 | Wednesday, August 6, 2008
Issue 885 | | Will Smith, Editor |  |
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Editor's Note: Today's top story is a test of RFID read rates for footwear and apparel items conducted by researchers at the RFID Research Center at the University of Arkansas. The researchers simulated retail use-case environments and found generally good performance but some large variations among tags and readers.
Private Equity HUB reports that Alien is about to close a $40 million round of funding. The article also offers an analysis of Alien's financing, which has become quite hard to follow after so many rounds.
Lastly, note the new classified listing below for the RFID Track & Trace Healthcare Summit co-sponsored by the National Association of Chain Drug Stores and the Healthcare Distribution Management Association. The summit is taking place in Arlington, Virginia, from November 16th through 18th. |
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RFID Study Evaluates Item-Level Retail Performance
By John Burnell
Retailers can achieve very good RFID read rates for typical item-level tagging applications, but performance can vary widely depending on which tags are used, according to a new report released by researchers at the RFID Research Center at the University of Arkansas' Information Technology Research Institute (ITRI). The report, RFID Item-Level Tagging for Apparel/Footwear: Feasibility Study, presents the results of tests designed to identify baseline read rates for individually tagged footwear and apparel items in typical retail use cases, including point-of-sale (POS) checkout, inventory monitoring on racks and shelves, theft prevention and identifying items on moving conveyors.
Three types of Gen2 UHF tags, four models of handheld readers, and three stationary readers were used in the tests. Tag and reader vendors were not identified. Researchers attained 100 percent read rates in each test scenario with at least one of the tag-reader combinations, and many combinations produced read rates above 90 percent. There were some major differences in the read rates for different combinations in specific use cases. Researchers also found that read rates went down as the number of items to be identified increased.
"The major differences in read rates came more from different tag types, not different reader types," Dr. Bill Hardgrave, executive director of the research center told RFID Update. "We've always known there's not one tag that's the best fit for all products. If you had the right tag on the right product it performed well, regardless of the use case."
Each tag-reader combination was tested 30 times in each use-case environment. Researchers tried to mimic real-world conditions and did not try to enhance read performance by spacing items on racks and conveyors or otherwise adjusting tag locations, according to Hardgrave.
Overall read rates were lowest for identifying tagged items in boxes on a conveyor belt, which was tested at speeds of 200, 400 and 600 feet per minute. Read rates were worst for the fastest-moving conveyors, ranging from a low of 64.5 percent for one tag-reader combination to a high of 90.1. Read rates for the 200 foot-per-minute conveyor test ranged from 90.9 to 100 percent, and the 400 fpm rates ranged from 68.8 to 94.4 percent.
The point-of-sale environment produced the best read rates, with seven out of the eight tag-reader combinations tested attaining 100 percent successful reads.
"The overall results are very encouraging and indicate a favorable outcome with many types of tags and readers. This project has successfully demonstrated the feasibility of RFID for specific applications and has the potential to satisfy many common-use cases, especially inventory management," Hardgrave said in the center's announcement.
The research was not designed to measure the productivity aspects of using RFID, but for comparison the researchers did record the time it took to inventory a round rack of apparel items by reading product tags by bar code and by RFID. It took about nine minutes to complete the process with bar code scanning, and just 15 seconds with an RFID reader.
The study was presented to sponsors in June and publicly released this week. Since the June release Hardgrave has spoken with several retailers who are running RFID systems or pilots, and he said they report their read rate experiences are mostly consistent with the study findings.
The study provided data that can be used as a guideline for retailers to set expectations and identify potential areas for improvement, but does not answer the question of what read rates are needed to make RFID valuable.
"Everyone wants to talk about 100 percent read rates, but when you sit down with retailers, talk about what they need and really drill down into their processes, we find that 100 percent read rates often aren't necessary," said Hardgrave. "They are not getting 100 percent identification with the processes they have now. The question becomes 'How much better is good enough?' For example, today many retailers may only take full inventory twice a year because of the time involved. With RFID you can take inventory every two weeks, or even constantly with a shelf reader. I think if you can get into the 90s for your accuracy with that frequency of taking inventory, the visibility would be fantastic."
The summer of 2008 may be remembered as the "test season" for the RFID industry. In addition to the new RFID Research Center report, two other organizations also released the results of their studies of RFID tag and reader performance (see Myth Busted' -- Tests Find RFID Works Well on Metals and Report Reveals RFID Performance on Different Surfaces). The RFID Research Center is involved in ongoing RFID research and earlier this year released a report on inventory management (see RFID Yields 13% Reduction in Understated Inventory).
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| Upcoming Events | RFID Health Care Industry Adoption Summit, Nov 16-18, D.C.
The National Association of Chain Drug Stores (NACDS) and Healthcare Distribution Management Association (HDMA) are pleased to co-sponsor this comprehensive overview of RFID and track-and-trace operational and implementation strategies for the healthcare supply chain. For more information, or to register, please visit -- http://meetings.nacds.org/rfid/2008/registration.cfm | RFID World | Sept 8-10, 2008 | MGM Grand | Las Vegas, NV
Now in its 6th year, this industry leading event is recognized as the gathering place for the builders, buyers and sellers of RFID and other Auto-ID technologies. Registration now open! Special Early Bird Savings: Save $300 off registration. Offer ends July 31st. Don't miss out! | RFID Executive Forum - Impact RFID, October 15, 2008 at UCLA
UCLA WINMEC will host its 2008 RFID Executive Forum. This Forum will bring academics, industry practitioners to discuss industry-specific modality of use of RFID and the application of RFID in their industry. For more information, please visit: www.winmec.ucla.edu/rfid/2008 | | | RFID Tags & Labels | Ferroxtag HF tags: Smart on Metal!
Ferroxtag is a new family of HF RFID tags suitable for operation on metallic surfaces. Ferroxtag's special ferrite antenna was developed using Ferroxcube's years of experience in ferrite technology. The high performance antenna means longer read range with a smaller tag. Visit www.ferroxtag.com | | | Products & Services | Real-Time WIP Visibility Appliance from Omnitrol Networks
Meet the industry's most innovative award winning RFID solution that enables complete work-order traceability in manufacturing. Real-time web-based dashboards and multi-site monitoring for work-order pedigree and traceability, including proactive bottleneck management and real-time performance analytics optimizing shop-floor efficiency. All at the lowest TCO in the marketplace. www.omnitrol.com/WIP. | Employees steal over $1 billion per week from employers
the American Management Association reports. 95% of businesses are victimized by employee theft. Managers are reluctant to ask questions, because trusted employees may feel offended, leaving business owners in a difficult situation. What can you do? Nox: Intelligent Perimeter Defense from Simply RFID provides advanced security and protection for business assets. | | | RTLS & Active RFID | Locate it now. How? Ekahau. That's how!
Ekahau RTLS (Real-Time Location System) automatically tracks assets and people via your existing Wi-Fi network. Control costs and improve asset management with Ekahau. For more information, visit us at www.ekahau.com. | | | Employment | RFID Recruiters - 100% Focused on RFID Recruiting
Whether your company is looking for the best RFID talent or you have the best RFID talent and are looking for the best RFID employer, RFID Recruiters offers the most focused approach to your objective. To learn how the RFID industry and the RFID job market are evolving, visit www.rfidrecruiters.com | | | Research & Whitepapers | RFID Marketing Strategies Report
Thirty-nine pages of original research on RFID audience perceptions, including 30+ figures of tactics, content & messaging, and recommendations to guide marketing strategy. Also, Top-10 RFID company rankings based on 550+ survey respondents. View the executive summary free, with Top-3 sample rankings. Only $495 Individual License or $795 Corporate License. Available now |
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