CN116040175A

CN116040175A - Logistics scheduling method, system, equipment and storage medium

Info

Publication number: CN116040175A
Application number: CN202211510559.XA
Authority: CN
Inventors: 李天宇
Original assignee: Hangzhou Hikrobot Co Ltd
Current assignee: Hangzhou Hikrobot Co Ltd
Priority date: 2022-11-29
Filing date: 2022-11-29
Publication date: 2023-05-02

Abstract

The application provides a logistics scheduling method, a logistics scheduling system, logistics scheduling equipment and a logistics scheduling storage medium, relates to the field of automatic logistics, and can effectively solve the problem that goods cannot be put in storage due to the fact that storage racks in a storage area occupy storage positions. The method is applied to a server, the server is used for a warehousing system, and the warehousing system further comprises a workbench, an exchange area and a storage area; the method comprises the following steps: determining a target goods shelf in the exchange area; the exchange area is used for storing empty shelves from the storage area to be provided for the workbench; the target goods shelf is an empty goods shelf in the exchange area; instructing the robot to handle the target pallet to the workstation so that the target pallet is loaded; and determining a target empty position in the storage area, and indicating the robot to carry the loaded target goods shelf to the target empty position. The method and the device can be used for the automatic logistics cargo warehousing process.

Description

Logistics scheduling method, system, equipment and storage medium

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to the field of automated logistics, and in particular, to a method, a system, an apparatus, and a storage medium for logistics scheduling.

Background

With the rising of emerging industries such as electronic commerce, for building high-efficiency high-fluidity automated logistics, currently, an enterprise often adopts a robot to realize automatic carrying and storage of goods. When goods need to be carried into a warehouse, the robot carries empty goods shelves (or goods shelves to be used) from the storage area to the workbench, and after goods are put on the shelf, the robot carries the goods shelves to the storage area to find the empty storage place to place.

In the current logistics scheduling scheme, storage areas in a warehouse are divided according to the types of goods, the storage areas are generally configured with using sequences, and when goods are required to be put in storage, empty goods shelves of the storage areas are selected according to the using sequences to put goods. In the process of warehousing the goods, when the type of the goods to be warehoused does not correspond to the type of the storage area for providing the empty goods shelves and the quantity of the goods to be warehoused is large, the operation of an automatic logistics is affected, and the fluxion can not be ensured. For example, area a stores vegetables and area B stores fruits, with the order of use being to use the empty shelves of area a before using the empty shelves of area B. When the robot conveys the empty goods shelf from the area A to the workbench for loading, if the goods are judged to be fruits, the robot needs to be conveyed to the area B for placement and storage. So to and fro, the empty shelves of the area A are always used, and are placed in the area B after being loaded, and the original empty shelves of the area B occupy the storage positions, so that the empty shelves of the area B can be placed without the storage positions, but a large number of empty shelves in the area B are unused.

Disclosure of Invention

The application provides a logistics scheduling method, a logistics scheduling system, logistics scheduling equipment and a logistics scheduling storage medium.

In a first aspect, the logistics scheduling method provided by the application is applied to a server, the server is used for a warehousing system, and the warehousing system further comprises a workbench, an exchange area and a storage area; the method comprises the following steps: determining a target goods shelf in the exchange area; the exchange area is used for storing empty shelves from the storage area to be provided for the workbench; the method comprises the steps of carrying out a first treatment on the surface of the The target goods shelf is an empty goods shelf in the exchange area; instructing the robot to handle the target pallet to the workstation so that the target pallet is loaded; and determining a target empty position in the storage area, and indicating the robot to carry the loaded target goods shelf to the target empty position.

According to the logistics scheduling method, firstly, an exchange area for providing an empty goods shelf of a storage area for a workbench is set. When goods are required to be put in storage, the target goods shelves are determined from the exchange area and are conveyed to the workbench for loading. And then determining a target empty storage position in the storage area, and carrying the loaded target goods shelf to the target empty storage position. According to the scheme, the empty goods shelves transfer between the storage areas and the workbench is realized through the exchange area, so that the situation that the goods cannot be put in storage due to insufficient empty goods shelves because the empty goods shelves occupy the storage places is avoided. Moreover, during warehouse entry, the empty shelves can be supplemented to the exchange area in advance without predicting the type of goods to be loaded subsequently, so that the exchange efficiency is greatly improved, and the high circulation of automatic logistics is ensured.

In a possible implementation manner, after loading the target shelf, the method further includes: determining a first goods shelf to be used, and indicating the robot to carry the first goods shelf to be used to an exchange area; the first shelf to be used is an empty shelf in the storage area.

In another possible implementation, the storage area includes one or more dedicated areas; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type; determining a first shelf to be used, comprising: determining a first special area corresponding to the type of goods on the target goods shelf; an empty shelf in the first dedicated area is determined as a first shelf to be used.

In a further possible implementation, the storage area further comprises a spare area, the spare area being free of a corresponding cargo type; determining a first shelf to be used, comprising: in the event that there are no empty shelves in the first dedicated area, one empty shelf in the standby area is determined to be the first shelf to be used.

In yet another possible implementation, the storage area includes one or more dedicated areas, and a spare area; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type; the spare area does not have a corresponding cargo type; determining a target null bit in a storage area, comprising: and determining a first special area corresponding to the type of the goods on the target goods shelf, and determining one empty storage position in the first special area as a target empty storage position.

In yet another possible implementation, determining a target empty storage location in a storage area includes: and under the condition that the first special area does not have the empty storage position, determining the storage position of the second to-be-used storage rack as a target empty storage position, wherein the second to-be-used storage rack is one empty storage rack in the first special area or the standby area. After loading the target pallet, the method further comprises: the robot is instructed to carry the second rack to be used to the exchange area.

In a second aspect, a warehousing system, comprising: the system comprises a server, a workbench, a switching area and a storage area; the server is used for determining a target goods shelf in the exchange area; the exchange area is used for storing empty shelves from the storage area to be provided for the workbench; the target goods shelf is an empty goods shelf in the exchange area; the server is also used for instructing the robot to carry the target goods shelf to the workbench so as to load the target goods shelf; the server is also used for determining a target empty storage position in the storage area and indicating the robot to carry the loaded target goods shelf to the target empty storage position.

In a possible implementation manner, the server is further configured to determine a first shelf to be used, and instruct the robot to carry the first shelf to be used to the exchange area; the first shelf to be used is an empty shelf in the storage area

In another possible implementation, the storage area includes one or more dedicated areas; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type; the server is specifically used for determining a first special area corresponding to the type of goods on the target goods shelf; an empty shelf in the first dedicated area is determined as a first shelf to be used.

In a further possible implementation, the storage area further comprises a spare area, the spare area being free of a corresponding cargo type; the server is specifically configured to determine, in the case where there is no empty shelf in the first dedicated area, that one empty shelf in the standby area is a first shelf to be used.

In yet another possible implementation, the storage area includes one or more dedicated areas, and a spare area; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type; the spare area does not have a corresponding cargo type; the server is specifically configured to determine a first dedicated area corresponding to a type of goods on the target shelf, and determine one empty storage location in the first dedicated area as a target empty storage location.

In yet another possible implementation manner, the server is specifically configured to determine, when the empty storage location does not exist in the first dedicated area, a storage location where the second shelf to be used is located as a target empty storage location, where the second shelf to be used is an empty shelf in the first dedicated area or the spare area. The server is also used for instructing the robot to carry the second shelf to be used to the exchange area.

In a third aspect, the present application provides a logistics scheduling apparatus, the apparatus comprising: a processor and a memory; the memory stores instructions executable by the processor; the processor is configured to, when executing the instructions, cause the logistics scheduling apparatus to implement the method of the first aspect described above.

In a fourth aspect, the present application provides a computer-readable storage medium comprising: computer software instructions; the computer software instructions, when run in a computer, cause the computer to implement the method of the first aspect described above.

In a fifth aspect, the present application provides a computer program product which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform the steps of the related method described in the first aspect above, to carry out the method of the first aspect above.

Advantageous effects of the second aspect to the fifth aspect described above may refer to corresponding descriptions of the first aspect, and are not repeated.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a conventional solution provided in the present application;

fig. 2 is a schematic view of an application environment of a logistics scheduling method provided in the present application;

FIG. 3 is a schematic flow chart of a method for scheduling logistics provided in the present application;

FIG. 4 is a schematic flow chart of a system scheme provided in the present application;

fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a warehousing system provided in the present application;

fig. 6 is a schematic diagram of a composition of a logistics scheduling apparatus provided in the present application.

Detailed Description

The following description of the embodiments of the present application will be made clearly and fully with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which it is evident that the embodiments described are only some, but not all, of the embodiments of the present application. All other embodiments, which can be made by one of ordinary skill in the art without undue burden from the present disclosure, are within the scope of the present disclosure.

It should be noted that, in the embodiments of the present application, words such as "exemplary" or "such as" are used to mean serving as an example, instance, or illustration. Any embodiment or design described herein as "exemplary" or "for example" should not be construed as preferred or advantageous over other embodiments or designs. Rather, the use of words such as "exemplary" or "such as" is intended to present related concepts in a concrete fashion.

In order to clearly describe the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present application, in the embodiments of the present application, the terms "first", "second", and the like are used to distinguish the same item or similar items having substantially the same function and effect, and those skilled in the art will understand that the terms "first", "second", and the like are not limited in number and execution order.

In order to facilitate understanding of the technical solutions of the present application, the terms referred to in the present application are first described in the following.

1. iWMS: and the intelligent warehouse management system (intellectual warehouse management system) is used for managing the inventory of the warehouse, configuring the basic information of the warehouse and processing the tasks and data generated by warehouse-in and warehouse-out operation.

2. CMS: the task scheduling system (content management system) is responsible for managing information such as maps and shelves in the warehouse. After the task list, the task is parsed and transferred to the RCS.

3. RCS: and the robot control system is responsible for selecting the robots and scheduling the robots to finish instructions.

4. And (3) a goods shelf: the container for loading goods can be lifted and carried from the bottom by a robot and has a unique number.

5. Storing: in the robot running field, the positions on which the shelves can be stored are provided with unique numbers, and each storage position can be provided with one shelf.

6. Area: the storage areas are grouped, each of which may contain one or more storage locations, and are typically divided by cargo type (or service type).

With the development of internet technology, online shopping is more and more convenient. The smaller the time it takes from the order to the shipment for the user, the better the user experience. Therefore, in order to ensure user experience and improve market share, each large company establishes a warehouse in most cities to be closer to the user side, so that the time for sending goods to the user side is shortened.

Traditional warehouse adopts artifical moisturizing, and efficiency is too low. Therefore, in order to improve the replenishment efficiency and reduce the cost of human resources, automated warehouses have been developed. An automated warehouse generally adopts a robot to realize operations such as carrying, warehousing or ex-warehouse of goods.

An automated warehouse includes a storage area and a work table. As shown in the conventional scheme of fig. 1, the storage area includes a plurality of storage locations, and each storage location may be provided with a shelf. The conventional storage area is divided by the size of the shelves, for example, all the shelves in area a are the same size and all the shelves in area B are the same size in fig. 1. When the robot carries, the goods shelf to be used is found from the storage area, and the robot jacks up and carries to the workbench from the bottom of the goods shelf to be used, so that the loading operation is performed. When the working table returns to the warehouse, the free storage position is selected for storage in a mode of calculating distance cost and the like.

However, in most project scenarios, the storage area is divided by cargo type (e.g., area a stores vegetables and area B stores fruits), which facilitates in-situ management of ex-warehouse or in-warehouse. Under the scene, when the workbench supplements empty shelves in advance, the type of the goods on the next shelf can not be predicted, and after the goods are placed on the shelf, the judgment of which area should be stored according to the type information of the current shelf is realized, and the goods are transported to the empty storage positions of the corresponding areas through the robot for storage.

This is explained in connection with fig. 1. If the area a is used for storing vegetables and the area B is used for storing fruits, the empty shelves of the area a are used first in a preset sequence, but in the case that most of the goods to be put on the shelf are fruits, a robot can be used for conveying the empty shelves from the area a to the area B for storage. This back and forth results in region B having no additional empty storage locations where shelves may be placed, but there are also situations where a large number of empty shelves are unused on region B. Greatly affecting the continuous operation and high flow-through of the automation stream.

Under the background technology, the embodiment of the application provides a logistics scheduling method, which comprises the steps of adding an exchange area between a storage area and a workbench, wherein only empty goods shelves are stored in the exchange area and used for providing the empty goods shelves in the storage area for the workbench to load, and further carrying the goods shelves after the loading to the storage area to finish the warehousing of the goods. According to the method, the exchange area is used for transferring, the empty goods shelves in the storage area can be continuously supplemented to the exchange area for subsequent use, and the problem that goods cannot be put in storage due to the fact that the empty goods shelves in the storage area occupy storage positions is effectively solved.

The logistics scheduling method provided by the application can be applied to the warehousing system shown in the figure 2. As shown in fig. 2, the warehousing system may include: a workbench, a switching area and a storage area. In addition, the warehousing system also includes a server (not shown in fig. 2), including at least one of iWMS, CMS, RCS, for coordinating interactions between each of the components shown in fig. 2.

The server may be a server cluster formed by a plurality of servers, or a single server, or a computer. The server may be a processor or the like. The embodiment of the application does not limit the specific device form of the server.

The workbench is used for loading empty shelves, and the exchange area is used for providing the empty shelves of the storage area for loading the workbench. There are also multiple storage locations in the exchange area, which are used only for empty shelves. The storage area is used for storing goods, and the goods can be grouped according to the type of the goods, so that different areas are obtained.

As shown in fig. 2, the storage area includes three areas (which are only one example and not particularly limited), namely, an area a, an area B, and a spare area. The area A and the area B are special areas for storing goods of a certain goods type. For example, region a stores vegetables and region B stores fruits. The spare area is similar to area a and area B, but does not specifically represent a certain cargo type. When any special area is full, the subsequent goods shelves can be returned to the warehouse to be placed in the area. Namely, the standby area is the last bottom-protecting area, and the problem of excessive warehousing of certain type of goods is solved. The dedicated area and the spare area comprise a plurality of storage locations, and each storage location can be provided with a goods shelf. For example, in fig. 2, the black boxes are shelves with goods and the white boxes are empty shelves.

Fig. 3 is a schematic flow chart of a logistics scheduling method according to an embodiment of the present application. The logistics scheduling method provided by the application can be applied to the warehousing system shown in fig. 2.

As shown in fig. 3, the logistics scheduling method provided in the present application may specifically include the following steps:

s301, the server determines a target goods shelf in the exchange area.

The exchange area is used for storing empty shelves from the storage area to be provided for the workbench. The target shelf is an empty shelf in the swap area.

As previously described, the exchange area serves as a transfer station between the work table and the storage area, and empty shelves of the storage area are provided to the work table for loading. The position of the exchange area can be arranged at a place close to the workbench, so that empty shelves can be conveniently and rapidly supplemented to the workbench for loading. At the beginning, a certain number of empty shelves can be stored in the exchange area in advance, which is beneficial to improving the exchange efficiency.

In some embodiments, the server may select an empty shelf in the exchange area as the destination shelf when the warehouse entry of the goods is desired. The selection of the empty shelves may be performed according to a preset sequence, or may be selected randomly, or may be selected according to other selection schemes, which is not limited in the embodiment of the present application.

Specifically, as described above, the ibms is responsible for managing warehouse entry and exit operations, and generating relevant task sheets. The CMS is used for analyzing the task sheet and managing information such as maps and shelves in the warehouse. Thus, when a warehouse entry of goods is required, the ibms may select an empty shelf as a target shelf in the exchange area. For example, the number of the selected empty shelf is identified, a shelf task is generated and sent to the CMS for subsequent dispatch handling operations. The pallet task is used to instruct the handling of the target pallet to the work table.

S302, the server instructs the robot to convey the target goods shelf to the workbench so as to load the target goods shelf.

In some embodiments, after the interchange area determines the target rack, the server may instruct the robot to handle the target rack to the workstation so that the target rack is loaded. The embodiment of the application does not limit the specific form of the robot, and can receive the instruction to realize the automatic conveying function. For example, the robot may be an automated guided vehicle (automated guided vehicle, AGV).

As previously described, the work bench is used to load empty shelves. The loading operation may be manual loading, or may be automatic loading by using an automation device such as a mechanical arm or a transmission line, which is not limited in this embodiment. It will be appreciated that the adoption of automated equipment may more efficiently increase the efficiency of warehousing.

Specifically, the RCS is responsible for scheduling robots and scheduling robots to complete task instructions. Therefore, after analyzing the shelf task of the transport destination shelf from the ibms, the CMS can analyze the shelf task and send the shelf task to the RCS. And the RCS dispatches the robot to the exchange area to lift the target goods shelf according to the analyzed goods shelf task, and then conveys the target goods shelf to the workbench for loading.

S303, the server determines a target empty storage position in the storage area and instructs the robot to carry the loaded target goods shelf to the target empty storage position.

In some embodiments, the server may determine the target empty storage location in the storage area, and after loading the target storage shelf is completed, instruct the robot to transport the loaded target storage shelf to the target empty storage location in the storage area for placement and storage. Specifically, the ibms may determine a target empty storage location in the storage area, generate a shelf task, send the shelf task to the CMS, and the CMS parses the shelf task to obtain a scheduled robot task, and sends the scheduled robot task to the RCS. The RCS selects a robot based on the task of the dispatching robot, instructs the robot to carry the loaded target goods shelves into the storage area, and places the target goods shelves at the empty storage area and stores the goods shelves.

In one possible implementation manner, the above logistics scheduling method further includes the following steps: after loading the target shelf, the server determines a first shelf to be used, and instructs the robot to carry the first shelf to be used to the exchange area. Wherein the first shelf to be used is an empty shelf in the storage area. The process of determining empty shelves and transporting empty shelves to the exchange area is also implemented by the interaction of the ibms, CMS and RCS, and will not be repeated here.

For example, the server may periodically determine the first shelf to be used in the storage area. I.e. the process of determining the first rack to be used and handling the racks to be used, may be performed automatically, periodically. For example, the warehouse manager may set a fixed preset period during which the server determines the shelves to be used in the storage area and instructs the robot to handle the shelves to be used to the exchange area. After a period of time, the next cycle is entered, and the above process is repeatedly performed, so as to realize automatic replenishment of empty shelves in the storage area to the exchange area.

Also exemplary, the storage area includes one or more dedicated areas; one dedicated area corresponds to one cargo type for storing the corresponding cargo type. Determining a first shelf to be used, comprising: the server determines a first special area corresponding to the type of goods on the target goods shelf, and determines an empty goods shelf in the first special area as a first goods shelf to be used.

As previously mentioned, the storage areas are generally grouped by cargo type of the cargo. Thus, the storage area comprises one or more dedicated areas, one dedicated area corresponding to each cargo type, for storing the cargo of the corresponding cargo type. As shown in fig. 2, the area a is a dedicated area, and the area B is a dedicated area for storing different types of goods. For convenience in management, when the goods are put in storage, the type of the goods needs to be judged to determine which area the goods need to be placed in for storage. The determination of the type of the goods by the server can be determined by the server receiving manually input type information, or can be automatically detected by setting automatic equipment such as a radio frequency identification technology (radio frequency identification, RFID) detection door, an industrial camera identification door and the like. The embodiment of the application does not limit the specific implementation manner of determining the type of the goods, so that the server can acquire the type of the goods to judge the special area to be put in storage. After determining the first dedicated area, the server may select an empty shelf in the first dedicated area as a first shelf to be used, so as to instruct the robot to carry the first shelf to the exchange area.

In addition, the storage area further includes a spare area. As described above, the spare area is a bottom protection area that is set to cope with a situation that a certain type of goods is too much in warehouse. Therefore, in the case that no empty shelf exists in the first dedicated area, the server determines the empty shelf in the standby area as the first to-be-used shelf and instructs the robot to carry the first to-be-used shelf to the exchange area, so as to realize the requirement of supplementing the empty shelf.

After determining the first dedicated area, the server may determine a target empty storage location in the first dedicated area, instruct the robot to transfer the loaded target shelf to the target empty storage location, and place the target shelf to store the goods.

Specifically, determining the target empty storage bit in the storage area specifically includes: the server determines a first special area corresponding to the type of the goods on the target goods, and determines one empty storage position in the first special area as the target empty storage position. And under the condition that the first special area does not have the empty storage position, determining the storage position of the second shelf to be used as the target empty storage position.

For example, the server may determine the first dedicated area based on the type of cargo after the target shelf is completely loaded. The manner of determining the cargo type is described above, and the detailed description is not repeated here. Further, the server may determine an empty location in the first dedicated area as a target empty location for placement of the loaded target shelf. If the first special area does not have the empty storage position, the server determines the storage position of the second goods shelf to be used as the target empty storage position.

The second rack to be used may be the first rack to be used, that is, the second rack to be used is an empty rack in the first dedicated area or the standby area, which is carried to the exchange area by the standby robot. Therefore, there are the following two cases.

Case 1, the second shelf to be used is an empty shelf of the first dedicated area. After the target goods shelf is loaded, the server can instruct the robot to carry the second goods shelf to be used in the first special area to the exchange area, and instruct the robot to carry the loaded target goods shelf to the storage position where the second goods shelf to be used is located, namely, the target empty storage position is the storage position where the second goods shelf to be used is located in the first special area.

Case 2, second shelf to be used is an empty shelf of the spare area. When the second shelf to be used is determined, the first dedicated area has no empty shelf, and the server determines an empty shelf from the standby area as the second shelf to be used. When the first special area does not have an empty storage position, after the target goods shelf is loaded, the server can instruct the robot to carry the second goods shelf to be used in the standby area to the exchange area, and instruct the robot to carry the loaded target goods shelf to the storage position of the second goods shelf to be used, namely, the target empty storage position is the storage position of the second goods shelf to be used in the standby area.

According to the logistics scheduling scheme, the first special area is used as the highest priority, namely, the goods can be numbered and put in storage as far as possible, whether the empty goods shelves occupy the storage positions or not in the first special area can be judged in time, the storage positions in the first special area can be fully utilized for storing the goods, and the problem that the goods are not put in storage smoothly due to the fact that the empty goods shelves are not moved in time is avoided.

The above-described flow is described by taking the case where the warehouse-in goods occupy one shelf as an example, and if there are a plurality of shelves for warehouse-in, the above steps S301 to S303 may be repeatedly performed for each shelf. I.e. one shelf is put in, an empty shelf is replenished to the exchange area. If two shelves are put in storage, two empty shelves are supplemented to the exchange area, and the continuity of logistics dispatching is guaranteed.

The logistics scheduling method provided by the application is described below in connection with a complete flow.

Step 1, starting working of a workbench, namely when goods are required to be put into storage, selecting an empty goods shelf in an exchange area by a server, and dispatching the empty goods shelf to be conveyed to the workbench by a robot for loading.

And step 2, triggering the robot to carry the goods shelves after the goods are loaded to be put in storage from the workbench after the goods are loaded. The server automatically judges which special area to put in according to the type of the goods to be loaded, such as a first special area. For this first dedicated area, the following is performed: step a, the server firstly determines an empty shelf as a shelf to be used in a first special area (namely, the shelf to be carried to the exchange area), and if the empty shelf does not exist, the server selects the empty shelf as the shelf to be used in the standby area. And b, the server inquires the empty storage position in the first special area, and if the empty storage position is not available, judging whether the goods shelf to be used in the step a is an empty goods shelf in the first special area. And d, if the goods shelf to be used in the step a is judged to be an empty goods shelf in the first special area, after the goods shelf to be used is carried away, indicating the robot to carry the goods shelf after loading to the first special area, and placing the goods shelf to be used in a storage position where the goods shelf to be used is originally positioned for storage. And d, if the goods shelf to be used in the step a is not the empty goods shelf in the first special area, indicating the robot to carry the goods shelf to the standby area, and placing the goods shelf to be used in a storage position where the goods shelf to be used is originally located for storage.

And 3, indicating the robot to carry the goods shelves to be used in the step 2 to the exchange area. Thus, one cycle is completed. In the executing process of the step 2, after the robot removes the goods shelves after loading from the workbench, the step 1 is triggered and executed immediately, so that the efficient circulation of the step 1-3 is formed, the goods can be circularly put in storage through the cooperation of a plurality of robots, and the processes of empty goods shelves to an exchange area and the like are supplemented.

Fig. 4 is a flowchart of a system scheduling scheme provided in an embodiment of the present application, as shown in fig. 4. First, the table triggers the start of warehouse entry, which is responsible for finding empty shelves (i.e., target shelves in the previous embodiment) in the exchange area by the ibms. And then generating shelf tasks based on the number of the target shelf and sending the shelf tasks to the CMS. The CMS analyzes the shelf tasks, determines that the target shelf needs to be transported to a workbench, obtains the dispatching robot tasks, and sends the dispatching robot tasks to the RCS. The RCS is based on dispatch robot tasks that the dispatch robot completes (i.e., carries the target pallet to the work table). Then, at the work bench, the loading of the goods is completed, the ibms matches the dedicated area and empty shelves again according to the type of goods loaded, and sends the shelf tasks to the CMS. The shelf tasks include warehouse entry area, and exchange of shelves (i.e., the shelf to be used) to the exchange area. The CMS parses and sends the scheduled robot task to the RCS, the scheduled robot task comprising: a. warehousing the goods shelves to a storage area; b. and exchanging shelves to an exchanging area. Finally, the RCS schedules multiple robots to complete tasks based on scheduling robot tasks (i.e., multiple robots to perform the tasks of warehousing shelves to storage areas and exchanging shelves to exchange areas, respectively).

The technical scheme provided by the embodiment at least brings the following beneficial effects, and the logistics scheduling method provided by the embodiment of the application firstly sets the exchange area for storing the empty goods shelves from the storage area to be provided for the workbench. When goods are required to be put in storage, the target goods shelves are determined from the exchange area and are conveyed to the workbench for loading. And then determining a target empty storage position in the storage area, and carrying the loaded target goods shelf to the target empty storage position. According to the scheme, the empty goods shelves transfer between the storage areas and the workbench is realized through the exchange area, so that the situation that the goods cannot be put in storage due to insufficient empty goods shelves because the empty goods shelves occupy the storage places is avoided. Moreover, during warehouse entry, the empty shelves can be supplemented to the exchange area in advance without predicting the type of goods to be loaded subsequently, so that the exchange efficiency is greatly improved, and the high circulation of automatic logistics is ensured.

Furthermore, the method for reserving the area corresponding to the cargo type is beneficial to meeting the functions of field management, exception handling, emergency warehouse-out and the like, and is especially close to the original warehouse storage mode in the industrial manufacturing industry, and is a hard requirement in most project scenes. In addition, the standby area in the scheme can exist or not, and a user can select according to specific scene requirements. The spare area mainly provides fault-tolerant capability when the replenishment plan is abnormally exceeded, and the larger the spare area is, the stronger the fault-tolerant capability is. Finally, the logistics scheduling method provided by the scheme can be combined with automation equipment such as an industrial camera identification door, a mechanical arm and a transmission line, so that more efficient automation operation is realized, and the efficiency of automatic logistics is further improved.

It can be seen that the foregoing description of the solution provided by the embodiments of the present application has been presented mainly from a method perspective. To achieve the above-mentioned functions, embodiments of the present application provide corresponding hardware structures and/or software modules that perform the respective functions. Those of skill in the art will readily appreciate that the various illustrative modules and algorithm steps described in connection with the embodiments disclosed herein may be implemented as hardware or combinations of hardware and computer software. Whether a function is implemented as hardware or computer software driven hardware depends upon the particular application and design constraints imposed on the solution. Skilled artisans may implement the described functionality in varying ways for each particular application, but such implementation decisions should not be interpreted as causing a departure from the scope of the present application.

In an exemplary embodiment, the present application also provides a warehousing system. The warehousing system may include one or more functional modules for implementing the logistics scheduling method of the above method embodiments.

For example, fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of a warehousing system according to an embodiment of the present application. As shown in fig. 5, the warehousing system includes: server, workstation, switching zone and storage area. The server may issue instructions to enable interaction between the workstation, the swap area, and the storage area.

The server is used for determining a target goods shelf in the exchange area; the exchange area is used for storing empty shelves from the storage area to be provided for the workbench; the target goods shelf is an empty goods shelf in the exchange area; the server is also used for instructing the robot to carry the target goods shelf to the workbench so as to load the target goods shelf; the server is also used for determining a target empty storage position in the storage area and indicating the robot to carry the loaded target goods shelf to the target empty storage position.

In some embodiments, the server is further configured to determine a first rack to use, instruct the robot to handle the first rack to the exchange area; the first shelf to be used is an empty shelf in the storage area

In some embodiments, the storage area includes one or more dedicated areas; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type; the server is specifically used for determining a first special area corresponding to the type of goods on the target goods shelf; an empty shelf in the first dedicated area is determined as a first shelf to be used.

In some embodiments, the storage area further comprises a spare area, the spare area being free of a corresponding cargo type; the server is specifically configured to determine, in the case where there is no empty shelf in the first dedicated area, that one empty shelf in the standby area is a first shelf to be used.

In some embodiments, the storage area includes one or more dedicated areas, and a spare area; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type; the spare area does not have a corresponding cargo type; the server is specifically configured to determine a first dedicated area corresponding to a type of goods on the target shelf, and determine one empty storage location in the first dedicated area as a target empty storage location.

In some embodiments, the server is specifically configured to determine, when the empty storage location does not exist in the first dedicated area, a storage location where the second rack to be used is located as a target empty storage location, where the second rack to be used is an empty rack to be carried to the exchange area in the first dedicated area or the spare area. The server is also used for instructing the robot to carry the second shelf to be used to the exchange area.

In the case of implementing the functions of the integrated modules in the form of hardware, the embodiment of the application provides a schematic composition diagram of a logistics scheduling device, which may be the server. As shown in fig. 6, the logistics scheduling apparatus 600 includes: processor 602, communication interface 603, bus 604. Optionally, the logistics scheduling apparatus 600 may further comprise a memory 601.

The processor 602 may be any means for implementing or executing the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with this disclosure. The processor 602 may be a central processing unit, a general purpose processor, a digital signal processor, an application specific integrated circuit, a field programmable gate array or other programmable logic device, a transistor logic device, a hardware component, or any combination thereof. Which may implement or perform the various exemplary logic blocks, modules, and circuits described in connection with this disclosure. The processor 602 may also be a combination that performs computing functions, such as a combination comprising one or more microprocessors, a combination of a DSP and a microprocessor, or the like.

A communication interface 603 for connecting with other devices via a communication network. The communication network may be an ethernet, a radio access network, a wireless local area network (wireless local area networks, WLAN), etc.

The memory 601 may be, but is not limited to, a read-only memory (ROM) or other type of static storage device that can store static information and instructions, a random access memory (random access memory, RAM) or other type of dynamic storage device that can store information and instructions, or an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, EEPROM), magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage device, or any other medium that can be used to carry or store desired program code in the form of instructions or data structures and that can be accessed by a computer.

As a possible implementation, the memory 601 may exist separately from the processor 602, and the memory 601 may be connected to the processor 602 through the bus 604 for storing instructions or program codes. The processor 602, when calling and executing instructions or program codes stored in the memory 601, can implement the logistics scheduling method provided in the embodiment of the present application.

In another possible implementation, the memory 601 may also be integrated with the processor 602.

Bus 604 may be an extended industry standard architecture (extended industry standard architecture, EISA) bus or the like. The bus 604 may be divided into an address bus, a data bus, a control bus, and the like. For ease of illustration, only one thick line is shown in fig. 6, but not only one bus or one type of bus.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art from this description that, for convenience and brevity of description, only the above-described division of the functional modules is illustrated, and in practical application, the above-described functional allocation may be performed by different functional modules according to needs, that is, the internal structure of the logistics scheduling apparatus is divided into different functional modules, so as to perform all or part of the functions described above.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a computer-readable storage medium. All or part of the flow in the above method embodiments may be implemented by computer instructions to instruct related hardware, and the program may be stored in the above computer readable storage medium, and the program may include the flow in the above method embodiments when executed. The computer readable storage medium may be any of the foregoing embodiments or memory. The computer readable storage medium may be an external storage device of the server, such as a plug-in hard disk, a Smart Media Card (SMC), a Secure Digital (SD) card, a flash card (flash card), or the like, which are provided on the server. Further, the computer-readable storage medium may include both the internal storage unit and the external storage device of the server. The computer-readable storage medium is used to store the computer program and other programs and data required by the server. The above-described computer-readable storage medium may also be used to temporarily store data that has been output or is to be output.

Embodiments of the present application also provide a computer program product comprising a computer program which, when run on a computer, causes the computer to perform any one of the logistics scheduling methods provided in the embodiments described above.

Although the present application has been described herein in connection with various embodiments, other variations to the disclosed embodiments can be understood and effected by those skilled in the art in practicing the claimed application, from a review of the figures, the disclosure, and the appended claims. In the claims, the word "Comprising" does not exclude other elements or steps, and the "a" or "an" does not exclude a plurality. A single processor or other unit may fulfill the functions of several items recited in the claims. The mere fact that certain measures are recited in mutually different dependent claims does not indicate that a combination of these measures cannot be used to advantage.

Although the present application has been described in connection with specific features and embodiments thereof, it will be apparent that various modifications and combinations can be made without departing from the spirit and scope of the application. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are merely exemplary illustrations of the present application as defined in the appended claims and are considered to cover any and all modifications, variations, combinations, or equivalents that fall within the scope of the present application. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modifications and variations can be made in the present application without departing from the spirit or scope of the application. Thus, if such modifications and variations of the present application fall within the scope of the claims and the equivalents thereof, the present application is intended to cover such modifications and variations.

The foregoing is merely a specific embodiment of the present application, but the protection scope of the present application is not limited thereto, and any changes or substitutions within the technical scope of the present disclosure should be covered in the protection scope of the present application. Therefore, the protection scope of the present application shall be subject to the protection scope of the claims.

Claims

1. The logistics scheduling method is characterized by being applied to a server, wherein the server is used for a warehousing system, and the warehousing system further comprises a workbench, an exchange area and a storage area; the method comprises the following steps:

determining a target shelf in the exchange area; the exchange area is used for storing empty shelves from the storage area to be provided for the workbench; the method comprises the steps of carrying out a first treatment on the surface of the The target goods shelf is an empty goods shelf in the exchange area;

instructing a robot to handle the target pallet to a workbench so that the target pallet is loaded;

and determining a target empty storage position in the storage area, and indicating the target goods shelf to the target empty storage position after the robot carries the goods.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein after loading the target shelf, the method further comprises:

determining a first goods shelf to be used, and indicating a robot to carry the first goods shelf to be used to the exchange area; the first shelf to be used is an empty shelf in the storage area.

3. The method of claim 2, wherein the storage area comprises one or more dedicated areas; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type;

the determining a first shelf to be used includes:

determining a first special area corresponding to the type of goods on the target goods shelf;

an empty shelf in the first dedicated area is determined as the first shelf to be used.

4. A method according to claim 3, wherein the storage area further comprises a spare area, the spare area being free of a corresponding cargo type; the determining a first shelf to be used includes:

and determining one empty shelf in the standby area as the first shelf to be used under the condition that no empty shelf exists in the first special area.

5. A method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the storage area comprises one or more dedicated areas, and a spare area; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type; the spare area does not have a corresponding cargo type;

determining a target empty storage location in the storage area, comprising:

And determining a first special area corresponding to the type of the goods on the target goods shelf, and determining one empty storage position in the first special area as the target empty storage position.

6. The method of claim 5, wherein determining a target empty storage location in the storage area comprises:

under the condition that the first special area does not have an empty storage position, determining a storage position of a second goods shelf to be used as the target empty storage position, wherein the second goods shelf to be used is an empty goods shelf in the first special area or the standby area;

after loading the target rack, the method further comprises: and instructing a robot to carry the second goods shelf to be used to the exchange area.

7. A warehousing system, the warehousing system comprising: the system comprises a server, a workbench, a switching area and a storage area;

the server is used for determining a target goods shelf in the exchange area; the exchange area is used for storing empty shelves from the storage area to be provided for the workbench; the target goods shelf is an empty goods shelf in the exchange area;

the server is further used for instructing a robot to carry the target goods shelf to a workbench so as to load the target goods shelf;

The server is further used for determining a target empty storage position in the storage area and indicating the target goods shelf to the target empty storage position after the robot carries the goods.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the system further comprises a controller configured to control the controller,

the server is further used for determining a first goods shelf to be used and instructing a robot to carry the first goods shelf to be used to the exchange area; the first goods shelf to be used is an empty goods shelf in the storage area;

the storage area comprises one or more dedicated areas; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type; the server is specifically configured to determine a first dedicated area corresponding to a type of goods on the target shelf; determining an empty shelf in the first dedicated area as the first shelf to be used;

the storage area further includes a spare area, the spare area having no corresponding cargo type; the server is specifically configured to determine, in a case where there is no empty shelf in the first dedicated area, that one empty shelf in the standby area is the first shelf to be used;

the storage area includes one or more dedicated areas, and a spare area; a special area corresponds to a cargo type and is used for storing cargos of the corresponding cargo type; the spare area does not have a corresponding cargo type; the server is specifically configured to determine a first dedicated area corresponding to a type of goods on the target shelf, and determine that one empty storage location in the first dedicated area is the target empty storage location;

The server is specifically configured to determine, when the first dedicated area does not have an empty storage location, a storage location where a second shelf to be used is located as the target empty storage location, where the second shelf to be used is an empty shelf in the first dedicated area or the standby area; the server is also used for instructing a robot to carry the second goods shelf to be used to the exchange area.

9. A logistics scheduling apparatus, characterized in that the logistics scheduling apparatus comprises: a processor and a memory;

the memory stores instructions executable by the processor;

the processor is configured to, when executing the instructions, cause the logistics scheduling apparatus to implement the method of any one of claims 1-6.

10. A computer-readable storage medium, the computer-readable storage medium comprising: computer software instructions;

when the computer software instructions are run in a computer, the computer is caused to carry out the method according to any one of claims 1-6.