Facility control system and facility control method

A facility control system comprising:

• a plurality of apparatus controllers, each of which controls an operation of a corresponding one of a plurality of facility apparatuses;
• a plurality of first-layer computers, each of which executes a first-layer program for issuing an apparatus operating command for a corresponding one of the plurality of facility apparatuses to a corresponding one of the plurality of apparatus controllers that each first-layer computer is assigned to and for managing an operation result of the corresponding facility apparatus transmitted from the corresponding apparatus controller, the plurality of first-layer computers including a first task computer assigned to one type of the apparatus controllers and a second task computer assigned to a different type of the apparatus controllers;
• a second-layer computer that executes a second-layer program for issuing a task command to at least one of the plurality of first-layer computers in order to cause at least one of the plurality of facility apparatuses required to process a task request to be operated in accordance with the task request which is a request for an operation that is to be accomplished by operating the at least one of the plurality of facility apparatuses, and for managing a result of a task that is related to the task request based on the operation result of the at least one of the plurality of facility apparatuses transmitted from the at least one of the plurality of first-layer computers;
• and
• wherein the plurality of facility apparatuses are a plurality of article transport devices in a distribution facility, wherein each of the plurality of first-layer computers is configured to manage the corresponding apparatus controller that controls the operation of a corresponding one of the plurality of article transport devices, wherein the second-layer computer is configured to manage article transport information for the entire distribution facility, and wherein the task request is a transport request for an article in the distribution facility;
• a service switching program comprising a selection processing portion and a substitute command output processing portion;
• wherein the selection processing portion is configured to display an information window on a display, the information window showing a list of a state of each of the plurality of first-layer computers and a state of the second-layer computer to distinguishably indicate whether each of the computers is operating normally or an abnormal condition has occurred, and
• recognizably showing which program or programs are currently executed by which computer or computers,
• wherein the selection processing portion is configured to display an indication that an abnormal condition has occurred on the information window and to accept a manual operation for selecting whether to cause the second layer computer to execute the first-layer program that had been executed by at least one of the plurality of first-layer computers, when an abnormal condition is detected in at least one of the plurality of first-layer computers;
• wherein the substitute command output processing portion issues a substitute command for executing, as a substitute-execution-subject program, the first-layer program that had been executed by at least one of the plurality of first-layer computers in which the abnormal condition occurred;
• wherein the substitute command output processing portion is configured to output the substitute command in accordance with a selection information selected by the selection processing portion,
• wherein the second-layer computer is configured to execute the substitute-execution-subject program based on the substitute command that the substitute command output processing portion outputs, and
• wherein the substitute-execution-subject program is executed by the second-layer computer when the second-layer computer receives the substitute command with the selection information indicating the selection by the manual operation to cause the second layer computer to execute the first-layer program that had been executed by at least one of the plurality of first-layer computers, when an abnormal condition is detected in at least one of the plurality of first-layer computers.