Warehouse racking system

Abstract

A racking system for storing suspended goods, having racks and service aisles, and a rack (A) comprising leg frames (1) assembled from vertical and horizontal supports. The rack (A) is constructed from pre-assembled modules comprising two leg frames (1), where one leg frame (1) has two vertical columns (2) which are connected to each other by cross beams (4). The leg frames (1 ) are connected to each other horizontally by rail beams (5) on one side and by longitudinal beams (3) on both sides. Two racks (A) are connected to each other on the side opposite the rail beam (5) as a pair of racks forming a level (S) of the racking system, and between the pairs of racks there are service aisles (21).

Description

[0001] Warehouse racking system

[0002] The subject of the patent is a racking system for the storage of suspended goods, with one rack built from pedestal frames constructed from vertical and horizontal supports.

[0003] A number of warehouse racking systems are known from the available literature, where vertical posts are connected by horizontal beams and additional slant bars to improve structural stability, and the frame structure created so is used to bear further structural elements, such as shelf panels, onto which goods are placed. In case of automated warehouses with significant traffic, the handling of the goods is often effected by using various elevators, carriages and other rolling structures. Patent document No. US 2011 / 0142581A1 describes such warehouse equipment which is capable of dispensing unit packages in a specific sequence according to a manual order, in which the unit packages are moved along a racking system by means of a belt conveyor, and a lifting unit lifts or lowers them to the desired level of the racking system. A carriage transports the unit packages between the shelves and dispatch chutes of the racking system, with the wheels of the carriage running on rails. It follows from the requirements of the warehousing system that the rails are made of U-profiles with vertical back plate, open to the side, wrapped around the wheel at the sides. The insertion of the carriages into the rails is therefore rather difficult and only possible at the end of the rails, as the wheels of the carriages need to be inserted in between the rails one by one. Therefore, an unused space is created in the warehouse during the insertion, replacement or repair of the carriages. Furthermore, this warehouse equipment, as a whole, is not suitable for the movement and handling of suspended goods, for their longitudinal and vertical movement and for their loading and unloading, as it has been primarily designed for moving boxes along a surface.

[0004] There are also known racking systems that have been designed for the suspended movement and storage of goods. Such a warehousing system is described in patent document No. US 2001 / 0051085 Al. Here, the suspended goods - primarily garments on coat hangers - are placed on a horizontal storage bar, with the length of the storage bar and therefore the number of coat hangers placed on it being constant. The storage bars are carried by a wheeled lifting stand along the rack system, lifting them to the desired height of the rack system or lowering them off it. The storage bars placed in the rack system are moved horizontally by a suspension device between the storage units of the rack, powered by a motor of vertical axis, sliding on horizontal beams.

[0005] The racking system is therefore not suitable for the horizontal movement of suspended goods by means of a rolling loading machine, and does not include rails or troughs open on top and independent from this supporting structure.

[0006] The objective of elaborating our invention was to eliminate the above deficiencies. The design of a warehouse racking system that is suitable for the storage and withdrawal of suspended goods, with rails fitted to the outside of the racks, guiding the wheels of the loading machine that performs the loading and unloading operations, with the said rails also functioning as loadbearing rail beams, contributing to the structural integrity of the rack. This use of the rail beams simplifies the structure of the racking system, also making the assembly easier and faster.

[0007] The solution of the target task is presented by the warehouse racking system specified in claim 1. The advantageous modes of implementation of the invention are represented by the variants specified in claims 2 - 9.

[0008] Hereinafter, the detailed construction of the invention and its functioning are introduced by means of drawings, wherein

[0009] Figure 1 shows the schematic front view of the racks,

[0010] Figure 2 shows the axonometric view of the racks,

[0011] Figure 3 shows the front view of the multi-level racking systems,

[0012] Figure 4 shows the axonometric view of the multi-level racking systems,

[0013] Figure 5 shows the axonometric view of one module,

[0014] Figure 6 shows the axonometric view of a rail beam,

[0015] Figure 7 shows the axonometric view of a bracing beam,

[0016] Figure 8 shows the axonometric view of installing a support lug, Figure 9 shows the axonometric view of installing an extension.

[0017] During the detailed description of the invention, the components and details shown on the various figures are first introduced based on their construction, followed by the presentation of how the particular component functions. Then we move on to a similar description of the component shown on the next figure, as it follows from the nature of the invention that it is reasonable for the unambiguous explanation of the implementation method.

[0018] Figure 1 therefore shows the schematic illustration of two racks A facing each other. One of the main components of rack A is the pedestal frame 1, built from vertical posts 2, horizontal transverse beams 4 and slant bars 8. Slant bars 8 do not form indispensable parts of the pedestal frame 1 , but their application is reasonable to increase the stability and the strength of rack A. On the sides of the A racks facing each other, rail beams 5 shown schematically are mounted at identical heights. The rail beams 5 form a rail track open upwards, in which the wheels of the loading machine may run along the service aisle way 21 between the A racks. Figure 1 shows two pairs of rail beams 5, of which the lower pair has been formed for the loading machine serving the two racks A shown in the figure. Then the A racks according to Figure 1 form the level S of a warehouse racking system. The upper pair of rail beams 5 serves A racks that form a further level S of the racking system not shown here.

[0019] The A racks are practically divided into three storage spaces vertically by the transverse beams 4. For example, hanger holders equipped with hangers and suitable for the suspended storage of goods are placed in them in the upper storage space. For certain designs, it is possible that conventional shelves may be installed at the bottom of certain storage spaces, on which goods, crates and packaging units may be placed in the conventional way.

[0020] In Figure 1, the bracing beams 12 have also been schematically illustrated, positioned on the outer side of the outermost A rack, where no further A rack is connected to it. In a fully implemented warehouse, there is always an A rack in the horizontal direction adjacent to any A rack, except for the end racks. Order of the elements of a fully implemented racking system: A rack, service aisleway, A rack, A rack, service aisleway, A rack, A rack, service aisleway, A rack and so on. In the present figure, only two A racks are shown; the lower level S of a racking system, between which a service aisleway 21 is formed, and the loading machines move along this service aisleway 21. Naturally, a warehousing system may contain several A racks at each level S, with several service aisleways 21 running between them. Then the rail beams 5 are positioned on the sides of the racks facing each other, with the bracing beams 12 fastened to their backs.

[0021] Figure 2 also shows two A racks in axonometric view, made of pedestal frames 1 positioned next to each other. It can be seen that the pedestal frames 1 are basically connected vertically by the longitudinal beams 3, as well as the rail beams 5 and the bracing beams 12, as described above. To further increase the strength and stability of the racking system and to warrant the width dimension of the service aisleway, the neighbouring A racks are also connected by connecting rods 14. Figure 2 shows two connecting rods 14 at the top and bottom of the A rack, practically positioned at the height of the rail beams 5. It is reasonable in an operating warehousing system to connect the majority or all of the pedestal frames 1 along the service aisleway 21 with connecting rods 14. These therefore form a line of brackets, onto which current rails may be fitted for the current collectors of the loading machines moving along the service aisleway 21, and / or the assemblies of an overhead suspended carriage track, a so-called “shuttle”, may be fitted, along with electric or optic cables, sensors, cameras, encoders, and other components that make up the necessary or reasonable accessories of an automated warehousing system. Figures 3 and 4 are schematic illustrations of multi-level - in the present case double-level - variants of the racking system. Then there are extensions 15 mounted on the upper end of the posts 2, to which the posts 2 of the level S above it are connected, and so they keep the levels S perfectly above each other. The adjacent posts 2 of the A racks are fastened together by connecting assemblies 27 “twinning” them, and the connecting assemblies 27 are longitudinally connected by the transverse braces 25, while the connecting rods 14 connect the A racks on the two sides of the service aisleway 21. The connecting assemblies 27, the transverse braces 25, and the connecting rods 14 greatly increase the strength of the racking system according to the invention. A few hanger beams 26 can also be seen in the figure of the racking system. The hanger beams 26 contain hangers that enable suspended storage and are mounted on the racking system at the height determined by the dimension of the suspended products.

[0022] Figure 5 shows a possible module of the racking system. The module is carried by 2 pedestal frames, whose posts 2 are connected by transverse beams 4 as described earlier. In order to increase the strength of the pedestal frames 1, posts 2 are also connected by slant bars 8. The pedestal frames 1 are connected to one another longitudinally by the longitudinal beams 3, the rail beam 5 and the bracing beam 12. On the bracing beam 12 side of the module, where it is connected to the module of the neighbouring A rack, connecting assemblies 27 are placed, connecting the modules at the bottom and top of the pedestal frame 1. The connecting assemblies 27 mounted on the bottom and top of the adjacent pedestal frames 1 are connected by transverse braces 25, which add to the structure’s stability as described above.

[0023] The longitudinal beams 3, the rail beam 5 and the bracing beam 12 are about twice as long as the distance between the pedestal frames, allowing the connection of a second module to the first module and subsequent modules to the second module. The longitudinal dimensions of the beams listed are presented by means of Figure 8 below. This structural composition allows the serial connection of an arbitrary number of modules, therefore the warehousing system may be expanded in depth according to preference. The overhanging elements of the last module of the line - longitudinal beams 3, rail beam 5, bracing beam 12 - are closed with the posts 2, transverse beams 4 and slant bars 8, creating a robust continuous rack line. Hanger holder beams 26 are mounted on the longitudinal beams 3, allowing the suspended storage of goods. The module shown on the diagram forms the lowest level of the racking system, therefore the posts 2 are equipped with wraparound reinforcement beams 24. The wraparound reinforcement beams 24 reinforce the lowermost posts on the one hand, which also bear the weight of the upper levels, and serve as a protective guard against collisions with forklifts. In the present case, post 2 is covered by the wraparound reinforcement beams 24 almost over its entire height, therefore only its section between the extension 15 and the connecting assembly 27 can be seen.

[0024] The rail beam 5 shown in Figure 6, for example, may be a profile practically bent from a single piece, but its plates may also be welded, resulting in a H-profile shown in the figure. It includes a vertical back plate 9 to which two horizontal, symmetrically arranged rail plates 10 are joined, with vertical flanges 11 connected to the ends of the rail plates 10. The height of the flanges 11 corresponds to the size of the back plate 9. The back plate 9, a rail plate 10 and a flange 11 together form one rail channel 7 both at the top and bottom. In the course of the operation of the warehousing system, the wheels of the loading machine run in these rail channels 11, the rail channels 11 both carrying and guiding the wheels. It is reasonable if the rail beam 5 is of a symmetrical design, and has, in vertical position, rail channels 7 both at its bottom and top, because this simplifies the assembly of the rack, and after substantial wear of the rail plate 10, the rail beam 5 may be overturned to position the unworn rail channel 7 on top. This can extend the service life of the rail beam 5. The rail beam 5 is mounted on the post 2 by its flanges 11, and its back plate 9 points outwards. This design is practical from the perspective of the strength of the rail beam 5, as when the warehouse loading machine runs along the rail channel 7 of the rail beam 5, the fixed rail plate 10 is secured against deflection. The rail beam 5, the longitudinal beam 3, as well as the bracing beam 12 described in the following sections are furnished with holes 13 for fastening with bolts and similar fasteners. The spacing of the holes 13 corresponds to the length of the beams such that the modules can be assembled one after the other.

[0025] The bracing beam 12 shown in Figure 7 consists of a vertical back plate with no specific reference codes, perpendicularly connected horizontal plates, and vertical flanges connected to the horizontal plates, bent back from these. Thereby a C-profile is created as shown in the figure.

[0026] It is noted here that the further structural elements are also furnished with the aforementioned holes 13 for the connection of the posts 2, longitudinal beams 3, transverse beams 4, rail beams 5, slant bars 8 and bracing beams 12. The holes 13 are shown in the figures as necessary. The spacing of the holes 13 is constant. This constant spacing of holes allows the installation of the supporting elements described above in the desired density, depending on the storage and loading requirements.

[0027] Figure 8 shows the connection of a post 2 and a longitudinal beam 3. A support lug 16 is mounted on the post 2 by means of a bolt 18. The longitudinal beam 3 is seated into the support lug 16, a groove 20 runs along the outer side plate 19 of the support lug 16, in which a quick release bolt 17 is placed. The assembly of the longitudinal beams 3 using support lugs 16 and quick release bolts 17 speeds up and simplifies the assembly. Built into a racking system, the A racks are placed tightly adjacent to one another, facing each other with their faces shown in Figure 8. In this position, the bolted connections of the longitudinal beams 3 are difficult to implement due to poor accessibility. Therefore the fixation of the longitudinal beams 3 is effected by hanging the bolts 17 of the longitudinal beams 3 into the grooves 20 of the support lugs 16.

[0028] The figure also shows that posts 2 are of a symmetric design. The holes 13 are distributed along the two sides of the vertical plane of symmetry at the necessary distance. The figure only shows the support lug 16 with the longitudinal beam 3 in it on one side, but another support lug may also be mounted adjacent to it, and the resulting symmetrical arrangement enables the arrangement of the longitudinal beams 3 along a line, to form a long rack A, consisting of several modules. The rail beams 5 and the bracing beams 12 are fastened to the post 2 in the same way, to both sides of it. The length of the horizontal beams is therefore determined to cover the distance of three posts 2, meeting the horizontal beams of the next module at the plane of symmetry.

[0029] In Figure 9, it can be seen that post 2 is equipped with an extension 15, slid into the U-profile post and, practically fastened to it by bolted connections. For economy of space, only one of the extensions 15 slid into the post 2 is shown. By means of the extension 15, a further level S may be built on rack A, forming a particular level S of the racking system such that the extensions 15 slide into the posts 2 of the superpositioned level S from below and are then fastened together.

[0030] This figure also shows that post 2 is vertically symmetrical, and the holes 13 are arranged in two rows along the plane of symmetry with a fixed spacing, and the bracing beam 12 is mounted using the hole-bolt connection 13 of one of the rows. The bracing beam 12 of a previous module not shown here is connected to the other row of holes 13. The rail beams 5 and the longitudinal beams 3 also follow one another in the same manner.

[0031] The figure also shows a transverse beam 4, a slant bar 8, fixed in the cavity of the U-profile of the post 2, using bolts and the holes 13 of the same spacing in the sidewalls of the U-profile.

[0032] Advantages of the warehouse racking system being the subject matter of the invention:

[0033] - it is suitable for storing suspended goods, moving the goods with loading machines,

[0034] - it includes a rail beam open to the top, separate from the supporting structure, - the rail beam also functions as a load-bearing element, ensuring the stability of the rack,

[0035] - which thereby also simplifies the structure of the rack, making it easier and quicker to assemble,

[0036] - the assembly operation is also simplified and accelerated by using support lugs and quick release elements,

[0037] - the rail beams open to the top make it easy to put in and remove a loading machine,

[0038] - the design of the structural elements allows the construction of a racking system with versatile arrangement,

[0039] - when hanger holders fitted with hangers and shelf panels can be installed in a versatile arrangement at heights and distances according to the dimensions of the goods stored,

[0040] - the racks ensure proper operation both when placed adjacent to one another and when superpositioned, and so the basic elements permit the construction of a warehousing system arbitrarily extensible in all directions of space,

[0041] - the structural members provide the necessary strength and stability on the one hand, and enable, on the other hand, the installation of the necessary components of an automated warehousing system, such as current collectors, current rails, electric or optic cables, sensors, cameras, encoders and the like.

[0042] List of reference codes:

[0043] 1 pedestal frame

[0044] 2 post

[0045] 3 longitudinal beam

[0046] 4 transverse beam

[0047] 5 rail beam

[0048] 7 rail channel

[0049] 8 slant bar

[0050] 9 back plate

[0051] 10 rail plate

[0052] 11 flange

[0053] 12 bracing beam

[0054] 13 hole

[0055] 14 connecting rod

[0056] 15 extension

[0057] 16 support lug

[0058] 17 quick release bolt

[0059] 18 bolt

[0060] 19 side plate

[0061] 20 groove

[0062] 21 service aisleway

[0063] 24 wraparound reinforcement beam

[0064] 25 transverse brace

[0065] 26 hanger holder beam

[0066] 27 connecting assembly

[0067] A rack

[0068] S level

Claims

Claims:

1. A racking system for the storage of suspended goods, having racks and service aisle ways, and a rack containing pedestal frames (1) assembled from vertical and horizontal supports, characterised in that a rack (A) is assembled from preassembled modules that contain two pedestal frames (1)- a pedestal frame (1) has two vertical posts (2), connected to one another by transverse beams (4),- the pedestal frames (1) are horizontally connected by rail beams (5) on one side and longitudinal beams (3) on both sides,- furthermore, two racks (A) are joined together at their sides opposite the rail beam (5) as a rack pair, forming a level (S) of the racking system,- and service aisle ways (21) are created between the rack pairs.

2. A racking system according to claim 1, characterised in that the pedestal frames (1) are also connected on their sides opposite to the rail beams (5) by bracing beams (12) and transverse braces (25), and hanger beams (26) are mounted on the longitudinal beams (3).

3. A racking system according to claim 1 or 2, characterised in that the racks (A) are connected to each other on their opposite sides to the rail beams (5) by connecting assemblies (27), which are mounted on the posts (2), and the transverse braces (25) are fastened to the connecting assemblies (27).

4. A racking system according to any of claims 1 - 3, characterised in that- the rail beam (5) is made of H-profiles, such that- it has a vertical back plate (9), to which two horizontal rail plates (10), placed above each other, are connected,- there are vertical flanges (11) formed on the ends of the rail plates, with the flanges (11) extending on the top and bottom to the height of the back plate (9), and- the back plate (9) the rail plates (10) and the flanges (11) form rail channels (7) on the top and bottom.

5. A racking system according to any of claims 1 - 4, characterised in that the posts (2) of the pedestal frame (1) are also connected by slant bars (8) between two transverse beams (4) above one another, and the longitudinal beams (3) and the transverse beams (4) are arranged at three separate heights above one another.

6. A racking system according to any of claims 1 - 5, characterised in that in the space of the service aisleway (21) between the racks (A), the posts (2) are connected by horizontal connecting rods (14), with wraparound reinforcement beams fitted onto the posts.

7. A racking system according to any of claims 1 - 6, characterised in that the posts (2), the longitudinal beams (3), the transverse beams (4), the rail beams (5) and the slant bars (8) are made from U-profiles, and- the bracing beams (12) are made of C-profiles,- where the C-profile consists of a vertical back plate and two side plates with flanges, perpendicular to it.

8. A racking system according to any of claims 1 - 7, characterised in that the posts (2) are fitted with extensions (15) at their top ends, which connect the racks (A) placed above one another, forming the levels of the racking system (S).

9. A racking system according to any of claims 1 - 8, characterised in that the posts (2), the longitudinal beams (3), the transverse beams (4), the rail beams (5), the slant bars (8), the bracing beams (12) and the bracing rods (14) have holes (13) in them, into which fasteners, for example, bolts have been placed in order to join these components to one another.

10. A racking system according to any of claims 1 — 9, characterised in that the U-profile post (2) is symmetric to a vertical plane of symmetry, with two lines of holes along this plane of symmetry on the profile’s back (13), onto which the longitudinal beams (3), the rail beams (5) and the bracing beams (12) are fastened by bolted connections, such that the consecutive line of beams are joined from the two sides of the said plane of symmetry, with the transverse beams (4) and the slant bars (8) pushed into the cavity of the post (2), fastened to the post (2) through the line of holes along its sides (13) by bolted connections.

11. A racking system according to any of claims 1 - 10, characterised in that support lugs (16) are bolted (18) to the posts (2), and the transverse beams (4) are fastened to the support lugs, using quick-release bolts (17) for example.

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