rfid middleware

Copyright © 2003-2007 Rajit Gadh 1

RFID Middleware


RFID Middleware • What is it?

• One notion: “This is a new breed of software that sits between the RFID reader and conventional middleware. It facilitates communication between enterprise systems and a variety of automatic identification devices” Source – http: http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/articleview/858/1/82/

• UCLA middleware initiative: http://www.wireless.ucla.edu/rfid/winrfid/

• Reference Publication - http://winmec.ucla.edu/reports.asp On the creation of Automatic Identification and Data Capture infrastructure via RFID and other technologies, The Internet of Things: from RFID to the Next-Generation Pervasive Networked Systems. Lu Yan, Yan Zhang, Laurence T. Yang, Huansheng Ning (eds.),Auerbach Publications, Taylor & Francis Group, 24 pp., Xiaoyong Su, Chi-Cheng Chu, B. S. Prabhu, Rajit Gadh

Copyright © 2003-2007 Rajit Gadh

RFID Middleware for manufacturing and supply chain

• Heterogeneous requirement

• Highly distributed architecture

• Components:

– Messaging platform - its discussion in middleware– Rules-based language - Defining and executing – Connectors – RFID network creation

3


Functions performed• Allows use of data for a meaningful application

– Capture RFID data • Networking of readers

– Set up network– Remote control and monitoring of devices– Single data format for reader, tag and RFID data– Move data around– Capture movement of objects by sending data from one reader to

another• Allows multiple organizations to share the same

infrastructure

• Allows multiple protocols and standards to work together

• Filtering at edge of network– To reduce the amount of data generated due to multiple reads of tag


Middleware – Rules engine• Rules engine

– Involve Readers, Stations (may be combination of readers), Antennas, Tag id’s, Time of reading, data fields in database, location of reader, etc.

– E.g. If (Reader A has read Tag 121 between the hours of 1200 and 1300) THEN i. Lookup Product ID for Tag 121, ii. Inform XYZ = Supplier-of-Tag (121) of arrival of product ID, iii. Enter information in enterprise database, iv. Dispatch payment to XYZ.

– Not all of the rules will be executed at the same place. E.g. Reading is close to the hardware (edge of network), Lookup of Product ID would be closer to core (enterprise I.T. / database), etc.

– Data utilization via rules engines. Reference publication http://winmec.ucla.edu/reports.asp On the Utilization and Integration of RFID data into Enterprise Information Systems via WinRFID, DETC2007-34731, Computers in Engineering Conference, Sep 4-7, 2007, Las Vegas, NV. Xiaoyong Su, Chi-Cheng Chu, B.S. Prabhu, Rajit Gadh


Middleware - connectors

• Connectors to applications– Databases – most applications today store data

somewhere (secure) about status of product or item in question, location (or last location), product ID, etc. Such databases may not contain the Tag ID.

• Oracle• Sequel Server• IBM

– Supply Chain software• SAP• IBM• I2


RFID middleware benefits

• Allows data to be made available easily to the applications

• Allows data to be shared across multiple organizations, e.g., with your trading partners (e.g. Walmart and its suppliers)

• Reduces cost of development of applications – especially when new hardware and standards are created

• Allows various functions to be embedded so that application developers can focus on developing applications in a language they understand

• Abstracts reader specifics from the application developor

• Allows rules to be written that are specific to the business of the enterprise

• Rules can be interpreted on the server side or the edge of the network/client side

• Allows messaging services to be used for actionable items


Selecting RFID Middleware for an application

• Performance as it relates to requirements– Speed in actual terms– Time to relay data from point A to B– Time for filtering– Time for interpreting and executing the rules– Time to access queues at edge and in database– Time to write data into the database (can be slow when large amounts

of data are coming in)• Scalability - What is scalability? It is the ability of an

application to not degrade rapidly in performance when the data size goes up.– E.g. of non-scalable solution : n = no. of tags in the system, and queue

size for table lookup of Product ID from Tag ID = O(n3)


Selecting middleware

• Configurability– The ease with which the middleware can be

configured in different real-world settings. – Needs of different applications may be different

• Flexibility – E.g. Warehouse management – if does not have a large amount of data, then there may be no need for edge of network filtering.

• Customizability – E.g. Supply chain spanning several organizations – since data flows outside the boundaries of an organization, each organization would have to be able to set up its own security settings depending on what kind of data it has to export/import, etc.


Selecting Middleware

• Ease-of-use– User interface, API functions, etc. need to be friendly

for the end application developer to use.• Distributed Application Capability

– Application may require multiple sites that are linked– Mobile client versus stationary client

• Platform: Unix, Linux, .Net, Windows, Windows Mobile, etc.

• Design Language: Java, C/C++ and C#• Protocols: CORBA, COM+, SOAP, etc.


RFID middleware research and technology issues

• Architecture

• Data formats

• How to secure data – very important for some industries e.g. medical/defense/financial/security

• Rules engine – language, design, interfacing

• Interpreting of rules – speed, where they are executed

• Collaborative frameworks (upstream and downstream) – in supply chain

• R/W management – robustness in architecture

• Network management – connectivity tools

• Extendibility to new protocols - abstraction


General Middleware

• Conclusion


WinRFID Middleware

• Rajit Gadh


WinRFID

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Logistics

HF/LF/UHF EPC/ISO Horizontal framework Multiple Reader Multiple Tag protocols Abstracts R/T Manages RFID

networkReader/Tag Abstract Layer and Connectivity Layer

Data Gathering, Event Generation and Data Distribution Layer

Enterprise (Supply Chain) Applications Layer (Supply Chain, closed loop inventory tracking, asset tracking, warehousing,

security, check-out)

Business Rules Layer

Industry Specific Solutions

WINRFID Middleware


WinRFID: Allows scalable enterprise applications development


EPC Network

• What is the EPC Network?

• The EPC Network http://www.epcglobalinc.org/news/EPCglobal%20Network%20Final%209%2024%2004%20Final.pdf September 2004

• EPC – Electronic Product Code, based on RFID– Standardized numbering system that uniquely identifies objects– No information beyond the number is conveyed within the EPC

network– Middleware such as WinRFID reads and transmits the data to

the right location in the network (and the network itself can be managed by the middleware)


EPC Network

• Conveys real time (within the network)• Reports on location/status of objects

being tracked• Security is important and information

about the product is available through the EPC network to authorized users

• WinRFID is able to allow applications to tap into the data like getting data off a “hub”


EPC standards from EPC Global EPC Class Definition/Bits Programming

Class 0 "Read Only" passive tags, 64bitProgrammed as part of the tag

(semiconductor) manufacturing process

*Class 0+"Write-Once, Read-Many" version

of EPC Class 0 Programmed once by the customer

then locked

Class 1"Write-Once, Read-Many" passive

tags, 64 can go to 96 bitsProgrammed once by the customer

then locked

Class 1 - Gen2

Generation 2 is approved by EPC Global, Inc., 96 bits

Programmed once by the customer then locked

Class 2 Rewritable passive tags, 96 bits

Can be reprogrammed many timesClass 3Semi-passive tags (battery

powered), still no user data

Class 4 Active tags

Class 5 Readers N/A

Source – EPC GLOBAL


EPC Class 1, HF Example

• EPC - HF Class I, 13.56 MHZ

• 4 Fields in EPC

– a header, defining the variety of EPC among a number of possible structures

– a domain manager number which is effectively a manufacturer number (middleware such as WinRFID can help map the number to a company via an ONS)

– an object class which is equivalent to a product number

– a serial number


Varieties of EPC• The below table gives, for the four varieties of EPC™ so far defined,

the size, in bits, of each field. The table also indicates, for each variety, the leading bits, i.e. the most significant bits, of the header.

Source – Auto ID Center Tech Report, 2003


Slotting protocol • Reader sends Begin_round command, number of slots of each round is within the command.

• Tag receives the command, and moves status from ready to slotted-read. And it calculates at which slot it should reply based on a hash value.

• At particular slot, tag sends reply data.

• If reader does not receive reply during one slot, it sends close slot sequence command.

• Tag receives the command, if it’s in slotted-read mode and replies, then it moves to ready status. If it did reply, then it will advance its position.

rfid middleware

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