Parcel Sorting (Radio Frequency Based)

Whatever you read about packaging, supply chains, or identification, you will come across an article or advertisement for Radio Frequency Identification (RFID). Why does it seem that this technology is being touted as the best thing since sliced bread? And is it just another piece of hype meant to confuse and make us invest money in another piece of technology?

RFID is evolving as a major technology enabler for identifying and tracking goods and assets around the world. It can help hospitals locate expensive equipment more quickly to improve patient care, pharmaceutical companies to reduce counterfeiting, and logistics providers to improve the management of moveable assets. It also promises to enable new efficiencies in the supply chain by tracking goods from the point of manufacture through to the retail point of sale (POS).

As a result of the potential benefits of RFID:

  • The automotive industry has been using closed-loop RFID systems to track and control major assemblies within a production plant for over 30 years.
  • Many of the world's major retailers have mandated RFID tagging for pallets and cases shipped into their distribution centers to provide better visibility.
  • There are moves in the defense and aerospace industry to mandate the use of RFID to improve supply chain visibility and ensure the authenticity of parts.
  • Regulatory bodies in the United States are moving to the use of ePedigrees based on RFID Hospitals are using RFID for patient identification and moveable asset tracking.
  • RFID tags are being used to track the movement of farm animals to assist with tracking issues when major animal diseases strike.

But while the technology has received more than its fair share of media coverage recently, many are still unfamiliar with RFID and the benefits it can offer. In the face of this need for clear, comprehensive information about RFID and its benefits, this paper defines the opportunities offered by the technology for all organizations involved in the production, movement, or sale of goods. It is equally relevant for organizations wishing to track or locate existing goods, assets, or equipment.

In addition, the paper seeks to outline the business and technical challenges to RFID deployment and demonstrates how these issues can be addressed with technology from Microsoft and its partners. Above all, it explains how Microsoft technology—which provides the software architecture underpinning the solution rather than the tags or readers—can support the deployment of RFID-based solutions.

The Origins of RFID

The first disturbing fact is that RFID is not a new technology. It was first used over sixty years ago by Britain to identify aircraft in World War II and was part of the refinement of radar. It was during the 1960s that RFID was first considered as a solution for the commercial world. The first commercial applications involving RFID followed during the 70s and 80s. These commercial applications were concerned with identifying some asset inside a single location. They were based on proprietary infrastructures.

The third era of RFID started in 1998, when researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Auto-IDCenter began to research new ways to track and identify objects as they moved between physical locations. This research, which has a global outlook, centered on radio frequency technology and how information that is held on tags can be effectively scanned and shared with business partners in near real time.

To do this we needed standards. The work of the Auto-IDCenter focused on:

  • Reducing the cost of manufacturing RFID tags.
  • Optimizing data networks for storing and delivering larger amounts of data.
  • Developing open standards.

It became apparent that the ideas being proposed, combined with other ongoing technological and standardization activities worldwide, would help to reduce the costs of RFID tagging. By 2003, the Center had over 100 sponsors from four continents. Its final task was to conduct a large field trial with 40 participating companies in 10 US cities. Today, the work of the Auto-IDCenter has helped to make RFID economically viable for pallet and carton-level tagging. The technology is also becoming more affordable for high-value items. The Auto-IDCenter officially closed on October 26, 2003, transferring all its technology to EPCglobal.

EPCglobal is now leading the development of industry-driven standards for the Electronic Product Code (EPC) Network to support the use of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) in today's fast-moving, information rich trading networks. EPCglobal is a member-driven organization composed of leading firms and industries that are focused on creating global standards for the EPCglobal Network. The EPCglobal Network is a set of technologies that enable immediate, automatic identification and sharing of information on items in the supply chain. In that way, the EPCglobal Network will make organizations more effective by enabling true visibility of information about items in the supply chain

RFID Business Benefits

Use of RFID technology can increase business productivity and reduce associated costs. To ensure that companies benefit from the advantages RFID provides it is important to understand how to adopt this technology. By analyzing current practices and procedures eight main areas of benefit can be identified. These are:

  • Improved Productivity and Cost Avoidance.
  • Decreased Cycle Time and Taking Costs Out.
  • Reduced Rework.
  • Reduced Business Risk & Control of Assets.
  • Improved Security and Service.
  • Improved Utilization of Resources.
  • Increased Revenues.
  • Exception Management.

Improved Productivity and Cost Avoidance

Identifying items by RFID involves less work than using barcode scanning and other less automated ways. This leads to greater process effectiveness in many tasks such as receiving and putting away, picking and shipping goods when the time required and cost of identifying items by RFID is substantially less than other methods.

Decreased Cycle Time and Taking Costs Out

RFID scanning is not a serial process, like traditional Barcode scanning, so the business can perform identical tasks much more quickly. This means processes that move goods through a supply chain are more efficient, leading to a reduction in the need for larger inventories.

Reduced Rework

As RFID scanning has a greater first time pass accuracy, this reduces the number of errors that are generated, and the number of retries that are needed.

Reduced Business Risk and Control of Assets

RFID tagging enables better audit and asset control. The ability to better track and trace items means assets can be located more easily. The opportunity for enhanced data collection leads to increased accuracy of record keeping and improved asset maintenance. Regulatory compliance can be achieved more effectively.

Improved Security and Service

Being able to validate information relating to an item enables increased security. This individual identification contributes to more effective access control, reductions in shrinkage and other losses, and the ability to provide fast and efficient services at the point of need. Ability to authenticate information can prevent activities like counterfeiting and fraud.

Improved Utilization of Resources

Information obtained by RFID scanning can be used to improve planning. Processes can be improved, time can be saved, assets can be utilized better.

Increased Revenues

By eliminating uncertainty, companies will suffer less "out of stock" situations and obtain greater item availability. This will reduce lost sales and increase choice, leading to more sales.

Exception Management

RFID enables processes and procedures to be measured better. Until a process can be measured accurately, it often can't be improved. Decisions that are based on limited, inaccurate, out-of-date information are often poor decisions. The contribution information captured by RFID offers to IT applications will allow managers in companies to be alerted when compensatory business decisions need to be taken.

What is RFID

Radio frequency identification (RFID) is a generic term that is used to describe a system that transmits the identity (in the form of a unique serial number) of an object or person wirelessly, using radio waves

Types of RF ID

RFID systems consist of three components in two combinations:

a transceiver (transmitter/receiver) and antenna are usually combined as an RFID reader.

A transponder (transmitter/responder) and antenna are combined to make an RFID tag.

An RFID tag is read when the reader emits a radio signal that activates the transponder, which sends data back to the transceiver.

There are two types of transponders, which correlate to the two major types of RFID tags:

Passive transponders and RFID tags have no energy source of their own, relying on the energy given off by the reader for the power to respond. Cheaper, passive RFID tags are the most likely to be used for consumer goods.

An active transponder or tag has an internal power source, which it uses to generate a signal in response to a reader.

Concept of RFID

A transponder (a microchip with an antenna) is a placed on an item and then a reader (a device with one or more antennas) is used to read data off of the microchip using radio waves.

The reader passes the information to a computer, so that the data can be used to create business value.

Structure of RFId

Postal/Parcel Application of RFID

Postal/Parcel RFID application model was proposed for the adoption of RFID technology in postal logistics environments

The main environments are:

A.Mail Office

B.Mail Collection & Distribution Center

C.Delivery Office

D.Monitoring Center

E.Postal Sorting

RFID Tags

RFID Reader Install at the Starting of the converyor System

Applications for RFID

Applications fall into two principal categories: short range applications in which the reader and tag must be in close proximity (such as in access control), and medium to long applications in which the distance may be greater (such as reading across a distribution center dock door). A sample of applications is shown here:

  • Access control for people:There are many areas in which RFID tags are carried by people to allow them to gain access to facilities or services:
  • Secure access to work place
  • Safety access to dangerous/secure equipment
  • Access to a computer or vehicle
  • Access to travel on trains/buses
  • Access to leisure facilities
  • Access control for vehicles:
  • Secure access on site
  • Road tolling
  • Instant payment for fuel
  • Manufacturing automation:
  • Control of flexible manufacturing processes by recognizing items being built on a production line (mass customization enabler)
  • Labeling key components for later recycling
  • Logistics and distribution:
  • Tracking parcels from shipment to end customer
  • Tracking goods from manufacture to retail
  • Retail:
  • Supply chain management
  • Stock taking
  • Reducing loss through shrinkage
  • Reverse logistics
  • Product availability
  • Maintenance:
  • Plant & Equipment
  • Fixed assets
  • Patients
  • Product security:
  • Tamper evidence
  • Product authentication
  • Anti-counterfeiting

Circuit Diagram

Operation

All the Envelopes are tag or added with the RFId Card or tag

When the Envelope is placed on the sorter system each envelope is added with the RFID Card

The moment card comes near the sensor it is sensed and data s send to microncontoller

uC compared the received ID with the stored one.

Depending Upon the ID by the RFId card Motor of that particular zone is selected and activated.

The moment motor is activated it rotates 45 degrees down and parcel will slide down

These Slided parcels are collected the Bag kept below the slider

Then motor comes back to its original position

Hardware and Software Requirement

1.Pentium-4 Based System

2.1GB RAM

3.100MB of HardDisk

Software

1.Windows XP

2.VB.net

3.DataBase Software

4.Drivers of RFID interface

Parcel System

  1. RFID Reader
  2. RFID Tags
  3. Conveyor System

What is RFID?

RFID is simply Radio Frequency Identification.

“Radio Frequency Identification is an automatic identification method, relying on storing and remotely retrieving data using devices called tags.”

RFID is similar to bar code technology but uses radio waves to capture data from tags, rather than optically scanning the barcodes on a label. RFID does not require the tag or label to “in line of sight” to read — that's one of the key characteristics of an RFID system.

How does an RFID system work?

For RFID systems to work the following components are essential: -

  • Tag (Passive, semi passive or active)
  • Reader (also known as an antenna or integrator)
  • Software (also known as middleware)

Information is sent to and read from RFID tags by a reader using radio waves. In passive systems, which are the most common, an RFID reader transmits an energy field that “wakes up” the tag and provides the power for the tag to respond to the reader. In active systems, a battery in the tag is used to boost the effective operating range of the tag and to support additional features over passive tags, such as temperature sensing. Data collected from tags is then passed through communication interfaces (cable or wireless) to host computer systems in the same manner that data scanned from bar code labels is captured and passed to computer systems for interpretation, storage, and action.

What is an RFID Tag?

RFID tags come in many shapes and sizes each suited to a specific application, but all RFID tags can be generally grouped into two main categories, regardless if they are encased, a sticky label or just a solid button like tag.

RFID tags are either “passive” (no battery) or “active” (self-powered by a battery). RFID tags also can be read-only (stored data can be read but not changed), read/write (stored data can be altered or rewritten), or a combination, in which some data is permanently stored while other memory is left accessible for later encoding and updates.

Passive RFID Tags

Passive RFID tags have no internal power supply. An electrical current induced in the antenna by the incoming radio frequency signal provides just enough power for the integrated circuit (IC) in the RFID tag to power up and transmit a response.

RFID tags communicate in various ways with the RFID reader. The aerial (antenna) has to be designed to both collect power from the incoming signal and also to transmit the outbound signal.

Lack of an onboard power supply means that the passive RFID tag can be quite small: commercially available products exist that can be embedded under the skin. As of 2006, the smallest passive RFID tag measured 0.15 mm × 0.15 mm, and are thinner than a sheet of paper (7.5 micrometers).

Passive RFID tags have practical read distances ranging from about 10 cm (4 in.) (ISO 14443) up to a few meters (EPC and ISO 18000-6) depending on the chosen radio frequency and antenna design/size.

Due to their simplicity in design they are also suitable for manufacture with a printing process for the antennas. Passive RFID tags do not require batteries and can be much smaller, and have an unlimited life span. Simple laboratory printed polymer tags operating at 13.56 MHz were demonstrated in 2005 by both PolyIC (Germany) and Philips (The Netherlands). If successfully commercialized, polymer tags will be roll printable, like a magazine, and much less expensive than silicon-based tags. The end game for most item level tagging over the next few decades is that RFID tags will be wholly printed - the same way a barcode is today - and be virtually free, like a barcode.

Active RFID Tags

Unlike passive RFID tags, active RFID tags have their own internal power source which is used to power any intergrated circuits that generate the outgoing signal. Active RFID tags are typically much more reliable than passive tags due to the ability for active tags to conduct a "session" with a reader.

Active RFID tags, due to their onboard power supply, also transmit at higher power levels than passive tags, allowing them to be more effective in "Radio Frequency challenged" environments like water (including humans/cattle, which are mostly water), metal (shipping containers, vehicles), or at longer distances. Many active tags have practical ranges of hundreds of meters, and a battery life of up to 10 years. Some active RFID tags include sensors such as temperature logging which have been used in concrete maturity monitoring or to monitor the temperature of perishable goods. Other sensors that have been married with active RFID include humidity, shock/vibration, light, radiation, temperature and atmospherics like ethylene.

Active tags typically have a much longer range (approximately 300 feet) and larger memories than passive tags, as well as the ability to store additional information sent by the transceiver.

What is an RFID Reader?

An RFID reader is basically a radio frequency (RF) transmitter and receiver, controlled by a microprocessor or digital signal processor (DSP). The RFID reader, using an attached antenna, captures data from RFID tags, and then passes the data to a computer for processing. As with tags, readers come in a wide range of sizes and offer different features. Readers can be affixed in a stationary position (for example, beside a conveyor belt in a factory or dock doors in a warehouse), portable (integrated into a mobile computer that also might be used for scanning bar codes), or even embedded in electronic equipment such as print-on-demand label printers.

What is RFID Software (middleware)?

So far your RFID system is communicating in radio waves, so software is used to decipher the radio waves into logical terms.

This software can either be separate from your RFID Reader and be stored on a PC or laptop, or it may be integrated into the RFID Reader as with portable devices such as the Datalogic Jet.