Honda RFID Assemply Line: Critical Component Traceability

Honda Italia partners with IBM to implement RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) technology and infrastructure in production processes at its plant located in Atessa, Italy. The solution will enable Honda Italy to increase efficiency and accuracy in managing its motorcycle production in Italy. ...

... "IBM Global Business Services will support Honda Italia in the design and development of the RFID implementation, which will enable the real time, automatic identification of each vehicle along the entire production chain. The RFID tags will also be used on micro-lots of critical components, such as engines. IBM business and technology consultants have been collaborating for a long time with Honda Italia engineers in the design of the new processes and in the identification of the best solution. The RFID technology will be then completely integrated with Honda's existing IT systems through an open standards-based, Linux and Java (J2EE) application built on the IBM WebSphere Application Server to track inventory and to monitor ways to improve efficiency.



The first phase of the project, completed earlier this year, simultaneously with the celebration of the 35th anniversary of Honda Italia, calls for the transformation of Honda's large-displacement bikes (Hornet 600, CBF1000/600/500) assembly line. The RFID tags were used to monitor the traceability of critical components, WIP (Work In Progress) management and inventory replenishment. In the future, RFID tags will also be applied to Honda's scooter production line, starting with the European best seller SH150i/125i and the bigger SH300i. " ...

Via IBM: Honda Italia and IBM Revolutionize Motorbike Production With RFID: Innovation Project at Honda's Plant in Italy Expected to Improve Efficiency and Accuracy ...

RFID Pioneer: CTO Role at Sirit

Bruce Roesner has been appointed to the position of Chief Technology Officer and Vice President of Engineering at Sirit, where he will manage RFID product and solutions development across all application focus areas. ...

... "After starting his career with industry leaders like Hughes Aircraft Company, Burroughs Corporation and Applied Micro Circuits, Bruce has been an entrepreneur and technologist in the domains of IC design and RFID. He was the founder of a number of technology companies including Instant Circuit Holdings, SCS Corporation and ClarIDy Solutions. He was instrumental in the development of low-cost RFID tags used in inventory tracking and control applications which won him Most Innovative Product and Entrepreneurial Team of the Year awards. Mr. Roesner is the author of numerous publications and presentations on the subject of high technology electronics including RFID. He is also the holder of over 25 patents and earned a M.S.E.E. and Ph.D. in Solid State Electronics from Purdue University. " ...

Via Sirit: Sirit Appoints Pioneering RFID Engineer to Lead Development Team ...

RFID Pilot: Cardinal Health Completes

Cardinal Health completes its RFID pilot, which tested RFID tags for end-to-end pharma packaging and distribution business processes. The pilot tested the application of tags and the utilization of item level tracking techniques. Alien Technology, IBM, and Verisign provided hardware, software and implementation services. The application and encoding of the RFID tags approached 100 percent success rates. Reliable read rates were best achieved at the individual case level. The pilot was a fruitful learning experience for the pharma industry. ...

... "The pilot program tested whether ultra-high frequency (UHF) radio frequency identification (RFID) tags could be applied, encoded and read at normal production speeds during packaging and distribution of pharmaceuticals. Verifying the authenticity of medications along each step of the distribution process adds an additional layer of security to lessen the chance of counterfeit pharmaceuticals entering the supply chain. It is also hoped that RFID data could improve efficiencies in the supply chain. Pilot Program Background: In conducting the industry's first end-to-end pilot program, Cardinal Health used new technology to place RFID tags on the labels of brand-name solid-dose prescription drugs, then encoded the electronic product code (EPC) standard data at the unit, case and pallet levels during the packaging process. The products were shipped to a Cardinal Health distribution center in Findlay, Ohio, where the data was read and authenticated as products were handled under typical operating conditions. Normal procedures were enhanced with RFID hardware and software from Alien Technology Corporation and IBM along with project management support from VeriSign.

RFID Labeling and Online Encoding: Data collected from the pilot suggest that it is feasible for RFID tags to be inlaid into existing FDA-approved pharmaceutical label stock, and the tags can be applied and encoded on packaging lines at normal operational speeds. Online encoding yields were 95 percent to 97 percent, and fine tuning of the process is expected to produce yields that approach 100 percent. The RFID tag application and encoding requires minimal adjustments to current labeling and packaging lines.

RFID Read Rates: Unit-level read rate data varied widely depending on the locations and type of reading stations throughout the supply chain. Highly reliable unit-level read rates in excess of 96 percent were found when reading individual cases one at a time and when reading units mixed with other products in tote containers prepared for delivery to a pharmacy. However, as expected, unit-level read rates were not found to be reliable when attempting to read units within a full pallet of product. " ...

Via Cardinal Health: Cardinal Health Releases RFID Pilot Results ...

Omron RFID Inlay: Single Tag Design ...

Omron develops single RFID tag design to support international markets, perform under challenging configurations, and with varying materials and radio frequencies. ...

... "Omron RFID announced availability of the Gen2 Global Loop inlay which can be used under North American, European and Japanese radio frequency bands in a single tag design. The Gen2 Loop is optimized to ensure robust read performance when the tag is applied to items containing materials unfriendly to RFID, including electronics equipment and products with high moisture content. The Loop tag also delivers reliable read ranges when the orientation on the product is not fixed or could change after application. As a direct result, the Loop inlay can improve pallet tag read rates. Because it has dimensions of 68m x 70 mm, the Loop inlay will fit 3-in. x 3-in., 4-in. x 3-in. and 4-in. x 6-in. spaces. Omron's Gen2 Loop inlays can be used with all international UHF RFID frequencies from 860 to 960MHz with little or no performance degradation. The addition of the inlay to the already announced Wave tag expands Omron's ability to meet a wide range of applications for today's international supply chain needs. " ...

Omron RFID Inlay: Single Tag Design: Via Omron: OMRON Introduces EPC Gen2 Global Loop Inlay ...

RFID Manufacturing Shipping Implementation ...

Peg Perego wil imeplement Northern Apex RFID in the manufacturing process for tracking WIP work-in-process materials and finished goods. ...

... "Peg Perego USA Inc., a subsidiary of Peg Perego SpA, Italy, manufacturer of high quality children's riding vehicles and the exclusive U.S. distributor of Italian infant products manufactured by Peg Perego SpA, Italy, which include baby strollers, car seats and high chairs, has awarded Fort Wayne-based Northern Apex Corporation a contract to integrate Apex's RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) equipment in Peg Perego's Indiana manufacturing and shipping facilities. Northern Apex will install a solution that incorporates automated RFID label applicators, RFID readers, antennas and software into Peg Perego's manufacturing and distribution center for WIP (work in process) and finished goods tracking. UHF 900 MHz Gen 2 RFID tags will be automatically applied to each box, at the end of the production line, to initiate the tracking system. " ...

RFID Manufacturing Shipping Implementation: Northern Apex To Provide RFID Technology to Peg PeregNorthern Apex To Provide RFID Technology to Peg Perego ...

RFID Infant Protection: Global Adoption ...

Verichip sees further global adoption of its RFID infant protection system, as it expands its international distribution. ...

... "VeriChip Corporation, a subsidiary of Applied Digital, announced that its Hugs and HALO infant protection system has expanded its international distribution to Kuwait. YTD 2006 revenue now exceeds $4.0 million, which includes record Q1 sales of 40 new infant protection systems within North America and abroad. This marks the company's continued strength in the infant protection market, both within North America and abroad, building on the over 900 facilities already using VeriChip's Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) infant security products. Using wearable RFID tags placed on infants and mothers combined with electronic monitoring of exits, VeriChip's systems are designed to help protect newborns from possible abduction and to help ensure mothers are matched with the correct infants during their stay. The Hugs system offers security against infant abductions while requiring little administration and training. The HALO Infant Protection System utilizes patented skin-sensing tag technology and is modular in design allowing facilities to add functionality as needed. " ...

RFID Infant Protection: Global Adoption: Via VeriChip: VeriChip Corporation Hugs and HALO Infant Protection Leadership Expands International Distribution to Kuwait ...

RFID: RealTime Promotion Execution

OatSystems and ADT combine to deliver a real-time promotion execution process, enabled by RFID technology. RFID applied to the execution of promotions, help track the inventory used in promotions in real-time and create immediate feedback for marketers. ...

... "OATSystems, Inc. and ADT, a unit of Tyco Fire & Security, announced a proof of ROI program designed to validate the return on investment from standards-based RFID-enabled promotions and ignite the next phase of RFID deployments. Together with Intel Corporation, the companies will provide RFID hardware, software and services necessary for a 10 store retail deployment to help retailers track promotional products and provide critical information back to suppliers such as Proctor & Gamble and Kimberly-Clark. To help validate the ROI, an independent academic institution of the retailer's choosing will establish the parameters of the study, monitor control stores and deliver a final report on the ROI.

Trade promotion spending by manufacturers is a massive budget item, representing 12%-15% of sales for most companies. Unfortunately, study after study and the day-to-day experiences of manufacturers and retailers show that the returns on trade promotions are far less than satisfactory. Real-time Promotion Execution (RPE) is a new, RFID-centric business process that can help consumer products manufacturers and retailers to dramatically increase promotion effectiveness which may result in increased promotional sales, decreased execution costs, and greater shopper satisfaction. According to Cheryl Perkins, senior vice president and chief innovation officer for Kimberly-Clark, RFID technology can be used as a business tool to help deliver greater value to K-C and its retail customers.

RPE uses RFID-tagged displays and promotion product cases to measure in-store promotion execution by tracking where and when the displays and promotion inventory are in the store. Manufacturers and retailers can track when the items reach the store, when they're moved to the sales floor, and how long they are there - all in near-real time. This information is then integrated across many stores and manipulated with powerful analytic tools. Illustrated by the recently released MIT study on RFID-based promotions, this enables a new business process that is cost-effective and dramatically increases promotion sell-through, correction of poor in-store execution and promotion intelligence, and lowers the cost of promotions management. " ...

Via OATSystems: OATSystems and ADT Announce Promotions-on-Standards Program to Ignite RFID ROI: Leaders Rally Retailers and Suppliers to Validate ROI in Standards-Based Real-time Promotions Execution ...

RFID Ladybag Reader and Tags ...

Exciting use of RFID technology in the ladybag ...

... "The Ladybag, a fabric totebag, uses radio frequency identification tags, a tag reader and a light emitting diode (LED) screen to detect whether any pre-determined items are missing from the bag. As each item is put in, the corresponding LED pattern shuts off, explains Lillian Tam, one of six members of Team Ladybag. When no LEDs are shining, everything is in the bag. " ...

RFID Ladybag Reader and Tags: Via SFU Faculty of Applied Sciences: High Tech Open House for Employers ...

RFID Research Program: Georgia Tech in Ireland ...

Georgia Tech starts RFID research program at research enterprise in Ireland. ...

... "The Georgia Tech Research Institute (GTRI), the applied research arm of the Georgia Institute of Technology, will establish a research enterprise in Athlone, Ireland to focus on industry research and development needs. GTRI Ireland will be GTRI's first applied research facility outside the United States.

The new institute will focus on four technology areas that mirror Ireland's research strengths — digital media, radio frequency identification (RFID), biotechnology and energy. The research with RFID will center on authentication and identification technologies from acoustics to optics for the commercial sector. For instance, because Ireland has a thriving pharmaceutical industry, some of the institute's research will target pill-tracking accuracy, ensuring authenticity and dosage. " ...

Via Georgia Institute of Technology: GTRI to Open Institute in Athlone, Ireland ...

Additional university-sponsored RFID research programs ...

Information Technology Research Institute: RFID Research Center: "Information Technology Research Institute created its first sub-unit, the RFID Research Center. This new center spans many disciplines including retail, supply chain, industrial engineering, and computer science, among others. The center's base of operations is a lab which models a production warehouse environment in 7000 sq ft. of space donated to the center by Hanna's Candles and located within Hanna's manufacturing and warehouse facility. Collaborators with the RFID Research Center within the Walton College include the UA information systems department, the Supply Chain Management Research Center, and the Center for Retailing Excellence. Leveraging multidisciplinary expertise across the University of Arkansas, the RFID Research Center also has collaborative relationships with the College of Engineering, including the departments of computer science and computer engineering, industrial engineering, electrical engineering and mechanical engineering; the J. William Fulbright College of Arts and Sciences, including the Center for Advanced Spatial Technologies and the department of public policy; the Dale Bumpers College of Agriculture, Food and Life Sciences, including the department of food science; and the School of Law. "

RFID@WINMEC:RFID Research: "RFID@WINMEC Middleware - The RFID@WINMEC middleware research project involves the development of a middleware stack with sub-stacks that manages r/w functions, abstracts reader and tags, networks readers together, provides hooks to databases and provides a homogeneous interface for application development. We work with sponsoring organizations on developing and studying RFID pilots by using our RFID middleware stack. "

RFID Academic Convocation II: Opportunities for RFID Sponsored Research Collaboration: "The RFID Academic Convocation brings together Directors of leading RFID research laboratories with executives from lead users in their industries and their RFID platform partners to address underlying research issues surrounding implementation of RFID. This event is part of a series of meetings that are being organized around the world to build collaboration across academic disciplines, institutional and geographic boundaries. Participation by qualified academic and industry researchers and governmental agency representatives is invited. "

Intelligent RFID Readers: Next Generation Through Partnership ...

iAnywhere and Applied Wireless will partner to deliver next-generation intelligent RFID readers ...

... "iAnywhere, a subsidiary of Sybase, Inc. (NYSE: SY) and Applied Wireless Identifications, Inc. announced a partnership to jointly develop next generation intelligent RFID readers that take advantage of the features of the iAnywhere RFID Anywhere Appliance Edition. As part of this new relationship, Applied Wireless Identifications (AWID) will embed the iAnywhere RFID Anywhere Appliance Edition into a new line of low-cost readers that include essential security features, multi-protocol communication support, and enhanced remote management and upgrade capabilities. Additionally, the two companies plan to jointly market iAnywhere RFID Anywhere 2.0 to purchasers of the new AWID RFID devices. RFID Anywhere 2.0 enables administrators to easily manage and upgrade a network of RFID readers, including data filtering and aggregation, as well as the execution of business logic. As a result, enterprises deploying RFID networks can reduce their associated administrative overhead through highly efficient management of remote readers. Reader configurations that have been lost or corrupted, for example, can be immediately and automatically restored. Further, logic at the reader level enables local data filtering and smoothing, reducing overall data volumes across the network and making transmitted data more immediately actionable. " ...

Intelligent RFID Readers: Next Generation Through Partnership: Via iAnywhere: iAnywhere And AWID Partner To Deliver Breakthrough Price And Performance In The RFID Intelligent Reader Marketplace ...

RFID Grocery Application ...

RFID is being applied in grocery industry ...

... "Grocery stores are also experimenting with new forms of radio frequency identification, or RFID, technology, a tagging system that sends product information via radio waves. " ...

Via OrlandoSentinel: Grocers get taste of future ...

RFID Journal LIVE! 2006 Announced ...

... "RFID Journal LIVE! 2006, its 4th annual conference and exhibition will be held May 1-3, 2006, at the MGM Grand in Las Vegas. RFID Journal LIVE! 2006 will feature many of the leading early adopters in five key industry segments: Retail/Consumer Goods; Defense/Aerospace; Transportation/Logistics; Health Care/Pharmaceutical, and Manufacturing industries. Business leaders from the leading companies in these industries will be presenting case studies and applied examples of profitable and efficient ways to utilize RFID. " ...

Via RFID Journal: RFID JOURNAL Announces Unparalleled Speaker Lineup for RFID Journal LIVE! 2006

RFID People Chipping ...

RFID chipping of people is not very far away. Consumer items, passports, drugs, and other objects will have RFID tags and could serve as a mechanism for tracking and tracing people. In the references below, there are many examples where people RFID chipping is beginning. Mark Long explores the benefits and privacy concerns of RFID technology as adoption increases to solve various problems in society. ...

... "Nevertheless, the chipping of Americans may not be as far away as some people think. For one thing, RFID tags are likely to play a pivotal role in securing the next generation of American identity documents, said Bob McCullough, an analyst at The Yankee Group. " ...

RFID People Chipping: Tracked by a Tiny Chip: The Promise and Peril of RFID - Via Tech Trends - NewsFactor Network

Additional resources on the chipping of people with RFID:

Feds approve human RFID implants | Via The Register: "The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has approved a gimmick from Florida-based Applied Digital Solutions to chip people with RFID implants - previously confined to tracking animals - thereby making it easy to access their medical records, even when they cannot, or would rather not, cooperate."

EPIC RFID Privacy Page: "In comments to the Article 29 Working Group, an association of leading European privacy officials, EPIC has recommended strong safeguards for RFIDs and techniques to track the use of digital works. EPIC's Comments on RFID (pdf) recommend a prohibition on chipping people and warn that unencrypted RFID passports pose significant security risks. "

Japan: Schoolkids to be tagged with RFID chips - Hardware - News - Via ZDNet Asia: "The rights and wrongs of RFID-chipping human beings have been debated since the tracking tags reached the technological mainstream. Now, school authorities in the Japanese city of Osaka have decided the benefits outweigh the disadvantages and will now be chipping children in one primary school. "

VeriChip RFID Medical Facility Adoption Grows ...

VeriChip continues to grow its RFID adoption in medical facilities. ...

... "VeriChip Corporation, a subsidiary of Applied Digital (NASDAQ: ADSX - News), a leading provider of identification and security technology, announced that 68 medical facilities, including 65 hospitals, have now agreed to implement the VeriMed System for Patient Identification. During the month of November, three additional hospitals agreed to adopt the System. Three additional healthcare organizations have recently agreed to adopt the System: one research center, one specialized care center, and one nursing home. " ...

VeriChip RFID Medical Facility Adoption Grows: Via VeriChip: VeriChip Corporation Expands Adoption of VeriMed System for Patient Identification: New Signings in November Increase Medical Facilities to 68 ...

VeriChip is a subsidiary of Applied Digital and the only company to provide both implantable and wearable RFID identification and security solutions for people, their assets, and their environments. From the world's first and only FDA-cleared, human-implantable RFID microchip to the only patented active RFID tag with skin-sensing capabilities, VeriChip leads the way in next-generation RFID technologies. Today, over 4,000 installations worldwide in healthcare, security, industrial, and government markets benefit from both the protection and efficiencies provided by VeriChip systems.

RFID UK Infant Protection ...

RFID UK Infant Protection: Via VeriChip News: VeriChip Corporation and Austco Communication Systems Introduce the Hugs® Infant Protection System in the United Kingdom ...

... "VeriChip Corporation, a subsidiary of Applied Digital (NASDAQ:ADSX), announced that it has shipped its first Hugs infant protection system for use in the United Kingdom. The sale and installation of the Hugs system is being coordinated by VeriChip's international distributor, Australia-based Austco Communication Systems Pty, Ltd. VeriChip's Hugs infant protection system is designed to prevent mismatching and deter abduction of newborn infants from hospitals, and is part of VeriChip's portfolio of RFID healthcare security products. " ...

Toyota RFID Project: Accelerated Processes ...

Toyota project will implement Alien RFID technology to drive accelerated supply chain processes. Anticipated benefits exceed the RFID project's capex investment. ...

Toyota RFID Project: Accelerated Processes: Via Alien Technology: Toyota South Africa Motors Ltd. Selects Alien Technology® RFID Solution for Vehicle Identification: Automated vehicle tracking will accelerate throughput of produced assets in the supply chain, resulting in reduction of time to invoice dealers and thus time-to-cash ...

... "Traditionally, RFID-based vehicle tracking applications have been hampered by the use of costly microwave systems and proprietary RFID protocols. Toyota's application will benefit from the use of open, global-standard EPC RFID technology that combines consistent reads, even in a heavy metallic environment, with the ability to leverage extremely low-cost RFID tags. In Toyota's implementation, an Alien RFID tag will be applied to each vehicle during production. The tags will then be accurately read by field-proven Alien ALR-9780 readers at ranges exceeding six meters as the vehicle is tracked from within the Assembly Plant, through the Plant Exit, into, through and out of the Vehicle Distribution Yard. The resulting precision tracking will enable Toyota to both streamline and accelerate its vehicle shipping and invoicing processes, and thus its time-to-cash. According to Stoop, the anticipated savings on interest for the targeted reduction of Stock (vehicles-on rubber) of one day is expected to more than off-set the CAPEX for this RFID Project. " ...

Toyota South Africa, established in 1961, has been the overall market leader in terms of domestic vehicle sales for more than 25 consecutive years. The company has now been integrated into the global supplier network of Toyota Motor Corporation after TMC took a 75% majority shareholding in the company in 2002. The current production capacity of Toyota SA’s plant in Durban is in excess of 100 000 vehicles annually. This is set to expand to 220 000 units per annum by 2008. The South African operation now exports built up units to both Australia and Europe.

Alien Technology Corporation is a leading provider of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) products for global customers in government, retail, manufacturing, pharmaceuticals, transportation, and other industries. Using its patented manufacturing process, Fluidic Self Assembly (FSA®), Alien manufactures EPC tags in very high-volumes and at low cost. The company provides a family of RFID readers for a variety of applications including supply chain management, logistics, and anti-counterfeiting, to improve inventory management and reduce operating costs. Alien is an active member of EPCglobal.

Sub10Cent RFID Inlays

RFID tag and inlay manufacturer, UPM Rafsec, will ship UHF Gen 1 and Gen 2 inlays at sub-10 U.S. cent pricing in minimum order quantities of 50,000 pieces. Sub 10cent RFID inlays lay the foundation for the cheap and ubiquitous use of RFID technology ....

Sub10Cent RFID Inlays: UPM RAFSEC KNOCKING DOWN UHF RFID ADOPTION BARRIERS WITH SUB-10 CENT INLAYS ...

... "This UPM Rafsec offer includes dry and wet delivery formats of the OneTenna™ short dipole which are compatible with existing converting technology for the insertion of inlays into smart labels and other substrates. UPM Rafsec UHF products have already been tested, approved and used by a large number of leading RFID adopters. The inlays are manufactured at UPM Rafsec's production facility in Fletcher, North Carolina (USA), with innovative technology for the volume production of EPC (Electronic Product Code) -compliant UHF tags and inlays. The unparalleled yields of this new, high volume production technology give UPM Rafsec competitive advantages and provide customers significantly lower applied tag costs. The patent pending process is cost-efficient, scalable and enables UPM Rafsec to rapidly increase its capacity according to market demand. " ...

References on inexpensive RFID inlays:

... "Via SATO: RFID Thermal Labels: SATO RFID labels can be made with any type of RFID inlay. Some examples of the other inlay types available include Ucode, UHF 868-928MHz ISO 18000, and Class 0 and 0+. RFID labels can be pre-printed, flood coated or laminated and can be converted in most popular finishing styles. " ...

... "Via Avery Dennison: INNOVATIVE AVERY DENNISON MANUFACTURING PROCESS BOOSTS RFID TAG PRODUCTION CAPACITY: Inlay is the term used for the electronic core of an RFID label. It typically consists of a metal pattern on a sheet of plastic film that functions as an antenna, onto which an integrated circuit (semiconductor chip) is attached. The inlay is then sandwiched between a paper facestock and an adhesive layer to form a self-stick RFID label. " ...

... "Via SmartCode: SmartCode Corp. beats any price for EPC Gen 2 Inlays for orders of 1 million - SmartCode prices EPC Gen 2 Inlays at 7.5 cents for quantities of 1 million and 7.2 cents for orders exceeding 10 million: The EPC Gen 2 Quickstart™ Program aims to accelerate the mass adoption of EPC Gen 2 solutions. Under the EPC Gen 2 Quickstart™ Program, SmartCode Corp. will offer the lowest cost EPC Gen 2 inlays at a price of 7.5 cents in orders of 1 million inlays or more and 7.2 cents in orders of 10 million or more. SmartCode Corp. EPC Gen 2 Quickstart™ Program is available for orders received until the 1st of January 2006. The delivery schedule can span throughout 2006. " ...