DISPENSING STORAGE

Abstract: The object of this invention is a paternoster-type dispensing storage, for instance for assembly parts. The parts to be stored are placed in units (5) supported by the paternoster mechanism. The units can be guided in a controlled manner to a dispensing/supplementing station of the storage, and can be swung out at this station in order to bring a specific article batch to the picking out/supplementing point of the dispensing/supplementing station.

Description: Dispensing storage The object of this invention is a dispensing storage for storing and dispensing of articles that are stored as batches of which each contains only one kind of articles. The storing and dispensing for assembly of assembly parts is mentioned as a particular application example of the invention. The basic structure of the storage is comprised of stora¬ ge units supported in a controlled manner on an endless, vertical circulating system; i.e. the said structure is based on the known paternoster construction. In storages based on the said structure it is known to controll an individual storage unit to a dispensing sta¬ tion on the basis of its own address. Similarly, the goods to be stored can be fed to their own storage stati- on by calling the storage place to the supplementing sta¬ tion. In the event that the storage is employed for the storage and dispensing of articles of which there are several kinds arranged in small storage batches of the particular kind, the rational use of the storage space necessitates several of the said batches to be located in one basic storage unit. Thus, each basic storage unit, as each of the paternoster storage shelves, has its own sub-storage system. As an example of the storage of the kind can be mentioned the componenet storage for the assembly of electronics devices. Articles of the said kind can be brought to the dispens- ing point by calling to the dispensing station the basic storage unit containing the storage batch of the desired article. The party in need of the article must then pick up the desired article or number of these articles from the relevant storage batch. The number of required artic¬ le kinds may be considerable. If this is the case, then several kinds of articles must be located in each indivi¬ dual basic storage unit. In an activity employing a typical storage unit of this kind the person executing the assembling of product per¬ forms his work next to a purpose-built worktop, the said worktop being adjacent to the storage dispensing station. Given such a setting, it would be rational for the person not to have to reach out for the necessary parts and ins¬ tead have the necessary parts at a handy distance. The dispensing storage in accordance with the invention brings an essential improvement in the said handy dis- tance in that the batches of articles per article kind have been positioned on supports that can be turned out from the basic storage unit. In the event that the said capability to be turned out is accompanied by a control system that is aware of the lo¬ cation of batches of articles on the support, the batches of articles can be guided in a selectable manner to the desired dispensing point. The said dispensing point may, for instance, be a dispensing aperture connected to a worktop adjacent to the dispensing station. The desired article batch is guided underneath the said aperture and the person assembling a product then takes the required amount of articles through the aperture. The "recipe" for the product being assembled is advantageously contained in the memory of the system in charge of the storage. Consequently, the products are guided in appropriate se¬ quence to the assembly point and information is provided concerning the number of articles to be picked from each storage batch. The following drawings are presented as a means of clari¬ fying the invention in greater detail. Of these, Figure 1 depicts a side view of the dispensing storage in accordance with the invention, Figure 2 depicts a partial enlargement of the dispensing storage's dispensing/supplementing station section of the storage, and Figure 3 depicts a cross-sectional view of the dispensing station as seen from above. The basic structure of the dispensing storage depicted in Fig. 1 is composed of a conventional paternoster storage containing an appropriate number of shelves or their equivalent, supported and guided by an endless vertically circulating track system, the said shelves or their equi¬ valent forming the basic storage units. The lower part of the storage houses on one side a dispensing station 3, whose structural details are given in Figs. 2 and 3. Each storage shelf (i.e. basic storage unit) houses sup¬ ports 5 for article specific batches, which supports can be swung around a vertical shaft 8. The implementation solution depicted in the figures embodies two supports 5 on each shelf. The supports 5 referred to in the drawings consist of semi-circular plates, the said supports being used to support product specific storage compartments 6 placed in a sectorial manner. The supporting plates 5 can be swung around the shaft 8 out to desired swing-out po- sition, in which position the storage compartment 6 is on hand for picking the desired articles out. The equipment houses an operating lever system 7 that can be turned into the storage, the said operating lever sys- tem enabling the article specific storage compartment 6 to be guided into position for picking articles out of it. The operating lever system 7 is advantageously part of the dispensing storage's dispensing station 3. To ac¬ complish the turning of the operating lever system, the equipment is provided, for example, with a pneumatically or hydraulically operated cylinder-piston device by means of which the operating lever is turned so that it comes into contact with the periphery of the supporting disc 5. The periphery of the supporting disc is provided with suitable friction material and the operating lever is provided with a turning device with a corresponding fric- tion device; e.g. a cogged belt. With the operating lever 7 in contact with the periphery of the supporting disc 5, the disc is rotated until the desired storage compartment 6 reaches the dispensing station's picking-out position. The said rotation is achieved advantageously under the supervision of an organ controlling the rotation position of the supporting disc 5. The actual dispensing station 3 consists advantageously of a worktop purpose-built for the assembly work stage or assembling. One at a time, the operating lever system 7 turns selected supporting discs 5 and the storage com¬ partments contained on them into position under the aper¬ ture in the worktop. The fixed control point for stopping the paternoster mechanism is most advantageously connected to the dis¬ pensing station 3 as this ensures that the supporting discs 5 will always be in the correct position with re¬ spect to the dispensing station. This is particularly essential if the dispensing station has been so con¬ structed as to be vertically adjustable; e.g. so that it can be adapted to the operators' dimensions. This adjust¬ ment measure requires no adjustment of the actual pater¬ noster mechanism. A dispensing storage implemented in accordance with the principle described above enables the application of a high degree of automation. Data on the priority and amount of parts needed for assembling a particular pro¬ duct can be entered into the control system. When this is done, the control system sees to it that the storage com- partment of the correct parts arrive in the correct se¬ quence at the workstation's picking-out point and the control system also informs the assembly person of the number of parts required. The person assembling the pro¬ duct needs only to pick out the said number of parts and then acknowledge that he has picked them out. Supplementing of the storage can be implemented in a man¬ ner that is the reverse of the above mentioned dispens¬ ing procedure and controlled by storage bookkeeping. Supplementing may be done via the same station or via station located elsewhere in the storage area. The supp¬ lementing station may, for instance, be located on the opposite side of the storage or at a level different to the one that the dispensing station is on. There may be more than one dispensing station per storage.

Claims: Claims : 1. A dispensing storage for different articles that are stored in batches of the same kind, as for assembly pur- poses, in which the batches of articles are stored sup¬ ported by an endless vertically circulating track system (1) and guided article specifically to at least one dis¬ pensing /supplementing station (3), characterized in that the batches each containing one kind of article are plac- ed on supports (5) that can be swung out to the dispens¬ ing/supplementing station (3) away from the path of move¬ ment of the vertically circulating track system support¬ ing the supports (5) . 2. A proportioning storage in accordance with claim 1, characterized in that the support (5) can be swung around a vertical shaft. 3. A proportioning storage in accordance with claim 2, characterized in that the support (5) is essentially semi-circular in shape. 4. A proportioning storage in accordance with any of the above claims 1-3, characterized in that the dispensing /supplementing station consists of an operating lever system (7) that can be turned into contact with the sup¬ port (5) for the purpose of turning the support out to¬ wards the dispensing/supplementing station in a controll¬ ed manner. 5. A proportioning storage in accordance with any of the above claims, characterized in that the stopping control point of the vertically circulating track system is con¬ nected to the dispensing/supplementing module and that the dispensing/supplementing station's location is verti¬ cally adjustable.

Inventors: LINDEVALL TAPIO, MERILAEINEN ESKO, LINDEVALL, TAPIO, MERILAEINEN, ESKO
Applicants: KASTEN VARASTOTEKNIIKKA OY
Application year: 1992
Main classification: B65G1
IPC codes: B65G1