Method for tracking and maintaining inventory in a store

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12079765-B2
Application number	US-202117387866-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 28, 2021
Priority date	Nov 25, 2019
Publication date	Sep 3, 2024
Grant date	Sep 3, 2024

Abstract

One variation of a method for tracking and maintaining inventory in a store includes: accessing a image of an inventory structure in the store; identifying a top shelf, in the inventory structure, depicted in the image; identifying a set of product units occupying the top shelf based on features detected in the image; identifying a second shelf, in the set of shelves in the inventory structure, depicted in the image, the second shelf arranged below the top shelf in the inventory structure; based on features detected in the image, detecting an understock condition at a slot—assigned to a product type—on the second shelf; and, in response to the set of product units comprising a product unit of the product type, generating a prompt to transfer the product unit of the product type from the top shelf into the slot on the second shelf at the inventory structure.

First claim

We claim:

1. A method for tracking and maintaining inventory in a store comprising:
accessing a first image of a first inventory structure in the store;
identifying a top shelf, in a first set of shelves in the first inventory structure, depicted in the first image;
identifying a first shelf, in the first set of shelves in the first inventory structure, depicted in the first image, the first shelf arranged below the top shelf in the first inventory structure;
detecting an understock condition at a first slot on the first shelf based on a first set of features detected in a first region of the first image adjacent the first shelf, the first slot assigned to a first product type;
identifying a first set of product units, of the first product type, occupying the top shelf at the first inventory structure based on a second set of features detected in a second region of the first image adjacent the top shelf;
annotating a visual representation of the first inventory structure to indicate locations of the first set of product units on the top shelf at the first inventory structure; and
generating a first prompt, associated with the visual representation, to transfer product units of the first product type from the top shelf into the first slot on the first shelf at the first inventory structure.

2. The method of claim 1 :
further comprising annotating the visual representation of the first inventory structure to indicate the first slot on the first shelf at the first inventory structure; and
wherein generating the first prompt comprises annotating the visual representation of the first inventory structure to prompt transfer of product units of the first product type from the top shelf into the first slot on the first shelf at the first inventory structure.

3. The method of claim 1 :
wherein accessing the first image of the first inventory structure comprises accessing a sequence of images of the first inventory structure captured by a mobile robotic system while autonomously navigating through the store during a scan cycle;
further comprising compiling the sequence of images into a panoramic image of the first inventory structure; and
wherein annotating the visual representation of the first inventory structure to indicate locations of the first set of product units on the top shelf at the first inventory structure comprises annotating the panoramic image of the first inventory structure to indicate locations of the first set of product units on the top shelf at the first inventory structure.

4. The method of claim 1 , further comprising serving the visual representation of the first inventory structure and the prompt to a computing device, assigned to an associate of the store, during a scheduled restocking period within the store.

5. The method of claim 1 :
further comprising estimating an understock quantity of the first product type at the first slot;
wherein annotating the visual representation of the first inventory structure to indicate locations of the first set of product units on the top shelf at the first inventory structure comprises annotating the visual representation of the first inventory structure to indicate locations of a target quantity of product units, in the first set of product units, on the top shelf at the first inventory structure, the target quantity of product units approximating the understock quantity; and
wherein generating the first prompt comprises annotating the visual representation of the first inventory structure with the first prompt to transfer the target quantity of product units from the top shelf into the first slot on the first shelf at the first inventory structure.

6. The method of claim 1 :
further comprising estimating an understock quantity of the first product type at the first slot;
wherein identifying the first set of product units, of the first product type, occupying the top shelf at the first inventory structure comprises generating a count of product units, of the first product type, occupying the top shelf at the first inventory structure based on the second set of features; and
wherein generating the first prompt comprises, in response to a ratio between the count of product units to the understock quantity falling below a threshold proportion, generating the first prompt to:
transfer product units of the first product type from the top shelf into the first slot on the first shelf at the first inventory structure;
retrieve a second set of product units of the first product type from back-of-store inventory; and
restock the first slot on the first shelf at the first inventory structure with the second set of product units.

7. The method of claim 1 :
wherein identifying the first set of product units, of the first product type, occupying the top shelf at the first inventory structure comprises:
detecting a set of object boundaries of the first set of product units in the second region of the first image;
detecting a first set of barcodes within the set of object boundaries in the first image, the first set of barcodes associated with case packs containing packaged product units;
identifying a first case pack, located on the top shelf at the first inventory structure and associated with the first product type, based on a first barcode in the first set of barcodes;
detecting a second set of barcodes within the set of object boundaries in the first image, the second set of barcodes associated with loose product units; and
identifying a second subset of loose product units, of the first product type, located on the top shelf at the first inventory structure based on the second set of barcodes; and

wherein generating the first prompt comprises generating the first prompt to preferentially transfer product units of the first product type from the first case pack stored on the top shelf, before the second subset of loose product units of the first product type stored on the top shelf, into the first slot on the first shelf.

8. The method of claim 1 :
wherein identifying the first set of product units, of the first product type, occupying the top shelf at the first inventory structure comprises:
detecting a set of object boundaries of the first set of product units in the second region of the first image;
detecting a first set of barcodes within the set of object boundaries in the first image, the first set of barcodes associated with case packs containing packaged product units;
identifying a first case pack, located on the top shelf at the first inventory structure and associated with the first product type, based on a first barcode in the first set of barcodes;
detecting a second set of barcodes within the set of object boundaries in the first image, the second set of barcodes associated with loose product units; and
identifying a second subset of loose product units, of the first product type, located on the top shelf at the first inventory structure based on the second set of barcodes; and

wherein generating the first prompt comprises generating the first prompt to preferentially transfer product units of the second subset of loose product units of the first product type stored on the top shelf, before product units of the first product type from the first case pack stored on the top shelf, into the first slot on the first shelf.

9. The method of claim 1 , further comprising:
accessing a second image of a second inventory structure in the store;
identifying a second top shelf, in a second set of shelves in the second inventory structure, depicted in the second image;
identifying a second shelf, in the second set of shelves in the second inventory structure, depicted in the second image, the second shelf arranged below the second top shelf i

Assignees

• Simbe Robotics Inc

Inventors

• Bogolea Bradley
• Tiwari Durgesh
• Safi Jariullah
• Reddy Shiva
• Vandegrift Lorin

Classifications

• G06V20/52

  Surveillance or monitoring of activities, e.g. for recognising suspicious objects (recognising microscopic objects G06V20/69) · CPC title

• G06V20/10

  Terrestrial scenes (scenes under surveillance with static cameras G06V20/52; scenes perceived from the exterior of a vehicle G06V20/56; scenes perceived from the interior of a vehicle G06V20/59) · CPC title

• G06V10/22

  by selection of a specific region containing or referencing a pattern; Locating or processing of specific regions to guide the detection or recognition · CPC title

• G06V30/2247

  Characters composed of bars, e.g. CMC-7 · CPC title

• G06V20/41

  Higher-level, semantic clustering, classification or understanding of video scenes, e.g. detection, labelling or Markovian modelling of sport events or news items (segmenting video sequences G06V20/49) · CPC title