Accu-Sort® Video Shows How Adding Side-by-Side Package Detection to Bar Code System Cut Costs for Distribution Center

New video case study explains how AV6010 bar-code system with side-by-side package detection uncovered cost savings

PHILADELPHIA, PA – (August 30, 2010) – Accu-Sort® Systems, Inc. has released a video case study on how its new side-by-side package detection system is projected to save a distribution center (DC) $111,000 a year by minimizing mis-shipments and manual handling of packages.

The new video demonstrates Accu-Sort’s recently introduced software option for its popular AccuVision® AV6010 camera bar-code scanner, which allows the system to automatically detect side-by-side packages that could otherwise be mistaken for a single package in an automated warehouse system. The AV6010 Camera System with Side-by-Side Package Detection will benefit any operation that has a bar code system and a problem with non-singulated cuboidal packages. It will be of particular interest to large retailers and parcel companies, who will also benefit from the camera system’s reliability and accuracy.

The video tells the story of one of the first DCs to install the Accu-Sort Side-by-Side Package Detection option. A large retailer had a problem with the flow of packages on an automated tilt-tray conveyor at its distribution center in the Mid-Atlantic region. Mis-sorts occurred when multiple packages ended up on the same tray, and each mis-sorted package had to be manually handled. Then retailer installed the Side-by-Side Package Detection system. Using a unique three-in-one method to identify side-by-side packages, nearly 100 percent of these conditions were detected, and those packages were diverted and automatically recirculated through the bar code system.

The video shows the system in operation and reveals the results of the project. By minimizing mis-shipments and manual handling of mis-sorts, the upgrade paid for itself within three months. Return-on-investment calculations project that the distribution center will save more than $111,000 annually.

Accu-Sort is the only company that uses an integrated, multidimensional approach to detect side-by-side packages. Consequently, the system minimizes false positives and negatives, which typically require costly manual intervention.

For more information about the AV6010 camera bar-code scanner with Side-by-Side Package Detection and to estimate your ROI for FREE, call 1-800-BAR-CODE or visit www.accusort.com/video/sbs.

PHILADELPHIA, PA – (July 12, 2010) – Accu-Sort® Systems, Inc. announced its DM3500 Irregular Dimensioning System has been certified by the National Type Evaluation Program (NTEP) of the National Conference of Weights and Measures, making it legal for trade in the United States. This certification verifies the system calculates the dimensions of irregularly shaped packages accurately and automatically as they move on a conveyor through a warehouse or distribution center. The DM3500 is the only package dimensioning system with this certification that is certified to dimension items up to 147 inches long.

The DM3500’s NTEP certification will be of particular interest to managers of distribution centers and parcel delivery companies who need to charge customers back for handling oversized and non-standard parcels such as brooms, mailing tubes, tires, carpet rolls, auto mufflers, etc. The Accu-Sort dimensioning system is equally useful to retail companies who need to dimension irregularly-shaped items for optimal truck loading and palletizing (cubing), although NTEP certification is not necessary. The system can also dimension cuboidal items (i.e., square and rectangular-shaped packages).

The DM3500 Irregular Dimensioning System includes two or three DM3500 dimensioners, depending on the width of the belt to be covered (up to 60 inches), plus a controller and Accu-Sort dimensioning software. The dimensioners mount over the conveyor so, unlike some competing systems, a break in the conveyor belt is not required. The unit’s overhead location also eliminates the potential for damage that may be encountered with side and bottom-mounted systems.

Accu-Sort also has a DM3500 dimensioning system that is NTEP certified for cuboidals only. The popular AccuVision® AV6010 camera bar-code system also offers an NTEP certified option for dimensioning cuboidal-shaped packages.

Accu-Sort® Now Offers Side-by-Side Package Detection for Automated Conveyor and Tilt-Tray Systems

Software for AV6010 camera bar-code scanner reduces cost of handling side-by-side packages

PHILADELPHIA, PA – (April 27, 2010) – Accu-Sort® Systems, Inc. is introducing a software option for its popular AV6010 camera bar-code scanner that minimizes mis-shipments, eliminating the need for manual detection and handling of closely spaced cartons that could otherwise be mistaken for a single package in an automated warehouse system. The Accu-Sort Side-by-Side Detection System provides unsurpassed accuracy and performance by correctly identifying side-by-side packages using a unique three-in-one approach to detection.

Unlike other approaches to side-by-side package detection, the new software combines three types of information from three different sources in the AccuVision® AV6010 camera bar-code system, which allows it to make more robust detection decisions. Typically, as packages move down a conveyor, bar-code systems detect each package separately based on the space between them. However, if two packages are located side by side on the conveyor, bar-code systems can mis-identify them as a single package. In contrast, when the optional Side-by-Side Detection software is enabled, the AV6010 system:

• Measures the height of side-by-side packages; if two different heights are detected, the software determines that two packages are present.
• Detects the outer edges of items and determines, based on the package outline, if more than one package is present.
• Reads the package bar codes; if multiple bar code labels are detected, then the system identifies two packages.

Accu-Sort is the only company to use an integrated, multidimensional approach to detect side-by-side packages and reduce false positives and negatives. As a result, its system minimizes the number of mis-routed and mis-shipped packages, which require costly manual intervention.

Unlike some competitive detection systems that must be installed beneath the conveyor and require a gap in the belt, the Accu-Sort system has the advantage of using the existing overhead-mounted AV6010 camera bar-code scanner. For this reason, Accu-Sort's Side-by-Side Package Detection is the only system that is also compatible with tilt-tray conveyors.  

Simpler installation is only the first advantage of this new package detection approach. An Optimization Tool included with the Side-by-Side Detection System allows users to analyze results and then adjust detection thresholds to improve accuracy. This is especially beneficial in settings where package characteristics change over time; it is also more efficient than competitive approaches that rely on time-consuming package testing to tune their systems. Distribution center managers who routinely capture images for analysis can also use this tool to quantify detection results and further optimize performance.

For added convenience, the Side-by-Side Detection software allows excluding items based on bar codes entered into the system’s memory. This feature is useful when the automation system must handle a combination of open totes and boxes on the conveyor. Because a tote is open at the top, it may appear to the system as a false side-by-side event. To prevent this, all totes can be assigned a special bar code that identifies them as totes, so they won’t be counted as side-by-side packages.

Large retail distribution centers and parcel shipment hubs will find the AV6010 Camera System with Side-by-Side Detection of particular interest because of its convenient operation, flexible installation, and superior accuracy, but it will benefit any operation that has a problem with non-singulated cuboidal packages.