RTLS Combines Infrared and RFID

The IR signal will not penetrate walls, ceilings, floors or large objects inside a room, but it will bounce off any object in its path. Therefore, the tag can receive an IR transmission from an A700 mounted inside a room as long as it is not completely covered by opaque objects and is located within 20 feet of the transmitter. However, the tag will not receive the IR signals emitting from A700s mounted in adjacent rooms.

The M100-i tag measures 1.84 inches by 1.35 inches by 0.46 inch. It contains a motion sensor that, when the tag is stationary, turns off the built-in IR receiver and reduces the tag's beacon rate (the number of times per minute it transmits its RF signal). This conserves battery life when the tag is not in motion and, presumably the asset to which it is attached need be tracked. The M100-i's lithium CR2032 replaceable coin-cell battery has an expected operational life of four years.

The M100-I tag contains a motion sensor that turns off the built-in IR receiver when the tag is stationary, reducing the tag's beacon rate.

RF Code has developed a middleware layer that pulls asset and location data from the RF Code RFID receivers and can plot the goods on a facility's map. Resellers can use an application protocol interface to link this mapped data into their own RTLS software, or they can choose to take only the raw tag ID and room-location data from the receivers, pulling that data into their RTLS.

According to Neuwirth, Agility decided to integrate the RF Code M100-i and A700 Room Locator into its RTLS offering for a number of reasons. "We look at three things: the resolution that the hardware offers, the costs to achieve the highest resolution—because a system can be effective but not efficient—and the implementation requirements, such as how disruptive or complex the installation will be," he says. "We can't require RF experts be present to configure each piece of hardware. In terms of those three criteria, the RF Code solution is a relatively low-cost way to perform RTLS without a lot of engineering and disruption [to an end user's operations]."

The M100-i and A700 are available now, though RF Code sells its products only through vertical channel partners, who ultimately set the price for the goods. Still, Medford claims, "room-level visibility can be achieved for little more than $100 per room, in quantity." He adds that RF Code works with system integrators and resellers in many industries, and expects that the IR-RFID hardware and middleware it has developed will be deployed by businesses in a wide range of sectors, not just health care.