JP2000348091A - Rental article management system - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To input a rental article to be collected to a management device from a renting party in real time. SOLUTION: An ID tag is attached to a uniform of a rental article. A person in charge of collection and delivery who collects dirty uniforms from a renting party carried a hand reader/writer 9 which transmits and receives a data signal by the ID tag and a radio wave and a PHS telephone set 10. At the time of collecting uniforms, the hand reader/writer 9 is made to communicate with the ID tag of the uniform and ID information on the uniform is acquired. Then, the ID information acquired by the hand reader/writer 9 is transmitted from the PHS telephone set 10 and inputted to a management device 3 through a PHS base section 11 and a public telephone line 8.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a rental item management system, and more particularly to a system for acquiring information on rental items collected at a lender and using the information to manage the rental items.

[0002]

Among the goods rental businesses, there is a linen supply business which lends clothes, for example, uniforms worn by doctors and nurses in hospitals or uniforms worn by employees at hotels. The system rents out uniforms to lenders such as hospitals and hotels, collects and cleans them when they become dirty, and lends them again to lenders. In such a linen supply business, if the uniforms to be collected and the uniforms to be lent are known in advance, the number of uniforms to be stocked can be reduced, and efficient sales can be performed.

By the way, the number of uniforms to be lent can be relatively easily grasped because the number of uniforms to be lent is a promise to the lender such as lending the uniform on the day of collection, for example, the next day. On the other hand, it is difficult for the wearer of the uniform to know in advance the number of uniforms to be collected, because when the uniforms become dirty, they change into new ones that have been cleaned. The earliest point at which you can know the number of uniforms collected is
It is likely that the collection and delivery truck, which has collected the uniforms from the lender, will arrive at the cleaning factory at best.

[0004] The number of uniforms to be lent is prepared to some extent with a margin. If the number of uniforms to be lent is large, the number of uniforms to be lent is satisfied by adding uniforms prepared as spares to the collected and cleaned uniforms. However, if there are many lenders who drop in for collection, the collection vehicle arrives late at the cleaning factory, or another uniform is being cleaned, and the arrived uniform cannot be cleaned in time. There is a problem that the number cannot be satisfied. In order to avoid such a problem, it is necessary to increase the number of uniforms to be prepared, resulting in poor efficiency.

The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a rental item management system capable of inputting a rental item to be collected from a lender to a management unit in real time.

[0006]

In order to achieve the above object, according to the first aspect of the present invention, ID information acquiring means acquires ID information of a rental item to be collected from a rental destination of a rental item, and obtains the ID information. Is transmitted to the managing means via the communication line to the transmitting means, so that the type and quantity of the collected rental item can be transmitted immediately from the lender. For this reason, the information of the collected rental items can be known in real time, and this can be used for managing the rental items, so that efficient management can be performed.

According to the second aspect of the present invention, there is provided an arrival information acquisition unit for acquiring ID information from an ID medium of a rental item carried in from a lender and inputting the information to a management unit.
The invention according to claim 4 further comprises inventory information acquisition means for acquiring ID information from an ID medium of a rental item in a lendable state and inputting the information to a management means. For example, in the case of the linen supply business, the ID information transmitted from the lender through the communication means and the information obtained from the arrival information acquisition means are provided. It can be used, for example, when determining the priority of the uniform to be cleaned from the ID information obtained from the acquired ID information, the ID information obtained from the inventory information obtaining means, or the ID information obtained from the rental request information obtaining means.

[0008]

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS An embodiment in which the present invention is applied to the linen supply industry will be described below with reference to the drawings. First, the linen supplier organization has a sales department,
Includes collection and delivery department, factory department, and warehouse department. The sales department accepts lending of uniforms from hospitals, hotels and other lenders of uniforms. The collection and delivery department collects uniforms from the lenders and delivers the cleaned uniforms to the lenders. The factory department cleans uniforms collected from lenders and repairs frays. The warehouse department stores and stores the cleaned uniforms in the warehouse, stores new uniforms as spares, and supplies the collection and delivery department with uniforms to be delivered to lenders.

As shown in FIG. 4, an ID tag 2 as an ID medium is attached to the uniform 1 lent to the hospital or hotel by the linen supplier. The ID tag 2 is formed in a small and thin sheet shape, is put in a bag, and is sewn to the back side of the inconspicuous hem of the uniform 1 or the like.

FIG. 1 shows a management system for a linen supplier. The management system is built around a management device 3 composed of a computer as a management means. The management device 3 includes terminal devices 4 to 7 composed of computers installed in each of the above sections and a public communication line. 8 are connected. The person in charge of the collection and delivery section carries a hand-held reader / writer 9 as ID information acquisition means and a mobile phone or PHS, for example, P
An HS terminal (hereinafter, a PHS telephone) 10 is carried.
Although not shown, the management device 3 and the terminal devices 4 to 7 are provided with input means such as a keyboard and a mouse, a display as a display means, a printer as a printing means, and the like.

The hand-held reader / writer 9 is for obtaining information such as the type and the number of the uniforms 1 collected at the lender, and the information obtained by the hand-held reader / writer 3 is transmitted from the PHS telephone 4 as a radio signal. Sent. Then, the radio signal transmitted from the PHS telephone 4 is received by the PHS base station 11 and given to the management device 3 via the public communication line 8.

The hand-held reader / writer 9 communicates with the ID tag 2 by radio waves. Here, the electrical configuration of the ID tag 2 and the handheld reader / writer 9 will be described. First, FIG.
2 shows an electrical configuration of the ID tag 2. As shown in FIG. 2, the ID tag 2 includes an antenna coil 12 for transmitting and receiving a radio signal, a resonance capacitor 13, and a control IC.
C14 and a smoothing section 15 are provided. Control IC 14
The semiconductor device constituting the rectifying unit 17, the modulation / demodulation unit 18, the memory unit 19 and the like in addition to the MPU (microprocessor unit) 16 as a control means is integrated into one chip. In this case, the memory unit 19 has a ROM in which operation programmable is stored, and an erasable non-volatile memory such as an EEPROM for temporary storage. The smoothing unit 15 includes a smoothing capacitor, a Zener diode, and the like (not shown). Here, the memory unit 19 stores various data such as the ID number, the type of the uniform 1, the type for men and women, the size, and the color.

The antenna coil 12 is connected in parallel with the resonance capacitor 13 to form a resonance circuit, and a predetermined high-frequency power radio signal is transmitted from a hand-held reader / writer 9 as an external device. When it comes, it receives this and supplies it to the rectifier 17. The rectification unit 17 includes the smoothing unit 1
5 together with the power supply circuit for operation, rectifies the electric wave signal for electric power transmitted from the resonance circuit, and
DC power at constant voltage (operating power)
And supply it to the MPU 16 and the like.

A signal such as data transmitted from the hand-held reader / writer 9 is transmitted by being superimposed on a power radio signal, and the signal is demodulated by the modulation / demodulation unit 18 and supplied to the MPU 16. Can be MPU 16
It operates in accordance with the operation program stored in the ROM of the memory unit 19, executes processing according to a signal input from the modem unit 18, and stores received data in the memory unit 19
In this case, the data is written to an erasable non-volatile memory such as an EEPROM, or data is read from the memory unit 19, modulated by the modulation / demodulation unit 18, and transmitted as a radio signal from the antenna coil 12.

FIG. 3 shows an electrical configuration of the hand-held reader / writer 9. As shown in the figure, the hand-held reader / writer 9 includes an MPU 20 as a control means, a transmitting unit 22 having a transmitting antenna 21, a receiving unit 24 having a receiving antenna 23, a memory unit 25, a modem 26 for the PHS telephone 12, and an operating unit. A battery 27 as a power supply is provided.

The MPU 20 of the handheld reader / writer 9 is
When communicating with the D tag 2, first, the carrier signal is modulated by the transmission unit 22 and converted into a power radio signal by the transmission antenna 21.
Then, the data to be transmitted is modulated by the transmitting unit 22 so as to be superimposed on the power radio signal, and transmitted from the transmitting antenna 21.

The radio signal transmitted from the ID tag 2 is received by the receiving antenna 23, demodulated by the receiving unit 24 and discriminated as data. And MPU20
Stores the data demodulated by the receiving unit 24 in the memory unit 25, and when the data transmission operation is performed, transmits the data stored in the memory unit 25 to the PHS telephone 12 via the modem 26.

On the other hand, the terminal devices 4 to 7 of the collection / delivery section, the factory section, and the warehouse section have reader / writers 28 to 32 for communicating with the ID tag 2 of the uniform 1 by radio waves similarly to the hand-held reader / writer 9. Is connected. Note that the electrical configuration of these reader / writers 28 to 32 is almost the same as that of the above-described hand-held reader / writer 9, and the operation power supply is obtained from a commercial AC power supply.

The reader / writers 28 to 32 give the management apparatus 3 information on the movement of the uniform 1 in the collection / delivery section, factory section, and warehouse section. Specifically, reader / writer 2 of the collection and delivery department
8 is the uniform 1 to be delivered when the uniform 1 is delivered to the lender.
Get the information of. The reader / writers 29 and 30 in the factory section acquire information on the uniform 1 received at the cleaning factory and information on the cleaned uniform. Therefore, the reader / writer 29 that acquires information on the uniform 1 received at the cleaning factory functions as an arrival information acquisition unit.

The reader / writers 31 and 32 in the warehouse section
Can store information on uniforms that are cleaned in a cleaning factory and stored in a warehouse, uniforms 1 that are newly purchased and stored in a warehouse, and information on uniforms 1 that are passed from a warehouse department to a collection and delivery department for delivery to a lender. get. By subtracting the information from the reader / writers 31 and 32, the type and number of the uniforms 1 stored in the current warehouse can be grasped.
Therefore, these reader / writers 31 and 32 function as stock information acquisition means. Note that in FIG.
Is an operation unit composed of key switches, and is connected to a display unit 34 composed of a liquid crystal display.

In the above configuration, when the sales department receives an order for lending uniforms from the lender, the sales department receives the order.
Lender name, scheduled lending date, type of uniform 1 to lend,
Rental request information such as size, type, men's and women's distinction, and color is input, and the rental request information is provided from the terminal device 4 to the management device 3. The warehouse section carries out the uniform 1 from the warehouse based on the rental request information. At this time,
The reader / writer 32 is the ID of the uniform 1 carried out of the warehouse.
ID information of the uniform 1 by communicating with the lug 2, that is, the ID
Information such as a number, a type, a size, a distinction between men and women, and a color is obtained, and this is input to the terminal device 6 in the warehouse section. And
The terminal device 6 gives the information on the uniform 1 carried out of the warehouse to the management device 3.

The person in charge of the collection / delivery section sorts the uniforms 1 carried out from the warehouse section for each lender based on the lending information, and places them on the pickup / delivery vehicle 33. When sorting to this lender,
The reader / writer 28 of the collection / delivery section communicates with the ID tag 2 of the uniform 1 to acquire the ID information of the uniform 1 and inputs this to the terminal device 7 of the collection / delivery section. Then, the terminal device 7 gives the information on the unloaded uniform 1 to the management device 3.

The person in charge of collection and delivery arrives at the lending destination, lends the new uniform 1 that has been cleaned, and collects the dirty uniform 1. At the time of collection of the uniform 1, the person in charge of collection and delivery holds the ID of the collected uniform 1 by holding the handheld reader / writer 9 in his hand.
It communicates with the tag 2 and obtains the ID information of the uniform 1. The ID information acquired by the handheld reader / writer 9 is transmitted from the PHS telephone 10 and received by the PHS base station 11. PH
The ID information received by the S base station 11 is then sent to the management device 3 via the public communication line 8 and received by a modem (reception unit) (not shown) of the management device 3. It is captured.

The collection and delivery vehicle 33 that has sequentially dropped in at the lending destination and collected the uniform 1 then delivers the collected uniform 1 to the factory department. In the factory section, the reader / writer 29 communicates with the ID tag 2 of the uniform 1 carried into the cleaning factory to acquire the ID information of the uniform 1 and gives the ID information to the management device 3 via the terminal device 5. Further, the reader / writer 30 communicates with the ID tag 2 of the uniform 1 whose cleaning has been completed to acquire the ID information of the uniform 1, and gives the ID information to the management device 3 via the terminal device 5. Then, the uniform 1 cleaned in the factory section is transported to the warehouse. At this time, the reader / writer 31 of the warehouse section communicates with the ID tag 2 of the uniform 1 carried into the warehouse to acquire the ID information of the uniform 1 and gives the acquired ID information to the management device 3.

Based on the ID information of the uniform 1 given from the terminal devices 4 to 7 and the PHS telephone 10 of each department as described above, the management device 3
Create collection schedule, shortage order schedule, inventory management, etc. That is, the management device 3 performs the rental request information given by the sales department and the stock information of the cleaned uniform given by the warehouse department based on the rental request information.
To keep the uniform 1 to be rented tomorrow in the warehouse by the end of today's work without using a new uniform 1 A cleaning schedule is calculated as to whether or not it needs to be loaded.

On the other hand, the management device 3 calculates, based on the cleaning schedule information given by the factory, the cleaned uniform information indicating by what time of the day what uniforms have been cleaned and stored in the warehouse. On the other hand, based on the uniform collection information of the hand-held reader / writer 9, which uniform is collected from each lender and how many clothes are collected are calculated.

Then, from the rental request information, the cleaning schedule information and the cleaned uniform information, the number of unsatisfactory uniforms, that is, which uniforms are in shortage and what are worn, is calculated. If there are insufficient uniforms, the PHS telephone 10
It is calculated from the collection information by whether or not the missing uniform 1 exists in the collected uniforms 1. As a result, if there is a collection and delivery person who collected the missing uniform 1, the management device 3
Displays the person in charge on a display (not shown), and changes the cleaning device schedule so that the missing uniform 1
When the collection and delivery vehicle that has collected the vehicles returns, the uniform 1 collected by the collection and delivery vehicles can be put into the cleaning device.

Then, the operator of the management apparatus 3 calls the PHS telephone 10 of the person in charge of collection and delivery displayed on the display and instructs by what time to return to the factory. As a result, the uniform 1 to be lent tomorrow can be cleaned and stored in the warehouse by the end of today.

Further, from the above-mentioned cleaning schedule information and the cleaned uniform information, the number of insufficient uniforms, that is, which uniforms are insufficient, is calculated. Based on the rental request information, a collection schedule is created so that the missing uniforms can be preferentially collected. If the person in charge of collection and delivery patrols the lender in accordance with the collection schedule, the probability of collecting the insufficient uniform 1 increases, depending on the degree of contamination on the lender side. Then, if the uniform 1 is collected, it is input to the management device 3 in real time, so that the uniform 1 can arrive at the factory earlier and the uniform shortage can be resolved.

If the uniform 1 to be lent is still insufficient even after performing the above processing, a new uniform stored in the warehouse is lent. The rental request information for this new uniform 1 is provided by the reader / writer 3 in the warehouse section.
1 to the management device 3 via the terminal device 7.

The present invention is not limited to the embodiment described above and shown in the drawings, and the following modifications or extensions are possible. Not only the uniform 1 in the linen supply business but also a video tape in the video rental business may be used. If information such as the type, size, distinction between male and female, and color of the uniform 1 is stored in the memory of the management device 3 together with the ID number, the ID medium attached to the uniform 1 is the ID of the uniform 1 It may be a barcode indicating a number. As long as the hand-held reader / writer 9 can connect to a public telephone and transmit ID information via a public communication line, the hand-held reader / writer 9 may be configured to also serve as a transmission unit. The public communication line may be replaced with a specific communication line (dedicated line).

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is an overall schematic diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of the ID tag.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an electrical configuration of a hand-held read / write;

FIG. 4 is a front view of a uniform.

[Explanation of symbols]

In the figure, 1 is a uniform (rental item), 2 is an ID tag, 3 is a management device, 4 is a terminal device (rental information acquisition means), 9 is a handheld reader / writer (ID information acquisition means), and 10 is PH
The S telephone (communication means), 29 is a reader / writer (arrival information acquisition means), and 31 and 32 are reader / writers (stock information acquisition means).

Claims (4)

[Claims] 1. An ID information acquisition unit for acquiring ID information of a rental item from an ID medium attached to the rental item, and transmitting the ID information of the rental item acquired by the ID information acquisition unit to a communication line. A rental product management system comprising: a management unit that captures the ID information of the rental product transmitted from the transmission unit via the communication line. 2. A rental device according to claim 1, further comprising an arrival information acquisition unit that acquires ID information from the ID medium of the rental item carried in from the rental destination and inputs the ID information to the management unit. Product management system. 3. The inventory information acquisition means according to claim 1, further comprising inventory information acquisition means for acquiring ID information from said ID medium of said rental item in a lent state and inputting said ID information to said management means. Rental goods management system. 4. A rental item management system according to claim 1, further comprising rental request information acquisition means for acquiring rental request information from a lender and inputting the information to the management means. .