Information processing device, method, and program

Abstract

To more accurately acquire traceability information on a product.SOLUTION: A first section of manufacturing a first product and a second section of manufacturing a second product are included in a plurality of sections related to manufacture of a prescribed product. A server device executes first, second and third processing. The first processing acquires association of identification information of a first lot of the first product with identification information of a second lot of the second product manufactured using the first product of the first lot. The second processing acquires association of identification information on the second lot of the second product with identification information of traceability-related information measured in the step of manufacturing the second product of the second lot. The third processing integrates first traceability information obtained by tracking to the first product of the first lot with traceability-related information on the second product of the second lot, and acquires second traceability information obtained by tracking to the second product of the second lot.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 3

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to supply chains. [Background technology]

[0002] Systems for sharing information among multiple companies that make up a supply chain are known. In this regard, for example, Patent Document 1 discloses a system for sharing product information among neighboring suppliers. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2004-171146 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] An object of the present disclosure is to provide an information processing device, method, and program that can acquire product traceability information with higher accuracy. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] One aspect of the present disclosure is a first process for acquiring a first association between identification information of a first lot of a first product manufactured by a first section among a plurality of sections involved in the manufacture of a predetermined product, each section delivering products in lot units, and identification information of a second lot of a second product manufactured by a second section among the plurality of sections using the first product of the first lot; a second process of acquiring a second association between identification information of the second lot of the second product and identification information of the first traceability-related information measured in a manufacturing process of the second product of the second lot; a third process of integrating first traceability information obtained by tracing from raw materials or parts to the first product of the first lot based on the first association and the second association and the first traceability-related information to obtain second traceability information obtained by tracing from raw materials or parts to the second product of the second lot; a control unit that executes The information processing device is provided with:

[0006] Another aspect of the present disclosure is The computer a first process for acquiring a first association between identification information of a first lot of a first product manufactured by a first section among a plurality of sections involved in the manufacture of a predetermined product, each section delivering products in lot units, and identification information of a second lot of a second product manufactured by a second section among the plurality of sections using the first product of the first lot; a second process of acquiring a second association between identification information of the second lot of the second product and identification information of the first traceability-related information measured in a manufacturing process of the second product of the second lot; Based on the first association and the second association, first traceability information obtained by tracing from the raw material or part to the first product of the first lot and the first traceability-related information are integrated to obtain the first traceability information obtained by tracing from the raw material or part to the first product of the second lot. A third process of acquiring second traceability information obtained by tracing the product to the second product; This is a method for doing this.

[0007] Another aspect of the present disclosure is On the computer, a first process for acquiring a first association between identification information of a first lot of a first product manufactured by a first section among a plurality of sections involved in the manufacture of a predetermined product, each section delivering products in lot units, and identification information of a second lot of a second product manufactured by a second section among the plurality of sections using the first product of the first lot; a second process of acquiring a second association between identification information of the second lot of the second product and identification information of the first traceability-related information measured in a manufacturing process of the second product of the second lot; a third process of integrating first traceability information obtained by tracing from raw materials or parts to the first product of the first lot based on the first association and the second association and the first traceability-related information to obtain second traceability information obtained by tracing from raw materials or parts to the second product of the second lot; This is a program for executing the above.

[0008] Another aspect of the present invention is a program for causing a computer to execute the above-described method, or a computer-readable storage medium that non-transitoryly stores the program. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] According to the present disclosure, product traceability information can be acquired with greater accuracy. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0010] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of a system configuration of an information processing system. [Figure 2] Figure 2 is an example of a product tree. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram illustrating an example of linking of transaction information according to the first embodiment. [Figure 4]FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the server device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of a company terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically illustrating the software configuration of the server device according to the first embodiment. [Figure 7] FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating a software configuration of a company terminal according to the first embodiment. [Figure 8] FIG. 8 is an example of product information. [Figure 9] FIG. 9 is an example of transaction information. [Figure 10] FIG. 10 is an example of a transaction information correspondence table. [Figure 11] FIG. 11 is an example of the traceability-related information correspondence table. [Figure 12] FIG. 12 shows an example of a lot association setting screen on a company terminal. [Figure 13] FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a sequence of processing between the server device and the company terminal 2 relating to the registration of lot association information. [Figure 14] FIG. 14 is an example of a flowchart of the traceability information calculation process performed by the server device. [Figure 15] FIG. 15 is an example of a flowchart of the process of acquiring and transferring traceability information about a predetermined product. [Figure 16] FIG. 16 is a diagram for explaining how to obtain traceability information when there are multiple lots of upstream products. [Figure 17] FIG. 17 is an example of a sequence of a process for acquiring traceability information about a predetermined product according to the second embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0011] In recent years, there has been a demand to track the amount of greenhouse gases emitted from products such as automobiles and batteries from the stage of manufacturing raw materials and parts to the stage of manufacturing, i.e., to track the carbon footprint.

[0012] Now, consider a case where a product is supplied by a supply chain that includes multiple companies. In one example, at least some of the companies (intermediate suppliers) included in the supply chain may receive parts from one or more upstream companies, produce their own products using the received parts, and deliver the produced products to companies in the next process (downstream companies). The most upstream company may directly produce its own products and deliver them to companies in the next process. Some companies in the supply chain may deliver products received from other companies directly to other companies (i.e., be involved in distribution). Multiple companies repeat this process, and the final product is obtained in the final process.

[0013] In the case of obtaining automobile products, the supply chain may consist of an OEM manufacturer and multiple suppliers. The OEM manufacturer may be the company that assembles the final product (the most downstream company), and the suppliers may be companies that supply parts, materials, assemblies, etc. to produce the product. The companies included in the supply chain may be determined depending on the product.

[0014] In the following explanation, the parts and other components produced by each of the multiple suppliers will be referred to as "products," and the final product will be referred to as "final product." In one example, the final product may be supplied to a consumer. Furthermore, the suppliers and OEM manufacturers included in the supply chain will be referred to simply as "companies." Furthermore, each of the multiple tiers in the supply chain will be referred to as a "tier."

[0015] In such a system, for example, in order to calculate the total amount of greenhouse gases emitted in the manufacture of a final product, it is necessary to clarify the product supply relationships between multiple companies. This is because if the relationships between the multiple products that make up the final product are not clear, it is difficult to correctly calculate the total amount of greenhouse gases emitted in multiple processes. Information obtained by tracing the production of raw materials and parts, etc. from the production of the final product using those raw materials and parts, etc., such as the total amount of greenhouse gases emitted in the manufacture of the final product, is called traceability information.

[0016] For example, if product A is delivered in the summer and product B, which is made using product A, is produced in the winter, the amount of electricity used will change depending on the season, and the amount of greenhouse gases emitted during the production of product A or product B may also change. In this way, if there is a time gap between when product A is delivered and when product B is produced, calculating traceability information without taking this time gap into consideration may result in a value that does not reflect the actual situation. One aspect of the present disclosure solves the above problem.

[0017] One aspect of the present disclosure is an information processing device including a control unit. The information processing device is, for example, a server device, a user terminal, etc. The user terminal is, for example, a PC (Personal Computer), a smartphone, a tablet terminal, etc. The control unit is, for example, a C PU (Central Processing Unit), GPU (Graphics Processing Unit), and DS P (Digital Signal Processor) and other processors.

[0018] The control unit executes the following first, second, and third processes. In the first process, the control unit acquires a first association between identification information of a first lot of a first product manufactured by a first section and identification information of a second lot of a second product manufactured by a second section using the first product of the first lot. The first and second sections are multiple sections involved in the manufacture of a specific product. A section is a company or a department within a company that manufactures products. A lot is a unit of shipment from each of the multiple sections. The unit of product included in one lot differs from section to section. Furthermore, the number or quantity of the product may be the same or different between lots of the same product shipped from the same section.

[0019] Multiple sections involved in the manufacture of a given product constitute the supply chain for that given product. In a supply chain, upstream and downstream are determined by the flow of the product. For example, as described above, if a first section manufactures a first product and a second section manufactures a second product using the first product, the first section is the upstream section and the second section is the downstream section. If there is a third section that manufactures a third product using the second product, the relationship between the second and third sections is such that the second section is the upstream section and the third company is the downstream section. In other words, when focusing on a certain level in the supply chain, the section located upstream is called the upstream section and the section located downstream is called the downstream section. The most downstream section is the company (OEM manufacturer) or department of a company that assembles the final product.

[0020] The first product is a product of the upstream section in the relationship between the first section and the second section, and is also referred to as an upstream product. The second product is a product of the downstream section, and is also referred to as a downstream product. The first product is a material, a raw material, or a part for the second product. The second product may be a final product.

[0021] In the second process, the control unit obtains a second association between the identification information of the second lot of the second product and the identification information of the first traceability-related information measured during the manufacturing process of the second product of the second lot. The traceability-related information for the second product differs for each lot of the second product because the measurement period varies depending on the lot. The second association makes it possible to identify the first traceability-related information corresponding to the second product of the second lot.

[0022] In the third process, the control unit integrates the first traceability information obtained by tracing from the raw materials or parts to the first product of the first lot and the first traceability-related information based on the first association and the second association, and obtains second traceability information obtained by tracing from the raw materials or parts to the second product of the second lot.

[0023] Traceability information is information obtained by tracing the production of raw materials and parts from the manufacture of products using those raw materials and parts, and is information that is passed on from upstream products to downstream products. On the other hand, traceability-related information is information used to obtain traceability information and is measured or obtained during the product manufacturing process. Traceability-related information itself is not passed on to downstream companies. Traceability information and traceability-related information include Carbon Footprint of Products (CFP) values, recycling rates or information for obtaining recycling rates, and scores indicating the degree of sufficiency of due diligence (DD) information. The CFP value is, for example, the amount of greenhouse gases emitted during the manufacture of a product.

[0024] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, when obtaining traceability information about a second product, In addition, the lot of the second product and the lot of the first product used in the production of the second product are considered. This makes it possible to obtain more accurate traceability information for each lot of the second product. High accuracy in traceability information for a given product means that it is in line with the actual manufacturing process from raw materials or parts to the given product.

[0025] In one aspect of the present disclosure, in the third process, if the first value indicating the first traceability information and the second value indicating the first traceability-related information have different units, the control unit may convert the first value into a value indicated in units of the second value using a predetermined conversion coefficient. If the units of the first traceability information used in the first section and the units of the first traceability-related information used in the second section are different, the two cannot be correctly integrated. Therefore, according to one aspect of the present disclosure, even if the units of the first traceability information used in the first section and the units of the first traceability-related information used in the second section are different, more accurate second traceability information regarding the second product of the second lot can be obtained.

[0026] In one aspect of the present disclosure, in the third process, when there are multiple first lots of the first product used in the manufacture of the second lot of second products, the control unit may perform the integration using (1) an average value of the first values ​​indicating the first traceability information for the first product of each first lot, or (2) a weighted average value of the first values ​​indicating the first traceability information for the first product of each first lot, weighted according to the usage ratio of the first product of each first lot. Alternatively, in the third process, when there are multiple first lots of the first product used in the manufacture of the second lot of second products, the control unit may acquire the second traceability information for the first product of each first lot.

[0027] According to one aspect of the present disclosure, even if multiple first products of a first lot are used to manufacture a second product of a second lot, the first traceability information for the first products of each first lot is taken into consideration, so that traceability information for the second product of the second lot can be obtained more accurately.

[0028] Specific embodiments of the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings. Unless otherwise specified, the hardware configuration, module configuration, functional configuration, etc. described in each embodiment are not intended to limit the technical scope of the disclosure to those configurations.

[0029] (First embodiment) The information processing system according to the first embodiment is a system that provides information about products supplied by a supply chain that includes multiple companies. The information about the products is typically information about traceability. The companies that belong to the supply chain may be determined appropriately depending on the attributes of the products, etc.

[0030] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the system configuration of an information processing system 100. FIG. 1 also shows an example of a supply chain according to the first embodiment. The supply chain shown in FIG. 1 is made up of an OEM company and multiple supplier companies. In the example of FIG. 1, for example, a supply chain is assumed that manufactures automobiles themselves, batteries, and other automobile-related products. The OEM company assembles the final product. Multiple supplier companies (Companies A to C) supply parts, materials, assemblies, etc. for manufacturing the final product. Each of the multiple supplier companies produces one or more products and delivers the products to a company one level below. The multiple companies repeat this process, and the final product is obtained in the final process (i.e., the OEM company).

[0031] In the first embodiment, in each tier of the supply chain, the side that delivers products is referred to as the upstream side, and the side that purchases the products and produces new products is referred to as the downstream side. In this specification, a company located on the upstream side is referred to as the upstream company, and a company located on the downstream side is referred to as the downstream company. Furthermore, products produced by upstream companies are referred to as upstream products, and products produced by downstream companies are referred to as downstream products. Downstream products include upstream products. Furthermore, in this embodiment, the tiers included in the supply chain are referred to as Tiers. Tier 0 is the lowest tier (corresponding to OEM companies) that assembles final products, and the tiers transition to the upstream side as one progresses through Tiers 1, 2, and 3. Depending on the tier being focused on, a downstream company may become an upstream company. For example, Company B, located in Tier 2, is a downstream company in relation to Tier 3, but an upstream company in relation to Tier 1. In this way, the definition of upstream and downstream companies can change depending on the tier.

[0032] The information processing system 100 includes a server device 1 and multiple company terminals 2. The company terminals 2 are terminals corresponding to each of multiple companies that make up the supply chain. The number of terminals corresponding to each company may be arbitrary. Furthermore, the terminals corresponding to a target company may include a terminal of a company (e.g., an agent company) that performs operations related to the target company.

[0033] The server device 1 collects information for generating a product tree (described later) from each of the multiple company terminals 2, and generates a product tree based on the collected information. Furthermore, the server device 1 can execute processes related to traceability (typically, processes for calculating carbon dioxide emissions, etc.) based on the generated product tree. The server device 1 can also transmit the results of the processes to the company terminals 2.

[0034] Figure 2 is an example of a product tree. A product tree is a tree diagram that shows the relationships between products supplied by a supply chain. In the example shown in Figure 2, the supply relationships between multiple products that make up final product X are represented by a tree diagram. In the example shown in Figure 2, final product X is produced by assembling products A1, B1, C1, D1... Product A1 is produced by assembling products A11, A12, A13... In this way, the relationships between multiple products that make up a final product can be represented by a tree diagram in which each product is a node.

[0035] The server device 1 according to the first embodiment collects information about the products produced by each company (hereinafter referred to as product information) and information for linking the product information from terminals (company terminals 2) corresponding to each company, and generates such a product tree based on this information. The product information also includes information about traceability (for example, information about greenhouse gas emissions; hereinafter referred to as traceability-related information), and tracing the product tree makes it possible to track carbon footprints, etc.

[0036] More specifically, the server device 1 acquires traceability information about a specific product by integrating traceability information about upstream products used in the manufacture of the specific product with traceability-related information about the specific product. The traceability information is information obtained by tracing a product tree from upstream to downstream. The traceability-related information is information measured or acquired in a company during the manufacturing process of the company's product.

[0037] For example, in the example shown in FIG. 2, product A11 is manufactured using product A111. Also, product A1 is manufactured using product A11. In this case, the traceability information on product A11 includes traceability-related information on product A11 measured in the manufacturing process of product A11 and traceability-related information on product A111 taken over from product A111. The traceability information for product A11 is passed on to product A1, a further downstream product, and is integrated with traceability-related information for product A1 measured in the manufacturing process of product A1 and traceability information for other downstream products of product A1.

[0038] When the CFP value is acquired as traceability information, the CFP value of a product in Tier N is expressed by the following formula 1.

number

[0039] k is a variable that indicates the upstream product. If a product in Tier N is designated Product N, and Product N is manufactured using multiple Products N+1 from Tier N+1, then the variable k ranges from 1 to the number of Products N+1 used in the manufacture of Product N. The conversion coefficient Ck for Product N converts the CFP value of the kth Product N+1 into the unit of the CFP value of Product N. The activity amount Uk for Product N is the amount of the kth Product N+1 used per unit of production of Product N. For example, if one unit of production of Product N is one unit, then the activity amount Uk for Product N is the amount of the kth Product N+1 used per unit of Product N. For example, if one unit of production of Product N is 1 kg, then the activity amount Uk for Product N is the amount of the kth Product N+1 used per kg of Product N. The CFP value of the final product (the most downstream product) can be obtained by sequentially executing the calculation of Equation 1 for each Tier product, starting from the upstream product.

[0040] In Equation 1, the CFP value of product N corresponds to the traceability information for product N. The measured CFP value at the Tier N company corresponds to the traceability-related information for product N. The CFP value of product k (Tier N+1) corresponds to the traceability information for product k (Tier N+1).

[0041] Next, when the recycle rate of product N for a specified raw material is obtained as traceability information, it is obtained by dividing the amount of recycled material used up to the production of product N by the total amount used up to the production of product N. The total amount of specified raw material used up to the production of product N indicates the total amount of recycled and non-recycled specified raw material used up to the production of product N. Hereinafter, the total amount used and the recycle rate in the manufacturing process of product N measured at a Tier N company will be simply referred to as the total amount used in the production of product N and the recycle rate in the production of product N. The amount used and the total amount used of recycled specified raw material used up to the production of product N will be simply referred to as the amount of recycled material used up to the production of product N and the total amount used, respectively. The recycle rate of specified raw materials included up to the production of product N will be simply referred to as the recycle rate of product N. The recycle rate of product N is expressed by the following formula 2.

number

[0042] The units used by Tier N+1 companies and Tier N companies may differ between the total amount used up to product N+1 and the total amount used in the manufacture of product N. Therefore, when the recycling rate of product N is calculated, the conversion coefficient Ck for product N is a conversion coefficient that converts the total amount used up to the kth product N+1 into the unit of the total amount used in the manufacture of product N.

[0043] In formula 2, the information passed on from product N+1 in Tier N+1 to product N in Tier N is the recycling rate of product k (Tier N+1) and the total amount used up to product k (Tier N+1). Therefore, in formula 2, the traceability information for product k (Tier N+1) is equivalent to the set of the recycling rate of product k (Tier N+1) and the total amount used up to product k (Tier N+1). Furthermore, in formula 3, the traceability-related information for product N is the set of the total amount used in the production of product N and the recycling rate for the production of product N, measured by the Tier N company. In this case, the traceability information for product N passed on from the Tier N company to the further downstream Tier N-1 company is the set of the recycling rate of product N and the total amount used up to product N.

[0044] When calculating the recycling rate of product N, the following formula 2-1, which is a modification of the formula 2 above, may be used.

number

[0045] When the recycling rate of product N is calculated using formula 2-1, the information carried over from product k in Tier N+1 to product N in Tier N is the amount of recycled material used up to product k (Tier N+1) and the total amount used up to product k (Tier N+1). Therefore, in formula 3-1, the traceability information for product k (Tier N+1) is the amount of recycled material used up to product k (Tier N+1) and the total amount used up to product k (Tier N+1). In formula 3-1, the traceability-related information for product N is a set of the amount of recycled material used in the production of product N and the total amount used.

[0046] When a score indicating the sufficiency of the DD information of product N is calculated according to a predetermined method, for example, it is possible to convert the unit of the usage of a predetermined raw material in product N inherited from Tier N, which is one piece of DD information. In this case, the conversion coefficient Ck is a conversion coefficient that converts the usage amount of a predetermined raw material in the kth product N+1 into the unit of the usage amount of the predetermined raw material contained in product N. The method for calculating the score indicating the sufficiency of the DD information is not limited to a specific method. When a score indicating the sufficiency of the DD information of product N is calculated, the traceability-related information regarding product N is, for example, the DD information regarding product N. When a score indicating the sufficiency of the DD information of product N is calculated, for example, the traceability information regarding product N+1 is, for example, a score indicating the sufficiency of the DD information of product N+1 and an aggregate value of the DD information up to product N+1. However, when a score indicating the sufficiency of the DD information of product N is calculated, the definitions of the traceability-related information regarding product N and the traceability information regarding product N+1 are not limited to those described above and are defined depending on the calculation method of the score.

[0047] 3 is a diagram showing an example of linking of transaction information according to the first embodiment. For example, a final product is manufactured by combining products manufactured by a company or by a division within a company. Hereinafter, a company that manufactures a product, a division within a company, a factory within a company, etc. will be collectively referred to as a section.

[0048] Section A, Section B, and Section C are sections that manufacture products included in the product tree of a specified final product. Section A manufactures Tier N+1 product A. Section B manufactures Tier N product B. Product B is manufactured using product A. In other words, the relationship between product A and product B is such that product A is the upstream product and product B is the downstream product.

[0049] For example, in each section, it is assumed that traceability information is measured monthly. Therefore, one product has multiple traceability-related information for each measurement. For example, the traceability-related information for product A measured in month M1 of year Y is traceability-related information A(1).

[0050] Furthermore, the unit of shipment of products from each section is, for example, a lot. The number and quantity of products contained in one lot differ depending on the section and product. Furthermore, even for the same product, the number or quantity shipped from each lot may differ. If shipments occur multiple times during the measurement period of traceability-related information, there will be multiple shipments (lots) of product A from section A in month M1 of year Y. The example shown in Figure 3 shows transaction information for lot A1, one of multiple lots of product A shipped from section A to section B in month M1 of year Y, and transaction information for lot B2, one of multiple lots of product B shipped from section B to section B in month M2 of year Y.

[0051] As explained in the example shown in Figure 2, for example, traceability information for product B can be obtained by integrating traceability-related information for product B and traceability information for upstream product A. However, for example, product A shipped in January of year Y is not necessarily used to manufacture product B, which will be shipped in January of year Y. Therefore, when attempting to obtain traceability information for product B with greater accuracy, it is necessary to consider when product A, which was shipped, was used for product B, which will be shipped in January of year Y, i.e., to consider the correspondence between upstream products and downstream products on a lot-by-lot basis.

[0052] In the first embodiment, for each product, correspondence between the product and an upstream product is acquired on a lot-by-lot basis. In the example shown in Fig. 3, lot B2 of product B is associated with lot A1 of product A used for product B of lot B2. This makes it possible to identify that product B of lot B2 was manufactured using product A of lot A1. In other words, it can be identified that traceability information related to product A of lot A1 is used when acquiring traceability information related to product B of lot B2.

[0053] Next, for product B, traceability-related information exists for each month, so in the first embodiment, an association between the lot and the traceability-related information corresponding to the time when the product of that lot was manufactured is acquired for each product. In the example shown in Fig. 3, lot B2 of product B is associated with traceability-related information B(2). This makes it possible to identify traceability-related information B(2) measured in month M2 of year Y as the traceability-related information for product B of lot B2.

[0054] In the first embodiment, when the server device 1 acquires traceability information about a specified product of a specified lot, it first identifies the lot of each product by tracing the correspondence between the upstream product and the downstream product for each product, starting from the specified product of the specified lot and proceeding upstream. Next, the server device 1 acquires traceability information about the specified product of the specified lot by repeatedly acquiring traceability information about the specified product of the specified lot, starting from the most upstream product and proceeding downstream. Information about the downstream product of the identified lot is acquired by acquiring traceability-related information about the downstream product of the identified lot from the correspondence between the identified lot and traceability-related information about the downstream product, and integrating this information with the traceability information about the upstream product of the identified lot.

[0055] [Device configuration] Next, the hardware configuration of each device constituting the system will be described. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of an example of the hardware configuration of the server device 1 according to the first embodiment. The server device 1 is configured as a computer having a control unit 11, a storage unit 12, a communication module 13, and an input / output device 14.

[0056] The server device 1 can be configured as a computer having a processor (CPU, GPU, etc.), a main memory device (RAM, ROM, etc.), and an auxiliary memory device (EPROM, hard disk drive, removable media, etc.). The auxiliary memory device stores an operating system (OS), various programs, various tables, etc., and by executing the programs stored therein, various functions (software modules) that match predetermined purposes, as described below, can be realized. However, some or all of the functions may be realized as hardware modules using hardware circuits such as ASICs, FPGAs, etc.

[0057] The control unit 11 is a computing unit that executes predetermined programs to realize various functions of the server device 1. The control unit 11 can be realized by, for example, a hardware processor such as a CPU. The control unit 11 may also be configured to include RAM, ROM (Read Only Memory), cache memory, etc.

[0058] The storage unit 12 is a means for storing information and is composed of storage media such as RAM, a magnetic disk, and a flash memory. The storage unit 12 stores programs executed by the control unit 11, data used by the programs, and the like. The storage unit 12 also has a database built therein, which stores transaction information, product information, and company-related account information collected from multiple company terminals 2. Details will be described later.

[0059] The communication module 13 is a communication interface for connecting the server device 1 to a network. The communication module 13 may be configured to include, for example, a network interface board, a wireless communication interface for wireless communication, etc. The server device 1 can perform data communication with other computers (for example, each company terminal 2) via the communication module 13.

[0060] The input / output device 14 is a means for receiving input operations performed by an operator and presenting information to the operator. Specifically, the input / output device 14 includes devices for input such as a mouse and a keyboard, and devices for output such as a display and a speaker. The input / output device may be integrally configured with, for example, a touch panel display.

[0061] The specific hardware configuration of the server device 1 may include omissions, substitutions, and additions of components as appropriate depending on the embodiment. For example, the control unit 11 may include multiple hardware processors. The hardware processor may be configured with a microprocessor, FPGA, GPU, etc. The input / output device 14 may be omitted, or an input / output device other than the exemplified ones (for example, an optical drive, etc.) may be added. The server device 1 may also be configured with multiple computers. In this case, the hardware configurations of the computers may or may not be the same.

[0062] 5 is a diagram schematically illustrating an example of the hardware configuration of the company terminal 2 according to the first embodiment. The company terminal 2 is configured as a computer having a control unit 21, a storage unit 22, a communication module 23, and an input / output device 24.

[0063] The company terminal 2 can be configured as a computer having a processor (CPU, GPU, etc.), a main memory (RAM, ROM, etc.), and an auxiliary memory (EPROM, hard disk drive, removable media, etc.), similar to the server device 1. However, some or all of the functions (software modules) may be implemented using hardware such as ASIC, FPGA, etc. Alternatively, the present invention may be implemented as a hardware module using a circuit.

[0064] The control unit 21 is a computing unit that executes a predetermined program to realize various functions (software modules) of the company terminal 2. The control unit 21 can be realized by a hardware processor such as a CPU. The control unit 21 may also be configured to include RAM, ROM (Read Only Memory), cache memory, etc.

[0065] The storage unit 22 is a means for storing information, and is configured with storage media such as RAM, a magnetic disk, a flash memory, etc. The storage unit 22 stores programs executed by the control unit 21, data used by the programs, etc.

[0066] The communication module 23 is a communication interface for connecting the company terminal 2 to a network. The communication module 23 may be configured to include, for example, a network interface board, a wireless communication interface for wireless communication, etc. The company terminal 2 can perform data communication with other computers (for example, the server device 1) via the communication module 23.

[0067] The input / output device 24 is a means for receiving input operations performed by an operator and presenting information to the operator. Specifically, the input / output device 24 includes devices for input such as a mouse and a keyboard, and devices for output such as a display and a speaker. The input / output device may be integrally configured with, for example, a touch panel display.

[0068] As with the server device 1, the specific hardware configuration of the company terminal 2 may be such that components are omitted, replaced, or added as appropriate depending on the embodiment.

[0069] Next, the software configuration of each device constituting the system will be described. FIG. 6 is a diagram schematically illustrating the software configuration of the server device 1 according to the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, the control unit 11 is configured to have three software modules: an information collection unit 111, a linking unit 113, and an information provision unit 114. Each software module may be realized by the control unit 11 (CPU) executing a program stored in the storage unit 12. Note that the information processing performed by the information collection unit 111, the linking unit 113, and the information provision unit 114 below is synonymous with the information processing performed by the control unit 11.

[0070] The information collection unit 111 receives transaction information and product information transmitted from the company terminal 2, and stores the transaction information and product information in the storage unit 12. In the first embodiment, the information collection unit 111 receives from the company terminal 2 lot associations between upstream products and products (downstream products) of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, and associations between the products and traceability-related information, and stores these associations in the storage unit 12.

[0071] The linking unit 113 is configured to interact with the company terminal 2 and acquire information for linking product information from the company terminal 2. Furthermore, the linking unit 113 is configured to execute a process of writing information representing a linking relationship for the product information stored in the storage unit 12 based on the acquired information. The linking unit 113 is also configured to receive a request to assign terminal information and, in response to the request, execute a process of assigning terminal information to the product information stored in the storage unit 12. A product tree is formed by reflecting the linking and terminal assignment. In other words, the formation of the product tree is performed by storing the linking information and terminal information in the storage unit 12. The linking unit 113 is configured to generate a product tree according to the results of the linking and terminal assignment.

[0072] The information providing unit 114 executes information processing related to the product tree, and as a result of the execution of the information processing, The information processing related to the product tree may include a process of performing a calculation related to traceability for the product tree. Outputting the result of performing the information processing may include a process of providing information about the generated product tree to the company terminal 2. In one example, the information providing unit 114 generates information about the product tree, and calculates traceability information about the product based on the generated product tree.

[0073] In the first embodiment, the storage unit 12 is configured to include a plurality of logical storage areas. Different access rights can be set for each of the plurality of storage areas, such as an area to which access rights are granted to company A and an area to which access rights are granted to company B. The information collection unit 111 sets access rights and ensures security by storing the transaction information, product information, lot associations between upstream products and products (downstream products) of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2 received from the company terminal 2 in the storage area corresponding to the relevant company.

[0074] Hereinafter, a table that holds the correspondence between upstream products and lots of products (downstream products) of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2 will be referred to as a transaction information correspondence table. A table that holds the correspondence between products and traceability-related information will be referred to as a traceability-related information correspondence table. The transaction information correspondence table and the traceability-related information correspondence table will be collectively referred to as a lot linking table group.

[0075] Furthermore, the storage unit 12 stores account information. In the first embodiment, an operator of each company logs in to the server device 1 via the company terminal 2 using the account of the corresponding company, thereby causing interaction between the server device 1 and the company terminal 2. The account information is information relating to the account corresponding to each company that makes up the supply chain. Note that logging in using an account is an example of accessing the server device 1 as the corresponding company. However, the method of accessing the server device 1 is not limited to this example, and may be selected as appropriate depending on the embodiment.

[0076] 7 is a diagram schematically illustrating the software configuration of the company terminal 2 according to the first embodiment. In the first embodiment, the control unit 21 is configured to have three software modules: an information generation unit 211, an association request unit 213, and an information acquisition unit 214. Each software module may be realized by the control unit 21 (CPU) executing a program stored in the storage unit 22. Note that the information processing executed by the information generation unit 211, the association request unit 213, and the information acquisition unit 214 below is synonymous with the information processing executed by the control unit 21.

[0077] The information generation unit 211 generates information (transaction information and product information) related to the products of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, and transmits it to the server device 1. It also generates a lot association between the upstream product and the product (downstream product) of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, and a correspondence between the product and traceability-related information, and transmits it to the server device 1. The lot association between the upstream product and the product (downstream product) of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, and the correspondence between the product and traceability-related information, are hereinafter referred to as lot association information. The lot association information is input, for example, through a lot association setting screen, which will be described later.

[0078] The linking request unit 213 sends a request to the server device 1 to link the company's product information sent to the server device 1 with an upstream product. Along with the request, the identifier of the company's product (downstream product) that is the linking source and the identifier of the upstream product that is the linking destination are also sent as a pair to the server device 1. In response to this, the server device 1 can link the product information together. Information about the downstream product that is the linking source and the upstream product that is the linking destination is input by a user operation via, for example, a linking destination setting screen.

[0079] The information acquisition unit 214 transmits a request for providing a product tree and traceability information of a specified product to the server device 1, and outputs the information received from the server device 1.

[0080] FIG. 8 is an example of product information. The product information may be received from the company terminal 2 or may be input via an operator of the server device 1. In the example shown in FIG. 8, the product information is configured to have fields for company ID, company name, product ID, and product name. The company ID field stores the identifier of the company that produces the target product. The company name field stores the name of the company that produces the target product. The product ID field stores the identifier of the target product. The product name field stores the name of the target product.

[0081] Furthermore, the product information includes linking-related information. The linking-related information is information for identifying upstream products that are linked to the target product. In the first embodiment, the linking-related information includes fields for "upstream product information" and "termination flag."

[0082] The upstream product information field is a field that stores information for identifying product information corresponding to an upstream product linked to the target product (i.e., a product that is necessary to produce the target product and is included in the target product). In other words, the upstream product information field functions as a pointer that indicates the upstream product linked to the target product.

[0083] The terminal flag field stores a flag indicating whether the target product is a leaf node in the product tree, i.e., the node located at the end of the most upstream node. For example, if the value of the terminal flag field is "1", this indicates that the target product is a node located at the end of the product tree. For example, if the value of the terminal flag field is "0", this indicates that the target product is a node located at the end of the product tree.

[0084] When a value is stored in the upstream product information field, the termination flag field is set to "0". On the other hand, when the termination flag field is set to "1", the upstream product information field is empty. The values ​​of the upstream product information and termination flag fields are received, for example, from the company terminal 2 or entered by an operator of the server device 1. Note that when a target product is manufactured using multiple upstream products, the product information for the target product includes linking-related information for each upstream product.

[0085] The information providing unit 114 identifies an upstream product from the linking related information included in the product information for the final product, and then identifies the next upstream product by referring to the linking related information included in the product information for the upstream product, and so on, thereby generating a product tree for the final product by tracing the linking related information. At this time, if the end flag is "1", the information providing unit 114 determines that the product tree ends with the product.

[0086] Furthermore, the product information is configured to include traceability-related information. In one example, the traceability-related information may include the amount of materials (e.g., upstream products) used per production volume of the product, information on the recycling rate of specific raw materials used in the company's product manufacturing process, the amount of greenhouse gases emitted when producing the product, due diligence information, or a combination thereof. The specific raw materials may be, for example, lithium, nickel, cobalt, lead, graphite, etc. The recycling rate may be expressed directly or indirectly, such as a combination of the total amount used and the amount of recycled material used. Due diligence information (DD information) may include, for products containing target raw materials (e.g., cobalt, natural graphite, lithium, nickel, etc.), the amount of raw materials contained in the product, which is shown in technical documentation to demonstrate that the company is fulfilling its "responsible mineral sourcing obligations," and , smelters, etc. Note that DD information, which is one piece of traceability-related information, may be a score (percentage or ratio, etc.) indicating the degree to which the above obligations are fulfilled. These values ​​correspond to the process of producing the target product, measured at the relevant company.

[0087] 8, the traceability-related information included in product information A stores the total amount of lithium, nickel, cobalt, and lead used in the manufacturing process of product A, the amount of recycled materials used, the amount of greenhouse gases emitted in the production activities of product A, and due diligence information (DD information) related to product A. The traceability-related information included in product information A does not include information about the process leading up to the production of upstream products (for example, the amount of greenhouse gases emitted before upstream product B is produced).

[0088] The traceability-related information may be selected appropriately depending on the embodiment. For example, greenhouse gas emissions (carbon footprint) may include Scope 1, Scope 2, and Scope 3 emissions. Scope 1 may be direct greenhouse gas emissions by oneself. Scope 2 may be indirect emissions associated with the use of electricity, heat, and steam supplied by other companies. Scope 3 may be indirect emissions other than Scope 1 and Scope 3.

[0089] In the first embodiment, the traceability-related information is stored as part of the product information, so that product information about a specific product exists for each measurement of the traceability-related information. For example, if the traceability-related information is measured monthly, product information about a specific product exists for each month. Note that the traceability-related information may be stored independently of the product information.

[0090] FIG. 9 is an example of transaction information. The transaction information may be received from the company terminal 2 or may be input via an operator of the server device 1. In the example shown in FIG. 9, the transaction information includes fields for a manufacturing company ID, a manufacturing company name, a manufactured product ID, a manufactured product name, an upstream company ID, an upstream product ID, a shipping date, and a downstream company ID. The manufacturing company ID field stores an identifier for the company that manufactures the target product. The manufacturing company name field stores the name of the company that manufactures the target product. The manufactured product ID field stores an identifier for the target product. The manufactured product name field stores the name of the target product.

[0091] The upstream company ID stores the identifier of the upstream product for the target product, i.e., the company that supplies the raw materials or parts for the target product. The upstream product ID stores the identifier of the upstream product for the target product. If the target product has multiple upstream products, the set of fields for upstream company ID and upstream product ID will be included for each upstream product of the target product.

[0092] The shipping date field stores the date the target product was shipped from the manufacturing company. The downstream company ID field stores the identifier of the company to which the target product is delivered. Note that the information included in the transaction information is not limited to the example shown in Figure 9. For example, the transaction information may also include a manufacturing department ID indicating the department of the target product.

[0093] Figure 10 is an example of a transaction information correspondence table. The transaction information correspondence table is a table that maintains the correspondence between the lot of a product manufactured by a company and the lot of an upstream product corresponding to that product. In the example shown in Figure 10, the transaction information correspondence table includes fields for the lot ID of the company's product and the lot ID of the upstream product corresponding to that product.

[0094] In the example shown in FIG. 10, the manufacturing company ID, manufactured product ID, and delivery date included in the transaction information (FIG. 9) are used as the identification information for the product lot. The fields for the lot ID of the target company's product and the lot ID of the upstream product corresponding to the product include subfields for the company ID, product ID, and shipping date, respectively.

[0095] The Company ID subfield stores the identifier of the company that manufactures the product. The Product ID subfield stores the identifier of the product. The Shipment Date subfield stores the date that the product was shipped from the manufacturer.

[0096] The upstream product lot ID field may further include a ratio subfield. The ratio subfield includes the ratio at which the upstream product is used in the target company's product. For example, if the upstream product is manufactured from one supplier, the value of the ratio field will be 100%. For example, if the upstream product is manufactured from multiple suppliers, a record will be created in the transaction information correspondence table for each supplier, and the value of each ratio field will be the ratio of raw materials or parts purchased from each supplier.

[0097] In addition to transaction information regarding the shipment of its own products, each company also holds transaction information regarding the receipt of products purchased by the company. Transaction information regarding the receipt of products purchased by the company is transaction information regarding the shipment of the product from the manufacturer of that product. The manufacturing company ID, product ID, and shipment date of the upstream product shown in Figure 10 are obtained from the transaction information regarding the shipment of the upstream product.

[0098] The information included in the transaction information correspondence table shown in Figure 10 is an example and is not limited to this. For example, if each company assigns identification information to transaction information, the identification information assigned to each transaction information may be used as the product lot identification information. Furthermore, in addition to the company ID field, a department ID field for storing the identifier of the manufacturing department may be included.

[0099] Furthermore, the method of storing the correspondence between the lot of a company's product and the lot of the upstream product corresponding to that product is not limited to storing it as a transaction information correspondence table. For example, the correspondence between the lot of a company's product and the lot of the upstream product corresponding to that product may be stored by including identification information of the lot of the upstream product in the transaction information regarding the shipment of the company's product.

[0100] Fig. 11 is an example of a traceability-related information correspondence table. The traceability-related information correspondence table is a table that stores the correspondence between product lots and traceability-related information corresponding to the products. In the example shown in Fig. 11, the traceability-related information correspondence table includes fields for the lot ID of the target company's product and the traceability-related information ID corresponding to the product.

[0101] In the example shown in Fig. 11, the manufacturing company ID, manufactured product ID, and shipping date included in the transaction information (Fig. 9) are used as product lot identification information, similar to the example shown in Fig. 10. Therefore, in Fig. 11, the lot ID field for a company's products includes subfields for the company ID, product ID, and shipping date.

[0102] In the example shown in Fig. 11, the company ID, product ID, and measurement month included in the product information about the target company's own product (Fig. 8) are used as identification information for the traceability-related information. Therefore, in Fig. 11, the fields of the traceability-related information each include subfields for the company ID, product ID, and measurement month.

[0103] The information included in the traceability related information correspondence table shown in FIG. 11 is an example, and is not limited to this. For example, the identification information of the traceability related information is If identification information is assigned to the traceability-related information (or product information), the identification information assigned to each piece of traceability-related information may be used. In addition to the company ID field, a department ID field may be included to store the identifier of the manufacturing department.

[0104] Furthermore, the method of storing the association between the lot of a company's product and the traceability-related information corresponding to the product is not limited to storing it as a table. For example, the association between the lot of a company's product and the traceability-related information corresponding to the product may be stored by including identification information of the corresponding traceability-related information in transaction information related to the shipment of the company's product. Alternatively, the association between the lot of a company's product and the traceability-related information corresponding to the product may be stored by including identification information of transaction information related to the shipment of the company's product in product information (traceability-related information) related to the company's product.

[0105] Furthermore, the correspondence between the lot of an in-house product and the lot of the upstream product corresponding to that product, and the correspondence between the lot of an in-house product and the traceability-related information corresponding to that product, do not necessarily have to be stored in separate tables as shown in Figures 10 and 11, but may be stored in a single table. The correspondence between the lot of an in-house product and the lot of the upstream product corresponding to that product is an example of a "first correspondence." The correspondence between the lot of an in-house product and the traceability-related information corresponding to that product is an example of a "second correspondence."

[0106] Fig. 12 is an example of a lot association setting screen of the company terminal 2. The lot association setting screen shown in Fig. 12 is based on the premise that a company identifier, a product identifier, and a shipping date are used as identification information for a product lot, similar to Figs. 10 and 11. It is also based on the premise that a company identifier, a product identifier, and a measurement month are used as identification information for traceability-related information.

[0107] 12 includes fields for inputting information about the product to be set that is manufactured by the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, and information about upstream products of the target product. The input fields for information about the target product include input fields for the product part number of the target product, identification information of the target lot of the target product, and identification information of the traceability-related information corresponding to the target lot.

[0108] 12, the date on which the target product of the target lot was shipped from the company corresponding to company terminal 2 is input into the input field for the identification information of the target lot of the target product. The month on which the traceability-related information for the target product of the target lot was measured is input into the input field for the identification information of the traceability-related information corresponding to the target lot. Drop-down lists may be arranged in the input fields for the product part number of the target product, the identification information of the target lot of the target product, and the identification information of the traceability-related information corresponding to the target lot, and a value selected from the drop-down list may be input.

[0109] The input fields for information about upstream products of the target product include a list of upstream companies for the upstream products associated with the target product, a list of upstream products, and an input field for the shipment date of the upstream product from the upstream company.

[0110] The list of upstream companies includes, for example, companies that have had a history of doing business in the past with the company (downstream company) corresponding to company terminal 2. When an upstream company is selected in the list of upstream companies, a list of products of the selected upstream company that have had a history of doing business in the past with the company corresponding to company terminal 2 is displayed as a list of upstream products.

[0111] When the user selects the association setting button, the lot association information registration The request, the product number of the target company's product, the shipment date of the target company's product, the measurement month of the traceability-related information, the identifier of the upstream company, the identifier of the upstream product, and the shipment date of the upstream product are input to the information generation unit 211. In response to this, the information generation unit 211 transmits a registration request for lot association information and the lot association information to the server device 1. Note that the lot association information includes a correspondence between the identifier of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, the identifier of the target product, and the shipment date of the target product as identification information of the lot of the product of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, and the identifier of the upstream company, the identifier of the upstream product, and the shipment date of the upstream product as identification information of the lot of the upstream product; and a correspondence between the identifier of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, the identifier of the target product, and the shipment date of the target product as identification information of the lot of the product of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, and the identifier of the company corresponding to the company terminal 2, the identifier of the target product, and the measurement month of the traceability-related information as identification information of the traceability-related information. The lot association setting screen shown in FIG. 11 is an example, and is not limited to the example shown in FIG.

[0112] [Processing flow] Fig. 13 is a diagram showing an example of a processing sequence relating to the registration of lot association information between the server device 1 and the company terminal 2. Fig. 13 illustrates an example in which the company terminal 2 corresponding to section B in Fig. 3 registers, in the server device 1, an association between lot B2 of product B manufactured in section B and lot A1 of upstream product A of product B, and an association between lot B2 of product B and traceability information B(2) corresponding to product B of lot B2.

[0113] In S11, the information generation unit 211 of the company terminal 2 corresponding to section B receives input of lot association information from the lot association setting screen. The lot association information includes, for example, an identifier of product B and the shipment date of product B as part of the identification information of the lot of product B, an identifier of section A, an identifier of product A, and the shipment date of product A as part of the identification information of the traceability-related information of product B, and an identifier of product B and the measurement month of the traceability-related information as part of the identification information of the traceability-related information of product B.

[0114] In S12, the information generation unit 211 of the company terminal 2 corresponding to section B transmits a request to register lot association information and the lot association information to the server device 1. In this case, the lot association information includes the information input through the lot association setting screen in S11, as well as the identifier of section A as part of the lot identification information of product B and part of the identification information of the traceability-related information of product B.

[0115] In S13, the information collecting unit 111 of the server device 1 receives the lot association information registration request and the lot association information from the company terminal 2, and registers the lot association information in the lot association table group corresponding to section B. More specifically, in the first embodiment, the information collecting unit 111 of the server device 1 stores, in the transaction information correspondence table corresponding to section B, a correspondence between the identification information of section B, the identifier of product B, and the shipment date of product B as the identification information of the lot of product B, and the identifier of section A, the identifier of product A, and the shipment date of product A as the identification information of the lot of product A. The information collecting unit 111 of the server device 1 stores, in the traceability-related information correspondence table corresponding to section B, a correspondence between the identification information of section B, the identifier of product B, and the shipment date of product B as the identification information of the lot of product B, and the identifier of section B, the identifier of product B, and the measurement month of the traceability-related information as the identification information of the traceability-related information.

[0116] FIG. 14 is an example of a flowchart of the traceability information calculation process by the server device 1. The process shown in FIG. 14 is executed repeatedly at a predetermined cycle, for example. The process shown in FIG. 14 is executed by the control unit 11 of the server device 1, but for convenience, the functional components 14 will be mainly described. Note that, as a premise of the process shown in Fig. 14, it is assumed that, for example, a product tree with a predetermined product as the final product is generated in response to a request from the company terminal 2 and is displayed on the company terminal 2. Also, in Fig. 14, the traceability information to be acquired will be described without specifying which of, for example, the CFP value, the recycle rate, and the score indicating the degree of fulfilment of the DD information is. The traceability information to be acquired may be more than one of the CFP value, the recycle rate, and the score indicating the degree of fulfilment of the DD information.

[0117] In OP101, the information providing unit 114 determines whether or not a traceability information acquisition request has been received from the company terminal 2. The traceability information acquisition request is transmitted from the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2, for example, when one of multiple products in a product tree displayed on the company terminal 2 is selected by a user operation of the company terminal 2. Along with the traceability information acquisition request, for example, an identifier of the product for which traceability information is to be acquired is also received. The product for which traceability information is to be acquired is assumed to be product P.

[0118] If a request to acquire traceability information is received from the company terminal 2 (OP101: YES), the process proceeds to OP102. If a request to acquire traceability information is not received from the company terminal 2 (OP101: NO), the process shown in FIG. 14 ends.

[0119] In OP102, the information providing unit 114 identifies the lot of the product P for which traceability information is to be acquired. For example, if there is a user-specified lot, the specified lot may be acquired as the lot for which traceability information is to be acquired. The user's designation of the lot may be acquired, for example, by receiving identification information of the user-specified lot along with a request to acquire traceability information. If there is no user-specified lot, for example, the latest lot or a predetermined number of lots from the latest may be identified as the lot for which traceability information is to be acquired.

[0120] In OP103, the information provider 114 identifies nodes corresponding to upstream products that reach the node corresponding to the target product P in a tier upstream of the node corresponding to the target product P on the product tree, and identifies the products that will be the target of the following processing. The tier in which the node corresponding to the target product P is located is referred to as Tier P. The nodes identified in OP103 include the node corresponding to the target product P. For example, if the target product P is a final product, OP103 identifies all nodes on the product tree.

[0121] Next, in OP104, for node n of Tier N in the product tree, the process of obtaining and transferring traceability information about the corresponding product n is executed. The details of the process of OP104 will be described later. Node n of Tier N indicates the node that is the target of the process of OP104. Also, node n of Tier N is the node identified in OP103.

[0122] The processing of OP104 is executed for each node identified by OP103 among the nodes in each tier in the product tree, starting from Tier M at the top of the product tree and proceeding in order up to Tier P. Specifically, the processing of OP104 is first executed in order for each node identified by OP202 in Tier M. Once this is complete, the processing of OP104 is then executed in order for each node identified by OP103 in Tier M-1. In this manner, the processing of OP104 is repeatedly executed until it has been executed for all nodes identified by OP103 in Tier P.

[0123] In OP105, the information providing unit 114 determines whether Tier N is Tier P, that is, That is, it is determined whether or not a node corresponding to the target product P is located in Tier N, which is the current target of the processing of OP 104.

[0124] If Tier N is not Tier P (OP105: NO), the information provider 114 sets Tier N-1 as the new Tier N and executes the process of OP104 for each node in Tier N identified in OP103.

[0125] If Tier N is Tier P (OP105: YES), the process proceeds to OP106. If Tier N is Tier P, traceability information about the target product P has been acquired by repeating the process of OP104 for all nodes in Tier N identified in OP103, so in OP106 the information provider 114 transmits the traceability information about the target product P to the company terminal 2. Thereafter, the process shown in FIG. 14 ends.

[0126] Fig. 15 is an example of a flowchart of the process of acquiring and handing over traceability information related to a predetermined product. The process shown in Fig. 15 is the process executed in OP104 of Fig. 14. The tier that is the target of the process shown in Fig. 15 is TierN, the node that is the target of the process is node n, and the product corresponding to node n is product n.

[0127] In OP201, the information providing unit 114 specifies the lot for which traceability information is to be acquired for product n. The lot for which traceability information is to be acquired for product n is acquired by tracing the transaction information correspondence tables of the sections that manufacture the products corresponding to each node on the product tree from node P (Tier P) corresponding to target product P toward the upstream side to node n corresponding to product n of Tier N.

[0128] In OP202, the information provider 114 refers to the transaction information correspondence table corresponding to section n that manufactures product n, identifies the lot of the upstream product that corresponds to the lot of product n identified in OP201, and acquires traceability information related to the upstream product of the identified lot. The traceability information related to the upstream product in Tier N+1 has already been acquired before the processing of Figure 15 is executed for product n, and is stored in a predetermined storage area to which the company corresponding to section n has access rights. Note that if product n is the most upstream product, traceability information related to the upstream product is not acquired in OP202.

[0129] In OP203, the information providing unit 114 refers to the traceability-related information correspondence table corresponding to the section n that manufactures the product n, and acquires the traceability-related information corresponding to the lot of the product n identified in OP201. The traceability-related information regarding the product n is acquired from a storage area allocated exclusively to the company corresponding to the section n.

[0130] In OP204, the information providing unit 114 determines whether the units of the value obtained from the traceability information about the upstream product and the value obtained from the traceability-related information about product n are the same. If the units of the value obtained from the traceability information about the upstream product and the value obtained from the traceability-related information about product n are the same (OP204: YES), the process proceeds to OP206. If the units of the value obtained from the traceability information about the upstream product and the value obtained from the traceability-related information about product n are different (OP204: NO), the process proceeds to OP205.

[0131] In OP205, the information providing unit 114 converts the value obtained from the traceability information on the upstream product acquired in OP202 into a value indicated by the unit used for the value obtained from the traceability-related information on the product n, using a predetermined conversion coefficient. If there are multiple upstream products in Tier N+1 used in the production of product n, the processes of OP202, OP204, and OP205 are executed for each of the multiple products. Note that if product n is the most upstream product, the processes of OP204 and OP205 are not executed.

[0132] In OP206, the information providing unit 114 integrates the traceability-related information about the product n of the lot identified in OP201 with the traceability information about the upstream product of the lot associated with that lot, thereby acquiring the traceability information about the product n of the lot identified in OP201. The integration of the traceability-related information about the product n with the traceability information about the upstream product is as described in Fig. 2. Note that if the product n is the most upstream product, the traceability-related information about the product n acquired in OP203 becomes the traceability information about the product n as is.

[0133] In OP207, the information providing unit 114 passes on the identification information of the lot identified in OP201 and the traceability information related to product n of the lot to downstream products in Tier N-1 relative to product n. The passing on of the traceability information related to product n in OP207 may be performed by storing the traceability information related to product n in a memory area shared by the company that manufactures product n and the company that manufactures downstream products in Tier M-1 relative to product n, or by storing the information in a memory area exclusively allocated to the company that manufactures downstream products in Tier M-1 relative to product n. When the information is stored in a memory area exclusively allocated to the company that manufactures downstream products in Tier M-1 relative to product n, it is assumed that the account of the company that manufactures product n has been granted write permission to the memory area exclusively allocated to the company that manufactures downstream products in Tier M-1.

[0134] When the processing of OP207 for node n is completed, the processing shown in Fig. 15 is executed with another node in Tier N among the nodes identified in OP103 in Fig. 14 as the target node n. When the processing shown in Fig. 15 has been executed for all nodes in Tier N identified in OP103 in Fig. 14, the processing proceeds to OP105 in Fig. 14. Note that the processing shown in Fig. 14 and Fig. 15 is merely an example, and the processing executed by the server device 1 can be changed as appropriate depending on the embodiment.

[0135] FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating the acquisition of traceability information when there are multiple lots of an upstream product. The premise of the example shown in FIG. 16 is the same as the example shown in FIG. 3. In the example shown in FIG. 16, there are multiple lots of product A used for product B in lot B2. When there are multiple lots of upstream products for a given lot of a given product, there will be as many pieces of traceability information related to the upstream products as there are lots, which will be used to acquire the traceability information of the given product. One of the following methods (1) to (3) is used to acquire the traceability information related to the given product by integrating multiple pieces of traceability information related to upstream products corresponding to each of multiple lots with traceability-related information related to the given product.

[0136] (1) The average value of multiple values ​​obtained from the traceability information on upstream products corresponding to each of multiple lots is used to integrate it with the traceability-related information on a specific product. (2) A weighted average of multiple values ​​obtained from traceability information on upstream products corresponding to multiple lots is used to integrate the traceability-related information on a specific product. The weights may be values ​​corresponding to the usage ratio of each of the multiple lots of upstream products, or may be obtained according to other rules. (3) Traceability information for each upstream product corresponding to multiple lots This is integrated with traceability-related information for a specific product to obtain traceability information for each of multiple lots of the upstream product. In this case, traceability information for the specific product is obtained for each of multiple lots of the upstream product based on the usage ratio of each of the multiple lots of the upstream product. This management method is called pattern management.

[0137] [Effects of the first embodiment] In the first embodiment, by tracing each product included in the product tree while taking into consideration the lot used in the production, it is possible to acquire traceability information of a predetermined product with higher accuracy.

[0138] [Second embodiment] In the first embodiment, the server device 1 acquires traceability information about downstream products by integrating traceability information about upstream products with traceability-related information about downstream products. In the second embodiment, the company terminals 2 corresponding to downstream companies each acquire traceability information about downstream products by integrating traceability information about upstream products with traceability-related information about downstream products without going through the server device 1. In the second embodiment, explanations that overlap with those in the first embodiment will be omitted.

[0139] FIG. 17 is an example of a sequence of a process for acquiring traceability information related to a specified product according to the second embodiment. In the example shown in FIG. 17, section A is a Tier N+1 section and is the most upstream section. Product A is a product manufactured by section A. The company terminal 2 corresponding to section A is company terminal 2A. Section B is a Tier N section. Product B is a product manufactured by section B using product A. The company terminal 2 corresponding to section B is company terminal 2B. Section C is a Tier N-1 section. Product C is a product manufactured by section C using product B. The company terminal 2 corresponding to section C is company terminal 2C. FIG. 17 illustrates an example of acquiring traceability information related to product C.

[0140] In S21, it is assumed that a request to acquire traceability-related information regarding product C of lot #F has occurred in the company terminal 2C corresponding to section C. This acquisition request may be input to the company terminal 2C by an operator belonging to section C, for example. Alternatively, a request to acquire traceability information regarding product C of lot #F may be sent from a company terminal 2 corresponding to another company to the server device 1, and the server device 1, upon receiving this request, may transmit the request to the company terminal 2C. The request is received by the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2C.

[0141] In S22, the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2C refers to the transaction information correspondence table corresponding to section C and identifies lot #K of upstream product B that is associated with product C of lot #F. In S23, the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2C sends a request to acquire traceability information regarding product B of lot #K to the company terminal 2B that corresponds to section B that manufactures product B. The acquisition request is accepted by the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2B.

[0142] In S24, the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2B refers to the transaction information correspondence table corresponding to section B and identifies lot #S of upstream product A that is associated with product B of lot #K. In S25, the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2B sends a request to acquire traceability information about product A of lot #S to the company terminal 2A corresponding to section A that manufactures product A. The acquisition request is received by the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2A. Since product A is the most upstream product, 214 does not execute processing related to a request for traceability information related to upstream products of product A.

[0143] In S31, the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2A acquires traceability information related to product A of lot #S. The information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2A references the traceability-related information correspondence table corresponding to section A and acquires the traceability-related information associated with product A of lot #S. Because product A is the most upstream product, the traceability-related information related to product A of lot #S becomes the traceability information related to product A of lot #S. In S32, the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2A transmits the traceability information related to product A of lot #S to the company terminal 2B that sent the request. The information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2B receives the traceability information related to product A of lot #S.

[0144] In S33, the information acquisition unit 214 of company terminal 2B refers to the traceability-related information correspondence table corresponding to section B, acquires the traceability-related information associated with product B of lot #K, and integrates it with the traceability information related to product A of lot #S to acquire the traceability information related to product B of lot #K. In S34, the information acquisition unit 214 of company terminal 2B transmits the traceability information related to product B of lot #K to company terminal 2C that sent the request. The information acquisition unit 214 of company terminal 2C receives the traceability information related to product B of lot #K.

[0145] In S35, the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2C refers to the traceability-related information correspondence table corresponding to Section C, acquires the traceability-related information associated with product C of lot #F, and integrates it with the traceability information related to product B of lot #K. In this way, the traceability information related to product C of lot #F is acquired. If the request to acquire traceability information related to product C of lot #F is from a company terminal 2 corresponding to Section C, the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2C outputs the traceability information related to product C of lot #F to a display or the like. If the request to acquire traceability information related to product C of lot #F is from a company terminal 2 corresponding to a company other than Section C, the information acquisition unit 214 of the company terminal 2C transmits the traceability information related to product C of lot #F to the server device 1, and the server device 1 transmits the traceability information related to product C of lot #F to the company terminal 2 that sent the request.

[0146] In S33 and S35, the integration of the traceability information on upstream products and the traceability-related information on downstream products by the company terminals 2B and 2C is the same as in the first embodiment. Furthermore, the lot correspondence tables and product information of each section may be held by the server device 1 as in the first embodiment, or may be held in the storage device of the company terminal 2 corresponding to each section.

[0147] According to the second embodiment, even when the company terminal 2 corresponding to the downstream company acquires traceability information about the downstream product by integrating traceability information about the upstream product and traceability-related information about the downstream product without going through the server device 1, it is possible to acquire more accurate traceability information about the downstream product by taking into account the lot.

[0148] It should be noted that instead of directly exchanging requests and the traceability information relating to upstream products as a response thereto between the company terminals 2, the information may be exchanged via the server device 1. For example, the request to acquire traceability information relating to product B of lot #K sent from company terminal 2C in S23 is received by the server device 1, and the server device 1 then sends the request to the company terminals 2C. For example, in S32, the company terminal 2A may transmit the traceability information about product A of lot #S to the server device 1, and the server device 1 may transmit the traceability information about product A of lot #S to the company terminal 2B. For example, in S25, the request to acquire traceability information about product A of lot #S transmitted from the company terminal 2B may be received by the server device 1, and the server device 1 may transmit the traceability information about product A of lot #S to the server device 1, and the traceability information may be stored in a memory area allocated to the company corresponding to section B in the server device 1. The server device 1 may notify the company terminal 2B that the traceability information about product A of lot #S has been acquired, and upon receiving this notification, the company terminal 2B may read and acquire the traceability information about product A of lot #S from the memory area allocated to the company corresponding to section B.

[0149] (Other variations) The above-described embodiment is merely an example, and the present disclosure may be modified as appropriate within the scope of the present disclosure. For example, the processes and means described in the present disclosure may be freely combined as long as no technical contradiction occurs.

[0150] Furthermore, in the description of the embodiment, the server device 1 stores the product information in a database, but the product information may be stored by means other than a database.

[0151] Furthermore, in the description of the embodiment, the server device 1 generates a product tree, but the role of the server device 1 may be distributed among multiple company terminals 2. For example, product information may be stored in a distributed database using a blockchain platform. In this case, the product information database may be configured by multiple company terminals 2. In this case, the processing of the server device 1 described above may be executed using a smart contract.

[0152] The storage areas in which each piece of product information is stored may also be distributed among multiple company terminals 2. In this case, the storage areas allocated exclusively to each company may be allocated only within the company terminal 2 of the corresponding company. Furthermore, the storage areas allocated to multiple companies on a shared basis may be distributed among the multiple company terminals 2 involved in the sharing.

[0153] Furthermore, the setting of access authority to the storage area may be realized by the operating system of the server device 1 or by other authentication methods. For example, a public key cryptosystem may be used. Furthermore, when a system is realized using a blockchain platform, access authority may be granted by an electronic key.

[0154] In the above embodiment, the multiple companies included in the supply chain are described as companies that produce products. However, the companies included in the supply chain do not necessarily have to be companies that produce products. For example, companies that transport, import, store, wholesale, etc. of products may also be included in the companies that make up the supply chain. In one example, some of the multiple companies may be companies that do not perform manufacturing processes, such as trading companies, sales agents, or import agents, and may receive products from companies located one level higher (upstream companies) and deliver them to companies located one level lower (downstream companies).

[0155] In the above embodiment, the supply chain for automobile-related products is assumed, and the OEM manufacturer is described as the most downstream company, and companies that supply parts, materials, assemblies, etc. are described as suppliers. However, the companies that belong to the supply chain are not necessarily limited to this. Companies at each stage may be determined appropriately depending on the product, etc. Furthermore, the manufacturing activities performed by each company until the final product is obtained may be determined appropriately depending on the embodiment, and may include, for example, all activities that may be performed until the final product is obtained, such as excavation, processing, assembly, transportation, and storage.

[0156] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, it is assumed that each company places an order with one company for a certain material. However, in the above embodiment, the order format of each company does not need to be limited to this example. At least some of the companies belonging to the supply chain may place orders with multiple upstream companies for the same product and selectively use the obtained upstream products in their own products. For example, in the example shown in FIG. 2, Tier 1 product A1 may selectively use Tier 2 product A11_1, product A11_2, or product A11_3. In this case, The server device 1 may hold a linking relationship for each pattern used. In the above example, the server device 1 may hold linking information for Tier 1 product A1, such as pattern 1 "Tier 2 product A11_1, . . .," pattern 2 "product A11_2, . . .," and pattern 3 "product A11_3, . . ..". In response to this, the server device 1 may perform calculation (integration) of the above traceability information for each pattern. In this case, for example, the server device 1 may output the calculation results for each pattern. In another example, the server device 1 may calculate statistics such as the maximum value, minimum value, average value, variance, standard deviation, and median of the calculation results from the calculation results, and output the calculated statistics.

[0157] Furthermore, a process described as being performed by one device may be shared and executed by multiple devices. Alternatively, a process described as being performed by different devices may be executed by a single device. In a computer system, the hardware configuration (server configuration) by which each function is realized can be flexibly changed.

[0158] The present disclosure can also be realized by providing a computer program implementing the functions described in the above embodiments to a computer, and having one or more processors in the computer read and execute the program. Such a computer program may be provided to the computer via a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium connectable to the computer's system bus or via a network. Non-transitory computer-readable storage media include, for example, any type of disk, such as a magnetic disk (e.g., a floppy disk, a hard disk drive (HDD), etc.), an optical disk (e.g., a CD-ROM, a DVD disk, a Blu-ray disk), a read-only memory (ROM), a random access memory (RAM), an EPROM, an EEPROM, a magnetic card, a flash memory, an optical card, or any type of medium suitable for storing electronic instructions. [Explanation of symbols]

[0159] 1. Server device 2. Corporate terminals 11,21 Control unit 12,22...Storage section 13,23··Communications Department 14,24 Input / Output Devices 100··Information Processing Systems 111··Information Collection Department 113·· Attachment section 114·Information Department 211...Information generation section 213··Linking request section 214...Information acquisition department

Claims

1. a first process for acquiring a first association between identification information of a first lot of a first product manufactured by a first section among a plurality of sections related to the manufacture of a predetermined product, each section delivering products in lot units, and identification information of a second lot of a second product manufactured by a second section among the plurality of sections using the first product of the first lot; a second process of acquiring a second association between identification information of the second lot of the second product and identification information of first traceability-related information measured in a manufacturing process of the second product of the second lot; a control unit that executes a third process of integrating first traceability information obtained by tracing from the raw materials or parts to the first product of the first lot based on the first association and the second association and the first traceability-related information to obtain second traceability information obtained by tracing from the raw materials or parts to the second product of the second lot; An information processing device comprising:

2. In the third process, the control unit When a first value indicating the first traceability information and a second value indicating the first traceability-related information are in different units, the first value is converted into a value indicated in units of the second value using a predetermined conversion coefficient. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

3. In the third process, the control unit When there are a plurality of first lots of the first product used in the manufacture of the second product of the second lot, the integration is performed using an average value of first values ​​indicating first traceability information for each of the plurality of first lots of the first product, thereby obtaining the second traceability information. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

4. In the third process, the control unit When there are a plurality of first lots of the first product used in the manufacture of the second product of the second lot, the integration is performed using a weighted average value of first values ​​indicating the first traceability information of each of the plurality of first lots of the first product, the weighting being based on the usage ratio of the first product for each of the plurality of first lots of the first product, to obtain the second traceability information. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

5. In the third process, the control unit When there are a plurality of first lots of the first product used in the manufacture of the second product of the second lot, the second traceability information is acquired for each of the plurality of first lots of the first product. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

6. In the first processing, the control unit receiving the first association from the account of the second section, storing the first association in a storage unit, and retrieving the first association from the storage unit; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

7. In the third process, the control unit when the second lot of the second product is specified, acquiring from the storage unit identification information of the first lot of the first product associated with identification information of the second lot of the second product in the first association; acquiring the first traceability information regarding the first product of the first lot corresponding to the acquired identification information; The information processing device according to claim 6 .

8. In the second processing, the control unit receiving the second association from the account of the second section, storing the second association in a storage unit, and retrieving the second association from the storage unit; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

9. The control unit for each of a plurality of sets of two sections that are in a relationship between the first section and the second section among the plurality of sections, the first process, the second process, and the third process are performed in order from the most upstream section to the most downstream section, to acquire third traceability information obtained by tracing from raw materials or parts to the predetermined product of a predetermined lot; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

10. At least some of the sections are associated with a company. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

11. At least some of the sections correspond to departments in a company. The information processing device according to claim 1 .

12. The first traceability information, the second traceability information, and the first traceability-related information include a Carbon Footprint of Products (CFP) value, a recycling value, and a a score indicating the degree of sufficiency of due diligence (DD) information; The information processing device according to claim 1 .

13. The computer a first process for acquiring a first association between identification information of a first lot of a first product manufactured by a first section among a plurality of sections related to the manufacture of a predetermined product, each section delivering products in lot units, and identification information of a second lot of a second product manufactured by a second section among the plurality of sections using the first product of the first lot; a second process of acquiring a second association between identification information of the second lot of the second product and identification information of first traceability-related information measured in a manufacturing process of the second product of the second lot; and a third process of integrating first traceability information obtained by tracing from raw materials or parts to the first product of the first lot based on the first association and the second association with the first traceability-related information to obtain second traceability information obtained by tracing from raw materials or parts to the second product of the second lot.

14. In the third process, the computer When a first value indicating the first traceability information and a second value indicating the first traceability-related information are in different units, the first value is converted into a value indicated in units of the second value using a predetermined conversion coefficient. The method of claim 13.

15. In the third process, the computer When there are a plurality of first lots of the first product used in the manufacture of the second product of the second lot, the integration is performed using an average value of first values ​​indicating first traceability information for each of the plurality of first lots of the first product, thereby obtaining the second traceability information. The method of claim 13.

16. In the third process, the computer When there are a plurality of first lots of the first product used in the manufacture of the second product of the second lot, the integration is performed using a weighted average value of first values ​​indicating the first traceability information of each of the plurality of first lots of the first product, the weighting being based on the usage ratio of the first product for each of the plurality of first lots of the first product, to obtain the second traceability information. The method of claim 13.

17. In the third process, the computer When there are a plurality of first lots of the first product used in the manufacture of the second product of the second lot, the second traceability information is acquired for each of the plurality of first lots of the first product. The method of claim 13.

18. In the first processing, the computer receiving the first association from the account of the second section, storing the first association in a storage unit, and retrieving the first association from the storage unit; The method of claim 13.

19. In the third process, the computer when the second lot of the second product is specified, acquiring from the storage unit identification information of the first lot of the first product associated with identification information of the second lot of the second product in the first association; acquiring the first traceability information regarding the first product of the first lot corresponding to the acquired identification information; 20. The method of claim 18.

20. On the computer, a first process for acquiring a first association between identification information of a first lot of a first product manufactured by a first section among a plurality of sections related to the manufacture of a predetermined product, each section delivering products in lot units, and identification information of a second lot of a second product manufactured by a second section among the plurality of sections using the first product of the first lot; a second process of acquiring a second association between identification information of the second lot of the second product and identification information of first traceability-related information measured in a manufacturing process of the second product of the second lot; and a third process of integrating first traceability information obtained by tracing from raw materials or parts to the first product of the first lot based on the first association and the second association, and the first traceability-related information, to obtain second traceability information obtained by tracing from raw materials or parts to the second product of the second lot.

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