Researchers from the Distributed Information and Automation Laboratory, Dr Vaggelis Giannikas and Dr Alexandra Brintrup represented the Cambridge Auto-ID lab at the GS1 Global Forum in Brussels in February. More than 750 participants from 89 countries attended this global event from GS1 Member Organisations, end user industry, key trade associations and solution providers.

In the Market Place of the Global Forum, Vaggelis and Alexandra showcased the lab’s on-going work on the following three topics:

1. Augmented reality in warehouse management 

DIAL has developed a demo app using the Google Glass for the sorting operation in warehousing. The app allows a user to scan QR codes printed on order labels and then guides him using the Glass’s display to sort the scanned package in the right bin. Besides displaying information, the app can also project a virtual object (3D cube) on the sorting bins to guide the user more effectively.

2. Tracking and control of resilient production systems 

This demo is based on the research to incorporate 3D printing technology with conventional manufacturing systems, especially focusing on re-distributed manufacturing systems. Decentralised agent based control system was implemented to control and co-ordinate manufacturing systems in multiple locations. Additionally, various scenarios such as responsive parts requests and customisation using 3D printing was incorporated in the demo.

3. Modelling supply networks using public data

Manufacturers often lack visibility of their supply network beyond the first tier - which can cause issues when disruptions to sub-tiers cascade through to the OEM. Although several commercial track and trace tools are available, these usually require adoption by all members of the network. As part of the VIPr project in collaboration with Boeing, the DIAL team developed an interactive tool that mines publicly available data on the web to indicate how a given supply network might be structured.

For further information contact Vaggelis Giannikas (eg366@cam.ac.uk) or Alexandra Brintrup (ab702@cam.ac.uk).

The Cambridge Auto-ID lab team during demonstrations