RF Controls’ smart RTLS antennas identify, locate and track passive RFID tags at distances once thought impossible

One of the biggest deployments of RF Controls’ antennas is in a cross-docking facility, where the ceiling is high with wide open spaces within its enclosure. “The simple equation to understand the square feet we can cover with an antenna is – ceiling height squared times four. So if you’ve got a 30-foot high ceiling and you’ve got one antenna, you can cover 3,600-square feet of space,” said Turchet. 

The data gathered from the passive RFID tags can be run through machine-learning algorithms to create insights for stakeholders, especially the warehouses, that can improve their operational efficiency. “We’re effectively a massive firehose of data. Imagine our antennas constantly reporting the X, Y and Z locations of a tag, or potentially millions of tags within a very large facility. That’s a lot of data,” said Turchet. 

And it is in this juncture that software companies can play a crucial part in extending the possibilities of a passive RFID antenna system like that of RF Controls. Graham Fenton, the managing director of Codegate, a U.K.-based software company for tracking solutions, spoke of how the cost of integrating RFID tags with user systems was an expensive process, and how every system was unique with different back-end formats. 

“At the moment, most of the companies are working with legacy systems of one type or the other. We’ve got to do a bit of work to get information in the right format into their systems. If you look at the cost per square foot for implementing a solution that gives you the ability to track all passive tags over a particular area, I think RF Controls will probably be the cheapest,” said Fenton. This reduction in costs is primarily because the passive RFID tags do not need energy from batteries to transmit data, making them very resourceful. This apart, constant innovation and economies of scale have also brought the price of tags from a cost of several dollars to a few pennies. 

“There are several different types of ultra-high frequency (UHF) RFID tags that all use batteries, making them very expensive. Even though the infrastructure costs are quite low in most cases, by the time you add the cost of the tags, it ends up being massively more expensive than the RF Controls system,” said Fenton. 

Turchet spoke on the extensive list of items that could be tagged within a warehouse or a manufacturing floor. For example, helmets, safety vests, toolboxes and tools, ladders, forklifts, and even the pallets themselves can be tagged. RF Controls enables the tracking of all these items via its antennas, with the management holding on to the tags permanently without ever needing to replace batteries. 

“We are a technology that can help unlock the high ceiling opportunity. If you’ve got a 44-foot high ceiling, then our antennas can provide true wall-to-wall visibility within a production line. On the floor, they can layer on new use cases, change processes and can test various types of tags on different assets,” said Turchet. “Ultimately, you have a more flexible operation, and eliminate the need for training somebody on a handheld scanner to scan tags.”