WHAT IS RFID ?
RFID (Radio
Frequency IDentification)
is an automatic identification system allowing to track, serialize, monitor
products or resources via an electronic transponder ("tag") fixed on them. Using radio waves,
a signal is sent to the transponder from a reading system (reader + antenna), energizing it
to obtain the information kept on the transponder chip.
PRINCIPLE A complete RFID system consists of tags, interrogators and software applications to support the use of the RFID hardware.
TAGS A tag is made of three main parts: an electronic chip, an antenna configuration and an encapsulation, as shown on the figure below. Its composition is extremely tiny: its dimension are reduced to minimum and its weight negligible.
Currently, there are three families of tags: passive, semi-active and active.
The main difference between them is the presence of a battery to power the
active tags, allowing them to transmit a signal without previously having
received a command from an interrogator. For this reason, they have a
shorter life expectancy but have a greater read range. Passive tags need a
signal to energize them before they can transmit, while the semi-active ones
are a blend of the two technologies.
INTERROGATORS These are electronic devices, transmitters of radio frequencies, which activates tags in a given range by energizing them sufficiently for them to respond. An example of a response is the transmission of the unique identification number contained on the tag which can be up to 96 bits (either 0 or 1 in computer language). A database can then be consulted to compute a number, verify access credentials or make a data check on a production line. Statistics can be compiled, such as the ID, the read rate and the read range of a set of tags. Frequencies that are used in this technology are normalized and their use is object to rules and regulations. For instance, frequencies used cannot interfere with water molecules composing the human body. The privileged frequencies employed in manufacturing and supply chain are regrouped under the name of Ultra High Frequency (UHF), although frequencies vary from projects and from environments. There is one main organization mandated to normalize the use of RFID: EPCGlobal. The majority of advances made in the RFID field (tags, interrogators and other devices) often have to be previously approved by this organization.
USE OF RFID Given the various forms and natures of RFID tags, they tend to generate multiple applications for their use. In fact, they are actually employed for identifying cattle and human beings, valued items (equipment and vehicles) as well as finished goods. RFID tags can provide the following information about a specific product:
What is the product made of?
Useful to manage returns of merchandise or to look for incompatibilities between two products.
Where did the product stop by?
Facilitate the decision-making process by providing the product's trace, from its assembly, to its point of sale, passing by its shipping and distributing steps.
What is the demand for the product?
Indicate, in real time, inventory stocks and the demand rate for one particular item over another.
There is a prediction that RFID will once replace barcodes (UPC for Universal Product Code),
although it is not likely in short term. The main reasons would be that RFID tags can be
used in places where barcodes are impossible to employ, such as paint environment, and that
they hold enough memory to store a unique identification number for each item where barcodes
can only identify a given set of similar products with the same number.
Other usages of RFID include:
Access control (buildings, departments, vehicles);
Production management and control;
Inventory and supply chain management.
Benefits of RFID are numerous. Here are a few: Optimization of processes and operations
Increase of profitability and efficiency
Automatic idenfitication of products (containers, vehicles, personnel)
Precise real-time locating of items
Accurate inventory management, on site or remotely
Efficient warranties management
Exact traceability
Better quality control
Secure operations
Improved management of business intelligence
PRINCIPLE A complete RFID system consists of tags, interrogators and software applications to support the use of the RFID hardware.
TAGS A tag is made of three main parts: an electronic chip, an antenna configuration and an encapsulation, as shown on the figure below. Its composition is extremely tiny: its dimension are reduced to minimum and its weight negligible.
INTERROGATORS These are electronic devices, transmitters of radio frequencies, which activates tags in a given range by energizing them sufficiently for them to respond. An example of a response is the transmission of the unique identification number contained on the tag which can be up to 96 bits (either 0 or 1 in computer language). A database can then be consulted to compute a number, verify access credentials or make a data check on a production line. Statistics can be compiled, such as the ID, the read rate and the read range of a set of tags. Frequencies that are used in this technology are normalized and their use is object to rules and regulations. For instance, frequencies used cannot interfere with water molecules composing the human body. The privileged frequencies employed in manufacturing and supply chain are regrouped under the name of Ultra High Frequency (UHF), although frequencies vary from projects and from environments. There is one main organization mandated to normalize the use of RFID: EPCGlobal. The majority of advances made in the RFID field (tags, interrogators and other devices) often have to be previously approved by this organization.
USE OF RFID Given the various forms and natures of RFID tags, they tend to generate multiple applications for their use. In fact, they are actually employed for identifying cattle and human beings, valued items (equipment and vehicles) as well as finished goods. RFID tags can provide the following information about a specific product:
What is the product made of?
Useful to manage returns of merchandise or to look for incompatibilities between two products.
Where did the product stop by?
Facilitate the decision-making process by providing the product's trace, from its assembly, to its point of sale, passing by its shipping and distributing steps.
What is the demand for the product?
Indicate, in real time, inventory stocks and the demand rate for one particular item over another.
There is a prediction that RFID will once replace barcodes (UPC for Universal Product Code),
although it is not likely in short term. The main reasons would be that RFID tags can be
used in places where barcodes are impossible to employ, such as paint environment, and that
they hold enough memory to store a unique identification number for each item where barcodes
can only identify a given set of similar products with the same number.
Other usages of RFID include:
Access control (buildings, departments, vehicles);
Production management and control;
Inventory and supply chain management.
Benefits of RFID are numerous. Here are a few:
Optimization of processes and operations
Increase of profitability and efficiency
Automatic idenfitication of products (containers, vehicles, personnel)
Precise real-time locating of items
Accurate inventory management, on site or remotely
Efficient warranties management
Exact traceability
Better quality control
Secure operations
Improved management of business intelligence
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