JP7832255B2 - Collection system, circular collection truck control server, collection method, circular collection truck control method, program - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a core logistics system, a collection system, a circular collection truck control server, a collection method, a circular collection truck control method, and a program.

Various efforts are being made to achieve Level 4 autonomous driving for large trucks (for example, Non-Patent Document 1). According to Non-Patent Document 1, the section envisioned for Level 4 autonomous driving is the section from entering a highway interchange to exiting it. In the future, if logistics facilities directly connected to highway interchanges, or connected by limited public roads, can be connected using Level 4 autonomous driving, it is expected that logistics efficiency will improve dramatically.

Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, “Road to the L4: Research and Development and Social Implementation Project for Advanced Mobility Services such as Autonomous Driving Level 4,” [online], Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry, [Accessed March 14, 2024], Internet <URL: https://www.road-to-the-l4.go.jp/>

However, under Level 4 autonomous driving, there was still a lack of detailed knowledge on how to efficiently handle shipments from industrial parks for delivery.

Therefore, this disclosure aims to provide a core logistics system that can efficiently deliver goods from industrial parks to their final destinations.

The core logistics system described herein includes an industrial park, a core logistics facility connected to the industrial park, a core logistics facility, a circular collection automated truck, and a core delivery automated truck.

A key logistics facility connected to an industrial park is a logistics facility that is connected to an industrial park.

The automated trucks that circle the industrial park collect shipments and return to the main logistics facility connected to the industrial park.

The trunk delivery autonomous trucks transport collected shipments from one trunk logistics facility connected to an industrial park to another.

According to the core logistics system disclosed herein, shipments from industrial parks can be efficiently delivered to their final destinations.

A diagram showing the functional configuration of the core logistics system in Example 1. A block diagram showing the device configuration of the collection system in Example 1. A block diagram showing the functional configuration of the circular collection truck control server in Example 1. A flowchart illustrating the operation of the circular collection truck control server in Example 1. A diagram illustrating an example of a computer's functional configuration.

The embodiments of this disclosure will be described in detail below. Components having the same function will be numbered identically, and redundant explanations will be omitted.

The functional configuration of the core logistics system of Embodiment 1 will be described below with reference to Figure 1. As shown in the figure, the core logistics system 1 of this embodiment includes an industrial park 11, a core logistics facility 12a connected to the industrial park, core logistics facilities 12b, 12c, ..., medium-sized logistics facilities 13a, 13b, 13c, ... connected to the core logistics facility 12a and core logistics facilities 12b, ..., small-sized logistics facilities 14a, 14b, 14c, ... connected to the medium-sized logistics facilities 13a, 13b, 13c, ..., a circular collection automated driving truck 15 (hereinafter also referred to as circular collection ADT 15, ADT = Autonomous Driving Track), a core delivery automated driving truck 16 (hereinafter also referred to as core delivery ADT 16), and a regional delivery truck 17 (hereinafter also referred to as regional delivery T17).

Furthermore, the logistics facilities connected hierarchically under the core logistics facility may extend up to the second level, as exemplified by the logistics facilities connected under 12a and 12b in the figure, or to the first level, as exemplified by the logistics facilities connected under 12c in the figure. In addition, there may be third, fourth, ... levels of logistics facilities connected hierarchically under the core logistics facility, or there may be no hierarchy at all, with goods being delivered directly from the core logistics facility to the destination.

Industrial park 11 includes factories 11a, 11b, 11c, ... Industrial park connecting main logistics facility 12a is a logistics facility connected to industrial park 11 by a dedicated road 51 and directly or via an interchange to the expressway 52. Main logistics facilities 12b, 12c, ... are also logistics facilities directly or via an interchange to the expressway 52. The circulating collection automated driving ADT 15 circulates around industrial park 11 to collect shipments and returns to industrial park connecting main logistics facility 12a. The main delivery automated driving ADT 16 transports collected shipments and other goods from industrial park connecting main logistics facility 12a to main logistics facilities 12b, 12c, ... Regional delivery T17 delivers shipments and other goods from industrial park 11 to subordinate logistics facilities from the main logistics facilities.

Furthermore, the automated cargo collection and driving ADT 15 also has the function of delivering cargo destined for the industrial park, collected at the industrial park's main logistics facility 12a, to each factory 11a, 11b, 11c, ... within the industrial park 11.

According to the core logistics system 1 of this embodiment, the industrial park 11 and the core logistics facility 12a connected to the industrial park are connected by a dedicated road 51. Therefore, shipments from the industrial park 11 can be placed on the core logistics route in the shortest possible time, making it efficient. Furthermore, since the dedicated road 51 is not a public road, autonomous trucks can operate on it, enabling automated collection and delivery of shipments, which is also efficient.

Furthermore, the automated collection and distribution system (ADT) 15 circles the industrial park 11 to collect shipments and returns to the main logistics facility 12a connected to the industrial park. The automated distribution system (ADT) 16 then uses the highway 52 to transport the collected shipments from the main logistics facility 12a to the main logistics facilities 12b, 12c, ..., thus enabling efficient delivery of shipments from factories 11a, 11b, 11c, ... to their final destinations.

The following describes the device configuration of the collection system in Example 2, which controls the collection in the core logistics system 1 of Example 1, with reference to Figure 2.

As shown in the figure, the collection system 2 of this embodiment includes factory terminals 21a, 21b, ..., 21i managed by each factory 11a, 11b, ..., 11i in the industrial park 11, and a circulating collection truck control server 22. The factory terminals 21a, 21b, ..., 21i and the circulating collection truck control server 22 are assumed to be connected via a network for communication. The circulating collection truck control server 22 is assumed to be connected via a network for communication with the circulating collection ADT 15.

The functional configuration of the circular collection truck control server 22 in this embodiment will be described below with reference to Figure 3. As shown in the figure, the circular collection truck control server 22 in this embodiment includes a collection request acquisition unit 221, a central logistics facility area aggregation unit 222, and a collection order unit 223.

The operation of each component will be explained below with reference to Figure 4.

<Collection Request Acquisition Unit 221>
The collection request acquisition unit 221 acquires collection requests from each factory terminal 21a, 21b, ..., 21i, including the factory ID, the delivery area of the shipment, the package ID, and the collection quantity (S221). The factory ID is the identifier of the factory. The delivery area of the shipment is preferably divided according to the delivery areas handled by each logistics facility directly under the main logistics facility 12a connected to the industrial park and the main logistics facilities 12b, 12c, ... The package ID is the identifier of the package. The collection quantity is information on the size, weight, and number of the packages.

<Area-specific consolidation section 222 directly beneath the main logistics facility>
The area-specific aggregation unit 222 directly beneath the main logistics facility aggregates the shipments included in the collection request according to the delivery area handled by each logistics facility directly beneath the main logistics facility 12a connected to the industrial park, or directly beneath the main logistics facilities 12b, 12c, ... (S222).

≪Logistics facilities directly below≫
The logistics facilities directly beneath the main logistics facility 12a connected to the industrial park refer to, for example, the medium-sized logistics facilities 13a, 13b, and 13c, which are directly beneath the main logistics facility 12a connected to the industrial park, as shown in the example in Figure 1. Therefore, the delivery areas covered by each logistics facility directly beneath the main logistics facility 12a connected to the industrial park are the delivery areas covered by the medium-sized logistics facilities 13a, 13b, and 13c, respectively.

Furthermore, the logistics facilities directly under the core logistics facilities 12b, 12c, ... refer to, for example, the medium-sized logistics facilities 13d, 13e, and 13f, which are directly under the core logistics facility 12b, in the example shown in the figure. Also, in the example shown in the figure, the core logistics facility 12c does not have any medium-sized logistics facilities under its control, but only small-sized logistics facilities 14s, ..., 14aa. In such a case, the logistics facilities directly under the core logistics facility would be the small-sized logistics facilities 14s, ..., 14aa.

<Collection Order Department 223>
The collection order unit 223 transmits a collection order to the circulating collection ADT 15, specifying a consolidated group of shipments in which the total amount collected from each factory falls within a predetermined range (S223).

Here, the upper limit of the predetermined range is typically determined based on the maximum load capacity or maximum load volume of the circular collection ADT 15. The lower limit of the predetermined range is determined considering factors such as the circular efficiency of the circular collection ADT 15. For example, the upper limit of the predetermined range can be set as maximum load capacity × 0.95, and the lower limit as maximum load capacity × 0.6.

The collection order should preferably include the factory ID of the factory where ADT15 will receive the goods, the delivery area, the package ID of the relevant package, and the quantity of the relevant package to be collected.

Upon receiving a collection order, the circular collection ADT 15 will circle the industrial park 11 in accordance with the order and collect the specified cargo.

In this embodiment of the collection system 2, the area-specific aggregation unit 222 directly beneath the main logistics facility aggregates shipments according to the delivery area handled by each logistics facility directly beneath it. The collection order unit 223 then sends a collection order specifying the aggregated shipment group to the circulating collection ADT 15. Therefore, the circulating collection ADT 15 can automatically create blocks of shipments grouped by delivery area simply by executing circulating collection.

The core distribution ADT16 simply transports the automatically generated blocks of shipments directly to the designated core logistics facility. The regional distribution T17 then transports the blocks of shipments delivered to the core logistics facility to the corresponding logistics facility directly below it. This allows for efficient delivery of shipments from the factory to their final destination.

<Note>
The functions realized by the components described herein may be implemented in a circuitry or processing circuitry, including general-purpose processors, application-specific processors, integrated circuits, ASICs (Application Specific Integrated Circuits), CPUs (a Central Processing Unit), conventional circuits, and/or combinations thereof, programmed to realize the functions described herein. A processor includes transistors and other circuits and is considered a circuitry or processing circuitry. A processor may be a programmed processor that executes a program stored in memory.

In this specification, "circuitry," "unit," and "means" refer to hardware programmed to perform or executing the functions described herein. Such hardware may be any hardware disclosed herein, or any hardware known to be programmed to perform or execute the functions described herein.

If the hardware in question is a processor considered to be a type of circuitry, then the circuitry, means, or unit is a combination of hardware and software used to constitute the hardware and/or processor.

The various processes described above can be carried out by loading a program that executes each step of the above method into the recording unit 10020 of the computer shown in Figure 5, and then causing the control unit 10010, input unit 10030, output unit 10040, etc., to operate.

The program describing this process can be recorded on a computer-readable recording medium. Any computer-readable recording medium can be used, such as a magnetic recording device, optical disc, magneto-optical recording medium, or semiconductor memory.

Furthermore, this program may be distributed, for example, by selling, transferring, or lending portable recording media such as DVDs or CD-ROMs containing the program. Alternatively, the program may be stored in the storage device of a server computer and distributed by transferring it from the server computer to other computers via a network.

A computer executing such a program may, for example, first store the program recorded on a portable storage medium or a program transferred from a server computer in its own storage device. Then, when processing is to be executed, the computer reads the program stored on its own storage medium and executes the processing according to the read program. Alternatively, the computer may directly read the program from the portable storage medium and execute the processing according to that program, or it may sequentially execute the processing according to the received program each time a program is transferred to it from the server computer. Furthermore, the processing may be executed using a so-called ASP (Application Service Provider) type service, where the processing function is realized only by issuing execution instructions and obtaining results, without transferring the program from the server computer to this computer. Moreover, the processing may be executed using a so-called SaaS (Software as a Service) type service, where a part of the server computer is made available to the user along with the program. Furthermore, the term "program" in this form includes information used for processing by an electronic computer that is equivalent to a program (data, etc., that is not a direct instruction to the computer but has the property of defining the computer's processing).

Furthermore, while this configuration involves executing a predetermined program on a computer, at least a portion of these processes may be implemented in hardware.

Claims (9)

A collection system for controlling collection in a core logistics system including an industrial park, a core logistics facility connected to the industrial park which is a logistics facility connected to the industrial park, a core logistics facility, a circular collection automated driving truck that travels around the industrial park to collect shipments and returns to the core logistics facility connected to the industrial park, and a core delivery automated driving truck that transports the collected shipments from the core logistics facility connected to the industrial park to the core logistics facility,
This includes factory terminals managed by each factory in the aforementioned industrial park, and a control server for circulating collection trucks.
The aforementioned circular collection truck control server is:
A collection request acquisition unit acquires a collection request from the aforementioned factory terminal, including the factory ID, the delivery area of the shipment, the package ID, and the collection quantity.
A central logistics facility-direct area aggregation unit aggregates the shipments included in the collection request for each delivery area handled by the logistics facility directly beneath the central logistics facility connected to the industrial park, or by each logistics facility directly beneath the central logistics facility.
A collection system including a collection command unit that transmits a collection command to the aforementioned automated truck for circular collection, specifying a block of shipments generated by aggregating the total amount of collected goods within a predetermined range. A core logistics system including an industrial park, a core logistics facility connected to the industrial park which is a logistics facility connected to the industrial park, a core logistics facility, a circular collection truck control server that controls collection in a core logistics system including a circular collection truck that travels around the industrial park to collect shipments and returns to the core logistics facility connected to the industrial park, and a core delivery truck that transports the collected shipments from the core logistics facility connected to the industrial park to the core logistics facility, wherein the circular collection truck control server controls collection in the core logistics system.
A collection request acquisition unit acquires collection requests from factory terminals managed by each factory in the aforementioned industrial park, including the factory ID, the delivery area of the shipped goods, the package ID, and the collection volume.
A central logistics facility-direct area aggregation unit aggregates the shipments included in the collection request for each delivery area handled by the logistics facility directly beneath the central logistics facility connected to the industrial park, or by each logistics facility directly beneath the central logistics facility.
A circular collection truck control server includes a collection command unit that transmits a collection command to the aforementioned circular collection automated driving truck, specifying a block of shipments that is generated by aggregating the total amount of collected goods within a predetermined range. A collection method executed by a collection system that controls collection in a core logistics system including an industrial park, a core logistics facility connected to the industrial park which is a logistics facility connected to the industrial park, a core logistics facility, a circular collection automated driving truck that travels around the industrial park to collect shipments and returns to the industrial park connected core logistics facility, and a core delivery automated driving truck that transports the collected shipments from the industrial park connected core logistics facility to the core logistics facility, the collection method being executed by a collection system that controls collection in a core logistics system,
The collection system includes factory terminals managed by each factory in the industrial park and a circulating collection truck control server.
The aforementioned circular collection truck control server is:
The steps include obtaining a collection request from the aforementioned factory terminal, which includes the factory ID, the delivery area of the shipment, the package ID, and the collection quantity.
The steps include consolidating the shipments included in the collection request according to the delivery area handled by each logistics facility directly beneath the main logistics facility connected to the industrial park, or directly beneath the main logistics facility,
A collection method comprising the step of sending a collection command to the aforementioned automated truck that travels around collecting goods, specifying a block of goods to be shipped, where the total amount of collected goods falls within a predetermined range and is generated by aggregation. A method for controlling circular collection trucks in a core logistics system that includes an industrial park, a core logistics facility connected to the industrial park which is a logistics facility connected to the industrial park, a core logistics facility, a circular collection automated driving truck that travels around the industrial park to collect shipments and returns to the industrial park connected core logistics facility, and a core delivery automated driving truck that transports the collected shipments from the industrial park connected core logistics facility to the core logistics facility, the method being executed by a circular collection truck control server that controls collection in a core logistics system,
The steps include obtaining a collection request from a factory terminal managed by each factory in the aforementioned industrial park, which includes the factory ID, the delivery area of the shipment, the package ID, and the collection quantity.
The steps include consolidating the shipments included in the collection request according to the delivery area handled by each logistics facility directly beneath the main logistics facility connected to the industrial park, or directly beneath the main logistics facility,
A method for controlling a circular collection truck, comprising the step of transmitting a collection command to the aforementioned circular collection automated driving truck, specifying a block of shipments that is generated by aggregating and whose total collection volume falls within a predetermined range. A collection system according to claim 1,
The predetermined range is defined as a collection system where the upper limit is the maximum load capacity of the automated circular collection truck multiplied by 0.95 , and the lower limit is the maximum load capacity of the automated circular collection truck multiplied by 0.6 . A circular collection truck control server according to claim 2,
The predetermined range is defined as a range where the upper limit is the maximum load capacity of the automated circular cargo collection truck multiplied by 0.95 , and the lower limit is the maximum load capacity of the automated circular cargo collection truck multiplied by 0.6. (Circular cargo collection truck control server) A collection method according to claim 3,
The predetermined range is defined as a range where the upper limit is the maximum load capacity of the automated circular cargo collection truck multiplied by 0.95 , and the lower limit is the maximum load capacity of the automated circular cargo collection truck multiplied by 0.6 . A method for controlling a circular collection truck according to claim 4,
The predetermined range is defined as a range where the upper limit is the maximum load capacity of the automated circular cargo collection truck multiplied by 0.95 , and the lower limit is the maximum load capacity of the automated circular cargo collection truck multiplied by 0.6. This is a method for controlling a circular cargo collection truck. A program that causes a computer to function as a circular collection truck control server as described in claim 2.