Cargo stacking method and robot

Abstract

This application provides a goods stacking method and a robot. The method includes controlling a robot to transport goods to a target warehouse within a preset warehouse. The preset warehouse includes one or more warehouses, each capable of storing one or more stacks of goods row by row. The method involves acquiring a scene image of the target warehouse to obtain the position information of the goods within the target warehouse, and determining height information based on the inventory information of the target warehouse. The robot moves according to the position information and controls the forks to move relative to the robot according to the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot are stacked on top of a stack of goods in the target warehouse with a layer count less than a preset number of layers. This application, when storing transported goods, obtains the position information of the target warehouse through a scene image and then obtains the height information through the inventory information. The robot moves according to the position and height information, enabling the transported goods to be accurately stacked on top of a stack of goods in the target warehouse with a layer count less than a preset number of layers, thereby increasing the warehouse's inventory capacity.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the technical field of intelligent robots, and particularly relates to a goods stacking method and a robot. BACKGROUND

[0002] Nowadays, robots are widely used in warehouses and used to carry goods and place the goods at a specified position. However, when the traditional robots carry goods in the warehouse, they can only be placed in a plane and cannot be stacked, which leads to the difficulty in fully utilizing the space of the warehouse and the low inventory of the warehouse. SUMMARY

[0003] In view of this, the embodiments of the present application provide a goods stacking method and a robot, which can complete the multi-layer stacking of goods and improve the storage capacity of a preset warehouse.

[0004] The goods stacking method of the embodiments of the present application comprises: controlling the robot to transport goods to a target line warehouse of a preset warehouse, wherein the preset warehouse comprises one or more line warehouses, and each line warehouse can store one or more stacks of goods row by row; acquiring a scene image of the target line warehouse to obtain position information of the goods in the target line warehouse, and determining height information according to inventory information of the target line warehouse; and controlling the body to move according to the position information and controlling the forks to move relative to the body according to the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot are stacked above one stack of goods with a number of layers less than a preset number of layers in the target line warehouse.

[0005] The robot of the embodiments of the present application comprises a processor, which is used to execute a goods stacking method. The goods stacking method comprises: controlling the robot to transport goods to a target line warehouse of a preset warehouse, wherein the preset warehouse comprises one or more line warehouses, and each line warehouse can store one or more stacks of goods row by row; acquiring a scene image of the target line warehouse to obtain position information of the goods in the target line warehouse, and determining height information according to inventory information of the target line warehouse; and controlling the body to move according to the position information and controlling the forks to move relative to the body according to the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot are stacked above one stack of goods with a number of layers less than a preset number of layers in the target line warehouse.

[0006] The goods stacking method and the robot of the present application can obtain the position information of the target line warehouse through the scene image when storing the transported goods, and can obtain the height information of the moving height of the transported goods through the inventory information, and the robot moves according to the position information and the height information, so that the transported goods can be accurately stacked above one stack of goods with a number of layers less than a preset number of layers in the target line warehouse, thereby fully utilizing the space of the warehouse and improving the inventory of the warehouse.

[0007] Additional aspects and advantages of the embodiments of the present application will be set forth in part in the description which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or can be learned by practice of the application. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0008] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present application can become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description, considered in conjunction with the drawings in which:

[0009] Figure 1 is a flowchart of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0010] Figure 2 is a plan view of a robot according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0011] Figure 3 is a scene diagram of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0012] Figure 4 is a flowchart of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0013] Figure 5 is a flowchart of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0014] Figure 6 is a flowchart of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0015] Figure 7 is a flowchart of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0016] Figure 8 is a scene diagram of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0017] Figure 9 is a flowchart of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0018] Figure 10 is a flowchart of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0019] Figure 11 is a flowchart of a method of stacking goods according to certain embodiments of the present application;

[0020] Figure 12 is a block diagram of a goods storage device according to certain embodiments of the present application; and

[0021] Figure 13 is an interaction diagram of a computer-readable storage medium and a processor according to certain embodiments of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0022] Embodiments of the present application are described below in detail, examples of which are shown in the drawings, wherein the same or similar reference numbers represent the same or similar elements or elements having the same or similar functions throughout. The embodiments described below by referring to the drawings are exemplary and are only used to explain the embodiments of the present application, and cannot be understood as a limitation on the embodiments of the present application.

[0023] The terms appearing in the present application are first explained below:

[0024] Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV): refers to a transport vehicle equipped with electromagnetic or optical automatic navigation device, which can travel along the specified navigation path, has safety protection and various transfer functions. The industrial application does not require a driver, and the rechargeable battery is the power source. Generally, the computer can control the travel path and behavior, or use the electromagnetic track to set the travel path. The electromagnetic track is pasted on the floor, and the unmanned carrier moves and acts by relying on the information brought by the electromagnetic track.

[0025] Please refer to Figure 1 and Figure 2 The goods stacking method of the embodiments of the present application is applied to a robot 100, which includes a fork 10, a body 20, and an image acquisition device 30. The fork 10 is movable relative to the body 20 to change the height of the fork 10. The fork 10 is used to load goods. The image acquisition device 30 is used to acquire scene images. The steps include:

[0026] Step 01: control the robot 100 to transport the goods to a target line warehouse of a preset warehouse. The preset warehouse includes one or more line warehouses, and the target line warehouse is any one of the line warehouses. Each line warehouse can store one or more stacks of goods in each row.

[0027] Specifically, the preset warehouse is provided with one or more line warehouses, and each line warehouse can store one or more stacks of goods in each row. When the robot 100 receives a warehouse entry application, it will move to the position of the goods that need to be entered into the warehouse and load the goods that need to be entered into the warehouse. Then, according to the position information of the target line warehouse in the warehouse entry application, the optimal travel route of the robot 100 is calculated and planned, so that the robot 100 transports the loaded goods to the target line warehouse of the preset warehouse according to the optimal travel route, thereby improving the transportation efficiency of the robot 100.

[0028] Step 02: acquire the scene image of the target line warehouse to acquire the position information of the goods in the target line warehouse, and determine the height information of the moving height of the transported goods according to the inventory information of the target line warehouse.

[0029] Specifically, the carrying device 100 is in communication connection with a system (such as a cloud server) for maintaining the inventory information of the warehouse. After the robot 100 transports the goods to the target line warehouse of the preset warehouse, the distance that the robot 100 needs to move is obtained by determining the position information of the goods in the target line warehouse and the height information of the moving height of the transported goods. For example, the robot 100 can use visible light based on LED lights to visually position the goods in the target line warehouse: a plurality of LED lights are installed on the pallet 200 carrying the goods in the target line warehouse, and after the robot 100 moves to the target line warehouse, the image acquisition device 30 receives the visible light emitted by the LED lights on the pallet 200 carrying the goods in the target line warehouse, and then a preset calculation intensity algorithm is used to calculate the intensity of the visible light received by the image acquisition device 30 at this time, so as to obtain the difference between the intensity of the light source of the LED light and the intensity of the visible light received by the image acquisition device 30, and then according to the preset software processing the difference between the intensity of the light source of the LED light and the intensity of the visible light received by the image acquisition device 30, the relative distance between the LED light and the image acquisition device 30 is obtained, so as to obtain the position information of the goods in the target line warehouse. Finally, according to the inventory information of the target line warehouse in the system and the preset number of layers, the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is determined, so as to realize the accurate positioning of a pile of goods in the target line warehouse with a number of layers less than the preset number of layers.

[0030] Further, in combination with the height of a layer of goods in the target line warehouse, the height of each layer of goods in the target line warehouse corresponds to a height information, and when the robot 100 determines the height information of the moving height of the transported goods, the height corresponding to the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is obtained. For example, the preset number of layers of goods in the target line warehouse is 2 layers, and at this time, there is a pile of goods with a number of layers of 1 layer in the target line warehouse, that is, 1 layer of transported goods can be placed above the goods with a number of layers of 1 layer, so at this time the robot 100 determines that the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is 1, and obtains the height corresponding to the height information of 1, so as to move the transported goods to the height corresponding to the height information of 1.

[0031] Step 03: According to the position information, the body 20 is controlled to move, and according to the height information, the fork 10 is controlled to move relative to the body 20, so that the goods transported by the robot 100 are stacked above a pile of goods in the target line warehouse with a number of layers less than the preset number of layers.

[0032] Specifically, after the robot 100 obtains the position information of the goods in the target line warehouse and the height information of the moving height of the transported goods, the robot 100 controls the body 20 to move according to the position information of the goods in the target line warehouse, and controls the forks 10 to move relative to the body 20 according to the height information of the moving height of the transported goods, so that the goods transported by the robot 100 are placed at a position corresponding to the position information of the goods in the target line warehouse and the height information of the moving height of the transported goods, thereby enabling the goods transported by the robot 100 to be stacked above a pile of goods in the target line warehouse with a number of layers less than the preset number of layers.

[0033] For example, please refer to Figure 3 , the preset number of layers of the goods in the target line warehouse is 2, the number of layers of the first pile of goods H1 in the target line warehouse is 2, and the number of layers of the second pile of goods H2 in the target line warehouse is 1, so that one more layer of goods can be placed above the second pile of goods H2, and the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is 1. When the robot 100 obtains the scene image of the target line warehouse, the position information of the second pile of goods H2 and the height information of the moving height of the transported goods are obtained, and the coordinates of the second pile of goods H2 are determined as (x1, y1), and the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is 1. Then, the robot 100 controls the body 20 to move according to x1 and y1, so that the transported goods can reach the position corresponding to x1 and y1, and then controls the forks 10 to move relative to the body 20 according to the height information of the moving height of the transported goods, so that the height of the goods is raised to the height corresponding to the height information of 1, thereby enabling the transported goods to be stacked on the second layer of the second pile of goods H2.

[0034] The goods stacking method of the present application enables the robot 100 to store the transported goods by obtaining the position information of the target line warehouse from the scene image, and obtaining the height information of the moving height of the transported goods from the inventory information. The robot 100 moves according to the position information and the height information, so that the transported goods can be accurately stacked above a pile of goods in the target line warehouse with a number of layers less than the preset number of layers, thereby fully utilizing the space of the warehouse and improving the inventory of the warehouse.

[0035] Please refer to Figure 2 and Figure 4 In some embodiments, step 03: controlling the body 20 to move according to the position information, and controlling the forks 10 to move relative to the body 20 according to the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot 100 are stacked above a pile of goods in the target line warehouse with a number of layers less than the preset number of layers, comprises:

[0036] Step 031: in the case where the height information is not 0, controlling the body 20 to move according to the position information, and controlling the forks 10 to move relative to the body 20 according to the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot 100 are stacked above a pile of goods in the target line warehouse with a number of layers less than the preset number of layers.

[0037] The goods stacking method of the present application can comprise:

[0038] Step 04: in the case that the height information is 0, the body 20 is controlled to move according to the position information, and the fork 10 is controlled to move relative to the body 20 according to the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot 100 are placed in the area in the target line warehouse where no goods are stored, and the distance between the placed goods and the adjacent placed goods in the target line warehouse is the preset distance.

[0039] Specifically, after the robot 100 obtains the height information of the moving height of the transported goods, the position where the transported goods are placed is selected according to the height information of the moving height of the transported goods. When the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is not 0, it can be obtained that the number of layers of one stack of goods in the target line warehouse does not reach the preset number of layers, and then the body 20 is controlled to move according to the position information of the goods in the target line warehouse, and the fork 10 is controlled to move relative to the body 20 according to the height information of the moving height of the transported goods, so that the goods transported by the robot 100 are stacked above the stack of goods in the target line warehouse whose number of layers is less than the preset number of layers. When the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is 0, it can be obtained that the number of layers of all the goods in the target line warehouse has reached the preset number of layers, and then the transported goods are placed in the area in the target line warehouse where no goods are stored in combination with the position information of the goods in the target line warehouse and the preset distance, so as to ensure that the distance between the placed goods and the adjacent placed goods in the target line warehouse is the preset distance.

[0040] For example, when the robot 100 obtains the height information which is not 0 according to the inventory information and the preset number, the position information of the stack of goods in the target line warehouse whose number of layers is less than the preset number of layers is obtained according to the scene image, such as coordinates (x2, y2), the robot 100 controls the body 20 to move according to x2 and y2, so that the transported goods can reach the position of the stack of goods in the target line warehouse whose number of layers is less than the preset number of layers, then the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is obtained according to the inventory information, and the fork 10 is controlled to move relative to the body 20, so that the transported goods can be stacked above the stack of goods in the target line warehouse whose number of layers is less than the preset number of layers. Or, when the height information is 0, the robot 100 obtains the position information of the placed goods adjacent to the area in the target line warehouse where no goods are stored according to the scene image, such as coordinates (x3, y3), and then determines the target position where the transported goods need to be placed in combination with x3, y3 and the preset distance, and places the transported goods at the target position, so as to ensure that the distance between the goods placed in the area where no goods are stored and the adjacent placed goods in the target line warehouse is the preset distance.

[0041] Please refer to Figure 5After the robot stacks the transported goods on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse with fewer than a preset number of layers, or places them in an area of ​​the target warehouse where no goods are stored, the goods stacking method of this application may further include:

[0042] Step 05: Update the inventory information based on the quantity of goods transported by robot 100.

[0043] That is, when the robot 100 stacks the transported goods on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse that has fewer layers than the preset number of layers, or places them in an area of ​​the target warehouse where no goods are stored, it will upload the quantity of the transported goods and the information of the target warehouse to the robot 100's control system to update the inventory information. This allows the robot 100 to obtain accurate height information of the transported goods based on real-time inventory information when placing them in the target warehouse, so as to prevent the robot 100 from being unable to raise the transported goods to the correct height, which could cause the transported goods to collide with the goods in the target warehouse or even cause them to collapse.

[0044] Please see Figure 2 and Figure 6 In some implementations, step 02: determining the height information of the transported goods' movement altitude based on the inventory information of the target warehouse, including:

[0045] Step 021: If the quantity of goods in the inventory information is an integer multiple of the preset quantity, determine the height information to be 0. The preset quantity is determined based on the quantity of goods when a pile of goods in the target warehouse reaches the preset layer.

[0046] Step 022: If the quantity of goods in the inventory information is not an integer multiple of the preset quantity, determine that the height information is not 0 and determine the height information based on the remainder when the quantity of goods in the inventory information is divided by the preset quantity.

[0047] Specifically, when robot 100 determines the height information of the transported goods' movement, it needs to compare and process the quantity of goods in the inventory information with a preset quantity. The preset quantity is determined based on the quantity of goods in a pile in the target warehouse when it reaches a preset number of layers. If the quantity of goods in the inventory information is an integer multiple of the preset quantity, it means that the number of layers in each pile of goods in the target warehouse has reached the preset number of layers, and the height information of the transported goods' movement can be determined to be 0. If the quantity of goods in the inventory information is not an integer multiple of the preset quantity, it means that the number of layers in the target warehouse has not reached the preset number of layers, and the height information of the transported goods' movement can be determined to be non-zero. The height information of the transported goods' movement is then determined based on the remainder when the quantity of goods in the inventory information is divided by the preset quantity.

[0048] For example, please combine Figure 3The preset quantity of goods in the target warehouse when a pile reaches the preset layer number is 54. The preset layer number of goods in the target warehouse is 3 layers, that is, 18 goods are placed on each layer. If the inventory information shows that the number of goods stored in the target warehouse is 108, it means that 2 piles of goods have been placed in the target warehouse, and the layer number of each pile of goods has reached the preset layer number, that is, no more goods can be placed on top of each pile of goods. At this time, the robot 100 determines that the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is 0, and then places the goods transported by the robot 100 in the area of ​​the target warehouse where no goods are stored. If the inventory information shows that the number of goods stored in the target warehouse is 72, it is clear that the number of goods is not an integer multiple of the preset quantity. Therefore, the number of goods in the inventory information needs to be divided by the preset quantity to obtain a remainder of 18. Then, the remainder of 18 is compared with the preset quantity of 54. It can be found that the remainder of 18 is one-third of the preset quantity of 54. It can be determined that the layer of goods that has not reached the preset layer number is 1. Combined with the preset layer number of goods in the target warehouse, it is determined that 2 more layers of goods can be placed on top of the goods that have not reached the preset layer number. Thus, the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is determined to be 2. Then, the robot 100 stacks the transported goods on top of the goods that have not reached the preset layer number according to the height information of the moving height of the transported goods.

[0049] Please see Figure 2 and Figure 7 In some implementations, step 022: determining the height information based on the remainder of the quantity of goods in the inventory information divided by a preset quantity, further includes:

[0050] Step 0221: Determine the number of layers based on the remainder and the predetermined quantity. The predetermined quantity is determined based on the quantity of one layer of goods in a pile of goods in the target warehouse.

[0051] Step 0222: Determine the height information based on the number of floors.

[0052] Specifically, the predetermined quantity is determined based on the quantity of goods in one layer of a pile of goods in the target warehouse. When the quantity of goods in the inventory information is not an integer multiple of the predetermined quantity, the robot 100 needs to divide the quantity of goods in the inventory information by the predetermined quantity to obtain the remainder, and then determine the number of layers based on the remainder and the predetermined quantity, thereby determining the height information of the moving height of the transported goods based on the number of layers.

[0053] For example, please combine Figure 3The target warehouse has a preset quantity of 54 items and a pre-determined quantity of 18 items, with a preset layer count of 3. If the inventory information shows that the target warehouse already contains 108 items, it means that two piles of goods have been placed in the target warehouse, and each pile has reached the preset layer count, meaning that no more goods can be placed on top of each pile. In this case, the robot 100 determines that the moving height of the transported goods is 0, and will place the goods transported by the robot 100 in an area of ​​the target warehouse where no goods are stored. If the inventory information shows that the number of goods stored in the target warehouse is 72, it is clear that the number of goods is not an integer multiple of the preset number. There is a pile of goods in the target warehouse whose number of layers has not reached the preset number of layers. Therefore, the number of goods in the inventory information, 72, needs to be divided by the preset number, 54, to get a remainder of 18. Then, the remainder of 18 is divided by the preset number of 18 to get the number of layers of goods in the target warehouse that is less than the preset number of layers as 1. Combining this with the preset number of layers, it can be seen that there are 2 more layers of transported goods above the goods in the target warehouse that are less than the preset number of layers. Thus, the height information of the moving height of the transported goods is 2. Then, the robot 100 moves the transported goods to the height corresponding to the height information of 2 according to the height information of 2, thereby placing the transported goods on the second layer of the goods in the target warehouse that are less than the preset number of layers.

[0054] Please see Figure 2 and Figure 8 In some embodiments, the goods transported by the robot 100 are carried on a pallet 200, which has multiple positioning holes 201. The forks 10 include multiple forks, and each fork 10 corresponds to a positioning hole 201. Each fork 10 extends into the corresponding positioning hole 201 to load the goods transported by the robot 100. When the goods transported by the robot 100 are stacked on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse with fewer than a preset number of layers, the bottom surface of the pallet 200 carrying the goods transported by the robot 100 is in contact with the top surface of the pile of goods in the target warehouse with fewer than a preset number of layers.

[0055] Specifically, the pallet 200 has multiple positioning holes 201. The robot 100 can load the goods to be transported by matching the forks 10 with the positioning holes 201 one by one, with each fork 10 inserted into the corresponding positioning hole 201. This limits the position of the goods to be transported relative to the robot 100 while loading them, making it easier for the robot 100 to stably stack the transported goods on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse that has fewer layers than a preset number of layers, or place them in an area of ​​the target warehouse where no goods are stored. When robot 100 directly stacks the transported goods on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse that has fewer layers than a preset number, robot 100 will align the bottom surface of the pallet 200 carrying the transported goods with the top surface of the pile of goods in the target warehouse that has fewer layers than a preset number. This ensures that the bottom surface of the pallet 200 carrying the transported goods is parallel to the top surface of the transported goods, thus stably stacking the pallet 200 on top of the pile of goods in the target warehouse that has fewer layers than a preset number. Furthermore, directly stacking the transported goods on top of the pile of goods in the target warehouse that has fewer layers than a preset number can further reduce the space used in the preset warehouse and increase the inventory capacity of the preset warehouse.

[0056] Furthermore, after the robot 100 transports the goods to the target warehouse, it uses inventory information and scene images to determine the height of the transported goods and the position information of goods in the target warehouse with fewer than a preset number of layers. Then, the robot 100 controls the body 20 to move and controls the forks 10 to move relative to the body 20, so that the transported goods are moved above the goods in the target warehouse with fewer than a preset number of layers. Then, the robot 100 slowly lowers the height of the transported goods so that the bottom surface of the pallet 200 of the transported goods is in contact with the top surface of the stack of goods in the target warehouse with fewer than a preset number of layers. Then, the forks 10 are slowly withdrawn from the positioning hole 201, thereby completing the stable stacking of the transported goods on top of the goods in the target warehouse with fewer than a preset number of layers.

[0057] Please see Figure 2 and Figure 9 In some embodiments, the cargo stacking method of this application includes the steps of:

[0058] Step 06: Obtain the scene image of the preset warehouse;

[0059] Step 07: Determine whether the preset target object exists in the target library based on the scene image of the preset warehouse;

[0060] Step 08: If yes, issue an alarm message and control robot 100 to stop moving until the preset target object leaves the target line library.

[0061] Specifically, there will inevitably be staff or other robots 100 moving around in the pre-set warehouse. If there are staff or other robots 100 in the target warehouse when a robot 100 is transporting goods, the staff or other robots 100 in the target warehouse may affect the accuracy of the scene image acquired by the robot 100 using the image acquisition device 30, and thus affect the position information of the goods in the target warehouse. In addition, the presence of staff or other robots 100 in the target warehouse when the robot 100 is transporting goods may also cause safety hazards. The robot 100 may collide with staff or other robots 100 during transportation, causing injury to the staff or displacement or even collapse of the transported goods. Therefore, the preset warehouse needs to collect scene images of the preset warehouse in real time to determine whether there is a preset target object in the target line library of all robots. If there is a preset target object in the target line library of a certain robot, the preset warehouse will issue an alarm message. The robot control system will then control the robot 100 with the preset target object in the target line library to stop moving before entering the target line library. Only after the preset target object leaves the target line library will the robot transport the goods to the target line library.

[0062] For example, a monitoring system, such as a monitor, can be set up in the preset warehouse, and objects that may appear in the preset warehouse, such as workers or other robots 100, can be set as preset target objects. The monitoring system collects scene images of the preset warehouse in real time. When the monitoring system determines from the scene images of the preset warehouse that there is a preset target object in the target line warehouse of a robot 100 that is transporting loaded goods, it will send an alarm message to the robot 100 in the target line warehouse where the preset target object appears. The robot control system will then control the robot 100 to stop moving when entering the target line warehouse until the preset target object leaves the target line warehouse.

[0063] Please see Figure 2 and Figure 10 In some embodiments, the cargo stacking method of this application includes:

[0064] Step 091: Upon receiving an inbound request, move to the goods storage area and load the goods. The inbound request selects the target warehouse.

[0065] Specifically, after receiving an inbound request, the robot 100 moves to the location of the goods to be transported in the temporary storage area, inserts the forks 10 into the positioning holes 201 of the pallet 200 of the goods to be transported, completes the loading of the goods to be transported, and then transports the loaded goods to the target warehouse according to the location of the target warehouse in the inbound request.

[0066] Furthermore, the robot 100 control system can select a target warehouse by combining the types of goods already placed in the inventory information with the corresponding target warehouse and the quantity and type of goods to be warehoused in the warehouse entry information, and provide the robot 100 with a warehouse entry request containing the location of the target warehouse. After receiving the warehouse entry request, the robot 100 will move to the goods temporary storage area, load the goods to be warehoused, and transport the loaded goods to the target warehouse. For example, when the preset warehouse stores multiple types of goods, the robot 100 can select a warehouse that is not full and stores the same type of goods as the target warehouse, and ensure that the total number of goods that can be stored in one or more target warehouses is greater than or equal to the number of goods to be warehoused, so that goods of the same type are stored together in the target warehouse, which facilitates the management of the preset warehouse.

[0067] Please see Figure 2 and Figure 11 In some embodiments, the cargo stacking method of this application includes:

[0068] Step 092: Upon receiving an outbound request, move to the warehouse selected in the outbound request and load the goods for that warehouse.

[0069] Step 093: Control the goods in the selected warehouse for the outbound request to be moved to the temporary storage area.

[0070] Specifically, upon receiving an outbound request, robot 100 moves to the target warehouse in the request. It then obtains the location information of the target warehouse based on the scene image and determines whether any goods in the target warehouse have not reached the preset number of layers based on inventory information. If any goods in the target warehouse have not reached the preset number of layers, the robot prioritizes loading the top layer of those goods. If all goods in the target warehouse have reached the preset number of layers, the robot selects one pile of goods and loads the top layer of that pile. This ensures that the goods in the target warehouse are outbound in an orderly manner. Robot 100 will not randomly select goods for outbound from the target warehouse, which could result in multiple piles of goods not reaching the preset number of layers, thus causing chaos in the management of the goods in the target warehouse.

[0071] After receiving an outbound request, robot 100 plans a route based on the temporary storage area and the target warehouse of the outbound goods to improve its transportation efficiency. Once robot 100 has loaded the goods from the warehouse in the outbound request, it transports the goods to the temporary storage area according to the planned route. Similarly, after loading the goods and transporting them from the target warehouse to the temporary storage area, robot 100 also executes step 10. That is, after transporting the goods from the storage area to the temporary storage area, robot 100 updates the inventory information promptly based on the unloaded quantity and the target warehouse information of the unloaded goods.

[0072] To facilitate better implementation of the cargo stacking method of this application, this application also provides a cargo storage device 40. Please refer to... Figure 12 The cargo storage device 40 may include:

[0073] Transportation module 11 is used to control the robot to transport goods to the target line warehouse of the preset warehouse. The preset warehouse includes one or more line warehouses, and each line warehouse can store one or more piles of goods row by row.

[0074] The acquisition module 12 is used to acquire scene images of the target line warehouse to obtain the location information of the goods in the target line warehouse, and determine the height information based on the inventory information of the target line warehouse;

[0075] The stacking module 13 is used to control the movement of the main body according to the position information and to control the movement of the forks relative to the main body according to the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot are stacked on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse with a number of layers less than the preset number of layers.

[0076] The stacking module 13 is specifically used to control the movement of the main body according to the position information and control the relative movement of the forks according to the height information when the height information is not 0, so that the goods transported by the robot are stacked on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse with a layer number less than the preset layer number.

[0077] In addition, the cargo storage device 40 in the embodiments of this application may also include:

[0078] The placement module 14 is used to control the movement of the main body according to the position information and control the relative movement of the forks according to the height information when the height information is 0, so that the goods transported by the robot are placed in the area of ​​the target line warehouse where no goods are stored, and the distance between the placed goods and the adjacent placed goods in the preset line warehouse is a preset distance.

[0079] The determination module 15 is used to determine the height information as 0 when the quantity of goods in the inventory information is an integer multiple of the preset quantity, the preset quantity being determined based on the quantity of goods when a pile of goods in the target line warehouse reaches a preset layer; or when the quantity of goods in the inventory information is not an integer multiple of the preset quantity, the height information is determined as not 0 and the height information is determined based on the remainder when the quantity of goods in the inventory information is divided by the preset quantity.

[0080] The determination module 15 is specifically used to determine the number of layers based on the remainder and the predetermined quantity, where the predetermined quantity is determined based on the quantity of one layer of goods in a pile of goods in the target line warehouse; and to determine the height information based on the number of layers.

[0081] The acquisition module 12 is specifically used to acquire scene images of the preset warehouse.

[0082] The determination module 15 is specifically used to determine whether a preset target object exists in the target line library based on the scene image of the preset warehouse; if so, it issues an alarm message and controls the robot to stop moving until the preset target object leaves the target line library.

[0083] The transportation module 11 is specifically used to move to the goods storage area and load goods upon receiving an inbound request, the inbound request including the target warehouse.

[0084] The transportation module 11 is specifically used to move to the line warehouse in the outbound request and load the goods in the line warehouse in the outbound request when an outbound request is received; and to control the goods in the line warehouse in the outbound request to be moved to the goods temporary storage area.

[0085] In addition, the cargo storage device 40 in the embodiments of this application may also include:

[0086] Update module 16 is used to update inventory information based on the quantity of goods transported by the robot.

[0087] Each module in the aforementioned cargo storage device 40 can be implemented entirely or partially through software, hardware, or a combination thereof. Each module can be embedded in or independent of the processor 50 in the computer device in hardware form, or stored in the memory of the computer device in software form, so that the processor 50 can call and execute the operations corresponding to each module.

[0088] Please refer to it again. Figure 2 The robot 100 in this embodiment includes a processor 50. The processor 50 is used to execute the cargo stacking method of any of the above embodiments, which will not be described in detail here for the sake of brevity.

[0089] Among them, robot 100 can be an AGV, a gripper vehicle, a warehouse robot 100, or other equipment with mobility and cargo loading capabilities.

[0090] Please see Figure 13 This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium 300 storing a computer program 310. When the computer program 310 is executed by the processor 50, it implements the steps of the cargo stacking method of any of the above embodiments. For the sake of brevity, these steps will not be repeated here.

[0091] It is understood that a computer program 310 includes computer program code. Computer program code can be in the form of source code, object code, executable files, or certain intermediate forms. Computer-readable storage media can be non-volatile computer-readable storage media such as any entity or device capable of carrying computer program code, recording media, USB flash drives, portable hard drives, magnetic disks, optical disks, computer memory, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), and software distribution media, etc.

[0092] In the description of this specification, the terms "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., refer to specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described in connection with the described embodiment or example, which are included in at least one embodiment or example of this application. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples. Moreover, without contradiction, those skilled in the art can combine and integrate the different embodiments or examples described in this specification, as well as the features of different embodiments or examples.

[0093] Any process or method description in the flowchart or otherwise herein can be understood as representing a module, segment, or portion of code comprising one or more executable instructions for implementing a particular logical function or process, and the scope of the preferred embodiments of this application includes additional implementations in which functions may be performed not in the order shown or discussed, including substantially simultaneously or in reverse order depending on the functions involved, as should be understood by those skilled in the art to which embodiments of this application pertain.

[0094] Although embodiments of this application have been shown and described above, it is understood that the above embodiments are exemplary and should not be construed as limiting this application. Those skilled in the art can make changes, modifications, substitutions and variations to the above embodiments within the scope of this application.

Claims

1. A method for stacking goods, characterized in that, This invention relates to a robot, which includes forks, a body, and an image acquisition device. The forks are movable relative to the body to change their height. The forks are used to load goods. The image acquisition device is used to acquire scene images. The goods stacking method includes: The robot is controlled to transport goods to a target warehouse in a preset warehouse. The preset warehouse includes one or more warehouses, and the target warehouse is any one of the warehouses. Each warehouse can store one or more piles of goods row by row. Acquire scene images of the target warehouse to obtain the location information of goods in the target warehouse, and determine the height information of the moving height of the transported goods based on the inventory information of the target warehouse. The robot controls the movement of its main body based on the position information and controls the movement of its forks relative to the main body based on the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot are stacked on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse that has fewer than a preset number of layers. When the height information is not 0, the robot controls the movement of the main body according to the position information and controls the movement of the forks relative to the main body according to the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot are stacked on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse with a layer number less than the preset layer number. When the height information is 0, the robot controls the movement of the main body according to the position information and controls the movement of the forks relative to the main body according to the height information, so that the goods transported by the robot are placed in the area of ​​the target warehouse where no goods are stored, and the distance between the placed goods and the adjacent placed goods in the target warehouse is a preset distance. If the quantity of goods in the inventory information is an integer multiple of a preset quantity, the height information is determined to be 0. The preset quantity is determined based on the quantity of goods when a pile of goods in the target warehouse reaches the preset number of layers. If the quantity of goods in the inventory information is not an integer multiple of the preset quantity, the height information is determined to be non-zero, and the height information is determined based on the remainder when the quantity of goods in the inventory information is divided by the preset quantity.

2. The cargo stacking method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Determining the height information based on the remainder of the quantity of goods divided by the preset quantity according to the inventory information includes: The number of layers is determined based on the remainder and the predetermined quantity, wherein the predetermined quantity is determined based on the quantity of one layer of goods in a pile of goods in the target warehouse; The height information is determined based on the number of layers.

3. The cargo stacking method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The goods transported by the robot are carried on a pallet with multiple positioning holes. The pallet has multiple forks, and each fork corresponds to a positioning hole. Each fork extends into a corresponding positioning hole to load the goods transported by the robot. When the goods transported by the robot are stacked on top of a pile of goods in the target warehouse with fewer layers than the preset number of layers, the bottom surface of the pallet carrying the goods transported by the robot is in contact with the top surface of the pile of goods in the target warehouse with fewer layers than the preset number of layers.

4. The cargo stacking method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: Obtain a scene image of the preset warehouse; Determine whether a preset target object exists in the target library based on the scene image of the preset warehouse; If so, an alarm message is issued, and the robot is controlled to stop moving until the preset target object leaves the target line library.

5. The cargo stacking method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Before controlling the robot to transport goods to the target warehouse of the preset warehouse, the goods stacking method further includes: Upon receiving an inbound request, the goods are moved to the temporary storage area and loaded. The inbound request selects the target warehouse.

6. The cargo stacking method according to claim 5, characterized in that, Also includes: Upon receiving an outbound request, move to the warehouse selected in the outbound request and load the goods for the selected warehouse. Control the goods from the selected warehouse in the outbound request to be moved to the temporary storage area.

7. The cargo stacking method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Also includes: The inventory information is updated based on the quantity of goods transported by the robot.

8. A robot, characterized in that, Includes a processor for performing the cargo stacking method according to any one of claims 1-7.

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