Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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METHODS OF MANAGING THE TRANSFER AND USE OF DATA
Technical Field
The present invention relates to improvements in methods of managing the
transfer and use of data, and in one embodiment the transfer and subsequent
use of data
from an existing database having an arbitrary data management system to a
selected
data management system.
Background of the Invention
Many facilities have computers that include databases with entries describing
multiple items. One example is a library, which typically has a computer with
a
database including entries for each library book, magazine, or other material
possessed
by the library. The database may be provided by a vendor, such as a library
automation
vendor. Those databases enable a library to access data related to one, a
group of, or all
of the materials in the library, as needed. For example, if a patron requests
a particular
book, the database can provide information regarding the circulation status of
the book,
such as the most recent date on which it was checked out, and other related
information. These types of databases are common in other fields also,
including asset
tracking and management generally.
In some fields, there are a variety of databases that use file formats that
are not
inter-compatible, and thus retrieving information from the database of one
system for
use with other systems can be problematic. For example, a particular
university library
may have a database listing its materials that is different from the
corresponding
database that a particular public library maintains, which in turn may be
different from
the database that a particular junior high school library maintains. It
therefore becomes
difficult for equipment, software, service or other suppliers to interact
effectively with
each of these different databases without customizing those databases. Because
manual
customization, or entry or re-entry of the contents of an entire database can
be an
impossibly large task, there is a need for improvements in the transfer and
use of
information between different databases. That is the subject of the present
invention.
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Summary of the Invention
The present invention includes a variety of features described herein,
including
a method of transferring and using information, comprising the steps of
obtaining
information related to a plurality of items from an existing database;
reformatting the
information in a desired manner to facilitate the use of the information by an
RFID
reader; exporting the information to a database stored on a data storage
device; and
using the information on the data storage device with an RFID reader in
conjunction
with the interrogation of RFID tags associated with the items. A combination
of
software for reformatting information obtained from an existing database
having an
arbitrary data management system into reformatted information stored in a
database for
use by an RFID reader, the databases comprising entries related to items of
interest; and
an RFID reader that interrogates RF117 tags associated with items and
transfers
information related to the interrogated RFID-tagged item from the RFID reader
to the
database, from the database to the RF117 reader, or both, is also disclosed.
The data transfer and management system of the present invention may be used
in conjunction with devices such as a portable RFID reader, self service
terminals and
staff workstations for processing tagged items, conversion stations, and other
item
processing devices. The system may be used not only in connection with RF117-
tagged
items, but also items that are associated with other item identifiers, such as
barcodes,
characters, handwritten indicia, and other types of identification.
The present invention, which typically uses lists or files created from an
existing database, has several advantages over systems that attempt to provide
direct
' access to an existing database. First, direct access systems require
detailed knowledge
of the structure of the existing database and how to create a connection to
that database.
Because the structures may differ based on the database, as described above,
direct
connections may be difficult to obtain. Second, direct access is relatively
slow
compared to file access (as used herein), because the existing database is
generally on a
different computer and requested data has to be separated from unrequested
data within
that database. Extraction into a file provides faster access than by direct
query. Third,
some existing databases may not support standard access, such as SQL access,
but
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essentially all existing databases should be able to provide some kind of
reporting
features for generating list files.
The items that are the subject of the data may be assets of any kind,
including
library materials, criminal evidence, documents or files, containers, pallets,
boxes, retail
goods, rental items, video tapes, or laboratory samples.
These and other aspects of the present invention are described in greater
detail
below.
Detailed Description of the Invention
The present invention is described in some instances with reference to the
management of data in the context of a library, and specifically in
interacting with
existing databases of the type described above. However, the usefulness of the
present
invention is not limited to the management of data in libraries, as will be
evident from
the following disclosure. The data transfer and management methods and systems
of
the present invention enable a user to extract data from an existing database,
transfer
them into a new database, reformat those data, and then use the reformatted
data in a
desired manner. Those and other aspects of the present invention will be
described in
detail below, and are also described in a publication entitled 3M Digital Data
Manager
Model 747 User Guide, a copy of which was submitted in an Information
Disclosure
Statement accompanying the present application, and the entire contents of
which is
incorporated by reference herein (hereinafter the "Data Manager User Guide").
Where
additional information may be useful to supplement an understanding of the
present
invention, reference is made to the subject matter incorporated from the Data
Manager
User Guide. Although the following description is provided largely in the
context of
transferring information from an existing arbitrary database to a new
database, the
reverse processes can also be implemented to reformat information in a manner
suitable
for transfer to an existing database.
Transfer and Use of Information
In one aspect of the invention, a method is provided for obtaining data from
an
existing database through a user interface (such as that provided on a
personal
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computer), downloading the data to a new database, optimizing or reformatting
those
data in a way that enables a radio frequency identification ("RFID") device to
use the
data, downloading the optimized or reformatted data to a non-volatile data
storage
medium, loading the data storage medium into an RFID device (preferably a
portable,
handheld RF117 reader, though other non-handheld devices of the type mentioned
below
are also suitable), and then using the RFID device in conjunction with the
data to obtain
real-time feedback from the RF1D device as to items having RFID tags that are
interrogated by the RFID device. The RFiD device may be an RFID reader (or
interrogator) of the type referred to in the Data Manager User Guide as the
Digital
Library Assistant, or "DLA," which is available from Minnesota Mining and
Manufacturing Company of St. Paul, Minnesota ("3M"). Additional information
related to RFID devices of this type is available in, for example, U.S. Patent
No.
6,232,870 (Garber et al.), the contents.of which is incorporated by reference
herein, and
from other manufacturers of RFID devices including Texas Instruments of
Dallas,
Texas.
A. Preparing Database Entries for Export
Data from a database may be prepared for eventual use by an RF117 device, for
example, in the following manner. The existing database is typically created
and
maintained on a personal computer or on a server, and may include thousands or
millions of entries related to items of interest. First, folders may be
created (in a
Windows operating system environment, for example) that store files containing
data
extracted from the database. Those folders may be, for example, ones that
contain files
listing items in a specific order (such as the order in which books or files
are supposed
ZS to be positioned on a shelf, or the order in which other assets are
supposed to be
positioned within a warehouse, or simply in order of their serial numbers), or
ones that
contain files with lists of items for which the user wishes to search (such as
items
thought to be missing, items that can be retrieved and discarded, items that a
person
wishes to retrieve for herself or another user, or other such things). These
folders can
reside on a hard drive, on a network drive, on a removable data storage
medium, or on
any type or combination of data storage media. Folders may be useful for
storing
multiple files that are related to each other, thereby linking files that
describe common
items, such as items located adjacent to each other in within a storage area,
or for other
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reasons. One reason that a user might choose to create multiple files that are
linked in
a folder is, for example, if a list file containing the records selected for
use is quite
large, then it may be useful to split that file into two or more files that
can be stored
within the same folder. Thus the ordered list folder may contain a first file
having
information,identifying items that are supposed to be located on the first 100
locations
within the storage area, a second file having information identifying items
that are
supposed to be located on the second 100 locations within the storage area,
and so on.
To prepare the data placed into the folders for transfer, an export location
is designated.
Typically the export location is a removable data storage device, such as a
flash
memory card, floppy disc, or the like. The export location may also be a hard
drive or
a network drive. There could also be multiple export locations for the same
information.
In the following example, the data stored in the files extracted from the
existing
database includes item identifiers (such as barcodes, characters, hand-written
identifiers, or the like) associated with items. The item identifiers may be
reformatted
in a manner that makes them easy to read in a printed report, such as adding
spaces and
other formatting characters, though the added information may not form part of
the
actual item identifier. Although it is preferred that the data manager not
select the data
directly from the existing database, but rather obtain data from a list of
data selected by
a user, the data manager could directly select the data from the existing
database and
place it into files as described above, or could select the data from the
existing database
based on a specified format of the existing data, or a user could create an
intermediate
database or text file with data in a specified format that the data manager
can extract.
To validate the item identifier information from the existing database, a
valid length
parameter is assigned. For example, for barcodes the minimum barcode length
may be
14 characters, and the maximum barcode length may be 16 characters, though
other
valid length parameters may be selected depending on the type and format of
the item
identifiers) in the existing database. The length parameters could also be the
same, so
that only item identifiers of a specific length would be accepted. Valid
characters are
also designated, so that the data transfer system can recognize those
characters and
ignore all others. Examples of valid characters may include numeric digits (0
through
9), lower case letters (a through z), upper case letters (A through Z), or
additional, user
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designated characters (such as one or more of the symbols !@#$%~&*~ +?>
<":';} {][_-\~). The user may customize the data format by setting values for
format
configuration parameters. Data that do not meet the format configuration
parameters
can be identified, which is advantageous because it enables the data manager
to inform
a user, or create a log, concerning invalid item identifiers such as barcodes
so that the
user can correct these identifiers in the existing database.
In some instances, an item identifier provided on an item does not match the
corresponding item identifier from the list file, and thus from the existing
database
record. When this occurs, it is necessary to alter the identifier of the item
so that it
corresponds to the identifier stored in the existing database. This is done
using filters,
which in the case of filters for barcodes are simply referred to as barcode
filters. A
filter such as a barcode filter consists of a group of instructions that can
identify a
specific barcode data format, and then change that format so that it matches
the existing
database data format. The filter instructions include conditions and actions.
Conditions
are requirements that must be met before the filter can be applied. For
example, the
required item identifier length is a condition. If an item identifier meets
all of the
conditions in the filter instructions, then the filter will apply all the
actions contained in
the filter instructions. For example, an action may be to find a specific
character string
in an item identifier such as a barcode and replace it with a desired
character string.
The data manager system provides a way to filter the item identifier so that
the
identifier read from the item will match the item identifier read from the
list file.
Another condition may be the existence of a specified string of characters in
the item
identifier. Other actions include adding specified characters, padding the
item
identifier on the leading or trailing end of the identifier, or both, until it
reaches a
specified length, adding a check digit computed using a selected algorithm,
removing
specified characters, or replacing specified characters. Additional
information related
to filtering, such as barcode filtering, is provided in the Data Manager User
Guide
incorporated by reference above.
The format in which the user's data exists, whether the data is in the user's
existing database or in data files extracted from the existing database by the
user, must
be designated in order for the data manager to extract the data from the
existing
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database or from the extracted data files. For example, the data format of
files
extracted from an existing database may be selected by the user from among a
number
of proposed formats provided by the data manager software package, or may be
customized by the user. For example, the user may specify that each item
record in the
existing database includes multiple lines of text, and that the records are
separated by
blank lines. Another format may include ones in which each record is provided
on a
single line, with a particular user-defined delimiter, such as a tab
character, separating
fields within the record. Yet another format may include ones in which each
record is
on a single line, and the field boundaries are defined by a fixed width, or
number of
characters. As a specific example of a data format, the user may specify that
the first
12 lines of the database should be skipped, then that the item identifier
starts at, for
example, the 6~' character position on the second line of each item record and
extends
for 12 characters, and may also specify the locations of the primary and
secondary
information in the records. User-defined formats may be named, saved, edited,
reused,
specified as a potential default format for future use, or more than one of
the foregoing.
Concurrent with identifying the format of the files extracted from the
existing database,
the user may select the data to be displayed on ari RFID device that is useful
for an
operator. For example, certain information from each database record may be
designated for display on an RF117 device as a primary information field, and
other
information from that database record may be designated for display as a
secondary
information field. Any number of information fields may be provided, and the
corresponding information displayed for the user. For example, the user may
wish to
display on the first line of a display the name and/or title of an obj ect or
a portion of the
name and/or title of an object, and to display on the second line of a display
an
identification number, call number, serial number and/or the equivalent or a
portion of
an identification number, call number, serial number and/or the equivalent.
Those
fields would be indicated as the primary and secondary information fields,
respectively.
Additional fields may also be designated relative to each database record,
perhaps
related to information about borrowing activity for each item, or the date of
publication,
or in the case of certain items the date the item was made or shipped, and
that
information may also be displayed for a user.
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Another aspect of the data manager system of the present invention is the
ability
of the system to handle duplicate items, duplicate database records on a
single list file,
duplicate database records on different list files, or any combination of
these issues.
The data manager system can address duplicate items by comparing a primary or
secondary information field (which might include an identification number,
call
number, or the like as described above), and then treating as duplicate
entries those that
match one or both of the primary and secondary information fields. Thus in
general
terms, the data manager identifies as a single item or type of item things
that have
differing item identifiers by, for example, comparing one or more information
fields
related to each entry to determine whether they are identical. For example, if
a facility
has multiple duplicate items, then the associated database may contain a
corresponding
number of substantially identical entries. This can occur in a library where,
for
example, 10 duplicate copies of a library book may be available for patrons,
or in a
warehouse where 10 identical products are all designated with the same
identifying
information. In this instance, then it may not matter to a user whether the
duplicate
items are in any particular order relative to each other, so long as they are
all located
together. When a ordered list of items (such as a list of items in the order
they should
be stored in a storage area) is prepared, the data manager assigns the same
storage area
location to each identical item. That way, none is considered by, for example,
an RFID
reader to be out of position so long as it is located with other like items.
Another
manner of addressing the same situation is to designate a range of acceptable
locations
for each of the multiple items, and to instruct the data manager system that
if the item is
found somewhere within that range of positions, it should be considered to be
in the
correct position. Thus where there are ten identical items, and each can be
located
anywhere between shelf position 3395 and 3404, the data manager can be
instructed to
consider that to be a proper location.
The data manager may also address a situation where duplicate database records
are on a single list file or duplicate database records are on different list
files. If
multiple database records exist in the same ordered list, or on more than one
ordered
list for the same storage area, this can assumed to be an error because an
item cannot
physically be in two or more locations at the same time. The data manager
software
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can detect and report this, thus allowing the user to correct the mistake in
the existing
database.
Transferring large files extracted from an existing database to a new database
using the data manager system and methods of the present invention can take a
substantial period of time, particularly when a large number of database
records are
transferred. This time can be wasted if the database records are not properly
transferred
and formatted for the new database. A "preview file export" feature may be
provided,
so that prior to transferring 25,000 database records, for example, the first
1000 records
can be displayed for the user to review before proceeding to export all the
records. In
the case of database records selected by the user as described above and
stored in a file
such as an ordered list for use by the data manager system, the preview file
export
feature may include fields including the storage area location (in numerical
format, for
example), the item identifier, call number or the like, the primary
information field, the
secondary information field, and any other fields desired by the user. Once
the user has
reviewed the files that have been previewed, the user can proceed to export
the entire
set of database records, or a subset, by initiating the appropriate commands.
B. Exporting_Data
One or more data lists can be selected for export to a data storage device,
such
as a hard drive or, preferably, the removable data storage medium of the type
referenced above. That data storage device may be non-volatile, an example of
which
is a compact-flash memory card, which is a solid-state data storage medium
that can be
inserted into and withdrawn from a compact flash drive or port. Additional
information
related to removable data storage media is provided in copending PCT
Application No.
PCT/USO1/07979, filed March 13, 2001 and entitled "Radio Frequency
Identification
Reader with Removable Media," the contents of which is incorporated by
reference
herein.
In another embodiment, the data may be exported to a data storage device that
is
docked or otherwise connected (for example by a hardwired connection to a
piece of
hardware, or by a tethered connection to a piece of portable hardware) to the
processor
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that exports the data, or could be transferred by wireless connection, all in
a manner
known in the art.
At the conclusion of the export, a summary log can be displayed for or made
available to a user. The log may include a description of the files that were
transferred,
the number of records that were transferred, the elapsed time for the
transfer, the
number of errors encountered, en or messages and warnings, and similar
information.
If errors are noted, then access may be provided to a detailed export or error
log, which
can describe the reason that an error was detected. For example, a database
record may
have been lacking information in a required field (such as the item
identifier, call
number, title, or the like), or have an invalid character, or the like. Or the
extracted
files) may contain multiple entries setting- forth different positions that a
single item is
located within the library. This information is useful because the user can
then correct
the existing database, so that the integrity of the existing database is
improved. Either
the new or the existing database or both could then be searched to locate all
entries with
a particular type of error, such as the absence of an item identifier, or the
absence of a
name or title. When the export is complete, the new database containing the
exported
files may be transferred electronically, or a removable data storage medium
may be
withdrawn from a drive and inserted into another drive or port, for example.
The information formatted and exported from the data manager as described
above can then be stored on the user's same computer, on a portable RFID
device, or,
preferably, on the removable data storage device through an appropriate
docking
station, all as described above. When that memory device is next inserted into
the RF117
reader, the reader is provided with access to data stored in a uniform manner,
from
which other operations of the reader can draw.
C Importing Data Collected from Interrogated RFID Tags to an Existing
Database
In another embodiment of the present invention, after data has been collected
by
an RFID reader by interrogation of RFID tags associated with items of
interest, the data
may be uploaded to an existing database. This may be done by a process similar
to
reversing the process described above for extracting data from an existing
database,
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transferring the data to a new database and then reformatting those data so
that the
reformatted data can be used in a desired manner. That is, the collected data
is
uploaded from the database in which it is stored after collection by the RFID
reader to
the system on which the data manager is resident. The data manager reformats
the
collected data by the data transfer and management methods of the present
invention to
the format of the existing database using database format designations
provided by the
user to the data manager. The reformatted data is then uploaded to the user's
existing
database. If the existing database is not accessible to the data manager, the
reformatted
collected data is transferred to a storage location accessible to the data
manager for later
uploading to the user's database. For example, the reformatted data may be
stored on a
removable data storage medium that is in communication with a portable RFID
reader,
and that data storage medium can be used to import or upload the data to the
existing
database at any appropriate time.
In another embodiment, an RFID reader may be used to collect data without
using information supplied by the user. In order to reformat the collected
data to a
format compatible with the existing database, the user first designates to the
data
manager the format in which the data exists in the existing database (to which
the user
intends to upload the collected information), or designates the format in
which the
existing database expects to receive the data. The reformatting of the
collected data by
the data manager and uploading of the reformatted collected data to the
existing
database occurs as described above.
In some cases the existing database management system may not be capable of
directly uploading the reformatted collected data from data files. In such
cases, the user
may upload the reformatted collected data to the existing database via a
software
keyboard wedge. This is a software application that can run on a computer that
is
operating the existing database client application or a terminal emulator
connected to
the user's database. The purpose of the software keyboard wedge application is
to read
data from a file on the computer and translate the data in the file into
keyboard input
which can be accepted by another program running on the computer, in this case
the
database client application or terminal emulator. To use the software keyboard
wedge,
the user would first set the database client application or terminal emulator
to accept
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input, for example identifiers. Then the software keyboard wedge would be
activated
and configured to provide data from the data file into the application in
focus or another
application. In this case the target is the database client application or
terminal
emulator. The operation will appear to the database as if the item information
had been
entered manually at the keyboard by the user.
The data transfer and management system of the present invention may also be
used in conjunction with devices other than a portable RFID reader. For
example, self
service terminals and staff workstations for processing tagged items, such as
those sold
by the assignee of the present invention under the designation "Digital
Self~Check~
System" and "Digital Staff Workstation," may also use data transferred to
either or both
of them in the manner described herein. Stations for converting barcoded items
to
RFID-tagged items, such as those sold by the assignee of the present invention
under
the designation "Digital Conversion Station" may also be used with the system
of the
present invention. Optical character recognition systems, manual entry
systems, and
list-based conversion systems may also be used. In that manner, items being
processed
by hardware other than a portable reader could also be checked against
inventory or
other lists, and handled appropriately.
Although RFID and non-RFID systems are not in general interchangeable, the
present invention lends itself to non-RFID systems also. That is, barcode,
optical
character recognition (OCR), handwriting, or other readers and systems could
be
effectively substituted for RFID-based systems of the type described herein.
In that
manner, information stored in a database could be designated, reformatted,
exported,
and used by a barcode or OCR-based system in the same manner as with an RFID
system, despite the obvious differences between RFID-based and optically-based
identification systems, because the specific type of interrogation system is
less
important than the data transfer and management systems of the present
invention.
This would enable someone using a barcode or OCR scanner to search for
particular
items among a group of items, for example. Barcode and OCR scanners and
systems
are well known in the art.
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The items described herein may be library materials, but may also be files (of
the type commonly used to store paper, as opposed to electronic files),
patient or client
records, assets, retail and consumer goods, pallets or containers, or other
similar items.
