Automatic tray dispensing
AssigneeAmazon Technologies, Inc.
InventorsWilliam Scott Kalm, Kevin Senh Ly
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A dispensing system (e.g., in a warehouse or other item-fulfillment environment) can include a tray holder sized for releasably receiving a tray. A rotational actuator may operate to pivot the tray holder between a first position aligned for receipt in the tray holder of a tray in a recumbent orientation and a second position in which the tray is arranged in an upended orientation. When the tray is in the upended orientation, an opening system may engage a door on an end of the tray to move the door from a closed state in which items contained in the tray are prevented from falling out of the tray and to an open state in which the items are allowed to fall out of the tray.
Claims20
An inventory loading system, comprising:
- a support frame extending in an up-down direction, a length direction, and a depth direction;
- a tray transport system comprising one or more conveyors arranged for tray transport relative to the support frame in the length direction;
- a dispensing system comprising a tray holder hingedly attached to the support frame for movement between a horizontal receiving position aligned for insertion of a tray from the tray transport system into the tray holder and a downwardly-pivoted vertical dispensing position aligned for dispensing tray contents in the up-down direction;
- and
- an insertion system arranged to receive one or more items from the tray in the up-down direction and move the one or more items in the depth direction toward a receiving zone.
A dispensing system, comprising:
- a tray holder sized for releasably receiving a tray;
- a rotational actuator operable to pivot the tray holder between a first position aligned for insertion of the tray into the tray holder while the tray is in a recumbent orientation and a second position in which the tray is arranged in an upended orientation;
- and
- an opening system engageable with a door on an end of the tray when the tray is in the upended orientation to move the door between a closed state in which items contained in the tray are prevented from falling out of the tray and an open state in which the items are allowed to fall out of the tray.
A method, comprising:
- receiving into a tray holder a tray delivered by a tray transport system comprising one or more conveyors arranged for tray transport relative to the tray holder;
- pivoting the tray holder and the tray to reposition the tray from a recumbent orientation to an upended orientation;
- and
- opening a door at an end of the tray in the upended orientation so as to release contents from the tray.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.