ORDER PREPARATION AND PACKING PROCESS

Abstract

The invention relates to a method of preparing an order, implemented using a first and a second set of self-guided trolleys (17,18).According to the invention, the method comprises the following steps: - transporting at least one storage container (16) containing an item from the order by a trolley (17) from the first assembly to a first predetermined parking location (25) facing the position of an operator or a robotic arm (26); - selecting a carton (24) forming the packaging for a parcel of the order; - transporting said carton (23) by a trolley (18) selected from the second assembly to a second predetermined parking location (23) adjacent to said first location (25) at an order preparation station (121); - picking an item from the order by said operator or robotic arm (26) from said storage container (16) and placing said item in said carton (24); - transporting said carton (24) to an order shipping station (131). Abstract figure: Figure 2.

Description

Title of the invention: METHOD FOR PREPARING ORDERS AND PACKING THEM INTO CARTONS Field of invention

[0001] The field of the invention is that of warehouse or store logistics and in particular the automation of the logistics chain.

[0002] More specifically, the invention relates to a method for preparing and packing at least part of an order.

[0003] The invention finds application in particular in the automation of flow management within a store and / or a storage warehouse, for example in an order preparation warehouse of a logistics chain, in the automation of the sorting of articles in a store or warehouse, or even in the automation of an order delivery service at a collection point, commonly called a "drive". Prior art

[0004] In the global supply chain, the management of flows and the handling of products within a warehouse or store play a decisive role.

[0005] Traditionally, an order picker moves around a warehouse to collect each product in an order from its location on a shelf in a rack.

[0006] It is noted that such an organization implies that the preparer travels long distances during a working day, which causes fatigue and loss of time when the journey is not optimized.

[0007] Another disadvantage is that the preparer must know the layout of the warehouse perfectly in order not to waste time.

[0008] To limit fatigue due to travel, improve picking management, and reduce order preparation time, we have devised a warehouse organization in "Goods to man" mode (in which the products are brought by mechanized means to the order preparers).

[0009] It is thus known to implement conveyors to transport products from a storage area of ​​a warehouse to an order preparation station and to transport products from the order preparation station to a shipping station.

[0010] This known technique, however, has the disadvantages of being complex and expensive to implement and requires the design of large warehouses, due to the bulkiness of the conveyors themselves.

[0011] Furthermore, as soon as items from an order are loaded onto a conveyor, it is no longer possible to replace them with items from another order that has become a priority, which means that the order of preparation of the orders cannot be changed at short notice.

[0012] In order to overcome these drawbacks, it has been proposed to implement mobile robots, and in particular robots of the automated guided vehicle (AGV) type, to pick products from the shelves and transport them to an order preparation station. Examples of such mobile robots are given in particular in applications WO 2017 / 064428, WO 2018 / 189110 and WO 2022 / 058569.

[0013] In addition to preparing the order, another important step is putting the order into boxes. There are two distinct types of processes at this stage. The first is called "pick then pack" (or "picking then packing") and consists of picking items from the warehouse, then transporting them to the preparation station where they will be sorted by order, then packed in a box. The second is called "pick and pack" (or "picking and packing") and consists of directly bringing together all the items of the same order in a box. This last method is particularly interesting, insofar as it combines the picking and packing operations.

[0014] For example, techniques are known where an order preparer picks up items brought to an order preparation station by a mobile robot and places them in a box placed on a conveyor or on a table equipped with combs, where a mobile robot can pick up this box from below, in particular by means of systems based on forks whose fingers slide into the openings of the comb.

[0015] A disadvantage of these known techniques is that the operator must make a large movement to place each item in a box, which constitutes a waste of time. Furthermore, these operations of transferring items into a box are often difficult for an operator, which can lead to products falling or being knocked about, and makes the work of an order picker difficult, or even likely to affect their health.

[0016] Furthermore, generally speaking, the management of the fleet of mobile robots within a warehouse or storage workshop is a complex operation, the efficiency of which is constantly being improved in terms of flexibility of flows, simplicity of operations, and in particular of boxing, and speed of product transfers to constitute orders and route them to a dispatch station. There is therefore a need for solutions that meet these requirements. Objectives of the invention

[0017] The invention therefore aims in particular to overcome the drawbacks of the state of the art cited above.

[0018] More specifically, the invention aims to provide an order preparation technique which makes it possible to reduce order preparation times and the times for packaging orders for shipment.

[0019] Another objective is to have a technique that allows for packaging adapted to each order, which will reduce the number of operators previously needed to find the right packaging adapted to the right order.

[0020] Another objective of the invention is to significantly improve the management of the fleet of trolleys in a store or in a storage workshop, in terms of optimizing flows and speed of product transfers and order creation.

[0021] In particular, in a particular embodiment of the invention, an objective of the invention is to allow temporary storage of a portion of the items in an order being prepared, for example while awaiting restocking of an item ordered but missing from the warehouse or store, or when it is necessary to defer dispatch of the order.

[0022] An objective of the invention is also to reduce the risks of musculoskeletal disorders occurring for operators working at an order preparation station.

[0023] The invention also aims to limit the risks of deterioration of products at an order preparation station resulting from a fall or impact with an element of the environment of the order preparation station.

[0024] Another objective of the invention is to provide a technique for preparing orders and putting them into boxes which is simple to implement and inexpensive. Presentation of the invention

[0025] These objectives, as well as others which will appear subsequently, are achieved using a method of preparing and packing at least part of an order comprising at least one item, implemented using: - an order preparation and boxing station; - a first set of self-guided trolleys capable of rolling on the ground, intended to pick up storage containers of at least one item and to transport said containers to the order preparation and boxing station, and - a second set of self-guided trolleys capable of rolling on the ground, intended to transport boxes containing at least some of the articles of the same order from said order preparation and cartoning station to a dispatch station for said order, to a temporary storage area or to a conveyor connected to a dispatch station for said order,

[0026] said method comprising the following steps: - a step of placing at least one storage container at said order preparation and boxing station comprising the steps of: • association with at least one trolley of said first set of a storage container containing at least one item of said control part; • removal by said cart(s) of the first set of said storage container(s) containing items from said control part; • transporting said storage container(s) by said cart(s) of the first set to a first predetermined parking location facing the position of an operator or a robotic arm at the order preparation and cartoning station; - a step of placing a box at said order preparation and boxing station comprising the steps of: • selection of a carton capable of containing at least the items of said order part, said selected carton being intended to form the packaging of a parcel for at least said order part; • picking up said selected carton by a trolley selected from the second set of trolleys; • transporting said selected carton by said selected cart in the second set of carts to a second predetermined parking location adjacent to said first predetermined parking location and facing the position of an operator or robotic arm at the order preparation and cartoning station; - a step of picking up by an operator or a robotic arm at least one item from said order part in a storage container directly above said first parking location and placing said item in said selected carton directly above said second parking location; - a step of transporting said selected carton in which the item(s) of said order part have been placed by said trolley of said second set to an order dispatch station, a storage area temporary or to a conveyor connected to a shipping station for said order.

[0027] Thus, in a novel manner, the invention proposes to position the trolleys conveying the products to the order preparation station and the trolleys bringing boxes on two adjacent locations facing the operator or a robotic arm, in order to be able to transfer the articles of an order between storage containers and a shipping box in a simple and ergonomic movement of an arm of the operator or the robotic arm and in a reduced time.

[0028] Furthermore, the method according to the invention is particularly simple and efficient: because the articles are placed directly in the shipping carton of the order, the number of handling operations is particularly reduced. In addition, only three successive operations, the execution of which is optimized in terms of time, are required to allow the shipping of an order (transport of the articles to the ordering and cartoning station, transfer of the articles into a carton and transport of the carton to the shipping station), which makes it possible to significantly reduce the total time for preparing a package, from the collection of the articles to shipping.

[0029] In the context of the invention, the selection of a carton can be carried out by the operator stationed at the order preparation or cartoning station, or automatically by a dedicated application. For this selection operation, the operator or the application can take into account, in a non-exhaustive manner, the number and size of the items in the order or of the part of the order to be contained in the carton, the nature and fragility of the items, the size of the wedging and / or protection elements to be put in place to effectively protect the items during transport, the sizes of cartons available, etc.

[0030] It will be noted that the method according to the invention also makes it possible to correct an error concerning the size of the cardboard selected by an operator or a software application.Indeed, if as items from an order are successively placed in a selected carton, the operator or software application finds, for example when attempting to place a new item in the carton, that the initially selected carton is of insufficient size to contain all of the items for which this carton was intended, the operator or application can select another larger carton which will be picked up by another trolley from the second set and transported to the second location, while the trolley from the second set carrying the initially selected carton will have received instructions to leave the second location to free up space for the trolley carrying the newly selected carton and to go to the first location.

[0031] The operator or robotic arm can then pick the items from the initially selected carton and place them in the newly selected carton.

[0032] It should also be noted that, within the scope of the invention, the term cardboard is understood in its general sense as a container, namely a cardboard box, of generally parallelepiped shape or any other suitable known shape. This box is generally made by folding and / or assembling different sheets of cardboard, for example with adhesive tape. This box can be closed by at least one flap or by a cap, by way of example. The term cardboard is also understood in its general sense as a material, namely a material made from paper or a paper analogue, whether it is, without limitation, simple, corrugated, honeycomb or even laminated cardboard.

[0033] It will further be noted that preferably, the parking spaces are within reach of the operator, or the robotic arm, so that the operator does not need to walk or to not have to move the motorized arm on the ground.

[0034] Furthermore, the position of the first and second parking spaces can be easily modified, without losing efficiency in the order preparation time, which makes it possible to develop and / or increase the capacity of a warehouse or store in which the orders are prepared within very short timeframes.

[0035] Furthermore, the order preparation method according to the invention offers very great flexibility with regard to the management of the fleet of trolleys, the same trolley being able to be used alternatively to ensure the transport of storage containers or boxes and therefore be part of the first or second set of trolleys as required.

[0036] Furthermore, thanks to the method according to the invention, several orders consisting of articles stored at different storage locations in the workshop, the store or the warehouse, can be carried out simultaneously and in a reduced time.

[0037] It is thus possible to begin to constitute a first order at the preparation station in a first box brought by a trolley of the second set, by asking an operator or a robotic arm to place therein some of the articles of the first order, these articles contained in different storage containers having been transported beforehand to the preparation station, by a plurality of trolleys of the first set of trolleys.

[0038] In the event that the preparation of a second order becomes a priority, or if it is not possible to finalize the preparation of the first order because an item of it is missing, the trolley of the second set leaves space on the first parking location to another trolley of the second set carrying a second box for the preparation of a second order. and transports the first box in which some of the items from the first order have been placed to a temporary storage area, pending finalization of the first order.

[0039] Preparation of the second order can then begin, by instructing the operator or robotic arm to place items from the second order contained in storage containers brought to the station by trolleys from the first set into the second carton. Once all or part of the items from the second order have been placed in the second carton, the latter can be sent to a temporary storage area, to a shipping station or a conveyor connected to a shipping station.

[0040] In summary, at least three operating modes for preparing an order can be envisaged using the method according to the invention:

[0041] Example 1: preparation of a “simple” order consisting of a single item.

[0042] After associating a trolley from the first set with the storage container containing the single item in the order, this cart transports this storage container to the first predetermined parking location at the order preparation station. The operator or a robotic arm picks the item and places it in a carton brought to the second predetermined parking location by a cart from the second set of carts. The carton can then be transferred to a shipping station or to a temporary storage area.

[0043] Example 2: preparation of a “simple” order made up of several different items stored in different locations in a warehouse.

[0044] The preparation of the order takes place in a manner substantially similar to example 1. The order comprising several items, several trolleys from the first set are provided here to pick up the storage containers each containing one of the items of the order, after having associated with each one of the storage containers to be picked, and they are presented one after the other at the first predetermined parking location. An operator or a robotic arm then successively picks up the different items of the order and places them in a box brought to the second predetermined parking location by a trolley from the second set of trolleys. This box can then be transferred to a shipping station or to a temporary storage area.

[0045] Example 3: preparation of part of an order comprising several items and putting this order on hold to prepare another order which has in the meantime become a priority.

[0046] In this example, the preparation of an order begins according to the procedure in example 2. If another order takes priority, the transfer of the items from the order being prepared into the box present at the level is interrupted. of the order preparation station, and the trolley of the second set carrying this carton leaves the second location and moves to a temporary storage area. This frees the first predetermined parking location for a trolley of the second set carrying a carton associated with the order that has become a priority and the preparation of the order that has become a priority can begin by transporting storage containers containing items of the order that has become a priority using trolleys of the first trolley set to the first parking location.

[0047] The above examples of operating modes are in no way limiting of the manner of managing trolleys, articles and orders when implementing the method of the present invention. They are simply intended to illustrate the flexibility offered by said method with regard to the management of trolleys and with regard to the creation of orders.

[0048] It will also be noted that within the scope of the invention, the term trolley is understood to mean any motorized vehicle equipped with at least two wheels for rolling on the ground (and which may therefore have 2, 3 or 4 or even a greater number of rolling wheels) and intended to transport a load, with the exception of any flying vehicle.

[0049] Furthermore, the terms "articles" and "products" can be substituted for each other. They simply designate an object, in particular a commercial object, stored in a workshop, a store or a warehouse, in particular with a view to being associated with another article to fulfill an order.

[0050] It should also be noted that within the scope of the invention, the temporary storage area may be an area intended to store orders waiting to be delivered at a “drive”, without departing from the scope of the invention.

[0051] Preferably, at least some of the trolleys of said first set of trolleys are also trolleys belonging to said second set of trolleys or vice versa.

[0052] This reduces the total number of trolleys required to transport storage containers and boxes.

[0053] According to a particular embodiment of the invention, said second set of carriages is a subset of said first set of carriages or vice versa.

[0054] The number of trolleys used is thus reduced to the strict minimum.

[0055] In a particular embodiment of the invention, said first parking space and said second parking space are formed of two substantially adjacent flat surfaces forming a portion of the upper part of a ramp.

[0056] The items to be picked can thus be easily placed at the height of an operator, which also makes placing them in the boxes easier.

[0057] According to a particular aspect of the invention, said ramp comprises means for charging a battery of one of said trolleys of said first and / or said second set.

[0058] These may be, for example, induction charging modules, also called "pads", which allow the batteries of the trolleys to be charged when they are parked on the ramp. This saves time and space, because it is not necessary to provide additional charging stations or at least the capacity and / or the number of other charging stations can be reduced.

[0059] Advantageously, said first parking space and / or said second parking space is inclined relative to the horizontal.

[0060] This makes it easier to remove an item from a storage container and place it in a box.

[0061] In a variant of this particular embodiment of the invention, said first parking space and said second parking space are at different heights.

[0062] It is thus possible to independently adapt the height of the upper opening of the storage containers and the upper opening of the cartons, for example to place these openings substantially at the same level if the storage containers and the cartons have different height dimensions.

[0063] According to an advantageous embodiment of the invention, when said control part comprises a plurality of different articles, said step of transporting said storage containers comprises a step of positioning said trolleys of said first set in an aligned line and directed towards said first parking location.

[0064] Storage containers containing various items from the same order part can thus be presented one after the other at the first location without loss of time.

[0065] According to a particular aspect of the invention, said storage containers are bins, baskets or crates.

[0066] In a particular embodiment of the invention, at least one of said storage containers is a carton containing at least one item of an order.

[0067] Advantageously, said order dispatch station comprises a carton sealer.

[0068] Thus, if the carton delivered to a shipping station contains all of the items ordered, the carton can be closed and shipped from the shipping station.

[0069] In a particular embodiment of the invention, the base of said robotic arm is fixed or rotates around an axis fixed relative to the ground.

[0070] In another particular embodiment of the invention, the base of said robotic arm is slidably mounted on at least one rail.

[0071] In a particular embodiment of the invention, when an operator performs said step of picking up at least one item from said order part and placing said picked item in said selected carton, said step of selecting a carton comprises a step of transmitting a signal containing information representative of a carton selected by said operator capable of being processed by a carton stock management unit.

[0072] This may in particular be an automated cardboard stock management unit.

[0073] In a particular embodiment of the invention, when a robotic arm performs said step of picking up at least one item from said control part and placing said picked item in said selected carton, said step of selecting a carton comprises a step of choosing an arrangement of said item(s) of said control part as a function of their order of presentation directly above said first predetermined parking location. List of figures

[0074] Other characteristics and advantages of the invention will appear more clearly on reading the following description of an embodiment of the invention, given as a simple illustrative and non-limiting example, and the appended drawings among which:

[0075] [Fig. 1] is a representation of an e-commerce distribution warehouse in which an exemplary embodiment of an order preparation method according to the invention is implemented;

[0076] [Fig.2] is a detailed perspective view of an order preparation station and packing of the warehouse presented with reference to [Fig.l];

[0077] [Fig.3] is a partial front view of the order preparation and placing station in cardboard presented with reference to [Fig.2];

[0078] [Fig.4] is a partial side view of the order preparation and placing station cardboard presented with reference to [Fig.2]. Detailed description of the invention

[0079] [Fig.l] illustrates a robotic distribution warehouse 10 of an online commerce company. This warehouse is organized into three zones: a storage zone 11, an order preparation and cartoning zone 12 equipped with order preparation and cartoning stations 12i and a shipping zone 13 equipped with a parcel shipping station 13i including a carton sealer 132.

[0080] The storage area 11 consists of a plurality of shelves 14 formed of shelves on several levels supported by uprights 15, and organized in successive parallel rows. Storage bins 16 which can contain all similar items or a plurality of different items from the same product range are stored on these shelves. Furthermore, it should be noted that some of these shelves are reserved for the temporary storage of boxes pre-filled with one or more items from the same order, waiting to be transported to a preparation and boxing station 12! to allow the other missing items to be placed there to finalize the boxing of the orders for which they have been assigned or while waiting to be sent to the shipping station 13i.

[0081] A first fleet of automatically guided trolleys 17, equipped with four rolling wheels on the ground, ensures the transport of the storage bins 16 between the storage area 11 and the order preparation and boxing stations 12b.

[0082] When a trolley 17 receives instructions to pick up a bin 16 containing one or more items of an order from a shelf, the trolley 17 rolls on the ground to the foot of the shelf 14 where this bin 16 is stored and climbs along this shelf, resting on the shelf facing the latter, to the level of the shelf where this bin 16 is stored and picks it up. The trolley 17 then descends between the two shelves, and once on the ground, transports the bin 16 to an order preparation station 12i.

[0083] A second fleet of automatically guided trolleys 18 ensures the transport of selected cartons to form the packaging of the parcels of the orders. These trolleys 18 ensure the picking of the selected cartons at a carton stock management unit 110 which delivers the cartons, the transport of the selected cartons to an order preparation and cartoning station 12i and the transport

[0084] of cartons in which one or more articles have been previously placed of the same order taken from storage bins 16 transported to the order preparation station 12i by trolleys 17, from an order preparation station 12i to the carton sealer 132 of the shipping station 13i.

[0085] In this particular embodiment of the invention, the selected cartons are cartons known per se, of rectangular parallelepiped shape opening on their upper face and equipped with four flaps to close the opening of the carton. These cartons can be of different dimensions depending on the number and size of the different articles they are intended to contain.

[0086] In a variant of this particular embodiment of the invention, it may be provided that a trolley 17 or 18 is used both to transport storage bins 16 to an order preparation and cartoning station 12i and, intermittently, to transport cartons to the shipping station 131 or vice versa, depending on the changing needs and the availability of the other trolleys in these fleets at any given time.

[0087] [Fig.2] shows in detail an order preparation and boxing station 12i in a perspective profile view.

[0088] In this particular embodiment of the invention, the order preparation and cartoning station 12i is equipped with a raising ramp 21 and a robotic arm 26 known per se.

[0089] The storage bins 16 are conveyed to this order preparation and cartoning station 12i by trolleys 17 of the first set of self-guided trolleys which take the raising ramp 21 from the left side. The trolleys 18 of the second set of self-guided trolleys leave the ramp 21 from its right side, in this particular embodiment of the invention.

[0090] The upper end of the ramp 21 is surmounted by a grid 27 separating the robotic arm 26 from the circulation zone of the carriages 17 and 18. An opening 29 is also formed in this grid to allow access of the carriages 17 and 18 within reach of the robotic arm 26.

[0091] The robotic arm 26, mounted on a fixed base 26i, is intended to pick up an article from a storage bin 16 conveyed by a trolley 17 to a predetermined parking location 23 at the end of the ramp 21 (shown by dotted lines in [Fig. 2] and in [Fig. 3], which is a front view of the order preparation and cartoning station 12J and to place it in a carton 24 transported by a trolley 18 to a predetermined parking location 25 at the end of the ramp 26 (shown by dotted lines in FIGS. 2 and 3). This carton 24 selected to form the packaging for the order being prepared was picked up by the trolley 18 at the level of the carton stock management unit 110.The selection of this carton from a set of available carton formats stored in the carton stock management unit 110 was carried out by a dedicated application based on the size and shape of the order items to be prepared and the cushioning to be provided to these items to ensure suitable protection.

[0092] The first parking location 25 and the second parking location 23 of the trolleys being advantageously adjacent and facing the robotic arm 26, the movements of the arm 26, for each article handled, are limited to taking an article from the storage bin 16, to a rotation of the arm to position the arm above the carton 24, to the depositing following a substantially vertical movement of the article in the carton 24 and to a return to its initial position, which makes it possible to repeat these operations with a high rate.

[0093] It is also easily understood that, in variants of this particular embodiment of the invention, where the operations carried out by the robotic arm are carried out by an operator, in addition to the time saving that this arrangement provides, significantly reduces the risk of musculoskeletal disorders occurring for the operator and the risk of items falling onto the floor if they escape from the operator's hand.

[0094] It can also be seen in [Fig. 4], which is a side view of the order preparation station 12i illustrated in [Fig. 2], that the respective parking locations 23 and 25 of the trolleys 18 and 17 are located on an inclined plane 31 relative to the horizontal of the upper end of the ramp 21, which facilitates access by the robotic arm to the articles in the storage bins 16 and their placement in the cartons 24.

[0095] In order to limit the time lost in transporting the various storage bins making it possible to constitute an order to the second parking space 25, the trolleys 17 are advantageously positioned in a line one behind the other on the ramp 21 while waiting for the space on the parking space 25 to be freed by the trolley preceding them after the item(s) of the order have been taken from the storage bin supported by this trolley by the robotic arm 26, by moving aside.

[0096] In addition, charging pads 28 are provided on each of the edges of the ramp 21 to recharge the batteries of the trolleys 17 or 18.

Claims

1. Claims Method for preparing at least part of an order comprising at least one item, implemented using: - an order preparation station (12J and boxing; - a first set (17) of self-guided trolleys capable of rolling on the ground, intended to pick up storage containers (16) of at least one item and to transport them to said order preparation station (12J) and boxing station, and - a second set (18) of self-guided trolleys capable of rolling on the ground, intended to transport cartons (24) containing at least part of the articles of the same order from said order preparation and cartoning station to a dispatch station for said order, to a temporary storage area or to a conveyor connected to a dispatch station for said order, said method comprising the following steps: - a step of placing at least one storage container at said order preparation and boxing station comprising the steps of: * association with at least one trolley of said first set of a storage container (16) containing at least one article of said control part; * removal by said trolley(s) of the first set of said storage container(s) (16) containing items from said control part; * transporting said storage container(s) (16) by said trolley(s) to a first predetermined parking location (25) facing the position of an operator or a robotic arm (26) at the order preparation and cartoning station; - a step of placing a carton (24) at said order preparation and cartoning station comprising the steps of: * selection of a carton (24) capable of containing at least the items of said order part, said selected carton being intended to form the packaging of a parcel for at least said order part; * picking up said selected carton by a trolley selected from the second set (18) of trolleys; * transporting said selected carton (24) by said trolley selected from the second set of trolleys to a second predetermined parking location (23) adjacent to said first predetermined parking location (25) and facing the position of an operator or a robotic arm (26) at the order preparation and cartoning station; - a step of picking up by an operator or a robotic arm (26) at least one item from said order part in a storage container (16) directly above said first parking location (25) and depositing said item in said selected carton (24) directly above said second parking location (23);- a step of transporting said selected carton (24) in which the item(s) of said order part have been placed by said carriage of said second set to an order dispatch station, a temporary storage area or to a conveyor connected to a dispatch station for said order, characterized in that said first parking location (25) and said second parking location (23) are formed of two substantially adjacent flat surfaces forming a portion of the upper part of a ramp (21) and which are at different heights.;

2. Method according to claim 1, characterized in that during said step of picking by said one or more trolleys from the first set of said one or more storage containers containing articles of said control part, said one or more storage containers (16) are picked from one or more shelves (14) for storing articles.

3. Method according to any one of claims 1 and 2, characterized in that at least a part of the carriages of said first set (17) of carriages are also carriages belonging to said second set (18) of carriages or vice versa.

4. Method according to claim 3, characterized in that said second set (18) of carriages is a subset of said first set (17) of carriages or vice versa.

5. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 4, characterized in that said ramp (21) comprises means (28) for charging a battery of one of said trolleys of said first and / or said second set.

6. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 5, characterized in that said first parking location (25) and / or said second parking location (23) is inclined (31) relative to the horizontal.

7. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, characterized in that, when said control part comprises a plurality of different articles, said step of transporting said storage containers (16) comprises a step of positioning said trolleys of said first set in an aligned line and directed towards said first parking location (25).

8. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 7, characterized in that said order dispatch station comprises a carton sealer.

9. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 8, characterized in that the base (261) of said robotic arm (26) is fixed or rotates around an axis fixed relative to the ground.

10. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, characterized in that when an operator performs said step of picking up at least one item from said order part and placing said picked item in said selected carton, said step of selecting a carton (24) comprises a step of transmitting a signal containing information representative of a carton selected by said operator capable of being processed by a carton stock management unit.

11. Method according to any one of claims 1 to 10, characterized in that when a robotic arm (26) performs said step of picking up at least one article from said control part and placing said picked article in said selected carton, said step of selecting a carton (24) comprises a step of choosing an arrangement of said article(s) of said control part according to their order of presentation directly above said first predetermined parking location (25).