Implementation Of A “Smart Shelves” System To Improve Library Performance
From 2017, the NTU Lee Wee Nam Library has entertained 752, 219 visitors, and loaned out 203, 205 books. This statistic indicates the demand for hard copy books by the students due to their personal preference, or the lack of electronic alternatives. Unfortunately, the report does not provide additional information about how a considerable number of students have been unable to locate their desired books in the library.
In addition, in review of NTU Libraries in the general years of 2014/2015 and 2015/2016, there has been an increase in the number of books made available from 834, 662 books to 854, 207 books respectively. This is an increase of 2. 28% from the previous year. Hence, there exists a need to manage both our growing book collection and our loaning process in a more efficient fashion.
Problem
Every book in the library has been labelled and shelved specifically to where they belong. The library’s KIOSK system helps students and librarians by simplifying the book searching process. However, due to the limited time and resources each librarian has to effectively manage the huge and growing number of books, the books may inadvertently be shelved into wrong positions. This is also further caused by students who carelessly place books on the wrong shelves.
As a result, students who are looking for a specific book might not be able to locate it due to the carelessness of another student or the low visibility of the books on the shelves. Thus, many students leave the library empty handed despite the fact that the book they so desire is buried deep in a forgotten shelf.
Solution
To improve the current system in the library, a new “smart shelves” system will be implemented. It involves the installation of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tags onto every book and RFID sensors onto every shelf to locate the books. An app would be created for students to search for the books and a computer application for the librarians to receive the compilation for all misplaced books.
When a student or librarian searches for a book, sensors would pick up a signal from the book placed on a particular shelf and notify them, providing them the exact location of the book. Therefore, they could locate the desired book. Additionally, the computer application would compile and notify the librarian whenever a book is misplaced. In which, the librarian could recover and shelve the book into the correct location. This could speed up the librarian’s stock taking process.
Benefits
With the RFID sensors in place, the library would become a smart library, improving it’s efficiency and saving the time of both students and librarians. Students will be able to search independently for the books they need without the help of librarians, even if the books are misplaced. Librarians would be able to focus more of their time on other responsibilities since the time required to sort the books in the library is reduced significantly. For instance, they can invest more of their time in the exhibitions, talks and events that take place in the library, and improve the quality of such events.
In addition, this project is scalable to every library in Nanyang Technological University (NTU) in the future. RFID tags can be adopted by most libraries to automatically sort out books returned, aiding in updating the system for every book returned. Books returned to the wrong libraries can be reported through the system as well, such that they can be returned to their respective library.
Implementation
The following description will be conducted for the for the implementation of smart shelves: Description Timeline
- Contact suppliers and contractors for the implementation. Ensure the agreement of the jobs to be done. 2 Week(s).
- Contact software developer to create application for the library. 6-8 Week(s).
- Replace old RFID tag in the books with the new RFID tag (sticker). 4-6 Week(s).
- Installing of RFID sensor onto the shelves. 2 Week(s).
- Verify that new system is up and running. 1 Week(s).
Conclusion
In conclusion, the current kiosk system in place is limited for book searching. With the new smart shelves system in place, there will be an increase in the efficiency of the book searching process, benefitting both the librarians and students by freeing up time for them to focus on their own pursuits and interests.
