Staff

The main emphasis with RFID is towards 'self-service' but this does not mean that all library customers will want to use a self-service unit, so some staff stations will also be required.

Staff Circulation Stations

A staff circulation station is an RFID Reader and Controller. The station can be provided on the desk, in the desk or under it. As a general rule the station is connected to existing staff terminals.

Stand alone staff pods can also be used throughout the library; this enables staff to assist users at various locations in the library without having to take them back to a central point.

Hand Held Scanner

Linked to a PDA (Portable Digital Assistant), the hand held scanner allows staff to easily search and check the shelf stock. The PDA communicates with the host library system via an Active Sync connection, allowing software, files and data to be uploaded and downloaded as required. A wireless connection is also available.

It is possible to create a search based on various criteria. This is particularly useful when carrying out inventory searches or looking for e.g unpopular stock as you could do a search based on item circulation count.

Server

All ORFID products can be connected to one back-up server, however, all self-service units have the ability to back-up individually. In the event of an LMS failure, all transactions will be sent to and recovered from the server and recovered from the server (rather than from individual machines).

The server will log statistics for each self-service unit as well as a total set. It will also log and display error messages as and when they occur.