An Investigation Towards an Efficient Algorithm for the Automation of Stocking and Disposal Tasks in a Convenience Store Using a Robotic Arm System

Robotic systems have been introduced to convenience stores to fulfill several menial tasks. One of those tasks is stocking, disposing, and arranging the product in the item rack. The general approach is to use a robotic arm to do pick-and-place tasks with the product. However, to solve this task, an appropriate algorithm is needed. In this study, we propose building an efficient algorithm for automating stocking, disposal, and arranging tasks with a robotic arm. In order to build it, a set of cost functions can be derived from the goal of stocking, disposal, and arranging processes in convenience stores. The derived cost function can then be used as a basis for creating a new algorithm that can drive the logical decisions of the system. A method to find temporary spaces within the item rack is also implemented in this algorithm. To find the most efficient form for the developed algorithm, several algorithms based on the cost function are built and tested on a simulated system of convenience store conditions. From the experiment, it is shown that, with the cost function created, using the greedy search algorithm performs the best compared to the other methods.