- Introduction.
- Reflection: Started working on additional orders with inventory at 5 units.
- No way, mid-September is a vacation in China.
- Create parts control chart
- I got an order for 3 units from the internet alone, at the stage of 2 black stock.
- The website clearly states that the product is out of stock and is available for back-ordering.
- At the end.
Introduction.
Developing “Mia,” a talking cat-shaped robot that speaks various dialects.
The following two features were released as major updates to Mia on 9/17 (Tuesday)
(1) Custom voice function
A function that allows Mia to play original phrases created by the user or recorded voice at a specified time. It can be used in various situations such as alarm, reminder notification, and study support. Special messages can also be delivered using the voice of a guesser or a family member.
https://mia-cat.com/notice/custom-voice-function
2) 28 new dialects added
Previously, Mia spoke only four dialects (Osaka, Hiroshima, Hakata, and Kagoshima dialects), but now 28 new dialects are supported.
List of Dialects Added Hokkaido dialect, Tsugaru dialect (Aomori prefecture), Akita dialect, Fukushima dialect, Ibaraki dialect, Koshu dialect (Yamanashi prefecture), Saitama dialect, Kanagawa dialect, Shizuoka dialect, Nagoya dialect (Aichi prefecture), Mikawa dialect (Aichi prefecture), Mino dialect (Gifu prefecture), Shiga dialect, Niigata dialect, Kanazawa dialect (Ishikawa prefecture), Toyama dialect, Kyoto dialect, Kobe dialect (Hyogo prefecture), Mie dialect, Okayama dialect, Iyo dialect (Ehime prefecture), Sanuki dialect (Kagawa), Yamaguchi dialect, Saga dialect, Hita dialect (Oita), Kumamoto dialect, Miyazaki dialect, Okinawa dialect
https://mia-cat.com/notice/mia-add-28-dialects
Since this is quite a significant update, I would like to do a big PR (and I am actually doing PR), but we are just suffering from a shortage problem, and I realized the need for inventory management and the psychological difficulty of PR, so I will describe the inventory problem in this issue.
By the way, I posted it on Mia’s X and the voice actors/free announcers in each dialect who helped us reposted it. Thank you!
Reflection: Started working on additional orders with inventory at 5 units.
The current situation is that 100 units were created at the time of initial release and an additional 25 units have been created and are gone.
Of the initial 100 units, we should have moved to place the next order when we had about 30 units in stock, but in fact we started moving to place additional orders when we had 5 units in stock, which was the first reflection.
I had assumed that I would be able to secure the stock right away because I would order the same components for the board and the components used are general-purpose, so I would be able to place an additional order with JC PCB and receive it in about 10 days as usual, but I encountered a problem that the Class D amplifier connecting the speaker and ESP32 was unexpectedly out of stock. However, the Class D amplifier to connect the speakers to the ESP32 was out of stock, and the circuit had to be changed to use a substitute.
Because we were uncertain whether the modified circuit would actually work, we really wanted to order 100 units, but we ordered 25 units.
It was nice that it actually worked the first time with the board I received, but if none of the boards I received had worked due to a circuit error, I would have been stuck at this point.
Nevertheless, 5 of the 25 units received were defective, and 4 were speaker-related (no audio playback or crackling). The defective units in the speaker area were not on the first release boards before the circuit modification, and this defective rate was unacceptable, so the circuit had to be modified further. Here is the actual result of the circuit modification
Since 80% of the boards were working, the possibility of a surface mounting error by JLCPCB, which also ordered surface mounting, was the highest, so we filed a Qulality Complaint with JLCPCB.
No way, mid-September is a vacation in China.
I ordered 25 boards from JLCPCB with modified circuits. Normally, it takes 4-5 days to ship and 10 days to arrive after ordering, but for some reason, the Production Progress is stuck at 56%.
I am in a hurry, so why only this time? I checked the Chinese holidays and found that the 15th, 16th, and 17th of mid-September are Mid-Autumn Festival holidays. Too bad timing.
By the way, I am itching to say that progress has not been made even as of 7:00 a.m. on Sept. 19, when I am writing this article.
Create parts control chart
In addition to the circuit board, there are several other components such as buttons, front panels, and back cabinets, so we created a spreadsheet for a component management chart to simply manage the inventory of each component.
I should have done it from the time of release, but I finally created it out of necessity.
Black was more popular than white for Mia, about 55% black and 45% white. At the beginning of the lease, we were not sure which would sell better, black or white, so we ordered equal numbers of both. Therefore, the black one always encountered the out-of-stock problem. Incidentally, there are currently no black ones in stock and 5 white ones in stock.
I got an order for 3 units from the internet alone, at the stage of 2 black stock.
So, there is currently no black in stock.
Incidentally, when we had two black units in stock, one user unexpectedly placed an order for three units (two black and one white) online (he had previously ordered two units, but never three), which made us very happy, but at the same time it also made us impatient: “We are out of black stock. I was very happy, but at the same time, it was an opportunity for me to be impatient and say, “We’re out of black stock.
Of the two black units in stock, one was at home and one was at the TiB SHOP, which is currently exhibiting in a pop-up store in Yurakucho, Tokyo, so we rushed to the TiB SHOP to pick up one black unit, box it up and deliver it.
I also told the TiB SHOP staff, “We have run out of black stock, so if you would like to purchase one in the store, please let them know that black is currently out of stock. Please urge them to go online to place an order (pre-order)”.
The website clearly states that the product is out of stock and is available for back-ordering.
So, since the black mia is out of stock, I specified on the purchase page of the website
Incidentally, Mia’s site uses WooCommerce for product management in conjunction with Stripe payment, and as for inventory, as shown below, the number of items in stock can be tracked and listed, as well as a column that says “accepting orders” rather than simply “in stock” or “out of stock.
It would be like a pre-order. We have changed the order to a pre-order because we would like users to pre-order the product since it is out of stock but will be shipped as soon as stock is available.
At the end.
The only thing to reflect on this time was that we should have moved on to the next order under the condition that we had plenty of inventory.
Even if you think it won’t be a problem because you’re ordering the same components.
- In fact, some parts may be out of stock
- Deliveries may be delayed due to vacations, etc. of the ordering party.
Unexpected external factors, such as the following, can occur, so it is still necessary to carry a certain amount of ample inventory in advance.
The great thing about software services is that they only issue accounts on the spot in response to orders, so the concept of inventory problems does not arise.
In the midst of all this, we released a major update to Mia’s functionality, coinciding with the development timing, and I said to myself, “I want to do PR, but we have an inventory problem. What should we do?” and the number of problems increased.
Above all, it is not good to have to constantly think about the inventory problem in a corner of your mind. It is similar to the situation where I am always worrying about my watch when I have to make a train connection, wondering if I will make it in time for a meeting.
So, originally, we should have ordered 500 units, not 100, to keep track of inventory, but we can’t read if there is still a need for that many units, and we don’t have the space to put them (500 units would require renting dedicated inventory).
Incidentally, we are also considering a magnetic hardware so that users can change Mia’s face. The hardware side will also change little by little, so we have to verify that it functions properly in that case, and we also have to verify the design of the next product lot at the same time, in addition to inventory management of the commercial version. There are many more things to consider at the same time than in the case of software, and I enjoy it without getting bored.
