JP2010100386A - Article takeout management device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide better shelf arrangement corresponding to takeout time without moving an article from a shelf. <P>SOLUTION: This article takeout management device 20 has an arrangement information storage means 50, a storage information storing means 51, a takeout information accepting means 52, an arrangement changing means 53, a takeout time arithmetic operation means 54, a change time arithmetic operation means 55 and a necessity determining means 56. This device 20 arithmetically operates takeout time and shelf position changing time of the article before changing arrangement and after changing the arrangement, by simulatively changing the arrangement of the shelf at least once so as to correspond to takeout information based on arrangement information on a plurality of stored shelves and storage information on the article when accepting the takeout information. The necessity of changing the arrangement of a plurality of shelves is determined by the takeout time before and after a change and the shelf arrangement changing time. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a management apparatus, and more particularly to an article removal management apparatus that manages the removal of articles stored in a plurality of movable shelves from a shelf.

  In a department that stores and delivers articles, such as a delivery center, an operator moves the articles stored on the shelves to the shelves and takes out the articles when the articles stored on the shelves are taken out before a preset shipping date and time. Articles are stored on shelves in a foldable container. The worker takes out a necessary number of necessary articles from each shelf while looking at the take-out slip and the like and puts them in another container for take-out.

In such a distribution center, a technique for shortening the work time by simulating the loading / unloading work is conventionally known (for example, see Patent Document 1). In the conventional technique, the layout of the shelf arrangement is arranged on the floor, and the entry / exit operation is simulated by inputting the flow line of the worker.
JP 2008-94553 A

In the conventional technique, once the arrangement of the shelves that seems to be optimal is determined, the work is only simulated based on the arrangement, and a better shelf arrangement is not taken into consideration.
The subject of this invention is enabling it to obtain the arrangement | positioning of the better shelf according to the taking-out time.

  The article removal management device according to the present invention is an apparatus that manages the removal of articles stored in a plurality of movable shelves from the shelf. The article removal management device includes an arrangement information storage unit, a storage information storage unit, an extraction information reception unit, an arrangement change unit, an extraction time calculation unit, a change time calculation unit, and a necessity determination unit. Yes. The arrangement information storage means stores arrangement information of a plurality of shelves. The storage information storage unit stores storage information of articles stored on each shelf. The take-out information accepting unit accepts a plurality of take-out information of the article. When receiving the take-out information, the arrangement changing means changes the arrangement of the shelves at least once so as to correspond to the take-out information. The take-out time calculating means calculates the take-out time of the articles before and after the change of the shelf arrangement. The change time calculation means calculates a shelf arrangement change time required for changing the shelf arrangement. The necessity determination means determines whether or not it is necessary to change the arrangement of the plurality of shelves based on the extraction time before the change, the extraction time after the change, and the shelf arrangement change time.

  In this article take-out management apparatus, the actual arrangement information of a plurality of shelves is stored in the arrangement information storage means. Further, storage information storage means stores storage information of articles arranged on each shelf. When the take-out information is received, the shelf arrangement is changed at least once in a simulated manner so as to correspond to the take-out information based on the stored arrangement information of the plurality of shelves and the storage information of the articles. Then, the take-out time before the change and the take-out time after the change are calculated, and the shelf arrangement change time required for changing the shelf arrangement is calculated. Then, it is determined whether or not the arrangement needs to be changed based on the extraction time before the change, the extraction time after the change, and the shelf arrangement change time. For example, compare the unloading time before the change with the time after adding the unloading time and the shelf layout change time after the change, and the time after adding the unloading time after the change and the shelf layout change time is the one before the change. If it is shorter than the take-out time, it is determined that the shelf arrangement should be changed. If it is better to change the arrangement of the shelves, an appropriate notification means such as display and printing of the changed arrangement, etc. is notified, and if it is better not to change, appropriate notifications such as display and printing, etc. This is notified by means. In addition, when it is better not to change, you may alert | report that it is better not to change by not displaying that.

  Here, the shelf for storing articles can be moved, and whether the shelf layout is changed according to the extraction information, and whether or not the change is necessary by adding the shelf layout change time to each extraction time. Deciding. For this reason, even if take-out information fluctuates due to specific factors such as seasonal fluctuations, it is possible to obtain a better shelf arrangement at each take-off time without moving the article from the shelf.

  Further, when the take-out information is received, the arrangement of the plurality of shelves is changed at least once in a simulated manner according to the take-out information. For this reason, since the simulated layout is automatically changed according to the extraction information, it is possible to simulate a change in the layout of the shelves without bothering the operator.

  If the take-out information receiving means accepts the take-out information at the next take-out time before the take-out time, the arrangement changing means simulates the arrangement of the shelves at least once so as to correspond to the take-out information at the take-out time and the next take-out time. The take-out time calculating means calculates the take-out time of the article before and after the change of the shelf arrangement in consideration of the two take-out information of the take-out time and the next take-out time, and the change time calculating means The shelf arrangement change time corresponding to the two take-out information is calculated, and the necessity determination means determines whether or not to change the arrangement of a plurality of shelves based on the calculated extraction time before and after the change and the shelf arrangement change time. May be judged.

  In this case, since it is possible to determine whether or not the shelf needs to be changed in consideration of a plurality of pick-up times, it is possible to obtain a better shelf arrangement according to the plurality of pick-up times without moving the article from the shelf. Become.

  The arrangement information storage means may store the arrangement information by the position information and the identification information transmitted from the information transmission unit that transmits the position information and the identification information of the shelf. In this case, since the actual arrangement of the plurality of shelves can be obtained, the arrangement information can be obtained without performing the input operation of the arrangement information of the shelves.

  The article take-out management program according to the present invention is a computer-operable program that manages the take-out of articles stored in a plurality of movable shelves. The article removal management program includes an arrangement information reception function, a storage information reception function, an extraction information reception function, an arrangement change function, an extraction time calculation function, a change time calculation function, and a necessity determination function. Yes. The arrangement information receiving function receives arrangement information of a plurality of shelves. The storage information reception function receives storage information of articles stored on each shelf. A take-out information receiving function and a plurality of take-out information of articles are received. When the placement change function accepts the take-out information, it changes the shelf placement at least once in a simulated manner so as to correspond to the take-out information. The take-out time calculation function calculates the take-out time of the articles before and after the change of the shelf arrangement. The change time calculation function calculates the shelf arrangement change time required for changing the shelf arrangement. The necessity determination function determines whether it is necessary to change the arrangement of the plurality of shelves based on the extraction time before the change, the extraction time after the change, and the shelf arrangement change time.

  According to the present invention, even if take-out information fluctuates due to specific factors such as seasonal fluctuations, it is possible to obtain a better shelf arrangement according to the take-out time without moving the article from the shelf.

1. In FIG. 1, a plurality of (for example, 20) shelves 12 provided with movable means are arranged in the storage area 10 of the warehouse of the distribution center. In the storage area 10, there is provided a management area 14 where workers who take out articles are arranged. In the management area 14, an article removal management device 20 according to an embodiment of the present invention is installed. In the storage area 10, a shelf arrangement area 18 having a plurality of (for example, 4 rows and 8 columns 32) shelf arrangement locations for arranging the shelves 12 is set. In this embodiment, for example, position information (row number-column number) including a row number and a column number is attached to the shelf arrangement location. In each place, characters indicating position information are displayed on the floor, and position information transmitting means (for example, an IC tag) capable of transmitting the position information is embedded in the floor.
The arrangement of the shelves 12 basically stores articles that are frequently loaded and unloaded on the shelves 12 near the management area 14.

2. Shelf Configuration As shown in FIG. 2, the shelf 12 can be loaded with a collapsible container 22 that can store articles. The shelf 12 includes a top plate 12a, a bottom plate 12b, and a plurality of (for example, three) shelf plates 12c provided between the top plate 12a and the bottom plate 12b. The shelf 12 can mount the container 22 on the bottom plate 12b and the shelf plate 12c. An operator takes out an article from the container 22 of the shelf 12 while pushing a cart on which a container for taking out (not shown) can be placed, and the taken-out article is an order information unit described later in the container for taking out on the carriage. Put in.

  Casters 23 for movement are provided at the four corners of the bottom surface of the bottom plate 12b. In the center front part of the lower surface, the identification information (for example, AT) and the position information (for example, (1-1)-(4-8)) of each shelf 12 can be transmitted by radio, for example. A portion 24 is provided. The information transmission unit 24 receives the position information from the position information transmission means provided at the shelf arrangement place, and also receives the arrangement information including the received position information and its own identification information from the article removal management device 20. Send by sending request. In addition, characters indicating identification information are displayed on the front surface of the information transmission unit 24.

3. Configuration of Item Extraction Management Device The item extraction management device 20 manages the extraction from the shelf 12 of articles stored in a plurality of shelves 12. The article removal management device 20 uses, for example, a personal computer, and includes a control unit 30 including, for example, a microcomputer as shown in FIG. The control unit 30 includes a keyboard 32, a mouse 34, a display unit 36 including a liquid crystal display, a storage unit (an example of a shelf storage unit) 38 including a hard disk, a printer 40, a position / identification information receiving unit 42, and a LAN ( A LAN connection unit 44 for connection to a local area network 45 is connected. Further, the control unit 30 is connected to the storage management device 46 via the LAN connection unit 44 and the LAN 45.

  The entry / exit management device 46 manages entry / exit information that is storage information of articles on each shelf 12. The entry / exit management device 46 receives order information from the customer via the external network. The entry / exit information includes the identification information of the articles on each shelf 12, the quantity (inventory), the entry date and the delivery date, and the quantity of entry / exit. Further, when receiving the order information of the article from the customer, it is sent to the article removal management device 20 at a predetermined timing as the removal information. The take-out information includes customer identification information, article identification information, the number of items, and shipping date / time information. Further, when the stock fluctuates due to an operator's input or the like, the warehouse information is transmitted to the article removal management device 20 at a predetermined timing.

  Goods ordered by order information are shipped at a preset time for each customer. For example, a customer ships items ordered at 12:00 am and 6:00 pm. In this case, the entry / exit management device 46 generates take-out information based on the order information having the shipping date / time information among the order information received one hour before the shipping date / time (for example, 11:00 am and 5:00 pm). To do. Then, the generated take-out information is transmitted to the article take-out management device 20. Therefore, in this embodiment, one hour before the shipping date is set as the take-out time.

  The control unit 30 is operated by an extraction management program. As shown in FIG. 4, the control unit 30 has, as shown in FIG. 4, an arrangement information storage unit 50, a storage information storage unit 51, an extraction information reception unit 52, an arrangement change unit 53, an extraction time calculation unit 54, A change time calculation means 55 and necessity determination means 56 are provided. The arrangement information storage unit 50 stores arrangement information (position information and identification information) of the plurality of shelves 12 and stores arrangement information received by the position / identification information receiving unit 42 when the extraction information is received. The storage information storage unit 51 stores storage information of articles stored in each shelf 12. Specifically, when the storage information storage unit 51 receives the extraction information, the storage information storage unit 51 stores the storage information according to the storage information that is transmitted from the storage management device 46 via the LAN connection unit 44 and the LAN 45. These storage means 50 and 51 are actually constituted by the storage unit 38. The take-out information accepting unit 52 accepts take-out information of articles with different take-out times. When receiving the take-out information, the placement changing means 53 changes the shelf placement at least once in a simulated manner so as to correspond to the take-out information. Specifically, the article to be taken out by the take-out information is moved to the vicinity of the management area 14, the length of the flow line on which the worker moves in consideration of the shortcut route is as short as possible, and the shelf 12 is moved. Change the distance as short as possible.

  The take-out time calculation means 54 calculates the take-out times ta and tb of the articles before and after the change in the arrangement of the shelves 12. The change time calculation means 55 calculates a shelf arrangement change time tc required for changing the arrangement of the shelves 12. The necessity determination means 56 determines whether or not it is necessary to change the arrangement of a plurality of shelves based on the extraction time ta before the change, the extraction time tb after the change, and the shelf arrangement change time tc. Specifically, when the take-out time ta before the change exceeds the take-out time tb after the change and the shelf arrangement change time tc, it is determined that the shelf position needs to be changed.

4). Example of Operation of Article Extraction Management Device Next, a specific operation of the control unit 30 will be described based on the flowchart shown in FIG.

  In step S1 of FIG. 5, it is determined whether or not the extraction information has been accepted. In this embodiment, the entry / exit management device 46 collects and sends out the order information that is received one hour before the shipping date and time and the shipping date and time is one hour later. However, each time the entry / exit management device 46 receives the order information whose shipping date and time is the next shipping timing, it may be output as the extraction information.

  When the take-out information is accepted, the process proceeds from step S1 to step S2. In step S2, the arrangement information of the shelf 12 received by the position / identification information receiving unit 42 is fetched, and the arrangement of the shelf 12 is displayed as shown in FIG. 1 according to the arrangement information. In step S3, the storage information of the articles stored in each shelf 12 is captured. The storage information is fetched from the entry / exit management device 46. In step S4, the captured storage information and arrangement information are stored in the storage unit 38.

  In step S5, the shelf position is changed in a simulated manner according to the extraction information. For example, when the take-out information indicates the items on the shelf 12 (C shelf, D shelf, F shelf, T shelf) indicated by black circles in FIG. 1, the arrangement shown in FIG. 1 is changed to the arrangement shown in FIG. To do. Specifically, the C, D, I, and J shelves and the one O, P, S, and T shelves are displayed on the display unit 36 by simulating the arrangement location.

  In step S6, extraction times before and after the change are calculated. In calculating the take-out times ta and tb, flow lines ML1 and ML2 for taking out articles indicated by thin lines in FIG. 7 before the change and FIG. 8 after the change are determined. The flow lines ML1 and ML2 are routes from the shelf 12 for taking out articles from the management area 14 to the return to the management area 14. Then, the extraction times ta and tb before and after the change are calculated by the time obtained by dividing the length of the flow lines ML1 and ML2 by the walking speed of the worker and the time when the worker stops and takes out the article in front of the shelf 12. To do.

  In step S6, the flow line is determined in consideration of whether a plurality of workers can pass each other along the route, the order of passage of the workers, whether they can pass between the shelves, or the like.

  In step S7, the shelf arrangement change time tc is calculated. The shelf arrangement change time tc is calculated from the distance that the operator moves the shelf 12. In this case, the operator moves the eight shelves 12, but the two shelves can be moved simultaneously. Therefore, the shelf arrangement change time tc is calculated by dividing the moving distance of the four shelves by the work speed of the operator.

  In step S7, in addition to the total time required for the movement of one worker on the shelf, the time required when a plurality of workers move simultaneously may be calculated.

  In step S8, it is determined whether or not the arrangement of the shelves 12 needs to be changed. As described above, this determination is made based on whether or not the extraction time ta before the arrangement change exceeds the sum of the extraction time tb after the arrangement change and the shelf arrangement change time tc (ta> tb + tc). If it is determined that the take-out time ta before the change does not exceed the take-out time tb after the change + the shelf arrangement change time tc, the process proceeds from step S8 to step S9. In step S9, the shelf position and the flow line ML1 before the change shown in FIG. 7 are displayed on the display unit 36, and a display indicating that the change is unnecessary is displayed on the display unit 36. In step S10, the layout of the shelf 12 shown in FIG. 7 before the change, the drawing on which the flow line ML2 of the extraction work is drawn, and the extraction information are output from the printer 40. The worker places an article takeout container on the cart in order information units, and moves along the flow line ML1 of the output drawing. Then, the article is taken out based on the take-out information, and the article is put into an individual container according to the order information.

  If it is determined that the take-out time ta before the change exceeds the take-out time tb after the change + the shelf arrangement change time tc, the process proceeds from step S8 to step S11. In step S11, the layout of the shelves 12 shown in FIG. 8 after the change, the drawing in which the flow line ML2 of the extraction work is drawn, and the extraction information are output from the printer 40. The worker places an article takeout container on the cart in order information units, and changes the arrangement of the shelves 12 according to the output drawing. And it moves along the flow line ML1 of the output drawing. Then, the article is taken out according to the take-out information, and the article is put into an individual container according to the order information.

5). Features (1)
The shelf 12 for storing articles can be moved, and the shelf 12 is taken into account when the placement time ta, tb and the shelf placement change time tc are taken into consideration depending on whether the placement of the shelf 12 is changed according to the take-out information. It is determined whether or not it is necessary to change the arrangement. For this reason, even if take-out information fluctuates due to specific factors such as seasonal fluctuations, it is possible to obtain a better shelf arrangement at each take-off time without moving the article from the shelf.

(2)
When the take-out information is received, the arrangement of the plurality of shelves 12 is changed at least once in a simulated manner according to the take-out information. For this reason, since the simulated layout is automatically changed according to the extraction information, it is possible to simulate a change in the layout of the shelves without bothering the operator.

(3)
Since the position / identification information receiving unit 42 for receiving the arrangement information transmitted from the information transmitting unit 24 is provided, the actual arrangement of the plurality of shelves 12 can be obtained. For this reason, arrangement information can be obtained without performing the input operation of shelf arrangement information.

6). Other Embodiments Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, the present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the invention.

(1)
In the embodiment, the extraction time and the shelf arrangement change time are calculated from the extraction information obtained by collecting the order information of the same shipping date / time information from the order information up to one hour before the shipping date / time. However, the present invention is not limited to this. .

  For example, when the information on the next shipment date / time is confirmed before the time of the previous shipment date / time, for example, the item information on the shipment date / time at 6:00 pm is one hour before the time of extraction at 12:00 am In this case, the extraction times ta and tb and the shelf arrangement change time tc may be calculated in consideration of the extraction information of the next shipping date and time and the extraction information of the previous shipping date and time. Further, when the extraction information of the next shipping date / time is determined before the extraction time of the previous shipping date / time, the extraction times ta and tb and the shelf arrangement change time tc are calculated in consideration of the extraction information. Good.

Based on the calculation result, it may be determined whether or not the shelf arrangement needs to be changed as in the above-described embodiment.
In this case, each time ta, tb, tc may be calculated by changing the shelf position according to the extraction information for each shipment date and time, and each shelf position may be changed according to the extraction information obtained by summing the determined extraction information. Times ta, tb, and tc may be calculated.

  In this case, since it is possible to determine whether or not the shelf arrangement needs to be changed in consideration of a plurality of extraction points, it is possible to obtain a better arrangement of the shelves corresponding to the plurality of extraction points without moving the article from the shelf 12. become able to.

(2)
In the said embodiment, although the taking-out time was set 1 hour before the shipping date, this invention is not limited to this. The take-out time point may be set to an appropriate time point before the delivery date and time depending on the type and size of the article.

(3)
The example of changing the arrangement of the shelves shown in FIG. 6 is an example, and the example of change is not limited to that shown in FIG.

  INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY The present invention is useful as an article removal management device that unloads articles according to takeout information.

The plane schematic diagram which shows the shelf layout of the warehouse where one Embodiment of this invention is employ | adopted. The perspective view of the shelf. The block diagram which shows the structure of the goods extraction management apparatus by one Embodiment of this invention. The block diagram which shows the function structure of the control part. The flowchart which shows operation | movement of a control part. The figure equivalent to FIG. 1 which shows an example of the example of a change when arrangement | positioning of a shelf is changed. The figure equivalent to FIG. 1 which added the flow line. The figure equivalent to FIG. 6 which added the flow line.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 12 Shelf 20 Article extraction management apparatus 50 Arrangement information storage means 51 Storage information storage means 52 Extraction information reception means 53 Arrangement change means 54 Extraction time calculation means 55 Change time calculation means 56 Necessity judgment means

Claims (4)

An article removal management device for managing removal of articles stored in a plurality of movable shelves from the shelf,
Arrangement information storage means for storing arrangement information of the plurality of shelves;
Storage information storage means for storing storage information of articles stored in each shelf;
Take-out information receiving means for receiving a plurality of take-out information of the article;
When the take-out information is received, an arrangement changing unit that changes the arrangement of the shelves at least once so as to correspond to the take-out information;
An extraction time calculating means for calculating an extraction time of the article before and after the change of the arrangement of the shelf;
Change time calculating means for calculating the shelf arrangement change time required for changing the shelf arrangement;
Necessity determining means for determining whether or not it is necessary to change the arrangement of the plurality of shelves based on the take-out time before the change, the take-out time after the change, and the shelf arrangement change time;
An article removal management device comprising: When the take-out information receiving means accepts the take-out information of the next take-out time that is different from the take-out time before the take-out time,
The arrangement changing means changes the arrangement of the shelf at least once in a simulated manner so as to correspond to the two extraction information at the extraction time and the next extraction time,
The take-out time calculating means calculates the take-out time of the article before and after the change taking into account two take-out information of the take-out time and the next take-out time,
The change time calculation means calculates the shelf arrangement change time corresponding to the two take-out information,
2. The article take-out according to claim 1, wherein the necessity determination unit determines whether it is necessary to change the arrangement of the plurality of shelves based on the calculated extraction time before and after the change and the shelf arrangement change time. Management device.   The article take-out according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the arrangement information storage unit stores the arrangement information based on the position information and the identification information transmitted from an information transmission unit that transmits the position information and identification information of the shelf. Management device. An article removal management program operable by a computer for managing removal of articles stored in a plurality of movable shelves from the shelf,
An arrangement information receiving function for receiving arrangement information of the plurality of shelves;
A storage information reception function for receiving storage information of articles stored in the shelves;
An extraction information reception function for receiving a plurality of extraction information of the article;
When receiving the take-out information, an arrangement change function for changing the arrangement of the shelves at least once in a simulated manner so as to correspond to the take-out information;
An extraction time calculation function for calculating an extraction time of the article before and after the change of the arrangement of the shelves;
A change time calculation function for calculating a shelf arrangement change time required for changing the shelf arrangement;
A necessity determination function for determining whether or not it is necessary to change the arrangement of the plurality of shelves based on the take-out time before the change, the take-out time after the change, and the shelf arrangement change time;
An article removal management program with

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