Item handling and tracking system and method therefor

A system for tracking passage of items from an arrival point to a departure point in an item handling system, comprising:

• an item processor for acquiring and processing information about the identity of one or more items;
• an arrival and departure processor for acquiring and processing information about the arrival and departure parameters for a particular item of the one or more items;
• a rules engine operating on a topology of a location through which the particular item may pass between arrival and departure to define a path through the location for the particular item;
• a store for storing item identity data provided from the item processor, arrival and departure parameters provided from the rules engine, and location topology information;
• a user application for communicating data relating to arrival and departure parameters and one or more items to a system user;
• and
• a plurality of checkpoints arranged along a plurality of paths, each checkpoint including a scanner for scanning items to provide item identity and time of arrival information to the rules engine to determine a status of the particular item based on the time of arrival of the particular item at the checkpoint compared to a target time of arrival, the particular item being assigned one of a plurality of statuses by the rules engine, the plurality of statuses including a status indicating whether the particular item is at risk of not arriving at the departure point by a required time;
• wherein when the particular item is assigned an at risk status, the rules engine is configured to determine and communicate a suggested remedial action to the user.

A method of tracking passage of items from an arrival point to a departure point in a hub and spoke item handling system, comprising the steps of:

• defining a set of configuration data comprising a set of paths an item may take from the arrival point to the departure point, a set of processes the item must undergo in each path, each process comprising at least one step and an item scan to determine an identity of the item and a time at which it is scanned, and a set of transits for each path, each transit comprising a start and an end scan point, an average time between the start and end scan points and a position of the transit in the path;
• acquiring event information relating to the item, the event information relating to the identity of the item, item scans, and its arrival and departure;
• in response to event information, determining at a processor whether an item is at risk of failing to arrive at the departure point by a predetermined time and for any item determined to be at risk;
• and
• if an item is determined to be at risk, determining a remedial action for the item.