US 12,529,591 B1Granted

Load cell compensation for mobile apparatuses

AssigneeAmazon Technologies, Inc.

InventorsSreemanananth Sadanand, Jacob A. Siegel, Kenneth Delpapa, Jonathan David Jones, Nicholas Franklin

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Abstract

This disclosure describes, in part, systems and techniques for determining compensation models to adjust load cell data and ensure accuracy of the load cells on a mobile apparatus through changing environments and conditions. This disclosure relates, specifically, to generating a compensation model by gathering sensor data for known weights of items over a range of weights, locations, temperatures, and humidity values and building a compensation model to infer compensation error to apply to the estimated weight data from the load cells. The compensation model can be used by a fleet of carts to infer weights of items in a manner accurate enough for sale-by-weight of items.

Claims20

Dependent claims

A system comprising:

a fleet of mobile apparatuses, wherein a mobile apparatus of the fleet of mobile apparatuses comprises:
a frame;
a basket to receive an item;
a weight sensor coupled between the basket and the frame, the weight sensor configured to generate first weight data representing a weight of an item being placed into the basket;
an environment sensor coupled to the frame, the environment sensor configured to generate environment data representing conditions at an environment surrounding the mobile apparatus;
one or more processors;
and
one or more computer-readable media storing instructions that, when executed by the one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform operations comprising:
determining environmental conditions based on the environment data from the environment sensor;
determining, in response to a predetermined weight being placed within the basket, a weight estimation based on second weight data from the weight sensor;
determining, based on the predetermined weight and the weight estimation, an error;
determining, based on the error, the environmental conditions, and the predetermined weight, a compensation model for the mobile apparatus, the compensation model configured to determine a compensated weight of the item based on the second weight data from the weight sensor compensated based on the environmental conditions;
and
conveying, to the fleet of mobile apparatuses, the compensation model for determining weights of items placed into baskets of the mobile apparatuses.

11 more elements

A method, comprising:

receiving, at a computing device communicably coupled with a mobile apparatus, environment data;
determining, by the computing device, environmental conditions based on the environment data;
determining, by the computing device, a weight estimation based on weight data from a weight sensor of the mobile apparatus, wherein determining the weight estimation is in response to a predetermined weight being placed within a basket of the mobile apparatus;
determining, based on the predetermined weight and the weight estimation and by the computing device, an error;
determining, based on the error, the environmental conditions, and the predetermined weight, a compensation model for the mobile apparatus, the compensation model configured to determine a compensated weight of an item based on the environmental conditions;
and
conveying, to a fleet of mobile apparatuses, the compensation model for determining weights of items placed into baskets of the mobile apparatuses.

4 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.