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Options for Growing Your RFID Network
Once the base platform is in place, enhancing your applications becomes much more straightforward. Below are some common ways in which RFID applications can be expanded:
Adding antennas to readers—RFID readers allow for multiple antennas to gather the data. This commonly ranges from two to eight antennas, four being the most common. This approach is frequently used to increase the read zone, but some middleware platforms allow for each antenna to be treated as a unique data-collection point.
Modifying tag types being monitored—Current second-generation readers can monitor EPC, ISO and other tag formats. Be sure to select a platform that allows for adding newly ratified tag specifications. Having this option in both your hardware and software environment provides the ability to choose the appropriate tag for each application.
Adopting a service-oriented architecture (SOA) to expose raw RFID data—A common interface over an SOA layer provides flexibility in how applications interface with the RFID network. Having one point of integration into your RFID network allows data to be delivered in multiple report formats. Be careful of filtering data on the RFID reader itself, though, as there may be a benefit to allowing seemingly useless data available for ongoing reporting and analysis.
Adding new reports—Once a solution is deployed, new insight can often be gathered by the data already being generated. Adding additional reports on the data, perhaps at an increased frequency or enhanced format, is often of benefit. ALE is one common form of reporting, but be aware that ALE is designed for EPC data formats. If you require reports on other tag formats (including ISO), or possibly from other device types (such as bar-code scanners), make sure you select a platform that provides this level of multi-protocol reporting.
All of these options will ultimately depend on the RFID technology you utilize for your implementation. Consider purchasing RFID middleware that provides flexibility in supported hardware devices, development options, communication protocols and reporting options. All of these lead to more options for expanding and integrating RFID into your enterprise.
Expanding Network Size and Breadth
RFID network growth can simply occur by purchasing, configuring and maintaining dedicated hardware for each new application. New hardware could include RFID readers or intelligent sensors to enable additional process automation. This strategy is most common for new applications requiring different levels of intelligence than existing applications. For example, an initial app might monitor dock doors with one set of readers, while the new application could use sensors and printers to automate a production line.
In addition to deployments requiring new types of hardware, the growth strategy of expanding the network with new hardware is acceptable for applications covering distinct zones or physical locations, where bringing in dedicated hardware is a necessity. RFID interference concerns arise when monitoring zones overlap, but the expansion of an existing network also introduces opportunities to increase its utilization.
Adding antennas to readers—RFID readers allow for multiple antennas to gather the data. This commonly ranges from two to eight antennas, four being the most common. This approach is frequently used to increase the read zone, but some middleware platforms allow for each antenna to be treated as a unique data-collection point.
Modifying tag types being monitored—Current second-generation readers can monitor EPC, ISO and other tag formats. Be sure to select a platform that allows for adding newly ratified tag specifications. Having this option in both your hardware and software environment provides the ability to choose the appropriate tag for each application.
Adopting a service-oriented architecture (SOA) to expose raw RFID data—A common interface over an SOA layer provides flexibility in how applications interface with the RFID network. Having one point of integration into your RFID network allows data to be delivered in multiple report formats. Be careful of filtering data on the RFID reader itself, though, as there may be a benefit to allowing seemingly useless data available for ongoing reporting and analysis.
Adding new reports—Once a solution is deployed, new insight can often be gathered by the data already being generated. Adding additional reports on the data, perhaps at an increased frequency or enhanced format, is often of benefit. ALE is one common form of reporting, but be aware that ALE is designed for EPC data formats. If you require reports on other tag formats (including ISO), or possibly from other device types (such as bar-code scanners), make sure you select a platform that provides this level of multi-protocol reporting.
All of these options will ultimately depend on the RFID technology you utilize for your implementation. Consider purchasing RFID middleware that provides flexibility in supported hardware devices, development options, communication protocols and reporting options. All of these lead to more options for expanding and integrating RFID into your enterprise.
Expanding Network Size and Breadth
RFID network growth can simply occur by purchasing, configuring and maintaining dedicated hardware for each new application. New hardware could include RFID readers or intelligent sensors to enable additional process automation. This strategy is most common for new applications requiring different levels of intelligence than existing applications. For example, an initial app might monitor dock doors with one set of readers, while the new application could use sensors and printers to automate a production line.
In addition to deployments requiring new types of hardware, the growth strategy of expanding the network with new hardware is acceptable for applications covering distinct zones or physical locations, where bringing in dedicated hardware is a necessity. RFID interference concerns arise when monitoring zones overlap, but the expansion of an existing network also introduces opportunities to increase its utilization.
