Automatic three-dimensional warehouse storage system and storage method thereof

Abstract

The automatic three-dimensional warehouse warehousing system comprises a warehousing workshop and a warehousing management control system covering the warehousing workshop, and an automatic three-dimensional warehouse, a first-layer warehousing area, a second-layer warehousing area and a material transportation system are arranged in the warehousing workshop; the warehouse management control system comprises a warehouse management system WMS and a warehouse control system WCS, the warehouse management system WMS comprises a material management system SAP for butt joint, and the warehouse control system WCS comprises an AGV scheduling system; according to the automatic three-dimensional warehouse warehousing system, the positions of all the areas are reasonably divided, the whole process of the incoming material unloading area, the unpacking and tray changing area, the material inspection area, the material to-be-inspected area, the warehousing area, the warehouse-out sorting area and the batching cache area is communicated through the AGV, flexible connection of the whole transfer line is achieved, the continuity and accuracy of the operation procedure are improved, and the working efficiency is improved. Automatic carrying and transportation of materials are achieved, the production efficiency is improved, and the labor cost is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the technical field of warehousing systems, and particularly to an automated vertical warehouse warehousing system and a warehousing method thereof. Background Art

[0002] With the development of technology, automated vertical warehouse warehousing systems have gradually become popular in material storage and allocation. The continuous progress and optimization of automated vertical warehouse warehousing systems have a huge promoting effect on the development of modern logistics. Most of the materials in the warehousing base are stored in the vertical warehouse. Using the vertical warehouse for storage greatly reduces the area of the warehousing base, compresses the logistics cost, and improves the storage efficiency per unit area. However, how to reasonably plan the layout, configure the facilities and equipment, design the dispatching and shipping plans, and ensure the efficient coordinated transfer of materials is still a relatively complex task.

[0003] Therefore, the present invention proposes an automated vertical warehouse warehousing system and a warehousing method thereof to solve the above problems. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The technical problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an automated vertical warehouse warehousing system and a warehousing method thereof, which can ensure the efficient coordinated transfer of materials by reasonably planning the regional layout, optimizing the facilities and equipment, and the dispatching and transfer plan.

[0005] To solve the above technical problem, the technical solution of the present invention is: an automated vertical warehouse warehousing system, the innovation of which lies in: including a warehousing workshop and a warehousing management control system covering the warehousing workshop; An automated three-dimensional warehouse, a first-floor warehousing area, a second-floor warehousing area, and a material transportation system are provided in the warehousing workshop, and a receiving and unloading area for incoming materials is provided outside the entrance of the warehousing workshop; The automated three-dimensional warehouse runs through the first-floor warehousing area and the second-floor warehousing area, and both the first-floor warehousing area and the second-floor warehousing area are provided with an entrance and an exit for warehousing; A unpacking and pallet-changing area, a material inspection area, and a material waiting-for-inspection area are provided between the entrance of the warehousing workshop and the entrance of the automated three-dimensional warehouse in the first-floor warehousing area. The unpacking and pallet-changing area is located at the entrance of the warehousing workshop, and the material waiting-for-inspection area is located on the side of the material inspection area away from the unpacking and pallet-changing area. A first outbound sorting area and a first batching buffer area are provided on the side of the automated three-dimensional warehouse in the first-floor warehousing area close to the material waiting-for-inspection area; The second-floor warehousing area is located above the first-floor warehousing area, and a second outbound sorting area and a second batching buffer area are provided on the side of the second-floor warehousing area close to the entrance of the automated three-dimensional warehouse; The material transportation system includes an automatic guided vehicle AGV, a hoist, a flexible double-beam crane KBK, a jib crane, a stacker, a shuttle car, a conveyor line, an electric forklift, and a reach truck; The warehouse management control system includes a Warehouse Management System (WMS) and a Warehouse Control System (WCS). The WMS is connected to a Material Management System (SAP), and the WCS includes an AGV scheduling system.

[0006] Further, there are nine storage areas in the automated stereoscopic warehouse, namely a raw material sheet metal warehouse, a flat warehouse with a cleaning room, a vertical warehouse, an inspection waiting warehouse, a line side warehouse, a batching buffer warehouse, a semi-finished product warehouse, a finished product warehouse, and a non-conforming product warehouse. Among them, the vertical warehouse is used to store materials in pallets and bins, and is divided into a pallet warehouse and a bin warehouse; The WMS includes a barcode system and supporting printing equipment, a receiving management module, a warehouse management module, a picking management module, a material requisition management module, a batch management module, a warehouse location management module, and a report management module.

[0007] The warehousing method of the above-mentioned automated vertical warehouse system includes the following processes: D1. Incoming material unloading and buffering; D2. Unpacking and pallet changing operation; D3. Material waiting for inspection; D4. Inspection in the inspection area; D5. Material warehousing; D6. Material outwarehouse sorting; D7. Batching area buffering; D8. Production line distribution; D9. Finished product warehousing.

[0008] Further, the process of incoming material unloading and buffering is as follows: The incoming material truck stops at the incoming material unloading area outside the warehouse workshop. The incoming material pallets are transferred off the truck using an electric forklift, the incoming material quantity is checked according to the corresponding delivery note, and barcodes are printed and pasted on the surface of the incoming material packages.

[0009] Further, the process of unpacking and pallet changing operation is as follows: The incoming material pallets in the incoming material unloading area are transferred to the lifting platform in the unpacking and pallet changing area using a hydraulic truck. The height of the lifting platform is adjusted according to the height of the incoming materials. After the material attributes are identified using a barcode scanner, the materials on the incoming material pallets on the lifting platform are classified and transported to the pallets in the warehouse workshop through a KBK. The material barcodes are printed and bound to the warehouse workshop pallet codes. An automatic weighing platform is equipped under the warehouse workshop pallets to detect the weight of the materials on the pallets in real time, and the QR code is scanned to call an AGV to transport them to the corresponding area. The AGV transports empty pallets from the warehouse pallet stacker to the automatic weighing platform.

[0010] Further, the process of material waiting for inspection is as follows: The materials waiting for inspection in the vertical warehouse are temporarily stored in the material waiting for inspection area by an AGV, and the AGV automatically transports them to the corresponding inspection windows in the material inspection area in the order of receipt. If there is no empty pallet position in the inspection area, the AGV will dock the subsequent materials to be inspected in the vertical warehouse to the inspection warehouse; If a pallet position becomes available in the inspection area, the inspection warehouse will output the pallets to be inspected in the order of inbound storage, and transfer them to the material inspection area through the AGV; For materials that need to be put into production urgently, according to the markings in the SAP system, they will be inspected preferentially and directly sent to the batching buffer area.

[0011] Further, the inspection process in the inspection area is as follows: The laboratory in the material inspection area divides each inspection window according to functions. The AGV sends the materials to be inspected to the corresponding inspection windows according to the material inspection attributes. After using the barcode scanner to scan the material barcode to confirm the material inspection ratio, the corresponding inspection is completed. After the inspection is completed, the material status is modified to complete the operation, and the AGV docks to the inbound port of the automated stereoscopic warehouse; Empty pallets are placed beside the inspection windows. If a certain type of material in the pallet is unqualified, the unqualified material will be placed on the empty pallet, and the AGV will be called to enter the non-conforming product vertical warehouse, and the WMS system will send information to the corresponding interface person.

[0012] Further, the process of material inbound storage is as follows: For materials in the pallet warehouse, the AGV automatically docks to the conveyor line at the inbound port of the pallet warehouse and conducts weight and shape inspections at the inbound port of the pallet warehouse; For materials in the bin warehouse, the AGV transports the materials in the bin warehouse after inspection to the inbound port of the bin warehouse, and sequentially transports the materials on the incoming pallet into the bins. Then, the material barcode is sequentially bound to the bin code through the handheld computer PDA. After the transfer is completed, the bin is pushed to the conveyor line at the inbound port of the bin warehouse. After the conveyor line port detects that there is no overweight or overheight abnormality of the material, it directly docks for inbound storage, scans the empty two-dimensional code, and the AGV transports the next material to be inbound to the inbound port of the bin warehouse, and transfers the empty pallet to the warehouse pallet stacker for fixed storage; For materials in the flat warehouse and the cleaning room, the AGV transfers the large flat warehouse and cleaning room materials from the unpacking and pallet changing area to the corresponding areas of the flat warehouse and the cleaning room, and then sends a command to the inspection room. After the inspection is completed, the incoming material attributes are modified through the PDA, and a command is sent to complete the inbound storage and shelving operation; For materials in the semi-finished product warehouse and the finished product warehouse, after verifying the quantity and packaging of the products to be inbound, scan the two-dimensional code to call the AGV for handling and inbound storage.

[0013] Further, the process of material outbound sorting is as follows: The materials are divided into general parts materials and special parts materials according to the outbound attributes; When general parts materials are outbound, the materials in the line-side warehouse are distributed by batch. The WMS system sets the minimum alarm quantity. When the materials in the line-side warehouse are less than the minimum alarm quantity, the information is real-time fed back to the WMS system to complete the distribution; When special parts are out of the warehouse, the materials are distributed according to the work order. The distribution frequency is set in the WMS system and the materials are distributed to the production line in batches. When materials in the pallet warehouse are out of the warehouse, according to the outbound task, the stacker automatically transports the inventory pallets to the conveyor lines at the outbound ports of the vertical warehouses in the first-floor storage area and the second-floor storage area. The AGV automatically docks with the conveyor lines at the outbound ports of the vertical warehouses and transports the materials to be sorted to the outbound sorting area. The outbound sorting area is equipped with a warehouse pallet stacker. The two-dimensional code of the empty pallet position is scanned, and the AGV automatically transports the pallets in the warehouse pallet stacker to the empty pallet positions for sorting as order pallets. The materials on the inventory pallets are transferred to the order pallets by the jib crane. After the transfer is completed, the material two-dimensional code is printed and pasted on the materials. The material two-dimensional code and the order pallet code are scanned to bind the materials, and the AGV is called to transport them to the batching buffer area. The inventory pallets are stored in the warehouse again through the docking of the AGV. When materials in the bin warehouse are out of the warehouse, abnormal handling ports are added to the conveyor lines in the bin warehouses in the first-floor storage area and the second-floor storage area for material inventory counting and full-bin outbound. According to the outbound task, the shuttle car automatically transports the bins to the conveyor lines in the first-floor storage area and the second-floor storage area. The materials are transported to the corresponding sorting ports in the outbound sorting area through the conveyor lines, sorted into empty bins, and the material two-dimensional code is printed and pasted on the materials. The material two-dimensional code and the bin code are bound through the PDA, and the AGV is called to transport them to the batching buffer area. The sorted inventory bins are returned to the bin warehouse through the conveyor lines. When materials in the flat warehouse and the cleaning room are out of the warehouse, according to the batching information of the work order, the materials that meet the AGV handling conditions are transferred to a fixed area by the reach truck. The AGV is connected to the batching buffer area. For large materials, they are transferred by the electric forklift and distributed in batches according to the production rhythm. The batch distribution mode is realized by the corresponding workstations on the production line calling for materials.

[0014] Furthermore, the buffer in the batching area is used for material kit buffer and material sorting exception buffer. The process of the buffer in the batching area is as follows: The AGV automatically docks with the materials in the batching buffer area and transports them to the corresponding production line and workstation.

[0015] The advantages of the present invention are as follows: The automated vertical warehouse storage system of the present invention reasonably divides the positions of each area, and through the AGV, the whole process of the incoming material unloading area, unpacking and pallet changing area, material inspection area, material waiting for inspection area, warehousing area, outbound sorting area and batching buffer area is connected, realizing the flexible connection of the entire transfer line, improving the continuity and accuracy of the operation process, realizing the automated handling and transportation of materials, improving the production efficiency and reducing the labor cost.

[0016] The AGV of the present invention automatically transfers the materials to be inspected to the inspection port and automatically connects and stores a batch of inspected materials. The whole process does not require personnel to move, reducing the manual labor.

[0017] The AGV scheduling system of the present invention is connected to the warehousing management control system. After there is no vacancy in the pallet positions in the ground material inspection waiting area, the AGV automatically transfers the subsequent pallets to be inspected into the automated storage warehouse. After there is a vacancy in the pallet positions in the material inspection waiting area, the warehousing management control system then schedules the AGV to transfer the pallets from the automated storage warehouse to the ground material inspection waiting area, reducing the pallet buffer area in the material inspection waiting area.

[0018] In the present invention, by designing upper and lower two-layer warehousing areas in the automated storage warehouse workshop, the automated storage warehouse is provided with outbound ports in both the upper and lower two-layer warehousing areas. When the sorting outbound task in the first-layer warehousing area is oversaturated, the sorting outbound task information in this layer of the warehousing area can be distributed to the other layer of the warehousing area. After the other layer of the warehousing area completes sorting, it is warehoused again and automatically exits the warehouse from this layer of the warehousing area. The overall scheduling and task allocation are more reasonable, and the sorting efficiency is higher.

[0019] The AGV of the present invention is docked with the warehouse pallet stacker, realizing automatic storage and retrieval of pallets. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0020] The present invention will be further described in detail below in conjunction with the drawings and specific embodiments.

[0021] Figure 1 It is the overall layout diagram of the first-layer warehousing area of the present invention.

[0022] Figure 2 It is the overall layout diagram of the second-layer warehousing area of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 3 It is the layout diagram of the incoming material unloading area of the present invention.

[0024] Figure 4 It is the layout diagram of the inbound area of the automated storage warehouse in the first-layer warehousing area of the present invention. Specific Embodiments

[0025] To further elaborate on the technical means and effects adopted by the present invention to achieve the predetermined invention purpose, the following will, in conjunction with the drawings and preferred embodiments, describe in detail the specific embodiments, structures, features, and their effects according to the present invention.

[0026] Embodiment 1 This embodiment provides an automated storage warehouse system, including a warehousing workshop and a warehousing management control system covering the warehousing workshop.

[0027] An automated storage warehouse, a first-layer warehousing area, a second-layer warehousing area, and a material transportation system are provided in the warehousing workshop.

[0028] In this embodiment, there are nine warehousing areas in the automated storage warehouse, namely the raw material sheet metal warehouse, the flat warehouse with a cleaning room, the automated storage warehouse, the inspection waiting warehouse, the line side warehouse, the batching buffer warehouse, the semi-finished product warehouse, the finished product warehouse, and the non-conforming product warehouse. Among them: Raw material sheet metal library: used for the storage and management of stainless steel open flat sheets; Flat warehouse: used for storing engineering materials for the cleaning room, heavy-duty shelves, and large items stored on the ground and urgently required for production line; Automated storage and retrieval system (AS / RS) warehouse: used for storing materials in pallets and bins, divided into pallet warehouse and bin warehouse; Pending inspection warehouse: used for storing materials that have not been inspected and warehoused, covering flat warehouse and AS / RS warehouse; Batching buffer warehouse: concentrated in the batching buffer area, used for docking with AGV for distribution to the production line; Line-side warehouse: used for storing general-purpose materials convenient for production line production, such as low-value parts; Semi-finished product warehouse: used for storing intermediate work-in-progress that needs to be buffered and warehoused by each production line; Finished product warehouse: used for storing materials that can be directly sold and shipped; Non-conforming product warehouse: used for storing non-conforming product materials.

[0029] As Figure 3 shown, there is a receiving and unloading area A outside the entrance of the warehousing workshop, and a canopy is set up in the receiving and unloading area A. An automated storage area E is formed at the location of the automated storage and retrieval system (AS / RS) warehouse. The automated storage and retrieval system (AS / RS) warehouse runs through the first-floor warehousing area and the second-floor warehousing area, and both the first-floor warehousing area and the second-floor warehousing area are provided with inbound ports and outbound ports.

[0030] As Figure 1 shown, there is a unpacking and pallet-changing area B-1, a material inspection area D, and a material pending inspection area C between the entrance of the warehousing workshop and the inbound port of the automated storage and retrieval system (AS / RS) warehouse in the first-floor warehousing area. The unpacking and pallet-changing area B-1 is located at the entrance of the warehousing workshop, and the material pending inspection area C is located on the side of the material inspection area D far from the unpacking and pallet-changing area B-A. As Figure 4 shown, there is a pallet inbound port E1 between the material inspection area D and the automated storage area E, and a bin inbound port E2 between the material pending inspection area C and the automated storage area E. On one side of the automated storage and retrieval system (AS / RS) warehouse close to the material pending inspection area C in the first-floor warehousing area, there is a first outbound sorting area F-1 and a first batching buffer area G-1. On the side of the automated storage area E far from the material inspection area D, there is a temporary unpacking and pallet-changing operation area B-2, and the warehousing workshop has a temporary entrance and exit at the temporary unpacking and pallet-changing operation area B-2.

[0031] The second-floor warehousing area is located above the first-floor warehousing area. As Figure 2As shown in the figure, on one side of the second - floor storage area near the entrance of the automated storage and retrieval system, there are a second outbound sorting area and a second batching buffer area G - 2. The second outbound sorting area is divided into a pallet - storage outbound sorting area F - 2 - 1 and a bin - storage outbound sorting area F - 2 - 2. The pallet - storage outbound sorting area F - 2 - 1 and the bin - storage outbound sorting area F - 2 - 2 are respectively arranged on both sides of the second batching buffer area G - 2, and the bin - storage outbound sorting area F - 2 - 2 is located between the second batching buffer area G - 2 and the automated storage area E.

[0032] The material transportation system includes an automated guided vehicle (AGV) for material transfer within the material area, a hoist for material transfer between the first - floor storage area and the second - floor storage area, a flexible double - beam crane (KBK) for auxiliary unpacking and pallet - changing in the storage area, a jib crane for auxiliary material handling during outbound picking, a stacker for conveying pallets, a shuttle car for conveying bins, a conveyor line for material feeding and discharging, an electric forklift for large - material transfer, and a reach truck. In this embodiment, the conveyor line uses an automatic roller conveyor line.

[0033] The warehouse management control system includes a warehouse management system (WMS) and a warehouse control system (WCS). The warehouse management system WMS is connected to the material management system SAP, and the warehouse control system WCS includes an AGV scheduling system. Among them, the warehouse management system WMS includes a barcode system and supporting printing equipment, a receiving management module, a warehouse management module, a picking management module, a material - issuing management module, a batch management module, a warehouse location management module, and a report management module.

[0034] The automated storage and retrieval system divides the positions of each area reasonably, and through the AGV, it fully connects the incoming - material unloading area, unpacking - and - pallet - changing area, material inspection area, material waiting - for - inspection area, warehousing area, outbound sorting area, and batching buffer area in the whole process, realizing the flexible connection of the entire transfer line, improving the continuity and accuracy of the operation process, realizing the automated handling and transportation of materials, improving production efficiency, and reducing labor costs. By designing upper and lower storage areas in the automated storage and retrieval workshop, the automated storage and retrieval system sets outbound ports in both the upper and lower storage areas. When the outbound sorting tasks in the first - floor storage area are oversaturated, the outbound sorting task information of this floor can be distributed to the other floor. After the other floor completes the sorting, it is re - warehoused and automatically exits from this floor. The overall scheduling and task allocation are more reasonable, and the sorting efficiency is higher.

[0035] Embodiment 2 This embodiment provides a warehousing method for the automated storage and retrieval system of Embodiment 1, including the following processes: D1. Incoming - material unloading and buffering: The incoming material truck stops under the awning of the incoming material unloading area outside the storage workshop. The receiving personnel drive an electric forklift to transfer the incoming material pallet under the awning. The receiving personnel check the quantity of the incoming materials according to the corresponding delivery note and print barcodes to stick on the surface of the incoming material packages.

[0036] D2. Unpacking and pallet changing operation; The process is as follows: Manually operate the hydraulic truck to transfer the incoming material pallet in the incoming material unloading area to the lifting platform in the unpacking and pallet changing area. Adjust the height of the lifting platform according to the height of the incoming materials. After identifying the material attributes with a barcode scanner, use the KBK to classify and transport the materials on the incoming material pallet on the lifting platform to the pallet in the storage workshop. Materials with different attributes cannot be mixed on the same pallet in the storage workshop. Print the material barcode and bind it to the storage workshop pallet code. An automatic weighing platform is equipped under the storage workshop pallet. During the process of pallet changing of materials, the weight of the materials on the pallet is detected in real time, and the QR code at the bottom of the automatic weighing platform is scanned to call the AGV to transport to the corresponding area. The AGV transports empty pallets from the warehouse pallet stacker to the automatic weighing platform; If it is rainy or snowy weather, the incoming material truck for electrical components is driven into the storage workshop through the temporary entrance, and the unpacking and pallet changing operation is carried out at the temporary unpacking and pallet changing operation area B-2.

[0037] D3. Materials awaiting inspection; The process is as follows: The materials awaiting inspection in the automated storage and retrieval system are temporarily stored in the materials awaiting inspection area by the AGV, and the AGV automatically transports them to the corresponding inspection window in the materials inspection area according to the order of receipt; If there is no empty pallet position in the awaiting inspection area, the AGV will dock the subsequent materials awaiting inspection in the automated storage and retrieval system to the awaiting inspection warehouse (i.e., the process of first warehousing and then inspection); If an empty pallet position becomes available in the awaiting inspection area, the awaiting inspection warehouse will output the awaiting inspection pallets in the order of receipt and transfer them to the materials awaiting inspection area through the AGV. At this time, the unpacked and pallet-changed materials still operate according to the process of first warehousing and then inspection; For materials that need to be put into production urgently, according to the mark in the SAP system, they will be given priority for inspection and directly sent to the batching buffer area.

[0038] D4. Inspection in the inspection area; The process is as follows: The laboratory in the materials inspection area is divided into 3 conventional inspection windows and 1 physical and chemical inspection window according to functions. The conventional inspection windows are used for appearance and dimension detection, and the physical and chemical inspection window is used for performance testing. The AGV sends the materials awaiting inspection to the corresponding inspection window according to the inspection attributes of the materials. If it is a material with two inspection attributes, it will be docked to the window according to the physical and chemical inspection requirements. The inspection personnel use a barcode scanner to scan the material barcode to confirm the inspection ratio of the materials, and then complete the corresponding inspection. After the inspection is completed, the material status is modified to complete the operation, and the AGV docks to the entrance of the automated storage and retrieval system; Empty pallets are placed beside the inspection windows. If a certain type of material in the pallet fails the inspection, the unqualified materials will be placed on the empty pallet, call the AGV to enter the non-conforming product automated storage and retrieval system, and the WMS system sends information to the corresponding interface person; For the large pieces of materials to be inspected in the flat storage and cleaning rooms, according to the inspection information released by the WMS system, the inspectors move to the storage areas of the flat storage and cleaning rooms to complete the corresponding inspections; a TV display board is equipped outside the inspection room, which displays in real time the stagnation time of the materials to be inspected, the materials inspected on the same day, and the information of the unqualified materials.

[0039] D5. Material warehousing; The process is as follows: For the materials in the pallet storage, the AGV automatically docks with the conveyor line at the inlet of the pallet storage and conducts weight and shape inspections at the inlet of the pallet storage to prevent personnel from accidentally putting items in during the process and ensure safety. The warehousing process of the raw material sheet metal storage materials is the same as that of the pallet storage materials; For the materials in the bin storage, the AGV transports the materials in the bin storage after inspection to the inlet of the bin storage, sequentially moves the materials on the incoming pallet into the bins, and binds the material barcodes with the bin codes in sequence through the handheld computer PDA. After the transfer is completed, the bin is pushed to the automatic roller conveyor line at the inlet of the bin storage. After the conveyor line port detects that the materials are not overweight or overheight abnormally, it directly docks for warehousing, scans the empty QR code, the AGV transports the next material to be warehoused to the inlet of the bin storage, and transfers the empty pallet to the warehouse pallet stacker for fixed storage; For the materials in the flat storage and cleaning rooms, after the AGV transfers the large pieces of materials in the flat storage and cleaning rooms from the unpacking and pallet-changing area to the corresponding areas of the flat storage and cleaning rooms, the WMS system sends an instruction to the inspection room. After the inspection is completed, the incoming material attributes are modified through the PDA, and an instruction is sent to complete the warehousing and shelving operation; For the materials in the semi-finished product storage and finished product storage, after the production line operators check the quantity and packaging of the products to be warehoused, they scan the QR code to call the AGV to transport the physical products into the warehouse. For the virtual warehousing materials, scanning the QR code of the in-line storage address and the product material code can be bound for warehousing.

[0040] D6. Material outbound sorting; The process is as follows: The materials are divided into general parts materials (standard parts, low-value general materials) and special parts materials (high-value, engineered and large parts materials) according to the outbound attributes; When the general parts materials are outbound, an in-line warehouse is established at the production line side and is linked with the WMS system for control. The materials in the in-line warehouse are distributed by batch. The WMS system sets the minimum alarm quantity. When the materials in the in-line warehouse are less than the minimum alarm quantity, the information is fed back to the WMS system in real time to complete the distribution; When the special parts materials are outbound, the materials are distributed according to the work order. The distribution frequency is set in the WMS system and is distributed to the production line in batches. The semi-finished products and finished products need to be transferred between floors through the AGV docking elevator and transferred to the outbound port of the first-floor storage area for outbound; When the materials in the pallet warehouse are out of storage, according to the out-of-storage task, the stacker automatically transports the inventory pallets to the conveyor lines at the out-of-storage ports of the vertical warehouses in the first-floor storage area and the second-floor storage area. The AGV automatically docks with the conveyor lines at the out-of-storage ports of the vertical warehouses and transports the materials to be sorted to the out-of-storage sorting area (for the materials out of storage in whole pallets, the AGV automatically docks with the conveyor lines and transports them to the batching buffer area). The out-of-storage sorting area is equipped with a warehouse pallet stacking machine. The two-dimensional code of the empty pallet position for sorting is scanned, and the AGV automatically transports the pallets in the warehouse pallet stacking machine to the empty pallet position for sorting as order pallets. The materials on the inventory pallets are transferred to the order pallets by the jib crane. After the transfer is completed, the material two-dimensional code is printed and pasted on the materials. The material two-dimensional code and the order pallet code are scanned to bind the materials, and the AGV is called to transport them to the batching buffer area. The inventory pallets are stored in the warehouse again through the docking of the AGV; When the materials in the bin warehouse are out of storage, abnormal handling ports are added to the conveyor lines in the bin warehouses in the first-floor storage area and the second-floor storage area for material inventory counting and whole-bin out-of-storage. According to the out-of-storage task, the shuttle car automatically transports the bins to the conveyor lines in the first-floor storage area and the second-floor storage area. The materials are transported to the corresponding sorting ports in the out-of-storage sorting area through the conveyor lines, sorted into empty bins, and the material two-dimensional code is printed and pasted on the materials. The material two-dimensional code and the bin code are bound through the PDA, and the AGV is called to transport them to the batching buffer area. The sorted inventory bins are returned to the bin warehouse through the conveyor lines; When the materials in the flat warehouse and the cleaning room are out of storage, according to the batching information in the work order, the materials that meet the AGV handling conditions are transferred to the fixed areas in the flat warehouse and the cleaning room by the reach truck. The AGV is connected to the batching buffer area. For large materials, they are transferred by the electric forklift and distributed in batches according to the production rhythm. The batch distribution mode is realized by the corresponding workstations on the production line calling for materials.

[0041] The conveyor line in this embodiment has the function of forward and reverse rotation. If the materials to be out of storage in the second-floor storage area are too late to be sorted, the materials can be transferred to the first-floor storage area, sorted and then stored in the pallet warehouse, and the out-of-storage at the out-of-storage port in the second-floor storage area is scheduled.

[0042] D7. Batching area buffer; The batching area buffer is used for material kit buffer and material sorting exception buffer. The process of the batching area buffer is as follows: The AGV automatically docks with the materials in the batching buffer area and transports them to the corresponding production lines and workstations.

[0043] D8. Production line distribution; For the general parts materials, a line-side warehouse is established beside the production line and is monitored in real time with the WMS system. The AGV automatically distributes the materials to the line-side warehouse in batches. When the materials in the line-side warehouse are less than the minimum storage quantity, the WMS system sends an instruction for automatic distribution; For the special parts materials, corresponding storage points are set at each workstation. The materials are distributed according to the work order. For large parts, the distribution frequency is set. When the materials on the production line reach the warning value, the production line personnel send an instruction to the WMS system to complete the distribution.

[0044] The materials in the line warehouse are delivered in batches. The WMS system sets a minimum alarm quantity. When the materials in the line warehouse are less than the minimum alarm quantity, the information is fed back to the WMS system in real time to complete the delivery. D9. Finished products are put into storage.

[0045] When finished products are put into storage, QR codes of corresponding positions are affixed to the reporting area and packaging area of ​​the production line, as well as the finished product warehouse. The production line assembly personnel call the AGV to move the old products to the reporting area. After the reporting is completed, the QR code is scanned to call the AGV to move them to the packaging area. After the packaging area personnel complete the packaging, they scan the QR code to call the AGV to move the finished products to the finished product warehouse, and the WMS system registers them into the warehouse.

[0046] The storage method of the present invention uses AGV to automatically transfer the materials to be inspected to the inspection port, and automatically transfers a batch of materials that have been inspected into the warehouse. The whole process does not require the movement of personnel, which reduces manual labor. The AGV scheduling system is connected with the warehouse management and control system. When there are no vacancies in the pallet positions in the ground material inspection area, the AGV automatically transfers the subsequent pallets to be inspected into the vertical warehouse. When there are vacancies in the pallet positions in the material inspection area, the warehouse management and control system dispatches the AGV to transfer the pallets from the vertical warehouse to the ground material inspection area, reducing the pallet cache area in the material inspection area.

[0047] The above description is only a preferred embodiment of the present invention and does not limit the present invention in any form. Although the present invention has been disclosed as a preferred embodiment as above, it is not used to limit the present invention. Any technical personnel in this field can make some changes or modify the technical contents disclosed above into equivalent embodiments without departing from the scope of the technical solution of the present invention. However, any brief modifications, equivalent changes and modifications made to the above embodiments based on the technical essence of the present invention without departing from the content of the technical solution of the present invention are still within the scope of the technical solution of the present invention.

Claims

1. An automated vertical storage and retrieval system, characterized in that: It includes a warehousing workshop and a warehousing management control system covering the warehousing workshop; An automated stereoscopic warehouse, a first-floor warehousing area, a second-floor warehousing area and a material transportation system are provided in the warehousing workshop, and a receiving and unloading area is provided outside the entrance of the warehousing workshop; The automated stereoscopic warehouse runs through the first-floor warehousing area and the second-floor warehousing area, and both the first-floor warehousing area and the second-floor warehousing area are provided with an inbound port and an outbound port; Between the entrance of the warehousing workshop and the inbound port of the automated stereoscopic warehouse in the first-floor warehousing area, there are an unpacking and pallet-changing area, a material inspection area and a material awaiting inspection area. The unpacking and pallet-changing area is located at the entrance of the warehousing workshop, and the material awaiting inspection area is located on the side of the material inspection area away from the unpacking and pallet-changing area. On the side of the automated stereoscopic warehouse in the first-floor warehousing area close to the material awaiting inspection area, there are a first outbound sorting area and a first batching buffer area; The second-floor warehousing area is located above the first-floor warehousing area. On the side of the second-floor warehousing area close to the inbound port of the automated stereoscopic warehouse, there are a second outbound sorting area and a second batching buffer area; The material transportation system includes an automatic guided vehicle (AGV), a hoist, a flexible double-beam crane (KBK), a jib crane, a stacker, a shuttle car, a conveyor line, an electric forklift, and a reach truck; The warehousing management control system includes a warehousing management system (WMS) and a warehousing control system (WCS). The warehousing management system (WMS) includes an interface with the material management system (SAP), and the warehousing control system (WCS) includes an AGV scheduling system.

2. The automated stereoscopic warehouse storage system according to claim 1, wherein: There are nine warehousing areas in the automated stereoscopic warehouse, namely a raw material sheet metal warehouse, a flat warehouse with a cleaning room, a vertical warehouse, a warehouse awaiting inspection, a line-side warehouse, a batching buffer warehouse, a semi-finished product warehouse, a finished product warehouse and a non-conforming product warehouse. Among them, the vertical warehouse is used to store materials in pallets and bins, and is divided into a pallet warehouse and a bin warehouse; The warehousing management system (WMS) includes a barcode system and supporting printing equipment, a receiving management module, a warehousing management module, a picking management module, a material requisition management module, a batch management module, a warehousing location management module, and a report management module.

3. The warehousing method of the automated stereoscopic warehouse storage system according to claim 1 or 2, characterized in that: It includes the following processes: D1. Receiving and unloading buffer; D2. Unpacking and pallet-changing operation; D3. Material awaiting inspection; D4. Inspection in the inspection area; D5. Material inbound; D6. Material outbound sorting; D7. Batching area buffer; D8. Delivery to the production line; D9. Finished product inbound.

4. The warehousing method of the automated stereoscopic warehouse storage system according to claim 3, wherein: The process of the receiving and unloading buffer is as follows: The incoming truck stops at the receiving and unloading area outside the warehousing workshop. The incoming pallet is transferred off the truck using an electric forklift, the incoming quantity is checked according to the corresponding delivery note, and a barcode is printed and pasted on the surface of the incoming package.

5. The warehousing method of the automated stereoscopic warehouse storage system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The process of the unpacking and pallet-changing operation is as follows: The incoming pallet in the receiving and unloading area is transferred to the lifting platform in the unpacking and pallet-changing area using a hydraulic truck. The height of the lifting platform is adjusted according to the height of the incoming material. After identifying the material attributes using a barcode scanner, the materials on the incoming pallet on the lifting platform are classified and transported to the pallets in the warehousing workshop by the KBK, and a material barcode is printed and bound to the pallet code in the warehousing workshop. An automatic weighing platform is equipped under the pallet in the warehousing workshop to detect the weight of the materials on the pallet in real time, and a two-dimensional code is scanned to call the AGV to transport to the corresponding area. The AGV transports an empty pallet from the warehouse pallet stacker to the automatic weighing platform.

6. The warehousing method of the automated stereoscopic warehouse storage system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The process of the material awaiting inspection is as follows: The materials awaiting inspection in the automated storage and retrieval system (AS / RS) are temporarily stored in the material awaiting inspection area by the automated guided vehicle (AGV), and the AGV automatically transports them to the corresponding inspection window in the material inspection area according to the order of receipt. If there is no empty pallet position in the awaiting inspection area, the AGV will dock the subsequent materials awaiting inspection in the AS / RS to the awaiting inspection warehouse. If an empty pallet position becomes available in the awaiting inspection area, the awaiting inspection warehouse will output the awaiting inspection pallets in the order of inbound storage, and transfer them to the material awaiting inspection area through the AGV. For materials that need to be put into production urgently, according to the marking in the SAP system, they will be inspected preferentially and directly sent to the batching buffer area.

7. The warehousing method of the automated stereoscopic warehouse storage system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The process of inspection in the inspection area is as follows: The laboratory in the material inspection area divides each inspection window according to its function. The AGV sends the materials awaiting inspection to the corresponding inspection window according to the material inspection attributes. After using the barcode scanner to scan the material barcode to confirm the material inspection ratio, the corresponding inspection is completed. After the inspection is completed, the material status is modified to complete the operation, and the AGV docks to the inbound port of the automated storage and retrieval system. Empty pallets are placed beside the inspection window. If a certain type of material in the pallet fails the inspection, the unqualified material will be placed on the empty pallet, and the AGV will be called to enter the non-conforming product warehouse, and the WMS system will send information to the corresponding interface person.

8. The warehousing method of the automated stereoscopic warehouse storage system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The process of the material being put into storage is as follows: For the materials in the pallet warehouse, the AGV automatically docks to the conveyor line at the inbound port of the pallet warehouse and conducts weight and shape inspections at the inbound port of the pallet warehouse. For the materials in the bin warehouse, the AGV transports the materials in the bin warehouse after inspection to the inbound port of the bin warehouse, sequentially transports the materials on the incoming pallet into the bins, and binds the material barcodes to the bin codes in sequence through the personal digital assistant (PDA). After the transfer is completed, the bin is pushed onto the conveyor line at the inbound port of the bin warehouse. After the conveyor line port detects that the material has no overweight or overheight abnormalities, it directly docks for storage. After scanning the empty QR code, the AGV transports the next material to be stored to the inbound port of the bin warehouse and transfers the empty pallet to the warehouse pallet stacker for fixed storage. For the materials in the flat warehouse and the cleaning room, the AGV transfers the large parts of the materials in the flat warehouse and the cleaning room from the unpacking and pallet changing area to the corresponding areas of the flat warehouse and the cleaning room, and then sends an instruction to the inspection room. After the inspection is completed, the incoming material attributes are modified through the PDA, and an instruction is sent to complete the inbound storage and shelving operation. For the materials in the semi-finished product warehouse and the finished product warehouse, after verifying the quantity and packaging of the products to be stored, scan the QR code to call the AGV to transport them into the warehouse.

9. The warehousing method of the automated stereoscopic warehouse storage system according to claim 3, wherein: The process of material outbound sorting is as follows: The materials are divided into general parts materials and special parts materials according to the outbound attributes. When general parts materials are outbound, the materials in the line-side warehouse are distributed by batch. The WMS system sets the minimum alarm quantity. When the materials in the line-side warehouse are less than the minimum alarm quantity, the information is fed back to the WMS system in real time to complete the distribution. When special parts materials are outbound, the materials are distributed according to the work order. The distribution frequency is set in the WMS system and they are distributed to the production line in batches. When the materials in the pallet library are out of storage, according to the out-of-storage task, the stacker automatically conveys the inventory pallets to the conveying lines at the out-of-storage openings of the vertical warehouses in the first-floor storage area and the second-floor storage area. The AGV automatically docks with the conveying lines at the out-of-storage openings of the vertical warehouses, conveys the materials to be sorted to the out-of-storage sorting area. The out-of-storage sorting area is equipped with a warehouse pallet stacker. The two-dimensional code of the sorting empty pallet position is scanned. The AGV automatically transports the pallets in the warehouse pallet stacker to the sorting empty pallet position as order pallets. The materials of the inventory pallets are transferred into the order pallets by the jib crane. After the transfer is completed, the material two-dimensional code is printed and pasted on the material. The material two-dimensional code and the order pallet code are scanned to bind the materials, and the AGV is called to transport them to the batching buffer area. The inventory pallets are stored in the warehouse again through the AGV docking; When the materials in the bin library are out of storage, abnormal handling openings are added to the conveying lines in the bin libraries in the first-floor storage area and the second-floor storage area for material inventory counting and full-bin out-of-storage. According to the out-of-storage task, the shuttle car automatically conveys the bins to the conveying lines in the first-floor storage area and the second-floor storage area. The materials are conveyed to the corresponding sorting openings in the out-of-storage sorting area through the conveying lines, sorted into empty bins, and the material two-dimensional code is printed and posted on the materials. The material two-dimensional code and the bin code are bound through the PDA, and the AGV is called to transport them to the batching buffer area. The sorted inventory bins are returned to the bin library through the conveying lines; When the materials in the flat warehouse and the cleaning room are out of storage, according to the work order batching information, the materials that meet the AGV handling conditions are transferred to a fixed area by the reach truck. The AGV is connected to the batching buffer area. For large materials, they are transferred by the electric forklift and distributed in batches according to the production rhythm. The batch distribution mode is realized by the feeding call of the corresponding workstations on the production line.

10. The warehousing method of the automated stereoscopic warehouse storage system according to claim 3, characterized in that: The buffer in the batching area is used for material kit buffer and material sorting exception buffer. The process of the buffer in the batching area is as follows: The AGV automatically docks with the materials in the batching buffer area and conveys them to the corresponding production lines and workstations.

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