Transport planning apparatus and method

Abstract

To propose a relay transport planning apparatus and method capable of formulating a relay transport plan that improves the transportation efficiency of packages.SOLUTION: A transport planning apparatus, on the basis of package information, vehicle information, and driver information, groups packages having at least partially overlapping transport routes and a common time zone for transportation via the transport routes together into one or more transport groups, and creates a transport plan by assigning transport vehicles and drivers to each created transport group. At this time, the transport planning apparatus allocates, as necessary, multiple transport vehicles for platoon driving with respect to the transport group, or a transport vehicle that tows multiple towed vehicles.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 12

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a transportation planning device and method, and is suitable for application to, for example, a relay transportation planning device that creates a transportation plan for a plurality of packages that pass through relay points. [Background technology]

[0002] Conventionally, when the destination of a transported cargo is far away, relay transportation is carried out in which the cargo is handed over to another driver at a base along the transportation route, and the transportation is shared among multiple drivers. As a technology for efficiently planning relay transportation (hereinafter referred to as a relay transportation plan), for example, there is a technology described in Patent Document 1.

[0003] Patent Document 1 discloses a technology that enables a delivery planning device to efficiently respond to delivery requirements that change dynamically, such as loading and unloading locations, cargo volume, vehicle loaders, and crew work shifts, by equipping the delivery planning device with a delivery request registration unit that receives and registers one or more delivery requests for deliveries between specified points, a coverage area creation unit that divides the delivery requests into deliveries for one or more areas that delivery vehicle crews are responsible for, depending on the specified number of delivery vehicles, and a vehicle route planning unit that identifies the delivery route and delivery costs for each combination of candidate relay points between areas and relay times at the candidate relay points, and identifies the delivery route as a vehicle route using the costs. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2020-4181 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Generally, when a relay transportation plan is created, a driver drives a transport vehicle such as a truck from a predetermined departure point to a relay point, and a plan is created to transport the cargo loaded on the transport vehicle at the relay point. According to the conventional method for creating a relay transportation plan, when the movements of the driver and the transport vehicle are synchronized and there is no cargo to transport from the driver's departure point to the relay point, a plan is created in which the driver drives an empty vehicle (a transport vehicle with no cargo loaded) to the relay point.

[0006] However, driving an empty vehicle requires the driver to work even though no cargo is being transported, which poses the problem of reduced transport efficiency, which is the amount of cargo transported per driver.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above points, and aims to propose a transportation planning device and method that can create a transportation plan that improves the efficiency of cargo transportation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve this problem, in the present invention, a transportation planning device that creates a transportation plan for cargo requested to be transported is provided with a memory unit that stores and holds cargo information, which is information about each requested cargo, vehicle information, which is information about each transport vehicle that transports the cargo, and driver information, which is information about each driver that drives the transport vehicle, and a control unit that creates the transportation plan by creating one or more transport groups based on the cargo information, the vehicle information, and the driver information, by grouping together cargo that has at least a partial overlap in transport route and that has the same transport time period via the transport route, and assigning the transport vehicle and the driver to each of the created transport groups, and the control unit is configured to assign multiple transport vehicles that will travel in convoy or transport vehicles that tow multiple towed vehicles to the transport group as necessary.

[0009] In addition, the present invention provides a transportation planning method executed by a transportation planning device that creates a transportation plan for cargo requested to be transported, which includes a first step of storing and retaining cargo information, which is information about each requested cargo, vehicle information, which is information about each transport vehicle that transports the cargo, and driver information, which is information about each driver that drives the transport vehicle; and a second step of creating the transportation plan by creating one or more transport groups based on the cargo information, the vehicle information, and the driver information, by grouping together cargo that share at least a partial transport route and have common transport time periods via the transport route, and assigning the transport vehicles and the drivers to each of the created transport groups; and in the second step, the transportation planning device assigns multiple transport vehicles that will travel in a convoy or transport vehicles that tow multiple towed vehicles to the transport groups as needed.

[0010] In the transportation planning device and method of the present invention, transportation vehicles and drivers are assigned separately to transportation groups, which prevents a decrease in cargo transportation efficiency due to empty vehicle operation. In addition, the transportation planning device and method of the present invention assigns multiple transportation vehicles that travel in a convoy or transportation vehicles that tow multiple towed vehicles to a transportation group as needed, which increases the transportation volume per driver. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] According to the present invention, it is possible to realize a relay transportation planning device and method that can create a relay transportation plan that improves the efficiency of cargo transportation. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a hardware configuration of a relay transportation planning system according to first to third embodiments. [Figure 2] 1 is a block diagram showing a logical configuration of a relay transportation planning system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 3]10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a package information table; [Figure 4] 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a vehicle information table; [Figure 5] 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a driver information table; [Figure 6] 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a base information table. [Figure 7] 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a travel cost information table; [Figure 8] 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an evaluation information table. [Figure 9] 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a relay point candidate information table. [Figure 10] 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a transportation group information table. [Figure 11] 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a relay transportation plan information table. [Figure 12] 10 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for relay transportation planning processing. [Figure 13] 10 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for a transport group creation process. [Figure 14] 10 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for creating a relay transportation schedule proposal. [Figure 15] 10 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure for a relay transportation plan proposal evaluation process. [Figure 16] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of the screen configuration of a result summary display screen. [Figure 17] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen configuration of a driver schedule display screen. [Figure 18] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a screen configuration of a transportation schedule display screen. [Figure 19] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating an example of a screen configuration of a base plan display screen. [Figure 20] FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the logical configuration of a relay transportation planning system according to a second embodiment. [Figure 21] 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a transportation device information table. [Figure 22]FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing the logical configuration of a relay transportation planning system according to a third embodiment. [Figure 23] 10 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a berth information table. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] An embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

[0014] The embodiments described below are merely examples for explaining the present invention, and some details have been omitted or simplified for clarity of explanation. The present invention can be implemented in various other forms. Unless otherwise specified, each component may be singular or plural.

[0015] In order to facilitate understanding of the invention, the position, size, shape, range, etc. of each component shown in the drawings may not represent the actual position, size, shape, range, etc. Therefore, the present invention is not necessarily limited to the position, size, shape, range, etc. disclosed in the drawings.

[0016] Examples of various types of information may be described using expressions such as "table," "list," and "queue," but the various types of information may also be expressed using data structures other than these. For example, various types of information such as "XX table," "XX list," and "XX queue" may also be expressed as "XX information." When describing identification information, expressions such as "identification information," "identifier," "name," "ID," and "number" are used, but these are interchangeable.

[0017] When there are multiple components with the same or similar functions, they may be described using the same reference numeral with different subscripts. When there is no need to distinguish between these multiple components, the subscripts may be omitted.

[0018] In the embodiments, there may be a case where a process performed by executing a program is described. Here, a computer executes the program using a processor (e.g., a CPU or a GPU), and performs the process defined by the program while using storage resources (e.g., a memory) and interface devices (e.g., a communication port). Therefore, the processor may be the entity that executes the program and performs the process.

[0019] Similarly, the entity that executes the program and performs the processing may be a controller, device, system, computer, or sheet having a processor. The entity that executes the program and performs the processing may be any computing unit, and may include a dedicated circuit that performs specific processing. Here, the dedicated circuit is, for example, an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), or a CPLD (Complex Programmable Logic Device).

[0020] A program may be installed on a computer from a program source. The program source may be, for example, a program distribution server or a computer-readable storage medium. When the program source is a program distribution server, the program distribution server may include a processor and storage resources for storing the program to be distributed, and the processor of the program distribution server may distribute the program to be distributed to other computers. In addition, in the embodiments, two or more programs may be realized as one program, or one program may be realized as two or more programs.

[0021] (1) First embodiment (1-1) Configuration of the relay transportation planning system according to this embodiment 1, the relay transportation planning system according to this embodiment is generally designated by reference numeral 1. This relay transportation planning system 1 is configured to include a relay transportation planning device 2, and one or more driver terminals 4, vehicle terminals 5, and base planning management terminals 6, which are communicably connected to this relay transportation planning device 2 via a network 3.

[0022] It should be noted that the network 3 connecting the relay transportation planning device 2 and each driver terminal 4, and between the relay transportation planning device 2 and each vehicle terminal 5, and the network 3 connecting the relay transportation planning device 2 and each base planning management terminal 6 do not necessarily have to be the same network. In the case of this embodiment, the network 3 connecting the relay transportation planning device 2 and each driver terminal 4, and between the relay transportation planning device 2 and each vehicle terminal 5 is assumed to be a wireless communication network such as a mobile terminal line network or a wide area wireless network, and the network 3 connecting the relay transportation planning device 2 and each base planning management terminal 6 is assumed to be a wired communication network such as the Internet.

[0023] The relay transportation planning device 2 is composed of a general-purpose computer device equipped with a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 10, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 11, a ROM (Read Only Memory) 12, an auxiliary storage device 13, an input device 14, a display device 15, a media reading device 16 and a communication device 17.

[0024] The CPU 10 is a processor that controls the overall operation of the relay transportation planning device 2. The RAM 11 is made up of volatile semiconductor memory and is used to temporarily store various programs and data as a working memory for the CPU 10. The ROM 12 is made up of nonvolatile semiconductor memory and is used to store programs and the like required to start up the relay transportation planning device 2.

[0025] The auxiliary storage device 13 is composed of a large-capacity nonvolatile storage device such as a hard disk device or an SSD (Solid State Drive), and stores various programs other than the programs stored in the ROM 12, data that needs to be stored for a long period of time, etc. The software stored in the auxiliary storage device 13 is read into the RAM 11 by the CPU 10 when the relay transportation planning device 2 is started up or when needed, and the CPU 10 executes the program read into the RAM 11, thereby performing various processes of the relay transportation planning device 2 as a whole, as described below.

[0026] The input device 14 is a device used by a user to input information to the relay transportation planning device 2, and is composed of, for example, a keyboard or a mouse. The display device 15 is composed of, for example, a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro-Luminescence) display, and is used to display various information. Note that, instead of the input device 14 and the display device 15, a touch panel that integrates these may be applied.

[0027] The media reader 16 is a device that reads information stored in a portable storage medium such as a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, etc. The communication device 17 is a device equipped with a communication function for transmitting and receiving information to and from each driver terminal 4, each vehicle terminal 5, and each base planning management terminal 6 via the network 3, and is configured, for example, by a wired and / or wireless NIC (Network Interface Card).

[0028] The driver terminal 4 is a wireless communication terminal carried by each driver who operates a transport vehicle, and is composed of a smartphone, tablet, dedicated communication terminal, etc. The vehicle terminal 5 is a dedicated wireless communication terminal device mounted on each transport vehicle, and is composed of a display device such as a small LCD display or organic EL display. The base planning management terminal 6 is a general-purpose computer device installed at each base.

[0029] 2 shows the logical configuration of the relay transportation planning system 2. As shown in this Fig. 2, the relay transportation planning device 2 includes a control unit 20, a storage unit 21, an input unit 22, a display unit 23, and a communication unit 24.

[0030] The control unit 20 is a functional unit that is realized by the CPU 10 (FIG. 1) executing a dedicated program stored in the auxiliary storage device 13 (FIG. 1). In this embodiment, the control unit 20 includes, as functional units, a relay point candidate creation unit 30, a transportation group creation unit 31, a relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32, and a relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33, which will be described later.

[0031] 1, the storage unit 21 is a functional unit configured from the RAM 11, ROM 12, and auxiliary storage device 13. The storage unit 21 stores and holds a baggage information table 34, a vehicle information table 35, a driver information table 36, a base information table 37, a travel cost information table 38, an evaluation information table 39, a relay base candidate information table 40, a transport group information table 41, and a relay transport plan proposal information table 42, which will be described later.

[0032] The input unit 22 is a functional unit that receives information input via the input device 14 (FIG. 1), and the display unit 23 is a functional unit that visualizes necessary information and displays it on the display device 15 (FIG. 1). The communication unit 24 is a functional unit that has the function of communicating with the driver terminal 4, the vehicle terminal 5, and the base planning management terminal 6 via the communication device 17 (FIG. 1).

[0033] On the other hand, the driver terminal 4 is configured to include a communication unit 43 and a display unit 44. The communication unit 43 is a functional unit that has a function of transmitting the current status of the driver who owns the driver terminal 4 to the relay transportation planning device 2 and receiving the transportation schedule of each driver transmitted from the relay transportation planning device 2. The display unit 44 is a functional unit that has a function of visually displaying the transportation schedule received by the communication unit 43 on a display device (not shown) that the driver terminal 4 includes.

[0034] The vehicle terminal 5 also includes a communication unit 45 and a display unit 46. The communication unit 45 is a functional unit that has the function of transmitting information about the current status of the transport vehicle on which the vehicle terminal 5 is mounted to the relay transportation planning device 2, and receiving a transport schedule for the transport vehicle transmitted from the relay transportation planning device 2. The display unit 46 is a functional unit that has the function of visually displaying the transport schedule received by the communication unit 45 on a display device (not shown) that the vehicle terminal 5 includes.

[0035] Similarly, the base planning management terminal 6 is also configured to include a communication unit 47 and a display unit 48. The communication unit 47 is a functional unit having a function to receive the work schedule for the base where the base planning management terminal 6 is installed, which is transmitted from the relay transportation planning device 2. The display unit 48 is a functional unit having a function to visually display the work schedule received by the communication unit 47 on a display device (not shown) included in the base planning management terminal 6.

[0036] (1-2) Relay transport planning function Next, we will explain the relay transportation planning function according to this embodiment, which is installed in the relay transportation planning device 2. This relay transportation planning function is a function that creates a transportation plan by creating one or more transportation groups by grouping together cargo that has at least a partial overlap in transportation routes and that has the same transportation time zone via the transportation routes, and assigning transportation vehicles and drivers to each of the created transportation groups.

[0037] In practice, for each transport request for a parcel (hereinafter referred to as an order), the relay transportation planning device 2 determines bases existing between the base from which the parcel is collected and the base at which the parcel is delivered as candidates for the parcel's relay base (hereinafter referred to as candidate relay bases), and generates a combination of relay bases for each order (hereinafter referred to as relay base combinations). Note that if there is no suitable base that can be a suitable relay base between the base from which the parcel is collected and the base at which the parcel is delivered, it is not necessary to determine a relay base for that route.

[0038] The relay transportation planning device 2 also divides the route from the collection origin base to the delivery destination base for each order into a route from the collection origin base to a candidate relay base, a route from a candidate relay base to another candidate relay base, and a route from the candidate relay base to a delivery destination base. Hereinafter, the combination of the start base, end base, and order number of the corresponding order on each route will be referred to as a package route.

[0039] However, in the following explanation, for ease of explanation and understanding, the case where the number of relay point candidates for each order is "0" or "1" will be explained. Therefore, the package route for each order will be divided into two package routes, one corresponding to the route from the collection origin base to the relay point candidate and the other corresponding to the route from the relay point candidate to the delivery destination base, or there will be one package route corresponding to the route from the collection origin base to the delivery destination base.

[0040] Furthermore, for each of the obtained cargo routes for each order, the relay transportation planning device 2 identifies a period during which the cargo can depart from the starting base and a period during which the cargo can arrive at the ending base. Based on the identification results, the relay transportation planning device 2 then groups, as a transportation group, all cargo routes whose starting and ending points coincide and whose periods during which the cargo can depart from the starting base and whose periods during which the cargo can arrive at the ending base overlap even partially.

[0041] The relay transportation planning device 2 also creates a relay transportation plan by separately allocating transportation vehicles and drivers that meet the transportation conditions to each of the transportation groups created in this way.

[0042] Furthermore, the relay transportation planning device 2 evaluates each of the relay transportation plans for the relay base combinations created in this way. This evaluation can be performed from various perspectives. In this embodiment, the relay transportation plan is comprehensively evaluated from three perspectives: "Delivery Date Delay" which is the delay time of the delivery date, "Operating Time" which is the operating time of the transport vehicle, and "Driver Satisfaction" which is the satisfaction level of the driver.

[0043] The relay transportation planning device 2 then performs the above processing for all combination patterns of candidate relay base combinations in which the number and locations of candidate relay bases are changed for some or all of the orders.The relay transportation planning device 2 then extracts the candidate relay base combination that has the highest evaluation value and is feasible from among these candidate relay base combinations, and presents the extracted candidate relay base combination to the user as a relay transportation plan.

[0044] As a means for realizing the above relay transportation planning function, as shown in FIG. 2, the memory unit 21 of the relay transportation planning device 2 stores and holds a baggage information table 34, a vehicle information table 35, a driver information table 36, a base information table 37, a travel cost information table 38, an evaluation information table 39, a relay base candidate information table 40, a transport group information table 41, and a relay transportation plan proposal information table 42, and the control unit 20 has a relay base candidate creation unit 30, a transport group creation unit 31, a relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32, and a relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 as functional units.

[0045] The package information table 34 is a table for managing various information (hereinafter referred to as package information) related to each package to be transported, and as shown in Fig. 3, is configured with an order number column 34A, a collection origin base name column 34B, a delivery destination base name column 34C, a quantity column 34D, a collection date and time column 34E, a delivery date and time column 34F, and a transport conditions column 34G. In the package information table 34, one record (row) corresponds to a package to be transported in one of the orders.

[0046] The order number field 34A stores an identification number (order number) assigned to the corresponding order, the collection origin base name field 34B stores a name (base name) assigned to the base from which the package is collected, the delivery destination base name field 34C stores the base name of the delivery destination base for the package, and the quantity field 34D stores the number of packages to be transported specified in the order.

[0047] Furthermore, the collection date and time field 34E is divided into a start field 34EA and an end field 34EB, and the start date and time of the period during which the package can be collected at the collection source base is stored in the start field 34EA, and the end date and time of that period is stored in the end field 34EB. Similarly, the delivery date and time field 34F is divided into a start field 34FA and an end field 34FB, and the start date and time of the period during which the package can be delivered to the delivery destination base is stored in the start field 34FA, and the end date and time of that period is stored in the end field 34FB.

[0048] Furthermore, the transport conditions column 34G stores the functions required for the transport vehicle that transports the cargo, the qualifications that the driver who drives the transport vehicle must have, etc. (Hereinafter, these will be referred to as transport conditions.) Examples of such transport conditions include "refrigerated vehicle," which requires that the transport vehicle be a refrigerated vehicle, and "hazardous materials handler qualification," which requires that the driver be qualified as a hazardous materials handler.

[0049] Therefore, in the example of Figure 3, for example, the collection origin of the cargo to be transported for an order assigned the order number "Order0001" is "Base 1," the delivery destination is "Base 2," and the number of cargoes is "10." Figure 3 also shows that the available collection dates and times at the collection origin are "4 / 1 15:00" to "4 / 1 20:00," the available delivery dates and times at the delivery destination are "4 / 5 10:00" to "4 / 5 15:00," and the transportation conditions require that the transport vehicle be a "refrigerated vehicle."

[0050] The "quantity" in the luggage information may be, for example, "weight" indicating the total weight of the luggage, "volume" or "quantity" indicating the layer volume of the luggage, a partial combination of "weight" and "volume", or "amount of luggage" indicating the amount of luggage.

[0051] Vehicle information table 35 is a table for managing various information (hereinafter referred to as vehicle information) about each transport vehicle that can be used to transport cargo, and as shown in Fig. 4, is configured with a vehicle name column 35A, a location column 35B, a loading limit column 35C, a vehicle unit price column 35D, an operating cost column 35E, a replacement method column 35F, and a special function column 35G. In vehicle information table 35, one record corresponds to one transport vehicle.

[0052] The vehicle name field 35A stores a name (vehicle name) unique to the corresponding transport vehicle, and the location field 35B stores the base name of the base to which the transport vehicle belongs. The maximum load capacity field 35C stores the maximum number of packages that can be loaded onto the transport vehicle (hereinafter referred to as the maximum load capacity), and the vehicle unit price field 35D stores the arrangement fee per transport vehicle when using the transport vehicle for transportation (hereinafter referred to as the vehicle unit price).

[0053] Furthermore, the operation unit price column 35E stores the usage fee (hereinafter referred to as the operation unit price) per unit time (for example, 1 minute) incurred when using the transport vehicle to transport cargo, and the replacement method column 35F stores the method of delivery of cargo by the transport vehicle at the relay point. Such delivery methods include "driver replacement" where the driver of the transport vehicle is replaced, "baggage transfer" where the cargo is transferred from the transport vehicle to another transport vehicle, and "tractor replacement" where the tractor of the transport vehicle is replaced.

[0054] Furthermore, the special function column 35G is divided into a plurality of function columns 35GA corresponding to several representative functions that are installed in a transport vehicle, and information indicating whether or not the transport vehicle has that function is stored in these function columns 35GA (in Fig. 4, if the function is installed, it is marked with "○", and if not, it is marked with "×"). Note that "representative functions installed in transport vehicles" include "temperature control" which allows temperature control inside the loading platform or container, "two-compartment type" in which the loading platform or container is divided into two compartments that can each be independently temperature-controlled, and "crane-equipped" in which a crane is installed on the loading platform.

[0055] Therefore, in the example of Figure 4, the transport vehicle given the name "Vehicle A" belongs to "Base 1," has a maximum load capacity of "50," has a vehicle cost of "100 (k yen)" per vehicle, an operating cost of "1 (yen)" per minute, uses a "driver change" method for delivering cargo at the relay point, and is equipped with at least a "temperature control" function.

[0056] In the vehicle information, the "load limit" may be replaced with some or all of the following: a "load weight limit" which is the upper limit of the load weight of the transport vehicle; a "load volume limit" which is the upper limit of the load capacity of the transport vehicle; a partial combination of the "load limit," "load weight limit," and "load volume limit," and a "load volume limit" which is the upper limit of the amount of cargo that can be loaded onto the transport vehicle. Also, a "driver unit cost," which is the driver's labor cost incurred per operating hour of the transport vehicle, may be added to the vehicle information.

[0057] The driver information table 36 is a table for managing information about each driver who operates a transport vehicle (hereinafter referred to as driver information), and as shown in Fig. 5, is configured with a driver number column 36A, a place of affiliation column 36B, a qualification information column 36C, and a personal request column 36D. In the driver information table 36, one record (row) corresponds to one driver.

[0058] The driver number column 36A stores an identification number (driver number) assigned to the corresponding driver that is unique to that driver, and the location column 36B stores the name of the location to which the driver belongs.

[0059] Furthermore, the license information field 36C is divided into a plurality of license information fields 36CA corresponding to several representative licenses and qualifications that a driver can obtain, and information indicating whether or not the driver has the license or qualification is stored in these license information fields 36CA (in FIG. 5, if the driver has the license or qualification, it is marked with "○", and if the driver does not have the license or qualification, it is marked with "X"). Examples of "representative licenses and qualifications that a driver can obtain" include a "crane operator's license" which is a license to operate a crane truck, and a "hazardous materials handler's license" which is a qualification for handling hazardous materials. In addition, a license information field 36CA corresponding to a qualification for transporting special loads or a qualification for placing special loads may also be provided.

[0060] Furthermore, the personal request column 36D is divided into a plurality of request columns 36DA corresponding to several typical requests that may be considered as requests of the driver, and these request columns 36DA store information indicating whether or not the corresponding request is desired (in FIG. 5, "○" indicates that the request is desired, and "×" indicates that the request is not desired) or specific details. Note that "typical requests of the driver" include the type of transport vehicle to be driven, passengers to accompany the driver while driving, the person to whom the luggage is to be handed over, or facilities at bases to be passed through, and specific examples include "riding with smokers" which allows smokers to ride with the driver, "smoking area installation" which requests that a smoking area be installed in the rest area of the base, and "method of transportation" (car, train, bus, etc.) when traveling to any of the bases.

[0061] The base information table 37 is a table for managing information relating to each base (hereinafter referred to as base information), and as shown in Fig. 6, is configured with a base name column 37A, a latitude column 37B, a longitude column 37C, a loading / unloading time column 37D, a number of berths column 37E, a cargo transshipment conditions column 37F, and a base equipment column 37G. In the base information table 37, one record corresponds to one base.

[0062] The base name field 37A stores the name of the corresponding base, and the latitude field 37B and longitude field 37C store the latitude and longitude of the base, respectively. The loading / unloading time field 37D stores the time required to load or unload one piece of cargo at the base (hereinafter referred to as the loading / unloading time). This loading / unloading time varies depending on factors such as the work capabilities of the workers on staff and the availability of equipment such as chutes, and so, for example, the average time so far at the base is registered.

[0063] Furthermore, the number of berths provided at the base is stored in the number of berths column 37E, and the conditions for the cargo and transport vehicles that can be transshipped at the base (hereinafter referred to as cargo transshipment conditions) are stored in the cargo transshipment conditions column 37F. Examples of such cargo transshipment conditions include "vehicles under 4 ton allowed," which allows only vehicles under 4 tons to be transshipped, and "dangerous materials not allowed," which prohibits the transshipment of dangerous materials.

[0064] Furthermore, the base equipment column 37G is divided into multiple equipment columns 37GA, each corresponding to a typical piece of equipment that may be installed at the base, such as a smoking area or a nap room, and these equipment columns 37GA store information indicating whether the base has the corresponding equipment (in Figure 6, if the equipment is available, it is marked with "○", and if not, it is marked with "×").

[0065] Therefore, in the example of Figure 6, the base given the base name "Base 1" is located at latitude "33°36'23"" and longitude "130°25'05", the loading and unloading time for one piece of cargo is "0.5" minutes, there are "5" berths, and the cargo transfer condition is set as "vehicles of 4 tons or less allowed". Figure 6 also shows that the base has a "smoking area" but no "sleeping area".

[0066] Instead of the loading and unloading times, the loading time of one piece of cargo and the unloading time of one piece of cargo may be stored in the base information table 37 as base information.

[0067] The travel cost information table 38 is a table for managing the time required to travel between two bases and the distance between the two bases. Hereinafter, a path from one base to another base will be referred to as a route. As shown in FIG. 7, the travel cost information table 38 is configured with a departure and arrival point column 38A, a travel time column 38B, and a travel distance column 38C. In the travel cost information table 38, one record corresponds to one route.

[0068] The departure / arrival location field 38A is divided into a departure location field 38AA and an arrival location field 38AB. The departure location field 38AA stores the name of the base that is the departure location of the corresponding route, and the arrival location field 38AB stores the name of the base that is the arrival location of the route. The travel time field 38B stores the time required to travel from the departure location of the route to the arrival location of the route, and the travel distance field 38C stores the distance of the route. Therefore, in the example of Figure 7, it is shown that it takes 15 minutes to travel from "Location 1" to "Location 2" and the distance is 8.4 km.

[0069] The evaluation information table 39 is a table used to manage preset values of each parameter used when comprehensively evaluating the relay transportation plan created as described above from three perspectives: "delivery delay," "operation time," and "driver satisfaction level." As shown in Fig. 8, the evaluation information table 39 is configured with a delivery delay parameter column 39A, an operation time parameter column 39B, and a driver satisfaction level parameter column 39C.

[0070] The delivery delay parameter field 39A stores a delivery delay parameter indicating the magnitude of the impact that a delivery delay has on logistics costs, and the operating time parameter field 39B stores an operating time parameter indicating the impact that the operating time of a transport vehicle has on logistics costs. Furthermore, the driver satisfaction parameter field 39C stores a driver satisfaction parameter indicating the magnitude of the impact that a driver's satisfaction with their work has on logistics costs.

[0071] Therefore, in the example of FIG. 8, it is shown that the value of the delivery delay parameter is preset to "3", the value of the working time parameter is preset to "1", and the value of the driver satisfaction parameter is preset to "2".

[0072] The candidate relay point information table 40 is a table used to manage candidate relay points for each order that are determined during a series of processes based on the relay transportation planning function described above, and is created for each candidate relay point combination. As shown in Fig. 9, this candidate relay point information table 40 is configured with a candidate relay point number column 40A, an order number column 40B, and a candidate relay point name column 40C. In the candidate relay point information table 40, one record corresponds to one candidate relay point determined for one order, and the combination of relay points for each order registered in this candidate relay point information table 40 corresponds to one combination of relay points described above.

[0073] The candidate relay point number field 40A stores a unique identifier (candidate relay point number) assigned to the candidate relay point for the corresponding order in the candidate relay point information table 40, and the order number field 40B stores the order number of that order. The candidate relay point name field 40C stores the name of the point determined as the candidate relay point for that order.

[0074] Therefore, in the example of Figure 9, the relay point candidate assigned the relay point candidate number "1" is shown to be the point assigned the point name "Point 10" that was determined for the order assigned the order number "Order0001".

[0075] The transport group information table 41 is a table used to manage transport groups created during a series of processes based on the relay transport planning function, and is created for each combination of candidate relay bases. As shown in Figure 10, this transport group information table 41 is configured with a transport group number column 41A, a start point column 41B, an end point column 41C, an order number column 41D, a loading time column 41E, a travel time column 41F, a start point possible departure date and time column 41G, and an end point arrival deadline date and time column 41H. In the transport group information table 41, one record corresponds to one transport group created at that time.

[0076] The transport group number field 41A stores an identification number (transport group number) unique to the transport group assigned to the corresponding transport group. The starting point field 41B stores the base name of the starting point base on the baggage route corresponding to the transport group, and the ending point field 41C stores the base name of the ending point base on the baggage route.

[0077] Furthermore, the order number column 41D stores the order number of each order whose package route is grouped into the transport group, and the loading time column 41E stores the estimated work time (loading time) required to load all packages belonging to the transport group onto a transport vehicle. Note that "packages belonging to a transport group" refers to each package to be transported in each order whose package route is grouped into the transport group. The same applies hereinafter.

[0078] Furthermore, the travel time column 41F stores the estimated travel time required for the transport vehicle to travel from the base station whose base station name is stored in the start point column 41B to the base station whose base station name is stored in the end point column 41C.

[0079] Furthermore, the starting point departure possible date and time column 41G stores the earliest date and time (hereinafter referred to as the starting point departure possible date and time) that is predicted to be when all cargo belonging to the transport group has been loaded onto the transport vehicle and the transport vehicle will be able to depart from the base whose base name is stored in the starting point column 41B.

[0080] Furthermore, the destination arrival deadline date and time column 41H stores the latest date and time (hereinafter referred to as the destination arrival deadline date and time) by which the transport vehicle should arrive at the base whose name is stored in the destination column 41C in order to transport each package belonging to the transport group to the delivery destination base without delay.

[0081] In addition, if the luggage route from the base stored in the starting point field 41B of the transportation group to the base stored in the ending point field 41C corresponds to the luggage route from the collection point of each luggage belonging to the transportation group to the relay base candidate, the ending point arrival deadline date and time is not stored in the ending point arrival deadline date and time field 41H. Also, if the luggage route from the base stored in the starting point field 41B of the transportation group to the base stored in the ending point field 41C corresponds to the luggage route from the relay base candidate of each luggage belonging to the transportation group to the delivery destination base, the starting point departure possible date and time is not stored in the starting point departure possible date and time field 41G.

[0082] Therefore, in the example of Figure 10, the transport group assigned the transport group number "1" indicates that the cargo of each order assigned the order numbers "Order0001," "Order0023," or "Order0041" belongs to the transport group assigned the transport group number "1," which is transported on a cargo route starting from "Base 1" and ending at "Base 3."

[0083] Figure 10 also shows that the loading time at the starting point for this transport group is predicted to be "50 minutes," and the travel time from the starting point to the end point is predicted to be "300 minutes." Furthermore, Figure 10 also shows that the cargo route from the starting point to the end point for this transport group corresponds to the cargo route from the collection point of each cargo to the candidate relay point (the end point arrival deadline date and time is "-"), and that the possible departure date and time for this transport group from the starting point is "4 / 1 8:40."

[0084] The relay transportation plan proposal information table 42 is a table used to manage relay transportation plan proposals created during a series of processes based on the relay transportation planning function, and is created for each combination of candidate relay base points. As shown in FIG. 11, this relay transportation plan proposal information table 42 is configured with a transportation plan number column 42A, an order number column 42B, a transportation group column 42C, a vehicle name column 42D, a responsible driver column 42E, a departure column 42F, and an arrival column 42G. In the relay transportation plan proposal information table 42, one record corresponds to one transportation plan created for one freight route in the relay transportation plan proposal. The relay transportation plan proposal is a collection of transportation plans for all of these freight routes.

[0085] The transportation plan number column 42A stores an identification number (transportation plan number) unique to the corresponding transportation plan that is assigned to that transportation plan on the relay transportation plan proposal information table 42. The order number column 42B stores the order number of the corresponding order, and the transportation group column 42C stores the transportation group number of the transportation group to which the corresponding package route belongs.

[0086] Furthermore, the vehicle name column 42D stores the vehicle name of the transport vehicle assigned to the transport group, and the driver column 42E stores the driver number of the driver assigned to the transport group (who drives the transport vehicle assigned to the transport group).

[0087] Furthermore, the departure column 42F is divided into a departure location column 42FA and a date and time column 42FB, and in the corresponding transportation plan, the name of the base from which the cargo of the corresponding order will depart is stored in the departure location column 42FA, and the date and time at which the cargo should depart from that base is stored in the date and time column 42FB.

[0088] Similarly, the arrival column 42G is divided into an arrival location column 42GA and a date and time column 42GB, and in the corresponding transportation plan, the name of the base where the cargo of the corresponding order will arrive is stored in the arrival location column 42GA, and the date and time when the cargo should arrive at that base is stored in the date and time column 42GB.

[0089] Therefore, in the example of Figure 11, in a transportation plan assigned a transportation plan number of "1," cargo for an order assigned an order number of "Order 0001" is assigned to a transportation group with a transportation group number of "2," and the transportation group is assigned a transportation vehicle with a vehicle name of "Vehicle A" and a driver with a driver number of "1."

[0090] Figure 11 also shows that the transportation plan is for the transport vehicle carrying the transport group's cargo to depart from a base named "Base 1" at "4 / 1 8:00" and arrive at a base named "Base 3" at "4 / 1 14:00."

[0091] In addition, the information for each transportation plan in the proposed relay transportation plan may include information such as "number" representing the total number of packages to be transported in each transportation plan, "weight" representing the total weight of the packages, "volume" representing the total capacity of the packages, or a partial combination of "number," "weight," and "volume," or "package volume" representing the amount of package.

[0092] Meanwhile, the relay point candidate creation unit 30 (FIG. 2) is a functional unit that has the function of determining the above-mentioned relay point candidates for each order. These relay point candidates divide the transport route of the package for each order into two package routes. The relay point candidate creation unit 30 registers the relay point candidates for each order that it has created in the relay point candidate information table 40 (FIG. 9).

[0093] The transport group creation unit 31 (FIG. 1) is a functional unit that creates the above-mentioned transport groups based on the determination results of the relay point candidate creation unit 30. The transport group creation unit 31 registers each of the created transport groups in the transport group information table 41 (FIG. 10).

[0094] Furthermore, the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 (FIG. 1) is a functional unit that has the function of creating a transportation plan for each cargo route by assigning a transportation vehicle and a driver to each transportation group created by the transportation group creation unit 31. The relay transportation plan creation unit 32 registers the created transportation plan for each cargo route in a relay transportation plan information table 42 (FIG. 11).

[0095] Furthermore, the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 (FIG. 1) is a functional unit having a function of evaluating the relay transportation plan proposal created by the relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32. The relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 outputs the relay transportation plan proposal with the highest evaluation value among the relay transportation plan proposals created by the relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32 as the relay transportation plan created at that time.

[0096] The specific processing contents of the relay point candidate creation unit 30, the transportation group creation unit 31, the relay transportation plan creation unit 32, and the relay transportation plan evaluation unit 33 will be described later.

[0097] (1-3) Various processes related to relay transportation planning functions Next, we will explain the details of various processes related to the relay transportation planning function that are executed in the relay transportation planning device 2. In the following, the entities that process each process will be explained as the relay base candidate creation unit 30, the transportation group creation unit 31, the relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32, or the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33, but it goes without saying that in reality, the CPU 10 of the relay transportation planning device 2 described above with reference to Figure 1 executes the process based on the corresponding program that is read from the auxiliary storage device 13 to the RAM 11.

[0098] (1-3-1) Relay transportation planning process Figure 12 shows the flow of a series of processes (hereinafter referred to as relay transportation plan creation processing) executed in the relay transportation planning device 2 when a user inputs an instruction to create a relay transportation plan (hereinafter referred to as a relay transportation plan creation instruction) into the relay transportation planning device 2 by a specified operation, and the relay transportation plan creation instruction is accepted by the input unit 22 (Figure 2).

[0099] When the input unit 22 receives such an instruction to formulate a relay transportation plan, the relay base candidate creation unit 30 first reads the above-mentioned luggage information, vehicle information, driver information, base information, travel cost information and evaluation information input to the portable storage medium via the media reading device 16 (Figure 1), and stores this information in the corresponding luggage information table 34 (Figure 3), vehicle information table 35 (Figure 43), driver information table 36 (Figure 5), base information table 37 (Figure 6), travel cost information table 38 (Figure 7) or evaluation information table 39 (Figure 8) (S1).

[0100] However, this baggage information, vehicle information, driver information, base information, travel cost information and evaluation information may be held in a distributed manner by the driver terminal 4, vehicle terminal 5 and base planning management terminal 6 described above in Figure 1, and the relay base candidate creation unit 30 may acquire this information from these driver terminal 4, vehicle terminal 5 and base planning management terminal 6 via the network 3 (Figure 1).

[0101] Next, the relay point candidate creation unit 30 determines a relay point candidate for each order based on the luggage information stored in the luggage information table 34 and the base information stored in the base information table 37, and generates one relay point candidate combination, which is a combination of the determined relay point candidates for each order (S2).

[0102] At this time, the candidate relay point creation unit 30 determines each candidate relay point for each order so that the total of the travel time between the collection source base and the relay point and the travel time between the relay point and the delivery destination base is short, and so that a candidate relay point combination different from the candidate relay point combinations created so far can be generated.The candidate relay point creation unit 30 then stores the determined candidate relay point for each order in the candidate relay point information table 40 (FIG. 9).

[0103] Next, the relay point candidate creation unit 30 determines whether or not a new relay point candidate combination that has not been created so far has been created in step S2 (S3). This determination can be made by comparing the information stored in each relay point candidate information table 40 created for each relay point candidate combination created so far with the content of the relay point candidate combination created this time. If the relay point candidate creation unit 30 obtains a positive result in this determination, it calls the transportation group creation unit 31.

[0104] When the transport group creation unit 31 is called by the relay point candidate creation unit 30, it generates all transport groups that can be created based on the relay point candidates for each order stored in the relay point candidate information table 40 and the baggage information stored in the baggage information table 34, and creates a transport group information table 41 that stores necessary information about each generated transport group (S4).The transport group creation unit 31 then calls the relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32.

[0105] When called by the transport group creation unit 31, the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 assigns transport vehicles and drivers to each transport group registered in the transport group information table 41. The relay transportation plan creation unit 32 also creates a transport plan for each transport group by determining the departure point, departure date and time, and arrival point, arrival date and time for the cargo belonging to these transport groups. This creates a relay transportation plan, which is a collection of transportation plans for each transport group. The relay transportation plan creation unit 32 then registers necessary information related to the created transport plan for each transport group in the relay transportation plan information table 42 (S5).

[0106] Next, the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 determines whether the relay transportation plan created as described above is feasible (S6). This determination is made by determining whether transport vehicles and drivers have been assigned to all transport groups, and whether the transport plan is such that the transport vehicle carrying the cargo of each transport group departs from a relay point before the cargo of that transport group arrives at that relay point.

[0107] If the relay transportation schedule proposal creation unit 32 obtains a negative result in this determination, it returns to step S2 and calls the relay point candidate creation unit 30. As a result, the relay point candidate creation unit 30 generates a new combination of relay point candidates in which the determination contents of the relay point candidates for some or all of the orders have been changed (S2). Thereafter, the processing from step S3 onwards is executed in the same manner as described above.

[0108] In response to this, if the relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32 obtains a positive result in the determination of step S6, it calls the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33. Then, the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 called by the relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32 comprehensively evaluates the relay transportation plan proposal consisting of the transportation plans for each transportation group registered in the relay transportation plan proposal information table 42 at that time from three perspectives: "delay in delivery date," "operating time of transportation vehicle," and "driver satisfaction" (S7).

[0109] The relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 also determines whether the current evaluation result is better than any of the relay transportation plans evaluated so far, and if a positive result is obtained, stores the evaluation value of the current relay transportation plan proposal as a provisional solution, and then returns to step S2 to again call the relay base candidate creation unit 30. If a negative result is obtained in this determination, the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 also immediately returns to step S2 to call the relay base candidate creation unit 30.

[0110] Then, the relay point candidate creation unit 30 called by the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 generates a new combination of relay point candidates in which the determined contents of the relay point candidates for some or all of the orders have been changed (S2). After this, the processing from step S3 onwards is executed in the same manner as described above.

[0111] When a negative result is obtained in step S3 by completing the processing of steps S3 to S7 for all possible combinations of relay point candidates for each transportation group, the relay point candidate creation unit 30 outputs the necessary information based on the relay transportation plan proposal that currently stores the evaluation values to the display unit 23 (Figure 2) of the relay transportation planning device 2, or transmits it to the corresponding driver terminal 4, vehicle terminal 5, and base planning management terminal 6 (S8).

[0112] 16 to 19 are displayed on the driver terminal 4, the vehicle terminal 5, and the base planning management terminal 6. This completes a series of processes in the relay transportation planning device 2.

[0113] (1-3-2) Transport group creation process FIG. 13 shows specific details of a series of processes (hereinafter referred to as a transport group creation process) executed by the transport group creation unit 31 in step S4 of the relay transportation planning process described above with reference to FIG.

[0114] When the transport group creation unit 31 is called by the relay base candidate creation unit 30 that has completed the processing of step S3 of the relay transportation plan formulation processing, the transport group creation unit 31 starts the transport group creation processing shown in Fig. 13. Then, the transport group creation unit 31 first reads the baggage information, base information, travel cost information, and relay base candidate information stored in the baggage information table 34, base information table 37, travel cost information table 38, and relay base candidate information table 40, respectively (S10).

[0115] The transport group creation unit 31 then executes the processes of steps S11 to S13 for each order number included in the package information. Note that the following describes the case where only one relay point is created for the order.

[0116] In practice, the transport group creation unit 31 calculates the range of dates and times when the parcels of each order should arrive at the relay point, and the range of dates and times when these parcels should depart from the relay point (S11).

[0117] Specifically, the transport group creation unit 31 searches for the relay point candidate information for each order number in the package information and identifies the name of the corresponding relay point. In addition, for each order number, the transport group creation unit 31 obtains the travel time for the route from the travel cost information, with the collection source code of the package information as the departure point and the relay point as the arrival point.

[0118] Furthermore, the transport group creation unit 31 obtains, for each order number, the range of collection dates and times (start date and time and end date and time) for the package corresponding to that order number from the package information, and calculates the range of dates and times for the package to arrive at the relay point by adding the travel time obtained as described above to the start date and time and end date and time of the obtained collection dates and times.

[0119] The transport group creation unit 31 also acquires, for each order number, the travel time for the route from the travel cost information, with the corresponding relay base as the departure point and the delivery destination of the corresponding cargo as the arrival point.The transport group creation unit 31 then acquires, for each order number, the range of delivery dates and times (start date and time and end date and time) of the corresponding cargo from the cargo information, and calculates the range of dates and times for the cargo to depart from the relay base by subtracting the travel time acquired as described above from the start date and time and end date and time of the acquired delivery date and time.

[0120] After this, the transport group creation unit 31 creates a transport group based on the range of dates and times when the parcels of each order should arrive at the relay point calculated in step S11 and the range of dates and times when these parcels should depart from the relay point (S12).

[0121] Specifically, the transport group creation unit 31 divides, for each order number, the luggage routes into those that start from the collection point of the luggage and end at a relay point, and those that start at the relay point and end at the delivery destination.The transport group creation unit then extracts, from the luggage routes for each order number obtained in this way, luggage routes that have the same start point and end point as the same luggage route group.

[0122] Then, for each extracted group of identical parcel routes, if each parcel route belonging to that group is a parcel route from the collection origin of the corresponding parcel to a relay hub, the transport group creation unit 31 creates a transport group by grouping parcel routes whose collection date and time ranges and arrival date and time ranges of the parcel at the relay hub overlap at least partially. Therefore, if each parcel route belonging to the same group is a parcel route from the collection origin of the corresponding parcel to a relay hub, two or more transport groups may be created from one group of identical parcel routes.

[0123] Furthermore, for each extracted group of identical parcel routes, if each parcel route belonging to that group is a parcel route from a relay base for the corresponding parcel to a delivery base, the transport group creation unit 31 groups parcel routes in which the range of dates and times for the parcel to depart from the relay base and the range of dates and times for the parcel to be delivered to the delivery base overlap, even if only partially, into the same transport group. Therefore, even if each parcel route belonging to the same group is a parcel route from a relay base for the corresponding parcel to a delivery base, two or more transport groups may be created from one group of identical parcel routes.

[0124] In addition, the condition for grouping the cargo of each order into the same transportation group may also be that the cargo transportation conditions are not violated.

[0125] In addition, when creating a transport group, an upper limit on the total number of packages that can be grouped into one transport group may be set in advance, taking into consideration the constraints on the number of transport vehicles that can travel in convoy at the same time or the constraints on the number of towed vehicles that can be towed at the same time, and the transport group creation unit 31 may create a transport group so that the total number of packages belonging to one transport group is less than or equal to this upper limit.

[0126] Furthermore, for example, the transport group creation unit 31 may create a transport group taking into consideration constraints regarding the cargo loaded on each transport vehicle traveling in a platoon, or on multiple transport vehicles that can travel in a platoon at the same time, and constraints regarding the cargo loaded on towed vehicles that can be towed by a transport vehicle at the same time, so that the deviation in the weight of the cargo loaded on each transport vehicle traveling in a platoon at the same time or each towed vehicle that is towed at the same time is below a certain level.

[0127] Furthermore, the transport group creation unit 31 may manage the types of transport vehicles that will be required at each base at a predetermined time in the future (for example, the start time of each base the next morning), and transport the cargo so that the transport vehicles required at each base will arrive at each base by that time and be available at that base, thereby creating a transport group so that the necessary transport vehicles are present at each base at that time.

[0128] Next, the transport group creation unit 31 stores the necessary information for all transport groups created as described above in the transport group information table 41 (FIG. 10) and registers these transport groups in the transport group information table (S13).The transport group creation unit 31 then ends this transport group creation process and calls the relay transportation schedule proposal creation unit 32.

[0129] (1-3-3) Relay transportation plan creation process On the other hand, Figure 14 shows the specific contents of a series of processes (hereinafter referred to as relay transportation plan creation process) executed by the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 in step S5 of the relay transportation plan creation process described above with reference to Figure 12.

[0130] When called by the transport group creation unit 31 that has completed the transport group creation process (Fig. 13), the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 starts the relay transportation plan creation process shown in Fig. 14. The relay transportation plan creation unit 32 first reads the vehicle information, driver information, base information, travel cost information, and transport group information stored in the vehicle information table 35, driver information table 36, base information table 37, travel cost information table 38, and transport group information table 41, respectively (S20).

[0131] Next, the relay transportation schedule proposal creating unit 32 assigns transportation vehicles to each transportation group (S21).

[0132] Specifically, the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 selects one transport group from the transport groups registered in the transport group information table 41, and acquires the order numbers of all orders whose cargo routes belong to the selected transport group (hereinafter referred to as the first selected transport group) from the transport group information. The relay transportation plan creation unit 32 also acquires the number of cargo items to be transported in the orders with each acquired order number from the cargo information, and calculates the total number of these acquired cargo items.

[0133] The relay transportation plan creation unit 32 also refers to vehicle information and cargo information to extract transport vehicles that can carry all cargo belonging to the first selected transport group and that meet the transport conditions for each cargo, and assigns those transport vehicles to the selected transport group.

[0134] In this case, if the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 cannot extract a transportation vehicle whose upper load capacity limit is greater than the total number of luggage belonging to the first selected transportation group from the transportation vehicles that meet the transportation conditions of each luggage belonging to the first selected transportation group, it extracts multiple transportation vehicles that each meet the transportation conditions of these luggage and assigns them to the first selected transportation group so that the total value of the upper load capacity limit exceeds the total value of the luggage belonging to the first selected transportation group.

[0135] In addition, at this time, the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 may assign multiple transport vehicles capable of platooning or a towing vehicle (tractor) that tows at least two or more towed vehicles (trailers) to a transport group as necessary.

[0136] For example, if the amount of cargo bound for a specific delivery location that arrives at a relay point within a specified time is greater than the amount of cargo that can be transported by a single transport vehicle, transportation efficiency can be improved and transportation costs reduced by assigning multiple transport vehicles capable of platooning as transport vehicles from the relay point to the delivery location, or a towing vehicle that tows at least two or more towed vehicles, as described above.

[0137] Furthermore, even if the number of transport vehicles transporting cargo bound for a specific delivery base to a relay base within a specified time period is greater than the number of transport vehicles that should depart from that relay base for that delivery base within that time period, transportation efficiency can be improved and transportation costs reduced by assigning multiple transport vehicles capable of platooning as transport vehicles from the relay base to the delivery base, or a towing vehicle that tows at least two or more towed vehicles, as described above.

[0138] Furthermore, even if the amount of cargo sharing a common cargo route is greater than a predetermined amount within a predetermined time period (for example, greater than the amount of cargo that can be transported by a single transport vehicle), the same effect can be achieved by assigning multiple transport vehicles capable of traveling in convoy as transport vehicles from a relay point to a delivery point, or a towing vehicle that tows at least two or more towed vehicles, to a transport group that transports cargo via that cargo route within that time period.

[0139] Furthermore, transport vehicles may be assigned to transport groups so that the types of transport vehicles required at each base at a predetermined time in the future (for example, the start time of each base the next morning) are present at each of these bases.

[0140] In addition, if the vehicle information specifies the loading limit for each transport vehicle in terms of weight or volume rather than number, multiple transport vehicles that each meet the transport conditions for these cargoes are extracted and assigned to the first selected transport group so that the total value of the weight and volume limits exceeds the total value of the weight and volume of all cargoes belonging to the selected transport group.

[0141] The relay transportation schedule creation unit 32 then executes the above process for each of the transportation groups registered in the transportation group information table 41, thereby allocating transportation vehicles to each of these transportation groups.

[0142] Next, the relay transportation schedule proposal creating unit 32 assigns drivers to the transportation vehicles assigned to each transportation group (S22).

[0143] Specifically, the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 selects one transport group from the transport groups registered in the transport group information table 41, and identifies the number of transport vehicles assigned to the selected transport group (hereinafter referred to as the second selected transport group) in step S21. The relay transportation plan creation unit 32 also calculates the number of drivers required for the second selected transport group by dividing the identified number of transport vehicles by the maximum number of vehicles that can travel in convoy, and rounding up any fractional part of the quotient.

[0144] Furthermore, based on the driver information, the relay transportation schedule creation unit 32 acquires from the travel cost information the travel time from the driver's place of residence to the starting point of the second selected transport group (hereinafter referred to as the first travel time) for each driver registered in the driver information table 36. Similarly, based on the driver information, the relay transportation schedule creation unit 32 acquires from the travel cost information the travel time from the base of the driver's place of residence to the ending point of the second selected transport group (hereinafter referred to as the second travel time) for each driver registered in the driver information table 36.

[0145] Then, for each driver, the relay transportation schedule creation unit 32 uses the shorter of the first travel time and the second travel time obtained as described above as the driver's evaluation value, and assigns the required number of drivers to the second selected transportation group, starting with the driver with the smallest evaluation value.

[0146] At this time, if a specific qualification, etc. is required for transporting cargo belonging to the second selected transport group, the relay transportation schedule creation unit 32 refers to the driver information and assigns to the second selected transport group the required number of drivers who have the qualification, etc. and have the lowest evaluation value. At this time, the relay transportation schedule creation unit 32 may also refer to the driver information and assign drivers to the second selected transport group taking into account the personal preferences of each driver.

[0147] Each driver can be assigned up to two transport groups: one that starts at a first base and ends at another second base, and another that starts at the second base and ends at the first base. In this case, these two transport groups may be assigned only if the driver satisfies a working condition, such as the total travel time of the driver for the two transport groups assigned to the driver being within the driver's working hours.

[0148] When only a transport group starting or ending at a relay point is assigned to a driver, the method of travel from the driver's home town to the relay point or from the relay point to the driver's home town, which is not assigned a transport group, is determined to be the travel method desired by the driver included in the driver information.

[0149] Next, the relay transportation schedule creation unit 32 determines a schedule for each transportation group, each transportation vehicle assigned to each transportation group, and each driver assigned to each transportation vehicle (S23).

[0150] Specifically, the relay transportation schedule proposal creation unit 32 identifies, for each transportation group, the earliest possible date and time at which departure can be made from the starting point of the transportation group (hereinafter referred to as the possible departure date and time).

[0151] For example, if the starting point of the transportation group is a base from which each package belonging to the transportation group is collected, the relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32 references the package information and identifies the latest collection date and time of these packages as the possible departure date and time. Furthermore, if the ending point of the transportation group is a relay base, the relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32 calculates the range of dates and times when each package belonging to the transportation group can depart from the relay base, similar to step S11 of the transportation group creation process described above with reference to Figure 13, and identifies the latest date and time within this calculated time range as the possible departure date and time. The relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 32 then sets the possible departure date and time thus identified as the tentative departure date and time from the starting point of the transportation group.

[0152] In addition, the relay transportation plan creation unit 32 extracts the travel time from the starting point to the end point of each transportation group from the travel cost information, and adds the extracted travel time to the above-mentioned tentative departure date and time to determine the date and time at which each piece of luggage belonging to that transportation group will arrive at the end point of that transportation group (hereinafter referred to as the estimated arrival date and time).

[0153] Then, for each transport group, the relay transport plan creation unit 32 adds to the transport schedule of the transport vehicles assigned to that transport group a schedule in which the transport vehicles depart from the starting point of the transport group at the above-mentioned possible departure date and time and arrive at the end point of the transport group at the above-mentioned scheduled arrival date and time.

[0154] In addition, for each driver assigned to one of these transport groups, if the driver is assigned only to that transport group, the relay transport plan creation unit 32 adds to the driver's transport schedule a travel schedule from the driver's home location to the relay base at the end of the transport group, or from the relay base at the start of the transport group to the driver's home location.

[0155] Through the above process, the transportation schedules for each transportation group, each transportation vehicle assigned to each transportation group, and each driver assigned to each transportation vehicle are determined. Then, the relay transportation schedule creation unit 32 ends the relay transportation schedule creation process.

[0156] (1-3-4) Evaluation of relay transportation plan proposals On the other hand, Figure 15 shows the specific contents of a series of processes (hereinafter referred to as the relay transportation plan evaluation process) executed by the relay transportation plan evaluation unit 33 in step S5 of the relay transportation plan formulation process described above with reference to Figure 12.

[0157] When the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 proceeds to step S5 of the relay transportation plan formulation process, it starts the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation process shown in Figure 15, and first reads the necessary information from each table held in the memory unit 21 (Figure 2) (S30).

[0158] Specifically, the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 reads baggage information, vehicle information, driver information, or base station information from a baggage information table 34, a vehicle information table 35, a driver information table 36, and a base station information table 37. The relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 also reads the values of the delivery delay parameter, the operating time parameter, and the driver satisfaction parameter from an evaluation information table 39. Furthermore, the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 reads a relay transportation plan (hereinafter, referred to as an evaluation target relay transportation plan) from a relay transportation plan proposal information table 42.

[0159] Next, the relay transportation plan evaluation unit 33 calculates an evaluation value for the delivery delay of each package in the relay transportation plan to be evaluated (hereinafter, this will be referred to as a delivery delay evaluation value) (S31). The delivery delay evaluation value is calculated by referring to the package information and the relay transportation plan information, for example, using the following formula: [Number] As shown above, the deviation is calculated by adding up the total deviation from the collection time frame of each parcel that cannot comply with the collection time frame according to the proposed relay transportation plan to be evaluated, and the total deviation from the delivery time frame of each parcel that cannot comply with the delivery date and time frame according to the proposed relay transportation plan to be evaluated.

[0160] Here, in formula (1), "collection time frame" refers to the range of time during which parcels can be collected, as determined for each base, and "deviation from collection time frame" refers to the time difference between the end time of the collection time frame and the end time of the collection time for the corresponding parcel at that base. For example, if the collection time frame at a certain base is from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM and the time range for the collection date and time of a certain parcel at that base is from 6:00 PM to 6:15 PM, then the absolute value of the difference between 3:00 PM and 6:15 PM, which is 3 hours and 15 minutes, corresponds to the "deviation from collection time frame."

[0161] Furthermore, in equation (1), the "delivery time frame" refers to the range of time within which a package can be delivered, as determined for each base, and the "deviation from the delivery time frame" refers to the time difference between the end time of the delivery time frame and the end time of the delivery time for the corresponding package at that base.

[0162] Next, the relay transportation plan evaluation unit 33 calculates an evaluation value of the operation time of each transport vehicle in the relay transportation plan to be evaluated (S32). The evaluation value of the operation time is calculated, for example, by referring to the vehicle information, the current status of the vehicle, and the relay transportation plan information, using the following formula:

number

[0163] Furthermore, the relay transportation plan evaluation unit 33 calculates an evaluation value of the satisfaction of each driver in the relay transportation plan to be evaluated (hereinafter referred to as a driver satisfaction evaluation value) (S33). The driver satisfaction evaluation value is calculated using, for example, the driver information, the base information, and the relay transportation plan information, using the following formula:

number

[0164] Then, the relay transportation plan evaluation unit 33 calculates the delivery delay evaluation value calculated in step S31, the operation time evaluation value calculated in step S32, the driver satisfaction evaluation value calculated in step S33, and the evaluation information, using the following formula:

number

[0165] Next, the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 determines whether the overall evaluation value calculated in step S34 is greater than the provisional solution stored as the maximum overall evaluation value among the overall evaluation values calculated so far (S35).

[0166] If the relay transportation plan evaluation unit 33 obtains a positive result in this determination, it stores the relay transportation plan evaluation value obtained this time as a provisional solution (S36), and then terminates this relay transportation plan evaluation process.

[0167] On the other hand, if the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 obtains a negative result in the determination at step S35, it ends this relay transportation plan proposal evaluation process without saving the currently obtained relay transportation plan proposal evaluation value as a provisional solution.

[0168] (1-4) Configuration of various display screens (1-4-1) Result summary display screen Figure 16 shows an example of the configuration of a result summary display screen 50 that is displayed on the display device 15 (Figure 1) of the relay transportation planning device 2 based on the processing results of the relay transportation plan formulation process output from the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 in step S8 of the relay transportation plan formulation process described above with reference to Figure 12.

[0169] The result summary display screen 50 is a screen that displays the processing results of the relay transportation plan formulation process, and is configured to include a vehicle transportation schedule display area 51, a vehicle transportation route display area 52, and a plan evaluation result display area 53.

[0170] The vehicle transport schedule display area 51 displays in tabular form the best transport schedule for each transport vehicle, which has been created through the relay transport planning process.

[0171] In practice, the vehicle transport schedule display area 51 displays a vehicle transport schedule table 60 having a vehicle name column 60A, a location name column 60B, a status column 60C, an order number column 60D, a quantity column 60E, and a date and time column 60F. In the vehicle transport schedule table 60, one record corresponds to the status of one operation at a certain base for a certain transport vehicle.

[0172] The vehicle name field 60A displays the name of the corresponding transport vehicle, and the location name field 60B displays the name of the base where the corresponding work is performed. The status field 60C displays the status of the corresponding work at the base for that transport vehicle. The statuses of the transport vehicle include "departure" (departing from a parking lot or base), "loading" (loading cargo onto the transport vehicle at the base), "relay" (handing over cargo to the next transport vehicle at the relay base or taking over cargo from the previous transport vehicle at the relay base), "unloading" (unloading cargo at the base), and "arrival" (arriving at the destination).

[0173] The order number field 60D displays the order number corresponding to the package if the status is work on the package, and the quantity field 60E displays the number of packages to be worked on if the status is work on the package. The date and time field 60F is divided into a start field 60FA and an end field 60FB, and the start date and time of the status displayed in the status field 60C is displayed in the start field 60FA, and the end date and time of the status is displayed in the end field 60FB.

[0174] Therefore, in the example of Figure 16, a transport schedule is created in which a transport vehicle named "Vehicle A" will "depart" from the parking lot of base "Base 4" between "4 / 1 9:05" and "4 / 1 9:13" and head to the berth at that base, and then "load" "8" pieces of cargo corresponding to order number "5" at that berth at that base between "4 / 1 9:05" and "4 / 1 9:13".

[0175] In addition to or instead of the quantity of cargo, the vehicle transport schedule table 60 may also display the weight, volume, length, width, or height of the cargo, or a combination of these. The date and time may also be substituted with the time that the corresponding transport vehicle will stay at the corresponding base. Furthermore, the transport schedule may be displayed as a Gantt chart with the date and time on the horizontal axis and each transport vehicle on the vertical axis.

[0176] Furthermore, the vehicle transport route display area 52 displays the transport route of any transport vehicle or all transport vehicles specified by the user, as determined in the proposed relay transport plan. The transport vehicle for which the transport route is to be displayed can be selected from a pull-down menu (not shown) that is displayed when the pull-down button 61 is clicked, and the vehicle name of the selected transport vehicle (if one transport vehicle is selected) or the string "all vehicles" (if the option for all transport vehicles is selected) is displayed in the selected vehicle display field 62.

[0177] Fig. 16 shows a case where a transport vehicle named "Vehicle A" is selected as the transport vehicle for which the transport route is to be displayed. Fig. 16 also shows an example in which base marks 63 ("□" in Fig. 16) representing bases managed as point information are displayed in the vehicle transport route display area 52 at positions corresponding to the latitude and longitude of the bases, and arrows 64 indicating the order in which the transport vehicle named "Vehicle A" should stop are displayed on the base marks 63 corresponding to the bases that the transport vehicle should stop at.

[0178] Furthermore, the plan evaluation result display area 53 displays the evaluation results of the proposed relay transportation plan from three perspectives: "Delivery delay," "Transport vehicle operating time," and "Driver satisfaction." In this embodiment, the evaluation results of each perspective are displayed as the delivery delay evaluation value, operating time evaluation value, and driver satisfaction evaluation value calculated by the above-mentioned formulas (1) to (3), respectively.

[0179] In addition to the delivery delay evaluation value, the working time evaluation value, and the driver satisfaction evaluation value, the values of the delivery delay parameter, the working time parameter, and the driver satisfaction parameter may be displayed, respectively, and further, the total transportation cost and total transportation time required if the proposed relay transportation plan is implemented may also be displayed as part of the evaluation results.

[0180] (1-4-2) Driver schedule display screen On the other hand, Fig. 17 shows an example of the configuration of a driver schedule display screen 70 showing the transportation schedules of these drivers, which is displayed on the driver terminal 4 (Fig. 1) of each driver based on the processing result of the relay transportation plan formulation process transmitted from the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 in step S8 of the relay transportation plan formulation process described above with reference to Fig. 12. This driver schedule display screen 70 is configured to include a driver schedule display area 71 and a driver movement route display area 72.

[0181] In the driver schedule display area 71, the schedule of each driver (hereinafter referred to as the driver schedule) created by the relay transportation planning process is displayed in a table format.

[0182] In practice, the driver schedule display area 71 displays a driver schedule table 73 having a driver column 73A, a vehicle name column 73B, a transport group column 73C, a location column 73D, a status column 73E, a quantity column 73F, a date and time column 73G, and a satisfaction level column 73H. In the driver schedule table 73, one record corresponds to the status of one task at one base for one driver.

[0183] The driver column 73A displays the driver number of the corresponding driver, and the status column 73E displays the status of the work that the driver is to perform. The "work status" includes "loading" where cargo is loaded onto a transport vehicle, "moving" where the transport vehicle is driven to move between bases, "transferring" where cargo is transferred to another transport vehicle at a relay base, and "unloading" where cargo is unloaded from a transport vehicle.

[0184] The location field 73D displays the location where the driver should perform the task or be in that state. For example, if the task status is "loading," "transshipment," or "unloading," the name of the base where the task will be performed is displayed. If the task status is "traveling," the names of the bases at the departure point and the arrival point are displayed.

[0185] The transport group field 73C displays the transport group number of the transport group to which the cargo that is the target of the work belongs. In this case, if the work status is "loading," "moving," or "unloading," the transport group number of the transport group to which the target cargo belongs is displayed, and if the work status is "transshipment," the transport group number of the transport group to which the cargo before transshipment belongs and the transport group number of the transport group to which the cargo after transshipment belongs are displayed.

[0186] The quantity column 73F displays the total number of packages belonging to the transport group. However, if the work is "transshipment," the total number of packages is not displayed. The vehicle name column 73B displays the name of the transport vehicle performing the work. Furthermore, the date and time column 73G is divided into a start column 73GA and an end column 73GB. The start column 73GA displays the date and time when the work status displayed in the status column 73E should start, and the end column 73GB displays the date and time when that status should end.

[0187] Furthermore, the satisfaction level column 73H displays the degree of satisfaction of the corresponding driver with respect to the corresponding task (hereinafter referred to as driver satisfaction level). The driver satisfaction level is calculated, for example, by the following formula:

number

[0188] Therefore, in the example of Figure 17, a driver assigned the driver number "1" loads "5" pieces of luggage belonging to the transport group "1" onto a transport vehicle "Vehicle A" at a base "Base 4" between "4 / 1 8:00" and "4 / 1 8:30," and then drives the transport vehicle to "move" the luggage to a relay base "Base 3" ("Base 4 - Base 3 (Relay Point)") between "4 / 1 8:30" and "4 / 1 11:40." Figure 17 also shows that the user satisfaction rate for both the "loading" and "moving" tasks in this case is 76%.

[0189] In addition, the driver schedule table 73 may display the weight, volume, length, width, or height of each package, or a combination of these, instead of or in addition to the quantity of each package.

[0190] The driver movement route display area 72 displays the movement routes of any driver or all drivers specified by the user, as determined in the proposed relay transportation plan. The driver whose movement route is to be displayed can be selected from a pull-down menu (not shown) that is displayed when a pull-down button 74 is clicked, and the driver number of the selected driver (if one driver is selected) or the string "all drivers" (if the option for all drivers is selected) is displayed in the selected driver display field 75.

[0191] Figure 17 shows a case where a driver with a driver number of "driver 1" is selected as the driver whose travel route will be displayed. Figure 17 also shows an example in which base marks 76 ("□" in Figure 17) representing bases that the driver should stop at, which are managed as point information, are displayed at positions corresponding to the latitude and longitude of the bases, and arrows 77 are displayed to connect the base marks 76 corresponding to the bases that the driver named "driver 1" should stop at in the order in which the driver will travel.

[0192] (1-4-3) Vehicle schedule display screen On the other hand, Figure 18 shows an example of the configuration of a transport schedule display screen 80 showing the transport schedule of each transport vehicle, which is displayed on the vehicle terminal 5 (Figure 1) of each transport vehicle based on the processing results of the relay transport plan formulation process sent from the relay transport plan proposal evaluation unit in step S8 of the relay transport plan formulation process described above with reference to Figure 12.

[0193] This transport schedule display screen 80 displays a character string 81 representing the vehicle name of the transport vehicle on which the vehicle terminal 5 displaying the transport schedule display screen 80 is mounted, and also displays the transport schedule of the transport vehicle created by the relay transport planning process in tabular form.

[0194] In practice, the transport schedule display screen 80 displays a transport schedule table 82 that includes a base name column 82A, a status column 82B, an order number column 82C, a quantity column 82D, a time column 82E, and a progress column 82F. In the transport schedule table 82, one record corresponds to one status at a base where the transport vehicle is located.

[0195] The base name column 82A, status column 82B, order number column 82C, quantity column 82D, and time column 82E each display the same content as that displayed in the location name column 60B, status column 60C, order number column 60D, quantity column 60E, and date and time column 60F for the corresponding transport vehicle in the vehicle transport schedule table 60 of the result summary display screen 50 described above with reference to Figure 16.

[0196] Furthermore, the progress column 82F stores information indicating the progress of the work displayed in the status column 82B. Fig. 18 illustrates a case where "Complete" is displayed when the work is completed, and "Not yet" is displayed when the work is not completed. In this embodiment, each time the driver completes a work displayed in the transportation schedule table 82, the driver makes a predetermined input to the driver terminal 4 to indicate that the work has been completed. Whether or not a certain work has been completed is determined by the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 of the relay transportation planning device 2 based on the input, and the determination result is displayed in the progress column 82F.

[0197] This transport schedule display screen 80 allows the driver to check the transport schedule of the transport vehicle that the driver is to drive and the progress of each task according to the transport schedule.

[0198] (1-4-4) Base plan display screen 19 shows an example of the configuration of a base plan display screen 90 on which the work plan, etc. at each base is displayed on the base plan management terminal 6 (FIG. 1) of each base based on the processing result of the relay transportation plan formulation process transmitted from the relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit 33 in step S8 of the relay transportation plan formulation process described above with reference to FIG. 12. This base plan display screen 90 is configured with a shipping order transportation status display area 91 and a work instruction display area 92.

[0199] The shipping order transportation status display area 91 displays the work schedule for the shipping orders from the corresponding bases in the best plan.

[0200] In practice, the shipping order transportation status display area 91 displays a work schedule table 93 having an order number column 93A, a work date and time column 93B, a work location column 93C, a status column 93D, a vehicle name column 93E, a transportation group column 93F, and a responsible driver column 93G. In the work schedule table 93, one record corresponds to one work performed at a base for a package shipped from the corresponding base based on a certain order.

[0201] The order number field 93A displays the order number of the corresponding order, and the work date and time field 93B displays the date and time when the corresponding work will be performed. The work location field 93C displays the name of the base where the work will be performed, and the status field 93D displays the status of the work. Examples of such "work status" include "departure," "loading," "transfer (including transshipment or driver change), "unloading," and "arrival," as explained above.

[0202] Furthermore, the vehicle name field 93E displays the name of the transport vehicle that will carry out that work on the package, the transport group field 93F displays the transport group number of the transport group to which the package belongs, and the assigned driver field 93G displays the driver number of the driver assigned to that transport vehicle.

[0203] Therefore, in the example of Figure 19, for example, the cargo belonging to transport group "1" requested for transport by order number "Order 0001" will be loaded ("loaded") onto transport vehicle "Vehicle A" handled by a driver assigned driver number "1" at base "Base 4" at "4 / 1 8:00", and will "depart" from the base at "4 / 1 8:30".

[0204] Figure 19 also shows that this cargo will be transferred ("relay, transfer") to a transport vehicle called "Vehicle B" operated by a driver with driver number "5" at a location called "Location 3" at "4 / 1 12:50," and then depart from that location at "4 / 1 13:25."

[0205] The work schedule table 93 may include information on the quantity, weight, volume, length, width, height, or a combination of these, of the cargo to be worked on. The work dates and times may be displayed separately as the start date and time when the work should begin and the end date and time when the work should be completed. Instead of the work schedule table 93, the schedule for each work as described above may be displayed as a Gantt chart with the date and time on the horizontal axis and each vehicle on the vertical axis.

[0206] The work instruction display area 92 displays the details of the work to be performed at each base for each piece of luggage belonging to each transport group.

[0207] In practice, the work instruction display area 92 displays a work instruction list 94 that includes a base name column 94A, a transport group column 94B, a vehicle name column 94C, an order number column 94D, a status column 94E, a work date and time column 94F, and a quantity column 94G. In the work instruction list 94, one record corresponds to work that should be performed on a certain package at a certain base.

[0208] The base name field 94A displays the name of the base where the work should be performed, the status field 94E displays the status of the work, the work date and time field 94F displays the date and time when the work should be performed at the base, and the vehicle name field 94C displays the name of the transport vehicle that will perform the work on the corresponding package.

[0209] Furthermore, the transport group field 94B displays the transport group number of the transport group to which the package belongs, the order number field 94D displays the order number of the order corresponding to the package, and the quantity field 94G displays the number of packages in the order.

[0210] Therefore, in the example of Figure 19, it is shown that an instruction has been issued to load 25 pieces of luggage requested in an order with order number "Order 0001" belonging to a transport group with transport group number "1" onto a transport vehicle called "Vehicle A" at a location called "Location 4" from 8:00 on 4 / 1.

[0211] (1-5) Effects of this embodiment As described above, in this embodiment, one or more transport groups are created by grouping together cargo that has at least some overlapping transport routes and that travels via the same transport routes during the same time period, and a transport vehicle and driver are assigned to each of the created transport groups to create a transport plan.

[0212] Therefore, according to the relay transportation planning device 2 of this embodiment, for example, even if there is no cargo from the first base to the second base, but there is cargo to be transported from the second base to the first or third base, instead of a transportation plan in which the driver drives an empty vehicle from the first base to the second base, a relay transportation plan can be created in which the driver travels to the second base by car, train, etc., and then drives the transport vehicle at the second base to transport the cargo to the first or third base, thereby preventing a decrease in cargo transportation efficiency due to empty vehicle operation.

[0213] In addition, in this embodiment, multiple transport vehicles that travel in a convoy or multiple transport vehicles that tow multiple towed vehicles are assigned to a transport group as needed, which allows for an increase in the amount of transport per driver and further improves the efficiency of cargo transportation.

[0214] (2) Second embodiment In the first embodiment, the case where the transportation means for transporting luggage (hereinafter referred to as transportation device) is a vehicle was described. In contrast, in this embodiment, the transportation device is expanded to include a railway, a ship, and / or an airplane as a transportation device for transporting luggage to and from a relay point.

[0215] 20, in which the same reference numerals are assigned to parts corresponding to those in FIG. 2, shows the logical configuration of a relay transportation planning system 100 according to the second embodiment. This relay transportation planning system 100 differs significantly from the relay transportation planning system 1 of the first embodiment in that a transportation equipment management terminal 101 is connected to the network 3. Note that the hardware configuration of the relay transportation planning system 100 of this embodiment is the same as that of the relay transportation planning system 1 of the first embodiment except for the provision of the transportation equipment management terminal 101, and therefore a description thereof will be omitted here.

[0216] The transportation equipment management terminal 101 is an information processing terminal that manages transportation schedules for transportation equipment other than transportation vehicles, such as railways, ships, and / or airplanes, and is configured, for example, by a general-purpose computer device. This transportation equipment management terminal 101 has a communication unit 102 and a display unit 103 as functional units. The communication unit 102 is a functional unit that has the function of transmitting the operation schedules of each transportation equipment that it manages to the relay transportation planning device 104. The display unit 103 is a functional unit that has the function of visually displaying the necessary information received by the communication unit 102 on a display device (not shown) that the transportation equipment management terminal 101 has.

[0217] The relay transportation planning device 104 of this embodiment also differs from the relay transportation planning device 2 of the first embodiment in that the memory unit 21 stores and holds a transport device information table 105 shown in FIG. 21 in addition to the cargo information table 34, vehicle information table 35, driver information table 36, base information table 37, travel cost information table 38, evaluation information table 39, relay base candidate information table 40, transport group information table 41, and relay transportation plan information table 42 described above with reference to FIGS. 3 to 11.

[0218] The transportation device information table 105 is a table for managing the operation schedules of various transportation devices other than transportation vehicles, and as shown in Fig. 21, is configured with a transportation device number column 105A, a departure location column 105B, an arrival location column 105C, a loading limit column 105D, a departure date and time column 105E, an arrival date and time column 105F, and a special function column 105G. In the transportation device information table 105, one record corresponds to one operation of one transportation device.

[0219] The transportation equipment number field 105A stores a transportation equipment number that is assigned to the corresponding transportation equipment and is unique to that transportation equipment. Note that this transportation equipment number is assigned to each train, ship, and airplane that can be used to transport cargo.

[0220] The departure point field 105B stores the name of the base that is the departure point of the transportation device corresponding to the corresponding operation, and the arrival point field 105C stores the name of the base that is the arrival point of the transportation device for that operation. Furthermore, the loading limit field 105D stores the upper limit number of cargo that can be loaded onto the transportation device. Note that this loading limit may be an upper limit on the number of containers that contain cargo, rather than an upper limit on the number of cargoes.

[0221] The departure date and time field 105E stores the date and time when the corresponding transportation device departs from the departure point described above for the corresponding operation, and the arrival date and time field 105F stores the date and time when the transportation device arrives at the destination described above for the corresponding operation. The special function field 105G stores the special functions installed in the corresponding transportation device. The special functions here are the same as the special functions of the transportation vehicle registered in the vehicle information table 35.

[0222] Therefore, in the example of Figure 21, a transportation device assigned the transportation device number "1" has an operation schedule that departs from a base called "Base 1" at "4 / 1 10:00" and arrives at a base called "Base 2" at "4 / 1 14:00", the number of cargo or containers that can be loaded onto the transportation device is "10", and the transportation device is equipped with a "temperature control" function.

[0223] Next, in the relay transportation planning system 100, the flow of the relay transportation planning process executed in the relay transportation planning device 104 when the input unit 22 of the relay transportation planning device 104 receives a relay transportation planning instruction from a user will be described.

[0224] The relay transportation planning process executed in the present relay transportation planning device 104 is basically the same as the relay transportation planning process of the first embodiment described above with reference to FIG.

[0225] However, in the case of this embodiment, in step S1 of the relay transportation planning process, the relay base candidate creation unit 107 of the control unit 106 of the relay transportation planning device 104 reads the operation schedule of each transportation device from the portable storage medium via the media reading device 16 (FIG. 1) in addition to the above-mentioned baggage information, vehicle information, driver information, base information, travel cost information, and evaluation information. Then, the relay base candidate creation unit 107 stores the read operation schedule of each transportation device in the transportation device information table 105.

[0226] In addition, in step S2 of the relay transportation planning processing, when determining relay point candidates for each order, the relay point candidate creation unit 107 determines relay point candidates for each order for routes that use transportation devices whose operation schedules are registered in the transportation device information table 105 by using the average values of the travel time between the collection point in the baggage information and the departure point of the transportation device, and the travel time between the delivery point in the baggage information and the arrival point of the transportation device.

[0227] Specifically, the relay point candidate creation unit 107 determines relay point candidates for each order so that the total travel time between the collection source base and the relay point, and the travel time between the relay point and the delivery destination base, is short, and a relay point candidate combination different from any relay point candidate combinations created so far can be generated.

[0228] Furthermore, in step S5 of the relay transportation plan processing, when allocating transportation vehicles to each transportation group, if the start point and end point of the transportation group coincide with the departure point and arrival point of any transportation device, respectively, the date and time when the transportation group can depart from the start point is before the departure date and time of the transportation device, and the deadline for arrival of the transportation group at the end point is after the arrival time of the transportation device, the relay transportation plan creation unit 108 allocates the transportation device to the transportation group instead of the transportation vehicle. Note that no driver is assigned to the transportation device.

[0229] In addition, when a transport device is assigned to a transport group in this manner, information about the transport device may be displayed on the result summary display screen 50 described above with respect to Figure 16 displayed on the display device 15 (Figure 1) of the relay transport planning device 2.

[0230] According to the relay transportation planning system 100 of this embodiment having the above-mentioned configuration, it is possible to create a relay transportation plan that utilizes transportation devices other than transport vehicles, and it is possible to create a relay transportation plan that further improves the efficiency of cargo transportation.

[0231] (3) Third embodiment 22, in which the same reference numerals are assigned to parts corresponding to those in Fig. 1, shows the logical configuration of a relay transportation planning system 110 according to the third embodiment. This relay transportation planning system 110 differs from the first embodiment in that the storage unit 21 of the relay transportation planning device 111 stores and holds a berth information table 112 in addition to a baggage information table 34, a vehicle information table 35, a driver information table 36, a base information table 37, a travel cost information table 38, an evaluation information table 39, a relay base candidate information table 40, a transportation group information table 41, and a relay transportation plan proposal information table 42.

[0232] The berth information table 112 is a table used to manage the acceptance times for accepting transport vehicles at berths provided at each base, and is configured with a base name column 112A, a berth name column 112B, and an acceptance time column 112C, as shown in Fig. 23. In the berth information table 112, one record corresponds to one berth provided at one of the bases.

[0233] The base name column 112A stores the base name of the base where the corresponding berth is located, and the berth name column 112B stores the name (berth name) unique to that berth. Furthermore, the receiving time column 112C is divided into a start column 112CA and an end column 112CB, and the start time at which the corresponding berth begins receiving the transport vehicle is stored in the start column 112CA, and the end time at which the berth ends receiving the transport vehicle is stored in the end column 112CB.

[0234] Therefore, in the example of FIG. 23, it is shown that the transport vehicle reception time of a berth named "berth A" provided at a base named "base 1" is from "07:00" to "21:00".

[0235] Next, in this relay transportation planning system 110, the flow of the relay transportation planning process executed in the relay transportation planning device 111 when the input unit 22 of the relay transportation planning device 111 receives a relay transportation planning instruction from a user will be described.

[0236] The relay transportation planning process executed in this relay transportation planning device 111 is basically the same as the relay transportation planning process of the first embodiment described above with reference to FIG.

[0237] However, in the case of this embodiment, in step S1 of the relay transportation planning process, the relay base candidate creation unit 114 of the control unit 113 of the relay transportation planning device 111 reads, as berth information, the acceptance time for accepting the transport vehicle at the berth of each berth from the portable storage medium via the media reading device 16 (FIG. 1), in addition to the above-mentioned baggage information, vehicle information, driver information, berth information, travel cost information, and evaluation information. Then, the relay base candidate creation unit 114 stores the read berth information in the berth information table 112.

[0238] In addition, in step S5 of the relay transportation plan processing, when determining the date and time for the transport vehicle to depart from a relay base after arriving at the relay base, the relay transportation plan proposal creation unit 115 identifies a berth that has been unused between the transport vehicle's arrival at the relay base and its departure, based on the berth information stored in the berth information table 112, and assigns that berth to the transport vehicle.

[0239] In addition, when a transportation device is assigned to a transportation group in this manner, information about the berth may also be displayed on the result summary display screen 50 described above with reference to Figure 16 displayed on the display device 15 (Figure 1) of the relay transportation planning device 2.

[0240] According to the relay transportation planning system 110 of this embodiment having the above-described configuration, in addition to the effects obtained by the first embodiment, it is possible to obtain the effect of being able to formulate more detailed relay transportation plans.

[0241] (4) Other embodiments In the above-described first to third embodiments, the relay transportation planning device 2, 104, 111 is described as being configured from a single general-purpose computer device, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the relay transportation planning device 2, 104, 111 may be configured as a distributed computing system made up of multiple computer devices.

[0242] In addition, in the above-mentioned first to third embodiments, we have described a case where zero or only one relay point candidate is determined between the collection point and the delivery point, but the present invention is not limited to this, and two or more relay point candidate may be determined.

[0243] Furthermore, in the above-mentioned first to third embodiments, the relay transportation plan evaluation unit 33 comprehensively evaluates the relay transportation plan from three perspectives, namely, "delivery delay," "operating time," and "driver satisfaction," but the present invention is not limited to this, and the relay transportation plan evaluation unit 33 may also evaluate the relay transportation plan from perspectives other than these. [Industrial Applicability]

[0244] The present invention can be widely applied to various transportation planning devices that create transportation plans for cargo requested for transportation. [Explanation of symbols]

[0245] 1,100,110...Relay transportation planning system, 2,104,111...Relay transportation planning device, 4...Driver terminal, 5...Vehicle terminal, 6...Base planning management terminal, 10...CPU, 15...Display device, 20,106,113...Control unit, 30,107,114...Relay base candidate creation unit, 31...Transportation group creation unit, 32,108,115...Relay transportation plan proposal creation unit, 33...Relay transportation plan proposal evaluation unit, 34...Luggage information table, 35...Vehicle information table, 36...Driver terminal ... Driver information table, 37...base information table, 38...travel cost information table, 39...evaluation information table, 40...relay base candidate information table, 41...transport group information table, 42...relay transport plan proposal information table, 50...result summary display screen, 70...driver schedule display screen, 80...transport schedule display screen, 90...base plan display screen, 101...transport equipment management terminal, 105...transport equipment information table, 112...berth information table.

Claims

1. In a transportation planning device that creates a transportation plan for cargo requested for transportation, a storage unit that stores and holds luggage information, which is information about each of the requested luggage, vehicle information, which is information about each transport vehicle that transports the luggage, and driver information, which is information about each driver that drives the transport vehicle; a control unit that creates one or more transport groups by grouping together the cargoes that have at least a partial overlap in transport routes and that are transported via the transport routes in the same time slot based on the cargo information, the vehicle information, and the driver information, and that creates the transport plan by assigning the transport vehicles and the drivers to each of the created transport groups; Equipped with The control unit Allocating the plurality of transport vehicles that travel in a convoy or the transport vehicles that tow the plurality of towed vehicles to the transport group as needed. A transportation planning device characterized by:

2. The control unit a relay point candidate creation unit that creates, for each of the transportation requests, relay point candidates that are candidates for relay points that relay the cargo to be transported; a transportation group creation unit that creates one or more transportation groups by grouping together the luggage that has a part of an overlapping transportation route that passes through the corresponding relay point candidate and that has a common transportation time period that passes through the overlapping transportation route; a transportation plan creation unit that creates the transportation plan by assigning the transportation vehicles and the drivers to each of the created transportation groups; The transportation planning device according to claim 1, further comprising:

3. The relay point candidate creation unit generating a plurality of patterns of relay point combinations in which the relay points are changed for a part or all of the transportation requests; The transportation group creation unit Create one or more transportation groups for each of the generated relay point combinations; The transportation plan creation unit creating the transportation plan for each of the combinations of relay points by assigning the transportation vehicle and the driver to each of the created transportation groups; The transportation system further includes a transportation plan evaluation unit that evaluates each of the transportation plans created by the transportation plan creation unit and outputs the transportation plan with the highest evaluation.

3. The transportation planning device according to claim 2.

4. The transportation plan creation unit If the amount of luggage bound for a specific delivery destination base that arrives at the candidate relay base within a predetermined time is greater than the amount of luggage that can be transported by one transport vehicle, or if the number of transport vehicles that transport the luggage bound for the specific delivery destination base to the candidate relay base within a predetermined time is greater than the number of transport vehicles that should depart from the candidate relay base for the delivery destination base within that time, assign multiple transport vehicles that travel in a convoy or the transport vehicle towing multiple towed vehicles to the transport group that transports the luggage from the candidate relay base to the delivery destination base within that time, When the transport routes overlap and the amount of cargo transported via the transport routes in the same time period is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount within a predetermined time period, the transport vehicles that travel in a convoy or the transport vehicle towing a plurality of towed vehicles are assigned to the transport group in which the cargo is transported via the transport route in the same time period.

3. The transportation planning device according to claim 2.

5. The storage unit storing a request for a travel method for each driver from a base in the driver's home location to a relay base or a delivery base; The control unit The drivers to be assigned to each of the transportation groups are determined based on the travel method requests of the respective drivers.

2. The transportation planning device according to claim 1.

6. The control unit The transport group is created taking into consideration constraints on the number of transport vehicles that can travel in platoon at the same time, constraints on the number of towed vehicles that can be towed at the same time, constraints on the cargo that can be loaded onto each transport vehicle traveling in platoon or multiple transport vehicles that can travel in platoon at the same time, or constraints on the cargo that can be loaded onto towed vehicles that can be towed by transport vehicles at the same time.

2. The transportation planning device according to claim 1.

7. A transportation planning method executed by a transportation planning device that creates a transportation plan for cargo requested for transportation, comprising: a first step of storing and holding luggage information, which is information about each of the requested luggage, vehicle information, which is information about each transport vehicle that transports the luggage, and driver information, which is information about each driver that drives the transport vehicle; a second step of creating the transportation plan by grouping together the cargoes that share at least a portion of the transport routes and have the same transport time period via the transport routes based on the cargo information, the vehicle information, and the driver information, and assigning the transport vehicles and the drivers to each of the created transport groups; Equipped with In the second step, the transportation planning device Allocating the plurality of transport vehicles that travel in a convoy or the transport vehicles that tow the plurality of towed vehicles to the transport group as needed. A transportation planning method comprising:

8. The second step includes: a relay point candidate creation step of creating, for each of the transportation requests, relay point candidates that are candidates for relay points that relay the cargo to be transported; a transportation group creation step of creating one or more transportation groups by grouping together the luggage that has a part of an overlapping transportation route that passes through the corresponding relay point candidate and that has a common transportation time zone that passes through the overlapping transportation route; a transportation plan creation step of creating the transportation plan by assigning the transportation vehicles and the drivers to each of the created transportation groups; The transportation planning method according to claim 7, further comprising:

9. In the relay point candidate generation step, generating a plurality of patterns of relay point combinations in which the relay points are changed for a part or all of the transportation requests; In the transportation group creation step, Create one or more transportation groups for each of the generated relay point combinations; In the transportation plan creation step, creating the transportation plan for each of the combinations of relay points by assigning the transportation vehicle and the driver to each of the created transportation groups; The method further includes a transportation plan evaluation step of evaluating each of the transportation plans created in the transportation plan creation step and outputting the transportation plan with the highest evaluation. The transportation planning method according to claim 8 .

10. In the transportation plan creation step, If the amount of luggage bound for a specific delivery destination base that arrives at the candidate relay base within a predetermined time is greater than the amount of luggage that can be transported by one transport vehicle, or if the number of transport vehicles that transport the luggage bound for the specific delivery destination base to the candidate relay base within a predetermined time is greater than the number of transport vehicles that should depart from the candidate relay base for the delivery destination base within that time, assign multiple transport vehicles that travel in a convoy or the transport vehicle towing multiple towed vehicles to the transport group that transports the luggage from the candidate relay base to the delivery destination base within that time, When the transport routes overlap and the amount of cargo transported via the transport routes in the same time period is equal to or greater than a predetermined amount within a predetermined time period, the transport vehicles that travel in a convoy or the transport vehicle towing a plurality of towed vehicles are assigned to the transport group in which the cargo is transported via the transport route in the same time period. The transportation planning method according to claim 8 .

11. In the first step, the transportation planning device storing a request for a travel method for each driver from a base in the driver's home location to a relay base or a delivery base; In the second step, the transportation planning device The drivers to be assigned to each of the transportation groups are determined based on the travel method requests of the respective drivers. The transportation planning method according to claim 7 .

12. In the second step, the transportation planning device The transport group is created taking into consideration constraints on the number of transport vehicles that can travel in platoon at the same time, constraints on the number of towed vehicles that can be towed at the same time, constraints on the cargo that can be loaded onto each transport vehicle traveling in platoon or multiple transport vehicles that can travel in platoon at the same time, or constraints on the cargo that can be loaded onto towed vehicles that can be towed by transport vehicles at the same time. The transportation planning method according to claim 7 .

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