The present disclosure generally relates to warehouse management and
particularly to signalling systems, such as portable picking scanners implemented in a warehouse having one or more picking zones for managing operations therein.
BACKGROUND
[0002] In traditional warehouses, an order is fulfilled by sending a copy of an order
for a specific item or group of items to an operator. The operator by reference to a facility map or plan must identify the location of the item, go to that location, pick the required quantity of items for the order, and place them in an appropriate receptacle. This process is repeated until a given order is filled. This is error-prone, e.g., selecting from an incorrect, but adjacent shelf or other storage receptacle, to picking the wrong quantity of the correct item, or to putting the correct items in an incorrect receptacle for subsequent shipping or order processing. Further, such system may not be able to process batch order, resulting in significant inefficiencies associated with repeated trips to pick each order individually.
[0003] Nowadays, order fulfilment warehouses, such as distribution centres for e-
commerce companies, rely upon signalling systems employing portable picking scanners (also known as ring scanners or handheld scanners or user-wearable scanners) and pick-to-light (PTL) units in order to direct an operator to where the pick or put is to occur, and thereby to provide for better efficiency and accuracy. The use of portable picking scanners has increased the mobility and productivity of the scanning operations. Specifically, wearable systems have been designed to free a user's hands from terminal operation so the user may focus on any tasks requiring their hands. A conventional portable picking scanner, generally, comprises a scanning unit, such as a ring scanner, coupled to a transmission unit. The transmission unit is disposed in direct communication with Warehouse Management System (WMS), which acts as a server for managing warehouse operation, to transmit information related to picking operation (as recorded

thereby) directly to the server. For this purpose, such conventional portable picking scanner, also known as handheld terminal (HHT), typically include a Wi-Fi module (Wi-Fi chip) to implement Wi-Fi communication protocol for transmission of information.
[0004] With such architecture, the transmission units employed in the said
conventional portable picking scanners usually consume significant power and thus may require larger battery, which, in turn, make these scanners bulky and difficult to handle, and further expensive. Further, with a typical warehouse having need of multiple portable picking scanners, the costs may add up to be significant. Furthermore, with the transmission units employed in the said conventional portable picking scanners being disposed in direct signal communication with the server, this cause an overhead (large signal traffic) on the server, which may either result in server down-time or may require to install server with large computational and transmission capacity, both of which may affect warehouse management and add to cost of the warehouse operations.
[0005] Therefore, in light of the foregoing discussion, there exists a need to overcome
problems associated with conventional systems and methods for implementation of portable picking scanners in the warehouse management.
SUMMARY
[0006] In an aspect, a system for managing a warehouse having one or more picking
zones is provided. The system comprises a server configured to receive and process information related to picking operations in each of the one or more picking zones in the warehouse, for managing the warehouse. The system also comprises at least one controller arranged in each of the one or more picking zones in the warehouse. The at least one controller is disposed in signal communication with the server. The system further comprises one or more portable picking scanners. Each of the one or more portable picking scanners is adapted to be handled by a user operating in one of the picking zones for conducting the picking operation therein. In the present system, each of the one or more portable picking scanners comprises a communication module adapted to implement a low-power communication protocol and configured to establish a communication link with the at least one controller paired therewith. The communication module

is further configured to transmit information related to the picking operation to the at least one controller. Further, in the present system, the at least one controller is configured to transmit the received information related to the picking operation to the server.
[0007] In one or more embodiments, the at least one controller is configured to
implement a handshake with the server for transmitting the information related to the picking operation thereto.
[0008] In one or more embodiments, the low-power communication protocol
comprises Bluetooth®.
[0009] In one or more embodiments, the communication module in each of the one
or more portable picking scanners is further configured to transmit a unique code assigned to the corresponding portable picking scanner for identification thereof, along with the information related to the picking operation to the at least one controller.
[0010] In one or more embodiments, the at least one controller is associated with one
or more communication modules. Herein, each of the one or more communication modules associated with the at least one controller is configured to implement the same low-power communication protocol as the communication modules of the one or more portable picking scanners to establish the communication link with at least two or more portable picking scanners paired therewith.
[0011] In one or more embodiments, the at least one controller is disposed in signal
communication with the server using one or more of Wi-Fi communication protocol, Ethernet communication protocol and cellular communication protocol.
[0012] In another aspect, a method for managing a warehouse having one or more
picking zones is provided. The method comprises establishing a communication link between at least two portable picking scanners and at least one controller, paired with each other, using a low-power communication protocol. The method further comprises transmitting information related to picking operation from each of the at least two portable picking scanners to the at least one controller using the low-power communication protocol. The method further comprises transmitting the received information related to the picking operation by the at least one controller to a server, to be processed for managing the warehouse.

[0013] In one or more embodiments, the method further comprises implementing a
handshake between the at least one controller and the server for transmitting the information related to the picking operation.
[0014] In one or more embodiments, the method further comprises transmitting a
unique code assigned to each of the at least two portable picking scanners for identification thereof, along with the transmitted information related to the picking operation to the at least one controller thereby.
[0015] In one or more embodiments, the low-power communication protocol
comprises Bluetooth®.
[0016] The foregoing summary is illustrative only and is not intended to be in any
way limiting. In addition to the illustrative aspects, embodiments, and features described above, further aspects, embodiments, and features will become apparent by reference to the drawings and the following detailed description.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES
[0017] For a more complete understanding of example embodiments of the present
disclosure, reference is now made to the following descriptions taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:
[0018] FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic of a system that may reside on and may be
executed by a computer, which may be connected to a network, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0019] FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic of a server, in accordance with one or more
exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0020] FIG. 3 illustrates a schematic of a client device, in accordance with one or
more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure;
[0021] FIG. 4 illustrates a depiction of a warehouse in which a system of the present
disclosure is implemented, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure; and

[0022] FIG. 5 illustrates a schematic of a system for managing a warehouse having
one or more picking zones, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure; and
[0023] FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart listing steps involved in a method for managing
a warehouse having one or more picking zones, in accordance with one or more exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0024] In the following description, for purposes of explanation, numerous specific
details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. It will be apparent, however, to one skilled in the art that the present disclosure is not limited to these specific details.
[0025] Reference in this specification to "one embodiment" or "an embodiment"
means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with the embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the present disclosure. The appearance of the phrase "in one embodiment" in various places in the specification are not necessarily all referring to the same embodiment, nor are separate or alternative embodiments mutually exclusive of other embodiments. Further, the terms "a" and "an" herein do not denote a limitation of quantity, but rather denote the presence of at least one of the referenced item. Moreover, various features are described which may be exhibited by some embodiments and not by others. Similarly, various requirements are described which may be requirements for some embodiments but not for other embodiments.
[0026] Furthermore, in the following detailed description of the present disclosure,
numerous specific details are set forth in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present disclosure. However, it will be understood that the present disclosure may be practiced without these specific details. In other instances, well-known methods, procedures, components, and circuits have not been described in detail so as not to unnecessarily obscure aspects of the present disclosure.
[0027] Embodiments described herein may be discussed in the general context of

computer-executable instructions residing on some form of computer-readable storage medium, such as program modules, executed by one or more computers or other devices. By way of example, and not limitation, computer-readable storage media may comprise non-transitory computer-readable storage media and communication media; non-transitory computer-readable media include all computer-readable media except for a transitory, propagating signal. Generally, program modules include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, etc., that perform particular tasks or implement particular abstract data types. The functionality of the program modules may be combined or distributed as desired in various embodiments.
[0028] Some portions of the detailed description that follows are presented and
discussed in terms of a process or method. Although steps and sequencing thereof are disclosed in figures herein describing the operations of this method, such steps and sequencing are exemplary. Embodiments are well suited to performing various other steps or variations of the steps recited in the flowchart of the figure herein, and in a sequence other than that depicted and described herein. Some portions of the detailed descriptions that follow are presented in terms of procedures, logic blocks, processing, and other symbolic representations of operations on data bits within a computer memory. These descriptions and representations are the means used by those skilled in the data processing arts to most effectively convey the substance of their work to others skilled in the art. In the present application, a procedure, logic block, process, or the like, is conceived to be a self-consistent sequence of steps or instructions leading to a desired result. The steps are those utilizing physical manipulations of physical quantities. Usually, although not necessarily, these quantities take the form of electrical or magnetic signals capable of being stored, transferred, combined, compared, and otherwise manipulated in a computer system. It has proven convenient at times, principally for reasons of common usage, to refer to these signals as transactions, bits, values, elements, symbols, characters, samples, pixels, or the like.
[0029] In some implementations, any suitable computer usable or computer readable
medium (or media) may be utilized. The computer readable medium may be a computer readable signal medium or a computer readable storage medium. The computer-usable, or computer-readable, storage medium (including a storage device associated with a computing device) may be, for example, but is not limited to, an electronic, magnetic, optical, electromagnetic, infrared, or semiconductor system, apparatus, device, or any suitable combination of the foregoing. More specific examples (a non-exhaustive list) of the computer-readable medium may include the

following: an electrical connection having one or more wires, a portable computer diskette, a hard disk, a random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), an optical fibre, a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), an optical storage device, a digital versatile disk (DVD), a static random access memory (SRAM), a memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such as punch-cards or raised structures in a groove having instructions recorded thereon, a media such as those supporting the internet or an intranet, or a magnetic storage device. Note that the computer-usable or computer-readable medium could even be a suitable medium upon which the program is stored, scanned, compiled, interpreted, or otherwise processed in a suitable manner, if necessary, and then stored in a computer memory. In the context of the present disclosure, a computer-usable or computer-readable, storage medium may be any tangible medium that can contain or store a program for use by or in connection with the instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.
[0030] In some implementations, a computer readable signal medium may include a
propagated data signal with computer readable program code embodied therein, for example, in baseband or as part of a carrier wave. In some implementations, such a propagated signal may take any of a variety of forms, including, but not limited to, electro-magnetic, optical, or any suitable combination thereof. In some implementations, the computer readable program code may be transmitted using any appropriate medium, including but not limited to the internet, wireline, optical fibre cable, RF, etc. In some implementations, a computer readable signal medium may be any computer readable medium that is not a computer readable storage medium and that can communicate, propagate, or transport a program for use by or in connection with an instruction execution system, apparatus, or device.
[0031] In some implementations, computer program code for carrying out operations
of the present disclosure may be assembler instructions, instruction-set-architecture (ISA) instructions, machine instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode, firmware instructions, state-setting data, or either source code or object code written in any combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented programming language such as Java®, Smalltalk, C++ or the like. Java and all Java-based trademarks and logos are trademarks or registered trademarks of Oracle and/or its affiliates. However, the computer program code for carrying out operations of the present disclosure may also be written in conventional procedural programming languages, such as the "C" programming language, PASCAL, or similar

programming languages, as well as in scripting languages such as JavaScript, PERL, or Python. In present implementations, the used language for training may be one of Python, Tensorflow™, Bazel, C, C++. Further, decoder in user device (as will be discussed) may use C, C++ or any processor specific ISA. Furthermore, assembly code inside C/C++ may be utilized for specific operation. Also, ASR (automatic speech recognition) and G2P decoder along with entire user system can be run in embedded Linux (any distribution), Android, iOS, Windows, or the like, without any limitations. The program code may execute entirely on the user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software package, partly on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the remote computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be connected to the user's computer through a local area network (LAN) or a wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer (for example, through the internet using an Internet Service Provider). In some implementations, electronic circuitry including, for example, programmable logic circuitry, field-programmable gate arrays (FPGAs) or other hardware accelerators, micro-controller units (MCUs), or programmable logic arrays (PLAs) may execute the computer readable program instructions/code by utilizing state information of the computer readable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry, in order to perform aspects of the present disclosure.
[0032] In some implementations, the flowchart and block diagrams in the figures
illustrate the architecture, functionality, and operation of possible implementations of apparatus (systems), methods and computer program products according to various implementations of the present disclosure. Each block in the flowchart and/or block diagrams, and combinations of blocks in the flowchart and/or block diagrams, may represent a module, segment, or portion of code, which comprises one or more executable computer program instructions for implementing the specified logical function(s)/act(s). These computer program instructions may be provided to a processor of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable data processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the computer program instructions, which may execute via the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus, create the ability to implement one or more of the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks or combinations thereof. It should be noted that, in some implementations, the functions noted in the block(s) may occur out of the order noted in the figures. For example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed substantially concurrently,

or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order, depending upon the functionality involved.
[0033] In some implementations, these computer program instructions may also be
stored in a computer-readable memory that can direct a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to function in a particular manner, such that the instructions stored in the computer-readable memory produce an article of manufacture including instruction means which implement the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks or combinations thereof.
[0034] In some implementations, the computer program instructions may also be
loaded onto a computer or other programmable data processing apparatus to cause a series of operational steps to be performed (not necessarily in a particular order) on the computer or other programmable apparatus to produce a computer implemented process such that the instructions which execute on the computer or other programmable apparatus provide steps for implementing the functions/acts (not necessarily in a particular order) specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram block or blocks or combinations thereof.
[0035] Referring now to the example implementation of FIG. 1, there is shown a
system 100 that may reside on and may be executed by a computer (e.g., computer 12), which may be connected to a network (e.g., network 14) (e.g., the internet or a local area network). Examples of computer 12 may include, but are not limited to, a personal computer(s), a laptop computer(s), mobile computing device(s), a server computer, a series of server computers, a mainframe computer(s), or a computing cloud(s). In some implementations, each of the aforementioned may be generally described as a computing device. In certain implementations, a computing device may be a physical or virtual device. In many implementations, a computing device may be any device capable of performing operations, such as a dedicated processor, a portion of a processor, a virtual processor, a portion of a virtual processor, portion of a virtual device, or a virtual device. In some implementations, a processor may be a physical processor or a virtual processor. In some implementations, a virtual processor may correspond to one or more parts of one or more physical processors. In some implementations, the instructions/logic may be distributed and executed across one or more processors, virtual or physical, to execute the instructions/logic. Computer 12 may execute an operating system, for example, but not limited to, Microsoft® Windows®; Mac® OS

X®; Red Hat® Linux®, or a custom operating system. (Microsoft and Windows are registered trademarks of Microsoft Corporation in the United States, other countries or both; Mac and OS X are registered trademarks of Apple Inc. in the United States, other countries or both; Red Hat is a registered trademark of Red Hat Corporation in the United States, other countries or both; and Linux is a registered trademark of Linus Torvalds in the United States, other countries or both).
[0036] In some implementations, the instruction sets and subroutines of system 100,
which may be stored on storage device, such as storage device 16, coupled to computer 12, may be executed by one or more processors (not shown) and one or more memory architectures included within computer 12. In some implementations, storage device 16 may include but is not limited to: a hard disk drive; a flash drive, a tape drive; an optical drive; a RAID array (or other array); a random access memory (RAM); and a read-only memory (ROM).
[0037] In some implementations, network 14 may be connected to one or more
secondary networks (e.g., network 18), examples of which may include but are not limited to: a local area network; a wide area network; or an intranet, for example.
[0038] In some implementations, computer 12 may include a data store, such as a
database (e.g., relational database, object-oriented database, triplestore database, etc.) and may be located within any suitable memory location, such as storage device 16 coupled to computer 12. In some implementations, data, metadata, information, etc. described throughout the present disclosure may be stored in the data store. In some implementations, computer 12 may utilize any known database management system such as, but not limited to, DB2, in order to provide multi-user access to one or more databases, such as the above noted relational database. In some implementations, the data store may also be a custom database, such as, for example, a flat file database or an XML database. In some implementations, any other form(s) of a data storage structure and/or organization may also be used. In some implementations, system 100 may be a component of the data store, a standalone application that interfaces with the above noted data store and/or an applet / application that is accessed via client applications 22, 24, 26, 28. In some implementations, the above noted data store may be, in whole or in part, distributed in a cloud computing topology. In this way, computer 12 and storage device 16 may refer to multiple devices, which may also be distributed throughout the network.
[0039] In some implementations, computer 12 may execute application 20 for

management of a warehouse. In some implementations, system 100 and/or application 20 may be accessed via one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28. In some implementations, system 100 may be a standalone application, or may be an applet / application / script / extension that may interact with and/or be executed within application 20, a component of application 20, and/or one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28. In some implementations, application 20 may be a standalone application, or may be an applet / application / script / extension that may interact with and/or be executed within system 100, a component of system 100, and/or one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28. In some implementations, one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28 may be a standalone application, or may be an applet / application / script / extension that may interact with and/or be executed within and/or be a component of system 100 and/or application 20. Examples of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28 may include, but are not limited to, a standard and/or mobile web browser, an email application (e.g., an email client application), a textual and/or a graphical user interface, a customized web browser, a plugin, an Application Programming Interface (API), or a custom application. The instruction sets and subroutines of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28, which may be stored on storage devices 30, 32, 34, 36, coupled to user devices 38, 40, 42, 44, may be executed by one or more processors and one or more memory architectures incorporated into user devices 38, 40, 42, 44.
[0040] In some implementations, one or more of storage devices 30, 32, 34, 36, may
include but are not limited to: hard disk drives; flash drives, tape drives; optical drives; RAID arrays; random access memories (RAM); and read-only memories (ROM). Examples of user devices 38, 40, 42, 44 (and/or computer 12) may include, but are not limited to, a personal computer (e.g., user device 38), a laptop computer (e.g., user device 40), a smart/data-enabled, cellular phone (e.g., user device 42), a notebook computer (e.g., user device 44), a tablet (not shown), a server (not shown), a television (not shown), a smart television (not shown), a media (e.g., video, photo, etc.) capturing device (not shown), and a dedicated network device (not shown). User devices 38, 40, 42, 44 may each execute an operating system, examples of which may include but are not limited to, Android®, Apple® iOS®, Mac® OS X®; Red Hat® Linux®, or a custom operating system.
[0041] In some implementations, one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28
may be configured to effectuate some or all of the functionality of system 100 (and vice versa). Accordingly, in some implementations, system 100 may be a purely server-side application, a

purely client-side application, or a hybrid server-side / client-side application that is cooperatively executed by one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28 and/or system 100.
[0042] In some implementations, one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28
may be configured to effectuate some or all of the functionality of application 20 (and vice versa). Accordingly, in some implementations, application 20 may be a purely server-side application, a purely client-side application, or a hybrid server-side / client-side application that is cooperatively executed by one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28 and/or application 20. As one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28, system 100, and application 20, taken singly or in any combination, may effectuate some or all of the same functionality, any description of effectuating such functionality via one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28, system 100, application 20, or combination thereof, and any described interaction(s) between one or more of client applications 22, 24, 26, 28, system 100, application 20, or combination thereof to effectuate such functionality, should be taken as an example only and not to limit the scope of the disclosure.
[0043] In some implementations, one or more of users 46, 48, 50, 52 may access
computer 12 and system 100 (e.g., using one or more of user devices 38, 40, 42, 44) directly through network 14 or through secondary network 18. Further, computer 12 may be connected to network 14 through secondary network 18, as illustrated with phantom link line 54. System 100 may include one or more user interfaces, such as browsers and textual or graphical user interfaces, through which users 46, 48, 50, 52 may access system 100.
[0044] In some implementations, the various user devices may be directly or
indirectly coupled to network 14 (or network 18). For example, user device 38 is shown directly coupled to network 14 via a hardwired network connection. Further, user device 44 is shown directly coupled to network 18 via a hardwired network connection. User device 40 is shown wirelessly coupled to network 14 via wireless communication channel 56 established between user device 40 and wireless access point (i.e., WAP) 58, which is shown directly coupled to network 14. WAP 58 may be, for example, an IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802.1 lg, Wi-Fi®, RFID, and/or Bluetooth™ (including Bluetooth™ Low Energy) device that is capable of establishing wireless communication channel 56 between user device 40 and WAP 58. User device 42 is shown wirelessly coupled to network 14 via wireless communication channel 60 established between user device 42 and cellular network / bridge 62, which is shown directly coupled to network 14.

[0045] In some implementations, some or all of the IEEE 802.1 lx specifications may
use Ethernet protocol and carrier sense multiple access with collision avoidance (i.e., CSMA/CA) for path sharing. The various 802. llx specifications may use phase-shift keying (i.e., PSK) modulation or complementary code keying (i.e., CCK) modulation, for example, Bluetooth™ (including Bluetooth™ Low Energy) is a telecommunications industry specification that allows, e.g., mobile phones, computers, smart phones, and other electronic devices to be interconnected using a short-range wireless connection. Other forms of interconnection (e.g., Near Field Communication (NFC)) may also be used.
[0046] The system 100 may include a computing system 200 (in the form of a server
200, as shown in FIG. 2) for warehouse management (as will be described later in more detail). Herein, FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an example of the server 200 capable of implementing embodiments according to the present invention. In one embodiment, an application server as described herein may be implemented on exemplary server 200. In the example of FIG. 2, the server 200 includes a processing unit 205 (hereinafter, referred to as CPU 205) for running software applications (such as, the application 20 of FIG. 1) and optionally an operating system. Memory 210 stores applications and data for use by the CPU 205. Storage 215 provides non-volatile storage for applications and data and may include fixed disk drives, removable disk drives, flash memory devices, and CD-ROM, DVD-ROM or other optical storage devices. An optional user input device 220 includes devices that communicate user inputs from one or more users to the server 200 and may include keyboards, mice, joysticks, touch screens, etc. A communication or network interface 225 is provided which allows the server 200 to communicate with other computer systems via an electronic communications network, including wired and/or wireless communication and including an Intranet or the Internet. In one embodiment, the server 200 receives instructions and user inputs from a remote computer through communication interface 225. Communication interface 225 can comprise a transmitter and receiver for communicating with remote devices. An optional display device 250 may be provided which can be any device capable of displaying visual information in response to a signal from the server 200. The components of the server 200, including the CPU 205, memory 210, data storage 215, user input devices 220, communication interface 225, and the display device 250, may be coupled via one or more data buses 260.
[0047] In the embodiment of FIG. 2, a graphics system 230 may be coupled with the

data bus 260 and the components of the server 200. The graphics system 230 may include a physical graphics processing unit (GPU) 235 and graphics memory. The GPU 235 generates pixel data for output images from rendering commands. The physical GPU 235 can be configured as multiple virtual GPUs that may be used in parallel (concurrently) by a number of applications or processes executing in parallel. For example, mass scaling processes for rigid bodies or a variety of constraint solving processes may be run in parallel on the multiple virtual GPUs. Graphics memory may include a display memory 240 (e.g., a framebuffer) used for storing pixel data for each pixel of an output image. In another embodiment, the display memory 240 and/or additional memory 245 may be part of the memory 210 and may be shared with the CPU 205. Alternatively, the display memory 240 and/or additional memory 245 can be one or more separate memories provided for the exclusive use of the graphics system 230. In another embodiment, graphics processing system 230 includes one or more additional physical GPUs 255, similar to the GPU 235. Each additional GPU 255 may be adapted to operate in parallel with the GPU 235. Each additional GPU 255 generates pixel data for output images from rendering commands. Each additional physical GPU 255 can be configured as multiple virtual GPUs that may be used in parallel (concurrently) by a number of applications or processes executing in parallel, e.g. processes that solve constraints. Each additional GPU 255 can operate in conjunction with the GPU 235, for example, to simultaneously generate pixel data for different portions of an output image, or to simultaneously generate pixel data for different output images. Each additional GPU 255 can be located on the same circuit board as the GPU 235, sharing a connection with the GPU 235 to the data bus 260, or each additional GPU 255 can be located on another circuit board separately coupled with the data bus 260. Each additional GPU 255 can also be integrated into the same module or chip package as the GPU 235. Each additional GPU 255 can have additional memory, similar to the display memory 240 and additional memory 245, or can share the memories 240 and 245 with the GPU 235. It is to be understood that the circuits and/or functionality of GPU as described herein could also be implemented in other types of processors, such as general-purpose or other special-purpose coprocessors, or within a CPU.
[0048] The system 100 also includes a controller 300 (as shown in FIG. 3). Herein,
FIG. 3 is a block diagram of an example of the controller 300 capable of implementing embodiments according to the present invention. In the example of FIG. 3, the controller 300 includes a processing unit 305 (hereinafter, referred to as CPU 305) for running software

applications (such as, the application 20 of FIG. 1) and optionally an operating system. A user input device 320 is provided which includes devices that communicate user inputs from one or more users and may include keyboards, mice, joysticks, touch screens, and/or microphones. Further, a communication module 325 is provided which allows the controller 300 to communicate with other computer systems (e.g., the computing system 200 of FIG. 2) via an electronic communications network, including wired and/or wireless communication and including the Internet. The controller 300 may also include a decoder 355 may be any device capable of decoding (decompressing) data that may be encoded (compressed). A display device 350 may be provided which may be any device capable of displaying visual information, including information received from the decoder 355. In particular, as will be described below, the display device 350 may be used to display visual information received from the server 200 of FIG. 2. The components of the controller 300 may be coupled via one or more data buses 360. In some embodiments of the present disclosure, the controller 300 may embody a portable picking scanner (also known as ring scanner) as discussed later in the description.
[0049] Referring now to FIG. 4, illustrated is a depiction of an exemplary warehouse
400, or particularly a picking zone in the warehouse 400, in which the system 100 of the present disclosure is implemented. As may be seen and generally understood, the warehouse 400 is divided into multiple picking zones (hereinafter, simply referred to as "zones"), depending on various factors such as affinity of products placed therein, coverage area of an operator, or the like. Hereinafter, the term "picking zone" (also referred by the numeral 400) has been used in a broader context, and the embodiments and the implementations described herein in consideration of the picking zone shall apply to the overall warehouse, without departing from the spirit and the scope of the present disclosure. In the present example, a given rack, such as a rack 401 (as shown in FIG. 4), may be considered as a single zone for purposes of explanation of embodiments of the present disclosure; although it may be noted that typically a single zone has multiple racks therein. Furthermore, hereinafter, the terms "rack" and "zone" ("picking zone") have been interchangeably used without any limitations. In other examples, a single rack, such as the rack 401, may be divided into multiple picking zones (sub-zones). In yet another example, a group of racks, such as the rack
401, may be defined as a single picking zone (sub-zone). It may be contemplated by a person skilled in the art that picking zones may be defined based on demand/frequency of picking of articles placed therein. A rack with fast-moving (high demand) articles may be divided into

multiple picking zones, which each of such multiple picking zones being provided with dedicated pickers; and, on the other hand, a group of racks with slow-moving (low demand) articles may be defined as a single picking zone, without any limitations.
[0050] In the illustration of FIG. 4 only a portion of the rack 401 is shown to illustrate
details of various components arranged therewith. It may be contemplated by a person skilled in the art that a typical warehouse includes a plurality of racks (such as, the racks 401, also sometimes referred to as picking bays) that are arranged in spaced apart rows which define therebetween a picking aisle, and each such picking aisle generally providing access to two opposing racks. Though reference hereinafter is made to two rows of racks and one aisle, it can be appreciated that a plurality of rows and aisles are contemplated in a warehouse. The picking aisle preferably provides sufficient open space for operators to move between the racks 401 so that the operators are not limited to a specific zone or specific set of racks.
[0051] The rack 401 comprises a conventional case flow bay or rack, which includes
a frame 402 and a plurality of vertically spaced shelves 404 that are supported by the frame 402. In some examples, each of the shelves 404 may include a plurality of rollers (not shown). In such case, each shelf 404 is typically canted or tilted so that products placed on the rollers forming the shelf 404 will flow to one side thereof. The lower side of the shelves 404 are typically aligned along a discharge side of the bay, while the higher side of the shelves are aligned along an induct side of the bay. Products are delivered by pallets and are placed on the shelves 404 in the rack 401. The products are typically delivered in boxes, which are then opened by an operator and placed on the shelf 404 from the induct side thereof.
[0052] In some examples, along vertical sides of the frame 402, vertical lifts (not
shown) are arranged by way of example in any number and are movable in the vertical direction in order to be able to reach different levels of the shelves 404. The lifts in particular have load-receiving means, by means of which storage containers or other loading aids, such as trays, move in the horizontal direction between the shelves 404 and the lifts, and thus can be exchanged. The lift thus retrieves storage containers from the shelves 404 and provides them, preferably at its lower end, for further processing, for instance to be picked-up by an operator. In some examples, order containers are transported to picking stations via a central conveyor.
[0053] Further, as may be seen, the shelves 404 are virtually divided into several

sections, with each such section acting as a storage area or storage rack 406. In the example illustration of FIG. 4, each shelf 404 is shown to have four storage racks 406. It may be appreciated that a given shelf 404 may have more or less number of storage racks 406 without departing from the scope and spirit of the present disclosure. Each storage rack 406 is here uniquely associated with one of the put areas. Generally, each of the put areas is partially or fully filled with a particular item, generally in loose form; however, the storage rack 406 can also be filled with containers, without any limitations.
[0054] Further, as illustrated, each of the storage racks 406 is associated with a pick-
to-light (PTL) unit 408. Such devices are also sometimes referred to as Put-to-light (PTL) units in the art. Herein, the PTL unit 408 forms part of the system 100, which is a signalling system, for warehouse management. In the illustrated example of the rack 401, the PTL units 408 corresponding to the storage racks 406 in the lowermost shelf 404 may be arranged on the shelf 404 immediately above thereof to provide convenient accessibility to the operator for configuring the corresponding PTL units 408. In some examples, the PTL units 408 corresponding to the storage racks 406 in the lowermost shelf 404 may be differently coloured as compared to the other PTL units to avoid confusion with the PTL units 408 corresponding to the storage racks 406 in the immediate above shelf 404 to the lowermost shelf 404.
[0055] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the system 100 catering
to the zone 400 includes a plurality of PTL units 408. As shown in the illustration of FIG. 4, each of the plurality of PTL units 408 is connected to a bus connection 410. It would be understood the warehouse may include a number of such bus connections, with each such bus connection serving a plurality of PTL units 408 in a single zone. As used herein, the bus connection 410 refers to one of the sets of conductors (e.g., wires, and printed traces or connections) connecting two or more functional units. The data bus, power bus, address bus and control bus, despite their names, constitute a single bus since each are often useless without the others. In the present examples, the term "bus connection" covers all possible connections for the exchange of data and power for PTL units 408.
[0056] As illustrated, the system 100 also includes a server 412 (similar in
configuration to the server 200 of FIG. 2). The server 412 may be any computer or hardware on which the services that clients use reside. Services available on the server are transmitted from the

server software to the client software over communication lines in packets of data according to defined protocols. Generally, the term "server" means a discrete host computer in a network, and it provides services to other computers or devices, termed "clients". For purposes of the example embodiments described herein, the term "server" includes machines that can be essentially any interconnected computer systems. The use of terms such as "server" is not meant to imply that any particular machine can only be performing host function, or that any particular machine cannot be acting as a client computing platform in any particular circumstance. The server 412 is configured to receive data packets from the plurality of PTL units 408. In present embodiments, the server 412 is further configured to send data packets to the plurality of PTL units 408 via the controller (as will be discussed in the proceeding paragraphs). Herein, the server 412 may be part of a larger warehouse management system (WMS) or warehouse control system (WCS) as known in the art.
[0057] Further, the system 100 includes a controller 414 (similar in configuration to
the controller 300 of FIG. 3). Herein, the controller 414 may be any processing device, system or part thereof that controls at least one operation of the device. The controller 414 may be implemented in hardware, firmware or software, or some combination of at least two of the same. It should be noted that the functionality associated with any particular controller may be centralized or distributed, whether locally or remotely. The controller 414 may be a multi-core processor, a single core processor, or a combination of one or more multi-core processors and one or more single core processors. For example, the one or more processors may be embodied as one or more of various processing devices, such as a coprocessor, a microprocessor, a controller, a digital signal processor (DSP), a processing circuitry with or without an accompanying DSP, or various other processing devices including integrated circuits such as, for example, an application specific integrated circuit (ASIC), a field programmable gate array (FPGA), a microcontroller unit (MCU), a hardware accelerator, a special-purpose computer chip, or the like. Further, the memory may include one or more non-transitory computer-readable storage media that can be read or accessed by other components in the device. The memory may be any computer-readable storage media, including volatile and/or non-volatile storage components, such as optical, magnetic, organic or other memory or disc storage, which can be integrated in whole or in part with the device. In some examples, the memory may be implemented using a single physical device (e.g., optical, magnetic, organic or other memory or disc storage unit), while in other embodiments, the memory may be implemented using two or more physical devices without any limitations.

[0058] As illustrated in FIG. 4, the controller 414 is disposed in signal
communication with the server 412. The controller 414 is further in signal communication with the plurality of PTL units 408 via the bus connection 410. Further, herein, the system 100 implements power line communication over the bus connection 410. In the present embodiments, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the system 100 may include a single or common controller 414 which may be connected to each of the said plurality of PTL units 408 via the bus connection 410. Further, each of the plurality of PTL units 408 may include a corresponding individual controller (not shown in FIG. 4) which may be connected to the individual controllers in other of the PTL units 408 via the bus connection 410.
[0059] Further, as illustrated in FIG. 4, the warehouse 400 includes one or more
portable picking scanners 418. Each of the one or more portable picking scanners 418 is adapted to be handled by a user operating in one of the picking zones 400 for conducting the picking operation therein. Also, as illustrated, the portable picking scanner 418 is disposed in signal communication with the controller 414, using a communication module 420. In particular, the portable picking scanner 418 is configured to transmit information related to the picking operations (as explained later in more detail) to the controller 414. In the present embodiments, the controller 414, in turn, is configured to transmit the received information related to the picking operations to the server 412.
[0060] In the preferred embodiments, the portable picking scanner 418 implemented
for the purposes of the present disclosure are wearable scanners, based on design of ring scanners as known in the art. Such portable picking scanner 418 are worn on the fingers or hand or arm. The portable picking scanner 418 of the present disclosure does not need the typical wrist mount terminal which, in many instances, provides Wi-Fi connectivity to the traditional server, as known in the prior-art. These portable picking scanners 418 are sturdy enough for high-volume use in tough environments, from warehouse floors and loading docks to assembly lines. Even though the risk of dropping these portable picking scanners 418 is greatly reduced because they are worn, not carried, they are built to withstand bumps and the wear and tear of wearing a device as well as other challenges of industrial environments such as exposure to water, dust, or temperature extremes.
[0061] Multiple types of scanners/readers are in use today, including optical scanners

and RFID tag readers. Optical scanning devices have been implemented in a variety of form factors, including some wearable forms. Current optical scanners are generally single function and/or lack flexible ways of providing dynamic user input. Further, cordless (wireless) ring scanners promise users greatly improved convenience, flexibility, and efficiency over previous corded scanners. The scan engines within such ring scanners function quite reliably. The wireless links, in and of themselves, also are reliable and generally have robust error correction. Nevertheless, the overall path between the scan engine and the host processor (which receives the scan data) relies upon a number of more or less independent components and may use a variety of links, with varying degrees of reliability and error detection.
[0062] One of the most widely used type of such portable picking scanner 418 is a
multi-mode ring scanner (MMRS), which has a ring unit for wearing on a finger. The MMRS optionally has a wrist unit coupled to the ring unit, such as via a cable. The MMRS optionally communicates wirelessly with a computing device. The ring unit has one or more scanners (such as an optical scanner or an RFID tag reader). The ring unit optionally has two paddle switches for activation by inward pressure from fingers adjacent to the finger. The two switches enable specifying operation of the MMRS in a plurality of modes and optionally enable the MMRS to communicate a plurality of information codes to the computing device. The computing device is optionally enabled to assign a function to each combination of activation of the two switches. A scanning system including the MMRS optionally provides feedback to a user based on feedback from a host processor.
[0063] Referring now to FIG. 5, illustrated is a schematic of a system 500 (similar in
configuration to the system 100, as described above) for managing a warehouse (such as, the warehouse 400 of FIG. 4), in accordance with one or more embodiments of the present disclosure. As illustrated in FIG. 5, the system 500 includes a server 502 and a controller 504. Herein, the server 502 is similar in configuration to the server 200 and the server 412, as described above; and the controller 504 is similar in configuration to the controller 300 and the controller 414, as described above. As discussed, the controller 504 may be arranged in each of the one or more picking zones 400. Further, the server 502 may be remote to the picking zones 400. The server 502 is configured to receive and process information related to picking operations in each of the one or more picking zones 400. In an embodiment, the controller 504 is disposed in signal communication with the server 502 using one or more of Wi-Fi communication protocol, Ethernet

communication protocol and cellular communication protocol. In particular, in the present embodiments, the controller 414 may be disposed in signal communication with the server 412 via a communication medium 506, such as an Ethernet-based local area network via a line 416. It may be appreciated that the said Ethernet-based local area network may utilize TCP/IP protocol for communication and transmission of data packets. In other examples, the communication medium 506 between the server 502 and the controller 504 may include wireless communication means, including Wi-Fi® based on, but not limited to, one or more of IEEE 802.11a, 802.11b, 802. llg, 802.1 lac standards.
[0064] Further, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the system 500 includes one or more portable
picking scanners 508 (similar in configuration to the portable picking scanner 418, as described in FIG. 4). In the illustrated example, the system 500 is shown to include three portable picking scanners 508; however, it may be appreciated that the system 500 may include more or lesser number of portable picking scanners 508 without departing from the spirit and the scope of the present disclosure. Each of the one or more portable picking scanners 508 is adapted to be handled by a user (picker) operating in one of the picking zones 400 for conducting the picking operation therein. In the preferred embodiments, the portable picking scanner 508 implemented for the purposes of the present disclosure are wearable scanners, based on design of ring scanners as known in the art.
[0065] In embodiments of the present disclosure, each of the one or more portable
picking scanners 508 comprises a communication module 510. The communication module 510 is adapted to implement a low-power communication protocol. The portable picking scanners 508 are paired with the controller 504 by means of the communication module 510. Thereby, the communication module 510 is configured to establish a communication link with the controller 504 paired therewith. Although herein, each of the three portable picking scanners 508 is shown to be paired with the single controller 504; in other examples, there may be more than one controller 504 and, say, one of the three portable picking scanners 508 may be paired with another controller 504. Thereby, the portable picking scanners 508 is able to transmit information related to the picking operation to the controller 504, using the low-power communication protocol as provided by the communication module 510. Further, in the present embodiments, the controller 504 is configured to transmit the received information related to the picking operation to the server 502. The controller 504 may be able to transmit (forward) the received information related to the

picking operation to the server 502 using the communication medium 506, as described above. This way the portable picking scanners 508 may indirectly be able to share the information related to the picking operation to the server 502, via the controller 504.
[0066] According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the low-power
communication protocol comprises Bluetooth®. The term "Bluetooth" generally refers to and defines a relatively short-range wireless communication protocol, with an operating range of a few meters to a few tens of meters. As used herein, the term "Bluetooth" can include communications governed by the IEEE 802.15 family of standards and/or governed by HiperLAN (a set of wireless standards, comparable to the IEEE 802.1 1 standards, used primarily in Europe). Further, although described below in terms of an infrastructure WLAN system including one or more APs, the example aspects are equally applicable to other WLAN systems including, for example, multiple WLANs, Independent Basic Service Set (IBSS) networks, ad-hoc networks, peer-to-peer (P2P) networks (e.g., operating according to the Wi-Fi Direct protocols), and/or Hotspots. In the preferred embodiment, the low-power communication protocol implements Bluetooth Classic, which is designed for continuous two-way data transfer with high Application throughput (up to 2.1 Mbps); however, in other examples, Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), as known in the art, may also be implemented without departing from the spirit and the scope of the present disclosure.
[0067] In the present embodiments, the controller 504 is associated with one or more
communication modules 512. Each of the one or more communication modules 512 associated with the controller 504 is configured to implement the same low-power communication protocol as the communication modules 510 of the one or more portable picking scanners 508. That is, the communication modules 510 of the one or more portable picking scanners 508 as well as the communication modules 512 associated with the controller 504 use the same communication protocol, in this case, the low-power communication protocol (Bluetooth®) for the purposes of the present disclosure. This is required in order for the controller 504 to establish the communication link with at least two or more portable picking scanners 508 paired therewith. As may be appreciated that each communication module 510 associated with the controller 504 may only be able to handle a certain number of connections to the communication modules 510 of the one or more portable picking scanners 508; in practical implementation, each communication module 510 associated with the controller 504 is paired with three number of portable picking scanners 508, to maintain proper connection and avoid data loss. The controller 504 may be associated with a

greater number of communication modules 510 based on the number of portable picking scanners 508 to be paired therewith.
[0068] In one or more embodiments, the communication module 510 in each of the
one or more portable picking scanners 508 is further configured to transmit a unique code assigned to the corresponding portable picking scanner 508 for identification thereof, along with the information related to the picking operation to the at least one controller 504. It may be understood that when there may be more than one portable picking scanner 508 being paired and transmitting information to the controller 504, it may be required to distinguish the information received from each of such paired portable picking scanners 508. For this purpose, each of the portable picking scanners 508 transmits the transmit a unique code along with the information related to the picking operation. In an example, the unique code may be a MAC address of the Bluetooth module used in the corresponding portable picking scanner 508. In another example, each of the portable picking scanners 508 may be assigned a Hexadecimal code or the like, to be used as the unique code. Such unique code may be appended (e.g., prefixed) to the data string (information) related to the picking operation, when transmitted by the corresponding portable picking scanner 508.
[0069] In an embodiment of the present disclosure, the controller 504 is configured
to implement a handshake with the server 502 for transmitting the information related to the picking operation thereto. As used herein, the term "handshake" refers the data and messages exchanged between the controller 504 and the server 502 to establish secure communication channel. The particular secure communication protocol defines the handshake protocol that must be employed to establish a secure communication channel. In at least one of the various embodiments, the purpose of a handshake may be to enable the controller 504 and the server 502 to agree on one or more cryptographic features to employ, such as, authentication methods, key exchange methods, key sizes, cipher methods, or the like, or combination thereof. Further, the handshaking process usually takes place in order to establish rules for communication. Signals are usually exchanged between two devices to establish a communication link. For example, when the controller 504 communicates with the server 502, the two devices will signal each other that they are switched on and ready to work, as well as to agree to which protocols are being used.
[0070] In particular, in the present embodiments, the controller 504 having
implemented the handshake with the server 502 further includes that the controller 504 is

configured to execute an asynchronous request with the server 502 which may last for few seconds, and after which the connection with the server 502 is broken. Thus, the controller 504 may only be communicating with the server 502 when needed to transmit data (e.g., information related to the picking operation). This, thereby, reduces the need of the server 502 to constantly maintain connection with the controller 504, and thus reduces the overhead to the server 502.
[0071] The system 500 of the present disclosure by allowing indirect communication
between the portable picking scanners 508 and the server 502, reduces a significant overhead on the server 502 to maintain constant communication channel with the multiple (sometimes, in hundreds or even thousands) portable picking scanners 508 being employed in the warehouse 400. The controller 504 can collate information related to the picking operation from the correspondingly paired portable picking scanners 508 and then transmit the collated information in a single instance by establishing connection with the server 502 using the communication medium 506. And, by employing the handshake protocol between the controller 504 and the server 502, the controller 504 may reduce overhead on the server 502 as well as traffic overhead on the communication medium 506. Furthermore, by implementing the low-power communication protocol between the portable picking scanners 508 and the controller 504, the conventional transmission units (like Wi-Fi chips) as employed by traditional scanners may be eliminated, and simpler units like the communication module 510 of the present disclosure may be implemented instead, which results in significantly lower power consumption. This, in turn, also reduces the need of large battery in the portable picking scanners 508 and thus may help to reduce their weights, resulting in more portability, and mobility for the user.
[0072] The present disclosure further provides a method for managing a warehouse.
Various embodiments and variants disclosed above, with respect to the aforementioned system, apply mutatis mutandis to the present method for managing the warehouse.
[0073] FIG. 6 illustrates a flowchart 600 listing steps involved in the said method for
managing a warehouse having one or more picking zones. At step 602, the method includes establishing a communication link between at least two portable picking scanners and at least one controller, paired with each other, using a low-power communication protocol. At step 604, the method includes transmitting information related to picking operation from each of the at least two portable picking scanners to the at least one controller using the low-power communication

protocol. At step 606, the method includes transmitting the received information related to the picking operation by the at least one controller to a server, to be processed for managing the warehouse. For the purposes of the present disclosure, the low-power communication protocol comprises Bluetooth®. In one or more embodiments, the method includes implementing a handshake between the at least one controller and the server for transmitting the information related to the picking operation. In one or more embodiments, the method includes transmitting a unique code assigned to each of the at least two portable picking scanners for identification thereof, along with the transmitted information related to the picking operation to the at least one controller thereby.
[0074] The foregoing descriptions of specific embodiments of the present disclosure
have been presented for purposes of illustration and description. They are not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the present disclosure to the precise forms disclosed, and obviously many modifications and variations are possible in light of the above teaching. The exemplary embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain the principles of the present disclosure and its practical application, to thereby enable others skilled in the art to best utilize the present disclosure and various embodiments with various modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.

WE CLAIM

What is claimed is:
1. A system for managing a warehouse having one or more picking zones, the system comprising:
a server configured to receive and process information related to picking operations in each of the one or more picking zones in the warehouse, for managing the warehouse; and
at least one controller arranged in each of the one or more picking zones in the warehouse, the at least one controller being disposed in signal communication with the server;
one or more portable picking scanners, with each of the one or more portable picking scanners being adapted to be handled by a user operating in one of the picking zones for conducting the picking operation therein;
wherein:
each of the one or more portable picking scanners comprises a communication module adapted to implement a low-power communication protocol and configured to establish a communication link with the at least one controller paired therewith, the communication module further configured to transmit information related to the picking operation to the at least one controller, and
the at least one controller is configured to transmit the received information related to the picking operation to the server.
2. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one controller is configured to implement a handshake with the server for transmitting the information related to the picking operation thereto.
3. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the low-power communication protocol comprises Bluetooth®.
4. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the communication module in each of the one or more portable picking scanners is further configured to transmit a unique code assigned to the corresponding portable picking scanner for identification thereof, along with the information related to the picking operation to the at least one controller.

5. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one controller is associated with one or more communication modules, each of the one or more communication modules associated with the at least one controller configured to implement the same low-power communication protocol as the communication modules of the one or more portable picking scanners to establish the communication link with at least two or more portable picking scanners paired therewith.
6. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the at least one controller is disposed in signal communication with the server using one or more of Wi-Fi communication protocol, Ethernet communication protocol and cellular communication protocol.
7. A method for managing a warehouse having one or more picking zones, the method comprising:
establishing a communication link between at least two portable picking scanners and at least one controller, paired with each other, using a low-power communication protocol;
transmitting information related to picking operation from each of the at least two portable picking scanners to the at least one controller using the low-power communication protocol; and
transmitting the received information related to the picking operation by the at least one controller to a server, to be processed for managing the warehouse.
8. The method as claimed in claim 7 further comprising implementing a handshake between the at least one controller and the server for transmitting the information related to the picking operation.
9. The method as claimed in claim 7 further comprising transmitting a unique code assigned to each of the at least two portable picking scanners for identification thereof, along with the transmitted information related to the picking operation to the at least one controller thereby.

10. The system as claimed in claim 1, wherein the low-power communication protocol comprises Bluetooth®.