RFID For Dummies®

RFID For Dummies®

by Patrick J. Sweeney II
Released April 2005
Publisher(s): For Dummies
ISBN: 9780764579103

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Book description

  • Many companies have asked suppliers to begin using RFID (radio frequency identification) tags by 2006

  • RFID allows pallets and products to be scanned at a greater distance and with less effort than barcode scanning, offering superior supply-chain management efficiencies

  • This unique plain-English resource explains RFID and shows CIOs, warehouse managers, and supply-chain managers how to implement RFID tagging in products and deploy RFID scanning at a warehouse or distribution center

  • Covers the business case for RFID, pilot programs, timelines and strategies for site assessments and deployments, testing guidelines, privacy and regulatory issues, and more

Table of contents

  1. Title
  2. Contents
  3. Introduction
    1. About This Book
    2. Who This Book Is For
    3. You Don’t Need a Slide Rule and Pocket Protector to Use This Book
    4. How This Book Is Organized
    5. Icons Used in This Book
  4. Part I : Now That You Can Spell RFID, Here’s the Rest of the Story
    1. Chapter 1: Taking the Mystery out of RFID
      1. What Is RFID?
      2. Sizing Up the Benefits of RFID
      3. Mandates, Womendates, Blind Dates — Forcing Efficiency
      4. Calling All Physicists! Calling All Physicists!
      5. Finding Success with Four Ps in a Pod
      6. A Ride in the Time Machine
    2. Chapter 2: Auto-ID Technologies: Why RFID Is King of the Hill
      1. Planning an Auto-ID Strategy for the Times
      2. To EPC or Not to Be: Unraveling the Words, Words, Words of the Electronic Product Code
      3. Addressing Privacy Concerns
    3. Chapter 3: Making Basic Decisions about Your RFID System
      1. Midas Touch Points: Where RFID Impacts Your Organization
      2. What’s the Frequency, Kenneth?
      3. Speed, Accuracy, or Distance — Pick Two
      4. Now What about the Tags and Objects?
  5. Part II : Ride the Electromagnetic Wave: The Physics of RFID
    1. Chapter 4: What Makes Up an RFID Network
      1. Elements of a Basic RFID System
      2. Time to Make Some Waves — Electromagnetic Waves
    2. Chapter 5: Understanding How Technology Becomes a Working System
      1. Anatomy of a Passive Tag: Understanding How It Works and Choosing the Right One
      2. Tracking the Tags with a Reader
      3. Air in Her Face — Blowing Sweet Nothings
    3. Chapter 6: Seeing Different RFID Systems at Work
      1. Setting Up RFID Interrogation Zones
      2. From Ski Resorts to Airlines: Applying RFID in the Real World
  6. Part III : Fitting an RFID Application into Your World
    1. Chapter 7: Seeing the Invisible: The Site Assessment
      1. Planning for Your Site Assessment
      2. Measuring for AEN during Normal Operations (And Beyond)
      3. Testing to Plan Your RFID Installation
    2. Chapter 8: Testing One, Two, Three: Developing Your Own Lab
      1. To Lab or Not to Lab
      2. Beyond a Swanky White Lab Coat: The Tools You Need for Successful Testing
      3. Setting Up Your Lab
    3. Chapter 9: Tag, You’re It: Testing for Best Tag Design and Placement
      1. Ready, Set, Test!
      2. Looking at the Material Composition of the Items You’re Tagging
      3. Choosing a Tag to Test
      4. Testing Tags in an Applications Test Facility
      5. Frequency Response Characterization: Testing Tags with Physics
      6. Encoding and Applying Tags
      7. The Secrets of Read Success
    4. Chapter 10: Hooked on Phonics: Reader Testing, Selection, and Installation
      1. Choosing a Hand-held, Mobile, or Fixed-location Reader
      2. Reading between the Lines: Critical Buying Criteria
      3. Installing a Reader and Antennas
    5. Chapter 11: Middle Where? It’s Not Just about the Readers
      1. Filter, Smooth, Route: Understanding What You Need Middleware to Do
      2. Exploring Middleware Vendors and Their Offerings
      3. Piecing Together a Middleware Architecture
      4. Getting the Most from Your RFID Middleware
  7. Part IV : Raising the Beams for Your Network
    1. Chapter 12: From Pilot to Admiral: Deploying RFID Successfully
      1. Creating a Pilot Project Plan
      2. Factors for a Successful Pilot Test
      3. Moving from Pilot to Production
    2. Chapter 13: Getting Set to Administer and Maintain Your System
      1. Configuring and Setting Up Tag Readers
      2. Getting the Digits
      3. Applying Tags to Objects
      4. Sending Objects through Your Business
      5. School’s in Session — Training Your Staff
    3. Chapter 14: Ping-pong, the Tags Are Gone: How to Monitor Your RFID Network
      1. Why Monitor an RFID Station?
      2. Setting Up Two Types of Monitoring
      3. Checking That a Reader Is Active
      4. Measuring and Interpreting System Behavior
  8. Part V : How to Speak Bean Counter
    1. Chapter 15: Making the Business Case
      1. Finding the First-Round Draft Picks for Your RFID Team
      2. A Game Plan Is More Than Xs and Os — Use a Proven Methodology
    2. Chapter 16: Fitting RFID into Strategic Plans
      1. Just in Time to Justify: Overcoming Skepticism with Strategic Thinking
      2. Calculating ROI — A Tactical Approach to RFID
      3. Tag and You’re It: RFID as a Competitive Strategy
    3. Chapter 17: What to Look for When Considering Outsourcing
      1. Why Outsource Your RFID Network?
      2. Identifying and Avoiding the Risks
      3. Is Outsourcing Right for You?
      4. Finding the Perfect Match
      5. Sealing the Deal with an SLA
  9. Part VI : The Part of Tens
    1. Chapter 18: Ten (Or So) Equipment Vendors
      1. Alien Technology
      2. ACCU-SORT
      3. Applied Wireless Identifications (AWID)
      4. FOX IV Technologies
      5. Impinj
      6. Intermec Technologies
      7. MARKEM
      8. Symbol Technologies, Inc. (Formerly Matrics)
      9. ODIN technologies
      10. OMRON electronics
      11. SAMSys Technologies
      12. Texas Instruments (TI)
      13. ThingMagic
    2. Chapter 19: Ten Web Sites for Information on RFID
      1. RFID Journal Online
      2. EPCglobal
      3. IDTechEx
      4. RFID Solutions Online
      5. RFID Exchange
      6. RFID Update
      7. Auto-ID Labs
      8. Auto-ID Lab @ Adelaide
      9. The RFID Gazette
      10. UCLA’s RFID@WINMEC site
      11. Slashdot
    3. Chapter 20: Ten Tips from the Experts
      1. Chris Fennig, ODIN technologies
      2. Joe White, Symbol Technologies (Formerly Matrics, Inc.)
      3. Duncan McCollum, Computer Sciences Corporation (CSC)
      4. Dr. Daniel Engels, MIT Auto-ID Labs
      5. Dr. Patrick King, Michelin Tire Corporation
      6. Steve Kowalke, ACCU-SORT Systems
      7. Team Tag-IT, Texas Instruments
      8. Kevin MacDonald, Lead RFID Architect, Sun Microsystems
      9. Mark Nelson, Savi Technology
    4. Chapter 21: Ten (Or So) RFID Standards and Protocols
      1. EAN.UCC
      2. EPCglobal
      3. UCCnet
      4. ISO/IEC JT1/SC17
      5. ISO/IEC JTC1/SC31/WG4
      6. AIAG
      7. Container Shipments
  10. Appendix: Glossary of Electrical, Magnetic, and Other Scientific Terms

Product information

  • Title: RFID For Dummies®
  • Author(s): Patrick J. Sweeney II
  • Release date: April 2005
  • Publisher(s): For Dummies
  • ISBN: 9780764579103