Consumable supplies monitoring/ordering system for reprographic equipment

• US 5,305,199 A
• Filed: 10/28/1992
• Issued: 04/19/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 10/28/1992
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Original Assignee: Xerox Corporation (Xerox Holdings Corp.)
• Inventors: LoBiondo, Martin F., Baiter, Paul A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Envall, Jr., Roy N.
• Assistant Examiner(s): BAI, ARI
• Application Number:
  US07/967,475
• Time in Patent Office: 538 Days
• Field of Search: 364/403, 364/400, 364/401, 364/402, 364/403, 364/406, 355/204, 355/206, 355/209
• US Class Current: 705/28
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/5079 for maintenance
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/55 Self-diagnostics; Malfunction or lifetime display
• CPC Class Codes: G03G 15/553 Monitoring or warning means for exhaustion or lifetime end of consumables, e.g. indication of insufficient copy sheet quantity for a job
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

A reprographic machine includes an inventory tracking system for monitoring consumable supplies. Usage data from a plurality of networked reprographic machines is supplied to a single tracking system for monitoring inventories of supplies consumed by the network. Automatic or semi-automatic ordering can be provided via a remote interactive communication system. Order confirmation, projected shipment dates and shipment confirmations can be provided from the reorder site. The system can provide inventory monitoring customized to a local network.

Claims

1. A consumable supplies monitoring, locating and ordering system comprising:

a plurality of reprographic machines arranged in a network;

an inventory tracking system in communication with the network of reprographic machines for tracking an inventory of at least one consumable material consumed by said plurality of reprographic machines;

a plurality of usage means, one usage means being disposed in each of the reprographic machines for determining usage information relating to the at least one consumable material;

means for supplying said usage information from each of the usage means to the inventory tracking system;

the inventory tracking system including a determining means for determining a projected reordering point for the at least one consumable material based on the usage information from the plurality of usage means and determining a customized inventory threshold for each of the plurality of reprographic machines to accommodate differences in the usage information generated by each of the plurality of usage means;

a user interface associated with at least one of said reprographic machines;

means for displaying information from the inventory tracking system on the user interface when at least one of the projected reordering point and customized inventory threshold for the at least one consumable material being tracked is reached, or in response to operator commands; and

means for ordering a resupply of the at least one consumable material when at least one of the projected reordering point and customized inventory threshold is reached.

2. The monitoring system as in claim 1, wherein the inventory tracking system is disposed within one of the plurality of networked reprographic machines.

3. The monitoring system as in claim 1, wherein the inventory tracking system includes means for storing information concerning inventories of a plurality of consumable materials.

4. The monitoring system as in claim 3, wherein the consumable materials include a recording medium and a marking material.

5. The system as in claim 1, wherein the inventory tracking system includes a judging means for judging that a reorder point for the at least one consumable material has been reached and means responsive to the judging means for displaying reorder information on the user interface indicative of reaching at least one of the projected reordering point and customized inventory threshold.

6. The monitoring system as in claim 5, wherein the judging means includes means for storing an inventory threshold value and means for determining if a stored inventory value is below the threshold value.

7. The monitoring system as in claim 5, further comprising a communications interface for communicating the reorder information to a remote location.

8. The monitoring system as in claim 1, wherein the inventory tracking system includes a judging means for judging that a reorder point has been reached for said at least one consumable material;

a communications interface is associated with at least one of said reprographic machines; and

the means for ordering further comprises means for sending an order for the at least one consumable material to a supplies ordering location via the communications interface in response to a judgment by the judging means that a reorder point is reached.

9. The monitoring system as in claim 8, further comprising an input means associated with the inventory tracking means for providing resupply information concerning the at least one consumable material to the inventory tracking system.

10. The monitoring system as in claim 9, wherein the input means is operator actuated.

11. A monitoring system as in claim 9, wherein the input means includes means for accepting information from the communications interface.