WO2005018816A2

WO2005018816A2 - Configurable part identification device

Info

Publication number: WO2005018816A2
Application number: PCT/US2004/020857
Authority: WO
Inventors: Stephen Nemethy; Robert G. Loosli
Original assignee: Nordson Corporation
Priority date: 2003-08-18
Filing date: 2004-06-29
Publication date: 2005-03-03
Also published as: WO2005018816A3

Abstract

A configurable part identification device in which from a blank or standard device an individual device can be modified so as to have a unique configuration to identify an associated group of parts. In one embodiment, the device is modified by removing members from a body of the device, wherein the members are attached to the device by frangible webs.

Description

CONFIGURABLE PART IDENTIFICATION DEVICE Related Application This application claims the benefit of United States provisional patent application serial no. 60/481,253 filed on August 18, 2003 for CONFIGURABLE PART IDENTIFICATION FLAG, the entire disclosure of which is fully incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field of the Invention The present invention relates generally to part identification techniques useful in material application apparatus. More particularly, the invention relates to a new concept for a part identification device. Background of the Invention Powder and liquid coating materials are commonly applied to surfaces of target objects by spraying or otherwise dispensing the material in a selectable pattern.

A typical powder spray apparatus, for example, can include one or more spray guns, a spray gun mover and/or oscillator, a powder spray booth, a powder supply, a control console, and often a powder overspray collection and/or reclamation system. Such apparatus are well known and described in the following exemplary United States

Patents: 5,167,714; 5,482,556; 5,566,042; and 6,021,799, the entire disclosures of which are fully incorporated herein by reference. The material application device may be electrostatic or non-electrostatic. In an electrostatic device, a high voltage electrode is used to apply an electrostatic charge to the material to improve the transfer ratio of material adhering to the target object. Application devices also typically include a triggering mechanism that is used to control the flow of material through the device. Such devices may be manually operated or electronically controlled such as with a robotic mechanism and/or appropriate electronic control arrangements. In the non-limiting example of a powder application system, a typical spraying operation is performed in a powder spray booth. The primary objective of using the booth is for powder overspray containment. Some powder booths are equipped or may be equipped with powder collection and recovery systems that collect powder overspray and either transfer the collected powder to a holding container or return the collected powder to the powder supply for continued use. In a typical system, an overhead conveyor is used to transport parts through a spray booth. Because much of the coating operation tends to be automated, such systems have control circuits that need to identify the parts that are to be coated. Part identification may be important for a number of reasons including, for example, the part size and geometry. Other parameters are also important such as the color to be applied as well as various parameters for operating the spray guns, movers and so on. It is well known to use a device commonly referred to as a part identification flag that hangs from the conveyor, typically preceding the parts into the spray booth. Known flags can be read optically, for example, by circuits that are also used to control coating operations based on various positions of the parts as they progress through the booth. A single flag may be used to convey information as simple as a part identification number to the control system, or may include any selectable number of additional encoded pieces of information. Exactly what is encoded is a function of the overall material application system and the sophistication of the control system. But for any automated system, the flag is useful for providing information about the parts that are to be coated. Many end users have a large inventory of different parts that are coated.

Moreover there can be a large number of parameters that are selected for any given group of parts. Accordingly, it is common that a large inventory of flags must be available. This large inventory of many different flags not only adds cost to the flag manufacturer but also for the end user that carries the inventory. It is desired, therefore, to provide new methods and apparatus for an identification device such as can be used, for example, in association with a group of parts being processed with a material application system. Summary of the Invention The invention contemplates methods and apparatus for an identification device used in association with a group of parts. A useful application of the invention is for part identification in a coating material application system. The identification criteria may be any type of information that is used during a coating process. For example, the identification criteria may be a part number, a size number, a color code, a spray method code and so on or any combination of different criteria. The information may be in the form of encoded data or may simply be numerical or alphanumeric input of system parameters or both. The particular information and format thereof that is provided by the identification device is of no particular significance to the present invention because the type and form of the information will be determined by the control system and parts for a particular application.

In accordance with one aspect of the invention, the identification device is a configurable or mechanically programmable device that has a first configuration and a second or selectable configuration in which the device identifies a group of parts when the device has the selected configuration. In one embodiment, the device has a body that can have one or more members added to or taken therefrom to modify the configuration of the device. The device configuration corresponds to or indicates information, such as for example a part number or color code. The device is then detected so that the information is available to an appropriate control arrangement. In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a device for identifying a group of parts that move through a material application system includes a body and at least one member associated with the body, the body being modifiable to have an identifying condition for a group of parts, the modification comprising one of the following: 1) separating at least one member from the body, 2) adding at least one member to the body.

In accordance with another aspect of the invention, a device for identifying a group of parts that move through a material application system includes a set of substantially identical devices wherein each of the devices is modifiable to have an identifying condition for a group of parts. In accordance with other aspects of the invention, the identification device can be detected any number of ways, including but not limited to mechanical detection, electro-optical detection, acoustic detection, electromagnetic detection (such as an inductive proximity switch or variable relurtance pick-up), electromechanical detection, and visual detection. In another particular embodiment, a device for identifying a group of parts as the group of parts move through a material application system includes an assembly comprising a flag body and at least one member separable from the flag body, the assembly having an identifying condition for a group of parts when at least one member is separate from the flag body.

In still further embodiments, a device for identifying a group of parts includes a set of substantially identical devices having a first configuration; each of the devices being modifiable to have a second configuration for identifying an associated group of parts. In another embodiment, a device for identifying a group of parts includes a set of substantially identical devices having a first configuration with each of the substantially identical devices comprising means for modifying the device to have a second configuration to identify an associated group of parts. The present invention further contemplates methods of use of such identification devices, as well as in another embodiment a method for identifying a group of parts that move through a material application system, comprising the steps of selecting from a set of substantially identical devices an individual device and modifying the selected individual device to have a configuration that identifies a group of parts.

These and other aspects and advantages of the present invention will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following description of the preferred embodiments in view of the accompanying drawings. Brief Description of the Drawings The invention may take physical form in certain parts and arrangements of parts, preferred embodiments and a method of which will be described in detail in this specification and illustrated in the accompanying drawings which form a part hereof, and wherein: Fig. 1 is a perspective view of the entrance to a powder spray booth illustrating use of the present invention; Figs. 2A-2D are elevation, top, side and perspective views respectively of exemplary embodiments of the invention; Fig. 3 is an enlarged view of the circled portion of Fig. 2A; Fig. 4 is a functional block diagram of a control circuit suitable for use with the present invention; and Fig. 5 illustrates an example of a modified identification device of Fig. 2D. Detailed Description of the Preferred Embodiments With reference to Fig. 1, in an exemplary embodiment, the present invention is illustrated being used with a material application system, such as, for example, a typical powder coating spray apparatus 10. Such an arrangement commonly includes a powder spray booth 12 in which an object or part P is to be sprayed with a powder coating material. The application of powder to the part P is generally referred to herein as a powder spraying or coating operation, however, there may be any number of control functions, steps and parameters that are controlled and executed before, during and after powder is actually applied to the part. As is known, the part P is suspended from an overhead conveyor 14 using hangers 16 or any other conveniently suitable arrangements. The booth 12 includes one or more openings 18 through which one or more spray guns 20 may be used to apply coating material to the part P as it travels through the booth 12. The selected design and operation of the material application system 10, including the spray booth 12, guns 20, conveyor 14 and a control system (not shown) for controlling operation thereof, forms no part of the present invention and may be selected based on the requirements of a particular coating application. The control system need only be programmed to detect an identification device that is realized in accordance with the present invention, and to extract or correlate the appropriate information from that device upon detection thereof. It is important to note that while the exemplary embodiments herein illustrate the novel identification device in use with an automated control system that detects the device and uses its encoded information as appropriate, the invention may also be used in non-automated systems. For example, an identification device in accordance with other embodiments of the invention may be visually observed by an operator who then sets the appropriate system functions in accordance with the information conveyed to the operator by noting the configuration of the identification device. Thus, the invention is not limited in any manner by the type of control system or detection technique used to detect the identification device or to extract or decode information therefrom, other than the detection system having to be compatible, in other words able to identify and interpret, the identification device. Moreover, while the described embodiments herein are presented in the context of a powder coating system, those skilled in the art will readily appreciate that the present invention may be used in a liquid or other material application system. The specific design and operation of the material application system selected provides no limitation on the present invention except as otherwise expressly noted herein. The invention thus provides a convenient identification device for identifying one or more characteristics of a part that will have material applied thereto, and/or one or more characteristics of the coating process that will be applied to the parts, or a combination thereof. Thus, the device may be used in a variety of different ways, including to identify an associated group of parts, and in particular one or more characteristics of that group, for example a part number, part size and so on, or optionally to identify one or more characteristics of the coating operation to be applied to an associated group of parts, such as for example the color or the spray technology (e.g. electrostatic, non-electrostatic, tribocharging, corona charging and so on to name a few examples), or still a further option to identify one or more characteristics of a group of parts and to also identify one or more characteristics of the coating operation to be used with that group of parts. The level of complexity of information that is extractable from the identification device is determined by design of the desired level of control and sophistication of the material application system, and therefore may be as widely varied, simple or complex as is desired by the end user. An identification device in accordance with the present invention can thus accommodate many different levels of complexity and information coding, from the simplest form of part number encoding to highly complex parameters of the material application system, thus being limited only by the creativity and cost constraints imposed in the design of the overall material application system. While various aspects of the invention are described and illustrated herein as embodied in combination in the exemplary embodiments, these various aspects may be realized in many alternative embodiments, either individually or in various combinations and sub-combinations thereof. Still further, various alternative embodiments as to the various aspects and features of the invention, such as alternative materials, structures, configurations, methods, devices, software, hardware, control logic and so on may be described herein, but such descriptions are not intended to be a complete or exhaustive list of available alternative embodiments, whether presently known or later developed. Those skilled in the art may readily adopt one or more of the aspects, concepts or features of the invention into additional embodiments within the scope of the present invention even if such embodiments are not expressly disclosed herein. Additionally, even though some features, concepts or aspects of the invention may be described herein as being a preferred arrangement or method, such description is not intended to suggest that such feature is required or necessary unless so expressly stated. Still further, exemplary or representative values and ranges may be included to assist in understanding the present invention however, such values and ranges are not to be construed in a limiting sense and are only intended to be critical values if so expressly stated. With continued reference to Fig. 1, typical automated material application systems use some sort of optical detector or scanning to detect position and sometimes to detect movement of the parts P as they are conveyed through the spray booth 12. hi the embodiment of Fig. 1, a pass through optical system 30 is illustrated. In this specific example, the optical system 30 is realized in the form of a through beam light curtain having a emitter array portion 32 and a receiver array portion 34. Which side of the booth 12 has the receiver or emitter is optional, and some light curtain designs include emitters and receivers mounted in each array, thus allowing bidirectional light transmission. The light curtain 30 is basically a longitudinal array of infrared emitters and receivers that the parts P pass between as they enter the spray booth 12. If light is detected then an object is not blocking the light, but if one or more of the receivers suddenly stops receiving light, presuming normal operation of the devices themselves, then the control system knows that an object has passed between the two arrays. Thus, the light curtain 30 is typically used to detect for example the leading and trailing edges of a part P. This information can be used, for example, to control coating spray gun on/off trigger times, trigger delay times, spray duration times and so on. A typical through beam light curtain is model SM31 available from Banner Engineering Corporation, Minneapolis, MN. Note that typically the parts P are suspended from the conveyor 14 so as to be positioned approximately in the middle of the longitudinally active region of the light curtain 30. It is also known to use reflective (as distinguished from through beam) optical systems in which an emitter and receiver are positioned on the same side of the booth. These arrangements may include a single emitter/receiver or an array of two or more such devices depending on the overall system requirements. In accordance with a first embodiment of the present invention, an identification device 100 is provided. The device 100 may be used for a wide variety of purposes, including but not limited to part identification such as a part number, part size identification, coating material color to be applied, application technology to be used (for example electrostatic or non-electrostatic), application equipment positioning (for example, more equipment to position A or position B) and so on. The types and amount of information extractable from the device 100 is a matter of design choice. In an exemplary use of the device 100, the device 100 is suspended from the conveyor 14 just ahead of an associated group of parts that it identifies. By 'associated group of parts' is simply meant one or more parts that have a common characteristic that is encoded into and thus associated with an identification device 100. For example, a group of parts may all have the same part ID (identification) number, or are to be coated with the same color. A different device 100 thus may be used to identify each different group of parts that will be processed through the material application system 10. Each different group of parts associated with a device

100 are uniquely identified by providing the device 100 with a correspondingly unique configuration or appearance, as will be explained more fully below herein. It is known to provide part identification flags that are suspended from the conveyor 14. However, in prior known systems, each flag was uniquely configured and manufactured, thus demanding a large inventory of flag designs both at the manufacturer as well as at the end user facility. In accordance with one aspect of the invention, the identification device 100 is configurable or in different terms mechanically programmable, meaning that its physical profile, shape, appearance, condition or configuration can be selectively altered or modified so as to be uniquely representative of an associated group of parts that will pass through the material application system 10. hi accordance with this aspect of the invention, the manufacturer can thus manufacture a single or first device configuration that serves as a "blank" or standard configuration (blank or standard meaning no particular information is conveyed in such configuration unless otherwise specified by the end user). The standard configuration thus typically will not be used to identify any particular group of parts (although alternatively the standard configuration in and of itself may indeed be used to identify a particular group of parts if so desired— for example, a groups of parts that may comprise a major percentage of the total number of parts that pass through the system 10.) The word 'standard' in this context thus simply connotes the idea that there is a configuration of the device 100, typically supplied from the manufacturer and thus able to be produced in quantity, that is then modified at the end user to have a second configuration that serves to identify a group of parts that will be processed through the system 10. By this technique then, an end user can inventory a number of standard devices 100, select one and modify it so as to have that modified device serve as an identification device 100 or flag for an associated group of parts. Depending on the particular design of the device 100, a modified device that has a non-standard or second configuration might be reused to be further modified to identify yet another different group of parts. Still as another alternative the device 100 may be designed so that the user can re-configure the altered device back to a standard configuration. All of these aspects are optional at the discretion of the designer, the salient point being that the device 100 is modifiable or configurable so as to take on more than one shape, profile, appearance or configuration so that it can be used to identify an associated group of parts, either as to one or more characteristics of the parts, one or more characteristics of the process applied to the parts, or a combination thereof. In an exemplary embodiment, the device 10O is detected and information extracted by an optical system such as, for example, the light curtain 30 of Fig. 1. However, many alternative detection techniques may be used to detect the device 100 and extract information therefrom. For example, the device 100 may be detected electromechanically using cam followers to name one example; the device 100 may be detected acoustically (for example with ultrasonic energy) or simply may be detected visually by the operator, and so on. Optical detection may include electromagnetic energy throughout the spectrum, including but not limited to infrared and radio frequency (RF) waves. In the embodiment of Fig. 1, in which the device 100 is detected by use of a light curtain 30, the device 100 is suspended from the conveyor 14 so as to hang near the top of the light curtain 30, above the highest point any part P reaches. This assures that the device 100 will not be detected as a part P and conversely that a part P will not be mistaken as being a identification device 100. Thus, in this example, the uppermost emitters/receivers in the light curtain array 30 are used exclusively for detecting and extracting information (for example, decoding) from the identification device 100. In an exemplary embodiment, the top eight devices of the light curtain are used, thus allowing 2⁸ possible unique codes of information. More or fewer may be used as required for a particular application. With reference to Figs. 2A-2D and Fig. 3, an exemplary embodiment of the invention is illustrated. In these illustrations, the identification device 100 is in a first or standard configuration, such as it may be provided by a manufacturer, and thus has not yet been modified to a second configuration. It should be noted that whether the alteration occurs at the manufacturer, end user or elsewhere is of no particular consequence to the concept of the invention, although it is contemplated that typically the device 100 will be modified at the end user facility. The device 100 includes a main body 102 that is generally rectangular in configuration. Any geometric shape for the body, however, may be used. The device 100 may be made of any suitable material as required for the material application system with which it will be used. In the case of a typical powder coating system, such as system 10 in Fig. 1, a suitable material is galvanized steel plate. This material has a fair amount of weight which may be desirable so that the device 100 does not move or sway with air currents in a manufacturing facility. Moreover, a material application system often sends the parts P from the spray booth directly into a high temperature oven or other high temperature curing device. The steel material will tend to prevent the device 100 from deforming or otherwise losing its shape so that it can be reused. The device 100 may be dimensioned as required, in the exemplary embodiment the device body 102 is about seven inches wide by about 16 inches long. The body 102 includes first or top and second or bottom end portions 104a and

104b, each provided with holes 106 to permit the device 100 to be hung from a conveyor. The device can be hung vertically as illustrated in Fig. 1 or horizontally or any other orientation so long as it is hung in a manner compatible with the detection system used. It should be noted then that "top" and "bottom" and "sides" and "end" are merely used herein for convenience of description and as a general reference and do not necessarily refer to any particular orientation of the device 100 when in use. The body 102 further includes two lateral side portions 108 in the form of longitudinally extending webs. At their outermost edge regions the side portions 108 may be bent to form flanges 110 at a suitable angle. This optional flanged feature helps make the devices 100 more stackable for shipment, storage and use. The identification device 100 may be painted or coated or otherwise treated to reduce its reflectivity as required. The body 102 further includes an active or programmable or configurable region 112 that preferably although not necessarily is disposed generally centrally therein, between the lateral sides 108 and the first and second end portions 104. In the exemplary embodiment, the configurable region or portion 112 includes one or more members 114 (not all of the members 114 are numbered in the drawings for clarity.) The members 114 in this example are tabs or plates formed by laser cutting vertical (116a) and horizontal (116b) slits 116 in the body 102. The slits 116 are arranged so that each tab or plate 114 remains attached to the body 102 by one or more frangible webs 118 (best shown in Fig. 3.) In the example herein, each member 114 is held on the body 102 by two frangible webs 118, one on each side of the member. The number of webs 118 used for each member is optional. In order to configure the device 100, all that an operator needs to do is selectively remove the appropriate members 114. Note that in the embodiment of Fig.

2 A there are more than eight member 114, although only eight emitters and receivers are used in the light curtain 30 (Fig. 1). This is an optional feature by which a standard device 100 can be made to accommodate different systems. Some systems may be used for sixteen programmable slots rather than eight. Any number may be selected as required. In the example of Fig. 2 A, every other one of the members 114 then may actually be the ones that are actively detected by the light curtain 30. This lessens the accuracy needed in the light beams. The smaller and more closely spaced the members 114 are, the more narrowly focused the light beam must be to detect that particular region, so as to prevent a detector from picking up false signals. For narrowly focused beams used in through beam configurations, it may be useful to apply a coating to cover the slits 116 so that false signals are not detected. By selectively removing one or more of the members 114, an operator can in essence mechanically program the device 100. When a member 114 is removed, light from an emitter 32 will pass through the resultant slot 115 and be detected by the corresponding receiver 34. If a particular member 114 is left in place, then light will not be transmitted through to the corresponding receiver. Thus, each member 114 acts as a binary encodable element. Which members 114 are to be removed in order to convey specific identification information will be dictated by the overall coding scheme. Thus, starting with a standard device 100, the operator can configure an individual device 100 to uniquely identify an associated group of parts that follow behind the device 100 on a conveyor. Each time one of the members 114 is removed, the configuration of the device 100 has been modified to a unique configuration that may be used to identify an associated group of parts. Although the exemplary embodiment illustrates removing members 114, in an alternative embodiment (not shown) the standard configuration may be one in which the region 112 is fully open, and members 114 are selectively added into position. For example, magnetic members may be used or other means for attaching a member to the device body. Thus, the invention contemplates either adding to or removing a portion of the device 100 to change it from a first configuration to a second configuration wherein the second configuration uniquely identifies an associated group of parts. The device 100 illustrated in Fig. 1 shows a typical example of what the device 100 might look like with some of the members 114 removed. Which of the members 114 are located at the "active" positions, meaning that they align with the optical devices in the light curtain 30, is a matter of design choice determined by the design of the optical system 30 and the amount of information needed to be extractable via the device 100. Fig. 5 illustrates one example of a device 100 in which some of the members have been removed to form a desired binary "code" 117. The coding scheme need not be binary, and need not be numerical. It will be noted that Fig. 2A and Fig. 2D actually illustrate two different embodiments. In the embodiment of Fig. 2A, the device 100 further and optionally includes a second configurable region 120. The region 120 includes one or more tabs 122 such as can be formed by laser cutting for example. These tabs may be selectively removed so as to leave a visually perceptible pattern. In the example of

Fig. 2 A, the tabs 122 are formed so that they can be selectively removed to form numerals or alternatively letters or other symbols, hi this manner an operator may visually identify the associated group of parts. The second region 120 is optionally used with the first region 112, or for operator based control systems the second region

120 alone may be used. With reference to Fig. 4, an exemplary control system 200 is illustrated. Light beams 201 are emitted from each of the available emitters 32. The device 100 is suspended from the conveyor so that the slots and members align with their corresponding emitter/detector pairs. The narrower the light beans used (or alternatively the further apart the active positions are located) the less precision is needed in hanging the device 100. Beam shaping masks (not shown) may be used to adjust the beam size, much like an aperture would function. Light that is transmitted through slots 115 formed by removing one or more members 114 is detected by the corresponding receiver detector array 34a. Each detector 34a produces an output 202 that is received by an appropriate controller 204. The controller 204, for example, may be part of an overall control system for the material application system. The controller 204 then generates appropriate system control signals 206 as appropriate for the information decoded about the group of parts. These system control signals for example might cause a particular color to be selected or a particular spray pattern to be used and so on. Note that the device 100 can be detected when in position between the emitters and receivers in a straightforward manner. When the device 100 is not present at all or not in position, all of the receivers 34a will or should (presuming proper operation) detect light from its corresponding emitter 32a. When a side portion 118 or flange 110 initially passes between the emitters and detectors, all of the light will be blocked so that all the detectors will indicate no light received. The controller 20 is then programmed to look at the detector outputs 202 at an appropriate time when the members 114, or the slots 115 left by removing one or members 114, are aligned between the emitters and receivers. The invention further contemplates the methods embodied in the use and modification of the device 100. Moreover, the invention contemplates a method for identifying a group of parts that includes the steps of selecting an individual identification device from a set of substantially identical identification devices having a first configuration, and modifying the selected device to have a second configuration that identifies an associated group of parts. The identification of the group of parts may be based on one or more characteristics of the parts, one or more characteristics of a process applied to the parts, or a combination thereof. A set of devices may be as few as one or a plurality more than one. The invention has been described with reference to the preferred embodiment. Modifications and alterations will occur to others upon a reading and understanding of this specification and drawings. The invention is intended to include all such modifications and alterations insofar as they come within the scope of the appended claims or the equivalents thereof.

Claims

CLAIMS Having thus described the invention, it is claimed: 1. A flag for identifying a group of parts that move through a material application system, comprising: an assembly having a flag body and at least one member separable from said flag body, said assembly having selectable conditions based on whether said member is separated from said body; said selectable conditions comprising a non-identifying condition for said group of parts and an identifying condition for said group of parts.

2. The flag of claim 1 wherein said identifying condition relates to a part number of said group of parts.

3. The flag of claim 1 wherein said identifying condition relates to a characteristic of material to be applied to said group of parts.

4. The flag of claim 1 in combination with a powder coating system that applies powder coating material to one or more of said group of parts, said system recognizing said group of parts based on detecting said identifying condition.

5. The flag of claim 1 wherein said non-identifying condition corresponds to a standard flag configuration.

6. The flag of claim 1 wherein from a set of substantially identical flags a selected flag of said set is modified with said member to identify a group of parts.

7. The flag of claim 6 wherein said selected flag is modified by separating said member from said flag body.

8. The flag of claim 1 wherein said identifying condition is selected by removing said member from said flag body.

9. The flag of claim 8 wherein said assembly comprises said flag body and a plurality of said members, each of said members being removably attached to said flag body.

10. The flag of claim 9 wherein each said member is attached to said flag body by a frangible piece thereof.

11. A device for identifying a group of parts as the group of parts move through a material application system, comprising: an assembly comprising a flag body and at least one member separable from said flag body, said assembly having an identifying condition for said group of parts when said at least one member is separate from said flag body.

12. The device of claim 11 wherein said identifying condition is optically detectable. 13. The device of claim 11 wherein said identifying condition is detectable by one or more of the following: mechanical detection, electro-optical detection, acoustic detection, electromechanical detection, electromagnetic detection, visual detection.

13. The device of claim 11 wherein from a set of substantially identical flags an individual flag is selected and modified by removing one or more of said members therefrom to identify a group of parts.

14. A method for identifying a group of parts that move through a material application system, comprising the steps of: selecting from a set of substantially identical device an individual device; modifying said individual device to have a configuration that identifies a group of parts; said modification comprising separating a member from a body of said individual device.

15. The method of claim 14 comprising the step of detecting said identifying condition by one or more of the following: mechamcal detection, electro- optical detection, acoustic detection, electromechanical detection, electromagnetic detection, visual detection.

16. A method for identifying a group of parts that move through a material application system, comprising the steps of: selecting from a set of substantially identical devices an individual device; modifying said individual device to have a configuration that identifies a group of parts.

17. The method of claim 16 wherein said step of modifying comprises one of the following: 1) separating a member from a body of said individual device, 2) adding a member to a body of said individual device.

18. A device for identifying a group of parts that move through a material application system, comprising: a flag body and at least one member associated with said flag body, said flag body being modifiable to have an identifying condition for a group of parts, said modification comprising one of the following: 1) separating said at least one member from said flag body, 2) adding said at least one member to said flag body.

19. A device for identifying a group of parts that move through a material application system, comprising: a set of substantially identical flags; each of said flags being modifiable to have an identifying configuration for a group of parts.

20. The device of claim 19 wherein a flag is modified by one of the following: 1) separating said at least one member from said flag body, 2) adding said at least one member to said flag body.

21. A method for identifying a group of parts being processed, comprising the steps of: selecting an identification device from a set of substantially identical identification devices having a first configuration; modifying said selected identification device to have a second configuration that identifies a group of parts.

22. The method of claim 21 comprising the step of hanging said selected and modified identification device from a conveyor in advance of said group of parts.

23. The method of claim 22 comprising the step of coating said parts with a material.

24. A device for identifying a group of parts, comprising: a set of substantially identical devices having a first configuration; each of said devices being modifiable to have a second configuration for identifying an associated group of parts.

25. A device for identifying a group of parts, comprising: a set of substantially identical devices having a first configuration; each of said substantially identical devices comprising means for modifying said device to have a second configuration to identify an associated group of parts.