Operating system

Abstract

To improve the practicability of a work system including a plurality of mobile work machines that perform work accompanied by movements with electricity accumulated in batteries.SOLUTION: In managing respective operations of a plurality of mobile work machines, work is allocated so that the work machines have movement distances corresponding to a battery remaining amount. Specifically, an in-warehouse product conveyance system for, for example, causing a conveyance robot 10 to convey products between a storage place 50 and a warehousing / shipping place 52 in a warehouse determines the storage place for products according to the battery remaining amount when allocating warehousing work to the conveyance robot, and allocates shipping work for products in the storage place corresponding to the battery remaining amount when allocating the shipping work to the conveyance robot.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a work system including a plurality of mobile work machines that perform work involving movement by electricity stored in a battery.

Background Art

[0002] Mobile work machines that perform work involving movement, such as vehicles and robots, are used in various industrial fields. In a work system equipped with a plurality of mobile work machines that perform work using electricity stored in a battery, it is meaningful to grasp the state of the battery of each mobile work machine. For example, in the technology described in the following patent document, the work performed by each of a plurality of vehicles, each of which is a mobile work machine, is assigned according to the state of the battery of each, specifically, the deterioration state of the battery.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] As described in the above patent document, grasping the state of the batteries of each mobile working machine and determining the work to be assigned to those mobile working machines is effective for improving the practicality of the work system. On the other hand, in order not to cause a situation where the remaining battery level of the mobile working machine becomes 0 or close to 0 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "power outage" or "power outage state"), the mobile working machine needs to be charged at an appropriate timing. However, for example, during a time period when there is a lot of work to be done (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "busy time period"), there may not be enough time for charging. In order to avoid the power outage state and allow the mobile working machine to perform efficient work, some ingenuity is required. In view of such circumstances, the present invention aims to improve the practicality in a system including the above plurality of mobile working machines.

Means for Solving the Problem

[0005] In order to solve the above problems, the work system of the present invention (a) A plurality of mobile working machines, each having a battery and performing work involving movement by the electricity stored in the battery; (b) Charging equipment for charging the plurality of mobile working machines; (c) A controller for managing the operations of each of the plurality of mobile working machines while grasping the remaining battery level, which is the amount of electricity remaining in the battery of each of the plurality of mobile working machines, Each of a plurality of mobile working machines is a transport robot for transporting products, and the working system is an in-warehouse product transport system for causing the transport robots to transport products between a storage location and a shipping / receiving location in a warehouse. The operations performed by the transport robots include a warehousing operation, which is an operation of transporting products from the shipping / receiving location to the storage location, and a shipping operation, which is an operation of transporting products from the storage location to the shipping / receiving location. The above The controller allocates a plurality of works to be performed at one time to some of the plurality of transport robot such that the moving distance corresponds to the remaining battery level, When assigning a warehousing operation to a transport robot, determine the storage location of the product according to the remaining battery level. When assigning a shipping operation to a transport robot, assign a shipping operation for the product at the storage location corresponding to the remaining battery level. and, for those transport robot to which no work is assigned, The above it is configured to cause charging by the charging equipment.

Effect of the Invention

[0006] According to the work system of the present invention (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "this system"), the moving distance in the work to be assigned is set to a distance corresponding to the remaining battery level of the moving work machine to be assigned, so that even during peak hours, the moving work machine can be prevented from running out of power, and the work efficiency of the entire system can be maintained at a high level. Aspects of the invention

[0007] The "moving work machine" in this system is not particularly limited. Specifically, for example, typically, vehicles that move and transport objects, vehicles that perform various operations such as construction and inspection, etc. are applicable. Also, a moving body that cannot be called a vehicle, such as a drone, etc. may be used. The moving work machine may be operated by a human or automatically. That is, it may be something like a robot. Also, the location where the moving work machine moves is not particularly limited, and it may be indoors or outdoors.

[0008] From the perspective of the object of avoiding power outage of the moving work machine without reducing work efficiency, the present invention is particularly meaningful for a work system equipped with charging facilities where all of a plurality of moving work machines cannot be charged simultaneously, such as when the number of charging ports to which the moving work machine is connected for charging is small. Incidentally, the "charging facilities" may be composed of a plurality of chargers each having one charging port, or may be composed of one charger having a plurality of charging ports.

[0009] "Moving distance according to battery remaining amount" generally means that the moving distance is short when the battery remaining amount is small, and conversely, the moving distance is long when the battery remaining amount is large. Depending on the battery remaining amount, the moving distance in the assigned work includes both a mode of continuously increasing or decreasing and a mode of stepwise increasing or decreasing. Specifically, for example, for a mobile working machine with a battery remaining amount less than the set remaining amount, an operation with a shorter moving distance than the operation assigned to a mobile working machine with a battery remaining amount equal to or greater than the set remaining amount may be assigned. In that case, multiple set remaining amounts may be set to increase or decrease the moving distance in multiple steps. Note that in order to surely prevent a power-off state, it is desirable not to assign work to a mobile working machine with a remaining amount at the limit. Also, during a busy time period or the time period before it (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "pre-busy time period"), the moving distance of the entire mobile working machine performing work may be made shorter compared to other time periods.

[0010] Since the "controller" manages the operation of the mobile working machine, for example, it desirably has a communication device capable of communicating with the terminal and various information and various instructions that the mobile working machine has. Also, the controller may have a function of acquiring or creating a work plan for the mobile working machine, and may be configured to include a computer.

[0011] Specifically, this system is suitable for an in-warehouse product conveyance system in which each of a plurality of mobile working machines is a conveyance robot for conveying products, and the products are conveyed between a storage location and a loading / unloading location in the warehouse by these conveyance robots. In that system, the work performed by the conveyance robot includes a warehousing operation, which is an operation of conveying products from the loading / unloading location to the storage location, and an outwarehousing operation, which is an operation of conveying products from the storage location to the loading / unloading location. Incidentally, the "loading / unloading location" is a comprehensive concept combining a loading location for receiving goods at the warehouse and a shipping location for shipping goods from the warehouse, and there may be multiple loading / unloading locations, such as when the loading location and the shipping location are different. The "product" in this aspect is not a concept that only means manufactured items, but a concept that also includes traded goods, work-in-progress in a manufacturing factory, and the like.

[0012] In the in-warehouse product transfer system, when assigning the warehousing operation to the transfer robot, the storage location of the product may be determined according to the remaining battery level. When assigning the outbound operation to the transfer robot, the outbound operation for the product at the storage location corresponding to the remaining battery level may be assigned. In that case, the storage location for the operation assigned to the transfer robot may be classified according to the remaining battery level of the assigned transfer robot.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0013]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0014] Hereinafter, as a mode for carrying out the present invention, the working system which is an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the present invention can be implemented in various forms with various changes and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art, in addition to the following embodiments and the forms described in the section of 〔Aspects of the Invention〕 above.

Embodiment

[0015] [A] Transfer Robot The working system of the embodiment is an in-warehouse product transfer system (hereinafter sometimes abbreviated as "transfer system") equipped with a plurality of transfer robots as mobile working machines for transporting products, goods, work-in-progress, stored items, etc. (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "products, etc."). FIG. 1 shows the transfer robot. The transfer robot 10 has a short cylindrical base 12. The lower right side of the figure is the front and the upper left side is the rear. Although not shown in the figure, the base 12 has a pair of left and right drive wheels and a pair of front and rear steering wheels. On the base 12, a pair of left and right posts 14 are erected, and between the pair of posts 14, a table 16 that can move up and down along these posts 14 is arranged. On the table 16, a slide arm 18 that can move back and forth is arranged. At the front end of the slide arm 18, a clamp 24 having a clamp base 20 and a pair of gripping plates 22 is arranged. The clamp 24 is configured to be movable left and right, and the pair of gripping plates 22 are configured to open and close left and right so as to grip a generally rectangular parallelepiped product or commodity (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "products, etc.") therebetween. The transfer robot 10 is configured to be movable back and forth and to be rotatable on the spot.

[0016] Since the transfer robot 10 operates electrically, it has a battery 26 inside the base 12. That is, the transfer robot 10 moves and performs work by the electric energy stored in the battery 26. Also, since the transfer robot 10 moves and performs work automatically, a camera 28 and a LiDAR 30 for recognizing the front are disposed above the clamp 24, and a receiver 32 for receiving signals from a beacon to be described later is arranged at the upper end of one of the pair of posts 14. Further, an antenna 34 for communicating with a control device to be described later is installed at the upper end of the other of the pair of posts 14. Note that although the transfer robot 10 travels automatically and performs work automatically, any known methods may be arbitrarily adopted for those operations, and the methods adopted in this transfer system will be omitted from the description here. Note that the transfer robot 10 has a control terminal 36 mainly composed of a computer to control itself.

[0017] [B]Logistics Warehouse Where the Transfer Robot Operates As schematically shown in FIG. 2, in the logistics warehouse, a plurality of rows of shelves 50 are arranged inside. Specifically, in the warehouse, there are provided passage α extending east-west on the northernmost side, passage β extending east-west at the north-south center, passage γ and passage δ which are two passages extending east-west on the southernmost side, and a plurality of passages a to l extending north-south connecting passage α and passage β, four passages m to p extending north-south connecting passage β and passage γ, and four passages q to t extending north-south connecting passage β and passage δ.

[0018] The shelves 50 are arranged in 13 rows in the north-south direction on both sides of each of the aisles a to t. Hereinafter, the rows of the shelves 50 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "shelf rows") are associated with the aisles a to t, and those on the west side of the aisle are called (a to t)W, and those on the east side of the aisle are called (a to t)E. For each row of the shelves 50, as shown in the leftmost shelf 50 in the figure, they are numbered 1 to 13 in order from the north side. Therefore, for example, the shelf 50 indicated by ☆ in the figure is eW4 in terms of the shelf number. Also, each shelf 50 has four tiers as shown in the lower right end of the figure and has four storage spaces. Each tier, that is, each storage space, is numbered A to D in order from the top. Therefore, the second storage space from the top of the shelf 50 with the shelf number eW4 indicated by ☆ in the figure shall be represented as eW4B. One or more types of products, etc. are stored in each storage space, one or more at a time. Note that each shelf 50 can be considered as a storage place for products, etc.

[0019] A plurality of transfer robots 10 travel inside the warehouse. In the figure, 10 transfer robots 10 are shown, and they are numbered R1 to R10 as robot No.

[0020] The yard on the south side of the center in the east-west direction inside the warehouse is the loading and unloading yard 52 as the loading and unloading location, and products, etc. are received and loaded onto the truck 54 entering and leaving the warehouse. Each transfer robot 10 performs an inbound operation and an outbound operation. In the inbound operation, the transfer robot 10 receives products, etc. one by one from the truck 54, transports the received products, etc. to the designated shelf 50, and stores them in the designated storage space of that shelf 50. In the outbound operation, the transfer robot 10 takes out the products, etc. stored in the designated storage space of the designated shelf 50 one by one, transports them to the truck 54, and delivers them to that truck 54.

[0021] In this conveying system, the installation locations of the shelves 50 are divided into three categories. Specifically, the installation locations of the shelves 50 in the warehouse are divided into three storage areas based on the moving distance of the conveying robot 10 between the incoming and outgoing yards 52 in the incoming and outgoing operations. The three storage areas are: a) a short-distance storage area where the moving distance of the conveying robot 10 is short, b) a long-distance storage area where the moving distance of the conveying robot 10 is long, and c) a medium-distance storage area where the moving distance of the conveying robot 10 can be considered to be intermediate between the short-distance storage area and the long-distance storage area. In the figure, the shelves 50 installed in the short-distance storage area are shown with hatching, and the shelves 50 installed in the medium-distance storage area are painted with a net pattern. The shelves 50 installed in the long-distance storage area are neither hatched nor painted with a net pattern.

[0022] In the incoming and outgoing yard 52, a standby space 56 for the conveying robot 10 is provided. The number of standby spaces 56 is provided corresponding to the number of conveying robots 10. Also, in the incoming and outgoing yard 52, charging equipment 58 is provided. The charging equipment 58 has one charger 60 and a plurality of charging ports 62. In this conveying system, as shown in the figure, the charging equipment 58 has only a number of charging ports 62 that is less than the number of conveying robots 10. Specifically, it has only three charging ports 62, and the three charging ports 62 are provided for the three standby spaces 56 on the north side. When charging its own battery 26, the conveying robot 10 needs to be located in any of the three standby spaces 56.

[0023] On each of the four corners of the warehouse ceiling, the aforementioned beacons 64 are installed. By receiving the signals from these beacons 64, the conveying robot 10 can grasp its position in the warehouse at any time.

[0024] The management of the operations of the transport robot 10, the remaining amount of the battery 26 (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "remaining battery amount"), and the charging of the battery 26 are performed by a control device 70 mainly composed of a computer and a communication device. Each transport robot 10 receives operation instructions and the like from the control device 70 and performs operations and the like according to the operation instructions. That is, the control device 70 is arranged in the control building outside the warehouse and functions as a controller for managing the operation (a concept including both work and charging) of the transport robot 10.

[0025] [C]Function of the control device The control device 70 is provided with a charging management function for managing the charging of the battery 26 of each transport robot 10 and a work management function for performing work management of each transport robot 10. These functions will be described in detail below.

[0026] i) Charging management function Each transport robot 10 transmits information about the remaining battery amount E, which is the amount of electricity remaining in the battery 26 it is equipped with BAT , BAT , FULL (hereinafter, it shall be expressed as a percentage of the full charge amount E of the electricity remaining at the current time) FULL to the control device 70. Based on the transmitted information, the control device 70 grasps the remaining battery amount E of each transport robot 10 BAT . The control device 70 manages the charging of each transport robot 10 while making good use of three charging ports 62, which are fewer than the number of transport robots 10, while avoiding power outages of each transport robot 10 as much as possible so that each transport robot 10 is charged as evenly as possible. The control device 70 recognizes the existence of the transport robot 10 that is currently being charged and the charging port 62 that is not being charged (hereinafter sometimes referred to as an "empty port").

[0027] The transfer robot 10 moves to the charging port 62 that is an empty port according to the charging instruction from the control device 70, and receives charging at the charging port 62. When the battery 26 of the transfer robot 10 reaches the fully charged state, it detaches from the charging port 62 where it is receiving charging without waiting for an instruction from the control device 70. Also, even if the battery 26 of the transfer robot 10 is not in the fully charged state, it detaches from the charging port 62 where it is receiving charging according to the charging end instruction from the control device 70.

[0028] The control device 70 performs charging management by repeatedly executing a charging management program, the flowchart of which is shown in FIG. 3, by its computer at a predetermined time pitch (for example, 1 minute). In the process according to this program, first, in step 1 (hereinafter abbreviated as "S1". The same applies to other steps.), the remaining battery levels E of all the transfer robots 10 BAT are recognized. In the next S2, it is determined whether there is a standby robot, which is a transfer robot 10 to which neither the incoming operation nor the outgoing operation, which will be described later, is assigned. If there is no standby robot, one execution of the program ends.

[0029] If it is determined in S2 that there is a standby robot, in S3, the transfer robot 10 with the least remaining battery level E among the standby robots BAT is specified as the standby minimum remaining amount robot S, and the remaining battery level E of the standby minimum remaining amount robot S BAT is specified as the remaining battery level E BAT-S . In the subsequent S4, it is determined whether there is an empty port. If there is an empty port, in S5, a charging instruction, which is an instruction to perform charging, is issued to the standby minimum remaining amount robot S.

[0030] If it is determined in S4 that there is no empty port, in S6, the transfer robot 10 with the most remaining battery level E among the transfer robots 10 that are charging BAT is specified as the charging maximum remaining amount robot C, and the remaining battery level E of the charging maximum remaining amount robot C BATis the remaining battery level E BAT-C which is specified as such. In the following S7 and S8, the remaining battery level E of the robot C with the maximum remaining amount during charging BAT-C is compared with the reference remaining amount E R to determine whether it is equal to or greater than the reference remaining amount E. Also, the remaining battery level E of the robot S with the minimum remaining amount during standby BAT-S is compared with the reference remaining amount E R to determine whether it is less than the reference remaining amount E. When the remaining battery level E of the robot C with the maximum remaining amount during charging BAT-C is equal to or greater than the reference remaining amount E R and the remaining battery level E of the robot S with the minimum remaining amount during standby BAT-S is less than the reference remaining amount E R at S9, a charging end instruction indicating to end the charging is issued to the robot C with the maximum remaining amount during charging. When the remaining battery level E of the robot C with the maximum remaining amount during charging BAT-C is less than the reference remaining amount E R or when the remaining battery level E of the robot C with the maximum remaining amount during charging BAT-C is equal to or greater than the reference remaining amount E R but the remaining battery level E of the robot S with the minimum remaining amount during standby BAT-S is equal to or greater than the reference remaining amount E R the execution of one cycle of the program ends. Incidentally, the reference remaining amount E R is set to a value at which it is considered desirable to perform charging if it is below this value, in other words, a value at which it is considered unnecessary to perform charging if it is above this value. In this transport system, the reference remaining amount E R is set to, for example, 70%.

[0031] ii) Work management function In this conveying system, regarding the truck 54 scheduled to enter the inbound and outbound yard 52, for products etc. to be unloaded from the truck 54 or products etc. to be loaded onto the truck 54, a list of inbound and outbound products etc. as shown in Fig. 4 is created as a work plan. Specifically explained, it describes the names of the products etc. to be received or shipped, the quantities of those products etc., and the times of receipt or shipment. Since the schedule of inbound and outbound of products etc. for the truck 54 is expected to change to some extent, the data regarding the above list of inbound and outbound products etc. is created by an inbound and outbound management device (not shown in the figure) at predetermined time intervals (e.g., every 1 hour) for a predetermined time period (e.g., for one day) and sent to the control device 70.

[0032] Each time one inbound or outbound operation by each conveying robot 10 is completed, the control device 70 sends data regarding the completed operation content to the inbound and outbound management device. Based on that data, the inbound and outbound management device updates the list of inbound and outbound products etc., and sends the data regarding the updated inbound and outbound products etc. to the control device 70 at the above-mentioned predetermined timing. The control device 70 holds the list of inbound and outbound products etc. based on that data as the latest list of inbound and outbound products etc.

[0033] On the other hand, the control device 70 holds a list of stored products etc. as shown in Fig. 4 regarding the stored products etc. housed in the warehouse. Specifically explained, in that list, for each storage space of the shelf 50, the name of the products etc. stored in that storage space and the quantity of those products etc. are shown. Incidentally, in the list of Fig. 4, a storage space where the name and quantity of the products etc. are not described indicates that it is an empty space where no products etc. are stored. The control device 70 updates the item regarding that storage space in the list when products etc. are stored in any storage space or when products etc. are taken out from any storage space.

[0034] In this transportation system, the operation of the transport robot 10 is managed by dividing 24 hours a day into hourly time zones. Therefore, at the beginning of each time zone, the control device 70 determines the workload for each time zone within a predetermined time (e.g., one day) from that point based on the above-mentioned list of incoming and outgoing products, etc. Specifically, the total workload for each time zone (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "total workload Q per time zone") is determined as shown in the workload distribution graph of FIG. 5. The horizontal axis of the graph indicates the time, i.e., the time from the current point, and the vertical axis indicates the workload. The graph of FIG. 5 represents the transition of the total workload Q per time zone from 00:00 to 00:00 of the next day.

[0035] In the graph of FIG. 5, the time zones of 07:00 - 11:00 and 14:00 - 18:00 are time zones where the total workload Q per time zone exceeds the reference workload Q R , that is, peak time zones. The control device 70 identifies the peak time zones. In those peak time zones, the remaining battery level E BAT of the entire transport robot 10 decreases significantly, and the transport robot 10 does not have enough time to charge. Therefore, in peak time zones, especially when the peak time zones continue, the possibility of any one of the transport robots 10 running out of power increases.

[0036] iii) Assignment of operations The central function in the operation management function is the assignment of operations to the transport robot 10. When a time zone starts, the control device 70 assigns the operations of that time zone as operations to be performed at one time to several transport robots 10. The assignment of operations will be described in detail below with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG. 6.

[0037] First, in S11, the control device 70 performs battery remaining level related processing. In this battery remaining level related processing, the control device 70 grasps the remaining battery level E BAT of each transport robot 10. Then, the control device 70 determines that the remaining battery level E BAT is the limit remaining level E LIMThe transport robot 10 with a remaining battery level of less than, for example, 10% is recognized as a transport robot 10 that requires charging, that is, a standby robot that does not perform work, and no work is assigned to this transport robot 10. Subsequently, the remaining transport robots 10 are recognized as operable robots and ranked based on the remaining battery level E BAT thereof.

[0038] Subsequently, in S12, the control device 70 performs work execution robot determination processing. In this processing, the control device 70 first recognizes the total workload Q for each time period described above, and determines the number of planned execution robots, which is the number of transport robots 10 that should perform work, based on the total workload Q for each time period. Next, the work execution robots, which are the transport robots 10 that actually execute work, are determined from among the operable robots in descending order according to the ranking based on the remaining battery level E BAT thereof. Incidentally, when the number of planned execution robots is greater than the number of operable robots, all the operable robots are determined as work execution robots. The transport robots 10 that are not determined as work execution robots among the operable robots are regarded as standby robots. BAT

[0039] Next, in S13, work execution robot classification processing is performed to classify the work execution robots based on the remaining battery level E BAT thereof. Specifically, as the remaining set amount for classification, a first threshold remaining amount E TH1 (for example, 60%) and a second threshold remaining amount E TH2 (for example, 40%) are set. Those with a first threshold remaining amount E TH1 or more are classified as robots with a large remaining amount, those with less than the first threshold remaining amount E TH1 but more than the second threshold remaining amount E TH2 are classified as robots with a medium remaining amount, and those with less than the second threshold remaining amount E TH2 are classified as robots with a small remaining amount.

[0040] The control device 70 performs time zone confirmation processing in S14 after the work execution robot classification processing. In this time zone confirmation processing, as described above, the control device 70 determines the total work amount Q for each 24-hour time zone from the current time. Based on this determination, the control device 70 determines whether the time zone is the above-mentioned peak time zone or a time zone within 2 hours before the peak time zone (hereinafter sometimes referred to as the "pre-peak time zone").

[0041] Subsequently, in S15, allocation processing is performed to allocate the work for each time zone to each work execution robot. In principle, the allocation processing is evenly performed for each work execution robot regardless of whether the work to be allocated is incoming work or outgoing work. The allocation processing is performed based on whether the transfer robot 10 is the above-mentioned low remaining quantity robot, medium remaining quantity robot, or high remaining quantity robot, and whether the time zone is the peak time zone or the pre-peak time zone.

[0042] In order to maintain high work efficiency while avoiding the situation where each transfer robot 10 runs out of power, in principle, the control device 70 BAT allocates work with a short moving distance to the transfer robot 10 with a small battery remaining amount E, and allocates work with a long moving distance to the transfer robot 10 with a large battery remaining amount E. When it is the peak time zone or the pre-peak time zone, an allocation is made to shorten the overall moving distance of the work execution robots. BAT Here, if the characteristics of each of the outgoing work and the incoming work are described, in the outgoing work, since the shelf 50 in which products to be transported to the shipping / receiving yard 52 are stored is determined, the moving distance of the transfer robot 10 in one work is generally determined. On the other hand, in the incoming work, as long as there is an empty space in the shelf 50, it is possible to arbitrarily determine the shelf 50 for storing products, etc. Therefore, for the allocation of the incoming work, the control device 70 itself determines the storage space for the products, etc. from the available storage spaces.

[0043]

[0044] ​Specifically, in view of the characteristics of the above-mentioned outbound and inbound operations, in this conveying system, the allocation process is generally carried out as follows. During normal hours, which are neither peak hours nor pre-peak hours, for the large-remaining quantity robots, outbound operations of products and the like stored in the long-distance storage area (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "long-distance outbound operations"), or inbound operations of products and the like into the storage space of the long-distance storage area (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "long-distance inbound operations") are allocated; for the medium-remaining quantity robots, outbound operations of products and the like stored in the medium-distance storage area (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "medium-distance outbound operations"), or inbound operations of products and the like into the storage space of the medium-distance storage area (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "medium-distance inbound operations") are allocated; for the small-remaining quantity robots, outbound operations of products and the like stored in the short-distance storage area (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "short-distance outbound operations"), or inbound operations of products and the like into the storage space of the short-distance storage area (hereinafter sometimes referred to as "short-distance inbound operations") are allocated.

[0045] On the contrary, in the case of peak hours or pre-peak hours, for the large-remaining quantity robots, long-distance outbound operations or medium-distance inbound operations are allocated; for the medium-remaining quantity robots, medium-distance outbound operations or short-distance inbound operations are allocated; for the small-remaining quantity robots, short-distance outbound operations or short-distance inbound operations are allocated.

[0046] Note that depending on the nature of the operations that must be carried out during that time period, the above-mentioned general allocation may not always be possible. Although detailed explanations are omitted, in such cases, during normal hours, allocation is carried out so that long-distance inbound operations are maximized as much as possible, and conversely, during peak hours or pre-peak hours, allocation is carried out so that short-distance inbound operations are maximized.

[0047] Based on the allocation carried out as described above, the control device 70 gives instructions regarding the allocated operations to each operation execution robot as the operations progress.

Explanation of Signs

[0048] 10: Transfer robot [mobile working machine] 50: Shelf [storage location] 52: Loading and unloading yard [loading and unloading location] 56: Waiting space 58: Charging equipment 62: Charging port 70: Control device [controller] E BAT : Battery remaining amount E LIM : Critical remaining amount E TH1 : First threshold remaining amount [set remaining amount] E TH2 : Second threshold remaining amount [set remaining amount]

Claims

1. A plurality of mobile work machines, each having a battery and performing work involving movement by electricity stored in the battery; Charging equipment for charging the plurality of mobile work machines; A controller that manages each operation while grasping the remaining battery level, which is the amount of electricity remaining in the battery of each of the plurality of mobile work machines; A work system comprising: Each of the plurality of mobile work machines is a transport robot for transporting products, and the work system is an in-warehouse product transport system for transporting products between a storage location and a shipping / receiving location in a warehouse by the transport robots. The work performed by the transport robots includes a warehousing operation, which is the operation of transporting products from the shipping / receiving location to the storage location, and a shipping operation, which is the operation of transporting products from the storage location to the shipping / receiving location. The controller: When assigning an inbound operation to a transport robot so as to assign a plurality of operations to be performed during a certain period to some of the plurality of transport robots such that the moving distance corresponds to the remaining battery level, determines the storage location of the product according to the remaining battery level. When assigning an outbound operation to a transport robot, assigns an outbound operation for the product at the storage location corresponding to the remaining battery level, and is configured to cause the charging equipment to charge the transport robots to which no operation is assigned.

2. The controller: is configured to assign an operation with a shorter moving distance to a transport robot with a remaining battery level less than the set remaining level than the operation assigned to a transport robot with a remaining battery level equal to or higher than the set remaining level. The work system according to Claim 1.

3. The controller: is configured not to assign an operation to a transport robot whose remaining battery level is less than the critical remaining level. The work system according to Claim 1.

4. The storage location for the operation assigned to the transport robot is classified according to the remaining battery level of the transport robot to which the operation is assigned. The work system according to Claim 1.

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