CN114435829A

CN114435829A - Transfer robot

Info

Publication number: CN114435829A
Application number: CN202210033995.6A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 徐丹
Original assignee: Beijing Kuangshi Robot Technology Co Ltd
Current assignee: Beijing Kuangshi Robot Technology Co Ltd
Priority date: 2022-01-12
Filing date: 2022-01-12
Publication date: 2022-05-06
Also published as: CN115465589A

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a transfer robot. The transfer robot comprises a walking robot body and a goods shelf, wherein the goods shelf is arranged at the top end of the walking robot body; the goods shelf comprises a vertically arranged frame and a plurality of goods positions arranged on the first side of the plane of the frame, the goods positions are arranged on the frame along the vertical direction, the goods positions comprise a plurality of goods carrying forks arranged at intervals, one end of each goods carrying fork is arranged on the frame, and the other end of each goods carrying fork extends outwards along the direction of the first side; and a rotatable goods taking assembly is arranged on the second side of the plane of the frame and is used for taking and placing goods from the goods space or the target position. This openly can shorten goods transport time, improves handling efficiency.

Description

Transfer robot

Technical Field

The invention relates to the technical field of logistics transportation in general, and in particular relates to a carrying robot.

Background

At present, with the rapid development of the logistics industry, higher requirements are put forward on the cargo handling efficiency. For example, in the process of operation, higher requirements are put forward in each link of transportation, warehousing, storage, sorting, packaging, sorting, ex-warehouse, inventory, distribution and the like.

In the warehousing operation, generally, a transfer robot such as an AGV is used to transfer the goods, for example, the transfer robot transfers the goods from a rack to a predetermined position such as a sorting workstation, or the transfer robot transfers the goods from a stocker to a storage rack.

Therefore, in the warehousing operation with a busy transportation task, how to improve the transportation efficiency of the transportation robot becomes one of the technical problems that needs to be solved at present.

Disclosure of Invention

In order to solve the above problems in the prior art, the present invention provides a transfer robot.

According to a first aspect of embodiments of the present disclosure, there is provided a transfer robot including: the walking robot comprises a walking robot body and a goods shelf, wherein the goods shelf is arranged at the top end of the walking robot body; the goods shelf comprises a vertically arranged frame and a plurality of goods positions arranged on the first side of the plane of the frame, the goods positions are arranged on the frame along the vertical direction, the goods positions comprise a plurality of goods carrying forks arranged at intervals, one end of each goods carrying fork is arranged on the frame, and the other end of each goods carrying fork extends outwards along the direction of the first side; and a rotatable goods taking assembly is arranged on the other side of the goods shelf and is used for taking and placing goods from the goods space or the target position.

In some embodiments, the plurality of load forks are equally spaced apart on the frame.

In some embodiments, the frame comprises a support disposed on the walkable robot body, and a plurality of frames disposed laterally on the support; one end of each carrying fork is fixedly arranged on the frame body.

In some embodiments, the frame comprises a support disposed on the walkable robot body, and a plurality of frames disposed laterally on the support; one end of each carrying fork is movably arranged on the frame body.

In some embodiments, the plurality of shelves may be movably disposed on the shelf.

In some embodiments, the spacing between a plurality of the cargo spaces is adjustable.

In some embodiments, a second side of the plane of the frame is further provided with a rotating assembly; the goods taking assembly is connected with the rotating assembly, and the goods taking assembly is driven to rotate through the rotation of the rotating assembly.

In some embodiments, the walkable robot body comprises an autonomous mobile robot AMR and/or an automatically guided vehicle AGV.

In some embodiments, at the second side, a sliding rail is provided in a vertical direction of the frame; the goods taking assembly is arranged on the sliding rail and moves in the vertical direction along the sliding rail.

In some embodiments, the walking robot body includes walking wheels, and the transfer robot is driven to walk by the rotation of the walking wheels.

The utility model provides a transfer robot is provided with goods shelves on the top of the robot body of can walking, and this goods shelves include the frame of vertical setting to and be provided with a plurality of goods positions in the planar first side in frame place, a plurality of goods positions set up in the frame along vertical direction, can place a plurality of goods through a plurality of goods positions, promptly, once realize the transport of a plurality of goods or workbin, can shorten the goods transport time, improve handling efficiency.

In addition, each cargo space of the transfer robot of the embodiment of the disclosure comprises a plurality of carrying forks arranged at intervals, and the carrying forks can be butted with other docking equipment (such as a lifter) so as to automatically transfer cargoes and the docking equipment; in addition, the carrying robot provided by the embodiment of the disclosure is provided with the rotatable goods taking assembly on the second side of the plane where the frame is located, and the goods can be taken and placed from the goods position or the target position through the goods taking assembly, so that the carrying robot is butted with other equipment, and the goods are automatically taken and placed.

Drawings

The above and other objects, features and advantages of embodiments of the present invention will become readily apparent from the following detailed description read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Several embodiments of the invention are illustrated by way of example, and not by way of limitation, in the figures of the accompanying drawings and in which:

fig. 1 is a schematic structural view of a transfer robot according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a partially enlarged schematic view of a transfer robot provided in an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3A illustrates a front view of a transfer robot interfacing with an elevator according to an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3B illustrates a side view of the transfer robot in a docked state with the lift in accordance with an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3C illustrates a rear view of the transfer robot in a docked state with the lift provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3D illustrates a top view of the transfer robot interfacing with the lift provided by embodiments of the present invention;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram illustrating the engagement of the load forks of a transfer robot with the transfer forks of an elevator provided by an embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating the engagement of the transfer forks of the elevator with the conveyor rollers of the conveyor according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 6 is a schematic flow chart of a cargo handling method according to an embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 7 is a schematic flow chart of a cargo handling method according to another embodiment of the present invention;

fig. 8 is a schematic flow chart of a cargo handling method according to another embodiment of the present invention;

in the drawings, the same or corresponding reference numerals indicate the same or corresponding parts.

Detailed Description

The principles and spirit of the present invention will be described with reference to a number of exemplary embodiments. It is understood that these embodiments are given solely for the purpose of enabling those skilled in the art to better understand and to practice the invention, and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention in any way.

It should be noted that although the expressions "first", "second", etc. are used herein to describe different modules, steps, data, etc. of the embodiments of the present invention, the expressions "first", "second", etc. are merely used to distinguish between different modules, steps, data, etc. and do not indicate a particular order or degree of importance. Indeed, the terms "first," "second," and the like are fully interchangeable.

It should be noted that although expressions such as "front", "back", "left", "right", "top", "bottom", "outside", "inside" and the like are used herein to describe different directions or sides of embodiments of the invention, the expressions such as "front", "back", "left", "right", "top", "bottom", "outside", "inside" and the like are merely for distinguishing between different directions or sides, and do not denote a particular outside or inside. Indeed, the terms "front," "back," "left," "right," "top," "bottom," "outer," "inner," and the like may, in some instances, be used interchangeably at all.

With the development of Intelligent technologies such as internet of things, artificial intelligence and big data, the requirement for transformation and upgrading of the traditional Logistics industry by using the Intelligent technologies is stronger, and Intelligent Logistics (Intelligent Logistics System) becomes a research hotspot in the Logistics field. The intelligent logistics system is widely applied to basic activity links of material transportation, storage, delivery, packaging, loading and unloading, information service and the like by using artificial intelligence, big data, various information sensors, radio frequency identification technology, Global Positioning System (GPS) and other Internet of things devices and technologies, and realizes intelligent analysis and decision, automatic operation and high-efficiency optimization management in the material management process. The internet of things technology comprises sensing equipment, an RFID technology, laser infrared scanning, infrared induction identification and the like, the internet of things can effectively connect materials in logistics with a network, the materials can be monitored in real time, environmental data such as humidity and temperature of a warehouse can be sensed, and the storage environment of the materials is guaranteed. All data in logistics can be sensed and collected through a big data technology, the data are uploaded to an information platform data layer, operations such as filtering, mining and analyzing are carried out on the data, and finally accurate data support is provided for business processes (such as links of transportation, warehousing, storing and taking, sorting, packaging, sorting, ex-warehouse, checking, distribution and the like). The application direction of artificial intelligence in logistics can be roughly divided into two types: 1) the AI technology is used for endowing intelligent equipment such as an unmanned truck, an AGV, an AMR, a forklift, a shuttle, a stacker, an unmanned distribution vehicle, an unmanned aerial vehicle, a service robot, a mechanical arm, an intelligent terminal and the like to replace part of labor; 2) The manual efficiency is improved through a software system such as a transportation equipment management system, a storage management system, an equipment scheduling system, an order distribution system and the like driven by technologies or algorithms such as computer vision, machine learning, operation and research optimization and the like. With the research and progress of intelligent logistics, the technology is applied to a plurality of fields, such as retail and electric commerce, electronic products, tobacco, medicine, industrial manufacturing, shoes and clothes, textile, food and the like.

First, this disclosure has improved a transfer robot, and this transfer robot can walk in the warehouse, realizes the transportation of goods in the warehouse, for example, transports the goods on the goods shelves in the warehouse to work website such as letter sorting equipment, or, transports the goods in buffer memory goods shelves etc. to storage goods shelves etc.. The transfer robot according to the present disclosure is configured by mounting a rack on a transportable robot such as an autonomous mobile robot AMR, an automatic guided vehicle AGV, or a submarine AGV.

In an alternative embodiment, as shown in fig. 1 and 2, the transfer robot 10 includes a walking robot body 11 and a pallet 12, the pallet 12 being disposed on the top end of the walking robot body; the goods shelf 12 comprises a vertically placed frame, a plurality of goods positions 13 are arranged on the first side of the plane of the frame, the goods positions 13 are arranged on the frame along the vertical direction, the goods positions 13 comprise a plurality of goods carrying forks 14 arranged at intervals, one end of each goods carrying fork 14 is arranged on the frame, and the other end of each goods carrying fork 14 extends outwards along the direction of the first side; and a rotatable goods taking assembly is arranged on the second side of the plane of the frame, and the goods taking assembly is used for taking and placing goods from the goods position 13 or the target position.

In the embodiment of the present disclosure, the rotating of the goods-assembling component can realize that the goods-taken component is taken and placed on the goods position 13 of the shelf 12, or the goods taken from the goods position 13 of the shelf 12 is placed on the target position, such as other docking equipment or storage shelf.

In an alternative embodiment, in order to realize the rotation of the goods taking assembly, the second side of the plane of the frame is also provided with a rotating assembly; the goods taking assembly is connected with the rotating assembly and rotates to drive the goods taking assembly to rotate.

In another alternative embodiment, in order to achieve that the picking assembly picks and places the goods from the goods space 13, the picking assembly may also be a two-way telescopic clamping device, for example, when the picking assembly is telescopic in the direction toward the first side, the picking assembly can pick and place the goods from the goods space 13 of the shelf 12, and when the picking assembly is telescopic in the direction toward the second side, the picking assembly can pick and place the goods from the target positions such as the storage shelf and the docking device.

In order to realize carrying a plurality of goods at a time, can be provided with a plurality of goods positions 13 along the vertical direction of frame, like this, a plurality of goods positions 13 are located the different height of frame, and in order to save the cost, get the goods subassembly and can set up one, like this, get the goods subassembly and get in order to realize getting 13 that the goods subassembly corresponds different goods positions and put the goods, get the goods subassembly and need movably set up on the vertical direction of frame.

In an alternative embodiment, on the second side, a sliding rail is provided in the vertical direction of the frame; the goods taking assembly is arranged on the sliding rail and moves in the vertical direction along the sliding rail.

The transfer robot 10 may include a walking robot body 11 and a plurality of cargo spaces 13 provided on the walking robot body 11, the plurality of cargo spaces 13 being provided on the walking robot body 11 in a vertical direction, for example, 5 to 8 cargo spaces 13 may be provided on a shelf 12 extending upward of the walking robot body 11, with a certain distance between the cargo spaces 13 so as to accommodate the cargo. Each cargo space 13 includes a plurality of load forks 14 (shown in fig. 2) spaced apart, the load forks 14 being adapted to carry cargo. A plurality of loading forks 14 corresponding to the same cargo space are located on the same horizontal plane and spaced at a certain distance along the horizontal direction, so as to be conveniently butted with other devices (the cargo space 13 is a fork type), for example, the docking device is butted, and the cargo is transported to the docking device.

Alternatively, in one embodiment, the transfer robot 10 may be docked with a docking device such as the lift 20 or a buffer rack to enable picking and placing of goods. For ease of understanding, the following description will be made by taking a docking device as the elevator 20, and a possible operation of the transfer robot provided in the embodiment of the present disclosure will be described.

In which fig. 3A-3D show schematic views of the transfer robot interfacing with the lift 20. In particular implementations, the spacing between the plurality of load forks 14 of the transfer robot 10 may be adapted to the spacing between the plurality of transfer forks 24 of the lift 20 so that the transfer forks 24 can smoothly pass through the gaps between the load forks 14. Further, the pitch between the plurality of cargo spaces 13 of the transfer robot 10 may be adapted to the pitch between the plurality of stages 23 of the lift 20. The transfer forks 24 are engaged with the carrying forks 14 of the transfer robot 10 to transfer the load on the carrying forks 14 to the transfer forks 24, or transfer the load on the transfer forks 24 to the carrying forks 14, thereby achieving the transfer of the load between the lift 20 and the transfer robot 10.

In a state where the transfer robot 10 and the lifter 20 are docked, the transfer forks 24 of the lifter 20 are positioned above or below the carrying forks 14 of the transfer robot 10, and the plurality of carrying forks 14 and the plurality of transfer forks 24 are horizontally arranged in a staggered manner.

Specifically, at the time of warehousing, the transfer robot 10 receives a plurality of goods-loaded bins from the goods storage position until the plurality of cargo spaces 13 on the transfer robot 10 are filled, and then, the transfer robot 10 transports the plurality of goods-loaded bins 100 to the docking position of the elevator 20 so that the transfer robot 10 docks with the elevator 20, and in this docked state, the plurality of stages 23 of the elevator 20 are located below the cargo spaces 13 of the transfer robot 10 in a one-to-one correspondence (as shown in fig. 3A to 3C), and the plurality of transfer forks 24 of the stages 23 are staggered in the horizontal direction from the carrier forks 14 of the cargo spaces 13 (as shown in fig. 4), so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the spacing gaps between the carrier forks 14. The lifting mechanism 22 is activated to drive the plurality of object stages 23 to ascend, so that the transfer fork 24 of each object stage 23 passes through the corresponding object fork 14 to lift the bins 100 carrying goods on the plurality of cargo spaces 13 at one time and transfer the bins to the plurality of object stages 23, and then the transfer robot 10 can leave the lifter 20 to continue to perform the next transfer task, thereby reducing the waiting time.

For example, in an ex-warehouse scenario, the elevator 20 receives empty boxes from the picking station, the empty boxes are respectively placed on the object stages 23, the transfer robot 10 moves to a docking position with the elevator 20 to dock the transfer robot 10 with the elevator 20, in this docked state, the object stages 23 of the elevator 20 are located above the cargo space 13 of the transfer robot 10 in a one-to-one correspondence (as shown in fig. 3A to 3C), and the transfer forks 24 of the object stages 23 are staggered in a horizontal direction (as shown in fig. 4) with the cargo forks 14 of the cargo space 13 so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the spacing gaps between the cargo forks 14. The lifting mechanism 22 is activated to lower the plurality of object stages 23, so that the transfer fork 24 of each object stage 23 passes through the corresponding object fork 14, and empty boxes on the plurality of object stages 23 are respectively placed on the plurality of object stages 23 of the transfer robot at one time. Then, the transfer robot 10 leaves the elevator 20 and returns to the cargo storage position, reducing the waiting time of the transfer robot 10.

Therefore, in the transfer robot 10 of the present disclosure, since each cargo space is configured by the plurality of the fork parts 14 arranged at intervals, the plurality of the cargos on the transfer robot 10 can be transferred to the carrier 23 at a time, or the plurality of the cargos on the lift 20 can be transferred to the transfer robot 10 at a time, so that the waiting time of the transfer robot 10 is reduced, and the transfer efficiency is improved. For example, 1/3 hours can be saved, and 1/3 numbers of transfer robots 10 can be reduced, thereby reducing the cost and the difficulty of system scheduling.

In one example, a plurality of load forks 14 may be equally spaced on the frame. In particular embodiments, the spacing between the plurality of load forks 14 may be made as large as possible, so that the transfer robot may interface with a variety of different docking apparatuses.

The specific size of the space between the carrying forks 14 can be set according to the actual scene requirement. If the width of the fork of the equipment to which the transfer robot is docked can be set, specifically, the distance between the carrying forks at least can accommodate the fork of the docking equipment, so that the goods docking between the transfer robot and the docking equipment is realized.

In one embodiment, the frame includes a support frame provided on the walking robot body 11, and a plurality of frame bodies provided laterally on the support frame; one end of a plurality of loading forks 14 is fixedly arranged on the frame body.

In an optional embodiment, in order to realize that the transfer robot can be docked with various docking devices, the distances between the plurality of carrying forks 14 are adjustable to adapt to the spacing distances between the plurality of transfer forks 24 corresponding to different docking devices, and meanwhile, the transfer robot can be adaptively adjusted according to the volume sizes of different cargos to stably support the cargos. In another embodiment, the frame includes a support frame provided on the walking robot body 11, and a plurality of frame bodies provided laterally on the support frame; one end of each of the plurality of article carrying forks 14 is movably arranged on the frame body.

In an optional embodiment, one end of the loading fork is slidably arranged on the frame body; or, be provided with a plurality of linkage holes on the support body, can select different linkage holes to connect according to actual demand.

In another example, a plurality of shelves can be movably arranged on the bracket. The interval between a plurality of goods positions 13 is adjustable to make and to do the adaptation adjustment according to the height of different goods, so that when handling goods, avoid goods and goods position 13 to take place to interfere in the direction of height, influence the loading and unloading of goods. For example, the rack body that a plurality of goods positions 13 correspond slidable sets up on the support, and the interval that realizes between a plurality of goods positions 13 through the rack body slides on the support is adjusted, and the rack body that will adjust the interval passes through the fastener to be fixed on the support.

In an alternative embodiment, the walking robot body 11 includes walking wheels, and the transfer robot 10 is driven to walk by the rotation of the walking wheels.

The transfer robot that this disclosed embodiment provided, through with goods shelves setting on the top of the robot of can walking, and goods shelves include the frame of vertical setting to and be provided with a plurality of goods positions in frame place planar first side, a plurality of goods positions set up in the frame along vertical direction, can place a plurality of goods through a plurality of goods positions, promptly, once realize the transport of a plurality of goods or workbin, can shorten the goods handling time, improve handling efficiency. In addition, each cargo space comprises a plurality of carrying forks which are arranged at intervals, and the carrying forks can be butted with other docking equipment (such as a lifter and the like), so that the cargo and the docking equipment can be automatically conveyed; in addition, the carrying robot provided by the embodiment of the disclosure is provided with the rotatable goods taking assembly on the second side of the plane where the frame is located, and the goods can be taken and placed from the goods position or the target position through the goods taking assembly, so that the carrying robot is butted with other equipment, and the goods are automatically taken and placed.

Optionally, in an implementation manner, the transfer robot provided in the embodiments of the present disclosure may be docked with a docking device (e.g., an elevator, a buffer storage rack, or the like), so as to transfer goods in a warehouse. Accordingly, the present disclosure also provides a cargo handling system comprising a docking apparatus and a handling robot 10; the transfer robot 10 is docked with the docking device, so that goods are transferred between the transfer robot and the docking device.

Wherein the docking device may be a lift. The goods can be a bin with goods or an empty bin without goods.

The following will take a docking device as an example, and describe a process of carrying goods by the transfer robot and the docking device in combination with a specific application scenario.

In an alternative application scenario, when warehousing, the transfer robot 10 transports the bin with the goods from the goods storage location to a location where it interfaces with a lift, through which the bin with the goods is transferred to a sorting workstation. When going out of the warehouse, the transfer robot 10 receives the empty bin transferred by the elevator from the sorting work station, and then the transfer robot 10 transports the empty bin to the goods storage location from the sorting work station to return the empty bin.

As shown in fig. 3A-3D, the elevator 20 may include a frame 21, an elevator mechanism 22, and a plurality of stages 23. The elevator 20 may be provided at a position adjacent to the conveyor 30 (shown in fig. 5) of the sorting work station, one side of which receives the goods of the transfer robot 10 and the other side of which transfers the goods to the conveyor 30 of the sorting work station.

The frame 21 supports a lifting mechanism 22 and a plurality of stages 23. The chassis 21 may be positioned adjacent the picking station, extending in a vertical direction.

The plurality of stages 23 are provided in the vertical direction on the frame 21, and the stages 23 can be raised and lowered with respect to the frame 21. Each carrier 23 includes a plurality of spaced transfer forks 24 (shown in fig. 3D), and the transfer forks 24 are used for transferring goods. The spacing between the transfer forks 24 may be adapted to the spacing between the carrier forks 14 of the transfer robot 10 so that the transfer forks 24 can smoothly pass through the gaps between the carrier forks 14. Further, the pitch between the plurality of stages 23 may be adapted to the pitch between the plurality of cargo spaces 13 of the transfer robot 10. The transfer forks 24 are engaged with the carrying forks 14 of the transfer robot 10 to transfer the load on the carrying forks 14 to the transfer forks 24, or transfer the load on the transfer forks 24 to the carrying forks 14, thereby achieving the transfer of the load between the lift 20 and the transfer robot 10.

The elevating mechanism 22 is connected to the stages 23, and drives the plurality of stages 23 to ascend or descend together. The lifting mechanism 22 drives the plurality of object carrying platforms 23 to ascend, the objects on the plurality of goods positions 13 of the transfer robot 10 are transferred to the transfer fork 24 at one time, the lifting mechanism drives the plurality of object carrying platforms 23 to descend, and the objects on the plurality of object carrying platforms 23 are transferred to the plurality of goods positions 13 of the transfer robot 10 at one time, so that the carrying efficiency of the objects is improved.

Specifically, at the time of warehousing, the transfer robot 10 receives a plurality of goods-loaded bins from the goods storage position until the plurality of cargo spaces 13 on the transfer robot 10 are filled, and then, the transfer robot 10 transports the plurality of goods-loaded bins to the docking position of the elevator 20 so that the transfer robot 10 docks with the elevator 20, and in this docked state, the plurality of stages 23 of the elevator 20 are located below the cargo spaces 13 of the transfer robot 10 in a one-to-one correspondence (as shown in fig. 3A to 3C), and the plurality of transfer forks 24 of the stages 23 are horizontally staggered from the carrier forks 14 of the cargo spaces 13 (as shown in fig. 4), so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the spacing gaps between the carrier forks 14. The lifting mechanism 22 is activated to drive the plurality of object stages 23 to ascend, so that the transfer fork 24 of each object stage 23 passes through the corresponding object fork 14 to lift the bins loaded with goods on the plurality of cargo spaces 13 at one time and transfer the bins to the plurality of object stages 23, and then the transfer robot 10 can leave the lifter 20 to continue to execute the next transfer instruction, thereby reducing the waiting time.

When the transfer robot 10 is out of the warehouse, the elevator 20 receives empty boxes from the picking station, the empty boxes are respectively placed on the object stages 23, the transfer robot 10 moves to the docking position with the elevator 20 so that the transfer robot 10 docks with the elevator 20, in the docked state, the object stages 23 of the elevator 20 are located above the cargo space 13 of the transfer robot 10 in one-to-one correspondence (as shown in fig. 3A to 3C), and the transfer forks 24 of the object stages 23 are staggered in the horizontal direction (as shown in fig. 4) with the object forks 14 of the cargo space 13 so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the spacing gaps between the object forks 14. The lifting mechanism 22 is activated to lower the plurality of object stages 23, so that the transfer fork 24 of each object stage 23 passes through the corresponding object fork 14, and empty boxes on the plurality of object stages 23 are respectively placed on the plurality of object stages 23 of the transfer robot at one time. Then, the transfer robot 10 leaves the elevator 20 and returns to the cargo storage position, reducing the waiting time of the transfer robot 10.

Therefore, in the elevator 20 of the present disclosure, the transfer forks 24 provided at a plurality of intervals for each carrier 23 can transfer a plurality of loads on the transfer robot 10 to the carriers 23 at one time, or transfer a plurality of loads on the elevator 20 to the transfer robot 10 at one time, thereby reducing the waiting time of the transfer robot 10 and improving the transfer efficiency. For example, 1/3 hours can be saved, and 1/3 handling robots can be reduced, thereby reducing the cost and the difficulty of system scheduling.

In one example, the spacing between the plurality of transfer forks 24 is adjustable to accommodate the spacing between the plurality of load forks 14 of different transfer robots 10, and can be adjusted to accommodate different loads for stable support. For example, the plurality of transfer forks 24 are respectively sleeved on a shaft rod extending in the horizontal direction, the distance between the plurality of transfer forks 24 is adjusted by sliding fit between the transfer forks 24 and the shaft rod, and the transfer forks 24 with the adjusted distance are fixed on the shaft rod through fasteners.

In another example, the distance between the plurality of object stages 23 is adjustable to adapt to the spacing distance between the plurality of cargo spaces 13 of different transfer robots 10, and can be adjusted adaptively according to the heights of different cargos, so that when the cargos are loaded and unloaded, the cargos and the object stages 23 are prevented from interfering in the height direction and affecting the loading and unloading of the cargos. For example, a shaft extending in the vertical direction is sleeved between the plurality of stages 23, and the stages 23 with the adjusted distance are fixed on the shaft by a fastener by realizing the distance adjustment between the plurality of stages 23 through the sliding fit of the stages 23 and the shaft.

In some embodiments, as shown in fig. 3A-3C, the lift mechanism 22 may include a lift assembly and a drive motor. The lifting assembly is connected with a plurality of object stages 23; the driving motor is connected with the lifting assembly, and drives the lifting assembly to drive the plurality of object stages 23 to ascend or descend.

For example, the lifting assembly may include a drive wheel, a driven wheel, and a transmission. The driving wheels and the driven wheels are arranged on the frame 21 at intervals in the vertical direction, the driving wheels are connected with an output shaft of the driving motor, and the transmission part is wound between the driving wheels and the driven wheels. Wherein a plurality of object tables 23 are fixed on the transmission in the vertical direction. The transfer forks 24 of the object carrier 23 comprise opposite connecting ends, which are fixed to the transmission elements, and free ends, which extend in the horizontal direction.

In a state where the transfer robot 10 is docked with the lift 20, the extension direction of the transfer forks 24 is opposite to the extension direction of the loading forks 14, so that the plurality of transfer forks 24 and the plurality of loading forks 14 can pass in the vertical direction.

Driving motor fixes in frame 21, and driving motor rotates and drives the drive wheel and rotate, drives the driving medium and follows the driving wheel and rotate to a plurality of objective tables 23 rise or descend with the counter rotating member.

The transmission medium is around locating between drive wheel and the follow driving wheel, and the transmission medium is a closed ellipse shape, can set up a plurality of objective tables 23 of arranging along vertical direction respectively in the both sides portion of transmission medium. When the transmission member rotates counterclockwise, the plurality of object stages 23 located on one side portion of the transmission member descend, and the plurality of object stages 23 located on the other side portion of the transmission member ascend, so that the plurality of object stages 23 on the transmission member can rotate continuously and circularly around the elliptical orbit. Wherein, a plurality of object stages 23 of one side of the transmission member are used for being butted with the goods space 13 of the transfer robot 10, and a plurality of object stages 23 of the other side of the transmission member are used for being butted with the sorting work station.

For example, the driving and driven wheels may be sprockets and the transmission member may be a chain. Or the driving wheel and the driven wheel can be belt wheels, and the transmission part can be a belt.

Optionally, in an embodiment, the elevator may also interface with a conveyor, such as the conveyor shown in fig. 5, which may be used to receive the goods of the elevator 20 according to any of the above embodiments, or transfer the goods to the elevator 20 according to any of the above embodiments, wherein the conveyor 30 includes an inbound conveyor line 31, and the inbound conveyor line 31 includes: a carriage 33 and a plurality of transport rollers 34. Further, the conveyor 30 further includes an outbound conveyor line 32 engaged with the inbound conveyor line 31 for conveying the goods conveyed from the inbound conveyor line.

The conveying frame 33 is used for supporting conveying rollers 34, and the conveying rollers 34 are arranged at the picking work station position, and are arranged on the conveying frame 33 in a spacing and rotatable mode along the horizontal direction. The plurality of conveying rollers 34 may be located on the same horizontal plane and arranged at intervals in the horizontal direction.

The spacing between the plurality of transfer rollers 34 may be adapted to the spacing between the plurality of transfer forks 24 of the elevator 20 so that the transfer forks 24 can smoothly pass through the gaps between the plurality of transfer rollers 34. The transfer fork 24 is matched with a plurality of conveying rollers 34, so that the goods on the transfer fork 24 are transferred to the conveying rollers 34, the goods transfer between the elevator 20 and the inbound conveying line 31 is realized, or the goods on the inbound conveying line 31 are transferred to the transfer fork 24.

In a state where the lifter 20 is butted against the inbound conveyor line 31, the plurality of transfer forks 24 and the plurality of conveying rollers 34 are arranged alternately in the horizontal direction, wherein the state where the lifter 20 is butted against the inbound conveyor line 31 corresponds to the positions of the transfer forks 24 and the plurality of conveying rollers 34 of the lifter 20 in the vertical direction.

The connecting end of the conveying roller 34 is rotatably connected to the conveying frame 33, and the free end of the conveying roller 34 extends in a horizontal direction, wherein the free end of the transfer fork 24 extends in a direction opposite to the direction in which the free end of the conveying roller 34 extends in a state in which the elevator 20 is docked with the inbound conveying line 31, so that the plurality of transfer forks 24 and the plurality of conveying rollers 34 can pass through in a vertically staggered manner.

Specifically, when the goods are put in storage, the elevator 20 is in butt joint with the incoming conveyor line 31, the plurality of object stages 23 are located above the plurality of conveying rollers 34, and the plurality of transfer forks 24 of the object stages 23 and the plurality of conveying rollers 34 are arranged in a staggered manner in the horizontal direction, so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the gap between the plurality of conveying rollers 34, and a plurality of bins loaded with goods are placed on the incoming conveyor line 31 one by one. The elevator 20 is started to drive the plurality of object stages 23 to descend, so that the plurality of transfer forks 24 positioned at the lowermost end penetrate through gaps among the plurality of conveying rollers 34, the lowermost bin carrying the commodities is placed on the plurality of conveying rollers 34 of the entering conveying line 31 to wait for sorting by sorting personnel, then the elevator 20 stops driving the object stages 23 to descend, after the plurality of conveying rollers 34 convey the lowermost bin carrying the commodities to the position away from the entering conveying line 31, the elevator 20 continues to drive the object stages 23 to descend so as to place the next bin carrying the commodities on the object stages 23 on the plurality of conveying rollers 34 of the entering conveying line 31, and therefore the plurality of bins carrying the commodities on the object stages 23 are placed on the entering conveying line 31 one by one for sorting.

When the empty box is delivered from the warehouse, the elevator 20 is in butt joint with the incoming conveying line 31, at least one of the object stages 23 is positioned below the conveying rollers 34, and the transfer forks 24 of the object stage 23 and the conveying rollers 34 are arranged in a staggered mode in the horizontal direction, so that the transfer forks 24 can penetrate through the gaps among the conveying rollers 34, and the empty boxes are transferred to the object stage 23 one by one. The empty case that delivery line 32 conveyed is received to incoming transfer line 31, lift 20 starts, it rises to drive objective table 23, the switching fork 24 of objective table 23 passes a plurality of conveying rollers 34, mention the empty case, shift to on objective table 23, make the empty case leave incoming transfer line 31, later, lift 20 stops to drive objective table 23 and rises, when treating that next empty case enters into a plurality of conveying rollers 34 of incoming transfer line 31, lift 20 continues to start to drive objective table 23 and rises and shift next empty case to next objective table 23, thereby shift a plurality of empty cases to on objective table 23 of lift 20 one by one.

According to the present disclosure, there is also provided a cargo handling system, including a handling robot 10, an elevator 20 and a conveyor 30, wherein the handling robot 10 is the handling robot 10 according to any one of the embodiments, the elevator 20 is the elevator 20 according to any one of the embodiments, and the conveyor 30 is the conveyor 30 according to any one of the embodiments.

When the goods are put in storage, the transfer robot 10 conveys bins loaded with goods to the elevator 20, and the elevator 20 transfers the bins loaded with goods conveyed by the transfer robot 10 to the conveyor 30, so that sorting personnel sort the goods at the incoming conveying line 31 of the conveyor 30.

Specifically, the transfer robot 10 receives a plurality of goods-loaded bins from the goods storage position until the plurality of cargo spaces 13 on the transfer robot 10 are filled, and then the transfer robot 10 transports the plurality of goods-loaded bins to the docking position of the elevator 20 so that the transfer robot 10 docks with the elevator 20, and in this docked state, the plurality of stages 23 of the elevator 20 are located below the cargo spaces 13 of the transfer robot 10 in a one-to-one correspondence (as shown in fig. 3A to 3C), and the plurality of transfer forks 24 of the stages 23 are staggered in the horizontal direction from the carrier forks 14 of the cargo spaces 13 (as shown in fig. 4), so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the spacing gaps between the carrier forks 14. The lifting mechanism 22 is activated to drive the plurality of object stages 23 to ascend, so that the transfer fork 24 of each object stage 23 passes through the corresponding object fork 14 to lift the bins loaded with goods on the plurality of cargo spaces 13 at one time and transfer the bins to the plurality of object stages 23, and then the transfer robot 10 can leave the lifter 20 to continue to execute the next transfer instruction, thereby reducing the waiting time. Next, the elevator 20 is abutted to the incoming conveyor line 31, the plurality of stages 23 are positioned above the plurality of conveying rollers 34, and the plurality of transfer forks 24 of the stages 23 and the plurality of conveying rollers 34 are staggered in the horizontal direction, so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the gaps between the plurality of conveying rollers 34, and the plurality of bins loaded with the commodities are placed one by one on the incoming conveyor line 31. The elevator 20 is started to drive the plurality of object stages 23 to descend, so that the plurality of transfer forks 24 positioned at the lowermost end penetrate through gaps among the plurality of conveying rollers 34, the lowermost bin carrying the commodities is placed on the plurality of conveying rollers 34 of the entering conveying line 31 to wait for sorting by sorting personnel, then the elevator 20 stops driving the object stages 23 to descend, after the plurality of conveying rollers 34 convey the lowermost bin carrying the commodities to the position away from the entering conveying line 31, the elevator 20 continues to drive the object stages 23 to descend so as to place the next bin carrying the commodities on the object stages 23 on the plurality of conveying rollers 34 of the entering conveying line 31, and therefore the plurality of bins carrying the commodities on the object stages 23 are placed on the entering conveying line 31 one by one for sorting.

When the empty box is delivered from the warehouse, the empty box is transferred to the inbound transport line 31 by the outbound transport line 32 of the conveyor 30, the empty box transferred to the inbound transport line 31 is transferred to the transfer robot 10 by the elevator 20, and the empty box is transported to the cargo storage location by the transfer robot 10.

The elevator 20 is butted against the inbound conveyor line 31, at least one of the plurality of stages 23 is positioned below the plurality of conveyor rollers 34, and the plurality of transfer forks 24 of the stage 23 are staggered from the plurality of conveyor rollers 34 in a horizontal direction so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the gaps between the plurality of conveyor rollers 34 to transfer empty cases one by one to the stage 23. The empty case that delivery line 32 conveyed is received to incoming transfer line 31, lift 20 starts, it rises to drive objective table 23, the switching fork 24 of objective table 23 passes a plurality of conveying rollers 34, mention the empty case, shift to on objective table 23, make the empty case leave incoming transfer line 31, later, lift 20 stops to drive objective table 23 and rises, when treating that next empty case enters into a plurality of conveying rollers 34 of incoming transfer line 31, lift 20 continues to start to drive objective table 23 and rises and shift next empty case to next objective table 23, thereby shift a plurality of empty cases to on objective table 23 of lift 20 one by one.

There is also provided according to the present disclosure a method 200 of cargo handling, as shown in fig. 6, employing an elevator 20 as described in any of the embodiments above. The cargo conveying method 200 includes steps S21 and S22:

in step S21, in response to the receiving command, the lifting mechanism of the elevator 20 is controlled to lift the transfer platforms, so as to transfer the cargos to the transfer forks 24 of the object platforms 23.

The pick-up instruction may include an in-storage pick-up instruction, which may be an instruction triggered by the transfer robot 10 reaching the docking position of the elevator 20.

In response to the warehousing goods receiving instruction, the elevator 20 is controlled to dock with the transfer robot 10, so that the transfer forks 24 of the elevator 20 are positioned below the carrying forks 14 of the transfer robot 10, and the carrying forks 14 and the transfer forks 24 are staggered in the horizontal direction.

The elevator 20 is docked with the transfer robot 10, and the plurality of stages 23 of the elevator 20 are located below the cargo space 13 of the transfer robot 10 in a one-to-one correspondence (as shown in fig. 3A to 3C). The plurality of load forks 14 are horizontally staggered from the plurality of transfer forks 24 so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the spacing gaps between the load forks 14.

The elevating mechanism controlling the elevator 20 moves the plurality of stages 23 upward, and transfers the plurality of loads on the transfer robot 10 to the plurality of transfer forks 24, respectively.

The elevating mechanism of the elevator 20 drives the plurality of object stages 23 to ascend, so that the transfer fork 24 of each object stage 23 passes through the corresponding object fork 14, and the bins loaded with goods on the plurality of cargo spaces 13 are lifted at one time and transferred to the plurality of object stages 23. Thus, the transfer robot 10 can leave the elevator 20 to continue executing the next transfer instruction, reducing the waiting time.

In step S22, in response to the unload command, the elevating mechanism of the elevator 20 is controlled to lower the plurality of stages 23, and the plurality of loads carried by the transfer forks 24 are placed on the conveyor or the transfer robot.

The unloading command includes an entering unloading command, which may be a command for the stage 23 of the elevator 20 to start upon receiving the load conveyed by the transfer robot 10.

In response to the warehousing unloading command, the elevator 20 is controlled to interface with the inbound conveying line 31 of the conveyor 30, the transfer fork 24 of the elevator 20 is positioned above the conveying roller 34 of the inbound conveying line 31, and the plurality of transfer forks 24 are staggered in the horizontal direction with the plurality of conveying rollers 34 of the conveyor 30, so that the transfer fork 24 can pass through the spacing gap between the plurality of conveying rollers 34. The elevating mechanism of the elevator 20 is controlled to drive the plurality of stages 23 to descend, and the plurality of goods transferred by the transfer forks 24 are sequentially placed on the inbound conveyor line of the conveyor 30.

The system can receive a goods arrival instruction, and controls the lifting mechanism of the lifter 20 to stop driving the object stage 23 to descend according to the received goods arrival instruction so as to wait for goods placed on the arrival conveying line 31 to leave the arrival conveying line 31, wherein the goods arrival instruction is an instruction triggered by the fact that the goods on the transfer fork 24 contact the arrival conveying line 31;

and receiving a goods outbound instruction, controlling the lifting mechanism of the lifter 20 to continuously drive the object stage 23 to descend according to the received goods outbound instruction, and placing the goods transferred by the next transfer fork 24 on the inbound conveying line 31 of the conveyor 30, wherein the goods outbound instruction is an instruction triggered by the fact that the goods of the inbound conveying line 31 leave the inbound conveying line. Thereby transferring the plurality of goods one by one to the inbound conveyor line 31 for the picker to sort the goods.

In some embodiments, the pick-up instructions further comprise ex-warehouse pick-up instructions comprising: in response to the delivery and receiving instruction, the elevator 20 is controlled to interface with the incoming conveyor line 31 of the conveyor 30, so that the transfer forks 24 of the elevator are positioned below the conveying rollers 34 of the incoming conveyor line 31, and the plurality of transfer forks 24 are horizontally staggered with the plurality of conveying rollers 34 of the incoming conveyor line 31, so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the spaced gaps between the plurality of conveying rollers 34. The elevating mechanism is controlled to drive the plurality of object stages 23 to ascend, and the plurality of goods on the station-entering conveying line 31 of the conveyor 30 are sequentially loaded on the transfer forks 24 of the plurality of object stages 23.

The goods outbound instruction can be received, and the lifting mechanism of the lifter 20 is controlled to stop driving the object stage 23 to ascend and descend according to the received goods outbound instruction, wherein the goods outbound instruction is an instruction triggered by the goods on the inbound conveying line 31 leaving a plurality of conveying rollers;

receiving a cargo arrival instruction, controlling the lifting mechanism of the lifter 20 to continuously drive the objective table 23 to ascend according to the received cargo arrival instruction, transferring the cargo of the next arrival conveying line to the transfer pallet fork 24 of the objective table 23, wherein the cargo arrival instruction is an instruction triggered when the cargo on the transfer pallet fork 24 contacts the arrival conveying line.

In one embodiment, the unloading command further includes an unloading command, and in response to the unloading command, the elevator 20 is controlled to interface with the transfer robot 10, such that the transfer forks 24 of the elevator 20 are located above the carrying forks 14 of the transfer robot 10, and the carrying forks 14 and the transfer forks 24 are horizontally staggered, so that the transfer forks 24 can pass through the spacing gaps between the carrying forks 14; the lifting mechanism of the control lifter 20 drives the plurality of object carrying platforms 23 to ascend, and the plurality of cargos on the plurality of transfer forks 24 are respectively placed on the object carrying forks 14 of the transfer robot 10, so that the cargos on the plurality of object carrying platforms 23 are transferred to the plurality of cargo spaces 13 at one time, the waiting time of the transfer robot 10 is shortened, and the transfer efficiency is improved.

According to the present disclosure, there is also provided a cargo handling method 300, as shown in fig. 7, applied to the handling robot 10 of any one of the above embodiments, the cargo handling method 300 including steps S31 and S32.

In step S31, in response to a delivery instruction, controlling the transfer robot 10 to move to a docking position with the elevator 20 and issuing a delivery instruction, wherein the delivery instruction includes an in-warehouse delivery instruction and/or an out-warehouse delivery instruction; in step S32, a receiving completion command corresponding to the receiving command is received, and the transfer robot is controlled to leave the docking position.

The delivery instruction includes an in-storage delivery instruction, and in response to the in-storage delivery instruction, the transfer robot 10 is controlled to move to the docking position with the elevator 20, and the delivery instruction is issued such that the transfer forks 24 of the elevator 20 are positioned below the carrying forks 14 of the transfer robot 10, and the carrying forks 14 and the transfer forks 24 are horizontally arranged in a staggered manner. After the butt joint is completed, a goods receiving instruction is sent to the lifter 20, the lifting mechanism of the lifter 20 drives the plurality of object carrying platforms 23 to ascend, so that the transfer fork 24 of each object carrying platform 23 penetrates through the corresponding object carrying fork 14, and the bins carrying goods on the plurality of goods positions 13 are lifted at one time and transferred to the plurality of object carrying platforms 23.

Then, the transfer robot 10 receives the delivery completion instruction corresponding to the warehousing delivery instruction, controls the transfer robot 10 to leave the docking position, and allows the transfer robot 10 to continue executing the next transfer instruction, thereby reducing the waiting time.

The delivery instruction includes an out-of-stock delivery instruction, controls the transfer robot 10 to move to the docking position with the elevator 20 in response to the out-of-stock delivery instruction, and issues a pick-up instruction such that the transfer forks 24 of the elevator 20 are positioned above the carrying forks 14 of the transfer robot 10 and the carrying forks 14 and the transfer forks 24 are horizontally staggered. After the butt joint is completed, a goods receiving instruction is sent to the lifter 20, the lifting mechanism of the lifter 20 drives the plurality of object carrying platforms 23 to ascend, so that the transfer fork 24 of each object carrying platform 23 penetrates through the corresponding object carrying fork 14, and the bins carrying goods of the plurality of object carrying platforms 23 are lifted at one time and transferred to the plurality of goods spaces 13. Then, the transfer robot 10 receives the delivery completion instruction corresponding to the delivery receipt instruction, and controls the transfer robot 10 to leave the docking position and return to the cargo storage position, thereby reducing the waiting time of the transfer robot 10.

There is also provided a cargo handling method 400 according to the present disclosure, as shown in fig. 8, applied to the conveyor 30 according to any of the above embodiments, the cargo handling method 400 including steps S41 and S42.

In step S41, receiving the information of the goods on the inbound conveyor line 31, and sending an inbound signal to the elevator 20;

the elevating system of elevator 20 drives objective table 23 and descends, and when shifting the goods to the transfer chain 31 of entering a station, sends the signal of entering a station to elevator 20, and elevator 20's elevating system stops to drive objective table 23 and descends to the goods of letter sorting personnel on the transfer chain 31 of entering a station are sorted.

In step S42, the plurality of conveying rollers 34 of the inbound conveying line 31 are controlled to rotate based on the received information on the load, so that the load is separated from the inbound conveying line 31, and an outbound signal is sent to the elevator 20.

When the goods leaves the inbound conveying line 31, at this moment, the goods sorting of inbound conveying line 31 is completed, the goods leaves the inbound conveying line 31, the elevator 20 continues to drive the objective table 23 to descend according to the received outbound signal, and the next goods are transferred to the inbound conveying line until the goods are placed into the inbound conveying line 31 one by one.

In one embodiment, the cargo handling method 400 further includes controlling the outbound conveyor lines of the conveyor to convey the cargo to the inbound conveyor lines in response to the outbound command, and issuing the outbound pick-up command to the elevator 20.

The sorted empty box needs to be conveyed to a goods storage position, the system conveyor controls the outbound conveying line 32 to convey the empty box to the inbound conveying line 31 according to a received outbound command, and sends the outbound goods receiving command to the elevator 20, so that the elevator 20 is in butt joint with the inbound conveying line 31 according to the received outbound goods receiving command, the empty box is transferred to the transfer robot 10, and the empty box is conveyed to the goods storage position through the transfer robot 10.

The foregoing description of the implementation of the invention has been presented for purposes of illustration and description. It is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to the precise form disclosed, and modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teachings or may be acquired from practice of the invention. The embodiments were chosen and described in order to explain the principles of the invention and its practical application to enable one skilled in the art to utilize the invention in various embodiments and with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

Claims

1. A transfer robot, characterized by comprising: the walking robot comprises a walking robot body and a goods shelf, wherein the goods shelf is arranged at the top end of the walking robot body;

the goods shelf comprises a vertically arranged frame and a plurality of goods places arranged on the first side of the plane where the frame is located, the goods places are arranged on the frame along the vertical direction, each goods place comprises a plurality of goods carrying forks arranged at intervals, one end of each goods carrying fork is arranged on the frame, and the other end of each goods carrying fork extends outwards along the direction of the first side;

and a rotatable goods taking assembly is arranged on the second side of the plane of the frame and is used for taking and placing goods from the goods space or the target position.

2. The transfer robot of claim 1, wherein the plurality of carrier forks are equally spaced apart from each other on the frame.

3. A transfer robot as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the frame comprises a support provided on the walking robot body, and a plurality of shelves provided laterally on the support;

one end of each carrying fork is fixedly arranged on the frame body.

4. A transfer robot as claimed in claim 1 or 2, wherein the frame comprises a support provided on the walking robot body, and a plurality of shelves provided laterally on the support;

one end of each carrying fork is movably arranged on the frame body.

5. The transfer robot of claim 3 or 4, wherein the plurality of shelves are movably disposed on the rack.

6. The transfer robot of claim 1, wherein a spacing between the plurality of cargo spaces is adjustable.

7. A transfer robot according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein a second side of the plane of the frame is further provided with a rotating assembly;

the goods taking assembly is connected with the rotating assembly, and the goods taking assembly is driven to rotate through the rotation of the rotating assembly.

8. Transfer robot according to any of claims 1-7, characterized in that the walkable robot body comprises an autonomous mobile robot AMR and/or an automatic guided vehicle AGV.

9. A transfer robot according to any one of claims 1-8, wherein at the second side, a slide rail is provided in a vertical direction of the frame;

the goods taking assembly is arranged on the sliding rail and moves in the vertical direction along the sliding rail.

10. The transfer robot of any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the walking robot body includes walking wheels, and the transfer robot is moved by rotation of the walking wheels.