storehouse

Abstract

To provide a technology that can, with a simple configuration, detect whether or not items protrude from multiple storage parts in a warehouse provided with storage shelves capable of storing the items in each of the storage parts.SOLUTION: A warehouse equipped with storage shelves 10 in which multiple storage parts 2 are arranged in a row includes a laser sensor 3, a drive device that moves the direction of laser light irradiation, and a control system, a surface where the articles W are put into and taken out of the storage parts 2 of the storage shelf 10 is defined as a shelf front surface S, and the drive device rotates the direction of laser light irradiation around a rotation axis 9 along the shelf depth direction while maintaining the same parallel to the shelf front surface S, causing the laser light to scan a detection surface E set along the shelf front surface S, and when the control system detects an item W intersecting the detection surface E with the laser sensor, it is determined that the item W protrudes from the shelf front surface S.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a warehouse.

Background Art

[0002] For example, Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2007-269460 (Patent Document 1) discloses a technology related to a warehouse. Hereinafter, the reference numerals shown in parentheses in the description of the background art are those of Patent Document 1.

[0003] The warehouse (article storage facility) of Patent Document 1 includes a storage shelf (storage shelf 1) having a plurality of storage parts (article storage parts 4) for storing articles (article 9) in a state arranged in the vertical direction and the shelf width direction (lateral direction), a stacker crane (3) traveling along the front of the storage shelf, and a control system (crane control device 27) for controlling the operation of the conveying device. The stacker crane (3) delivers articles to and from the plurality of storage parts.

[0004] The stacker crane (3) is provided with a detection device (28) for detecting an article in a state of protruding from the storage part toward the conveying device side (protruding state). The control system executes an inspection mode in which the stacker crane (3) is run while the protruding article is detected by the detection device. When the control system detects a protruding article, it stops the running of the stacker crane (3) and executes a notification process for notifying that the protruding article has been detected.

[0005] The detection device (28) comprises a light emitter (30) and a light receiver (32). The light emitter (30) is mounted on the upper support arm (29) of the stacker crane (3). The light receiver (32) is mounted on the lower support arm (30) of the stacker crane (3). The light emitter (30) projects detection light parallel to the front surface (1A) of the storage shelf. The light receiver (32) is positioned directly below the light emitter (30) and receives the detection light projected from the light emitter (30). The control system detects the protrusion of an item when this detection light is blocked. Multiple sets of such light emitters (30) and light receivers (32) are arranged separately on both outer sides in the direction of travel of the stacker crane (3). This allows for proper detection of items that are already protruding due to earthquakes or other factors, while avoiding interference between the stacker crane (3) traveling in the direction of travel and the items that are already protruding. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2007-269460 [Overview of the project] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0007] In the warehouse described in Patent Document 1, as mentioned above, in order to avoid interference between the stacker crane in motion and the protruding articles, a light emitter and a light receiver are provided on both outer sides in the direction of travel of the stacker crane, and support members for these light emitters and receivers are provided on the stacker crane. As a result, the configuration for detecting the protruding articles tends to become complex, which is a factor in high costs.

[0008] Therefore, in a warehouse equipped with storage shelves capable of storing goods in each of its multiple storage compartments, there is a need for a technology that can detect, with a simple configuration, whether or not an item is protruding from a storage compartment. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The warehouse relating to this disclosure is a warehouse in which a plurality of storage compartments are arranged in the vertical direction and in the shelf width direction intersecting the vertical direction, and each of the storage compartments is equipped with storage shelves capable of storing articles, The system comprises a laser sensor that detects an object that reflects laser light by irradiating it with laser light and receiving the reflected light, a drive device that moves the direction of the laser light irradiation, and a control system. The surface along the vertical direction and the shelf width direction, the surface on which the articles are inserted into and removed from the multiple storage compartments in the storage shelf, is defined as the shelf front, and the direction perpendicular to the shelf front is defined as the shelf depth direction. The drive device rotates the laser beam around a pivot axis along the depth direction of the shelf while maintaining the irradiation direction of the laser beam parallel to the front of the shelf, thereby scanning the detection surface set along the front of the shelf with the laser beam. When the control system detects an item intersecting the detection surface using the laser sensor, it determines that the item is protruding from the front of the shelf.

[0010] With this configuration, the laser sensor can detect whether or not there are items protruding from the front of the shelf. Therefore, even if the position of items stored in the storage compartment shifts due to an earthquake or other factors, it is possible to appropriately detect if there are items protruding from the front of the shelf due to the shift. Furthermore, with this configuration, by rotating the direction of the laser beam around the pivot axis, the presence or absence of protrusions of items across the entire detection surface set along the front of the shelf can be detected by a single laser beam emitted from the laser sensor. Therefore, the number of laser sensors can be kept to a minimum. Consequently, it is easier to simplify the configuration for detecting items protruding from the front of the shelf.

[0011] Further features and advantages of the warehouse will become clear from the following description of exemplary and non-limiting embodiments, which will be illustrated with reference to the drawings. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0012] [Figure 1] Side view of the storage shelf [Figure 2] Front view of the storage shelf [Figure 3] Perspective view of the detection device [Figure 4] A schematic side view showing the front and detection surfaces of the shelf. [Figure 5] Control block diagram [Figure 6] Control flow diagram [Figure 7] Control flow diagram [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0013] The following describes an embodiment of the warehouse based on the drawings.

[0014] As shown in Figures 1 and 2, the warehouse 1 is equipped with a storage shelf 10 in which multiple storage compartments 2 are arranged in the vertical direction and in the shelf width direction X that intersects the vertical direction, and each storage compartment 2 is capable of storing goods W. Furthermore, as shown in Figures 1 to 3, the warehouse 1 is equipped with a laser sensor 3 that detects objects that reflect laser light by irradiating them with laser light and receiving the reflected light, a drive device 4 that moves the direction of laser light irradiation, and a control system 100. In this embodiment, the warehouse 1 is further equipped with a transport device 5 for transporting goods W. The transport device 5 transports goods W between the storage shelf 10 and the outside of the warehouse 1 and also loads and unloads goods W into and out of the multiple storage compartments 2. The shelf width direction X is defined as the direction along the horizontal plane, in other words, the direction perpendicular to the vertical direction. In the following description, the surface along the vertical direction and the shelf width direction X, on which goods W are loaded and unloaded into and out of the multiple storage compartments 2 in the storage shelf 10, will be referred to as the shelf front S, and the direction perpendicular to the shelf front S will be referred to as the shelf depth direction Y. In this embodiment, the laser sensor 3 and the drive unit 4 are collectively referred to as the detection device 8. Furthermore, the articles W stored in the storage unit 2 may be pallets and containers such as cartons stacked on pallets, or they may be containers such as cartons stored without being placed on pallets. Also, the articles W are not limited to containers.

[0015] In this example, warehouse 1 is equipped with a pair of storage shelves 10. The pair of storage shelves 10 are arranged side by side in the shelf depth direction Y with a conveying device 5 in between (Figure 1). The conveying device 5 moves between the front faces S of each of the pair of storage shelves 10 along the shelf width direction X. As shown in Figure 2, the front face S of the shelf is a virtual surface in which, when viewed in the shelf depth direction Y along the shelf depth direction, the openings of the multiple storage compartments 2 (in this case, openings formed on the conveying device 5 side) are arranged in the vertical direction and the shelf width direction X, and is a rectangular surface.

[0016] As shown in Figure 1, the transport device 5 comprises a traveling trolley 51 that travels along the shelf width direction X, a mast 52 erected from the traveling trolley 51, a lifting platform 53 that moves up and down along the mast 52, and a transfer device 54 that loads and unloads items W between each storage section 2. In other words, the transport device 5 is a stacker crane. In this example, as shown in Figure 1, rails R are provided on the travel path of the transport device 5. The traveling trolley 51 is guided by the rails R and travels in front of the storage shelves 10. The transfer device 54 is provided on the lifting platform 53. When items W are brought in from outside the warehouse 1, for example, when the transfer device 54 receives the items W placed on an loading port, the traveling trolley 51 moves to the row of storage section 2 designated as the destination, and the lifting platform 53 moves up and down to the designated level of storage section 2. Then, the transfer device 54 transfers the items W into the storage section 2. When transporting goods W stored in storage section 2 to the outside of warehouse 1, the transport device 5 operates in the reverse order. Here, the transfer device 54 is a fork type, but is not limited to this, and may be a conveyor type, for example. The transfer device 54 is capable of loading and unloading goods W into and from each storage section 2 of the pair of storage racks 10. Furthermore, the transport device 5 is not limited to a stacker crane. The transport device 5 may be, for example, an automated guided vehicle that autonomously travels on the floor or the like to transport goods W, or travels along guide rails or the like to transport goods W, or an overhead transport vehicle that travels along guide rails or the like suspended from the ceiling to transport goods W.

[0017] As shown in FIGS. 1 and 2, the storage shelf 10 includes a plurality of support columns 13 arranged in the shelf width direction X and the shelf depth direction Y, a plurality of connecting members 12 connecting the support columns 13 arranged in the shelf depth direction Y, and a plurality of placing members 11 for placing the article W. In this example, the connecting member 12 connects two support columns 13 arranged in the shelf depth direction Y, and a plurality of them are arranged at the same intervals in the vertical direction (here, an interval larger than the vertical length of the article W). A plurality of sets are provided such that two support columns 13 connected by the plurality of connecting members 12 are arranged in a plurality of rows in the shelf width direction X. The placing member 11 is fixed to the connecting member 12. Here, each of the plurality of placing members 11 is arranged so as to protrude inward in the shelf width direction X (the side where the article W is arranged) from each of a pair of connecting members 12 arranged at the same height adjacent to each other in the shelf width direction X. The storage portion 2 is formed by a pair of placing members 11 arranged to protrude inward in the shelf width direction X from the pair of connecting members 12 and the upper space with respect to the pair of placing members 11. The article W is supported from below by the pair of placing members 11 in a state of being housed in the storage portion 2. Thus, each of the plurality of storage portions 2 is formed as a so-called fixed location.

[0018] Note that each of the plurality of storage portions 2 is not limited to the fixed location as described above, and may be formed as a free location. In that case, for example, a plurality of rectangular shelf boards that are along a horizontal plane and long in the shelf width direction X are arranged at intervals in the vertical direction, and a configuration in which the support columns 13 support the plurality of shelf boards can also be adopted. In this case, it is preferable that the article W can be placed at an arbitrary position in the shelf width direction X of each step of the shelf board. And, each space in which the article W can be arranged in each step of the shelf can be used as the storage portion 2. In this case, the area occupied by each storage portion 2 may change each time depending on the size of each article W actually arranged on the shelf.

[0019] As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, in this example, in the storage shelf 10, a storage area R1 where a plurality of storage units 2 are arranged and a non-storage area R2 where the storage units 2 are not arranged are formed. Here, the non-storage area R2 is formed below the storage area R1. More specifically, the non-storage area R2 is formed between the lowermost placement member 11 and the floor surface. Here, the front of the shelf S includes both the storage area R1 and the non-storage area R2. However, for example, it can be configured to include only the storage area R1 and not include the non-storage area R2. Thus, the range of the front of the shelf S can be changed according to the arrangement of each storage unit 2 in the storage shelf 10. Hereinafter, the specific configuration of the detection device 8 (laser sensor 3, drive device 4) will be described.

[0020] The laser sensor 3 is configured to measure the distance to an object that reflects laser light. In other words, in this embodiment, the laser sensor 3 is a laser distance meter. In this example, the laser sensor 3 is configured to measure the distance to an object that reflects laser light on a detection surface E set along the front of the shelf S. The laser light is irradiated along the detection surface E. As shown in Figures 2 and 4, the detection surface E is set in an area that overlaps with the front of the shelf S when viewed in the shelf depth direction Y. In this example, the detection surface E is set at a position separated from the front of the shelf S by a specified distance in the shelf depth direction Y (here, on the side of the conveying device 5) (Figure 1). This specified distance is set so that the detection surface E does not interfere with the conveying device 5 on the travel path. The detection surface E is formed to correspond to the shape of the front of the shelf S. Specifically, the detection surface E is formed in a rectangular shape. On the other hand, the detection surface E is not set in an area that does not overlap with the front of the shelf S when viewed in the shelf depth direction. Here, the detection surface E is set in the area of ​​the shelf front S that overlaps with the storage area R1 when viewed in the depth direction of the shelf. In other words, the detection surface E is set to include the entire storage area R1 but not the non-storage area R2. On the other hand, the detection surface E is not set outside the storage area R1. Therefore, the detection surface E is not set outside the shelf front S. However, the detection surface E may be set to include the area outside the shelf front S. Also, the detection surface E may be set to include the non-storage area R2. The method for setting the detection surface E will be explained in detail later.

[0021] As shown in Figures 2 and 3, the drive unit 4 rotates the laser beam around a pivot axis 9 along the shelf depth direction Y, while maintaining the irradiation direction of the laser beam parallel to the shelf front S, thereby scanning the detection surface E set along the shelf front S with the laser beam. In this embodiment, the drive unit 4 rotates the entire laser sensor 3. This changes the irradiation direction of the emitted laser beam. In this embodiment, as shown in Figure 2, the pivot axis 9 is set at one of the four corners of the rectangular shelf front S when viewed in the shelf depth direction Y. This allows the entire detection surface E to be scanned by rotating the laser beam by 90°. That is, in this example, the rotation angle θ of the laser beam (here, the rotation angle θ of the laser sensor 3) is set to be between 0° and 90°. Note that the rotation angle θ may be set to exceed 90°. Naturally, the rotation angle θ can be changed as appropriate depending on the shape of the detection surface E, etc. In this example, the pivot axis 9 of the laser sensor 3 is positioned at a location corresponding to one of the four corners of the shelf front S, on the lower (floor side), when viewed in the depth direction of the shelf (hereinafter referred to as "first position P1"). Note that the "four corners of the shelf front S" do not include only the four vertices of the rectangular shelf front S. In this example, the "four corners of the shelf front S" are considered to be an extended area. The "four corners" may be shifted inward from the corresponding vertices of the shelf front S by a specified amount. For example, in the vertical direction, the shift of the "four corners" area is permitted to be less than the vertical dimension of the item W with the smallest vertical dimension relative to each vertex. In the shelf width direction X, a shift of less than half the length of the shelf width direction X of one storage section 2 is permitted. The "four corners" may also be shifted outward from the corresponding vertices of the shelf front S by a specified amount. For example, in the "four corners" region, the amount of overhang of the drive unit 4 and laser sensor 3 from the front of the shelf S is acceptable as long as it does not interfere with surrounding members including the floor (for example, the support columns 13, which are members of the storage shelf 10).

[0022] In this example, the drive unit 4 is configured to rotate the entire laser sensor 3 around a pivot axis 9 along the shelf depth direction Y, and is located at a position where the pivot axis 9 of the laser sensor 3 is positioned at the first position P1. As shown in Figure 3, the drive unit 4 is attached, for example, to the support column 13 of the storage shelf 10 via a support member. Here, the drive unit 4 is positioned using the non-storage area R2. The detection device 8 may include a support member to support such a drive unit 4. Alternatively, the detection device 8 may be erected directly on the floor surface instead of on the support column 13. The drive unit 4 may also be configured to be located inside the laser sensor 3. For example, the drive unit 4 may be configured to include a mechanism for rotating the light source and light receiving element inside the laser sensor 3.

[0023] As shown in Figure 4, the position in which the laser sensor 3 is installed (specifically, the position in which the pivot axis 9 of the laser sensor 3 is located) is not limited to the first position P1 described above. For example, the pivot axis 9 of the laser sensor 3 may be located at a position corresponding to either of the two upper corners of the four corners of the shelf front S (second position P2). In this embodiment, the second position P2 is further defined as a position corresponding to either of the two upper vertices of the four vertices of the rectangular detection surface E.

[0024] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 4, the position where the laser sensor 3 is installed (specifically, the position where the pivot axis 9 of the laser sensor 3 is located) may be a position on each side of the rectangular detection surface E (third position Q1). In this way, when the pivot axis 9 of the laser sensor 3 is located at the third position Q1, the maximum value of the rotation angle θ of the laser beam is set to be greater than the maximum value of the rotation angle θ at the first position P1 and the second position P2. In the illustrated example, the maximum value of the rotation angle θ is set to 180°. Alternatively, the position where the pivot axis 9 of the laser sensor 3 is located may be a position on the surface excluding the four peripheral sides of the detection surface E (in the illustrated example, the central region of the detection surface E) (fourth position Q2). In this way, when the pivot axis 9 of the laser sensor 3 is located at the fourth position Q2, the maximum value of the rotation angle θ of the laser beam is set to be greater than the maximum value of the rotation angle θ at the third position Q1. In the illustrated example, the maximum value of the rotation angle θ needs to be set to 360°.

[0025] As shown in Figure 5, the control system 100 has the function of controlling the detection device 8 (laser sensor 3, drive device 4) and the transport device 5. In this embodiment, the warehouse 1 is equipped with a control device H as the control system 100. The control device H includes, for example, a processor such as a microcomputer, peripheral circuits such as memory, etc. The functions of the control system 100 are realized through the cooperation of this hardware and a program executed on the processor such as a computer. In this example, the control device H includes a storage unit 101, an arithmetic processing unit 102, and a determination unit 103.

[0026] When the control system 100 detects an item W intersecting the detection surface E using the laser sensor 3, it determines that the item W is protruding from the front of the shelf S. In this embodiment, the determination unit 103 performs the above determination. When the detection device 8 detects an item W intersecting the detection surface E (hereinafter referred to as "protruding item Wt"), it transmits detection information to the control device H. The detection information includes at least the distance to the object (in this case, the protruding item Wt) measured by the laser sensor 3 and the rotation angle θ of the laser sensor 3. Based on the rotation angle θ around the rotation axis 9 of the irradiation direction when the laser sensor 3 detects the item W, and the distance to the object (protruding item Wt) measured by the laser sensor 3, the control system 100 identifies the position of the item W protruding from the front of the shelf S in the vertical direction and the shelf width direction X. In this embodiment, the storage unit 101 has in advance stored position information indicating the position of each storage unit 2 (such as the coordinates of each storage unit 2 identified by the orthogonal coordinate system set on the detection surface E). The arithmetic processing unit 102 identifies the position of the protruding article Wt (in this case, the storage unit 2 in which the protruding article Wt is stored) based on the detection information received from the detection device 8 and the position information described above. In this example, the range of the detection surface E is pre-set in the control device H (for example, the storage unit 101) using the Cartesian coordinate system described above. Therefore, for example, if the detection information acquired from the detection device 8 includes information that the laser sensor 3 has detected some object outside the detection surface E, the arithmetic processing to identify the position of that object is not performed. It is also possible to configure the detection device 8 to have a set detection surface E. In this case, the detection information transmitted from the detection device 8 to the control device H does not include information on the detection of an object outside the detection surface E. As described above, the detection surface E is separated from the front of the shelf S by a specified distance (Figure 1). Therefore, for the article W in the storage unit 2, the protrusion from the front of the shelf S to just before the detection surface E is not detected by the laser sensor 3 and is therefore permitted.

[0027] In this example, it is preferable that the warehouse 1 is further equipped with an output device 6, as shown in Figure 5. When the control device H identifies the location of the protruding item Wt, it outputs output information to the output device 6 indicating that the protruding item Wt has been detected and that the storage section 2 in which the protruding item Wt is stored is located. The output device 6 may be, for example, a display device that displays the output information on a monitor, or a notification device that indicates that the protruding item Wt has been detected with sound or light, or a combination of these.

[0028] As shown in Figure 6, the control system 100 (in this case, the control device H) is configured to perform a first rotation process (S01). The first rotation process is performed, for example, after an earthquake occurs, based on input from a worker or the like. In the first rotation process, the control device H controls the detection device 8 to rotate the laser sensor 3 and scan the detection surface E with laser light. In this case, the detection device 8 scans the entire detection surface E during the first rotation process. After the execution of the first rotation process, the control system 100 determines whether or not a protruding article Wt has been detected (S02). If the control system 100 determines that a protruding article Wt has been detected (S02: Yes), it performs a location identification process (S03). In the location identification process, the control device H identifies the storage section 2 in which the protruding article Wt is housed. In this example, if multiple protruding articles Wt are detected, the storage section 2 in which each protruding article Wt is housed is identified. The control system 100 further performs output processing to output each identified storage unit 2 to the output device 6. The operator then corrects the position of the protruding item Wt according to the output information output to the output device 6. In the first rotation process, operations on the entire detection surface E may be performed multiple times. Alternatively, the transport device 5 may perform the operation to correct the position of the protruding item Wt. In that case, it is necessary to ensure that the protruding item Wt or any falling objects do not interfere with the travel trajectory of the transport device 5.

[0029] The first rotation process may be performed, for example, at predetermined intervals (e.g., every few hours, every few days, etc.). In this case, the first rotation process may be performed automatically by the control system 100. When the first rotation process is performed periodically in this way, the detection device 8 can be permanently installed in each storage shelf 10. On the other hand, when the first rotation process is performed in an emergency, such as after an earthquake, the detection device 8 can be installed in the storage shelf 10 as needed. In this case, the detection device 8 can be shared among multiple storage shelves 10, thus reducing costs.

[0030] As shown in Figure 7, after the position of the protruding item Wt, which is determined to be an item W protruding from the front of the shelf S, is corrected, the control system 100 performs a verification process in which it scans the area that was in the shadow of the protruding item Wt as viewed from the pivot axis 9 with a laser beam. In this example, the control system 100 (here, the control device H) is configured to be able to execute a second pivot process in the verification process (S11). In the second pivot process, the control device H controls the detection device 8 to scan the area that could not be scanned on the detection surface E because it was in the shadow of the protruding item Wt (unscanned area E1). The second pivot process may be performed by an operator or the like by inputting to the control system 100, or if the position of the protruding item Wt is corrected by the transport device 5, it may be automatically executed after the correction operation by the transport device 5 is completed. The control device H may control the detection device 8 to scan only the unscanned area E1, or, for example, if there are multiple unscanned areas E1, it may control the detection device 8 to scan the entire detection surface E. After executing the second rotation process, the control system 100 determines whether or not it has detected the protruding item Wt (S12). If the control system 100 determines that it has detected the protruding item Wt (S12: Yes), it executes a position identification process (S13). The control system 100 outputs each identified housing unit 2 to the output device 6. The operator corrects the position of the protruding item Wt according to the output information output to the output device 6. In the position identification process, naturally, if only the unscanned area E1 is scanned, the housing unit 2 containing the protruding item Wt in the unscanned area E1 is identified, and if the entire detection surface E is scanned, the housing unit 2 containing the protruding item Wt is identified regardless of whether the position of the protruding item Wt is in the unscanned area E1 or not.

[0031] [Other Embodiments] (1) In the above embodiment, the warehouse 1 was described as having a configuration that includes a conveying device 5, but it is not limited to this. The warehouse 1 does not have to include a conveying device 5. In this case, for example, the items W may be loaded and unloaded into the storage section 2 directly by human hands, or the items W may be loaded and unloaded into the storage section 2 by a forklift or the like operated by a worker.

[0032] (2) In the above embodiment, the drive device 4 was described as having a configuration in which the detection surface E is scanned with laser light by rotating the laser beam around a pivot axis 9 along the shelf depth direction Y while maintaining the irradiation direction of the laser light parallel to the shelf front S, but the device is not limited to this. The drive device 4 can also be configured to scan the detection surface E with laser light without rotating the irradiation direction of the laser light. In this case, for example, the drive device 4 may fix the irradiation direction of the laser light in the vertical direction or along the shelf width direction X, and move the laser sensor 3 itself along the vertical direction or along the shelf width direction X.

[0033] (3) In the above embodiment, the detection surface E was described as being set at a position separated by a specified distance from the shelf front S in the shelf depth direction Y (towards the conveying device 5), but the embodiment is not limited to this. The detection surface E may be set on the shelf front S. For example, the entire shelf front S can be used as the detection surface E, or a part of the shelf front S (such as the storage area R1) can be used as the detection surface E.

[0034] (4) In the above embodiment, the pivot axis 9 was described as being set at one of the four corners of the rectangular shelf front S when viewed in the shelf depth direction Y along the shelf depth direction, but the system is not limited to this. The pivot axis 9 may be set at multiple locations among the four corners of the rectangular shelf front S when viewed in the shelf depth direction Y along the shelf depth direction. In this case, it is possible to arrange multiple laser sensors 3 for one storage shelf 10.

[0035] (5) In the above embodiment, the control system 100 was described as having a configuration in which, after the position of the protruding article Wt is corrected, it performs a confirmation process in which it scans the area that was in the shadow of the protruding article Wt as seen from the pivot axis 9 with a laser beam. However, it is not limited to this configuration. The control system 100 does not necessarily have to perform the confirmation process. In this case, for example, it is preferable for the control system 100 to repeatedly perform the first pivot process and perform the position identification process and output process each time the protruding article Wt is detected. Furthermore, it is preferable to perform these processes even during the work of correcting the position of the protruding article Wt and to repeat these processes until the protruding article Wt is no longer detected on the entire detection surface E.

[0036] (6) The configurations disclosed in each of the embodiments described above can be applied in combination with configurations disclosed in other embodiments (including combinations of embodiments described as other embodiments), as long as no inconsistencies arise. With regard to other configurations, the embodiments disclosed herein are merely illustrative in all respects. Therefore, various modifications can be made as appropriate without departing from the spirit of this disclosure.

[0037] [Summary of the above embodiments] The following is a summary of the warehouses described above.

[0038] The warehouse relating to this disclosure is a warehouse in which a plurality of storage compartments are arranged in the vertical direction and in the shelf width direction intersecting the vertical direction, and each of the storage compartments is equipped with storage shelves capable of storing articles, The system comprises a laser sensor that detects an object that reflects laser light by irradiating it with laser light and receiving the reflected light, a drive device that moves the direction of the laser light irradiation, and a control system. The surface along the vertical direction and the shelf width direction, the surface on which the articles are inserted into and removed from the multiple storage compartments in the storage shelf, is defined as the shelf front, and the direction perpendicular to the shelf front is defined as the shelf depth direction. The drive device rotates the laser beam around a pivot axis along the depth direction of the shelf while maintaining the irradiation direction of the laser beam parallel to the front of the shelf, thereby scanning the detection surface set along the front of the shelf with the laser beam. When the control system detects an item intersecting the detection surface using the laser sensor, it determines that the item is protruding from the front of the shelf.

[0039] With this configuration, the laser sensor can detect whether or not there are items protruding from the front of the shelf. Therefore, even if the position of items stored in the storage compartment shifts due to an earthquake or other factors, it is possible to appropriately detect if there are items protruding from the front of the shelf due to the shift. Furthermore, with this configuration, by rotating the direction of the laser beam around the pivot axis, the presence or absence of protrusions of items across the entire detection surface set along the front of the shelf can be detected by a single laser beam emitted from the laser sensor. Therefore, the number of laser sensors can be kept to a minimum. Consequently, it is easier to simplify the configuration for detecting items protruding from the front of the shelf.

[0040] Here, the laser sensor is configured to measure the distance to the object that reflects the laser light. The control system preferably determines the position of the article protruding from the front of the shelf in the vertical direction and the shelf width direction based on the rotation angle of the irradiation direction around the rotation axis when the laser sensor detects the article and the distance to the object measured by the laser sensor.

[0041] This configuration allows for the identification of the vertical and horizontal positions of items protruding from the front of the shelf, making it easy to adjust the position of the items.

[0042] Furthermore, it is preferable that the detection surface is set in an area that overlaps with the front of the shelf when viewed in the shelf depth direction along the shelf depth direction, and not in an area that does not overlap with the front of the shelf when viewed in the shelf depth direction.

[0043] This configuration allows the detection of objects by the laser sensor to be limited to an area that overlaps with the front of the shelf when viewed in the depth direction. Therefore, the possibility of mistakenly detecting objects other than those stored in the storage compartment as items can be reduced.

[0044] Furthermore, it is preferable that the pivot axis is set at one of the four corners of the rectangular-shaped front surface of the shelf, when viewed in the depth direction of the shelf along the shelf depth direction.

[0045] With this configuration, the rotation angle of the laser beam irradiation direction for scanning the entire detection surface can be set to approximately 90°. Therefore, the configuration of the drive unit can be easily simplified.

[0046] Furthermore, it is preferable that the control system, after correcting the position of the protruding item, which is determined to be protruding from the front of the shelf, performs a verification process in which the laser beam scans the area that was in the shadow of the protruding item when viewed from the pivot axis.

[0047] With this configuration, even if there are areas that were not scanned by laser light because they were obscured by the shadow of a protruding object, after the position of the protruding object is corrected, the area can be scanned by laser light to check for the presence or absence of other protruding objects.

[0048] The warehouse relating to this disclosure only needs to achieve at least one of the effects described above. [Explanation of symbols]

[0049] 1: Warehouse 2: Containment section 3: Laser sensor 4: Drive unit 9: Rotation axis center 10: Storage shelves 100: Control System E: Detection surface S: Shelf front Wt:Protruding article X:Shelf width direction Y: Shelf depth direction θ: rotation angle

Claims

1. A warehouse comprising storage shelves in which multiple storage compartments are arranged in the vertical direction and in the shelf width direction intersecting the vertical direction, and each of the storage compartments is capable of storing articles, The system comprises a laser sensor that detects an object that reflects laser light by irradiating it with laser light and receiving the reflected light, a drive device that moves the direction of irradiation of the laser light, and a control system. The surface along the vertical direction and the shelf width direction, the surface on which the articles are inserted into and removed from the multiple storage compartments in the storage shelf, is defined as the shelf front, and the direction perpendicular to the shelf front is defined as the shelf depth direction. The drive device rotates the laser beam around a pivot axis along the depth direction of the shelf while maintaining the irradiation direction of the laser beam parallel to the front of the shelf, thereby scanning the detection surface set along the front of the shelf with the laser beam. A warehouse in which the control system determines that an item is protruding from the front of the shelf when the laser sensor detects an item intersecting the detection surface.

2. The laser sensor is configured to measure the distance to the object that reflects the laser light. The warehouse according to claim 1, wherein the control system determines the position of the article protruding from the front of the shelf in the vertical direction and the shelf width direction based on the rotation angle of the irradiation direction around the rotation axis when the laser sensor detects the article and the distance to the object measured by the laser sensor.

3. The warehouse according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the detection surface is set in an area that overlaps with the front of the shelf when viewed in the shelf depth direction along the shelf depth direction, and is not set in an area that does not overlap with the front of the shelf when viewed in the shelf depth direction.

4. The warehouse according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the pivot axis is set at one of the four corners of the rectangular front surface of the shelf, when viewed in the shelf depth direction along the shelf depth direction.

5. The warehouse according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the control system performs a verification process in which, after the position of the protruding article, which is determined to be an article protruding from the front of the shelf, is corrected, the laser beam is scanned over the area that was in the shadow of the protruding article when viewed from the pivot axis.

Images