Motorized carts for picking and staging packages and doubling up capacity by motorized stacking

A motorized cart system comprising:

• a cart frame comprising:
• a base;
• a handle to control movement of the cart frame;
• and
• a plurality of shelves comprising a stationary shelf and a movable shelf disposed above the stationary shelf, the movable shelf being moveable in a path of travel vertically overhead of the stationary shelf to change a volume between the movable shelf and the stationary shelf such that items are stackable over each other within the volume and supported by the stationary shelf;
• an object detection sensor disposed on the movable shelf and configured to detect a presence of an object between the stationary shelf and the movable shelf;
• a height adjustment assembly comprising a height adjustor configured to lower or raise the movable shelf in a vertical direction to an ergonomic height for loading the items and a storage height to store the items while creating sufficient volume below the movable shelf loading the items on the stationary shelf;
• and
• a cart controller configured to receive a height input associated with the movable shelf, and control the height adjustor based on the height input and sensor data from the object detection sensor.

A method of picking and staging items in an inventory system using a cart system comprising a cart frame with a stationary shelf, a movable shelf vertically movable over the stationary shelf, an object detection sensor disposed on the movable shelf and configured to detect a presence of an object between the stationary shelf and the movable shelf;

• and a height adjustment assembly, the method comprising:
• detecting, via a cart controller using sensor data from the object detection sensor, whether an object is present between the movable shelf and the stationary shelf;
• responsive to absence of the object, lowering, via the height adjustment assembly of the cart system, the movable shelf of the cart system to a first height to load a first set of items on the movable shelf, the first height corresponding to an ergonomic loading position for an operator;
• vertically raising, via the height adjustment assembly of the cart system, the movable shelf to a second height, the second height being at or above a shoulder of the operator, the movable shelf at the second height providing an upper bound of a volume also bound by the stationary shelf;
• receiving a second set of items on the stationary shelf and within the volume;
• and
• controlling, via a motion controller on a handle of the cart frame, a motorized wheel of the cart system to route the cart frame to a staging area of the inventory system with the first set of items on the movable shelf and with the second set of items on the stationary shelf.