Voice Picking and AR as a Warehouse Data Collection Technology

In the warehouse, excellent data collection processes are critical to accurate inventory counts in real time. By knowing what’s in the warehouse, organizations can fulfil orders quickly, avoid shortages, reduce misspeaks, and deliver the highest levels of customer service.

In the beginning, pen and paper was the only method for data collection. Distribution center (DC) managers created processes, trained personnel, and handed them pads of paper to collect warehouse data. Most of the picking was done based upon paper-based pick documents spit out of printers. To fulfill orders, pickers would go and find the product and then market short picks and back orders on their paper list.  Then, at a verification station, the picker or a packer would report the quantity picked into the system and cross check against the paper document. Next, they would print a packing list for the customer and a shipping label addressed to the appropriate retailer and/or carrier.

This old process was cumbersome and paper heavy, using big dot matrix printers. Later, labels made it easy to mark boxes clearly for the customer or the store. Next, barcodes and scanners helped automate the process. Most recently, voice controlled systems have become a reality and vision picking is not too far in the future.

Evolution of Data Collection Technology Tools:

Now let’s look at the process more granularity. At every stage, the common system had elements that were both good and bad.

  • Operators write down everything they do in a paper in a pad with a pen or pencil.
  • Pre-printed pick sheets, work assignments (sometimes with sticker labels are printed in bulk. Then the pickers would take those sheets, perform the picking processes, then bring the product to a work station, where they would verify the product and the inventory they picked by reporting that to the warehouse management system (WMS).
  • The supervisors and/or managers create processes and train operators.

Photo courtesy: Bastian Solutions

  • Users log on to RF hand held guns, also called bricks to functions such as picking, receiving, sorting, putaway, etc.
  • These guns were originally designed and deployed in retail stores, where store associates performed inventory count for accuracy on an as needed basis.
  • Warehouses deployed same devices despite the different nature of the tasks there. Warehouse operators do inventory count, moving boxes, moving pallets, moving product/merchandise, etc.
  • For DC operation, labor is the primary cost accounting for 50% to 70% of overall operating costs making labor optimization critical.
  • RF handhelds are built to purpose with an integrated barcode scanner, and a mini-computer running the Windows CE operating system and terminal emulation software to reproduce a console screen in the mini computer.
  • These devices cost, when purchased new, from $2,000 to $3,500 each.
  • Used or refurbished devices can be purchased for $800 to $1,500. Retailers & distributors with thin margins use these refurbished devices to accommodate budged demands.

  • Wrist mounted devices make operators more efficient, and were designed to allow them to operate hands free. Since the device is strapped to their arm, the operator and use their hands to carry boxes, drive equipment or pick products.
  • Really, these devices provided a couple of extra fingers rather than an extra free hand so adoption has been slow.
  • The same vendors that make RF handhelds make these devices.
  • These devices cost from $3,000 to $4,500.
  • Used or refurbished devices can be purchased for from $1,400 to $1500. Retailers & distributors with thin margins use these refurbished devices to accommodate budged demands.

Warehouse Voice Picking technology promises to be game changing for the warehousing and distribution industry.

  • Voice is a great option for picking, because frees the operator’s hands and eyes. The operator does not need to look at the screen of the devices since directions are dictated through a headset, saving additional time.
  • The price of these voice picking devices range from $4,000 to $5,500.
  • These systems also require proprietary software, which increases implementation costs.

Image courtesy: Pickavi

  • A new set of companies have emerged, to provide vision picking capabilities. These devices leverage smart glasses with a heads up display. The operators look at the data in a screen and then performs scanning using a ring worn on their fingers.
  • Vision-picking systems are not as fast as voice picking. Retailers and distributors are piloting the technology but widespread adoption has not occurred.
  • Smart glass technology is unfamiliar to most people, making the adoption curve stiffer and training times longer.
  • This technology will likely gain impetus and faster adoption after consumers adopt artificial reality (AR) glasses more broadly. Vuzix and  ODG are developing this technology.

  • The platform-based approach leverages consumer mobile devices, ruggedizes for warehouse use. It incorporates capabilities using software as a platform, and takes advantage of capabilities available on t consumer mobile devices.
  • The platform can support a wide variety of capabilities including:
    • Basic scanning as a wearable.
    • Basic scanning as a handheld.
    • Gamification.
    • Voice enabling using the same hardware.
    • AR in the future.
    • Tablet technology for the supervisors & managers.
  • Highly intuitive, user friendly software with consumer style UI/UX provides good benefits.
  • These devices are low cost compared to the purpose-built devices but offer more capabilities including:
    • Easy communication between the operators and supervisors
    • Video based training for new operators
    • Fast charging with reduced weight of the device resulting in lesser stress on the arms of the operators
  • Devices can be voice with software enablement and adding a headset. One platform provide mobile capabilities to the supply chain including:
    • Wearable.
    • RF Handheld leveraging Cognex shell.
    • Tablets for trucks in the warehouse.
    • Terminal emulation.
    • Voice enabling the whole solution.
    • Gamification.
    • Image enabling.

Originally published at Smartgladiator.com on Feb 28, 2018.

19
Aug 2018
By Puga Sankara250 Comments
Author:
Puga Sankara
About:
Puga Sankara is the Founder, CEO of Smart Gladiator LLC. Smart Gladiator designs, builds, and delivers market-leading mobile technology for retailers, distributors, and 3PL service providers. So far, Smart Gladiator LoadProof has been used to ship, receive, and scan more than 100 million boxes. SG LoadProof is a patent pending Centralized Enterprise Photo/Video Document System on Cloud for Supply Chain. SG LP is built on the fact that photos & videos are vital docs as important as POs/SOs/Legal Contracts/Fulfillment Orders that reside in ERP/WMS/TMS systems, that serve as compelling, conclusive, unequivocal proof of crucial, critical, vital operations executed in Supply Chain within/across orgs when fulfilling customer orders as well as meeting contractual obligations between orgs as merchandise is transferred between different parties that partake in Supply Chain functions & operations. And these photos/videos data should not be stored in someone’s Smartphone or Email Inbox or in their personal/work Computer, but should be stored in a Centralized Enterprise system, where such data can be pushed into super-fast, stored securely, accessible to all stake holders (CFO/Sales Reps/Customer Support/AR/AP) in an org, as well as facilitates super-fast retrieval/sharing. LP is an Enterprise System of record for Photo/Video docs & is as important as an ERP which is an enterprise system of record for POs, SOs, Legal Contracts between parties etc. that have huge legal ramifications, also as important as a WMS (Warehouse Management System) that hold indispensable shipment & fulfillment data on orders. Like how Instagram, Facebook, Snapchat etc. have evolved into social media platforms/systems that enable individuals to showcase their beauty/pretty clothes/lovely cosmetics/hep coolness etc., LoadProof is an Enterprise system that holds similar photos/videos, but for a different reason, not for show off, but to serve as compelling, conclusive, unequivocal & indisputable system of record and proof that can be presented even in the court of law, when there is a dispute between parties while they execute many facets of the Supply Chain functions & operations. SG LoadProof is also an Enterprise System of Record for Photos, videos and any other digital documents for your Supply Chain Network. A system of record (SOR) or source system of record (SSoR) is a data management term for an information storage system (commonly implemented on a computer system running a database management system) that is the authoritative data source for a given data element or piece of information. The need to identify systems of record can become acute in organizations where management information systems have been built by taking output data from multiple source systems, re-processing this data, and then re-presenting the result for new business use. In these cases, multiple information systems may disagree about the same piece of information. These disagreements may stem from semantic differences, differences in opinion, use of different sources, and differences in the timing of the extract, transform, and load processes that create the data they report against, or may simply be the result of bugs. The integrity and validity of any data set is open to question when there is no traceable connection to a good source, such as a known System of Record. Where the integrity of the data is vital, if there is an agreed system of record, the data element must either be linked to, or extracted directly from it. In other cases, the provenance and estimated data quality should be documented. The “system of record” approach is a good fit for environments where both: 1. there is a single authority over all data consumers, and 2. all consumers have similar needs Here, LoadProof is the System of Record for pictures and videos for all the entities in Supply chain who uses pictures and videos to track using any Supply Chain System infrastructure. 1. LoadProof provides accurate, thorough, complete, and latest information in pictures and videos related to any entity in the Supply chain that is tracked. 2. LoadProof is the single authority on pictures and videos related to any entity in the Supply Chain that is tracked 3. LoadProof doesn’t let any external system to copy the records being stored in it, which eliminates the data being duplicated in multiple places to preserve the data integrity and credibility. 4. LoadProof has a secured login procedure which lets only users with select level access to view the data and modify the records which helps in maintaining LoadProof is becoming the Industry Standard System for Photo & Video Docs for Supply Chain Smart Gladiator is located in ATDC - Advanced Tech Dev Center (tech Incubator) in Georgia Institute of Tech. Click for a demo - https://loadproof.com/apply Puga is a supply chain technology professional with more than 25 years of experience in deploying capabilities in the logistics and supply chain domain. His prior roles involved managing complicated mission-critical programs driving revenue numbers, rolling out a multitude of capabilities involving more than a dozen systems, and managing a team of 30 to 50 personnel across multiple disciplines and departments in large corporations such as Hewlett Packard. He has deployed WMS for more than 30 distribution centers in his role as a senior manager with Manhattan Associates. He has also performed process analysis walk-throughs for more than 50 distribution centers for WMS process design and performance analysis review, optimizing processes for better productivity and visibility through the supply chain. Size of these DCs varied from 150,000 to 1.2 million SQFT. Puga Sankara has an MBA from Georgia Tech. He can be reached at puga@smartgladiator.com or visit the company at www.smartgladiator.com. Also follow him at www.pugasankara.com. [Read More]
More articles by: Puga Sankara

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