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Label Printing
Ref: _ g:\gij documents\notes\labelprinting.docx
Author: Gareth I Jenkins
Date: 27/01/2015 14:52:00
1. Introduction
The purpose of this note is to describe how Horizon behaves when printing labels
during Postal Services Acceptance (aka PS12). Specifically it describes the behaviour
when labels fail to print.
Note that it is also possible to print a label from an AP-ADC script. The same
principles apply, but no specific tests were carried out in that scenario.
2. Overview
Postal Service Acceptance operates in a number of phases. At a high level the stages
are as follows:
User (ie counter clerk) identifies weight of item, destination (ie UK or which
foreign country), number of items and specific preferences (eg Guaranteed
delivery)
System then presents a list of Postal Services that meet those criteria together
with prices.
User selects the required service
If appropriate, any add on services are selected
User identifies whether item is pre-paid, or requires a label or stamps.
Note that the available options are defined in Postal Service Reference Data
(controlled by Post Office Ltd) and may depend upon the service selected and
also the value and weight of the item:
If label is selected, a label is then printed for each item (if more than one item)
When all labels are printed, then a single item is added to the customer’s basket
and any required Certificates of Posting are printed.
Other items can be added to the basket, and the customer is then asked to pay
for the items in the basket and appropriate tender items are added to the
basket.
The basket is then settled.
3. Error Handling
Clearly, when labels are being printed, failures may occur during the printing process.
The following describes the process of printing a label in more detail:
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. User requests that a label is printed
An Event is recorded in the audit trail that a label print has been requested and
this is immediately secured to the Horizon Data Centre
Once the Event has been successfully recorded, the label information is sent to
the printer and the User is expected to insert a label into the printer for
printing.
Failure to insert a label or a failure during printing a label results in a failure
message being displayed. Also a Rejected label report is sent to the Tally Roll
on the printer and a Rejected label transaction is included in the customer’s
basket.
If the system believes that it has successfully printed the label, the User is then
asked if the label printed OK, to which they need to select Yes or No. If “No”
is selected, then again a Rejected Label Report is produced and a Rejected
Label transaction is added to a customer’s basket.
This is to handle the case where the label may be illegible or have become
unusable in spite of apparently printing OK.
If the user says it was printed OK, then printing is considered to be complete.
If the printing failed (ie at step 4) or the User indicates that no useable label
was produced (at step 5) and a Rejected Label Report has been generated, then
the system returns to the screen described in section 2 step 5, when the user
can choose to have another attempt at printing a label, or select an alternative
mechanism (such as stamps).
3.1 Posting a Single Item
In the simple case of a single item being posted, then a single Basket Entry appears on
the Customer Stack visible on the clerk’s screen. However should a Rejected Label
Receipt have been produced, then this will be visible as a zero value transaction on the
Customer’s receipt (should one be printed).
If the User subsequently looks at the Transaction Log, then multiple entries will be
found in each case. For example in the case where a single first class item weighing
1,000gms is processed for £3.20, and the initial label print failed, but a second attempt
worked OK, then the following items will appear on the transaction log:
aw WN
1* Class, Qty = 1-, amount £3.20-
Post Label 1SP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
RejPostLabel 1SP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
Followed by the customer’s settlement eg cash, Qty 1, amount 3.20
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3.2
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Note that should multiple attempts be made printing the label before a successful
attempt, then there will be multiple Rejected label entries on the customer receipt (if
any) and pairs of items like steps 4 and 5 above in the Transaction Log.
Should attempting to print a label be abandoned, and another option such as stamps is
selected, then the item at step 2 above would be replaced by an item for product
stamps again with a Qty of 1- and value of £3.20-.
Posting Multiple Items
It is possible for some services (generally those that don’t require barcodes or address
information, but controlled by Reference Data) to indicate that there are a number of
identical items to be posted as a single basket item. This is achieved by settling Qty to
a value greater than I at (or before) step 1 in section 2.
In this case, if the option to print a label is selected at stepS in section 2, a separate
label is printed for each item (ie Qty times). Each such label print goes through the
process described in section 3. This can result in a number of Rejected label receipts
and corresponding items on the Customer’s receipt and the Transaction Log.
Taking the case of Qty set to 2 where both labels printed eventually, but with 2
rejected labels, then the Transaction Log will look as follows:
1* Class, Qty = 2-, amount £6.40-
Post Label 1SP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
Post Label 1SP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
RejPostLabel 1SP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
RejPostLabel 1SP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
eon
Ce rnawes
10. Followed by the customer’s settlement eg cash, Qty 1, amount 6.40
However should label printing be abandoned part the way through, and stamps
selected for the remaining items, then 2 items will be visible in the customer’s on
screen basket and on the receipt (as well as an item on the receipt for each Rejected
label)
Taking an example of Qty being set to 10 and the first 3 labels print OK, the 4" then
fails twice and the remainder is handled by stamps, then the transaction log will be as
follows:
1. 1* Class, Qty = 3-, amount £9.60-
2. Post Label ISP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
3. RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
4. Post Label ISP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
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5. RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
6. Post Label ISP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
7. RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
8. RejPostLabel 1SP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
9. RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
10. RejPostLabel ISP, Qty 1-, amount 3.20-
11. RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 3.20
12. 1* Class, Qty = 7-, amount 22.40-
13. Stamps, Qty 1-, amount 22.40-
14. RM Label Balance, Qty 1, amount 22.40
15. Followed by the customer’s settlement eg cash, Qty 1, amount 32.00
The customer’s receipt will also show 2 separate items (one with Qty = 3 and the other
Qty = 7) for the postage and also the 2 rejected labels.
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