A method, apparatus, and medium for automated unloading of a forklift truck

Abstract

The application discloses a forklift automatic unloading method, equipment and medium, the method comprises the following steps: controlling the forklift to go to the unloading point corresponding to the empty area; determining whether the empty area meets the unloading conditions of the current goods carried by the forklift; controlling the lifting of the fork group of the forklift, and controlling the forward movement of the fork group; according to the preset unloading direction, the fork group is controlled to move horizontally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction through the horizontal movement mechanism. The fork group moves the current goods horizontally in the opposite direction to reduce the distance between the current goods and the stored goods, and the gap between them is reduced, not only the same space in the goods shelf can accommodate more goods, but also the arrangement efficiency of the goods on the goods shelf is increased, and the probability of damage of the goods due to shaking during transportation is reduced.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of automation control, specifically to a method, equipment, and medium for automated unloading of goods by a forklift. Background Technology

[0002] With the development of technology, more and more automated control equipment has emerged in the production process of enterprises and factories, such as automated production lines and driverless transport vehicles.

[0003] Autonomous transport vehicles may include self-driving forklifts, which can automate the entire process of loading, transporting, and unloading. However, in traditional solutions, forklifts often result in excessive spacing between goods on shelves during unloading, leading to low shelf placement efficiency and requiring manual assistance for arrangement. Furthermore, when trucks transport goods on shelves, excessive spacing can even cause the goods to shake and become damaged. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To address the aforementioned problems, this application proposes an automated forklift unloading method, comprising:

[0005] The system determines that the forklift is located in the unloading area, obtains the coordinate information of the goods already stored on the shelf, determines the available area on the shelf that can be unloaded based on the coordinate information, and controls the forklift to go to the unloading point corresponding to the available area.

[0006] Determine that the available area meets the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, wherein the current goods include the goods themselves arranged vertically and the transport pallet;

[0007] Control the forklift to raise to a height matching the height of the rack, and control the forklift to advance to a depth matching the depth of the rack;

[0008] According to the preset unloading direction, the fork assembly is controlled by the lateral movement mechanism to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until the lateral movement mechanism is stopped, and the current goods are unloaded.

[0009] On the other hand, this application also proposes an automated forklift unloading device, comprising:

[0010] At least one processor; and,

[0011] A memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein,

[0012] The memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, which, when executed by the at least one processor, enable the at least one processor to perform actions such as:

[0013] The system determines that the forklift is located in the unloading area, obtains the coordinate information of the goods already stored on the shelf, determines the available area on the shelf that can be unloaded based on the coordinate information, and controls the forklift to go to the unloading point corresponding to the available area.

[0014] Determine that the available area meets the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, wherein the current goods include the goods themselves arranged vertically and the transport pallet;

[0015] Control the forklift to raise to a height matching the height of the rack, and control the forklift to advance to a depth matching the depth of the rack;

[0016] According to the preset unloading direction, the fork assembly is controlled by the lateral movement mechanism to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until the lateral movement mechanism is stopped, and the current goods are unloaded.

[0017] On the other hand, this application also proposes a non-volatile computer storage medium storing computer-executable instructions, wherein the computer-executable instructions are configured as follows:

[0018] The system determines that the forklift is located in the unloading area, obtains the coordinate information of the goods already stored on the shelf, determines the available area on the shelf that can be unloaded based on the coordinate information, and controls the forklift to go to the unloading point corresponding to the available area.

[0019] Determine that the available area meets the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, wherein the current goods include the goods themselves arranged vertically and the transport pallet;

[0020] Control the forklift to raise to a height matching the height of the rack, and control the forklift to advance to a depth matching the depth of the rack;

[0021] According to the preset unloading direction, the fork assembly is controlled by the lateral movement mechanism to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until the lateral movement mechanism is stopped, and the current goods are unloaded.

[0022] The automated forklift unloading method proposed in this application can bring the following beneficial effects:

[0023] The fork assembly is controlled to move the current goods laterally in the opposite direction to reduce the distance between the current goods and the existing goods, thus narrowing the gap between them. This not only allows more goods to be accommodated in the same space on the shelf, increasing the efficiency of goods arrangement on the shelf, but also reduces the probability of goods being damaged due to shaking during transportation. Attached Figure Description

[0024] The accompanying drawings, which are included to provide a further understanding of this application and form part of this application, illustrate exemplary embodiments and are used to explain this application, but do not constitute an undue limitation of this application. In the drawings:

[0025] Figure 1 This is a flowchart illustrating the automated forklift unloading method in the embodiments of this application;

[0026] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of the automated forklift unloading equipment in the embodiments of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0027] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the technical solutions of this application will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with specific embodiments and corresponding drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only a part of the embodiments of this application, and not all of them. Based on the embodiments in this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative effort are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0028] The technical solutions provided by the various embodiments of this application are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0029] like Figure 1 As shown in the figure, this application provides an automated forklift unloading method, including:

[0030] S101: Determine that the forklift is located in the unloading area, obtain the coordinate information of the stored goods on the shelf, determine the available empty area on the shelf that can be unloaded based on the coordinate information, and control the forklift to go to the unloading point corresponding to the available area.

[0031] The unloading area is equipped with one or more racks. After the forklift is loaded with goods, it unloads the goods onto the corresponding area of ​​the rack to complete the unloading process. The forklift transports the goods to the unloading area through automatic navigation (such as visual navigation, infrared navigation, etc.).

[0032] When the unloading area includes multiple shelves, the shelf where unloading was last completed will be used as the corresponding shelf for this unloading. Of course, if the shelf is already full after the last unloading and cannot accommodate new goods, it can proceed to the next unloading shelf based on the pre-set shelf planning path.

[0033] Coordinate information can be obtained in various ways, such as through infrared scanning, image analysis, or a combination of these methods, to determine available unloading areas. The unloading point is located within or near these available areas; the selection of unloading points will be described in detail below.

[0034] S102: Determine that the vacant area meets the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, wherein the current goods include the goods themselves arranged vertically and the transport pallet.

[0035] Generally speaking, in order to ensure the convenience of forklifts during loading and unloading and the stability during transportation, a pallet is usually placed under the goods (here referred to as the goods body). The pallet is provided with corresponding through holes so that the forklift forks can be inserted, thereby facilitating the loading, unloading and transportation process of the forklift.

[0036] Unloading conditions refer to the requirement that the available space is larger than the volume of the current goods. Specifically, when the forklift is loading, the goods' information (e.g., type, details, weight) is already known and entered into the forklift's processor or a remote server's database for subsequent data retrieval.

[0037] Of course, in some scenarios, unloading conditions can be further specified. For example, the available space not only needs to be larger than the current volume of the goods, but also needs to have a certain amount of extra space.

[0038] S103: Control the forklift to raise to a height matching the height of the rack, and control the forklift to advance to a depth matching the depth of the rack.

[0039] Typically, a forklift's fork assembly consists of two forks, which can perform actions such as lifting, lowering, moving forward, moving backward, lateral movement, and extending outward based on control.

[0040] The height and depth information of the shelves are measured and stored in advance. Of course, if there are multiple layers of shelves, the corresponding height information can be measured and stored for each layer.

[0041] The lifting height needs to be higher than the height of the rack, and the excess should be at least higher than the height of the pallet. This can be set based on actual needs. The forward depth should ensure that the fork assembly's forehead does not extend beyond the innermost edge of the rack (the side furthest from the forklift).

[0042] S104: According to the preset unloading direction, the fork assembly is controlled to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction by the lateral movement mechanism until the lateral movement mechanism is in a stopped state, and the current goods are unloaded.

[0043] After controlling the forks to lift and move forward, lowering the forks at this point can also unload the current goods. However, manual assistance is often required to rearrange the goods at this stage.

[0044] Based on this, the control fork assembly moves the current goods laterally in the opposite direction to reduce the distance between the current goods and the stored goods, thus narrowing the gap between them. This not only allows the same space in the shelf to accommodate more goods and increases the efficiency of goods arrangement on the shelf, but also reduces the probability of goods being damaged due to shaking during transportation.

[0045] In one embodiment, during unloading, when the fork assembly is lifted and moved forward, there are corresponding structures on the forks below and behind for support, making the process relatively stable. However, during lateral movement, there are often no support structures on the left and right sides of the forks, so the stability during lateral movement is lower than that during lifting and moving forward.

[0046] Based on this, pressure sensors installed on the fork assembly collect the initial pressure value exerted by the current cargo on the fork assembly. Typically, the pressure sensors are installed on the upper surface of the fork assembly, which contains two forks. Each fork can have a pressure sensor installed, and the average of the data collected by the two pressure sensors is used to obtain the corresponding pressure value.

[0047] The fork assembly is controlled to descend at a constant speed along the vertical direction (this descent speed is typically very slow, for example, 0.1–0.2 m / min, to ensure subsequent data acquisition), and during the descent, pressure sensors collect the real-time pressure value exerted by the current load on the fork assembly. As the fork assembly descends, the center of gravity of the entire forklift lowers, thus increasing stability when moving the current load.

[0048] During the uniform descent, because the descent is slow and constant, the real-time pressure value should be basically the same as the initial pressure value before the pallet touches the shelf. As the pallet gradually touches the shelf, the pressure exerted by the current goods will gradually be distributed to the shelf, and the real-time pressure value will gradually decrease until the current goods no longer exert pressure on the fork assembly, at which point the fork assembly has detached from the current goods.

[0049] During the descent, once the real-time pressure value decreases to the preset pressure value, the descent stops. If the preset pressure value is higher than 0 but lower than the initial pressure value, it indicates that the current goods have simultaneously contacted the fork assembly and the rack, with the fork assembly and rack sharing the pressure from the goods. The two forks in the fork assembly are controlled to extend outwards (extension outwards means that the two forks move to their respective sides; for example, the fork on the left moves to the left, and the fork on the right moves to the right, thus achieving outward extension). Because the rack shares the pressure, the stability of the forks when extending outwards is increased. The outward extension of the forks also increases the stability during lateral movement. At this point, the lateral movement mechanism controls the fork assembly to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until the lateral movement mechanism stops. Compared to direct lateral movement, this increases stability during movement. The stopping state includes both active and passive stops.

[0050] Furthermore, throughout the entire process, the forklift does not completely abandon its support for the current goods. While increasing stability (by lowering the center of gravity and extending the forks outward), it also ensures that the wear and tear on the pallet to the rack is not too high during lateral movement (because the fork assembly still provides support for the current goods). Generally speaking, compared to completely putting down and then reloading the goods, maintaining a continuous and moderate support for the goods can reduce wear and tear on the forklift equipment and increase the service life of the forklift.

[0051] Furthermore, when calculating the preset pressure value, the cargo information of the current cargo is determined, including cargo weight, cargo volume, and cargo type. Based on the cargo information, a first coefficient is determined, where cargo weight is negatively correlated with the first coefficient, and cargo volume is positively correlated with the first coefficient. If the cargo type is a preset type, the first coefficient is reduced to obtain a second coefficient. The preset types include at least fragile types. Of course, if the cargo type is not a preset type, the first coefficient equals the second coefficient.

[0052] Based on the initial pressure value and the second coefficient, a preset pressure value is obtained. For example, multiplying the two yields the preset pressure value. In other words, the heavier and taller the goods, the higher the stability required during lateral displacement. Therefore, the corresponding first coefficient is lower, resulting in a lower preset pressure value. This means the shelf provides greater support for the goods, leading to greater stability during lateral displacement. If the goods are of a preset type (e.g., fragile), even higher stability is required. In this case, the first coefficient is further reduced to obtain the second coefficient.

[0053] Of course, as the preset pressure value decreases, the wear and tear on the shelf will increase, and when it decreases to a certain extent, it may even lead to a decrease in stability during lateral movement. Therefore, after obtaining the preset pressure value, it can be compared with the preset minimum pressure value (for example, the minimum pressure value is 50% of the initial pressure value). If it is already lower than the minimum pressure value, then the minimum pressure value is taken as the preset pressure value.

[0054] In addition, as mentioned above, the stopping state includes active stopping and passive stopping. In actual lateral movement, the appropriate lateral movement method needs to be selected based on the scenario.

[0055] Specifically, determine the first type of goods currently in use, and the second type of goods that is the closest existing goods to the vacant area.

[0056] If the first type of goods is a preset type (e.g., fragile), or if there is an interaction between the first and second types of goods, the corresponding lateral movement distance is determined. Generally, goods of the same type are placed together. However, in some cases, when the quantity of certain types of goods is particularly small, or to save storage space, multiple different types of goods may be placed on the same shelf. In this case, adjacent goods may interact, and this interaction relationship is preset to indicate whether different goods types affect each other. For example, if the first type of goods requires a higher storage temperature, while the second type requires refrigeration, placing them too close together can easily lead to heat transfer, affecting the second type of goods; in this case, there is an interaction. Another example is if both the first and second types of goods are fruits, but if they are too close, they may have a ripening effect on each other; in this case, there is an interaction. Yet another example is if both the first and second types of goods are disinfectants, but they contain different chemical components. If they mix due to packaging leakage, a chemical reaction can easily occur, producing toxic gases; in this case, there is an interaction.

[0057] At this point, the corresponding lateral movement distance is determined (this lateral movement distance is usually a fixed value, generally lower than 30% of the upper limit of the lateral movement distance of the lateral mechanism, and in some cases, it can even be set to 0) to ensure that during this movement, there is still a certain distance between the current goods and the nearest stored goods.

[0058] The lateral movement mechanism controls the fork assembly to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until the displacement reaches the lateral movement distance, at which point it automatically stops. Of course, there is also a possibility that before reaching the lateral movement distance, the current goods have already touched the nearest stored goods. In this case, the lateral movement mechanism will jam and will passively stop after being jammed for more than a preset time (of course, at this point, it can be moved a certain distance in the forward direction of the unloading direction based on actual needs).

[0059] Otherwise, if the first cargo type does not belong to the preset type, and there is no mutual influence between the first cargo type and the second cargo type, the fork assembly is controlled by the lateral movement mechanism to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until it reaches the upper limit of the lateral movement mechanism and then stops actively, or the lateral movement mechanism is stuck for more than a preset time and then stops passively. This is to minimize the gap between cargo as much as possible.

[0060] In one embodiment, when navigating the forklift, the forklift is controlled to reach the corresponding first starting point in the unloading area via a navigation system (e.g., visual navigation, infrared navigation, etc.). The unloading area is equipped with a rack that needs to be unloaded. The first starting point is the starting end of the rack in the unloading area corresponding to the unloading direction, and the distance between the rack and the rack is a first distance, that is, the first starting point is located on one side of the rack and the distance between the rack and the rack is a first distance (e.g., 2 meters).

[0061] The forklift moves along the unloading direction of the rack while maintaining a constant distance from the rack, moving parallel to it. During this movement, an infrared sensor scans the rack to obtain the coordinates of the goods already on it and determines the available unloading area based on these coordinates. The infrared sensor scan provides a rough estimate of the rack's current state, thus pinpointing the location of any available areas. Since the goods are closely packed along the unloading direction, the first area on the rack that exceeds a certain threshold and is not currently occupied is identified as an available unloading area.

[0062] When the distance between the forklift and the empty area is less than a preset distance (this distance is the position between the infrared sensor and the empty area, and can be set according to needs, such as 5 meters), the image acquisition device located on the side of the forklift (usually, image acquisition devices are installed on both sides of the forklift; in this case, only the one on the shelf needs to be activated) and with a fixed shooting angle (usually a 90-degree angle perpendicular to the forklift, and the focal length and other shooting parameters of the image acquisition device are also fixed) is activated. The image acquisition device then acquires images containing stored goods and / or empty areas in real time. Initially, only stored goods can be captured. As the forklift moves forward, empty areas are gradually captured. At this point, both empty areas and stored goods are present in the image to be identified. Furthermore, as the forklift continues to move, the edges of the stored goods gradually shift to one side in multiple frames.

[0063] Edge detection is performed on the image to be identified to determine the edge of the stored goods closest to the empty area. The forklift stops moving forward when the edge is located at a specified position in the image. Since the shooting angle and shooting parameters of the image acquisition device are fixed, the position of the forklift relative to the empty area can be obtained based on the position of the edge in the image. The relative relationship between these two positions can be set in advance based on experiments in a real-world scenario. Thus, the position of the forklift relative to the empty area can be obtained by determining the position of the edge in the image. When the edge is at the specified position, the forklift is in the appropriate position. At this point, the forklift is controlled to turn towards the shelf (usually by turning 90 degrees in place) and then moves forward a second distance to reach the unloading point. The second distance is less than the first distance to ensure that the forklift does not touch the shelf.

[0064] Of course, to determine the position of the forklift more accurately, the position determination of the infrared sensor can be combined with the position determination of the image recognition. When both determine that the position matches, the forklift can then be controlled to turn.

[0065] Furthermore, since forklifts are typically made of metal and undergo a polishing process, their surfaces have a high light reflectivity. When exposed to strong light, this light reflection can easily cause excessive brightness in certain areas of the image, thus affecting edge recognition of the image to be identified.

[0066] Therefore, when performing edge recognition on an image to be recognized, the image is first processed into a grayscale image. This can also include other image preprocessing methods such as image denoising and image enhancement. Then, the derivative of each pixel in the grayscale image is calculated to obtain the corresponding two-dimensional vector as the gradient vector. The derivative result reflects the rate of decrease of the image intensity function; the direction of the gradient is where the decrease is fastest.

[0067] A gradient image is generated based on the magnitude of the gradient vector. A Robert operator is constructed, and cross-correlation is performed between the operator and the gradient image to obtain the corresponding edge pixels in the image to be identified. Of course, if multiple edges are identified, the continuous changes in the edges across multiple frames can be used to determine if it represents the edge of the nearest existing item to be identified.

[0068] Furthermore, considering the impact of lighting on image recognition, a light sensor installed on the forklift is used to determine the light intensity. If the light intensity exceeds a preset level, it is determined that the lighting may affect image recognition. The forklift may be equipped with multiple light sensors, and the highest light intensity value detected by each sensor is taken as the light intensity for this recognition operation.

[0069] At this point, the designated light source corresponding to the current moment is determined from the light sources existing in the 3D scene model corresponding to the unloading area. The 3D scene model is pre-set, mainly setting the various objects and light sources in the scene. The light reflectance coefficients of the surface materials of each object can be pre-acquired and stored, and the existing light sources can include internal light sources and external light sources. Different designated light sources correspond to different time periods. For example, at night, the designated light source is only an internal light source, while in the morning it corresponds to the external light source from the east window, and in the afternoon it corresponds to the external light source from the west window.

[0070] For each specified light source, the illumination emitted by the specified light source is represented as consisting of several light rays. These light rays are evenly distributed and are of a preset quantity, thereby quantifying the illumination. The surface of the stored goods is divided into multiple surface regions, and the sum of the surface regions is the total surface region of the stored goods.

[0071] The intensity of reflected light is determined by identifying each ray of light as the incident light, and how it reaches the corresponding surface area of ​​the stored goods after direct or indirect illumination. Direct illumination refers to the reflected light produced when the light directly strikes the surface of the stored goods. Indirect illumination refers to the reflected light produced when the light strikes another object and is reflected several times before reaching the surface of the stored goods. Higher light intensity requires consideration of the impact of indirect illumination resulting from more reflections; in other words, the number of reflections is positively correlated with the light intensity.

[0072] For example, through L r (x,ω r ) = L i (x,ω i cos i The intensity of the reflected light is obtained, where ω rLet x be the direction of observation, and let L be the position of the illumination. r (x,ω r L represents the intensity of the reflected light during this reflection process. i (x,ω i Let θ be the intensity of the incident light during this reflection process, and θ be the intensity of the direct light illuminating the object. i Let θ be the offset angle of the light source relative to the x-position, and θ be the indirect light intensity for indirect illumination. i Let f be the offset angle of the previous reflection point relative to the x position, and f be the bidirectional reflection distribution function.

[0073] The bidirectional reflectance distribution function (BRDF) can be viewed as a quantitative unification of materials, employing physically based rendering (PBR). It is obtained through experimental calculations, statistical analysis, and the application of physical formulas, and can represent how much light attenuates after reflection, thereby inferring the intensity of reflected light.

[0074] After light is emitted from the light source, it is reflected by each object surface in turn. The intensity of the incident light and the intensity of the reflected light are calculated for each reflection. The intensity of the reflected light is then used as the intensity of the incident light for the next reflection. This process continues until the light reaches the surface of the stored goods, completing the final calculation and obtaining the corresponding lighting effect. Based on the number of reflections n that has been set, only the light reaching the surface of the stored goods within n reflections is considered.

[0075] For each surface region, the total reflected light intensity corresponding to all light rays in that surface region is summed to obtain the total reflected light intensity of that surface region. Based on this total reflected light intensity, the grayscale value of the corresponding pixel in the grayscale image is reduced.

[0076] At this point, when eliminating the impact of illumination on grayscale values, the grayscale values ​​of pixels within each surface region in the grayscale image are reduced based on the total reflected light intensity of that surface region. The degree of reduction is positively correlated with the total reflected light intensity. This process segments the region to be identified, thereby more accurately eliminating the negative effects of illumination.

[0077] In one embodiment, the above description mainly refers to the "intermediate goods" in the unloading process. However, for the "first goods" and "last goods" on the shelf, the unloading process can also be achieved by following the process described above. However, some additional problems may be encountered in actual implementation.

[0078] Specifically, when the unloading point of the current shelf is reached, if it is found that the available area is insufficient to meet the unloading conditions, then it is necessary to go to another shelf (which is usually also a unloading area, and the next shelf can be found based on the preset unloading rules) to unload the goods. At this time, when unloading on the other shelf, the goods are the "first goods".

[0079] If it is determined that the empty area does not meet the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, the forklift is controlled to move to the location of other shelves in the unloading area, and the forklift is controlled to move to the unloading point corresponding to the other shelf according to the unloading direction. The method of determining the unloading point is similar to that described above, and the first starting point corresponding to the other shelf can be used as the unloading point.

[0080] Control the forklift's forks to rise to a height that matches the height of other racks, and control the forks to advance to a depth that matches the depth of other racks, thus completing the lifting and advancing.

[0081] At this point, the horizontal length of other shelves (which is usually stored on the server) is divided by the horizontal length of the current goods (which can be obtained from the goods volume in the goods information), and the integer part and remainder of the division result are obtained.

[0082] If the integer part is low, below the first preset value (e.g., below 5), it indicates that the quantity of goods subsequently stored on the shelf during this unloading process may be low, with low variability. The initial placement of the first item has a significant impact on the overall shelf placement. If the integer part is high, then many unloading processes are required in subsequent unloading operations, which naturally involve many variables, such as changes in the type of goods or malfunctions during the unloading process. In this case, the placement of the first item is no longer as important.

[0083] If the remainder is lower than the second preset value (e.g., 0.5), the remainder represents the proportion of space that can be left after a completely compact arrangement, which can accommodate the current goods. When the proportion is low, it means that there is less room for error when unloading the overall goods. If too many errors occur during the subsequent unloading process, resulting in larger gaps between the goods, it is easy to cause the final number of shelves to be placed to fall short of the number corresponding to the "integer part" in the calculation.

[0084] Therefore, when unloading the first item, it needs to be moved laterally in the opposite direction to increase the clearance space during subsequent unloading processes. This ensures that even if errors occur during subsequent unloading, the placement of goods will not be affected. Before unloading, the fork assembly is moved laterally in the opposite direction of the preset unloading direction via a lateral movement mechanism. Otherwise, it indicates that the variability of subsequent goods is too high, or that the reserved space is too large, in which case lateral movement is unnecessary, and the current item can be unloaded directly.

[0085] The unloading conditions for the "last item" are usually different. First, it is important to clarify whether the current item is indeed the last item on the shelf.

[0086] If the horizontal length of the empty area is determined to be higher than the horizontal length of the current cargo, then a further determination is made to find the difference between the horizontal length of the empty area and the horizontal length of the current cargo.

[0087] If the difference is greater than the horizontal length of the current item, it means that the current item is not the last one. At this point, it can be determined that the empty area meets the unloading conditions of the current item for forklift handling.

[0088] If the difference is lower than the lateral length of the current item but higher than the preset difference, it means that the current item is the last item. In this case, the preset difference is twice the value corresponding to the upper limit of the lateral movement mechanism. If the difference is higher than the preset difference, it means that as long as the current item is placed on the shelf, whether it is moved to the left or right, it will not usually fall off the shelf or be squeezed against the edge of the shelf. In this case, it is determined that the empty area meets the unloading conditions of the current item handled by the forklift.

[0089] Of course, if the difference is lower than the preset difference, it is considered that the unloading conditions are not met.

[0090] like Figure 2 As shown in the figure, this application embodiment also provides an automated forklift unloading device, including:

[0091] At least one processor; and,

[0092] A memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein,

[0093] The memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, which, when executed by the at least one processor, enable the at least one processor to perform actions such as:

[0094] The system determines that the forklift is located in the unloading area, obtains the coordinate information of the goods already stored on the shelf, determines the available area on the shelf that can be unloaded based on the coordinate information, and controls the forklift to go to the unloading point corresponding to the available area.

[0095] Determine that the available area meets the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, wherein the current goods include the goods themselves arranged vertically and the transport pallet;

[0096] Control the forklift to raise to a height matching the height of the rack, and control the forklift to advance to a depth matching the depth of the rack;

[0097] According to the preset unloading direction, the fork assembly is controlled by the lateral movement mechanism to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until the lateral movement mechanism is stopped, and the current goods are unloaded.

[0098] This application embodiment also provides a non-volatile computer storage medium storing computer-executable instructions, wherein the computer-executable instructions are configured as follows:

[0099] The system determines that the forklift is located in the unloading area, obtains the coordinate information of the goods already stored on the shelf, determines the available area on the shelf that can be unloaded based on the coordinate information, and controls the forklift to go to the unloading point corresponding to the available area.

[0100] Determine that the available area meets the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, wherein the current goods include the goods themselves arranged vertically and the transport pallet;

[0101] Control the forklift to raise to a height matching the height of the rack, and control the forklift to advance to a depth matching the depth of the rack;

[0102] According to the preset unloading direction, the fork assembly is controlled by the lateral movement mechanism to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until the lateral movement mechanism is stopped, and the current goods are unloaded.

[0103] The various embodiments in this application are described in a progressive manner. Similar or identical parts between embodiments can be referred to mutually. Each embodiment focuses on describing the differences from other embodiments. In particular, the device and medium embodiments are basically similar to the method embodiments, so the description is relatively simple; relevant parts can be referred to the description of the method embodiments.

[0104] The devices and media provided in this application are one-to-one with the methods. Therefore, the devices and media also have similar beneficial technical effects as their corresponding methods. Since the beneficial technical effects of the methods have been described in detail above, the beneficial technical effects of the devices and media will not be repeated here.

[0105] Those skilled in the art will understand that embodiments of this application can be provided as methods, systems, or computer program products. Therefore, this application can take the form of a completely hardware embodiment, a completely software embodiment, or an embodiment combining software and hardware aspects. Furthermore, this application can take the form of a computer program product embodied on one or more computer-usable storage media (including but not limited to disk storage, CD-ROM, optical storage, etc.) containing computer-usable program code.

[0106] This application is described with reference to flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems), and computer program products according to embodiments of this application. It will be understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and / or block diagrams, can be implemented by computer program instructions. These computer program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, embedded processor, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, generate instructions for implementing the flowchart... Figure 1 One or more processes and / or boxes Figure 1 A device that provides the functions specified in one or more boxes.

[0107] These computer program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable storage medium that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing device to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable storage medium produce an article of manufacture including instruction means, which are implemented in a process Figure 1 One or more processes and / or boxes Figure 1 The function specified in one or more boxes.

[0108] These computer program instructions may also be loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing equipment to cause a series of operational steps to be performed on the computer or other programmable equipment to produce a computer-implemented process, thereby providing instructions that execute on the computer or other programmable equipment for implementing the process. Figure 1 One or more processes and / or boxes Figure 1 The steps of the function specified in one or more boxes.

[0109] In a typical configuration, a computing device includes one or more processors (CPU), input / output interfaces, network interfaces, and memory.

[0110] Memory may include non-persistent storage in computer-readable media, such as random access memory (RAM) and / or non-volatile memory, such as read-only memory (ROM) or flash RAM. Memory is an example of computer-readable media.

[0111] Computer-readable media includes both permanent and non-permanent, removable and non-removable media that can store information using any method or technology. Information can be computer-readable instructions, data structures, modules of programs, or other data. Examples of computer storage media include, but are not limited to, phase-change memory (PRAM), static random access memory (SRAM), dynamic random access memory (DRAM), other types of random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), flash memory or other memory technologies, CD-ROM, digital versatile optical disc (DVD) or other optical storage, magnetic tape, magnetic magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage devices, or any other non-transferable medium that can be used to store information accessible by a computing device. As defined herein, computer-readable media does not include transient computer-readable media, such as modulated data signals and carrier waves.

[0112] It should also be noted that the terms "comprising," "including," or any other variations thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements includes not only those elements but also other elements not expressly listed, or elements inherent to such a process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising one..." does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in the process, method, article, or apparatus that includes said element.

[0113] The above description is merely an embodiment of this application and is not intended to limit the scope of this application. Various modifications and variations can be made to this application by those skilled in the art. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this application should be included within the scope of the claims of this application.

Claims

1. A method for automated forklift unloading, characterized in that, include: The system determines that the forklift is located in the unloading area, obtains the coordinate information of the goods already stored on the shelf, determines the available area on the shelf that can be unloaded based on the coordinate information, and controls the forklift to go to the unloading point corresponding to the available area. Determine that the available area meets the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, wherein the current goods include the goods themselves arranged vertically and the transport pallet; Control the forklift to raise to a height matching the height of the rack, and control the forklift to advance to a depth matching the depth of the rack; According to the preset unloading direction, the fork assembly is controlled by the lateral movement mechanism to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until the lateral movement mechanism is stopped, and the current goods are unloaded. After controlling the forklift to proceed to the unloading point corresponding to the vacant area, the method further includes: If it is determined that the empty area does not meet the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, the forklift is controlled to move to the location of other shelves in the unloading area, and the forklift is controlled to move to the unloading point corresponding to the other shelves according to the unloading direction; Control the forklift to raise to a height matching the height of the other racks, and control the forklift to advance to a depth matching the depth of the other racks; Divide the horizontal length of the other shelves by the horizontal length of the current goods, and obtain the integer part and the remainder of the division result; If the integer part is lower than a first preset value and the remainder part is lower than a second preset value, then before unloading, according to the preset unloading direction, the fork assembly is controlled to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction by the lateral movement mechanism. Otherwise, proceed directly with unloading the current goods.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The fork assembly is controlled to move laterally in the opposite direction to the unloading direction via a lateral movement mechanism until the lateral movement mechanism is stopped. Specifically, this includes: The initial pressure value exerted by the current cargo on the fork assembly is collected by a pressure sensor installed on the fork assembly. The fork assembly is controlled to fall at a constant speed along the height direction, and during the constant speed descent, the pressure sensor collects the real-time pressure value exerted by the current cargo on the fork assembly; Once the real-time pressure value is determined to have decreased to a preset pressure value, the descent stops. The preset pressure value is higher than 0 and lower than the initial pressure value. Control the two forks in the fork assembly to extend outwards respectively; The fork assembly is controlled to move laterally in the opposite direction to the unloading direction by a lateral movement mechanism until the lateral movement mechanism is in a stopped state, which includes active stop and passive stop.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, Before determining that the real-time pressure value has decreased to a preset pressure value, the method further includes: Determine the cargo information of the current cargo, including cargo weight, cargo volume, and cargo type; Based on the cargo information, a first coefficient is determined, wherein the cargo weight is negatively correlated with the first coefficient, and the cargo volume is positively correlated with the first coefficient; If the type of goods is a preset type, then the first coefficient is reduced to obtain the second coefficient, and the preset type includes at least the fragile type; A preset pressure value is obtained based on the initial pressure value and the second coefficient.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The fork assembly is controlled to move laterally in the opposite direction to the unloading direction via a lateral movement mechanism until the lateral movement mechanism is stopped. Specifically, this includes: Determine the first cargo type of the current cargo, and the second cargo type of the existing cargo that is closest to the empty area; If the first cargo type is a preset type, or if there is a mutual influence relationship between the first cargo type and the second cargo type, then the corresponding lateral movement distance is determined. The mutual influence relationship is preset and is used to indicate whether there is a mutual influence between different cargo types. The fork assembly is controlled to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction by a lateral movement mechanism until the displacement reaches the lateral movement distance and then stops actively, or the lateral movement mechanism is stuck for more than a preset time and then stops passively. Otherwise, the fork assembly is controlled by the lateral movement mechanism to move laterally in the opposite direction of the unloading direction until it reaches the upper limit of the lateral movement mechanism and then stops actively, or the lateral movement mechanism is stuck for more than a preset time and then stops passively.

5. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The process involves determining that the forklift is located in the unloading area, obtaining the coordinates of the goods already stored on the rack, identifying the available unloading area on the rack based on the coordinates, and controlling the forklift to proceed to the unloading point corresponding to the available area. Specifically, this includes: The forklift is controlled to reach the first starting point corresponding to the unloading area through the navigation system. The unloading area is equipped with a shelf that needs to be unloaded. The first starting point is the starting end of the shelf in the unloading area corresponding to the unloading direction, and there is a first distance between the forklift and the shelf. The forklift is controlled to move along the unloading direction of the shelf, and during the movement, the shelf is scanned by an infrared sensor to obtain the coordinate information of the goods stored on the shelf, and the available empty area on the shelf that can be unloaded is determined based on the coordinate information. When the distance between the forklift and the empty area is less than a preset distance, the image acquisition device located on the side of the forklift with a fixed shooting angle is activated, and the image acquisition device acquires an image to be identified in real time, including the stored goods and / or the empty area. Edge recognition is performed on the image to be identified to determine the stored goods closest to the empty area. The goods are located near the edge of the empty area. When the edge is located at a specified position in the image to be identified, the forklift stops moving forward and controls the forklift to turn to the side of the shelf before moving forward a second distance to reach the unloading point. The second distance is less than the first distance.

6. The method according to claim 5, characterized in that, Edge recognition is performed on the image to be identified to determine the stored goods closest to the empty area, near the side edge of the empty area, specifically including: The image to be identified is processed into a grayscale image. The light intensity is determined by the light sensor installed on the forklift. If the light intensity exceeds the preset intensity, the designated light source corresponding to the current moment is determined from the light sources existing in the three-dimensional scene model corresponding to the unloading area. The designated light source is represented as being composed of several rays, which are evenly distributed and constitute a preset number, and the surface of the stored goods is divided into multiple surface areas; Each ray of light is determined as the incident light, and after direct or indirect illumination, it reaches the corresponding surface area of ​​the stored goods, and the intensity of the reflected light generated in the surface area is determined; wherein, indirect illumination refers to the specified light source illuminating the stored goods after a number of reflections within the three-dimensional scene model, and the number of reflections is positively correlated with the light intensity. For each surface region, the reflected light intensities corresponding to all light rays in that surface region are summed to obtain the total reflected light intensity for that surface region. Based on this total reflected light intensity, the grayscale value of the corresponding pixel in the grayscale image is reduced.

7. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, Determining that the available area meets the unloading conditions for the current goods being handled by the forklift includes: Determine the lateral length of the empty area to be higher than the lateral length of the current cargo, and determine the difference between the lateral length of the empty area and the lateral length of the current cargo; If the difference is greater than the lateral length of the current goods, then the empty area is determined to meet the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift. If the difference is lower than the lateral length of the current goods and higher than the preset difference, then the empty area is determined to meet the unloading conditions of the current goods being handled by the forklift, wherein the preset difference is twice the value corresponding to the upper limit of the movement of the lateral mechanism.

8. An automated forklift unloading device, characterized in that, include: At least one processor; as well as, A memory communicatively connected to the at least one processor; wherein, The memory stores instructions that can be executed by the at least one processor, which, when executed by the at least one processor, enables the at least one processor to perform, for example, an automated forklift unloading method as described in any one of claims 1-7.

9. A non-volatile computer storage medium storing computer-executable instructions, characterized in that, The computer-executable instructions are set to: an automated forklift unloading method as described in any one of claims 1-7.

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