To provide a physical distribution management system dispensing with excessive reserve inventory without running out of inventory of consumable articles such as toner cartridges and positively collecting used consumable articles to contribute to recycling.
The physical distribution management system comprises a radio storage member fixedly mounted to the consumable article itself used by a user, and storing identification information for identifying the consumable article and allowing the identification information to be read from the outside by radio; a first reading means for reading the identification information of the consumable article from the radio storage member of the consumable article stored by the user, from the outside by radio; a second reading means for reading the identification information of the consumable article from the radio storage member of the consumable article used by the user, from the outside by radio; and a management means for managing the consumable article based on the identification information read by the first and second reading means.
COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT
Katsuo Naruse
Masahiro Koizumi
Aoya Kazuo
Masashi Torino