AUTONOMOUS GROUND VEHICLES BASED AT DELIVERY LOCATIONS

• US 20180024554A1
• Filed: 07/25/2016
• Published: 01/25/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/2016
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Amazon Technologies, Inc. (Amazon.com, Inc.)
• Inventors: Brady, Tye Michael, Evans, Ethan Zane
• Granted Patent: US 10,216,188 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0088 characterized by the autonomous decision making process, e.g. artificial intelligence, predefined behaviours using knowledge based models G06N5/00
• CPC Class Codes: G05D 1/0276 using signals provided by a source external to the vehicle involving a plurality of vehicles G05D1/0287; automatically controlling vehicle speed responsive to externally generated signals B60K31/0058
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0833 Tracking
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0837 Return transactions
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/20 Analysis of motion motion estimation for coding, decoding, compressing or decompressing digital video signals H04N19/43, H04N19/51

Abstract

Autonomous ground vehicles (“AGVs”) are utilized to retrieve items from transportation vehicles (e.g., delivery trucks) for delivery to specified locations (e.g., user residences, etc.). In various implementations, the AGVs may be owned by individual users and/or may service a group of users in a given area (e.g., in an apartment building, neighborhood, etc.). The AGVs may travel out (e.g., from a user'"'"'s residence, apartment building, etc.) to meet a transportation vehicle (e.g., a delivery truck on the street) to receive items, and may be joined by other AGVs that have traveled out to meet the transportation vehicle, and may line up in a particular order (e.g., according to delivery addresses, etc.). After the items are received, the AGVs may travel back (e.g., to the user residences) to deliver the items, and may be equipped to open and close access barriers (e.g., front doors, garage doors, etc.).

Claims

1. A system to transport an ordered item, the system comprising:

a first autonomous ground vehicle (AGV) that is stationed at a first home base location at a first user'"'"'s residence; and

a computing system comprising;

one or more processors; and

a memory coupled to the one or more processors and storing program instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to at least;

determine a meeting location which a transportation vehicle that is carrying a first item will travel to for meeting the first AGV;

instruct the first AGV to travel from the first home base location to the meeting location to meet the transportation vehicle to receive the first item; and

instruct the first AGV to travel from the meeting location to the first user'"'"'s residence to deliver the first item.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory further includes program instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to at least determine a starting travel time when the first AGV is to begin travelling to the meeting location that is based at least in part on an estimated time of when the transportation vehicle is expected to arrive at the meeting location.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the starting travel time is determined to enable the first AGV to arrive at the meeting location ahead of the transportation vehicle.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the first home base location includes a charging component that charges a power module of the first AGV.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the memory further includes program instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to at least determine that a second AGV is present at the meeting location and instruct the first AGV to be positioned relative to the second AGV at the meeting location according to a designated order.

6. The system of claim 5, wherein the designated order is based on at least one of an order of addresses that the first and second AGVs are to deliver items to or an arranged order of items that are stored in the transportation vehicle.

7. An autonomous ground vehicle (AGV) comprising:

a propulsion system;

a storage compartment having a locking mechanism; and

a computing system, comprising;

one or more processors; and

a memory coupled to the one or more processors and storing program instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to at least;

determine that an item has been placed in the storage compartment while the AGV is at a receiving location, wherein the receiving location is at least one of a meeting location for meeting a transportation vehicle or a home base location that the AGV is stationed at;

control the locking mechanism to lock the storage compartment;

control the propulsion system to navigate the AGV along a travel path to a delivery location to deliver the item; and

control the locking mechanism to unlock the storage compartment at the delivery location to enable the item to be retrieved from the storage compartment at the delivery location.

8. The AGV of claim 7, wherein the home base location and the delivery location are at a user'"'"'s residence.

9. The AGV of claim 8, wherein the memory further includes program instructions that when executed by the one or more processors cause the one or more processors to at least control the propulsion system to navigate the AGV from a home base location where the AGV is stationed to the receiving location before the item is placed in the storage compartment.

10. The AGV of claim 7, wherein the delivery location is a meeting location where the item is delivered to a transportation vehicle as part of a return process for the item.

11. The AGV of claim 7, further comprising an access mechanism that is utilized to open an access barrier that the AGV encounters along the travel path to the delivery location.

12. The AGV of claim 7, further comprising an item engagement mechanism that is utilized to place the item in the storage compartment at the receiving location.

13. The AGV of claim 7, further comprising at least one of:

a presence detection sensor that detects the presence of the item that has been placed in the storage compartment;

a motion sensor that detects movement when the item is placed in the storage compartment;

an image capture sensor that captures an image of the item that has been placed in the storage compartment;

an item identification sensor that is utilized to determine an identification of the item that has been placed in the storage compartment;

or

a temperature sensor that senses a temperature in the storage compartment.

14. A method for transporting items, the method comprising:

determining a meeting location to which a transportation vehicle will travel to meet first and second autonomous ground vehicles (AGVs);

instructing the first AGV to receive a first item from the transportation vehicle at the meeting location, wherein the first item is to be delivered by the first AGV from the meeting location to a first delivery location; and

instructing the second AGV to receive a second item from the transportation vehicle at the meeting location, wherein the second item is to be delivered by the second AGV from the meeting location to a second delivery location.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein the first and second delivery locations are at respective first and second user'"'"'s residences.

16. The method of claim 14, further comprising instructing the second AGV to receive a third item from the transportation vehicle at the meeting location, wherein the third item is to be delivered by the second AGV from the meeting location to a third delivery location, and the second AGV includes separate storage compartments for holding the second and third items.

17. The method of claim 14, wherein the first and second AGVs travel from respective first and second home base locations at respective first and second user'"'"'s residences to the meeting location.

18. The method of claim 14, wherein the meeting location is a home base location for the first and second AGVs.

19. The method of claim 14, wherein the positions of the first and second AGVs at the meeting location are coordinated so that the first and second AGVs are arranged in a designated order at the meeting location.

20. The method of claim 14, further comprising sending a message to a first user indicating when the first AGV has received the first item and an identification of the first item.