Goods carrying method and device, electronic equipment and storage medium

Abstract

The embodiment of the invention provides a cargo carrying method and device, electronic equipment and a storage medium, and relates to the technical field of intelligent storage. In response to the situation that the cross-floor carrying equipment carries the to-be-carried goods to the current floor, a target robot used for carrying the to-be-carried goods is determined in a robot queue waiting for the cross-floor carrying equipment on the current floor; the target robot is controlled to release target goods loaded by the target robot, the target robot is controlled to carry the goods to be carried to a preset temporary storage position, and the temporary storage position is used for temporarily storing the goods to be carried; after the to-be-carried goods are carried away from the cross-floor carrying equipment by the target robot, the robots in the robot queue are controlled to place the goods loaded by the robots on the cross-floor carrying equipment according to the queuing sequence and the number of the goods capable of being placed in the cross-floor carrying equipment; and the goods carried by the cross-floor carrying equipment are conveyed to the target floor through the cross-floor carrying equipment. Therefore, the utilization rate of the robot waiting for the cross-floor carrying equipment can be increased.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of intelligent warehousing technology, and in particular to a cargo handling method, apparatus, electronic device, and storage medium. Background Technology

[0002] In scenarios involving cross-floor cargo transport, cross-floor transport equipment carries goods between floors to achieve cross-floor transport. The goods inside the cross-floor transport equipment are loaded by robots, which wait near the equipment to place their loaded goods upon arrival. When there are many goods requiring cross-floor transport, there are also many robots waiting in a queue near the equipment.

[0003] When a cross-floor transport system arrives at a floor, it often contains goods transported from other floors. In related technologies, idle robots are needed to remove the goods from the system before waiting robots place their own goods onto it. However, scheduling idle robots to move goods increases the number of robots required for cross-floor transport, leading to low robot utilization. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The purpose of this application is to provide a cargo handling method, apparatus, electronic device, and storage medium to improve the utilization rate of robots. The specific technical solution is as follows:

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a cargo handling method, the method comprising:

[0006] In response to the arrival of the inter-floor transport equipment carrying the goods to be transported on the current floor, a target robot for transporting the goods is determined from the queue of robots waiting for the inter-floor transport equipment on the current floor.

[0007] The target robot is controlled to release the target cargo it is carrying, and the target robot is controlled to move the cargo to a preset temporary storage location, wherein the preset temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the cargo to be moved.

[0008] After the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, the robots in the robot queue are controlled to place their loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, so that the cross-floor transport equipment can transport its loaded goods to the target floor.

[0009] Optionally, the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor includes:

[0010] The robot at the head of the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is identified as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported; or...

[0011] If the queuing channel of the robot queue allows any robot in the robot queue to leave the queue, the robot at the front of the queue shall be selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported, or a robot not at the front of the queue shall be selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0012] Optionally, the step of determining a robot from the non-first-ranked robots as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported includes:

[0013] From the robots not ranked first, identify one robot that cannot use the cross-floor transport equipment in this instance, and designate it as the target robot for transporting the goods to be moved; or,

[0014] The robot that is closest to the inter-floor transport equipment among the non-first-ranked robots will be selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0015] Optionally, the step of controlling the robots in the robot queue to place their loaded goods onto the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment includes:

[0016] If the target robot is the first robot in the queue, after the target robot moves the goods to be transported away from the inter-floor transport equipment and reloads the target goods, the system controls the target robot to place the target goods onto the inter-floor transport equipment. Based on the queue order and the capacity of the inter-floor transport equipment, the system determines whether to control a robot in the queue that is not at the front to place its loaded goods onto the inter-floor transport equipment; or...

[0017] If the target robot is not the first robot in the queue, after the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, the robot at the first position in the robot queue is controlled to place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment. Based on the queue order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, it is determined whether to control the robot at the second position in the robot queue to place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0018] Optionally, if the target robot is not in the first position and the target goods need to be placed on the inter-floor transport equipment, the method further includes:

[0019] If the robot preceding the target robot has already placed its loaded cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment, after the target robot reloads the target cargo, the target robot is controlled to place the target cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment.

[0020] Optionally, after the step of controlling the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying, the method further includes:

[0021] The position of the target robot in the robot queue and the current placement position of the target cargo are locked;

[0022] After the step of controlling the target robot to move the goods to be transported to the preset temporary storage location, the method further includes:

[0023] If the target robot reloads the target cargo, unlock the current placement location of the target cargo;

[0024] When the target robot returns to its position in the robot queue carrying the target cargo, or when the target cargo is placed on the inter-floor transport equipment, the position of the target robot in the robot queue is unlocked.

[0025] Optionally, the storage space of the preset temporary storage location is only allowed to store the goods to be transported;

[0026] The method further includes the step of controlling the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying.

[0027] Control the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying in place.

[0028] Optionally, after the step of controlling the target robot to move the goods to be transported to the preset temporary storage location, the method further includes:

[0029] Control an empty robot to move the goods to be transported from the preset temporary storage location to the delivery location corresponding to the goods to be transported; wherein, the empty robot is a robot that has placed the goods it is loaded with on the cross-floor transport equipment, or an idle robot that is closest to the preset temporary storage location.

[0030] Optionally, before the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods in the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor, the method further includes:

[0031] If there is no first idle robot on the current floor, determine whether there is a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor; wherein, the first idle robot is an idle robot whose distance from the cross-floor transport equipment is not greater than a preset distance;

[0032] If the robot queue exists on the current floor, the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is performed.

[0033] Optionally, the method further includes:

[0034] If the robot queue is not present on the current floor, a cargo handling task is issued to the second idle robot on the current floor with the smallest distance from the cross-floor transport equipment. The cargo handling task is used to instruct the second idle robot to move the cargo to be transported from the cross-floor transport equipment to the corresponding delivery location.

[0035] During the process of the second idle robot moving towards the cross-floor transport equipment, it is determined whether there is a third idle robot or a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor. The third idle robot is an idle robot whose distance to the cross-floor transport equipment is less than the current distance between the second idle robot and the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0036] If the robot queue exists on the current floor, the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is executed;

[0037] If the third idle robot exists but the robot queue does not exist, the third idle robot is used as the new second idle robot, and the step of issuing the cargo handling task to the second idle robot with the smallest distance from the cross-floor handling equipment on the current floor is returned until there is a robot queue waiting for the cross-floor handling equipment on the current floor, or the second idle robot arrives at the cross-floor handling equipment and moves the cargo to be transported away from the cross-floor handling equipment.

[0038] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a cargo handling device, the device comprising:

[0039] A robot identification module is used to identify a target robot for transporting the goods in the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor in response to the arrival of the cross-floor transport equipment with the goods to be transported.

[0040] The first control module is used to control the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying, and to control the target robot to move the cargo to be moved to a preset temporary storage location, wherein the preset temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the cargo to be moved.

[0041] The second control module is used to control the robots in the robot queue to place their loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment after the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, so that the cross-floor transport equipment can transport its loaded goods to the target floor.

[0042] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide an electronic device, including:

[0043] Memory, used to store computer programs;

[0044] The processor, when executing a program stored in memory, implements any of the above-described cargo handling methods.

[0045] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide a computer-readable storage medium storing a computer program, wherein the computer program, when executed by a processor, is any of the cargo handling methods described above.

[0046] Fifthly, embodiments of this application also provide a computer program product containing instructions that, when run on a computer, cause the computer to perform any of the cargo handling methods described above.

[0047] Beneficial effects of the embodiments in this application:

[0048] The solution provided in this application embodiment, in response to the arrival of a cross-floor transport device carrying goods to be transported on the current floor, allows the electronic device to identify a target robot from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport device on the current floor. The target robot is then controlled to release its loaded target goods and move them to a preset temporary storage location, where the temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the goods. After the goods are removed from the cross-floor transport device by the target robot, the robots in the queue are controlled to place their loaded goods onto the cross-floor transport device according to the queue order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport device, so that the cross-floor transport device can transport its loaded goods to the target floor. In this way, the electronic device can call upon the target robot in the queue waiting for the cross-floor transport device to move the goods to the preset temporary storage location. Since the robots in the queue can only use the cross-floor transport device after the goods are removed, calling upon robots in the queue to move goods does not increase the number of robots required for cross-floor goods transport, compared to waiting in place to call additional idle robots, thus improving the utilization rate of the robots in the queue. Of course, implementing any product or method of this application does not necessarily require achieving all of the advantages described above at the same time. Attached Figure Description

[0049] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other embodiments can be obtained based on these drawings.

[0050] Figure 1 A flowchart illustrating a cargo handling method provided in this application embodiment;

[0051] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram illustrating a scenario of goods being transported across floors, as provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0052] Figure 3 A schematic diagram illustrating the loading of goods to be transported onto the target robot, as provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0053] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram illustrating how the target robot, as provided in this embodiment of the application, moves goods to a preset temporary storage location.

[0054] Figure 5 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the release of goods to be transported and the return of the target robot to the robot queue, as provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0055] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram illustrating the use of cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0056] Figure 7 A schematic diagram of a passageway for a robot queue provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0057] Figure 8 Another schematic diagram of the passageway for the robot queue provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0058] Figure 9 This is a schematic diagram illustrating how a target robot, as provided in this application embodiment, transports goods to a destination.

[0059] Figure 10 This is another flowchart illustrating the cargo handling method provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0060] Figure 11 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a cargo handling device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0061] Figure 12 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0062] The technical solutions of the embodiments of this application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Obviously, the described embodiments are only some embodiments of this application, and not all embodiments. Based on the embodiments of this application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art based on this application are within the scope of protection of this application.

[0063] To improve the utilization rate of robots in cross-floor goods handling scenarios, embodiments of this application provide a goods handling method, apparatus, electronic device, computer-readable storage medium, and computer program product. The goods handling method provided in this application embodiment is described below.

[0064] The cargo handling method provided in this application can be applied to any electronic device capable of assigning handling tasks to a robot, scheduling the robot's movement and work, and planning and scheduling the robot's walking path in real time, such as a robot control system (RCS), a robot controller, etc., without specific limitations herein. For clarity, it will be referred to as an electronic device herein.

[0065] like Figure 1 As shown, a cargo handling method includes:

[0066] S101, in response to the arrival of the cross-floor transport equipment carrying the goods to be transported to the current floor, a target robot for transporting the goods to be transported is determined from the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor.

[0067] S102, control the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying, and control the target robot to move the cargo to be transported to a preset temporary storage location.

[0068] The preset temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the goods to be transported.

[0069] S103, after the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, the robots in the robot queue are controlled to place their loaded goods into the cross-floor transport equipment, so that the cross-floor transport equipment can transport its loaded goods to the target floor.

[0070] The solution provided in this application embodiment, in response to the arrival of a cross-floor transport device carrying goods to be transported on the current floor, allows the electronic device to identify a target robot from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport device on the current floor. The target robot is then controlled to release its loaded target goods and move them to a preset temporary storage location, where the temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the goods. After the goods are removed from the cross-floor transport device by the target robot, the robots in the queue are controlled to place their loaded goods onto the cross-floor transport device according to the queue order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport device, so that the cross-floor transport device can transport its loaded goods to the target floor. In this way, the electronic device can call upon the target robot in the queue waiting for the cross-floor transport device to move the goods to the preset temporary storage location. Since the robots in the queue can only use the cross-floor transport device after the goods are removed, calling upon robots in the queue to move goods does not increase the number of robots required for cross-floor goods transport, compared to waiting in place to call additional idle robots, thus improving the utilization rate of the robots in the queue.

[0071] In the field of smart warehousing, goods are distributed across different floors, requiring cross-floor transport to deliver them to their designated locations. This cross-floor transport is achieved using robots in conjunction with cross-floor transport equipment. A robot can load goods for cross-floor transport on its current floor. When the cross-floor transport equipment arrives at the robot's floor, the robot places the goods on it. The equipment then carries the goods to the floor where the goods' intended delivery location is located. During this process, the robot remains stationary. Once the equipment reaches the delivery location, a robot on that floor loads the goods and the cross-floor transport equipment moves them to their designated delivery location.

[0072] The term "robot" can refer to any intelligent mobile robot capable of moving goods to a designated location, such as heavy-duty forklift AGVs (Automated Guided Vehicles), stealth AGVs, etc., without specific limitations. "Inter-floor transport equipment" can refer to any equipment capable of transporting goods across floors, such as elevators, hoists, etc., without specific limitations. "Goods" can refer to shelves, bins, pallets, etc., without specific limitations.

[0073] Since robots loaded with goods need to wait for the arrival of cross-floor transport equipment, and when there are many goods requiring cross-floor transport, multiple robots may be waiting on each floor. Therefore, a robot queuing area can be set up near the cross-floor transport equipment, and each robot can be controlled to queue in this area. To improve the utilization efficiency of cross-floor equipment, when the equipment goes to each floor to load goods, it often carries goods that need to be delivered to that floor.

[0074] When the electronic device detects that the cross-floor transport equipment carrying the goods to be transported has arrived at the current floor, it can identify the target robot for transporting the goods from the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor, and thus execute the above step S101.

[0075] Since there are goods to be delivered to the current floor inside the inter-floor transport equipment when it arrives at the current floor, the goods to be delivered to the current floor need to be removed from the inter-floor transport equipment first, and the robots waiting in line for the inter-floor transport equipment can then place the goods to be transported to other floors into the inter-floor transport equipment.

[0076] Furthermore, since there are queues of robots waiting for cross-floor transport equipment on each floor, in order to reduce the number of robots required for cross-floor transport and improve robot utilization, robots in the queues waiting for cross-floor transport equipment can be used to transport the goods to be transported in the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0077] In one implementation, the electronic device can designate the robot at the head of the robot queue as the target robot for transporting goods. In another implementation, if the queuing aisle of the robot queue allows any robot in the queue to leave, the electronic device can designate any robot in the queue as the target robot for transporting goods.

[0078] This section only provides a brief description of the method for determining the target robot used to move the goods to be moved; a detailed explanation will be provided in subsequent embodiments.

[0079] After the target robot moves the goods to be transported from the inter-floor transport equipment and places them at a certain location, it also needs to place its own goods onto the inter-floor transport equipment. Robots in the queue need to place their respective loads onto the inter-floor transport equipment in queuing order. Using robots in the queue to move goods within the inter-floor transport equipment may affect the overall performance of the inter-floor transport task by the robots in the queue.

[0080] Especially when the target robot is the first robot in the queue, the target robot needs to place the goods to be transported in a certain position first, then load the target goods that it needs to transport to the cross-floor transport equipment and place the target goods in the cross-floor transport equipment. In this way, other robots in the queue can continue to use the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0081] To avoid the target robot being occupied for too long due to moving the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment, which would affect the task execution efficiency of each robot in the robot queue, a preset temporary storage position for temporarily storing the goods to be transported can be set up near the cross-floor transport equipment. The electronic equipment can determine the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported in the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0082] For example, such as Figure 2 As shown, the inter-floor transport equipment is an elevator. A preset temporary storage area can be set up next to the elevator. Within the elevator's robot queuing area, there is a robot queue consisting of robots 1, 2, 3...N, waiting for the elevator. Robot 1 carries goods A, robot 2 carries goods B, robot 3 carries goods C, and so on, with robot N carrying goods N. When the elevator arrives at the current floor carrying goods M, the electronic equipment can identify the target robot from the robot queue to transport goods M.

[0083] Depending on the actual application scenario, the number of robots in the queue waiting to move equipment across floors can be one or more. Figure 2 This is merely an example of the number of robots in a robot queue, not a limitation.

[0084] After identifying the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported, the electronic device can execute the above step S102, that is, control the target robot to release the target goods it is carrying, and control the target robot to transport the goods to be transported from the cross-floor transport equipment to the preset temporary storage location.

[0085] For each floor, the electronic device pre-stores the coordinates of the preset temporary storage positions of the cross-floor transport equipment on that floor. In the case of multiple cross-floor transport equipment on each floor, a preset temporary storage position can be set up separately for each cross-floor transport equipment, and the electronic device can store the coordinates of each cross-floor transport equipment and its associated preset temporary storage position; alternatively, a preset temporary storage position can be set up for multiple cross-floor equipment, and the electronic device can store the coordinates of that preset temporary storage position.

[0086] After identifying the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported, the electronic device can send a goods transport task to the target robot, which carries the coordinates of the goods to be transported in the cross-floor transport equipment, as well as the coordinates of the preset temporary storage location. The goods transport task is used to instruct the target robot to release the target goods it is carrying and transport the goods to be transported to the preset temporary storage location.

[0087] Upon receiving the cargo handling task, the target robot can release the target cargo it is carrying and move the cargo to be transported by the cross-floor transport equipment to the preset temporary storage location.

[0088] In one implementation, the electronic device can release the target cargo it is loaded with in place, that is, release the target cargo to the queuing position of the target robot in the robot queue. In this way, after the target robot places the cargo to be transported in the preset temporary storage position, it controls the target robot to return to the queuing position in the robot queue and reload the target cargo.

[0089] In one implementation, the electronic device can release the target goods it is loaded with to a preset temporary storage location. Thus, after the target robot places the goods to be transported in the preset temporary storage location, the target robot can be controlled to reload the target goods placed in the preset temporary storage location, and the target robot can be controlled to return to its queuing position in the robot queue or place the target goods in the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0090] In one implementation, the electronic device can release the target goods loaded on itself to a preset delivery location associated with the robot queue. Thus, after the target robot places the goods to be transported in the preset temporary storage location, the target robot can be controlled to reload the target goods placed in the preset delivery location, and the target robot can be controlled to return to its queuing position in the robot queue or place the target goods in the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0091] based on Figure 2 ,like Figure 3 As shown, after the electronic device selects robot 1 from the robot queue as the target robot, it can control robot 1 to release cargo A in place and move it into the elevator to load cargo M to be transported. Figure 4 As shown, robot 1 can carry the goods M to be transported to a preset temporary storage location, and as... Figure 5 As shown, robot 1 places the goods M to be transported in a preset temporary storage location and returns to the robot queue.

[0092] After the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, the electronic device can execute the above step S103, according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, control the robots in the robot queue to place the goods they are carrying in the cross-floor transport equipment, so that the cross-floor transport equipment can transport the goods it is carrying to the target floor.

[0093] Electronic equipment can determine the number of goods that can be placed in a cross-floor transport equipment based on the actual capacity of the equipment, preset loading requirements, and the current quantity of goods loaded. For example, if the actual capacity of the cross-floor transport equipment allows for 5 goods of a certain type, and the preset loading requirement is only 1 item, then after unloading the goods to be transported, the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment is 1. As another example, if the actual capacity of the cross-floor transport equipment allows for 5 goods of a certain type, the preset loading requirement is full load, and the current quantity of goods loaded is 3, then the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment is 2.

[0094] After the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, the electronic equipment can control the robots in the queue to place their loaded goods into the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0095] In one implementation, when the target robot is the first robot in the robot queue, the electronic device can control the target robot to place its loaded target goods into the cross-floor transport equipment after the target robot moves the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment and reloads the target goods. Then, according to the queue order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, it determines whether to control the robot in the queue that is not the first robot to place its loaded goods into the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0096] If a robot in the queue that is not at the front of the queue places its cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment, the electronic device can continue to control the robot in the queue that is not at the front of the queue to place its cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment, based on the queue order and the number of cargo that the inter-floor transport equipment can hold, until the number of cargo in the inter-floor transport equipment reaches the number of cargo that the inter-floor transport equipment can hold, and then control the inter-floor transport equipment to transport its cargo to the target floor.

[0097] If it is determined that a robot not at the front of the queue will place its cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment without the control of the robot in the queue, the electronic equipment can control the inter-floor transport equipment to transport its cargo to the target floor.

[0098] In another implementation, when the target robot is not the first robot in the queue, after the goods to be transported are removed from the inter-floor transport equipment by the target robot, the electronic equipment can determine whether to control the non-first robots in the queue to place their own goods on the inter-floor transport equipment, based on the queue order and the capacity of the inter-floor transport equipment. In this way, the first robot in the queue can place its own goods on the inter-floor transport equipment after the goods to be transported are removed by the target robot, reducing the waiting time in the robot queue and improving the efficiency of inter-floor transport.

[0099] If a robot in the queue that is not at the front of the queue places its cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment, the electronic device can continue to control the robot in the queue that is not at the front of the queue to place its cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment, based on the queue order and the number of cargo that the inter-floor transport equipment can hold, until the number of cargo in the inter-floor transport equipment reaches the number of cargo that the inter-floor transport equipment can hold, and then control the inter-floor transport equipment to transport its cargo to the target floor.

[0100] If it is determined that a robot not at the front of the queue will place its cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment without the control of the robot in the queue, the electronic equipment can control the inter-floor transport equipment to transport its cargo to the target floor.

[0101] For example, Figure 6 based on Figure 5 ,like Figure 6 As shown, after placing the goods M to be transported in the preset temporary storage position, robot 1 can reload goods A. Robot 1 carries goods A to the elevator and places goods A in the elevator. Since the elevator can only hold 1 item, the electronic device does not control the robots 2, 3... N in the robot queue that are not at the first position to place their loaded goods in the cross-floor transport equipment and control the elevator to transport the goods A it is carrying to the target floor.

[0102] The solution provided in this application embodiment allows an electronic device to call a target robot from the robot queue waiting in line for cross-floor transport equipment to move the goods to be transported to a preset temporary storage location. Since the robots in the robot queue can only use the cross-floor transport equipment after the goods to be transported have been moved away from the equipment, calling a robot from the robot queue to move the goods does not require increasing the number of robots needed for cross-floor goods transport, and can improve the utilization rate of the robots in the robot queue, compared to waiting in place to call additional idle robots.

[0103] As one embodiment of this application, step S101, which is the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor, may include:

[0104] The robot that is first in the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is identified as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0105] Due to space limitations on the current floor, the queuing channel for the robot queue only allows robots in the queue to leave the queue in the order they are queuing. That is, robots that are queuing later can only leave the queue after the robot at the front of the queue has left.

[0106] In this situation, the electronic device can directly identify the robot at the front of the queue of robots waiting to be transported across floors as the target robot for transporting the goods to be moved.

[0107] For example, Figure 7 based on Figure 2 ,like Figure 7As shown, due to the space limitations of the current floor, the queuing channel 710 of the robot queue only allows robots in the robot queue to leave the queue in the order of queuing. That is, robot 2 can only leave the queue after robot 1 leaves the queue in the order of queuing. The electronic device can use robot 1, which is at the top of the queue, as the target robot for transporting the goods M to be transported, and control robot 1 to transport the goods M to be transported.

[0108] In one implementation, if there are multiple robot queues waiting for the same cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor, the robot at the head of any robot queue can be identified as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0109] In this embodiment, the electronic device can identify the robot at the front of the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported. Since the robot at the front is closest to the cross-floor transport equipment, the robot needs to move a shorter distance to transport the goods, thereby reducing the waiting time of each robot in the queue and improving the overall efficiency of goods transport.

[0110] As one embodiment of this application, step S101, which is the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor, may include:

[0111] If the queuing channel of the robot queue allows any robot in the robot queue to leave the queue, the robot at the front of the queue shall be selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported, or a robot not at the front of the queue shall be selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0112] If the queuing channel of the robot queue allows any robot in the queue to leave the queue, that is, the paths of the robots leaving the queue do not affect each other, each robot can leave the queue on its own regardless of the queuing order.

[0113] In this situation, the electronic device can select the robot at the front of the robot queue as the target robot for transporting the goods, or it can select a robot from the robots that are not at the front of the queue as the target robot for transporting the goods.

[0114] For example, Figure 8 based on Figure 2 ,like Figure 8As shown, the queuing channel 810 of the robot queue only allows any robot in the robot queue to leave the queue. That is, the communication channel allows robot 3 to leave the queue. The electronic device can use robot 3, which is not at the first position in the queue, as the target robot for carrying the goods M to be carried, and control robot 3 to carry the goods M to be carried.

[0115] In this embodiment, if the queuing channel of the robot queue allows any robot in the queue to leave the queue, the electronic device can select the robot at the front of the queue as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported, or select a robot from the robots that are not at the front of the queue as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported. In this way, when the queuing channel of the robot queue allows any robot in the queue to leave the queue, the electronic device can select any robot as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported. Furthermore, when the robot at the front of the queue is selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported, the target robot is closest to the cross-floor transport equipment and can quickly move the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment, improving the efficiency of goods transport. When a robot is selected from the robots that are not at the front of the queue as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported, after the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment, the electronic device can control the robots in the queue that are ahead of the target robot to place their loaded goods into the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment. Since there is no need to wait for the target robot to place the target goods into the cross-floor transport equipment first, controlling the target robot to transport the goods to be transported and controlling the robots ahead of the target robot to place their loaded goods into the cross-floor transport equipment can be done in parallel, improving the overall efficiency of goods transport.

[0116] As one embodiment of this application, the step of determining a robot from the robots that are not ranked first as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported may include:

[0117] From the robots that are not ranked first, identify one robot that cannot use the cross-floor transport equipment in this instance, and select it as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0118] According to the queuing order, if the goods to be transported in the cross-floor transport equipment are moved out of the cross-floor transport equipment, at least the robot at the front of the queue can use the cross-floor transport equipment. The number of robots that can use the cross-floor transport equipment among the robots that are not at the front of the queue needs to be determined based on the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0119] Therefore, the electronic device can determine a robot that cannot use the cross-floor transport equipment in this instance, based on the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, and then select a robot from the robots that cannot use the cross-floor transport equipment in this instance as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0120] In one implementation, the electronic device can select any robot that is not in the first position and cannot use the cross-floor transport equipment in this instance as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported; in another implementation, the electronic device can select the robot that is closest to the cross-floor transport equipment among the robots that are not in the first position and cannot use the cross-floor transport equipment in this instance as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0121] For example, after the goods to be transported are moved out of the cross-floor transport equipment, the cross-floor transport equipment can hold 3 goods. According to the queuing order, only two robots that are not in the first position can use the cross-floor transport equipment this time. That is, the robots in the fourth position and below in the robot queue cannot use the cross-floor transport equipment this time. The robot in the fourth position can be used as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0122] In this embodiment, the electronic device can identify a robot from the non-first-ranked robots that cannot currently use the inter-floor transport equipment, and designate it as the target robot for transporting the goods to be moved. Thus, while this target robot is moving the goods from the inter-floor transport equipment to a preset temporary storage location, the electronic device can, according to the queue order and the capacity of the inter-floor transport equipment, control the robots in the queue that are currently using the inter-floor transport equipment to place their loaded goods onto the equipment. This parallel process of controlling the target robot to move the goods from the inter-floor transport equipment and controlling the robot to place its goods improves the overall efficiency of inter-floor goods transport. Furthermore, since the target robot cannot currently use the inter-floor transport equipment, it only needs to move within the robot queue carrying its loaded goods as the equipment reaches that floor. The electronic device's scheduling of this target robot to transport the goods further enhances its utilization rate.

[0123] As one embodiment of this application, the step of determining a robot from the robots that are not ranked first as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported may include:

[0124] The robot that is closest to the inter-floor transport equipment among the non-first-ranked robots will be selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0125] In order to move the goods to be moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment as quickly as possible, the electronic equipment can select the robot that is closest to the cross-floor transport equipment from among the non-first robots in the queue as the target robot for moving the goods.

[0126] In this embodiment, the electronic device can select the robot closest to the inter-floor transport equipment among the non-first-ranked robots as the target robot for transporting the goods to be moved. Thus, by calling upon the non-first-ranked robot to move the goods from the inter-floor transport equipment to a preset temporary storage location, while the goods are being moved from the inter-floor transport equipment to the preset temporary storage location under the guidance of the target robot, the first-ranked robot can be controlled to place its loaded goods onto the inter-floor transport equipment. The transfer of the goods and the control of the robot using the inter-floor transport equipment are performed in parallel, improving the overall efficiency of inter-floor goods transport. Furthermore, since the target robot is the one closest to the inter-floor transport equipment among the non-first-ranked robots, it can move to the inter-floor transport equipment faster than other non-first-ranked robots and move the goods away from the equipment, shortening the waiting time of the first-ranked robot and further improving the overall efficiency of inter-floor goods transport.

[0127] As one embodiment of this application, step S103, namely, controlling the robots in the robot queue to place their loaded goods onto the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, may include:

[0128] When the target robot is the first robot in the queue, after the target robot moves the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment and reloads the target goods, the target robot is controlled to place the target goods on the cross-floor transport equipment. Based on the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, it is determined whether to control the robot in the queue that is not the first robot in the queue to place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0129] When the target robot is the first robot in the queue, it can place its loaded target goods on the inter-floor transport equipment before other robots in the queue, according to the queuing order of the robot queue.

[0130] After the target robot moves the goods to be transported away from the inter-floor transport equipment, the electronic equipment can control the target robot to reload the target goods.

[0131] After the target robot moves the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment and the target robot reloads the target goods, the electronic equipment can control the target robot to place the target goods on the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0132] After the target robot places the target goods, the electronic equipment can determine whether to control the robot in the queue that is not at the front to place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment, based on the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0133] Specifically, the electronic device can determine the number of robots that can still be used in this cross-floor transport equipment after the target robot has placed the target goods, based on the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0134] If the number of robots that can still use the cross-floor transport equipment is 0, it can be determined that the robot that is not in the first position in the robot queue will place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment. The electronic equipment can control the cross-floor transport equipment to transport its loaded goods to the target floor.

[0135] If the number of robots that can still use the cross-floor transport equipment is not zero, it can be determined that the number of robots that are not at the top of the robot queue can be controlled to place their loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment, and the first number of robots that are not at the top of the robot queue can be controlled to place their loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment in sequence.

[0136] In this embodiment, when the target robot is the first robot in the queue, after the target robot moves the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment and reloads the target goods, the system controls the target robot to place the target goods onto the cross-floor transport equipment. Based on the queue order and the capacity of the cross-floor transport equipment, the system determines whether to control other robots in the queue that are not at the front to place their loaded goods onto the cross-floor transport equipment. Thus, after calling the first robot in the queue to transport the goods, the system first controls that first robot to use the cross-floor transport equipment. Only then does the electronic system determine whether to control other robots to use the cross-floor transport equipment based on the queue order and the capacity of the cross-floor transport equipment. This improves robot utilization while ensuring that the order in which robots use the cross-floor transport equipment conforms to their queue order.

[0137] As one embodiment of this application, step S103, namely, controlling the robots in the robot queue to place their loaded goods onto the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, may include:

[0138] If the target robot is not the first robot in the queue, after the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, the robot at the first position in the robot queue is controlled to place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment. Based on the queue order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, it is determined whether to control the robot at the second position in the robot queue to place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0139] When the target robot is not the first robot in the queue, after the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, the electronic equipment can control the first robot in the queue to place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0140] Based on the queuing order and the amount of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, determine the number of robots that can still use the cross-floor transport equipment this time. Based on the determined number of robots that can still use the cross-floor transport equipment this time, determine whether to control the robot that is not at the first position in the robot queue to place its loaded goods in the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0141] If the number of robots that can still use the cross-floor transport equipment is 0, it can be determined that the robot that is not in the first position in the robot queue will place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment. The electronic equipment can control the cross-floor transport equipment to transport its loaded goods to the target floor.

[0142] If the number of robots that can still use the cross-floor transport equipment is not zero, it can be determined that the number of robots that are not at the first position in the robot queue can be controlled to place their loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment. In accordance with the queuing order, the first number of robots that are not at the first position in the robot queue can be controlled to place their loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0143] In this embodiment, when the target robot is not the first robot in the queue, after the target robot removes the goods to be transported from the inter-floor transport equipment, the control system determines whether to control other robots in the queue to place their goods on the inter-floor transport equipment, based on the queue order and the capacity of the equipment. Thus, while the target robot is moving the goods from the inter-floor transport equipment to a preset temporary storage location, the electronic device can control the first robot in the queue to use the equipment and determine whether to control other robots in the queue to place their goods on the equipment, based on the queue order and the capacity of the equipment. This improves both robot efficiency and overall efficiency of inter-floor transport while ensuring that the order in which robots use the inter-floor transport equipment conforms to their queue order.

[0144] As one embodiment of this application, when the target robot is not in the first position and the target goods need to be placed on the inter-floor transport equipment, the goods transport method provided in this application embodiment may further include:

[0145] If the robot preceding the target robot has already placed its loaded cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment, after the target robot reloads the target cargo, the target robot is controlled to place the target cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment.

[0146] If the target robot is not in the first position and the target goods need to be placed on the cross-floor transport equipment, the electronic device can control the robot in front of the target robot to place its own loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment while the target robot moves the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment and begins to move towards the preset temporary storage position.

[0147] If the robot ahead of the target robot has already placed its loaded goods on the inter-floor transport equipment, the electronic device can determine whether the target robot has reloaded the target goods, and after the target robot reloads the target goods, control the target robot to place the target goods on the inter-floor transport equipment; if the target robot has not reloaded the target goods, the electronic device can control the target robot to reload the target goods and control the target robot to place the target goods on the inter-floor transport equipment.

[0148] In this embodiment, if the robot preceding the target robot has already placed its loaded goods on the inter-floor transport equipment, the target robot is controlled to place the target goods on the inter-floor transport equipment after reloading the target goods. This improves both robot efficiency and overall efficiency of inter-floor transport while ensuring that the order in which robots use the inter-floor transport equipment conforms to their queuing order.

[0149] As one embodiment of this application, after performing the step S102 above, which involves controlling the target robot to release the target cargo it carries, the cargo handling method provided in this application embodiment may further include:

[0150] The position of the target robot in the robot queue and the current placement position of the target cargo are locked;

[0151] After the target robot releases the target cargo it is carrying, in order to prevent the target robot's position from being occupied by a robot that was originally behind it in the robot queue, or by a newly entered robot, causing the target robot to lose its queue position due to being scheduled to move cargo, the electronic device can lock the target robot's position in the robot queue; in order to prevent other robots from colliding with the target cargo at the target cargo's current placement position after the target robot places the target cargo in the current placement position, the electronic device can lock the target cargo's current placement position.

[0152] The electronic device can mark the position of the target robot in the robot queue on the map, and the current placement position of the target goods is marked with goods, thus locking the position of the target robot in the robot queue and the current placement position of the target goods.

[0153] In one implementation, when the target robot releases the target cargo in place, the target cargo is placed at the target robot's position in the robot queue. The electronic device can mark the position of the target robot in the robot queue with cargo placed on the map, thereby simultaneously locking the position of the target robot in the robot queue and the current placement position of the target cargo.

[0154] Accordingly, after executing the step S102 above, which involves controlling the target robot to move the goods to be transported to a preset temporary storage location, the goods handling method provided in this application embodiment may further include:

[0155] If the target robot reloads the target cargo, unlock the current placement location of the target cargo;

[0156] When the target robot returns to its position in the robot queue carrying the target cargo, or when the target cargo is placed on the inter-floor transport equipment, the position of the target robot in the robot queue is unlocked.

[0157] When the target robot reloads the target cargo, the target cargo has been transferred from its current location to the target robot, and the electronic equipment can unlock the current location of the target cargo.

[0158] After reloading the target cargo, the target robot can either carry the cargo back to its original position in the robot queue or place the cargo on a cross-floor transport device. In this case, electronic devices can unlock the target robot's position in the robot queue.

[0159] In this embodiment, after the target robot puts down its loaded target goods, the electronic device can lock the target robot's position in the robot queue and the current placement position of the target goods. This prevents other robots from occupying the target robot's position in the queue and protects the space occupied by the target goods from collisions. After the target robot moves the goods to a preset temporary storage location, the current placement position of the target goods is unlocked when the target robot reloads the goods; the target robot's position is also unlocked when it returns to its original position in the robot queue with the target goods, or when it places the target goods on a cross-floor transport device. By unlocking both the current placement position of the target goods and the target robot's position in the robot queue, both positions can be restored to a usable state, improving the utilization efficiency of each location.

[0160] As one embodiment of this application, the storage space of the preset temporary storage location is only allowed to store the goods to be transported. Accordingly, step S102 above, that is, the step of controlling the target robot to release the target goods it is carrying, may include:

[0161] Control the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying in place.

[0162] Due to limited space in cross-floor cargo handling scenarios, the storage space of the preset temporary storage location is limited. Furthermore, the storage space of the preset temporary storage location restricts it to only temporarily storing goods to be transported, and not storing the target goods loaded by the target robot for cross-floor transport.

[0163] Therefore, electronic devices can control the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying in place.

[0164] In this embodiment, when the storage space of the preset temporary storage location is only allowed to hold goods to be transported, the electronic device can control the target robot to release the target goods it is carrying in place. In this way, by releasing the target goods carried by the target robot in place, the response time of the target robot is shortened, the target goods are prevented from occupying other areas, and since the current placement position of the target goods is located in the communication channel of the robot queue, the space currently occupied by the target goods can be protected from collisions with other robots. There is no need to set up an additional buffer area for the target goods released by the target robot, thus improving the site adaptability of the goods handling method.

[0165] As one embodiment of this application, after step S102 above, i.e., the step of controlling the target robot to move the goods to be transported to the preset temporary storage location, the goods transport method provided in this application embodiment may further include:

[0166] Control an empty robot to move the goods to be transported from the preset temporary storage location to the delivery location corresponding to the goods to be transported; wherein, the empty robot is a robot that has placed the goods it is loaded with on the cross-floor transport equipment, or an idle robot that is closest to the preset temporary storage location.

[0167] After the target robot places the goods to be transported in the preset temporary storage location, the electronic equipment also needs to control the empty robot to transport the goods from the preset temporary storage location to the corresponding delivery location.

[0168] In one implementation, the idle robot can be a robot that has already placed its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment. When the electronic device detects the presence of a robot that has already placed its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment, it can control the robot to move the goods to be transported from a preset temporary storage location to the corresponding delivery location, thereby improving robot utilization. Compared to calling idle robots that are not using the cross-floor transport equipment, calling robots that are already using the equipment can reduce the number of robots required for cross-floor goods transport.

[0169] In one implementation, the empty robot can be a robot that was originally at the head of the robot queue and has already placed its loaded goods on the inter-floor transport equipment. When the electronic device detects that the robot originally at the head of the queue has placed its loaded goods on the inter-floor transport equipment, it can control that robot to move the goods to be transported from a preset temporary storage location to the corresponding delivery location. This improves robot utilization and, compared to calling other robots that have already placed their loaded goods on the inter-floor transport equipment, shortens the waiting time for the goods to be delivered, thus improving delivery efficiency.

[0170] In one implementation, the idle robot can be the one closest to the temporary storage location. Electronic devices can control the idle robot closest to the temporary storage location to move the goods to be transported from the preset temporary storage location to the corresponding delivery location, thereby improving the delivery efficiency of the goods to be transported and increasing the utilization rate of the idle robot.

[0171] For example, Figure 9 based on Figure 6 ,like Figure 9 As shown, after the robot 1 places the goods A inside the elevator, the electronic device can control the robot 1 to move to the preset temporary storage position, load the goods M to be transported, and transport the goods M to the destination.

[0172] In this embodiment, the electronic device can control an idle robot to move goods from a temporary storage location to the corresponding delivery location. The idle robot is either a robot that has already placed its loaded goods on the inter-floor transport equipment or an idle robot closest to the temporary storage location. When the idle robot has already placed its loaded goods on the inter-floor transport equipment, the electronic device can call upon this robot to move the goods to the corresponding delivery location. The robot is loaded with goods both when it arrives at and leaves the waiting area of ​​the inter-floor transport equipment, thus improving robot utilization. When the idle robot is an idle robot closest to the temporary storage location, the delivery efficiency of the goods to be moved and the utilization rate of the idle robot can be improved.

[0173] As one embodiment of this application, before step S101 above, i.e., determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor, the goods transport method provided in this application embodiment may further include:

[0174] If there is no first idle robot on the current floor, determine whether there is a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor; wherein, the first idle robot is an idle robot whose distance from the cross-floor transport equipment is not greater than a preset distance;

[0175] If the robot queue exists on the current floor, the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is performed.

[0176] In response to the arrival of the inter-floor transport equipment carrying goods to be transported on the current floor, the electronic equipment can first determine whether there is a first idle robot on the current floor whose distance from the inter-floor transport equipment is no greater than a preset distance. The preset distance can be set according to actual needs, for example, it could be 5 meters, 10 meters, etc., and is not specifically limited here.

[0177] If there is an idle robot on the current floor, in order to improve the efficiency of goods handling, the electronic device can control the idle robot to move the goods to be moved from the cross-floor handling equipment to the corresponding delivery location.

[0178] If there is no first idle robot on the current floor, or if the number of idle robots on the current floor is insufficient or all idle robots are far away from the cross-floor transport equipment, the electronic equipment can further determine whether there is a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor.

[0179] If there is a robot queue on the current floor, the electronic device can perform the above step S101, that is, determine the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor.

[0180] In this embodiment, if there is no first idle robot on the current floor, it is determined whether there is a queue of robots waiting for cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor. The first idle robot is an idle robot whose distance from the cross-floor transport equipment is no greater than a preset distance. If there is a robot queue on the current floor, the step of determining a target robot for transporting goods from the queue of robots waiting for cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is executed. Thus, when the cross-floor transport equipment arrives on the current floor carrying goods, if the electronic device has a first idle robot on the current floor whose distance from the cross-floor transport equipment is no greater than a preset distance, calling upon the first idle robot to transport the goods can improve the efficiency of goods transport. If there is no first idle robot but there is a queue of robots waiting for cross-floor transport equipment, the electronic device determines a target robot for transporting the goods from the queue, which can improve the utilization rate of the robots in the queue, reduce the waiting time when idle robots that are far away from the cross-floor transport equipment arrive and move to the cross-floor transport equipment to carry away the goods, and reduce the waiting time for robots in the queue to use the elevator, thereby improving the efficiency of cross-floor goods transport.

[0181] As one embodiment of this application, the cargo handling method provided in this application embodiment may further include:

[0182] If the robot queue is not present on the current floor, a cargo handling task is issued to the second idle robot on the current floor with the smallest distance from the cross-floor transport equipment. The cargo handling task is used to instruct the second idle robot to move the cargo to be transported from the cross-floor transport equipment to the corresponding delivery location.

[0183] During the process of the second idle robot moving towards the cross-floor transport equipment, it is determined whether there is a third idle robot or a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor. The third idle robot is an idle robot whose distance to the cross-floor transport equipment is less than the current distance between the second idle robot and the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0184] If the robot queue exists on the current floor, the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is executed;

[0185] If the third idle robot exists but the robot queue does not exist, the third idle robot is used as the new second idle robot, and the step of issuing the cargo handling task to the second idle robot with the smallest distance from the cross-floor handling equipment on the current floor is returned until there is a robot queue waiting for the cross-floor handling equipment on the current floor, or the second idle robot arrives at the cross-floor handling equipment and moves the cargo to be transported away from the cross-floor handling equipment.

[0186] If there is no robot queue on the current floor, the electronic device can issue a cargo handling task to the second idle robot on the current floor that is the closest to the cross-floor handling equipment.

[0187] Among them, the cargo handling task is used to instruct the second idle robot to move the cargo to be moved from the cross-floor handling equipment to the corresponding delivery location.

[0188] After receiving a cargo handling task, the second idle robot can move towards the inter-floor transport equipment. During the movement of the second idle robot towards the inter-floor transport equipment, the electronic equipment can determine whether there is a third idle robot or a queue of robots waiting for the inter-floor transport equipment on the current floor.

[0189] The third idle robot is an idle robot whose distance to the cross-floor transport equipment is less than the current distance between the second idle robot and the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0190] If there is a robot queue on the current floor, the electronic device can perform step S101, which is to determine the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor.

[0191] If there is a third idle robot on the current floor and there is no robot queue, the electronic device can use the third idle robot as the new second idle robot, control the original second idle robot to move to the robot's preset parking position to avoid blocking other robots, and return to the above steps of issuing the goods handling task to the second idle robot with the smallest distance from the cross-floor handling equipment on the current floor, until there is a robot queue waiting for the cross-floor handling equipment on the current floor, or the second idle robot arrives at the cross-floor handling equipment and moves the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor handling equipment.

[0192] In this embodiment, if there is no robot queue on the current floor, the electronic device can call the second idle robot closest to the cross-floor transport equipment to perform the goods transport task. While the second idle robot is moving, it continues to search for a newly generated third idle robot that is even closer, and checks whether there are any new robots in the queuing area to transport goods and wait in line for the cross-floor transport equipment. If a new robot is found in the queuing area to transport goods and wait in line for the cross-floor transport equipment, the electronic device calls a robot in the queue waiting in line for the cross-floor transport equipment to transport the goods to be transported, thereby improving robot utilization. If there are no new robots in the queuing area to transport goods and wait in line for the cross-floor transport equipment, the electronic device shortens the waiting time for the goods to be transported by searching for a new robot that is even closer, thereby improving the goods transport efficiency.

[0193] As one embodiment of this application, a flowchart of a cargo handling method can be shown as follows: Figure 10 As shown, the robot scheduling system is the electronic device in this application, the elevator is the cross-floor transport device in this application, and the elevator buffer is the preset temporary storage location in this application; specifically, it may include the following steps S1001-S1009:

[0194] S1001: The elevator has reached the target floor;

[0195] S1002: Is there a schedulable idle robot if the distance to the elevator is less than distance D? Wherein, distance D can be preset in the system; if yes, proceed to step S1003, if no, proceed to step S1004.

[0196] When the robot scheduling system detects that an elevator has arrived at the target floor L, it queries whether there are any available robots that can be scheduled if the distance to the elevator on the target floor L is less than the threshold D, based on the preset distance D in the system.

[0197] S1003: Schedule idle robots to accept goods to be taken out of the elevator;

[0198] S1004: Are there any robots queuing up to carry goods into the elevator? If yes, proceed to step S1005; otherwise, proceed to step S1003.

[0199] If there is an available robot on the target floor L, the robot scheduling system can schedule that available robot to move goods in the elevator.

[0200] If there are no available robots to be dispatched on the target floor L, the robot dispatching system checks the elevator queuing area to see if any robots are carrying goods and waiting to enter the elevator. If no robots are carrying goods and waiting to enter the elevator, the robot dispatching system dispatches the nearest available robot to the elevator to perform the task of carrying goods inside the elevator.

[0201] Furthermore, as the idle robot moves toward the elevator, the robot scheduling system continues to search for newly generated idle robots that are closer in distance, and checks the queuing area to see if there are any new robots carrying goods to queue up and wait to enter the elevator.

[0202] If there is no new robot in the queuing area to carry goods to wait in line for the elevator, and a new idle robot that is closer is found, the robot that is closer is called to perform the task of carrying goods in the elevator.

[0203] S1005: The first robot in the queue places its own goods in place;

[0204] S1006: Mark this location as having goods in the system;

[0205] When robots are queuing to carry goods into an elevator, the robot scheduling system controls the robot at the front of the queue to put down its loaded goods in place and marks the queue position of that robot on the map, preventing other robots from entering that robot's queue position.

[0206] S1007: The robot is scheduled to move the goods to be taken out of the elevator to the elevator buffer position. The elevator buffer position can be preset in the system and associated with the elevator.

[0207] Based on the preset elevator buffer positions in the system, the robot is scheduled to move the goods to be taken out of the elevator to the elevator buffer positions associated with the elevator.

[0208] S1008: Dispatch the robot back to the queuing area, move its original goods into the elevator, and release the elevator;

[0209] S1009: Schedule the robot to transport goods from the elevator to the elevator buffer position to the designated destination.

[0210] After moving the goods to be taken out of the elevator to the elevator buffer position, the robot is dispatched back to the queuing area to reload its original goods, carries the loaded goods into the elevator, and releases the elevator so that it can transport the goods to the target floor. The robot is then dispatched to transport the goods taken from the elevator to the elevator buffer position to the designated destination.

[0211] Corresponding to the above-described cargo handling method, this application also provides a cargo handling device. The cargo handling device provided in this application embodiment is described below.

[0212] like Figure 11 As shown, a cargo handling device includes:

[0213] The robot determination module 1101 is used to determine the target robot for transporting the goods in the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor in response to the cross-floor transport equipment carrying the goods to be transported arriving at the current floor.

[0214] The first control module 1102 is used to control the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying, and to control the target robot to move the cargo to be moved to a preset temporary storage location, wherein the preset temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the cargo to be moved.

[0215] The second control module 1103 is used to control the robots in the robot queue to place their loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment after the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, so that the cross-floor transport equipment can transport its loaded goods to the target floor.

[0216] The solution provided in this application embodiment, in response to the arrival of a cross-floor transport device carrying goods to be transported on the current floor, allows the electronic device to identify a target robot from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport device on the current floor. The target robot is then controlled to release its loaded target goods and move them to a preset temporary storage location, where the temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the goods. After the goods are removed from the cross-floor transport device by the target robot, the robots in the queue are controlled to place their loaded goods onto the cross-floor transport device according to the queue order and the number of goods that the device can hold, so that the cross-floor transport device can transport its goods to the target floor. In this way, the electronic device can call upon the target robot in the queue to move the goods to the preset temporary storage location. Since the robots in the queue can only use the cross-floor transport device after the goods are removed, calling upon robots in the queue to move goods improves the utilization rate of the robots in the queue compared to waiting in place to call upon additional idle robots.

[0217] As one embodiment of this application, the robot determining module 1101 includes:

[0218] The robot determination submodule is used to determine the robot at the head of the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported; or, if the queuing channel of the robot queue allows any robot in the queue to leave the queue, the robot at the head of the queue is used as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported, or a robot is determined from the robots that are not at the head of the queue as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0219] As one embodiment of this application, the robot determination submodule includes:

[0220] The robot determination unit is used to determine, from the robots that are not in the first position, a robot that cannot use the cross-floor transport equipment in this instance, as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported; or, to determine, from the robots that are not in the first position, the robot that is closest to the cross-floor transport equipment, as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

[0221] As one embodiment of this application, the second control module 1103 includes:

[0222] The first control submodule is configured to, when the target robot is the first robot in the queue, after the target robot has moved the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment and after the target robot has reloaded the target goods, control the target robot to place the target goods on the cross-floor transport equipment, and determine whether to control a robot in the queue that is not the first in the queue to place its own loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment; or, when the target robot is not the first robot in the queue, after the target robot has moved the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment, control the first robot in the queue to place its own loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment, and determine whether to control a robot in the queue that is not the first in the queue to place its own loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0223] As one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0224] The third control module is used to control the target robot to place the target goods on the cross-floor transport equipment when the target robot is not in the first position and needs to place the target goods on the cross-floor transport equipment, and the robot in front of the target robot has already placed its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment. After the target robot reloads the target goods, the module controls the target robot to place the target goods on the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0225] As one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0226] A locking module is used to lock the position of the target robot in the robot queue and the current placement position of the target cargo after controlling the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying;

[0227] The first unlocking module is used to unlock the current placement position of the target goods after the target robot has moved the goods to be transported to the preset temporary storage position and the target robot has reloaded the target goods.

[0228] The second unlocking module is used to unlock the position of the target robot in the robot queue when the target robot returns to its position in the robot queue carrying the target cargo, or when the target cargo is placed on the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0229] As one embodiment of this application, the storage space of the preset temporary storage position is only allowed to contain the goods to be transported; the aforementioned first control module 1102 includes:

[0230] The second control submodule is used to control the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying in place.

[0231] As one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0232] The fourth control module is used to control the empty robot to move the goods to be transported from the preset temporary storage location to the corresponding delivery location after controlling the target robot to move the goods to be transported to the preset temporary storage location; wherein, the empty robot is a robot that has placed the goods it is loaded on the cross-floor transport equipment, or an idle robot that is closest to the preset temporary storage location.

[0233] As one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0234] The first determining module is used to determine whether there is a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor before determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported in the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor; wherein, the first idle robot is an idle robot whose distance from the cross-floor transport equipment is not greater than a preset distance; if the robot queue exists on the current floor, the robot determining module 1101 is triggered.

[0235] As one embodiment of this application, the apparatus further includes:

[0236] The task assignment module is used to assign a goods handling task to the second idle robot with the smallest distance from the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor when there is no robot queue on the current floor. The goods handling task is used to instruct the second idle robot to move the goods to be moved from the cross-floor transport equipment to the corresponding delivery location.

[0237] The second determining module is used to determine whether there is a third idle robot or a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor during the process of the second idle robot moving towards the cross-floor transport equipment. The third idle robot is an idle robot whose distance to the cross-floor transport equipment is less than the current distance between the second idle robot and the cross-floor transport equipment. If the robot queue exists on the current floor, the robot determining module 1101 is triggered. If the third idle robot exists but the robot queue does not exist, the third idle robot is designated as the new second idle robot, and the task issuing module is triggered until there is a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor, or the second idle robot arrives at the cross-floor transport equipment and moves the goods to be transported away from the cross-floor transport equipment.

[0238] This application also provides an electronic device, such as... Figure 12 As shown, it includes:

[0239] Memory 1201 is used to store computer programs;

[0240] The processor 1202 is used to execute the program stored in the memory 1201 to implement the cargo handling method described in any of the above embodiments.

[0241] Furthermore, the aforementioned electronic device may also include a communication bus and / or a communication interface, with the processor 1202, the communication interface, and the memory 1201 communicating with each other via the communication bus.

[0242] The solution provided in this application embodiment, in response to the arrival of a cross-floor transport device carrying goods to be transported on the current floor, allows the electronic device to identify a target robot from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport device on the current floor. The target robot is then controlled to release its loaded target goods and move them to a preset temporary storage location, where the temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the goods. After the goods are removed from the cross-floor transport device by the target robot, the robots in the queue are controlled to place their loaded goods onto the cross-floor transport device according to the queue order and the number of goods that the device can hold, so that the cross-floor transport device can transport its goods to the target floor. In this way, the electronic device can call upon the target robot in the queue to move the goods to the preset temporary storage location. Since the robots in the queue can only use the cross-floor transport device after the goods are removed, calling upon robots in the queue to move goods improves the utilization rate of the robots in the queue compared to waiting in place to call upon additional idle robots.

[0243] The communication bus mentioned in the above electronic devices can be a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus or an Extended Industry Standard Architecture (EISA) bus, etc. This communication bus can be divided into address bus, data bus, control bus, etc. For ease of illustration, only one thick line is used to represent it in the diagram, but this does not indicate that there is only one bus or one type of bus.

[0244] The communication interface is used for communication between the aforementioned electronic devices and other devices.

[0245] The memory may include random access memory (RAM) or non-volatile memory (NVM), such as at least one disk storage device. Optionally, the memory may also be at least one storage device located remotely from the aforementioned processor.

[0246] The processors mentioned above can be general-purpose processors, including central processing units (CPUs), network processors (NPs), etc.; they can also be digital signal processors (DSPs), application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), or other programmable logic devices, discrete gate or transistor logic devices, or discrete hardware components.

[0247] In another embodiment provided in this application, a computer-readable storage medium is also provided, which stores a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the steps of any of the above-described cargo handling methods.

[0248] In another embodiment provided in this application, a computer program product containing instructions is also provided, which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the steps of any of the cargo handling methods described above.

[0249] In the above embodiments, implementation can be achieved entirely or partially through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented entirely or partially in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions. When the computer program instructions are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available medium can be a magnetic medium (e.g., floppy disk, hard disk, magnetic tape), an optical medium (e.g., DVD), or a solid-state drive (SSD), etc.

[0250] It should be noted that, in this document, relational terms such as "first" and "second" are used only to distinguish one entity or operation from another, and do not necessarily require or imply any such actual relationship or order between these entities or operations. Furthermore, 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 limitations, 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.

[0251] The various embodiments in this specification are described in a related 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 embodiments of apparatus, electronic devices, computer-readable storage media, and computer program products are basically similar to the method embodiments, and therefore the descriptions are relatively simple; relevant parts can be referred to the descriptions of the method embodiments.

[0252] The above description is merely a preferred embodiment of this application and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of this application. Any modifications, equivalent substitutions, improvements, etc., made within the spirit and principles of this application are included within the scope of protection of this application.

Claims

1. A method for handling goods, characterized in that, The method includes: In response to the arrival of the inter-floor transport equipment carrying the goods to be transported on the current floor, a target robot for transporting the goods is determined from the queue of robots waiting for the inter-floor transport equipment on the current floor. The target robot is controlled to release the target cargo it is carrying, and the target robot is controlled to move the cargo to a preset temporary storage location, wherein the preset temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the cargo to be moved. After the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, the robots in the robot queue are controlled to place their loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, so that the cross-floor transport equipment can transport its loaded goods to the target floor.

2. The method according to claim 1, characterized in that, The step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor includes: The robot at the head of the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is identified as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported; or... If the queuing channel of the robot queue allows any robot in the robot queue to leave the queue, the robot at the front of the queue shall be selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported, or a robot not at the front of the queue shall be selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

3. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The step of determining a robot from among the robots not ranked first as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported includes: From the robots not ranked first, identify one robot that cannot use the cross-floor transport equipment in this instance, and designate it as the target robot for transporting the goods to be moved; or, The robot that is closest to the inter-floor transport equipment among the non-first-ranked robots will be selected as the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported.

4. The method according to claim 2, characterized in that, The step of controlling the robots in the robot queue to place their loaded goods onto the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment includes: If the target robot is the first robot in the queue, after the target robot moves the goods to be transported away from the inter-floor transport equipment and reloads the target goods, the system controls the target robot to place the target goods onto the inter-floor transport equipment. Based on the queue order and the capacity of the inter-floor transport equipment, the system determines whether to control a robot in the queue that is not at the front to place its loaded goods onto the inter-floor transport equipment; or... If the target robot is not the first robot in the queue, after the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, the robot at the first position in the robot queue is controlled to place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment. Based on the queue order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment, it is determined whether to control the robot at the second position in the robot queue to place its loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment.

5. The method according to claim 4, characterized in that, When the target robot is not in the first position and the target goods need to be placed on the inter-floor transport equipment, the method further includes: If the robot preceding the target robot has already placed its loaded cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment, after the target robot reloads the target cargo, the target robot is controlled to place the target cargo on the inter-floor transport equipment.

6. The method according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, After the step of controlling the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying, the method further includes: The position of the target robot in the robot queue and the current placement position of the target cargo are locked; After the step of controlling the target robot to move the goods to be transported to the preset temporary storage location, the method further includes: If the target robot reloads the target cargo, unlock the current placement location of the target cargo; When the target robot returns to its position in the robot queue carrying the target cargo, or when the target cargo is placed on the inter-floor transport equipment, the position of the target robot in the robot queue is unlocked.

7. The method according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, The storage space of the preset temporary storage location is only allowed to store the goods to be transported; The method further includes the step of controlling the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying. Control the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying in place.

8. The method according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, After the step of controlling the target robot to move the goods to be transported to the preset temporary storage location, the method further includes: Control an empty robot to move the goods to be transported from the preset temporary storage location to the delivery location corresponding to the goods to be transported; wherein, the empty robot is a robot that has placed the goods it is loaded with on the cross-floor transport equipment, or an idle robot that is closest to the preset temporary storage location.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1-5, characterized in that, Prior to the step of determining a target robot for transporting the goods in the queue of robots waiting for the inter-floor transport equipment on the current floor, the method further includes: If there is no first idle robot on the current floor, determine whether there is a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor; wherein, the first idle robot is an idle robot whose distance from the cross-floor transport equipment is not greater than a preset distance; If the robot queue exists on the current floor, the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is performed.

10. The method according to claim 9, characterized in that, The method further includes: If the robot queue is not present on the current floor, a cargo handling task is issued to the second idle robot on the current floor with the smallest distance from the cross-floor transport equipment. The cargo handling task is used to instruct the second idle robot to move the cargo to be transported from the cross-floor transport equipment to the corresponding delivery location. During the process of the second idle robot moving towards the cross-floor transport equipment, it is determined whether there is a third idle robot or a queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor. The third idle robot is an idle robot whose distance to the cross-floor transport equipment is less than the current distance between the second idle robot and the cross-floor transport equipment. If the robot queue exists on the current floor, the step of determining the target robot for transporting the goods to be transported from the robot queue waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor is executed; If the third idle robot exists but the robot queue does not exist, the third idle robot is used as the new second idle robot, and the step of issuing the cargo handling task to the second idle robot with the smallest distance from the cross-floor handling equipment on the current floor is returned until there is a robot queue waiting for the cross-floor handling equipment on the current floor, or the second idle robot arrives at the cross-floor handling equipment and moves the cargo to be transported away from the cross-floor handling equipment.

11. A cargo handling device, characterized in that, The device includes: A robot identification module is used to identify a target robot for transporting the goods in the queue of robots waiting for the cross-floor transport equipment on the current floor in response to the arrival of the cross-floor transport equipment with the goods to be transported. The first control module is used to control the target robot to release the target cargo it is carrying, and to control the target robot to move the cargo to be moved to a preset temporary storage location, wherein the preset temporary storage location is used to temporarily store the cargo to be moved. The second control module is used to control the robots in the robot queue to place their loaded goods on the cross-floor transport equipment according to the queuing order and the number of goods that can be placed in the cross-floor transport equipment after the goods to be transported are moved away from the cross-floor transport equipment by the target robot, so that the cross-floor transport equipment can transport its loaded goods to the target floor.

12. An electronic device, characterized in that, include: Memory, used to store computer programs; A processor, when executing a program stored in memory, implements the method described in any one of claims 1-10.

13. A computer-readable storage medium, characterized in that, The computer-readable storage medium stores a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the method described in any one of claims 1-10.

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