Information processing method, information processing apparatus, and program

Abstract

To provide an information processing method, an information processing apparatus, and a program which implement efficient management of transportation objects or transport assisting means.SOLUTION: The method includes: acquiring transporting vehicle position information in time series from first information processing apparatuses mounted on respective transporting vehicles; acquiring transportation object or transport assisting means position information in time series from second information processing apparatuses mounted on respective transportation objects or transport assisting means; specifying transportation objects or transport assisting means which are moving, on the basis of the transportation object or transport assisting means position information; determining whether or not movement information obtained based on the transportation object or transport assisting means position information, of the transportation object or transport assisting means which is moving corresponds to movement information of one of a plurality of transporting vehicles; and if it is determined to correspond, associating identification information of the transportation object or the transport assisting means determined to be moving with identification information of the transporting vehicle for which it is determined to correspond.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to an information processing method, an information processing device, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] When transporting cargo, a chassis for carrying a container loaded with cargo may be coupled to a transport vehicle. When a chassis is used to transport cargo, a chassis corresponding to the cargo, such as a container, is usually prepared with the cargo loaded on it at a logistics / distribution base such as a logistics center. Then, when the transport vehicle arrives at the loading site, the transport vehicle is disconnected from the chassis connected to the transport vehicle to enable unloading of the container, and is then connected to the chassis prepared with the cargo loaded on it, and a new transport to the destination begins.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses that container transport vehicles are managed by affixing a wireless IC chassis tag with a chassis number input thereto and installing wireless antennas that transmit and receive signals between the wireless IC chassis tag at required checkpoints within the trailer's travel range. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Patent Publication No. 2022-30675 Summary of the Invention

[0005] However, in conventional technologies such as Patent Document 1, the position of the transported goods or auxiliary transport means such as a chassis can only be determined from the position of the installed radio antenna, and it is not possible to associate it with the transport vehicle, so it is not possible to determine the status of the chassis, such as when and where the transported goods or auxiliary transport means will next be available.

[0006] Furthermore, even if an attempt is made to install and manage some kind of equipment on the transported goods or auxiliary transport means, there is a problem in that the equipment cannot be used continuously because the transported goods or auxiliary transport means themselves are not provided with a power source.

[0007] An object of the present invention is to improve the efficiency of management of transported goods or transport auxiliary means. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] According to one embodiment of the present invention, an information processing method includes: acquiring first position information in a chronological order from a first information processing device mounted on each of a plurality of transport vehicles; acquiring second position information in a chronological order from a second information processing device mounted on each of a plurality of transport items or transport auxiliary means; identifying a transport item or transport auxiliary means that is moving among the plurality of transport items or transport auxiliary means based on the second position information; determining whether movement information based on the second position information of the moving transport item or transport auxiliary means corresponds to movement information based on the first position information of any of the plurality of transport vehicles; and, if it is determined that there is a correspondence, associating identification information of the transport item or transport auxiliary means determined to be moving with identification information of the transport vehicle determined to correspond. Effect of the Invention

[0009] According to the present invention, the management of transported goods or transport auxiliary means can be made more efficient. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram of a chassis management system according to an aspect of an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a first information processing device 100 in FIG. [Diagram 3] 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a second information processing device 200 in FIG. 1. [Figure 4]FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a third information processing device 300 in FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a server 400 in FIG. [Figure 6] 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of an administrator terminal 500 in FIG. 1. [Figure 7] 4 is a flowchart of a travel information acquisition and transmission process in the present embodiment. [Figure 8] 4 is a flowchart of a location information acquisition and transmission process in the present embodiment. [Figure 9] 13 is a flowchart of a chassis reservation process in the present embodiment. [Figure 10] 13 is a screen for inputting chassis reservation information, which is displayed on the display unit 340 of the third information processing device 300. [Figure 11] 13 is a flowchart of a first chassis management process in this embodiment. [Figure 12] 13 shows an example of a data structure of a chassis information database 422 that stores various information such as the status of the chassis 20. [Figure 13] 13 is an example of a data structure of a transport vehicle information database 423 that stores various information related to the transport vehicle 10. [Figure 14] 13 is a flowchart of a second chassis management process in this embodiment. [Figure 15] 13 is an example of designated location chassis information displayed on a display unit 540. [Figure 16] 13 is an example of a reservation details input screen displayed on a display unit 540. [Figure 17] 16 shows an example of a case where the display on the designated location chassis information display unit 540 shown in FIG. 15 is updated when reservation request information is transmitted to the server 400 based on the reservation request shown in FIG. [Figure 18] 13 is a flowchart of a third chassis management process in this embodiment. [Figure 19] 13 is an example of designated area chassis information associated with map information displayed on a display unit 540. [Figure 20] 13 is an example of a chassis / cargo reservation screen displayed on the display unit 540 of the driver's terminal 500 of the transport vehicle 10. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0011] DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment of the present invention will now be described with reference to the drawings as an example of a mode for carrying out the present invention. In the description of the drawings, the same elements are denoted by the same reference numerals, and duplicate descriptions may be omitted. Furthermore, the components described in these embodiments are merely examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention.

[0012] <Functional configuration> 1 is a system configuration diagram of a chassis management system according to one aspect of the present embodiment. In this system, a first information processing device 100 mounted on a transport vehicle 10, which is an example of a transport vehicle, a second information processing device 200 mounted on a chassis 20 for carrying a container 30 and connecting to the transport vehicle 10 to transport the container, a third information processing device 300 for registering the container 30 in response to the loading of the container 30 on the chassis 20, a server 400, and an administrator terminal 500 operated by an administrator who manages the chassis 20 are connected via a network NW, and the first information processing device 100 acquires at least travel information related to the transport vehicle 10 including position information, and the second information processing device 200 acquires at least position information, and the acquired information is transmitted to the server 400 via the network NW. In the server 400, various processes are executed based on the accumulated driving information of the first information processing device 100, the position information of the second information processing device 200, and the like, and the results are output to the administrator terminal 500.

[0013] The chassis is included in the transport goods or transport auxiliary means, and in this embodiment, the chassis is described as an example of the transport goods or transport auxiliary means. The following description is applicable not only to the chassis but also to the transport goods or transport auxiliary means. In addition, the second information processing device 200 mounted on the chassis 20 may be interpreted as being mounted on the transported item, or on the packaging of the transported item.

[0014] In the chassis management system of this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, there are transport vehicles 10 that are coupled to a chassis 20 (transport vehicle 10b) and those that are not coupled to a chassis 20 (transport vehicle 10a), there are chassis 20 that are coupled to a transport vehicle 10 (chassis 20b) and those that are not coupled to a transport vehicle 10 (chassis 20a and chassis 20c), and there is a mixture of vehicles that are located at logistics / distribution bases where cargo is loaded, etc., and vehicles that are in motion (coupled to a transport vehicle 10 that is in motion), and further, there is a third information processing device 300 (referred to as third information processing device 300c) that registers containers 30 that are located at logistics / distribution bases and are loaded onto the chassis 20 for transportation (the former is referred to as container 30c, and the latter as chassis 20b). The following explanation will be given taking as an example a case in which there is a third information processing device 300c) that registers the containers when they are loaded onto the chassis 20 (the former is referred to as container 30c, and the latter as chassis 20b) that are located at logistics / distribution bases.

[0015] Here, the travel information is information related to the travel of the transport vehicle 10, and examples of the information include, but are not limited to, information related to the position, information related to the speed, and information related to the acceleration. The travel information is not limited to being composed of one type of information, and may be composed of a plurality of types of information, for example, the travel information may be composed of position information and acceleration information. The travel information is collected at a predetermined timing in the first information processing device 10, and similarly, the travel information accumulated in the first information processing device 10 is transmitted to the server 400 at a predetermined timing. For example, in a certain first information processing device 10, the travel information is collected every second and transmitted to the server 400 every minute, while in another first information processing device 10, the travel information may be collected every 10 seconds and transmitted to the server 400 every 10 minutes. Furthermore, in a certain first information processing device 10, the travel information is collected every 10 seconds, and transmitted via the roadside device when the transport vehicle 10 passes near the roadside device connected to the server 400 (for example, a method based on ETC2.0 is exemplified). In this embodiment, the travel information includes at least position information.

[0016] A logistics / distribution base refers to a facility that serves as the base for logistics, such as a logistics center or a distribution center, but is not limited to this and can be any place where the containers 30 are loaded onto and unloaded from the chassis 20. In other words, the location is not limited to a logistics center or distribution center where various cargoes are loaded and unloaded, but may be a small-scale base where specific cargoes are loaded and unloaded, or a base (e.g., a fishing port) where cargo is loaded to be delivered to a logistics center or distribution center.

[0017] The transport vehicle 10 is, for example, a truck vehicle, and is a vehicle that can transport cargo (for example, a container 30) loaded on the chassis 20 by coupling with the chassis 20. The transport vehicle 10 is equipped with a first information processing device 100. Details of the first information processing device 100 will be described later. In this embodiment, the transport vehicle 10 includes at least one (transport vehicle 10a) that is operated without being coupled to the chassis 20, and one (transport vehicle 10b) that is coupled to the chassis 20. When describing the transport vehicles as a whole, they will be referred to as transport vehicle 10, and when describing matters specific to each transport vehicle, they will be referred to as transport vehicle 10a or transport vehicle 10b, etc.

[0018] In this embodiment, the chassis 20 corresponds to a "framework" that is coupled to a vehicle that serves as a transport vehicle and that carries cargo such as a container 30 to transport luggage. By way of example and not of limitation, the chassis 20 refers to a vehicle that can carry cargo to be transported by loading the cargo, and that can be moved with the cargo loaded, that is, transported, by being coupled to a transport vehicle. In this embodiment, the chassis 20 is provided with a second information processing device 200. Details of the second information processing device 200 will be described later. In this embodiment, similarly to the transport vehicle 10, there are at least two types of chassis 20: one (chassis 20b) that is coupled to the transport vehicle 10 and operated, and one (chassis 20c) that is not coupled to the transport vehicle 10 and is placed alone at a logistics / distribution base. When describing the chassis as a whole, it will be referred to as chassis 20, and when describing matters specific to each chassis, it will be referred to as chassis 20b or chassis 20c, etc., in the following description.

[0019] The container 30 is a so-called transport container, which is mounted on a chassis 20 and can be moved by connecting the chassis 20 to a transport vehicle 10; examples of the container 30 include, but are not limited to, marine containers, air containers, and railway containers. When the container 30 is mounted on the chassis 20, the usage status of the chassis 20 is changed accordingly, and therefore information relating to the usage of the container 30 is input through the third information processing device 300. The third information processing device 300 will be described in detail later.

[0020] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the first information processing device 100 of FIG. The first information processing device 100 in this embodiment is, for example, a device that collects travel information according to the ETC2.0 system and transmits it to the server 20. Another example is a device that can be inserted into a socket (for example, a cigarette lighter socket, an electricity supply socket, or a connection socket) of the transport vehicle 10 and fixed inside the transport vehicle 10 (referred to as a "cigarette lighter device" in this application). The electricity supply socket or the connection socket is, for example, a socket that supports USB (Universal Serial Bus). Of course, the first information processing device 100 is not limited to these, and may be any device such as a drive recorder, a car navigation device, a digital tachograph, or other device provided in the transport vehicle 10, or even a mobile terminal carried by a passenger of the transport vehicle 10, as long as it can collect travel information of the transport vehicle 100 and transmit it to the server 400. The first information processing device 100 includes, for example, a processing unit 110, a storage unit 120, a communication unit 130, a display unit 140, an operation unit 150, a sound output unit 160, a driving information acquisition unit 170, and a clock unit 180. As described above, the first information processing device 100 collects driving information via the driving information acquisition unit 170 at predetermined intervals, and stores the information in the storage unit 120 in association with time information acquired by the clock unit 180. Then, the first information processing device 100 transmits the acquired and stored driving information to the server 400 connected to the network NW via the communication unit 130 at a predetermined timing.

[0021] The processing unit 110 is configured by a processing and arithmetic device including, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and an MPU (Micro-Processing Unit). The processing unit 110 performs various processes on each piece of data, and also reads and executes programs stored in the storage unit 120 to control each functional unit such as the communication unit 130, the display unit 140, the operation unit 150, the sound output unit 160, the driving information acquisition unit 170, and the clock unit 180.

[0022] The storage unit 120 includes, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), and the like, and stores the control program processed by the processing unit 110, various data, for example, information acquired by each functional unit, and the like. Note that the storage unit 120 is not limited to being built into the first information processing device 100, and may be an external storage device connected via a digital input / output port such as a universal serial bus (USB), or the like.

[0023] In this embodiment, the storage unit 120 stores, for example, a travel information acquisition and transmission processing program 121 and a travel information database 122.

[0024] The travel information acquisition and transmission processing program 121 is a program for implementing a travel information acquisition and transmission process for transmitting the travel information acquired via the travel information acquisition unit 170 to the server 400 at an appropriate timing. The travel information acquisition and transmission process will be described later.

[0025] The travel information database 122 is, for example, a database in which acquired travel information generated for each transport vehicle 10 is accumulated and stored. The travel information is stored in the travel information database 122 in association with time information issued by a clock unit 180 described later. That is, the travel information is accumulated in the travel information database 122 in a manner that makes it possible to know when the travel information was acquired. For example, when the first information processing device 100 acquires position information as travel information, the coordinate information as the acquired position information and the acquisition time are stored in association with each other.

[0026] The communication unit 130 is a module that can connect to a public network such as the Internet and communicate data with each device such as the server 20 connected to the network by using, for example, mobile communications such as LTE (Long Term Evolution), 3G, 4G, and 5G, or narrowband communications such as DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication). Alternatively, information may be exchanged by communications compatible with ETC2.0 that performs two-way communications using DSRC. Through the communication unit 130, the driving information stored in the driving information database 122, which will be described later, is transmitted to an external server 400. The process of transmitting the driving information to the server 400 will be described in detail later.

[0027] The display unit 140 is a display device configured to have, for example, an LCD or the like, and performs various displays based on a display signal output from the processing unit 110. The display unit 140 may be configured integrally with a touch panel to form the operation unit 150 as a touch screen.

[0028] The operation unit 150 is configured to have an input device such as an operation button or an operation switch for the user to perform various operation inputs to the first information processing device 100. The operation unit 150 may also have a touch panel integrally configured with the display unit 140, and this touch panel may function as an input interface between the user and the first information processing device 100. An operation signal according to a user operation is output from the operation unit 150 to the processing unit 110. For example, an input by the user is accepted in a daily inspection process described later.

[0029] The sound output unit 160 is a sound output device including a speaker and the like, and outputs various sounds based on the sound output signal output from the processing unit 110.

[0030] For example, when the traveling information includes position information, the traveling information acquisition unit 170 acquires position information (e.g., latitude and longitude information) of the first information processing device 100 at a predetermined interval based on radio waves arriving from a GNSS satellite (e.g., a GPS satellite). That is, the traveling information of the transport vehicle 10 equipped with the first information processing device 100 can be acquired. In other words, by using the transport vehicle 10 equipped with the first information processing device 100, the position information of the transport vehicle 10 can be substantially acquired. For example, when the traveling information includes speed information, the traveling information acquisition unit 170 acquires vehicle speed pulse information acquired by a vehicle speed pulse acquisition unit (not shown) mounted on the transport vehicle 10, and acquires the speed information of the transport vehicle 10 at a predetermined interval based on the vehicle speed pulse information. Alternatively, the speed information may be calculated based on position information acquired separately. For example, when the traveling information includes acceleration information, the acceleration is acquired by a piezoelectric acceleration sensor. Alternatively, the acceleration of the vehicle may be calculated based on position information and speed information acquired separately. The acquired driving information is stored in the driving information database 122 of the storage unit 120 in association with information about the time (current time) at which the driving information was acquired, which is acquired by the clock unit 180 described later.

[0031] Here, when the location information is included in the travel information, an accuracy value (e.g., DOP value) indicating the accuracy of the location information may be acquired when acquiring the location information. In this case, the acquired location information and accuracy value are associated with the current time and stored in the storage unit 120.

[0032] The method of acquiring the location information is not limited to the above, and any method of acquiring the location information may be applied. For example, the location information of the first information processing device 100 may be acquired by the location information acquiring unit 170 receiving radio waves, which include location information specific to a roadside device installed on the side of a road, when the transport vehicle 10 equipped with the first information processing device 100 approaches the roadside device.

[0033] The clock unit 180 is a built-in clock of the first information processing device 100, and outputs time information (timekeeping information). The clock unit 180 is configured to include, for example, a clock using a crystal oscillator. The clock unit 180 may be configured to include a clock that complies with the Network Identity and Time Zone (NITZ) standard or the like.

[0034] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the second information processing device 200 in FIG. The second information processing device 200 in this embodiment is a device having a function of collecting position information at least at a predetermined interval and transmitting it to the server 20. The second information processing device 200 is configured to include, for example, at least a processing unit 210, a storage unit 220, a communication unit 230, a driving information acquisition unit 270, a clock unit 280, and a power supply unit 290. The second information processing device 200, like the first information processing device 100, collects location information via the location information acquisition unit 270A at a predetermined interval, and stores the location information in the storage unit 220 in association with time information acquired by the clock unit 280. Then, the second information processing device 200 transmits the acquired and stored location information to the server 400 connected to the network NW via the communication unit 230 at a predetermined timing.

[0035] The processing unit 210, memory unit 220, communication unit 230, and clock unit 280 have the same functional configurations as the processing unit 110, memory unit 120, communication unit 130, and clock unit 180 in the first information processing device 100, so their description is omitted here.

[0036] In this embodiment, the storage unit 220 stores, for example, a location information acquisition and transmission processing program 221 and a location information database 222.

[0037] The location information acquisition and transmission processing program 221 is a program for implementing location information acquisition and transmission processing for transmitting, at an appropriate timing, location information acquired via the location information acquisition unit 170A to the server 400. The location information acquisition and transmission processing will be described later.

[0038] The position information acquisition unit 270A acquires position information (e.g., latitude and longitude information) of the second information processing device 200 at predetermined intervals based on radio waves arriving from a GNSS satellite (e.g., a GPS satellite), for example. That is, the position information of the chassis 20 including the second information processing device 200 can be acquired. The acquired location information is stored in the location information database 222 of the storage unit 220 in association with information regarding the time when the location information was acquired (current time).

[0039] The second information processing device 200 may also include a power supply unit 290. The power supply unit 290 is, by way of example and not limitation, a power generation means that converts solar energy into electricity using a solar cell, and each functional unit of the second information processing device 200 functions using the electricity generated by the power supply unit 290 as a power source. In this case, when the second information processing device 200 is placed in a position where it cannot receive sunlight, it cannot generate power, and therefore each functional unit of the second information processing device 200 will stop functioning if the stored power source is lost.

[0040] The power supply unit 290 is not limited to the above-mentioned form, and is not particularly limited as long as it can generate power by some means, such as natural energy such as wind power, hydroelectric power, and atomic power, or power generated in response to tire rotation, and supply power to the second information processing device 200. In particular, when generating electricity from sunlight, wind power, or tire rotation, power generation can be expected when the chassis 20 is moving, and location information can be acquired sequentially, whereas when the chassis 20 is not moving, even if power generation cannot be expected, since the chassis 20 is located in the same place, it is possible to determine the current location based on the last acquired location information.

[0041] Of course, the power supply unit 290 may be operated by any commonly conceived power supply means (battery means such as dry batteries or rechargeable batteries, or means for obtaining power from an external power supply via a cord, etc.).

[0042] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the third information processing device 300 in FIG. In this embodiment, the third information processing device 300 allows a user (e.g., a chassis manager, a driver of the corresponding transport vehicle 10, staff in charge of loaded items, etc.) to input information regarding the loading of the container 30 onto the chassis 20 and transmits such input information to the server 400 in order to update information about the chassis 20 managed by the server 400 when loading a container 30 onto the chassis 20. The third information processing device 300 is configured to include at least a processing unit 310, a storage unit 320, a communication unit 330, a display unit 340, an operation unit 350, a sound output unit 360, a position information acquisition unit 370, and a clock unit 380, for example.

[0043] The processing unit 310, memory unit 320, communication unit 330, display unit 140, operation unit 150, sound output unit 360, location information acquisition unit 370 and clock unit 380 in the third information processing device 300 have the same functional configurations as the processing unit 110, memory unit 120, communication unit 130, display unit 140, operation unit 150, sound output unit 160 and clock unit 180 in the first information processing device 100, and the location information acquisition unit 370 has the same functional configuration as the location information acquisition unit 270 in the second information processing device 200, so its description will be omitted here.

[0044] In this embodiment, the storage unit 320 stores, for example, a chassis reservation processing program 321 and a chassis reservation information database 322 .

[0045] The chassis reservation processing program 321 is a program for implementing chassis reservation processing for transmitting chassis reservation information inputted via the operation unit 350 to the server 400. The chassis reservation processing will be described later.

[0046] The mounting information database 322 is a database for storing information related to the chassis 20 transmitted from the server 400 and mounting information input via the operation unit 350.

[0047] Fig. 5 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the server 400 in Fig. 1. The server 400 in this embodiment includes a processing unit 410, a storage unit 420, and a communication unit 430. The server 400 is connected to the first information processing device 100, the second information processing device 200, the administrator terminal 500, etc., via a network such as the Internet, and receives the travel information of each transport vehicle 10 and the position information of each chassis from the first information processing device 100 and the second information processing device 200, and stores them in the storage unit 420. Based on the stored information, the server 400 performs chassis management processing, which will be described later.

[0048] The processing unit 410 is configured by a processing operation device including, for example, a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and an MPU (Micro-Processing Unit). The processing unit 410 performs various processes on each piece of data, and also reads and executes programs stored in the storage unit 420.

[0049] The storage unit 420 includes, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), an electrically erasable programmable read-only memory (EEPROM), a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), etc., and stores the control program processed by the processing unit 210, various data, for example, an on-board device table in which device identification information is registered, etc. Note that the storage unit 420 is not limited to being built into the server 400, and may be an external storage device connected via a digital input / output port such as a universal serial bus (USB), etc.

[0050] In this embodiment, the storage unit 420 stores, for example, a chassis management processing program 421, a chassis information database 422, and a transport vehicle information database 423.

[0051] The chassis management processing program 421 is a program that is read by the processing unit 410 and executed as the chassis management processing described later.

[0052] The chassis information database 422 is a database for storing information for managing each chassis 20, such as the position information for each chassis 20 transmitted from the second information processing device 200, the chassis ID, status, schedule, etc. of each chassis 20. As described above, the location information is associated with time information, and is stored in the chassis information database 422 in a manner that makes it possible to know when the location information was acquired.

[0053] The transport vehicle information database 423 is a database for storing information for managing each transport vehicle 10, such as driving information for each transport vehicle 10 transmitted from the first information processing device 100, the transport vehicle chassis ID, status, schedule, etc. of each transport vehicle 10. As described above, the travel information is associated with time information and is stored in the transport vehicle information database 423 in a manner that makes it possible to know when the travel information was acquired.

[0054] The chassis reservation processing program 424 is a program for implementing chassis reservation processing based on the chassis reservation information transmitted from the third information processing device 300. The chassis reservation processing will be described later.

[0055] The communication unit 430 is a module that can connect to a network such as the Internet using a wired or wireless communication interface, for example, mobile communications such as LTE (Long Term Evolution) or 3G, or narrowband communications such as DSRC (Dedicated Short Range Communication), and can perform data communication with each device, such as the first information processing device 100, connected to the network.

[0056] Fig. 6 is a block diagram showing the functional configuration of the administrator terminal 500 in Fig. 1. The administrator terminal 500 in this embodiment may be, for example and without limitation, an electronic device such as a tablet or laptop PC, and is configured to include, for example, a processing unit 510, a storage unit 520, a communication unit 530, a display unit 540, an operation unit 550, and a sound output unit 560. The configurations of these functional units, the processing unit 510, the memory unit 520, the communication unit 530, the display unit 540, the operation unit 550, and the sound output unit 560, may be substantially similar to the processing unit 110, the memory unit 120, the communication unit 130, the display unit 140, the operation unit 150, and the sound output unit 160 of the first information processing device 100, and therefore detailed descriptions thereof will be omitted.

[0057] In this embodiment, the storage unit 520 stores, for example, a chassis management processing program 521.

[0058] The chassis-related processing program 521 is a program that is read by the processing unit 510 and executed in cooperation with the chassis-related processing program 421 of the server 400 as a first chassis management process, a second chassis management process, or a third chassis management process, which are described below. The first chassis management process, the second chassis management process, and the third chassis management process may be processed in a unified manner by the chassis-related processing program 521, or the chassis-related processing program 521 may include programs corresponding to the first chassis management process, the second chassis management process, and the third chassis management process, respectively, and the form is not particularly limited.

[0059] <Driving information transmission process> Hereinafter, a description will be given of a driving information acquisition and transmission process for acquiring driving information in the first information processing device 100 and transmitting the acquired driving information to the server 400. The driving information acquisition and transmission process is performed by a driving information transmission processing program 121 stored in the storage unit 120. Fig. 7 is a flowchart of the driving information acquisition and transmission process in this embodiment.

[0060] As shown in FIG. 7, first, the first information processing device 100 acquires driving information through the driving information acquisition unit 170 (S1002). The travel information acquired by the first information processing device 100 is stored in the travel information database 122 of the storage unit 120 (S1003). At this time, the travel information is stored in association with the time information acquired by the clock unit 180. That is, the travel information is stored in a manner that makes it possible to know when the travel information was acquired by the first information processing device 100. The timing of acquiring the driving information is not particularly limited, but may be, for example, every predetermined time (e.g., 1 second), every time a predetermined distance (e.g., 200 meters) is traveled, every time a predetermined azimuth angle (e.g., 90 degrees) changes, or any combination of these.

[0061] Next, it is determined whether a predetermined condition is satisfied (S1004). The predetermined condition varies depending on the setting of the first information processing device 100 regarding the transmission of the travel information to the server 400. For example, in this embodiment, the predetermined condition is whether the first information processing device 100 is located near a roadside device installed on the side of the road according to the ETC2.0 system. Other examples that can be given include, but are not limited to, the specified condition being that a predetermined time (e.g., 5 minutes) has elapsed since the start of acquisition of driving information in step S1001 or since the last time driving information was sent to server 400, or that a predetermined distance (e.g., 1 kilometer) has been traveled since the start of acquisition of driving information in step S1001 or since the last time driving information was sent to server 400.

[0062] If the predetermined condition is met (S1004; Y), the travel information accumulated in the storage unit 120 is transmitted to the server 400 (S1005). That is, the process of S1002 is repeated to collectively transmit the acquired and stored travel information to the server 400. If the predetermined condition is not met (S1004; N), the process returns to step S1002 and the processes of steps S1002 and S1003 are repeated.

[0063] After step S1005, the travel information recorded in the storage unit 120 is deleted (S1006). By doing so, a mechanism is established in which newly acquired travel information is accumulated thereafter.

[0064] After step S1005, the process returns to step S1002 and the subsequent processes are repeated.

[0065] In this manner, the first information processing device 100 continuously transmits the travel information accumulated for a predetermined period of time to the server 400 at a predetermined frequency.

[0066] <Location information acquisition and transmission processing> Next, a location information acquisition and transmission process for acquiring location information in the second information processing device 200 and transmitting the acquired location information to the server 400 will be described below. The location information acquisition and transmission process is performed by a location information acquisition and transmission processing program 221 stored in the storage unit 220. Fig. 8 is a flowchart of the location information acquisition and transmission processing device in this embodiment.

[0067] As shown in FIG. 8, first, it is determined whether the second information processing device 200 in the chassis 20 from which the position information is to be acquired is functioning (S1011). That is, if the second information processing device 200 is functioning, it is possible to acquire, store, and transmit the position information, so this is basically synonymous with confirming that. Note that, "functioning" refers to a state in which the power is on and the expected processing can be performed without problems, and it means that it is not functioning if, for example, the power is not supplied, the power is supplied but the power is not turned on, or the power is turned on but is broken and the expected processing cannot be performed. Note that this step may be omitted. In this case, for example, if the power is not turned on, each function such as the transmission of driving information cannot be automatically performed, so that the position information acquisition and transmission processing cannot be performed, and this is synonymous with the case where it is determined that it is not functioning.

[0068] In step S1001, if it is determined that the second information processing device 200 is functioning (S1011; Y), the second information processing device 200 acquires location information through the location information acquisition unit 270A (S1012). If it is determined that the second information processing device 200 is not functioning (S1011; N), the second information processing device 200 suspends the location information acquisition and transmission process (S1011) and waits until the function is restored. In other words, the second information processing device 200 is not acquired or transmitted until the location information acquisition and transmission process is started again (for example, the power supply of the second information processing device 200 is turned ON).

[0069] The location information acquired by the second information processing device 200 is stored in the location information database 222 of the storage unit 220 (S1013). At this time, the location information is stored in association with the time information acquired by the clock unit 280. That is, the location information is stored in a manner that makes it possible to know when the driving information was acquired by the second information processing device 200. The timing of acquiring the location information is not particularly limited, and an example similar to that of the first information processing device 100 can be applied. In this embodiment, however, if the information processing device 200 is functioning, the location information is acquired every predetermined time (for example, every minute).

[0070] Next, it is determined whether a predetermined condition is satisfied (S1014). The predetermined condition varies depending on the setting of the second information processing device 200 regarding the transmission of the location information to the server 400, and the same example as that of the first information processing device 100 can be applied. In this embodiment, however, the predetermined condition is that a predetermined time (for example, 10 minutes) has passed since the last transmission of the location information to the server 400.

[0071] If the predetermined condition is met (S1014; Y), the location information accumulated in the storage unit 220 is transmitted to the server 400 (S1005). That is, the process of S1012 is repeated to transmit all the acquired and stored location information to the server 400. If the predetermined condition is not met (S1014; N), the process returns to step S1011 and the processes of steps S1012 and S1013 are repeated.

[0072] After step S1015, the location information recorded in the storage unit 220 is deleted (S1016). By doing so, the system is set up so that newly acquired location information is stored again thereafter.

[0073] After step S1015, the process returns to step S1011 and the subsequent processes are repeated.

[0074] In this way, while the second information processing device 200 is functioning (for example, while the power is on), the location information accumulated for a predetermined period is continuously transmitted from the second information processing device 200 to the server 400 at a predetermined frequency. In other words, as long as the location information is being transmitted, it is possible to distinguish that the second information processing device 200 is functioning.

[0075] <Chassis reservation processing> Next, a description will be given of chassis reservation processing for accepting input of chassis reservation information in the third information processing device 300 and transmitting the accepted chassis reservation information to the server 400 for registration. The chassis reservation processing is performed by a chassis reservation processing program 321 stored in the storage unit 320 and a chassis reservation processing program 424 stored in the storage unit 420 of the server 400. Fig. 9 is a flowchart of the chassis reservation processing device in this embodiment.

[0076] As shown in FIG. 9, first, the third information processing device 300 judges whether or not input of chassis reservation information is required (S1021). Whether or not it is necessary to input chassis reservation information corresponds to whether or not the user is prompted to input chassis reservation information by some trigger, for example, via the display unit 340 or the sound output unit 360 of the third information processing device 300.

[0077] The chassis reservation information here is, for example, information for reserving the use of the chassis 20 at a certain time in the future and preventing others from using the chassis or setting up plans to use the chassis 20. The chassis reservation information will be described in detail later.

[0078] The trigger here may be, for example, an administrator or the like registering a reservation for the chassis 20 in the administrator device 500, or the chassis 20 and the third information processing device 300 having corresponding location information for a predetermined period of time or more (for example, within a predetermined distance, approximately matching, etc.), or a user of the third information processing device 300 recognizing that a reservation for the chassis 20 will be made and calling up a screen for entering chassis reservation information via the operation unit 350 or the like. The screen for inputting chassis reservation information may be called up by any method, such as by inputting the identification number attached to chassis 20 via operation unit 350, or by operation unit 350 including an imaging unit (not shown) reading a code attached to chassis 20 (for example, a two-dimensional code such as a QR code (registered trademark), a one-dimensional code such as a barcode, etc.) to read the identification information of chassis 20.

[0079] If it is determined that input of chassis reservation information is not necessary (S1021; N), the chassis reservation process is terminated, or the process returns to step S1021 and a new determination is made.

[0080] If it is determined that the input of chassis reservation information is necessary (S1021; Y), the input of chassis reservation information is accepted via the operation unit 350 (S1022). When inputting chassis reservation information, for example, a screen as shown in FIG. 10 is displayed on the display unit 340, and input is accepted through this screen.

[0081] In addition to inputting the above-mentioned chassis reservation information, the third information processing device 300 may be capable of registering the status of the chassis 20 at a certain point in time, for example, the fact that the container 30 is currently being loaded onto the chassis 20. In other words, the third information processing device 300 may be capable of updating information such as the status in the chassis information database 422.

[0082] FIG. 10 shows a screen for inputting chassis reservation information, which is displayed on the display unit 340 of the third information processing device 300. As shown in FIG. As shown in Fig. 10, in the screen for inputting chassis reservation information, for example, chassis information is arranged on the left side of the screen, transported goods information is arranged on the right side of the screen, and items such as user information, date and time information, and a reservation button are arranged on the bottom of the screen, which are at least some of the elements constituting the chassis reservation information. More specifically, the chassis information shows "chassis ID" which is identification information of the chassis 20, "type" which is information on the type of the chassis 20, "chassis image" which is an image of the exterior of the chassis 20, and "usage history" which shows the recent use history of the chassis 20, while the transported goods information shows "container ID" which is identification information of the container 30 for transporting the transported goods, "type" which is information on the type of the container 30, transported goods which show the contents of the transported goods, and "destination" which shows the destination to which the transported goods are transported, and at the bottom of the screen, the "user name" of the person who inputs the information, "scheduled start date and time of use" and "scheduled end date and time of use" which are scheduled dates and times when the use of the combination of the chassis 20 and the container 30 is to start and end, and a "reservation button" with "reserve" written on it which is a button for confirming the reservation, are arranged.

[0083] By inputting the necessary information for these items and finally pressing the "Reserve" button, chassis reservation information for that combination of chassis 20 and container 30 is generated and transmitted to the server 400 (S1023).

[0084] The server 400 registers the received chassis reservation information in the chassis information database 422 in the storage unit 420, and reserves the use of the chassis from the scheduled use start date and time to the scheduled use end date and time included in the chassis reservation information (S1024).

[0085] When registration of the chassis reservation information is completed, a message to that effect is sent to the third information processing device 300, and the message is displayed on the display unit 340 of the third information processing device 300 (S1025), thereby allowing the user to confirm that the reservation has been completed.

[0086] When step S1025 is completed, the process returns to step S1021, and the subsequent processes are repeated. Alternatively, the chassis reservation process may be terminated upon completion of step S1025.

[0087] <Chassis management first process> Hereinafter, a description will be given of a first chassis management process performed by the server 400 as an example of a process for managing a chassis. Fig. 11 is a flowchart of the first chassis management process in this embodiment.

[0088] The first chassis management process is a process having as one of its objectives the determination of where each chassis is located at that time and what its status is. Originally, it is assumed that there are multiple chassis to be managed and the process is to be performed for all of them, but for the sake of simplicity, the following description will be given assuming the process is performed for one chassis 20.

[0089] As a premise of this process, the server 400 receives the travel information from the first information processing device 100 (step S1005) and the position information from the second information processing device 200 (step S1015), and if reservation information is generated in the third information processing device 300, the server 400 receives the reservation information (step S1023). In addition, it is assumed that some of the transport vehicles 10 that can be coupled to the chassis 20 to be managed are equipped with the first information processing device 100, and some are not.

[0090] First, the server 400 judges whether the chassis 20 is moving (S3001). Whether the chassis 20 is moving or not is judged by, for example, extracting a predetermined number (e.g., three) of the latest pieces of location information within a predetermined time period (e.g., the past 10 minutes) from the location information transmitted from the second information processing device 200, and judging that the chassis 20 is moving if the positions indicated by these pieces of location information are different from each other (S3001; Y). Then, if it is judged that the chassis 20 is moving, the server 400 sets the status of the chassis 20 to "moving" (S3002). If the latest predetermined number of pieces of location information within a predetermined time in the past indicate the same location, or if no location information was acquired within a predetermined time in the past, it is determined that the chassis 20 is not moving (S3001; N). If it is determined that the chassis 20 is not moving, the server 400 sets the status of the chassis 20 to "standby" (S3003), and ends the first chassis management process for the chassis 20.

[0091] FIG. 12 shows an example of the data structure of the chassis information database 422 that stores various information related to the chassis 20, such as the status. As shown in FIG. 12, the chassis information database 422 is configured to include, by way of example and not limitation, elements associated with a chassis ID, which is identification information for each chassis 20, such as “latest location information” based on acquired location information, “acquired location information (the most recent of these is the “latest location information”)” which is acquired location information, “status” indicating the state of the chassis 20, “movement history” indicating the history of each movement by the chassis 20, “reservation information” which is information regarding reservations for the chassis 20, “next available location” which is the location where the chassis 20 will be available at the next available date and time, and “type” indicating the type of chassis 20.

[0092] When location information transmitted from the second information processing device 200 mounted on each chassis 20 is acquired, the "acquired location information" is updated, and the "latest location information" is also updated accordingly. Note that, as the "latest location information", for example and not by way of limitation, an address or building corresponding to the location indicated by the location information (for example, "near E town, D city" for the chassis 20 with the chassis ID CH001, "logistics and distribution base A" for the chassis 20 with the chassis ID CH002, etc.) may be displayed alone or in addition to the location information.

[0093] Also, the "status" column is updated according to steps S3002 and S3003. For example, for the chassis 20 with the chassis ID CH001 and the chassis 20 with the chassis ID CH004, the latest three pieces of acquired location information are within 10 minutes from the current time, and the locations indicated by these three pieces of location information are different, so the statuses are set to "moving", while for the chassis 20 with the chassis ID CH002 and the chassis 20 with the chassis ID CH003, the latest three pieces of acquired location information are within 10 minutes from the current time, but the locations indicated by these three pieces of location information are the same, so the statuses are set to "waiting".

[0094] The chassis 20 with the chassis ID CH002 is also said to have a status of "waiting" but also "loading". This means, for example, that the chassis is not moving, but an input indicating that the chassis is in this state has been made by the third information processing device 300, or the time has come when the chassis will start to be used based on the input reservation information. In other words, this means that at that point in time, the chassis has started to be used based on a reservation, and the chassis is in a state of being loaded for delivery just before the delivery.

[0095] In addition, as the movement history, information on the movement history of the chassis 20 is recorded, and for example, in this embodiment, the date and time when it is determined that the chassis 20 has transitioned from standby to moving is recorded. The determination of the transition from standby to moving may be made, for example, based on the position information of the chassis 20, when it is confirmed for the first time that the chassis 20 has been moving outside of a logistics / distribution base since the time when the chassis 20 was waiting. In addition, the transition may be made simply by confirming that the chassis 20 is moving based on the position information regardless of whether the chassis 20 is inside or outside the base, and the transition to moving may be made in any manner as long as it is determined whether the chassis 20 is moving based on at least some information related to the traveling such as the position information.

[0096] The reservation information also shows what reservations have been made at that time for chassis 20 through chassis reservation processing, etc. For example, for chassis 20 with chassis ID CH001, there are two reservations, one for 19:30 on 2 / 13 with logistics / distribution base B as its destination, and the other for 12:30 on 2 / 16 with logistics / distribution base C as its destination, and the former reservation is currently being used as indicated by the underline.

[0097] Also, preferably, by performing an operation to select reservation information (for example, a tap operation) through the operation unit 550, chassis reservation information as shown in FIG. 10 may be called up and displayed. That is, each piece of reservation information is stored in association with the corresponding chassis reservation information.

[0098] In addition, the location that will be available next time is the location that will become available after all of the reservations currently in existence for the chassis 20 have been completed. For example, for chassis 20 with chassis ID CH001, the location that will become available after the above-mentioned two reservations have been completed is shown as logistics / distribution base C. This next available location corresponds to the end point of the reservation that is the most future that exists at that time (for example, it may be the same location as the end point, or it may be a logistics / distribution base near the end point), so it may be omitted in cases where the end point of the reservation that is the most future that exists at that time can be known by some means.

[0099] Also, the type of chassis 20 is shown. The information indicated in the type column is not limited to the number of axes and length shown in FIG. 9, and may be any information relating to the type of chassis 20.

[0100] Alternatively, for example, the next available date and time may be the date and time when the chassis 20 becomes available after all of the reservations currently in use have been completed. For example, for the chassis 20 with chassis ID CH001, the date and time when the chassis 20 becomes available after the above-mentioned two reservations have been completed (e.g., 9:00 on February 17) may be indicated. This next available date and time corresponds to the end date and time of the use related to the future-most reservation currently in use (e.g., it may be the same date and time as the end date and time, or it may be the start time of the business day following the end date and time, or it may be a date and time that takes into account the time of inspection or the like that will be performed after the transportation is completed), so it may be omitted in cases where the end date and time of the use related to the future-most reservation currently in use can be known by some means.

[0101] After step S3002, the server 20 determines whether or not there is a transport vehicle 10 corresponding to the movement of the chassis 20 (S3004).

[0102] Whether or not there is a transport vehicle 10 corresponding to the movement of the chassis 20 means whether or not there is a transport vehicle 10 moving with the chassis 20 coupled together (whether the information regarding the movement of the chassis 20 corresponds to the information regarding the movement of the transport vehicle 10), and the method for determining this is not particularly limited, and any method may be used. For example, the trajectory of the position information of the chassis 20 and the trajectory of the position information included in the travel information of the transport vehicle 10 during the same time period may be compared to determine whether there is an approximate match. Alternatively, the positions of the transport vehicle 10 and the chassis 20 at any time may be estimated from position information at nearby times, and the positions may be determined based on whether the positions approximately match (e.g., whether the distance between the two is a predetermined distance (e.g., 10 meters) or less). As another example, the positions of the transport vehicle 10 and the chassis 20 at multiple arbitrary intervals of time (e.g., three times at five-minute intervals) may be specified or estimated from the respective position information, and the positions of the two may be determined based on whether the positions approximately match (e.g., whether the distance between the two is a predetermined distance or less) at all or some of those times.

[0103] When it is determined that a transport vehicle 10 corresponding to the movement of the chassis 20 exists (S3004; Y), the chassis 20 is registered as an articulated chassis for the corresponding transport vehicle 10 (S3005). Specifically, for example, in the transport vehicle information database 423, information on the "articulated chassis" of the corresponding transport vehicle 10 may be indicated by the identification information of the chassis 20. That is, the identification information of the corresponding chassis 20 and the transport vehicle 10 is associated with each other. Alternatively, the chassis information database 422 may record identification information of the transport vehicle 10 coupled to the chassis 20 .

[0104] FIG. 13 shows an example of the data structure of the transport vehicle information database 423 that stores various information related to the transport vehicle 10. As shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 13, the transport vehicle information database 423 is configured to include, by way of example and not limitation, elements associated with a transport vehicle ID, which is the identification information of each transport vehicle 10, such as "latest location information" based on location information included in the acquired driving information, "acquired location information (the latest of these is the "latest location information")" which is location information included in the acquired driving information, "connected chassis" indicating the identification information of the connected chassis, "schedule" which is information regarding the schedule of the transport vehicle 10, and "driver" which is information regarding the driver of the transport vehicle 10.

[0105] In the transport vehicle information database 423, when location information transmitted from the first information processing device 100 mounted on each transport vehicle 10 is acquired, the "acquired location information" is updated, and accordingly, the "latest location information" is also updated. Note that, as the "latest location information", for example and not limited thereto, an address or a building corresponding to the location indicated by the location information (for example, "near E town, D city" for the transport vehicle 10 whose transport vehicle ID is TR001, and "logistics and distribution base B" for the transport vehicle 10 whose transport vehicle ID is TR004) may be displayed alone or in addition to the location information.

[0106] Also, the "connected chassis" field is updated according to steps S3004 and S3005. For example, for the transport vehicle 10 whose transport vehicle ID is TR001, it is determined in steps S3004 and S3005 that it corresponds to the chassis 20 whose chassis ID is CH001, so the "connected chassis" is set to "CH001", while for the transport vehicle 10 whose transport vehicle ID is TR002, it is determined in step S3004 that there is no corresponding chassis 20, so "N / A" indicating that there is no connected chassis is input in the "connected chassis". Here, it is not limited to "N / A" being input, and any content (e.g., NULL) may be input as long as it can indicate that there is no connected chassis.

[0107] Also, the schedule shows what kind of schedule exists at that time for each transport vehicle 10. For example, the transport vehicle 10 with the transport vehicle ID TR001 is scheduled to start use at 19:30 on 2 / 13 at logistics / distribution base A and end use at logistics / distribution base B, and the fact that the use corresponding to this schedule is currently being carried out is underlined.

[0108] Further, as the driver, driver information, which is information about the driver of each transport vehicle 10, is shown. The driver information is, by way of example and not limitation, the driver's name, information that can identify the driver (ID, etc.), the driver's email address, the login ID of an arbitrary application, etc. Preferably, when instructions, etc. are to be given to a specific transport vehicle 10, the information in the driver's column can be used to give a notice, etc. to the driver of the transport vehicle 10.

[0109] After step S3005, the server 400 reflects the schedule of the transport vehicle 10 in the reservation information of the chassis 20 coupled thereto. Specifically, for example, a transport vehicle 10 with a transport vehicle ID of TR001 has a schedule starting from 19:30 on 2 / 13 with logistics / distribution base A as the start point and logistics / distribution base B as the end point, and since it is linked to a chassis 20 with a chassis ID of CH001, information corresponding to the schedule starting from 19:30 on 2 / 13 with logistics / distribution base A as the start point and logistics / distribution base B as the end point is entered in the reservation information for the chassis 20 with a chassis ID of CH001.

[0110] By doing this, by inputting in advance the schedule of the transport vehicle 10 to be managed, the reservation status for the chassis 20 to be managed can be automatically reflected, thereby making it possible to easily grasp the usage status of the chassis 20 (for example, when it will be available for use).

[0111] Furthermore, even when a transport vehicle that is not subject to management is coupled with a chassis 20 that is subject to management, it is possible to at least determine that the chassis 20 is in motion, which has the effect of easily determining that the chassis 20 is unavailable at least at the present time and its location, without having to manage a schedule for the chassis 20 in advance.

[0112] After step S3006, the server 400 ends the first chassis management process for the chassis 20.

[0113] <Chassis management second process> Next, a second chassis management process for understanding the status of the chassis at each designated location such as a logistics / distribution base from the viewpoint of the user of the chassis (for example, the driver of the transport vehicle 10 connected thereto) and related parties such as the manager will be described. Fig. 14 is a flowchart of the second chassis management process in this embodiment.

[0114] First, in the administrator terminal 500 (or the driver terminal), a designated location chassis information acquisition request for grasping the status of the chassis at a designated location (hereinafter referred to as the designated location) is received from the user via the operation unit 550 (S4001). The designated location chassis information acquisition request includes at least information about the designated location for which the chassis status is to be grasped (e.g., location information, area information, logistics / distribution base information, etc.).

[0115] The accepted designated location chassis information acquisition request is transmitted to the server 400, and in response, the server 400 extracts the designated location chassis information (S4002).Then, the extracted designated location chassis information is transmitted to the manager terminal 500 (S4003). The designated location chassis information is, by way of example and not limitation, information on the status of chassis 20 located at a designated location that is identified based on information on the designated location for which the status of the chassis is to be known that is included in the designated location chassis information acquisition request. The designated location chassis information is extracted with reference to the chassis information database 422, etc.

[0116] The manager terminal 500, which has received the transmitted designated location chassis information, displays information about each chassis present at the destination on the display unit 540 based on the designated location chassis information (S4004). FIG. 15 is an example of designated location chassis information displayed on the display unit 540. In FIG.

[0117] As shown in FIG. 15, the content displayed on display unit 540 includes, for example, a "chassis ID," a "chassis image" indicating a URL where an image of the exterior of the chassis can be accessed, a "reservation status" indicating whether a reservation has been made, the "destination" of the chassis if a reservation has been made, the "reservation holder" if a reservation has been made, and a "reservation button" for making a reservation. Looking at the contents displayed on the display unit 540, the user (e.g., manager, driver, etc.) checks the chassis that can be reserved, and presses the reservation button for the chassis that the user wishes to reserve for use via the operation unit 550. When the reservation button is pressed, a reservation details input screen such as that shown in FIG.

[0118] 16, for example, in addition to displaying the user name "BB" of the person who made the input, details of the chassis 20 selected in the designated location chassis information, such as the chassis ID, the type of chassis 20, the usage history of the chassis 20, and an image of the chassis 20, are displayed, and the scheduled start date and time of use, the destination, and the scheduled arrival date and time at the destination can be input as reservation details. By inputting the reservation details via operation unit 550 and pressing the "Reserve" button, a reservation of the selected chassis 20 can be requested.

[0119] When a reservation request is input by the administrator terminal 50 (S4005), reservation request information corresponding to the input reservation request is transmitted to the server 400 (S4006). Then, the server 400, which has received the reservation request information, updates information relating to the reservation of the chassis 20 based on the received reservation request information (S4007).

[0120] Then, when the information regarding the reservation of the chassis 20 is updated, the server 200 transmits the corresponding designated location chassis information to the manager terminal 500, and the updated designated location chassis information is displayed on the display unit 540 of the manager terminal 500 (S4008).

[0121] Fig. 17 shows an example of the display being updated on the designated location chassis information display section 540 shown in Fig. 15 when reservation request information is sent to the server 400 based on the reservation request in Fig. 16. As shown in Fig. 17, in response to a reservation request being made for chassis 20 with chassis ID CH019, the display shows that the reservation status for that chassis 20 has become "reserved", the destination has become "logistics / distribution base C", the reserving party has become "BB", and the reservation has become "reservation not possible".

[0122] Note that the process from step S4005 onwards is performed on the assumption that a reservation request will be made, and if a reservation request is not made, the process from step S4005 onwards may not be performed and the second chassis management process may be terminated. In other words, the second chassis management process may be performed simply for the purpose of checking the chassis status at the specified location.

[0123] With this, the second chassis management process performed by the administrator terminal 500 and the server 400 in cooperation with each other is completed.

[0124] <Chassis management third process> Next, a third chassis management process for understanding the status of the chassis in a certain geographical area from the viewpoint of the user of the chassis (for example, the driver of the transport vehicle 10 to be coupled) and related parties such as the manager will be described. Fig. 18 is a flowchart of the third chassis management process in this embodiment.

[0125] First, in the administrator terminal 500 (or the driver terminal), a designated area chassis information acquisition request for grasping the status of the chassis in a designated area (hereinafter referred to as the designated area) is received from the user via the operation unit 550 (S5001). The designated area chassis information acquisition request includes at least information (e.g., location information, area information, etc.) about the designated area for which the status of the chassis is to be grasped, and may be, for example, an administrative district such as a prefecture or a city, town, or village, or any area designated by the operation unit 550.

[0126] The accepted designated area chassis information acquisition request is transmitted to the server 400, and in response, the server 400 extracts the designated area chassis information (S5002).Then, the extracted designated area chassis information is transmitted to the manager terminal 500 (S5003). The designated area chassis information is, by way of example and not limitation, information on the status of the chassis 20 located within the range of the designated area corresponding to the information on the designated area included in the designated area chassis information acquisition request. The designated area chassis information is extracted with reference to the chassis information database 422, etc.

[0127] The manager terminal 500, which has received the transmitted designated area chassis information, displays information about each chassis present in the designated area on the display unit 540 in association with map information based on the designated area chassis information (S5004). FIG. 19 is an example of the designated area chassis information associated with the map information displayed on the display unit 540. In FIG.

[0128] As shown in FIG. 19, the display unit 540 displays, in association with map information, distribution / distribution bases and chassis 20 in motion that are included in a specified area (one prefecture in the example of FIG. 19). More specifically, in Fig. 19, distribution centres (DCs: inventory-type distribution centres) and transfer centres (TCs: transit-type distribution centres) are displayed as icons at the corresponding positions as distribution and delivery centres included in the specified area, and numerical values ​​are shown above the icons. These numerical values ​​are the counts of vacant chassis 20 at the distribution and delivery centres, and by referring to these numerical values, chassis users, managers, etc. can check the counts of vacant chassis 20 at each distribution and delivery centre within the specified area.

[0129] In addition, the display unit 540 displays the location of the chassis 20 in motion within the specified area using truck icons. For example, some of the displayed truck icons are connected to a logistics or distribution base by dotted lines, which shows an example of a display relating to the association of these trucks (chassis 20 in motion) with the destination. In other words, the destination of the chassis 20 in motion can be easily grasped. In addition, although not shown, by selecting any one of the chassis 20 through the operation unit 550, such as by tapping on a displayed truck icon, it is possible to obtain and display information about the selected chassis 20, similar to the content shown in Fig. 16. In other words, by selecting a chassis 20 that is in motion, it is possible to grasp more detailed information about that chassis 20 (for example, the scheduled date and time of arrival at the destination, information about the payload, etc.).

[0130] When the user operates the operation unit 550 to select one of the logistics / distribution bases displayed on the display unit 540 as shown in FIG. 19, a designated location chassis information acquisition request is made (S5005), which is an information request for obtaining information on the chassis 20 located at that logistics / distribution base.

[0131] The designated location chassis information acquisition request corresponds to step S4001 in the second chassis management processing, and thereafter, the processing from step S4002 onwards in the second chassis processing is carried out.

[0132] Note that the process from step S5005 onwards is performed on the assumption that a reservation request is made, and if a reservation request is not made, the process from step S5005 onwards may not be performed and the second chassis management process may be terminated. In other words, the third chassis management process may be performed simply to check the chassis status in the specified area.

[0133] With this, the third chassis management process performed by the administrator terminal 500 and the server 400 in cooperation with each other is completed.

[0134] <Modification> In the above-described second chassis management process, an example has been given of managing the chassis 20 from the perspective of relevant parties such as chassis users and managers, but the method of chassis management is not limited to this. For example, chassis management can also be performed by selecting a chassis 20 carrying a container to be transported from the perspective of the driver of the transport vehicle 10.

[0135] Fig. 20 is an example of a chassis / cargo reservation screen displayed on the display unit 540 of the driver's terminal 500 of the transport vehicle 10. As shown in Fig. 15, the chassis / cargo reservation screen includes a chassis ID, a reward to be obtained when the cargo is delivered, a destination to which the cargo is to be delivered, a deadline for delivery of the cargo, a type of container carrying the cargo, contents of the cargo, and a reservation button for reserving a combination of the chassis 20 and the cargo.

[0136] The chassis / cargo reservation screen displays a list of chassis information based on the delivery conditions previously entered by the driver. In other words, the list displays information on chassis that meet the driver's desired delivery conditions. The delivery conditions to be input include information on the departure point, destination information specifying the destination, and the details of the transportation work (cargo contents, container type, delivery deadline, etc.). The delivery conditions may also include a desired remuneration amount.

[0137] The driver, viewing the chassis / cargo reservation screen, refers to the information about each chassis and presses the reservation button corresponding to the desired cargo delivery through the operation unit 550. This causes the cargo delivery to be reserved, and the reservation information about the corresponding chassis 20 is updated.

[0138] In this way, for example, the transportation of the chassis 20 carrying the container 30 can be requested by having the driver of the transport vehicle 10 select a driver according to a predetermined condition. In particular, since the transportation of the chassis 20 carrying the container can be requested from a driver outside the company, rather than being limited to a driver within the company, there is an effect that the management of the chassis 20 can be simplified.

[0139] The chassis / cargo reservation screen as shown in FIG. 20 may be displayed on any terminal, or may be displayed only on terminals that satisfy specified conditions (for example, a terminal located within a specified range from the location of the reserved chassis 20, or a terminal corresponding to a delivery vehicle 10 traveling to the logistics / distribution center where the chassis 20 is located, or even a terminal corresponding to a transport vehicle 10 with a driving score above a specified level, or a terminal corresponding to a transport vehicle 10 with a workload of less than a specified level in the most recent specified period, etc.). In other words, the contents of the chassis / cargo reservation screen displayed may differ depending on the terminal.

[0140] When a chassis 20 is reserved through the chassis / cargo reservation screen, the reservation information of the corresponding chassis 20 is updated. By updating the reservation information, it becomes possible to easily grasp how the chassis 20 will be used in the future.

[0141] Also, various analysis results may be provided based on the location information, etc., acquired for each chassis 20.

[0142] For example, information regarding the degree of usage in a predetermined period of the past (e.g., the most recent three months) for any chassis 20 may be calculated based on the location information. The degree of usage is, for example, a numerical value of an amount based on the time used for transportation in a predetermined period or the frequency of use. If the usage rate is high, it is expected that the demand for the chassis 20 is high, and therefore the usage rate can be a reason to consider purchasing a similar chassis 20 and can be a trigger for the manager to streamline the schedule in order to achieve more efficient operation. On the other hand, if the usage rate is low, it is expected that the demand for the chassis is low, and therefore the usage rate can be a reason to consider disposing of the chassis 20 and can be a trigger for the manager to transfer it to another logistics / distribution base in order to achieve more efficient operation.

[0143] It is preferable that the information on the usage level is displayed, for example, on the display unit 540 of the administrator terminal 500 in association with a display (for example, an item such as an icon or text information) corresponding to the chassis 20. Here, it is more preferable that, as a display mode, when the information on the usage level satisfies a predetermined condition (for example, the usage level is equal to or higher than a predetermined threshold value / equal to or lower than a predetermined threshold value), the display mode is different from when the condition is not satisfied (for example, by changing the color, changing the size of the icon, changing the shape of the icon, etc.). By displaying the information in this manner, a user such as an administrator can easily understand the current status of the utilization of each chassis 20.

[0144] Similarly, for example, information regarding the degree of wear for a given period of time in the past (for example, the most recent three months) may be calculated for any chassis 20 based on location information and reservation information. The information regarding the degree of wear is information indicating how much wear the chassis 20 has experienced, and is, for example, an amount that takes into account the amount of load in each transportation task and the road conditions along which the task was transported, in addition to the time used for transportation in a given period and the frequency of use (for example, the sum of the product of the time for each transportation task, the load in the transportation task, and the road conditions coefficient).

[0145] Regarding obtaining information regarding the load weight, if chassis reservation information as shown in Figure 10 is input for a movement, the information regarding the load weight included in such input can be extracted. On the other hand, for a movement for which there is no information regarding the load weight such as chassis reservation information, the information regarding the degree of wear can be calculated by assuming that a predetermined load weight (which may be a fixed amount such as 700 kg, or an amount based on past load weight history (average, etc.)) is carried.

[0146] If the degree of wear is high, it is assumed that the chassis 20 is under heavy strain, and therefore, depending on the degree of wear, it can serve as a trigger for considering an opportunity to perform maintenance on the chassis 20 in the near future, a reason for considering purchasing a similar chassis 20, or a trigger for the manager to streamline the schedule in order to achieve more efficient operation. On the other hand, if the degree of wear is low, it is assumed that the chassis 20 is not under much strain, and therefore, depending on the degree of wear, it can serve as a trigger for considering selling the chassis 20 or for transferring it to another logistics / distribution base in order to achieve more efficient operation.

[0147] It is preferable that the information on the wear level, like the information on the usage level, is displayed on the display unit 540 of the administrator terminal 500 in association with a display (e.g., an item such as an icon or text information) corresponding to the chassis 20. Here, it is more preferable that the display mode when the information on the wear level satisfies a predetermined condition (e.g., the wear level is equal to or greater than / equal to a predetermined threshold value) is different from when the condition is not satisfied (e.g., by changing the color, changing the size of the icon, changing the shape of the icon, etc.). By displaying the information in this manner, a user such as an administrator can easily understand the current state of the degree of wear for each chassis 20.

[0148] Furthermore, for example, information on the demand and supply of the chassis 20 at an arbitrary logistics / distribution base may be acquired based on the location information (particularly, the movement history) of the chassis 20. The information on the demand and supply of the chassis 20 at a logistics / distribution base is, for example, information on the state of the balance between demand and supply (for example, a sentence or a score indicating that there is a shortage of supply, an excess of supply, or that there is a balance between demand and supply) by comparing the location information of the chassis 20 with the number of a specific type of chassis 20 or the total number of chassis 20 of a specific type present at the target logistics / distribution base (which may be the number at a certain moment or the number (average value, etc.) for a specific period such as the past week) for a specific type of chassis 20 or for all chassis 20 regardless of type.

[0149] For example, when it is determined that there is an oversupply of a specific type of chassis 20 or the entire chassis 20 regardless of the type at at least one logistics / distribution base based on information on the demand / supply of the chassis 20 at each logistics / distribution base (for example, the information on the demand / supply satisfies a threshold condition indicating an oversupply), information recommending the movement of the chassis 20 to at least one logistics / distribution base where the supply of the chassis 20 of the same specific type or the entire chassis 20 is insufficient may be displayed on the display unit 540 of the administrator terminal 500. In addition to recommending the movement from a base with an oversupply to a base with a shortage, information recommending the movement from a base with low demand to a base with high demand, from a base with high supply to a base with high demand, or from a base with low demand to a base with a shortage may be displayed.

[0150] In this way, information regarding the demand and supply of chassis 20 at logistics and distribution centers has the effect that, for example, if there is a slight shortage of supply of a particular chassis 20 at at least one logistics and distribution center, this can trigger the transfer of that chassis 20 from at least one other logistics and distribution center where there is a slight excess supply of the same particular chassis 20.

[0151] In addition, in the above embodiment, a chassis 20 is reserved by a user such as an administrator selecting a chassis 20 that meets demand from a list of available chassis 20 at the logistics / distribution center, which is the specified departure point, but the method of selecting a chassis 20 is not limited to this. For example, when a departure point and demand details (e.g., a destination point, contents of the transported goods, information on the container 30 carrying the transported goods, etc.) are specified, chassis 20 that match the demand details may be extracted and selected from chassis 20 available at the logistics / distribution base that is the departure point. Alternatively, the extracted items may be displayed as a list, and the user may select from the list.

[0152] Furthermore, after the chassis 20 and containers 30 corresponding to the demand are determined, request information requesting the transportation of the chassis 20 and containers 30 may be transmitted to a terminal associated with the transport vehicle 10 (such as a terminal used by the driver of the transport vehicle 10). In this case, the destination terminal is preferably a terminal associated with the transport vehicle 10 located within a predetermined range from the position of the chassis 20, or a terminal associated with the transport vehicle 10 performing transport to the logistics / distribution base where the chassis 20 is located. In this way, similar to what was explained using Figure 20, a request can be made to transport a combination of chassis 20 and container 30 by having the driver of the transport vehicle 10 select according to specified conditions.

[0153] Also, the second information processing device 200 has been described as being mounted on a transported item or a transport auxiliary means, but in the case of a transported item, the person who mounts the second information processing device 200 on the transported item is not limited to the party managing the transportation, but may be the owner of the transported item, etc. As an example, if the transported item is a golf bag, the owner of the golf bag procures the second information processing device 200 and mounts (attaches) the second information processing device 200 on the golf bag in a form capable of communicating with the network NW. In this way, the golf bag becomes manageable by the administrator terminal 500, and it becomes possible to know where the golf bag is located at any given time, and if the golf bag is moving, where the destination is. In this case, since the administrator side does not need to prepare and adjust the second information processing device 200, it is possible to provide some benefits to the owner of the golf bag, i.e., the user. For example, a discount may be given on the shipping fee when the golf bag is shipped with the second information processing device 200 loaded.

[0154] In the above-mentioned embodiments, various programs and data relating to various processes are stored in the storage unit, and the processing unit reads and executes these programs to realize the processes in the above-mentioned embodiments. In this case, the storage unit of each device may have internal storage devices such as ROM, EEPROM, flash memory, hard disk, and RAM, as well as recording media (recording media, external storage devices, storage media) such as memory cards (SD cards), Compact Flash (registered trademark) cards, memory sticks, USB memories, CD-RWs (optical disks), and MOs (magneto-optical disks), and the above-mentioned various programs and data may be stored in these recording media.

[0155] Although the embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail above, the scope of the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment and modifications. Furthermore, the above embodiment and modifications can be improved or modified in various ways without departing from the spirit of the present invention. Furthermore, the above embodiment and modifications can be combined. [Explanation of symbols]

[0156] 10 Transport vehicles 20 Chassis 30 Container 100 First information processing device 200 Second information processing device 300 Third information processing device 400 Servers 500 Administrator terminal (driver terminal)

Claims

1. An information processing method performed by one or more processors, Acquiring second position information in a time series from a second information processing device mounted on the transportation assistance means, If the second location information cannot be obtained, the position of the transport assisting means is determined based on the most recent of the second location information that has already been obtained. Includes, The second information processing device operates using a power source based on solar energy, wind power, or the rotation of the tires of the transport assisting means. Information processing methods.

2. The information processing method according to claim 1, The time at which the state transitioned from one where the second location information could not be obtained to one where it could be obtained is recorded, Information processing methods, further including the above.

3. The information processing method according to claim 1, Based on the time the second location information was acquired, the usage information of the transportation assistance means is calculated, Information processing methods, further including the above.

4. The information processing method according to claim 1, To acquire weight information of the cargo loaded onto the aforementioned transport assistance means, Based on the time the second position information was acquired and the weight information, the wear and tear information of the transport assistance means is calculated. Information processing methods, further including the above.

5. The information processing method according to claim 1, The image object corresponding to the transportation assistance means is displayed in association with map information based on the second location information, Information processing methods, further including the above.

6. The information processing method according to claim 1, Based on the second location information, if it is confirmed that the transportation assistance means is moving outside a designated logistics and distribution base, it is determined that the transportation assistance means has started moving. Information processing methods, further including the above.

7. The information processing method according to claim 1, Based on the most recent of the acquired second location information, the next available location and next available date and time of the transportation assistance means are determined. Information processing methods, further including the above.

8. An information processing device, An acquisition unit that acquires second position information in a time series from a second information processing device mounted on a transport assistance means, A determination unit that determines the position of the transport assisting means based on the most recent acquired second position information when the second position information cannot be obtained, Equipped with, The second information processing device operates using a power source based on solar energy, wind power, or the rotation of the tires of the transport assisting means. Information processing device.

9. On the computer, Acquiring second position information in a time series from a second information processing device mounted on the transportation assistance means, If the second location information cannot be obtained, the position of the transport assisting means is determined based on the most recent of the second location information that has already been obtained. Make it run, The second information processing device operates using a power source based on solar energy, wind power, or the rotation of the tires of the transport assisting means. program.

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