Optimization of packaging sizes

• US 10,332,060 B2
• Filed: 01/08/2016
• Issued: 06/25/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 08/30/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Tian, Hong, Smith, Mackenzie, Mishra, Devesh
• Primary Examiner(s): Menz, Laura M
• Application Number:
  US14/991,244
• Publication Number:
  US 20160125352A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,264 Days
• CPC Class Codes: B65B 65/08 Devices for counting or registering the number of articles handled, or the number of packages produced by the machine
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/04 Forecasting or optimisation specially adapted for administrative or management purposes, e.g. linear programming or "cutting stock problem" market predictions or forecasting for commercial activities G06Q30/0202
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping

Abstract

Various systems, methods, and programs embodied in computer-readable mediums are provided for determining sizes of packaging in a packaging suite and generating the new packaging. The packaging may be used, for example, in the shipping of items. Data may be received that describes bounding boxes corresponding to collections of items shipped to customers. The sizes of the packaging in the packaging suite may be determined based at least in part upon the data that describes the bounding boxes.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer-readable medium embodying at least one program executable in at least one computing device, the at least one program having a plurality of instructions that when executed cause the at least one computing device to at least:

receive data describing a plurality of shipments and a plurality of three-dimensional bounding boxes from a current packaging suite employed in a material handling facility used to enclose the plurality of shipments, individual ones of the plurality of shipments corresponding to at least one respective item that has been shipped in a single respective package;

generate an updated packaging suite that minimizes a wasted volume in a plurality of different sizes of three-dimensional bounding boxes to be used for future shipments originating from the materials handling facility based at least in part on the data describing the plurality of shipments, the updated packaging suite comprising the plurality of different sizes of three-dimensional bounding boxes without regard to predetermined sizes of the plurality of three-dimensional bounding boxes; and

cause at least one packaging machine to generate packaging in the plurality of different sizes of three-dimensional bounding boxes.

2. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein when executed the plurality of instructions further cause the at least one computing device to at least generate an order for the plurality of different sizes of three-dimensional bounding boxes from the updated packaging suite, the at least one packaging machine being caused to generate the packaging in the plurality of different sizes of three-dimensional bounding boxes in response to the order.

3. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein when executed the plurality of instructions further cause the at least one computing device to at least receive a quantity of different packaging sizes, wherein the updated packaging suite is generated to include the quantity of different packaging sizes.

4. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein when executed the plurality of instructions further cause the at least one computing device to at least regenerate the updated packaging suite for a different plurality of shipments, wherein the updated packaging suite changes upon regeneration.

5. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein a first packaging of the plurality of different sizes of three-dimensional bounding boxes differs in shape from a second packaging of the plurality of different sizes of three-dimensional bounding boxes.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 1, wherein the wasted volume is minimized using a P-median solver.

6. A system, comprising:

a data store storing data describing a plurality of three-dimensional bounding boxes in a current packaging suite employed in a material handling facility, individual ones of the plurality of three-dimensional bounding boxes enclosing a corresponding one of a plurality of item collections that has been shipped; and

at least one computing device in communication with the data store and configured to at least;

determine a plurality of shipping volumes from the data describing the plurality of three dimensional bounding boxes, individual ones of the plurality of shipping volumes corresponding to a respective one of the plurality of item collections;

generate an updated packaging suite that minimizes a wasted volume in a plurality of different sizes of packaging that are to be employed for future shipments based at least in part on the plurality of shipping volumes, the updated packaging suite specifying the plurality of different sizes of packaging that are to be employed for future shipments without regard to predetermined sizes of the current packaging suite; and

generate an order for the plurality of different sizes of packaging from the updated packaging suite for the material handling facility.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the updated packaging suite is further based at least in part on a plurality of packaging volumes individually corresponding to the plurality of different sizes of packaging.

8. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one computing device is further configured to at least generate the data describing the plurality of three dimensional bounding boxes based at least in part on data describing the plurality of item collections.

9. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one computing device is further configured to at least regenerate the data describing the plurality of three dimensional bounding boxes based at least in part on data describing a different plurality of item collections.

10. The system of claim 9, wherein a frequency of periodically regenerating the data describing the plurality of three dimensional bounding boxes is based at least in part on a lead time between ordering new packaging and receiving the new packaging.

11. The system of claim 6, wherein individual ones of the plurality of item collections have been shipped to a single respective customer.

12. The system of claim 6, wherein the at least one computing device is further configured to at least cause at least one packaging machine to generate packaging in each of the plurality of different sizes of packaging in response to determining the updated packaging suite.

13. A method, comprising:

receiving, via at least one computing device, data describing a plurality of bounding boxes from a current packaging suite employed in a material handling facility, individual ones of the plurality of bounding boxes enclosing one of a plurality of item collections, individual ones of the plurality of item collections having been shipped to a respective customer;

determining, via the at least one computing device, an updated packaging suite specifying a plurality of different sizes of packaging that are to be employed for future shipments without regard to predetermined sizes of the plurality of bounding boxes, the plurality of different sizes of packaging being determined to minimize a wasted volume in the plurality of different sizes of packaging for future shipments based at least in part on the data describing the plurality of bounding boxes; and

causing, via the at least one computing device, at least one packaging machine to generate packaging in the plurality of different sizes of packaging.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the plurality of different sizes of packaging are further determined based at least in part on a minimum buffering zone required for shipping individual items in the plurality of item collections.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the plurality of different sizes of packaging are further determined based at least in part on a plurality of shipping volumes associated with individual ones of the plurality of bounding boxes.

16. The method of claim 13, wherein at least one of the plurality of item collections has been shipped in at least two of the plurality of bounding boxes.

17. The method of claim 13, wherein the plurality of different sizes are determined without regard for a set of the plurality of bounding boxes used for each of the plurality of item collections that have been shipped to the respective customer.

18. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

determining, via the at least one computing device, a period of time; and

requesting, via the at least one computing device, that the data describing the plurality of bounding boxes be based at least in part on the period of time.

20. The method of claim 13, wherein the updated packaging suite comprises at least one size of bounding box differing from the plurality of bounding boxes from the current packaging suite.