Abstract:
An automated assembly conveyor method and apparatus for dry-cleaners, wherein the system is disposed to recognize, associate, and consolidate garments in customer transactions by reading garment identification tags located within each item. The system further includes an optional point-of-sale system and mark-in station to facilitate the intake of items from a customer to ensure each item is input into a database.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION 
       [0001]    This application is a continuation-in-part, which claims the benefit of and takes priority from pending U.S. application Ser. No. 11/801,728 filed on May 10, 2007, which in turn claims the benefit of and takes priority from U.S. Application No. 60/799,518 filed on May 11, 2006, now expired. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
       [0002]    1. Field of the Invention 
         [0003]    This invention relates generally to automated systems for assembling and sorting items, and more particularly to an automated sorting system preferably for use in the dry cleaning industry, wherein the system is disposed to interpret and utilize various tags and labels in the classification and sorting of the items. 
         [0004]    2. Description of the Related Art 
         [0005]    A compelling burden in the dry-cleaning industry is to classify and account for the many garments and products moving through the cleaning apparatus. Many dry-cleaning establishments use antiquated, non-computerized, manual techniques for sorting products. Older sorting routines can be extremely cumbersome and time consuming, besides being error prone. Typically, to keep track of orders, dry-cleaning establishments may divide garments or groups of customer garments into unique customer orders. 
         [0006]    After products are cleaned, an assembly process follows. During assembly, cleaned garments are gathered and returned to the customer. The process requires the proper evaluation of order numbers for each garment. 
         [0007]    A basic function of inventory control is the counting of incoming and outgoing materials, and the keeping of a running total. In some situations, the identity of specific articles must be monitored, making inventory control somewhat more complicated. Automation in marking, sensing and routing can present enormous cost savings over manual operations for such establishments. Although the user is always subject to equipment failure, every step at which manual functioning and decision making can be eliminated likewise avoids time loss, errors, and various losses associated with human operation. 
         [0008]    An inventory control system particularly adapted for a dry-cleaning store has many needs in common with the usual merchandise distribution warehouse system. Furthermore, the relatively low cost of individual transactions and cleaning operations aggravates the need to cut costs. In general, the possible revenue to be gained by processing a single article is quite small in comparison to the possible dissatisfaction which could be generated with consumers by even small percentage losses of articles and the like. 
         [0009]    The usefulness of automated apparatus for information and process control has further benefits. The optimization of dry-cleaning store efficiency requires that garments or products be divided into batches of similar characteristics that may be processed as units. For example, all articles of a given type of fabric may be best processed under certain conditions involving specific cleaning fluids, particular operating temperatures and timing cycles, and the like. The operator (or his supplier) can clean the largest number of articles at the least expense by most efficiently allocating his machines and materials to reflect the particular mix of supplies being presented by the customers. 
         [0010]    In connection with laundry systems, a common practice has been to apply a unique tag to a unit of laundry. While such tags may have alpha-numeric markings that are machine readable, it is preferable that the tags also be readable by the human operators. Once prepared, the identifying tags are coupled to the product or article of clothing. A different or more complicated indicia may also be attached to a hanger or the like, upon which the article of clothing is suspended. In any event, some form of code is needed for each article. 
         [0011]    Bar codes applied to various forms of identification labels are increasingly popular for identifying products or packages. In typical retail establishments, dealing with diverse goods and merchandise, each product has a unique bar code number that identifies the product, its price, the manufacturer or source, and other commercial data. Bar codes are quickly read by laser scanning and then decoded by suitable bar code reader apparatus. Various computer programs are available for utilizing decoded indicia obtained from bar codes in a database. Images may also be captured during the scanning process. However, once an image is captured, it must be processed to identify and decode a variety of encoded indicia, including bar codes, two-dimensional dense codes, and alphanumeric characters. 
         [0012]    Many drycleaners attach bar coded, machine readable identification labels to each garment. These bar coded tags may be permanently attached to the garment (using a “heat seal” type of tag), or the bar code may be printed on a “one time use” tag material and attached to the garment for each cleaning cycle. 
         [0013]    While bar coded labels can be used in dry-cleaning establishments, the washing process to which items are subjected may degrade the printing, making it difficult and error prone to read and decipher. In some cases, the damage or degradation may be extensive enough that no amount of rescanning will be able to recover the lost information. Typical dry cleaning labels or tags include relatively large, human readable characters corresponding to the bar code characters that are printed adjacent to the bar code. When the bar code is unreadable, the human readable text may be deciphered by a human attendant, and data may be manually entered into the associated computer database. 
         [0014]    RF or RFID identification chips and paper ID tags also find application in the retail dry-cleaning industry. Each identification method requires unique scanning techniques and hardware to read and interpret the encoded information. Radio Frequency (RF) chips are utilized by a small group of very large drycleaners to uniquely identify garments. 
         [0015]    Most drycleaners continue to utilize disposable, single usage paper identification tags that are temporarily attached to each garment. These paper ID tags contain the alphanumeric identification information necessary to uniquely identify and relate each garment to its respective customer order. 
         [0016]    Another data input option is the manual entry of the identification tag information by a human operator. This input method is old and time consuming, but a modern scanning system must offer this form of input as a substitute where the scanning system is unable to electronically read the information tag or process the scanned information derived therefrom. Where the scanning apparatus fails to function, data must be manually entered via a computer keyboard. As a practical matter modern scanning systems must provide for manual scanning as the last line of defense against unreadable tags to prevent the Loss or mismatching of articles or garments. 
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
       [0017]    The instant invention, as described further herein, imparts a novel automated system for assembling and sorting items for use in the dry cleaning industry, wherein the system is disposed to recognize, associate and consolidate each dry-cleaned or laundered item for customer transactions by interpreting an identification tag attached to each item. 
         [0018]    The invention interfaces to a “Point of Sale” system when available. 
         [0019]    Identification tags are read by a scanning apparatus whose construction may vary depending upon they type of garment tagging system utilized by a given retail drycleaner. The invention reads through Optical Character Recognition (OCR) scanning, Bar Code scanning, or Radio Frequency (RF) means. 
         [0020]    The system easily assembles a large inventory of individual garments into unique groupings (sometimes referred to as “Orders”, or “Tickets”, or “Invoices”) by customer. The system efficiently manages the processes of scanning, identifying, and grouping individual garments into smaller groupings (called “Orders”) for each customer. Each different “group” has at least one garment, and may include a large number of garments. The system also maintains a running record of the inventory of customer Orders that are not completed and remain on the assembly conveyor for various reasons and may require special attention to resolve. 
         [0021]    One component of the invention is a customized attribute recognition program (such as an OCR recognition program, or a bar code recognition program) which interprets the scanned garment identification tag(s) information and in turn generates an internal binary text string from this alphanumeric tag information. These internal binary text strings are then programmatically compared to various text strings stored in an inventory management system (e.g., existing point-of-sale system) database, or are compared to various text strings stored in an internal lookup table unique to the invention where an inventory management system is not present. This comparison process programmatically determines the identity of the customer “owner” of each garment. Also, this comparison process determines the identification number (also referred to as the customer Order Number) assigned to the “grouping” of garments in which this garment is assigned. This Order Number information, as well as the garment identification tag data is required for the re-assembly process. Once the Order Number associated with this garment identification tag is identified, the invention assigns a specific numbered location on a conveyor where all subsequent garments for this Order Number will also be grouped. As each garment is scanned, the invention identifies the Order Number associated with this garment and the invention automatically rotates a conveyor to the assigned location where all garments for the same Order Number will be consolidated. Once all garments for a specific Order Number have been consolidated, then the system notifies the operator that all expected garments for this Order Number have been processed and the “group” of garments for this Order Number are now ready for removal from the conveyor to be routed to the next stage in the plant production process (which is normally the “bagging station”). 
         [0022]    The invention communicates with a Point-of-Sale System in use at the dry-cleaning plant over a computer network (either LAN or WAN). The order and garment in formation is received by the invention and stored in a local lookup table for retrieval and comparison when required at a later time. This local lookup table allows the system to continue to operate for several hours in the event the computer network fails. The invention also provides information about the garment&#39;s assembly status and operator efficiency information to the Point-of-Sale system using the same computer network and shared files. In the event that the Point-of-Sale system ceases to provide the information required to assemble the garments, the operator is notified by a flashing icon on the computer interface screen. 
         [0023]    Thus a basic object is to provide a computerized system for automatically sorting, marking, and assembling various objects or items or groups of such items. 
         [0024]    A related object is to provide an automatic reading and sorting system of the character described that is ideal for dry-cleaning establishments. 
         [0025]    A fundamental object is to automate the process of manually matching dry-cleaning garment tags with the correct customers and/or the correct order numbers. 
         [0026]    It is also an object of the invention to provide an automated inventory control system that addresses the particular needs of a retail dry-cleaning establishment. 
         [0027]    A further object of the invention is to use scanned bar code labels in a dry-cleaning establishment. 
         [0028]    Another object of the invention is to provide an inventory tracking and management apparatus in which identification codes for articles such as garments or orders of several garments can be acquired automatically for managing inventory. 
         [0029]    Yet another important object of the invention is to provide an inventory scanning and tracking system that can use RF/RFID technology, bar code scanning technology, OCR technology, combined with the ability to accept and process manual data entry. 
         [0030]    Another object of our invention is to employ a bar code scanner to electronically interpret identifying information encoded in a bar code associated with a tag applied to incoming goods to be laundered, and to use this garment identification information to complete the assembly process for each garment. 
         [0031]    Another object is to provide a scanning system of the character described that utilizes OCR imaging scanner technology and an associated OCR interpretation program customized for the specific ID tag utilized by the drycleaner. 
         [0032]    It is a further object of the invention to provide an inventory tracking and management system which employs RF encoding. 
         [0033]    It is also an object to analyze optical character recognition (OCR) data in addition to bar code reading and scanning. 
         [0034]    A related object of the present invention is to supplement bar codes with human readable characters or indicia. 
         [0035]    A still further object is to verify, interpret, route and store decoded data associated with garment identification in a dry-cleaning establishment. 
         [0036]    An object of the invention is to communicate with a Point-of-Sale System in use at the dry-cleaning plant over a computer network (either LAN or WAN). It is a feature of the invention that order and garment information is received by the invention and stored in a local lookup table for retrieval and comparison when required at a later time. 
         [0037]    Another object of the instant invention is to provide a mark-in system that is disposed to interface with a point-of-sale system thereby enabling an individual to input items received from customers into the system. 
         [0038]    Another object of the instant invention is to provide a mark-in system that is disposed to enable operation of the system without requiring a point-of-sale system for marking-in items. 
         [0039]    Another object of the instant invention is to provide an operator with a plurality of voice prompts and confirmations relating to items recently input into the system. 
         [0040]    Another object of the instant invention is to provide a system that is disposed to interface with a plurality of printers, wherein each printer references a unique delivery route or store. 
         [0041]    Another object of the instant invention is to provide a system that is disposed to provide an operator the quantity of items that are scheduled for sorting and assembly over a pre-determined time period. 
         [0042]    Another object of the instant invention is to provide a system, wherein the system is disposed to mark-in multiple items as a single order and then separate the order into smaller sub-orders during assembly. 
         [0043]    There has thus been outlined, rather broadly, the more important features of the automated system for assembling and sorting items, in order that the detailed description thereof that follows may be better understood, and in order that the present contribution to the art may be better appreciated. There are additional features of the invention that will be described hereinafter and which will form the subject matter of the claims appended hereto. 
         [0044]    In this respect, before explaining at least one embodiment of the invention in detail, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited in its application to the details of construction and to the arrangements of the components set forth in the following description or illustrated in the drawings. The invention is capable of other embodiments and of being practiced and carried out in various ways. Also, it is to be understood that the phraseology and terminology employed herein are for the purpose of the description and should not be regarded as limiting. 
     
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         [0045]    Advantages of the present invention will be apparent from the following detailed description of exemplary embodiments thereof, which description should be considered in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which: 
           [0046]      FIG. 1A  illustrates a diagrammatic perspective view of the automated system for assembling and sorting items in the dry cleaning industry. 
           [0047]      FIG. 1B  illustrates an exploded perspective view of the loading shroud and conveyor slots utilized to retain a plurality of items. 
           [0048]      FIG. 2  illustrates a block diagram of the system. 
           [0049]      FIG. 3  illustrates a block diagram of the conveyor control component of the system. 
           [0050]      FIG. 4  illustrates a diagrammatic top view of the conveyor apparatus and operator station area of the system. 
           [0051]      FIG. 5  illustrates a fragmentary, isometric view of the OCR Scanner station. 
           [0052]      FIGS. 6-8  illustrate diagrammatic views of various sample identification tags utilized by the system during the assembly and sorting of items. 
           [0053]      FIGS. 9-15  illustrate multiple flow diagrams of the computer software disposed for scanning garment identification tag information and for subsequent processing. 
           [0054]      FIG. 16  illustrates a flow diagram of the software disposed for interfacing to a Point of Sale system. 
           [0055]      FIG. 17  illustrates a flow diagram of the software disposed for interfacing to a Mark-In system. 
           [0056]      FIG. 18  illustrates a flow diagram for providing an operator the quantity of items that are scheduled for sorting and assembly over a pre-determined time period. 
       
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
       [0057]      FIG. 1A  illustrates the instant invention  20  consisting of an automated system for assembling and sorting items, preferably for use in the dry cleaning industry. In the preferred embodiment, the system is disposed to handle and inventory items being dry-cleaned. As used herein, the term “item” designates not only garments, but other products including but not limited to rugs, bedding items, pillow casings, and blankets, along with a variety of other things which can be dry-cleaned. During operation of the system  20 , an operator (not shown) may stand near a work table  21  (see  FIG. 4 ) preferably located within a work area  23  of a dry-cleaning establishment or other similar business venture. 
         [0058]    Initially, a customer (not shown) provides a plurality of items  50  to an operator, wherein the items  50  for a given transaction are received through a “mark-in process”. In the preferred embodiment, a plurality of items  50  belonging to a given customer transaction may be assembled as a group  60  and subsequently identified; the group  60  may also be referenced as a customer order. In one embodiment, if a customer brings in separate items over multiple visits, then a separate transaction is observed, and a separate customer order or group is formed for each corresponding visit. Once the group  60  is identified, the individual items  50  of the group  60  become commingled with other items  50  belonging to different customers that have been similarly associated with separate customer orders  60 . 
         [0059]    Once cleaning is complete, the system  20  aids the operator in reassembling the required items  50  with the original group  60  that was created when the customer initially provided the items  50  for cleaning. In the preferred embodiment, the operator selects one garment  50  from a pre-assembly holding rail  40  and scans a garment identification (“ID”) tag  55  attached to the item  50 , using either an Optical Character Recognition (“OCR”) scanner  80  or a bar code scanner  90 ; in an alternate embodiment, the operator may utilize a radio frequency (“RF”)/radio frequency identification (“RFID”) receiver  81 . In one alternate embodiment, if the garment ID tag  55  is unable to be interpreted through the use of one of the above-mentioned methods, the information contained within the ID tag  55  may be manually entered by an operator into the system  20 . Preferably the information is entered into a database processor  70  through either a computer keyboard  75 , a mouse  77 , or via a touch screen monitor  65 . In one alternate embodiment, the information may be obtained electronically through an external point of sale (“POS”) system  76  (see  76  (see  FIG. 2 ); in yet another alternate embodiment, an operator may enter the information through a mark-in station  78  (see  FIG. 2  and  FIG. 17 ). 
         [0060]    Once information from the ID tag  55  is received by the custom software program (see  FIGS. 9-15 ) running in the data processor  70 , the system  20  programmatically assigns a specific conveyor slot  150  number on an assembly conveyor  105  to be reserved for all items  50  associated with the same group  60 . The system  20  then sends an electronic command from the data processor  70  via a communications interface  100  to a conveyor control unit  110 . The electronic command enables the assembly conveyor  105  to automatically rotate until the reserved slot  150  location on the conveyor is positioned to allow for hanging of the items on a loading shroud assembly  135 . Preferably, the operator will hang the item  50  on this specified slot  150 ; the system automatically detects that the operator has hung the item  50  on the slot  150 . Ultimately, this process is repeated with the next item  50  to be assembled and sorted by the system  20 . Upon scanning the last item  50  of a specific group  60 , a receipt is automatically produced via a receipt printer  85  for the Completed Order, listing specific information related to each item  50  in the group  60 . 
         [0061]    Following rotation of the conveyor  105  to reach the assigned slot  150  for a specific customer order  60  such that the slot  150  is positioned at the loading shroud assembly  135 , a light  140  illuminates over the loading shroud assembly  135  serving as a visual confirmation to the operator that the customer order  60  is complete and ready to be removed from the assembly conveyor  105 . Furthermore, as described below, the system may incorporate an audible voice prompt informing an operator that the order is complete, while simultaneously displaying the same message on the touch screen monitor. Additionally, a sensor  145  is located on the loading shroud assembly  135 , wherein the sensor  145  sends an electronic signal via a connecting cable  160  to the conveyor control unit  110  to acknowledge that the customer order  60  has been removed from the conveyor  105 . The connecting cable  160  passes through an enclosure  115  to the conveyor control unit  110 . Once the garments  50  for the customer order  60  are removed from the assembly conveyor  105 , this conveyor slot  150  is now available to be re-assigned for another customer order. Moreover, the system  20  may utilize a conveyor slot bracket assembly  123  to ensure substantially accurate positioning of the conveyor  105  with respect to the loading shroud  135 . The bracket assembly  123  further includes a plurality of beam sensors  125 , wherein the beam sensors  125  are preferably oriented towards the slots  150  of the conveyor  105 . Therefore, when one slot  150  passes through and interrupts the beam sensors  125 , a digital pattern is created and decoded by the conveyor control unit  110  to ascertain the current position of the conveyor  105 . The conveyor slots  150  may be programmatically assigned and tracked by the custom software to be described hereinafter (see  FIGS. 9-15 ). Preferred conveyors with the slot function are available from Railex Corporation, 89-02 Atlantic Ave, Queens, N.Y. 11416. 
         [0062]      FIG. 1B  illustrates the loading shroud assembly  135  wherein the loading shroud assembly  135  further includes a loading shroud  137  along with an emergency stop switch  120 , a conveyor manual jog switch  130  and an order complete light  140  along with the bracket assembly  123 . The loading shroud assembly  135  prevents the operator from placing an item  50  on any slot  150  but the desired one. The emergency stop switch  120  cuts all electrical power to the system  20  when pushed in and the conveyor manual jog switch  130  is used in the rare case the operator needs to manually move the conveyor  105  to a particular slot  150 . The “order complete” light  140  indicates to the operator when an order is complete and needs to be removed from the conveyor. 
         [0063]      FIG. 2  illustrates a block diagram of the system  20  along with the POS system  76  and Mark-In station  78 . 
         [0064]      FIG. 3  illustrates a block diagram of the conveyor control unit  110 , wherein power is supplied to the control unit  110  via a power source  111 . Also, the speed of the conveyor  105  may be varied through a speed drive  113 . 
         [0065]    One component of the system  20  is a customized attribute recognition program (such as an OCR recognition program, or a bar code recognition program) which interprets the information on the ID tag  55 , and in turn generates an internal binary text string from this alphanumeric tag information. These internal binary text strings are then programmatically compared to various text strings stored in an inventory management system (e.g., existing point-of-sale system) database, or are compared to various text strings stored in an internal lookup table unique to the system wherein an inventory management system is not present. This comparison process programmatically determines the identity of the customer “owner” of each garment. Also, this comparison process determines the identification number (also referred to as the customer Order Number) assigned to the “grouping” of garments in which this garment is assigned. This order number information, as well as the garment identification tag data is required for the re-assembly process. Once the order number associated with this garment identification tag is identified, the invention assigns a specific numbered location on a conveyor where all subsequent garments for this order number will also be grouped. As each garment is scanned, the system  20  identifies the order number  60  associated with this item and the system automatically rotates the conveyor  105  to the assigned location where all items  50  for the same order number  60  will be consolidated. Once all items  50  for a specific order number  60  have been consolidated, then the system  20  will notify the operator that all expected items  50  for this order number  60  have been processed and the “group” of garments for this order number  60  are now ready for removal from the conveyor  105  to be routed to the next stage in the plant production process (which is normally the “bagging station”). 
         [0066]    As described above, the system  20  may communicate with an external Point-of-Sale system  76  via several commands issued using shared files over a computer network (either LAN or WAN) (see  FIG. 16 ). The Point-of-Sale System creates or appends to files with garment and order information. The order and garment information is read by the invention and stored in a local lookup table for retrieval and comparison when needed at a later time. This local lookup table allows the system to continue to operate for several hours in the event the computer network fails. The invention also provides information about the garment&#39;s assembly status and operator efficiency information to the Point-of-Sale system using the same computer network and shared files. Multiple files are used for different commands and information. 
         [0067]    In the event that the Point-of-Sale system ceases to provide the information required to assemble the garments, the operator is notified by a flashing icon on the computer interface screen. 
         [0068]    The series of files and the content was developed specifically for the invention by the inventors. This flexible format allows the invention to interface with multiple Point-of-Sale systems without modification to the original source code of the program. In the event that the data in the files are incorrectly formed or corrupted, the invention creates a log of the incorrect. This log is available to the operator for troubleshooting purposes 
         [0069]    Moreover, the system  20  can operate with or without the presence of an inventory management control system (commonly referred to as a point-of-sale POS system). In the case where a POS system  76  and mark-in station  78  are not present, then the total number of garments  50  associated with a customer Order  60  would need to be present on the garment ID tag  55 . 
         [0070]      FIG. 5  illustrates the OCR scanner  80 , wherein the OCR scanner includes a metal housing  83  secured to a support  84 . The scanner  80  further includes a light  86  located within a housing  83 , wherein the light  86  is disposed between an OCR scanner element  87  and a glass viewing pane  88 . As previously discussed, other optically scannable indicia can be used, as well as electrically encoded scannable indicia such as RF chips or magnetically encoded tags. Alternatively, a less sophisticated encoding is possible, such as coding shown alphanumerically and entered by keystrokes via the computer keyboard  75 . 
         [0071]      FIGS. 6-8  illustrate representative ID tags  55 ; there are industry “generic” tags that can be ordered from several dry-cleaning supply companies, and there are “customized” paper tags that are designed and printed to the drycleaner&#39;s specifications. All of these tags  55  (generic or custom) are available in ten standard colors. Some drycleaners use the color of the tag to indicate which day of the week the clothes are promised to be ready for the customer to pick up. Some use colored tags to indicate which store the clothes originated from and where they will be returned; all of the sample tags in shown in  FIGS. 6-8  may be produced in up to ten colors or more. 
         [0072]    The indicia on each tag  55  are interpreted by the OCR scanner  80  and are interpreted by the software program discussed hereinafter (see  FIGS. 9-15 ). The indicia information is displayed on the computer screen for the operator to view and confirm before processing the garment. Therefore it is the responsibility of the operator to verify that the indicia are accurate. There is not an example of a striped tag, but any tag design can contain stripes, stars, diamonds, and other special characters to be used as additional identification marks, such as to distinguish “delivery route” Orders from “in store” orders, etc. The specific meaning varies from one drycleaner to another regarding the use of stripes, stars, diamonds, etc, as identifying marks on the tags. 
         [0073]      FIG. 6  illustrates a representative laundry tag  56  possessing a piece designation  56 A that indicates that the order has two pieces for laundering, (i.e., “2pc.”). Both garments in this order  60  will have the same information printed on a paper tag  56 . In this embodiment, an Identification Control Number  56 C or customer order number is shown as “589.” A “promise number”  56 B (i.e., “2”) is located in a box that indicates the day of the week that the order is “promised,” which is determined by a formula wherein 1=Monday, 2=Tuesday etc. 
         [0074]      FIG. 7  illustrates a typical dry-cleaning tag  57  with a piece identification  57 A (i.e., 2 pieces in this order), a boxed “promise number”  57 B (i.e., “3”) indicating that the completed order has been promised for Wednesday, and an identification control number or order number  57 C (i.e., “426). 
         [0075]      FIG. 8  illustrates a more sophisticated custom dry cleaning tag  58  with a barcode  59  containing a customer phone number  58 A (i.e., “803-555-1234”), an entry date  58 B (i.e., “05/31/05”), and a customer name  58 C (i.e., “John Doe”); the number  58 D (i.e., “05-1039”) is a numerical representation of what is contained in the barcode  59  above it. 
         [0076]      FIG. 9  illustrates the commencement of the software program. The software program commences at step  200  ( FIG. 9 ). Step  202  determines if OCR scanning is being used, and if not, in step  204  the operator must use the scanner to read the bar code (i.e., such as barcode  59  in  FIG. 8 ) or RF ID. The garment tag number is displayed on screen  65  ( FIG. 1 ) in step  206 . A decision is made in step  208  whether or not the screen information is correct. If so, the program jumps at  210  to step  212  in  FIG. 14 . If not, the operator manually enters correct data in step  211 , entering missing information and correcting errors. When correct, the operator presses an “accept” button in step  213 , which is followed by steps  210  ( FIG. 9 ) and step  212  ( FIG. 14 ), to be explained hereinafter. 
         [0077]    If step  202  ( FIG. 9 ) determines that OCR reading is used, step  216  ( FIG. 9 ) is followed by step  218  ( FIG. 10 ). In step  220  ( FIG. 10 ) the operator holds the ID tag against the glass viewing pane  88  ( FIG. 5 ) of the OCR scanner. Step  222  determines if the garment ID tag is for laundry or dry-cleaning. If it is a laundry tag, the OCR is set for reading laundry style tags in step  224  and step  225  follows. If OCR determination step  222  determines that a dry cleaning tag exists, the OCR step  223  sets the scanner program for dry-cleaning and proceeds to step  225  as indicated by line  226 . 
         [0078]    Step  225  ( FIG. 10 ) determines if the ID tag indicates fire restoration, i.e., the tag is striped, and if so, step  227  follows and the OCR scanner is set for striped style tags and proceeds to step  230 . If not, a striped tag, step  228  sets the OCR scanner program for non-striped tags, and step  230  follows, as indicated by line  231 . 
         [0079]    Step  230  ( FIG. 10 ) connects to step  234  in  FIG. 11  which is followed by step  236  that determines if the garment ID “piece count” is readable. If readable, the “piece count” is read and stored in the OCR scanner program in step  238 . If the “piece count” is not readable in step  236 , step  239  sets an error condition on the piece count data entry field in the OCR scanner program, and step  240  follows as indicated by line  241 . 
         [0080]    Step  240  ( FIG. 11 ) determines if the “promised day” delivery date information is available. If so, step  244  reads the “promised date” from the garment ID tag and stored that date in the program, exiting to step  247 . If not, step  248  sets an error condition for the “promised day” information in the data entry field of the OCR scanning program. Step  248  is followed by step  247  as indicated by line  249 . 
         [0081]    Step  247  ( FIG. 11 ) connects with step  250  of  FIG. 12 , which is followed by step  252  that determines if the “lot control garment number” is readable. If it is, step  254  reads the “lot control garment” number and proceeds to step  258 . If not, step  260  sets an error condition marker for the lot control garment number in the data entry field of the OCR scanner program, and continues to step  258  as indicated by line  262 . 
         [0082]    Step  258  ( FIG. 12 ) determines if the garment ID “tag color” is readable. If so, step  264  determines the “tag color” in OCR logic, and stores the result in the OCR scanner program, then running to step  265 . If “tag color” is not readable in step  258 , step  266  sets an error condition for tag color in the data entry field of the OCR scanner program, and proceeds as indicated by line  267  to step  265 . 
         [0083]    Step  265  ( FIG. 12 ) connects to step  270  ( FIG. 13 ) and thus to step  272 , which has several functions. Step  272  passes previously collected tag status information relating to “promised day,” “piece count”, “tag color”, “striped or non-striped”, “tag style” to the software program. Step  274  displays the status information on the touch screen monitor  65  ( FIG. 1 ). If decision step  276  ( FIG. 13 ) finds the information correct, the operator then presses the “accept button” in step  278  and step  279  follows. If the displayed information in step  274  is not correct, the operator corrects missing or invalid information in step  277 , which is then followed by step  278 , as indicated by line  275 . 
         [0084]    Steps  210  ( FIG. 9 ) and step  279  ( FIG. 13 ) connect to step  212  at the top of  FIG. 14  upon completion. Step  282  that follows compares the garment tag information against the garment ID tag information previously received at the mark in process form the point of sale, which was scanned and stored in the program. Step  284  determines if the garment tag information matches the previously established database record. If so, step  286  follows. If not, step  288  causes the screen display of an error message indicating that no invoice was found for this particular garment ID tag, and step  289  connects back to start step  200  ( FIG. 9 ). 
         [0085]    If the garment tag information matches, step  286  ( FIG. 14 ) determines if this is the first garment tag ID for the invoice number. If so, step  290  assigns an empty slot location on the conveyor for the particular invoice number. Step  293  determines if this is the last garment tag ID for the particular invoice number, and, if not, step  302  follows. If this is the last garment ID for the particular order number, step  295  turns on a flashing light on the conveyor to indicate that this invoice or customer number is complete. Step  296  rotates the conveyor to a pre-assigned slot number location for this particular invoice number. In step  297  the operator removes these garments from the conveyor slot location, and a sensor acknowledges that the garments have been removed. Step  299  returns the program to beginning step  200  ( FIG. 9 ). 
         [0086]    Step  291  ( FIG. 14 ) connects with step  292  of  FIG. 15 , which is followed by Step  293 , wherein it is determined if this is the last garment tag ID for this invoice. If not, then in step  302  the conveyor is rotated to a pre-assigned slot location for this invoice number. In the succeeding step  304  ( FIG. 15 ) the operator hangs the garment on the pre-assigned conveyor slot and a sensor acknowledges that the garment has been placed there. If this is the last garment to be scanned today, as determined via step  306 , the process is ended at  308 . If this is not the last garment to be scanned, step  309  gets the next garment to be scanned, and box  311  indicates a repeat of the aforedescribed software process returning to box  200  ( FIG. 9 ). At step  295 , the light  140  is activated on the conveyor  105  to indicate that the invoice number is now “complete”. Then at step  296 , the conveyor is rotated to the pre-assigned slot location for the specific invoice number above. Next, at step  297 , the operator removes all garments from the conveyor slot  150  and the sensor  145  indicates the garments have been removed from the conveyor  105 . Once the garments have been removed, the system  20  proceeds back to step  200 . 
         [0087]      FIG. 16  illustrates the Point-of-Sale System  76 , which may operate independently from the system  20  to collect information. The system continuously polls for existing information or uses the Operating Systems file notification service to determine when data is available. Step  400  starts the subroutine. If it is determined in Step  401  that the POS System has provided information by creating a file, the invention will read and parse the file in step  404  and check for errors in step  405 . The information can be stored in the local database in a local table in step  406 , or an error log entry is made in step  407  describing the error. 
         [0088]    Steps  500  and  501  represent the method which the invention provides information to the Point-of-Sale System. Various events that the operator performs create data records to allow the Point-of-Sale System to have real-time status of the garments and orders. Examples of events are racking of a garment, un-racking of a garment, completion of an order and manual removal of an order among other events. 
         [0089]      FIG. 17  illustrates the optional mark-in station  78  (“ADAC Plus”), wherein the mark-in station  78  may interface with the Point-of-Sale system  76  or may operate independently. In the preferred embodiment, the mark-in station  78  is utilized in conjunction with the Point-of-Sale system  76 . In an alternate embodiment, an individual that does not possess the Point-of-Sale system  76 , or that does not have an interface between the mark-in station  78  and the Point-of-Sale system  76 , may use the mark-in station  78  in lieu of obtaining the mark-in information (as described above) from the Point-of-Sale system  76 . In yet another alternate embodiment, when there is an interface between the Point-of-Sale system  76  and the mark-in station  78 , the mark-in station  78  may be utilized for mark-in of some items while the Point-of-Sale system  76  is used for other items. An example would be a dry-cleaner who has a POS system for his retail stores, but also has wholesale customers (i.e. other dry-cleaning drop store operators) who either do not have a POS, or have a different POS than the one he uses. In this case, the POS system would be used for mark-in of the customers&#39; items that are dropped off at his retail locations, while the ADAC Plus system would be used for mark-in of items brought in from his wholesale accounts. 
         [0090]    Therefore, with the mark-in station  78 , mark-in information goes into the mark-in station  78  database and is then sent to the data processor  70 . Subsequent, the data processor  70  sends the print command to the printer (or printers) upon completion of each order during the assembly process. With items marked in through the Point-of-Sale system  76 , the information first goes to the POS database, and then is sent to the data processor  70  via the interface. Upon completion of an order, the data processor  70  sends information to the POS via the interface and the POS sends the command to the printer to print the ticket for the order. 
         [0091]    First at step  300 , the Operator signs in via the touch screen. The ID is compared to the table in the database for validity and access level. At step  305 , the Operator presses the “New Ticket” button to begin the mark-in process. At step  310 , the Operator changes the due date (or promise time) on the computer to signify when the order needs to be ready, if necessary. Normally most tickets will have the same due time and this step can be skipped once the correct due time has been entered for the session. Then at step  315 , the Operator examines whether the store/route has been selected. As such, like the due time referenced above, items are normally marked-in by store/route in batches. Once the operator selects the proper store, this step can be skipped in subsequent ticket mark-ins, as long as the target is the same as the previous marked in order. If this is the first ticket of the programs execution, the software will force the operator to select a store or route at step  320 , otherwise control is passed to step  330 . At step  320 , the software will present the operator with a dialog to pick a predefined Store/Route (Target Destination) from a list. Subsequently, at step  325 , the Operator Picks Target Destination from the dialog presented in step  320 . 
         [0092]    It is important to note each store has its own color assigned to it. Once the store has been selected, the ticket screen on the display changes color to match the store selected. This gives the operator another point of reference to avoid marking in orders for the wrong target. At step  330 , the Operator is presented with a dialog box allowing entry of the invoice number from the original invoice being entered. If the invoice contains a machine readable code, the operator would simply scan the invoice using an imager to capture the information. In the event of a non machine readable code, the operator inputs the invoice number through the on screen keyboard. At step  335  the operator physically counts the garments they will be marking in for this invoice and enters the number of items on the invoice. This is used in step  120  to verify that every piece has been entered. At step  340 , the Operator using the imager scans the barcode for the garment. If the barcode is not machine readable, the operator may choose the option of an on screen keyboard to enter the garment ID. At step  345 , the garment table in the database is checked to see if the unique ID of the garment is on file. If the garment is on file, control is passed to step  350  otherwise control is passed to step  355 . At step  350 , the customer&#39;s name field is populated with name of the customer stored in the database table. At step  355 , the total number of pieces the operator indicated they would be marking in step  335  is compared to the total number of pieces entered. If so, control is passed to step  365 , otherwise control is passed to step  360 . 
         [0093]    Again, it is important to note that the Operator may at anytime update the amount of pieces they will be marking in by selecting the piece count button and entering a new amount. This would be used if they found an extra piece, or had miscounted originally. At step  360 , the software will disable the “END” button. This prevents the operator from finishing the invoice until the number of items scanned at step  355  matches the number of items operator will be entering at step  335 . At step  365 , the software will enable the “END” button so the operator can finish the invoice. At step  370 , if the operator presses the “END” button control continues on to step  370 , otherwise control is passed back to step  340  allowing a new garment to be entered. At step  375 , the Operator is presented with a dialog box to enter the customer&#39;s name. If a customer was identified in step  345 , the Operator will be presented with that name and may just accept the customer. If the customer&#39;s name does not match the customers name on the original invoice, they may simply overwrite the name with the correct information. Lastly at step  380 , the system will save the transaction in the database and flag it for transmission to the data processor  70 . 
         [0094]      FIG. 18  illustrates the time specials feature of the system  20  that allows for the operator to provide a display of garments coming due at user defined intervals. For example, occasionally a dry cleaner&#39;s customer will need a garment before the normal due time (i.e. normally the clothes are promised for 5:00 pm, but this customer needs his by 2:00 pm to make a flight). The present system  20  will display to the operator that a garment is coming due within the specified time frame. The default times are End of Day, 2 hours, 1 hour, 30 minutes, and past due. Each threshold has its own box to display the number of items/orders due within that time frame. When all the orders are due in 30 minutes or more, the display shows number of pieces and orders, and has a green back ground. When an order is due in less than 30 minutes (or smallest user defined time frame) the displays are now a yellow back ground to alert the operator. Once an item has gone over due, the display turns red. The operator may, at anytime touch the buttons on the screen to see a list of the items due. 
         [0095]    At step  400 B, the ini, or settings, file for the program is read. The end user may define three time periods to display. By default these time periods are: 
         [0096]    Period  1 : 30 Minutes 
         [0097]    Period  2 : 60 Minutes 
         [0098]    Period  3 : 120 Minutes 
         [0000]    For the purpose of clarity, applicant will refer to each of these periods with the default time periods throughout the remainder of this figure. 
         [0099]    At step  405 B, the database is queried for all items that are due out today. These items are then collected as a record set and examined in subsequent steps. At step  410 , the records that were collected by step  405  are cycled through one by one. At step  415 , the due time of the item is compared to the current clock time. If the item was due to be finished prior to now, control continues to step  420 . Otherwise control is passed to step  435 . At step  420 , the on screen counter is incremented by 1 to show an increase in the overdue items. At step  425 , the display also shows, in addition to how many items are due, the number of tickets due. If this is the first item then control continues to step  430 , otherwise control is passed to step  495 . At step  430 , the display that shows the number of invoices overdue is increased by one; control is passed to step  495 . 
         [0100]    At step  435 , it is determined whether there is an item due in less than thirty minutes from now. If yes, then control continues to step  440 , otherwise control is passed to step  455 . At step  440 , the on screen counter is incremented by 1. At step  445 , if this is the first item then control continues to step  450 , otherwise control is passed to step  495 . At step  450 , the display that shows the number of invoices due in thirty minutes is increased by one; control is passed to step  495 . At step  455 , it is determined whether there is an item due in less than sixty minutes from now? If yes, then control continues to step  460 , otherwise control is passed to step  475 . At step  460 , the on screen counter is incremented by 1. At step  465 , if this is the first item then control continues to step  470 , otherwise control is passed to step  495 . At step  470 , the display that shows the number of invoices due in sixty minutes is increased by one; control is passed to step  495 . At step  475 , it is determined whether there is item due in less than one hundred twenty minutes from now? If yes, then control continues to step  480 , otherwise control is passed to step  495 . At step  480 , the on screen counter is incremented by 1. At step  485 , if this is the first item, then control continues to step  490 , otherwise control is passed to step  495 . At step  490 , the display that shows the number of invoices due in one hundred twenty minutes is increased by one; control is continues to step  495 . 
         [0101]    At step  495 , the display that contains the total items due by the end of the day is updated. This display is inclusive of all other time periods. At step  500 , if this is the first item then control continues to step  505 , otherwise control is passed to step  510 . At step  505 , the display that shows the number of invoices due for today is increased by one; control is continues to step  510 . At step  510 , this checks to see if this is the last item of the record set created in step  405 . If it is control continues to step  515 , otherwise control is passed to step  415  for the next record. At step  515 , if overdue items exist then control is passed to step  530 , otherwise control continues on to step  520 . At step  520 , if items are due in less than thirty minutes, control is passed to step  535 , otherwise control continues to step  525 . At step  525 , if no items are due in thirty minutes or overdue, then the operator&#39;s display is set to green. At step  530 , if items are overdue, the operator&#39;s display is set to red. This alerts the operator that they are overdue and need to take action. Finally, at step  535 , if items are due in less than 30 minutes, then the operators display is set to yellow. This warns the operator that they have items due shortly and need to take action before the items become overdue. 
         [0102]    In addition to the above disclosed system  20 , there are additional embodiments and options shown below to assist the operator in efficiency and use of the overall system  20 . 
       Missing Items Report: 
       [0103]    This prints a report for the operator that shows items that have yet to be assembled. This report may also be run specified for the time periods specified in the time special thresholds. The printed report gives the operator the information needed to track down the garments in the plant. It also provides a space for the operator to make notes on if they found it, it is missing, or if it is being held and the reason why it is being held. 
       Loaded Items History Report: 
       [0104]    This report shows the history of an item. It also shows the history of the items that were hung next to it, offloaded before and after it. In the rare case where an operator may have mixed up pieces while packing the completed order, this gives them a report to track down where the pieces may have gone. 
       Voice Prompts/Confirmations: 
       [0105]    The system  20  may use verbal prompting to supplement the visual displays. In one embodiment, a pair of sound effects as audio cues may be utilized. The first is a “ding” subtle bell sound, which repeats after an item is scanned until it is confirmed to have been racked (through the sensor or screen press). The second is a more pronounced Chime or Harp sound, this plays once an order is complete until the order is removed. Voices are generated through Microsoft&#39;s Speech Application Programming Interface (SAPI). Thus, by utilizing the SAPI process we can create customer specific prompts at run time. For example: 
         [0106]    When an item is scanned:
       a. On a single piece order, the SAPI voice will announce “this is a single piece order, order complete . . . ” and the Chime will repeat until the item is removed   b. On the first piece of a multi piece order, the SAPI voice will announce “Please hang the garment on hook  24 .” The ding sound will repeat until the rack operation is completed.   c. On subsequent pieces of multi piece orders the SAPI voice will announce “Please hang the garment on hook  24  with the 2 other pieces” Obviously hook number and number of pieces changes to reflect the current and correct information. The ding sound will repeat until the rack operation is complete.   d. On the final piece of multi piece orders the SAPI voice will announce “Order Complete. Please remove the 4 piece order from slot  24 ”. The chime sound will repeat until the order is removed.       
 
       Multi-Language: 
       [0111]    One of the benefits of using a SAPI based system is the ability to send custom text at run time and have it read to the operator. SAPI voices come from numerous third party software providers in different languages and genders. Simply by installing another language SAPI voice and sending it the correct prompts in that language it is read out load. 
         [0112]    While several embodiments of the instant invention have been illustrated by way of example, it is apparent that further embodiments could be developed within the spirit and scope of the instant invention. However, it is to be expressly understood that such modifications and adaptations are within the spirit and scope of the instant invention, as set forth in the following claims.