JP7621055B2 - Location information management method, location information management device, and location information management program - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to a location information management method, a location information management device, and a location information management program.

In warehouses, factories, etc. (hereinafter collectively referred to as "warehouses"), items such as steel bodies (coils) may be loaded onto a pallet (hereinafter simply referred to as a "transport cart") of a transport cart such as a trailer, and transported to a destination warehouse. In general, when the items to be transported are large, the items placed in the item storage area in the warehouse from which they are transported are lifted by a hoist such as an overhead crane installed in the warehouse by the operator, and lowered onto the transport cart. The items are then transported to the destination warehouse by the transport cart. The items on the transport cart parked at the destination warehouse are lifted by a hoist such as an overhead crane installed in the warehouse by the operator, and lowered into the item storage area in the warehouse. When multiple items are loaded onto the transport cart and transported together, it is necessary to confirm that each of the items actually loaded and unloaded on the transport cart parked at the destination warehouse is the same as the item that the operator intends to unload.

Conventionally, a method has been used in which the position where an item is lowered onto a transport cart in the source warehouse and the position where the item is lifted from the transport cart in the destination warehouse are measured, and the two positions are compared to confirm whether the item being unloaded from the transport cart matches the item that the operator intends to unload. When comparing the two positions, it is necessary to take into account the difference in orientation between the source warehouse (e.g., the loading exit) and the destination warehouse (e.g., the loading entrance), as well as the difference in orientation between the transport cart when parked at the source warehouse and when parked at the destination warehouse.

For example, the actual item management system described in Patent Document 1 replaces the position information indicating the position of each item suspended onto a transport cart in the source warehouse with relative position information based on the position of any one item on the transport cart. The actual item management system also replaces the position information indicating the position of each item suspended from the transport cart in the destination warehouse with relative position information based on the position of any one item on the transport cart. The actual item management system then verifies the transported items by comparing these sets of relative position information on the transport cart.

Patent No. 5127415

However, in the case of the actual item management system described in Patent Document 1, a set of relative position information is generated only after the measurement of the positions of all items on the transport cart is completed in the destination warehouse. Therefore, only after the measurement of the positions of all items is completed, the set of relative position information obtained in the source warehouse and the set of relative position information obtained in the destination warehouse cannot be compared. This causes a problem that even if the comparison results are inconsistent, the operator cannot obtain the comparison result and cannot check the transported items until the measurement of the positions of all items is completed.
In addition, because the direction in which the transport cart stops varies from warehouse to warehouse, or because the transport cart stops in a location that is shifted from the designated stopping position in the warehouse, there may be a discrepancy between the items that the operator intends to unload and the items that are actually unloaded.

The present invention was made in consideration of the above technical background, and aims to provide a technology that can check each and every item even if the position of all transported items has not been measured.

One aspect of the present invention includes a source position information acquisition step for acquiring a plurality of source position information represented by a coordinate system in the source area for each position of a plurality of items placed on a cart in a source area, a destination position information acquisition step for acquiring a plurality of destination position information represented by a coordinate system in the destination area for each position of a plurality of items transported by the cart in a destination area and removed from the cart, a direction information acquisition step for acquiring direction information indicating the relationship between the orientation of the cart in the source area and the orientation of the cart in the destination area, and The method includes a position information estimation step of calculating estimated position information, based on one source position information among the plurality of source position information, one destination position information among the plurality of destination position information that corresponds to the one source position information, and the direction information, from another source position information different from the one source position information among the plurality of source position information, to obtain estimated position information that is a position to which the item corresponding to the other source position information has been transported by the cart in the destination area and is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area, and a comparison step of comparing the position based on the other destination position information with the position based on the estimated position information.

Another aspect of the present invention is the above-mentioned position information management method, in which the direction information is information indicating the relationship based on the direction of the exit of the trolley in the source area and the direction of the entrance of the trolley in the destination area.

In one aspect of the present invention, in the position information management method described above, the direction information is further information indicating the relationship based on the traveling direction of the trolley in the source area and the traveling direction of the trolley in the destination area.

In addition, one aspect of the present invention is the above-mentioned location information management method, which further includes an output step of outputting warning information when the location based on the destination location information does not match the location based on the estimated location information.

Another aspect of the present invention is the above-mentioned position information management method, in which the source position information is obtained by measuring the position where the item is placed on the cart by a conveyance machine installed in the source area, and the destination position information is obtained by measuring the position where the item is removed from the cart by a conveyance machine installed in the destination area.

In one aspect of the present invention, there is provided a source position information acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of source position information pieces indicated by a coordinate system in the source area for each of a plurality of positions of a plurality of items placed on a cart in a source area, a destination position information acquisition unit that acquires a plurality of destination position information pieces indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area for each of a plurality of positions of a plurality of items transported by the cart in a destination area and removed from the cart, a direction information acquisition unit that acquires direction information indicating a relationship between an orientation of the cart in the source area and an orientation of the cart in the destination area, and The position information management device includes a position information estimation unit that calculates estimated position information, based on one source position information among the plurality of source position information, one destination position information among the plurality of destination position information that corresponds to the one source position information, from another source position information different from the one source position information among the plurality of source position information, based on the direction information, and the estimated position information indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area, where the item corresponding to the other source position information has been transported by the cart in the destination area; and a comparison unit that compares the position based on the other destination position information with the position based on the estimated position information.

In one aspect of the present invention, a computer includes a source position information acquisition step for acquiring a plurality of source position information pieces indicated by a coordinate system in the source area for each position of a plurality of items placed on a cart in a source area, a destination position information acquisition step for acquiring a plurality of destination position information pieces indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area for each position of a plurality of items transported by the cart in a destination area and removed from the cart, a direction information acquisition step for acquiring direction information indicating the relationship between the orientation of the cart in the source area and the orientation of the cart in the destination area, and a method for acquiring a plurality of destination position information pieces indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area for each position of a plurality of items transported by the cart in a destination area and removed from the cart. This is a position information management program for executing a position information estimation step of calculating estimated position information, which is a position to which the item corresponding to another source position information of the plurality of source position information is transported by the cart in the destination area from another source position information different from the one source position information of the plurality of source position information based on one source position information of the plurality of destination position information, the one destination position information corresponding to the one source position information, and the direction information, and which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area; and a comparison step of comparing a position based on the other destination position information with a position based on the estimated position information.

The present invention makes it possible to check each and every item even if the position of all transported items has not yet been measured.

1 is a schematic diagram for explaining a method for conveying an article according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a schematic diagram for explaining a method for conveying an article according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram showing an overall configuration of a transport system TS according to an embodiment of the present invention. 10 is a flowchart showing an operation of a source transport system TS1 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 10 is a flowchart showing an operation of a destination transport system TS2 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 1 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a source position information managing device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a destination position information management device 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a conversion table used by a destination position information managing device 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a conversion table used by a destination position information managing device 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG.

[Transport System Overview]
Hereinafter, an overview of an article conveying method according to one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Figures 1 and 2 are schematic diagrams for explaining a method for transporting items according to one embodiment of the present invention. The method for transporting items according to this embodiment is a method for loading multiple items GD placed in a source warehouse WH1, which is the source of the transport, onto a transport cart TR, such as a trailer, and transporting them to a destination warehouse WH2, which is the destination of the transport. As shown in the figure, Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating the state of transport in the source warehouse WH1, and Figure 2 is a diagram illustrating the state of transport in the destination warehouse WH2.

The item GD here is a large object such as a steel strip (coil). Therefore, as shown in FIG. 1, the item GD placed in the item storage area of the source warehouse WH1 is lifted by a crane CR1 installed in the source warehouse WH1 and lowered onto a transport cart TR parked in the source warehouse WH1. Note that the item GD may be a small object.

Then, the item GD is loaded onto a transport cart TR and transported from the source warehouse WH1 to the destination warehouse WH2. As shown in FIG. 2, the item GD loaded on the transport cart TR parked at the destination warehouse WH2 is lifted up by a crane CR2 installed in the destination warehouse WH2 and lowered into the item storage area of the destination warehouse WH2.

The crane CR1 (transport machine) at the source warehouse WH1 and the crane CR2 (transport machine) at the destination warehouse WH2 are operated by operators. However, the crane CR1 and the crane CR2 may also be automatically operated, for example, by computer control.

Also, as shown in FIG. 1, the exit for the transport cart TR to enter and exit the source warehouse WH1 faces west. Therefore, for example, as shown in FIG. 1, when the transport cart TR enters the source warehouse WH1 from the rear (from the rear of the vehicle) and stops, the transport cart TR faces west. Also, when the transport cart TR enters the source warehouse WH1 from the front (from the front of the vehicle) and stops, the transport cart TR faces east.

On the other hand, as shown in FIG. 2, the exit for the transport cart TR to enter and exit the destination warehouse WH2 faces north. Therefore, for example, as shown in FIG. 2, when the transport cart TR enters the destination warehouse WH2 from the front and stops there, the transport cart TR faces south. Also, when the transport cart TR enters the destination warehouse WH2 from the rear and stops there, the transport cart TR faces north.

In this way, the orientation of the transport cart TR when the items GD are loaded onto the transport cart TR and the orientation of the transport cart TR when the items GD are unloaded from the transport cart TR differ depending on the warehouse and also on whether the transport cart TR enters the warehouse from the front or the rear. Therefore, in order to prevent the mis-entry of items due to, for example, an operator's misrecognition at the destination warehouse WH2, it is necessary to confirm that each of the items actually unloaded from the transport cart TR matches the item that the operator of the destination warehouse WH2 intends to unload.

[Overall configuration of the transport system]
3 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of a transfer system TS according to an embodiment of the present invention, which includes a source transfer system TS1 and a destination transfer system TS2.

The source transport system TS1 is a system installed in the source warehouse WH1. As shown in FIG. 3, the source transport system TS1 includes a source position information management device 10 and a source crane control device 50.

The source crane control device 50, by operation of the operator, controls the operation of the crane CR1, which hoists the item GD placed in the item storage area of the source warehouse WH1 and lowers it onto the transport cart TR. In addition, a sensor (not shown) that acquires position information is attached to the crane CR1, and the source crane control device 50 can acquire position information indicating the position measured by the sensor. The source crane control device 50 acquires position information from the sensor (not shown) that indicates the position where the item GD was lowered onto the transport cart TR, and outputs the acquired position information to the source position information management device 10.

Note that the configuration is not limited to the above as long as it has a mechanism capable of acquiring position information indicating the position where the item GD is suspended and lowered onto the transport cart TR, and may be, for example, a configuration in which a sensor is installed on the ceiling or wall of the source warehouse WH1. Alternatively, the configuration may be such that the position of the item GD is measured by a satellite positioning system such as GPS (Global Positioning System).

The source position information management device 10 acquires position information (hereinafter referred to as "source position information") output from the source crane control device 50, which indicates the position where the item GD was lowered onto the transport cart TR. The source position information management device 10 also stores information indicating the direction of the exit in the source warehouse WH1 in advance. The source position information management device 10 is also capable of recognizing the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the source warehouse WH1 (whether from the front or the rear). Hereinafter, the information indicating the direction of the exit in the source warehouse WH1 and the information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the source warehouse WH1 are collectively referred to as "source direction information."

The source position information management device 10 transmits the source position information and source direction information to the destination position information management device 20 (described later) via a communication network.

The destination transport system TS2 is a system installed in the destination warehouse WH2. As shown in FIG. 3, the destination transport system TS2 includes a destination position information management device 20 and a destination crane control device 60.

The destination crane control device 60, by operation of the operator, controls the operation of the crane CR2, which hoists the item GD loaded onto the transport cart TR parked at the destination warehouse WH2 and lowers it into the item storage area of the destination warehouse WH2. In addition, a sensor (not shown) that acquires position information is attached to the crane CR2, and the destination crane control device 60 can acquire position information indicating the position measured by the sensor. The destination crane control device 60 acquires position information from the sensor (not shown) that indicates the position where the item GD was lifted from the transport cart TR, and outputs the acquired position information to the destination position information management device 20.

Note that the configuration is not limited to the above as long as the transport cart TR has a mechanism capable of acquiring position information indicating the position where the item GD is lifted from the transport cart TR. For example, the transport cart TR may have a configuration in which a sensor is installed on the ceiling or wall of the destination warehouse WH2. Alternatively, the transport cart TR may have a configuration in which the position of the item GD is measured by a satellite positioning system such as GPS.

The destination position information management device 20 acquires position information (hereinafter referred to as "destination position information") output from the source crane control device 50, indicating the position where the item GD was lifted from the transport cart TR. The destination position information management device 20 also stores information indicating the direction of the loading entrance at the destination warehouse WH2 in advance. The destination position information management device 20 is also capable of recognizing the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the destination warehouse WH2 (whether from the front or the rear). Hereinafter, the information indicating the direction of the loading entrance at the destination warehouse WH2 and the information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the destination warehouse WH2 are collectively referred to as "destination direction information".

As shown in FIG. 3, the location information management system 1 is composed of a source location information management device 10 and a destination location information management device 20. The destination location information management device 20 receives the source location information and source direction information transmitted from the source location information management device 10 via a communication network. The destination location information management device 20 performs processing to confirm whether each of the items actually unloaded from the transport cart TR matches the items intended to be unloaded by the operator of the destination warehouse WH2, based on the source location information, source direction information, destination location information, and destination direction information. The specific flow of the above processing will be described below with reference to FIG. 4 and FIG. 5.

[Operation of Source Conveyor System]
An example of the operation of the source transport system TS1 will now be described.
FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the source transport system TS1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The source crane control device 50 moves the crane CR1 to the item storage area of the source warehouse WH1 based on the operation by the operator (step S101). The source crane control device 50 lifts one of at least one item GD placed in the item storage area based on the operation by the operator (step S102).

Based on the operation by the operator, the source crane control device 50 moves the crane CR1 that has lifted the item GD onto the transport cart TR (step S103). Based on the operation by the operator, the source crane control device 50 lowers the item GD lifted by the crane CR1 onto the transport cart TR (step S104).

The source crane control device 50 acquires position information indicating the position where the item GD was lowered, measured by the above-mentioned sensor (not shown) (step S105). The source crane control device 50 outputs the acquired position information to the source position information management device 10 (step S106).

The source crane control device 50 repeats the operations from step S101 to step S106 until loading of all items GD onto the transport cart TR is completed (step S107, No). When loading of all items GD onto the transport cart TR is completed (step S107, Yes), the source crane control device 50 ends the operation.

The source position information management device 10 acquires the position information transmitted from the source crane control device 50 in step S106 (step S201). The source position information management device 10 temporarily stores the acquired position information (step S202). If the acquired position information is the position information of the first item GD loaded onto the transport cart TR (i.e., if the position information is acquired for the first time) (step S203, Yes), the source position information management device 10 assigns a flag indicating that the acquired position information is position information representing a reference position (hereinafter referred to as the "reference position") to the acquired position information (step S204). Note that if the acquired position information is the position information of the second or subsequent item GD loaded onto the transport cart TR (i.e., if the position information is acquired for the second or subsequent time) (step S203, No), the above flag is not assigned.

The operator is able to visually determine which of the multiple items GD loaded onto the transport cart TR is the first item GD loaded by the crane CR1 of the source warehouse WH1. For example, a rule may be established in advance that the first item GD to be loaded must always be placed in a specific position on the transport cart TR (e.g., the left side of the front row on the pallet of the transport cart TR), allowing the operator to determine this. Alternatively, a specific mark may be placed in advance on the surface of the first item to be loaded, allowing the operator to determine this.

In addition, not only the operator of the crane CR1 at the source warehouse WH1, but also the operator of the crane CR2 at the destination warehouse WH2 can visually determine which of the multiple items GD loaded onto the transport cart TR is the first item GD loaded by the crane CR1 at the source warehouse WH1.

The source position information management device 10 repeats the above steps S201 to S204 until loading of all items GD onto the transport cart TR is completed (step S205, No). When loading of items GD onto the transport cart TR is completed (step S205, Yes), the source position information management device 10 acquires source direction information that has been pre-stored in the device (step S206). As described above, the source direction information includes information indicating the direction of the exit in the source warehouse WH1 and information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the source warehouse WH1.

The source position information management device 10 transmits the source position information consisting of the temporarily stored position information group (including a flag indicating the reference position) and the source direction information to the destination position information management device 20 via the communication network (step S207). The transmitted information is received by the destination position information management device 20 in step S401 shown in FIG. 5, which will be described later. This completes the operation of the source position information management device 10, and all operations of the source transport system TS1 shown in the flowchart in FIG. 4 are completed.

[Operation of destination transport system]
An example of the operation of the source transport system TS2 will now be described.
FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the destination transport system TS2 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Based on the operation by the operator, the destination crane control device 60 moves the crane CR2 onto the transport cart TR parked at the destination warehouse WH2 (step S301). Based on the operation by the operator, the destination crane control device 60 lifts one of the at least one item GD loaded onto the transport cart TR (step S302).

The destination crane control device 60 acquires position information indicating the position where the item GD is lifted, measured by the above-mentioned sensor (not shown) (step S303). The destination crane control device 60 outputs the acquired position information to the destination position information management device 20 (step S304).

Based on the operation by the operator, the destination crane control device 60 moves the crane CR2 that has lifted the item GD to the item storage area of the source warehouse WH2 (step S305). Based on the operation by the operator, the destination crane control device 60 lowers the item GD lifted by the crane CR2 into the item storage area (step S306).

The destination crane control device 60 repeats the operations from step S301 to step S306 until unloading of the item GD from the transport cart TR is completed (step S307, No). When unloading of the item GD from the transport cart TR is completed (step S307, Yes), the destination crane control device 60 ends the operation.

The destination position information management device 20 receives the source position information and source direction information transmitted from the source position information management device 10 in step S207 of FIG. 4 via the communication network (step S401).

The destination position information management device 20 acquires the position information transmitted from the destination crane control device 60 in step S304 (step S402). If the acquired position information is the position information of the first item GD unloaded from the transport cart TR (i.e., if this is the first time that position information has been acquired) (step S403: Yes), the destination position information management device 20 temporarily stores the acquired position information (step S404).

The destination position information management device 20 acquires destination direction information that has been stored in advance in the device (step S405). As described above, the destination direction information includes information indicating the direction of the entrance of the destination warehouse WH2 and information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the destination warehouse WH2.

The destination position information management device 20 converts the position information indicating the position of each item GD in the source position information into position information indicating the position of each item GD on the transport cart TR parked at the destination warehouse WH2 (step S406) by performing calculations based on the position information indicating the reference position in the source position information (i.e., the position of the first item GD, based on the position information to which the flag has been assigned) and the position information indicating the position of each item GD, and the position information indicating the position of the first item GD unloaded from the transport cart TR. As a result, the source position information in the coordinate system of the source warehouse WH1 received from the source position information management device 10 is converted into position information in the coordinate system of the destination warehouse WH2. Hereinafter, the converted position information will be referred to as "estimated position information".

The destination position information management device 20 temporarily stores the estimated position information (step S407). Then, the destination position information management device 20 waits for the acquisition of position information output from the destination crane control device 60 in association with the unloading of the second or subsequent item GD (step S402).

If the acquired position information is the position information of the second or subsequent item GD unloaded from the transport cart TR (i.e., if the position information is acquired for the second or subsequent time) (step S403: No), the destination position information management device 20 compares the position based on the acquired position information (destination position information) with the position of each item GD based on the estimated position information temporarily stored in the above step S407 (step S409).

If the acquired position information (destination position information) does not match any of the positions of each item GD based on the estimated position information (step S409: No), the destination position information management device 20 outputs information indicating a warning (warning information) (step S410) and terminates the operation. This is because, if the position of the item GD based on the estimated position information (estimated by the above calculation) differs from the actual position of the item GD, it can be confirmed that some kind of malfunction has occurred, for example, the operator has mistakenly lifted an item GD different from the item GD that should be lifted first.

On the other hand, if the acquired position information (destination position information) matches any of the positions of each item GD based on the estimated position information (step S409, Yes), the destination position information management device 20 repeats the operations of steps S402, S403, S408, and S409 described above until unloading of the item GD from the transport cart TR is completed (step S411, No). When unloading of the item GD from the transport cart TR is completed (step S409, Yes), the destination position information management device 20 ends its operation. This completes all operations of the destination transport system TS2 shown in the flowchart of FIG. 5.

[Functional configuration of the origin position information management device]
The functional configuration of the origin position information managing device 10 will be described below.
6 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the origin location information managing device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 6, the origin location information managing device 10 includes an origin location information acquiring unit 11, a storage unit 12, and a transmitting unit 13.

The source position information acquisition unit 11 acquires position information transmitted from the source crane control device 50. The source position information acquisition unit 11 stores the acquired position information in the memory unit 12 as source position information 121. Furthermore, if the acquired position information is the position information of the first item GD loaded onto the transport cart TR (i.e., if this is the first time that position information has been acquired), the source position information acquisition unit 11 assigns a flag to the acquired position information indicating that the acquired position information is position information indicating a reference position, and stores the flag in the memory unit 12.

The storage unit 12 temporarily stores the source position information 121 and the source direction information 122. The storage unit 12 is configured, for example, by a storage medium such as a RAM (Random Access Memory; a readable and writable memory), a flash memory, an EEPROM (Electrically Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), and a HDD (Hard Disk Drive), or any combination of these storage media.

The source direction information 122 is stored in advance in the storage unit 12. As described above, the source direction information includes information indicating the direction of the exit in the source warehouse WH1 and information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the source warehouse WH1. The information indicating the direction of the exit is stored in advance in the storage unit 12 by a system administrator or the like, for example, when the source position information management device 10 is installed in the source warehouse WH1.

In addition, information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the source warehouse WH1 is generated by a sensor (not shown) installed at the exit of the source warehouse WH1 when the transport cart TR enters the source warehouse WH1, and is stored in the memory unit 12. Alternatively, information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the source warehouse WH1 is generated by the operator of the crane CR1 visually checking the direction of the transport cart TR and inputting it into the source position information management device 10, and is stored in the memory unit 12.

The transmitting unit 13 transmits the origin position information 121 (including a flag indicating the reference position) and the origin direction information 122 stored in the memory unit 12 to the destination position information management device 20 via a communication network. The transmitting unit 13 includes a communication interface for connecting to the receiving unit 21 (described later) of the destination position information management device 20.

[Functional configuration of destination position information management device]
The functional configuration of the destination position information management device 20 will be described below.
7 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a destination position information management device 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 7, the destination position information management device 20 includes a receiving unit 21, a destination position information acquisition unit 22, a storage unit 23, a position information estimation unit 24, a collating unit 25, and an output unit 26.

The receiving unit 21 receives the origin position information 121 and the origin direction information 122 transmitted from the transmitting unit 13 of the origin position information management device 10 via a communication network. The receiving unit 21 stores the origin position information 121 and the origin direction information 122 in the memory unit 23. The receiving unit 21 includes a communication interface for connecting to the transmitting unit 13 of the origin position information management device 10 for communication.

The destination position information acquisition unit 22 acquires position information transmitted from the destination crane control device 60. If the acquired position information is the position information of the first item GD unloaded from the transport cart TR (i.e., if the position information is acquired for the first time), the destination position information acquisition unit 22 stores the position information in the memory unit 12. In addition, if the acquired position information is the position information of the second or subsequent item GD unloaded from the transport cart TR (i.e., if the position information is acquired for the second or subsequent time), the destination position information acquisition unit 22 outputs the position information to the collation unit 25.

The storage unit 23 temporarily stores the source position information 121, the source direction information 122, the estimated position information 231, and the destination direction information 232. The storage unit 23 is configured, for example, by a storage medium such as a RAM, a flash memory, an EEPROM, or a HDD, or by any combination of these storage media.

The destination direction information 232 is stored in advance in the memory unit 23. As described above, the destination direction information includes information indicating the direction of the loading entrance at the destination warehouse WH2 and information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the destination warehouse WH2. The information indicating the direction of the loading entrance is stored in advance in the memory unit 23 by a system administrator or the like, for example, when the destination position information management device 20 is installed in the destination warehouse WH2.

In addition, information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the destination warehouse WH2 is generated by a sensor (not shown) installed at the entrance of the destination warehouse WH2 when the transport cart TR enters the destination warehouse WH2, and is stored in the memory unit 23. Alternatively, information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the destination warehouse WH2 is generated by the operator of the crane CR2 visually checking the direction of the transport cart TR and inputting it into the destination position information management device 20, and is stored in the memory unit 23.

Based on the position information indicating the reference position in the source position information 121 (i.e., the position of the first item GD, based on the position information to which the above flag has been assigned) and the position information indicating the position of the first item GD stored in the memory unit 23 by the destination position information acquisition unit 22, the position information estimation unit 24 performs a calculation to convert the position information indicating the positions of the second and subsequent items GD in the source position information 121 into position information indicating the positions of the second and subsequent items GD on the transport cart TR parked in the destination warehouse WH2, and stores it in the memory unit 23 as estimated position information 231. As a result, the source position information 121 in the coordinate system of the source warehouse WH1 received from the source position information management device 10 is converted into estimated position information 231 in the coordinate system of the destination warehouse WH2.

The matching unit 25 waits for input of position information output from the destination crane control device 60 in association with the unloading of the second or subsequent item GD from the destination position information acquisition unit 22. The matching unit 25 matches the position based on the input position information (destination position information) with the position of each item GD based on the estimated position information 231 stored in the memory unit 23.

If the position based on the acquired position information (destination position information) does not match any of the positions of each item GD based on the estimated position information 231, the collation unit 25 outputs information indicating a warning (warning information) via the output unit 26. This is because, if the estimated position of the item GD differs from the actual position of the item GD, it can be confirmed that some kind of malfunction has occurred, for example, the operator has mistakenly lifted an item GD different from the item GD that should be lifted first.

On the other hand, if the position based on the acquired position information (destination position information) matches any of the positions of each item GD based on the estimated position information 231, the matching unit 25 outputs information indicating that the matching result is normal via the output unit 26. Alternatively, in this case, the matching unit 25 may be configured not to output information.

The output unit 26 outputs information based on the result of the matching by the matching unit 25. The output unit 26 may be a component including a display device such as a liquid crystal display, or may be a communication interface for outputting information to an external display device, etc.

[Example of conversion table configuration]
An example of the configuration of the conversion table will be described below.
8 and 9 are diagrams showing an example of a conversion table used by the destination position information managing device 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention.

The conversion table TB1 shown in FIG. 8 is a conversion table in which information indicating the direction of the exit at the source warehouse WH1, information indicating the direction of the entrance at the destination warehouse WH2, and a conversion formula for position information are associated with each other.

In the return formula shown in FIG. 8, "Xa" and "Ya" are the X-coordinate value of the first item GD based on the estimated position information 231, and the Y-coordinate value of the first item GD based on the estimated position information 231, respectively. Also, in the return formula shown in FIG. 8, "Δx" and "Δy" are the difference value obtained by subtracting the X-coordinate value (of the reference position) of the first item GD from the X-coordinate value of the second or subsequent item GD based on the source position information 121, and the difference value obtained by subtracting the Y-coordinate value (of the reference position) of the first item GD from the Y-coordinate value (of the reference position) of the first item GD based on the source position information 121, respectively.

For example, assume that the exit of the source warehouse WH1 faces west as shown in Figure 1, and the entrance of the destination warehouse WH2 faces north as shown in Figure 2. In this case, the conversion formula is (Xa + Δy, Ya - Δx), as shown in Figure 8.

For example, in the source warehouse WH1, the coordinates (Xm, Ym) of the position (reference position) of the first item are (3, 5), and the coordinates (Xn, Yn) of the position of the second item are (4, 7). For example, in the destination warehouse WH2, the coordinates (Xa, Ya) of the position of the first item are (1, 6). That is, in this case, Xa = 1, Ya = 6, Δx = 1, Δy = 2.

In the above example, the coordinates (Xb, Yb) of the position of the second item at destination warehouse WH2 are (1+2,6-1) based on the above conversion formula, and the converted coordinates (3,5) can be obtained.

The conversion table TB2 shown in FIG. 9 is a conversion table in which information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the source warehouse WH1, information indicating the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the destination warehouse WH2, and a conversion formula for position information are associated with each other.

As in FIG. 8, in the return formula shown in FIG. 9, "Xa" and "Ya" are the X-coordinate value of the first item GD based on the estimated position information 231, and the Y-coordinate value of the first item GD based on the estimated position information 231, respectively. Also, as in FIG. 8, in the return formula shown in FIG. 9, "Δx" and "Δy" are the difference value obtained by subtracting the X-coordinate value (of the reference position) of the first item GD from the X-coordinate value of the second or subsequent item GD based on the origin position information 121, and the difference value obtained by subtracting the Y-coordinate value (of the reference position) of the first item GD from the Y-coordinate value (of the reference position) of the first item GD based on the origin position information 121, respectively.

For example, as shown in Figure 1, the direction of entry of the transport cart TR at the delivery exit of the source warehouse WH1 is from the rear, and as shown in Figure 2, the direction of entry of the transport cart TR at the delivery entrance of the destination warehouse WH2 is from the front. In this case, as shown in Figure 9, the conversion formula is (Xa-Δy, Ya-Δx).

For example, in the source warehouse WH1, the coordinates (Xm, Ym) of the position (reference position) of the first item are (3, 5), and the coordinates (Xn, Yn) of the position of the second item are (4, 7). For example, in the destination warehouse WH2, the coordinates (Xa, Ya) of the position of the first item are (1, 6). That is, in this case, Xa = 1, Ya = 6, Δx = 1, Δy = 2.

In the above example, the coordinates (Xb, Yb) of the position of the second item at the destination warehouse WH2 are (1-1, 6-2) based on the above conversion formula, and the converted coordinates are (0, 4).

Note that, although a conversion table TB1 for converting position information taking into consideration the direction of the exit at the source warehouse WH1 and the direction of the entrance at the destination warehouse WH2, and a conversion table TB2 for converting position information taking into consideration the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the source warehouse WH1 and the direction in which the transport cart TR entered the destination warehouse WH2 are illustrated separately in Figures 8 and 9, this is not limiting. For example, a configuration may be used in which one conversion table that can perform the above two types of conversions together is used. In addition, other types of conversion tables may be used as necessary depending on various environments such as the transport cart TR and its parking location, or the sensor that acquires the position information.

As described above, the destination position information management device 20 (position information management device) according to one embodiment of the present invention includes a source position information acquisition unit 11 that acquires a plurality of source position information 121 indicated by a coordinate system in the warehouse WH1 (source area) for each position of a plurality of items GD placed on a transport cart TR (cart) in a warehouse WH1 (source area), a destination position information acquisition unit 22 that acquires a plurality of destination position information indicated by a coordinate system in the warehouse WH2 (destination area) for each position of a plurality of items GD transported by the transport cart TR (cart) in a warehouse WH2 (destination area) and removed from the transport cart TR (cart), and a destination position information acquisition unit 23 that acquires a plurality of destination position information indicated by a coordinate system in the warehouse WH2 (destination area) for each position of a plurality of items GD transported by the transport cart TR (cart) in the warehouse WH1 (source area) and removed from the transport cart TR (cart). The system includes a receiving unit 21 (direction information acquisition unit) that acquires direction information indicating a relationship with the direction of the transport dolly TR (cart); a position information estimation unit 24 that calculates estimated position information 231, which is a position to which the item GD corresponding to the other source position information 121 has been transported in the warehouse WH2 (destination area) by the transport dolly TR (cart) from another source position information 121 different from the one source position information 121 among the multiple source position information 121 based on one source position information 121 among the multiple destination position information and the direction information, and a comparison unit 25 that compares the position based on the other destination position information with the position based on the estimated position information 231.

By being equipped with the above configuration, the destination position information management device 20 (position information management device) according to one embodiment of the present invention can check each and every item even if the measurement of the position of all the transported items has not been completed.

The location information management system 1 in the above-mentioned embodiment may be realized in part or in whole by a computer. In that case, a program for realizing this function may be recorded in a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded in the recording medium may be read into a computer system and executed to realize the function. Note that the term "computer system" here includes hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices. Furthermore, the term "computer-readable recording medium" refers to portable media such as flexible disks, optical magnetic disks, ROMs, and CD-ROMs, and storage devices such as hard disks built into a computer system. Furthermore, the term "computer-readable recording medium" may include those that dynamically hold a program for a short period of time, such as a communication line when a program is transmitted via a network such as the Internet or a communication line such as a telephone line, and those that hold a program for a certain period of time, such as a volatile memory inside a computer system that is a server or client in such a case. Furthermore, the above-mentioned program may be for realizing part of the above-mentioned function, or may be capable of realizing the above-mentioned function in combination with a program already recorded in the computer system, or may be realized using hardware such as a PLD (Programmable Logic Device) or FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array).

The location information management system 1 in the above-described embodiment may be implemented using multiple information processing devices connected to each other so that they can communicate with each other via a network. In this case, each functional unit of the location information management system 1 may be distributed and implemented in multiple information processing devices.

Although an embodiment of the present invention has been described above with reference to the drawings, it is clear that the above embodiment is merely an example of the present invention and the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment. Therefore, addition, omission, substitution, and other modifications of components may be made without departing from the technical concept and gist of the present invention.

1...location information management system, 10...origin location information management device, 11...origin location information acquisition unit, 12...storage unit, 13...transmission unit, 20...destination location information management device, 21...reception unit, 22...destination location information acquisition unit, 23...storage unit, 24...location information estimation unit, 25...collation unit, 26...output unit, 50...origin crane control device, 60...destination crane control device

Claims (5)

an origin position information acquiring step of acquiring a plurality of origin position information represented by a coordinate system in the origin area for each position of a plurality of articles placed on a cart in the origin area, and transmitting the acquired information from the origin position information managing device to the destination position information managing device ;
a first destination position information acquisition step of acquiring one destination position information indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area for a position of one of the plurality of articles transported by the cart in the destination area and removed from the cart;
a direction information acquisition step of acquiring direction information indicating a relationship between an orientation of an exit in the source area and an orientation of an entrance in the destination area, and a relationship between an orientation in which the cart enters the source area and an orientation in which the cart enters the destination area;
a position information estimating step of acquiring a conversion table in which a direction of the carry-out exit in the source area, a direction of the carry-in entrance in the destination area, a direction in which the cart entered the source area, and a direction in which the cart entered the destination area are associated with each other, and calculating estimated position information, which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area , from another piece of source position information different from the one piece of source position information among the plurality of pieces of source position information, based on the one piece of source position information corresponding to the one piece of destination position information among the plurality of pieces of source position information transmitted from the source position information management device to the destination position information management device, the direction information, and the conversion table, where the estimated position information is a position to which the item corresponding to the other piece of source position information was transported by the cart in the destination area, and which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area;
a second destination position information acquisition step of acquiring other destination position information, which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area, for a position of another item, different from the one item, among the plurality of items transported by the cart in the destination area and removed from the cart;
a comparison step of comparing a position based on the other destination position information with a position based on the estimated position information;
A location information management method comprising the steps of: The position information management method according to claim 1 , further comprising: an output step of outputting warning information when the position based on the delivery destination position information and the position based on the estimated position information do not match. 3. The position information management method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the source position information is obtained by measuring the position where the item is placed on the cart by a conveying machine installed in the source area, and the destination position information is obtained by measuring the position where the item is removed from the cart by a conveying machine installed in the destination area. an origin position information acquiring unit that acquires a plurality of origin position information represented by a coordinate system in the origin area for each position of a plurality of articles placed on a cart in the origin area, and transmits the acquired information from the origin position information managing device to the destination position information managing device ;
a first destination position information acquisition unit that acquires one destination position information indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area for a position of one of the plurality of articles that are transported by the cart in the destination area and removed from the cart;
a direction information acquisition unit that acquires direction information indicating a relationship between an orientation of an exit in the source area and an orientation of an entrance in the destination area, and a relationship between an orientation in which the cart enters the source area and an orientation in which the cart enters the destination area;
a position information estimating unit that acquires a conversion table in which a direction of the carry-out exit in the source area, a direction of the carry-in entrance in the destination area, a direction in which the cart entered the source area, and a direction in which the cart entered the destination area are associated with each other, and calculates estimated position information, which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area, from other source position information different from the one source position information among the plurality of source position information, based on the one destination position information corresponding to the one destination position information among the plurality of source position information transmitted from the source position information managing device to the destination position information managing device, the direction information, and the conversion table , where the estimated position information is a position to which the item corresponding to the other source position information was transported by the cart in the destination area in the destination area, and which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area;
a second destination position information acquisition unit that acquires other destination position information, which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area, for a position of another item, different from the one item, among the multiple items transported by the cart in the destination area and removed from the cart;
a collation unit that compares a position based on the other destination position information with a position based on the estimated position information;
A location information management device comprising: On the computer,
an origin position information acquiring step of acquiring a plurality of origin position information represented by a coordinate system in the origin area for each position of a plurality of articles placed on a cart in the origin area, and transmitting the acquired information from the origin position information managing device to the destination position information managing device ;
a first destination position information acquisition step of acquiring one destination position information indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area for a position of one of the plurality of articles transported by the cart in the destination area and removed from the cart;
a direction information acquisition step of acquiring direction information indicating a relationship between an orientation of an exit in the source area and an orientation of an entrance in the destination area, and a relationship between an orientation in which the cart enters the source area and an orientation in which the cart enters the destination area;
a position information estimating step of acquiring a conversion table in which a direction of the carry-out exit in the source area, a direction of the carry-in entrance in the destination area, a direction in which the cart entered the source area, and a direction in which the cart entered the destination area are associated with each other, and calculating estimated position information, which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area , from another piece of source position information different from the one piece of source position information among the plurality of pieces of source position information, based on the one piece of source position information corresponding to the one piece of destination position information among the plurality of pieces of source position information transmitted from the source position information management device to the destination position information management device, the direction information, and the conversion table, where the estimated position information is a position to which the item corresponding to the other piece of source position information was transported by the cart in the destination area, and which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area;
a second destination position information acquisition step of acquiring other destination position information, which is indicated by a coordinate system in the destination area, for a position of another item, different from the one item, among the plurality of items transported by the cart in the destination area and removed from the cart;
a comparison step of comparing a position based on the other destination position information with a position based on the estimated position information;
A location information management program for executing the above.

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