JP5481918B2 - Shipping support device and shipping support system - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a shipping support apparatus and a shipping support system.

  In Patent Document 1, a document server that manages document data of a printed material, an inventory management server that manages inventory information of the printed material, a list of printed materials obtained from the document server and displayed, and a printed material desired by the user from the list. A printer that displays and displays the inventory of the product from the inventory management server, and also allows the user to select whether the printed matter is to be delivered from the inventory, printed on demand, or a combination thereof. A system is described in which a printed matter desired by a user is sent out according to a form selected by the user.

JP 2005-165722 A

  An object of the present invention is to provide a shipping support apparatus and a shipping support system that can improve the efficiency of packing work of printed matter.

[1] Based on the number of copies of the printed material for each shipping destination and the number of copies of the printed material, whether to ship from the stock for each shipping destination or to newly print and ship with a printing device is determined. A decision means to
Based on the determination by the determination means, a print instruction means for giving a first print instruction to the printing apparatus so as to print the printed matter by the number of copies based on the number of newly printed and shipped, and according to the determination by the determination means Dispatch that describes the pickup destination indicating the acquisition source of printed matter for each shipping destination, and instructs to pick up the printed matter in stock from the inventory shelf and / or pick up and pack the newly printed matter from the printing device. Shipping instruction output control means for controlling the output of the instruction;
A shipping support apparatus having

[2] When the number of copies of at least one type of printed matter is less than the number of copies of the one type of printed matter for each shipping destination, the determining means sends all types of printed matter for each destination to the printing device. The dispatch support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the dispatch support apparatus determines to newly print and ship.

[3] The print instruction means issues a second print instruction to the printing apparatus so as to print the printed material by the number of copies in which the number of copies of the printed material is insufficient to a predetermined number of copies,
2. The shipping support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the shipping instruction output control unit performs output control of a warehousing instruction that instructs to add a printed matter printed based on the second printing instruction to the stock.

[4] The dispatch support device according to claim 3, wherein the print instruction unit decreases the predetermined number of copies with time.
[5] Based on the number of copies of the printed material to be shipped to the shipping destination and the number of copies of the printed material in stock, the product is shipped from the inventory for each packaging unit or newly printed by the printing apparatus. And a determination means for determining whether or not to ship,
A print instruction means for giving a first print instruction to the printing apparatus so as to print the printed matter by the number of copies based on the number of newly printed copies based on the determination by the determination means;
According to the determination by the determination means, for each of the packing units, a pickup destination indicating the acquisition source of the printed material is described, and the printed material in stock is stored in the inventory shelf and / or the newly printed printed material is stored in the printing apparatus. A shipping instruction output control means for performing output control of a shipping instruction for instructing picking up and packing;
A shipping support apparatus having
[6] A terminal device for designating the number of copies to be printed and a shipping destination;
A printing device for generating the printed matter;
Based on the number of copies of the printed material for each of the shipping destinations specified by the terminal device and the number of copies of the printed material in stock, it is shipped from the inventory for each of the shipping destinations or newly printed by the printing device. A first print instruction is made to print the printed material by the number of copies based on the number of newly printed and shipped copies. In addition, for each of the shipping destinations , a pickup destination indicating an acquisition source of the printed material is described for each of the shipping destinations, and the printed material in stock is removed from an inventory shelf and / or the newly printed printed material is printed in the printing apparatus. dispatch support system and a ship support device that performs output control of the dispatch instruction that instructs to pack to pick from.

According to the invention according to claim 1 or 6 , the efficiency of the packing work for each destination of the printed matter is improved as compared with the case where switching between the shipment from the stock or the new printing is not performed for each destination. Can be made.

According to the invention of claim 2, when the number of copies of at least one type of printed matter is less than the number of copies of the one type of printed matter for each destination, all types of printed matter for each destination are stored in the printing device. By newly printing and shipping, the number of times of picking up the printed material can be reduced.
According to the invention of claim 3 , when switching between shipping from a stock or newly printing and shipping for each shipping destination, the stock that will not be shipped indefinitely is insufficient for the predetermined number of copies. Compared to not adding prints to inventory, it can be reduced.
According to the invention which concerns on Claim 4, the stock number of printed matter can be decreased with progress of time.

According to the invention which concerns on Claim 5 , compared with the case where it does not switch for every packing unit whether it ships from stock or it prints and ships, the efficiency of the packing operation | work of printed matter can be improved.

It is the schematic which shows the structural example of the dispatch assistance system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the structural example of the dispatch assistance server which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the structural example of the pick-up list | wrist which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the other structural example of the pick-up list | wrist which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the structural example of the printed matter reprint adjustment information which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is the schematic which shows the structural example of the warehousing instruction based on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the operation example of the dispatch assistance system which concerns on embodiment of this invention. It is a flowchart which shows the other operation example of the dispatch assistance system which concerns on embodiment of this invention.

(Configuration of image forming system)
FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a shipping support system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

  The shipping support system 100 is a shipping support device that is installed in the warehouse 100A and includes electronic components such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit) and an HDD (Hard Disk Drive), and receives a printed matter to support shipping. The server 1, the printer 4 that prints the pick-up list 40 as a shipping instruction document in which instructions for packing the second printed material and the printed materials 20 and 50 as the first printed material are stored, and print information of the printed material are stored. The printed matter print information database 3 to be printed, the printer 2 that prints the printed matter 20 on demand using the print information stored in the printed matter print information database 3, and the inventory shelf 5 that manages inventory of the printed matter 50 that has been printed in advance. The pickup list 40 may be configured to be printed by the printer 2.

  The printed materials 20 and 50 are, for example, catalogs, etc., packed by the operator on the packing material 60 based on the contents of the pickup list 40, and delivered to the bases 100B and 100C that are the ordering sources. A plurality of types of packing materials 60 are prepared according to the number of printed materials to be packed. In addition, the printed materials 20 and 50 may have a plurality of types, but have the same contents.

  In addition, the shipping support server 1 is connected via the Internet 100D to a terminal device 100b installed at the site 100B as an ordering source and a terminal device 100c installed at the site 100C. By executing a predetermined operation in the terminal devices 100b and 100c, the printed material is ordered from the shipping support server 1.

  The terminal devices 100b and 100c operate based on an operation signal input from an operation unit such as a mouse or a keyboard, and are configured by electronic components such as a CPU and an HDD to process information, and an LCD (Liquid Crystal Display). An image is displayed on a display unit such as a panel.

  FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of the shipping support server according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The shipping support server 1 includes a CPU and the like, controls each unit and executes various programs, a storage unit 11 including a storage device such as an HDD and a flash memory, and stores information, and the Internet 100D. The communication unit 12 communicates with the printer 2, the printed matter print information database 3, and the printer 4 through a network such as a LAN (Local Area Network).

  The control unit 10 operates a shipping method determination unit 10A, a pickup list output control unit 10B, and a print instruction unit 10C by executing a shipping support program 11A described later.

  The shipping method determination means 10A stores the order information 11B received from the terminal devices 100b and 100c in the storage unit 11, confirms the contents of the order information 11B, and considers the inventory quantity of the printed matter 50 in the inventory shelf 5, It is determined whether to print out the printed matter from the inventory shelf 5 or to newly print out the printed matter at the printer 4. The pick-up list output control means 10B creates the pick-up list 40 based on the determination by the shipping method determination means 10A and instructs the printer 4 to print it. When the printed material 20 is required based on the determination by the shipping method determining unit 10A, the print instruction unit 10C acquires the corresponding print information from the printed material print information database 3 and instructs the printer 2 to print the printed material 20. .

  The storage unit 11 is a shipping support program 11A that causes the control unit 10 to operate as each unit described above, order information 11B received from the terminal devices 100b and 100c, and information for adjusting the inventory quantity of the printed matter 50 in the inventory shelf 5. The printed matter reprint adjustment information 11C is stored.

  FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of a pickup list according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The pickup lists 40a and 40b indicate the delivery destination of the ordering source, the order number received from the ordering source, the packing item indicating the type of the packing material, the pickup destination indicating the acquisition source of the printed matter, and the type of the printed matter to be acquired. A catalog name, and the number of copies indicating the number of copies to be obtained.

  In the example shown in FIG. 3, for example, it is assumed that there are a box and a bag as packing materials, the box can pack 100 copies of printed matter, and the bag can pack 99 copies or less of printed matter. Further, the case where the number of copies received is smaller than the number of stocks in the inventory shelf 5 is shown.

  FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing another configuration example of the pickup list according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The pickup lists 40c and 40d are executed by the delivery destination of the ordering source, the order number received from the ordering source, the packing item indicating the type of the packing material, the pickup destination indicating the acquisition source of the printed matter, and the pickup destination printer. A print job ID, a catalog name indicating the type of printed material to be acquired, and a number of copies indicating the number of copies of the printed material to be acquired.

  In the example shown in FIG. 4, for example, the case where the number of received orders is larger than the number of stocks in the inventory shelf 5 is shown, and all the printed materials are printed by the printer 2 in order to save the trouble of picking up the printed materials from a plurality of places. doing. Further, in order to improve the printing speed, the printed matter is printed by a different printer for each packing material, but may be printed by the same printer. In that case, sorting may be facilitated by generating printed materials for sorting for each shipping destination or packing material. If the installation positions of the printer 2 and the inventory shelf 5 are close and it does not take time for the packing operator to pick up the printed matter, the printer 2 uses up the number of copies stored in the inventory shelf 5 and the printer 2 only has the shortage. It is good also as a system which prints the printed matter 20.

  FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram illustrating a configuration example of printed matter reprint adjustment information according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The printed matter reprint adjustment information 11C includes a catalog name that indicates the type of printed matter, a start period that indicates the start of a period when the printed matter 50 stocked on the inventory shelf 5 starts to be reduced, and an end of a period that reduces the printed matter that is stocked on the inventory shelf 5. And a ratio indicating a ratio of decreasing the printed matter on a monthly basis.

  The catalog A as a printed material is, for example, 1000 in stock on the inventory shelf 5, and after 6 months have passed since the distribution started, the inventory is 950 copies, 900 copies, 850 copies, etc. every 12 months. Decrease by 5% until After 12 months, the catalog A may be discarded, or new print increase adjustment information may be set. In addition, the inventory in the inventory shelf 5 is replenished with printed matter 20 printed by the printer 2, and the timing of replenishment is performed between the end of shipping and the next order deadline.

  FIG. 6 is a schematic diagram showing a configuration example of the warehousing instruction according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  The warehousing instructions 40e and 40f are printed by the printer 4, and a pickup destination indicating the acquisition source of the printed material, a job ID of a print executed by the pickup destination printer, a warehousing destination that identifies an inventory shelf, and acquisition A catalog name indicating the type of printed material to be printed, and the number of copies indicating the number of copies of the printed material to be acquired.

  In the example shown in FIG. 6, 80 copies of catalog A and 50 copies of catalog B as printed matter 20 printed by printer 2, each of shelf number 5 of inventory shelf 5. 001 and shelf no. The packing worker is instructed to enter at 002.

(Operation)
Hereinafter, the operation of the shipping support system according to the embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings.

  First, the user places an order for a printed material, for example, by requesting a catalog or the like as a printed material from the terminal devices 100b and 100c. The ordered content is transmitted to the shipping support server 1 via the Internet 100D.

  In the following description, an operation in which the shipping support server 1 receives an order and ships a printed matter will be described.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the shipping support system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  First, the shipping method determination means 10A receives orders for printed matter from the terminal devices 100b and 100c and stores them in the storage unit 11 as order information 11B (S10). Next, when a predetermined order deadline is reached (S11; Yes), the shipping method determination means 10A takes out the contents of the order information 11B (S12) and confirms the number of stocks in the inventory shelf 5 (S13).

  When the stock in the stock shelf 5 is equal to or greater than the number of copies of the order information in step S13 (S13; Yes), the shipping method determination means 10A sends the shipping method from the stock shelf 5, for example, as shown in FIG. (S14), the pick-up list creating means 10B creates the print information of the pick-up lists 40a and 40b based on the determination by the shipping method determining means 10A (S15). Steps S12 to S16 and steps S18 to S21 described later are repeated for all order information (S16), and the created pickup list is printed (S17).

  When the stock on the inventory shelf 5 is less than the number of copies of the order information in step S13 (S13; No), the shipping method determination means 10A determines the shipping method on-demand in the printer 2, for example, as shown in FIG. The delivery method using the printed product 20 is determined (S18), and the information on the number of copies that are lacking is recorded in a memory (not shown) of the delivery support server 1 (S19), and the print instruction means 10C prints the printed matter. The instruction is transmitted to the printer 2 (S20), and the pick-up list creation means 10B creates print information of the pick-up lists 40c and 40d based on the determination by the shipping method determination means 10A (S21), and steps S16 are performed. Thereafter, the pickup lists 40c and 40d are printed by the printer 4 (S17).

  After the above operation, the packing operator prepares the packing material 60 according to the pickup lists 40a and 40b, or 40c and 40d, packs the printed material 20 and / or 50, and sends it to the shipping destination.

  FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing another example of the operation of the dispatch support system according to the embodiment of the present invention.

  First, the pick-up list output control means 10B confirms whether or not insufficient printed matter information is recorded in the memory built in the shipping support server 1 in the process of step S19 described in FIG. 7 (S22), and the insufficient printed matter information is recorded. (S22; Yes), the missing printed matter information is extracted (S23), and the number of copies to be printed is calculated with reference to the printed matter reprint adjustment information 11C (S24).

  Next, when the number of extra copies calculated in step S24 is not 0 (S25; Yes), the printer 2 is instructed to print the insufficient printed matter (S26). If the number of extra copies calculated in step S24 is 0 (S25; No), the process proceeds to step S27. Steps S23 to S26 described above are executed for all types of printed matter, for example, all catalogs (S27).

  Next, warehousing instructions for the reprinted printed matter 20, for example, warehousing instructions 40e and 40f shown in FIG. 6, are created and printed by the printer 4 (S28).

  After the above operation, the packing worker enters the printed product 20 into the inventory shelf 5 according to the printed receipt instructions 40e and 40f.

[Other embodiments]
The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and various modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the present invention. For example, the printed materials 20 and 50 may be used for packaging. Moreover, you may change whether the printed matter 20 and 50 can be used together for every packing material.

  Further, the delivery method determining means 10A, the pickup list output control means 10B, and the print instruction means 10C used in the above embodiment may be read from a storage medium such as a CD-ROM into a storage unit in the apparatus. You may download to the memory | storage part in an apparatus from the server apparatus etc. which are connected to networks, such as the internet. Moreover, you may implement | achieve part or all of the means used by the said embodiment by hardware, such as ASIC.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Shipping support server, 2 ... Printer, 3 ... Printed matter printing information database, 4 ... Printer, 5 ... Inventory shelf, 10 ... Control part, 10A ... Shipping method determination means, 10B ... Pickup list output control means, 10C ... Print instruction Means: 11 ... Storage unit, 11A ... shipping support program, 11B ... order receiving information, 11C ... printed product reprint adjustment information, 12 ... communication unit, 20 ... printed product, 40a-40d ... pickup list, 40e, 40f ... warehousing instruction ... printed matter, 60 ... packing material, 100 ... shipping support system, 100A ... warehouse, 100B ... base, 100C ... base, 100D ... internet, 100b ... terminal device, 100c ... terminal device

Claims (6)

Determination means for deciding whether to ship from the stock or to newly print and ship by the printing apparatus for each shipping destination based on the number of copies of the printed matter for each shipping destination and the number of copies of the printed matter. When,
Based on the determination by the determination means, a print instruction means for giving a first print instruction to the printing apparatus so as to print the printed matter by the number of copies based on the number of newly printed and shipped, and according to the determination by the determination means Dispatch that describes the pickup destination indicating the acquisition source of printed matter for each shipping destination, and instructs to pick up the printed matter in stock from the inventory shelf and / or pick up and pack the newly printed matter from the printing device. Shipping instruction output control means for controlling the output of the instruction;
A shipping support apparatus having The determination unit newly sets all types of printed matter for each destination in the printing apparatus when the number of copies of at least one type of printed matter is less than the number of copies for the one type of printed matter for each destination. The dispatch support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the dispatch support apparatus determines to print and ship. The print instruction means issues a second print instruction to the printing apparatus so as to print the printed material by the number of copies in which the number of copies of the printed material is insufficient to a predetermined number of copies;
2. The shipping support apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the shipping instruction output control unit performs output control of a warehousing instruction that instructs to add a printed matter printed based on the second printing instruction to the stock. The dispatch support apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the print instructing unit decreases the predetermined number of copies with time. Based on the number of printed copies shipped for each packing unit to be shipped to the shipping destination and the number of printed copies in stock, either the packaging units are shipped from the stock or newly printed out by a printing device. A decision means for deciding whether to do;
Based on the determination by the determination means, a print instruction means for giving a first print instruction to the printing apparatus so as to print the printed matter by the number of copies based on the number of newly printed and shipped, and according to the determination by the determination means Dispatch for describing the pickup destination indicating the acquisition source of the printed material for each packing unit, and instructing to pick up the printed material in stock from the inventory shelf and / or pick up the newly printed material from the printing apparatus and pack it. Shipping instruction output control means for controlling the output of the instruction;
A shipping support apparatus having A terminal device for designating the number of copies to be printed and the destination,
A printing device for generating the printed matter;
Based on the number of copies of the printed material for each of the shipping destinations specified by the terminal device and the number of copies of the printed material in stock, it is shipped from the inventory for each of the shipping destinations or newly printed by the printing device. A first print instruction is made to print the printed material by the number of copies based on the number of newly printed and shipped copies. In addition, for each of the shipping destinations , a pickup destination indicating an acquisition source of the printed material is described for each of the shipping destinations, and the printed material in stock is removed from an inventory shelf and / or the newly printed printed material is printed in the printing apparatus. dispatch support system and a ship support device that performs output control of the dispatch instruction that instructs to pack to pick from.

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