US 12,293,322 B2
Systems and methods of merging retail products between containers to optimize storing capacity of retail storage facilities
Vivek Tomar, Cincinnati, OH (US); Rei E. Siew Hew Sam, New York, NY (US); Sunada S N Chakravarthy, Metuchen, NJ (US); and Kaiwen Luo, Atlanta, GA (US)
Assigned to Walmart Apollo, LLC, Bentonville, AR (US)
Filed by Walmart Apollo, LLC, Bentonville, AR (US)
Filed on Feb. 23, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/586,296.
Application 18/586,296 is a continuation of application No. 18/101,493, filed on Jan. 25, 2023, granted, now 11,948,120.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/304,908, filed on Jan. 31, 2022.
Prior Publication US 2024/0193529 A1, Jun. 13, 2024
This patent is subject to a terminal disclaimer.
Int. Cl. G06Q 10/08 (2024.01); B65G 1/137 (2006.01)
CPC G06Q 10/08 (2013.01) [B65G 1/1373 (2013.01)] 20 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An automated storage and retrieval system for managing storage of inventory at a retail facility, the system comprising:
a storage structure including a plurality of storage locations configured to store a plurality of containers, each of the containers containing a plurality of products;
a container transport system including at least one conveyor configured to transport the containers between the storage locations and at least one picking station, where one or more products are removed from one or more of the containers;
a control unit operatively coupled to the container transport system and configured to control movement of the at least one conveyor of the container transport system; and
a control circuit communicatively coupled to the control unit, the control circuit being configured to:
identify two adjacent containers that are eligible for product merging therebetween; and
in response to receipt of a signal indicating that the two adjacent containers identified as being eligible for the product merging arrived at the at least one picking station, cause the two adjacent containers that are eligible for the product merging to remain at the at least one picking station until all of the products stored in a first one of the two adjacent containers are removed from the first one of the two adjacent containers and merged with the products stored in a second one of the two adjacent containers.