RFID Supports Nissan Continuous Improvement Initiative

Nissan implements a continuous improvement initiative to target vehicle labor cost reduction, increase logistics throughput accelerating customer service, and enhance vehicle quality through defect elimination early in the product lifecycle. The initiative will be enabled by a wireless architecture and active RFID technology in the Nissan Canton MS manufacturing facility, supplied by WhereNet. ...

... "As part of a continuous improvement initiative at its four-million square foot assembly plant in Canton, Mississippi, Nissan will leverage a single wireless architecture to run multiple WhereNet applications, including the WhereSoft Yard Management System (YMS) and Vehicle Tracking and Management System (VTMS), to improve production velocity and throughput, labor productivity, and vehicle quality. Nissan's Canton assembly plant has the capacity to produce 400,000 vehicles per year, including the Altima sedan, Armada full-size sport utility vehicle, Infiniti QX56 full-size sport utility vehicle, Quest minivan, and Titan full-size pickup truck.

Deploying the WhereNet single wireless infrastructure over the entire Canton complex will take less than 90 days. The hardware consists of 1500 active RFID WhereTag transmitters, which are temporarily attached to new vehicles as they roll off the assembly line as part of the WhereNet VTMS system; 700 WhereTag transmitters that are permanently fixed to trailers belonging to Nissan's dedicated suppliers or temporarily attached to others as part of the WhereSoft YMS application; 120 WherePort magnetic exciters positioned between gates and at key choke points across the complex; and a local infrastructure of 80 wireless WhereLAN locating access points.

Nissan also plans to deploy the WhereNet automated gate check-in/out solution known as Fast Gate that supports 24x7 sequenced parts deliveries from Nissan suppliers. Fast Gate senses when a truck is approaching the gate; cross-references detailed information about the truck in a database; and, if authorized, automatically opens the gate to grant entry. Then, based on business rules loaded into the WhereSoft yard management application, the system instructs drivers and yard personnel to deliver the inbound load to the appropriate dock door for just-in-time sequencing of parts based on the assembly line build plan for that work shift.



When new vehicles roll off the Nissan assembly line, each vehicle is assigned an active RFID WhereTag transmitter that is married to the vehicle identification number (VIN). The WhereTag remains on the vehicle until it has been processed and is ready to ship to its final destination. Nissan uses the WhereNet VTMS in off-line areas to manage post-assembly verification and test processes, as well as quality repair, containment and shipping zones. The system includes a logical hierarchy of rules that manages the processing of every vehicle in accordance with its assigned status so that critical orders are processed before lower-priority units. " ...

Via Wherenet: NISSAN SELECTS WHERENET'S LOCATABLE, ACTIVE RFID SYSTEM TO AUTOMATE INBOUND SUPPLY CHAIN AND OUTBOUND DELIVERY CHAIN ...

Solar RFID: RPI Pilot

RPI pilots solar-powered RFID readers to collect traffic data and monitor flow. The portable RFID reader has the potential to decrease traffic congestion and enable travel time estimation in real-time, using intelligence dynamically about work zones, events, etc. When fully networked, the RFID-enable database can recommend the best driving routes and avoid construction zones and accidents. ...

... "In the coming months, the units will be deployed to collect traffic data during the morning commute on busy Capital Region roads. The portable units, which are based on the same technology as E-ZPass tag readers, could eventually be used to provide valuable data for a variety of applications, from decreasing congestion in work zones to assisting emergency evacuations. A portable, solar-powered tag reader that collects data to monitor traffic flow. The research is funded through a $3.9 million grant from the Federal Highway Administration to the Center for Infrastructure and Transportation Studies (CITS) at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute. " ...

Via Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute: Portable, Solar-Powered Tag Readers Could Improve Traffic Management

RFID Training Program Sponsored by Grant ...

RFID Training Program Sponsored by Grant: Via Littleton Independent: MCC is awarded job training grant
...

... "MCC's grant will enable the college to develop and implement educational training programs for Radio Frequency Identification technicians. RFID is expected to revolutionize many processes in the U.S. economy. " ...

Passport RFID 64Kb Chips ...

Grant Gross explores the US government requirement for RFID-enabled passports. ...

Passport RFID 64Kb Chips: Via PC World New Zealand: US to require RFID chips in passports

... "Starting in early 2006, the US Department of State will begin issuing passports with 64KB RFID (radio frequency identification) chips that will contain the name, nationality, gender, date of birth and place of birth of the passport holder, as well as a digitised photograph of that person. " ...

RFID Laboratory and Program Planned

RFID program will launch, including a radio frequency identification equipped laboratory, at Middlesex Community College. Tom Spoth reports on the exploration of RFID at MCC. ...

Founded in 1966 as a branch campus of Manchester Community College, Middlesex Community College became an independent member of the Community College System in 1968. In 1973, the college moved to its present 38-acre campus, which overlooks the scenic Connecticut River and the City of Middletown. Middlesex Community College is conveniently located in Central Connecticut and is easily accessible via major interstates.

RFID Laboratory and Program Planned: Via Lowell Sun Online: Grant allows MCC to launch RFID program ...

... "Using a grant of more than $850,000 from the U.S. Department of Labor, Middlesex Community College plans to establish a radio frequency identification program at its Lowell campus. ... " ...

Additional references on RFID at university research laboratories:

A popular radio-frequency ID system that is used to deter car thefts and as a convenience device for the purchase of gasoline can be defeated with low-cost technology, computer scientists from The Johns Hopkins University and RSA Laboratories have determined. ...

The University of Arkansas RFID Research Center laboratory has passed accreditation criteria established by EPCglobal Inc., a global not-for-profit standards organization commercializing the Electronic Product CodeT (EPC) and RFID worldwide. The UA lab is one of the first EPC/RFID research laboratories worldwide to receive the EPCglobal Performance Test Center accreditation. The RFID Research Center, a subunit of the Information Technology Research Institute, housed in the university's Sam M. Walton College of Business. ...

The University of Wisconsin-Madison unveiled its new radio-frequency identification test laboratory Friday, which will help Wisconsin businesses find ways to use the technology in their operations. ...

RFID Student Developer Program ...

RFID Student Developer Program: Sun CEO Declares The Java Technology Community's First Decade Most Successful Community Effort Ever ...

... "Sun is helping empower students further, with the launch of the Student Developer Program. The company is giving away copies of Sun's Java Studio Enterprise, Sun Java Studio Mobility, Sun Studio 10, Solaris10 Operating System, and training in Solaris 10 worth $180 million. This program provides students with access to a valuable Sun hardware and software grant, as well as hundreds of Sun software products in new and emerging markets like Radio Frequency ID (RFID). " ...

A singular vision -- "The Network Is The Computer" -- guides Sun in the development of technologies that power the world's most important markets. Sun's philosophy of sharing innovation and building communities is at the forefront of the next wave of computing: the Participation Age.

MicroPower UWB RFID Tag ...

MULTISPECTRAL SOLUTIONS RECEIVES CERTIFICATION FOR MICROPOWER RFID TAG UNDER NEW FCC UWB REGULATIONS ...

... "The FCC has issued a Grant of Equipment Authorization for Multispectral Solutions' micropower ultra wideband (UWB) Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag under its latest UWB regulations. The UWB tag is the fifth in a series of FCC-certified UWB products from the company, and is compatible with the company's latest Sapphire Precision Asset Location System product line. The tag is available in two form factors - a small asset tag for equipment and a credit card-sized mini-badge tag for personnel. Both UWB tags have ranges in excess of 650 feet line-of-sight, yet have battery life expectancies in excess of 4 years, over 2 orders of magnitude longer than other active RFID tags operating at the same blink rate of once per second. " ...

RFID Equipment Training Investments ...

News Release

... "The Governor toured the company's state-of-the-art facilities with President Mike Kennedy, Vice President for Marketing and Sales Pat Kennedy, and Vice President for Operations Todd Kennedy, all brothers, and Founder Bert Kennedy, their father. Taft presented the company with a mock check for a $63,000 Ohio Investment in Training Program grant to assist with training employees to use new equipment for the company's RFID (Radio Frequency ID) solutions business. "

RFID Vehicle Security Tracking Integration ...

RFID Vehicle Security Tracking Integration: I.D. Systems Wins Grant from Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to Integrate RFID Baggage Tag Tracking Into Vehicle Security System: Symbol Technologies, Inc. to Provide RFID Solutions

Symbol and ID Systems team up to integrate RFID bag tracking into vehicle security system to enable intelligent business processes in a vehicle and asset management network ...

... I.D. Systems, Inc. (NASDAQ: IDSY) announced today that it has been awarded a grant from the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) to integrate RFID (radio frequency identification)-based baggage tracking capability into the company’s Wireless Asset Net™ vehicle security and tracking system. I.D. Systems will develop and prototype a mobile, automated baggage tracking system in which “intelligent” containers and vehicles identify and locate items tagged with EPC (electronic product code)-compliant RFID tags, and communicate that data through I.D. Systems’ wireless vehicle management network. To support the RFID integration, I.D. Systems will collaborate with Symbol Technologies, Inc. (NYSE: SBL), a worldwide leader in data capture, mobile computing, wireless infrastructure and RFID technology, to provide the EPC-compliant RFID tags and readers. ...

Based in Hackensack, New Jersey, I.D. Systems, Inc. is a leading provider of wireless solutions for corporate asset management. I.D. Systems’ customers include 3M Company, American Axle, Archer Daniels Midland, DaimlerChrysler, Deere & Co., Ford Motor Company, General Dynamics, Hallmark Cards, Northrop Grumman, Target Corporation, Walgreen Co., the U.S. Navy, the U.S. Postal Service, and the U.S. Transportation Security Administration, among others. Using local area networks, wide area networks, and the Internet, the company’s systems enable management to control and track the location and status of their assets — from forklifts and cranes to automobiles and trucks — in real time.

Large-Scale Wireless Sensor Networks ...

US NSF - ERE - Award#0308498 - IDEA: Large-Scale Wireless Sensor Networks for In Situ Observation of Ecosystem Processes

... "A grant has been awarded to Northern Arizona University under the direction of Dr. Paul Flikkema for the development and deployment of a wireless sensor network for the purpose of enabling a better understanding of environmental and ecosystem processes across multiple scales. Progress in an array of technologies, including microelectronic sensing and computation, wireless communication, and the self-assembly of autonomous devices into cooperative networks has inspired the vision of wireless sensor networks. While networks of intelligent agents transparently embedded into our physical environment could advance human welfare in a number of domains, research indicates that any successful wireless sensor network must be carefully optimized for its application. Our goals are to (i) complete the development of wireless environmental sensor network technology, (ii) make significant progress in understanding the maintenance of biodiversity and in measuring ecosystem properties by applying this technology to three field projects, (iii) build awareness of the benefits of the technology to society, and (iv) improve collaboration between engineering and the sciences. " ...

Feds RFID Spending Growth Increasing

RFID Spending Growth Increasing: INPUT Projects Federal RFID Spending to Grow 120 Percent Over Next ...

RFID spending in the Federal Government is forecasted to increase significantly ...

From PR Newswire (press release) ... US Federal Government spending on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology is expected to grow 120 percent by fiscal year 2009 (FY09 ...

... U.S. Federal Government spending on radio frequency identification (RFID) technology is expected to grow 120 percent by fiscal year 2009 (FY09), according to a report released by INPUT, the quantifiable leader in government market intelligence. The Department of Defense (DoD) is successfully using RFID technology to improve its supply chain management process with results and costs savings being proven in the current war in Iraq. Although growth within civilian agencies will start out slow, INPUT expects substantial growth to begin in FY07 as business cases emerge demonstrating similar cost benefits in areas outside of the supply chain process. ...

INPUT is the quantifiable leader in government market intelligence. Established in 1974 and based in Reston, Virginia, INPUT provides information services, industry analysis, consulting, software solutions, and events to help technology vendors win more government business, and to help government organizations further advance their IT initiatives. INPUT tracks more than a half trillion dollars in contract and grant opportunities within the US federal, state & local government markets, as well as tender opportunities throughout the European Union and United Kingdom. INPUT has built a solid reputation for high quality and in-depth government industry insight and analysis, with over 1,000 clients, including 80 of the top 100 IT contractors. Leading defense, hardware, software, telecommunications and IT services contractors, plus 4 of the top 5 8(a)s, rely on INPUT to help them win more than $45 billion in government business each year.

UWB RFID Tags Authorized ...

UWB RFID Tags: Multispectral Solutions Receives FCC Certification for Ultra Low ...

From Business Wire (press release), CA ... issued a Grant of Equipment Authorization for Multispectral Solutions' ultra low power, ultra wideband (UWB) active Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag. ...

... The FCC has issued a Grant of Equipment Authorization for Multispectral Solutions' ultra low power, ultra wideband (UWB) active Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) tag. The tag is the fourth in a series of FCC-certified UWB products from the company, and is compatible with the company's PAL650(TM) Precision Asset Location System(TM) product line. The tag measures approximately 1 x 1 x 0.8 inches including battery, and has a range of approximately 650 feet line-of-sight and better than 150 feet in partially obstructed environments. ...

Multispectral Solutions, Inc. (MSSI), established in 1989 in Germantown, MD, is a pioneer and established industry leader in the development of ultra wideband (UWB) systems for communications, radar and precision positioning applications. The company's PAL650 Precision Asset Location system is the world's first FCC-certified, UWB-based, active RFID and tracking system for personnel and asset management.

Additional resources on UWB RFID tags ...

A DC-13GHz LNA for UWB RFID Applications: File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat High data-rate: The data-rate of UWB could be as high as 500Mbps, which enable RFID tags contain more information, and enable reading information from a mass ...

Hospital Gets Ultra-Wideband RFID: staff and essential equipment. The Washington Hospital Center will use two types of UWB RFID active tags. Asset tags are 1-inch ...

Intel-SAP UWB RFID Conference Room Pilot: File Format: Microsoft Word 2000 ... test facility. 2) perform system cost evaluation (UWB RFID tag, reader, communication, controlling, installation). 3) determine nature ...

FCC Certifies UWB Positioning Tags: Positioning Tags. December 17, 2004, ... The Federal Communications Commission has certified the UWB (ultra wide-band) technology of a Denver-based developer of RFID ...

RFID Technology: Government Sponsored Research Programs...

SBIR is a highly competitive program that encourages small business to explore their technological potential and provides the incentive to profit from its commercialization. By including qualified small businesses in the nation's R&D arena, high-tech innovation is stimulated and the United States gains entrepreneurial spirit as it meets its specific research and development needs.

SBIR targets the entrepreneurial sector because that is where most innovation and innovators thrive. However, the risk and expense of conducting serious R&D efforts are often beyond the means of many small businesses. By reserving a specific percentage of federal R&D funds for small business, SBIR protects the small business and enables it to compete on the same level as larger businesses. SBIR funds the critical startup and development stages and it encourages the commercialization of the technology, product, or service, which, in turn, stimulates the U.S. economy.

Example of RFID Projects:

Expertise Needed - Looking for Research Institute with specialization in Radio Freq Identification Technologies (RFID) research and applications and interested in STTR collaborative opportunities. Expertise Provided - Innovative concepts in the application of RFID technologies to address public safety and other human and environmental safety concerns.

The Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) program was reauthorized in December of 2000 for a period of 8 years (September 30, 2008). The reauthorization legislation included some significant enhancements to the program, one of which will provide additional small business data rights protection, and more a balanced program overall for small business concerns and the federal government. Another significant enhancement to the program was the establishment of the Federal and State Technology Partnership program or FAST. The legislation states that the SBA shall establish FAST to strengthen the technological competitiveness of small business concerns in states. All 50 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, Guam and the American Samoa are eligible to participate in the FAST program. FAST will be a competitive grants program, that will allow each state to receive funding in the form of a grant to provide an array of services in support of the SBIR program. Any individual, organization, or entity in a state is eligible to participate in the FAST program.

Low-Cost RFID: Xerox hopes plastic ink leads to printed chips

From InfoWorld, CA ... has discovered a way to print plastic transistors using a semiconductive ink, paving the way for flexible displays and low-cost RFID (radio frequency ...

Xerox Research Results Bring Printed Plastic Transistors Closer to Commercial Reality

Complete plastic transistor circuit could be printed using new semiconductive ink

SAN FRANCISO, April 16, 2004 -- Semiconductive ink and new materials revealed today by Xerox Corporation (NYSE: XRX) may make flexible roll-up television screens and computer displays one step closer to reality.
According to Xerox, it has developed a high-performance, semiconductive ink that can be used to print the semiconductor channels of transistors at low temperatures and in open air - a requirement for low-cost manufacturing. Most materials developed by researchers from other organizations have required processing at high temperatures and under inert atmospheres.

In addition to creating the semiconductive ink necessary to print the semiconductor component of a transistor circuit, Beng Ong, a Xerox fellow, reported today that his team at the Xerox Research Centre of Canada has also developed materials for printing the conductor and the dielectric components. Thus, all three elements necessary to make a plastic circuit - a semiconductor, a conductor and dielectric - may now be printed using inkjet techniques.

Companies worldwide have been competing to develop a low-cost alternative to silicon technology that could print flexible plastic transistors as easily as printing a newspaper. The technology could ultimately lead to inexpensive large-area devices like flat-panel and flexible displays and low-end microelectronics such as radio frequency identification tags.

The manufacturing dilemma
The Holy Grail for researchers who want to bring flexible plastic circuits to the masses is a low-cost manufacturing solution that has two key elements: one, materials that can be processed in ambient conditions, and two, compatible printing techniques. The research developments announced today could satisfy both these manufacturing requirements.

According to Ong, if progress continues on this research project as he expects, Xerox just may have found the missing elements that could enable commercialized applications of flexible printed transistors. Ong discussed these research findings in a presentation at the Materials Research Society spring conference here today.

"Having developed these three critical liquid-processable materials may make it possible to create low-cost, flexible plastic transistor circuits using common liquid-deposition techniques such as spin coating, screen or stencil printing, offset, or inkjet printing," Ong said. He believes that products based on these or similar materials will be available commercially in the near future.

Xerox's advances build on the unique polythiophene semiconductor previously designed by Ong's team at XRCC, as well as on the Palo Alto Research Center's method for creating a plastic semiconductor transistor array using inkjet printing, reported last fall. PARC is a wholly owned subsidiary of Xerox.

The open air issue
Being able to print in open air is significant because the electrical properties of most liquid-processable organic semiconductors degrade when exposed to atmospheric oxygen. This makes it difficult to build functional transistors in air. However, the Xerox polythiophene semiconductor not only possesses better air stability, but also exhibits excellent self assembly behavior.

Its unique molecular characteristics allow it to be readily processed into novel, structurally ordered semiconductor nanoparticles. These nanoparticles, when dispersed in a liquid, form environmentally stable nanoparticle ink. The ink provides consistent properties and enables inkjet printing of high-performing organic transistor channel layers under ambient conditions for the first time.

Under a National Institute of Standards and Technology's Advanced Technology Program grant, Xerox is working with Motorola Inc. and Dow Chemical Company in developing plastic integrated circuits for various electronic applications. Using XRCC's materials, PARC is inkjet printing active-matrix addressed arrays as backplane switching circuits for displays, while Motorola is fabricating plastic circuits for various applications using commercial printing technologies.

"Without the sharing of financial burden through the ATP grant, Xerox would not have been able to aggressively pursue this high-risk research endeavor," said Hervé Gallaire, president, Xerox Innovation Group, and the company's chief technology officer. "The ATP grant has dramatically accelerated the progress of this research, leading to our profound materials and process developments for this emerging technology."

Xerox Corporation operates research and technology centers in the United States, Canada and Europe that conduct work in color science, computing, digital imaging, work practices, electromechanical systems, novel materials and other disciplines connected to Xerox's expertise in printing and document management. The company consistently builds its inventions into business by embedding them in superior Xerox products and solutions, using them as the foundation of new businesses, or licensing or selling them to other entities. For more information, visit www.xerox.com/innovation.