US 12,330,875 B1
Storage, retrieval and order sortation arranged in vertical orientation
James M. Serstad, Orlando, FL (US); Michael C. Futch, Cocoa, FL (US); and Parthiban A. Mathavan, Cary, NC (US)
Assigned to Tompkins Robotics, Inc., Orlando, FL (US)
Filed by Tompkins Robotics, Inc., Orlando, FL (US)
Filed on Jun. 14, 2024, as Appl. No. 18/743,203.
Application 18/743,203 is a continuation of application No. PCT/US2024/033838, filed on Jun. 13, 2024.
Claims priority of provisional application 63/565,644, filed on Mar. 15, 2024.
Int. Cl. B65G 1/137 (2006.01); B65G 1/04 (2006.01)
CPC B65G 1/1378 (2013.01) [B65G 1/0464 (2013.01); B65G 1/0492 (2013.01)] 19 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. An order fulfillment system comprising:
an order sortation system comprising one or more computer controlled vehicles configured for traveling in all directions on a platform that is elevated from a proximal surface for transporting and depositing articles to be sorted into a plurality of receptacles in response to commands;
an article storage and retrieval system separate from the order sortation system, the article storage and retrieval system positioned directly above the order sortation system, the article storage and retrieval system comprising a three-dimensional array of storage spaces from which the articles to be sorted are automatically retrievable by one or more retrieval mechanisms in response to commands; and
a controller configured to:
receive an order;
direct a retrieval mechanism of the article storage and retrieval system to move a storage bin containing a first article required for the order to an output station;
direct collecting, at the output station, of the first article from the storage bin;
direct a computer controlled vehicle to transport and deposit the first article collected from the storage bin into a first destination receptacle among a plurality of destination receptacles, wherein the first destination receptacle corresponds with the order; and
determine when the order is complete.