Patents Assigned to Simbe Robotics, Inc.
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Patent number: 11897148Abstract: One variation of a method for deploying a mobile robotic system to scan inventory structures within a store includes: dispatching the mobile robotic system to navigate along inventory structures within the store during a setup cycle; at the mobile robotic system, while navigating along the inventory structures during the setup cycle, capturing a set of wireless connectivity metrics representing connectivity to a first wireless network; assembling the set of wireless connectivity metrics into a wireless connectivity map of the store; estimating a processing duration from start of the scan cycle to transformation of images of the inventory structures, captured by the mobile robotic system, into a stock condition of the store; and dispatching the mobile robotic system to autonomously capture images of the inventory structures within the store during a scan cycle preceding a scheduled restocking period in the store based on the processing duration.Type: GrantFiled: February 5, 2021Date of Patent: February 13, 2024Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Mirza Akbar Shah, Cem Ersoz, Jariullah Safi, Bradley Bogolea
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Patent number: 11860649Abstract: One variation of a method for monitoring cooling units in a store includes: at a robotic system, during a first scan routine, autonomously navigating toward a cooling unit in the store, recording a color image of the cooling unit, and scanning a set of temperatures within the cooling unit; identifying a set of products stocked in the cooling unit based on features detected in the color image; mapping the set of temperatures to the set of products at a first time during the first scan routine based on positions of products in the set of products identified in the color image; and generating a record of temperatures of the set of products stocked in the cooling unit at the first time.Type: GrantFiled: March 18, 2020Date of Patent: January 2, 2024Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Durgesh Tiwari, Bradley Bogolea
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Patent number: 11593755Abstract: A method for stock keeping in a store includes: accessing an image captured by a fixed camera within the store; retrieving a field of view of the fixed camera; estimating a segment of an inventory structure in the store depicted in the image based on a projection of the field of view onto a planogram of the store; identifying a set of slots within the inventory structure segment; retrieving a product model representing a set of visual characteristics of a product type assigned to a slot, in the set of slots, by the planogram; extracting a constellation of features from the image; if the constellation of features approximates the set of visual characteristics in the product model, detecting presence of a product unit of the product type occupying the inventory structure segment; and representing presence of the product unit, occupying the inventory structure segment, in a realogram.Type: GrantFiled: May 21, 2020Date of Patent: February 28, 2023Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Mirza Akbar Shah, Lorin Vandegrift, Luke Fraser, Jariullah Safi, Jeffrey Gee, Durgesh Tiwari
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Patent number: 11544668Abstract: A method for maintaining inventory within a store includes: accessing an image (e.g., a color image, depth image) depicting an inventory structure; detecting a slot region of the image depicting a slot; identifying a product type assigned to the slot; accessing a product dimension of the product type; defining a target region within the slot in the image based on the product dimension; defining a product region within the slot in the image based on the product dimension and the target region; defining a back-of-shelf plane intersecting the target region of the image; detecting a surface within the product region; and, in response to the surface intersecting the back-of-shelf plane, identifying the slot as empty and generating a prompt to restock the slot with product units of the product type.Type: GrantFiled: June 9, 2022Date of Patent: January 3, 2023Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Kanchan Bahirat, Shiva Reddy, Bradley Bogolea, Jariullah Safi
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Patent number: 11514398Abstract: One variation of a method for deploying fixed cameras within a store includes: dispatching a robotic system to autonomously navigate along a set of inventory structures in the store and generate a spatial map of the store during a scan cycle; generating an accessibility heatmap representing accessibility of regions of the store to the robotic system based on the spatial map; generating a product value heatmap for the store based on locations and sales volumes of products in the store; accessing a number of fixed cameras allocated to the store; generating a composite heatmap for the store based on the accessibility heatmap and the product value heatmap; identifying a subset of inventory structures occupying a set of locations within the store corresponding to critical amplitudes in the composite heatmap; and generating a prompt to install the number of fixed cameras facing the subset of inventory structures in the store.Type: GrantFiled: December 7, 2020Date of Patent: November 29, 2022Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Durgesh Tiwari
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Patent number: 11341454Abstract: One variation of a method for tracking placement of products in a store includes: accessing an image depicting a shelving structure in the store; reading a product identifier of a product from a shelf tag detected in the image; accessing a set of template features associated with the product identifier; based on the shelf tag detected in the image, locating a region in the first image depicting a slot on the shelving structure; confirming presence of a unit of the product in the slot in response to detecting features analogous to the set of template features in the region in the image; detecting absence of the product from the slot based on absence of features analogous to the set of template features in the region in the image; and in response to detecting absence of the product from the slot, generating a prompt to restock the slot.Type: GrantFiled: September 23, 2019Date of Patent: May 24, 2022Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Mirza Akbar Shah, Lorin Vandegrift, Luke Fraser, Jariullah Safi, Jeffrey Gee
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Patent number: 11288630Abstract: One variation of a method for maintaining perpetual inventory within a store includes: accessing a radar scan of an inventory structure within a store; accessing an optical image of the inventory structure; identifying a product type associated with the slot in a region of the optical image; retrieving a volumetric definition of the product type; locating a slot volume defining the slot in the radar scan; extracting a volumetric representation of a set of product units intersecting the slot volume in the radar scan; segmenting the volumetric representation by the volumetric definition to calculate a quantity of the set of product units occupying the slot; and updating a stock record of the store to reflect the quantity of the set of product units occupying the slot.Type: GrantFiled: April 30, 2021Date of Patent: March 29, 2022Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Durgesh Tiwari, Bradley Bogolea, Jariullah Safi, Kanchan Bahirat
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Patent number: 11276034Abstract: One variation of a method for tracking stock level within a store includes: dispatching a robotic system to image shelving structures within the store during a scan cycle; receiving images from the robotic system, each image recorded by the robotic system during the scan cycle and corresponding to one waypoint within the store; identifying, in the images, empty slots within the shelving structures; identifying a product assigned to each empty slot based on product location assignments defined in a planogram of the store; for a first product of a first product value and assigned to a first empty slot, generating a first prompt to restock the first empty slot with a unit of the first product during the scan cycle; and, upon completion of the scan cycle, generating a global restocking list specifying restocking of a set of empty slots associated with product values less than the first product value.Type: GrantFiled: February 14, 2020Date of Patent: March 15, 2022Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Mirza Akbar Shah, Bradley Bogolea, Jeffrey Gee
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Patent number: 11257141Abstract: One variation of a method for managing virtual shopping lists includes: dispatching robotic systems, deployed in store, to autonomously scan inventory structures within this store; deriving current stock conditions of this store based on scan data recorded by these robotic systems; initializing a virtual shopping list for a user; in response to receipt of selection of a first product, from a population of products, isolating a subset of stores, in the set of stores in the geographic region, associated with current stock conditions indicating presence of the first product and products previously added to the virtual shopping list; in response to the subset of stores including at least one store, adding a first identifier of the first product to the virtual shopping list; and specifying a particular store, in the subset of stores, for fulfillment of a set of products on the virtual shopping list.Type: GrantFiled: June 20, 2019Date of Patent: February 22, 2022Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Jariullah Safi
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Patent number: 11200537Abstract: One variation of a method for tracking fresh produce in a store includes: accessing a first hyper-spectral image, of a produce display in a store, recorded at a first time; extracting a first spectral profile from a first region of the first hyper-spectral image depicting a first set of produce units in the produce display; identifying a first varietal of the first set of produce units; characterizing qualities (e.g., ripeness, bruising, spoilage) of the first set of produce units in the produce display based on the first spectral profile; and, in response to qualities of the first set of produce units in the produce display deviating from a target quality range assigned to the first varietal, generating a prompt to audit the first set of produce units in the produce display.Type: GrantFiled: May 25, 2020Date of Patent: December 14, 2021Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Durgesh Tiwari, Jariullah Safi
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Patent number: 11130239Abstract: One variation of a method for automatically generating waypoints for imaging shelves within a store includes: dispatching a robotic system to autonomously generating a map of a floor space within the store; accessing an architectural metaspace defining target locations and addresses of the set of shelving structures within the store; distorting the architectural metaspace into alignment with the map to generate a normalized metaspace representing real locations and addresses of the set of shelving structures in the store; defining a set of waypoints distributed longitudinally along and offset laterally from a first shelving structure represented in the normalized metaspace based on a known position of an optical sensor in the robotic system; and dispatching the robotic system to record optical data while occupying the set of waypoints during an imaging routine.Type: GrantFiled: July 16, 2019Date of Patent: September 28, 2021Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Mirza Akbar Shah, Bradley Bogolea, Jeffrey Gee, Jariullah Safi, Luke Fraser
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Patent number: 11126962Abstract: One variation of a method for tracking promotional states of slots in inventory structures within a store includes: accessing an image of an inventory structure within a store; detecting a shelf tag on the inventory structure in the image; extracting a set of features from the shelf tag detected in the image; detecting a promotional tag on the inventory structure in the image; extracting a set of features from the promotional tag detected in the image; detecting a deviation between the shelf tag and the promotional tag based on a difference between the sets of features; and, in response to detecting the deviation between the shelf tag and the promotional tag, identifying the first promotional tag as erroneous, and notifying a store associate to replace the first promotional tag with a second promotional tag at the first slot, the second promotional tag correcting the difference.Type: GrantFiled: February 5, 2021Date of Patent: September 21, 2021Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Jariullah Safi, Lorin Vandegrift, Shiva Reddy, Tom Gehani
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Patent number: 11107035Abstract: One variation of a method for tracking and maintaining inventory in a store includes: accessing a image of an inventory structure in the store; identifying a top shelf, in the inventory structure, depicted in the image; identifying a set of product units occupying the top shelf based on features detected in the image; identifying a second shelf, in the set of shelves in the inventory structure, depicted in the image, the second shelf arranged below the top shelf in the inventory structure; based on features detected in the image, detecting an understock condition at a slot—assigned to a product type—on the second shelf; and, in response to the set of product units comprising a product unit of the product type, generating a prompt to transfer the product unit of the product type from the top shelf into the slot on the second shelf at the inventory structure.Type: GrantFiled: November 25, 2020Date of Patent: August 31, 2021Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Durgesh Tiwari, Jariullah Safi, Shiva Reddy, Lorin Vandegrift
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Patent number: 10891589Abstract: One variation of a method for deploying fixed cameras within a store includes: dispatching a robotic system to autonomously navigate along a set of inventory structures in the store and generate a spatial map of the store during a scan cycle; generating an accessibility heatmap representing accessibility of regions of the store to the robotic system based on the spatial map; generating a product value heatmap for the store based on locations and sales volumes of products in the store; accessing a number of fixed cameras allocated to the store; generating a composite heatmap for the store based on the accessibility heatmap and the product value heatmap; identifying a subset of inventory structures occupying a set of locations within the store corresponding to critical amplitudes in the composite heatmap; and generating a prompt to install the number of fixed cameras facing the subset of inventory structures in the store.Type: GrantFiled: March 13, 2020Date of Patent: January 12, 2021Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Durgesh Tiwari
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Patent number: 10846657Abstract: One variation of a method for tracking stock level within a store includes: at a robotic system, navigating along a first inventory structure in the store, broadcasting radio frequency interrogation signals according to a first set of wireless scan parameters, and recording a first set of wireless identification signals returned by radio frequency identification tags coupled to product units arranged on the first inventory structure; generating a first list of product units arranged on the first inventory structure based on the first set of wireless identification signals; detecting a first product quantity difference between the first list of product units and a first target stock list assigned to the first inventory structure by a planogram of the store; and generating a stock correction prompt for the first inventory structure in response to the first product quantity difference.Type: GrantFiled: April 6, 2018Date of Patent: November 24, 2020Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Durgesh Tiwari, Bradley Bogolea, Mirza Akbar Shah, Jeffrey Gee
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Patent number: 10713621Abstract: One variation of a method for tracking fresh produce in a store includes: accessing a first hyper-spectral image, of a produce display in a store, recorded at a first time; extracting a first spectral profile from a first region of the first hyper-spectral image depicting a first set of produce units in the produce display; identifying a first varietal of the first set of produce units; characterizing qualities (e.g., ripeness, bruising, spoilage) of the first set of produce units in the produce display based on the first spectral profile; and, in response to qualities of the first set of produce units in the produce display deviating from a target quality range assigned to the first varietal, generating a prompt to audit the first set of produce units in the produce display.Type: GrantFiled: October 7, 2019Date of Patent: July 14, 2020Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Durgesh Tiwari, Jariullah Safi
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Patent number: 10684623Abstract: One variation of a method for detecting and responding to hazards within a store includes: autonomously navigating toward an area of a floor of the store; recording a thermal image of the area; recording a depth map of the area of the floor; detecting a thermal gradient in the thermal image; scanning a region of the depth map, corresponding to the thermal gradient detected in the thermal image, for a height gradient; in response to detecting the thermal gradient in the thermal image and in response to detecting absence of a height gradient in the region of the depth map, predicting presence of a fluid within the area of the floor; and serving a prompt to remove the fluid from the area of the floor of the store to a computing device affiliated with the store.Type: GrantFiled: January 10, 2019Date of Patent: June 16, 2020Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Durgesh Tiwari, Bradley Bogolea
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Patent number: 10642293Abstract: One variation of a method for monitoring cooling units in a store includes: at a robotic system, during a first scan routine, autonomously navigating toward a cooling unit in the store, recording a color image of the cooling unit, and scanning a set of temperatures within the cooling unit; identifying a set of products stocked in the cooling unit based on features detected in the color image; mapping the set of temperatures to the set of products at a first time during the first scan routine based on positions of products in the set of products identified in the color image; and generating a record of temperatures of the set of products stocked in the cooling unit at the first time.Type: GrantFiled: January 10, 2019Date of Patent: May 5, 2020Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Durgesh Tiwari, Bradley Bogolea
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Patent number: 10625426Abstract: One variation of a method for automatically generating a planogram for a store includes: dispatching a robotic system to autonomously navigate within the store during a mapping routine; accessing a floor map of the floor space generated by the robotic system from map data collected during the mapping routine; identifying a shelving structure within the map of the floor space; defining a first set of waypoints along an aisle facing the shelving structure; dispatching the robotic system to navigate to and to capture optical data at the set of waypoints during an imaging routine; receiving a set of images generated from optical data recorded by the robotic system during the imaging routine; identifying products and positions of products in the set of images; and generating a planogram of the shelving segment based on products and positions of products identified in the set of images.Type: GrantFiled: May 19, 2017Date of Patent: April 21, 2020Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Bradley Bogolea, Mirza Akbar Shah, Jariullah Safi, Luke Fraser, Lorin Vandegrift, Jeffrey Gee
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Patent number: 10607182Abstract: One variation of a method for tracking stock level within a store includes: dispatching a robotic system to image shelving structures within the store during a scan cycle; receiving images from the robotic system, each image recorded by the robotic system during the scan cycle and corresponding to one waypoint within the store; identifying, in the images, empty slots within the shelving structures; identifying a product assigned to each empty slot based on product location assignments defined in a planogram of the store; for a first product of a first product value and assigned to a first empty slot, generating a first prompt to restock the first empty slot with a unit of the first product during the scan cycle; and, upon completion of the scan cycle, generating a global restocking list specifying restocking of a set of empty slots associated with product values less than the first product value.Type: GrantFiled: November 9, 2016Date of Patent: March 31, 2020Assignee: Simbe Robotics, Inc.Inventors: Mirza Akbar Shah, Bradley Bogolea, Jeffrey Gee