Materials handling vehicle obstacle scanning tools

A materials handling vehicle comprising

• a steering mechanism,
• materials handling hardware,
• a vehicle drive mechanism,
• a user interface, and
• an obstacle scanning tool, wherein:
• the steering mechanism, materials handling hardware, vehicle drive mechanism, and user interface facilitate movement of the materials handling vehicle and materials handled by the materials handling vehicle along a travel path in a warehouse at a vehicle speed SC towards a destination;
• the obstacle scanning tool comprises obstacle scanning hardware establishing a scan field, and a path filter establishing a filter field Fi, and is configured to indicate the presence of obstacles in the filter field Fi;
• and
• the obstacle scanning tool executes obstacle scanning logic to
• establish the filter field Fi in response to an input performance level Li using the path filter,
• scan for obstacles in the filter field Fi,
• execute a performance level reduction inquiry for obstacles detected in the filter field Fi wherein outcomes of the performance level reduction inquiry comprise reduction of the performance level Li when a performance level reduction is available and execution of obstacle avoidance when a performance level reduction is not available.

A materials handling vehicle comprising

• a towing vehicle and
• at least one trailer towed by the towing vehicle, wherein:
• the towing vehicle comprises a steering mechanism, materials handling hardware, a vehicle drive mechanism, a user interface, and an obstacle scanning tool;
• the steering mechanism, materials handling hardware, vehicle drive mechanism, and user interface facilitate movement of the materials handling vehicle and materials handled by the materials handling vehicle along a curved travel path in a warehouse towards a destination;
• a towing configuration of the materials handling vehicle establishes a trailer turning radius r1 that is smaller than a towing vehicle turning radius r2 along curved portions of the curved travel path;
• the obstacle scanning tool comprises obstacle scanning hardware establishing a scan field and a path filter establishing a filter field, and is configured to indicate the presence of obstacles in the filter field;
• and
• the obstacle scanning tool executes obstacle scanning logic to use the path filter to establish the filter field such that the area of the filter field is skewed towards the inside edges of turns along the curved travel path to a degree that is sufficient to account for the smaller turning radius r1 of the trailer and avoid collisions with obstacles along the inside edges of the turns along the curved travel path.

A method of executing scanning logic for a materials handling vehicle, the method comprising:

• moving the materials handling vehicle and materials handled by the materials handling vehicle along a travel path in a warehouse at a vehicle speed SC towards a destination, the materials handling vehicle comprising a steering mechanism, materials handling hardware, a vehicle drive mechanism, a user interface, and an obstacle scanning tool, wherein
• the steering mechanism, materials handling hardware, vehicle drive mechanism, and user interface facilitate movement of the materials handling vehicle and materials handled along the travel path, and
• the obstacle scanning tool comprises obstacle scanning hardware, a path filter, and a performance filter;
• establishing a scan field through use of the obstacle scanning hardware of the obstacle scanning tool;
• establishing a filter field through use of the path filter of the obstacle scanning tool;
• establishing a performance field Pi through use of the performance filter of the obstacle scanning tool;
• scanning with the obstacle scanning tool for obstacles in the filter field and the performance field Pi;
• executing obstacle avoidance through the obstacle scanning tool for obstacles detected in the filter field;
• executing a performance level reduction inquiry for obstacles detected in the performance field Pi;
• executing an outcome of the performance level reduction inquiry to reduce the performance level Li when a performance level reduction is available;
• and
• executing an outcome of the performance level reduction inquiry to execute obstacle avoidance when a performance level reduction is not available.

A method of executing scanning logic for a materials handling vehicle, the method comprising:

• moving the materials handling vehicle and materials handled by the materials handling vehicle along a travel path in a warehouse at a vehicle speed SC towards a destination, the materials handling vehicle comprising a steering mechanism, materials handling hardware, a vehicle drive mechanism, a user interface, and an obstacle scanning tool, wherein
• the steering mechanism, materials handling hardware, vehicle drive mechanism, and user interface facilitate movement of the materials handling vehicle and materials handled along the travel path, and
• the obstacle scanning tool comprises obstacle scanning hardware and a path filter;
• establishing a scan field through use of the obstacle scanning hardware of the obstacle scanning tool;
• establishing a filter field Fi through use of the path filter of the obstacle scanning tool;
• scanning with the obstacle scanning tool for obstacles in the filter field Fi;
• executing a performance level reduction inquiry for obstacles detected in the filter field Fi;
• executing an outcome of the performance level reduction inquiry to reduce the performance level Li when a performance level reduction is available;
• and
• executing an outcome of the performance level reduction inquiry to execute obstacle avoidance when a performance level reduction is not available.

A method of executing scanning logic for a materials handling vehicle comprising a towing vehicle and at least one trailer towed by the towing vehicle, the method comprising:

• moving the materials handling vehicle and materials handled by the materials handling vehicle along a curved travel path in a warehouse towards a destination, the materials handling vehicle comprising a steering mechanism, materials handling hardware, a vehicle drive mechanism, a user interface, and an obstacle scanning tool, wherein
• the steering mechanism, materials handling hardware, vehicle drive mechanism, and user interface facilitate movement of the materials handling vehicle and materials handled along the curved travel path, and
• the obstacle scanning tool comprises obstacle scanning hardware and a path filter;
• establishing through a towing configuration of the materials handling vehicle a trailer turning radius r1 that is smaller than a towing vehicle turning radius r2 along curved portions of the curved travel path;
• establishing a scan field through use of the obstacle scanning hardware of the obstacle scanning tool;
• establishing a filter field through use of the path filter of the obstacle scanning tool, wherein the area of the filter field is skewed towards the inside edges of turns along the curved travel path to a degree that is sufficient to account for the smaller turning radius r1 of the trailer and avoid collisions with obstacles along the inside edges of the turns along the curved travel path;
• and
• scanning with the obstacle scanning tool for obstacles in the filter field.