Mobile base utilizing transportation units for receiving items

• US 9,656,805 B1
• Filed: 12/12/2014
• Issued: 05/23/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 12/12/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Evans, Ethan Zane, Kalyan, Atishkumar
• Primary Examiner(s): Cumbess, Yolanda
• Application Number:
  US14/569,511
• Time in Patent Office: 893 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/024 of the remote controlled vehicle type, i.e. RPV
• CPC Class Codes: B64C 39/028 Micro-sized aircraft
• CPC Class Codes: B64D 1/12 Releasing
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 10/16 with five or more distinct rotor axes, e.g. octocopters
• 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 2201/00 UAVs characterised by their flight controls
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 2201/104 using satellite radio beacon positioning systems, e.g. GPS
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 30/20 Rotors; Rotor supports
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 30/29 Constructional aspects of rotors or rotor supports; Arrangements thereof
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 50/19 using electrically powered motors
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 70/93 for use on a land or nautical vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B64U 80/25 for recharging batteries; for refuelling
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4182 manipulators and conveyor only
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G08G 5/0069 specially adapted for an unmanned aircraft

Abstract

A mobile base is provided that travels through areas for receiving items (e.g., from merchants, vendors, returns of items from users, etc.), wherein the items are transported to the mobile base by associated transportation units (e.g., automated aerial vehicles). The transportation units may be carried on the mobile base or may be stationed locally. Once an item is received by a transportation unit or at the mobile base, a credit or other payment may be issued to the supplier of the item, and the item may be recorded as available for sale in an inventory database. The mobile base may transport the received items to a materials handling facility, or the received items may be sold directly from the mobile base, for which transportation units may subsequently be utilized to transport the items to user specified delivery locations.

Claims

1. A system to receive items, the system comprising:

a materials handling facility configured to receive and store the items;

a mobile base configured to transport the items from a receiving area to the materials handling facility, the receiving area including a plurality of receiving locations;

a plurality of transportation units configured to transport designated items from the plurality of receiving locations to the mobile base; and

a management system that sends instructions directing at least one of the plurality of transportation units to transport the designated items from the plurality of receiving locations to the mobile base, wherein the materials handling facility includes an inventory database and at least one designated item is recorded as available for sale in the inventory database after the at least one designated item has been transported to the mobile base but before the item has arrived at the materials handling facility.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the plurality of transportation units include one or more automated aerial vehicles.

3. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile base includes an opening in either a roof or a side of the mobile base through which designated items may be received once the designated items have been transported to the mobile base by the transportation units.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein at least one transportation unit is configured to land on a roof of the mobile base while the mobile base is moving.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the mobile base includes or is otherwise transported by at least one of a truck, an automobile, an aircraft, or a watercraft.

6. A computer implemented method, comprising:

under control of one or more computing systems configured with executable instructions;

determining a transportation unit to transport an item;

sending instructions directing the transportation unit to travel to a receiving location, wherein the transportation unit is stationed on a mobile base and the instructions directing the transportation unit to travel to the receiving location include a route from the mobile base to the receiving location;

sending instructions directing the transportation unit to engage the item at the receiving location; and

sending instructions directing the transportation unit to transport the item from the receiving location to the mobile base, wherein after the transportation unit departs from the mobile base, the mobile base is moved to a new location, and the instructions directing the transportation unit to transport the item from the receiving location to the mobile base include the new location of the mobile base.

7. The computer implemented method of claim 6, further comprising:

recording the item as available for sale in an inventory database once the item has been at least one of engaged by the transportation unit or received at the mobile base;

determining that the item has been sold while the item is still in the mobile base; and

sending instructions directing a transportation unit to transport the sold item from the mobile base to a user-specified delivery location.

8. The computer implemented method of claim 6, further comprising:

determining that a travel path of the mobile base to a materials handling facility is inhibited; and

sending instructions to direct one or more transportation units to transport the item from the mobile base to the materials handling facility in response to the determination that the travel path of the mobile base to the materials handling facility is inhibited.

9. A computer implemented method, comprising:

under control of one or more computing systems configured with executable instructions;

determining a transportation unit to transport an item;

sending instructions directing the transportation unit to travel to a receiving location;

sending instructions directing the transportation unit to engage the item at the receiving location; and

sending instructions directing the transportation unit to transport the item from the receiving location to a mobile base;

wherein the computer implemented method further comprises at least one of;

recording the item as available for sale in an inventory database once the item has been at least one of engaged by the transportation unit or received at the mobile base;

or

providing a credit or other compensation for the item once the item has been at least one of engaged by the transportation unit or received at the mobile base.

10. The computer implemented method of claim 9, further comprising:

determining that the item has been sold while the item is still in the mobile base; and

sending instructions directing a transportation unit to transport the sold item to a user-specified delivery location.

11. The computer implemented method of claim 9, further comprising:

determining that a travel path of the mobile base to a materials handling facility is inhibited; and

sending instructions to direct one or more transportation units to transport the item from the mobile base to the materials handling facility.

12. The computer implemented method of claim 9, wherein the transportation unit is initially carried by and departs from a first mobile base to travel to the receiving location, and the instructions direct the transportation unit to travel with the item from the receiving location to a second mobile base at a different location than the first mobile base.

13. The computer implemented method of claim 9, wherein the transportation unit is stationed remotely from the mobile base and the method further includes transmitting a location where the mobile base will be so that the transportation unit may transport the item from the receiving location to the mobile base.

14. The computer implemented method of claim 9, wherein the transportation unit is stationed on the mobile base and the instructions directing the transportation unit to travel to the receiving location include a route from the mobile base to the receiving location.

15. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions, the instructions when executed by a processor causing the processor to at least:

determine a receiving area including a plurality of receiving locations;

direct a mobile base to travel to the receiving area; and

direct that items be received from the plurality of receiving locations, wherein the items are received by transportation units that are carried by the mobile base and which travel to each of the plurality of receiving locations to receive the items;

wherein the receiving area that the mobile base is directed to travel to is determined based at least in part on one or more demand factors, and the one or more demand factors are related to at least one of a number of scheduled receiving locations or a number of anticipated receiving locations in the receiving area.

16. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the instructions when executed by the processor further cause the processor to direct at least one transportation unit that has received an item from one of the plurality of receiving locations to transport the item to either a second mobile base or a materials handling facility.

17. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 15, wherein the instructions when executed by the processor further cause the processor to at least:

determine that an item received from one of the plurality of receiving locations has been sold; and

direct a transportation unit that has received the item to transport the sold item to a user specified delivery location.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions, the instructions when executed by a processor causing the processor to at least:

determine a receiving area including a plurality of receiving locations;

direct a mobile base to travel to the receiving area; and

direct that items be received from the plurality of receiving locations, wherein the items are received by transportation units that are carried by the mobile base and which travel to each of the plurality of receiving locations to receive the items;

wherein the receiving area is also a delivery area and the instructions when executed by the processor further cause the processor to direct that items be delivered from the mobile base to a plurality of delivery locations, wherein the items are delivered by transportation units that are carried by the mobile base.

19. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions when executed by the processor further cause the processor to direct at least one transportation unit that has received an item from one of the plurality of receiving locations to transport the item to either a second mobile base or a materials handling facility.

20. The non-transitory computer-readable storage medium of claim 18, wherein the instructions when executed by the processor further cause the processor to at least:

determine that an item received from one of the plurality of receiving locations has been sold; and

direct a transportation unit that has received the item to transport the sold item to a user specified delivery location.