# US 9,519,880 B1 · Wireless visualization interface for autonomous ground vehicle signal coverage

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- Number: US 9,519,880 B1
- Document ID: US9519880B1
- Status: Granted
- Kind: B1
- Application number: 15/008,847
- Filed: 2016-01-28
- Granted: 2016-12-13
- Earliest claimed: 2014-09-25
- Assignees: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
- Applicants: Amazon Technologies, Inc.
- Inventors: Jonathan Cohn
- Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US9519880B1

## CPC

- G06Q 10/08: Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
- B65G 1/137: with arrangements or automatic control means for selecting which articles are to be removed
- G05D 1/0297: {by controlling means in a control room}
- G06F 3/0482: Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
- G06F 3/04842: Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements (G06F3/0482 takes precedence)
- H04L 67/12: specially adapted for proprietary or special-purpose networking environments, e.g. medical networks, sensor networks, networks in vehicles or remote metering networks
- H04W 16/20: for indoor coverage or short range network deployment
- H04W 28/00: Network traffic management; Network resource management
- G05B 19/41895: {using automatic guided vehicles [AGV] (control of position or course of AGV's G05D1/00)}
- Y02P 90/02: Total factory control, e.g. smart factories, flexible manufacturing systems [FMS] or integrated manufacturing systems [IMS]
- G06Q: INFORMATION AND COMMUNICATION TECHNOLOGY [ICT] SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES; SYSTEMS OR METHODS SPECIALLY ADAPTED FOR ADMINISTRATIVE, COMMERCIAL, FINANCIAL, MANAGERIAL OR SUPERVISORY PURPOSES, NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR
- B65G: TRANSPORT OR STORAGE DEVICES, e.g. CONVEYORS FOR LOADING OR TIPPING, SHOP CONVEYOR SYSTEMS OR PNEUMATIC TUBE CONVEYORS (packaging B65B; handling thin or filamentary materials, e.g. paper sheets or thread, B65H; cranes B66C; portable mobile or lifting or hauling appliances, e.g. hoists, B66D; devices for lifting or lowering goods for loading or unloading purposes, e.g. fork-lift trucks, B66F9/00; emptying bottles, jars, casks, barrels or similar containers, not otherwise provided for, B67C9/00; delivering or transferring liquids B67D; filling or discharging vessels for liquefied, solidified or compressed gases F17C; pipe-line systems for fluids F17D)
- G05D: SYSTEMS FOR CONTROLLING OR REGULATING NON-ELECTRIC VARIABLES
- G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N)
- H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M)
- H04W: WIRELESS COMMUNICATION NETWORKS (broadcast communication H04H; communication systems using wireless links for non-selective communication, e.g. wireless extensions H04M1/72)
- G05B: CONTROL OR REGULATING SYSTEMS IN GENERAL; FUNCTIONAL ELEMENTS OF SUCH SYSTEMS; MONITORING OR TESTING ARRANGEMENTS FOR SUCH SYSTEMS OR ELEMENTS (systems for controlling or regulating non-electric variables G05D; systems for regulating electric or magnetic variables G05F; control devices or systems insofar as characterised by mechanical features only G05G)
- Y02P: CLIMATE CHANGE MITIGATION TECHNOLOGIES IN THE PRODUCTION OR PROCESSING OF GOODS

## Abstract

A system for analyzing the network traffic health of an inventory management system that includes an autonomous vehicle and a plurality of access points. The autonomous vehicle interacts with access points in an inventory management system, and network traffic information related to network connectivity between the autonomous vehicle and the access points is obtained. The autonomous vehicle or the access points transmit(s) the network traffic information to a computer system that can generate a graphical user interface that represents the network traffic information for the inventory management system. The network traffic information can include a variety of information about the interactions between autonomous vehicles and access points, such as roam time of the autonomous vehicles between access points as the autonomous vehicles navigate within the inventory management system.

## Claims

### Claim 1

An inventory management system, comprising:
a plurality of access points situated in a materials handling facility;
a mobile drive unit for moving inventory within the inventory management system, and for receiving and transmitting data from and to the plurality of access points;
a computer system for:
receiving the data from at least one of the mobile drive unit or at least one of the plurality of access points, the data including at least roam times associated with network connectivity between the mobile drive unit and the at least one of the plurality of access points;
generating connectivity improvement information based at least in part on the data; and
providing the connectivity improvement information to the at least one of the plurality of access points, the connectivity improvement information comprising instructions for the at least one of the plurality of access points to change a first configuration of the at least one of the plurality of access points.

### Claim 2 (depends on 1)

The inventory management system of claim 1, wherein the data includes at least one of signal strength indicators associated with an access point, timeouts that occur when the mobile drive unit switches from the at least one access point to another access point of the plurality of access points, beacons from the at least one access point, bitrates from the at least one access point, coordinates of the mobile drive unit, a timestamp, or an identifier associated with the mobile drive unit.

### Claim 3 (depends on 1)

The inventory management system of claim 1, wherein the computer system is further configured for providing a graphical user interface (GUI) to a user, the GUI graphically representing information corresponding to the data received by the computer system, wherein the data is stored in a database that is in communication with the GUI.

### Claim 4 (depends on 3)

The inventory management system of claim 3, wherein the GUI includes the connectivity improvement information and is configured to receive input from the user to implement the connectivity improvement information to instruct the at least one of the plurality of access points.

### Claim 5 (depends on 1)

The inventory management system of claim 1, wherein the computer system is further configured for generating trend information based at least in part on the data, wherein generating the connectivity improvement information includes using the trend information, the trend information identifying trends with respect to at least one of timeouts that occur when the mobile drive unit switches from the at least one access point to another access point of the plurality of access points, beacons from the at least one access point, bitrates from the at least one access point, coordinates of the mobile drive unit, a timestamp, or an identifier associated with the mobile drive unit, within a specified time period.

### Claim 6

A computer-implemented method, comprising:
receiving, by a computer system, from at least one of an autonomous vehicle or at least one access point of a plurality of access points, network traffic information, the network traffic information including information related to network connectivity between the autonomous vehicle and the at least one access point of the plurality of access points in a first inventory management system;
generating, by the computer system, a graphical user interface displaying the network traffic information on a map that corresponds to the first inventory management system,
the network traffic information including at least one of (1) roam time between the at least one access point and another access point or (2) timeouts that occur when the autonomous vehicle switches from the at least one access point to the another access point of the plurality of access points; and
automatically providing, by the computer system, instructions to alter at least one of a first configuration of the at least one access point or a second configuration of the autonomous vehicle based on the network traffic information.

### Claim 7 (depends on 6)

The computer-implemented method of claim 6, further comprising:
providing the graphical user interface to a user;
receiving input from the user interacting with the graphical user interface;
updating the graphical user interface based at least in part on the received input; and
providing for presentation the updated graphical user interface to the user.

### Claim 8 (depends on 7)

The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein receiving the input from the user includes a selection to filter the network traffic information included in the graphical user interface, wherein the selection includes at least one of a date, a time, a particular access point of the plurality of access points, a particular autonomous vehicle, a length of roam time between access points, beacon information of the access points, a particular map of the first inventory management system, or a traffic pattern of the particular autonomous vehicle.

### Claim 9 (depends on 7)

The computer-implemented method of claim 7, further comprising:
generating connectivity improvement information based at least in part on the network traffic information,
specifying a threshold for a portion of the information included in the network traffic information based on the user utilizing the graphical user interface, wherein automatically providing, by the computer system, the instructions to alter the at least one of the first configuration or the second configuration is based at least in part on the threshold and the connectivity improvement information.

### Claim 10 (depends on 6)

The computer-implemented method of claim 6, further comprising analyzing the network traffic information to determine trend information, the trend information identifying inefficient behavior of the autonomous vehicle or the at least one access point of the plurality of access points in the first inventory management system based at least in part on the network traffic information.

### Claim 11 (depends on 10)

The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising utilizing the trend information for providing instructions to a second inventory management system, the instructions indicating a first number of the plurality of access points and the first configuration of the first number of the plurality of access points and a second number of the autonomous vehicles and the second configuration of the second number of the autonomous vehicles for the second inventory management system to implement in an initial configuration.

### Claim 12 (depends on 10)

The computer-implemented method of claim 10, further comprising generating connectivity improvement information based at least in part on the trend information, the instructions to alter the at least one of the first configuration or the second configuration further being based on the connectivity improvement information.

### Claim 13

A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a computer system, cause the computer system to perform operations comprising:
receiving, from at least one of an autonomous vehicle or at least one access point of a plurality of access points, network traffic information, the network traffic information indicating network connectivity between the autonomous vehicle and the at least one access point of the plurality of access points in an inventory management system;
generating a graphical user interface based at least in part on the network traffic information;
providing the graphical user interface for presentation to a user; and
generating connectivity improvement information based at least in part on the network traffic information, wherein the connectivity improvement information includes at least first instructions to at least one of (1) turn on or off the at least one access point, (2) adjust a signal strength of the at least one access point, or (3) rearrange the at least one access point in the inventory management system.

### Claim 14 (depends on 13)

The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, further comprising:
receiving input from the user interacting with the graphical user interface, the input including instructions to filter the network traffic information provided via the graphical user interface;
updating the graphical user interface based at least in part on the received input; and
providing the updated graphical user interface for presentation to the user.

### Claim 15 (depends on 13)

The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the connectivity improvement information includes at least second instructions to at least one of update traffic patterns of the autonomous vehicle or adjust a number of autonomous vehicles configured to interact with the at least one access point.

### Claim 16 (depends on 13)

The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, further comprising
providing instructions to the at least one access point of the plurality of access points to prioritize access of a particular autonomous vehicle over other autonomous vehicles in the inventory management system, the instructions based at least in part on the connectivity improvement information generated from the network traffic information.

### Claim 17 (depends on 13)

The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, further comprising:
receiving, from the user, selection of a first access point and a second access point from the plurality of access points via the graphical user interface; and
updating the graphical user interface to display roam time and position of the autonomous vehicle between the first access point and the second access point, the roam time indicating an amount of time between the autonomous vehicle disconnecting from the first access point and connecting to the second access point.

### Claim 18 (depends on 13)

The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, further comprising:
receiving, from the user, selection of a first access point and an area of a map associated with the inventory management system via the graphical user interface; and
updating the graphical user interface to display roam time and position of the autonomous vehicle between the first access point and any other access point of the plurality of access points of the inventory management system, the roam time indicating an amount of time between the autonomous vehicle disconnecting from the first access point and connecting to any other access point of the plurality of access points.

### Claim 19 (depends on 13)

The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 13, wherein the receiving, from at least one of the autonomous vehicle or the at least one access point of the plurality of access points, of the network traffic information occurs at least one of periodically, randomly, upon request, upon a trigger event, or in real time.

### Claim 20 (depends on 19)

The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 19, further comprising instructing at least one of the autonomous vehicle or the at least one access point of the plurality of access points to transmit network traffic information based at least in part on a user request received from the user through the graphical user interface.