Provided is an autonomous moving body that controls driving wheels by allowing a trailing caster to be located on a front side with respect to a traveling direction when it is recognized that there is no step in a traveling direction and controls the driving wheels to change the orientation of a base body in which the driving wheels and the trailing caster are arranged and approach the step so that at least one of two driving wheels contacts the step before the trailing caster contacts the step when it is recognized that there is a step in the traveling direction.

Systems and methods for towing, hitching, and connecting devices are described. An autonomous guided vehicle includes an automated hitch capable of connecting to a variety of types of containers.

A localization device using a magnetic field for positioning a moving object is provided. The localization device includes a magnetic landmark, a set of at least four tri-axes magnetic sensors mounted on the moving object, and a logic operation processing unit. The set of at least four tri-axes magnetic sensors forms four non-coplanar points in a three-dimension coordinate system. The logic operation processing unit is connected to the set of at least four tri-axes magnetic sensors. The set of at least four tri-axes magnetic sensors senses the magnetic field of the magnetic landmark and generates at least four magnetic signals transmitted to the logic operation processing unit.

Systems and methods for loading and delivering stalk subassemblies and yarn packages are disclosed herein. Such systems and methods can have at least one processor, at least one automated guided vehicle, at least one creel assembly, and an automated creel loading assembly. The at least one automated guided vehicle can be communicatively coupled to the at least one processor. The at least one processor can be configured to selectively direct an automated guided vehicle to engage a respective stalk subassembly. Upon engagement between the automated guided vehicle and the stalk subassembly, the processor can be configured to selectively direct the automated guided vehicle to move about and between the selected operative position within the creel assembly and a loading position proximate the automated creel loading assembly.

Systems and methods for autonomous provision replenishment are disclosed. Parts used in a manufacturing process are stored in an intermediate stock queue. When the parts are consumed by the manufacturing process and the number of parts in the queue falls below a threshold, a provision-replenishment signal is generated. One or more self-driving material-transport vehicles, a fleet-management system, and a provision-notification device.

A cart alignment device of the present disclosure is used in a delivery system that delivers an article using a cart including a loading section for loading articles and a caster disposed in the loading section and having wheels capable of changing a movement direction of the loading section. The cart alignment device includes a rail member configured to guide the caster of the cart in a predetermined arrangement direction, and a disposition section configured to dispose and fix the rail member in a collection chamber for accommodating one or more carts.

A method handles malfunctioning vehicles on a track system constituting part of a storage and retrieval system configured to store a plurality of stacks of storage containers. The track system forms a grid pattern of adjacent cells. The storage and retrieval system includes a plurality of remotely operated vehicles configured to move laterally on the track system, wherein each of the plurality of remotely operated vehicles comprises driving wheels, and a control system for monitoring and controlling wirelessly movements of the plurality of remotely operated vehicles. The control system performs at least the following steps by wireless data communication: detecting an anomaly in an operational condition of a vehicle on the track system, registering the vehicle with the anomalous operational condition as a malfunctioning vehicle, registering a halt position of the malfunctioning vehicle relative to the supporting track system, and setting up a two-dimensional shutdown zone on the track system. The setting up a two-dimensional shutdown zone on the track system includes a malfunctioning vehicle zone including the halt position of the malfunctioning vehicle, and an entrance zone for entry into the malfunctioning vehicle zone. The entrance zone extends between the malfunctioning vehicle zone and a location at a periphery of the track system. The control system further performs ordering the remotely operated vehicles in operation within the shutdown zone to either move out of the shutdown zone, a halt or a combination thereof, and indicating allowance of entry into the entrance zone for an external operator by at least one of: unlocking a gateway at the periphery, and producing an entry-allowed signal registrable by a human operator located at the periphery such that the human operator may enter the entrance zone through the gateway.

A reading device includes a first support member extending vertically, a scanner attached to the first support member and including a window facing a first direction and through which an item can be scanned by an operator, an extension member attached to an upper portion of the first support member and extending in the first direction above the scanner, a camera attached to an end of the extension member in the first direction and configured to capture an image of the operator, and a controller configured to issue a notification signal when the controller detects from the captured image that the operator is carrying out a predetermined operation.

An information technology system for a distributed manufacturing network includes an additive manufacturing platform configured to manage workflows for a set of distributed manufacturing network entities associated with the distributed manufacturing network. The information technology system includes a set of digital twins generated by the additive manufacturing platform. The information technology system includes an artificial intelligence system configured to be executed by a data processing system in communication with the additive manufacturing platform. The artificial intelligence system is trained to generate process parameters for the workflows managed by the additive manufacturing platform using data collected from the set of distributed manufacturing network entities. The information technology system includes a control system configured to adjust the process parameters during an additive manufacturing process performed by at least one of the set of distributed manufacturing network entities.

Methods and apparatus for making autonomous vehicle handover decisions are described. A handover decision involves deciding if an autonomous vehicle should be handed off from one worker to another worker. The methods allow for decisions to be made in real or near real time shortly before an autonomous vehicle changes location. Worker time, if a handover is not implemented, is considered including the amount of worker time involved with the worker moving with the autonomous vehicle to the new location as compared to a new worker meeting the autonomous vehicle at the new location or on the way to the new location. Handover decisions can consider worker distribution and/or order priority. Such factors can be used to weight one or more time based cost values with a cost value representation of the cost if a handover is not implemented vs implementing a handover being compared to make the handover decision.