Tagged
KU technology hits marketplace
David McKinney/University Relations
The tiny chip in the KU-Tag can contain a wealth of information about a given product.
Radio frequency identification, or RFID, tag technology developed at KU will soon be in the marketplace, keeping track of everything from computers to retail supplies to valuable liquids.
The Information and Telecommunication Technology Center has signed an agreement with Kansas City-based Starport Technologies that grants Starport the right to manufacture and market the patent-pending RFID tags.
"KU has a mission to move innovations stemming from our research into the marketplace," said Jim Roberts, vice provost for research. "This license to Starport Technologies stems from ITTC researcher Dan Deavours' RFID research and is a tremendous example of the process. KU is pleased to partner with CEO Jeff Nedblake and Starport Technologies."
RFID identifies tagged items through radio communication between electronic readers and tags that contain data on microchips. RFID tags have advantages over bar codes in that they provide a large, unique identifier, they do not require line-of-sight to be read and multiple tags can be scanned simultaneously. Plus, RFID tags, specifically those that use industry standards and operate in ultra-high frequencies, can be read from more than 25 feet away. These capabilities and relatively low cost have spurred the wide adoption of RFID in supply chain management.
Typically when RFID tags are placed on or near metal or liquids, performance degrades to the point where tags are no longer usable. Metals and water interfere with the operation of the RFID tag antenna.
David McKinney/University Relations
Dan Deavours, ITTC research assistant professor, displays the KU-Tag, a radio frequency ID tag developed at KU that will be in the marketplace soon.
The KU-Tag is at its best when it's on metal.
"Some of our tags work better on metal than most other tags do in air," said Deavours, an ITTC research assistant professor and principal inventor of the KU-Tag. "We found that the few tags that had been designed for metal were big, bulky and didn't work well."
The KU-Tags also have the advantage of mobility, durability and can save time, labor and money. Readers for the tags can be placed on a forklift, which can read the tags on the products it moves. That data can be observed by a supply chain manager, showing where the product goes on its way through the chain. The tags are durable, able to maintain wear and tear from stacking of products and general use that could wear inferior systems out.
The tags can save time by eliminating the need for a person to scan a barcode every time a product is moved. They can also be reprogrammed thousands of times.
"Bar codes are basically free, but scanning them is not," Deavours said. "RFID isn't free, but scanning them can happen without any human intervention."
The KU-Tag has reported read ranges in excess of 30 feet, yet it is only a little thicker than a coin.
"The KU-Tag is another important tool in our expanding range of RFID solutions," said Nedblake, managing partner of Starport Technologies. "ITTC researchers found an innovative solution to address the metal/liquid problem, which is a common problem we keep hearing from customers. This technology will give our customers a variety of terrific new tools to manage their assets."
Starport will introduce two new RFID tags that leverage the KU technology and that will be particularly well suited for asset tracking applications where metal or liquids are involved. Commercial production quantities of the two products are expected to ship this month, and production samples of the products were available for inspection at RFID Journal Live, held April 30-May 2 in Orlando, Fla.
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