Like most products in the document industry, RFID tags take many forms. Ideal type depend on the application. Here are three things to know about the technology. For more details, visit RFID Journal's web site at www.rfidjournal.com.
1. The difference between low-, high- and ultra-high frequencies for RFID tags: Just as your radio tunes in to different frequency to hear different channels, RFID tags and readers have to be tuned to the same frequency to communicate. RFID systems use many different frequencies, but generally the most common are low- (around 125 KHz), high- (13.56 MHz) and ultra-high frequency, or UHF (850-900 MHz). Microwave (2.45 GHz) is also used in some applications. Radio waves behave differently at different frequencies, so you have to choose the right frequency for the application. For instance, low-frequency tags are cheaper than UHF tags, use less power and are better able to penetrate non-metallic substances. They're ideal for scanning objects with high-water content, such as fruit, at close range. UHF frequencies typically offer better range and can transfer data faster, but they use more power and are less likely to pass through materials. And because they tend to be more "directed," they require a clear path between the tag and reader. UHF tags are ideal for airport security and scanning boxes of goods as they pass through a bay door into a warehouse. McCarran uses UHF.
2. The difference between passive and active RFID tags: Active RFID tags have a battery, which is used to run the microchip's circuitry and to broadcast a signal to a reader (the way a cell phone transmits signals to a base station). Passive tags have no battery. Instead, they draw power from the reader, which sends out electromagnetic waves that induce a current in the tag's antenna. Semi-passive tags use a battery to run the chip's circuitry, but communicate by drawing power from the reader. Active and semi-passive tags are useful for tracking high-value goods that need to be scanned over long ranges, such as railway cars on a track, but they cost a dollar or more, making them too expensive to put on low-cost items. Passive tags are far less expensive than active tags and require no maintenance. McCarran uses passive.
3. The difference between read-only and read/write tags: Microchips in RFID tags can be read-write or read-only. With read-write chips, you can add information to the tag or write over existing information when the tag is within range of a reader. Read-write tags are useful in some specialized applications. But because they're more expensive than read-only chips, they're impractical for tracking inexpensive items. Some read-only chips have information stored on them during the manufacturing process. The information on such chips can never been changed. A more flexible option is to use something called electrically erasable programmable read-only memory, or EEPROM. With EEPROM, the data can be overwritten using a special electronic process. McCarran uses read-only.
In addition to the TSA's mandate, demand for RFID systems has risen because retail giants Wal-Mart and Target announced that vendors must adopt the technology. Also, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration reported last month that RFID "will make the copying of medications either extremely difficult or unprofitable." The agency concluded that using RFID as "the standard track and trace technology" is feasible by 2007. Distributors and manufacturers selling to manufacturing and medical clients are well-positioned to offer RFID by partnering with firms offering the necessary tags, hardware and software.
Experts say RFID systems won't displace bar codes, but they yield four main advantages: One, no line of sight is required between the carrier and the reader. Two, users have the ability to rewrite information to the tag without physically seeing it, even when the product is mixed among others. Three, RFID offers virtually 100-percent readability. Four, the technology doesn't have print readability concerns. "In order to move to the next level of operating efficiency, bar codes won't do it anymore," Shoemkaker says. "RFID can provide a level of visibility in the supply chain that can't be matched."
How Vegas' High-Tech Bet Works
When a passenger checks a bag at a McCarran ticket counter, an airline agent places a 21-inch RFID tag on the bag, either by using a printer that includes a roll of tags or by peeling one from a sheet. Each passive, UHF tag includes a read-only microchip and a small antenna. "Take one glance at the tag, and you won't even notice the chip," Ingalls says.
The only data encoded on the chip by Matrics is a unique, 10-digit ID number. Other information, including passenger name, passenger security status, airline and flight number, are "live" after the passenger checks the bag. From that point, the data is associated with the 10-digit number and stored in a computer database on McCarran's server. "The beauty of a read-only chip is that someone could use a reader to read a bag tag, but all he would see is 10-digit number that makes no sense," Ingalls says. "All the important information is in the database and not physically on the bag tag."
The agent drops the bag on a conveyor belt behind the ticket counter. The belt leads to one of 12 eXaminer® 3DX 6000 explosive detection and screening (EDS) machines from L-3 Communications, New York City. (A trend is for airports to place such machines in baggage conveyor lines instead of making them visible in airport lobbies.) RFID readers read the tag as it enters and leaves the machine. Those time stamps are sent automatically to the database. If needed, authorized personnel could verify that Bag 1234567891 entered EDS Machine 3 at 10:03:04 a.m. and left at 10:03:07 a.m. If a bag fails to clear the explosive-screening machine, it's sent to a special facility to be hand-checked.
When the EDS machine scans the bag, it verifies the airline and plane number for the passenger associated with it. The conveyor system automatically routes each bag to its correct "pier," which are holding areas shared by several flights. If Flight 111 is loading from Pier 3, the conveyor will route all bags for that flight to there, so employees can pick them from the belt and take them to the correct plane. If a baggage holder wants to double-check that all bags for a flight are correct, he or she can use a handheld device to "shoot" bags simultaneously while they're on a unit-load device (ULD), the metal crate that carries bags to planes. Throughout the process, green lights indicate that all bags are correct.
FKI Logistex, Louisville, Ky., provides McCarran with the intelligent conveyor system, plus the design and architecture of the RFID baggage-tracking system. McCarran awarded the company with an $8 million contract when it awarded Matrics with its $25 million contract for RFID tags.
During the next five years, the RFID system is expected to cost McCarran $125 million, but the TSA is paying $94 million of that amount. "This becomes a win for all concerned--the traveler, the airport, the TSA and the airline--by reducing the incidence of lost or mishandled bags while ensuring screened bags are delivered to the right place at the right time," Walker says.
Cooperation Trumps Complexity
The first phase of McCarran's RFID project involves five airlines and 40 percent of airport travelers. The next phase, which likely will be completed in two years, will include use of a facility that screens off-site baggage coming from hotels and car-rental companies, as well as two other screening facilities to handle baggage checked in at the airport's main terminal, Ingalls said. Later, an RFID transponder will be integrated with the baggage tag, and each airline will write its own code to the tag when it's printed. "McCarran is the breakthrough airport because they're going to do this for all bags and all airlines," Shoemaker says. "No one else in the world has made that decision."
Shoemaker participates in regular conference calls with Clark County officials and other McCarran leaders, as well as representatives from other firms the airport uses. "We're all working together to make this come to fruition," Ingalls says. "We realize airlines have specific goals and need to cooperate and assist as well. It's a complex project, but as team members, we'll pull it off."
Shoemaker predicts that more airports will be "making a massive transition to UHF, passive RFID tags over the next several years." Last month, he flew to Hong Kong to speak to airport officials about the technology. Ingalls was preparing for trips to London and Geneva. "More companies should learn about RFID," Shoemaker says. "From a personal point of view, I think it helps in the war against terrorism," he says. "We're using American know-how to fight back."
Darin Painter is managing editor at Print Solutions. Email us your comments at dpainter@PSDA.org.
Starwood Hotels and Resorts didn't make it easy for Jerome Group. The hotel and leisure company, based in White Plains, N.Y., was impressed with Jerome Group's digital printing capabilities, but spent months researching case studies, testing sample products and grilling Jerome Group's service staff with questions about digital printing. Starwood wondered if the technology-savvy print provider's products were too good to be true.
Today, Starwood executives are thrilled. St. Louis-based Jerome Group's digital capabilities have enabled the end user to print highly customized, cost-efficient ID cards (called DigeCards) at a much faster rate. Starwood's first production, which ran in January, was nearly flawless. Jerome Group and Starwood expect future runs to be just as smooth.
Customization is Key To Member Programs
Starwood, which owns, operates and franchises more than 740 properties worldwide, provides a preferred-guest program for more than 3 million travelers. Upon joining, each member receives a card that includes information such as member name, member number, program affiliation and expiration date.
Prior to its relationship with Jerome Group, Starwood embossed plastic that was the size and thickness of a typical credit card on traditional printing presses, says Tony Hayes, director of Starwood's print production and procurement. From a marketing standpoint, the cards were largely uniform. Customization seemed cost-prohibitive, Hayes says. He worked with several print manufacturers to print the cards, and predicting inventory was an issue.
Enter Jerome Group's DigeCard. Like the cards they replaced, Starwood's DigeCards can include images of partners' logos. Content, format, co-branding and size are variables that can be managed on a one-to-one basis. Thousands of cards can be printed in one run--each with its own colors, graphics and photos--without stopping Jerome Group's HP Indigo 3000 printers. In short, DigeCards are a marketing department's dream.
