UAV Inventory Transport System
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Solution Overview
Problem
Modern inventory systems face inefficiencies in moving items between densely packed storage areas or multilevel storage systems, particularly due to limitations in existing ground-based units and vertical displacement mechanisms, which hinder the effective management and retrieval of inventory items across different levels within a finite infrastructure.
Innovation Solution
The implementation of an inventory system that utilizes unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for transporting items between inventory holders at disparate locations, combined with autonomous ground drive units, to facilitate efficient movement and processing of inventory items across multiple levels, including the use of docking stations for recharging, ballast adjustment, and item handling.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If ground-based units and conventional vertical displacement mechanisms are used to move inventory items, then the infrastructure can support multilevel storage, but the efficiency of moving items between levels deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional ground-based mechanical transport systems and vertical displacement mechanisms (elevators) with unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) that fly autonomously through the storage facility. This substitution of mechanical ground transport with aerial robotic systems resolves the contradiction by achieving high-speed item movement between levels without requiring complex mechanical infrastructure.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from two-dimensional ground-based transport to three-dimensional aerial transport by deploying UAVs that can move freely in vertical and horizontal spaces. This dimensional change allows the system to bypass the limitations of conventional elevators and ground transport, achieving superior productivity through spatial utilization that was previously inaccessible.
2Volume of stationary object
If inventory density is increased in horizontal and vertical directions, then space utilization improves, but the efficiency of moving items in and out of storage areas deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces conventional mechanical handling systems with autonomous UAVs that can access densely packed storage locations without being constrained by the physical limitations of elevators or ground-based conveyors. This substitution enables efficient item retrieval even from high-density vertical and horizontal storage configurations.
Solution Approach 2:
The UAVs are equipped with autonomous navigation and item handling capabilities, allowing them to independently locate, access, and retrieve items from densely packed storage areas without requiring manual intervention or complex mechanical assistance. This self-service capability maintains high productivity despite increased storage density.
Data Source
AI summary
The disclosed inventory systems and methods can be used to retrieve and transport items from one location in an inventory system to another. Specifically, an unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) including passive buoyancy element, a thrust unit, and a retention feature, can be controlled by a management component to retrieve one or more items, transport the item or items, and deposit the item or items. For example, a UAV can be controlled to obtain an item at one location in a warehouse such as a first floor and lift said item to a second location in the warehouse such as a second floor, and deposit the item at the second location.