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US 12,755,238 B2Granted
Smart shelf logistics
AssigneeDell Products L.P.
InventorsJason Bonafide, Eric L. Caron, Vinicius Michel Gottin
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
Smart shelf logistics is disclosed. A shelf (or rack) in a warehouse environment may be equipped with a compute device and a radio transmitter. The shelf can detect or determine attributes such as center of gravity, capacity and open spots. This may be determined using information about pallets that is available for consumption. As new pallets enter the environment, shelves can bid on these pallets based on their attributes. This allows pallets to be routed and placed effectively. The smart shelf logistics system may also include a central component that allows logistics to be managed collectively based on data from multiple shelves.
Claims20
A method comprising:
- detecting, by a compute node associated with a shelf in an environment and comprising a processor, a pallet being received into the environment via an event published on a message bus;
- determining attributes of the pallet, wherein the attributes include a weight of the pallet and dimensions of the pallet retrieved from a pallet data store indexed by a tag identifier;
- determining, using an ultrawideband anchor associated with the shelf, a position of the pallet relative to the shelf based on distance measurements to a tag attached to the pallet;
- generating a bid, by the node, for placing the pallet on an open spot of the shelf, wherein generating the bid comprises, for each open spot on the shelf, computing a projected center of gravity of the shelf by modeling placement of the pallet at that open spot using the pallet weight, the pallet dimensions, and a location of the open spot, and excluding any open spot whose projected center of gravity exceeds a predefined stability threshold;
- and
- receiving the pallet into the open spot for a successful bid of the node and verifying correct placement by re-measuring, with the ultrawideband anchor, a distance between the tag and the shelf.
3 more elements
A method comprising:
- causing a pallet to be tagged with a receiver, weighed, and dimensioned, and storing a weight and dimensions of the pallet in a pallet data store associated with the receiver;
- notifying shelves in the environment that the pallet is ready for placement on one of the shelves by publishing a pallet-ready event on a message bus;
- receiving bids from the shelves, wherein each of the bids is associated with an open spot and includes a score, wherein each shelf generates its respective bid by, for each open spot on the shelf, computing a projected center of gravity by modeling placement of the pallet at that open spot using the stored pallet weight, the stored pallet dimensions, and a location of the open spot, and excluding any open spot whose projected center of gravity exceeds a predefined stability threshold and each score having been computed by a respective shelf using a projected center of gravity calculated for that open spot based on the pallet weight and dimensions;
- selecting a best bid based on the scores that satisfy a center-of-gravity threshold and notifying the shelves of the best bid;
- and
- directing a vehicle to deliver the pallet to a shelf associated with the best bid, wherein the pallet is placed in the open spot associated with the best bid and placement is confirmed using distance measurements obtained from ultrawideband anchors, wherein confirming placement comprises verifying correct placement by re-measuring, with an ultrawideband anchor associated with the shelf, a distance between the receiver and the shelf to confirm that the pallet is positioned at the open spot associated with the best bid.
3 more elements
A smart shelf comprising:
- a compute device configured with applications including a center of gravity application, a capacity application, and a scoring application;
- an ultrawideband anchor configured to measure distances to tags attached to pallets;
- and
- shelving for supporting objects,
- wherein the center of gravity application is configured to determine a center of gravity for the smart shelf as pallets are added to and removed from the shelf, and to compute, for each open spot on the shelving when a new pallet notification is received, a projected center of gravity by assuming placement of the pallet at the open spot using a stored pallet weight, stored pallet dimensions, and a location of the open spot,
- wherein the scoring application is configured to generate a bid that includes a score for each open spot, wherein each score for each open spot is based on a corresponding projected center of gravity, a capacity of the shelf, and a height of the open spot relative to a floor, and to exclude open spots whose projected center of gravity exceeds a predefined threshold,
- wherein the scoring application is configured to submit a bid to a logistics system and receive a result indicating whether a new object is scheduled to be placed in the open spot associated with the best bid, and
- wherein, in response to receiving the result indicating that the new object is scheduled to be placed in the open spot associated with the best bid, the compute device is further configured to verify correct placement of the new object by causing the ultrawideband anchor to re-measure a distance to a tag attached to the new object and to confirm that the new object is positioned at the open spot associated with the best bid.
5 more elements
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.