conveying channels to reverse the conveying, and refill the remaining material in the third conveying channel back into the empty box conveyed in reverse in the second conveying channel in the order of last in first out, so as to obtain a full box conveyed to the second inlet.

[0096] S8: Arrange at least two full boxes continuously output from the second inlet into a full box group according to the output order, and then store them in the storage warehouse in a translation manner. Record the storage time of the current full box group as earlier than the earliest storage time of the full box group in the current storage warehouse. Then return to execute S8 until the remaining material in the third conveying channel is completely loaded into the box and stop executing S7 and S8.

[0097] Preferably, in step S8, if the number of full boxes output by the second entry point is less than 2, meaning the number of full boxes output by the second entry point is insufficient to form a full box group, the remaining full boxes output by the current second entry point are left on the docking channel between the storage repository and the second entry point. For example, the remaining full boxes output by the current second entry point are left on... Figure 3 On the conveyor belt 32 shown, the materials in this part of the box are output first when the downstream machine needs materials next, so as to ensure the absolute first-in-first-out of materials.

[0098] This third embodiment can return materials in the connecting channel (third conveying channel) between the downstream machine and the buffer warehouse to the buffer warehouse for storage in a first-out-last-back manner when the downstream machine needs to be shut down for a long time. This solves the problem in the prior art that materials on the channel between the downstream packaging machine and the buffer conveying device can only be sent back to the buffer conveying device through manual recycling and other processing methods. This is difficult to operate, inefficient, and due to manual intervention, product quality cannot be uniform. Some materials may even have to be discarded, resulting in resource waste. In addition, it is difficult to trace and locate materials after manual intervention.

[0099] Furthermore, such as Figure 2 As shown, by installing a dehumidification device 31 on the storage warehouse 3, the dehumidification device 31 is used to change the humidity of the environment inside the storage warehouse 3 to meet the humidity required for long-term storage of materials. This improvement enables the long-term storage of highly absorbent materials (such as new tobacco products). The material in the third conveying channel flows back to the buffer warehouse 3 for storage, which can further improve the stability of the material storage environment, improve the quality of the material, and prevent the material from deteriorating due to prolonged stagnation in the open third channel.

[0100] like Figure 2 As shown in the figure, the third conveying channel 23 described in the embodiment of the present invention can be implemented as a material conveyor 6, which is located between the packaging machine 10 and the material emptying device 2. Figure 10Figure 1 is a front view of the material conveyor for realizing the material backflow function in the third conveying channel, Figure 11 Figure 2 is a front view of the material conveyor, Figure 10 Figure 3 is a top view of the drive structure of the material conveyor. As shown in Figure 10 and Figure 11 , the material conveyor 6 is composed of a drive mechanism 61 and a frame 62; the drive mechanism includes a downstream drive mechanism 61A and an upstream drive mechanism 61B arranged at both ends of the conveyor respectively. When conveying the material to the downstream packaging machine, the downstream drive mechanism 61A close to the packaging machine 10 is the driving end, and the upstream drive mechanism 61B close to the emptying device 2 is the driven end; when reversing the material in the third conveying channel to the box, the upstream drive mechanism 61B close to the emptying device 2 is the driving end, and the downstream drive mechanism 61A close to the packaging machine 10 is the driven end.

[0101] Figure 12 Figure 4 is a structural schematic diagram of the upstream drive mechanism 61B, and the downstream drive mechanism 61A and the upstream drive mechanism 61B are the same in structure and mutually symmetrical with the upstream drive mechanism 61B. As shown in Figure 12 , the upstream drive mechanism 61B includes a sprocket 611, a shaft 612, a one-way overrunning clutch 613, a gear set 614, and an electric drive assembly 615; the sprockets 611 of the downstream drive mechanism 61A and the upstream drive mechanism 61B are connected to each other to form a rotary structure. Figure 13 Figure 5 is a structural schematic diagram of the one-way overrunning clutch. As shown in Figure 12 and Figure 13 , the sprocket 611 is nested in one end of the shaft 612 through a flat key, the other end of the shaft 612 is connected with the inner ring 6131 of the one-way overrunning clutch, the outer ring 6132 of the one-way overrunning clutch is connected with the output wheel of the gear set 614, and the input wheel of the gear set 614 is connected with the electric drive assembly 615.

[0102] When the downstream transmission mechanism 61A is the driving end, the downstream transmission mechanism 61A is driven by the electric driving assembly 615 to rotate the overrunning clutch inner ring 6131 counterclockwise through the overrunning clutch outer ring 6132, so as to rotate the sprocket 611 counterclockwise. When the upstream transmission mechanism 61B is the driving end, the electric driving assembly 615 drives the overrunning clutch inner ring 6131 to rotate clockwise through the overrunning clutch outer ring 6132 and the gear set 614, so as to drive the sprocket 611 to rotate clockwise. That is, when the material in the third conveying channel needs to be conveyed to the packaging machine 10, the sprocket 611 of the downstream transmission mechanism 61A close to the packaging machine 10 rotates counterclockwise, and the sprocket 611 of the upstream transmission mechanism 61B close to the emptying device rotates counterclockwise, so as to drive the overrunning clutch inner ring 6131 of the upstream transmission mechanism 61B to rotate counterclockwise. In order to make the overrunning clutch 613 work normally, the electric driving assembly 615 of the upstream transmission mechanism 61B as the driven end needs to drive the overrunning clutch outer ring 6132 to rotate counterclockwise, and the rotating speed of the overrunning clutch outer ring 6132 is slightly greater than that of the inner ring 6131. When the material in the third conveying channel needs to be conveyed in the opposite direction, the above-mentioned process is reversed. Of course, the overrunning clutch in the embodiment can be replaced by a bidirectional overrunning clutch, so that the motor of the driven end does not need to be started.

[0103] The material conveyor 6 in the above-mentioned embodiment has the advantage of being able to realize a special-shaped layout. When the inlet of the packaging machine and the outlet of the material emptying device are not in the same plane, the path of the material conveyor 6 needs to be non-linear. Of course, when the conveying path is linear, the material conveyor 6 can adopt a belt conveying mode.

[0104] So far, the material absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying method and the corresponding implementation device provided by the embodiment of the application have been described. Through the method of the application, the upstream and downstream machines can be continuously operated, and the absolute first-in-first-out storage and conveying of the material can be ensured, and the traceability of the material is provided. For the material with a time limit, the method also realizes the long-time stable storage of the material that has been output from the storage through the backflow of the material, solves the problem of difficult manual operation and material waste at the present stage. The method provided by the application can improve the production efficiency and improve the product quality, and the material input and output layout of the device is flexible, and the adaptability to different models of upstream and downstream machines is high.

[0105] The above-mentioned is only a specific embodiment of the application, but the protection scope of the application is not limited to this. Any person skilled in the art can easily think of changes or replacements within the technical range disclosed by the application, which should be covered within the protection scope of the application. Therefore, the protection scope of the application should be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A method for storing and conveying materials with absolute first-in, first-out (FIFO) principle, characterized in that, Includes the following steps: S1: Take out an empty box group from the storage warehouse and output the empty boxes in the currently taken empty box group to the first inlet in sequence; wherein, the empty box group includes at least 2 empty boxes for storing materials; S2: The empty box input at the first inlet is conveyed in the first conveying channel, and the material from upstream is filled into the empty box conveyed in the first conveying channel to obtain a full box conveyed to the first outlet; S3: Arrange at least two full boxes continuously output from the first outlet into a full box group according to the output order, store the current full box group into the storage warehouse in a translation manner and record the storage time; wherein, the full box output direction of the first outlet is the first horizontal direction; the translation manner means that before and after the full box group is moved, the relative position of the projection of each full box in the full box group in the horizontal plane remains unchanged. S4: Take out the full box group with the earliest entry time from the storage warehouse in a translation manner, and input the full boxes in the current full box group sequentially from the second entrance along the second horizontal direction; wherein, the second horizontal direction is parallel to the first horizontal direction and opposite in direction; S5: The full box input at the second inlet is conveyed in the second conveying channel, and the material in the full box conveyed in the second conveying channel is emptied. The emptied material is output to the downstream through the third conveying channel, and an empty box is conveyed to the second outlet. S6: Combine at least two empty boxes continuously output from the second outlet into an empty box group, and store the currently formed empty box group into the storage repository; In step S3, before storing the current full box group into the storage repository in a translation manner, or in step S4, after retrieving the full box group with the earliest storage time from the storage repository, the method further includes the step of: arranging the full boxes in the current full box group in reverse order. Wherein, after S6, the method further includes the following steps: S7: When a downstream material supply stop request is received, control the second and third conveying channels to reverse the conveying, and refill the remaining material in the third conveying channel back into the empty box conveyed in reverse in the second conveying channel in the order of last in first out, so as to obtain a full box conveyed to the second inlet. S8: Arrange at least two full boxes continuously output from the second entry into a full box group according to the output order and store them into the storage repository in a translation manner, and record the storage time of the current full box group as earlier than the earliest storage time of the full box group in the current storage repository. S8 further includes: If the number of full boxes output by the second entry is less than 2, then the full boxes output by the second entry will remain on the docking channel between the storage repository and the second entry.

2. The material storage and conveying method with absolute first-in, first-out (FIFO) as described in claim 1, characterized in that, S2 specifically includes: The empty box input at the first inlet is conveyed in the first conveying channel along the third horizontal direction. The material filling device located above the first conveying channel fills the empty box conveyed in the first conveying channel with the material conveyed in the fourth conveying channel, resulting in a full box being conveyed to the first outlet. The fourth conveying channel is located above the first conveying channel, and the third horizontal direction is perpendicular to the first horizontal direction.

3. The material storage and conveying method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The conveying direction of the fourth conveying channel is parallel to and opposite to the third horizontal direction.

4. The material storage and conveying method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The length direction of the empty box conveyed in the first conveying channel is along the third horizontal direction, and the width direction of the full box output from the first outlet is along the first horizontal direction.

5. The material storage and conveying method according to claim 1, characterized in that, S5 describes conveying the full box input at the second inlet into the second conveying channel, and emptying the material from the full box conveyed in the second conveying channel, specifically including: The full box input at the second inlet is conveyed in the second conveying channel along the fourth horizontal direction, and the material in the full box conveyed in the second conveying channel is emptied by a material emptying device located on the upper side of the second conveying channel; wherein, the third conveying channel is located above the second conveying channel, and the fourth horizontal direction is perpendicular to the second horizontal direction.

6. The material storage and conveying method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The conveying direction of the third conveying channel is parallel to and the same as the fourth horizontal direction.

7. The material storage and conveying method according to claim 5, characterized in that, The length direction of the full box conveyed in the second conveying channel is along the fourth horizontal direction, and the width direction of the full box conveyed in the second inlet is along the second horizontal direction.

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