Work plan system, work plan device and work plan method

Abstract

To provide a work plan device which corrects a work plan of a machine etc. which performs cooperative work to improve whole work efficiency.SOLUTION: A work plan device comprises: a first state acquisition unit A102 which acquires information on a mobile object B100; a second state acquisition unit A104 which acquires the information on a mobile object B102; a work plan acquisition unit A101 which acquires a work plan including a cooperative work position of the mobile object B100 and the mobile object B102 and a cooperative work time zone of the mobile objects B100, B102; a first time zone calculation unit A103 which calculates a first time zone from the arrival to the start of the mobile object B100 according to the information on the mobile object B100 and the cooperative work position; a second time zone calculation unit A105 which calculates a second time zone from the arrival of the mobile object B102 to the cooperative work position to the start according to the information on the mobile object B102 and the cooperative work position; an overlap determination unit A106 which determines overlap of the cooperative work time zone, the first time zone and the second time zone; a meeting time zone setting unit A107 which sets a meeting time zone of the mobile objects B100, B102; and an output unit A108 which outputs the meeting time zone.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a work planning system, a work planning device, and a work planning method for a moving body.

Background Art

[0002] There are sites where machines work together or machines work with workers, such as a transport machine and a picking robot in a logistics warehouse, or a transport machine and a worker, or a shovel and a dump truck at a construction site or a mine. At such sites, joint work occurs as part of the assigned work, and at other times, work is carried out alone. Alternatively, the work is repeated while changing the partner for the joint work.

[0003] At this time, a situation may occur where joint work cannot be carried out at a time zone scheduled in advance due to the working environment of the machine or the worker. If one machine or worker is behind schedule, it will lead to a work delay of the other machine or worker. Even if one is accelerated compared to the plan, the other will work according to the plan, so it will not lead to the recovery or improvement of work efficiency.

[0004] For example, specifically, in the case of a shovel and a dump truck in a mine, a joint work occurs in which the shovel loads the excavated earth and ore onto the dump truck. Since the excavation and loading speed of the shovel varies from the plan depending on the hardness of the ground to be excavated, when it is slow, there will be a dump truck waiting in line, and when it is fast, there will be a waiting time for the shovel to wait for the arrival of the next dump truck.

[0005] In addition, since the traveling speed of the dump truck varies from the plan depending on the road surface condition and the frequency of occurrence of obstacles, when it is slow, there will be a waiting time for the shovel, and when it is fast, there will be a waiting time for the dump truck to wait in line for loading.

[0006] In response to such problems, Patent Document 1 presents a method for determining the position and time to transfer work to another working machine 2 based on the work progress of a certain working machine 1 in a situation where work is continuously performed while alternating between two working machines.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0007]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0008] According to Patent Document 1, since the time zone of the joint work can be adjusted based on the state of the working machine 1, the working efficiency can be maintained and improved even when the work progress of the working machine 1 is different from the plan.

[0009] However, in Patent Document 1, since the plan of the working machine 2 needs to be in a state where it can be flexibly changed according to the state of the working machine 1, there is still room for improvement in the working efficiency of the working machine 2.

[0010] In view of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to provide a work planning system, a work planning device, and a work planning method that can improve the overall working efficiency.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0011] To achieve the above object, the present invention is configured as follows.

[0012] The work planning device includes a first state acquisition unit that acquires state information of a first moving body, a second state acquisition unit that acquires state information of a second moving body, a work plan acquisition unit that acquires a work plan including a joint work position where the first moving body and the second moving body work jointly and a joint work time zone indicating a time zone from when the first moving body and the second moving body merge until they complete the joint work and disperse, a first time zone calculation unit that calculates a first time zone from when the first moving body arrives at the joint work position until it departs using the state information of the first moving body and the joint work position, a second time zone calculation unit that calculates a second time zone from when the second moving body arrives at the joint work position until it departs using the state information of the second moving body and the joint work position, an overlap determination unit that determines the overlap between the joint work time zone included in the work plan, the first time zone calculated by the first time zone calculation unit, and the second time zone calculated by the second time zone calculation unit, a confluence time zone setting unit that sets a confluence time zone at the joint work position of the first moving body and the second moving body based on the determination result of the overlap determination unit, and an output unit that outputs the confluence time zone set by the confluence time zone setting unit.

[0013] Further, the work planning system includes the work planning device, a first moving body, and a second moving body.

[0014] Also, the work planning method includes acquiring state information of a first moving body, acquiring state information of a second moving body, acquiring a work plan including a joint work position where the first moving body and the second moving body work jointly and a joint work time zone indicating a time zone from when the first moving body and the second moving body merge until they complete the joint work and disperse, calculating a first time zone from when the first moving body arrives at the joint work position until it departs using the state information of the moving body and the joint work position, calculating a second time zone from when the second moving body arrives at the joint work position until it departs using the state information of the second moving body and the joint work position, determining the overlap between the joint work time zone included in the work plan, the first time zone, and the second time zone, setting a confluence time zone at the joint work position of the first moving body and the second moving body based on the determination result of the overlap, and outputting the set confluence time zone.

Advantages of the Invention

[0015] It is possible to provide a work planning system, a work planning device, and a work planning method that can improve the overall work efficiency.

[0016] In a site where machines work together or machines work with workers, such as a transport machine and a picking robot in a logistics warehouse, or a transport machine and a worker, or a shovel and a dump truck at a construction site or a mine, even in a situation where joint work cannot be carried out at the time scheduled in the plan in advance due to the working environment, it is possible to maintain and improve the work efficiency.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0017]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3A

Figure 3B

Figure 4

Figure 5A

Figure 5B

Figure 6

Figure 7A

Figure 7B

Figure 7C

Figure 8

Figure 9

Figure 10

Figure 11

Figure 12

Figure 13

Figure 14

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0018] The work planning system, work planning device, and work planning method of the present invention are systems for calculating a work plan (a table such as work content, work location, execution time, etc.) for a moving body (a controllable moving body such as a robot or a vehicle).

[0019] Hereinafter, the work planning system, work planning device, and work planning method of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

Examples

[0020] (Example 1) FIG. 1 is a simplified diagram of an example of a functional block diagram of the work planning system of the present invention. Note that, for simplicity of explanation, FIG. 1 shows a configuration in which the number of mobile bodies to be controlled is limited to one, but the present invention can also be used when controlling multiple mobile bodies.

[0021] In Example 1, a work site where machines perform collaborative work is assumed. Hereinafter, for ease of explanation, a mine shown in FIG. 2 is targeted, and a transport mobile body and an excavation mobile body are assumed as mobile bodies.

[0022] <Situation when applied to a mine> First, referring to FIG. 2, the situation when the present invention is applied to a mine will be described. In the first embodiment, it is assumed that the transport moving body B100 and the excavation moving body B102, which are the control objects, are mixed and moved on the travel permission passage B101.

[0023] The transport moving body B100 can load materials such as earth and sand or ore. The excavation moving body B102 having a loading function moves to a designated position so that it can load the loaded material, and performs an operation of discharging the loaded material in a designated area.

[0024] The target position to which the transport moving body B100 should move is managed by the management server B104. The management server B104 may be installed inside the mine or at another location. The target position determined by the management server B104 is distributed to the transport moving body B100 via the wireless communication line B103 in the mine.

[0025] <Configuration including a self-controlled moving body> As shown in FIG. 3A, it is assumed that the transport moving body B100 is a four-wheel vehicle. However, the transport moving body B100 dealt with in the present invention is not limited to a four-wheel vehicle, and various forms of moving bodies such as a differential two-wheel type robot, an omni-wheel type robot, a forklift, and a towing vehicle can be dealt with. Here, x is the x coordinate of the four-wheel vehicle, y is the y coordinate of the four-wheel vehicle, and θ is the azimuth (direction) of the four-wheel vehicle.

[0026] The four-wheel vehicle is equipped with sensors such as an encoder that detects the rotation speed of wheels (not shown), an inertial sensor: IMU ( I nertia M easurement U nit), LiDAR( Li ght D etection A nd R anging), and GNSS (Global Navigation Satellite System).

[0027] To explain the configuration when the transport mobile body B100 operates by autonomous control, only the functions related to the present invention are illustrated, and a simplified functional block diagram is shown in FIG. 3B.

[0028] In FIG. 3B, the transport mobile body B100 is composed of a recording unit M01, a communication unit M02, a sensor M03, a work plan correction unit M04, a self-position / orientation calculation unit M05, a movement control unit M06, and an actuator M07. The self-position / orientation calculation unit M05 and the movement control unit M06 correspond to the autonomous control device.

[0029] The recording unit M01 is a recording device of the calculation unit provided in the transport mobile body B100, corresponding to an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), an SSD (Solid State Drive), or a memory. Various control programs, parameters used in the control programs, control targets, and work plans are recorded in the recording unit M01.

[0030] The communication unit M02 is a wireless communication device such as 5G or LTE (Long Term Evolution), and can communicate with the excavation mobile body B102 and the management server B104 via the wireless communication line B103 in the mine.

[0031] The sensor M03 corresponds to the sensors provided in a four-wheeled vehicle such as the above-described encoder, IMU, LiDAR, and GNSS. The transport mobile body B100 is provided with a sensor for measuring the cylinder length for obtaining the loading amount.

[0032] The work plan correction unit M04 is a function that performs calculations related to the correction of the work plan of the mobile body, and is executed in a controller (not shown) provided in a four-wheeled vehicle. The calculation content of the work plan correction unit M04 will be described in detail later.

[0033] The self-position and orientation calculation unit M05 calculates its own position (x and y coordinates on a two-dimensional plane) and orientation using a combination of a plurality of sensors provided on the four-wheeled vehicle, and outputs the position, orientation, and the acquired sensor values. This is executed in a controller (not shown) provided on the four-wheeled vehicle. Since the self-position and orientation calculation unit M05 can be realized by a technique known as SLAM( S imultaneous L ocalization A nd M apping), a detailed description is omitted.

[0034] The movement control unit M06 is a function that performs calculations related to the travel control of the moving body. This function is executed in the controller in the same way as the self-position and orientation calculation unit M05.

[0035] The self-position and orientation calculation unit M05 and the movement control unit M06, which are autonomous control devices, correct the work plan based on the merging time zone, and control the moving body according to the corrected work plan.

[0036] The movement control unit M06 can be realized by methods such as PID control and model predictive control (MPC: Model Predictive Control).

[0037] The actuator M07 corresponds to the driving motor, steering mechanism, and braking device of the four-wheeled vehicle.

[0038] The management server B104 is composed of a communication unit M02 and an information display unit M08.

[0039] The information display unit M08 is an information display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL display, and can display the sensor information and work plan of the transport moving body B100 and the excavation moving body B102.

[0040] The excavation mobile body B102 is composed of a communication unit M02, a sensor M03, and a self-position / orientation calculation unit M05. In FIG. 3B, the excavation mobile body B102 may also be configured to operate by autonomous control, including a movement control unit M06 and an actuator M07, similar to the transport mobile body B100.

[0041] <Configuration including driving support function> To explain the configuration when the transport mobile body B100 operates as a mobile body with a driving support function, only the functions related to the present invention are illustrated, and a simplified functional block diagram is shown in FIG. 4. The example shown in FIG. 3A is a configuration for an autonomously controlled mobile body, while the configuration shown in FIG. 4 is an example where the transport mobile body B100 and the excavation mobile body B102 are operated by a driver (manned).

[0042] In FIG. 4, the transport mobile body B100 is composed of a recording unit M01, a communication unit M02, a sensor M03, a work plan correction unit M04, a self-position / orientation calculation unit M05, and an information display unit M08. The information display unit M08 displays the corrected work plan to assist the driver.

[0043] The transport mobile body B100 transmits the work plan to the management server B104 via the communication unit M02, and the management server B104 displays the received work plan on the information display unit M08. If the communication cycle is fast enough and there are few interruptions, the work plan correction unit M04 and the recording unit M01 storing the work plan may be provided in the management server B104, and the corrected work plan on the management server B104 may be distributed to the transport mobile body B100 for use by the movement control unit M06 (shown in FIG. 3B) or displayed on the information display unit M08.

[0044] Also, the excavation mobile body B102 shown in FIG. 4 is provided with an information display unit M08 connected to the communication unit M02 for displaying information to the driver.

[0045] Returning to FIG. 1 again, the functional blocks of the work plan system for the mine in FIG. 2 will be described in detail.

[0046] <Description of the Functional Blocks of the Work Plan System> The work plan system is a system that corrects the work plan of the transport mobile body B100 in the mine based on the information acquired by the transport mobile body B100 and the excavation mobile body B102, and many processes are executed by the transport mobile body B100.

[0047] The work plan system is composed of a work plan acquisition unit A101, a first state acquisition unit A102, a first time zone calculation unit A103, a second state acquisition unit A104, a second time zone calculation unit A105, an overlap determination unit A106, a confluence time zone setting unit A107, and an output unit A108.

[0048] The work plan acquisition unit A101 acquires the work plan stored in the storage unit M01. The work plan is a database composed of waypoint positions P (P1, P2 ··· P n ···) set in the travel permission path B101 as shown in Fig. 5A, and the scheduled arrival time and stay time corresponding to the waypoint position P shown in Fig. 5B.

[0049] The work plan includes a joint work position indicating the position where the transport mobile body B100, which is the first mobile body, and the excavation mobile body B102, which is the second mobile body, work together, and a joint work time zone indicating the time zone from when the transport mobile body B100 and the excavation mobile body B102 merge until they complete the joint work and disperse.

[0050] The transport mobile body B100 and the excavation mobile body B102 move to the waypoint position P according to the work plan and perform joint work. At this time, the stay time is the time required for the joint work, and the time zone from the scheduled arrival time to the scheduled departure time after the stay time has elapsed is the joint work time zone. The work plan is designed in advance so that the overall operation efficiency of the operation site is high. For example, in a mine, it is most efficient when the excavation and loading work, which is the joint work of the excavation mobile body B102, is carried out smoothly. Therefore, the joint work time zone of the excavation mobile body B102 is designed to be continuous as much as possible.

[0051] The first state acquisition unit A102 acquires the current values and histories of the position, speed, and load capacity, which are the state information of the transport mobile body B100. The functions of the first state acquisition unit A102 correspond to the sensor M03 and the self-position / orientation calculation unit M05 in FIGS. 3B and 4, respectively.

[0052] First, the first time zone calculation unit A103 acquires the current values and histories of the position, speed, and load capacity of the transport mobile body B100, and based on the work plan, first obtains the next transit position P1 and the transit position P2 next to the transit position P1, and sets the movement route from the current position to the transit position P1 as shown in FIG. 6 and the movement route from the transit position P1 to the transit position P2. That is, the first time zone calculation unit A103 calculates the first time zone from the arrival of the transport mobile body B100 at the collaborative work position to the departure using the state information of the transport mobile body B100 and the collaborative work position.

[0053] Next, based on the gradient and curvature of the movement route and the load capacity of the transport mobile body B100, the shortest arrival time t1 when moving from the current position to the transit position P1 at the shortest movement time is calculated, and the limit departure time t2 obtained by subtracting the shortest movement time from the transit position P1 to the transit position P2 from the scheduled arrival time of the transit position P2 is calculated.

[0054] The shortest movement time is obtained by calculating the speed profile for the movement distance within the movement route based on the maximum speed achievable at each point within the movement route and the acceleration / deceleration performance of the transport mobile body B100, and calculating the time required for movement from the speed profile. The maximum speed achievable at each point is such that for the gradient, the maximum speed at which the vehicle can stop according to the braking performance is obtained, and for the curvature, the maximum speed at which the vehicle can travel without tipping over based on the load capacity or the maximum speed that does not exceed the limit of the turning performance of the transport mobile body B100 is obtained.

[0055] Finally, compare the shortest arrival time t1 with the limit departure time t2. When the shortest arrival time t1 is earlier than the limit departure time t2 and the time difference between them is longer than the collaborative working time at the transit position P1, output the time period from the shortest arrival time t1 to the limit departure time t2 as the first time period. When the shortest arrival time t1 is earlier than the limit departure time t2 and the time difference between them is shorter than the collaborative working time, or when the shortest arrival time t1 is later than the limit departure time t2, output the time period from the shortest arrival time t1 to the time obtained by adding the collaborative working time to the shortest arrival time t1 as the first time period. The collaborative working time may use the stay time τ1 within the work plan, or may use the average value or the maximum value in the history of the time required for the collaborative work of the transport mobile body B100.

[0056] For the excavation mobile body B102, the second state acquisition unit A104 and the second time period calculation unit A105 perform the same processing as the first state acquisition unit A102 and the first time period calculation unit A103, respectively.

[0057] <Overlap determination unit A106> The overlap determination unit A106 determines and classifies the overlap between the first time period calculated by the first time period calculation unit A103 and the second time period calculated by the second time period calculation unit A105. That is, it determines the overlap between the collaborative working time period included in the work plan, the first time period calculated by the first time period calculation unit A103, and the second time period calculated by the second time period calculation unit A105.

[0058] For example, there are three types of classifications. As shown in Fig. 7A, when the overlapping time period between the first time period and the second time period is equal to or longer than the collaborative working time; as shown in Fig. 7B, when the overlapping time period between the first time period and the second time period is shorter than the collaborative working time; and as shown in Fig. 7C, when the first time period and the second time period do not overlap with each other.

[0059] The joint operation time may use the stay time τ1 within the operation plan, or may use the average value or the maximum value in the accumulated past history of the time actually required for the joint operation of the transport moving body B100, or may use the average value or the maximum value in the history of the time required for the joint operation of the excavation moving body B102, or may select and use the maximum time among the above-mentioned times.

[0060] <Confluence time zone setting unit> Based on the determination result of the overlap determination unit A106, the confluence time zone setting unit A107 sets a confluence time zone indicating the time from when the transport moving body B100 and the excavation moving body B102 start the joint operation until they finish. For example, the method for setting the confluence time zone will be described for the three types of classifications shown in the description of the overlap determination unit A106.

[0061] As shown in FIG. 7A, when the overlapping time zone of the first time zone and the second time zone is equal to or longer than the joint operation time, the start time of the joint operation can be set within the overlapping time zone. As a setting method, for example, the start time of the joint operation may be set by mathematical optimization including the speed profile from the current positions of the transport moving body B100 and the excavation moving body B102 to the via position P1. As a mathematical optimization method, for example, Bayesian Optimization (BO) may be used.

[0062] BO is an algorithm that efficiently explores parameters so as to maximize or minimize a specific evaluation index c based on this evaluation index by repeating simulations and experiments. The evaluation index c indicates the working efficiency of the transport moving body B100 and the excavation moving body B102, and may be, for example, the energy consumption used for the movement of the transport moving body B100 and the excavation moving body B102 from the current position to the via position P1, or may be the total value of the brake use time.

[0063] Taking the problem of minimizing energy consumption as an example, the method for adjusting the speed profile by BO will be described. In this example, the parameters to be adjusted are the boundary positions of the time periods of acceleration, deceleration, and constant-speed driving in the speed profile. Let the variable summarizing the parameters to be adjusted be the vector ρ. Since the evaluation index c is the energy consumption, the optimization problem can be given as the problem of finding the optimal ρ* that minimizes this value.

[0064] Generally, this optimization problem cannot be solved directly. In BO, while giving several solution candidates ρi and checking the values of the actually obtained evaluation index c, the function shape of the evaluation index c is estimated, and the next solution candidate ρi is calculated.

[0065] Figure 8 is a diagram for explaining the method for searching the merging time period using Bayesian optimization, and schematically shows the method for searching solution candidates. The black dots in Figure 8 are the evaluation values obtained by the previous solution candidates ρi (i = 1 ··· 6). Using the solution candidates obtained so far, the estimated value of the function shape (the solid line in Figure 8) and its variance (the broken line in Figure 8) can be calculated. The variance takes a large value in the region where there are no previous solution candidates ρi. Considering the estimated value of the function shape and the variance, the next solution candidate ρ7 (△ in Figure 8) is determined.

[0066] It is known that by performing the above processing, the parameter search can be performed very efficiently compared to the case of verifying the solution candidates ρi exhaustively.

[0067] As shown in FIG. 7B, when the time period in which the first time period and the second time period overlap is less than the collaborative work time, for example, the start time or the end time of either or both of the first time period and the second time period is adjusted until they overlap with a time width equivalent to the collaborative work time, and the overlapping time period after adjustment is set as the merging time period.

[0068] In the example of FIG. 7B, the end of the first time period or the start of the second time period is adjusted. When adjusting the end of the first time period, it means delaying the departure time of the transport mobile body B100, which also delays the shortest arrival time at the transit position P2 that the transit position P2 to which it heads next. At this time, by also adjusting the merging time period after the transit position P2, it is also possible to confirm that the delay in the shortest arrival time at the transit position P2 is absorbed within the subsequent process before making the adjustment.

[0069] When adjusting the start of the second time period, since the shortest movement time of the excavation mobile body B102 does not change, it is adjusted by shortening the joint operation time of the joint operation before the transit position P1. Since the joint operation of the excavation mobile body B102 is an excavation and loading operation, the energy consumption may be increased to increase the working speed, or the target loading amount may be reduced to reduce the amount of work. Mathematical optimization may be used for the adjustment here.

[0070] As shown in FIG. 7C, when the first time period and the second time period do not overlap, the start time or end time of either or both of the first time period and the second time period is adjusted until they overlap with a time width equal to the joint operation time, and the overlapping time period after the adjustment is set as the merging time period. The adjustment method here can use the same method as in FIG. 7B.

[0071] The output unit A108 outputs the first time period calculated by the first time period calculation unit A103, the second time period calculated by the second time period calculation unit A105, the merging time period set by the merging time period setting unit A107, and the movement route shown in FIG. 6, and displays it on the information display unit M08 of the transport mobile body B100 or the management server B104, for example, as shown in FIG. 9.

[0072] <Processing Procedure of the Work Plan System> The processing procedure of the work plan system described so far will be described using the flowchart of FIG. 10.

[0073] First, in step Fc001, obtain the work plans of the transport mobile body B100 and the excavation mobile body B102. This process corresponds to the work plan acquisition unit A101. When step Fc001 ends, the process transitions to step Fc002.

[0074] In step Fc002, obtain the state of the transport mobile body B100 (for example, the current numerical values and history of the position, speed, and load capacity). This process corresponds to the first state acquisition unit A102. When step Fc002 ends, the process transitions to step Fc003.

[0075] In step Fc003, calculate the first time zone. This process corresponds to the first time zone calculation unit A103. When step Fc003 ends, the process transitions to Fc004.

[0076] In step Fc004, obtain the state of the excavation mobile body B102 (for example, the current numerical values and history of the position and speed). This process corresponds to the second state acquisition unit A104. When step Fc004 ends, the process transitions to step Fc005.

[0077] In step Fc005, calculate the second time zone. This process corresponds to the second time zone calculation unit A105. When step Fc005 ends, the process transitions to step Fc006.

[0078] In step Fc006, determine the overlap between the first time zone and the second time zone. This process corresponds to the overlap determination unit A106. When step Fc006 ends, the process transitions to step Fc007.

[0079] In step Fc007, calculate and set the confluence time zone. This process corresponds to the confluence time zone setting unit A107. When step Fc007 ends, the process transitions to step Fc008.

[0080] In step Fc008, construct the screen shown in FIG. 9 from the first time zone, the second time zone, and the confluence time zone, and output it to the information display unit M08. This process corresponds to the output unit A108.

[0081] The above process is repeated for each calculation cycle of the work plan correction unit M04. By performing it for each calculation cycle, even if the current position deviates from the work plan, the work plan is corrected based on the current position, so an appropriate work plan can be obtained.

[0082] <Effect of Example 1> According to Example 1, even in a situation where the transport mobile body B100 or the excavation mobile body B102 cannot perform joint work in the time zone scheduled in the plan in advance due to the work environment, the current state of all the machines or workers performing the joint work and the subsequent process after the joint work are used to calculate the executable time zone, and the time zone of the joint work is sequentially and automatically corrected to the time zone where the respective executable time zones overlap, so that the work efficiency can be maintained and improved.

[0083] That is, according to Example 1, it is possible to provide a work plan system, a work plan device, and a work plan method that can appropriately correct the work plan of the machines or workers performing joint work and improve the overall work efficiency. Further, it is applicable even when workers performing joint work move a mobile body.

[0084] (Example 2) Next, Example 2 will be described. However, the same parts as in Example 1 will be omitted.

[0085] In Example 1, the joint work between machines was targeted, the state of each mobile body was obtained from the mounted sensors, and the position where the joint work was performed was fixed. Therefore, in Example 2, a work site where a machine and a worker perform joint work is assumed, and further, a situation is assumed where the state is obtained using an infrastructure sensor, which is a sensor installed in the environment, and there are multiple candidates for the position where the joint work can be performed.

[0086] FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining the situation when Example 2 is applied to a warehouse.

[0087] Hereinafter, for the sake of easy explanation, the warehouse shown in FIG. 11 is targeted, and a transport mobile body B100 and a worker B103a are assumed as mobile bodies.

[0088] In the following, the description of the parts where the configuration and operation overlap with those of Example 1 will be omitted, and only the different parts will be described.

[0089] <Configuration of the warehouse> In this second embodiment, it is assumed that the transport moving body B100 and the worker B103a having the mobile terminal B103b move on the travel permission passage B101 where they are mixed.

[0090] The transport moving body B100 can stack the articles in the warehouse, and the worker B103a moves to a position where the articles can be moved between the shelf B107 and the transport moving body B100.

[0091] The management server B104 manages the target position to which the transport moving body B100 should move. Note that the management server B104 may be installed inside the warehouse or at another location. The target position determined by the control server B104 is distributed to the transport moving body B100 by the wireless communication device B105 in the warehouse.

[0092] <Configuration including the mobile terminal B103b and the infrared sensor B106> To describe the configuration including the mobile terminal B103b and the infrared sensor B106, only the functions related to the present invention are illustrated, and a simplified functional block diagram is shown in FIG. 12.

[0093] The mobile terminal B103b includes a communication unit M02, a sensor M03, a self-position / orientation calculation unit M05, an information display unit M08, and a work input unit M09.

[0094] The work input unit M09 is an input device such as a touch panel or a button, and can register the work completed or in progress by the worker B103a.

[0095] The infrared sensor B106 includes a communication unit M02, a sensor M03, and a subject position / orientation calculation unit M10.

[0096] The subject position and orientation calculation unit M10 calculates the position (x and y coordinates on a two-dimensional plane) and orientation of the subject using a combination of a plurality of infrastructure sensors B106 provided in the warehouse, and outputs the position, orientation, and the acquired sensor values. These functions are executed in a controller (not shown) provided in the infrastructure sensor B106. Since the subject position and orientation calculation unit M10 can be realized by an image processing technique such as a convolutional neural network, detailed description thereof is omitted.

[0097] The first state acquisition unit A102 and the second state acquisition unit A104 may acquire the state of the transport mobile body B100 or the worker B103a from the self-position and orientation calculation unit M05 of the transport mobile body B100 or the mobile terminal B103b, or may acquire the state of the transport mobile body B100 or the worker B103a from the subject position and orientation calculation unit M10 of the infrastructure sensor B106.

[0098] <Processing procedure when there are multiple candidate via positions> As shown in FIG. 13, the processing procedure of the work plan system in a situation where there are a plurality of candidate via positions (via position P1A, via position P1B, via position P1C) in a certain process will be described using the flowchart of FIG. 14. In this example, the scheduled arrival time and stay time of the candidates are common.

[0099] In step Fc003, the first time zone is calculated for each candidate position. This process corresponds to the first time zone calculation unit A103. When step Fc003 ends, the process proceeds to step Fc010. The process of step Fc010 also corresponds to the first time zone calculation unit A103.

[0100] In step Fc010, based on the calculated first time period, it is checked whether there is a candidate position for which the first time period has not been calculated. If there is a candidate position for which the first time period has not been calculated, that is, if the first time period has not been calculated for all candidate positions (No), it is necessary to calculate the first time period for the next candidate position, so the process returns to step Fc003. If the first time period has been calculated for all candidate positions (Yes), the process transitions to step Fc004.

[0101] In step Fc004, the state of the operator is acquired. This process corresponds to the second state acquisition unit A104. The process transitions to step Fc005.

[0102] In step Fc005, the second time period is calculated for each candidate position. This process corresponds to the second time period calculation unit A105. When step Fc005 ends, the process transitions to step Fc011. The process of step Fc011 also corresponds to the second time period calculation unit A105.

[0103] In step Fc011, based on the calculated second time period, it is checked whether there is a candidate position for which the second time period has not been calculated. If there is a candidate position for which the second time period has not been calculated, that is, if the second time period has not been calculated for all candidate positions (No), it is necessary to calculate the second time period for the next candidate position, so the process returns to step Fc005. If the second time period has been calculated for all candidate positions (Yes), the process transitions to step Fc006.

[0104] In step Fc006, the overlap between the first time period and the second time period is determined for each candidate position. This process corresponds to the overlap determination unit A106. When step Fc006 ends, the process transitions to step Fc012.

[0105] In step Fc012, based on the overlap determination, it is checked whether there is a candidate position for which the overlap determination has not been given. If there is a candidate position for which the overlap determination has not been given, that is, if the overlap determination has not been given for all candidate positions (No), it is necessary to determine the overlap for the next candidate position, so the process returns to step Fc006. If the overlap determination has been given for all candidate positions (Yes), the process transitions to step Fc013. The process of step Fc012 also corresponds to the overlap determination unit A106.

[0106] In step Fc013, based on the overlap determination for each candidate position, the candidate position with the longest overlapping time period is set as the next passing position. The process of step Fc013 also corresponds to the overlap determination unit A106. When step Fc013 ends, the process transitions to step Fc007.

[0107] In step Fc00, the joining time between the transport mobile body B100 and the worker B103a is set, and the process transitions to step Fc008.

[0108] In step Fc008, the joining time and the joint work position between the transport mobile body B100 and the worker B103a are output and displayed on the information display unit M08 of the mobile terminal B103b.

[0109] <Effect of Example 2> At the work site where the machine and the worker perform joint work, by acquiring the state of the mobile body from the infrared sensor B106, it becomes possible to use a mobile body without a sensor, and it becomes possible to use a mobile body with a low introduction cost.

[0110] Also, by making it possible to set a plurality of candidates at positions where joint work can be performed, the situation where the overlapping time period between the first time period and the second time period becomes short, that is, the situation where the modification from the work plan becomes large, can be suppressed, and it becomes easy to maintain the work plan.

[0111] That is, according to the second embodiment, even at a work site where a machine and a worker perform joint work, it is possible to provide a work plan system, a work plan device, and a work plan method that can appropriately correct the work plans of the machines or workers performing the joint work and improve the overall work efficiency. Also, it is applicable even when workers performing joint work move a moving body.

[0112] As described above, the embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail by taking a mine and a warehouse as examples. Needless to say, the application destination of the present invention is not limited to this case. For example, it can also be used for transport vehicles in a port, robots moving within a theme park, and the like.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0113] A101 ··· Work plan acquisition unit, A102 ··· First state acquisition unit, A103 ··· First time zone calculation unit, A104 ··· Second state acquisition unit, A105 ··· Second time zone calculation unit, A106 ··· Overlap determination unit, A107 ··· Confluence time zone setting unit, A108 ··· Output unit, B100 ··· Transport moving body, B101 ··· Travel permission passage, B102 ··· Excavation moving body, B103 ··· Wireless communication line, B103a ··· Worker, B103b ··· Mobile terminal, B104 ··· Management server, B105 ··· Wireless communication device, B106 ··· Infrared sensor, B107 ··· Shelf, M01 ··· Storage unit, M02 ··· Communication unit, M03 ··· Sensor, M04 ··· Work plan correction unit, M05 ··· Self-position / orientation calculation unit, M06 ··· Movement control unit, M07 ··· Actuator, M08 ··· Display unit, M09 ··· Work input unit, M10 ··· Subject position / orientation calculation unit, P1~P n ··· Via position.

Claims

1. a first state acquisition unit that acquires state information of a first moving body; a second state acquisition unit that acquires state information of a second moving body; a work plan acquisition unit that acquires a work plan including a joint work position where the first moving body and the second moving body work together and a joint work time zone indicating a time zone from when the first moving body and the second moving body merge until they work together and disband; a first time zone calculation unit that calculates a first time zone from when the first moving body arrives at the joint work position until it departs using the state information of the first moving body and the joint work position; a second time zone calculation unit that calculates a second time zone from when the second moving body arrives at the joint work position until it departs using the state information of the second moving body and the joint work position; an overlap determination unit that determines an overlap between the joint work time zone included in the work plan, the first time zone calculated by the first time zone calculation unit, and the second time zone calculated by the second time zone calculation unit; a confluence time zone setting unit that sets a confluence time zone at the joint work position of the first moving body and the second moving body based on the determination result of the overlap determination unit; an output unit that outputs the confluence time zone set by the confluence time zone setting unit; A work plan device, characterized by comprising the above.

2. In the work plan device according to claim 1, the overlap determination unit determines which of the cases where the overlap between the first time zone and the second time zone overlaps with a time width equal to or greater than the joint work time zone, overlaps with a time width less than the joint work time zone, and does not overlap. A work plan device characterized by this.

3. In the work plan device according to claim 1, the confluence time zone setting unit when the first time zone and the second time zone overlap with a time width equal to or greater than the joint work time zone, sets the confluence time zone within the overlapping time zone A work planning device characterized by

4. In the work planning device according to claim 1, The confluence time zone setting unit When the first time zone and the second time zone overlap with a time width less than the joint work time zone, adjusting the start time or end time of either or both of the first time zone and the second time zone until they overlap with a time width equal to the joint work time zone, and setting the overlapping time zone after adjustment as the confluence time zone A work planning device characterized by

5. In the work planning device according to claim 1, The confluence time zone setting unit When the first time zone and the second time zone do not overlap, adjusting the start time or end time of either one or both of the first time zone and the second time zone until they overlap with a time width equal to the joint work time zone, and setting the overlapping time zone after adjustment as the confluence time zone A work planning device characterized by

6. In the work planning device according to claim 1, When there are a plurality of candidate positions at the joint work position The first time zone calculation unit calculates the first time zone for each candidate position, The second time zone calculation unit calculates the second time zone for each candidate position, The overlap determination unit determines the overlap for each candidate position, and sets the candidate position with the longest overlapping time zone as the joint work position. A work planning device characterized by

7. In the work planning device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, The first moving body is provided with an autonomous control device that controls the first moving body according to the state information of the first moving body and the work plan, The autonomous control device corrects the work plan based on the confluence time zone, and controls the mobile body according to the corrected work plan. A work planning device characterized by this.

8. In the work planning device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, The first mobile body includes an information display unit that displays information to an operator of the first mobile body, The output unit outputs the confluence time zone and the joint work position to the information display unit. A work planning device characterized by this.

9. In the work planning device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, The output unit outputs the confluence time zone and the joint work position to the second mobile body. A work planning device characterized by this.

10. In the work planning device according to claim 1, The output unit outputs the confluence time zone to the information display unit of the first mobile body and the information display unit of the second mobile body. A work planning device characterized by this.

11. The work planning device according to claim 1, A first mobile body, A second mobile body, A work planning system characterized by including.

12. Obtain the state information of the first mobile body, Obtain the state information of the second mobile body, Obtain a work plan including a joint work position where the first mobile body and the second mobile body work together and a joint work time zone indicating the time zone from when the first mobile body and the second mobile body merge until they work together and disband, Calculate a first time zone from when the first mobile body arrives at the joint work position until it departs using the state information of the mobile body and the joint work position, Calculate a second time zone from when the second mobile body arrives at the joint work position until it departs using the state information of the second mobile body and the joint work position, Determine the overlap between the joint working time period included in the work plan and the first time period and the second time period. Based on the determination result of the overlap, set a confluence time period at the joint working position of the first moving body and the second moving body. Output the set confluence time period. A work plan method characterized by the above.

13. In the work plan method according to claim 12, Determine whether it falls into any of the cases where the overlap between the first time period and the second time period overlaps with a time width equal to or greater than the joint working time period, overlaps with a time width less than the joint working time period, or does not overlap. A work plan method characterized by this.

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