Storage module having inventory carriers that are elongate along a lateral direction to carry a plurality of storage containers

A storage module configured to store inventory items, the storage module comprising:

• a first end and a second end spaced from one another along a longitudinal direction;
• a pair of upper tracks that are spaced from one another along a lateral direction, and a pair of lower tracks that are spaced from one another along the lateral direction and from the pair of upper tracks along a vertical direction, the upper tracks connected to the lower tracks at the first and second ends such that the storage module defines a closed movement path in a plane that extends along the longitudinal and vertical directions;
• a plurality of inventory carriers that are arranged end-to-end along the upper and lower tracks along the longitudinal direction and that are elongate along the lateral direction, each inventory carrier having an open upper end and a lower end spaced from one another along the vertical direction, first and second sides spaced from one another along the lateral direction, and first and second first wheel assemblies at the first and second sides, respectively, the first and second wheel assemblies of each inventory carrier configured to couple the inventory carrier to the pair of upper tracks when supported by the pair of upper tracks and to the pair of lower tracks when supported by the pair of lower tracks;
• and
• a plurality of storage containers configured to be received in the open upper ends of the inventor carriers and configured to be supported by the inventory carriers such that each of the inventory carriers carries a set of the storage containers that are arranged side-by-side along the lateral direction,
• wherein the storage module is configured to move the inventory carriers around the movement path until a desired one of the inventory carriers is presented at one of the first and second ends.