Method and apparatus for monitoring keys and other articles

摘要

A microprocessor based system for storing and monitoring articles such as the keys for the vehicles in the inventory of an automobile dealership. The keys are held on binary coded cards which are received by edge connectors mounted on four removable panels on a wall mounted storage board. Each key has an identification number determined by the code on its card, and each edge connector has a unique address. The microprocessor continuously scans the edge connectors and stores in memory the code of the key at each address. Each edge connector has an indicator light which is turned on when a valid user code is entered on a keyboard and a request is made for the key located at the address of the edge connector. If request is made for a key which is missing, the system displays the number of the key and the user code of the person who removed it.