Patent ID: 8928481
Filing Date: 2015-01-06
Classification: B65G

Abstract:
1. An article storage equipment comprising: a storage section including a plurality of arranged storage units each for supporting and receiving an article storage container; conveying means movable in a direction of arranging the storage units within an article transporting space defined in a front side of the storage section and having transfer means operable to transfer the article storage container to the storage units; and control means for controlling operation of the conveying means, the transfer means having an article supporting member movable between a retracted position in the article transporting space and a projecting position to project into each of the storage units and also vertically movable for receiving the article storage container, the article supporting member being used in a fetching process for taking out the article storage container placed on any of the storage units and in a storing process for storing the article storage container placed on the article supporting member in any of the storage units; the storage units each having a plate-like member made of metal for receiving the article storage container to be stored, the plate-like member having an opening through which the article supporting member in the projecting position vertically passes, the control means being configured to control the operation of the conveying means to extend the article supporting member to the projecting position at a fetching level lower than the plate-like member of the storage unit by a fixed amount, raise the article supporting member to a target fetching level higher than the fetching level by a raised amount for fetching, and then withdraw the article supporting member to the retracted position when the fetching process is performed, wherein the article storage container has a passive-type RFID tag storing identification information of the article storage container and provided in a portion of an outer periphery of the article storage container overlapping above the plate-like member with the article storage container being placed on the storage unit, the article supporting member has an RFID reader for reading out the identification information stored in the RFID tag, and the control means is configured to perform a reading-out operation process for controlling the operation of the conveying means when execution of an article confirmation process for allowing the RFID reader to read out the identification information of the RFID tag provided in the article storage container stored in the storage unit is instructed to extend the article supporting member to the projecting position at the fetching level, raise the article supporting member to a target reading-out level higher than the fetching level by a raised amount for reading, and then lower the article supporting member to the fetching level to be withdrawn to the retracted position.