RFID News Roundup

Presented here are news announcements made during the past week by the following organizations: Kathrein Solutions; STMicroelectronics; Antenna Co.; FogHorn; Kerlink, SenRa; and Nova Mobile Systems.

Kathrein Solutions Offers RFID Reader for Precise Goods Detection

Kathrein Solutions has announced its ARU 8500 RFID reader, designed for complex logistics processes. The ARU 8500 reader comes with an integrated circular switch-beam antenna enabling precise detection of goods and their direction of movement. The reader allow companies to ensure that shipped goods and commodities are tracked at all times for industrial production or logistics processes, the firm reports. According to Kathrein, the device offers high processing capacity, fast reading capability and increased reading accuracy, even under difficult conditions.

The core function of the ARU 8500 is a circular switch-beam antenna that can be swiveled in three areas to track the direction of movement in a gantry or when goods pass through a gate. The pass-through area is divided into three zones, enabling the system to determine direction of movement. The solution can distinguish between transported goods that pass through all three reading zones and static readings that only take place in a single zone. Thus, only moved product are detected, enabling companies to identify the flow of goods, and to control and optimize production and logistics.

The ARU 8500 reader has a robust housing made of industry-standard aluminum injection mold, with a plastic hood for the circular switch-beam antenna. It comes with four LEDs, allowing for a visualization of an active antenna or a feedback of the read goods per antenna. The LEDs provide a signal that can be flexibly adjusted in terms of color, intensity and flashing frequency. The company says the reader can be integrated into existing IT and ERP systems using the CrossTalk AutoID software suite.

According to Kathrein, the device is suitable for registering goods movement in the industrial, logistics and retail sectors. This feature can be used at dock doors to detect products and their direction of movement, and as an anti-theft system to check whether items have been paid for when customers leave a store.