Amazon Technologies, Inc.

A9.com, Inc.

Danny Sekich

Phillip Walkemeyer

Jonathan Mcqueen

Karl McDowall

Joshua Bavari

David Clarke

Michael Bolotski

Wesley Caruso

Autonomous mobile robots for transporting carts are described. An example robotic cart transport system includes a cart for transport and a robotic transport. The robotic transport includes a transport cab and a load handler. The transport cab includes a drive system and a sensor array positioned over the transport cab. The load handler includes a load base supported by a directable caster wheel, a lift table positioned over the load base, a lift abutment anchor, and a lift drive. The robotic transport can autonomously position the load handler under a cart, and the lift drive can raise the lift table up and off of the top surface of the load base, to a lifted position seated against the lift abutment anchor. The lift table will contact and lift the cart in this motion, and the cart can be transported to a new location by the robotic transport.

Cart lift robotic transport

An autonomous robot with a modular conveyor belt moves materials in a warehouse or other industrial environment. Example embodiments may include systems and methods for autonomous robots with conveyor systems. An example method may include detecting, by an autonomous cart, an unloading station, moving to a position at or near the unloading station, and determining, using a first load cell, a first position of a first item on a conveyor belt of the autonomous cart. Some methods may include determining a length of time for which to actuate the conveyor belt based at least in part on the first position, and causing the conveyor belt to unload the first item from the autonomous cart by actuating the conveyor belt for the length of time.

Conveyor system for autonomous robot

An autonomous robot with a modular conveyor belt moves materials in a warehouse or other industrial environment. Its load cells detect items on its conveyor belt and its cameras detect loading stations with stationary conveyor belts throughout the warehouse. It guides itself to a loading station using visual cues until it is close enough to load or unload items from its conveyor belt. The cart orients itself relative to the stationary conveyor belt based on the conveyor belt's direction of motion and tracks its position using wheel or visual odometry. It unloads by running the conveyor belt, which may be about 1.5 m long, at a speed of about 1 m/s for about 2 seconds. For loading, the cart detects an item on a stationary conveyor belt using a camera, positions itself next to the stationary conveyor belt, then triggers the stationary conveyor belt and its own conveyor belt to load the item.

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Loveland, CO, United States of America

Danny Sekich