Space management system and space management method

Abstract

To enable an operation of a plurality of autonomous mobile bodies to be controlled with a simple configuration.SOLUTION: A space management system comprising an autonomous mobile body and a space management device. The autonomous mobile body comprises: a reservation request unit for transmitting a reservation request including a movement plan to the space management device, in order to make a reservation of an exclusive space to be exclusively used in response to the movement of the autonomous mobile body in accordance with a formulated movement plan; and a movement control unit for controlling the movement of the autonomous mobile body in accordance with a reservation result notification indicating a result of reservation processing pertaining to the reservation on the exclusive space transmitted from the space management device in response to the reservation request transmitted by the reservation request unit. The space management device comprises a reservation processing unit for performing the reservation processing for the exclusive space indicated in the movement plan included in the reservation request received from the autonomous mobile body, and transmitting the reservation result notification indicating the result of the reservation processing to the autonomous mobile body.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a space management system and a space management method.

Background Art

[0002] Based on the identification information of other moving bodies read by the communication device of the target moving body and the image captured by the imaging unit provided in the target moving body, the management device determines whether the target moving body can be moved to the first car of the elevator. If it is determined that the target moving body cannot be moved, a technique is known in which control is performed so that the target moving body rides on the second car (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the configuration described in Patent Document 1 above, the scale of the entire system becomes large due to the need for the management device to analyze the captured images acquired from each moving body in order to avoid interference between the moving bodies.

[0005] Therefore, in consideration of the above problems, an object of the present invention is to enable the operation of a plurality of autonomous moving bodies to be controlled with a simple configuration.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] One aspect of the present invention for solving the above-described problems is a space management system including an autonomous mobile body and a space management device. The autonomous mobile body includes a reservation request unit that transmits a reservation request including the movement plan to the space management device when reserving an exclusive space that will be occupied in accordance with the determined movement plan as the autonomous mobile body moves, and a movement control unit that controls the movement of the autonomous mobile body according to a reservation result notification indicating the result of reservation processing regarding the reservation of the exclusive space, which is transmitted from the space management device in response to the reservation request transmitted by the reservation request unit. The space management device includes a reservation processing unit that performs reservation processing for the exclusive space indicated by the movement plan included in the reservation request received from the autonomous mobile body, and transmits a reservation result notification indicating the result of the reservation processing to the autonomous mobile body.

[0007] One aspect of the present invention is a space management method in a space management system including an autonomous mobile body and a space management device. The method includes a reservation request step in which a reservation request unit of the autonomous mobile body transmits a reservation request including the movement plan to the space management device when reserving the occupation of an exclusive space in which the autonomous mobile body moves according to the determined movement plan, a movement control step in which a movement control unit of the autonomous mobile body controls the movement of the autonomous mobile body according to a reservation result notification indicating the result of reservation processing regarding the reservation of the exclusive space, which is transmitted from the space management device in response to the reservation request transmitted by the reservation request unit, and a reservation processing step in which a reservation processing unit of the space management device performs reservation processing for the exclusive space indicated by the movement plan included in the reservation request received from the autonomous mobile body, and transmits a reservation result notification indicating the result of the reservation processing to the autonomous mobile body.

Advantages of the Invention

[0008] According to the present invention, an effect is obtained in that the operation of a plurality of autonomous mobile bodies can be controlled with a simple configuration.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0009]

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Embodiments for Carrying Out the Invention

[0010] <First Embodiment> [Overall Configuration Example of Space Management System] FIG. 1 shows an overall configuration example of the space management system of this embodiment. In the space management system of this embodiment, a plurality of autonomous mobile bodies 100 - A, 100 - B, 100 - C are operating in the management target space 10. In the following description, when the autonomous mobile bodies 100 - A, 100 - B, 100 - C are not particularly distinguished, they are described as the autonomous mobile body 100. The space that becomes the management target space 10 is not particularly limited, and may be a building, an office, a factory, an art museum, a hospital, indoor and outdoor leisure facilities, a block, or the like. Also, the functions assumed by the autonomous mobile body 100 are not particularly limited, such as guidance, transportation, monitoring, etc. Note that the number of autonomous mobile bodies 100 operating in the management target space 10 is not particularly limited. In the following, for the sake of simplicity of explanation, the case where there are three autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C operating in the management target space 10 will be taken as an example.

[0011] The autonomous mobile body 100 calculates a movement route from the current position to the designated destination, and autonomously moves along the calculated movement route. Also, the autonomous mobile body 100 may set a time related to movement, such as the time (time) to start moving to the destination, and move according to the set time. In the following description, the concept including the movement route formulated by the autonomous mobile body 100 and the time set for movement is also referred to as a "movement plan". Also, the "calculation" of the movement route and the "setting" of the time related to movement by the autonomous mobile body 100 are also referred to as "formulation".

[0012] The space management device 200 is communicably connected to each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100 in the management target space 10 via a wireless network. The space management device 200 performs management of the management target space (space management). Specifically, the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting of the movement plan so that the autonomous mobile bodies 100 moving in the management target space 10 do not interfere with each other as space management.

[0013] [Case of reservation setting (First case)] As a specific example of the reservation setting by the space management device 200, the first case will be described first. The space management system of this embodiment is configured to manage predetermined points and section parts on the movement route planned by the autonomous mobile body 100 as nodes. Specifically, the nodes may be, for example, a destination, a waypoint designated on the movement route, a narrow passage where it is difficult for a plurality of autonomous mobile bodies 100 to exist simultaneously, or the inside of an elevator car. The autonomous mobile body 100 sets a point or section part corresponding to a node on the planned movement route as a node. That is, node information is added to the movement route information of this embodiment.

[0014] Also, in the space management system of this embodiment, prior to starting to move according to the movement plan it has formulated, the autonomous mobile body 100 is configured to make a reservation (movement reservation) with the space management device 200 to move according to the movement plan. Such a movement reservation can be regarded as reserving exclusive use of the nodes included in the corresponding movement route when the autonomous mobile body 100 moves along the movement route. The autonomous mobile body 100 makes a movement reservation by transmitting a movement reservation request (an example of a reservation request) to the space management device 200 via communication. The movement reservation request may include a node schedule based on an autonomous mobile body identifier that uniquely identifies the transmitting source autonomous mobile body 100, nodes in the formulated movement plan, and the time of exclusive use (exclusive time) for each node.

[0015] If the node schedule included in the received movement reservation request has not been reserved by other autonomous mobile bodies 100, the space management device 200 may set a reservation for the node schedule. The setting of the reservation for the node schedule may be performed by storing the contact schedule in the reservation management information. Also, in this case, the space management device 200 transmits a reservation result notification indicating the establishment of the reservation to the autonomous mobile body 100 that is the transmitting source of the movement reservation request. The autonomous mobile body 100 that has received the reservation result notification indicating the establishment of the reservation starts moving according to the movement plan corresponding to the previously transmitted movement reservation request.

[0016] On the other hand, when the same node schedule as that included in the received movement reservation request has already been reserved by another autonomous mobile body 100, the space management device 200 transmits a reservation result indicating reservation failure to the autonomous mobile body 100 that is the source of the movement reservation request. The autonomous mobile body 100 that has received the reservation result notification indicating reservation failure re-plans the movement plan and retries the movement reservation. When retrying the movement reservation, the autonomous mobile body 100 transmits a movement reservation request including the node schedule based on the re-planned movement plan to the space management device 200. First, FIGS. 2(A) and 2(B) show a case where the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C move to the node Nd-M as the same destination M via different movement routes from different departure points. In this case, as shown in FIG. 2(A), the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C have set the destination M as a node in the movement plans they have respectively formulated. Also, the time to reach the destination M under the respective initial movement plans of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C was the same.

[0017] In this case, the space management device 200 sets the reservation of the node schedule for the autonomous mobile bodies 100 (100-A, 100-B, 100-C) in the order in which the movement reservation requests were transmitted. As a specific example, among the autonomous mobile bodies 100 (100-A, 100-B, 100-C), first, the autonomous mobile body 100-C transmitted a movement reservation request. At this time, the node schedule included in the movement reservation request transmitted by the autonomous mobile body 100-C was not in a reserved state in the reservation management information. Therefore, in this case, the space management device 200 sets the reservation of the node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-C and transmits a reservation result notification indicating reservation success to the autonomous mobile body 100-C.

[0018] After that, the autonomous mobile body 100-A transmitted a movement reservation request. In this case, since the same node schedule has already been reserved by the autonomous mobile body 100-C, the space management device 200 transmitted a reservation result notification indicating reservation failure to the autonomous mobile body 100-A as a response to the movement reservation request. In response to receiving a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation is not established, the autonomous mobile body 100-A reschedules the movement plan so that the arrival time at the destination M is shifted by a predetermined time later than the originally formulated movement plan, and retransmits a movement reservation request based on the rescheduled movement plan to the space management device 200. The space management device 200 confirmed that the node schedule included in the retransmitted movement reservation request is not in a reserved state in the reservation management information. Therefore, the space management device 200 sets the reservation for the node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-A and transmits a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation is established to the autonomous mobile body 100-A.

[0019] After that, the autonomous mobile body 100-B transmitted a movement reservation request. Also in this case, since the same node schedule has already been reserved by the autonomous mobile body 100-C, the space management device 200 transmitted a reservation non-establishment notification to the autonomous mobile body 100-B. In response to receiving a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation is not established, the autonomous mobile body 100-B reschedules the movement plan so that the arrival time at the destination M is shifted by a predetermined time later than the originally formulated movement plan, and retransmits a movement reservation request based on the rescheduled movement plan to the space management device 200. The space management device 200 confirmed that the node schedule included in the retransmitted movement reservation request is in a reserved state by the autonomous mobile body 100-A. Therefore, the space management device 200 transmitted a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation is not established to the autonomous mobile body 100-B as a response to the movement reservation request. In response to receiving a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation is not established, the autonomous mobile body 100-B reschedules the movement plan so that the arrival time at the destination M is shifted by an even more predetermined time later than the previously formulated movement plan, and retransmits a movement reservation request based on the rescheduled movement plan to the space management device 200. The space management device 200 confirmed that the node schedule included in the resent movement reservation request was not in a reserved state in the reservation management information. Therefore, the space management device 200 sets a reservation for the node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-B and transmits a reservation result notification indicating the establishment of the reservation to the autonomous mobile body 100-B.

[0020] Each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C moves to the destination M according to the movement plan corresponding to the node schedule reserved by the space management device 200 as described above. As a result of such movement, the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C reach the node Nd-M as the destination M at different times. In Fig. 2(B), the parts marked with the symbols of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C indicate that they are in a state of being exclusively occupied on the time axis for each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C at the corresponding nodes. As shown in the figure, among the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C, first, the autonomous mobile body 100-C reaches the destination M and occupies the node Nd-M. Next, after the autonomous mobile body 100-C that occupied the node Nd-M moves from the node Nd-M, the autonomous mobile body 100-A reaches the destination M and occupies the node Nd-M. Next, after the autonomous mobile body 100-C moves from the node Nd-M, the autonomous mobile body 100-B reaches the destination M and occupies the node Nd-M. In this way, the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C move according to the reservation settings made by the space management device 200, so that they reach the node Nd-M as the destination M at different times, and the operation is controlled so as not to interfere at the destination M.

[0021] In addition, when the node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-C that first transmitted a movement reservation request among the autonomous mobile bodies 100 (100-A, 100-B, 100-C) is already reserved, the space management device 200 may transmit a reservation result notification of reservation failure to the autonomous mobile body 100-C. In this case, similar to the above-described autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B, the autonomous mobile body 100-C may be configured to re-plan the movement plan until a reservation result notification of reservation success is transmitted from the space management device 200.

[0022] [Example of Reservation Setting (Second Example)] As a specific example of reservation setting by the space management device 200, the second example will be described. FIG. 3(A) shows the initial movement plans formulated by the respective autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C under the second example. FIG. 3(A) shows that each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C passes through the node Nd-L as the same narrow road L at the same time.

[0023] In this case, movement reservation requests are transmitted to the space management device 200 in the order of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-C, and 100-B. The space management device 200 responds to each sequentially transmitted movement reservation request, and determines whether the corresponding node schedule is already reserved, similar to the first example, and performs reservation setting and transmission of a reservation result notification according to the determination result. As a result, in this example, as shown in FIG. 3(B), the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-C, and 100-B pass through the narrow road L at different times (occupy the node Nd-L) in this order, and interference between the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-C, and 100-B on the narrow road L is avoided, thereby preventing the occurrence of running failure, sticking, etc.

[0024] [Example of Reservation Setting (Third Example)] As a specific example of reservation setting by the space management device 200, the third example will be described. FIG. 4(A) shows the initial movement plans formulated by the respective autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C under the third example. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-A includes a movement route that starts from a point Ma (node Nd-Ma) in the space range M within the management target space 10, passes through a narrow road L (node Nd-L), and has a point N (node Nd-N) as the destination. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-B includes a movement route that starts from a point Mb (node Nd-Mb) in the space range M, passes through the narrow road L, and has the point N as the destination. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-C includes a movement route that starts from a point N in the management target space 10, passes through the narrow road L, and has a point Mb in the space range M as the destination. Also, in the initial movement plans of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C shown in the figure, for example, since the movement start times specified by each of them are the same, the time periods during which the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B occupy the node Nd-L (narrow road L) and the node Nd-N (point N) overlap. Also, in the initial movement plans, the time period during which the autonomous mobile body 100-C occupies the node Nd-L (narrow road L) overlaps with those of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B. Such overlaps cause interference among the autonomous mobile bodies 100. Note that as the movement start time, it may specifically indicate a time, or it may indicate the current time as the movement start time, such as "move immediately".

[0025] In this case, movement reservation requests were sent to the space management device 200 in the order of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-B, 100-A, and 100-C. Since the node schedule indicated in the movement reservation request sent from the autonomous mobile body 100-B is not reserved, the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting and sends a reservation result notification indicating reservation success to the autonomous mobile body 100-B. In response to receiving the reservation result notification, the autonomous mobile body 100-B is made to move according to the initial movement plan. In Fig. 4(B), the node schedule corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100-B and set as the reservation, that is, the node schedule according to the initial movement plan (initial node schedule), is shown.

[0026] Next, the space management device 200 receives a movement reservation request transmitted from the autonomous mobile body 100-A. The initial node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-A indicated in the received movement reservation request has already been reserved by the node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-B. Therefore, in this case, the space management device 200 transmits a reservation result notification indicating reservation failure to the autonomous mobile body 100-A. In response to the reservation result notification indicating reservation failure, the autonomous mobile body 100-A re-plans its movement plan so that the node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-A does not overlap with the exclusive time of the nodes, and re-transmits a movement reservation request corresponding to the re-planned movement plan to the space management device 200. Since the node schedule indicated in the movement reservation request re-transmitted from the autonomous mobile body 100-A has not been reserved, the space management device 200 sets the reservation of the node schedule in the re-transmitted movement reservation request, and transmits a reservation result notification indicating reservation success to the autonomous mobile body 100-A. In response to the reception of the reservation result notification, the autonomous mobile body 100-A is made to move according to the initial movement plan. In FIG. 4(B), as the node schedule reserved corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100-A, the node schedule according to the movement plan re-planned by the autonomous mobile body 100-A is shown.

[0027] Next, the space management device 200 receives a movement reservation request transmitted from the autonomous mobile body 100-C. The initial node schedule indicated in the received movement reservation request includes nodes that overlap with the node schedules already reserved by the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B. Specifically, when the autonomous mobile body 100-C starts moving from point N (node Nd-N) at the same time as the autonomous mobile body 100-B according to the initial node schedule, the time for occupying node Nd-L (narrow road L) overlaps with that of the autonomous mobile body 100-B.

[0028] Therefore, in this case, the space management device 200 transmits a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation is not successful to the autonomous mobile body 100-C. The autonomous mobile body 100-C that has received the reservation result notification re-plans its movement plan and re-transmits a movement reservation request including a node schedule (re-planned node schedule) according to the re-planned movement plan to the space management device 200. If the occupation of the nodes according to the node schedule included in the re-transmitted movement reservation request has not been reserved by other autonomous mobile bodies 100, the space management device 200 sets the re-planned node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-C as a reservation. On the other hand, if the occupation of the nodes according to the node schedule included in the re-transmitted movement reservation request has been reserved by other autonomous mobile bodies 100, the space management device 200 transmits a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation is not successful to the autonomous mobile body 100-C again.

[0029] The autonomous mobile body 100-C and the space management device 200 may repeat the exchange of the movement reservation request including the node schedule corresponding to the re-planned movement plan as described above and the exchange of the reservation result notification indicating that the reservation is not successful until the reservation can be set. In FIG. 4(B) in this case, at the time after the autonomous mobile body 100-A reaches the point N and finishes occupying the node Nd-N (point N), the autonomous mobile body 100-C starts moving from the node Nd-N, passes through the node Nd-L (narrow road L), and moves to the node Nd-Mb (point Mb). The node schedule is shown. By making the movement reservation in this way, it is possible to avoid interference with other autonomous mobile bodies 100 when the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C are moving along the movement route.

[0030] [Example of reservation setting (Fourth example)] As a specific example of the reservation setting by the space management device 200, the fourth example will be described. FIG. 5(A) shows the initial movement plans formulated by the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C respectively under the fourth example. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-A includes a movement route that starts from a point Ma (node Nd-Ma) in the space range M within the management target space 10, passes through a narrow path L (node Nd-L), uses a point N (node Nd-N) as a waypoint, and has a point K (node Nd-K) as the destination. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-B includes a movement route that starts from a point Mb (node Nd-Mb) in the space range M, passes through the narrow path L, uses the point N as a waypoint, and has the point K as the destination. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-C includes a movement route that starts from a point K in the management target space 10, passes through the narrow path L, passes through the point N, and has a point Mb in the space range M as the destination. Also, in the initial movement plans of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C shown in the figure, for example, since their respective movement start times are the same, the times when the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B occupy the node Nd-L (narrow path L), node Nd-N (point N), and node Nd-K (point K) overlap. In each initial movement plan, the time when the autonomous mobile body 100-C occupies the node Nd-L (narrow path L) and the node Nd-N (point N) overlaps with that of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B.

[0031] The space management device 200 and the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C execute processing corresponding to the same movement reservations as those performed in the first to third cases so far. In this case, movement reservation requests are sent to the space management device 200 in the order of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-B, 100-A, and 100-C. In this case, the space management device 200 first makes a reservation setting for the node schedule corresponding to the movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-B. Next, the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting for the node schedule corresponding to the movement plan re-planned by the autonomous mobile body 100-A so as not to overlap with the node schedule of the already reserved autonomous mobile body 100-B. Next, the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting for the node schedule corresponding to the movement plan re-planned by the autonomous mobile body 100-C so as not to overlap with the node schedules of the already reserved autonomous mobile bodies 100-B and 100-A.

[0032] Figure 5(B) shows the node schedules reserved for each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-B, 100-A, and 100-C in this example. First, the node schedule reserved corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100-B indicates that the movement starts at a time earlier than those of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-C, and exclusively occupies the nodes Nd-L (narrow road L), Nd-N (location N), and Nd-K (location K) in this order from the node Nd-Mb (location Mb) which is the starting point. Next, the node schedule reserved corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100-A shows that by delaying the movement start time at the location Ma as the node Nd-Ma compared to the autonomous mobile body 100-B, it exclusively occupies the nodes Nd-L, Nd-N, and Nd-K at a time after the autonomous mobile body 100-B. Next, the node schedule reserved corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100-C is set such that the movement start time at the node Nd-K as the starting point is after the time when the autonomous mobile body 100-A occupies the node Nd-K, so that it exclusively occupies the nodes Nd-K, Nd-N, and Nd-L at a time after the times when the autonomous mobile bodies 100-B and 100-A have exclusive occupancy, and exclusively occupies the node Nd-Mb at a time after the autonomous mobile body 100-B. By making such movement reservations, it is avoided that the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C interfere with other autonomous mobile bodies 100 when moving along the movement route.

[0033] [Example of reservation setting (fifth example)] As a specific example of the reservation setting by the space management device 200, the fifth example will be described. Figure 6(A) shows the initial movement plans formulated by each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C under the fifth example. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-A includes a movement route that starts from a point Ma (node Nd-Ma) in the space range M within the management target space 10, passes through a point N (node Nd-N), and has a destination at a point Ka (node Nd-Ka) in the space range K. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-B includes a movement route that starts from a point Mb (node Nd-Mb) in the space range M, passes through a point N, and has a destination at a point Kb (node Nd-Kb) in the space range K. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-C includes a movement route that starts from a point Ka in the space range K within the management target space 10, passes through a point N, and has a destination at a point Mb in the space range M. In the initial movement plans of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C shown in the figure, since the respective movement start times are the same, the time for exclusively occupying the node Nd-N (point N) overlaps among the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C.

[0034] The space management device 200 and the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C execute processing corresponding to the same movement reservations as those performed in the above respective cases (the first case to the fourth case). Here, movement reservation requests are sent to the space management device 200 in the order of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-B, 100-C, and 100-A. In this case, the space management device 200 first makes a reservation setting for the node schedule corresponding to the movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-B. Next, the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting for the node schedule corresponding to the re-planned movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-C so as not to overlap with the node schedule of the already reserved autonomous mobile body 100-B. Next, the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting for the node schedule corresponding to the re-planned movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-A so as not to overlap with the node schedules of the already reserved autonomous mobile bodies 100-B and 100-C.

[0035] FIG. 6(B) shows the node schedules reserved for each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-B, 100-C, and 100-A in this example. First, the node schedule reserved corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100-B indicates that the movement starts at a time earlier than those of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-C and 100-A, and the autonomous mobile body 100-B exclusively occupies the nodes Nd-N (location N) and Nd-Kb (location Kb) in this order starting from the node Nd-Mb (location Mb) which is the departure point. Next, the node schedule reserved corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100-C shows that the start time of movement at the location Ka as the node Nd-Ka is set so as to exclusively occupy the nodes Nd-N and Nb-Mb at a time after the autonomous mobile body 100-B. Next, the node schedule reserved corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100-A shows that the start time of movement at the location Ma as the node Nd-Ma is set so as to exclusively occupy the nodes Nd-N and Nd-Ka at a time after the autonomous mobile body 100-C. By making such movement reservations, it is possible to avoid interference with other autonomous mobile bodies 100 when the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C are moving along their movement routes.

[0036] [Example of reservation setting (Sixth example)] As a specific example of the reservation setting by the space management device 200, the sixth example will be described. FIG. 7(A) three-dimensionally shows a specific example of the movement within the management target space according to the movement plans of the autonomous mobile bodies 100 (100-A, 100-B) corresponding to this example. FIG. 7(B) shows the movement of the autonomous mobile body 100 shown in FIG. 7(A) as the connection of nodes.

[0037] First, as shown in FIGS. 7(A) and 7(B), the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B move to the space range M in front of the door of the elevator EV on the first floor in the building 11 in the management target space at the same time according to the movement plan, and wait for the same elevator EV. When waiting, the autonomous mobile robot 100-A is positioned at a point Ma (node Nd-Ma) within the space range M, and the autonomous mobile robot 100-B is positioned at a point Mb (node Nd-Mb) within the space range M. That is, the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B can maintain a state where they do not interfere with each other by being located at different points in the space range M at the same time.

[0038] Next, when the elevator EV arrives at the first floor and the door opens, the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B move to board the elevator EV. At this time, the path from the space range M to the elevator EV for the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B to board the elevator EV is treated as a narrow path A (node Nd-A).

[0039] In this case, the floor inside the car of the elevator EV is treated as a space range N. The autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B that board the elevator EV are positioned at different points Na (node Nd-Na) and point Nb (node Nd-Nb) respectively within the space range N.

[0040] Under the movement plan, it is determined that the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B move from the first floor to the third floor by the elevator EV. Therefore, the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B wait until the elevator EV moves to the third floor. When the elevator EV stops at the third floor and the door opens, the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B move from the elevator EV to the third floor. The path from the door of the elevator EV to the floor on the third floor is treated as a narrow path C (node Nd-C).

[0041] In the node schedules in the initial movement plans formulated by each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B, the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B pass through two nodes, namely the node Nd-A as the narrow path A and the node Nd-C as the narrow path C, at the same time, resulting in interference. In this case, the first movement reservation request was transmitted to the space management device 200 in the order of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-B and 100-A. In this case, for the autonomous mobile body 100-B, the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting of the node schedule according to the initial movement plan in response to the reception of the first movement reservation request. Next, the space management device 200 receives the first movement reservation request from the autonomous mobile body 100-A. The initial node schedule included in the movement reservation request received from the autonomous mobile body 100-A overlaps with the node schedule reserved for the autonomous mobile body 100-B in terms of the time for occupying each of the nodes Nd-A (narrow path A) and Nd-C (narrow path C). Therefore, in this case, the space management device 200 transmits a reservation result notification indicating reservation failure to the autonomous mobile body 100-A. When receiving the reservation result notification of reservation failure, the autonomous mobile body 100-A re-formulates the movement plan. In this case, for example, the autonomous mobile body 100-A keeps the elevator EV it boards unchanged and re-formulates the movement plan by shifting the time for occupying each of the nodes Nd-A (narrow path A) and Nd-C (narrow path C) to a later time than the current time. The autonomous mobile body 100-A re-transmits a movement reservation request including the node schedule according to the re-formulated movement plan to the space management device 200. The time for occupying the nodes Nd-A (narrow path A) and Nd-C (narrow path C) does not overlap between the node schedule of the re-transmitted movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-A and the reserved node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-B. Therefore, the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting of the node schedule of the re-transmitted movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-A.

[0042] FIG. 7(C) shows the node schedules reserved for each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B in this case. In the figure, first, the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B simultaneously occupy the first-floor nodes Nd-Ma (point Ma) and Nd-Mb (point Mb) in the space range M respectively and wait for the elevator EV. Then, in response to the arrival of the elevator EV at the first floor and the opening of its door, first, the autonomous mobile robot 100-B moves while occupying the node Nd-A (narrow path A) and boards the elevator EV, and positions itself to occupy the node Nd-Nb (point Nb) on the floor (space range N) inside the elevator car.

[0043] Next, the autonomous mobile robot 100-A moves while occupying the node Nd-A (narrow path A) following the autonomous mobile robot 100-B and boards the elevator EV, and positions itself to occupy the node Nd-Na (point Na) on the floor (space range N) inside the elevator car. In this way, by passing through the narrow path A in sequence by the autonomous mobile robots 100-B and 100-A, interference at the narrow path A during boarding the elevator EV is avoided. Also, inside the elevator car, since the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B occupy different positions (node Nd-Na (point Na), node Nd-Nb (point Nb)) respectively, they are in a state of sharing the ride without interference.

[0044] The elevator EV moves to the third floor with the autonomous mobile robots 100-A and 100-B located at the nodes Nd-Na (point Na) and Nd-Nb (point Nb) respectively on board. On the third floor, first, the autonomous mobile robot 100-B starts moving from the node Nd-Nb (point Nb) to exit the elevator EV and moves along the narrow path C as the node Nd-C. Next, the autonomous mobile robot 100-A moves from the node Nd-Na (point Na) to the node Nd-C (narrow path C) following the autonomous mobile robot 100-B and moves to exit the elevator EV.

[0045] [Functional Configuration Example of Autonomous Mobile Robot] FIG. 8 shows an example of the functional configuration of the autonomous mobile body 100. The autonomous mobile body 100 of the present embodiment includes a computer configured to include a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a GPU (Graphical Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), and an auxiliary storage device such as an HDD (Hard Disk Drive) or an SDD (Solid State Drive). The functions of the autonomous mobile body 100 shown in FIG. 8 are realized by the computer provided in the autonomous mobile body 100 executing a program.

[0046] The autonomous mobile body 100 in FIG. 8 includes a communication unit 101, a sensor unit 102, a movement mechanism unit 103, a control unit 104, and a storage unit 105.

[0047] The communication unit 101 communicates with the space management device 200 etc. via a network.

[0048] The sensor unit 102 includes a predetermined sensor for detecting information for detecting surrounding objects and obstacles or estimating its own position. The sensor unit 102 may include, for example, a two-dimensional sensor. A LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging) may be used for the two-dimensional sensor. Each two-dimensional sensor using LiDAR includes an irradiation unit for irradiating laser light and a light receiving unit for receiving the reflected laser light, and measures the distance based on the time from when the pulsed laser light is irradiated to the surroundings by the irradiation unit until the reflected light is received by the light receiving unit. In the autonomous mobile body 100, the movement control unit 141 generates surrounding environment data indicating the shape of the surrounding environment using the measurement results, and estimates its own position on, for example, an area map. The area map is, for example, a map showing the inside of a facility where the autonomous mobile body 100 moves.

[0049] The movement mechanism unit 103 is a drive mechanism that enables the autonomous mobile body 100 to move. The movement mechanism unit 103 may be configured to be able to move the autonomous mobile body 100 forward, backward, or turn in the left or right directions based on the information input from the movement control unit 141.

[0050] The control unit 104 executes various controls in the autonomous mobile body 100. The control unit 104 includes a movement control unit 141 and a reservation request unit 142.

[0051] The movement control unit 141 formulates a movement plan and controls the autonomous mobile body 100 to move autonomously according to the formulated movement plan. As for formulating the movement plan, the movement control unit 141 plans the movement route to the destination with reference to the area map stored in the area map storage unit 151. Also, as for formulating the movement plan, the movement control unit 141 may formulate a time schedule for the movement according to the planned movement route. Further, the movement control unit 141 may identify the nodes included in the planned movement route based on the node information indicated in the area map and add the identified node information to the movement route. The movement control unit 141 stores the formulated movement plan in the movement plan storage unit 152.

[0052] In the state where the autonomous mobile body 100 is moving, the movement control unit 141 estimates its own position by referring to the area map and using the detection information of the sensor unit 102, and controls so that the estimated own position follows the route. By performing the control by the movement control unit 141 in this way, the autonomous mobile body 100 can move autonomously following the planned route.

[0053] The reservation request unit 142 executes processing related to the reservation request to the space management device 200 for the node schedule indicated by the movement plan formulated by the movement control unit 141. The reservation request unit 142 may make a reservation request by transmitting the above-mentioned movement reservation request to the space management device 200.

[0054] The storage unit 105 stores various types of information corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100. The storage unit 105 includes an area map storage unit 151 and a movement plan storage unit 152.

[0055] The area map storage unit 151 stores an area map corresponding to the area of the movement range of the autonomous mobile body 100. The area map may show points set as nodes, spatial region parts, etc. in the management target space 10.

[0056] The movement plan storage unit 152 stores the information of the movement plan formulated by the movement control unit 141.

[0057] FIG. 9 shows a functional configuration example of the space management device 200. The space management device 200 includes a computer configured with a CPU, a GPU, a ROM, a RAM, and an auxiliary storage device such as an HDD or an SDD. The functions as the space management device 200 shown in FIG. 5 are realized by the computer provided in the space management device 200 executing a program.

[0058] The space management device 200 in FIG. 9 includes a communication unit 201, a control unit 202, and a storage unit 203. The communication unit 201 communicates with the autonomous mobile body 100 via a network.

[0059] The control unit 202 executes various controls in the space management device 200. The control unit 202 includes a reservation processing unit 221. The reservation processing unit 221 executes processing related to the reservation of the requested node schedule in response to the reservation request of the node schedule made by the reservation request unit 142 of the autonomous mobile body 100.

[0060] The storage unit 203 stores various types of information related to the space management device 200. The storage unit 203 stores a reservation management information storage unit 231.

[0061] The reservation management information storage unit 231 stores reservation management information. The reservation management information is information for managing the reservation status of the node schedule by the autonomous mobile body 100. The reservation processing unit 221 can grasp the current reservation status of the node schedule by the autonomous mobile body 100 by referring to the reservation management information.

[0062] FIG. 10 shows an example of the reservation management information stored in the reservation management information storage unit 231. As shown in the figure, the reservation management information corresponding to the reservation of one node schedule includes fields for the autonomous mobile body identifier and the node schedule. Since the priority field corresponds to the second embodiment, the description thereof is omitted here. The field of the autonomous mobile body identifier stores the autonomous mobile body identifier that uniquely indicates the autonomous mobile body 100 that reserved the corresponding node schedule. The field of the node schedule stores the node schedule corresponding to the reserved movement plan. The node schedule is information indicating the exclusive time for each node that the corresponding autonomous mobile body 100 will exclusively occupy (corresponding to passing through or reaching) by moving according to the movement plan. Specifically, as shown in the figure, the node schedule may have a structure in which the exclusive time is associated with each node identifier that uniquely indicates the node. Note that the exclusive time may indicate the period (start time and end time) during which the autonomous mobile body 100 will exclusively occupy the corresponding node.

[0063] Note that the storage unit 203 may store an area map indicating the position of each node in the management target space 10. By referring to such an area map, for example, the reservation processing unit 221 can grasp the position of the node indicated by the node identifier stored in the node schedule.

[0064] [Example of processing procedure] Referring to the flowchart of FIG. 11, an example of the processing procedure executed by the autonomous mobile body 100 and the space management device 200 in relation to the movement reservation will be described. First, an example of the processing procedure executed by the autonomous mobile body 100 will be described. Step S100: In the autonomous mobile body 100, the movement control unit 141 formulates a movement plan corresponding to the designated destination. The designation of the destination may be performed, for example, by a device (not shown) that manages the operation of the autonomous mobile body 100, or by the space management device 200, or may be performed based on information on the destination previously stored in the autonomous mobile body 100.

[0065] Step S102: The reservation request unit 142 transmits a movement reservation request for reserving the movement according to the movement plan formulated in Step S100 to the space management device 200. The movement reservation request includes a node schedule indicating the exclusive time for each node included in the movement route indicated by the movement plan formulated in Step S100.

[0066] Step S104: The reservation request unit 142 receives the reservation result notification transmitted by the space management device 200 in response to the transmission of the movement reservation request in Step S102. The reservation result notification indicates whether the movement reservation corresponding to the movement reservation request transmitted in Step S102 is established.

[0067] Step S106: The reservation request unit 142 determines whether the movement reservation corresponding to the movement reservation request transmitted in Step S102 is established based on the content of the reservation result notification received in Step S104. If it is determined that the movement reservation is not established, the process returns to Step S100, and the movement reservation request is retried. That is, the movement control unit 141 re-formulates the movement plan in Step S100 so that the exclusive time of the node is different from that of the movement plan formulated in Step S100 before the previous time. In re-formulating the movement route, for example, the movement route until reaching the destination may not be changed, and the exclusive time of the node may be changed by changing the start time of the movement. Also, when the reservation is not established because the node as the route point until reaching the destination has been reserved, the movement route may be formulated so as not to pass through (not to exclusively occupy) the reserved node. The movement control unit 141 transmits, according to step S102, a movement reservation request including a node schedule corresponding to the re-planned movement plan to the space management device 200.

[0068] Step S108: If it is determined in step S106 that the movement reservation is established, the movement control unit 141 starts the autonomous movement of the autonomous mobile body 100 according to the movement plan formulated in the last step S100.

[0069] Next, a description will be given of an example of a processing procedure executed by the space management device 200. Step S200: In the space management device 200, the reservation processing unit 221 receives the movement reservation request transmitted from the autonomous mobile body 100 according to step S102.

[0070] Step S202: The reservation processing unit 221 collates the node schedule included in the movement reservation request received in step S200 with the reservation management information stored in the reservation management information storage unit 231.

[0071] Step S204: Based on the result of the collation in step S202, the reservation processing unit 221 determines whether the node schedule included in the received movement reservation request has already been reserved in the reservation management information. When there are a plurality of nodes included in the node schedule, the reservation processing unit 221 may determine whether each node included in the node schedule has already been reserved. In this case, if at least one node has already been reserved, it may be determined that the node schedule included in the received movement reservation request has already been reserved.

[0072] Step S206: If it is determined in step S204 that the reservation has not been made yet, the reservation processing unit 221 makes a reservation setting for the node schedule included in the movement reservation request received in step S200. That is, the reservation processing unit 221 generates reservation management information in which the node schedule included in the movement reservation request received in step S200 is associated with the autonomous mobile body identifier of the autonomous mobile body 100 that is the transmission source of the movement reservation request, and stores the generated reservation management information in the reservation management information storage unit 231 newly.

[0073] Step S208: Also, if it is determined in step S204 that the reservation has not been made yet, the reservation processing unit 221 sends a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation has been made.

[0074] Step S210: If it is determined in step S204 that the reservation has already been made, the reservation processing unit 221 sends a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation has not been made. Note that the reservation result notification indicating that the reservation has not been made may be configured to indicate whether another autonomous mobile body 100 has already made a reservation for each node in the node schedule corresponding to the received movement reservation request.

[0075] Note that in the previous description, when making reservation settings in accordance with the transmission order of movement reservation requests, until the reservation settings become possible, the autonomous mobile body 100 repeats retries by re-planning the movement plan and re-sending the movement reservation request. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, when the space management device 200 sends a reservation result notification indicating that the reservation has not been made, it may notify the free time that has not been reserved corresponding to the nodes that have already been reserved among the nodes in the node schedule included in the movement reservation request. The autonomous mobile body 100 re-plans the movement plan according to the node schedule that occupies the node at the notified free time, and sends a movement reservation request including the node schedule. In this case, the reservation will be made with a small number of retries, and it will be possible to make reservation settings efficiently. Also, for example, if the reservation processing unit 221 has been reserved in step S204, it may change the received node schedule so as not to overlap with the reserved node schedule, and perform reservation setting for the changed node schedule. Then, together with the notification of the reserved node schedule, a movement plan indicating the changed node schedule may be transmitted to the corresponding autonomous mobile body 100. In this case, by moving the autonomous mobile body 100 according to the changed movement plan, interference between the autonomous mobile bodies 100 is avoided.

[0076] <Second Embodiment> [Overview] Next, the second embodiment will be described. In the above first embodiment, as an example of movement reservation, a case where reservation setting is preferentially performed according to the transmission order of movement reservation requests has been given. However, for example, in operation, there may be a case where it is desired to prioritize the movement (occupation of space) of a specific autonomous mobile body 100, or to prioritize a movement plan along a specific movement route over other movement plans. Therefore, in the second embodiment, it is possible to set a priority corresponding to the formulated movement plan. In this embodiment, the "priority set corresponding to the movement plan" may include not only the priority set (assigned) corresponding to each movement plan, but also the priority set for the autonomous mobile body 100 itself. When a priority is set for the autonomous mobile body 100 itself, the priority set for the autonomous mobile body 100 is assigned to the movement plan formulated by the autonomous mobile body 100, so that it can be treated as the "priority set corresponding to the movement plan". In this way, the priority set corresponding to the movement plan can also be treated as the priority set for the node schedule shown in the movement plan. Furthermore, the space management device 200 of this embodiment is basically configured to perform reservation setting according to the transmission order of movement reservation requests in the same manner as the first embodiment, and when a priority is set for the node schedule included in the transmitted movement reservation request, the movement reservation is set according to the priority. Regarding the priority, for example, it may be defined by predetermined levels or numerical values such as "high", "medium", "low", level 1, level 2, and so on.

[0077] [Example of Reservation Setting] With reference to FIGS. 12(A) to 12(D), an example of reservation setting according to the priority of the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 12(A) shows the initial movement plans formulated by each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C under this example. The movement plans of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B each include a movement route that starts from point M (node Nd-M), passes through the narrow road L (node Nd-L), and has point N (node Nd-N) as the destination. The movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-C includes a movement route that starts from point N, passes through the narrow road L, and has point M as the destination. Also, since the initial movement plans of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C each have the same movement start time, a state occurs in which the occupation of nodes overlaps among the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C.

[0078] In this example, a case will be cited in which the priority is set for the movement plan of the autonomous mobile body 100-C among the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C, but the priority is not set for the movement plans of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B. Also, in this example, a case will be cited in which the movement reservation requests are transmitted in the order of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C. FIG. 12(B) shows the node schedule in which the space management device 200 has made a reservation setting in response to the movement reservation requests transmitted in the order of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B first. In the figure, first, for the autonomous mobile body 100-A, reservation settings were made so that the state of occupying the node Nd-M (location M) at time t0 would start according to the initial node schedule. Next, for the autonomous mobile body 100-B, as a result of a retry in response to the fact that the node schedule corresponding to the autonomous mobile body 100-A had already been reserved, a node schedule shifted by a predetermined time after time t0 was reserved so that the occupation of each node by the autonomous mobile body 100-A and the autonomous mobile body 100-B would not overlap.

[0079] After the reservation settings were made for the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B as described above, a movement reservation request was sent from the autonomous mobile body 100-C to the space management device 200. A priority was set for the node schedule included in the movement reservation request sent from the autonomous mobile body 100-C. In this case, the node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-C should be prioritized over the node schedules of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B.

[0080] In this case, when the space management device 200 starts the node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-C from time t0, it recognizes that the occupation of the node Nd-L overlaps with the autonomous mobile body 100-A and the occupation of the node Nd-M overlaps with the autonomous mobile body 100-B. Therefore, the space management device 200 deletes the reservation management information including the node schedules of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B that had already been reserved from the reservation management information storage unit 231. Also, the space management device 200 sends a notification (reservation cancellation notification) of deleting (canceling) the reservation settings for each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A and 100-B.

[0081] Moreover, as shown in FIG. 12(C), the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting so that the node schedule of the autonomous mobile body 100-C starts from time t0. In addition, in response to receiving a reservation cancellation notice, the autonomous mobile units 100-A and 100-B re-plan their movement schedules to shift the time backward and retry by re-sending a movement reservation request. In this case, the movement reservation requests from the autonomous mobile units 100-A and 100-B are received by the space management device 200 in this order. As a result, for example, as shown in FIG. 12(C), for each node schedule of the autonomous mobile units 100-A and 100-B, the movement starts by sequentially occupying the node Nd-M after the exclusive time of the node Nd-M indicated by the node schedule of the autonomous mobile unit 100-C. By making such reservation settings, it is possible to preferentially move the autonomous mobile unit 100-C and avoid interference at nodes among the autonomous mobile units 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C.

[0082] In addition, FIG. 12(D) shows an example of reservation settings when the space management device 200 receives a movement reservation request transmitted from the autonomous mobile unit 100-C, the autonomous mobile unit 100-A is already in motion according to the node schedule set for the reservation, and the autonomous mobile unit 100-B has not yet started moving. In this case, for the autonomous mobile unit 100-A that is already in motion, the space management device 200 does not cancel the reserved node schedule and continues the movement according to the reserved node schedule. Also, for the reserved node schedule of the autonomous mobile unit 100-B that has not yet started moving, the space management device 200 cancels the reservation and sends a reservation cancellation notice to the autonomous mobile unit 100-B. After that, for the node schedule of the autonomous mobile unit 100-C, the space management device 200 makes a reservation setting to start from the time after the autonomous mobile unit 100-A finishes occupying the node Nd-N as shown in FIG. 12(D). In addition, in response to the retry according to the reservation cancellation notice, the autonomous mobile unit 100-B sends a movement reservation request corresponding to the re-planned movement schedule to the space management device 200. The space management device 200 makes a reservation setting such that movement starts from the node Nd-M after the exclusive time of the node Nd-M by the autonomous mobile body 100-C ends, for the node schedule included in the received movement reservation request. By making such a reservation setting, it is possible to preferentially move the autonomous mobile body 100-C in response to the situation where the autonomous mobile body 100-A is in motion, and it is possible to avoid interference at the nodes among the autonomous mobile bodies 100-A, 100-B, and 100-C.

[0083] [Example of processing procedure] With reference to the flowchart of FIG. 13, an example of a processing procedure executed by the autonomous mobile body 100 and the space management device 200 of the present embodiment in relation to movement reservation will be described. First, an example of a processing procedure executed by the autonomous mobile body 100 will be described. In the figure, the processing of steps S300 to S306 executed by the autonomous mobile body 100 is the same as that of steps S100 to S106 in FIG. 11.

[0084] Step S308: When it is determined in step S306 that the movement reservation corresponding to the last movement reservation request has been established, the movement control unit 141 determines whether the timing at which the movement of the autonomous mobile body 100 according to the last formulated movement plan starts has arrived.

[0085] Step S310: When it is determined in step S308 that the timing at which the movement of the autonomous mobile body 100 starts has not arrived, the reservation request unit 142 determines whether a reservation cancellation notification transmitted from the space management device 200 has been received. If it is determined that the reservation cancellation notification has not been received, the process returns to step S308 to wait for the movement start timing to arrive. Also, if it is determined that the reservation cancellation notification has been received, the process returns to step S300 to execute a retry in response to the reservation cancellation.

[0086] Step S312: When it is determined in step S308 that the movement start timing has been reached, the movement control unit 141 starts the autonomous movement of the autonomous mobile body 100 according to the movement plan formulated in the last step S300.

[0087] Next, a processing procedure example executed by the space management device 200 will be described. In the figure, the processing of steps S400 to S408 executed by the space management device 200 is the same as that of steps S200 to S208 in FIG. 11.

[0088] Step S410: When it is determined in step S404 that the node schedule included in the received movement reservation request has already been reserved, the reservation processing unit 221 determines whether a priority is set for the node schedule included in the received movement reservation request.

[0089] Step S412: When it is determined in step S410 that a priority is set, the reservation processing unit 221 compares the priority set for the node schedule included in the received movement reservation request with the priority set for the node schedule determined to be reserved in step S404. The reservation processing unit 221 can recognize the priority of the reserved node schedule by referring to the priority field of the reservation management information storing the reserved node schedule.

[0090] Step S414: The reservation processing unit 221 determines whether the priority of the node schedule of the movement reservation request received this time is higher based on the comparison result of step S412.

[0091] Step S416: When it is determined in step S414 that the priority of the node schedule of the movement reservation request received this time is higher, the reservation processing unit 221 deletes from the reservation management information storage unit 231 the reservation management information including the node schedule for which the autonomous mobile body 100 is not in motion among the node schedules determined to be reserved in step S404.

[0092] Step S418: The reservation processing unit 221 transmits a reservation cancellation notice to the autonomous mobile body 100 corresponding to the reservation management information deleted in step S416.

[0093] After the processing of step S418, by executing the processing of steps S406 and S408, reservation settings corresponding to the received movement reservation request this time and a reservation result notice indicating the establishment of the reservation are transmitted to the autonomous mobile body 100 that is the transmission source of the movement reservation request.

[0094] Step S420: If it is determined in step S410 that there is no priority setting, or if it is determined in step S414 that the priority of the node schedule of the movement reservation request received this time is low, the reservation processing unit 221 transmits a reservation result notice indicating reservation failure to the autonomous mobile body 100 that is the transmission source of the movement reservation request received this time.

[0095] In the above second embodiment, for a reserved movement plan (node schedule) with overlapping space exclusions and low priority, the reservation is cancelled and the autonomous mobile body 100 is made to retry. However, for example, the reservation processing unit 221 in the second embodiment may change a reserved movement plan with overlapping space exclusions and low priority according to the reservation setting of a movement plan with high priority, and transmit the changed movement plan to the corresponding autonomous mobile body 100. In this case, by the autonomous mobile body 100 moving according to the changed movement plan, interference between the autonomous mobile bodies 100 is avoided. Alternatively, when the space management device 200 transmits a cancellation notice, it may also notify the free time that has not yet been reserved. The autonomous mobile body 100 can re-plan a movement plan according to a node schedule that occupies a node at the notified free time, and retry by transmitting a movement reservation request including the node schedule.

[0096] According to the space management system of each of the above embodiments as described above, the autonomous mobile body 100 makes a reservation request for the space exclusively occupied by the movement plan formulated by itself to the space management device 200, and the space management device 200 accepts the reservation request and makes a reservation regarding the exclusive use of nodes for each autonomous mobile body 100, thereby avoiding interference between other autonomous mobile bodies 100 during the movement of the autonomous mobile bodies 100. That is, in the present embodiment, without involving complex and heavy processing such as image analysis around the autonomous mobile body 100, the operation of the autonomous mobile body 100 can be appropriately controlled by a simple configuration including the reservation setting process in response to the reservation request. In addition, such a reservation setting configuration can also be easily constructed by applying, for example, an existing seat reservation system or the like. Further, for example, if an application corresponding to the reservation of the present embodiment is installed in each of the autonomous mobile bodies 100, it is possible to easily correspond to the reservation setting function of the present embodiment. Therefore, for example, even in a situation where autonomous mobile bodies 100 with different specifications due to differences in manufacturers and the like are mixed, unified management can be easily realized. In addition, by providing the reservation application so that it can also be used by a user as a person, it is possible to adjust the exclusive use of space in the management target space including the autonomous mobile body 100 and the user as a person.

[0097] In the above embodiments, the case where reservation settings are made for the space occupied by the autonomous mobile body 100 moving on the floor surface is taken as an example. However, for example, the configuration of the present embodiment may also be applied when making a reservation for exclusive use of space in the air by an autonomous mobile body such as a drone moving in the air.

[0098] Note that a program for realizing functions such as the above-described autonomous mobile body 100 and space management device 200 may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, and the program recorded on this recording medium may be read into a computer system and executed to perform processing such as the above-described autonomous mobile body 100 and space management device 200. Here, "reading and executing the program recorded on the recording medium by the computer system" includes installing the program in the computer system. The "computer system" as used herein shall include hardware such as an OS and peripheral devices. Further, the "computer system" may include a plurality of computer devices connected via a network including a communication line such as the Internet, WAN, LAN, or dedicated line. Also, the "computer-readable recording medium" refers to a portable medium such as a flexible disk, magneto-optical disk, ROM, CD-ROM, etc., and a storage device such as an HDD or SDD built into the computer system. Thus, the recording medium storing the program may be a non-transitory recording medium such as a CD-ROM. Also, the recording medium includes an internal or external recording medium provided so as to be accessible from a distribution server for distributing the program. The code of the program stored in the recording medium of the distribution server may be different from the code of the program executable on the terminal device. That is, as long as it can be downloaded from the distribution server and installed in a form executable on the terminal device, the form stored in the distribution server does not matter. Note that the program may be divided into a plurality of parts, downloaded at different timings, and then combined on the terminal device, or the distribution servers for distributing each of the divided programs may be different. Furthermore, the "computer-readable recording medium" shall also include a volatile memory (RAM) inside a computer system that becomes a server or a client when a program is transmitted via a network, which holds the program for a certain period of time. Also, the above program may be for realizing a part of the above-described functions.Furthermore, it may be a so-called difference file (difference program) that can be realized in combination with a program already recorded in a computer system for the above-described functions.

[0099] [SDGs Goal Notation] There are "Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)", which are 17 international goals adopted at the United Nations Summit in September 2015. The on-site management system, on-site management method, and program according to this embodiment can contribute to the achievement of, for example, the goal of "9. Build the foundation of industry and technological innovation" among the 17 goals of these SDGs.

Explanation of Signs

[0100] 10 Managed Space, 11 Building, 100 Autonomous Mobile Body, 100-A Autonomous Mobile Body, 100-B Autonomous Mobile Body, 100-C Autonomous Mobile Body, 101 Communication Unit, 102 Sensor Unit, 103 Movement Mechanism Unit, 104 Control Unit, 105 Memory Unit, 141 Movement Control Unit, 142 Reservation Request Unit, 151 Area Map Memory Unit, 152 Movement Plan Memory Unit, 200 Space Management Device, 201 Communication Unit, 202 Control Unit, 203 Memory Unit, 221 Reservation Processing Unit, 231 Reservation Management Information Memory Unit

Claims

1. A space management system comprising an autonomous mobile body and a space management device, wherein the autonomous mobile body, when reserving a dedicated space exclusively occupied in response to the movement of the autonomous mobile body according to a formulated movement plan, transmits a reservation request including the movement plan to the space management device; and a movement control unit that controls the movement of the autonomous mobile body according to a reservation result notification indicating a result of reservation processing regarding reservation of the dedicated space, which is transmitted from the space management device in response to the reservation request transmitted by the reservation request unit; wherein the space management device, performs reservation processing for a dedicated space indicated by a movement plan included in a reservation request received from the autonomous mobile body, and transmits a reservation result notification indicating the result of the reservation processing to the autonomous mobile body; A space management system comprising the above components.

2. The reservation request unit is configured to transmit a reservation request that indicates each of the dedicated spaces as nodes, which are predetermined points or section portions included in a movement route indicated by a corresponding movement plan, and requests exclusive reservation of the nodes; The reservation processing unit registers reservations in units of nodes indicated by the received reservation request. The space management system according to Claim 1.

3. As the reservation processing, the reservation processing unit determines whether a dedicated space indicated by a movement plan included in the received reservation request has already been exclusively reserved by another autonomous mobile body, and transmits the reservation result notification based on the determination result to the autonomous mobile body. The space management system according to Claim 1 or 2.

4. The reservation processing unit transmits a reservation result notification indicating whether a dedicated space indicated by a movement plan included in the received reservation request has already been exclusively reserved by another autonomous mobile body to the autonomous mobile body; When the received reservation result notification indicates that the dedicated space has not been exclusively reserved, the movement control unit starts the movement of the autonomous mobile body according to the formulated movement plan. The space management system according to Claim 3.

5. When the received reservation result notification indicates that the dedicated space has already been exclusively reserved, the reservation request unit changes the movement plan and transmits a reservation request including the changed movement plan to the space management device. The space management system according to Claim 3.

6. When the reserved space indicated by the movement plan included in the received reservation request is already reserved by another autonomous mobile body, the reservation processing unit registers a reservation for the movement plan with the higher priority among the movement plan included in the received reservation request and the movement plan corresponding to the already reserved one. The space management system according to claim 1 or 2.

7. When the other autonomous mobile body is moving according to the movement plan corresponding to the already reserved one, the reservation processing unit registers the movement plan corresponding to the already reserved one as having a higher priority. The space management system according to claim 6.

8. The reservation processing unit changes the movement plan with the lower priority so as not to overlap with the reserved space indicated by the movement plan with the higher priority, and sets a reservation according to the changed movement plan. The space management system according to claim 7.

9. A space management method in a space management system including an autonomous mobile body and a space management device, a reservation request step in which, when the reservation request unit of the autonomous mobile body reserves the exclusive use of the exclusive space in which the autonomous mobile body moves according to the formulated movement plan, the reservation request including the movement plan is transmitted to the space management device; a movement control step in which the movement control unit of the autonomous mobile body moves according to the reservation result notification indicating the result of the reservation process regarding the reservation of the exclusive space, which is transmitted from the space management device in response to the reservation request transmitted by the reservation request unit, and thereby exclusively occupies the space; a reservation process step in which the reservation processing unit of the space management device performs a reservation process for the exclusive space indicated by the movement plan included in the reservation request received from the autonomous mobile body, and transmits a reservation result notification indicating the result of the reservation process to the autonomous mobile body including a space management method.

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