US-12623860-B2 - Parcel distribution control

US12623860B2US 12623860 B2US12623860 B2US 12623860B2US-12623860-B2

Abstract

An automated parcel distribution system includes a plurality of operatively connected individual conveyor belts arranged in zones; a set of sensors arranged on lateral sides of the conveyor belts and at the boundaries between adjacent conveyor belts; and a processor configured to adjust the speed of individual conveyor belts based on sensor data to evenly distribute parcels on the conveyor belts. The processor may receive the data from the set of sensors and determine the volume of parcels in each zone based on width and length measurements of the parcels obtained from the sensors. The processor may slow down, speed up, or maintain a speed of the conveyor belts for a predetermined period in order to evenly distribute the parcels on the conveyor belts. The set of sensors may be arranged on lateral sides and at the boundary between two adjacent conveyor belts.

Inventors

Stephen G. Wargo
William G. Twigg
Jacob F. Twigg

Assignees

Impact Automation, Inc.

Dates

Publication Date: 20260512
Application Date: 20240125

Claims (20)

1 . An automated parcel distribution system comprising: a plurality of operatively connected individual conveyor belts arranged in zones; a set of sensors arranged on lateral sides of the conveyor belts and at the boundaries between adjacent conveyor belts, wherein the set of sensors comprises, for each zone, a cross sensor positioned on a first lateral side and configured to detect parcels across an entire width of the conveyor belt using a counterpart component on a second lateral side, a right sensor positioned on the first lateral side configured to detect parcels within a first limited portion of the conveyor belt width, and a left sensor positioned on the second lateral side configured to detect parcels within a second limited portion of the conveyor belt width; and a processor configured to calculate a three-dimensional virtual box volume for parcels in each zone by determining parcel width based on which combination of the cross sensor, right sensor, and left sensor detect each parcel, determining parcel length based on a duration each sensor is blocked multiplied by conveyor belt speed, and generating a volume measurement from the width and length determinations, assign a volume density rating of HEAVY, NORMAL, or LIGHT to each zone based on the calculated virtual box volume exceeding or falling below predetermined thresholds, compare the volume density rating of each zone with volume density ratings of immediately adjacent upstream and downstream zones, and adjust the speed of individual conveyor belts for predetermined time periods of less than one second to disperse concentrated volumes from HEAVY-rated zones to adjacent LIGHT-rated zones, wherein the speed adjustment is based on the volume density comparison and not on achieving predetermined spacing between parcels.
2 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is to receive the data from the set of sensors and determine the volume of parcels in each zone based on width and length measurements of the parcels obtained from both of the cross sensors detecting the entire width and the lateral sensors detecting portions of the width.
3 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the processor is to slow down, speed up, or maintain a speed of the conveyor belts for a predetermined period in order to evenly distribute the parcels on the conveyor belts.
4 . The system of claim 1 , comprising a counterpart component aligned with at least one sensor of the set of sensors to provide a limit to a distance of a sensing view of the at least one sensor.
5 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the set of sensors are arranged on lateral sides and at the boundary between two adjacent conveyor belts.
6 . The system of claim 1 , wherein the plurality of operatively connected individual conveyor belts are aligned together and linked to move independently of each other.
7 . The system of claim 3 , wherein the processor is to control the speed of each conveyor belt independently.
8 . A method for controlling parcel distribution on a conveyor belt system, the method comprising: receiving parcel data from a set of sensors on the conveyor belt system, wherein for each zone in the conveyor belt system, the set of sensors comprises a cross sensor detecting across an entire conveyor width, a right sensor detecting a first lateral portion, and a left sensor detecting a second lateral portion; analyzing the parcel data to determine a volume of parcels in each zone of the conveyor belt system by calculating parcel width based on determining which sensors of the cross sensor, right sensor, and left sensor are simultaneously blocked by each parcel, calculating parcel length by multiplying sensor blocking duration by conveyor belt speed, creating a three-dimensional virtual box volume measurement from the width and length calculations, and assigning volume density ratings to each zone based on comparing the virtual box volume to threshold values; and adjusting a speed of individual conveyor belts independently of each other based on the analyzed parcel data to maintain optimal parcel distribution in the conveyor belt system, wherein the adjusting of the speed comprises comparing volume density ratings between each zone and its immediately adjacent upstream and downstream zones, when a zone has a HEAVY volume density rating and an adjacent zone has a LIGHT volume density rating, temporarily adjusting conveyor belt speeds for a duration of less than one second to transfer parcel volume from the HEAVY zone to the LIGHT zone, and repeating the volume determination and speed adjustment in a continuous feedback loop to disperse concentrated parcel volumes across zones without establishing predetermined fixed spacing between parcels.
9 . The method of claim 8 , comprising reducing the speed if a parcel volume on a particular conveyor belt exceeds a threshold limit.
10 . The method of claim 8 , comprising maintaining or increasing the speed of the conveyor belts if a parcel volume on a particular conveyor belt is below a threshold limit.
11 . The method of claim 8 , comprising adjusting the speed of the conveyor belts independently of each other to disperse parcel volume on a particular conveyor belt.
12 . The method of claim 8 , comprising adjusting the speed of the conveyor belts based on a comparison of a volume of parcels in a particular zone with a volume of parcels in adjacent zones.
13 . The method of claim 8 , comprising utilizing data from the set of sensors at a boundary between two adjacent conveyor belts to adjust the speed of the conveyor belts in adjacent zones.
14 . The method of claim 8 , comprising adjusting the speed of the conveyor belts by adjusting the speed of the conveyor belt in a zone based on a volume of a number of parcels in the zone.
15 . The method of claim 8 , comprising calculating parcel volume using width and length measurements of each parcel that is detected by the set of sensors.
16 . The method of claim 15 , comprising determining a duration that a sensor is blocked to calculate parcel length.
17 . A computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-executable instructions that when executed cause a processor of a computing device to: receive parcel data from a set of sensors on a plurality of operatively connected individual conveyor belts in a conveyor belt system, wherein the sensors comprise, for each conveyor belt zone, a cross sensor detecting full width, a right sensor detecting a right portion, and a left sensor detecting a left portion; analyze the parcel data to determine a volume of parcels in each zone of the conveyor belts by determining a width measurement for each parcel based on a pattern of which of the cross sensor, right sensor, and left sensor detect the parcel, determining a length measurement for each parcel based on sensor blocking duration and belt speed, calculating a virtual box volume using the width and length measurements, and categorizing each zone as having HEAVY, NORMAL, or LIGHT volume density based on the virtual box volume; and adjust a speed of individual conveyor belts independently of each other based on the analyzed parcel data to maintain optimal parcel distribution in the conveyor belt system, wherein adjusting the speed comprises implementing a look-ahead and look-behind control algorithm that compares volume density of each zone with its adjacent zones, dispersing concentrated volumes by temporarily speeding up or slowing down individual conveyor belts for periods less than one second when volume density differences exist between adjacent zones, and continuously monitoring and adjusting to prevent parcel backup and overcrowding rather than achieving predetermined pitch spacing.
18 . The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to control the set of sensors to detect a presence or absence of parcels on the conveyor belt system.
19 . The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to receive the data from the set of sensors and determine the volume of parcels in each zone based on width and length measurements of the parcels obtained from the set of sensors.
20 . The computer-readable storage medium of claim 17 , wherein the instructions, when executed, further cause the processor to utilize parcel distribution in an adjacent zone ahead and an adjacent zone behind a particular zone to determine whether to make speed adjustments of the conveyor belt in the particular zone.

Description

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS This applications claims priority to U.S. Provisional Ser. No. 63/441,166, filed on Jan. 25, 2023, the complete disclosure of which, in its entirety, is herein incorporated by reference. BACKGROUND Technical Field The embodiments herein generally relate to mail and packaging sorting equipment and systems, and more particularly to conveyor-belt, accumulator systems for transferring and transporting parcels such as mail, envelopes, and packages in mail sorting systems. Description of the Related Art This background description includes information that may be useful in understanding the present invention. It is not an admission that any of the information provided herein is prior art or relevant to the presently claimed invention or that any publication specifically or implicitly referenced is prior art. By nature of the mail/package sorting, loading, and unloading process, mail/packages are typically deposited onto conveyors in sporadic batches. As batches of mail are transported along a series of conveyors, the volume of the batches of mail/packages can tend to be overly concentrated in some areas of the conveyor belts thus causing backups or excessive mail/package build-up when unloading the mail/packages from the conveyor belts. This distribution of mail/package parcels, combined with the sporadic batch input onto the conveyor belts, generally results in an uneven density of mail/packages along the series of conveyors including instances of a lot of volume of mail/packages and other instances of very little volume. Conventional mail/packaging systems typically utilize a series of conveyor belts onto which the mail/packages are input and then these parcels travel along the conveyor belts until they are unloaded, sometimes by humans and sometimes by automatic discharge into an output bin of some type. However, when too much mail/packages are output at once; i.e., too large a volume of parcel, then the person who is unloading the parcels cannot keep up with this large volume and mail/packages can fall onto the floor, get lost, damaged, and/or the conveyor belt may become backed up with too many parcels for timely output. Such challenges can also occur in an automatic discharge/output system such that the output area/bin may become overly saturated with accumulated parcels. SUMMARY In view of the foregoing, an embodiment herein provides an automated parcel distribution system comprising a plurality of operatively connected individual conveyor belts arranged in zones; a set of sensors arranged on lateral sides of the conveyor belts and at the boundaries between adjacent conveyor belts; and a processor configured to adjust the speed of individual conveyor belts based on sensor data to evenly distribute parcels. The processor may receive the data from the set of sensors and determine the volume of parcels in each zone based on width and length measurements of the parcels obtained from the sensors. The processor may slow down, speed up, or maintain a speed of the conveyor belts for a predetermined period in order to evenly distribute the parcels on the conveyor belts. The system may comprise a counterpart component aligned with at least one sensor of the set of sensors to provide a limit to a distance of a sensing view of the at least one sensor. The set of sensors may be arranged on lateral sides and at the boundary between two adjacent conveyor belts. The plurality of operatively connected individual conveyor belts may be aligned together and linked to move independently of each other. The processor may control the speed of each conveyor belt independently. Another embodiment provides a method for controlling parcel distribution on a conveyor belt system, the method comprising receiving parcel data from a set of sensors on the conveyor belt system; analyzing the parcel data to determine a volume of parcels in each zone of the conveyor belt system; and adjusting a speed of individual conveyor belts independently of each other based on the analyzed parcel data to maintain optimal parcel distribution in the conveyor belt system. The method may comprise reducing the speed if a parcel volume on a particular conveyor belt exceeds a threshold limit. The method may comprise maintaining or increasing the speed of the conveyor belts if a parcel volume on a particular conveyor belt is below a threshold limit. The method may comprise adjusting the speed of the conveyor belts independently of each other to disperse parcel volume on a particular conveyor belt. The method may comprise adjusting the speed of the conveyor belts based on a comparison of a volume of parcels in a particular zone with a volume of parcels in adjacent zones. The method may comprise utilizing data from the set of sensors at a boundary between two adjacent conveyor belts to adjust the speed of the conveyor belts in adjacent zones. The method may comprise adjusting the speed of the conveyor belts by adjusting the