US3800963A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Material storage and handling system
Assignee: Individual
•
Filing: 1972-12-04
•
Granted: 1974-04-02
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Expires: 1992-12-04
Abstract
Abstract A transportation system for load-carrying pallets which are stored in multiple-tier, multiple-lane storage racks. The system includes a host vehicle, which is a specially designed stacker crane that operates along an aisle adjacent the work faces of the racks. The host vehicle has a vertical elevator that carries a pallet transporting carrier which is used to deposit, move or retrieve a pallet from any storage lane or tier in the rack. The carrier is powered and remotely controlled by the operator of the host vehicle through a control-power belt interconnecting the host vehicle and the carrier. With the system, a single host machine and a single pallet carrier can service the entire storage area from a single aisle.
Inventors
- 👤 E Holland
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-23 12:11
CPC Classifications
B; B65; B65G; B65G1/00; B65G1/02; B65G1/04; B65G1/06; B65G1/065; B65G1/0407; B65G1/0414
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 15
Claim 1
Independent Claim
287 words
A material storage and handling system for loads stored in multiple-tier, multiple-lane load supporting racks having an aisle extending along the faces of said racks, each address of said racks having an entrance end and a discharge end with a plurality of storage stations there between, said system comprising a vehicle movable along said aisle from lane to lane of said racks, said racks includes a pair of parallel rails that are horizontally spaced apart and extended from the entrance end to the discharge end of the address, the upper surface of said rails supporting the load stored in said racks, and said rails having a surface below said upper surface upon which said carrier is supported and moves, a vertically movable carriage on said vehicle movable between the lowest and highest of said tiers, a source of power for said vehicle, a load transporting carrier adapted for movement between storage stations along any selected one of said rack addresses, load lifting means on said carrier movable between a first lowered position in which said carrier can pass beneath a load supported by said racks in one of the storage stations and a second raised position in which a load engaged by said lifting means is raised above a supporting position on said racks, power means on board said carrier to provide for controlled movement of said carrier, support means on the vertically movable carriage of said vehicle for receiving said load transporting carrier from or dispatching it into an address of said racks and for supporting and carrying said carrier either with or without a load, and a flexible controlpower member interconnecting said vehicle and said carrier to supply power and control functions for said carrier.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
287 words
A material storage and handling system for loads stored in multiple-tier, multiple-lane load supporting racks having an aisle extending along the faces of said racks, each address of said racks having an entrance end and a discharge end with a plurality of storage stations there between, said system comprising a vehicle movable along said aisle from lane to lane of said racks, said racks includes a pair of parallel rails that are horizontally spaced apart and extended from the entrance end to the discharge end of the address, the upper surface of said rails supporting the load stored in said racks, and said rails having a surface below said upper surface upon which said carrier is supported and moves, a vertically movable carriage on said vehicle movable between the lowest and highest of said tiers, a source of power for said vehicle, a load transporting carrier adapted for movement between storage stations along any selected one of said rack addresses, load lifting means on said carrier movable between a first lowered position in which said carrier can pass beneath a load supported by said racks in one of the storage stations and a second raised position in which a load engaged by said lifting means is raised above a supporting position on said racks, power means on board said carrier to provide for controlled movement of said carrier, support means on the vertically movable carriage of said vehicle for receiving said load transporting carrier from or dispatching it into an address of said racks and for supporting and carrying said carrier either with or without a load, and a flexible controlpower member interconnecting said vehicle and said carrier to supply power and control functions for said carrier.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
46 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 1 in which said carrier has a main rectangular-shaped body, and there is at least one wheel rotatably mounted near the front and near the rear along each side of the body, said wheels all being power-driven wheels.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
52 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 1 in which said carrier is provided with a reel mounted for rotation on a vehicle axis beneath the carrier, said control-power member being wound on said reel, and power means is provided to drive said said to maintain tension constantly on said member.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
64 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 3 in which said reel is driven in one direction only, and there are a pair of idlers adjacent said reel, one mounted toward the front and one toward the rear of said carrier, one of aid idlers being engagable with said control-power member at all times dpending upon the direction of movement from said vehicle.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
41 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 3 in which the power means driving said reel is hydraulic and said hydraulic power means maintains a constant pressure on said reel so as to maintain the tension on said control-power member.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
77 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 1 in which said carrier is mounted on a plurality of wheels, said control-power member includes a plurality of electrical leads, the power means on board said carrier includes a main electric motor and a variable volume hydraulic pump driven by said motor, and there are a plurality of hydraulic motors one for each of said wheels, said hydraulic moTors being supplied by said pump to drive said wheels.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
65 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 6 in which said carrier is provided with a reel mounted for rotation on a vertical axis beneath the carrier, said carrier-power member being wound on said reel, and hydraulc power means is provided to drive said reel to maintain tension constantly on said member, said hydraulic power means being supplied by said variable volume hydraulic pump.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
29 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 6 in which the load lifting means on said carrier is hydraulically powered and supplied by said variable volume hydraulic pump.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
37 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 1 in which said vehicle includes an operator''s station said operator''s station having manually operated controls for controlling movement of said vehicle, said vertically movable carriage and said carrier.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
24 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 9 in which said operator''s station is connected to and movable with said vertically movable carriage.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
38 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 1 in which the support means on the vertically movable carriage is adapted to receive or dispatch said carrier either direction transversely to the direction of movement of said vehicle.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
63 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 1 in which the support means on the vertically movable carriage includes a platform having parallel spaced-apart members corresponding to the size and spacing of the rails in each address of the racks, said spaced-apart members being adapted to receive or dispatch said carrier either direction transversely to the direction of movement of said vehicle.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
103 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 2 in which the supporting means on the vertically movable carriage includes a platform having parallel spaced-apart members corresponding to the size and spacing of the rails in each address of the racks, and said carrier has a pair of wheels near the front and near the rear along each side of the body, each pair being spaced apart along each side, the width of said members being such that the members can be positioned a distance from said rails that is less than the spacing between a pair of the wheels on said carrier.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
34 words
The material storage and handling system of claim 1 in which said flexible control-power member is a flat belt and includes a plurality of electrical leads and a wear resistant covering over said leads.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 1977-04-01 | 1977-10-01 | 1978-04-02 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 1981-04-01 | 1981-10-01 | 1982-04-02 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 1985-04-01 | 1985-10-01 | 1986-04-02 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |