Work support device, work support method, and work support program

Abstract

To reduce the burden of a person in charge by a movement instruction input job.SOLUTION: The movement instruction data generation unit automatically generates the movement instruction data in which the warehouse to which the final shipping warehouse flag indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse for shipping the ordered product is attached is set as the shipping warehouse of the product and the warehouse to which the final shipping warehouse flag indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse for shipping the ordered product is attached is set as the warehousing warehouse of the product from the warehouse to which the final shipping warehouse flag indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse for shipping the product is attached, thereby reducing the burden on the person in charge due to the movement instruction input work.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a business support device, a business support method, and a business support program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent document 1 (JP Patent Publication No. 2004-203531) discloses a distribution control system that includes a manufacturer connected via a communication network, a master warehouse that receives business consumables from the manufacturer, and multiple branch warehouses that are geographically distributed, receive business consumables from the master warehouse, and deliver the business consumables to customers.

[0003] This distribution control system calculates and stores the probability of an order quantity occurring over time for each possible order quantity from a customer for a specific product, based on the order probability obtained from a database that manages time-series order probabilities for each product or customer.The system then calculates the optimum inventory quantity for a specific product at a specific time based on the probability of the order quantity occurring, associates the calculated optimum inventory quantity with notification destination information stored in a notification destination database, and notifies the calculated optimum inventory quantity via a specified communication line.

[0004] This allows for centralized inventory management of business consumables, and enables distribution control through inventory management that allows business consumables to be delivered to users in a short time with a small amount of stock. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-203531 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] Here, when issuing an instruction to ship goods stored in a warehouse, the person in charge must first enter an order and then input a movement instruction to instruct the shipment of the goods stored in the warehouse, which creates a burden.

[0007] The present invention has been made in consideration of the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a task support device, a task support method, and a task support program that can reduce the burden on a person in charge of inputting movement instructions. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the business support device of the present invention includes a priority detection unit that references a priority warehouse master table in which a priority order is stored for each warehouse as a warehouse from which goods are to be shipped, and detects the priority of the warehouse from which ordered goods are to be shipped; an inventory quantity detection unit that references an inventory data storage unit in which inventory quantities of goods are stored, and detects the inventory quantities of goods in each warehouse in the order of the priorities detected by the priority detection unit; an allocation processing unit that performs allocation processing for the ordered quantities of goods in the order of warehouse priority based on the inventory quantities of each warehouse; and when all ordered quantities of goods have been allocated using the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, order data is generated that includes the ordered quantities of goods, the warehouse that has allocated the ordered quantities of goods, and the warehouse that has allocated the ordered quantities of goods, and when a backlog of goods occurs as a result of allocating goods using the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, and when an ordered quantity that results in a backlog of goods is allocated using the inventory quantity of a warehouse with a priority second or lower, a main order data is generated that includes the warehouse with the highest priority and the ordered quantity of goods that has been allocated using the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority out of all ordered quantities of goods. the order data generation unit generates order data divided into sub-order data including the main order data, one or more warehouses with second or lower priority used in allocating the ordered quantity of goods that will become the backlog, and the order quantity that has been allocated from the order quantity that will become the backlog; the order data generation unit adds a final output warehouse flag, which is information indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped, to the main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority, and adds a final output warehouse flag, which is information indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped, to the sub-order data including the one or more warehouses with second or lower priority that have been allocated the ordered quantity that will become the backlog; a transfer instruction data generation unit generates transfer instruction data that sets a warehouse with a final output warehouse flag, which is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped, as the output warehouse for the goods, and a warehouse with a final output warehouse flag, which is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped, as the receiving warehouse for the goods from the warehouse with a final output warehouse flag, which is not the warehouse from which the goods will be shipped; and an output control unit outputs the transfer instruction data to an output target device.

[0009] In order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, the business support method according to the present invention includes a priority detection step in which a priority detection unit refers to a priority warehouse master table in which a priority order is stored for each warehouse as a warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped, and detects the priority of the warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped; an inventory quantity detection step in which an inventory quantity detection unit refers to an inventory data storage unit in which the inventory quantities of the goods are stored, and detects the inventory quantities of the goods in each warehouse in the order of the priorities detected in the priority detection step; and an allocation processing unit receives the goods in the order of the warehouse priorities based on the inventory quantities of each warehouse. an allocation processing step for performing allocation processing of orders, and an order data generation unit, when all orders for a product are allocated based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, generating order data including the order quantity of the product, the warehouse that allocated the order quantity of the product, and the warehouse that allocated the order quantity of the product, and when a backlog occurs as a result of allocating products based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, and when a backlog occurs as a result of allocating products based on the inventory quantity of a warehouse with a second or lower priority, the warehouse with the highest priority and the total order quantity of the product are allocated based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority The order data is divided into main order data including the order quantity, one or more warehouses with second or lower priority that were used to allocate the products for the order quantity that will become the backlog, and sub-order data including the order quantity that will become the backlog that has been allocated, and a final shipping warehouse flag is added to the main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority, which is information indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse from which the ordered products will be shipped, and a final shipping warehouse flag is added to the sub-order data including one or more warehouses with second or lower priority that have been used to allocate the product for the order quantity that will become the backlog that has been allocated, which is information indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the ordered products will be shipped. the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag indicating that the ordered goods are not being shipped from the warehouse as the goods shipping warehouse, and the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag indicating that the ordered goods are being shipped from the warehouse as the goods receiving warehouse from the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag indicating that the goods are not being shipped from the warehouse; and an output control step in which the output control unit outputs the movement instruction data to the output target device.

[0010] Furthermore, in order to solve the above-mentioned problems and achieve the object, a business support program according to the present invention includes a computer, a priority detection unit that references a priority warehouse master table in which a priority order is stored for each warehouse as a warehouse from which goods are to be shipped, and detects the priority of the warehouse from which ordered goods are to be shipped, a stock quantity detection unit that references an inventory data storage unit in which the stock quantities of goods are stored, and detects the stock quantities of goods in each warehouse in the order of the priorities detected by the priority detection unit, an allocation processing unit that performs allocation processing for ordered goods in the order of warehouse priority based on the stock quantities of each warehouse, and when all ordered goods have been allocated using the stock quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, order data is generated that includes the ordered goods quantity, the warehouse that has allocated the ordered goods quantity, and the warehouse that has allocated the ordered goods quantity, and when an allocation processing for ordered goods using the stock quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority results in a backlog, and when an allocation processing for ordered goods using the stock quantity of the warehouse with second or lower priority is performed for a backlog, the number of ordered goods that have been allocated using the stock quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority is allocated to the warehouse with the highest priority out of all ordered goods and sub-order data including the order quantity that has been allocated, and one or more warehouses with a priority of second or lower that have been used in allocating the order quantity that will become the backlog; and the order data generation unit adds a final output warehouse flag, which is information indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse from which the ordered goods are shipped, to the main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority, and adds a final output warehouse flag, which is information indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods are shipped, to the sub-order data including the one or more warehouses with a priority of second or lower that have been used in allocating the order quantity that will become the backlog; a transfer instruction data generation unit generates transfer instruction data that sets a warehouse with a final output warehouse flag, which is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods are shipped, as the output warehouse for the goods, and a warehouse with a final output warehouse flag, which is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods are shipped, as the receiving warehouse for the goods from the warehouse with a final output warehouse flag, which is not the warehouse from which the goods are shipped; and an output control unit that outputs the transfer instruction data to an output target device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0011] The present invention can reduce the burden on the person in charge of inputting travel instructions. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0012] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration of a task assistance device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a product master table. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of the warehouse master table. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a customer master table. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a customer-specific priority warehouse master table. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of the inventory data storage unit. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an outline of the operation of the task assistance device according to the embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a shipping form for a single shipment in which a business partner ships products from a single warehouse. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a shipping form in which regular products are moved from a plurality of regular warehouses to one regular warehouse, and then shipped from this one regular warehouse to a customer. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a shipping format in which, when shipping hazardous goods and normal goods to a customer, the hazardous goods are moved from a warehouse handling hazardous goods to a normal warehouse, and then the normal goods and hazardous goods are shipped to the customer from this normal warehouse. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 shows a shipping format in which, when shipping hazardous goods and normal goods to a customer, the normal goods are moved from a normal warehouse to a hazardous goods handling warehouse, and then the normal goods and hazardous goods are shipped to the customer from this hazardous goods handling warehouse. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining an example in which "regular products" corresponding to the ordered quantity can be shipped from the stock of the warehouse with the highest priority. [Figure 13]FIG. 13 is a diagram for explaining an example in which the warehouse with the highest priority has stock and is able to deliver "hazardous items" corresponding to the ordered quantity. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is a diagram for explaining an example in which the order quantity is allocated from the stocks of the warehouses handling dangerous goods with the highest and second highest priorities. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example in which allocation processing is performed using the inventory of the warehouse with the highest priority and the inventory of the warehouse with the second highest priority, and the product is moved to the warehouse with the highest priority and shipped out. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating an example in which allocation processing is performed using the inventory of the warehouse with the highest priority and the inventory of the warehouse with the third highest priority, and the product is moved to the warehouse with the highest priority and shipped out. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is a diagram illustrating an example in which allocation processing is performed using the stocks of the warehouses with the second and third highest priorities, and the product is moved to the warehouse with the second highest priority and shipped out. [Figure 18] FIG. 18 is a diagram illustrating an example in which allocation processing is performed using the stocks of the warehouses with the highest to third highest priorities, and the product is moved to the warehouse with the highest priority and shipped out. [Figure 19] FIG. 19 is a diagram for explaining an example in which a product is moved to and shipped from a regular warehouse designated as the final shipping warehouse. [Figure 20] FIG. 20 is a diagram for explaining an example in which a product is moved to a warehouse that handles dangerous goods and is designated as the final shipping warehouse and then shipped out. [Figure 21] FIG. 21 is another diagram for explaining an example in which goods are moved to and shipped from a warehouse that handles dangerous goods and is designated as the final shipping warehouse. [Figure 22] FIG. 22 is a diagram illustrating an example in which an error notification is issued due to an inventory shortage as a result of allocation processing. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0013] An example of application of the present invention to a business support device for inventory management and shipping operations in the chemical industry, which handles normal and hazardous products, will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings. Note that the present invention is not limited to the following embodiment, and can be applied to any device that performs inventory management and shipping operations for products.

[0014] (overview) There are many companies in the chemical industry that handle hazardous materials. Warehouses that can store hazardous materials are regulated by the Fire Service Act as shown below, and warehouses that store normal goods and warehouses that store hazardous materials are clearly separated.

[0015] Article 10, Paragraph 1 of the Fire Service Act: Hazardous materials in quantities greater than the designated amount must not be stored in any location other than a storage facility, or handled in any location other than a manufacturing facility, storage facility, or handling facility.

[0016] In addition, "dangerous goods" are defined in the Fire Service Act as follows:

[0017] 1: High risk of fire 2: High risk of fire spreading 3: Fires that are difficult to extinguish

[0018] (Automatic decision on shipping warehouse taking into account dangerous goods) When dangerous goods are stored only in specific warehouses, it is necessary to correctly determine which warehouse to designate as the warehouse from which goods are to be shipped when an order is placed. Previously, the warehouse from which goods were to be shipped was determined manually by referencing the ordered items and the inventory of the warehouse, and based on information on the location or strength of logistics functions. This placed a heavy burden on the person in charge, and the decision on the warehouse from which goods were to be shipped was inaccurate from the perspective of inventory balance.

[0019] For this reason, the business support device of the embodiment automatically determines the shipping warehouse based on the following criteria.

[0020] 1. Type of item being shipped (dangerous goods or normal goods) 2. Order quantity and inventory in the warehouse 3. Warehouse priority (set warehouse priority for each customer and each product)

[0021] If the inventory of all prioritized warehouses falls below the shipping quantity, the order data will be automatically divided in order of priority.

[0022] This allows the warehouse to be automatically determined when an order is placed, reducing the burden on the person in charge and reducing the risk of human error in specifying the shipping warehouse.It also prevents bias in warehouse decisions made by each person in charge, enabling more precise inventory management.

[0023] (Automation of movement instructions for bulk shipments) Next, when orders are placed for products from multiple warehouses at the same time, or when orders are placed for both regular and hazardous items at the same time, there is a possibility that the delivery dates will differ if the items are shipped separately. Therefore, regular and hazardous items are temporarily consolidated into one warehouse and shipped together.

[0024] Regarding the warehouse to be consolidated, there are various operations depending on the company. For example, some companies consolidate dangerous goods into a regular warehouse because the warehouse handling dangerous goods does not have a logistics system in place, or some companies consolidate dangerous goods into a dangerous goods warehouse because they do not want to move dangerous goods to a regular warehouse even temporarily.

[0025] To carry out this type of operation, it is necessary to issue separate instructions to transfer inventory after an order is received, which places a burden on the person in charge.In addition, there is a time lag between recording the order and recording the transfer instructions, which causes inconveniences such as delays in shipping timing.

[0026] For this reason, the business support device of the embodiment automatically issues a movement instruction when an order is recorded and simultaneous shipping from multiple warehouses is required. Specifically, the warehouse from which the order will be shipped is managed using a final shipping warehouse flag. In addition, the device has a function that allows for general use of either a normal warehouse or a hazardous goods warehouse as the shipping warehouse.

[0027] As a result, the business support device of the embodiment can automatically issue a transfer instruction as needed when an order is received, reducing the burden on the person in charge. Also, it is possible to record the transfer instruction at the same time as the order is received, preventing a time lag between recording the order and the transfer instruction, and enabling the transfer instruction to be confirmed in real time.

[0028] (Hardware configuration) As shown in FIG. 1, the business support device 1 of the embodiment includes a storage unit 2, a control unit 3, a communication interface unit 4, and an input / output interface unit 5. An input device 6 and an output device 7 are connected to the input / output interface unit 5. The output device 7 corresponds to a display unit such as a monitor device (including a home television), a printing device, or a speaker device. The input device 6 may be a keyboard device, a mouse device, a microphone device, or a monitor device that cooperates with a mouse device to achieve a pointing device function. The communication interface unit 4 is connected to a network, for example, a wide area network such as the Internet or a private network such as a LAN (Local Area Network).

[0029] A storage device such as a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), or an SSD (Solid State Drive) can be used as the storage unit 2. The storage unit 2 stores a work support program that can reduce the burden on a person in charge of inputting movement instructions.

[0030] The storage unit 2 also includes a product master table 11, a warehouse master table 12, a customer master table 13, a customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14, an inventory data storage unit 15, an order data storage unit 16, and a movement instruction data storage unit 17, each of which is a storage area.

[0031] The product master table 11 is a master table in which a danger flag indicating whether the product is a normal product or a dangerous product is set for each product. The product master table 11 includes a product code, a product name, and a dangerous product flag as shown in FIG.

[0032] In the example of Figure 2, a product with the product code "TSHOUHIN100" and the product name "Normal Product 100" has a hazardous product flag set to "0 (normal product)" indicating that it is a normal product, and a product with the product code "KSHOUHIN100" and the product name "Dangerous Product 100" has a hazardous product flag set to "1 (hazardous product)" indicating that it is a hazardous product.

[0033] The warehouse master table 12 is a master table in which a hazardous goods handling warehouse flag is set for each warehouse, indicating whether the warehouse is a warehouse that stores normal goods or a warehouse that stores hazardous goods. This warehouse master table 12 includes a warehouse code, a warehouse name, and a hazardous goods handling warehouse flag, as shown in Figure 3.

[0034] The example in Figure 3 is an example in which a dangerous goods handling warehouse flag of "0 (normal warehouse)" is set for each of the warehouses with warehouse names "Warehouse 100" to "Warehouse 500" and warehouse codes "TSOUKO100" to "TSOUKO500". Also, the example in Figure 3 is an example in which a dangerous goods handling warehouse flag of "1 (hazardous goods handling warehouse)" is set for each of the warehouses with warehouse names "hazardous goods handling warehouse 100" to "hazardous goods handling warehouse 500" and warehouse codes "KSOUKO100" to "KSOUKO500".

[0035] The final shipping warehouse for a product is set in advance for each customer in the customer master table 13. As shown in Figure 4, this customer master table 13 includes a customer code, a customer name, and a final shipping warehouse selection flag.

[0036] In the example of Figure 4, for a customer with customer code "TOKUISAKI100" and customer name "Customer 100", "0 (shipping from a normal warehouse)" is set, specifying that the final shipping warehouse for the product will be from a normal warehouse. Also, in the example of Figure 4, for a customer with customer code "TOKUISAKI200" and customer name "Customer 200", "1 (shipping from a dangerous goods warehouse)" is set, specifying that the final shipping warehouse for the product will be from a dangerous goods warehouse.

[0037] The customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 is a master table in which the priority of warehouses that allocate ordered products is set for each customer and each type of product. As shown in Figure 5, this customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 includes the customer code, hazardous goods handling warehouse flag, warehouse code, and priority.

[0038] The example in Figure 5 shows a case where a priority of "1" is set for the warehouse with warehouse code "TSOUKO100" for a customer with customer code "TOKUISAKI100" that has a dangerous goods handling warehouse flag of "0 (normal warehouse)", a priority of "2" is set for the warehouse with warehouse code "TSOUKO300", and a priority of "3" is set for the warehouse with warehouse code "TSOUKO500".

[0039] In addition, the example in Figure 5 is an example in which a priority of "1" is set for the warehouse with warehouse code "KSOUKO100" for the customer with customer code "TOKUISAKI100" that has a hazardous goods handling warehouse flag of "1 (hazardous goods handling warehouse)", a priority of "2" is set for the warehouse with warehouse code "KSOUKO200", and a priority of "3" is set for the warehouse with warehouse code "KSOUKO400".

[0040] The inventory quantity of products stored in each warehouse is stored in the inventory data storage unit 15. This inventory data storage unit 15 has a storage area for normal products shown in Fig. 6(a) and a storage area for hazardous products shown in Fig. 6(b), and each storage area stores the warehouse code of each warehouse, the product code of the stored product, and the inventory quantity.

[0041] The example in Figure 6(a) shows that the warehouses with warehouse codes "TSOUKO100" to "TSOUKO500" store 100 units, 80 units, 40 units, 120 units, and 50 units of the regular product with product code "TSHOUHIN100," respectively.

[0042] In addition, the example in Figure 6(b) shows that the warehouses with warehouse codes "KSOUKO100" to "KSOUKO500" store 100 units, 80 units, 40 units, 120 units, and 50 units of hazardous goods with product code "KSHOUHIN100," respectively.

[0043] (Functional configuration of business support device) Next, the control unit 3 executes the business support program stored in the memory unit 2, thereby functioning as a detection unit 21, an allocation processing unit 22, a data generation unit 23, an output control unit 24, and a discrimination unit 25, as shown in Fig. 1. The detection unit 21 includes a priority detection unit 26 and an inventory quantity detection unit 27. Furthermore, the data generation unit 23 includes an order data generation unit 28 and a movement instruction data generation unit 29.

[0044] In this example, the detection unit 21 to the movement instruction data generation unit 29 are described as being realized by software based on a business support program, but some or all of the detection unit 21 to the movement instruction data generation unit 29 may be realized by hardware. In either case, the same effects as those described below can be obtained.

[0045] The priority detection unit 26 of the detection unit 21 refers to a priority warehouse master table (customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 shown in Figure 5) in which the priority of each warehouse is stored as the warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped, and detects the priority of the warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped.

[0046] The inventory quantity detection unit 27 of the detection unit 21 refers to the inventory data storage unit 15 (see Figure 6) in which the inventory quantities of products are stored, and detects the inventory quantities of products in each warehouse in the order of each priority detected by the priority detection unit 26.

[0047] The allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the ordered quantity of merchandise in order of warehouse priority based on the inventory quantity in each warehouse.

[0048] When the entire ordered quantity of a product is allocated based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, the order data generation unit 28 of the data generation unit 23 generates order data including the ordered quantity of the product and the warehouse that allocated the ordered quantity of the product (see Figure 12).

[0049] Furthermore, when a backlog occurs as a result of allocating products based on the inventory quantity in the warehouse with the highest priority, and the ordered quantity of products resulting in the backlog is allocated based on the inventory quantity in a warehouse with a second or lower priority, the order data generation unit 28 generates primary order data including the ordered quantity of products that have been allocated based on the inventory quantity in the warehouse with the highest priority out of the total ordered quantity of products at the warehouse with the highest priority (see the data in the upper part of Figure 15(d)). Furthermore, the order data generation unit 28 generates order data divided into secondary order data including the ordered quantity that has been allocated out of the order quantity resulting in the backlog and one or more warehouses with a second or lower priority that have been used for allocating products for the ordered quantity resulting in the backlog (see the data in the lower part of Figure 15(d)).

[0050] Additionally, the order data generation unit 28 adds a final shipping warehouse flag, which is information indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse from which the ordered goods are shipped, to the main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority (see the data in the upper part of FIG. 15(e)). Additionally, the order data generation unit 28 adds a final shipping warehouse flag, which is information indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods are shipped, to the secondary order data including one or more warehouses with second or lower priority that have performed allocation processing for the remaining ordered goods (see the data in the lower part of FIG. 15(e)).

[0051] The output control unit 24 outputs the order data to an output target device. The output target device may be a monitor display unit (image output), a printer (print output), a speaker device (audio output), etc. In addition to the storage unit 2, the output target device may be an external storage device, a server device on a network, etc.

[0052] When a backlog occurs due to the allocation process of the goods based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, the allocation processing unit 22 selects the warehouse with the inventory quantity that can allocate the entire order quantity from among the warehouses with each priority and performs the allocation process (see Figures 16(d) and 17(d)).

[0053] The order data generation unit 28 generates main order data with a final shipping warehouse flag added, which designates the warehouse with the highest priority among the warehouses used in the allocation process as the warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped (see the data in the upper row of Figure 16(d) and the data in the upper row of Figure 17(d)).

[0054] The goods may be of at least a first type (eg, normal goods) and a second type (eg, dangerous goods) different from the first type (see Figures 2 and 6).

[0055] The warehouse can be a warehouse that stores a first type of product (a normal warehouse) and a warehouse that stores a second type of product (a warehouse that handles dangerous goods) (see FIGS. 4 and 5).

[0056] The determination unit 25 refers to the product master table 11 (see FIG. 2) in which type information indicating the first type or the second type is stored for each product, and determines the type of the ordered product.

[0057] The allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing of the ordered quantity of each type of product based on the priority order of the inventory quantity of the warehouse where the products of the type identified by the identification unit 25 are stored (see Figures 5, 12, and 13).

[0058] When the allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing of the order quantity for each type of product based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse where each type of product is stored (see Figure 6), the order data generation unit 28 refers to the final shipping warehouse selection master table (customer master table 13 in Figure 4) in which a final shipping warehouse selection flag is stored, which is information indicating the warehouse from which the first type of product and the second type of product will be shipped, out of the warehouse storing the first type of product and the warehouse storing the second type of product.

[0059] Then, when a warehouse storing the first type of product is specified as the final shipping warehouse (see Figure 19(c)), the order data generation unit 28 generates main order data with a final shipping warehouse flag added, specifying the warehouse with the highest priority among the warehouses storing the first type of product that has undergone allocation processing as the warehouse from which the ordered first and second type of products will be shipped (see Figure 19(f)).

[0060] In addition, when a warehouse storing the second type of product is specified as the final shipping warehouse (see Figure 20(c)), the order data generation unit 28 generates main order data with a final shipping warehouse flag added, which designates the warehouse with the highest priority among the warehouses storing the second type of product that has undergone allocation processing as the warehouse from which the ordered first and second type of product will be shipped (see Figure 21(b)).

[0061] (Operation overview) The business support device 1 of this embodiment automatically determines the warehouse to allocate ordered products for each customer and each type of product (normal product or hazardous product) based on the priority of each warehouse, as shown in Fig. 7. Then, it generates order data with a final shipping warehouse flag that designates the warehouse with the highest priority among the warehouses used for allocation as the shipping warehouse, and stores the order data in the order data storage unit 16.

[0062] In addition, among the warehouses used for allocation, the warehouse with the highest priority is designated as the receiving warehouse for the ordered goods, and movement instruction data is generated to instruct the other warehouses as shipping warehouses from which the goods will be moved to the receiving warehouse, and is stored in the movement instruction data storage unit 17.

[0063] Based on this movement instruction data, a shipping instruction is issued for the products collected in the warehouse with the highest priority, and the products are shipped to the customer.

[0064] Specific shipping formats are shown in Figures 8 to 11. Figure 8 is a diagram showing shipping formats for individual shipments of normal goods or hazardous goods. Of these, Figure 8(a) is a diagram showing shipping formats for individual shipments of normal goods. As shown in Figure 8(a), normal goods are usually shipped from a normal warehouse to a customer. Also, Figure 8(b) is a diagram showing shipping formats for individual shipments of hazardous goods. As shown in Figure 8(b), hazardous goods are usually shipped from a warehouse that handles hazardous goods to a customer.

[0065] In contrast, Figure 9 shows a shipping format in which regular products are moved from multiple regular warehouses to a single regular warehouse, and then shipped to a customer from this single regular warehouse. The warehouse to which regular products are moved (the warehouse from which they are shipped) is often set in advance.

[0066] Next, Figure 10 shows a shipping format in which, when shipping hazardous goods and normal goods to a customer, the hazardous goods are moved from a hazardous goods handling warehouse to a normal warehouse, and then the normal goods and hazardous goods are shipped to the customer from this normal warehouse.

[0067] In contrast, Figure 11 shows a shipping method in which, when shipping hazardous goods and normal goods to a customer, the normal goods are moved from a normal warehouse to a hazardous goods handling warehouse, and then the normal goods and hazardous goods are shipped to the customer from this hazardous goods handling warehouse.

[0068] The normal warehouse to which hazardous materials are moved (normal warehouse from which they are shipped) shown in Figure 10, or the hazardous materials handling warehouse to which normal materials are moved (hazardous materials handling warehouse from which they are shipped) shown in Figure 11, are often set in advance.

[0069] (Automatic decision making in warehouse) Next, when recording an order, the business support device 1 of the embodiment refers to the product master table 11 using the product code on the order recording screen as a key, and automatically determines the warehouse using the following logic.

[0070] If the dangerous goods flag in the product master is "0: Normal goods" (1) Using the customer code on the order entry screen as a key, determine the candidate warehouses in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14, and compare the inventory data with the product / order quantity on the order entry screen to determine the shipping warehouse. Check the inventory data for the warehouse with priority "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master, and then perform the following process.

[0071] If the inventory quantity in the inventory data is greater than or equal to the number of orders on the order entry screen, the warehouse with priority "n" in the customer priority warehouse master table 14 is automatically set as the warehouse on the order entry screen (one line of details).

[0072] If the stock quantity in the stock data is less than the number of orders on the order entry screen, add 1 to the value of "n" and perform the same process.

[0073] "n" is a natural number equal to or greater than 1, and if the value of "n" becomes the highest priority (using customer code / hazardous goods handling warehouse flag as key) in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 during processing, the following processing is performed.

[0074] If the inventory quantity in the inventory data is greater than or equal to the number of orders on the order entry screen, the warehouse with priority "n" in the customer priority warehouse master table 14 is automatically set as the warehouse on the order entry screen (one line of details).

[0075] If the inventory quantity in the inventory data is less than the number of orders on the order entry screen, and the total inventory quantity of warehouses with priorities of "1" to "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master is greater than or equal to the number of orders on the order entry screen, the system will proceed to process (2) described below.

[0076] On the other hand, if the total stock quantity of warehouses with priority levels "1" to "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 is less than the number of orders on the order entry screen, an error message is displayed due to a shortage of stock.

[0077] (2) Determining the two-part split pattern 1. Calculate the stock quantity of the warehouse with priority "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the stock quantity of the warehouse with priority "(n+1)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 (n+(n+1)). Then, If n+(n+1)≧the number of orders on the order entry screen, the details on the order entry screen are divided into two, and the warehouse priorities for each detail are set to the priorities "n" and "(n+1)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0078] In contrast, If n+(n+1)<the number of orders on the order entry screen, proceed to step 2 below.

[0079] 2. Calculate the stock quantity of the warehouse with priority "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the stock quantity of the warehouse with priority "(n+2)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 (n+(n+2)). Then, If n+(n+2)≧the number of orders on the order entry screen, the details on the order entry screen are divided into two, and the warehouses for each detail are assigned the priorities of "n" and "(n+2)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0080] In contrast, If n+(n+2)<the number of orders on the order entry screen, proceed to the process of "3." below.

[0081] 3. Calculate the quantity of inventory with priority "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the quantity of inventory with priority "(n+N)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 (n+(n+N)). "N" is the value that determines the priority of (n+N) in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0082] If n+(n+N)≧the number of orders on the order entry screen, the details on the order entry screen are divided into two, and the warehouses for each detail are assigned the priorities of "n" and "(n+N)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0083] If n+(n+N)<the number of orders on the Order Recording Screen, add 1 to the value of "n" and repeat steps "1" to "3" in (2).

[0084] "n" starts from 1, and if the value of "n+1" becomes the highest priority (using customer code / hazardous goods handling warehouse flag as key) in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 during the process, the following processing is performed.

[0085] If n+(n+1)≧the number of orders on the order entry screen, the details on the order entry screen are divided into two, and the warehouses for each detail are set to the priorities of "n" and "(n+1)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0086] If n+(n+1)<the number of orders on the order entry screen, the process will proceed to "(3) Three-way split detail pattern" explained below.

[0087] (3) Determining the three-part split pattern 1. Calculate the quantity of inventory with priority "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the quantity of inventory with priority "(n+1)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the quantity of inventory with priority "(n+2)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 (n+(n+1)+(n+2)).

[0088] If n+(n+1)+(n+2)≧the number of orders on the order entry screen, the details on the order entry screen are divided into three, and the warehouses for each detail are assigned the priorities of "n", "(n+1)", and "(n+2)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0089] If n+(n+1)+(n+2)<the number of orders on the order entry screen, proceed to step 2 below.

[0090] 2. Calculate the quantity of inventory with priority "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the quantity of inventory with priority "(n+1)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the quantity of inventory with priority "(n+3)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 (n+(n+1)+(n+3)).

[0091] If n+(n+1)+(n+3)≧the number of orders on the order entry screen, the details on the order entry screen are divided into three parts, and the warehouses for each detail are assigned the priorities of "n", "(n+1)", and "(n+3)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0092] If n+(n+1)+(n+3)<the number of orders on the order entry screen, proceed to step 3 below.

[0093] 3. Calculate the quantity of inventory with priority "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the quantity of inventory with priority "(n+1)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the quantity of inventory with priority "(n+N)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 (n+(n+1)+(n+N)) (N is the value such that (n+N) is the priority in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14).

[0094] If n+(n+1)+(n+N)≧the number of orders on the order entry screen, the details on the order entry screen are divided into three parts, and the warehouses for each detail are assigned the priorities of "n", "(n+1)", and "(n+N)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0095] If n+(n+1)+(n+N)<the number of orders on the order entry screen, proceed to process (A) below.

[0096] (A) Calculate the inventory quantity for warehouses with priority of "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the inventory quantity for warehouses with priority of "(n+2)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the inventory quantity for warehouses with priority of "(n+3)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 (n+(n+2)+(n+3)).

[0097] · n + (n + 2) + (n + 3) ≧ Order entry screen. If the number of orders is greater than or equal to 3, the details on the order entry screen are divided into three parts, and the warehouses for each detail are assigned the priorities "n", "(n + 2)", and "(n + 3)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0098] If n+(n+2)+(n+3)<the number of orders on the order entry screen, proceed to process (B) below.

[0099] (B) Calculate the quantity of inventory with priority "n" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the quantity of inventory with priority "(n+2)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 + the quantity of inventory with priority "(n+N)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 (n+(n+2)+(n+N)) (N is the value such that (n+N) is the priority in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14).

[0100] ·n+(n+2)+(n+N)≧Order entry screen. When the number of orders is greater than or equal to n, the details on the order entry screen are divided into three parts, and the warehouses for each detail are assigned the priorities of "n", "(n+2)", and "(n+N)" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0101] If n+(n+2)+(n+N)<the number of orders on the order entry screen, the process will shift to the 4-part detail pattern.

[0102] "n" is a natural number equal to or greater than 1, and if the value of "n+2" becomes the highest priority (using the customer code / hazardous goods handling warehouse flag as keys) in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 during processing, the following processing is performed.

[0103] If n+(n+1)+(n+2)≧the number of orders on the order entry screen, the details on the order entry screen are divided into three, and the warehouses for each detail are assigned the priorities of "n", "(n+1)", and "n+2" in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0104] If n+(n+1)+(n+2)<the number of orders on the order entry screen, the process will move to the 4-detail split pattern, which is the same process as the 2-detail split pattern and the 3-detail split pattern described above.

[0105] If the dangerous goods flag in product master table 11 is "1: dangerous goods" · The same processing as for normal goods is carried out (the details for which the dangerous goods handling warehouse flag in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 is "1: dangerous goods handling warehouse" are targeted).

[0106] When the order contains a mixture of products with the dangerous goods flag in product master table 11 set to "0: normal goods" and "1: dangerous goods" The automatic determination process for the shipping warehouse is the same as for normal / hazardous items alone, and processing is performed in order of the lowest detail number on the order entry screen.

[0107] (Setting behavior of the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen) The initial display shows that "NULL data" has been entered, indicating that no value has been entered for any of the order details.

[0108] When you assign the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen, the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen will be changed using the following logic.

[0109] (1) When the product code specified in each order detail on the order entry screen is either only normal products or only dangerous products.

[0110] 1. For each order detail, the customer code / warehouse code on the order entry screen is used as a key to refer to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14, and the priority value of the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 is obtained.

[0111] 2. For the order details with the smallest priority value in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14, the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen is set to "1."

[0112] 3. For other order details, set the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen to "0".

[0113] (2) When both normal and hazardous items are specified as product codes on the order entry screen in the same order slip (when an order contains a mixture of normal and hazardous items)

[0114] 1. Order entry screen. The value of the final shipping warehouse selection flag in the customer master table 13 is obtained using the customer code as a key.

[0115] (A) If the value of the final shipping warehouse selection flag in the customer master is "0: Shipping from a normal warehouse," the value of the dangerous goods handling warehouse flag in the warehouse master table 12 is obtained for each order detail using the order entry screen warehouse code as a key.

[0116] (B) For details specifying a warehouse for which the value of the dangerous goods handling warehouse flag in the warehouse master table 12 is "0: normal warehouse," the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 is referenced using the customer code / warehouse code on the order entry screen as a key, and the priority value in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 is obtained.

[0117] (C) For the order detail with the smallest priority value in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 among the details focused on in (B), the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen is set to "1".

[0118] (D) For order details other than these, set the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen to "0."

[0119] For example, if the warehouse of a customer whose customer code on the order entry screen is "TOKUISAKI100 (common to all details)" is specified as follows: Detail 1: TSOUKO100 (normal warehouse) Priority of customer-specific preferred warehouse master: 1 Detail 2: TSOUKO500 (normal warehouse) Priority of customer-specific preferred warehouse master: 3 Detail 3: KSOUKO100 (warehouse handling dangerous goods) Priority of customer-specific preferred warehouse master: 1 Detail 4: KSOUKO200 (warehouse handling dangerous goods) Priority of customer-specific preferred warehouse master: 2

[0120] This is a detail in which the dangerous goods handling warehouse flag in the warehouse master is "0: normal warehouse" and the priority in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 is the lowest.

[0121] The final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen for Detail 1 will be set to "1", and the final shipping warehouse flags on the order entry screens for the other Detail 2 to 4 will be set to "0".

[0122] 2. If the value of the Customer Master Final Shipping Warehouse Selection Flag is "1: Shipping from dangerous goods handling warehouse" (A) For each order detail, the value of the dangerous goods handling warehouse flag in the warehouse master table 12 is obtained using the warehouse code on the order entry screen as a key.

[0123] (B) For details specifying a warehouse where the value of the dangerous goods handling warehouse flag in the warehouse master table 12 is "1: dangerous goods handling warehouse," the order entry screen uses the customer code / warehouse code as a key to refer to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 and obtains the priority value in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14.

[0124] (C) For the order detail with the smallest priority value in the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 among the details focused on in (B), the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen is set to "1".

[0125] (D) For order details other than these, set the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen to "0."

[0126] For example, if the customer code on the order entry screen is "TOKUISAKI100 (common to all details)" and the warehouse of the customer is specified as follows: Detail 1: TSOUKO100 (normal warehouse) Priority of customer-specific preferred warehouse master: 1 Detail 2: TSOUKO500 (normal warehouse) Priority of customer-specific preferred warehouse master: 3 Detail 3: KSOUKO100 (warehouse handling dangerous goods) Priority of customer-specific preferred warehouse master: 1 Detail 4: KSOUKO200 (warehouse handling dangerous goods) Priority of customer-specific preferred warehouse master: 2

[0127] This is a detail where the dangerous goods handling warehouse flag in the warehouse master is "1: dangerous goods handling warehouse" and where the priority in the customer-specific priority warehouse master is the lowest.

[0128] In addition, the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen for Detail 3 will be set to "1", and the final shipping warehouse flags on the order entry screens for the other Detail 1, 2, and 4 will be set to "0".

[0129] After the final shipping warehouse flag is assigned, it can be freely switched between "0" and "1" on the order entry screen. It is recommended that there is only one item on a single order slip for which the final shipping warehouse flag on the order entry screen is set to "1."

[0130] (Automatic creation of movement instruction data) If there are multiple details on the order slip and multiple warehouse codes are specified on the order entry screen, the transfer instruction data will be created using the following logic when the order slip is registered.

[0131] If there are multiple warehouses with the final shipping warehouse flag set to 0 on the Order Recording Screen, the detail lines for the transfer instruction data will be split.

[0132] 1. If there is a line item with the last shipping warehouse flag = 1 Details for which the final shipping warehouse flag is set to 1 -> Transfer instruction data is created with the warehouse specified in the order details as the receiving warehouse in the transfer instruction data and the order quantity as the receiving quantity. Details for which the final shipping warehouse flag is 0 -> Create transfer instruction data with the warehouse specified in the order details as the shipping warehouse in the transfer instruction data and the order quantity as the shipping quantity.

[0133] 2. If there are no details with the final shipping warehouse flag = 1 Movement instruction data is not automatically generated.

[0134] (Example of operation) Hereinafter, the automatic warehouse determination operation and the automatic movement instruction data creation operation in the task support device 1 of the embodiment will be described using examples.

[0135] (Example of standard product shipping) First, the example shown in Fig. 12 is an example in which "regular items" corresponding to the ordered quantity are available for shipment from the inventory of the warehouse with the highest priority. That is, when a person in charge inputs an order such as a scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via an order input screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including an automatically generated order number and line number, and the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in Fig. 12(a).

[0136] In this example, the determination unit 25 determines that the product to be shipped is a "normal product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in FIG. 12(b) based on the product code "TSHOUHIN100".

[0137] The priority detection unit 26 refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code, which in this example is "TOKUISAKI100," and detects the highest priority regular warehouse (in this example, "TSOUKO100") among the regular warehouses set for that customer, as shown in Figure 12(c).

[0138] Furthermore, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantity of the regular product with the product code "TSHOUHIN100" in the regular warehouse with the warehouse code "TSOUKO100" by referring to the inventory data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(a) based on the warehouse code "TSOUKO100" and the product code "TSHOUHIN100". In this example, the inventory quantity detected is "100 units".

[0139] If the stock quantity of regular items in the regular warehouse with the highest priority is equal to or greater than the ordered quantity, the allocation processing unit 22 allocates the ordered quantity of regular items to the stock quantity in the regular warehouse with the highest priority. The order data generation unit 28 adds the warehouse code "TSOUKO100" indicating the regular warehouse where the allocation processing of the ordered quantity of regular items was performed to the order data, as shown in Figure 12(d), and stores it in the order data storage unit 16.

[0140] This order data can be output at a desired timing by the output control unit 24 (for example, as a display output via the output device 7).

[0141] (Example of dangerous goods shipment) Next, the example shown in Fig. 13 is an example in which "hazardous items" corresponding to the ordered quantity can be shipped from the inventory of the warehouse with the highest priority. That is, when the person in charge inputs the order information such as the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via the order input screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including the automatically generated order number and line number, the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in Fig. 13(a).

[0142] In this example, the determination unit 25 determines that the product to be shipped is a "hazardous product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in FIG. 13(b) based on the product code "KSHOUHIN100."

[0143] The priority detection unit 26 refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code, which in this example is "TOKUISAKI100," and detects the warehouse handling hazardous materials with the highest priority (in this example, "KSOUKO100") among the warehouses handling hazardous materials set for that customer, as shown in Figure 13(c).

[0144] Furthermore, the stock quantity detection unit 27 detects the stock quantity of the product with the product code "KSHOUHIN100" in the warehouse with the warehouse code "KSOUKO100" by referring to the stock data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(b) based on the warehouse code "KSOUKO100" and the product code "KSHOUHIN100". In this example, the stock quantity detected is "100 units".

[0145] If the inventory quantity of hazardous goods at the warehouse with the highest priority is equal to or greater than the ordered quantity, the allocation processing unit 22 allocates the ordered quantity of hazardous goods to the inventory quantity at the warehouse handling hazardous goods with the highest priority. The order data generation unit 28 adds the warehouse code "KSOUKO100" indicating the warehouse handling hazardous goods where the allocation process for the ordered quantity of hazardous goods was performed to the order data, as shown in Figure 13(d), and stores it in the order data storage unit 16.

[0146] This order data can be output at a desired timing by the output control unit 24 (for example, as a display output via the output device 7).

[0147] (Example of allocation processing in warehouse inventory for handling dangerous goods with the highest and second highest priority) Fig. 14 shows an example in which allocation processing is performed from warehouse inventory with the highest and second highest priorities. That is, when a person in charge inputs order information such as a scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via an order input screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including an automatically generated order number and line number, and the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in Fig. 14(a).

[0148] In this example, the determination unit 25 determines that the product to be shipped is a "hazardous product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in FIG. 14(b) based on the product code "KSHOUHIN100."

[0149] In this example, the priority detection unit 26 refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code, "TOKUISAKI200," and detects the warehouse handling hazardous materials with the highest priority ("KSOUKO300" in this example) among the warehouses handling hazardous materials set for that customer, as shown in Figure 14(c).

[0150] Furthermore, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantity of the product with the product code "KSHOUHIN100" in the dangerous goods handling warehouse with the warehouse code "KSOUKO300" by referring to the inventory data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(b) based on the warehouse code "KSOUKO300" and the product code "KSHOUHIN100". In this example, the inventory quantity detected is "40 units".

[0151] The allocation processing unit 22 allocates the order quantity based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, but in this example, the order quantity is "100 units," while the inventory quantity of hazardous materials in the warehouse handling hazardous materials is "40 units." Since allocation processing is only possible for "40 units," a remaining allocation of "60 units" occurs.

[0152] Therefore, the priority detection unit 26 again refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code "TOKUISAKI200" and detects the second-priority hazardous goods handling warehouse (in this example, "KSOUKO400") among the hazardous goods handling warehouses set for that customer, as shown in Figure 14(c).

[0153] Then, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantity of the product with the product code "KSHOUHIN100" in the dangerous goods handling warehouse with the warehouse code "KSOUKO400" by referring to the inventory data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(b) based on the warehouse code "KSOUKO400" and the product code "KSHOUHIN100". In this example, the inventory quantity detected is "120 units".

[0154] The allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the order quantity of "40 units" based on the inventory quantity at the warehouse handling dangerous goods for "KSOUKO300," which has the highest priority, and also performs allocation processing for the order quantity of "60 units" that had remained unallocated based on the inventory quantity at the warehouse handling dangerous goods for "KSOUKO400," which has the second highest priority.

[0155] In this case, as shown in Figure 14(d), the order data generation unit 28 adds the warehouse code of "KSOUKO400", which has the second highest priority and is the warehouse handling hazardous goods that has the largest number of hazardous goods allocated among the warehouses handling hazardous goods for which the ordered number of hazardous goods has been allocated, to the order data and stores it in the order data storage unit 16.

[0156] This order data can be output at a desired timing by the output control unit 24 (for example, as a display output via the output device 7).

[0157] (Example of allocation processing using inventory from the warehouse with the highest priority and the warehouse with the second highest priority, and then moving the product to the warehouse with the highest priority for shipping.) Next, Fig. 15 shows an example of moving and shipping products to the warehouse with the highest priority. That is, when a person in charge inputs order information such as a scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via an order input screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including an automatically generated order number and line number, and the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in Fig. 15(a).

[0158] In this example, the determination unit 25 determines that the product to be shipped is a "normal product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in FIG. 15(b) based on the product code "TSHOUHIN100".

[0159] In this example, the priority detection unit 26 refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code, "TOKUISAKI100," and detects the regular warehouse with the highest priority ("TSOUKO100" in this example) among the regular warehouses set for that customer, as shown in Figure 15(c).

[0160] Furthermore, the stock quantity detection unit 27 detects the stock quantity of the product with the product code "TSHOUHIN100" in the regular warehouse with the warehouse code "TSOUKO100" by referring to the stock data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(b) based on the warehouse code "TSOUKO100" and the product code "TSHOUHIN100". In this example, the stock quantity detected is "100 units".

[0161] The allocation processing unit 22 allocates the order quantity based on the inventory quantity in the warehouse with the highest priority, but in this example, the order quantity is "120 units," while the inventory quantity of regular items in the regular warehouse is "100 units." Since allocation processing is only possible for "100 units," there is a remaining allocation of "20 units."

[0162] Therefore, the priority detection unit 26 again refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code of "TOKUISAKI100" and detects the second-priority regular warehouse (in this example, "TSOUKO300") among the regular warehouses set for that customer, as shown in Figure 15(d).

[0163] Then, the stock quantity detection unit 27 detects the stock quantity of the product with the product code "TSHOUHIN100" in the regular warehouse with the warehouse code "TSOUKO300" by referring to the stock data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(a) based on the warehouse code "TSOUKO300" and the product code "TSHOUHIN100". In this example, the stock quantity detected is "40 units".

[0164] The allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the order quantity of "100 units" from the stock quantity in the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100" which has the highest priority, and also performs allocation processing for the order quantity of "20 units" which has remained unallocated from the stock quantity in the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO300" which has the second highest priority.

[0165] In this case, as shown in Figure 15(d), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100," which has the highest priority and has allocated "100" regular items out of the ordered quantity of "120," and order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO300," which has the second highest priority and has allocated "20" regular items out of the ordered quantity of "120" (order data is generated with details divided according to the allocation process).

[0166] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 15(e), the order data generation unit 28 sets a final shipping warehouse flag to designate the order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100," which has the highest priority among the order data for each detail, as the shipping warehouse for "120 units" of regular products. "TSOUKO100," shown in the order data in the upper row of Figure 15(e), to which a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" has been added, is the warehouse designated as the warehouse from which regular products will be shipped.

[0167] In addition, "TSOUKO300," which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "0" attached as shown in the order data in the lower part of Figure 15(e), is the warehouse where, in this example, "20 units" of regular products will be moved as a result of the remaining allocation process to "TSOUKO100," which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" attached.

[0168] When the order data is generated in this manner, the transfer instruction data generation unit 29 generates transfer instruction data, as shown in Figure 15(f), specifying the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO300" used in the allocation process of "20 units" of regular products through the allocation process of the remaining allocation as the output warehouse (the warehouse to which the regular products are moved), and storing the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100" into which the "20 units" of regular products moved from the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO300" are to be stored as the "receiving warehouse." As a result, the "20 units" of regular products are moved to the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100" specified as the "receiving warehouse," and together with the "100 units" of regular products in stock at this "receiving warehouse," a total of "120 units" of regular products are shipped to the customer.

[0169] Such order data and movement instruction data can be output by the output control unit 24 at a desired timing (for example, as a display output via the output device 7).

[0170] (Example of allocation processing using inventory from the warehouse with the highest priority and the warehouse with the third highest priority, and then moving the product to the warehouse with the highest priority for shipping.) Next, Fig. 16 shows an example in which allocation processing is performed using the inventory of the warehouse with the highest priority and the inventory of the warehouse with the third priority, and the product is moved to the warehouse with the highest priority for shipping. That is, when a person in charge inputs an order such as a scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via an order input screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including an automatically generated order number and line number, and the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in Fig. 16(a).

[0171] In this example, the determination unit 25 determines that the product to be shipped is a "normal product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in FIG. 16(b) based on the product code "TSHOUHIN100".

[0172] In this example, the priority detection unit 26 refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code "TOKUISAKI100" to detect the regular warehouses for each priority set for that customer, as shown in Figure 16(c). As a result, the regular warehouses for "TSOUKO100," "TSOUKO300," and "TSOUKO500" are detected in order of priority, as shown in Figure 16(c).

[0173] Furthermore, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantities of the regular warehouses with the warehouse codes "TSOUKO100", "TSOUKO300", and "TSOUKO500" by referring to the inventory data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(a) based on the warehouse codes "TSOUKO100", "TSOUKO300", and "TSOUKO500" and the product code "TSHOUHIN100". In this example, the inventory quantities detected are "100", "40", and "50".

[0174] The allocation processing unit 22 allocates the order quantity based on the inventory quantity in the regular warehouse, which has the highest priority. In this example, the order quantity is "150 units," while the inventory quantity of regular items in the regular warehouse is "100 units." Since allocation processing is only possible for "100 units," a remaining allocation of "50 units" occurs.

[0175] Therefore, the allocation processing unit 22 compares the remaining allocation amount of "50 units" with the inventory quantity in the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO300", which has the second highest priority, and the inventory quantity in the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO500". In this example, the inventory quantity in the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO300", which has the second highest priority, is "40 units", which is less than the remaining allocation amount. In contrast, the inventory quantity in the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO500" is "50 units", which is the inventory quantity that can be used for allocation processing of the remaining allocation amount.

[0176] The allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the ordered quantity of "150 units" of regular products using the inventory quantity (100 units) in the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100" with the highest priority and the inventory quantity (50 units) in the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO500" with the third priority.

[0177] As shown in Figure 16(d), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100," which has the highest priority and has allocated "100 units" of regular items out of the order quantity of "150 units," and order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO500," which has the third highest priority and has allocated "50 units" of regular items out of the order quantity of "150 units" (order data with details divided according to the allocation process is generated).

[0178] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 16(e), the order data generation unit 28 sets a final shipping warehouse flag to designate the order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100," which has the highest priority among the order data for each detail, as the shipping warehouse for "150 units" of regular products. "TSOUKO100," shown in the order data in the upper row of Figure 16(e), to which a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" has been added, is the warehouse designated as the warehouse from which regular products will be shipped.

[0179] In addition, "TSOUKO500," which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "0" attached as shown in the order data in the lower part of Figure 16(e), is the warehouse where "50 units" of regular products will be moved as a result of the remaining allocation process to "TSOUKO100," which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" attached.

[0180] When the order data is generated in this manner, the transfer instruction data generation unit 29 generates transfer instruction data, as shown in Figure 16(f), that specifies the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO500" used in the allocation process of "50 units" of regular products through the allocation process of the remaining allocation as the output warehouse (the warehouse to which the regular products are moved), and stores the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100" into which the "50 units" of regular products moved from the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO500" are received as the "receiving warehouse." This causes the "50 units" of regular products to be moved to the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100" that is specified as the "receiving warehouse," and together with the "100 units" of regular products that are in stock at this "receiving warehouse," a total of "150 units" of regular products are shipped to the customer.

[0181] Such order data and movement instruction data can be output by the output control unit 24 at a desired timing (for example, as a display output via the output device 7).

[0182] (Example of allocation processing using inventory from warehouses with second and third priority, and then moving the product to the warehouse with second priority for shipping) Next, Fig. 17 shows an example in which allocation processing is performed using the inventory of the warehouse with second priority and the inventory of the warehouse with third priority, and the product is moved to the warehouse with second priority for shipping. That is, when the person in charge inputs the order information such as the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via an order input screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including the automatically generated order number and line number, the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in Fig. 17(a).

[0183] In this example, the determination unit 25 determines that the product to be shipped is a "hazardous product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in FIG. 17(b) based on the product code "KSHOUHIN100."

[0184] In this example, the priority detection unit 26 refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code "TOKUISAKI100" to detect warehouses that handle hazardous materials for each priority level set for that customer, as shown in Figure 17(c). As a result, the warehouses that handle hazardous materials, "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500," are detected in order of priority, as shown in Figure 17(c).

[0185] Furthermore, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantities of hazardous goods handling warehouses with warehouse codes of "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500" by referring to the inventory data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(b) based on the warehouse codes of "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500" and the product code of "KSHOUHIN100." In this example, the inventory quantities detected are "40 units," "120 units," and "50 units."

[0186] The allocation processing unit 22 allocates the order quantity by using the inventory quantity of the warehouse handling hazardous materials with the highest priority as a priority. In this example, the order quantity is "170 units," while the inventory quantity of the warehouse handling hazardous materials with the highest priority is "40 units," resulting in an allocation balance of "130 units."

[0187] Therefore, the allocation processing unit 22 detects a combination that can efficiently allocate the order quantity of "170 units" from the combinations of inventory quantities of "40 units," "120 units," and "50 units" at each of the dangerous goods handling warehouses "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500" (allocation combination detection function).

[0188] In this example, by combining the inventory quantity of "120 units" in the dangerous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO400" and the inventory quantity of "50 units" in the dangerous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO500", the total inventory quantity becomes "150 units", making it possible to allocate the ordered quantity of "170 units". Therefore, the allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the ordered quantity of "170 units" using the inventory quantity of "120 units" in the dangerous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO400" and the inventory quantity of "50 units" in the dangerous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO500".

[0189] As shown in Figure 17(d), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data for the hazardous goods handling warehouse "KSOUKO400" with the second highest priority, which has allocated "120 units" of hazardous goods out of the order quantity of "170 units," and order data for the hazardous goods handling warehouse "TSOUKO500" with the third highest priority, which has allocated "50 units" of hazardous goods out of the order quantity of "170 units" (order data with details divided according to the allocation process is generated).

[0190] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 17(e), the order data generation unit 28 sets a final shipping warehouse flag to designate the order data for the hazardous goods handling warehouse "KSOUKO400," which has the second highest priority, as the shipping warehouse for "170 units" of hazardous goods among the order data for each detail. "KSOUKO400," shown in the upper order data of Figure 17(e) and to which a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" has been added, is the warehouse designated as the warehouse from which hazardous goods will be shipped.

[0191] In addition, "KSOUKO500," which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "0" attached as shown in the order data in the lower part of Figure 17(e), is the warehouse where, in this example, "50 units" of hazardous items will be moved as a result of the remaining allocation process to "KSOUKO400," which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" attached.

[0192] When the order data is generated in this manner, the transfer instruction data generation unit 29 generates transfer instruction data, as shown in Figure 17(f), specifying the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO500" used in the allocation process of "50 units" of hazardous goods through the allocation process of the remaining allocation as the output warehouse (the warehouse to which the hazardous goods are moved), and the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO400" into which the "50 units" of hazardous goods moved from the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO500" are received as the "receiving warehouse." This causes the "50 units" of hazardous goods to be moved to the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO400" designated as the "receiving warehouse," and together with the "120 units" of hazardous goods in stock at this "receiving warehouse," a total of "170 units" of hazardous goods are shipped to the customer.

[0193] Such order data and movement instruction data can be output by the output control unit 24 at a desired timing (for example, as a display output via the output device 7).

[0194] (Example of allocation processing using inventory from warehouses with the highest to third highest priorities, and then moving the product to the warehouse with the highest priority for shipping.) Next, Fig. 18 shows an example in which allocation processing is performed using the inventory of the warehouses with the highest to third highest priorities, and the product is moved to the warehouse with the highest priority and shipped out. That is, when a person in charge inputs order information such as a scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via an order input screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including an automatically generated order number and line number, and the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in Fig. 18(a).

[0195] In this example, the determination unit 25 determines that the product to be shipped is a "normal product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in FIG. 18(b) based on the product code "TSHOUHIN100".

[0196] In this example, the priority detection unit 26 refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code "TOKUISAKI100" to detect the regular warehouses for each priority set for that customer, as shown in Figure 18(c). As a result, the regular warehouses for "TSOUKO100," "TSOUKO300," and "TSOUKO500" are detected in order of priority, as shown in Figure 18(c).

[0197] Furthermore, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantities of the regular goods warehouses with the warehouse codes "TSOUKO100", "TSOUKO300", and "TSOUKO500" based on the warehouse codes of "TSOUKO100", "TSOUKO300", and "TSOUKO500" and the product code of "TSHOUHIN100" by referring to the inventory data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(a). In this example, the inventory quantities detected are "100", "60", and "40".

[0198] The allocation processing unit 22 allocates the order quantity by using the inventory quantity in the regular warehouse with the highest priority as a priority. In this example, the inventory quantity in the regular warehouse with the highest priority (100 units), the inventory quantity in the regular warehouse with the second highest priority (60 units), and the inventory quantity in the regular warehouse with the third highest priority (40 units) allow allocation processing for the order quantity of 200 regular products without any remaining allocations.

[0199] Therefore, the allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the order quantity of "200 units" using the combinations of inventory quantities of "100 units," "60 units," and "40 units" in the regular warehouses of "TSOUKO100," "TSOUKO300," and "TSOUKO500," respectively.

[0200] As shown in Figure 18(d), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100," which has the highest priority and has allocated "100" regular items out of the order quantity of "200," order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO300," which has the second highest priority and has allocated "60" regular items out of the order quantity of "200," and order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO500," which has the third highest priority and has allocated "40" regular items out of the order quantity of "200" (order data with details divided according to the allocation process is generated).

[0201] Furthermore, as shown in Figure 18(e), the order data generation unit 28 sets a final shipping warehouse flag to designate the order data for the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100," which has the highest priority among the order data for each detail, as the shipping warehouse for "200 units" of regular products. "TSOUKO100," shown in the order data in the upper row of Figure 18(e) and to which a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" has been added, is the warehouse designated as the warehouse from which regular products will be shipped.

[0202] In addition, "TSOUKO300" and "TSOUKO500", which have a final shipping warehouse flag of "0" attached as shown in the order data in the middle and bottom rows of Figure 18(e), are the warehouses where the remaining "60 units" and "40 units" of regular products will be moved to "TSOUKO100", which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" attached.

[0203] When the order data is generated in this manner, the transfer instruction data generation unit 29 generates transfer instruction data, as shown in Figure 18(f), that sets the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO300" used in the allocation process of "60 units" of regular items, which corresponds to the allocation process of the remaining allocation, as the output warehouse (the warehouse to which the regular items are moved), and the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100" where the "60 units" of regular items moved from the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO300" are received as the "receiving warehouse," and stores this data in the transfer instruction data storage unit 17.

[0204] In addition, as shown in Figure 18(f), the movement instruction data generation unit 29 generates movement instruction data that sets the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO500" used in the allocation process of "40 units" of regular items, which corresponds to the allocation process of the remaining allocation, as the output warehouse (the warehouse to which the regular items are moved), and the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO100" where the "40 units" of regular items moved from the regular warehouse of "TSOUKO500" are received as the "receiving warehouse," and stores this data in the movement instruction data storage unit 17.

[0205] As a result, "60 units" and "40 units" of regular products are moved to the regular warehouse "TSOUKO100" designated as the "receiving warehouse," and together with the "100 units" of regular products in stock at this "receiving warehouse," a total of "200 units" of regular products are shipped to the customer.

[0206] Such order data and movement instruction data can be output by the output control unit 24 at a desired timing (for example, as a display output via the output device 7).

[0207] (Example of shipping goods by moving them to a regular warehouse designated as the final shipping warehouse) Next, Figure 19 shows an example of shipping goods by moving them to a regular warehouse designated as the final shipping warehouse. When a person in charge inputs order information such as a scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via an order entry screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including an automatically generated order number and line number, the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in Figure 19(a). The example in Figure 19(a) shows an order for 100 units of regular goods with product code "TSHOUHIN100" and 100 units of hazardous goods with product code "KSHOUHIN100."

[0208] In this example, the discrimination unit 25 determines whether the product to be shipped is a "normal product" or a "hazardous product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in Figure 19(b) based on the product codes "TSHOUHIN100" and "KSHOUHIN100".

[0209] In this example, the priority detection unit 26 references the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code "TOKUISAKI100" to detect the highest priority regular warehouse set for that customer, as shown in Figure 19(d). As a result, the highest priority regular warehouse, "TSOUKO100," is detected, as shown in Figure 19(d).

[0210] In addition, the priority detection unit 26 references the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code "TOKUISAKI100" in this example, and detects the hazardous materials handling warehouse with the highest priority set for that customer, as shown in Figure 19(d). As a result, the hazardous materials handling warehouse "KSOUKO100", which is the hazardous materials handling warehouse with the highest priority, is detected, as shown in Figure 19(d).

[0211] Furthermore, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantities of normal or hazardous items for each warehouse code of "TSOUKO100" and "KSOUKO100" by referring to the inventory data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(a) based on the warehouse codes of "TSOUKO100" and "KSOUKO100" and the product codes of "TSHOUHIN100" and "KSHOUHIN100". In this example, the inventory quantities of "100" normal and hazardous items are detected.

[0212] In this example, the inventory quantities in each of the warehouses of "TSOUKO100" and "KSOUKO100" are "100 units," and the ordered products are "100 units" of normal products and "100 units" of hazardous products. Therefore, the allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the ordered "100 units" of normal products and "100 units" of hazardous products based on the inventory quantities in each of the warehouses of "TSOUKO100" and "KSOUKO100."

[0213] The order data generation unit 28 generates order data indicating that the ordered "100 units" of normal products have been allocated from the inventory of the normal warehouse for "TSOUKO100," which has the highest priority, as shown in Figure 19(e). Also, the order data generation unit 28 generates order data indicating that the ordered "100 units" of hazardous products have been allocated from the inventory of the hazardous products handling warehouse for "KSOUKO100," which has the highest priority, as shown in Figure 19(e).

[0214] Here, the order data generation unit 28 references the customer master table 13 shown in FIG. 19(c) to detect the final shipping warehouse designated by the customer as the warehouse from which the products will be shipped. In this example, the final shipping warehouse is "0: Shipping from a normal warehouse." Therefore, as shown in FIG. 19(f), the order data generation unit 28 sets a final shipping warehouse flag for the order data for the normal warehouse "TSOUKO100" among the order data, specifying it as the warehouse from which a total of "200" normal products and hazardous products will be shipped, for example. "TSOUKO100," shown in the order data in the upper row of FIG. 19(f) with a final shipping warehouse flag of "1," is the warehouse designated as the warehouse from which normal products and hazardous products will be shipped together.

[0215] In addition, the hazardous goods handling warehouse for "KSOUKO100," which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "0" attached as shown in the order data in the lower part of Figure 19(f), is the warehouse that will move "100 units" of hazardous goods to the regular warehouse for "TSOUKO100," which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" attached.

[0216] Based on the final shipping warehouse flag of the order data, the movement instruction data generation unit 29 generates movement instruction data that specifies the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO100" as the shipping warehouse from which "100 units" of hazardous goods will be moved, and the normal warehouse of "TSOUKO100" as the shipping warehouse from which "100 units" of hazardous goods will be received and from which the normal goods and hazardous goods will be shipped together with "100 units" of normal goods, as shown in Figure 19(g), and stores this data in the movement instruction data storage unit 17.

[0217] As a result, 100 hazardous items will be moved to the regular warehouse "TSOUKO100" designated as the "receiving warehouse," and together with the 100 regular items in stock at this "receiving warehouse," a total of 200 regular and hazardous items will be shipped to the customer.

[0218] Such order data and movement instruction data can be output by the output control unit 24 at a desired timing (for example, as a display output via the output device 7).

[0219] (Example of shipping goods by moving them to a warehouse handling dangerous goods designated as the final shipping warehouse) 20 and 21 show an example of shipping goods by moving them to a warehouse handling hazardous materials, which is designated as the final shipping warehouse. When a person in charge inputs order information such as a scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via an order entry screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including an automatically generated order number and line number, the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in FIG. 20(a). The example in FIG. 20(a) shows an order for 180 units of regular goods with product code "TSHOUHIN100" and 180 units of hazardous goods with product code "KSHOUHIN100."

[0220] In this example, the discrimination unit 25 determines whether the product to be shipped is a "normal product" or a "hazardous product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in Figure 20(b) based on the product codes "TSHOUHIN100" and "KSHOUHIN100".

[0221] The priority detection unit 26 references the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code of "TOKUISAKI200" and detects the regular warehouses of "TSOUKO200" and "TSOUKO400" with the highest and second highest priorities, which enable allocation processing of regular items with an ordered quantity of "180 units," as shown in Figure 20(d). Furthermore, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantities of regular items of "80 units" and "120 units" in the regular warehouses of "TSOUKO200" and "TSOUKO400," respectively.

[0222] Furthermore, the priority detection unit 26 refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code of "TOKUISAKI200" to detect the hazardous goods handling warehouses "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500" with the highest to third highest priorities that allow for allocation processing of the ordered quantity of hazardous goods of "180 units," as shown in Figure 20(d). Furthermore, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantities of normal goods of "40 units," "120 units," and "50 units," respectively, in the hazardous goods handling warehouses "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500."

[0223] The allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the ordered "180 units" of normal products based on the inventory numbers in the normal warehouses of "TSOUKO200" and "TSOUKO400." In addition, the allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the ordered "180 units" of hazardous products based on the inventory numbers in the hazardous product handling warehouses of "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500."

[0224] As shown in Figure 21(a), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data indicating that the ordered "180 units" of regular products have been allocated from the inventory in the regular warehouse for "TSOUKO200," which has the highest priority, and from the inventory in the regular warehouse for "TSOUKO400," which has the second highest priority. Also, as shown in Figure 21(a), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data indicating that the ordered "180 units" of hazardous products have been allocated from the inventory in the hazardous product handling warehouses for "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500," which have the highest to third highest priorities.

[0225] Here, the order data generation unit 28 references the customer master table 13 shown in FIG. 20(c) to detect the final shipping warehouse designated by the customer as the warehouse from which the goods will be shipped. In this example, the final shipping warehouse is "1: Shipping from a hazardous goods handling warehouse." Therefore, as shown in FIG. 21(b), the order data generation unit 28 sets a final shipping warehouse flag in the order data for the hazardous goods handling warehouse "KSOUKO300," which has the highest priority among the hazardous goods handling warehouses that have performed the hazardous goods allocation process, to designate it as the warehouse from which a total of "360 units" of normal goods and hazardous goods will be shipped. "KSOUKO300," which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "1" added as shown in FIG. 21(b), is the hazardous goods handling warehouse designated as the warehouse from which normal goods and hazardous goods will be shipped together.

[0226] In addition, the regular warehouses of "TSOUKO200" and "TSOUKO400", which have a final shipping warehouse flag of "0" in Figure 21(b), and the dangerous goods handling warehouses of "KSOUKO400" and "KSOUKO500" are the warehouses that move "80 units" and "100 units" of regular goods and "120 units" and "20 units" of dangerous goods to the dangerous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO300", which has a final shipping warehouse flag of "1".

[0227] Based on the final shipping warehouse flag of such order data, the movement instruction data generation unit 29 generates movement instruction data that specifies the normal warehouse of "TSOUKO200" as the shipping warehouse from which "80 units" of normal items will be moved and the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO300" as the warehouse to which "80 units" of normal items will be received, as shown in Figure 21(c), and stores this data in the movement instruction data storage unit 17.

[0228] In addition, based on the final shipping warehouse flag of the order data, the movement instruction data generation unit 29 generates movement instruction data that specifies the normal warehouse of ``TSOUKO400'' as the shipping warehouse from which ``100'' normal items will be moved and the hazardous items handling warehouse of ``KSOUKO300'' as the warehouse to which ``100'' normal items will be received, as shown in Figure 21(c), and stores this data in the movement instruction data storage unit 17.

[0229] In addition, based on the final shipping warehouse flag of the order data, the movement instruction data generation unit 29 generates movement instruction data that designates the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO400" as the shipping warehouse from which "120 units" of hazardous goods will be moved and the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO300" as the warehouse to which "120 units" of hazardous goods will be received, as shown in Figure 21 (c), and stores this data in the movement instruction data storage unit 17.

[0230] In addition, based on the final shipping warehouse flag of the order data, the movement instruction data generation unit 29 generates movement instruction data that designates the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO500" as the shipping warehouse from which "20 units" of hazardous goods will be moved and the hazardous goods handling warehouse of "KSOUKO300" as the warehouse to which "20 units" of hazardous goods will be received, as shown in Figure 21 (c), and stores this data in the movement instruction data storage unit 17.

[0231] As a result, 80 units and 100 units of normal goods will be moved to the hazardous goods handling warehouse "KSOUKO300" designated as the "warehouse receiving warehouse," and 120 units and 20 units of hazardous goods will be moved.Together with the 40 units of hazardous goods in stock at this "warehouse receiving warehouse," a total of 360 units of normal goods and hazardous goods will be shipped together to the customer.

[0232] Such order data and movement instruction data can be output by the output control unit 24 at a desired timing (for example, as a display output via the output device 7).

[0233] (Error notification behavior when inventory shortage occurs during allocation processing) Next, Figure 22 is a diagram for explaining the error notification operation when inventory shortage occurs during allocation processing. When a person in charge inputs order information such as the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity via an order input screen (not shown), the order data generation unit 28 generates order data including the automatically generated order number and line number, the scheduled shipping date, customer code, product code, and order quantity input by the person in charge, as shown in Figure 22(a). The example in Figure 22(a) is an order for 500 hazardous items with the product code "KSHOUHIN100."

[0234] In this example, the discrimination unit 25 determines that the product to be shipped is "1: Dangerous product" by referring to the product master table 11 shown in Figure 22(b) based on the product codes "TOKUISAKI100" and "KSHOUHIN100".

[0235] The priority detection unit 26 refers to the customer-specific priority warehouse master table 14 based on the customer code of "TOKUISAKI100" and detects the hazardous materials handling warehouses "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500," which have the highest to third highest priorities, as shown in Figure 22(c).

[0236] In addition, the inventory quantity detection unit 27 detects the inventory quantities of hazardous materials of "40 units," "120 units," and "50 units" at each of the hazardous materials handling warehouses "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500" by referring to the inventory data storage unit 15 shown in Figure 6(b).

[0237] The allocation processing unit 22 performs allocation processing for the ordered quantity of 500 hazardous materials based on the inventory quantities of 40, 120, and 50 at the hazardous materials handling warehouses "KSOUKO300," "KSOUKO400," and "KSOUKO500," respectively. However, since the inventory quantity is less than the ordered quantity, a so-called inventory shortage occurs.

[0238] When this shortage of stock occurs, the output control unit 24 displays an error message such as "Insufficient stock" via the output device 7. In addition to the error display, audio output control may be performed to output an error message or an electronic sound indicating the shortage of stock.

[0239] (Effects of the embodiment) As is clear from the above description, the business support device 1 of the embodiment sets a priority for each warehouse, performs allocation processing for the ordered quantity of products from the inventory quantity of each warehouse according to the priority of each warehouse, and automatically generates order data that specifies the warehouse with the highest priority as the final shipping warehouse from which the products will be shipped.

[0240] This allows the system to automatically determine the shipping warehouse corresponding to the order quantity and automatically generate order data, reducing the workload of the person in charge. Furthermore, because the shipping warehouse can be determined automatically, it is possible to prevent mistakes in specifying the shipping warehouse. It also prevents bias in the decisions made by each person in charge regarding the shipping warehouse, enabling more precise inventory management.

[0241] Furthermore, the business support device 1 of the embodiment automatically generates transfer instruction data in which the warehouse with the highest priority among the warehouses used in the allocation process is designated as the output warehouse from which the goods are shipped, and the other warehouses are designated as output warehouses from which inventory is moved to the warehouse with the highest priority.

[0242] This reduces the burden on staff by automatically specifying the shipping warehouse. Also, when an order is received, it is possible to instruct the movement of the product from the shipping warehouse to the receiving warehouse, preventing the occurrence of a time lag between the order entry and the entry of the movement instruction, and enabling movement instructions to be given in real time.

[0243] [Contribution to the United Nations-led Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs)] This invention can contribute to improving business efficiency and promoting appropriate management decisions by companies, thereby contributing to the achievement of goals "8" and "9" of the SDGs.

[0244] Furthermore, this invention can contribute to reducing waste and promoting paperless and electronic systems, thereby contributing to the achievement of SDGs goals 12, 13, and 15.

[0245] Furthermore, the present invention can contribute to strengthening control and governance, thereby contributing to the achievement of Goal 16 of the SDGs.

[0246] [Other embodiments] The present invention can be implemented in various different forms other than the above-described embodiments within the scope of the technical concept described in the claims.

[0247] For example, among the processes described in the embodiments, all or part of the processes described as being performed automatically may be performed manually, or all or part of the processes described as being performed manually may be performed automatically using a known method or the like.

[0248] Furthermore, the processing procedures, control procedures, specific names, registered data for each process, information including parameters such as search conditions, screen examples, and database configurations shown in the specification or drawings may be changed as desired unless otherwise specified.

[0249] Furthermore, the components of the business support device 1 shown in the figure are conceptual functional components and do not necessarily have to have the physical configuration shown in the figure. For example, all or any part of the processing functions of the business support device 1, particularly the processing functions performed by the control unit 3, may be realized by a program interpreted and executed by the control unit 3 (CPU: Central Processing Unit), or may be realized by hardware using wired logic.

[0250] The program is recorded on a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium containing programmed instructions for causing the information processing device to execute the processes described in the embodiments, and is mechanically read by the business support device 1 as needed. That is, a computer program is recorded in the storage unit 2, such as a ROM or HDD, for working with an OS (Operating System) to give instructions to a control unit 3 (CPU) and perform various processes. The computer program is loaded into RAM, expanded, and executed by the control unit 3 as appropriate.

[0251] In addition, the business support program of this business support device 1 may be stored in another server device connected to the business support device 1 via any network, and all or part of it may be downloaded and executed as needed.

[0252] Furthermore, the business support program for executing the processes described in the embodiments may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable recording medium, or may be configured as a program product.

[0253] Here, the "recording medium" can be any "portable physical medium" such as a memory card, a USB (Universal Serial Bus) memory, an SD (Secure Digital) card, a flexible disk, a magneto-optical disk, a ROM, an EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), an EEPROM (registered trademark) (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory), a CD-ROM (Compact Disk Read Only Memory), an MO (Magneto-Optical Disk), a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), and a Blu-ray (registered trademark) Disc.

[0254] Furthermore, a "program" is a data processing method written in any language or description method, regardless of the format, such as source code or binary code.

[0255] It should be noted that a "program" is not necessarily limited to a single structure, but includes a structure that is distributed as multiple modules or libraries, and a structure that achieves its function by working together with other programs, such as an OS.

[0256] Furthermore, the specific configuration for reading the recording medium in the task support device 1 of the embodiment, the reading procedure, and the installation procedure after reading can be any known configuration or procedure.

[0257] The memory unit 2 is a storage means such as a memory device such as RAM or ROM, a fixed disk device such as a hard disk, a flexible disk, or an optical disk, and stores various programs, tables, databases, web page files, etc. used for various processes or to provide websites.

[0258] The business support device 1 may be configured as an information processing device such as a known personal computer or a workstation, or may be configured as an information processing device connected to any peripheral device. The information processing device may be implemented with software (including programs or data) that realizes the processes described in the embodiments.

[0259] Furthermore, the specific forms of distribution and integration of the devices are not limited to those shown in the drawings, and all or part of them can be functionally or physically distributed or integrated in any unit depending on various additions or functional loads. In other words, the above-mentioned embodiments can be selectively implemented by combining them in any way. [Industrial Applicability]

[0260] The present invention is suitable for application to inventory management operations for various products. [Explanation of symbols]

[0261] 1 Business support equipment 2 Storage section 3. Control Unit 4. Communication interface section 5 Input / Output Interface Section 6 Input Devices 7 Output Devices 11 Product Master Table 12 Warehouse Master Table 13 Customer Master Table 14 Customer-specific preferred warehouse master table 15 Inventory data storage section 16 Order data storage section 17 Movement instruction data storage unit 21 Detection unit 22 Allocation Processing Section 23 Data Generation Unit 24 Output control section 25 Discrimination part 26 Priority detection unit 27 Stock quantity detection unit 28 Order Data Generation Unit 29 Movement instruction data generation unit

Claims

1. a priority detection unit that detects the priority of a warehouse from which the ordered product will be shipped by referring to a priority warehouse master table in which a priority order is stored for each warehouse; an inventory quantity detection unit that references an inventory data storage unit in which inventory quantities of the products are stored, and detects the inventory quantities of the products in each of the warehouses in the order of the priorities detected by the priority detection unit; an allocation processing unit that performs allocation processing for the ordered quantity of the product in order of priority of the warehouses based on the inventory quantity of each of the warehouses; When the entire order quantity of the product is allocated based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, order data is generated that includes the order quantity of the product, the warehouse that allocated the order quantity of the product, and the warehouse that allocated the order quantity of the product; an order data generation unit that generates order data divided into main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority and the ordered quantity of the goods for which allocation processing was performed using the inventory quantity at the warehouse with the second highest priority out of the total ordered quantity of the goods, and secondary order data including one or more warehouses with the second highest priority or lower that were used in the allocation processing of the ordered quantity of goods for which allocation processing was performed using the inventory quantity at the warehouse with the second lowest priority and the ordered quantity for which allocation processing was performed out of the ordered quantity for which allocation processing was performed, and adds a final shipping warehouse flag to the main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority, which is information indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse from which the ordered goods are shipped, and adds a final shipping warehouse flag to the secondary order data including one or more warehouses with the second highest priority or lower that have performed allocation processing for the ordered quantity for which allocation processing was performed a transfer instruction data generation unit that generates transfer instruction data that sets the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag, indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods are to be shipped, as the output warehouse for the goods, and sets the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag, indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse from which the ordered goods are to be shipped, as the receiving warehouse for the goods from the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag, indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the goods are to be shipped; an output control unit that outputs the movement instruction data to an output target device; A business support device having the above.

2. When a remaining allocation occurs due to the allocation process of the product based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, the allocation processing unit selects a warehouse with an inventory quantity that can allocate the entire order quantity from among the warehouses with each priority and performs the allocation process; the order data generation unit generates the main order data to which the final shipping warehouse flag is added, specifying the warehouse with the highest priority among the warehouses used in the allocation process as the warehouse from which the ordered goods will be shipped; 2. The business support device according to claim 1, wherein:

3. the merchandise is at least a first type and a second type different from the first type, the warehouse is a warehouse that stores the first type of product and a warehouse that stores the second type of product, a determination unit that determines the type of the ordered commodity by referring to a commodity master table in which type information indicating the first type or the second type is stored for each commodity; the allocation processing unit performs allocation processing of the ordered quantity of the product for each type based on the priority order from the inventory quantity of the warehouse where the product of the type determined by the determination unit is stored; 3. The business support device according to claim 2, wherein:

4. When the allocation processing unit has performed allocation processing for the ordered quantity of each type of product based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse where the product of each type is stored, the order data generation unit refers to a final shipping warehouse selection master table in which a final shipping warehouse selection flag is stored, the final shipping warehouse selection flag being information indicating the warehouse from which the first and second types of products are shipped, among the warehouse storing the first type of product and the warehouse storing the second type of product; If a warehouse storing the first type of product is specified as the final shipping warehouse, the main order data is generated with the final shipping warehouse flag added, specifying the warehouse with the highest priority among the warehouses storing the first type of product that have undergone allocation processing as the warehouse from which the ordered first type and second type of product will be shipped; When a warehouse storing the second type of product is specified as the final shipping warehouse, the main order data is generated with the final shipping warehouse flag added, specifying the warehouse with the highest priority among the warehouses storing the second type of product that have undergone allocation processing as the warehouse from which the ordered first type and second type of product will be shipped; 4. The business support device according to claim 3, wherein:

5. when the warehouse storing the first type of product or the warehouse storing the second type of product is designated as the final shipping warehouse in the final shipping warehouse selection master table, the transfer instruction data generation unit generates the transfer instruction data in such a way that the warehouse with the highest priority among the warehouses storing the designated type of product and which have undergone allocation processing is designated as the receiving warehouse, and warehouses with other priorities are designated as shipping warehouses; 5. The business support device according to claim 4, wherein:

6. the output control unit outputs error information indicating an inventory shortage to the output target device when the inventory quantity detection unit determines that the total inventory quantity of the product in all warehouses is less than the total ordered quantity; 6. The business support device according to claim 1, wherein:

7. a priority detection step in which a priority detection unit refers to a priority warehouse master table in which a priority order is stored for each warehouse as a warehouse from which the ordered product will be shipped, and detects the priority order of the warehouse from which the ordered product will be shipped; an inventory quantity detection step in which an inventory quantity detection unit refers to an inventory data storage unit in which inventory quantities of the products are stored, and detects the inventory quantities of the products in each of the warehouses in the order of the priorities detected in the priority order detection step; an allocation processing step in which an allocation processing unit performs allocation processing for the ordered quantity of the product in order of priority of the warehouses based on the inventory quantity of each of the warehouses; the order data generation unit generates order data including the ordered quantity of the product, the warehouse that allocated the ordered quantity of the product, and the warehouse that allocated the ordered quantity of the product when the entire ordered quantity of the product is allocated based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority; an order data generation step of generating order data divided into main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority and the ordered quantity of the goods for which allocation processing was performed using the inventory quantity at the warehouse with the second highest priority out of the total ordered quantity of the goods, and secondary order data including one or more warehouses with the second highest priority or lower that were used in the allocation processing of the ordered quantity of goods for which allocation processing was performed using the inventory quantity at the warehouse with the second lowest priority and the ordered quantity for which allocation processing was performed out of the ordered quantity for which allocation processing was performed, and adding a final shipping warehouse flag, which is information indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse for shipping the ordered goods, to the main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority, and adding a final shipping warehouse flag, which is information indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse for shipping the ordered goods, to the secondary order data including one or more warehouses with the second highest priority or lower that have performed allocation processing for the ordered quantity for which allocation processing was performed; a transfer instruction data generation step in which the transfer instruction data generation unit generates transfer instruction data that designates the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag, indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods are to be shipped, as the output warehouse for the goods, and designates the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag, indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse from which the ordered goods are to be shipped, as the receiving warehouse for the goods from the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag, indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the goods are to be shipped; an output control step in which an output control unit outputs the movement instruction data to an output target device; A business support method having the above.

8. Computer, a priority detection unit that detects the priority of a warehouse from which the ordered product will be shipped by referring to a priority warehouse master table in which a priority order is stored for each warehouse; an inventory quantity detection unit that references an inventory data storage unit in which inventory quantities of the products are stored, and detects the inventory quantities of the products in each of the warehouses in the order of the priorities detected by the priority detection unit; an allocation processing unit that performs allocation processing for the ordered quantity of the product in order of priority of the warehouses based on the inventory quantity of each of the warehouses; When the entire order quantity of the product is allocated based on the inventory quantity of the warehouse with the highest priority, order data is generated that includes the order quantity of the product, the warehouse that allocated the order quantity of the product, and the warehouse that allocated the order quantity of the product; an order data generation unit that generates order data divided into main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority and the ordered quantity of the goods for which allocation processing was performed using the inventory quantity at the warehouse with the second highest priority out of the total ordered quantity of the goods, and secondary order data including one or more warehouses with the second highest priority or lower that were used in the allocation processing of the ordered quantity of goods for which allocation processing was performed using the inventory quantity at the warehouse with the second lowest priority and the ordered quantity for which allocation processing was performed out of the ordered quantity for which allocation processing was performed, and adds a final shipping warehouse flag to the main order data including the warehouse with the highest priority, which is information indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse from which the ordered goods are shipped, and adds a final shipping warehouse flag to the secondary order data including one or more warehouses with the second highest priority or lower that have performed allocation processing for the ordered quantity for which allocation processing was performed a transfer instruction data generation unit that generates transfer instruction data that sets the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag, indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the ordered goods are to be shipped, as the output warehouse for the goods, and sets the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag, indicating that the warehouse is the warehouse from which the ordered goods are to be shipped, as the receiving warehouse for the goods from the warehouse with the final output warehouse flag, indicating that the warehouse is not the warehouse from which the goods are to be shipped; an output control unit that outputs the movement instruction data to an output target device; A business support program that functions as a

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