Systems, devices and methods of controlling motorized transport units in a retail shopping facility

Abstract

Some embodiments include apparatuses to fulfill customer orders comprising a motorized transport unit; a product pick unit (PPU) that cooperate with the motorized transport unit; a wireless communication network; and a central computer system configured to communicate with the multiple motorized transport units and the plurality of product pick units, and comprises a control circuit and memory storing instructions executed to cause the control circuit to: communicate an instruction to the motorized transport unit and direct the motorized transport unit to transport the product pick unit to a determined first location within the shopping facility proximate to where a first product having been ordered is located; and communicate an instruction to the product pick unit cooperated with the motorized transport unit and direct the product pick unit to retrieve the first product.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A system to fulfill a customer order, comprising:
 a plurality of self-propelled motorized transport units (MTU) each configured to move through at least a portion of a retail shopping facility that is configured such that customers regularly enter and travel through at least a sales floor portion of the retail shopping facility to locate and purchase products from the retail shopping facility, wherein each of the motorized transport units comprises:
 an item container configured to receive products placed into the item container by a customer and retain the products intended to be purchased; 
 an MTU control circuit; 
 a product scanner communicatively coupled with the MTU control circuit and configured scan and obtain product identifying information for products placed into the item container and communicate the product identifying information to the MTU control circuit; 
 a user interface communicatively coupled with the MTU control circuit wherein the MTU control circuit is configured to present information to the customer, including an identifier of the products placed into the item container, and receive input from the customer; 
 a wireless transceiver communicatively coupled with the MTU control circuit, wherein the MTU control circuit is configured to wirelessly communicate and wirelessly receive at least instructions from a separate and remote central computer system through the wireless transceiver; 
 a motorized locomotion system communicatively coupled with the MTU control circuit and controlled by the MTU control circuit, wherein the MTU control circuit is configured to control the locomotion system to transport the MTU and item container through at least the portion of the retail shopping facility enabling the customer to acquire desired products; and 
 a plurality of location sensors detecting sensor data utilized to determine a location within the retail shopping facility in accordance with at least a two-dimensional map of the retail shopping facility; and 
   the central computer system comprising a central control circuit communicatively coupled with a wireless central control transceiver and configured to wirelessly communicate with each of the plurality of MTUs, determine locations of each of the MTUs within the retail shopping facility, and communicate the instructions to the MTUs wherein the instructions in part are utilized by the respective MTU control circuits to control the movements of the MTUs within the retail shopping facility.   
     
     
         2 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the central computer system is further configured to:
 wirelessly communicate through the central control transceiver with the plurality of MTUs and with a plurality of user interface units each exclusively associated with a particular customer of a plurality of customers;   temporarily associate each of the plurality of user interface units with a respective one of the plurality of MTUs while the respective MTU is to be used to support the respective customer associated with the respective user interface unit; and   communicate the instructions used by the respective MTU control circuits to control movement of a respective one of the plurality of MTUs through the retail shopping facility based at least on inputs from the respective user interface unit that is temporarily associated with the respective MTU.   
     
     
         3 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the central computer system is further configured to:
 receive a voice input comprising an MTU command from the customer via a particular one of the user interface units that is associated with a particular one of the MTUs;   transmit to the particular one of the user interface units an MTU instruction that corresponds to the MTU command, such that the particular one of the user interface units can then provide that MTU instruction to the particular one of the MTUs for execution by the particular one of the MTUs.   
     
     
         4 . The system of  claim 2 , wherein the central computer system is further configured to:
 wherein the MTU control circuit is configured to display through the user interface product information regarding products identified in a listing provided through an application operated on a user interface unit operated by the customer; and   
     
     
         5 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the system further comprises:
 wherein each of the plurality of motorized transport units comprises at least one light receiver configured to receive light emitted one or more light sources of multiple different lights sources distributed throughout the retail shopping facility and configured to emit light encoding a light source identifier, and extract from the received light a light identifier encoded in the light from the one or more light sources; and   a location control unit configured to receive the light source identifier of each of the one or more light sources and determine a location of at least one of the plurality of MTUs in the retail shopping facility based at least on the light source identifiers from the at least one light receiver of the at least one of the plurality of MTUs.   
     
     
         6 . The system of  claim 5 , wherein each of the plurality of MTUs comprises at least one additional sensor configured to detect objects within an intended path of movement of the respective MTU through the retail shopping facility. 
     
     
         7 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein the central computer system outputs signals to control movement of the plurality of MTUs, the signals generated based on one or more of: movement instructions determined by the central computer system; commands received at a user interface unit from a customer; and commands received at the central computer system from a remote user not located at the retail shopping facility. 
     
     
         8 . The system of  claim 7 , wherein the central computer system is configured to automatically generate a travel route of at least one of the plurality of MTUs through the retail shopping facility based on one or more of: a user provided list of items entered by the user via a user interface unit; user selected route preferences entered by the user via the user interface unit;
 user profile data received from a user information database; and product availability information from a retail inventory database.   
     
     
         9 . The system of  claim 1 , wherein at least a first MTU of the plurality of MTUs comprises:
 a first product pick unit (PPU) comprising the item container and configured to autonomously retrieve multiple products and deposit each of the multiple products into the item container.   
     
     
         10 . The system of  claim 9 , wherein the central computer system is further configured to identify two or more products of the multiple products specified in a customer's order, and determine routing through the shopping facility along which the first MTU is to transport the first PPU to acquire the two or more products such that damage to a first product of the two or more products does not occur from a retrieval of a second product of the two or more products, wherein the instruction communicated by the central computer system to the first MTU comprises route information in accordance with the determined routing that is to be implemented by the first MTU to transport the first PPU and autonomously acquire the first product and the second product while avoiding damage to the first product and the second product. 
     
     
         11 . A method of controlling movement of a motorized transport unit through a retail shopping facility, comprising:
 by a central control circuit:   determining locations within the shopping facility of each of a plurality of motorized transport units (MTU) within the retail shopping facility, wherein each of the MTUs is separate from the control circuit and each of the MTUs comprises an item container integral with the respective MTU, wherein the shopping facility is configured such that customers regularly enter and travel through at least a sales floor portion of the retail shopping facility to locate and purchase products from the retail shopping facility, including determining a location of a first motorized transport unit (MTU), of a plurality of self-propelled motorized transport units (MTU), and wherein the item container is configured to receive products placed into the item container by the customer and retain the products intended to be purchased;   receiving a communication from a portable user interface unit exclusively associated with a customer;   determining a routing of the first MTU through the shopping facility based on the communication from the portable user interface unit;   wirelessly communicating instructions to each of the plurality of MTUs directing the MTUs to transport the corresponding item container integral with the MTU through the retail shopping facility to support the customer temporarily associated with the first MTU as the customer travels through and shops for one or more products available for purchase from the shopping facility and causing a MTU control circuit of each of the plurality of MTUs to control a motorized locomotion system of the MTU that is communicatively coupled with the MTU control circuit and controlled by the MTU control circuit in implementing the instructions, to transport the MTU and item container through at least the portion of the shopping facility enabling the customer to acquire desired products; and   wirelessly receiving product identifying information from each of the plurality of the MTUs captures by a product scanner communicatively coupled with the MTU control circuit and configured scan and obtain the product identifying information for products placed into the item container.   
     
     
         12 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising:
 temporarily associating each of a plurality of user interface units with a respective one of the plurality of MTUs while the respective MTU is to be used to support the respective customer associated with the respective user interface unit; and   communicating the instructions used by the respective MTU control circuits to control movement of a respective one of the plurality of MTUs through the retail shopping facility based at least on inputs from the respective user interface unit that is temporarily associated with the respective MTU.   
     
     
         13 . The method of  claim 12 ,
 receiving a voice input comprising an MTU command from the customer via a particular one of the user interface units that is associated with a particular one of the MTUs;   transmitting to the particular one of the user interface units an additional MTU instruction that corresponds to the MTU command; and   causing the particular one of the user interface units to wirelessly communicate the additional MTU instruction to the particular one of the MTUs for execution by the particular one of the MTUs.   
     
     
         14 . The method of  claim 12 , further comprising:
 causing the MTU control circuit of the particular MTU to display, through a user interface cooperated with the particular MTU, product information regarding products identified in a listing provided through an application operated on the particular user interface unit operated by the customer.   
     
     
         15 . The method of  claim 11 , further comprising:
 wirelessly receiving, from the particular MTU, a light identifier obtained by at least one light receiver, of the particular MTU, configured to receive light emitted one or more light sources of multiple different lights sources distributed throughout the shopping facility and configured to emit light encoding the light identifier, and wherein the light receiver is configured to extract from the received light the light identifier that is encoded in the light from the one or more light sources; and   wherein the determining the location within the shopping facility of each of a plurality of MTUs comprises determining a location of at the particular MTU of the plurality of MTUs in the shopping facility based at least on the light identifier from the at least one light receiver of the particular MTU.   
     
     
         16 . The method of  claim 15 , further comprising:
 receiving additional sensor data from the particular MTU that comprises at least one additional sensor configured to detect objects within an intended path of movement of the respective MTU through the retail shopping facility; and   wherein the communicating the instructions comprises communicating the instructions based on the additional sensor data.   
     
     
         17 . The method of  claim 11 , wherein the communication the instructions comprises generating the instructions based on one or more of: movement instructions determined by the central computer system; commands received at a user interface unit from a customer; and commands received at the central computer system from a remote user not located at the retail shopping facility. 
     
     
         18 . The method of  claim 17 , wherein the generating the instructions comprises automatically generating a travel route each of the plurality of MTUs through the shopping facility based on one or more of: a customer provided list of items entered by the customer via the user interface unit; customer selected route preferences entered by the customer via the user interface unit; user profile data received from a user information database; and product availability information from a retail inventory database.