JP2019028751A - Vehicle-mounted device and package management system - Google Patents

Abstract

To provide a vehicle-mounted device and a package management system which are useful for management of loss etc. of various articles to be conveyed.SOLUTION: Vehicle-mounted devices 10-1 to 10-3 mounted in each vehicle 33 receive radio waves transmitted by wireless tags (active tags) 32-1 to 32-3 attached to respective packages 31-1 to 31-3 to acquire tag ID numbers, further acquire position information of a local vehicle, and radio-transmit the tag ID numbers and the position information in association with each other to the server 43. Each of the vehicle-mounted devices 10-1 to 10-3 cyclically repeats this operation. A server 43 grasps a detection state of each of the wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3 based on signals received from the vehicle-mounted devices 10-1 to 10-3, and when the signal indicating the detection state is interrupted, considers that the package associated with the associated one of the wireless tag 32-1 to 32-3 has been lost. The server 43 sequentially updates the contents of a database, and uses information in the database to search for the lost package.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

  The present invention relates to a vehicle-mounted device and a luggage management system.

  When moving various items from one point to another at a distance, a specialized delivery company, for example, uses a vehicle, such as a truck, rail car, or aircraft, to specify each item as a destination. It will be transported using a predetermined route. In addition, such a delivery company carries a large number of articles with different destinations and delivery routes using the same vehicle at the same time, or unloads the goods from the vehicle at a certain delivery base, sorts the goods for each destination, Carry out operations such as transshipping each article to another vehicle with a different destination. Further, for example, due to a mistake in work during transportation, each article may be delivered to a place different from a place designated in advance, or the article may be lost. Therefore, it is necessary to appropriately manage the articles so that the delivery destination of each article is not mistaken or lost. Therefore, in general, a delivery company or the like manages each article using a bar code.

  Further, for example, Patent Document 1 shows a technique for preventing goods from being stolen or illegally taken out. That is, a non-contact tag is attached to an article, and a plurality of antennas and gates are installed to detect it. The computer manages the correlation between the non-contact tag and the antennas and gates. When a non-contact tag is destroyed, shielded, or data has been tampered with, the computer detects that an abnormality has occurred in the non-contact tag from the change in correlation, and determines that there is a possibility of theft or unauthorized removal of goods. Notify the situation.

  Patent Document 2 shows a technique for more reliably issuing a warning when an article being delivered is stolen. That is, the tag data is attached to an article to be delivered that stores the encrypted data in which the encrypted data is encrypted with the encryption key. The warning device radiates a radio wave from the antenna to a predetermined range, and reads the encrypted data from the tag as the reflected wave. The warning device decrypts the read encrypted data and determines whether or not the decrypted data is tag data. The warning device issues a warning when the decrypted data is not tag data or when encrypted data cannot be read from the tag.

JP 2006-127442 A JP 2011-186578 A

  For example, when the technique of Patent Document 2 is adopted, the management device can grasp the presence / absence of each article being transported on a vehicle by reading data of a tag attached to each article. become. However, for example, even if it is possible to detect the loss of an article being transported, there is no information useful for finding the lost article.

  As a system for managing each item to be delivered, a system independently developed by a plurality of delivery companies is employed. Therefore, it has been impossible to share article information among a plurality of delivery companies. Therefore, for example, when an article is loaded on a vehicle managed by another company due to a mistake in the work, the data of the tag attached to the applicable article cannot be read, and the lost article is searched. could not.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-described circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an in-vehicle device and a luggage management system that are useful for managing the loss of various articles to be conveyed.

In order to achieve the above-described object, the vehicle-mounted device and the luggage management system according to the present invention are characterized by the following (1) to (7).
(1) An on-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle for transporting an article,
A wireless signal receiving unit that receives a wireless signal from a wireless tag attached to each article;
A position information acquisition unit for acquiring information indicating the current position of the host vehicle;
A radio signal transmitter for transmitting a radio signal to a predetermined server existing outside the host vehicle;
The contents of the radio signal received from each radio tag received by the radio signal reception unit are associated with the current position of the host vehicle acquired by the position information acquisition unit, and transmitted to the server using the radio signal transmission unit. A transmission control unit;
A vehicle-mounted device characterized by comprising:

  According to the vehicle-mounted device having the configuration (1), it is possible to notify the server of each article to which the wireless tag is attached in a state in which the unique information of the wireless tag and the current position information are associated with each other. Therefore, the server can grasp the presence / absence and the current position of each article being transported on the vehicle. Further, even when the loss of an article is detected, the vehicle-mounted device and the server can grasp the position of the corresponding article immediately before the loss occurs, so that the work of searching for the lost article becomes easy.

(2) One or more onboard equipment as described in said (1), and the said server,
The server manages each wireless tag based on the content of the wireless signal received from each vehicle-mounted device,
A luggage management system characterized by that.

  According to the package management system configured as described in (2) above, the server can grasp the presence / absence and current position of each article being transported on the vehicle. Further, even when the loss of an article is detected, the vehicle-mounted device and the server can grasp the position of the corresponding article immediately before the loss occurs, so that the work of searching for the lost article becomes easy.

(3) The server, for each of the wireless tags, a destination information acquisition unit that acquires one or more destination information representing a destination of an article associated with the wireless tag;
An article management unit for recognizing that the radio tag or the corresponding article is lost when it is detected that the signal from the radio tag is interrupted at a place other than the place represented by the destination information;
The package management system according to (2) above, comprising:

  According to the package management system configured as described in (3) above, if an article managed during transportation is lost at a location other than a predetermined destination such as a base where cargo is loaded or unloaded, Since the loss can be detected quickly, the management of the article becomes easy. Further, by making the signal interruption from the wireless tag in a place other than the destination out of the detection target, it is possible to prevent the temporary signal interruption accompanying the work such as loading and unloading of luggage from being mistaken as the loss of the article.

(4) The article management unit wirelessly transmits information from the wireless tag recognized as lost or the wireless tag associated with the article recognized as lost from an on-vehicle device mounted on any vehicle. If detected based on the signal, recognize that the wireless tag or the article is found,
The package management system according to (3) above, wherein

  According to the package management system configured as described in (4) above, even if it is detected that a managed article is lost, it is possible to automatically find the corresponding article.

(5) The article management unit loses the wireless tag when a state in which a signal from the same wireless tag is continuously received satisfies a predetermined condition after the corresponding vehicle starts traveling. To be managed,
The package management system according to (3) above, wherein

  According to the package management system configured as described in (5) above, for example, temporary signal interruption caused by operations such as movement of goods in the vicinity of a distribution base, loading / unloading of goods from / to a vehicle, and reloading of goods between vehicles. It is possible to manage the loss of articles in a stable state by eliminating the influence.

(6) The wireless tag or the corresponding article is lost when the article management unit continues until the signal from the wireless tag, which is the object of loss management, is interrupted until the condition satisfies a predetermined condition. Recognize it,
The package management system according to (5) above, wherein

  According to the package management system configured as described in (6) above, the signal from each wireless tag is temporarily interrupted due to, for example, temporary loss of power, the influence of radio wave shielding, or erroneous operation. However, it is possible to avoid misrecognizing that the article is lost.

(7) The server allows reception of signals from a plurality of the wireless tags having different managed user attributes or a plurality of the vehicle-mounted devices having different managed user attributes, and the wireless tag. Having a database that manages the specific information of the attribute and the attribute information in association with each other,
The package management system according to any one of (2) to (6) above,

  According to the package management system configured as described in (7) above, a plurality of wireless tags managed by a plurality of users such as different companies and a plurality of vehicle-mounted devices are managed in a unified manner using a common server. be able to. Therefore, for example, it is easy to find an article loaded on a vehicle on which an on-vehicle device of a different company is mounted or an article loaded on a vehicle of a different company due to an erroneous work.

  According to the vehicle-mounted device and the luggage management system of the present invention, it is possible to obtain a function useful for managing the loss of various articles to be conveyed. That is, the vehicle-mounted device can notify the server of each article to which the wireless tag is attached in a state in which the wireless tag specific information and current position information are associated with each other. In addition, the server can grasp the presence / absence and current position of each article being transported on the vehicle. Further, even when the loss of an article is detected, the vehicle-mounted device and the server can grasp the position of the corresponding article immediately before the loss occurs, so that the work of searching for the lost article becomes easy.

  The present invention has been briefly described above. Further, the details of the present invention will be further clarified by reading through a mode for carrying out the invention described below (hereinafter referred to as “embodiment”) with reference to the accompanying drawings. .

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating a configuration example of the package management system according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a database used by the server of the package management system. FIG. 4 is a flowchart illustrating an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device according to the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing an example of the confirmation tag process executed by the server in the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing an example of loss determination processing executed by the server in the embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the operation of the server when receiving a tag signal and the operation of the server when searching for a tag. FIG. 8 is a plan view illustrating an example of a positional relationship between a vehicle on which the vehicle-mounted device is mounted, a communicable range, and a wireless tag.

  Specific embodiments relating to the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings.

<Configuration example of OBE>
The structural example of the onboard equipment 10 in embodiment of this invention is shown in FIG. The vehicle-mounted device 10 is used in a state where it is mounted on the vehicle in order to manage various packages carried on the vehicle such as a truck. The vehicle-mounted device 10 is assumed to be configured as a dedicated vehicle-mounted device for managing luggage or as a part of a general vehicle-mounted device such as a digital tachograph.

  1 includes a microcomputer (CPU) 11, a speed signal interface 12, an engine signal interface 13, a GPS interface 14, an analog signal interface 15, an external input interface 16, a tag signal interface 17, and a wide area wireless communication module. 18, an antenna 19, a nonvolatile memory 20, a volatile memory 21, an SD card 22, a switch input unit 23, and a liquid crystal display unit (LCD) 24.

  The microcomputer 11 implements various functions required for the vehicle-mounted device 10 by executing a program incorporated in advance. The main operation of the microcomputer 11 will be described later.

  The speed signal interface 12 converts a predetermined vehicle speed signal SG1 output from the vehicle side into a signal suitable for the processing of the microcomputer 11. The microcomputer 11 can grasp the travel speed and travel distance of the vehicle by monitoring the number of pulses of the vehicle speed signal SG1 and the signal cycle.

  The engine signal interface 13 converts a predetermined engine rotation signal SG2 output from the vehicle side into a signal suitable for input processing of the microcomputer 11. The microcomputer 11 can grasp the rotation speed (rpm) of the engine by monitoring the number of pulses of the engine rotation signal SG2 and the signal cycle.

  The GPS interface 14 is used to input a signal SG3 from a GPS receiver (not shown) to the microcomputer 11. The GPS receiver can receive radio waves from a plurality of GPS (Global Positioning System) satellites and calculate the current position of the vehicle as a reception point. The microcomputer 11 can acquire information on the current position from the GPS receiver via the GPS interface 14.

  The analog signal interface 15 can convert the analog signal SG4 representing the temperature in the luggage compartment of the vehicle into a digital signal and give it to the microcomputer 11. Therefore, the microcomputer 11 can manage the temperature of each package.

  The external input interface 16 converts a predetermined external signal SG5 into a signal suitable for input processing of the microcomputer 11. For example, a signal indicating the magnitude of acceleration applied to the vehicle can be input to the external input interface 16 as the external signal SG5.

  The tag signal interface 17 is used to connect the receiver 30 to the input of the microcomputer 11. The receiver 30 has a function of receiving a radio signal from a radio tag 32 described later. In addition, the receiver 30 may be connected to the outside of the vehicle-mounted device 10 as shown in FIG.

  The wide area wireless communication module 18 has a function for securing a wireless communication line with a wireless base station 41 provided by a mobile communication provider or the like and enabling wide area wireless communication, for example. The wide area wireless communication module 18 can communicate with the wireless base station 41 via the antenna 19.

  The non-volatile memory 20 is an electronic device such as a flash memory that can read and rewrite data held by the microcomputer 11. The non-volatile memory 20 is used to hold various parameters, constant data, programs, and other data used by the vehicle-mounted device 10.

  The volatile memory 21 is a semiconductor memory device that can freely read and write data by accessing the microcomputer 11. The volatile memory 21 is used to temporarily hold various data handled by the microcomputer 11.

  The SD card 22 is detachably connected to the vehicle-mounted device 10 using a predetermined card interface (not shown). The SD card 22 is used to store various data to be recorded by the vehicle-mounted device 10 such as vehicle operation data.

  The switch input unit 23 includes a switch that generates signals representing operation states of a plurality of buttons for accepting an input operation of a user such as a vehicle driver. A signal indicating the operation state of each button is input from the switch input unit 23 to the microcomputer 11.

  The liquid crystal display unit 24 is disposed at a position on the front surface of the housing of the vehicle-mounted device 10 that is easy to see from the driver. Used to display necessary information.

<Example of configuration of luggage management system>
An example of the configuration of the luggage management system in the embodiment of the present invention is shown in FIG. In the example illustrated in FIG. 2, wireless tags 32-1, 32-2, and 32-3 are attached to a plurality of packages 31-1, 31-2, and 31-3, respectively.

  Here, each of the wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3 is an active tag. That is, each tag has a built-in battery, periodically emits radio waves with its own power, and transmits tag information. It is also possible to connect a sensor to each tag and transmit information detected by the sensor from the tag. As a specific example, each of the wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3 periodically transmits information including its own ID as a wireless signal every minute.

  For example, a radio signal is transmitted using a frequency band of 920 [MHz]. In that case, for example, the radio waves of the wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3 reach a position separated by about 300 [m]. Of course, other frequency bands may be used.

  In the example shown in FIG. 2, the receiver 30-1 is connected to the vehicle-mounted device 10-1, the receiver 30-2 is connected to the vehicle-mounted device 10-2, and the receiver 30-3 is connected to the vehicle-mounted device 10-3. Yes. The vehicle-mounted device 10-1 and the receiver 30-1 are mounted on one vehicle 33, and the receiver 30-1 is arranged so as to receive radio waves from the wireless tag 32-1 arranged in the luggage compartment of the vehicle 33. . Similarly, the vehicle-mounted device 10-2 and the receiver 30-2 are used in a state of being mounted on another vehicle. The vehicle-mounted device 10-3 and the receiver 30-3 are also used in a state of being mounted on another vehicle.

  Each of the receivers 30-1 to 30-3 is equipped with a reception function for receiving radio waves of the wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3 and acquiring information such as an ID from a reception signal. In the present embodiment, the receivers 30-1 to 30-3 do not have a transmission function.

  Note that the wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3 are used for purposes other than tags such as the frequency band of 920 [MHz] (for example, energy management systems (EMS) such as MEMS and HEMS). When using the same frequency as the communication), the receivers 30-1 to 30-3 have a function of discarding the received signals other than the tag from the received signals in order to avoid the problem of privacy. It may be allowed.

  In the example shown in FIG. 2, the package 31-1 is a general package handled by the company A as a shipping company, the package 31-2 is an empty package handled by the same company A, and the package 31-3 is another shipping company. Assume that the container is handled by Company B. As described above, even when the various packages 31-1 to 31-3 handled by a plurality of different companies are used, the wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3, the receivers 30-1 to 30-3, and the vehicle-mounted device 10. By making the communication specifications of -1 to 10-3 common, it is possible to handle them in a common system.

  For example, even if the luggage 31-1 handled by the company A is erroneously loaded on the vehicle 33 managed by the company B, the receiver 30-3 and the vehicle-mounted device 10- managed by the company B are used. 3 receives the radio wave of the wireless tag 32-1 attached to the package 31-1, and can detect the presence of the package 31-1.

  A server 43 included in the package management system shown in FIG. 2 is connected to the radio base station 41 via the Internet network 42. User terminals 44 and 45 are connected to the server 43. The user terminal 44 is a personal computer (PC) managed by company A, for example, and the user terminal 45 is a personal computer managed by company B, for example. That is, here, it is assumed that a single server 43 handles package information of a plurality of companies.

  Each of the vehicle-mounted devices 10-1 to 10-3 mounted on different vehicles 33 receives the radio signals of the wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3 existing within a predetermined area range from the receivers 30-1 to 30-. By receiving in step 3, the ID number of the corresponding tag can be acquired. Further, each of the vehicle-mounted devices 10-1 to 10-3 secures a wireless communication line with the wireless base station 41 by wide-area wireless communication, and transmits the detected tag ID number and the like to the server 43. Information transmitted by each of the vehicle-mounted devices 10-1 to 10-3 reaches the server 43 via the radio base station 41 and the Internet network 42.

  Further, as will be described later, each of the vehicle-mounted devices 10-1 to 10-3 acquires information on the current position of the host vehicle, links the position information to the ID number of the detected tag, and transmits the information to the server 43. To do. Therefore, the server 43 can grasp the presence / absence of each of the wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3 and the current position thereof. In addition, the server 43 includes packages 31-1 to 31-3, wireless tags 32-1 to 32-3, receivers 30-1 to 30-3, so that a plurality of businesses and users can be managed separately. Information is managed in a state in which each of the vehicle-mounted devices 10-1 to 10-3, or at least one of them is distinguished for each user such as each company.

  The server 43 can automatically detect the loss of the managed baggage, display an alarm on the screen of the corresponding user terminal 44 or 45, or notify by e-mail. A user of each company or the like can access the server 43 by the user terminal 44 or 45 and perform a search for finding a lost package. Details will be described later.

<Configuration example of database used by server 43>
A configuration example of a database used by the server 43 of the package management system is shown in FIG. That is, the computer in the server 43 uses various information existing in the tag database DB1, the vehicle database DB2, the determination condition database DB3, etc. shown in FIG.

  The tag database DB1 is a database for individually managing information associated with each of a large number of tags for each tag. The tag database DB1 shown in FIG. 3 includes company names, identification numbers (ID numbers of the tags), analog information (such as temperature), acceleration information, status information, and destination information as management items.

  The status information in the tag database DB1 is information indicating the state of the baggage attached with the tag, and specifically, waiting in a depot (warehouse or delivery base), delayed delivery, misdelivery, delivery, completion of delivery, etc. There is a state of. The status information also includes information indicating whether or not a “determined tag”, which will be described later, and information indicating the presence / absence of lost packages.

  The destination information in the tag database DB1 includes information on the destination of the baggage attached with the tag (location such as a delivery base and a relay point) and the time to arrive at the destination. The contents of the tag database DB1 are sequentially updated under the control of the server 43 in accordance with the actual state change of each corresponding tag.

  The vehicle database DB2 is a database for managing each vehicle on which the vehicle-mounted device 10 is mounted. The vehicle database DB2 shown in FIG. 3 includes company names, travel speed, engine rotation speed, and GPS data (current vehicle position) as management items.

  In addition, although it can acquire based on the GPS data in vehicle database DB2 about each tag and the present position of the package which attached it, you may manage the information of the current position for every tag by tag database DB1. The contents of the vehicle database DB2 are sequentially updated under the control of the server 43 as the state of the vehicle changes.

  The determination condition database DB3 is information used when the server 43 determines the state of each tag and the package attached thereto. In the determination condition database DB3 shown in FIG. 3, information such as time, place, and distance is registered in advance as determination conditions.

<Description of operation>
<Operation example of the vehicle-mounted device 10>
FIG. 4 shows an operation example of the vehicle-mounted device 10 in the embodiment of the present invention. That is, the microcomputer 11 in the vehicle-mounted device 10 shown in FIG. 1 executes the operation shown in FIG. The operation of FIG. 4 will be described below.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the receiver 30 mounted on each vehicle 33 and the wireless tag 32 detected by the vehicle-mounted device 10 are a tag (32−) attached to a load (31-1) loaded in the luggage compartment of the vehicle 33. 1) or a tag (32-2) that does not exist in the cargo compartment but exists within a range in which the radio waves of the tag can be received.

  The microcomputer 11 monitors the signal output from the receiver 30 connected to the input of the vehicle-mounted device 10 and identifies whether or not the receiver 30 has received a wireless signal from any wireless tag 32 in S11. If the radio signal is received, the process proceeds to S12.

  In step S <b> 12, the microcomputer 11 acquires the ID number information of the wireless tag 32 included in the signal received by the receiver 30 from the receiver 30 via the tag signal interface 17.

  In step S <b> 13, the microcomputer 11 acquires information on the current position (latitude / longitude of the reception point or the vehicle position) calculated by a GPS receiver (not shown) via the GPS interface 14.

  In step S14, the microcomputer 11 associates the information of the ID number of the wireless tag 32 acquired in S12 and the information of the current position acquired in S13 with each other, the wide area wireless communication module 18 and the like. To the server 43. For example, the vehicle-mounted device 10 may simultaneously transmit information representing the state of the host vehicle such as the traveling speed and the traveling distance to the server 43 in S14.

  Accordingly, the server 43 periodically receives the ID number of each wireless tag 32 detected by the receiver 30 connected to the vehicle-mounted device 10 mounted on each vehicle in a state in which the current position is associated with each other. can do.

<Description of fixed tag processing>
FIG. 5 shows an example of “confirmation tag processing” executed by the server 43 in the embodiment of the present invention. This process is periodically executed as needed by the computer in the server 43. The contents of the “confirmation tag process” shown in FIG. 5 will be described below.

  In step S <b> 21, the computer in the server 43 performs input processing on a message transmitted from any one of the vehicle-mounted devices 10 and acquires necessary information. That is, in addition to the ID number and position information of the tag transmitted by the vehicle-mounted device 10 in S14 of FIG. 4, the ID number that identifies the vehicle-mounted device 10 that is the transmission source and the state of the vehicle that is the transmission source (travel speed, travel distance) Get such information.

  In step S22, the computer in the server 43 identifies whether or not the vehicle on which the vehicle-mounted device 10 that is the transmission source of the message processed in S21 is running, and if it is running, proceeds to the next processing in S23.

  In step S23, the computer in the server 43 repeats a message representing the same wireless tag 32 within a predetermined time (for example, 5 minutes) by monitoring the ID numbers of the tags included in the plurality of messages processed in S21. Identifies whether or not it has been received. If it has been received repeatedly, the process proceeds to the next S24. That is, if the in-vehicle device 10 of the transmission source and the server 43 are continuously detecting the presence of the same wireless tag 32, that is, the same luggage 31, the processing of the server 43 proceeds to S24.

  In step S24, the computer in the server 43 determines in advance the determination condition for determining whether or not the wireless tag 32 detected in S23 is a “determined tag”, and the actual detection state of the wireless tag 32 to be processed. And compare. Constant data representing the determination condition is held in the determination condition database DB3 shown in FIG. Specifically, the length of time during which the state of detecting the same wireless tag 32 continues, the length of the mileage of the vehicle in this continuous state, the location (position) where the corresponding wireless tag 32 is detected Are compared with the determination conditions defined by the constant data in the determination condition database DB3 in S24.

  If the wireless tag 32 detected in S23 satisfies the determination condition in S24, the process proceeds to the next S25, and the computer in the server 43 stores the status information (in the tag database DB1) of the wireless tag 32 detected in S23. , A flag indicating the state of “definite tag” is set.

  When the server 43 executes the “determined tag process” shown in FIG. 5, the wireless tags 32 that are continuously detected in a stable state can be selected as “determined tags”. Therefore, for example, the signal of the wireless tag 32 attached to the luggage loaded on another vehicle different from the own vehicle, or placed or moved for a short time in each depot or other place for work. The status information of the “determined tag” can be used to eliminate the influence of an unstable signal such as the signal of the wireless tag 32 attached to the package.

<Description of loss determination processing>
FIG. 6 shows an example of “lost determination process” executed by the server 43 in the embodiment of the present invention. This process is periodically executed by the computer in the server 43 every fixed time (for example, 5 minutes) for each tag. The contents of the “lost determination process” shown in FIG. 6 will be described below.

  In step S <b> 31, the computer in the server 43 refers to the status information for each wireless tag 32 managed on the tag database DB <b> 1 that can be referred to by the server 43, and identifies whether it is a “determined tag”. For the “determined tag”, the process of the next S32 is executed.

  In step S <b> 32, the computer in the server 43 identifies whether or not the communication with the wireless tag 32 detected as the “determined tag” in S <b> 31 is interrupted while the vehicle is traveling. When detecting that communication from the vehicle-mounted device 10 representing the signal of the corresponding “determined tag” has been interrupted, the server 43 executes the next S33.

  In step S33, the computer in the server 43 sets an allowable time (for example, 10 minutes) that predetermines the length of time that the communication interruption state continues for the “determined tag” in which the communication interruption is detected in S32. Compare. The constant data of the allowable time is stored in advance in the determination condition database DB3, for example. If the duration of the communication interruption state exceeds the allowable time, the process proceeds to the next step S34.

  In step S34, the computer in the server 43 acquires the destination information of the corresponding tag from the tag database DB1 for the “determined tag” detected in S33 that the state of communication interruption has exceeded the allowable time.

  The destination information on the tag database DB1 is used together with the ID number of the wireless tag 32 when creating a schedule of the delivery destination, delivery time, delivery route, etc. for each package to be delivered or when updating the schedule. It can be determined and registered in the tag database DB1. This destination information includes time information of expected arrival in addition to the position information of the corresponding delivery base.

  In step S34, the computer in the server 43 obtains the current position information of the corresponding tag from the tag database DB1 or the vehicle database DB2 for the “determined tag” detected in S33 that the communication interruption state has exceeded the allowable time. get.

  In step S34, the computer in the server 43 compares, for example, the destination acquired in S34 and the current position acquired in S35 for the “determined tag” detected in S33 that the state of communication interruption has exceeded the allowable time. Thus, it is determined whether or not the current position is outside the destination range. Here, the current position is a position represented by information on the current position associated with the “determined tag” acquired immediately before the communication interruption. This current position can be updated when the “determined tag” is detected by, for example, the vehicle-mounted device 10 or the receiver 30 mounted on another vehicle in an operation for searching for a lost package described later.

  Note that the determination condition of S36 may be determined in consideration of time information in addition to position information. This determination condition is held on the determination condition database DB3, for example. For the “determined tag” that is detected to be out of the destination range in S36, the next process of S37 is executed.

  In step S37, the computer in the server 43 outputs a lost package alarm to the “determined tag” that is detected to be out of the destination range in S36. Specifically, among the user terminals 44 and 45 accessing the Web screen provided by the server 43, the corresponding “determined tag” is applied to the screen of the user terminal corresponding to the company name assigned to the corresponding tag. The lost information indicating that the parcel 31 attached to “is lost is displayed. In addition, an alarm mail including a message indicating that the corresponding package 31 has been lost is automatically transmitted to an e-mail address of a mobile terminal or the like registered in advance as a user corresponding to the company name assigned to the corresponding tag. To do.

<Operation to search for lost packages>
FIG. 7 shows the operation of the server when receiving a tag signal and the operation of the server when searching for a tag. Moreover, the example of the positional relationship of the vehicle carrying the onboard equipment 10, the communicable range, and a wireless tag is shown in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 8, assuming that the vehicle-mounted device 10 and the receiver 30 are mounted on the vehicles 33-1 and 33-2 traveling on the road, respectively, the vehicles 33-1 and 33-2. Each receiver 30 can receive the radio wave of each wireless tag 32 in a roaming area that is a circular area having a predetermined radius (for example, about one hundred to several hundred [m]) around the center.

  Therefore, the vehicle-mounted device 10 and the receiver 30 mounted on each of the vehicles 33-1 and 33-2 are erroneously mounted on other vehicles as well as the normal luggage loaded in the cargo compartment of the own vehicle. There is a case where a baggage or a baggage placed on the ground (with the wireless tag 32 attached) is accidentally found while the host vehicle is traveling.

  And the onboard equipment 10 transmits the information of the discovered wireless tag 32 with respect to the server 43 (S14 of FIG. 4). In step S41 in FIG. 7, the server 43 performs input processing on the message transmitted from the vehicle-mounted device 10 and acquires necessary information. That is, the server 43 acquires the ID number, position information, and the like of the corresponding wireless tag 32. Then, the server 43 stores the acquired information on the wireless tag 32 in the tag database DB1 or the like in S42.

  On the other hand, a trader who manages the server 43 can use the server 43 to provide a Web service for searching for lost packages to each company or user using the package management system. In that case, each company or user uses the user terminals 44 and 45 to access the Web screen of the server 43 and receives provision of relevant information.

  When each company or user inputs the tag ID number of the wireless tag 32 attached to the package to be searched from the user terminals 44 and 45, this tag ID number is input to the computer of the server 43 in S51 shown in FIG.

  In step S52, the computer of the server 43 searches the tag database DB1 based on the tag ID number input in S51. That is, it is identified whether or not the specific wireless tag 32 corresponding to the tag ID number input in S51 has been detected (even temporarily) on the tag database DB1 after loss detection. When the corresponding specific wireless tag 32 is in the detected state on the tag database DB1, the process proceeds from S53 to S54, and the computer of the server 43 sends a request to the user terminal 44 or 45 as the request source. , S52 is notified of the search result.

  Since the server 43 manages the company name corresponding to each wireless tag 32 in the tag database DB1 or the like, the server 43 can manage each package separately for each company or for each user. For example, when the server 43 provides a service in S51 to S54 in FIG. 7, only the information of the tag ID number corresponding to the user for the user such as the company of the user terminals 44 and 45 that has accessed the server 43. Provide services limited to

  However, in the package management system shown in FIG. 2, the basic configuration and specifications of each wireless tag 32, in-vehicle device 10, and receiver 30 are the same, and are managed by a company different from the company that requested the service to the server 43. The lost wireless tag 32 and the package can be found using the vehicle-mounted device 10, the receiver 30, and the vehicle on which these are mounted.

<Advantages of luggage management system>
As described above, in the package management system shown in FIG. 2, even when the package 31 is being transported, the server 43 can detect the loss of the package 31 to which the wireless tag 32 is attached. In addition, it becomes easy to search for lost packages.

  Further, the server 43 executes the process shown in FIG. 5 and identifies the “determined tag”, so that it is possible to detect the state of the package in a stable state while the package is being transported. Further, when the server 43 executes the process shown in FIG. 6, it is possible to accurately determine the loss by determining the situation by adding the vehicle state to the “determined tag”.

  Moreover, like the tag database DB1 and the vehicle database DB2 shown in FIG. 3, by managing each tag and vehicle (or on-vehicle device) together with information such as the company name, the packages handled by a plurality of companies can be handled in a common system. It becomes possible to manage. Furthermore, by using a system common to a plurality of companies, it is possible to efficiently find lost packages. In addition, it is possible to manage the handled packages individually for each company, and it is not necessary to exchange information on packages between a plurality of companies or share information with each other in order to search for lost packages.

  In the package management system shown in FIG. 2, it is assumed that packages of a plurality of companies are managed by a common server 43, but only the packages handled in the same company are managed by the server 43. May be.

Here, the features of the vehicle-mounted device and the luggage management system according to the embodiment of the present invention described above are briefly summarized and listed in the following [1] to [7], respectively.
[1] An on-vehicle device (10) mounted on a vehicle for transporting an article,
A wireless signal receiving unit (receiver 30) that receives a wireless signal from the wireless tag (32) attached to each article;
A position information acquisition unit (GPS interface 14) for acquiring information indicating the current position of the host vehicle;
A wireless signal transmitter (wide area wireless communication module 18) that transmits a wireless signal to a predetermined server (43) existing outside the host vehicle;
The contents of the radio signal received from each radio tag received by the radio signal reception unit are associated with the current position of the host vehicle acquired by the position information acquisition unit, and transmitted to the server using the radio signal transmission unit. A transmission control unit (microcomputer 11, S14);
A vehicle-mounted device characterized by comprising:

[2] One or more vehicle-mounted devices (10) according to [1] above, and the server (43),
The server manages each wireless tag based on the content of the wireless signal received from each vehicle-mounted device (see FIGS. 5 to 7).
A luggage management system characterized by that.

[3] The server, for each of the wireless tags, a destination information acquisition unit (S34) that acquires one or more destination information that represents a destination of an article associated with the wireless tag;
An article management unit (S31 to S37) that recognizes that the wireless tag or the corresponding article has been lost when it is detected that the signal from the wireless tag has been interrupted at a place other than the place indicated by the destination information;
The package management system according to [2], further comprising:

[4] The article management unit wirelessly transmits information from the wireless tag recognized as lost or the wireless tag associated with the article recognized as lost from an in-vehicle device mounted on any vehicle. When it is detected based on the signal, it is recognized that the wireless tag or the article is found (see FIG. 7),
The package management system according to [3] above, wherein

[5] The article management unit loses the wireless tag when a state in which a signal from the same wireless tag is continuously received satisfies a predetermined condition after the corresponding vehicle starts traveling. To be managed (S21 to S25, S31),
The package management system according to [3] above, wherein

[6] The article management unit has lost the radio tag or the corresponding article when the signal from the radio tag, which is the subject of loss management, is interrupted until the condition satisfies a predetermined condition. Recognize as a thing (S31-S33),
The package management system according to [5] above, wherein

[7] The server allows reception of signals from a plurality of the wireless tags having different managed user attributes or a plurality of the vehicle-mounted devices having different managed user attributes, and the wireless tag. A database (tag database DB1) that manages the unique information and the attribute information in association with each other.
The package management system according to any one of the above [2] to [6].

10, 10-1, 10-2, 10-3 On-vehicle equipment 11 Microcomputer 12 Speed signal interface 13 Engine signal interface 14 GPS interface 15 Analog signal interface 16 External input interface 17 Tag signal interface 18 Wide area wireless communication module 19 Antenna 20 Non-volatile Memory 21 Volatile memory 22 SD card 23 Switch input unit 24 Liquid crystal display unit 30, 30-1, 30-2, 30-3 Receiver 31, 31-1, 31-2, 31-3 Luggage 32, 32-1, 32 -2, 32-3 Radio tag 33 Vehicle 41 Radio base station 42 Internet network 43 Server 44, 45 User terminal A1, A2 Communicable range DB1 Tag database DB2 Vehicle database DB3 Judgment condition database

Claims (7)

An in-vehicle device mounted on a vehicle for transporting goods,
A wireless signal receiving unit that receives a wireless signal from a wireless tag attached to each article;
A position information acquisition unit for acquiring information indicating the current position of the host vehicle;
A radio signal transmitter for transmitting a radio signal to a predetermined server existing outside the host vehicle;
The contents of the radio signal received from each radio tag received by the radio signal reception unit are associated with the current position of the host vehicle acquired by the position information acquisition unit, and transmitted to the server using the radio signal transmission unit. A transmission control unit;
A vehicle-mounted device characterized by comprising: One or more in-vehicle devices according to claim 1, and the server.
The server manages each wireless tag based on the content of the wireless signal received from each vehicle-mounted device,
A luggage management system characterized by that. The server includes, for each of the wireless tags, a destination information acquisition unit that acquires one or more destination information indicating a destination of an article associated with the wireless tag;
An article management unit for recognizing that the radio tag or the corresponding article is lost when it is detected that the signal from the radio tag is interrupted at a place other than the place represented by the destination information;
The package management system according to claim 2, further comprising: The article management unit is configured to use information from the wireless tag associated with the wireless tag recognized as lost or the article recognized as lost based on a wireless signal from an in-vehicle device mounted on any vehicle. If it is detected, it is recognized that the wireless tag or the article is found,
The luggage management system according to claim 3. The article management unit is subject to loss management when a state in which a signal from the same wireless tag is continuously received satisfies a predetermined condition after the corresponding vehicle starts traveling. And
The luggage management system according to claim 3. The article management unit recognizes that the radio tag or the corresponding article has been lost when the signal from the radio tag targeted for loss management is interrupted until the condition satisfies a predetermined condition. To
The package management system according to claim 5, wherein: The server allows reception of signals from a plurality of the wireless tags having different managed user attributes, or a plurality of the vehicle-mounted devices having different managed user attributes, and specific information of the wireless tag And a database that manages the attribute information in association with each other,
The package management system according to any one of claims 2 to 6, wherein

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