KR20140086780A - Apparatus, system and method for tracking container each LOT - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention relates to an apparatus, a system and a method for tracking a container per LOT. The objective of the present invention is to make a LOT by grouping containers according to shipper, and to process and to transmit information according to destination desired by the shipper by designating a master container per each LOT. The present invention provides an apparatus for tracking a container per LOT, including a grouping part for making a LOT by grouping containers according to shipper through communications between container tracking apparatus comprised in each container loaded in a transportation unit: a designation part for designating the containers included in each LOT as a master container and a slave container; and a transmission management part which is comprised in each container, and is included in the master container per LOT, and processes and transmits container information of the master container and container information collected from the slave container according to destination desired by the shipper, and the system including the same and the tracking method using the same.

Description

Technical Field [0001] The present invention relates to a container tracking device, a system,

The present invention relates to a container tracking system and method. More particularly, the present invention relates to a container tracking system and method, and more particularly, to a container tracking system and method in which containers are grouped by LOT and converted into LOT, master container is designated for each LOT, , Systems and methods.

A container is a boxed container used to transport cargo efficiently and economically. It is called a freight container in the International Organization for Standardization (ISO) and a cargo container in the American National Standards Institute (ANSI). Lt; / RTI > Vehicles transporting such containers may include automobiles, ships, railways, and aircraft, and automobiles, railways, and ships often have special types of containers.

Such a container includes a container tracking device for checking the position and state of the container during transportation, and performs communication with the control center based on the container tracking device. At this time, since the container has mobility, the limited power supply is provided. As a result, the communication environment for container support needs to be applied to the low power network technology for the limited power supply.

Especially, in the case of container, the transportation means used in the transportation process depends on the loading state and the geographical position to be transported. Therefore, it is possible to maintain and operate the container communication environment appropriately by efficiently using limited power supply through communication network operation optimized for the changing environment Needs to be.

Such a conventional container tracking device is installed in each of the containers, and individual tracking is performed on the container, so that the efficiency of tracking of the container is low.

Especially, in case of a ship which is loaded with a large amount of containers, it takes a considerable time for the container tracking device to individually collect the container information.

In addition, since conventional container tracking is managed by focusing on the container itself, tracking of the container by the container is not performed.

In addition, the container tracking device attached to each container can provide information such as the status and the position of the corresponding container to the customer. However, since communication with the container tracking device attached to each container is performed, Waste is inevitable.

In addition, since the container tracking device attached to the container carries out individual communication, battery consumption is low, and in the case of a container having a relatively long transportation distance, communication can not be performed due to battery discharge.

Accordingly, it is an object of the present invention to provide a container tracking apparatus, system, and method for each LOT that can more effectively manage and track containers by grouping containers by shippers.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a container tracking apparatus, system, and method for each LOT for processing information for each desired destination by specifying a master container among the grouped containers.

It is another object of the present invention to provide a container tracking apparatus, system, and method for each LOT that can save communication resources and a battery.

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides a container tracking apparatus, system, and method for each LOT by grouping containers into LOTs by designating containers, designating a master container for each LOT, do.

The present invention provides a container tracking system for each LOT, which includes transport means, container tracking devices provided in the containers loaded on the transport means, and an information output device communicating with the container tracking device via a communication network do. The container tracking devices include a grouping unit, a control unit, and a transmission management unit, respectively. The grouping unit groups the shippers into LOTs by communicating among the container tracking devices. The designation unit designates containers included in each LOT as a master container and a slave container. The transmission management unit is included in the master container for each LOT and processes the container information of the master container and the container information collected from the slave container for each destination desired by the shipper and transmits the information.

The present invention also relates to a grouping unit for grouping and grouping the container tracking devices provided in each of the containers mounted on the transportation means by the shippers, and designating the containers included in each LOT as a master container and a slave container And a transmission management unit that is included in the master container for each LOT and processes the container information of the master container and the container information collected from the slave container for each destination desired by the shipper and transmits the information To provide a container tracking device for each LOT.

In the container tracking device for each LOT according to the present invention, the grouping unit may perform grouping based on the shipment information included in the container information collected from the containers.

In the container tracking apparatus for each LOT according to the present invention, the specifying unit may designate a master container among the containers whose communication strength is equal to or higher than a threshold value among the containers included in each LOT.

In the container tracking device for each LOT according to the present invention, the designation unit may designate a master container based on information on whether or not a master container is included in the container information collected from the containers.

In the LOT-specific container tracking device according to the present invention, the designation unit may designate a container connected first among the containers included in each LOT as a master container.

In the container tracking device for each LOT according to the present invention, the designating part may designate a master container among the containers having relatively short transport distances among the containers included in each LOT.

In the LOT-specific container tracking device according to the present invention, the designation unit may designate, as a master container, a container including a LOT-specific container tracking device having the largest battery residual amount among the containers included in each LOT.

In the container tracking device for each LOT according to the present invention, if there are a plurality of containers having relatively short transport distances among the containers included in the respective LOTs, the designating section designates a container having the largest communication strength among the plurality of containers as a master container Alternatively, a container including the LOT-specific container tracking device having the largest remaining battery power among the plurality of containers may be designated as a master container.

In the container tracking device for each LOT according to the present invention, when a plurality of containers having relatively short transport distances are included among the containers included in each LOT, the designating section designates a container having the largest communication strength among the plurality of containers as a master container .

The container tracking device for each LOT according to the present invention may further include a collecting unit for collecting container information including information on the respective articles stored in the containers, environment information of the containers storing the articles, and shippers information .

In the container tracking device for each LOT according to the present invention, the transmission management unit included in the slave container can transmit its own container information to the master container to which it belongs.

In the container tracking device for each LOT according to the present invention, the designating unit may change the master container periodically or after a predetermined time has elapsed.

The present invention also provides a method of controlling a container tracking system, the method comprising the steps of: grouping container tracking devices provided in containers carried by the container, And the container tracking device included in the master container processes the container information of the master container and the container information collected from the slave container by a destination desired by the shipper and transmits the processed container information to the container Provides a tracking method.

The container tracking method for each LOT according to the present invention may further comprise a changing step of changing the master container periodically or after a predetermined time has elapsed.

The container tracking method for each LOT according to the present invention is characterized in that when the master container designated by the container tracking device is removed from the transportation means, And reassigning the master container among the master containers.

According to the present invention, the containers can be more effectively managed and tracked by grouping containers by shippers.

Also, the master container among the grouped containers can be specified, and the information can be processed and transmitted for each destination desired by the shipper.

Also, since communication is performed through the master container among the containers, there is an advantage that communication resources including communication cost can be saved as compared with the case where the entire containers perform communication.

Further, when designating a master container, designating a master container among the containers having relatively short transportation distances among the containers included in each LOT has an advantage of reducing battery consumption of the tracking module installed in the container.

Also, when there are a plurality of containers having relatively short transportation distances among the containers included in the LOT, by designating the container having the container tracking device with the greatest battery residual amount as the master container, .

1 is a block diagram showing a container tracking system for each LOT according to an embodiment of the present invention.
FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a container tracking device for each LOT in FIG.
3 is a flowchart illustrating a container tracking method for each LOT according to an embodiment of the present invention.

In the following description, only parts necessary for understanding the embodiments of the present invention will be described, and the description of other parts will be omitted so as not to obscure the gist of the present invention.

The terms and words used in the present specification and claims should not be construed as limited to ordinary or dictionary meanings and the inventor is not limited to the meaning of the terms in order to describe his invention in the best way. It should be interpreted as meaning and concept consistent with the technical idea of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments described in the present specification and the configurations shown in the drawings are merely preferred embodiments of the present invention, and are not intended to represent all of the technical ideas of the present invention, so that various equivalents And variations are possible.

Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

1 is a block diagram showing a container tracking system for each LOT according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1, the container tracking system for each LOT according to the embodiment of the present invention includes a transportation means 10, a container tracking device 40, and an information output device 50 connected to each other via a communication network 30.

The transportation means (10) transports a plurality of containers (20). A plurality of containers (20) are loaded with articles to be delivered to a customer in accordance with requests from a plurality of shippers. At this time, a container tracking device 40 capable of communicating with the information output device 50 through the communication network 30 is installed in the container 20.

The container tracking device 40 includes a communication with the information output device 50 via the communication network 30 and communicates with another container tracking device 40 installed in the containers 20. [

The container tracking device 40 includes a remote communication module that performs remote communication with the information output device 50 through the communication network 30 and a remote communication module that performs a local communication with the container tracking device 40 installed in another container 20 And a short-range communication module for performing short-range communication. Also, the container tracking device 40 can store and collect container information such as information about the goods loaded in the container 20, environmental information of the container 20 in which the goods are stored, and container information.

At this time, the communication network 30 performs a series of data transmission / reception operations for data transmission and information exchange between the container tracking device 40 and the information output device 50. The communication network 30 may be a mobile communication network capable of long distance communication, a wireless broadband (WiBro) network, a high-speed downlink packet access (HSDPA) network, a satellite communication network, Of course.

Wireless LAN (WLAN), bluetooth, zigbee, WiBro, wireless USB (Universal Serial Bus), RFID technology, and IrDA based infrared communication technology can be used as the short range communication method.

The container tracking device 40 also manages and tracks movement information of the container 20 until the container 20 is transported to the customer. The container tracking device 40 can transmit information to the container tracking device 40 or the information output device 50 of the other container 20 via the communication network 30. [ For example, the container tracking device 40 can provide information collected from the container 20 to an information output device 50 such as a shipper, a container manager, or a customer.

The container tracking device 40 groups the containers 20 loaded on the transportation means 10 by shippers and provides the containers 20 grouped by shippers by processing information for each destination. At this time, the container tracking device 40 manages the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m grouped by the shippers by LOT.

M2, ..., Mn; n (n) among the containers 20 grouped by the shippers in order to collect information effectively from the containers 20 loaded on the transportation means 10. [ Is a natural number). The container tracking device 40 installed in the designated master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn is connected to the slave containers S11, S12, ..., S1n (S21, S22, ..., S2n) Container information can be collectively collected and stored through communication with the container tracking device 40 installed in the container terminals Sn1, Sn2, ..., Snn. The container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn transmits information collected through the communication network 30 to the information output device 50. [ At this time, the container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn actively collects the collected information to the information output device 50 or manually collects the collected information according to the request of the information output device 50 Information can be transmitted. The container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn may transmit the collected information to the information output device 50 via the control device constructed in association with the communication network 30 .

The container tracking device 40 installed in the containers 20 can communicate with the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn and the slave containers S11, S12, ..., S1n (S21, S22, ..., S2n) ... (Sn1, Sn2, ..., Snn). The container tracking device 40 also detects the container 21, 23, ..., Mn included in the LOT to which the removed master container belongs when the designated master container M1, M2, ..., Mn is removed from the transportation means 10, 2m and m is an odd number), the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn are reassigned. The container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn may change the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn periodically or after a predetermined time elapses for battery management. The container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn monitors whether the remaining battery level reaches a threshold value, and when the threshold value is reached, the containers 21, , ..., 2m, the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn can be changed.

The information output device 50 is a terminal device for receiving and outputting information on the container 20 from the container tracking device 40, and can be used by a shipper, a container manager, a customer, and the like. For example, the information output device 50 may be a mobile communication terminal, a notebook, a PDA (Personal Digital Assistant), a PMP (Portable Multimedia Player), a smart phone, a tablet PC, a PC,

The container tracking device 40 according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 and 2. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a container tracking device 40 for each LOT in FIG.

1 and 2, the container tracking device 40 includes a grouping unit 41, a determination unit 43, and a transmission management unit 45, and may further include a collecting unit 47. The grouping unit 41 groups the containers 20 loaded on the transportation means 10 by the shippers and converts them into LOTs. M2, ..., Mn and the slave containers S11, S12, ..., S1n (S21, S22, ..., S2n) among the containers 20 included in each LOT. (Sn1, Sn2, ..., Snn). The transmission management unit 45 is provided in each of the containers 20 and is included in the master containers M1 to Mn for each LOT and stores container information of the master containers M1, Containers S11, S12, ..., S1n (S21, S22, ..., S2n) ... (Sn1, Sn2, ..., Snn) for each destination desired by the shipper and transmits the processed container information.

At this time, the grouping unit 41 performs grouping based on the shipment information included in the container information collected from the containers 20. Also, the grouping unit 41 converts the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m (m is an odd number) grouped by the shippers into LOTs. The grouping unit 41 can perform subgrouping again on the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m grouped by the shippers when the number of the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m grouped by the shippers is large. For example, when the number of containers of A shippers is 100, the grouping unit 41 sub-groups 100 containers in 10 units again. The reason why the sub grouping is performed is that the number of slave containers that can communicate with one master container is limited according to the local area communication method, so subgrouping is performed according to the local communication method used.

The designation unit 43 designates one of the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT as master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn. M2, ..., Mn). For example, the designation unit 43 can designate the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn among the containers whose communication intensity is equal to or higher than the threshold value among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT. If the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in the LOT are sub-grouped, a master container corresponding to the number of subgrouping can be designated.

Or the designation unit 43 can designate the master container M1, M2, ..., Mn based on information on whether or not the master container is included in the information collected from the containers 20. [

Or designation unit 43 may designate the first container connected among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT as master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn.

Or the designation unit 43 may designate the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn at random among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT.

Or the designation unit 43 designates the container including the container tracking device 40 having the largest battery residual amount among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT as the master container M1, M2, ..., , Mn).

Or the designation unit 43 can designate the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn among the containers having the short transport distances among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT. At this time, if there are a plurality of containers having relatively short transport distances among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT, Can be designated as master containers (M1, M2, ..., Mn). When there are a plurality of containers having short transport distances among the containers 21, 23, ..., and 2m included in each LOT, the specifying unit 43 transmits a container having the maximum communication strength among the plurality of containers to the master containers M1 and M2 , ..., Mn).

When the designation unit 43 designates the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn, among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in the respective LOTs, (M1, M2, ..., Mn), there is an advantage that battery consumption of the container tracking device 40 installed in the container can be reduced. For example, when the transportation means 10 departs from Busan and transports the containers 20 to China via China, the container 20 to the Singapore has a longer period of time than the container 20 to the Chinese The container tracking device 40 should be used. Therefore, when the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in the LOT are specified, among the containers 20 transported in short distance, By designating the containers M1, M2, ..., Mn, it is possible to reduce the battery consumption of the container tracking device 40 of the containers 20 that are relatively far from each other, that is, to the Singapore. Therefore, when the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn are designated for each LOT, the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn are first specified among the containers 20 to be transported to the shortest transportation distance, . When the user goes to Singapore via China, he or she designates the master containers (M1, M2, ..., Mn) among the containers 20 to go to Singapore and performs communication.

When there are a plurality of containers 20 having relatively short transportation distances among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in the LOT, the container 20 having the largest remaining battery power of the container tracking device 40 is called a master By designating the containers M1, M2, ..., Mn, it is possible to suppress the occurrence of problems such as communication failure due to the battery shortage of the container tracking device 40. [

On the other hand, when the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn designated by the transport means 10 are removed from the transportation means 10 through transhipment or the like, the designation unit 43 stores the containers 21, ..., 2m) by the above-described method among the master containers (M1, M2, ..., Mn).

Also, the designation unit 43 may change the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn periodically or after a predetermined time elapses for battery management.

The collecting unit 47 collects container information including information on the articles respectively loaded in the containers 20, environment information of the containers 20 in which the articles are stored, and information on the containers. The collection unit 47 provides the collected container information to the transmission management unit 45.

The transmission management unit 45 included in the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn includes slave containers S11, S12, ..., S1n (S21, S22, ..., S2n) (Sn1, Sn2, ..., Snn). The transmission management unit 45 included in the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn receives the container information of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn and the slave containers S11, S12, ..., S1n , ..., S2n) ... (Sn1, Sn2, ..., Snn) for each destination desired by the shipper and stores the processed container information or transmits the container information to the information output device 50. [

On the other hand, the slave containers S11, S12, ..., S1n (S21, S22, ..., S2n) The transmission management unit 45 provided in the master container (Sn1, Sn2, ..., Snn) transmits its own container information to the master containers (M1, M2, ..., Mn) to which it belongs.

The container tracking method according to this embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 3. FIG. 3 is a flowchart illustrating a container tracking method for each LOT according to an embodiment of the present invention.

First, in step S71, the container tracking device 40 groups the containers 20 loaded on the transportation means 10 by the shippers and converts them into LOTs. That is, the container tracking devices 40 provided in each of the containers 20 loaded on the transportation means 10 communicate with each other and group them by shippers and convert them into LOTs.

Next, in step S73, the container tracking device 40 designates master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT. That is, the container tracking devices 40 of the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in the LOT designate the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn through communication with each other. For example, the container tracking device 40 can designate the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn among the containers having short transport distances among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT. The container tracking device 40 may be configured to move the container including the container tracking device 40 having the largest remaining battery capacity among the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT to the master containers M1, M2, Mn). If the container tracking device 40 has a plurality of containers having relatively short transport distances among the containers 21, 23, ..., and 2m included in each LOT, , ..., Mn).

Next, in step S75, the container tracking device 40 included in the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn for each LOT compares the container information of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn with the container information of the slave containers S11, ..., S1n) (S21, S22, ..., S2n) ... (Sn1, Sn2, ..., Snn) for each destination desired by the shipper, and transmits the processed container information to the information output apparatus 50. That is, the container tracking device 40 installed in each of the containers 20 is configured to store the information on the respective items loaded in the container 20, the container information including the environmental information of the container 20 in which the goods are stored, Collect information. The container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn includes slave containers S11, S12, ..., S1n (S21, S22, ..., S2n) (Sn1, Sn2, ..., Snn). The container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn transmits its own container information and collected container information to the information output device 50 through the communication network 30. [

Next, in step S77, the container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn determines whether or not a predetermined time has elapsed.

In step S77, the container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn changes the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn by performing step S73 again. On the other hand, in the present embodiment, an example of changing the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn after a predetermined time has elapsed has been described, but the present invention is not limited thereto. For example, the container tracking device 40 of the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in each LOT may periodically change the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn. The container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn monitors whether or not the remaining battery level reaches a threshold value, and when the threshold value is reached, the containers 21, , ..., 2m, the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn can be changed.

If the result of the determination in step S77 does not pass, the container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn performs step S79.

In step S79, the container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn determines whether or not the container tracking device 40 itself is removed from the transportation means 10 through transhipment.

The container tracking device 40 of the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn repeatedly performs the process from step S75.

In step S79, the container tracking device 40 of the containers 21, 23, ..., 2m included in the LOT to which the master containers M1, M2, ..., And reassigns the master containers M1, M2, ..., Mn.

It should be noted that the embodiments disclosed in the present specification and drawings are only illustrative of specific examples for the purpose of understanding, and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention. It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that other modifications based on the technical idea of the present invention are possible in addition to the embodiments disclosed herein.

10: Transportation
20: Container
30: Network
40: Container tracking device
41:
However,
45:
50: Information output device

Claims (16)

Transport means;
Container tracking devices respectively provided in the containers loaded on the transportation means;
And an information output device for performing communication with the container tracking device via a communication network,
Each of the container tracking devices comprises:
A grouping unit for grouping the container tracking devices into LOTs by communication between the container tracking devices;
A designation unit for designating containers included in each LOT as a master container and a slave container;
A transmission management unit, provided in each of the containers, for processing the container information of the master container and the container information collected from the slave container for each destination desired by the shipper and transmitting the information;
The container tracking system comprising: A grouping unit for grouping the container tracking devices provided in each of the containers loaded on the transportation means and converting the containers into LOTs;
A designation unit for designating containers included in each LOT as a master container and a slave container;
A transmission management unit, provided in each of the containers, for processing the container information of the master container and the container information collected from the slave container for each destination desired by the shipper and transmitting the information;
And a container tracking unit for each LOT. 3. The apparatus of claim 2,
Wherein the grouping is performed based on the shipment information included in the container information collected from the containers. The apparatus according to claim 2,
Wherein a master container is specified among the containers having relatively short transport distances among the containers included in each LOT. The apparatus according to claim 2,
Wherein a container including the LOT-specific container tracking device having the largest battery residual amount among the containers included in each LOT is designated as a master container. 5. The apparatus according to claim 4,
When there are a plurality of containers having relatively short transportation distances among the containers included in the respective LOTs, a container having the maximum communication strength among the plurality of containers is designated as a master container, or a container having the largest battery residual amount And a container including the container tracking device is designated as a master container. The apparatus according to claim 2,
And a master container is designated based on information on whether or not a master container is included in the container information collected from the containers. 3. The method of claim 2,
A collecting unit for collecting container information including information on the articles respectively loaded on the containers, environment information on the containers in which the articles are stored, and container information;
Wherein the container tracking device further comprises: 3. The method of claim 2,
Wherein the transmission management unit included in the slave container transmits its own container information to the master container to which the slave container belongs. The apparatus according to claim 2,
Wherein the master container is changed periodically or after a predetermined time has elapsed. The container tracking devices provided in each of the containers loaded on the transportation means are communicated with each other and grouped into shippers and converted into LOT;
The container tracking device designating containers included in each LOT as a master container and a slave container;
The container tracking device included in the master container processes container information of the master container and container information collected from the slave container for each desired destination of the shipper and transmits the container information;
The method comprising the steps of: 12. The method of claim 11, wherein in the LOTization,
Wherein the container tracking device performs grouping based on shippers information included in container information collected from the containers. 12. The method of claim 11, wherein in the specifying step,
Wherein the container tracking device designates a master container among the containers having relatively short transport distances among the containers included in each LOT. 14. The method according to claim 13, wherein in the specifying step,
Wherein the container tracking device designates, as a master container, a container including an LOT-specific container tracking device having the largest remaining battery power among the containers included in each LOT. 15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:
A changing step of changing the master container periodically or after a predetermined time has elapsed;
Further comprising the steps of: 12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:
Reassigning the master container among the containers included in the LOT to which the removed master container belongs when the master container designated by the container tracking device is removed from the transportation means;
Further comprising the steps of:

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