KR101410252B1 - Object movement chasing method in the EPCglobal network - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to a method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network and a method for analyzing a supply chain process using the same. More particularly, the present invention relates to a method for acquiring an EPC (Electronic Product Code) ; Storing at least one EPC event type in at least one object information server for the EPC obtained from the object; And retrieving the EPC stored in the at least one object information server at the same time to obtain the history information, and tracking the movement of the object accordingly.
According to the present invention, a method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network and a method for analyzing a supply chain process using the same can acquire an EPC unique to an object each time the object moves, store it in an object information server, It is possible to track the movement path of the object with ease.

Description

A method for tracking an object movement in an EPC global network,

The present invention relates to a method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network and a method for analyzing a supply chain process using the same, and more particularly to a method for tracking an object moving in an EPC global network environment, The present invention relates to a method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network capable of analyzing a supply chain process, and a method for analyzing a supply chain process using the same.

In the field of food, the most important issue is to deliver food effectively to consumers in a fresh state without causing injury. In particular, since food is very sensitive to temperature, unlike other products, temperature monitoring is carried out in order to maintain proper temperature during production and distribution. However, it is difficult to monitor temperature in the process of loading or unloading food in transportation vehicles happened.

In this way, research on cold chain systems consisting of processes, equipment, and information management to maintain the low temperature condition at all stages of production, storage, transportation, distribution, sale and consumption of food is concentrated. By effectively constructing such a cold chain system, it is possible to minimize the loss of commodity value internally, enable quick decision support, and achieve overall operational efficiency of logistics. In addition, competitive marketing can be achieved through strategic marketing externally, and it has various advantages that usefulness can be utilized in legal response.

In particular, in recent years, researches to apply RFID sensor tag, which is one of applications combining RFID and sensor technology, which is one of short-range wireless communication technologies, to operate a cold chain system effectively according to the development of IT technology, is increasing.

The RFID sensor tag is a tag to which a sensor capable of acquiring external environment information and a thin film battery for self-power supply are added to an RFID tag that can only acquire an existing ID.

In order to utilize RFID in the business, standard of hardware, software and service model includes EPC (Electronic Product Code) which is a metacoding system designed to support various industries, wireless interface protocol between RFID tag and RFID reader (for example, EPCGen2 ), EPCIS (EPC Information Services), and a search service, ONS (Object Naming Services), which are known as EPC standards or EPC technology.

It is called EPC Global Network or EPC Network that Electronic Product Code (EPC) information of object, which is a standard RFID code system of EPC Global, is shared among trading parties through computer network.

By using such an EPC global network, system integration or implementation cost is reduced, so that the system can be simplified within the enterprise or among other companies, so that the collaboration can be efficiently performed through easy sharing of information.

However, in spite of these advantages, it has been difficult to grasp the route of the product in which stage the product belongs at the stage of production, storage, transportation, distribution, sale and consumption of the product.

As described above, a movement tracking method of an object in the EPC global network and a supply chain process analysis method using the same are as follows. Prior Art 1 is Korean Patent No. 10-0721972 (2007.05.18), which relates to a logistics management system and a method using RFID printed with a bar code. In this prior art 1, a barcode is printed, and an RFID tag having only a radio frequency identification code is freely attached to the RFID tag, so that logistics management can be performed. Thus, (POM), which manages logistics in real time from the wise man, while improving the efficiency of logistics management by automatically managing the flow and location of all logistics from goods receipt to warehouse, Managment) system to solve some of the work stress in the field.

Prior art 2 is Korean Patent Laid-Open No. 10-2009-0032642 (April 01, 2009), which relates to an RFID-based international logistics information management system and method. The prior art 2 registers the EPC history information and the B2B history information generated at the international logistics base, and receives the log-history information inquiry request, and stores the pre-stored EPC history information, the B2B history information, and the export / import customs logistics management network link module A tracking server for integrating and processing the import / export customs logistics history information collected through the server; A key mapping server for verifying and registering a logistics information key value transmitted from the client application server and extracting a key for inquiring specific logistics history information; And an international logistics monitoring server for communicating with the key mapping server and the tracking server and providing the logistics history information corresponding to the received key value to the information inquiry requester when the received key value is inputted, And a technology for collectively managing EPC information related to an RFID event, B2B information, and import-export customs logistics information by acquiring related logistics keying information through a keying system, And to eliminate the disconnection / decentralization of information by a complex logistics key.

In order to solve the problems of the related art as described above, the present invention provides a method and apparatus for searching an EPC (Electronic Product Code) unique to an object based on RFID for an object moving in an EPC global network environment, The present invention provides a method of tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network that can easily track movement of an object regardless of whether the object is coupled or not.

In order to solve the problems of the related art as described above, the present invention applies EPC of an object moving in an EPC global network environment to a process mining technique to more accurately analyze a supply chain process, We propose a method of analyzing supply chain process using tracking method.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network, the method comprising: obtaining an electronic product code (EPC) as a unique ID from an object moving in a plurality of paths; Storing at least one EPC event type in at least one object information server for the EPC obtained from the object; And retrieving the EPC stored in the at least one object information server at the same time to obtain the history information, and tracking the movement of the object accordingly.

In particular, an RFID sensor tag may be attached to the object, and obtaining the EPC of the object that obtains the EPC through the lead of the RFID sensor tag.

In particular, it may include an EPC event including at least one of an EPC unique number, manufacturing data, transaction data, a recognition point, a recognition time, a storage point, a process state, and an object state for the object.

In particular, an object event (ObjectEvent) defining an event occurring in the object, a combining event (AggregationEvent) defining a combining / disassembling event between the object and another object, a processing event A TransactionEvent, and a QuantityEvent that defines a quantity for the object.

More preferably, it is determined whether the EPC is combined with another EPC based on at least one EPC event related to the EPC stored in the object information server, and tracking the movement of the EPC according to the determination result And tracking movement to an object that further includes.

More preferably, checking whether the number of EPC events related to the EPC stored in the object information server is one or more; Checking whether there is a binding event among the stored EPC events from the object information server when the number of EPC events related to the EPC stored in the object information server is one or more; Determining whether there is only the combination information in the combining event when there is more than one combination event, and if the combination information is present, determining that the EPC is connected to the parent EPC and leaving the establishment; Determining that the combination is released in the workplace when the binding information in the binding event does not exist and only the disassociation information exists; Determining that the EPC is combined with a parent EPC in a workplace and is unblocked in the workplace if both the binding information and the unbinding information in the binding event are present; And if the EPC event related to the EPC in the object information server does not exist, determining that the EPC is delivered from the workplace without being unblocked in a state in which the EPC is combined with the parent EPC; And determining whether the EPC including the EPC is combined with another EPC.

Particularly, the ID of the parent EPC associated with the EPC, the combined time between the EPC and the parent EPC, the unbinding time when the EPC is decoupled from the parent EPC, the time of receipt of the EPC in the workplace, And a shipment time dispatched from the warehouse.

More preferably, if there is only the combination information in the combination event, the ID of the parent EPC associated with the EPC, the connection time between the EPC and the parent EPC, and the shipment time from the EPC workplace are obtained from the binding event And tracking movement of the EPC based on the movement information.

More preferably, when there is no binding information in the binding event and only the binding information is present, the ID of the parent EPC, the time of arrival of the EPC in the workplace, and the time when the EPC is decoupled from the parent EPC Acquiring the release time, and tracking the movement to the EPC based on the release time.

More preferably, when both the combination information in the combination event and the release information are present, the ID of the parent EPC, the connection time of the EPC with the parent EPC, the combination of the EPC and the parent EPC Acquiring the release time, and tracking the movement to the EPC based on the release time.

More preferably, when there is no EPC event related to the EPC in the object information server, the ID of the parent EPC, the arrival time of the EPC in the workplace, the EPC Acquiring the departure time from the workplace, and tracking the movement to the EPC based on the acquired departure time.

According to another aspect of the present invention, there is provided a method for analyzing a supply chain process according to moving object tracking in an EPC global network, the method comprising: obtaining an electronic product code (EPC) ; Storing at least one EPC event type in at least one object information server for the EPC obtained from the object; Retrieving the EPC stored in the at least one object information server at the same time to obtain the history information and tracking the movement to the object accordingly; And analyzing the supply chain process of the object by applying the obtained history information to a process mining technique.

In particular, the step of analyzing the supply chain process of the object converting into the MXML form to define the history information formed based on the RFID communication as the process instance state may be included.

Particularly, the present invention provides a method of managing a supply chain process of an object that performs at least one of a process of deriving an entire process of a supply chain by applying the history information to a process mining technique, determining a structural change of the supply chain, Lt; / RTI >

In particular, the process of deriving the entire process of the supply chain that derives the entire process of the supply chain by checking the start and end status of the process through the EPC event of the object generated in the distribution network based on the alpha algorithm plug in .

In particular, it may include a process of determining a change in the structure of the supply chain that determines a change in the supply chain structure over time based on the fuzzy miner plug-in.

In particular, it may include determining a suitability between the process and the process instance based on the conformance checker plug-in, and determining an anomaly in the supply chain that determines an anomaly in the supply chain.

A method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network and a method for analyzing a supply chain process using the same according to the present invention includes acquiring an EPC unique to an object at each movement of the object and storing the acquired EPC in an object information server, Thereby, the movement path of the object can be easily tracked.

In addition, according to the present invention, there is provided a method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network and a method for analyzing a supply chain process using the same by simultaneously searching EPCs stored in at least one object information server, There is an effect that can be done.

In addition, the object movement tracking method and the supply chain process analyzing method using the EPC global network according to the present invention can be applied to process mining of the object by searching the EPC of the object, The structure change and the abnormal phenomenon can be easily analyzed.

FIG. 1 is a system block diagram illustrating an object movement tracking method in an EPC global network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.
FIG. 2 is a diagram briefly showing the trace of an object in an EPC global network. FIG.
3 is a flowchart illustrating a method of tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network according to an embodiment of the present invention.
4 is a diagram illustrating a process of acquiring and transmitting an EPC of an object.
5 is a graph showing an EPC sensing method of an object.
6 is a graph showing a condition for storing EPC obtained from an object.
7 is a diagram illustrating a process of handling an overflow when acquiring an EPC from an object.
8 is a diagram showing the types of EPC events.
9 is a diagram showing a state in which temperature data is added.
10 is a view showing a general logistics process.
11 is a view showing an embodiment of the present invention.
12 is a table showing attributes of the EPC event.
13 is a diagram showing an algorithm of a getHistory () function used for tracking an object's history.
14 is a diagram showing an example of a standard query of an object information server.
FIG. 15 is a view showing a type of combination and release of objects in a workplace.
FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a sequential query method for tracking the history of an object according to the related art.
17 is a diagram illustrating a parallel query method for tracing a history of an object according to the present invention.
FIG. 18 is a system block diagram illustrating a method of analyzing a supply chain process according to another embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustrating a method of analyzing a supply chain process according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.
20 is a diagram showing an object trace tracing result and a supply chain process instance.
21 is a diagram showing data in an MXML form used for analyzing an object history.
22 is a diagram showing the meaning of elements used in each workflow.
23 is a matching table for the conversion between EPC events and MXML.
24 is a diagram showing a virtual supply chain process.
Figure 25 is a drawing of the entire supply chain process using an alpha algorithm.
26 is a diagram showing changes in the supply chain structure using a purge miner plug-in.
27 is a diagram showing an anomaly in the supply chain using the component checker plug-in.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT Hereinafter, the present invention will be described in detail with reference to preferred embodiments and accompanying drawings, which will be easily understood by those skilled in the art. The present invention may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein.

Before describing the present invention, an EPC global network environment in which the present invention is performed will be briefly described with reference to FIG.

FIG. 1 is a system block diagram illustrating an object movement tracking method in an EPC global network according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention. Referring to FIG.

As shown in FIG. 1, in an EPC global network environment, a plurality of event information generated based on RFID wireless communication is shared by a plurality of users (or enterprises) through an EPCIS (hereinafter referred to as an object information server), a DS (Hereinafter referred to as a discovery server), an ONS (hereinafter referred to as an object naming service server), and a history tracking server.

The Electronic Product Code Information Service Server (EPCIS) is a server for exchanging RFID-based data stored in a local repository. Acquires and stores an EPC event occurring in a workplace where an object (or a commodity) is produced, and provides a query interface for querying the EPC event in an in-house system or a system of a partner company.

The Discovery Service server (DS) provides the address of the object information server storing the EPC to track to track the history of the object in the EPC global network environment.

The object naming service server (ONS) provides information indicating the product name, manufacturing date, etc. of the EPC, which is a unique ID of the object, and provides the address of the discovery server managing the EPC to track the history.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 2, the trace of the trace according to the movement of the object in the workplace will be described in more detail.

FIG. 2 is a diagram briefly showing the trace of an object in an EPC global network. FIG.

As shown in FIG. 2, whenever a manufacturer-object information server (EPCIS) passes an RFID sensing tag attached object through a plurality of RFID sensing points (reading points) installed in the inside of a business place, (Electronic Product Code) of the object from the RFID tag attached to the RFID tag and stores it as an EPC event type. When the object is completed in a plurality of work processes, such as production, packaging, palletizing, shipping, etc., at the manufacturer's workplace, The worker moves to an adjacent distribution work site for a later work process. In this movement process, as the RFID sensor tag attached to the object passes through the RFID sensing point installed in the manufacturer's workplace, the enterprise object information server completes the operation on the workplace at the manufacturer's workplace Transmits the EPC event type to the discovery server, notifies that the object has been shipped, and stores the EPC event.

In this manner, when the object dispatched from the manufacturer's business site is received at the distribution business site, the object information server of the distribution business site reports that the object has been received to the discovery service server. Thereafter, the object information server of the distribution center transmits the EPC event type to the discovery service server when the object is delivered from the distribution business site, and stores the EPC event. At this time, the EPC event transmitted from the object information server to the discovery service server includes at least one of an EPC unique number, manufacturing data, transaction data, recognition point, recognition time, storage point, process state, and object state.

Thus, the history information about the object that has been performed in each company or each business site is distributed and stored in the discovery service server.

Accordingly, if the history of the object is questionable, the object naming server (ONS) inquires the address of the discovery service server managing the EPC event information of the object, inquires again with the returned discovery service address, By accessing, the history information of the object can be obtained.

Hereinafter, a method of moving and tracking an object in the EPC global network according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

3 is a flowchart illustrating a method of tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 3, an object movement tracking method in an EPC global network of the present invention includes an EPC (Electronic Product Code) including a unique ID from an object moving in a predetermined path between a business place and a business place, (S110).

Thereafter, the acquired EPC is stored in at least one object information server as an EPC event type (S120).

Accordingly, the history tracking server simultaneously inquires the EPC stored in the at least one object information server to acquire the history information, and thereby tracks the movement to the object (S130).

Hereinafter, the EPC acquisition process of the object described above will be described in detail with reference to FIGS.

4 is a diagram illustrating a process of acquiring and transmitting an EPC of an object.

4, the RFID sensor tag is attached to the moving object, the reader and the middleware sense the EPC of the object from the RFID sensor tag, and then the EPC of the object sensed by the object information server is transmitted, The object information server internally stores the EPC of the object sensed by the reader and the middleware.

5 is a graph showing an EPC sensing method of an object.

As shown in FIG. 5, the EPC sensing method of an object is divided into an immediate method that temporarily senses when the system requests it, and an interval method that periodically senses a predetermined time.

The immediate method shown on the left side of FIG. 5 shows how the RFID sensor tag attached to the object senses at the request of the system when it crosses major distribution points such as goods receipt, picking, or goods issue.

Alternatively, the interval method shown on the right side of FIG. 5 may be configured to periodically transmit the RFID sensor tag attached to the object once every predetermined time (for example, two minutes), irrespective of the process of passing the object through the main distribution point Sensing.

6 is a graph showing a condition for storing EPC obtained from an object.

As shown in FIG. 6, the EPC of the object sensed by the reader and the middleware is transmitted to the object information server, and the object information server stores various methods of the received object in the internal storage.

First, the first EPC storage method is to store all transmitted sensing data without any condition (none method).

The second EPC storage method is to set the tolerance range in advance and to store the sensing data from the point outside the set tolerance range (out of range method).

The third EPC storage method is a method of comparing a previously sensed sensing data value with a currently sensed sensed data value and storing the sensed data value only when the difference is greater than a preset threshold value (gap out method).

In the present invention, only the sensor data necessary for the limited memory is stored using the second (out of range method) and the third (gap out method) EPC storing method.

A memory overflow may occur when the reader senses the RFID sensor tag, that is, when the EPC of the object is stored in the memory.

Hereinafter, the processing procedure of the memory overflow will be described in detail with reference to FIG.

7 is a diagram illustrating a process of handling an overflow when acquiring an EPC from an object.

As shown in FIG. 7, there are various processing methods for an overflow that occurs when storing ERC-sensed data of an object.

The first method is to not store the sensed data in the memory inside the tag (none method).

The second method is to delete the last data of the previously stored sensing data and to add the currently sensed data (last data updating method).

The third method is to delete the first stored sensing data and store the current sensing data in the last storage location (queue queue method).

The fourth method is to erase all previously stored sensing data and store the current sensing data from the beginning (erase all and add method).

Referring back to FIG. 4, the reader and the middleware will be described in detail.

The reader and the middleware use an interval method for periodically sensing data at predetermined time intervals from an RFID sensor tag attached to an object and an immediate method for temporarily sensing data only when a system request is generated. At this time, in the case of the immediate method, it can be used in the case where a logistics event such as an object is received in a business place or shipped.

When sensing the RFID sensor tag, the reader may first sense the ID of the RFID sensor tag, and then selectively sense the sensor data stored in the tag memory.

In this data sensing method, there is a method of reading only the latest sensor data (latest sensor data method). This data sensing method has an advantage that a reader and a middleware can be used in a system environment that can always transmit RFID and sensor data to an information system regardless of a place.

 Second, there is a method of all sensor data (all sensor data method). Such a data sensing method can be used for collecting sensor data generated during transportation after the transportation is completed because no wireless transmission device is installed in the transportation vehicle. Also, it is a system environment that can transmit data to the information system even in the transportation section. However, considering the case where the transmission is not possible due to the equipment error, the sensor data stored during transportation after the transportation is completed is recognized at once, It can also be used in the data logging dimension.

These readers and middleware transmit sensed sensing data to the object information server, and the transmission method is also divided into two cases.

The first transmission scheme includes a scheme of transmitting sensing data at predetermined predetermined intervals (an interval scheme) and a scheme of transmitting sensing data immediately after a predetermined tolerance range is exceeded (an immediate scheme). Alternatively, the interval method and the immediate method may be used by being fused with each other. The fusion method continuously compares the sensing data with the tolerance range. When the sensing data is determined to be normal, the sensing data is transmitted to the object information server through the initially set interval method. Immediately after the sensing data out of the tolerance range, A method of reducing the transmission period of the sensing data may be used.

As the sensing data is transmitted to the object information server, the object information server stores the received sensing data in the form of an EPC event.

Hereinafter, the EPC event will be described in detail with reference to Table 1 below.

An EPC event (EPCISEvent) is stored with four perspectives of what, where, when, and when. The What stores the EPC representing the ID of the object, A read point and a business location indicating a sensing point of the RFID sensor tag of the object are stored. In the case, the event time (EventTime), which is the sensing time, and the record time (RecordTime) Quot; BizStep " indicating the step of the business process and " disposition indicating the state of the object due to the step are stored.

What EPC number (SGTIN)
Manufacturing data (lot, batch, expiration date)
Transaction data (PO, Shipment, Invoice) Where Location (can be fixed or moving leverage master data - GLN)
Read Point
Business Location When Event Time
Record Time Why bizStep: business process step eg receiving, shipping
Disposition: Product status example: sellable_accessible, active, in_transit

Such an EPC event is divided into an object event (ObjectEvent), a combination event (AggregationEvent), a processing event (TransactionEvent), and a quantity event (QuantityEvent).

8 is a diagram showing the types of EPC events.

As shown in FIG. 8, an object event (ObjectEvent) of the EPC event defines one or more EPC lists observed at a specific time, place and business step by defining an event occurring in the object.

The AggregationEvent defines a physical association between the EPCs at a specific time and place and a business step by defining a combination or disassociation event between the object and another object.

A transaction event (TransactionEvent) defines a processing state of an event occurring in the object, and indicates that the EPC obtained from the object and the business transaction are related.

QuantityEvent defines the quantity for the object and represents the quantity of the goods at a specific time and place.

In particular, there is an extension point in each EPC event, and temperature data for the object is additionally recorded in the extended area, so that not only the movement history but also the temperature history of the object can be tracked later.

9 is a diagram showing a state in which temperature data is added.

9, when the temperature data is added to the object event, the unique ID and other information from the RFID sensor tag attached to the object are allocated to correspond to the attribute of the event according to the existing event generation rule , It can be seen that the temperature data newly added to the extended area is stored using the tag "temperature". In this case, the namespace hls is used, and the value is assigned to 20.

Using this method of adding temperature data, various contents can be added to each other EPC event.

Before applying the above-described EPC event to the object's logistics process and examining it in detail, a general process of the logistics process will be briefly described. In order to retrieve the history information of the EPC obtained from the object, first, a method of inquiring the object information server for all the EPC events generated in relation to the EPC (hereinafter referred to as the target EPC) , If the target EPC is bound to another EPC as a child, the method of inquiring the history of the parent EPC should be used.

10 is a view showing a general logistics process.

10, when an EPC (for example, goods) is packaged in a box at a sensing point 2 and the box is delivered to a business site (for example, a manufacturing factory) If the RFID reader senses only the EPC of the box at the sensing point ④, only the box EPC is stored in the object information server, and the goods EPC combined in the box is not sensed and stored .

In addition, when the goods are received in the box with the goods packed in the box, only the box EPC is sensed even though the goods are passed through the internal process of the goods center, the goods EPC is not sensed and is not stored in the object information server. If the EPC event for the product EPC is inquired to the object information server of the manufacturing factory and the distribution center, only the EPC event for the product EPC occurring at the sensing points 1 and 2 can be acquired.

Therefore, in order to acquire the complete history information of the merchandise EPC that may be combined with the box EPC, not only the EPC event related to the merchandise EPC, but also all the EPCs from the time when the EPC event of the box EPC is combined to the time when the combination with the box EPC is released, The event needs to be retrieved from the object information server.

Accordingly, the object movement tracking process (S130) of the present invention determines whether the EPC is combined with another EPC based on at least one EPC event related to the EPC stored in the object information server, And tracks the movement of the EPC.

Hereinafter, the movement tracking process of the object (S130) will be described in more detail with reference to FIG.

11 is a view showing an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 11, a user server which wishes to track the history of a specific EPC inquires the address of the discovery service server (DS) to the object naming service server (ONS) (S131), and acquires the address of the discovery service server The address of the object information server is inquired and acquired (S132). Accordingly, the user server accesses each object information server storing the EPC through the obtained address of the object information server, and acquires an EPC event related to the EPC to track the history (S133). Thereafter, the acquired plurality of EPC events are sorted in time order (S134).

In particular, the process of obtaining an EPC event related to an EPC to track movement will be described in more detail.

In order to acquire an EPC-related EPC event to track the movement, a getHistoy () function is recursively called (S133a), and an EPC event related to the EPC to be tracked exists in all object information servers storing the EPC event (S133b).

If there is no EPC event in the corresponding object information server, it is determined whether there is an EPC event in the object information server (S133c). If there is no EPC event in the object information server, ID is obtained (S133c1).

If the parent EPC is not acquired from the previous object information server (S133c2), the process of S133c1 is repeated.

If the ID of the parent EPC is not obtained from the previous object information server, the ID of the parent EPC, the connection time with the parent EPC, and the leaving time from the business are obtained (S133c3).

If there is even one EPC event in the object information server in step S133c, it is checked whether there is an aggregation event including an EPC to be tracked (step S133d). If there is no binding event, the EPC event inquiry process of the object information server is re-executed.

However, if more than one event is present in the object information server, it is determined whether there is only the combination information (S133f). If there is only the combination information, the ID of the parent EPC, By obtaining the shipment time (S133f1), it is determined that the EPC is shipped from the workplace in a state coupled to the parent EPC.

However, it is determined whether there is only the disassociation information with respect to the combination event existing in the object information server (S133g). If only the disassociation information exists, the ID of the parent EPC, the goods receipt time, (S133g1), it is judged that the EPC is put in the combined state in the workplace and the combination is released in the workplace.

(S133h), and acquires the ID, the coupling time, and the unjoining time of the parent EPC (S133h1), thereby determining whether the EPC exists in the same workplace , It is judged that it is combined with the parent EPC and released at the business site.

12 is a table showing attributes of an EPC event used in the getHistory () function.

12, for each of the object event, the combining event, and the processing event in the EPC event, the time at which the event occurred, the time at which the event was stored in the object information server, the EPC list, the EPC list included as a child, ID, an object or a business number, a place where the object is sensed, a place where the object stays, a business step, a state of an object, a business transaction list, and the like.

13 is a diagram showing an algorithm of a getHistory () function used for tracking an object's history. The matters described above with reference to FIG. 11 are shown in the form of an algorithm.

The EPC event attribute of the Discovery Service Server (DS) is named as the query result DSEvent (DSE) and is assumed to include the EPC, the object information server (epcisAddress), the receiving time (receivingTime), and the shipping time (shippingTime). At this time, the receipt time and the delivery time indicate the time when an EPC passes through the first place and the last place when the EPC passes the business establishment, respectively.

In addition, it is possible to define a variant data type of a aggregation event (aggregationEvent) called SortedAggregationEvent (SAE). In the SAE, any EPC analyzes all join events combined as a child, and then uses the parent EPC as a key, The time at which the EPC of interest to be tracked is combined with its parent EPC, and the time at which it is released. Therefore, the SAE includes the ID of the parent EPC, the aggregation time, and the disaggregation time.

For example, if a business event does not find a join event, then the join time aggregationTime is null, and if the unbind event does not occur, the unbind time disaggegationTime is null.

14 is a diagram showing an example of a standard query of an object information server.

First, all the EPC events related to the EPC corresponding to the departure time equal to or less than the arrival time of the EPC to be tracked are inquired to the object information server.

If there is an EPC event related to the EPC, an AggregationEventList is extracted from the EPCISEventList.

If the AggregationEventList does not exist, it means that the object information server is not combined with another object. Therefore, the EPCISEventList collected until the end of the query is returned.

However, if there is an AggregationEventList, the AggregationEventList type is converted to the SortedAggregationEvent type described above. The SortedAggregationEvent is a variant data type of a binding event AggregationEvent, which analyzes all join event AggregationEvent to which an EPC is bound as a child, and uses the parent EPC as a key to determine the time at which the EPC is combined with the parent EPC, ≪ / RTI > Therefore, the SortedAggregationEvent contains the parentID, addtionTime, and deletionTime of the parent EPC. At this time, addtionTime is null if no binding event is found in a business, and deletionTime is null if no union event occurs.

Thereafter, the getHistory () function is called recursively for the parent EPC of the EPC to track the movement. Accordingly, the parent EPC of the EPC , the parent EPC of the parent EPC, and eventually the root EPC can be inquired to trace the complete history of the EPC to track the first movement.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 15, the combination and release types of objects will be described in detail.

FIG. 15 is a view showing a type of combination and release of objects in a workplace.

As shown in FIG. 15, it can be seen that the EPC for the object is combined with and released from the parent EPC in a workplace.

First, the first type refers to the state in which the EPC is shipped to the parent EPC. In this case, there is no deletionTime in the SortedAggregationEvent. Accordingly, in order to track all the histories related to the parent EPC in the object information server, the object information server inquires all the time from when the target EPC to be traversed is combined with the parent EPC to when the target EPC is shipped.

The second type refers to the state in which the objective EPC and the parent EPC are combined in the workplace and unjoined in the workplace. In this case, there is no addtionTime in the SortedAggregationEvent. Accordingly, the inquiry is made from the object information server about the history of the parent EPC from the time when the object EPC enters the business to the time when the object is released from the parent EPC.

In the third type, the objective EPC is combined with the parent EPC in a workplace and is unlinked at the same site. In this case, the additionTime and deletionTime information are all present in the SortedAggregationEvent. Therefore, the history of the parent EPC is inquired from the object information server from the time when the object EPC is combined with the parent EPC to the time when the object is disconnected.

The fourth type is that the destination EPC has been put into the workplace in combination with a parent EPC and has been released from the workplace without disassembly. In this case, the object information server does not have an EPC event related to the destination EPC. Therefore, the parent EPC of the target EPC is inquired to the previous object information server which is temporally ahead of the object information server currently being queried. When the association event AggregationEvent related to the target EPC is inquired from the previous object information server, the parent ID of the most recent join event AggregationEvent corresponds to the parent EPC while the action is ADD.

At this time, when there is the history information when querying the current object information server with the parentID obtained from the previous object information server, the result is returned. If it does not exist, the ID of the parent EPC is acquired in the same manner to the previous object information server until obtaining the history information, and the query is repeated to the current object information server.

Considering all four types of joins between objects, it is possible to shorten the time required for movement tracking by using a parallel query method of simultaneously querying and querying a plurality of object information servers for tracking the movement history of the object EPC The effect can be expected.

In particular, if an EPC event is inquired to a plurality of object information servers, an EPC event list can be acquired. In addition, not only the movement path of the object to be traced but also the temperature history can be easily confirmed in the EPC event list.

Particularly, from the viewpoint of application scope of the present invention, in the EPC global network-based supply chain, it is possible to accurately track the forward logistics as well as the reverse logistics and the returnable logistics unit Therefore, it can operate robustly in various types of supply chains. In consideration of the coupling relationship with the parent EPC, both the combining and unbinding time and the goods receipt or delivery time at the destination EPC are considered, and the situation where the object information server does not record the destination EPC is considered to be.

Second, from the viewpoint of information detail, according to the present invention, while conventional tracking systems provide the position of a product at the level of a read point, the present invention is applicable not only to a recognition point, So that it is possible to confirm the position more precisely. For example, you can provide not only that a product is in a warehouse, but you can also provide information about what box a product is in.

)은 객체 네이밍 서버 (ONS) 쿼리 처리시간(

), 디스커버리 서비스 서버 (DS) 쿼리 처리시간(

) 및 객체정보서버쿼리 처리시간(

)의 합으로 표현될 수 있다. Thirdly, evaluation of the present invention from the viewpoint of traceability time will lead to a high-level trace time cost based on a study of the performance of conventional web service combinations and a method of calculating the performance of existing RFID- , As shown in Equation (1) below, the total tracking time (

) Is the object naming server (ONS) query processing time (

), Discovery Service Server (DS) Query Processing Time (

) And object information server query processing time (

). ≪ / RTI >

)으로서, 전체 객체정보서버의 쿼리 처리시간을 계산할 수 있게 된다. 이때, 쿼리해야 할 전체 객체정보서버의 집합(N)은 디스커버리 서비스서버(DS) 쿼리결과를 통해 결정된다.In the case of using the forward tracking method for sequentially accessing the object information server through which the goods pass in the process of tracking the history of the goods, the sum of the query processing times of the respective object information servers (

), It is possible to calculate the query processing time of the entire object information server. At this time, the set (N) of the entire object information servers to be queried is determined through the result of the discovery service server (DS) query.

However, since the present invention is capable of simultaneously querying target object information servers determined as a query result of the discovery service server DS in parallel form, the equation for processing time can be expressed as Equation 2 shown below Can be changed.

At this time, since the longest processing time among the query processing times from the plurality of object information servers determines the query processing time of all the object information servers N, it can be seen that the max () function is used in the formula.

Such a parallel-type service invocation method can logically perform faster than sequential service invocation if the computer resources of the server on which the tracking service is installed are generous.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 16 and FIG. 17, a sequential service call method used in the past and a parallel service call method used in the present invention are compared with each other.

FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a sequential query method for tracking the history of an object according to the related art.

As shown in FIG. 16, when the history of an object is tracked by a general sequential query method, tracking is started from the first object information server through which the object has passed.

Then, the object information server (Plant) is accessed first, the goods item (1), the case (2), and the pallet pallet (2) are retrieved in this order and the object information server (Distribution Center EPCIS) (4), the case case (5), and the pallet pallet (6). In the retail store server, pallet pallet (7), case case (8), and item item (9) are inquired. When retrieving from the object information server, the pallet pallet, the case case, and the item item are determined based on the inquiry result of the previous object information server.

However, if the parallel query method of the present invention is used, the history of the object can be tracked by simultaneously accessing each object information server.

17 is a diagram illustrating a parallel query method for tracing a history of an object according to the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 17, each object information server is accessed and tracked in the order of item item (1), case case (3), and pallet pallet (3).

In other words, since the number of product information requests in the supply chain is limited to the supply chain participants and customers, it is expected that the traffic is less than the web servers on the Internet that serve the unspecified number of users. .

In addition, the method of analyzing the supply chain process using the object movement tracking method in the EPC global network will be described in detail.

FIG. 18 is a system block diagram illustrating a method of analyzing a supply chain process according to another embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 18, the system using the supply chain process analysis method according to the movement tracking of the object in the EPC global network includes a system using the movement tracking method of the object in the EPC global network described above with reference to FIG. 1, In accordance with some similarities, only the components different from those described with reference to FIG. 1 will be described below.

As shown in FIG. 18, the supply chain process instance receives history information for tracking movement from the history tracking server, and receives the history information of the RFID type input by the process instance data converter in the business process mining framework, And stores them in the process instance repository. The business process mining framework (ProM) analyzes the supply chain process by applying the process mining technique to the MXML formatted history information.

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 19, a method of analyzing a supply chain process according to movement tracking of an object in the EPC global network of the present invention will be described in detail.

FIG. 19 is a flowchart illustrating a method of analyzing a supply chain process according to an exemplary embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIG. 19, in the method of analyzing the supply chain process according to the movement tracking of an object in the EPC global network of the present invention, an EPC (Electronic Product Code) including a unique ID is obtained from an object moving in a predetermined path (S210 ).

And stores the EPC event type in at least one object information server as an EPC event type (S220).

In step S230, the EPC stored in the at least one object information server is simultaneously inquired to obtain the history information, and the movement to the object is tracked accordingly.

The acquired history information is applied to a process mining technique to analyze the supply chain process of the object (S240).

20 is a diagram showing an object trace tracing result and a supply chain process instance.

As shown in FIG. 20, it can be seen that the history information of the object passing through the supply chain to a series of logistics processes (factory-warehouse-logistics center-distribution center-store) is one instance of the supply chain process. In order for the business process mining framework (ProM) to analyze the supply chain process by using the history information of these objects, the RFID event schema collected from the EPC global network by the MXML schema and the traceability server is not completely meaningful, And converts the history information formed based on the RFID communication into the MXML form so as to define the process instance state.

21 is a diagram showing data in an MXML form used for analyzing an object history.

As shown in FIG. 21, the AuditTrailEntry indicates one event data included in a specific process instance. These AuditTrailEntries include WorkflowModelElement, which indicates the type of job, EventType, which indicates the type of event, such as start and end, Timestamp, which means event time, and Originator, which contains the performer.

22 is a diagram showing the meaning of elements used in each workflow.

As shown in FIG. 22, the meaning of WorkflowModelElement, EventType, Timestamp, and Originator is an example of a simple workflow. In this example, start of Analyze defect, pause of Analyze defect, complete of Analyze defect, A total of five EPC events were generated.

As such, the EPC event tracked by the history tracking server encompasses all event attributes of the object information server. Each of these EPC events is stored with four perspectives of what, where, when and when. The What stores the EPC representing the ID of the object, (Read Point) and a business location indicating a sensing point of the RFID sensor tag of the object are stored. When the event time (EventTime), which is the sensing time, and the record time (RecordTime) In the Why, bizStep indicating the step of the business process and disposition indicating the state of the object due to the step are stored, respectively.

23 is a matching table for the conversion between EPC events and MXML.

As shown in FIG. 23, GLN (Global Location Number) indicating a workplace is assigned to WorkflowModelElement and BizStep, which means a procedure of the logistics process, is assigned to EventType.

Since the main purpose of RFID based supply chain process mining is to derive the process structure of the supply chain related to the object, it selects the readPoint which can identify the object of the RFID event data and assign a unique ID as WorkflowModelElement. In addition, bizStep is selected as EventType because it is similar to event of workflow in the sense that it changes the state of object.

RFID events do not contain operator information, so there is no attribute that can be mapped directly to the Orginator. Conceptually, RFID recognition is performed by RFID reader, so readPoint is assigned to Originator, and eventTime means event occurrence time, so it is assigned to Timestamp whose meaning agrees.

As such matching rule, the process instance data converter of the process mining application shown in FIG. 18 converts RFID events collected from the traceability system into MXML format and stores them in the process instance storage.

As described above, at least one of the processes of deriving the entire process of the supply chain, determining the structural change of the supply chain, and determining the anomaly of the supply chain by applying the history information stored in the instance repository to the process mining technique .

Hereinafter, with reference to FIG. 24, the imported beef distribution network, which is an example of the supply chain process, will be described in detail.

24 is a diagram showing a virtual supply chain process.

As shown in FIG. 24, the imported beef distribution network is composed of a total of six participants including a manufacturer, a distribution center, a retailer 1, a retailer 2, a retailer 3, and a port. The manufacturer consists of three stages of production, packing and shipment. The distribution center consists of goods receipt, picking, and shipment processes. There is a dedicated shipping point for delivery to each retailer. Each retailer consists of a two-step process of goods receipt and sale, and the harbor also consists of a two-step process of goods receipt and departure. The lower left corner of the rectangle representing the step of each process represents readPoint.

First, a process of deriving the entire process of the supply chain by applying the history information to the process mining technique will be described with reference to FIG.

Figure 25 is a drawing of the entire supply chain process using an alpha algorithm.

As shown in FIG. 25, a business process mining framework (ProM) provides various plug-in types of algorithms that can be used to derive a process from a log. The most basic algorithm This is an example of deriving the entire process based on the RFID events generated in the virtual RFID-based beef distribution network using the Alpha algorithm plug-in (Alpha ++ Algorithm Plug-in).

The first state node (left first circle) and last state node (right last circle) of the derived process are logical symbols that indicate the start and end of the RFID process and do not represent the actual movement of the object. This analysis enables companies in the supply chain to acquire information on the overall logistics process structure of their supply chain.

In addition, the structure of the distribution network and the volume of the distribution network are continuously changed in accordance with the change of the distribution network such as new partner participation in the distribution network and demand change. Referring to FIG. 26, the history information is applied to the process mining technique, As shown in FIG.

26 is a diagram showing changes in the structure of the imported beef supply chain using the purge miner plug-in.

As shown in Fig. 26, the thickness of the arrow indicates the degree of beef volume passing through the path, the left drawing shows the initial supply chain process, and the right drawing shows the latter supply chain process. According to the control of event occurrence in hypothetical scenarios, in the past, the beef picked in D1.2 has been distributed to R1.2 through D1.3, but recently it has been confirmed that the beef is much supplied to R3.2 through D1.5 . In the beginning, there was only a path from M1.3 to D1.1, but in the latter period, a new path P1.1 was added, and a small number of beef was supplied to the path. Through this analysis process, it is possible to compare and analyze the structural change of the RFID-based supply chain and the change of the trade volume, and if such a snapshot accumulates, it can help predict the future supply chain.

Third, the process of analyzing the anomalies of the supply chain by applying the historical information to the process mining technique will be examined in detail.

Products may be lost or other unusual phenomena may occur due to reasons such as unrecognized RFID. Such anomaly may eventually be extended to supply chain anomalies.

In order to solve these problems, we use the Conformance Checker Plug-in, one of the tools to evaluate the suitability of the derived process and process instances, Or a point holding a product that has a waiting time that exceeds the reference value.

27 is a diagram showing an anomaly in the supply chain using the component checker plug-in.

As shown in FIG. 27, the number of arrows indicates the number of objects passing through the path. Analysis showed that 501 beef was shipped in D1.3, while only 451 were delivered to R1.1 in the next phase, and only 403 beef delivered (R1.2) were delivered, and the rest were found to be abnormally terminated . Abnormal termination is likely to be lost or beef that is not recognized by RFID readers. In addition, beef from D1.4 and D1.5 also has a loss, and similar abnormalities are found in each of the following procedures. This supply chain anomaly analysis can help you make more informed decisions about the effort to increase inventory accuracy and frequency adjustment and help you decide to replace the RFID device or supplement the RFID recognition process.

In addition, the present invention can be stored in a computer-readable recording medium on which a program for execution by a computer is recorded. At this time, the computer-readable recording medium includes all kinds of recording apparatuses in which data that can be read by a computer system is stored. Examples of the computer readable recording medium include ROM, RAM, CD-ROM, DVD 占 ROM, DVD-RAM, magnetic tape, floppy disk, hard disk, optical data storage, and the like. In addition, the computer-readable recording medium may be distributed to network-connected computer devices so that computer-readable codes can be stored and executed in a distributed manner.

A method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network and a method for analyzing a supply chain process using the same according to the present invention includes acquiring an EPC unique to an object at each movement of the object and storing the acquired EPC in an object information server, Thereby, the movement path of the object can be easily tracked.

In addition, according to the present invention, there is provided a method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network and a method for analyzing a supply chain process using the same by simultaneously searching EPCs stored in at least one object information server, There is an effect that can be done.

In addition, according to the present invention, there is provided a method for tracking movement of an object in an EPC global network and a method for analyzing a supply chain process using the same, the method comprising: extracting an EPC of an object and applying the track to the process mining, The structure change and the abnormal phenomenon can be easily analyzed.

While the present invention has been described in connection with what is presently considered to be practical exemplary embodiments, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to the disclosed embodiments, but, on the contrary, Do.

S110: Obtain an Electronic Product Code (EPC) including a unique ID from an object moving in a predetermined path
S120: At least one object information server stores an EPC event type for the EPC acquired from the object
S130: the EPC stored in each of the at least one object information server is simultaneously inquired to obtain the history information, and the movement to the object is thereby tracked

Claims (20)

Acquiring an EPC (Electronic Product Code) including a unique ID from an object moving from a manufacturer object information server to a predetermined path;
Storing at least one object information server as an EPC event type for an EPC obtained from the object; And
The history tracking server simultaneously inquiring the EPC stored in the at least one object information server to obtain the history information, and thereby tracking the movement with respect to the object;
, ≪ / RTI &
The step of obtaining the EPC of the object
An RFID sensor tag is attached to the object, an EPC is obtained through a lead of the RFID sensor tag,
Sensing the RFID sensor tag every time the object passes the main distribution point or periodically sensing the RFID sensor tag at predetermined time intervals,
The step of the at least one object information server storing an EPC event type for an EPC
The at least one object information server receives and stores EPCs at predetermined intervals from the reader and the middleware. When the received EPC exceeds the predetermined tolerance range, the at least one object information server stores the received EPCs, The receiving period of the EPC is decreased,
Wherein the step of tracking the movement of the object by the history tracking server
The history trace server analyzes an input / output pattern in a workplace according to the combination or cancellation of the received EPC, and simultaneously queries at least one object information server in parallel form according to the analysis result, And determining the longest processing time as the query processing time of all object information servers.
delete The method according to claim 1,
The EPC event
Wherein the at least one object includes at least one of an EPC unique number, manufacturing data, transaction data, a recognition point, a recognition time, a storage time, a process state, and an object state of the object.
The method according to claim 1,
The EPC event
An ObjectEvent for defining an event to be generated in the object, a AggregationEvent for defining a combination or disassembly event between the object and another object, a TransactionEvent for defining a processing state of an event occurring in the object, And quantity events that define quantities for the objects. The method of claim 1, wherein the quantization events are quantized by a quantization method.
The method according to claim 1,
The step of tracking movement for the object
Determining whether the EPC is combined with another EPC based on at least one EPC event related to the EPC stored in the object information server, and tracking the movement of the EPC according to the determination result;
The method further comprising the step of:
6. The method of claim 5,
The process of determining whether the EPC is combined with another EPC
Determining whether the number of EPC events related to the EPC stored in the object information server is one or more;
Checking whether there is a binding event among the stored EPC events from the object information server when the number of EPC events related to the EPC stored in the object information server is one or more;
Determining whether there is only the combination information in the combining event when there is more than one combination event, and if the combination information is present, determining that the EPC is connected to the parent EPC and leaving the establishment;
Determining that the combination is released in the workplace when the binding information in the binding event does not exist and only the disassociation information exists;
Determining that the EPC is combined with a parent EPC in a workplace and is unblocked in the workplace if both the binding information and the unbinding information in the binding event are present; And
If the EPC event related to the EPC in the object information server does not exist, determining that the EPC is delivered from the workplace without being unblocked in a state that the EPC is combined with the parent EPC;
The object tracking method comprising the steps of:
The method according to claim 6,
The combining event
The ID of the parent EPC associated with the EPC, the combined time between the EPC and the parent EPC, the unbinding time at which the EPC is decoupled from the parent EPC, the time of receipt of the EPC at the workplace, Wherein the object tracking information includes at least one of the following:
8. The method of claim 7,
If there is only the combination information in the combining event, the ID of the parent of the parent combined with the EPC, the coupling time between the EPC and the parent EPC, and the shipment time of the EPC from the coupling event are obtained, And tracking movement for the EPC;
The method further comprising the step of:
8. The method of claim 7,
If there is no binding information in the binding event and only binding information is present, the ID of the parent EPC, the arrival time of the EPC at the workplace, and the binding release time of the binding of the EPC from the parent EPC And tracking movement for the EPC based on the acquired EPC;
The method further comprising the step of:
8. The method of claim 7,
If both the combination information in the combination event and the combination release information exist, the ID of the parent EPC, the connection time of the EPC with the parent EPC, and the connection release time of the connection of the EPC with the parent EPC are obtained And tracking movement for the EPC based on the EPC;
The method further comprising the step of:
8. The method of claim 7,
If there is no EPC event related to the EPC in the object information server, the ID of the parent EPC, the time of arrival of the EPC in the workplace, the EPC from the business entity, Acquiring the shipped warehouse time and tracing the movement to the EPC based on the shipped warehouse time;
The method further comprising the step of:
delete delete delete delete delete delete A computer-readable recording medium on which a program for executing a method according to any one of claims 1 to 11 is recorded.
delete The method according to claim 1,
Wherein the storing of the at least one object information server in the form of an EPC event for an EPC comprises:
When a memory overflow occurs in storing the sensing data, the last sensing data among the pre-stored sensing data is deleted, and the currently sensed sensing data is added and stored,
The first stored sensing data is deleted, the current sensing data is stored,
And storing the sensing data in the EPC global network.

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