Porter service system, service provision method, and service provision program

Abstract

To reduce congestion at elevator halls in porter services that use elevators with transport robots. [Solution] The porter service system provides a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using elevators. The porter service system acquires porter service request information and, based on the request information, commands the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the shipper's luggage from the boarding floor to the destination floor. The system then determines whether the shipper is in the car containing the transport robot at the boarding floor, and if it determines that the shipper is in the car, it prevents the car from departing. Furthermore, if it determines that the shipper is in the car, the system may also issue a notification requesting the shipper to disembark.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a technology for a porter service system in which a transport robot and an elevator work together to transport a shipper's luggage to a destination floor. [Background technology]

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses technology related to a mobile robot that performs the task of transporting an object. In this technology, a user places an object in a mobile robot and requests that it be transported. The mobile robot autonomously moves to a set destination and transports the object. If the destination is on a different floor, the mobile robot uses an elevator to move. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2024-67410 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] In a porter service in which an autonomously moving transport robot uses an elevator to transport a customer's luggage to the destination floor, as in Patent Document 1, it is possible to transport large luggage such as suitcases. If such a transport robot rides in the elevator car with the customer, the space inside the car for other passengers to board is reduced, which could result in the hall becoming crowded with people waiting to board. Thus, in a porter service using a transport robot, it is necessary for the elevator and the transport robot to work together to reduce congestion at the hall.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide technology that can reduce congestion at elevator halls in porter services that use elevators with transport robots. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The porter service system disclosed herein is a porter service system that provides a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, and includes a request acquisition unit that acquires request information for the porter service, a transport instruction unit that issues a command to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the shipper's luggage from the boarding floor to the destination floor based on the request information, a boarding determination unit that determines whether the shipper is in the car containing the transport robot at the boarding floor, and a driving control unit that prevents the car from departing if the boarding determination unit determines that the shipper is in the car.

[0007] The porter service system disclosed herein is a porter service system that provides a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using elevators, and includes a request acquisition unit that acquires request information for the porter service, a transport instruction unit that, based on the request information, commands the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the shipper's luggage from the boarding floor to the destination floor, and a boarding notification unit that, at the boarding floor, notifies the shipper of information to encourage them to move to the destination floor by means of transportation other than the car.

[0008] In addition, the service provision method disclosed herein is a service provision method that is executed by a computer and provides a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, and includes the steps of: acquiring request information for the porter service; issuing a command to the transport robot, based on the request information, to get into the elevator car and transport the shipper's luggage from the boarding floor to the destination floor; determining whether the shipper is in the car containing the transport robot at the boarding floor; and, if it is determined that the shipper is in the car, preventing the car from departing.

[0009] In addition, the service provision method disclosed herein is a service provision method that is executed by a computer and provides a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, and includes the steps of: acquiring request information for the porter service; issuing a command to the transport robot, based on the request information, to get into the elevator car and transport the shipper's luggage from the boarding floor to the destination floor; and notifying the shipper, at the boarding floor, of information to encourage them to travel to the destination floor by means of transportation other than the car.

[0010] In addition, the service provision program disclosed herein is a service provision program that causes a computer to provide a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, and is configured to acquire request information for the porter service, and based on the request information, issue a command to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the shipper's luggage from the boarding floor to the destination floor, determine whether the shipper is in the car containing the transport robot at the boarding floor, and if it is determined that the shipper is in the car, prevent the car from departing.

[0011] Furthermore, the service provision program disclosed herein is a service provision program that causes a computer to provide a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, and is configured to cause the computer to acquire request information for the porter service, and based on the request information, to instruct the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the shipper's luggage from the boarding floor to the destination floor, and to notify the shipper at the boarding floor of information to encourage them to move to the destination floor by means of transportation other than the car. [Effects of the Invention]

[0012] According to the technology of the present disclosure, it is possible to reduce congestion at elevator halls in porter services that use elevators with transport robots. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0013] [Figure 1] 1 is a block diagram for explaining an overview of a porter service system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of a situation in which a shipper requests porter service near an elevator landing. [Figure 3] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating an example of the operation when a car that responded to a hall call of the transport robot arrives at a boarding floor. [Figure 4] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the operation when a shipper gets into a car that has arrived at a boarding floor. [Figure 5] 10A and 10B are diagrams illustrating an example of an operation when a car that has responded to a hall call of the transport robot arrives at a destination floor. [Figure 6] FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an example of the actions of a consignor receiving a package at a landing at a destination floor. [Figure 7] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing functions of the information processing device according to the embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart of a process executed in the porter service system according to the embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 10 is a diagram illustrating a modified example of hardware resources of an information processing device. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0014] Hereinafter, an embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that elements common to the various drawings are given the same reference numerals and redundant explanations will be omitted.

[0015] 1. Overview of the porter service system according to the embodiment Fig. 1 is a block diagram for explaining an overview of a porter service system according to an embodiment. The porter service system 100 of this embodiment is a system that realizes a porter service in which an autonomously moving transport robot uses an elevator to transport a shipper's luggage to the destination floor of a building. Note that the porter service is based on the premise that the shipper receiving the service will move to the destination floor using stairs, escalators, or the like, with the aim of reducing congestion at the landing.

[0016] The porter service system 100 of the embodiment includes an information processing device 10, an elevator 20, a beacon device 22, an alarm device 24, a transport robot 30, and a shipper terminal 40. The elevator 20, the beacon device 22, the alarm device 24, the transport robot 30, and the shipper terminal 40 are each connected to the information processing device 10 via a communication network 8 such as the Internet, a wireless LAN, or a wired LAN.

[0017] The elevator 20 is installed in a building, such as a building with multiple floors. An elevator shaft for the elevator 20 is provided in the building. The elevator shaft is a long space extending vertically across multiple floors. On each floor, a landing is provided adjacent to the elevator shaft. The building also includes transportation means such as stairs or escalators in addition to the elevator to move between multiple floors.

[0018] The elevator 20 comprises, as its main components (not shown), a hoist, a main rope, a car, and a counterweight. The main rope is wound around a sheave of the hoist. The main rope supports the load of the car on one side of the sheave of the hoist. The main rope supports the load of the counterweight on the other side of the sheave of the hoist. The car is a device that transports users of the elevator 20 or the transport robot 30 between multiple floors by traveling up and down the hoistway. The car travels up and down the hoistway in conjunction with the movement of the main rope due to the rotation of the sheave of the hoist.

[0019] The beacon device 22 is installed, for example, in the car of the elevator 20. The beacon device 22 is, for example, a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE; "Bluetooth" is a registered trademark) beacon that transmits a beacon signal to surrounding compatible devices using short-range wireless communication. The beacon signal includes unique identification information such as a UUID, major and minor numbers, and radio wave strength such as RSSI. The beacon device 22 is used to determine whether a shipper who has a shipper terminal 40 has boarded the car.

[0020] The notification device 24 is provided, for example, in the car of the elevator 20. The notification device 24 is a device for issuing notifications to passengers around the car. For example, the notification device 24 is a speaker for issuing voice notifications. The notification device 24 outputs various voice announcements in accordance with commands transmitted from the information processing device 10.

[0021] The transport robot 30 is a luggage transport robot used in a porter service that transports luggage. The transport robot 30 is configured to autonomously travel using the elevator 20 while determining its own location. Typically, the transport robot 30 autonomously coordinates with the elevator 20 to call the elevator 20 and boards or disembarks in the elevator car corresponding to the call. The transport robot 30 operates under the control of a robot control device (not shown). There are no limitations on the operation control of the transport robot 30. Furthermore, there are no limitations on the luggage loading structure of the transport robot 30. For example, the transport robot 30 may be equipped with a platform for loading luggage, may be connectable to a cart or the like carrying luggage, or may be connectable directly to the luggage itself. The transport robot 30 communicates with a mobile object control device via a communication network 8, such as wirelessly. Alternatively, the mobile object control device is mounted on the transport robot 30.

[0022] The shipper terminal 40 is a portable terminal device carried by a shipper who uses the porter service. Examples of the shipper terminal 40 include a smartphone, a tablet, etc. that are equipped with an input device and a display device (not shown).

[0023] The consignor terminal 40 has an operating system and application program software installed on its hardware. The application program includes, for example, a dedicated application program for receiving porter services within a building. This application program is hereinafter referred to as the "porter service app." By running the porter service app under the operating system, it is possible to request the porter service described below.

[0024] The information processing device 10 is a device that performs various controls to provide a porter service using the transport robot 30. The information processing device 10 communicates with the elevator 20, the transport robot 30, and the shipper terminal 40 via a communication network 8.

[0025] The information processing device 10 is a microcomputer including at least one processor 50 and at least one memory 60. The memory 60 stores a service provision program 62 and various data 64 for running the service provision program 62. The processor 50 includes a CPU (Central Processing Unit). The processor 50 reads and executes the service provision program 62 to realize various functions of the information processing device 10. The realized functions will be described in detail below. The service provision program 62 may be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium, or may be stored on a server capable of communicating with the information processing device 10, such as a cloud server.

[0026] 2. Porter service operation overview An overview of the operation when a consignor requests porter service in a building to which such a porter service system 100 is applied will be described. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of a situation in which a consignor requests porter service near an elevator landing. In the example shown in this figure, the consignor of luggage has a consignor terminal 40. The consignor requests porter service by launching a porter service app from the consignor terminal 40 and inputting request information. The request information includes, for example, consignor information, information on the boarding floor where the luggage will be deposited, information on the destination floor, luggage information such as the size or weight of the luggage, etc. The luggage information may also be an image of the luggage. The information processing device 10 acquires the request information input to the consignor terminal 40 via the communication network 8. This process will be referred to as the "request acquisition process" hereinafter.

[0027] The information processing device 10 transmits an operation command related to the porter service to the transport robot 30 via the communication network 8. This process is hereinafter referred to as the "transport command process." In the transport command process, the information processing device 10 determines the transport robot 30 to which the porter service is assigned based on the request information acquired by the request acquisition process. The assignment operation of the transport robot 30 is not limited. For example, the information processing device 10 assigns a transport robot 30 waiting at a boarding floor included in the request information. Alternatively, the information processing device 10 assigns a transport robot 30 with an appropriate platform size based on the baggage information. At this time, if the baggage information includes an image of the baggage, the information processing device 10 estimates the size or weight of the baggage from the image. Then, the information processing device 10 transmits a transport start command to the assigned transport robot 30. The transport start command here is a command to collect the baggage from the shipper and transport it to the destination floor, and includes information on the baggage collection location, the destination floor, etc. The transport robot 30 that receives the transport start command autonomously travels to the collection location at the boarding floor. The consignor identifies the transport robot 30 assigned to them and deposits their luggage there, for example, based on the robot's identification number displayed on the consignor terminal 40. After collecting the consignor's luggage at the collection location, the transport robot 30 cooperates with the elevator 20 to make a hall call, and uses the elevator 20 to travel from the boarding floor to the destination floor.

[0028] FIG. 3 illustrates an example of the operation when a car responding to a hall call from a transport robot 30 arrives at a boarding floor. When the car responding to a hall call from a transport robot 30 opens its doors at the boarding floor, the information processing device 10 outputs a voice announcement related to the porter service from the alarm device 24 of the elevator 20. This process is hereinafter referred to as the "boarding notification process." The voice announcement here includes, for example, a voice announcement for passengers around the car saying, "Please be careful as a transport robot will be boarding," and a voice announcement for shippers who have requested porter service saying, "Customers using the porter service are requested to cooperate by using stairs, etc." This not only alerts passengers around the car, but also encourages shippers to use transportation other than the elevator to reach their destination floor.

[0029] FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an example of the operation when a consignor gets into a car that has arrived at the boarding floor. While the porter service app is running, the operation system of the consignor terminal 40 determines the radio wave strength of the beacon signal from the beacon device 22 and transmits it to the information processing device 10 via the communication network 8. The radio wave strength here can be, for example, an RSSI value. The information processing device 10 estimates the distance from the beacon device 22 to the consignor terminal 40 based on the received radio wave strength, and determines whether the consignor is in the car. This process is hereinafter referred to as "boarding determination process."

[0030] When the boarding determination process determines that the consignor is in the car together with the transport robot 30, the information processing device 10 temporarily stops the elevator 20 from moving and maintains the door-open stop state. This process is hereinafter referred to as the "travel control process." Furthermore, when the boarding determination process determines that the consignor is in the car together with the transport robot 30, the information processing device 10, in addition to the travel control process, outputs a voice announcement from the alarm device 24 of the elevator 20 requesting the consignor to exit the car. This process is hereinafter referred to as the "exit request process." An example of the voice announcement here is a voice announcement addressed to the consignor in the car saying, "Customers using the porter service are requested to use the stairs, etc." Figure 4 illustrates an example in which the consignor, upon hearing the voice announcement, exits the stopped car and heads to the destination floor using the stairs.

[0031] If the boarding determination process determines that the consignor has disembarked within a predetermined determination period after the execution of the driving control process, the information processing device 10 terminates the execution of the driving control process, thereby canceling the temporary stop state of the elevator 20 and causing the elevator 20 to resume operation. Furthermore, if the boarding determination process has not yet determined that the consignor has disembarked when the predetermined determination period has elapsed, the information processing device 10 prioritizes the operation of the elevator 20, thereby terminating the execution of the driving control process, thereby canceling the stop state of the elevator 20 and causing the elevator 20 to begin operating.

[0032] The information processing device 10 imposes a penalty condition on a shipper who does not unload the car within the determination period. This process will be hereinafter referred to as "penalty imposition process." The penalty condition here may be, for example, a restriction on the use of porter services for a certain period of time.

[0033] FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of the operation when a car that responded to a hall call from the transport robot 30 arrives at the destination floor. When the car that responded to a hall call from the transport robot 30 opens its doors at the destination floor, the information processing device 10 outputs an audio announcement related to the porter service from the alarm device 24 of the elevator 20. This process is hereinafter referred to as the "disembarkation notification process." The audio announcement here includes, for example, an audio announcement for passengers around the car saying, "Please be careful as the transport robot is disembarking." This makes it possible to alert passengers around the car when the transport robot 30 disembarks. After disembarking, the disembarking transport robot 30 waits at the destination floor's hall until the shipper arrives.

[0034] FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the operation of a consignor receiving a package at a landing at a destination floor. While the porter service app is running, the operation system of the consignor terminal 40 accepts a transfer end input from the consignor receiving the package. The input transfer end input is transmitted to the information processing device 10 via the communication network 8. Upon receiving the transfer end input, the information processing device 10 executes a transfer command process and transmits a transfer end command to the transfer robot 30. The transfer end command includes a command to end the porter service and a standby command for the transfer robot 30 to move to a standby location and wait. Furthermore, upon receiving the transfer end input, the information processing device 10 grants special conditions to consignors who did not ride the elevator 20 in which the transfer robot 30 boarded. This process is hereinafter referred to as the "special condition granting process." Examples of special conditions here include the granting of coupons that can be used at facilities within the building, the granting of coupons related to special benefits for the next use of the porter service, etc.

[0035] According to the above-described series of processes of the porter service system 100, it is possible to encourage shippers who have used the porter service to move to their destination floors by means of transportation other than the elevator 20. This increases the opportunities for users waiting at the landing to use the elevator 20, thereby reducing congestion at the landing due to the porter service.

[0036] 3. Functional configuration of the information processing device according to the embodiment Next, the functional configuration of the information processing device 10 included in the porter service system 100 will be described in more detail. Fig. 7 is a block diagram showing the functions of the information processing device according to the embodiment. The information processing device 10 includes a request acquisition unit 102, a transportation instruction unit 104, a boarding notification unit 106, a boarding determination unit 108, a travel control unit 110, a disembarking request unit 112, a penalty assignment unit 114, a disembarking notification unit 116, and a benefit assignment unit 118 as functions realized by the processor 50 reading and executing the service provision program 62.

[0037] The request acquisition unit 102 is a functional block for executing the above-mentioned request acquisition process. The request information acquired by the request acquisition process is sent to the transportation instruction unit 104. The transportation instruction unit 104 is a functional block for executing the above-mentioned transportation command process based on the request information. The boarding time notification unit 106 is a functional block for executing the above-mentioned boarding time notification process. The boarding determination unit 108 is a functional block for executing the above-mentioned boarding determination process. The determination result of the boarding determination process is sent to the traveling control unit 110 and the disembarking request unit 112.

[0038] The driving control unit 110 is a functional block for executing the above-mentioned driving control process based on the determination result of the boarding determination process. The disembarking request unit 112 is a functional block for executing the above-mentioned disembarking request process based on the determination result of the boarding determination process. The penalty granting unit 114 is a functional block for executing the above-mentioned penalty granting process. The disembarking time notification unit 116 is a functional block for executing the above-mentioned disembarking time notification process. The bonus granting unit 118 is a functional block for executing the above-mentioned bonus granting process.

[0039] 4. Specific processing executed in the porter service system according to the embodiment Specific processing executed in the porter service system 100 will be described below with reference to a flowchart. FIG. 8 is a flowchart of processing executed in the porter service system according to an embodiment. The routine shown in FIG. 8 is executed by the processor 50 of the information processing device 10 executing the service provision program 62 stored in the memory 60. Note that this routine also represents part of a service provision method in which the porter service system 100 provides a porter service using the transport robot 30.

[0040] 8, in step S100, the request acquisition unit 102 executes a request acquisition process to acquire porter service request information transmitted from the shipper terminal of the shipper. The acquired request information is sent to the transport instruction unit 104. After the process of step S100 is performed, the process proceeds to step S102.

[0041] In step S102, the transport instruction unit 104 executes a transport command process to determine a transport robot 30 that will provide the porter service, and transmits a transport start command to the determined transport robot 30. After the process of step S102 is performed, the process proceeds to step S104.

[0042] In step S104, the boarding notification unit 106 executes boarding notification processing in response to the arrival of the car that responded to the hall call from the transport robot 30 at the boarding floor. Here, the boarding notification unit 106 outputs, from the notification device 24, an audio announcement to call attention to the boarding and an audio announcement to encourage the shipper to travel by means of transportation other than the elevator 20. After the processing of step S104 is executed, the processing proceeds to step S106.

[0043] In step S106, the boarding determination unit 108 executes boarding determination processing to determine whether the consignor has boarded the car of the elevator 20. As a result, if the determination is established, the processing proceeds to step S108, and if the determination is not established, the processing proceeds to step S116.

[0044] In step S108, the travel control unit 110 executes a travel control process to temporarily prevent the car of the elevator 20 from departing and maintain the door-open stop state. Also in step S108, the disembarkation request unit 112 outputs an audio announcement from the alarm device 24 of the elevator 20 requesting the shipper to disembark. Once the process of step S108 has been executed, the process proceeds to step S110.

[0045] In step S110, the boarding determination unit 108 executes boarding determination processing to determine whether the shipper has exited the elevator car 20 within a determination time after executing the exit request processing. The determination time is a time set in advance as an allowable time for waiting for the shipper to exit the elevator car. As a result, if the determination is successful, the process proceeds to step S114, and if the determination is not successful, the process proceeds to step S112.

[0046] In step S112, the penalty granting unit 114 executes a penalty granting process in response to the determination result of the boarding determination process that the transaction is not established. After the process of step S112 is executed, the process proceeds to step S114.

[0047] In step S114, the travel control unit 110 ends the travel control process and releases the prevention of departure of the elevator 20. This causes the car door of the elevator 20 to close and operation to resume. After the process of step S114 is executed, the process proceeds to step S116.

[0048] In step S116, the disembarking notification unit 116 executes disembarking notification processing in response to the arrival of the car that responded to the hall call from the transport robot 30 at the destination floor. Here, the disembarking notification unit 116 outputs an audio announcement to call attention to when disembarking from the notification device 24. After the processing of step S116 is executed, the processing proceeds to steps S118 and S120.

[0049] When receiving the package from the transport robot 30 at the destination floor, the consignor inputs a transport end input to the consignor terminal 40 or the transport robot 30. In step S118, when the transport instruction unit 104 receives the transport end input input to the consignor terminal 40 or the transport robot 30, it executes a transport command process and sends a transport end command to the transport robot 30.

[0050] In addition, in step S120, when the transfer end input is received, the reward granting unit 118 executes a reward granting process for the shipper who did not ride in the car with the transfer robot 30.

[0051] According to the porter service system 100 of the embodiment described above, it is possible to encourage shippers who have requested porter service to travel by means of transportation other than the elevator 20. This increases the chances that users waiting at the landing will board the elevator, thereby reducing congestion at the landing.

[0052] Furthermore, according to the porter service system 100 of the embodiment, the porter service can inform the shipper that it is assumed that the shipper will use a means of transportation other than the elevator 20 by the boarding notification process.

[0053] Furthermore, if the shipper rides in the elevator 20 together with the transport robot 30, a penalty condition is imposed on the shipper by the penalty imposition process, which makes it possible to guide the shipper to take action to use a means of transportation other than the elevator 20 and ensure smooth service operation.

[0054] Furthermore, when the consignor uses a means of transportation other than the elevator 20, special conditions are given, so it is possible to guide the consignor to use a means of transportation other than the elevator 20 and ensure smooth service operation.

[0055] 5. Variations The porter service system 100 according to the embodiment may employ the following modified aspects.

[0056] 5-1. Hardware resources of information processing device 10

[0057] Fig. 9 is a diagram showing a modified example of hardware resources of an information processing device. In the example shown in Fig. 9, the information processing device 10 includes, for example, a processor 50, a memory 60, and a processing circuit 72 including dedicated hardware 70. Fig. 9 shows an example in which some of the functions of the information processing device 10 are realized by the dedicated hardware 70. All of the functions of the information processing device 10 may also be realized by the dedicated hardware 70. The dedicated hardware 70 may be a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, a parallel programmed processor, an ASIC, an FPGA, or a combination thereof.

[0058] The memory 60 may be independent from the information processing device 10, and the role of the memory 60 may be played by a cloud or the like.

[0059] In the porter service system 100, all or part of the functions of the information processing device 10 may be installed in the elevator 20, the transport robot 30, the shipper terminal 40, or a server at a remote location.

[0060] 5-2. Boarding notification unit 106 The function of the boarding notification unit 106 is not essential to the porter service system 100. That is, in the processing of the flowchart shown in Fig. 8, after the processing of step S102, the boarding notification processing of step S104 may not be executed, and the process may proceed to the processing of step S106.

[0061] 5-3. Boarding determination unit 108 The boarding determination process executed by the boarding determination unit 108 is not limited to the above-described process. That is, in the boarding determination process, in addition to the beacon device 22 provided in the car, a beacon device may also be provided at each landing, for example, and based on the radio wave intensity of the beacon signals from the multiple beacon devices, it may be determined with higher accuracy whether a shipper carrying a shipper terminal 40 is in the car.

[0062] 5-4. Exit Request Section 112 There are no limitations on the content of the voice announcement and its output mode in the alighting request process executed by the alighting request unit 112. That is, in the alighting request process, for example, the same voice announcement may be repeatedly output multiple times within the determination time, or the content of multiple voice announcements may be output in sequence.

[0063] 5-5. Penalty Granting Section 114 The penalty imposition process executed by the penalty imposition unit 114 is not essential. That is, if the consignor does not dismount from the car within the determination time, instead of or in addition to imposing a penalty condition by the penalty imposition process, a forced dismount process may be executed to force the transport robot 30 in the car to dismount. In this case, in the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 8 , instead of or in addition to the process of step S112, the transport instruction unit 104 executes a transport command process in which a dismount command is sent to the transport robot 30. As a result, the transport robot 30 that receives the dismount command dismounts from the car. Then, when the forced dismount process is executed, the travel control unit 110 ends the travel control process and releases the prevention of the elevator 20 from departing. As a result, the car doors of the elevator 20 are closed and operation resumes.

[0064] The porter service system 100 may be configured so that the manager of the building to which the porter service system 100 is applied can arbitrarily select either or both of the penalty imposition processing and the forced disembarkation processing.

[0065] 5-6. Exit notification unit 116 The function of the alighting notification unit 116 is not essential to the porter service system 100. That is, in the processing of the flowchart shown in Fig. 8, after the processing of step S114, the alighting notification processing of step S116 may not be executed, and the process may proceed to the processing of step S118.

[0066] 5-7. Benefits Granting Department 118 The reward granting process executed by the reward granting unit 118 is not essential. That is, when a transfer end input is received from the consignor terminal 40, instead of or in addition to granting the reward conditions through the reward granting process, a transfer continuation process for continuing the porter service from the destination floor hall to the destination may be executed. In this case, in the process of the flowchart shown in FIG. 8 , instead of or in addition to the process of step S118, the transfer instruction unit 104 transmits a transfer continuation command to the transfer robot 30. The request information input by the consignor includes information about the designated location of the destination, such as a parking lot within the building or a building exit. Here, the transfer instruction unit 104 generates a transfer continuation command to continue transferring the package to the designated location included in the request information and transmits it to the transfer robot 30. The transfer robot 30 continues transferring the package to the designated location based on the received transfer continuation command. In addition, if the travel route to the designated location includes travel using another elevator, the transport robot 30 may make a hall call to coincide with its arrival at the hall of that other elevator in order to ensure smooth travel.

[0067] The manager of the building to which the porter service system 100 is applied may be configured to be able to arbitrarily select either or both of the privilege granting process and the transport continuation process.

[0068] 5-8.Alarm device 24 The notification device 24 may be installed at the landing as long as it is positioned so as to be able to notify users around the car.

[0069] 6.Other Although the preferred embodiments have been described in detail above, the present disclosure is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the claims.

[0070] Various aspects of the present disclosure are summarized below as appendices. (Appendix 1) A porter service system that provides a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, a request acquisition unit that acquires request information for the porter service; a transport instruction unit that issues an instruction to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the consignor from the boarding floor to the destination floor based on the request information; an onboard determination unit that determines whether the consignor is on the car in which the transport robot is on the boarding floor; a travel control unit that prevents the car from departing when the boarding determination unit determines that the shipper is boarding; A porter service system equipped with (Appendix 2) A porter service system as described in Appendix 1, comprising a disembarkation request unit that, when the boarding determination unit determines that the shipper has boarded, issues a notification to request the shipper to disembark. (Appendix 3) When the boarding determination unit determines that the shipper has disembarked from the car within the determination time, the travel control unit causes the car to depart. 3. The porter service system according to claim 1 or 2, configured as follows: (Appendix 4) a penalty imposing unit that imposes a penalty condition related to the porter service; If the boarding determination unit does not determine that the shipper has disembarked from the car within a determination time, The travel control unit starts the car, The penalty imposing unit imposes the penalty condition on the shipper. The porter service system according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 3, configured as follows: (Appendix 5) When the boarding determination unit does not determine that the shipper has dismounted from the car within a determination time, the transport instruction unit is configured to instruct the transport robot to dismount. A porter service system according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 3. (Appendix 6) A privilege granting unit grants privilege conditions to the consignor when the consignor moves to the destination floor without getting on the car. A porter service system according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 5. (Appendix 7) When receiving a transfer end input indicating that the transfer of the luggage has been completed, the transfer instruction unit issues a command to the transfer robot to end the transfer and move to a waiting location. The porter service system according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 6, configured as follows: (Appendix 8) When the shipper moves to the destination floor without getting on the car, the transport instruction unit instructs the transport robot to continue transporting the baggage to a designated location. The porter service system according to any one of Supplementary Note 1 to Supplementary Note 7, configured as follows: (Appendix 9) A porter service system that provides a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, a request acquisition unit that acquires request information for the porter service; a transport instruction unit that issues an instruction to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the consignor from the boarding floor to the destination floor based on the request information; a boarding notification unit that notifies the shipper at the boarding floor of information to encourage the shipper to move to the destination floor by a means of transportation other than the car; A porter service system equipped with (Appendix 10) A service providing method executed by a computer for providing a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that autonomously moves within a building using an elevator, the method comprising: acquiring request information for the porter service; a step of issuing an instruction to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the shipper from the boarding floor to the destination floor based on the request information; a step of determining whether the consignor is in the car in which the transport robot is riding at the boarding floor; If it is determined that the shipper is on board, preventing the car from departing; A porter service system equipped with (Appendix 11) A service providing method executed by a computer for providing a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that autonomously moves within a building using an elevator, the method comprising: acquiring request information for the porter service; a step of issuing an instruction to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the shipper from the boarding floor to the destination floor based on the request information; At the boarding floor, notifying the shipper of information to encourage the shipper to move to the destination floor by a means of transportation other than the car; A service delivery method that includes: (Appendix 12) A service providing program that causes a computer to provide a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, Acquire the request information for the porter service, Based on the request information, a command is issued to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the shipper from the boarding floor to the destination floor; determining whether the shipper is in the car in which the transport robot is riding at the boarding floor; When it is determined that the shipper is on board, the car is prevented from departing. A service providing program configured to cause a computer to perform the following: (Appendix 13) A service providing program that causes a computer to provide a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, Acquire the request information for the porter service, Based on the request information, a command is issued to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the shipper from the boarding floor to the destination floor; At the boarding floor, information is notified to the shipper to encourage the shipper to move to the destination floor by a means of transportation other than the car. A service providing program configured to cause a computer to perform the following: [Explanation of symbols]

[0071] 8 Communication network, 10 Information processing device, 20 Elevator, 22 Beacon device, 24 Notification device, 30 Transport robot, 40 Shipper terminal, 50 Processor, 60 Memory, 62 Service provision program, 64 Various data, 70 Dedicated hardware, 72 Processing circuit, 100 Porter service system, 102 Request acquisition unit, 104 Transport instruction unit, 106 Boarding time notification unit, 108 Boarding determination unit, 110 Travel control unit, 112 Disembarking request unit, 114 Penalty assignment unit, 116 Disembarking time notification unit, 118 Benefit assignment unit

Claims

1. A porter service system that provides a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, a request acquisition unit that acquires request information for the porter service; a transport instruction unit that issues an instruction to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the consignor from the boarding floor to the destination floor based on the request information; an onboard determination unit that determines whether the consignor is on the car in which the transport robot is on the boarding floor; a travel control unit that prevents the car from departing when the boarding determination unit determines that the shipper is boarding; A porter service system equipped with

2. The porter service system according to claim 1, further comprising a disembarking request unit that notifies the consignor to disembark when the boarding determination unit determines that the consignor has boarded the vehicle.

3. When the boarding determination unit determines that the shipper has disembarked from the car within the determination time, the travel control unit causes the car to depart.

3. The porter service system according to claim 1 or 2, configured as follows:

4. a penalty imposing unit that imposes a penalty condition related to the porter service; If the boarding determination unit does not determine that the shipper has disembarked from the car within a determination time, The travel control unit starts the car, The penalty imposing unit imposes the penalty condition on the shipper.

3. The porter service system according to claim 1 or 2, configured as follows:

5. When the boarding determination unit does not determine that the shipper has dismounted from the car within a determination time, the transport instruction unit is configured to instruct the transport robot to dismount. The porter service system according to claim 1 or 2.

6. A privilege granting unit grants privilege conditions to the consignor when the consignor moves to the destination floor without getting on the car. The porter service system according to claim 1 or 2.

7. When receiving a transfer end input indicating that the transfer of the luggage has been completed, the transfer instruction unit issues a command to the transfer robot to end the transfer and move to a waiting location.

3. The porter service system according to claim 1 or 2, configured as follows:

8. When the shipper moves to the destination floor without getting on the car, the transport instruction unit instructs the transport robot to continue transporting the baggage to a designated location.

3. The porter service system according to claim 1 or 2, configured as follows:

9. A porter service system that provides a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, a request acquisition unit that acquires request information for the porter service; a transport instruction unit that issues an instruction to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the consignor from the boarding floor to the destination floor based on the request information; a boarding notification unit that notifies the shipper at the boarding floor of information to encourage the shipper to move to the destination floor by a means of transportation other than the car; A porter service system equipped with

10. A service providing method executed by a computer for providing a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that autonomously moves within a building using an elevator, the method comprising: acquiring request information for the porter service; a step of issuing an instruction to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the shipper from the boarding floor to the destination floor based on the request information; a step of determining whether the consignor is in the car in which the transport robot is riding at the boarding floor; If it is determined that the shipper is on board, preventing the car from departing; A service delivery method that includes:

11. A service providing method executed by a computer for providing a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that autonomously moves within a building using an elevator, the method comprising: acquiring request information for the porter service; a step of issuing an instruction to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the shipper from the boarding floor to the destination floor based on the request information; At the boarding floor, notifying the shipper of information to encourage the shipper to move to the destination floor by a means of transportation other than the car; A service delivery method that includes:

12. A service providing program that causes a computer to provide a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, Acquire the request information for the porter service, Based on the request information, a command is issued to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the shipper from the boarding floor to the destination floor; determining whether the shipper is in the car in which the transport robot is riding at the boarding floor; When it is determined that the shipper is on board, the car is prevented from departing. A service providing program configured to cause a computer to perform the following:

13. A service providing program that causes a computer to provide a porter service that transports luggage using a transport robot that moves autonomously within a building using an elevator, Acquire the request information for the porter service, Based on the request information, a command is issued to the transport robot to get into the elevator car and transport the cargo of the shipper from the boarding floor to the destination floor; At the boarding floor, information is notified to the shipper to encourage the shipper to move to the destination floor by a means of transportation other than the car. A service providing program configured to cause a computer to perform the following:

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