Delivery box

Abstract

To provide a home delivery box whose wiring can be simplified as a whole.SOLUTION: A home delivery box 10 includes a main box row 12 and a sub box row 14 subordinating thereto. The main box row comprises a control box 18 including a display part (24) and an operation part (26) on a front face, and the sub box row comprises a plurality of storage boxes 28. A microcomputer (38) of a master unit 34 controls the display part and the operation part. Microcomputers (60) of slave units 56 manage corresponding storage boxes. The microcomputer (38) and the microcomputers (60) are connected with a first two-wire serial signal line, the microcomputers (60) are connected to one another with a second two-wire serial signal line, and thereby, all the slave units 56 are linked to the master unit 34.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a delivery box, and more particularly to a delivery box provided with a plurality of storage sections (storage boxes) for storing packages, for example. [Background technology]

[0002] In both Patent Document 1 and Patent Document 2, which are directed to letter boxes or mailboxes, ideas are proposed to facilitate electrical wiring for locking and managing a large number of storage compartments.

[0003] In Patent Document 1, a wiring path is formed on the inner wall of the box body, and a control unit for controlling a corresponding electric lock device among multiple electric lock devices is connected to each electric lock device by wiring passed through the wiring path 10.

[0004] In Patent Document 2, output connectors and input connectors that electrically connect to adjacent mailboxes are provided on the top and bottom of each of a plurality of mailboxes, and the output connectors and input connectors of vertically adjacent mailboxes in each row are connected simply by stacking the mailboxes. The mailboxes in each row are placed on relay boxes lined up in the left-right direction, and are connected to a control unit via the relay boxes. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0005] [Patent Document 1] JP 2009-100874 A [A47G 29 / 12 E05B 49 / 00, 65 / 02] [Patent Document 2] JP 2016-140434 A [A47G 29 / 124, 29 / 122] Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0006] In both Patent Documents 1 and 2, simplification of the overall wiring is insufficient.

[0007] Therefore, a primary object of the present invention is to provide a novel delivery box.

[0008] Another object of the present invention is to provide a delivery box that can simplify wiring overall. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] In order to solve the above problems, the present invention employs the following configuration. Note that the reference symbols and supplementary explanations in parentheses indicate the corresponding relationships with the embodiments described to aid in understanding the present invention, and do not limit the present invention in any way.

[0010] A first invention includes a main box row having a control box with a display unit and an operation unit provided on a front surface thereof, a sub-box row having a plurality of storage boxes subordinate to the main box row and each having a storage door, a master unit including a first computer that controls the display unit and the operation unit, a slave unit having a second computer provided in individual correspondence with each of the plurality of storage boxes and that manages each storage box, a first two-wire serial signal line connecting the first computer and the second computer, and a second two-wire serial signal line connecting the second computer connected to the first computer and a second computer subsequent to the second computer, The main box row and the sub box row are each formed of an individual inner case, and further include an outer case that houses the individual inner case, a predetermined gap is formed between each of the multiple inner cases and the outer case to ensure thermal insulation, the slave unit is provided near the corresponding storage box in the predetermined gap, and the first two-wire serial signal line and the second two-wire serial signal line are both wired within the predetermined gap. It is a delivery box.

[0011] In the first invention, a delivery box (10: a reference symbol illustrating a corresponding part in the embodiment; the same applies below) includes a main box row (12) and a sub-box row (14) subordinate to the main box row (12). The main box row (12) is formed with a control box (18) having a display unit (24) and an operation unit (26) on its front side, and the sub-box row (14) includes a plurality of storage boxes (28) each having a storage door. A first computer (38) of a master unit (34) controls the display unit (24) and the operation unit (26). A second computer (60) of a plurality of slave units (56) provided in an individual correspondence with each of the plurality of storage boxes manages each of the storage boxes (28). The first computer (38) of the master unit (34) and the second computer (60) of the first-stage slave unit (56a) are connected by a first two-wire serial signal line (84), and the second computers (60) of the next-stage slave unit (56b) subsequent to the first-stage slave unit (56) are connected by a second two-wire serial signal line (84). Furthermore, the main box row (12) and the sub-box row (14) are each formed of an individual inner case (74) and further include an outer case (72) that houses the individual inner case (74), a predetermined gap is formed between each of the multiple inner cases and the outer case to ensure thermal insulation, the slave unit (56) is provided near the corresponding storage box (28) in the predetermined gap, and the first two-wire serial signal line (84) and the second two-wire serial signal line (84) are both wired within the predetermined gap.

[0012] According to the first aspect of the present invention, the first computer of the master unit and the second computers of each slave unit can be connected and coordinated only by serial signal lines, thereby simplifying the overall wiring. Moreover, a gap can be provided between the inner case and the outer case to ensure thermal insulation, and this thermally insulated space can be used to provide slave units and wire signal lines, allowing these electrical components to be efficiently arranged and safely protected.

[0013] The second invention is dependent on the first invention, Further, an electric lock is provided for locking and unlocking a storage door for opening and closing the storage box, The slave units are individually connected to the corresponding storage boxes. The electric lock is provided on the side of the electric lock in a predetermined gap outside the electric lock. locking and Unlocking And It is a delivery box that manages stored items.

[0014] In the second invention, Further, the storage box further includes an electric lock (32) for locking and unlocking a storage door for opening and closing the storage box, The slave unit (56) manages and controls the locking and unlocking of the electric lock (32) of the corresponding storage box (28) and the stored items, i.e., the stored item detection sensor (88).

[0015] A third invention is according to the first or second invention, and is a delivery box, in which the master unit includes a first transceiver connected to a first computer and a first general-purpose input / output connector connected to the first transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line, the slave unit includes a second transceiver connected to a second computer and a second general-purpose input / output connector connected to the second transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line, and the first two-wire serial signal line connects the first general-purpose input / output connector and the second general-purpose input / output connector.

[0016] In the third invention, the master unit (34) includes a first transceiver (52) connected to a first computer (38) and a first general-purpose input / output connector (54) connected to the first transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line (50). The slave unit (56) includes a second transceiver (66) connected to a second computer (60) and a second general-purpose input / output connector (70a or 70b) connected to the second transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line (68a or 68b). A first two-wire serial signal line (84) connects the first general-purpose input / output connector (54) and the second general-purpose input / output connector (70a or 70b). do. According to the third invention, the master unit and the slave unit can be connected simply by connecting the first general-purpose input / output connector and the second general-purpose input / output connector with a first two-wire serial signal line, thereby further simplifying the wiring.

[0017] A fourth invention is dependent on the third invention, and is a delivery box, in which the slave unit further includes a third general-purpose input / output connector connected to the second transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line, and the second two-wire serial signal line connects the third general-purpose input / output connector of the preceding slave unit and the third general-purpose input / output connector of the succeeding slave unit.

[0018] In the fourth aspect of the invention, the slave unit (56) further includes a third general-purpose input / output connector (70b or 70a) connected to the second transceiver (66) via a two-wire serial signal line (68a or 68b). A second two-wire serial signal line (84) connects the third general-purpose input / output connector (70b or 70a) of the preceding slave unit and the second general-purpose input / output connector (70a or 70b) of the succeeding slave unit. do. According to the fourth invention, the slave units can be connected to each other simply by connecting the third general-purpose input / output connector and the second general-purpose input / output connector with the second two-wire serial signal line, thereby further simplifying the wiring.

[0019] A fifth invention is according to the third or fourth invention, and is a delivery box, in which the master unit includes a third transceiver connected to the first computer and a fourth general-purpose input / output connector connected to the third transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line, and the display unit and the operation unit are connected to the third transceiver via the fourth general-purpose input / output connector.

[0020] In the fifth invention, the master unit (34) includes a third transceiver (46) connected to the first computer (38) and a fourth general-purpose input / output connector (48) connected to the third transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line (44), and the display unit (34) and the operation unit (26) are connected to the third transceiver via the fourth general-purpose input / output connector.

[0021] According to the fifth aspect of the present invention, the display unit and the operation unit are connected to the first computer via the fourth general-purpose input / output connector, so that the display unit and the operation unit can be controlled by the first computer. Effect of the Invention

[0022] According to this invention, the master unit which controls the whole system and the slave units which manage and control each storage box (and also between the slave units) are connected by a two-wire serial signal line, so that the overall wiring can be greatly simplified.

[0023] The above objects, other objects, features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the drawings. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0024] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a perspective view showing a home delivery box according to one embodiment of the present invention. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a master unit used in the embodiment of FIG. [Diagram 3] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of a slave unit used in the embodiment of FIG. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a state in which the master unit and the slave unit are connected in the embodiment of FIG. [Diagram 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of stored object detection and electric lock control in the embodiment of FIG. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of an infrared distance measuring sensor used in the embodiment of FIG. 5, where FIG. 6(A) shows a front view and FIG. 6(B) shows a side view. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0025] 1, a delivery box 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention is installed in, for example, an apartment building or other collective housing, as well as in offices, convenience stores, supermarkets, and other stores and commercial facilities, or public facilities such as train stations and hospitals, and stores delivery items for delivery destinations in a lockable manner. It is also called a delivery locker or the like.

[0026] In this embodiment, the delivery box 10 includes one main box row 12 and multiple (in this embodiment, two) sub-box rows 14, 14 subordinate to the main box row 12, and the main box row 12 and the sub-box rows 14, 14 are fixed closely to each other on a common base 16.

[0027] The main box row 12 includes a control box 18, and a control door 20 is attached to the control box 18 so as to be able to open and close, and a lock 22 is attached to the control door 20. However, the lock 22 may be an electronic lock, but it is usually kept locked and is only unlocked by the administrator of the delivery box 10 when necessary.

[0028] A display unit 24 is provided on the front of the control door 20, which displays the presence or absence of items in each storage box 28, which will be described later, and an operation unit 26 is provided for inputting, for example, a PIN number or a storage box number to lock or unlock each storage box 28.

[0029] The main box row 12 is further provided with a plurality of storage boxes 28 above and below the control box 18. However, the main box row 12 does not necessarily have to be provided with the storage boxes 28.

[0030] Each storage box 28 is provided with a storage door 30 that can be opened and closed, and the storage door 30 is also provided with an electric lock 32 similar to the electric lock 22 of the above-mentioned control door 20. Locking and unlocking of the electric lock 32 is controlled by a slave unit 56 (FIG. 3) described later.

[0031] However, an electric lock refers to a lock that can be managed or controlled (locked / unlocked) by electrical or electronic operation using a computer, etc., and is a concept that includes so-called electronic locks.

[0032] The sub-box rows 14, 14 adjacent to the main box row 12 are not provided with a control box 18, but are provided with only storage boxes 28 similar to those in the main box row 12. A master unit 34 (FIG. 2), which will be described later, manages and controls at least whether or not the electric locks 32 of each storage box 28 in this sub-box row 14 can be unlocked. In that sense, the sub-box row 14 can be said to be subordinate to the main box row 12.

[0033] The electric lock 32 is unlocked when no item is stored in the storage box 28, and the delivery company can open the storage door 30 of the storage box 28 to store the delivery item. After storing the delivery item, the delivery company closes the storage door 30 and locks the electric lock 32. After that, when the user of the delivery item destination of the storage box inputs, for example, a personal identification code (ID) using the operation unit 26, the input is verified by the master unit 34. If the input verification is OK, the master unit 34 sets the corresponding electric lock 32 to be unlocked. When the user performs an unlock operation in this state, the electric lock 32 of the corresponding storage box 28 is unlocked, and the storage door 30 can be opened to remove the delivery item.

[0034] In this embodiment, the size (vertical height in FIG. 1) of the storage boxes 28 is set to be different between the central sub-box row 14 and the right-most sub-box row 14, but these may be the same size. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the width (horizontal direction in FIG. 1) of the main box row 12 and the sub-box row 14 is set to be the same, but the widths of the rows 12, 14 may be different.

[0035] 2, an example of the above-mentioned master unit 34 includes a microcomputer 38 mounted on a master board 36. This microcomputer 38 functions as a first computer, and is responsible for the overall management and control of the delivery box 10 of the embodiment. As this microcomputer 38, for example, "RX65N" (32-bit microcomputer with built-in Ethernet (product name) controller) manufactured by Renesas Corporation can be used.

[0036] The master board 36 is further equipped with a LAN (Local Area Network) connection device 40, which is controlled by an Ethernet controller built into the microcomputer 38. For this purpose, the LAN connection device 40 is connected to the Ethernet controller built into the microcomputer 38 via, for example, a two-wire serial signal line (hereinafter simply referred to as a "serial signal line") 42. The connection between the LAN connection device 40 and the external communication is not limited to a wired LAN, but may be a wireless LAN that connects via wireless communication.

[0037] A transceiver (RS-232C Tx / Rx) 46 for a serial signal line 44, such as RS-232C (product name), is connected to the microcomputer 38 using specific pins (four pins including power / GND). A general-purpose input / output connector (hereinafter sometimes simply referred to as a "connector") 48 called a GPIO (General Purpose Input / Output) is provided on the serial signal line 44, and this connector 48 is used to connect to the display unit 24 and operation unit 26 described above. Note that this connector 48 is, for example, an 8-pin connector, and as is well known, not only can the input pins or output pins be freely rearranged, but each pin can also be disabled or enabled as necessary.

[0038] A transceiver (RS-485 Tx / Rx) 52 for a serial signal line 50 such as RS-485 (product name) is further connected to the microcomputer 38 using other specific pins (four pins including power / GND). The serial signal line 50 is provided with a connector 54, and is used to link with a slave unit 56 (FIG. 3) (microcomputer 60) described below.

[0039] 3, an example of the slave unit 56 described above includes a microcomputer 60 mounted on a slave board 58. This microcomputer 60 functions as a second computer, and individually manages and controls each storage box 28 of the delivery box 10 of the embodiment. An example of this microcomputer 60 is the "RL78" (16-bit microcomputer) manufactured by Renesas Corporation. etc. are available.

[0040] In this embodiment, four serial signal lines such as RS-485 or analog / digital signal lines 62a, 62b, 62c, and 62d are connected to the microcomputer 60, and general-purpose connectors 64a, 64b, 64c, and 64d such as GPIO are connected to the signal lines 62a, 62b, 62c, and 62d, and power / GND is also supplied by a separate line. In this embodiment, four serial signal lines or analog / digital signal lines 62a, 62b, 62c, and 62d are provided, but in reality, only two signal lines 62a and 62b are used for detecting stored items and controlling the opening and closing of the electric lock, as described later. Therefore, the number of signal lines 62a, 62b, 62c, and 62d can be increased or decreased as necessary.

[0041] A transceiver (RS-485Tx / Rx) 66 for a serial signal line 68 is connected to the microcomputer 60 using specific pins (four pins including power / GND). The serial signal line 68 branches into two serial signal lines 68a and 68b, and the branched serial signal lines 68a and 68b are provided with connectors 70a and 70b, respectively. One connector 70a (or 70b) is used to link with the slave unit 56 (its microcomputer 60) in the previous stage, and the other connector 70b (or 70a) is used to link with the slave unit 56 (its microcomputer 60) in the subsequent stage. However, in the slave unit 56 that directly links with the master unit 34, the connector 70a (or 70b) is connected to the connector 54 (FIG. 2) described above by a serial signal line.

[0042] In the embodiment of delivery box 10 shown in Fig. 1, for example, as shown in Fig. 4, control box 18 and storage boxes 28 are linked by connecting master unit 34 and slave unit 56 by a data transmission path including only serial signal lines. Then, microcomputer 38 of master unit 34 manages and controls delivery box 10 as a whole, and microcomputer 60 of slave unit 56 manages and controls corresponding storage boxes 28 individually.

[0043] Note that Figure 4 basically partially shows the internal structure (longitudinal cross section) of the delivery box 10 in Figure 1, but some parts have been omitted, and the position and size of the control box 18 in the main box row 12, as well as the number and positions of the storage boxes 28, differ from those in Figure 1, but this is merely for convenience.

[0044] Each of the main box row 12 and the sub-box row 14 includes an outer case 72 made of a metal such as stainless steel and an inner case 74 made of a similar metal, and the outer case 72 and the inner case 74 are connected to each other by welding or the like with a predetermined gap therebetween in order to ensure thermal insulation and further due to the need for internal component placement, etc. However, in Fig. 4, the connection portion between the outer case 72 and the inner case 74 by welding or the like is not shown.

[0045] A partition plate 76 made of a similar metal is inserted between the left and right side walls of the inner case 74 at the same height and fixed to the left and right side walls by welding or the like. The room in the inner case 74 separated into upper and lower parts by this partition plate 76 is used as the control box 18 or the storage box 28.

[0046] Master unit 34 is provided at a predetermined location in the gap between outer case 72 and inner case 74, between the ceiling portions of both cases in the embodiment of Fig. 4. Microcomputer 38 (Fig. 2) of master unit 34 is connected by LAN connection device 40 (Fig. 2) to centralized control device 78 installed, for example, in the delivery company's jurisdictional office or the control room of an apartment building, via wireless network 80. Therefore, centralized control device 78 can grasp the current status of delivery box 10 according to data sent from master unit 34, and can also send necessary control data from centralized control device 78 to master unit 34.

[0047] The microcomputer 38 of the master unit 34 is connected to the display unit 24 and the operation unit 26 by a serial signal line 82, such as RS-232C, which is connected to the connector 48. Therefore, the microcomputer 38 receives operation input from the operation unit 26 and executes a predetermined process, and also displays on the display unit 24 information, such as the presence or absence of an item in the storage box 28, which is received from the slave unit 56, for example.

[0048] By connecting connector 54 (FIG. 2) and connector 70a (or 70b) (FIG. 3) by a serial signal line 84 such as RS-485, microcomputer 38 of master unit 34 is connected to microcomputer 60 (FIG. 3) of first-stage slave unit 56a, which is arranged next to control box 18 and manages and controls storage box 28 (first-stage storage box) in main box row 12.

[0049] This first-stage slave unit 56a is further connected to the next-stage slave unit 56b that controls the following next-stage storage box. That is, the connector 70b (or 70a) of the first-stage slave unit 56a and the connector 70a (or 70b) of the next-stage slave unit 56b are connected by a serial signal line 84 such as RS-485, thereby linking the microcomputers 60 of the slave units 56a and 56b.

[0050] The slave unit 56b is further connected to the slave unit 56c in the next stage. That is, the connector 70b (or 70a) of the slave unit 56b and the connector 70a (or 70b) of the slave unit 56c in the next stage are connected by a serial signal line 84 such as RS-485, thereby linking the microcomputers 60 of the slave units 56b and 56c.

[0051] Similarly, the next-stage slave unit 56d is connected to the previous-stage slave unit 56c by connecting the connector 70b (or 70a) and the connector 70a (or 70a) by a serial signal line 84 such as RS-485.

[0052] In this manner, the slave unit 56a for the first storage box 28 is connected to the master unit 34, and the slave units 56 of the subsequent storage boxes 28 are successively connected in series by the serial signal lines 84, so that the slave units 56b, 56c, 56d, 56e, 56f, ... of all the storage boxes 28 are linked to the master unit 34.

[0053] The connector serving as the input of the slave unit 56 may be either the connector 70a or the connector 70b, and the connector serving as the output may be either the connector 70b or the connector 70a.

[0054] In FIG. 4, a bushing 85 is formed between adjacent outer cases 72 to allow a serial signal line 84 to pass therethrough.

[0055] In this way, in the delivery box 10 of the embodiment, the microcontroller 38 of the master unit 34, which manages and controls the display unit 24 and operation unit 26 of the control box 18, and the microcontroller 60 of the slave unit 56, which manages and controls the multiple storage boxes 28 individually, can be connected and linked using only a serial signal line, thereby simplifying the wiring overall and thereby significantly reducing the manufacturing cost of the delivery box 10.

[0056] Furthermore, in the delivery box 10 of this embodiment, the control box 18 is provided only in the main box row 12, the sub-box row 14 is provided subordinate to the main box row 12, and the sub-box row 14 is provided with only storage boxes 28. Therefore, the capacity of the delivery box can be easily increased by adding only the sub-box rows. However, in this case, the storage boxes 28 may or may not be provided in the main box row 12.

[0057] Furthermore, in the delivery box 10 of this embodiment, as shown in Fig. 5, a notch 86 is formed in the side wall 74a of the inner case 74 forming each storage box 28, and an infrared distance measuring sensor 88 is provided on the outer surface of the notch 86. In this embodiment, this infrared distance measuring sensor 88 functions as a stored item detection sensor. As the infrared distance measuring sensor used in this embodiment, for example, an "ORA1M05" infrared distance measuring sensor manufactured by Kodenshi Co., Ltd. is used, but it is not necessarily limited to this specific element.

[0058] 6, the infrared distance measuring sensor 88 has a housing 90 that protrudes rearward when viewed from the side shown in Fig. 6(B), with screw holes 94 formed in upper and lower ends 92 of the housing 90, an infrared light emitting element 96 provided in the lower interior portion of the housing 90, and a light detecting element 98 provided in the upper interior portion. The infrared distance measuring sensor 88 is attached to the outer surface of the side wall 74a of the inner case 74 using the screw holes 94 and screws 100 so that infrared light 96a from the infrared light emitting element 96 is irradiated onto the storage box 28 through the notch 86 and the reflected light is received by the light receiving element 98 through the notch 86.

[0059] However, in order to prevent the infrared distance sensor 88 from being exposed to the inside of the storage box 28 through the notch 86, it is desirable to seal the notch 86 with a transparent material such as acrylic or polycarbonate, although this is not shown.

[0060] A serial signal line such as RS-232C or an analog / digital signal line 102, which is connected to the connector 64a (FIG. 3) of the serial signal line 62a of the slave unit 56, is connected to the infrared distance measuring sensor 88. To be more specific, a drive voltage for driving the infrared light emitting element 96 to emit light is output from the microcomputer 60 (FIG. 3) through the serial signal line or analog / digital signal line 102, and a light detection signal (output voltage) from the light receiving element 98 is input to the microcomputer 60 through the serial signal line or analog / digital signal line 102.

[0061] When the microcomputer 60 applies a drive voltage to the infrared emitting element 96, the infrared emitting element 96 outputs infrared light 96a having a predetermined radiation angle as shown in FIG. 5, and the infrared light is irradiated into the storage box 28. The reflected light of the infrared light 96a is received by the light receiving element 98, and the output voltage from the light receiving element 98 is detected by the microcomputer 60, so that the distance to the object can be measured. For example, the light receiving element 98 outputs an analog voltage corresponding to a distance of 5.5 cm to 60 cm from the infrared emitting element 96. However, if there is no object within that distance range, the light receiving element 98 does not output a light detection signal (output voltage). Therefore, the infrared distance measuring sensor 88 functions as a sensor for detecting whether or not a storage item (delivery item) is present on the partition plate 76 of the storage box 28.

[0062] When an item (delivery) is present in a storage box 28, the microcomputer 60 of the corresponding slave unit 56 detects the presence of the item in response to the output voltage from the light receiving element 98, and this information is sent to the microcomputer 38 of the master unit 34 via the serial signal line 84 (FIG. 4). Therefore, the master unit 34 can grasp and manage the status of all storage boxes 28 in the delivery box 10.

[0063] In this type of delivery box 10, it is essential to detect whether there is an item stored or delivered inside the storage box 28. To that end, a stored item detection device such as a weight sensor or an infrared sensor is disposed on the partition plate 76 that divides each storage box 28. However, naturally, these stored item detection devices require wiring to the corresponding slave unit 56, but because the partition plate 76 is formed separately from the inner case 74, wiring from the slave unit 56 to the stored item detection device is time-consuming, which is a factor in increasing manufacturing costs and also leads to an increase in the number of steps during maintenance and inspection.

[0064] In this embodiment, a detection device for detecting whether or not there is an item or delivery in the storage box 28, in this embodiment an infrared distance measuring sensor 88, is provided on the side wall 74a of the inner case 74. This not only simplifies the structure and wiring compared to the case where a weight sensor or the like is used as the detection device, but also simplifies maintenance.

[0065] Furthermore, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 5, a serial signal line such as RS-232C or an analog / digital signal line 104 connected to the connector 64b (FIG. 3) of the serial signal line 62b of the slave unit 56 is connected to the electric lock 32.

[0066] When the electric lock 32 is locked, information (signal) indicating this is input to the microcomputer 60 (Fig. 3) of the slave unit 56 through the serial signal line or analog / digital signal line 104, and is then transmitted to the microcomputer 38 of the master unit 34, and is then sent to the centralized control device 78. When the microcomputer 38 of the master unit 34 permits unlocking of the electric lock 32 in response to the user's operation of the operation unit 26 (Fig. 1), a command to that effect is sent from the microcomputer 38 to the microcomputer 60 of the slave unit 56, and the microcomputer 60 unlocks the electric lock 32. This allows the user to open the storage door 30 of the storage box 28 and take out the stored item (delivery item).

[0067] In the embodiment of Figures 4 and 5, the slave unit 56 is placed in the gap between the outer case 72 and the inner case 74 on the left side of the storage box 28. Therefore, when connecting to the infrared distance measuring sensor 88 or the electric lock 32 provided on the left side of the storage box 28, the serial signal line or the analog / digital signal line (wire harness) can be made the shortest. By unitizing the devices, it is possible to simplify the wiring, reduce the number of maintenance steps, and reduce the number of steps required for wiring work.

[0068] However, a different structure may be considered, such as arranging the slave unit 56 on the right side of the storage box 28. In this case, the distance between the infrared distance measuring sensor 88 or the electric lock 32 and the slave unit 56, i.e., the length of the serial signal line or the analog / digital signal line, may become longer, but since it is only necessary to connect the serial signal line or the analog / digital signal line to the general-purpose input / output connector as in the embodiment, this does not prevent the simplification of the wiring.

[0069] 4, the storage boxes above the control box 18 in the main box row 12 are described as first-stage storage boxes, and the slave unit 56a that manages and controls them is described as the first-stage slave unit. However, the meaning of the first-stage storage box refers to the storage box that corresponds to the slave unit to which the master unit 34 is first connected, and is not named according to the location where the storage box is installed.

[0070] Also, in the above embodiment, the control box 18 is provided in the main box row 12, which is also provided with a plurality of storage boxes 28, but the main box row 12 may have only the control box 18, and all the storage boxes 28 may be provided in the sub-box row 14 subordinate to the main box row 12. In this case, in the extreme case, it is also conceivable that only the control box 18 and the master unit 34 that manages and controls it constitute one box row.

[0071] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, an infrared distance measuring sensor is used as the stored object detection mechanism of the storage box 28, but stored object detection sensors of other structures or methods may be used. [Explanation of symbols]

[0072] 10. Delivery box 12 ... Main box row 14 ... Subbox column 18 …Control box 20...Control door 24...Display section 26...Operation unit 28 ... Storage box 30... Storage door 32 ... Electric lock 34 ... Master unit 38 ... Microcomputer (first computer) 42, 44, 50, 68, 82, 84...2-wire serial signal line 56 Slave Unit 60 ... Microcomputer (second computer)

Claims

1. a main box row having a control box with a display unit and an operation unit provided on the front surface; a sub-box row having a plurality of storage boxes subordinate to the main box row, each of the storage boxes having a storage door; a master unit including a first computer that controls the display unit and the operation unit; a slave unit provided in correspondence with each of the plurality of storage boxes and having a second computer for managing each of the storage boxes; a first two-wire serial signal line connecting the first computer and the second computer; and a second two-wire serial signal line connecting the second computers to each other; The main box row and the sub box row are each formed with an individual inner case, and further include an outer case that houses the individual inner case, a predetermined gap is formed between each of the plurality of inner cases and the outer case in order to ensure thermal insulation, and the slave unit is provided in the predetermined gap near the corresponding storage box, the first two-wire serial signal line and the second two-wire serial signal line are both wired within the specified gap.

2. A delivery box as described in claim 1, further comprising an electric lock for locking and unlocking a storage door that opens and closes the storage box, wherein the slave unit is provided on the side where the electric lock is provided within the specified gap outside the individually corresponding storage box, and manages the locking and unlocking of the electric lock and the stored items.

3. the master unit includes a first transceiver connected to the first computer, and a first general-purpose input / output connector connected to the first transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line; the slave unit includes a second transceiver connected to the second computer, and a second general-purpose input / output connector connected to the second transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line; 3. The delivery box according to claim 1, wherein the first two-wire serial signal line connects the first general-purpose input / output connector and the second general-purpose input / output connector.

4. the slave unit further includes a third general-purpose input / output connector connected to the second transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line; 4. The delivery box according to claim 3, wherein the second two-wire serial signal line connects the third general-purpose input / output connector of a preceding slave unit and the second general-purpose input / output connector of a succeeding slave unit.

5. the master unit includes a third transceiver connected to the first computer, and a fourth general-purpose input / output connector connected to the third transceiver via a two-wire serial signal line; 5. The delivery box according to claim 3, wherein the display unit and the operation unit are connected to the third transceiver via the fourth general-purpose input / output connector.

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