JP7628402B2 - Fuel Supply System - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a fuel supply system suitable for use in self-service fuel supply stations where customers themselves operate a fuel supply device to supply fuel.

In a self-service fuel supply system, the customer sets the type of liquid to be supplied, the amount of liquid to be supplied, etc., and supplies fuel to a vehicle or other target by operating a fuel supply nozzle provided on the fuel supply device.

In a self-service fuel supply system, which is an example of a self-service fuel supply system, the customer operates a fuel supply operation setting device to set the fuel supply operation information, such as the type and amount of fuel to be supplied to the vehicle or other target, removes the fuel supply nozzle (fuel supply nozzle) from the nozzle hook of the fuel supply machine (fuel supply device), and, with the discharge pipe of the fuel supply nozzle inserted into the fuel filler opening of the vehicle or other target, opens the operating lever to supply fuel to the target.

At that time, when the fuel nozzle is removed from the nozzle hanger of the fuel tanker, a fueling permission request including the set refueling operation information and a request for permission to send fuel to the fuel nozzle is sent from the fuel tanker to the management device (self-service console, SSC).

When the gas station attendant, acting as the work supervisor, confirms that the customer has performed the above-mentioned preparation work correctly and without error, the management device will allow the refueling machine that received the refueling permission request to send the set fuel type to the fueling nozzle, allowing the customer to start refueling the target (actual fuel supply) by operating the operating lever themselves.

As an example, in the self-service refueling systems described in Patent Documents 1 and 2, the management device is equipped with a dedicated operation terminal (management device terminal consisting of a remote controller and a head-mounted display device) that can be carried by a gas station attendant. The operation terminal is wirelessly connected to the management device, and has a display unit that displays the operating status (operating status) of each of the multiple refueling machines installed at the gas station, and an operation unit that authorizes the operation of the pumps and other liquid delivery devices of each refueling machine to start actual refueling (start of fuel supply).

In such a self-service refueling system equipped with a management device having a portable operation terminal, if a gas station attendant carries the operation terminal with him/her, even if a refueling permission request is issued from a refueling machine, he/she can operate the operation terminal from the site without returning to the office where the management device is installed, and send a refueling permission to the refueling machine that has requested refueling permission, and can authorize the operation of the liquid delivery device corresponding to the refueling nozzle that the customer has removed from the nozzle hanger.

JP 2000-335696 A JP 2018-52570 A

However, in such a self-service refueling system, for the sake of convenience, if the gas station attendant is performing another task away from the refueling machine that issued the refueling permission request, there is a possibility that the customer may not fully check the progress of the refueling operation before operating the operating terminal to give permission for refueling. In such a case, refueling will begin without the gas station attendant having fully checked the situation.

If safety issues were overlooked during refueling operations by customers, such as the tip of the refueling nozzle not being inserted all the way into the target fuel inlet, problems could arise in the refueling machine, such as the refueling nozzle becoming wobbly in the fuel inlet during refueling due to the operation of the fuel delivery device based on the refueling permission.

Particularly in the case of self-service gas stations, in situations where the workload of gas station attendants increases and diversifies due to staff shortages, it is important in terms of customer service and gas station safety that gas station attendants thoroughly and reliably check the refueling procedures carried out by customers.

The present disclosure aims to solve the above-mentioned problems, and provides a fuel supply system equipped with a management device having a portable operation terminal, which improves customer service and safety.

The fuel supply system according to the present disclosure comprises:
A plurality of fuel supply devices;
A management device for managing the execution of a fuel supply operation of each of the fuel supply devices;
a portable management device terminal that is wirelessly connected to the management device and includes a notification unit and an input unit;
A fuel supply system for a fuel supply station, comprising:
a terminal location detection unit that detects where the management device terminal is located within the fuel supply station;
a permission request notification control unit that, when a permission request for a fuel supply operation is issued in any one of the plurality of fuel supply devices, notifies a user of the permission request by the notification unit of the management device terminal;
a terminal location determination unit that, when the occurrence of the permission request is confirmed by a confirmation operation of the input unit of the management device terminal, determines whether or not the location of the management device terminal detected by the terminal location detection unit is within a fuel supply permission area corresponding to the fuel supply device that issued the permission request for the fuel supply work, among the plurality of fuel supply permission areas corresponding to each of the fuel supply devices;
The device is equipped with an outside-area notification control unit that, when the determination result by the terminal location determination unit is outside the range, provides a notification via the notification unit of the management device terminal that the management device terminal is located outside the range of a fuel supply permission area corresponding to the fuel supply device that issued the permission request for the fuel supply work.

According to the present disclosure, in a fuel supply system equipped with a management device having a portable management device terminal, if a fuel supply station attendant is performing another task at a location away from the fuel supply device that issued a permission request for fuel supply work, when the fuel supply station attendant confirms on the management device terminal that the permission request has been issued, a notification unit of the management device terminal automatically notifies the fuel supply station attendant that the fuel supply station attendant is outside the fuel supply permission area corresponding to the fuel supply device that issued the permission request for the fuel supply work.

Therefore, when granting permission for fuel supply work, the fuel supply station attendant is prompted to move within the fuel supply permission area corresponding to the fuel supply device that issued the permission request, and the fuel supply station attendant can thoroughly and reliably check the safety of the customer's work, such as the installation status of the fuel supply nozzle to the supply port of the supply target, thereby improving the safety of the customer's fuel supply work.

Furthermore, customer service will be improved since fuel supply station staff will necessarily go to the fuel supply permission area, which includes the fuel supply work area of the fuel supply device that issued the permission request.

In addition, the problems, configurations, and advantages of this disclosure other than those described above will become clear from the description of the embodiments below.

1 is an overall configuration diagram of a self-service fuel supply system as one embodiment of a fuel supply system according to the present disclosure. 13 is a flowchart of the position detection control process of the SSC terminal for detecting the location within a gas station of the management device terminal of the refueling management device. 2 is an explanatory diagram of a refueling permission area P provided within a gas station, taking the self-service refueling system shown in FIG. 1 as an example. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a schematic diagram of an embodiment of an allowability determination table stored in a management device terminal or a refueling management device. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing tanker control performed by a tanker control device of the tanker to control each part. 4 is a flowchart of refueling management control performed by a gas station management device upon receiving a refueling permission request from a refueling machine. 4 is a flowchart of refueling management control performed by a gas station management device upon receiving refueling result information from a refueling machine. 4 is a flowchart of emergency stop control of a refueling machine, which is part of the refueling management control performed by a gas station management device. A flowchart of one embodiment of a refueling permission control process for a refueling work area of a refueling aircraft that has received a refueling permission request, which is performed on the refueling management device side of a refueling management device equipped with a management device terminal. A flowchart of one embodiment of a refueling permission control process for a refueling work area of a refueling aircraft that has received a refueling permission request, which is performed on the management device terminal side of a refueling management device equipped with a management device terminal. This is a notification screen for the occurrence of a refueling permission request that is displayed on the screen operation unit of the management device terminal when a refueling permission request occurs in a refueling machine. This is a notification screen for the occurrence of a refueling permission request that is displayed on the screen operation unit of the management device terminal when a refueling permission request occurs in a refueling machine. This is a notification screen for the occurrence of a refueling permission request that is displayed on the screen operation unit of the management device terminal when a refueling permission request occurs in a refueling machine. A flowchart of another embodiment of a refueling permission control process for a refueling operation area of a refueling aircraft that has received a refueling permission request, which is performed on the refueling management device side of a refueling management device equipped with a management device terminal. A flowchart of another embodiment of a refueling permission control process for a refueling work area of a refueling aircraft that has received a refueling permission request, which is performed on the management device terminal side of a refueling management device equipped with a management device terminal.

One embodiment of the fuel supply system according to the present disclosure will be described below with reference to the drawings. In the description, the fuel supply system according to the present disclosure will be described as an example of a self-service refueling system applied to a self-service gas station where the customer himself operates the refueling nozzle of a refueling machine to refuel a vehicle or other target. Note that the self-service fuel supply station to which the fuel supply system according to the present disclosure is applied is not limited to self-service gas stations, but can also be applied to self-service fuel supply stations for fuel gases such as liquefied petroleum gas (LPG), compressed natural gas (CNG), compressed hydrogen gas, etc.

Figure 1 is an overall configuration diagram of a self-service fuel supply system as an embodiment of the fuel supply system according to the present disclosure.

In the illustrated example, the self-service refueling system 1 has multiple refueling machines 10 (10-1 to 10-4) that are applicable to a self-service refueling method, a change machine (payment machine) 20, and a refueling station management device 30 that manages the overall operations of a refueling station equipped with these refueling machines 10 and change machines 20. These refueling machines 10, change machines 20, and refueling station management device 30 are connected for communication via a Service Station - Local Area Network (SS-LAN) 6 within the refueling station, enabling communication of various signals and various information data between each of these devices.

The refueling machine 10 houses, within the refueling machine housing 11, a pump or other liquid delivery device, a flow rate measuring device such as a flow meter, and a refueling machine control device that controls the operation of each part of the refueling machine and calculates the amount of fuel dispensed. A hose 12 having a refueling nozzle 13 at its tip extends from the refueling machine housing 11, and the base end of the hose 12 is connected to the outlet side of the flow meter inside the refueling machine housing 11.

The fuel nozzle 13 is equipped with an automatic valve closing mechanism that opens and closes in response to the operation of an operating lever, and closes when the fuel oil level in the target, such as a vehicle, reaches the discharge pipe at the tip of the nozzle, regardless of the operating position of the operating lever. The fuel nozzle 13 can be freely removed and stored in the nozzle hanger 14 provided on the fuel tanker housing 11, and is stored in the nozzle hanger 14 when refueling work is not being performed.

The refueling machine 10 pumps up fuel oil liquid from an underground tank (liquid storage tank) (not shown) by operating a liquid delivery device such as a pump. The pumped up fuel oil liquid is delivered via a flow meter to the refueling nozzle 13 at the end of the hose.

The customer, who is the refueling worker, removes the refueling nozzle 13 from the nozzle hanger 14, inserts its discharge pipe into the refueling port (fuel supply port) of the target to be supplied, such as a vehicle, and operates the operating lever to open the valve to supply fuel to the target.

The amount of fuel dispensed at that time (amount of fuel oil liquid dispensed) is calculated by the tanker control device based on the flow rate pulse signal output from a flow rate transmitter attached to the flow meter, and is displayed on the display 15 provided on the tanker housing 11.

In the illustrated example, the refueling machine 10 is configured such that a plurality of hoses 12, refueling nozzles 13, and nozzle hangers 14 are provided on the front surface of the refueling machine housing 11 in response to different types of fuel to be supplied, such as high octane, regular, and diesel. Similarly, a plurality of hoses 12, refueling nozzles 13, and nozzle hangers 14 are provided on the rear surface of the refueling machine housing 11 (not shown) in response to different types of fuel to be supplied, such as high octane, regular, and diesel. Displays 15 are also similarly provided on the front and rear surfaces of the refueling machine housing 11. As a result, in the case of the illustrated refueling machine 10, it is possible to perform refueling operations for different supply targets independently and in parallel on the front and rear sides of the refueling machine housing 11.

In accordance with this, the pumps and flow meters inside the refueling machine housing 11 are accommodated in multiple units according to the type of liquid to be supplied and the number of refueling nozzles 13 (corresponding to the number of refueling systems) provided on the refueling machine housing 11 to enable refueling operations with the desired type of liquid on both the front and rear sides of the refueling machine housing 11.

That is, in the case of the refueling machine 10-n (where n is any one of integers 1 to 4) shown in the figure, one refueling work area (fuel supply work point) E (En1, En2) is configured on each of the front and rear of the refueling machine housing 11, and each refueling work area En1, En2 is configured to have three refueling systems, such as high octane, regular, and diesel. In each refueling work area En1, En2, the refueling machine control device controls the operation of each part of the refueling machine, including the pumps and other liquid delivery devices of each of the three refueling systems, so that a desired type of fuel oil selected from a number of oil types, such as high octane, regular, and diesel, can be supplied to a supply target such as a vehicle by operating the refueling nozzle 13 of the corresponding oil type.

It should be noted that the pumps of the fuel supply systems that supply the same type of liquid may be shared between the fuel supply work areas En1 and En2 of one fuel supply machine 10-n. However, in the explanation of the self-service fuel supply system 1 shown in the figure, in order to simplify the understanding of the fuel supply machine control by the fuel supply machine control device described below, the following explanation will be given assuming that each fuel supply system has its own pump even if the multiple fuel supply systems supply the same type of liquid.

In the illustrated example, the refueling machine 10 is applied to a self-service gas station, so that self-service-compatible devices such as a setting device 16, a refueling fee payment device 17, and a receipt issuing device 18 are provided integrally with the refueling machine housing 11 on the front and rear of the refueling machine housing 11 in correspondence with each of the refueling work areas En1 and En2.

The setting device 16 is a self-service adaptive device that allows a customer, who is a refueling worker, to set and input the type of fuel oil (e.g., high octane, regular, diesel, etc.) and amount of fuel oil (e.g., a full tank or a desired preset amount or preset price) to be supplied to the target when the customer removes the refueling nozzle 13 from the nozzle holder 14 and begins refueling work. The information set and input by the setting device 16 is supplied to the refueling machine control device.

The fuel payment device 17 is a self-service device that allows a customer to pay the fuel fee (fuel charge) in advance by cash or credit card or prepaid card when filling up the tank. The amount information of the prepaid fuel fee entered into the fuel payment device 17 is supplied to the fuel tanker control device.

The refueling machine control device of the refueling machine 10 creates refueling work information for the refueling work that will be started by operating the refueling nozzle 13, based on the type of liquid and amount of liquid set and input by the setting device 16, and the amount information of the prepaid refueling fee entered by the refueling fee payment device 17. The refueling work information is sent from the refueling machine 10 to the gas station management device 30 via the SS-LAN 6, with identification information added for the refueling machine 10 and the refueling work area (fuel supply work point) E used in the refueling work.

The receipt issuing device 18 is a self-service device that issues an accounting receipt for the refueling operation based on refueling result information, such as the actual amount of fuel dispensed and the amount of fuel dispensed, calculated by the refueling machine control device of the refueling machine 10 when the refueling operation is completed, for example, by storing the refueling nozzle 13 in the nozzle holder 14. The refueling result information is transmitted from the refueling machine 10 to the gas station management device 30 via the SS-LAN 6.

In this embodiment, the settlement slip issued by the slip issuing device 18 is used to confirm the contents of the refueling result information, such as the prepaid refueling fee, the type of fuel, the actual amount of refueling, the amount of refueling, the change, etc. In addition, the settlement slip is also used as an identification piece when a customer whose actual refueling amount does not reach the prepaid refueling fee previously deposited in the refueling fee payment device 17 receives change back from the change machine 20. Therefore, when printing out the settlement slip, the slip issuing device 18 generates identification information for the settlement slip so that each customer who receives change from the change machine 20 can be identified. This identification information is printed out on the settlement slip by the slip issuing device 18 together with the refueling result information. The identification information is also supplied to the refueling machine control device and included in the refueling result information transmitted from the refueling machine 10 to the refueling station management device 30.

In the illustrated example, the self-service adaptable device consisting of the setting device 16, fuel fee payment device 17, and receipt issuing device 18 is configured as an integral part of the fuel tanker housing 11 for each fuel tanker 10, but it is also possible to provide it as a self-service adaptable unit device separate from the fuel tanker housing 11 and corresponding to multiple fuel tankers 10, connected to the SS-LAN 6. When the setting device 16 is shared by multiple fuel tankers 10 and the fuel supply work area (fuel supply work point) E, the customer will also set and input identification information such as the number of the fuel tanker 10 to be used for the fuel supply work as the fuel supply work information.

Fuel tanker 10-n is also provided with monitoring cameras 51 of monitoring device 50, which will be described later, corresponding to the fueling work areas En1, En2 on the front and rear of fuel tanker housing 11. Also provided is a beacon 8 that is used to confirm the location of a portable management device terminal (SSC terminal) 70, which will be described later.

The surveillance cameras 51 (51En1, 51En2) capture images of the refueling work area E (En1, En2) corresponding to the refueling machine 10-n, and transmit the captured image data to the surveillance device 50 of the gas station management device 30 via the dedicated image data signal line 7.

In the illustrated example, a pair of beacons 8 (8-nA, 8-nB) are arranged on each side of the tanker housing 11 for each tanker 10-n. Each beacon 8 transmits a beacon signal (e.g., a low-power communication signal using Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE)) for confirming the location of the management device terminal (SSC terminal) 70. Each beacon signal is identifiable for each beacon (8-nA, 8-nB, n is 1 to 4). In the illustrated example, multiple beacons 8 are arranged for each refueling work area (fuel supply work point) E, but the arrangement positions and number of beacons 8 at the gas station are not limited to the illustrated example. For example, the refueling work area (fuel supply work point) E may be identified according to the difference in the combination of beacon signals received from each of the multiple beacons 8 or the difference in the combination of distances measured based on the reception strength from each of the multiple beacons 8. Additionally, beacons 8 can be installed on island pillars, walls of offices 3 and pits, canopies, signs, etc.

The change machine (adjustment machine) 20 is a device for a customer to receive change when the amount of fuel dispensed based on the amount of fuel dispensed does not reach the amount of fuel paid in advance by the customer who is the fuel dispenser in a self-service fuel dispenser, and change is required. The change machine 20 receives fuel dispenser result information transmitted from the fuel dispenser 10 each time a self-service fuel dispenser is performed, and stores the identification information of the settlement slip for customers who need their change returned, the amount of change, etc. as settlement information. When the change machine 20 reads the identification information of a customer's settlement slip with its slip identification unit, it checks the accumulated settlement information, and if it is confirmed that the customer is a customer who should receive the change, it pays the change. In the illustrated example, the change machine (adjustment machine) 20 is configured to be shared by multiple fuel dispensers 10 in a separate housing from the fuel dispenser 10, but it may be provided for each fuel dispenser 10 as an integral part of the fuel dispenser housing 11.

The gas station management device 30 is installed in the gas station office 3, and in this embodiment, is configured to include a POS terminal 40 that manages the point of sale at the gas station, a monitoring device 50 for monitoring the status inside the gas station including the gas station filling area E, and a gas filling management device 60 that manages the execution of self-service gas filling operations using a gas filling machine 10 by customers themselves. The POS terminal 40 and the gas filling management device 60 are connected to the SS-LAN 6, and together with each gas filling machine 10 and the change machine 20, they form a gas station network. The gas filling management device 60 corresponds to a so-called self-service station controller (SSC).

The POS terminal 40 receives the refueling operation information set in the setting device 16 when starting the refueling operation, the permission request to start refueling (start sending fuel to the refueling nozzle), and the refueling result information created at the end of the refueling operation, all of which are transmitted from each refueling machine 10 via the SS-LAN 6, and manages the point of sale of fuel oil at the gas station. The permission request to start refueling is made for each refueling system specified by the refueling operation information set in the setting device 16, that is, for each refueling nozzle 13. Note that below, the combination of the refueling operation information set in the setting device 16 when starting the refueling operation and the permission request to start refueling, all of which are transmitted from each refueling machine 10 via the SS-LAN 6, may be referred to as a refueling permission request.

The monitoring device 50 has monitoring cameras 51 (51En1, 51En2, 51-20) provided corresponding to each of the fuel supply work areas E and the change machine 20, and is connected to each of the monitoring cameras 51 via a dedicated image data signal line 7. The monitoring device 50 generates and displays monitoring images from the captured images, consisting of moving or still images of each of the fuel supply work areas E and the surroundings of the change machine 20, captured by each of the monitoring cameras 51. This allows a gas station attendant to monitor the situation in each place within the gas station from within his or her office by viewing the monitoring images. In response to the operation instructions of the gas station attendant, the monitoring device 50 can generate monitoring images in which the images captured by each of the multiple monitoring cameras 51 are split and displayed, or a desired captured image can be selected from the images and an enlarged monitoring image can be generated.

The refueling management device 60 is capable of receiving refueling operation information, requests for permission to start refueling, and refueling result information transmitted from each refueling machine 10 via the SS-LAN 6 in the same way as the POS terminal 40. The refueling management device 60 is also connected to the monitoring device 50 via data signals, and is also capable of receiving desired monitoring images from the monitoring device 50.

The refueling management device 60 determines the operating state of each refueling machine 10, for example, the refueling operation acceptance state, the waiting state for refueling permission, and the refueling operation end state (standby state) of the refueling machine 10 based on the refueling operation information, the permission request to start refueling, and the refueling result information transmitted from each refueling machine 10 via the SS-LAN 6. The refueling management device 60 also determines the start/stop state, refueling state (liquid delivery operating state), and refueling prohibited state (emergency stop state) of the refueling machine 10 based on the start/stop instruction, refueling permission, and emergency stop transmitted to each refueling machine 10 via the SS-LAN 6. The refueling management device 60 then sequentially updates and stores these determined operating states of each refueling machine 10 in its memory unit for each refueling machine 10 or for each refueling operation area (fuel supply operation point) E.

At that time, the display unit of the refueling management device 60 displays the current or latest operating status of each refueling machine 10. The gas station attendant can operate the operation unit of the refueling management device 60 to give permission to start refueling to the refueling machine 10 that is waiting for refueling permission and has received a refueling permission request, or select the target refueling machine 10 and set it to a refueling prohibited state (emergency stop state). In this case, permission to start refueling refers to permission to operate the pump or other liquid delivery equipment related to the set oil type for the refueling work area (fuel supply work point) E of the corresponding refueling machine 10 so that fuel can be discharged from the refueling nozzle 13 when the customer operates the operating lever to open the valve. Furthermore, the prohibition of refueling refers to prohibiting the operation of pumps and other liquid delivery devices in the refueling work areas (fuel supply work points) En1 and En2 of the corresponding refueling machine 10-n until a specified return operation is performed, regardless of whether the operating state of the refueling machine 10 is a refueling work in progress state in which the refueling nozzle 13 is removed from the nozzle hanger 14, or a standby state in which the refueling nozzle 13 is stored in the nozzle hanger 14 and no refueling work is being performed. The permission to start refueling and the prohibition of refueling are transmitted from the refueling management device 60 to the target refueling machine 10 via the SS-LAN 6.

In addition, in this embodiment, the refueling management device 60 has an operation unit that also serves as an operation unit for the monitoring device 50, and a display unit that also serves as a display device for the monitoring image. Therefore, the refueling management device 60 can indicate the monitoring image generated by the monitoring device 50, display the monitoring image generated by the monitoring device 50, and further display the current or latest operating status of the corresponding refueling machine 10 (refueling work information, presence or absence of a refueling permission request, refueling result information) on the monitoring image generated by the monitoring device 50 via an OSD (On-Screen Display).

In addition, in this embodiment, the refueling management device 60 is provided with a portable management device terminal (SSC terminal) 70 that is wirelessly connected to the refueling management device 60. In this case, like the operation unit and display unit of the refueling management device 60 described above, the management device terminal 70 can receive a refueling permission request and give permission to start refueling to a refueling machine 10 that is waiting for permission, select a target refueling machine 10 and set it to a refueling prohibited state (emergency stop state), display the current or latest operating state of each refueling machine 10, and instruct the monitoring device 50 on the form of a monitoring image and display that monitoring image.

The management device terminal 70 is not limited to a wireless terminal device dedicated to the refueling management device 60. As long as it is capable of communicating with the refueling management device 60 and has a beacon receiving function (short-range wireless communication function) that can receive beacon signals from each of the beacons 8, a portable general-purpose mobile communication terminal device such as a smartphone, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a tablet computer with communication function, etc. can also function as the management device terminal 70.

Therefore, the fuel supply management device 60 is equipped with a wireless communication unit 68 capable of communicating with the management device terminal 70. The wireless communication unit 68 is configured as a Wi-Fi router of the SS-LAN (Service Station - Local Area Network) 6 in the gas station, and the management device terminal 70 is directly connected to the fuel supply management device 60 via the wireless communication unit 68, and can also be connected to SS-LAN-connected devices other than the fuel supply management device 60 of the SS-LAN via the wireless communication unit 68 and the fuel supply management device 60.

In the self-service refueling system 1 of this embodiment configured as described above, refueling management for the self-service refueling operation performed by the customer himself/herself by operating the refueling nozzle 13 of the refueling machine 10 is performed as follows by a gas station attendant acting as the operation supervisor who operates the management device terminal 70 of the refueling management device 60.

Figure 2 is a flowchart of the SSC terminal's position detection control process for detecting the location of the management device terminal of the fuel management device within a gas station.

As shown in FIG. 2, the management device terminal (SSC terminal) 70 activates a short-range wireless communication function (e.g., Bluetooth) that serves as a beacon receiving function that is pre-installed in the terminal itself, receives beacon signals transmitted from each beacon 8 (8-nA, 8-nB, n is 1 to 4), and obtains the received radio wave intensity of each received beacon signal (FIG. 2, S010).

Then, the refueling management device (SSC main body) 60, which has been provided with the received radio wave strength of each beacon signal from the management device terminal 70 via the management device terminal 70 or the wireless communication unit 68, obtains the distance from the corresponding beacon 8 to the management device terminal 70 based on the received radio wave strength of each received beacon signal (S020).

Based on this, the management device terminal 70 or the refueling management device 60 identifies the current location of the management device terminal 70 within the gas station, i.e., the refueling permission area P located within the gas station where the management device terminal 70 is currently located (SA030). In identifying this refueling permission area P, the management device terminal 70 also receives beacon signals from two or more of the beacons 8 (8-nA, 8-nB, n is 1 to 4) located in different positions, allowing it to accurately identify its own current location within the gas station.

Next, we will explain an example of a refueling permission area P located within a gas station and a method for identifying the refueling permission area P with reference to Figure 3.

Figure 3 is an explanatory diagram of the refueling permission area P set up within a gas station, using the self-service refueling system shown in Figure 1 as an example.

In the illustrated example, a pair of beacons 8 (8-nA, 8-nB) are arranged for each tanker 10-n, one on each side of the tanker housing 11. The refueling permission area P for each tanker 10-n includes the refueling work area (fuel supply work point) E (En1, En2) for each tanker 10-n, and is an area within the tanker station where the tanker station attendant can adequately check the progress of the refueling work performed by the customer using the tanker 10-n. The boundaries of the refueling permission area P are defined by the reception strength of the beacon signal from the corresponding beacon 8 (8-nA, 8-nB) for each tanker 10-n.

Specifically, the refueling permission area P1 for refueling operations using the refueling aircraft 10-1 is area P(8-1A) defined based on the reception strength of the beacon signal from beacon 8-1A (obtained reception strength W > reception strength W(1A)), or area P(8-1B) defined based on the reception strength of the beacon signal from beacon 8-1B (obtained reception strength W > reception strength W(1B)). Similarly, the refueling permission possible area P2 for refueling operations using the tanker 10-2 is the area P(8-2A) defined based on the reception strength of the beacon signal from the beacon 8-2A (obtained reception strength W > reception strength W(2A)) or the area P(8-2B) defined based on the reception strength of the beacon signal from the beacon 8-2B (obtained reception strength W > reception strength W(2B)). The refueling permission possible area P3 for refueling operations using the tanker 10-3 is the area P(8-3A) defined based on the reception strength of the beacon signal from the beacon 8-3A (obtained reception strength W > reception strength W(3A)). The refueling permission area P4 for refueling operations using the tanker 10-4 is area P(8-4A) defined based on the reception strength of the beacon signal from beacon 8-4A (acquired reception strength W > reception strength W(4A)) or area P(8-4B) defined based on the reception strength of the beacon signal from beacon 8-4B (acquired reception strength W > reception strength W(4B)).

Then, in SA030, the management device terminal 70 or the refueling management device 60, which identifies the refueling permission area P located within the gas station where the management device terminal 70 is currently located and the refueling machines 10-n that are eligible for refueling permission, has a permission determination table Y stored in advance for identifying the refueling permission areas P1 to P4 and the refueling machines 10-1 to 10-4 that are eligible for refueling permission.

Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing one example of a permission determination table Y stored in the management device terminal or the refueling management device.

For example, based on this permission determination table Y, the management device terminal 70 or the refueling management device 60 can determine that, for the management device terminal 70a shown in Figure 3, the obtained reception strength W > reception strength W (3A) is obtained, and therefore the terminal is located within area P (8-3A), i.e., within the refueling permission area P3, and refueling is only permitted for refueling work at refueling work areas (fuel supply work points) E31 and E32 using the refueling aircraft 10-3. Similarly, based on this permission determination table Y, the management device terminal 70 or the refueling management device 60 can determine that the management device terminal 70b shown in Figure 3 is located in area P(8-3A) and area P(8-3B), i.e., in the refueling permission possible area P3, and that refueling permission is possible for the refueling work in the refueling work areas (fuel supply work points) E31 and E32 using the refueling aircraft 10-3, because the acquired reception intensity W > reception intensity W (3A) and the acquired reception intensity W > reception intensity W (3B) are obtained. Also, with respect to the management device terminal 70b, the acquired reception intensity W > reception intensity W (1A) and the acquired reception intensity W > reception intensity W (1B) are obtained, so that the management device terminal 70b is located in area P(8-1A) and area P(8-1B), i.e., in the refueling permission possible area P1, and that refueling permission is possible for the refueling work in the refueling work areas (fuel supply work points) E11 and E12 using the refueling aircraft 10-1. In addition, this permission determination table Y may be configured to obtain a distance L or position S calculated from the acquired reception strength W of the beacon signal from each individual beacon 8 instead of the acquired reception strength W of the beacon signal from each individual beacon 8, and to identify the refueling permission area P in which the vehicle is located by comparing it with a preset comparison distance L or comparison position S.

Next, with reference to FIG. 5, we will explain the fuel tanker control performed by the fuel tanker control device of the fuel tanker 10-n, which controls each part, when the customer operates the fuel tanker nozzle 13 of the fuel tanker 10-n (where n is any one of 1 to 4) to perform the refueling operation by himself/herself in the self-service fuel tanker system 1 of this embodiment.

Figure 5 is a flowchart showing the tanker control performed by the tanker control device to control each component.

When performing self-service refueling, the customer, who is the operator, operates the desired setting device 16 on either the front (i.e., the refueling work area En1 side) or the rear (i.e., the refueling work area En2 side) of the refueling machine housing 11 of the refueling machine 10-n corresponding to the refueling work area (fuel supply work point) E where the refueling work will be performed, sets and inputs the type of fuel oil (e.g., high octane, regular, diesel, etc.) and amount of fuel oil (e.g., full tank or a desired preset amount or preset amount) to be supplied to the supply target, and inserts the prepaid refueling fee into the refueling fee payment device 17 (S110).

The refueling machine control device creates refueling operation information for the refueling operation that will be started by operating the refueling nozzle 13 in the refueling operation area (fuel supply operation point) E that corresponds to the setting device 16, based on the type of liquid and amount of liquid set and input by the setting device 16, and the amount information of the prepaid refueling fee entered by the refueling fee payment device 17. The refueling machine control device transmits the created refueling operation information from the refueling machine 10-n to the gas station management device 30 via the SS-LAN 6.

Then, when the refueling machine control device detects, based on the output of the nozzle switch provided on the nozzle hanger 14, that the refueling nozzle 13 in the refueling work area E corresponding to the setting device 16 has been removed from the nozzle hanger 14 by the customer (S120), it transmits a refueling permission request for refueling work by the refueling machine 10-n in this refueling work area E to the refueling management device 60 via the SS-LAN 6 (S130).

Then, when the tanker control device receives a refueling permission for the tanker 10-n in response to the refueling permission request from the refueling management device 60 (S140), it operates the liquid delivery equipment such as a pump in the refueling system that corresponds to the set liquid type for the refueling work area E (S150) and starts supplying fuel oil liquid to the refueling nozzle 13.

Therefore, in the refueling machine 10-n, this series of processes of the refueling machine control device causes the nozzle tip of the refueling nozzle 13 to be inserted into the refueling inlet of the target to be refueled, and the customer opens the refueling nozzle 13 with the nozzle tip inserted into the refueling inlet of the target to begin actual refueling of the target.

When actual refueling of the supply target is started in this manner, the refueling machine control device calculates the amount of refueling based on the flow rate pulse signal output from the flow rate transmitter attached to the flow meter of the refueling system corresponding to the set liquid type of the refueling work area E, displays it on the display 15 (S160), and sequentially transmits the current amount of refueling to the management device terminal 70 via the SS-LAN 6. In parallel with the execution of this refueling amount measurement and display process, after receiving refueling permission from the management device terminal 70, the refueling machine control device checks whether or not to end refueling of the supply target (S170).

In this case, confirmation of the end of refueling can be made, for example, by returning the nozzle, reaching the limit amount/time limit, completion of refueling the set amount of fuel, input of an emergency stop signal, operation of the emergency stop button, etc.

Specifically, "returning the nozzle" corresponds to the fuel nozzle 13 once removed from the nozzle hanger 14 by the customer being put back into the nozzle hanger 14 by the customer. "Reaching the limit amount/time limit" corresponds to the amount of fuel supplied to the supply target reaching a preset limit amount, or the time that has elapsed since the fuel nozzle 13 was removed from the nozzle hanger 14 reaching a preset time limit. "Completion of refueling the set amount of fuel" corresponds to the amount of fuel supplied to the supply target reaching the preset amount of fuel or fuel amount that the customer set in the setting device 16 when refueling. "Input of emergency stop signal" corresponds to receiving an emergency stop signal from the fuel supply management device 60. "Operation of emergency stop button" corresponds to operating the emergency stop button provided on the operation unit of the fuel supply management device 60 or the screen operation unit of the management device terminal 70.

When the refueling machine control device detects the end of refueling in this way (S170, YES), it stops the operation of the pump and other liquid delivery devices in the refueling system that correspond to the set liquid type for the refueling work area E (S180). Then, it monitors the output of the nozzle switch provided on the nozzle hanger 14, and detects whether the refueling nozzle 13 that was temporarily removed by the customer has been stored back in the nozzle hanger 14 and the refueling work on the supply target by the customer has been completed (S190).

When the refueling machine control device detects the end of refueling by the refueling machine 10-n in the refueling work area E (in this case, the desired one of the refueling work areas En1 or En2) in this manner (S190, YES), it generates refueling result information, such as the actual amount of refueling related to this refueling work and the amount of refueling, based on the amount of refueling.Then, it transmits this refueling result information to the refueling management device 60 and the POS terminal 40 via the SS-LAN 6 (S200).

Next, the fuel supply management control of the fuel station management device 30, which manages the execution of the fuel supply work in the fuel supply work areas (fuel supply work points) En1 and En2 of each of the fuel tankers 10 (10-1 to 10-4) in which the above-mentioned fuel tanker control is performed in the self-service fuel supply system 1 of this embodiment, and manages the work of the fuel station as a whole, will be described with reference to Figures 6 to 8.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart of the refueling management control performed by the gas station management device upon receiving a refueling permission request from a refueling machine.
FIG. 7 is a flowchart of the refueling management control performed by the gas station management device upon receiving refueling result information from the refueling machine.
FIG. 8 is a flowchart of the emergency stop control of a fuel tanker, which is part of the fuel supply management control performed by the fuel station management device.

When the refueling management device 60 receives refueling work information for a refueling work to be performed in the refueling work area (fuel supply work point) En1 or En2 from the refueling machine 10-n, it updates and stores the operation state of the refueling machine 10-n in the refueling work area (fuel supply work point) En1 or En2 where the refueling work is to be performed from a standby state to a refueling work acceptance state, and registers the received refueling work information as the current refueling work information for the refueling work area En1 or En2 of the refueling machine 10-n. In addition, the operation state and refueling work information of the refueling work acceptance state for the refueling work area En1 or En2 of the refueling machine 10-n are displayed on the display unit, and the refueling work acceptance state and refueling work information for the refueling work area En1 or En2 of the refueling machine 10-n are also transmitted to the management device terminal 70 via the wireless communication unit 68.

Then, as shown in FIG. 6, when the refueling management device 60 receives a refueling permission request from the refueling machine 10-n for the refueling work area En1 or En2 (S311), it updates and stores the operation state of the refueling machine 10-n for the refueling work area En1 or En2 from a refueling work acceptance state to a refueling permission waiting state (S313). In addition, the refueling management device 60 displays on the display unit that the refueling machine 10-n is in an operation state waiting for refueling permission for the refueling work area En1 or En2, and also transmits the refueling permission waiting state of the refueling machine 10-n for the refueling work area En1 or En2 to the management device terminal 70 via the wireless communication unit 68.

As shown in FIG. 7, when the refueling management device 60 receives refueling result information for the refueling work area En1 or En2 from the refueling machine 10-n (S321), it updates and stores the operation state of the refueling machine 10-n for the refueling work area En1 or En2 from the previous refueling state (liquid delivery operation state) to a refueling work completion state (standby state) (S323). The refueling management device 60 also displays the operation state of the refueling work completion state of the refueling machine 10-n for the refueling work area En1 or En2 on the display unit, and also transmits the refueling work completion state (standby state) and refueling result information of the refueling machine 10-n for the refueling work area En1 or En2 to the management device terminal 70 via the wireless communication unit 68.

As shown in FIG. 8, when the emergency stop button provided on the operation unit is operated (S331) or an emergency stop output instruction is received from the management device terminal 70 (S333), the refueling management device 60 outputs an emergency stop signal to the refueling machines 10-n that are the target of the emergency stop via the SS-LAN 6, and updates the stored operating state of the refueling machines 10-n to a refueling prohibited state (emergency stop state) (S335). The refueling management device 60 also displays the operating state of the refueling prohibited state of the refueling machine 10-n on the display unit, and transmits the refueling prohibited state of the refueling machine 10-n to the management device terminal 70 via the wireless communication unit 68.

As a result, in the refueling machine 10-n that is the subject of an emergency stop and whose operating state has been set to a refueling prohibited state, upon receiving an emergency stop signal from the refueling management device 60 (step S170 in FIG. 5), the refueling machine control device stops the operation of the pump even if it is running (S180), and the setting device 16 is also set to an inactive state in which it is not possible to input settings for the type of liquid and the amount of liquid for a new refueling operation.

In this way, the refueling management device 60 maintains the refueling prohibited state for the refueling machine 10-n whose operation state has been set to the refueling prohibited state until a predetermined release operation is performed on the operation unit (S337), and maintains the prohibition of new refueling work using the refueling machine 10-n. On the other hand, when a predetermined release operation is performed on the operation unit of the refueling prohibited refueling machine 10-n (S337), for example, on the condition that all the refueling nozzles 13 are closed and stored in their corresponding nozzle holders 14, the operation state of the refueling machine 10-n is updated and stored from the previous refueling prohibited state to a refueling work completion state (standby state) and displayed on the display unit, and the standby state (standby state) of each of the refueling work areas En1 and En2 of the refueling machine 10-n is also transmitted to the management device terminal 70 via the wireless communication unit 68 (S339).

Next, in the self-service refueling system 1 of this embodiment, we will explain the refueling permission control by the refueling management device 60 equipped with the management device terminal 70 for the refueling work area En1 or En2 of the refueling machine 10-n whose operating state is waiting for refueling permission.

The permission to refuel for the refueling work area En1 or En2 of the refueling machine 10-n whose operating state is waiting for refueling permission can be given by a refueling station attendant performing a predetermined operation on the operation unit of the refueling management device 60 while checking the status of the refueling work using the refueling work area En of the refueling machine 10-n that is waiting for refueling permission on the monitoring screen of the monitoring device 50 in the refueling station office 3. Also, the permission to refuel can be given by a refueling station attendant performing a predetermined operation on the screen operation unit that serves as both the input unit and the notification unit of the management device terminal 70 within the refueling permission possible area P that is specified for the refueling work area En1 or En2 of the refueling machine 10-n that is waiting for refueling permission.

1 and 2, when the refueling management device 60 receives a refueling permission request transmitted from the refueling work area En1 or En2 of any one of the refueling machines 10-1 to 10-4, for example, the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4, it updates and stores the operation state of the refueling machine 10-4 for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 from a refueling work acceptance state to a refueling permission waiting state, as described in step S313 of FIG. 6. In addition, the refueling management device 60 displays the operation state of the refueling permission waiting state of the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 on the display unit, and also transmits the refueling permission waiting state of the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 to the management device terminal 70 via the wireless communication unit 68. This allows the gas station attendant to know that the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 is waiting for refueling permission not only through a notification provided by the display unit of the refueling management device 60, but also through a notification provided by the operation screen unit of the management device terminal 70.

The fuel station attendant can issue a fuel refueling permission for the fueling work area E42 of the fuel tanker 10-4 awaiting fuel refueling permission by performing a predetermined operation on the operation unit of the fuel refueling management device 60 while checking the status of the refueling work using the fuel refueling work area E42 of the fuel tanker 10-4 awaiting fuel refueling permission on the monitoring screen of the monitoring device 50 in the fuel station office 3. The fuel station attendant can also issue a fuel refueling permission for the fuel refueling work area E42 of the fuel tanker 10-4 awaiting fuel refueling permission by performing a predetermined operation on the screen operation unit of the management device terminal 70 within the fuel refueling permission possible area P4 (P8(4A) or P8(4B)) specified for the fuel refueling work area E42 of the fuel tanker 10-4 awaiting fuel refueling permission.

Therefore, in the self-service refueling system 1 of this embodiment, the refueling management device 60 performs a refueling permission control process as shown in FIG. 9 for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission, and the portable management device terminal connected via wireless communication to the refueling management device 60 is configured to perform a refueling permission control process as shown in FIG. 10 for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission.

Figure 9 is a flowchart of one embodiment of a refueling permission control process for the refueling operation area E of a refueling machine that has received a refueling permission request, which is performed on the refueling management device side of a refueling management device equipped with a management device terminal in the self-service refueling system of this embodiment.

Figure 10 is a flowchart of one embodiment of a refueling permission control process for a refueling operation area of a refueling machine that has received a refueling permission request, which is performed on the management device terminal side of a refueling management device equipped with a management device terminal in the self-service refueling system of this embodiment.

In FIG. 9, the refueling management device 60 checks whether or not a refueling permission operation has been performed by a refueling station attendant on the operation unit for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission (S351), or whether or not confirmation of the occurrence of a refueling permission request for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 has been received and input from the management device terminal 70 via the wireless communication unit 68 (S353).

Here, the confirmation of the occurrence of a refueling permission request from the management device terminal 70 is generated on the management device terminal 70 side when the gas station attendant performs a specified confirmation operation on the screen operation unit of the management device terminal 70, as described below, and is wirelessly transmitted to the refueling management device 60. This confirmation of the occurrence of a refueling permission request also includes the reception strength of the beacon signal from each beacon 8 (8-nA, 8-nB) acquired on the management device terminal 70 side when the gas station attendant performs the specified confirmation operation on the screen operation unit of the management device terminal 70.

When the refueling management device 60 detects that the refueling station attendant has performed a refueling permission operation on the operation unit for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission (S351, YES), it outputs a refueling permission to the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission via the SS-LAN 6 (S359). Furthermore, the refueling management device 60 updates and stores the operation state of the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 from the waiting for refueling permission state to the refueling state (liquid delivery operation state) (S361). Furthermore, the refueling management device 60 displays the operation state of the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission on the display unit, and also transmits the refueling permission waiting state of the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 to the management device terminal 70 via the wireless communication unit 68. This allows the management device terminal 70 to recognize that the operating state of the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 has changed from a waiting for refueling permission state to a refueling in progress state (liquid delivery operating state).

In response to this, when the refueling management device 60 detects that a confirmation of the occurrence of a refueling permission request for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling aircraft 10-4 waiting for refueling permission has been received and input from the management device terminal 70 via the wireless communication unit 68 (S351, YES), the refueling management device 60 checks whether the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission possible area P4 (P8(4A) or P8(4B)) for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling aircraft 10-4 waiting for refueling permission when the confirmation of the occurrence of the refueling permission request is made on the management device terminal 70 side, based on the reception strength of the beacon signal from each beacon 8 (8-nA, 8-nB) acquired on the management device terminal 70 side and included in the confirmation of the occurrence of the refueling permission request (S355).

This confirmation is performed by the refueling management device 60, for example, by referring to the permission determination table Y shown in FIG. 4, which is pre-stored in the refueling management device 60, based on the reception strength of the beacon signal from each beacon 8 (8-nA, 8-nB), and executing the processing of steps S020 and S030 of the position detection control processing of the management device terminal (SSC terminal) 70 shown in FIG. 2.

Then, as a result of checking the location of the management device terminal 70, when the refueling management device 60 detects that the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission possible area P4 for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission (S355, YES), it further checks whether an instruction for refueling permission has been input within a predetermined time following input of the confirmation of the occurrence of the refueling permission request from the management device terminal 70 that sent the confirmation of the occurrence of the refueling permission request (S357).

When the refueling management device 60 detects through these checks that the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission possible area P4 for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 waiting for refueling permission, and that a refueling permission instruction has been input from the management device terminal 70 within a predetermined time following confirmation of the occurrence of a refueling permission request (YES in both S355 and S357), it grants refueling permission for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 waiting for refueling permission, as described above in steps S359 and S361.

In response to this, if the management device terminal 70 is not located within the refueling permission possible area P4 for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling aircraft 10-4 waiting for refueling permission (S355, NO), or if the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission possible area P4 but does not input a refueling permission instruction within a predetermined time following the refueling permission request (S355 is YES and S357 is NO), the refueling management device 60 transmits a refueling denial outside the area via the wireless communication unit 68 to the management device terminal 70 that sent the confirmation of the refueling permission request (S363).

Then, the refueling management device 60 notifies the display unit of the refusal of the refueling permission request from the corresponding management device terminal 70, increments the number of refusals by the corresponding management device terminal 70, and stores the number of refusals as a history (S365).

Then, the refueling management device 60 determines whether the number of refusals by the corresponding management device terminal 70 has reached a preset number (S367), and if the preset number has been reached (S367, YES), prohibits operations related to refueling management control using the corresponding management device terminal 70.

In this case, prohibiting operations related to refueling management control using the relevant management device terminal 70 includes deactivating the relevant management device terminal 70 itself so that it cannot perform operations related to refueling management control, and preventing the refueling management device 60 from accepting operations related to refueling management control using the relevant management device terminal 70, etc.

In FIG. 10, the management device terminal 70, each time wireless communication is performed with the refueling management device 60, checks from time to time whether it is located within the wireless communication range via the wireless communication unit 68 of the refueling management device 60, for example, based on whether an acknowledgment Ack can be received from the refueling management device 60 (S411). If the management device terminal 70 is not located within the wireless communication range of the refueling management device 60 (S411, NO), it notifies the screen operation unit that communication is not possible (S415).

When the management device terminal 70 is located within the wireless communication range via the wireless communication unit 68 of the refueling management device 60 (S411, YES), it stores the operation status of the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 transmitted from the refueling management device 60 for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4, and notifies the operation status of the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 on the screen operation unit (S413). When the operation status of the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 is a waiting for refueling permission state, the refueling permission control process from step S417 onwards is performed for the refueling machine that received the refueling permission request.

In FIG. 10, from step S417 onwards, the management device terminal 70 checks whether or not an emergency stop operation has been performed by the gas station attendant on the screen operation section for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission (S417), whether or not a notification that refueling is not possible outside the area has been received from the refueling management device 60 (S419), whether or not an operation has been performed by the gas station attendant on the screen operation section to confirm the occurrence of a refueling permission request (S421), and whether or not an operation to grant refueling permission has been performed by the gas station attendant on the screen operation section (S421).

Then, when an emergency stop operation is performed by a gas station attendant on the screen operation section of the management device terminal 70 (S417, YES), the management device terminal 70 transmits and outputs an emergency stop instruction to the refueling management device 60 (S431), which is related to the emergency stop control of the refueling machine 10 among the refueling management control performed by the refueling management device 60 as described in Fig. 8. Also, when the management device terminal 70 receives and inputs a message indicating that refueling outside the area is not permitted from the refueling management device 60 in step S363 of Fig. 9 (S419, YES), the management device terminal 70 displays a pop-up display on the screen display section to inform the user that the permitted operation on the management device terminal 70 is invalid outside the area for a predetermined period of time. In addition, when the gas station attendant operates the screen operation unit of the management device terminal 70 to confirm the occurrence of a refueling permission request (S421, YES), the management device terminal 70 transmits and outputs a confirmation of the occurrence of the permission request to the refueling management device 60 in association with the receipt confirmation of the occurrence confirmation of the refueling permission request by the refueling management device 60 in step S353 of FIG. 9 (S435). In addition, when the gas station attendant operates the screen operation unit of the management device terminal 70 to permit refueling (S423, YES), the management device terminal 70 transmits and outputs an instruction for refueling permission to the refueling management device 60 in association with the receipt confirmation of the instruction for refueling permission by the refueling management device 60 in step S357 of FIG. 10 (S437).

Next, the refueling permission control process performed on the refueling management device 60 side and the management device terminal 70 side shown in Figures 9 and 10 above for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 waiting for refueling permission will be explained along with the transition of the guidance notification displayed on the screen operation unit of the management device terminal 70 by executing the refueling permission control process.

Figures 11A to 11C show a notification screen for the occurrence of a refueling permission request that is displayed on the screen operation section of the management device terminal when a refueling permission request occurs from a refueling tanker.

As shown in FIG. 11A, the screen operation section 71 of the management device terminal 70 is configured to have a refueling point display area 72 and a navigation area 73 in the illustrated example.

In the refueling point display area 72, the operating status of each refueling work area E11, E12, ..., E41, E42 of each of the refueling aircraft 10-1 to 10-4 is displayed in a list using operating status icons for each operating status as the operating status of the refueling aircraft 10-1 at the refueling work point "01", the operating status of the refueling aircraft 10-1 at the refueling work point "02", ..., the operating status of the refueling aircraft 10-4 at the refueling work point "07", and the operating status of the refueling aircraft 10-4 at the refueling work point "08".

The refueling point display area 72 can also display in more detail the operating status of the refueling machine "10-[(m+1)/2]" (in this case, [(m+1)/2] is any one of integers 1 to 4) at the selected refueling work point "m" (in this case, m is any one of integers 1 to 8) among the refueling work points "01" to "08".

On the other hand, in the navigation area 73, various operation buttons are displayed according to the operation status of the refueling machine "10-[(m+1)/2]" of the selected refueling work point "m" among the refueling work points "01" to "08", such as a "Stop" operation button for stopping the operation of the refueling machine "10-[(m+1)/2]" of the refueling work point "m" selected from the refueling work points "01" to "08", and an "Allow" operation button for allowing refueling of the refueling machine "10-[(m+1)/2]" of the preselected refueling work point "m" that is waiting for refueling permission.

Figure 11A shows the state of the screen operation unit 71 of the management device terminal 70 when a refueling permission request occurs for the refueling machine 10-4 at refueling work point "08" among the refueling work points "01" to "08" based on the processing of step S130 in Figure 5, and the operating state of the refueling machine 10-4 at refueling work point "08" becomes a waiting for refueling permission state.

In this case, the "nozzle mark" operating status icon, which indicates a state where refueling permission is awaited, flashes at refueling task point "08" in the refueling point display area 72, and a notification is given that a refueling task point in a state where refueling permission is awaited has occurred. The occurrence of this refueling task point in a state where refueling permission is awaited may also be notified by a voice notification from the management device terminal 70 or a vibration notification from the management device terminal 70.

On the refueling point occurrence notification screen in the refueling permission waiting state shown in FIG. 11A, the gas station attendant can touch the flashing "nozzle mark" operation status icon indicating the refueling permission waiting state to confirm that a permission request has occurred for the refueling operation point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4, as described in the processing of step S421 in FIG. 10.

In addition, on the refueling point occurrence notification screen in the waiting for refueling permission state, the "Stop all at once" operation button is displayed as activated and operable in the navigation area 73, while the "Stop" operation button and the "Permission" operation button are displayed as inactivated and cannot be operated.

When a confirmation operation is performed on the notification screen for the occurrence of a refueling point in the waiting state for refueling permission to confirm the occurrence of a permission request for the refueling task point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4, the management device terminal 70 performs the process shown in step S435 in FIG. 10, and the refueling management device 60 performs the process shown in step S355 in FIG. 9. At that time, if the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission possible area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling task point "08" in the waiting state for refueling permission (S355, YES), the screen operation unit 71 of the management device terminal 70 will be as shown in FIG. 11B.

Figure 11B is a permission waiting notification screen for a refueling point in a state of waiting for refueling permission when the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission possible area P4 corresponding to the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 in a state of waiting for refueling permission (Figure 9, S355, YES). This permission waiting notification screen for a refueling point in a state of waiting for refueling permission is displayed on the screen operation unit 71 of the management device terminal 70 when the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission possible area P4 of the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 in a state of waiting for refueling permission (S355, YES) on the refueling point occurrence notification screen in a state of waiting for refueling permission shown in Figure 11A, when the operation to confirm the occurrence of a permission request for the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08" shown in step S421 of Figure 10 is performed by a gas station attendant.

On this permission-waiting notification screen for the refueling point that is waiting for permission to refuel, the set fuel type in the refueling work information for refueling work point "08" that is waiting for permission to refuel is displayed as "regular," the type of fuel supplied by the refueling nozzle 13 that the customer has removed from the nozzle holder 14 as "regular," and the set amount in the refueling work information as "full," and the "stop" operation button and the "permission" operation button are also displayed as activated and operable.

On the permission waiting notification screen for this refueling point that is waiting for permission to refuel, the gas station attendant can confirm that the set fuel type matches the type of fuel supplied, and then touch the "permission" operation button to perform the refueling permission operation for the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08", as described in the processing of step S423 in Figure 10.

In response to this, on the notification screen for the occurrence of a refueling point in the waiting state for refueling permission shown in FIG. 11A, an operation is performed to confirm the occurrence of a permission request for the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4, and in the refueling management device 60, when the processing shown in step S355 shown in FIG. 9 is performed, if the management device terminal 70 is not located within the refueling permission possible area P4 of the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 in the waiting state for refueling permission (S355, NO), the screen operation unit 71 of the management device terminal 70 will be as shown in FIG. 11C.

Figure 11C is a permission waiting notification screen for a refueling point in a state of waiting for refueling permission when the management device terminal 70 is not located within the refueling permission possible area P4 of the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 in a state of waiting for refueling permission ( Figure 9, S355, NO). This permission waiting notification screen for a refueling point in a state of waiting for refueling permission is displayed on the screen operation unit 71 of the management device terminal 70 when the management device terminal 70 is not located within the refueling permission possible area P4 of the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 in a state of waiting for refueling permission (S355, YES) and the operation of confirming the occurrence of a permission request for the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 is performed by a gas station attendant on the refueling point occurrence notification screen in a state of waiting for refueling permission shown in Figure 11A in step S421 of Figure 10.

When this management device terminal 70 is not located within the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 waiting for refueling permission, the permission waiting notification screen for the refueling point waiting for refueling permission differs from the permission waiting notification screen for the refueling point waiting for refueling permission shown in FIG. 11B in that it further displays "Outside refueling permission area," indicating that the management device terminal 70 is not located within the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 waiting for refueling permission, and the "Permission" operation button is also displayed in an inactive state and cannot be operated.

When the management device terminal 70 is not located within the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 in the refueling permission waiting state, the refueling station attendant can touch the "return" button on the screen to return to the refueling point occurrence notification screen in the refueling permission waiting state shown in FIG. 11A, where the operation to confirm the occurrence of the permission request for the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 can be performed again. This allows the refueling station attendant to understand from the refueling permission waiting notification screen in the refueling permission waiting state shown in FIG. 11C that the management device terminal 70 is located outside the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 in the refueling permission waiting state. In this case, the gas station attendant can move into the refueling permission possible area P4 of the refueling work point "08" of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission, and retry the operation to check whether a permission request has been issued for the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08".

In this way, in this embodiment, even if the gas station attendant acting as the work supervisor operates the management device terminal 70 outside the refueling permission area P4 to wirelessly transmit a confirmation of the occurrence of a refueling permission request to the refueling management device 60, or even if the management device terminal 70 is operated within the refueling permission area P4 to wirelessly transmit a confirmation of the occurrence of a refueling permission request to the refueling management device 60, if an instruction for refueling is not subsequently performed on the management device terminal 70 within a specified time, the refueling management device 60 will not grant refueling permission for the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4 that is waiting for refueling permission, because the gas station attendant is not in the refueling permission area P4 where he or she can confirm the status of the refueling work in the refueling work area E42 of the refueling machine 10-4, or because the refueling permission unnecessarily delays the customer's start of refueling. This makes it possible to prevent, for example, a situation in which a gas station attendant issues a refueling permission command on the management device terminal 70 while remaining in a location distant from the refueling machine 10-4 that has issued the refueling permission request, or in which the gas station attendant confirms that a refueling permission request has been issued but does not immediately check the status of the refueling operation in the refueling operation area E42.

In addition, if an operator is not in the refueling permission area P4 where the status of the refueling operation in the refueling operation area E42 of the refueling aircraft 10-4 can be confirmed, and attempts to give refueling permission multiple times using the management device terminal 70 in a location away from the refueling aircraft 10-4, the management device terminal 70 carried by the operator will no longer be able to give refueling permission in response to the refueling permission request.

Therefore, if a gas station attendant carrying the management device terminal 70 is performing another task outside the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08" waiting for refueling permission, the gas station attendant can understand from the permission waiting notification screen of the refueling point waiting for refueling permission shown in FIG. 11C that the gas station attendant is located outside the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08" waiting for refueling permission. In addition, since the "permission" operation button is in an inactive state in which it cannot be operated on the permission waiting notification screen of the refueling point waiting for refueling permission shown in FIG. 11C, the gas station attendant is prompted to move into the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08" waiting for refueling permission, and the gas station attendant can thoroughly and reliably check the safety of the customer's refueling work, such as the installation state of the refueling nozzle 13 to the supply port to be supplied, thereby improving the safety of the customer's refueling work. In addition, customer service is improved because the fuel station staff will inevitably go to the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08" that is waiting for refueling permission to grant refueling permission.

Next, another embodiment of the refueling permission control process for the refueling operation area of the refueling aircraft that has received the refueling permission request, which is performed on the refueling management device side and the management device terminal side shown in Figures 9 and 10, will be described with reference to Figures 12 and 13. Note that in the description, the same processes as those shown in Figures 9 and 10 are given the same step symbols, and the description of those processes will be omitted.

Figure 12 is a flowchart of another embodiment of the refueling permission control process for the refueling operation area of a refueling aircraft that has received a refueling permission request, which is performed on the refueling management device side of a refueling management device equipped with a management device terminal.

Figure 13 is a flowchart of one embodiment of a refueling permission control process for a refueling operation area of a refueling aircraft that has received a refueling permission request, which is performed on the management device terminal side of a refueling management device equipped with a management device terminal.

In the refueling permission control process shown in Figures 12 and 13, the refueling permission control process shown in Figures 9 and 10 was performed on the refueling management device 60 side, but in this process, the management device terminal 70 checks whether the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08" that is waiting for refueling permission. If the management device terminal 70 is not located within the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08", it cannot send a refueling permission instruction to the refueling management device 60.

To this end, in step S421 of FIG. 13, when it is detected that a refueling station attendant has performed an operation on the screen operation unit to confirm the occurrence of a refueling permission request, the management device terminal 70 checks whether or not the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08" waiting for refueling permission (S425). If it is confirmed that the management device terminal 70 is located within the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08" waiting for refueling permission (S425, YES), the refueling permission operation is activated (S425). If it is confirmed that the management device terminal 70 is located outside the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10-4 at the refueling work point "08" waiting for refueling permission (S425, NO), the refueling permission operation is deactivated (S427), and a pop-up notification that the out-of-area operation is invalid is displayed on the screen operation unit 71 for, for example, five seconds (S429). Therefore, the permission determination table Y is stored in the management device terminal 70.

The management device terminal 70 is configured not to check whether the refueling permission operation button has been operated while the refueling permission operation is inactive (S422, NO). As a result, this embodiment can also achieve the same effects as the refueling permission control process shown in Figures 9 and 10.

The refueling system of the present disclosure is configured as described above, but as long as it is a refueling system, the specific configuration is not limited to the embodiment described. In a case where a gas station attendant carrying the management device terminal 70 is performing another task outside the refueling permission area P4 of the refueling machine 10 at the refueling work point (refueling work area, fuel supply work point) E waiting for refueling permission, the gas station attendant is not limited to the embodiment described above as long as the management device terminal 70 can inform the gas station attendant that it is located outside the refueling permission area P of the refueling machine 10 at the refueling work point E waiting for refueling permission.

For example, in the above-described embodiment, when it is detected that a refueling permission request has been confirmed by a gas station attendant on the management device terminal 70, a confirmation is made as to whether or not the refueling permission request has been generated within the refueling permission area P of the refueling machine 10 at the refueling work point E waiting for refueling permission is generated. However, this operation for confirming the generation of a refueling permission request may also be performed by the refueling permission operation for the refueling work point E of the refueling machine 10 waiting for refueling permission, so that if it is determined that the refueling permission request is generated outside the refueling permission area P of the refueling machine 10 at the refueling work point E waiting for refueling permission, the refueling management device 60 may not send a refueling permission to the refueling machine 10 at the refueling work point E waiting for refueling permission, or the management device terminal 70 may not wirelessly send a refueling permission instruction to the refueling management device 60. Furthermore, the number of refueling machines in a gas station, the number of refueling work points E at each refueling machine, and the number of refueling systems (refueling nozzles) at each refueling work point E are not limited to the above-described embodiment, and it is also possible to provide multiple types of refueling machines with different numbers of refueling work points E or refueling systems (refueling nozzles).

1. Self-service fueling system,
3. Gas station office,
6 SS-LAN,
7. Image data dedicated signal line,
8 Beacon,
10 tanker,
11 tanker housing,
12 hose,
13 refueling nozzle,
14 Nozzle hook,
15 display device,
16 setting device,
17 fuel payment device,
18 slip issuing device,
20. Change machine,
30 Gas station management device,
40 POS terminals,
50 monitoring device,
51 Surveillance cameras,
52 monitor device,
53 monitor display,
60 Fuel supply management device,
68 wireless communication unit,
70 Management device terminal,
71 Screen operation unit,
72 Refueling point display area,
73 Navigation area,
P Refueling permitted area,
E Refueling work area (fuel supply work point, refueling work point)
Y Permittability determination table.

Claims (4)

A plurality of fuel supply devices;
A management device for managing the execution of a fuel supply operation of each of the fuel supply devices;
a portable management device terminal that is wirelessly connected to the management device and includes a notification unit and an input unit;
A fuel supply system for a fuel supply station, comprising:
a terminal location detection unit that detects where the management device terminal is located within the fuel supply station;
a permission request notification control unit that, when a permission request for a fuel supply operation is issued in any one of the plurality of fuel supply devices, notifies a user of the permission request by the notification unit of the management device terminal;
a terminal location determination unit that, when the occurrence of the permission request is confirmed by a confirmation operation of the input unit of the management device terminal, determines whether or not the location of the management device terminal detected by the terminal location detection unit is within a fuel supply permission area corresponding to the fuel supply device that issued the permission request for the fuel supply work, among a plurality of fuel supply permission areas corresponding to each of the fuel supply devices;
an outside-area notification control unit that, when the determination result by the terminal location determination unit is outside the range , notifies the user by the notification unit of the management device terminal that the management device terminal is located outside the range of a fuel supply permission possible area corresponding to the fuel supply device that has issued the permission request for the fuel supply work;
Equipped with
a terminal-specific accumulating unit that accumulates and stores a number of determinations each time the terminal location determining unit obtains a result of an out-of-range determination for each of the management device terminals;
a number confirmation unit capable of confirming the number of judgments accumulated and stored in the terminal-specific accumulation unit;
Equipped with
Fuel supply system. A plurality of fuel supply devices;
A management device for managing the execution of a fuel supply operation of each of the fuel supply devices;
a portable management device terminal that is wirelessly connected to the management device and includes a notification unit and an input unit;
A fuel supply system for a fuel supply station, comprising:
a terminal location detection unit that detects where the management device terminal is located within the fuel supply station;
a permission request notification control unit that, when a permission request for a fuel supply operation is issued in any one of the plurality of fuel supply devices, notifies a user of the permission request by the notification unit of the management device terminal;
a terminal location determination unit that, when the occurrence of the permission request is confirmed by a confirmation operation of the input unit of the management device terminal, determines whether or not the location of the management device terminal detected by the terminal location detection unit is within a fuel supply permission area corresponding to the fuel supply device that issued the permission request for the fuel supply work, among a plurality of fuel supply permission areas corresponding to each of the fuel supply devices;
an outside-area notification control unit that, when the determination result by the terminal location determination unit is outside the range , notifies the user by the notification unit of the management device terminal that the management device terminal is located outside the range of a fuel supply permission possible area corresponding to the fuel supply device that has issued the permission request for the fuel supply work;
Equipped with
a terminal-specific accumulating unit that accumulates and stores a number of determinations each time the terminal location determining unit obtains a result of an out-of-range determination for each of the management device terminals;
and an operation prohibition unit that judges whether the number of judgments accumulated and stored in the terminal-specific accumulating unit has reached a specified number, and when the specified number of judgments has been reached, prohibits the operation of the corresponding management device terminal.
Fuel supply system. A plurality of fuel supply devices;
A management device for managing the execution of a fuel supply operation of each of the fuel supply devices;
a portable management device terminal that is wirelessly connected to the management device and includes a notification unit and an input unit;
A fuel supply system for a fuel supply station, comprising:
a terminal location detection unit that detects where the management device terminal is located within the fuel supply station;
a permission request notification control unit that, when a permission request for a fuel supply operation is issued in any one of the plurality of fuel supply devices, notifies a user of the permission request by the notification unit of the management device terminal;
a terminal location determination unit that, when the occurrence of the permission request is confirmed by a confirmation operation of the input unit of the management device terminal, determines whether or not the location of the management device terminal detected by the terminal location detection unit is within a fuel supply permission area corresponding to the fuel supply device that issued the permission request for the fuel supply work, among a plurality of fuel supply permission areas corresponding to each of the fuel supply devices;
an outside-area notification control unit that, when the determination result by the terminal location determination unit is outside the range , notifies the user by the notification unit of the management device terminal that the management device terminal is located outside the range of a fuel supply permission possible area corresponding to the fuel supply device that has issued the permission request for the fuel supply work;
Equipped with
the terminal location determination unit and the outside area notification control unit are provided in the management device,
the notification unit of the management device terminal notifies the user that the management device terminal is located outside the fuel supply permission area based on a signal from the outside-area notification control unit.
Fuel supply system. In any one of claims 1 to 2 ,
A fuel supply system, wherein the terminal location determination unit and the out-of-area notification control unit are provided in the management device terminal.