Systems and methods for providing power search and harvesting in a drone device provide execution of one or more tasks, wherein one of the tasks has a higher priority than the remaining tasks. A power mode is determined for executing the highest priority task by sequentially determining whether the highest priority task can be executed in one of a plurality of execution scenarios including from a charging pad associated with the drone, from another location using energy harvested from an existing energy source, from another location using energy harvested from an energy source enabled by the drone, or from another location using battery power alone. The highest priority task is executed in keeping with the first usable execution scenario found during the sequential determination.

A system for configuring generic maintenance activity scheduling is provided. For example, user input may help define a maintenance process for a plurality of mobile drive units of the physical workspace. The maintenance process may be defined through a configuration of activity templates and input templates. Input may be received to configure maintenance activities and the system may automatically correlate failure rules with the activity template. The system may generate the configurable electronic instructions for the mobile drive units and transmit them with the failure rules, if generated, to one or more mobile drive units of the physical workspace. When the one or more mobile device units receive the configurable electronic instruction, the mobile drive units may operate in accordance with the configurable electronic instruction.

When it is detected that the charging of a battery is finished, a server transmits transport-out instructions for a vehicle to a vehicle transport apparatus, and when receiving the transport-out instructions transmitted from the server, the vehicle transport apparatus transports the vehicle, for which the charging of the battery is finished, out of a charging space.

Robotic apparatus employ a large variety of resources to operate. A robotic apparatus seeks out sources of energy, computational capacity, shelter, communications, and/or other resources to preserve or renew its energy stores, computational resources, or physical integrity and/or to receive further guidance or direction or to report collected or sensed data or information. A robotic apparatus can determine the existence of a resource deficiency or projected resource deficiency, assess a ranking of such, identify one or more remedial actions, and execute the remedial action(s). A robotic apparatus can assess a ranking of a resource deficiency or projected resource deficiency based on a value of the resource, a severity of need or urgency for the resource, and ability to obtain or replenish the source.

A charging system, wherein a movable body has an automatic operation function, the charging system comprises: a movable body managing unit that manages a charging state of the storage battery of the movable body; and a waiting space managing unit that manages a usage state of a plurality of waiting spaces for keeping the movable body waiting, the waiting space managing unit has: a waiting space determining unit that determines, among the plurality of waiting spaces that the waiting space managing unit is managing, a waiting space for keeping the movable body waiting after charging of the movable body has completed, if the movable body managing unit has detected that: (i) charging of the movable body is being started; (ii) charging of the movable body has been started; (iii) charging of the movable body is completing; or (iv) charging of the movable body has completed.

A system used in a factory for manufacture of a vehicle comprises: a remote controller remotely controlling running of the vehicle capable of running in the factory during a course of manufacture in the factory, the vehicle including a communication device having a communication function for remote control and a secondary battery for running; a power feeder available for charging the secondary battery; a manufacturing status acquisition unit acquiring information about a manufacturing status in the factory; and a feeding judgment unit judging whether to feed the vehicle using the acquired information about the manufacturing status. When the feeding judgment unit judges that the vehicle is to be fed, the vehicle is fed using the power feeder.

A scheduling system includes first circuitry and second circuitry. The first circuitry stores, in a memory, information on a plurality of tasks to be executed by at least one mobile device. The information on the plurality of tasks includes information on an estimated amount of battery consumption of the at least one mobile device in executing each of the plurality of tasks. The second circuitry receives designation of the plurality of tasks to be executed by the at least one mobile device. The second circuitry further causes a display to display a screen having a schedule in which the plurality of tasks is arranged for the at least one mobile device based on the information on the estimated amount of battery consumption.

Robotic apparatus employ a large variety of resources to operate. A robotic apparatus seeks out sources of energy, computational capacity, shelter, communications, and/or other resources to preserve or renew its energy stores, computational resources, or physical integrity and/or to receive further guidance or direction or to report collected or sensed data or information. A robotic apparatus can determine the existence of a resource deficiency or projected resource deficiency, assess a ranking of such, identify one or more remedial actions, and execute the remedial action(s). A robotic apparatus can assess a ranking of a resource deficiency or projected resource deficiency based on a value of the resource, a severity of need or urgency for the resource, and ability to obtain or replenish the source.

In an article transport facility, the operational states of each of transport vehicles include a first state in which the transport vehicle is traveling to a transport destination being set to receive or transfer articles and a second state in which the transport destination is not set. A transport vehicle, among the transport vehicles, in the second state is a standby vehicle. A control system obtains, in determining a travel destination of the standby vehicle, information indicating a battery level of a power storage included in the standby vehicle. The control system determines the travel destination in a charging area or in a non-charging area in response to the battery level being greater than or equal to a set value and determines the travel destination in the charging area in response to the battery level being less than the set value.