Multi-Floor Robotics Automation Using Vertical Transport Coordination
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Solution Overview
Problem
In multi-floor warehouses, existing robotics automation systems face inefficiencies in transporting items between different vertical levels, requiring manual intervention and lacking optimal space utilization, which hampers inventory management and retrieval processes.
Innovation Solution
A method and system for multi-floor robotics automation that involves a server using processing circuitry to select a bot based on item type, determine vertical levels, and utilize transport devices to move bots between floors, optimizing vertical space usage and automating the transportation process.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a robot transports items between different vertical levels in a multi-floor warehouse, then the item transportation capability is improved, but the system complexity increases due to the need for vertical transport devices and coordination
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extends the transportation system from two-dimensional horizontal movement to three-dimensional vertical movement by introducing elevators and automated vertical transport devices. This allows robots to operate across multiple floors, significantly expanding the warehouse's storage and retrieval capabilities while managing complexity through automated coordination systems.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent introduces a central control system that acts as an intermediary between robots, elevators, and the warehouse management system. This mediator coordinates vertical transport requests, manages elevator scheduling, and optimizes the overall system operation, reducing the complexity burden on individual robot components.
2Quantity of substance
If vertical space is utilized for storage in multi-floor warehouses, then the storage capacity is improved, but the difficulty of detecting and measuring location increases across multiple levels
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a three-dimensional coordinate system that tracks robot and item locations across horizontal and vertical dimensions. This multi-dimensional positioning system enables precise location detection in multi-floor environments, allowing the system to manage increased storage capacity while maintaining accurate location awareness through automated tracking.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent incorporates continuous feedback mechanisms where robots, elevators, and the central control system constantly exchange location and status information. This real-time feedback loop ensures that the system maintains accurate knowledge of item and robot positions across multiple floors, enabling efficient retrieval operations despite the increased spatial complexity.
3Productivity
If automated bot selection and transport device coordination is implemented, then the productivity is improved, but the device complexity increases due to multiple coordination layers
Solution Approach 1:
The patent designs a universal control architecture where the central control system handles multiple functions including robot dispatch, elevator scheduling, path optimization, and coordination across all warehouse operations. This multi-functional approach consolidates complexity into a single coordinated system rather than requiring separate control mechanisms for each function, thereby improving productivity while managing overall system complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
A method includes receiving a request to transport an item from a first location to a second location; selecting a bot for transporting the item from the first location to the second location; determining a first vertical level associated with an initial location of the selected bot and a second vertical level associated with a destination of the selected bot; determining whether the first vertical level associated is different than the second vertical level. The method further includes, in response to the determination that the first vertical level is different from the second vertical level, (a) selecting a transport device configured to transfer the selected bot from the first vertical level to the second vertical level in a vertical direction; and (b) outputting a control signal to the selected bot causing the selected bot to move to a first position associated with the selected transport device.