# US 10,121,034 B1 · Generation and presentation of location-based indications > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,121,034 B1 - Document ID: US10121034B1 - Status: Granted - Kind: B1 - Application number: 15/280,716 - Filed: 2016-09-29 - Granted: 2018-11-06 - Earliest claimed: 2016-09-29 - Assignees: Amazon Technologies, Inc. - Applicants: Amazon Technologies, Inc. - Inventors: Allan Scott Bathurst; Matthew Bartol; Nelson Andres Ramon; James Gregory Martin; Will Seidelman - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10121034B1 ## CPC - G06Q 10/087: Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders - G06Q 10/0877: {by inventory control or reporting using inventory tracking or counting} - G06K 7/08: by means detecting the change of an electrostatic or magnetic field, e.g. by detecting change of capacitance between electrodes - G06K 7/10: by electromagnetic radiation, e.g. optical sensing; by corpuscular radiation - G06Q 10/08741: {by picking of items from inventory for fulfillment} - G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR - G06K: GRAPHICAL DATA READING (image or video recognition or understanding G06V); PRESENTATION OF DATA; RECORD CARRIERS; HANDLING RECORD CARRIERS ## Abstract Methods and systems are disclosed that relate to causing indicators to present indications. Sensor data associated with a space of a fixture that includes a set of slots may be received. The sensor data may indicate that a sensor has sensed a condition of a container relative to the space. It may be determined that the condition corresponds to a slot of the set of slots based at least in part on the sensor data. Information usable to associate the container with a record may be generated. An indicator corresponding to the slot may be caused to produce an indication. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A system, comprising: a fixture, comprising: a slot configured to receive a container; a radio-frequency identification (RFID) antenna associated with the slot; and a visual indicator associated with the slot; an RFID reader in communication with the RFID antenna and configured to read RFID tags via the RFID antenna; and a computing device in communication with the RFID reader and the visual indicator, the computing device configured to: cause the visual indicator to produce a first visual indication based at least in part on an availability of the slot to receive the container; receive, via the RFID reader, identifying information corresponding to an RFID tag associated with the container based at least in part on a read by the RFID reader of the RFID tag; determine that the container has been successfully placed at the slot based at least in part on the identifying information; and based at least in part on determining that the container has been successfully placed at the slot, cause the visual indicator to produce a second visual indication that is distinct from the first visual indication. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, further comprising a handheld scanner that is configured to at least: send, to an external computing device, a communication indicating that the container has been successfully placed at the slot; use the communication indicating that the container has been placed at the slot to associate the container with a record; identify an item of the record by scanning a machine-readable code associated with the item; and provide an instruction to the computing device that causes the visual indicator to produce a third visual indication, the third visual indication identifying the slot including the container as a location for placement of the item. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein: the slot is a first slot, the RFID antenna is a first RFID antenna, the container is a first container, the RFID tag is a first RFID tag, the identifying information is first identifying information, and the visual indicator is a first visual indicator; the system further comprises: a second slot configured to receive the container; a second RFID antenna associated with the second slot; and a second visual indicator associated with the second slot; and the computing device is further configured to at least: cause the second visual indicator to produce a third visual indication based at least in part on an availability of the second slot to receive a second container; receive, via the RFID reader, second identifying information corresponding to a second RFID tag associated with the second container at least in response to the RFID reader reading the second RFID tag; determine that the second container has been placed someplace other than the second slot based at least in part on the second identifying information; and based at least in part on determining that the second container has been placed someplace other than the second slot, cause the second visual indicator to produce a fourth visual indication. ### Claim 4 (depends on 3) The system of claim 3, wherein the first visual indication and the third visual indication share a first visual characteristic, the second visual indication has a second visual characteristic, and the fourth visual indication has a third visual characteristic. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The system of claim 1, wherein the computing device is an onboard computing device. ### Claim 6 A computer-implemented method, comprising: receiving, by a computing device, sensor data from a sensor associated with a space of a fixture that comprises a set of slots, the sensor data indicating that the sensor has sensed a condition of a container relative to the space of the fixture; determining, by the computing device, that the condition corresponds to a slot of the set of slots based at least in part on the sensor data; generating, by the computing device, information usable to associate the container with a record; causing, by the computing device, an indicator corresponding to the slot to produce a first indication that identifies that the container has been successfully placed at the slot; and based at least in part on receiving a communication from a handheld scanner, causing the indicator corresponding to the slot to produce a second indication that identifies the slot as a location for placement of an item that is associated with the record. ### Claim 7 (depends on 6) The computer-implemented method of claim 6, further comprising causing the indicator corresponding to the slot prior to receiving the sensor data. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein a third indication identifies the slot as a recommended slot for placement of the container. ### Claim 9 (depends on 6) The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the first indication comprises a first colored light and the second indication comprises a second colored light. ### Claim 10 (depends on 6) The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the sensor data is first sensor data, the sensor is a first sensor, the condition is a first condition, the slot is a first slot, the information is first information, the indicator is a first indicator, the space is a first space, and the container is a first container; and the method further comprises: receiving second sensor data from a second sensor, the second sensor data indicating that the second sensor has sensed a second condition of a second container relative to a second space; determining that the second condition corresponds to a second slot of the set of slots based at least in part on the second sensor data; and causing a second indicator corresponding to the second slot to produce a third indication that indicates that the second condition was unexpected. ### Claim 11 (depends on 6) The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the sensor data is first sensor data, the sensor is a first sensor, the condition is a first condition, the indicator is a first indicator, and the item is a first item; and the method further comprises: receiving second sensor data from a second sensor, the second sensor data indicating that the second sensor has sensed a second condition of a second item relative to a second slot; and causing a second indicator corresponding to the second slot to produce a third indication at least in response to receiving the second sensor data. ### Claim 12 (depends on 11) The computer-implemented method of claim 11, wherein the first sensor is a first RFID sensor and the second sensor is at least one of a second RFID sensor, a pressure sensor, a weight sensor, or an optical sensor. ### Claim 13 (depends on 6) The computer-implemented method of claim 6, wherein the condition comprises at least one of a presence of the container with respect to the slot or an absence of the container with respect to the slot. ### Claim 14 (depends on 6) The method of claim 6, further comprising causing, by the computing device, a different indicator corresponding to a different slot to produce a third indicator in the event a different condition of the container is sensed relative to a different space of the fixture, the different indicator associated with the different space. ### Claim 15 One or more computer-readable storage devices comprising computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a computing system, causes the computing system to perform operations comprising at least: receiving scan data identifying an item; determining whether the item is associated with a record based at least in part on the scan data; identifying a slot from among a plurality of slots of a fixture in the event the item is associated with the record, the fixture adapted for transportation on an item cart, the slot including a container that was previously associated with the record by at least: providing, to a fixture computing device associated with the fixture, a first communication that causes the fixture computing device to instruct a visual indicator associated with the slot to produce a first indication that identifies the slot; receiving, from the fixture computing device, a second communication that a container has been successfully placed at the slot; associating the container with the record based at least in part on the second communication; at least in response to identifying the slot, causing the visual indicator associated with the slot to produce a second indication that at least identifies the slot; and receiving information indicating that the item has been placed in the container. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The one or more computer-readable storage devices of claim 15, wherein the operations further comprise, prior to receiving the scan data, receiving an item retrieval instruction, the item retrieval instruction identifying a physical location of the item in an item storage system. ### Claim 17 (depends on 15) The one or more computer-readable storage devices of claim 15, wherein the visual indicator comprises a light source configured to produce the first indication and the second indication. ### Claim 18 (depends on 15) The one or more computer-readable storage devices of claim 15, wherein: the scan data is first scan data; receiving the information indicating that the item has been placed in the container comprises receiving second scan data identifying the slot; and the operations further comprise, at least in response to receiving the second scan data, causing the visual indicator to produce a third indication. ### Claim 19 (depends on 18) The one or more computer-readable storage devices of claim 18, wherein receiving the first scan data and the second scan data comprises receiving the first scan data and the second scan data from an optical scanner. ### Claim 20 (depends on 15) The one or more computer-readable storage devices of claim 15, wherein receiving the information indicating that the item has been placed in the container comprises receiving the information from a sensor associated with the slot.