JP7632227B2 - Parts Management System - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a system for managing parts installed in a product.

A system that manages parts installed in products such as automobiles is known that manages parts by linking the same management information to parts of the same type.

Patent document 1 describes a system for managing parts by laser marking two-dimensionally coded part management information on the parts.

JP 2001-297301 A

However, managing parts by linking the same management information to parts of the same type can be inconvenient when trying to manage parts according to their use. For example, even if parts are of the same type, if a part that is installed in a newly sold product and a part that is not installed in the product when it is sold but is added to the product after it is sold are managed using the same management information, these parts will be managed together, making it difficult to manage them separately.

The purpose of this disclosure is to provide a system that can manage parts installed in products according to their intended use.

One aspect of the present disclosure is a parts management system that has a management means that manages parts by linking management information for identifying parts to parts installed in a product, and the management means manages, for the same type of parts, parts that are installed in the product when the product is sold and parts that are not installed in the product when the product is sold but are additionally installed in the product after the sale using different management information, and manages parts of the same type that are used as replacements for parts installed in the product when the product was sold using the same management information as the parts installed in the product when the product was sold .

With the above configuration, even if the parts are the same type, parts that are installed in the product when it is sold and parts that are not installed in the product when it is sold but are added to the product after it is sold can be managed separately.

The parts management system disclosed herein allows parts installed in products to be managed according to their intended use.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a parts management system. FIG. 13 illustrates a management table. FIG. 13 illustrates a screen displayed when registering a part in a management table.

The parts management system according to the embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of the parts management system.

The parts management system includes a parts management device 10 and a terminal device 12. The parts management device 10 and the terminal device 12 can communicate with each other via a communication path N such as the Internet or a LAN (Local Area Network).

The parts management device 10 is a device that manages parts installed in products. The products are not particularly limited and are, for example, automobiles, motorcycles, aircraft, electrical appliances, etc. The parts to be managed are not particularly limited. If the product is an automobile, the parts to be managed are, for example, electronic device parts installed in the automobile, power system parts, air conditioning system parts, body parts, door parts, interior parts, etc. Electronic device parts are, for example, audio, cameras, various sensors, lighting, car navigation systems, airbags, etc. Power system parts are, for example, motor parts, engine parts, battery parts, brake system parts, etc.

The part management device 10 is, for example, a server or a personal computer (hereinafter referred to as a "PC"), and includes a processor such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a storage device (e.g., a memory or a hard disk drive), a communication interface having a communication chip, a communication circuit, etc., and a user interface (hereinafter referred to as a "UI").

The terminal device 12 is a PC, tablet PC, smartphone, mobile phone, etc., and includes, for example, a processor, a storage device, a communication interface, and a UI.

Figure 1 shows the configuration of the parts management device 10, which is related to parts management. The parts management device 10 includes a UI 14, a management unit 16, and a storage device 18 as components related to part management.

The UI 14 includes a display and an operation device. The display is a liquid crystal display or an EL display, etc. The operation device is a keyboard, a mouse, input keys, an operation panel, etc. The UI 14 may be a touch panel that combines a display and an operation device.

The management unit 16 manages the parts to be installed in the product by linking the parts to management information for identifying the parts. The management information is stored in the storage device 18.

For parts of the same type, the management unit 16 manages the parts using different management information for parts that are installed in a product when the product is sold and parts that were not installed in the product when the product was sold and are additionally installed in the product after the sale. In other words, for parts of the same type, the management unit 16 manages the parts using different management information for parts that are installed in a product when the product is sold and parts that were not installed in the product when the product was sold and are additionally installed in the product after the sale.

The management information is, for example, a management number consisting of multiple numbers, a character string consisting of alphanumeric characters, or a symbol string consisting of alphanumeric characters and other symbols. The management information is information for uniquely identifying parts of the same type, and is information for distinguishing between parts that are installed in a product when the product is sold and parts that are not installed in the product when the product is sold but are added to the product after the sale.

The storage device 18 is a device that constitutes a storage area for storing data, and is, for example, a memory (e.g., RAM, DRAM, ROM), a hard disk drive, a solid-state drive (SSD), or an optical disk.

The storage device 18 stores a management table for managing parts. The management table registers management information for the parts.

In this embodiment, the following three uses of parts are assumed. Here, we will explain the case where part A is used as an example.

Application (1): When a new product (hereafter referred to as the "new product") is sold, part A is installed in the new product, and the new product is sold.

Application (2): A new product equipped with part A is sold, and then the installed part A is replaced with a new part A of the same type. It is assumed that part A will be replaced if the installed part A breaks down. For example, a supply item is a part used in application (2).

Use (3): When a new product is sold, it is sold without part A installed. After the sale, the new product is treated as a "pre-sold product." After the sale, part A, which was not installed on the pre-sold product at the time of sale, is additionally installed on the pre-sold product.

Taking an automobile as an example, use (1) is applied when a new car equipped with part A is sold, use (2) is applied when a new car equipped with part A is sold and the installed part A is replaced with a new part A of the same type, and use (3) is applied when part A is installed on a used car that does not have part A installed.

The management unit 16 manages part A using different management information for part A used in application (1) and part A used in application (3). In other words, the management unit 16 manages part A by differentiating the management information associated with part A used in application (1) from the management information associated with part A used in application (3).

The management unit 16 may also manage part A using the same management information for part A used in application (1) and part A used in application (2). In other words, the management unit 16 may manage part A by making the management information linked to part A used in application (1) and the management information linked to part A used in application (2) the same. In this case, the management unit 16 will manage part A using different management information for part A used in application (1) or (2) and part A used in application (3).

The information registered in the management table will be described below with reference to FIG. 2. FIG. 2 shows an example of the management table.

In the management table, for example, for each type of part, the part name, a part image representing the part (e.g., a drawing of the part), management information, information indicating the use of the part, information indicating the price of the part, information indicating the number of parts shipped, and information indicating the supplier that supplies the part are linked. The use of the part is new/replacement (use (1) or (2)), or addition (use (3)). Note that the information indicating the price, the information indicating the number of parts shipped, and the information indicating the supplier do not need to be registered in the management table.

Figure 2 shows information about part A as an example.

Specifically, for part A used in application (1) or (2) (i.e. part A installed in a new product for sale or part A for replacement), the name of part A, a part image representing part A, management information for application (1) or (2) "1234-aaaaa", the application "new/replacement", the price of part A installed in scenario (1) or (2) "XXX yen", the shipment quantity of part A used in application (1) or (2) "X units", and supplier "α" that supplies part A used in application (1) or (2) are linked.

Part A used in application (3) (i.e., part A added to a product already on the market) is linked with the name of part A, a part image representing part A, management information for application (3) "1234-bbbbbb", the application "addition", the price of part A used in application (3) "□□□ yen", the shipment quantity of part A used in application (3) "Y units", and the supplier "β" that supplies part A used in application (3).

Although part A used in application (1) or (2) and part A used in application (3) are the same type of part, they are linked with different management information and managed separately. For example, the price, shipping quantity, supplier, etc. can be managed separately for part A used in application (1) or (2) and part A used in application (3). If you want to have different prices or suppliers for application (1) or (2) and application (3), you can manage the parts using management information according to the application, and thereby manage the price and supplier for each application.

The price and supplier for use (1) or (2) may be the same as or different from use (3).

In Figure 2, only the information about part A is shown, but parts of other types are also managed in the same way as part A, with different management information linked to use (1) or (2) and use (3).

The operation of registering a part in the management table will be described below with reference to FIG. 3. FIG. 3 shows a screen 20 that is displayed when registering a part in the management table.

As an example, the operation for registering part A in the management table will be described here. A list of the names and part images of each part to be registered is displayed on the display of the terminal device 12, and when the worker uses the terminal device 12 to select part A from the list, the management unit 16 causes the display of the terminal device 12 to display screen 20.

Screen 20 displays the name of part A, a part image 22 representing part A, an input field 24 for management information, and buttons 26 and 28. Button 26 is a button for registering management information as information for a new product to be sold or for replacement (use (1) or (2)). Button 28 is a button for registering management information as information for addition (use (3)).

When the worker inputs management information into input field 24 on screen 20 and presses button 26, management unit 16 links the management information input into input field 24 to the name and part image of part A and registers it in the management table. In addition, management unit 16 links the management information to the purpose "new/replacement" (purpose (1) or (2)).

When the worker inputs management information into input field 24 and presses button 28, management unit 16 links the management information input into input field 24 to the name and part image of part A and registers it in the management table. In addition, management unit 16 links the management information to the purpose "add" (purpose (3)).

The worker may register the management information using the UI 14 of the part management device 10. In this case, the screen 20 is displayed on the display of the UI 14, and the worker inputs the management information on the screen 20. In this example, the terminal device 12 does not need to be included in the part management system.

There is no particular limit to the timing at which management information is linked to a part and registered in the management table. For example, it is assumed that a part will be registered in the management table when a new part is designed or manufactured. As another example, it is assumed that a part is initially manufactured for use in application (1) or (2), at which point management information for application (1) or (2) is linked to the part, and then, when the part is used for application (3), management information for application (3) is linked to the part.

Note that the operation of inputting and registering management information via screen 20 is merely one example, and management unit 16 may automatically link management information corresponding to uses (1) to (3) to parts and register them in the management table during the design and manufacturing process.

The uses of parts in the above-described embodiment are merely examples. As another example, the management unit 16 may manage each part by linking different management information for parts of the same type to be installed in new products and parts to be installed in already-sold products.

The configuration of the parts management system shown in FIG. 1 is merely an example, and the management unit 16 may be provided in the terminal device 12, and the storage device 18 may be provided in a device such as a server.

A worker can search for parts using the management information. For example, when a worker inputs management information using the terminal device 12, the input management information is sent to the parts management device 10. The management unit 16 uses the input management information as a search key to search for parts linked to the management information in the management table, and sends the search results to the terminal device 12. The search results are displayed on the display of the terminal device 12. For example, the part name, part image, use, price, shipment quantity, and supplier are displayed as search results on the display of the terminal device 12. Note that management information may be input using the UI 14 of the parts management device 10, and the search results corresponding to the management information may be displayed on the display of the UI 14.

The functions of each part of the parts management device 10 are realized, for example, by the cooperation of hardware and software. For example, a processor such as a CPU reads and executes a program stored in the memory of the parts management device 10, thereby realizing the functions of the parts management device 10. The program is stored in the memory via a recording medium such as a CD or DVD, or via a communication path such as a network. The functions of each part of the parts management device 10 may be realized by an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or other programmable logic device, or may be realized by hardware such as an electronic circuit.

10 Parts management device, 12 Terminal device, 16 Management unit, 18 Storage device.

Claims (1)

a management unit that manages parts by linking management information for identifying the parts to the parts to be mounted on the product;
the management means manages, for the same type of parts, the parts that are mounted on the product when the product is sold and the parts that are not mounted on the product when the product is sold and are additionally mounted on the product after the sale, using different management information , and also manages the same type of parts used as replacements for the parts that were mounted on the product when the product was sold, using the same management information as the parts that were mounted on the product when the product was sold .
A parts management system comprising:

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