Recirculating Gantry System for Automated Sortation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Current materials handling facilities face high labor costs and error-prone manual sortation processes when grouping items for shipment, leading to slow throughput and inefficiencies in sorting and pallet building.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of recirculating gantry systems that automate the sortation and pallet building process by using overhead gantries with actuators to retrieve items from multiple picking locations and deposit them into corresponding stowage locations, allowing for high-throughput automated sorting and reduced labor costs.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If manual sortation is used to group items for shipment, then flexibility in handling various item types is maintained, but labor costs increase and throughput decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The system uses self-service mechanisms where items are automatically identified by scanners, routed by the control system based on destination, and deposited by robotic actuators without human intervention. The gantry system serves itself by continuously recirculating and picking up new items after depositing previous ones.
Solution Approach 2:
Manual mechanical sortation operations are replaced with an automated gantry system that uses robotic actuators, overhead conveyors, and computer-controlled mechanisms to perform picking, sorting, and depositing functions that were previously done manually.
2Productivity
If multiple pickers are deployed to handle different picking locations simultaneously, then throughput increases, but system complexity and coordination requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
Multiple picking operations are merged into a single integrated gantry system. The gantry combines multiple actuators and picking mechanisms into one coordinated unit that can service multiple locations simultaneously, eliminating the need for separate pickers at each location.
Solution Approach 2:
The single gantry is designed with multi-functionality to perform picking operations at multiple different locations along its travel path. It can deposit items at various stowage locations and retrieve items from different conveyors, making one device capable of doing the work of multiple specialized devices.
3Manufacturing precision
If automated gantry systems are implemented for sortation, then labor costs decrease and precision increases, but initial system complexity and infrastructure requirements increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates feedback mechanisms through item scanners that identify items and their destinations, and control systems that monitor gantry position and actuator operations. This feedback enables precise control and tracking of each item throughout the sortation process.
Solution Approach 2:
The control system acts as an intermediary between the physical gantry mechanisms and the sortation logic. It processes item identification data, determines routing decisions, and coordinates the physical actions of the gantry and actuators to achieve precise sortation.
Data Source
AI summary
Disclosed are various embodiments for a recirculating gantry system operating in parallel with multiple actuators on one or more gantries. A plurality of items are retrieved from a plurality of picking locations via a plurality of actuators disposed on a gantry spanning the picking locations. The gantry is moved along a horizontal track toward a plurality of stowage locations. The gantry is centered on the horizontal track. Individual items are deposited in respective ones of the stowage locations via the plurality of actuators as the gantry moves over the stowage locations.