Routed Order Picking Area for Automated Storage Bottleneck Reduction
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing order fulfillment systems in storage facilities face bottlenecks due to excessive direct exchanges between back-to-back racks, leading to reduced throughput and inefficiencies, especially when handling orders with many items stored in multiple aisles or requiring high numbers of exchanges.
Innovation Solution
Orders requiring many exchanges are reassigned to a routed products order picking area, where they are fulfilled in parallel, reducing the need for cross-aisle transfers and optimizing the use of automated storage and retrieval devices, while manual picking stations with put-walls handle items efficiently, allowing for increased throughput without additional investment.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If direct exchanges between back-to-back racks are used to fulfill orders with many items, then order fulfillment capability is improved, but system bottleneck and reduced throughput occur
Solution Approach 1:
The system segments orders into two categories: simple orders fulfilled through automated direct exchanges between back-to-back racks, and complex orders with many items routed to manual picking stations. This segmentation allows the automated system to handle high-volume simple orders efficiently while complex orders are processed in parallel through manual stations, preventing system bottlenecks and maintaining overall throughput.
2Speed
If automated storage and retrieval devices are used for high-speed operations, then retrieval performance is improved, but bottleneck occurs when handling orders requiring many cross-aisle transfers
Solution Approach 1:
Manual picking stations with put-walls serve as intermediary processing points for complex orders. These stations receive items from automated storage racks via the routing conveyor, allow manual assembly of multi-item orders, and return completed orders to the system. This intermediary approach prevents the automated retrieval system from becoming overwhelmed by complex orders requiring numerous cross-aisle transfers.
3Adaptability or versatility
If manual picking stations are used to handle complex orders, then flexibility and adaptability are improved, but additional space and infrastructure are required
Solution Approach 1:
The system merges automated storage racks with manual picking stations into an integrated hybrid facility. The automated racks provide high-speed retrieval for simple orders, while attached manual picking stations with put-walls handle complex orders. This merging allows the facility to maintain high adaptability for different order types without requiring completely separate automated and manual facilities, optimizing space utilization.
Data Source
AI summary
A method of fulfilling orders by making orders available in order units by picking from product units in a storage facility that includes a routed product order picking area, and an automated storage and retrieval racking area that is upstream from the routed products order picking area and connected thereto by a routing conveyor. The method includes reassigning order fulfillment of orders requiring products from product units requiring many exchanges between adjoining storage racks from a source storage rack to an adjacent storage rack via cross conveyance locations in the storage racks themselves to reach a destination storage rack, where the orders are reassigned to the routed products order picking area for parallel order fulfillment such that bottlenecks within the automated storage and retrieval racking area can be prevented or at least decreased.