Systems and methods for warehouse order sortation

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11639267-B2
Application number	US-202117533832-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 23, 2021
Priority date	Aug 15, 2019
Publication date	May 2, 2023
Grant date	May 2, 2023

Abstract

Warehouse automation and methods of automatically sorting and sequencing items can be implemented to streamline and expedite order fulfillment and store replenishment processes in a cost-effective manner. Some embodiments described herein include sorting items to a truck-level, inducting items for a first truck into a first portion of a mobile robot field, accumulating the items in the first portion of the mobile robot field until all the items for a first cart of the first truck are in the first portion, moving, by one or more mobile robots, all of the items for the first cart in a sequence that corresponds to a store aisle layout, loading the first cart in the sequence, and moving the loaded first cart into the first truck, which can be accomplished in a particular sequence with other carts for the first truck.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An automated method for sorting saleable items into a store aisle-ready arrangement, the method comprising:
inducting a plurality of items into a temporary storage area;
assigning each of the items to a respective location of a first store-friendly transport vessel, wherein the respective location assignments of the items are based on how the items will be arranged at a store to which the items are destined;
determining whether all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel are in the temporary storage area; and
in response to determining that all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel are in the temporary storage area, transporting all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel from the temporary storage area to a station for loading the first store-friendly transport vessel.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein the temporary storage area is a mobile robot field.

3. The method of claim 2 , wherein the transporting is performed by one or more mobile robots.

4. The method of claim 2 , wherein the transporting is performed in a sequence that corresponds to the respective location assignments of the items.

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
assigning a plurality of store-friendly transport vessels to a particular semi-trailer; and
determining a sequence for loading the plurality of store-friendly transport vessels into the particular semi-trailer based on how the plurality of items in the plurality of store-friendly transport vessels will be arranged at a store to which the items are destined.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of items is inducted into the temporary storage area by a conveyor of the warehouse that is configured to feed into a particular portion of the temporary storage area.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel are located in a first portion of the temporary storage area and all of the items assigned to a second store-friendly transport vessel are located in a second portion of the temporary storage area that differs from the first portion of the temporary storage area.

8. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
determining whether all of the items assigned to a second store-friendly transport vessel are in the temporary storage area; and
in response to determining that all of the items assigned to the second store-friendly transport vessel are in the temporary storage area, transporting all of the items assigned to the second store-friendly transport vessel from the temporary storage area to a station for loading the second store-friendly transport vessel.

9. The method of claim 1 , wherein the respective location assignments of the items are based on an order that one or more shelves in the store will be stocked.

10. The method of claim 9 , wherein the respective location assignments of the items are based on at least one of a direction from left to right and a direction from right to left that the one or more shelves in the store aisle will be stocked.

11. The method of claim 1 , wherein the temporary storage area comprises one or more multi-level mobile robot fields.

12. The method of claim 11 , wherein the transporting comprises transporting all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel from multiple levels of the one or more multi-level mobile robot fields to the station.

13. A system for sorting saleable items into a store aisle-ready arrangement, the system comprising:
a temporary storage area;
a conveyor of a warehouse that is configured to feed items into the temporary storage area; and
a control system configured to:
induct a plurality of items into the temporary storage area;
assigning each of the items to a respective location of a first store-friendly transport vessel, wherein the respective location assignments of the items are based on how the items will be arranged at a store to which the items are destined;
determining whether all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel are in the temporary storage area; and
in response to determining that all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel are in the temporary storage area, transporting all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel from the temporary storage area to a station for loading the first store-friendly transport vessel.

14. The system of claim 13 , wherein the temporary storage area is a first mobile robot field.

15. The system of claim 14 , wherein the first mobile robot field comprises two or more portions.

16. The system of claim 15 , wherein a mobile robot is assigned to a particular portion of the first mobile robot field.

17. The system of claim 14 , wherein the first mobile robot field is a multilevel robot field.

18. An automated method for sorting saleable items into a store aisle-ready arrangement, the method comprising:
inducting a plurality of items into a temporary storage area;
determining whether all of the items assigned to a first store-friendly transport vessel are in the temporary storage area; and
in response to determining that all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel are in the first mobile robot field, transporting all of the items assigned to the first store-friendly transport vessel in a sequence that corresponds to assigned locations of the items in the first store-friendly transport vessel.

19. The method of claim 18 , wherein the temporary storage area comprises a mobile robot field.

20. The method of claim 19 , wherein the transporting is performed by one or more mobile robots.

Assignees

• Target Brands Inc

Inventors

• Lisso Gregory
• Sellner David

Classifications

• B65G1/1376 Primary

  the orders being assembled on a commissioning conveyor · CPC title

• G06Q50/28

  Physics · mapped topic

• G06Q10/08 Primary

  Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management · CPC title