System and methods for estimating storage capacity and identifying actions based on sound detection

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10656266-B2
Application number	US-201715698055-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 7, 2017
Priority date	Sep 13, 2016
Publication date	May 19, 2020
Grant date	May 19, 2020

Abstract

Described in detail herein are methods and systems for estimating storage capacity of a storage unit disposed in a facility based on echoes detected by microphones. The microphones can detect sounds generated in the warehouse and reflected off the storage unit structures. The microphones detect the intensity of the sounds. The microphones can encode the sounds and the intensity of the sounds in time-varying electrical signals and transmit the time-varying electrical signals to a computing system. The computing system can decode the sounds and the intensity of the sounds from the time-varying electrical signals and estimate storage capacity of a storage unit from which the sounds reflected off of based on the intensity of the sounds.

First claim

We claim:

1. A storage capacity estimation and action identification system, comprising:
an array of microphones disposed in an area of a facility that includes a plurality of storage units, the microphones being configured to detect arbitrary sounds in the area and to detect reflections of the arbitrary sounds from at least one of the plurality of storage units, the microphones being configured to output time varying electrical signals upon detection of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections; and
a computing system operatively coupled to the array of microphones, the computing system programmed to:
receive the time varying electrical signals associated with the arbitrary sounds and the reflections;
determine which of the arbitrary sounds correspond to each of the reflections; and

estimate an available capacity of the at least one storage unit based on a relationship of the arbitrary sounds to the reflections corresponding to the arbitrary sounds.

2. The system in claim 1 , wherein the microphones are further configured to detect intensities of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections of the arbitrary sounds and encode the intensities of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections of the arbitrary sounds in the time varying electrical signals.

3. The system in claim 2 , further comprising:
a database including metrics for determining the available capacity of the at least one of the plurality of storage units based on the intensities of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections of the arbitrary sounds.

4. The system in claim 3 , wherein the computing system is further programmed to query the database using at least one of the intensities of the reflections of the arbitrary sounds or a combination of the intensities of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections to retrieve the available capacity of the at least one storage unit.

5. The system in claim 4 , wherein the microphones detect intensities of arbitrary sounds prior to the arbitrary sounds reflecting off the at least one of the plurality of storage units.

6. The system in claim 5 , wherein the computing system is further programmed determine the distance between the at least one of the plurality of storage units and the arbitrary sounds based on the intensity of the arbitrary sounds prior to the arbitrary sounds reflecting off the at least one of the plurality of storage units.

7. The system in claim 6 , wherein the computing system is further programmed to use the distance between the at least one of the plurality of storage units and the arbitrary sounds and the intensity of the reflections of the arbitrary sounds to estimate the available capacity of the at least one of the plurality of storage units.

8. The system in claim 1 , wherein the microphones are configured to detect a first set of reflections of the arbitrary sounds in response to at least some of the arbitrary sounds reflecting off of a first storage unit and a second set of reflections of the arbitrary sounds in response to at least some of the arbitrary sounds reflecting off of a second storage unit.

9. The system in claim 8 , wherein the computer system is further programmed to distinguish between the first set of reflections of the arbitrary sounds and the second set of reflections of the arbitrary sounds.

10. The system in claim 1 , wherein a first one of the microphones detects the reflections of the arbitrary sounds in response to at least some of the arbitrary sounds reflecting off of more than one of the plurality of storage units.

11. A storage capacity estimation method, comprising:
detecting arbitrary sounds via an array of microphones disposed in an area of a facility that includes a plurality of storage units;
detecting, via the microphones, reflections of the arbitrary sounds from at least one of the plurality of storage units;
outputting, via the microphones, time varying electrical signals upon detection of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections;
receiving, via a computing system operatively coupled to the array of microphones, the time varying electrical signals associated with the arbitrary sounds and the reflections;
determining, via the computing system, which ones of the arbitrary sounds correspond to each of the reflections; and
estimating, via the computing system, an available capacity of the at least one of the plurality of storage units based on a relationship of the arbitrary sounds to the reflections.

12. The method in claim 11 , further comprising:
detecting via the microphones, intensities of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections of the arbitrary sounds; and
encoding the intensities of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections of the arbitrary sounds in the time varying electrical signals.

13. The method in claim 12 , further comprising:
determining, via the computing system, the available capacity of the at least one of the plurality of storage units based on the intensities of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections of the arbitrary sounds.

14. The method in claim 13 , wherein determining the available capacity of the at least one of the plurality of storage units comprises:
querying a database within the computing system using at least one of the intensities of the reflections of the arbitrary sounds or a combination of the intensities of the arbitrary sounds and the reflections to retrieve the available capacity of the at least one storage unit; and
determining the available capacity based on one or more metrics returned in response to the query.

15. The method in claim 14 , further comprising detecting, via the microphones, intensities of arbitrary sounds prior to the arbitrary sounds reflecting off the at least one of the plurality of storage units.

16. The method in claim 15 , further comprising:
determining, via the computing system, the distance between the at least one of the plurality of storage units and the arbitrary sounds based on the intensity of the arbitrary sounds prior to the arbitrary sounds reflecting off the at least one of the plurality of storage units.

17. The method in claim 16 , further comprising:
estimating the available capacity of the at least one of the plurality of storage units based on the distance between the at least one of the plurality of storage units and the arbitrary sounds and the intensity of the reflections of the arbitrary sounds.

18. The method in claim 11 , further comprising:
detecting, via the microphones, a first set of reflections of the arbitrary sounds in response to at least some of the arbitrary sounds reflecting off of a first storage unit and a second set of reflections of the arbitrary sounds in response to at least some of the arbitrary sounds reflecting off of a second storage unit.

19. The method in claim 18 , further comprising:
distinguishing, via the computing system, between the first set of reflections of the arbitrary sounds and the second set of reflections of the arbitrary sounds.

20. The method in claim 11 , further comprising:
detecting, via a first one of the microphones, the reflections of the arbitrary sounds in response to at least some of the arbitrary sounds reflecting off of more than one of the plurality of storage units.

21. A system for determining fullness of a tote based on detected sounds produced by unloading a truck or an environment within which the truck is unloaded, the system comprising:
an array of microphones disposed in a first area of a facility, the microphones being configured to detect sounds and output time varying

Assignees

• Walmart Apollo Llc

Inventors

• Jones Matthew Allen
• Vasgaard Aaron James
• Jones Nicholaus Adam
• Taylor Robert James

Classifications

• H04R29/00

  Monitoring arrangements; Testing arrangements {(for hearing aids H04R25/30; detection of loudspeaker connection H04R5/04; sound-field adaptation dependent on speaker detection H04S7/308)} · CPC title

• G01S15/10 Primary

  using transmission of interrupted, pulse-modulated waves (determination of distance by phase measurement G01S15/32) · CPC title

• G01S15/42

  Simultaneous measurement of distance and other co-ordinates (indirect measurement G01S15/46) · CPC title

• H04R1/40 Primary

  by combining a number of identical transducers {(specially adapted for hearing aids H04R25/405)} · CPC title

• G01S5/30

  Determining absolute distances from a plurality of spaced points of known location · CPC title