Dunkin Donuts Talk

Voice-based warehouse "picking" systems are doing their part to help spur the use of wireless LANs.

Such systems learn the sound of a worker's voice through speech recognition, then instruct that worker - who wears a portable computer and wireless headset - as to which items to pick from the warehouse inventory and where to deposit them for shipment.
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A highly accurate voice-based picking system can greatly speed warehouse productivity, compared with workers having to print and consult paper instructions. Some workers - like those in the Dunkin' Donuts Swedesboro, N.J., warehouse - drive carts or other small vehicles. So hands-free voice systems can also contribute to safety in picking operations.

Specifically, Dunkin' Donuts has been piloting Airespace wireless to support the Voxware VoiceLogistics picking system. The renowned pink-and-orange striped donut chain plans to soon go commercial with its six Airespace multimode 802.11a/b/g lightweight access points and an Airespace 4000 WLAN switch, which it uses to segregate its traffic for performance.

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