Patent ID: 8714669

Claim:
A storage and retrieval machine comprising: a) an enclosure where said enclosure has a front enclosure panel and where a portion of said front enclosure panel comprises an enclosure opening where said enclosure opening has a fixed position and a fixed width and is generally rectangular in shape and has a height dimension that is greater than its width dimension; b) a shelf stack further comprising a plurality of shelves, at least one shelf support, and a plurality of shelf attachment means where said shelf stack is located inside said enclosure and where each said shelf of said plurality of shelves has at least one load-bearing surface and is supported by said at least one shelf support using at least one of said plurality of shelf attachment means where corresponding edges of said at least one load-bearing surfaces are vertically aligned and where storage areas are formed by the vertical space between said plurality of shelves and where said plurality of shelf attachment means allow for the removal and insertion of said plurality of shelves, and further, where said shelf stack is proximal to and aligned with said enclosure opening and where said shelf stack has approximately the same width as said enclosure opening whereby said enclosure opening allows access to said shelf stack and said front enclosure panel blocks access to other parts of said enclosure; c) two independently positionable doors at said enclosure opening arranged opposite each other such that said two independently positionable doors can be moved vertically to form an access opening at any selected position and any selected vertical size along said enclosure opening and where one of said two independently positionable doors is an upper door and another is a lower door; d) a multiplicity of said shelf stacks grouped to form at least one storage cylinder that is rotatably mounted inside said enclosure such that when rotated all shelf stacks can be brought to a position proximal to and aligned with said enclosure opening whereby said storage areas and said shelves are accessible through any part of said enclosure opening not blocked by said two independently positionable doors.