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US 9,174,246 B2Granted
Sorting plant and sorting method with two types of sorting terminals
AssigneeSiemens Aktiengesellschaft
InventorPeter Berdelle-Hilge
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
A sorting plant and a sorting method sort objects according to a predefined sort criterion. The sorting plant has a plurality of transfer sites, a plurality of upper pick-up units which can be swiveled into a pick-up position and into a park position, and a plurality of lower pick-up units. The upper pick-up units are arranged in such a manner that the upper pick-up units are located between the transfer sites and the lower pick-up units when the upper pick-up units are swiveled into the park position. For each object to be sorted, one pick-up unit is automatically selected regardless of the sorting criterion value of the object. The object is first moved to a transfer site and then into or onto the selected pick-up unit.
Claims13
A sorting plant for sorting objects according to a pre-defined sorting criterion, the sorting plant comprising:
- a set of transfer sites having a plurality of transfer sites;
- a set of pick-up units with a plurality of lower pick-up units and a plurality of upper pick-up units;
- a holding device to which said plurality of upper pick-up units is fastened, each of said upper pick-up units pivotably connected to said holding device such that said upper pick-up units can be brought into a pick-up position or a park position;
- a measuring device configured to measure, for an object to be sorted, a value that the predefined sorting criterion assumes for the object;
- a selection unit configured to select, for the object to be sorted, depending on a measured sorting criterion value of the object, one of said upper pick-up units or one of said lower pick-up units;
- a conveying transport device for transporting the object to be sorted to one of said transfer sites;
- a pick-up unit transport device;
- each of said transfer sites, said upper pick-up units and said lower pick-up units configured to accommodate at least one object to be sorted;
- one of said upper pick-up units being disposed between said set of transfer sites and said lower pick-up units at least when said upper pick-up unit is in the pick-up position;
- each of said upper pick-up units and each of said lower pick-up units can be brought respectively into one transfer position in relation to each of said transfer sites;
- the object to be sorted can be brought out of one of said transfer sites into one of said upper pick-up units if said one upper pick-up unit being disposed in the transfer position in relation to said one transfer site;
- the object to be sorted can be brought out of said transfer site into one of said lower pick-up units if said one lower pick-up unit being disposed in the transfer position in relation to said transfer site and each of said upper pick-up units being disposed in the park position between said transfer site and one of said lower pick-up units;
- said pick-up unit transport device configured for the object to be sorted, to carry out a relative movement of said upper or said lower pick-up unit selected for the object in relation to said transfer site, to which the object was transported in such a way that said selected upper or lower pick-up unit is situated, following the relative movement, in the transfer position in relation to said transfer site with the object;
- and
- the sorting plant configured to bring the object to be sorted from said transfer site to which the object was transported, into one of said set of pick-up units which is situated in the transfer position and has been selected.
12 more elements
A sorting method for sorting objects according to a pre-defined sorting criterion, which comprises the steps of:
- providing a sorting plant and performing the sorting method via the sorting plant, the sorting plant containing:
- a set of transfer sites having a plurality of transfer sites;
- a holding device to which a plurality of upper pick-up units is fastened;
- a set of pick-up units with a plurality of lower pick-up units;
- each transfer site, each upper pick-up unit and each lower pick-up unit configured to accommodate at least one object to be sorted;
- each of the upper pick-up units is pivotably connected to the holding device such that the upper pick-up units can be brought into a pick-up position and into a park position;
- the upper pick-up units situated in the pick-up position are each situated between the set of transfer sites and the set of pick-up units;
- performing the following steps for each of the objects to be sorted:
- measuring a value that the pre-determined sorting criterion assumes for the object;
- depending on a sorting criterion value of the object, automatically selecting either the upper pick-up unit or the lower pick-up unit;
- transporting the object to a transfer site;
- when the upper pick-up unit has been selected for the object to be sorted, performing the further steps of:
- pivoting a selected upper pick-up unit into, or remains in, the pick-up position and is brought into a transfer position in relation to the transfer site to which the object was transported or remains in such a transfer position;
- and
- bringing the object out of the transfer site into the selected upper pick-up unit;
- when the lower pick-up unit has been selected for the object to be sorted, performing the further steps of:
- pivoting a selected lower pick-up unit into, or remains in, the transfer position in relation to the transfer site to which the object was transported;
- bringing at least one of the upper pick-up units which is situated between the transfer site with the object and the selected lower pick-up unit, into the park position or remains in the park position;
- and
- bringing the object out of the transfer site into the selected lower pick-up unit.
17 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.