 | Friday, November 30, 2007
Issue 732 | | Will Smith, Editor |  |
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Editor's Note: Today's top story is the use of solar panels to power RFID readers in remote locations where traditional power sources are unavailable.
RFID standards organization EPCglobal has launched a new website aimed at disseminating information about the use and benefits of RFID and EPC technology. DiscoverRFID.org includes numerous and varied examples of how the technology has been deployed to make people's lives easier, better, and safer.
FileTrail has announced that the U.S. Tax Court will deploy its RFID file-tracking system across facilities around the country, including the central office in Washington, DC, and more remote offices nationwide. RFID Update has focused on file tracking this week, as it is a nascent but promising market for which RFID technology has improved markedly in the last couple years. See RFID File Tracking is Heating Up and RFID Solution Tracks 100,000 Individual Documents for more.
Lastly, Psion Teklogix has added six new readers to its WORKABOUT PRO line of mobile, ruggedized RFID readers. The readers support a wide range of RFID technologies, including LF, HF, and both active and passive UHF. See the announcement for more. |
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Solar Power Helps RFID Track Anywhere Under the Sun
Solar-powered RFID readers are being installed to help track things anywhere under the sun. The U.S. Army and Emprevi, a Colombian logistics company, operate systems that use solar panels to provide power for signpost-style roadside RFID readers that track cargo passing through remote locations. The systems are separate and not part of the same logistics network, but each features roadside active RFID readers from Savi Technology.
The readers are mounted on signposts along highways. The signposts automatically identify and record RFID-tagged vehicles and cargo that pass. Readers then report the event to Savi's Site Manager software system, using a variety of communications options.
"The solar-enabled signposts (readers) are powered purely by the solar panels. There hasn't been an issue generating enough power -- the decision where and whether to use solar really comes down to the installation cost," Savi spokesperson Mark Nelson told RFID Update. "Our readers and signposts tend to be installed at remote locations, especially where there aren't electrical outlets or a lot of existing power generation infrastructure, so it's often cheaper to install solar than to run a power cable."
The U.S. Army has installed solar-powered readers in Kuwait, Qatar, and Fort Bragg, North Carolina, and is planning or considering additional installations for Afghanistan, Italy, Japan, Korea, and California. Emprevi uses the readers at locations throughout Colombia.
"It goes without saying that installations make the most sense where there is plenty of sunshine," said Nelson.
The largest installation is in Kuwait, where 50 solar-powered readers have been installed as part of a system that tracks 25,000 tags per day. Savi offers solar panels as part of the Early Entry Deployment Support Kits it created for the U.S. Army that enables the military to quickly set up a tracking system in a new area.
The Army makes extensive use of Savi's RFID and communications systems to track its materiel throughout the world. Savi holds a multiyear contract, which expires next month, to supply hundreds of millions of dollars worth of RFID-based tracking systems to the U.S. Department of Defense (see DoD Doubles Active RFID Spend to $425M).
Defense is Savi's core market, but the Emprevi installation is an example of how commercial firms are increasingly adapting military-style tracking systems for supply chain operations. Automakers, 3PLs, and port operators are among Savi's commercial clients.
"Solar energy powers some of the more remote sections of Emprevi's RFID network that would otherwise lack a constant, dependable power source," Emprevi's president Mauricio Barberan Canas is quoted in Savi's announcement. "While taking advantage of a clean, renewable energy source, the system also leverages highly advanced information and security technologies that greatly improve Emprevi's supply chain security, visibility, and management."
The need to power active RFID systems is driving innovation. Based on the U.S. Army's plans, the number of deployed solar-powered readers is sure to grow. In addition to solar power, a variety of battery technologies are being developed to power RFID tags. Most are not ready for mass production and widespread use, but one researcher predicts non-traditional printed and thin-film RFID tag batteries will become a multibillion dollar market (see RFID is the Future for Thin-film & Printable Batteries and New Battery Could Drive Semi-active RFID Growth for more background).
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