RFID Automates Payments at Regina's Snow Dump

The Canadian city of Regina is using radio frequency identification technology to automatically bill companies that dispose of snow at its municipal snow storage facility. With the system, the city provides RFID stickers that can be attached to truck windshields so that RFID readers can identify each time a vehicle arrives to dump a load, enabling the city to bill the owner accordingly.

Man who invented smartcard tech reveals he gets no royalties

The St Andrews professor who spent 30 years developing the technology behind Oyster cards and other e-money smartcards says he doesn’t earn a penny in royalties. Jim Scott says the patents for the nano-memories he pioneered have expired.He was speaking as he received the UNESCO medal for contributions to nanoscience and nanotechnology in honour of his research on ferroelectric materials and devices.

UK consumers keen on NFC mobile payments

A quarter of UK consumers are making NFC mobile purchases or would like to do so in the future, research by Mastercard reveals, with the figure increasing to 45% for those aged 25 to 34. More than two in five are ready to give up carrying cash completely, with 40% attributing their reduced use of traditional currency to wider acceptance of contactless payments.

In terms of RFID tags, China has become the world's largest production base

As the IoT industry booms, the global RFID market has grown rapidly, with the market size exceeding USD10 billion in 2015. And this figure is expected to surpass USD17 billion in 2020. At present, the global RFID industry is mainly concentrated in European and American markets, where RFID technology has more mature applications, accounting for nearly 70% of the global total in 2015. In contrast, China is at the stage of RFID exploration and has no mature standards and technologies, thus leading to lower market penetration. In future, with improvements in RFID standards, technical breakthroughs, lower tag costs, as well as the advancement of smart IoT industry, the Chinese RFID market is expected to grow at an annual rate of around 20% in 2016-2020.

The development of the RFID industry hinges on the consummation of the whole industry chain. As a link in the entire industry chain that produces the highest profit margin, RFID chips are mainly monopolized by foreign companies like Alien Technology, NXP, and Freescale. Currently, China has mastered HF RFID chip technology, but still has a bigger gap with foreign countries in UHF and higher-frequency RFID chips.

In terms of RFID tags, China has become the world's largest production base, representing roughly over 70% of the world's total. In 2015, China's RFID market size approached RMB3 billion, 90% of which came from passive RFID. Comparatively, however, active RFID boasts long-distance identification, big data transmission, low transmitting power, and excellent reliability and compatibility, among others. Therefore, staring in 2004, active RFID market showed rapid growth, and a large number of enterprises such as Shanghai Super Ele&Tec, ZTE Intelligent IOT Technology, and Shenzhen Aerospace Innotech have already entered the market.

As for RFID readers, China has launched a series of products, and low-power read/write modules have been up to the level of foreign products of same kind. Moreover, China has made breakthroughs in high-power read-write modules and SoC. In future, RFID readers will develop towards mufti-function, multiple interfaces, modularization, miniaturization, as well as portable- and embedded-type.

US consumers ‘largely unfamiliar’ with contactless and mobile payments

Contactless payment systems remain largely unfamiliar to U.S. consumers despite a high level of satisfaction with the technology’s speed, convenience of ease-of-use. By contrast, adoption of contactless card payment is high in Australia and the U.K., but mobile payments remains limited, according to the results of a research study commissioned by NXP Semiconductors.

Only about 20% of U.S. consumers have used contactless payment systems such as Apple Pay, Samsung Pay and Android Pay to make retail purchases, according to the study, conducted by market research firm Creative Strategies Inc. By contrast, more than 85% of consumers in Australia and nearly 80% of consumers in the U.K. reported having used contactless payment systems in retail transactions.

A majority of U.S. consumers reported they would use contactless payment for over half their purchases if they knew that form of payment was supported, with 45-59 year olds being the age range to most often use contactless for every single transaction. In contrast, 30-44 year olds in Australia and the UK are the most likely to use contactless for every single purchase.

Global RFID bag tracking can save $3 billion by 2022

IATA and global IT provider SITA said the tracking rates of Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology could reduce the number of mishandled bags by up to 25% and save the air transport industry over $3 billion by 2022, according to a paper released Oct. 19 at the IATA World Passenger Symposium in Dubai, UAE. For the air transport industry, RFID technology enables airports, airlines and ground handlers to keep track of bags at every step of the journey and ensure the right bag is loaded onto the correct flight, the report stated, adding the technology supports IATA’s Resolution 753 that requires by 2018 airlines keep track of every item of baggage from start to finish.

Chicago mobile ticket app hits 1m downloads

The Ventra mobile ticketing app introduced by Chicago’s Metra commuter rail service in November 2015 has been downloaded more than one million times and used by passengers to pay for more than US$110m in fares. “The Ventra app truly transformed the way people across Chicago engage with transit each day,” says Matt Cole, president of Ventra app developer Cubic Transportation Systems.

Local tattoo artist implants RFID chip in student’s hand

Carlson is a freshman computer and electrical engineering double major at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He said he’s not sure how he found out about RFID chip implants, but the idea came to him through the biohacking community. Biohackers are people interested in technology implants that make life more convenient. Carlson said he saw a YouTube video of a man who had implanted a full circuit board in his arm. He had built an app to read it, and project medical information such as his body temperature. Carlson said the app could predict when the man would get sick. The board looked 3 to 4 inches long and blinked beneath the skin.

Live Beacon aims to be the simplest iBeacon device

A new product dubbed Live Beacon aims to be the simplest iBeacon device out there, making it easy for places like retail stores and museums to connect visitors with promotions or information via their smartphone. Those with a Live Beacon can update what it transmits via the cloud; those with the Live Beacon app, meanwhile, will get a notification when they get within 100ft or so of the device. That notification will take the visitors to an app, website, or video, depending on how the owner set it up.

Evry to offer NFC and HCE mobile payments with G&D

Norwegian financial services provider Evry is licensing Giesecke & Devrient’s (G&D) Convego CloudPay mobile payment solution to make NFC and host card emulation (HCE) mobile payment services available to its banking customers across the Nordic region. 'By combining its issuance solutions with our Convego CloudPay solution, Evry will be well positioned to offer versatile mobile payment services to its banking customers for a true tap and pay experience with high security,' says Edgar Salib, head of financial institutions at G&D.

Internet of Things companies are on notice; time to fix security

Winter is here. The Internet of Things (IoT) winter, that is. All those digital routers, DVRs, "smart" kitchen appliances and IP-enabled cameras you assumed were innocuous as they worked away in the background of your life are rising up like zombies at the behest of the Night's King of Game of Thrones.  And like the fictional, aforementioned zombie army, it seems there's little we can do to stop the next big distributed denial of service (DDoS) attack, fueled by the malware dubbed Mirai — a word that appropriately means "the future" in Japanese.

Pain but no gain for workers suffering with poorly designed barcode scanners

Logistics and delivery workers say the pressures of work and poorly designed mobile barcode scanners are affecting their health and productivity, according to latest research. 63% reported they suffered from wrist or arm aches and pains with 69% forced to take time off for an average of two and three quarter sick days in the past year – costing their employer £310 per person*. Repetitive Strain Injury (RSI) also affected 52% of the workforce with 78% of those affected having to take an average of three sick days in the past 12 months – costing the employer £338 per person*.

The Scanning Pain For No Gain report, undertaken by independent market research company Opinion Matters and commissioned by Panasonic Business, reported that 60% of workers from the delivery, warehouse and logistics industry felt their mobile barcode scanner device was only fairly effective or not effective at all.

Their biggest stress factors were the slow and cumbersome scanning process due to the device being used (32%), the time it took to scan packages (31%), hard to scan items (26%), delivery times being reduced (23%) and the number of packages to be scanned in a day (22%).

To compound the problem, workforces believed that scanning requirements were dramatically rising with the average worker saying they scanned 197 times a day with year-on-year growth estimated at 24%.

Australian banks call Apple’s NFC restriction 'completely baseless'

Apple’s claim that allowing access to the NFC technology within its iPhones would diminish the security of Apple Pay has been branded “completely baseless” by a group of four Australian banks, who are seeking greater powers of negotiation over the entry of third-party mobile wallets in the country. Bendigo and Adelaide Bank, Commonwealth Bank of Australia, National Australia Bank and Westpac Bank submitted their request for negotiation to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) in July, urging Apple to open access to the NFC technology within its handsets to let other mobile payment providers launch NFC mobile payment services on iPhone handsets.

FNB launches NFC mobile payments

Customers of First National Bank (FNB) can now make NFC mobile payments using the latest version of the financial institution’s mobile banking app. “A first in Africa, FNB Pay enables customers to quickly and conveniently purchase goods below R200 (US$14.46) without entering their card PIN,” FNB says. Users can add “any of their FNB cards” to FNB App 5.0 for use with the new feature.

Study shows growing European appetite for mobile payments

Some 54% of European consumers are using a mobile device to make payments for a range of activities in-store, in-app and online, compared to 18% at this time last year, Visa’s 2016 Digital Payments Study has revealed. Only 12% of respondents have never used these methods of purchasing and have no plans to do so, a drop from 38% in 2015. The study, based on the responses of more than 36,000 people in 19 European countries, also reveals that more than half of those surveyed (58%) have used contactless cards this year, up from 20% in 2015.

New RFID Standard for Healthcare Industry Introduced

AIM, the worldwide industry association for the automatic identification industry, providing unbiased information, educational resources and standards to providers and users of these technologies for nearly half a century, announced today the release today of Medical Electrical Equipment & System Electromagnetic Immunity Test for Exposure to RFID Readers, a new standard that provides specialized guidance on the testing of non-implantable medical devices to determine if they are immune to emissions from radio frequency identification (RFID) systems.

The standard provides medical device manufactures and end-users with guidance on how to evaluate their devices for immunity to emissions from radio frequency identification (RFID) systems.  The test procedures in this document are based on experimental results from several AIM members.  Test protocols are included for the major commercial implementations of RFID as standardized by ISO, including LF, HF, and UHF RFID.  Both active and passive ISO RFID standards are covered in this document.

Members of AIM’s Healthcare Initiative Work Group (HCI) were made aware of a need for a specialized standard from the interactions identified in the early 2000s between RFID systems and non-implantable medical devices.  An ISO technical report, ISO 20017 (ISO/IEC TR 20017:2011), was published in 2011 that provided information about interactions between RFID and implantable medical devices.  However, ISO 20017 does not provide any guidance for non-implantable medical devices.  The new standard developed by AIM provides guidance for non-implantable medical devices and how to test for immunity to emissions from RFID systems.   

EBT PrintPack's RFID Management and Label Launched in 1000 Clothing Chain Stores

By August 2016, EBT PrintPack Ltd. has successfully installed EBT RFID management and labels for 1000 clothing chain stores in Shanghai which improved their working efficiency.

Shanghai EBT, based on many years' accumulation of RFID technology and the application in the clothing industry, puts forward the UHF RFID technology as the core, combined with Internet technology, wireless communication technology and aiming to offer a one stop solution to help partners to maximize their benefit. The main purpose of the scheme is to use RFID long-distance read-write prevention and other security features, to help with warehouse inventory and selling statistics, to quickly find goods and VIP customers' management. It can also help with high efficiency operations to promote sales, to help customers optimize warehouse logistics operations and to implement distribution policies.
  

Top 5 Vendors in the Global RFID Blood Refrigerator and Freezer Market from 2016 to 2020: Technavio

Technavio has announced the top five leading vendors in their recent global RFID blood refrigerator and freezer market report. This research report also lists six other prominent vendors that are expected to impact the market during the forecast period.

The growing focus on epidemiology and translational science, along with the generation and preservation of biological samples (which includes variants of blood) for studies and experimentation, has increased the need for storage solutions that can extend the shelf life of blood.

Approximately 50% blood donations happen in high-income countries, which have only 20% of the global population. There is an emphasis on proper storage facilities to store, track, and monitor blood that is supplied or transported to countries that face a shortage of blood units, thereby requiring advanced refrigerating systems.

The global RFID blood refrigerator and freezer market is moderately concentrated with the presence of large and small-sized players. The competition among these players is intense. The market is growing rapidly with an increase in the requirement of blood rising from the growing number of diseases that require surgeries involving blood transfusions.

“The demand will be high in emerging countries, especially in India and China due to an increase in the number of diagnostic laboratories and hospitals as a result of largely unmet patient needs. These countries will constitute the fastest-growing market,” says Amber Chourasia, a lead lab equipment analyst from Technavio.

Product differentiation makes it imperative for vendors to distinguish their product and service offerings through a distinct functionality and unique value proposition. The end-users in the market consider factors such as machine cost, service and software cost, training cost, accessories cost, and maintenance cost before buying RFID storage solutions. Vendors are focusing on providing solutions with features such as consistent quality to reduce errors and improve patient safety, prevent counterfeit products, and improve patient flow management, productivity, and business process.

Macy's to RFID-Tag 100 Percent of Items

Speaking at RFID Journal's second annual RFID in Retail and Apparel conference and exhibition, held in New York City, Bill Connell, Macy's senior VP of logistics and operations, revealed that his company plans to have 100 percent of all items in every store tagged by the end of 2017. "We still have a lot of work to do with our suppliers to get that joint commitment to apply tags at source," Connell said. "But we are fully prepped and continue to expand [our use of RFID]. We are now moving into additional use cases that are enabled because of RFID and, equally important—because of the availability of accurate information—on a very quick basis."

East Coast Warehouse Tracks Shipping Containers via RFID

East Coast Warehouse & Distribution (ECW), a provider of logistics services, has reduced labor costs and boosted productivity via a radio frequency identification solution that tracks the locations of more than 1,000 shipping containers throughout its 60-acre yard. The solution, known as the Advanced Yard Management System, was provided by PINC Solutions and includes passive ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID tags attached to containers, as well as RFID readers installed on yard trucks (switchers), and cloud-based yard-management software, says Rafael Granato, PINC's marketing director.

Global Functional Printing Market: Expecting Worldwide Growth by 2024

The functional printing market is a research study which covers printing technologies in addition with functional inks employed for printing electronics. Multiple technologies used in the market include screen, inkjet, gravure, flexo and others. Various applications of functional printing include sensors, displays, lighting, batteries, photovoltaic, medical and RFID.

Demand for new low cost electronic products lead to the demand of functional printing globally. This is made possible with the introduction and development of new printing technologies and materials. Traditional printing techniques such as flexography, inkjet, gravure and screen have been developed and modified which made them capable of printing on a wide range of substrates with the use of functional inks. At present, the screen printing technique has highest share in functional printing market owing to its higher reliability. Screen printing is primarily used in the making of sensors and RFID antennas. In addition, functional printing market enjoys huge opportunity and is being used to manufacture RFID chips, sensors and OLED displays and so on.

Multiple substrates such as graphene are being developed for printed products. These materials are responsible for production of reliable and robust electronics. New ink such as graphene and other substrates are enabling the companies to adopt printed electronics technology with the use of functional printing. In addition, rising demand for displays, biosensors and RFID tags is driving the functional printing market. The current printing technologies are not specially planned for the purpose of functional printing. Although, now companies are bringing up new printing technologies especially designed for printing electronics.

Mist's Virtual Bluetooth Beacons Get a Try-out

Mobile and cloud-based technology startup Mist Systems has developed a solution that creates "virtual Bluetooth Low Energy (vBLE) beacons" by using software algorithms and steerable antennas to identify the location of a user's BLE-enabled mobile phone. The system features what Mist calls a Dynamic BLE Array, incorporated into a device that functions as multiple BLE beacons. The device, which the company refers to as a BLE access point, can typically cover a 2,500-square-foot area—which, according to Sudheer Matta, Mist's product VP, equates to the same amount of coverage provided by eight physical beacons in the same area.

In-depth research on global RFID blood refrigerator and freezer market

The global RFID blood refrigerator and freezer market is expected to grow at a CAGR of 22% during the period 2016-2020, according to a new research. RFID blood storage solutions include blood refrigerators and freezers that are useful in minimizing technical errors and monitoring of blood products. They provide efficient storage and accurate tracking of blood samples, thereby increasing operational efficiency. 

ScanSource Appoints New Presidents for Barcode, Networking and Security Segment

ScanSource, a wholesale distributor of technology products and solutions, announces new leadership for its Worldwide Barcode, Networking and Security segment with the appointment of two seasoned channel executives to the role of Worldwide co-president. Paul Constantine and Tony Sorrentino will provide strategic vision and leadership for the segment on a global basis.

QR code snafu places too many passengers on ANA plane

The transport ministry slapped All Nippon Airways Co. with a severe warning Tuesday after a plane pushed back for takeoff with a seat-less passenger standing in the aisle. The incident last month involved ANA Flight 256, a Boeing 777 service from Fukuoka to Tokyo’s Haneda airport.

All 405 passenger seats were full, and a boarding-pass error had put one too many people aboard, according to the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport and Tourism. A father and son checked in for the flight and went aboard using the same QR code by mistake.

Kohl’s launches QR code mobile payments feature across the US

Customers at US department store chain Kohl’s can now make purchases by scanning a QR code at the point of sale using Kohl’s Pay, a mobile payment feature that has been integrated into the retailer’s existing mobile app. The nationwide service allows “more than 25m active cardholders” to pay for purchases with their Kohl’s Charge card directly from a mobile phone.

Barcodes soon on e-tickets to verify fliers at Pune Airport

In a bid to curb people who try to sneak in flights with fake e-tickets, the Pune International Airport will soon introduce the bar code feature to legitimately verify the flier. The move comes in after the Central Industrial Security Force (CISF) has claimed a rise in the incidents of fliers with bogus tickets. According to a senior CISF officer, they nab one person every 10 days for sneaking in with a fake eticket across India. "It is the duty of CISF personnel to check e-tickets and verify the travellers by checking their identity cards.
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Simple RFID Door Lock System

Group entry hacks are a favorite for hacker social groups. Why use old fashioned keys when you can use newfangled electronic keys? If you are looking to build a simple RFID-based security system to secure your important stuff, this project from Resin.io is a good place to start. In it, [Joe Roberts] outlines the process of building a simple RFID-triggered mechanism for their office door.

The Black Tux integrates Fujitsu RFID

Formal wear rental leader, The Black Tux, has implemented Fujitsu’s new washable UHF RFID Fashion tag as well as Fujitsu’s rugged Linen tag to reduce garment processing time and improve order accuracy. Additionally, integrating RFID tracking into their order management process helps their customers get faster delivery of formal wear and accessories while reducing internal handling and administrative costs.

The Fujitsu RFID tags allow warehouse personnel to quickly and accurately configure an order with the precise item styles, colors, and sizes. Packed orders are then verified before shipping by reading the contents of the final shipping box without ever having to touch the items in the box. No more shipping the wrong color tie or 2 left shoes to a waiting customer. Returned orders are immediately scanned as soon as they are received so The Black Tux can provide fast and accurate accounting of returned items which reduces the chances of lost items due to inaccurate manual sorting and scanning with traditional bar code readers. Customer orders can be quickly closed and the need for unnecessary customer contact for lost items is eliminated.

The Fujitsu washable RFID tags are so small that they are virtually imperceptible when installed in fashion and formal wear. The new WT-A522L Fashion tag, which is Fujitsu’s thinnest tag, is made from transparent materials, allowing it to be sewn into any tie, sheer fabric, accessory, or inserted into shoes. The Fashion tag is home wash, dry-clean, and ironing safe. The rugged WT-A533 Linen tag is designed to survive hundreds of washings under very harsh industrial washing conditions.

Companies say IoT matters but don't agree how to secure it

A majority of enterprises say the internet of things is strategic to their business, but most still take a piecemeal approach to IoT security. Those results from a global IDC survey conducted in July and August reveal both the promise and the growing pains of IoT, a set of technologies that may help many industries but can’t simply be plugged in. The 27-country survey had more than 4,500 respondents, all from organizations with 100 or more employees.

CoPilot-RFID takes next step in driver false claim protection

Driver behavior management is taking the next step with the CoPilot-RFID, the AngelTrax windshield-mounted mobile DVR/camera combination now equipped with the capability to permanently embed the vehicle operator's identification into the vehicle's video records. With two integrated wide-angle lens cameras, the CoPilot-RFID is a solution for simultaneously surveilling oncoming traffic and in-cab activity, according to AngelTrax President and CEO Richie Howard.

Make QR codes cool again with this quirky tool

There’s no denying that QR codes are incredibly useful, but they’ve always been a bit too dull for my liking. The monochrome color palette feels too formal, and the lack of visible variation between different codes makes them appear extremely regimented. Recently, I stumbled upon an open-source project that’s dedicated to bringing a new lease of life to QR codes by letting you embellish them with an image, color, and even animation. They’re all very minor things, but collectively they create a much more personal code.

RFID compulsory for skyway users

Skyway O&M Corp. (SOMCO), the Malaysian operator of the Skyway, will require all public utility vehicles (PUVs) and trucks to  use radio frequency identification (RFID) stickers starting November. This is meant to eliminate the long queue of vehicles going in and out of the tollway which is the cause of  traffic buildup both on the elevated and at-grade sections of the Skyway. The RFID toll collection system, a cashless transaction already in place and used by mostly private vehicles, could greatly increase throughput time for trucks and public utility vehicles (PUVs) at toll plazas.

SML to Host RFID Pop-Up Retail Store

SML will host an RFID Pop-up Retail Store in New York City in conjunction with RFID Journal's RFID in Retail and Apparel conference and exhibition, which will be held on Oct. 6 at the Helen Mills Theater. Brand owners and retailers attending the event will have the opportunity to visit the pop-up store on Oct. 5-6 to see in action the latest RFID tags and hardware, as well as the company's Clarity software, currently deployed at more than 1,000 stores worldwide.

"Retailers and brand owners will learn all about RFID in retail at RFID Journal's conference, and will then get to see RFID in action at the SML RFID Pop-Up Retail Store," said Dean Frew, SML's CTO and senior VP of RFID solutions. "We will demonstrate RFID applications throughout the retail supply chain."

RFID in Retail and Apparel is an exclusive, invitation-only event for retailers and brand owners. The conference will feature case studies presented by end users already utilizing radio frequency identification, as well as technology companies showcasing their latest products.

The conference sessions will cover the four foundational use cases for RFID in retail: inventory accuracy, out-of-stocks, product location and loss detection. Attendees will also learn how RFID is being used to enhance the customer experience, cycle-counting strategies, conversion and loss prevention. The conference will help attendees determine the best approach for their needs, learn best practices from early adopters and find the right technology partners to move forward with deployment.

RFID Journal to Provide Education to Address Accelerating RFID Adoption in Aerospace, Defense

RFID Journal announced hat it will hold its RFID in Aerospace and Defense 2016 conference and exhibition on Oct. 20 at the Long Beach Convention Center, located in California. The one-day event will also feature fast-track RFID training on Oct. 19, provided by RFID4U. As news of RFID adoption continues to accelerate in these sectors, RFID in Aerospace and Defense aims to help companies comply with customer requirements and use the technology internally to achieve significant benefits.

NFC RFID Activates Israeli Digital-Entertainment Complex

Breeze Creative has developed Near Field Communication (NFC)-based technology for an Israel-based digital-entertainment park that enables visiting children and teens to operate the approximately 20 interactive games that the complex provides. At Mogo Park (part of the Oshiland shopping mall operated by Israeli real-estate firm Oshira), players wear a wristband, provided by RFID technology company Tadbik, that not only launches games, but also collects game scores, photographs and videos.

5 Best QR Code Reader Apps for Android

QR code or Quick response code is a well-known type of Matrix barcode found in both one or two-dimensional forms that were first coined by the Japanese Motor industry. This is a machine-readable optical label that has information coded within it about an item or link to a website. To store data, QR codes use four standardised encoding modes which are numeric, alphanumeric, byte/binary, and kanji or in some cases, extensions can also be used. Five of the Best QR Code Reader Apps for Android you can download from the Play Store.

Wireless Sensors Expected to Reach Nearly $7.7B by 2021

The global market for wireless sensor devices will grow from nearly $2.4 billion in 2016 to nearly $7.7 billion by 2021 with a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 26.7% for the period of 2016-2021. Information on parameters that can be measured by wireless sensor devices including temperature, pressure level, flow, chemical composition, biological characteristics, motion and position, surveillance and image, and humidity. The report provides analyses of end vertical applications including industrial installations, ecology and agriculture, logistics and transport, defense and surveillance, medicine, residential, automation, and energy management.

Health Risks and 5 Other Secrets Barcodes Can Tell You

The humble barcode has been a regular part of grocery store shopping since 1974, with the first ever product being scanned on June 26th of that year. Since then, they have become almost invisible, with some package designs finding ingenious ways to hide or dress up their somewhat garish appearance.
However, with smartphones and apps now becoming a part of our everyday lives, the importance of barcodes is changing. Now, instead of being something the store uses to track inventory, the code can be a great way to find out much more about the product itself. From secrets about the product's manufacturer, to allergy information and user reviews, here are six amazing things that barcodes can tell you.

Mid-range RFID reader rugged for industrial use

The Ha-VIS RF-R300 UHF RFID reader is a highly flexible unit which combines extremely robust construction for use in the toughest industrial environments with flexible modular software that allows it to be tailored to a wide range of applications. With its software virtualisation concept, the reader allows specific project and customer software to be installed alongside standard Harting software. The modular software means that the reader can support a range of communication protocols, and the architecture also makes it possible to create and support customer-specific variants.

RFID Still In Early Stages of Adoption by Waste Industry

Radio-frequency identification (RFID) technology systems are being integrated into waste haulers’ and municipalities’ customer relationship management (CRM) and billing system to improve customer service and billing accuracy. And that rate of adoption is likely to grow as RFID systems become less expensive and easier to deploy and maintain. “The future of RFID technology starts with the continuation of adoption and acceptance until it is the norm throughout the industry. RFID technology will also provide the foundation for additional measurable technologies,” says Eric Crippin, senior product manager with Cascade Cart Solutions based in Grand Rapids, Mich.

VarodaRent Uses RFID to Manage Rented Moving Equipment

For the past four years, VarodaRent, a Dutch company that provides containers and other moving equipment on a rental basis, has been using radio frequency identification technology to track the movements of its boxes, containers and other assets as they are automatically sent to customers and then returned. The company is now deploying the same RFID solution, provided by Belgian company Aucxis, to two more facilities at which its half-million assets will be tracked. The system consists of EPC Gen 2 passive ultrahigh-frequency (UHF) RFID tags, handheld readers and Aucxis Base Gates, each of which contains a fixed RFID reader with four 30-degree antennas.