Goods storage system and method for lifting and / or lowering at least one container in goods warehouse of goods storage system

Abstract

The invention relates to a cargo storage system (1) comprising: a cargo warehouse (2) having a plurality of driverless lifting devices (9) arranged in a storage well (3), each lifting device or a plurality of lifting devices of each group having a drive coupling (10) configured to feed a drive torque into the lifting device, the drive coupling being accessible from a running platform; and at least one driverless vehicle (8) having a lifting drive (11) and a drive mating coupling (12) which is adapted to the drive coupling of the lifting device and which is designed to couple the lifting drive (11) to the drive coupling of the lifting device. The driverless vehicle is automatically coupled to a corresponding drive coupler of the lifting device when the driverless vehicle is couplable in proximity to the drive coupler of the lifting device. The invention also relates to a method for lifting and / or lowering at least one container (5) or a stack of a plurality of containers inside a storage well in a cargo warehouse of a cargo storage system.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The invention relates to a cargo storage system having a cargo warehouse, the cargo warehouse comprising a plurality of storage wells, which are arranged next to each other in a plurality of rows and columns, so that each storage well can be accessed through an upper well opening in order to remove one or more containers from above from the corresponding storage well and / or to place one or more containers from above into the corresponding storage well, so that a plurality of containers can be stored in a vertical stack in the corresponding storage well. The invention also relates to a method for lifting and / or lowering at least one container in a cargo warehouse of a cargo storage system. Background Art

[0002] Patent document EP3820791B1 describes a storage system, comprising: a plurality of vertical stacks consisting of storage containers, wherein the stacks are arranged along a first horizontal direction and a second horizontal direction perpendicular to the first direction; a transport unit for transporting at least one container to or from a selected stack along a first and / or second direction; a container handling device for transferring at least one top container from the selected stack to the transport unit before transporting the transport unit together with the container out of the selected stack, and for transferring at least one container from the transport unit to the upper end of the selected stack after transporting the transport unit together with the container to the selected stack; wherein the transport unit is capable of moving above the stack; wherein the container handling device has a lifting element for moving the selected stack in a vertical direction relative to an adjacent stack, wherein the lifting element is capable of moving under the stack in its non-lifting state, and wherein the container handling device has a coupling element, which is arranged on the transport unit and is suitable for: engaging with at least one top container of the lifted stack to recover the container, or releasing the engaged container to place the container at the upper end of the selected stack. Summary of the invention

[0003] The object of the present invention is to provide a cargo storage system and an associated method, whereby at least one container can be automatically raised and / or lowered in a storage shaft of the cargo storage system in a simple and reliable manner.

[0004] The object of the present invention is achieved by a cargo storage system, which comprises:

[0005] - a cargo warehouse, comprising a plurality of storage wells, which are arranged next to each other in a plurality of rows and columns, so that each storage well is accessible through an upper well opening in order to remove one or more containers from above from the corresponding storage well and / or to place one or more containers from above into the corresponding storage well, so that a plurality of containers can be stored in the corresponding storage well in a vertical stack;

[0006] a travel platform arranged above the storage shaft, the travel platform having guide elements designed to enable the driverless vehicle to move inside the travel platform selectively in a first travel direction in order to be able to switch between a plurality of shaft openings of a plurality of storage shafts arranged in a row, and in a second travel direction in order to be able to switch between a plurality of shaft openings of a plurality of storage shafts arranged in a column,

[0007] at least one driverless vehicle, which is constructed and designed to travel automatically along the guide in the travel platform, so that the driverless vehicle can move to the shaft opening of any storage shaft of the cargo warehouse by driving along the guide, optionally in the first travel direction and / or in the second travel direction,

[0008] a plurality of lifting devices arranged at the cargo warehouse, wherein each lifting device is designed to lift and lower at least one stack consisting of a plurality of containers stored in a corresponding storage shaft,

[0009] Features

[0010] The plurality of lifting devices are designed to be driveless, and each lifting device or each group of a plurality of lifting devices has a drive coupling which is designed to feed a drive torque into the lifting device, wherein the drive coupling is accessible from the travel platform, and

[0011] At least one of the unmanned vehicles has a lifting drive having a drive mating coupler matching the drive coupler of the lifting device, and the drive mating coupler is constructed to automatically couple to the corresponding drive coupler of the lifting device when the unmanned vehicle approaches the drive coupler of the lifting device in a connectable manner.

[0012] In a cargo warehouse of a cargo storage system, a plurality of storage wells are arranged side by side in a plurality of rows and columns, so that there is no passage between each two rows or columns of storage wells, for example for conventional racking equipment. Therefore, in the cargo warehouse, the stored containers cannot be removed laterally from the storage wells individually at any height. On the contrary, due to the structural form of the storage wells being arranged directly side by side, one or more containers can only be removed through the well opening at the upper end of the corresponding storage well. In any case, it can be optionally provided that when the lowest plane is free in the cargo warehouse, a single container can be removed at the lower end of the corresponding storage well.

[0013] However, in a goods warehouse according to the invention with storage shafts arranged in a plurality of rows and columns directly adjacent to one another, it is usually provided that one or more containers are removed or inserted through the upper shaft opening.

[0014] In order to be able to take out or put in containers via the upper well openings of multiple storage wells, a driving platform is arranged above the storage well, and one or more unmanned vehicles can travel in the driving platform so as to automatically reach the vicinity of the required well opening of the required storage well. The unmanned vehicle is constructed to transport the container to be loaded into the cargo warehouse to the required well opening of the required storage well so that the container can be placed in the relevant storage well. In a known cargo storage system, the unmanned vehicle has a type of lifting device that can sink the transported container into the storage well by unwinding at least one rope on the unmanned vehicle. In a similar manner, the container located in the storage well can be lifted inside the storage well by winding at least one rope so that the container can be taken out of the storage well through the well opening. However, its disadvantage is that only one uppermost container can be taken out from the storage well at a time.

[0015] Very complex goods storage systems are also known, in which each storage shaft has its own lifting device and its own lifting drive for moving the respective lifting device. Although it is possible to simultaneously raise or lower the entire stack of containers within the individual storage shafts, this concept requires a large number of lifting drives (one lifting drive per storage shaft) and complex electrical lifting drive wiring.

[0016] The cargo storage system includes an upper traveling platform having guide members designed to enable the unmanned vehicle to selectively travel along a first traveling direction within the traveling platform so as to be able to switch between multiple well openings of multiple storage wells arranged in rows, and to enable the unmanned vehicle to travel along a second traveling direction so as to be able to switch between multiple well openings of multiple storage wells arranged in columns.

[0017] The driverless vehicle can be moved, for example, in a first driving direction and in a second driving direction perpendicular to the first driving direction, so as to be able to switch between multiple well openings of multiple storage wells arranged in columns and rows. In a variant embodiment, the driverless vehicle can also be movable, for example, diagonally.

[0018] Thus, one or more unmanned vehicles automatically travel along the guides in the travel platform so that the unmanned vehicles can move to any desired well opening of any storage well of the cargo warehouse. This is basically used to enable the container to be transported by the unmanned vehicle to the desired well opening so that the transported container can be loaded into the storage well, or the container can be taken out of the desired storage well and transported away from the cargo warehouse.

[0019] According to the invention, it is now proposed that at least one driverless vehicle has a lifting drive and that the cargo storage warehouse itself has no fixed lifting drive.

[0020] Nevertheless, a plurality of passive, ie non-driven, lifting devices arranged on the goods storage are provided on the storage shaft, wherein each lifting device is designed to lift and lower at least one stack of a plurality of containers stored in the respective storage shaft.

[0021] According to the invention, however, each lifting device or each group of a plurality of lifting devices has a drive coupling which is designed to feed a drive torque into the lifting device, wherein the drive coupling is accessible from the travel platform.

[0022] At least one unmanned vehicle has a drive coupling that matches the drive coupling of the lifting device, and the drive coupling is configured to automatically couple to the corresponding drive coupling of the fixed lifting device when the unmanned vehicle approaches the drive coupling of the lifting device in a coupleable manner. In principle, it only makes sense to lift or lower the container inside the storage shaft by the lifting device when the unmanned vehicle is also located near the shaft opening of the relevant storage shaft, thereby allowing at least one relevant container to be transferred. Therefore, the lifting drive is only required where the unmanned vehicle is located. Since the unmanned vehicle already has a running gear with a travel drive and the travel drive of the unmanned vehicle must be provided with drive energy anyway, the same infrastructure used to provide drive energy for the travel drive can also be used as drive energy for the lifting drive carried by the unmanned vehicle.

[0023] The driving energy may preferably be electrical energy, and the lifting drive carried by the unmanned vehicle may be an electric lifting drive.

[0024] The electric drive energy can be stored, for example, in an electric energy storage device carried by the driverless vehicle, such as a drive battery. Alternatively, the driverless vehicle can have a mating electrical plug connector that can be electrically contacted with a fixed plug connector so that the electric energy can be transmitted to the driverless vehicle by wire. If necessary, the electric energy can also be transmitted to the driverless vehicle wirelessly, for example by induction means.

[0025] The drive mating connector can be automatically adjustable on the unmanned vehicle between a connection position and a release position by means of an adjustment device, wherein when the unmanned vehicle is connectably close to the drive connector of the lifting device, the drive mating connector engages with the corresponding drive connector of the lifting device in the connection position; wherein the drive mating connector is separated from the drive connector of the lifting device in the release position.

[0026] In the coupling position in which the drive partner coupling is engaged with the drive coupling of the lifting device, the drive torque generated by the lifting drive of the driverless vehicle can be transmitted to the fixed lifting device of the storage shaft in the cargo warehouse. The lifting device of the desired storage shaft is controlled by the lifting drive controlled by the driverless vehicle in order to lift or lower a container or a stack of multiple containers inside the storage shaft.

[0027] The drive counter-coupling can for example have a drive profile, as is generally known for driving a bolt head. Thus, the drive counter-coupling can for example be configured as an inner hexagonal profile, wherein the drive coupling of the lifting device can correspondingly have an outer hexagonal profile.

[0028] The adjusting device can, for example, have a lever, an articulated transmission and / or a linear drive, by means of which at least the drive mating coupling can be raised and / or lowered in the axial direction about its axis of rotation. The adjusting device can also be configured to raise and / or lower the lifting drive together with the drive mating coupling. Thus, the lifting drive can, for example, comprise an electric motor having a motor shaft to which the drive mating coupling is fastened. If necessary, the electric motor itself can be fixedly mounted on the unmanned vehicle and only the motor shaft can be height-adjustable in the axial direction together with the drive mating coupling.

[0029] Thus, the driverless vehicle can have an electrical energy store and a lifting drive connected to the electrical energy store, which lifting drive is designed as an electric motor, to the motor shaft of which a drive partner coupling is connected.

[0030] The cargo storage system may include at least one charging station arranged at the cargo warehouse, which is constructed and designed to charge an electrical energy storage device of an unmanned vehicle, wherein the charging station has an electrical plug-in connector, through which electrical energy can be output from the charging station, and the unmanned vehicle has a mating electrical plug-in connector corresponding to the electrical plug-in connector of the charging station, wherein when the unmanned vehicle is connectably close to a corresponding drive connector of the lifting device, the mating electrical plug-in connector of the unmanned vehicle can be electrically connected to the electrical plug-in connector of the charging station.

[0031] The electric motor of the lifting drive can be constructed and designed to draw electrical energy directly from the power grid connected to the charging station when the mating electrical plug connector of the driverless vehicle is connected to the electrical plug connector of the charging station. In this case, it can be provided that the electrical energy for driving by the travel drive is still obtained from the vehicle's electrical energy storage.

[0032] When the lifting drive of the unmanned vehicle is connected to the driving coupling of the lifting device via its driving counterpart coupling, the unmanned vehicle is stopped, i.e., the unmanned vehicle is not moving. Therefore, during the stopping of the unmanned vehicle, it is not necessary to draw electrical energy from the electrical energy storage of the unmanned vehicle. On the contrary, the stopped unmanned vehicle can be connected to the fixed electrical plug connector via its counterpart electrical plug connector, so that electrical energy can be obtained from the outside of the unmanned vehicle, in particular from the power grid, through the electrical contact between the counterpart electrical plug connector and the plug connector. While the lifting drive is powered from the power grid to drive a lifting device, the electrical energy storage of the unmanned vehicle, in particular the driving battery of the unmanned vehicle, can also be charged in parallel if necessary.

[0033] The corresponding drive connector of the lifting device can be connected to a lifting screw (Hubspindel), which extends along the height of at least one storage shaft, wherein a platform for placing containers extending in the storage shaft is mounted on the lifting screw in a height-adjustable manner, whereby the lifting screw is driven by the drive connector so that the platform can be lifted inside the storage shaft so that the containers stacked on the platform can be lifted upward out of the storage shaft through the shaft opening, and / or can be lowered inside the storage shaft so that the containers stacked on the platform can be lowered into the storage shaft through the shaft opening.

[0034] Each storage shaft can have its own lifting device. Alternatively, two storage shafts or a group of multiple storage shafts can also have a common lifting device. In the case of a common lifting device, multiple containers in different storage shafts can be raised and / or lowered together by a single lifting drive.

[0035] The lifting device can have at least one lifting screw. The lifting screw can extend along the entire height of the storage well, or at least substantially along the main height of the storage well. Each storage well can be equipped with a single lifting screw. Alternatively, each storage well can be equipped with two or more lifting screws. If the storage well has only one lifting screw, the lifting device can additionally have a guide, such as a fixed rod, which extends parallel to the lifting screw along the main height of the storage well. A height-adjustable platform is connected to the at least one lifting screw, so that the lifting screw is driven by a drive connector so that the platform can be lifted inside the storage well so that the containers stacked on the platform can be lifted up from the storage well via the well opening, and / or can be lowered inside the storage well so that the containers stacked on the platform can be lowered into the storage well by entering the well opening. The platform can also be guided in an adjustable height on an optional guide or rod when necessary.

[0036] In a simple embodiment, the drive coupling can be formed by a corresponding drive contour, which is formed on the upper end section of the lifting spindle. In this regard, the drive coupling can be constructed in one piece with the lifting spindle.

[0037] The platform can have at least one through hole equipped with an internal screw thread. The lifting screw is then provided with an external screw thread, which engages in an internal lifting screw passage of the through hole through which the lifting screw passes. Thus, by turning the lifting screw in one direction of rotation, the platform is raised; by turning the lifting screw in the opposite direction of rotation, the platform is lowered. One or more containers placed on the platform inside the storage shaft can be raised and / or lowered accordingly by the lifting or lowering of the platform. In this regard, the platform is a cross section extending transversely across the storage shaft. The platform can be formed, for example, by a closed planar plate, a grid or a single tine, for example in the form of a fork.

[0038] Each drive coupling of the lifting device can be connected to a lifting screw, which extends along the height of at least one storage shaft, wherein at least one auxiliary lifting screw also extends on the storage shaft, which auxiliary lifting screw can be driven together with the lifting screw, wherein the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw are arranged opposite to the stack on the container in the storage shaft and each have a screw thread, which is designed to engage with the load-bearing section on the lateral edge area of ​​the container, so that the container engaged in the screw thread of the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw can be individually lifted and / or lowered by rotating the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw. In such a stack, two containers arranged directly on top of each other can not be stacked directly in contact with each other, but slightly spaced apart, because each container is independently supported on the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw. Within the framework of the present invention, such a stack arranged spaced apart from each other is still referred to as a stack, in the sense that a plurality of containers are stacked one above the other inside a single storage shaft.

[0039] In this regard, each container can have a support section on two opposite sides. The corresponding support section can be constructed in one piece with the container. The container can be made of plastic, for example.

[0040] Each bearing section can have, for example, a strip-shaped protrusion, which is arranged on the side wall of the container in an inclined direction corresponding to the helix angle of the corresponding screw thread of the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw. In this embodiment, the bearing section of the container is engaged in the screw thread of the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw. Therefore, each container is suspended on the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw at a specific height position. Through the rotation of the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw, the bearing section engaged in the screw thread can be optionally moved up or down according to the rotation direction, so that the suspended container is lifted or lowered accordingly in the storage well.

[0041] The carrying sections of the container can be adjustable when necessary so that they can selectively engage with the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw so that the relevant container can be lifted and / or lowered by rotation of the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw, or the carrying sections of the container can be disengaged so that the container does not move together when the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw are rotated.

[0042] The lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw can terminate at a vertical height above the bottom of the cargo warehouse, which is at least as high as the height of the container, so that the container guided by the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw can be released at a height position close to the bottom and disengaged from the screw threads of the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw, so that the corresponding container released from the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw can be discharged from the cargo warehouse in the lower plane.

[0043] Therefore, in this embodiment, the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw do not extend to the lowest plane of the cargo warehouse. The containers discharged downward can be transported out of the cargo warehouse in the lower plane by ground vehicles or, for example, by active or passive conveying devices (such as rollers or conveyor belts) if necessary. Similarly, the containers to be loaded into the cargo warehouse can be automatically transported to the bottom of a specific storage shaft by ground vehicles in the lowest plane below the storage shaft. If the container arrives below the selected storage shaft, the container can be lifted from below into the storage shaft, for example, by a lifting device and received there by the lifting screw and the auxiliary lifting screw, so that the received container can be automatically lifted and lowered again by the lifting device inside the storage shaft.

[0044] Each storage well can have a cross-section that is at least basically rectangular, and every two or four storage wells can form a quadrant on the traveling platform with their well openings, wherein the two or four lifting screws corresponding to each two or four storage wells are arranged close to the center of the quadrant, so that, viewed from above, the storage well arranged in the first quadrant has its first lifting screw in the lower left corner, the storage well arranged in the second quadrant has its second lifting screw in the lower right corner, the storage well arranged in the third quadrant has its third lifting screw in the upper right corner, and / or the storage well arranged in the fourth quadrant has its fourth lifting screw in the upper left corner.

[0045] This means that a group of four directly adjacent storage shafts can have their respective lifting screws arranged close to the center. This has the advantage that the unmanned vehicle can selectively drive one of the four lifting screws via the lifting drive of the unmanned vehicle from a certain position of the travel platform without the unmanned vehicle having to leave or change its current vehicle position. If necessary, the unmanned vehicle can also have more than one single lifting drive, so that in this embodiment, two, three or four lifting screws of four different storage shafts can be moved simultaneously if necessary. Thus, containers can be raised or lowered simultaneously in up to four storage shafts. Of course, it can also be provided here that, for example, one or a group of containers are raised in a first storage shaft and one or a group of containers are lowered simultaneously in a second storage shaft different from the first storage shaft.

[0046] The driverless vehicle can have at least one carrying arm which is designed to simultaneously receive at least one container or a stack of multiple containers in order to be able to transport these containers together within the travel platform.

[0047] In a first variant, the support arms can be extended laterally away from the cuboid basic housing of the driverless vehicle so that the container can be removed from or inserted into a storage shaft which is arranged directly next to the storage shaft in which the driverless vehicle is located.

[0048] In a second variant, the unmanned vehicle can have a frame-like structure with a central access opening, through which the container can be removed from the storage well and / or placed in the storage well through the frame-like structure of the unmanned vehicle. Thus, in this variant, the carrying arm can extend inwardly from the frame-like outer structure in the central direction to the access opening, so that the carrying arm can place the container or a stack of multiple containers with respect to the center of the well opening in which the unmanned vehicle is currently located.

[0049] The object of the present invention is also achieved by a method for lifting and / or lowering at least one container or a stack of multiple containers in a storage shaft in a cargo storage system, in particular a cargo warehouse of a cargo storage system as described above, the method comprising the following steps:

[0050] - enabling the unmanned vehicle to move automatically, the unmanned vehicle being constructed and designed to move automatically in a travel platform above a storage shaft of a cargo warehouse along a guide in the travel platform, so that the unmanned vehicle can move to an upper shaft opening of any storage shaft of the cargo warehouse by the unmanned vehicle driving itself along the guide in a first travel direction and / or a second travel direction,

[0051] - automatically coupling a drive coupling of the unmanned vehicle, which can be driven by its lifting drive, to a drive coupling of a lifting device of the cargo warehouse, which is fixedly arranged in the relevant storage shaft, so that the torque from the lifting drive of the unmanned vehicle can be transmitted to the lifting device of the cargo warehouse, so that a container present in the storage shaft or a stack of a plurality of containers present in the storage shaft can be selectively lifted or lowered by the lifting device,

[0052] - Automatically actuating a lifting drive of the driverless vehicle in order to raise or lower a container present in the storage shaft or a stack of a plurality of containers present in the storage shaft by means of a lifting device.

[0053] Within the scope of the method, two containers arranged directly on top of each other in such a stack can also not be placed directly above each other, but slightly spaced apart, since each container is supported independently on the lifting and auxiliary lifting screws. Within the scope of the invention, such a stack arranged spaced apart from each other is still referred to as a stack, in the sense that a plurality of containers are placed one above the other within a single storage shaft.

[0054] The method may also include the following steps: automatically drawing electrical energy from a fixed charging station in the cargo warehouse into an electrical energy storage device of the unmanned vehicle and / or a lifting drive of the unmanned vehicle, while the lifting drive of the unmanned vehicle drives the lifting device of the cargo warehouse to lift or lower a container in a storage shaft or a stack of multiple containers in a storage shaft. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0055] The specific embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. The specific features of these exemplary embodiments can be considered individually or in combination as necessary to represent the general features of the present invention, regardless of where they are specifically mentioned in this article. Among them:

[0056] Figure 1 A partial schematic diagram of an exemplary cargo storage system according to the present invention is shown, the cargo storage system having a lifting device in the form of a lifting screw and an unmanned vehicle having a protruding carrying arm for a container,

[0057] Figure 2 A partial schematic diagram of an exemplary cargo storage system according to the present invention is shown, wherein the cargo storage system has a lifting device in the form of a lifting screw and an unmanned vehicle having a frame-type external structure,

[0058] Figure 3 A partial schematic diagram of an exemplary cargo storage system according to a second embodiment of the present invention is shown, the cargo storage system having a lifting device in the form of a lifting screw and an auxiliary lifting screw, on which the container is directly held,

[0059] Figure 4 shows a partial side view of an exemplary cargo storage system according to a third embodiment of the present invention having a plurality of lifts in a common corner area of ​​a set of four storage wells,

[0060] Figure 5 Shows Figure 4 A top view of a cargo storage system according to a third embodiment is shown, and

[0061] Figure 6 A flow chart showing the steps of the basic method according to the present invention is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0062] Figure 1 An exemplary cargo storage system 1 is schematically shown in FIG.

[0063] The cargo storage system 1 has a cargo warehouse 2, which includes a plurality of storage wells 3, which are arranged closely side by side in multiple rows and columns, so that each storage well 3 can be entered through an upper well opening 4 to remove one or more containers 5 from the corresponding storage well 3 from above and / or place one or more containers 5 from the corresponding storage well 3 from above, so that a plurality of containers 5 can be stored in a vertical stack inside the corresponding storage well.

[0064] The cargo storage system 1 comprises a travel platform 6 arranged above the storage well 3, the travel platform having a guide member 7 ( Figure 5 ), these guide members are designed to: enable the unmanned vehicle 8 to optionally travel along a first driving direction inside the driving platform 6 so as to be able to switch between multiple well openings 4 of multiple storage wells 3 arranged in rows; and travel along a second driving direction so as to be able to switch between multiple well openings 4 of multiple storage wells 3 arranged in columns.

[0065] Therefore, the cargo storage system 1 has at least one unmanned vehicle 8, which is constructed and designed to automatically travel along the guide member 7 in the driving platform 6, so that the unmanned vehicle 8 can be moved to the shaft opening 4 of any storage shaft 2 of the cargo warehouse 2 by optionally self-driving along the guide member 7 in the first driving direction and / or in the second driving direction.

[0066] The cargo storage system 1 comprises a plurality of lifting devices 9 arranged at the cargo warehouse 2 , wherein each lifting device is designed to lift and lower at least one stack 5 consisting of a plurality of containers stored in a corresponding storage shaft 3 .

[0067] The plurality of lifting devices 9 are designed to be driveless and each lifting device 9 or each group of a plurality of lifting devices 9 has a drive coupling 10 which is designed to feed a drive torque into the lifting device 9 , wherein the drive coupling 10 is accessible from the travel platform 6 .

[0068] According to the present invention, at least one unmanned vehicle 8 has a lifting drive 11, which has a drive matching connector 12 matching the drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9, and the drive matching connector is constructed to automatically connect to the corresponding drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9 when the unmanned vehicle 8 is connectably close to the drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9.

[0069] In the case of the present embodiment, the drive mating connector 12 is automatically adjustable on the unmanned vehicle 8 between a connection position and a release position via an adjusting device 25, wherein, when the unmanned vehicle 8 is connectably close to the drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9, the drive mating connector 12 engages with the corresponding drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9 at the connection position; wherein, the drive mating connector 12 is separated from the drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9 at the release position.

[0070] In the present exemplary embodiment, the driverless vehicle 8 has an electrical energy storage device 13 . The lifting drive 11 is designed as an electric motor, to whose motor shaft a drive coupling 12 is connected, wherein the lifting drive 11 , ie the electric motor, is connected to the electrical energy storage device 12 .

[0071] In accordance with Figure 2 In a variant, the unmanned vehicle 8 can have a frame-like structure 14, which has a passage opening 15 in the center, via which the container 5 can be taken out of the storage well 3 through the frame-like structure 14 of the unmanned vehicle 8 and / or the container 5 can be placed in the storage well 3. Therefore, in this variant, the carrying arm 16 can extend inwardly from the frame-like outer structure 14 in the central direction to the passage opening 15, so that the carrying arm 16 can place the container 5 or a stack of multiple containers 5 in the center of the well opening 4 where the unmanned vehicle 8 is currently located.

[0072] In accordance with Figure 1 and Figure 2In the embodiment of the present invention, the corresponding drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9 is connected to a lifting screw 17, which extends along the height of at least one storage well 3, wherein a platform 18 for placing containers 5 extending in the storage well 3 is height-adjustably mounted on the lifting screw 17, whereby the lifting screw 17 is driven by the drive connector 10 so that the platform 18 can be lifted inside the storage well 3 so that the containers 5 stacked on the platform 18 can be lifted upward from the storage well 3 through the well opening 4, and / or can be lowered inside the storage well 3 so that the containers 5 stacked on the platform 18 can enter the well opening 4 and be lowered downward into the storage well 3.

[0073] Figure 3 A variant embodiment is shown, in which the corresponding drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9 is connected to a lifting screw 17, which extends along the height of at least one storage well 3, wherein at least one auxiliary lifting screw 17a also extends on the storage well 3, and the auxiliary lifting screw can be driven together with the lifting screw 17, wherein the lifting screw 17 and the auxiliary lifting screw 17a are arranged opposite to the stack on the container 5 in the storage well 3 and respectively have a screw thread, which is designed to engage with the load-bearing section 19 on the lateral edge area of ​​the container 5, so that the container 5 engaged in the screw thread of the lifting screw 17 and the auxiliary lifting screw 17a can be individually lifted and / or lowered by rotating the lifting screw 17 and the auxiliary lifting screw 17a.

[0074] exist Figure 3 In the illustrated embodiment, the lifting screw 17 and the auxiliary lifting screw 17a terminate at a vertical height H above the bottom 20 of the cargo warehouse 2, which is at least as high as the height of the container 5, so that the container 5 guided by the lifting screw 17 and the auxiliary lifting screw 17a is released at a height position close to the bottom and disengaged from the screw threads of the lifting screw 17 and the auxiliary lifting screw 17a, so that the corresponding container 5 released from the lifting screw 17 and the auxiliary lifting screw 17a can be discharged from the cargo warehouse 2 in the lower plane.

[0075] like Figure 4 As schematically shown in FIG. 1 , the cargo storage system 1 may have at least one charging station 21 arranged at the cargo warehouse 2, which is constructed and designed to charge the driverless vehicle 8 (in Figure 48 is a vehicle 8 shown on the left in the figure, wherein the charging station 21 has an electrical plug connector 22, through which electrical energy can be output from the charging station 21, and the unmanned vehicle 8 has a mating electrical plug connector 23 corresponding to the electrical plug connector 22 of the charging station 21, wherein when the unmanned vehicle 8 is connectably close to the corresponding drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9, the mating electrical plug connector 23 of the unmanned vehicle 8 can be electrically connected to the electrical plug connector 22 of the charging station 21, as shown in FIG. Figure 4 The unmanned vehicle 8 is shown on the left side.

[0076] The electric motor of the lifting drive 9 can be constructed and designed to draw electrical energy directly from a power grid 24 connected to the charging station 21 when the mating electrical plug connector 23 of the driverless vehicle 8 is connected to the electrical plug connector 22 of the charging station 21 .

[0077] Especially if Figure 5 Combination Figure 4 As shown, in this embodiment, each storage well 3 can have a cross-section that is at least basically rectangular, and every four storage wells 3 can form a quadrant on the travel platform 6 with their well openings 4, wherein the four lifting screws 17 corresponding to each of the four storage wells 3 are arranged close to the center of the quadrant, so that when viewed from above, the storage well 3 arranged in the first quadrant I has its first lifting screw 17.1 in the lower left corner, the storage well 3 arranged in the second quadrant II has its second lifting screw 17.2 in the lower right corner, the storage well 3 arranged in the third quadrant has a third lifting screw 17.3 in the upper right corner, and the storage well 3 arranged in the fourth quadrant IV has its fourth lifting screw 17 in the upper left corner.

[0078] In all embodiments, the driverless vehicle 8 can have at least one carrying arm 16 which is designed to simultaneously receive at least one container 5 or a stack of multiple containers 5 in order to be able to transport these containers together within the travel platform 6 .

[0079] exist Figure 6 Schematically shown in FIG. 1 is a method for lifting and / or lowering at least one container 5 or a stack of a plurality of containers 5 within a storage shaft 3 in a cargo warehouse 2 of a cargo storage system 1 .

[0080] In the first step S1 of the method, an unmanned vehicle 8 is driven automatically. The unmanned vehicle is constructed and designed to drive automatically in the driving platform 6 above the storage shaft 3 of the cargo warehouse 2 along the guide member 7 in the driving platform 6, so that the unmanned vehicle 8 can be moved to the upper shaft opening 4 of any storage shaft 3 of the cargo warehouse 2 by enabling the unmanned vehicle 8 to drive self-propelledly along the guide member 7 optionally in the first driving direction and / or the second driving direction.

[0081] In the second step S2 of the method, the drive partner connector 12 of the unmanned vehicle 8, which can be driven by its lifting drive 11, is automatically connected to the drive connector 10 of the lifting device 9 of the cargo warehouse 2, which is fixedly arranged in the relevant storage shaft 3, so that the torque from the lifting drive 11 of the unmanned vehicle 8 can be transmitted to the lifting device 9 of the cargo warehouse 2, so that the container 5 present in the storage shaft 3 or the stack of multiple containers 5 present in the storage shaft 3 can be optionally lifted or lowered by the lifting device 9.

[0082] In a third step S3 of the method, the lifting drive 11 of the driverless vehicle 8 is automatically driven in order to lift or lower the container 5 or the stack of a plurality of containers 5 present in the storage shaft 3 via the lifting device 9 .

[0083] In an optional step of the method, electrical energy can be automatically drawn from the fixed charging station 21 of the cargo warehouse 1 to the power storage 13 of the unmanned vehicle 8 and / or the lifting drive 11 of the unmanned vehicle 8, while the lifting drive 11 of the unmanned vehicle 8 drives the lifting device 9 of the cargo warehouse 2 to lift or lower the container 5 present in the storage shaft 3 or the stack of multiple containers 5 present in the storage shaft 3.

Claims

1. A cargo storage system (1), comprising: - a cargo warehouse (2) having a plurality of storage shafts (3) arranged next to one another in a plurality of rows and columns, so that each of the storage shafts (3) is accessible through an upper shaft opening (4) in order to remove one or more containers (5) from above from the corresponding storage shaft (3) and / or to place one or more containers (5) from above into the corresponding storage shaft (3), so that a plurality of containers (5) can be stored in the corresponding storage shaft (3) in a vertical stack, - a travel platform (6) arranged above the storage shaft (3), the travel platform having a guide element (7) designed to enable the unmanned vehicle (8) to selectively travel in a first travel direction inside the travel platform (6) so as to be able to switch between a plurality of shaft openings (4) of the storage shafts (3) arranged in a row, and to travel in a second travel direction so as to be able to switch between a plurality of shaft openings (4) of the storage shafts (3) arranged in a column, - at least one unmanned vehicle (8) which is constructed and designed to automatically travel along the guide member (7) in the travel platform (6), so that the unmanned vehicle (8) can be moved to the shaft opening (4) of any storage shaft (2) of the cargo warehouse (2) by making the unmanned vehicle (8) selectively travel in the first travel direction and / or the second travel direction along the guide member (7) in an autonomous manner, - a plurality of lifting devices (9) arranged at the cargo warehouse (2), wherein each of the lifting devices (9) is designed to lift and lower at least one stack consisting of a plurality of containers (5) stored in a corresponding storage shaft (3), It is characterized in that The plurality of lifting devices (9) are designed to be driveless, and each lifting device (9) or each group of a plurality of lifting devices (9) has a drive coupling (10) which is designed to feed a drive torque into the lifting device (9), wherein the drive coupling (10) is accessible from the travel platform (6), and The at least one unmanned vehicle (8) has a lifting drive (11), and the lifting drive has a drive matching coupler (12) matching the drive matching coupler (10) of the lifting device (9), and the drive matching coupler is constructed to automatically connect to the corresponding drive matching coupler (10) of the lifting device (9) when the unmanned vehicle (8) is able to connect to the drive matching coupler (10) of the lifting device (9).

2. The cargo storage system according to claim 1, characterized in that: The drive mating connector (12) is mounted on the unmanned vehicle (8) in an automatically adjustable manner between a connection position and a release position via an adjusting device (25), wherein when the unmanned vehicle (8) is connectably close to the drive connector (10) of the lifting device (9), the drive mating connector (12) engages with the corresponding drive connector (10) of the lifting device (9) at the connection position; wherein the drive mating connector (12) is separated from the drive connector (10) of the lifting device (9) at the release position.

3. The cargo storage system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: The driverless vehicle (8) has an electrical energy storage device (13) and a lifting drive (11) connected to the electrical energy storage device (13), wherein the lifting drive is designed as an electric motor and the drive partner coupling (12) is connected to the motor shaft of the electric motor.

4. The cargo storage system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The cargo storage system comprises at least one charging station (21) arranged at the cargo warehouse (2), the charging station being constructed and designed to charge the electrical energy storage device (13) of the unmanned vehicle (8), wherein the charging station (21) has an electrical plug connector (22), through which electrical energy can be output from the charging station (21), and the unmanned vehicle (8) has a mating electrical plug connector (23) corresponding to the electrical plug connector (22) of the charging station (21), wherein when the unmanned vehicle (8) is connectably close to the corresponding drive connector (10) of the lifting device (9), the mating electrical plug connector (23) of the unmanned vehicle (8) can be electrically connected to the electrical plug connector (22) of the charging station (21).

5. The cargo storage system according to claim 4, characterized in that: The electric motor of the lifting drive (11) is constructed and designed to draw electrical energy directly from a power grid (24) connected to the charging station (21) when the mating electrical plug connector (23) of the driverless vehicle (8) is connected to the electrical plug connector (22) of the charging station (21).

6. The cargo storage system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The corresponding drive connector (10) of the lifting device (9) is connected to a lifting screw (17), which extends along the height of at least one storage shaft (3), wherein a platform (18) extending in the storage shaft (3) and used to place the container (5) is mounted on the lifting screw (17) in a height-adjustable manner, and the lifting screw (17) is driven by the drive connector (10) so that the platform (18) can be lifted inside the storage shaft (3), so that the containers (5) stacked on the platform (18) can be lifted upward from the storage shaft (3) through the shaft opening (4), and / or can be lowered inside the storage shaft (3), so that the containers (5) stacked on the platform (18) can enter the shaft opening (4) and be lowered downward into the storage shaft (3).

7. The cargo storage system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that: The corresponding drive connector (10) of the lifting device (9) is connected to a lifting screw (17), which extends along the height of at least one storage well (3), and at least one auxiliary lifting screw (17a) extends on each of the storage wells (3), and the auxiliary lifting screw can be driven together with the lifting screw (17), wherein the lifting screw (17) and the auxiliary lifting screw (17a) are arranged relative to the stack on the container (5) in the storage well (3) and have a screw thread respectively, and the screw thread is constructed to engage with the load-bearing section (19) on the lateral edge area of ​​the container (5), so that the container (5) engaged in the screw thread of the lifting screw (17) and the auxiliary lifting screw (17a) can be individually lifted and / or lowered by rotating the lifting screw (17) and the auxiliary lifting screw (17a).

8. The cargo storage system according to claim 7, characterized in that: The lifting screw (17) and the auxiliary lifting screw (17a) terminate at a vertical height (H) above the bottom (20) of the cargo warehouse (2), and the vertical height is at least as high as the height of the container (5), so that the container (5) guided by the lifting screw (17) and the auxiliary lifting screw (17a) can be released at a height position close to the bottom and disengaged from the screw threads of the lifting screw (17) and the auxiliary lifting screw (17a), so that the corresponding container (5) released from the lifting screw (17) and the auxiliary lifting screw (17a) can be discharged from the cargo warehouse (2) in the lower plane.

9. The cargo storage system according to any one of claims 6 to 8, characterized in that: Each storage well (3) has an at least substantially rectangular cross-section, and every two or four storage wells (3) form a quadrant on the travel platform (6) with their well openings (4), wherein the two or four lifting screws (17) corresponding to each of the two or four storage wells (3) are arranged close to the center of the quadrant, so that, viewed from above, the storage well (3) arranged in the first quadrant (I) has its first lifting screw (17.1) in the lower left corner, the storage well (3) arranged in the second quadrant (II) has its second lifting screw (17.2) in the lower right corner, the storage well (3) arranged in the third quadrant (III) has its third lifting screw (17.3) in the upper right corner, and / or the storage well (3) arranged in the fourth quadrant (IV) has its fourth lifting screw (17.4) in the upper left corner.

10. The cargo storage system according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that: The driverless vehicle (8) has at least one carrying arm (16) which is configured to simultaneously receive at least one container (5) or a stack of multiple containers (5) so that the containers can be transported together inside the travel platform (6).

11. A method for lifting and / or lowering at least one container (5) or a stack of a plurality of containers (5) within a storage shaft (3) in a cargo warehouse (2) of a cargo storage system (1), in particular a cargo storage system (1) according to any one of claims 1 to 10, comprising the following steps: - causing an unmanned vehicle (8) to drive automatically, the unmanned vehicle being constructed and designed to drive automatically in a driving platform (6) above a storage shaft (3) of the cargo warehouse (2) along a guide member (7) in the driving platform (6), so that the unmanned vehicle (8) can be moved to the upper shaft opening (4) of any storage shaft (3) of the cargo warehouse (2) by causing the unmanned vehicle (8) to drive automatically along the guide member (7) selectively in a first driving direction and / or a second driving direction, - automatically coupling a drive coupling (12) of the unmanned vehicle (8) which can be driven by a lifting drive (11) of the unmanned vehicle (8) to a drive coupling (10) of a lifting device (9) of the cargo warehouse (2) which is fixedly arranged in the relevant storage shaft (3), so that the torque from the lifting drive (11) of the unmanned vehicle (8) can be transmitted to the lifting device (9) of the cargo warehouse (2), so that a container (5) present in the storage shaft (3) or a stack of multiple containers (5) present in the storage shaft (3) can be selectively lifted or lowered by the lifting device (9), - automatically driving the lifting drive (11) of the unmanned vehicle (8) in order to raise or lower the container (5) present in the storage shaft (3) or a stack of multiple containers (5) present in the storage shaft (3) by means of the lifting device (9).

12. The method according to claim 11, further comprising the steps of: Electric energy is automatically drawn from a fixed charging station (21) of the cargo warehouse (2) to an electric energy storage device (13) of the unmanned vehicle (8) and / or a lifting drive (11) of the unmanned vehicle (8), and at the same time, the lifting drive (11) of the unmanned vehicle (8) drives a lifting device (9) of the cargo warehouse (2) to lift or lower a container (5) in the storage shaft (3) or a stack of multiple containers (5) in the storage shaft (3).

Images