{
  "patent_number": "US 12077385",
  "country": "US",
  "title": "How Warehouses Sort Items with Magnetic Levitation Shuttles",
  "original_title": "Systems and methods for high-speed warehouse order sortation",
  "summary": "This patent describes a warehouse system that uses magnetic levitation shuttles to quickly sort individual items for customer orders, guided by a control system that directs shuttles based on item type and order needs.",
  "what_it_does": "This patent describes a warehouse system designed to sort items quickly for customer orders. It features a \"conveyance system\" with many \"shuttles\" that carry individual items (Claim 1). Workers at \"manual decantation stations\" load items onto these shuttles. The shuttles travel along pathways using \"magnetic levitation,\" meaning they float above the surface without touching it, and each shuttle can move independently (Claim 1). A \"control system\" tells each shuttle where to go based on the item it carries and the order it belongs to (Claim 1). For example, if a shuttle carries an item for a specific order, the control system directs it to the correct \"automated order sortation system\" or even a \"manual order sortation system\" (Claims 3, 4, 6). The system can also link two or more shuttles together, or \"gang\" them, to transport larger or heavier items (Claim 1).",
  "what_it_does_not_cover": [
    "Does not cover warehouse sorting systems that use wheels, belts, or other non-magnetic levitation methods for moving items.",
    "Does not cover systems where items are loaded onto shuttles entirely automatically without any human involvement at a decantation station.",
    "Does not cover systems where shuttles cannot travel independently or be linked together to carry larger items.",
    "Does not cover sorting systems that lack a central control system to direct shuttles based on item type and order requirements.",
    "Does not cover systems that only use a single type of sortation (e.g., only automated or only manual) without routing items to different types."
  ],
  "filed": "2021-05-27",
  "granted": "2024-09-03",
  "expires": "2041-05-27",
  "status": "active",
  "holder": "Target Brands",
  "holder_url": "https://patentbrief.org/company/target-brands",
  "inventors": [
    {
      "name": "Gervasio Mutarelli",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/gervasio-mutarelli"
    },
    {
      "name": "Carlos Loza",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/carlos-loza"
    },
    {
      "name": "Ernesto Saldana Pena",
      "url": "https://patentbrief.org/inventor/ernesto-saldana-pena"
    }
  ],
  "times_cited": 1,
  "tags": [
    "ecommerce",
    "logistics",
    "robotics",
    "automation",
    "mechanical",
    "software"
  ],
  "abstract": "Warehouse automation and methods of automatically sorting and sequencing items can be implemented to streamline and expedite order fulfillment and store replenishment processes in a cost-effective manner. Some embodiments described herein include: (i) picking or retrieving items from an inventory storage area, (ii) decanting individual items and placing them on carriers of a high-speed sorting and conveyance system, and (iii) final sortation as per customer orders. In some embodiments, the high-speed sorting and conveyance system includes multiple shuttles that each carry an individual item to a designated final order sortation system.",
  "url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12077385/systems-and-methods-for-high-speed-warehouse-order-sortation",
  "markdown_url": "https://patentbrief.org/patent/us/12077385/systems-and-methods-for-high-speed-warehouse-order-sortation/md",
  "google_patents_url": "https://patents.google.com/patent/US12077385",
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}