CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a U.S. National Stage Application under 35 U.S.C. § 371 of International Patent Application No. PCT/CN2019/078213, filed on Mar. 15, 2019, which claims priority to China Patent Application No. 201810659540.9, filed on Jun. 25, 2018, the disclosures of both of which are incorporated by reference herein in their entirety.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present disclosure relates to a goods information obtaining device, a shelf, a shelf managing system and a method.

BACKGROUND

With the development and improvement of image recognition technology, image recognition technology is widely applied in various industries. In the commodity retail business, intelligent management of shelf commodities may be realized by capturing products on the shelves and performing image recognition on the captured images.

SUMMARY

In one aspect of the present disclosure, a goods information obtaining device for obtaining goods information within a shelf unit is provided. The goods information obtaining device includes: at least one reflector; and at least one image sensor for sensing a reflection image of goods within the shelf unit that are reflected one or more times by the at least one reflector.

In some embodiments, each of the at least one reflector includes a plane mirror or a convex mirror.

In some embodiments, the at least one image sensor includes a plurality of image sensors, and viewing angles of lenses of the plurality of image sensors adjoin or partially coincide each other at a coverage area of the at least one reflector.

In some embodiments, the goods information obtaining device further includes a driver for driving the at least one image sensor or the at least one reflector to move, such that a viewing angle of a lens of each of the at least one image sensor covers reflection images of different portions of the goods on the at least one reflector at different moments.

In one aspect of the present disclosure, a shelf is provided. The shelf includes: a shelf unit for containing goods; and the goods information obtaining device previously described.

In some embodiments, the at least one reflector is located on one side of a top of the shelf unit close to the goods, and each of the at least one image sensor includes a lens, wherein the lens has a viewing angle covering at least a portion of the at least one reflector.

In some embodiments, the lens has a height no higher than a height of the goods.

In some embodiments, the height of the lens is configured to be flush with a bottom plane of the shelf unit.

In some embodiments, the shelf unit has an open end for accessing the goods, and the at least one image sensor is located within the shelf unit on one side of the shelf unit away from the open end.

In some embodiments, the shelf unit further has a closed end, where the at least one image sensor is located.

In some embodiments, a minimum distance d between the lens and the goods satisfies:

d=H⁡(2⁢D′-H)W;

where W is a maximum distance between the goods and the lens, H is a height of the goods, and D′ is a minimum spatial height of the shelf unit.

In some embodiments, the at least one reflector includes: a first reflector, located on one side of a top of the shelf unit close to the goods; and a second reflector, located on one side opposite to the first reflector; wherein each of the at least one image sensor includes a lens having an orientation configured such that a viewing angle of the lens covers at least a portion of the second reflector.

In some embodiments, the at least one reflector is located external to the shelf unit.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, a shelf managing system is provided. The shelf managing system includes: the goods information obtaining device previously described; and a processor for processing the reflection image.

In some embodiments, the processor is configured to perform at least one of the following operations: analyzing the reflection image to obtain goods information related to placement within the shelf unit; stitching reflection images to form a complete reflection image of the goods within the shelf unit; or detecting whether the goods placed within the shelf unit are out of stock or are wrong goods according to the reflection image.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, a shelf managing system is provided. The shelf managing system includes: the shelf previously described; and a processor for processing the reflection image.

In some embodiments, the processor is configured to perform at least one of the following operations: analyzing the reflection image to obtain goods information related to placement within the shelf unit; stitching reflection images to form a complete reflection image of the goods within the shelf unit; or detecting whether the goods placed within the shelf unit are out of stock or are wrong goods according to the reflection image.

In another aspect of the present disclosure, a shelf managing method is provided. The shelf managing method includes: sensing by an image sensor a reflection image of goods within a shelf unit that are reflected one or more times by an at least one reflector; analyzing the reflection image to obtain goods information related to placement within the shelf unit.

In some embodiments, the shelf managing method further includes: judging whether the goods placed within the shelf unit are out of stock or are wrong goods according to the goods information related to placement.

In some embodiments, the shelf managing method further includes: stitching reflection images to form a complete reflection image of the goods within the shelf unit.

