Mar 08, 2017Fresno-based Community Regional Medical Center is utilizing RFID technology produced by TagMaster North America to help it achieve its goal of developing a safe and reliable parking-access system. According to TagMaster North America, the medical center was unhappy with its existing solution, and so it turned to the company, a specialist in long-range RFID technology, for help.
A previously installed RFID system had performed poorly, making it difficult for faculty, administrators and staff members to reliably gain access to their assigned lots without the need for a manual override of the barrier arms, according to Ali Khaksar, TagMaster North America's president. This caused significant traffic congestion and delayed employees from reporting to their assigned duty positions to care for patients within a reasonable amount of time.
TagMaster devised a system that would allow for quick and hands-free vehicle access for hospital personnel and other medical staff. Its solution makes use of the company's LR-3 reader, as well as its S1240 MarkTag MeM, an automated vehicle identification (AVI) 2.4 GHz battery-powered RFID tag that can be mounted to a vehicle's windshield via TagMaster's WinFix MeM holder, which is affixed via double-sided adhesive tape. When a vehicle approaches a parking lot's entrance, the reader attempts to interrogate the AVI tag; if valid, the tag's credentials are logged and the barrier arm opens. If not, the arm remains closed, effectively barring access to anyone without proper authorization.
The LR-3, which measures 8.9 inches by 5.6 inches by 2.0 inches, has a built-in antenna and is encased in a weather-proof plastic and aluminum housing. Due to its wide read range, the LR-3 can identify a vehicle from as far away as 18 feet. It has built-in red and green LEDs to provide a user with visual verification that a tag has been read. The MeM tag's battery has a life of up to five years, the company reports, and the tag itself, which measures 1.6 inches by 1.6 inches by 0.5 inch, is CE-certified according to Radio & Teleterminal Equipment (R&TTE) Directive 1999/5/EC Annex IV.
With TagMaster's solution, Khaksar says, drivers no longer need to stop, roll down their windows and enter a code or present a card. The system also eliminates the need for a human gatekeeper, he reports, while at the same time still providing security and greatly improving employee morale, health and well-being.
