A RFID-based dual-command method for unit-load warehouse systems

In this paper, a RFID-based method is proposed for resource localization and dual-command generation in unit-load warehouse environments. A novel framework is constructed by deploying two types of passive tags respectively on grounds and racks as reference points (serve as landmarks) in warehouses. The number of readers can be decreased greatly without losing localization accuracy. Readers are installed on handling equipment (forklifts) to identify reference tags for resource localization when performing operations. The class-based strategy for storage assignment and dual-command generating mechanism are adopted. The travelling distance in warehouse can be reduced obviously by dual-command operations, which is analyzed using the expected travelling distance model. As well, experimental results show that readers can identify tags accurately in a reasonable distance to meet practical requirements.