STORAGE POSITION DECISION SYSTEM, STORAGE POSITION DECISION METHOD, AND PROGRAM

Abstract

To provide a storage position determination system which can determine arrangement of articles that improves work efficiency involved in article storage, using calculation with less processing amount.SOLUTION: A storage position determination system 1 executes input processing, calculation processing and determination processing. In the input processing, with regard to each of a plurality of articles which are objects to be stored in a predetermined region, article information showing an article, storage position information showing a storage position in the case of storing the article, carrying-in / carrying-out information showing the number of carrying-in articles and the number of carrying-out articles in time sequence of the articles, and movement path information showing a movement path at work time regarding one or a plurality of transport object articles which are the objects to be carried-in or carried-out simultaneously shown by the carrying-in / carrying-out information are inputted. In the calculation processing, a candidate of a change destination of the storage position is calculated with regard to at least one of the plurality of articles so as to satisfy a first condition that a movement distance shown by the movement path information does not increase. In the determination processing, the change destination is determined from among the candidates with regard to the candidate calculation article which is the article whose candidates have been calculated.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a storage location determination system, a storage location determination method, and a program. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 describes an item management method in a picking workplace, with the aim of improving the work efficiency of workers. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2000-034004 A Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In the technology described in Patent Document 1, in order to avoid an increase in walking distance and congestion, a simulation is performed while sequentially changing the combination of storage locations of items, so there is a possibility that it may be necessary to simulate all combinations in order to find a combination of storage locations that avoids congestion without increasing walking distance. Therefore, it is desirable to determine the arrangement of items that improves the efficiency of work related to storing items by calculations with a small amount of processing.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made to solve such problems, and its purpose is to provide a storage location determination system, a storage location determination method, and a program that are capable of determining the placement of items in a way that improves the efficiency of work related to item storage with calculations that require a small amount of processing. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The storage position determination system according to the present disclosure executes an input process for inputting, for each of a plurality of items to be stored within a predetermined area, item information indicating the items, storage position information indicating the storage position when storing the items, carry-in / out information indicating the number of items carried in and carried out in chronological order, and movement route information indicating the movement route during work for the transport target items, which are one or more items to be carried in or out at the same time indicated by the carry-in / out information, executes a calculation process for calculating candidates for a storage location change destination for at least one of the plurality of items so as to satisfy a first condition of not increasing the movement distance indicated by the movement route information, and executes a determination process for determining a change destination from among the candidates for the candidate calculated items, which are the items for which the candidates have been calculated. With such a configuration, the storage position determination system can determine the arrangement of items that improves the efficiency of work related to item storage with calculations that require a small amount of processing.

[0007] The storage position determination method according to the present disclosure performs an input process for inputting, for each of a plurality of items to be stored in a predetermined area, item information indicating the items, storage position information indicating the storage position when storing the items, carry-in / out information indicating the number of items carried in and carried out in chronological order, and movement route information indicating the movement route during work for the transport target items, which are one or more items to be carried in or out at the same time indicated by the carry-in / out information, performs a calculation process for calculating candidates for a storage location change destination for at least one of the plurality of items so as to satisfy a first condition of not increasing the movement distance indicated by the movement route information, and performs a determination process for determining a change destination from among the candidates for the candidate calculated items, which are the items for which the candidates have been calculated. With such a configuration, the storage position determination method can determine the arrangement of items that improves the efficiency of work related to item storage by calculation with a small amount of processing.

[0008] The program according to the present disclosure is a program for causing a computer to execute an input process for inputting, for each of a plurality of items to be stored within a predetermined area, item information indicating the items, storage position information indicating the storage position when storing the items, carry-in / out information indicating the number of items carried in and carried out in chronological order, and movement route information indicating the movement route during work for the transport target items, which are one or more items to be carried in or out at the same time indicated by the carry-in / out information, execute a calculation process for calculating candidates for a storage location change destination for at least one of the plurality of items so as to satisfy a first condition of not increasing the movement distance indicated by the movement route information, and execute a determination process for determining a change destination from among the candidates for the candidate calculation item, which is the item for which the candidate is calculated. With such a configuration, the program can determine the arrangement of items that improves the efficiency of work related to item storage with calculations that require a small amount of processing.

[0009] In any of the storage location determination system, the storage location determination method, and the program, one or more of the following various configurations can be applied.

[0010] The first condition may include a condition that the storage location is accessible along a travel route indicated by the travel route information, and the calculation process may calculate at least one of the candidates so as to satisfy the condition.

[0011] Here, the calculation process may calculate, as at least one of the candidates, a storage location where at least a part of the travel route indicated by the travel route information overlaps with each other so as to satisfy the condition.

[0012] The item information may include information indicating a size of the item, and the calculation process may calculate the candidates from among storage locations in which the item indicated by the item information can be stored.

[0013] Any of the movement routes indicated by the movement route information may be a route limited to movement from a predetermined direction relative to the storage location.

[0014] The calculation process may not calculate candidates for items among the multiple items that are not included in the import / export information or for items whose import and export numbers in the import / export information are zero, or may calculate a storage location that is the same as the candidate storage location as the candidate.

[0015] The determination process may determine a storage location from among the candidates such that an amount of work required for carrying in and carrying out to storage locations within the specified area is distributed among the storage locations.

[0016] The item information may include information indicating the size of the item, and the storage location information may include information indicating the size of a storage area or the number of items that can be stored for each of the plurality of items, and the determination process may determine, based on the item information and the storage location information, a storage location from among the candidates in which the candidate calculated item can be stored as the change destination.

[0017] The item information may include information indicating a level of caution required in transporting the item, and the determination process may determine, based on the information indicating the level, a storage location from among the candidates to which the candidate-calculated item can be transported and stored without damage as the new storage location.

[0018] At least one of the movement routes indicated by the input movement route information may be a route calculated as a route that is estimated to be taken when carrying in or out the transport target item. Effect of the Invention

[0019] The present disclosure makes it possible to provide a storage location determination system, a storage location determination method, and a program that are capable of determining an item placement that improves the efficiency of item storage work through calculations with a small amount of processing power. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0020] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a storage position determination system according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of a storage position determination process executed in the storage position determination system of FIG. 1; [Diagram 3] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a shelf layout and an arrangement of items in a warehouse. [Figure 4] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a work order. [Diagram 5] 1. FIG. 4 is a flow chart for explaining a more specific example of the storage location determination process executed in the storage location determination system of FIG. [Figure 6] 4 is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of a process for calculating candidate allocation destinations for an item in the example of FIG. 3; FIG. [Figure 7] 7 is a diagram showing an example of assignment destination candidates calculated in the processing example of FIG. 6; [Figure 8] 1. FIG. 4 is a flow chart for explaining another more specific example of the storage location determination process executed in the storage location determination system of FIG. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 illustrates an example of a hardware configuration of the apparatus. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0021] The present invention will be described below through embodiments of the invention, but the invention according to the claims is not limited to the following embodiments. Also, not all of the configurations described in the embodiments are necessarily essential as means for solving the problems.

[0022] (Embodiment) An example of the configuration of a storage location determination system according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figures 1 to 8. First, an example of the configuration of a storage location determination system according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Figure 1. Figure 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a storage location determination system according to this embodiment (hereinafter, this system).

[0023] The system 10 shown in FIG. 1 is a system that determines the storage location for each of a number of items to be stored within a specified area, and can be configured with its functions distributed across multiple devices or as a single device.

[0024] The multiple items to be stored may be items that are treated as different items from each other, and therefore may include items that are different in size or weight from each other. Typically, the multiple items to be stored may be items that are different in type (model number, etc.), in which case they correspond to multiple types of items to be stored. However, even if the items are actually the same type, they may be treated as different items. In addition, the items to be stored may include, for example, a set of multiple pieces of one type of part for manufacturing a certain product, or a set of multiple types of parts for manufacturing a certain product.

[0025] The predetermined area may be, for example, one warehouse, or multiple warehouses on the same premises, but is not limited to this. In addition, there will be multiple storage locations for the items, and the sizes and shapes of the storage locations may differ in part or in whole. The storage location for the items may be, for example, a shelf, but is not limited to this.

[0026] Furthermore, the work of storing items can be performed by a worker, or by an autonomous mobile robot serving as a work robot, or by both.

[0027] 1, the present system 10 may include an input unit 11 that executes information input processing, a calculation unit 12 that executes calculation processing, and a decision unit 13 that executes decision processing, and may also include a storage unit 14 that is a storage device that stores information and the like used in these processes. The input processing, calculation processing, and decision processing will be described later.

[0028] The input unit 11 can be composed of, for example, an interface such as an input interface for inputting information from the memory unit 14, or a communication interface for receiving information from an external device such as a server device connected outside the system 10, and an input control unit for controlling the input of information.

[0029] The input control unit, the calculation unit 12, and the determination unit 13 can be provided as a control unit that controls the entire system 10. This control unit can be realized, for example, by an integrated circuit, and can be realized, for example, by a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a working memory, and a non-volatile storage device. A control program executed by the processor is stored in this storage device, and the processor reads the program into the working memory and executes it, thereby achieving the input control function of the input control unit, the function of the calculation unit 12, and the function of the determination unit 13. Note that the storage unit 14 can utilize a part of the storage area of ​​this storage device.

[0030] As an input process, the input unit 11 executes a process of inputting item information, storage location information, carry-in / out information, and movement route information for each of the multiple items. These pieces of information can be stored in the memory unit 14 and input from the memory unit 14, and although such information will be given as an example below, they can also be stored in the external device and input from the external device. The input unit 11 passes part or all of the input information to the calculation unit 12 and the determination unit 13.

[0031] The item information is information indicating an item, and can be information such as an item number that can be distinguished from other items. The storage location information is information indicating the storage location for each item when storing the item, and can include information such as a shelf number that can distinguish the shelf from other shelves, for example, when multiple shelves are provided as storage locations. In addition, the storage location information includes item information for the storage location where the item is stored, or is associated with item information. The storage location information input by the input unit 11 is only information indicating the storage location before the final storage location of the item is determined. Note that the storage location information includes information indicating the location where the item can be stored, and can include item information or be information that is not associated with item information. In that case, the item information only needs to include information indicating the storage location, or be associated with the storage location information.

[0032] The carry-in / carry-out information is information that indicates the number of items carried in and carried out in a chronological order. For example, if there are multiple items among the multiple items that are treated as the same item, the number of items carried in or carried out at a certain date and time may be multiple.

[0033] The movement route information is information indicating the movement route of the transport target item, which is one or more items to be transported or removed at the same time, indicated by the carry-in / out information. To give a simple example, the movement route of multiple items to be transported or removed at the same time can be obtained as follows. That is, for example, the shortest route from the transport start position or collection start position to the storage position of the item whose storage position indicated by the storage position information is the shortest distance, and the shortest route from the storage position of the item to the storage position of the other item that is the shortest distance, can be obtained in advance as a route connecting the shortest routes between items. In addition, the movement route of multiple items to be transported or removed at the same time can also be obtained in advance by solving an optimization problem that provides the shortest distance based on the storage positions of each of these items. Note that the transport start position refers to the position at which the work of transporting and placing the item to the storage position begins, and the collection start position refers to the position at which the work of moving to the storage position to pick up the item begins.

[0034] The movement route information is information showing the movement route during work for the transport target items that are brought in or taken out at the same time, and does not need to include information showing the transport date and time. When generating the movement route information, it is sufficient to know the items that are brought in or taken out at the same time, such as the transport deadline or the moving date and time of each item. However, the movement route information itself can also include information showing the moving date and time, and even in this case, it is not necessary to use this information.

[0035] As a calculation process, the calculation unit 12 executes a process of calculating candidates for a storage location change destination for at least one of the plurality of items so as to satisfy a condition (hereinafter, a first condition) of not increasing the travel distance indicated by the travel route information inputted by the input unit 11. The calculation unit 12 can execute this calculation process by referring not only to the travel route information but also to item information, storage location information, and carry-in / out information, which are information other than the travel route information inputted by the input unit 11. In this way, the calculation unit 12 can calculate candidates using all or part of the information inputted by the input unit 11.

[0036] The travel distance refers to the walking distance when the worker transports the item by walking, and refers to the total travel distance of the worker and the travel distance of the mobile object when the worker transports the item by riding on a mobile object. Also, when a work robot transports the item, the travel distance refers to the travel distance of the work robot.

[0037] Here, the storage location of a certain item, that is, the storage destination, can also be called the allocation destination to which the arrangement of the item is allocated, and the candidate change destination refers to the candidate allocation destination. In this way, the calculation unit 12 can also be called the allocation destination candidate acquisition unit because it acquires the candidate allocation destination by calculation.

[0038] Since the first condition is a condition that the moving distance is not increased, when the input moving route information indicates that there is one item to be transported, it naturally means that the moving distance indicated by the moving route information is not increased. When the input moving route information indicates that there are multiple items to be transported, the first condition means that the moving distance indicated by the moving route information for moving the multiple items is not increased.

[0039] As the determination process, the determination unit 13 executes a process of determining a change destination, i.e., a new allocation destination, from among the candidates for a candidate calculated item, which is an item whose candidate has been calculated by the calculation unit 12. The determination unit 13 can determine a new allocation destination for the candidate calculated item using information indicating the allocation destination candidates, which are candidates for the candidate calculated item, and all or part of the information input by the input unit 11.

[0040] The system 10 can then be configured to execute a change process that changes the storage location information based on the new destination determined in the determination process. Here, the description will be given assuming that the determination unit 13 also performs this change process. In other words, the determination unit 13 determines an allocation destination for the candidate calculated item, and changes the storage location information by changing the allocation destination in accordance with this determination. Therefore, the determination unit 13 can be called an allocation destination change unit. The worker or work robot can store each item based on the changed storage location information.

[0041] With the above-described configuration, the system 10 can determine a new storage location with a small amount of calculations without increasing the travel distance of the worker or work robot from the existing storage location. In other words, the system 10 can determine an item storage location that improves the efficiency of work related to item storage with a small amount of calculations. Furthermore, the system 10 can implicitly or explicitly include information indicating the amount of work in the travel route information, and determines a new storage location (storage destination) based on such travel route information, so that the work of the worker or work robot can be prevented from concentrating at the determined storage location, reducing the possibility of congestion.

[0042] Next, an example of a storage position determination process executed in the present system 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 2. Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of a storage position determination process executed in the storage position determination system 10 of Fig. 1.

[0043] 2 will be described assuming that item information 14b for each of the multiple items, shelf information 14c as an example of storage location information, incoming / outgoing order information 14a as an example of carrying-in / out information, and workload information 14d as an example of movement route information are stored in the storage unit 14. In the storage unit 14, each of the information 14a to 14d can be stored in a database format.

[0044] The warehousing / receiving order information 14a is information on carrying in and carrying out when the carrying in and carrying out are to and from a warehouse, respectively, and is information indicating an order for carrying in and carrying out. In other words, here, an example is given in which the goods are managed in a warehouse as an example of a predetermined area. Also, the shelf information 14c is storage location information when the storage location is a shelf in the warehouse. In other words, here, an example is given in which one of a plurality of shelves installed in the warehouse is used as the storage location. For convenience, the following description will be given taking shelves as an allocation destination for storing goods, but the allocation destination for storing goods is not limited to shelves.

[0045] The work amount information 14d is information indicating the amount of work required for transportation, including the travel distance, and can be input as travel route information. Alternatively, the work amount information 14b can be stored as a result calculated based on the input travel route information. The work amount information 14d can be information indicating the amount of work, including the travel distance, for each item, obtained from past performance and forecast data regarding incoming and outgoing goods.

[0046] First, in the present system 10, the input unit 11 or the like pre-sets existing allocation destinations (step S1). In step S1, existing allocation destination information, which is information indicating existing allocation destinations, is stored in the storage unit 14, but the timing of storing the information may be before step S2. The existing allocation destination information includes shelf information 14c, and may also include item information 14b, incoming / outgoing order information 14a, and workload information 14d.

[0047] Here, pre-setting of an existing allocation destination refers to an existing allocation destination for an item being determined in advance by a person and input into this system 10, or an existing allocation destination being automatically set by a function separately provided in this system 10 or an external system.

[0048] Furthermore, the existing allocation destination may include an allocation destination where an item is actually placed within a specified area such as a warehouse, an allocation destination where an item is actually planned to be placed within a specified area such as a warehouse, or both. However, when both allocation destinations are included, the item targeted for the former allocation destination is different from the item targeted for the latter allocation destination. To add, in the former case, the system 10 determines a change destination where changing the actual allocation is favorable from the viewpoint of work, and in the latter case, determines a change destination where changing the planned allocation is favorable from the viewpoint of work, by the processing of steps S2 to S6 described later.

[0049] Next, the input unit 11 inputs the existing assignment information and passes it to the calculation unit 12 (step S2). The calculation unit 12 calculates assignment candidates that satisfy the first condition based on the existing assignment information, and passes them to the determination unit 13 (step S3).

[0050] In step S3, the calculation unit 12 can calculate the allocation destination candidates, for example, as follows. First, the calculation unit 12 calculates reserve candidates for the allocation destination for each of the items included in the storage / retrieval order information 14a based on the storage / retrieval order information 14a, the item information 14b, and the shelf information 14c, and executes a process of calculating a movement route during the work of each storage / retrieval order when the item is assigned to the allocation destination of each reserve candidate. Next, the calculation unit 12 extracts a movement route that does not exceed the movement distance indicated by the work amount information 14d in the existing allocation destination information from the movement routes when the allocation destination of each reserve candidate is used, and calculates each of the allocation destinations of the reserve candidates indicated by the movement route as an allocation destination candidate.

[0051] Thus, in step S3, the calculation unit 12 calculates, for each item included in the incoming / outgoing order information 14a, an allocation candidate that does not increase the travel distance of the work indicated by each incoming / outgoing order compared to the travel distance of the existing allocation destination, based on the existing allocation destination information. Here, when an item that does not satisfy the first condition of not increasing the travel distance is included in the incoming / outgoing order information 14a, the calculation unit 12 can determine that there is no allocation candidate for that item. The calculation of the allocation candidate in the calculation unit 12 can be performed using, for example, a learning model, and the algorithm, etc., is not limited.

[0052] Following step S3, the determination unit 13 determines a new destination (new item allocation destination) from among the allocation candidates for the item (candidate calculated item) whose allocation candidate has been calculated by the calculation unit 12, and temporarily stores it (step S4).

[0053] The destination to which the item will be assigned can be determined, for example, as follows: The determination unit 13 calculates a new item assignment destination within the range of the assignment destination candidates for each item, based on information indicating the assignment destination candidates determined for each item, information indicating the shelf position etc. in the shelf information 14c, and work amount information 14d for each item obtained from past performance and forecast data regarding storage and retrieval, so that the number of tasks or time will not be concentrated on a specific shelf.

[0054] In step S4, a new item allocation destination is determined when the in- and out-of-stock situation of the stored item changes, but a new item allocation destination is also determined when the existing allocation destination is changed by adding or deleting the stored item, etc. The calculation of the new allocation destination in the determination unit 13 can be performed using, for example, a learning model, and the algorithm, etc., is not important.

[0055] In addition, the determination unit 13 reads out the new item allocation destination determined and temporarily stored in step S4 (step S5), and updates the shelf information 14c in the existing allocation information based on this new item allocation destination, thereby changing the item arrangement on the system 10 (step S6).

[0056] Through this processing, the system 10 can obtain a new item allocation destination that does not concentrate work on a specific shelf and is less likely to be crowded, without increasing the travel distance of the worker or work robot from the state of the existing allocation destination.

[0057] Also, if there is a change in the item allocation, i.e., the item allocation destination, in step S6, the process returns to step S2 and the same process can be executed with the changed allocation destination as the existing allocation destination. This makes it possible to find an allocation destination with a low possibility of congestion again.

[0058] In addition, in the present system 10, it is preferable to perform recalculation at the point when a certain amount of incoming / outgoing order information 14a has been accumulated since the previous allocation destination change, and to determine a new item allocation destination and make the change. At the time of recalculation, for example, recalculation can be performed using only information from the incoming / outgoing order information 14a that dates back a predetermined period from the time of recalculation, or recalculation can be performed by weighting more recent information from the incoming / outgoing order information 14a, thereby determining an item allocation destination that takes into account the most recent information.

[0059] Specifically, a more detailed example of the system 10 will be described with reference to Figs. 3 to 7. Fig. 3 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a shelf layout and an arrangement of items in a warehouse. Fig. 4 is a diagram showing an example of a work order. Fig. 5 is a flow diagram for explaining a more specific example of a storage position determination process executed in the system 10. Fig. 6 is a schematic diagram for explaining an example of a process for calculating candidate allocation destinations for items in the example of Fig. 3, and Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of the candidate allocation destinations calculated in the example of the process of Fig. 6.

[0060] First, the input unit 11 can obtain, for example, the following information (i) to (iv) as input information and pass it to the calculation unit 12. Based on this information, the calculation unit 12 calculates, for each item, a shelf (allocation destination candidate) to which the allocation destination can be changed so that the travel distance required for the work of each incoming and outgoing order is not increased from the existing allocation destination.

[0061] (i) Information indicating the existing allocation destination of each part, as part of the shelf information 14c. (ii) As item information 14b, information indicating the item to be stored and information indicating allocation conditions required for setting an allocation destination, such as the size of the item. (iii) Information indicating incoming and outgoing orders for goods that have been placed in the past or are expected to be placed in the future as incoming and outgoing order information 14a. (iv) As part of the shelf information 14c, information indicating the shelf arrangement layout, information indicating the route, and information indicating the allocation conditions such as the size of the shelf required for setting the allocation destination. The information indicating the route includes information on the route such as no-passage and one-way streets, and information on the transport rules for workers or work robots (such as the order in which work is performed and the method of route selection).

[0062] With regard to (iii) above, a storage / retrieval order is given for one item or a set of multiple items per operation, and when a worker or a work robot is given one of the storage orders or delivery orders, it transports the item from the work start position to the shelf assigned to each item included in the given storage / retrieval order, performs the storage or delivery work corresponding to the storage / retrieval order, and returns to the work end position when work on all items has been completed.

[0063] In the following, for the sake of simplicity, a situation that satisfies the following first to sixth prerequisites will be illustrated and a processing example by the calculation unit 12 will be described. Note that the processing by the determination unit 13 will also be described later using this situation as an example.

[0064] First, as shown in FIG. 3, the shelves SH are arranged in a warehouse WH in a layout of 4 rows and 6 columns, and each shelf SH is numbered by a combination of row numbers 1 to 4 and column numbers A to F, and each shelf SH can be stored and retrieved from the aisle located at the bottom in FIG. 5. In FIG. 3, the numbers in <> are row numbers, and the letters in <> are column numbers. Second, there are eight items, α, β, γ, δ, ε, ζ, η, and θ, and their existing allocation destinations are given by the storage positions shown in FIG. 3. For example, the existing allocation destinations of the items α and θ are set as being stored on the shelf in row 1, column C of the shelves SH. Third, the information shown in FIG. 4 is given as the in-stock / out-stock order information 14a.

[0065] Fourth, the shelves are large enough to accommodate any items, and there is no distinction in management whether the shelves are single-tiered or multi-tiered. Fifth, the work starts from the work start / end position SG shown in Figure 3, and returns to the work start / end position SG. Sixth, the worker or work robot can move only in the direction of the arrow in the aisles marked with arrows in Figure 3.

[0066] In such a case, the calculation unit 12 calculates the allocation destination candidate so as to satisfy the first condition. The first condition is a condition that the travel distance indicated by the travel route information inputted by the input unit 11 is not increased, and in this case, it corresponds to the condition that the travel distance is not increased from the travel distance at the existing allocation destination shown in FIG.

[0067] Here, as an example of the basic concept of finding a position where the allocation destination can be changed without increasing the travel distance compared to the existing allocation destination, although other concepts can be adopted, the following concept will be adopted as an example here: That is, when considering a certain item (assuming it is item OB), the movement paths for all work orders that include item OB are found, shelves are found where all of the found movement paths overlap, and among the found shelves, shelves that can be allocated and that satisfy the allocation destination conditions such as the size of item OB become candidate allocation destinations that do not increase the travel distance of item OB.

[0068] First, the input unit 11 acquires all items to be allocated from the item information 14b and passes them to the calculation unit 12 as a list L (step S11). The items to be allocated can be all items managed in the warehouse WH. Next, the calculation unit 12 selects one item OB from the list L of items (step S12). For example, item α located at the position shown in FIG. 3 can be selected as the item OB. Next, the calculation unit 12 acquires a work order including the selected item OB from the incoming / outgoing order information 14a (step S13). If the selected item OB is item α, three work orders No. 1, 2, and 4 in FIG. 4 are acquired.

[0069] Next, the calculation unit 12 calculates the movement route of each of the acquired work orders according to a predetermined transportation rule (step S14). The movement route is the movement route during work and can also be called the work route. For work orders No. 1, 2, and 4 in Figure 4, the routes are as shown by the solid line, dashed line, and dashed line in Figure 6, respectively.

[0070] Next, the calculation unit 12 finds a shelf at a position where all the movement paths found overlap (step S15). The position where all the movement paths of work orders No. 1, 2, and 4 overlap is the position shown by diagonal lines in FIG. 6, and shelves 1A, 1B, 1C, 4A, 4B, and 4C at the diagonal lines are the shelves found. After that, the calculation unit 12 extracts shelves to which the item can be allocated from the found shelves (step S16). In the case of item α, shelves 1A, 1B, 1C, 4A, 4B, and 4C are extracted.

[0071] The calculation unit 12 sets the extracted shelves as candidates for allocation of the target item (step S17). In the case of the item α, shelves 1A, 1B, 1C, 4A, 4B, and 4C are given and set as candidates for allocation.

[0072] The candidate allocation destinations for an item determined by this process are on the movement routes of all work orders that include the item, so even if the allocation destination is changed, at least among the determined candidate allocation destinations, the movement distance does not increase.

[0073] Next, the calculation unit 12 determines whether there are any unprocessed items remaining in the list L (step S18), and if there are, the process returns to step S12 and continues until step S18 returns NO, i.e., until processing has been completed for all items.

[0074] In this way, the calculation unit 12 finds allocation candidates for all items. However, for items not included in the work order (item ζ in the example of FIG. 3), only the positions of the existing allocation settings are set as candidates for changing the allocation. In this way, the calculation unit 12 can calculate the same storage position as the allocation candidate for items not included in the input carry-in / out information among the above-mentioned multiple items, or items for which the number of items carried in and the number of items carried out in the input carry-in / out information are zero. Alternatively, the calculation unit 12 can be configured not to calculate allocation candidates for such items.

[0075] By the process illustrated in FIG. 5, for the example in FIG. 3, the allocation destination change candidates for each item are given in FIG.

[0076] Next, a detailed example of the determination unit 13 will be described. First, the calculation unit 12 passes the following information (I) to the determination unit 13, and the input unit 11 can obtain, for example, the following information (II) and (III) as input information and pass it to the determination unit 13. Based on this information, the determination unit 13 determines an item allocation destination so as to distribute the amount of work performed on each shelf after restricting the allocation destination of each item to the allocation destination candidates.

[0077] (I) Information indicating candidate allocation destinations for each item calculated by the calculation unit 12. (II) Shelf information, such as the number of items that can be assigned to a shelf, as part of shelf information 14c. (III) Information indicating the amount of work required for each item as work amount information 14d.

[0078] Here, the amount of work required for each item is the time it takes to take an item in and out of the shelf, the number of items taken in and out in a set period, the product of the above time and number, etc., and can be selected according to the purpose. In addition, these values ​​for the item are assumed to be given in advance based on past in-and-out records, forecasts, etc.

[0079] The item allocation destination where the workload is distributed is the one where the workload variance value V shown in the following formula (1) is the smallest. In formula (1), S is the set of shelves, |S| is the number of shelves, and Ws is the workload of shelf s∈S. Ws is given as the total workload of the items allocated to shelf s.

[0080]

number

[0081] The determination unit 13 can determine a new item allocation destination by adopting, for example, the following method as a method for finding an item allocation destination: That is, the determination unit 13 constructs a combinatorial optimization problem in which the item allocation destination is restricted to the allocation destination candidates, with the objective function being the above V, and can find a new item allocation destination as an exact solution or an allowable solution by using a method for solving combinatorial optimization problems, such as a search method such as a branch and bound method or an approximation algorithm such as a simulated annealing method.

[0082] In this way, the determination unit 13 may determine a new item allocation destination from among the allocation destination candidates so that the amount of work required for loading and unloading to storage locations within a specified area is distributed among the storage locations. As described above, information indicating this amount of work can be implicitly (calculatable from the transport route information) or directly included in the transport route information. Here, distributing the amount of work among the storage locations can refer to, for example, the total amount of work being equal. Therefore, as a modified example, the determination unit 13 can also perform processing such as the following two examples.

[0083] In the above example, the determination unit 13 determines an item allocation destination so that the workload performed on each shelf SH is distributed, and so the above formula (1), which is the variance of the workload of the shelves, is given as the objective function. In contrast, the number of shelves |S| and Total in the above formula (2), which is the sum of the workload of all shelves, are constant regardless of the allocation, so the determination unit 13 in the modified example determines a new item allocation destination using the amount V' in the above formula (3) as the objective function instead of the variance V. Even when such an objective function is used, it is equivalent in terms of optimization problem to the case where the variance value V is used.

[0084] In addition, because the total amount of work on all shelves SH is constant, if the number of shelves SH with a large amount of work decreases, the amount of work on the shelves SH is distributed. Therefore, as another modified example, the determination unit 13 can achieve the same objective by using a strictly monotonically increasing function f other than the identity function as an objective function other than the above V and V', and using the quantity V" given by the above equation (4) as the objective function.

[0085] As described above, the present system 10 can determine storage locations for an item based on the storage location of a given item and the loading / unloading information regarding the loading and unloading of the item, without increasing the travel distance of a worker or work robot currently performing a task such as picking, and while at the same time, for example, equalizing the number of loading and unloading operations at each storage location.

[0086] To explain this effect, a comparative example that does not employ this embodiment is assumed in which storage positions of items are determined in a warehouse or the like that stores items so as to shorten the travel distance required for picking or storing in order to improve work efficiency. In this comparative example, the storage positions of items are concentrated in a specific part, increasing the possibility that multiple workers or work robots will try to pick items at the same time in the same place, resulting in reduced work efficiency due to congestion in waiting for work. However, as described above, the present system 10 can obtain a travel route by estimating it, determine storage positions on the travel route, and determine storage positions of items so that the amount of work is equal among the determined storage positions.

[0087] Furthermore, the processing in the present system 10 does not require time information such as the time series of the work order, and only information indicating the combination of items to be worked on in the work order is required. Therefore, the present system 10 can be used even when the time series information is unknown, such as when a new warehouse is started up.

[0088] As described above, the first condition includes a condition that the storage location is accessible along the travel route indicated by the travel route information, and the calculation unit 12 can calculate at least one of the allocation destination candidates so as to satisfy this condition. Furthermore, as described above, the calculation unit 12 can also calculate, as at least one of the allocation destination candidates, a storage location where at least a part of the travel route indicated by the input travel route information overlaps with each other so as to satisfy this condition.

[0089] In the above-mentioned scene, it is assumed that the passage with the arrow in FIG. 3 as the information indicating the passage in (iv) above can move (transport) only in the direction of the arrow. In other words, any movement route indicated by the input movement route information can be a route limited to movement from a predetermined direction with respect to the storage location, that is, a one-way route. However, this embodiment is not limited to application to scenes where such restrictions are imposed, and the movement route indicated by the movement route information can also include a route that allows two-way passage.

[0090] As described above, at least one of the movement routes indicated by the movement route information may be a route calculated as a route that is estimated to be taken when carrying in or out an item to be transported. However, at least one of the movement routes indicated by the input movement route information may be a movement route that is determined and input in advance by a manager or the like.

[0091] In the above scenario, the explanation is based on the assumption that the shelf is a single level, or that even if there are multiple levels, there is no distinction for management purposes, but this is not limited to the above. For example, even if the shelves are provided in multiple levels and have management distinctions, it is sufficient to specify the position of each shelf, such as the horizontal position and number of levels (or vertical position) of the shelf. Even in this case, the horizontal position of the shelf basically affects the transportation of the item, so the allocation destination candidates can be calculated by considering only the horizontal position of the shelf on which the item is placed.

[0092] In the above-mentioned scenario, the shelf is large enough to allocate any item, but the present invention is not limited to this. For example, the item information 14b may include information indicating the size of the item. In this case, the calculation unit 12 may calculate candidates from among the storage positions in which the item indicated by the item information can be stored. In this case, in step S16, in the case of item α, if there is a shelf SH among the shelves 1A, 1B, 1C, 4A, 4B, and 4C that cannot be allocated due to a comparison of the size of the shelf SH with the item α, such a shelf SH will not be extracted.

[0093] When the item information 14b includes information indicating the size of the item, the storage location information can include information indicating the size of the storage area or the number of items that can be stored for each of the multiple items. Then, the determination unit 13 can determine, as the change destination, a storage location that can store the candidate-calculated item from among the candidates, based on the item information and the storage location information.

[0094] Also, although only the size of the item is considered, the item information 14b may contain information indicating the weight of the item and the storage location information may contain information indicating the storage weight limit in the storage area, and the determination unit 13 may also execute the determination process taking these pieces of information into consideration. In other words, the determination unit 13 can determine, as the change destination, from among the allocation destination candidates, a storage location in which the candidate calculation item can be stored, based on the item information and storage location information, both of which contain information regarding weight.

[0095] In addition, the item information 14b may include information indicating a level of caution required for the transportation of the item. In this case, the determination unit 13 may determine, as a storage location to which the candidate-calculated item can be transferred and stored without being damaged, from among the candidates, based on the information indicating the level.

[0096] Next, an alternative example to the processing example of FIG. 5 will be described. In the processing example of Fig. 5, the calculation unit 12 determines allocation destination candidates for all items, and then the determination unit 13 determines an allocation destination with less congestion by considering all items. As an alternative process, processing is performed for "some items" instead of "all items", and by repeating this process, it is possible to determine an allocation destination with less congestion without increasing the travel distance. In other words, in this embodiment, the calculation unit 12 determines allocation destination candidates for some items, and then the determination unit 13 determines an allocation destination with less congestion by considering the above-mentioned some items, and the same effect can be obtained by repeating such processing as many times as necessary, for example, until it is completed for all parts.

[0097] Such a processing example will be described with reference to Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a flow diagram for explaining another more specific example of the storage position determination processing executed in the storage position determination system 10 of Fig. 1.

[0098] First, the input unit 11 assigns an existing allocation destination to the variable X (step S21). For example, the shelf SH in row 1, column C in FIG. 3 is assigned. Next, the input unit 11 acquires some items from among the items (items α and θ in the above example) in the allocation destination assigned to the variable X, and passes them to the calculation unit 12 as a list L' (step S22). The items acquired here can be selected at random, or can be items that are assigned to the shelf with the largest amount of work among the existing allocation destinations of items.

[0099] Next, the calculation unit 12 obtains allocation candidates for the items in list L' using the same calculation method as described in Fig. 5, and passes them to the determination unit 13 (steps S22, S23). Specifically, list L' is used instead of list L of items to be allocated that is read in step S11 in Fig. 5, and the process in Fig. 5 is executed to calculate and set allocation candidates for all items in list L', and the results are passed to the determination unit 13.

[0100] Next, the determination unit 13 uses the allocation destination candidates for the items included in list L' to find new allocation destinations to which the workload is distributed in the same manner as the determination unit 13 described above (step S24). However, for items not included in list L', the allocation destination is not changed. Then, the input unit 11 assigns the new allocation destination to the variable X (step S25).

[0101] In this system 10, steps S22 to S25 are repeated until the number of repetitions reaches a specified number. Therefore, the input unit 11 judges whether the number of repetitions has reached the specified number (step S26), and returns to step S22 if the number has not reached the specified number. If the number of repetitions has reached the specified number (YES in step S26), the input unit 11 notifies the determination unit 13 to that effect, and the determination unit 13 adopts the allocation destination in the variable X as a new allocation destination to be changed, changes the existing allocation destination to the new allocation destination (step S27), and ends the process. The new allocation destination determined in this way is an allocation with less congestion without increasing the travel distance from the existing allocation destination.

[0102] Here, whether or not to repeat may be determined not by threshold processing with a specified number of times, but by threshold processing with a specified time, for example. In other words, in step S26, it may be determined whether or not the repetition has reached a specified time.

[0103] (Alternative examples, etc.) In the above embodiment, the present system 10 has been described, but the storage location determination system is not limited to the configuration shown in the example, as long as it can perform its functions. Furthermore, the information handled by the storage location determination system is not limited to the example, and can be any information that can perform the same calculation.

[0104] As described above for the system 10, the storage location determination system can be configured with functions distributed across multiple devices or can be configured as a single device. Either of these multiple devices or single device can have the following hardware configuration, for example. Figure 9 is a diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of such a device.

[0105] 9 may include a processor 101, a memory 102, and an interface 103. For example, when the device 100 is a computer, the interface 103 may include an interface with an operation device that accepts user operations, an interface with a display device that displays information, a communication interface for sending and receiving information, and the like.

[0106] The processor 101 may be, for example, a CPU, a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), or an MPU (Micro Processor Unit), also called a microprocessor. The processor 101 may include multiple processors. The memory 102 is configured, for example, by a combination of a volatile memory and a non-volatile memory. The functions of the above-mentioned multiple devices or a single device are realized by the processor 101 reading a control program stored in the memory 102 and executing the program while exchanging necessary information via the interface 103.

[0107] The program includes instructions (or software code) that, when loaded into a computer, cause the computer to perform one or more functions described in the embodiments. The program may be stored in a non-transitory computer-readable medium or a tangible storage medium. By way of example and not limitation, the computer-readable medium or tangible storage medium includes random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, solid-state drive (SSD) or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disc (DVD), Blu-ray® disk or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassette, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage device. The program may be transmitted on a transitory computer-readable medium or communication medium. By way of example and not limitation, the transitory computer-readable medium or communication medium includes electrical, optical, acoustic, or other form of propagated signal.

[0108] The present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiment, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit and scope of the present disclosure. In addition, the present disclosure includes implementation in which the examples in the above-described embodiment are appropriately combined. [Explanation of symbols]

[0109] SG Work start / end position SH Shelf WH warehouse 10 Storage location determination system 11 Input section 12 Calculation section 13 Decision Section 14 Storage section 14a Stock / Return Order Information 14b Goods information 14c Shelf information 14d Work volume information 100 devices 101 Processor 102 Memory 103 Interface

Claims

1. execute an input process for inputting, for each of a plurality of items to be stored within a specified area, item information indicating the item, storage location information indicating the storage location when storing the item, loading / unloading information indicating the number of items brought in and taken out in chronological order, and movement route information indicating the movement route during work for the transported items, which are one or more items to be brought in or taken out simultaneously as indicated by the loading / unloading information; execute a calculation process for calculating a candidate storage location for changing the storage location of at least one of the plurality of items so as to satisfy a first condition of not increasing a moving distance indicated by the moving route information; executing a determination process for determining a change destination from among the candidates for the candidate-calculated product, which is the product for which the candidates have been calculated; Storage location determination system.

2. the first condition includes a condition that the storage location is a location that can be moved along a movement route indicated by the movement route information, The calculation process calculates at least one of the candidates so as to satisfy the condition. The storage location determination system of claim 1 .

3. the calculation process calculates, as at least one of the candidates, a storage location where at least a part of the travel route indicated by the travel route information overlaps with each other so as to satisfy the condition; The storage location determination system of claim 2 .

4. The item information includes information indicating a size of the item, the calculation process calculates the candidates from among storage locations in which the item indicated by the item information can be stored; 3. A storage location determination system according to claim 1 or 2.

5. Any of the movement routes indicated by the movement route information is a route limited to movement from a predetermined direction relative to the storage location.

3. A storage location determination system according to claim 1 or 2.

6. In the calculation process, for an item among the plurality of items that is not included in the carry-in / out information or an item whose carry-in number and carry-out number in the carry-in / out information are zero, the calculation of the candidate is not performed, or the calculation process calculates a storage location that is the same as the storage location of the candidate as the candidate.

3. A storage location determination system according to claim 1 or 2.

7. The determination process determines a storage location from among the candidates such that an amount of work required for carrying in and carrying out the storage location within the predetermined area is distributed among the storage locations.

3. A storage location determination system according to claim 1 or 2.

8. The item information includes information indicating a size of the item, The storage location information includes information indicating a size of a storage area or a storage capacity number of each of the plurality of items, The determination process determines, as a change destination, a storage location in which the candidate-calculated item can be stored from among the candidates, based on the item information and the storage location information.

3. A storage location determination system according to claim 1 or 2.

9. the item information includes information indicating a level of attention required for transporting the item, the determination process determines, as a storage location to which the candidate calculated item can be transported and stored without being damaged, from among the candidates, based on the information indicating the level; 3. A storage location determination system according to claim 1 or 2.

10. At least one of the movement routes indicated by the input movement route information is a route calculated as a route that is estimated to be taken when carrying in or carrying out the transport target item.

3. A storage location determination system according to claim 1 or 2.

11. execute an input process for inputting, for each of a plurality of items to be stored within a specified area, item information indicating the item, storage location information indicating the storage location when storing the item, loading / unloading information indicating the number of items brought in and taken out in chronological order, and movement route information indicating the movement route during work for the transported items, which are one or more items to be brought in or taken out simultaneously as indicated by the loading / unloading information; execute a calculation process for calculating a candidate storage location for changing the storage location of at least one of the plurality of items so as to satisfy a first condition of not increasing a moving distance indicated by the moving route information; executing a determination process for determining a change destination from among the candidates for the candidate-calculated product, which is the product for which the candidates have been calculated; Storage location determination method.

12. On the computer, execute an input process for inputting, for each of a plurality of items to be stored within a specified area, item information indicating the item, storage location information indicating the storage location when storing the item, loading / unloading information indicating the number of items brought in and taken out in chronological order, and movement route information indicating the movement route during work for the transported items, which are one or more items to be brought in or taken out simultaneously as indicated by the loading / unloading information; execute a calculation process for calculating a candidate storage location for changing the storage location of at least one of the plurality of items so as to satisfy a first condition of not increasing a moving distance indicated by the moving route information; executing a determination process for determining a change destination from among the candidates for the candidate-calculated product, which is the product for which the candidates have been calculated; A program for executing storage location determination processing.

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