WO2022237306A1 - Control method and apparatus for robot, device, system and storage medium - Google Patents

Abstract

A control method and apparatus for a robot (20), a device, a system, and a storage medium. Once the robot (20) completes a pick-and-place operation in a first lane, if it is determined that a next target position of the robot (20) is a first user operation region, the robot (20) is controlled to move along a path through the first lane and an annular track (50) to the first user operation region, so as to reach the first user operation region, wherein the robot (20) moves in a preset direction on the annular track (50). In the foregoing manner, the probability of conflict between different robots (20) is avoided, and the difficulty of scheduling the robots (20) is reduced.

Description

Robot control method, device, equipment, system and storage medium

This disclosure claims the priority of the Chinese patent application with the application number CN 202110507528.8 and the application name "Control method, device, equipment, system and storage medium for robots" submitted to the China Patent Office on May 10, 2021, and its entire content Incorporated by reference in this disclosure.

technical field

The present disclosure relates to the field of intelligent storage, and in particular to a robot control method, device, equipment, system and storage medium.

Background technique

With the continuous advancement of science and technology, warehousing technology is also constantly improving. How to realize warehousing management more efficiently has become a hot issue.

Some warehousing systems include multiple racks and robots. The shelves are used to store goods, and aisles are formed between adjacent shelves. The racks are usually multi-layer racks, and vertical rails are set in each lane, so that the robot can move along the vertical rails in the lane to pick and place goods at different heights. After the robot has finished picking and placing goods in a lane, the robot is controlled to descend to the ground along the vertical track, and move to other lanes or user work areas through the ground area.

However, in the above process, different robots are prone to conflicts during the moving process, which makes it difficult to schedule the robots.

Contents of the invention

Embodiments of the present disclosure provide a robot control method, device, equipment, system, and storage medium, so as to reduce the difficulty of scheduling the robot.

In the first aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a method for controlling a robot. The robot is located in a storage area, and the storage area includes a plurality of shelves arranged at intervals, and an aisle is formed between adjacent shelves. A circular track is provided around the plurality of shelves; the method includes:

After the robot completes the pick-and-place operation in the first lane, determine the next target position of the robot;

If the next target position is the first user's work area, control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the first user's work area, so as to reach the first user A working area; wherein, the robot moves along a preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple circular tracks, and different circular tracks have different heights;

Controlling the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the first user work area includes:

determining a target circular orbit from the plurality of circular orbits;

Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track through the first lane.

In a possible implementation manner, determining the target circular orbit from the plurality of circular orbits includes:

If there is a first circular track in the plurality of circular tracks, and the height of the first circular track is the same as the current height of the robot, then the first circular track is determined as the target circular track; or,

If the heights of the plurality of circular tracks are all different from the current height of the robot, selecting a circular track whose height is closest to the current height of the robot from the multiple circular tracks as the target circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, determining the target circular orbit from the plurality of circular orbits includes:

Respectively for each of the plurality of circular tracks, plan a candidate path passing through the first roadway, the circular track to the first user's work area, and obtain multiple candidate paths;

respectively determining the lengths of the plurality of candidate paths;

Determining, among the plurality of circular trajectories, the circular trajectory corresponding to the shortest length of the candidate path as the target circular trajectory.

In a possible implementation manner, each of the tunnels is provided with a plurality of first linear tracks along the direction in which the tunnel extends, and the height of the plurality of first linear tracks is the same as the height of the plurality of circular tracks. The heights are in one-to-one correspondence, and the two ends of each first linear track are docked with the circular track of the corresponding height;

Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track through the first lane includes:

If the height of the target circular track is equal to the current height of the robot, control the robot to move to the target circular track along the first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane on track; or,

If the height of the target circular track is higher than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to rise along the vertical track in the first lane, and when the robot rises to the height of the target circular track, Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track along a first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane; or,

If the height of the target circular track is lower than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to descend along the vertical track in the first lane, and when the robot descends to the height of the target circular track, Controlling the robot to move onto the target circular track along a first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane.

In a possible implementation manner, the number of the circular track is one, the circular track is arranged on the top of the plurality of shelves, and each of the lanes is provided with a first straight line along the extending direction of the lane. track, the height of the first linear track is the same as the height of the circular track, and the two ends of the first linear track are docked with the circular track;

Controlling the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the first user work area includes:

controlling the robot to rise along the vertical track in the first lane;

When the robot rises to the height of the ring shelf, the robot is controlled to move onto the ring track along the first linear track in the first lane.

In a possible implementation manner, the first user work area is located on the ground; an exit is provided on the circular track, and a slide rail extending from the circular track to the ground is provided at the position of the exit;

Controlling the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the first user work area includes:

controlling the robot to move to the exit along a preset direction on the circular track;

The robot is controlled to move to the first user work area along the slide rail at the exit position.

In a possible implementation, there are multiple exits; controlling the robot to move to the exit in a preset direction on the circular track includes:

determining a first exit from the plurality of exits that is closest to the robot's current location;

The robot is controlled to move to the first exit along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple exits, and the slide rails corresponding to different exits extend to different user work areas;

Controlling the robot to move to the exit along the preset direction on the circular track includes:

determining a second exit extending to the first user work area from the plurality of exits;

The robot is controlled to move to the second exit along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation, the method further includes:

If the next target position is the second lane, then control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane; wherein, The robot moves along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, the tops of the plurality of shelves are provided with second linear tracks, and the length direction of the second linear tracks is perpendicular to the length direction of the shelves; the method further includes:

If the next target position of the robot is the second lane, then control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the second linear track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane .

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple second linear tracks; the robot is controlled to move along a path passing through the first lane, the second linear track to the second lane, so as to reach The second roadway includes:

Respectively acquiring the moving distances required for the robot to move through the first lane to each of the second linear tracks;

Selecting the second linear track with the shortest moving distance from the plurality of second linear tracks as the target linear track;

The robot is controlled to move along a path passing through the first lane, the target straight track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane.

In the second aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a control device for a robot. The robot is located in a storage area, and the storage area includes a plurality of shelves arranged at intervals, and an aisle is formed between adjacent shelves. At least one circular track is provided around the plurality of shelves; the device includes:

A determination module, configured to determine the next target position of the robot after the robot completes the pick-and-place operation in the first lane;

A control module, configured to control the robot to move along a path passing through the first lane and the circular track to the first user operation area if the next target position is the first user operation area, so as to reach The first user work area; wherein, the robot moves along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple circular tracks, and different circular tracks have different heights; the control module is specifically used for:

determining a target circular orbit from the plurality of circular orbits;

Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track through the first lane.

In a possible implementation manner, the control module is specifically used for:

If there is a first circular track in the plurality of circular tracks, and the height of the first circular track is the same as the current height of the robot, then the first circular track is determined as the target circular track; or,

If the heights of the plurality of circular tracks are all different from the current height of the robot, selecting a circular track whose height is closest to the current height of the robot from the multiple circular tracks as the target circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, the control module is specifically used for:

Respectively for each of the plurality of circular tracks, plan a candidate path passing through the first roadway, the circular track to the first user's work area, and obtain multiple candidate paths;

respectively determining the lengths of the plurality of candidate paths;

Determining, among the plurality of circular trajectories, the circular trajectory corresponding to the shortest length of the candidate path as the target circular trajectory.

In a possible implementation manner, each of the tunnels is provided with a plurality of first linear tracks along the direction in which the tunnel extends, and the height of the plurality of first linear tracks is the same as the height of the plurality of circular tracks. The heights are in one-to-one correspondence, and the two ends of each first linear track are docked with the circular track of the corresponding height; the control module is specifically used for:

If the height of the target circular track is equal to the current height of the robot, control the robot to move to the target circular track along the first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane on track; or,

If the height of the target circular track is higher than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to rise along the vertical track in the first lane, and when the robot rises to the height of the target circular track, Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track along a first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane; or,

If the height of the target circular track is lower than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to descend along the vertical track in the first lane, and when the robot descends to the height of the target circular track, Controlling the robot to move onto the target circular track along a first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane.

In a possible implementation manner, the number of the circular track is one, the circular track is arranged on the top of the plurality of shelves, and each of the lanes is provided with a first straight line along the extending direction of the lane. Track, the height of the first linear track is the same as the height of the circular track, and the two ends of the first linear track are docked with the circular track; the control module is specifically used for:

controlling the robot to rise along the vertical track in the first lane;

When the robot rises to the height of the ring shelf, the robot is controlled to move onto the ring track along the first linear track in the first lane.

In a possible implementation manner, the first user work area is located on the ground; an exit is provided on the circular track, and a slide rail extending from the circular track to the ground is provided at the position of the exit; the The control module is used specifically for:

controlling the robot to move to the exit along a preset direction on the circular track;

The robot is controlled to move to the first user work area along the slide rail at the exit position.

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple outlets; the control module is specifically used for:

determining a first exit from the plurality of exits that is closest to the robot's current location;

The robot is controlled to move to the first exit along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple exits, and slide rails corresponding to different exits extend to different user work areas; the control module is specifically used for:

determining a second exit extending to the first user work area from the plurality of exits;

The robot is controlled to move to the second exit along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, the control module is also used for:

If the next target position is the second lane, then control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane; wherein, The robot moves along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, the tops of the plurality of shelves are provided with second linear tracks, and the length direction of the second linear tracks is perpendicular to the length direction of the shelves; the control module is also used for:

If the next target position of the robot is the second lane, then control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the second linear track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane .

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple second linear tracks; the control module is specifically used for:

Respectively acquiring the moving distances required for the robot to move through the first lane to each of the second linear tracks;

Selecting the second linear track with the shortest moving distance from the plurality of second linear tracks as the target linear track;

The robot is controlled to move along a path passing through the first lane, the target straight track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane.

In a third aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a control device, including:

at least one processor; and

memory communicatively coupled to the at least one processor;

Wherein, the memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, and the instructions are executed by the at least one processor, so that the control device executes the method according to any one of the first aspect.

In a fourth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a control system, including: multiple shelves, a robot, and the control device as described in the third aspect.

In the fifth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a computer-readable storage medium, where computer-executable instructions are stored in the computer-readable storage medium, and when the processor executes the computer-executable instructions, any one of the first aspect is implemented. the method described.

In a sixth aspect, an embodiment of the present disclosure provides a computer program, the computer-readable storage medium stores computer-executable instructions, and when a processor executes the computer-executable instructions, the method described in any one of the first aspect is implemented. method.

In the robot control method, device, equipment, system, and storage medium provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure, after the robot completes the operation of picking and placing goods in the first lane, if it is determined that the next target position of the robot is the first user work area, then Control the robot to move along the path to the first user's work area through the first roadway and the circular track to reach the first user's work area, wherein the robot moves along the preset direction on the circular track, thus avoiding the interaction between different robots. The probability of conflict reduces the difficulty of scheduling robots.

Description of drawings

In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings that need to be used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the accompanying drawings in the following description These are some embodiments of the present disclosure, and those skilled in the art can also obtain other drawings based on these drawings without any creative effort.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a robot climbing a shelf provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 3 is a schematic flowchart of a robot control method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram of a storage system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of another storage system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 6 is a schematic flowchart of another robot control method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 7 is a schematic flowchart of another robot control method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram of another storage system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 9 is a schematic diagram of a robot movement provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a robot control device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure;

Fig. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of a control device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure.

Detailed ways

In order to make the purpose, technical solutions and advantages of the embodiments of the present disclosure clearer, the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present disclosure will be clearly and completely described below in conjunction with the drawings in the embodiments of the present disclosure. Obviously, the described embodiments It is a part of the embodiments of the present disclosure, but not all of them. Based on the embodiments in the present disclosure, all other embodiments obtained by persons of ordinary skill in the art without creative efforts fall within the protection scope of the present disclosure.

The technical solution provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure may be applied to any suitable industry field or technical field, such as the field of intelligent warehousing, the field of intelligent logistics, and the like.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of an application scenario provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Figure 1 illustrates a schematic diagram of a storage system. As shown in FIG. 1 , the storage system is provided with shelves 10 and robots 20 . Wherein, the rack 10 is used for storing goods, and there are multiple racks 10 , and the racks 10 are arranged at intervals in the storage area, and aisles are formed between adjacent racks 10 . The robot 20 can move within the tunnel. The robot 20 may be a transfer robot or a sorting robot or the like. The handling robot can be used to carry the boxes, and the picking robot can be used to pick the goods in the boxes. Of course, a robot can also have both the handling function and the picking function.

Referring to FIG. 1 , one or more user work areas can also be set in the storage system, and users 40 can operate goods in the user work areas. The user 40 may be an operator, a delivery clerk, a sorter, and the like.

The robot 20 can communicate with a control device 30 . The control device 30 may be a server, a terminal device, and the like. The control device 30 can also be a device or a device integrated in the robot 20 . Under the control of the control device 30 , the robot 20 can take or put goods from the shelf 10 , and can also transport the goods to the user's work area for the user 40 to operate on the goods.

In an exemplary scenario, after the control device 30 receives an order, it controls the robot 20 to move to the corresponding shelf 10, and controls the robot to take out from the shelf 10 a container containing items required by the order. The control device 30 controls the robot 20 to carry the container to the user's work area. The user picks the required items from the box according to the order. The control device 30 then controls the robot 20 to put the container back on the shelf 10 .

Continuing to refer to FIG. 1 , the rack 10 may have multiple layers, and each layer of the rack 10 may have a plurality of storage positions arranged horizontally, that is, the storage positions of the rack 10 are arranged in a grid. A storage location is used to place boxes containing goods. The robot 20 can climb along the height direction of the rack 10 , so as to be able to pick and place the goods in each location on the rack 10 .

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram of a robot climbing a shelf provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 2 is the front view of the storage system, as shown in Fig. 2, the storage positions of different columns of the shelves 10 are all correspondingly provided with vertical tracks 11, and the vertical tracks 11 on the shelves 10 on both sides of the roadway correspond to each other, and the robots 20 The width matches the width of the roadway. The control device 30 can control the robot 20 to move up and down along the vertical track 11 , so that the robot 20 can reach the warehouse location of each layer of the shelf 10 to perform picking or placing operations. When the robot 20 moves up and down, since the two sides of the robot 30 will abut and cooperate with the vertical rails 11 of the shelves 10 on both sides of the roadway at the same time, the lifting process of the robot 20 is more stable.

After the robot 20 completes the pick-and-place operation in a roadway, the control device 30 controls the robot 20 to descend to the ground along the vertical track, and moves to other roadways or to User work area.

The inventor found in the process of implementing the present disclosure that in practical applications, there will be multiple robots 20 in the storage area, and each robot 20 can move freely in the public area on the ground. In this way, conflicts between different robots are likely to occur during the movement process, making It is relatively difficult for the control device 30 to schedule the robot 20 .

In order to solve the above-mentioned technical problems, in the embodiment of the present disclosure, a circular track can be arranged around a plurality of shelves in the horizontal direction, and the control device can control the robot to move in one direction on the circular track. In this way, since different robots move in one direction on the circular track, conflicts between them can be avoided, the difficulty of scheduling can be reduced, and the work efficiency of the robots can be improved.

Some embodiments of the present disclosure will be described in detail below in conjunction with the accompanying drawings. Under the condition that there is no conflict between the various embodiments, the following embodiments and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other.

Fig. 3 is a schematic flowchart of a method for controlling a robot provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 3, the method of this embodiment includes:

S301: After the robot completes the operation of picking and placing goods in the first lane, determine the next target position of the robot.

Wherein, the first lane may be any lane in the storage area.

The control device controls the robot to move to the first lane for picking and placing goods. The robot can pick and place goods from multiple storage locations in the first lane. Wherein, the pick-and-place operation includes a pick-up operation and/or a put-out operation. In the first lane, the robot can pick up some warehouse locations and release goods to other warehouse locations. Picking up refers to taking out the goods/cartons from the storage location, and putting goods refers to putting the goods/cartons into the storage location.

Exemplarily, it is assumed that the robot needs to perform pick-and-place operations on the storage locations on the first floor, the fourth floor, and the sixth floor in the first lane. After the robot moves to the first lane, it first performs pick-and-place operations on the first-floor storage location, then rises along the vertical track to the fourth-floor storage location for pick-and-place operations, and then rises to the sixth floor along the vertical track Pick-and-place operations for warehouse locations. So far, the robot has completed the pick-and-place operation in the first lane.

Specifically, the next target position of the robot may be determined according to the handling task planned by the control device for the robot in advance. Exemplarily, if the handling task planned by the control device for the robot includes: taking out the first container from shelf A, taking out the second container from shelf B, and then transporting the first container and the second container to the user's work area. Then, when the robot completes the picking operation in the aisle corresponding to shelf A, the next target position of the robot is the aisle corresponding to shelf B. When the robot completes the pick-and-place operation in the aisle corresponding to shelf B, the next target position of the robot is the user's work area.

S302: If the next target position is the first user's work area, control the robot to move along the path passing through the first laneway and circular track to the first user's work area, so as to reach the first user A working area; wherein, the robot moves along a preset direction on the circular track.

In this embodiment, a plurality of shelves are arranged at intervals in the storage area, and a circular track is arranged around the plurality of shelves in the horizontal direction. The circular track can form a closed shape around the storage area. In this embodiment, the shape of the circular track is not limited, and it may be circular, elliptical, or rectangular corresponding to the periphery of multiple shelves, or any other closed shape.

When the robot needs to move to the first user's work area, the control device can plan a path for the robot to go through the first laneway and circular track to the first user's work area, and then control the robot to move along the planned path to reach the first user. Operating Area. Since the robot moves to the first user's work area along the circular track, compared with the way in the prior art that the robot freely moves to the user's work area in the public area on the ground, conflicts between different robots can be avoided to a certain extent.

Further, when the robot enters the circular track, the control device can control the robot to move along the preset direction on the circular track. For example, it can be moved in a clockwise direction, or, alternatively, it can be moved in a counterclockwise direction. It should be understood that when different robots enter the circular track, they all move in the same preset direction, so that conflicts caused by the relative movement between different robots can be avoided.

In the robot control method provided in this embodiment, after the robot completes the pick-and-place operation in the first lane, if it is determined that the next target position of the robot is the first user operation area, the robot is controlled to pass through the first lane and the circular track along the way. The path to the first user work area is moved to reach the first user work area, wherein the robot moves along the preset direction on the circular track, thus avoiding the probability of conflict between different robots and reducing the scheduling of the robots difficulty.

In addition, the circular track provides additional moving space and path for the robot, so that the robot does not need to reciprocate between the storage location and the ground along the vertical track in the first lane, that is, the robot rises from the ground to the designated shelf on the vertical track. After picking up and placing goods in the warehouse, you can leave the first lane through the circular track instead of descending to the ground along the vertical track and then leave the first lane, so that it will not affect the work of other robots that enter the first lane, and improve the storage system. overall work efficiency.

On the basis of the above-mentioned embodiments, the method for controlling the robot will be further described below in combination with several possible configurations of the circular track.

Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of a storage system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 4 , the circular track 50 is disposed on top of the plurality of shelves 10 . Moreover, a first linear track 60 is provided in each lane along the direction in which the lane extends. The height of the first linear track 60 is the same as that of the circular track 50 , and the two ends of the first linear track 60 are respectively connected to the circular track 50 . That is, the two ends of the first linear track 60 respectively abut with different track segments of the circular track 50 .

After the robot 20 completes the task of picking and placing goods in the first lane, the robot 20 can be controlled to rise along the vertical track in the first lane. When the robot rises to the height of the circular track 50, the robot 20 is controlled to move onto the circular track along the first straight track 60 in the first lane.

It should be understood that since each lane is provided with the first linear track 60, the robots 20 working in different lanes can move to the corresponding first straight track 60 along the vertical track, and move along the first straight line. The track 60 moves onto the circular track 50 . Since the robots entering the circular track 50 all move in one direction along the preset direction, the robots entering the circular track 50 from different first linear tracks 60 will not interfere with each other.

By setting the annular track 50 surrounding a plurality of shelves on the top of the shelf, after the robot 20 completes the pick-and-place operation in the first lane, it can continue to rise along the vertical track and enter the annular track through the first straight track 60 to leave the first lane. One lane, without the need to descend to the ground along the vertical track, thereby avoiding conflicts with other robots in the first lane, making the scheduling of the robots easier.

Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram of another storage system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 5 , multiple circular tracks 50 may be arranged around multiple shelves 10 in the horizontal direction, and different circular tracks 50 may be provided at different heights.

A plurality of first linear tracks 60 are arranged in each lane along the extending direction of the lane. The two ends of the first linear track 60 are docked with the circular track 50 of corresponding height. The robot can move along the first linear track 60 so as to enter the circular track 50 at a corresponding height.

In one example, as shown in FIG. 5 , one circular track 50 may be set on the top of the shelf 10 , and one or more circular tracks 50 may be set in the middle of the shelf 10 . As shown in FIG. 5 , two circular rails 50 are set in the middle of the shelf 10 . In this way, the robot can move along the circular track at the top of the shelf, or along the circular track in the middle of the shelf.

In another example, a circular track 50 may be provided at a height corresponding to each storey location of the rack 10 . In this way, a "track shell" is formed around the exterior of the plurality of shelves 10, and the robot can move on any circular track, making the moving path of the robot more flexible.

It should be noted that in FIG. 5 , only the first straight track corresponding to the circular track on the top of the shelf is illustrated, and the first straight track corresponding to the rest of the circular tracks is not shown.

After the robot completes the pick-and-place operation in the first lane, if the control device determines that the robot needs to move to the first user's work area, the control device can determine the target circular orbit from multiple circular orbits, and plan a route through the first lane. , the path from the target circular track to the first user work area, and then control the robot to move along the planned path to reach the first user work area.

The target circular orbit may be determined from multiple circular orbits in the following feasible manner.

Method 1: Select the target circular orbit according to the principle of closeness in height.

Specifically, if there is a first circular track among the multiple circular tracks, and the height of the first circular track is the same as the current height of the robot, then the first circular track is determined as the target circular track. In this way, the robot does not need to ascend or descend along the vertical track, and directly enters the circular track with the same height as the robot, which makes the scheduling of the robot simple.

If the heights of multiple circular tracks are all different from the current height of the robot, the circular track whose height is closest to the current height of the robot is selected from the multiple circular tracks as the target circular track. Exemplarily, assuming that the third and sixth floors of the shelf are provided with circular tracks, if the robot is currently on the fourth floor, select the circular track on the third floor as the target circular track; if the robot is currently on the fifth floor, select The circular track of the sixth layer is used as the target circular track.

Method 2: Select the target circular orbit according to the principle of the shortest path.

Specifically, for each of the plurality of circular tracks, a candidate path is planned to pass through the first roadway, the circular track to the first user's work area, and a plurality of candidate paths are obtained; respectively The lengths of the multiple candidate paths are determined, and the circular track corresponding to the shortest length of the candidate path among the multiple circular tracks is determined as the target circular track. This way enables the robot to reach the first user's work area along the shortest path, improving the working efficiency of the robot.

Method 3: Select the target circular orbit according to the principle of the shortest time consumption.

Specifically, for each of the plurality of circular tracks, a candidate path is planned to pass through the first roadway, the circular track to the first user's work area, and a plurality of candidate paths are obtained; respectively Determine the time required for the robot to reach the first user's work area along each candidate path, and determine the circular track with the shortest corresponding duration among the plurality of circular tracks as the target circular track. This method enables the robot to reach the first user's work area in the shortest time, improving the working efficiency of the robot.

After determining the target circular track, the control device can control the robot to move from the current position to the target circular track.

In one example, if the height of the target circular track is equal to the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to move to the target circular track along the first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane. on track. For example, assuming that the target circular track is a circular track set on the sixth floor of the shelf, and the robot is currently on the sixth floor, then the robot is controlled to move to the target circular track along the first linear track set on the sixth floor in the first lane.

In another example, if the height of the target circular track is higher than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to rise along the vertical track in the first lane. When the robot rises to the height of the target circular track, the robot is controlled to rise along the vertical track in the first lane The first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track moves to the target circular track. For example, assuming that the target circular track is the circular track set on the 6th floor of the shelf, and the robot is currently on the 4th floor, then the robot is controlled to rise to the 6th floor along the vertical track in the first lane, and then set it on the shelf along the first lane. The first linear track of the 6th floor moves to the target circular track.

In yet another example, if the height of the target circular track is lower than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to descend along the vertical track in the first lane, and when the robot descends to the height of the target circular track, the robot is controlled to descend along the vertical track in the first lane. The first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track moves to the target circular track. For example, assuming that the target circular track is the circular track set on the 6th floor of the shelf, and the robot is currently on the 8th floor, then the control robot will descend to the 6th floor along the vertical track in the first lane, and then set it on the shelf along the first lane. The first linear track of the 6th floor moves to the target circular track.

The above-mentioned embodiments describe the manner in which the control device controls the robot to enter the circular track. When the user work area is located on the ground, the robot also needs to move to the user work area on the ground through a circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, an exit may also be provided on each circular track, and a slide rail extending from the circular track to the ground is provided at the position of the exit. In this way, when the robot enters the circular track, the control device can control the robot to move to the exit along the preset direction on the circular track, and then control the robot to move to the first user work area along the slide rail at the exit position.

Optionally, the slide rail may be a vertical structure extending along the height direction of the shelf, or may have a certain inclination relative to the vertical direction.

Optionally, the exit can be located at the edge of the storage area, and the slide rail can be close to the user work area outside the storage area. In this way, the robot can directly reach the user work area along the slide rail without interfering with other robots. work efficiency.

It should be understood that when multiple circular tracks are provided in the storage area, each circular track is provided with an exit, and the positions of the exits of different circular tracks may be the same or different, which is not limited in this embodiment.

In a possible implementation manner, each circular track may be provided with multiple outlets. The outlets may be located on different track sections of the circular track. This way, the robot can move to the ground through one of the exits.

In an example, the principle of the shortest distance may be used to select which exit to move to the ground. Specifically, when the robot enters the circular track, the control device can determine the first exit closest to the current position of the robot from multiple exits, control the robot to move to the first exit along the preset direction on the circular track, and pass through the first exit. A slide rail provided at the exit moves to the ground, and then reaches the first user's work area. This method can make the moving path of the robot shorter and improve the working efficiency of the robot.

In another example, the slide rails corresponding to different exits extend to different user work areas, and the corresponding exits can be determined according to the first user work area that the robot needs to reach. Specifically, when the robot enters the circular track, the second exit extending to the first user's work area is determined from the plurality of exits, and the robot is controlled to move to the second exit along the preset direction on the circular track and pass through the second exit. The set slide rail moves to the first user work area. This way can make the robot go directly to the first user's work area from the circular track. On the one hand, it can improve the work efficiency of the robot, and on the other hand, it can avoid conflicts between different robots and reduce the difficulty of scheduling.

In the above embodiments, the circular track can be used to move to the user's work area. In some possible implementation manners, the circular track can also be used for the robot to move from the first lane to the second lane, which will be described below in conjunction with FIG. 6 .

FIG. 6 is a schematic flowchart of another robot control method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 6, the method of this embodiment includes:

S601: After the robot completes the operation of picking and placing goods in the first lane, determine the next target position of the robot.

It should be understood that the implementation of S601 is similar to that of S301 in FIG. 3 , and details are not described here.

S602: If the next target position is a second lane, control the robot to move along a path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane; wherein , the robot moves along the preset direction on the circular track.

When the robot needs to move to the second lane, the control device can plan a path for the robot via the first lane, the circular track to the second lane, and then control the robot to move along the planned path to reach the second lane. It should be understood that the specific control principle of this embodiment is similar to that of the foregoing embodiments, and will not be described in detail here. The following is only combined with an example.

For example, taking the storage system shown in FIG. 3 as an example, it is assumed that the circular track is set on the top of the shelf. If the robot is currently on the third floor of the first aisle, the robot can be controlled to rise to the top of the shelf along the vertical track in the first aisle, and move to the circular track along the first linear track in the first aisle. Furthermore, the robot is controlled to move along the preset direction on the circular track until it reaches the docking position between the circular track and the first linear track in the second tunnel. At the docking position, the robot is controlled to turn and move along the first straight track in the second lane to the target storage location. Further, the robot can also be controlled to descend to the target height along the vertical track corresponding to the target storage location, so as to complete the pick-and-place operation in the second lane.

In this embodiment, the robot can be controlled to move to the second aisle along the path from the first aisle, the circular track to the second aisle, so that the robot can move to other aisles through the circular track without returning to the ground by the outside of the storage area Detours to other lanes improve the efficiency of the robot's movement between multiple lanes.

On the basis of the above embodiments, in the embodiments of the present disclosure, cross-lane tracks may also be set in the storage area, so as to further improve the efficiency of the cross-lane movement of the robot. It will be described below in conjunction with FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 .

FIG. 7 is a schematic flowchart of another robot control method provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 7, the method of this embodiment includes:

S701: After the robot finishes picking and placing goods in the first lane, determine the next target position of the robot.

It should be understood that the implementation of S701 is similar to that of S301 in FIG. 3 , and details are not described here.

S702: If the next target position of the robot is the second lane, control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the second linear track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane .

In this embodiment, the second straight track can also be called a cross-lane track. The second linear track can pass through multiple lanes so that the robot can move from one lane to another.

Fig. 8 is a schematic diagram of another storage system provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 8 , a second linear track 70 may be provided on top of multiple shelves 10 , and the length direction of the second linear track 70 is perpendicular to the length direction of the shelves 10 .

Specifically, since the lanes between adjacent shelves are relatively independent, and the extension directions of different lanes are parallel to each other, the robot cannot directly move from one lane to another lane in the prior art. By setting the second linear track on the top of the shelf, after the robot moves to the top of the shelf, it can move to other lanes through the second straight track, without returning to the ground and detouring to other lanes from the outside of the storage area, thereby improving the robot. Efficiency of movement between multiple lanes.

Optionally, the second linear track 70 can be set along the midpoint of each shelf 10 in the length direction, so that the robot can quickly move to the second linear track no matter which storage location it is in.

Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram of a robot movement provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. Fig. 9 takes the storage system shown in Fig. 8 as an example, illustrating how the robot moves on the circular track, the first linear track, and the second linear track on the top of the shelf. Referring to FIG. 9 , the robot can move to the circular track 50 along the first linear track 60 corresponding to each lane, and the robot can move unidirectionally in a preset direction (eg, counterclockwise) on the circular track. In addition, the robot can also move from one aisle to another along the second linear track.

For example, assume that each shelf has 9 locations, the first end of the shelf is location 1, the second end is location 9, and the second linear track is set at the midpoint location of multiple shelves (i.e. bit 5) at the top. Assume that the robot is currently at the second storage location on the third floor in lane 1, and the next target position is the seventh storage location on the fifth floor in lane 2. Then the control process of the robot is as follows: control the robot to rise to the top of the shelf along the vertical track in the lane 1, and move to the second end of the shelf along the first linear track in the lane 1 on the top of the shelf until it moves into the lane 1 The docking position of the first linear track and the second linear track. The robot is controlled to turn at the docking position, and move along the second linear track toward the roadway 2 until it reaches the docking position between the second straight track and the first straight track in the roadway 2 . Furthermore, the robot is controlled to turn around at the docking position, and move along the first straight track in the lane 2 toward the second end of the rack until it reaches the warehouse location 7 . The robot is controlled to descend to the storage location on the third floor along the vertical track in the lane 2.

Optionally, there can be multiple second linear tracks, and multiple second linear tracks can be arranged in parallel with each other at intervals, so that the first linear track and the second linear track on the top of the shelf can criss-cross to form a track network, for The scheduling of robots provides more possibilities, making the entire warehousing system applicable to more complex cargo delivery tasks.

In the case that multiple second linear tracks are provided, when the robot needs to move across the lane, one of the second straight track can be selected to cross the lane.

In one example, the moving distances required for the robot to move through the first lane to each second linear track can be acquired respectively; the second linear track with the shortest moving distance is selected from multiple second linear tracks as the target linear track, and the robot is controlled along the way Moving through the first lane, the target straight track to the path of the second lane, so as to reach the second lane.

For example, it is assumed that three second linear tracks are provided, which are respectively arranged on the tops of storage locations 2, 5 and 8 of each shelf. If the robot is currently located at storage location 3 in the first lane, the second linear track at the top of storage location 2 is used as the target linear track. If the robot is currently located at the storage location 7 in the first lane, the second linear track at the top of the storage location 8 is used as the target linear track.

In this embodiment, the robot can be controlled to move to the second roadway along the path from the first roadway, the second straight track to the second roadway, so that the robot can move to other roadways through the second straight track without returning to the ground to The outside of the storage area detours to other lanes, thereby improving the moving efficiency of the robot between multiple lanes.

Fig. 10 is a schematic structural diagram of a robot control device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in FIG. 10 , the robot control device 1000 provided in this embodiment may include: a determining module 1001 and a determining module 1002.

Wherein, the robot is located in a storage area, and the storage area includes a plurality of shelves arranged at intervals, an aisle is formed between adjacent shelves, and at least one circular track is arranged around the plurality of shelves in the horizontal direction.

A determining module 1001, configured to determine the next target position of the robot after the robot completes the pick-and-place operation in the first lane;

A control module 1002, configured to control the robot to move along a path passing through the first lane and the circular track to the first user operation area if the next target position is the first user operation area, so as to Arriving at the first user work area; wherein, the robot moves along a preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple circular tracks, and different circular tracks have different heights; the control module 1002 is specifically used for:

determining a target circular orbit from the plurality of circular orbits;

Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track through the first lane.

In a possible implementation manner, the control module 1002 is specifically configured to:

If there is a first circular track in the plurality of circular tracks, and the height of the first circular track is the same as the current height of the robot, then the first circular track is determined as the target circular track; or,

If the heights of the plurality of circular tracks are all different from the current height of the robot, selecting a circular track whose height is closest to the current height of the robot from the multiple circular tracks as the target circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, the control module 1002 is specifically configured to:

Respectively for each of the plurality of circular tracks, plan a candidate path passing through the first roadway, the circular track to the first user's work area, and obtain multiple candidate paths;

respectively determining the lengths of the plurality of candidate paths;

Determining, among the plurality of circular trajectories, the circular trajectory corresponding to the shortest length of the candidate path as the target circular trajectory.

In a possible implementation manner, each of the tunnels is provided with a plurality of first linear tracks along the direction in which the tunnel extends, and the height of the plurality of first linear tracks is the same as the height of the plurality of circular tracks. The heights are one-to-one correspondence, and the two ends of each first linear track are docked with the circular track of the corresponding height; the control module 1002 is specifically used for:

If the height of the target circular track is equal to the current height of the robot, control the robot to move to the target circular track along the first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane on track; or,

If the height of the target circular track is higher than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to rise along the vertical track in the first lane, and when the robot rises to the height of the target circular track, Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track along a first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane; or,

If the height of the target circular track is lower than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to descend along the vertical track in the first lane, and when the robot descends to the height of the target circular track, Controlling the robot to move onto the target circular track along a first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane.

In a possible implementation manner, the number of the circular track is one, the circular track is arranged on the top of the plurality of shelves, and each of the lanes is provided with a first straight line along the extending direction of the lane. track, the height of the first linear track is the same as the height of the circular track, and the two ends of the first linear track are docked with the circular track; the control module 1002 is specifically used for:

controlling the robot to rise along the vertical track in the first lane;

When the robot rises to the height of the ring shelf, the robot is controlled to move onto the ring track along the first linear track in the first lane.

In a possible implementation manner, the first user work area is located on the ground; an exit is provided on the circular track, and a slide rail extending from the circular track to the ground is provided at the position of the exit; the The control module 1002 is specifically used for:

controlling the robot to move to the exit along a preset direction on the circular track;

The robot is controlled to move to the first user work area along the slide rail at the exit position.

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple outlets; the control module 1002 is specifically used for:

determining a first exit from the plurality of exits that is closest to the robot's current location;

The robot is controlled to move to the first exit along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation, there are multiple exits, and the slide rails corresponding to different exits extend to different user work areas; the control module 1002 is specifically used for:

determining a second exit extending to the first user work area from the plurality of exits;

The robot is controlled to move to the second exit along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, the control module 1002 is further configured to:

If the next target position is the second lane, then control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane; wherein, The robot moves along the preset direction on the circular track.

In a possible implementation manner, the tops of the plurality of shelves are provided with second linear tracks, and the length direction of the second linear tracks is perpendicular to the length direction of the shelves; the control module 1002 is also used for:

If the next target position of the robot is the second lane, then control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the second linear track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane .

In a possible implementation manner, there are multiple second linear tracks; the control module 1002 is specifically used for:

Respectively acquiring the moving distances required for the robot to move through the first lane to each of the second linear tracks;

Selecting the second linear track with the shortest moving distance from the plurality of second linear tracks as the target linear track;

The robot is controlled to move along a path passing through the first lane, the target straight track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane.

The robot control device provided in this embodiment can be used to execute any of the above-mentioned method embodiments, and its implementation principles and technical effects are similar, and will not be repeated here.

Fig. 11 is a schematic structural diagram of a control device provided by an embodiment of the present disclosure. As shown in Figure 11, the control device of this embodiment may include:

at least one processor 1101; and

a memory 1102 communicatively coupled to the at least one processor;

Wherein, the memory 1102 stores instructions that can be executed by the at least one processor 1101, and the instructions are executed by the at least one processor 1101, so that the control device performs the method described in any of the above-mentioned embodiments. method.

Optionally, the memory 1102 can be independent or integrated with the processor 1101 .

The implementation principles and technical effects of the control device provided in this embodiment can be referred to the foregoing embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

An embodiment of the present disclosure also provides a storage system, including the control device described in any one of the foregoing embodiments, a plurality of shelves, and a robot.

In the storage system provided by the embodiments of the present disclosure, the specific working principles, processes and beneficial effects of the control equipment can be referred to the foregoing embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

An embodiment of the present disclosure also provides a computer-readable storage medium, where computer-executable instructions are stored in the computer-readable storage medium, and when the processor executes the computer-executable instructions, the method as described in any of the preceding embodiments is implemented .

In the several embodiments provided in the present disclosure, it should be understood that the disclosed devices and methods may be implemented in other ways. For example, the device embodiments described above are only illustrative. For example, the division of the modules is only a logical function division. In actual implementation, there may be other division methods, for example, multiple modules can be combined or integrated. to another system, or some features may be ignored, or not implemented. In another point, the mutual coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces, and the indirect coupling or communication connection of devices or modules may be in electrical, mechanical or other forms.

The modules described as separate components may or may not be physically separated, and the components shown as modules may or may not be physical units, that is, they may be located in one place, or may be distributed to multiple network units. Part or all of the modules can be selected according to actual needs to implement the solution of this embodiment.

In addition, each functional module in each embodiment of the present disclosure may be integrated into one processing unit, each module may exist separately physically, or two or more modules may be integrated into one unit. The units formed by the above modules can be implemented in the form of hardware, or in the form of hardware plus software functional units.

The above-mentioned integrated modules implemented in the form of software function modules may be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. The above-mentioned software function modules are stored in a storage medium, and include several instructions to make a computer device (which may be a personal computer, server, or network device, etc.) or a processor execute some steps of the methods described in various embodiments of the present disclosure.

It should be understood that the above-mentioned processor may be a central processing unit (Central Processing Unit, referred to as CPU), and may also be other general-purpose processors, digital signal processors (Digital Signal Processor, referred to as DSP), application specific integrated circuits (Application Specific Integrated Circuit, referred to as ASIC) and so on. A general-purpose processor may be a microprocessor, or the processor may be any conventional processor, or the like. The steps of the method disclosed in conjunction with the invention can be directly implemented by a hardware processor, or implemented by a combination of hardware and software modules in the processor.

The storage may include a high-speed RAM memory, and may also include a non-volatile storage NVM, such as at least one disk storage, and may also be a U disk, a mobile hard disk, a read-only memory, a magnetic disk, or an optical disk.

The bus can be an Industry Standard Architecture (ISA) bus, a Peripheral Component Interconnect (PCI) bus, or an Extended Industry Standard Architecture (EISA) bus. The bus can be divided into address bus, data bus, control bus and so on. For ease of representation, the buses in the drawings of the present disclosure are not limited to only one bus or one type of bus.

The above-mentioned storage medium can be realized by any type of volatile or non-volatile storage device or their combination, such as static random access memory (SRAM), electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), erasable In addition to programmable read-only memory (EPROM), programmable read-only memory (PROM), read-only memory (ROM), magnetic memory, flash memory, magnetic disk or optical disk. A storage media may be any available media that can be accessed by a general purpose or special purpose computer.

An exemplary storage medium is coupled to the processor such the processor can read information from, and write information to, the storage medium. Of course, the storage medium may also be a component of the processor. The processor and the storage medium may be located in Application Specific Integrated Circuits (ASIC for short). Of course, the processor and the storage medium can also exist in the electronic device or the main control device as discrete components.

Those of ordinary skill in the art can understand that all or part of the steps for implementing the above method embodiments can be completed by program instructions and related hardware. The aforementioned program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. When the program is executed, it executes the steps including the above-mentioned method embodiments; and the aforementioned storage medium includes: ROM, RAM, magnetic disk or optical disk and other various media that can store program codes.

Finally, it should be noted that: the above embodiments are only used to illustrate the technical solutions of the present disclosure, not to limit them; although the present disclosure has been described in detail with reference to the foregoing embodiments, those of ordinary skill in the art should understand that: It is still possible to modify the technical solutions described in the foregoing embodiments, or perform equivalent replacements for some or all of the technical features; and these modifications or replacements do not make the essence of the corresponding technical solutions deviate from the technical solutions of the various embodiments of the present disclosure. scope.

Claims (17)

1. A control method for a robot, characterized in that the robot is located in a storage area, the storage area includes a plurality of shelves arranged at intervals, a laneway is formed between adjacent shelves, and the plurality of shelves are surrounded in the horizontal direction. The shelf is provided with a circular track; the method includes:

   After the robot completes the pick-and-place operation in the first lane, determine the next target position of the robot;

   If the next target position is the first user's work area, control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the first user's work area, so as to reach the first user A working area; wherein, the robot moves along a preset direction on the circular track.
2. The method according to claim 1, wherein the number of said circular tracks is multiple, and the heights of different said circular tracks are different;

   Controlling the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the first user work area includes:

   determining a target circular orbit from the plurality of circular orbits;

   Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track through the first lane.
3. The method according to claim 2, wherein determining the target circular orbit from the plurality of circular orbits comprises:

   If there is a first circular track in the plurality of circular tracks, and the height of the first circular track is the same as the current height of the robot, then the first circular track is determined as the target circular track; or,

   If the heights of the plurality of circular tracks are all different from the current height of the robot, selecting a circular track whose height is closest to the current height of the robot from the multiple circular tracks as the target circular track.
4. The method according to claim 2, wherein determining the target circular orbit from the plurality of circular orbits comprises:

   Respectively for each of the plurality of circular tracks, plan a candidate path passing through the first roadway, the circular track to the first user's work area, and obtain multiple candidate paths;

   respectively determining the lengths of the plurality of candidate paths;

   Determining, among the plurality of circular trajectories, the circular trajectory corresponding to the shortest length of the candidate path as the target circular trajectory.
5. The method according to claim 3 or 4, wherein a plurality of first linear tracks are arranged in each of the tunnels along the direction in which the tunnel extends, and the height of the plurality of first linear tracks is the same as that of the first linear tracks. The heights of the plurality of circular tracks are in one-to-one correspondence, and both ends of each first linear track are docked with circular tracks of corresponding heights;

   Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track through the first lane includes:

   If the height of the target circular track is equal to the current height of the robot, control the robot to move to the target circular track along the first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane on track; or,

   If the height of the target circular track is higher than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to rise along the vertical track in the first lane, and when the robot rises to the height of the target circular track, Controlling the robot to move to the target circular track along a first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane; or,

   If the height of the target circular track is lower than the current height of the robot, the robot is controlled to descend along the vertical track in the first lane, and when the robot descends to the height of the target circular track, Controlling the robot to move onto the target circular track along a first linear track corresponding to the height of the target circular track in the first lane.
6. The method according to claim 1, wherein the number of said circular track is one, said circular track is set on the top of said plurality of shelves, and each said lane is set along the direction in which said lane extends There is a first linear track, the height of the first linear track is the same as that of the circular track, and the two ends of the first linear track are docked with the circular track;

   Controlling the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the first user work area includes:

   controlling the robot to rise along the vertical track in the first lane;

   When the robot rises to the height of the ring shelf, the robot is controlled to move onto the ring track along the first linear track in the first lane.
7. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the first user operation area is located on the ground; an exit is provided on the circular track, and an exit from the circular track is provided at the position of the exit. A slide rail whose track extends toward the ground;

   Controlling the robot to move along the path through the first lane, the circular track to the first user work area, including:

   controlling the robot to move to the exit along a preset direction on the circular track;

   The robot is controlled to move to the first user work area along the slide rail at the exit position.
8. The method according to claim 7, wherein there are multiple exits; controlling the robot to move to the exit in a preset direction on the circular track comprises:

   determining a first exit from the plurality of exits that is closest to the robot's current location;

   The robot is controlled to move to the first exit along the preset direction on the circular track.
9. The method according to claim 7, characterized in that there are multiple outlets, and the slide rails corresponding to different outlets extend to different user work areas;

   Controlling the robot to move to the exit along the preset direction on the circular track includes:

   determining a second exit extending to the first user work area from the plurality of exits;

   The robot is controlled to move to the second exit along the preset direction on the circular track.
10. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the method further comprises:

    If the next target position is the second lane, then control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the circular track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane; wherein, The robot moves along the preset direction on the circular track.
11. The method according to any one of claims 1 to 9, wherein the tops of the plurality of shelves are provided with second linear tracks, and the length direction of the second linear tracks is perpendicular to the length direction of the shelves; The method also includes:

    If the next target position of the robot is the second lane, then control the robot to move along the path passing through the first lane, the second linear track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane .
12. The method according to claim 11, characterized in that, there are multiple second linear tracks; The path moved to reach the second roadway includes:

    Respectively acquiring the moving distances required for the robot to move through the first lane to each of the second linear tracks;

    Selecting the second straight track with the shortest moving distance from the plurality of second straight track as the target straight track;

    The robot is controlled to move along a path passing through the first lane, the target straight track to the second lane, so as to reach the second lane.
13. A control device for a robot, characterized in that the robot is located in a storage area, the storage area includes a plurality of shelves arranged at intervals, a laneway is formed between adjacent shelves, and the plurality of shelves are surrounded in the horizontal direction. The shelf is provided with at least one circular track; the device includes:

    A determination module, configured to determine the next target position of the robot after the robot completes the pick-and-place operation in the first lane;

    A control module, configured to control the robot to move along a path passing through the first lane and the circular track to the first user operation area if the next target position is the first user operation area, so as to reach The first user work area; wherein, the robot moves along the preset direction on the circular track.
14. A control device, characterized in that it comprises:

    at least one processor; and

    memory communicatively coupled to the at least one processor;

    Wherein, the memory stores instructions executable by the at least one processor, and the instructions are executed by the at least one processor, so that the control device executes the method according to any one of claims 1-12. method.
15. A control system, characterized by comprising: a plurality of shelves, a robot and the control device according to claim 14 .
16. A computer-readable storage medium, wherein computer-readable instructions are stored in the computer-readable storage medium, and when the processor executes the computer-executable instructions, the method according to any one of claims 1-12 is realized. method.
17. A computer program product, characterized in that the computer program product includes a computer program, and when the computer program is executed by a processor, the method according to any one of claims 1-12 is realized.

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