Page 10 - Logistics News August 2016
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RFID
RFID software solutions
are evolving rapidly
By Scot Stelter, ChainLink Research
Under the influence of development in the Internet of Things, cloud computing and data
analytics, the way RFID value is delivered is evolving rapidly.
FOR SOME time now it has become apparent RFID-as-a-Service (RaaS)
that developments in the Internet of Things (IoT), RaaS has the same appeal as SaaS for small and
cloud computing and data analytics would bring medium-sized businesses. The capital investment
change to the RFID marketplace, and that RFID is minimised for the user, and the vendor can
technology and solution vendors who did not get absorb more of the technology risk.
on board would be left behind.
An example of a mature RaaS solution
provides secure cabinets, refrigerators and
freezers that store tagged, high-value inventory.
Vendors of medical devices, rare chemical
reagents and pharmaceuticals use these
enclosures to store consigned inventory at point-
of-demand. When the hospital employee takes
a medical device out of the enclosure, the RFID
subsystem communicates that to the cloud,
triggering replenishment and invoicing. This RaaS
solution takes advantage of economies of scale
and spares both the hospital and the device
vendor the need to install and maintain the
hardware.
Cloud-resident software RFID Data Analytics
Solution providers are rapidly migrating their Some remedial analytics might be possible with
software from on-premises servers to the cloud. handheld RFID, but the continuous reads from
For example, the installation of servers in every fixed infrastructure lead to a much richer flow of
outlet of a retail chain is a significant deployment data. Several RFID firms have demonstrated fixed
task that inflates costs for up-front capital and infrastructure hardware. These solutions maximise
ongoing maintenance. In retail, RFID solutions coverage by steering the beam around the space
vendors are offering their products via a shared or under the reader, reducing the number of physical
private Cloud, enabling retail employees to access readers required for a given area.
store data on loss prevention, inventory and traffic
via iPads and iPhones. One vendor, whose technology features
a central ‘Star Receiver’ surrounded by a
Software-as-a-Service (SaaS) constellation of e-nodes, talks about detecting
SaaS is attractive for small and medium-sized ‘pre-theft’ and other abstract events. Another
businesses that want to minimise up-front costs. offering includes exit gate readers that combine
Because of its shared-resource, multi-tenant traditional EAS and RFID in one package. Another
architecture, SaaS is inherently scalable and combines this with Traffic Intelligence, which
therefore less expensive for the vendor to deliver. uses video and other sensors to analyse traffic
As RFID migrates from the big chains to smaller patterns. Another software platform aims to link
operations, SaaS will become more common. ID data to information about tagged objects in the
cloud to enable solutions vendors to implement
services such as authentication, identification and
tracking.
These are only some of the early indications of
an emerging marketplace for RFID data analytics
that will develop rapidly. Users should consider
these trends when researching RFID solutions. •
8 August 2016 | Logistics News
