Material box in and out storage control method, device, electronic device and readable storage medium

By detecting the free status of cached bits in the warehousing system in real time and adjusting robot tasks, the warehousing system stuck problem caused by different number and speed of robots is solved, and the system efficiency is improved.

CN119142694BActive Publication Date: 2025-03-14HANGZHOU HIKROBOT TECH CO LTD
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Patent Information

Application Number
CN202411650661.9
Authority / Receiving Office
CN · China
Patent Type
Patents(China)
Current Assignee / Owner
Filing Date
2024-11-19
Publication Date
2025-03-14
Estimated Expiration
2044-11-19

AI Technical Summary

Technical Problem

Due to the different numbers and pick-up and delivery speeds of the two robots, the storage system is often stuck.

Method used

By detecting the water level data of all buffer bits belonging to the walking lane in real time, and assigning the first robot a sub-task and a sub-task to the shelf according to the detected water level data to ensure that the water level data remains in the predetermined range.

Benefits of technology

This avoids the warehousing system stuck, improves the efficiency of the warehousing system, and ensures the smooth completion of the inlet and outlet tasks of the material box.

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Abstract

The present application discloses a method, device, equipment and readable storage medium for controlling the entry and exit of material boxes. The method for controlling the entry and exit of material boxes first detects the water level data of the free cache positions in all the cache positions belonging to the walking lane in real time, and then allocates the shelving subtask of the material boxes to be entered or the unshelving subtask of the material boxes to be exited to the first robot according to the detected water level data. In this way, the water level data of the free cache positions can be maintained in a reasonable predetermined range, thereby avoiding the situation where the second robot (i.e., the lurking robot) has no cache positions available due to all the cache positions being occupied, thereby avoiding the storage system from getting stuck.
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Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of logistics technology, and in particular to a method, device, equipment and readable storage medium for controlling the entry and exit of material boxes. Background Art

[0002] One of the basic functions of a warehousing system is to ensure that the storage and outbound processes of material boxes proceed smoothly.

[0003] In the relevant scheme, the bottom layer of the shelf unit can usually be set as a cache layer, that is, along the length direction of the shelf unit, a number of cache positions are set on both sides of the walking aisle between adjacent shelf units. In this way, the lurking robot (or AGV cart) can transfer the material box between the cache position and the workbench, and the handling robot (such as a multi-compartment robot) can transfer the material box between the cache position and the storage position of the shelf unit. In this way, through the transfer caching of the cache position, the two robots can cooperate with each other to complete the warehousing and outbound tasks of the material box.

[0004] However, due to the difference in the number of the two types of robots and the speed of picking and placing goods, the warehouse system often gets stuck. Summary of the invention

[0005] In response to at least one aspect of the above-mentioned technical problems, an embodiment of the present application provides a material box entry and exit control method, device, equipment and readable storage medium. The material box entry and exit control method can assign tasks to the first robot (i.e., the above-mentioned transport robot) according to the water level conditions of the vacant cache locations in all the cache locations belonging to the walking lane, thereby avoiding the warehousing system from getting stuck and solving the above-mentioned technical problems.

[0006] In a first aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a method for controlling the entry and exit of a material box, the method comprising:

[0007] Real-time detection of water level data of vacant cache positions in all cache positions belonging to the walking lanes between adjacent shelf units; wherein the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit is provided with a plurality of cache positions along the length direction, the vacant cache positions represent cache positions not occupied by material boxes, and the water level data represent the proportion of the number of the vacant cache positions in the number of all the cache positions located on both sides of the walking lanes;

[0008] A shelving subtask and a de-shelving subtask are assigned to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains in a predetermined range; wherein, the first robot walks along the walking aisle and transfers material boxes between the storage position of the shelf unit and the cache position, the shelving subtask represents a subtask in the warehousing task of the material boxes to be stored in the warehouse, in which the material boxes are transferred from the cache position to the storage position of the shelf unit, and the de-shelving subtask represents a subtask in the warehousing task of the material boxes to be stored in the warehouse, in which the material boxes are transferred from the storage position of the shelf unit to the cache position.

[0009] In one embodiment, preferably, the step of real-time detecting the water level data of the free cache locations in all the cache locations belonging to the walking lanes between adjacent shelf units comprises:

[0010] Traversing the occupancy status of all the cache locations belonging to the walking lane to determine the number of the free cache locations;

[0011] The water level data is obtained by dividing the number of the free cache bits by the total number of the cache bits.

[0012] In one embodiment, preferably, the step of allocating a loading subtask and a unloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined range includes:

[0013] When the water level data is less than a first water level value, the shelving subtask is assigned to the first robot, and at the same time, the assignment of the de-shelving subtask to the first robot is suspended to ensure that the water level data is greater than the first water level value.

[0014] In one embodiment, preferably, the step of allocating a loading subtask and a unloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined range further includes:

[0015] When the water level data is greater than the second water level value, the de-shelfing sub-task is assigned to the first robot, and at the same time, the assignment of the shelving sub-task to the first robot is suspended to ensure that the water level data is between the first water level value and the second water level value; wherein the second water level value is greater than the first water level value.

[0016] In one embodiment, preferably, the step of allocating a loading subtask and a unloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined range includes:

[0017] In the case that the first robot is provided with a plurality of robot storage positions along the height direction, when the water level data is less than a first water level value, the material box to be shipped out obtained by the robot storage position is locked.

[0018] In one embodiment, preferably, the step of allocating a loading subtask and a unloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined range further includes:

[0019] When the water level data is greater than the second water level value, the material box to be stored acquired by the robot storage position is locked.

[0020] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box in and out control method further includes:

[0021] Determine the storage buffer location according to the storage location specified in the storage task of the material box to be stored;

[0022] The second robot is driven to carry the material box to be stored and walk to the storage cache position, and the material box to be stored is transferred to the storage cache position.

[0023] In one embodiment, preferably, the step of determining the storage cache location according to the storage location specified in the storage task of the material box to be stored includes:

[0024] An empty cache location closest to the incoming storage location is determined as the incoming storage location.

[0025] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box in and out control method further includes:

[0026] Determine the outbound cache location according to the outbound storage location specified in the outbound task of the material box to be outbound;

[0027] Driving the first robot to obtain the to-be-outbound material box from the outbound storage location and temporarily storing it in the robot storage location of the first robot;

[0028] During the execution of the shelving subtask or the unshelving subtask, when the path walked by the first robot from the current position to the task position passes through the outbound cache position of the to-be-outbound material box with the longest acquisition time, the to-be-outbound material box with the longest acquisition time is released to the corresponding outbound cache position.

[0029] In one embodiment, preferably, the step of determining the outbound cache location according to the outbound storage location specified in the outbound task of the material box to be outbound includes:

[0030] An empty cache location closest to the outbound storage location is determined as the outbound cache location.

[0031] Based on the material box outbound control method, in a second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a material box inbound and outbound control device, the material box inbound and outbound control device comprising:

[0032] A water level detection unit is used to detect in real time the water level data of the vacant cache positions among all the cache positions belonging to the walking lanes between adjacent shelf units; wherein the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit is provided with a plurality of the cache positions along the length direction, the vacant cache positions represent the cache positions not occupied by the material boxes, and the water level data represent the proportion of the number of the vacant cache positions in the number of all the cache positions located on both sides of the walking lanes;

[0033] A water level adjustment unit is used to allocate a shelving subtask and a de-shelving subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains in a predetermined range; wherein, the first robot walks along the walking aisle and transfers material boxes between the storage position of the shelf unit and the cache position, the shelving subtask represents a subtask in the warehousing task of the material box to be stored in the warehouse, in which the material box is transferred from the cache position to the storage position of the shelf unit, and the de-shelving subtask represents a subtask in the outbound task of the material box to be stored in the warehouse, in which the material box is transferred from the storage position of the shelf unit to the cache position.

[0034] In one embodiment, preferably, the water level detection unit includes:

[0035] A quantity determination module, used to traverse the occupancy status of all the cache locations belonging to the walking lane to determine the number of the free cache locations;

[0036] The water level calculation module is used to obtain the water level data by dividing the number of the free cache bits by the total number of the cache bits.

[0037] In one embodiment, preferably, the water level adjustment unit includes:

[0038] The first water level adjustment module is used to assign the shelving subtask to the first robot when the water level data is less than a first water level value, and at the same time, suspend assigning the de-shelving subtask to the first robot to ensure that the water level data is greater than the first water level value.

[0039] In one embodiment, preferably, the water level adjustment unit further includes:

[0040] The second water level adjustment module is used to assign the de-shelfing subtask to the first robot when the water level data is greater than a second water level value, and at the same time, suspend the assignment of the shelving subtask to the first robot to ensure that the water level data is between the first water level value and the second water level value; wherein the second water level value is greater than the first water level value.

[0041] In one embodiment, preferably, the water level adjustment unit includes:

[0042] The first locking module is used to lock the material box to be shipped out obtained by the robot storage position when the water level data is less than a first water level value when the first robot is provided with a plurality of robot storage positions along the height direction.

[0043] In one embodiment, preferably, the water level adjustment unit further includes:

[0044] The second locking module is used to lock the material box to be stored acquired by the robot storage position when the water level data is greater than a second water level value.

[0045] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box in and out control device further includes:

[0046] The storage buffer position determination unit is used to determine the storage buffer position according to the storage position specified in the storage task of the material box to be stored;

[0047] The storage drive unit is used to drive the second robot to carry the material box to be stored and walk to the storage cache position, and transfer the material box to be stored to the storage cache position.

[0048] In one embodiment, preferably, the storage cache position determination unit includes:

[0049] The storage entry cache position determination module is used to determine an empty cache position closest to the storage entry position as the storage entry cache position.

[0050] In one embodiment, preferably, the material box in and out control device further includes:

[0051] The outbound storage buffer position determination unit is used to determine the outbound storage buffer position according to the outbound storage position specified in the outbound task of the material box to be outbound;

[0052] a material box acquisition unit to be shipped out, used for driving the first robot to acquire the material box to be shipped out from the shipping storage position and temporarily store it in the robot storage position of the first robot;

[0053] The release unit for the material box to be shipped out is used to release the material box to be shipped out with the longest acquisition time to the corresponding outbound cache position when the path walked by the first robot from the current position to the task position passes through the outbound cache position of the material box to be shipped out with the longest acquisition time during the execution of the putting on the shelf subtask or the unloading the shelf subtask.

[0054] In one embodiment, preferably, the outbound cache position determination unit includes:

[0055] The outbound cache position determination module is used to determine an empty cache position closest to the outbound storage position as the outbound cache position.

[0056] Based on the material box outbound warehouse control method, in a third aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides an electronic device, including a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores instructions, and the instructions are loaded and executed by the processor to implement the steps of the material box inbound and outbound warehouse control method as described above.

[0057] Based on the material box outbound control method, in a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer instructions are stored. When the computer instructions are executed by a processor, they are used to implement the steps of the material box inbound and outbound control method as described above.

[0058] Based on the material box outbound control method, in a fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a computer program product, including a computer program, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the material box inbound and outbound control method as described above.

[0059] Based on the material box outbound warehouse control method, in a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a warehousing system, the warehousing system includes a shelf unit, a first robot, a second robot and a control unit;

[0060] Wherein, the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit is provided with a plurality of cache locations along the length direction;

[0061] The second robot is used to walk between the buffer position and the workbench and transfer the material box;

[0062] The first robot is provided with a plurality of robot storage positions along the height direction, and the first robot is used to walk in the walking lane beside the shelf unit, and transfer the material box between the cache position and the storage position of the shelf unit through the transfer of the robot storage position;

[0063] Furthermore, the control unit is used to drive the first robot and the second robot according to the material box in-and-out storage control method as described above.

[0064] One or more technical solutions provided in the embodiments of the present application have at least the following technical effects or advantages:

[0065] The embodiments of the present application provide a method, device, equipment and readable storage medium for controlling the entry and exit of material boxes. The method for controlling the entry and exit of material boxes first performs real-time detection of the water level data of the free cache positions in all the cache positions belonging to the walking lane, and then allocates the shelving subtask of the material boxes to be entered or the unshelving subtask of the material boxes to be exited to the first robot based on the detected water level data. In this way, the water level data of the free cache positions can be maintained in a reasonable predetermined range, thereby avoiding the situation where the second robot (i.e., the lurking robot) has no cache positions available due to all the cache positions being occupied, thereby avoiding the storage system from getting stuck.

[0066] In other words, for all the cache positions belonging to the walking aisles, this embodiment introduces the concept of water level data of the free cache positions, and based on the detected water level data, this embodiment allocates shelving subtasks and unshelving subtasks to the first robot so that the water level data can be kept in a reasonable predetermined range. In other words, compared with the number of all cache positions, this embodiment can keep the number of free cache positions at a reasonable level to avoid jamming of the warehouse system or low efficiency. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0067] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the accompanying drawings required for use in the description of the embodiments of the present invention will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the accompanying drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present invention. For ordinary technicians in this field, other accompanying drawings can be obtained based on these accompanying drawings without paying creative labor.

[0068] Figure 1 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the shelf unit described in the embodiment of the present application.

[0069] Figure 2 A possible structural schematic diagram of the occupancy of the cache positions on both sides of the walking lane described in the embodiment of the present application.

[0070] Figure 3 It is a flow chart of the material box in and out storage control method described in the embodiment of the present application.

[0071] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the structure in which the first robot has a robot storage position in an embodiment of the present application.

[0072] Figure 5 A schematic diagram of a possible position of the outbound buffer position relative to the outbound material box described in the embodiment of the present application.

[0073] Figure 6 A schematic diagram of a possible position of the storage cache position relative to the storage storage position described in the embodiment of the present application.

[0074] Figure 7 It is a schematic diagram of the structure of the material box in and out control device described in the embodiment of the present application.

[0075] Wherein, the reference numerals are:

[0076] 100- Material box to be shipped out, 200- Material box to be shipped out, 300- Workbench,

[0077] 10-First robot, 11-Robot storage position,

[0078] 20- Second robot,

[0079] 30-shelf unit, 31-storage layer, 32-storage position, 33-cache position, 34-walking aisle,

[0080] 321-warehouse storage location,

[0081] 331-inbound cache position, 332-outbound cache position, 333-free cache position,

[0082] 61-water level detection unit, 62-water level adjustment unit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0083] In order to better understand the above technical solution, the example embodiments of the present application will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments of the present application. It should be understood that the present application is not limited to the exemplary embodiments described here.

[0084] Please combine Figure 1~Figure 3 , a material box in and out of the warehouse control method, the material box in and out of the warehouse control method comprising:

[0085] S1, real-time detection of water level data of the vacant cache positions 333 in all cache positions 33 belonging to the walking lanes 34 between adjacent shelf units 30; wherein the bottom storage layer 31 of the shelf unit 30 is provided with a plurality of cache positions 33 along the length direction, the vacant cache positions 333 represent the cache positions 33 not occupied by the material boxes, and the water level data represent the proportion of the number of the vacant cache positions 333 in the number of all the cache positions 33 located on both sides of the walking lanes 34;

[0086] S2. Assign the shelving subtask and the unshelving subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains in a predetermined range; wherein the first robot walks along the walking aisle and transfers the material boxes between the storage position and the cache position of the shelf unit, the shelving subtask represents the subtask of transferring the material boxes from the cache position to the storage position of the shelf unit in the warehousing task of the material boxes to be stored, and the unshelving subtask represents the subtask of transferring the material boxes from the storage position of the shelf unit to the cache position in the outbound task of the material boxes to be stored.

[0087] In general, this embodiment ensures that the number of free cache locations is maintained within an appropriate range by allocating the loading and unloading subtasks to the first robot according to the proportion of the free cache locations in all the cache locations in the walking lane.

[0088] It should be noted that first, please combine Figure 1 and Figure 2 , Figure 1 shows the structure of the shelf unit, Figure 2A possible situation of cache position occupancy on both sides of the walking lane is shown. The shelf unit 30 is provided with multiple storage layers 31 in the height direction. Then, along the length direction of the shelf unit 30, each storage layer 31 is provided with a plurality of storage positions 32, and the storage positions 32 are used to store material boxes; the storage layer 31 at the bottom of the shelf unit 30 is configured as a plurality of cache positions 33; it is understandable that, referring to Figure 2 , between adjacent shelf units 30 is a walking lane 34 for the first robot 10 to walk. At this time, there are a number of cache locations 33 on both sides of the walking lane 34, that is, Figure 2 The cache positions in the middle dotted frame are all the cache positions belonging to the left walking lane.

[0089] Among them, continue to see Figure 2 Regarding the warehousing operation of the material box, the material box to be stored will first be carried by the second robot 20 (for example, a lurking robot) and transferred to an unoccupied cache position, and then the first robot 10 (for example, a multi-compartment robot) will transfer the material box to be stored to a suitable storage position to complete the warehousing operation; similarly, regarding the out-of-warehouse operation of the material box, the material box to be stored will first be transferred by the first robot to an unoccupied cache position, and then the second robot will carry the material box to be stored to the workbench 300 to complete the out-of-warehouse operation of the material box to be stored.

[0090] It can be seen that the warehousing task of the material box will be divided into a transfer-in subtask completed by the second robot and a shelving subtask completed by the first robot, wherein the transfer-in subtask is that the second robot transfers the material box to the cache position, and the shelving subtask is that the first robot transfers the material box from the cache position to the storage position of the shelf unit; the warehousing task of the material box will be divided into a destocking subtask completed by the first robot and a transfer-out subtask completed by the second robot; wherein the destocking subtask is that the first robot transfers the material box from the storage position of the shelf unit to the cache position, and the transfer-out subtask is that the second robot transfers the material box from the cache position to the workbench.

[0091] Understandable, see Figure 4 The first robot 10, for example, is provided with a plurality of robot storage positions 11 along the height direction, so that the robot storage positions 11 can temporarily store the material boxes (the material boxes to be stored or the material boxes to be sent out 200) again; in other words, for example, the first robot may obtain a plurality of material boxes to be sent out at the same time, and then, may release the plurality of material boxes to the corresponding cache positions in sequence, so that a plurality of cache positions will be occupied in a relatively short period of time, which may result in an insufficient number of cache positions, that is, no cache positions are available for the second robot.

[0092] Therefore, in step S1 of this embodiment, it is first necessary to detect the water level data of the free buffer positions in all the buffer positions belonging to the walking lane in real time.

[0093] Among them, all the cache positions belonging to the above-mentioned walking lane are all the cache positions on both sides of it, and the water level data can reflect the proportion of the number of free cache positions in the total number of cache positions; for example, if all cache positions are free cache positions, the water level data is 1, indicating that the water level has risen to the highest; if all cache positions are occupied and there are no free cache positions, the water level data is 0, indicating that the water level has dropped to the lowest.

[0094] In step S2 of this embodiment, it is necessary to allocate the loading and unloading subtasks to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined range.

[0095] For example, if the water level indicated by the water level data is low, then the number of shelving tasks assigned to the first robot can be increased and the number of unshelving tasks assigned to the first robot can be reduced. It can be understood that at this time, the number of material boxes to be stored obtained by the first robot from the cache position will be greater than the number of material boxes to be released from the cache position, thereby increasing the number of vacant cache positions and causing the water level to rise.

[0096] Similarly, for example, if the water level indicated by the water level data is high, then the number of shelving tasks assigned to the first robot can be reduced, while the number of unshelving tasks assigned to the first robot can be increased. It can be understood that at this time, the number of to-be-stocked material boxes obtained by the first robot from the cache position will be less than the number of to-be-stocked material boxes released to the cache position, thereby reducing the number of vacant cache positions and lowering the water level.

[0097] It can be understood that the above-mentioned predetermined interval can be determined according to the respective operating efficiencies and quantities of the first robot and the second robot, and this embodiment does not impose any limitation on this.

[0098] The embodiments of the present application provide a method, device, equipment and readable storage medium for controlling the entry and exit of material boxes. The method for controlling the entry and exit of material boxes first performs real-time detection of the water level data of the free cache positions in all the cache positions belonging to the walking lane, and then allocates the shelving subtask of the material boxes to be entered or the unshelving subtask of the material boxes to be exited to the first robot based on the detected water level data. In this way, the water level data of the free cache positions can be maintained in a reasonable predetermined range, thereby avoiding the situation where the second robot (i.e., the lurking robot) has no cache positions available due to all the cache positions being occupied, thereby avoiding the storage system from getting stuck.

[0099] In other words, for all the cache positions belonging to the walking aisles, this embodiment introduces the concept of water level data of the free cache positions, and based on the detected water level data, this embodiment allocates shelving subtasks and unshelving subtasks to the first robot so that the water level data can be kept in a reasonable predetermined range. In other words, compared with the number of all cache positions, this embodiment can keep the number of free cache positions at a reasonable level to avoid jamming of the warehouse system or low efficiency.

[0100] In a possible implementation manner, step S1 includes:

[0101] S101, traverse the occupancy status of all cache positions 33 belonging to the walking lane 34, and determine the number of free cache positions 333;

[0102] S102 , dividing the number of free cache locations 333 by the total number of cache locations 33 to obtain water level data.

[0103] That is, this embodiment may first traverse all cache bits of the walking lane to determine the number of unoccupied free cache bits; then, divide the number of free cache bits by the number of all cache bits, and the quotient obtained is the water level data.

[0104] Return to view Figure 2 , you can see, Figure 2 The number of all cache locations belonging to the middle walking lane is 20, and the number of unoccupied free cache locations (white squares in the dotted frame) is 12. The quotient obtained by dividing 12 by 20 is the water level data.

[0105] In a possible implementation manner, step S2 includes:

[0106] S201. When the water level data is less than the first water level value, assign a shelving subtask to the first robot 10, and at the same time, suspend assigning a shelving subtask to the first robot 10 to ensure that the water level data is greater than the first water level value.

[0107] According to actual conditions, this embodiment can set a minimum water level that a storage system can accept, that is, a first water level value. When the water level data is less than the first water level value, it indicates that the number of free cache positions has been reduced to the lower limit that the storage system can accept. At this time, only the shelving task should be assigned to the first robot, and the unshelving task should be suspended; that is, at this time, the first robot is required to move some to-be-stored material boxes from the cache position as soon as possible to increase the number of free cache positions, otherwise there may be a risk of the storage system being stuck; as for whether the first robot only obtains the to-be-stored material boxes to its own robot storage position, or further transfers it to the storage position of the shelf unit, this embodiment does not limit this. In short, what needs to be ensured is that the first robot obtains the material boxes from the cache position and no longer releases the material boxes to the cache position.

[0108] In a specific implementation, step S2 includes:

[0109] S202. When the water level data is greater than the second water level value, assign the unloading task to the first robot 10, and at the same time, suspend assigning the loading task to the first robot 10 to ensure that the water level data is between the first water level value and the second water level value; wherein the second water level value is greater than the first water level value.

[0110] Similar to the above-mentioned minimum water level, this embodiment can set an acceptable maximum water level, i.e., a second water level value, while ensuring the efficiency of the warehousing system. When the water level data is greater than the second water level value, it indicates that the number of free cache positions has increased to the upper limit acceptable to the warehousing system. At this time, only the destocking task should be assigned to the first robot, and the shelving task should be suspended; that is, at this time, the first robot is required to move some boxes to be shipped out to the cache position as soon as possible to reduce the number of free cache positions, otherwise the second robot may have no boxes to be shipped out to transfer; in short, it is necessary to ensure that the first robot releases the boxes to the cache position and no longer obtains the boxes from the cache position.

[0111] It can be understood that the first robot in the above embodiments may have a robot storage position or may not have a robot storage position.

[0112] In a possible implementation manner, step S2 includes:

[0113] S211, when the first robot 10 is provided with a plurality of robot storage positions 11 along the height direction, when the water level data is less than a first water level value, the to-be-out material box 200 acquired by the robot storage position 11 is locked.

[0114] That is, see Figure 4 When the first robot has several robot storage positions along the height direction, as mentioned above, the robot storage positions may temporarily store a mixture of to-be-stored material boxes 100 and to-be-out-of-warehouse material boxes 200. At this time, when the water level data is less than the first water level value and the first robot needs to move some to-be-stored material boxes from the cache position as soon as possible, the to-be-out-of-warehouse material boxes obtained by the robot storage positions can be locked and kept in their respective robot storage positions, and are no longer released to the cache position. Then, the free robot storage positions are used to perform the shelving task.

[0115] In a specific implementation, step S2 further includes:

[0116] S212: When the water level data is greater than the second water level value, the material box 100 to be stored acquired by the robot storage position 11 is locked.

[0117] Similar to the above, when the water level data is greater than the second water level value and the first robot is required to move some of the to-be-outbound material boxes to the cache position as soon as possible, the to-be-inbound material boxes obtained by the robot storage position can be locked and maintained in their respective robot storage positions, thereby suspending their release to the storage positions of the shelf unit, and then, the free robot storage positions can be used to perform the unloading task.

[0118] In a possible implementation manner, the material box in and out storage control method further includes:

[0119] S3, determining the storage cache position 331 according to the storage storage position 321 specified in the storage task of the material box 100 to be stored;

[0120] S4, driving the second robot 20 to carry the material box 100 to be stored and walk to the storage cache position 331, and transferring the material box 100 to be stored to the storage cache position 331.

[0121] That is, for the warehousing task of the material box to be stored, the cooperation of the second robot is required. This embodiment can determine the storage cache position 331 to which the second robot transfers the material box to be stored based on the storage position 321 of the material box to be stored, and then the first robot transfers the material box to be stored from the storage cache position to the storage position.

[0122] Among them, after the storage cache position is determined, the second robot can be driven to carry the material box to be stored and transfer it to the storage cache position.

[0123] Wherein, step S3 comprises:

[0124] S301: Determine an empty cache location closest to the incoming storage location as the incoming storage location.

[0125] Combination Figure 6 In this embodiment, the vacant cache position closest to the incoming storage position, for example, when the cache position directly below the incoming storage position is a vacant cache position, the cache position directly below is determined as the incoming storage cache position; otherwise, an vacant cache position closest to the cache position directly below the incoming storage position can be set as the incoming storage cache position.

[0126] In a possible implementation manner, the material box in and out storage control method further includes:

[0127] S5. Determine the outbound cache location according to the outbound storage location specified in the outbound task of the material box to be outbound;

[0128] S6, driving the first robot to obtain the material box to be shipped from the shipping storage position, and temporarily storing it in the robot storage position of the first robot;

[0129] S7. During the execution of the subtask of putting on shelves or the subtask of taking off shelves, when the path of the first robot walking from the current position to the task position passes through the outbound cache position of the to-be-outbound material box with the longest acquisition time, the to-be-outbound material box with the longest acquisition time is released to the corresponding outbound cache position.

[0130] That is, for the outbound task of the material box to be outbound, it is first necessary to determine the outbound cache position according to the outbound storage position of the material box to be outbound in step S5.

[0131] Then, after determining the outbound storage location, the first robot can be driven to obtain the material box from the outbound storage location in step S6. At this time, the material box can be temporarily stored in the robot storage location.

[0132] Then, regarding the timing of releasing the material box to be shipped out, that is, the timing of releasing it to the shipping cache position determined above, it can be when the first robot performs the shelving subtask or unshelving subtask of other material boxes, and the path of the first robot from the current position to the task position (the task position is the position where the first robot needs to stay when performing the above-mentioned shelving subtask or unshelving task) will pass through the shipping cache position of the material box to be shipped out that has the longest acquisition time. At this time, the material box to be shipped out that has the longest acquisition time can be released to the corresponding shipping cache position, thereby reducing the walking distance of the first robot and improving efficiency.

[0133] Wherein, step S5 comprises:

[0134] S501: Determine an empty cache location closest to the outbound storage location as the outbound cache location.

[0135] Similar to the inbound cache position, the vacant cache position closest to the outbound storage position in this embodiment, for example, when the cache position directly below the outbound storage position is a vacant cache position, the cache position directly below is determined as the outbound cache position; otherwise, an vacant cache position closest to the cache position directly below the outbound storage position can be set as the outbound cache position.

[0136] Based on the material box in-and-out control methods disclosed in the above embodiments, the present application also discloses a material box in-and-out control device, which includes:

[0137] A water level detection unit is used to detect in real time the water level data of the free cache positions in all the cache positions belonging to the walking lanes between adjacent shelf units; wherein the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit is provided with a plurality of cache positions along the length direction, the free cache positions refer to the cache positions not occupied by the material boxes, and the water level data refer to the proportion of the number of free cache positions in the number of all the cache positions located on both sides of the walking lanes;

[0138] The water level adjustment unit is used to allocate the shelving subtask and the unshelving subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains in a predetermined range; wherein the first robot walks along the walking aisle and transfers the material boxes between the storage position and the cache position of the shelf unit, the shelving subtask represents the subtask of the incoming task of the material box to be stored in the warehouse from the cache position to the storage position of the shelf unit, and the unshelving subtask represents the subtask of the outgoing task of the material box to be stored in the warehouse from the storage position of the shelf unit to the cache position.

[0139] In a possible implementation manner, the water level detection unit includes:

[0140] The quantity determination module is used to traverse the occupancy of all cache locations belonging to the walking lanes and determine the number of free cache locations;

[0141] The water level calculation module is used to obtain water level data by dividing the number of free cache bits by the total number of cache bits.

[0142] In a possible implementation manner, the water level adjustment unit includes:

[0143] The first water level adjustment module is used to assign a shelving subtask to the first robot when the water level data is less than a first water level value, and at the same time, suspend assigning a de-shelf subtask to the first robot to ensure that the water level data is greater than the first water level value.

[0144] In a specific embodiment, the water level adjustment unit further includes:

[0145] The second water level adjustment module is used to assign the unloading task to the first robot when the water level data is greater than the second water level value, and at the same time, suspend the assignment of the putting on the shelf task to the first robot to ensure that the water level data is between the first water level value and the second water level value; wherein the second water level value is greater than the first water level value.

[0146] In a possible implementation manner, the water level adjustment unit includes:

[0147] The first locking module is used to lock the material box to be shipped out obtained by the robot storage position when the water level data is less than a first water level value when the first robot is provided with a plurality of robot storage positions along the height direction.

[0148] In a specific embodiment, the water level adjustment unit further includes:

[0149] The second locking module is used to lock the material box to be stored acquired by the robot storage position when the water level data is greater than the second water level value.

[0150] In a possible implementation manner, the material box in and out control device further includes:

[0151] The storage buffer position determination unit is used to determine the storage buffer position according to the storage position specified in the storage task of the material box to be stored;

[0152] The storage drive unit is used to drive the second robot to carry the material box to be stored and walk to the storage cache position, and transfer the material box to be stored to the storage cache position.

[0153] In a specific implementation, the storage cache position determination unit includes:

[0154] The entry cache position determination module is used to determine an empty cache position closest to the entry storage position as the entry cache position.

[0155] In a possible implementation manner, the material box in and out control device further includes:

[0156] The outbound storage buffer position determination unit is used to determine the outbound storage buffer position according to the outbound storage position specified in the outbound task of the material box to be outbound;

[0157] The material box acquisition unit to be shipped out is used to drive the first robot to acquire the material box to be shipped out from the shipping storage position and temporarily store it in the robot storage position of the first robot;

[0158] The release unit for the material box to be shipped out is used to release the material box to be shipped out with the longest acquisition time to the corresponding outbound cache position when the path walked by the first robot from the current position to the task position passes through the outbound cache position of the material box to be shipped out with the longest acquisition time during the execution of the shelving subtask or the unshelving subtask.

[0159] In a specific implementation, the outbound cache position determination unit includes:

[0160] The outbound cache position determination module is used to determine an empty cache position closest to the outbound storage position as the outbound cache position.

[0161] Based on the material box in and out of storage control method disclosed in the above embodiments, the present application also discloses an electronic device, which includes a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores instructions, and the instructions are loaded and executed by the processor to implement the steps of the material box in and out of storage control method as described above.

[0162] Based on the material box in and out warehousing control method disclosed in the above embodiments, the present application also discloses a computer-readable storage medium, in which computer instructions are stored. When the computer instructions are executed by a processor, they are used to implement the steps of the material box in and out warehousing control method as described above.

[0163] Based on the material box in-and-out storage control method disclosed in the above embodiments, the present application also discloses a computer program product, which includes a computer program. When the computer program is executed by a processor, the steps of the material box in-and-out storage control method are implemented.

[0164] Based on the material box in-and-out storage control method disclosed in the above embodiments, the embodiment of the present application further provides a warehousing system, which includes a shelf unit, a first robot, a second robot and a control unit;

[0165] The bottom storage layer of the shelf unit is provided with a plurality of cache locations along the length direction;

[0166] The second robot is used to walk between the buffer position and the workbench and transfer the material box;

[0167] The first robot is provided with a plurality of robot storage positions along the height direction, and the first robot is used to walk in the walking lane beside the shelf unit, and transfer the material box between the buffer position and the storage position of the shelf unit through the transfer of the robot storage position;

[0168] Furthermore, the control unit is used to drive the first robot and the second robot according to the above-mentioned material box storage and retrieval control method.

[0169] The basic principles of the present application are described above in conjunction with specific embodiments. However, it should be noted that the advantages, strengths, effects, etc. mentioned in the present application are only examples and not limitations, and it cannot be considered that these advantages, strengths, effects, etc. are required by each embodiment of the present application. In addition, the specific details disclosed above are only for the purpose of illustration and ease of understanding, not for limitation, and the above details do not limit the present application to being implemented by adopting the above specific details.

[0170] The block diagrams of the devices, apparatuses, equipment, and systems involved in this application are only illustrative examples and are not intended to require or imply that they must be connected, arranged, and configured in the manner shown in the block diagram. As will be appreciated by those skilled in the art, these devices, apparatuses, equipment, and systems can be connected, arranged, and configured in any manner. Words such as "including", "comprising", "having", etc. are open words, referring to "including but not limited to", and can be used interchangeably with them. The words "or" and "and" used here refer to the words "and / or" and can be used interchangeably with them, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. The words "such as" used here refer to the phrase "such as but not limited to", and can be used interchangeably with them.

[0171] It should also be noted that in the apparatus, device and method of the present application, each component or each step can be decomposed and / or recombined. Such decomposition and / or recombination should be regarded as equivalent solutions of the present application.

[0172] The above description of the disclosed aspects is provided to enable any person skilled in the art to make or use the present application. Various modifications to these aspects will be readily apparent to those skilled in the art, and the general principles defined herein may be applied to other aspects without departing from the scope of the present application. Therefore, the present application is not intended to be limited to the aspects shown herein, but rather to the widest scope consistent with the principles and novel features disclosed herein.

[0173] The above description has been given for the purpose of illustration and description. In addition, this description is not intended to limit the embodiments of the present application to the forms disclosed herein. Although multiple example aspects and embodiments have been discussed above, those skilled in the art will recognize that some variations, modifications, changes, additions and sub-combinations thereof should be included within the scope of protection of the present invention.

Claims

1. A material box in and out storage control method, characterized in that: The material box in and out storage control method comprises: Real-time detection of water level data of vacant cache positions in all cache positions belonging to the walking lanes between adjacent shelf units; wherein the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit is provided with a plurality of cache positions along the length direction, the vacant cache positions represent cache positions not occupied by material boxes, and the water level data represent the proportion of the number of the vacant cache positions in the number of all the cache positions located on both sides of the walking lanes; Assigning a loading subtask and a unloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined interval; wherein the first robot walks along the walking lane and transfers material boxes between the storage position of the shelf unit and the cache position, the loading subtask represents a subtask of transferring the material boxes to be loaded into the warehouse from the cache position to the storage position of the shelf unit in the warehousing task, and the unloading subtask represents a subtask of transferring the material boxes to be loaded into the warehouse from the storage position of the shelf unit to the cache position in the warehousing task; The material box in and out storage control method also includes: Determine the outbound cache location according to the outbound storage location specified in the outbound task of the material box to be outbound; Driving the first robot to obtain the to-be-outbound material box from the outbound storage location and temporarily storing it in the robot storage location of the first robot; During the execution of the shelving subtask or the unshelving subtask, when the path taken by the first robot from the current position to the task position passes through the outbound cache position of the to-be-outbound material box with the longest acquisition time, the to-be-outbound material box corresponding to the outbound cache position is placed therein.

2. The material box in and out storage control method according to claim 1 is characterized in that: The step of real-time detection of water level data of free cache locations in all cache locations belonging to the walking lanes between adjacent shelf units comprises: Traversing the occupancy status of all the cache locations belonging to the walking lane to determine the number of the free cache locations; The water level data is obtained by dividing the number of the free cache bits by the total number of the cache bits.

3. The material box in and out control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of allocating a loading subtask and a unloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined range includes: When the water level data is less than a first water level value, the shelving subtask is assigned to the first robot, and at the same time, the assignment of the de-shelving subtask to the first robot is suspended to ensure that the water level data is greater than the first water level value.

4. The material box in and out control method according to claim 3 is characterized in that: The step of allocating a loading subtask and a unloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined range also includes: When the water level data is greater than the second water level value, the de-shelfing sub-task is assigned to the first robot, and at the same time, the assignment of the shelving sub-task to the first robot is suspended to ensure that the water level data is between the first water level value and the second water level value; wherein the second water level value is greater than the first water level value.

5. The material box in and out storage control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of allocating a loading subtask and a unloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined range includes: In the case that the first robot is provided with a plurality of robot storage positions along the height direction, when the water level data is less than a first water level value, the material box to be shipped out obtained by the robot storage position is locked.

6. The material box in and out storage control method according to claim 5, characterized in that: The step of allocating a loading subtask and a unloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data to ensure that the water level data remains within a predetermined range also includes: When the water level data is greater than the second water level value, the material box to be stored acquired by the robot storage position is locked.

7. The material box in and out storage control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The material box in and out storage control method also includes: Determine the storage buffer location according to the storage location specified in the storage task of the material box to be stored; The second robot is driven to carry the material box to be stored and walk to the storage cache position, and the material box to be stored is transferred to the storage cache position.

8. The material box in and out control method according to claim 7, characterized in that: The step of determining the storage cache location according to the storage location specified in the storage task of the material box to be stored includes: An empty cache location closest to the incoming storage location is determined as the incoming storage location.

9. The material box in and out storage control method according to claim 1, characterized in that: The step of determining the outbound cache location according to the outbound storage location specified in the outbound task of the material box to be outbound includes: An empty cache location closest to the outbound storage location is determined as the outbound cache location.

10. A material box in and out storage control device, characterized in that: The material box in and out control device comprises: A water level detection unit is used to detect in real time the water level data of the vacant cache positions among all the cache positions belonging to the walking lanes between adjacent shelf units; wherein the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit is provided with a plurality of the cache positions along the length direction, the vacant cache positions represent the cache positions not occupied by the material boxes, and the water level data represent the proportion of the number of the vacant cache positions in the number of all the cache positions located on both sides of the walking lanes; The water level adjustment unit is used to allocate a loading subtask and a deloading subtask to the first robot according to the water level data, so as to ensure that the water level data is kept in a predetermined interval; wherein the first robot walks along the walking lane and transfers the material box between the storage position of the shelf unit and the cache position, the loading subtask represents a subtask of transferring the material box from the cache position to the storage position of the shelf unit in the storage task of the material box to be loaded into the warehouse, and the deloading subtask represents a subtask of transferring the material box from the storage position of the shelf unit to the cache position in the outbound task of the material box to be loaded out of the warehouse; The outbound storage buffer position determination unit is used to determine the outbound storage buffer position according to the outbound storage position specified in the outbound task of the material box to be outbound; The material box acquisition unit to be shipped out is used to drive the first robot to acquire the material box to be shipped out from the shipping storage position and temporarily store it in the robot storage position of the first robot; The release unit for the material box to be shipped is used to place the material box to be shipped corresponding to the outbound cache position when the path walked by the first robot from the current position to the task position passes through the outbound cache position of the material box to be shipped that has the longest acquisition time during the execution of the shelving subtask or the unshelving subtask.

11. An electronic device, characterized in that: It comprises a processor and a memory, wherein the memory stores instructions, and the instructions are loaded and executed by the processor to implement the steps of the material box in-and-out storage control method as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 9.

12. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that: The computer-readable storage medium stores computer instructions, which, when executed by a processor, are used to implement the steps of the material box in-and-out storage control method as described in any one of claims 1 to 9.

13. A computer program product, characterized in that It includes a computer program, which, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of the material box in and out storage control method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

14. A storage system, characterized in that: The storage system includes a shelf unit, a first robot, a second robot and a control unit; Wherein, the bottom storage layer of the shelf unit is provided with a plurality of cache locations along the length direction; The second robot is used to walk between the buffer position and the workbench and transfer the material box; The first robot is provided with a plurality of robot storage positions along the height direction, and the first robot is used to walk in the walking lane beside the shelf unit, and transfer the material box between the cache position and the storage position of the shelf unit through the transfer of the robot storage position; Furthermore, the control unit is used to drive the second robot and drive the first robot according to the material box in and out control method according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

Citation Information

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    CN118145214A