Method and apparatus for transporting a plurality of stacked motorized transport units

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9875503-B2
Application number	US-201615061054-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Mar 4, 2016
Priority date	Mar 6, 2015
Publication date	Jan 23, 2018
Grant date	Jan 23, 2018

Abstract

A housing contains a plurality of motorized transport units in a stacked relationship to one another, with a bottom-most one of the plurality of motorized transport units serving as a locomotion mechanism that selectively causes movement of the housing with the plurality of motorized transport units contained therein. By one approach the aforementioned housing has a cylindrical form factor and includes a cylindrically-shaped chamber configured to receive the motorized transport units, By one approach, for example, this housing includes no lifting mechanism to lift any of the motorized transport units into itself and further has no integral locomotion mechanism by which the housing can move itself. The interior of the housing can include at least one track formed therein to receive a corresponding part of each of the plurality of motorized transport units which the motorized transport units can engage to thereby lift themselves into the interior of the housing.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a housing configured to contain a plurality of motorized transport units in a stacked relationship to one another, a bottom-most one of the plurality of motorized transport units serving as a locomotion mechanism that selectively causes movement of the housing with the plurality of motorized transport units contained therein, wherein the housing includes no lifting mechanism to lift any of the plurality of motorized transport units into itself.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the plurality of motorized transport units each have, at least in part, a cylindrical form factor and wherein the housing includes a cylindrically-shaped chamber configured to receive the plurality of motorized transport units in the stacked relationship to one another.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 wherein the cylindrically-shaped chamber includes a track formed therein to receive a corresponding part of each of the plurality of motorized transport units.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 wherein the housing further comprises at least one sensor configured to gather information regarding an external environment to the housing.

5. The apparatus of claim 4 wherein the housing further comprises at least one interface configured to transmit the information regarding the external environment.

6. An apparatus comprising:
a housing configured to contain a plurality of motorized transport units in a stacked relationship to one another, a bottom-most one of the plurality of motorized transport units serving as a locomotion mechanism that selectively causes movement of the housing with the plurality of motorized transport units contained therein, wherein the housing includes no integral locomotion mechanism by which the housing can move itself.

7. An apparatus comprising:
a housing configured to contain a plurality of motorized transport units in a stacked relationship to one another, a bottom-most one of the plurality of motorized transport units serving as a locomotion mechanism that selectively causes movement of the housing with the plurality of motorized transport units contained therein;
a central computer system configured to communicate with at least one of the plurality of motorized transport units to thereby control locomotion of the housing via the at least one of the plurality of motorized transport units.

8. A method comprising:
by a central computer system:
instructing a plurality of motorized transport units to enter a housing that is configured to contain the plurality of motorized transport units in a stacked relationship to one another;
instructing a bottom-most one of the plurality of motorized transport units to serve as a locomotion mechanism that selectively causes movement of the housing with the plurality of motorized transport units contained therein.

9. The method of claim 8 wherein the plurality of motorized transport units each have, at least in part, a cylindrical form factor and wherein the housing includes a cylindrically-shaped chamber configured to receive the plurality of motorized transport units in the stacked relationship to one another.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein the cylindrically-shaped chamber includes a track formed therein to receive a corresponding part of each of the plurality of motorized transport units.

11. The method of claim 8 wherein the housing includes no lifting mechanism to lift any of the plurality of motorized transport units into itself.

12. The method of claim 8 wherein the housing further comprises at least one sensor configured to gather information regarding an external environment to the housing.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising:
receiving the information regarding the external environment to the housing and using the information when controlling the selective movement of the housing with the plurality of motorized transport units contained therein.

14. The method of claim 8 wherein the housing includes no integral locomotion mechanism by which the housing can move itself.

15. The method of claim 8 further comprising:
causing the housing with the plurality of motorized transport units contained therein to move into an action area.

16. The method of claim 15 further comprising:
causing individual ones of the plurality of motorized transport units contained in the housing to remove themselves from within the housing and undertake at least one assigned task in the action area.

17. The method of claim 16 further comprising:
causing a last remaining one of the plurality of motorized transport units contained in the housing to move the housing outside of the action area.

Assignees

• Wal Mart Stores Inc

Inventors

• High Donald R
• Atchley Michael D
• Winkle David C

Classifications

• G01S2201/02

  Indoor positioning, e.g. in covered car-parks, mining facilities, warehouses · CPC title

• G01S1/7038

  Signal details · CPC title

• G01S1/7034

  Mounting or deployment thereof · CPC title

• G01S1/72

  using ultrasonic, sonic or infrasonic waves · CPC title

• G06Q30/0619

  Neutral agent · CPC title