AUTOMATED BOT WITH TRANSFER ARM

• US 20120189416A1
• Filed: 12/15/2011
• Published: 07/26/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Symbotic, Llc
• Original Assignee: Casepick Systems, LLC
• Inventors: Toebes, Stephen C., Sullivan, Robert
• Granted Patent: US 11,078,017 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 414/509
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 1/0492 with cars adapted to travel in storage aisles

Abstract

An autonomous transport vehicle is provided. The autonomous transport vehicle includes a payload bed and a transfer arm configured to extend along a first axis to transfer a pickface to and from the payload bed, the transfer arm including fingers that are independently movable along a second axis, substantially perpendicular to the first axis for picking and placing the pickface.

Claims

1. An autonomous transport vehicle comprising:

a payload bed; and

a transfer arm disposed in the payload bed and configured to extend along a first axis to transfer a pickface to and from the payload bed, the transfer arm including fingers that are independently movable relative to each other along a second axis, substantially perpendicular to the first axis for picking and placing the pickface.

2. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 1, further comprising a drive unit for each of the fingers where the drive unit is configured to selectively move a respective finger along the second axis.

3. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 1, further comprising a movable member to which the fingers are mounted such that the fingers are cantilevered from the movable member for unitary movement along the first axis.

4. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 3, further comprising a driven member configured to be selectively coupled to the movable member for effecting movement of the transfer arm along the first axis.

5. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 4, wherein one or more of the fingers includes a protrusion and the driven member includes at least one corresponding recess, where when the one or more fingers are raised the protrusion engages the recess for coupling the movable member to the driven member.

6. An autonomous transport vehicle comprising:

a driven member;

a movable member; and

a positionable coupling configured to selectively couple the movable member to the driven member, the positionable coupling is capable of being coupled and uncoupled wherein when uncoupled the driven member is movable along a first axis independent of the movable member and when coupled the driven member and the movable member move along the first axis as a unit.

7. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 6, further comprising a payload bed where the driven member is configured to at least orient case units on the payload bed and the movable member in part transfers the case units to and from the payload bed.

8. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 6, wherein the movable member includes fingers that are movable along a second axis, the second axis being substantially perpendicular to the first axis where one or more of the fingers engages the driven member for coupling the movable member to the driven member.

9. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 8, further comprising a controller configured to determine an amount of travel of the fingers along the first axis such that cantilevered tips of the fingers are spaced from a distal end of a case unit being picked so as not to extend beyond an edge of the case unit.

10. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 6, wherein the movable member includes at least one gripper configured to substantially contact a side of one or more case units for transferring the one or more case units between the autonomous transport vehicle and a storage shelf.

11. An autonomous transport vehicle comprising:

a frame including a transport area;

a drive system; and

a transfer arm having fingers disposed in the transport area and connected to the frame through the drive system, wherein the drive system is configured to move the fingers along a first axis as a unit and move each finger independently relative to other fingers of the transfer arm along a second axis that is substantially perpendicular to the first axis.

12. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 11, wherein the drive system comprises a single axis drive common to all fingers and configured to move the fingers along the first axis.

13. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 11 wherein the drive system comprises a linear drive for each finger, where each linear drive is configured to individually move a respective finger along the second axis independently of other ones of the fingers.

14. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 11 wherein the drive system comprises a linear drive selectively coupled to each of the fingers, where the linear drive is configured to move one or more fingers along the second axis.

15. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 11, wherein movement of the fingers along the second axis couples the fingers to the drive system for movement along the first axis.

16. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 15, further comprising a movable member configured to interface with a payload of the autonomous transport vehicle wherein the drive system is configured move one or more fingers along the second axis to selectively couple the one or more fingers to the movable member and move the one or more fingers along the first axis by driving the movable member along the first axis.

17. The autonomous transport vehicle of claim 11, wherein the fingers are cantilevered from the frame.