Conveying support device and conveying support method

Abstract

This improves the reliability of preventing work delays. [Solution] The computer evaluates the work accuracy for each of the multiple work stations, which is the probability that work will be performed on the target conveying device from the target storage container, which is the storage container assigned to the target conveying device. Based on the work accuracy of each work station, the computer evaluates the waiting risk for at least some of the multiple waiting positions, which is the degree of waiting time at a work station if the target conveying device waits at that waiting position and then moves to the target work station among the multiple work stations. Based on the waiting risk of each waiting position, the computer determines the waiting position of the target conveying device.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention generally relates to a technology that supports transport control for transporting objects by the movement of a transport device. [Background technology]

[0002] In logistics centers, the task of picking items (e.g., goods) corresponding to orders from each storage area (e.g., warehouse) and sorting them into packing units is a highly laborious one. In particular, with the expansion of the e-commerce market, there is a shortage of workers in logistics centers, making it a high-demand task to reduce the workload.

[0003] Therefore, even when the storage locations of multiple items corresponding to an order span multiple storage areas, a transport system that automates sorting using transport devices such as automated guided vehicles (AGVs) is used to reduce the workload of sorting. Specifically, the transport device loads shipping boxes (e.g., cardboard boxes) corresponding to the order, circulates to work stations (work spaces where workers are positioned) in each storage area, and collects the items corresponding to the order into the shipping boxes. This makes it possible to sort items without workers having to move, even when the storage locations of multiple items corresponding to an order span multiple storage areas.

[0004] In a transport system using such transport devices, efficient operation control of numerous transport devices (numerous moving objects) within a logistics center is necessary. As a technology for operation control targeting such a large number of moving objects, for example, there is the technology described in Patent Document 1. [Prior art documents] [Patent Documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Publication No. 2018-124974 [Overview of the Initiative] [Problems that the invention aims to solve]

[0006] In a conveying system that uses conveying devices to streamline (e.g., automate) sorting operations, the conveying devices circulate among work stations. When a conveying device arrives at a work station, a worker picks the necessary items from inventory boxes (or storage containers) into shipping boxes (or order containers) loaded onto the conveying device. In other words, "picking" here includes not only obtaining items from inventory boxes but also loading the obtained items into shipping boxes. Inventory boxes may be supplied to the work stations from storage areas such as automated warehouses. The conveying devices circulate among multiple work stations in succession to collect multiple items into shipping boxes, and workers (or robots) at each work station repeatedly pick items from the conveying devices arriving at that work station one after another.

[0007] As a transport support measure, a plan including the location and scheduled start time of the picking operation may be prepared, and the operation (travel) of the transport device may be controlled based on this plan. The plan may be prepared in advance based on the location and speed of the transport device, the output capacity of the automated warehouse, etc. The transport device operates according to this plan.

[0008] In this transport system, if work is being performed on another transport device at a work station where one transport device is intended to be located, the transport device that arrives at the work station later must wait in a standby position.

[0009] Depending on the status of the work and the conveying equipment, the plan may be changed, for example, the target work station or the scheduled start time of the work may be altered. If the waiting position is inappropriate for the revised plan (e.g., the revised target work station or revised start time), the arrival of the conveying equipment from the waiting position to the work station may be too late or too early compared to the arrival of the storage containers assigned to that conveying equipment at the work station. As a result, there will be downtime at the work station where work cannot be performed, and the overall work will be delayed.

[0010] The problem to be solved by the present invention is to improve the certainty of suppressing work delays.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0011] The computer evaluates the work accuracy, which is the probability that work on the target transfer device is performed from the target storage container, which is the storage container assigned to the target transfer device, for each of the plurality of work stations. Based on the work accuracy of each work station, for at least some of the plurality of standby positions, when the target transfer device moves to the intended work station among the plurality of work stations after waiting at the standby position, the waiting risk as the degree of waiting at the work station is evaluated. The computer determines the standby position of the target transfer device based on the waiting risk of each standby position.

Effects of the Invention

[0014] In the following explanation, "interface device" may refer to one or more interface devices. These one or more interface devices may be at least one of the following: • One or more I / O (Input / Output) interface devices. An I / O (Input / Output) interface device is an interface device to at least one of the following: an I / O device and a remote display computer. The I / O interface device to the display computer may be a communication interface device. The at least one I / O device may be either a user interface device, such as an input device like a keyboard and a pointing device, or an output device like a display device. • One or more communication interface devices. One or more communication interface devices may be one or more identical communication interface devices (e.g., one or more NICs (Network Interface Cards)) or two or more different communication interface devices (e.g., a NIC and an HBA (Host Bus Adapter)).

[0015] Furthermore, in the following explanation, "memory" refers to one or more memory devices, which are examples of one or more storage devices, and may typically be main memory devices. At least one memory device in memory may be a volatile memory device or a non-volatile memory device.

[0016] Furthermore, in the following explanation, "persistent storage device" may refer to one or more persistent storage devices, which are examples of one or more storage devices. Persistent storage devices are typically non-volatile storage devices (e.g., auxiliary storage devices), and specifically may be, for example, HDDs (Hard Disk Drives), SSDs (Solid State Drives), NVME (Non-Volatile Memory Express) drives, or SCMs (Storage Class Memory).

[0017] Furthermore, in the following explanation, "storage device" may also be "memory" and / or "persistent storage device".

[0018] Furthermore, in the following explanation, "processor" may refer to one or more processor devices. At least one processor device may typically be a microprocessor device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), but may also be other types of processor devices such as a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). At least one processor device may be single-core or multi-core. At least one processor device may be a processor core. At least one processor device may be a broad-sense processor device such as a circuit that is a collection of gate arrays according to a hardware description language that performs some or all of the processing (e.g., FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), CPLD (Complex Programmable Logic Device), or ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit)).

[0019] Furthermore, in the following explanation, the term "xxx table" may be used to describe information from which an output is obtained for a given input. This information can be data of any structure (for example, structured or unstructured data), or it can be a neural network that generates an output for a given input, or a learning model such as a genetic algorithm or random forest. Therefore, "xxx table" can be referred to as "xxx information." Also, in the following explanation, the structure of each table is just an example; one table may be divided into two or more tables, or all or part of two or more tables may be a single table.

[0020] Furthermore, in the following explanation, the subject of the process may be "program," but since a program is executed by a processor and performs defined processes using memory and / or interface devices as appropriate, the subject of the process may also be the processor (or the computer, device, or system having that processor). A program may be installed from a program source into a device such as a computer. The program source may be, for example, a program distribution server or a recording medium readable by a computer (e.g., a non-temporary recording medium). Also, in the following explanation, two or more programs may be implemented as a single program, or one program may be implemented as two or more programs.

[0021] Furthermore, any information (for example, at least one of "ID," "name," and "number") may be used as information to identify an element (identification information, identifier).

[0022] Furthermore, in the following explanation, when describing similar elements without distinction, the common reference code will be used, and when describing similar elements with distinction, the reference code will be used.

[0023] Furthermore, in the following explanation, the unit of "date and time" can be either coarser or finer than year, month, day, hour, and minute.

[0024] Figure 1 is a diagram illustrating the schematics of multiple types of areas in an embodiment. The multiple types of areas shown in Figure 1 may be, for example, parts of a logistics facility (e.g., a warehouse or a distribution center). A logistics facility is, for example, a storage facility used by a mail-order company or a machinery manufacturer to store goods. The goods stored in the logistics facility may be, for example, products or parts.

[0025] The transport system comprises multiple transport devices 3 that travel within a mobile area 150, and a control device 4 that remotely controls the movement of each transport device 3. Shipping boxes 87 (see Figures 3A and 3B) are loaded onto the transport devices 3, and goods (e.g., products or parts) are placed into the shipping boxes 87. A "shipping box 87" is a container (e.g., a box) into which goods that will be packed into the same box (e.g., a cardboard box) as a shipping unit (packaging unit) are placed, and may also be called an "order container." Goods that will be packed into different boxes as shipping units are not placed in the same shipping box 87, but are placed in the corresponding shipping boxes 87 for each shipping unit. Once all the goods are in the shipping boxes 87, the goods in the shipping boxes 87 are inspected, packed, and then shipped. The goods in the shipping boxes 87 may be transferred to the shipping box (e.g., a cardboard box) by a worker or a robot, packed, and shipped. Alternatively, the shipping box 87 may be the shipping box itself.

[0026] The moving area 150 includes an inspection area 103, a charging area 104, a waiting area 105, and an abnormality response area 106. The inspection area 103 is the area where the goods in the shipping boxes 87 loaded on the conveying device 3 are inspected. The charging area 104 is the area where the conveying device 3 is charged. The waiting area 105 is the area where the conveying device 3 is on standby. The abnormality response area 106 is the area where any abnormalities in the conveying device 3 are addressed. At least one of areas 103 to 106 may be located outside the moving area 150. In addition, other areas may be provided inside or outside the moving area 150 in place of or in addition to at least one of areas 103 to 106. Furthermore, in this embodiment, inspection is performed when the conveying device 3 passes through the inspection area 103 within the moving area 150, but alternatively, it may be performed after the goods have been handed over to the packing area 102 (in this case, there may be no inspection area 103 in the moving area 150, and the packing area 102 may also serve as the inspection area).

[0027] Outside the moving area 150, there is a shipping box supply area 100, multiple storage areas 101, and a packing area 102. The shipping box supply area 100 is the area where shipping boxes 87 are supplied, and the shipping boxes 87 are loaded onto the conveying device 3. In this embodiment, it is assumed that empty shipping boxes 87 are supplied in the shipping box supply area 100, but shipping boxes 87 may be supplied with some items already inside, such as items acquired outside the conveying system, to be packed into the same box as a shipping unit. The storage area 101 is the area where items are stored (arranged). The packing area 102 is the area where shipping boxes 87 containing items are packed.

[0028] Multiple storage areas 101 differ in at least one of the following: storage method, retrieval method, or picking method. Examples of multiple storage areas 101 include the flat storage area 101A, the automated warehouse area 101B, the shelf transport area 101C, and the flow rack area 101D. Storage areas 101A to 101D will be described later.

[0029] Figure 2 is an explanatory diagram of the configuration of the movement area 150. For convenience, the two-dimensional directions are defined as the x-direction and the y-direction perpendicular to the x-direction.

[0030] The movement area 150 may be divided and managed into multiple rectangular sections 201 of a predetermined size. The sections 201 can be represented as sections (α, β). α is the x-coordinate (section position along the x-direction), and β is the y-coordinate (section position along the y-direction).

[0031] Furthermore, if the moving area 150 includes areas on multiple floors or areas above and below a mezzanine, the height position of each area can be represented by using the z-coordinate. In this case, the section 201 may be in a coordinate format such as section(α, β, γ). α is the x-coordinate (section position along the x-direction), β is the y-coordinate (section position along the y-direction), and γ is the z-coordinate (area position in the height direction). When the moving area 150 extends to multiple floors, transportation between floors, or transportation between the upper and lower parts of a mezzanine, if one is provided, may be performed by, for example, a vertical conveyor. In this case, the vertical conveyor may transport only the shipping boxes, or it may transport the conveying device 3 loaded with shipping boxes.

[0032] Each section 201 may have a marker (not shown) indicating its location. The marker only needs to contain information to identify the location of the section, which may be, for example, the location information of the section, or information associated with the location information of the section (for example, identification information for section 201). The marker is information that can be read by the sensor 14 (see Figure 6) of the transport device 3, and may be, for example, a one-dimensional code, a two-dimensional code such as a QR code (registered trademark), or information such as an RFID (Radio Frequency Identifier) ​​tag. For example, when the transport device 3 passes through each section 201, it reads the marker in that section 201. Each transport device 3 transmits the information of the read marker, along with the identification information of the transport device 3, to the control device 4. The control device 4 identifies the location of each transport device 3 based on the identification information of the transport device 3 and the marker information received from each transport device 3. Plate-like members are present throughout section 201, allowing movement from section 201 to another adjacent section 201, and the conveying device 3 may rotate within section 201.

[0033] The conveying device 3 and the shipping boxes 87 may be smaller than, for example, one of the compartments 201. There may be various variations in how the compartments are configured. Furthermore, there may be compartments that the conveying device 3 is not allowed to enter (for example, compartment (3, 1)).

[0034] For each section 201 of the moving area 150, as illustrated by the arrows in Figure 2, the direction in which the transport device 3 can move within that section 201 is not restricted (for example, the transport device 3 can move in any of the +x, -x, +y, and -y directions). Furthermore, movement between sections 201 may be set to be bidirectional or unidirectional. For example, by setting some sections 201 to be unidirectional, it is expected that congestion of the transport device 3 can be suppressed or reduced, and the overall movement efficiency can be improved. Also, if there are many sections 201 that can only be moved in one direction, the movement path of the transport device 3 may become longer. Therefore, the direction in which the transport device 3 can move may be predetermined based on the number of transport devices 3 in the moving area 150, or the position of each section 201 or section setting 1202, etc., or such directions may be dynamically set or changed by the control device 4.

[0035] Refer to Figure 1 again. The conveying device 3 is a device that moves according to movement instructions from the control device 4, and is typically an Automatic Guided Vehicle. For example, the conveying device 3, following one or more movement instructions from the control device 4, starts moving from the shipping box supply area 100 with empty shipping boxes 87 loaded on it, moves to two or more (or one) storage areas 101, and arrives at the packing area 102 via the inspection area 103 with the items placed in the shipping boxes 87 from each of the two or more (or one) storage areas 101. Specifically, for example, the movement sequence of the conveying device 3A is as shown in the figure: shipping box supply area 100 → flat storage area 101A → automated warehouse area 101B → shelf conveying area 101C → inspection area 103 → packing area 102. Furthermore, the movement sequence of the conveying device 3B is as shown in the diagram: shipping box supply area 100 → flow rack area 101D → shelf conveying area 101C → flat storage area 101A → inspection area 103 → packaging area 102.

[0036] There are orders that specify multiple different items, and for each order, the control device 4 assigns one or more shipping boxes 87 to the order, and these one or more shipping boxes 87 are loaded onto one or more transport devices 3. For example, if all the items corresponding to a certain order are packed in the same box as a shipping unit, the order (all the items corresponding to the order) may be assigned to one shipping box 87, but if they do not all fit in the same shipping box 87, they may be assigned to multiple shipping boxes 87. The control device 4 prevents a single shipping box 87 from being assigned to multiple orders with different delivery destinations. The order of movement from the shipping box supply area 100 to the packing area 102 may be specified in a single movement instruction, or it may be determined by a combination of multiple movement instructions. The "movement instruction" transmitted to the transport device 3 is associated with information representing the movement task assigned to the transport device 3. In this embodiment, "movement" of the transport device 3 refers to the movement of the transport device 3 in general, regardless of whether or not there are transported items (shipping boxes 87 or the items inside the shipping boxes 87). The "movement" of the conveying device 3 may be rephrased as the "travel" of the conveying device 3. The "movement" of the conveying device 3 while it is carrying an object is sometimes specifically referred to as "conveying." A movement task is a task to move the conveying device 3 to the area specified in the movement task (movement instruction), and may include a task to have the conveying device 3 transport the shipping box 87 to the specified area. Information representing a movement task may include, for example, the movement path, which is the path the conveying device 3 travels, and the direction of movement of the conveying device 3.

[0037] As shown in Figure 3A, the conveying device 3 has a platform 85 on which the shipping boxes 87 are loaded. One conveying device 3 may have one shipping box 87 loaded on it, as shown in Figure 3A, or it may have multiple (two or more) shipping boxes 87 loaded on it, as shown in Figure 3B.

[0038] The transport device 3 is configured to automatically move to the charging area 104 and charge the battery (not shown) if its remaining charge falls below a predetermined value. For example, if the remaining charge of the transport device 3's battery falls below a predetermined value, the transport device 3 may request charging from the control device 4, and the control device 4 may respond to the charging request by instructing the transport device 3 to move to the charging area 104 and charge.

[0039] The following describes the multiple storage areas 101A to 101D. In this description, the "parking area" for each storage area 101 may be an area within the movement area 150 (for example, an area adjacent to storage area 101 and composed of one or more sections 201 of the movement area 150) or an area outside the movement area 150 (for example, an area inside storage area 101).

[0040] Figure 4A is a schematic diagram showing an example of a flat parking area 101A.

[0041] Area 101A is an example of an area where PTG (Person to Goods) is applied. According to PTG, a worker (Person) walks to storage location 2 for the goods (Goods) and picks them.

[0042] The flat storage area 101A includes an item area 400 and one or more work areas 163A, with each work area 163A having a parking area 164A adjacent to it. The item area 400 is an area equipped with storage locations 2 where items are laid flat. The item area 400 may have shelves as storage locations 2, and items may be placed on the shelves. The parking area 164A is an area where the conveying device 3 stops. In the work area 163A, according to work instructions from the control device 4, items picked from the storage locations 2 are placed (loaded) by workers into the shipping boxes 87 of the conveying device 3 parked in the parking area 164A adjacent to the work area 163A.

[0043] Figure 4B is a schematic diagram showing an example of automated warehouse area 101B.

[0044] Automated warehouse area 101B is an example of an area where GTP (Goods To Person) is applied. According to GTP, goods are transported by robots (or other devices) to the location of the picking worker.

[0045] The automated warehouse area 101B includes an automated warehouse 161B, one or more conveyors 162, and one or more work areas 163B, with each work area 163B having a parking area 164B adjacent to it. The automated warehouse 161B releases (deploys) goods to one of the conveyors 162 according to the dispatch instructions from the control device 4. The conveyors 162 transport the goods that have come out of the automated warehouse 161B to the work area 163B (destination WS and / or dispatch WS). The work area 163B is the area where workers pick the goods being transported by the conveyor 162. The parking area 164B is the area where the transport device 3 stops. The goods picked in the work area 163B are placed by workers into the shipping boxes 87 of the transport device 3 parked in the parking area 164B adjacent to the work area 163B.

[0046] A temporary waiting area 165 may be provided in the moving area 150. The temporary waiting area 165 is an area where a transport device 3 heading to the storage area 101, work area 163, or parking area 164 can temporarily wait if the target storage area 101, work area 163, or parking area 164 is full. For example, as shown in Figure 4B, the temporary waiting area 165 may be provided near the automated warehouse area 101B and its parking area 164B. In this case, for example, if the parking area 164B is full, that is, if a transport device 3 has already parked in all of the parking areas 164B, the transport device 3 will temporarily wait in the temporary waiting area 165. The temporary waiting area 165 may be provided anywhere in the moving area 150. Also, there may be multiple temporary waiting areas 165, and the transport device 3 may choose any of the multiple temporary waiting areas 165.

[0047] Figure 4C is a schematic diagram showing an example of a shelf transport area 101C.

[0048] The shelf transport area 101C is an example of an area to which GTP is applied. The shelf transport area 101C has multiple shelves 5, and multiple items are placed on multiple shelves 5. In the shelf transport area 101C, the transport device 161C transports the shelves 5 according to the outbound instruction (movement instruction) from the control device 4. The shelf transport area 101C includes one or more work areas 163C, and each work area 163C has a parking area 164C adjacent to the work area 163C. The work area 163C is the area where items are picked by workers from the shelves 5 transported by the transport device 161C. The parking area 164C is the area where the transport device 3 stops. In the work area 163C, the picked items are placed by workers into the shipping boxes 87 of the transport device 3 which is parked in the parking area 164C adjacent to the work area 163C.

[0049] Figure 4D is a schematic diagram showing an example of a flow rack area 101D.

[0050] The flow rack area 101D includes a flow rack 450 and one or more work areas 163D, with each work area 163D having a parking area 164D adjacent to it. The flow rack 450 has trays arranged vertically, with goods placed in each tray. In the work area 163D, according to work instructions from the control device 4, a worker picks goods from the flow rack 450 and places the picked goods into a shipping box 87 of the conveying device 3 parked in the parking area 164D adjacent to the work area 163D.

[0051] Thus, the multiple storage areas 101A to 101D differ in at least one of the following: storage method, retrieval method, or picking method.

[0052] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a packing area 102.

[0053] The packing area 102 includes one or more conveyors 171, and each conveyor 171 includes a packing machine 172 and a work area 173. Additionally, each conveyor 171 has a stopping area 174. For example, separate stopping areas 174 may be provided for different shipping box sizes, such as large, medium, and small.

[0054] For each conveyor 171, the stopping area 174 is located near (e.g., adjacent to) the work area 173. In the work area 173, a worker transfers a shipping box 87 from the transport device 3 parked in the stopping area 174 to the conveyor 171. If the shipping box 87 is the box to be shipped (e.g., a cardboard box), the shipping box 87 being transported by the conveyor 171 is packed by the packaging machine 172, the packed shipping box 87 is transported by the conveyor 171, and eventually shipped (delivered). Alternatively, the goods placed in the shipping box 87 may be transferred by a worker to the box to be shipped (e.g., a cardboard box), the box to be shipped may be transported by the conveyor 171, packed by the packaging machine 172, the packed box may be transported by the conveyor 171, and eventually shipped (delivered).

[0055] The stopping area 174 may be an area within the moving area 150 (for example, an area adjacent to the packing area 102 and composed of one or more sections 201 of the moving area 150), or it may be an area outside the moving area 150 (for example, inside the packing area 102).

[0056] Figures 6 and 7 show specific configuration examples of the elements of the transport system in this embodiment.

[0057] The transport system comprises a control device 4, a transport device 3, material handling equipment 161, a station terminal 710, and a network 551 (for example, a wireless communication line such as a wireless LAN (Local Area Network)). Each component of the transport system may be one or more. The transport device 3, control device 4, material handling equipment 161, and station terminal 710 are each capable of communication via the network 551. The transport system may also be called a "logistics system."

[0058] The transport device 3 comprises a drive unit 11, a storage device 12, an interface device 13, multiple types of sensors 14, a battery, and a controller 10 connected thereto.

[0059] The controller 10 is responsible for controlling the operation of the transport device 3 according to movement instructions from the control device 4 and the charge status of the built-in battery. The drive device 11 includes drive wheels 20, auxiliary wheels 21, and actuators (not shown) such as motors for rotating the drive wheels 20.

[0060] The interface device 13 is a device for communicating with the control device 4 using a predetermined wireless communication method, and may consist of, for example, a wireless LAN card.

[0061] Sensor 14 is a device for collecting information about the floor surface on which the transport device 3 travels and various information about the transport device 3. For example, sensor 14 can read information about markers on the floor section 201. The transport device 3 may be equipped with multiple types of sensors 14, such as a camera for imaging the state of the section 201, a vibration sensor for detecting vibrations experienced by the transport device 3 while it is moving, a speed sensor for measuring the speed of the transport device 3, an acceleration sensor for measuring the acceleration of the transport device 3, a weight sensor for measuring the weight of the load (transported object), and a gyro sensor for measuring the orientation of the transport device 3.

[0062] The storage device 12 stores, for example, a route table 23, a device table 24, a map table 25, a measurement table 27, and a performance table 28. The controller 10 stores a communication program 29, a movement control program 30, a measurement program 31, and a position estimation program 32. The communication unit, the driving control unit, the measurement unit, and the position estimation unit are realized when the communication program 29, the movement control program 30, the measurement program 31, and the position estimation program 32 are executed by the controller 10.

[0063] The route table 23 is a table that stores the aforementioned movement instructions received from the control device 4 and information representing the movement route specified by the movement instructions (the information representing the movement route may include information about the sections of the movement route, etc.). The device table 24 is a table that stores the ID of the transport device 3, its current location (section), and its status (e.g., "standby", "moving", or "transporting"). The map table 25 is a table that stores information representing the location and attributes of each section (e.g., which area it belongs to). Note that the map table 25 may include information as illustrated in Figure 2. The measurement table 27 is a table that stores values ​​measured by multiple types of sensors 14 (e.g., speed, acceleration, rotation, weight, position (value read from marker), captured images of the section, etc.). The performance table 28 is a table that stores information representing the movement performance, including the route and date and time traveled by the transport device 3.

[0064] The communication program 29 is a program that has the function of exchanging commands and information with the control device 4 via the interface device 13. For example, the communication program 29 transmits information from at least some of tables 23-25, 27, and 28 to the control device 4 in response to a request from the control device 4 (or without a request). The communication program 29 of each transport device 3 may transmit each of these pieces of information to the control device 4 at regular or irregular intervals.

[0065] The movement control program 30 is a program that controls the movement of the transport device 3 in response to movement instructions received from the control device 4 via the communication program 29. For example, the movement control program 30 controls the drive device 11 to move along a specified movement path in accordance with the movement instructions from the control device 4.

[0066] The measurement program 31 registers the output (measurement result) of each sensor 14 in the measurement table 27. The position estimation program 32 estimates the position of the transport device 3 based on the markers (markers in section 201 of the movement area 150) detected through the sensors 14 of the transport device 3.

[0067] The control device 4 may be one or more physical computers having hardware such as a processor 40, memory 41, storage device 42, input device 43, output device 44, and interface device 45, or it may be a system implemented on one or more physical computers (e.g., a cloud infrastructure) (e.g., a cloud computing system). Furthermore, each device of the control device 4 may be located on a single physical computer, or it may be distributed across multiple physical computers. Each program and piece of information in the storage device 42 may be stored in a single storage device, or it may be divided and stored across multiple storage devices. Instead of the input device 43 and output device 44, information input and output may be possible via a client system that can communicate through the interface device 45.

[0068] The processor 40 is a device that controls the operation of the entire control unit 4. The memory 41 is used as the work memory of the processor 40. The storage device 42 stores programs and tables. The input device 43 consists of, for example, a mouse or keyboard, and is used by the operator to input necessary information and instructions to the control unit 4. The output device 44 may be a display device such as a liquid crystal display or an organic EL (Electro Luminescence) display. The interface device 45 is a device for communicating with the transport device 3, material handling equipment 161, and station terminal 710 using a predetermined wireless communication method, and may consist of, for example, a wireless LAN card.

[0069] The storage device 42 stores, for example, a transport device table 53, an inventory table 54, an order table 55, a map table 56, a storage area table 57, a work management table 58 (a picking work management table 581 and a loading work management table 582), a shipping box table 59, and a moving area table 60. The map table 56 is information representing a map of the moving area 150 (and each stopping area) (for example, a table storing the location (coordinates) and attributes of each section) (this table 56 may be distributed to each transport device 3 and stored as a map table 25 in each transport device 3). The map table 56 may include information as illustrated in Figure 2.

[0070] The storage device 42 stores an integrated WCS program 51 and multiple WCS programs 50. The integrated WCS and WCS are realized when the integrated WCS program 51 and WCS programs 50 are executed by the processor 40. WCS stands for Warehouse Control System. The integrated WCS program 51 comprehensively controls the conveying device 3 and the material handling equipment 161. The WCS programs 50 control the material handling equipment 161 or the conveying device 3. For example, the first WCS program 50 controls the material handling equipment 161 in the automated warehouse area 101B (specifically, the automated warehouse 161B). The second WCS program 50 controls the shelf conveying area (specifically, the conveying device 161C). The third WCS program 50 controls the conveying device 3.

[0071] The material handling equipment 161 is located in the storage area 101 (typically a storage area to which GTP is applied) and is used for receiving, storing, or shipping materials from the storage area 101. The material handling equipment 161 is, for example, an automated warehouse 161B in the automated warehouse area 101B, or a conveying device 161C in the shelf conveying area 101C. The material handling equipment 161 includes, for example, an interface device 711, a storage device 713, a drive device 714, a sensor 715, and a processor 712 connected thereto.

[0072] The interface device 711 is a device for communicating with the control device 4 using a predetermined wireless communication method, and may consist of, for example, a wireless LAN card. The drive device 714 is a device for driving the material handling equipment 161. The sensor 715 may be a sensor for detecting the position of the material handling equipment 161, etc.

[0073] The storage device 713 stores an inventory table 760 and a goods receipt / issue table 761. The inventory table 760 may be a table containing at least some of the same information as the inventory table 54 held by the control device 4. The goods receipt / issue table 761 may be a table containing information regarding the receipt or issuance of goods. The processor 712 controls the operation of the entire material handling equipment 161 by executing a program in the storage device 713, for example, based on the inventory table 760 and the goods receipt / issue table 761.

[0074] The station terminal 710 is installed in the WS (work station (i.e., work area 163)) and is an information processing terminal that displays a work management table 770, which is an example of information related to a worker's work (e.g., picking work or loading work), and accepts input from the worker when the work is completed. Upon input of work completion, the work status of the target work is updated. The station terminal 710 has an interface device 731, a storage device 732, and a processor 733 connected thereto. The WS may also be called a Work Station or Working Station.

[0075] The interface device 731 is a device for communicating with the control device 4 using a predetermined wireless communication method, and may consist of, for example, a wireless LAN card. The storage device 732 stores the work management table 770. The work management table 770 may be a table from the work management tables 58 of the control device 4 that contains information corresponding to the work management table (WS). The processor 733 controls the operation of the entire station terminal 710 by executing a program in the storage device 732, for example, based on the work management table 770. The station terminal 710 may be equipped with an input device and an output device. The input device may receive input from the worker regarding work, such as the completion of work. The output device may output instructions to the worker regarding work.

[0076] Figure 8 shows an example of the configuration of the order table 55.

[0077] The order table 55 is a table that stores various information about customer orders. The order table 55 has a record for each item. Each record holds information such as status 601, invoice number 602, shipping box ID 603, store ID 604, item name 605, item ID 606, quantity 607, delivery date 608, received date and time 609, work date and time 610, and priority flag 611. A new record may be added to the order table 55 each time a new order is received from a customer, or a corresponding record may be added periodically for each of one or more new orders. Let's take one item as an example (referred to as the "item of interest" in the explanation of Figure 8). As shown in the example in Figure 8, if the invoice number 602 is the same, even if the type of item (for example, item name 605 and item ID 606) is different, it may be treated as one order.

[0078] Status 601 represents the work status for the item of interest. Document number 602 represents the order number (document number) in which the item of interest is specified.

[0079] Shipping box ID 603 represents the ID of shipping box 87 assigned to the item of interest. Store ID 604 represents the ID of the store that sells or manufactures the item.

[0080] Item Name 605 represents the name of the item of interest, Item ID 606 represents the ID of the item of interest, and Quantity 607 represents the number of items of interest (the number ordered).

[0081] The delivery date 608 represents the deadline by which the item in question will be delivered to the destination (typically the customer). The receipt date and time 609 represents the date and time when the order for the item in question was received. The work date and time 610 represents the date and time when a specific operation related to the item in question (e.g., picking, loading, inspection, packaging, etc.) is performed. In addition to or instead of this information, there may be information on work deadlines and shipping deadlines.

[0082] Priority flag 611 is assigned to orders (invoice number or shipping box group) that should be prioritized, such as sudden orders or orders with approaching deadlines. Orders with priority flag 611 are given higher priority than orders without it. Priority flag 611 may also represent a multi-level priority, such as "high," "medium," or "low."

[0083] Priority flag 611 may be automatically assigned, for example, when there is less than a specified time remaining until the work deadline, or when the order is an express order, or it may be assigned by input from the administrator and / or worker. It may also be assigned for the purpose of improving efficiency, such as preventing delays in goods related to an order, for example, when an order is divided into multiple shipping boxes, and the status 601 of some shipping boxes is picking complete, but the status 601 of the remaining shipping boxes is picking incomplete, by assigning priority flag 611 to the remaining shipping boxes.

[0084] Figure 9 shows an example of the configuration of the inventory table 54.

[0085] The inventory table 54 is a table that stores information about items. The inventory table 54 has a record for each pair of item and storage area 101. The inventory table 54 may also have a record for each pair of item and location within storage area 101 705. Each record holds information such as item name 701, item ID 702, stock quantity 703, storage area 704, location within area 705, storage container ID 706, location within container 707, number of times issued 708, and item size and weight 709. Let's take one item as an example (referred to as the "item of interest" in the explanation of Figure 9).

[0086] Item Name 701 represents the name of the item of interest. Item ID 702 represents the ID of the item of interest. Stock Quantity 703 represents the stock quantity of the item of interest. Storage Area 704 represents the ID of storage area 101 where the item of interest is located. Location within Area 705 represents the location of the item of interest within storage area 101. Storage Container ID 706 represents the ID of the storage container located at the location indicated by Location within Area 705. Location within Container 707 represents the location of the item of interest within the storage container. Number of Issues 708 represents the number of times the item has been issued. Item Size / Weight 709 represents the size or weight of the item.

[0087] The configuration of information 705-707 differs depending on the storage area 101. For example, if storage area 101 is automated warehouse area 101B, the area location 705 consists of the ID of automated warehouse area 101B and a value representing the location within the automated warehouse (column, tier, row), the storage container ID 706 consists of a value representing the ID of the bucket, which is a storage container used in automated warehouse area 101B, and the container location 707 consists of a value representing the opening of the bucket. If storage area 101 is flat storage area 101A, the area location 705 consists of the ID of flat storage area 101A and a value representing the location within flat storage area 101A (for example, column, tier, row (or column, row)). If the storage area 101 is the shelf transport area 101C, the area position 705 consists of values ​​representing the storage compartment ID (or address) of the mobile shelf, the face of the mobile shelf, the level of the mobile shelf, and the opening of the mobile shelf; the storage container ID 706 consists of a value representing the ID of the mobile shelf; and the container position 707 consists of a value representing the position within the opening of the mobile shelf. If the storage area 101 is the flow rack area 101D, the area position 705 consists of a value representing the ID of the flow rack; and the container position 707 consists of a value representing the position within the flow rack.

[0088] Figure 10 shows an example of the configuration of the storage area table 57.

[0089] The storage area table 57 is a table that stores information about the storage area 101. The storage area table 57 has a record for each location within the area. Each record holds information such as the storage area 801, the method 802, the temporary waiting area 803, the location within the area 804, and the station ID 805. Let's take one location within the area as an example (referred to as "location of interest within the area" in the explanation of Figure 10).

[0090] Storage area 801 represents the type of storage area 101 located within the area of ​​interest. Method 802 represents the method of retrieval or picking.

[0091] The temporary waiting area 803 indicates the presence or absence of a temporary waiting area. The presence or absence of a temporary waiting area may be managed for each storage area 101, or for each WS (or WS group (two or more WS)). A temporary waiting area may be reserved for each WS, but multiple WS may share a temporary waiting area.

[0092] Area location 804 represents the location within the area of ​​interest. Station ID 805 represents the ID of the WS (available WS) corresponding to the area location.

[0093] Figure 11 shows an example of the configuration of the conveying device table 53.

[0094] The transport device table 53 is a table that stores information about each transport device 3. The transport device table 53 has a record for each transport device 3. Each record holds information such as device ID 1101, shipping box ID 1102, location 1103, battery level 1104, device status 1105, storage area 1106, destination location 1107, and expected arrival date and time 1108. Let's take one transport device 3 as an example (referred to as "Target Transport Device 3" in the explanation of Figure 11).

[0095] Device ID 1101 represents the ID of the transport device 3 of interest. Shipping box ID 1102 represents the ID of the shipping box 87 loaded onto the transport device 3 of interest. If multiple shipping boxes 87 are loaded onto the transport device 3 of interest, multiple IDs are recorded as the ID of the transport device 3 of interest. For example, in the example in Figure 11, the records with device ID 1101 being "transport device 04-R" and "transport device 04-L" indicate that the shipping box with shipping box ID "B08" is loaded on the right side (R) of the front of the transport device 04, and the shipping box with shipping box ID "B09" is loaded on the left side (L) of the front of the transport device 04.

[0096] Position 1103 represents the coordinates of the section (i.e., the current section) where the focus transport device 3 is located. Battery level 1104 represents the remaining battery level of the focus transport device 3.

[0097] Device status 1105 represents the status of the focus transport device 3. "Moving" means that the focus transport device 3 is moving. "Empty" means that no shipping boxes are assigned to the focus transport device 3. "Stopped" means that the focus transport device 3 is stopped in the stopping area (or temporary waiting area).

[0098] The storage area 1106 represents the storage area to which the transport device 3 of interest will move. The target location 1107 represents the location to which the transport device 3 of interest will move, and may be a location related to the storage area 1106 or a location near the storage area 1106. For example, it may be the parking area in front of the WS (work area) of the storage area 1106, or a temporary waiting area.

[0099] The estimated arrival date and time 1108 is the estimated date and time when the transport device 3 is scheduled to arrive at its destination. The estimated arrival date and time 1108 may be, for example, a date and time calculated by the integrated WCS program 51 (or WCS program 50) based on the travel route of the transport device 3 to its destination.

[0100] Figure 12 shows an example of the configuration of the mobile area table 60.

[0101] The movement area table 60 holds information for each section within the movement area 150. The movement area table 60 has a record for each section. Each record holds information such as address 1201, section setting 1202, station ID 1203, unavailable flag 1204, rotation unavailable flag 1205, and direction 1206. Let's take one section as an example (referred to as the "section of interest" in the explanation of Figure 12).

[0102] Address 1201 represents the address (location information) of the area of ​​interest. Area setting 1202 represents how the area of ​​interest is set up. For example, “Movement Area” is the area on which the transport device 3 travels. “Stopping Area” is the area belonging to the stopping area. “Temporary Waiting Area” is the area belonging to the temporary waiting area. Station ID 1203 represents the ID of the WS corresponding to the area of ​​interest.

[0103] The unavailable flag 1204 indicates whether the area of ​​interest is unavailable (cannot be a component of the movement path). The rotation impossible flag 1205 indicates whether the area of ​​interest is unable to be rotated by the transport device 3. The direction 1206 indicates the direction in which the transport device 3 located in the area of ​​interest can move.

[0104] Furthermore, if a transport device such as a conveyor is moving within the storage area 101, a table similar to the movement area table 60 may be managed for that storage area 101. In this case, the WCS program 50, which mainly controls the transport device, may refer to or update the said table.

[0105] Figure 13 shows an example of the configuration of the shipping box table 59.

[0106] The shipping box table 59 is a table that stores information about each shipping box. The shipping box table 59 has a record for each size category of shipping boxes. Each record holds information such as the size category 1301, loadable size 1302, loadable weight 1303, loadable quantity 1304, and shipping box ID 1305. Let's take one shipping box as an example (referred to as the "featured shipping box" in the explanation of Figure 13).

[0107] Size category 1301 represents the size category to which the featured shipping box belongs (e.g., large, medium, small). Loadable size 1302 represents the size of the items that can be loaded into the featured shipping box (e.g., width, depth, height). Loadable weight 1303 represents the weight of the items that can be loaded into the featured shipping box.

[0108] The loading capacity of 1304 represents the maximum number of shipping boxes belonging to the same size category as the featured shipping box that can be loaded onto the conveying device 3.

[0109] Shipping box ID 1305 represents the ID of the shipping box of interest. Specifically, for each size category, shipping box ID 1305 is a list of IDs of the shipping boxes of interest belonging to that size category. Note that the IDs included in shipping box ID 1305 may include all shipping boxes, or they may include only the IDs of shipping boxes that have not been assigned to a document number (i.e., empty shipping boxes) (i.e., if an ID of a shipping box to be assigned is selected from shipping box ID 1305, that ID may be deleted from shipping box ID 1305).

[0110] Furthermore, the shipping box table 59 may have a record for each shipping box, and in addition to the information 1301 to 1305 described above, it may also manage the allocation status of each shipping box (unassigned or assigned status, assigned slip number, assigned transport device 3 ID, etc.).

[0111] Figure 14 shows an example of the configuration of the loading operation management table 582.

[0112] The loading operation management table 582 is a table related to loading operations. The loading operation management table 582 has a record for each loading operation. Each record holds information such as station ID 1401, slip number 1402, device ID 1403, shipping box ID 1404, item ID 1405, quantity 1406, scheduled start date and time 1407, scheduled end date and time 1408, and work status 1409. Let's take a single loading operation as an example (referred to as "Featured Loading Operation" in the explanation of Figure 14).

[0113] Station ID 1401 represents the ID of the WS where the loading operation takes place. Slip number 1402 represents the slip number of the order corresponding to the loading operation. Device ID 1403 represents the ID of the conveying device 3 that transports the shipping box 87 containing (loaded) the goods to the WS during the loading operation.

[0114] Shipping box ID 1404 represents the ID of the shipping box in which the goods will be placed (loaded) during the loading operation; item ID 1405 represents the ID of the item; and quantity 1406 represents the number of the item to be loaded during the loading operation.

[0115] The scheduled start date and time 1407 represents the scheduled start date and time of the loading operation of interest. The scheduled end date and time 1408 represents the scheduled end date and time of the loading operation of interest. The scheduled start date and time 1407 may be calculated by the integrated WCS program 51 or WCS program 50 based on the scheduled arrival date and time of the conveying device 3 along the movement path to the WS, and the estimated time required for loading operations performed before the loading operation of interest (or the scheduled end date and time). The scheduled end date and time 1408 may be calculated by the integrated WCS program 51 or WCS program 50 based on the scheduled start date and time 1407 and the estimated time required for the loading operation of interest. The estimated time required for the loading operation may be calculated by the integrated WCS program 51 or WCS program 50 based on at least one of the following: the quantity of items to be loaded, the average time required for the loading operation, and the past loading operation history of the worker performing the loading operation. Note that the loading operation may be performed by a robot in place of or in addition to the worker.

[0116] Work status 1409 represents the status of the loading operation. "Before work" means that the loading operation has not yet started. "In progress" means that the loading operation has started but has not yet been completed. "Completed" means that the loading operation has been completed. Note that changes to work status 1409 may be made based on input from the operator of the loading operation, or automatically based on values ​​automatically detected regarding the loading operation.

[0117] Furthermore, the loading operation management table 582 may manage records for each WS, for example by creating a separate table for each WS, so that the loading status of each WS can be seen. The order of the records may be the order in which the conveying devices 3 (shipping boxes 87) arrived at each WS.

[0118] Figure 15 shows an example of the configuration of the picking work management table 581.

[0119] The picking work management table 581 is a table related to picking operations. The picking work management table 581 has a record for each picking operation. Each record holds information such as station ID 1501, slip number 1502, storage container ID 1503, item ID 1504, quantity 1505, scheduled start date and time 1506, scheduled end date and time 1507, and work status 1508. Let's take a single picking operation as an example (referred to as "focus picking operation" in the explanation of Figure 15).

[0120] Station ID 1501 represents the ID of the workstation (WS) where the picking operation is performed. Slip number 1502 represents the slip number of the order corresponding to the picking operation. Storage container ID 1503 represents the ID of the storage container containing the items to be picked in the picking operation.

[0121] Item ID 1504 represents the ID of the item to be picked in the featured picking operation, and quantity 1505 represents the number of items to be picked.

[0122] The scheduled start date and time 1506 represents the scheduled start date and time of the picking operation of interest. The scheduled end date and time 1507 represents the scheduled end date and time of the picking operation of interest. The scheduled start date and time 1506 may be calculated by the integrated WCS program 51 or WCS program 50 based on the scheduled arrival date and time of the storage container at the WS and the estimated time required (or scheduled end date and time) for picking operations performed prior to the picking operation of interest. The scheduled end date and time 1507 may be calculated by the integrated WCS program 51 or WCS program 50 based on the scheduled start date and time 1506 and the estimated time required for the picking operation. The estimated time required for the picking operation may be calculated by the integrated WCS program 51 or WCS program 50 based on at least one of the following: the quantity of items to be picked, the average time required for the picking operation, and the past picking history of the worker performing the picking operation. The picking operation may be performed by a robot in place of or in addition to a worker.

[0123] Work status 1508 represents the status of the picking task in question. "Before work" means that the picking task in question has not yet started. "In progress" means that the picking task in question has started but has not yet been completed. "Completed" means that the picking task in question has been completed. Note that changes to work status 1508 may be made based on input from the worker performing the picking task in question, or it may be made automatically based on values ​​automatically detected regarding the picking task in question.

[0124] Furthermore, the picking work management table 581 may be organized in a way that allows for tracking the picking status of each workstation, for example by creating a separate table for each workstation. The records may be arranged in the order in which the items (storage containers) arrived at each workstation.

[0125] Additionally, there is a slip number 1502 that represents multiple different slip numbers (e.g., "81" and "85"), which is related to the loading operation management table 582 (e.g., the record with slip numbers 1402 "81" and "85") and indicates that items from different orders with those slip numbers are picked together in a single picking operation.

[0126] The following describes an example of the processing performed in this embodiment. In this embodiment, the control device 4 receives information (for example, information including sensor measurements) periodically or irregularly from each transport device 3, each material handling equipment 161, and each station terminal 710, and the integrated WCS program 51 or WCS program 50 updates the relevant portion of tables 53 to 60 as appropriate.

[0127] Figures 16 to 21 are flowcharts showing the order processing flow. In the following explanation, "WCS program 50X" refers to the WCS program 50 corresponding to the material handling equipment 161 in the destination storage area 101. "WCS program 50Y" refers to the WCS program 50 corresponding to the conveying device 3.

[0128] As shown in Figure 16, in S1601, the integrated WCS program 51 selects one or more records from the order table 55 where the work date and time 610 corresponds to a predetermined work date and time. Orders with a priority flag 611 set to "yes" may be given priority in at least some of the following order processing steps compared to orders without a priority flag (for example, priority in the order in which items are dispatched from the material handling equipment 161 in the storage area 101, and in the order in which the conveying device 3 arrives at the stopping area 164 and / or in the waiting order).

[0129] In S1602, the integrated WCS program 51 refers to the order table 55 to identify the document number for which the shipping box ID 603 is unassigned, and performs a shipping box selection process. Here, for example, if all the items corresponding to the identified document number do not fit into a single shipping box, it is decided that those items will be divided into multiple shipping boxes. Also, if there are multiple sizes of shipping boxes, the size of the shipping box is identified, and it is determined whether or not multiple shipping boxes can be loaded onto a single transport device 3 (if multiple shipping boxes are to be loaded, the number of shipping boxes to be loaded is determined). As a result of this S1602, information regarding shipping boxes for each of the records identified in S1601 (for example, some or all of the information such as the shipping box group ID, shipping box size, number of shipping boxes to be loaded onto the transport device 3, combination of shipping box groups, and shipping box ID corresponding to each record) is set (determined) and recorded in the order table 55.

[0130] In S1603, the integrated WCS program 51 refers to the transport device table 53.

[0131] In S1604, the integrated WCS program 51 identifies a transport device 3 for which no shipping boxes are assigned (device status 1105 is "empty").

[0132] In S1605, the integrated WCS program 51 sends a move request to the WCS program 50Y to move the identified transport device 3 to the supply WS (WS in the shipping box supply area 100). The move request specifies the device ID of the transport device identified in S1604 and the destination area (e.g., the stopping area at the destination).

[0133] In S1606, the WCS program 50Y transmits a move instruction to the designated transport device 3 to move to the supply WS, in accordance with the move request.

[0134] In S1607, WCS program 50Y receives notification from conveyor 3 that it has arrived at the supply WS and reports to the integrated WCS that conveyor 3 has arrived at the supply WS.

[0135] In S1608, Integrated WCS Program 51 receives a report of arrival completion.

[0136] As shown in Figure 17, in S1609, the integrated WCS program 51 sends a loading request for shipping boxes to the station terminal 710 of the supply WS. The loading request includes, for example, some or all of the information about the shipping boxes identified in S1602 (e.g., some or all of the information such as the shipping box group ID, the size of the shipping boxes, the number of shipping boxes to be loaded onto the conveying device 3, the combination of shipping box groups, and the shipping box ID).

[0137] In S1610, the station terminal 710 of the supply WS displays loading instructions for the shipping boxes based on the loading request. The displayed loading instructions are information about the shipping boxes to be loaded onto the transport device 3 that has arrived at the corresponding stopping area of ​​the supply WS, and include the information included in the loading request. Loading is performed according to the displayed loading instructions. For example, at the supply WS, a worker or work robot may input the information of the shipping box IDs to be loaded into the station terminal 710 by scanning (reading) the codes (e.g., including the shipping box ID) attached to the shipping boxes to be loaded using a scanning terminal such as a code reader, for the "shipping box size" and "number of shipping boxes" specified in the loading instructions. The worker or work robot loads the scanned shipping boxes onto the transport device 3 of the WS. If there are multiple shipping box sizes, the loading instructions display will include information about the size of the shipping boxes. The worker loads the shipping boxes of that size (i.e., one or more shipping boxes are loaded onto a single conveying device 3 according to the loading instructions).

[0138] As an alternative modification, the supply WS may be separated according to the size of the shipping box. In this case, the integrated WCS program 51 may send a move request to the WCS program 50Y to move the transport device 3 to the supply WS corresponding to the size of the shipping box. As another alternative modification, if there is a transport device 3 corresponding to the device status 1105 "empty", the shipping boxes may be loaded onto the supply WS first, and then an unassigned slip number (shipping box group) may be assigned to that shipping box.

[0139] In S1611, the station terminal 710 receives input from the worker indicating that loading is complete and reports the loading completion (including, for example, information about the shipping box ID) to the integrated WCS program 51.

[0140] In S1612, the integrated WCS program 51 receives a report that loading is complete and updates the conveyor table 53 (setting the ID of the loaded shipping box as shipping box ID 1102 for the target conveyor 3).

[0141] In S1613, the integrated WCS program 51 updates the order table 55. For example, the integrated WCS program 51 assigns the loaded shipping boxes to the target document number (shipping box group). If multiple shipping boxes are loaded on the same transport device, the integrated WCS program 51 assigns the loaded shipping boxes to each shipping box group corresponding to the target combination of shipping box groups. In the order table 55, the integrated WCS program 51 sets the ID of the loaded (assigned) shipping box as the shipping box ID 603 for each item record corresponding to each shipping box group.

[0142] As a variation, if a shipping box ID is set in S1602 (Figure 16), and the loading request in S1609 and the loading instruction in S1610 include information about the shipping box ID, the worker or robot may load the shipping box with the shipping box ID specified in the loading instruction onto the conveying device 3.

[0143] As shown in Figure 18, in S1614, the integrated WCS program 51 refers to the order table 55 and the inventory table 54 to identify the storage area 101 that stores the item corresponding to the relevant document number (the item whose status 601 indicates that picking or loading is incomplete).

[0144] In S1615, the integrated WCS program 51 refers to the work management table 58 (picking work management table 581 and loading work management table 582), the storage area table 57, the movement area table 60, and the conveying device table 53 (and also refers to, for example, the inbound / outbound table 761 of each material handling equipment 161). From the referenced tables, the integrated WCS program 51 identifies the work status of each WS (e.g., work capacity and congestion), the location and movement status of each conveying device 3 (e.g., destination and expected arrival date and time), and the items scheduled for outbound shipment, and determines (selects) the destination storage area and the target location (e.g., the WS in the destination storage area 101 or a temporary waiting area). If the target location is a temporary waiting area, the integrated WCS program 51 selects an area with a low waiting risk from among one or more temporary waiting areas according to the waiting location selection method described later (the method shown in Figure 22), and determines (selects) it as the target location. Based on that decision, the integrated WCS program 51 determines the patrol sequence (all or some destinations, including at least the first destination). The integrated WCS program 51 updates the transport device table 53 (e.g., device status 1105, storage area 1106, and target location 1107).

[0145] In S1616, the integrated WCS program 51 refers to the storage area table 57 and determines whether the destination storage area 101 is a GTP area (an area to which GTP is applied). If the result of the determination in S1616 is false (S1616: NO), the process proceeds to S1632 (Figure 20).

[0146] If the result of the determination in S1616 is true (S1616: YES), in S1617, the integrated WCS program 51 sends a move request to the WCS program 50Y to move the transport device 3 to the target position.

[0147] In S1618, the WCS program 50Y transmits a move instruction to the transport device 3 to move it to the target position in accordance with the move request.

[0148] In S1619, WCS program 50Y receives completion notification from conveyor 3 that it has arrived at the destination location, and reports the arrival completion to integrated WCS program 51.

[0149] In S1620, Integrated WCS Program 51 receives a report of arrival completion.

[0150] As shown in Figure 19, at S1621, the integrated WCS program 51 sends a dispatch request to the WCS program 50X corresponding to the material handling equipment 161 in the destination storage area 101 to dispatch the goods (the goods corresponding to the relevant document number) from the destination storage area 101.

[0151] In S1622, the WCS program 50X transmits a dispatch instruction to the corresponding material handling equipment 161 to dispatch the items corresponding to the relevant document number in accordance with the dispatch request. The dispatch instruction may include, in part or in whole, information such as the dispatch destination WS in storage area 101, and the order and timing of the items' arrival.

[0152] For example, WCS program 50X refers to inventory table 54 to identify area location 705 corresponding to item name 701 and / or item ID 702 of the item to be issued. WCS program 50X refers to storage area table 57 to identify area location 804 corresponding to area location 705, identifies station ID 805 corresponding to area location 804, and identifies (determines) the WS (shipping destination WS, transport destination WS) to which the item will be issued.

[0153] If there are multiple station IDs, the WCS program 50X may refer to the picking work management table 581 and determine the WS to which the item will be shipped, taking into account the status of the picking work tasks at each WS so that the work tasks at each WS are leveled or optimized (based on the worker's work processing speed, etc.). Furthermore, if it is more efficient to pick the item together with other picking work tasks (picking work tasks for the same or different items, such as items corresponding to other slip numbers), the WCS program 50X may determine the destination WS so that the same WS is used for shipping, and may also determine the arrival order and / or timing of the items when they arrive at the destination WS.

[0154] In S1623, WCS program 50X receives status information from material handling equipment 161 representing the status of goods being issued and transported, and reports this status information to the integrated WCS. The status information may include, for example, information representing the destination WCS in storage area 101, and the order and timing of goods' arrival.

[0155] In S1624, the integrated WCS program 51 receives a report containing status information on outbound and transport status.

[0156] In S1625, the integrated WCS program 51 sends an output request (a request to display picking and loading work instructions) to the station terminal 710 of the storage WS (WS in the destination storage area 101), or sends a move request to the WCS program 50Y. Specifically, for example, the integrated WCS program 51 sends an output request to the station terminal 710 of the storage WS based on status information (for example, information on the destination WS and the order and timing of arrival of the items), or determines a move request such that the order and timing of arrival of the conveying device 3 at the parking area 164 corresponding to the storage WS is the same as the order and timing of arrival of the items at the destination WS, and sends it to the WCS program 50Y. The work instructions include information representing the items to be picked at the destination storage area 101 and loaded onto the conveying device 3, the number of items, and the location of the items (location within the area or location within the container).

[0157] In S1626, the WCS program 50Y transmits a movement instruction to the transport device 3 to its target location (WS in the storage area 101) in accordance with the movement request.

[0158] In S1627, WCS program 50Y receives completion notification from conveyor 3 that it has arrived at the destination location, and reports the arrival completion to integrated WCS program 51.

[0159] In S1628, the storage WS station terminal 710 displays picking and / or loading work instructions based on the output request.

[0160] In S1629, station terminal 710 receives input from the worker indicating that picking and / or loading is complete, and reports the completion of the work to the integrated WCS program 51.

[0161] In S1630, Integrated WCS Program 51 receives a report of arrival completion.

[0162] In S1631, the integrated WCS program 51 receives a report of picking completion and / or loading completion and updates the status 601 in the order table 55 (updating the status 601 of the item corresponding to the relevant document number to "completed" for picking and / or loading). After the status 601 for picking and loading is set to "completed", the process proceeds to S1640 (Figure 21).

[0163] In the case of S1616:NO in Figure 18, the process proceeds to S1632 in Figure 20, as described above. In S1632, the integrated WCS program 51 sends a move request to the WCS program 50Y to move the transport device 3 to the target location (storage WS) in the destination storage area 101.

[0164] In S1633, the WCS program 50Y transmits an instruction to the transport device 3 to move to the target position in accordance with the move request.

[0165] In S1634, WCS program 50Y receives completion notification from transport device 3 that it has arrived at the destination location, and reports the arrival completion to integrated WCS program 51.

[0166] In S1635, Integrated WCS Program 51 receives a report of arrival completion.

[0167] In S1636, the integrated WCS program 51 sends an output request to the storage WS station terminal 710, which is a request to display picking and loading work instructions. The work instructions include information indicating the items to be picked in the destination storage area 101 and loaded onto the conveying device 3, the number of items, and the location of the items (location within the area or location within the container).

[0168] In S1637, station terminal 710 displays picking and loading work instructions based on the output request.

[0169] In S1638, station terminal 710 receives input from the worker indicating the completion of picking and loading, and reports the completion of the work to the integrated WCS program 51.

[0170] In S1639, the integrated WCS program 51 receives a report of work completion and updates status 601 in the order table 55 (updating status 601 of the item corresponding to the relevant document number to "completed" for picking and / or loading). After the status 601 for picking and loading is set to "completed", the process proceeds to S1640 (Figure 21).

[0171] As shown in Figure 21, in S1640, the integrated WCS program 51 refers to the status 601 of each item in the order table 55 that corresponds to the relevant document number (and / or the relevant shipping box ID).

[0172] In S1641, the integrated WCS program 51 determines whether the status 601 of each item corresponding to the target document number (or target shipping box ID, or multiple shipping box IDs loaded onto the same transport device 3) is "completed" or not (i.e., whether all items corresponding to the target document number have been loaded into the shipping box). If the result of the determination in S1641 is false (S1641: NO), the process returns to S1614 in Figure 18. In other words, another destination storage area is identified, and the same process proceeds.

[0173] If the result of the determination in S1641 is true (S1641: YES), in S1642, the integrated WCS program 51 sends a move request to the WCS program 50Y to move the transport device 3 to the target position in the inspection area 103.

[0174] In S1643, the WCS program 50Y transmits a move instruction to the conveying device 3 to move it to the target location (inspection area 103) in accordance with the move request.

[0175] In S1644, WCS program 50Y receives completion notification from conveyor 3 that it has arrived at the destination location, and reports the arrival completion to integrated WCS program 51.

[0176] At S1645, the integrated WCS program 51 receives a report of arrival completion and sends an inspection instruction to the inspection equipment (not shown) in the inspection area 103.

[0177] In S1646, the integrated WCS program 51 receives a report that the inspection is complete and sends a move request to the WCS program 50Y to move the conveying device 3 to the desired position in the packing area 102.

[0178] In S1647, the WCS program 50Y transmits a move instruction to the conveying device 3 to move it to the target location (packing area 102) in accordance with the move request.

[0179] In S1648, WCS program 50Y receives completion notification from conveyor device 3 that it has arrived at the destination location, and reports the arrival completion to integrated WCS program 51.

[0180] In S1649, the integrated WCS program 51 receives a report of arrival completion and sends a request to the station terminal 710 of the WS in the packing area 102 to output a loading instruction to transfer the shipping boxes to the packing area 102. The integrated WCS program 51 updates the device status 1105 of the transport device 3 from which the shipping boxes have been removed to "empty" and sends a move request to the WCS program 50Y to move the transport device 3 to the next destination location (for example, the waiting area 105 or the shipping box supply area 100).

[0181] Although embodiments have been described above, these are merely illustrative examples for explaining the present invention and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention to these embodiments only. The present invention can be implemented in various other forms.

[0182] Furthermore, for example, the shape of the partition is not limited to a rectangle, but may be other shapes. Also, partitions of different sizes or shapes may be mixed together. In addition, the location of a partition may be identified by a method other than by markers on the partition.

[0183] Furthermore, for example, the integrated WCS program 51 and WCS program 50 may be executed by the transport device 3 instead of or in addition to the control device 4. Also, the transport device 3 may also function as the control device 4.

[0184] As described above, when the integrated WCS program 51 designates a temporary waiting area 165 as the target location, it selects an area with a low waiting risk from among one or more temporary waiting areas 165 according to the method shown in Figure 22, and determines (selects) it as the target location. The series of processes shown in Figure 22 are performed in S1615 of the flow shown in Figures 16 to 21, but may be performed in another step instead of or in addition to S1615. The method for selecting a waiting location will be described below with reference to Figure 22 and later. The temporary waiting area 165 may also be called a "waiting location". In this embodiment, there are multiple work stations 163 (multiple work areas 163) and multiple temporary waiting areas 165 in at least one storage area 101. The terms "location," such as the temporary waiting area 165 and the target location, and "section" in the moving area 150 may be synonymous. Furthermore, the term "picking work" refers to an example of work performed at a work station, and typically includes the work of picking items that have been released from storage area 101, and / or the loading work of placing the picked items into shipping boxes. In the above explanation, the management tables for picking work and loading work were separate, and picking work and loading work were distinguished as appropriate, but for the sake of simplicity, picking work may refer to picking work in a broad sense as work performed at a work station, and picking work in a broad sense may include loading work and picking work in a narrow sense.

[0185] Figure 22 is a flowchart illustrating the flow of controlling the transport device 3 based on the waiting risk considering the accuracy of the work. The series of processes represented by this flow are part of the process in which the processor 40 plans movement instructions for some or all of the transport devices 3 (i.e., the process of creating or updating the operation plan related to the operation of the transport devices 3), and are executed at predetermined timings. "Predetermined timings" may be, for example, a timing after a certain amount of time has elapsed since the predetermined time in the previous cycle, or a timing when the availability of work stations 163 or temporary waiting areas 165 changes (for example, when the number of available work stations 163 or available temporary waiting areas 165 increases or decreases), or a timing when a transport device 3 that is waiting appears, or a timing that can be freely combined with some or all of these timings. In the following description, each step is performed by the processor 40, specifically, for example, by the processor 40 executing the integrated WCS program 51.

[0186] In S2301, the processor 40 determines, based on the transport device table 53, whether there is a transport device 3 that is in standby mode (a transport device 3 whose device status 1105 is "standby"). If the result of the determination in S2301 is false (S2301: NO), the processor 40 does not perform control based on waiting risk. However, if control based on waiting risk was already being performed before the determination was made, the processor 40 continues that control.

[0187] If the result of the S2301 determination is true (S2301:YES), the processor 40 executes S2302 to S2304 as control based on the waiting risk. The waiting risk is calculated based on a map table 56 that contains information representing the location of each work station and the location of each temporary waiting area.

[0188] In S2302, the processor 40 predicts the probability that some or all of the operations will be performed for each of some or all of the transport devices 3. The specific method for predicting the probability of operations will be described later, but the probability of operations changes over time depending on the progress of the work plan, etc. Processing according to this flow may be performed as part of updating the operation plan in accordance with the update of the work plan. Alternatively, instead of the example in which the work plan and the operation plan are distinguished, a plan that includes information about operations and information about operations as a whole may be adopted. That is, in this embodiment, the "plan" may include both the work plan and the operation plan, or at least the operation plan. The work plan may consist of at least a part of the loading work management table 582 and the picking work management table 581. The operation plan may consist of at least a part of the transport device table 53.

[0189] In S2303, the processor 40 calculates the waiting risk for each of some or all of the transport devices 3 and each of some or all of the temporary waiting areas. "Waiting" refers to a state in which a worker (or robot) is unable to perform work, and mainly occurs when the arrival of the transport device 3 at the work station 163 is delayed from the scheduled start time of work. For each pair of transport device 3 and temporary waiting area 165, "waiting risk" refers to the risk as the degree of waiting that may occur at the work station 163 for the work assigned to the transport device 3 if the transport device 3 waits in the temporary waiting area 165. The specific method for calculating the waiting risk will be described later, but the processor 40 calculates the waiting risk at predetermined timings based on the certainty of the work (i.e., based on the possibility of changes in the work). Since the certainty of the work changes over time, the waiting risk also changes over time. For this reason, this flow is performed at predetermined timings.

[0190] In S2304, the processor 40 controls the transport device 3 to select a temporary waiting area 165 with a low waiting risk. For example, the processor 40 selects the pair with the lowest waiting risk (the pair of transport device 3 and temporary waiting area 165) and decides to move the transport device 3 in that pair to the temporary waiting area 165. At this time, the processor 40 may directly control the operation of multiple transport devices 3, or it may update the operation plan (e.g., route table 23) of multiple transport devices 3.

[0191] If a second conveying device 3, separate from the first conveying device 3 in the first group, is waiting in the first temporary waiting area 165 in the first group, where the risk of waiting is low, then at least one of the following may be performed. The processor 40 places the first transport device 3 in the first temporary waiting area 165 in place of the second transport device 3. If the risk of the first temporary waiting area 165 being unaffected is lower for the second transport device 3 located in the first temporary waiting area 165 in the first set, the processor 40 searches for another temporary waiting area to serve as the temporary waiting area for the first transport device 3.

[0192] If the first transport device 3 is not placed in the first temporary waiting area 165, and the second temporary waiting area 165 in the second group which includes the first transport device 3 and has the next lowest waiting risk is available, and the next lowest waiting risk is lower than the waiting risk in the temporary waiting area where the first transport device 3 is waiting, the processor 40 may move the first transport device 3 from the current temporary waiting area to the second temporary waiting area in the second group.

[0193] The processor 40 calculates the waiting risk for the transport devices 3 already waiting in the temporary waiting area, as described above (i.e., "some or all transport devices 3" above may include transport devices 3 already waiting in the temporary waiting area), and if a temporary waiting area with a lower waiting risk is found for the waiting transport device 3, it may move the waiting transport device 3 to the temporary waiting area 165 with the lower waiting risk. For example, as will be described in more detail later, the processor 40 may change the temporary waiting area 165 where the transport device 3 is waiting so that the transport device 3 gradually approaches the target location (in this case, the work station 163) where the work is most likely to be completed, depending on the remaining time until the scheduled start date and time (the date and time represented by the scheduled start date and time 1506).

[0194] As described above, the processor 40 updates the waiting risk of each temporary waiting area 165 for some or all of the transport devices 3 at predetermined intervals, and moves the transport devices 3 waiting in the temporary waiting area to a temporary waiting area with a lower waiting risk for that transport device 3 based on the waiting risk for each pair of transport devices 3 and temporary waiting area 165.

[0195] Furthermore, when the processor 40 decides to place a certain transport device 3 in the temporary waiting area with the lowest risk, if another transport device 3 has a lower risk in that temporary waiting area, it may place the other transport device 3 in that temporary waiting area and determine the next lowest temporary waiting area for the transport device 3.

[0196] For each conveying device 3, the specific operation of the conveying device 3 will differ depending on the method used to calculate the waiting risk, but a typical example is as follows: The conveying device 3 waits in a temporary waiting area 165 that is roughly the same distance away from multiple work stations 163 that are candidates for the conveying device 3. As time passes, the probability of work being performed on the conveying device 3 increases at one of the work stations 163. Therefore, the conveying device 3 gradually approaches the work station where the probability of work on the conveying device 3 has increased.

[0197] "Work accuracy" (work accuracy) has two main components: accuracy regarding the location where the work will be performed and accuracy regarding the timing of the work's performance. For each work station 163, "location accuracy" (location accuracy) refers to the probability or degree of that probability that the work will be performed at that work station 163, taking into account that the work station 163 where the work will be performed may change from the initial plan. "Timing accuracy" (timing angle) refers to the probability or degree of that probability that the work will be performed at the scheduled start time, taking into account that the scheduled start time of the work may change from the initial plan. Examples of prediction methods for each accuracy are explained below.

[0198] Figure 23A is a schematic diagram illustrating how to calculate the location accuracy of a work station within the automated warehouse area 101B.

[0199] Here, we consider a situation where the inventory box (storage container) 2403 is transported by conveyor belt 162 to one of the work stations A to C (an example of multiple work stations 163B).

[0200] Before the inventory box 2403 crosses the conveyor branch 2301A or 2301B, there is room to switch the work station to which the inventory box 2403 is headed. If the processor 40 deems it necessary, the work station on which the work is performed may change (i.e., the work plan may be updated), as described above. In such cases, the processor 40 may determine the location accuracy of each of the work stations A to C from the shape of the conveyor 162 (the possible paths that the inventory box 2403 can take) and the position of the inventory box 2403.

[0201] The inventory box 2403 at position 2302A may reach any of work stations A through C. If the inventory box 2403 is at position 2302A, for example, the accuracy of its location may be expressed as a probability such as 50% for work station A, 25% for work station B, and 25% for work station C, based on the branching shape of the conveyor 162.

[0202] After a certain period of time has elapsed, if the inventory box 2403 has passed branch 2301A and moved to position 2302B, the possibility of the inventory box 2403 reaching work station A has been eliminated. In this case, based on the branching shape of the conveyor 162, the accuracy of the location can be considered as 0% for work station A, 50% for work station B, and 50% for work station C.

[0203] Here, the processor 40 calculated the location accuracy based on the shape of the conveyor 162 and the position of the stock boxes 2403. However, the elements (e.g., variables) of the stock accuracy may be replaced with or in addition to at least one of the shapes of the conveyor 162 and the position of the stock boxes 2403, and other elements (variables) depending on the type of storage area 101 may be adopted. For example, if the storage area 101 is a shelf transport area 101C, as shown in Figure 26A, the location accuracy for each of the work stations X to Z (an example of multiple work stations 163C) may be calculated based on the time and distance required to move from the transport device 161C having shelves as stock boxes to the work station. Alternatively, depending on the type of storage area 101 (or regardless of the type of storage area 101), the location accuracy of a work station may be calculated by learning (or statistics) based on historical information such as which work stations stock boxes have reached in the past and when work was started on those stock boxes. In this embodiment, the location accuracy is expressed as a probability, but an index other than probability may be used as the location accuracy.

[0204] In addition to or instead of the aforementioned spatial accuracy, timing accuracy is an element (e.g., a variable) of work accuracy. The elements (e.g., variables) of timing accuracy mainly consist of at least one of the following: variability in travel time and variability in work time.

[0205] Variations in travel time occur because interactions such as the merging of conveyors 162 (see, for example, Figure 23B) or the intersection of travel paths between transporting devices that carry inventory boxes (see, for example, Figure 26B) cause the arrival time of inventory boxes at work stations to deviate from the plan, and consequently, the start time of work deviates from the plan (scheduled start time). For each work station, the processor 40 calculates the variation in travel time based on the travel distance to that work station and the degree of congestion of the transporting devices 3 in an area that includes multiple work stations. For example, since interactions tend to occur more as the travel distance increases and the degree of congestion increases, the processor 40 may increase the variation in travel time for each work station in proportion to the travel distance and the degree of congestion.

[0206] The variability in work time varies depending on factors such as the worker's skill level, the amount of unfinished work at each work station, and the type of goods being handled. If the worker's skill level is low, the work time may fluctuate due to mistakes or hesitation. Mistakes and hesitation are likely to increase as the amount of work and the type of goods increase. Thus, at least one of the following factors (e.g., variables) can be involved in the variability of work time: the worker's skill level, the amount of unfinished work at each work station, and the type of goods being handled. For example, the processor 40 may calculate the variability of work time in such a way that the variability is greater for work stations where the worker's skill level is low, there is a lot of unfinished work, and there are many types of goods being handled.

[0207] Figure 24 is a schematic diagram illustrating the concept of evaluating waiting risk. Consider a situation where the transport device 3 is traveling or waiting in a moving area 150 that contains work stations W0 to W2 (an example of multiple work stations 163) and temporary waiting areas T0 to T9 (an example of multiple temporary waiting areas 165). Furthermore, we will take one transport device 3 (referred to as "target transport device 3" in the explanation referring to Figure 24) as an example.

[0208] For each of the work stations W0 to W2, the processor 40 can define a solid line range, a dashed line range, and a dashed-dotted line range with the work station as the base point (e.g., the center). The solid line range is the range defined by a solid line. The dashed line range is the range defined by a dashed line. The dashed-dotted line range is the range defined by a dashed-dotted line. The following explanation will use work station W2 as an example to describe each range.

[0209] The solid line area 2503 represents the range (possible departure position) within which the transport device 3, assuming it is heading towards a candidate temporary waiting area, can arrive at work station W2 by the scheduled start date and time at work station W2 if it starts moving from the temporary waiting area towards work station W2 at the scheduled arrival date and time. In other words, the distance D1 from work station W2 to the frame of the solid line area 2503 corresponds to the time until the scheduled start date and time at work station W2 (the time until work can begin). In order for the transport device 3 to arrive at work station W2 in time for the scheduled start date and time at work station W2, the transport device 3 must wait in the solid line area 2503. Note that in this embodiment, for the sake of explanation, the solid line area 2503 (and the dashed line area 2505 and dashed-dotted line area 2504 described later) are circles, but the solid line area 2503 does not necessarily have to be a circle.

[0210] The dashed line area 2505 encompasses the solid line area 2503, and the dashed-dotted line area 2504 is encompassed by the solid line area 2503. That is, the distance D2 from the work station W2 to the area of ​​the dashed line area 2505 is longer than the distance D1, and the distance D3 from the work station W2 to the area of ​​the dashed-dotted line area 2504 is shorter than the distance D1. The difference Δ between distance D2 and distance D3 is based on the timing accuracy of the pair of the target conveying device 3 and the work station W2. Each of the dashed line area 2505 and the dashed-dotted line area 2504 is a range that takes into account the variation in the time until work begins at the work station W2. The dashed-dotted line area 2504 is the departure position range (the range of possible departure positions) in which work is expected to always be completed on time even with the worst-case variation, but because it is narrow, there are few candidate temporary waiting areas. The dashed line range 2505 may include departure positions that, depending on variations, may not be able to complete the work at work station W2 in time, but its wide area provides many potential temporary waiting areas. Depending on the temporary waiting areas of other conveying devices, if there are few potential temporary waiting areas, it may not be possible to select a temporary waiting area for the target conveying device 3.

[0211] The following explanation focuses on temporary waiting areas within the dashed-dotted line range, prioritizing timely completion of tasks. However, other ranges, such as solid or dashed lines, may be used depending on the circumstances. Specifically, for example, if calculating the available risk for temporary waiting areas based on the dashed-dotted line range results in a limited number of candidates, making it impossible to select a temporary waiting area for the target transport device 3, then the available risk for temporary waiting areas may be calculated based on the dashed line range.

[0212] A screen showing the simulated evaluation results exemplified in Figure 24 may be displayed on the output device 44 (or an information processing terminal capable of communicating with the control device 4). For each work station, the intensity of the filled area of ​​the dashed-dotted line corresponds to the accuracy of the work station's location. That is, the higher the location accuracy, the darker the area, and the lower the location accuracy, the lighter the area. In this case, the intensity of the filled area of ​​the dashed-dotted line is uniform, but it does not have to be uniform. For example, a gradient where the center of the dashed-dotted line is darker may be used. Since the dashed-dotted line is defined for each work station, the area where the dashed-dotted line areas of multiple work stations overlap is darker. In Figure 24, the temporary waiting area belonging to the area with the darkest overlap is the temporary waiting area with the lowest waiting risk.

[0213] As described above, the processor 40 calculates the probability of completing a task for each of the multiple work stations, and for each candidate temporary waiting area, it calculates the waiting risk for each work station, weighting the work stations with higher probability of completion accordingly. This allows the processor 40 to select the temporary waiting area where waiting is least likely to occur, even if there are changes to the work stations or the scheduled start time.

[0214] The above is a conceptual explanation of the assessment of waiting risk; a more specific calculation method will be explained using the example shown in Figure 25.

[0215] Figure 25 is a schematic diagram illustrating a specific calculation example for evaluating waiting risk.

[0216] Consider a situation where the transport device 3 is running or waiting in an area where there are a plurality of work stations 163, a plurality of temporary waiting areas 165, and inventory boxes 2603. The parameters used here include the time T until the inventory box 2603 can be worked on

[0219] , B2STi , ,

[0218] , G2STi , B2STi , , , , B2STi , , B2STi , , , G2STi , , , t which is the variation in the time until the inventory box can be worked on G2STi , location accuracy C STi , the moving time T from the temporary waiting area to the work station B2STi , t which is the variation in the moving time from the temporary waiting area to the work station B2STi , are available. Among these parameters, i is the number of the work station (any integer from 1 to n). The time T until the inventory box 2603 can be worked on G2STi may be the time from a predetermined timing to the date and time represented by the scheduled start date and time 1506 at the work station i (for example, the scheduled date and time when the inventory box 2603 arrives at the work station i from a predetermined timing).

[0217] Since it will wait when the moving time from the temporary waiting area to the work station is longer than the time until the inventory box corresponding to the transport device 3 can be worked on, the processor 40 evaluates the waiting risk of the temporary waiting area by obtaining the difference between the two for each temporary waiting area (Buf).

[0218] For example, as shown in equation (1), the processor 40 may select the temporary waiting area where the waiting risk F is minimized.

Equation

[0219] In equation (1), T B2STi + t B2STi According to this, since the variation in the moving time is added to the moving time from the temporary waiting area to the work station, T B2STi + t B2STi is an element that reflects the delay in the moving time. T G2STi - t G2STiAccording to this, the variation in the time until inventory box 2603 becomes ready for work is subtracted from the time until it becomes ready for work, so it is a factor that reflects the reduction in the time until it becomes ready for work. (T B2STi +t B2STi )-(T G2STi -t G2STi According to this, the reduction in time until work begins is subtracted from the delay in travel time, thus representing the degree of possibility of waiting. Since the location accuracy is multiplied as a coefficient to this degree, the degree is represented more accurately. For each temporary waiting area, the on-board risk F is calculated based on this degree for each work station.

[0220] Equation (1) assumes the worst-case scenario from the perspective of waiting risk, where the travel time from the temporary waiting area to the work station is long and the time until work on the inventory boxes becomes possible is short. This evaluation emphasizes waiting in a location where it is possible to work in time even with variability. By multiplying these differences by the location accuracy coefficient, the degree of importance of work at the target work station can be expressed. Here, we have focused on the worst-case scenario from the perspective of waiting risk, but processor 40 may also focus on cases where the travel time from the temporary waiting area to the work station is short and the time until work on the inventory boxes becomes possible is long.

[0221] Variation in travel time from the temporary waiting area to the work station. B2STi Since this increases with distance traveled, the processor 40 calculates the distance d from the temporary waiting area to the work station as shown in equation (2). B2STi and the standard deviation of travel time per unit distance σ move The variation in travel time may be calculated by multiplying by a factor. Alternatively, the variation in travel time may be calculated based on the number of surrounding transport devices as a measure of congestion.

number

[0222] Variation in the time it takes for inventory boxes to become ready for processing.G2STi This can also be calculated as the sum of the variation in travel time until the inventory box arrives at the work station and the variation in work time until the unfinished work is completed. The variation in travel time until the inventory box arrives at the work station is given by equation (3) by the distance d from the inventory box's current location to the work station. G2STi And the standard deviation of travel time per unit distance σ move It may also be calculated by multiplying by . The variation in work time is the number of incomplete tasks n STi And the standard deviation of the work time per task σ workSTi You can also calculate it by multiplying by .

number

[0223] The above examples illustrate methods for calculating waiting risk based on location accuracy and timing accuracy. The calculation of waiting risk can be performed by freely combining the above examples. For example, location accuracy or timing accuracy alone may be used, or if the elements of timing accuracy are limited to travel time variability or work time variability alone may be used.

[0224] The above describes the temporary waiting area for the conveying device 3 that transports shipping boxes, but this calculation method may also be applied to the conveying device 161C that transports inventory boxes.

[0225] As described above, the processor 40 in this embodiment can select a temporary waiting area that allows each transport device 3 to move smoothly to its target position by calculating the waiting risk based on at least one of these calculation methods.

[0226] The above explanation can be summarized as follows, for example. The following summary may include supplementary explanations to the above explanation and explanations of modified examples of the above embodiments. Note that "work" can be any work, such as picking work, loading work, storage work, hoarding work, transfer work, or mounting work.

[0227] The system provides support for transport control of multiple transport devices in an environment where, after a storage container (e.g., shipping box) arrives at a work station that is the destination of the outbound shipment from among multiple work stations (e.g., multiple work stations 163), the goods are loaded onto a transport device (e.g., multiple transport devices 3) that travels through a moving area (e.g., moving area 150) to arrive at the work station and is assigned to the storage container, and the transport device that has performed this operation moves from the work station to another location (e.g., another work station 163, inspection area 103, or packaging area 102).

[0228] A transport support device is constructed to assist in transport control. The transport support device may be a physical computer system (one or more physical computers) or a logical computer system based on a physical computer system (e.g., a virtual computer or cloud computing system). The transport support device may be, for example, control device 4.

[0229] The transport support device comprises an interface device (e.g., interface device 45), a storage device (e.g., storage device 42), and a processor (e.g., processor 40). The interface device communicates with each transport device. The storage device stores map information (e.g., map table 56), which is information representing the location of each work station and the location of each standby position. The processor performs the following (x) to (z) for a target transport device that is already standby at one of the standby positions or will need to be standby at one of the standby positions, among a plurality of transport devices traveling in a moving area having a plurality of standby positions (e.g., a plurality of temporary standby areas 165) to a plurality of work stations. (x) For each of the multiple work stations, evaluate (typically calculate) the work accuracy, which is the probability that work will be performed from the storage container assigned to the target conveying device to the target conveying device. (y) Refer to map information and, based on the work accuracy of each work station, evaluate (typically calculate) the waiting risk for at least some of the multiple waiting positions, as the degree of waiting at the work station when the target transport device waits at that waiting position and then moves to the target work station among the multiple work stations. (z) Determine the standby position of the target transport device based on the waiting risk at each standby position.

[0230] This allows for the determination of an appropriate standby position for the target conveying device, thereby improving the certainty of suppressing work delays. Specifically, for example, even if the plan (e.g., work plan) is changed, a standby position is determined that reduces delays in arrival at the work station, thereby reducing waiting time at the work station and improving the certainty of suppressing work delays.

[0231] For each of the multiple work stations, the processor may evaluate the likelihood of work to that work station based on at least one of the following: location accuracy, which is the likelihood that the work station will be the destination for the target storage container, and timing accuracy, which is the likelihood that work from the target storage container will begin on time at that work station. This is expected to yield an appropriate work accuracy, which in turn will yield an appropriate risk level for each standby position, thereby improving the appropriateness of the standby positions that are determined.

[0232] For each of the multiple work stations, the processor determines the accuracy of work to that work station, and the accuracy of the location of that work station (e.g., C STi In addition to the above, the evaluation may be based on a first timing accuracy as an element of the timing accuracy of the work station. For the work station, the first timing accuracy is the time (e.g., T) until work can be performed at the work station. G2STi ) and the first time variability (e.g., t G2STiThe first time variability may be based on the following: arrival variability, which is the variability in the time it takes for the target storage container to arrive at the work station, and work time variability, which is the variability in the time it takes to work at the work station. This is expected to provide an appropriate level of accuracy in the work, and consequently, an appropriate level of risk for each waiting position, thereby improving the appropriateness of the waiting positions to be determined. The arrival variability is based on the distance from the target storage container to the work station (for example, d G2STi ) and the standard deviation of the time of movement of storage containers per unit distance (e.g., σ) move ) may be based on the amount of work at the work station (e.g., n STi ) and the standard deviation of the work time per unit of work (e.g., σ) workSTi ) may be based on the following. The “workload” at a work station may be defined in any way, for example, by the number of waiting storage containers for the work to be done, or by the number of items for which work is to be done. Furthermore, for each work station, the work accuracy of the pair of the waiting position and the work station may be evaluated for each waiting position, and the waiting risk of each waiting position may be evaluated based on the work accuracy of each pair of work station and waiting position.

[0233] For at least some of each standby position, the processor may evaluate the waiting risk of that standby position based on the work accuracy of each work station and a second timing accuracy for each work station based on the relative positional relationship between each work station and the standby position. This is expected to yield an appropriate waiting risk for each standby position, thereby improving the appropriateness of the standby position to be determined. For each standby position, the second timing accuracy for each work station is the travel time from the standby position to the work station (e.g., T B2STi ) and the variation in travel time from the standby position to the work station (for example, t B2STi) may be based on the following. For at least some of each standby position, for each work station, the variation in travel time from the standby position to the work station is based on the distance from the standby position to the work station (e.g., d B2STi ) and the standard deviation of the travel time per unit distance (e.g., σ) move ) and at least one of the following: the degree of congestion of transport equipment in the area of ​​the movement area that involves at least the waiting position and the work station.

[0234] The designated standby position for the target conveying device can be the standby position with the lowest risk of manual handling. This is expected to improve the appropriateness of the determined standby position.

[0235] With respect to the target transport device, the processor may, for example, perform (a) to (d) below in (x) above. This is expected to improve the appropriateness of the determined standby position. (a) Select the unselected waiting location with the lowest risk among at least some of the waiting locations. (b) With respect to the waiting position selected in (a), determine if there is another transport device that offers a lower handling risk than the target transport device. If the result of (c)(b) is false, the standby position selected in (a) is determined to be the standby position of the target transport device. If the result of (d)(b) is true, return to (a).

[0236] According to (a) to (d), for example, in the description of the embodiment, if a second conveying device that has a lower handling risk than the first conveying device is already present in the first temporary waiting area that has the lowest handling risk for the first conveying device, the second temporary waiting area that has the next lowest handling risk after the first temporary waiting area can be determined as the temporary waiting area where the first conveying device will wait. On the other hand, if a second conveying device that has a higher handling risk than the first conveying device is already present in the first temporary waiting area that has the lowest handling risk for the first conveying device is already present in the first temporary waiting area, the second conveying device can be moved from the first temporary waiting area to another temporary waiting area (for example, the temporary waiting area with the lowest handling risk for the second conveying device), and the first temporary waiting area can be determined for the first conveying device.

[0237] If any transport device is already in any of the standby positions (for example, if the result of the determination in S2301 is true), the processor may perform transport support processing (for example, S2302 to S2304). This allows the standby position of a transport device to be set to an appropriate position in accordance with the situation that changes over time, even after the standby position of the transport device has been determined.

[0238] The storage device may store, for each storage container, work plan information (e.g., picking work management table 581) which represents the work station from among the plurality of work stations to which the storage container will be shipped out and the scheduled start date and time at that work station, and movement plan information (e.g., transport device table 53) which represents the movement plan (e.g., operation plan) which represents the destination location of each transport device. The processor may send a movement request to each transport device specifying the destination location of the transport device, according to the movement plan information. The transport device may move to the location specified in the movement request in accordance with the movement request to the transport device. When the plan represented by the work plan information is updated, the processor may perform transport support processing to update the movement plan information. This makes it possible to maintain an appropriate movement plan in accordance with the update of the work plan.

[0239] For each of the multiple work stations, the processor may evaluate the location accuracy to that work station based on at least one of the following: the path from the target storage container to the work station and past performance. Past performance may follow the relationship between the location of the storage container and the location of each work station, at least one of the following: the workload of each work station when the storage container is at that location, and the history of the work station to which the storage container actually arrived at that location. This is expected to yield appropriate location accuracy, which in turn yields appropriate work accuracy, and thereby improve the appropriateness of the determined waiting position. Furthermore, a machine learning-based or statistical-based model may be constructed based on past performance, and current variables (e.g., the location of the target storage container, the location of each work station, the workload at each work station) may be input into the model, and the location accuracy of each work station when the target storage container is at that location may be obtained as output from the model. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0240] 3: Conveying device, 4: Control device

Claims

1. A transport support device that assists in the transport control of multiple transport devices in an environment where, from a storage container arriving at a designated work station among multiple work stations, an item is loaded onto a transport device among multiple transport devices that travels through a moving area to arrive at the work station and to which the storage container is assigned, and the transport device on which the item was loaded moves from the work station to another location, An interface device that communicates with the plurality of transport devices that travel through the moving area having a plurality of standby positions to the plurality of work stations, A memory device that stores map information, which is information representing the location of each work station and the location of each standby position, The interface device and the storage device are connected to a processor that performs transport support processing. Equipped with, The transport support process applies to the target transport device, which is a transport device that is already waiting at one of the standby positions among the plurality of transport devices, or a transport device that needs to wait at one of the standby positions. For each of the aforementioned work stations, the work accuracy is evaluated, which is the probability that work will be performed on the target conveying device from the target storage container, which is the storage container assigned to the target conveying device. Referencing the aforementioned map information, and based on the work accuracy of each work station, evaluate the waiting risk for at least some of the multiple waiting positions, as the degree of waiting time at the target work station after the target transport device has waited at that waiting position and then moved to the target work station among the multiple work stations, and The waiting position of the target transport device is determined based on the waiting risk at each waiting position. including, Transport support device.

2. For each of the plurality of work stations, the processor evaluates the likelihood of work to that work station based on at least one of the following: location accuracy, which is the likelihood that the work station will be the destination for the target storage container; and timing accuracy, which is the likelihood that work from the target storage container will begin on time at that work station. The transport support device according to claim 1.

3. For each of the aforementioned work stations, The processor evaluates the accuracy of work to the work station based on the location accuracy of the work station, as well as a first timing accuracy as an element of the timing accuracy of the work station. Regarding the work station in question, The first timing accuracy is based on the time until work becomes possible at the work station and the first time variability. The aforementioned first time variability is based on at least one of the following: arrival variability, which is the variability in the time it takes for the target storage container to arrive at the work station; and work time variability, which is the variability in the time it takes to perform work at the work station. The transport support device according to claim 2.

4. For each of the aforementioned work stations, The aforementioned arrival variability is based on the distance from the target storage container to the work station and the standard deviation of the travel time of the storage container per unit distance. The aforementioned variation in work time is based on the amount of work at the work station and the standard deviation of the work time per unit of work. The transport support device according to claim 3.

5. For at least some of the standby positions, the processor evaluates the waiting risk of the standby position based on the work accuracy of each work station and a second timing accuracy for each work station based on the relative positional relationship between each work station and the standby position. The transport support device according to claim 1.

6. For at least some of the aforementioned standby positions, the second timing accuracy for each work station is based on the travel time from the standby position to the work station and the variation in the travel time from the standby position to the work station. The transport support device according to claim 5.

7. For each of the above-mentioned standby positions, the variation in travel time from the standby position to the work station for each work station is based on at least one of the following: the distance from the standby position to the work station, the standard deviation of travel time per unit distance, and the degree of congestion of the transport equipment in the travel area, at least in the area involving the standby position and the work station. The transport support device according to claim 6.

8. The determined standby position for the aforementioned transport device is the standby position with the lowest risk of handling. The transport support device according to claim 1.

9. With respect to the aforementioned transport device, the processor is: (a) Select the unselected waiting position with the lowest risk among at least some of the waiting positions, (b) With respect to the waiting position selected in (a), determine if there is another transport device that offers a lower handling risk than the target transport device. If the result of (c)(b) is false, the waiting position selected in (a) is determined to be the waiting position of the target transport device. If the result of (d)(b) is true, return to (a). The transport support device according to claim 1.

10. If any transport device is already in any of the standby positions, the processor performs the transport support process. The transport support device according to claim 1.

11. The storage device stores, for each storage container, work plan information which represents the work station from which the storage container will be shipped out and the scheduled start date and time at that work station, and movement plan information which represents the destination location of each conveying device. The processor is configured to transmit a movement request to each transport device, specifying the destination location of the transport device, in accordance with the movement plan information. Each of the aforementioned conveying devices is configured to move in accordance with a movement request to the conveying device, so as to arrive at the position specified in the movement request. When the work plan represented by the work plan information is updated, the processor performs the transport support process to update the movement plan information. The transport support device according to claim 1.

12. For each of the aforementioned work stations, The processor evaluates the accuracy of the location to the work station based on at least one of the route from the target storage container to the work station and past performance. The aforementioned past performance is based on the relationship between the location of the storage container and the location of each work station, at least one of the workload of each work station when the storage container is in that location, and the history of the work station to which the storage container actually arrived at that location. The transport support device according to claim 2.

13. A transport support method that supports the transport control of multiple transport devices in an environment in which an item is loaded from a storage container that has arrived at a designated work station among multiple work stations, onto a transport device that has traveled through a moving area to arrive at the work station and to which the storage container is assigned, and the transport device on which the item was loaded moves from the work station to another location, Regarding the target conveying device, which is a conveying device that is already waiting at one of the waiting positions or a conveying device that needs to wait at one of the waiting positions, among the multiple conveying devices that travel in the moving area having multiple waiting positions to the multiple work stations, For each of the aforementioned work stations, the work accuracy, which is the probability that work will be performed on the target conveying device from the target storage container, which is the storage container assigned to the target conveying device, is evaluated. Referencing map information representing the location of each work station and each standby position, and based on the work accuracy of each work station, evaluate the waiting risk for at least some of the standby positions among the plurality of standby positions, as the degree of waiting time at the standby position after the target transport device has waited there and then moved to the target work station among the plurality of work stations. Based on the waiting risk at each standby position, the standby position of the target transport device is determined. A computer-assisted transport method.

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