JP2009182867A - Terminal for mounting on cargo, and simple positioning method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To position a cargo which is being transported, while reducing the power consumption and the communication cost. <P>SOLUTION: A terminal for mounting on cargo includes: a base information storage par 502, where a base table with which base identification information for identifying bases being reference points of a logistics company dotted from a start point to a destination point and positional information, showing the positions of the bases are registered beforehand is stored; a radio wave receiving part 501, which receives radio waves from a base station which transmits radio waves, containingpositional information of the base station itself, with respect to mobile phones or the terminal for mounting on cargo; and a positioning part 503, which extracts positional information of the base station, from the received radio waves and acquires positional information, corresponding to the base identification information from the base table and calculates the distances among the base station and the bases, corresponding to the positional information of the base station and positional information that corresponds to the base identification information, to thereby perform simple positioning for obtaining the present position of the terminal for mounting on cargo. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2009,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a cargo loading terminal and a simple positioning method for performing simple positioning of the current position of a transported cargo.

  In recent years, a management system has been developed to prevent misdelivery and loss of parcel delivery cargo and to grasp the route to the destination and the time to arrival. As a method for knowing the time until the cargo arrives at the destination, it is necessary to first grasp the current position of the cargo being transported, and various methods for grasping the current position have been proposed.

  For example, a method of acquiring the current position information of cargo being transported by utilizing GPS has been proposed (for example, see Patent Document 1). In Patent Document 1, receipt confirmation data (position coordinates: latitude, longitude and PIN code), which is delivery destination location information, is registered in advance in a delivery destination, and communicates with a GPS satellite to measure its own location and guide a delivery vehicle. Thus, an authentication method that enables online management of cargo by an electronic computer is disclosed.

  Further, as a conventional technique, a method of tracking a cargo by using a location information providing service provided by a communication carrier and grasping a current location of the cargo is also used.

JP-A-8-273097

  However, the above-described conventional techniques have the following problems that a large amount of power is consumed during operation and a communication fee and a service fee are charged.

  For example, in the technology disclosed in Patent Document 1, since the position of the cargo is detected based on GPS communication, a GPS communication fee is required from the start to the end of delivery, which is economically inefficient. In addition, there is a problem that power consumption increases.

  Also, in the case of using the location information providing service used in the prior art, since many of the location information providing services are performed using a system developed using GPS, similarly, communication charges and There is a problem that power consumption increases.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above, and provides a cargo loading terminal and a simple positioning method capable of positioning the position of a cargo being transported while reducing power consumption and communication costs. That is.

  In order to solve the above-described problems and achieve the object, the invention according to claim 1 is a simple positioning terminal mounted on a positioning object, which is a reference location dotted from a starting point to a destination. A base information storage unit for storing a base table in which base identification information for identifying a base and position information indicating the position of the base are registered in advance, and a mobile phone or the simple positioning terminal. A receiving unit that receives a radio wave from a base station that transmits a radio wave including position information; and a position corresponding to the base identification information from the base table by extracting positional information of the base station from the radio wave received by the receiving unit. A simple method for obtaining the current position of the simple positioning terminal by acquiring information and calculating the distance between the base station and the base from the position information of the base station and the position information corresponding to the base identification information Wherein the positioning unit for performing the position, in that it comprises.

  The invention according to claim 2 is the freight loading terminal according to claim 1, wherein the distance calculated by the positioning unit is within a reference range that is a predetermined distance from the base. And a positioning interval switching unit that switches a positioning interval, which is an interval of the simple positioning, from a long cycle of a predetermined interval to a short cycle that is shorter than the long cycle when it is determined that it is within the reference range And the positioning unit performs the simple positioning at the positioning interval switched by the positioning interval switching unit.

  According to a third aspect of the present invention, there is provided a simple positioning terminal mounted on a positioning object, wherein the simple positioning terminal identifies bases that are reference locations scattered from a starting point to a destination. Base information storage means for storing a base table in which base identification information for the base station and position information indicating the position of the base are registered in advance, and includes own position information for a mobile phone or the simple positioning terminal A reception step of receiving radio waves from a base station that transmits radio waves, and extracting position information of the base station from the radio waves received by the receiving unit, and acquiring position information corresponding to the base identification information from the base table unit Then, simple measurement for obtaining the current position of the simple positioning terminal by calculating the distance between the base station and the base from the positional information of the base station and the positional information corresponding to the base identification information. A positioning step of the execution, characterized in that it comprises a.

  According to the present invention, the current position information of the cargo loading terminal is calculated based on the position information included in the radio wave of the mobile phone base station, thereby grasping the current position without using the GPS or the position information providing service. Therefore, it is possible to determine the position of the cargo being transported while reducing power consumption and communication costs.

  Exemplary embodiments of a simple method for positioning a cargo loading terminal according to the present invention will be explained below in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing the order of movement of the cargo loading terminal according to the present embodiment. When the cargo is collected, the cargo loading terminal 200 is mounted on the cargo C with a label T on which a delivery destination is displayed, and the monitoring center 400 is used by using the portable reading terminal 100 as necessary. To communicate with. There are a plurality of bases that are the reference locations of the logistics company from when the cargo loading terminal 200 departs from the departure reference point 100 that is the departure point to the arrival reference point that is the arrival point. . The cargo loading terminal 200 departs from the departure reference point 100, passes through a plurality of passage bases registered in the transport route, arrives at the arrival reference point 100, and is collected when delivery is completed.
The number of bases can be up to 100 in the cargo loading terminal 200, but this is an example, and the present invention is not limited to this.

  The cargo loading terminal 200 according to the present embodiment performs simple positioning of the current position during the passage between the bases shown in FIG. 1 and when entering and exiting the bases. FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing the order in which the cargo loading terminal 200 passes through the base A. Each base has a unique base range 301 for determining whether the cargo loading terminal 200 has entered or exited the base. Since the base range 301 also plays a role of preventing misidentification of nearby bases, the base range 301 is assigned for each base with a certain distance from the base. In addition, since the simple positioning depends on the installation of the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n, it is necessary to determine the exact location of the base, so the error range 302 for correcting the location of the base is centered on the location of the base. Is provided.

  For example, three types of base ranges can be set such as 600 m, 1500 m, and 4000 m, and an error range can be set as one type of 2000 m. The error range is determined based on a radius centered on the base. Further, both the base range and the error range can be set from 1 to 9999 m, and the numerical value can be changed at the monitoring center 400. However, the values of these base ranges and error ranges are examples, and are not limited to these numerical values.

  Further, the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n transmit radio waves to the mobile phone and the cargo loading terminal 200, and the radio waves include latitude and longitude which are location information of the base station itself. Yes. As shown in FIG. 2, the cargo loading terminal 200 first enters the base range 301, then enters the error range 302, and passes through the base A. After passing through the base A, the base station exits the base range 301 after exiting the error range 302. When the cargo loading terminal 200 receives a periodic positioning start instruction from the monitoring center 400, the cargo loading terminal 200 starts simple positioning and receives radio waves from the mobile phone base stations 101 a to 101 n.

  Here, the base range can be arbitrarily changed according to the density of bases in each region. The base range is set short in areas where bases are close to each other, such as the city center. It will be set longer in areas that are not. On the other hand, since the error range is based on the installation of the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n, the error range is set to be the same for all regional bases in order to determine the exact position of the bases. . For this reason, the base range may be smaller than the error range. In this case, first enter the error range, then enter the base range, exit the base range, and then exit the error range. It becomes.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of the cargo loading terminal 200 according to the present embodiment. The cargo loading terminal 200 includes a radio wave reception unit 501, a base information storage unit 502, a positioning unit 503, a positioning interval switching unit 504, a counter 505, a communication unit 506, a base confirmation unit 507, and an update unit 508. And mainly.

  The radio wave receiver 501 receives radio waves from the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n.

  The site information storage unit 502 is a storage medium such as a memory or a hard disk drive (HDD) that stores the site table 200 (see FIG. 4).

  The base table 600 is a table in which data necessary for determining entry and exit from the base, such as a base range and an error range, is determined for each registered base. FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an example of the base table 600 stored in the base storage unit 502 according to the present embodiment.

As shown in FIG. 4, the base table 600 includes a base code that is identification information for identifying the starting base, the target base, and a base passing between the base, the longitude / latitude coordinates indicating the base position, and the base. The base range indicating the range of the area, the error range set to correct the accurate position information of the base range, and the constant to be compared with the number of receptions of the radio wave counted by the counter 505 when determining the approach to the base range The base entry determination counter, which is a threshold value, and the base departure determination counter, which is a constant threshold value compared with the number of times of reception of the radio wave counted by the counter 505 at the time of determination of exit from the base range, The arrival flag shown is associated. Here, the arrival flag is a flag indicating whether or not the vehicle has arrived at the base. When the arrival flag is ON, it indicates that the vehicle has arrived at the base.
In the present embodiment, a 6-digit number is used as the base code, but this is an example, and the present invention is not limited to this.

  The positioning unit 503 extracts the coordinates of the mobile base stations 101a to 101-n from the radio waves received from the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n by the radio wave receiving unit 501. Further, the base table 600 is searched based on the base code, and the base coordinates are acquired. The distance between the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n and the base is calculated from the obtained base coordinates and the coordinates of the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n extracted from the radio waves.

The positioning interval switching unit 504 switches the positioning cycle interval to the long cycle mode or the short cycle mode according to confirmation of entry into or exit from the base range. Specifically, for example, the positioning interval switching unit 504 switches between the long cycle mode and the short cycle mode when a switching instruction is received from the site confirmation unit 507 when the site entry determination counter reaches a certain number of times. Process.
The positioning interval can be set, for example, to 15 minutes for the long cycle mode and 5 minutes for the short cycle mode, and this numerical value can be changed by the monitoring center 400. However, the interval of each mode is an example and is not limited thereto.

  When the cargo loading terminal 200 enters the base range and receives an instruction to count the number of times of reception of radio waves from the positioning interval switching unit 504, the counter 505 receives radio waves from the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n. Is counted.

  The communication unit 506 communicates with the monitoring center 400 by receiving an instruction for starting or ending the regular positioning from the monitoring center 400 or transmitting a signal for entering or leaving the base to the monitoring center 400. .

  The site confirmation unit 507 transmits an instruction to start counting the number of times of reception of radio waves to the counter 505 when it is determined that the distance calculated by the positioning unit 503 is within the site range or the error range. Further, when it is confirmed that the number of receptions of the radio waves counted by the counter 505 has reached a certain number, the arrival flag of the base code in the base area that has entered is turned ON. Therefore, the cargo loading terminal 200 confirms at which base the cargo arrival terminal 200 is currently arriving based on whether or not the arrival flag has been updated, and finally confirms that it has arrived at the arrival point.

  After the delivery is completed, the update unit 508 checks whether or not the monitoring center 400 and the base table 600 have the same version of the latitude and longitude coordinates of the base, and if they are different, monitors the coordinate version of the base table 600. The coordinates of the latest version received from the center 400 are updated.

  FIG. 5 is a hardware configuration diagram of the cargo loading terminal 200 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 5, the cargo loading terminal 200 has an integrated module in which a communication module 801 and a GPS module 802 are integrated, and the integrated module constitutes the position information acquisition unit 210 shown in FIG. Then, communication with the GPS satellite is performed via the external antenna I / F 804. The control unit main unit 805 stores software such as the security information notification unit 230 and the center information reception unit 295, and controls these operations. Further, the cargo loading terminal 200 controls the operation of devices such as the buzzer 290 and the power supply operation from the battery 275 in the control sub unit 806, and indicates the operating state of the illuminance sensor 270 and the cargo loading terminal 200. It controls the operation of an LED (Light Emitting Diode) 807, a backup unit 809 for storing the above-described software backup data, and the like. The built-in antenna 803 constitutes a spare antenna when the external antenna I / F 804 stops operating for some reason, and the power SW 808 is a switch for starting and stopping the cargo loading terminal 200.

  Next, periodic positioning processing by the cargo loading terminal 200 configured as described above will be described. 6 and 7 are flowcharts showing a processing procedure from the start to the end of the regular positioning by the cargo loading terminal 200 according to the present embodiment.

  First, the communication unit 506 receives a periodic positioning start instruction from the monitoring center 400 (step S700). Then, the positioning interval switching unit 504 starts simple positioning in the long cycle mode (step S701).

  Details of the procedure of this simple positioning process (step S702) will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the simple positioning process.

  First, the radio wave receiving unit 501 receives radio waves (step S800). Next, the positioning unit 503 extracts coordinates indicating the latitude / longitude information of the mobile base station from the radio wave received by the radio wave receiving unit 501 (step S801). Then, the positioning unit 503 searches the base table 600 using the base code as a key, and acquires coordinates indicating the latitude and longitude information of the base (step S802). The positioning unit 503 calculates the distance between the mobile base stations 101a to 101-n and the base from these two coordinates (step S803). The above is a series of procedures for the simple positioning process, which is repeated until the communication unit 503 receives a periodic positioning release instruction from the monitoring center 400.

  Next, the positioning interval switching unit 504 determines whether or not the distance calculated by the simple positioning in the long cycle mode is within the base range (step S703). If it is determined that it is within the base range (step S703: Yes), the positioning interval is switched to the short cycle mode and the simple positioning process is continued (step S704). Then, when switching to the short cycle mode, the counter 505 starts counting the number of times of reception of radio waves (step S709).

  On the other hand, when the positioning interval switching unit 504 determines that the distance calculated by the simple positioning process is not within the base range (step S703: No), it is determined whether the calculated distance is within the error range ( Step S705). If it is determined that it is within the error range (step S705: Yes), the positioning interval is switched to the short cycle mode (step S706), and the simple positioning process is continued (step S707). If it is determined that the calculated distance is within the base range (step S708: Yes), an instruction to start counting the number of times of reception of radio waves is transmitted to the counter 505 (step S709). If it is determined (step S708: No), the simple positioning process is repeated without switching the positioning interval until it is determined that it is in the base range (step S707).

  When the positioning interval switching unit 504 determines that the distance calculated by the simple positioning process is not within the base range (step S703: No), and determines that the calculated distance is not within the error range (step S705). : No), that is, when it is determined that the calculated distance is not in either the base range or the error range, the simple positioning process (step S702) is continued without switching the positioning interval.

  When the positioning interval switching unit 504 switches the positioning interval to the short cycle mode, the counter 505 receives an instruction to count the number of radio wave receptions from the positioning interval switching unit 504, and counts the number of radio wave receptions (step S709). .

When the counter 505 starts counting, the site confirmation unit 507 performs a site entrance determination counter (for example, 3 times) in which the counted number of receptions of radio waves indicated by the site entrance determination counter registered in the site table 600 is a constant count. ) Is determined (step S710). When the site confirmation unit 507 confirms that the site entry determination counter, which is a certain count, has been reached (step S710: Yes), the communication unit 506 uses the portable reading terminal 100 to monitor the monitoring center. A “base entry” signal is transmitted to 400 (step S711). Subsequently, the site confirmation unit 507 turns on the arrival flag of the site table 600 (step S712).
Here, if the arrival flag is “ON”, it is not determined whether the base is “entering the base” again. In addition, when the determination of “entering a base” is made for a plurality of bases, a plurality of “entering bases” signals are simultaneously transmitted to the monitoring center 400.

  In addition, the fixed count number as a threshold value registered in the base entrance determination counter shown here is an example, and is not limited to this.

  On the other hand, if the site confirmation unit 507 determines that the number of radio wave receptions has not yet reached the number of base entry determination counters (step S710: No), the simple positioning continues in the short cycle mode until the base arrival determination counter is reached. The process is repeated (step S707).

  When the arrival flag is updated by the site confirmation unit 507 (step S712), the positioning interval switching unit 504 switches the positioning interval to the long cycle mode and continues the simple positioning (steps S713 and S714). Then, the site confirmation unit 507 determines whether or not the distance calculated by the simple positioning process exceeds the site range and the error range (step S715). When it is determined that it is within the base range and the error range (step S715: Yes), the base confirmation unit 507 transmits an instruction to start counting the number of times of reception of radio waves to the counter 505, and the counter 505 displays the positioning interval. The count start instruction is received from the switching unit 504, and the number of radio wave receptions is counted (step S716). On the other hand, when the site confirmation unit 507 determines that the distance calculated by the simple positioning process is not yet within the site range and the error range (step S715: No), until it is determined that the distance is within the site range and the error range, The simple positioning process is continuously performed without counting the number of receptions of radio waves (step S714).

  Here, regarding the switching of the positioning interval, when a plurality of bases are detected at the same time and switched to different cycle modes, the long cycle mode has priority. For example, in the case where the site A is switched to 15-minute intervals after “base-enter” is transmitted, and the site B enters the error range and is switched to 5-minute intervals, the 15-minute interval is prioritized.

The site confirmation unit 507 determines whether or not the number of receptions of the radio wave counted by the counter 505 has reached a site departure determination counter having a certain count number (for example, once) registered in the site table 600. (Step S717). Then, when the site confirmation unit 507 confirms that the site departure determination counter has been reached (step S717: Yes), the communication unit 506 uses the portable reading terminal 100 to notify the monitoring center 400 that “site departure”. Is transmitted (step S718). Then, the site confirmation unit 507 confirms whether the arrival flag arrival flag display in the site table 600 is “ON” (step S719). If the arrival flag of the arrival reference point is “ON” (step S719: Yes), the site confirmation unit 507 confirms that the arrival reference point has arrived, and the communication unit 506 conforms to the monitoring center 400. The fact that the point has been reached is transmitted (step S720). On the other hand, if the site confirmation unit 507 has not yet confirmed that the certain number of counts has been reached (step S717: No), the simple positioning process is continued until it is confirmed that the location determination counter has been reached (step S717: No). Step S714).
The base departure determination counter can be set from 1 to 99 times, and the threshold of the base departure determination counter can be changed at the monitoring center 400. Moreover, the threshold value of the base departure determination counter shown here is an example, and is not limited to this.

  The monitoring center 400 that has received the arrival at the arrival reference point transmits a periodic positioning cancellation instruction to the communication unit 506, and the communication unit 506 receives the instruction (step S721). Then, the positioning interval switching unit 504 cancels the simple positioning operation and ends the simple positioning (step S722).

  The above is the procedure of the process from the start to the end of the regular positioning by the cargo loading terminal 200 according to the present embodiment. Thus, by calculating the current position information of the cargo loading terminal 200 based on the position information included in the radio waves of the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n, the GPS and the position information providing service are not utilized. Since the current position can be ascertained, the position of the cargo being transported can be measured while reducing power consumption and communication costs.

  Next, an operation process of the cargo loading terminal 200 after the end of the regular positioning will be described. In the base table 600, coordinates of longitude and latitude as the position are registered for each base, but the position of the base may be changed. In this case, the base coordinates of the base table 600 are the latest. Is no longer a thing. On the other hand, the latest information on the coordinates of the base is grasped on the monitoring center side and registered and managed in a database or the like. For this reason, in the cargo loading terminal 200 of the present embodiment, after the completion of cargo delivery, the version of the base coordinates registered in the base table 600 is older than the base coordinate version registered in the monitoring center 400. In addition, the latest version coordinates are acquired from the monitoring center 400 and registered in the base table 600. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a procedure of update processing of the version of latitude / longitude information in the base table 600 performed after the end of the regular positioning.

  First, the site confirmation unit 507 determines whether delivery has been completed by confirming that the arrival point has been reached (step S900). If it is determined that the delivery has not yet been completed (step S900: No), the update process to the latest version of the coordinates is not performed. On the other hand, when determining that the delivery has been completed (step S900: Yes), the communication unit 506 receives the latest version of the latitude and longitude of the base from the monitoring center 400 (step S901). Then, the positioning interval switching unit 504 confirms whether or not the version of the coordinates of the base in the base table 600 is the same as the version of the coordinates of the monitoring center 400 (step S902). If the versions of the base table 600 and the monitoring center 400 are different (step S902: No), the latest latitude / longitude information of the monitoring center 400 is downloaded (step S903), and the version of the base table 600 is updated (step S903). Step S904).

  On the other hand, when the versions of the base table 600 and the monitoring center 400 are the same (step S902: Yes), the operation process is completed without updating the base table 600. By such processing, the coordinates of the base registered in the base table 600 can be kept up-to-date.

  Thus, in the cargo loading terminal 200 according to the present embodiment, the current status of the cargo loading terminal 200 is based on the coordinates of the base station and the coordinates of the base included in the radio waves of the mobile phone base stations 101a to 101-n. By measuring the position, the current position can be ascertained without using GPS or position information providing services, so it is possible to determine the position of the cargo being transported while reducing power consumption and communication costs. it can.

It is a figure which shows the order of a movement of the cargo loading terminal 200 concerning this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the order in which the cargo loading terminal 200 enters and exits from the base range indicating a certain area of the base. It is a block diagram which shows the structure of the cargo loading terminal 200 which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a figure which shows the display of the base table 600 concerning this Embodiment. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware constitutions of the cargo loading terminal 200 which concerns on this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the process from the start of regular positioning by the cargo loading terminal 200 concerning this Embodiment to completion | finish. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the process from the start of regular positioning by the cargo loading terminal 200 concerning this Embodiment to completion | finish. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the simple positioning process of the terminal 200 for cargo loading concerning this Embodiment. It is a flowchart which shows the procedure of the update process of the version of the latitude longitude information of the base table 600 of the cargo loading terminal 200 concerning this Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

100 portable reading terminal 200 cargo loading terminal 300, 302 error range 301 site range 400 monitoring center 501 radio wave receiving unit 502 site information storage unit 503 positioning unit 504 positioning interval switching unit 505 counter 506 communication unit 507 site checking unit 508 updating unit 600 base table

Claims (3)

A simple positioning terminal mounted on a positioning object,
A base information storage unit for storing a base table in which base identification information for identifying bases that are scattered from a starting point to a destination and position information indicating the positions of the bases are registered in advance;
A receiver that receives radio waves from a base station that transmits radio waves including its own location information to a mobile phone or the simple positioning terminal;
Extracting position information of the base station from the radio wave received by the receiving unit, obtaining position information corresponding to the base identification information from the base table, and corresponding to the base station position information and the base identification information A positioning unit that performs simple positioning to obtain a current position of the terminal for simple positioning by calculating a distance between the base station and the base from position information;
Cargo loading terminal characterized by comprising. It is determined whether the distance calculated by the positioning unit is within a reference range that is a predetermined distance from the base, and when it is determined that the distance is within the reference range, A positioning interval switching unit that switches a certain positioning interval from a long cycle of a predetermined interval to a short cycle that is shorter than the long cycle;
2. The cargo loading terminal according to claim 1, wherein the positioning unit performs the simple positioning at a positioning interval switched by the positioning interval switching unit. A simple positioning terminal mounted on a positioning object,
The simple positioning terminal stores a base table in which base identification information for identifying bases that are reference places scattered from a departure place to a destination and position information indicating the position of the base are registered in advance. Base information storage means
A reception step of receiving radio waves from a base station that transmits radio waves including its own position information to a mobile phone or the simple positioning terminal;
The base station location information is extracted from the radio wave received by the receiving unit, the location information corresponding to the site identification information is obtained from the site table unit, and the base station location information and the site identification information are supported. A positioning step for performing simple positioning to obtain a current position of the terminal for simple positioning by calculating a distance between the base station and the base from position information to be performed;
A simple positioning method characterized by comprising:

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