The IBM® WebSphere® Sensor Events Print, Verify, and Ship Reference User Interface enables
users to print RFID tag labels, associate case tags with containers,
validate outgoing containers, and run a variety of reports. This topic
defines terms and describes the Print, Verify, and Ship processes.
Overview
You can use the Print, Verify, and Ship Reference User Interface in both
integrated and non-integrated environments. In an integrated environment,
the RFID network retrieves information from the back-end enterprise
system; therefore, product and catalog information display directly
in the Print, Verify, and Ship Reference User Interface.
In a non-integrated environment, the RFID network is not connected
to the back-end enterprise system and does not have access to product
and catalog information.
Before using the Print, Verify, and Ship Reference User Interface, your
administrator must create pack types and profiles using the WebSphere Sensor Events Administrative Console. A
pack type represents a type of container, such as a case or pallet.
Each pack type is associated with various pieces of information that
are required for converting customer-specific product codes to EPC
format. For additional information about pack types, see Working with pack types. A profile is an
association of a particular customer's pack types into a single record.
Profiles simplify the process of printing tag labels. For additional
information about profiles, see Working with profiles.
Tag labels are printed based on print
templates defined in the WebSphere Sensor Events Administrative Console. You
can print tag labels using a device adapter for a tag printer. You
can use adapters for printer software vendors, such as Loftware or
BarTender, or you can develop and add adapters that can be used for
other printer vendors. For additional information about tag printers,
see Configuring printers.
WebSphere Sensor Events provides
example code for the following usage scenario. To support other usage
scenarios, you must develop your own agents or modify the example
agents.
Scenario steps
- Open the Print, Verify,
and Ship Reference User Interface.
- Click Print on the menu bar.
- Click the Setup tab:
- In an integrated environment, select a profile and purchase order
for the print job. The interface retrieves the purchase order and
catalog information from your enterprise system.
- In a non-integrated environment, select the profile and enter
the purchase order number. The purchase order number and any associated
products you add for printing are saved in a record in the WebSphere Sensor Events database.
You can retrieve this information later for verification and shipping.
- Click one of the following tabs to determine the products for
which you are printing tag labels:
- Click Select to select the products from
a purchase order or catalog.
- Click Search to search for products by
description keyword.
- Click Enter to scan GID (Global ID/UPC)
codes with a hand-held reader or enter the codes manually.
- Ensure that the customer profile, purchase order information,
and details are correct.
- Click the Print tab to set up the print
job:
- Select the printer to which you are sending the print job.
- Enter a description of the print job.
- Click Submit to send the job to the printer.
Note: To view the status of the print job, select it from the
menu and click Status.
- If a tag label is damaged, you can reprint it
from the Reprint tab by entering the EPC URN
that is printed on the label, selecting the encoding type for the
tag label, and entering the serial number. For example, an EPC URN
for an sgtin 69 tag would be: urn:epc:tag:sgtin-96:2.1234567.100150.11
- Click Verify on the menu bar to associate
existing tagged items with containers so that the items being shipped
are tracked accurately:
- Click Manual to retrieve all the EPC URN
tag values printed for a purchase order, and store the relative associations
in a database. You do this without a reader. For example, you can
associate case tags with a particular pallet tag. You can define any
selected tag as a container. When a tag is made a container, you can
associate other tags as subordinates. When an association is stored,
the total number of items decrements from the number of items required
for a purchase order.
- Click Automatic to retrieve a list of tags
printed for a purchase order. A reader reads a set of tags. The tags
are filtered based on what previously printed for a purchase order.
If the tags read by the reader have printed for a purchase order,
they display in the Expected Tags list. If the tags read were not
associated with a purchase order, they display in the Unexpected Tags
list. Tags in the Associated Tags list can be associated.
- Save the association. The Verification Report displays the status
of the associated cases.
- In an integrated environment, the system saves the association
to your back-end enterprise system database and updates the Verification
Report to reflect the status of the items on the purchase order.
- In a non-integrated environment, the system saves the association
to the WebSphere Sensor Events database
for validation later but does not display the Verification Report.
- When outgoing shipments are ready to exit the dock door, click Ship on
the menu bar to match the container tag with a purchase order.
- If the container tag matches the purchase order, a green light
displays on the light tree and the shipment proceeds.
- If the container tag does not match the purchase order, a red
light displays on the light tree and the shipment is stopped.