Container conveying device of first-in first-out repository

Abstract

The utility model provides a container conveying device of a first-in first-out storage warehouse, belongs to the technical field of material caching, and is used for solving the problem that an existing warehouse type first-in first-out system cannot guarantee absolute first-in first-out of all containers in each group of trays stored in the warehouse. The device comprises a full box conveyor, a full box temporary storage conveyor and a shifting mechanism, the full box conveyor conveys a container full of materials to the position below the first position of the shifting mechanism in the first direction in the horizontal plane. The shifting mechanism is used for transferring the single containers on the full box conveyor below the first position of the shifting mechanism to the full box temporary storage conveyor; the full box temporary storage conveyor conveys the containers on the full box temporary storage conveyor in the horizontal plane in the second direction; the manipulator translates all the containers on the full box cache conveyor to a storage library for storage; wherein the width direction of the conveyed container is in the first direction, and the second direction is parallel to the first direction and opposite to the first direction. According to the utility model, absolute first-in first-out of cached materials can be realized.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This utility model relates to the field of material buffering technology, and in particular to a container conveying device for a first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse. Background Technology

[0002] In the material production process, buffer devices are often added between upstream production machines and downstream packaging machines to coordinate the production speeds of both sides and ensure continuous operation of the production line. Commonly used material buffer devices typically operate on a last-in, first-out (LIFO) basis. For example, the method for conveying and storing rod-shaped materials provided in Chinese Patent CN 201810984683.7 is a LIFO buffering method. However, in some production fields, the LIFO buffering method is no longer sufficient to meet product quality requirements. For example, for time-sensitive materials such as cigarettes, a first-in, first-out (FIFO) buffering method (materials that enter the buffering device first are output first) is more necessary.

[0003] To meet the first-in, first-out (FIFO) storage requirements for materials, existing technologies have proposed a FIFO material storage method in the form of a storage warehouse. Figure 1 The diagram shows the structure of an existing first-in-first-out (FIFO) library-based storage system. Figure 1 The system mainly includes an input device 11, a robotic arm 12, a storage bin 13, and an output device 14, wherein the conveying directions of the input device 11 and the output device 14 are as follows: Figure 1 The solid arrows on each device indicate this. After the input device 11 outputs a tray 15 filled with materials, the left-hand robotic arm 12 stores multiple trays 15 as a group into the storage warehouse 13. When materials in the storage warehouse are needed, the right-hand robotic arm 12, following the first-in, first-out principle, retrieves the group of trays 15 that entered the warehouse first and transfers them to the output device 14 for output. For example... Figure 1 As shown, if the numbers ①②③④…… represent the sequential output pallet 15 numbers of the input device 11, assuming that 3 material pallets 15 are a group, then the group of pallets 15 with numbers ①②③ output by the input device 11 will first be transferred by the left-hand robotic arm 12 to a storage location on the shelf of the storage warehouse 13. Figure 1 (Represented by dashed boxes in the image), then the pallets 15 numbered ④⑤⑥ output by input device 11 are transferred by the left-hand robotic arm 12 to another storage location on the shelf of storage warehouse 13. Figure 1 (Represented by a dashed box in the middle) When materials are needed from the storage facility, following the first-in, first-out (FIFO) principle, the robotic arm 12 on the right first retrieves the group of pallets 15 numbered ①②③ and transfers them to the output device 14. Then, as shown... Figure 1 As shown, although the first pallets ①②③ that were first put into storage were output first, the materials in these pallets were not first-in-first-out (FIFO) but rather first-in-last-out (LIFO).

[0004] because Figure 1 Such systems are typically large in layout, while production workshop space is limited and production line equipment is closely connected. To save space, the robotic arms in this first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage system generally transfer pallets by translation, moving pallet groups into or out of the warehouse. That is, the order of pallets within each group is not changed during inbound / outbound operations. Figure 1 As shown, this results in the material pallets produced later being dispatched first in a set of pallets. To solve this problem, designing the robot arm to be able to reverse 180° to achieve absolute first-in-first-out for the materials in each set of pallets would increase the size of the robot arm and add a reversing step, which would reduce storage efficiency. It would also require pre-processing the orientation / sorting of the pallets to be stored, making the system design more complex. Utility Model Content

[0005] In view of this, the present invention provides a container conveying device for a first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse, which solves the problems that existing warehouse FIFO systems cannot guarantee that all containers in each group of pallets entering the warehouse are absolutely first-in-first-out, and that using a robotic arm with reversing function will result in a large system footprint and complex system structure.

[0006] This disclosure provides a container conveying device for a first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse, including: a full-box conveyor, a full-box buffer conveyor, a shifting mechanism, and a robotic arm; wherein, the shifting mechanism is disposed above the full-box conveyor and the full-box buffer conveyor, and the robotic arm is located between the full-box buffer conveyor and the storage warehouse;

[0007] The full-box conveyor is used to transport containers filled with materials in a horizontal plane along a first direction to a position below the shifting mechanism; wherein the width direction of the transported container is along the first direction;

[0008] The shifting mechanism is used to move a single container on a full-box conveyor located below its first position to the full-box buffer conveyor;

[0009] The full-box buffer conveyor is used to transport containers on it in a horizontal plane along a second direction, which is parallel to and opposite to the first direction.

[0010] The robotic arm is used to move all the containers on the full-box buffer conveyor to the storage warehouse without changing their arrangement order.

[0011] In some embodiments, the displacement mechanism includes: a horizontal moving electric cylinder, a vertical lifting cylinder, a mounting plate, and a gripping component;

[0012] The guiding direction of the horizontally moving electric cylinder is horizontal and perpendicular to the first direction;

[0013] The vertical lifting cylinder is mounted on the sliding table of the horizontal moving electric cylinder, and the push rod of the vertical lifting cylinder is set in the vertical direction;

[0014] The mounting plate is connected to the push rod, and gripping elements are symmetrically installed at both ends of the mounting plate;

[0015] The gripper is used to grip the outer wall of the container so that when the push rod of the vertical lifting cylinder rises, the gripped container is lifted by the mounting plate and the gripper.

[0016] In some embodiments, the container has horizontal grooves on its two outer side walls along its length; the gripping member is a lifting plate, which is a C-shaped groove with its opening facing downwards.

[0017] In some embodiments, the full-box buffer conveyor includes a second frame, a second conveyor belt assembly, and a limiting member; the second conveyor belt assembly is mounted on the second frame, and the length direction of the second conveyor belt of the second conveyor belt assembly is along a second direction; the limiting member is fixedly mounted at one end of the conveying direction of the second conveyor belt assembly.

[0018] In some embodiments, the full-box buffer conveyor is further configured to output all m containers on it as a group to the robotic arm in the horizontal plane along the first direction; where m is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

[0019] The container conveying device for the FIFO storage unit provided by this utility model only requires a space slightly wider than the container length to set up a full-box buffer conveyor parallel to the full-box conveyor. A shifting mechanism can transfer containers filled with materials, continuously conveyed at equal intervals from the full-box conveyor, to the full-box buffer conveyor, and then to the storage unit via a robotic arm. This allows for the rearrangement of container order without affecting the original conveying speed of the full-box conveyor. This not only enables FIFO for container groups but also for individual containers within each group, ensuring absolute FIFO for material storage, guaranteeing material timeliness, and enabling traceability of the material production line. Furthermore, the pre-ordering of containers to be stored simplifies the downstream material handling robotic arm structure, reduces the storage unit's footprint, and improves material buffering efficiency. Attached Figure Description

[0020] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this utility model or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this utility model. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0021] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of the structure of an existing first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage system;

[0022] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of the structure of a container conveying device for a first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse provided for an embodiment of this utility model;

[0023] Figure 3 A schematic diagram of the shifting mechanism provided in this embodiment of the utility model;

[0024] Figure 4 A flowchart of a container transport method for a first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse is provided for an embodiment of this utility model;

[0025] Figure label:

[0026] 1. Full box conveyor; 2. Full box buffer conveyor; 3. Shifting mechanism; 4. Container; 11. Input device; 12. Robot arm; 13. Storage unit; 14. Output device; 15. Pallet; 21. Second frame; 22. Second conveyor belt assembly; 23. Limiting element; 31. Horizontal moving electric cylinder; 32. Vertical lifting cylinder; 33. Mounting plate; 34. Lifting plate; 311. Moving slide; 321. Push rod; 41. Horizontal groove; 401. Second schematic container; 402. First schematic container. Detailed Implementation

[0027] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this utility model clearer, the present utility model will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the present utility model and are not intended to limit the present utility model.

[0028] For ease of explanation, the following will be Figure 2 The direction horizontally to the left along the length of container 4 is defined as the left direction. Figure 2 The direction horizontally to the right along the length of container 4 is defined as the rightward direction. Figure 1 The direction perpendicular to the width of container 4 and outward ( Figure 2 The direction indicated by the middle arrow M is defined as forward. Figure 1 The direction perpendicular to the width of container 4 and outward ( Figure 2 The direction indicated by the middle arrow R is defined as backward.

[0029] Figure 2 A schematic diagram of a container conveying device for a first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse is provided for an embodiment of this utility model, as shown below. Figure 2As shown, the device includes: a full box conveyor 1, a full box buffer conveyor 2, a shifting mechanism 3, and a robot arm; wherein, the full box conveyor 1 and the full box buffer conveyor 2 are arranged side by side, the shifting mechanism 3 is arranged above the full box conveyor 1 and the full box buffer conveyor 2, and the robot arm (not shown in the figure) is located between the full box buffer conveyor (2) and the storage unit (not shown in the figure);

[0030] Full box conveyor 1 is used to move along a first direction in the horizontal plane ( Figure 2 (In the direction indicated by the middle arrow R) the container 4 filled with material is conveyed to a position below the first position of the shifting mechanism 3; wherein the width direction of the conveyed container 4 is along the first direction;

[0031] Each time, the shifting mechanism 3 moves a single container 4 from the full box conveyor 1 located below its first position to the full box buffer conveyor 2;

[0032] Full-box buffer conveyor 2 is used to move along the second direction in the horizontal plane ( Figure 2 The container 4 is conveyed in the direction indicated by the middle arrow M. The second direction is parallel to the first direction but opposite in direction.

[0033] The robotic arm is used to move all the containers 4 on the full-box buffer conveyor 2 to the storage warehouse in one go without changing their arrangement order.

[0034] Preferably, such as Figure 2 As shown, the full-box buffer conveyor 2 includes a second frame 21, a second conveyor belt assembly 22, and a limiting member 23; the second conveyor belt assembly 22 is mounted on the frame 21, and the length direction of the second conveyor belt of the second conveyor belt assembly 22 is along the second direction; the limiting member 23 is fixedly installed in the conveying direction of the second conveyor belt assembly 22. Figure 2 The end of the direction indicated by the middle arrow M, i.e. Figure 2 At the rear end of the middle. When the full-box buffer conveyor 2 conveys the container 4 along the second direction, the container 4 will eventually be blocked by the limiting member 23 at the end of the second direction M, realizing the buffering function of the full-box buffer conveyor 2 for the container 4.

[0035] Preferably, when the number of containers 4 cached on it reaches a preset number m, the full-box buffer conveyor 2 is also used to output all m containers 4 on it as a group to the robot arm in the first direction in the horizontal plane. The robot arm takes out these m containers 4 as a group at the same time and transfers them to the first-in-first-out storage unit for storage in groups; where m is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

[0036] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the displacement mechanism provided in an embodiment of the present invention, as shown below. Figure 3As shown, the shifting mechanism 3 includes: a horizontal moving electric cylinder 31, a vertical lifting cylinder 32, a mounting plate 33, and a gripping component, wherein:

[0037] The guide direction of the horizontally moving electric cylinder 31 is horizontal and perpendicular to the first direction, combined with Figure 2 The guiding direction of the horizontally moving electric cylinder 31 is the left and right direction;

[0038] The vertical lifting cylinder 32 is mounted on the sliding slide 311 of the horizontal moving electric cylinder 31, and the push rod 321 of the vertical lifting cylinder 32 is set in the vertical direction.

[0039] Mounting plate 33 is connected to push rod 321, and gripping elements are symmetrically installed at both ends of mounting plate 33; obviously, Figure 2 The horizontal moving electric cylinder 31 can drive the vertical lifting cylinder 32 to move left and right through the moving slide 311. The vertical lifting cylinder 32 can lower or raise the mounting plate 33 by extending or retracting the push rod 321.

[0040] The gripper is used to grip the outer wall of the container 4 so that when the push rod 321 of the vertical lifting cylinder 32 rises, the gripped container 4 is lifted by the mounting plate 33 and the gripper. For example, the gripper can be a mechanical gripper with opening and closing functions, or it can be a vacuum suction cup capable of adsorbing the side wall of the container 4.

[0041] Preferably, such as Figure 2 and Figure 3 As shown, the container 4 has horizontal grooves 41 on its two outer side walls along its length; the gripper is a lifting plate 34, which is a C-shaped groove with its opening facing downwards. The inner width of the C-shaped groove is greater than the width of the container 4, and the thickness of the bottom short side of the C-shaped groove extending inwards is less than the height of the horizontal groove 41, so that the bottom short side of the C-shaped groove can pass through the horizontal groove 41 without interference.

[0042] The container conveying device for the FIFO (First-In, First-Out) storage warehouse provided by this utility model includes a full-box buffer conveyor parallel to the full-box conveyor but in the opposite direction. A shifting mechanism transfers containers filled with material, continuously conveyed at equal intervals from the full-box conveyor, to the full-box buffer conveyor. A robotic arm then transfers these containers to the storage warehouse. This allows for the reordering of containers grouped together without affecting the original conveying speed of the full-box conveyor, achieving absolute FIFO for material storage (not only the container group but also individual containers within each group). This ensures the timeliness of materials and traceability of the material production line. Furthermore, the pre-ordering of containers to be stored simplifies the downstream material handling robotic arm structure, reduces the storage warehouse system's footprint, and improves material buffering efficiency.

[0043] Corresponding to the container conveying device for the first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse provided in this embodiment of the present invention, this embodiment of the present invention also provides a container conveying method for the FIFO storage warehouse, such as... Figure 4 As shown, the method includes the following steps S1 to S4:

[0044] Step S1: The full-box conveyor 1 conveys the nth container 4 filled with material along the first direction in the horizontal plane to below the first position of the shifting mechanism 3, and then the shifting mechanism 3 moves from the preset second position to the first position;

[0045] Where n is a positive integer, and the initial value of n is 1.

[0046] In this embodiment, Figure 2 For example, the full-box conveyor 1 transports containers 4 filled with material from upstream at equal intervals along the direction indicated by arrow R. Assuming the full-box conveyor 1 is currently moving the first container 4 filled with material to the first position of the first schematic container 402 below the shifting mechanism 3, the shifting mechanism 3 moves from a pre-set second position to the first position. The second position can be... Figure 2 The position of the second schematic container 401 below the shifting mechanism 3 shown in the diagram.

[0047] Step S2: The shifting mechanism 3 moves the nth container 4 on the full box conveyor 1 located below the first position to the full box buffer conveyor 2. At the same time, the full box conveyor 1 conveys the n+1th container 4 filled with material in the first direction in the horizontal plane.

[0048] In some embodiments, when the container delivery method for the first-in-first-out (FIFO) storage repository provided by this utility model is used... Figure 2 and Figure 3 When using the device shown, step S2 above may include:

[0049] Step S21: The vertical lifting cylinder 32 retracts the push rod 321 upwards, and the bottom short side of the C-shaped groove of the lifting plate 34 hooks and lifts the nth container 4, which is currently below the first position, so that the bottom surface of the nth container 4 is separated from the first conveyor belt of the full box conveyor 1.

[0050] Step S22: The moving slide 311 of the horizontal moving electric cylinder 31 moves horizontally a preset distance toward the full box buffer conveyor 2 so that the nth container 4 reaches directly above the full box buffer conveyor 2;

[0051] Preferably, after the moving slide 311 of the horizontal moving electric cylinder 31 moves horizontally a preset distance towards the full-box buffer conveyor 2, the nth container 4 arrives. Figure 2 Directly above the second schematic container 401 below the shifting mechanism 3 shown.

[0052] Step S23: The vertical lifting cylinder 32 extends the push rod 321 downward to place the nth container 4 on the second conveyor belt of the full-box buffer conveyor 2;

[0053] Step S3: When the full-box conveyor 1 transports the (n+1)th container 4 to below the first position, the shifting mechanism 3 returns to the first position;

[0054] The shifting mechanism 3 returns to the first position, specifically by: the moving slide 311 of the horizontal moving electric cylinder 31 moving horizontally towards the full-box conveyor 1, causing the bottom short side of the C-shaped groove of the lifting plate 34 connected to the mounting plate 33 to pass through the horizontal grooves 41 on both sides of the container 4 until it moves to the first position. For example, in Figure 2 Based on this, in step S3, the moving slide 311 of the horizontally moving electric cylinder 31 moves horizontally to the right, passing through in sequence. Figure 2 The second schematic container 401 and the first schematic container 402 are placed in the horizontal grooves 41. The process ends when the bottoms of the C-shaped grooves on the left and right sides of the lifting plate 34 are respectively located in the horizontal grooves 41 of the first schematic container 402, and then the lifting plate 34 is confirmed to return to the first position.

[0055] Step S4: The full-box buffer conveyor 2 conveys the nth container 4 in the second direction in the horizontal plane, then sets n=n+1 and returns to execute step S2;

[0056] The second direction is parallel to the first direction but opposite in direction.

[0057] Preferably, in step S4, the full-box buffer conveyor 2 transports the nth container 4 along the second direction in the horizontal plane by at least the width value of the container 4, thereby reserving a position below the shifting mechanism 3 for the next (n+1) container 4 to be transferred from the full-box conveyor 1 by the shifting mechanism 3.

[0058] Furthermore, after step S4, the method provided by this utility model embodiment also includes step S5: when the number of containers 4 cached on the full-box buffer conveyor 2 reaches a preset number m, the robot moves all the containers 4 on the full-box buffer conveyor 2 to the storage warehouse without changing their arrangement order; where m is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

[0059] Optionally, during the process of the shifting mechanism 3 transferring the first container 4 in the right-side full-box conveyor 1 to the left of the full-box buffer conveyor 2, the full-box conveyor 1 continues to transport the next container 4 to the first position. During the process of the shifting mechanism 3 lifting the next container 4 from the first position and transferring the container 4 to the left, the full-box buffer conveyor 2 can transport the previous container 4 in the second direction, thereby improving the efficiency of container reordering and conveying.

[0060] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this utility model, but the protection scope of this utility model is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the technical scope disclosed in this utility model should be included within the protection scope of this utility model. Therefore, the protection scope of this utility model should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

1. A container conveying device for a first-in, first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse, characterized in that, include: A full box conveyor (1), a full box buffer conveyor (2), a shifting mechanism (3), and a robot arm; wherein the shifting mechanism (3) is disposed above the full box conveyor (1) and the full box buffer conveyor (2), and the robot arm is located between the full box buffer conveyor (2) and the storage warehouse; The full-box conveyor (1) is used to convey a container (4) filled with material in a first direction in a horizontal plane to a first position below the shifting mechanism (3); wherein the width direction of the conveyed container (4) is along the first direction; The shifting mechanism (3) is used to move a single container (4) on the full box conveyor (1) located below its first position to the full box buffer conveyor (2); The full-box buffer conveyor (2) is used to convey the container (4) thereon in a second direction in a horizontal plane, the second direction being parallel to and opposite to the first direction; The robotic arm is used to move all the containers (4) on the full-box buffer conveyor (2) to the storage warehouse without changing their arrangement order.

2. The container conveying device for a first-in, first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse according to claim 1, characterized in that, The displacement mechanism (3) includes: a horizontal moving electric cylinder (31), a vertical lifting cylinder (32), a mounting plate (33), and a gripping component; The guiding direction of the horizontally moving electric cylinder (31) is horizontal and perpendicular to the first direction; The vertical lifting cylinder (32) is mounted on the sliding slide (311) of the horizontal moving electric cylinder (31), and the push rod (321) of the vertical lifting cylinder (32) is arranged in the vertical direction; The mounting plate (33) is connected to the push rod (321), and gripping parts are symmetrically installed at both ends of the mounting plate (33); The gripper is used to grip the outer wall of the container (4) so ​​that when the push rod (321) of the vertical lifting cylinder (32) rises, the gripped container (4) is lifted by the mounting plate (33) and the gripper.

3. The container conveying device for a first-in, first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse according to claim 2, characterized in that, The container (4) has horizontal grooves (41) on its two outer side walls along its length; the gripper is a lifting plate (34), which is a C-shaped groove with its opening facing downwards.

4. The container conveying device for a first-in, first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse according to claim 1, characterized in that, The full-box buffer conveyor (2) includes a second frame (21), a second conveyor belt assembly (22), and a limiting member (23); the second conveyor belt assembly (22) is installed on the second frame (21), and the length direction of the second conveyor belt of the second conveyor belt assembly (22) is along the second direction; the limiting member (23) is fixedly installed at the end of the conveying direction of the second conveyor belt assembly (22).

5. The container conveying device for a first-in, first-out (FIFO) storage warehouse according to claim 1, characterized in that, The full-box buffer conveyor (2) is also used to output all m containers (4) on it to the robot arm in a group along the first direction in the horizontal plane; where m is a positive integer greater than or equal to 2.

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