Autonomous transport vehicle charging system

• US 9,499,062 B2
• Filed: 07/14/2015
• Issued: 11/22/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/15/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Symbotic, Llc
• Original Assignee: Symbotic, Llc
• Inventors: Sullivan, Robert, Vasilyev, Dmitry
• Primary Examiner(s): Fantu, Yalkew
• Application Number:
  US14/799,367
• Publication Number:
  US 20160185245A1
• Time in Patent Office: 497 Days
• Field of Search: 320/109
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60G 5/00 Resilient suspensions for a set of tandem wheels or axles having interrelated movements
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/63 in response to network capacity
• CPC Class Codes: B60L 53/66 Data transfer between charging stations and vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60S 5/00 Servicing, maintaining, repairing, or refitting of vehicles vehicles adapted to carry a workshop for servicing or maintenance B60P3/14; servicing rail locomotives B61K
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 1/0492 with cars adapted to travel in storage aisles
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 1/1373 for fulfilling orders in warehouses
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 47/04 for feeding articles
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 67/02 Loading or unloading land vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/105 involving programming of a portable memory device, e.g. IC cards, "electronic purses"
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/0215 Including financial accounts
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 40/00 Finance; Insurance; Tax strategies; Processing of corporate or income taxes
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/70 Energy storage systems for electromobility, e.g. batteries
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 10/7072 Electromobility specific charging systems or methods for batteries, ultracapacitors, supercapacitors or double-layer capacitors
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/12 Electric charging stations
• CPC Class Codes: Y02T 90/16 Information or communication technologies improving the operation of electric vehicles

Abstract

A charging system for autonomous transport vehicles including at least one charging contact disposed on each pick floor level of a storage and retrieval system, each of the at least one charging contact being located at a transfer station, at least one power supply configured to supply power to the at least one charging contact, and a controller in communication with the transfer station and being configured to communicate information relating to a transfer of items between the transfer station and a predetermined one of the autonomous transport vehicles and to apply power from the power supply to the at least one charging contact for charging the predetermined autonomous transport vehicle corresponding to the transfer and located at the transfer station, wherein the controller is configured to supply power to the charging contacts simultaneously with the predetermined autonomous transport vehicle exchanging items related to the transfer at the transfer station.

Claims

1. A method for charging autonomous transport vehicles in a warehouse storage and retrieval system, the method comprising:

providing at least one charging contact on each pick floor level of the storage and retrieval system, each of the at least one charging contact corresponding to a respective transfer station;

supplying power, with at least one power supply, to the at least one charging contact;

communicating information, with a first controller in communication with at least one of the at least one charging contact or at least one autonomous transport vehicle, relating to a transfer of items between the transfer station and a predetermined one of the autonomous transport vehicles; and

with the first controller, applying power from the power supply to the at least one charging contact for charging the predetermined autonomous transport vehicle with the predetermined autonomous transport vehicle transferring the items related to the transfer at the transfer station.

2. The method of claim 1, further comprising transferring power to a capacitor disposed on the autonomous transport vehicle with a receptacle interfacing with the at least one charging contact.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising engaging a contact pad of the receptacle with actuable members of the at least one charging contact.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing each pick floor of the storage and retrieval system with at least one vestibule extending from a transfer deck and located adjacent a respective multilevel vertical conveyor, wherein at least one charging contact is located in each of the at least one vestibule.

5. The method of claim 1, further comprising providing a transfer station with a multilevel vertical conveyor and linking the operation of the at least one charging contact and an associated multilevel vertical conveyor such that when the at least one charging contact is inoperable the first controller deems the multilevel vertical conveyor inoperable at least for the pick floor level on which the at least one charging contact is located.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising controlling operations of the power supply and the multilevel vertical conveyor with the first controller.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising effecting, with a second controller, a charge cycle of each autonomous transport vehicle located on at least one pick floor level with the transfer of items with the multilevel vertical conveyor.

8. A method comprising:

providing at least one autonomous transport vehicle;

providing at least one transfer station having an allocated and unallocated state where in the allocated state the at least one transfer station allows transfer of items from and to the at least one autonomous transport vehicle;

providing at least one charging station on each pick floor level of the storage and retrieval system, each of the at least one charging contact being located at a respective one of the at least one transfer station;

providing at least one power supply configured to supply power to the at least one charging contact;

communicating, with a controller in communication with at least one of the at least one charging station or the at least one autonomous transport vehicle, information related to a transfer of items between the transfer station and a predetermined one of the autonomous transport vehicles; and

with the controller, applying power from the power supply to the at least one charging station for charging the at least one autonomous transport vehicle located at the transfer station, wherein the controller supplies power to the charging station for charging a predetermined autonomous transport vehicle corresponding to the transfer of items with the predetermined autonomous transport vehicle transferring the items at a predetermined transfer station when the predetermined transfer station is in the allocated state and supplies power to the at least one charging station for charging another of the at least one autonomous vehicles located at the predetermined transfer station when the predetermined transfer station is in the unallocated state.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

providing at least one multilevel vertical conveyor within the storage and retrieval system;

providing at least one pick floor level having storage locations, at least one vestibule and a transfer deck connecting the storage locations with the at least one vestibule, each of the at least one vestibules having at least one of the at least one transfer station providing access to a respective one of the at least one multilevel vertical conveyor; and

controlling operations, with the controller, of at least one of the at least one multilevel vertical conveyors and operations of at least one charging station located in vestibules associated with the respective multilevel vertical conveyor.

10. The method of claim 9, further comprising controlling, with a level controller connected to each pick floor level, storage and retrieval operations of the respective level, and linking, with the level controller, operations of the at least one multilevel vertical conveyors with associated charging stations such that access to the at least one multilevel vertical conveyor is prevented when one or more of the associated charging stations is inoperable.

11. The method of claim 9, further comprising providing the storage and retrieval system with at least one power supply where the at least one power supply is commonly connected to charging stations of vertically adjacent ones of the at least one pick floor level.

12. The method of claim 11, wherein the charging stations are commonly connected to the at least one power supply comprising a two by two array of charging stations where a first two of the charging stations in the array are located on a first pick floor level and a second two of the charging stations in the array are located on a second pick floor level, the first two of the charging stations and the second two of the charging stations being vertically stacked one above the other.

13. The method of claim 9, further comprising providing each vestibule with at least two charging stations and arranging the at least two charging stations on a common linear path.

14. The method of claim 9, further comprising providing the transfer deck with an array of autonomous transport vehicle travel paths, the array including longitudinal travel paths providing access to the storage locations and the at least one vestibule and transverse travel paths providing shunts between the longitudinal travel paths.

15. The method of claim 9, further comprising reserving, with the controller, one or more of the charging stations for allowing an autonomous transport vehicle access to the one or more of the at least two charging stations.

16. The method of claim 9, further comprising re-routing, with the controller, an autonomous transport vehicle destined for a charging station at a first vestibule to a charging station at another vestibule when the charging station at the first vestibule is inoperable.

17. The method of claim 9, wherein when in the unallocated state the transfer station does not allow the transfer of items from and to the at least one autonomous transport vehicle.

18. A charging system for autonomous transport vehicles in a warehouse storage and retrieval system, the charging system comprises:

at least one charging contact disposed on each pick floor level of the storage and retrieval system, each of the at least one charging contact corresponding to a respective transfer station;

at least one power supply configured to supply power to the at least one charging contact; and

a first controller in communication with at least one of at least one autonomous transport vehicle or the at least one charging contact and being configured to communicate information relating to a transfer of items between the transfer station and a predetermined one of the autonomous transport vehicles and to apply power from the power supply to the at least one charging contact for charging the predetermined autonomous transport vehicle corresponding to the transfer and located at the transfer station, wherein the first controller is configured to supply power to the charging contacts for charging the predetermined autonomous transport vehicle with the predetermined autonomous transport vehicle transferring the items related to the transfer at the transfer station.

19. The charging system of claim 18, further comprising a capacitor disposed on the autonomous transport vehicle and a receptacle configured to interface with the at least one charging contact where the engagement is configured to transfer power to the capacitor.

20. The charging system of claim 19, wherein the receptacle includes a contact pad and the at least one charging contact includes actuable members configured to engage the contact pad.

21. The charging system of claim 18, wherein each pick floor of the storage and retrieval system includes at least one vestibule extending from a transfer deck and located adjacent a respective multilevel vertical conveyor, wherein at least one charging contact is located in each of the at least one vestibule.

22. The charging system of claim 18, wherein the transfer station includes a multilevel vertical conveyor and the operation of the at least one charging contact and an associated multilevel vertical conveyor are linked such that when the at least one charging contact is inoperable the first controller deems the multilevel vertical conveyor inoperable at least for the pick floor level on which the at least one charging contact is located.

23. The charging system of claim 22, wherein the first controller is configured to control operations of the power supply and the multilevel vertical conveyor.

24. The charging system of claim 22, wherein the charging system further comprises a second controller configured to effect a charge cycle of each autonomous transport vehicle located on at least one pick floor level with the transfer of the items with the multilevel vertical conveyor.

25. A storage and retrieval system comprising:

at least one autonomous transport vehicle;

at least one transfer station having an allocated and unallocated state where in the allocated state the at least one transfer station is configured to allow transfer of items from and to the at least one autonomous transport vehicle;

at least one charging station disposed on each pick floor level of the storage and retrieval system, each of the at least one charging contact being located at a respective one of the at least one transfer station;

at least one power supply configured to supply power to the at least one charging contact; and

a controller in communication with at least one of the at least one autonomous transport vehicle or the at least one charging station and being configured to communicate information relating to a transfer of items between the transfer station and a predetermined one of the autonomous transport vehicles and to apply power from the power supply to the at least one charging station for charging the at least one autonomous transport vehicle located at the transfer station, wherein the controller is configured to supply power to the charging station for charging a predetermined autonomous transport vehicle corresponding to the transfer of items in combination with the predetermined autonomous transport vehicle transferring the items related to the transfer at a predetermined transfer station when the predetermined transfer station is in the allocated state and to supply power to the at least one charging station for charging another of the at least one autonomous vehicles located at the predetermined transfer station when the predetermined transfer station is in the unallocated state.

26. The storage and retrieval system of claim 25, further comprising:

at least one multilevel vertical conveyor; and

at least one pick floor level having storage locations, at least one vestibule and a transfer deck connecting the storage locations with the at least one vestibule, each of the at least one vestibules having at least one of the at least one transfer station configured to provide access to a respective one of the at least one multilevel vertical conveyor, wherein the controller is configured to control operations of at least one of the at least one multilevel vertical conveyors and operations of at least one charging station located in vestibules associated with the respective multilevel vertical conveyor.

27. The storage and retrieval system of claim 26, wherein a level controller is connected to each pick floor level and configured to control storage and retrieval operations of the respective level, the level controller being further configured to link operations of the at least one multilevel vertical conveyors with associated charging stations such that access to the at least one multilevel vertical conveyor is prevented when one or more of the associated charging stations is inoperable.

28. The storage and retrieval system of claim 26, wherein the storage and retrieval system includes at least one power supply, the at least one power supply being commonly connected to charging stations of vertically adjacent ones of the at least one pick floor level.

29. The storage and retrieval system of claim 28, wherein the charging stations commonly connected to the at least one power supply comprising a two by two array of charging stations where a first two of the charging stations in the array are located on a first pick floor level and a second two of the charging stations in the array are located on a second pick floor level, the first two of the charging stations and the second two of the charging stations being vertically stacked one above the other.

30. The storage and retrieval system of claim 26, wherein each vestibule includes at least two charging stations arranged on a common linear path.

31. The storage and retrieval system of claim 26, wherein the transfer deck includes an array of autonomous transport vehicle travel paths, the array including longitudinal travel paths providing access to the storage locations and the at least one vestibule and transverse travel paths providing shunts between the longitudinal travel paths.

32. The storage and retrieval system of claim 25, wherein the controller is configured to reserve one or more of the charging stations for allowing an autonomous transport vehicle access to the one or more of the at least two charging stations.

33. The storage and retrieval system of claim 25, wherein the controller is configured to re-route an autonomous transport vehicle destined for a charging station at a first vestibule to a charging station at another vestibule when the charging station at the first vestibule is inoperable.

34. The storage and retrieval system of claim 25, wherein when in the unallocated state the transfer station is not configured to allow transfer of items from and to the at least one autonomous transport vehicle.