Delivery support device

Abstract

To allow a worker to load packages into a delivery vehicle even if the worker does not know a delivery route.SOLUTION: A delivery support device 40 comprises a control unit 43 that creates a package delivery route for a delivery vehicle 10 into which a plurality of packages are loaded. The control unit 43 acquires information on the positions of the plurality of packages in the delivery vehicle 10. The control unit 43 creates the delivery route on the basis of the information on the positions of the plurality of packages, so that packages at positions where the packages are easily unloaded from the delivery vehicle 10 can be delivered to destinations earlier than packages at positions where the packages are not easily unloaded from the delivery vehicle 10.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a delivery assistance device that assists in the delivery of packages by delivery vehicles. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a delivery support device that sets a delivery route for a delivery vehicle based on recipient information of a package to be delivered. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2022-76394 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] When a delivery vehicle arrives at a delivery destination, a delivery person unloads the packages from the delivery vehicle. In order to unload the packages efficiently, it is necessary to load multiple packages onto the delivery vehicle while taking into consideration the delivery order determined by the delivery route. When loading multiple packages onto a delivery vehicle so that unloading at the delivery destination can be performed efficiently, a worker who knows the delivery route needs to load the packages onto the delivery vehicle. In other words, a worker who does not know the delivery route cannot load the packages onto the delivery vehicle. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] A delivery support device for solving the above problem includes a control device that creates a delivery route for a delivery vehicle that is loaded with multiple packages. The control device executes the following: acquiring position information of the multiple packages within the delivery vehicle; and creating the delivery route based on the position information of the multiple packages so that the packages located in positions that are easy to unload from the delivery vehicle can be delivered to the delivery destination before the packages located in positions that are difficult to unload from the delivery vehicle. Effect of the Invention

[0006] The delivery support device has an effect that even a worker who does not know the delivery route can load packages into a delivery vehicle. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a configuration diagram showing a delivery support device, an information acquisition device, a plurality of delivery vehicles, and an information terminal according to the first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a perspective view showing a state in which a plurality of packages are loaded onto the delivery vehicle of FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a sequence diagram showing a process flow for creating a parcel delivery route in the delivery support device of the first embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a sequence diagram showing a process flow for creating a parcel delivery route in the delivery support device of the second embodiment. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a delivery route that provides the highest parcel delivery efficiency. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] (First embodiment) Hereinafter, a first embodiment of a delivery support device will be described with reference to Figs. FIG. 1 illustrates a delivery support device 40, an information acquisition device 30, a plurality of delivery vehicles 10, and a plurality of information terminals 20.

[0009] <Delivery vehicles and information terminals> The delivery vehicle 10 is a vehicle managed by the delivery support device 40. The delivery vehicle 10 is equipped with a loading platform 11. As shown in FIG. 2, the loading platform 11 can carry a plurality of parcels DD.

[0010] As shown in Fig. 1, the information terminal 20 is a communication device owned by a delivery person who boards the delivery vehicle 10. The information terminal 20 is configured to be able to communicate with the delivery support device 40 via a communication network 100. Examples of the information terminal 20 include a smartphone and a tablet terminal.

[0011] For example, the information terminal 20 has a communicator 21, a user interface 23, and a processing circuit 25. The communicator 21 outputs information received from the delivery support device 40 via the communication network 100 to the processing circuit 25. The communicator 21 transmits the information output from the processing circuit 25 to the delivery support device 40 via the communication network 100.

[0012] The user interface 23 has a display screen and an operation unit. An example of the processing circuit 25 is an electronic control device. When the operation unit is operated by a delivery person, the processing circuit 25 executes processing according to the operation. In addition, when the communication device 21 receives information from the delivery support device 40 via the communication network 100, the processing circuit 25 displays the information received by the communication device 21 on the display screen of the user interface 23.

[0013] <Information acquisition device> 1 and 2, the information acquisition device 30 includes an imaging device 31 such as a camera, a processing circuit 33, and a communication device 35. The processing circuit 33 analyzes image data, which is data of an image captured by the imaging device 31. The communication device 35 transmits information related to the analysis result of the processing circuit 33 to the delivery support device 40.

[0014] An example of the analysis process of the above data image will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 shows a state in which a large number of packages DD are loaded onto the platform 11 of a delivery vehicle 10. A tag TG is attached to each of the packages DD. Identification information for identifying the packages DD is registered in the tag TG. An example of the tag TG is an RFID. "RFID" is an abbreviation for "Radio Frequency Identification".

[0015] The imaging device 31 captures an image of a worker loading the package DD onto the loading platform 11 of the delivery vehicle 10. At this time, the worker loads the package DD onto the delivery vehicle 10 so that the imaging device 31 can capture an image of the tag TG attached to the package DD.

[0016] The imaging device 31 captures an image of the inside of the loading platform 11 onto which the luggage DD is loaded. Then, the imaging device 31 generates image data that is image data that indicates the position of the luggage DD within the loading platform 11. The imaging device 31 outputs the generated image data to the processing circuit 33. For example, the imaging device 31 captures an image of the inside of the loading platform 11 every time a luggage DD is loaded onto the loading platform 11 to generate image data. Then, the imaging device 31 outputs the image data to the processing circuit 33 every time the imaging device 31 generates image data.

[0017] When the imaging data is input from the imaging device 31, the processing circuit 33 of the information acquisition device 30 analyzes the image shown by the imaging data. Specifically, the processing circuit 33 acquires position information, which is information about the position of the parcel DD in the delivery vehicle 10. For example, the processing circuit 33 acquires height position information, which is information about the position of the parcel DD in the height direction X, and depth position information, which is information about the position of the parcel DD in the depth direction Y, as the position information. The height direction X is the vehicle upward direction of the delivery vehicle 10. For example, when multiple parcels DD are stacked, the height direction X can also be said to be the stacking direction of the parcels DD. The depth direction Y is the direction away from the carry-in entrance 12 provided at the rear of the delivery vehicle 10. In other words, the depth direction Y is the front of the vehicle. The carry-in entrance 12 is an opening through which the parcel DD is loaded and unloaded from the loading platform 11.

[0018] The processing circuit 33 also reads the tags TG of the packages DD shown in the images represented by the imaging data, and outputs the tags TG read from the images to the delivery support device 40 together with the position information of each package DD.

[0019] <Delivery support device> The configuration of the delivery support device 40 will be described with reference to FIG. The delivery support device 40 includes a communication device 41, a control device 43, and a database 47.

[0020] The communicator 41 is an interface of the delivery support device 40 for transmitting and receiving information to and from an external communication device via the communication network 100. For example, the communicator 41 outputs information received via the communication network 100 to the control device 43. Also, for example, the communicator 41 transmits information output by the control device 43 to the information terminal 20 via the communication network 100.

[0021] An example of the control device 43 is an electronic control device. In this case, the control device 43 has a CPU 44 and a memory 45. The memory 45 stores a control program executed by the CPU 44. When the CPU 44 executes the control program, the control device 43 executes a series of processes for creating a delivery route for the package DD of the delivery vehicle 10.

[0022] Information required for the control device 43 to create a delivery route is registered in the database 47. For example, information regarding the delivery destinations of multiple packages DD is registered in the database 47. The information regarding the delivery destinations includes the addresses of the delivery destinations.

[0023] <Process flow when creating a delivery route> An example of the process flow when creating a first delivery route RT1, which is a delivery route for a package DD, will be described with reference to FIG.

[0024] A worker starts loading the parcels DD into the delivery vehicle 10. Then, the processing circuit 33 of the information acquisition device 30 executes the process of step S101. In step S101, the processing circuit 33 acquires the position information of the parcels DD in the delivery vehicle 10 based on the image data captured by the imaging device 31. The processing circuit 33 executes the process of step S101 until the loading of the parcels DD into the delivery vehicle 10 is completed. When the loading of the parcels DD is completed, the processing circuit 33 has acquired the position information of all the parcels DD in the loading platform 11, so the information acquisition device 30 executes the process of step S103. In step S103, the communication device 35 of the information acquisition device 30 transmits to the delivery support device 40 that the loading of the parcels DD into the delivery vehicle 10 is completed. At this time, the communication device 35 also transmits the position information of the multiple parcels DD to the delivery support device 40.

[0025] When the communication device 41 of the delivery support device 40 receives a notification from the information acquisition device 30 that loading of the package DD onto the delivery vehicle 10 has been completed, the delivery support device 40 executes the process of step S201.

[0026] In step S201, the control device 43 of the delivery support device 40 acquires position information of all packages DD loaded onto the delivery vehicle 10. In the next step S203, the control device 43 calculates a first index Z1 of all packages DD loaded onto the delivery vehicle 10 based on the position information of the multiple packages DD. The first index Z1 is an index indicating the ease of unloading from the delivery vehicle 10. For example, the value indicated by the first index Z1 of a package DD placed at a position that makes it easy to unload from the delivery vehicle 10 is smaller than the value indicated by the first index Z1 of a package DD placed at a position that makes it difficult to unload from the delivery vehicle 10.

[0027] Here, a package DD located at a higher position in the height direction X is easier to unload than a package DD located at a lower position in the height direction X. In other words, in a situation where multiple packages DD are stacked, when unloading a package DD located at a lower position in the height direction X, it is necessary to move the other packages DD placed on top of that package DD. Therefore, the value indicated by the first index Z1 of a package DD located at a lower position in the height direction X is relatively large.

[0028] Also, a package DD located on the near side in the depth direction Y is easier to unload than a package DD located on the far side in the depth direction Y. That is, when unloading a package DD located on the far side, other packages DD located in front of the package DD need to be moved. Therefore, the value indicated by the first index Z1 of a package DD located on the far side in the depth direction Y is relatively large.

[0029] When the control device 43 completes the calculation of the first index Z1 in this way, the control device 43 shifts the process to step S205. In step S205, the control device 43 sets the delivery order of the multiple parcels DD based on the first index Z1 of the multiple parcels DD calculated in step S203. For example, the control device 43 sets the delivery order of the multiple parcels DD so that the delivery destination of the parcel DD with a small value indicated by the first index Z1 can be delivered before the delivery destination of the parcel DD with a large value indicated by the first index Z1. Then, in step S207, the control device 43 creates a delivery route as the first delivery route RT1 that can deliver the parcels DD in the delivery order set in step S205. That is, the control device 43 creates the first delivery route RT1 based on the position information of the multiple parcels DD so that the parcels DD located in a position where it is easy to unload from the delivery vehicle 10 can be delivered to the delivery destination before the parcels DD located in a position where it is difficult to unload from the delivery vehicle 10.

[0030] In the next step S209, the communication device 41 of the delivery support device 40 transmits information about the first delivery route RT1 created by the control device 43 to the information terminal 20 of the delivery person aboard the delivery vehicle 10.

[0031] Thereafter, the delivery vehicle 10 delivers the package DD along the first delivery route RT1. <Actions and Effects of the Present Embodiment> (1-1) When a package DD is loaded onto the delivery vehicle 10, the control device 43 of the delivery support device 40 acquires position information of the package DD inside the delivery vehicle 10. Then, the control device 43 creates a first delivery route RT1 based on the position information of multiple packages DD. The first delivery route RT1 is a delivery route for delivering packages DD placed in positions that are easy to unload from the delivery vehicle 10 to the delivery destination before packages DD placed in positions that are difficult to unload from the delivery vehicle 10.

[0032] In this way, since the delivery route is created based on the position information of the packages DD in the delivery vehicle 10, the worker who loads the packages DD onto the delivery vehicle 10 does not need to know the delivery route. Therefore, the delivery support device 40 allows even a worker who does not know the delivery route to load the packages DD onto the delivery vehicle 10.

[0033] (1-2) The delivery vehicle 10 delivers the package DD along the first delivery route RT1. For example, when the delivery vehicle 10 arrives at the first delivery destination, a delivery person unloads the package DD addressed to the first delivery destination from the delivery vehicle 10. At this time, the package DD addressed to the first delivery destination is placed in a position on the loading platform 11 that makes it easy to unload. Therefore, the delivery support device 40 can prevent the time required for the delivery person to unload the package DD at the delivery destination from being long.

[0034] Second embodiment A second embodiment of the delivery support device will be described with reference to Figures 4 and 5. Note that in the second embodiment, the method of determining the first delivery route is different from that in the first embodiment. In the following description, the differences from the first embodiment will be mainly described, and the same components as in the first embodiment will be denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicated description will be omitted.

[0035] An example of the process flow when creating the first delivery route RT1A in this embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 4 and FIG. A worker starts loading the parcels DD into the delivery vehicle 10. Then, the processing circuit 33 of the information acquisition device 30 executes the process of step S101. In step S101, the processing circuit 33 acquires position information of the parcels DD in the delivery vehicle 10 based on image data captured by the imaging device 31. The processing circuit 33 executes the process of step S101 until loading of the parcels DD into the delivery vehicle 10 is completed. In the next step S103, the communication device 35 of the information acquisition device 30 transmits to the delivery support device 40 a message indicating that loading of the parcels DD into the delivery vehicle 10 is completed. At this time, the communication device 35 also transmits position information of the multiple parcels DD to the delivery support device 40.

[0036] When the communication device 41 of the delivery support device 40 receives a notification from the information acquisition device 30 that loading of the package DD onto the delivery vehicle 10 has been completed, the delivery support device 40 executes the process of step S201.

[0037] In step S201, the control device 43 of the delivery support device 40 acquires position information of all packages DD loaded onto the delivery vehicle 10. In the next step S203, the control device 43 calculates a first index Z1 of all packages DD loaded onto the delivery vehicle 10 based on the position information of the multiple packages DD.

[0038] In the next step S221, the control device 43 creates a second delivery route RT2. FIG. 5 shows an example of the second delivery route RT2. As shown in FIG. 5, the second delivery route RT2 is a delivery route in which the delivery vehicle 10 departs from the delivery center DS, travels to multiple delivery destinations DL1, DL2, DL3, and DL4 in order, and then returns to the delivery center DS. In more detail, the second delivery route RT2 is a delivery route that has the highest delivery efficiency for the parcels DD. An example of the second delivery route RT2 is a delivery route that can minimize the travel distance of the delivery vehicle 10. The control device 43 can create the second delivery route RT2 based on the position information of the delivery destinations of multiple parcels DD.

[0039] Returning to Fig. 4, once the control device 43 creates the second delivery route RT2, the process proceeds to step S223. In step S223, the control device 43 calculates the second index Z2 of all packages DD loaded onto the delivery vehicle 10 based on the second delivery route RT2. The second index Z2 is an index indicating the order in which the packages DD will be unloaded from the delivery vehicle 10, assuming that the packages DD were delivered by the delivery vehicle 10 according to the second delivery route RT2. The value indicated by the second index Z2 of the package DD that is unloaded first is smaller than the value indicated by the second index Z2 of the package DD that is unloaded later.

[0040] In step S225, the control device 43 sets the delivery order of the multiple packages DD based on the first index Z1 of the multiple packages DD calculated in step S203 and the second index Z2 of the multiple packages DD calculated in step S223. For example, the control device 43 sets the delivery order of the multiple packages DD so that a package DD with a smaller sum of the value indicated by the first index Z1 and the value indicated by the second index Z2 can be delivered before a package DD with a larger sum of the value indicated by the first index Z1 and the value indicated by the second index Z2. Then, in step S227, the control device 43 creates a delivery route as a first delivery route RT1A that allows the packages DD to be delivered in the delivery order set in step S225.

[0041] In the next step S229, the communication device 41 of the delivery support device 40 transmits information about the first delivery route RT1A created by the control device 43 to the information terminal 20 of the delivery person aboard the delivery vehicle 10.

[0042] Thereafter, the delivery vehicle 10 delivers the package DD according to the first delivery route RT1A. <Actions and Effects of the Present Embodiment> In addition to the effect (1-1) of the first embodiment, the delivery support device 40 of the present embodiment can obtain the following effects.

[0043] (2-1) The control device 43 of the delivery support device 40 creates the first delivery route RT1A taking into consideration both the ease of unloading the delivery vehicle 10 and the delivery efficiency. As a result, the delivery support device 40 can suppress a decrease in the delivery efficiency of the delivery vehicle 10 while suppressing an increase in the time required for unloading the delivery vehicle 10 at the delivery destination.

[0044] (Example of change) The above-described embodiments may be modified as follows: The above-described embodiments and the following modifications may be combined with each other to the extent that they are not technically inconsistent.

[0045] In the second embodiment, the control device 43 may create the first delivery route RT1A based on the product of the value indicated by the first index Z1 and the value indicated by the second index Z2. Even in this case, the first delivery route RT1A can be said to be a delivery route created based on the first index Z1 and the second index Z2.

[0046] The control device 43 is not limited to a device having a CPU and a ROM and executing software processing. That is, the control device 43 may have any one of the following configurations (a), (b), and (c).

[0047] (a) The control device 43 includes one or more processors that execute various processes according to a computer program. The processor includes a CPU and memory such as RAM and ROM. The memory stores program codes or instructions that are configured to cause the CPU to execute processes. The memory, i.e., computer-readable media, includes any available media that can be accessed by a general-purpose or special-purpose computer.

[0048] (b) The control device 43 includes one or more dedicated hardware circuits for executing various processes. Examples of the dedicated hardware circuits include application specific integrated circuits, i.e., ASIC and FPGA. ASIC is an abbreviation for "Application Specific Integrated Circuit" and FPGA is an abbreviation for "Field Programmable Gate Array."

[0049] (c) The control device 43 includes a processor that executes some of the various processes in accordance with a computer program, and a dedicated hardware circuit that executes the remaining processes among the various processes. [Explanation of symbols]

[0050] 10... delivery vehicle, 20... information terminal, 30... information acquisition device, 40... delivery support device, 41... communication device, 43... control device, 44... CPU, 45... memory, 47... database, 100... communication network, DD... luggage, DL1 to DL4... delivery destination.

Claims

1. A control device is provided for creating a delivery route for a delivery vehicle on which a plurality of packages are loaded, The control device includes: Obtaining location information of the plurality of packages within the delivery vehicle; Based on the position information of the plurality of packages, the delivery route is created so that the packages located at positions where it is easy to unload the delivery vehicle can be delivered to the delivery destination before the packages located at positions where it is difficult to unload the delivery vehicle. Delivery assistance device.

2. The control device acquires, as the position information of the package, information regarding the position of the package in a height direction within the delivery vehicle and information regarding the position of the package in a depth direction within the delivery vehicle. The delivery assistance device according to claim 1 .

3. When the delivery route is a first delivery route, The control device includes: Calculating a first index for each of the packages, the first index being an index indicating the ease of unloading the packages from the delivery vehicle, based on the position information of the plurality of packages; creating a second delivery route that is a delivery route with the highest delivery efficiency for the packages based on location information of the delivery destinations of the plurality of packages; calculating, for each of the packages, a second index which is an index indicating the order in which the packages would be unloaded from the delivery vehicle if the packages were delivered by the delivery vehicle along the second delivery route; When creating the first delivery route, the first delivery route is created based on the first indicator and the second indicator. The delivery support device according to claim 1 or 2.

4. When creating the first delivery route based on the first index and the second index, the control device creates the first delivery route so that the parcel having a small sum of a value indicated by the first index and a value indicated by the second index can be delivered to a delivery destination before the parcel having a large sum of a value indicated by the first index and a value indicated by the second index. The delivery assistance device according to claim 3.

Images