Patent ID: 9475649
Filing Date: 2016-10-25
CPC Classification: B65G

Claim Text:
1. A pickface builder for a storage and retrieval system for storing goods units and having an in-feed conveyor and a picking device, each goods unit holding at least one product package therein, the pickface builder comprising: a frame; a pusher member movably coupled to the frame; and a snugger member movably coupled to the frame, wherein the pickface builder is configured to receive goods units from the in-feed conveyor and the pusher member and snugger member are movable at least in a direction transverse to a direction of goods unit travel on the in-feed conveyor and configured to form more than one of the goods units into a pickface picked by the picking device as a unit and having a predetermined reference datum, formed by relative movement between the pusher member and the snugger member, the relative movement simultaneously creating the predetermined reference datum and its position reference embodied therein so that the position reference of the predetermined reference datum embodies a structural positioning reference feature that defines a corresponding structural positioning reference feature intrinsic to the pickface and is common to the more than one of the goods units forming the pickface, so as to relate each of the more than one of the goods units forming the pickface to a respective placement position of each of the goods units forming the pickface and placed as a unit along a storage surface of the storage and retrieval system.