Simbe Robotics, Inc.

Durgesh Tiwari

Bradley Bogolea

Jariullah Safi

Lorin Vandegrift

Jeffrey Gee

Mirza Akbar Shah

Luke Fraser

Shiva Reddy

Kanchan Bahirat

One variation of a method for maintaining perpetual inventory within a store includes: accessing a radar scan of an inventory structure within a store; accessing an optical image of the inventory structure; identifying a product type associated with the slot in a region of the optical image; retrieving a volumetric definition of the product type; locating a slot volume defining the slot in the radar scan; extracting a volumetric representation of a set of product units intersecting the slot volume in the radar scan; segmenting the volumetric representation by the volumetric definition to calculate a quantity of the set of product units occupying the slot; and updating a stock record of the store to reflect the quantity of the set of product units occupying the slot.

Method for maintaining perpetual inventory within a store

One variation of a method for stock keeping in a store includes: accessing an image captured by a fixed camera within the store; retrieving a field of view of the fixed camera; estimating a segment of an inventory structure in the store depicted in the image based on a projection of the field of view onto a planogram of the store; identifying a set of slots within the inventory structure segment; retrieving a product model representing a set of visual characteristics of a product type assigned to a slot, in the set of slots, by the planogram; extracting a constellation of features from the image; if the constellation of features approximates the set of visual characteristics in the product model, detecting presence of a product unit of the product type occupying the inventory structure segment; and representing presence of the product unit, occupying the inventory structure segment, in a realogram.

Method for stock keeping in a store with fixed cameras

One variation of a method for tracking and maintaining inventory in a store includes: accessing a image of an inventory structure in the store; identifying a top shelf, in the inventory structure, depicted in the image; identifying a set of product units occupying the top shelf based on features detected in the image; identifying a second shelf, in the set of shelves in the inventory structure, depicted in the image, the second shelf arranged below the top shelf in the inventory structure; based on features detected in the image, detecting an understock condition at a slot—assigned to a product type—on the second shelf; and, in response to the set of product units comprising a product unit of the product type, generating a prompt to transfer the product unit of the product type from the top shelf into the slot on the second shelf at the inventory structure.

Method for tracking and maintaining inventory in a store

One variation of a method for monitoring cooling units in a store includes: at a robotic system, during a first scan routine, autonomously navigating toward a cooling unit in the store, recording a color image of the cooling unit, and scanning a set of temperatures within the cooling unit; identifying a set of products stocked in the cooling unit based on features detected in the color image; mapping the set of temperatures to the set of products at a first time during the first scan routine based on positions of products in the set of products identified in the color image; and generating a record of temperatures of the set of products stocked in the cooling unit at the first time.

Method for monitoring temperature-controlled units in a store

A method for stock keeping in a store includes: accessing an image captured by a fixed camera within the store; retrieving a field of view of the fixed camera; estimating a segment of an inventory structure in the store depicted in the image based on a projection of the field of view onto a planogram of the store; identifying a set of slots within the inventory structure segment; retrieving a product model representing a set of visual characteristics of a product type assigned to a slot, in the set of slots, by the planogram; extracting a constellation of features from the image; if the constellation of features approximates the set of visual characteristics in the product model, detecting presence of a product unit of the product type occupying the inventory structure segment; and representing presence of the product unit, occupying the inventory structure segment, in a realogram.

One variation of a method for deploying fixed cameras within a store includes: dispatching a robotic system to autonomously navigate along a set of inventory structures in the store and generate a spatial map of the store during a scan cycle; generating an accessibility heatmap representing accessibility of regions of the store to the robotic system based on the spatial map; generating a product value heatmap for the store based on locations and sales volumes of products in the store; accessing a number of fixed cameras allocated to the store; generating a composite heatmap for the store based on the accessibility heatmap and the product value heatmap; identifying a subset of inventory structures occupying a set of locations within the store corresponding to critical amplitudes in the composite heatmap; and generating a prompt to install the number of fixed cameras facing the subset of inventory structures in the store.

Method for deploying fixed and mobile sensors for stock keeping in a store

One variation of a method for tracking fresh produce in a store includes: accessing a first hyper-spectral image, of a produce display in a store, recorded at a first time; extracting a first spectral profile from a first region of the first hyper-spectral image depicting a first set of produce units in the produce display; identifying a first varietal of the first set of produce units; characterizing qualities (e.g., ripeness, bruising, spoilage) of the first set of produce units in the produce display based on the first spectral profile; and, in response to qualities of the first set of produce units in the produce display deviating from a target quality range assigned to the first varietal, generating a prompt to audit the first set of produce units in the produce display.

Method for tracking and characterizing perishable goods in a store

One variation of a method for tracking and maintaining inventory in a store includes: accessing a image of an inventory structure in the store; identifying a top shelf, in the inventory structure, depicted in the image; identifying a set of product units occupying the top shelf based on features detected in the image; identifying a second shelf, in the set of shelves in the inventory structure, depicted in the image, the second shelf arranged below the top shelf in the inventory structure; based on features detected in the image, detecting an understock condition at a slot&#x2014;assigned to a product type&#x2014;on the second shelf; and, in response to the set of product units comprising a product unit of the product type, generating a prompt to transfer the product unit of the product type from the top shelf into the slot on the second shelf at the inventory structure.

One variation of a method for tracking stock level within a store includes: at a robotic system, navigating along a first inventory structure in the store, broadcasting radio frequency interrogation signals according to a first set of wireless scan parameters, and recording a first set of wireless identification signals returned by radio frequency identification tags coupled to product units arranged on the first inventory structure; generating a first list of product units arranged on the first inventory structure based on the first set of wireless identification signals; detecting a first product quantity difference between the first list of product units and a first target stock list assigned to the first inventory structure by a planogram of the store; and generating a stock correction prompt for the first inventory structure in response to the first product quantity difference.

Method for tracking stock level within a store

One variation of a method for detecting and responding to hazards within a store includes: autonomously navigating toward an area of a floor of the store; recording a thermal image of the area; recording a depth map of the area of the floor; detecting a thermal gradient in the thermal image; scanning a region of the depth map, corresponding to the thermal gradient detected in the thermal image, for a height gradient; in response to detecting the thermal gradient in the thermal image and in response to detecting absence of a height gradient in the region of the depth map, predicting presence of a fluid within the area of the floor; and serving a prompt to remove the fluid from the area of the floor of the store to a computing device affiliated with the store.

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San Francisco, CA, United States of America

Durgesh Tiwari