RFID Location Tracking in Elder Care

AeroScout and Surecom collaborate to implement nmedical alerting system for PresCare, an Australian elder-care provider. The solution uses RFID technology to provide track the status of elderly residents at one of its senior residential sites in Queensland, Australia. ...

... "Wi-Fi-based Active RFID tags along with its enterprise location tracking software, MobileView. These products communicate with the existing Wi-Fi infrastructure at the facility and are linked with each staff member's mobile handheld device as well as several flat screen monitors throughout the complex. AeroScout's unique Exciter products add enhanced high-accuracy detection at choke points such as doorways and exits. The AeroScout and Surecom solution is based on a set of configurable location-based rules, which trigger alerts when transgressed. These rules could include an at-risk resident wandering within a dangerous location, lack of movement for a configurable amount of time, a self-alerting button, or many others. Whenever an alert is triggered, an on-call nurse is immediately notified through their handheld device. " ...

Via AeroScout: PresCare Deploys AeroScout Wi-Fi RFID Solution for Patient Safety and Medical Alerting

Metro RFID Rolls Out Network Infrastructure

Reva enables Metro Group's RFID capability with its network infrastructure. ...

... "Reva's RFID network infrastructure provides a key component that enables Metro's RFID architecture to support current and future RFID initiatives. METRO Group has one of the most sophisticated RFID research and testing organizations in the world. Their process for evaluating innovative technologies is thorough, their requirements for standards-based performance are exacting, and their criteria are stringent for moving from RFID pilots to production. Reva's TAP products will be used to manage the distributed network of RFID installations, to produce accurate data from each site, and to provide rapid operator feedback. For the initial phase of the rollout, METRO Group is primarily using RFID to enhance its distribution and store receiving processes by using accurately located tag data for more efficient operations, better customer service and improved inventory management. " ...

Via Reva Systems: RFID Network Infrastructure for Europe's Largest Retail RFID Rollout at Metro Group

Mobile RFID Platform Syncs Data to Enterprise

Mobile RFID solution provides store and forward approach to RFID data. ...

... "By leveraging Vue Technology's enterprise application functionality, once the laptop is connected to a network, the RFID data gathered while offline can be aggregated and managed by Vue's centralized management software, providing visibility of the RFID data across the enterprise. " ...

Via Vue Technology: Mobile Version of the TrueVUE RFID Platform Opens New Opportunities for RFID

WiFi RFID Tags Track High-Value Parcels in UK

AeroScout, Inc. deploys asset tracking tags for City Link, an express parcel delivery firm in the UK's, that focuses on high-value delivery services. City Link is seeing benefits in its overnight trucking schedule which helps it sustain industry-leading delivery performance. ...

... "In the first stage of deployment, AeroScout and its UK Partner JDH Consultancy Limited installed 15,000 specially designed Wi-Fi tags with an extended battery life, which will be used at City Link's depots around the UK. These rugged, Wi-Fi-standard tags jointly designed by AeroScout and JDH Consultancy Limited are being used to manage the company's dynamic inventory of roll-cages, which house and protect its high-value parcels during transit. At any moment in time, up to 300,000 parcels in 15,000 cages at 70 UK locations can be monitored and located in real-time from City Link's National Distribution Centre in Wednesbury, West Midlands over the City Link Cisco Wi-Fi network. By maintaining accurate and real-time visibility of roll-cages, City Link has improved the efficiency and speed of its delivery services. " ...

Via Aeroscout: AeroScout Delivers World's Largest Wi-Fi-Based Active RFID Tag Deployment to City Link ...

RFID Plant Automation Network Integration

Automation technology will integrate RFID readers and other intelligent devices in the plant network, enabling real-time response to production events. ...

... "The deviceWISE 2.0 framework links PLCs, RFID readers and other intelligent devices in a network to enable bidirectional data flow between systems running, IBM DB2, IBM Websphere, Oracle, Microsoft SQL Servers and other software. This connectivity provides companies with an accurate picture of the production environment, allowing companies to monitor and retrieve information faster and to respond to operational issues in real-time. " ...

Via ILSTechnology: ILS Technology Enters Joint Development Agreement With Mitsubishi Electric for deviceWISE 2.0 Framework ...

RFID Shipment Tracking and Detection

Pliant implements IBM-designed RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) platform pilot program, that tracks shipments between technical centers and customer sites. The RFID system detects tampering in shipped products and enables workforce mobility using handheld devices to track products. Potential tampering can be identified and addressed in real-time. ...

... "IBM Global Business Services consultants collaborated with Pliant to develop a comprehensive RFID technology roadmap, helping Pliant prepare and validate the RFID equipment in its labs. Pliant's IBM software and solution, which has been in place since December 2005, leverages IBM's Data Collection Server software and WebSphere RFID Device Infrastructure. The software installed on Pliant's network helped to create RFID labels which were printed and deployed on pallets and the pallets were tracked as they moved between the two Pliant technical centers in Newport News, Virginia and Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. IBM consultants worked with Pliant to create Web pages on a network database to track the content and movement history of each pallet so that its location was always known.



A wireless handheld RFID reader loaded with the WebSphere RFID Device Infrastructure used to scan the pallets within the plants to immediately look up pallet content information. With the support provided by the IBM Global Business Services team, Pliant now has a proven product concept to access to real-time tracking information for shipments between its two facilities. This setup allowed Pliant to download and monitor critical information which helped protect business-critical applications. " ...

Via Pliant Corporation: IBM Helps Pliant Design and Implement RFID System to Track Shipments and Detect Tampering ...

Tokyo RFID Ubiquitous Network

Tokyo shopping district pilots location services using RFID technology. University of Tokyo professor leads the pilot project, which understands where people are and helps them navigate to their destination within the district, providing additional relevant information about products and services. The pilot is planned for the first quarter of 2007. ...

... "The Tokyo Ubiquitous Network Project seeks to install RFID, infrared and wireless transmitters throughout Tokyo's Ginza area, which is the most famous shopping area in the capital. " ...

Via ComputerWorld: Read RFID Project

RFID Adaptive Supply Chain Networks

SAP upgrades its transportation management functionality, as part of the mySAP Supply Chain Management (mySAP SCM) modules to support adapting business processes to optimize revenue across global trade operations. The upgraded software will support ocean shipping management and transportation planning through increased visibility and control of shipments globally. Transportation management costs will be reduced by making the business process more flexible and dynamic using real world aware practices, such as RFID technology. RFID technology integration into the adaptive supply chain will occur through SAP's NetWeaver platform. SAP reports that its existing transportation management software is used by more than 2,200 companies worldwide. This upgrade positions SAP as a strong competitor in the supply chain logistics software market. ...

... "Powered by the SAP NetWeaver platform and leveraging emerging technologies and real world aware practices - using technologies such as radio frequency identification (RFID) tags, smart cards and sensors - mySAP SCM transforms traditional, linear supply chains into adaptive supply chain networks to meet the challenges of rapidly changing market dynamics. These adaptive supply chain networks allow all participants, including suppliers and logistics providers, to sense changes in demand and supply conditions as they occur and to share the critical knowledge needed to respond intelligently. The result is an adaptive supply chain network that is not only demand-driven but can also leverage its assets to influence demand where appropriate. mySAP SCM offers a dynamic synchronization of demand-driven planning, logistics and network execution based on real-time information that provides the capability to synchronize supply with demand by balancing push and pull network planning processes and to replenish and produce based on actual demand; sense and respond with an adaptive supply chain network in which distribution, transportation and logistics are driven and integrated into real-time planning processes; and enable network wide visibility, collaboration and analytics across the extended supply chain. " ...

Via SAP: SAP Helps Companies Meet the Challenges and Reduce the Costs of Global Trade ...

OTI RFID Supports Discover Network Contactless Payment

OTI receives certification for its RFID reader in support of the contactless payment solution for the Discover Network. ...

... "Discover Network, a business unit of Discover Financial Services and Morgan Stanley, announced that it has certified the Saturn 5000 contactless reader developed by On Track Innovations (OTI) (NASDAQ: OTIV), a global leader in contactless microprocessor-based smart card solutions, for use with Discover Network's contactless payment application. The certification process ensures that the Saturn 5000's reader technology is able to support Discover Network's proprietary contactless payment solution. Additional OTI readers are in the certification process.

Compatible with major POS terminal providers and acquirers, Saturn 5000's enhanced features allow the reader to support multiple application programs and read a variety of payments sources, including credit cards and key fobs and cell phones. The console's plug-and-play design and small footprint facilitates quick upgrades of existing POS terminals to accept contactless payments. And because the reader faces the customer, the Saturn 5000 enables easier and faster payment transactions. Additionally, OTI's patented matched antenna technology provides more effective power consumption, reliable and stable communications, and additional levels of security and encryption throughout the communication link. " ...

Via Discover Network: Discover Network Certifies Oti Card Reader For Contactless Payment System, OTI's Saturn 5000 to Support Discover Network's Fast, Secure, and Simple Contactless Payment System Worldwide

RFID Context Aware Location Services

Sybase enhances its RFID Anywhere solution to support advanced services that enable context-aware locating capabilities. Location information is given a business context in applications that support asset management, access control, resource management in industries, such as logistics, healthcare, and other supply chain environments. Location information will integrate sensor technology data associated with assets. Assets will be identified and associated with fixed locations and temporal information to provide location and timing insights. Conditions can be monitored and alerts will be provided based on events. ...

... "RFID Anywhere 3.0 breaks new ground with the delivery of a context-aware Location Information System. Using RFID Anywhere, businesses can not only track assets from a range of data collection points [such as passive RFID, active RFID, real-time location systems (RTLS), barcode, global positioning systems (GPS) and environmental sensors], but can dramatically enhance the value of this data by associating environmental inputs (e.g., temperature) along with the location data. In addition, the RFID Anywhere 3.0 Location Information System exposes its complete feature set via a rich service oriented architecture (SOA) web services layer allowing organizations to easily transform static business information into business-aware intelligence. " ...

Via Sybase: Sybase iAnywhere Pioneers Context-Aware Location Information System with RFID Anywhere 3.0 ...

RFID Anywhere simplifies the development, deployment, configuration and management tasks for highly distributed, multi-site, intelligent sensor networks, and abstracts the interaction with the physical network of devices. With support for over forty devices, this powerful infrastructure enables the creation of intelligent sensor networks out-of-the-box. By using RFID Anywhere, sensors are able to work together as an intelligent network by combining, organizing and coordinating these technologies through a common management structure, advanced feature set and event-driven development framework.

RFID Technology Enables Asia Logistics for Metro Supply Chain

The METRO Group and Savi Networks will collaborate to implement the Advanced Logistics Asia (ALA) project. The project will deploy RFID radio frequency identification technology to monitor the location and security of inventory shipped from Asia to Europe in real-time through the supply chain. ...

... "The ALA project, managed by METRO Group Buying Hong Kong (MGB Hong Kong), will utilize SaviTrak(TM), a web-based, real-time information service that leverages automatic data transmissions from Electronic Product Code (EPC) - compliant passive and active RFID tags, among other wireless devices, on shipments transported throughout the global supply chain. MGB Hong Kong manages METRO Group imports from sourcing to delivery at Distribution Centers in Germany. Under the ALA project, SaviTrak will monitor a variety of retail products while they are transported through a global RFID reader network, stretching from a consolidation center in Hong Kong, through the Port of Hong Kong, to the Port of Rotterdam, the inland Port of Duisburg in Germany and finally to a METRO Group distribution center in Unna, Germany.



Active, battery-powered RFID tags on containers will be utilized to automatically transmit information into the SaviTrak information service. As a six-month pilot, the ALA project is designed to evaluate improvements in the visibility, management and security of inventory while it is transported end-to-end. The project will further evaluate investment returns in reduced lead times and inventory, improved customer service as well as supply chain and financial performance." ...

Via Savi Networks: The METRO Group and Savi Networks Launch Real-Time Information Service on Inventory Shipped From Asia to Europe

RFID Track Trace System ...

Infosys has successfully implemented SAP RFID solution to enable CHEP's Global Track and Trace System. CHEP will use this system to provide real-time visibility to its customers for their products and to track the shipping assets. CHEP is the global leader in pallet and container pooling services and serves many of the world's largest companies. The company has more than 7,700 employees and operates in 44 countries. CHEP manages over 280 million pallets and containers through a global network of service centers. It identified product and asset visibility as a significant opportunity to leverage RFID technology. The Global Track and Trace System at CHEP enables vendor managed inventory (VMI), yields increased asset control, and optimizes inventory management. ...

... "This project is a significant step forward for global RFID adoption, combining SAP's RFID platform and applications with Infosys' strong thought leadership and robust implementation model for the RFID-enabled enterprise. By delivering innovative, value-added solutions with a low total cost of ownership (TCO), Infosys and SAP aim to help organizations adopt RFID technology to both enhance their existing business models and pursue new ones. " ...

Via Infosys: Infosys Deploys SAP Solutions for RFID for CHEP's Global Track and Trace System

EPCGlobal RFID Conference This Week ...

This week: EPCGlobal Conference ...

... "The EPCglobal US Conference 2006 will be held October 17-19 in Los Angeles, California at the Los Angeles Convention Center. This year's three-day event will feature interactive workshops, an expanded tradeshow floor, live technology provider demonstrations and the opportunity to problem solve and network with global thought leaders and experts. " ...

Via EPCGlobal: 2006 Conference: Industry-leading EPC/RFID event to be held October 17-19 in Los Angeles, California ...

RFID Tag Airport Passengers ...

Airline passengers can be tagged with RFID technology to track their location throughout the airport. ...

... "The basic idea is that airports could be fitted with a network of combined panoramic cameras and RFID (radio frequency ID) tag readers, which would monitor the movements of people around the various terminal buildings. " ...

Via BBC: Air passengers could be tagged

RFID Port Security: Container Shipping ...

Savi Networks will implement RFID container shipping to improve port security at Virginia ports. ...

... "Savi Networks announced that it is installing Radio Frequency Identification-based (RFID) technology information services at Virginia Port Authority terminals to further enhance the security and efficiency of cargo container shipments. Under an agreement signed August 22, with the VPA, Savi Networks will deploy a system compatible with international standards (ISO18000-7) at Norfolk International Terminal, Newport News Marine Terminal and Portsmouth Marine Terminal. The network automatically tracks the location and security status of RFID-tagged containers. SaviTrak, the company's web-based managed information service, also will be utilized to deliver real-time information collected by the network infrastructure. " ...

Via Savi Technology: SAVI NETWORKS TO DEPLOY CARGO SECURITY AND TRACKING NETWORK AT VIRGINIA PORT AUTHORITY TERMINALS ...

DOD RFID Dept of Defense Implementation Enablers

ODIN Technologies shares some of the key ingredients (Accuracy and Implementation Speed) to enabling their successful implementation of RFID technology in the DOD supply chain. The Dept of Defense has strict read rate accuracy requirements that ODIN had to meet with limited technology capabilities at that time. In addition, ODIN perfected an implementation methodology for the DOD that improved the speed of delivery while sustaining performance quality. ...

... "DoD is modernizing its logistics system to better support the warfighter. Passive RFID is at the center of that transformation. It is a core element of the DoD's force transformation initiative designed to create a more agile military. However, if the tags and readers do not communicate reliably, the benefits will not materialize. After years of planning, the DLA needed a highly accurate RFID network established rapidly.

...

Accuracy: DoD expected its RFID system to be an order of magnitude more sophisticated than what was currently being deployed. Boundaries relative to read-rates and performance were strict, unlike many retailers who have toyed with trial-and-error methods. Rather than just attempt to read a single pallet tag, the DoD demanded 20 Gen 1.0 and Gen 2.0 RFID tags be affixed to cases and read as they come through a dock door - 100% accurately. This required scientific precision when designing and configuring the RFID network. Each portal was tested 10 times for that performance criteria. The DoD has shown RFID will reduce costs, increase supply visibility and streamline its entire supply chain, from the factory-to-the-foxhole. However, it can only do this if the RFID system is accurate and reliable.

...

Implementation Methods and Speed: Eighteen facilities spanning the continental U.S. (CONUS) were evaluated, solutions designed, installed and tested to 100% accuracy in under 130 days. " ...

Via ODIN Technologies: DOD Case Study (PDF) ...

SAP Cisco RFID Investment

SAP and Cisco invest in Reva Systems through investment, industry collaboration, and strategic relationships. ...

... "Reva Systems, an emerging leader among radio frequency identification (RFID) network infrastructure providers, announced $13.5M in second-round venture funding that includes a capital contribution and technology standards collaboration with Cisco Systems, Inc.; a capital investment and strategic relationship with SAP Ventures, a division of SAP AG (NYSE: SAP); and follow-on investments from Reva's original venture backers and individual investors, including North Bridge Venture Partners and Charles River Ventures. Today's announcement brings Reva's total funding to $20M including the original Series A financing in April, 2004. The investments will fund Reva's growth in a time of intensifying global RFID market expansion. The company is well-positioned with a robust RFID appliance to satisfy network management and scalability challenges that the RFID community now recognizes as the key to widespread RFID deployment.



Reva's approach and its product development are aligned with Cisco's expectation of the proliferation of RFID and the resulting demand for innovative solutions and network management to support RFID deployments. Reva is leading industry standards committees to help define network-to-reader protocols and other standards that will streamline RFID network integration, and its approach is becoming the practical model for managing readers and collecting data across any RFID implementation." ...

Via Reva Systems: Reva Secures Investments from Cisco Systems and SAP Ventures: Funding accelerates RFID network integration effort ...

RFID Cargo Terminal Operational: Chain of Custody ...

Savi implements RFID-enabled chain of custody process at the Port of Felixstowe (PFL) in the UK. The system, called SaviTrak, automates the tracking of cargo as it is processed through the supply chain, while monitoring security. ...

... "Network infrastructure, including SaviTrak software and Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) readers, are now installed and operational at PFL's Trinity Terminal, the largest cargo-handl