recent uhf technological advancements

Recent UHF Technological Advancements

Expanding the Power, Utility & Value of RFID

Victor Vega

8 October 2008

Public Information2

Agenda

Higgs-3™ Tag IC

Intelligent Tag Radar™ (ITR™)

UHF Technology Updates

Public Information3

Higgs-3: The Next GenerationHiggs-3 extends Alien Gen 2 RFID leadership by delivering the best performance available in a UHFGen 2 IC as well as extendinguser memory and security features

Public Information4

Higgs-3: The Next Generation

Attribute Feature Application

Authentication• Unique 64 Bit TID• Factory Programmed

• Anti-Counterfeiting• Product Diversion

Security• 32 Bit R / W Passwords• Block Level Access

• Anti-Snooping• Public / Private Data

Memory• 512 Bits of User Memory• Extensible EPC Number

• Legacy Part Numbers• Chain of Custody

Interoperability• Conforms to EPC 1.2• Compatible & Interop.

• Works with G2 Readers

Sensitivity• 25% > Higgs-2• 50% > The Competition

• Difficult Materials• Smaller Tags

Price • Higgs-2 Parity • Any & All

Public Information5

EPC Number Extension vs. User Memory

EPC User Memory96-bits 512-bits

Proprietary Scheme User Memory480-bits 64-bits

SGTIN-198 User Memory208-bits 384-bits

Public Information6

Exemplary EPC UHF Gen 2 Data Structure

Typical 96- bit EPC Tag Structure

48 3 5 0614141 100734 203886Company PrefixCompany Prefix Serial NumberSerial NumberItem ReferenceItem ReferencePartitionPartitionFilterFilterHeader

Tag Identifier (TID) – Permanent Data

E2 00 3 412 0614 1411 0073 488664-bit Factory Programmed Unique ID64-bit Factory Programmed Unique IDIC ModelIC ModelGen 2 Tag IC MfgIC Mfg

9064 6431 2073 4836 0604 2471 9073…4883Extended User MemoryExtended User Memory 512-bits (64 Chars)

Public Information7

How Duplicate Tag ID’s Are AlleviatedTag #1: Authentic Tag

1111 2222 3333 4444 5555 666696-bit EPC ID96-bit EPC ID

E200 3411 3333 2222 1111 000096-bit Factory Programmed Unique TID96-bit Factory Programmed Unique TID

Tag #2: Attempted Duplicate Tag

1111 2222 3333 4444 5555 666696-bit EPC ID96-bit EPC ID

E200 3411 3333 2222 1111 000196-bit Factory Programmed Unique TID96-bit Factory Programmed Unique TID

Note: TID is Factory

Programmed and Unique

Public Information8

Block 8 (Bits 449-512)







Block 1 (Bits 1-64)

User Memory

USE

R M

EMO

RY

-BA

NK

3Viewing

PermissionsWrite

Permissions32-bitAccess Password

User Memory Security States

Public Information9

Higgs-3 Sensitivity

0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11

Competitive silicon range is 7m

Higgs-2 is 25% better at 8.75m

Higgs-3 is 50% better at 10.5m

Distance in meters

Public Information10

Agenda

Higgs-3™ Tag IC




Introducing Alien ITR™

The ability to determine not only the contents of a passive tag, but also…

Its relative location

Its relative direction

Its relative velocity

TM


ITR Enhances Foundation Capabilities

ITR enables users to:Singulate tagsDetect & measure tag motionDetermine direction of travel

ITR will:Open new sources of ROIDrive adoptionSolve fundamental RFID challenges


ITR Features

Is it approaching or receding?

Red shift / Blue shift (Doppler)

How strong is the tag Signal?RSSI

Is it moving? Relative speed?Velocity


ITR Functions

Moving L-R or R-L?Directionality

Which tag is which?Singulation

Which tag is moving?Motion


ITR Applications

Retail, asset trackingDirectionality

Manufacturing, baggageSingulation

Retail, theft control, asset trackingMotion


Motion

Enables tag filtering based upon relative velocity

Applicable toRetail merchandising

ex: DVD rack

Asset trackingCustomer Kiosks


Singulation

Enables reliable isolation and ordering of tags on conveyor systems

Applicable toCase linesPharmaceutical / item tagging Baggage handling

Antenna

Item of Interest

Field of View


Singulation: The Challenge:Isolating Tags on a Conveyor

Tag of Interest

Field of ViewAntenna

The reader detects tag at “top dead center”


ITR – Latest Addition to the Powerful Alien Reader Protocol

Intelligent Tag RadarWhere is the tag and how fast is it moving?

AutoMode – unattended operation triggered by external inputs Programmable, intelligent state machine

Extensive filtering and collection optionsInclusive and exclusive mask, time, antenna, velocity and signal strength

Configurable operating modesNotification – packaged, filtered tag dataStreaming – real time, unfiltered, high speedXML, ASCII, custom formats

Manageable, easy to useRecordable macros and loadable configuration profilesAuto-discovery, SNMP, push or pull firmware upgrades


ITR Provides New Data with Each Tag read

Examples of Alien Reader Protocol Tag Data Types

TAGID Tag id (no spaces)

TX Tx antenna

RX Rx antenna

DATE1 First read date

DATE2 Last read date

COUNT Reads/count

TIME1 First read time

TIME2 Last read time

FREQ Frequency

Examples of New Data Types

SPEED Tag speed, m/sec

RSSI Signal strength in arbitrary units

DIR Direction of travel: approaching, receding or stationary


ITR Enables New Filtering Capability

Can mask on speed, direction, and signal intensity

Examples:SpeedFilter = -3.1 3.1Shows only tags whose velocity less than 3.1 meters per second

RSSIFilter = 0 45000Shows only tags whose signal is between zero and 45,000


ITR: Setting ExpectationsITR is a powerful instrument

- More like a piano than music

It is not a Real Time Location, or GPS system – it works on the principal of relative vs. absolute position

ITR is geared to enhance performance of standard low cost enterprise-class readers

S/W is required to take action on the reader’s output

New algorithms are underway to increase the sampling rate, hence the population & accuracy


Limits of Physics and ProtocolThe reader can currently support about 30 velocity measurements per second

Best for either few tags, or slowly moving tagsExamples: conveyors, shelf readers, indoor assetsNot suitable for measuring velocity of hundreds of tags in pallets

The reader can report RSSI data with every Tag ID


How is ITR Delivered?Reader firmware

Software Developer’s KitNew API updateSample code for Directionality and Singulation (coming)Application notes (coming)


New Software Advancements Enable New Applications and Boost ROI

TM


Agenda

Higgs-3™ Tag IC




UHF Technology UpdatesSilicon

Authentication featuresExpanded memoryHigh sensitivity

TagsBetter performanceSmaller sizesNear & Far Field Coupling

ReadersPOEIntelligent Tag Radar


ALR-9650 Smart Antenna Quick-start RFID Solution

Integrated Antenna

Power Over Ethernet

Simple Interface

The ideal RFID solution for single-antenna systems reading moderate tag populations

Low system cost & small footprint


Pharmaceutical RFID MotivationsPedigree

~35 states considering legislationPatient Safety

Medical errors: ~$6BWorld wide deaths: ~195K/yr

Pharmaceutical Counterfeiting~$50B ($75B by 2010)

Channel DiversionInventory Management

Expiration / Out-of-StocksFDA EndorsementSample ManagementContainment / Reverse LogisticsSupply Chain ManagementPatient ComplianceMarketing / Sales


UHFRFID

ePedigree Options

HFRFID

Item Case / PalletUHFRFID

2-DData

Matrix

Rx


Accuracy. Convenience. Efficiency.

RFID(Post-Package Reads)

UHF RFID alleviates production flow restrictions & improves content accuracy by facilitating item reads within cases, without breaching the case seal.

RFID efficiencies are realized from the manufacturer to retailer at the item, case, & pallet level.

2D (Line-of-Sight)(Pre-Packaged Read Required)

In production, interrupted product flow is common (e.g. sample Q.A., divergent product, or exception handling).

Inaccurately accounted serialization, can result in mandatory product containment until disposition is fully resolved, thus potentially resulting in additional validation labor, costs, & retail supply deficiencies.


Viable Serialization OptionsRead / Write Restriction Provisions

Blister Packs

Single System

Infrastructure

Enhance Distribution Efficiencies

Adjacent to

Liquids

Pallet Level

Case Level

Item Level

Technology

UHF RFID

2D Data Matrix

HF RFID


UHF RFID Advantages

Case tag may contain CRC of random serialized item ID’s for further authentication

Global, open UHF G2 protocol simplifies options and assures multiple hardware, tag, & software sources

Viewing & / or programming provisions can be set to restrict data access to downstream trading partners

UTID alleviates duplication & provides additional level of authentication

Cases do not need to be opened by downstream partners to scan individual items within a case

Single system infrastructure reduces implementation complexity & cost

Tag data can be permanently locked

UHF RFID allows entire contents of case to be read after being packed


UHF RFID Advancements

Untrue. UHF systems are available in Near Field and Far Field

UHF RFID was only offered with Far Field Coupling

UHF tags can be made to use the blister foil as the antenna

UHF tags could not be used at the blister pack level

UHF tags are viable for 1ml vial applications at 9 x 12 mm

UHF tags were much too large

Untrue. Advancements such as Intelligent Tag Radar are available

UHF RFID could not be used where singulation was required

Latest developments demonstrate UHF RFID working adjacent to liquids

UHF tags could not be placed adjacent to liquids

UHF ADVANCEMENTSPREVIOUS HURDLES


Summary: UHF = Simplified Infrastructure

Liquids VialsBlister Packs Syringes

CasesPallets


Demo / Questions?


Solution Brief: RFID for Product Integrity


Solution Brief: RFID in Life Sciences

Thank You!

For additional information:

Website: www.alientechnology.com

recent uhf technological advancements

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