JP7619332B2 - Management device, management method, and program - Google Patents

Description

This disclosure relates to a management device, a management method, and a program.

In recent years, technology has been proposed for automatically managing inventory of items. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an inventory management system that uses a camera to manage the number of boxes stored on a shelf. In this inventory management system, a color identification code is attached to the front of each box to identify the box, and by photographing this color identification code with a camera, the boxes stored on the shelf can be identified and the remaining number can be confirmed. For this reason, each box is stored on the shelf so that the front is visible to the camera.

JP 2015-078032 A

The inventors have considered using a camera to identify items while grasping the remaining number in order to manage the number of items stored in a storage container. In order to identify items in a storage container and grasp the remaining amount, it is necessary to face the surface used for recognition in a specified direction (i.e., the direction in which the camera is located) and store the items so that they do not overlap each other. In other words, it is necessary to store items so that the surface used for recognition faces a specified direction and is not covered by other items. However, when storage space is limited, it is not necessarily realistic to store items in this way. Therefore, there is a need to provide a technology that can appropriately select between storage that prioritizes recognition and storage that prioritizes storage efficiency.

This disclosure has been made against the background of the above circumstances, and aims to provide a management device, management method, and program that can select the appropriate storage method from among storage that prioritizes recognition and storage efficiency.

One aspect of the present disclosure for achieving the above-mentioned object is a management device having an information acquisition unit that acquires free space information about available storage containers and item information about items to be stored in the storage containers, a space calculation unit that calculates, based on the item information, a storage space required when storing the items in the storage container using a first storage method in which a specific surface used for recognizing the items is orientated in a specific direction and the items are stored in the storage container so that they do not overlap each other, and a storage determination unit that determines, based on the free space identified from the free space information and the calculated storage space required when storing the items using the first storage method, whether to store the items in the storage container using the first storage method or a second storage method in which a greater number of items can be stored in the storage container than the first storage method.
According to this management device, a storage pattern is selected depending on whether the space required for storage suitable for recognition is available, so that an appropriate storage pattern can be selected from storage that prioritizes recognition and storage that prioritizes storage efficiency.

In one aspect above, the second storage method may have a plurality of different storage patterns, and the space calculation unit may further calculate, for each storage pattern, the storage space required when storing using the second storage method based on the item information, and the storage determination unit may identify the storage pattern that can be selected when storing the items in the storage container using the second storage method based on the free space identified from the free space information and the storage space required when storing using the second storage method calculated for each storage pattern.
According to this configuration, when storage efficiency is given priority, an appropriate storage pattern can be selected.

In one aspect described above, the second storage method may include a first storage pattern in which different items are packed in the storage container and a second storage pattern in which different items are not packed in the storage container, and the space calculation unit may calculate the storage space required for each of the first storage pattern and the second storage pattern.
With this configuration, it is possible to provide storage options that prioritize storage efficiency, including storage in which different items are packed together in a storage container and storage in which different items are not packed together in a storage container.

In one aspect of the above, the storage device may further include a volume calculation unit that calculates the volume of the storage space utilized in the storage container in which the items are stored by the second storage method based on three-dimensional data of the space inside the storage container, and a remaining number calculation unit that calculates the number of items remaining in the storage container based on the calculated volume and the size of the items.
With this configuration, even if priority is given to storage efficiency, it is possible to grasp the remaining number.

In one of the above aspects, the remaining number calculation unit may calculate the number of items remaining in the storage container for each item based on the volume of storage space utilized in the storage container in which the different items are packed, the size of each of the different items, and the ratio of the consumption rates of the different items.
According to this configuration, even when different types of items are packed together in a storage container, it is possible to grasp the remaining number of each item.

Another aspect of the present disclosure for achieving the above-mentioned object is a management method in which a management device acquires free space information about available storage containers and item information about items to be stored in the storage containers, calculates, based on the item information, a storage space required when storing the items in the storage container using a first storage method in which a specific surface used for recognizing the items is orientated in a specific direction and the items are stored in the storage container so that they do not overlap each other, and determines, based on the free space identified from the free space information and the calculated storage space required when storing using the first storage method, whether to store the items in the storage container using the first storage method or a second storage method that stores a greater number of items in the storage container than the first storage method.
According to this management method, a storage pattern is selected depending on whether the space required for storage suitable for recognition is available, so that an appropriate storage pattern can be selected from storage that prioritizes recognition and storage that prioritizes storage efficiency.

Another aspect of the present disclosure for achieving the above-mentioned object is a program that causes a computer to execute an information acquisition step of acquiring free space information about available storage containers and item information about items to be stored in the storage containers; a space calculation step of calculating, based on the item information, a storage space required when storing the items in the storage container using a first storage method in which a specified surface used for recognizing the items is oriented in a specified direction and the items are stored in the storage container so that they do not overlap each other; and a storage determination step of determining, based on the free space identified from the free space information and the calculated storage space required when storing the items using the first storage method, whether to store the items in the storage container using the first storage method or a second storage method in which a greater number of items can be stored in the storage container than the first storage method.
According to this program, a storage pattern is selected depending on whether the space required for storage suitable for recognition is available, so that an appropriate storage pattern can be selected from storage that prioritizes recognition and storage that prioritizes storage efficiency.

According to the present disclosure, it is possible to provide a management device, a management method, and a program that can select the appropriate storage method from among storage that prioritizes recognition and storage that prioritizes storage efficiency.

FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of a configuration of an item management system according to a first embodiment; FIG. 2 is a schematic front view showing an example of a configuration of a shelf that houses storage boxes. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a management device according to a first embodiment; 1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of storing items in a storage box according to a first storing method; FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing an example of storing items in a storage box according to a second storing method. FIG. 11 is a schematic diagram showing an example of storing items in a storage box according to a second storing method. FIG. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of a hardware configuration of a management apparatus according to an embodiment. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation of the management device regarding the determination of a storage method. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation of the management device regarding recognition of an item. FIG. 11 is a block diagram showing an example of a functional configuration of a management device according to a second embodiment. 10 is a flowchart showing an example of an operation of the management device regarding estimation of the number of items using three-dimensional data.

<First embodiment>
1 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of an item management system 10 according to a first embodiment. The item management system 10 is a system that performs processing to determine a method for storing items in a storage container and manage the remaining number of items stored using the determined storage method. Note that in this embodiment, as an example, the storage container is a storage box, which will be described later, but the storage container is not limited to this as long as it can store items.

As shown in FIG. 1, the item management system 10 has a management device 100 and a camera 200. In the configuration example shown in FIG. 1, the management device 100 is wirelessly or wired connected to the camera 200 so as to be able to communicate with it, but the management device 100 only needs to be able to acquire the output data of the camera 200, and the management device 100 does not necessarily have to be connected to the camera 200 so as to be able to communicate with it.

The management device 100 is a device that performs a process to determine a method for storing items in a storage box. In this embodiment, the management device 100 also performs a process to recognize objects in the storage box based on images captured by the camera 200, but the management device 100 may only perform a process to determine the storage method. Details of the management device 100 will be described later.

The storage box 60 stores items 90 used by the user. The items 90 stored in the storage box 60 are, for example, consumable items such as food and daily necessities. The user takes out the items 90 stored in the storage box 60 and uses them. This reduces the number of items 90 stored in the storage box 60. In other words, as the user consumes the items 90 stored in the storage box 60, the number of items 90 stored in the storage box 60 reduces. In this embodiment, the storage box 60 is stored on a shelf placed in the user's living space, for example, but the storage box 60 does not necessarily have to be stored on a shelf.

Figure 2 is a schematic front view showing an example of the configuration of a shelf 50 that houses storage boxes 60. The shelf 50 is a shelf that houses the storage boxes 60, and is installed, for example, in the living space of a house. In this specification, the house includes an apartment building, an office building, etc., and the living space includes an office space. As shown in Figure 2, the shelf 50 is equipped with storage boxes 60a to 60c for storing consumable items. The storage boxes 60a to 60c are different sizes. Hereinafter, when the storage boxes 60a to 60c are mentioned without any particular distinction, they will be referred to as storage boxes 60.

As shown in FIG. 2, the shelf 50 includes a housing 51, a partition plate 52, a rail 53, and a locking mechanism 54.

The right-handed xyz Cartesian coordinate system shown in FIG. 2 is for the sake of convenience in explaining the positional relationships of the components. Normally, the positive direction of the z axis is vertically upward, and the xy plane is a horizontal plane. Also, although FIG. 2 is a front view, the storage box 60 is shown hatched to make it easier to understand. Furthermore, the configuration of the shelf 50 shown in FIG. 2 is merely an example, and shelves having other configurations capable of accommodating storage boxes may be used.

The housing 51 constitutes the outer frame of the shelf 50. In the example shown in Fig. 2, the housing 51 has a frame structure in which a top plate provided on the positive side of the z axis, a bottom plate provided on the negative side of the z axis, and side plates provided on the positive and negative sides of the y axis are integrally formed. That is, the front and back of the housing 51 are open so that the storage box 60 can be inserted and removed.
Note that an openable door may be provided on the front and back of the open housing 51. Also, the front or back of the housing 51 may be closed.

As shown in FIG. 2, the partition plate 52 is provided parallel to the side plates constituting the housing 51 (i.e., parallel to the xz plane) and extends from the front surface to the rear surface of the open housing 51 .
Here, the partition plates 52 are provided so that the distance between the side panels of the housing 51 and the adjacent partition plates 52 and the distance between the partition plates 52 themselves are equal.
2, two partition plates 52 are provided and three rows of storage locations for the storage boxes 60 are provided, but there is no limitation on the number of partition plates 52. Also, no partition plate 52 may be provided and the storage locations for the storage boxes 60 may be provided in one row.

As shown in FIG. 2, the pairs of rails 53 extend in the depth direction (x-axis direction) on the inner surface of the housing 51 and on the partition plate 52, and are arranged side by side at equal intervals in the height direction (z-axis direction). Here, the rails 53 are arranged to rise approximately vertically from the inner surface of the housing 51 and the partition plate 52. In the example of FIG. 2, four pairs of rails 53 are provided per row, and four of the smallest size storage boxes 60a can be stored per row.

It goes without saying that there is no limit to the number of rails 53. Furthermore, the rails 53 may extend discontinuously in the depth direction (x-axis direction) as long as they are capable of supporting the storage box 60. Alternatively, instead of the rails 53, short supports may be arranged so as to be aligned in the depth direction (x-axis direction).

Flanges 61 are provided on both sides of the storage box 60, and the storage box 60 is supported on the shelf 50 by the flanges 61 being supported from below by a pair of adjacent and opposing rails 53. The flanges 61 are protruding parts that protrude outward in the width direction from the storage box 60. The flanges 61 are provided on both sides of the storage box 60, spanning from the front to the back. The flanges 61 slide on the pair of rails 53, allowing the storage box 60 to be taken in and out.
In this manner, the shelf 50 can accommodate all of the storage boxes 60 of a plurality of predefined sizes while supporting them slidably along each pair of rails 53 .

A locking mechanism 54 is provided on the upper side of each pair of rails 53. The locking mechanism 54 locks the storage box 60 and its lid (not shown) housed in the shelf 50 to the housing 51, preventing theft of the storage box 60 and the consumable items stored therein. Note that the shelf 50 does not necessarily have to be provided with the locking mechanism 54. Also, the storage box 60 does not necessarily have to be provided with a lid.

In this embodiment, the predefined sizes of storage boxes 60a to 60c all have the same width in the y-axis direction and depth in the x-axis direction. On the other hand, the storage boxes 60a to 60c have different heights in the z-axis direction. The height of the smallest size storage box 60a is designed to match the distance between adjacent rails 53 in the z-axis direction. Naturally, the height of the smallest size storage box 60a is smaller than the distance between the rails 53. The height of the medium size storage box 60b is designed to be approximately twice the height of the storage box 60a. The height of the largest size storage box 60c is designed to be approximately three times the height of the storage box 60a.

That is, the heights of the storage boxes 60a to 60c of a plurality of predefined sizes are designed to be approximately an integer multiple of the distance between adjacent rails 53 in the z-axis direction.
In the example shown in Fig. 2, there are three different sizes of storage boxes, but there may be one, two, or four or more different sizes. In the example shown in Fig. 2, in addition to storage boxes 60a to 60c, a storage box having a height, for example, about four times the height of storage box 60a may be provided separately.

Items 90, which are consumable items such as food and daily necessities, are stored inside the storage box 60. Specifically, the items 90 are stored inside the storage box 60 according to a storage method determined by a storage determination unit 103, which will be described later. Note that different items 90 may be packed together in the storage box 60. In other words, multiple types of items may be stored in the same storage box 60.

Next, the camera 200 will be described. The camera 200 is a camera that photographs the inside of the storage box 60. The camera 200 photographs the inside of the storage box 60 from the open side of the storage box 60. Specifically, in this embodiment, as shown in FIG. 1, the camera 200 photographs the inside of the storage box 60 from above the storage box 60. The camera 200 outputs image data generated by photographing to the management device 100. The camera 200 is, for example, a 2D (2-dimension) camera, but may also be a 3D (3-dimension) camera. The camera 200 may also be provided on the shelf 50.

Next, the details of the management device 100 will be described. FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the management device 100. As shown in FIG. 3, the management device 100 has an information acquisition unit 101, a space calculation unit 102, a storage determination unit 103, a camera data acquisition unit 104, and an item recognition unit 105.

The information acquisition unit 101 acquires free space information about available storage boxes 60 and item information about items 90 to be stored in the storage boxes 60. Here, the free space information is information indicating available storage space, specifically, information indicating available storage boxes 60 and the size of the storage boxes 60. For example, the free space information is information indicating how many storage boxes 60 of a size are available among the storage boxes 60a to 60c of a plurality of sizes defined in advance. The available storage boxes 60 may be multiple, or may be storage boxes 60 of a plurality of sizes. It can also be said that the available storage boxes 60 are storage boxes 60 that are not currently being used among the storage boxes 60 stored on the shelf 50. The information acquisition unit 101 may acquire the free space information by any method. For example, the information acquisition unit 101 may acquire the free space information by receiving it from any other device, or by reading it from a storage device such as a memory of the management device 100. In addition, the information acquisition unit 101 may acquire free space information by referring to a database for managing the size and usage status of each storage box 60, or may acquire free space information input by the user via an input device such as a keyboard or a pointing device.

The item information is information indicating the items 90 to be stored in the storage box 60, the size of the items 90, and the number of the items 90. That is, the item information is information that specifies the items to be stored together with the number and size of the items. The item information may specify different items, i.e., multiple types of items. All items indicated by the item information will be stored in one or more available storage boxes 60. The information acquisition unit 101 may acquire the item information by any method. For example, the information acquisition unit 101 may acquire the item information by receiving it from any other device, or by reading it from a storage device such as the memory of the management device 100. The information acquisition unit 101 may acquire the item information by referring to a database for managing the items to be stored, or may acquire the item information input by a user via an input device such as a keyboard or a pointing device.

The items 90 to be stored can be any items, but Figures 4 to 6 described below show a specific example in which two types of retort food packaged in rectangular packages are stored in one or more storage boxes 60. In this case, the item information indicates the number of the first type of retort food, the size of the package of the first type of retort food (e.g., width, height, and depth dimensions), the number of the second type of retort food, and the size of the package of the second type of retort food (e.g., width, height, and depth dimensions).

The space calculation unit 102 calculates the storage space required when storing the item 90 indicated by the item information acquired by the information acquisition unit 101 in the storage box 60 using a specified storage method based on the item information. In this embodiment, the space calculation unit 102 calculates the storage space required when storing using the first storage method and the storage space required when storing using the second storage method. However, in order to check whether the item 90 can be stored using the first storage method, only the storage space required when storing using the first storage method may be calculated.

Here, the difference between the first and second storage methods will be described.
The first storage method refers to a method in which the predetermined surface used for recognizing the item 90 faces a predetermined direction and the items 90 are stored in the storage box 60 so as not to overlap each other. The predetermined surface used for recognizing the item 90 refers to a surface to be photographed by the camera 200 for image recognition of the item 90, and refers to a surface on which the identification information of the item 90 is displayed. The predetermined surface used for recognition may be, for example, a surface on which the product name is displayed, or a surface on which the identification code is displayed. For example, in the case of the above-mentioned retort food, the front surface of the package (i.e., the surface on which the product name is displayed) corresponds to the predetermined surface used for recognition. In addition, the predetermined direction is, more specifically, the direction of the opening surface of the storage container (storage box 60), and can also be said to be the direction in which the camera is present at the time of photographing. In this embodiment, the predetermined direction is specifically the upward direction. Thus, the first storage method refers to a method in which the predetermined surface used for recognition faces a predetermined direction and the surface is stored so as not to be covered by other items 90. The first storage method can also be said to be a storage method that prioritizes recognition.

Figure 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of storing items 90 in a storage box 60 according to the first storage method. In the example shown in Figure 4, the items 90 are stored with the front of the package facing upwards, and the items 90 are arranged so that they do not overlap each other. In the example shown in Figure 4, the surface used for recognition is the widest of the six surfaces of the package, so if storage is to be performed using the first storage method, a large storage space will be required.

When items are stored using the first storage method, the camera 200 can reliably capture images of the specified faces of all items in the storage box 60. This makes it possible to accurately identify all items 90 remaining in the storage box 60 and to accurately determine their number.

The second storage method is a storage method in which a greater number of items 90 are stored in the storage box 60 than the first storage method described above. The second storage method may be a storage method that allows faces other than the specified face used for identifying the items 90 to face in a specified direction, or a storage method that allows the items 90 to overlap each other, or a storage method that allows both. The second storage method can also be said to be a storage method that prioritizes storage efficiency.

5 and 6 are schematic diagrams showing an example of storing items 90 in a storage box 60 according to the second storing method.
In the example shown in FIG. 5, the items 90 are stored in a disorderly manner. Therefore, the items 90 are allowed to overlap with each other when stored. In addition, the items 90 are allowed to be stored with a surface other than the surface used for recognition (for example, the back surface of the package) facing upward. According to this storage method, since the items are stored without the restrictions as in the first storage method, more items 90 can be stored than in the first storage method shown in FIG. 4. However, in the case of this storage method, it is difficult to photograph the predetermined surfaces of all the items 90 in the storage box 60 by the camera 200. Therefore, it is difficult to identify all the items 90 remaining in the storage box 60 and to specify the number of the items.

In the example shown in FIG. 6, the items 90 are stored in an aligned manner. However, the surfaces other than the surface used for recognition (for example, the side of the package) are stored facing upward. According to this storage method, since it is not necessary to face the front surface of the package, which is a surface with a large area, upward, more items 90 can be stored than in the first storage method shown in FIG. 4. However, in this storage method, it is difficult to photograph a specific surface of the items 90 in the storage box 60 by the camera 200. For this reason, it is not possible to identify all the items 90 remaining in the storage box 60, and it is difficult to determine the number of remaining items for each item. In the example shown in FIG. 6, a small box 91 is provided in the storage box 60 to store the items 90 in an aligned manner, but the small box 91 does not necessarily have to be used. By providing a partition such as the small box 91 in the storage box 60 and arranging the items 90 separately for each type, the number of remaining items can be determined for each item from the image captured by the camera 200. However, if the arrangement by type is disturbed (for example, if a user mistakenly returns an item 90 that he or she picked up to a row of other items 90), it is not possible to accurately determine the remaining number of each item. Also, dividers must be provided inside the storage box 60.

In the example shown in FIG. 6, the items 90 are not overlapped, but the items 90 may be aligned by allowing the items 90 to overlap. That is, the items 90 may be stored in a stacked manner. In this way, in the second storage method, the items do not necessarily need to be stored in a disorderly manner, and may be stored in an aligned state in any manner.

The space calculation unit 102 specifically calculates the storage space required when storing items 90 in a storage box 60 using each storage method, for example, as follows. The space calculation unit 102 uses size information for each item 90 to be stored, the number of items 90 to be stored, and the size of the storage box 60 to calculate the storage space required to store all items 90 indicated in the item information using a specified storage method. To calculate the required storage space, the space calculation unit 102 specifically calculates how many storage boxes 60 are required for storage. Note that, in the case where storage boxes 60 of different sizes exist as in this embodiment, the space calculation unit 102 calculates how many storage boxes 60 of each size are required for storage.

When storing items in a disorganized manner, it is difficult to accurately estimate the number of items 90 that can be stored in one storage box 60. For this reason, for example, the space calculation unit 102 may calculate the required storage space by estimating the number of items 90 that can be stored in one storage box 60 by considering the size of each item to be the size obtained by adding a predetermined margin to the actual size of the item. In addition, when storing items in a stacked and aligned manner, an upper limit on the number of stacking layers may be set. This setting may be set for each item 90. For example, a setting may be made such that up to two stacking layers are allowed for tissue boxes, and up to three stacking layers are allowed for cans. In this case, the space calculation unit 102 calculates the storage space required when stacking and storing items 90 so as not to exceed the set number of stacking layers.

If the item information acquired by the information acquisition unit 101 indicates that 10 retort chicken curry foods and 10 retort beef curry foods are to be stored, the following result, for example, is obtained as the calculation result of the space calculation unit 102. For example, when storing using the first storage method (see FIG. 4), the calculation result indicates that five storage boxes of the smallest size 60a or larger size (storage boxes 60b or 60c) are required. This is because only four retort foods can be stored per box.

In addition, the information acquisition unit 101 may calculate the storage space required when storing using the second storage method for each of the following multiple different storage patterns, for example:

<Storage pattern A>
Storage pattern A is a storage pattern in which different items are packed together in a storage box 60 by the random storage method shown in Fig. 5. According to the above example, this storage pattern is a storage pattern in which a retort food of chicken curry and a retort food of beef curry are randomly packed together in the same storage box 60. For this storage pattern, the following result, for example, is obtained as a calculation result by the space calculation unit 102. For example, the calculation result shows that one storage box 60a of the minimum size or a storage box of a larger size (storage box 60b or 60c) is required for such storage. This calculation result means that 20 retort food items can be stored in one storage box 60.

<Storage pattern B>
The storage pattern B is a storage pattern in which a separate storage box 60 is used for each item 90, and the items are stored in the random storage method shown in FIG. 5. Therefore, unlike the storage pattern A, the storage pattern B is a storage pattern in which different items are not packed together in the storage box 60. In other words, the storage pattern B is a storage pattern in which only the same items 90 are stored in one storage box 60. According to the above example, this storage pattern is a storage pattern in which the retort food of chicken curry and the retort food of beef curry are randomly stored in separate storage boxes 60. For this storage pattern, the following result is obtained as a calculation result by the space calculation unit 102. For example, the calculation result shows that the minimum size storage box 60a or two storage boxes (storage boxes 60b or 60c) are required for such storage. This calculation result means that, of the two storage boxes 60, one storage box 60 can store all the retort food of chicken curry, and the other storage box 60 can store all the retort food of beef curry.

<Storage pattern C>
As shown in FIG. 6, the storage pattern C is a storage pattern in which different items are aligned and packed in the storage box 60. According to the above example, this storage pattern is a storage pattern in which the retort food of chicken curry and the retort food of beef curry are aligned and packed in the storage box 60. For this storage pattern, the calculation result of the space calculation unit 102 may be, for example, as follows. For example, the calculation result shows that one storage box 60b of intermediate size or a storage box (storage box 60c) of a larger size is required for such storage. The reason why a storage box 60 of intermediate size or larger is required is that the packages are stored upright and cannot be stored in the minimum size storage box 60a. This calculation result means that 20 retort food items can be stored in one storage box 60.

The storage determination unit 103 determines whether to use the first storage method or the second storage method described above to store the item 90 in the storage box 60, based on the free space identified from the free space information acquired by the information acquisition unit 101 and the storage space calculated by the space calculation unit 102 when storing using the first storage method. If there is free space sufficient to ensure the storage space required by the first storage method, the storage determination unit 103 determines to store the item indicated in the item information using the first storage method. On the other hand, if there is not free space sufficient to ensure the storage space required by the first storage method, the storage determination unit 103 determines to store the item indicated in the item information using the second storage method.

As described above, the second storage method may have a plurality of different storage patterns. For this reason, in this embodiment, the storage determination unit 103 may specify a storage pattern that can be selected when storing the item 90 in the storage box 60 using the second storage method, based on the free space specified from the free space information and the storage space required for storage using the second storage method calculated for each storage pattern. If there is free space sufficient to ensure the storage space required for storage using a certain storage pattern, the storage determination unit 103 determines that the item indicated in the item information can be stored using this storage pattern. That is, in this case, the storage determination unit 103 determines that storage using this storage pattern is selectable. On the other hand, if there is not free space sufficient to ensure the storage space required for storage using a certain storage pattern, the storage determination unit 103 determines that it is not possible to store the item indicated in the item information using this storage pattern. That is, in this case, the storage determination unit 103 determines that storage using this storage pattern is not selectable.

When storing item 90 using the second storage method, storage determination unit 103 selects one of the storage patterns determined to be selectable. At this time, storage determination unit 103 may select a storage pattern according to instructions from a user, or may select a storage pattern according to a predetermined rule. In this way, when deciding to store item 90 using the second storage method, storage determination unit 103 also decides which storage pattern to adopt.

When the storage determination unit 103 determines the storage method for the item 90 indicated in the item information, it may output information to another device instructing the storage of the item 90 in the storage box 60 according to the determined storage method. Here, the other device may be an output device such as a display or speaker, or may be a robot that performs the storage work. Thereafter, the storage box 60 in which the item 90 has been stored according to the storage method determined by the storage determination unit 103 is stored on the shelf 50.

Returning to FIG. 3, the description of the components of the management device 100 will continue. The camera data acquisition unit 104 acquires data output by the camera 200. Specifically, the camera data acquisition unit 104 acquires image data generated by the camera 200 capturing an image of the inside of the storage box 60. The camera data acquisition unit 104 may acquire the data output by the camera 200 by any method. For example, the camera data acquisition unit 104 may acquire the data output by the camera 200 by receiving it directly from the camera 200, by acquiring it via any other device, or by reading it from a storage device such as a memory of the management device 100.

The item recognition unit 105 recognizes items in the storage box 60 based on the data acquired by the camera data acquisition unit 104. Specifically, the item recognition unit 105 identifies the items 90 present in the storage box 60 and determines the number of items 90 by performing image recognition processing on image data captured inside the storage box 60. As described above, for a storage box 60 in which items 90 are stored by the first storage method, the item recognition unit 105 can accurately recognize all items 90 in the storage box 60. The item recognition unit 105 may register the identification information of the items 90 obtained by the image recognition processing and the number of items 90 in a database for inventory management of the items 90 in the storage box 60. Note that the item recognition unit 105 may perform image recognition processing only for storage boxes 60 in which items 90 are stored by the first storage method, for which accurate image recognition processing is possible.

Although the components of the management device 100 have been described above, the management device 100 does not need to have all of the components described above. For example, the management device 100 does not need to have components other than those related to determining the storage method, i.e., the camera data acquisition unit 104 and the item recognition unit 105. In this case, the processing of the camera data acquisition unit 104 and the item recognition unit 105 may be realized by a device different from the management device 100.

FIG. 7 is a block diagram showing an example of the hardware configuration of the management device 100. As shown in FIG. 7, the management device 100 includes a network interface 151, a memory 152, and a processor 153.

The network interface 151 is used to communicate with any device, such as the camera 200. The network interface 151 may include, for example, a network interface card (NIC).

The memory 152 is configured, for example, by a combination of volatile memory and non-volatile memory. The memory 152 is used to store programs executed by the processor 153, data used for various processes of the management device 100, and the like.

The processor 153 reads out and executes a program from the memory 152 to perform processing of each component shown in Fig. 3. The processor 153 may be, for example, a microprocessor, a microprocessor unit (MPU), or a central processing unit (CPU). The processor 153 may include multiple processors.
In this manner, the management device 100 has the functionality of a computer.

The program includes instructions (or software code) that, when loaded into a computer, cause the computer to perform one or more functions described in the embodiments. The program may be stored on a non-transitory computer-readable medium or a tangible storage medium. By way of example and not limitation, computer-readable media or tangible storage media include random-access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, solid-state drive (SSD) or other memory technology, CD-ROM, digital versatile disc (DVD), Blu-ray (registered trademark) disk or other optical disk storage, magnetic cassette, magnetic tape, magnetic disk storage or other magnetic storage device. The program may be transmitted on a transitory computer-readable medium or communication medium. By way of example and not limitation, a transitory computer-readable medium or communication medium includes electrical, optical, acoustic, or other forms of propagated signals.

Next, the flow of operations of the management device 100 will be described. FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of operations of the management device 100 related to determining a storage method. FIG. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of operations of the management device 100 related to recognizing items.

First, the flow of operations of the management device 100 regarding the determination of the storage method will be described with reference to FIG.
In step S100, the information acquisition unit 101 acquires item information on the items 90 to be stored in the storage box 60 and available free space information on the storage box 60.
Next, in step S101, the space calculation unit 102 calculates the storage space required for each storage method.

Next, in step S102, the storage determination unit 103 compares the free space with the calculated storage space to determine whether there is sufficient free space for the first storage method. If there is sufficient free space (YES in step S102), the process proceeds to step S103. On the other hand, if there is not sufficient free space (NO in step S102), the process proceeds to step S104.

In step S103, the storage determination unit 103 determines to store the item indicated in the item information using the first storage method. In contrast, in step S104, the storage determination unit 103 determines to store the item indicated in the item information using the second storage method. In this case, the storage determination unit 103 determines the storage method, including which storage pattern of the second storage method to use for storage. After step S103 or step S104, as described above, the storage determination unit 103 may output information to another device instructing to store the item 90 in the storage box 60 according to the determined storage method.

Next, the flow of operations of management device 100 regarding recognition of items will be described with reference to Fig. 9. For example, management device 100 performs the following process in a state where storage has been achieved according to the storage method determined by storage determination unit 103.
In step S200, the camera data acquisition unit 104 acquires image data.
Next, in step S201, the item recognition unit 105 performs image recognition processing on the image data to recognize the items 90 present in the storage box 60. As a result, the remaining number of each type of item 90 is identified for the storage box 60 in which the items 90 are stored by the first storage method in particular. After the processing of step S201, the item recognition unit 105 may register the recognition results in a database as described above.

The above describes the first embodiment. According to the management device 100, the storage space required by the first storage method, which is storage suitable for recognition, is calculated and compared with the available space. Then, it is determined whether the item 90 is to be stored by the first storage method or the second storage method, which has a relatively high storage efficiency. In other words, according to the management device 100, a storage pattern is selected depending on whether the space required for storage suitable for recognition is available. Therefore, it is possible to select an appropriate storage from storage that prioritizes recognition and storage that prioritizes storage efficiency. In addition, the space calculation unit 102 calculates the storage space required when storing by the second storage method for each storage pattern, and the storage determination unit 103 identifies a selectable storage pattern based on the calculation result. Therefore, it is possible to select an appropriate storage pattern when performing storage with priority given to storage efficiency.

<Embodiment 2>
Next, a second embodiment will be described. This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that it includes a configuration for making it possible to estimate the number of articles 90 in a storage box 60 when the number of articles 90 in the storage box 60 cannot be confirmed by image recognition alone. Below, the differences from the first embodiment will be described, and overlapping explanations will be made as appropriate.

The item management system according to this embodiment has the same system configuration as that of the first embodiment, except that the management device 100 is replaced with the management device 100a. However, in this embodiment, the camera 200 is a 3D camera and also measures depth.

FIG. 10 is a block diagram showing an example of the functional configuration of the management device 100a according to the second embodiment. As shown in FIG. 10, the management device 100a has an information acquisition unit 101, a space calculation unit 102, a storage determination unit 103, a camera data acquisition unit 104, an item recognition unit 105, a volume calculation unit 106, and a remaining number calculation unit 107. That is, the management device 100a differs from the management device 100 according to the first embodiment in that the volume calculation unit 106 and the remaining number calculation unit 107 are added. In this embodiment, as described above, the camera 200 also measures the depth from the camera 200 to the subject. In other words, the camera 200 generates three-dimensional data of the subject. Therefore, in this embodiment, the camera data acquisition unit 104 acquires the three-dimensional data generated by the camera 200. In addition, the camera data acquisition unit 104 does not necessarily acquire the three-dimensional data generated by the camera 200, and may acquire three-dimensional data generated using a sensor other than the camera 200.

As described above, when items 90 are stored in a storage box 60 using the second storage method, it is difficult to determine the number of items 90 remaining in the storage box 60 using image recognition processing. Therefore, in this embodiment, the number of items 90 remaining in a storage box 60 in which items 90 have been stored using the second storage method is estimated using processing by the volume calculation unit 106 and the remaining number calculation unit 107. This makes it possible to know the number of items 90 remaining in the storage box 60 even if the user has consumed the items 90 in the storage box 60.

The volume calculation unit 106 calculates the volume of the storage space used in the storage box 60 in which the items 90 are stored by the second storage method based on the three-dimensional data of the space inside the storage box 60 (i.e., the entire storage space of the storage box 60). That is, the volume calculation unit 106 calculates the volume occupied by the items 90 based on the data output by the camera 200 that photographs the inside of the storage box 60. Specifically, for example, the volume calculation unit 106 may calculate the volume of the storage space being used by subtracting the volume of the unused storage space identified from the three-dimensional data from the volume of the entire storage space of the storage box 60 identified from the size of the storage box 60.

The remaining number calculation unit 107 calculates the number of items 90 remaining in the storage box 60 based on the volume calculated by the volume calculation unit 106 and the size of the items 90. Specifically, for example, the remaining number calculation unit 107 may calculate the number of items 90 in the storage box 60 by dividing the calculated volume by the volume per item 90 determined from the size of the item 90. Also, for example, the remaining number calculation unit 107 may calculate the number of items 90 consumed and subtract the number of items 90 consumed from the number of items 90 in the initial state (the number of items 90 placed in the storage box 60) to calculate the current number of items 90 in the storage box 60. In this case, the remaining number calculation unit 107 first identifies the total volume of the consumed items 90 by comparing the volume calculated by the volume calculation unit 106 before the items 90 are consumed with the volume calculated by the volume calculation unit 106 after the items 90 are consumed. The remaining number calculation unit 107 then calculates the number of consumed items 90 by dividing the sum of the volumes of the consumed items 90 by the volume of each item 90 determined from the size of the item 90. The remaining number calculation unit 107 then calculates the current number of items 90 in the storage box 60 by subtracting the number of consumed items 90 from the number of items 90 in the initial state (the number of items 90 placed in the storage box 60).

This makes it possible to calculate the number of items 90 in a storage box 60 that does not contain different items 90, i.e., in a storage box 60 that contains only the same items 90. In other words, in this case, it is possible to know how many of each item 90 remain in the storage box 60. Note that, for a storage box 60 in which different items 90 are packed, if all of the packed items 90 are the same size, it is possible to determine the total number of items 90 in the storage box 60 by calculation by the remaining number calculation unit 107, but the number of each type of item 90 cannot be determined.

However, if the ratio of the consumption speeds of different items 90 packed together is known, the remaining number calculation unit 107 can specify the number of each type of item 90 even when different items 90 are packed together. This is because, when n items (n is a natural number) of an item are consumed among the group of items packed together, it is possible to specify how many other items have been consumed based on the ratio of the consumption speeds. For example, it is assumed that items a and b are packed together in one storage box 60. It is also assumed that the ratio of the consumption speeds of items a and b is 1:p. It is also assumed that the volume of item a specified from the size of item a is V _a , and the volume of item b specified from the size of item b is V _b . In this case, when n items a are consumed, n×p items b are consumed. Therefore, when n items a are consumed, the sum S of the volumes of the consumed items 90 is expressed by the following formula.
S=n×V _a +n×p×V _b
Here, the sum S of the volumes of the consumed items 90 can be determined by using the calculation results of the remaining number calculation unit 107 as described above. The consumed number of items a is determined by solving the above equation for n. Then, the consumed number of items b (i.e., n×p) is also determined based on the ratio of the consumption speeds. Therefore, the remaining number can be determined for each item from the initial number of items a and b (the number of items a and b placed in the storage box 60) and the consumed number. As described above, the remaining number calculation unit 107 may calculate the number of items 90 remaining in the storage box 60 for each item based on the volume of the storage space used in the storage box 60 in which different items 90 are packed, the size of each of the different items 90, and the ratio of the consumption speeds of the different items 90. Note that if the ratio of the consumption speeds is known, the remaining number calculation unit 107 can calculate the remaining number of each item 90 even if the sizes of the items 90 packed are different. However, the remaining number calculation unit 107 may calculate the remaining number using the ratio of the consumption speeds when the sizes of the items 90 to be packed are the same. Also, the remaining number calculation unit 107 may calculate the remaining number using the ratio of the consumption speeds when the ratio of the consumption speeds is the same. The ratio of the consumption speeds may be specified by the user or may be determined from statistical data indicating the consumption speed of each item.

Next, the flow of operations of the management device 100a will be described. FIG. 11 is a flowchart showing an example of operations of the management device 100a related to estimating the number of items using three-dimensional data. Below, the flow of operations of the management device 100a will be described with reference to FIG. 11.

In step S300, the camera data acquisition unit 104 acquires three-dimensional data.
Next, in step S301, the volume calculation unit 106 calculates the volume of the storage space being used based on the three-dimensional data.
Next, in step S302, the remaining number calculation unit 107 calculates the number of articles 90 remaining in the storage box 60. After the process of step S302, the remaining number calculation unit 107 may register the calculation result in a database.

The above describes the second embodiment. In this embodiment, the volume of the storage space used is calculated based on the three-dimensional data, and the number of remaining items is calculated based on the calculated volume. Therefore, even when the storage efficiency is prioritized by the second storage method, the remaining number of items can be grasped. As described above, the remaining number calculation unit 107 may calculate the number of items using the ratio of the consumption speeds. With this configuration, even when different types of items 90 are packed in the storage box 60, the remaining number of each item can be grasped. Note that, when the ratio of the consumption speeds is known, the remaining number of each item can be grasped even when different items 90 are packed in the storage box 60. Therefore, when the second storage method is adopted, the storage determination unit 103 may select a storage pattern in which different items are packed or a storage pattern in which different items are not packed, based on whether the ratio of the consumption speeds of the items can be specified. In other words, the storage determination unit 103 may select a storage pattern in which different items are packed only when the ratio of the consumption speeds of the items can be specified.

The present invention is not limited to the above embodiment, and can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention.

10 Item management system 50 Shelf 51 Housing 52 Partition plate 53 Rail 54 Lock mechanism 60a, 60b, 60c Storage box 90 Item 91 Small box 100, 100a Management device 101 Information acquisition unit 102 Space calculation unit 103 Storage determination unit 104 Camera data acquisition unit 105 Item recognition unit 106 Volume calculation unit 107 Remaining number calculation unit 151 Network interface 152 Memory 153 Processor 200 Camera

Claims (7)

an information acquisition unit that acquires free space information about available storage containers and item information about items to be stored in the storage containers;
a space calculation unit that calculates a storage space required when storing the items in the storage container by a first storage method in which a predetermined surface used for recognizing the items is oriented in a predetermined direction based on the item information and the items are stored in the storage container so that they do not overlap each other;
a storage determination unit that determines whether to store the items in the storage container using the first storage method or a second storage method that can store a greater number of items in the storage container than the first storage method, based on the available space identified from the available space information and the calculated storage space required when performing storage using the first storage method. The second storage method has a plurality of different storage patterns,
The space calculation unit further calculates, for each of the storage patterns, a storage space required when storing the items by the second storage method based on the item information, and
The management device described in claim 1, wherein the storage determination unit determines the storage pattern that can be selected when storing the items in the storage container using the second storage method, based on the free space determined from the free space information and the storage space required when storing using the second storage method calculated for each storage pattern. The second storage method includes a first storage pattern in which different items are packed together in the storage container, and a second storage pattern in which different items are not packed together in the storage container,
The management device according to claim 2 , wherein the space calculation unit calculates the storage space required for each of the first storage pattern and the second storage pattern. a volume calculation unit that calculates a volume of a storage space utilized in the storage container in which the item is stored by the second storage method based on three-dimensional data of an inner space of the storage container;
The management device according to claim 1 , further comprising a remaining number calculation unit that calculates the number of the items remaining in the storage container based on the calculated volume and a size of the items. The management device of claim 4, wherein the remaining number calculation unit calculates the number of the items remaining in the storage container for each item based on the volume of storage space utilized in the storage container in which the different items are packed, the size of each of the different items, and a ratio of consumption rates of the different items. The management device:
Obtaining free space information about available storage containers and item information about items to be stored in the storage containers;
calculating, based on the item information, a storage space required when storing the items in the storage container by a first storage method in which a predetermined surface used for recognizing the items is oriented in a predetermined direction and the items are stored in the storage container so that they do not overlap each other;
A management method which determines whether to store the items in the storage container using either the first storage method or a second storage method which stores a greater number of items in the storage container than the first storage method, based on the available space identified from the available space information and the calculated storage space required when storing using the first storage method. an information acquisition step of acquiring free space information about available storage containers and item information about items to be stored in the storage containers;
a space calculation step of calculating a storage space required when storing the items in the storage container by a first storage method in which a predetermined surface used for recognizing the items is oriented in a predetermined direction based on the item information and the items are stored in the storage container so that they do not overlap each other;
a storage determination step of determining whether to store the items in the storage container using the first storage method or a second storage method that can store a greater number of items in the storage container than the first storage method, based on the available space identified from the available space information and the calculated storage space required when performing storage using the first storage method.

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