EPC Gen2 UHF RFID Standard v3 – What’s Changed and Tips for Hands-on Testing

Mar 04, 2024

About the author

I'm a long-term Voyantician and an Engineering Fellow at the Company with focus on RFID technology, new test methods, prototyping, and supporting technical design work. I've got 13+ years of versatile experience in RFID industry, and 19+ years overall working with sensors, electronics, and measurement technology.

Content

EPC Gen2 UHF RFID standard v3 update was recently published by GS1. The new version came with optimizations in the air interface and new commands aiming at saving time, improving accuracy, and making the inventory process more robust. In this blog, we’ll walk through some of the most significant changes in terms of inventory performance, and provide pointers on how to get started with testing and learning yourself.

More time (and power) for the chip initialization

The minimum carrier time before the first command has been increased from 1500us to 2500us. The change comes with a small compromise on total initialization time but also works for the benefit of chips which require more time to initialize. The delay is likely small enough to go unnoticed in most applications and the extra time should secure the proper initialization of all chips. Moreover, interrogator power-up is required to be faster (500us → 250us) with more allowance for undershoot and overshoot (+/-5% → -10/+20%) during the 1ms waveform settling period. The shorter rise time is unlikely to influence chip performance significantly and the greater allowance for overshoot opens up an interesting possibility to provide a short carrier level boost (1.58dB/1ms) as part of the field initialization. This kind of boost won’t change the active state operating voltage of the chip but might help them to further optimize their performance during initialization process, and ensure optimal performance of tags.

Fig. Interrogator power-up is required to be faster, but field strength is allowed to undershoot/overshoot by -10%/+20% during the 1ms waveform settling period. The total time before command was increased to 2,5ms. Source: https://ref.gs1.org/standards/gen2/3.0.0/

Field-strength adjustment filters out fringe tags

The third update on the air interface is to allow interrogators to perform field strength adjustment during Select, Challenge, Query, or QueryX commands in an attempt to prevent ghosting tags from slowing down the inventory process. Ghosting tags, also referred to as fringe tags, are tags that have such a low operating voltage, that they might get activated and respond to Query, but do not have enough energy to follow through the response to Acknowledge command. Such tags cannot be inventoried, but since they will reply to Queries, more iterations are required in the inventory process, and the time to complete the inventory cycle gets increased.

The interrogator performs the field adjustment by dropping the carrier level by 0-20% (0-1,93dB) for the duration of the command modulation. The level is adjusted down at least 500us (RF Adjust lead time) before the start of command and brought back up monotonically at the end of the command. Tags are required to tolerate such a waveform pattern and guarantee that the minimum power needed to complete the response to Acknowledge is not more than 1,93dB higher than the power needed to start replying to QueryX. In effect, with the field adjustment in use, the tags shouldn’t have enough power to respond to the adjusted Query/QueryX command unless they’re capable of replying to Acknowledge as well, which reduces the unnecessary overhead from the inventory process.

Fig. Field-adjust before Query/QueryX (upper) and after Query/QueryX/QyeryY (lower). Field-strength adjustment can be used to bring Query sensitivity closer to Ack sensitivity which may help reduce ghosting tags and improve inventory efficiency through the reduction of unnecessary iterations. Source: https://ref.gs1.org/standards/gen2/3.0.0/

New commands further improve filtering and allow simpler memory access

QueryX and QueryY, combine classic Select + Query commands in a single timed package. Unlike Select(s)+Query, they’re effectively packaging the whole series of Selects and the following Query into a single command frame. This blocks external readers from interfering with the filtering process and makes the inventory process more robust. It also prevents tags from participating if they only heard part of the QueryX/QueryY command frame. This could be the case if they’ve been moving in/out of the reader’s field of view during the inventory cycle. Lastly, the new commands come with optional configurations such as an option to choose whether the tag shall include EPC or TID into the ACK response (AckData), whether RN16 is protected with a checksum (ReplyCRC), and flexible filtering conditions: ≥, ≤, ≠, = (Comp). These parameters add flexibility to the inventory process and can be used to make the process more efficient.

Fig. QueryX/QueryY commands effectively package Select(s) + Query into a single command and provide new parameters for more efficient and robust inventory process. (click to enlarge image). Source: https://ref.gs1.org/standards/gen2/3.0.0/

ReadVar, is an alternative to Read (which also remains mandatory in the standard). The two are very close to each other, but the tag reply to ReadVar contains additional informative data. NumWords indicates number of words returned as part of the reply, MoreWords indicates the amount of data yet available in the memory to read beyond the read space, and there’s a parity bit computed over data transmitted (Parity). Overall, ReadVar command is more flexible in comparison to Read and makes tag memory access easier as the user doesn’t need to know the available memory size of the bank targeted.

Fig. ReadVar is a more flexible version of the classic Read command.
Source: https://ref.gs1.org/standards/gen2/3.0.0/

Use custom commands to test new protocol features

Tagformance Pro comes with an option to utilize user-defined custom commands in tag performance tests providing a practical means for testing some of the new Gen2 v3 features. Custom commands can be created using a standard text editor, imported to the software, and used in the performance test programs. For example, it’s possible to generate a custom Query command waveform with field adjustment and testing the effect on tag performance using Threshold sweep (see figures below). Furthermore, a custom command can also be combined with ISO 18000-63 inventory into a custom command sequence, which allows preparing e.g., ReadVar test command.

Fig. Custom command feature allows generating used-defined command waveforms which can be utilized in standard test programs, such as Threshold sweep. (Left) Normal Query waveform Query, (right) Query with field-strength adjustment and 500us RF adjust lead time.

Fig. Measurement example – Query threshold with and without field adjustment. Read sensitivity threshold provided as a reference to give an idea of difference of Query vs. Query+Ack sensitivities of the tag tested.

For more information on the updates discussed in this article and other important changes in the protocol, go to the new version of the protocol on GS1 official website. Of particular interest might also be Snapshot sensor reading procedures which were mainly mirrored from ISO-18000-63. Also, remember to check what’s new in the Tag data standard to stay current with the latest changes in the tag encoding.

Download – Example Custom Command Package ›

Presentation – Extend Tagformance Testing Capability with Custom Commands

Download a quick overview on Tagformance Pro Custom Commands feature including application examples.

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NRF 2024 Recap – Stores Are Morphing into Fulfillment Laboratories

Jan 25, 2024

About the author

Juho Partanen

"I enjoy seeing both Voyantic employees and our customers thrive. The grand majority of my time is invested in projects and initiatives that grow the RAIN RFID market in the long term. My remote office is on a patrol boat somewhere in the archipelago of Finland."

Content

I have visited NRF a half-dozen times, and know the challenge is the size of the exhibition: 1,000+ exhibitors, 35,000+ visitors spread over two gigantic halls at the Javits Center in New York. It’s easy to get overwhelmed and lost in there.

The three days spent at the show gave a fresh perspective into the forces that shape the future of retail. The angle I was specifically interested to learn more about is how the RAIN RFID market is evolving.

Lost and Found Buzzwords

Artificial Intelligence, AI, was The Buzzword, hands down. I saw less augmented reality on display than on the previous year and, surprisingly to me, sustainability was well hidden, practically non-existent. It serves to mention, that Digital Product Passport (DPP) was only highlighted on a couple of booths.

Grand Theme #1 – Loss Prevention

For the suppliers in the retail space, chargebacks are the elephant in the room that only a few have talked about in public, except for at the RVCF or GS1 events. For retailers as I gather, a similar pain point is loss prevention. Solutions and practices to address this area are very much rooted in the latest breed of inventory technologies, which lead to the ability to trace items and events, and ultimately in the data analysis that follows. I was specifically impressed with Sensormatic’s Shrink Analyzer.

The obvious 1st goal for everyone is to prevent loss in the first place, but without putting employees or store associates at risk. The second goal is to detect theft so that the inventory can be replenished without unnecessary delay. The third goal is to address the root cause of the issue. As heard from Joe Coll, Vice President Asset Protection Operations & Strategy at Macy’s, thanks to the advanced blend of inventory control, video surveillance, and other methods, retailers today are capable of serving air-tight cases of theft to law enforcement to study and prosecute.

All this is rooted in the ability to track inventory and events across stores and supply chains. In essence that requires item-level traceability, for which RAIN RFID is the dominant solution.

Grand Theme #2 – Consumer Experiences

The grand theme that many companies promoted was the increasing convenience of the consumer shopping experience. It builds on several factors: omni-channel sales, the right product selection on the shelves, associates that can focus on the customer, and fast self-checkout processes. Engagement and VIP-like experiences can be necessary add-ons, depending on the retailer’s market positioning.

Oddly, in a high-volume grocery business, product identification in checkout is still much reliant on barcodes. In lower-volume but higher product-value retail, product identification is more often based on RAIN RFID. As an example, the Amazon Just Walk Out concept has already been deployed at several stadium sports merchandise stores.

Interpretation of Themes

Putting past trends, such as omnichannel, BOPIS, and labor shortage, together with the new buzzwords, such as AI, loss prevention, and self-checkouts, leads me to think that traditional brick-and-mortar stores are becoming convenient fulfillment centers, where all events are being monitored and studied.

In a panel discussion with Levi’s, PacSun, and Nedap, Levi’s VP of Global Direct to Consumer, Kirsten L’Orange, noted her personal view, that RAIN RFID is enabling data mining in the stores! According to L’Orange, ”Omni-channel execution without RFID is not possible. […] The cost of RFID has come down tremendously.” Shirley Gao, CDIO at PacSun shared the benefits RFID has provided for PacSun: 30% from revenue uplift, 30% from savings in shipping costs, and 30% from shrink reduction.

I feel it’s cool to be able to state that stores are morphing into fulfillment laboratories.

It’s hard to imagine a laboratory without data. Going forward it may also become difficult to conceptualize a retailer without accurate inventory – almost the same as a consumer without a smartphone. As of today, I don’t see any other technology being able to provide similar transparency into supply chains and inventories as RAIN RFID does.

What’s in the Horizon

There are a few themes that I expect to come across in future NRF events: robots doing replenishment, item life cycle traceability, DPP, and sustainability. Inventory robots seem to be available already, but on-shelf replenishment requires additional robot capabilities. I expect that lifecycle traceability, DPP solutions, and the opportunities associated are going to hit EuroCIS already in 2024, and possibly NRF in 2026-2027.

Sustainability will also be everywhere, as our future on this planet practically depends on it. More sustainable practices, transparency, and traceability requirements hit the manufacturing, supply chain, distribution, and post-POS lifecycle of the product. Often the packaging and the practical recyclability of products will need to be re-invented. With that said, I am confident there are endless business opportunities for many stakeholders within the retail space. I wonder who are the first ones to ride that early wave in the US market?

Final take for those in the RAIN RFID industry – now is the time to review roadmaps to make sure our products and service offerings are aligned with these upcoming themes and requirements!

RAIN RFID is the key technology for item-level traceability.

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RAIN RFID Tag ICs – The Road to Configuration Words

Nov 21, 2023

About the author

Jesse Tuominen

I joined Voyantic during the birth of the RAIN technology and assumed the responsibilities of the CTO in 2009. My MSc level background is in electronics after which I made my PhD in the field of photonics. Currently, I work with new measurement methods, RF design, product prototypes, standards, protocols and IPR.

Content

Tag config memory – What is that? Is it a fifth memory bank? Having configuration words in tag memory is the new normal in the industry and it is slowly gaining importance and cannot be ignored any longer. How did we end up with config words and how can we embrace them instead? Let’s take a look.

Birth of Gen2

The core features and the operating principles of a RAIN tag IC have remained the same since the birth of the protocol in 2004 – The ability to wirelessly read and write memory contents, the ability to lock all or parts of the content from further edits by outsiders, and the ability to permanently disable the transponder when it has served its purpose. That was pretty much it and to a great extent, still is.

The memory was organized into four parts all with their special purpose. Also, in the air interface protocol, a total of two bits were reserved to specify which memory was to be selected, read, written, or locked.

Memory bank 00 is the “reserved memory” and it contains the 32-bit Kill password as its two first words and the 32-bit Access password for the following two words, four 16-bit words in total.
Memory bank 01 is the “EPC memory”. This is where the EPC code is stored. EPC code is the specified part and length of the memory that will be broadcasted in the inventory process. The two first words in the EPC code have a special function. The very first word has a precalculated error correction word, CRC, stored in it. The second word, referred to as the protocol control word, or PC-word, is an important one. It is a word broadcasted prior to the EPC code in inventory and has several single-bit flags to tell which features tag has activated, and what numbering system it might belong to. It also has a 5-bit L parameter to tell and set the length of the broadcasted part of the EPC code. In short, in the inventory process, the tag would give a reply consisting of PC+EPC+CRC all from this memory.
Memory bank 10 is the “TID memory”. This has all the unalterable records of the tag locked from the factory in the wafer state. In particular, it has MDID specifying the company that designed the IC and TMN specifying the exact IC type and version.
Memory bank 11, is the “user memory”. This is a memory dedicated for the user to write any other entries the application needs, and should contain no special words or bits for the protocol or IC operation. As only a few applications require this type of “disc space” and most applications work solely around the EPC code, most commodity tags don’t actually have any user memory. Manufacturing expensive non-volatile memory “just in case” is too expensive as it uses quite a lot of IC surface area.

Typical memory map and memory contents of the four memory banks when read with Tagformance Memory Management tool. The MDID+TMN reveal that this is the memory of a tag equipped with an older monza5 chip .

Rise and fall of the custom commands

Very soon after the very first wave of ICs had hit the market, the second wave of ICs from roughly 2010 and onward had several new features that were not considered in the original memory organization and protocol. However, the protocol had large RFU provisions for custom commands. So, each tag IC got their own set of special vendor and IC-specific commands to activate and control the new advanced features. The tag features were often clearly documented in datasheets and worked well. However, readers, their command sets, and UIs really struggled to keep up with new and specific firmware versions often needed. For practical matters, like controlling the privacy level of retail tags in this somewhat custom and vendor-specific way just didn’t work too well.

Gen2v2 to the rescue

In 2014, the protocol got a new version, the Gen2v2, which included many of the features added earlier as custom in a somewhat more standard way. The main topics that the new version touched were authentication, encryption, and user privileges. This cleaned the table a little, but still, using new commands to access new features was already found to not always be the easiest solution to adopt.

Configuration words

What happened nearly simultaneously with the release of Gen2v2 was that the control of these added features was slowly transferring from specific new commands to standard Select, Read, and Write commands just pointing to special memory locations. Every reader and reader UI already had filters and memory read functions enabled, so these could be “misused” to control tag settings. Specially formulated Select commands were used to trigger events like “record sensor reading” and “switch to temporary operating mode X”. Writing specific control bits changed settings like tag memory allocations and backscatter levels the state of which could be retained in memory from this point on and to be retained through power cycles.

Soon every manufacturer had their own “config memory bank” or “config word” hidden deep inside the already existing four banks with bits and parameters to be configured to tailor the tag functionality. The trouble was that each IC manufacturer placed the config memory in a different place with varying functionality. Also changing the settings is not always as easy as hailing the tag and writing, as special safety measures are often set in place.

In hindsight, It would have been great to have had a 5th memory bank for tag settings, but as there were just the two bits in each command to specify the memory bank, we were already kind of maxed out at four.

Vendor-specific implementations

Impinj

From roughly the R6 family onwards, Impinj has chosen to place the config word in the reserved memory bank, right after the two passwords at address 0x04. This location has been kept throughout the various R6, M700, and M800 families of ICs with the purpose of each bit being kept more or less similar. Some of the features that can be configured are read range reduction, autotune disable, unkillable mode, and memory split between EPC and User memories, and some inventory optimization modes. More complex ICs like the Monza X-8K have used several words deeper in the same reserved bank for even more settings. Care must be taken when setting the features as only some of the bits can be written, some need to be written from a secured state with a non-zero access password and some bits can only ever be changed once. As the protocol only allows full 16-bit words to be written, changing single bits needs to be done with care and optimally the whole config set on one single write event.

A common reason for changing tag configuration is to trade some of the maximum EPC length into user memory. For instance, the only difference between the M830 and M850 is a different split between the EPC and user memory sizes, and the swap can also be made through the tag configuration bits.

NXP

NXP on the other hand has chosen to primarily use the word at a word address 0x20 in the EPC memory for configuration starting form the Ucode G2iL family of ICs and through the G2iM, Ucode 7, Ucode 8, and Ucode 9. Available features vary from model to model, some of them touching on the topics of product flags, backscatter strength and curve type, parallel encoding, memory config selection, write power indicator, self-adjust settings, and memory checks. Some of the bits are action bits, meaning that selecting on those will trigger special features, some bits are permanent bits for configuring more permanent modes and some are purely indicator bits for reading current feature status. Changing some of the settings is careful work as some require a non-zero access password, then accessing the tag with that, then strictly using a mandatory Write command to perform a toggle-write on the bits that are wanted to be flipped.

*NXP Ucode9 has config bits to select from different backscatter responses which can be helpful to optimize for privacy, performance, or conformance.*

EM Microelectronic

EM Microelectronic has been known for their “more involved”, more advanced, and therefore also more complicated ICs hosting a variety of features, such as serial data interface, power outputs, sensoring, IO-pins, NFC+RAIN operation, TOTAL tag talks only modes, etc. These advanced settings often take several words of memory space for configuration in what EM refers to as “System memory” at the far end of the User memory bank.

Alien

Alien has a “Device configuration” often further up the TID memory bank. However, not many public datasheets are available describing the functionalities better. Most probably they are settings performed by the manufacturer and are not meant for the user or an encoding process to mess with. Anyhow, so far four manufacturers and four different memory banks have been chosen for config purposes.

Other manufacturers

With several dozens of Gen2 tag IC manufacturers in the game, there are too many to mention and not all distribute proper open datasheets to share all features in public. However, it seems that some of the newer players on the market have chosen to adopt one of the existing strategies, such as the Impinj Reserved memory word 0x04 for a comparable configuration. This might help existing readers support the newcomers when the location of the settings is the same.

Afterthoughts

There are several good aspects on this topic. First of all, for at least 90% of the customers, the initial settings are just fine. Also, with the two biggest RAIN IC providers on the market covering such a large market share, there nearly are two “standard” ways to control tag configurations. Furthermore, the Gen2v3 is just around the corner (more on that later), but it is not going to touch on the subjects typically controlled by the tag config bits. Unfortunate, that it will not clean this up, but then again fortunate, that it will not introduce even more ways to facilitate configurations that are bound to evolve faster than the protocol versions ever will. The place where the spread and complexity of configuring RAIN tags is putting the most pressure is probably in the encoding of tags where each IC type needs to be recognized and catered for to serve the remaining sub 10% of cases. If your software or UI is not recognizing the IC types, then the datasheet is your friend in deciphering the tag configuration options.

A personal plea to all the RAIN IC manufacturers out there: Please keep the datasheets publicly available to your customers and solutions providers. Also, luckily we are today talking about small single-bit differences in tag configs, as RAIN stands technologically relatively united and nowhere near as spread out and as complicated a disorder as the 13.56MHz playground that NFC is trying to unite and clean up. Let’s continue keeping RAIN united.

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Why Label RF Quality Matters – Excellence in RFID

Aug 23, 2023

About the author

Hannele Koutsoukou

I work as a Marketing Manager at Voyantic. I have been working in B2B marketing for over a decade, first in the Wi-Fi industry and now with RFID. My job is to make sure our target audience knows how Voyantic can help them to excel in RFID.

Content

Summary

Bad RFID tag production quality = unacceptable variance in tags’ sensitivity = inconsistent performance / read ranges = unreliable RFID system performance = unhappy customers = bad for business
Quality can only be checked with professional RFID testing and quality control systems
Voyantic can help you improve design and manufacturing quality

Voyantic has published a lot of content about RFID technology, the market, and quality testing practicalities. But I wanted to understand what quality really means in RFID. And why should label converters and tag manufacturers care? Read on to find out what I learned.

Framework of RFID Tag Quality

The quality of RFID tags and labels boils down to RF performance – how consistent is the performance compared to the RFID tag specifications? RF quality cannot be seen with the human eye. Nor can the RF performance of a smart label or inlay be checked with any camera, x-ray, or machine vision. The quality can only be checked with RF (radio frequency) measurement system.

(Note: The other aspect of RFID tag quality, that will not be covered in this post, is tag data content. Learn more about tag data and encoding here: https://landing.voyantic.com/webinar-rain-rfid-encoding-for-barcode-professionals)

With that in mind, the following framework describes the levels of defining smart label RF quality, from design quality to documented production quality control:

Design Quality means fit-for-purpose
RFID tags are designed for different use cases and applications. Good quality design means that the tag has the required performance and durability for the intended use case, taking form factor and unit cost into consideration as well. In practice, performance translates into readability and read range of the tag in the environment it was designed for: from how far the tag can be read, and from which angles, what type of items is it a good fit for?
Tags can be functional but not-fit-for-purpose
Taking a simple approach, the functionality of the tag can be checked with any reader – if the tag ID can be read, it is a functional tag. Sadly, this approach does not reveal aspects of quality, or if the tag meets the requirements or not.

Consider an analogy to a tag functionality test from the automotive sector: at the end of a car factory line, someone only looks at and listens to the cars: “I see a car and hear the engine – Quality check ok!”
RFID tester verifies that tags meet the specifications
A proper quality test measures the RF performance of the tag, preferably on the production line. Voyantic’s Tagsurance 3 RFID production quality control system checks the tags’ performance against pre-set criteria. The system gives a pass/fail result based on the requirements for each RFID tag passing through the system.
Knowing the production variance is the key to improving your process
Quality testing also reveals the variance in the tested tags’ performance. The variation in the tags’ sensitivity in practice means the differences in the tags’ read range. Tag sensitivity is the measure of how much power is needed to wake up a tag. Variance is inherent to mass production – manufactured tags are never perfectly identical. Quality requirements set the acceptable variance limits for the tags’ sensitivity, ensuring they meet requirements for consistent performance, i.e., consistent readability of the tags.

Knowing the variance is essential for internal development: for discovering good practices, and making comparisons – comparing machines, production teams, materials, settings, and so on.
Customers expect proof of quality
The highest level is to be able to prove the quality in detail. A professional quality control solution automatically records a log of all tests with the tag’s unique codes along the log data. This record can be used to prove the quality of the production batch and to prove the quality of each individual tag.

Testing in RFID inlay and label production is required to verify the produced tags meet the designed sensitivity.

Why Quality Matters…

…for the RFID system end-users?

Variation in sensitivity causes the readability of the tags to vary. Differences in tags’ read ranges lead to missed readings, and ultimately, decreased reliability of the whole RFID system. High variation in tag sensitivity also indicates variation in durability – some tags may last longer than others. End users will not be happy to see the reliability of the RFID system decrease.

Customers expect consistency and for each tag to perform according to its datasheet information. As customers’ knowledge and experience of RFID technology increases, they also expect a documented quality program and, in some cases, require documented proof of quality from the tag supplier, and even compliance with a quality standard.

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…for manufacturing?

Quality management is the bedrock of RFID inlay and label manufacturing. A complete RFID quality control system gives visibility into the production process to catch production line issues early on before more tags start to fail, thus reducing waste and improving yield.

The statistical quality data also enables comparing machines, production lines, and shifts. Good practices can be adopted, and poor performance can be addressed, improving the overall efficiency of production.

… for management?

A company’s top management typically focuses on the long-term growth and profitability of the company. High-quality products contribute to customer satisfaction, thus helping to drive more recurring sales revenue. Higher production yields, reduced waste, and increased production efficiency also contribute to better margins.

The measured quality data is the basis for continuous operational improvements and long-term profitability. In practice, data enables optimizing investments: Which machines and materials work the best, and where there is room for improvement?

The Cost of Bad Quality

As the industrial scale of a company increases, the importance of good quality and reliability gets to a whole new level. Two very typical use cases for RFID are inventory tracking and supply chain management. Big brands and retailers may have hundreds of millions of items tracked and traced with RAIN RFID throughout their supply chain and retailer networks. If you consider, for example, that 1 percent of the RFID tags used to track items do not work well, that doesn’t initially sound too bad. But when you are tracking hundreds of millions of items, 1 percent translates into millions of products being lost from inventory tracking and considered stolen, wasted, or otherwise unaccounted for.

Read more about the cost of bad quality: https://voyantic.com/blog/posts/analysis-of-the-cost-of-rfid-quality-and-how-not-to-lose-a-customer/

The Experts in RFID Testing and Quality Control

Voyantic’s core business is to measure the performance of RFID tags and inlays – to help our customers make sure every delivered tag works right, and enable engineers to make better products. Our vision is that every RFID tag and label have been tested and verified in the production process with our quality control system

Get in touch to see if we can help you with your RFID projects!

Learn more:

Best practices for RFID quality testing: https://voyantic.com/blog/posts/best-practices-for-rain-rfid-label-quality-testing/

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Announcing Voyantic, an Impinj Company

Apr 26, 2023

About the author

Jukka Voutilainen

I am the CEO and co-founder of Voyantic, a company that specializes in RFID test and measurement solutions. Before starting Voyantic in 2004, I worked as a researcher at the Helsinki University of Technology focusing on passive RFID sensing for moisture in building structures.

Content

I am happy to share with you that Voyantic is now part of the Impinj family!

Impinj has recently acquired ownership of Voyantic. We at Voyantic will continue our operations as a wholly owned subsidiary of Impinj with our current organization and management team. We are excited about the opportunities this creates for both of us. By joining forces, Impinj and Voyantic have even better opportunities to help companies to excel in RFID.

I am sure most readers of this blog are familiar with Impinj. Impinj is a leading RAIN RFID provider and Internet of Things pioneer. The Impinj platform uses RAIN RFID to deliver timely data about everyday things to business and consumer applications, enabling a boundless Internet of Things.

Voyantic, on the other hand, is known as an expert organization that provides test and measurement solutions to the RFID industry and academia. We will continue on this path with our existing products and services. And there will be more. Together with Impinj, we will have more opportunities to grow and strengthen our offering to the RAIN RFID industry.

I have known several people from Impinj for more than 15 years and always enjoyed working with them. I feel we share a similar culture of valuing expertise and achievement. In addition, we largely share the same customer base. It is our common goal that manufacturers all over the world design and manufacture high-quality RFID inlays and labels. I see that as a key for continued RAIN RFID adoption.

I am happy to answer any questions you may have about this news. We will also be attending several events in the upcoming weeks where you can meet Impinj and Voyantic representatives, including RFID Journal Live in Orlando and Shanghai IOTE in May, and the RAIN in Action event in Seattle in June.

The Voyantic team looks forward to the future as an Impinj company and continuing to help you to excel in RFID! For more information about the future of Impinj and Voyantic, see the Impinj blog for an update from Chris Diorio.

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Getting to Trillions of RAIN RFID Tagged Items

Feb 08, 2023

About the author

Juho Partanen

Content

While the annual manufacturing volumes of RAIN tags at over 30 Billion are indeed impressive, the potential is in Trillions. I dare to claim we are seriously underperforming!

Let’s have a look at how the RAIN market has evolved over the past 20 years, and what has been the driving force that has taken us from one era to another. In the end, I will highlight some of the eco-system challenges ahead, and how to tackle them.

The Era of Making it Work

When RAIN RFID technology was still in its infancy between 2004-2010, the whole thing looked and felt like a science project. I say “a thing” because it hardly was a profitable business for anyone. The RF performance of both the tags and readers was one central engineering issue. What made it worse still was the fact that most often reader and tag manufacturers were separate entities, which simply meant that collective learning was a slow and delicate process.

*Glimpses from the early “science project” days at Voyantic*.

The emergence of common test systems, practices, and language helped engineers collaborate and fix many of the early shortcomings of RFID technology. The ARC program was further established to bridge the end users over that death valley of RF performance and tag selection. The EPC global and Item Level RFID Initiative (ILRI) brought the end users together, streamlining for example the use of data carriers utilized in supply chains. As a result, the science project started to gain adoption across the retail industry in North America.

The Era of Collaboration

As the technology and market started maturing through 2010-2020, RF performance evolved into a lesser problem. In addition to the ARC program, vendors collectively learned about the marvels of RFID tagging performance through the GS1 TIPP guideline projects. Also, the end users expanded their collaboration in numerous ways, and I would gladly point out the ISO Tire RFID project as one successful example. The RAIN Alliance was established in 2014, and it gave experts a safe domain that facilitated collective learning and market promotion further still.

On the technology side, readers got different “modes” that help end users optimize the inventory strategy for various use cases. Also, the sensitivity of tag ICs went up through the roof. We also saw how the industrial-scale manufacturing technology in reel-to-reel processes secured the supply of RAIN labels. All this led to a situation, where everyone in the market recognize that RAIN RFID simply works. Where are the next challenges?

The Emerging Era of Super Scalability

According to the RAIN Market report 2022, the current inlay-based smart-label industry continues to grow 20-30 % per year. That forecast leads the RAIN industry to annual tagging volumes of 50 Billion by the end of 2025. However, the potential of RAIN is in trillions of tagged items per year! How to bridge this gap? Work is needed both on the supply and demand sides.

To super-scale up towards trillions of RAIN-tagged items, our eco-system needs to adopt new approaches to the supply side. As one example, we are already seeing embedded tagging taking place at various product manufacturing lines. In the long run, embedded tagging may, or may not, utilize traditional dipole-type inlays, that are manufactured in reel-to-reel processes.

*Embedded tags can be added to tires during the manufacturing process.*

The other side of scalability is that we need to make RAIN much easier to deploy – think of Wi-Fi, BLE, QR codes, or even NFC. RAIN gives items a digital identity, that will be utilized through the item’s life cycle. This future vision goes well beyond the retail industry.

As the item digital identities carry more and more information, data protection and data sharing between stakeholders require more attention. I count on industry-wide policies and standards to help stakeholders to agree on sustainable practices regarding data sharing, protection, and ownership.

As RAIN RFID Spreads, Read Reliability will be Challenged

As RAIN deployments scale, overlap with each other, and expand to new environments, read reliability will be challenged. Read reliability has several contributing factors and, fundamentally, a statistical nature: the shorter the time available for an inventory round, the greater the challenge is.

Contributing factors include data carrier structures, tagging quality, RF interference, and regulatory constraints. It is important to tackle all these factors early on. If we choose to ignore or under-resource such necessary housekeeping, I believe we will start seeing applications with timing constraints switch over to other technologies.

In all this, tagging quality is one of the most trivial variables to control. Data carriers are more challenging mainly because of the extensive and broad documentation involved with them. Fortunately, both GS1 and RAIN are increasing the awareness around sustainable numbering policies, and also providing documentation and material that is more easily digested.

Industrial Collaboration is the Key to Continued Success

Item numbering structures, RF interference, and regulatory constraints are eco-system-wide challenges, that require early mitigation. Simply said mitigation most definitely includes engineering work, but also implementation guidelines, regulatory advocacy, and an endless amount of training.

*Industry collaboration, learning, and networking at the 2022 Connections Summit in Helsinki. (Image by Ilkka Vuorinen)*

These eco-system challenges are typically bigger than individual companies can handle. That is why I believe industrial collaboration through the RAIN Alliance, GS1, and AIM plays such a pivotal role. If you’re in this industry for the long run, be sure to follow, support, and contribute to the collaborative efforts that take place within these different industrial associations.

*Voyantic is a member of the RAIN Alliance and AIM Global*.

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NRF 2023 Recap – Inventory Management is a Priority and Self-Service Increases

Jan 19, 2023

About the author

Juho Partanen

Content

After two years of idle time I attended the NRF Big Show in New York from 14th to 17th Jan 2023. Three full days of walking was definitely worth the effort. My takeaways from the event are as follows:

Liz Ann Sonders: GEL and demographics

The clarity and reasoning by which Liz Ann Sonders, the Chief Investment Strategist of Charles Schwab & Co., Inc., presented her views on the state of US markets and economy were unprecedented. I made two pages of notes and became her fan.

Her message in a nutshell as understood by me: the world has exited the era of cheap Goods, cheap Energy and cheap Labour (GEL). That change will also affect the balance of power between capital and labour. For the last 20 years, capital has had the advantage. Going forward, much of the power will transfer to labour.

Factors are numerous, and demographic development is an even stronger force than inflation or the rampart war in Europe. The outcome is that digitalization continues and supply chains will be more carefully managed than ever before.

Outlook of the retail market (Sonders cont.)

While consumer confidence has gone down, the savings rate has been high because of the fiscal stimulus during the pandemic. Due to the accrued excess savings, consumer spending still continues at a high level, but the notable change is the spending baton that is being passed from goods to services.

As a result, many retailers currently carry excessive inventory levels. The industry will work through that, but by now many have learned to be cautious against excess inventory.

Remember this driver (Sonders cont.)

The change in demographics has already shaped many industries in Asia and Europe. Automation and digitalization will increase, due to the increasing struggle to hire and retain the hands that do the manual work. The long-term driver to learn and remember therefore is labour shortage.

Observations from the exhibition floor

I saw more self-service check-out counters being promoted than in prior years. Additionally, the count of robot demonstrations impressed me. Robot applications range from warehouses to shop-floor replenishment, and from inventory scanning to customer service.

The increasing usage of automation obviously makes companies more resilient against labour shortage. It also helps in talent retention, as more time is spent on creative and complex tasks.

Outlook of the RAIN RFID market

(For simplicity, I will discard demand forecasting as it has little to do with RFID.)

Inventory control requires supply chain management, and today’s supply chain management leans on item-level traceability. For technology vendors, the welcome result is that the demand for RAIN RFID technology remains at a high level. What I also heard several label suppliers state is that after a few agonising years, the supply of RAIN RFID tag ICs is getting better. Lastly, I heard the adoption of this technology is finally taking off big time in the logistics industry.

Folks, we are in the right business.

Label-based tagging keeps on increasing

On a high level, several tagging approaches are available: sticker-type labels, hang tags, rugged tags and embedded tags. Labels and hang tags fulfil the scanning requirements of supply chains, and the scalable supplier ecosystem efficiently supports the approach.

I came to estimate that the yearly RFID labels production quantity is already enough to wrap the whole Javitz congress center with RFID labels for its outer surfaces.

At the NRF what I didn’t hear American retailers talk about was product life cycle traceability, digital product passport, and digital twin. They seem to be concepts of the future, which marks a major difference compared to European retailers. I am curious to see if EuroShop presents a different tone.

RFID applications closing in on the US consumers

Millions of American consumers that work in the supply chains already use RAIN RFID every day. At work, they have learned to appreciate the efficiency and convenience that RAIN brings. My question goes: when will they start requesting the same efficiency and convenience in managing their personal inventories and households?

I gather that the world is becoming ready for such a leap as more consumer-friendly RAIN RFID reader products are finally emerging. Sledge-type of readers, that attaches to your smartphone, have been in the market for years already. Recently more slick and pocket-sized alternatives have been launched, just have a look at the BlueBird VX500 and Unitech RP902. The former is a RAIN-enabled smartphone, and the latter device connects to Android and Apple phones wirelessly.

I believe these products are game-changing as they expand the usage of RAIN RFID well beyond the supply chains and point-of-sale. As the embedded and durable tagging of products increases in the coming years, I am sure consumers find delight and convenience in RFID also outside of their working hours.

Passive Bluetooth

Wiliot was already a familiar name from several prior industry events. Wiliot is an IOT platform that connects BLE-based sensors, “IoT Pixels” as Wiliot calls them. The sensors carry an ID and sensing capabilities. The sensors don’t require a battery, instead, they harvest energy from nearby transmitters, which makes them relatively cheap and small, practically stickers. Additional gateways pass the encrypted sensor data to the cloud.

The difference to RAIN in Wiliot is that the IoT Pixel data can only be accessed via cloud. Wiliot runs a SaaS business. The Bluetooth infrastructure and consumables are relatively cheap, and a Wiliot system is easy to set up.

Three additional findings from the exhibition floor are worth mentioning:

Another company Nexite also utilizes BLE technology and follows a similar SaaS business model
There is an emerging paper-thin ecosystem of suppliers that produce Wiliot labels.
I came across a Wiliot-enabled prototype printer.

In my assessment, passive Bluetooth is in its infancy the same way as RAIN RFID was 20 years ago. Technology itself is demonstrated to work, although practically the sensors cannot yet be read with smartphones. All in all, I remain curious to see how passive Bluetooth takes off.

Final thoughts

The NRF Big Show is overwhelming in its size and range of content. After three days at the exhibition and conference, I was left with a warm comforting view that the growth of the RAIN RFID market is set to accelerate. It is a very exciting business to be in.

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RAIN RFID for Location Tracking Applications – Webinar Recap

Jan 17, 2023

About the author

Hannele Koutsoukou

Content

RAIN RFID technology has been used for location-tracking applications for a long time. But the hype around IoT has given a new boost to companies exploring RAIN RFID’s suitability as a locating technology. In recent IoT tradeshows, our team has had several discussions about using RFID as an indoor locating (RTLS – Real Time Locating System) technology. So we decided to host a webinar to explore the topic further.

Watch the webinar on-demand

This post summarizes the various RFID-based locating approaches covered during the webinar. Check out the webinar recording to also hear case study examples of utilizing RAIN RFID in locating applications and combining RFID with other RTLS technologies. The webinar guest speakers came from Turck Vilant Systems and Kathrein Solutions.

RAIN RFID as Indoor Locating Technology

Reader-based Location

The most common way to establish a location of an item is to base it on the readers. When you have a fixed reader and you know the location of the reader, you can determine the approximate location of a tagged item based on the reader reporting the tag. The location of the item will be within the set reader zone. For many applications, this approach works, for example in sports race timing applications. The reader could be placed also on a doorway to detect movement in and out, providing the room-level location.

Readers at the finishing line detect when the runner’s tag crosses the line.

Tag-based Location

A reversed method for reader-based locating is to have tags in fixed locations and track the reader location based on the fixed tag positions. The benefit of this approach is that tags are cheap. It is feasible to put many tags along known paths, for example, in elevators, trains, conveyors, floor tiles, etc. When the reader passes and “sees” a tag, that’s where you place it on the map.

Tags at fixed locations reveal the reader’s location.

Locating Correct Items

Finding the location of a specific item, where something is, is a very common use case. For example, finding the right part in a warehouse or the right file in a large archive. A new product in the market that helps with this application is an LED tag. To find an item, a hand-held reader sends a select command to the item it is looking for. When a reader “finds” the item it is looking for, the LED on the tag lights up to visually aid the user to locate the item.

The other method is using a “Geiger mode” with a hand-held reader. A reader can be set to show a “getting warmer or getting colder” indication when the reader gets closer to or further away from the item of interest. A sound indication beeping more frequently when the item is closer is often used – hence the method is often labeled as “Geiger counter”.

Reference Location Tags

Another good and common method for locating is to place reference tags in fixed locations where items are stored, for example on shelves and tables, in rooms, and at doorways. When you are doing an inventory with a handheld reader, you are also reading the reference tag in addition to the tags on your items and can determine the location of the items based on the known reference tag location.

Phased Array

Phased array is a fairly new method for locating RFID tags. This technology has existed for decades, mostly in the radar business. Phased array is a type of antenna consisting of multiple small radiating elements within one antenna housing, where controlling the phase difference of the elements allows the transmit beam to be steered in the desired direction. This allows you to scan your environment in different directions to find the tagged items.

Overhead two-directional phased-array readers are becoming more popular. They allow estimating item locations with a single reader mounted on the ceiling, scanning left, right, back and front. The overhead readers work well when the items are big and the room is fairly empty. Shelves and furniture in the room causing reflections and echoes will have an effect on the accuracy.

Triangulation

Using two or more horizontal wall-placed scanning phased-array readers enables determining the location with triangulations. You could also determine the location with one phased-array antenna placed on the wall if you know the angle and the distance range to the item. This technique is still rare and relatively expensive.

Range-based triangulation is a more traditional approach, where two or more readers find the item and can estimate the distance of the item from the reader. The distance data can be used to calculate the location of the item. But estimating the distance with RFID is not that simple. Typically in RF, time of flight is used, but with small distances, the time differences are too small for it to work accurately. Using RSSI is also tricky since it only works in one way. If you get a very high RSSI, you know the item is very close. But if you get a low RSSI, the item can be anywhere, far away, or close.

Using directional antenna-based triangulation and range-based triangulation for determining the location.

Phase-based Ranging

Phase-based ranging is a technique using backscatter phase measurement. In this method, you pick a channel and get a reply from a tag. The reply always comes at a certain phase. When you take the next channel or move up in frequency, more wavelengths are going to fit in the path from the reader to the tag and back, so the phase will increase. When you go to a higher channel number, the phase goes up (see the below graph). The phase rate of change is relative to distance and can thus be used to calculate the distance of the tag. If the phase grows fast the tag is far away. If the phase grows slowly when you increase in frequency, the tag is much closer. Regional channel regulations cause challenges for this approach, however.

Inventory Robots

Using inventory robot technology for locating items is not very common yet, but it can be a good solution for doing inventory in large retail stores and warehouses, for example. The robot’s location can be tracked accurately with floorplans and rotary encoders, LIDAR, and other technologies. While the robot roams around tirelessly, its antennas can detect tagged items from hundreds of locations on its path. The accurate location of the items can be calculated from those data points in post-processing. This method is optimal when the items don’t move. Luckily the robots do not mind pulling an all-nighter, allowing the inventory rounds to be completed during the night.

In Practice – A Combination

Usually, a combination of methods is the best approach. One RFID tag can be located through any of the methods. Let’s use a hospital as an example:

It may be enough to know that a piece of equipment is in a specific patient room when in use: 🡪 gate readers.
Item stored outside of cabinet can be searched with handheld readers: 🡪 Geiger counter
In the entrance area items a triangulated for preventing stealing: 🡪 triangulation with RSSI and beam antennas

During the webinar, Peter Feldmann from Kathrein covered how a combination of RTLS and RFID technologies is used to locate forklifts in a warehouse.

When to use RAIN RFID as a location-tracking technology?

This post scratched the surface of the different approaches to utilizing RAIN RFID technology for location tracking. Whether RAIN RFID is suitable, as a complementary or main technology, for locating applications depends on the use case and requirements.

One of the clear benefits of RAIN RFID technology is that the tags are relatively low cost, coming in various forms and sizes, making the tagging of also lower-value and small form factor items feasible. One situation where it is smart to explore the potential of RAIN RFID for locating applications is when there is already a RAIN RFID system in place and the locating application could utilize the item data from existing tags and infrastructure.

If you are interested in learning more, watch the webinar recording.

Voyantic tools

Voyantic Tagformance system includes an Application Development Suite (ADS). The ADS software is an ideal tool for optimizing RAIN RFID locating systems.

The software package includes tools for determining forward and reverse link power margins with different locating approaches, a tool for optimizing antenna positions, and a tool for detecting phase shift, as well as tools for testing tag populations and interferences.

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Upper European RAIN RFID Frequency Band Increases Adoption

Nov 10, 2022

About the author

Juho Partanen

Content

How cool is NFC in that it simply works all over the globe: 13,56 MHz everywhere? How cool do you think it is, that RAIN RFID today enjoys the same: several reader channels between 902 and 928 MHz on all the continents!

Status up until 2018: two regulatory regions with no overlap

Traditionally, the end users and RAIN solution providers have accepted and adapted the fact, that in Europe RAIN deployments have been limited to operate at the 866-868 MHz range, also known as the ETSI range, where the four reader transmit channels are. The rest of the world utilized reader transmit channels somewhere between 902 and 928 MHz – the so-called FCC range.

The EU decided to harmonize the RAIN RFID band in 2018

After years of CEPT (short for European Conference of Postal and Telecommunications Administrations) technical studies and mounting pressure from the RAIN end users, the Commission Implementing Decision (EU) 2018/1538 specified three reader channels at 916,3 MHz, 917,5 MHz, and 918,7 MHz. The Commission also defined the implementation deadline as 1st February 2019 but acknowledged several exceptions for existing regional radio systems, such as military and railway deployments.

The picture above shows how well the European new RAIN RFID reader channels fit among the other global regulatory regions.

Status today: 902-928 MHz covered by a grand majority of countries!

As we study the RAIN RFID regulatory status document maintained by Mr. Craig Alan Repec of GS1 Global Office, out of the listed 81 countries with known status, 55 offer RAIN RFID reader channels between the band 902 – 928 MHz. Out of the CEPT 46 member counties, 25 have partial or full implementation for the upper European RAIN RFID channels, and that number is rising every year.

Performance benefits are significant

As one looks behind the numbers, you come to realize that specifically, the upper European band is wonderful news: more of everything!

*Comparison of lower and upper European RAIN RFID frequency channels*

“The upper European frequency band definitely offers dramatically more wiggle room for RAIN engineers to optimize system and component designs,” says Dr. Jesse Tuominen, the CTO RFID of Voyantic.

Business benefits

As most supply chains are global, it makes sense to keep the RAIN tagging specs at 860 – 930 MHz. This way tagging is responsive all around the globe, which adds simplicity to the deployments.

In certain applications, it might even make sense to narrow down the tagging specs to 902-928 MHz, as tagging and reader antennas can be further optimized for performance, footprint and, ultimately, cost. I believe this opportunity is especially interesting in applications, where there are severe space or area constraints for either the readers or the tagging.

What’s up with the slow adopters

Well, all I can say is that the RAIN RFID end users in Germany, the Netherlands, Croatia, Greece and a few other countries are in a totally unfair situation – they are outliers that remain limited to the lower European RAIN frequency bands for the time being.

*For future-proofing RAIN RFID deployments also in Germany, please prepare to upgrade systems to support the Upper ETSI frequency band.*

Having said that, I foresee that nuisance to eventually pass. My advice is to prepare to upgrade deployments as those reader channels become available later on. Practically that means requiring the deployments to be compatible with and upgradeable to the 915-917 MHz in the RAIN project specifications.

Bottom line: use the upper European reader channels and be appreciative of them!

The awareness around the global harmonized RAIN frequency band has been slim. However, numerous end users are embracing it. “Most of the main RAIN users in France have declared they are going to use the upper bandwidth for their deployment to get all benefits from this new frequency possibility”, says Hervé d´Halluin, Leader RFID & Traceability of Decathlon. “This represents tens of thousand of locations spread all over France.”

What about the appreciation? Regulatory advocacy is an area where industry stakeholders need to pull their ranks together. With the help of industrial associations, such as the RAIN Alliance, AIM and GS1, we’ve done just that. If you’re in the RAIN RFID business for the long run, make sure your company supports these associations by becoming their member, because regulatory work never ends.

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Consolidation in the RFID Industry – Part 1: Connections Summit 2022 Edition

Jun 10, 2022

About the author

Jukka Voutilainen

Content

Voyantic has been at the center of the RAIN RFID industry for the last 16 years. During that time, many new companies have been started, and many no longer exist. In addition, there have been some IPOs and acquisitions, but overall, the early years of RAIN RFID were pretty quiet on that front. But not anymore! During the last couple of years, a number of acquisitions have taken place. Usually, consolidation is a sign of maturity in the market as bigger players are establishing their foothold in the market.

I have been planning to blog about the latest acquisitions for a while, but it became quickly evident that there is just too much happening to be covered in one blog post. So where should I start? Well, why not close to home. Next week, on June 14-16, 2022, Voyantic is hosting the Helsinki Connections Summit together with Beontag, and Nordic ID, two perfect examples of recent acquisitions in the industry.

Beontag

The Helsinki Connections Summit was originally planned for the summer of 2020. Unfortunately, it was postponed twice because of the pandemic. Originally, one of the co-hosts was supposed to be Stora Enso, a publicly listed forest products company. They were relative newcomers in the RFID industry, known especially for their ECO RFID line of sustainable tags. Their RFID operations were based (where else but) in the RFID capital of the world, Tampere, Finland.

From Tampere comes also Confidex, a company best known for its industrial-grade RAIN RFID tags and labels, as well as contactless RFID tickets. Founded in 2005, they are an established and well-known player in the RAIN RFID industry.

Both Stora Enso’s RFID division and Confidex were acquired by Beontag in 2020 and 2022 respectively. Beontag is a Brazilian company – a rather new name in the business – but one that cannot have been missed by anyone following the industry. Lately, they have been the most active in the industry on the acquisition front, acquiring companies in Italy and France as well (but more about that in future blog posts).

Nordic ID – A Brady Business

Another host of the Connections Summit, Nordic ID, defines itself as Europe’s leading provider of item tracking and tracing solutions. Founded in 1986, Nordic ID is traditionally known for its hand terminals: first barcode scanning and then RAIN RFID. Lately, they have profiled themselves as both solutions and device provider. They are based in Salo, a town made famous by Nokia during its prime.

Nordic ID was listed in Nasdaq Helsinki First North in 2018 and and was acquired by Brady Corporation in 2021.

Final note

There is plenty of RFID expertise in Finland – and this blog post barely touched the surface! Why not come and witness it with your own eyes at the Connections Summit on June 14-16. Your hosts Beontag, Nordic ID, and Voyantic are looking forward to seeing you there!

Stay tuned for part 2 in the blog series! Part two will cover a couple of other acquisitions within the industry. But let’s keep it a secret for now. If you want to make sure you will not miss it, sign up to receive blog notifications to your email.

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