Order processing method, picking workstation and warehousing system

Abstract

The present disclosure relates to the technical field of warehousing and logistics. Disclosed are an order processing method, a picking workstation and a warehousing system. The method comprises: acquiring a plurality of orders to be processed that correspond to a picking workstation, and determining a plurality of containers that correspond to the plurality of orders to be processed, and a target carrier for placing the plurality of containers; controlling a transport device to transport the target carrier to the picking workstation; when the transport device has transported the target carrier to the picking workstation, controlling a pick-and-place apparatus of the picking workstation to take out a target container from the target carrier, and transporting the target container to a first docking position that corresponds to a first order container on a put wall; and when the pick-and-place apparatus has moved to the first docking position, controlling the pick-and-place apparatus to transfer, into the first order container, first goods picked from the target container by the pick-and-place apparatus.

Description

Order processing methods, picking workstations, and warehousing systems

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese patent application No. 202410985217.6, filed on July 22, 2024, 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, a picking workstation, and a warehousing system. Background Technology

[0003] In a warehousing system, robots can move shelves or cartons from the inventory area to the workstation, where operators pick the required goods from the cartons and place them into the corresponding order boxes on the order placement wall, thus completing the picking and placement operation. When the number of orders in the warehousing system is large, manual picking and placement requires significant labor costs and has low picking efficiency. Summary of the Invention

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

[0005] The first aspect of this disclosure provides an order processing method applied to a control device in a warehousing system. The warehousing system further includes handling equipment, a picking station, and a sorting wall; wherein the picking station is equipped with a pick-and-place device. The order processing method includes: first, acquiring multiple pending orders corresponding to the picking station, and determining multiple containers corresponding to the multiple pending orders and a target carrier for placing the multiple containers. Second, controlling the handling equipment to transport the target carrier to the picking station; then, with the handling equipment transporting the target carrier to the picking station, controlling the pick-and-place device to remove the target container from the target carrier and transport the target container to a first docking position corresponding to a first order container on the sorting wall; wherein the target container is a container containing the first goods required for the first order among the multiple containers, the multiple pending orders include the first order, and the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order; finally, with the pick-and-place device moving to the first docking position, controlling the pick-and-place device to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container.

[0006] A second aspect of this disclosure provides a picking workstation, which includes a pick-and-place device. The pick-and-place device includes a container pick-and-place mechanism and a goods pick-and-place mechanism coupled to the container pick-and-place mechanism. The container pick-and-place mechanism is configured to: when a handling device transports a target carrier to the picking workstation, remove a target container from the target carrier and transport the target container to a first docking position corresponding to a first order container; wherein the picking workstation corresponds to multiple pending orders, the target carrier is a carrier for placing multiple containers corresponding to the multiple pending orders, and the target container is a container among the multiple containers for placing the first goods required for the first order; the multiple pending orders include a first order, and the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order. The goods pick-and-place mechanism is configured to: when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, transfer the first goods picked from its target container to the first order container.

[0007] A third aspect of this disclosure provides a warehousing system including a picking workstation, a control device, and a handling device. The picking workstation includes a pick-and-place device. The control device is configured to: acquire multiple pending orders corresponding to the picking workstation, determine multiple containers corresponding to the multiple pending orders and a target carrier for placing the multiple containers, and generate handling instructions and picking instructions based on the multiple containers and the target carrier. The handling device is configured to: transport the target carrier to the picking workstation according to the handling instructions. The pick-and-place device is configured to: when the handling device transports the target carrier to the picking workstation, according to the picking instructions, remove a target container from the target carrier, transport the target container to a first docking position corresponding to a first order container on a seeding wall, and transfer the first goods picked from the target container by the pick-and-place device to the first order container; wherein the target container is a container containing the first goods required for the first order among the multiple containers, the multiple pending orders include the first order, and the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order.

[0008] A fourth aspect of this disclosure provides an order processing apparatus, including an acquisition module and a control module. The acquisition module is configured to: acquire multiple pending orders corresponding to a picking workstation, and determine multiple containers corresponding to the pending orders and a target carrier for placing the multiple containers. The control module is configured to: control a handling device to transport the target carrier to the picking workstation; when the handling device transports the target carrier to the picking workstation, control a pick-and-place device at the picking workstation to remove a target container from the target carrier and transport the target container to a first docking position corresponding to a first order container on a seeding wall; wherein the target container is a container containing the first goods required for the first order among multiple containers, the multiple pending orders include the first order, and the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order. When the pick-and-place device moves to the first docking position, control the pick-and-place device to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container.

[0009] A fifth aspect of this disclosure provides an electronic device, including: a processor and a memory, the memory being used to store computer-executable instructions; the processor being used to read the instructions from the memory and execute the instructions to implement the order processing method described in the first aspect above.

[0010] A sixth 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.

[0011] A seventh aspect of this disclosure provides a computer program product comprising a computer 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.

[0012] The eighth aspect of this disclosure provides a computer program that, when executed by a processor, can implement the order processing method described in the first aspect above. Attached Figure Description

[0013] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0014] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a workstation provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0015] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an order processing method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0016] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0017] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0018] Figure 6A is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0019] Figure 6B is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0020] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0021] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0022] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0023] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of an order processing device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure;

[0024] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of an electronic device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. Detailed Implementation

[0025] To enable those skilled in the art to better understand the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention, and to make the above-mentioned objectives, features and advantages of the embodiments of the present invention more apparent and understandable, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0026] In a goods-to-person warehousing scenario, robots can transport cartons or shelves containing cartons to workstations. Workstation operators then pick the required goods from the cartons and place them into the corresponding order boxes, completing the picking and packing process. Typically, picking and packing constitute a significant portion of the work in a warehousing system; for example, they account for approximately 40% to 60% of the total warehousing system time. Therefore, improving the efficiency of picking and packing can significantly enhance the overall efficiency of the warehousing system. Manual picking and packing are costly, and their picking efficiency is low when dealing with large order volumes, failing to meet the demands of the warehousing system.

[0027] To improve the picking efficiency of warehousing systems, picking robots can be used in some examples to perform picking and loading operations. For instance, the forks on a picking robot can move up and down to retrieve inventory boxes and order boxes from the shelves. The robotic arm on the picking robot moves to the inventory box, retrieves the goods to be loaded from it, and then moves to the order box to place the goods to be loaded into it. Therefore, picking robots can achieve automated picking and loading operations, further improving picking efficiency compared to manual picking and loading.

[0028] However, in the process of automated picking and loading by the picking robot, the robot needs to simultaneously retrieve both inventory boxes and order boxes. After loading, it must return both boxes to their corresponding shelves. This process involves picking and placing two boxes per cycle, increasing picking time and reducing efficiency. Secondly, the picking robot can only load one order box at a time. If other order boxes require the same goods in the inventory container, the robot must return the current order box before retrieving the next, making the process cumbersome. Furthermore, when performing full-box outbound operations or replenishing empty boxes, the picking robot must transport each order box individually, resulting in low handling efficiency. Therefore, when performing picking and loading operations, the picking robot needs to constantly move within the warehouse to retrieve and place different boxes. With a large number of orders, the picking efficiency may not be high and may not meet the needs of the warehousing system.

[0029] To address the aforementioned issues, this disclosure provides an order processing method in which the picking station's pick-and-place device can directly transport the target container taken from the target carrier to the first docking position of the first order container, and pick and place the first goods in the target container at the first docking position. Compared with manual picking in related technologies, this method reduces labor costs, simplifies the picking operation process, and improves the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0030] 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).

[0031] Exemplarily, the carrier 10 may include multiple storage locations (also referred to as storage locations). These storage locations may be used to place containers, bins, or goods directly, or even the original packaging of the goods. This disclosure does not limit the scope of the embodiments; the following embodiments use the placement of containers as an example for illustrative purposes.

[0032] 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.

[0033] 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 used for placing containers.

[0034] In some examples, vehicle 10 can be either a high-density storage rack or a low-density storage rack. When vehicle 10 is a high-density storage rack, the gaps between containers are smaller. For example, vehicle 10 can dock in storage area 101, which can be either a high-density or low-density storage area. Storage area 101 can include multiple storage locations, which can be neatly arranged in rows and columns, and each storage location can be used to dock one vehicle 10.

[0035] 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.

[0036] For example, the number of workstations 30 in the warehousing system 100 can be one or more. A workstation 30 can also be called a picking workstation 30. Each workstation 30 can be provided with a corresponding vehicle docking area, which includes one or more docking positions for parking vehicles 10. The vehicles parked in the vehicle docking area are either vehicles awaiting picking or vehicles currently being picked. For example, the vehicle docking area includes a queuing area and a picking area; the vehicles parked in the queuing area are vehicles awaiting picking, and the vehicles parked in the picking area are vehicles that the workstation is currently picking.

[0037] For example, the handling equipment 20 may be called an automated handling equipment, and the handling equipment 20 may be used to handle the carrier 10 or to handle the container.

[0038] For example, the handling equipment 20 can move the carrier 10 in the storage area 101 to the corresponding carrier docking area in the workstation 30. As another example, the handling equipment 20 can also be a handling robot, such as an Automated Guided Vehicle (AGV), which can move under the carrier 10 and then lift the carrier 10 off the ground, thereby carrying the carrier 10 to move.

[0039] In some examples, taking the handling equipment 20 handling the carrier 10 as an example, 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 storage 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. In this embodiment of the disclosure, the same handling equipment is used as an example, that is, the handling equipment moves the carrier to the carrier parking area so that the workstation 30 can perform a picking operation.

[0040] For example, the storage system 100 also includes a seeding wall 40. The seeding wall 40 corresponds to a workstation 30, such that one workstation 30 may correspond to at least one seeding wall 40.

[0041] In some examples, the seeding wall 40 is provided with multiple seeding positions 41, each of which can hold an order container 42 for placing goods to be seeded. For example, the seeding wall 40 can be located on one side of the workstation 30, or it 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. As shown in Figure 1, the seeding wall 40 and the vehicles 10 docked in the vehicle docking area can be located on opposite sides of the workstation 30.

[0042] For example, an output device 43 may be provided on the seeding station 41. The output device 43 may be a display screen, electronic tag, speaker, or projection device, etc. The output device 43 is used to display the seeding quantity of the goods to be seeded on the corresponding seeding station 41. When the picking object is seeded in the order container 42 on the seeding station 41, the goods to be seeded can be seeded into the order container 42 on the seeding station 41 according to the seeding quantity displayed on the output device 43. It should be noted that the picking object of the workstation 30 may be a picking person or a picking device (such as a picking robot arm).

[0043] 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.

[0044] For example, the warehousing system 100 may also include a sorting device (not shown in Figure 1), which may also be called an automated sorting machine. For instance, each workstation 30 may correspond to at least one sorting device, which is used to deliver the goods picked by the picking objects of the workstation 30 to the corresponding order containers 42 on the sorting wall.

[0045] For example, the control device can be coupled to the handling equipment 20 and the workstation 30 respectively, and is used to control the operation of the handling equipment 20 and the workstation 30. For example, the control device can control the handling equipment 20 to move and handle the carrier 10, and control the workstation 30 to pick the carrier 10 parked on the picking area, etc.

[0046] 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.

[0047] In some examples, the control device communicates with the handling equipment 20 and the workstation 30 for data communication. For example, the control device can communicate with the handling equipment 20 and the workstation 30 via a local area network (LAN), a wireless local area network (WLAN), or other networks.

[0048] In some examples, as shown in Figure 1, workstation 30 (such as the box-picking device of workstation 30) can retrieve the container corresponding to the order (hereinafter referred to as the hit container) from carrier 10 according to order requirements and place the hit container on the picking station of workstation 30; then, the picking personnel pick out the goods to be picked from the hit container on the picking station and place the goods to be picked into the order container 42 corresponding to the order. Using the above manual picking method for picking and picking increases labor costs and has low picking efficiency when the order quantity is large.

[0049] In other examples, when the workstation 30 (e.g., the box-retrieving device of workstation 30) places the target container on the picking station of workstation 30, the workstation 30 (e.g., the picking robot arm of workstation 30) can also pick the goods to be planted from the target container on the picking station and place the goods to be planted on the distributing device. The distributing device then plants the goods to be planted into the order container 42 corresponding to the order, thereby realizing automatic planting of the goods to be planted. When using the above automatic picking method for picking and planting, firstly, the box-retrieving device needs to take out the container and place it on the picking station; then, the picking robot arm moves to the picking station to pick the goods to be planted from the target container; finally, the distributing device moves to the position of the order container to realize planting. In this process, the box-retrieving device and the picking robot arm jointly complete the picking operation, and the distributing device completes the planting operation. The execution process is relatively cumbersome, and the distance that the box-retrieving device and the picking robot arm move is relatively far, thus affecting the picking efficiency.

[0050] To address the aforementioned issues, this disclosure provides an order processing method, a picking workstation, and a warehousing system that enable automated picking and sorting, thereby improving the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0051] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a workstation provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. The structure and working principle of the picking workstation provided in this embodiment will be described below with reference to Figure 2. It should be noted that the workstation 30 shown in Figure 2 is a picking workstation, that is, workstation 30 can also be called picking workstation 30.

[0052] In some embodiments, as shown in FIG2, the workstation 30 includes a support frame 31, a guide mechanism 32, and a pick-and-place device 33.

[0053] For example, a guide mechanism 32 is disposed to a support frame 31. The guide mechanism 32 is movable laterally or vertically relative to the support frame 31. A pick-and-place device 33 is disposed to the guide mechanism 32 so that the pick-and-place device 33 is movable laterally or vertically relative to the support frame 31.

[0054] For example, 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 pick-and-place device 33 is disposed to the vertical moving device 36, thereby allowing the pick-and-place device 33 to move vertically relative to the moving rod 35. Therefore, the pick-and-place device 33 can move laterally and / or vertically on the support frame 31.

[0055] In some examples, workstation 30 may not have support frame 31. When workstation 30 does not have support frame 31, pick-and-place device 33 can move laterally and / or vertically via guide mechanism 32.

[0056] 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 pick-and-place device 33. The pick-and-place device 33 is disposed on the guide mechanism 32 and can move laterally and / or vertically through the guide mechanism 32.

[0057] 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 pick-and-place device 33 is disposed on the moving rod 35 so that the moving rod 35 drives the pick-and-place device 33 to move laterally; the vertical moving device 36 is coupled to the pick-and-place device 33 and configured to drive the pick-and-place device 33 to move vertically relative to the moving rod 35.

[0058] In some examples, the lateral moving device 34 can be disposed on the moving rod 35 or on the pick-and-place 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 pick-and-place device 33 to move vertically relative to the moving rod 35.

[0059] In some examples, the 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 of ​​the workstation 30, the pick-and-place device 33 moves laterally (in the L direction in Figure 2) and / or vertically (in the H direction in Figure 2) to the position corresponding to the location 15 in the carrier 10. The pick-and-place device 33 can also move laterally and / or vertically to any seeding position on the seeding wall 40.

[0060] In other words, the pick-and-place device 33 can move laterally and / or vertically to reach the position of any container on the vehicle 10 parked in the vehicle parking area, or it can also reach the position of any order container on the seeding wall 40.

[0061] In some embodiments, the pick-and-place device 33 includes a container pick-and-place mechanism 331 and a cargo pick-and-place mechanism 332.

[0062] For example, as shown in FIG2, the container picking mechanism 331 and the goods picking mechanism 332 can be coupled together. The goods picking mechanism 332 can move laterally or vertically with the container picking mechanism 331 to pick goods from containers placed on the container picking mechanism.

[0063] Exemplarily, the container picking and placing mechanism 331 and the goods picking and placing mechanism 332 can also be set independently of each other. The container picking and placing mechanism 331 can move horizontally or vertically, and the goods picking and placing mechanism 332 can pick goods from the containers placed on the container picking and placing mechanism 331. For example, the container picking and placing mechanism 331 can be set on the guide mechanism 32, and the goods picking and placing mechanism 332 can be set on the support frame 31. The specific setting of the container picking and placing mechanism and the goods picking and placing mechanism is not limited in this embodiment, as long as the container picking and placing mechanism 331 can move to any position on the sowing wall (i.e., the docking position corresponding to the order container), and the goods picking and placing mechanism 332 can pick goods from the containers placed in the container picking and placing mechanism and sow them into the order container.

[0064] The following embodiments are illustrated by taking the coupling between the container handling mechanism 331 and the goods handling mechanism 332 as an example.

[0065] It should be noted that the above-mentioned pick-and-place device 33 is disposed on the guide mechanism 32. The pick-and-place device 33 can move laterally and / or vertically through the guide mechanism 32, including: the container pick-and-place mechanism 331 on the pick-and-place device 33 is disposed on the guide mechanism 32. The container pick-and-place mechanism 331 can move laterally and / or vertically through the guide mechanism 32.

[0066] In some examples, the container handling mechanism 331 and the goods handling mechanism 332 can be directly or indirectly connected. For example, the container handling mechanism 331 and the goods handling mechanism 332 can be directly connected by a shaft, pin, gear, connecting rod, or other mechanical components, so that the movement of the container handling mechanism 331 can drive the movement of the goods handling mechanism 332. This disclosure does not limit the connection method between the container handling mechanism 331 and the goods handling mechanism 332.

[0067] For example, the container picking and placing mechanism 331 is disposed to the guide mechanism 32. When the container picking and placing mechanism 331 moves laterally or vertically through the guide mechanism 32, it can drive the cargo picking and placing mechanism 332 to move laterally or vertically at the same time. That is, the cargo picking and placing mechanism 332 can move laterally or vertically with the container picking and placing mechanism 331.

[0068] In some examples, the container handling mechanism 331 may include a container handling component that can move along the depth direction. This container handling component may be a claw, gripper fork, or suction cup, etc., connected to the container handling mechanism 331.

[0069] For example, when the container pick-and-place mechanism 331 reaches the position corresponding to the storage location 15 by lateral and / or vertical movement, the container pick-and-place component can extend along the depth direction, i.e., along the direction toward the carrier, to the storage location 15 to pick / place containers from / to the storage location 15. The container pick-and-place mechanism 331 also includes a receiving component, which can be placed on the container to be picked after the container pick-and-place component removes the container to be picked from the storage location 15.

[0070] For example, after the container picking mechanism 331 takes out the container to be picked, it can move from its current position (i.e., the position corresponding to the storage location 15) to the position of the order container corresponding to the container to be picked on the seeding wall.

[0071] In some examples, the goods handling mechanism 332 may include a goods picking component that can pick up and remove goods from a container. The goods picking component may be attached to the goods handling mechanism 332 as a claw or suction cup, etc.

[0072] For example, when the container pick-and-place mechanism 331 moves the container to be picked to the position of the order container, the goods picking component of the goods picking and placing mechanism 332 can grab (or suck up) the goods required for the order container from the container to be picked placed by the receiving component of the container pick-and-place mechanism 331, and deliver the retrieved goods into the order container, thereby completing the picking and placement of goods.

[0073] The picking workstation provided in this embodiment includes a picking and placing device, which is equipped with a container picking and placing mechanism and a goods picking and placing mechanism. The container picking and placing mechanism can directly transport containers taken from a carrier to the position of the order container on the order wall, thereby facilitating the goods picking and placing mechanism to pick the goods required for the order container from the container and place the goods into the order container. In the above process, since the container picking and placing mechanism can directly transport the target container taken from the target carrier to the first docking position of the first order container, the goods picking and placing mechanism, which moves to the first docking position at the same time, can pick and place the first goods in the target container. Compared with manual picking and picking robots in related technologies, this reduces labor costs, simplifies the picking operation process, and improves the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0074] The order processing method provided by the embodiments of this disclosure will be described below with reference to Figures 3 to 9.

[0075] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an order processing method provided by an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 3, the order processing method includes steps 310 to 340 as follows.

[0076] Step 310: Obtain multiple pending orders corresponding to the picking workstation, and determine multiple containers corresponding to the multiple pending orders and the target vehicle for placing the multiple containers.

[0077] It should be noted that the picking workstation can be workstation 30 in the above embodiments (workstation 30 in Figure 2), and the picking workstation includes a picking and placing device. The picking and placing device may include a container picking and placing mechanism and a goods picking and placing mechanism. The structure of the picking workstation has been described in the above embodiments, and will not be repeated here to avoid repetition.

[0078] In some examples, the control unit can assign corresponding pending orders to each picking station before performing the picking operation. Then, based on the multiple pending orders corresponding to the picking station, the container to be picked by the picking station and the carrier containing the container can be determined.

[0079] For example, each of multiple pending orders can be assigned to at least one container (the container assigned to a pending order can be called a assigned container). All assigned containers corresponding to each pending order can be placed on one vehicle or multiple vehicles (the vehicle on which the assigned containers are placed can be called the assigned vehicle). It should be noted that an assigned container means that the container contains the goods required for the pending order.

[0080] In some examples, the target vehicle is one of multiple vehicles in the inventory area, and at least one hit container is placed on the target vehicle. For example, the target vehicle may hold all the containers that have hit multiple pending orders, or it may hold some of the containers that have hit multiple pending orders; this disclosure does not limit this.

[0081] For example, when multiple pending orders at a picking station correspond to multiple hit containers placed on multiple hit vehicles, the target vehicle can be any of the multiple hit vehicles, or it can be the vehicle with the most hit containers among the multiple hit vehicles.

[0082] Step 320: Control the handling equipment to move the target vehicle to the picking workstation.

[0083] In some examples, after a target vehicle is identified, the control unit can dispatch handling equipment (such as a handling robot) to the location of the target vehicle to move it to the picking station. For example, the handling equipment can move the target vehicle to the vehicle docking area (such as the picking area or queuing area) of the picking station.

[0084] For example, if there are no vehicles being picked in the picking area of ​​the picking station, the handling equipment can move the target vehicle to the picking area; if there are vehicles being picked in the picking area of ​​the picking station, the handling equipment can move the target vehicle to the queuing area to wait in line, and after the vehicles leave the picking area, they will enter the picking area in sequence for picking.

[0085] For example, the handling equipment for moving the target vehicle can be any idle handling equipment in the warehousing system, such as the idle handling equipment closest to the target vehicle.

[0086] Step 330: When the handling equipment moves the target carrier to the picking station, the pick-and-place device is controlled to remove the target container from the target carrier and move the target container to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container on the seeding wall.

[0087] In some examples, the multiple pending orders corresponding to a picking workstation may include a first order, which is any one of the multiple pending orders; the target container is at least one hit container on the target vehicle containing the first goods required for the first order. The first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order among the multiple order containers on the seeding wall.

[0088] It should be noted that the target container may contain only the first cargo, or it may contain other cargo besides the first cargo. This disclosure does not limit this.

[0089] In some embodiments, step 330 includes: controlling the container pick-up and drop mechanism to remove the target container from the target vehicle and transporting the target container to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container.

[0090] For example, when the target carrier arrives at the picking area of ​​the picking station, the pick-and-place device moves from its current position to the position of the target container by lateral and / or vertical movement, so that the container pick-and-place mechanism on the pick-and-place device removes the target container from the target carrier.

[0091] For example, after the container pick-and-place mechanism reaches the position of the target container, the container pick-and-place component on the container pick-and-place mechanism extends along the depth direction toward the target vehicle to the storage location where the target container is located, so as to take out the target container from the storage location and place the taken-out target container in the receiving component.

[0092] For example, after the container pick-up and drop mechanism takes out the target container and places it in the receiving component, it can move from the current position to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container by lateral and / or vertical movement.

[0093] In some examples, the docking position corresponding to the order container can be at the same level as the order container itself, or it can be adjacent to the order container. Specifically, the first docking position is adjacent to or at the same level as the first order container on the seeding wall.

[0094] For example, the docking position corresponding to the order container can be an adjacent position at the same level as the order container when the planting wall faces the picking workstation. This embodiment of the disclosure does not limit the docking position, as long as it ensures that when the container picking and placing mechanism is in the docking position, the goods picking and placing mechanism of the picking and placing device can deliver the picked goods into the order container.

[0095] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure.

[0096] As shown in Figure 4, after the handling equipment transports the target carrier to the picking area of ​​the picking station, the picking station's 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 of the target container. The container pick-and-place mechanism 331 removes the target container from the target carrier and transports it to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container on the seeding wall (the pentagram position in front of the first order container in Figure 4).

[0097] Step 340: When the pick-and-place device moves to the first docking position, control the pick-and-place device to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container.

[0098] In some embodiments, step 340 includes: when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the goods pick-and-place mechanism to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container.

[0099] In some embodiments, when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the goods pick-and-place mechanism to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container includes: controlling the goods pick-and-place mechanism to pick the first goods from the target container during the process of the container pick-and-place mechanism moving to the first docking position, and controlling the goods pick-and-place mechanism to transfer the picked first goods to the first order container when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position; or, controlling the goods pick-and-place mechanism to pick the first goods from the target container and transfer the first goods to the first order container when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position.

[0100] In some examples, the goods picking and placing mechanism can pick the first item from the target container in two ways. For example, the goods picking and placing mechanism can pick the first item from the target container after the container picking and placing mechanism has moved to the first docking position, and then transfer the picked first item to the first order container. As shown in Figure 4, when the container picking and placing mechanism 331 moves the target container to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container, the goods picking and placing mechanism can be controlled to pick the first item from the target container and deliver it to the first order container.

[0101] For example, the goods picking and placing mechanism can pre-select the target container during the process of the container picking and placing mechanism moving to the first docking position, so as to pick out the first goods from the target container. Therefore, after the container picking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the goods picking and placing mechanism can directly deliver the picked first goods to the first order container, thereby further improving the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0102] The order processing method provided in this disclosure involves using a pick-and-place device to retrieve a target container from a target carrier parked at a picking workstation and transport the target container to a first docking position corresponding to a first order container on a sorting wall. Then, at the first docking position, the pick-and-place device can deliver the first goods required for the first order container, which it has picked from the target container, into the first order container, thus completing the picking and sorting of the first goods. In this process, because the pick-and-place device can directly transport the target container retrieved from the target carrier to the first docking position of the first order container and perform picking and sorting of the first goods in the target container at the first docking position, compared with manual picking in related technologies, it reduces labor costs, simplifies the picking operation process, and improves the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0103] The following describes the process by which the cargo handling mechanism pre-selects the target container and picks out the first cargo from it during the process of the container handling mechanism moving to the first docking position.

[0104] In some embodiments, the order processing method further includes: identifying a first item in the target container and controlling the item handling mechanism to retrieve the first item from the target container during the process of the container handling mechanism moving the target container to the first docking position.

[0105] In some examples, during the process of the container pick-up and drop mechanism taking out the target container and transporting it to the first docking position, the control device can pre-identify the first goods required by the first order container in the target container and pre-grab the first goods so that the goods pick-up and drop mechanism can take out the first goods more quickly when the container pick-up and drop mechanism reaches the first docking position.

[0106] For example, the cargo handling mechanism may be equipped with sensors, such as cameras, lidar, or infrared sensors. These sensors can acquire information about the cargo placed in the target container.

[0107] For example, a camera can capture images of goods in a target container. The control device acquires the image information and identifies each item inside the target container, as well as the position and layout of each item, based on the image information. This allows the first item and its position to be determined within the target container, so that the goods handling mechanism can accurately pick up the first item.

[0108] In some examples, after determining the location of the first item and its position, the loading / unloading mechanism can select a suitable gripping point and gripping method to grip the first item. For example, the position and orientation of the gripper or suction cup of the loading / unloading mechanism can be adjusted to ensure stable and safe gripping of the first item and to avoid damage to adjacent items.

[0109] For example, when the container handling mechanism moves to the first docking position, the cargo handling mechanism is controlled to remove the first cargo from the target container and transfer the first cargo to the first order container.

[0110] In some examples, when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, the goods pick-and-place mechanism may have already grabbed or picked up the first goods. In this case, the goods pick-and-place mechanism can directly take out the first goods and deliver them into the first order container.

[0111] In other examples, when the container pick-up and drop mechanism moves to the first docking position, the goods pick-up and drop mechanism may not have yet picked up or picked up the first goods. In this case, the goods pick-up and drop mechanism can continue to pick up or pick up the first goods until it has picked up or picked up the first goods, then take out the first goods and deliver the first goods into the first order container.

[0112] The order processing method of this disclosure, by pre-identifying the first item in the target container, can retrieve the first item from the target container more quickly when the container picking mechanism moves to the first docking position, thereby further saving picking time and improving the picking efficiency of the warehousing system. For example, by pre-identifying and grabbing the first item, approximately 2 seconds of picking time can be saved compared to identifying and grabbing the first item when the container picking mechanism moves to the first docking position.

[0113] In some examples, the spacing (e.g., vertical spacing) between the seed positions (also called seed grids) on the seed wall used to place order containers is typically set relatively large to facilitate the delivery of picked goods to the corresponding order containers by the picking mechanism. Larger spacing between seed positions reduces the number of seed positions on the seed wall, thus reducing the number of order containers that can be placed and the number of orders that the picking station can handle. Therefore, in warehouse systems with a large number of orders, larger spacing between seed positions affects the picking efficiency. For example, increasing the number of seed positions on the seed wall can increase the number of orders that the picking station can handle. However, as the number of seed positions increases, the spacing between them decreases, resulting in smaller spacing (e.g., vertical spacing) between order containers. In this case, the picking mechanism may not be able to directly deliver picked goods to the order containers.

[0114] To address the aforementioned issues, the order processing method provided in this disclosure addresses situations where the large number of seeding positions on the seeding wall prevents the goods retrieval mechanism from directly delivering the picked goods to the order container. In such cases, the container retrieval mechanism can pull out the order container using a push-pull method, facilitating the delivery of the picked goods into the order container. After delivery, the order container is pushed back to its original position. This disclosure also enables picking at the picking station on the seeding wall even with an increased number of seeding positions, thereby improving the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0115] In some embodiments, step 340 includes: when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the container pick-and-place mechanism to pull the first order container out from the first seeding position so that the goods pick-and-place mechanism can deliver the first goods into the first order container; controlling the goods pick-and-place mechanism to deliver the first goods picked from the target container into the first order container; and controlling the container pick-and-place mechanism to push the first order container back to the first seeding position.

[0116] For example, when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, it can pull the first order container out from the first seeding position where the first order container is located. After pulling out the first order container, the control goods pick-and-place mechanism delivers the first goods picked from the target container into the first order container.

[0117] For example, if there are many seeding positions on the seeding wall, such as exceeding a preset threshold, the intervals between the seeding positions will be small, preventing the goods handling mechanism from directly delivering the first goods into the first order container. In this case, the container handling mechanism can pull the first order container out from the first seeding position, such as pulling the first order container a preset distance from the first seeding position, so that the goods handling mechanism can deliver the first goods into the first order container.

[0118] In some examples, the preset quantity threshold is the upper limit of the number of planting positions on the planting wall. If the number of planting positions exceeds this upper limit, the spacing between the placed order containers will be too small due to the excessive number of planting positions, preventing the goods handling mechanism from directly delivering goods into the order containers. If the number of planting positions does not exceed the upper limit, the spacing between the order containers is sufficient for the goods handling mechanism to directly deliver goods into the order containers. Therefore, the corresponding planting method can be determined based on the relationship between the number of planting positions on the planting wall and the preset quantity threshold.

[0119] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in this embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 5, the number of seeding positions on the seeding wall is greater than or equal to a preset threshold, resulting in a small vertical spacing between each order container, making it impossible for the goods retrieval and placement mechanism to directly deliver goods into the order containers.

[0120] As shown in Figure 5, the container picking and placing mechanism 331 can pull the first order container out a preset distance along the direction towards the picking workstation. After the first order container has been pulled out a preset distance, and there are no obstacles on the first order container, the goods picking and placing mechanism 332 can deliver the first goods into the first order container.

[0121] In some examples, when the container picking and placing mechanism 331 pulls out the first order container, it can determine the pulling distance (i.e., the preset distance) based on the size and shape of the delivered goods (i.e., the first goods). The preset distance for each order container can be the same or different. It should be noted that when pulling out the first order container, the preset distance must ensure that the first order container can be placed stably and will not tip over.

[0122] For example, after the goods handling mechanism delivers the first goods to the first order container, the container handling mechanism can be controlled to push the first order container back to the first seeding position. That is, the first order container can be pushed back from a preset position to its original position.

[0123] The order processing method provided in this embodiment allows for the pulling of a first order container when there are many seeding positions on the seeding wall. This allows the goods picking mechanism to deliver the first goods into the first order container. After delivery, the first order container is pushed back to its original position. Therefore, this embodiment increases the number of order processing positions at the picking station, thereby further improving the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0124] In some examples, during the process of transferring the first item from the target container to the first order container at the first docking position, the goods handling mechanism may experience issues where the first item falls due to a loose grip (or suction). For example, the first item might fall into the gap between the picking station and the picker wall, resulting in a picking anomaly. In such cases, operator intervention is required, increasing labor costs and reducing picking efficiency.

[0125] To address the aforementioned issues, the container handling mechanism provided in this embodiment is equipped with a guide component that can automatically extend and retract. When the guide component is extended, it can bridge the gap between the container handling mechanism and the order container to receive goods dropped by the goods handling mechanism.

[0126] Figure 6A is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided by an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 6A, step 340 includes steps 341 to 342 as shown below.

[0127] Step 341: When the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, the control guide component is connected between the container pick-and-place mechanism and the first order container.

[0128] Figure 6B is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure.

[0129] As shown in Figure 6B, when the container pick-and-place mechanism 331 moves the target container to the first docking position, the guide member 61 can be connected across the container pick-and-place mechanism 331 and the first order container. For example, the guide member 61 can extend from the container pick-and-place mechanism 331 in the direction toward the first order container and connect with the docking position of the first order container (the edge of the first order container).

[0130] In some examples, the guide component 61 can be connected to the container pick-and-place mechanism 331 via a guide rail (such as a linear guide), a ball screw, a rack and pinion, or other moving components. The guide component 61 can move smoothly and accurately to the bridging position of the order container during its extension.

[0131] In some examples, the container handling mechanism 331 is also provided with a guide drive component that can drive the extension and retraction of the guide component 61.

[0132] Step 342: Control the cargo handling mechanism to transfer the first cargo picked from the target container to the first order container; or, control the cargo handling mechanism to place the first cargo picked from the target container on a guide component to transfer the first cargo to the first order container via the guide component.

[0133] In some examples, after the guide member is connected between the container pick-and-place mechanism and the first order container, the goods pick-and-place mechanism can place the picked first goods at the first end of the guide member to transfer the first goods into the first order container via the guide member. For example, the guide member 61 can be configured with a smooth surface to facilitate the transport of the first goods.

[0134] For example, as shown in Figure 6B, the guide component 61 can be tilted across the container handling mechanism 331 and the first order container. One end connecting to the container handling mechanism 331 is the first end A of the guide component, and the other end connecting to the first order container is the second end B of the guide component 61. The height of the first end A is lower than the height of the second end B. After the goods handling mechanism 332 removes the first goods from the target container, it can place the first goods at the first end A of the guide component 61 and transport the first goods to the first order container via the second end B of the guide component 61.

[0135] In other examples, after a guide component is installed between the container pick-and-place mechanism and the first order container, the goods pick-and-place mechanism can transfer the picked first goods into the first order container. In this case, the guide component can act as a fall prevention mechanism, catching goods dropped by the goods pick-and-place mechanism.

[0136] In some embodiments, step 342 includes: controlling the cargo picking mechanism to pick up the first cargo from the target container; and, in the process of transferring the first cargo to the first order container, if the first cargo falls onto the guide component, controlling the cargo picking mechanism to pick up the first cargo from the guide component and deliver the first cargo into the first order container.

[0137] In some examples, if a cargo falls during the transfer of the first cargo by the cargo handling mechanism, the first cargo may fall onto the guide component.

[0138] For example, sensors on the goods handling mechanism can acquire the picking status of the mechanism and send the acquired picking status to the control device. The control device determines whether the first item has been dropped based on the picking status. If it is determined that the first item has been dropped, the control device controls the goods handling mechanism to move to the guide component to pick up (grab or suck up) the first item from the guide component and transfer the picked-up first item back to the first order container.

[0139] In some embodiments, step 342 includes: controlling the cargo picking mechanism to pick out the first cargo from the target container, and transferring the first cargo to the first order container by means of the guide component if the first cargo falls onto the guide component during the process of transferring the first cargo to the first order container.

[0140] In some examples, where the first item can fall onto the guide member, the guide member can also directly convey the first item to the first order container. For example, as shown in FIG6B, if the first item falls onto the guide member 61, and if the first item falls onto any position on the guide member 61, the guide member 61 can convey the first item to the first order container through the second end B.

[0141] In some embodiments, after step 342, the method further includes: retracting the guide component after transferring the first cargo to the first order container.

[0142] In some examples, the control device can retract the guide component based on sensor detection information on the goods handling mechanism, once it is determined that the first item has been delivered into the first order container. For example, after the guide component retracts, the container handling mechanism can be controlled to continue moving, thereby avoiding the influence of the guide component on the movement of the container handling mechanism.

[0143] The order processing method provided in this embodiment can prevent goods from falling during the sorting process by setting a guide component on the container sorting mechanism, thereby improving the safety of the sorting process. At the same time, it can also deliver the goods to the location when the goods fall, avoiding manual operation and improving the picking efficiency.

[0144] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided by an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 7, after step 340 above, the method further includes steps 350 to 380 as shown below.

[0145] Step 350: Determine if there are other goods required for pending orders in the target container.

[0146] If there are other goods required for pending orders in the target container, proceed to step 360; if there are no other goods required for pending orders in the target container, proceed to step 380.

[0147] In some examples, a target container can hold multiple goods, which can be matched by different pending orders. In other words, goods required by multiple order containers can be placed in the same container.

[0148] Step 360: Control the container picking and placing mechanism to move the target container from the first docking position to the second docking position corresponding to the second order container on the seeding wall.

[0149] In some examples, where the target container also contains the second goods required for the second order in multiple pending orders, the control container handling mechanism moves the target container from the first docking position corresponding to the first order container to the second docking position corresponding to the second order container. Here, the second order container is the order container corresponding to the second order, and it is different from the first order container.

[0150] For example, the second docking position can be adjacent to or level with the second order container on the seeding wall. When the container handling mechanism moves the target container to the second docking position, the cargo handling mechanism can deliver the picked second cargo into the second order container.

[0151] In some examples, in related technologies, picking and loading operations are performed by a picking robot. If a second order container requires a second item while the target container is still containing that item, the picking robot needs to return the first order container to its original position and then move to the location of the second order container to retrieve it. In this process, the picking robot first returns the first order container, then moves to the location of the second order container, and uses its forks to move up and down to retrieve the second order container. This process is time-consuming and inefficient. In the embodiments of this disclosure, the container handling mechanism only needs to move laterally and / or vertically to move the target container from the location of the first order container to the location of the second order container, simplifying the picking operation and improving picking efficiency.

[0152] Step 370: With the container pick-and-place mechanism moved to the second docking position, control the cargo pick-and-place mechanism to transfer the second cargo picked from the target container to the second order container.

[0153] In some examples, as the container picking mechanism moves to the second docking position, the second goods in the target container can be identified in advance, and the picking mechanism can be controlled to take the second goods from the target container. When the container picking mechanism moves to the second docking position, the picking mechanism can be controlled to take the second goods from the target container and transfer the second goods to the second order container, thereby further improving the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0154] It should be noted that step 370 is similar to step 340 in the above embodiment, that is, the seeding process of the cargo picking and placing mechanism for the second cargo is similar to the seeding process of the first cargo. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0155] Step 380: Control the container picking and placing mechanism to move the target container from the first docking position to an empty storage location of the target vehicle or an empty buffer location of the picking workstation.

[0156] For example, if the target container does not contain the goods required by other pending orders among multiple pending orders, the container handling mechanism can move the target container back to the target vehicle.

[0157] In some examples, when the target container has been picked and the target carrier is located in the picking area of ​​the picking station, the container pick-and-place mechanism can move the target container from the first docking position to an available location on the target carrier. For example, this available location can be the original location of the target container or any other available location.

[0158] In other examples, after the target container has been picked and the target carrier has been moved out of the picking area of ​​the picking station, the container pick-and-place mechanism can move the target container from the first docking position to an idle buffer in the picking station. For example, the picking station may have multiple buffer slots, each of which can hold a container. If no container is placed in a buffer slot, that buffer slot is an idle buffer slot. The container pick-and-place mechanism can place the target container on any idle buffer in the picking station.

[0159] In some examples, after the next vehicle arrives at the picking area of ​​the picking station, the container pick-and-place mechanism can move the target container from an empty buffer location to any empty location on that vehicle.

[0160] The order processing method provided in this disclosure, after completing the initial loading of the first item, can further determine whether there are other items required by other order containers in the target container. If there are other items required by other order containers in the target container, the container handling mechanism can move the target container to the docking position corresponding to the next order container for loading its required items; if there are no other items required by other order containers in the target container, the target container is moved back to an idle buffer space in the target vehicle or picking station, thereby further improving the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0161] In some examples, when there are full order containers on the order wall, operators need to perform an outbound operation on those full order containers, that is, remove the full order containers from the order wall and replace them with empty order containers. The outbound of full order containers and the replenishment of empty order containers can be referred to as the box swapping process. Given the large number of order containers on the order wall, manually performing the box swapping operation is costly and inefficient. Furthermore, using a picking robot to perform full-box outbound or empty-box replenishment requires the picking robot to handle each order container individually, resulting in low handling efficiency.

[0162] To address the aforementioned issues, the container handling mechanism provided in this embodiment can remove full order containers from the seeding wall and replenish empty order containers, thereby improving the container changing efficiency of the warehousing system and reducing container changing costs.

[0163] In some embodiments, the order processing method further includes: obtaining the sowing status of each order container among multiple order containers on the sowing wall; if there is a third order container on the sowing wall with a sowing status of completed sowing, controlling the container picking and placing mechanism to move to the third docking position corresponding to the third order container, and taking out the third order container at the third docking position, and transporting the third order container to an idle storage location of the first carrier parked at the picking station or an idle buffer location of the picking station.

[0164] In some examples, the third order container is any order container on the seeding wall. For example, the third order container may be the same as or different from the first and second order containers.

[0165] For example, the seeding status of an order container includes "seeding completed" and "seeding incomplete." "Seeding completed" indicates that the order container has contained all the required goods; in this case, an outbound operation needs to be performed on the order container, i.e., the order container is moved away from the seeding wall. If the order container is not seeded, it can remain on the seeding position, awaiting the next seeding cycle.

[0166] In some examples, when goods are placed in an order container, the WMS can update the information about the goods required for that order container until all the required goods are placed in the order container, at which point the WMS determines that the order container has been successfully placed.

[0167] In other examples, a weight sensor can be installed at the seeding position. The WMS can determine whether all the required goods have been placed in the order container, i.e., whether the order container has completed seeding, based on the weight information of each item and the weight information of the order container. It should be noted that the embodiments of this disclosure do not limit the method for determining the seeding status of the order container.

[0168] For example, when it is determined that the third order container has completed sowing, an outbound operation needs to be performed on the third order container. In this case, the container pick-and-place mechanism can be controlled to move from the previous position to the third docking position corresponding to the third order container, retrieve the third order container at the third docking position, and transport the third order container to an empty storage location of the first carrier parked at the picking station or an empty buffer location of the picking station. For example, the third docking position can be a position adjacent to or level with the third order container on the sowing wall.

[0169] In some examples, when the container pick-and-place mechanism retrieves the third order container and the first vehicle is docked in the picking area of ​​the picking station, the container pick-and-place mechanism can place the third order container in an empty location on the first vehicle.

[0170] In some examples, the first vehicle can be the vehicle currently docked in the picking area of ​​the picking station, such as the target vehicle or other vehicles to be picked.

[0171] In other examples, the first vehicle can also be a designated container swapping vehicle. This swapping vehicle can be a vehicle specifically configured within the warehousing system for full-container outbound shipments. For example, the first vehicle may include a vehicle with multiple available storage locations.

[0172] For example, when the first vehicle is a container-changing vehicle, the control device can move the first vehicle to the picking station at preset time intervals (such as the first time interval) to receive the order containers (such as the third order container) that have been seeded on the seeding wall at the picking station.

[0173] In other examples, if the container pick-and-place mechanism retrieves the third order container and the first carrier is not present in the picking area of ​​the picking station, the container pick-and-place mechanism may place the third order container that has been seeded into an empty buffer slot in the picking station.

[0174] In some embodiments, the order processing method further includes: after the handling equipment moves the first carrier to the picking station, controlling the container pick-and-place mechanism to move the third order container on the idle buffer position to the idle position of the first carrier.

[0175] For example, after the handling equipment moves the first carrier to the picking area of ​​the picking station, the container picking and placing mechanism can move the third order container from the buffer position of the picking station to the empty position on the first carrier, thereby realizing the outbound operation of the third order container.

[0176] In some embodiments, after step 340 above, the method further includes: obtaining the full status of the first order container detected by the full box detection component; if the full status of the first order container is full, controlling the container picking and placing mechanism to remove the first order container from the seeding wall and transport the first order container to an idle storage location of the third vehicle parked at the picking station or an idle buffer location of the picking station.

[0177] In some examples, a full container status is used to indicate whether the goods placed in the order container have reached the container's capacity limit. This capacity limit includes a weight limit and / or a space limit. For example, if the goods are heavy or large, the order container may have reached its capacity limit before planting is complete, in which case an outbound operation needs to be performed on the order container.

[0178] In some embodiments, the container handling mechanism is equipped with a full-container detection component, which can detect the fullness of the order container. For example, the full-container detection device can detect the placement of goods in the order container to determine the fullness of the order container.

[0179] In some examples, the full-container detection device can be an ultrasonic sensor, a laser rangefinder, or an infrared sensor, which can detect the stacking height of goods in an order container or the space occupancy. For example, when the goods reach the maximum height of the order container or reach the maximum space utilization rate, the full state of the order container can be determined as a full state.

[0180] In other examples, the fullness detection device can also be a camera, which captures images of the goods inside the order container to determine the degree of fullness. For example, if the empty space in the order container is less than a preset percentage, the container can be determined to be full.

[0181] It should be noted that the embodiments disclosed herein do not limit the method for detecting a full container state. For example, the detection result of a weight sensor installed at the seeding position can also be used to determine whether the order container has reached a full state.

[0182] For example, after the goods handling component places the first goods into the first order container, the control device can obtain the detection result of the full-box detection device and determine the full status of the first order container based on the detection result. If the first order container is in a full-box state, an outbound operation needs to be performed on the first order container. Since a target container is currently placed on the container handling mechanism, after the container handling mechanism completes the picking of the target container and places it on the target carrier (or the buffer position of the picking station), the control device can move the container handling mechanism to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container and retrieve the first order container. The container handling mechanism can then transport the retrieved first order container to an empty storage location on a third carrier or an empty buffer position on the picking station.

[0183] For example, the third vehicle can be a vehicle currently docked in the picking area of ​​the picking station. The third vehicle can be the target vehicle or another vehicle to be picked. As another example, the third vehicle can also be a designated swapping vehicle. The third vehicle can be the same swapping vehicle as the first vehicle mentioned above, or it can be a different swapping vehicle.

[0184] In some embodiments, after step 340 above, the method further includes: if there is an empty seeding position among the multiple seeding positions on the seeding wall, controlling the container pick-up and drop mechanism to take an empty container from a second carrier docked at the picking station and transport the empty container to an empty seeding position on the seeding wall.

[0185] For example, if there are vacant planting positions on the planting wall, it is necessary to perform an operation to replenish empty order containers. Here, a vacant planting position is a planting position where no order container is placed. After the container retrieval mechanism removes a completed planting order container from the planting wall, the original planting position of that order container becomes a vacant planting position; alternatively, after the container retrieval mechanism removes a full order container from the planting wall, the original planting position of that order container can also become a vacant planting position.

[0186] In some examples, where a second vehicle is parked in the picking area of ​​the picking station, the container pick-and-place mechanism can move empty order containers from the second vehicle to an available seeding position on the seeding wall.

[0187] In some examples, the second carrier can be a carrier currently docked in the picking area of ​​the picking station, such as a target carrier or other carriers awaiting picking. For example, at least one empty order container can be placed on each carrier awaiting picking. During the picking process, if an empty seeding position is identified on the seeding wall, the container pick-and-place mechanism can move the empty order container from the carrier to the empty seeding position to complete the replenishment operation, thereby improving the packing efficiency.

[0188] In other examples, the second vehicle can also be a designated container swapping vehicle. This swapping vehicle can be a vehicle specifically configured within the warehousing system for replenishing empty order containers. For example, the second vehicle can hold multiple empty order containers.

[0189] For example, when the second vehicle is a container-changing vehicle, the control device can move the second vehicle to the picking station at preset time intervals (such as a second time interval) to perform the replenishment operation of empty order containers at the picking station.

[0190] In some examples, the second carrier and the first carrier mentioned above can be the same carrier or different carriers. For example, if the second carrier and the first carrier can be the same carrier, some storage positions on the second carrier are empty storage positions, which are used to place order containers that have been seeded and / or full order containers; other storage positions on the second carrier are used to place empty order containers. The handling equipment can move the carrier to the picking station at preset intervals to perform outbound operations for full order containers and replenishment operations for empty order containers.

[0191] The order processing method provided in this disclosure can realize automatic box changing operation through the container picking and placing mechanism of the picking workstation, including the outbound operation of full order containers and the replenishment operation of empty order containers. Compared with the manual box changing in related technologies, this disclosure reduces labor costs and improves box changing efficiency.

[0192] For example, before performing picking operations on containers placed on each carrier, a sorting operation can be performed on the containers placed on each carrier to improve subsequent picking efficiency. The sorting operation can include sorting containers between different carriers, or sorting different containers on the same carrier.

[0193] For example, containers with pending orders can be transferred from multiple carriers to at least one carrier; or containers with pending orders can be transferred from one storage location on a carrier to another storage location.

[0194] In some embodiments, the warehousing system further includes a sorting workstation. The sorting workstation is used to perform sorting operations on containers placed on each vehicle. The sorting workstation includes sorting objects, which can be sorting personnel or sorting equipment.

[0195] In some examples, when the sorting object is a sorting device, the sorting device can be a cargo robot that can pick up / place containers on a carrier; or, the sorting workstation can also be equipped with a robotic arm that can pick up / place containers on a carrier.

[0196] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of another order processing method provided by an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 8, before step 310, the method further includes steps 810 to 840 as shown below. It should be noted that step 810 can be performed after step 310 and before step 320.

[0197] Step 810: Determine the container positions on the target vehicle for the multiple containers corresponding to the multiple pending orders.

[0198] In some examples, after determining the multiple containers corresponding to multiple pending orders and the target vehicle for placing the multiple containers in step 310, the positions of the multiple containers on the target vehicle can be further determined. It should be noted that the containers corresponding to the pending orders (i.e., the containers hit by multiple pending orders) are referred to as the hit containers.

[0199] For example, the container location of each hit container on the target vehicle may include the cargo location of each hit container on the target vehicle, and the location area of ​​that cargo location on the target vehicle.

[0200] Step 820: Based on the container location, determine the cargo containers to be processed on the target vehicle.

[0201] In some examples, a container awaiting processing can be determined from multiple inventory containers on a target vehicle based on the container location of each hit container. The inventory containers on the target vehicle include hit containers and non-hit containers (containers not hit by pending orders), and the container awaiting processing is at least one inventory container on the target vehicle, which may include hit containers and / or non-hit containers.

[0202] For example, the containers to be processed include at least one first container that has been hit by multiple pending orders and whose container position is off-center from a preset area, and / or at least one second container that has not been hit by multiple pending orders and whose container position is within the preset area. The preset area can be the middle area of ​​the target vehicle.

[0203] In some examples, the target container can be divided into two areas, such as a central area and a peripheral area. When the hit container is placed in the central area, the pick-and-place device (such as a container pick-and-place mechanism) moves a shorter distance from the target container to the docking position corresponding to the order container, thus further improving picking efficiency. Therefore, by performing a sorting operation, the container corresponding to the order to be processed (i.e., the hit container) can be transferred to the central area of ​​the target container.

[0204] For example, among multiple hit containers on a target vehicle, some hit containers may be located in the central area, and some hit containers may be located outside the central area (i.e., the surrounding area); or, all hit containers may be located within the central area; or, all hit containers may be located outside the central area. Here, a hit container being located within the central area means that the cargo location of the hit container is a cargo location within the central area.

[0205] In some examples, if all hit containers are located within the intermediate area, no tallying operation is required on the target vehicle. If at least one hit container is located outside the intermediate area, a tallying operation may be performed on the target vehicle; alternatively, a tallying operation may be performed on the target vehicle when the number of hit containers located outside the intermediate area exceeds a specified threshold, as this disclosure does not limit the scope of the tallying operation.

[0206] For example, if at least one hit container is located outside the intermediate area, the hit container located outside the intermediate area is referred to as the first container. That is, if the first container is present on the target vehicle, a cargo handling operation can be performed on the target vehicle.

[0207] Step 830: Control the handling equipment to move the target vehicle to the cargo handling workstation.

[0208] In some examples, when it is determined that a tallying operation needs to be performed on the target vehicle, the control device can control the handling equipment to move the target vehicle to the tallying workstation. The handling equipment that moves the target vehicle to the tallying workstation can be the same handling equipment as the handling equipment that moves the target vehicle to the picking workstation in step 320, or they can be different handling equipment.

[0209] Step 840: When the handling equipment moves the target vehicle to the tallying workstation, the tallying workstation is controlled to perform tallying operations on the first container and / or the second container to tally the first container to a preset area.

[0210] In some examples, after the target vehicle is moved to the picking station, a sorting operation can be performed on the target vehicle. Sorting objects (such as sorting personnel or sorting equipment) can transfer the first container on the target vehicle to a predetermined area.

[0211] In some embodiments, step 840 includes: determining the number of first containers and the number of available storage spaces in a preset area; controlling the sorting object to sort the first containers to available storage spaces in the preset area, and / or sorting the second containers to available storage spaces outside the preset area, based on the number of first containers and the number of available storage spaces in the preset area.

[0212] In some embodiments, controlling a sorting object to sort a first container to an available storage location within a preset area, and / or to sort a second container to an available storage location outside the preset area, includes: when the number of available storage locations within the preset area is greater than or equal to the number of first containers, controlling the sorting object to sort the first container to an available storage location within the preset area; when the number of available storage locations within the preset area is less than the number of first containers, controlling the sorting object to sort at least one second container to an available storage location outside the preset area, and to sort the first container to an available storage location within the preset area.

[0213] In some examples, if there are many vacant storage locations in a preset area (such as the middle area) that are greater than or equal to the number of first containers, the first containers can be moved from the current storage location (i.e., the storage location outside the preset area) to an vacant storage location within the preset area, so that the matching containers corresponding to the pending orders are all placed in the preset area of ​​the target vehicle.

[0214] In other examples, if the number of available storage spaces within the preset area is small and less than the number of first containers, the available storage spaces within the preset area cannot accommodate all the first containers. Therefore, it can be determined whether there are any non-target containers (i.e., second containers) within the preset area. If there are second containers on the target vehicle, the handling object can be controlled to move the corresponding number of second containers from the current storage space (i.e., the storage space within the preset area) to an available storage space outside the preset area, based on the number of storage spaces required by the first containers. After moving the second containers outside the preset area, the first containers are then moved to an available storage space within the preset area.

[0215] The order processing method provided in this embodiment can pre-sort multiple containers corresponding to the orders to be processed to the middle area of ​​the target vehicle by performing a sorting operation on the target vehicle. This allows the container picking and placing mechanism of the subsequent picking workstation to retrieve each container by moving less distance for picking and sorting operations, thereby further improving the picking efficiency of the warehousing system.

[0216] For example, multiple picking workstations in a warehousing system can be divided into at least one workstation group, and each workstation group includes multiple picking and placing devices and multiple picking walls.

[0217] Figure 9 is a schematic diagram of another warehousing system provided in an embodiment of this disclosure.

[0218] As shown in Figure 9, the warehousing system 100 may include a workstation group 90, which may consist of two picking workstations. The workstation group 90 includes two picking and placing devices, such as a first picking and placing device 3310 and a second picking and placing device 3320.

[0219] In some examples, workstation group 90 corresponds to vehicle docking area 91, which may include multiple picking areas. That is, multiple (e.g., two) pick-and-place devices in workstation group 90 can simultaneously perform picking operations on multiple vehicles docked in the picking area.

[0220] As shown in Figure 9, the vehicle docking area 91 has three picking areas, where vehicles A, B, and C are respectively docked. A first pick-and-place device 3310 and a second pick-and-place device 3320 can retrieve the target container from vehicle A, vehicle B, or vehicle C, respectively. The first pick-and-place device 3310 can transport the retrieved target container to the corresponding order container on the first seeding wall 410 to perform picking and seeding operations; the second pick-and-place device 3320 can transport the retrieved target container to the corresponding order container on the second seeding wall 420 to perform picking and seeding operations. For example, each vehicle can enter or leave the picking area of ​​the vehicle docking area 91 via the direction of the arrow.

[0221] It should be noted that the first pick-and-place device 3310 and the second pick-and-place device 3320 have the same mechanism as the pick-and-place device 33 in the above embodiment, and the process of picking and sowing is also similar. To avoid repetition, it will not be described again here.

[0222] The order processing method provided in this disclosure improves the picking efficiency of the warehousing system by dividing the workstation into groups, increasing the number of vehicles that can be picked each time and the order hit rate.

[0223] Figure 10 is a schematic diagram of an order processing device provided in an embodiment of this disclosure. As shown in Figure 10, the order processing device 1010 includes an acquisition module 1011 and a control module 1021. Wherein:

[0224] The acquisition module 1011 is configured to: acquire multiple pending orders corresponding to the picking workstation, and determine multiple containers corresponding to the pending orders and the target vehicle for placing the multiple containers.

[0225] The control module 1021 is configured to: control the handling equipment to transport the target carrier to the picking station; when the handling equipment transports the target carrier to the picking station, control the picking device of the picking station to remove the target container from the target carrier and transport the target container to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container on the seeding wall; wherein, the target container is a container containing the first goods required for the first order among multiple containers, the multiple orders to be processed include the first order, and the first order container is the order container corresponding to the first order; when the picking device moves to the first docking position, control the picking device to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container.

[0226] In some embodiments, the pick-and-place device includes a container pick-and-place mechanism and a cargo pick-and-place mechanism, which are coupled together, and the cargo pick-and-place mechanism can move laterally or vertically along with the container pick-and-place mechanism.

[0227] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is further configured to: control the container pick-and-place mechanism to remove the target container from the target carrier and transport the target container to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container. The control module 1021 is also configured to: when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, control the goods pick-and-place mechanism to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container.

[0228] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is configured to: control the goods picking mechanism to pick up the first goods from the target container during the process of the container picking mechanism moving to the first docking position, and control the goods picking mechanism to transfer the picked first goods to the first order container when the container picking mechanism moves to the first docking position; or, control the goods picking mechanism to pick up the first goods from the target container and transfer the first goods to the first order container when the container picking mechanism moves to the first docking position.

[0229] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is further configured to: identify a first item in the target container during the process of the container pick-and-place mechanism transporting the target container to the first docking position, and control the item pick-and-place mechanism to pick up the first item from the target container. When the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the item pick-and-place mechanism to transfer the first item picked from the target container to the first order container includes: when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the item pick-and-place mechanism to remove the first item from the target container and transfer the first item to the first order container.

[0230] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is configured to: control the container pick-and-place mechanism to pull the first order container out from the first seeding position, so that the goods pick-and-place mechanism can deliver the first goods into the first order container; control the goods pick-and-place mechanism to deliver the first goods picked from the target container into the first order container. After delivering the first goods into the first order container, the method further includes: controlling the container pick-and-place mechanism to push the first order container back to the first seeding position.

[0231] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is further configured to: when the target container contains the second goods required for the second order among multiple pending orders, control the container pick-and-place mechanism to move the target container from the first docking position to the second docking position corresponding to the second order container on the seeding wall; wherein the second order container is the order container corresponding to the second order, and the second order container is different from the first order container. When the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the second docking position, control the goods pick-and-place mechanism to transfer the second goods picked from the target container to the second order container.

[0232] In some embodiments, the picking station is provided with multiple buffer positions; the control module 1021 is also configured to: control the container picking mechanism to move the target container from the first docking position to an empty storage position of the target vehicle or an empty buffer position of the picking station when there are no goods required by other pending orders in the target container.

[0233] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is further configured to: obtain the sowing status of each order container among the multiple order containers on the sowing wall; and, if there is a third order container on the sowing wall with a sowing status of completed sowing, control the container picking and placing mechanism to move to the third docking position corresponding to the third order container, and take out the third order container at the third docking position, and transport the third order container to the idle storage location of the first carrier parked at the picking workstation or the idle buffer location of the picking workstation.

[0234] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is further configured to: after the handling equipment moves the first carrier to the picking station, control the container pick-and-place mechanism to move the third order container on the idle buffer position to the idle position of the first carrier.

[0235] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is further configured to: when there is an empty seeding position among the multiple seeding positions on the seeding wall, control the container pick-up and drop mechanism to take an empty container from the second carrier docked at the picking station and transport the empty container to the empty seeding position on the seeding wall.

[0236] In some embodiments, a guide member is provided on the container pick-and-place mechanism. The control module 1021 is configured to: control the guide member to bridge between the container pick-and-place mechanism and the first order container when the container pick-and-place mechanism moves to the first docking position; control the goods pick-and-place mechanism to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container; or control the goods pick-and-place mechanism to place the first goods on the guide member to transfer the first goods to the first order container via the guide member.

[0237] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is configured to: control the goods picking and placing mechanism to pick up the first goods from the target container; and, in the process of transferring the first goods to the first order container, if the first goods fall onto the guide component, control the goods picking and placing mechanism to pick up the first goods from the guide component and deliver the first goods into the first order container; or, control the goods picking and placing mechanism to pick up the first goods from the target container; and, in the process of transferring the first goods to the first order container, if the first goods fall onto the guide component, transfer the first goods into the first order container via the guide component.

[0238] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is further configured to control the retraction of the guide component after the first goods have been transferred to the first order container.

[0239] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is further configured to: obtain the full status of the first order container detected by the full box detection component; and, if the full status of the first order container is full, control the container picking and placing mechanism to remove the first order container from the seeding wall and transport the first order container to an idle storage location of the third vehicle parked at the picking station or an idle buffer location of the picking station.

[0240] In some embodiments, the warehousing system further includes a sorting workstation. The order processing device 1010 further includes a determining module configured to: determine the container positions of multiple containers corresponding to multiple pending orders on a target vehicle; and determine containers to be sorted on the target vehicle based on the container positions; wherein the containers to be sorted include at least one first container that has been hit by multiple pending orders and whose container position is off-center from a preset area, and / or at least one second container that has not been hit by multiple pending orders and whose container position is within the preset area; the preset area is located in the middle area of ​​the target vehicle. The control module 1021 is further configured to: control a handling device to transport the target vehicle to the sorting workstation. When the handling device transports the target vehicle to the sorting workstation, the control module 1021 controls the sorting objects at the sorting workstation to perform sorting operations on the first container and / or the second container to sort the first container into the preset area.

[0241] In some embodiments, the determining module is configured to: determine the number of first containers and the number of available storage locations within a preset area. The control module 1021 is configured to: based on the number of first containers and the number of available storage locations within the preset area, control the sorting object to sort the first containers to available storage locations within the preset area, and / or sort the second containers to available storage locations outside the preset area.

[0242] In some embodiments, the control module 1021 is configured to: when the number of vacant storage locations in a preset area is greater than or equal to the number of first containers, control the sorting object to sort the first containers to vacant storage locations in the preset area; when the number of vacant storage locations in the preset area is less than the number of first containers, control the sorting object to sort at least one second container to vacant storage locations outside the preset area, and then sort the first container to vacant storage locations within the preset area.

[0243] Figure 11 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. 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.

[0244] As shown in Figure 11, 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.

[0245] 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.

[0246] 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. Specifically, program 1005 may include program code, which includes computer-executable instructions.

[0247] 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.

[0248] 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. Specifically, program 1005 may be invoked by processor 1001 to cause electronic device 1000 to perform the operation of an order processing method.

[0249] This disclosure provides a computer-readable storage medium storing at least one executable instruction. When executed on an electronic device 1000, the executable instruction causes the electronic device 1000 to perform the order processing method described in the above embodiments. Specifically, the executable instruction can be used to cause the electronic device 1000 to perform the operation of the order processing method.

[0250] 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.

[0251] In some embodiments, this disclosure provides a computer program product including a computer 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.

[0252] 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.

[0253] 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 order processing method provided above, and will not be repeated here.

[0254] The embodiments described above do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this disclosure.

Claims

An order processing method, the method is applied to a control device in a warehouse system, the warehouse system further comprises a handling device, a picking workstation and a seeding wall; wherein, The picking station is provided with a taking and placing device; the method comprises: acquiring a plurality of to-be-processed orders corresponding to the picking station, and determining a plurality of containers corresponding to the plurality of to-be-processed orders and a target carrier on which the plurality of containers are placed; controlling the carrying equipment to carry the target carrier to the picking station; in the case where the carrying equipment carries the target carrier to the picking station, controlling the taking and placing device to take a target container from the target carrier and carry the target container to a first docking position corresponding to a first order container on the seeding wall; wherein the target container is a container in which a first goods required by a first order is placed, the plurality of to-be-processed orders include the first order, and the first order container is an order container corresponding to the first order; in the case where the taking and placing device moves to the first docking position, controlling the taking and placing device to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container. The method of claim 1, wherein, The taking and placing device comprises a container taking and placing mechanism and a goods taking and placing mechanism; the container taking and placing mechanism and the goods taking and placing mechanism are coupled; The goods taking and placing mechanism can move along the horizontal direction or the vertical direction with the container taking and placing mechanism to pick the goods placed in the container on the container taking and placing mechanism; or The container taking and placing mechanism and the goods taking and placing mechanism are independent of each other, the container taking and placing mechanism can move along the horizontal direction or the vertical direction, and the goods taking and placing mechanism can pick the goods placed in the container on the container taking and placing mechanism. The method of claim 2, wherein, The control of the taking and placing device to take the target container from the target carrier and carry the target container to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container on the seeding wall comprises: controlling the container taking and placing mechanism to take the target container from the target carrier and carry the target container to the first docking position corresponding to the first order container; The control of the taking and placing device to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container in the case where the taking and placing device moves to the first docking position comprises: in the case where the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container. The method of claim 3, wherein, In the case where the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container comprises: in the process of the container taking and placing mechanism moving to the first docking position, controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to pick the first goods from the target container, and in the case where the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to transfer the picked first goods to the first order container; or in the process of the container taking and placing mechanism moving to the first docking position, controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to pick the first goods from the target container, and in the case where the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to transfer the picked first goods to the first order container. In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: The method according to claim 3, further comprising: In the process that the container taking and placing mechanism carries the target container to the first docking position, the first goods in the target container are identified, and the goods taking and placing mechanism is controlled to take the first goods in the target container; The method according to claim 1, wherein in the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the goods taking and placing mechanism is controlled to transfer the first goods picked from the target container to the first order container. In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: The method of claim 3, wherein, In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: The method of any one of claims 3-6, wherein, In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: The method of any one of claims 3-6, wherein, In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method 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position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the method further comprises: In the In the case that there is no goods required by other to-be-processed orders in the plurality of to-be-processed orders in the target container, the container taking and placing mechanism is controlled to carry the target container from the first docking position to an idle storage location of the target vehicle or an idle buffer location in the plurality of buffer locations. The method according to any one of claims 2-8, further comprising: acquiring a sowing state of each order container in the plurality of order containers on the sowing wall; in the case that there is a third order container with a sowing state of completed sowing on the sowing wall, controlling the container taking and placing mechanism to move to a third docking position corresponding to the third order container, and taking out the third order container at the third docking position; carrying the third order container to an idle storage location of a first vehicle parked at the picking station or an idle buffer location of the picking station. The method of claim 9, wherein, in the case that the container taking and placing mechanism carries the third order container to the idle buffer location of the picking station, the method further comprises: after the carrying device carries the first vehicle to the picking station, controlling the container taking and placing mechanism to carry the third order container on the idle buffer location to an idle storage location of the first vehicle. The method according to any one of claims 2-10, further comprising: in the case that there is an idle sowing position in the plurality of sowing positions on the sowing wall, controlling the container taking and placing mechanism to take out an empty container from a second vehicle parked at the picking station, and carrying the empty container to the idle sowing position on the sowing wall. The method of any one of claims 3-11, wherein, The container taking and placing mechanism is provided with a guide component; and the controlling, in the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the goods taking and placing mechanism to transfer the first goods picked from the target container into the first order container, comprises: in the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, controlling the guide component to straddle between the container taking and placing mechanism and the first order container; controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to transfer the first goods picked from the target container into the first order container, or controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to place the first goods picked from the target container on the guide component to transfer the first goods into the first order container through the guide component. The method of claim 12, wherein, The controlling, in the case that the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position, the goods taking and placing mechanism to transfer the first goods picked from the target container into the first order container, comprises: controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to pick the first goods from the target container, and in the process of transferring the first goods into the first order container, in the case that the first goods fall on the guide component, controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to pick up the first goods on the guide component and deliver the first goods into the first order container; or, controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to pick the first goods from the target container, and in the process of transferring the first goods into the first order container, in the case that the first goods fall on the guide component, controlling the goods taking and placing mechanism to pick up the first goods on the guide component and deliver the first goods into the first order container; or, The method further comprises: The method further comprises: After the first goods are transferred to the first order container, the guide component is controlled to retract. The method of any one of claims 3-14, wherein, The container taking and placing mechanism is provided with a full container detection component; after the first goods picked by the goods taking and placing mechanism from the target container are transferred to the first order container, the method further comprises: Obtaining a full container state of the first order container detected by the full container detection component; When the full container state of the first order container is a full state, the container taking and placing mechanism is controlled to take the first order container from the sowing wall and transport the first order container to an idle bin of a third carrier parked at the picking station or an idle buffer position of the picking station. The method of any one of claims 1-15, wherein, The warehouse system further comprises a goods arrangement station; before the transporting device transports the target carrier to the picking station, the method further comprises: Determining container positions of the plurality of containers corresponding to the plurality of to-be-processed orders on the target carrier; According to the container positions, determining to-be-arranged containers on the target carrier; wherein the to-be-arranged containers include at least one first container hit by the plurality of to-be-processed orders and deviating from a preset area, and / or at least one second container not hit by the plurality of to-be-processed orders and located in the preset area; the preset area is located in a middle area of the target carrier; Controlling the transporting device to transport the target carrier to the goods arrangement station; When the transporting device transports the target carrier to the goods arrangement station, controlling an arrangement object of the goods arrangement station to perform an arrangement operation on the first container and / or the second container to arrange the first container into the preset area. The method of claim 16, wherein, The control of the arrangement object of the goods arrangement station to perform the arrangement operation on the first container and / or the second container to arrange the first container into the preset area comprises: Determining a number of the first containers and a number of idle bins in the preset area; According to the number of the first containers and the number of idle bins in the preset area, controlling the arrangement object to arrange the first containers into idle bins in the preset area and / or to arrange the second containers into idle bins outside the preset area. The method of claim 17, wherein, The control of the arrangement object to arrange the first containers into idle bins in the preset area and / or to arrange the second containers into idle bins outside the preset area according to the number of the first containers and the number of idle bins in the preset area comprises: In a case where the number of idle storage locations in the preset area is greater than or equal to the number of the first containers, the order-fulfillment object is controlled to fulfill the first containers to the idle storage locations in the preset area; In a case where the number of idle storage locations in the preset area is less than the number of the first containers, the order-fulfillment object is controlled to fulfill at least one of the second containers to an idle storage location outside the preset area, and then fulfill the first containers to the idle storage locations in the preset area. A picking station includes a taking and placing device, the taking and placing device includes a container taking and placing mechanism, and a cargo taking and placing mechanism coupled with the container taking and placing mechanism; The container taking and placing mechanism is configured to, in a case where the target carrier is carried to the picking work station by the carrying device, take a target container from the target carrier and carry the target container to a first docking position corresponding to a first order container; wherein, The picking station corresponds to a plurality of orders to be processed, the target carrier is a carrier for placing a plurality of containers corresponding to the plurality of orders to be processed, and the target container is a container for placing first cargo required by a first order in the plurality of containers; The plurality of orders to be processed includes the first order, and the first order container is an order container corresponding to the first order; The cargo taking and placing mechanism is configured to transfer the first cargo picked from the target container to the first order container when the container taking and placing mechanism moves to the first docking position. The order picking station of claim 19, wherein, The picking station further includes at least one guide mechanism; the container taking and placing mechanism is arranged to the guide mechanism, and the container taking and placing mechanism can move laterally or vertically through the guide mechanism, and the cargo taking and placing mechanism can move laterally or vertically with the container taking and placing mechanism; The container taking and placing mechanism includes a taking and placing component that can move along a depth direction. The order picking station of claim 20, wherein, The guide mechanism includes: A lateral movement device coupled with a movement rod and configured to drive the movement rod to move laterally; The movement rod extends in a vertical direction, and the container taking and placing mechanism is arranged to the movement rod so that the movement rod drives the container taking and placing mechanism to move laterally; and A vertical movement device coupled with the container taking and placing mechanism and configured to drive the container taking and placing mechanism to move vertically relative to the movement rod. The order picking station according to any one of claims 19-21, wherein The container taking and placing mechanism is provided with a guide component that can be connected between the container taking and placing mechanism and the first order container to transfer the first cargo to the first order container; The cargo taking and placing mechanism is configured to transfer the first cargo picked from the target container to the first order container, or place the first cargo picked from the target container on the guide component to transfer the first cargo to the first order container through the guide component. The order picking station of claim 22, wherein After the first cargo is transferred to the first order container, the guide component can be retracted. The order picking station according to any one of claims 19-23, wherein The container taking and placing mechanism is provided with a full-box detection component for detecting a full-box state of an order container on a seeding wall; The container taking and placing mechanism is configured to take out the first order container from the seeding wall and carry the first order container to an empty bin of a third carrier parked at the picking station or an empty buffer bin of the picking station in a case that the full case state of the first order container is a full state. A warehouse system comprises: A picking station comprising a taking and placing device; A control device configured to obtain a plurality of to-be-processed orders corresponding to the picking station, determine a plurality of containers corresponding to the plurality of to-be-processed orders and a target carrier on which the plurality of containers are placed, and generate a carrying instruction and a picking instruction according to the plurality of containers and the target carrier; A carrying device configured to carry the target carrier to the picking station according to the carrying instruction; The taking and placing device is configured to, in a case that the carrying device carries the target carrier to the picking station, take out a target container from the target carrier according to the picking instruction, carry the target container to a first docking position corresponding to a first order container on a seeding wall, and transfer first goods picked by the taking and placing device from the target container to the first order container; wherein the target container is a container in which first goods required by a first order are placed among the plurality of containers, the plurality of to-be-processed orders include the first order, and the first order container is an order container corresponding to the first order. An order processing apparatus comprises: An obtaining module configured to obtain a plurality of to-be-processed orders corresponding to a picking station, and determine a plurality of containers corresponding to the to-be-processed orders and a target carrier on which the plurality of containers are placed; A control module configured to: control a carrying device to carry the target carrier to the picking station; in a case that the carrying device carries the target carrier to the picking station, control a taking and placing device of the picking station to take out a target container from the target carrier and carry the target container to a first docking position corresponding to a first order container on a seeding wall; wherein the target container is a container in which first goods required by a first order are placed among the plurality of containers, the plurality of to-be-processed orders include the first order, and the first order container is an order container corresponding to the first order; in a case that the taking and placing device moves to the first docking position, control the taking and placing device to transfer the first goods picked by the taking and placing device from the target container to the first order container. An electronic device comprises: one or more processors and a memory; The memory is configured to store one or more programs; 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 1-18. A computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program, which, when executed by a processor, implements the order processing method according to any one of claims 1-18. A computer-readable storage medium having stored thereon a computer program, which, when executed by a processor, implements the order processing method according to any one of claims 1-18. A computer program product comprising a computer program which, when executed by a processor, implements the order processing method according to any one of claims 1-18.

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