WO1998025219A1

WO1998025219A1 - Work support system

Info

Publication number: WO1998025219A1
Application number: PCT/JP1996/003542
Authority: WO
Inventors: Hirotoshi Ise; Toshihiko Ogura; Masatoshi Hino
Original assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
Priority date: 1996-12-04
Filing date: 1996-12-04
Publication date: 1998-06-11

Abstract

Even when any delay in a schedule occurs due to the delay in travelling time in a mobile type business such as sale, the system of this invention gives a suitable work method in accordance with the situation of a worker. The system comprises a worker's state monitor portion (1-3) for monitoring the worker's status by utilizing a time and a place, a work schedule management portion (1-7) for executing a re-scheduling processing of the work schedule, a processing for reporting a start time to a destination, etc., and a work execution management portion (1-4) for giving work instruction information to the worker when the worker's status is in conformity with the work schedule. The system can give suitable information corresponding to a given condition and can prevent omission of a work.

Description

Work support

Light

Technical field

Rice field

The present invention relates to work support for managing a worker's schedule. In particular, it relates to work support systems that support workers engaged in mopile-type work, and also relates to work support systems in which workers use mobile terminals. Background art

In recent years, portable terminals such as notebook computers and PDAs have become widespread. Mobile terminals are in an environment where it is easier to support work according to the worker's position and situation, compared to terminals that are connected to a network or the like and have a limited degree of freedom regarding the work place. As a business that makes effective use of this mobile terminal, there is a mopile type business represented by a sales business (for example, a salesman visiting each home).

In the mopile type business, a schedule management tool is mounted on a mobile terminal and used for personal work support.

For example, in the sales business, a work plan is created in advance that describes the work method corresponding to the customer, the order of visits by the customer, etc., the work plan is expressed in time, and registered in a schedule management tool or the like. When performing work, the registered Upon receiving the alarm sent according to the schedule and seeing the registered message, the worker recalls the work method and performs the work.

The schedule management tool is intended to support personal work. Workers register when and what to do as a work plan, and use the timer function built into the mobile terminal to register it. When the registered time comes, an alarm or the like informs the worker that there is a registered item. The above-mentioned schedule management tool converts all work plans into time and manages them in chronological order, so there are the following problems.

(1) For workers who move a lot, such as in sales operations, the travel time depends on traffic conditions. When a work plan is managed with a schedule management tool, the movement of places is converted to time, so the schedule time is likely to shift or change. If the schedule goes wrong, unless the worker re-registers the schedule, he or she will not be able to receive work instructions properly, forget to do the work to be performed at the intended place, and leave the place. (2) In the sales business, post-processing work differs depending on the customer and route that came around, but if the work plan is managed only by time, post-processing work support is provided when there are multiple patterns in post-processing. Can not.

(3) If the work plan is managed only by time, the travel time to the destination is calculated empirically, converted to time and incorporated into the schedule, but the travel time to an unfamiliar place is not Accurate and vague. Therefore, errors may occur in the calculation of the departure time, and the customer may be late.

(4) Since the work plan of a worker is likely to be changed dynamically, a work plan that is only time-consuming will cause a deviation from the actual behavior, and the manager will need to grasp the current situation of the worker. Kure ,.

An object of the present invention is to respond to the situation of an operator defined by a place, a work state, and the like. The second is to provide a work support system that presents appropriate work methods to workers. It is also intended to prevent workers from missing work. It is also intended to allow managers to grasp the current situation of workers. Disclosure of the invention

In order to achieve the above object, the present invention has the following configuration.

Task definition means for creating a work plan composed of at least the start conditions described in the worker situation expressed by a combination of place and time and work instruction information instructing the actions to be performed by the worker. A worker status monitoring means for acquiring a worker status; and outputting the work instruction information registered in the work plan when the obtained worker status matches the start condition of the work plan. A work support device comprising work execution management means. In addition, this is a work support device that supports the work by resetting the worker's schedule, and distinguishes the worker's work schedule from the location information indicating the work place of each work and the tolerance for changing the work time. Storage means for storing together with the information to be performed; recognition means for recognizing the location of the worker, the current time and the work status of the worker at the current time; and the results recognized by the recognition means and the storage. If it is necessary to change the schedule after the present time among the above schedules, output the proposed schedule with the schedule changed preferentially from the work with the higher tolerance. A work support device characterized by having output means for performing the operation.

Further, communication means for transmitting and receiving information such as the current position of the worker between the worker's portable terminal and the base center may be added. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an outline of a work support system of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a worker status monitoring unit. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing a configuration example of a work support system. Fig. 4 shows the flow of the work plan registration process. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing an example of a work plan table. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the task information table. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing an example of a work information list. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing an example of a user attribute list. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing a flow of an alarm registration process. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing a flow of an event when performing a task. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a flow of processing of task activation condition evaluation. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a flow of processing of worker status monitoring. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing a flow of a process of generating a time event. FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a flow of a process of generating a place event. FIG. 15 is a diagram showing an example of a location area table. FIG. 16 is a diagram showing an example of a location area table different from that of FIG. FIG. 17 is a diagram showing a flow of a process of generating a work event. FIG. 18 is a diagram showing a flow of processing of event control rule evaluation. FIG. 19 is a diagram showing the flow of the process of rescheduling the time task. FIG. 20 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen of a reschedule confirmation message. FIG. 21 is a diagram showing an outline of the rescheduling of the time task. FIG. 22 is a diagram showing an example of a display screen of a departure time notification message. FIG. 23 is a diagram showing a flow of a departure time calculation process. FIG. 24 is a diagram showing an example of the event state evaluation. FIG. 25 is a diagram showing an example of an event state evaluation different from FIG. 24. FIG. 26 is a diagram showing a flow of a task execution process. FIG. 27 is a diagram showing an example of a screen image of the task execution process. FIG. 28 is a diagram showing another example of the work support composition different from FIG. Fig. 29 shows a different work support from Fig. 1. It is a figure showing an outline. FIG. 30 is a diagram showing a flow of an interrupt work assignment process. BEST MODE FOR CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

Hereinafter, a first embodiment of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. The embodiment described here is a work support system such as a small handy terminal (portable terminal). The current position, time, and work status shall be used as information for identifying the situation of the worker.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of an outline of a functional configuration of a work support system according to the present invention. This work support system realizes individual work support according to the work plan created by the work definition section. Reference numeral 111 in the figure denotes a work definition unit, which creates a work plan 112. Reference numeral 13 denotes a worker status monitoring unit that monitors the worker status. As a result of the monitoring, if the worker status is consistent with the work plan 112, the work execution management unit 114, the work plan management unit 117, etc. are notified of the worker status and an event occurs. . Reference numeral 114 denotes a work execution management unit, which instructs a worker to work or updates task information according to an event or a worker's operation. Note that a task is a structural unit of work handled in this embodiment. Reference numeral 115 denotes a data input unit for inputting information necessary for performing a task. 1 to 6 are displays for displaying information necessary for performing the task, such as task information and task information. Reference numeral 17 denotes a work plan management unit which searches for event control rules 18 corresponding to the worker status, changes the work plan according to the event control rules, and processes the work execution management unit 14. Control. Reference numeral 19 denotes an operation notification unit, which notifies an operator that there is an operation to be performed. Reference numeral 110 denotes task information, which manages details of each task. In this embodiment, the information on the work is the task information. Manage as information.

FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of the worker status monitoring unit. Reference numeral 2-1 denotes a location event generation unit which measures a current terminal location and generates a location event when a pre-registered alarm location is detected. Reference numeral 2-2 denotes a time event generator, which measures the current time using a timer or the like built into the computer and generates a time event when a pre-registered alarm time is detected. 2-3 is a work event generator, which accesses task information. A work event is generated when task information that matches the task start condition is detected as a result of access. 2-4 is an event evaluation unit that monitors the event status of place events, time events, and work events. As a result of monitoring, an integrated event is generated when the task start condition of work plan 1-2 is satisfied.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a work support system for realizing the present invention. Reference numeral 21 in the figure is a data file that stores task activation conditions, event control rules, document information, and the like. 22 is a CPU that controls the entire work support system. 23 is a memory and is composed of ROM 23-1 and RAM 23-2. ROM 23-1 stores various programs for realizing the present invention, and also stores programs for realizing task processing, task activation condition evaluation, location / time Z work event generation, and task activation condition registration. These programs may be stored on different storage media. RAM 23-2 stores various tables and data. These various tables and data may be stored in separate storage media. In this embodiment, ROM 23-1 and RAM 23-2 are separate blocks, but the data to be stored in ROM and the data to be stored in RAM on the same memory (block). It can also be realized by dividing the data storage area. 24 is a position detecting means. For example, GPS (Global A system that measures the latitude, longitude, and altitude of the current terminal location, such as a Positioning System, or a system that acquires location information, such as a PHS, may be used. '24 uses these to generate a location event when a pre-registered alarm location is detected. Reference numeral 25 denotes an input means for performing a task, an operation selection instruction, and the like. The input means is realized by a screen input device that controls mouse and pen input, or a code input device such as a keyboard. Reference numeral 26 denotes a display for displaying information on tasks and tasks. Reference numeral 27 denotes a notification means for notifying an operator when an event occurs. The notification means can be realized by a sound generating device, a vibration device, or the like. Next, the flow of processing relating to work plan registration and work execution according to the present embodiment will be described.

Fig. 4 shows the flow of the work plan registration process. In step 100, a work plan is created using the work definition unit 111. The created work plan is expressed as a set of work plan items. Fig. 5 shows an example of the work plan. The work plan consists of task launch conditions, launch tasks, priorities and adjustable flags. The task activation condition is a condition for the task to be activated, and is described using the state of the worker. In the present embodiment, the task activation condition is expressed as a logical expression in which task activation condition items are combined by a logical sum, a logical product, or the like. The task start condition items are described as conditions relating to time, place, and the relationship between tasks. It should be noted that the task activation condition item may be described in association with an event that triggers work execution. Triggers include events that occur in other applications, such as changes in attribute values that compose task information, activation or termination of a call application, incoming mail, and so on. The event that occurs at this time can be evaluated by the event evaluation unit and the work execution unit.

In this embodiment, priority can be set for each task activation condition item. And The priority defines the priority of the activation condition. For example, if the priority of a place is higher than the priority of time, the following control is possible.

(a) An event occurs when the location trigger fires, but not yet. (b) When the time trigger fires but the location trigger has not yet occurred, no event occurs.

(c) An event occurs when a time trigger fires and a location trigger fires.

The adjustable flag is used when it is necessary to reschedule the work plan due to a delay in travel time. For example, tasks that are determined by other people's circumstances, such as meetings and telephone calls, will not be rescheduled if the adjustable flag is set to “impossible”. A start task is a task that is executed when the task start conditions are satisfied.

The activation task is set selectively from the task information. Figure 6 shows an example of task information. In this embodiment, a task is represented as a set of tasks. Here, the task has a parent-child hierarchy. Task information consists of task name, task ID, purpose, status, worker ID, parent task ID, splittable flag, pointer to work information, pointer to user attribute, and so on. The task name is information that identifies the task as seen by the user. The task ID is information that uniquely identifies the task by the system. The purpose is the purpose of the task, and is comment information that the user refers to when performing the task. The status is information indicating the status of the task, and has values such as “not started”, “in process”, “suspended”, and “completed”. The worker ID is information that identifies the worker who executes the task by the system. The parent task ID is a task ID of a task positioned at a higher position than the parent task ID. The splittable flag is a flag indicating whether or not the task can be split into a plurality of tasks. Normal, Tasks for which the divisible flag is set are continuously mapped to the work plan. However, if mapping cannot be performed continuously due to rescheduling, etc., it is divided into multiple parts and mapped to the work plan.

The pointer to work information is pointer information to work information that manages work instructions necessary to perform a task. Fig. 7 shows an example of work information. The work information shown here consists of work contents, mandatory flags, priority, and so on. The work content is a description of a work procedure to be performed in order to perform a task. If automatic execution is possible, describe the execution procedure and the name of the file that describes the execution procedure, etc. in this work content. Mandatory flags are information that is set when there is a task that must be performed in order to perform a task. The priority flag is set when the work has a priority. Note that in this embodiment, it is assumed that there are a plurality of work steps in order to perform one task, but if one task is composed of only one work step, the work information The work information is stored directly in the area where the pointer is stored. The pointer to the user attribute is a pointer to the user attribute that can be set arbitrarily by the user. User attributes are information required by the user to perform work, and an example of user attributes is shown in FIG. The user attributes shown here consist of attribute names, types, attribute values, and so on.

In this example, the mechanism for access control of task information is not explained, but it is also possible to set access authority for users and tasks for each task information.

If there is a document related to the task, set the attribute name to the document name and set the attribute value to the address where the document file is stored. In this way, you will need Examples such as manuals and know-how can be associated with tasks and managed.

Returning to FIG. In step 102, the created work plan is stored. In step 104, an alarm registration process is performed. Figure 9 shows the detailed flow of the alarm registration process.

The alarm registration process is a process that creates an alarm from task activation conditions and registers it for each event occurrence. In step 1000, the stored task activation condition is read. In step 1002, it is determined whether there is a place event. As a result, if there is a location event in the task activation condition, the process proceeds to step 104. In step 104, a location event is extracted. At step 106, the alarm location is registered based on the extraction result. In step 1008, it is determined whether there is a time event. As a result, if a time event exists, the process proceeds to step 110. In step 110, time events are extracted. In step 101, the alarm time is registered based on the extraction result.

In this embodiment, the work execution process is realized by an event-driven program. FIG. 10 shows the flow of events in the processing unit related to work performance. The task activation condition evaluation process is a process executed by the event evaluation unit. The place event generation processing, the time event generation processing, and the work event generation processing are processings executed by the place event generation unit, the time event generation unit, and the work event generation unit, respectively.

Fig. 11 shows the flow of task activation condition evaluation processing. The task activation condition evaluation process evaluates the event generated by each event occurrence. When the evaluation result matches the task start condition, an integrated event is generated. First, in step 200, monitoring processing of the worker status is executed. Here, we use three types of events: location, time, and work events. Monitors the status of workers. However, it is also possible to perform monitoring processing by adding evaluations of other events such as the start and end of applications and the arrival of mail. In this case, a check for the occurrence of each event and status update processing by each event are added. Fig. 12 shows the detailed flow of the worker status monitoring process.

The worker status monitoring is a process of updating the event status for each event type in the event queue. In FIG. 12, in step 2000, the presence or absence of a location event is checked. If there is no location event, the location status is updated in step 202. In step 204, the presence or absence of a time event is checked. If there is no location event, the time status is updated in step 206. At step 208, the presence or absence of a work event is checked. If there is no work event, the work status is updated in step 210. In step 210, it is checked whether or not the event evaluation processing is to be ended. If it does not end, it is checked in step 204 whether the location, time, or work event status has been updated. If there is no update, the processing of steps 20000 to 214 is repeated.

Fig. 13 shows the flow of the time event generation process. In step 300, the registered alarm time is read. In step 302, the current time is obtained using the clock (timer) built into the computer. In step 304, it is checked whether there is a request for updating the registered alarm time. If there is an update request, the processing of steps 300 to 304 is repeated to read the updated registered alarm time. In step 306, if the current time matches the alarm time, go to step 308. In step 308, a time event is generated. The method of occurrence of the time event occurs each time it matches the alarm time. In addition to this There is also a method in which a time range in which the alarm time can be regarded as one is specified in advance, and the events corresponding to the alarm times falling within the specified time range are integrated into one. An example in which a time event is generated by this method will be described. The time range within which the alarm time can be considered as one is 30 minutes. For example, the time is divided into time periods of 30 minutes, such as 0: 00 to 0: 30, 0: 30 to 1: 00, and the event for the alarm time that falls in this time period is reduced to one. Integrate. Also, it can be realized by a specified method of integrating events for alarm times falling within a specific time range (13:15 to 13:45). In step 310, it is checked whether or not to end the time event generation processing. If the check does not end, the processing of steps 302 to 310 is repeated.

The generation of the time event may be realized by using an alarm function provided by an operating system or the like.

Figure 14 shows the flow of the place event generation process. In step 400, the registered alarm location is read. In step 402, the alarm location is converted into coordinate information using the location area table.

FIG. 15 shows a configuration showing an example of the location area table. The location area table consists of location, coordinates and area radius. A place is a place where a worker may perform some work. Coordinates are information that specifies the location of a place. For example, latitude, longitude, and altitude. The area radius is information specifying an area to be regarded as a place, and is information indicating the radius of a circle or a sphere centered on coordinates.

Another example of the location area table is shown in FIG. In Figure 15, the area to be regarded as a place is defined by coordinates and (almost) a circle or (almost) a sphere centered on the coordinates. However, here the area is defined by vector data. The location area table is composed of coordinates representing the location and area Is done. A place is a place where workers may perform some work, as in Fig. 15. The coordinates representing the area are coordinates that serve as reference points when the boundary of the area considered as a place is approximated by a straight line. Therefore, the area regarded as a place is a closed area where the coordinates representing the area are connected one by one and one stroke can be drawn.

The table size of the location area table of FIG. 15 can be smaller than that of the location area table of FIG. However, since the area considered as a place is represented by a circle or a sphere, there is a problem in the accuracy of detecting the place. Therefore, the location area table shown in Fig. 15 is normally used. Further, when there is an overlap in the areas, a method of determining the place area by using the place area table shown in FIG. 16 for the overlapping places may be used.

The location area table can be registered in the location event generation unit by registering locations where workers may go in advance as a location area dictionary, or by registering only locations related to the work plan when creating a work plan. It can be realized by such methods.

Returning to FIG. In step 404, the current location is acquired using the position detection means. The current position may be either the position where the device is located or the position where the worker is located. G as position detection means

When using PS, the current location can be obtained as a combination of latitude, longitude and altitude. In step 406, it is checked whether there is a request for updating the registered alarm location. If there is an update request, the processing of steps 400 to 406 is repeated, and the updated registered alarm location is read. In step 408, it is determined whether or not the current position is within the area of the place registered as the alarm place. In step 410, if the current position is within the region as a result of the region determination, the process proceeds to step 412. Steps 4 1 and 2 generate a location event. In addition, When using the location area table shown in Fig. 15 in step 408, the distance between the current location and the location registered as the alarm location is calculated, and it is checked whether or not the location is within the location area. In step 4 14, it is checked whether or not the place event generation processing is to be ended. If the processing is not to be ended, the processing of steps 404 to 414 is repeated.

FIG. 17 shows the flow of the work event generation process. In step 500, the registered work, that is, the task start condition related to the status of the task information is read. In step 502, the process waits for the update of the task information. Here, the task event generation process is performed by referring to the status of the task information. Therefore, it is only necessary to check whether or not the status is updated. In step 504, the status of the task information is obtained. The task information status has values such as Not Started, In Progress, Suspended and Completed,

Describe the task start condition items in the format of "When task 1 ends", "When task A starts". Here, the task activation condition is described using only the status of the task information, but the task activation condition may be described using all the attribute values constituting the task information.

In step 506, it is checked whether or not the task start condition related to the work has been updated. If there is an update as a result of the check, the processing of steps 500 to 506 is repeated, and the task activation condition related to the updated work is read. In step 508, it is determined whether or not there is a task activation condition that matches the status of the task information. If so, the process proceeds to step 510. In step 510, a work event is generated. In step 5 12, it is checked whether to end the work event generation process. If not, the process of steps 502 to 512 is repeated.

Returning to FIG. In step 202, the event control rule Is evaluated. Here, the event control rules shown in FIG. 18 are read and each event is evaluated. Figure 18 shows the flow of the event control rule evaluation process. The following describes the processing when the following two rules are executed as event control rules.

(1) If there is some difference between the estimated arrival time and the actual arrival time, reschedule the time-related tasks.

(2) Calculate the time required to move from the current location to the destination, calculate the time to depart from the current location from the calculated result and the start time of the work performed at the destination, and depart Generate an event when it is time. In step 30000, it is checked whether the rule for rescheduling the task is valid. If it is invalid, the processing after step 300 is executed. If it is valid, it is checked in step 302 whether there is any task to be rescheduled. If there is no target task, the processing from step 3006 is executed. If there is a target task, re-schedule the time-related task in step 304.

FIG. 19 shows an example of the process flow of the rescheduling of the task related to time. Here, tasks are classified into three types: tasks whose time cannot be changed, tasks whose time can be changed, tasks that can be split, and tasks whose time can be changed and that cannot be split. A task whose time cannot be changed is a task that must not be rescheduled even if there is a difference between the actual arrival time and the estimated arrival time. A task whose time can be changed and which can be divided is a task that can be rescheduled and can be executed even if the task is temporally divided into multiple tasks. Tasks that can be changed in time and cannot be split are tasks that can be rescheduled and cannot be split in time. Note that the task classification is based on the fact that there are fewer divisible flags in the task information and less Both are determined with reference to one. Tasks with an “impossible” adjustable flag are those whose time cannot be changed. Adjustable flag task "permitted" and the divisible ability flag is "possible" is, _c adjustable flag is divisible tasks can change time "possible" and the division flag is "impossible" task Is a task whose time can be changed and which cannot be divided.

In step 310, the difference between the actual arrival time and the estimated arrival time is calculated. In step 310, it is specified whether or not to display a confirmation message. If not, the processing from step 310 is executed. If so, a confirmation message is displayed in step 310. Fig. 20 shows an example of the confirmation message display screen. In step 310, a process is selected by a button added to the confirmation message display screen. When the “Y es” button is pressed on the confirmation message display screen, the processing from step 310 is executed. When the “No” button is pressed, the time task is rescheduled. The process ends and returns.

In step 310, a time task to be rescheduled is extracted from the task activation conditions. In step 3110, it is checked whether or not the extracted time task has a task whose time cannot be changed. In some cases, the processing of steps 3110 to 3116 is executed. If not, execute the processing from step 3118. In step 3 1 1 2, a task whose time cannot be changed is arranged. In step 3114, a time slot in which indivisible tasks can be allocated is detected from the free time, and tasks that cannot be divided are allocated. In step 3116, tasks that can be divided into idle time are allocated. In step 3118, the start / end time of the task is changed using the difference between the actual arrival time calculated in step 3100 and the estimated arrival time. In step 3120, the alarm time managed by the time event generator is changed, and the rescheduling of the time task is completed. An example of a rescheduling processing image of a task related to time is shown in FIG.

(A) in Fig. 21 shows the original schedule, and (b) shows the schedule after rescheduling. In this example, the arrival at the destination is 30 minutes behind schedule. In addition, “meeting” and “call to 〇〇” are tasks whose time cannot be changed, and “work 1” and “work 2” are tasks whose time can be changed and which can be divided. In this example, the tasks that cannot be changed in time, “meeting” and “call me”, are placed in the same time slot as the original schedule. Next, “Work 1” and “Work 2”, which are tasks that can be divided and whose time can be changed, are appropriately divided (according to the length of the vacant time period) and arranged in the vacant time periods. . In the case of a task whose time can be changed and cannot be divided, a time zone in which the defined time can be continuously secured from the vacant time zone is searched and arranged. Here, the case where the start of the work is delayed from the scheduled time has been described, but if the work is started earlier, the rescheduling can be performed by the same procedure.

Regarding task allocation, there is a method of assigning priorities to tasks and allocating tasks from tasks with higher priorities. In this case, if the priority is set in the order of 1) tasks whose time cannot be changed, 2) tasks whose time can be changed and cannot be divided, and 3) tasks whose time can be changed and can be divided, the same processing as above is performed. Management becomes possible.

Referring back to FIG. In step 303, it is checked whether or not the departure time notification rule is valid. If the result of the check is invalid, return. In step 3008, it is checked whether there is any task to be notified of the departure time. If there is no check result, return. If there is a task to be notified, a departure time calculation process is executed in step 310. Fig. 22 shows an example of the display screen of the departure time notification message, and Fig. 23 shows the flow of the departure time calculation process. In step 3200, the current location is obtained from the location event generation unit. S

Step 3 202 checks whether the current location has moved. If it has moved, the processing from step 320 onward is executed. If it has not moved, the processing of steps 320 to 320 is repeated. In step 3204, the current location, work place, and route to the work place are set using the travel time table that manages the starting point, destination, route, and required time in association with each other, and the travel time is set. calculate. In step 3206, a task that includes the work place in the task start condition is searched from the task start condition. Among the tasks obtained as a result of the search, the start time of the task to be executed first is calculated. In step 3208, the departure time is calculated from the task start time and the travel time. In step 3210, the departure time is registered as the alarm time. In step 3 2 1 2, it is determined whether the departure time calculation process is to be ended. If not, the processing of steps 3200 to 3212 is repeated.

As an example of event control rules, rules regarding rescheduling of time-related tasks and rules regarding notification of departure times have been specifically described. The following rules are examples of event control rules other than the above. Conceivable.

(1) If the user intends to stay at a predetermined place for a predetermined time or more, only the event control rules described in the time event and the work event are searched.

(2) If no other event occurs even after the alarm time exceeds a certain time, the task activation condition in the waiting state is invalidated.

(3) When there are multiple events with near alarm time, one event Integrate with

The event control rules described in (1) above improve task retrieval condition search efficiency and speed up task activation condition state transition processing by classifying task activation conditions for each work place. .

The processing related to the event control rule shown in (2) above is the same whether or not there is a priority between the events constituting the task activation condition. If there is a priority, the above processing is performed when an already fired lower priority event waits for a higher priority event. If no priority is specified for an event, the above processing occurs when the event that fired first waits for the firing of another event.

The event control rule shown in (3) above indicates that the task start condition is (a) the task start condition is described only with the time event, and the alarm time is within the specified range. The description elements other than the time event are common, and when the alarm time of the time event is within the specified time range, the fired time event is integrated into one. At this time, the integrated event expresses a time having a width such as 12: 0 to 12:30. In the case of (a), as described above, it may be realized by a method of integrating them into one in the time event generation processing.

Returning to FIG. 11, the description will be continued. In step 204, the event state is evaluated with reference to the task start condition of the work plan. Based on the evaluation result, it is determined whether to generate an integrated event. When generating an integrated event, an integrated event is generated in step 206 to notify the worker status. In step 208, it is determined whether or not the task activation condition evaluation processing is to be ended. If not, the processing in steps 200 to 208 is repeated. For the processing image of event state evaluation, the two methods shown in Fig. 24 and Fig. 25 are shown. Figure 24 shows the state in the event state evaluation section. It is a figure for explaining a method. FIG. 25 is a diagram for explaining a method in which the event state evaluation unit has no state. The event state has a one-to-one correspondence with the task start condition item of the task start condition, and the event corresponding to the task start condition item has two states of “ignited” and “unfinished”.

Fig. 24 shows a method of changing the event status based on the evaluation result of the event status. In this method, first, a table for managing an event state for each task activation condition is prepared, and an event state corresponding to the task activation condition item is stored. An integrated event is generated when all the event states corresponding to the task activation conditions have been fired. Fig. 25 shows a case where the event state is evaluated and a new event state is generated based on the evaluation result. In this example, when both “state 1” and “state 2” become fired, a new event state “internal state 1” is generated. When both “Internal state 1” and “State 3” are in the fired state, an event is generated.

When the event state is evaluated by this method, the state and the internal state are evaluated by the same method, and all transitions of the event state can be expressed by a set of “trigger → action”. In this example, it can be represented by two sets of "state 1 & state 2 → internal state 1" and "internal state 1 & state 3 → event generation". Therefore, when the transition of the event state corresponding to the task start condition is “(state 1 & state 2) & state 3”, “state 1 & state 2 → internal state 1”

It is sufficient to automatically generate the task start conditions, such as “Internal state 1 & state 3—event generation”. In other words, there is no need to provide a table for storing the event status when evaluating the event status.

As described above, both the method shown in FIG. 24 and the method shown in FIG. 25 can manage the task start condition in which a plurality of events are combined. For this reason, "If you move from location A to location B," It becomes possible to generate an integrated event corresponding to the task activation condition such as

Figure 26 shows the task execution process flow. The task execution process is a process of executing a work instruction to a worker, triggered by the integrated event generated by the task activation condition evaluation process. In step 600, it is checked whether or not there is an event generated by the task activation condition evaluation processing. If there is an event, the processing from step 602 is executed. In step 604, a work list is displayed. In step 600, the worker is notified that the event has been received by using the work notification means. In step 608, the process waits for the operator to select a work. When a work is selected, a work instruction relating to the work selected in step 61 is displayed. In step 6 12, it is determined whether or not to suspend the work. If the work is to be interrupted, work interruption processing is executed in step 6-14. If the work is not interrupted, check in step 6 16 if the work has been completed. If not completed, the processing of steps 61 to 616 is repeated. When the work is completed, the task status is updated in step 618 and the work list is updated in step 620. As a method of updating the work list, there are a method of deleting a completed work from the list, a method of identifying a completed work, an uncompleted work, and an unstarted work and displaying the work. In step 62, it is checked whether all necessary tasks have been completed. If not completed, the processing of steps 608 to 622 is repeated. In step 62, it is determined whether or not to end the business. If the processing is not to be terminated, the processing of steps 600 to 624 is repeated.

FIG. 27 shows an example of a screen for task execution processing. (A) is a task selection screen, and (b) is a task execution screen. (A) consists of a “task list” and a “current state”. The "task list" A list of currently executable tasks. The task is triggered by the integration event, and when a new task becomes executable, this task is added to the "task list". “Current status” indicates the current status of the worker. In this example, the current date, time, location, and work status can be displayed.

When an arbitrary task is selected from the task list in (a), the process transits to (b). In this example, “Refer to case 1 and perform work 1” is selected from the task list in (a). In (b), a window for displaying the work method of “work 1”, a window for displaying “case 1”, and a window for operating a work tool for executing work 1 are displayed. In this embodiment, when a state change occurs, an event is generated, and the activation of the task execution processing program is controlled using this event. However, the task execution processing program may monitor the execution state data of the related program and execute the processing when a state change occurs.

As information for recognizing the situation of the worker, there is a method of using the operation of the worker, the use state of the portable terminal, and the like in addition to the information on the current position, time, and work state described above. The movement of the worker is information such as walking, operating a mobile terminal, and whether or not the worker is working. The usage status of the mobile terminal is information such as whether or not the worker is carrying the mobile terminal. Next, a second embodiment will be described. In the first embodiment, an example has been described in which the present invention is realized by one mode terminal. In the present embodiment, a configuration example in which the location detection device and the task processing device are realized in separate casings will be described.

FIG. 28 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a work support system for realizing the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 71 denotes a location detection device, and reference numeral 72 denotes a task processing device. The location detecting device 71 includes a data file 71-1, a memory 711-2, a position detecting means 71-3, a CPU 71-4, and a communication means 71-1. Consists of five. The data file 71-1 stores a task start condition related to a place, a place area table for managing the correspondence between the place, latitude, longitude, and altitude, and the like. The memory 71-2 stores a location event generation program and the like. The position detecting means 71-3 uses a system for measuring the latitude, longitude and altitude of the current terminal position such as GPS. When a pre-registered alarm location is detected, a location event is generated. The CPUs 71-4 control the entire location detector. The communication means 71-5 performs data communication with the task processing device.

The task processing device 72 includes a data file 72-1, memory 72-2, input means 72-3, notification means 72-4, display 72-5, CPU 72-6, and communication means 72-7. The data file 72-1 stores task activation conditions, event control rules, document information, and the like. The memory 72-2 is composed of a ROM 72-21 and a RAM 72-22. The ROM 72-21 stores various programs for implementing the present invention. Programs that implement task processing, task activation condition evaluation, location / time work event generation, and task activation condition registration are also stored here. Note that these programs may be stored in separate storage media. RAM 72— 2

2 stores various tables and data. The table and the data may be stored on different storage media. In this embodiment, the ROMs 72-21 and the RAMs 72-22 are separate blocks. However, on the same memory (recording medium), the storage areas for the data stored in ROM and the data stored in RAM are separated. Can also be realized. The input means 72-3 is used to instruct selection of a task or work. For example, it can be realized by a screen input device that controls mouse and pen input, or a code input device such as a keyboard. The notification means 72-4 is for notifying the worker when an event occurs. For example, sound generators and vibration devices It can be realized with. Display 7 2—5 displays information on tasks and tasks. The CPU 72-6 controls the entire task processing device. The communication means 7 2-7 performs data communication with the location detection device.

In this example, the location detector sends a location event to the task fulfiller. The processing of the task execution device that has received the place event is the same as the flow described in the first embodiment.

By separating the location detection device and the task execution device, the size of the task execution device can be reduced. It also facilitates cooperation with on-board navigation systems.

The communication means used in this example only needs to be able to perform data communication, and may be wireless or wired. In the case of wireless communication, it is necessary to manage the location detection device and the task execution device so that they do not separate more than a certain distance. As a method of keeping the distance above a certain distance, there is a method of reducing the aerial power of radio. In the case of wireless, it is necessary to have a mechanism to manage the correspondence between the location detection device and the task execution device. For example, it is possible to have a method in which an identifier common to the location detection device and the task execution device is provided, and the correspondence is managed by recognizing the identifier.

Next, a third embodiment will be described. In the present embodiment, the portable terminal has communication means and can perform data communication with the base center. FIG. 29 is a block diagram showing a configuration of a work support system for realizing the present invention.

In the figure, reference numeral 81 denotes a portable terminal owned by a worker, and reference numeral 82 denotes a base center. Data communication is possible between the mobile terminal and the base center. The latest work information is transmitted from the base center to the mobile terminal, and the current location is transmitted from the mobile terminal to the base center.

Next, the configuration of the mobile terminal will be described. In the figure, 8 1 1 1 is a work definition section, which creates a work plan 8 1-2. The work definition department is located at the base center 8 2 A method is also conceivable in which each mobile terminal manages the work plan created by the base center 82.

8 1-3 is the worker status monitoring unit. Here, the worker status is monitored, and when the worker status is consistent with the work plan 8 11, the worker status is notified to the work execution management unit 8 1-4 and the work plan management unit 8 1-7. Then an event is generated. 8 1-4 is a work execution management unit, which instructs workers and updates task information by events and worker operations. 8 1 1 5 is a data input unit for inputting information necessary for performing a task. 8 1 — 6 is a display for displaying information necessary for performing the task, such as task information and task information. 8 1-7 is the work plan management department. Here, an event control rule corresponding to the worker status is searched, the work plan is changed according to the event control rule, and the processing of the work execution management unit 8 1-4 is controlled. 8 1-8 is a work notification section that notifies the worker that there is work to be performed. 8 1—9 is task information that manages the details of each task. 8 1-10 is a communication control unit, which realizes data communication with the base center.

The base center 82 checks whether there is interrupt work and the latest work information. In some cases, change the work plan or send the latest work information to the mobile terminal. 8 2-1 is a data input section for inputting information about interrupt work. 8 2-2 is an interruption work allocating unit, which executes a process of allocating the interruption work to the work plan of the worker. 8 2-3 is a display, which displays information about the interruption work and work plan. 8 2-4 is a communication control unit that realizes data communication with the base center. 8 2-5 is a work plan, which is stored when the work plan of each worker can be obtained in advance.

Work with highly urgent interruption work at the base center 82 with this configuration The processing assigned to the worker's work plan will be described with reference to FIG. In step 700, an interrupt operation is accepted. In step 720, it is determined whether the priority of the accepted interrupt work is high or low. In step 704, the current positions of all workers are obtained. As a method of acquiring the current position of the worker, the base center 82 sends a location inquiry to the mobile terminal, and the mobile terminal receiving the inquiry sends the current position to the base center. It can be realized by such as. Also, when the work plan is read out in advance, it is possible to grasp the current position of the worker who does not respond to the current position from the mobile terminal by referring to the work plan read out in advance. In step 706, a worker who can arrive at the work place of the interruption work within the designated time is searched. In step 708, the worker who can perform the express work is identified with reference to the searched worker's work plan. As a method of acquiring a worker's work plan, the base center 82 sends a work plan inquiry to the mobile terminal 81, and the mobile terminal 81 that receives the inquiry sends the work plan to the base center 82. It can be realized by a method of transmitting a message. Here, the acquisition of the current position of the worker and the acquisition of the work plan are realized in separate steps, but it can also be realized by inquiring the mobile terminal 81 simultaneously about the current position and the work plan. In addition, the identification of the workers who can perform the interrupting work is based on the assignment of tasks that cannot be adjusted in the time zone to which the interrupting work should be assigned, the priority of the tasks assigned to that time zone, etc. Execute.

In step 710, the interruption work is assigned to the work plan of the specified worker. If rescheduling of the work plan occurs after assignment of the interrupted work, rescheduling is possible by executing the same processing as in FIG. The method of transmitting the work plan to the mobile terminal 81 after assigning the work to the work plan at the base center 82 is to assign the work to be interrupted. is there. Furthermore, a method of transmitting the interruption work to the portable terminal 81 and executing the assignment processing on the portable terminal 81 can be considered. In step 71, a request is made to send a notification to the worker's mobile terminal 81. The mobile terminal 81 that has received this request notifies the worker of a change notification using a work notification unit or the like. In step 714, it is determined whether or not to terminate the interrupt work assignment process. If not, the processing of steps 700 to 714 is repeated.

At the time of performing the work, a display indicating that the work registered by another person, such as the interruption work, is not the work registered by himself / herself. A display that allows you to distinguish between the work you have registered and the work registered by others even when referring to the work plan

Industrial applicability

According to the present invention, the situation of the worker is monitored using the place event, the time event, the work event, and the like, so that the following effects can be obtained.

(1) The rescheduling of the work plan can be easily executed even when a difference occurs between the time registered in the work plan and the actual work start time. Therefore, omission of work due to a schedule deviation can be eliminated.

(2) Since the travel time from the current location to the destination can be calculated and the departure time of the current location can be notified, there is a concern that even if there are important promises, the promised time will be delayed. There is no.

(3) Since the work plan is registered according to the situation of the worker, information such as work instruction information, examples necessary for performing the work, manuals, etc. can be presented to the worker at an appropriate timing. .

As described above, various functions that support workers can be provided in mopile-type work. In addition, by using the communication means, the current situation of the worker can be grasped for the manager, so that urgent jumping jobs can be appropriately assigned.

Claims

The scope of the claims

1. Task definition means for creating a work plan composed of at least the start condition described in the worker situation expressed by a combination of place and time and work instruction information instructing actions to be performed by the worker. When,

A worker status monitoring means for acquiring a worker status,

A work support device, comprising: a work execution management unit that outputs work instruction information registered in the work plan when the acquired worker status matches a start condition of the work plan.

2. The work support device according to claim 1,

A work support apparatus, wherein the worker status acquired by the worker status monitoring means includes a current position of the worker.

3. The work support device according to claim 1,

A work support apparatus, wherein the worker status acquired by the worker status monitoring means includes a current time.

4. The work support device according to claim 1,

The worker status monitoring means acquires a current position and a current time of the worker as a work status,

The work support device, wherein the work execution management means outputs the work instruction information when both the acquired current position and the current time match the start condition.

5. The work support device according to claim 1,

The work execution management means, if there is a difference between the estimated time of arrival at the place described in the work plan calculated in advance based on the worker status and the arrival time defined as the work instruction information, A work support device for rescheduling a related work plan.

6. The work support device according to claim 1,

The start condition is expressed by a logical combination of condition items of different condition types representing worker status, and a priority for each condition type is set for each start condition, and processing of different start conditions is realized according to the priority. Work characterized by

7. The work support device according to claim 1,

The work support device, wherein the work plan has an adjustable flag, and the adjustability flag defines the possibility of changing the work plan.

8. The work support device according to claim 1,

A work support device characterized in that when staying at the same place for a predetermined time or more, a work plan related to the place is excluded from search targets.

9. The work support device according to claim 1,

After the work time conditions are satisfied, the work plan that does not satisfy the other conditions after the specified time has elapsed after the work time conditions are satisfied must be invalidated. Work support equipment characterized by

10. The work support device according to claim 1,

An operation support apparatus characterized in that when there are a plurality of activation conditions including a condition item relating to time within a predetermined time range, an event corresponding to the activation condition is generated.

1 1. In the work support device according to claim 1,

The travel time required to travel from the current location to the destination described in the work plan is calculated, and the departure to depart from the current location using the travel time and the schedule for the work to be performed at the destination is calculated. Calculating the time and notifying the worker when the departure time comes.

1 2. In the work support device according to claim 1,

3. The work support device according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of notification means for notifying the worker that the event has been received are provided, and the notification means for the worker is switched according to the current location. ,

A work support device that separates a part of the function of the worker status monitoring means, is realized in a separate case from the work execution management means, and performs data communication between the cases using communication means.

1 4. In a work support system consisting of multiple work support devices and base centers,

The base center obtains the current location of the work support device carried by the worker, searches for a work support device that can reach the place where the work is performed within the designated time, and searches for the work from among the searched work support devices. A work support method characterized by determining the workers to be assigned.

1 5. A work support device that supports the work by resetting the worker's schedule.

Storage means for storing the worker's work schedule together with place information indicating the work place of each work and information for discriminating the permissibility of changing the work time; and a place where the worker exists, a current time and a current time. Recognizing means for recognizing the work situation of the worker at the time of

The result recognized by the recognition means is compared with the content stored in the storage means, and when the schedule after the present time in the schedule has to be changed, the work having the large tolerance is given priority. An operation support device, comprising: output means for outputting a proposed schedule with a changed schedule.