JP2005115731A - Product information creation method and system - Google Patents

Abstract

An object of the present invention is to provide a method and system for identifying a product for each product type in a product manufacturing process, creating product information corresponding to the product type in real time, and assigning the product information to the product. That is.
A first code reader that decodes a code attached to a product, an information creation unit that creates product information based on information decoded by the first code reader, and information creation An encoding unit 4 that encodes product information from the unit 3 into a code; a printing unit 10 that prints the code encoded by the encoding unit 4 again on a product; and a second that decodes the code printed by the printing unit 10 It comprises a code reader 21 and an information creation / giving determination unit 5 that determines whether product information has been normally created and assigned based on information decoded by the second code reader 21.
[Selection] Figure 1

Description

  The present invention relates to a method and system for creating product information and attaching the information to a product in a product manufacturing process.

  Conventionally, in order to manage logistics information such as shipping history for products manufactured in factories, the product number, product name, date of manufacture, Print important product information such as the quality retention period and production lot number, and use the product information to perform inspections, sorting, etc., and record the shipping date, shipping destination information, and product information as logistics information. doing. In order to increase the efficiency of work, a method of mechanizing various work by bar code printing product information or using an IC chip has been put into practical use (Patent Document 1).

  Here, an example in which product information is printed on a packing box filled with products will be described with respect to a conventional product information printing method. FIG. 10 shows a configuration example of a conventional production system. A wide variety of products are manufactured on independent lines, and each line has a box making section 50-1 to 50-N, a boxing section 60-1 to 60-N, a manufacturing section 70-1 to 70-N, and a printing section. It consists of 80-1 to 80-N, and has a mechanism in which product information is printed by a printing unit after box making, manufacturing, and packaging.

  The device that prints product information in the printing unit includes 1) an inkjet printer that prints product information directly on the surface of the packaging box, 2) a labeling machine that prints product information on a seal label and affixes it to the surface of the packaging box, and 3) packaging There are stampers that stamp product information on the box surface.

  In the production system configured as shown in FIG. 10, the product information to be printed on the packaging box is determined in advance based on the production schedule, and the printers for each line are set so as to print the contents to prepare for production. Do. In general, the product information set when the packaging box passes in front of the printing apparatus is printed as a system.

During production, the same product information is printed for each box. When the production lot number or product type is switched, it is necessary to change the printing contents. Therefore, the production of the corresponding line is temporarily interrupted and the setting of the printing apparatus is changed.
JP 2003-36106 A

  As for the apparatus for printing product information described above, the ink jet printer and the labeling machine both have good and stable print quality, and can print not only characters and bar codes but also two-dimensional codes. However, there is a drawback that the configuration of the device itself is complicated and expensive. In the production system of FIG. 10, the configuration in which one of these printing apparatuses is installed in each line is expensive to implement as a whole for a factory with many production lines.

On the other hand, the stamper has a simple printing principle and the device itself is inexpensive, but the printing quality is low and unstable, and it is difficult to print a precise pattern such as a barcode with high reproducibility. is there. In other words, a production system configured with a stamper installed in each production line can be realized relatively easily, but is limited to printing simple patterns such as alphanumeric characters.
The work related to logistics is focused on visual inspection, and the overall work efficiency cannot be improved.

  For such a problem, a production system having a configuration as shown in FIG. 11 is conceivable. In the production system of FIG. 11, various types of products are manufactured on independent lines, and each line includes a box making unit 50-1 to 50-N, a boxing unit 60-1 to 60-N, and a manufacturing unit 70-1. The product information is printed by one printing unit 81 when the lines after box making, manufacturing, and boxing merge. That is, even if there are a plurality of lines, it is only necessary to install one printing apparatus, and an increase in cost can be avoided. If an inkjet printer or a labeling machine is introduced, product information including barcodes and two-dimensional codes can be printed on all packing boxes.

  However, in this configuration, product information having the same content is printed on all of the various types of packaging boxes. Among the unique information at the time of manufacture, information that can be printed in common on various types of packaging boxes includes the date of manufacture, the time of manufacture, etc., but it is difficult to think that sufficient logistics management can be carried out with only this information.

  It is desirable that the production system has a configuration as shown in FIG. 11 and that the printing apparatus recognizes a product packaging box for each product type and creates and prints appropriate product information in each packaging box.

  The present invention has been made in view of the present situation, and an object of the present invention is to identify a storage body or a product body (manufactured product) in which a product is stored for each product type in a manufacturing process of the product, and to correspond to the product type. It is to provide a method and system for creating product information in real time and attaching it to a product.

  In order to achieve the above object, the invention described in claim 1 includes a step of reading information given to a product, a step of analyzing the read information, and extracting or newly adding predetermined information from the analyzed information. Determining whether or not product information has been normally created and assigned to the product, and a step of adding the extracted predetermined information or created information to the product as product information. A product information creation and grant method comprising steps.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, there is provided a first code reader that decodes a code attached to a product, and an information creation unit that creates product information based on information decoded by the first code reader. An encoding unit that encodes product information from the information creation unit into a code, a printing unit that prints the code encoded by the encoding unit on a product, and a second code reader that decodes the code printed by the printing unit And a product information creation and grant system comprising an information creation and grant determination unit for judging whether or not product information has been successfully created and assigned based on information decoded by the second code reader.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a first code reader that decodes a code attached to a product, and an information creation unit that creates product information based on information decoded by the first code reader. , Encoding unit that encodes product information from the information creation unit into a code, a printing pasting unit that prints the code encoded by the encoding unit on a label and affixes it to a product, and decodes the code pasted by the printing pasting unit A product information creation and grant system comprising: a second code reader that performs information creation and a determination unit that determines whether or not product information has been normally created and assigned based on information decoded by the second code reader. .

According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, there is provided an IC tag attached to a product for recording information, a code reader for decoding a code attached to the product, and a product based on the information decoded by the code reader. An information creation unit for creating information, an IC tag reader / writer unit having a function of reading information recorded on the IC tag and a function of writing new information, and product information from the information creation unit is sent to the IC tag by the IC tag reader / writer unit. This is a product information creation and grant system that includes an information creation and grant determination unit that determines whether or not product information has been normally written.

  The invention according to claim 5 is an IC tag that is attached to a product and stores information; an IC tag reader / writer unit that has a function of reading information recorded on the IC tag and a function of newly writing information; An information creation unit that creates product information based on information read by the IC tag reader / writer unit, and product information is normally written when product information from the information creation unit is written to the IC tag by the IC tag reader / writer unit. This is a product information creation and grant system that includes an information creation and grant determination unit that determines whether or not it has been performed.

  As is apparent from the above description, even in a factory that manufactures a wide variety of products in multiple lines, if one system is installed at the place where the line joins the product information creation and grant system according to the present invention, the products are stored. The storage body or the product main body (manufactured product) can be identified for each product type, and product information corresponding to the product type can be created in real time and assigned to the product. The amount of capital investment can be greatly reduced compared to the conventional configuration in which one device for printing product information is installed on each line.

  Furthermore, according to the present invention, encoded product information such as a barcode or a two-dimensional code can be given to the product, or the product information is recorded on an IC tag attached to the product. Therefore, if a code reader or an IC tag reader is used at a subsequent distribution work site, the work can be mechanized and the work efficiency can be expected to be improved.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  FIG. 1 shows an overall configuration of Embodiment 1 of a product information creation and assignment system according to the present invention. This product information creation and assignment system includes a conveyor 1, a controller 2, a speaker 6, a warning light 7, an ink jet printer 10, a first code reader 20, a second code reader 21, optical sensors 22a, 23a, 24a, and a reflecting mirror 22b. , 23b, 24b. The controller 2 includes an information creation unit 3, an encoding unit 4, and an information creation / giving determination unit 5. Packing boxes (manufactured products) 8 and 9 flowing on the conveyor 1 are packed with products having different product numbers, and codes indicating the product numbers of the products in advance, for example, bar codes 30 and 31 are respectively provided on the surface of the packing box. It is printed.

  Next, a product information creation and grant system with this configuration will be described below with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4, focusing on the packaging box 9 and a method and procedure for creating product information and giving it to the packaging box.

  FIG. 2 shows an operation flow of the system. When the packaging box 9 passes between the optical sensor 22a and the reflecting mirror 22b, a detection signal is sent to the first code reader 20 (step S10). The bar code 31 printed on the packing box 9 is read by the first code reader 20 (step S11). The read product number information is sent to the information creation unit 3 where new product information is created.

The information creation unit 3 has a database of product information as shown in FIG. 3, searches the database using the product number information from the first code reader 20 as a key, and stores the product name, production line, person in charge, quality Retrieve information such as period. If necessary, the quality retention period is calculated from the date of the current day and the quality retention period information. These pieces of information are collectively sent to the encoder unit 4 as product information (step S12).

  The product information from the information creation unit 3 is encoded by the encoding unit 4, and the encoding result and product information are transmitted to the ink jet printer (printing unit). The product information is also sent to the information creation / giving determination unit 5 (step S13). When the packaging box 9 passes between the optical sensor 23a and the reflecting mirror 23b and is detected, the code encoded by the inkjet printer 10 and the product information (32) are printed on the surface of the packaging box 9 (steps S14 and S15).

  An example of product information printed by the inkjet printer 10 is shown in FIG. A barcode 41, a two-dimensional code 42, and product information characters 43 are printed on the surface 40 of the packaging box. Here, as the information of the bar code 41, the minimum information necessary for physical distribution work such as inspection and sorting, for example, a product number, a factory name, a manufacturing date, and a manufacturing line can be considered. The two-dimensional code 42 is encoded with all product information including the product name, the person in charge, and the like. This two-dimensional code is effective, for example, when it is desired to input and manage all the product information at the delivery destination at the same time.

  When the printing of the product information is completed and the packaging box 9 is detected by passing between the optical sensor 24a and the reflecting mirror 24b, the barcode 41 printed by the second code reader 21 is read, and the decoding result is information creation It is sent to the grant determination unit 5 (steps S16 and S17). In the information creation / giving determination unit 5, the product information from the encoding unit 4 and the decoding result from the code reader 21 are collated, and it is determined whether printing has been performed normally (step S18). For example, when the print density is low and the bar code 41 is not decoded by the code reader 21 and is determined to be abnormal here, the operator is notified by the speaker 6 and the warning lamp 7 (step S19). If it is normal, the process returns to step S10.

  The information creation / giving determination unit 5 also monitors the state of the ink jet printer 10. If information such as an operation abnormality from the start to the end of printing or out of ink is received from the ink jet printer 10, step S 19 is executed in the same manner. .

  In the database shown in FIG. 2, information such as products to be manufactured, manufacturing lines, and persons in charge needs to be set in advance before manufacturing. When such information changes, for example, when the person in charge or the production line changes, it is necessary to change / update the database as a change in management information.

  Next, a second embodiment of the product information creation and assignment system according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 5 shows the overall configuration of the system. The difference from the system of the first embodiment is that the labeling machine 11 is the product information creation / giving means for the packing box 9 as can be seen from the comparison with FIG. That is, in the first embodiment, the product information is directly printed on the surface of the packaging box 9, but in the second embodiment, the label 33 on which the product information is printed is attached to the surface of the packaging box 9.

  Regarding the operation flow of the system, the difference from the first embodiment is that step S15 in FIG. 2 is a printing / pasting process by a labeling machine. Is sent. Since other configurations and operation flows are the same as those of the system of the first embodiment, detailed description thereof is omitted.

Next, Embodiment 3 of the product information creation and assignment system according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 6 shows the overall configuration of the system. The major difference from the product information creation and assignment system of the first and second embodiments is that the product information creation and assignment means for the packaging box 9 is an IC tag reader / writer 12. In addition to the barcodes 30 and 31 representing the product numbers being printed in advance on the packing box 9, IC tags 13 and 14 are attached to the packaging boxes 9, respectively. IC at the pre-production stage
No information is written in the tags 13 and 14.

  A method and procedure for creating product information and assigning it to the packaging box will be described below with reference to the operation flow of FIG.

  When the packaging box 9 passes between the optical sensor 22a and the reflecting mirror 22b, a detection signal is sent to the first code reader 20 (step S30). The bar code 30 printed on the packing box 9 is read by the first code reader 20 (step S31). The read product number information is sent to the information creation unit 3 where new product information is created.

  The product information creation procedure in the information creation unit 3 is exactly the same as in the first and second embodiments, and product information such as the product number, product name, factory name, production date, production line, and person in charge extracted here. Are rearranged according to the determined data format and sent to the IC tag reader / writer 12 and the information creation / giving determination unit 5 (step S32). When the packaging box 9 passes between the optical sensor 23a and the reflecting mirror 23b and is detected, the product information is written to the IC tag 14 by the IC tag reader 12 (steps S33 and S34).

  The IC tag reader / writer 12 reads the information written in the IC tag 14 immediately after the writing is completed, and sends the information to the information creation / giving determination unit 5. The information creation / giving determination unit 5 checks whether the information from the IC tag reader / writer 12 and the product information from the information creation unit 3 are collated and written normally (step S35). If the two do not match and are determined to be abnormal, the operator is notified of the abnormality by the speaker 6 and the warning lamp 7 as in the first and second embodiments (step S36). If it is normal, the process returns to step S1. If any abnormality occurs during the writing of the IC tag reader / writer, the information is sent to the information creation / giving determination unit 5, and step S36 is similarly executed. Although not shown in FIG. 7, it is conceivable to execute writing / reading / product information collation / determination again as a response to the abnormality in step S <b> 35.

  It should be noted that the barcodes 30 and 31 in the first to third embodiments do not generate extra production costs if they are printed in the same manner as the characters of the product name or the design of the product when the packaging box manufacturer manufactures the packaging box. If the code readers 20 and 21 can read a two-dimensional code, there is no problem even if the barcodes 30 and 31 are two-dimensional codes.

  Next, a fourth embodiment of the product information creation and assignment system according to the present invention will be described. FIG. 8 shows the overall configuration of the system. The difference from the product information creation and assignment system of the third embodiment is that the product number barcode is not printed on the packing boxes 8 and 9.

  FIG. 9 shows an operation flow of the system. The product number information is written in the IC tags 13 and 14 attached to the packing boxes 8 and 9 in advance before manufacturing. Similarly, the product information creation and assignment method and procedure will be described below with a focus on the packaging box 9.

  When the packaging box 9 passes between the optical sensor 23a and the reflecting mirror 23b, a detection signal is sent to the IC tag reader / writer 12 (step S40). The product number information written in the IC tag 14 is read by the IC tag reader / writer 12 (step S41). The product number information is sent to the information creation unit 3, and new product information is created.

The product information creation procedure and the subsequent operation flow (steps S42 to S45) in the information creation unit 3 are exactly the same as those in the third embodiment. In the system of the fourth embodiment, it is necessary to write the product number information in advance on the IC tags 13 and 14 attached to the packaging boxes 8 and 9, but it is not necessary to print the barcode of the product number on the packaging box. There is an advantage that a bar code reader for reading the bar code is unnecessary.

  If the speed of the conveyor 1 is high and the number of packing boxes that flow per unit time is large, the processing of the system may not be in time, and packing boxes that are not assigned product information may flow to the subsequent process. As a countermeasure, although not shown in the system configuration diagram (FIGS. 1, 5, 6, and 8), a stopper is placed in front of the system so that the packaging box 8 advances after the processing for the packaging box 9 is completed. The structure which provides can be considered.

  Up to now, the example of creating and giving product information to a packaging box packed with products has been shown, but the present invention is not limited to the product packaging box for creating and giving product information, The present invention can be applied to a storage body or a product body of any material in which a product is stored. However, when using an inkjet printer (printing unit) or a labeling machine (printing and pasting unit) as in the first and second embodiments, it is necessary that the surface to which product information is applied is a flat surface.

The present invention relates to a method and a system for creating product information and assigning the information to a product in a product manufacturing process, and for each type of storage body or product body (product) in which the product is stored. Product information corresponding to the product type can be created in real time and given to the product.

The figure which shows the whole structure of Embodiment 1 of the product information creation provision system by this invention. The figure which shows the operation | movement flow of Embodiment 1 of the product information creation provision system by this invention. The figure which shows an example of the database of the product information which an information preparation part has The figure which shows an example of the product information printed with the inkjet printer The figure which shows the whole structure of Embodiment 2 of the product information creation provision system by this invention. The figure which shows the whole structure of Embodiment 3 of the product information creation provision system by this invention. The figure which shows the operation | movement flow of Embodiment 3 of the product information creation provision system by this invention. The figure which shows the whole structure of Embodiment 4 of the product information creation provision system by this invention. The figure which shows the operation | movement flow of Embodiment 4 of the product information creation provision system by this invention. The figure which shows the structural example of the production system containing the conventional product information printing apparatus The figure which shows another structural example of the production system containing the conventional product information printing apparatus

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Conveyor 2 Controller 3 Information preparation part 4 Encoding part 5 Information preparation provision determination part 6 Speaker 7 Warning lamps 8 and 9 Packing box (product)
10 Inkjet printer (printing section)
11 Labeling machine (printing part)
12 IC tag reader / writer 13, 14 IC tag 20 First code reader 21 Second code reader 22a, 23a, 24a Optical sensor 22b, 23b, 24b Reflector 30, 31 Bar code (code)
32 Product information printed on the product 33 Label 40 on which the product information is printed 40 Packing box (product) surface 41 Bar code 42 Two-dimensional code 43 Product information characters 50-1 to 50-N Box making unit 60-1 60-N Packing part 70-1 to 70-N Manufacturing part 80-1 to 80-N, 81 Printing part

Claims (5)

A step of reading information given to the product, a step of analyzing the read information, a step of extracting predetermined information from the analyzed information or creating new information, and the extracted predetermined information or created information A product information creation and grant method comprising the steps of: re-assigning the product as product information to the product and determining whether the product information has been normally created and assigned to the product. A first code reader that decodes a code attached to a product; an information creation unit that creates product information based on information decoded by the first code reader; and product information from the information creation unit. An encoding unit that encodes the code; a printing unit that prints the code encoded by the encoding unit on the product; a second code reader that decodes the code printed by the printing unit; and the second code reader A product information creation and grant system comprising an information creation and grant determination unit for judging whether or not product information has been successfully created and assigned based on information decoded by a code reader. A first code reader that decodes a code attached to a product; an information creation unit that creates product information based on information decoded by the first code reader; and product information from the information creation unit. An encoding unit that encodes the code; a printing paste unit that prints the code encoded by the encoding unit on a label and pastes the code on the product; and a second code reader that decodes the code printed and pasted by the printing paste unit And a product information creation and grant system that determines whether or not product information has been successfully created and assigned based on the information decoded by the second code reader. An IC tag that is attached to a product and records information; a code reader that decodes a code attached to the product; an information creation unit that creates product information based on the information decoded by the code reader; An IC tag reader / writer unit having a function of reading information recorded on the IC tag and a function of newly writing information, and when product information from the information creation unit is written to the IC tag by the IC tag reader / writer unit In addition, a product information creation and grant system comprising an information creation and grant judgment unit for judging whether or not product information has been normally written. An IC tag attached to a product and storing information; an IC tag reader / writer unit having a function of reading information recorded on the IC tag and a function of newly writing information; and information read by the IC tag reader / writer unit An information creation unit for creating product information based on the information, and whether product information has been normally written when product information from the information creation unit is written to the IC tag by the IC tag reader / writer unit A product information creation and grant system comprising an information creation and grant determination unit.

Images