The best job worldwide? We are testing flashing LED lights!
“Why are the lights off, when they are supposed to be on?”
I have asked around, while I was making my first coffee at 9 am. As a part of the verification department I have to ask this question almost every day, because my job is to test Pick to Light system. We can imagine PTL system as a little helper in the warehouse, who knows everything about the picking order.
Every customer’s problem is unique, so I prefer individual approach. I’m trying to work as an operator in the real daily production process and therefore I always have to think very well about testing the system. How will they use it? Who will use it? Real cases have their miniatures in my office, so I put on my headset, turn on the music and let’s go!
My motto is": “There is difference between a tester and a tester…” And that’s why I do the hardware connections by myself and I try to understand all the process from the first cable to the main application. I think I've improved a lot lately in that. I take part when the system is installed at the real warehouse of our customer so I can solve possible problems make up the last details for the perfection. These visits allow me to watch the system in the real production. As a part of the verification department I also administrate test backgrounds and production enviroments for our customers. Therefore, I have the first-hand information about creating an application, through its deployment to the report.
But I have to return to the very important question: “Why are the lights off, when they are supposed to be on?”
The system consists of several components and it is important to find out where the error happened. Usually I have to check the whole process from placing the order, which then travels/moves from the main application through the M2E interface (this is the boss box). There is specific LED stripe selected which has to light up the lights. Then, this request has to be processed in the M2T device (this is the data sending box). This box has to find out where the specific LED stripe physically is and the request is send to the specific M2L device connected to specific LED stripe (this is the LEDlighting box).
I know, it sounds terrifying, at least all devices are telling me what is wrong. I understand their language and the logs have never disappointed me.
Sometimes my colleagues also make my conditions more difficult by deflecting a laser which is used to confirm the picking of goods, but I can usually detect this error very quickly lately. It is very funny to be in the office, you never get bored here. For example, when something doesn’t work properly we say it was damaged by „itself“. But that's part of it, I'm sometimes amazed at what can happen in real production.
When I’m in good mood, I take the handheld scanner and confirm the picks while sitting comfy on my office chair - yep, it is very comfy.
Since I dedicate my full-time job to testing, customer gets a perfect product, which usually has all the errors debugged.
Sipping my second coffee and watching the LED stripes lighting like in the Las Vegas. I pick the simulated order with a handheld mobile scanner, confirm its correctness on the tablet and start planning the itinerary of the customer visit.