![]() ![]() ![]() Using these chokepoints at entrances and exits – instead of covering the whole room – lowers cost.Īnother advantage of passive RFID is that the tags can be read using iOS and Android-based mobile devices with a handheld attachment, allowing users to locate tagged equipment hidden (intentionally or unintentionally) inside closed bins and cabinets, behind ceiling tiles, or under desks, sinks – you name it. RFID-enabled chokepoints can also be used to detect equipment entering or leaving large rooms such as central distribution or a biomed shop. ![]() The nature of coverage provided by an RFID antenna allows solution architects to design a system with varying degrees of location granularity, achieving accuracy at the facility, floor and room level.ĭepending on the nature of the installation, the RFID readers can detect the presence (or absence) of tagged items (e.g., used equipment in soiled rooms) continuously, or act as a checkpoint for loss and theft prevention at critical chokepoints (e.g., laundry chutes and dock doors). The advantage of the limited coverage is that a specific antenna can be tied to a single location, and as tags are read, the system updates their last known location. The limited coverage of a single antenna point warrants the need for installing the RFID readers and antennas at every location where tracking is required. Different antennas have varying shapes of RF fields (RF bubble), which are published by each manufacturer. Since the passive tags are energized only when they pass through the RF field from these antennas, selecting the locations for installing them is one of the most important design criteria in a passive RFID deployment. The readers are connected to antennas which disperse the RF field that energizes the tags. This band spans from 902 - 928MHz, typically the size of a network router powered by AC supply or over the Ethernet (PoE). ![]() Passive RFID operates in the Industrial Scientific Medical band approved by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC). The tags are energized only when they are within the RF (radio frequency) field of a device typically called the RFID reader or interrogator. It is usually called “Passive RFID”, because in a normal state, the tags are not powered by an external source such as a battery. RFID is the blanket term that refers to Ultra High Frequency (UHF) Gen2 Passive radio frequency identification technology. Tools such as Real-Time Location System (RTLS) and Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) play a primary role in automation, specifically in the hospital workflow. Notice the use of the word “tool”, because that’s exactly what wireless tracking is – an enabling tool and not an entire solution. The terms "Internet of Things" and “IoT” were not commonly used back then.įrom a 10,000-foot view, the technological nuances of wireless tracking can be intimidating, but once the basics are understood, it can be an extremely powerful tool. I was blown away by the fact that a paper thin electronic sensor could essentially make anything in the physical space identifiable in the digital world. As a young electrical engineering student intrigued by all things wireless, my first encounter with radio frequency tracking was during a research assistantship at the University of Maryland, where I evaluated technologies for improving supply chain automation. ![]()
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