Warehouse Infrastructure

Abstract

A warehouse infrastructure component including a controller and an RFID antenna. The controller is configured to receive a motion detection signal from a sensor configured to detect motion in a vicinity of the warehouse infrastructure component and to provide a trigger signal when the motion detection signal indicates that motion has been detected. The RFID antenna is configured to perform an RFID scan in response to the trigger signal and to transmit an RFID scan signal to excite one or more RFID tags in a vicinity of the RFID antenna and to provide RFID signaling representative of the one or more RFID tag signals received from the one or more RFID tags. The controller is further configured to process the RFID signaling to determine one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with the RFID signaling and to transmit an output signal representative of the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to warehouse infrastructure components, and more particularly to warehouse infrastructure components that include RFID antennas. Summary of the Invention [Means for solving the problem]

[0002] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a component of a warehouse infrastructure, comprising: A controller, receiving a motion detection signal from a sensor configured to detect motion in the vicinity of a component of the warehouse infrastructure; providing a trigger signal when the motion detection signal indicates that motion is detected; a controller configured to: an RFID antenna that performs an RFID scan in response to a trigger signal; transmitting an RFID scan signal to excite one or more RFID tags in the vicinity of the RFID antenna; providing RFID signaling representing one or more RFID tag signals received from one or more RFID tags; an RFID antenna configured to: The controller is processing the RFID signaling to determine one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with the RFID signaling; transmitting an output signal representative of the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers; configured to: Warehouse infrastructure components are provided.

[0003] Advantageously, such components of the warehouse infrastructure can be operated in an efficient manner in terms of power consumption, since the RFID antennas are controlled to perform RFID scans at times when there is most likely to be a change in an RFID tag in the vicinity of the component of the warehouse infrastructure.

[0004] The controller is processing the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with the RFID signaling to identify RFID tag identifiers associated with the warehouse inventory; and transmitting output signals representative of only those RFID tag identifiers identified as being associated with the warehouse inventory.

[0005] The controller is comparing the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers with one or more RFID tag identifiers determined from a previous RFID scan; transmitting an output signal representing the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers only if the determined RFID tag identifiers have changed since the previous RFID scan.

[0006] The controller may be configured to postpone providing the trigger signal to the RFID antenna until a predetermined time has elapsed after motion is detected.

[0007] The controller may be configured to provide a trigger signal to the RFID antenna after the detected motion has stopped.

[0008] The warehouse infrastructure component may be a support, a barrier, a racking leg, a support cap, a gate post, or a shelf.

[0009] The warehouse infrastructure component further includes a sensor configured to detect movement in the vicinity of the warehouse infrastructure component.

[0010] Components of the warehouse infrastructure may be battery powered.

[0011] The controller also The RFID antenna may be configured to perform RFID scans periodically or in response to a user-initiated trigger signal.

[0012] Also, an inventory monitoring system, Any warehouse infrastructure component as disclosed herein, wherein an output signal transmitted by the warehouse infrastructure component includes an infrastructure identifier; and a server, receiving an output signal from a component of the warehouse infrastructure; determining a location of the warehouse infrastructure component based on the infrastructure identifier in the received output signal; generating a map of the warehouse including the determined locations of the warehouse infrastructure components along with a representation of the one or more RFID tag identifiers in the output signal; a server configured to: An inventory monitoring system including:

[0013] Inventory monitoring systems include: and may further include one or more additional components of the warehouse infrastructure, wherein an output signal transmitted by each of the one or more additional components of the warehouse infrastructure includes an infrastructure identifier; The server receiving output signals from one or more additional components of the warehouse infrastructure; determining a location of each of the one or more additional components of the warehouse infrastructure based on the infrastructure identifier in each output signal; For any RFID tag identifier represented by the plurality of output signals, determining an inventory location for the RFID tag identifier by combining the determined locations of the warehouse infrastructure components that provided the plurality of output signals; generating a map of the warehouse including the determined inventory locations with associated RFID tag identifiers; The device is configured to:

[0014] The server The inventory location for the RFID tag identifier may be determined by averaging the determined locations of the warehouse infrastructure components that provided the multiple output signals.

[0015] The server The inventory location for the RFID tag identifier may be configured to be determined by using a predetermined relationship between the inventory location and the determined locations of the warehouse infrastructure components that provided the plurality of output signals.

[0016] The server may be configured to determine the inventory location as one of a plurality of predetermined candidate inventory locations representing inventory storage areas within a warehouse.

[0017] According to a further aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a method of scanning a warehouse, the method comprising: receiving a motion detection signal from a sensor configured to detect motion in the vicinity of a component of the warehouse infrastructure; providing a trigger signal when the motion detection signal indicates that motion is detected; Performing an RFID scan in response to a trigger signal transmitting an RFID scan signal to excite one or more RFID tags in the vicinity of the RFID antenna; providing RFID signaling representing one or more RFID tag signals received from one or more RFID tags; processing the RFID signaling to determine one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with the RFID signaling; transmitting an output signal representative of the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers; and A method for scanning a warehouse is provided, comprising:

[0018] A computer program may be provided that, when executed on a computer, causes the computer to configure any apparatus, including the controller, system, or device disclosed herein, or to perform any method disclosed herein. The computer program may be implemented in software, and the computer may be considered to be implemented in any suitable hardware, such as, but not limited to, a digital signal processor, a microcontroller, and implementations in read-only memory (ROM), erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM), or electronically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM). The software may also be an assembly program.

[0019] The computer program may be provided on a computer-readable medium (which may be a physical computer-readable medium, e.g., a disk or memory device) or may be embodied as a transient signal. Such a transient signal may be a network download, e.g., an Internet download. One or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media may be provided that store computer-executable instructions that, when executed by a computing system, cause the computing system to perform any of the methods disclosed herein.

[0020] One or more embodiments will now be described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a schematic plan view of a portion of the interior of a warehouse. [Figure 2] FIG. 1 illustrates an area within a warehouse where two components of a warehouse infrastructure according to the present disclosure reside. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 shows the support column of FIG. 2 in more detail, along with three components of nearby inventory. [Figure 4] FIG. 1 illustrates an exemplary embodiment of an inventory monitoring system according to the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0022] Keeping track of inventory in a warehouse can be difficult, especially in very large warehouses. Also, in some situations, multiple inventory storage containers (e.g., totes, boxes, or pallets) can accumulate in a particular area of ​​the warehouse, and it can be difficult to determine that this is happening and where it is occurring.

[0023] FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic plan view of a portion of the interior of a warehouse. A warehouse is a suitable environment in which the warehouse infrastructure components described herein may be used. FIG. 1 illustrates six banks of racking 101 with aisles 102 between each bank 101. As shown in FIG. 1, a forklift truck (FLT) 108 can travel along the aisles to access inventory stored in different banks of racking 101. Each bank of racking 101 has a number of racking legs 103. The racking legs 103 are vertical supports used to support shelves or pallets. The banks of racking 101 may also include beams (generally horizontal) and / or braces (extending generally diagonally relative to the ground).

[0024] FIG. 1 also shows that a portion of the warehouse is designated as a pedestrian walkway 104. The pedestrian walkway 104 is separated from the racking end aisle by a barrier 105. In this example, the barrier 105 is shown to include a plurality of spaced apart posts 106, with rails 107 joining most of the adjacent posts 106. A pedestrian access point 109 is shown as a gap in the barrier where pedestrians can walk to travel between the pedestrian walkway 104 and the portion of the warehouse where the FLT 108 operates.

[0025] Each of the posts 106, barriers 105, racking legs 103, and banks of racking 101 are examples of warehouse infrastructure components in accordance with the present disclosure. Additionally, one or more of the following may also be considered warehouse infrastructure components: post caps (i.e., caps on the posts), gate posts, shelves, and any other barriers or dividers between different regions within a warehouse (including barriers between different inventory storage areas).

[0026] FIG. 2 illustrates an area within a warehouse in which two components of a warehouse infrastructure according to the present disclosure reside. In this example, the warehouse infrastructure components are a first support pole 210 and a second support pole 211. As will be described below, particularly with reference to FIG. 3, the first and second support poles 210, 211 include a controller and an RFID antenna. The controller and RFID antenna may be located in any desired location relative to their respective support poles 210, 211. In examples where the controller and RFID antenna are located within a cap portion of the support pole 210, 211 (which in some implementations may be provided on the support pole 210, 211 as separate components for mounting thereon), the warehouse infrastructure component including the controller and RFID antenna may be considered a support pole cap.

[0027] 3, RFID antennas on the first and second posts 210, 211 transmit RFID scan signals 212, 213 to excite one or more RFID tags 214 in the vicinity of the RFID antennas. In this example, the RFID tags 214 are associated with inventory items 215 in a warehouse. Each RFID tag 214 may be associated with an individual inventory item 215 or with a container (e.g., a tote, box, or pallet) that stores multiple inventory items.

[0028] Figure 3 shows the post 310 of Figure 2 in more detail, along with three nearby inventory items 315. Each inventory item 315 has an RFID tag 314 associated with it.

[0029] As previously mentioned, the pole 310 includes a controller 316 and an RFID antenna 319. In this example, the pole 310 also includes a transmitter 321 and a sensor 317 for detecting movement in the vicinity of the pole 310.

[0030] Controller 316 is configured to receive motion detection signal 318 from sensor 317. By way of non-limiting example, sensor 317 may implement a vibration sensor, a passive infrared (PIR) sensor, a pressure sensor (which may be mounted, for example, on a shelf that receives inventory), or any other type of sensor capable of detecting motion in the vicinity of support 310. As will be understood from the discussion below, such detected motion may be considered an indication that inventory 315 in the vicinity of support 310 may have moved.

[0031] Controller 316 provides a trigger signal 322 to RFID antenna 319 when motion detection signal 318 indicates that motion has been detected. The RFID antenna then performs an RFID scan in response to trigger signal 322. The RFID scan involves RFID antenna 319 transmitting an RFID scan signal (not shown in FIG. 3 to avoid obscuring other features of the drawing) to excite one or more RFID tags 314 in its vicinity. Any RFID tags 314 that are excited by the RFID scan signal transmit an RFID tag signal 323 in response to the excitation, as is known in the art. In this example, RFID tags 314 are passive. This is advantageous because it eliminates the need to provide batteries for inventory 315 and therefore eliminates the need to periodically recharge or replace any such batteries. Furthermore, RFID tags 314 in this example are ultra-high frequency (UHF) tags.

[0032] The RFID antenna 319 then provides RFID signaling 320 representing one or more RFID tag signals 323 received from one or more RFID tags 314 after excitation with an RFID scan signal.

[0033] The controller 316 processes the RFID signaling 320 to determine one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with the RFID signaling 323 and transmits an output signal 324 representing the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers. In this example, the post 310 includes a transmitter 321 for transmitting the output signal 324 to a remote device (e.g., a server).

[0034] Advantageously, the pole 310 of Figure 3 can be operated in a manner that is efficient in terms of power consumption because the RFID antenna 319 is controlled to perform an RFID scan when it is most likely that there has been a change in the RFID tag 314 (and therefore a change in the inventory 315) near the pole 310. For example, the sensor 317 can detect when an FLT is near the pole 310 because they are removing or adding inventory 315 from a storage bay near the pole 310, and can accordingly perform an RFID scan to check whether any inventory has moved.

[0035] In some examples, the controller 316 may postpone providing the trigger signal 322 to the RFID antenna 319 until a predetermined time has elapsed after motion is detected. This allows any inventory movement operations to be completed before an RFID scan is performed, thereby allowing the minimum (power-intensive) RFID scan required to detect a change in inventory to be performed. In another example, the controller 316 may provide the trigger signal 322 to the RFID antenna 319 after the detected motion has stopped. Again, such an example may increase the likelihood that the RFID scan will detect a change in inventory 315 and reduce the likelihood that an RFID scan will be performed prematurely.

[0036] The energy-efficient implementation of the stanchion 310 described above advantageously allows the stanchion 310 to be battery-powered, allowing for relatively long periods between battery changes or recharges, which is a very important advantage in warehouse environments where mains power may not be directly available to all components of the warehouse infrastructure and / or where it may be desirable to move or replace components of the warehouse infrastructure without having to worry about changing electrical wiring.

[0037] In one implementation, controller 316 determines that RFID tag signal 323 is present in RFID signaling 320 only if the signal strength of RFID tag signal 323 exceeds a threshold. One example of how signal strength may be represented is a received signal strength indication (RSSI) for received RFID tag signal 323. In this manner, weak RFID tag signals 323, perhaps too far away to be considered in the vicinity of mast 310, can be excluded from further processing and omitted from output signal 324.

[0038] In some examples, the controller 316 can process the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with the RFID signaling 320 to identify RFID tag identifiers associated with the warehouse inventory 315. For example, the controller 316 may have access to a lookup table or database in computer memory that stores a list of RFID tag identifiers associated with the warehouse inventory 315. Such a lookup table or database may include RFID tag identifiers that are not associated with inventory. For example, they may instead be associated with infrastructure components or clothing components (e.g., PPE (personal protective equipment)). The controller 316 can then transmit an output signal 324 that represents only the RFID tag identifiers identified as associated with the warehouse inventory 315.

[0039] Such an implementation represents an effective way of determining the location of inventory 315 within the warehouse (potentially, the location of totes, pallets, and boxes carrying the inventory, depending on the use of RFID tags 314). Depending on the location of posts 310 in FIG. 3 (and any other components of the warehouse infrastructure that have the same functionality as posts 310 in FIG. 3), the location of inventory 315 can be determined as it enters / exits the warehouse, as it enters / exits temporary storage locations within the warehouse, and / or as it is moving between such locations. Moreover, as previously mentioned, such location determination can be performed in an energy-efficient manner because RFID scans are performed in response to detected movement that occurs as inventory 315 moves within the warehouse in this manner.

[0040] In some examples, controller 316 may compare the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers to one or more RFID tag identifiers determined from a previous RFID scan (in some examples, the immediately preceding RFID scan). In this manner, controller 316 may determine whether there has been a change in the RFID tag identifiers in the vicinity of support post 310. The change may be the appearance of a new RFID tag identifier and / or the disappearance of an RFID tag identifier. Controller 316 may then transmit an output signal 324 representing the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers only if there has been a change in the determined RFID tag identifiers from the previous RFID scan. In some implementations, output signal 324 may only represent a change in the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers. In another example, the controller 316 can transmit an output signal 324 representing the determined RFID tag identifier(s) only if the determined RFID tag identifier(s) for a current RFID scan differs from the determined RFID tag identifier(s) in a previous RFID scan by at least a minimal amount (e.g., there are at least a threshold number of different RFID tag identifiers returned by the scan, where the threshold number can be one, two, three, or more). In this way, the controller 316 only sends updates (e.g., to a server) if there is some degree of movement (e.g., at least three box movements). This is advantageous when the RFID antenna 319 is scanning an area with a high amount of component movement and for applications where there is a high interest in how many components (e.g., totes, boxes, etc.) are stationary, because battery power is not wasted by sending updates that are not necessary for that particular application. Such an implementation can represent yet another energy-saving process performed by the controller 316. This is because if the output signal 324 does not represent any new information or represents insufficient new information to warrant transmission of the output signal, the output signal 324 will not be transmitted, which again helps to extend the battery life of the stanchion 310 if it is battery powered.

[0041] In some examples, the functionality of one or more of the warehouse infrastructure components disclosed herein can be extended by having the RFID antenna 319 perform RFID scans, either periodically or in response to a user-initiated trigger signal, also by the controller 316 or alternatively by the controller 316. In this manner, RFID signaling 320 can be provided by the RFID antenna 319 on demand, or with at least a minimum time interval between successive RFID scans.

[0042] In yet another example, once motion is detected and RFID antenna 319 performs an RFID scan, controller 316 can wait for a minimum time to expire before providing another trigger signal 322 to RFID antenna 319 (even if motion is detected by sensor 317 within this time). In this way, a minimum wait time between successive RFID scans is achieved. Advantageously, this can reduce the number of output signals transmitted, conserving battery power. This can be particularly useful in applications where inventory is more of a concern than inventory flow / movement.

[0043] An exemplary embodiment of an inventory monitoring system according to the present disclosure is shown in Figure 4. The inventory monitoring system includes a server 425 and one or more components of a warehouse infrastructure (in this example, at least two columns 410, 411).

[0044] FIG. 4 illustrates a warehouse area including eight posts and seven barriers between the posts, which define inventory storage areas within the warehouse. RFID scan signals 412, 413 are shown in FIG. 4 as emanating from two of the posts, 410, 411. However, it is understood that any of the other posts and / or barriers may include RFID scanners and may also emit RFID scan signals in the same manner as described above with respect to FIG. 3, and thus each may generate an output signal representing one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with nearby inventory 415. In this example, each of the output signals includes an infrastructure identifier that is a unique identifier for the warehouse infrastructure component 410, 411 that provided the output signal.

[0045] As will be described, the server 425 can process output signals received from multiple components 410, 411 of the warehouse infrastructure (in this example, received over a network, e.g., the Internet 426) to generate a map of the warehouse that includes the locations of inventory associated with detected RFID tags.

[0046] The server 425 can receive output signals from one or more of the warehouse infrastructure components 410, 411 and determine the location of the warehouse infrastructure component associated with each output signal based on the infrastructure identifier in the respective output signal. In some examples, this can involve the server 425 using a lookup table or database to determine the coordinates of the infrastructure component 410, 411 using the infrastructure identifier.

[0047] The server 425 may then generate a map of the warehouse that includes the determined locations of each of the warehouse infrastructure components 410, 411 along with a representation of the one or more RFID tag identifiers in the output signal associated with each warehouse infrastructure component 410, 411. The representation of the one or more RFID tag identifiers may be provided in any convenient manner. For example, the name of the type of inventory associated with the RFID tag identifier may be displayed along with a count of the amount of inventory detected by the individual warehouse infrastructure components 410, 411.

[0048] In some applications, an RFID tag identifier may be represented by output signals received from multiple components of the warehouse infrastructure. This is illustrated schematically in FIG. 4, where some (if not all) of the inventory 415 can be seen to be exposed to an RFID scan signal 412 from a first post 410 and also to an RFID scan signal 413 from a second post 411. In this case, the server 425 can determine the inventory location for the RFID tag identifier by combining the determined locations of the warehouse infrastructure components 410, 411 that provided output signals containing the same RFID tag identifier. Following this, the server 425 can generate a map of the warehouse to include the determined inventory locations along with representations of the associated RFID tag identifiers.

[0049] In one embodiment, the server 425 may determine an inventory location for an RFID tag identifier by averaging the determined locations of the warehouse infrastructure components that provided multiple output signals. In this manner, the inventory location may be determined as the midpoint between the warehouse infrastructure components that detected the RFID tag associated with the inventory.

[0050] In another embodiment, server 425 can determine an inventory location for the RFID tag identifier by using a predetermined relationship between the inventory location and the determined locations of the warehouse infrastructure components that provided the plurality of output signals. For example, server 425 may have access to computer memory that stores associations between known inventory storage areas and associated warehouse infrastructure components that are proximate to the inventory storage areas. In this manner, server 425 can determine the inventory location as one of a plurality of predetermined candidate inventory locations that represent inventory storage areas within the warehouse.

Claims

1. A component of a warehouse infrastructure comprising: A controller, receiving a motion detection signal from a sensor configured to detect motion in the vicinity of the warehouse infrastructure component; providing a trigger signal when the motion detection signal indicates that motion is detected; a controller configured to: an RFID antenna that performs an RFID scan in response to the trigger signal; transmitting an RFID scan signal to excite one or more RFID tags in the vicinity of the RFID antenna; providing RFID signaling representative of one or more RFID tag signals received from one or more RFID tags; an RFID antenna configured to: The controller processing the RFID signaling to determine one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with the RFID signaling; transmitting an output signal representative of the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers; configured to: Components of warehouse infrastructure.

2. The controller processing the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with the RFID signaling to identify RFID tag identifiers associated with warehouse inventory; transmitting output signals representative of only those RFID tag identifiers identified as associated with warehouse inventory. A warehouse infrastructure component according to claim 1.

3. The controller comparing the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers with one or more RFID tag identifiers determined from a previous RFID scan; transmitting an output signal representing the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers only if the determined RFID tag identifiers have changed since the previous RFID scan; 3. A warehouse infrastructure component according to claim 1 or claim 2, configured to:

4. 4. The warehouse infrastructure component of claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to postpone providing the trigger signal to the RFID antenna until a predetermined time has elapsed after the movement is detected.

5. 4. The warehouse infrastructure component according to claim 1, wherein the controller is configured to provide the trigger signal to the RFID antenna after detected movement has stopped.

6. The warehouse infrastructure component according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the warehouse infrastructure component is a support, a barrier, a racking leg, a support cap, a gate post, or a shelf.

7. A warehouse infrastructure component according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising a sensor configured to detect movement in the vicinity of the warehouse infrastructure component.

8. A warehouse infrastructure component according to any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the warehouse infrastructure component is battery powered.

9. The controller further comprises: A warehouse infrastructure component according to any one of claims 1 to 8, configured to cause the RFID antenna to perform RFID scans periodically or in response to a user initiated trigger signal.

10. 1. An inventory monitoring system, comprising: A warehouse infrastructure component according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein an output signal transmitted by said warehouse infrastructure component comprises an infrastructure identifier; a server, receiving the output signal from the warehouse infrastructure component; determining a location of the warehouse infrastructure component based on the infrastructure identifier in the received output signal; generating a map of the warehouse including the determined locations of components of the warehouse infrastructure along with a representation of one or more RFID tag identifiers in the output signal; a server configured to: Inventory monitoring system including.

11. One or more additional components of the warehouse infrastructure according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the output signal transmitted by each of said one or more additional components of the warehouse infrastructure comprises an infrastructure identifier; The server receiving said output signals from said one or more additional components of warehouse infrastructure; determining a location of each of the one or more additional components of warehouse infrastructure based on the infrastructure identifier in the respective output signal; for any RFID tag identifier represented by a plurality of said output signals, determining an inventory location for said RFID tag identifier by combining said determined locations of said components of warehouse infrastructure that provided said plurality of output signals; creating the map of the warehouse to include the determined inventory locations along with the associated RFID tag identifiers; configured to: The inventory monitoring system of claim 10.

12. The server determining the inventory location for the RFID tag identifier by averaging the determined locations of the components of warehouse infrastructure that provided the plurality of output signals.

12. The inventory monitoring system of claim 11.

13. The server determining the inventory location for the RFID tag identifier by using a predetermined relationship between the inventory location and the determined location of the component of warehouse infrastructure that provided the plurality of output signals.

12. The inventory monitoring system of claim 11.

14. 14. The inventory monitoring system of claim 13, wherein the server is configured to determine the inventory location as one of a plurality of predetermined candidate inventory locations representing inventory storage areas within the warehouse.

15. 1. A method for scanning a warehouse, the method comprising: receiving a motion detection signal from a sensor configured to detect motion in the vicinity of the warehouse infrastructure component; providing a trigger signal when the motion detection signal indicates that motion is detected; performing an RFID scan in response to the trigger signal; transmitting an RFID scan signal to excite one or more RFID tags in the vicinity of the RFID antenna; providing RFID signaling representative of one or more RFID tag signals received from one or more RFID tags; processing the RFID signaling to determine one or more RFID tag identifiers associated with the RFID signaling; transmitting an output signal representative of the determined one or more RFID tag identifiers; A method comprising:

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