Digital Pen and Smart Paper

The digital pen used by Datatrac in their Pen solutions has a video camera under the nib and contains a battery, a mother board and a timer. The pen is used as an ordinary hand writing tool to write information onto “smart paper” which has been printed with the required data collection format. The paper is covered in a unique pattern of dots faintly printed on it and the camera in the pen locates the exact location of a pen stroke on the paper by a navigational fix in relation to the dots.

Any information written on the pre-printed paper is stored on the pen, which is capable of storing up to 40 different documents. Once the data has been collected the pen is placed into its docking station that is attached to a computer and all the information is downloaded. Data is captured in three different ways, as an image (JEPG) format, as Boolean entries which enable multiple choice questions to be answered and sorted or as character recognition which allows for data to be handled in an analytical way.

When the pen is synchronised with the computer an exact copy of the document, including any signatures, is downloaded. The timer in the pen accurately places a time and date on each pen stroke which provides a valuable performance monitoring device for compliance checklists and safety procedures.

The first level of the Datatrac “digital pen” solution captures only an image as a JPG. This image may be stored at the point of data capture such as on board a vessel or if required it may be sent ashore; pen strokes only are transmitted in very small files of only 2Kbytes instead of 50Kbytes for an equivalent JPG document.

The second level of the Datatrac solution uses Boolean programming to sort a series of check boxes and analyse responses. These responses may be filed and sorted in the Datatrac management database. The reporting forms and summary analysis may be transmitted to head office in much the same way as the image capture.

The third level of pen technology adds character recognition to the application. Data is captured into the Datatrac management database and may then be exported into Microsoft EXCEL spreadsheets for analysis. The speed with which accurate data is captured into the computer, without the need for extra data entry, facilitates the flow of information from an operational unit to head office or a central server which in ordinary circumstances would have to wait until the operating personnel was free to key the data collected into the computer.

Handheld Reader

with Electronic Tags

Datatrac have combined a PDA (personalised data assistant) with their own reader head in order to contact with and read data from electronic tags. The resulting handheld reader is easy to operate with only one hand even when the operator is wearing a work glove.

The Datatrac solution provides that electronic tags are securely placed, either around a work area such as a vessel or on specific pieces of equipment. The contact memory tag is an electronic chip in a ruggedised case that has been manufactured with a unique identification number. When the tag is touched by the Datatrac reader head a circuit is completed that allows the reader to read the identification number and any data saved on the tag. The software in the PDA recognises the tag identification and through the Datatrac software program always records the time and date of contact for proof of presence and /or prompts the operator to take one or more specific actions.

At the commencement of his tasks the operator would have been required to enter his own unique identification (PIN) to activate the PDA. At the end of a sequence of tasks the PDA is then docked in a cradle or connected by lead to a computer and the data collected from the tags is downloaded automatically into the Datatrac management database. It can then be imported into the client’s own planned maintenance system or can be retained as a record of actions actually completed for compliance purposes. After completion of the round the operator is not required to take any further actions, and does not need to update any maintenance record by typing into the computer. The tag and reader automatically record the time of contact which avoids the necessity of entering time data and acts as an accurate proof that a task was performed, when it was performed and by whom.

IS Tag Reader

with Electronic Tags

Datatrac have developed their e-tag reader for operations in gaseous environments. Cleared to Zone 0 this reader is able to read Oxley e-tag wherever it is necessary to do so.

With the Datatrac IS e-tag reader it is now possible to manage the maintenance of assets within the IS envelope. No longer will be necessary to record data by hand and transcribe it to desktop computers outside the IS envelope.

This reader is ideally suited for operations on Oil Rigs, in Tankers or in support operations where there is a gaseous environment