Patent ID: 8740538

Claim:
A storage and retrieval system comprising: a vertical array of storage levels, each storage level having storage locations arranged in substantially parallel rows separated by picking aisles having transport guide ways and an autonomous transport travel loop distinct from each of the picking aisles and arranged having a longitudinal axis substantially transverse to the picking aisles; a multilevel vertical conveyor system configured to transport uncontained case units to and from the vertical array of storage levels, each storage level being configured to receive uncontained case units from the multilevel vertical conveyor system; at least one autonomous transport confined to each storage level, the at least one autonomous transport being configured to transport the uncontained case units between respective storage locations and the multilevel vertical conveyor system, the autonomous transport travel loop being configured to provide the at least one autonomous transport access to each of the picking aisles for travel along the transport guide ways; and a controller configured to effect operation of the multilevel vertical conveyor system and the at least one autonomous transport for assembling orders of uncontained case units of different types without moving bundles of the same uncontained case unit type throughout the storage and retrieval system.