Freight information management method and freight management system using electronic tags

• US 7,516,080 B2
• Filed: 12/28/2004
• Issued: 04/07/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 04/08/1998
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Tsushima, Isao, Taniguchi, Kazuhiko, Kimijima, Norihiro, Ota, Izumi, Soga, Shuji, Ono, Toshiyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Jeanty; Romain
• Application Number:
  US11/022,868
• Publication Number:
  US 20050114188A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,561 Days
• Field of Search: 705/7, 705/8, 705/28, 705/29
• US Class Current: 705/7.26
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/063 Operations research, analysis or management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0631 Resource planning, allocation, distributing or scheduling for enterprises or organisations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06315 Needs-based resource requirements planning or analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06316 Sequencing of tasks or work
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0633 Workflow analysis
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/083 Shipping
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/0875 Itemisation or classification of parts, supplies or services, e.g. bill of materials
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 20/203 Inventory monitoring

Abstract

A collection request inputted at a consignor destination system is recorded on an electronic tag attached to freight and sent to a collection management system so as to be received. During collection of freight, information concerning collection is recorded on the electronic tag by means of a terminal unit and the collection information is sent to the collection management system. An in-base station freight information management system informs a freight information overall management system of the collection information and information concerning freight passing through the base station. The freight information overall management system acquires a transport history of the freight on the basis of the information sent from the in-base station freight information management system, calculates a delivery schedule of the freight and informs it to each in-base station freight information management system.

Claims

1. A delivery management system coupled to base station systems and a delivery article information management apparatus, each of the base station systems being provided with a base station through which a delivery article having an electronic tag circulates, the electronic tag preliminarily storing delivery-route information as to a delivery route of the delivery article to a base station as a first arrival store, wherein:

each of the base station systems comprises;

a receiving unit for receiving a change-request information requesting a change of an arrival store from the first arrival store to a second arrival store, the change-request information including information as to a base station as the second arrival store;

a processing unit for extracting a nearest base station that can execute a write operation on the electronic tag after receiving of the change-request information, based on delivery-history information as to a base station through which the delivery article passed, the delivery-history information including information identifying a base station and work-index information indicating a work index at the base station, to extract changed-delivery-route information from a correspondence table preliminarily stored in a storage unit, the changed-delivery-route information indicating a delivery route from the nearest base station thus extracted to a base station as the second arrival store, the correspondence table storing a predetermined base station of a delivery route between two base stations for each combination of the base stations; and

a transmitting unit for transmitting the changed-delivery-route information thus extracted to the base station system of the nearest base station, wherein;

the base station system of the nearest base station comprises;

a receiving unit for receiving the changed-delivery-route information thus transmitted; and

a write processing unit for writing the changed-delivery-route information thus received in the electronic tag.

2. The delivery management system according to claim 1, wherein the work-index information has either one of a collection flag, an unload flag, a sorting flag and a loading flag, and, based on the work-index information, the processing unit extracts the nearest base station by judging whether or not the base station as the second arrival store is the nearest base station.

3. The delivery management system according to claim 1, wherein the processing unit of the delivery article information management apparatus:

extracts names of the base stations and the work indexes from a delivery history database storing history information of delivery; and

extracts, as the nearest base station, a base station next to a base station whose work index indicates completion of loading.

4. The delivery management system according to claim 1, wherein the change-request information includes both a change from the first arrival store to the second arrival store, and a change of delivery date/time.

5. A delivery management method in a delivery management system provided with base station systems and a delivery article information management apparatus, each of the base station systems being provided with a base station through which a delivery article having an electronic tag circulates, the electronic tag preliminarily storing delivery-route information as to a delivery route of the delivery article to a base station as a first arrival store, the method comprising the steps of:

receiving, by the delivery article information management apparatus, a change-request information requesting a change of an arrival store from the first arrival store to a second arrival store, the change-request information including information as to a base station as the second arrival store;

extracting, by the delivery article information management apparatus, a nearest base station that can execute a write operation on the electronic tag after receiving of the change-request information, based on delivery-history information as to a base station through which the delivery article passed, the delivery-history information including information identifying a base station and work-index information indicating a work index at the base station, to extract changed-delivery-route information from a correspondence table preliminarily stored in a storage unit, the changed-delivery-route information indicating a delivery route from the nearest base station thus extracted to a base station as the second arrival store, the correspondence table storing a predetermined base station of a delivery route between two base stations for each combination of the base stations; and

transmitting, by the delivery article information management apparatus, the changed-delivery-route information thus extracted to the base station system of the nearest base station, and

receiving, by the base station system of the nearest base station, the changed-delivery-route information thus transmitted; and

writing, by the base station system of the nearest base station, the changed-delivery-route information thus received in the electronic tag.

6. The delivery management method according to claim 5, wherein the work-index information has either one of a collection flag, an unload flag, a sorting flag and a loading flag, and, based on the work-index information, the processing unit extracts the nearest base station by judging whether or not the base station as the second arrival store is the nearest base station.

7. The delivery management method according to claim 5, wherein the step of extracting the nearest base station further includes the steps of:

extracting names of the base stations and the work indexes from a delivery history database storing history information of delivery; and

extracting, as the nearest base station, a base station next to a base station whose work index indicates completion of loading.

8. The delivery management method according to claim 5, wherein the change-request information includes both a change from the first arrival store to the second arrival store, and a change of delivery date/time.