Autonomous Trailer Unloading Robot for Tight Pallet Row Clearance

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Solution Overview

Problem

Autonomous mobile robots face challenges in precisely placing pallets in confined trailer spaces due to limited room and the need for precise alignment to avoid collisions.

Innovation Solution

The autonomous mobile robot is equipped with sensors to detect contact and boundaries, allowing it to side-shift pallets within trailers and navigate to precise drop positions, even in tight spaces.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Productivity

If an autonomous mobile robot is used for pallet placement in trailers, then operational efficiency and precision are improved, but the robot cannot fully accommodate in confined spaces with limited room

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveoperational efficiencyVSAvoidrobot accommodation space

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSVolume of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The robot's operation is segmented into distinct phases: navigation to drop position, side-shifting fork toward wall, detecting contact via sensors, backing away by lip width, and dropping pallet. This segmentation allows the robot to perform precise operations in confined spaces by breaking down the complex task of pallet placement into manageable sequential steps that can be executed within limited trailer space.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The robot performs preliminary side-shifting of the fork toward the trailer wall and detects contact before dropping the pallet. This preliminary action ensures precise positioning and avoids collisions with trailer walls and existing pallets, enabling accurate pallet placement in confined spaces before the actual drop operation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Manufacturing precision

If the robot side-shifts fork to align with trailer wall for precise pallet placement, then manufacturing precision is improved, but the risk of collision with trailer walls and pallets increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepallet placement precisionVSAvoidcollision risk

Core Design Contradiction:

Manufacturing precisionVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The robot uses sensors to detect contact between the fork/pallet and the trailer wall during side-shifting. This feedback mechanism allows the robot to precisely determine when alignment is achieved and when to stop moving, ensuring accurate pallet placement while avoiding excessive force that could cause collisions or damage to trailer walls and existing pallets.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The robot backs the fork away from the trailer wall by a predetermined distance corresponding to the lip width after detecting contact. This beforehand cushioning prevents the pallet from being forced against the wall with excessive force, reducing collision risk and ensuring gentle, precise placement that protects both the pallet and trailer structure.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #11Beforehand cushioning (Prior cushioning)

3Ease of operation

If the robot navigates to drop position inside trailer, then ease of operation is improved, but space constraints prevent full robot accommodation

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenavigation capabilityVSAvoidtrailer interior space

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSArea of stationary object

Solution Approach 1:

The robot utilizes the lateral dimension by side-shifting the fork toward and away from the trailer wall, rather than requiring full three-dimensional maneuvering space. This dimensional approach allows the robot to perform precise positioning operations within the limited interior space of the trailer by moving the fork laterally while maintaining a compact overall footprint.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

Solution Approach 2:

The trailer wall lip serves as an intermediary reference point for the robot's positioning system. The robot uses the lip's predetermined distance from the wall as a mediator to determine the correct drop position, enabling accurate navigation and pallet placement without requiring the robot to fully accommodate its entire structure within the confined trailer space.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

Data Source

PatentUS20250128927A1Autonomous mobile robot operations for last rows in-trailer unloading

Publication Date: 2025.04.24 GIDEON BROTHERS D O O

AI summary

Unloading first few rows of pallets from a trailer using an autonomous mobile robot. The robot determines that a pallet is a first in a row where the trailer does not have sufficient space to accommodate the robot. The robot determines a pose of each observable pallet in the trailer and determines a front plane for the pallets in the same row as the target pallet. The robot navigates to a first goal position inside the trailer, based on the pallet and trailer poses, then picks up the pallet. The robot side-shifts toward an adjacent pallet until detecting contact, then adjusts back by a predetermined distance to maximize clearance between the pallet and a side wall of the trailer. The robot navigates backward in a straight line to a second goal position on a ramp, and then proceeds to drop off the pallet in the staging area.