Physical distribution management apparatus, physical distribution management pallet and physical distribution management system

• US 7,419,101 B2
• Filed: 09/12/2005
• Issued: 09/02/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 09/13/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Omron Corporation
• Original Assignee: Omron Corporation
• Inventors: Kawai, Wakahiro
• Primary Examiner(s): LE, THIEN MINH
• Application Number:
  US11/222,739
• Publication Number:
  US 20060054693A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,086 Days
• Field of Search: 235/441, 235/435, 235/383, 235/492, 235/486, 235/375
• US Class Current: 235/492
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 19/44 Elements or devices for locating articles on platforms
• CPC Class Codes: B65D 2203/10 Transponders
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/00 Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 19/0717 the sensor being capable of sensing environmental conditions such as temperature history or pressure
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 7/10336 the antenna being of the near field type, inductive coil
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management

Abstract

The physical distribution management apparatus comprises a non-contact communication section for communicating out of contact with a non-contact IC tag, an information acquisition section for acquiring the information concerning a situation where it is placed, a control section for writing the information acquired by the information acquisition section into a prescribed storage section, and a portable power source section for supplying an electric power to each of the sections.

Claims

1. A physical distribution management apparatus comprising:

a non-contact communication section for communicating out of contact with a non-contact IC tag;

an information acquisition section for acquiring the information concerning a situation where said physical distribution management apparatus is placed;

a control section for writing the information acquired by said information acquisition section into at least one storage section, said at least one storage section configured to maintain a plurality of information being acquired by said information acquisition section at different times; and

a portable power source section for supplying an electric power to each of said sections.

2. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said information acquisition section includes a positional information acquisition section for acquiring the current positional information.

3. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said positional information acquisition section is configured to acquiring the current positional information from a global positioning system.

4. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 3, wherein said positional information acquisition section is configured to acquire the current positional information from a location based transmission device.

5. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said positional information acquisition section is configured to acquiring the current positional information from a location based transmission device.

6. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said information acquisition section includes an environmental information acquisition section for acquiring the current environmental information.

7. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said at least one storage section includes a first storage section provided in said non-contact IC tag and a second storage section provided in said physical distribution management apparatus, and

wherein said control section writes the information acquired by said information acquisition section into the first storage section of said non-contact IC tag, and writes the information concerning said non-contact IC tag and the information acquired by said information acquisition section into the second storage section of said physical distribution management apparatus.

8. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a time recognition section for recognizing the time, wherein the time at which said information is acquired is written along with said information.

9. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

a time recognition section for recognizing the time, wherein said non-contact communication section communicates with the non-contact IC tag in accordance with the preset time settings.

10. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising:

an external apparatus communication section for communicating with an external apparatus through a communication line, apart from said non-contact communication section, wherein when there is an access from said external apparatus, said physical distribution management apparatus performs a predetermined process based on an instruction signal received from said external apparatus, and enables said external apparatus communication section to transmit the result of executing said process to said external apparatus.

11. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the ID information of a consignee is read from the non-contact IC tag possessed by the consignee, and said ID information is written into said storage section.

12. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 11, further comprising:

a time recognition section for recognizing the time, wherein the receiving time acquired by said time recognition section and the information acquired by said information acquisition section are written along with the ID information of the consignee into said storage section.

13. A physical distribution conveyance member incorporating the physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 1, comprising:

a fork insertion portion for inserting a fork of a forklift from a lateral face;

wherein each of said sections of the physical distribution management apparatus is kept away from said fork insertion portion.

14. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said, wherein said physical distribution management apparatus is a conveyance pallet or container.

15. A physical distribution management system comprising:

a communication line for enabling the communications;

an external apparatus having a communication section for communicating via said communication line; and

a physical distribution management apparatus having an external apparatus communication section for communicating with said external apparatus via said communication line, a non-contact communication section for communicating .out of contact with a non-contact IC tag, a control section for performing-various control processes, and a portable power source section for supplying an electric power to each of said sections;

wherein when there is an access from said external apparatus, said physical distribution management apparatus performs a prescribed process based on an instruction signal received from said external apparatus, and enables said external apparatus communication section to transmit a tag information concerning said non-contact IC tag as the result of executing said process to said external apparatus.

16. The physical distribution management system according to claim 15, wherein said physical distribution management apparatus comprises an information acquisition section for acquiring the information concerning a situation where it is placed, in which the information acquired by said information acquisition section and the tag information are transmitted to said external apparatus by said external apparatus communication section.

17. The physical distribution management system according to claim 15, further comprising:

a charging section for charging said external apparatus for an access to said physical distribution management apparatus.

18. A physical distribution management apparatus comprising:

a non-contact communication section for communicating out of contact with a non-contact IC tag;

a time information section for acquiring time information;

an information acquisition section for acquiring the information concerning a situation where it is placed;

a control section for writing the information acquired by said information acquisition section into at least one storage section, said at least one storage section configured to maintain a plurality of information being acquired by said information acquisition section at different times, said control section configured to request said information concerning a situation in response to an event; and

a portable power source section for supplying an electric power to each of said sections.

19. The physical distribution management apparatus of claim 18, further comprising:

an impact sensor section for acquiring information regarding an impact event and providing said information regarding an impact to said control section,

wherein response to said information regarding an impact, said control section configured to request said information concerning a situation.

20. The physical distribution management apparatus of claim 18, wherein said control section is configured to periodically request said information concerning a situation.

21. The physical distribution management apparatus of claim 18, wherein said control section is configured in response to a request from an external communication device to provide at least some of said information stored in said at least one section to an external communication device, said control section for writing information about said request from said external communication device into said at least one storage section.

22. The physical distribution management apparatus of claim 18, wherein said control section is configured in response to a request from an external communication device to request said information concerning a situation and provide said information concerning a situation to said external communication device, said control section for writing information about said request from said external communication device into said at least one storage section.

23. The physical distribution management apparatus according to claim 18, wherein said, wherein said physical distribution management apparatus is a conveyance pallet or container.