Order processing method and warehousing system

Abstract

An order processing method and a warehousing system. The method comprises: acquiring a plurality of orders to be processed corresponding to a plurality of workstations (30), and determining a target carrier hit by the plurality of orders to be processed; controlling a first carrying device to carry the target carrier to a first workstation (310); when a first order hits a first storage device on the target carrier and a second order hits a second storage device on the target carrier, controlling the first workstation (310) to sort first goods hit by the first order in the first storage device; and controlling the first workstation (310) to convey an object to be transferred corresponding to the second order to a second workstation (320) by means of a conveying device, so as to re‑bin, on a put wall corresponding to the second workstation (320), second goods hit by the second order, the object to be transferred comprising the second storage device or the second goods hit by the second order in the second storage device.

Description

Order processing methods and warehousing systems

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese patent applications filed on May 29, 2024, with application numbers 202410683824.7, 202410684221.9, 202410684233.1, 202411554039.8, 202411, and 202422667901.8, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This disclosure relates to the field of warehousing and logistics technology, and in particular to an order processing method and a warehousing system. Background Technology

[0003] In a warehousing system, robots can move shelves or boxes from the storage area to workstations. Workstation operators then remove the goods from the boxes and sort (or seed) them onto the sorting wall at that workstation, completing the picking and sorting process. If another workstation also picks a box containing the same item, the robot needs to move the shelf or box to that workstation, where the picking and sorting operations are performed. Therefore, if a container on a shelf is picked by multiple workstations simultaneously, the robot must move the shelf to each workstation, and each workstation must perform the picking and sorting separately, reducing the picking and sorting efficiency of the warehousing system. Summary of the Invention

[0004] This disclosure provides an order processing method and a warehousing system.

[0005] A first aspect of this disclosure provides an order processing method, comprising: first, acquiring multiple pending orders corresponding to multiple workstations, and determining the target vehicles to which the multiple pending orders are matched. Second, controlling a first handling device to transport the target vehicles to a first workstation; wherein the multiple workstations include a first workstation and a second workstation; the multiple pending orders include a first order corresponding to the first workstation and a second order corresponding to the second workstation. Then, when a first order matches a first storage device on the target vehicle, and a second order matches a second storage device on the target vehicle, controlling the first workstation to pick the first goods matched by the first order from the first storage device, and controlling the first workstation to transport the items to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveying device, so as to distribute the second goods matched by the second order onto a seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation; wherein the items to be transferred include the second storage device or the second goods matched by the second order in the second storage device.

[0006] A second aspect of this disclosure provides a warehousing system including multiple workstations, including a first workstation and a second workstation. A control device is configured to: acquire multiple pending orders corresponding to the multiple workstations and determine target vehicles to which the multiple pending orders are matched; generate a first handling instruction based on the target vehicles; wherein the multiple pending orders include a first order corresponding to the first workstation and a second order corresponding to the second workstation. A first handling device is configured to: transport the target vehicles to the first workstation according to the first handling instruction. The control device is configured to: generate a first picking instruction and a conveying instruction when the first order matches a first storage device on the target vehicle and the second order matches a second storage device on the target vehicle. The first workstation is configured to: pick first goods matched by the first order from the first storage device according to the first picking instruction; and convey the goods to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveying device according to the conveying instruction, so as to distribute the second goods matched by the second order on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation; wherein the goods to be transferred include the second storage device or the second goods matched by the second order in the second storage device.

[0007] A third aspect of this disclosure provides an electronic device, including: a processor and a memory, the memory being configured to store computer-executable instructions; the processor being configured to read the instructions from the memory and execute the instructions to implement the order processing method described in the first aspect above.

[0008] A fourth aspect of this disclosure provides a computer-readable storage medium storing computer program instructions, which, when read by a computer, execute the order processing method described in the first aspect above.

[0009] A fifth aspect of this disclosure provides a computer program product comprising a computing program stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the computer program including program instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the order processing method described in the first aspect. Attached Figure Description

[0010] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0011] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a workstation provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0012] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a broadcast device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0013] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0014] Figure 5A is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0015] Figure 5B is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0016] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0017] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0018] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0019] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0020] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of a track and track transport equipment provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0021] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of a track transport device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0022] Figure 12 is a schematic diagram of an order processing method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0023] Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0024] Figure 14 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0025] Figure 15 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0026] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of an order processing device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0027] Figure 17 is a schematic diagram of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0028] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions in the embodiments of this disclosure, and to make the above-mentioned objectives, features and advantages of the embodiments of this disclosure more apparent and understandable, the technical solutions in the embodiments of this disclosure will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0029] Typically, in a warehousing system, different workstations correspond to their own picker walls. Each workstation can be linked to at least one picker wall. Robots can move shelves or cartons from the storage area to the workstation, where operators then remove the goods from the cartons and pick them onto the corresponding picker wall, completing the picking and placement process. If multiple workstations have the same item on a shelf, the robot needs to move the shelf sequentially to each workstation for individual picking and placement.

[0030] To improve the picking and seeding efficiency of a warehousing system, one approach is to treat multiple seeding walls within the system as a movable component (e.g., a mobile seeding wall). This mobile seeding wall doesn't need to be tied to a specific workstation and can be flexibly allocated among multiple workstations. However, at any given time, the mobile seeding wall still belongs to only one workstation, and the workstations remain unconnected. Another approach is to use a binary search method, combining the order sets corresponding to multiple seeding walls into a single order set for picking and seeding. However, this method requires further allocation of the order set to different orders after picking and seeding, necessitating more manpower. Therefore, these methods still cannot effectively improve the picking and seeding efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0031] To address the aforementioned issues, this disclosure proposes a warehousing system that introduces a conveying device to connect multiple workstations within the system, thereby linking multiple seeding walls into a shared large seeding wall. A robot can transport shelves located at multiple workstations to a single workstation, where it can then complete picking for other workstations. This reduces the number of times the robot needs to move shelves, enables the sharing of seeding walls among multiple workstations, and improves the efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0032] The warehousing system provided in the embodiments of this disclosure will be described below with reference to Figures 1 to 11.

[0033] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 1, the warehousing system 100 includes multiple carriers 10, multiple handling devices 20, multiple workstations 30, and a control device (not shown in Figure 1).

[0034] Exemplarily, the carrier 10 may include multiple storage locations (also referred to as storage locations). These storage locations may hold containers, bins, goods directly, or the original packaging of the goods. This disclosure does not limit the scope of the embodiments; the following embodiments use the placement of containers in storage locations as an example for illustrative purposes.

[0035] For example, the cargo space can be a rectangular prism-shaped storage space, and multiple cargo spaces on the carrier 10 can be neatly arranged along the length, width, and height of the carrier 10. The container can be a product specifically designed for the carrier 10, a regular cargo box (also called a container), or cargo packaging (also called a box), and this disclosure does not limit the specific type of container used.

[0036] In some examples, the carrier 10 can be a shelf, a turnover cart, a cage cart, etc. For example, the carrier 10 can be a mobile shelf. The mobile shelf includes at least one partition that divides the carrier 10 into at least two layers. At least one storage location is provided on the partition of the carrier 10, and each storage location can accommodate at least one container. The container placed in each storage location can be a box or a pallet; this disclosure does not limit this. It should be noted that the carrier 10 includes, but is not limited to, partitioned shelves, container shelves, picking shelves, mobile shelves, etc. The carrier 10 provided in this disclosure can refer to any carrier for placing containers.

[0037] In some examples, the carrier 10 can be either a high-density storage rack or a low-density storage rack. When the carrier 10 is a high-density storage rack, the gaps between containers are smaller. For example, the carrier 10 can be parked in a rack area 101, which can be either a high-density or low-density storage area. The rack area 101 can include multiple storage locations, which can be neatly arranged in rows and columns, and each storage location can accommodate one carrier 10.

[0038] In some examples, the carrier 10 can be a single-sided carrier, a double-sided carrier, or a four-sided carrier (i.e., containers can be retrieved from four sides). This disclosure does not limit this; however, it uses a double-sided carrier as an example for illustrative purposes. For instance, the carrier 10 is a double-sided shelf, and partitions can be provided between multiple storage locations along the vertical direction. Each side of the carrier 10 can have 30 storage locations, for a total of 60 storage locations on both sides. This disclosure does not limit the type of carrier 10 or the number of storage locations it includes; this is merely an illustrative example.

[0039] For example, the warehouse system 100 may have one or more workstations 30. Each workstation 30 may have a corresponding vehicle docking area, which includes one or more docking positions where vehicles 10 can be docked. The vehicles docked in the vehicle docking area are either vehicles awaiting picking or vehicles being picked. For example, the vehicle docking area includes a queuing area and a picking area; the vehicles docked in the queuing area are vehicles awaiting picking, and the vehicles docked in the picking area are vehicles that the workstation is currently picking.

[0040] For example, the handling equipment 20 may also be called an automated handling equipment. The handling equipment 20 can handle the carrier 10, as well as goods or containers holding goods. For instance, the handling equipment 20 can move the carrier 10 or containers on the carrier 10 from the shelving area 101 to the workstation 30 to perform picking operations. The handling equipment 20 can be a handling robot, such as an Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV). For example, the handling robot can move under the carrier 10 and then lift the carrier 10 off the ground, thereby moving the carrier 10.

[0041] In some examples, when the handling equipment 20 is handling the carrier 10, the handling equipment 20 can move the carrier 10 to the queuing area corresponding to the workstation 30. After the picking area of ​​the workstation 30 becomes available, the carrier 10 is then moved from the queuing area to the picking area so that the workstation 30 can perform a picking operation on the carrier 10. For example, the workstation 30 can remove the container from the carrier 10 parked in the picking area, or place the container on the storage location of the carrier 10. It should be noted that the handling equipment that moves the carrier 10 from the shelving area 101 to the queuing area corresponding to the workstation 30 can be the same handling equipment or different handling equipment that moves the carrier 10 from the queuing area to the picking area.

[0042] For example, the storage system 100 also includes a seeding wall 40. The seeding wall 40 corresponds to a workstation 30, and one workstation 30 may correspond to at least one seeding wall 40.

[0043] In some examples, the seeding wall 40 is provided with multiple seeding positions 41, each of which can hold an order container 42. For example, the seeding wall 40 can be located on one side of the workstation 30, or the seeding wall 40 can be located in the distribution area of ​​the storage system 100, which can be a preset area in the warehouse for performing distribution operations.

[0044] In some examples, order container 42 is used to hold goods to be planted. For example, picking objects at workstation 30 can pick goods to be planted from containers taken from carrier 10 according to order requirements, and the seeding objects can then plant the goods to be planted into the order container 42 corresponding to the order.

[0045] For example, an output device 43 may be provided on the sowing position 41. The output device 43 may be a display screen, electronic tag, speaker, and projection device, etc. The output device 43 is used to display the sowing quantity of the goods to be sown on the corresponding sowing position 41. When sowing, the sowing personnel can sow the goods to be sown into the order container 42 on the sowing position 41 according to the sowing quantity displayed on the output device 43.

[0046] For example, multiple seeding positions 41 on the seeding wall 40 can be neatly arranged along the length, width, and height directions. Seeding is complete when all the goods to be seeded for the order container 42 at a seeding position 41 have been seeded.

[0047] In some examples, the picking object can be a person (such as a picking operator) or a picking device, such as a robotic arm. The dispensing object can be a person (such as a dispensing operator) or a dispensing device. It should be noted that the picking operator and the dispensing operator can be the same person. For example, when both the picking object and the dispensing object are operated by an operator, that operator can pick the goods required for the order from the containers on the workstation and dispensing the goods into the corresponding order containers.

[0048] For example, when the sorting object is a sorting device, as shown in FIG1, the warehousing system 100 also includes multiple sorting devices 50, which can also be called a three-dimensional sorting machine. Each workstation 30 can correspond to at least one sorting device 50, and the sorting device 50 is used to deliver the goods picked by the sorting object of the workstation 30 to the corresponding order container 42 on the sorting wall.

[0049] For example, the control device can be coupled to the handling equipment 20, the workstation 30, and the distribution equipment 50 respectively, and is used to control the operation of the handling equipment 20, the workstation 30, and the distribution equipment 50. For example, the control device can control the handling equipment 40 to move and handle the carrier 10, control the workstation 30 to sort and pick the carrier 10 parked on the picking area 301, and control the distribution equipment 50 to perform distribution operations, etc.

[0050] In some examples, the control device can be a server or a terminal device, or a device deployed with a Warehouse Management System (WMS) and a Robot Management System (RMS). The terminal device can include at least one of a personal computer, laptop computer, smartphone, tablet computer, and portable wearable device; the server can include a standalone server or a server cluster consisting of multiple servers, and this disclosure does not limit the specific implementation.

[0051] In some examples, the control device is communicatively connected to the handling equipment 20, workstation 30, and subcast equipment 50 for data communication. For example, the control device can communicate with the handling equipment 20, workstation 30, and subcast equipment 50 via a local area network (LAN), wireless local area network (WLAN), or other networks.

[0052] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a workstation provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. The structure and working principle of the workstation 30 provided in this embodiment of the disclosure will be described below with reference to Figure 2.

[0053] As shown in Figure 2, the workstation 30 includes a support frame 31, a guiding mechanism 32, and a container handling device 33.

[0054] In some examples, a guide mechanism 32 is disposed to a support frame 31. The guide mechanism 32 is movable laterally and vertically relative to the support frame 31. A container loading / unloading device 33 is disposed to the guide mechanism 32 so that the container loading / unloading device 33 is movable laterally and / or vertically relative to the support frame 31.

[0055] In some examples, the container pick-and-place device 33 is coupled to a control device. When the handling equipment 20, under the control of the control device, moves the carrier 10 to the picking area 301 of the workstation 30, the container pick-and-place device 33 moves laterally (e.g., in the L direction) and / or vertically (e.g., in the H direction) to reach the position corresponding to the storage location 15 in the carrier 10, thereby picking up or placing containers at the storage location 15.

[0056] Exemplarily, the guiding mechanism 32 may include a lateral moving device 34, a moving rod 35, and a vertical moving device 36. The lateral moving device 34 is disposed to the support frame 31 and coupled to a control device. The lateral moving device 34 is laterally movable relative to the support frame 31. The moving rod 35 extends vertically and is disposed to the lateral moving device 34, thereby allowing the moving rod 35 to move laterally relative to the support frame 31. The vertical moving device 36 is disposed to the moving rod 35 and coupled to the control device. The vertical moving device 36 is vertically movable relative to the moving rod 35. A container picking / placing device 33 is disposed to the vertical moving device 36, thereby allowing the container picking / placing device 33 to move vertically relative to the moving rod 35. Therefore, the container picking / placing device 33 can move laterally and / or vertically on the support frame 31.

[0057] In some examples, workstation 30 may not have support frame 31. When workstation 30 does not have support frame 31, container loading and unloading device 33 can move laterally and / or vertically via guide mechanism 32.

[0058] For example, if the workstation 30 is not equipped with a support frame 31, the workstation 30 may include at least one guide mechanism 32 and a container pick-and-place device 33. The container pick-and-place device 33 is disposed on the guide mechanism 32 and can move laterally and / or vertically through the guide mechanism 32.

[0059] In some embodiments, the lateral moving device 34 is coupled to the moving rod 35 and configured to drive the moving rod 35 to move laterally; the moving rod 35 extends in a vertical direction, and the container picking and placing device 33 is disposed on the moving rod 35 so that the moving rod 35 drives the container picking and placing device 33 to move laterally; the vertical moving device 36 is coupled to the container picking and placing device 33 and configured to drive the container picking and placing device 33 to move vertically relative to the moving rod 35.

[0060] In some examples, the lateral moving device 34 can be disposed on the moving rod 35 or on the container picking and placing device 33; the vertical moving device 36 can be disposed on the moving rod 35. For example, the lateral moving device 34 and the vertical moving device 36 can be two drive motors. This disclosure does not limit the specific positions of the lateral moving device 34 and the vertical moving device 36, as long as the lateral moving device 34 can drive the moving rod 35 to move laterally, and the vertical moving device 36 can drive the container picking and placing device 33 to move vertically relative to the moving rod 35.

[0061] In some examples, the guiding mechanism 32 can be a robotic arm (such as an automated robotic arm), and the container picking and placing device 33 can be connected to the robotic arm. The container picking and placing device 33 can move laterally and / or vertically via the robotic arm (for example, the robotic arm can move laterally and / or vertically with the container picking and placing device 33). The robotic arm can be fixed to the ground or a guide rail. The robotic arm can be permanently fixed to the ground or a guide rail, or it can be temporarily fixed to the ground or a guide rail. This disclosure does not limit this aspect.

[0062] For example, the container handling device 33 may include a handling component that can move along the depth direction. The handling component may be a claw, gripping fork, or suction cup, etc., connected to the container handling device 33.

[0063] In some examples, when the container pick-and-place device 33 reaches the position corresponding to the storage location 15 by lateral and / or vertical movement, the pick-and-place component can be controlled to extend along the depth direction, i.e., the pick-and-place component can extend to the storage location 15 in the direction toward the carrier, to pick up or place a container from the storage location 15. For example, as shown in FIG2, when the container pick-and-place device 33 reaches the position corresponding to the storage location, the pick-and-place component (as shown in FIG2) can move along the depth direction (such as the Z direction) to the storage location 15 to pick up the container placed on the storage location 15.

[0064] For example, after the container pick-and-place device 33 takes the container off the storage location 15 and places it on the picking station of the workstation, the picking object of the workstation picks out the goods to be sown from the container and places the goods to be sown on the sowing device 50, and the sowing device 50 completes the sowing operation of the goods to be sown.

[0065] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a splitter device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. The structure and working principle of the splitter device 50 provided in an embodiment of this disclosure are described below with reference to Figure 3.

[0066] As shown in Figure 3, the seeding device 50 includes a delivery mechanism 51 and a movement mechanism 52. The delivery mechanism 51 is used to carry goods (such as goods to be seeded) and deliver the goods to the corresponding order containers on the order wall.

[0067] In some examples, the motion mechanism 52 is connected to the delivery mechanism 51, and the motion mechanism 52 can drive the delivery mechanism 51 to move to the sowing position. For example, the motion mechanism 52 may include a horizontal motion module and a vertical motion module. The horizontal motion module can drive the delivery mechanism 51 to move along the length direction of the sowing device 50, and the vertical motion module can drive the delivery mechanism 51 to move along the height direction of the sowing device 50, so that the delivery mechanism 51 moves to the sowing position, thereby delivering the goods on the delivery mechanism 51 to the order container corresponding to the sowing position.

[0068] In some examples, the seeding wall 40 may be provided on at least one side of the seeding device 50. For example, the seeding wall 40 may be provided along the width direction of the seeding device 50, or seeding walls 40 may be provided on both sides of the seeding device 50 along the width direction.

[0069] For example, as shown in Figure 3, the seeding device 50 has a first seeding wall 401 on its first side along the width direction and a second seeding wall 402 on its second side. The delivery mechanism 51 can deliver goods to the first seeding wall 401 or to the second seeding wall 402.

[0070] For example, the seeding wall 40 may include shelves and order containers (also referred to as turnover containers) disposed on the shelves. The shelves may include multiple seeding positions arranged along the height direction, and each seeding position may include multiple seeding positions arranged side by side along the length direction of the seeding wall 40. The order containers are placed on each seeding position for receiving goods delivered by the delivery mechanism 51.

[0071] It should be noted that order containers may include, but are not limited to, bins, cartons, or cages. The goods distributed by the 50 distribution devices include, but are not limited to, the goods themselves, goods with packaging boxes, and parcels containing goods.

[0072] In some examples, the sorting device 50 can collaborate with handling equipment (such as a sorting robot) to perform the sorting of goods. For example, the sorting robot can receive goods picked from the picking objects at workstation 30 and transport them to the delivery position of the sorting device 50 for delivery. For example, the sorting robot can be a flip-board robot, a belt-driven sorting robot, a liftable pallet robot, or other types of robots. This disclosure does not limit the specific form of the sorting robot.

[0073] In other examples, the distribution device 50 can be manually distributed by an operator. That is, the operator directly places the goods to be distributed onto the delivery mechanism 51, and then the delivery mechanism 51 delivers the received goods to the corresponding order container.

[0074] For example, the sorting device 50 may also include a buffer mechanism 53. Sorting robots or operators can place the goods to be sown in the buffer mechanism 53, and then the buffer mechanism 53 will transfer the goods to be sown to the delivery mechanism 51, thereby shortening the waiting time for sorting robots or operators and improving sowing efficiency.

[0075] In some examples, the buffer mechanism 53 can be a conveyor line, such as a conveyor belt, and goods located on the conveyor belt can be transported to the delivery mechanism 51 in a horizontal direction. This disclosure does not limit the specific form of the buffer mechanism 53.

[0076] For example, after receiving the goods, the delivery mechanism 51 of the seeding device 50 can move to the seeding position under the drive of the motion mechanism 52, and then deliver the goods into the order container of the seeding wall 40 to complete the seeding of the goods.

[0077] In some examples, there can be one or more delivery mechanisms 51. For example, when there are multiple delivery mechanisms 51, multiple delivery mechanisms 51 can move alternately to the delivery position to receive the goods to be seeded on the sorting robot or the buffer mechanism 53, and each can move independently to the corresponding seeding position to deliver the corresponding target item to the designated order container, so that multiple goods can be seeded at the same time, further improving the seeding efficiency of the seeding device 50.

[0078] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of another storage system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 4, the plurality of workstations 30 may include a first workstation 310 and a second workstation 320. The first workstation 310 corresponds to at least one first seeding device 510, the second workstation 320 corresponds to at least one second seeding device 520, the first seeding device 510 corresponds to at least one first seeding wall 410, and the second seeding device 520 corresponds to at least one second seeding wall 420.

[0079] It should be noted that the embodiments disclosed herein do not limit the number of workstations, nor the number of seeding devices and seeding walls corresponding to each workstation. For example, as shown in Figure 4, an example is provided where each workstation corresponds to one seeding device, and one seeding device corresponds to two seeding walls.

[0080] In some embodiments, the control device is configured to: acquire multiple pending orders corresponding to multiple workstations, and determine the target vehicles matched by the multiple pending orders; and generate a first transport instruction based on the target vehicles. A first transport device is configured to: transport the target vehicles to a first workstation according to the first transport instruction.

[0081] The multiple pending orders may include a first order corresponding to the first workstation 310 and a second order corresponding to the second workstation 320. It should be noted that the first and second orders are orders pre-assigned to the first and second workstations by the control device.

[0082] In some examples, the first order and the second order can be the same or different. For instance, if the first order requires a large quantity of goods, it can be assigned to both the first and second workstations. This means the first and second workstations can correspond to the same order (e.g., the first order itself). When the first and second workstations correspond to the same order, they can simultaneously pick the goods for that order, thus improving picking efficiency.

[0083] In some examples, after obtaining multiple pending orders, the target vehicle can be determined from multiple vehicles in the warehousing system based on each pending order. The target vehicle is one of the multiple vehicles simultaneously selected by the first workstation 310 and the second workstation 320. It should be noted that in this embodiment, a vehicle being selected by a workstation indicates that the vehicle stores the goods required for the order corresponding to that workstation.

[0084] In some examples, the first workstation 310 and the second workstation 320 can be any two different workstations from a plurality of workstations; or, the first workstation 310 and the second workstation 320 can be two related workstations from a plurality of workstations. Here, the association of the first workstation 310 and the second workstation 320 means that the first workstation 310 and the second workstation 320 can be two different workstations within the same workstation group.

[0085] In some embodiments, multiple workstations in a warehousing system can be divided into at least one workstation group. The multiple workstation groups include a first workstation group, which includes a first workstation 310 and a second workstation 320.

[0086] For example, multiple workstations in a warehousing system can be divided into at least one workstation group based on the location of each workstation in the warehousing system and / or the pending orders corresponding to each workstation.

[0087] In some examples, workstations located within a preset distance threshold can be grouped into a workstation group based on their location. For instance, if the distance between workstation A and workstation B is less than the preset distance threshold, and the distance between workstation B and workstation C is also less than the preset distance threshold, then workstations A, B, and C can be grouped into a workstation group. Alternatively, based on their location, a preset number of adjacent workstations can be grouped into a workstation group, where the distance between any two adjacent workstations within the group can be less than the preset distance threshold.

[0088] In other examples, workstations corresponding to pending orders with a required goods similarity higher than a preset similarity threshold can be grouped together based on the pending orders for each workstation. For instance, if the goods required by the orders at workstation A and workstation B have a high similarity, exceeding the preset similarity threshold, then workstations A and B can be grouped together.

[0089] It should be noted that the embodiments of this disclosure can also divide workstation groups in other ways. For example, different workstation groups can be divided according to the location of each workstation and the pending orders corresponding to each workstation. The embodiments of this disclosure do not limit this.

[0090] In some embodiments, the control device is configured to: acquire a set of pending orders corresponding to the workstation group; and determine the target vehicle corresponding to the workstation group based on the vehicle matched by each pending order in the pending order set in the warehousing system, and / or the number of second handling devices in the warehousing system that are idle.

[0091] The pending orders set includes pending orders corresponding to each workstation in the workstation group.

[0092] In some examples, after dividing the workstations into groups, the pending orders corresponding to each workstation in the workstation group can be considered as a single order set (i.e., a set of pending orders), meaning each workstation group corresponds to one set of pending orders. Based on the set of pending orders for each workstation group, the target vehicle corresponding to each workstation group is determined. Specifically, the first workstation group corresponds to the first set of pending orders, which includes the first order corresponding to the first workstation 310 and the second order corresponding to the second workstation 320.

[0093] For example, the target vehicle corresponding to the workstation group can be determined based on the vehicle that each pending order in the pending order set hits.

[0094] In some embodiments, the vehicle that is matched by the most pending orders in the warehouse system is identified as the target vehicle corresponding to the workstation group.

[0095] For example, the vehicle matched by each pending order in the pending order set (such as the first pending order set) is determined, and the vehicle matched by the pending order with the largest number of pending orders is identified as the target vehicle. In other words, the target vehicle is the vehicle matched by the most pending orders in the pending order set.

[0096] For example, the first set of pending orders includes four orders: Order A, Order B, Order C, and Order D. Order A matches two vehicles (e.g., vehicle a and vehicle b), Order B matches three vehicles (e.g., vehicle a, vehicle c, and vehicle d), Order C matches one vehicle (e.g., vehicle d), and Order D matches two vehicles (e.g., vehicle a and vehicle c). Since vehicle a is matched by three orders from the first set of pending orders, vehicle b is matched by one order, and vehicles c and d are matched by two orders, vehicle a, which can be matched by the most orders, can be identified as the target vehicle corresponding to the first workstation group.

[0097] In some examples, the first handling device is a handling device for any handling vehicle in the warehousing system (e.g., referred to as a vehicle handling device), such as any idle vehicle handling device in the warehousing system. The first handling device can move the target vehicle to the first workstation based on a first handling command sent by the control device. For example, the first handling device can move the target vehicle to the corresponding idle parking space at the first workstation.

[0098] For example, as shown in FIG4, the warehousing system 100 includes a plurality of second handling devices 60. These second handling devices, also known as goods handling devices, can handle containers or goods. For instance, the second handling devices can move containers or goods from one workstation to another.

[0099] It should be noted that the handling equipment 20 in Figure 1 may include a first handling equipment and a second handling equipment. The first handling equipment and the second handling equipment may be different types of handling equipment. For example, the first handling equipment is a handling equipment for handling vehicles (such as a vehicle handling equipment), and the second handling equipment is a handling equipment for handling inventory objects (such as containers or goods) (such as an item handling equipment).

[0100] In some examples, the second handling device 60 may include an adjusting mechanism and a carrying mechanism. The adjusting mechanism can adjust the height of the carrying mechanism according to the position of the received goods or containers, so as to receive the goods or containers through the carrying mechanism. The carrying container may be a belt or a flapper, and this disclosure does not limit this.

[0101] For example, the target vehicle can be determined based on the number of second handling devices that are idle in the warehousing system.

[0102] In some examples, the more idle second handling equipment there is in the warehousing system (e.g., greater than or equal to a pre-set quantity threshold), the more frequently hit vehicles can be identified as target vehicles. For instance, when there are more idle second handling equipment, the vehicle hit by the most orders can be identified as the target vehicle. In this case, the number of handling operations of the first handling equipment can be reduced, the handling efficiency of the first handling equipment can be improved, and the overall efficiency of the warehousing system can be increased.

[0103] In other examples, when the number of idle second handling devices is small (e.g., less than a preset threshold), vehicles that are randomly selected can be identified as target vehicles. For example, vehicles selected by fewer orders (e.g., less than a preset number of orders) can be identified as target vehicles, which can improve the handling efficiency of the second handling devices.

[0104] For example, the target vehicle for a workstation group can be determined based on the number of vehicles matched by each pending order and the number of second handling devices that are idle. For instance, the cost of the first handling device moving each vehicle to the corresponding workstation and the cost of the second handling device moving goods or containers from one workstation to another can be determined, and the vehicle corresponding to the minimum cost can be identified as the target vehicle.

[0105] It should be noted that the number of target vehicles can be one or more. For example, the first target vehicle with the most orders can be identified from among the multiple hit vehicles; after picking the first target vehicle, the second target vehicle with the most orders can be identified from the remaining hit vehicles, and so on, to complete the processing of the order set corresponding to the workstation group.

[0106] In some examples, since the target vehicle is hit by multiple workstations in a workstation group (such as the first workstation group), after identifying the target vehicle, it is necessary to further determine which workstation (such as the first workstation) to move the target vehicle to for picking operations.

[0107] For example, any workstation in the first workstation group can be designated as the first workstation; or, the first workstation can be designated based on the number of storage devices hit on the target vehicle by each workstation in the first workstation group.

[0108] In some embodiments, the control device is further configured to: determine the first workstation based on the number of hit storage devices on the target vehicle corresponding to the pending orders of each workstation in the first workstation group, and / or the workload of each workstation in the first workstation group.

[0109] In some examples, storage devices are devices for storing goods. For example, storage devices can be containers, boxes (also called bins), packaging for goods (also called original boxes), pallets, and devices for storing large or irregularly shaped goods.

[0110] For example, in the case where the storage device is used to store large or irregularly shaped goods, the storage device is usually not removed and placed at the picking station of the workstation for the picking operation to be performed by the picking object. The picking area of ​​the storage device can usually be set in a designated area on one side of the workstation, and the picking of the storage device is completed by the picking personnel.

[0111] The embodiments disclosed herein do not limit the specific form of the storage device. The following embodiments can be illustrated by taking a container as an example of the storage device.

[0112] For example, the workstation corresponding to the order that hits the storage device most times on the target vehicle in the first workstation group can be determined as the first workstation.

[0113] In some examples, the workstation in the first workstation group that hits the most containers on the target vehicle can be designated as the first workstation. Since the first workstation hits the most containers on the target vehicle, moving the target vehicle to the first workstation can improve handling and picking efficiency.

[0114] For example, the workstation with the least workload in the first workstation group can be identified as the first workstation.

[0115] In some examples, the workload of each workstation can be determined based on the number of pending picking tasks currently corresponding to each workstation. The number of pending picking tasks corresponding to each workstation includes the number of vehicles parked in the vehicle docking area of ​​each workstation, and the number of containers on each vehicle that have been picked by the order corresponding to that workstation.

[0116] For example, the first workstation is the workstation in the first workstation group that has the fewest number of vehicles parked in the vehicle docking area, and also has the fewest sums of containers hit by the orders corresponding to the first workstation on all vehicles.

[0117] For example, the first workstation can be determined based on the number of containers hit on the target vehicle by each workstation in the first workstation group and the workload of each workstation. For instance, the workstation that hits a large number of containers on the target vehicle and has a small workload can also be determined as the first workstation.

[0118] In some examples, after determining the target vehicle and the first workstation, the control device can generate a first transport instruction based on the target vehicle and the first workstation, and send the first transport instruction to the first transport equipment. The first transport equipment receives the first transport instruction and, according to the first transport instruction, moves to the location of the target vehicle and transports the target vehicle to the first workstation, such as transporting the target vehicle to the vehicle docking area of ​​the first workstation.

[0119] In some examples, the first handling device for moving the target vehicle can be any idle first handling device in the warehousing system. For example, the first handling device for moving the target vehicle to the first workstation can be called the first robot, and the first robot can be the first handling device closest to the target vehicle and in an idle state.

[0120] In some embodiments, the control device is configured to generate a first picking instruction and a conveying instruction when a first order hits a first storage device on a target vehicle and a second order hits a second storage device on the target vehicle. A first workstation is configured to: pick the first goods from the first storage device according to the first picking instruction; and convey the items to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveying device according to the conveying instruction, so as to distribute the second goods from the second order onto the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0121] For example, the item to be transferred corresponding to the second order can be the second storage device (i.e., the second container) that the second order hits on the target vehicle, or the item to be transferred can be the second goods that the second order hits in the second storage device. That is to say, the first workstation can transport the second container or the second goods to the second workstation via a conveying device.

[0122] For example, the target vehicle stores a first storage device (hereinafter referred to as the first container) that was hit by the first order and a second storage device (hereinafter referred to as the second container) that was hit by the second order.

[0123] In some examples, the first storage device and the second storage device can be the same storage device or different storage devices. That is, the first order corresponding to the first workstation and the second order corresponding to the second workstation can simultaneously hit the same container on the target vehicle; or, the first order and the second order can also hit different containers on the target vehicle; wherein, the first container includes the first goods hit by the first order, and the second container includes the second goods hit by the second order, and the first goods and the second goods can be the same goods or different goods.

[0124] For example, after identifying the first container, the control device can generate a first picking instruction based on the first container and send the first picking instruction to the first workstation. The first workstation receives the first picking instruction and performs a picking operation on the first container according to the first picking instruction.

[0125] In some examples, after receiving the first picking instruction, the first workstation can control the container pick-and-place device to remove the first container from the target carrier and place the first container at the picking station of the first workstation (also referred to as the first picking station), and the first goods can be picked out from the first container by the picking object of the first workstation.

[0126] The object to be picked at the first workstation is called the first picking object. The first picking object can be either the picking personnel or the picking equipment.

[0127] For example, when the first picking object is a picking person, the control device can control the output device corresponding to the first workstation to output picking information according to the first picking instruction. This picking information is used to instruct the picking person to pick out the first item from the first container. The output device can be a display screen, electronic tag, speaker, or projection device, etc. When the first picking object is a picking device (such as a robotic arm), the control device can control the picking device to pick out the first item from the first container according to the first picking instruction. This disclosure does not limit the picking object.

[0128] For example, after determining the item to be transferred, the control device can generate a transport instruction based on the item and send the transport instruction to the first workstation. The first workstation receives the transport instruction and, according to the instruction, transports the item to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a transport device.

[0129] In some examples, when the object to be transferred is a second container, the control device can generate a transport instruction based on the second container; the first workstation, based on the transport instruction, removes the second container from the target vehicle and places the second container on the transport equipment to transport it to the second workstation via the transport equipment.

[0130] In other examples, when the item to be transferred is a second cargo, the control device can generate a transport instruction based on the second container; the first workstation, based on the transport instruction, removes the second container from the target carrier and places it at the first picking station, and then the first picking object picks the second cargo from the second container and places the second cargo on the conveying equipment to be transported to the second workstation via the conveying equipment.

[0131] In some embodiments, the conveying equipment includes a second handling device and / or a conveyor line. The conveyor line is used to transport the second goods to the second handling device or a second workstation.

[0132] For example, the conveying device can be a second handling device. As shown in FIG4, the conveying device is a second handling device 60, and the first workstation 310 can place the second container or the picked second goods onto the second handling device 60, which will then transport them to the second workstation 320.

[0133] For example, the warehousing system 100 also includes a conveyor line that can transport goods or containers corresponding to one workstation (such as the first workstation 310) to another workstation (such as the second workstation 320), or the conveyor line can also transport goods or containers corresponding to the first workstation to a second handling device.

[0134] For example, the conveying device can be a conveyor line.

[0135] Figure 5A is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 5A, the conveying equipment is a conveyor line 70, with a first end of the conveyor line 70 connected to a first workstation 310 and a second end of the conveyor line 70 connected to a second workstation 320. A first picking object can place the item to be transferred at the first end of the conveyor line 70, and the conveyor line 70 can directly transport the item to be transferred to the second workstation 320 through the second end.

[0136] For example, the conveying device can be a conveyor line and a second handling device.

[0137] Figure 5B is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 5B, the conveying equipment includes a conveyor line 70 and a second handling device 60. For example, the conveyor line 70 can transport the items to be transferred from the first workstation 310 to the second handling device 60, and then the second handling device 60 can transport them to the second workstation 320. One end of the conveyor line 70 is connected to the first workstation 310, and the other end is connected to the second handling device 60.

[0138] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG5B, the first distribution device 510 includes a first buffer mechanism, which may be a conveyor line (such as conveyor line 70). When the first buffer mechanism is a conveyor line, the conveyor line may be provided with a first outlet A and a second outlet B; wherein, the first outlet A is used to convey the first goods to the first distribution device, and the second outlet B is used to convey the object to be transferred to the second handling device 60.

[0139] In some examples, the first picking object may place the item to be transferred on conveyor line 70 to transport the first item to the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution device through the first outlet A of conveyor line 70.

[0140] For example, if the buffer mechanism between the first workstation 310 and the first distribution device 510 is a conveyor line, the conveyor line may be provided with two outlets. The first outlet can transport goods or containers to the first distribution device, and the second outlet can transport goods or containers to the corresponding conveyor line of the second workstation (as shown in Figure 5A), or to the second handling device (as shown in Figure 5B).

[0141] In some examples, multiple conveyor lines can be set up between each workstation and its corresponding distribution equipment, or a single conveyor line can be used. For example, if two conveyor lines are set up between the workstation and the distribution equipment, the conveying directions of these two conveyor lines can be different; one conveyor line can transport goods or containers from the workstation to the distribution equipment, while the other conveyor line can transport goods or containers from the distribution equipment to the workstation. If only one conveyor line is set up between the workstation and the distribution equipment, the conveying direction of this conveyor line can be adjusted as needed, and this disclosure does not limit this aspect.

[0142] The following description uses a conveyor as an example to illustrate the warehousing system provided in the embodiments of this disclosure.

[0143] In some embodiments, the transport instruction includes a target transfer instruction and a second handling instruction. A first workstation is configured to transfer the object to be transferred to a second handling device according to the target transfer instruction; the second handling device is configured to handle the object to be transferred to a second workstation according to the second handling instruction, so as to seed the second goods hit by the second order on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0144] In some examples, after identifying the item to be transferred, the control device can generate a target transfer instruction and a second handling instruction based on the item, and send the target transfer instruction to the first workstation 310 and the second handling instruction to the second handling device 60. The first workstation transfers the item to be transferred to the second handling device according to the target transfer instruction. After the first workstation 310 transfers the item to the second handling device 60, the second handling device 60 moves the item to the second workstation 320 according to the second handling instruction.

[0145] In some examples, when the object to be transferred is a second container, the first workstation 310 can remove the second container from the target carrier using a container pick-and-place device and place the second container on the picking station of the first workstation 310, and the first picking object of the first workstation 310 can transfer the second container to the second handling equipment 60.

[0146] In some examples, when the item to be transferred is a second cargo, the first workstation 310 can remove the second container from the target vehicle using a container pick-and-place device and place the second container on the first picking station of the first workstation 310. The first picking object picks the second cargo from the second container and places the second cargo on the second handling equipment 60.

[0147] In some examples, the first workstation transferring the item to be transferred to the second handling equipment according to the target transfer instruction can be a first picking object from the first workstation transferring the item to the second handling equipment. The process of the first picking object transferring the item to be transferred from the first workstation to the second handling equipment is described below.

[0148] In some embodiments, the first picking object is configured to: transfer the object to be transferred to the second handling device according to the target transfer instruction; or, transfer the object to be transferred to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation according to the target transfer instruction, and transport the object to be transferred to the second handling device through the buffer mechanism; or, transfer the object to be transferred to the first distribution device according to the target transfer instruction, and transfer the object to be transferred to the second handling device through the first distribution device.

[0149] In some examples, the first picking object can directly place the second container placed at the first picking station onto the second handling equipment according to the target transfer instruction, or place the second goods picked from the second container onto the second handling equipment 60.

[0150] In some examples, the first picking object can be placed on the buffer mechanism (such as the first buffer mechanism) of the first workstation according to the target transfer instruction, and the object to be transferred can be transported to the second handling equipment through the first buffer mechanism.

[0151] For example, as shown in Figure 5B, the first buffer mechanism can be a conveyor line 70, and the first picking object can place the object to be transferred at one end of the conveyor line 70 so that the object to be transferred can be transported to the second handling device 60 through the second outlet B of the conveyor line 70.

[0152] In some examples, the first picking object can be transferred to the first distribution device according to the target transfer instruction, and then transported to the second handling device through the first distribution device.

[0153] For example, as shown in Figure 5B, the first picking object can place the object to be transferred at one end of the conveyor line 70 so that the object to be transferred can be transported to the first sorting device 510 through the first outlet A of the conveyor line 70, and then the first sorting device 510 can transfer the object to be transferred to the second handling device 60.

[0154] In some examples, when the item to be transferred is transferred to the second handling device via the first sorting device, the first picking object may first transfer the item to the delivery mechanism of the first sorting device, and then the delivery mechanism transfers the item to the second handling device.

[0155] In some embodiments, the first sorting device includes a first delivery mechanism, and the target transfer instruction includes a first transfer instruction and a second transfer instruction. The first picking object is configured to: transfer the object to be transferred to the delivery mechanism of the first sorting device according to the first transfer instruction; the first delivery mechanism is configured to: when the second transport device moves to a preset sowing position on the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation, move to the docking position corresponding to the preset sowing position according to the second transfer instruction, and transfer the object to be transferred to the second transport device.

[0156] For example, each workstation's corresponding seeding wall includes multiple grids, each grid including multiple seeding positions. One or more seeding positions on the bottom layer (grid) of the seeding wall can be designated as preset seeding positions. No order containers need to be placed on the preset seeding positions, and a docking position is provided below the preset seeding positions for a second transport device to dock.

[0157] For example, when the second transport device is parked at a docking position below the preset sowing position, the delivery mechanism can transfer the object to be transferred to the second transport device at the docking position when it moves to the docking position of the preset sowing position.

[0158] In some examples, the first picking object can directly transport and place the item to be transferred onto the first delivery mechanism, or the first picking object can place the item to be transferred onto the conveyor line and transport it to the first delivery mechanism of the first seeding device through the first outlet of the conveyor line. After receiving the item to be transferred, the first delivery mechanism can move from its current position to the docking position corresponding to the preset seeding position according to the second transfer instruction, and transfer the item to the second handling device.

[0159] For example, the first distribution device has a corresponding buffer position. After receiving the item to be transferred, if the second handling device has not yet reached the docking position below the preset seeding position, or if there is no idle second handling device in the current storage system, the first delivery mechanism can first place the item to be transferred on the buffer position, and the second handling device can move to the buffer position to receive the item to be transferred placed on the buffer position.

[0160] In some examples, a buffer rack can be placed on one side of the first distribution device, and multiple buffer positions can be set on the buffer rack. The buffer position corresponding to the first distribution device can be an empty buffer position on the buffer rack; alternatively, the buffer position corresponding to the first distribution device can also be a conveyor line or a flip plate. For example, the buffer position can be set at a preset seeding position, and when the second transport device arrives at the docking position, the buffer position at the preset seeding position can transfer the object to be transferred to the second transport device. This disclosure does not limit the specific form of the buffer position corresponding to the first distribution device.

[0161] For example, when the first container and the second container are the same container, the first picker can pick out the first item from the first container and transfer the first item to the first distribution device, where the first distribution device performs a distribution operation on the first item. After picking out the first item, the first picker can transfer the first container or the second item in the first container to the second handling device, which then transports it to the second workstation, where the second distribution device at the second workstation performs a distribution operation on the second item.

[0162] In some embodiments, the control device is further configured to: after the first workstation picks the first goods that have been matched by the first order in the first storage device, generate a first distribution instruction; the first picked object is configured to: transfer the first goods to the first delivery mechanism according to the first distribution instruction; the first delivery mechanism is configured to deliver the first goods to the first order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation according to the first distribution instruction, so as to complete the distribution of the first goods.

[0163] The first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order.

[0164] In some examples, after the first picking object selects the first item corresponding to the first order from the first container, it moves and places the first item onto the first delivery mechanism of the first delivery device according to the first distribution instruction. After receiving the first item, the first delivery mechanism moves from its current position to the position of the first order container corresponding to the first order according to the first distribution instruction to deliver the first item into the first order container, thereby completing the distribution of the first item.

[0165] It should be noted that the process of the first picking object moving and placing the first goods onto the first delivery mechanism of the first sorting equipment is similar to the process of the first picking object transferring the items to be picked to the first delivery mechanism of the first sorting equipment, including: the first picking object directly moving and placing the first goods onto the first delivery mechanism of the first sorting equipment, or the first picking object placing the first goods onto the conveyor line 70 so that the first goods can be transported to the first delivery mechanism through the first outlet of the conveyor line 70.

[0166] In some embodiments, when the item to be transferred is a second storage device, the control device is further configured to: after the first workstation transports the item to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveying device, generate a second picking instruction and a second distribution instruction. The second workstation is configured to: pick the second item matched by the second order in the second storage device according to the second picking instruction; and transfer the picked second item to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation according to the second distribution instruction. The second distribution device is configured to: deliver the second item to the second order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation according to the second distribution instruction, thereby completing the distribution of the second item.

[0167] The second order container is the order container corresponding to the second order.

[0168] In some examples, when the item to be transferred is a second container, after the second container is transported to the second workstation by the conveyor, a picking operation needs to be performed on the second container to pick out the second goods that the second order has hit.

[0169] For example, if the second handling equipment moves the second container to the second workstation, the second picker at the second workstation moves the second container from the second handling equipment to the picking station (e.g., the second picking station) of the second workstation and picks out the second goods from the second container at the second picking station; or, the second handling equipment may move the second container to the conveyor line of the second workstation, and the conveyor line transports the second container to the second picking station of the second workstation, where the second picker picks out the second goods from the second container at the second picking station; or, the second handling equipment may be parked near the second workstation, and the second picker may directly pick out the second goods from the second container on the second handling equipment.

[0170] For example, the second picking object may directly place the picked second goods onto the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device according to the second distribution instruction; or, the second picking object may also place the picked second goods onto the conveyor line corresponding to the second workstation according to the second distribution instruction, so as to be transported to the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device via the conveyor line.

[0171] In some examples, after receiving the second goods, the second delivery agency can move to the location of the second order container corresponding to the second order and deliver the second goods to the second order container, thereby completing the distribution of the second goods.

[0172] In some embodiments, when the item to be transferred is a second cargo, the control device is further configured to generate a second distribution instruction after the second cargo corresponding to the second order is transported to the second workstation via a conveying device from the first workstation. The second distribution device is configured to deliver the second cargo to the second order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation according to the second distribution instruction, thereby completing the distribution of the second cargo.

[0173] In other words, when the second handling equipment moves the second goods to the second workstation, the second picking object at the second workstation can transfer the second goods to the second sorting equipment, and the second sorting equipment can perform a sorting operation on the second goods.

[0174] In some examples, after the second handling device moves the second goods to the second workstation, the second picking object transfers the second goods from the second handling device to the second sorting device. The second sorting device then delivers the second goods to the second order container according to the second sorting instruction. Alternatively, the second handling device may move the second goods to below a preset sowing position on the second sowing wall, and the second delivery mechanism moves to the docking position of the preset sowing position on the second sowing wall to receive the second goods from the second handling device. After receiving the second goods, it moves to the position of the second order container and delivers the second goods into the second order container.

[0175] In some embodiments, when the item to be transferred is a second container, after the second workstation completes picking the second container, if the second container is not matched by orders corresponding to other workstations in the first workstation group, the second container is placed in an empty location on the pick-up carrier of the second workstation, or the second container is transported to the first workstation via the second handling equipment, and the second container is placed on the target carrier by the first workstation.

[0176] For example, after the second workstation completes picking the second container, that is, after the second workstation picks out the second goods that the second order hits from the second container, the second container can be placed on the vehicle corresponding to the second workstation.

[0177] In some examples, when a picking vehicle is present at the second workstation and there is an available storage location on that vehicle, the second workstation can control the container pick-and-place device to move the second container from its current location (such as the second picking station) to the available storage location.

[0178] In other examples, if there is no picking vehicle at the second workstation, or if there is a picking vehicle at the second workstation but no available storage space on that vehicle, the container pick-and-place device at the second workstation can move the second container from its current position to an available buffer space at the second workstation. If a picking vehicle is available at the second workstation, the container pick-and-place device will then move the second container placed in the buffer space to an available storage space on that vehicle, thus not affecting the picking operations of other containers at the second workstation.

[0179] For example, after the second workstation completes picking the second container, that is, after the second workstation picks out the second goods matching the second order from the second container, the second container can be transported back to the first workstation via the second handling equipment and placed on the vehicle that the first workstation is picking. For example, the vehicle that the first workstation is picking includes the target vehicle or other vehicles besides the target vehicle.

[0180] For example, the second handling equipment that moves the second container back to the first workstation and the second handling equipment that moves the second container to the second workstation can be different second handling equipment or the same second handling equipment. This disclosure does not limit this.

[0181] In some examples, when the second handling device moves the second container to the first workstation, the target vehicle is still performing picking operations at the first workstation, and there are available storage locations on the target vehicle. In this case, the container pick-and-place device of the first workstation can place the second container on the available storage location on the target vehicle.

[0182] In other examples, where the second handling device moves the second container to the first workstation, the target vehicle does not perform a picking operation at the first workstation, and there is another vehicle in the vehicle docking area of ​​the first workstation with an available storage space on the vehicle being picked, the container pick and place device of the first workstation can place the second container into the available storage space on the vehicle being picked.

[0183] In other examples, after the second handling device moves the second container to the first workstation, if there is no target vehicle or other vehicles being picked in the first workstation's vehicle docking area, or if there is no available storage space on a vehicle being picked at the first workstation, the control container pick-and-place device at the first workstation will move the second container to an available buffer location at the first workstation. If a vehicle being picked is available at the first workstation, the container pick-and-place device will then move the second container placed in the buffer location to an available storage space on that vehicle, thus not affecting the first workstation's picking operations for other containers.

[0184] In some examples, multiple buffer slots can be set up on each workstation, or a buffer rack with multiple buffer slots can be set up near each workstation. The buffer slots are used to temporarily place containers to be picked or containers that have been picked; or, the buffer slots can also be set up on a buffer rack near a second workstation, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0185] It should be noted that the first workstation group also includes other workstations, such as the third workstation. If the second container on the target vehicle is hit by both the second and third workstations, the second container can be transferred to the second workstation for picking first, and then transferred from the second workstation to the third workstation for picking and distribution. Alternatively, the second goods of the second order corresponding to the second workstation and the third goods of the third order corresponding to the third workstation can be picked out from the second container at the first workstation and then transported to the second and third workstations respectively by the conveying equipment for distribution.

[0186] The warehousing system provided in this disclosure allows for the following operations: when both a first order corresponding to a first workstation and a second order corresponding to a second workstation match containers on a target vehicle, the target vehicle can be transported to the first workstation via a first handling device. At the first workstation, the first goods matched by the first order are picked and sorted. Simultaneously, the second goods matched by the second order, or the containers containing the second goods, can be transported from the first workstation to the second workstation via a conveying device (such as a second handling device or conveyor line), and the second goods are sorted at the second workstation. This warehousing system allows for the simultaneous picking of goods matched by one workstation and the transport of goods matched by other workstations, or the containers containing those goods, to other workstations via conveying devices. This avoids the first handling device having to transport the target vehicle to other workstations, thereby improving the overall efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0187] In some embodiments, when the conveying device is a second handling device, the control device is further configured to: generate an order container removal command when the sowing status of the first order container is "sowing completed"; and generate an order container replenishment command when there is an available sowing position on the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation. The first distribution device is configured to: remove the first order container from the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation according to the order container removal command, and transfer the first order container to the second handling device for removal via the second handling device. The second handling device is configured to: transfer an empty order container to the first distribution device according to the order container replenishment command, and transfer the empty order container to an available sowing position via the first distribution device.

[0188] In some examples, when the control device determines that the sowing status of the first order container is completed, it can generate an order container removal instruction. This instruction directs the first seeding device and the second transport device to remove the completed order container (such as the first order container) from the first seeding wall. For instance, based on the order container removal instruction, the first seeding device removes the completed first order container from its corresponding seeding position and places it on the second transport device. The second transport device then transports the received first order container to the corresponding area based on the order container removal instruction.

[0189] For example, the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution device can take out the first order container and place it on the corresponding buffer position of the first distribution device, and the second handling device can receive the first order container from the buffer position.

[0190] In some examples, when the control device determines that there is an available seeding position on the first seeding wall, it can generate an order container replenishment instruction. This instruction directs the first seeding device and the second transport device to replenish a new order container at an available seeding position. For example, the second transport device receives an empty order container according to the order container replenishment instruction and transports it to the first seeding device. The first seeding device then places the received empty order container at an available seeding position according to the order container replenishment instruction.

[0191] For example, the second handling device can transfer the empty order container to the corresponding buffer position of the first distribution device, and the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution device can receive the empty order container from the buffer position and place the empty order container on the vacant seeding position on the first seeding wall.

[0192] For example, the warehousing system may further include at least one container handling device, which can be moved to the location of each seeding wall to handle the handling of each order container on the seeding wall. The container handling device may be equipped with a robotic arm, which can perform the handling of each order container on the seeding wall.

[0193] In some examples, when there are completed order containers or vacant seeding positions on the first seeding wall, the container pick-and-place device can move to one side of the first seeding wall, remove the completed order containers from the first seeding wall, and transfer the removed completed order containers to the second transport device, which then removes the completed order containers; or, the container pick-and-place device can place empty order containers transported by the second transport device onto vacant seeding positions on the first seeding wall.

[0194] For example, an operator can remove a completed seeding order container from the first seeding wall and place it on a second transport device, which then removes the seeded order container. Alternatively, the second transport device can transport an empty order container to the location of the first seeding wall, from which an operator can remove the empty order container and place it on an empty seeding position on the first seeding wall.

[0195] When there are order containers that have been planted on the seeding wall, the storage system provided in this disclosure can remove the order containers that have been planted using a seeding device and a second handling device; when there are vacant seeding positions on the seeding wall, the seeding device and the second handling device can also be used to replenish the vacant seeding positions with empty order containers.

[0196] In some embodiments, when the conveying device is a second handling device, the control device is configured to generate a second handling instruction when the number of second handling devices in an idle state is greater than or equal to a preset quantity threshold.

[0197] In some embodiments, when the conveying device is a second handling device, the control device is further configured to generate a third handling instruction when the number of idle second handling devices is less than a preset quantity threshold. The first handling device is configured to transport the target vehicle to the second workstation according to the third handling instruction, so as to pick the second goods matched by the second order at the second workstation.

[0198] In some examples, the number of idle second handling devices in the storage system 100 can be determined and compared with a preset quantity threshold. If the number of idle second handling devices is greater than or equal to the preset quantity threshold, it indicates that there are enough idle second handling devices, and therefore the second handling devices can be scheduled to perform the transport of the items to be transferred, that is, to move the items to be transferred from the first workstation to the second workstation.

[0199] In some examples, the number of idle second handling devices is less than a preset threshold, indicating that there are fewer idle second handling devices. When the second order corresponding to the second workstation hits the second container on the target vehicle, the first handling device can transport the target vehicle to the second workstation for picking and sorting after the first workstation completes the picking of the first container. This can avoid waiting for the second handling device and improve the picking and sorting efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0200] The warehousing system provided in this embodiment can determine whether it is necessary to transfer containers or goods between the first and second workstations using the second handling equipment based on the number of idle second handling equipment. If there are fewer idle second handling equipment, the target vehicle can be directly transported to the second workstation for picking using the first handling equipment, thereby avoiding waiting for the second handling equipment and further improving the working efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0201] In some embodiments, multiple workstation groups are dynamically adjusted based on at least one of the following: the number of pending orders corresponding to each workstation, the cargo information corresponding to each pending order, the number of second handling equipment in the warehousing system that is idle, and the path congestion information in the warehousing system.

[0202] In some examples, the number of workstations in each workstation group can be dynamically adjusted. That is, after dividing the workstations into groups, the number of workstations in each group can be dynamically adjusted.

[0203] For example, after identifying each workstation in the workstation group, the number of pending orders for each workstation and the goods required for each pending order can be determined.

[0204] In some examples, when there are many pending orders and / or many goods required for each pending order, the number of goods or containers that need to be transferred in the workstation group will be large, thus requiring a large number of second handling equipment to transfer goods or containers between the workstations in the workstation group.

[0205] For example, a large number of secondary handling devices operating in a warehousing system may lead to path congestion, resulting in lower handling efficiency and consequently reducing picking and sorting efficiency. Alternatively, if the number of idle secondary handling devices is insufficient to handle the transfer of items in the workstation group, waiting for secondary handling devices is necessary. Path congestion can also affect the handling efficiency of the secondary handling devices. Therefore, in these situations, the number of workstations in the workstation group can be reduced by breaking it down into smaller workstation groups. This reduces the number of items to be transferred, thereby reducing the number of secondary handling devices and the travel distance of each device, ultimately improving the handling efficiency of the secondary handling devices.

[0206] In some examples, when the number of pending orders is small and / or the amount of goods required for each pending order is small, the number of goods or containers that need to be transferred in the workstation group will be small. As a result, the number of second handling devices required to transfer goods or containers between workstations in the workstation group will be small, while the number of second handling devices in the warehousing system that are idle will be large. Alternatively, if there is no risk of path congestion in the warehousing system, the number of workstations in the workstation group can be increased, that is, the workstation group can be adjusted to a larger workstation group. This allows the first handling vehicle to cover more workstations, thereby improving the hit rate and further improving the efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0207] The warehousing system provided in this embodiment can dynamically adjust the workstations in the divided workstation groups. By increasing or decreasing the number of workstations in the workstation groups, the handling efficiency of the second handling equipment and the picking and sorting efficiency of the warehousing system can be further improved.

[0208] In some embodiments, the operating area of ​​the second handling device is different from or partially the same as the operating area of ​​the first handling device.

[0209] For example, the second handling equipment can share the operating area with the first handling equipment, that is, the second handling equipment can reuse part of the path of the first handling equipment.

[0210] In some embodiments, the operating area of ​​the second conveying device includes at least one of the following: the area below each workstation, the area behind each workstation, and the area above each workstation.

[0211] In some examples, the second handling device may also have a separate operating area that can only be used by the second handling device. This operating area may include the area below the workstation, the area behind the workstation, and the area above each workstation. When the operating area of ​​the second handling device is located in the area above the workstation, the second handling device may be a handling device that runs along an overhead rail and can move containers or goods by overhead lifting.

[0212] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 6, the straight lines with arrows represent the travel paths of the first handling equipment, the small white squares represent the travel paths of the second handling equipment, and the large gray squares represent the travel paths shared by the first and second handling equipment. As shown in Figure 6, the second handling equipment may share a travel path with the first handling equipment, or it may have its own separate travel path.

[0213] The warehousing system provided in this embodiment can maximize path utilization by scheduling at least two different types of handling equipment on the same map through path planning for the first and second handling equipment.

[0214] The following is a detailed description of the situation where the conveying equipment is a conveyor line and the second cargo is to be transferred.

[0215] For example, as can be seen from the above embodiments, when the conveying equipment is a conveyor line, the conveyor line can be connected to the first workstation and the second distribution equipment respectively. Therefore, when the first workstation transfers the picked second goods to the conveyor line, the conveyor line can transport the second goods placed on it to the second distribution equipment.

[0216] In some embodiments, the conveyor line includes a strip conveyor line or a ring conveyor line.

[0217] In some embodiments, when the conveyor line is a strip conveyor line, the strip conveyor line is provided with multiple docking interfaces, which can be respectively docked with at least one workstation and at least one distribution device. That is, the conveyor line can be docked with at least one workstation and at least one distribution device through multiple docking interfaces, thereby conveying the goods picked by the workstation to the distribution device corresponding to the goods.

[0218] For example, the multiple interfaces of the strip conveyor line may include a first pair of interfaces and a second pair of interfaces. The first pair of interfaces interfaces with a first workstation, and the second pair of interfaces interfaces with the second distribution device (i.e., the second distribution device) corresponding to the second workstation. The first workstation can transfer the picked second item onto the conveyor line via the first pair of interfaces and then transport it to the second distribution device via the second pair of interfaces.

[0219] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 7, the conveyor line is a strip conveyor line 72. The first pair of interfaces 72a of the strip conveyor line 72 is connected to the first workstation 310, and the second pair of interfaces 72b of the strip conveyor line 72 is connected to the second distribution device 520 corresponding to the second workstation 320.

[0220] As shown in Figure 7, the first picking object places the picked second goods on the first pair of interfaces 72a of the strip conveyor line 72. The strip conveyor line 72 transports the second goods and then transports them to the second distribution device 520 through the second pair of interfaces 72b.

[0221] In some examples, as shown in Figure 7, the first pair of interfaces 72a of the strip conveyor 72 can be connected to the first buffer mechanism (such as the first conveyor 71) of the first workstation 310, and the second pair of interfaces 72b of the strip conveyor 72 can be connected to the delivery mechanism (such as the second delivery mechanism) of the second distribution device 520, or to the buffer position of the second distribution device 520.

[0222] For example, the first picking object of the first workstation 310 places the picked second goods at one end of the first conveyor line 71, and transfers the second goods to the first interface 72a of the strip conveyor line 72 through the second outlet B of the first conveyor line 71. The strip conveyor line 72 can transport the second goods to the second interface 72b of the strip conveyor line 72 along the conveying direction, and then transport the second goods to the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device 520 through the second interface 72b; or, transport them to the buffer position of the second distribution device 520, from which the second delivery mechanism can then obtain the second goods.

[0223] It should be noted that when the second delivery mechanism is idle, the second pair of interfaces 72b of the strip conveyor line 72 can transport the second goods to the second delivery mechanism. When the second delivery mechanism is not idle, the strip conveyor line 72 can transport the second goods to the buffer position of the second distribution device through the second pair of interfaces 72b, and the second delivery mechanism can receive the second goods at the buffer position.

[0224] For example, as shown in FIG7, the first pair of interfaces 72a of the strip conveyor line 72 can also be connected to the first distribution device 510 to receive the second goods transferred by the first distribution device 510, and the second pair of interfaces 72b of the strip conveyor line 72 can be connected to the second distribution device 520 to transfer the second goods onto the second distribution device 520.

[0225] In some examples, the first pair of interfaces 72a of the strip conveyor 72 can be connected to the buffer position of the first distribution device 510 to receive the second goods on the buffer position of the first distribution device 510, and the second pair of interfaces 72b of the strip conveyor 72 can be connected to the buffer position of the second distribution device 520 to transfer the second goods to the buffer position of the second distribution device 520, and then the second delivery mechanism can be connected to the buffer position to receive the second goods.

[0226] In other examples, the first pair of interfaces 72a of the strip conveyor 72 may also interface with the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution device 510 to receive the second goods delivered by the first delivery mechanism, and the second pair of interfaces 72b of the strip conveyor 72 may interface with the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device 520 to transfer the second goods to the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device.

[0227] In some other examples, the first pair of interfaces 72a of the strip conveyor 72 can also be connected to the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution device 510 to receive the second goods delivered by the first delivery mechanism, and the second pair of interfaces 72b of the strip conveyor 72 can be connected to the buffer position of the second distribution device 520 to transfer the second goods to the buffer position of the second distribution device, and then the second delivery mechanism connects to the buffer position to receive the second goods.

[0228] It should be noted that the present invention does not limit the number of the multiple interfaces of the strip conveyor line 72, nor the docking position of each interface.

[0229] In some embodiments, when the conveyor line is a circular conveyor line, the circular conveyor line includes a first transfer inlet, a second transfer inlet, a first transfer outlet, and a second transfer outlet; wherein the first transfer inlet, the second transfer outlet, the first transfer outlet, and the second transfer inlet are arranged sequentially along the circular conveyor line.

[0230] In some embodiments, the first transfer inlet is connected to the first workstation to receive goods picked out by the first workstation; the first transfer outlet is connected to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation to transfer goods conveyed on the circular conveyor line to the second distribution device; the second transfer inlet is connected to the second workstation to receive goods picked out by the second workstation; and the second transfer outlet is connected to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation to transport goods conveyed on the circular conveyor line to the first distribution device.

[0231] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of another storage system provided in the embodiments of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 8, the conveyor line is a circular conveyor line 80. The circular conveyor line 80 includes a first transfer inlet 81, a second transfer inlet 82, a first transfer outlet 83, and a second transfer outlet 84. The first transfer inlet 81, the second transfer inlet 82, the first transfer outlet 83, and the second transfer outlet 84 are arranged sequentially along the circumference of the circular conveyor line 80.

[0232] In some examples, the conveying direction of the circular conveyor line 80 can be determined according to requirements. For example, the circular conveyor line 80 can convey in a counterclockwise direction or in a clockwise direction, and this disclosure does not limit this. For example, the following description uses the example of the circular conveyor line 80 conveying in a counterclockwise direction.

[0233] For example, when the first workstation 310 receives a picking instruction and executes a picking operation, the first item to be picked can be a first item picked from the first container and transferred to the circular conveyor line 80 through the first transfer inlet 81; a second item can be picked from the second container and also transferred to the circular conveyor line 80 through the first transfer inlet 81. The first item reaches one side of the first sorting device 510 on the circular conveyor line 82 in a counter-clockwise direction and can be transferred to the first sorting device 510 through the second transfer outlet 84; the second item passes through the first sorting device 510 on the circular conveyor line 82 in a counter-clockwise direction and reaches one side of the second sorting device 520 and can be transferred to the second sorting device 520 through the first transfer outlet 83.

[0234] For example, when the second workstation 320 receives a picking instruction and executes a picking operation, it can also pick out the first item from the first container and transfer it to the circular conveyor line 80 through the second transfer inlet 82; and pick out the second item from the second container and transfer it to the circular conveyor line 80 through the second transfer inlet 82 as well. When the first item passes through the first workstation 310 counterclockwise on the circular conveyor line 80 and reaches one side of the first distribution device 510, it can be transferred to the first distribution device 510 through the second transfer outlet 84; when the second item passes through the first workstation 310 and the first distribution device 510 counterclockwise on the circular conveyor line 80 and reaches one side of the second distribution device 520, it can be transferred to the second distribution device 520 through the first transfer outlet 83.

[0235] For example, scanning devices can be installed on the circular conveyor line 80, workstations 30 (such as the first workstation 310 and the second workstation 320), or distribution equipment (such as the first distribution equipment 510 and the second distribution equipment 520). The control device can obtain the cargo information of each cargo being transported on the circular conveyor line 80 through the scanning devices. Based on the scanning results of the scanning devices, the circular conveyor line 80 can transport the cargo in different directions. For example, a first scanning device can be installed on the first distribution equipment 510, and a second scanning device can be installed on the second distribution equipment 520.

[0236] For example, as shown in Figure 8, taking the circular conveyor line 80 transporting goods in a counterclockwise direction as an example, after receiving a picking instruction, the first workstation 310 can pick out the first item from the first container and the second item from the second container, and transfer the first item and the second item to the circular conveyor line 80 respectively. When the first scanning device detects that there is goods on one side of the first distribution device 510, it can scan the goods. If the first scanning device scans that the goods are the first items, the circular conveyor line 80 can move the first items out to the first distribution device 510 through the second transfer outlet 84. If the first scanning device scans that the goods are the second items, the circular conveyor line 80 continues to transport the second items. If the second scanning device scans that there are goods on one side of the second distribution device 520, it scans the goods. If the second scanning device scans that the goods are the second items, the circular conveyor line 80 can transfer the second items to the second distribution device 520 through the first transfer outlet 83.

[0237] It should be noted that the conveyor line in this embodiment may include, but is not limited to, conveyor belts such as belts, chains, and rollers, and the structure of the conveyor line is not limited in this embodiment.

[0238] In some embodiments, the conveying equipment may further include a track and track-transferring equipment. The track-transferring equipment can move along the track. The track may have multiple docking positions, allowing the track-transferring equipment to dock with workstations or distribution equipment as it moves along the track and reaches each docking position.

[0239] In some examples, a first docking position and a second docking position may be provided on the track. When the track transport equipment moves along the track to the first docking position, the track transport equipment can dock with the first workstation to receive the second goods picked up by the first workstation. When the track transport equipment moves along the track to the second docking position, the track transport equipment can dock with the second distribution equipment to transport the second goods it is transporting to the second distribution equipment.

[0240] It should be noted that more docking positions can be set on the track, such as the third docking position and the fourth docking position, etc. Each docking position can correspond to different docking devices (such as workstations or broadcasting devices). This embodiment does not specifically limit the number of docking positions on the track or the docking devices corresponding to each docking position.

[0241] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 9, the conveying equipment includes a track 91 and a track transport device 92.

[0242] As shown in Figure 9, track 91 includes a first docking position 91a and a second docking position 91b. The first docking position 91a allows the track transport device 92 to dock with the first workstation 310, and the second docking position 91b allows the track transport device 92 to dock with the second distribution device 520. The track transport device 92 is mounted on track 91 and can move along track 91. For example, the track transport device 92 can move along track 91 to the first docking position 91a or to the second docking position 91b.

[0243] In some examples, when the track transport device 92 is docked at the first docking position 91a, the track transport device 92 can dock with the first buffer mechanism (such as the first conveyor line) of the first workstation 310; wherein the first conveyor line can transfer the second goods picked up by the first workstation 310 to the track transport device 92, or can transfer the second goods on the first distribution device 510 to the track transport device 92. When the track transport device 92 is docked at the second docking position 91b, the track transport device 92 can dock with the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device 520, or it can dock with the buffer position of the second distribution device 520, so that the second goods can be transported to the second delivery mechanism or buffer position of the second distribution device 520 via the track transport device 92.

[0244] In other examples, when the track transport device 92 is docked at the second docking position 91b, the track transport device 92 can dock with the second buffer mechanism (such as a second conveyor line) of the second workstation 320. The second conveyor line can transfer the first goods picked up by the second workstation 320 to the track transport device 92, or it can transfer the first goods on the second distribution device 520 to the track transport device 92. When the track transport device 92 is docked at the first docking position 91a, the track transport device 92 can dock with the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution device 510, or it can dock with the buffer position of the first distribution device 510, so that the first goods can be transported to the first delivery mechanism or buffer position of the second distribution device 520 via the track transport device 92.

[0245] In some examples, track 91 provides running guidance for track transport equipment 92. Through the extension path and direction of track 91, track transport equipment 92 can move along track 91 and reach each docking position on track 91, thereby realizing docking of track transport equipment 92 (also called track robot) with each workstation 30 and each distribution device.

[0246] In some examples, as shown in Figure 9, after the track transport device 92 receives the second cargo transferred from the first workstation 310 at the first docking position 91a, it can move along the track toward the second docking position 91b. When the track transport device 92 reaches the second docking position 91b, it can transport the second cargo to the second distribution device 520.

[0247] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of a track and a track transport device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 10, the track 91 has two opposite ends along its length, and the track transport device 92 moves along the track 91.

[0248] In some examples, where more mating positions can be provided on the track, the third or fourth mating position among the multiple mating positions can be any position between the two ends of the track 91. For example, the third and fourth mating positions are both two positions between the two ends of the track 91, wherein the third and fourth mating positions are spaced apart along the extension direction of the track 91.

[0249] For example, track 91 can connect at least three workstations to realize cargo transfer between at least three workstations. Thus, the aforementioned third and fourth docking positions can be partial docking positions of track 91, and the docking positions of track 91 can be adjusted according to actual needs.

[0250] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of a track transport device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 11, the track transport device 92 includes a base 921, a lifting mechanism 922, and a pick-and-place mechanism 923. The lifting mechanism 922 is disposed on the base 921, and the pick-and-place mechanism 923 is disposed on the lifting mechanism 922. The lifting mechanism 922 can drive the pick-and-place mechanism 923 to move up and down to dock with structures of different heights, such as the buffer position of the first workstation or the second delivery mechanism of the second seeding device.

[0251] In some examples, the picking and placing components of the picking and placing mechanism 923 may include, but are not limited to, suction cups, gripping forks, hooks, etc., as long as they can pick up or release the first or second goods. The lifting mechanism 922 may include, but is not limited to, a belt drive structure, a gear and rack structure, or a hydraulic cylinder structure, as long as it can drive the picking and placing mechanism 733 to move up and down.

[0252] In some examples, a drive wheel and a drive motor are provided on the base 921. The drive wheel is rolled on the track 91, and the drive motor can drive the drive wheel to rotate, so that the drive wheel rolls along the track 91, causing the track transport device 92 to move along the track 91.

[0253] It should be noted that the track 91 provides running guidance for the track transport equipment 92. By extending the path and direction of the track 91, the track transport equipment 92 can move along the track 91 to reach each workstation and the corresponding seeding equipment. This eliminates the need to set up steering drive wheel sets, anti-collision mechanisms and radar, thus simplifying the structure of the track transport equipment 92.

[0254] For example, when it is necessary to transport the second goods picked up by the first workstation 310 to the second distribution device 520, the control device can control the track transport device 92 to move along the track 91 to the buffer mechanism of the first workstation 310. First, the lifting mechanism drives the pick-and-place mechanism to move to the height of docking with the buffer mechanism. Then, the pick-and-place mechanism takes out the second goods from the buffer mechanism. Then, the track transport device 92 carries the second goods along the track 91 to the second distribution device 520, and drives the pick-and-place mechanism to move to the height of docking with the buffer position or the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device 520. The pick-and-place mechanism then transfers the second goods to the buffer position or the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device 520.

[0255] In some examples, multiple track handling devices 92 can be installed on track 91. When there are multiple second goods corresponding to the second order, and the multiple second goods are picked out by the first workstation 310, the multiple second goods can be transported sequentially by the multiple track handling devices 92.

[0256] For example, if multiple orders include the third goods required for the third order corresponding to the third workstation and the fourth goods required for the fourth order corresponding to the fourth workstation, and both the third and fourth goods are picked by the first workstation 310, each track handling device 92 can sequentially transfer the third and fourth goods picked by the first workstation to the distributing device corresponding to the third workstation and the distributing device corresponding to the fourth workstation, respectively.

[0257] For example, since the length of track 91 is limited, individual track transport devices cannot move to the corresponding position. In this case, each track transport device can perform relay transfer to transfer the second cargo from the first workstation 310 to the second distribution device 520.

[0258] For example, track 91 is equipped with a first track transport device, a second track transport device, and a third track transport device. The first track transport device can move near the first workstation 310, the second track transport device can move in the area between the first workstation 310 and the second workstation 320, and the third track transport device can move near the second workstation 320. Specifically, the first track transport device can dock with the first workstation 310 to receive the second goods picked up by the first workstation, and then the second track transport device can dock with the first track transport device to receive the second goods on the first track transport device. The second track transport device continues to move to the third track transport device, transferring the second goods to the pick-and-place mechanism of the third track transport device. Then, the third track transport device docks with the second distribution device 520 and transfers the second goods onto the second distribution device 520.

[0259] In some examples, when the track transport device 92 docks with the first workstation 310, it may dock with the work platform of the first workstation 310, or with the buffer mechanism of the first workstation 310, or with the buffer bit of the first sub-broadcast device corresponding to the first workstation 310, or with the delivery mechanism of the sub-broadcast device corresponding to the first workstation 310. This disclosure does not limit this.

[0260] The order processing method provided by the embodiments of this disclosure will be described below with reference to Figure 12. It should be noted that the order processing method provided by the embodiments of this disclosure can be implemented by the warehousing system 100 in the above embodiments, such as by the control device in the warehousing system 100.

[0261] Figure 12 illustrates an order processing method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 12, the order processing method includes steps 1210 to 1230 as follows.

[0262] Step 1210: Obtain multiple pending orders corresponding to multiple workstations, and determine the target vehicle that the multiple pending orders are matched with.

[0263] For example, a warehousing system includes multiple workstations, which can be divided into at least one workstation group.

[0264] In some embodiments, step 1210 includes: obtaining a set of pending orders corresponding to the workstation group; and determining the target vehicle corresponding to the workstation group based on the set of pending orders, using the vehicle with the most orders in the set of pending orders.

[0265] The pending orders set includes pending orders corresponding to each workstation in the workstation group.

[0266] In some examples, each workstation in each workstation group can hit at least one vehicle, and the target vehicle corresponding to the workstation group is determined based on the vehicles hit by each pending order in the pending order set in the warehousing system, and / or the number of second handling devices that are idle in the warehousing system.

[0267] In some embodiments, the vehicle that is matched by the most pending orders in the warehouse system is determined as the target vehicle corresponding to the workstation group.

[0268] Step 1220: Control the first handling equipment to move the target vehicle to the first workstation.

[0269] Among them, multiple workstations include a first workstation and a second workstation, and multiple pending orders include a first order corresponding to the first workstation and a second order corresponding to the second workstation.

[0270] In some examples, the first workstation and the second workstation can be any two different workstations in the warehousing system, or the first workstation and the second workstation can be two workstations in the same workstation group. This disclosure provides an illustrative example where the first workstation and the second workstation can be two workstations in the same workstation group (such as the first workstation group).

[0271] In some examples, after identifying the workstation group and its corresponding target vehicle, the target vehicle needs to be moved to a workstation within the workstation group to perform a picking operation. For instance, the target vehicle can be moved to the first workstation in the first workstation group to perform the picking operation.

[0272] In some embodiments, the first workstation is determined based on the number of hit storage devices on the target vehicle corresponding to the pending orders of each workstation in the first workstation group, and / or the workload of each workstation in the first workstation group.

[0273] In some embodiments, the workstation corresponding to the order that hits the storage device most times on the target vehicle in the first workstation group is determined as the first workstation; or, the workstation with the fewest tasks in the first workstation group is determined as the first workstation.

[0274] In some examples, storage devices may include containers, pallets, boxes, etc. When an order hits a storage device on a target vehicle, it indicates that the storage device contains the goods required for the order. In other words, the first workstation is the workstation in the first workstation group that hits the storage device most frequently on the target vehicle. Moving the target vehicle to the first workstation can improve the hit rate, reduce the number of times the target vehicle needs to be moved, and improve handling efficiency.

[0275] Step 1230: If the first order hits the first storage device on the target vehicle and the second order hits the second storage device on the target vehicle, control the first workstation to pick the first goods hit by the first order from the first storage device, and control the first workstation to transport the items to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation through the conveying equipment, so as to sow the second goods hit by the second order on the sowing wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0276] The items to be transferred include the second storage device or the second goods in the second order within the second storage device.

[0277] In some embodiments, the first storage device and the second storage device are the same storage device.

[0278] In some embodiments, the conveying equipment includes a second handling device and / or a conveyor line. The conveyor line is used to transport the item to be transferred to the second handling device or a second workstation.

[0279] In some embodiments, step 1230 above, controlling the first workstation to transport the object to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveying device, so as to sow the second goods hit by the second order on the sowing wall corresponding to the second workstation, includes: controlling the first workstation to transfer the object to be transferred to the second handling device; controlling the second handling device to transport the object to be transferred to the second workstation, so as to sow the second goods hit by the second order on the sowing wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0280] In some embodiments, controlling the first workstation to transfer an item to the second handling device includes: instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the item to the second handling device; or, instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the item to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and conveying the item to the second handling device through the buffer mechanism; or, instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the item to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation, and transferring the item to the second handling device through the first distribution device.

[0281] In some examples, the picking object at the first workstation (i.e., the first picking object) can be either a picking person or a picking device. The control device instructing the first picking object to transfer to the second handling equipment includes: the control device outputting display information, the picking person transferring the object to the second handling equipment according to the display information; or, the control device sending a corresponding transfer instruction, the picking equipment transferring the object to the second handling equipment according to the transfer instruction.

[0282] In some embodiments, the buffer mechanism includes a conveyor line having a first outlet and a second outlet; the first outlet is used to convey a first cargo to a first distribution device, and the second outlet is used to convey an item to be transferred to a second handling device.

[0283] In some examples, where the item to be transferred is conveyed to a second handling device via a buffer mechanism (such as a conveyor line), the second outlet of the conveyor line is used to convey the item to the second handling device.

[0284] In some examples, when the object to be transferred is transferred to the second handling device via the first distribution device, the first outlet of the conveyor line can also be used to transport the object to be transferred to the first distribution device.

[0285] In some embodiments, the picking object of the first workstation is instructed to transfer the object to be transferred to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation, and the object to be transferred is transferred to the second transport device via the first distribution device: the picking object of the first workstation is instructed to transfer the object to be transferred to the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device; the second transport device is controlled to move to a preset seeding position on the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation, and the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device is controlled to move to the docking position corresponding to the preset seeding position, so as to transfer the object to be transferred to the second transport device.

[0286] In some embodiments, the order processing method further includes: instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the first goods to the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation; controlling the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device to deliver the first goods to the first order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation, so as to complete the distribution of the first goods; wherein, the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order.

[0287] In some embodiments, the order processing method further includes: when the sowing status of the first order container is completed, controlling the first sowing device to move the first order container away from the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation and transferring the first order container to the second transport device, so as to remove the first order container by the second transport device; when there is an empty sowing position on the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation, controlling the second transport device to transfer the empty order container to the first sowing device, and transferring the empty order container to the empty sowing position by the first sowing device.

[0288] In some embodiments, when the item to be transferred is a second storage device, the order processing method further includes: controlling a second workstation to pick the second goods matched by the second order in the second storage device, and transferring the picked second goods to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation; controlling the second distribution device to deliver the second goods to the second order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation to complete the distribution of the second goods; wherein, the second order container is the order container corresponding to the second order.

[0289] In some embodiments, the order processing method further includes: when the number of second handling devices in an idle state is less than a preset quantity threshold, controlling the first handling device to transport the target vehicle to the second workstation, so as to pick the second goods matched by the second order at the second workstation; when the number of second handling devices in an idle state is greater than or equal to the preset quantity threshold, controlling the second handling device to transport the object to be transferred to the second workstation, so as to sow the second goods matched by the second order on the sowing wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0290] In some examples, a preset quantity threshold can be pre-set and stored as needed. This disclosure does not limit the size of the preset quantity threshold; for example, the preset quantity threshold can be an integer greater than or equal to 1.

[0291] In some embodiments, the order processing method further includes: dynamically adjusting multiple workstation groups based on at least one of the following: the number of pending orders corresponding to each workstation, the cargo information corresponding to each pending order, the number of second handling equipment in an idle state, and path congestion information.

[0292] In some embodiments, the operating area of ​​the second handling device is different from or partially the same as the operating area of ​​the first handling device.

[0293] In some embodiments, the operating area of ​​the second conveying device includes at least one of the following: the area below each workstation, the area behind each workstation, and the area above each workstation.

[0294] The following describes the case where the item to be transferred is the second cargo in the second order of the second storage device.

[0295] In some embodiments, when the item to be transferred is the second item in the second order of the second storage device, the above step 1230 includes: when the first order hits the first storage device on the target vehicle and the second order hits the second storage device on the target vehicle, controlling the first workstation to pick the first item in the first storage device that was hit by the first order, and picking the second item in the second order of the second storage device, and controlling the first workstation to transport the second item to the distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via the conveying equipment.

[0296] For example, the target vehicle stores a first storage device (hereinafter referred to as the first container) that was hit by the first order and a second storage device (hereinafter referred to as the second container) that was hit by the second order.

[0297] For example, after determining the first container and the second container, the first workstation can perform picking operations on the first container and the second container respectively. For instance, the first workstation can control a container pick-and-place device to remove the first container and the second container from the target carrier and place the first container and the second container on the picking station of the first workstation (such as the first picking station), so that the picking object of the first workstation can pick out the first item from the first container.

[0298] It should be noted that the first workstation may perform the picking operation on the first container first and then on the second container; or, the first workstation may perform the picking operation on the second container first and then on the first container. The order of execution for the first container and the second container is not limited in this embodiment.

[0299] For example, the first picking object picks the first goods from the first container and can transfer the first goods to the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution equipment corresponding to the first workstation. The first delivery mechanism then delivers the first goods to the first order container on the first seeding wall, thereby completing the distribution of the first goods. Alternatively, the first picking object can directly transport and place the first goods onto the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution equipment.

[0300] In some embodiments, the first picking object of the first workstation picks the second goods from the second container, and the second goods can be transferred to a conveying device to be conveyed to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation.

[0301] Figure 13 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided by an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 13, the above-mentioned control of the first workstation to transport the second goods to the distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation via the conveying equipment includes step 1320 in step 1310 below.

[0302] Step 1310: Control the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the second handling equipment.

[0303] In some examples, the first workstation can remove the second container from the target vehicle using a container pick-and-place device and place the second container on the first picking station of the first workstation. The first picking object picks the second goods from the second container and transfers the second goods to the second handling equipment.

[0304] In some embodiments, step 1310 includes: instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the second handling equipment; or, instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and conveying the second goods to the second handling equipment through the buffer mechanism; or, instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the first distribution equipment corresponding to the first workstation, and transferring the second goods to the second handling equipment through the first distribution equipment.

[0305] It should be noted that when the picking object at the first workstation (i.e., the first picking object) is a picking person, instructing the first picking object indicates that the control device can control the output device corresponding to the first workstation to output instruction information, and the picking person performs the corresponding operation according to the instruction information; when the first picking object is a picking device, instructing the first picking object indicates that the control device can send the corresponding instruction to the picking device to control the picking device to perform the corresponding operation.

[0306] In some examples, the first picking object can be placed directly from the second container onto the second handling equipment.

[0307] In some examples, the first picking object may place the second item on a first buffer mechanism at a first workstation, and the second item may be conveyed to a second handling device via the first buffer mechanism. For example, as shown in Figure 5B, the first picking object may place the second item at one end of a conveyor line 70 to convey the second item to a second handling device 60 via a second outlet B of the conveyor line 70.

[0308] In some examples, the second picking object can transfer the second item to the first sorting device, and then the first sorting device transports the second item to the second handling device. For example, as shown in Figure 5B, the first picking object can place the second item at one end of the conveyor line 70 to transport the second item to the first sorting device 510 through the first outlet A of the conveyor line 70, and then the first sorting device 510 transfers the second item to the second handling device 60.

[0309] In some embodiments, instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the first sorting device corresponding to the first workstation, and transferring the second goods to the second handling device via the first sorting device, includes: instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the delivery mechanism of the first sorting device; controlling the second handling device to move to a preset sowing position on the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation, and controlling the delivery mechanism of the first sorting device to move to the delivery position corresponding to the preset sowing position, so as to transfer the second goods to the second handling device.

[0310] In some examples, when the second goods are transferred to the second handling equipment via the first sorting device, the first picking object may first transfer the second goods to the first delivery mechanism of the first sorting device, and then the first delivery mechanism transfers the second goods to the second handling equipment.

[0311] For example, when the second transport device is parked at a parking position below the preset seeding position, the delivery mechanism (such as the first delivery mechanism) can transfer the second goods to the second transport device at the docking position when it moves to the docking position of the preset seeding position.

[0312] In some examples, the first picking object can directly transport and place the second goods on the first delivery mechanism, or the first picking object can place the second goods on the first buffer mechanism (such as the first conveyor line) corresponding to the first workstation, and transport the second goods to the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution equipment through the first outlet of the first conveyor line. After receiving the second goods, the first delivery mechanism moves from its current position to the docking position corresponding to the preset seeding position, and transfers the second goods to the second handling equipment.

[0313] For example, the first distribution device has a corresponding buffer position. After receiving the second goods, if the second handling device has not yet reached the stop position below the preset distribution position, or if there is no idle second handling device in the current warehousing system, the first delivery mechanism can first place the second goods on the buffer position, and the second handling device can move to the buffer position to receive the second goods placed on the buffer position.

[0314] In some examples, a buffer rack can be placed on one side of the first distribution device, and multiple buffer positions can be set on the buffer rack. The buffer position corresponding to the first distribution device can be an empty buffer position on the buffer rack; alternatively, the buffer position corresponding to the first distribution device can also be a conveyor line or a flip plate. For example, the buffer position can be set at a preset seeding position, and when the second transport device arrives at the docking position, the buffer position at the preset seeding position can transfer the second goods to the second transport device. This disclosure does not limit the specific form of the buffer position corresponding to the first distribution device.

[0315] For example, when the first container and the second container are the same container, the first picking object can pick out the first item from the first container and transfer the first item to the first distribution device, where the first distribution device performs a distribution operation on the first item. After picking out the first item, the first picking object can transfer the second item in the first container to the second handling device, which then transports it to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation, where the second distribution device performs a distribution operation on the second item.

[0316] Step 1320: Control the second handling equipment to move the second goods to the second distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation.

[0317] For example, after receiving the second goods, the second handling equipment can transport the second goods to the delivery mechanism (such as the second delivery mechanism) of the second distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation.

[0318] In some examples, after the second handling device moves the second goods to the second workstation, the second goods on the second handling device can be transferred to the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device through the picking object (i.e. the second picking object) of the second workstation.

[0319] For example, the second picking object may place the second goods taken from the second handling equipment directly onto the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution equipment; or, the second picking object may place the second goods taken from the second handling equipment onto the second buffer mechanism (such as the second conveyor line) of the second workstation, and transport the second goods to the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution equipment through the first outlet of the second conveyor line.

[0320] In other examples, the second handling device may also directly deliver the second goods to the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device.

[0321] In some other examples, the second transport device may also transport the second goods to below the preset seeding position of the second seeding wall, and receive the second goods on the second transport device when the second delivery mechanism moves to the docking position of the preset seeding position of the second seeding wall.

[0322] In some embodiments, after controlling the first workstation to transport the second goods to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via the conveying equipment, the method further includes: controlling the second distribution device to distribute the second goods to the order container (such as the second order container) on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0323] In some examples, the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device may receive the second goods conveyed by the conveying device and perform a distribution operation on the second goods; or, the second delivery mechanism may receive the second goods conveyed by the conveying device from the buffer position of the second distribution device and perform a distribution operation on the second goods.

[0324] For example, the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device can move from its current position to the distribution position of the second order container and deliver the second goods into the second order container, thereby completing the distribution of the second goods. The second order container is the order container corresponding to the second order on the second distribution wall.

[0325] The order processing method provided in this disclosure allows for the following: when both a first order corresponding to a first workstation and a second order corresponding to a second workstation match containers on a target vehicle, the target vehicle can be transported to the first workstation using a first handling device. At the first workstation, the first goods matched by the first order are picked and distributed. Simultaneously, the second goods matched by the second order can be picked at the first workstation and transported to the second workstation via a conveying device (such as a second handling device or conveyor line) for distribution using the distribution device corresponding to the second workstation. This order processing method, while picking containers matched by one workstation, can also pick goods matched by other workstations and transport the picked goods to other workstations for distribution. This avoids the first handling device having to transport the target vehicle to other workstations, thus improving the picking efficiency, distribution efficiency, and overall work efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0326] In some embodiments, where the conveyor line includes a track and track transport equipment, controlling the first workstation to transport the second goods to the distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation via the conveyor equipment includes: controlling the first workstation to transfer the picked second goods to the track transport equipment; and controlling the track transport equipment to move along the track to transfer the second goods to the distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation.

[0327] In some embodiments, when the track transport equipment is controlled to move along the track to the first docking position of the track, the first workstation is controlled to transfer the picked second goods to the track transport equipment located at the first docking position of the track.

[0328] In some examples, as shown in Figure 9 above, the control device can control the track transport device 92 to move from its current position toward the first docking position 91a based on its position on the track 91. When the track transport device 92 moves to the first docking position 91a, it can receive the second goods picked by the first picking object from the first picking object of the first workstation 310 at the first docking position 91a.

[0329] In some embodiments, the above-mentioned control of the first workstation to transfer the picked second goods to the rail transport equipment includes: instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the rail transport equipment; or, instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and conveying the second goods to the rail transport equipment through the buffer mechanism.

[0330] For example, as shown in Figure 9 above, the first picking object can directly transfer the picked first goods to the rail transport device 92 located at the first docking position 91a, or the first picking object can also transfer the picked second goods to the first buffer mechanism of the first workstation 310, and transport them to the rail transport device 92 located at the first docking position 91a through the first buffer mechanism.

[0331] The following explanation addresses the case where the object to be transferred is a second storage device.

[0332] In some embodiments, when the item to be transferred is a second storage device, the above step 1230 includes: when a first order hits a first storage device on a target vehicle and a second order hits a second storage device on a target vehicle, controlling a first workstation to pick the first item hit by the first order in the first storage device, and controlling the first workstation to transport the second storage device to the second workstation via a conveying device.

[0333] In some embodiments, after determining the first container, the first workstation may perform a picking operation on the first container. After determining the second container containing the second goods required for the second order, the first workstation transports the second container to the second workstation via a conveying device. It should be noted that the conveying device has been described in detail in the above embodiments, and to avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0334] Figure 14 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided by an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 14, the above-mentioned control of the first workstation to transport the second storage device to the second workstation via a conveying device includes step 1420 in step 1410 below.

[0335] Step 1410: Control the first workstation to transfer the second storage device to the second handling equipment.

[0336] In some examples, the first workstation can remove the second container from the target carrier using a container pick-and-place device, place the second container on the first picking station of the first workstation, and then the first picking object can transfer the second container to the second handling equipment.

[0337] In some embodiments, step 1410 includes: instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second storage device to the second conveying device; or, instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second storage device to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and conveying the second storage device to the second conveying device through the buffer mechanism; or, instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second storage device to the distributing device corresponding to the first workstation, and transferring the second storage device to the second conveying device through the distributing device corresponding to the first workstation.

[0338] In some examples, the first picking object can be placed directly from the second container onto the second handling equipment.

[0339] In other examples, the first picking object may place the second container onto a first buffer mechanism at a first workstation, and then transport the second container to a second handling device via the first buffer mechanism. For example, as shown in Figure 5B, the first picking object may place the second container at one end of a conveyor line 70 to transport the second container to the second handling device 60 via a second outlet B of the conveyor line 70.

[0340] In some examples, the first picking object can transfer the second container to the first sorting device, and then the first sorting device transports the second container to the second handling device. For example, as shown in FIG5B, the first picking object can place the second container at one end of the conveyor line 70 to transport the second container to the first sorting device 510 through the first outlet A of the conveyor line 70, and then the first sorting device 510 transfers the second container to the second handling device 60.

[0341] In some embodiments, instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second storage device to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation, and then transferring the second storage device to the second handling device via the first distribution device, includes: instructing the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second storage device to the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device; controlling the second handling device to move to a preset seeding position on the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation, and controlling the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device to move to the delivery position corresponding to the preset seeding position, so as to transfer the second storage device to the second handling device.

[0342] In some examples, when the second container is transferred to the second handling device via the first distribution device, the first picking object may first transfer the second container to the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution device, and then the first delivery mechanism transfers the second container to the second handling device.

[0343] For example, when the second transport device is parked at a docking position below the preset seeding position, the delivery mechanism (such as the first delivery mechanism) can move to the docking position of the preset seeding position and transfer the second container to the second transport device at the docking position.

[0344] In some examples, the first picking object can directly transport and place the second container on the first delivery mechanism, or the first picking object can place the second container on the first buffer mechanism (such as the first conveyor line) corresponding to the first workstation, and transport the second container to the first delivery mechanism of the first distribution device through the first outlet of the first conveyor line. After receiving the second container, the first delivery mechanism moves from its current position to the docking position corresponding to the preset seeding position, and transfers the second container to the second handling device.

[0345] For example, the first distribution device has a corresponding buffer position. After receiving the second container, if the second transport device has not yet reached the docking position below the preset seeding position, or if there is no idle second transport device in the current storage system, the first delivery mechanism can first place the second container on the buffer position, and the second transport device can move to the buffer position to receive the second container placed on the buffer position.

[0346] For example, when the first container and the second container are the same container, the first picker can pick out the first item from the first container and transfer the first item to the first sorting device, where the first sorting device performs a sorting operation on the first item. After picking out the first item, the first picker can transfer the first container (i.e., the second container) to the second handling device, which then transports it to the second workstation for picking and sorting.

[0347] Step 1420: Control the second handling equipment to move the second storage device to the second workstation.

[0348] For example, after receiving the second container, the second handling device can move the second container to the second workstation.

[0349] In some examples, the second picking object may be the second container taken directly from the second handling equipment and placed at the picking station of the second workstation (such as the second picking station); or the second container may be placed on the second buffer mechanism (such as the second conveyor) of the second workstation by the second handling equipment and then transported to the second workstation via the second conveyor.

[0350] In other examples, the second transport device may also transport the second container to below the preset seeding position of the second seeding wall, and the second delivery mechanism moves to the docking position of the preset seeding position of the second seeding wall to receive the second container on the second transport device, and then transport the second container to the second workstation via the second conveyor line.

[0351] In some embodiments, after the first workstation controls the second storage device to be transported to the second workstation via a conveying device, the method further includes: controlling the second workstation to pick the second goods that match the second order in the second storage device, and controlling the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation to distribute the second goods to the order containers on the distribution wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0352] In some examples, the conveyor transports the second container to the second workstation, where a picking operation is first performed on the second container to pick out the second goods that the second order has hit.

[0353] In some examples, the second workstation receives the second container. If the second container is placed on the second picking station of the second workstation, the second picking object of the second workstation can pick out the second goods that match the second order in the second container and transfer the picked second goods to the second distribution device; or, the second picking object can also directly pick out the second goods from the second container on the second handling device and transfer them to the second distribution device.

[0354] For example, the second picking object may place the picked second goods onto the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device; or, the second picking object may place the picked second goods onto the second conveyor line corresponding to the second workstation, so as to be transported to the second delivery mechanism of the second distribution device through the first outlet of the second conveyor line.

[0355] In some examples, after receiving the second goods, the second delivery unit can move to the location of the second order container corresponding to the second order and deliver the second goods to the second order container, thereby completing the distribution of the second goods. The second order container is the order container corresponding to the second order on the second seeding wall of the second distribution device.

[0356] In some embodiments, after the second workstation completes picking the second container, if the second container is not matched by orders from other workstations in the first workstation group, the second container needs to be returned to the carrier. For example, the second container can be returned to its original carrier (i.e., the target carrier), or it can be returned to a carrier other than the target carrier.

[0357] The process of returning the second container described above will be further explained below with reference to Figure 15.

[0358] Figure 15 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided in this embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 15, after the above-mentioned control of the second workstation to pick the second goods matched by the second order in the second storage device, and control of the distributing equipment corresponding to the second workstation to distribute the second goods to the order containers on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation, the method further includes steps 1510 and 1520 as shown below.

[0359] Step 1510: Control the second workstation to place the second storage device that has completed picking into an idle buffer space of the second workstation or an idle storage space of the vehicle that the second workstation is picking.

[0360] For example, after the second workstation completes picking the second container, that is, after the second workstation picks out the second goods that the second order hits from the second container, the second container can be placed on the vehicle corresponding to the second workstation.

[0361] In some examples, if there is a picking vehicle at the second workstation and there is an available storage location on that vehicle, the second workstation can control its container pick and place device to move the second container from its current location (such as the second picking station) to the available storage location.

[0362] In other examples, if there is no picking vehicle at the second workstation, or if there is a picking vehicle at the second workstation but no available storage location on that vehicle, the container pick-and-place device at the second workstation can move the second container from its current position to an available buffer location at the second workstation. If a picking vehicle is available at the second workstation, the container pick-and-place device then moves the second container placed in the buffer location to an available storage location on that vehicle, thus not affecting the picking operations of other containers at the second workstation.

[0363] Step 1520: Control the second workstation to transfer the second storage device that has been picked to the second handling equipment, and control the second handling equipment to transport the second storage device that has been picked to the first workstation, so that the second storage device that has been picked can be placed in the target vehicle or an empty buffer space of the first workstation or an empty cargo space of the vehicle that the first workstation is picking.

[0364] For example, after the second workstation completes picking the second container—that is, after the second workstation picks the second goods matching the second order from the second container—the second container can be transported back to the first workstation via the second handling equipment and placed on the vehicle that the first workstation is picking. For example, the vehicle that the first workstation is picking may include the target vehicle or other vehicles besides the target vehicle.

[0365] For example, the second handling equipment that moves the second container back to the first workstation and the second handling equipment that moves the second container to the second workstation can be different second handling equipment or the same second handling equipment. This disclosure does not limit this.

[0366] In some examples, after the second handling device moves the second container to the first workstation, the target vehicle is still performing picking operations at the first workstation, and there are available storage locations on the target vehicle. In this case, the container pick-and-place device of the first workstation can place the second container on the available storage location on the target vehicle.

[0367] In other examples, after the second handling device moves the second container to the first workstation, the target vehicle does not perform a picking operation at the first workstation, and there is another vehicle performing a picking operation in the vehicle docking area of ​​the first workstation. If there is an empty storage space on the vehicle that is being picked, the container pick-and-place device of the first workstation can place the second container into the empty storage space on the vehicle that is being picked.

[0368] In some other examples, after the second handling device moves the second container to the first workstation, if there is no target vehicle or other vehicles being picked in the first workstation's vehicle docking area, or if there is no available storage space on a vehicle being picked at the first workstation, the control container pick-and-place device at the first workstation will move the second container to an available buffer location at the first workstation. If there is a vehicle being picked at the first workstation, the container pick-and-place device will then move the second container placed in the buffer location to an available storage space on that vehicle, thus not affecting the first workstation's picking operations for other containers.

[0369] In some examples, multiple buffer slots can be set up on each workstation, or a buffer rack with multiple buffer slots can be set up near each workstation. The buffer slots are used to temporarily place containers to be picked or containers that have been picked; or, the buffer slots can also be set up on a buffer rack near a second workstation, which is not limited in this embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0370] It should be noted that the first workstation group also includes other workstations, such as the third workstation. If the second container on the target vehicle is hit by both the second and third workstations, the second container can be transferred to the second workstation for picking first, and then transferred from the second workstation to the third workstation for picking and distribution. Alternatively, the second goods of the second order corresponding to the second workstation and the third goods of the third order corresponding to the third workstation can be picked out from the second container at the first workstation and then transported to the second and third workstations respectively by the conveying equipment for distribution.

[0371] The order processing method provided in this disclosure allows for the following operations: when both a first order corresponding to a first workstation and a second order corresponding to a second workstation match containers on a target vehicle, the target vehicle can be transported to the first workstation using a first handling device. At the first workstation, the first goods matched by the first order are picked and distributed. Simultaneously, the second container matched by the second order can be transported from the first workstation to the second workstation via a conveying device (such as a second handling device or conveyor line). The second workstation picks the second goods from the second container and distributes the picked second goods using the distribution device corresponding to the second workstation. This order processing method, while picking containers matched by one workstation, can simultaneously transport containers containing goods matched by other workstations to other workstations for picking and distribution. This avoids the first handling device transporting the target vehicle to other workstations, improving the picking efficiency, distribution efficiency, and overall work efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0372] In some embodiments, if a third item required by the first order container is present on the pick-up carrier of the second workstation, the first seeding device corresponding to the first workstation is controlled to remove the first order container from the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation and transfer the first order container to the second handling device; the second handling device is controlled to transport the first order container to the second seeding device corresponding to the second workstation; the second seeding device is controlled to transfer the first order container on the second handling device to an empty seeding position on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0373] In some examples, if the third item required for any order container (such as the first order container) on the first seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation is stored on the picking carrier at the second workstation, the first order container can be transferred to the second seeding wall at the second workstation. For example, if a third container exists on the currently picking carrier at the second workstation, and the third container contains the third item required for the first order, the first order container on the first seeding wall can be transferred to the second seeding wall by the second handling equipment, so that the third item can be seeded into the first order container by the second seeding equipment.

[0374] In some examples, the first seeding device can remove the first order container from the current seeding position and transfer it to the second transport device, which then transports the first order container to the second seeding device, which in turn transfers the first order container from the second transport device to an empty seeding position on the second seeding wall.

[0375] In some embodiments, after the second distribution device transfers the first order container on the second transport device to an empty seeding position on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation, the method further includes: instructing the picking object of the second workstation to pick the third goods and transferring the picked third goods to the second distribution device so as to deliver the third goods to the first order container located on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation via the second distribution device.

[0376] In some examples, after the first order container is placed at the seeding position on the second seeding wall, the container pick-and-place device of the second workstation can remove the third container from the pick-up carrier and place it on the second picking station. The second picker picks the third goods from the third container and transfers the third goods to the second delivery mechanism of the second sorting device. After the second delivery mechanism moves to the delivery position corresponding to the first order container, it delivers the third goods into the first order container, completing the sorting operation of the third goods.

[0377] It should be noted that after the second seeding device completes the seeding of the third goods, the first order container can continue to be placed on the second seeding wall, or it can be transported back to the first seeding wall by the second handling device. For example, it can be determined according to the location of the goods required for the first order. This disclosure does not limit this.

[0378] It should be noted that the order processing method provided in this embodiment has been described in detail in the above-mentioned warehousing system, and the beneficial effects it can achieve are similar to those of the warehousing system provided in the above-mentioned embodiment. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0379] Figure 16 is a schematic diagram of an order processing device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 16, the order processing device 1600 includes an acquisition module 1610, a determination module 1620, and a control module 1630. Wherein:

[0380] The acquisition module 1610 is configured to acquire multiple pending orders corresponding to multiple workstations.

[0381] The determination module 1620 is configured to: determine the target vehicle hit by multiple pending orders.

[0382] The control module 1630 is configured to: control a first handling device to transport a target vehicle to a first workstation; wherein, the multiple workstations include a first workstation and a second workstation; the multiple pending orders include a first order corresponding to the first workstation and a second order corresponding to the second workstation; when the first order hits a first storage device on the target vehicle and the second order hits a second storage device on the target vehicle, the control module 1630 controls the first workstation to pick the first goods hit by the first order from the first storage device, and controls the first workstation to transport the items to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveyor to sow the second goods hit by the second order on the sowing wall corresponding to the second workstation; wherein, the items to be transferred include the second storage device or the second goods hit by the second order in the second storage device.

[0383] In some embodiments, when the item to be transferred is a second storage device, the control module 1630 is configured to: control the first workstation to transport the second storage device to the second workstation via a conveying device; control the second workstation to pick the second goods that have been matched by the second order in the second storage device; and control the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation to distribute the second goods to the order containers on the distribution wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0384] In some embodiments, when the item to be transferred is a second cargo, the control module 1630 is configured to: control the first workstation to pick the second cargo that is matched by the second order in the second storage device, and transport the second cargo to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via a conveying device; control the second distribution device to distribute the second cargo to the order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0385] In some embodiments, the conveying equipment includes a second handling device and / or a conveyor line; wherein the conveyor line is used to convey the object to be transferred to the second handling device, the second workstation, or the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation.

[0386] In some embodiments, the conveying device is a second handling device; the control module 1630 is configured to: control the first workstation to transfer the object to be transferred to the second handling device; if the object to be transferred is a second storage device, control the second handling device to transport the second storage device to the second workstation; if the object to be transferred is a second cargo, control the second handling device to transport the second cargo to the second seeding device, so as to seed the second cargo hit by the second order on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0387] In some embodiments, the control module 1630 is configured to: instruct the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the item to be transferred to the second handling device; or, instruct the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the item to be transferred to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and transport the item to be transferred to the second handling device through the buffer mechanism; or, instruct the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the item to be transferred to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation, and transfer the item to be transferred to the second handling device through the first distribution device.

[0388] In some embodiments, the buffer mechanism includes a conveyor line having a first outlet and a second outlet; the first outlet is used to convey a first cargo to a first distribution device, and the second outlet is used to convey an item to be transferred to a second handling device.

[0389] In some embodiments, the control module 1630 is configured to: instruct the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the object to be transferred to the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device; control the second handling device to move to the preset seeding position on the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation, and control the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device to move to the docking position corresponding to the preset seeding position, so as to transfer the object to be transferred to the second handling device.

[0390] In some embodiments, the control module 1630 is further configured to: instruct the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the first goods to the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation; control the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device to deliver the first goods to the first order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation, so as to complete the distribution of the first goods; wherein, the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order.

[0391] In some embodiments, the conveying device is a second handling device; the control module 1630 is further configured to: when the sowing status of the first order container is completed, control the first distribution device to move the first order container away from the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation and transfer the first order container to the second handling device so as to remove the first order container by means of the second handling device; when there is an empty sowing position on the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation, control the second handling device to transfer the empty order container to the first distribution device and transfer the empty order container to the empty sowing position by means of the first distribution device.

[0392] In some embodiments, the object to be transferred is a second storage device; the control module 1630 is further configured to: control the second workstation to pick the second goods that the second order hits in the second storage device, and transfer the picked second goods to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation; control the second distribution device to deliver the second goods to the second order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation to complete the distribution of the second goods; wherein, the second order container is the order container corresponding to the second order.

[0393] In some embodiments, the conveying device is a second handling device; the control module 1630 is further configured to: control the second workstation to place the second storage device that has been picked into an empty buffer space of the second workstation or an empty storage space of the vehicle that the second workstation is picking; or, control the second workstation to transfer the second storage device that has been picked into the second handling device, and control the second handling device to transport the second storage device that has been picked into the first workstation, so that the second storage device that has been picked into the first workstation can be placed into the target vehicle, or an empty buffer space of the first workstation, or an empty storage space of the vehicle that the first workstation is picking.

[0394] In some embodiments, the conveying device is a second handling device; the control module 1630 is further configured to: when there is a third item required by the first order container on the pick-up carrier of the second workstation, control the first seeding device corresponding to the first workstation to remove the first order container from the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation and transfer the first order container to the second handling device; wherein, the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order on the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation; control the second handling device to transport the first order container to the second seeding device corresponding to the second workstation; control the second seeding device to transfer the first order container on the second handling device to an empty seeding position on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0395] In some embodiments, the control module 1630 is further configured to: instruct the picking object of the second workstation to pick the third goods and transfer the picked third goods to the second distribution device, so as to deliver the third goods to the first order container located on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation via the second distribution device.

[0396] In some embodiments, the conveying device is a second handling device; the control module 1630 is further configured to: when the number of second handling devices in an idle state is less than a preset quantity threshold, control the first handling device to transport the target carrier to the second workstation, so as to pick the second goods hit by the second order at the second workstation; when the number of second handling devices in an idle state is greater than or equal to the preset quantity threshold, control the second handling device to transport the object to be transferred to the second workstation, so as to sow the second goods hit by the second order on the sowing wall corresponding to the second workstation.

[0397] In some embodiments, multiple workstations are divided into at least one workstation group; the acquisition module 1610 is configured to: acquire a set of pending orders corresponding to the workstation group; wherein the set of pending orders includes pending orders corresponding to each workstation in the workstation group. The determination module 1620 is configured to: determine the target vehicle corresponding to the workstation group based on the vehicles matched by each pending order in the pending order set in the warehousing system, and / or the number of second handling devices in the warehousing system that are idle.

[0398] In some embodiments, at least one workstation group includes a first workstation group, the first workstation group including a first workstation and a second workstation; the determining module 1620 is further configured to: determine the first workstation based on the number of hit storage devices on the target vehicle corresponding to the pending orders corresponding to each workstation in the first workstation group, and / or the workload corresponding to each workstation in the first workstation group.

[0399] In some embodiments, the determining module 1620 is further configured to dynamically adjust at least one workstation group based on at least one of the following: the number of pending orders corresponding to each workstation, the cargo information corresponding to each pending order, the number of second handling equipment in an idle state, and path congestion information.

[0400] In some embodiments, the conveying device is a conveyor line; the control module 1630 is configured to control the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the conveyor line so as to convey the second goods to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via the conveyor line.

[0401] In some embodiments, the control module 1630 is configured to: instruct the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the conveyor line; or, instruct the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and transfer the second goods to the conveyor line through the buffer mechanism.

[0402] In some embodiments, the conveyor line includes a strip conveyor line; the strip conveyor line includes multiple interfaces, including a first interface and a second interface, wherein the first interface interfaces are connected to a first workstation, and the second interface interfaces are connected to a second distribution device. The control module 1630 is configured to: control the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the first interface of the strip conveyor line, so as to convey the second goods to the buffer position of the second distribution device via the second interface of the strip conveyor line; or, control the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the first interface of the strip conveyor line, so as to convey the second goods to the delivery mechanism of the second distribution device via the second interface of the strip conveyor line.

[0403] In some embodiments, the conveyor line includes a circular conveyor line; the circular conveyor line includes a first transfer inlet, a second transfer inlet, a first transfer outlet, and a second transfer outlet; wherein the first transfer inlet, the second transfer outlet, the first transfer outlet, and the second transfer inlet are arranged sequentially along the circular conveyor line; the first transfer inlet is connected to a first workstation for receiving goods picked out by the first workstation; the first transfer outlet is connected to a second distribution device for transferring goods conveyed on the circular conveyor line to the second distribution device; the second transfer inlet is connected to a second workstation for receiving goods picked out by the second workstation; the second transfer outlet is connected to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation for conveying goods conveyed on the circular conveyor line to the first distribution device.

[0404] In some embodiments, the control module 1630 is configured to: control the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the first transfer inlet of the circular conveyor line, so as to transport the second goods to the buffer position of the second distribution device through the first transfer outlet of the circular conveyor line; or, control the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the first transfer inlet of the circular conveyor line, so as to transport the second goods to the delivery mechanism of the second distribution device through the first transfer outlet of the circular conveyor line.

[0405] In some embodiments, the conveying equipment further includes a track and a track transport device disposed on the track; the control module 1630 is configured to: control the first workstation to transfer the picked second goods to the track transport device; control the track transport device to move along the track to transfer the second goods to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation.

[0406] In some embodiments, the control module 1630 is configured to: instruct the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the rail transport equipment; or, instruct the picking object of the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and transport the second goods to the rail transport equipment through the buffer mechanism.

[0407] In some embodiments, the track transport device moves along a track to dock with second distribution devices corresponding to the first workstation and the second workstation, respectively. The control module 1630 is configured to: when the track transport device moves along the track and docks with the first workstation, control the first workstation to transfer the picked second goods onto the track transport device; and after the track transport device receives the second goods, control the track transport device to move along the track, and when the track transport device docks with the second distribution device, control the track transport device to deliver the second goods to the second distribution device.

[0408] In some embodiments, the control module 1630 is configured to: control the track transport device to move along the track to transfer the second goods to the buffer position of the second distribution device; or, control the track transport device to move along the track to transfer the second goods to the delivery mechanism of the second distribution device.

[0409] Figure 17 is a schematic diagram of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. In some embodiments, the electronic device includes one or more processors and a memory. The memory is configured to store one or more programs. Wherein, when the one or more programs are executed by the one or more processors, the one or more processors implement the order processing method in the above embodiments.

[0410] As shown in Figure 17, the electronic device 1000 includes a processor 1001 and a memory 1002. Exemplarily, the electronic device 1000 may also include a communications interface 1003 and a communications bus 1004.

[0411] The processor 1001, memory 1002, and communication interface 1003 communicate with each other via communication bus 1004. Communication interface 1003 is used to communicate with other network elements such as clients or other servers.

[0412] In some embodiments, the processor 1001 is used to execute program 1005, specifically performing the relevant steps in the above-described order processing method embodiments. In some examples, program 1005 may include program code, which includes computer-executable instructions.

[0413] For example, processor 1001 may be a central processing unit (CPU), an application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or one or more integrated circuits configured to implement embodiments of the present disclosure. Electronic device 1000 may include one or more processors, which may be processors of the same type, such as one or more CPUs; or they may be processors of different types, such as one or more CPUs and one or more ASICs.

[0414] In some embodiments, memory 1002 is used to store program 1005. Memory 1002 may include high-speed RAM memory, and may also include non-volatile memory (NVM), such as at least one disk storage device.

[0415] Specifically, program 1005 can be called by processor 1001 to cause electronic device 1000 to execute the order processing method.

[0416] This disclosure provides a computer-readable storage medium storing at least one executable instruction that, when executed on an electronic device 1000, causes the electronic device 1000 to perform the order processing method described in the above embodiments.

[0417] The executable instructions can be used to cause the electronic device 1000 to perform the order processing method.

[0418] For example, the computer-readable storage medium may be a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), a compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), magnetic tape, floppy disk, and optical data storage device, etc.

[0419] In some embodiments, this disclosure provides a computer program product including a computing program stored on a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium, the computer program including program instructions that, when executed by a computer, cause the computer to perform the order processing method described in any of the above embodiments.

[0420] In some embodiments, this disclosure also provides a computer program that, when executed by a processor, can implement the order processing method described in any of the above embodiments.

[0421] The beneficial effects that the order processing apparatus, electronic device, computer-readable storage medium, computer program product, and computer program provided in this disclosure can achieve are similar to the beneficial effects of the corresponding order processing methods provided above, and will not be repeated here.

[0422] In the above embodiments, multiple steps or methods can be implemented using software or firmware stored in memory and executed by a suitable instruction execution system. For example, if implemented in hardware, as in another embodiment, it can be implemented using any one or a combination of the following techniques known in the art: discrete logic circuits having logic gates for implementing logical functions on data signals, application-specific integrated circuits (ASICs) having suitable combinational logic gates, programmable gate arrays (PGAs), field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs), etc.

[0423] The embodiments described above do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this disclosure. All embodiments of this disclosure can be performed individually or in combination with other embodiments, and are all considered to be within the scope of protection claimed by this disclosure.

Claims

1. An order processing method, comprising: Obtain multiple pending orders corresponding to multiple workstations, and determine the target vehicle to which the multiple pending orders are matched; The first handling equipment is controlled to transport the target vehicle to the first workstation; wherein, the plurality of workstations includes a first workstation and a second workstation; the plurality of pending orders includes a first order corresponding to the first workstation and a second order corresponding to the second workstation; When the first order hits the first storage device on the target vehicle, and the second order hits the second storage device on the target vehicle, the first workstation is controlled to pick the first goods hit by the first order from the first storage device, and the first workstation is controlled to transport the items to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveying device, so as to sow the second goods hit by the second order on the sowing wall corresponding to the second workstation; wherein, the items to be transferred include the second storage device or the second goods hit by the second order in the second storage device.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein, When the item to be transferred is the second storage device, controlling the first workstation to transport the item to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveying device includes: The first workstation is controlled to transport the second storage device to the second workstation via a conveying device; After the second storage device is transported to the second workstation via a conveying device, the method further includes: The second workstation is controlled to pick the second goods that match the second order in the second storage device, and the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation is controlled to distribute the second goods to the order containers on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein, When the item to be transferred is the second cargo, controlling the first workstation to transport the item to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveying device includes: The first workstation is controlled to pick the second goods that match the second order in the second storage device, and the second goods are transported to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via the conveying equipment; After the second cargo is transported to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via the conveying equipment, the method further includes: Control the second distribution device to distribute the second goods to the order containers on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

4. The method of any one of claims 1-3, wherein, The conveying equipment includes a second handling device and / or a conveyor line; wherein the conveyor line is used to convey the object to be transferred to the second handling device, the second workstation, or the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation.

5. The method according to claim 4, wherein, The conveying equipment is the second handling equipment; controlling the first workstation to transport the items to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via the conveying equipment, so as to distribute the second goods hit by the second order on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation, includes: The first workstation is controlled to transfer the object to be transferred to the second handling equipment; If the item to be transferred is the second storage device, control the second handling equipment to transport the second storage device to the second workstation; When the item to be transferred is the second cargo, the second handling equipment is controlled to transport the second cargo to the second seeding equipment so as to seed the second cargo matched by the second order on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein, The control of the first workstation to transfer the object to be transferred to the second handling equipment includes: Instruct the picking object at the first workstation to transfer the item to be transferred to the second handling equipment; or, The picking object at the first workstation is instructed to transfer the item to be transferred to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and then the item is transported to the second handling equipment via the buffer mechanism; or... The picking object at the first workstation is instructed to transfer the item to be transferred to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation, and then the item is transferred to the second handling device via the first distribution device.

7. The method according to claim 6, wherein, The buffer mechanism includes a conveyor line with a first outlet and a second outlet; the first outlet is used to transport the first goods to the first distribution device, and the second outlet is used to transport the object to be transferred to the second handling device.

8. The method according to claim 6, wherein, The step of instructing the picking object at the first workstation to transfer the item to be transferred to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation, and then transferring the item to be transferred to the second handling device via the first distribution device, includes: The picking object at the first workstation is instructed to transfer the item to be transferred to the delivery mechanism of the first distribution equipment; The second transport device is controlled to move to a preset sowing position on the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation, and the delivery mechanism of the first distribution device is controlled to move to the docking position corresponding to the preset sowing position, so as to transfer the object to be transferred to the second transport device.

9. The method according to any one of claims 1-8, wherein, After the first workstation is controlled to pick the first item matched by the first order from the first storage device, the method further includes: The picking object at the first workstation is instructed to transfer the first goods to the delivery mechanism of the first distribution equipment corresponding to the first workstation; The delivery mechanism of the first distribution equipment is controlled to deliver the first goods to the first order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation, so as to complete the distribution of the first goods; wherein, the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order.

10. The method according to claim 9, wherein, The conveying device is a second handling device; the method further includes: When the sowing status of the first order container is "sowing completed", the first sowing device is controlled to move the first order container away from the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation and transfer the first order container to the second handling device so that the first order container can be removed by the second handling device. If there is an empty sowing position on the sowing wall corresponding to the first workstation, the second transport device is controlled to transfer the empty order container to the first sowing device, and the empty order container is transferred to the empty sowing position through the first sowing device.

11. The method according to any one of claims 1-10, wherein, The object to be transferred is the second storage device; After the first workstation controls the conveyor to transport the item to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation, the method further includes: The second workstation is controlled to pick the second goods that are matched by the second order in the second storage device, and the picked second goods are transferred to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation; The second distribution device is controlled to deliver the second goods to the second order container on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation, so as to complete the distribution of the second goods; wherein, the second order container is the order container corresponding to the second order.

12. The method according to claim 11, wherein, The conveying equipment is a second handling equipment; After the second workstation is controlled to pick the second goods matched by the second order in the second storage device, the method further includes: Control the second workstation to place the second storage device that has been picked into an empty buffer space of the second workstation or an empty cargo space of the vehicle that the second workstation is picking; or, The second workstation is controlled to transfer the second storage device that has been picked to the second handling equipment, and the second handling equipment is controlled to transport the second storage device that has been picked to the first workstation, so that the second storage device that has been picked can be placed in the target vehicle, or an empty buffer space of the first workstation, or an empty storage space of the vehicle that the first workstation is picking.

13. The method according to any one of claims 1-12, wherein, The conveying device is a second handling device; the method further includes: If the third goods required by the first order container are present on the picking carrier of the second workstation, the first distributing device corresponding to the first workstation is controlled to remove the first order container from the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation and transfer the first order container to the second handling device; wherein, the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order on the seeding wall corresponding to the first workstation; Control the second handling equipment to move the first order container to the second distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation; Control the second seeding device to transfer the first order container on the second transport device to an empty seeding position on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

14. The method according to claim 13, wherein, After the method of controlling the second seeding device to transfer the first order container on the second transport device to the vacant seeding position on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation is completed, the method further includes: The picking object at the second workstation is instructed to pick the third goods and transfer the picked third goods to the second distribution device, so that the third goods can be delivered to the first order container located on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation via the second distribution device.

15. The method according to any one of claims 1-14, wherein, The conveying device is a second handling device; the method further includes: If the number of idle second handling devices is less than a preset threshold, the first handling device is controlled to move the target vehicle to the second workstation so that the second goods matched by the second order can be picked at the second workstation. If the number of second handling devices in an idle state is greater than or equal to the preset quantity threshold, the second handling devices are controlled to transport the object to be transferred to the second workstation so as to sow the second goods hit by the second order on the sowing wall corresponding to the second workstation.

16. The method according to any one of claims 1-15, wherein, The multiple workstations are divided into at least one workstation group; The step of acquiring multiple pending orders corresponding to multiple workstations and determining the target vehicle to which the multiple pending orders correspond includes: Obtain the set of pending orders corresponding to the workstation group; wherein, the set of pending orders includes the pending orders corresponding to each workstation in the workstation group; The target vehicle corresponding to the workstation group is determined based on the vehicle matched by each pending order in the warehousing system and / or the number of second handling devices that are idle in the warehousing system.

17. The method according to claim 16, wherein, The at least one workstation group includes a first workstation group, the first workstation group including a first workstation and a second workstation; the method further includes: The first workstation is determined based on the number of storage devices that are hit on the target vehicle for the pending orders corresponding to each workstation in the first workstation group, and / or the workload corresponding to each workstation in the first workstation group.

18. The method according to claim 16, further comprising: The at least one workstation group is dynamically adjusted based on at least one of the following: the number of pending orders corresponding to each workstation, the cargo information corresponding to each pending order, the number of second handling equipment in an idle state, and path congestion information.

19. The method according to claim 3, wherein, The conveying equipment is a conveyor line; the step of conveying the second goods to the distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation via the conveying equipment includes: The first workstation is controlled to transfer the second cargo to the conveyor line, so that the second cargo can be transported to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via the conveyor line.

20. The method according to claim 19, wherein, The control of the first workstation to transfer the second cargo to the conveyor line includes: Instruct the picking object at the first workstation to transfer the second item to the conveyor line; or, The picking object at the first workstation is instructed to transfer the second goods to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and then the second goods are transferred to the conveyor line through the buffer mechanism.

21. The method according to claim 20, wherein, The conveyor line includes a strip conveyor line; the strip conveyor line includes multiple interfaces, the multiple interfaces include a first pair of interfaces and a second pair of interfaces, wherein the first pair of interfaces is connected to the first workstation, and the second pair of interfaces is connected to the second distribution equipment; The step of controlling the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the conveyor line, so as to transport the second goods to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via the conveyor line, includes: The first workstation is controlled to transfer the second cargo to the first pair of interfaces on the strip conveyor line, so that the second cargo can be transported to the buffer position of the second distribution device through the second pair of interfaces on the strip conveyor line; or... The first workstation is controlled to transfer the second goods to the first pair of interfaces of the strip conveyor line, so as to transport the second goods to the delivery mechanism of the second distribution equipment through the second pair of interfaces of the strip conveyor line.

22. The method according to claim 20, wherein, The conveyor line includes a circular conveyor line; the circular conveyor line includes a first transfer inlet, a second transfer inlet, a first transfer outlet, and a second transfer outlet; wherein the first transfer inlet, the second transfer outlet, the first transfer outlet, and the second transfer inlet are arranged sequentially along the circular conveyor line; The first transfer inlet is connected to the first workstation and is used to receive the goods picked out by the first workstation; the first transfer outlet is connected to the second distribution equipment and is used to transfer the goods to be transported on the circular conveyor line to the second distribution equipment. The second transfer inlet is connected to the second workstation and is used to receive the goods picked out by the second workstation; the second transfer outlet is connected to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation and is used to transport the goods conveyed on the circular conveyor line to the first distribution device.

23. The method according to claim 22, wherein, The step of controlling the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the conveyor line, so as to transport the second goods to the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via the conveyor line, includes: The first workstation is controlled to transfer the second goods to the first transfer inlet of the circular conveyor line, so that the second goods can be transported to the buffer position of the second distribution device through the first transfer outlet of the circular conveyor line; or... The first workstation is controlled to transfer the second goods to the first transfer inlet of the circular conveyor line, so as to transport the second goods to the delivery mechanism of the second distribution equipment through the first transfer outlet of the circular conveyor line.

24. The method according to claim 3, wherein, The conveying equipment further includes a track and track handling equipment mounted on the track; the step of conveying the second goods to the distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation via the conveying equipment includes: The first workstation is controlled to transfer the picked second goods to the track transport equipment; The track transport equipment is controlled to move along the track to transfer the second cargo to the second distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation.

25. The method according to claim 24, wherein, The control of the first workstation to transfer the picked second goods to the track transport equipment includes: Instruct the picking object at the first workstation to transfer the second goods to the rail transport equipment; or, The picking object at the first workstation is instructed to transfer the second goods to the buffer mechanism corresponding to the first workstation, and the second goods are then transported to the track transport equipment through the buffer mechanism.

26. The method of claim 24, wherein, The track transport equipment moves on the track to dock with the second broadcasting equipment corresponding to the first workstation and the second workstation, respectively; The control of the first workstation to transfer the picked second goods to the track transport equipment includes: When the track transport equipment moves along the track and docks with the first workstation, the first workstation is controlled to transfer the picked second goods to the track transport equipment. The control of the track transport equipment to move along the track to transfer the second cargo to the second distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation includes: After the track transport device receives the second cargo, it controls the track transport device to move along the track, and when the track transport device docks with the second distribution device, it controls the track transport device to transport the second cargo to the second distribution device.

27. The method according to claim 24, wherein, The control of the track transport equipment to move along the track to transfer the second cargo to the second distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation includes: Control the track-mounted transport device to move along the track to transfer the second cargo to the buffer position of the second distribution device; or, The track transport device is controlled to move along the track to transfer the second cargo to the delivery mechanism of the second distribution device.

28. A warehousing system, comprising: Multiple workstations, including a first workstation and a second workstation; The control device is configured to: acquire multiple pending orders corresponding to the multiple workstations, and determine the target vehicle to which the multiple pending orders are matched; A first handling instruction is generated based on the target vehicle; wherein, the plurality of pending orders include a first order corresponding to the first workstation and a second order corresponding to the second workstation; The first handling device is configured to: handle the target vehicle to the first workstation according to the first handling instruction; The control device is configured to generate a first picking instruction and a conveying instruction when the first order hits a first storage device on the target vehicle and the second order hits a second storage device on the target vehicle. The first workstation is configured to: pick the first goods in the first storage device that match the first order according to the first picking instruction; and transport the items to be transferred corresponding to the second order to the second workstation via a conveying device according to the conveying instruction, so as to distribute the second goods in the second order on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation; wherein the items to be transferred include the second storage device or the second goods in the second order in the second storage device.

29. The warehousing system according to claim 28, wherein, When the item to be transferred is the second storage device, the control device is further configured to: Based on the second goods, generate a second picking instruction and a dispensing instruction; The first workstation is configured to: transport the second storage device to the second workstation via a conveying device according to the conveying instruction; The second workstation is configured to: pick the second goods that match the second order in the second storage device according to the second picking instruction; The second distribution device of the second workstation is configured to distribute the second goods to the order containers on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation according to the distribution instruction.

30. The warehousing system according to claim 28, wherein, In the case that the item to be transferred is the second cargo, the control device is further configured to: Based on the second cargo, generate a distribution instruction; The first workstation is configured to: pick the second goods in the second storage device according to the first picking instruction, and transport the second goods to the distribution device corresponding to the second workstation via the conveying device according to the conveying instruction; The second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation is configured to distribute the second goods to the order containers on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation according to the distribution instruction.

31. The warehousing system according to any one of claims 28-30, wherein, The conveying equipment includes a second handling device and / or a conveyor line; wherein the conveyor line is used to convey the object to be transferred to the second handling device, the second workstation, or the second distribution device corresponding to the second workstation.

32. The warehousing system according to claim 31, wherein, The conveying device is the second handling device; the conveying command includes a target transfer command and a second handling command. The first workstation is configured to transfer the object to be transferred to the second handling device according to the target transfer instruction; The second conveying device is configured as follows: If the item to be transferred is the second storage device, the second storage device is moved to the second workstation according to the second handling instruction; If the item to be transferred is the second cargo, the second cargo is transported to the seeding device corresponding to the second workstation according to the second handling instruction, so as to seed the second cargo hit by the second order on the seeding wall corresponding to the second workstation.

33. The warehousing system according to any one of claims 28-32, wherein, The conveying equipment is a conveyor line; the first workstation is configured as follows: Transfer the second cargo to the conveyor line; or... The second cargo is transferred to the buffer unit corresponding to the first workstation, and then transferred to the conveyor line through the buffer unit.

34. The warehousing system according to claim 33, wherein, The conveyor line includes a first transfer inlet and a first transfer outlet. The first transfer inlet is connected to the first workstation to receive the second goods transferred by the first workstation. The first transfer outlet is connected to the second distribution equipment corresponding to the second workstation to transfer the second goods to the second distribution equipment.

35. The warehousing system according to claim 34, wherein, The conveyor line is a strip conveyor line, which includes a first docking position and a second docking position; The first docking position docks with the buffer mechanism of the first workstation to receive the second goods on the buffer mechanism of the first workstation, and the second docking position docks with the buffer mechanism of the second workstation to transfer the second goods to the buffer mechanism of the second workstation. or, The first docking position is docked with the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation to receive the second goods on the first distribution device, and the second docking position is docked with the second distribution device to transfer the second goods to the second distribution device; The first transfer inlet is located at the first docking position, and the first transfer outlet is located at the second docking position.

36. The warehousing system according to claim 34, wherein, The conveyor line is a circular conveyor line, and the circular conveyor line further includes a second transfer inlet and a second transfer outlet; the first transfer inlet, the second transfer outlet, the first transfer outlet and the second transfer inlet are arranged sequentially along the circumference of the circular conveyor line; The first transfer inlet is configured to receive the first goods picked by the first workstation, and the second transfer outlet is connected to the first distribution device corresponding to the first workstation to transfer the first goods to the first distribution device. The second transfer inlet is configured to interface with the second workstation to receive the second goods picked out by the second workstation.

37. The warehousing system according to any one of claims 28-36, wherein, The conveying equipment includes a track and a track transport device mounted on the track; the track is respectively connected to the second distribution device corresponding to the first workstation and the second workstation. The track transport device is configured to move along the track to transfer the second goods picked up by the first workstation to the second distribution device.

38. An electronic device comprising: One or more processors and memory; The memory is configured to store one or more programs; Wherein, when the one or more programs are executed by the one or more processors, the one or more processors implement the order processing method according to any one of claims 1-27.

39. A computer-readable storage medium having a computer program stored thereon, which, when executed by a processor, implements the order processing method according to any one of claims 1-27.

40. A computer program product comprising a computer program that, when executed by a processor, implements the order processing method according to any one of claims 1-27.

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