C1G2 standard revs up RFID
By Dan Oglebay and Charles Rice
Initiatives from retailers and the U.S. Department of Defense to launch passive radio frequency identification in the supply chain affect consumer, pharmaceutical and defense manufacturers. However, the lack of globally accepted standards and the limited functionality of current, proprietary, passive RFID technology, hinders wide-scale adoption.
To address these challenges, EPCglobal, the international RFID standards body, recently approved a standard called Class-1, Generation-2 (C1G2). The standard specifies the communications protocols between RFID tags and readers in the ultra-high frequency (UHF), or 860- to 960-MHz, range. Test quantities of C1G2 tags already are shipping, and production quantities of the tags will be available in the third quarter.
C1G2 creates a specification that is faster, more secure, globally recognized and, eventually, less expensive to deploy. It also provides a royalty-free framework toward which all major technology producers – including chip, reader, label, printer and software providers – can build. This will help drive adoption and bring down cost.
The standard already has been accepted in Europe and North America. China is expected to ratify the C1G2 standard by year-end.
C1G2 increases tag-read speeds to roughly 1,500 reads per second in the U.S. (600 reads per second in Europe), compared with 100 to 300 for current tags. Write speeds are twice as fast as those achievable with C1G2. This is especially critical because RFID is deployed within manufacturing lines and other high-speed environments. For example, a typical consumer-goods manufacturing line can move at 200 cases per minute and a pharmaceutical bottling line can move at 400 bottles per minute, both well beyond the write capability of current tags and readers.
For complete details on C1G2, please go to:
http://www.nwfusion.com/news/tech/2005/042505techupdate.html?nlt
Copyright © 2005 IDG Communications, Inc.