Inventory system with climate-controlled inventory

An inventory system comprising:

• a first inventory holder positioned in a first climate-controlled zone of a workspace ace that is at a below-freezing temperature;
• a second inventory holder positioned in a second climate-controlled zone of the workspace that is at an above-freezing refrigerated temperature;
• a third inventory holder positioned in a third climate-controlled zone of the workspace that is at ambient conditions;
• a management module operable to:
• receive an order for the first inventory item, an order for the second inventory item, and an order for the third inventory item;
• instruct a first mobile drive unit to transport the first inventory holder to an inventory station;
• instruct a second mobile drive unit to transport the second inventory holder to the inventory station;
• instruct a third mobile drive unit to transport the third inventory holder to the inventory station;
• and
• wherein the management module is further operable to schedule when at least one of the first inventory holder and the second inventory holder is to be transported to the inventory station, the schedule calculated to reduce an amount of time the first inventory holder is away from the first zone and the second inventory holder is away from the second zone.

An inventory system comprising:

• a first inventory holder positioned in a first climate-controlled zone of a workspace that is at a below-freezing temperature;
• a second inventory holder positioned in a second climate-controlled zone of the workspace that is at an above-freezing refrigerated temperature;
• a third inventory holder positioned in a third climate-controlled zone of the workspace that is at ambient conditions;
• a management module operable to:
• receive an order for the first inventory item, an order for the second inventory item, and an order for the third inventory item;
• instruct a first mobile drive unit to transport the first inventory holder to an inventory station;
• instruct a second mobile drive unit to transport the second inventory holder to the inventory station;
• instruct a third mobile drive unit to transport the third inventory holder to the inventory station;
• receive a first order for the third inventory item;
• instruct the third mobile drive unit to transport the third inventory holder to the inventory station in response to receiving the first order;
• receive a second order for the first inventory item;
• modify the instruction to the third mobile drive unit in response to receiving the second order, the modified instruction instructing the third mobile drive unit to transport the third inventory holder to a drift location associated with the inventory station;
• and
• instruct the second mobile drive unit to transport the second inventory holder to the inventory station, wherein the second order is completed at the inventory station while the third inventory holder is in the drift location;
• and
• instruct the third mobile drive unit to transport the third inventory holder to the inventory station in response to detecting that the second order is complete.

A method, comprising:

• assigning, by a management module, a first priority to a first inventory item, the first inventory item stored by a first inventory holder in a first storage zone, wherein the first storage zone is at ambient conditions;
• assigning, by the management module, a second priority to a second inventory item, the second inventory item stored by a second inventory holder in a second storage zone, wherein the second storage zone is at a refrigeration temperature and priorities assigned to inventory items in the second storage zone are higher than priorities assigned to inventory items in the first storage zone;
• determining to process the second inventory item ahead of the first inventory item based at least in part upon the assigned priorities;
• instructing a first mobile drive unit to transport the second inventory holder to an inventory station such that the second inventory item is processed at the inventory station ahead of the first inventory item;
• and
• instructing the first mobile drive unit to return the second inventory holder to the second storage zone such that the second inventory holder is returned ahead of the first inventory holder.

An apparatus, comprising:

• an interface operable to wirelessly transmit instructions to one or more mobile drive units;
• and
• a processor communicatively coupled to the interface and operable to:
• instruct a first mobile drive unit to transport a first inventory holder storing a first inventory item at ambient conditions from a first zone to an inventory station;
• instruct a second mobile drive unit to transport a second inventory holder storing a second inventory item at a climate-controlled temperature from a second zone to the inventory station;
• and
• based at least in part upon a condition associated with the second inventory item, determine a first priority of the instruction to the first mobile drive unit and a second priority of the instruction to the second mobile drive unit, wherein the first and second priorities determine a sequence in which the first inventory item and the second inventory item are transported to an inventory station;
• and
• wherein a climate-controlled inventory holder is stored in the first zone, and the processor is further operable to:
• instruct a third mobile drive unit to transport a third inventory holder storing a third inventory item at a freezing temperature from a third temperature zone to the inventory station.

An apparatus, comprising:

• an interface operable to wirelessly transmit instructions to one or more mobile drive units;
• and
• a processor communicatively coupled to the interface and operable to:
• instruct a first mobile drive unit to transport a first inventory holder storing a first inventory item at ambient conditions from a first zone to an inventory station;
• instruct a second mobile drive unit to transport a second inventory holder storing a second inventory item at a climate-controlled temperature from a second zone to the inventory station;
• based at least in part upon a condition associated with the second inventory item, determine a first priority of the instruction to the first mobile drive unit and a second priority of the instruction to the second mobile drive unit, wherein the first and second priorities determine a sequence in which the first inventory item and the second transported to an inventory station;
• detect that the condition associated with the second inventory item is changed;
• and
• based on the changed condition, modify the first priority and the second priority.

An apparatus, comprising:

• an interface operable to wirelessly transmit instructions to one or more mobile drive units;
• and
• a processor communicatively coupled to the interface and operable to:
• instruct a first mobile drive unit to transport a first inventory holder storing a first inventory item at ambient conditions from a first zone to an inventory station;
• instruct a second mobile drive unit to transport a second inventory holder storing a second inventory item at a climate-controlled temperature from a second zone to the inventory station;
• based at least in part upon a condition associated with the second inventory item, determine a first priority of the instruction to the first mobile drive unit and a second priority of the instruction to the second mobile drive unit, wherein the first and second priorities determine a sequence in which the first inventory item and the second inventory item are transported to an inventory station;
• and
• instruct a third mobile drive unit to replace a third inventory holder located in a queue associated with the inventory station with the second inventory holder based at least in part upon determining that the second priority is higher than a third priority associated with the third inventory holder.

An apparatus, comprising:

• an interface operable to wirelessly transmit instructions to one or more mobile drive units;
• and
• a processor communicatively coupled to the interface and operable to:
• instruct a first mobile drive unit to transport a first inventory holder storing a first inventory item at ambient conditions from a first zone to an inventory station;
• instruct a second mobile drive unit to transport a second inventory holder storing a second inventory item at a climate-controlled temperature from a second zone to the inventory station;
• based at least in part upon a condition associated with the second inventory item, determine a first priority of the instruction to the first mobile drive unit and a second priority of the instruction to the second mobile drive unit, wherein the first and second priorities determine a sequence in which the first inventory item and the second inventory item are transported to an inventory station;
• and
• based at least in part upon determining that the second priority is higher than the first priority, instruct the first mobile drive unit to transport the first inventory holder to a drift location before transporting the first inventory holder to the inventory station.