DAT-MAIL - Whittier Tagger - Reference Guide

Tagger/DAT-MAIL Interface - How It Works

The WMP Barcode Tagger can read Mail.dats either from a network share, its own share or a USB flash drive. If you are generating sibling tags for overflow trays with the Barcode Tagger, we recommend that you use a “share” to exchange data with DAT-MAIL. If you have only one Tagger that share can be on the Tagger itself (refer to Connecting to the Tagger Built-in File Server from a Windows PC for setup instructions). If you have multiple Taggers, you should use a share on your network (refer to Set Up a Network Share & Connect with the Tagger for setup instructions). A share is also required if you wish to have DAT-MAIL automatically export data to the Tagger after a Mail.dat is imported.

If you do not have the Tagger connected to your network and don’t mail a large number of jobs, it is possible to use a USB flash drive to transfer files to and from the Barcode Tagger. The import of the sibling tray data would have to be manual, not automatic, however.

You can also setup the Tagger to write its log files to a network share to facilitate transfer of that data to DAT-MAIL while reading job data from USB flash drives. If mailers are producing many jobs at the same time, it may actually be easier for an operator to load the data from a flash drive than a network share but it is always better to send data back to DAT-MAIL via the share. The “search” function does allow a mailer with many files in their share to quickly locate the one they need, so a share will always will be the most efficient way to exchange data between the Tagger and DAT-MAIL.

There are two ways DAT-MAIL can provide data to a Tagger:

  1. Automatically after each job is imported into DAT-MAIL. This is good for mailers that are using a share. If you are importing Mail.dats with DAT-MAIL’s Daemon or AWAM™, the export is done after all other automated processes are finished. This way if you are palletizing during import, the Tagger exports will reflect the pallets that were added; and

  2. Manually using the “Export to Tagger” button on the Advanced Navigator screen or the “IM Scanning” option on the “Other Program” menu. Manual export is best when one of the following is true:

    • The mailer has multiple Taggers and wishes to direct a file to a specific Tagger for tag printing that is in-line with production. The files can be saved to a sub-folder in the share that has been designated for use by a specific Tagger.

    • The mailer wishes to save job data to USB flash drives.

      Once DAT-MAIL has transferred the data to a share or USB flash drive, the Barcode Tagger can read the file, print or reprint tray tags and create “sibling” tags. If sibling tags are created, a new barcode number is generated and recorded in a log file that is saved to a “logs” sub-folder in the share or USB flash drive. DAT-MAIL can import the log data and update these tags to the appropriate Mail.dats. DAT-MAIL can import the log data and update these tags to the appropriate Mail.dats through the use of the Automation Scheduler with IM Scan Manager plug-in.

See also