Process control for warehouse operations

A system comprising:

• one or more computers;
• and
• a computer-readable medium coupled to the one or more computers having instructions stored thereon which, when executed by the one or more computers, cause the one or more computers to perform operations comprising
• identifying, by a warehouse process orchestrator software service and for a warehouse, a warehouse request that includes a set of warehouse request items;
• creating, in an electronic data repository and in accordance with a data model, a warehouse request data object for the warehouse request and a warehouse request item data object for each warehouse request item;
• for each warehouse request item, identifying, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service and using the data model, a warehouse process data object instance associated with a warehouse process for handling the warehouse request and a warehouse process control configuration data object instance for the warehouse process data object instance that defines both a sequence of operational steps of the warehouse process and physical movement of goods through the warehouse;
• tracking, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service and using the data model, progress of each warehouse request item using warehouse task data object instances and an intermediary warehouse progress data object instance for the warehouse request item including creating new warehouse task object instances based on the warehouse process control configuration data object instance, wherein tracking of a first warehouse request item linked to a first intermediary warehouse progress data object instance includes:
• identifying, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service, an exception condition for the first warehouse request item;
• creating, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service, a new intermediary warehouse progress data object instance linked to the first warehouse request item and at least one new warehouse task data object instance for handling the exception condition, wherein the new intermediary warehouse progress data object instance is different from the first intermediary warehouse progress data object instance;
• tracking, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service, handling of the exception condition using the new intermediary warehouse progress data object instance and the at least one new warehouse task data object instance, wherein the tracking includes receiving a notification that a last task for handling the exception condition has been completed;
• and
• in response to receiving the notification that the last task for handling the exception condition has been completed:
• removing the new intermediary warehouse progress data object instance from the electronic data repository;
• and
• resuming tracking processing of the first warehouse request item using the first intermediary warehouse progress data object instance;
• determining, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service, for each warehouse request item, that a final warehouse task defined in the warehouse process control configuration data object instance has been completed for the warehouse request item;
• and
• recording, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service and in the electronic data repository, completion of the warehouse request in the warehouse request data object.

A computer program product encoded on a non-transitory storage medium, the product comprising non-transitory, computer readable instructions for causing one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

• identifying, by a warehouse process orchestrator software service and for a warehouse, a warehouse request that includes a set of warehouse request items;
• creating, in an electronic data repository and in accordance with a data model, a warehouse request data object for the warehouse request and a warehouse request item data object for each warehouse request item;
• for each warehouse request item, identifying, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service and using the data model, a warehouse process data object instance associated with a warehouse process for handling the warehouse request and a warehouse process control configuration data object instance for the warehouse process data object instance that defines both a sequence of operational steps of the warehouse process and physical movement of goods through the warehouse;
• tracking, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service and using the data model, progress of each warehouse request item using warehouse task data object instances and an intermediary warehouse progress data object instance for the warehouse request item including creating new warehouse task object instances based on the warehouse process control configuration data object instance, wherein tracking of a first warehouse request item linked to a first intermediary warehouse progress data object instance includes:
• identifying, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service, an exception condition for the first warehouse request item;
• creating, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service, a new intermediary warehouse progress data object instance linked to the first warehouse request item and at least one new warehouse task data object instance for handling the exception condition, wherein the new intermediary warehouse progress data object instance is different from the first intermediary warehouse progress data object instance;
• tracking, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service, handling of the exception condition using the new intermediary warehouse progress data object instance and the at least one new warehouse task data object instance, wherein the tracking includes receiving a notification that a last task for handling the exception condition has been completed;
• and
• in response to receiving the notification that the last task for handling the exception condition has been completed:
• removing the new intermediary warehouse progress data object instance from the electronic data repository;
• and
• resuming tracking processing of the first warehouse request item using the first intermediary warehouse progress data object instance;
• determining, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service, for each warehouse request item, that a final warehouse task defined in the warehouse process control configuration data object instance has been completed for the warehouse request item;
• and
• recording, by the warehouse process orchestrator software service and in the electronic data repository, completion of the warehouse request in the warehouse request data object.