Voice, Scan, Screen and RFID: A Marriage of Convenience

Screen with Voice

In comparison to voice-plus-scan, there are fewer voice-directed systems today that use the RF terminal screen after the user signs-on. This is somewhat understandable, as one of the big advantages of voice-directed applications is that users never need to look down at a computer screen while working―they can listen to their next instruction while moving with their heads up―a faster, more efficient and safer process. But there are some instances where presenting information on screen is preferable to voice. One good example of this relates to pallet-building in grocery, foodservice and other case-picking applications.

Anyone who has spent time in a grocery DC knows that pallet-building is a bit of an art form, and that there is some variation in how different selectors will stack their pallets. In paper-based systems, experienced selectors are very adept at looking at their pick lists and quickly identifying which items they should pick first to create a stable, non-crushable base on which they can easily stack the rest of the items in an order.

When moving to voice, you can take that decision-making out of the hands of selectors and trust the WMS or voice system to determine which items to pick as a base, in which order. But as much as we in the software industry like to believe our analysts and developers are smarter than selectors, experienced selectors may do a better job planning their own pallets. As a result, some selectors may experience a slight drop in productivity when moving to voice, as they may sometimes need to unstack and restack their pallets to create their preferred base.

And here’s where a terminal screen comes in. Rather than pre-determining the order in which to pick base items, the WMS can identify the potential base items and the voice system can display the items as a list on the terminal screen. By giving selectors this information in list form, they can make informed decisions about which items to pick first and pre-plan their pallet, avoiding pallet restacking during the pick process.

The voice system could deliver this list verbally, but a screen is a better delivery method for this quantity of information―a list of items with item number, description, cube, weight, location and quantity to pick. On the other hand, if managers don’t want to give all selectors the ability to decide which items to pick first, they can enable or disable base-item display for different selectors within the voice system.

In addition to presenting lists of information, the terminal screen can also be used in other situations. For example, if selectors are confused about pack factors when picking an item (what does one “each” or box look like?), the voice system can display an image of the item or package to pick. This “show me” capability is a relatively new addition to the arsenal that could have wide use, especially outside of picking.

All Together Now

The next frontier in voice-plus applications is the integration of voice and RFID. There are some significant technical and cost obstacles that need to be overcome before RFID will be adopted widely in the DC, but the technology offers potentially large productivity and accuracy advantages for task verification and data collection.

The long-term ideal would be for a voice-directed application in which a user is directed to a location by voice and the user triggers (by voice) an RFID reader to read a tag on a product or location. Compared to bar code scanning, RFID is a true hands-free technology. Compared to voice, RFID reduces the potential for human error (reading a location check string but picking from an adjacent slot).

In truth, it will be some time before voice-plus-RFID applications enter the mainstream of DCs. In the meantime, we can expect to see new and innovative combinations of voice with scanning, screens and keypads that will drive levels of accuracy and productivity above and beyond what is possible with earlier voice-only or scan-only systems.

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Chris Sweeney is senior vice president and Dan Keller is senior solutions manager at Lucas Systems Inc., developers of voice directed applications for distribution centers.