IDC’S SIMPLITRAK RFID TECHNOLOGY IS PROVIDING MANUFACTURERS WITH A POWERFUL TOOL TO COMBAT COUNTERFEITING.
RFID technology is providing businesses with a powerful tool in their efforts to combat counterfeiting. This is timely as the problem is estimated to affect over $300 billion of goods annually, which is an astonishing 10% of total world trade. There are costs in human terms too: the EU estimates that as many as 100,000 jobs have been lost through forgery. In addition, the counterfeiting of, for example, airplane parts and pharmaceuticals puts many lives directly at risk.
The key advantage of RFID technology to manufacturers is that it can be implemented usually without any major changes to products or the machinery or equipment used to manufacture them. Recent developments mean that RFID tag inlays can be converted into smart media, such as self- adhesive labels. These offer read and write capability, with company specific encryption if required; and can easily be integrated into all types of merchandise.
For RFID systems be commercially viable it is important that one tag type be used across different products. This brings economies of scale, which help to reduce the tag price to a level where the RFID system is competitive. However, in some cases, where luxury goods are concerned, tag price is often secondary to tag size.
Size matters because, generally speaking, UHF tags are significantly larger in size when compared to HF tags. This can be a problem with smaller items such as luxury goods where the tag must be as small as possible to be unobtrusive to the user and remain hidden from would-be counterfeiters. In addition to physical considerations, tag size also matters due to the amount of data that is required to be stored. Miniature tags are likely to be once-programmable devices, which offer the benefit of low cost, but require a supporting database for effective tracking.
The alternative of tags with multiple read/multiple write memories provides far more capabilities to put all product information on the tag, with the benefit that a supporting database is not required. These tags are more costly, however, and generally larger than once-programmable devices.
The question of how much data to include on tag is also important as regards how the products are packaged and transported through the production facility. These considerations are critical in determining which tag technology should be employed. The last thing that a manufacturer wants is to install an RFID system and then find that he has to slow down production conveyors just to accommodate the reading rate of RFID tags. Generally speaking, UHF technology is better suited for reading case and pallet tags, due to its longer read range. In contrast, the shorter read range of HF technology provides more well-defined read zones that are better suited to shelf and item- level applications.
Another major consideration for the tag user is material on which (or in which) it is used. This is particularly important if the product comes into contact with water (i.e. it is washed) during its lifetime, or if the base to which the tag is affixed is metal. In the former case the tags used would have to be waterproof and employ HF technology.
High frequency RF signals are better able to penetrate water and other liquids because the longer wavelengths of HF systems are less susceptible to absorption. The technology, in the form of HF tags, has been tried and tested for many years in the textile and garment/uniform rental industries, and is proven to withstand liquids, pressure and large temperature variations.
Difficulties also arise in RFID system in cases where tags are attached to metal. Radio frequency signals do not pass through metal, so when metallic materials are close to the antenna of a HF or UHF tag or reader, the effect is to reduce the overall read range of the system. Another undesirable effect is absorption: RF signals are absorbed by metal, instead of going through it. This affects HF tags and UHF tags differently.
HF tags have a lower read range, while UHF tags can have increased read range if there is a sufficient air gap between them and the metal surface. The higher the tag is lifted, the better it works. However, the protrusion of the tag often hampers its usability, so the ideal height is usually of the order of 5mm. IDC has enjoyed success with self- adhesive UHF tags of this height: the tags are foam-backed to provide the necessary isolation between the tag and the product. In other applications IDC has had to resort to ferrite shielding to ensure integrity of the tag/reader system.
The basis of IDC’s anti-counterfeiting RFID solutions is SIMPLITRAK, a system that employs read/write tags, which can be embedded into products at their point of manufacture. This facility enables manufacturers to provide full product tracking and traceability, and to guard against counterfeit products and components entering their supply chain. It also equips quality assurance (QA) departments with the means to provide customers with processing data for compliance to set procedures and policies.
Anti-Counterfeiting RFID System For Clothing Manufacturer
In one recent application IDC supplied a leading clothing manufacturer with a Simplitrak RFID system to protect against counterfeit garments infiltrating its supply chain.
The manufacturer packs garments each with its own customised read/write TAG (fitted during manufacturing) into cartons, which have their own unique ID. When being processed prior to shipment, each carton passes a tag reader, which transmits a complete list of its contents for display on a PC. The PC checks the actual contents of the carton against the known manifest for the carton ID to produce a Pass or Fail result. If the carton passes then the carton ID is written to a datablock on each tag, which is locked.
Other datablocks can also be written with hand held RF terminals during QA checks etc. In this way all of the garments can be checked at each stage of their journey from manufacture to lorry, lorry to distribution centre and distribution centre to store.
SIMPLITRAK RFID + SMART MEDIA
Working with its smart media partner, CLC from Loughborough, IDC is able to supply complete Simplitrak turnkey solutions for any RFID project. CLC with over 30 years of experience in Label Printing is able to convert raw RFID tag inlays into smart media, such as swing tickets, self adhesive labels, sew in labels and cards. These offer read and write capability and can also incorporate bar codes where necessary, with company specific encryption if required, and can easily be integrated into all types of merchandise. These converted inlays provide a unique ID and require no line of sight for reading or writing. They also offer multiple scanning facilities and the facility to be updated in real time.
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For further information contact: Kevin Buckley, IDC Ltd, Keynes House, Chester Park, Alfreton Road, Derby. DE21 4AS. Tel: +44 (0) 1332 604 030 Fax: +44 (0) 1332 604 031. E-mail: sales@idc.gb.com Website: www.idc.gb.com