Patent Application
20190382219
The disclosure relates to a device for storing and transporting large-volume foam blocks, in particular to curing racks with a conveying device.
Very soft, viscoelastic foams and freshly produced foam blocks, which have not completely hardened after the foaming process and which, due to the remaining heat of reaction, must still cure and cool down, are nowadays stored as large-volume foam blocks in rack storages. These racks are filled with the help of a stacker crane via the longitudinal axis. Such storage warehouses are described for example in a Wikipedia article at https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Langgutlager in the version of Jan. 22, 2018.
Block or honeycomb storage systems are storage systems in which the material is arranged in bins, i.e. open, elongated containers, in a honeycomb-like shelf block next to each other. Access to the stored material is provided by a stacker crane as a conveying device which is horizontally, vertically and also diagonally movable in front of the honeycomb storage system. The possible diagonal movement in front of the shelf block of the honeycomb storage system and the immediate access to each bin results in a high storage and retrieval performance.
The front of such honeycomb storage systems looks like a checkerboard. In the block or honeycomb storage systems, the individual shelf trays are equipped with driven conveyor belts. Typical dimensions of the blocks to be stored are approximately between 2 m and 120 m in length, up to 2.5 m in width, and up to a height of 1.5 m.
Disadvantages of the system are the large space that is required exclusively for the stacker crane, the many drives in each of the shelf trays, and the belts in need of maintenance, as well as a high variety of variants, especially in stacker cranes. This also results in a high configuration effort for the systems, since these must each be adapted to the specific dimensional wishes of the customers and in particular to basic spatial requirements.
The disclosure is based on the object to improve known curing racks in such a way that the disadvantages of the prior art are avoided. The improved system guarantees a safe, simple, inexpensive and space-saving way to store and transport large-volume, soft, viscoelastic foam blocks, without damaging the freshly produced foam blocks, which are not fully cured after foaming.
The object is achieved by providing at least one mobile storage box for receiving at least one foam block at a loading position, and a transport device for transporting the storage box from the loading position into at least one floor storage.
By providing a dedicated loading position, the elaborate and space-consuming stacker crane used in prior art solution is no longer required. Instead, the mobile storage boxes can be transported inexpensively via usually existing gantry, ceiling or mobile container cranes or for example via forklifts.
At the loading position the device preferably comprises a feed conveyor and a loading device onto which at least one mobile, stackable storage box can be placed. Foam blocks can be introduced by the feed conveyor and the loading device into the storage boxes. After the introduction of the foam blocks, the transport device can move the storage boxes to a floor storage area, where they can be stacked on top of each other.
By using a feed conveyor that need not be vertically and transversely movable, considerable space usually required by a stacker crane can be saved. The use of only one loading device saves many vulnerable transport mechanisms arranged in each shelf.
In their bottom area, the storage boxes include spaced tabs with upwardly directed lower support surfaces. In their ceiling area, the storage boxes have crossbars, which have upwardly directed upper support surfaces. The crossbars of a lower storage box when stacking the storage boxes engage in the space between the tabs of an upper storage box to form a common, almost continuous support surface at the upper storage box.
To fill the storage box with large-volume foam blocks, the storage box can be placed onto the loading device. There, conveyor elements of the loading device protrude through the space between the tabs of the storage box such that the foam blocks rest only on the conveyor elements when inserted into the storage box. A foam block is then gently introduced via the conveyor elements into the storage box. After introducing the foam block, the storage box is lifted from the loading device, and the foam block rests on the lower support surfaces.
It has proved to be advantageous for the storage boxes and the loading device to have corner fittings which engage in one another during stacking or placement by means of coupling adapters for securing purposes. Thereby, a simple fitting of the storage boxes on the loading device as well as joining storage boxes above and next to one another at the floor storage without complicated adjustment work is possible.
It has proven beneficial if at least one storage space is provided at the at least one floor storage which has elevations. Those elevations engage in the space between the tabs to provide additional support for the foam blocks. The elevations increase the bottom surface of the storage boxes formed by the lower supports, leading to a common substantially continuous support surface for the foam block. This ensures that the bottom of foam blocks arranged in the lowermost storage boxes of a floor storage are completely supported during their storage and/or curing time.
In order to adapt the device easily to different circumstances and requirements, the storage boxes may consist of at least one module. Multi-module storage boxes can be assembled by connecting members which are arranged between the modules.
For transporting the storage box, at least one module can be gripped by a spreader. If the interconnected modules are sufficiently rigid and stable, for example, only one of the modules needs to be gripped with a simple spreader, such as a container spreader. If the storage boxes are not sufficiently rigid it may be necessary to use a more elaborate container spreader which can grip each module, possibly even at multiple places.
The storage boxes may be designed to be variably adjustable at least in height. Thereby, unused storage boxes can be stacked and/or transported in a space-saving manner. In addition, soft foam blocks in the storage boxes can be compressed and thus also transported in a space-saving manner.
The following detailed description of the invention is merely exemplary in nature and is not intended to limit the invention or the application and uses of the invention. Furthermore, there is no intention to be bound by any theory presented in the preceding background of the invention or the following detailed description of the invention.
In
A motor 19 mounted, for example, on one of the stands 13 drives the conveyor elements 12 of the loading device 11. The stand 13 has corner fittings 20 which are connected to the front frame 2 and into which coupling adapters 21 engage to secure placement of the storage box 1 on the loading device 11.
On top of the lower storage box 1 a second, upper storage box 1′ is placed. The upper support surfaces 9 of the crossbars 8 are arranged between the lower support surfaces 7′ of the tabs 6′. Thereby a common substantially continuous support surface is formed also for the foam block 10′. Onto these two storage boxes 1 and 1′ can now be placed the storage box 1 which in
The top of the supports 25 of the storage space 24 increases the bottom surface of the lower or first storage box 1, while the top of the lower or first storage box 1 increases the bottom surface of the upper or second storage box 1′ to a nearly seamless continuous support surface. The negative and positive elevations of the storage boxes 1 through the tabs 6 and crossbars 8 during stacking form a flat support surface 7, 9 on which the foam blocks can cure.
If the storage boxes 1 consisting of the modules 26 are sufficiently resistant to bending, for example, the two outer or else the two inner crossbeams 29 could be eliminated from the spreader 28. Of course, the storage boxes 1 can also be handled by two cranes (not shown) having spreaders with only one crossbeam 29 each.
In summary, the new storage concept is based on a simple storage box 1, which can be made by connecting several modules 26. This storage box 1 is constructed such that it can be loaded via a correspondingly designed loading device 11. It can then be transported by a commercial crane and a spreader 28 as a gripper or by a mobile lifting system, such as a truck, forklift or the like. The gripper may be based on the gripping systems for freight containers. For storage, these storage boxes 1 are simply stacked onto each other, for example, up to five stories high. The storage boxes 1 can be connected to each other like containers on container ships with a proven or slightly modified bolt-lug system, which is described for example in EP 0 699 164 B1.
The storage boxes 1 have tabs 6 with a defined pronounced geometry which recede below the conveying elements 12 while loading the foam block 10 on the loading device 11. At the top of the storage boxes 1, crossbars 8 are arranged at an offset so that after stacking of the storage boxes 1 a nearly continuous support surface for the large volume foam blocks 10 is created in the block or honeycomb storage system 23. This double support during storage is particularly beneficial in combination with soft-elastic and in particular fresh, not yet cured foam blocks 10 to ensure the dimensional stability of the foam blocks 10. Thus, the device ensures optimal handling of the fresh blocks without physical impairment, in particular for demanding foams.
For reasons of saving space during storage and transport unused storage boxes 1, and possibly to compress the foam blocks for further transport, the storage boxes 1 may be formed to be variably adjustable at least in height. For this purpose, sliding or folding mechanisms can be used.
While the present invention has been described with reference to exemplary embodiments, it will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art that the invention is not limited to the disclosed or illustrated embodiments but, on the contrary, is intended to cover numerous other modifications, substitutions, variations and broad equivalent arrangements that are included within the spirit and scope of the following claims.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 10 2018 209 421.7 | Jun 2018 | DE | national |
