Unmanned equipment path planning method and device

Abstract

The present disclosure provides a method and device for unmanned equipment path planning, which relates to the field of unmanned equipment. The method includes: determining the positions of various landmarks in the warehouse; taking the current landmark as the current node, obtaining the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and taking the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked as the current node, repeating the steps of obtaining the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and taking the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked as the current node, until the landmark corresponding to the last goods to be picked is obtained, wherein the initial value of the current node is the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment; and taking the line formed by the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked selected in sequence as the driving path of the unmanned equipment. The present invention can quickly plan the travel route of the unmanned equipment in the warehouse.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of unmanned equipment, and in particular to a method and device for unmanned equipment path planning. Background Art

[0002] In today's warehouse production activities, automated equipment has been used on a large scale, such as using unmanned equipment such as drones and unmanned vehicles to perform picking operations in warehouses. Whether the route planning of unmanned equipment in the warehouse is reasonable and whether the route can be planned efficiently has a great impact on the production efficiency in the warehouse. Summary of the invention

[0003] A technical problem to be solved by the present disclosure is to provide a method and device for unmanned equipment path planning, which can quickly plan the travel route of the unmanned equipment in the warehouse.

[0004] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, a method for unmanned equipment path planning is proposed, including: determining the positions of various landmarks in a warehouse; taking the current landmark as the current node, obtaining the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and taking the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked as the current node, repeating the steps of obtaining the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and taking the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked as the current node, until the landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked is obtained, wherein the initial value of the current node is the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment; and taking the route formed by the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmarks corresponding to the items to be picked that are selected in sequence as the driving path of the unmanned equipment.

[0005] Optionally, the method also includes: mapping landmarks in the warehouse into a two-dimensional matrix map; determining the coordinate values ​​of the initial landmarks of the unmanned equipment in the two-dimensional matrix map and the coordinate values ​​of the landmarks corresponding to each item to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; calculating the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to each item to be picked based on the coordinate values, as well as the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to each item to be picked.

[0006] Optionally, calculating the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each item to be picked based on the coordinate value includes: calculating the coordinate distance between the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; judging whether the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked are located between two identical main lanes; if the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then determining the first landmark number from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the first of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the second of the two identical main lanes, as well as determining the third landmark number from the first main lane to the corresponding landmark of each item to be picked and the fourth landmark number from the second main lane to the corresponding landmark of each item to be picked, calculating the sum of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, and the sum of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; adding the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each item to be picked.

[0007] Optionally, if the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, the coordinate distance is the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each of the goods to be picked.

[0008] Optionally, calculating the path distance between landmarks corresponding to each item to be picked based on the coordinate values ​​includes: calculating the coordinate distance between any two landmarks corresponding to the items to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; determining whether the two landmarks corresponding to the items to be picked are located between two identical main lanes; if the two landmarks corresponding to the items to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then determining the first landmark number from the landmark corresponding to the first item to be picked among the two items to be picked to the first main lane of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number from the landmark corresponding to the first item to be picked to the second main lane of the two identical main lanes, as well as the third landmark number from the landmark corresponding to the second item to be picked among the two items to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number from the landmark corresponding to the second item to be picked to the second main lane, calculating the sum of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, and the sum of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; adding the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two items to be picked.

[0009] Optionally, if the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, the coordinate distance is the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked.

[0010] Optionally, the method further includes: if there are multiple selected driving paths for the unmanned equipment, selecting the optimal path among the multiple driving paths according to the initial starting point of the next step of planning.

[0011] Optionally, selecting the optimal path among multiple driving paths according to the initial starting point of the next planning includes: selecting a driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last commodity to be picked among the multiple driving paths is closest to the initial starting point of the next planning as the optimal path.

[0012] Optionally, if the next step is planned to return the unmanned equipment to the initial landmark, the driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked is closest to the initial landmark among the multiple driving paths is selected as the optimal path.

[0013] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, an unmanned equipment path planning device is also proposed, including: a landmark position determination unit, used to determine the positions of various landmarks in the warehouse; a landmark acquisition unit, used to take the current landmark as the current node, obtain the landmark corresponding to the to-be-picked item that is closest to the current node path distance, and use the landmark corresponding to the to-be-picked item as the current node, and repeat the steps of obtaining the landmark corresponding to the to-be-picked item that is closest to the current node path distance, and using the landmark corresponding to the to-be-picked item as the current node until the landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked is obtained, wherein the initial value of the current node is the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment; a driving path determination unit, used to use the line formed by the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmarks corresponding to the items to be picked selected in sequence as the driving path of the unmanned equipment.

[0014] Optionally, the device also includes: a path distance determination unit, used to map landmarks in the warehouse into a two-dimensional matrix map; determine the coordinate values ​​of the initial landmarks of the unmanned equipment in the two-dimensional matrix map and the coordinate values ​​of the landmarks corresponding to each item to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; calculate the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to each item to be picked according to the coordinate values, as well as the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to each item to be picked.

[0015] Optionally, the path distance determination unit is used to calculate the coordinate distance between the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; determine whether the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are located between two identical main lanes; if the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then determine the first landmark number from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the first main lane of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the second main lane of the two identical main lanes, as well as determine the third landmark number from the corresponding landmark of each goods to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number from the corresponding landmark of each goods to be picked to the second main lane, calculate the sum of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, and the sum of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; add the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the corresponding landmark of each goods to be picked.

[0016] Optionally, the path distance determination unit is also used for, if the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, then the coordinate distance is the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each good to be picked.

[0017] Optionally, the path distance determination unit is used to calculate the coordinate distance between the corresponding landmarks of any two items to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; determine whether the corresponding landmarks of the two items to be picked are located between two identical main lanes; if the corresponding landmarks of the two items to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then determine the first landmark number of the corresponding landmark of the first item to be picked among the two items to be picked to the first main lane of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number of the corresponding landmark of the first item to be picked to the second main lane of the two identical main lanes, as well as the third landmark number of the corresponding landmark of the second item to be picked among the two items to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number of the corresponding landmark of the second item to be picked to the second main lane; calculate the sum of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, as well as the sum of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; add the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two items to be picked.

[0018] Optionally, the path distance determination unit is further configured to, if the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, then the coordinate distance is the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked.

[0019] Optionally, the device further includes: an optimal path determination unit, which is used to select the optimal path among the multiple driving paths according to the initial starting point of the next step of planning if there are multiple driving paths selected for the unmanned equipment.

[0020] Optionally, the optimal path determination unit is used to select a driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last commodity to be picked among the multiple driving paths is closest to an initial starting point of the next step of planning as the optimal path.

[0021] Optionally, the optimal path determination unit is used to select a driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last commodity to be picked among multiple driving paths is closest to the initial landmark as the optimal path if the next step is planned for the unmanned equipment to return to the initial landmark.

[0022] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, an unmanned equipment path planning device is also proposed, including: a memory; and a processor coupled to the memory, the processor being configured to execute the unmanned equipment path planning method as described above based on instructions stored in the memory.

[0023] According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a computer-readable storage medium is also proposed, on which computer program instructions are stored, and when the instructions are executed by a processor, the steps of the above-mentioned unmanned equipment path planning method are implemented.

[0024] Compared with the prior art, the embodiment of the present disclosure takes the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment as the starting point, sequentially obtains the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked, and uses the route formed by the obtained landmarks as the driving path of the unmanned equipment, thereby being able to quickly plan the travel route of the unmanned equipment in the warehouse.

[0025] Other features and advantages of the present disclosure will become apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure with reference to the accompanying drawings. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] The accompanying drawings, which constitute a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the present disclosure and, together with the description, serve to explain the principles of the present disclosure.

[0027] The present disclosure may be more clearly understood from the following detailed description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

[0028] Figure 1 The present invention is a flowchart of an embodiment of the unmanned equipment path planning method disclosed herein.

[0029] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the landmarks for the unmanned equipment disclosed in the present invention.

[0030] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the two-dimensional matrix map of the unmanned equipment disclosed in this disclosure.

[0031] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of a logistics map in one embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0032] Figure 5The figure is a schematic diagram of the structure of an embodiment of the unmanned equipment path planning device disclosed in the present invention.

[0033] Figure 6 It is a structural schematic diagram of another embodiment of the unmanned equipment path planning device disclosed in the present invention.

[0034] Figure 7 This is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of the unmanned equipment path planning device disclosed in the present invention.

[0035] Figure 8 This is a schematic structural diagram of another embodiment of the unmanned equipment path planning device disclosed in the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0036] Various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will now be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. It should be noted that the relative arrangement of components and steps, numerical expressions and numerical values ​​set forth in these embodiments do not limit the scope of the present disclosure unless otherwise specifically stated.

[0037] At the same time, it should be understood that for the convenience of description, the sizes of the various parts shown in the drawings are not drawn according to the actual proportional relationship.

[0038] The following description of at least one exemplary embodiment is merely illustrative in nature and is in no way intended to limit the present disclosure, its application, or uses.

[0039] Technologies, methods, and apparatus known to ordinary technicians in the relevant field may not be discussed in detail, but where appropriate, such technologies, methods, and apparatus should be considered part of the authorization specification.

[0040] In all examples shown and discussed herein, any specific values ​​should be interpreted as merely exemplary and not as limiting. Therefore, other examples of the exemplary embodiments may have different values.

[0041] It should be noted that like reference numerals and letters refer to similar items in the following figures, and therefore, once an item is defined in one figure, it need not be further discussed in subsequent figures.

[0042] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the present disclosure more clearly understood, the present disclosure is further described in detail below in combination with specific embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0043] Figure 1 The present invention is a flowchart of an embodiment of the unmanned equipment path planning method disclosed herein.

[0044] In step 110, the locations of various landmarks in the warehouse are determined. Figure 2As shown, 210 is a shelf, and 220 is a landmark, wherein the landmark may include a shelf landmark and a main aisle landmark. The unmanned equipment moves along the landmarks in the warehouse. The current position of the unmanned equipment can be determined through the landmarks, and the next direction of travel can be determined accordingly.

[0045] In step 120, the current landmark is used as the current node, the landmark corresponding to the product to be picked that is closest to the current node path is obtained, and the landmark corresponding to the product to be picked is used as the current node. Figure 3 As shown, the landmarks in the warehouse are mapped to the two-dimensional matrix map. The boxes filled with patterns are landmarks, and the white boxes are specific objects or open spaces. The coordinate values ​​of the initial landmarks of the unmanned equipment in the two-dimensional matrix map and the coordinate values ​​of the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map are determined. The path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked, as well as the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked are calculated based on the coordinate values.

[0046] In step 130, it is determined whether the current node is the landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked. If so, step 140 is executed, otherwise, step 120 is executed. That is, whether the landmarks corresponding to all items to be picked have been obtained. If not, step 120 is continued until the landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked is obtained.

[0047] In step 140, the route formed by the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked selected in sequence is used as the picking path of the unmanned equipment. There may be multiple picking paths.

[0048] In this embodiment, the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment is used as the starting point, and the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked are obtained in sequence, and the route formed by the obtained landmarks is used as the driving path of the unmanned equipment, so that the travel route of the unmanned equipment in the warehouse can be quickly planned.

[0049] In one embodiment, the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked can be calculated according to the coordinate values ​​as follows: the coordinate distance between the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map is calculated; if the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, then the coordinate distance is the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked; if the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked is determined. The first landmark number of the first main lane and the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the second landmark number of the second main lane in the two identical main lanes, as well as determining the third landmark number of the first main lane from the landmark corresponding to each commodity to be picked and the fourth landmark number of the second main lane from the landmark corresponding to each commodity to be picked, calculate the sum of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, and the sum of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; add the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each commodity to be picked.

[0050] In one embodiment, the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the commodities to be picked is calculated according to the coordinate values, for example, the coordinate distance between any two landmarks corresponding to the commodities to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map is calculated; if the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, then the coordinate distance is the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked; if the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then the first landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the first commodity to be picked among the two commodities to be picked to the first main lane of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the first commodity to be picked to the second main lane of the two identical main lanes, as well as the third landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the second commodity to be picked among the two commodities to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the second commodity to be picked to the second main lane are determined, and the sum of the first landmark number and the third landmark number and the sum of the landmark number of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number are calculated; the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map is added to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked.

[0051] In one embodiment, the coordinates of the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map can be expressed as [X, Y, whether it is a cross lane, landmark KEY, north_landmark KEY, south_landmark KEY, west_landmark KEY, east_landmark KEY, upper_landmark number, lower_landmark number]. Among them, if the landmark where the unmanned equipment is located is marked as a cross lane in the two-dimensional matrix map, the unmanned equipment can be moved in any direction. The landmark KEY is the identifier of the landmark. According to the landmark KEY, the coordinates [X, Y] of the landmark in the two-dimensional matrix map can be queried. According to [north_landmark KEY, south_landmark KEY, west_landmark KEY, east_landmark KEY, upper_landmark number], the coordinates [X, Y] of the landmark in the two-dimensional matrix map can also be determined. The number after KEY_ is a unique code, which can be ordered or unordered. Among them, if KEY is Null, it means that the corresponding landmark is empty, that is, a physical object or an empty space. The upper_number of landmarks indicates the number of landmarks from the coordinate [X, Y] in the positive direction of the Y axis to the nearest main lane, and the lower_number of landmarks indicates the number of landmarks from the coordinate [X, Y] in the negative direction of the Y axis to the nearest main lane. This parameter can be used to decide which direction to move to reach the least main lane.

[0052] The calculation formula for the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each item to be picked, or the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to each item to be picked can be expressed as |X1–X2|+|Y1–Y2|+M, where (X1, Y1) and (X2, Y2) are two landmark points. When the two landmark points are in two different shelf lanes and between two identical main lanes, the two points cannot be directly reached at this time, and the unmanned equipment can only move to the target landmark point through the main lane path. Therefore, it is necessary to count the number of landmarks that move the two landmark points to the same lane. The number of landmarks that move upward to the main lane or the number of landmarks that move downward to the main lane can be counted, and the sum of the two is M. If the two points are in two different shelf lanes and are not between two identical main lanes, M is 0.

[0053] For example, Figure 4As shown, the coordinates of the initial landmark A of the unmanned equipment in the two-dimensional matrix map are [13, 2, no, KEY_000012, north_KEY_000032, south_KEY_000075, west_KEY_000045, east_KEY_000047, 0, 0]; the coordinates of the landmark corresponding to product B in the two-dimensional matrix map are [7, 4, no, KEY_000112, north_KEY_000099, south_KEY_000138, west_KEY_000111, east_KEY_000113, 2, 1]; the coordinates of the landmark corresponding to product C in the two-dimensional matrix map are [3, 6, no, KEY_000164, north_KEY_000145, south_KEY_000178, west_KEY_000161, east_KEY_000165, 1, 2 ]; the coordinates of the landmark corresponding to product D in the two-dimensional matrix map are [7, 10, no, KEY_000164, north_KEY_000145, south_KEY_000178, west_KEY_000161, east_KEY_000165, 2, 1]; the coordinates of the landmark corresponding to product E in the two-dimensional matrix map are [3, 12, no, KEY_000197, north_KEY_000173, south_KEY_000219, west_KEY_000196, east_KEY_000198, 1, 2]; the coordinates of the landmark corresponding to product F in the two-dimensional matrix map are [7, 12, no, KEY_000210, north_KEY_000199, south_KEY_000225, west_KEY_000207, east_KEY_000212, 1, 2]. Table 1 shows the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to the commodities to be picked and the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the commodities to be picked.

[0054]

[0055]

[0056] Table 1

[0057] The landmarks corresponding to the products can be selected in sequence according to the path distance calculated in Table 1. First, the starting point [A(0), ALL(0)] is selected, where ALL(), the value in the brackets is the path distance, and the value in the letter brackets is the path distance between the landmark and the previous landmark. If the landmark is the initial landmark, the value in the letter brackets is 0.

[0058] The second step is to start from point A and obtain the landmark that is closest to point A, that is, point B, to form a landmark list [A(0), B(8), ALL(8)], where B(8) indicates that the path distance between point B and point A is 8.

[0059] The third step is to obtain the landmark closest to point B. Since the path distance between C or D and point B is 6, two routes are formed: [A(0), B(8), C(6), ALL(14)] and [A(0), B(8), D(6), ALL(14)].

[0060] In the fourth step, the two routes select the corresponding next closest distance points, namely [A(0), B(8), C(6), E(6), ALL(20)] and [A(0), B(8), D(6), F(2), ALL(16)] respectively.

[0061] In the fifth step, the two routes select the corresponding next closest distance point respectively. The distances from E to D and F are the same. Therefore, three routes are formed: [A(0), B(8), C(6), E(6), D(6), ALL(26)], [A(0), B(8), C(6), E(6), F(6), ALL(26)] and [A(0), B(8), D(6), F(2), E(6), ALL(22)].

[0062] Step 6. Get the last landmark, namely [A(0), B(8), C(6), E(6), D(6), F(2), ALL(28)], [A(0), B(8), C(6), E(6), F(6), D(2), ALL(28)], and [A(0), B(8), D(6), F(2), E(6), C(6), ALL(28)].

[0063] Through the above steps, the driving path of the unmanned equipment can be determined. From the sixth step, it can be seen that the lengths of the three paths formed are the same. Therefore, the optimal path among the multiple driving paths can be selected according to the initial starting point of the next step planning. The driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked among the multiple driving paths is closest to the initial starting point of the next step planning can be selected as the optimal path. For example, if the next step is planned for the unmanned equipment to return to the initial landmark, the driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked among the multiple driving paths is closest to the initial landmark is selected as the optimal path. If the next task needs to be executed after the picking task is completed, the last point can be used as the starting point of the next task according to the overall layout of the next task.

[0064] In the above embodiment, when the unmanned equipment plans the route, the calculation is directly based on the coordinate values ​​of the two-dimensional matrix map, the calculation logic is simpler, the complexity is lower, and the demand for hardware computing power is smaller. When the shelves and landmarks in the warehouse are increased or decreased, the modification of the entire map can be completed by traversing and modifying the coordinates.

[0065] Figure 5The schematic diagram of the structure of an embodiment of the unmanned equipment path planning device disclosed in the present invention includes a landmark position determination unit 510, a landmark acquisition unit 520 and a driving path determination unit 530.

[0066] The landmark position determination unit 510 is used to determine the positions of various landmarks in the warehouse. The landmarks may include shelf landmarks and main lane landmarks. The unmanned equipment moves along the landmarks in the warehouse. The current position of the unmanned equipment can be determined through the landmarks, and the next moving direction can be determined accordingly.

[0067] The landmark acquisition unit 520 is used to use the current landmark as the current node, obtain the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and use the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked as the current node, and repeat the steps of obtaining the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and using the landmark corresponding to the item to be picked as the current node, until the landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked is obtained, wherein the initial value of the current node is the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment.

[0068] The driving path determination unit 530 is used to use the route formed by the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked selected in sequence as the driving path of the unmanned equipment.

[0069] In this embodiment, the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment is used as the starting point, and the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked are obtained in sequence, and the route formed by each landmark is used as the driving path of the unmanned equipment, so that the travel route of the unmanned equipment in the warehouse can be quickly planned.

[0070] Figure 6 The schematic diagram of another embodiment of the unmanned equipment path planning device disclosed in the present invention includes a path distance determination unit 610, which is used to map landmarks in the warehouse to a two-dimensional matrix map; determine the coordinate values ​​of the initial landmarks of the unmanned equipment in the two-dimensional matrix map and the coordinate values ​​of the landmarks corresponding to each commodity to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; calculate the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to each commodity to be picked, and the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to each commodity to be picked according to the coordinate values.

[0071] In one embodiment, the path distance determination unit 610 is used to calculate the coordinate distance between the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; determine whether the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are located between two identical main lanes; if the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then determine the first landmark number from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the first main lane of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the second main lane of the two identical main lanes, as well as determine the third landmark number from each landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number from each landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked to the second main lane, calculate the sum of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, and the sum of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; add the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each goods to be picked. If the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, then the coordinate distance is the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked.

[0072] In one embodiment, the path distance determination unit 610 is used to calculate the coordinate distance between the corresponding landmarks of any two items to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; determine whether the corresponding landmarks of the two items to be picked are located between two identical main lanes; if the corresponding landmarks of the two items to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then determine the first landmark number of the corresponding landmark of the first item to be picked among the two items to be picked to the first main lane of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number of the corresponding landmark of the first item to be picked to the second main lane of the two identical main lanes, as well as the third landmark number of the corresponding landmark of the second item to be picked among the two items to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number of the corresponding landmark of the second item to be picked to the second main lane; calculate the sum of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, and the sum of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; add the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two items to be picked. If the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, the coordinate distance is the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked.

[0073] In another embodiment of the present disclosure, the device also includes an optimal path determination unit 620, which is used to select the optimal path among the multiple driving paths according to the initial starting point of the next step planning if there are multiple driving paths selected for the unmanned equipment. For example, the driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked among the multiple driving paths is closest to the initial starting point of the next step planning can be selected as the optimal path. If the next step planning is for the unmanned equipment to return to the initial landmark, the driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last item to be picked among the multiple driving paths is closest to the initial landmark is selected as the optimal path. If the picking task is completed and the next task needs to be executed, the last point can be used as the starting point of the next task according to the overall layout of the next task.

[0074] In the above embodiment, when the unmanned equipment plans the route, the calculation is directly based on the coordinate values ​​of the two-dimensional matrix map, the calculation logic is simpler, the complexity is lower, and the demand for hardware computing power is smaller. When the shelves and landmarks in the warehouse are increased or decreased, the modification of the entire map can be completed by traversing and modifying the coordinates.

[0075] Figure 7 Schematic diagram of another embodiment of the unmanned equipment path planning device disclosed in the present invention. The device includes a memory 710 and a processor 720, wherein the memory 710 can be a disk, a flash memory or any other non-volatile storage medium. The memory is used to store Figure 1 The processor 720 is coupled to the memory 710 and can be implemented as one or more integrated circuits, such as a microprocessor or a microcontroller. The processor 720 is used to execute instructions stored in the memory.

[0076] In one embodiment, it is also possible to Figure 8 As shown, the device 800 includes a memory 810 and a processor 820. The processor 820 is coupled to the memory 810 via a BUS bus 830. The device 800 can also be connected to an external storage device 850 via a storage interface 840 to call external data, and can also be connected to a network or another computer system (not shown) via a network interface 860, which will not be described in detail here.

[0077] In this embodiment, data instructions are stored in a memory, and then the processor processes the instructions. The initial landmark of the unmanned equipment is used as the starting point, and the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked are obtained in sequence. The route formed by each landmark is used as the driving path of the unmanned equipment, so that the travel route of the unmanned equipment in the warehouse can be quickly planned.

[0078] In another embodiment, a computer readable storage medium stores computer program instructions, which when executed by a processor implement Figure 1The steps of the method in the corresponding embodiment. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the embodiments of the present disclosure may be provided as methods, devices, or computer program products. Therefore, the present disclosure may take the form of a complete hardware embodiment, a complete software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware. Moreover, the present disclosure may take the form of a computer program product implemented on one or more computer-usable non-transient storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0079] The present disclosure is described with reference to flowcharts and / or block diagrams of methods, devices (systems) and computer program products according to embodiments of the present disclosure. It should be understood that each process and / or block in the flowchart and / or block diagram and the combination of processes and / or blocks in the flowchart and / or block diagram can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, an embedded processor or other programmable data processing device to produce a machine, so that the instructions executed by the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing device generate instructions for implementing the processes in the flowchart and / or block diagram. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A device that provides the functions specified in a block or multiple blocks.

[0080] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory capable of directing a computer or other programmable data processing device to operate in a specific manner, so that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture comprising an instruction device, which implements the process Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A function specified in one or more boxes.

[0081] These computer program instructions can also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing device so that a series of operating steps are executed on the computer or other programmable device to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing instructions for implementing the process. Figure 1 A process or multiple processes and / or boxes Figure 1 The steps for the functions specified in one or more boxes.

[0082] So far, the present disclosure has been described in detail. In order to avoid obscuring the concept of the present disclosure, some details known in the art are not described. Based on the above description, those skilled in the art can fully understand how to implement the technical solution disclosed here.

[0083] Although some specific embodiments of the present disclosure have been described in detail by way of example, it should be understood by those skilled in the art that the above examples are for illustration only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present disclosure. It should be understood by those skilled in the art that the above embodiments may be modified without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. The scope of the present disclosure is defined by the appended claims.

Claims

1. A method for unmanned equipment path planning, comprising: Determine the location of various landmarks within the warehouse; Map the landmarks in the warehouse into a two-dimensional matrix map; Determine the coordinate value of the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment in the two-dimensional matrix map and the coordinate value of the landmark corresponding to each commodity to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; Calculate the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to the commodities to be picked, and the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the commodities to be picked according to the coordinate values; Taking the current landmark as the current node, obtaining the landmark corresponding to the product to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and taking the landmark corresponding to the product to be picked as the current node, repeatedly executing the steps of obtaining the landmark corresponding to the product to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and taking the landmark corresponding to the product to be picked as the current node, until obtaining the landmark corresponding to the last product to be picked, wherein the initial value of the current node is the initial landmark of the unmanned device; The route formed by the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked selected in sequence is used as the driving path of the unmanned equipment. The step of calculating the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each commodity to be picked according to the coordinate value includes: Calculate the coordinate distance between the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the commodity to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; Determine whether the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the commodity to be picked are located between two identical main lanes; If the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then determine the first landmark number from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the first of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the second of the two identical main lanes, and determine the third landmark number from each landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number from each landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked to the second main lane, and calculate the sum of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, and the sum of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; The value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map is added to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each item to be picked.

2. The unmanned equipment path planning method according to claim 1, wherein: If the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, the coordinate distance is the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked.

3. The unmanned equipment path planning method according to claim 1, wherein: Calculating the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to each item to be picked based on the coordinate values ​​includes: Calculate the coordinate distance between any two landmarks corresponding to the items to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; Determine whether the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked are located between two identical main lanes; If the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, then determine the first landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the first commodity to be picked among the two commodities to be picked to the first of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the first commodity to be picked to the second of the two identical main lanes, as well as the third landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the second commodity to be picked among the two commodities to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the second commodity to be picked to the second main lane, and calculate the sum of the landmark numbers of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, and the sum of the landmark numbers of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; The value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map is added to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance between the two landmarks corresponding to the commodities to be picked.

4. The unmanned equipment path planning method according to claim 3, wherein: If the two landmarks corresponding to the commodities to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, the coordinate distance is the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked.

5. The unmanned equipment path planning method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, further comprising: If there are multiple driving paths selected for the unmanned equipment, the optimal path among the multiple driving paths is selected according to the initial starting point of the next step of planning.

6. The unmanned equipment path planning method according to claim 5, wherein: The optimal path among multiple driving paths is selected based on the initial starting point of the next step planning, including: A driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last commodity to be picked among the multiple driving paths is closest to the initial starting point of the next step planning is selected as the optimal path.

7. The unmanned equipment path planning method according to claim 6, wherein: If the next step is planned to return the unmanned equipment to the initial landmark, the driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last commodity to be picked among the multiple driving paths is closest to the initial landmark is selected as the optimal path.

8. An unmanned equipment path planning device, comprising: A landmark position determination unit, used to determine the positions of various landmarks in the warehouse; a path distance determination unit for mapping landmarks in the warehouse into a two-dimensional matrix map; Determine the coordinate value of the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment in the two-dimensional matrix map and the coordinate value of the landmark corresponding to each to-be-picked commodity in the two-dimensional matrix map; calculate the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each to-be-picked commodity, and the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to each to-be-picked commodity according to the coordinate value, wherein the coordinate distance between the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the to-be-picked commodity in the two-dimensional matrix map is calculated; determine whether the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the to-be-picked commodity are located between two identical main lanes; if the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the to-be-picked commodity are located between two identical main lanes, determine the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment The first landmark number from the landmark to the first main lane of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the second main lane of the two identical main lanes, and the third landmark number from the landmark corresponding to each commodity to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number from the landmark corresponding to each commodity to be picked to the second main lane are determined, and the sum of the landmark numbers of the first landmark number and the third landmark number and the sum of the landmark numbers of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number are calculated; the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map is added to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmark corresponding to each commodity to be picked; A landmark acquisition unit is used to use the current landmark as the current node, acquire the landmark corresponding to the commodity to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and use the landmark corresponding to the commodity to be picked as the current node, and repeatedly execute the steps of acquiring the landmark corresponding to the commodity to be picked that is closest to the path of the current node, and use the landmark corresponding to the commodity to be picked as the current node, until the landmark corresponding to the last commodity to be picked is acquired, wherein the initial value of the current node is the initial landmark of the unmanned device; The driving path determination unit is used to use the route formed by the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked selected in sequence as the driving path of the unmanned equipment.

9. The unmanned equipment path planning device according to claim 8, wherein: The path distance determination unit is also used for, if the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment and the landmark corresponding to the goods to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, then the coordinate distance is the path distance from the initial landmark of the unmanned equipment to the landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked.

10. The unmanned equipment path planning device according to claim 8, wherein: The path distance determination unit is used to calculate the coordinate distance between any two landmarks corresponding to the goods to be picked in the two-dimensional matrix map; determine whether the landmarks corresponding to the two goods to be picked are located between two identical main lanes; if the landmarks corresponding to the two goods to be picked are located between two identical main lanes, determine the first landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the first of the two goods to be picked to the first of the two identical main lanes and the second landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the first of the two goods to be picked to the second of the two identical main lanes, as well as the third landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the second of the two goods to be picked to the first main lane and the fourth landmark number of the landmark corresponding to the second of the two goods to be picked to the second main lane; calculate the sum of the landmark numbers of the first landmark number and the third landmark number, and the sum of the landmark numbers of the second landmark number and the fourth landmark number; add the value corresponding to the smaller sum of the two landmark numbers in the two-dimensional matrix map to the coordinate distance to obtain the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two goods to be picked.

11. The unmanned equipment path planning device according to claim 10, wherein: The path distance determination unit is further configured to determine, if the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked are not located between two identical main lanes, the coordinate distance being the path distance between the landmarks corresponding to the two commodities to be picked.

12. The unmanned equipment path planning device according to any one of claims 8 to 11, further comprising: The optimal path determination unit is used to select the optimal path among the multiple driving paths according to the initial starting point of the next step planning if there are multiple driving paths selected for the unmanned equipment.

13. The unmanned equipment path planning device according to claim 12, wherein: The optimal path determination unit is used to select a driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last commodity to be picked among multiple driving paths is closest to the initial starting point of the next step planning as the optimal path.

14. The unmanned equipment path planning device according to claim 13, wherein: The optimal path determination unit is used to select a driving path whose landmark corresponding to the last commodity to be picked among multiple driving paths is closest to the initial landmark as the optimal path if the next step is planned for the unmanned equipment to return to the initial landmark.

15. An unmanned equipment path planning device, comprising: Memory; as well as A processor coupled to the memory, the processor being configured to execute the unmanned equipment path planning method as described in any one of claims 1 to 7 based on instructions stored in the memory.

16. A computer-readable storage medium having computer program instructions stored thereon, which, when executed by a processor, implement the steps of the unmanned equipment path planning method described in any one of claims 1 to 7.

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