JPH1020935A - Moving body allocating method - Google Patents

Abstract

PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a moving body allocating method by which bid messages are not concentrated on a part of request sources even if the distribution of moving bodies and request sources is biased. SOLUTION: The request sources 20 calculate moving body distribution near the request sources 20 based on information from an operation center 10 and broadcast an allocation request message containing the moving body distribution and position information of the request sources 20. When the moving bodies 30 receive the plural allocation request messages, they calculate a distance from position information to the request sources 20 for the respective allocation request messages. An evaluation value corresponding to the group of the calculated distance and moving body distribution is decided. The request source 20 whose evaluation value is the largest is selected as a bid destination and the bid message containing the distance to the request source 20 is issued. The request source 20 issues the bid message to the moving body 30 in the nearest distance among the plural moving bodies 30 issuing the bid message. When the moving body 30 receives the bid message, the pertinent evaluation value in a bid evaluation table is increased and the evaluation value is reduce when it does not receive the bid message.

Description

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to a method for allocating a plurality of mobile objects, for example, an autonomous mobile robot or an automatic guided vehicle, to a plurality of request sources repeatedly.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art There are various systems for repeatedly assigning a mobile body such as an autonomous mobile robot or an unmanned carrier to a request issued asynchronously from a request source at an arbitrary position in an area. For example, there is a luggage transport system that assigns an automatic guided vehicle to a luggage carrier at a distribution terminal, a factory, a building, or the like. In such a conventional system,
The following two methods have been used to allocate mobile units to requesters.

[0003] The first conventional method is a control center,
The system has been applied to a system which is composed of a plurality of mobile units and a plurality of request sources, and in which each component can exchange messages with each other by appropriate communication means.

[0004] A requester who wants to receive the assignment of a mobile unit issues an assignment request to a control center. The control center can obtain the current positions of all assignable mobile units in the area, and when receiving the allocation request, issues a movement instruction to the mobile unit closest to the request source. The moving body that has received the movement instruction moves while selecting an appropriate route to the specified request source. In this way, the assignment of the mobile unit to the request source has been realized.

[0005] The second conventional method comprises a plurality of mobile units and a plurality of request sources, each of which can exchange messages with each other by appropriate communication means, and the request source is other than the other in the area. It has been applied to systems that can broadcast messages to components.

[0006] A requester who wants to receive the assignment of a mobile issues an assignment request message to the mobile within the area. The publishing is performed by broadcasting, and a plurality of mobiles can receive the message at the same time. Position information indicating the current position of the request source is added to this allocation request message. When each mobile receives the assignment request message, it issues a bid message to the requestor if it can meet the request. When a plurality of allocation request messages are received, one of the request sources located closest to the request is selected, and a bid message is issued to the request source. At this time, position information indicating the current position of the moving object is added to the bid message.

[0007] When only one bidding message is received, the requester issues a successful bid message to the mobile that issued the bidding message. When a plurality of bid messages are received, a successful bid message is issued to one moving body located at the nearest distance, and a non-successful bid message is issued to other moving bodies. If no bid message arrives within the predetermined time, the allocation request message is broadcast again. The moving body that has received the successful bid message moves while selecting an appropriate route to the request source. In this way, the assignment of the mobile unit to the request source has been realized.

[0008]

However, in the first conventional method, the control center manages the positions of all mobile units and selects an optimum one from all possible combinations of mobile units and request sources. Was. Therefore, when the number of mobile units and request sources is large, many operations are required,
There is a disadvantage that control in real time is difficult.

The second conventional method solves the drawbacks of the first conventional method by performing calculations in a distributed manner. When the moving objects and the request sources are moderately distributed in the area, Was an effective method. But with this method,
Since all mobiles decided to issue bid messages using the same criteria, depending on the location, mobiles or requesting sources were concentrated, or the distribution of mobiles or requesting sources was highly biased by location. In some cases, bidding messages may be concentrated on some requesters.

[0010] For this reason, non-successful bid messages and bid messages that do not lead to a successful bid increase, resulting in an increase in useless communication. In addition, in the entire system, there are request sources that wait for a long time even when there is room for the number of mobile units that can be allocated, or mobile units whose allocation destinations cannot be determined even though there are request sources that are waiting for allocation. There was a disadvantage that

For example, there is a system for transporting products from a plurality of different types of manufacturing machines to one warehouse in a factory. When a certain number of products are completed, each manufacturing machine broadcasts an assignment request message to the automatic guided vehicle in the factory.
At this time, the unmanned guided vehicle that meets the demand, that is, the unmanned guided vehicle that unloads and loads products is concentrated around the warehouse. Therefore, a bid message is duplicated for a manufacturing machine relatively close to the warehouse, and it is difficult to bid for a manufacturing machine relatively far from the warehouse, and the above-described drawbacks occur.

The present invention solves the above-mentioned drawbacks of the prior art, and even when there is a large bias in the distribution of mobile units or request sources, mobile unit allocation in which bid messages are not concentrated on some request sources. The aim is to provide a method.

[0013]

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, the present invention repeatedly assigns a plurality of moving bodies moving on a predetermined traveling path to a plurality of request sources existing along the traveling path. A method of allocating a mobile unit, wherein the requester sends an allocation request message including distribution information indicating a distribution state of mobiles near the requester and location information of the requester to all mobiles. When the mobile receives an allocation request message from a plurality of request sources, the mobile calculates, for each allocation request message, a distance from the mobile to the request source based on the position information included in the allocation request message. The distance previously calculated using a bid evaluation table in which one evaluation value is given to each of a plurality of distances from the moving body to the requesting source for each of a plurality of distribution situations of the moving body near the requesting source. And the allocation request Determining an evaluation value corresponding to the distribution contained in the message, and select an evaluation value is greatest requesting the bidding destination to issue a bid message that includes the distance to the supplicant for the requester.

When the requester receives a bid message from a plurality of mobiles, the requester selects a mobile that is closest to the requester from the plurality of mobiles, and makes a bid for the mobile. Issue a message, when the mobile receives this successful bid message, increases the evaluation value corresponding to the requester who issued the successful bid message in the bid evaluation table by a predetermined value, and when the successful bid message is not received,
It is characterized in that the evaluation value is reduced by a predetermined value.

Further, the present invention is a moving object allocating method for repeatedly allocating a plurality of moving objects moving on a predetermined traveling path to a plurality of request sources existing along the traveling path,
In this method, the requester broadcasts an allocation request message including distribution information indicating the distribution status of another requester near the requester and location information of the requester to all mobiles, However, when receiving an allocation request message from a plurality of request sources, for each of the allocation request message, based on the position information included in the allocation request message, calculate the distance from the mobile unit to the request source, near the request source The distance calculated previously and the allocation request are used in a bid evaluation table in which one evaluation value is assigned to each of a plurality of distances from the moving object to the request source for each of a plurality of distribution situations of other request sources. An evaluation value corresponding to the distribution state included in the message is determined, a requester having the highest evaluation value is selected as a bidder, and a bid message including a distance to the requester is issued to the requester.

When the requester receives a bid message from a plurality of mobiles, the requester selects a mobile that is closest to the requester from the plurality of mobiles, and sends a bid message to the mobile. When the mobile receives this successful bid message, it increases the evaluation value corresponding to the requester who issued the successful bid message in the bid evaluation table by a predetermined value, and when the mobile body does not receive the successful bid message, the evaluation value Is reduced by a predetermined value.

Further, the present invention is a moving object allocating method for repeatedly allocating a plurality of moving objects moving on a predetermined traveling path to a plurality of request sources existing along the traveling path,
In this method, a requester broadcasts to all mobiles an allocation request message including distribution information indicating the distribution of mobiles in the vicinity of the requestor and other requesters and location information of the requester. When the mobile receives allocation request messages from a plurality of requesters, calculates a distance from the mobile to the requester based on the position information included in the allocation request message for each of the allocation request messages, Calculated first using a bid evaluation table that assigns one evaluation value for each of multiple distances from the mobile to the requestor for each of multiple distribution situations of nearby mobiles and other requesters Determine the evaluation value corresponding to the distance and the distribution status of the moving object and other request sources included in the request message, select the request source with the highest evaluation value as the bidder, and Distance to To issue a bid message that contains the.

When the requester receives a bid message from a plurality of mobiles, the requester selects a mobile that is closest to the requester from the plurality of mobiles and makes a bid for the mobile. Issue a message, when the mobile receives this successful bid message, increases the evaluation value corresponding to the requester who issued the successful bid message in the bid evaluation table by a predetermined value, and when the successful bid message is not received,
It is characterized in that the evaluation value is reduced by a predetermined value.

Preferably, the location information of the request source is a link number of the link and a distance from the end point of the link to the moving body when the traveling route is specified by a plurality of nodes and a plurality of links.

Further, the distribution state of the moving objects and the distribution state of the moving objects in the bid evaluation table are preferably represented by the total number of the moving objects existing within the distance from the distance starting from the request source.

The distribution status of the other request sources and the distribution status of the other request sources in the bid evaluation table can be expressed by the total number of moving objects within this distance with respect to the distance starting from the request source. Good.

[0022]

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an embodiment of a mobile unit allocating method according to the present invention;

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the system of this embodiment. This system includes one control center 10, a plurality of request sources 20 existing along a predetermined traveling path, and a plurality of moving bodies 30 moving on the traveling path,
In response to a mobile unit allocation request issued by each request source 20 from an arbitrary position independently of other request sources, one appropriate mobile unit 30
Is assigned. Here, the traveling route of the mobile unit 30 can be represented by a network map including appropriate links and nodes, and the positions of the request source 20 and the mobile unit 30 on the network map are indicated by the request source 20 and the mobile unit 30.
It can be specified by using the position information.

First, the control center 10 shown in FIG.
20 and 30 will be described with reference to FIGS.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the control center 10 shown in FIG. This control center 10
It comprises a moving body position acquiring section 11, a moving body distribution information creating section 12, and an information providing section 13. The functions of these units can be realized by a central processing unit that executes a program, a communication device that communicates with the request source 20 and the mobile unit 30, and the like.

The moving body position acquiring section 11 acquires moving body position information indicating the current position from each of the assignable moving bodies in the area through the information providing section 13 at a predetermined cycle, and obtains the moving body position information. It is output to the mobile unit distribution information creation unit 12. Here, the moving body position information can be obtained by each moving body by using, for example, GPS (Global Positioning System). The moving body position information is represented as coordinates in an appropriate coordinate system.

The moving object distribution information creating unit 12 calculates the number of assignable moving objects existing on each link of the network map for each link, using the moving object position information from the moving object position acquiring unit 11. This is output to the information providing unit 13 as moving body distribution information indicating the distribution state of the moving body. As this moving object distribution information, for example, information in which a set of a link number and the number of moving objects existing on the link are arranged in a line in the order of the link number can be considered.

The information providing unit 13 includes a moving body distribution information creating unit 12
The mobile object distribution information from
Is notified at a predetermined cycle. In addition, it receives moving body position information from each moving body 30 and outputs the information to the moving body position acquisition unit 11. The notification to each request source 20 is, for example,
This is performed by broadcasting using a communication device.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the request source 20 shown in FIG. The request source 20 is the location specifying unit 2
1. It is composed of a nearby moving object distribution information creating unit 22, a successful bid destination selection unit 23, and a communication unit 24. The functions of these parts are performed by a central processing unit that executes programs, a control center,
It can be realized by a communication device or the like that communicates with the mobile device 30 or the mobile device 30.

The position specifying unit 21 specifies the position of the request source 20 on the network map, creates request source position information indicating the position, and uses this to create a nearby mobile unit distribution information creating unit.
22, output to the successful bidder selection unit 23 and the communication unit 24. Here, when the position is fixed, the position specifying unit 21 only needs to output the request source position information specified in advance, and when the position is movable and the position changes, for example, GPS or the like is used. The position coordinates are obtained, the position on the network map is specified based on the position coordinates, and the request source position information is created. The position on the network map is represented, for example, by the link number of the link where the request source 20 exists and the distance from the end point of the link to the position of the request source 20.

The nearby mobile unit distribution information creating unit 22 uses the request source position information from the position specifying unit 21 and the mobile unit distribution information received from the control center 10 through the communication unit 24 to make this request in accordance with the processing procedure described later. Moving object distribution information representing the distribution of moving objects in the vicinity of element 20 is created. And
This mobile unit distribution information is added to an allocation request message requesting allocation of mobile units, and this is output to the communication unit 24. In the present embodiment, by creating this mobile unit distribution information at the request source and providing it to each mobile unit, the burden on each mobile unit is reduced, and each mobile unit can quickly respond to the assignment request message. ing.

Using the request source position information from the position specifying unit 21 and the bid message received from the mobile unit 30 through the communication unit 24, the successful bidder selection unit 23 selects an optimal mobile unit according to a processing procedure described later. Create a successful bid message for this moving object. This is output to the communication unit 24.

The communication unit 24 receives the moving object distribution information from the control center 10 and transmits it to the nearby moving object distribution information creating unit 22.
The request source position information from the position specifying unit 21 is added to the allocation request message from the nearby mobile unit distribution information creating unit 22, and this is broadcast to the mobile unit 30. The communication unit 24 receives the bid message from the mobile unit 30 and outputs it to the successful bid destination selection unit 23, and transmits the successful bid message from the successful bid destination selection unit 23 to the predetermined mobile unit 30. .

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of the moving body 30 shown in FIG. The mobile unit 30 includes a communication unit 31, a position identification unit 32, a movement control unit 33, and a bid destination selection unit. The functions of these units are performed by a central processing unit that executes programs, an autonomous mobile mechanism, and a control center 10.
Or a communication device that communicates with the request source 20.

The communication unit 31 includes the request source 20 and the control center.
It exchanges messages with 10. More specifically, a message arriving within a predetermined time from the request source 20 is stored in a message queue for each message type, and the message is output to the bid destination selection unit 34 in response to a request from the bid destination selection unit 34. In addition, a bid message from the bid destination selection unit 34 is transmitted to the predetermined request source 20, and the location information created by the location identification unit 32 is transmitted to the control center 10.

The position specifying unit 32 obtains the position coordinates of the current position of the moving body 30 by using, for example, GPS. Then, based on the position coordinates, a position on the network map is specified to create moving object position information,
This is output to the movement control unit 33 and the bid destination selection unit 34. Here, the mobile unit position information is represented by, for example, a link number of a link on which the mobile unit 30 exists on the network map and a distance from an end point of the link to a position of the mobile unit 30.

When the bid destination selecting unit 34 designates a moving destination, the moving control unit 33 selects an appropriate route based on the moving object position information from the position specifying unit 32, and Is moved to the destination.

The bid destination selection unit 34 determines a bid destination to which the mobile unit 30 should bid in accordance with a processing procedure described later. Then, the bidding message is transmitted to the corresponding request source through the communication unit 31.
20. Then, based on a successful bid message or a non-successful message from the request source 20 received through the communication unit 31, the following processing is performed.

Incidentally, the bid destination selection section 34 holds a table called a bid evaluation table. This bid evaluation table, when selecting one to bid from among a plurality of request sources, according to the pattern of the distribution state of the mobile near the request source and the distance from the request source to the mobile, This is for determining an evaluation value for each request source, which is a reference for selecting a bid destination.

It is the mobile that is in the vicinity of the requesting source that issues the bid message, and the requesting source selects the mobile that is closest to itself from among the multiple mobiles that have issued the bid message. . Therefore, the mobile unit predicts the possibility that the mobile unit is selected by the request source based on the distance to the request source and the distribution state of the mobile unit near the request source.
Then, a bid message is issued by selecting the request source most likely to be selected. As a result, useless issuance of bid messages is avoided, and concentration of many bid messages on one request source is prevented.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an image of the bid evaluation table. In FIG. 5, the distribution pattern of the moving object is
This corresponds to the distribution information of the moving objects near the request source added to the allocation request message issued by the request source, and is a distribution state of the moving objects that can occur within a predetermined range centered on the request source. In the figure, n patterns P1, P2,..., Pn are described. Further, the distance to the request source is a distance on the traveling path to the moving object within a predetermined range centered on the request source. In the figure, 0-N1, 0-N2,
..., m distances from 0 to Nm are described.

Then, the pattern (P
1, P2,…, Pn) and the distance from the requester to the mobile unit (0 to N)
1, 0 to N2,..., 0 to Nm) are associated with one evaluation value. In the present embodiment, the distance has a predetermined width, and one evaluation value is made to correspond to one within the range. This evaluation value can be increased or decreased as described later. When the system is introduced, it is assumed that all moving objects have the same bid evaluation table, and the evaluation values are initialized to appropriate values, for example, all values are set to 0. The distribution pattern of the moving object near the request source will be described in detail in the description of the operation.

Next, the operations of the request source 20 and the mobile unit 30 will be described in detail. The control center 10
It is assumed that the mobile unit distribution information is periodically broadcast to each request source 20.

First, the operation of the request source 20 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

The request source 20 starts the processing when the mobile unit 30 needs to be allocated. First, the position specifying unit 21 of the request source 20
Specifies the position of the request source 20 on the network map and creates request source position information, and outputs this to the nearby mobile object distribution information creation unit 22, the successful bid destination selection unit 23, and the communication unit 24 (step S21). Next, the communication unit 24
Receiving the mobile object distribution information that is periodically issued from the mobile terminal, and outputs the information to the nearby mobile object distribution information creating unit 22 (step S2).
2).

The nearby mobile unit distribution information creation unit 22 includes a communication unit 24
Using the moving object distribution information from, the density of moving objects for each link, that is, the number of moving objects per unit length is calculated (step S23). For example, if the link length is 5 and the number of mobiles on the link is 10, the density of the link is
10 ÷ 5 = 2. This is calculated for all links. The calculation of the density of the moving object may be performed by the control center, and the result may be broadcast to the moving object.

Next, the nearby mobile unit distribution information creating unit 22 searches for a route having the shortest route length of 1 with the request source 20 as a starting point, and finds the total number of mobile units existing on all the routes. Is calculated. Similarly, while increasing the length of the shortest path by one, the total number of moving objects existing on all the paths is calculated. This is repeated until the length of the shortest path becomes a predetermined length (step S24). That is, first, the total number of moving objects on the route with a distance of 1 or less is calculated from the request source 20, and then the total number of moving objects on the route with a distance of 2 or less is calculated from the request source 20. That is to repeat to the length. Note that the start point of the request source 20 can be specified by request source position information from the position specifying unit 21.

The route search uses a well-known method such as the Dijkstra method. The total number is calculated by, for example, adding the density of the link at which the end point of the route exists to the total number each time the length of the route is extended by one. However, when the route is extended by one and the node just overlaps, the density of the immediately preceding link is added.
Since this method uses density, it does not strictly mean that the correct total number has been calculated, but it is simple and sufficient in this embodiment.

Next, the nearby mobile unit distribution information creating unit 22 creates mobile unit distribution information, adds it to the assignment request message, and outputs it to the communication unit 24 (step S25). here,
This moving object distribution information is obtained by arranging the total number of moving objects for each path length calculated in step S24 in a line in order from the one closest to the request source 20.

The communication unit 24 includes a nearby mobile unit distribution information creation unit 22
The position information from the position identification unit 21 is added to the allocation request message to which the mobile object distribution information from the mobile station has been added, and this is broadcast to the mobile object (step S26). The request source 20 thereafter waits for the arrival of a bid message issued by the mobile unit for a predetermined time. If no bid message has arrived within the predetermined time, the flow returns to step S26 to broadcast the allocation request message again. If one or more bid messages have been received, the message is output to the successful bidder selection section 23, and the process proceeds to the next step S29 (step S28).

When a plurality of bid messages are received, the successful bid destination selection unit 23 compares the distance information added to each bid message to determine the request source from the mobile units that have issued the bid messages. At step S20, one of the moving objects located at the shortest distance is selected (step S29). Then, a successful bid message is issued to the selected mobile unit and a non-successful message is issued to the unselected mobile unit through the communication unit 24 (step S30). From the above, request source 20
Is completed.

Next, the operation of the moving body 30 will be described with reference to the flowchart shown in FIG.

When the mobile unit 30 is on standby and is in an assignable state, it performs a bidding process. First, mobile 30
The bid destination selection unit 34 sends a request to the communication unit 31 at predetermined intervals, and receives all allocation request messages that have arrived at the communication unit 31 during that period (step S31). Next, the position specifying unit 32 specifies the position of the mobile unit 30 on the network map to create mobile unit position information, and outputs this to the bid destination selection unit 35 and the movement control unit 33 (step S32). ).

Next, the bid destination selecting unit 34 uses the mobile unit position information from the position specifying unit 32 and the request source position information added to the allocation request message from each request source received through the communication unit 31. Then, the shortest route on the network map from the mobile unit 20 to each request source is searched, and the route length is set as the distance to each request source (step S33). The search for the shortest path and the calculation of the path length can be easily realized by a known method such as the Dijkstra method.

Next, the bid destination selection unit 34 obtains an evaluation value serving as a criterion for determining a bid destination for each request source using the bid evaluation table (step S34). This evaluation value is calculated in step S33.
The set corresponding to the set consisting of the distance from the mobile unit 30 to each request source calculated in step S31 and the mobile unit distribution information near the request source added to the allocation request message received from each request source in step S31 Is searched from the bid evaluation table, and the evaluation value given to the set is obtained. When a plurality of assignment request messages are received, the evaluation value is obtained for all request sources that have issued the assignment request messages.

Next, the bid destination selection unit 34 compares all the evaluation values obtained in step S34, and selects a request source having the maximum evaluation value (step S35). When there are a plurality of items having the maximum evaluation values, for example, one of them is randomly selected. Then, a bid message is issued to the selected request source (step S36). This bid message includes the mobile unit calculated in step S33.
The distance from 20 to the selected request source is added as distance information.

The communication unit 31 transmits the bid message issued by the bid destination selection unit 34 to the corresponding request source, and then waits for the arrival of a successful bid message or a non-successful message issued by the request source (step S37). The bid destination selection unit 34
When the successful bid message is received through the communication unit 31, the evaluation value for the pair of the corresponding distance and the moving object distribution information in the bid evaluation table is incremented by 1 (step S39). And
The position information of the requester who has made a successful bid is output to the movement controller 33, and an instruction to move to the requester is issued.

The movement control unit 33 selects the appropriate route based on the mobile unit position information from the position specifying unit 32 and the request source position information from the bid destination selection unit 34 while requesting the mobile unit 30 to perform the request. It is moved back (step S40). In addition, mobile
30 moves to the request source, executes the specified task there, and returns to step S31 to receive the next assignment message. Here, the task is, for example, to transport a package to a destination in the case of a package transport system, and depends on the form of the applied system.

On the other hand, when the non-successful bid message is received through the communication unit 31, the bid destination selection unit 34 sets the evaluation value for the set of the corresponding distance and the moving object distribution information in the bid evaluation table to 1.
Is subtracted only (step S41). Then, the process returns to step S31, and receives the next assignment request message through the communication unit 31. As described above, each time a mobile bids, the evaluation value in the bid evaluation table is increased or decreased based on the result of the bid, and the validity of the evaluation value is increased.

Next, how the bid destination is determined in this embodiment will be described with reference to a specific example shown in FIG. Note that this example is very simple for easy understanding.

FIG. 8 is a network map showing N1 to N1.
N5 is a node, and L1 to L4 are links. And link L
The lengths of 1, L2, L3, and L4 are 3, 2, 2, and 3, respectively.
The number of mobiles on links L1, L2, L3, L4 is 3,
4, 2, and 3. At this time, the densities of L1, L2, L3, and L4 are 1, 2, 1, and 1, respectively. In FIG. 8, a pair of numbers in parentheses attached to the link label indicates the length of the link and the number of moving objects on the link. In addition, for ease of explanation, a scale is provided for each unit length on the link, and labels a, b, c, d, e, and f are attached to each scale.

At a certain time, it is assumed that the request source R is located at the position b as shown in FIG. 8 and broadcasts an assignment request message. At this time, the nearby moving object distribution information added by the request source R to the allocation request message is created as follows. First, the total number of moving objects n1≡1 + 1 = 2 existing on the shortest path (b−a) and (b−N2) with a distance 1 is calculated, and then the shortest path (b−a−N1) with a distance 2 b-N2-c), (b-N2-e)
, The total number of moving objects n2≡n1 + 1 + 2 + 1 = 6 is calculated, and this is repeated until the distance reaches a predetermined length while extending the distance one by one. Here, the predetermined length is 5
It is assumed that The distribution information of the nearby moving objects created at this time is (n1, n2, n3, n4, n5) = (2, 6, 9, 1)
1, 12).

If the moving object V is located at the position d as shown in FIG. 8, the shortest path length between the moving object V and the request source R is four. Therefore, in the moving object V, from the bid evaluation table, a combination of the distribution pattern (2, 6, 9, 11, 12) of the moving object and the distance 4 to the request source <(2, 6, 9, 11, 12), 4) The evaluation value for <4> is searched and set as the evaluation value for requester R. Evaluation values are similarly obtained for other request sources. Then, a bidding message is issued to the request source having the largest tabular value.

As described above, according to this embodiment,
The moving object selects a bid destination using a unique evaluation value learned from past experience as a criterion. Then, as information to be used in the learning, the distance from the moving object to the request source and the moving object distribution information in the vicinity of the request source created by the request source based on the global information obtained from the control center are described. Used. Therefore, the moving object can select a bid destination without losing immediacy by using the moving object distribution information created by the request source. In addition, mobile
By using the mobile object distribution information created based on the global information, a more detailed situation can be grasped, and learning adapted to the situation becomes possible.

In this embodiment, the bid evaluation table of the bid destination selection unit 34 of the mobile unit 30 has a width corresponding to the distance to the request source, but there is also a pattern of the distribution information of the mobile unit. A width may be provided, and the same evaluation value may be given to those within the range of the width.

Further, in this embodiment, the moving object obtains the evaluation value by using the moving object distribution information near the request source at the time of selecting a bid destination. May be used, and both the mobile unit distribution information and the request source distribution information may be used simultaneously. In any case, the same effect as in the present embodiment can be expected.

[0067]

As described above, according to the present invention, the moving body is
A bidder is selected based on a unique evaluation value learned from past experience. Then, as information to be used in the learning, the distance from the moving object to the request source and the moving object distribution information in the vicinity of the request source created by the request source based on the global information obtained from the control center are described. Used. Therefore, the moving object can select a bid destination without losing immediacy by using the moving object distribution information created by the request source. In addition, by using the moving object distribution information created based on the information on the entire area, the moving object can grasp a more detailed situation, and can learn more appropriately to the situation.

As a result, even when the mobile units or request sources are concentrated depending on the location, or when the distribution of the mobile units or request sources is largely biased, the bid messages do not concentrate on some request sources. As a result, it is possible to prevent unnecessary communication from increasing, and it is extremely unlikely that a long-waiting mobile object whose request source or assignment destination is not determined will occur.

[Brief description of the drawings]

FIG. 1 is a system configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a control center.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of a request source.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration of a moving object.

FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an image of a bid evaluation table.

FIG. 6 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the request source.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart for explaining the operation of the moving object.

FIG. 8 is a diagram for explaining determination of a bid destination.

[Explanation of symbols]

 10 Traffic control center 11 Mobile unit position acquisition unit 12 Mobile unit distribution state information creation unit 13 Information providing unit 20 Requester 21, 32 Location identification unit 22 Nearby mobile unit distribution information creation unit 23 Successful bidder selection unit 24, 31 Communication unit 30 Move Body 33 Movement control unit 34 Tender selection unit

Claims (6)

[Claims] 1. A moving object allocating method for repeatedly allocating a plurality of moving objects traveling on a predetermined traveling route to a plurality of requesting sources existing along the traveling route, wherein the method comprises: Broadcasts an allocation request message including distribution information indicating the distribution status of mobiles in the vicinity of the request source and location information of the requester to the plurality of mobiles, wherein the mobile When receiving the assignment request message from the request source, for each assignment request message,
A distance from the mobile to the request source is calculated based on the position information included in the assignment request message, and a distance from the mobile to the request source is determined for each of a plurality of distribution situations of the mobile near the request source. Using a bid evaluation table in which one evaluation value is assigned to each of a plurality of distances, an evaluation value corresponding to the previously calculated distance and the distribution state included in the allocation request message is determined, and the evaluation value is Selecting a large requester as a bidder and issuing a bid message including a distance to the requester to the requester, when the requester receives the bid message from a plurality of the mobile units, Selecting a mobile unit that is closest to the request source from the plurality of mobile units and issuing a successful bid message to the mobile unit; and when the mobile unit receives the successful bid message, the bid evaluation table The drop in An evaluation value corresponding to the requester that issued the message is increased by a predetermined value, when not receiving the bid message, mobile assignment method characterized by decreasing the evaluation value by a predetermined value. 2. A moving object allocating method for repeatedly allocating a plurality of moving objects traveling on a predetermined traveling route to a plurality of requesting sources existing along the traveling route, wherein the method comprises: Broadcasts, to the plurality of mobile units, an allocation request message including distribution information indicating the distribution status of another request source near the request source and the location information of the request source; When receiving the assignment request message from the request source of, for each assignment request message,
Calculating a distance from the mobile unit to the request source based on the location information included in the allocation request message; The evaluation value corresponding to the previously calculated distance and the distribution status included in the allocation request message is determined using a bid evaluation table in which one evaluation value is assigned to each of the plurality of distances, and the evaluation value Selects the largest requester as the bidder and issues a bid message including the distance to the requester to the requester, wherein the requester receives the bid message from a plurality of the mobile units. Selecting a mobile unit that is closest to the request source from the plurality of mobile units and issuing a successful bid message to the mobile unit; and when the mobile unit receives the successful bid message, In the evaluation table An evaluation value corresponding to the requester that issued the bid message is increased by a predetermined value, when not receiving the bid message, mobile assignment method characterized by decreasing the evaluation value by a predetermined value. 3. A moving object allocating method for repeatedly allocating a plurality of moving objects traveling on a predetermined traveling route to a plurality of request sources existing along the traveling route, wherein the method comprises: Broadcasts, to the plurality of mobile units, an allocation request message including distribution information indicating the mobile units in the vicinity of the request source and the distribution status of other request sources, and location information of the request source. Is, when receiving the assignment request message from a plurality of request sources, for each assignment request message,
Calculating a distance from the mobile unit to the request source based on the location information included in the allocation request message, and determining the mobile unit in the vicinity of the request source and the mobile unit for each of a plurality of distribution states of other request sources; Using a bid evaluation table that assigns one evaluation value for each of a plurality of distances from the requesting source to the requesting source, the distance calculated previously and the distribution status of the moving object and other requesting sources included in the request message are corresponded. The evaluation value to be determined is determined, the request source having the highest evaluation value is selected as a bidder, and a bid message including a distance to the request source is issued to the request source. When the bidding message is received from a mobile unit, a mobile unit that is closest to the request source is selected from the plurality of mobile units and a successful bid message is issued to the mobile unit. Receive the successful bid message In the bid evaluation table, the evaluation value corresponding to the request source that issued the successful bid message in the bid evaluation table is increased by a predetermined value, and when the successful bid message is not received, the evaluation value is decreased by a predetermined value. Mobile unit allocation method. 4. The mobile object allocating method according to claim 1, wherein the position information of the request source is a link number of a link when the traveling route is specified by a plurality of nodes and a plurality of links. And a distance from an end point of the link to the moving object. 5. The mobile unit allocating method according to claim 1, wherein the distribution state of the mobile unit and the distribution state of the mobile unit in the bid evaluation table are within the distance with respect to the distance starting from the request source. A mobile object assignment method, wherein the total number of existing mobile objects is provided. 6. The mobile unit allocating method according to claim 2, wherein the distribution status of the other request source and the distribution status of the other request source in the bid evaluation table are the distance with respect to a distance starting from the request source. A mobile object allocation method, characterized in that the total number of mobile objects present in the mobile terminal is included.