Robot control method and device, cargo transport system

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to a robot control method and apparatus, a cargo transport system, and a computer-readable storage medium. The robot includes a liftable fork and at least one back basket, the fork being for loading and unloading cargo, and each back basket being for temporarily storing cargo. The robot control method includes controlling the robot to move to a first pickup stop position, where the first pickup stop position is a stop position where the robot retrieves at least one first target cargo; controlling the robot to retrieve the at least one first target cargo using the fork at the first pickup stop position, where retrieving the at least one first target cargo using the fork includes retrieving one of the at least one first target cargo using the fork and loading it onto the fork; and controlling the robot to move to a target position when retrieving the at least one first target cargo at the first pickup stop position is completed, where one of the at least one first target cargo is loaded onto the fork while the robot is moving to the target position.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application is based on and claims priority from a Chinese application having application number CN202310736004.5 and filed on June 20, 2023, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference. [Technical Field]

[0002] The present disclosure relates to the field of computer technology, and more particularly to a robot control method and apparatus, a cargo handling system, and a computer-readable storage medium. [Background technology]

[0003] A multi-tank robot is a device that carries a back basket and forks. In related technology, the robot stops at a pickup stop position, and is controlled to use the forks to pick up cargo and load it into the back basket at the pickup stop position, and further, only the robot with cargo loaded in the back basket is controlled to move to an unloading stop position. Summary of the Invention

[0004] According to a first aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a robot control method, wherein the robot includes a fork that can be raised and lowered and at least one back basket, the fork is for putting in and taking out cargo, and each back basket is for temporarily storing cargo, the robot control method including: controlling the robot to move to a first pickup stop position, the first pickup stop position being a stop position where the robot picks up at least one first target cargo; controlling the robot to pick up the at least one first target cargo using the fork at the first pickup stop position, where using the fork to pick up the at least one first target cargo includes using the fork to pick up one of the at least one first target cargo and loading it onto the fork; and when picking up the at least one first target cargo at the first pickup stop position is completed, controlling the robot to move to a target position, where one of the at least one first target cargo is loaded onto the fork while the robot is moving to the target position.

[0005] In some embodiments, the target position includes an unloading stop position corresponding to the at least one first target cargo, and the unloading stop position is a stop position where the robot places the at least one first target cargo, and the robot control method further includes controlling the forks to place the first target cargo to be loaded on the forks at a cargo position corresponding to the unloading stop position when the robot moves to the unloading stop position, and after placing the first target cargo to be loaded on the forks at the cargo position corresponding to the unloading stop position, if cargo is loaded into a back basket of the robot, controlling the forks to remove the first target cargo to be loaded into the back basket from the back basket and place the removed first target cargo at a cargo position corresponding to the unloading stop position.

[0006] In some embodiments, when there is space in the robot's back basket, the target position includes a second pickup stop position, the second pickup stop position being a stop position for removing at least one second target cargo, and the robot control method further includes controlling the forks to load the first target cargo to be loaded onto the forks into the empty back basket, and when the robot moves to the second pickup stop position, controlling the robot to use the forks at the second pickup stop position to remove the at least one second target cargo, and removing the at least one second target cargo using the forks includes using the forks to remove one of the at least one second target cargo and load it onto the forks.

[0007] In some embodiments, using the forks to remove the at least one second target cargo further includes using the forks to remove other second target cargoes from the at least one second target cargo other than the second target cargo loaded on the forks and loading them into an empty back basket.

[0008] In some embodiments, a method for controlling a robot includes, in response to receiving a request to obtain a load status of the robot at a first time, transmitting load status information of a back basket of the robot at the first time; and receiving task information of a transport task corresponding to the first time, the task information being determined according to the load status information of the back basket of the robot at the first time, the task information corresponding to the first time including position information of the first pickup stop location, cargo information of the at least one first target cargo, and position information of a unloading stop location corresponding to the transport task at the first time; and, if a cargo docking type at the robot station belongs to a specified docking type, transmitting loading status information of a back basket and a fork of the robot at the second time in response to receiving a request to acquire a loading status of the robot at a second time after the first time, wherein the loading status information of the back basket and the fork of the robot at the second time is for determining task information of a transportation task corresponding to the second time, and the task information corresponding to the second time includes location information of the second pickup stop location, cargo information of the at least one second target cargo, and location information of an unloading stop location corresponding to the transportation task at the second time.

[0009] In some embodiments, the robot control method further includes acquiring locally stored configuration information, the configuration information including a correspondence between an unloading stop position and whether cargo loading is performed using the back basket and the forks simultaneously, and if the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at the first time belongs to a specified docking type and the configuration information indicates that cargo loading is performed using the back basket and the forks simultaneously at the unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at the first time, transmitting loading status information of the back basket and the forks of the robot at the second time in response to receiving a request to acquire the loading status of the robot at a second time after the first time.

[0010] In some embodiments, using the forks to retrieve and load one of the at least one first target cargo onto the forks includes using the forks to retrieve and load one of the at least one first target cargo onto the forks if the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position corresponding to the at least one first target cargo belongs to a specified docking type.

[0011] In some embodiments, the robot control method further includes retrieving locally stored configuration information, the configuration information including a correspondence between an unloading stop position and whether cargo loading is performed by simultaneously using a back basket and a fork, and if the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position belongs to a specified docking type and the configuration information indicates that cargo loading is performed by simultaneously using a back basket and a fork at the unloading stop position, using the fork to retrieve one of the at least one first target cargo and load it onto the fork.

[0012] In some embodiments, using the forks to remove the at least one first target cargo further includes using the forks to remove other first target cargoes than the at least one first target cargo loaded on the forks and load them into an empty back basket of the robot.

[0013] In some examples, the robot control method further includes, in response to receiving a request to obtain a loading status of the robot at a first time, transmitting loading status information of a back basket of the robot at the first time and receiving task information of a transportation task corresponding to the first time, wherein the task information is determined according to the loading status information of the back basket of the robot at the first time, and the task information corresponding to the first time includes position information of the first pickup stop position, cargo information of the at least one first target cargo, and position information of the target position.

[0014] According to a second aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a first control module configured to control a robot to move to a first pickup stop position, the first pickup stop position being a stop position where the robot retrieves at least one first target cargo, the robot including a liftable fork and at least one back basket, the fork for loading and unloading cargo, and each back basket for temporarily storing cargo; and a second control module configured to control the robot to retrieve the at least one first target cargo using the fork at the first pickup stop position. a second control module configured to control the robot to move to a target position when the removal of the at least one first target cargo at the first pickup stop position is completed, and wherein the fork is loaded with one of the at least one first target cargo while the robot is moving to the target position.

[0015] According to a third aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a robot control device including a memory and a processor coupled to the memory and configured to execute the robot control method described in any one of the above embodiments based on instructions stored in the memory.

[0016] According to a fourth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a cargo transport system including a robot control device configured to execute the robot control method according to any one of the above embodiments.

[0017] In some embodiments, the cargo transportation system further includes a task processing device configured to send a request to the robot control device to obtain a loading status of the robot at a first time, the robot control device being configured to send loading status information of the robot's back basket at the first time to the task processing device in response to receiving the request to obtain the loading status of the robot at the first time, the task processing device being further configured to determine task information of a transportation task corresponding to the first time according to the loading status information of the robot's back basket at the first time, the task information corresponding to the first time including location information of a first pickup stop position, cargo information of at least one first target cargo, and location information of a target position.

[0018] In some embodiments, the task information corresponding to the first time further includes location information of an unloading stop location corresponding to the at least one first target cargo, the target location including a second pickup stop location, the second pickup stop location being a stop location for picking up at least one second target cargo, the task processing device is further configured to send a request to the robot control device to obtain a loading status of the robot at a second time after the first time, the robot control device is further configured to send a docking type indicating a cargo docking type at the unloading stop location corresponding to the at least one first target cargo, If the robot belongs to a group, in response to receiving a request to obtain the loading status of the robot at the second time, the task processing device is configured to send loading status information of the back basket and fork of the robot at the second time to the task processing device, and the task processing device is further configured to determine task information of a transportation task corresponding to the second time according to the loading status information of the back basket and fork of the robot at the second time, and the task information corresponding to the second time includes location information of a second pickup stop position, cargo information of at least one second target cargo, and location information of an unloading stop position corresponding to the at least one second target cargo.

[0019] According to a fifth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon computer program instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the robot control method described in any one of the above embodiments to be realized.

[0020] According to a sixth aspect of the present disclosure, there is provided a computer program comprising instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to perform the robot control method according to any one of the above embodiments. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0021] The drawings, which form a part of the specification, illustrate embodiments of the disclosure and, together with the specification, serve to explain the principles of the disclosure.

[0022] The present disclosure will be more clearly understood from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the drawings. [Figure 1] 1A and 1B are schematic diagrams illustrating the configuration of a robot according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 2] 1 is a flowchart illustrating a robot control method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 3] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a robot controller according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating a robot controller according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 5] 1 is a block diagram illustrating a cargo transportation system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure. [Figure 6] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a computer system for implementing some embodiments of the present disclosure. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0023] Various exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Unless otherwise specified, the relative arrangements of components and steps, formulas, and numerical values ​​described in these embodiments do not limit the scope of the present disclosure.

[0024] Furthermore, for the sake of convenience, it should be understood that the dimensions of the various parts shown in the drawings are not drawn to actual proportions.

[0025] The following description of at least one exemplary embodiment is merely exemplary in nature and is in no way to be construed as limiting the present disclosure and its application or uses.

[0026] Techniques, methods and equipment known to those skilled in the art may not be discussed in detail, but where appropriate, said techniques, methods and equipment should be considered part of the description.

[0027] In all examples shown and discussed herein, any specific values ​​should be construed as exemplary only, not limiting, and therefore other examples of the exemplary embodiment may have different values.

[0028] It should be noted that like numerals and letters represent like items in the following drawings, so that once an item is defined in one drawing, it need not be further discussed in subsequent drawings.

[0029] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating the configuration of a robot according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0030] As shown in FIG. 1 , the robot 10 includes a fork 11 that can move up and down and at least one back basket 12. The fork 11 is used to load and unload cargo, and each back basket 12 is used to temporarily store cargo. For example, the fork 11 is used to remove cargo from a location where the cargo is placed, such as a shelf, and load it into the back basket 12, or to remove cargo from the back basket 12 and load it into a location where the cargo is placed, such as a shelf. The robot 10 further includes a movable mechanism 13 and a stand 14. The robot 10 is movable by the movable mechanism 13. The fork 11 is movable up and down along the stand 14. For example, the shape or structure of the back basket 12 may be a rack shape as shown in FIG. 1 or may be another shape, such as a box. In some embodiments, the cargo may be a tank.

[0031] For example, the process of the robot 10 loading and unloading cargo may include the forks 11 lifting and lowering to grab a tank on an external shelf, loading it into the back basket 12 after picking it up, and when the robot 10 reaches the tank loading destination, removing the tank from the back basket 12 and placing it on the conveying line. In this operation process, the operation steps can be broken down into the following steps, in order: picking up from the shelf, completing the pick-up and loading it onto the forks, unloading from the forks to the back basket, completing the unloading and loading it into the back basket, picking up from the back basket, completing the pick-up and loading it onto the forks, placing it outside from the forks, and completing the unloading and moving it to the shelf.

[0032] In the related art, even when the robot is fully loaded with cargo, i.e., the back basket is full of cargo, the forks are still empty and each part of the robot cannot be fully utilized.

[0033] In response to the above technical issues, the present disclosure proposes a robot control method that can improve the cargo carrying capacity and efficiency of a robot.

[0034] The following describes in detail the robot control method in the embodiment of the present disclosure, taking as an example a case where the robot includes a fork that can be raised and lowered and at least one back basket.

[0035] FIG. 2 is a flowchart illustrating a robot control method according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0036] As shown in FIG. 2 , the robot control method includes the following steps: Step S210: Control the robot to move to a first pickup stop position. The first pickup stop position is a stop position where the robot picks up at least one first target cargo. Step S220: Control the robot to pick up at least one first target cargo using a fork at the first pickup stop position. Here, picking up the at least one first target cargo using the fork includes picking up one first target cargo of the at least one first target cargo using the fork and loading it onto the fork. Step S230: When picking up the at least one first target cargo of the at least one first target cargo at the first pickup stop position is completed, control the robot to move to a target position. Here, while the robot is moving to the target position, one first target cargo of the at least one first target cargo is loaded onto the fork. The robot control method of the present disclosure can be applied to a cargo receiving scenario or a cargo outgoing scenario.

[0037] In some embodiments, when multiple first target cargoes are present, the remaining first target cargoes other than the first target cargo loaded onto the fork are loaded into a back basket of the robot. In some embodiments, the robot control method is performed by a robot control device. For example, the robot control device is deployed in a robot control console or a robot control system. In other embodiments, the robot control method may be performed by a robot. For example, the robot control device is deployed on the robot.

[0038] In the above embodiment, while the robot is controlled to transport cargo, the robot's forks are controlled to load and move one cargo. This allows the robot to load cargo not only using the back basket but also using the forks. The "back basket + fork" method can be used to provide carrying capacity, thereby improving the robot's cargo transport capacity. Furthermore, providing carrying capacity to the forks in addition to the back basket increases the number of cargoes the robot can transport in one trip, thereby improving the robot's cargo transport efficiency. For example, if a robot has eight back baskets and one fork, loading cargo using the "back basket + fork" method can be referred to as "8+1" loading. Tests have shown that the robot control method disclosed herein can increase the number of cargoes a robot can transport in one trip by 12.5%.

[0039] In step S210, the robot is controlled to move to a first pickup stop position. The first pickup stop position is a stop position where the robot picks up at least one first target cargo. For example, the pickup stop position is a picking point.

[0040] In step S220, the robot is controlled to retrieve at least one first target cargo using the forks at the first pickup stop position. Here, retrieving the at least one first target cargo using the forks includes retrieving one of the at least one first target cargo using the forks and loading it onto the forks. In some embodiments, when there are multiple first target cargoes, the other first target cargoes among the multiple first target cargoes other than the first target cargo loaded onto the forks are loaded into the back basket of the robot. For example, the cargo may be a tank, and the cargo loaded onto the forks may be a tank that can be held by the forks.

[0041] In some embodiments, when using the forks to retrieve at least one first target cargo, the forks retrieve one first target cargo at a time. For example, the forks retrieve the first target cargo from a cargo location (e.g., a storage location) at a first pickup stop location using the forks. The warehouse includes a plurality of shelves, with a laneway between two adjacent rows of shelves, and the robot travels along the laneway and stops at different pickup stop locations. The shelves have multiple levels, each level has a plurality of storage locations, and each storage location holds one first target cargo.

[0042] In some embodiments, using the forks to remove and load one of the at least one first target cargo onto the forks can occur in various ways.

[0043] Taking the retrieval scenario of a plurality of first target cargoes as an example, the forks may be used to sequentially retrieve the first target cargoes other than the last first target cargo among the plurality of first target cargoes according to the retrieval order from the storage positions on the shelf and load them into the back basket, and then the forks may be used to retrieve the last first target cargo and load it onto the forks. That is, the forks move while holding the last first target cargo that is located last in the retrieval order among the plurality of first target cargoes having the retrieval order.

[0044] Still taking the outgoing scenario of multiple first target cargoes as an example, the multiple first target cargoes may be sequentially removed according to the outgoing order and loaded into the back basket using a fork, and cargo may be removed from the back basket at a position corresponding to the designated outgoing order and loaded onto the fork. That is, the fork moves while holding one first target cargo other than the last first target cargo located at the end of the outgoing order among the multiple first target cargoes having the outgoing order. The outgoing order here may also be referred to as the cargo removal order.

[0045] In the above example, in the outbound scenario, the first target cargo to be loaded onto the fork may be retrieved from a storage location on the shelf or from the back basket. The inbound scenario is similar to the outbound scenario described above and will not be further described here.

[0046] In some examples, the robot control method further includes, in response to receiving a request to obtain a load status of the robot at a first time, transmitting load status information of a back basket of the robot at the first time and receiving task information of a transport task corresponding to the first time. The task information corresponding to the first time is determined according to the load status information of the back basket of the robot at the first time, and the task information corresponding to the first time includes position information of a first pickup stop position, cargo information of at least one first target cargo, and position information of the target position.

[0047] In some embodiments, the task information corresponding to the first time further includes location information of an unloading stop location corresponding to at least one first target cargo. The unloading stop location is a stop location where the robot places the at least one first target cargo, such as a tank loading point, i.e., a location point where a tank is loaded. The location information of the first pickup stop location is used to control the robot to move to the first pickup stop location. The cargo information of the at least one first target cargo includes the number of at least one first target cargo (cargo to be picked up) and cargo location information (e.g., storage location where the cargo is located). The back basket loading status information includes, for example, the number and label of empty back baskets.

[0048] In some embodiments, the task information may be generated by the task processing device in response to dynamically changing transport tasks in a task pool in the task processing device, for example, the task processing device is equipped with a task distribution system that distributes robot transport tasks to robot controllers or robots.

[0049] In some embodiments, the robot controller may obtain loading status information for the robot by obtaining and storing snapshot information for the robot.

[0050] In some embodiments, when multiple first pickup stops are included, the task information corresponding to the first time further includes a movement path of the robot formed by the multiple first pickup stops and / or a pickup order (or removal order) for removing the first target cargo at each first pickup stop. The movement path of the robot formed by the multiple first pickup stops is determined according to information such as the location of the robot at the first time, an associated cost of the movement path, and lane popularity.

[0051] In some embodiments, using the forks to remove at least one first target cargo further includes using the forks to remove other first target cargoes than the at least one first target cargo loaded on the forks and loading them into an empty back basket of the robot.

[0052] In step S230, when the removal of the at least one first target cargo from the first pickup stop position is completed, the robot is controlled to move to the target position, where one of the at least one first target cargo is loaded onto the fork while the robot is moving to the target position.

[0053] In some embodiments, the target locations may include a drop stop location corresponding to at least one first target load. The drop stop location may include a load location where the load is placed. For example, in an outbound scenario, the at least one first target load in a single transfer may correspond to the same load location, e.g., the same conveyance line. For example, in an inbound scenario, the at least one first target load in a single transfer may correspond to different load locations, e.g., different shelves or different storage locations on the same shelf.

[0054] In some embodiments, when the fullness rate of the robot's back baskets is equal to or greater than a fullness rate threshold, or when the number of empty back baskets is equal to or less than a number threshold, the robot is controlled to move to an unloading stop position. By determining the fullness rate or the number of empty back baskets, the robot can be filled as much as possible during a single transport, further improving the transport efficiency of the robot transporting cargo.

[0055] In some embodiments, using a fork to pick up and load one of the at least one first target cargo onto the fork includes using a fork to pick up and load one of the at least one first target cargo onto the fork if the cargo docking type at the unloading stop corresponding to the at least one first target cargo belongs to the designated docking type. The cargo docking type refers to the docking type at which cargo is placed and can be understood as a cargo location type, for example, a conveyance line type or a shelf type. By determining the cargo docking type at the unloading stop, cargo can be loaded onto the fork only at the designated docking type, thereby realizing different modes of transportation control in different scenarios and providing greater flexibility. In some embodiments, the designated docking type is a docking type that allows cargo to be loaded or unloaded using a fork. For example, the designated docking type may be a conveyance line type, a shelf type, etc. The conveyance line type is typically the designated docking type in an outbound scenario, indicating that the cargo location at the unloading stop is a conveyance line. The shelf type is typically the designated docking type in a warehousing scenario, indicating that the cargo location at the unloading stop is a storage location on the shelf.

[0056] In some embodiments, the robot control method further includes retrieving locally stored configuration information, the configuration information including a correspondence between the unloading stop position and whether the back basket and the fork are to be used simultaneously to load cargo. In this case, if the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position belongs to a specified docking type and the configuration information indicates that the back basket and the fork are to be used simultaneously to load cargo at the unloading stop position, the fork is used to pick up one of the at least one first target cargo and load it onto the fork. Taking "8+1" loading as an example, the configuration information includes a correspondence between the unloading stop position and an indicator indicating whether "8+1" loading is to be performed. A user can initialize and maintain the configuration information.

[0057] In the above example, the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position is usually pre-configured by the workstation corresponding to the unloading stop position. By adding locally stored configuration information, some cargo docking types can flexibly configure whether to use the "back basket + fork cargo loading" method for cargo transportation at the unloading stop position belonging to the specified docking type, thereby improving the flexibility of the robot's cargo transportation.

[0058] In some embodiments, for example, when the target location includes at least one unloading stop location corresponding to the first target cargo, when the robot moves to the at least one unloading stop location corresponding to the first target cargo, the robot controls the forks to place the first target cargo at a cargo location corresponding to the unloading stop location. The cargo location is a location for placing cargo, i.e., a location where the cargo is located. After the first target cargo is placed at the cargo location corresponding to the unloading stop location, if cargo is to be loaded into the robot's back basket, the robot controls the forks to remove the first target cargo from the back basket and place the removed first target cargo at a cargo location corresponding to the unloading stop location. For example, when the robot uses the forks to remove and load cargo at a pickup stop location, the robot reports the position information of the pickup stop location, information about the change in the cargo position, etc. This allows the robot control device or the robot to determine whether to load cargo onto the forks and whether to load cargo into the back basket. In some embodiments, the robot reports its position information to the robot controller in real time, allowing the robot controller to determine the location of the robot in real time and control the robot to move, etc.

[0059] In the above embodiment, when the robot is transporting cargo to the unloading stop position, the cargo on the fork can be directly placed at the cargo position at the unloading stop position, and only the cargo in the back basket needs to be controlled so that the fork first removes the cargo from the back basket and then places the removed cargo at the cargo position at the unloading stop position. For the same number of cargoes, this method can reduce the number of steps for the fork to pick up the cargo from the back basket by one and reduce the number of steps for the fork to place the removed cargo in the back basket by one, allowing the cargo to be removed and placed at the cargo position at the unloading stop position more quickly, further improving the transport efficiency of the robot.

[0060] In some embodiments, when the robot's back basket is empty and the robot has not moved to the unloading stop position, the target position includes a second pickup stop position, the second pickup stop position is a stop position for removing at least one second target cargo, and the second pickup stop position is reached after the first pickup stop position. The robot control method further includes controlling a fork to load the first target cargo to be loaded onto the fork into the empty back basket, and, when the robot has moved to the second pickup stop position, controlling the robot to remove the at least one second target cargo using the fork at the second pickup stop position, wherein removing the at least one second target cargo using the fork includes removing one of the at least one second target cargo using the fork and loading it onto the fork.

[0061] In the above embodiment, the robot is initially controlled to transport cargo at the first pickup stop position, but then, since there is still space in the robot's back basket, the robot is controlled to reach the second pickup stop position and continue picking up cargo before moving to the unloading stop position to fill the robot as full as possible, thereby further improving the transport efficiency of the robot's cargo transport.

[0062] In some embodiments, when the robot has completed the removal of the at least one second target cargo using the forks at the second pickup stop, the robot is controlled to move to another target position other than the above target positions, such as a third pickup stop reached after the second pickup stop, or a stop position for unloading the at least one first target cargo and the at least one second target cargo.

[0063] In some embodiments, using the forks to remove at least one second target cargo further includes using the forks to remove other second target cargoes from the at least one second target cargo other than the second target cargo loaded on the forks and loading them into an empty back basket.

[0064] In some embodiments, for example, when the task information corresponding to the first time includes position information of a loading stop corresponding to the transport task at the first time, the robot control method further includes, in response to receiving a request to acquire the robot's loading status at a second time after the first time, transmitting loading status information of the robot's back basket and fork for the second time if the cargo docking type at the loading stop corresponding to the transport task corresponding to the first time belongs to a specified docking type. The loading status information of the robot's back basket and fork for the second time is used to determine task information for the transport task corresponding to the second time, where the task information corresponding to the second time includes position information of a second pickup stop, cargo information of at least one second target cargo, and position information of the loading stop corresponding to the transport task at the second time. In some embodiments, the cargo needs to be placed by the fork at the loading stop of the specified docking type. For example, the specified docking type is a transport line docking type or a shelf docking type.

[0065] In the above example, at the first time, the robot cannot determine whether it can use the forks to load cargo. Therefore, only the loading status information of the back basket is transmitted at the first time and used to determine the transport task. Meanwhile, after receiving the transport task at the first time, it can determine whether it can load cargo using the "back basket + fork" method according to the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position corresponding to the transport task at the first time. Therefore, at the second time, the loading status information of the forks and back basket is transmitted and used to determine the additional transport task, which can more accurately assign transport tasks to the robot and improve the rationality of transport task assignment.

[0066] In some embodiments, the request to obtain the loading status of the robot is periodic. In this case, the loading status of the robot is monitored in real time, and transportation tasks are added to the robot to keep the robot as fully loaded as possible, thereby further improving the efficiency of the robot's cargo transportation. For example, the request to obtain the loading status of the robot is sent approximately once every 200 milliseconds. In this case, the task processing device periodically monitors the transportation tasks in the task pool and adds transportation tasks to the robot based on the loading status of the robot.

[0067] In some embodiments, the robot control method further includes acquiring locally stored configuration information, the configuration information including a correspondence between an unloading stop position and whether cargo loading is performed using the back basket and the forks simultaneously. In this case, if a cargo docking type at the unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at a first time belongs to a specified docking type and the configuration information indicates that cargo loading is performed using the back basket and the forks simultaneously at the unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at the first time, in response to receiving a request to acquire a loading status of the robot at a second time after the first time, transmitting loading status information of the back basket and the forks of the robot at the second time.

[0068] In the above example, the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position is usually pre-configured by the workstation corresponding to the unloading stop position. By adding locally stored configuration information, some cargo docking types can flexibly configure whether to use the "back basket + fork cargo loading" method for cargo transportation at the unloading stop position belonging to the specified docking type, thereby improving the flexibility of the robot's cargo transportation.

[0069] In some embodiments, the above-described step of using the forks to retrieve at least one second target cargo includes, when one second target cargo is present at the second pickup stop position, and when only one second target cargo is present at the second pickup stop position, using the forks to retrieve the second target cargo and load it onto the forks.

[0070] In some embodiments, utilizing the forks to retrieve at least one second target cargo may further include the following steps.

[0071] First, if there are multiple second pickup stop positions and the number of empty back baskets is equal to or greater than the number of the multiple second pickup stop positions, the robot is controlled to use the forks to pick up the second target cargo at the second pickup stop positions other than the last second pickup stop position and load it into an empty back basket.

[0072] Then, when only one second target cargo is present at the final second pickup stop position, the robot is controlled to use the forks at the final second pickup stop position to pick up the second target cargo and load it onto the forks.When multiple second target cargoes are present at the final second pickup stop position, the robot is controlled to use the forks at the final second pickup stop position to pick up second target cargoes other than the final second target cargo among the multiple second target cargoes and load them into an empty back basket, and further to use the forks to pick up the final second target cargo among the multiple second target cargoes and load it onto the forks.

[0073] In some embodiments, the second target cargo to be loaded onto the fork may be a second target cargo positioned in a pick-up order other than the last of the multiple second target cargoes having a pick-up order. In this case, the multiple second target cargoes may be first picked up and loaded into the back basket according to the pick-up order using the fork, and then the second target cargo that needs to be loaded by the fork may be picked up from the back basket and loaded onto the fork.

[0074] FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a robot controller according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0075] As shown in FIG. 3, the robot control device 31 includes a first control module 311, a second control module 312, and a third control module 313.

[0076] The first control module 311 is configured to control the robot to move to a first pickup stop position, where the robot picks up at least one first target cargo, for example, by executing step S210 shown in Fig. 2. The robot includes a liftable fork and at least one back basket, where the fork is used to load and unload at least one cargo, and each back basket is used to temporarily store cargo.

[0077] The second control module 312 is configured to control the robot to use the forks to retrieve at least one first target cargo at the first pickup stop position, where using the forks to retrieve the at least one first target cargo includes using the forks to retrieve one of the at least one first target cargo and load it onto the forks, for example, performing step S220 shown in FIG. 2.

[0078] In some embodiments, the second control module 312 is further used to use the forks to remove second target cargo other than the second target cargo loaded on the forks from among the at least one second target cargo and load it into an empty back basket.

[0079] In some embodiments, the second control module 312 is further used to use the forks to remove at least one first target cargo other than the one loaded on the forks and load it into an empty back basket of the robot.

[0080] The third control module 313 is configured to control the robot to move to the target position when the removal of the at least one first target cargo at the first pickup stop position is completed, and while the robot is moving to the target position, the fork is loaded with one of the at least one first target cargo, and for example, execute step S230 shown in Figure 2.

[0081] In some embodiments, taking the case where the target positions include at least one unloading stop position corresponding to a first target cargo as an example, the robot control device 31 further includes a fourth control module. The fourth control module is configured to control the forks to place the first target cargo to be loaded on the forks at a cargo position corresponding to the unloading stop position when the robot moves to the unloading stop position, and after placing the first target cargo to be loaded on the forks at the cargo position corresponding to the unloading stop position, when cargo is loaded in the back basket of the robot, to control the forks to remove the first target cargo to be loaded in the back basket from the back basket and place the removed first target cargo at the cargo position corresponding to the unloading stop position.

[0082] In some embodiments, when the robot's back basket is empty, the target position includes a second pickup stop position, which is a stop position for retrieving at least one second target cargo. In this case, the robot control device 31 further includes a fifth control module. The fifth control module is configured to control the forks to load the first target cargo to be loaded onto the forks into the empty back basket, and, when the robot moves to the second pickup stop position, to control the robot to retrieve the at least one second target cargo using the forks at the second pickup stop position, where retrieving the at least one second target cargo using the forks includes retrieving one of the at least one second target cargo using the forks and loading it onto the forks.

[0083] In some embodiments, the robot controller 31 further includes a transmitting module and a receiving module.

[0084] The transmission module is configured to transmit back basket load status information of the robot at the first time in response to receiving a request to obtain a load status of the robot at the first time.

[0085] The receiving module is configured to receive task information of a transportation task corresponding to a first time, the task information being determined according to loading status information of the back basket of the robot at the first time, and the task information corresponding to the first time including position information of a first pickup stop position, cargo information of at least one first target cargo, position information of the target position, and position information of an unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at the first time.

[0086] The transmission module is further configured to transmit loading status information of the back basket and fork of the robot for the second time in response to receiving a request to obtain the loading status of the robot at a second time after the first time, when the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task corresponding to the first time belongs to a specified docking type, and the loading status information of the back basket and fork of the robot for the second time is for determining task information of the transportation task corresponding to the second time, and the task information corresponding to the second time includes location information of the second pickup stop position, cargo information of at least one second target cargo, and location information of the unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at the second time.

[0087] In some embodiments, the robot control device 31 further includes an acquisition module. The acquisition module is configured to acquire locally stored configuration information, the configuration information including a correspondence between an unloading stop position and whether cargo loading is performed using the back basket and the forks simultaneously. The transmission module is further configured to transmit loading status information of the back basket and the forks of the robot for a second time period in response to receiving a request to acquire the loading status of the robot at a second time period after the first time period, when a cargo docking type at the unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at the first time period belongs to a specified docking type and the configuration information indicates that cargo loading is performed using the back basket and the forks simultaneously at the unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at the first time period.

[0088] In some embodiments, the second control module 312 is further configured to utilize the forks to retrieve and load one of the at least one first target cargo onto the forks when the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position corresponding to the at least one first target cargo belongs to the specified docking type.

[0089] In some embodiments, the second control module 312 is further configured to use the forks to retrieve and load one of the at least one first target cargo onto the forks when the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position belongs to the specified docking type and the configuration information indicates that cargo loading is to be performed at the unloading stop position using the back basket and forks simultaneously.

[0090] The division into different modules in the above embodiment is merely one division scheme and does not represent the only division scheme. The robot controller may be located in a robot control console or robot control system, or may be located on the robot.

[0091] FIG. 4 is a block diagram illustrating a robot controller according to some other embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0092] 4, the robot control device 41 includes a memory 411 and a processor 412 coupled to the memory 411. The memory 411 is for storing instructions for executing a corresponding embodiment of a robot control method. The processor 412 is configured to execute the robot control method of any embodiment of the present disclosure based on the instructions stored in the memory 411.

[0093] FIG. 5 is a block diagram illustrating a cargo transportation system according to some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0094] 5, the cargo transport system 5 includes a robot control device 51. The robot control device 51 is configured to execute the robot control method according to any embodiment of the present disclosure, and is, for example, the robot control device 31 or the robot control device 41.

[0095] In some embodiments, the cargo transport system 5 further includes a task processor 52. The task processor 52 is configured to send a request to the robot controller at a first time to obtain a loading status of the robot.

[0096] The robot control device 51 is configured to transmit loading status information of the back basket of the robot at the first time to the task processing device in response to receiving a request to acquire the loading status of the robot at the first time.

[0097] The task processing device 52 is further configured to determine task information for a transportation task corresponding to a first time according to the loading status information of the back basket of the robot at a first time, and the task information corresponding to the first time includes location information of each first pickup stop position, cargo information of at least one first target cargo, and location information of the target position.

[0098] In some embodiments, the task information corresponding to the first time further includes location information of an unloading stop location corresponding to the at least one first target cargo, the target location including a second pickup stop location, the second pickup stop location being a stop location for picking up the at least one second target cargo. In this case, the task processor 52 is further configured to send a request to the robot controller to obtain a loading status of the robot at a second time that is later than the first time.

[0099] The robot control device 51 is further configured to, in response to receiving a request to obtain the loading status of the robot at a second time, send loading status information of the back basket and forks of the robot at a second time to the task processing device, if the cargo docking type at the unloading stop position corresponding to at least one first target cargo belongs to a specified docking type.

[0100] The task processing device 52 is further configured to determine task information of a transportation task corresponding to a second time according to the loading status information of the back basket and forks of the robot at a second time, and the task information corresponding to the second time includes position information of a second pickup stop position, cargo information of at least one second target cargo, and position information of an unloading stop position corresponding to at least one second target cargo (i.e., an unloading stop position of the transportation task corresponding to the second time).

[0101] In some embodiments, the cargo transport system further includes a robot in the above-described embodiments, where the robot controller is not deployed on the robot, and the robot controller can be separated from the robot to reduce robot costs and reduce stress on the robot's control system.

[0102] FIG. 6 is a block diagram illustrating a computer system for implementing some embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0103] 6, computer system 60 may be represented in the form of a general-purpose computing device. Computer system 60 includes memory 610, a processor 620, and a bus 600 that connects the different system components.

[0104] The memory 610 may include, for example, a system memory, a non-volatile storage medium, etc. The system memory stores, for example, an operating system, applications, a boot loader, other programs, etc. The system memory may also include a volatile storage medium, for example, a random access memory (RAM) and / or a cache memory. The non-volatile storage medium stores, for example, instructions of corresponding embodiments that execute at least one of the robot control methods. The non-volatile storage medium includes, but is not limited to, a magnetic disk memory, an optical memory, a flash memory, etc.

[0105] The processor 620 may be implemented by discrete hardware components such as a general-purpose processor, a digital signal processor (DSP), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field-programmable gate array (FPGA) or other programmable logic device, discrete gates, or transistors. Accordingly, for example, each of the judgment module and the decision module may be implemented by a central processing unit (CPU) executing instructions in a memory that perform the corresponding steps, or may be implemented by a dedicated circuit that performs the corresponding steps.

[0106] Bus 600 may use any of a variety of bus structures, including, but not limited to, an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, a MicroChannel Architecture (MCA) bus, and a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus.

[0107] The computer system 60 may further include an input / output interface 630, a network interface 640, a storage interface 660, etc. These interfaces 630, 640, 660, the memory 610, and the processor 620 may be connected via a bus 600. The input / output interface 630 may provide a connection interface for input / output devices such as a display, a mouse, and a keyboard. The network interface 640 provides a connection interface for various devices connected to a network. The storage interface 660 provides a connection interface for external storage devices such as a floppy disk, a U disk, and an SD card.

[0108] Aspects of the present disclosure have been described herein with reference to flowcharts and / or block diagrams of methods, apparatuses, and computer program products according to embodiments of the present disclosure. It will be understood that each block of each flowchart and / or block diagram, and combinations of blocks, can be implemented by computer-readable program instructions.

[0109] These computer-readable program instructions can be provided to a processor of a general-purpose computer, special-purpose computer, or other programmable device to create a machine whereby the instructions executed by the processor create an apparatus for implementing the functions specified in one or more blocks in the flowcharts and / or block diagrams.

[0110] These computer-readable program instructions may also be stored in a computer-readable memory, and these instructions cause a computer to operate in a particular manner to produce an article of manufacture containing instructions that implement the functions specified in one or more blocks of the flowcharts and / or block diagrams.

[0111] The present disclosure may take the form of an entirely hardware embodiment, an entirely software embodiment or an embodiment combining software and hardware.

[0112] The robot control method and device, cargo transport system, and computer-readable storage medium used in natural language processing in the above embodiments can improve the cargo transporting capability and efficiency of the robot.

[0113] The robot control method and device, the cargo transport system, and the computer-readable storage medium according to the present disclosure have been described in detail above. In order to avoid obscuring the concept of the present disclosure, some details known in the art will not be described. Those skilled in the art can fully understand how to implement the technical solutions disclosed in this specification from the above description.

Claims

1. A robot control method, wherein the robot includes a fork that can be raised and lowered and at least one back basket, the fork is for loading and unloading cargo, and each back basket is for temporarily storing cargo, the robot control method comprising: controlling the robot to move to a first pickup stop location, the first pickup stop location being a stop location where the robot retrieves at least one first target load; controlling the robot to retrieve the at least one first target cargo using the forks at the first pickup stop position, wherein retrieving the at least one first target cargo using the forks includes retrieving one of the at least one first target cargo using the forks and loading it onto the forks; A robot control method comprising: controlling the robot to move to a target position when removal of the at least one first target cargo at the first pickup stop position is completed, and loading one of the at least one first target cargo onto the fork while the robot is moving to the target position.

2. the target locations include unloading stop locations corresponding to the at least one first target cargo, the unloading stop locations being stop locations at which the robot places the at least one first target cargo, and the robot control method includes: When the robot moves to the unloading stop position, controlling the forks to place the first target cargo loaded on the forks at a cargo position corresponding to the unloading stop position; 2. The robot control method according to claim 1, further comprising: controlling the forks to remove the first target cargo to be loaded into the back basket from the back basket and place the removed first target cargo at the cargo position corresponding to the unloading stop position when cargo is loaded into the back basket of the robot after the first target cargo to be loaded onto the forks has been placed at the cargo position corresponding to the unloading stop position.

3. When there is a vacancy in the back basket of the robot, the target location includes a second pickup stop location, and the second pickup stop location is a stop location for picking up at least one second target cargo item, and the robot control method includes: Controlling the forks to load a first target cargo to be loaded on the forks into an empty back basket; The robot control method according to any one of claims 1 to 2, further comprising: when the robot moves to the second pickup stop position, controlling the robot to use the forks to pick up the at least one second target cargo at the second pickup stop position, wherein using the forks to pick up the at least one second target cargo includes using the forks to pick up one of the at least one second target cargo and loading it onto the forks.

4. Utilizing the forks to remove the at least one second target cargo includes: The robot control method according to claim 3, further comprising using the fork to pick up second target cargo other than the second target cargo loaded on the fork from among the at least one second target cargo and load it into an empty back basket.

5. In response to receiving a request to obtain a load status of the robot at a first time, transmitting back basket load status information of the robot at a first time; receiving task information of a transportation task corresponding to a first time, the task information being determined according to loading status information of a back basket of the robot at the first time, the task information corresponding to the first time including position information of the first pickup stop position, cargo information of the at least one first target cargo, and position information of an unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at the first time; 5. The robot control method of claim 3, further comprising: in response to receiving a request to acquire the loading status of the robot at a second time after the first time, transmitting loading status information of a back basket and a fork of the robot at the second time when a cargo docking type at an unloading stop position corresponding to a transportation task corresponding to a first time belongs to a specified docking type; wherein the loading status information of the back basket and the fork of the robot at the second time is for determining task information of the transportation task corresponding to the second time, and the task information corresponding to the second time includes position information of the second pickup stop position, cargo information of the at least one second target cargo, and position information of an unloading stop position corresponding to the transportation task at the second time.

6. The method further includes acquiring locally stored configuration information, the configuration information including a correspondence relationship between an unloading stop position and whether or not the back basket and the fork are used simultaneously to load cargo; 6. The robot control method according to claim 5, wherein, when a cargo docking type at an unloading stop position corresponding to a transportation task at the first time belongs to a specified docking type and the configuration information indicates that cargo loading is performed using a back basket and a fork simultaneously at an unloading stop position corresponding to a transportation task at the first time, in response to receiving a request to acquire a loading status of the robot at a second time after the first time, loading status information of the back basket and the fork of the robot at the second time.

7. Utilizing the forks to retrieve and load one of the at least one first target cargo onto the forks includes: The robot control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising: when a cargo docking type at an unloading stop position corresponding to the at least one first target cargo belongs to a designated docking type, using the forks to retrieve one of the at least one first target cargo and load it onto the forks.

8. The method further includes acquiring locally stored configuration information, the configuration information including a correspondence relationship between an unloading stop position and whether or not the back basket and the fork are used simultaneously to load cargo; 8. The robot control method of claim 7, wherein, when a cargo docking type at the unloading stop position belongs to a specified docking type and the configuration information indicates that cargo loading is performed at the unloading stop position using a back basket and a fork simultaneously, one of the at least one first target cargo is picked up and loaded onto the fork using the fork.

9. Utilizing the forks to remove the at least one first target cargo includes: The robot control method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, further comprising using the forks to pick up first target cargo other than the cargo loaded on the forks among the at least one first target cargo and load it into an empty back basket of the robot.

10. In response to receiving a request to obtain a load status of the robot at a first time, transmitting back basket load status information of the robot at a first time; and receiving task information of a transportation task corresponding to a first time, the task information being determined according to loading status information of a back basket of the robot at the first time, the task information corresponding to the first time including position information of the first pickup stop position, cargo information of the at least one first target cargo, and position information of the target position.

11. a first control module configured to control a robot to move to a first pickup stop position, the first pickup stop position being a stop position where the robot retrieves at least one first target load, the robot including a liftable fork and at least one back basket, the fork for loading and unloading the load, and each back basket for temporarily storing the load; a second control module configured to control the robot to retrieve the at least one first target cargo using the forks at the first pickup stop position, wherein retrieving the at least one first target cargo using the forks includes retrieving one of the at least one first target cargo and loading it onto the forks; a third control module configured to control the robot to move to a target position when removal of the at least one first target cargo at the first pickup stop position is completed, wherein the fork is loaded with one of the at least one first target cargo while the robot is moving to the target position.

12. Memory and A processor coupled to the memory and configured to execute the robot control method according to any one of claims 1 to 10 based on instructions stored in the memory.

13. A cargo transport system including a robot control device configured to execute the robot control method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

14. a task processor configured to send a request to the robot controller to acquire a loading status of the robot at a first time; the robot control device is configured to transmit back basket load status information of the robot at the first time to the task processing device in response to receiving a request to acquire a load status of the robot at a first time; 14. The cargo transportation system of claim 13, wherein the task processing device is further configured to determine task information of a transportation task corresponding to a first time according to loading status information of a back basket of the robot at a first time, and the task information corresponding to the first time includes position information of a first pickup stop position, cargo information of at least one first target cargo, and position information of a target position.

15. The task information corresponding to the first time further includes location information of an unloading stop location corresponding to the at least one first target cargo, the target location including a second pickup stop location, the second pickup stop location being a stop location for picking up at least one second target cargo; the task processing device is further configured to send a request to the robot control device to acquire a loading status of the robot at a second time that is after the first time; The robot control device is further configured to, in response to receiving a request to acquire a loading status of the robot at a second time, send loading status information of a back basket and a fork of the robot at a second time to the task processing device, when a cargo docking type at an unloading stop position corresponding to the at least one first target cargo belongs to a designated docking type; 15. The cargo transportation system of claim 14, wherein the task processing device is further configured to determine task information of a transportation task corresponding to a second time according to loading status information of the back basket and forks of the robot at a second time, and the task information corresponding to the second time includes position information of a second pickup stop position, cargo information of at least one second target cargo, and position information of an unloading stop position corresponding to the at least one second target cargo.

16. A computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon computer program instructions that, when executed by a processor, cause the robot control method according to any one of claims 1 to 10 to be implemented.

17. A computer program comprising instructions which, when executed by a processor, cause the processor to carry out the robot control method according to any one of claims 1 to 10.

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