A multilevel storage facility comprising:
- a plurality of vertically stacked storage chambers and a plurality of storage platforms, each of the chambers containing one of the platforms, all of the chambers being accessible from a common face of the facility;
- an elevator, mounted to move along the common face of the facility for providing access to any one of the chambers;
- each of the chambers and the elevator providing a lower storage means for engaging one of the platforms when said platform is empty, and an upper storage means for engaging one of the platforms, when said platform contains an item for storage thereon, each of the platforms including a plurality of wheels positioned for engaging the upper storage means, and alternately, the lower storage means, such that with the elevator aligned with any one of the chambers, the respective elevator and chamber lower storage means and upper storage means are respectively aligned so that platform transfers are enabled therebetween;
- the elevator further including a first transferring means for transferring one of the platforms between one of the chambers and the elevator, and a second transferring means for transferring one of the platforms between the elevator lower storage means and the elevator upper storage means;
- the second transferring means including a plurality of U-shaped sections, each providing an upper, and a lower rest surface for supporting one of the wheels of one of the platforms, the U-shaped sections including means for vertical positioning thereof, such that with the wheels of one of the platforms positioned on the lower rest surfaces of the U-shaped sections respectively, the platform is vertically positionable within the upper, or alternately, the lower storage means of the elevator by vertical adjustment of the position of the U-shaped sections in synchronized motion, and with the lower rest surfaces positioned in the elevator lower storage means, the upper rest surfaces are positioned in the elevator upper storage means, the exchange of platform positions being enabled during elevator movement;
- such that an item to be stored in the facility is loaded onto one of the platforms positioned on the elevator upper storage means, and then moved to any empty chamber, swapping the loaded platform in the elevator with the empty platform in the chamber, the loaded platform being transferred into the chamber upper storage means, the empty chamber platform being transferred into the elevator lower storage means, the empty platform then being transferred to the elevator upper storage means in anticipation of repeating a storing sequence;
- and
- to retrieve an item from the facility, first an empty one of the platforms in the elevator upper storage means is transferred to the elevator lower storage means, the elevator is positioned adjacent to a target one of the chambers, and the loaded chamber platform on the chamber upper storage means is transferred to the elevator upper storage means, while the empty elevator platform on the elevator lower storage means is placed into the chamber lower storage means.