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Calif. Researchers Tag Cadavers, Body Parts
In cases in which a specimen is to be subdivided (as opposed to remaining whole throughout the time it is used for study), an additional RFID tag is issued to each separate part removed from the body, such as a section or organ. In the software, the unique ID encoded to each additional tag is associated both with the unique ID number assigned to the whole cadaver, and with a non-serialized ID representing the type of specimen it is. The tags are either sutured directly onto the removed body parts or, if that is impossible, permanently attached to the containers in which the specimens are stored.
The work environment within the anatomical services labs, where the tags are encoded and read, presents a number of challenges when it comes to transmitting and receiving radio frequency signals. Metal tends to reflect RF waves, and most work surfaces and storage areas in the lab are made of metal. What's more, most liquids are highly RF-absorbent, so the fact that the cadavers and body parts are composed largely of water also presents a challenge. Higher radio frequencies are more prone to these types of interference than lower ones.
WINMEC and Schmitt's team tested several different types of passive RFID tags for tracking the specimens, including ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) passive RFID tags compliant with the EPC Gen 2 standard. Due to interference from the metals and liquids, however, these tags did not perform well, so the group decided to employ low-frequency (LF) passive tags compliant with the ISO 11784 and 11785 standards. To read the tags, lab workers utilize a wand-shaped handheld RFID interrogator.
When each specimen—be it a whole cadaver or an individual part—reaches the end of its usefulness, it is disposed of through cremation. Rather than recollect and recycle the tags, Schmitt says, they are left on the specimens when they are cremated. This decision, she explains, was made because the tags are inexpensive, and because recollecting and reusing them would introduce the unlikely possibility of an error in the tracking system, since the tag identification number would be reintroduced to the software—albeit in association with a new specimen ID.
Today, the RFID system supports two main business processes for the UCLA lab: It is used to identify donations, and to automate the process of taking inventory of the specimens stored at the facility. Previously, donations were identified using hand-written tags, and inventory was performed by manually reading the tags. Now, staff members pass the reader wand over the tag attached to each donation, at close proximity, in order to collect the inventory data. This task is being performed on a monthly basis, and requires significantly less time than the process previously took, when inventory was counted manually.
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The work environment within the anatomical services labs, where the tags are encoded and read, presents a number of challenges when it comes to transmitting and receiving radio frequency signals. Metal tends to reflect RF waves, and most work surfaces and storage areas in the lab are made of metal. What's more, most liquids are highly RF-absorbent, so the fact that the cadavers and body parts are composed largely of water also presents a challenge. Higher radio frequencies are more prone to these types of interference than lower ones.
WINMEC and Schmitt's team tested several different types of passive RFID tags for tracking the specimens, including ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) passive RFID tags compliant with the EPC Gen 2 standard. Due to interference from the metals and liquids, however, these tags did not perform well, so the group decided to employ low-frequency (LF) passive tags compliant with the ISO 11784 and 11785 standards. To read the tags, lab workers utilize a wand-shaped handheld RFID interrogator.
When each specimen—be it a whole cadaver or an individual part—reaches the end of its usefulness, it is disposed of through cremation. Rather than recollect and recycle the tags, Schmitt says, they are left on the specimens when they are cremated. This decision, she explains, was made because the tags are inexpensive, and because recollecting and reusing them would introduce the unlikely possibility of an error in the tracking system, since the tag identification number would be reintroduced to the software—albeit in association with a new specimen ID.
Today, the RFID system supports two main business processes for the UCLA lab: It is used to identify donations, and to automate the process of taking inventory of the specimens stored at the facility. Previously, donations were identified using hand-written tags, and inventory was performed by manually reading the tags. Now, staff members pass the reader wand over the tag attached to each donation, at close proximity, in order to collect the inventory data. This task is being performed on a monthly basis, and requires significantly less time than the process previously took, when inventory was counted manually.
