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Key Considerations for Choosing the Right RFID Tag for Your Traceability Application

Choosing an RFID tag for your traceability application can be difficult given the huge variation of tags available today. Here are four main factors to keep in mind when selecting a tag, which will greatly contribute to the success of your RFID project.  

 

Choose tag type: I like to start with tags and work backward. Tags come in many shapes and sizes – from paper labels to hang tags, pucks, and even glass capsules and reusable data bolts. First, think about where you want to mount your tag. It is important that it does not interfere with your current product or production process. If you plan to tag a metal product, using a metal-mount style tag will give you the best results.

Assess the required read range: Think about how much range you need between your RFID readers and your tags. Remember that the shorter your range, the more options you will have when selecting a suitable frequency. While all frequencies work for short ranges, long ranges require HF (High Frequency) or even UHF (Ultra High Frequency) products. As a rule of thumb, it is best to keep your reading range as short as possible for the most reliable results.

 

Consider the environment: RFID tags are designed to withstand high temperatures, chemicals, water, and moisture. If your environment involves any of these conditions, you will want a tag that is up to the challenge and will remain functional.

 

Choose the data storage option: RFID tags can be read only or read/write, so think about what kind of data you want to store on your tags. Do you want your tag to be a simple license plate tied back to a centralized database, or do you want to store process/status data directly on the tag? RFID gives you a choice and now is the time to think about what and how much data you want to maximize the benefit of RFID for your process.

 

So now that you have thought about tag type, read range, environment, and data, you already have a promising idea of which tags will work in your application. The final step is to get price quotes and get started with your project. This is a wonderful time to ask the RFID experts for more recommendations and ask about on-site testing to make sure your tags are a great fit for your application. It is also an excellent time to collect recommendations for which reader will pair best with your tag and application.

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Securing Your Supply Chain and Beefing Up Traceability

 

Snake oil is one of the most maligned products in all of history. Synonymous with cure-alls and quackery, it is a useless rip-off, right? Well, no, it’s actually high in the Omega 3’s, EPA, and DHA.

Snake oil fell from prominence because it was all too easy for charlatans to brew up fake oil and pass it off as the genuine article, with sometimes dangerous outcomes.

Today’s customers are smarter than ever and waking up with ever-evolving knockoffs. We are more aware of fake reviews and fake products. Brands that can prove their products are genuine can command higher prices and forge long-standing customer relationships. This starts with securing your supply chain and beefing up traceability.

Securing your brand

Many roads lead to Rome and no single technology will be the one silver bullet to secure your supply chain. That said, RFID technology is likely to play an important role. RFID allows for multi-read without a line of sight, making it a great choice in both production and warehouse/logistics environments. Perhaps more importantly, RFID tags can be encrypted. This adds protection against would-be cheats. The ability to both read and write provides additional flexibility for tracking and tracing in production.

RFID is not the only traceability solution and smart companies will use a combination of technologies to secure their brands. We’ve seen holograms on baseball cards and QR codes on underwear. We’ve seen authorized retailer programs … and RFID on coffee cups and medical devices. As you think through the various options, it’s worth keeping in mind the following 4 questions:

      1. Is the technology secure? Does it support modern cryptographic methods?
      2. Does the solution add value – i.e. improve current processes?
      3. Is the technology future-proof?
      4. Is the technology robust?

Any technology that answers yes to these questions will be well-suited to meet this new market. Brands that stay ahead of the curve will grow and those who fall behind the curve risk ending up in the dustbin – right next to the snake oil.

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RFID Basics – Gain Key Knowledge to Select the Best Fit System

As digitalization evolves, industrial companies are automating more and more manual processes. Consequently, they transfer paper-based tasks in the field of identification  to digital solutions. One important enabling technology is radio frequency identification (RFID), which uses radio frequency to exchange data between two different entities for the purpose of identification. Since this technology is mature, many companies now trust it to improve their efficiency. Strong arguments for RFID technology include its contactless reading, which makes it wear-free. Plus, it’s maintenance-free and insensitive to dirt.

RFID basics for selecting the best fit system

There are myriad applications for RFID in the manufacturing process, which can be clustered into the following areas:

    • Asset management e.g. tool identification on machine tools or mold management on injection molding machines in plastic processing companies
    • Traceability for work piece tracking in production
    • Access control for safety and security purposes by instructed and authorized experts to ensure that only the right people can access the machine and change parameters, etc.

But not all RFID is the same. It is important to select the system type and components that are best suited for your application.

Frequencies and their best applications

RFID runs on three different frequency bands, each of which has its advantages and disadvantages.

Low Frequency (LF)
LF systems are in the range of 30…300 kHz and are best suited for close range and for difficult conditions, such as metallic surroundings. Therefore, they fit perfectly in tool identification applications, such as in machine tools, Additionally, they are used in livestock and other animal tracking. The semiconductor industry (front end) relies on this frequency (134kHz) as well.

High Frequency (HF)
HF in the range of 3…30 MHz is ideal for parts tracking at close range up to 400 mm. With HF you can process and store larger quantities of data, which is helpful for tracking and tracing workpieces in industrial applications. But companies also use it for production control. It comes along with high data transmission speeds. Accordingly, it accelerates identification processes.

Ultra High Frequency (UHF)
UHF systems in the range of  300 MHz…3 GHz are widely used in intralogistics applications and typically communicate at a range of up to 6 m distance. Importantly, they allow bulk reading of tags.

RFID key components

Every RFID system consists of three components.

    1. RFID tag (data carrier). The data carrier stores all kinds of information. It can be read and/or changed (write) by computers or automation systems. Read/write versions are available in various memory capacities and with various storage mechanisms. RFID tags are usually classified based on their modes of power supply, including:

– Passive data carriers: without power supply
– Active data carriers: with power supply

2. Antenna or Read/Write head. The antenna supplies the RFID tag with power and reads the data. If desired, it can also write new data on it.

3. Processing unit. The processing unit is used for signal processing and preparation. It typically includes an integrated interface for connecting to the controller or the PC system.

RFID systems are designed for some of the toughest environments and address just most identification applications in the plants. To learn more about industrial RFID applications and components visit www.balluff.us/rifd.

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How Industrial RFID Can Reduce Downtime in Your Stamping Department

The appliance industry is growing at record rates. The increase in consumer demand for new appliances is at an all-time high and is outpacing current supply. Appliance manufacturers are increasing production to catch up with this demand. This makes the costs associated with downtime even higher than normal. But using industrial RFID can allow you to reduce downtime in your stamping departments and keep production moving.

Most major household appliance manufacturers have large stamping departments as part of their manufacturing process. I like to think of the stamping department as the heart of the manufacturing plant. If you have ever been in a stamping department while they are stamping out metal parts, then you understand. The thumping and vibration of the press at work is what feeds the rest of the plant.  I was in a plant a few weeks ago meeting with an engineer in the final assembly area. It was oddly quiet in that area, so I asked what was going on. He said they’d sent everyone home early because one of their major press lines went down unexpectedly. Every department got sent home because they did not have the pieces and parts needed to make the final product. That is how critical the stamping departments are at these facilities.

In past years, this wasn’t as critical, because they had an inventory of parts and finished product. But the increase in demand over the last two years depleted that inventory. They need ways to modernize the press shop, including implementing smarter products like devices with Industry 4.0 capabilities to get real-time data on the equipment for things like analytics, OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness), preventative maintenance, downtime, and more error proofing applications.

Implementing Industrial RFID

One of the first solutions many appliance manufacturers implement in the press department is traceability using industrial RFID technology. Traceability is typically used to document and track different steps in a process chain to help reduce the costs associated with non-conformance issues. This information is critical when a company needs to provide information for proactive product recalls, regulatory compliance, and quality standards. In stamping departments, industrial RFID is often used for applications like asset tracking, machine access control, and die identification. Die ID is not only used to identify which die is present, but it can also be tied back to the main press control system to make sure the correct job is loaded.

need for RFID in appliance stamping
This shows an outdated manual method using papers that are easily lost or destroyed.
appliance stamping can be improved by RFID
This image shows an identification painted on a die, which can be easily destroyed.

Traditionally, most companies have a die number either painted on the die or they have a piece of paper with the job set up attached to the die. I cannot tell you how many times I have seen these pieces of paper on the floor. Press departments are pretty nasty environments, so these pieces of paper get messed up pretty quickly. And the dies take a beating, so painted numbers can easily get rubbed or scratched off.

Implementing RFID for die ID is a simple and affordable solution to this problem. First, you would attach an RFID tag with all of the information about the job to each die. You could also write maintenance information about the die to this tag, such as when the die was last worked on, who last worked on it, or process information like how many parts have been made on this die.
Next, you need to place an antenna. Most people mount the antenna to one of the columns of the press where the tag would pass in front of it as it is getting loaded into the die. The antenna would be tied back to a processor or IO-Link master if using IO-Link. The processor or IO-Link master would communicate with the main press control system. As the die is set in the press, the antenna reads the tag and tells the main control system which die is in place and what job to load.

In a stamping department you might find several large presses. Each press will have multiple dies that are associated with each press. Each die is set up to form a particular part. It is unique to the part it is forming and has its own job, or recipe, programmed in the main press control system. Many major stamping departments still use manual operator entry for set up and to identify which tools are in the press. But operators are human, so it is very easy to punch in the wrong number, which is why RFID is a good, automated solution.

In conclusion

When I talk with people in stamping departments, they tell me one of the main reasons a crash occurs is because information was entered incorrectly by the operator during set up. Crashes can be expensive to repair because of the damage to the tooling or press, but also because of the downtime associated. Establishing a good die setup process is critical to a stamping department’s success and implementing RFID can eliminate many of these issues.

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RFID Replaces Bar Codes for Efficient Asset Tracking

Bar code technology has been around for many years and is a tried and true means for tracking asset and product movement, but it has its limitations. For example, a bar code reader must have an unobstructed view of the bar code to effectively scan. And the bar code label cannot be damaged, or it is then unreadable by the scanner.

In more recent years, additional RFID technologies have been more readily available for use to accomplish the same task but with fewer limitations. Using RFD, a scanner may be able to read tags that are blocked by other things and not visible to the naked eye. UHF RFID can scan multiple tags at the same time in a single scan, whereas most bar codes need to be scanned individually. This, therefore, increases efficiency and reduces the time required to perform the scans.

Then, of course, there is the human factor. RFID can help eliminate mistakes caused by human error. Most bar code scanning is done with hand scanners held by workers since the scanner has to be in the exact position to see the bar code to get a good scan. While manual/hand-held scanning can be done using RFID, most times a fixed scanner can be used as long as the position of the RFID tag can be guaranteed within certain tolerances. These tolerances are much greater than with a bar code scanner.

With the advent of inexpensive consumable RFID labels, the ease and cost of transitioning to RFID technology has become more feasible for manufacturers and end users. These labels can be purchased for pennies each in rolls of several thousand at a time.

It should be noted that several companies now produce printers that can actually code the information on a RFID label tag while also printing data, including bar codes, on these label tags so you have the best of both worlds. Tags can be scanned automatically and data that can be read by the human eye as well as a bar code scanner.

Some companies have expressed concern about the usage of RFID in different countries due to local regulations regarding the frequencies of radio waves causing interferences.

This is not an issue for HF  and UHF technology. HF is an ISO standard (ISO 15693) technology so it applies to most everywhere. For UHF, which is more likely to be used due to the ability to scan at a distance and scan multiple tags at the same time, the only caveat is that different areas of the world allow scanners to only operate in certain frequencies. This is overcome by the fact that almost all UHF tags that I have encountered are what are called global tags.

This means these tags can be used in any of the global frequency ranges of UHF signals. For example, in the North America, the FCC restricts the frequency range for UHF RFID scanners to 902-928 MHz, whereas MIC in Japan restricts them to 952-954 MHz, ETSI EN 300-220 in Europe restricts them to 865-868 MHz, and DOT in India restricts them to 865-867 MHz. These global tags can be used in any of these ranges as they work from 860 to 960 MHz.

On the subject of UHF, it should be mentioned that in addition to the frequency ranges restricted by various part of the world, maximum antenna power is also locally restricted.

For more information on RFID for asset tracking, visit https://www.balluff.com/local/us/products/product-overview/rfid/

 

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Turning Big Data into Actionable Data

While RFID technology has been available for almost seventy years, the last decade has seen widespread acceptance, specifically in automated manufacturing. Deployed for common applications like automatic data transfer in machining operations, quality control in production, logistics traceability and inventory control, RFID has played a major role in the evolution of data collection and handling. With this evolution has come massive amounts of data that can ultimately hold the key to process improvement, quality assurance and regulatory compliance. However, the challenge many organizations face today is how to turn all that data into actionable data.

Prominent industry buzzwords like Industry 4.0 and the Industrial Internet of Things (IIOT) once seemed like distant concepts conjured up by a marketing team far away from the actual plant floor, but those buzzwords are the result of manufacturing organizations around the globe identifying the need for better visibility into their operations. Automation hardware and the infrastructure that supports it has advanced rapidly due to this request, but software that turns raw data into actionable data is still very much in demand. This software needs to provide interactive feedback in the form of reporting, dashboards, and real time indicators.

The response to the demand will bring vendors from other industries and start-ups, while a handful of familiar players in automation will step up to the challenge. Competition keeps us all on our toes, but the key to filling the software gap in the plant is partnering with a vendor who understands the needs on the plant floor. So, how do you separate the pretenders from the contenders? I compiled a check list to help.

Does the prospective vendor have:

  • A firm understanding that down time and scrap need to be reduced or eliminated?
  • A core competency in automation for the plant floor?
  • Smart hardware devices like RFID and condition monitoring sensors?
  • A system solution that can collect, analyze, and transport data from the device to the cloud?
  • A user-friendly interface that allows interaction with mobile devices like tablets and phones?
  • The capability to provide customized reports to meet the needs of your organization?
  • A great industry reputation for quality and dependability?
  • A chain of support for pre-sales, installation, and post-sales support?
  • Examples of successful system deployments?
  • The willingness to develop or modify current devices to address your specific needs?

If you can check the box for all of these, it is a safe bet you are in good hands. Otherwise, you’re rolling the dice.

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Document Product Quality and Eliminate Disputes with Machine Vision

“I caught a record-breaking walleye last weekend,” an excited Joe announced to his colleagues after returning from his annual fishing excursion to Canada.

“Record-breaking?  Really?  Prove it.” demanded his doubtful co-worker.

Well, I left my cell phone in the cabin so it wouldn’t get wet on the boat so I couldn’t take a picture, but I swear that big guy was the main course for dinner.”

“Okay, sure it was Joe.”

We have all been there — spotted a mountain lion, witnessed an amazing random human interaction, or maybe caught a glimpse at a shooting star.  These are great stories, but they are so much more believable and memorable with a picture or video to back them up.  Now a days, we all carry a camera within arm’s reach.  Capturing life events has never been easier and more common, so why not use cameras to document and record important events and stages within your manufacturing process?

As the smart phone becomes more advanced and common, so does the technology and hardware for industrial cameras (i.e. machine vision).  Machine vision can do so much more than pass fail and measurement type applications.  Taking, storing, and relaying pictures along different stages of a production process could not only set you apart from the competition but also save you costly quality disputes after it leaves your facility.  A picture can tell a thousand words, so what do you want to tell the world?  Here are just a couple examples how you can back up you brand with machine vision:

Package integrity: We have all seen the reduced rack at a grocery store where a can is dented or missing a label.  If this was caused by a large-scale label application defect, someone is losing business.  So, before everyone starts pointing fingers, the manufacturer could simply provide a saved image from their end-of line-vision system to prove the cans were labeled when shipped from their facility.

Assembly defects: When you are producing assembled parts for a larger manufacturer, the standards they set are what you live and die by.  If there is ever a dispute, having several saved images from either individual parts or an audit of them throughout the day could prove your final product met their specifications and could save your contract.

Barcode legibility and placement: Show your retail partners that your product’s bar code will not frustrate the cashier by having to overcome a poorly printed or placed barcode.  Share images with them to show an industrial camera easily reading the code along the packaging line ensuring a hassle-free checkout as well as a barcode grade to ensure their barcode requirements are being met.

In closing, pictures always help tell a story and make it more credible.  Ideally your customers will take your word for it, but when you catch the record-breaking walleye, you want to prove it.

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Which RFID Technology is Best for Your Traceability Application?

There are a lot of articles on using RFID for traceability, but it’s hard to know where to begin. Examples of traceability include locating an important asset like a specific mold that is required to run a machine or verifying a specific bin of material required to run production. Spending time looking for these important assets leads to lost time and production delays. RFID can help but understanding the different RFID capabilities will narrow down the type of RFID that is required.

Not all RFID technology is the same. Each RFID technology operates differently and is categorized by the frequency band of the radio spectrum, such as low frequency, high frequency and ultra-high frequency. In low and high frequency RFID, the read range between RFID tag and reader antenna is measured in millimeters and inches. The read range on ultra-high frequency (UHF) RFID technology can range from one meter to 100 meters. Typically, inventory traceability is done using ultra-high frequency band of the radio frequency spectrum, due to the need to read the asset at a further distance so it does not interfere with the production flow. Also, there are cases where there needs to be a reading of multiple tags in an area at the same time to determine where an asset is located. UHF RFID technology allows for simultaneous reading of multiple RFID tags from a single antenna reader.

There are two types of UHF RFID, passive and active.  Passive UHF RFID means that the RFID tags themselves have no additional power source. The UHF reader antenna sends out an electromagnetic wave field, and the RFID tags within the electromagnetic field have an internal antenna that receives the energy which activates the integrated circuit inside the tag to reflect the signals back to start communicating. The read distance between the passive RFID tag and antenna reader is determined by several factors, such as the size of the electromagnetic wave field generated out of the reader antenna and the size of the receiver antenna on the RFID tag. Typical read ranges on passive UHF systems can be anywhere from one to 12 meters, where the larger the power and RFID tag, the longer the range.

Active UHF RFID systems do not require the tag to reflect signals back to communicate because the active RFID tag has its own transmitter and internal battery source. Because of this, with active UFH RFID you can get read ranges of up to 100 meters. There are active tags which wake up and communicate when they receive a radio signal from a reader antenna, while others are beacons which emit a signal at a pre-set interval. Beacon active tags can locate in real time the location of the asset that the RFID tag is attached to. However, a downfall to active RFID tags is the battery life on the tag. If the battery is dead, then the asset will no longer be visible.

Figure 1

Once the strengths and weaknesses of each type of UHF RFID system is known, it’s easier to work with the constraints of the system. For example, the application in Figure 1 shows a reader antenna for reading bins of material placed a few feet away so that its’ not in the way of production. A passive UHF RFID system will work in this case, due to the distance between the antenna and the RFID tag on the bin a few feet away. There is no need to worry about battery life on the passive RFID tag.

Figure 2

If the exact location of a production mold is required in a large facility, then using an active UHF RFID system is likely a better fit. Incorporating an active RFID tag that sends out a beacon at a fixed interval to a data center ensures the location of all assets are always known. With this setup, the exact location of the mold can be found at any time in the facility.

Examining the different types of RFID technology can help determine the correct one to use in a traceability application. This includes analyzing the pros and cons of each technology and seeing which one is the best fit for the application.

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Injection Molding: Ignore the Mold, Pay the Price

Are you using a contract molding company to make your parts? Or are you doing it in house, but with little true oversight and management reporting on your molds? As a manufacturer, you can spend as much on a mold as you might for an economy, luxury or even a high-performance car. The disappointing difference is that YOU get to drive the car, while your molder or mold shop gets to drive your mold. How do you know if your mold is being taken care of as a true tooling investment and not being used as though it were disposable, or like the car analogy, like the Dukes of Hazzard used the General Lee?

What steps can you take in regard to using and maintaining a mold in production that can help guarantee your company’s ROI? How can you ensure your mold is going to produce the needed parts and provide or exceed the longevity required?

It is important for any manufacturer to understand the need for the cleaning and repair required for proper tool maintenance. The condition of your injection mold affects the quality of the plastic components produced. To keep a mold in the best working order, maintenance is critical not only when issues arise, but also routinely over time.

In the case of injection molds specifically, there are certain checks and procedures that should be performed regularly. An example being that mold cavities and gating should be routinely inspected for wear or damage. This is as important as keeping the injection system inspected and lubricated, and ensuring all surfaces are cleaned and sprayed with a rust preventative.

Figure 1 An example of the mold usage process.

The unfortunate reality is that some molders wait until part quality problems arise or the tool becomes damaged to do maintenance. One of the biggest challenges with injection molders is being certain that your molds are being run according to the maintenance requirements. Running a mold too long and waiting until problems arise to perform routine maintenance or refurbish a mold can result in added expense, supply/stock issues, longer time to market and even loss of the mold. However, when molders have a clear indication of maintenance and production timing, and follow the maintenance procedures in place, production times and overall costs can decrease.

Figure 2 Balluff add-on Mold ID monitoring and traceability system.

Creating visibility and accuracy into this maintenance timing is something today’s automation technology can now address. With todays modern, industrial automation technology, visibility and traceability can be added to any mold machine, regardless of machine age, manufacturer and manufacturing environment.

With the modern networked IIoT (industrial internet of things)-based monitoring and traceability system solutions available today, the mold can be monitored on the machine in real-time and every shot is recorded and kept on the mold itself using, for example, an assortment of industrial RFID tag options mounted directly on the mold. Mold shot count information can be tracked and kept on the mold and can be reported to operations or management using IIoT-based software running at the molder or even remotely using the internet at your own facility, giving complete visibility and insight into the mold’s status.

Figure 3 Balluff IIoT-based Connected Mold ID reporting and monitoring software screens.

Traceability systems record not only the shot count but can provide warning and alarm shot count statuses locally using visual indicators, such as a stack light, as the mold nears its maintenance time. Even the mold’s identification information and dynamic maintenance date (adjusted continuously based on current shot count) are recorded on the RFID tag for absolute tracability and can be reported in near real-time to the IIoT-based software package.

Advanced automation technology can bring new and needed insights into your mold shop or your molder’s treatment of your molds. It adds a whole new level of reliability and visibility into the molding process. And you can use this technology to improve production up-time and maximize your mold investments.

For more information, visit https://www.balluff.com/en/de/industries-and-solutions/solutions-and-technologies/mold-id/connected-mold-id/

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Tag, You’re It: Choosing the Right Type of Tags for Your RFID System

Many companies have already discovered the benefits of implementing RFID into their systems. Traceability within the manufacturing process provides a competitive advantage of both efficiency and profitability. RFID tags are a major component of this technology. But it’s important to select the correct type for your specific application. These tags are classified into categories based on how they obtain power and how they use that power. The three categories are as follows:

  • Passive tags
  • Semi-passive tags
  • Active tags

Understanding the difference between these can help narrow down your decision when looking into implementing RFID systems to your process.

Passive tags do not have their own power source. The tag receives power only when the RFID reader is in range. These tags are limited since the power supplied is minimal. The biggest advantages of passive tags are that they are small and inexpensive. They can be useful in specific applications where space is limited. Also, if the environment in which the tag is being placed is harsh, the passive tag may be a good option because it can be cheaply replaced if damaged. Since these tags do not generate power, their read distance of just a few inches to about two feet is much shorter than others. Passive tags are also limited to the amount of data storage they possess. Depending on the application this can be an advantage or disadvantage.

Semi-Passive tags, as the name implies, are similar to passive tags in that they do not have an active transmitter. They still require an RFID interrogator to be in range for the device to work, although the semi-passive tags have their own battery to power the IC. If you are looking for longer read ranges than the passive tag, this could be an option. Since the read range of the passive sensor is solely based on how far away the interrogator can power the device and not the signals coming in, adding a battery unit to the semi-passive tags increases this distance. These distances can range up to 100 feet. Another advantage is the amount of data they can store. These added features do come with added costs. The onboard power supply also makes these tags larger and heavier. The electronics inside the tag are susceptible to harsh environments like high or low temperatures, resulting in shorter lifespans.

Active tags have both a battery and transmitter built within their housings. The typical read range is again increased to around 300 to 750 feet depending on the battery power and the antenna. This allows the tags to store more data with their increased memory capacity. Active tags display the most configurability in comparison to passive and semi-passive tags. They can be set up to conserve battery power when the interrogator is out of range and respond only when the reader is within range. They can also be set up as a beacon, which is when the tag does not wait until it receives a signal from the interrogator. Instead, the active tag can be configured to send the information in set time intervals. Since active tags contain an active transmitter, they can contribute to radio noise. They are also more expensive and usually larger in size and weight due to the increased electronics within its housing.

It’s important when selecting a tag for your RFID system to consider the application needs and the advantages and disadvantages of these different options.