WO2020039699A1

WO2020039699A1 - Traveling vehicle control device, traveling vehicle system, and traveling vehicle control method

Info

Publication number: WO2020039699A1
Application number: PCT/JP2019/022971
Authority: WO
Inventors: 悠二榎; 賢治熊谷
Original assignee: 村田機械株式会社
Priority date: 2018-08-24
Filing date: 2019-06-10
Publication date: 2020-02-27
Also published as: TW202014356A; JP2020030724A

Abstract

In the present invention, for a combination of a target traveling vehicle, which is one of a plurality of traveling vehicles, and a travel request that includes a request for movement to a destination, a controller selects a traveling route for the target traveling vehicle. The controller is provided with: a storage unit for storing map information that includes a plurality of nodes, a plurality of links, and a static travel cost that is associated with each link and indicates the time it will take for a traveling vehicle to pass the link; a calculation unit that calculates a delay cost indicating an increase in the amount of time it will take for the target traveling vehicle and at least one of non-target traveling vehicles to pass the link depending on the relationships between the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicles; and a selection unit that selects a travel route from a plurality of candidate routes on the basis of a total travel cost calculated on the basis of the static travel cost and the delay cost.

Description

Traveling vehicle control device, traveling vehicle system, and traveling vehicle control method

The present disclosure relates to a traveling vehicle control device, a traveling vehicle system, and a traveling vehicle control method.

2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, an unmanned traveling vehicle system that controls traveling of a traveling vehicle that conveys articles such as semiconductors, for example, in a semiconductor manufacturing factory or the like is known. In such an unmanned traveling vehicle system, a new travel request (for example, a transport request including information indicating each of an article to be transported, a gripping position (From point), and an unloading position (To point)) is issued. Each time it occurs, for example, the following optimum bogie priority control is executed. First, from among a plurality of vacant traveling vehicles (traveling vehicles that are not carrying articles) existing in a module (bay) including a cargo grasping position, a traveling vehicle that can reach the cargo grasping position in the shortest path or the shortest time is specified. Is done. Then, the transfer request is assigned to the specified traveling vehicle.

As such an automatic guided vehicle system, for example, Patent Literature 1 discloses that a plurality of candidate routes from the current position of a traveling vehicle to a destination can efficiently travel based on the distance and speed limit of the candidate route. A system is disclosed in which a candidate route determined to be is selected as a traveling route of the traveling vehicle. In addition, for example, in Patent Document 2, for each traveling vehicle, a traveling plan indicating a position and a time at which the traveling vehicle accelerates or decelerates in a traveling route selected in advance is created, and based on the traveling plan, traveling vehicles in front and behind are created. A system is disclosed that corrects a traveling plan of a subsequent traveling vehicle when it is determined that the traveling vehicle interferes.

Japanese Patent No. 4915302 Japanese Patent No. 5743169

In the automatic guided vehicle system disclosed in Patent Document 1, a traveling route is selected from a plurality of candidate routes without considering that traveling of the traveling vehicles is hindered by the relationship between the traveling vehicles. However, in practice, the traveling vehicle must travel while avoiding interference with other traveling vehicles, for example, and cannot always travel at the upper limit speed of the speed limit. For this reason, depending on the relationship between the traveling vehicles, a candidate route where each traveling vehicle cannot travel efficiently may be selected as the traveling route.

In addition, in the automatic guided vehicle system disclosed in Patent Document 2, a traveling route is selected in advance without considering a relationship between traveling vehicles, and a traveling plan according to the traveling route is corrected afterward. Therefore, it is desired to select a more appropriate traveling route by considering the relationship between traveling vehicles in advance when selecting the traveling route.

Therefore, an object of the present disclosure is to provide a traveling vehicle control device, a traveling vehicle system, and a traveling vehicle control method that can more appropriately select the traveling route of the traveling vehicle.

The traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure transmits a target traveling vehicle that is one of a plurality of traveling vehicles traveling along a transport path and a request to move to a preset destination. A traveling vehicle control device that selects a traveling route from the current position of the target traveling vehicle to the destination for the combination of the traveling request including the traveling request, and an acquisition unit that acquires the traveling request, and the target traveling vehicle in the transport path. A plurality of nodes each indicating a specific point included in the travelable area, a plurality of links connecting the nodes, and a static associated with each link indicating a time required for the traveling vehicle to pass through the link. A storage unit that stores map information including a travel cost, and at least one of the target travel vehicle and the non-target travel vehicle based on a relationship between the target travel vehicle and a non-target travel vehicle that is a travel vehicle other than the target travel vehicle. Tsuga phosphorus A calculating unit that calculates a delay cost indicating an increase in time required to pass through, a total running cost is calculated for each link based on the static running cost and the delay cost, and the calculated total running cost is calculated based on the calculated total running cost. A selection unit that selects a traveling route from a plurality of candidate routes from the current position of the target traveling vehicle to the destination.

The traveling vehicle control method according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a target traveling vehicle that is one of a plurality of traveling vehicles traveling along a transport path and a request to move to a preset destination. A traveling vehicle control method for selecting a traveling route from the current position of the target traveling vehicle to the destination, for a combination of the traveling request including the traveling request, and an acquisition step of acquiring the traveling request, wherein the target traveling vehicle is located on a transport path. For a static traveling cost indicating a time required for a traveling vehicle to pass through the link, associated with each of a plurality of links connecting between a plurality of nodes each indicating a specific point included in the travelable area, The delay cost indicating the amount of increase in the time required for at least one of the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle to pass through the link according to the relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle that is a traveling vehicle other than the target traveling vehicle. Calculating the total traveling cost for each link based on the static traveling cost and the delay cost, and calculating a plurality of total traveling costs from the current position of the target traveling vehicle to the destination based on the calculated total traveling cost. Selecting a traveling route from the candidate routes.

In this traveling vehicle control device or traveling vehicle control method, the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling are determined based on not only the unique static traveling cost associated with each link but also the relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle. The total travel cost is calculated for each link in consideration of a delay cost indicating an increase in time required for at least one of the vehicles to pass through the link. Then, a traveling route is selected from the plurality of candidate routes based on the calculated total traveling cost. Therefore, in consideration of the case where the traveling of the traveling vehicle is hindered by the relationship between traveling vehicles, a candidate route that allows the target traveling vehicle to travel more efficiently to the destination of the traveling request is selected as the traveling route. be able to. Therefore, according to the traveling vehicle control device or the traveling vehicle control method, it is possible to more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle.

In the traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the selecting unit calculates, for each link, a total traveling cost that is a sum of the static traveling cost and the delay cost, and includes the total traveling cost in the candidate route among the plurality of candidate routes. The candidate route that minimizes the total sum of the running costs of the links to be linked may be selected as the running route. Thus, in this traveling vehicle control device, the total traveling cost, which is the sum of the static traveling cost and the delay cost, is calculated, so that the total traveling cost can be calculated by simple processing. In this traveling vehicle control device, a candidate route that minimizes the sum of the total traveling costs of the links included in the candidate route is selected as the traveling route. As a result, a candidate route that allows the target traveling vehicle to travel particularly efficiently to the destination of the traveling request can be selected as a traveling route.

In the traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the delay cost is such that the target traveling vehicle passes through the link due to the influence of the front traveling vehicle, which is a non-target traveling vehicle ahead along the transport path of the target traveling vehicle. May include a first delay cost indicating the amount of increase in the time required for. Accordingly, in this traveling vehicle control device, the amount of time required for the target traveling vehicle to pass through the link due to the influence of the preceding traveling vehicle is reflected in the delay cost, so that the traveling vehicle passes through the link. Can be estimated appropriately. Therefore, the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle can be more appropriately selected.

The traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a planning unit that creates a traveling schedule related to a position of the traveling vehicle at each future time for each of the plurality of traveling vehicles, and the planning unit includes a target traveling vehicle. Create a static traveling schedule that is a traveling schedule of the traveling vehicle that does not consider the relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle, and based on the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle and the traveling schedule of the traveling vehicle ahead, A modified traveling schedule is created by modifying the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle so as to avoid interference with the preceding traveling vehicle, and the calculation unit calculates the modified traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle and the modified traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle. The first delay cost may be calculated based on the first delay cost. Thus, the traveling vehicle control device can more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle in consideration of the influence of the interference between the target traveling vehicle and the preceding traveling vehicle.

A traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a communication unit that receives, at a predetermined timing, state information related to a current position and a traveling speed of the traveling vehicle from a plurality of traveling vehicles, and the node is configured such that a transport path branches or Including a branch junction that is a merging point, the calculation unit, based on the state information of the traveling vehicle, at the branch junction located forward along the transport path of the target traveling vehicle, the target traveling vehicle and the forward traveling vehicle When the target traveling vehicle waits in front of the branching junction according to the relationship, the first standby delay cost indicating the standby time of the target traveling vehicle is calculated, and the first delay cost may include the first standby delay cost. . Thus, in this traveling vehicle control device, the target traveling vehicle waits in front of the branching junction in order to avoid interference with a forward traveling vehicle that is about to branch or merge with the transport path on which the target traveling vehicle is traveling. In the case where such control is performed, it is possible to more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle.

In the traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the traveling vehicle is an unmanned guided vehicle that transports and transfers articles, and from a plurality of traveling vehicles, state information related to the current position and traveling speed of the traveling vehicle. And a transfer unit for receiving, at a predetermined timing, transfer information on a transfer position, time, and required time at which the traveling vehicle transfers an article, and the calculation unit includes state information and the transfer of the traveling vehicle. Based on the information, the first transfer delay cost indicating the standby time of the target traveling vehicle is calculated when the target traveling vehicle stands by before the transfer position of the preceding traveling vehicle due to the transfer of the article by the preceding traveling vehicle. , The first delay cost may include a first transfer delay cost. Accordingly, in the traveling vehicle control device, when the control is performed such that the target traveling vehicle waits in front of the transfer position in order to avoid interference with the preceding traveling vehicle that transfers the articles, the traveling of the target traveling vehicle is performed. The route can be more appropriately selected.

In the traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the delay cost is such that the rear traveling vehicle that is a non-target traveling vehicle behind the target traveling vehicle along the transport path of the target traveling vehicle passes through the link due to the influence of the target traveling vehicle. May include a second delay cost indicating the amount of increase in the time required for. Thus, in the traveling vehicle control device, the amount of time required for the following vehicle to pass through the link due to the influence of the target traveling vehicle is reflected in the delay cost, so that the target traveling vehicle can control other traveling vehicles. The influence on running can be considered. Therefore, the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle can be more appropriately selected.

The traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a planning unit that creates a traveling schedule related to a position of the traveling vehicle at each future time for each of the plurality of traveling vehicles, and the planning unit includes a target traveling vehicle. Create a static traveling schedule that is a traveling schedule of the traveling vehicle that does not consider the relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle. A modified traveling schedule is created by modifying the static traveling schedule of the rearward traveling vehicle so as to avoid interference with the rearward traveling vehicle, and the calculation unit calculates the modified traveling schedule of the rearward traveling vehicle and the static traveling schedule of the rearward traveling vehicle. The second delay cost may be calculated based on the second delay cost. Thus, the traveling vehicle control device can more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle in consideration of the influence of interference between the target traveling vehicle and the rear traveling vehicle.

A traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes a communication unit that receives, at a predetermined timing, state information related to a current position and a traveling speed of the traveling vehicle from a plurality of traveling vehicles, and the node is configured such that a transport path branches or Including a branch junction, which is a merging point, the calculation unit, based on the state information of the traveling vehicle, at the branch junction located forward along the transport path of the target traveling vehicle, the target traveling vehicle and the rear traveling vehicle When the rear traveling vehicle stands by before the branch junction according to the relationship, the second standby delay cost indicating the standby time of the rear traveling vehicle is calculated, and the second delay cost may include the second standby delay cost. . Thus, in the traveling vehicle control device, the rear traveling vehicle waits in front of the branch junction in order to avoid interference with the rear traveling vehicle that is about to branch or merge with the transport path on which the target traveling vehicle is traveling. In the case where such control is performed, it is possible to more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle.

In the traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the traveling vehicle is an unmanned guided vehicle that transports and transfers articles, and from a plurality of traveling vehicles, state information related to the current position and traveling speed of the traveling vehicle. And a transfer unit for receiving, at a predetermined timing, transfer information on a transfer position, time, and required time at which the traveling vehicle transfers an article, and the calculation unit includes state information and the transfer of the traveling vehicle. Based on the information, when the rear traveling vehicle stands by before the transfer position of the target traveling vehicle due to the transfer of the article by the target traveling vehicle, a second transfer delay cost indicating a standby time of the rear traveling vehicle is calculated. , The second delay cost may include a second transfer delay cost. Accordingly, in the traveling vehicle control device, when performing control of waiting for the rear traveling vehicle to be in front of the transfer position in order to avoid interference with the target traveling vehicle for transferring articles, the traveling of the target traveling vehicle is performed. The route can be more appropriately selected.

In the traveling vehicle control device according to an aspect of the present disclosure, the acquisition unit acquires and accumulates a plurality of traveling requests, and the selection unit accumulates each of the plurality of traveling vehicles as target traveling vehicles and the acquisition unit. And selecting a traveling route for each of the plurality of traveling requests and, based on the total traveling cost corresponding to each of the traveling routes selected for each combination, assigning one traveling vehicle to each of the plurality of traveling requests. A deriving unit that derives the associated pairing information may be provided. Thus, in the traveling vehicle control device, after a plurality of traveling requests are temporarily stored, pairing information in which traveling vehicles are associated one-to-one with each of the plurality of traveling requests is derived. Therefore, it is possible to associate (assign) a traveling vehicle to each of a plurality of traveling requests in consideration of not only a single traveling request but also a mutual influence between a plurality of traveling requests. Therefore, with this traveling vehicle control device, it is possible to more appropriately allocate the traveling request to the traveling vehicle as compared with the case where the traveling vehicle is allocated to the traveling request each time one traveling request is generated. Become.

走行 A traveling vehicle system according to an aspect of the present disclosure includes the traveling vehicle control device described above, a transport path, and a plurality of traveling vehicles that can travel along the transport path. Since the traveling vehicle system includes the traveling vehicle control device described above, the traveling vehicle system can more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle for the above-described reason.

According to various aspects of the present disclosure, it is possible to more appropriately select a traveling route of a traveling vehicle.

FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating a layout example of the traveling vehicle system according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the controller. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the controller. FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating an example of a process performed by the selection unit. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an example of a process performed by the selection unit. FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example of a processing result of the selection unit. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the pairing information derived for the processing result of FIG. FIG. 8 is a diagram illustrating an example of a process of the derivation unit. FIG. 9 is a flowchart illustrating an example of a process of the derivation unit. FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining an example of the processing of the derivation unit. FIG. 11 is a diagram for explaining an example of the processing of the derivation unit. FIG. 12 is a diagram for explaining an example of the processing of the derivation unit. FIG. 13 is a diagram illustrating an example of a process of the deriving unit. FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of a process of the deriving unit. FIG. 15 is a diagram illustrating an example of a process of the deriving unit. FIG. 16 is a diagram for describing a traveling schedule created by the planning unit. FIG. 17 is a diagram for describing a travel schedule created by the planning unit. FIG. 18 is a diagram for describing a traveling schedule created by the planning unit. FIG. 19 is a diagram for describing a traveling schedule created by the planning unit. FIG. 20 is a diagram for describing a travel schedule created by the planning unit. FIG. 21 is a diagram for describing a travel schedule created by the planning unit. FIG. 22 is a diagram for describing a travel schedule created by the planning unit. FIG. 23 is a diagram for describing a travel schedule created by the planning unit. FIG. 24 is a flowchart illustrating the traveling vehicle control method.

Hereinafter, exemplary embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. In the drawings, the same or corresponding portions are denoted by the same reference characters, and redundant description will be omitted.

FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a layout example of the traveling vehicle system 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram illustrating an example of a hardware configuration of the controller 3. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a functional configuration of the controller 3. As shown in FIGS. 1 to 3, the traveling vehicle system 1 according to the present embodiment includes a transport path 4, a plurality of traveling vehicles 2 that can travel along the transport path 4, and an operation of each traveling vehicle 2. A controller (traveling vehicle control device) 3 for controlling the vehicle.

The traveling vehicle 2 is an unmanned traveling vehicle, for example, an overhead traveling vehicle, a tracked truck, or the like. In the present embodiment, the traveling vehicle 2 is, for example, an unmanned transport vehicle that is provided so as to be able to travel along a transport path 4 laid in a factory and that transports and transfers articles. As shown in FIG. 1, in the present embodiment, as an example, a traveling vehicle 2 is a ceiling transportation vehicle provided to be able to travel along a transportation path 4 such as a rail (track) laid near a ceiling in a factory. It is. For example, the traveling vehicle 2 is an overhead traveling type automatic guided vehicle (OHT: Overhead / Hoist / Transfer). As an example, the article transported by the traveling vehicle 2 is a cassette (a so-called FOUP (Front Opening Unified Unified Pod)) in which a plurality of semiconductor wafers are stored. The traveling vehicle 2 transmits the state information and the transfer information to the controller 3 at a predetermined timing. The state information is information on the current position and the traveling speed of the traveling vehicle 2. The transfer information is information on a transfer position, time, and required time at which the traveling vehicle transfers an article.

The transport path 4 is divided into a plurality (twelve in the example of FIG. 1) of sections (bays). The transport path 4 includes an intrabay route 5 which is a route in a bay, and an interbay route 6 which is a route connecting different bays. A load port 7 and a buffer 8 are provided along the transport path 4. The load port 7 is a point where the FOUP is transferred between the semiconductor processing device (not shown) and the traveling vehicle 2. The buffer 8 is a point where the traveling vehicle 2 can temporarily place the FOUP. The branching junction 9 is a point where the transport path 4 branches or merges. In the branching junction 9, exclusive control is required to exclude a plurality of traveling vehicles 2 from entering at the same time on the transport path 4.

The controller 3 controls the transport operation of each traveling vehicle 2 by outputting a transportation command to each traveling vehicle 2 by, for example, wireless communication. Here, the transport operation is a series of operations performed for transporting and transferring the FOUP. For example, an operation of gripping the FOUP at the load port 7 and the buffer 8 (load gripping operation) and an operation of unloading the FOUP (loading operation) Unloading operation), and a traveling operation of traveling on the transport path 4 and the like. The controller 3 receives a transport request (transport command) related to the transport of the FOUP from an upper controller such as a MES (Manufacturing Execution System) and an MCS (Material Control System) (not shown), and allocates it to the traveling vehicle 2. That is, when receiving the transfer request from the upper controller, the controller 3 determines the traveling vehicle 2 that executes the transfer request, and instructs the determined traveling vehicle 2 to execute the transfer request. Here, the transport request includes information for specifying an article to be transported, a cargo gripping position (From point), an unloading position (To point), and the like. That is, the transport request is a command requesting that a FOUP (article) arranged at a cargo gripping position (From point) as a destination be gripped and unloaded at a predetermined unloading position (To point). .

The controller 3 may directly control the traveling vehicle 2 existing in the control target area (area including a plurality of bays) illustrated in FIG. 1 or may travel the traveling vehicle 2 via a controller lower than the controller 3. May be controlled indirectly. For example, the control target area may be divided into a plurality of zones (for example, bay units), and a zone controller (bay controller) for controlling the traveling vehicle 2 in the zone may be provided for each zone. In this case, the controller 3 may transmit a control signal to each zone controller, and each zone controller may transmit a control signal to the traveling vehicle 2 in each zone. That is, the traveling vehicle 2 in each zone may be indirectly controlled by the controller 3 via the zone controller of each zone.

As shown in FIG. 2, the controller 3 includes a processor 301 such as one or more CPUs (Central Processing Unit), one or more RAMs (Random Access Memory) 302 as a main storage device, and one or more ROMs (Read Only). Memory) 303, an input device 304 such as a keyboard for the operator to perform operation input, an output device 305 such as a display for presenting information to the operator, and wired communication or wireless communication between the host controller and the traveling vehicle 2 and the like. It can be configured as a computer system including a communication module 306 for performing communication and an auxiliary storage device 307 such as an HDD and an SSD. The controller 3 may be configured as one server device, or may be configured as a plurality of server devices that operate in cooperation with each other. Each function of the controller 3 described below, for example, causes a predetermined program to be read on a memory such as the RAM 302, operates the input device 304 and the output device 305 under the control of the processor 301, and operates the communication module 306. It is realized by reading and writing data in the RAM 302 and the auxiliary storage device 307.

As illustrated in FIG. 3, the controller 3 includes, as functional components, an acquisition unit 31, a storage unit 32, a planning unit 33, a calculation unit 34, a selection unit 35, a derivation unit 36, a communication unit 37. The controller 3 assigns a traveling request including a request for moving to a preset destination to the target traveling vehicle 2A which is one traveling vehicle 2 selected from the plurality of traveling vehicles 2 by using these functions. Execute the process. In the present embodiment, the traveling request is the above-described transport request, and the preset destination is a cargo gripping position included in the transport request. For the combination of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the transport request, the controller 3 selects a traveling route from the current position of the target traveling vehicle 2A to the destination of the transport request. In the following description, the traveling vehicle 2 which is focused on as a target to which the traveling request is allocated may be referred to as a target traveling vehicle 2A. The traveling vehicle 2 other than the target traveling vehicle 2A may be referred to as a non-target traveling vehicle 2B. The non-target traveling vehicle 2B ahead of the target traveling vehicle 2A along the transport path 4 may be referred to as a front traveling vehicle 2F, and the rear non-target traveling vehicle 2B along the transport path 4 of the target traveling vehicle 2A may be referred to as a rear traveling vehicle. It may be referred to as traveling vehicle 2R.

The acquisition unit 31 acquires and accumulates a plurality of transport requests output from the host controller. The acquisition unit 31 temporarily stores the transport request acquired from the upper controller in a memory or the like provided in the controller 3. In the present embodiment, the acquisition unit 31 is configured to periodically receive a transport request from a host controller at a predetermined cycle (first control cycle). That is, the acquisition unit 31 accepts a transport request from the host controller at the reception timing that repeatedly arrives in the first control cycle. For example, the acquisition unit 31 acquires one or more transport requests generated in the upper controller between the previous reception timing and the current reception timing at the current reception timing. In the case where no transfer request has occurred between the previous reception timing and the current reception timing, the transfer request may not be acquired by the acquisition unit 31 at the current reception timing.

The storage unit 32 stores map information on the layout of the traveling vehicle system 1. The map information is information including a plurality of nodes, a plurality of links, and a static traveling cost associated with each link. The map information is referred to by the planning unit 33 described later.

The plurality of nodes are information indicating specific points included in an area on which the target traveling vehicle 2A can travel (for example, the control target area illustrated in FIG. 1) on the transport path 4. The specific point is an arbitrary point registered on the transport path 4 in advance. The specific point is, for example, a point where a predetermined working device such as the load port 7 and the buffer 8 is arranged, and a point including the branch junction 9 where the transport path 4 branches or merges. The link is information indicating a part connecting the nodes (a part of the transport path 4). A direction in which the traveling vehicle 2 can travel is associated with each link. That is, a plurality of nodes and a plurality of links included in the map information form a directed graph.

The static traveling cost is information indicating the time required for the traveling vehicle 2 to pass through the link (hereinafter, also referred to as “cost”). The static traveling cost is a cost associated with the link in advance, and is a cost when the relationship between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B is not considered. In other words, the static traveling cost is a cost that is not affected by other traveling vehicles 2. For example, the static traveling cost is a cost that indicates the shortest time that one traveling vehicle 2 can pass through a link in a situation where it is not affected by another traveling vehicle 2. Such a static traveling cost can be calculated based on, for example, the length (distance) of the link, the speed limit associated with the link, and the like.

The planning unit 33 creates, for each of the plurality of traveling vehicles 2, a traveling schedule related to the position of the traveling vehicle 2 at each future time (see FIG. 17). More specifically, first, the planning unit 33 creates a static traveling schedule that is a traveling schedule of the traveling vehicle 2 without considering the relationship between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B.

Thereafter, the planning unit 33 determines the target traveling vehicle 2A and the front traveling vehicle 2F based on the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the traveling schedule of the front traveling vehicle 2F (the decided traveling schedule of the front traveling vehicle 2F). A modified traveling schedule is created by modifying the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A so as to avoid interference with the traveling vehicle. That is, the planning unit 33 detects interference between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the front traveling vehicle 2F, and creates a corrected traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A so as to eliminate the interference.

The planning unit 33 also determines the target traveling vehicle 2A and the rear traveling vehicle 2R based on the traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A (the determined traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A) and the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R. A modified traveling schedule is created by modifying the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R so as to avoid interference with the vehicle. That is, the planning unit 33 detects interference between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the rear traveling vehicle 2R, and creates a corrected traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R so as to eliminate the interference. The traveling schedule created by the planning unit 33 will be described later in detail.

The calculation unit 34 calculates a delay cost indicating an increase in time required for at least one of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B to pass through the link, based on the relationship between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B. calculate. The delay cost includes a first delay cost Ti1 indicating an amount of time required for the target traveling vehicle 2A to pass through the link due to the influence of the traveling vehicle 2F and a rear traveling vehicle 2R due to the influence of the target traveling vehicle 2A. And a second delay cost Ti2 indicating the amount of time required to pass through the link increases (see FIG. 23). More specifically, the calculation unit 34 calculates the first delay cost Ti1 based on the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the corrected traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A. Further, the calculation unit 34 calculates the second delay cost Ti2 based on the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R and the corrected traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R.

The selection unit 35 selects a travel route for each combination of each of the plurality of traveling vehicles 2 as the target traveling vehicle 2A and each of the plurality of traveling requests accumulated by the acquisition unit 31. The selecting unit 35 calculates the total traveling cost for each link based on the static traveling cost and the delay cost. Then, the selection unit 35 selects a traveling route from a plurality of candidate routes from the current position of the target traveling vehicle 2A to the destination based on the calculated total traveling cost. For example, the selection unit 35 calculates, for each link, a total traveling cost that is a total of the static traveling cost and the delay cost, and calculates a total of the total traveling costs of the links included in the candidate route among the plurality of candidate routes. Is selected as the traveling route.

The processing performed by the selection unit 35 will be described with reference to FIGS. 4 and 5 are diagrams for explaining an example of the processing of the selection unit 35.

The selecting unit 35 determines whether the traveling vehicle 2 has received the transportation request for each combination of one of the transportation requests accumulated by the acquisition unit 31 and one of the traveling vehicles 2. The route cost indicating the time required for the execution (in the present embodiment, the time required for the traveling vehicle 2 to reach the destination (From point) of the transport request) is calculated. Specifically, the selection unit 35 determines, for each combination of the transport request and the traveling vehicle 2, the static traveling cost included in the map information stored in the storage unit 32 and the delay cost calculated by the calculation unit 34. , The total travel cost is calculated for each link. Then, the selection unit 35 selects a traveling route from a plurality of candidate routes from the current position of the target traveling vehicle 2A to the destination (From point which is a cargo gripping position) based on the calculated total traveling cost.

In the present embodiment, as described above, the selection unit 35 determines, for an arbitrary combination of the transport request and the traveling vehicle 2, a plurality of candidate routes from the current position of the traveling vehicle 2 to the destination (From point) of the transportation request. Among them, the candidate route (that is, the shortest route) that minimizes the sum of the total running costs of the links included in the candidate route (that is, the route cost) is determined as the running route. The selection unit 35 determines a travel route (shortest route) for each combination of the transport request and the traveling vehicle 2 by using a known shortest route search algorithm such as the Dijkstra method or A * (A-star). , The route cost can be calculated.

With reference to FIG. 4, the processing of the selection unit 35 for a certain combination of the traveling vehicle 2 and the transport request will be described. Here, the processing using the Dijkstra method will be described as an example. In FIG. 4, the nodes N with “E” and “1” to “6” correspond to the nodes included in the above-described map information. A node N marked with “S” (hereinafter also referred to as “start point S”) indicates a departure point of the route search (that is, the current position of the traveling vehicle 2). The node N marked with “E” (hereinafter also referred to as “end point E”) indicates the destination of the route search (that is, the From point of the transport request). Nodes N marked with “1” to “6” are nodes that are neither the departure place nor the destination. The link L connecting these nodes N corresponds to the link included in the map information. “Cost” associated with each link L corresponds to the cost included in the map information. Here, the cost of each link L is the total running cost which is the sum of the static running cost and the delay cost. The direction of each link L indicates a direction in which the traveling vehicle 2 can travel. Note that the start point S does not match a node registered in the map information in advance (that is, the start point S corresponds to an intermediate position of a link connecting the first node and the second node registered in the map information in advance). In FIG. 4, the selecting unit 35 newly sets a first link connecting the starting point S and the first node and a second link connecting the starting point S and the second node. You may acquire the information of a simple map. In this case, the travel cost associated with each of the first link and the second link includes, for example, the travel cost associated with the link connecting the first node and the second node, and the distance between the first link and the second link. And the ratio of

The selecting unit 35 executes the shortest path search algorithm (here, Dijkstra's algorithm) on the directed graph as shown in FIG. 4, and determines the shortest path from the start point S to the end point E and the one included in the shortest path. A route cost, which is the sum of the running costs of the link L, is derived. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an execution result of the shortest path search algorithm. As shown in FIG. 5, the selecting unit 35 selects “S” → “1” → “2” → “4” → “6” → “5” → “E” as the shortest path from the start point S to the end point E. Is determined. Further, the selecting unit 35 calculates “16 (= 2 + 3 + 3 + 4 + 2 + 2)” which is the sum of the traveling costs of the links L included in the shortest route (that is, the route cost) as the route cost of the shortest route. As described above, the selecting unit 35 derives the travel route (shortest route) and the route cost for one combination of the traveling vehicle 2 and the transport request by executing the known shortest route search algorithm. The selecting unit 35 executes the shortest route search algorithm for all possible combinations between the plurality of transport requests accumulated by the acquiring unit 31 and the plurality of traveling vehicles 2 existing in the control target area. Thereby, the selection unit 35 derives the traveling route and the route cost for each combination.

処理 By the processing of the selection unit 35 described above, the route cost for each possible combination between the plurality of transport requests and the plurality of traveling vehicles 2 accumulated by the acquisition unit 31 is obtained. FIG. 6 shows a plurality of (here, four) transport requests (transport requests 1 to 4) and a plurality of (here, seven) traveling vehicles 2 (the traveling vehicles 2 identified by the traveling vehicle IDs A to G). FIG. 14 is a diagram illustrating an example of a path cost calculated for each combination with (1). For example, the first row in the table of the transport request 1 in FIG. 6 indicates that the transport request 1 is the traveling vehicle 2 whose traveling vehicle ID is “A” (hereinafter, traveling vehicle 2 whose traveling vehicle ID is “X”). Is simply referred to as “traveling vehicle X”.), The shortest time required for traveling vehicle A to reach the From position of transport request 1 from the current position of traveling vehicle A is “3”. It is shown that. In the example of FIG. 6, the traveling vehicle 2 whose route cost is equal to or more than a predetermined threshold (here, 30) is excluded.

The deriving unit 36 derives pairing information in which one traveling vehicle is associated with each of a plurality of traveling requests based on route costs respectively corresponding to traveling routes selected for each combination. More specifically, the deriving unit 36 derives pairing information in which one traveling vehicle 2 is associated with (assigned to) each of the plurality of transport requests accumulated by the acquiring unit 31. The deriving unit 36 derives the pairing information based on the route cost calculated for each combination by the selecting unit 35 (that is, the calculation result as shown in FIG. 6). In the present embodiment, the deriving unit 36 derives the pairing information such that the sum of the route costs in the combination of the plurality of transport requests and the plurality of traveling vehicles 2 accumulated by the acquisition unit 31 is minimized.

FIG. 7 is a diagram showing the pairing information derived for the example of FIG. As shown in FIG. 7, the traveling request C is associated with the transportation request 1, the traveling vehicle E is associated with the transportation request 2, the traveling vehicle B is associated with the transportation request 3, and the traveling vehicle A is associated with the transportation request 4. In this case, the sum of the path costs takes the minimum value “21 (= 6 + 5 + 6 + 4)”. Therefore, the pairing information indicating such association is derived by the deriving unit 36. As described above, according to the deriving unit 36, the pairing information (hereinafter, also referred to as “optimal pairing information”) in which the total optimization of the route costs is minimized is obtained.

Next, an example of the processing of the deriving unit 36 for deriving the optimal pairing information will be described with reference to FIGS. In this example, the deriving unit 36 formulates the association (pairing) between the transport request and the traveling vehicle 2 as a minimum cost flow problem, and derives pairing information by solving the minimum cost flow problem. Here, as shown in FIG. 8, a process for deriving optimal pairing information that minimizes the sum of the route costs between the two

transport requests

1 and 2 and the three traveling vehicles A, B and C. Will be described. FIG. 8A illustrates an example of a calculation result by the selection unit 35 prepared for the description of the present example in a table format similar to FIG. FIG. 8B expresses the relationship shown in FIG. 8A as an undirected graph. The graph shown in FIG. 8B expresses the

transport requests

1 and 2 and the traveling vehicles A, B, and C as nodes, respectively, and expresses each of the

transport requests

1 and 2 and the traveling vehicles A, B, and C as nodes. The route cost of the combination is expressed as the cost of a link connecting the transport request and the traveling vehicle.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing a processing procedure. First, in step S11, the deriving unit 36 creates the network with cost shown in FIG. 10 in order to formulate the problem of deriving the optimal pairing information as the minimum cost flow problem. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 10, the deriving unit 36 sets the starting point s connected to each of the

nodes

1 and 2 indicating the

transport requests

1 and 2 by the link of the cost “0”, and An end point e connected to each of the nodes A, B, and C indicating the cars A, B, and C by a link having a cost of “0” is set. In addition, the deriving unit 36 sets each graph so that the entire graph becomes a directed graph flowing in the direction of “start point s → transport request node (nodes 1 and 2) → traveling vehicle node (nodes A, B and C) → end point e”. Set the direction of the link. Here, the capacity of each link is set to 1. As described above, the problem of deriving the optimal pairing information between the two

transport requests

1 and 2 and the three traveling vehicles A, B, and C is the minimum cost flow problem for the network with cost (directed graph) shown in FIG. Is converted to

Subsequently, in step S12, the deriving unit 36 obtains the shortest path P1 from the start point s to the end point e by executing the shortest path search algorithm such as the Dijkstra method for the network with cost shown in FIG. The shortest cost from the start point s to each node (the sum of the costs of the links that pass when the shortest path from the start point s to each node is traced) is obtained. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 11, the shortest path P1 (start point s → node 1 → node A → end point e) indicated by a thick line and the shortest cost of each node are obtained.

Subsequently, in step S13, the deriving unit 36 creates an auxiliary network (remaining capacity network) for the shortest path P1. Specifically, first, as shown in FIG. 12, the deriving unit 36 reverses the direction of each link on the shortest path P1 and makes the cost of each link on the shortest path P1 negative (that is, Multiply the cost of each link by "-1"). As a result, the cost of the link connecting node 1 and node A changes from “1” to “−1”. Subsequently, as shown in FIG. 13, the deriving unit 36 adds “the shortest cost at the start point of the link−the shortest cost at the end point of the link” to the cost of each link in the directed graph. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 13, the auxiliary network AN1 in which the cost of each link is updated is obtained.

Subsequently, in step S14, the deriving unit 36 determines whether or not there is a route from the start point s to the end point e in the auxiliary network AN1. Here, in the auxiliary network AN1, there is a route from the start point s to the end point e, and the determination result is “YES”, so the deriving unit 36 proceeds to the process of step S15.

In step S15, the derivation unit 36 obtains the shortest path P2 from the start point s to the end point e by executing the shortest path search algorithm such as the Dijkstra method on the auxiliary network AN1, and also, from the start point s to each node. Find the shortest cost of Thereby, as shown in FIG. 14, the shortest path P2 (start point s → node 2 → node A → node 1 → node B → end point e) indicated by a thick line is obtained, and the shortest cost of each node is updated. .

Subsequently, returning to step S13, the deriving unit 36 obtains an auxiliary network for the shortest path P2 by the same procedure as the processing for the shortest path P1. Thereby, as shown in FIG. 15, the direction of each link on the shortest path P2 is reversed, and the auxiliary network AN2 in which the cost of each link is updated is obtained. When the auxiliary network AN2 is obtained, there is no route from the start point s to the end point e. Therefore, the determination result of step S14 is “NO”, and the deriving unit 36 proceeds to the process of step S16. When “the number of traveling vehicles 2 (here, 3)> the number of transport requests (here, 2)” is satisfied as in this example, the number of repetitions (the number of times the auxiliary network is derived) is equal to the number of transport requests. Become equal. For this reason, in the present example, when the second auxiliary network AN2 is derived, there is no route from the start point s to the end point e.

Subsequently, in step S16, the deriving unit 36 executes the traveling vehicles (nodes A to C) in the state (auxiliary network AN2 shown in FIG. 15) at the time when the above-described iterative processing (shortest route search and auxiliary network creation) is completed. Optimum pairing information is derived on the basis of the link directed to the transport request (nodes 1 and 2) from. In the example of FIG. 15, the link from the node A to the node 2 and the link from the node B to the node 1 indicate an optimal combination of the transport request and the traveling vehicle. In this case, the deriving unit 36 derives the pairing information in which the transport request 1 is associated with the traveling vehicle B and the transport request 2 is associated with the traveling vehicle A as the optimal pairing information.

In this example, when there are a plurality of shortest paths obtained by the shortest path search algorithm such as the Dijkstra method in step S12 or step S15 (that is, a plurality of shortest paths having the same cost from the start point s to the end point e) Is present). In such a case, the deriving unit 36 may select any one of the plurality of shortest paths and execute the subsequent processing (the creation of the auxiliary network in step S13). According to such a measure, optimal pairing information can be finally obtained. In the example of FIG. 8, a case where all combinations between the plurality of

transport requests

1 and 2 and the plurality of traveling vehicles A, B, and C are possible (that is, all traveling vehicles A, B, and C are all In which the transfer requests 1 and 2 can be executed). However, the above-described processing is applicable even when there is a traveling vehicle that can execute only a part of the transportation requests and when there is a transportation request that can be executed only by some of the traveling vehicles. It is.

1 to 3, the communication unit 37 transmits and receives information to and from the traveling vehicle 2 by, for example, wireless communication. The communication unit 37 transmits information on the traveling request associated with each traveling vehicle 2 to the traveling vehicle 2 based on the pairing information derived by the deriving unit 36. Thereby, the controller 3 assigns a traveling request to each traveling vehicle 2. In addition, the communication unit 37 transmits, from the plurality of traveling vehicles 2, state information relating to the current position and traveling speed of the traveling vehicle 2, and a transfer position at which the traveling vehicle transfers articles, a time, and a transfer time relating to a required time. And the placement information are received at a predetermined timing.

Next, the travel schedule created by the planning unit 33 will be described. FIG. 16 is a diagram illustrating a part of the transport path 4. The portion shown in FIG. 16 of the transport path 4 includes three links (hereinafter, referred to as link A, link B, and link C). Link A, link B, and link C are connected in this order. Link A is connected to link X and link Y on the upstream side of link A at node a. Further, link A and link B are connected at node b, and link B and link C are connected at node c. The link C is connected to a link Z on the downstream side of the link C by a node d. As an initial state, one traveling vehicle 2 located at link B is traveling toward link C, traveling vehicle 2 located at link A is traveling toward link B, and traveling vehicle 2 is located at link X. It is assumed that the traveling vehicle 2 is traveling toward the link A.

Here, as shown in FIG. 16, the traveling vehicle 2 located on the link A is closer to the node a (that is, between the traveling vehicle 2 located on the link A and the traveling vehicle 2 located on the link X), For example, it is assumed that the traveling vehicle 2 newly enters from the transport path Y. Hereinafter, the newly entered traveling vehicle 2 is referred to as a target traveling vehicle 2A, and the traveling vehicle 2 which was located at the link X in the initial state is the rear traveling vehicle 2R, and the traveling vehicle 2 which was located at the link A in the initial state. Is referred to as a forward running vehicle 2F. The traveling vehicle 2 located at the link B in the initial state is referred to as a leading traveling vehicle 2T.

FIG. 17 is a graph showing the traveling schedule of the leading traveling vehicle 2T, the forward traveling vehicle 2F, and the rear traveling vehicle 2R when the target traveling vehicle 2A enters the link A. In FIG. 17, the horizontal axis represents time, and the vertical axis represents a position along the transport path 4. The slope of the graph represents the traveling speed of the traveling vehicle 2. When the traveling speed of the traveling vehicle 2 is not affected by the other traveling vehicles 2, the traveling speed of the traveling vehicle 2 is specified by, for example, the speed limit of each link. Before the target traveling vehicle 2A enters the link A, the leading traveling vehicle 2T is scheduled to stop to transfer articles on the link B, as shown in FIG. In addition, in front of (upstream of) the leading traveling vehicle 2T that has stopped for transferring articles, the traveling vehicle 2F is scheduled to stop in order to avoid interference with the leading traveling vehicle 2T. The rear traveling vehicle 2R is scheduled to travel on the transport path 4 without being affected by the leading traveling vehicle 2T and the forward traveling vehicle 2F.

FIG. 18 is a diagram for describing a static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A in the link A. When the target traveling vehicle 2A enters the link A, as shown in FIG. 18, static traveling in which the target traveling vehicle 2A travels at the speed limit of the link A in a range from the current position of the target traveling vehicle 2A to the node b. A schedule is created. The required time T1 from the current position of the target traveling vehicle 2A to the node b is represented by the following equation (1). Here, Cost is the required time when the traveling vehicle 2 travels from the node a to the node b at the speed limit of the link A, L is the total length of the link A, and P is the distance from the node a to the target traveling vehicle 2A. The distance to the current location.
T1 = Cost × ((LP) / L) (1)

FIG. 19 is a diagram for describing correction of a traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A in the link A. As shown in FIG. 19, in order to keep the inter-vehicle distance with the forward traveling vehicle 2F waiting in the link B for the transfer of articles by the leading traveling vehicle 2T, the target traveling vehicle 2A is connected to the node b. Reduce running speed. More specifically, the time interval between the time when the forward traveling vehicle 2F passes through the node b and the time when the target traveling vehicle 2A reaches the node b is a safety time T2 represented by the following equation (2). Thus, the target traveling vehicle 2A decreases the traveling speed to the node b. Here, v is the speed limit of the link A, a is the traveling speed of the target traveling vehicle 2A, and Lv is the total length of the traveling vehicle 2.
T2 = − (v / a) + (Lv / v) (2)

FIG. 20 is a diagram for explaining correction of the traveling schedule in the link A of the target traveling vehicle 2A based on the flow rate restriction control. As shown in FIG. 20, the flow rate limiting control sets an upper limit on the number of traveling vehicles 2 that can exist in each link, and the number of traveling vehicles 2 exceeding the upper limit attempts to enter the link. In this case, the control is such that the traveling vehicle 2 does not enter the link. Here, as an example, for the link B, the flow rate limiting control for setting the upper limit of the traveling vehicles 2 that can exist in the link B to two is executed. For this reason, the target traveling vehicle 2A does not enter the link B while the leading traveling vehicle 2T and the traveling vehicle 2F are present in the link B. Then, the target traveling vehicle 2A is connected to the node so that the target traveling vehicle 2A enters the link B after the leading traveling vehicle 2T exits the link B so that only the forward traveling vehicle 2F exists within the link B. The traveling speed up to b is reduced.

FIG. 21 is a diagram for explaining a static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A in the link B. As shown in FIG. 21, a static traveling schedule in which the target traveling vehicle 2A travels at the link B speed limit is created for the range from the node b to the node c. In this case, since the relationship between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B is not taken into account in the static traveling schedule, the created static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A is such that the target traveling vehicle 2A is located ahead of the target traveling vehicle 2A. It interferes with the traveling schedule of the traveling vehicle 2F.

FIG. 22 is a diagram for explaining the correction of the traveling schedule in the link B of the target traveling vehicle 2A. As shown in FIG. 22, based on the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the traveling schedule of the front traveling vehicle 2F, the target traveling vehicle 2A is configured to avoid interference between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the front traveling vehicle 2F. A modified traveling schedule is created by modifying the static traveling schedule of. More specifically, the traveling speed of the target traveling vehicle 2A from node b to node c is reduced so that the target traveling vehicle 2A does not catch up with and interfere with the front traveling vehicle 2F. At this time, the time interval between the time when the target traveling vehicle 2A passes through the node b and the time when the target traveling vehicle 2A reaches the node c in the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A corresponds to the static traveling cost of the link B. The time interval between the time when the target traveling vehicle 2A reaches the node c in the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the time when the target traveling vehicle 2A reaches the node c in the modified traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A. Corresponds to the delay cost of the link B in the situation of FIG. 22 (more specifically, the first delay cost Ti1). The created corrected traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A is such that the target traveling vehicle 2A interferes with the rear traveling vehicle 2R.

FIG. 23 is a diagram for explaining correction of a traveling schedule in the link B of the rear traveling vehicle 2R. As shown in FIG. 23, the interference between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the rear traveling vehicle 2R based on the traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A (here, the corrected traveling schedule) and the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R. A modified traveling schedule is generated by modifying the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R so as to avoid the following. More specifically, the traveling speed of the rear traveling vehicle 2R from the node b to the node c is reduced so that the rear traveling vehicle 2R does not catch up with and interfere with the target traveling vehicle 2A. At this time, the time when the rear traveling vehicle 2R reaches the node c in the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R and the time when the rear traveling vehicle 2R reaches the node c in the modified traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R. The interval corresponds to the delay cost (more specifically, the second delay cost Ti2) of the link B in the situation of FIG. The time interval between the time when the target traveling vehicle 2A passes through the node b in the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the time when the rear traveling vehicle 2R reaches the node c in the modified traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R. Corresponds to the total traveling cost of the link B of the target traveling vehicle 2A in the situation of FIG. That is, here, the total travel cost of the link B is a cost obtained by adding the first delay cost Ti1 and the second delay cost Ti2 to the static travel cost.

Next, the traveling vehicle control method will be described. The traveling vehicle control method is a method of selecting a traveling route from the current position of the target traveling vehicle 2A to the destination of the traveling request for the combination of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the traveling request. Here, a traveling vehicle control method using the above-described controller 3 will be described as an example.

FIG. 24 is a flowchart showing a traveling vehicle control method. The flowchart of FIG. 24 is started, for example, when a traveling request is output from a host controller. As shown in FIG. 24, in the traveling vehicle control method, in step S21, the controller 3 acquires a traveling request (acquisition step). More specifically, the acquisition unit 31 acquires the traveling request output from the upper controller. Subsequently, in step S22, the controller 3 determines, based on the relationship between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B, the static traveling cost associated with each of the plurality of links connecting the plurality of nodes. A delay cost indicating an increase in time required for at least one of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B to pass through the link is calculated (calculation step). Subsequently, in step S23, the controller 3 calculates the total traveling cost for each link based on the static traveling cost and the delay cost, and calculates the total traveling cost from the current position of the target traveling vehicle 2A based on the calculated total traveling cost. A traveling route is selected from a plurality of candidate routes to the destination (selection step). Thus, the current processing of the traveling vehicle control method ends.

The first delay cost Ti1 may include a first standby delay cost and a first transfer delay cost. Further, the above-described second delay cost Ti2 may include a second standby delay cost and a second transfer delay cost. Hereinafter, the first standby delay cost, the first transfer delay cost, the second standby delay cost, and the second transfer delay cost will be described.

The first waiting delay cost refers to a case where a front traveling vehicle 2F that is about to branch or join at a branching junction 9 located ahead of the target traveling vehicle 2A along the transport path 4 exists. This is the cost incurred when the target traveling vehicle 2A waits in front of the branch junction 9 until the vehicle 2A leaves the branch junction 9. The first standby delay cost occurs because an exclusive control is executed to exclude a plurality of traveling vehicles 2 from entering the branching junction 9 at the same time. As described above, the calculation unit 34 determines, based on the state information of the traveling vehicle 2, the target traveling vehicle 2 A and the forward traveling vehicle 2 F at the branching junction 9 located forward along the transport path 4 of the target traveling vehicle 2 A. When the target traveling vehicle 2A stands by before the branching junction 9 according to the relationship, the first standby delay cost indicating the standby time of the target traveling vehicle 2A is calculated. More specifically, the calculation unit 34 determines whether or not the standby of the target traveling vehicle 2A is necessary based on the state information of each traveling vehicle 2 and, when determining that the standby of the target traveling vehicle 2A is necessary, The standby time of the target traveling vehicle 2A is calculated based on the state information of each traveling vehicle 2.

The first transfer delay cost is a cost incurred when the target traveling vehicle 2A waits short of the transfer position by the front traveling vehicle 2F due to the transfer of an article by the front traveling vehicle 2F. The first transfer delay cost occurs because the target traveling vehicle 2A cannot pass the front traveling vehicle 2F that is stopped for the transportation in front of the transport path 4 on which the target traveling vehicle 2A is traveling. I do. As described above, the calculation unit 34 causes the target traveling vehicle 2A to stand by just before the transfer position by the front traveling vehicle 2F due to the transfer of the articles by the front traveling vehicle 2F based on the state information and the transfer information of the traveling vehicle 2. In this case, the first transfer delay cost indicating the standby time of the target traveling vehicle 2A is calculated. More specifically, the calculation unit 34 determines whether the standby of the target traveling vehicle 2A is necessary based on the state information and the transfer information of each traveling vehicle 2 and determines that the standby of the target traveling vehicle 2A is necessary. In this case, the standby time of the target traveling vehicle 2A is calculated based on the state information and the transfer information of each traveling vehicle 2.

The second waiting delay cost means that when the target traveling vehicle 2A is about to branch or merge at the branching junction 9, the rear traveling vehicle 2R is connected to the branch junction 9 until the target traveling vehicle 2A leaves the branching junction 9. This is the cost incurred by waiting in front of the server. The second standby delay cost is generated because exclusive control is executed to exclude a plurality of traveling vehicles 2 from entering the branching junction 9 at the same time. As described above, the calculation unit 34 determines, based on the state information of the traveling vehicle 2, that the target traveling vehicle 2 A and the rear traveling vehicle 2 R at the branching junction 9 located forward along the transport path 4 of the target traveling vehicle 2 A. When the rear traveling vehicle 2R stands by before the branching junction 9, the second standby delay cost indicating the standby time of the rear traveling vehicle 2R is calculated according to the relationship. More specifically, the calculation unit 34 determines whether or not the waiting of the rear traveling vehicle 2R is necessary based on the state information of each traveling vehicle 2 and, when determining that the standby of the rear traveling vehicle 2R is necessary, The standby time of the rear traveling vehicle 2R is calculated based on the state information of each traveling vehicle 2.

The second transfer delay cost is a cost incurred when the rear traveling vehicle 2R waits short of the transfer position of the target traveling vehicle 2A due to the transfer of an article by the target traveling vehicle 2A. The second transfer delay cost occurs because the rear traveling vehicle 2R cannot overtake the target traveling vehicle 2A stopped for the transportation in front of the transport path 4 on which the rear traveling vehicle 2R is traveling. I do. As described above, the calculation unit 34 causes the rear traveling vehicle 2R to stand by just before the transfer position by the target traveling vehicle 2A due to the transfer of articles by the target traveling vehicle 2A based on the state information and the transfer information of the traveling vehicle 2. In this case, the second transfer delay cost indicating the standby time of the rear traveling vehicle 2R is calculated. More specifically, the calculation unit 34 determines whether or not the rear traveling vehicle 2R needs to wait based on the state information and the transfer information of each traveling vehicle 2, and determines that the rear traveling vehicle 2R needs to wait. In this case, the standby time of the rear traveling vehicle 2R is calculated based on the state information and the transfer information of each traveling vehicle 2.

As described above, the controller 3 requests the target traveling vehicle 2A, which is one of the traveling vehicles 2 traveling along the transport path 4, to move to the preset destination. The controller 3 selects a traveling route from the current position of the target traveling vehicle 2A to the destination with respect to a combination of the traveling request including the traveling request. A plurality of nodes respectively indicating specific points included in the area where the car 2A can travel, a plurality of links connecting the nodes, and a time required for the traveling vehicle 2 to pass through the link, which is associated with each link. And a storage unit 32 for storing map information including a static traveling cost indicating the target traveling vehicle 2A and a non-target traveling vehicle 2B that is a traveling vehicle 2 other than the target traveling vehicle 2A. A calculating unit that calculates a delay cost indicating an increase in a time required for at least one of the vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B to pass through the link; and a total traveling cost based on the static traveling cost and the delay cost. A selection unit 35 that calculates a traveling route from a plurality of candidate routes from the current position of the target traveling vehicle 2A to the destination based on the calculated total traveling cost and the calculated total traveling cost.

The controller 3 determines at least the target traveling vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B based on the relationship between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the non-target traveling vehicle 2B as well as the unique static traveling cost associated with each link. The total running cost is calculated for each link in consideration of the delay cost indicating the amount of time required for one to pass through the link. Then, a traveling route is selected from the plurality of candidate routes based on the calculated total traveling cost. Therefore, in consideration of the case where the traveling of the traveling vehicle 2 is hindered by the relationship between the traveling vehicles 2, the candidate route that allows the target traveling vehicle 2A to travel more efficiently to the destination of the traveling request is determined as the traveling route. Can be selected as Therefore, according to the controller 3, it is possible to more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle 2A.

Further, in the controller 3, the selection unit 35 calculates a total traveling cost, which is a sum of the static traveling cost and the delay cost, for each link, and calculates a total traveling cost of a link included in the candidate route among the plurality of candidate routes. Is selected as a traveling route that minimizes the sum of As a result, the controller 3 calculates the total traveling cost, which is the sum of the static traveling cost and the delay cost, so that the total traveling cost can be calculated by simple processing. The controller 3 selects a candidate route that minimizes the sum of the total travel costs of the links included in the candidate route among the plurality of candidate routes as the travel route. As a result, a candidate route that allows the target traveling vehicle 2A to travel particularly efficiently to the destination requested for traveling can be selected as a traveling route.

In the controller 3, the delay cost is caused by the target traveling vehicle 2A passing through the link due to the influence of the front traveling vehicle 2F which is the non-target traveling vehicle 2B ahead of the target traveling vehicle 2A along the transport path 4. A first delay cost Ti1 indicating the amount of increase in time is included. Accordingly, the controller 3 reflects the amount of time required for the target traveling vehicle 2A to pass through the link due to the influence of the preceding traveling vehicle 2F in the delay cost, so that the traveling vehicle 2 passes through the link. Can be estimated appropriately. Therefore, the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle 2A can be more appropriately selected.

In addition, the controller 3 includes a planning unit 33 that creates a traveling schedule for each of the plurality of traveling vehicles 2 at a future time at a position of the traveling vehicle 2. A static traveling schedule, which is a traveling schedule of the traveling vehicle 2 that does not consider the relationship with the target traveling vehicle 2B, is created, and the target traveling is performed based on the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the traveling schedule of the forward traveling vehicle 2F. A corrected traveling schedule is created by modifying the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A so as to avoid interference between the vehicle 2A and the traveling vehicle 2F, and the calculation unit 34 calculates the static traveling schedule and the target traveling of the target traveling vehicle 2A. The first delay cost Ti1 is calculated based on the corrected travel schedule of the vehicle 2A. Thus, the controller 3 can more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle 2A in consideration of the influence of interference between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the front traveling vehicle 2F.

Further, the controller 3 includes a communication unit 37 that receives state information on the current position and the traveling speed of the traveling vehicle 2 from the plurality of traveling vehicles 2 at a predetermined timing. The node is located at a point where the transport path 4 branches or merges. The calculation unit 34 includes, based on the state information of the traveling vehicle 2, the branching junction 9 located in front of the target traveling vehicle 2 A along the transport path 4 and the target traveling vehicle 2 A. When the target traveling vehicle 2A stands by before the branch junction 9 due to the relationship with the forward traveling vehicle 2F, a first standby delay cost indicating a standby time of the target traveling vehicle 2A is calculated, and the first delay cost Ti1 is Including the first waiting delay cost. Thereby, in the controller 3, the target traveling vehicle 2 A is connected to the branch junction 9 in order to avoid interference with the forward traveling vehicle 2 F that is about to branch or join the transport path 4 on which the target traveling vehicle 2 A is traveling. In the case of executing the control of waiting in front, the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle 2A can be more appropriately selected.

In the controller 3, the traveling vehicle 2 is an unmanned transport vehicle that transports and transfers articles, and from the plurality of traveling vehicles 2, state information on the current position and traveling speed of the traveling vehicle 2 and the traveling vehicle 2 2 includes a communication unit 37 that receives, at a predetermined timing, transfer information on a transfer position, a time, and a required time at which an article is transferred. A first transfer delay indicating a standby time of the target traveling vehicle 2A when the target traveling vehicle 2A stands by before the transfer position by the front traveling vehicle 2F due to the transfer of an article by the front traveling vehicle 2F based on the information. The cost is calculated, and the first delay cost Ti1 includes the first transfer delay cost. Accordingly, in the case where the target traveling vehicle 2A executes a control to wait in front of the transfer position in order to avoid interference with the forward traveling vehicle 2F that transfers the articles, the controller 3 performs control of the target traveling vehicle 2A. The traveling route can be more appropriately selected.

In the controller 3, the delay cost is due to the rear traveling vehicle 2R, which is a non-target traveling vehicle 2B behind the target traveling vehicle 2A along the transport path 4 due to the influence of the target traveling vehicle 2A, passing through the link. A second delay cost Ti2 indicating the amount of increase in time is included. Accordingly, the controller 3 reflects the increase in the time required for the rear traveling vehicle 2R to pass through the link due to the influence of the target traveling vehicle 2A in the delay cost, so that the target traveling vehicle 2A can be used as another traveling vehicle. 2 can be considered. Therefore, the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle 2A can be more appropriately selected.

In addition, the controller 3 includes a planning unit 33 that creates a traveling schedule for each of the plurality of traveling vehicles 2 at a future time at a position of the traveling vehicle 2. A static traveling schedule, which is a traveling schedule of the traveling vehicle 2 that does not consider the relationship with the target traveling vehicle 2B, is created, and the target traveling is performed based on the traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle 2A and the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R. A modified traveling schedule is created by modifying the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle 2R so as to avoid interference between the vehicle 2A and the rear traveling vehicle 2R. The second delay cost Ti2 is calculated based on the corrected traveling schedule of the vehicle 2R. Thus, the controller 3 can more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle 2A in consideration of the influence of interference between the target traveling vehicle 2A and the rear traveling vehicle 2R.

Further, the controller 3 includes a communication unit 37 that receives state information on the current position and the traveling speed of the traveling vehicle 2 from the plurality of traveling vehicles 2 at a predetermined timing. The node is located at a point where the transport path 4 branches or merges. The calculation unit 34 includes, based on the state information of the traveling vehicle 2, the branching junction 9 located in front of the target traveling vehicle 2 A along the transport path 4 and the target traveling vehicle 2 A. When the rear traveling vehicle 2R stands by before the branching junction 9 due to the relationship with the rear traveling vehicle 2R, a second standby delay cost indicating a standby time of the rear traveling vehicle 2R is calculated, and the second delay cost Ti2 is Including the second waiting delay cost. Thus, in the controller 3, the rear traveling vehicle 2R is connected to the branch junction 9 in order to avoid interference with the rear traveling vehicle 2R that is about to branch or merge with the transport path 4 on which the target traveling vehicle 2A is traveling. In the case of executing the control of waiting in front, the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle 2A can be more appropriately selected.

In the controller 3, the traveling vehicle 2 is an unmanned transport vehicle that transports and transfers articles, and from the plurality of traveling vehicles 2, state information on the current position and traveling speed of the traveling vehicle 2 and the traveling vehicle 2 2 includes a communication unit 37 that receives, at a predetermined timing, transfer information on a transfer position, a time, and a required time at which an article is transferred. Based on the information, when the rear traveling vehicle 2R waits in front of the transfer position of the target traveling vehicle 2A due to the transfer of the article by the target traveling vehicle 2A, a second transfer delay indicating the standby time of the rear traveling vehicle 2R. The cost is calculated, and the second delay cost Ti2 includes the second transfer delay cost. Accordingly, in the case where the controller 3 executes a control in which the rear traveling vehicle 2R waits in front of the transfer position in order to avoid interference with the target traveling vehicle 2A for transferring articles, the controller 3 The traveling route can be more appropriately selected.

In the controller 3, the acquiring unit 31 acquires and accumulates a plurality of traveling requests, and the selecting unit 35 computes each of the traveling vehicles 2 as the target traveling vehicle 2 A and the plurality of traveling requests accumulated by the acquiring unit 31. A traveling route is selected for each of the traveling requests and the combination of the traveling requests, and one traveling vehicle 2 is corresponded to each of the plurality of traveling requests based on the total traveling cost corresponding to the traveling route selected for each combination. A deriving unit 36 for deriving the attached pairing information is provided. Thus, in the controller 3, after a plurality of traveling requests are once accumulated, pairing information in which the traveling vehicle 2 is associated with each of the plurality of traveling requests on a one-to-one basis is derived. For this reason, it is possible to associate (assign) the traveling vehicle 2 with each of the plurality of traveling requests in consideration of not only a single traveling request but also the mutual influence between the plurality of traveling requests. Therefore, the controller 3 can more appropriately allocate the traveling request to the traveling vehicle 2 as compared with the case where the traveling vehicle 2 is assigned to the traveling request each time one traveling request is generated. Become.

The traveling vehicle system 1 includes the controller 3 described above, a transport path 4, and a plurality of traveling vehicles 2 that can travel along the transport path 4. Since the traveling vehicle system 1 includes the above-described controller 3, the traveling vehicle system 1 can more appropriately select the traveling route of the target traveling vehicle 2A for the above-described reason.

走行 In addition, the above-described traveling vehicle control method includes the acquisition step, the calculation step, and the selection step, so that the same operation and effect as the above-described controller 3 can be achieved.

The embodiments described above can be implemented in various forms with various changes and improvements based on the knowledge of those skilled in the art.

For example, the travel request may be a request including a request for moving to a preset destination, and may not be a transport request for transporting articles.

The selection unit 35 does not need to calculate the total travel cost as the sum of the static travel cost and the delay cost. For example, the selection unit 35 may calculate the total traveling cost as the sum of the static traveling cost and the cost obtained by weighting the delay cost based on a preset reference. In addition, the selecting unit 35 does not have to select a candidate route having the smallest total traveling cost among the plurality of candidate routes as the traveling route.

The delay cost does not have to include the first delay cost Ti1. Further, the delay cost may not include the second delay cost Ti2.

算出 Also, the calculating unit 34 does not necessarily need to calculate the delay cost based on the traveling schedule created by the planning unit 33. For example, the calculation unit 34 may statistically calculate the delay cost based on the past traveling history of the traveling vehicle 2. For example, for each link, the calculation unit 34 calculates the delay cost of the link based on the amount of time required for the traveling vehicle 2 to pass through the link in the past relative to the static travel cost. Is also good. More specifically, for each link, the average value of the amount of time required for the traveling vehicle 2 to pass through the link in the past to the static traveling cost may be set as the delay cost of the link. In this case, the controller 3 may not include the planning unit 33.

The first delay cost Ti1 may not include the first standby delay cost. Further, the first delay cost Ti1 may not include the first transfer delay cost. The second delay cost Ti2 may not include the second standby delay cost. Further, the second delay cost T12 may not include the second transfer delay cost.

Alternatively, the controller 3 may acquire one traveling request by the acquiring unit 31 and select a traveling route for only the combination of one target traveling vehicle 2A and the traveling request by the selecting unit 35. In this case, the controller 3 need not derive pairing information in which one traveling vehicle 2 is associated with each of the plurality of traveling requests. That is, the controller 3 may not include the deriving unit 36.

Further, in the above-described embodiment, the FOUP accommodating a plurality of semiconductor wafers is exemplified as the article (transported article) conveyed by the traveling vehicle 2, but the article is not limited to this, and for example, a glass wafer, a reticle It may be another container in which etc. are stored. In addition, the traveling vehicle system 1 is not limited to a semiconductor manufacturing plant, and can be applied to other facilities.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Traveling vehicle system, 2 ... Traveling vehicle, 2A ... Target traveling vehicle, 2B ... Non-target traveling vehicle, 2F ... Forward traveling vehicle, 2R ... Rear traveling vehicle, 3 ... Controller (traveling vehicle control device), 4 ... Transport path , 9: branching and joining section, 31: acquisition section, 32: storage section, 33: planning section, 34: calculation section, 35: selection section, 36: derivation section, 37: communication section.

Claims

The combination of a target traveling vehicle, which is one of a plurality of traveling vehicles traveling along the transport path, and a traveling request including a request to move to a preset destination, A traveling vehicle control device that selects a traveling route from the current position of the vehicle to the destination,
An acquisition unit that acquires the traveling request;
A plurality of nodes respectively indicating specific points included in an area where the target traveling vehicle can travel on the transport path, a plurality of links connecting the nodes, and the traveling vehicle associated with each of the links. A storage unit that stores map information including a static traveling cost indicating a time required to pass through the link,
Increase in time required for at least one of the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle to pass through the link due to a relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle that is the traveling vehicle other than the target traveling vehicle. A calculating unit for calculating a delay cost indicating the amount;
A total traveling cost is calculated for each link based on the static traveling cost and the delay cost, and a plurality of traveling distances from the current position of the target traveling vehicle to the destination are calculated based on the calculated total traveling cost. A selection unit that selects the travel route from the candidate routes.
The selecting unit calculates, for each of the links, the total traveling cost that is a sum of the static traveling cost and the delay cost, and calculates the total traveling of the link included in the candidate route among the plurality of candidate routes. The traveling vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the candidate route that minimizes the total cost is selected as the traveling route.
The delay cost is an increase amount of time required for the target traveling vehicle to pass through the link due to an influence of a front traveling vehicle that is the non-target traveling vehicle ahead of the target traveling vehicle along the transport path. The traveling vehicle control device according to claim 1, wherein the traveling vehicle control device includes a first delay cost indicated.
For each of the plurality of traveling vehicles, comprising a planning unit that creates a traveling schedule related to the position of the traveling vehicle at each future time,
The planning unit comprises:
Create a static traveling schedule that is a traveling schedule of the traveling vehicle that does not consider the relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle,
The static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle based on the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle and the traveling schedule of the preceding traveling vehicle so as to avoid interference between the target traveling vehicle and the preceding traveling vehicle. Create a corrected travel schedule with the
The traveling vehicle control device according to claim 3, wherein the calculation unit computes the first delay cost based on the static traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle and the corrected traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle.
A communication unit that receives status information on the current position and the traveling speed of the traveling vehicle from the plurality of traveling vehicles at a predetermined timing,
The node includes a branch junction where the transport path branches or merges,
The calculation unit is based on the state information of the traveling vehicle, and at the branching junction located forward along the transport path of the target traveling vehicle, by a relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the forward traveling vehicle. When the target traveling vehicle stands by before the branch junction, a first standby delay cost indicating a standby time of the target traveling vehicle is calculated,
The traveling vehicle control device according to claim 3, wherein the first delay cost includes the first standby delay cost.
The traveling vehicle is an automatic guided vehicle that transports and transfers articles.
From the plurality of traveling vehicles, state information relating to the current position and traveling speed of the traveling vehicle, and a transfer position at which the traveling vehicle performs the transfer of the article, time, and transfer information relating to a required time are determined by a predetermined method. It has a communication unit to receive at the timing,
The calculation unit is configured to wait for the target traveling vehicle to be in front of the transfer position by the traveling vehicle based on the transfer of the article by the traveling vehicle based on the state information and the transportation information of the traveling vehicle. In this case, a first transfer delay cost indicating a standby time of the target traveling vehicle is calculated,
The traveling vehicle control device according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein the first delay cost includes the first transfer delay cost.
The delay cost is an increase amount of time required for the rear traveling vehicle that is the non-target traveling vehicle behind the target traveling vehicle along the transport path to pass through the link due to the influence of the target traveling vehicle. The traveling vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 6, including a second delay cost indicated.
For each of the plurality of traveling vehicles, comprising a planning unit that creates a traveling schedule related to the position of the traveling vehicle at each future time,
The planning unit comprises:
Create a static traveling schedule that is a traveling schedule of the traveling vehicle that does not consider the relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle,
The static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle based on the traveling schedule of the target traveling vehicle and the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle so as to avoid interference between the target traveling vehicle and the rear traveling vehicle. Create a corrected travel schedule with the
The traveling vehicle control device according to claim 7, wherein the calculation unit computes the second delay cost based on the static traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle and the corrected traveling schedule of the rear traveling vehicle.
A communication unit that receives status information on the current position and the traveling speed of the traveling vehicle from the plurality of traveling vehicles at a predetermined timing,
The node includes a branch junction where the transport path branches or merges,
The calculation unit is based on the state information of the traveling vehicle, and at the branching junction located forward along the transport path of the target traveling vehicle, by a relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the rear traveling vehicle. When the rear traveling vehicle stands by before the branch junction, a second standby delay cost indicating a standby time of the rear traveling vehicle is calculated,
The traveling vehicle control device according to claim 7, wherein the second delay cost includes the second standby delay cost.
The traveling vehicle is an automatic guided vehicle that transports and transfers articles.
From the plurality of traveling vehicles, state information relating to the current position and traveling speed of the traveling vehicle, and a transfer position at which the traveling vehicle performs the transfer of the article, time, and transfer information relating to a required time are determined by a predetermined method. It has a communication unit to receive at the timing,
The calculating unit is configured to transfer the article by the target vehicle based on the state information and the transfer information of the traveling vehicle so that the rear traveling vehicle waits before the transfer position by the target vehicle. In this case, a second transfer delay cost indicating the waiting time of the rear traveling vehicle is calculated,
The traveling vehicle control device according to any one of claims 7 to 9, wherein the second delay cost includes the second transfer delay cost.
The acquisition unit acquires and accumulates a plurality of the traveling requests,
The selecting unit selects the traveling route for each combination of each of the plurality of traveling vehicles as the target traveling vehicle and each of the plurality of traveling requests accumulated by the acquisition unit,
A deriving unit that derives pairing information in which one traveling vehicle is associated with each of a plurality of traveling requests, based on the total traveling costs respectively corresponding to the traveling routes selected for each of the combinations. The traveling vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 10.
A traveling vehicle control device according to any one of claims 1 to 11,
The transport path;
And a plurality of the traveling vehicles that can travel along the transport path.
The combination of a target traveling vehicle, which is one of a plurality of traveling vehicles traveling along the transport path, and a traveling request including a request to move to a preset destination, A traveling vehicle control method for selecting a traveling route from the current position of the vehicle to the destination,
An acquisition step of acquiring the travel request;
In the transport path, the traveling vehicle is associated with each of a plurality of links connecting a plurality of nodes each indicating a specific point included in an area where the target traveling vehicle can travel, and the traveling vehicle passes through the link. At least one of the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle is determined based on a relationship between the target traveling vehicle and the non-target traveling vehicle other than the target traveling vehicle. A calculating step of calculating a delay cost indicating an increase in time required for one to pass through the link;
A total traveling cost is calculated for each link based on the static traveling cost and the delay cost, and a plurality of traveling distances from the current position of the target traveling vehicle to the destination are calculated based on the calculated total traveling cost. A selecting step of selecting the traveling route from the candidate routes.