Briefly introduce the shuttle car rack
Shuttle car shelving is a high-density storage system that combines automated shuttle cars with three-dimensional shelving. The core is to replace manual or forklift labor with shuttle cars to complete the storage and retrieval of goods inside the shelving, adapting to the storage needs of "large quantities and few varieties" of goods. It is widely used in e-commerce, cold chain, and manufacturing warehouses. Specific details can be briefly introduced from three aspects: core composition, workflow, and key advantages.
1、 Core components: 3 major components collaborate to achieve automated storage
The shuttle car shelving system mainly consists of three parts: the shelving body, shuttle car, and management system. The functions of each component are clear:
Shelf body: Adopting a three-dimensional steel structure, the storage area is divided according to the "aisle". Each aisle is designed with multiple layers of storage space (usually 3-10 layers), and the width of the storage space is adapted to the size of the pallet (such as 1200mm × 1000mm standard pallet). Some can be customized as double depth positions (two storage spaces in the same aisle) to improve space utilization.
Shuttle: As the core execution equipment, it has a compact appearance (matching the size of the pallet), comes with drive wheels, lifting mechanisms, and positioning sensors, and can travel along the tracks in the shelf aisle to achieve automated operations of "picking, transporting, and releasing". It is divided into "pallet shuttle" (handling whole pallet goods) and "material box shuttle" (handling small material boxes).
Management system: issue instructions through WMS (warehouse management system) or WCS (warehouse control system) to coordinate the operation of shuttle trucks, forklifts (or stackers). For example, after receiving the "warehousing" instructions, the system dispatches shuttle trucks to a certain cargo location to receive goods, and then transports them to empty cargo locations for storage, while recording the cargo location information.
2、 Workflow: Complete the "inbound storage outbound" process of goods in 4 steps
The operation process of shuttle car shelves relies on the cooperation of "shuttle car+external equipment (forklift/stacker)", which is overall efficient and orderly:
Storage: Forklifts transport pallets with goods to the "transfer position" at the entrance of the shelf aisle. The system instructs the shuttle car to move to the transfer position, lifts the pallets through the lifting mechanism, and then travels along the track to the empty storage position assigned by the system. The pallets are then lowered to complete the storage.
Storage: Goods are densely stored in the shelves and positions, and shuttle cars in the same aisle can operate in multiple layers. The dual deep position design can also achieve "storage first, retrieval later" (after the outer position is retrieved, the shuttle car moves the goods from the inner position to the outer side), utilizing the shelf space.
Ex warehouse: after receiving the ex warehouse instruction, the system dispatches the shuttle truck to drive to the target cargo location, picks up the cargo and transports it to the junction location at the entrance of the roadway, and then the forklift truck transports the pallet out of the shelf area to complete ex warehouse.
Inventory: The shuttle car can be equipped with scanning or weighing modules to automatically inventory the goods in the storage location during operation intervals. The data is uploaded to the management system in real time, without the need for manual verification, improving inventory efficiency and accuracy.
3、 Key advantage: Adapt to high-density storage requirements
Compared to traditional beam type shelves, the core advantages of shuttle car shelves are concentrated in three aspects: "space utilization, operational efficiency, and safety and stability":
High density storage: No need to reserve forklift access (only connecting positions at both ends of the aisle), warehouse space utilization rate is increased by 30% -50% compared to traditional shelves, especially suitable for urban warehouses with high land costs or cold chain and food industries that require large quantities of storage.
Automation: Shuttle trucks can operate continuously 24 hours a day, and the efficiency of single lane operations is 2-3 times higher than that of manual forklifts, while avoiding the collision risk of forklifts driving inside the shelves. It is suitable for high-frequency e-commerce promotions and manufacturing raw material storage scenarios.
Safety and flexibility: The shuttle car automatically avoids obstacles through sensors, and there is no manual intervention during the storage of goods, reducing cargo damage and personnel safety hazards; Simultaneously supports two outbound modes, which can be flexibly adjusted according to the characteristics of the goods, such as shelf life and batch.