SYSTEMS AND METHODS FOR DRONE DISPATCH AND OPERATION

• US 20170293991A1
• Filed: 04/07/2017
• Published: 10/12/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/2016
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Walmart Apollo, LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Wal-Mart Stores Texas LLC (WalMart Inc.)
• Inventors: High, Donald, Jones, Nathan Glenn, Hicks, Gregory
• Application Number:
  US15/482,147
• Publication Number:
  US 20170293991A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/02 characterised by special use
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 1/22 Taking-up articles from earth's surface
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/60 for transporting passengers; for transporting goods other than weapons
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2101/64 for parcel delivery or retrieval
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/104 using satellite radio beacon positioning systems, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/387 for combinatorial weighing, i.e. selecting a combination of articles whose total weight or number is closest to a desired value
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/4144 for controlling weight of goods in commercial establishments, e.g. supermarket, P.O.S. systems
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 23/365 involving comparison with a reference value G01G23/37 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0011 associated with a remote control arrangement
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/102 specially adapted for vertical take-off of aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0635 Processing of requisition or of purchase orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/17 taken from planes or by drones
• CPC Class Codes: G06V 20/52 Surveillance or monitoring of activities, e.g. for recognising suspicious objects recognising microscopic objects G06V20/69

Abstract

Described are systems, methods, and computer readable medium for drone dispatch and operation. Exemplary embodiments provide a group of drones, a server in communication with the drones, and a detachable basket coupled to a shopping cart including an optical machine-readable label that represents identifying data for the basket. The identifying data for the basket is received from a client device at a server. The basket is associated with a user profile corresponding to the client device. Information identifying a vehicle associated with the user profile is determined. A checkout message is received indicating that a user of the client device completed a purchase transaction and requested a drone for transporting the basket. In response to the checkout message, identifying data for the basket is transmitted to a selected drone in the group of drones, and instructions to carry the basket to the vehicle are also transmitted to the selected drone.

Claims

1. A drone system for transporting items comprising:

a plurality of drones;

a server in communication with the plurality of drones, the server including a profile module and a dispatch module;

a detachable basket coupled to a shopping cart, the basket including an optical machine-readable label that includes identifying data for the basket;

wherein the profile module is configured to;

receive the identifying data for the basket from a client device,

associate the basket with a user profile corresponding to the client device, and

determine information identifying a vehicle associated with the user profile;

wherein the dispatch module is configured to;

receive a checkout message indicating that a user of the client device completed a purchase transaction and requests a drone for transporting the basket, and

in response to receiving the checkout message, transmit to a selected drone among the plurality of drones the identifying data for the basket and instructions to carry the basket to the vehicle.

2. The drone system of claim 1, wherein the information identifying the vehicle includes a location of the vehicle determined by a GPS of the client device when the vehicle is parked in proximity to a retail store, the location of the vehicle transmitted to the server by the client device and stored by the server.

3. The drone system of claim 2, wherein the instructions transmitted to the selected drone causes the selected drone to locate the basket using the identifying data for the basket, and to carry the basket to the vehicle based on the location of the vehicle stored by the server.

4. The drone system of claim 3, wherein the information identifying the vehicle includes an image of the vehicle stored by the server, and the selected drone is configured to process the image of the vehicle to determine that the vehicle at the location matches the vehicle associated with the user profile.

5. The drone system of claim 1, wherein the information identifying the vehicle includes at least one of a license plate number, a make and a model of the vehicle, and a color of the vehicle.

6. The drone system of claim 1, wherein the basket includes an integrated scale to measure a total weight of items in the basket, the integrated scale in communication with the server.

7. The drone system of claim 6, wherein the plurality of drones includes ground drones and aerial drones, and wherein the dispatch module is further configured to:

receive a total weight of the items in the basket,

compare the total weight with a predefined threshold, and

when the total weight is less than the predefined threshold, transmit instructions to an aerial drone as the selected drone, and

when the total weight is more than the predefined threshold, transmit instructions to a ground drone as the selected drone.

8. The drone system of claim 1, wherein the user profile includes a delivery preference, and the drone delivers the basket according to the delivery preference.

9. The drone system of claim 8 wherein the delivery preference indicates to deliver the basket in the trunk or rear of the vehicle.

10. The drone system of claim 8 wherein the delivery preference indicates to deliver the basket on the ground near the vehicle.

11. A method for drone dispatch, the method comprising:

receiving, from the client device at a server, identifying data for a basket detachably coupled to a shopping cart, the identifying data scanned from an optical machine-readable label affixed to the basket;

associating, at the server, the basket with a user profile corresponding to a client device;

determining, at the server, information identifying a vehicle associated with the user profile;

receiving, at the server, a checkout message indicating that a user of the client device has completed a purchase transaction and is requesting a drone for transporting the basket;

transmitting, in response to receiving the checkout message, the identifying data for the basket to a selected drone among a plurality of drones; and

transmitting instructions to the selected drone to carry the basket to the vehicle.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving and storing, at the server, a location of the vehicle determined by a GPS of the client device when the vehicle is parked in proximity to a retail store.

13. The method of claim 12, wherein the instructions transmitted to the selected drone causes the selected drone to locate the basket using the identifying data for the basket, and to carry the basket to the vehicle based on the location of the vehicle stored by the server.

14. The method of claim 13, further comprising:

processing an image included in the information identifying the vehicle; and

determining that the vehicle at the location matches the vehicle associated with the user profile based on the processing of the image.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein the information identifying the vehicle includes at least one of a license plate number, a make and a model of the vehicle, and a color of the vehicle.

16. The method of claim 11, wherein the basket includes an integrated scale to measure a total weight of the items in the basket, the integrated scale in communication with the server.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

receiving at the server a total weight of the items in the basket,

comparing at the server the total weight with a predefined threshold, and

when the total weight is less than the predefined threshold, transmitting instructions from the server to an aerial drone as the selected drone, and

when the total weight is more than the predefined threshold, transmitting instructions from the server to a ground drone as the selected drone.

18. The method of claim 11, wherein the user profile includes a delivery preference, and the drone delivers the basket according to the delivery preference.

19. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions that when executed by a processor causes the processor to implement a method for using a drone to transport items, the method comprising:

receiving, from the client device at a server, identifying data for a basket detachably coupled to a shopping cart, the identifying data scanned from an optical machine-readable label affixed to the basket;

associating, at the server, the basket with a user profile corresponding to a client device;

determining, at the server, information identifying a vehicle associated with the user profile;

receiving, at the server, a checkout message indicating that a user of the client device has completed a purchase transaction and is requesting a drone for transporting the basket;

transmitting, in response to receiving the checkout message, the identifying data for the basket to a selected drone among a plurality of drones; and

transmitting instructions to the selected drone to carry the basket to the vehicle.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein the instructions transmitted to the selected drone causes the selected drone to locate the basket based on the identifying data for the basket, and to carry the basket to the vehicle based on a location of the vehicle stored by the server.

21. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 19, wherein the instructions transmitted to the selected drone includes a code that enables the drone to automatically open a trunk of the vehicle.