Inventory Control in Stores

Spring 2005 Design Report

Team:

Dec05-09

Client:

Senior Design Program

Faculty Advisor:

Dr. Degang Chen

Team Members:

Jeff Benson

Frederick Brown

Christopher Reed

Brian Wagner

REPORT DISCLAIMER NOTICE

DISCLAIMER: This document was developed as a part of the requirements of an electrical and computer engineering course at IowaStateUniversity, Ames, Iowa. This document does not constitute a professional engineering design or a professional land surveying document. Although the information is intended to be accurate, the associated students, faculty, and IowaStateUniversity make no claims, promises, or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness, quality, or adequacy of the information. The user of this document shall ensure that any such use does not violate any laws with regard to professional licensing and certification requirements. This use includes any work resulting from this student-prepared document that is required to be under the responsible charge of a licensed engineer or surveyor. This document is copyrighted by the students who produced this document and the associated faculty advisors. No part may be reproduced without the written permission of the senior design course coordinator.

May 4, 2005

Table of Contents

List of Figures

List of Tables

List of Acronyms/Definitions

1Introductory Materials

1.1Executive Summary

1.2Acknowledgement

1.3Problem Statement

1.3.1General Problem Statement

1.3.2Solution Approach

1.4Operating Environment

1.5Intended Users/Uses

1.5.1Intended Users

1.5.2Intended Uses

1.6Initial Assumptions and Limitations

1.6.1Current Assumptions

1.6.2Current Limitations

1.7Expected End-Product and Other Deliverables

1.7.1Deliverables

2End-Product Design

2.1Approach Used

2.1.1Design Objectives

2.1.2Functional Requirements

2.1.3Design Constraints

2.1.4Technical Approach and Considerations and Results

2.1.4.1Technology Consideration

2.1.4.2RFID Connection

2.1.4.3RFID Power Source

2.1.4.4Software

2.1.4.5RFID Tag Type

2.1.4.6RFID Frequency Range

2.1.4.7RFID Antenna

2.1.5Testing Approach Considerations

2.1.6Project Continuation Recommendations

2.2Detailed Design

2.2.1Project Design

2.2.2Software Design

2.2.2.1Classes

2.2.2.2Program Screenshots

3Estimated Resources and Schedules

3.1Resource Requirements

3.1.1Personnel Effort Requirements

3.1.2Other Resource Requirements

3.1.3Financial Requirements

3.2Schedules

3.2.1Project Schedule

3.2.2Deliverable Schedule

4Closure Materials

4.1Contact Information

4.1.1Client Contact Information

4.1.2Faculty Advisor Contact Information

4.1.3Student Team Contact Information

4.2Closing Summary

List of Figures

Figure 2.2.1—1: System Flowchart

Figure 2.2.1—2: Inventory Flowchart

Figure 2.2.1—3: Customer Flowchart

Figure 2.2.2—1: Screenshot of Main Inventory Window

Figure 2.2.2—2: Add To Inventory Manually Screenshot

Figure 2.2.2—3: Remove From Inventory Screenshot

Figure 2.2.2—4: Update Item Screenshot

Figure 2.2.2—5: Check Out Inventory Manually Screenshot

Figure 2.2.2—6: Return Item Screenshot

Figure 2.2.2—7: Screenshot of Main Customer Window

Figure 2.2.2—8: Add New Customer Screenshot

Figure 2.2.2—9: Delete Customer Screenshot

Figure 2.2.2—10: Update Customer Info Screenshot

Figure 2.2.2—11: View Customer History Screenshot

Figure 3.2.1—1: Original Project Tasks Schedule

Figure 3.2.1—2: Revised Project Tasks Schedule

Figure 3.2.2—1: Original Project Deliverable Schedule

Figure 3.2.2—2: Revised Project Deliverable Schedule

List of Tables

Table 2.1.4—1: Bar-code Versus RFID

Table 2.1.4—2: Active Tag Versus Passive Tag

Table 2.1.4—3: RFID Frequency Ranges

Table 2.2.2—1: DVD Class Data

Table 2.2.2—2: Customer Class Data

Table 3.1.1—1: Original Estimated Personal Effort Resource Requirement

Table 3.1.1—2: Revised Estimated Personal Effort Resource Requirement

Table 3.1.2—1: Original Estimated Required Resources

Table 3.1.2—2: Revised Estimate Required Resources

Table 3.1.3—1: Original Estimated Project Costs

Table 3.1.3—2: Revised Estimated Project Costs

List of Acronyms/Definitions

RFID – Radio frequency identification

GUI – Graphical user interface

RFID tag – A small object that can be attached to, or incorporated into a product that is used to store and retrieve data.

RFID scanner/reader – A device used to communicate with the RFID tags.

Passive RFID tag –A tag that does not have any internal power source and is powered by the scanner.

Active RFID tag – A tag that requires its own power source to operate.

RS232 – Recommended Standard IEEE 232 [computer serial interface].

1Introductory Materials

The following introductory material is required to develop a general idea of the project and express how the solution will come about.

1.1Executive Summary

An essential part of any business is being able to track inventory and sales. In order for a business to be successful, the inventory control system must be accurate and effective. To insure accuracy and effectiveness, automated data collection systems are used. These systems use technologies such as barcodes or RFID, of which barcodes are the most widely used. Barcode technology is inexpensive and can be effective, but is time-consuming and tedious when using it for inventory control. The new technology that is becoming available is radio frequency identification (RFID). The purpose of this project is to simulate an inventory control system using RFID technology that will show some of the benefits that it holds over the current barcode systems. This group will report on the advantages and disadvantages of RFID and show how it can be implemented in current business inventory systems.

1.2Acknowledgement

The team would like to thank Professor John Lamont, Professor Ralph Patterson III, and Professor Degang Chen for their assistance in defining the project and support through its completion.

1.3Problem Statement

This section defines the problem and states the problem solution.

1.3.1General Problem Statement

Barcode technology is the leader in inventory control at the present time. However, there are flaws in the technology that limit its effectiveness. The amount of data that can be stored in a barcode, the need for human intervention, and the necessity for line-of-site to transfer data, are a few issues that can be negated using other technology.

1.3.2Solution Approach

The use of RFID can, in many cases, enhance the effectiveness of inventory control. The team will research the possibilities of RFID technology, using the Internet and textbooks, and examinesome of the improvements it has on the current barcode system. The team willidentifyissues that can be resolved with the use of RFID and demonstrateits effectiveness. This will be done by, first, analyzing the limitations of barcode technology, and then applying the new possibilities of RFID technology to propose solutions to correct some of the current issues.

1.4Operating Environment

The operating environment for this RFID system will be indoors and outdoors. Since there are so many different types of businesses with inventory needs, there are many possible scanners and tags that are available. In many cases, the equipment must be able to operate in high traffic areas. The readability of the reader is affected by moisture and temperatures outside the range of 0 to 50C, so the operating environment must be dry and within that range. Retail stores and warehouses provide great operating environments for this type of system.

1.5Intended Users/Uses

This section describes the intended users and uses of the final project.

1.5.1Intended Users

The intended users of the RFID inventory control system are retail businesses that hold and need to track inventory and sales to the business’ customers. This system will be setup to be mostly self-operated, but will require a trained staff member for troubleshooting and linkage of the system to the specific company software. An employee with sole responsibilities being the inventory system is recommended. In order for simplicity, the system will be developed for relatively easy setup and mild human interference, but will require overseeing. It is assumed that the system user will not apply moisture to the system or attempt to use the system outside of the temperature range. Nonprofit organizations and individuals can also benefit from this system.

1.5.2Intended Uses

The RFID inventory control system is used to track inventory, sales, and customers. It will be designed for retail businesses that hold inventory. The system will be able to manage and track inventory and sales, collect data, and can be linked to a security system. The system will be able to scan in new items, display information about the item, write new information to the item tag, manage in and out of stock inventory, manage customers, and subtract items from inventory.

1.6Initial Assumptions and Limitations

The design team will proceed with the project based on the assumptions and limitations listed within this section.

1.6.1Current Assumptions

Listed below are the current assumptions for the project.

RFID kit –The team will be able to purchase an RFID kit and it will come with proper instruction.

Interface – The team will be able to interface with the RFID reader.

RFID tags – The tags will be programmable.

Data – The data taken from the tags will be read to a setup database.

Software – The software will be Windows compatible.

System – The system will only track inventory going in/out of DVD rental business.

1.6.2Current Limitations

Listed below are the current limitations for the project.

Experience –The team doesn’t have any prior experience with RFID.

Cost – The project budget is $150 and the cost of RFID scanners and tags is, in most cases, more than this.

Time – The time available to learn the RFID software is limited.

Size – Although the size of the RFID system is not a significant restraint as it will be inside a retail store, this group has set a boundary of less than one cubic foot. This volume will contain the reader hardware, but the external antenna will not be included in this restraint.

Weight – Much like the size, this restraint is even less important to the overall product design, but a loose product weight limit has been set at five pounds. Once again, this includes only the main RFID hardware and excludes the antenna and PC that is running the inventory system.

Power – It is assumed that the power for the RFID unit will be constant, and this team also therefore assumes that power loss is not a concern. Because of this, an alternate form of power will not be necessary in the design of the RFID system.

RFID tag size – A size constraint is needed for the individual RFID tags, as they are required to fit inside DVD cases and other small items that a retailer may carry.

Standards – There is no set of standards established at the present time.

Temperature – The temperature range for this system to operate effectively is between 0 and 50C.

Liquid and metals – Radio frequency signal quality can be compromised in the presence of materials like metals and liquids.

Distance to read tag – Due to cost constraints the distance to read tag may be smaller than hoped for.

1.7Expected End-Product and Other Deliverables

The end product of this project will be contingent upon available funding and design time requirements.

1.7.1Deliverables

Listed below are the deliverables the team expects to complete by the end of the project.

Demonstration – The demonstration will include a working model of a sample inventory control system using RFID technology. The system will be linked to the team’s made-up company data. The team will show how a tag is scanned, the information that can be collected, and how that information can be linked to a database. Initial research will also be included.

Documentation – The documentation will assist the user during operation of the inventory system.

Weekly e-mails – These will update theinstructors, advisors, and clients involved with the project on the work completed the previous week and ask recipients about any issues that have arisen during the previous week. They will also serve as a plan for the upcoming week.

Project plan – The project plan outlined the basic objective of the project and included information about design restrictions, estimation of work, supplies necessary, and the process being used to develop the product.

Project poster –The project poster is a large, graphical description of the basic components, operation, and design of the project.

Oral presentation of the design results – The team will give an oral presentation describing the progress achieved and the final design.

Design report – Describes progress made during the first semester and outlines the project plan for the second semester.

Final design report – A final report due at the end of the year detailing all aspects of the design process.

2End-Product Design

The end-project section of this report gives the client a brief description of all of the design constraints the inventory control system is designed around as well as the deliverables in this project.

2.1Approach Used

The approach used section of this report examines each of the components that the group considered in the design of this project.

2.1.1Design Objectives

Based on the problem statement, there are several necessary objectives that the system must meet. These objectives include the following:

Easy to use – The system will need to be easy to use once it has been setup. It will be a stand-alone system and will require minimum human interface with the system itself in order to perform its functions.

Low maintenance – Once setup, the system will be able to function with little input from an operator. The database will be updated automatically and will only require an employee to oversee the process. The software will be equipped with an override feature that would allow the employee to take control.

Utilize RFID capabilities – The system will display some of the nice features that RFID technology has to offer. These features will demonstrate some of the benefits of using RFID over barcode technology.

2.1.2Functional Requirements

The design objectives lead to the functional requirements of the inventory control system of the rental store, which are as follows:

Scanning capability- The system will scan the RFID tags located on items and membership cards using an RFID scanner.

Data storage/management-The design will collect and store data from the RFID reader or scanner on a computer using a R232 serial connection.

Software- Software will be used to collect and process the retail information for the data.

Data control-The system will allow manual entry into the database for adding membership and items.

2.1.3Design Constraints

Listed below are the constraints the team intends on following throughout the design.

Cost – The overall cost for the RFID hardware necessary to complete the project shall not exceed $150.

DVD – Tag will not be able to be removed from DVD.

Customer

– Only one customer can walk by reader at a time.

– Each customer must have membership card with RFID tag on it.

– Customers must be at least three seconds apart.

– Each customer must hold membership card and items being rented within reader’s reading distance.

– Each customer must walk slowly by reader to allow enough time to read in membership card and items.

– Each customer won’t walk by scanner again with items just rented.

System user – A trained employee of the business is the only one who can add inventory into system.

2.1.4Technical Approach and Considerations and Results

This section describes the different types of technology and approach used to design the team’s inventory system.

2.1.4.1Technology Consideration

For a system solution, there are two possible inventory control scanning techniques that were considered. The technologies that were considered were bar coding, and RFID. The advantage of having bar code is that it is inexpensive, and has the potential to scan items from 40 feet away with 100 percent of accuracy. The disadvantages to having bar code are that it can only scan and read one bar code at a time, and requires line of sight to scan the bar code. The advantages for using RFID scanning techniques are the user can scan many RFID tags simultaneously, does not require line of sight to read each tag, and has a unique identification number with more data. The disadvantages to having RFID are that it can scan only items within a few feet, and scanning accuracy is less than 100 percent. Table 2.1.4—1 explains the advantages and disadvantages of bar code versus RFID. The technology chosenis to use RFID over bar coding because it is designed more for an inventory control environment and already has all the features needed in one convenient package. Depending on the type of product there are some advantages of RFID over bar coding. RFID is well suited for high-value products and also for high volume distribution centers where RFID can speed the velocity of the goods through the receiving and shipping process. RFID is a much better technology in "track and trace" applications where the user wants to be able to track goods through the supply chain.