DC Velocity - April 2009

Look Ma, no wires: Voice technology specialist Vocollect now offers the Vocollect SRX wireless headset for the second-generation Workabout Pro mobile computer from Psion Teklogix. The addition of the wireless headset option for the Workabout Pro Speech eliminates cables that normally would need to be connected and clipped, giving workers more freedom of movement and increased convenience, comfort, and safety.

Psion Teklogix is the first Vocollect device manufacturer partner to offer a wireless headset capability with Vocollect Voice on a handheld mobile computer. Operators can now easily combine voice with the screen, keyboard, and bar-code reader. The Workabout Pro Speech supports a variety of field-installable expansion modules, including scanners, imagers, RFID modules, wireless LAN, and GPS. It functions as both data-cap-ture device and cellular phone, allowing mobile workers to call customers, upload route maps, and send data back to office headquarters—all enabled through one mobile device. (Vocollect, (412) 349-2515, www.vocollect.com)

Super modules: Dematic Corp. has introduced the Rapistan Modular Conveyor System, a totally integrated and flexible package conveyor system designed for improved carton control, quiet operation, and low energy consumption.

All of the conveyor modules are built on a universal side channel. Modular conveyor sections available to build a system include roller or belted straight sections, curves, inclines/declines, right angle transfers, steerable wheel diverters, and more. The modules utilize many common components, so unique parts are minimized and fewer overall parts are required to be kept on hand, making it easier to maintain.

The Rapistan Modular Conveyor System is scalable and flexible. Configuration changes are simple to accomplish, as modules can be added or moved whenever a company’s business changes. The system can also be easily retrofitted into an existing conveyor system.

The Rapistan Modular Conveyor System can be configured with motorized rollers, standard AC drives, or variable-frequency drives. Carton control is optimized through an available segmented belt conveying surface with automatic tracking and self-tensioning belts. Controls are mounted onboard and are connected with CAN Bus, allowing parameters such as conveyor speed, accumulation mode, and sleep mode to be adjusted locally or from a central location. (Dematic Corp., www.dematic.us)

Empowering: Have you ever driven a car that didn’t have power steering? Making a turn is physically demanding, and parallel parking leaves you feeling like you’ve just finished a workout. That’s how operators of center control pallet trucks with manual steering feel at the end of a shift. But now, with its new PC 4500 Series, Crown

Equipment Corp. brings the benefits of power steering from the road to the warehouse.

The PC 4500 simplifies operators’ tasks in a number of applications, allowing them to travel quickly and easily through a facility during transport, steer effortlessly from beside the truck during order picking, and maneuver easily in tight spaces. By eliminating the awkward body movements associated with the operation of manual-steer center control pallet trucks, the PC 4500 significantly reduces operator fatigue. In addition, optional fold-down second-level pick steps on both sides of the truck help operators retrieve items stored just outside their reach.

The truck’s intuitive nature is the result of the hardware and software solutions that Crown’s engineers applied to the power steering system. Access 1 2 3 technology, as implemented on the PC 4500, automatically reduces the truck’s speed as the steer angle increases during a turn. This contributes to operator safety, increases stability, and gives operators precise control.

Also available on the PC 4500 is Crown Insite, which uses on-truck electronic systems, wireless fleet management tools, and fleet cost-tracking software to gather data that gives facility managers the insights they need to increase productivity and reduce costs. (Crown Equipment Corp., www.crown.com)