Automatic guided vehicle dispatching method, device and storage medium

Abstract

The present application discloses a scheduling method, device and storage medium for an automated guided vehicle, and relates to automated guided vehicle scheduling technology. The specific scheme includes: obtaining a locking request of an automated guided vehicle for a target node on a travel path; if the target node has been locked, adding the automated guided vehicle to a waiting list corresponding to the target node; the waiting list is used to store the device identification of the automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the node and the travel direction when passing through the node; when obtaining a message that the target node is unlocked, a priority automated guided vehicle is determined from the waiting list corresponding to the target node using a reverse tracing method, and the priority automated guided vehicle is an automated guided vehicle that preferentially locks the target node; the priority automated guided vehicle locks the target node, and deletes the priority automated guided vehicle from the waiting list corresponding to the target node. The main purpose of the present application is to improve the scheduling efficiency, thereby improving the driving efficiency of the automated guided vehicle.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present application relates to automatic guided vehicle scheduling technology, and in particular to an automatic guided vehicle scheduling method, device and storage medium. Background Art

[0002] In order to facilitate path planning and control and prevent conflicts between the paths of multiple automated guided vehicles, the current method mainly uses the automated guided vehicle to lock the target node that is about to be passed, and allocates the nodes on the paths of multiple automated guided vehicles. The node locking method in the prior art is that the automated guided vehicle repeatedly attempts to lock the target node at a preset time interval. If the target node has been locked and the locking is unsuccessful, it enters a waiting state; if the target node has not been locked and the locking is successful, it locks the target node and walks in the direction of the target node.

[0003] In the prior art method, the automatic guided vehicle can only wait for the preset time interval to end before trying to lock the target node, and the driving efficiency of the automatic guided vehicle is low. In addition, if the dispatching scale is large and the number of automatic guided vehicles is large, the number of automatic guided vehicles entering the waiting state will also increase, which increases the dispatching pressure and reduces the dispatching efficiency. In addition, in the prior art, if multiple automatic guided vehicles request to lock the target node at the same time, they will randomly seize the right to lock the target node, and the dispatching efficiency is very low. Summary of the invention

[0004] In view of this, the main purpose of the present application is to provide a scheduling method for an automated guided vehicle, which can overcome the defect that the automated guided vehicle only attempts to request to lock the target node at a preset time interval, thereby reducing the scheduling pressure, improving the scheduling efficiency, and further improving the driving efficiency of the automated guided vehicle.

[0005] In order to achieve the above objectives, the technical solution proposed in this application is:

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a scheduling method for an automated guided vehicle, comprising the following steps:

[0007] Obtaining a lock request of the automatic guided vehicle for a target node; the target node is the next node passed by the automatic guided vehicle on the travel path;

[0008] If the target node has been locked, the automated guided vehicle is added to a waiting list corresponding to the target node; the waiting list is used to store the device identification of the automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the node and the travel direction when passing through the node;

[0009] When a message that the target node is unlocked is obtained, a priority automated guided vehicle is determined from a waiting list corresponding to the target node using a reverse tracing method; the priority automated guided vehicle is an automated guided vehicle that preferentially locks the target node;

[0010] The priority automated guided vehicle locks the target node and deletes the priority automated guided vehicle from a waiting list corresponding to the target node.

[0011] In a possible implementation manner, the step of determining a priority automatic guided vehicle from a waiting list corresponding to the target node by using a reverse tracing method includes:

[0012] Determine each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node from the waiting list corresponding to the target node, use each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node as a backtracking starting automated guided vehicle, and use the node where each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node is located as a backtracking starting node;

[0013] Starting from each backtracking start node, a predetermined number of nodes in the direction opposite to the traveling direction of the corresponding backtracking start automatic guided vehicle are obtained as nodes to be detected, wherein the backtracking start node and the nodes to be detected constitute a backtracking path;

[0014] For each reverse tracing path, determining a congestion parameter of the reverse tracing path according to the number of automated guided vehicles in a waiting list corresponding to each node on the reverse tracing path that have the same traveling direction as the reverse tracing starting automated guided vehicle;

[0015] According to the congestion parameter of each back-tracing path, one of the back-tracing starting automated guided vehicles is selected as a priority automated guided vehicle.

[0016] In a possible implementation manner, when obtaining a locking request of the automatic guided vehicle for a target node and the target node is not locked, the method further includes:

[0017] The automatic guided vehicle locks onto the target node.

[0018] In a possible implementation, after obtaining the automatic guided vehicle's lock request for the target node and before the step of adding the automatic guided vehicle to a waiting list corresponding to the target node, the step further includes:

[0019] Determine whether a service anomaly occurs. If a service anomaly occurs, try to use the automatic guided vehicle to lock the target node at preset time intervals until the automatic guided vehicle successfully locks the target node or determines that the target node has been locked.

[0020] In a possible implementation manner, after the step of adding the automated guided vehicle to a waiting list corresponding to the target node and before the step of obtaining a message that the target node is unlocked, the method further includes:

[0021] For each of the automated guided vehicles in the waiting list, when a path change instruction is received, determining an automated guided vehicle that needs to change its path according to the path change instruction;

[0022] The automatic guided vehicle that needs to change its path is deleted from the waiting list.

[0023] In a possible implementation manner, when an abnormality occurs in the automatic guided vehicle, the method further includes:

[0024] In the case where the automatic guided vehicle has locked the node, releasing the automatic guided vehicle from locking the node;

[0025] Alternatively, when the automated guided vehicle is added to the waiting list, the automated guided vehicle is deleted from the waiting list.

[0026] In a possible implementation manner, the method further comprises the step of monitoring the number of automated guided vehicles in the waiting list:

[0027] determining a first total number of automated guided vehicles included in each waiting list;

[0028] The number of automated guided vehicles in the waiting list is monitored according to the first total number and the second total number of each of the automated guided vehicles participating in the scheduling.

[0029] In the second aspect, based on the same design concept, the embodiment of the present application also provides a dispatching device for an automatic guided vehicle, including:

[0030] An acquisition module, used to acquire a lock request of the automatic guided vehicle for a target node; the target node is the next node passed by the automatic guided vehicle on the travel path;

[0031] A queue management module is used to add the automatic guided vehicle to a waiting list corresponding to the target node when the target node has been locked; the waiting list is used to store the device identification of the automatic guided vehicle waiting to lock the corresponding node and the travel direction when passing the corresponding node; and is also used to delete the automatic guided vehicle from the waiting list corresponding to the priority target node;

[0032] A device determination module, configured to determine a priority automated guided vehicle from a waiting list corresponding to the target node by using a reverse tracing method when obtaining a message that the target node is unlocked, wherein the priority automated guided vehicle is an automated guided vehicle that preferentially locks the target node;

[0033] A node locking module is used to use the priority automatic guided vehicle to lock the target node.

[0034] In a third aspect, the embodiments of the present application also provide a computer-readable storage medium, which can reduce scheduling pressure, improve scheduling efficiency, and thus improve the driving efficiency of the automatic guided vehicle. The specific solution is:

[0035] A computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions, which, when executed by a processor, can implement the steps of the above-mentioned first aspect and any possible implementation method of the first aspect.

[0036] In a fourth aspect, the embodiments of the present application also provide an electronic device that can reduce scheduling pressure, improve scheduling efficiency, and thus improve the driving efficiency of the automatic guided vehicle. The specific solution is:

[0037] An electronic device includes the above-mentioned computer-readable storage medium and a processor capable of executing the computer-readable storage medium.

[0038] In summary, the present application proposes a scheduling method, device and storage medium for an automated guided vehicle. In the present application, when the target node has been locked, the automated guided vehicle requesting to lock the target node is added to the waiting list corresponding to the target node. When the target node is unlocked, the priority automated guided vehicle is immediately selected from the waiting list, and the device of the priority automated guided vehicle is used to indicate the locking of the target node. Compared with the prior art, in which the target node is locked after waiting for a preset time interval, the target node is locked when the target node is unlocked, without waiting for a preset time interval, which can greatly improve the scheduling efficiency and the driving efficiency of the automated guided vehicle; when the message that the target node is unlocked is obtained, a priority automated guided vehicle is determined from the waiting list corresponding to the target node by a reverse tracing method. Compared with the prior art of randomly seizing the right to lock the target node, the road conditions and automated guided vehicle conditions around the target node can be determined by the reverse tracing method. The priority automated guided vehicle is determined according to the road conditions and automated guided vehicle conditions around the target node, which can greatly improve the scheduling efficiency and prevent the formation of large-scale congestion. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0039] Figure 1 A schematic diagram of an application scenario of an embodiment of the present application;

[0040] Figure 2This is a flow chart of the first embodiment of the present application;

[0041] Figure 3 This is a flow chart of the second embodiment of the present application;

[0042] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the third embodiment of the present application;

[0043] Figure 5 This is a structural diagram of Example 5 of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0044] The embodiments of the present application may be applied to a scenario in which multiple automated guided vehicles (AGVs) are dispatched.

[0045] In order to facilitate path planning and control, such as Figure 1 As shown, a plurality of nodes 101 are set for the walking space of the AGV 102, and each node 101 can be identified by its coordinate value. When the path planning is performed for each AGV 102, the travel path of each AGV 102 passes through at least one node 101, and the travel mode of each AGV 102 is to travel from one node 101 on the planned travel path to the next node 101.

[0046] In order to make the objectives, technical solutions and advantages of the present application more clear, the present application will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments.

[0047] Embodiment 1

[0048] Figure 2 This is a flow chart of the first embodiment of the present application, as shown in Figure 2 As shown, this embodiment mainly includes:

[0049] S201: Obtaining a locking request of an automated guided vehicle for a target node; the target node is the next node that the automated guided vehicle passes on a travel path.

[0050] The driving mode of each automated guided vehicle is to drive from a node on the path planned to the target node. Before driving to the target node, in order to prevent conflicts in the travel paths between different automated guided vehicles, it is still necessary to request to lock the target node. After locking the target node, the automated guided vehicle drives towards the target node. At this time, other automated guided vehicles cannot lock the above target node.

[0051] S202: If the target node has been locked, the automated guided vehicle is added to a waiting list corresponding to the target node; the waiting list is used to store the device identification of the automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the node and the travel direction when passing through the node.

[0052] Unlike the prior art, when the target node has been locked by other automated guided vehicles, the embodiment of the present application does not require the automated guided vehicle to continuously request to lock the target node at preset time intervals, but adds the automated guided vehicle requesting to lock to the waiting list corresponding to the target node. Here, since each node may have multiple automated guided vehicles initiating locking requests to itself, each node corresponds to a waiting list. In addition to storing the device identification of each automated guided vehicle requesting to lock the corresponding locked node, the waiting list also stores the direction of travel of each automated guided vehicle.

[0053] For example, Figure 1 As shown, before AGV 1021 is about to drive to target node 1011 at the current node, it needs to request to lock target node 1011. When target node 1011 has been locked by AGV 1023, AGV 1021 requesting to lock is added to the waiting list corresponding to the target node. AGV 1021 added to the waiting list stays and waits at the node it has currently locked until it has locked target node 1011 and then drives to target node 1011. Figure 1 In the example, there are two AGVs 102, namely AGV 1021 and AGV 1022, both of which need to travel to the target node 1011. Therefore, AGV 1021 and AGV 1022 are added to the waiting list corresponding to the target node. The waiting list corresponding to the target node stores the device identification and travel direction of AGV 1021 and AGV 1022. Assume that AGV 1021 needs to travel to the right and AGV 1022 needs to travel upward.

[0054] S203: When a message indicating that the target node is unlocked is obtained, a priority automated guided vehicle is determined from a waiting list corresponding to the target node using a reverse tracing method; the priority automated guided vehicle is an automated guided vehicle that preferentially locks the target node.

[0055] In order to overcome the blindness of the prior art in which the authority to lock the target node is seized in a random manner, for each automated guided vehicle in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, a priority automated guided vehicle is determined from the waiting list corresponding to the target node according to the road conditions and automated guided vehicle conditions near the target node. Specifically, a priority automated guided vehicle is determined from the waiting list corresponding to the target node using a reverse tracing method. Using a reverse tracing method to determine a priority automated guided vehicle based on the road conditions and automated guided vehicle conditions near the target node can greatly improve scheduling efficiency and prevent the formation of large-scale congestion compared to the prior art in which the authority to lock the target node is seized in a random manner.

[0056] S204: The priority automated guided vehicle locks the target node, and deletes the priority automated guided vehicle from a waiting list corresponding to the target node.

[0057] After the priority automated guided vehicle locks the target node, the priority automated guided vehicle no longer needs to be stored in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, so the priority automated guided vehicle is deleted from the waiting list corresponding to the target node.

[0058] In the prior art, the automatic guided vehicle continuously requests to lock the target node at a preset time interval. If a larger time interval is set, such as 1s, for example, Figure 1 As shown, if AGV1023 has unlocked the target node 1011 at the beginning of the preset time interval, AGV1021 or AGV1022 can only seize the lock of the target node after the preset time interval ends. After 100ms, AGV1023 will release the target node 1011 after leaving, but AGV1021 or AGV1022 will have to wait for another 900ms to seize the lock of the target node, and the driving efficiency is low. If a smaller time interval is set, such as 100ms, since each AGV102 needs a certain amount of time to walk, too frequent requests for locking the target node 1011 will generate a lot of redundant request information, wasting computing resources. In contrast, the method provided in the embodiment of the present application can improve the scheduling efficiency and the driving efficiency of the automatic guided vehicle. The reverse tracing method is used to determine the priority automatic guided vehicle according to the road conditions and the automatic guided vehicle conditions near the target node. Compared with the prior art of seizing the right to lock the target node in a random manner, the scheduling efficiency can also be greatly improved to prevent the formation of large-scale congestion.

[0059] Embodiment 2

[0060] Figure 3 This is a flow chart of the second embodiment of the present application, as shown in Figure 3 As shown, this embodiment mainly includes:

[0061] S301: Obtain a locking request of the automatic guided vehicle to a target node.

[0062] S302: Determine whether a service abnormality occurs.

[0063] If a service abnormality scenario such as network disconnection, network request timeout, or location service application failure occurs, due to the service abnormality, it is impossible to determine whether the locking of the target node is ultimately successful or failed in these scenarios, and the automatic guided vehicle is attempted to lock the target node at preset time intervals. Specifically, an asynchronous timing scheduler can be used to cyclically attempt to lock the target node until the network service or location service application is restored. After the network service or location service application is restored, the automatic guided vehicle successfully locks the target node, or determines that the target node has been locked, and enters step S302.

[0064] S303: Determine whether the target node has been locked.

[0065] If the target node is not locked by other automated guided vehicles, go to step S304; if the target node is locked by other automated guided vehicles, go to step S305.

[0066] S304: The automatic guided vehicle locks the target node.

[0067] Specifically, the target node may be locked using the device identifier of the automated guided vehicle. After the automated guided vehicle locks the target node, the automated guided vehicle travels toward the target node, and the target node cannot be locked by other automated guided vehicles.

[0068] S305: Add the automatic guided vehicle to a waiting list corresponding to the target node.

[0069] The waiting list corresponding to the target node stores the device identification of the AGV waiting to lock the node and the direction of travel when passing through the node. The AGV added to the waiting list corresponding to the target node stays and waits at the current node until the target node is unlocked.

[0070] For example, Figure 1 As shown, the waiting list corresponding to the target node stores the device identification and travel direction of AGV1021 and AGV1022 requesting to lock the target node 1011. AGV1021 and AGV1022 stay and wait at the node where they are currently located until the target node 1011 is unlocked.

[0071] S306: Determine each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node from the waiting list corresponding to the target node, use each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node as a back-tracing starting automated guided vehicle, and use the node where each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node is located as a back-tracing starting node.

[0072] When the message that the target node is unlocked is obtained, a priority automated guided vehicle is determined from the waiting list corresponding to the target node using the reverse tracing method. At the beginning of determining the priority automated guided vehicle using the reverse tracing method, it is necessary to determine the starting point of the reverse tracing, specifically, including determining the reverse tracing starting automated guided vehicle and the reverse tracing starting node. The reverse tracing starts from the automated guided vehicles in the waiting list corresponding to the target node. Therefore, each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node in the waiting list corresponding to the target node is used as the reverse tracing starting automated guided vehicle, and the node where each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node in the waiting list corresponding to the target node is located is used as the reverse tracing starting node.

[0073] S307: Starting from each backtracking start node, a predetermined number of nodes in the direction opposite to the traveling direction of the corresponding backtracking start automatic guided vehicle are obtained as nodes to be detected, and the backtracking start node and the nodes to be detected constitute a backtracking path.

[0074] The waiting list corresponding to the target node stores the travel direction of each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node, and obtains a predetermined number of nodes in the opposite direction of the corresponding reverse-tracing starting automated guided vehicle as nodes to be detected: assuming that the travel direction of the automated guided vehicle is expressed as southeast, northwest, and north, if the travel direction of the automated guided vehicle is east, obtain a predetermined number of nodes to the west of the automated guided vehicle as nodes to be detected; if the travel direction of the automated guided vehicle is north, obtain a predetermined number of nodes to the south of the automated guided vehicle as nodes to be detected; assuming that the travel direction of the automated guided vehicle is expressed as up, down, left, and right, if the travel direction of the automated guided vehicle is right, obtain a predetermined number of nodes to the left of the automated guided vehicle as nodes to be detected; if the travel direction of the automated guided vehicle is upward, obtain a predetermined number of nodes downward of the automated guided vehicle as nodes to be detected. The backtracking start node and the node to be detected constitute a backtracking path. Here, according to the backtracking path, it can be determined that there may be a congested path because the backtracking start automatic guided vehicle is waiting to lock the target node.

[0075] S308: For each reverse tracing path, determine the congestion parameter of the reverse tracing path according to the number of automated guided vehicles in a waiting list corresponding to each node on the reverse tracing path that have the same travel direction as the reverse tracing start automated guided vehicle.

[0076] Afterwards, for each reverse tracing path, the number of automated guided vehicles in each waiting list corresponding to each node on the reverse tracing path and having the same direction of travel as the reverse starting automated guided vehicle is determined as the congestion parameter of the reverse tracing path. Here, according to the congestion parameter, it can be determined that the degree of congestion on the path where congestion may occur due to the reverse starting automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node. If an automated guided vehicle is stored in each waiting list corresponding to each node on the reverse tracing path, and the stored automated guided vehicle has the same direction of travel as the reverse starting automated guided vehicle, it means that the reverse starting automated guided vehicle is waiting for the target node to be unlocked and the stop process at the current node has caused other automated guided vehicles on the reverse tracing path to be unable to continue to move forward, that is, it has caused congestion on the path where congestion may occur. Moreover, the congestion parameter of the reverse tracing path also represents the degree of congestion on the path where congestion may occur due to the reverse starting automated guided vehicle.

[0077] In addition, in order to further improve the scheduling efficiency, when the target node is unlocked, a step of determining the number of automated guided vehicles stored in the waiting list corresponding to the target node can be added. Specifically: first, determine the number of automated guided vehicles stored in the waiting list corresponding to the target node. If only one automated guided vehicle is stored in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, the automated guided vehicle stored in the waiting list corresponding to the target node is determined as the target automated guided vehicle; if more than two automated guided vehicles are stored in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, a step of determining a priority automated guided vehicle from the waiting list corresponding to the target node using a reverse tracing method is performed.

[0078] During the specific implementation process, the coordinate value of the node can be used as an index, and the waiting list corresponding to the node can be used as the content to store the node and the waiting list corresponding to the node. Therefore, the backtracking starting node can be obtained, and the coordinate values ​​of a predetermined number of nodes to be detected that are opposite to the traveling direction of the backtracking starting automatic guided vehicle can be obtained according to the traveling direction of the backtracking starting automatic guided vehicle. And the waiting list corresponding to each node to be detected is obtained respectively with the coordinate value of the above-mentioned node to be detected as an index. Each waiting list stores the device identification and traveling direction of the automatic guided vehicle waiting for the corresponding node to be detected to be unlocked, and the number of automatic guided vehicles in each waiting list corresponding to the above-mentioned node to be detected that has the same traveling direction as the backtracking starting automatic guided vehicle is determined as the congestion parameter.

[0079] For example, Figure 1As shown, when AGV1021 and AGV1022 are stored in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, since the direction of travel of AGV1021 is right, a predetermined number of nodes to the left from AGV1021 are obtained; similarly, since the direction of travel of AGV1022 is upward, a predetermined number of nodes to the downward from AGV1022 are obtained. The number of the predetermined number of nodes can be set according to the scheduling requirements, for example, 3-9 nodes in the direction opposite to the direction of travel of the reverse starting automatic guided vehicle are obtained. Figure 1 It is shown in the figure that AGV1021 is used as the reverse tracing starting automatic guided vehicle, the node locked by AGV1021 is used as the reverse tracing starting node, and the four nodes to the left of the reverse tracing starting node are obtained as the nodes to be detected.

[0080] In the case where the backtracking path includes the backtracking start node and the node to be detected, the backtracking path corresponds to 5 waiting lists respectively. For the backtracking start node, the waiting list of the backtracking start node occupied by the backtracking start automatic guided vehicle AGV1021 includes AGV1024. Assuming that the direction of travel of AGV1024 is the same as that of AGV1021, both are traveling to the right, then AGV1024 is the automatic guided vehicle that causes congestion due to AGV1021. The first node to be detected to the left from AGV1021 is the node occupied by AGV1024. The waiting list of the node to be detected includes AGV1025. Assuming that the direction of travel of AGV1025 is the same as that of AGV1021, both are traveling to the right, then AGV1025 is also the automatic guided vehicle that causes congestion due to AGV1021. The second node to be detected to the left from AGV1021 is the node occupied by AGV1025, and the waiting list of the node to be detected includes AGV1027. The direction of travel of AGV1027 is different from that of AGV1021, which is upward, so AGV1027 is not the automated guided vehicle that causes congestion due to AGV1021. There are no automated guided vehicles in the waiting lists of the third and fourth nodes to be detected to the left from AGV1021. In summary, according to the 5 waiting lists corresponding to the backtracking starting node and the nodes to be detected included in the backtracking path, the number of automated guided vehicles with the same travel direction as AGV1021 is 2.

[0081] Similarly, for the backtracking starting node, the five nodes from the backtracking starting automatic guided vehicle AGV1022 downward correspond to five waiting lists respectively. The waiting list of the backtracking starting node occupied by the backtracking starting automatic guided vehicle AGV1022 includes AGV1026. The direction of travel of AGV1026 is to the left, which is different from the direction of travel of AGV1022. Therefore, AGV1026 is not the automatic guided vehicle that causes congestion due to AGV1022. There are no automatic guided vehicles in the waiting lists of the first to fourth nodes to be detected from AGV1022 downward. In summary, according to the five waiting lists corresponding to the backtracking starting node and the nodes to be detected included in the backtracking path, the number of automatic guided vehicles with the same travel direction as AGV1022 is 0.

[0082] When determining the congestion parameter according to the number of automated guided vehicles in the waiting list corresponding to each node on the reverse path that have the same travel direction as the reverse starting automated guided vehicle, the number of automated guided vehicles in the waiting list corresponding to each node on the reverse path that have the same travel direction as the reverse starting automated guided vehicle can be directly determined as the congestion parameter. For example, Figure 1 In the example, the congestion parameter of AGV1021 is 2, and the congestion parameter of AGV1022 is 0. Alternatively, in order to avoid the occurrence of a 0 parameter, the backtracking starting AGV can also be added to the number of AGVs used to determine the congestion parameter, for example, Figure 1 In the example, the congestion parameter of AGV 1021 is 3, and the congestion parameter of AGV 1022 is 1, that is, the congestion parameters of AGV 1021 and AGV 1022 both include AGV 1021 or AGV 1022 itself.

[0083] S309: Selecting one of the automatic guided vehicles from each of the reverse-tracing start automatic guided vehicles as a priority automatic guided vehicle according to the congestion parameter of each reverse-tracing path.

[0084] Specifically, the following two possible implementations may be used to determine the priority automated guided vehicle according to the congestion parameter of each automated guided vehicle:

[0085] In a possible implementation, the automated guided vehicle with the smallest congestion parameter may be selected from each automated guided vehicle in the waiting list corresponding to the target node as the priority automated guided vehicle.

[0086] Selecting the automated guided vehicle with the smallest congestion parameter means releasing the automated guided vehicle on the path with the least congestion first. This is because compared with releasing the automated guided vehicle with a larger congestion parameter, after the automated guided vehicle with the smallest congestion parameter passes the target node, fewer automated guided vehicles will need to lock onto and pass through the target node in the future, so one of the directions that need to pass can be opened up more quickly. If an automated guided vehicle with a larger congestion parameter is selected for release, after one automated guided vehicle is released, the automated guided vehicle with the smallest congestion parameter is likely to have to wait for other automated guided vehicles on the path in the direction of travel of the automated guided vehicle with the larger congestion parameter to continue passing. During the waiting time, it may even cause congestion in a larger area, entering a vicious circle. Therefore, preferably, from each automated guided vehicle in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, the automated guided vehicle with the smallest congestion parameter is selected as the priority automated guided vehicle. Exemplarily, in Figure 1 The waiting list corresponding to the target node selects AGV1022 as the priority automatic guided vehicle.

[0087] In another possible implementation, an automated guided vehicle with a maximum congestion parameter may be selected from each automated guided vehicle in a waiting list corresponding to the target node as a priority automated guided vehicle.

[0088] In actual application, there may be a situation where the path with a larger congestion parameter needs to be cleared as much as possible to prevent more and more AGVs from waiting on the path with a larger congestion parameter. In this case, from each AGV in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, the AGV with the largest congestion parameter is selected as the priority AGV. Figure 1 The waiting list corresponding to the target node selects the automated guided vehicle 1021 as the priority automated guided vehicle.

[0089] In addition, if there are more than two automated guided vehicles with the same congestion parameters in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, one automated guided vehicle is randomly selected from the two automated guided vehicles with the same congestion parameters to be determined as the priority automated guided vehicle. For example, if the automated guided vehicle with the smallest congestion parameter is selected as the priority automated guided vehicle from each automated guided vehicle in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, when there are two automated guided vehicles with the smallest congestion parameters and the same congestion parameters, one automated guided vehicle is randomly selected from the two automated guided vehicles with the smallest congestion parameters and the same congestion parameters to be determined as the priority automated guided vehicle. Alternatively, if the automated guided vehicle with the largest congestion parameter is selected as the target automated guided vehicle from each automated guided vehicle in the waiting list corresponding to the target node, when there are two automated guided vehicles with the largest congestion parameters and the same congestion parameters, one automated guided vehicle is randomly selected from the two automated guided vehicles with the largest congestion parameters and the same congestion parameters to be determined as the priority automated guided vehicle.

[0090] S310: The priority automated guided vehicle locks the target node and deletes the priority automated guided vehicle from a waiting list corresponding to the target node.

[0091] For example, Figure 1 As shown, when AGV1021 unlocks and walks away from the target node 1011, when AGV1022 is selected as the priority automatic guided vehicle from the waiting list corresponding to the target node, AGV1022 is used first to lock the target node, for example, the target node is locked using the device identifier of AGV1022, and AGV1022 is deleted from the waiting list corresponding to the target node.

[0092] In addition, in order to increase the reliability of the automatic guided vehicle scheduling method provided in the embodiment of the present application, the method provided in the embodiment of the present application is required to deal with some special situations.

[0093] A: For example, after the automated guided vehicle is added to the waiting list corresponding to the target node and before the step of obtaining the message that the target node is unlocked, the automated guided vehicle stored in the waiting list may receive a path change instruction while staying and waiting at the current node. After obtaining the path change instruction and before changing the travel path according to the path change instruction, the automated guided vehicle that is changing the path needs to be deleted from the waiting list. The path change instruction to change the travel path may include changing the travel direction and / or target node of the automated guided vehicle.

[0094] Since the node coordinates are usually used as indexes and the waiting list corresponding to the node is used as content, the nodes and the waiting list corresponding to the nodes are stored. Therefore, when a path change instruction is received, the automatic guided vehicle that needs to change the path needs to be determined according to the path change instruction.

[0095] For example, a path change instruction may carry a device identifier, and the automated guided vehicle that needs to change its path can be found based on the device identifier carried in the path change instruction. Alternatively, when the automated guided vehicle receives the path change instruction, the automated guided vehicle sends a path change message to the device or apparatus that applies the present method. The path change message is used to notify the automated guided vehicle corresponding to the device or apparatus that applies the present method that the path needs to be changed. The path change message may carry the device identifier of the automated guided vehicle and the coordinate value of the target node that the automated guided vehicle requests to lock. The automated guided vehicle that needs to change its path can be found based on the coordinate value of the target node that the automated guided vehicle requests to lock and the device identifier of the automated guided vehicle.

[0096] Since the automated guided vehicle may obtain a different travel direction and / or target node after changing the path, the automated guided vehicle that needs to change the path needs to be deleted from the waiting list before downloading or executing the new travel path.

[0097] B: For another example, when an abnormality occurs in an automated guided vehicle, such as when the automated guided vehicle cannot continue to move, the automated guided vehicle needs to release all travel paths for offline operation, the automated guided vehicle needs to be restarted, or the automated guided vehicle needs to clear the current travel path to resume the transportation task, the automated guided vehicle cannot continue to perform the transportation task normally. At this time, if the automated guided vehicle has locked the node, the node is unlocked by the automated guided vehicle to prevent the abnormal automated guided vehicle from occupying the locked node and hindering other normal automated guided vehicles from locking the node occupied by it; or, if the automated guided vehicle is added to the waiting list, the automated guided vehicle is deleted from the waiting list. At this time, the automated guided vehicle does not need to continue waiting to lock the target node. Even if it is selected as the target automated guided vehicle, it cannot normally lock the target node to continue to perform the transportation task. Therefore, it is deleted from the waiting list to prevent the abnormal automated guided vehicle from being determined as the target automated guided vehicle. At the same time, it can also prevent too much redundant information in the waiting list, resulting in abnormal situations such as memory overflow. When the automated guided vehicle cannot continue to move, the operator is usually required to manually unlock the node locked by the automated guided vehicle's equipment identifier and push it out of the automated guided vehicle's walking space to avoid interfering with the operation of other automated guided vehicles.

[0098] C: In order to further improve the reliability of the method and prevent the occurrence of certain uncontrollable abnormal situations, the method provided in the embodiment of the present application also includes the step of monitoring the number of automated guided vehicles in the waiting list: determining the first total number of automated guided vehicles included in each waiting list; determining the second total number of each automated guided vehicle participating in the scheduling; and monitoring the number of automated guided vehicles in the waiting list based on the first total number and the second total number of each automated guided vehicle participating in the scheduling. Specifically, the first total number needs to be less than or equal to the second total number. In addition, when the first total number is greater than the second total number, a warning message can be sent to the monitoring system or monitoring personnel.

[0099] Based on the same design concept, the embodiment of the present application also provides a scheduling device and storage medium for an automatic guided vehicle.

[0100] Embodiment 3

[0101] like Figure 4 As shown, the embodiment of the present application provides a scheduling device 400 for an automated guided vehicle, comprising:

[0102] The acquisition module 401 is used to acquire a lock request of the automatic guided vehicle for a target node; the target node is the next node passed by the automatic guided vehicle on the travel path;

[0103] The queue management module 402 is used to add the automatic guided vehicle to a waiting list corresponding to the target node when the target node has been locked; the waiting list is used to store the device identification of the automatic guided vehicle waiting to lock the corresponding node and the travel direction when passing the corresponding node; and is also used to delete the automatic guided vehicle from the waiting list corresponding to the priority target node;

[0104] The device determination module 403, when obtaining the message that the target node is unlocked, determines a priority automated guided vehicle from the waiting list corresponding to the target node by using a reverse tracing method, wherein the priority automated guided vehicle is the automated guided vehicle that preferentially locks the target node;

[0105] The node locking module 404 is used to use the priority automatic guided vehicle to lock the target node.

[0106] In a possible implementation manner, the device determination module 402 is further configured to:

[0107] Determine each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node from the waiting list corresponding to the target node, use each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node as a backtracking starting automated guided vehicle, and use the node where each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node is located as a backtracking starting node;

[0108] Starting from each backtracking start node, a predetermined number of nodes in the direction opposite to the traveling direction of the corresponding backtracking start automatic guided vehicle are obtained as nodes to be detected, wherein the backtracking start node and the nodes to be detected constitute a backtracking path;

[0109] For each reverse tracing path, determining a congestion parameter of the reverse tracing path according to the number of automated guided vehicles in a waiting list corresponding to each node on the reverse tracing path that have the same traveling direction as the reverse tracing starting automated guided vehicle;

[0110] According to the congestion parameter of each back-tracing path, one of the back-tracing starting automated guided vehicles is selected as a priority automated guided vehicle.

[0111] In a possible implementation manner, when a locking request of the automatic guided vehicle for a target node is obtained and the target node is not locked, the node locking module 404 is further used to:

[0112] The automatic guided vehicle locks onto the target node.

[0113] In a possible implementation manner, the automatic guided vehicle scheduling device 400 further includes an exception handling module 405, which is used to:

[0114] Determine whether a service anomaly occurs. If a service anomaly occurs, try to use the device identifier of the automatic guided vehicle to lock the target node at preset time intervals until the automatic guided vehicle successfully locks the target node or determines that the target node has been locked.

[0115] In a possible implementation manner, the automatic guided vehicle scheduling device 400 further includes a path changing module 406, which is used to:

[0116] For each of the automated guided vehicles in the waiting list, when a path change instruction is received, determining an automated guided vehicle that needs to change its path according to the path change instruction;

[0117] The automatic guided vehicle that needs to change its path is deleted from the waiting list.

[0118] In a possible implementation manner, the exception handling module 405 is further used to:

[0119] In the case where the automatic guided vehicle has locked the node, releasing the automatic guided vehicle from locking the node;

[0120] Alternatively, when the automated guided vehicle is added to the waiting list, the automated guided vehicle is deleted from the waiting list.

[0121] In a possible implementation, the exception handling module 404 is further configured to:

[0122] determining a first total number of automated guided vehicles included in each waiting list;

[0123] The number of automated guided vehicles in the waiting list is monitored according to the first total number and the second total number of each of the automated guided vehicles participating in the scheduling.

[0124] Embodiment 4

[0125] A computer-readable medium storing instructions, wherein when the instructions are executed by a processor, the processor executes the steps of the method provided in Embodiment 1 or Embodiment 2. In practical applications, the computer-readable medium may be a RAM, a ROM, an EPROM, a magnetic disk, an optical disk, etc., and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application.

[0126] In addition to being implemented by a data processing program, the method steps described in this application can also be implemented by hardware, for example, by logic gates, switches, application specific integrated circuits (ASICs), programmable logic controllers, and embedded microcontrollers, etc. Therefore, such hardware that can implement the method described in this application can also constitute this application.

[0127] Embodiment 5

[0128] The present application also provides an electronic device, which may be a computer or a server, in which the automatic guided vehicle dispatching device of the above-mentioned device embodiment of the present application can be integrated. Figure 5 As shown, it shows the electronic device 500 involved in the third embodiment of the device of the present application.

[0129] The electronic device may include a processor 501 with one or more processing cores and one or more computer-readable storage media 502. The electronic device may also include a power supply 503 and an input / output unit 504. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that Figure 5 The electronic device is not limited thereto and may include more or fewer components than shown in the figure, or combine certain components, or arrange the components differently.

[0130] in:

[0131] The processor 501 is the control part of the electronic device, which connects various parts using various interfaces and lines, and executes the steps of the method provided in Example 1 or Example 2 by running or executing the software program stored in the computer-readable storage medium 502.

[0132] The computer-readable storage medium 502 may be used to store software programs, namely, the programs involved in the methods provided in the first or second embodiment.

[0133] The processor 501 executes various functional applications and data processing by running the software program stored in the computer-readable storage medium 502. The computer-readable storage medium 502 may include a program storage area and a data storage area, wherein the program storage area may store an operating system, an application required for at least one function (such as the determination of a priority automatic guided vehicle, etc.), etc.; the data storage area may store data required for use by the electronic device (such as a waiting list, etc.). In addition, the computer-readable storage medium 502 may include a high-speed random access memory, and may also include a non-volatile memory, such as at least one disk storage device, a flash memory device, or other volatile solid-state storage device. Accordingly, the computer-readable storage medium 502 may also include a memory controller to provide the processor 501 with access to the computer-readable storage medium 502.

[0134] The electronic device also includes a power supply 503 for supplying power to each component. Preferably, the power supply 503 can be logically connected to the processor 501 through a power management system, so as to manage charging, discharging, power consumption and other functions through the power management system. The power supply 503 can also include one or more DC or AC power supplies, recharging systems, power failure detection circuits, power converters or inverters, power status indicators and other arbitrary components.

[0135] The server may also include an input and output unit 504, which can be used, for example, to receive input digital or character information, and to generate keyboard, mouse, joystick, optical or trackball signal input related to user settings and function control; for example, it can be used to display information input by the user or information provided to the user and various graphical user interfaces of the server, which can be composed of graphics, text, icons, videos and any combination thereof.

[0136] In summary, the above are only preferred embodiments of the present application and are not intended to limit the protection scope of the present application. Any modifications, equivalent replacements, improvements, etc. made within the spirit and principles of the present application shall be included in the protection scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A method for dispatching an automatic guided vehicle, characterized in that: The method includes: Obtaining a lock request of the automatic guided vehicle for a target node; the target node is the next node passed by the automatic guided vehicle on the travel path; If the target node has been locked, the automated guided vehicle is added to a waiting list corresponding to the target node; the waiting list is used to store the device identification of the automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the node and the travel direction when passing through the node; When a message that the target node is unlocked is obtained, a priority automated guided vehicle is determined from a waiting list corresponding to the target node using a reverse tracing method; the priority automated guided vehicle is an automated guided vehicle that preferentially locks the target node; The priority automated guided vehicle locks the target node and deletes the priority automated guided vehicle from a waiting list corresponding to the target node; The step of determining a priority automatic guided vehicle from the waiting list corresponding to the target node by using the reverse tracing method includes: Determine each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node from the waiting list corresponding to the target node, use each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node as a backtracking starting automated guided vehicle, and use the node where each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node is located as a backtracking starting node; Starting from each backtracking start node, a predetermined number of nodes in the direction opposite to the traveling direction of the corresponding backtracking start automatic guided vehicle are obtained as nodes to be detected, wherein the backtracking start node and the nodes to be detected constitute a backtracking path; For each reverse tracing path, determining a congestion parameter of the reverse tracing path according to the number of automated guided vehicles in a waiting list corresponding to each node on the reverse tracing path that have the same traveling direction as the reverse tracing starting automated guided vehicle; According to the congestion parameter of each back-tracing path, one of the back-tracing starting automated guided vehicles is selected as a priority automated guided vehicle.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that When a locking request of the automatic guided vehicle for a target node is obtained and the target node is not locked, the method further includes: The automatic guided vehicle locks onto the target node.

3. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that After obtaining the locking request of the automatic guided vehicle for the target node, before the step of adding the automatic guided vehicle to the waiting list corresponding to the target node, the method further includes: Determine whether a service anomaly occurs. If a service anomaly occurs, try to use the automatic guided vehicle to lock the target node at preset time intervals until the automatic guided vehicle successfully locks the target node or determines that the target node has been locked.

4. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that: After the step of adding the automatic guided vehicle to a waiting list corresponding to the target node and before the step of acquiring a message that the target node is unlocked, the method further includes: For each of the automated guided vehicles in the waiting list, when a path change instruction is received, determining an automated guided vehicle that needs to change its path according to the path change instruction; The automatic guided vehicle that needs to change its path is deleted from the waiting list.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that In the case where an abnormality occurs in the automatic guided vehicle, the method further comprises: In the case where the automatic guided vehicle has locked the node, releasing the automatic guided vehicle from locking the node; Alternatively, when the automated guided vehicle is added to the waiting list, the automated guided vehicle is deleted from the waiting list.

6. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that The method further comprises the step of monitoring the number of automated guided vehicles in the waiting list: determining a first total number of automated guided vehicles included in each waiting list; The number of automated guided vehicles in the waiting list is monitored according to the first total number and the second total number of each of the automated guided vehicles participating in the scheduling.

7. A dispatching device for an automatic guided vehicle, characterized in that: include: An acquisition module, used to obtain a locking request of the automatic guided vehicle for a target node; The target node is the next node that the automated guided vehicle passes through on its travel path; A queue management module is used to add the automatic guided vehicle to a waiting list corresponding to the target node when the target node has been locked; the waiting list is used to store the device identification of the automatic guided vehicle waiting to lock the corresponding node and the travel direction when passing the corresponding node; and is also used to delete the automatic guided vehicle from the waiting list corresponding to the target node of the priority automatic guided vehicle; A device determination module, configured to determine a priority automated guided vehicle from a waiting list corresponding to the target node by using a reverse tracing method when obtaining a message that the target node is unlocked, wherein the priority automated guided vehicle is an automated guided vehicle that preferentially locks the target node; A node locking module, used to use the priority automatic guided vehicle to lock the target node; The device determination module is specifically used to determine a priority automated guided vehicle from the waiting list corresponding to the target node by using the reverse tracing method, determine each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node from the waiting list corresponding to the target node, use each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node as a reverse tracing starting automated guided vehicle, and use the node where each automated guided vehicle waiting to lock the target node is located as a reverse tracing starting node; Starting from each back-tracing starting node, a predetermined number of nodes in the direction opposite to the traveling direction of the corresponding back-tracing starting automated guided vehicle are obtained as nodes to be detected, and the back-tracing starting node and the nodes to be detected constitute a back-tracing path; for each back-tracing path, a congestion parameter of the back-tracing path is determined according to the number of automated guided vehicles in the same traveling direction as the back-tracing starting automated guided vehicle in a waiting list corresponding to each node on the back-tracing path; according to the congestion parameter of each back-tracing path, one is selected from each back-tracing starting automated guided vehicle as a priority automated guided vehicle.

8. A computer-readable storage medium storing computer instructions, characterized in that: When the instructions are executed by a processor, the steps of the method described in any one of claims 1 to 6 can be implemented.

9. An electronic device, characterized in that: The electronic device comprises the computer-readable storage medium as claimed in claim 8, and further comprises a processor capable of executing the computer-readable storage medium.

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