Data processing device for inventory control

• US 4,591,705 A
• Filed: 07/07/1983
• Issued: 05/27/1986
• Est. Priority Date: 03/17/1983
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Michiharu Toudou
• Original Assignee: Michiharu Toudou
• Inventors: Toudou, Michiharu
• Primary Examiner(s): TRAFTON, DAVID
• Application Number:
  US06/511,537
• Time in Patent Office: 1,055 Days
• Field of Search: 235/381, 235/382, 235/383, 235/384, 235/385, 235/432, 177/4, 177/6, 364/403, 364/478, 364/567
• US Class Current: 235/381
• CPC Class Codes: G01G 19/02 for weighing wheeled or rolling bodies, e.g. vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: G06K 17/00 Methods or arrangements for effecting co-operative working between equipments covered by two or more of main groups G06K1/00 - G06K15/00, e.g. automatic card files incorporating conveying and reading operations
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/08 Logistics, e.g. warehousing, loading or distribution; Inventory or stock management
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

Method and apparatus for determining the nature and amount of goods being moved into or out of a particular location, such as a stock yard or the like. The disclosed embodiment deals with trucks transporting material into or out of a stock yard. Each truck is weighed upon entering the stock yard, and again upon leaving the yard. Each truck operator carries a measurement permission card containing encoded information about the weight and identity of the truck, and the material being picked up or delivered. This information preferably is encoded on the permission card in bar code, and is read from the permission card. The detected gross weight and net weight of the truck, and possibly other information, are printed on a separate measuring sheet as part of the material delivery of pick-up operation. Operating steps are performed under control of a programmed computer.

Claims

1. A data processing method for loading and unloading in a stock yard with data processing apparatus for reading and writing codes on a card showing information, said method comprising the steps of:

inserting into the apparatus a measuring sheet and a permission card provided with coded information showing the type of a truck at a portal of the yard;

thereafter determining whether the truck is entering or leaving the stock yard by detecting the absence or presence, respectively, of coded information on said measuring sheet;

measuring the weight of the truck by means of a truck scale connected to the apparatus; and

if the truck was determined to be entering the stock yard, printing on the measuring sheet encoded information corresponding to the type of truck in response to the coded information on the permission card, and also printing encoded information the measured weight of the truck, or

if the truck was determined to be leaving the stock yard, printing on the measuring sheet the differential weight between the measured weight and the truck weight corresponding to the information encoded on said measuring sheet.

2. The data processing method of claim 1, wherein said weight of the entering truck is printed in terms of both the coded information and Arabic numerals.

3. The data processing method of claim 1, comprising the steps of reading the coded information at least two times;

and comparing said readings for identity, thereby indicating that the coded information was read correctly.

4. The data processing method of claim 1, further comprising the step of determining an abnormal situation by:

predicting the tare weight of the truck in response to the type of truck encoded on the permission card;

comparing the predicted tare weight with the measured weight of the truck when the truck is determined to be entering the stock yard;

comparing the predicted tare weight with the differential weight of the truck when the truck is determined to be leaving the stock yard;

determining an abnormal weight condition if either comparison exceeds a prescribed value; and

printing a mark on the measuring sheet indicating an abnormality in response to determining an abnormal weight condition.

5. The data processing method of claim 1, further comprising the step of printing an abnormality-indicating mark on the measuring sheet if the code of vehicle type printed on the measuring sheet is not coincident to the code of vehicle type on the permission card when the truck is determined to be leaving the stock yard.

6. The data processing method of claim 1, further comprising the step of determining whether the truck has been loaded or unloaded at the portal of the yard, in response to said measured weight of the truck.

7. The data processing method of claim 1, further comprising the steps of:

when the truck is determined to be entering the stock yard, comparing the measured weight to the official tare weight encoded on the permission card and determining either (a) the entering truck is loaded when the measured weight exceeds the official tare weight by a prescribed amount, or (b) the entering truck is empty when the measured weight does not exceed the official tare weight by the prescribed amount; and

when the truck is determined to be leaving the stock yard, comparing the present measured weight to the measured weight previously printed on the measuring sheet when the truck entered the stock yard, and determining either (a) the leaving truck is loaded when the present measured weight exceeds the previous measured weight printed on the measuring sheet, and (b) the leaving truck is empty when the present measured weight is less than the previous measured weight printed on the measuring sheet.

8. The data processing system as in claim 7, further comprising the steps of:

when the truck is determined to be entering is empty, printing the measured weight on the measuring sheet as the actual tare weight of the truck;

when the truck is determined to be entering loaded, printing the measured weight on the measuring sheet as the gross weight of the truck;

when the truck is determined to be leaving empty, printing the differential between the entering weight and the leaving weight as the amount of material transported into the stock yard; and

when the truck is determined to be leaving full, printing the differential between the leaving weight and entering weight as the amount of material transported out of the stock yard.

10. Apparatus as in claim 8, wherein:

said card reading means is operative to produce signals in response to encoded information on said permission card indicating to the official tare weight of the truck; and

said processing means is operative to compare the encoded official tare weight information with the measured weight information from the truck scale corresponding to actual tare weight of the truck, and operative to cause said printer to print information on said measuring sheet indicating an abnormal condition if the differential between measured tare weight and official tare weight exceeds a predetermined amount.

9. Data processing apparatus for determining the loading and unloading of trucks in a stock yard having a truck scale providing an output signal indicating the measured weight of a truck, comprising in combination:

code reading means operative to produce signals in response to encoded information on a measuring sheet and in response to a separate permission card both selectably inserted in the code reading means;

a printer associated with said code reading means and operative to print coded information on the measuring sheet;

processor means responsive to signals from said code reading means indicating insertion of a measuring sheet lacking imprinted coded weight information, and operative to cause said printer to print coded weight information on said measuring sheet corresponding to the measured weight signal from the truck scale, and also operative to cause said printer to print information read from the permission card, thereby determining from the detected absence of imprinted coded weight information on the measuring sheet that the truck is entering the stock yard; and

said processing means additionally responsive to signals from said code reading means indicating insertion of a measuring sheet including previously imprinted coded weight information, thereby determining that the truck is leaving the stock yard, and thereupon operative to cause said printer to print on said measuring sheet the differential weight between the measured weight from the truck scale and the weight previously encoded on said measuring sheet,

thereby producing a record on the measuring sheet showing the weight of the truck upon entering the stock yard and the differential weight corresponding to the amount of material loaded or unloaded between entering and leaving the stock yard.