Tire maintenance support program and tire maintenance support device

Abstract

To provide a tire maintenance support program and a tire maintenance support device that can reduce mistakes in tire maintenance work to improve work efficiency.SOLUTION: A tire maintenance support program causes a computer to execute an information addition step, a diagram arrangement step, a replacement extraction step, and an information display step. The information addition step adds tire identification information to a tire diagram showing a tire attached to a vehicle. The diagram arrangement step arranges the tire diagram on a display screen on the basis of axle arrangement information. The replacement extraction step extracts a candidate for a replacement for a tire corresponding to the tire diagram that overlaps an operator's operating portion on the display screen. The information display step displays, on the display screen, information on the candidate for the replacement extracted in the replacement extraction step.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 13

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a tire maintenance assistance program and a tire maintenance assistance device that assist in the maintenance of tires mounted on a vehicle. [Background technology]

[0002] Generally, tires wear according to driving conditions and mileage, and the wear can be uneven depending on the axle position on which they are mounted. Tires are maintained to suppress uneven wear and to extend their life by rotating them according to the axle position within a vehicle or between vehicles. In addition, when tires wear out and the remaining tread depth is small, maintenance is performed by replacing them with tires that have sufficient remaining tread depth.

[0003] Patent Document 1 describes a conventional tire management system. This tire management system includes a tire information acquisition unit, a sensor information acquisition unit, and a management unit. The tire information acquisition unit acquires identification information of tires mounted on a vehicle. The sensor information acquisition unit acquires identification information of sensors disposed in the tires. The management unit stores the tire identification information acquired by the tire information acquisition unit and the sensor identification information acquired by the sensor information acquisition unit in association with each other. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2021-075243 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] The tire management system described in Patent Document 1 manages tire identification information and sensor identification information in association with each other. The inventors of the present invention thought that it would be possible to improve conventional tire maintenance work by easily simulating the identification of the target tire and the maintenance work, thereby reducing maintenance work errors and increasing work efficiency in actual maintenance work such as tire rotation and tire replacement.

[0006] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above circumstances, and its object is to provide a tire maintenance support program and a tire maintenance support device that can reduce errors in tire maintenance work and improve work efficiency. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] A tire maintenance assistance program according to one embodiment of the present invention causes a computer to execute an information adding step of adding tire identification information to a tire graphic representing a tire mounted on a vehicle; a graphic arranging step of arranging the tire graphic on a display screen based on axle arrangement information; a replacement part extraction step of extracting replacement part candidates for a tire corresponding to the tire graphic that overlaps an operator's operation location on the display screen; and an information display step of displaying information on the replacement part candidates extracted by the replacement part extraction step on the display screen.

[0008] Another aspect of the present invention is a tire maintenance support device, which includes an information adding unit that adds tire identification information to a tire graphic representing a tire mounted on a vehicle, a graphic arranging unit that arranges the tire graphic on a display screen based on axle arrangement information, a replacement part extracting unit that extracts replacement part candidates for a tire corresponding to the tire graphic that overlaps an operator's operation position on the display screen, and an information display unit that displays information on the replacement part candidates extracted by the replacement part extracting unit on the display screen. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, mistakes in tire maintenance work can be reduced and work efficiency can be improved. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a tire maintenance support device according to a first embodiment. [Diagram 2] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing tire mounting positions displayed on a display screen. [Diagram 3] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen on which tire graphics and the like are arranged. [Figure 4] 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure of a tire rotation process performed by the tire maintenance assistance device. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of tire rotation on a display screen. [Figure 6] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the arrangement of tire figures and the like after tire rotation. [Figure 7] 7(a) to 7(c) are schematic diagrams for explaining the operation of moving a geometric element. [Figure 8] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram for explaining an operation for reversing the direction of a tire. [Figure 9] 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen when displaying the mounting positions before and after movement. FIG. [Figure 10] 10(a) and 10(b) are schematic diagrams showing examples in which the display form of a moved geometric element is changed. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a tire maintenance support device according to a second embodiment. [Figure 12] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen for tire changing work. [Figure 13] 4 is a flowchart showing a procedure of processing for replacement work by the tire maintenance assistance device. [Figure 14] FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen for sensor replacement. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] The present invention will be described below based on preferred embodiments with reference to Figures 1 to 14. The same or equivalent components and members shown in each drawing are given the same reference numerals, and duplicated descriptions are omitted as appropriate. The dimensions of the members in each drawing are enlarged or reduced as appropriate for ease of understanding. Some of the members that are not important for explaining the embodiments are omitted in each drawing.

[0012] (Embodiment 1) 1 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a tire maintenance support device 100 according to embodiment 1. The tire maintenance support device 100 includes an operation unit 10, a display unit 15, a storage unit 20, and a control unit 30. The tire maintenance support device 100 is used in maintenance work such as tire rotation and replacement.

[0013] The tire maintenance support device 100 displays images relating to the arrangement, movement, and replacement of tires and sensors. The tire maintenance support device 100 displays graphic elements that resemble tires and sensors on a display screen, and the graphic elements are moved by an operator's operation. The tire maintenance support device 100 also displays information relating to tires and sensors according to the position of a cursor operated by the operator on the display screen.

[0014] Each unit in the tire maintenance support device 100 can be realized in hardware terms by electronic processing circuits made up of electronic elements such as a computer CPU and mechanical parts, and in software terms by computer programs, but here, functional blocks realized by the cooperation of these are depicted. Therefore, it will be understood by those skilled in the art that these functional blocks can be realized in various forms by combining hardware and software.

[0015] The operation unit 10 is an operable input device such as a touch panel, a switch, a keyboard, and a mouse device. The worker operates the operation unit 10 to move a figure representing a tire (hereinafter referred to as a tire figure) and a figure representing a sensor (hereinafter referred to as a sensor figure) displayed on the display unit 15. The worker simulates tire rotation and sensor replacement by moving the tire figure and the sensor figure on the display screen.

[0016] The display unit 15 is a display device such as a liquid crystal display. The display unit 15 displays on the screen of the display device a graphic simulating the axle arrangement, a tire graphic, a sensor graphic, and a graphic of a temporary placement location where the tire to be moved is to be placed after being removed from the axle position. The worker moves the tire graphic while looking at the display screen displayed on the display unit 15.

[0017] The storage unit 20 is a storage device configured, for example, by an SSD (Solid State Drive), a hard disk, a CD-ROM, a DVD, etc. The storage unit 20 stores a computer program executed by the control unit 30, operation management data 20a, axle arrangement data 20b, mounting status data 20c, specification data 20d, etc.

[0018] The operation management data 20a includes vehicle identification information of one or more transport trucks, etc., whose operation is managed by a transport company, for example. The axle arrangement data 20b is information including the axle arrangement and tire mounting positions corresponding to the vehicle identification information. The axle arrangement and tire mounting positions of a vehicle are determined according to the vehicle name and vehicle model of the vehicle. The axle arrangement data 20b of a transport truck with a certain vehicle name includes information that, for example, three axles are arranged from the front to the rear of the vehicle, one tire is attached to each side of the front axle, and two tires are attached to each side of the two axles from the center to the rear. In the case of this vehicle, a total of 10 tires are attached.

[0019] The mounting status data 20c includes identification information of tires mounted at each mounting position of the vehicle corresponding to the vehicle identification information, information indicating the orientation of the serial surface of the tire, identification information of the sensor, and information indicating the orientation of the wheel attached to each tire. One of the two sides intersecting in the tire width direction has serial information such as the tire's manufacturing number, product name, size, tire width, and aspect ratio engraved on it. The side on which the serial information such as the tire's manufacturing number is engraved is called the serial surface. The information indicating the orientation of the serial surface of the tire indicates whether the serial surface faces the left or right side of the vehicle. The information indicating the orientation of the wheel indicates whether the wheel surface faces the left or right side of the vehicle.

[0020] The specification data 20d includes information on the specifications of the tire and the sensor. The tire specifications include information on tire performance such as the manufacturer, product name, model number, tire size, tire width, aspect ratio, wear resistance, tire strength, static stiffness, dynamic stiffness, tire outer diameter, load index, and manufacturing date. The sensor specifications include information on the manufacturer, product name, model number, measurement content, and manufacturing date.

[0021] The control unit 30 has an information addition unit 31, a figure placement unit 32, an operation reception unit 33, a figure movement unit 34, a position management unit 35, and an information display unit 36. The control unit 30 is, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit). Each unit of the control unit 30 functions by loading an application program stored in the storage unit 20 into the CPU and executing processing such as calculations.

[0022] Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram showing tire mounting positions displayed on the display screen, and Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen on which tire figures 6 and the like are arranged. The information addition unit 31 reads out the axle arrangement and tire mounting positions from the axle arrangement data 20b in the storage unit 20 based on the identification information of the vehicle selected by the user. At this time, the worker operates the operation unit 10 to select a vehicle based on the operation management data 20a. The operation acceptance unit 33 outputs the identification information of the vehicle selected by the operation unit 10 to the information addition unit 31.

[0023] The information adding unit 31 reads out the identification information of the tires mounted at each mounting position on the vehicle, the information indicating the orientation of the serial surface of the tires, and the identification information of the sensors provided on each tire, based on the mounting status data 20c. The information adding unit 31 adds the identification information of the tires and the sensors to the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 arranged on the display screen.

[0024] 2, the graphic layout unit 32 places axles A1, A2, and A3 in order from the front of the vehicle on the display screen based on the axle arrangement data 20b. The graphic layout unit 32 places tire mounting positions B11, B12, etc. on each axle based on the axle arrangement data 20b. In the example shown in FIG. 2, the axle A1 has two mounting positions B11, B12, the axle A2 has four mounting positions B21, B22, B23, B24, and the axle A3 has four mounting positions B31, B32, B33, B34.

[0025] Furthermore, the graphic placement unit 32 places a graphic C of a temporary placement location, which indicates a place to which the tire graphic 6, etc., is to be temporarily moved, on the display screen. By temporarily moving the tire graphic 6, etc., to the graphic of the temporary placement location, the operator can simulate tire rotation in an easy-to-understand manner.

[0026] 3, the graphic arrangement unit 32 arranges a tire set graphic 5 indicating a tire set of a tire, a wheel, and a sensor for each tire mounting position. Inside the tire set graphic 5, the graphic arrangement unit 32 displays symbols such as B11, B12, etc. indicating the mounting position.

[0027] The graphic arrangement unit 32 arranges a tire graphic 6, a sensor graphic 7, and a wheel graphic 8 inside the tire set graphic 5. The graphic arrangement unit 32 displays the tire identification information added to the tire graphic 6 by the information addition unit 31 inside the tire graphic 6. The graphic arrangement unit 32 displays the sensor identification information added to the sensor graphic 7 by the information addition unit 31 inside the sensor graphic 7. The tire graphic 6 includes a serial surface graphic 61 indicating the orientation of the serial surface of the tire. In the example shown in FIG. 3, the serial surface graphic 61 is shown by a line segment, and the serial information is engraved on the side of the tire where the line segment is displayed.

[0028] The graphic arrangement unit 32 reads out information indicating the wheel orientation from the mounting status data 20c, and arranges the wheel graphic 8 on the side of the tire graphic 6 on which the wheel surface faces. The side on which the wheel surface faces is determined according to the mounting position and does not contradict the information indicating the wheel orientation in the mounting status data 20c. In Fig. 3, the tire identification information is represented by TID01, TID02, etc., and the sensor identification information is represented by SID01, SID02, etc.

[0029] The operation reception unit 33 receives operation input by the worker via the operation unit 10. The operation reception unit 33 receives an operation to move the tire set figure 5 located at the mounting position on the display screen to the position of the temporary placement location figure C. The operation reception unit 33 receives an operation to move the tire set figure 5 located at the mounting position on the display screen to another mounting position where there is no tire set figure 5, and an operation to move the tire set figure 5 located at the temporary placement location figure C to a mounting position where there is no tire set figure 5.

[0030] The operation receiving unit 33 may or may not receive an operation to move the tire set figure 5 located at the mounting position on the display screen so that it overlaps with the tire set figure 5 located at another axle position.

[0031] The operation receiving unit 33 may receive an operation input by the worker to move the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 on the display screen to another mounting position or a temporary placement position graphic C. The operation receiving unit 33 may also receive an operation input to flip the tire set graphic 5 and the tire graphic 6 left and right when moving them.

[0032] The figure moving unit 34 reflects on the display screen the operation of the worker received by the operation receiving unit 33. For example, when the worker performs an operation to move the tire set figure 5 to the temporary placement location figure C on the display screen, the figure moving unit 34 moves the tire set figure 5 to the temporary placement location figure C.

[0033] The graphic movement unit 34 moves the tire set graphic 5 that is in the mounting position on the display screen to another mounting position where there is no tire set graphic 5. The graphic movement unit 34 moves the tire set graphic 5 that is in graphic C, the temporary placement location on the display screen, to a mounting position where there is no tire set graphic 5. The graphic movement unit 34 also moves, together with the tire set graphic 5, the display of the mounting position within that graphic, the tire graphic 6, the sensor graphic 7, and the wheel graphic 8.

[0034] When the worker performs an operation to move the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 individually on the display screen, the graphic moving unit 34 moves the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 to another mounting position or to graphic C at a temporary placement location.

[0035] A graphic movement unit 34 displays the mounting positions before and after the movement on the tire set graphic 5 when the tire graphic 6 is moved by moving the tire set graphic 5 and when the tire graphic 6 is moved independently.

[0036] When the operator performs an operation to reverse the tire set graphic 5 and the tire graphic 6 on the display screen, the graphic moving unit 34 reverses the side on which the wheel graphic 8 is placed on the tire graphic 6 from left to right and displays it. The tire graphic 6 also includes a serial surface graphic 61, and the graphic moving unit 34 reverses the placement of the serial surface graphic 61 on the tire graphic 6 from left to right in conjunction with the left-right reversal of the tire graphic 6. The graphic moving unit 34 may change the display form when the placement of the serial surface graphic 61 is reversed from left to right. The graphic moving unit 34 may change the display form, for example, from black line segments to blue line segments when the placement of the serial surface graphic 61 is reversed from left to right.

[0037] The graphic moving unit 34 may have a function of storing operations in the simulation trial of tire rotation on the display screen in the storage unit 20 and replaying the operations of the operator from the beginning. The movement of the tire graphic 6 etc. replayed by the graphic moving unit 34 can be checked by another operator or the user of the vehicle, or when performing actual tire rotation on the vehicle, the operator can work while checking the replay.

[0038] The position management unit 35 stores, as mounting status data 20c, in the memory unit 20, the tire identification information indicated by the tire graphic 6, the serial surface orientation indicated by the serial surface graphic 61, the sensor identification information indicated by the sensor graphic 7, and the wheel orientation indicated by the wheel graphic 8, which correspond to each mounting position on the display screen after tire rotation. The memory unit 20 may rewrite the mounting status data 20c for each tire rotation, or may keep the data before the tire rotation and add new data to keep a history.

[0039] The information display unit 36 ​​displays information about the tires and sensors on the display screen in response to operations performed by the worker on the operation unit 10. For example, the worker operates a mouse device on the operation unit 10, which moves a cursor indicating the location of the worker's operation on the display screen. Position information of the cursor on the display screen is acquired by the operation acceptance unit 33 and input to the information display unit 36. In addition, in the case of operation input using a touch panel, the location of the worker's operation is, for example, a location on the touch panel where the touch of the worker is detected. Below, an example will be described in which the cursor is displayed on the display screen as the location of operation.

[0040] When the cursor is placed over the tire graphic 6, the information display unit 36 ​​reads out the tire specifications corresponding to the tire graphic 6 from the specification data 20d and displays them on the display screen. When the cursor is placed over the sensor graphic 7, the information display unit 36 ​​displays the mounting position of the sensor graphic 7 before it was moved on the display screen. Furthermore, when the cursor is placed over the sensor graphic 7, the information display unit 36 ​​may read out the sensor specifications corresponding to the sensor graphic 7 from the specification data 20d and display them on the display screen.

[0041] Next, the operation of the tire maintenance support device 100 will be described. Fig. 4 is a flow chart showing the procedure of tire rotation processing by the tire maintenance support device 100. The information addition unit 31 of the tire maintenance support device 100 adds tire identification information and sensor identification information to the tire graphic 6 and sensor graphic 7 displayed on the display screen (S1). The graphic arrangement unit 32 arranges graphic elements such as the axle arrangement, tire mounting position, tire set graphic 5, tire graphic 6, sensor graphic 7, wheel graphic 8, and temporary placement location graphic C on the display screen (S2).

[0042] The operation reception unit 33 determines whether or not the end button has been pressed (S3). When the operation reception unit 33 determines that the end button has not been pressed (S3: NO), the operation proceeds to the next step S4. Note that the end button is, for example, arranged on the display screen, and the worker performs an operation of pressing the end button on the display screen.

[0043] The operation reception unit 33 receives input of the operator's movement operation for the tire set graphic 5, the tire graphic 6, and the sensor graphic 7 (S4). The graphic movement unit 34 moves the tire graphic etc. at the tire mounting position and the temporary placement location in accordance with the operator's operation received by the operation reception unit 33, reflects the operator's operation on the display screen (S5), and returns to step S3.

[0044] If it is determined in step S3 that the end button has been pressed (S3: YES), the position management unit 35 stores the tire identification information indicated by the tire figure 6, the serial surface orientation indicated by the serial surface figure 61, the sensor identification information indicated by the sensor figure 7, and the wheel orientation indicated by the wheel figure 8, which correspond to each mounting position after tire rotation on the display screen, in the memory unit 20 as mounting status data 20c (S6), and terminates the processing.

[0045] The tire maintenance support device 100 receives operator operations regarding the movement of the tire figure at the operation receiving unit 33, and by moving the tire figure at the mounting position and temporary placement location, it is possible to visually simulate tire rotation in an easy-to-understand manner and support tire rotation work.

[0046] When rotating tires on the display screen, the tire maintenance support device 100 adds identification information to the tire figure 6 and the sensor figure 7, respectively, allowing the worker to easily identify the tire and sensor to be moved, thereby improving work efficiency.

[0047] In addition, the tire maintenance support device 100 can provide data for understanding the movement status of the tires and sensors by storing the tire identification information, serial surface orientation, sensor identification information, and wheel orientation at each mounting position after tire rotation as mounting status data 20c.

[0048] Fig. 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of tire rotation on the display screen, and Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram showing the arrangement of tire figures and the like after tire rotation. In this example, as shown in Fig. 5, the tire set figure 5 at mounting position B12 is moved to the temporary placement location figure C, the tire set figure 5 at mounting position B23 is moved to mounting position 12, and the tire set figure 5 that was at the temporary placement location figure C is moved to mounting position B23. After the tire rotation operation is completed, the tire set figures 5 and the like related to the movement are arranged according to the operation, as shown in Fig. 6.

[0049] 7(a) to 7(c) are schematic diagrams for explaining the operation of moving graphic elements. As shown in Fig. 7(a), the tire maintenance support device 100 allows the tire set graphic 5 to be selected with a cursor, and the tire graphic 6, the sensor graphic 7, and the wheel graphic 8 to be moved together.

[0050] As shown in Fig. 7(b), the tire maintenance support device 100 allows only the tire graphic 6 to be selected with the cursor and the tire graphic 6 to be moved independently. As shown in Fig. 7(c), the tire maintenance support device 100 allows only the sensor graphic 7 to be selected with the cursor and the sensor graphic 7 to be moved independently.

[0051] FIG. 8 is a schematic diagram for explaining an operation for reversing the tire orientation. The operation receiving unit 33 receives an input by an operator operating, for example, a reversal button displayed on the display screen, and outputs the input to the figure moving unit 34. The figure moving unit 34 may or may not reverse the wheel figure 8 provided on one side of the tire figure 6 before the movement operation to the other side of the tire figure 6 after the movement operation depending on the mounting position. The figure moving unit 34 also reverses the arrangement of the serial surface figure 61 in the tire figure 6 from left to right. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the arrangement of the serial surface figure 61 is reversed from left to right based on the relationship of the mounting position based on the reversal operation input by the operator, and the arrangement of the wheel figure 8 is not reversed from left to right. The arrangement of the wheel figure 8 is reversed from left to right depending on the mounting position after the movement. The tire maintenance support device 100 can identify the left-right direction of the tire by moving the wheel figure 8 and the serial surface figure 61 together with the tire figure 6, and can simulate a change in the tire orientation in an actual tire rotation by receiving a reversal operation. Furthermore, the figure moving unit 34 may recognize a case where both the arrangements of the serial surface figure 61 and the wheel figure 8 are reversed as being inverted in a different category from a case where only one of them is reversed.

[0052] Fig. 9 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen in which the mounting positions before and after movement are displayed. The graphic moving unit 34 may display the mounting positions before and after movement for the moved tire graphic 6. In Fig. 9, the graphic moving unit 34 displays, for the tire set graphic 5 at mounting position B12 to which the tire graphic 6 has been moved, that the tire set graphic 5 has moved from mounting position B23 to B12, and displays, for the tire set graphic 5 at mounting position B23, that the tire set graphic 5 has moved from mounting position B12 to B23.

[0053] The tire maintenance assistance device 100 can provide the worker with information on the mounting positions before and after the movement in an easily understandable manner by displaying the mounting positions before and after the movement for the moved tire graphic 6.

[0054] When the cursor operated by the operator on the display screen overlaps the tire graphic 6, the information display unit 36 ​​of the tire maintenance assistance device 100 displays the tire specifications corresponding to the tire graphic 6, thereby making it possible to provide the specifications of the tire arranged on the display screen. When the cursor operated by the operator on the display screen overlaps the sensor graphic 7, the information display unit 36 ​​displays the mounting position of the sensor graphic 7 before it was moved on the display screen, thereby making it possible for the operator to know the mounting position of the sensor before it was moved.

[0055] The graphic moving unit 34 may change the display form of the moved graphic element so that it is different from that of the non-moved graphic element. When the tire set graphic 5, the tire graphic 6, the serial surface graphic 61, the sensor graphic 7, and the wheel graphic 8 are moved, the graphic moving unit 34 changes the display form of these graphic elements.

[0056] 10(a) and 10(b) are schematic diagrams showing an example in which the display form of a moved graphic element is changed. In FIG. 10(a) and FIG. 10(b), an example is shown in which a tire is moved from a mounting position B11 to B12. As shown in FIG. 10(a), when the tire set graphic element 5 is moved, the graphic element moving unit 34 changes the frame of the tire set graphic element 5 to a color different from the color before the movement. Also, as shown in FIG. 10(b), when the tire set graphic element 5 is moved, the graphic element moving unit 34 changes the color of the outline of the tire set graphic element 5 and the tire graphic element 6 to a color different from the color before the movement. For example, the graphic element moving unit 34 changes the color from black to blue. The change in the display form of the graphic element by the graphic element moving unit 34 is not limited to a change in the color of the frame or outline, but may be a change in the color of the outline of the graphic element, such as filling in the graphic element, or changing the shape or line type.

[0057] When the tire set figure 5 is moved, the tire figure 6, the serial surface figure 61, the sensor figure 7, and the wheel figure 8 move together, and the figure moving unit 34 may change the display form of the tire figure 6 and the like in the same manner as the tire set figure 5. The figure moving unit 34 may also treat an operation in which the arrangement of the serial surface figure 61 and the wheel figure 8 is reversed from left to right as one form of a moving operation, and may change the display form of these figures. The figure moving unit 34 may change the display form in different ways for the reversal operations of the different categories described above, so that the operator knows that they are different reversal operations.

[0058] The change in the display form for the tire graphic 6, the serial surface graphic 61, the sensor graphic 7, and the wheel graphic 8 includes a change in the display form for the graphic elements surrounding these graphic elements, i.e., the tire set graphic 5. The change in the display form for the tire graphic 6, the serial surface graphic 61, the sensor graphic 7, and the wheel graphic 8 may be considered to include a change in the display form, such as the frame color of the tire set graphic 5 that surrounds these graphic elements.

[0059] The tire maintenance support device 100 changes the display format for the moved tire set figure 5, tire figure 6, serial surface figure 61, sensor figure 7 and wheel figure 8, thereby allowing the worker to easily understand the graphic elements that have been moved by operation, thereby reducing mistakes in maintenance work and improving work efficiency.

[0060] Furthermore, the graphic moving unit 34 changes the display forms of the tire set graphic 5, tire graphic 6, serial surface graphic 61, sensor graphic 7, and wheel graphic 8 when moving the graphic elements between the mounting positions on the axle and when moving the graphic elements to the temporary placement location graphic C. The tire maintenance support device 100 also changes the display forms of the graphic elements passing through the temporary placement location, allowing the operator to easily recognize the graphic elements in the middle of the moving operation.

[0061] (Embodiment 2) 11 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a tire maintenance support device 100 according to embodiment 2. In addition to the units of the tire maintenance support device 100 described in embodiment 1, the tire maintenance support device 100 according to embodiment 2 includes a replacement determination unit 37 and a replacement part extraction unit 38 in the control unit 30. The tire maintenance support device 100 also stores wear state data 20e and replacement part data 20f in the storage unit 20.

[0062] In the first embodiment, there is described a configuration and functions for supporting a tire rotation operation by the tire maintenance support device 100. In the second embodiment, there is described a configuration and functions for supporting a maintenance operation of replacing tires and sensors by the tire maintenance support device 100.

[0063] The wear state data 20e stored in the memory unit 20 is a measurement value obtained during periodic tire groove depth inspections. For example, when a tire has four grooves in the width direction, the tire groove depth is measured at four locations in the width direction, and then measured at three locations in the circumferential direction of the same groove, for example, at intervals of 120°. As a result, uneven wear in the width direction or circumferential direction of the tire is also stored in the wear state data 20e.

[0064] The wear state data 20e may be, for example, a wear amount estimated using a learning-type calculation model. In the wear amount estimation using the learning-type calculation model, the uneven wear state of the tire can be estimated by estimating the remaining groove amount for each groove.

[0065] The replacement data 20f includes information on tires, such as the manufacturer, product name, model number, and unique identification information of a plurality of new tires with different specifications and used tires in storage. The replacement data 20f only needs to store information necessary to identify new tires and used tires in storage, and the specification data 20d is referenced for detailed specifications such as performance. Used tires include winter tires and summer tires stored in areas where tires are changed according to the season.

[0066] The replacement data 20f includes information regarding sensors, such as product names, model numbers, and unique identification information for identifying new sensors and used sensors in storage. The replacement data 20f only needs to store information necessary to identify new sensors and used sensors in storage, and the specification data 20d is referenced for detailed specifications such as performance.

[0067] 12 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen for tire replacement work. The display screen for tire rotation and the display screen for tire and sensor replacement work can be switched by, for example, arranging buttons indicating "Tire rotation" and "Replacement" on the display screen and the worker pressing the button.

[0068] As in the first embodiment, the information adding unit 31 of the control unit 30 adds identification information to the tire graphic 6, etc. The graphic placement unit 32 places the tire graphic 6, etc. on the display screen at the tire mounting position of the selected vehicle. The graphic placement unit 32 also places a field for displaying the main specifications of the tire and sensor, and a field for displaying replacement part candidates on the display screen. Note that the graphic movement unit 34 does not move graphic elements on the display screen for tire replacement work.

[0069] The replacement determination unit 37 of the control unit 30 reads out the wear state of each tire corresponding to the tire figure 6 arranged at the mounting position from the wear state data 20e stored in the memory unit 20. The replacement determination unit 37 determines for each tire whether or not the tire should be replaced based on the wear state of the tire.

[0070] The replacement determination unit 37 determines that a tire should be replaced when the remaining groove depth of the tire groove is equal to or less than a specified value, when the difference between the maximum and minimum remaining groove depths due to uneven wear is equal to or greater than a predetermined value, etc. The replacement determination unit 37 outputs the identification information and mounting position of a tire determined to need replacement to the graphic arrangement unit 32.

[0071] Furthermore, the replacement determination unit 37 determines whether or not the sensor of each tire needs to be replaced. If the measurement data from the sensor is not available or the sensor is broken, the replacement determination unit 37 determines that the sensor needs to be replaced. The replacement determination unit 37 outputs the identification information and mounting position of the sensor that has been determined to need to be replaced to the graphic arrangement unit 32.

[0072] The graphic arrangement unit 32 displays the tire graphic 6 corresponding to the identification information and mounting position of a tire determined to need tire replacement in a display form different from that of the tire graphic 6 corresponding to a tire determined not to need tire replacement. The graphic arrangement unit 32 also displays the sensor graphic 7 corresponding to the identification information and mounting position of a sensor determined to need sensor replacement in a display form different from that of the sensor graphic 7 corresponding to a sensor determined not to need sensor replacement.

[0073] Displaying the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 in different display forms includes displaying in a different display form the graphic elements surrounding these graphic elements, i.e., the tire set graphic 5. The graphic elements can be displayed in different display forms by changing the color of the frame or outline, filling in the graphic, changing the shape or line type, etc.

[0074] The replacement part extraction unit 38 extracts replacement part candidates of tires and sensors in response to operations performed by the operator on the operation unit 10. The replacement part extraction unit 38 extracts replacement part candidates from the replacement part data 20f when the cursor on the display screen overlaps with the tire figure 6. The extracted replacement part candidates are those having the same tire width, aspect ratio, rim diameter, etc.

[0075] The replacement extraction unit 38 extracts sensor replacement candidates from the replacement data 20f when the cursor on the display screen overlaps with the sensor graphic 7. The extracted sensor replacement candidates are, for example, those with the same manufacturer or product name, or those with equivalent measurement performance.

[0076] The replacement part extraction unit 38 outputs the extracted candidates for tire replacement parts and sensor replacement parts to the information display unit 36. The information display unit 36 ​​displays the candidates for tire replacement parts and sensor replacement parts in a field that displays candidates for replacement parts on the display screen. The information display unit 36 ​​also displays the specifications of the tire and sensor corresponding to the tire graphic 6 and sensor graphic 7 over which the cursor is placed in a field that displays the main specifications of the tire and sensor.

[0077] The replacement part extraction unit 38 may also read out the wear state of the tire corresponding to the tire graphic 6 on which the cursor is hovering from the wear state data 20e, and extract replacement part candidates based on the wear state. For example, when a tire has a large amount of wear, the replacement part extraction unit 38 may preferentially extract used tires with a small amount of wear. The replacement part extraction unit 38 may also preferentially extract used tires with the opposite uneven wear state. For example, the replacement part extraction unit 38 extracts used tires with little center wear and advanced shoulder wear as candidates for a replacement for a tire with advanced center wear.

[0078] Next, the operation of the tire maintenance support device 100 according to the second embodiment will be described. FIG. 13 is a flow chart showing the procedure of processing for replacement work by the tire maintenance support device 100. The information addition unit 31 of the tire maintenance support device 100 adds tire identification information and sensor identification information to the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 displayed on the display screen (S11). The graphic arrangement unit 32 arranges graphic elements such as the axle arrangement, tire mounting position, tire set graphic 5, tire graphic 6, sensor graphic 7, wheel graphic 8, and temporary placement location graphic C on the display screen (S12). When the replacement determination unit 37 determines that the tire and the sensor should be replaced, the graphic arrangement unit 32 displays the corresponding tire graphic 6 and sensor graphic 7 in a display form different from normal.

[0079] The operation reception unit 33 determines whether or not the end button has been pressed (S13). If the operation reception unit 33 determines that the end button has not been pressed (S13: NO), it proceeds to the next step S14. If it determines in step S13 that the end button has been pressed (S13: YES), it ends the process. Note that the end button is, for example, arranged on the display screen, and the worker performs an operation of pressing the end button on the display screen.

[0080] The replacement part extraction unit 38 determines whether or not the cursor on the display screen overlaps with the graphic elements of the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 (S14). The determination in step S14 may be a determination as to whether or not the cursor is kept overlapping with the graphic element for a predetermined period of time or more. If it is determined in step S14 that the cursor is not overlapping with the graphic elements of the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 (S14: NO), the process returns to step S13 and continues.

[0081] In step S14, if it is determined that the cursor overlaps the graphic elements of the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 (S14: YES), the replacement extraction unit 38 extracts replacement candidates for the tire and the sensor for the overlapping tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7 (S15).

[0082] The information display unit 36 ​​displays on the display screen the main specifications of the tire and sensor corresponding to the graphic element over which the cursor is placed (S16). Furthermore, the information display unit 36 ​​displays on the display screen the extracted replacement candidate items (S17). After step S17, the control unit 30 returns to step S13 to continue the process, and when it is determined in step S13 that the end button has been pressed (S13: YES), the process ends.

[0083] 12, the tire maintenance support device 100 extracts replacement candidate tires and displays them on the display screen. The tire maintenance support device 100 extracts replacement candidate tires for the tire corresponding to the tire figure 6 over which the cursor is placed on the display screen and displays them on the display screen, thereby reducing mistakes in selecting replacement tires during tire replacement maintenance work and improving work efficiency.

[0084] Fig. 14 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a display screen for sensor replacement. As shown in Fig. 14, the tire maintenance support device 100 extracts replacement candidates for the sensor and displays them on the display screen. The tire maintenance support device 100 extracts replacement candidates for the sensor corresponding to the sensor figure 7 over which the cursor is placed on the display screen and displays them on the display screen, thereby reducing mistakes in selecting a replacement in maintenance work for replacing a sensor and improving work efficiency.

[0085] The replacement item extraction unit 38 extracts replacement item candidates from among the new tires and used tires in storage stored in the replacement item data 20f. This allows the tire maintenance support device 100 to efficiently extract replacement item candidates from a database constructed including used tires.

[0086] Furthermore, the replacement determination unit 37 of the tire maintenance support device 100 determines whether or not a tire needs to be replaced. The graphic arrangement unit 32 displays the tire graphic 6 corresponding to a tire determined to need replacement on the display screen in a display form different from that of the tire graphic determined not to need replacement. Because the tire maintenance support device 100 displays the tire graphic 6 corresponding to a tire determined to need replacement in a different display form, the tire maintenance support device 100 allows the worker to easily know which tires need to be replaced.

[0087] Furthermore, the replacement part extraction unit 38 extracts replacement part candidates based on the wear state of the tire corresponding to the tire figure over which the cursor is placed. As described above, the tire maintenance support device 100 can extract used tires with small amounts of wear or used tires with reversed uneven wear as candidates and present them to the operator as replacement part candidates.

[0088] In the above example, the tire maintenance support device 100 extracts replacement candidate tires when the cursor operated by the worker overlaps the tire graphic 6 and the sensor graphic 7. The tire maintenance support device 100 may extract replacement candidate tires when the cursor operated by the worker overlaps the tire set graphic 5. The overlapping of the cursor on the tire graphic 6 may also be considered to include the overlapping of the cursor on the tire set graphic 5.

[0089] The tire maintenance support device 100 may extract candidates for tire replacement parts when the cursor operated by the worker overlaps the tire graphic 6 and the tire graphic 6 is selected by clicking the mouse device or the like. The tire maintenance support device 100 may also extract candidates for sensor replacement parts when the cursor operated by the worker overlaps the sensor graphic 7 and the sensor graphic 7 is selected by clicking the mouse device or the like. When a touch panel is used, the tire maintenance support device 100 may extract candidates for tire or sensor replacement parts by various operation forms such as touching or long pressing the panel.

[0090] Next, features of the tire maintenance assistance program and the tire maintenance assistance device according to the embodiment will be described. The tire maintenance assistance program causes a computer to execute an information addition step, a graphic arrangement step, a replacement part extraction step, and an information display step. The information addition step adds tire identification information to a tire graphic 6 representing a tire mounted on a vehicle. The graphic arrangement step arranges the tire graphic 6 on the display screen based on the axle arrangement information. The replacement part extraction step extracts replacement part candidates for the tire corresponding to the tire graphic 6 overlapping the operator's operation location on the display screen. The information display step displays information on the replacement part candidates extracted by the replacement part extraction step on the display screen. This tire maintenance assistance program can reduce mistakes in selecting replacement parts during tire replacement maintenance work, thereby improving work efficiency.

[0091] The replacement part extraction step extracts replacement part candidates based on the wear state of the tire corresponding to the tire figure 6 overlapping the operation location. According to this tire maintenance support program, used tires with little wear or used tires with reversed uneven wear state can be extracted as candidates and presented to the worker as replacement part candidates.

[0092] In addition, the replacement item extraction step extracts replacement item candidates from new tires and used tires in storage. According to this tire maintenance support program, replacement item candidates can be efficiently extracted from a database constructed including used tires.

[0093] The tire maintenance assistance program further includes an exchange determination step for determining whether or not a tire needs to be exchanged. The graphic arrangement step displays the tire graphic 6 corresponding to a tire determined by the exchange determination step to be in a state that requires exchange in a display form different from that of the tire graphic 6 corresponding to a tire determined not to be in a state that requires exchange. This tire maintenance assistance program allows an operator to easily know which tires need to be exchanged.

[0094] The information adding step adds sensor identification information to a sensor graphic 7 representing a sensor provided in the tire. The graphic arranging step arranges the sensor graphic 7 on the display screen. The replacement item extracting step extracts replacement item candidates for the sensor corresponding to the sensor graphic 7 that overlaps with the operator's operation location on the display screen. This tire maintenance assistance program can reduce mistakes in selecting replacement items during maintenance work to replace sensors, thereby improving work efficiency. Furthermore, the tire maintenance assistance program may be used as a rotation recommendation function before rotation or replacement. In other words, the tire maintenance assistance program can be used on a computer as a function that recommends optimal rotation according to the condition of tires at each mounting position before rotation or replacement. This tire maintenance assistance program can be used to order materials, prepare tires, etc., and improve work efficiency. If the tire maintenance assistance program is used after rotation, the tire movement history can be saved and the wear history can be tracked. Also, when the information addition step is confirmed, a work instruction step may be provided in which an instruction is given to order the selected replacement parts and to take them out of the warehouse, and a work instruction sheet indicating the vehicle identification number, the work date, and the installation position (including the installation direction) on the vehicle is attached to each replacement part for the selected sensor or the selected tire. This makes it possible to further reduce work errors by the worker and to improve work efficiency.

[0095] The tire maintenance support device 100 includes an information addition unit 31, a graphic arrangement unit 32, a replacement part extraction unit 38, and an information display unit 36. The information addition unit 31 adds tire identification information to a tire graphic 6 representing a tire mounted on a vehicle. The graphic arrangement unit 32 arranges the tire graphic 6 on the display screen based on the axle arrangement information. The replacement part extraction unit 38 extracts replacement part candidates for the tire corresponding to the tire graphic 6 that overlaps with the operator's operation position on the display screen. The information display unit 36 ​​displays information on the replacement part candidates extracted by the replacement part extraction unit 38 on the display screen. In this way, the tire maintenance support device 100 can reduce mistakes in selecting a replacement part during tire replacement maintenance work and improve work efficiency.

[0096] The above description is based on the embodiments of the present invention. These embodiments are merely examples, and it will be understood by those skilled in the art that various modifications and changes are possible within the scope of the claims of the present invention, and that such modifications and changes are also within the scope of the claims of the present invention. Therefore, the descriptions and drawings in this specification should be treated as illustrative rather than restrictive. [Explanation of symbols]

[0097] 6 tire diagram, 7 sensor diagram, 31 information addition unit, 32 graphic arrangement section, 36 information display section, 37 exchange judgment section, 38 Replacement part extraction unit, 100 Tire maintenance support device.

Claims

1. an information adding step of adding identification information of the tire to a tire diagram representing a tire mounted on a vehicle; a graphic arrangement step of arranging the tire graphic on a display screen based on the axle arrangement information; a replacement part extraction step of extracting replacement part candidates for the tire corresponding to the tire figure overlapping with the operator's operation position on the display screen; an information display step of displaying information on the replacement item candidates extracted by the replacement item extraction step on the display screen; A tire maintenance assistance program that causes a computer to execute the above.

2. 2. The tire maintenance assistance program according to claim 1, wherein the replacement part extraction step extracts replacement part candidates based on a wear state of the tire corresponding to the tire figure overlapping the operation portion.

3. 2. The tire maintenance support program according to claim 1, wherein the replacement item extraction step extracts replacement item candidates from new tires and stored used tires.

4. A replacement determination step of determining whether the tire needs to be replaced, 2. The tire maintenance assistance program according to claim 1, wherein the graphic arrangement step displays the tire graphic corresponding to the tire determined by the replacement determination step to be in a state in which replacement is required in a different display form from the tire graphic corresponding to the tire determined not to be in a state in which replacement is required.

5. the information adding step includes adding identification information of the sensor to a sensor graphic representing a sensor provided in the tire; The graphic arrangement step arranges the sensor graphic on a display screen; 2. The tire maintenance assistance program according to claim 1, wherein the replacement part extraction step extracts replacement part candidates for the sensor corresponding to the sensor graphic overlapping an operation position of the operator on the display screen.

6. an information adding unit that adds identification information of a tire to a tire diagram representing a tire mounted on a vehicle; a graphic layout unit that lays out the tire graphic on a display screen based on the axle arrangement information; a replacement part extraction unit that extracts replacement part candidates for the tire corresponding to the tire figure that is overlapped with an operation position of the operator on the display screen; an information display unit that displays information on the replacement item candidates extracted by the replacement item extraction unit on the display screen; A tire maintenance assistance device comprising:

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