Abstract:
An automated assembly conveyor method and apparatus for dry-cleaners recognizes, associates, and consolidates garments in customer transactions by reading garment identification tags. A scanning apparatus whose construction may vary depending upon they type of garment tagging system utilized by a given retail drycleaner reads tags through Optical Character Recognition (OCR) scanning, Bar Code scanning, or Radio Frequency (RF) means, and manual error correcting input is also facilitated. A large inventory of garments assembled into unique orders by customer., each “group” having at least one garment. The software collects information relating to “promised day,” “piece count”, “tag color” “striped or non-striped”, and “tag style” for operator display.

Description:
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION  
       [0001]     This application is based upon, and claims the priority filing date, of the previously-filed, copending U.S. Provisional patent application entitled “AUTOMATED DRY CLEANING ASSEMBLY CONVEYOR SYSTEM,” filed May 11, 2006, Ser. No. 60/799,518. 
     
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     I. Field of the Invention  
         [0003]     The present invention relates generally to automated sorting and conveyor apparatus used in retail dry cleaning establishments. More particularly, the present invention relates to automatic, dry cleaning sorting systems that read and respond to product bar codes, various labels, and RF tags for the subsequent computerized classification and sorting of the goods.  
         [0004]     II. Description of the Prior 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]     Various systems of lot accumulation, inventory reporting and other such inventory control and operation systems are known in the art. For example, automated systems in which digital computers are employed for counting purposes are known in connection with laundry systems. An example of such a system is shown in U. S. Pat. No. 3,876,075. In the system described in the latter patent, customer identification and sorted article counts are computer processed to assist in the allocation of identifiable product lots to specific cleaning machines.  
         [0011]     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.  
         [0012]     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.  
         [0013]     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.  
         [0014]     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.  
         [0015]     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.  
         [0016]     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.  
         [0017]     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.  
         [0018]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,581,064 issued Dec. 3, 1996 discloses a system for reading popular retail discount coupons. Identifying information can be derived with a bar code reader, an OCR scanner, a combination bar code reader/OCR scanner, or manual entry. The manufacturer&#39;s discount coupon has an alphanumeric identification of a particular item, a description and an amount by which to decrease the retail price of the item, an expiration date, and a U.P.C. (Universal Product Code), or other code, that identifies it. The system correlates the first identifying code with one or more second identifying codes, and chooses a particular one of the second identifying codes in uniquely identifying the coupon.  
         [0019]     U.S. Pat. No. 6,832,726 issued Dec. 21, 2004 provides barcode optical character recognition software configured to create a printer format based on scanned labels. After an existing label is scanned, the software converts the scan into a label format through optical character recognition (OCR). The software recognizes and distinguishes text, graphics, and barcodes.  
         [0020]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,880,451 issued Mar. 9, 1999 discloses an OCR processing system that reads human readable characters corresponding to an unsuccessfully decoded word in a bar code symbol. An imaging system captures an image of the label including its bar code symbol and corresponding human readable characters. If a bar code character is not successfully decoded, the system locates the associated human readable text and segments the text into individual character images. The unsuccessfully decoded bar code character is mapped to one or more of the alphanumeric character images, which are converted into text characters. The resulting ASCII data is used to create a substitute bar code character in the bar code symbology.  
         [0021]     U.S. Pat. No. 6,744,938 issued Jun. 1, 2004 discloses a retail terminal with an imaging scanner that scans and reads labels to derive identifying product attributes. An attribute recognition program such as an optical character recognition (OCR) program is used on the scanned product label that generates text strings from alphanumeric label information and graphics images from graphics and logos. Text strings and/or graphics data are then compared to various text strings and graphics data in a database or look-up table to return information relative to the scan. Data, stored either locally or at a remote site accessible via a network or the like, is correlated to a plurality of text strings/graphics that correspond to alphanumeric text/graphics on a plurality of product labels.  
         [0022]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,770,841 issued Jun. 23, 1998 discloses a scanner including an imaging system and a label decoding system. The imaging system captures an image of a package surface that includes a machine readable code such as a bar code and an alphanumeric destination address. The label decoding system locates and decodes the machine readable code and uses OCR techniques to read the destination address. The destination address is validated by comparing the decoded address to a database of valid addresses. If the decoded address is invalid, an image of the destination address is displayed on a workstation and an operator enters the correct address. The system forms a unified package record by combining the decoded bar code data and the correct destination address data. The unified package record is used for subsequently sorting and tracking the package and is stored in a database and applied to a label that is affixed to the package.  
         [0023]     U.S. Pat. No. 4,550,246 issued Oct. 29, 1985 discloses an inventory control and reporting system for dry-cleaning establishments. A data input keyboard provides information for analyzing processing costs of laundry articles, a data processor adapted to calculate pricing information and to generate reports based upon such data. Sequential bar code records and tags for attachment to the laundry articles are generated in sequential transactions. The bar code tags are attached to articles of clothing and are used with scanning apparatus to facilitate generation of reports according to various management needs.  
         [0024]     U.S. Pat. No. 5,962,834 issued Oct. 5, 1999 discloses a tracking and management system designed especially for dry-cleaning inventory control using RF encoding device and optical encoding. The optical pattern includes a barcode for automatic or semiautomatic data capture as well as human readable characters that are cross referenced to the RF identifying code and to inventory control records in a database. An identification packet is attached to each garment for tracking.  
       SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION  
       [0025]     This invention provides an automated assembly conveyor method and apparatus that is especially designed for retail dry-cleaning and laundry applications. The preferred apparatus recognizes, associates, and consolidates dry-cleaned or laundered garments for customer transactions by reading garment identification tags attached to each garment by the retail drycleaner. The invention interfaces to a “Point of Sale” system when available.  
         [0026]     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.  
         [0027]     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.  
         [0028]     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”).  
         [0029]     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.  
         [0030]     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.  
         [0031]     A related object is to provide an automatic reading and sorting system of the character described that is ideal for dry-cleaning establishments.  
         [0032]     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.  
         [0033]     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.  
         [0034]     A further object of the invention to use scanned bar code labels in a dry-cleaning establishment.  
         [0035]     Another object of the invention 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.  
         [0036]     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.  
         [0037]     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.  
         [0038]     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.  
         [0039]     It is a further object of the invention to provide an inventory tracking and management system which employs RF encoding.  
         [0040]     It is also an object to analyze optical character recognition (OCR) data in addition to bar code reading and scanning.  
         [0041]     A related object of the present invention is to supplement bar codes with human readable characters or indicia.  
         [0042]     A still further object is to verify, interpret, route and store decoded data associated with garment identification in a dry-cleaning establishment.  
         [0043]     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 in formation is received by the invention and stored in a local lookup table for retrieval and comparison when required at a later time.  
         [0044]     These and other objects and advantages of the present invention, along with features of novelty appurtenant thereto, will appear or become apparent in the course of the following descriptive sections. 
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0045]     In the following drawings, which form a part of the specification and which are to be construed in conjunction therewith, and in which like reference numerals have been employed throughout wherever possible to indicate like parts in the various views:  
         [0046]      FIG. 1  is a partially exploded, fragmentary isometric view of the operator station according to the best mode of our invention;  
         [0047]      FIG. 2  is a block diagram of the preferred system;  
         [0048]      FIG. 3  is a block diagram of the conveyor control component of the present invention;  
         [0049]      FIG. 4  is a diagrammatic view of the conveyor and operator station floor plan according to the best mode of the invention;  
         [0050]      FIG. 5  is a fragmentary, isometric view of the OCR Scanner station;  
         [0051]      FIGS. 6-8  are diagrammatic views of several sample garment identification tags readable by the invention;  
         [0052]      FIG. 9-15  are flow diagrams of the computer software used for scanning garment identification tag information and for subsequent processing; and,  
         [0053]      FIG. 16  is a flow diagram of the preferred software used for interfacing to a Point of Sale system. 
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0054]     The invention comprises an automated dry-cleaning system  20  seen pictorially in  FIG. 1  and in block form in  FIG. 2 . The system is adapted to handle and inventory items being dry-cleaned. As used herein, the term “item” designates not only garments, but other products such as, rugs, bedding items, pillow casings, blankets, and a variety of other things which can be dry-cleaned. An operator (not shown) usually stands near the work table  21  ( FIG. 4 ) in the reception area  23  of a retail garment dry-cleaning establishment. In the “mark-in process,” one or more items, usually comprising garments  50 , from a given customer during a given transaction are received. Group  60  (also called “customer orders)” of items belonging to a given customer transaction are identified. (If the same customer later brings more clothes or items for cleaning, a separate transaction is observed, and a separate customer order or group is formed.)  
         [0055]     After a group is determined, its members become commingled with other items and other garments belonging to different customers that have been similarly associated with different orders. After cleaning is complete, system  20  aids the operator in reassembling the required garments  50  with the original group  60  (i.e., customer Order) that was determined immediately after the customer dropped off the garments for cleaning. The operator selects a garment  50  from the pre-assembly holding rail  40  and scans the attached garment ID tag  55  using either the OCR scanner  80  or a bar code scanner  90 . Optionally an RF/RFID receiver  81  can be used. If for some reason information a garment ID tag  55  cannot be read by the scanner (or other equipment), the garment tag information can be manually entered using keystrokes via a computer keyboard  75  or mouse  77  ( FIG. 1 ), or via a touch screen monitor  65  ( FIGS. 1, 2 ). An external POS (i.e., “point-of-sale”) system is identified by the reference numeral  76  ( FIG. 2 )  
         [0056]     Once information from the garment ID tag  55  is received by the custom software program (i.e.,  FIGS. 9-15 ) running in the data processor  70 , the invention programmatically assigns a specific slot number on the assembly conveyor  105  ( FIG. 1 ) to be reserved for all garments associated with this same customer Order  60 . The system then sends an electronic command from the data processor  70  ( FIG. 2 ) via a communications interface  100  to the conveyor control panel  110  ( FIGS. 1-3 ), causing the assembly conveyor  105  ( FIG. 1 ) to automatically rotate until the reserved slot location on the conveyor is positioned at the loading shroud  135 . The operator will now hang the garment  50  on this specified slot. The invention automatically detects that the operator has hung the garment  50  on the slot. Then the process is repeated with the next garment  50  to be assembled.  
         [0057]     Power is supplied via source  111  ( FIG. 3 ). The conveyor slots are programmatically assigned and tracked by the custom software to be described hereinafter. Preferred conveyors with the slot function are available from Iowa Techniques, Inc. 524 Tradesman Park Dr., Hutto, Tex. 78634.  
         [0058]     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 invention will notify 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”).  
         [0059]     The invention communicates with a Point-of-Sale System via several commands issued using shared files over a computer network (either LAN or WAN) ( 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.  
         [0060]     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.  
         [0061]     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  
         [0062]     The speed of the conveyor can be varied as indicated by control  113  ( FIG. 3 ).  
         [0063]     Upon scanning the last garment  50  of a specific group  60  (customer Order), a receipt printer  85  ( FIGS. 1, 2 ) produces a printed receipt  95  ( FIG. 1 ) for the Completed Order, listing specific information related to each garment in the customer Order.  
         [0064]     After automatic rotation of the conveyor  105  until the slot assigned for this customer order is positioned at the load shroud  135 , a light  140  is illuminated over the loading shroud  135  as a visual confirmation to the operator that customer order  60  is complete and ready to be removed from the assembly conveyor  105 . Sensor  145  located on the loading shroud  135  sends an electronic signal via a connecting cable to the data processor  70  ( FIG. 2 ) to acknowledge that the customer order  60  has been removed from the conveyor. Once the garments  50  for the customer order  60  are removed from the assembly conveyor  105 , this conveyor slot is now available to be re-assigned for another customer order.  
         [0065]     The invention 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 is 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 .  
         [0066]     The scannable garment ID tag  55  information has been discussed with respect to optically scannable medium, such as a bar code or pre-printed paper garment lot control tags. Other optically scannable indicia can be used as well, as can 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 a computer keyboard  75 .  
         [0067]     Turning to  FIG. 5 , the OCR scanner has a metal housing  83  secured to support  84 . A light  86  within housing  83  is disposed between OCR scanner element  87  and the glass viewing pane  88 .  
         [0068]     Representative garment tags are shown in  FIGS. 6-8 . There are industry “generic” tags that can be ordered from several drycleaning supply companies, and there are “customized” paper tags that are designed and printed to the drycleaner&#39;s specifications. All of these tags (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 will be returned to. All of the sample tags in  FIGS. 6-8  can be produced in ten colors.  
         [0069]     The indicia on each tag is read by the OCR scanner and is interpreted by the software program discussed hereinafter. The indicia information is displayed on the computer screen for the attendant to view and confirm before processing the garment. Therefore it is the responsibility of the attendant to verify that the indicia is correct. 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.  
         [0070]     In  FIG. 6 a  representative laundry tag  56  has a piece designation  56 A that indicates that the order has two pieces for laundering, i.e., “2pc.” Both garments in this Order will have the same information printed on the paper tag  56 . The Identification Control Number or customer order number  56 C is “ 589 .” A “promise number”  56 B (i.e., “ 2 ”) that is in a box, indicates the day of the week that the order is “promised,” which is determined by a formula wherein 1=Monday, 2=Tuesday etc.  
         [0071]      FIG. 7  shows a typical dry-cleaning tag  57  with 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).  
         [0072]      FIG. 8  shows a more sophisticated custom dry cleaning tag  58  with a barcode  59 . There is a customer phone number  58 A (i.e., “803-555-1234”), an entry date  58 B (i.e., “May 31, 2005”), 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.  
         [0073]     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.  
         [0074]     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 .  
         [0075]     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 .  
         [0076]     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 .  
         [0077]     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 .  
         [0078]     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 .  
         [0079]     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 .  
         [0080]     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 .  
         [0081]     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 walk 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 ).  
         [0082]     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  292  determines if this is the last garment tag ID for the particular invoice number, and, if not, step  294  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 preassigned 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 ).  
         [0083]     Step  294  ( FIG. 14  ) connects with step  300  of  FIG. 15 , which is followed by step  302 , that rotates the conveyor to a preassigned slot location for this invoice number. In the succeeding step  304  ( FIG. 15 ) the operator hangs the garment on the preassigned 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 ).  
         [0084]     Referencing primarily  FIG. 16 , steps  400 - 407  operate independently to collect information from the Point-of-Sale System. 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.  
         [0085]     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.  
         [0086]     From the foregoing, it will be seen that this invention is one well adapted to obtain all the ends and objects herein set forth, together with other advantages which are inherent to the structure.  
         [0087]     It will be understood that certain features and subcombinations are of utility and may be employed without reference to other features and subcombinations.  
         [0088]     As many possible embodiments may be made of the invention without departing from the scope thereof, it is to be understood that all matter herein set forth or shown in the accompanying drawings is to be interpreted as illustrative and not in a limiting sense.