# US 11,999,570 B2 · Material handling system

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- Number: US 11,999,570 B2
- Document ID: US11999570B2
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B2
- Application number: 18/216,656
- Filed: 2023-06-30
- Published: 2024-02-01
- Granted: 2024-06-04
- Earliest claimed: 2019-08-14
- Assignees: Opex Corporation
- Applicants: OPEX Corporation
- Inventors: Joseph Valinsky; Alexander Stevens
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US11999570B2

## CPC

- B65G 1/1375: {the orders being assembled on a commissioning stacker-crane or truck}
- B25J 9/1687: {Assembly, peg and hole, palletising, straight line, weaving pattern movement}
- B65G 1/04: mechanical
- B65G 1/0471: {with access from beneath}
- B65G 1/0492: {with cars adapted to travel in storage aisles}
- B65G 1/065: {with self propelled cars}
- B65G 1/10: with relatively movable racks to facilitate insertion or removal of articles {(cabinets with means for moving compartments up and down A47B51/00; cabinet system, e.g. consisting of cabinets arranged in a row with means to open or close passages between adjacent cabinets A47B53/02)}
- B65G 1/1371: {with data records}
- B65G 1/1373: {for fulfilling orders in warehouses}
- B65G 1/1376: {the orders being assembled on a commissioning conveyor}
- B65G 1/1378: {the orders being assembled on fixed commissioning areas remote from the storage areas}
- G05D 1/0027: {involving a plurality of vehicles, e.g. fleet or convoy travelling (fleet control of land vehicles from a control room G05D1/0297; traffic control systems for road vehicles G08G1/00; for marine craft G08G3/00; for aircraft G08G5/00)}
- G05D 1/0225: {involving docking at a fixed facility, e.g. base station or loading bay (parking aids B62D15/027)}
- G05D 1/0297: {by controlling means in a control room}
- G05D 1/69: Coordinated control of the position or course of two or more vehicles
- G05D 1/692: involving a plurality of disparate vehicles
- G06Q 10/087: Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
- G06Q 10/08741: {by picking of items from inventory for fulfillment}
- G06Q 10/08744: {by distributed inventory management}
- B65G 1/08: the articles being fed by gravity {(braking arrangements for roller-ways B65G13/075; separating or stopping elements B65G47/88)}
- B65G: TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS (packaging B65B; handling thin or filamentary materials, e.g. paper sheets or thread, B65H; cranes B66C; portable mobile or lifting or hauling appliances, e.g. hoists, B66D; devices for lifting or lowering goods for loading or unloading purposes, e.g. fork-lift trucks, B66F9/00; emptying bottles, jars, casks, barrels or similar containers, not otherwise provided for, B67C9/00; delivering or transferring liquids B67D; filling or discharging vessels for liquefied, solidified or compressed gases F17C; pipe-line systems for fluids F17D)
- B25J: MANIPULATORS; CHAMBERS PROVIDED WITH MANIPULATION DEVICES ({manipulators specially adapted for use in surgery A61B34/70; manipulators used in cleaning hollow articles B08B9/04}; manipulators associated with rolling mills B21B39/20; manipulators associated with forging machines B21J13/10; {manipulators associated with picking-up and placing mechanisms B23P19/007}; means for holding wheels or parts thereof B60B30/00; {vehicles with ground-engaging propulsion means, e.g. walking members B62D57/02, B62D57/032; devices for picking-up and depositing articles or materials between conveyors B65G47/90, B65G47/91; manipulators with gripping or holding means for transferring packages B65H67/065}; cranes B66C; {manipulators used in the protection or supervision of pipe-line installations F17D5/00; walking equipment adapted for nuclear steam-generators F22B37/006}; manipulators specially adapted for, or associated with, nuclear reactors G21C; {apparatus used for handling wafers during manufacture or treatment of semiconductor H10P72/50})
- G05D: SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES
- G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR

## Abstract

A system may include a vehicle for delivering items and a moveable track that cooperates with the vehicle. The moveable track may cooperate with a storage system having storage locations for storing items. The vehicle may drive into the moveable track and lift the track using a vertical drive mechanism. The vehicle may include a horizontal drive system operable to drive the vehicle horizontally along the ground to carry the moveable track to a position adjacent the storage location. The vehicle may operate the vertical drive system to drop the moveable track adjacent the storage system. Additionally, the vehicle may operate the vertical drive to drive up the moveable track to an elevated position adjacent one of the storage locations in the storage system. The vehicle may include a transfer mechanism for transferring items between the vehicle and the storage location while the vehicle is in the elevated position.

## Claims

### Claim 1

A material handling apparatus for storing or retrieving a plurality of items, comprising:
a plurality of storage racks spaced apart from one another forming an elongated aisle wherein each storage rack comprises a plurality of storage locations for storing containers containing items;
a plurality of delivery vehicles wherein each vehicle comprises:
a horizontal drive system operable to drive the vehicle along a horizontal surface,
a vertical drive operable to drive the vehicle vertically; and
a transfer mechanism operable to transfer an item between the vehicle and one of the storage locations;
a conveyor spaced apart from the plurality of storage racks and having a generally horizontal conveyor surface configured to receive a container from one of the delivery vehicles and convey the container in a forward direction toward a workstation where an operator can remove one of the items from the container or in a reverse direction to convey the container away from the workstation and back toward the one delivery vehicle;
a guide adjacent the conveyor configured to guide the delivery vehicles vertically upwardly to an upper position adjacent the conveyor surface;
a central controller comprising a microprocessor programmed to provide control signals to control the delivery vehicles to perform the steps of:
driving a first one of the vehicles on a horizontal surface toward a first of the storage racks;
driving the first vehicle vertically upwardly to a first storage location in the first storage rack;
transferring a first container from the first storage location onto the first delivery vehicle;
driving the first vehicle downwardly with the first container to the horizontal surface;
driving the first vehicle with the first container along the horizontal surface to the guide;
operating the vertical drive to move the first delivery vehicle with the first container vertically upwardly along the guide to the upper position;
transferring the first container onto the conveyor surface; and
actuating the conveyor to convey the first container away from the first vehicle and toward the workstation.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the guide comprises a track having a vertical section and wherein the vertical drive is configured to engage the track to drive the vehicle upwardly.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the horizontal drive system comprises a plurality of rotatable wheels or rollers.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the vertical drive comprises a plurality of synchronously driven elements having teeth configured to engage the guide to drive the vehicles vertically up the guide.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the aisle is wider than a width of the delivery vehicles so that the vehicles can climb vertically within the aisle between the racks.

### Claim 6

A method of storing or retrieving a plurality of items from a plurality of storage racks spaced apart from one another forming an elongated aisle wherein each storage rack comprises a plurality of storage locations for storing containers containing items, comprising the steps of:
providing a plurality of delivery vehicles wherein each vehicle has a horizontal drive system, a vertical drive and a transfer mechanism operable to transfer an item between the vehicle and one of the storage locations;
actuating the horizontal drive system of a first one of the vehicles to drive the first vehicle on a horizontal surface toward a first of the storage racks;
actuating the vertical drive of the first vehicle to drive the first vehicle vertically upwardly to a first storage location in the first storage rack;
transferring a first container from the first storage location onto the first delivery vehicle;
driving the first vehicle downwardly with the first container to the horizontal surface;
driving the first vehicle with the first container along the horizontal surface toward a transfer location;
operating the vertical drive to move the first delivery vehicle with the first container vertically upwardly along a guide to an upper position at the transfer location, wherein the upper position is vertically spaced from the horizontal surface;
transferring the first container onto a conveyor surface while the first vehicle is at the upper position; and
actuating the conveyor in a forward direction to convey the first container away from the first vehicle;
retrieving an item from the first container after the step of actuating the conveyor.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The method of claim 6 wherein the step of retrieving an item comprises using an operator to retrieve the item.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The method of claim 7 comprising the step of conveying the first container away from the operator and back toward the transfer location.

### Claim 9 (depends on 8)

The method of claim 8 comprising the step of actuating the conveyor in a reverse direction to convey the first container toward one of the vehicles at the transfer location.

### Claim 10 (depends on 9)

The method of claim 9 comprising the step of transferring the first container onto the one of the vehicles at the transfer location.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The method of claim 10 comprising the step of driving the one of the vehicles at the transfer location to one of the racks and transferring the first container into one of the storage locations.

### Claim 12 (depends on 11)

The method of claim 11 wherein the step of driving the one of the vehicle at the transfer location comprises driving the vehicle along the horizontal surface.

### Claim 13 (depends on 12)

The method of claim 12 wherein the step of driving the vehicle along the horizontal surface comprises driving the vehicle under one of the racks.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The method of claim 13 wherein the step of driving the vehicle under one of the racks comprises the step of turning the vehicle while the vehicle is under the rack.

### Claim 15 (depends on 11)

The method of claim 11 comprising the step of actuating a vertical drive system of the vehicle to climb up one of the racks after the step of driving the one of the vehicles at the transfer location to one of the racks.