JP4011970B2 - Loading efficiency simulation system - Google Patents

Description

[0001]
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to a logistics loading efficiency simulation system.
[0002]
[Prior art]
The calculation of the distribution load efficiency of a new product is generally performed after the product package plan is decided, that is, after the form and dimensions of the product package are decided. For this reason, for example, if the package size is further reduced by 2 mm, the loading efficiency on the pallet will be doubled and the distribution cost will be halved later. In some cases, it was necessary to overlook the relationship with the adjustment schedule of the production line, etc., and there was no room for changing the dimensions of the individual package, leading to a reduction in logistics costs. If you know this at an early stage of planning, you can change the dimensions of the package or change the filling line at the factory. This is because it cannot be done due to physical constraints.
[0003]
When trying to calculate logistics costs at the planning stage of a package, it will be done manually or using dedicated software. In fact, it is impossible to use, and there is a problem that it is very inconvenient to use the conventional dedicated software for calculating the logistics load efficiency in the package planning stage. The dedicated software can only be used on a personal computer (PC) with the dedicated software installed. In addition, because it is dedicated software for logistics designers, items that are not necessary for package planning are also set. This is because it is difficult to handle unless you are a full-time logistics designer. Therefore, in these conventional methods, it is not easy to easily and roughly simulate logistics loading efficiency at the package planning stage, and to perform package planning considering logistics costs.
[0004]
[Problems to be solved by the invention]
The present invention has been made in consideration of such problems, and in order to carry out optimal package design from the viewpoint of logistics efficiency, the basic dimensions of the package and other data can be interactively used at the package planning stage. It is an object of the present invention to provide a simulation system that simply calculates from the loading efficiency of each pallet to the fare calculation simply by inputting.
[0005]
[Means for Solving the Problems]
The first invention for solving the problem is:
A system for accessing a server device from a client computer handled by an operator through a network and simulating the logistics loading efficiency of a product packaging box by interactive operation, the first aspect of which is
The server device specifies the dimensions of the individual box, the number of individual boxes to be packed in the decorative box, the number of decorative boxes to be packed in the outer box, and the designation of how to load the pallet in this order, so that The loading efficiency is calculated and the result is output to the client computer.
[0006]
A preferred second aspect of the present invention has an interface for designating a variation of how to stack or stack individual boxes and cosmetic boxes, and designs the cosmetic box and outer box according to the designated stacking method. It is the simulation system which concerns on the 1st aspect which performs the loading simulation based on this.
[0007]
In a preferred third aspect of the present invention, when designating a variation of how to stack or stack the cosmetic box on the outer box, an illustration of the cosmetic box that visually explains the selected stacking or stacking direction is displayed. It is a simulation system concerning the 2nd mode.
[0008]
In the fourth preferred embodiment of the present invention, the condition for stacking the outer box on the pallet can be specified by the items of height limit, pallet dimension, overhang dimension, and stacking margin. The simulation system according to the first aspect is characterized in that a loading simulation calculation is performed.
[0009]
In a fifth preferred embodiment of the present invention, the load simulation calculation result is obtained by any one or any combination of the load efficiency per pallet, the total number of outer boxes, the plane load ratio, the three-dimensional load ratio, the size, the number of boxes per stage. Or a simulation system according to a fourth aspect, characterized by displaying all of them.
[0010]
According to a sixth aspect of the present invention, by specifying the type of the transport truck, the shipping place and the unloading place or the transport distance, the required number, the loading efficiency and the fare for each transport truck type are calculated and displayed. 6 is a simulation system according to the fifth aspect.
[0011]
A preferred seventh aspect of the present invention is to display the load on the outer box loaded in the lowermost stage during transportation by specifying the weight of the goods to be stored in the individual box and the amount of paper that forms each box, and the lowermost stage It is the simulation system which concerns on either of the 1st aspect to the 5th aspect also provided with the function to perform the intensity | strength calculation of the outer box piled up in.
[0012]
According to a preferred eighth aspect of the present invention, development data of the boxes is created from the sizes of the individual box, the decorative box, and the outer box determined as a result of the loading efficiency simulation, and the multi-page layout calculation is performed. According to the first to fifth aspects, the layout data can be created, the size of the multi-sided sheet can be calculated, and the developed drawing of the box and the multi-sided drawing can be output from the plotter device connected to the server device. A simulation system according to any one of the above. Here, the development data and the multi-face layout data are so-called CAD data input to a specific CAD system. This can be realized by preparing a software program that appropriately replaces the numerical values related to typical box development data prepared in advance according to the box size data determined by the simulation.
[0013]
A preferred ninth aspect of the present invention is an interface for designating a variation in a method of stacking or stacking the individual box and the decorative box based on three sides a, b, c determined with respect to the front surface of the individual box. Designing a decorative box and outer box according to the specified stacking method, and displaying the illustration of the outer box and the three sides of the outer box determined by the illustration display “Length”, “Width”, “Height” By displaying the inside size size, outside size size, and 3 sides a, b, and c of the individual box corresponding to each side, the design result of the exterior box is stored not only in the size but also in the exterior box. It is a simulation system concerning the 1st mode characterized by displaying including the direction of an individual box. By using the simulation system of this mode, it becomes possible to know in advance the direction of the product stored in the outer box, so not only the size of the outer box, but also when the product is actually packed It is possible to confirm in advance whether there is any problem. Individual boxes are also called individual packaging boxes, and outer boxes are also called exterior boxes.
[0014]
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
A system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described below with reference to the drawings. FIG. 6 is an overall configuration diagram of the system 1. Reference numeral 20 denotes a server device. The server device 20 is connected to a user's client computer 10 through the Internet or an intranet 9 which is an in-house IP (Internet Protocol) network. It is assumed that the computer 10 is equipped with a WWW (World Wide Web) browser. Reference numeral 24 denotes a plotter for outputting a box development view and an imposition drawing obtained as a result of the simulation calculation. The server device 20 includes a WWW server 21, page data 22 written in some HTML (HyperText Markup Language), and simulation means 23. Install the available WWW server software and use it as the WWW server 21. The HTML page data 22 provides a login screen for accepting the first access from the user. The simulation means 23 is a server side program called from the WWW server 21 and plays a central role in this system. Details will be described later.
[0015]
The user accesses the server device 20 by specifying the URL (Uniform Resource Locator) of the server device 20 from the browser of the computer 10. The WWW server 21 sends login screen data, and displays a screen prompting the computer 10 to log in. Here, when the user inputs a correct user name password or the like and the server device 20 recognizes that the user is a valid registered user, the user can use the logistics loading efficiency simulation function provided by the server device 20. it can. For the authentication of the accessing user, an existing technique such as using a function provided in the WWW server 21 is used.
[0016]
The WWW server 21 that has received the request from the user activates the simulation means 23 that is a server-side program. Thereafter, the simulation unit 23 repeats the reception of designated conditions for the distribution load efficiency simulation → simulation calculation → result display → acceptance of the next designated conditions →. The result display refers to a process of generating HTML data for displaying a simulation result on the user's WWW browser in the simulation unit 23 and sending the data to the user's computer 10 through the WWW server 21. FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the simulation process performed by the simulation means 23. Hereinafter, the operation of the simulation unit 23 will be described with reference to FIG. 7, focusing on the user interface provided by the simulation unit 23.
[0017]
The specified conditions for the distribution load efficiency simulation are specified in the following order: condition of individual box → condition of decorative box → condition of outer box. An individual box is a box or container that wraps one of the products. A unit purchased by the final consumer. A vanity box is a box in which individual boxes are collected in a certain unit. This unit is mainly handled by retailers. The exterior box is a form for distribution, which is a collection of a certain number of cosmetic boxes. FIG. 1 shows a screen 100 for inputting conditions for simulation. The screen 100 is a screen displayed on the browser of the computer 10 immediately after the user who has accessed the server device 20 has authenticated and selected to use the simulation function. Hereinafter, description will be made with reference to FIG. 2 showing a screen state in which the screen 100 is slightly scrolled.
[0018]
First, the size of the individual packaging box and the like are input (S10). As the size of the individual packaging box, the sizes a, b, and c are input in the input field 101 shown in FIG. It should be noted that a is the height of the front surface of the box, b is the width of the front surface of the box, and c is the Specifies the depth to the front face. Here, the surface corresponding to the front of the box is a surface determined by the design of the box. Further, the amount of paper forming the individual packaging box, the weight of the products put in the individual packaging box, and the total amount of the products to be delivered are designated from the input field 102 (S12). However, since the latter two are necessary conditions for intensity calculation, the loading efficiency itself can be calculated without input.
[0019]
Next, the cosmetic box is designed by specifying the conditions of the cosmetic box. First, the number in the front direction, the depth direction, and the height direction when packing an individual packaging box into a cosmetic box is designated in the input field 103 (S14). In the example of the screen 100 in FIG. 1, the front padding number = 2, the depth padding number = 5, and the height padding number = 1 are designated. Based on this designation and the designation in the input field 101 (the direction of packing in the cosmetic box, the size of the individual packaging box), the size of the cosmetic box is automatically calculated. For example, when the direction of packing in the cosmetic box is vertical insertion, the width size of the front of the cosmetic box = the front packing number × a + the margin, the depth size of the cosmetic box = the number of depth packing × c + the margin, the height size of the cosmetic box = high The size of the cosmetic box is automatically calculated from the number of fillings × b + the margin. Here, the amount of “margin” is the individual box type (whether or not there is an overlap) in the input field 103b, the type of the cosmetic box, and the packing method of the individual box into the cosmetic box (hand-packed or machine-packed) It changes depending on the designation of. The simulation means 23 stores an appropriate margin amount as one of the reference tables for all combinations specified in the input field 103b. Therefore, the package planner need only select the input field 103b. There is no need to calculate the appropriate margin yourself.
[0020]
The upper row of the display column 104 shows the width size of the front face of the vanity box obtained as a result of the above automatic calculation, the depth size of the vanity box viewed from the front, and the height size of the vanity box, “front”, “depth”, Each item is displayed as “Height”. The “a”, “c”, and “b” displays for “front”, “depth”, and “height” in the lower row of the display column 104 respectively indicate the width size direction of the front of the cosmetic box, The correspondence relationship between the depth direction of the cosmetic box, the height direction of the cosmetic box, and the three sides abc of the individual packaging box is shown. This correspondence is used when calculating the size of the cosmetic box. In this display, for example, when the direction in which the individual packaging box is packed into the cosmetic box is designated as horizontal insertion, the display positions of a and b are switched. Along with this, the places for substituting “a” and “b” in the calculation formula for the size of the cosmetic box are switched. When the direction of packing the individual packaging into the cosmetic box is specified to be flat, the width size of the front of the cosmetic box = the front packing number × b + margin, the depth of the cosmetic box = the depth packing number × a + the margin, the height of the vanity box Since the calculation is performed with size = number of height padding × c + room, “front” = b, “depth” = a, and “height” = c are displayed. By displaying the lower row of the display field 104, it is possible to confirm which side of the individual packaging box is in contact with which side of the cosmetic box.
[0021]
By designating the input fields 101 and 103, the direction of the face of the cosmetic box is also determined, so that a development view of the cosmetic box can be drawn. The orientation of the face of the vanity box is always fixedly determined from the three-dimensional size of the vanity box. That is, the surface determined by the front size and height size of the cosmetic box is the “front” of the cosmetic box. Further, the side determined by the depth size and the height size of the cosmetic box is the “side surface” of the cosmetic box. Furthermore, the surface determined by the front size and depth size of the vanity box becomes the “top” of the vanity box. The top surface is an opening surface into which individual packaging boxes are packed. This is displayed on 105 of the screen 100 in FIG.
[0022]
Note that if the cosmetic box exceeds the general size of the display shelf used in the retail industry, the system 1 warns that the cosmetic box cannot be displayed on the display shelf. Thereby, it is possible to prevent the use of an inconveniently sized package.
[0023]
Next, the exterior box is designed by specifying the conditions of the exterior box. In this system, certain rules are set for the design of the outer box. That is, the side having the largest three-dimensional size of the outer box is defined as “length”, and the next largest side is defined as “width”, and a surface constituted by these two sides is defined as an opening surface of the outer box. The remaining side is a side perpendicular to the opening surface and is displayed as “height”. In the user interface (hereinafter referred to as UIF) of this system, the exterior box is displayed as indicated by 107 in FIG.
[0024]
If this “length”, “width” and “height” are determined, the exterior box can be designed, but in order to determine that, the conditions for how to pack the cosmetic box into the exterior box are determined. specify. The direction in which the cosmetic box is put into the exterior box and the number of the packing boxes when packing are designated (S18). The designation column 106 is a UIF that designates the direction in which the cosmetic box is placed in the exterior box. The upper surface of the outer packaging box = which surface of the cosmetic box is matched with the opening surface, and other surfaces that share the "length" side with the opening surface of the outer packaging box, that is, "length" and "height" Specify which side of the cosmetic box should be matched with the side to be touched. As illustrated in the selection field 106 of FIG. 2, “upper = front length = side” is “the front of the cosmetic box is formed on the upper surface of the outer box, and is composed of the“ length ”and“ height ”of the outer box. Indicates that the packing method is selected so that the side of the cosmetic box matches the side to be applied. Also, the input field 108 shown in FIG. 1 designates how many decorative boxes of the direction designated by 106 are packed in the direction of the three sides of the exterior box.
[0025]
From the above specifications, the inner dimensions of the three sides of the outer box are calculated, and the outer dimensions of the outer box can be calculated in consideration of the thickness of the outer box. This result is displayed in the display column 109. In the display column 109, the first line (uppermost line) has the “length”, “width”, “height” of the inner dimension, the second line has the “length”, “width”, “height”, In the third row, the correspondence of the three sides abc of the individual packaging box corresponding to each of the three sides “length”, “width”, and “height” of the exterior box is displayed. Three sides abc of the individual packaging box are designated in the input field 101 (FIG. 2). The display in the third row shows the correspondence between the three sides of the outer box and the three sides of the individual box, so it is easy to check whether there is no risk that the individual box will be transported in an inappropriate direction in the outer box. Can be confirmed. For example, when flat insertion is specified in the input field 101 and the side a or b corresponds to the “height” of the outer box, the contents are rotated 90 degrees from the state in which the contents are put in the individual box. Therefore, depending on the contents, it may be inappropriate to be transported in this state. In such a case, it is necessary to redesign the exterior box size by changing the direction in which the cosmetic box is packed.
[0026]
Next, the way of stacking the outer packaging is designed (S22). Specify the height limit when stacked on a pallet. Select from two preset pallet dimensions. Specify the overhang amount. The overhang is the length of the part that protrudes from the pallet. Also specify the margin for loading. The stacking margin is a margin dimension inside the pallet. The above numerical values are set in the input field 110 of the screen 100 shown in FIG. Since these numerical values are all set to initial values, they need only be specified when they are different from the initial values.
[0027]
When the designation of how to pack the outer boxes is completed, the simulation means 23 performs a loading efficiency calculation regarding the pallet stacking (S28). For each of the three types of pallet stacking patterns shown in FIG. 8, which are block stacking, brick stacking, and pinwheel stacking, the respective plane loading ratio, three-dimensional loading ratio, and the number of outer boxes per pallet are calculated and displayed. If the size of the outer box is determined, this calculation can be easily performed because the rectangular solids representing the outer box can be stacked according to the respective stacking patterns. The plane loading ratio represents the area ratio that the box occupies with respect to the pallet area. The three-dimensional loading ratio represents a volume ratio that is three-dimensionally occupied by a packed box with respect to a volume determined by the pallet area × height limit.
[0028]
When the 119 loading diagram button is selected, a detailed description of the pattern is displayed on another screen 200 as shown in FIG. 5 (S32). While looking at the proportion display 121 of the cosmetic box and the proportion display 122 of the exterior box on the screen 200, the number of fillings is adjusted, and trial and error are repeated so as to increase the loading rate (return to S14 etc. and re-simulation). When the simulation calculation (S28) is performed by designating how the outer boxes are stacked, the model setting of the delivery truck can also be designated (S24). In that case, the necessary number of trucks of the designated vehicle type, the fare, etc. can be calculated and displayed on 124 of the screen 200. The simulation means 23 internally holds the maximum load capacity, the transportable volume, and the fare table for each vehicle type distance for each truck vehicle type to be used, and performs simulation calculation with reference to this data.
[0029]
When the weight of one product is designated in the input field 102, the strength calculation result can also be displayed on the screen 200 as shown in FIG. The number of stacks, the weight of the outermost one outer box, the design strength of the outer box, and the like are displayed. The weight applied to the lowermost one outer box can be easily calculated by dividing the sum of the weights of the outer boxes stacked from the second stage by the number of the lowermost outer boxes. When the weight applied to the outermost one outer packaging box is close to or exceeds the design strength weight of the outer packaging box, it is possible to take measures such as reducing the number of stacking stages.
[0030]
As a result of repeating trial and error so as to increase the loading ratio, the finally determined individual packaging box and cosmetic box can output development view data to the plotter 24 for sample preparation. Further, if the server device 20 is provided with a program for creating a multi-sided drawing from a developed view of one box, the multi-sided drawing can also be output from the plotter 24, and an imposition paper size can be obtained.
[0031]
System 1 is the condition of individual packaging box → cosmetic box size, cosmetic box size + loading method → exterior box size, exterior box size + how to load on pallet, etc. → cosmetic box and exterior The original usage is to simulate the loading efficiency while designing the box. However, the system 1 can also be used to estimate how much the loading efficiency will be different when an existing outer box is used compared to when an optimal outer box is newly redesigned. . What is necessary is just to compare the load efficiency value obtained in the original simulation procedure with the size of the outer box in the field 109 and calculate the load efficiency. In this way, the system 1 can forcibly input the size of the decorative box or the exterior box and then perform the subsequent simulation. Simulation means 23: simulation of each phase of individual packaging condition → decoration box design, vanity box size + loading method → exterior box design, outer box size + pallet loading method, etc. → loading efficiency calculation What is necessary is just to implement | achieve as an aggregate | assembly of three independent program modules which perform calculation.
[0032]
【The invention's effect】
Heretofore, the loading efficiency simulation system according to the embodiment of the present invention has been described in detail. According to this loading efficiency simulation system, interactive operations can be accessed from a personal computer and simulation of loading efficiency can be performed with simple operations without the need for logistics expertise. The result can be used for planning and design of individual packaging boxes or product containers, and the product can be developed in consideration of loading efficiency.
[Brief description of the drawings]
FIG. 1 is a simulation condition setting screen 100 of a simulation system 1 according to an embodiment of the present invention.
2 is a simulation condition setting screen 100. FIG.
3 is a simulation condition setting screen 100. FIG.
4 is a simulation condition setting screen 100. FIG.
FIG. 5 is a stacking pattern details display screen 200;
FIG. 6 is an overall configuration diagram of a simulation system 1 according to the embodiment of the present invention.
7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the simulation means 23. FIG.
FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining a stacking pattern on three pallets.
[Explanation of symbols]
DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Loading efficiency simulation system 9 IP network 10 Client computer 20 Server apparatus 21 WWW server 22 HTML data 23 Simulation means 24 Plotter

Claims (9)

A system that accesses the server device from the client computer handled by the operator through the network and simulates the logistics loading efficiency of the product packaging box by interactive operation,
The server device specifies the dimensions of the individual box, the number of individual boxes to be packed in the decorative box, the number of decorative boxes to be packed in the outer box, and the designation of how to load the pallet in this order, so that A simulation system for calculating the loading efficiency and outputting the result to the client computer. An interface for designating a variation of a method for stacking or stacking individual boxes and decorative boxes, designing a decorative box and an outer box according to the specified stacking method, and performing a loading simulation based on the result. The simulation system described. The simulation system according to claim 2, wherein when designating a variation of the way of stacking or the direction of stacking, the illustration of the dressing box that visually explains the selected way of stacking or stacking is displayed. It is possible to specify the conditions for stacking the outer box on the pallet according to the items of height limit, pallet dimension, overhang dimension, stacking allowance, and load simulation calculation based on those specifications The simulation system according to claim 1. Loading simulation calculation results are displayed in one or any combination or all combinations of loading efficiency per pallet, total number of outer boxes, plane loading ratio, three-dimensional loading ratio, size, number of boxes per stage The simulation system according to claim 4, wherein: The simulation system according to claim 5, wherein by specifying the type of the transport truck, the shipping place and the unloading place, or the transport distance, the required number loading efficiency and the transport efficiency for each transport truck type are calculated and displayed. By specifying the weight of the product that can be stored in the individual box and the amount of paper that forms each box, the load on the outer box loaded at the bottom stage during transportation is displayed and the strength of the outer box loaded at the bottom stage is calculated. The simulation system according to claim 1, further comprising a function. From the size of the individual box, decorative box, and outer box determined as a result of the loading efficiency simulation, create the development data of those boxes, calculate the multi-page layout, create the multi-page layout data, and create the multi-page size 6. The simulation system according to claim 1, wherein a development view of a box and a multi-face drawing can be output from a plotter device connected to the server device. It has an interface that specifies the variation of how to stack or stack the individual boxes and decorative boxes based on the three sides a, b, c determined with respect to the front surface of the individual box, and according to the specified stacking method Design of the decorative box and outer box, and the inner and outer dimensions of “length”, “width” and “height” which are the three sides of the outer box determined by the illustration display of the outer box and the illustration display In addition, by displaying the three sides a, b, and c of the individual box corresponding to each side, the design result of the outer box includes not only the size but also the direction of the individual box stored in the outer box. The simulation system according to claim 1, wherein display is performed.

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