Robot

Abstract

To provide a robot that enables labor saving and manpower saving of work by using a storage box storing an article.SOLUTION: A robot for conveying a storage box capable of storing an article, includes an arm part that takes out the storage box from a first shelf by a hand part, and after conveyance, arranges the storage box in a second shelf along with advance and retreat movement with respect to the second shelf. When the arm part advances to the first shelf, the hand part is in a folded state. When the hand part is arranged so as to face a side part by advancing of the arm part to the first shelf, the hand part makes a transition to a deployed state and holds the side part.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 8A

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a robot that transports an object. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art In warehouses and the like, a transport robot is known that picks up a target item from a shelf on which the item is stored in order to improve efficiency (for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2017-141102 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the distribution industry, labor-saving measures have been implemented through the use of SA (Store Automation) systems and SCM (Supply Chain Management), but in retail stores and other locations, tasks such as stocking products continue to require human labor. Stocking products is physically demanding, and the recent decline in the birthrate and aging population has led to labor shortages and rising labor costs. For this reason, there is a demand for labor-saving and manpower-saving work using robots that transport storage boxes that hold items.

[0005] An object of the present invention is to provide a robot that can reduce the labor and manpower required for work by using a storage box for storing items. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The robot according to the present invention comprises: A robot that transports a storage box capable of storing an item, a hand unit capable of holding a side portion of the storage box, the hand unit removing the storage box from the first shelf as the storage box moves toward and away from a first shelf, and an arm unit placing the storage box on the second shelf after the storage box is transported as the storage box moves toward and away from a second shelf; When the arm portion advances toward the first shelf, the hand portion is in a folded state, and when the arm portion advances toward the first shelf and the hand portion is positioned opposite the side portion, the hand portion transitions to an unfolded state and holds the side portion. Effect of the Invention

[0007] According to the present invention, it is possible to reduce the labor and manpower required for operations by using a storage box for storing items. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view of the appearance of a robot according to an embodiment of the present invention, showing a state in which a door is closed. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the appearance of the robot shown in FIG. 1 with a door open. [Diagram 3] 2 is a perspective view of the robot body with the housing removed from the robot shown in FIG. 1. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the robot body shown in FIG. 3, illustrating a state during transportation. [Diagram 5] FIG. 4 is a side view of the robot body shown in FIG. 3, illustrating picking up a tray from a shelf or displaying the tray on a shelf. [Figure 6A] FIG. 13 is a side view of the hand unit, showing a state in which the link mechanism is folded. [Figure 6B] FIG. 13 is a top view of the hand unit, showing a state in which the link mechanism is folded. [Figure 7A] FIG. 4 is a side view of the hand unit, showing a state in which the link mechanism is deployed. [Figure 7B] FIG. 4 is a top view of the hand unit, showing a state in which the link mechanism is deployed. [Figure 8A] 13 is a side view of the hand unit, showing a state in which the tray is held by the link mechanism. FIG. [Figure 8B] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing the hand unit as viewed from the tip end side, illustrating a state in which a tray is held by a link mechanism. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0009] Hereinafter, an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

[0010] [robot] Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the exterior of a robot 1 according to this embodiment, showing a state in which a door is closed, and Fig. 2 is a perspective view of the exterior of the robot 1, showing a state in which the door is open.

[0011] The robot 1 has a robot body 10 and a housing 20, which are shown in Figs.

[0012] The housing 20 is provided to surround and protect a tray 100 (see FIG. 4 etc.) described below that is housed in the housing 20, specifically, to protect items housed in the tray 100. The housing 20 has a door 21 (the opening / closing part in the present invention), an opening / closing port 22, and openings 23-25.

[0013] The door 21 is, for example, a three-stage sliding door. As shown in FIG. 1, the door 21 closes the opening 22 when the tray 100 is accommodated in the housing 20 and transported.

[0014] 2, the door 21 opens the opening 22 when the tray 100 is carried into the housing 20 and when the tray 100 is carried out from the housing 20. At this time, the door 21 is housed in the housing 20 as shown in FIG. 2 so as not to be an obstacle to the hand unit 40 described later or surrounding objects and people.

[0015] The door 21 for opening and closing the opening / closing gate 22 is not limited to a sliding door, but may be another door, such as a folding door (accordion door).

[0016] The openings 23 to 25 are provided so that a sensor, described later, can detect the surroundings of the robot 1. A laser sensor 64 for automatic travel is disposed inside the opening 23, and detects the self-position of the robot 1, surrounding objects, distance, etc., through the opening 23. In this case, the opening 23 is provided on the main traveling direction side of the robot 1, and the laser sensor 64 is disposed inside, but the opening 23 may be provided on the side opposite to the main traveling direction, and the laser sensor 64 may be disposed inside.

[0017] Further, a laser sensor 65 for safety confirmation is disposed inside the openings 24, 25, and detects objects and people around the robot 1 through the openings 24, 25. Since the laser sensor 65 is used to confirm the safety around the robot 1, it is desirable to detect a 360° range around the robot 1, and it is desirable to use a plurality of laser sensors 65. Here, as an example, two laser sensors 65 are used, and they are disposed at diagonal positions on the robot body 10, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4 described later.

[0018] [Robot body] Fig. 3 is a perspective view of the robot body 10 with the housing 20 removed from the robot 1 shown in Fig. 1. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the robot body 10, showing a state during transportation. Fig. 5 is a side view of the robot body 10, showing the picking up of trays from the shelf S or the displaying of trays on the shelf. In Figs. 3 to 5, the housing 20 is removed in order to explain the operation of the robot body 10.

[0019] The robot body 10 has a robot arm unit 30, a transport cart unit 60, and a storage shelf unit 70. The robot arm unit 30 will be described later together with the hand unit 40.

[0020] The transport cart unit 60 is a cart that supports the robot arm unit 30 and the storage shelf unit 70, and has a control unit 61, two drive wheels 62, and four casters 63. The transport cart unit 60 also has laser sensors 64 and 65.

[0021] The two drive wheels 62 are controlled by a control unit 61 and a battery (not shown) to move the robot 1 forward, backward, and rotate. The four casters 63 are driven wheels whose direction can be freely changed depending on the direction of travel of the drive wheels 62.

[0022] As an example, the control unit 61 controls the forward movement, backward movement and rotation of the robot 1 by an autonomous movement method. The control unit 61 performs mapping using a laser sensor 64, and detects the self-position of the robot 1, surrounding objects, distance, etc., and controls the forward movement, backward movement and rotation of the robot 1 to move to a target position. At this time, the control unit 61 also uses a laser sensor 65 to confirm the safety of the surroundings of the robot 1, and moves to the target position.

[0023] Here, four casters 63 are arranged at the four corners of the transport cart section 60, and two drive wheels 62 are arranged in the center, but the number and arrangement of the drive wheels 62 and casters 63 can be changed as appropriate.

[0024] Further, here, the control unit 61 controls the forward movement, backward movement and rotation of the robot 1 by an autonomous movement method, but other methods, for example, a guided path method, etc. may be used.

[0025] Further, here, the control unit 61 uses the laser sensors 64, 65, but other sensors, for example, a camera, may be used instead of the laser sensors 64, 65. In this case, the control unit 61 detects the self-position of the robot 1, surrounding objects, distance, etc., by analyzing, for example, an image from the camera, and controls the forward movement, backward movement, and rotation of the robot 1.

[0026] The storage shelf section 70 is a shelf that stores the trays 100 within the housing 20. As an example, the storage shelf section 70 is a shelf with four shelves in a row partitioned by a frame and plate materials, and each space stores one tray 100. As shown in Fig. 4, the robot 1 can be transported with the tray 100 held by the robot arm section 30, so in the example shown in Fig. 4, a maximum of five trays can be transported.

[0027] Here, the storage shelf section 70 has one row and four levels of shelves, but this can be changed appropriately depending on the size of the tray 100, and may be, for example, two rows and four levels of shelves.

[0028] [Robot arm] The robot arm unit 30 is a five-axis (X1-axis, X2-axis, Y-axis, Z-axis, and θ-axis) robot arm. Although illustrations or reference numerals of the X1-axis, Y-axis, and θ-axis drive units are omitted except for the X2-axis drive unit 32 and the Z-axis drive unit 33, the robot arm unit 30 has the X1-axis drive unit, the X2-axis drive unit 32, the Y-axis drive unit, the Z-axis drive unit 33, and a θ-axis drive unit. Note that hereinafter, the X1-axis drive unit, the X2-axis drive unit 32, the Y-axis drive unit, and the θ-axis drive unit excluding the Z-axis drive unit 33 may be referred to as the arm unit main body 31.

[0029] In the robot arm unit 30, the X1-axis drive unit moves the X2-axis drive unit 32, the Y-axis drive unit, and the θ-axis drive unit in the X-axis direction. The X2-axis drive unit 32 moves the hand unit 40 shown in Figs. 6A to 8B described later in the X-axis direction. The Y-axis drive unit moves the X2-axis drive unit 32 and the θ-axis drive unit in the Y-axis direction. The Z-axis drive unit 33 moves the arm unit main body 31 in the Z-axis direction. The Z-axis drive unit 33 has a balance weight 34, and even if the article to be stored in the tray 100 is heavy, the balance weight 34 can suppress the load during driving. The θ-axis drive unit moves (rotates) the X2-axis drive unit 32 in the θ-axis direction (a rotation direction with the Z-axis as the rotation axis).

[0030] The robot arm unit 30 is operated by the X1-axis drive unit, X2-axis drive unit 32, Y-axis drive unit, Z-axis drive unit 33, and θ-axis drive unit described above. Specifically, the robot arm unit 30 moves toward and away from a shelf (first shelf in the present invention), and accordingly removes the tray 100 from the shelf. Thereafter, the robot arm unit 30 carries the tray 100 into the housing 20, and moves toward and away from the storage shelf unit 70, and accordingly stores the tray 100 in the storage shelf unit 70.

[0031] Then, after the robot 1 moves to the target position (after transport by the robot 1), the robot arm unit 30 moves toward or away from the storage shelf unit 70, and accordingly removes the tray 100 from the storage shelf unit 70. Thereafter, the robot arm unit 30 moves toward or away from the target shelf (the second shelf in the present invention), and accordingly places the tray 100 on the target shelf.

[0032] [Hand part] The robot arm unit 30 has a hand unit 40 shown in FIGS. 6A to 8B described later as its end effector, and holds a side surface 101 (side portion) of the tray 100 using the hand unit 40.

[0033] Here, Fig. 6A is a side view of the hand unit 40, showing a state in which the link mechanism 50 is folded. Fig. 6B is a top view of the hand unit 40, showing a state in which the link mechanism 50 is folded. Fig. 7A is a side view of the hand unit 40, showing a state in which the link mechanism 50 is unfolded. Fig. 7B is a top view of the hand unit 40, showing a state in which the link mechanism 50 is unfolded. Fig. 8A is a side view of the hand unit 40, showing a state in which the link mechanism 50 holds the tray 100. Fig. 8B is a view of the hand unit 40 as seen from the tip side, showing a state in which the link mechanism 50 holds the tray 100.

[0034] In the following description, the direction in which the hand unit 40 advances relative to the shelf is illustrated as direction F, and the direction in which the hand unit 40 retreats is illustrated as direction R. Also, the front side of the tray 100 is the left side in Fig. 8A, and the rear side of the tray 100 is the right side in Fig. 8A.

[0035] The hand unit 40 has a fixed portion 41 , a sliding portion 42 , a guide portion 43 , a connecting portion 44 , a driving portion 45 , and a link mechanism 50 .

[0036] The fixed part 41 is connected to the robot arm part 30 (X2-axis drive part 32) via a connection part 44, and its position relative to the robot arm part 30 (X2-axis drive part 32) is fixed. The fixed part 41 is inserted from the front side of the tray 100 to the outside of the side surface 101 of the tray 100. Therefore, as shown in Figs. 6B and 7B, the fixed part 41 has a base part 411 and branch parts 412, 413 extending from the base part 411 toward the tip side (direction F), and is formed into a U-shaped branched shape.

[0037] The sliding portion 42 is configured to be slidable on the fixed portion 41. Specifically, the base portion 421 of the sliding portion 42 is connected to the tip of the sliding shaft 451 of the driving portion 45 via the connecting member 424. When the driving portion 45 operates and the sliding shaft 451 moves in the direction F, the sliding portion 42 also moves in the direction F via the connecting member 424. On the other hand, when the driving portion 45 operates and the sliding shaft 451 moves in the direction R, the sliding portion 42 also moves in the direction R via the connecting member 424. With such movement of the sliding portion 42, the link mechanism 50 is folded or unfolded upward.

[0038] The slide portion 42 is also inserted from the front side of the tray 100 to the outside of the side surface 101 of the tray 100. Therefore, as shown in Fig. 6B and Fig. 7B, the slide portion 42 has a base portion 421 and branch portions 422 and 423 extending from the base portion 421 toward the tip end (direction F), and is formed into a U-shaped branch.

[0039] The guide portion 43 is a guide that guides the sliding portion 42 along the fixed portion 41. Specifically, the guide portion 43 is attached to the outer surfaces of the branching portions 412, 413, and the sliding portion 42 (branching portions 422, 423) is disposed inside the guide portion 43. In this way, the guide portion 43 guides the sliding portion 42 (branching portions 422, 423) along the fixed portion 41 (branching portions 412, 413).

[0040] The connection part 44 is a member that connects the fixed part 41 to the robot arm part 30 (X2 axis drive part 32). The connection part 44 also serves as a spacer to prevent the hand part 40 from interfering with the operation of the robot arm part 30.

[0041] The driving unit 45 has a sliding shaft 451, and by actuation thereof, as described above, the sliding shaft 451 moves. Here, the driving unit 45 is, for example, an air cylinder, and a tube (not shown) or the like is connected to a port 452, and compressed air is supplied to move the sliding shaft 451.

[0042] Here, the drive unit 45 is an air cylinder, but other actuators, such as a hydraulic cylinder or a linear motor, may also be used.

[0043] The link mechanism 50 is disposed in the hand unit 40 at positions corresponding to the side surfaces 101 on both sides of the tray 100. The link mechanism 50 is configured as follows, so as to move away from the side surfaces 101 (ribs 102) when folded downward and to abut against the side surfaces 101 (ribs 102) when unfolded upward.

[0044] In the link mechanism 50, the branch portions 412, 413 of the fixed portion 41 correspond to fixed links. The link mechanism 50 further includes a pair of rotating links 51 rotatably supported by the branch portions 412, 413, respectively, and an intermediate link 52 connecting the pair of rotating links 51 to each other. In each link mechanism 50, one end of the pair of rotating links 51 is supported by a rotating shaft 511 so as to be rotatable with respect to the branch portions 412, 413. The other end of the pair of rotating links 51 is also supported by the rotating shaft 512 so as to be rotatable with respect to the intermediate link 52.

[0045] Further, in the pair of rotating links 51, the portion between the rotating shaft 511 and the rotating shaft 512 is supported by the rotating shaft 513 so as to be rotatable with respect to the branched portions 422, 423 of the sliding portion 42. Therefore, the pair of rotating links 51 rotate with respect to the branched portions 412, 413 in conjunction with the movement of the branched portions 422, 423, whereby the intermediate link 52 moves from the initial position (folded state position) to an upper position (unfolded position) or returns from the unfolded position to the initial position.

[0046] The intermediate link 52 may simply hold the tray 100, or may hold the tray 100 stably. Here, as an example, the tray 100 has a rib 102 on its side surface 101, and therefore a groove 521 corresponding to the rib 102 is provided in the intermediate link 52. Therefore, when holding the tray 100, the rib 102 is inserted into the groove 521, and the tray 100 can be held stably.

[0047] In addition, the link mechanism 50 is configured so that, when deployed, the pair of pivot links 51 tilt toward the direction F, and the hand portion 40 has support portions 46 that respectively support the pair of pivot links 51 when the pair of pivot links 51 are tilted toward the direction F.

[0048] In this way, when unfolded, the pair of pivot links 51 are inclined toward the direction F, so that the link mechanism 50 is unlikely to return to the folded state (is unlikely to tip over) and can stably hold the tray 100. In particular, when articles are stored in the tray 100 and a load is applied to the link mechanism 50, the tray 100 is even less likely to tip over.

[0049] Furthermore, since the pair of pivot links 51 are supported by the support parts 46 in a state in which the pair of pivot links 51 are tilted toward the direction F when unfolded, it is possible to prevent an excessive load from being applied to the pivot shaft 513, which serves as the point of force. If the pivot links 51 are arranged in a vertical direction when unfolded, a load from the tray 100 side may be applied to the pivot shaft 513, etc., resulting in an excessive load. However, as described above, since the pivot links 51 are supported by the support parts 46 in a tilted state, the load is distributed by the support parts 46, making it possible to prevent an excessive load from being applied to the pivot shaft 513.

[0050] As described above, when the robot arm unit 30 advances toward the shelf (moves in the direction F), the link mechanism 50 of the hand unit 40 is in a folded state. Then, when the robot arm unit 30 advances toward the shelf and the hand unit 49 is disposed opposite the side surface 101 of the tray 100, the link mechanism 50 of the hand unit 40 transitions to an unfolded state, so as to hold the rib 102 of the side surface 101.

[0051] The hand unit 40 having such a link mechanism 50 is particularly suitable for a tray 100 having an opening 103 including at least a part of the front and upper surfaces of the tray 100 and having an uneven height of the flange 104 (peripheral edge portion), as shown in Fig. 8A etc. Such an opening 103 makes it easy for a purchaser to take out an article when the article stored in the tray 100 is displayed on a display shelf in a retail store.

[0052] For example, if a simple U-shaped hand unit is used to hold the tray 100, the height of the flange 104 is not uniform, so the tray 100 may tilt when the hand unit is raised. In this case, the articles stored in the tray 100 may fall over, and in some cases, the articles may fall out of the tray 100.

[0053] In contrast, in this embodiment, when inserting the hand unit 40 into the tray 100, the hand unit 40 is inserted in a folded state, and when the hand unit 40 is disposed facing the side surface 101 of the tray 100, the link mechanism 50 on the tip side of the hand unit 40 is deployed to hold the tray 100. Therefore, even if the height of the flange 104 is uneven, the link mechanism 50 holds the rib 102 that can hold the tray 100 without tilting it, so that the tray 100 can be held stably. As a result, the articles stored in the tray 100 will not fall over, and the articles will not fall out of the tray 100.

[0054] 8A, the tray 100 has an opening 103 in which the height of the flange 104 is not uniform from the front side to the upper side. Therefore, the area in the front side of the tray 100 into which the hand unit 40 can be inserted is not large. However, in this embodiment, the hand unit 40 is inserted into a position below the lowest part of the flange 104 with the link mechanism 50 folded, so that the hand unit 40 can be inserted even into the tray 100 having the opening 103 as shown in FIG. 8A. In other words, the hand unit 40 can be inserted outside the side surface 101 of the tray 100 without interfering with the flange 104.

[0055] 8B, the tray 100 has a shape in which the side surfaces 101 narrow toward the bottom surface 105. When the trays 100 are placed adjacent to each other, the gap between the trays 100 is wider on the bottom surface 105 side than on the upper side. The hand unit 40 can be inserted into the outside of the side surface 101 on the bottom surface 105 side where the gap is wider, because the link mechanism 50 extends upward to hold the side surface 101 side of the tray 100, and the hand unit 40 can hold the tray 100 even when the trays 100 are placed close to each other.

[0056] [Example of how the robot is used] A description will be given of an example of how the robot 1 is used. Here, a case will be described in which empty trays 100 (container boxes in the present invention) are collected from display shelves (second shelves in the present invention) in a store (sales floor) and the trays 100 are displayed on the display shelves from shelves in the back yard (first shelves in the present invention).

[0057] A retail store clerk uses a terminal to instruct the collection of the empty trays 100 from the display shelves. For example, the clerk reads the barcode of the product attached to the empty tray 100 with the terminal, or specifies the location of the empty tray 100 on a map on the terminal. At this time, the date and time of collection may be set.

[0058] The robot 1 checks the location of the empty tray 100 based on instructions from the terminal, and when a collection date and time is set, collects the empty tray 100 at the set collection date and time. At this time, the robot 1 moves to the location of the display shelf S on which the empty tray 100 is located, holds the empty tray 100 using the hand unit 40, and carries it into the housing 20 using the robot arm unit 30, thereby collecting the empty tray 100 (see FIG. 5, etc.).

[0059] When the storage of the products on the tray 100 is completed, a retail store clerk uses a terminal to instruct the tray 100 to be displayed on a display shelf. For example, the barcode of the product attached to the tray 100 may be read by the terminal, or the display position of the tray 100 may be specified on a map on the terminal. At this time, the date and time of display may be set.

[0060] Based on instructions from the terminal, the robot 1 confirms the position of the tray 100 containing the product on the shelf in the back yard, and also confirms the position on the display shelf where the tray 100 containing the product is to be displayed.

[0061] Based on instructions from the terminal, the robot 1 moves to a shelf in the back yard where the tray 100 containing the products is located, holds the tray 100 containing the products using the hand unit 40, and carries it into the housing 20 using the robot arm unit 30. At this time, the tray 100 containing the products may be stored in the storage shelf unit 70, or may remain in a state of being held by the hand unit 40.

[0062] Then, the robot 1 moves to a display shelf where the trays 100 containing the products are displayed, holds the trays 100 containing the products using the hand unit 40, and uses the robot arm unit 30 to carry them out of the housing 20 and display them on the display shelf.

[0063] In this manner, the robot 1 can reduce the labor and manpower required for stocking items by using storage boxes that store items.

[0064] The above-mentioned embodiments and modifications are merely examples of the embodiment of the present invention, and the technical scope of the present invention should not be interpreted as being limited by them. In other words, the present invention can be embodied in various forms without departing from the gist or main characteristics of the present invention.

[0065] For example, in the above embodiment, the link mechanism 50 is exemplified as a mechanism for holding the tray 100, but other configurations may be used as long as the hand portion 40 has a foldable member that unfolds when holding the tray 100 and can hold the side 101 of the tray 100.

[0066] In addition, in the above embodiment, the link mechanism 50 holds the tray 100 using a rib 102 protruding from the side 101 of the tray 100, but a configuration other than the rib 102 may be used as long as it protrudes from the side 101 of the tray 100. [Industrial Applicability]

[0067] The robot according to the present invention is a robot that transports articles, and is particularly useful as a robot that carries out the task of stocking articles in stores. [Explanation of symbols]

[0068] 1. Robot 10 Robot body 20. Cabinet 21 Door 22 Opening and Closing 23, 24, 25 Openings 30 Robot arm section 31 Arm body 32 X2 axis drive unit 33 Z-axis drive unit 34 Balance weight 40 Hand section 41 Fixed part 411 Base 412, 413 Branch 42 Slide section 421 Base 422, 423 Branch 424 Connection parts 43 Guide section 44 Connection 45 Drive unit 451 Sliding shaft 452 Port 46 Support part 50 Link mechanism 51 Rotating link 511, 512, 513 Rotating shaft 52 Intermediate Links 521 Groove 60 Transport Trolley Section 61 Control Unit 62 Drive Wheel 63 Caster 64, 65 Laser sensor 70 Storage Shelf 100 Trays 101 Side 102 Ribs 103 Opening 104 Flange 105 Bottom

Claims

1. A robot that transports a storage box capable of storing an item, an arm section having a hand section capable of holding a side section of the storage box, the arm section removing the storage box from the first shelf by the hand section as the storage box moves toward and away from a first shelf, and, after transportation, placing the storage box on the second shelf as the storage box moves toward and away from a second shelf; When the arm unit advances to the first shelf, the hand unit is in a folded state, and when the hand unit is disposed opposite the side portion as a result of the arm unit advancing to the first shelf, the hand unit transitions to an unfolded state and holds the side portion. robot.

2. The hand unit has a link mechanism, When the arm unit advances to the first shelf, the link mechanism is folded, and when the hand unit is disposed opposite the side portion due to the advancement of the arm unit to the first shelf, the link mechanism is unfolded to hold the side portion. The robot according to claim 1.

3. The link mechanism is disposed at a position in the hand portion corresponding to the side portions on both sides of the storage box, and is spaced apart from the side portions on both sides of the storage box when folded downward, and is brought into contact with the side portions on both sides of the storage box when unfolded upward. The robot according to claim 2.

4. The container has an opening having a non-uniform peripheral height that includes at least a portion of a front surface and a top surface of the container, When the arm portion advances to the first shelf, the hand portion in the folded state is positioned below the lowest part of the peripheral portion. The robot according to claim 1.

5. A robot body and a cart unit that moves the robot body between a back yard and a sales floor, the arm unit provided on the robot body takes out the storage box from the first shelf in the back yard and displays the storage box on the second shelf in the sales area; The robot according to claim 1.

6. A housing that houses the container; an opening / closing unit for opening and closing a door of the housing; Equipped with the opening / closing unit opens the door when the arm unit takes out the storage box from the first shelf and when the arm unit places the storage box on the second shelf, and closes the door after the arm unit takes out the storage box from the first shelf and places it in the housing. The robot according to claim 1.

7. the link mechanism includes a fixed link extending toward a tip end of the hand unit, a pair of rotating links rotatably supported by the fixed link, and an intermediate link connecting the pair of rotating links to each other, The hand unit has a support portion that supports the pair of rotating links in a state inclined toward the tip end when deployed. The robot according to claim 2.

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