Inventory holder load detection and/or stabilization

• US 9,738,449 B1
• Filed: 09/26/2016
• Issued: 08/22/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 09/19/2014
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Palamarchuk, Andriy, Brazeau, Jeremiah David
• Primary Examiner(s): Cumbess, Yolanda
• Application Number:
  US15/276,602
• Time in Patent Office: 330 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: B65G 1/137 with arrangements or automatic control means for selecting which articles are to be removed
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 15/02 electric
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/00 Control of position, course, altitude or attitude of land, water, air or space vehicles, e.g. using automatic pilots drive control systems specially adapted for autonomous road vehicles B60W60/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0297 by controlling means in a control room
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management

Abstract

An inventory system includes an inventory holder that may be moved by a mobile drive unit. The inventory holder may hold inventory items. The mobile drive unit may move in a manner for facilitating a shift of position of at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder. Such movement may be accomplished, for example, by accelerating, decelerating, turning while driving, spinning, dropping the inventory holder, or by causing at least one of the mobile drive unit or the inventory holder to at least one of interact with or engage an obstacle such as a bump over which the mobile drive unit drives, a bar positioned above a floor on which the mobile drive unit drives, a wall, another mobile drive unit, or another inventory holder.

Claims

1. A mobile drive unit comprising:

a drive module comprising a propulsion system configured to move the mobile drive unit between locations of a workspace;

a docking head configured to dock with an inventory holder for movement of the inventory holder by the mobile drive unit;

a sensor configured to obtain information about a load distribution of the inventory holder relative to the mobile drive unit, the load distribution dependent on a distribution of any inventory items stored in the inventory holder; and

a module configured to at least one of receive or generate instructions that are based at least in part on the information obtained by the sensor and that instruct operation of the drive module to cause the mobile drive unit to move abruptly so as to cause a shift of position of at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder to change the load distribution of the inventory holder relative to the mobile drive unit.

2. The mobile drive unit of claim 1, wherein the instructions instruct operation of the drive module to at least one of accelerate or decelerate to cause the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder.

3. The mobile drive unit of claim 1, wherein the instructions instruct operation of the drive module to turn while driving to cause the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder.

4. The mobile drive unit of claim 1, wherein the instructions instruct operation of the drive module to spin to cause the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder.

5. A mobile drive unit comprising:

a drive module comprising a propulsion system configured to move the mobile drive unit;

a docking head configured to dock with an inventory holder for movement of the inventory holder by the mobile drive unit; and

a module configured to at least one of receive or generate instructions that instruct movement of the mobile drive unit for facilitating a shift of position of at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder, wherein the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder comprises the at least one inventory item moving from one position within the inventory holder to another position within or out of the inventory holder.

6. The mobile drive unit of claim 5, wherein the instructions instruct the mobile drive unit to move by at least one of accelerating, decelerating, turning while driving, spinning, or dropping the inventory holder.

7. The mobile drive unit of claim 5, wherein the instructions instruct movement of the mobile drive unit to cause at least one of the mobile drive unit or the inventory holder to at least one of interact with or engage an obstacle.

8. The mobile drive unit of claim 5, wherein the obstacle comprises at least one of a bump over which the mobile drive unit drives, a bar positioned above a floor on which the mobile drive unit drives, a wall, another mobile drive unit, or another inventory holder.

9. The mobile drive unit of claim 5, wherein the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder comprises the at least one inventory item moving from one position within the inventory holder to another position within the inventory holder.

10. The mobile drive unit of claim 5, wherein the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder comprises the at least one inventory item moving from one position within the inventory holder to another position out of the inventory holder.

11. The mobile drive unit of claim 10, wherein the another position out of the inventory holder comprises a location on another inventory holder.

12. The mobile drive unit of claim 5, further comprising a sensor configured to obtain information about a load distribution of the inventory holder relative to the mobile drive unit, the load distribution dependent on a distribution of any inventory items stored in the inventory holder, wherein the instructions are based at least in part on the information obtained by the sensor.

13. The mobile drive unit of claim 5, wherein the instructions are based at least in part on an analysis of a risk of damage from performing actions for facilitating the shift of position.

14. The mobile drive unit of claim 5, the instructions instruct movement of the mobile drive unit for facilitating the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder and relative to at least one of padding or netting arranged to receive the at least one inventory items moving as a result of shift, the at least one of padding or netting arranged on at least one of the inventory holder, the mobile drive unit, or a component at a station configured to receive the mobile drive unit and inventory holder.

15. A mobile drive unit comprising:

a drive module comprising a propulsion system configured to move the mobile drive unit between locations of a workspace, the workspace comprising a station;

a docking head configured to dock with an inventory holder for movement of the inventory holder by the mobile drive unit;

a sensor configured to obtain information about a load distribution of the inventory holder relative to the mobile drive unit; and

a module configured to at least one of receive or generate instructions that are based at least in part on the information obtained by the sensor and that instruct the mobile drive unit to move the inventory holder to the station for performance of actions for facilitating a shift of position of at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder.

16. The mobile drive unit of claim 15, wherein the instructions instruct the mobile drive unit to move the inventory holder to a position at the station for engagement with a vibration plate or other mechanism configured to impart a jostling motion to the inventory holder without using the mobile drive unit to impart the jostling motion so as to cause the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder.

17. The mobile drive unit of claim 15, wherein the instructions instruct the mobile drive unit to move the inventory holder to a position at the station arranged to facilitate performance of actions by an operator to cause the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder.

18. The mobile drive unit of claim 15, wherein the instructions instruct the mobile drive unit to move the inventory holder abruptly en route to or from the station for facilitating the shift of position of the at least one inventory item relative to the inventory holder.

19. The mobile drive unit of claim 18, the instructions instruct the mobile drive unit to move the inventory holder abruptly by at least one of accelerating, decelerating, turning while driving, spinning, dropping the inventory holder, or by causing at least one of the mobile drive unit or the inventory holder to at least one of interact with or engage an obstacle.