1. AN APPRATUS FOR PHOTO-ELECTRICALLY SCANNING AND COUNTING INVENTORY TO DETERMINE PREDETERMINED CHARACTERISTICS AND NUMBER OF UNITS STORED COMPRISING (A) INVENTORY STORAGE MEANS DIVIDED INTO SUB-SECTIONS FOR STORING INVENTORY OF DIFFERING CHARACTERISTICS IN EACH SUB-SECTION; (B) PHOTO-ELECTRIC SCANNING MEANS POSITIONED ABOVE SAID INVENTORY STORGE MEANS FOR TRAVERSING THE INVENTORY STORGAE AREA; (C) CONTROL MEANS FOR PRESELECTING A SPECIFIC SUB-SECTION AREA FOR SCANNING AND COUNTING UNITS OF INVENTORY STORED WITHIN THE SUB-SECTION; (D) AND VISUAL READ-OUT MEANS IN CIRCUITRY WITH SAID CONTROL MEANS AND PHOTO-ELECTRIC SCANNING MEANS TO GIVE A VISUAL READ-OUT OF THE NUMBER OF INVENTORY UNITS STORED WITHIN THE INTEROGATED SUB-SECTION.