Patent ID: 8359986

Claim:
A protecting apparatus of items accommodated in an accommodating shelf into/out of which the accommodated items are put/taken, the protecting apparatus comprising: a plurality of cells, which are arranged in longitudinal direction and lateral direction, accommodating the accommodated items, each of the cells having an entrance/exit portion to put/take the accommodated items; a plurality of longitudinal bars disposed across the entrance/exit portions of the cells which are arranged in the longitudinal direction; a plurality of lateral bars disposed across the entrance/exit portions of the cells which are arranged in the lateral direction; a plurality of first drivers configured to move the longitudinal bars individually in the lateral direction to allow individual entrance/exit portions to be blocked and unblocked; and a plurality of second drivers configured to move the lateral bars individually in the longitudinal direction to allow individual entrance/exit portions to be blocked and unblocked, wherein a longitudinal bar disposed in front of an entrance/exit portion of a specific cell selected from the cells is moved individually in the lateral direction and a lateral bar disposed in front of an entrance/exit portion of the specific cell is moved individually in the longitudinal direction to the outside of the entrance/exit portion of the specific cell, respectively, to allow an entrance/exit portion of the specific cell to be unblocked, wherein each entrance/exit portion of first cells forming a line with the specific cell in the longitudinal direction is blocked by each lateral bar disposed in front of the entrance/exit portions of the first cells though the moved longitudinal bar allows the entrance/exit portions of the first cells to be unblocked, and each entrance/exit portion of second cells forming a line with the specific cell in the lateral direction is blocked by each longitudinal bar disposed in front of the entrance/exit portions of the second cells though the moved lateral bar allows the entrance/exit portions of the second cells to be unblocked.