Industrial Vehicle Pose Development Using Pre-Positioned Landmarks

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Solution Overview

Problem

Industrial vehicles face challenges in accurate localization during start-up in environments with few unique natural features, leading to potential navigation errors and safety risks in warehouses and other shared use spaces.

Innovation Solution

A method and apparatus using unique landmarks, such as beacons or pre-placed objects with identifiable features, to determine the initial position of industrial vehicles, enabling accurate localization and navigation through a combination of sensors and a mobile computer system that communicates with a central computer and warehouse management system.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If traditional localization methods are used in environments with few unique natural features, then the system cannot determine accurate vehicle pose, but adding more sensors or features increases system complexity

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvevehicle pose computation accuracyVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system pre-places objects with identifiable features (barcodes, RFID tags, visual markers) at known locations in the warehouse environment before vehicle operation. This preliminary setup creates a localization infrastructure that vehicles can use without carrying complex sensing equipment, resolving the contradiction by preparing the environment in advance rather than complicating the vehicle system.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces placed objects with identifiable features as intermediary elements between the vehicle and the environment. These objects serve as mediators that carry location information and enable the vehicle to determine its pose by detecting these intermediaries, rather than requiring direct complex sensing of the environment itself.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Productivity

If manual operation with human drivers is used to complete tasks, then flexibility is maintained, but safety risks and productivity limitations increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetask completion rateVSAvoidsafety risks

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system enables industrial vehicles to perform self-localization and self-navigation by detecting placed objects with identifiable features and computing their own pose and path. This self-service capability allows automated operation without human drivers, simultaneously improving productivity and eliminating safety risks associated with manual operation.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The patent replaces the mechanical system of human drivers operating vehicles with an automated system based on sensor detection and computer vision. The vehicle localization and navigation functions previously performed by human operators are now executed automatically through sensor data processing and pose computation algorithms.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

3Productivity

If more forklifts and drivers are added to increase productivity, then task completion improves, but safety risks and operational costs increase

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvetask completion rateVSAvoidsafety risks

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

By enabling vehicles to autonomously determine their pose and navigate using placed objects with identifiable features, the system allows a single vehicle to operate independently without requiring additional human operators. This self-service capability increases productivity while reducing the number of vehicles and personnel needed, thereby decreasing safety risks.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

4Ease of operation

If the vehicle navigates without accurate pose information, then operation can continue, but navigation errors and safety incidents occur

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontinuous operation capabilityVSAvoidnavigation accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements feedback-based localization where the vehicle continuously detects placed objects with identifiable features, computes its pose based on these detections, and uses this feedback information to correct and maintain accurate navigation. This closed-loop feedback mechanism ensures both continuous operation and high navigation reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

Data Source

PatentUS10611613B2Systems and methods for pose development using retrieved position of a pallet or product load to be picked up

Publication Date: 2020.04.07 CROWN EQUIP CORP

AI summary

A method and apparatus for using unique landmarks to position industrial vehicles during start-up. In one embodiment, a method of using pre-positioned objects as landmarks to operate an industrial vehicle is provided. The method comprises identifying a start-up scenario from sensor data, wherein the start-up scenario comprises a unique marker start-up or a pre-positioned object start-up. in response to the identified start-up scenario, either a unique marker or pre-positioned object is identified within a physical environment, wherein the pre-positioned object or unique marker corresponds with a sub-area of the physical environment. The industrial vehicle pose is determined in response to the identity of the pre-positioned object or unique marker and the industrial vehicle is operated based on the determined industrial vehicle pose.