Amazon Technologies, Inc.

Kiva Systems, Inc.

Peter K Mansfield

Dennis Polic

Patrick R Dingle

Peter R Wurman

Raffaello D'Andrea

Michael Cordell Mountz

Andrew Stubbs

Matthew David Verminski

Raffaello D'andrea

Ned Lecky

Joseph Romano

Michael T Barbehenn

Robert Michael Shydo, Jr

Andrew Brenden Tinka

Sean Hugh Breheny

James Christopher Curlander

Gregory Edward Tierney

Burl W Amsbury

Parris S Wellman

Jules Cook Graybill

Dragan Pajevic

Peter Thomas Colantonio

Stephen Caldara

John A Laplante

Kevin John Trenholme

David Levy

Oliver Christoph Purwin

Mark Anthony Messina

John A LaPlante

David F Lyons

Peter Martin Hess

David William Guerin

Jill Kathleen Sestini

Dennis Polle

David P Lyons, Ii

Raffaello D`andrea

Raffaello D'ANDREA

David F Ii Lyons

Techniques for controlling mobile drive units (e.g., robots) in proximity to humans in a physical area are described. A management device may send an activity message to the mobile drive units instructing the mobile drive units to perform a set of activities. If a human is detected in the physical area, the management device or another mobile drive unit may send an activity command instructing a mobile drive unit to stop, reduce the speed at which it is traveling, to change its path of travel, or to continue performing its set of activities. If the mobile drive units do not receive the activity command, the mobile drive units may stop performing the set of activities. After the management device determines that the human has left the physical area, the management device may resume sending the activity message.

Safety compliance for mobile drive units

A system for transporting inventory items includes an inventory holder capable of storing inventory items and a mobile drive unit. The mobile drive unit is capable of moving to a first point with the inventory holder at least one of coupled to and supported by the mobile drive unit. The mobile drive unit is additionally capable of determining a location of the inventory holder and calculating a difference between the location of the inventory holder and the first point. The mobile drive unit is then capable of determining whether the difference is greater than a predetermined tolerance. In response to determining that the difference is greater than the predetermined tolerance, the mobile drive unit is also capable of moving to a second point based on the location of the inventory holder, docking with the inventory holder, and moving the mobile drive unit and the inventory holder to the first point.

Method and system for transporting inventory items

An inventory system includes an inventory holder and an actively balanced mobile drive unit. A control module of the mobile drive unit can receive sensing information about the inventory holder and/or the mobile drive unit and use the sensing information to control a drive module of the mobile drive unit so as to maintain the inventory holder and/or the mobile drive unit within a predetermined deviation amount from an equilibrium state.

Actively balanced mobile drive unit

Robots or other machines may be used for retrieving errant objects from the floor of an automated warehouse. A system can include one or more reporting methods to alert a central control to the existence and location of an object on the warehouse floor. The central control can establish a safety zone around the object to avoid contact with normal warehouse traffic (e.g., standard warehouse robots). The system can route a cleanup robot to the location to retrieve the object. The system can include a cleanup pod comprising a convertible shelving unit with a robotic arm. The cleanup pod can have a similar form factor as shelving units used for storing inventory in the warehouse, thereby enabling standard warehouse robots to lift and transport the cleanup pod to retrieve an object.

Systems and methods for removing debris from warehouse floors

Techniques for making a physical area safe for a human to enter when mobile drive units (e.g., robots) are operating in the physical area are described. A management device may send an activity message to the mobile drive units instructing the mobile drive units to perform a set of activities. If a human is detected in the physical area, the management device may stop sending the activity command. If the mobile drive units do not receive the activity command, the mobile drive units may stop performing the set of activities. After the management device determines that the human has left the physical area, the management device may resume sending the activity message.

Inventory systems may include one or more sensors capable of detecting spatial positioning of inventory holders and an arm of a worker interacting with the inventory holder. Data can be received from a sensor, a gesture of the arm can be determined from the data, and a bin location or other information can be determined based on the gesture.

Arm-detecting overhead sensor for inventory system

Some examples include charging an onboard power source of a mobile drive unit (MDU) of an inventory system while the MDU is operating in the inventory system, rather than removing the MDU from service for recharging. As an example, the MDU may receive instructions to retrieve an inventory holder, and an onboard power source of the MDU may be charged while the MDU and the inventory holder are located at the charging station.

Mobile drive unit charging

Short range transmissions are used to identify potential interactions between warehouse workers and warehouse robots in automated warehouses. The robot can be equipped with one or more short range transmission tags, such as radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, while the warehouse worker can be equipped with a short range transmission reader, such as an RFID reader. The robot can detect a warehouse worker that is within range when the RFID tags on the robot are written to by the RFID reader. The warehouse robots and warehouse workers can also be equipped with one or more cameras to identify fiducials in the automated warehouse and to report their positions. A central control or interaction server can ensure that warehouse robots and warehouse workers are routed appropriately to avoid incidents.

Systems and methods to facilitate human/robot interaction

Inventory systems may include one or more sensors capable of detecting spatial positioning of inventory holders and associated inventory items. Data can be received from a sensor, a boundary corresponding to a face of the inventory holder can be determined from the data, and items projecting across the boundary can be determined as items protruding from the inventory holder.

Item-detecting overhead sensor for inventory system

Some examples include using an inventory tracking device to track the addition of inventory items to an inventory holder of an inventory system or removal of inventory items from the inventory holder. The inventory holder may include one or more trays to store one or more inventory items, with each tray including one or more bins that may be defined by dividers on the tray. The inventory tracking device may use inventory holder configuration data that identifies locations of the bins to determine that the inventory item was added to or removed from a particular bin of the inventory holder.

Automated inventory management

Growing community of inventors

Bellevue, WA, United States of America

Peter K Mansfield