Patent ID: 9598236
Date: 2017-03-21
CPC Classifications: B65G

Claim:
1. A transfer device comprising: an arm configured to stretch forward along a front-and-rear direction to unload an article placed on at least one of a first placement area and a second placement area onto a shelf, the second placement area being positioned ahead of the first placement area, and configured to retract rearward along the front-and-rear direction to load the article placed on the shelf onto at least one of the first placement area and the second placement area; and a controller configured or programmed to control movement of the arm; wherein the arm includes: the controller is configured or programmed to store a relative position of the arm with respect to the article on the second placement area where the second hook enters the second abutment position; the controller is configured or programmed to retract the arm to the stored relative position of the arm with respect to the article after the article placed on the first placement area is unloaded onto the shelf and the article placed on the second placement area is unloaded onto the shelf, such that the second hook is spaced apart from the front end of the article unloaded onto the shelf from the first placement area and the second hook is spaced apart from the rear end of the article unloaded onto the shelf from the second placement area; and the controller is configured or programmed to remove the second hook from the second abutment position with the second hook being spaced apart from the front end of the article unloaded onto the shelf from the first placement area and with the second hook being spaced apart from the rear end of the article unloaded onto the shelf from the second placement area.