Amazon Technologies, Inc.

Brian Hoffman

Timothy Alan Talda

Alexandra Kay Hartford

John Matrecano

Mohan Mahadevan

David L Alspaugh

Eric K Wyman

Paul Roy Raines, Jr

Cory R Boudreau

Martin Peter Aalund

Todd Brunner

Samuel Gardner Garrett

Toby Ge Xu

Akshay Rajendra Tilekar

David C Franchino

Stephanie Tomasetta

Paul Raines

Michael Ralph

Vivian Lin

Alexandra Surasky-Ysasi

Garett Andrew Ochs

William Scott Kalm

Seshachalamgupta Motamarri

Dinesh Mahadevan

Peter A Grant

Steven Todd Johnson

Joshua David Landry

A material handling apparatus for reorienting and transferring inventory items to a packaging device includes a support member and a packaging conveyor. The support member receives an inventory item and reorients the item to a rejection orientation or a packaging orientation. The item is moved onto the packaging conveyor in the packaging orientation and is transported to the packaging device.

Material handling apparatus

An actuator system for fabricating a cavity within thermoplastic material includes a plurality of actuators arranged in an array. When dimensions of an item are determined, the actuator system may be programmed with data regarding such dimensions to fabricate a cavity for the item. A subset of the actuators, and distances by which each of the actuators is to be extended, may be selected based on dimensions of the item, in order to fabricate a cavity within the thermoplastic material that may accommodate the item therein. Additionally, the actuators and the distances may be selected based on intrinsic or extrinsic data regarding the item, and a cavity fabricated within the thermoplastic material may include one or more buffer zones or protective regions that are specifically formed with respect to aspects of the item.

Right-sized thermoformed cavities for packaging items

A system and method that causes at least one item to be placed within a portion of an elastic film positioned across a top surface of a container, the portion including a center portion in which the at least one item is placed. Air may be extracted from the container to create a vacuum within the cavity and to expand the center portion to create a void in the center portion within the cavity. Air may flow into the container to release the vacuum and contract the center portion of the elastic film as the void is decreased and eliminated.

Vacuum-assisted item bundling system

A packaging cushion includes a first liner and a second liner opposite one another and each defining an inner surface. A transverse liner axis extends normal to the inner surfaces. The packaging cushion includes a mesh bonded to and disposed between the first and second liners. The mesh has a top mesh surface and an opposed bottom mesh surface. The mesh defines a plurality of nodes and a plurality of legs interconnecting the plurality of nodes. Each of the plurality of nodes defines 1) a top node surface defined by the top mesh surface, 2) a bottom node surface defined by the bottom mesh surface, and 3) a transverse node axis extending substantially normal to the top and bottom node surfaces. The transverse node axes of at least some of the plurality of nodes are each oriented at an oblique angle relative to the transverse liner axis.

Packaging products and associated material

A laminate includes an outer liner having a filament mesh disposed between a paper sheet and a resin layer. The resin layer and mesh extend between first and second opposed lateral edges of the sheet. A cushion layer is disposed over the resin layer. An inner liner of kraft paper is disposed over the cushion layer. A region of the resin layer is activated into an adhesive bonding the cushion layer and inner liner to the sheet. The laminate defines first and second longitudinally adjacent portions. The outer liner in the first portion has opposed first and second peripheral portions extending laterally outward from opposed lateral edges of the cushion layer and inner liner to the first and second lateral edges of the sheet, whereby a first width between the lateral edges along the first portion exceeds a second width measured the lateral edges along the second portion.

Cushioned packaging materials, cushioned packages, and related methods

A sortation system uses short conveyors or transporter units on a lift to move products or packages to totes in a storage rack. The lift may be a carousel. Automated components remove the totes from the rack and place them on outfeed conveyors. The system to remove the totes can include a transfer vehicle. The sortation system may be modular.

Automated modular system for sorting items

Dunnage may be applied to surfaces of items by nozzles coupled to one or more robotic arms that may be operated in six degrees of freedom within three-dimensional space. The dunnage is applied in substantially hollow pieces or sections by one or more 3D printing processes, e.g., by deposition. Such pieces or sections may be applied in one or more series or patterns along surfaces of an item prior to enveloping the item in one or more wraps or covers, or depositing the item in one or more containers. Various characteristics of the dunnage, such as materials from which the dunnage is formed, diameters or thicknesses of the dunnage, the series or patterns in which the dunnage is applied to the surface of the item, or any other factors may be selected based on one or more attributes of the items, such as dimensions or shipping and handling instructions.

Packaging items using customized 3D-printed dunnage

A laminate includes an outer liner having a resin layer disposed on a paper sheet. The resin layer extends between first and second opposed lateral edges of the sheet and defines a moisture barrier. A cushion layer is disposed over the resin layer. An inner liner of kraft paper is disposed over the cushion layer. A region of the resin layer is activated into an adhesive bonding the cushion layer and inner liner to the sheet. The laminate defines first and second longitudinally adjacent portions. The outer liner in the first portion has opposed first and second peripheral portions extending laterally outward from opposed lateral edges of the cushion layer and inner liner to the first and second lateral edges of the sheet, whereby a first width between the lateral edges along the first portion exceeds a second width measured the lateral edges along the second portion.

A cable chain retraction system for a robot has a constant force on the cable chain because of the use of constant force springs cartridges. Spring cartridges may be added or subtracted to adjust the spring force on the cable chain. All components may be pre-installed on a rail, such as a quick release guiderail.

Constant force robotic dresspack

A package preparation system includes a material conveyable along a longitudinal direction and including two folded layers of polymeric film joined at a fold. The fold extends longitudinally and defines a first side of the material opposite an open second side. A first welding device forms partition welds located between the two folded layers and extending from the fold to a terminus inward of the open side. A second welding device forms first and second seal welds that extend from the fold to the open side and are spaced from each other by a length extending longitudinally and traversing a plurality of the partition welds. The system includes a device comprising a nozzle insertable in the open side, and clamps that traverse the length and temporarily seal the open side around the nozzle while the nozzle inflates interior channels defined between the plurality of partition welds.

Inflatable packaging materials, automated packaging systems, and related methods

A method of preparing a packaging laminate includes conveying a mesh of paper material having perforations against a rigid edge causing, at substantially each perforation, a mesh portion at the leading side to have an average elevation lower than that of a mesh portion on the trailing side of the perforation. The method includes expanding the perforations into cells separated from one another by legs interconnected by nodes defined in the mesh Top and bottom surfaces of the legs and nodes are reoriented from an initial orientation substantially parallel with a direction of conveyance of the mesh to an expanded orientation oblique to the direction of conveyance, such that, in the expanded orientation, the top surfaces of the nodes are substantially parallel with each other. The method includes attaching an outer liner to at least some of the bottom surfaces so as to form the packaging laminate.

Methods for packaging items and preparing packaging materials

In one embodiment, a system has a carousel that has a guiderail that forms a loop that has a loading position and an unloading position. The carousel also has a plurality of buckets, each having an upper end and a lower end. The lower end includes at least one bottom wall that is moveable between (i) a transporting configuration where the at least one bottom wall substantially closes the lower end of the bucket and (ii) a discharge configuration where the at least one bottom wall is moved so as to define an opening in the lower end of the bucket. The buckets are supported by the guiderail such that the buckets can be driven from the loading position towards the unloading position in the transporting configuration. The buckets can be transitioned to the discharge configuration so as to unload inventory items at the unloading position into a packaging material.

System having a carousel of buckets configured to induct inventory items into packaging

A packaging system employs a cartridge having moveable walls such that the cartridge discharges or inducts one or more items into a cavity of a package, such as a film that is sealed into a pouch or mailer. A bottom wall of the cartridge is retracted relative to an end panel of the cartridge during the induction process.

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Seattle, WA, United States of America

Brian Hoffman