Method of and system for automatically identifying packages during package transport operations carried out by a human operator walking through the doorway of a storage warehouse
First Claim
1. A method of automatically identifying packages during package transport operations carried out through the doorway of a storage warehouse, said method comprising the steps of:
- (a) supporting a laser scanning system above a doorway of a storage warehouse, said doorway defining a passageway of 3-D spatial extent through which a human operator may walk while manually transporting packages bearing bar code symbols through said doorway, said laser scanning system including a housing having a light transmission aperture, and a laser scanning pattern generator disposed within said housing;
(b) projecting from said laser scanning pattern generator, and through said light transmission aperture, an omnidirectional laser scanning pattern substantially confined within the spatial extent of a predefined 3-D scanning volume and spatially encompassing a substantial portion of said passageway of 3-D spatial extent; and
(c) transporting a package bearing a bar code symbol through said doorway as said human operator walks through said doorway so that said omnidirectional laser scanning pattern automatically reads the bar code symbol on said package, and said laser scanning system automatically produces symbol character data representative of said read bar code symbol and the identity of said package.
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Abstract
A method of and system for automatically identifying packages during package transport operations carried out by a human operator walking through the doorway of a storage warehouse, wherein, a laser scanning system is supported above the doorway defining a passageway of 3-D spatial extent, through which a human operator may walk while manually transporting packages bearing bar code symbols. In the illustrative embodiment, the laser scanning system includes a housing having a light transmission aperture, and a laser scanning pattern generator disposed within the housing. During operation of the system, the laser scanning pattern generator employs a holographic scanning disc to project through the light transmission aperture, an omnidirectional laser scanning pattern which is substantially confined within the spatial extent of a predefined 3-D scanning volume that spatially encompasses a substantial portion of the passageway of 3-D spatial extent. As each package bearing a bar code symbol is transported through the doorway as the human operator walks through the doorway, the package is automatically identified by the laser scanning system supported above the doorway. By virtue of the present invention, a bar coded package can now be automatically identified as a human operator holding the package walks through the doorway of a storage warehouse, thus improving inventory control accuracy and worker productivity.
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Citations
10 Claims
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1. A method of automatically identifying packages during package transport operations carried out through the doorway of a storage warehouse, said method comprising the steps of:
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(a) supporting a laser scanning system above a doorway of a storage warehouse, said doorway defining a passageway of 3-D spatial extent through which a human operator may walk while manually transporting packages bearing bar code symbols through said doorway, said laser scanning system including a housing having a light transmission aperture, and a laser scanning pattern generator disposed within said housing;
(b) projecting from said laser scanning pattern generator, and through said light transmission aperture, an omnidirectional laser scanning pattern substantially confined within the spatial extent of a predefined 3-D scanning volume and spatially encompassing a substantial portion of said passageway of 3-D spatial extent; and
(c) transporting a package bearing a bar code symbol through said doorway as said human operator walks through said doorway so that said omnidirectional laser scanning pattern automatically reads the bar code symbol on said package, and said laser scanning system automatically produces symbol character data representative of said read bar code symbol and the identity of said package. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5)
a plurality of laser beam sources for producing a plurality of laser beams;
a holographic scanning disc, rotatable about an axis of rotation, and supporting a plurality of holographic optical elements for scanning and focusing said plurality of laser beams so as to produce a plurality of scanning planes;
a plurality of beam folding mirrors disposed about said holographic scanning disc, for folding said plurality of scanning planes so as to project said omnidirectional laser scanning pattern through said light transmission aperture and within the spatial extent of said predefined 3-D scanning volume;
a plurality of light focusing elements disposed beneath said holographic scanning disc, each said light focusing element focusing towards a focal point above said holographic scanning disc, light rays reflected off said scanned bar code symbol and collected by said holographic optical elements; and
a plurality of photodetectors, each said photodetector being proximately disposed at one said focal point above said holographic scanning disc, and being radially aligned with the optical axis of one said light focusing element, for directly detecting the intensity of focused light rays retransmitted through said holographic optical elements as said holographic scanning disc rotates, and generating a scan data signal for subsequent processing and conversion into said symbol character data.
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4. The method of claim 3, wherein said light focusing element is realized as a parabolic mirror element.
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5. The method of claim 3, wherein said plurality of laser beam sources comprises a plurality of visible laser diodes.
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6. A system for automatically identifying packages during package transport operations carried out through the doorway of a storage warehouse, said system comprising:
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a laser scanning system supported above a doorway of a storage warehouse, said doorway defining a passageway of 3-D spatial extent through which a human operator may walk while manually transporting packages bearing bar code symbols, said laser scanning system including a housing having a light transmission aperture, and a laser scanning pattern generator disposed within said housing, for projecting through said light transmission aperture an omnidirectional laser scanning pattern substantially confined within the spatial extent of a predefined 3-D scanning volume that spatially encompasses a substantial portion of said passageway, so that when a package bearing a bar code symbol is transported through said passageway by said human operator, said omnidirectional laser scanning pattern automatically reads the bar code symbol on said package, and said laser scanning system automatically produces symbol character data representative of said read bar code symbol and the identity of said package. - View Dependent Claims (7, 8, 9, 10)
a plurality of lasers beam sources for producing a plurality of laser beams;
a holographic scanning disc, rotatable about an axis of rotation, and supporting a plurality of holographic optical elements for scanning and focusing said plurality of laser beams so as to produce a plurality of scanning planes;
a plurality of beam folding mirrors disposed about said holographic scanning disc, for folding said plurality of scanning planes so as to project said omnidirectional laser scanning pattern through said light transmission aperture and within the spatial extent of said predefined 3-D scanning volume;
a plurality of light focusing elements disposed beneath said holographic scanning disc, each said light focusing element focusing towards a focal point above said holographic scanning disc, light rays reflected off said scanned bar code symbol and collected by said holographic optical elements; and
a plurality of photodetectors, each said photodetector being proximately disposed at one said focal point above said holographic scanning disc, and being radially aligned with the optical axis of one said light focusing element, for directly detecting the intensity of focused light rays retransmitted through said holographic optical elements as said holographic scanning disc rotates, and generating a scan data signal for subsequent processing and conversion into said symbol character data.
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9. The system of claim 8, wherein said light focusing element is realized as a parabolic mirror element.
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10. The method of claim 8, wherein said plurality of laser beam sources comprises a plurality of visible laser diodes.
Specification