Radio Frequency Intelligent Devices

 

Portal Reality Check ^TM solution

 

Value Proposition Business solution

 

The Portal Reality Check solution will be used as a tool by an installer. Some of its benefits and features include the following:

• Provides integrators with a three-dimensional graphic view of the RFID interrogation read zone actually being covered by the system.
• Verifies the integrity of an RFID system by reporting the location of voids in the three dimensional radio frequency fields when the system is not able to read a tag.
• Allows ease in field contouring, lowering time spent on each RFID zone.
• Will lower time and price for RF field contouring and increase read rate accuracy.
• Can be used for passive and active tag systems.
• Will not interfere with the read zone.
• Can be used simultaneously with other systems at adjoining portal RF fields.
• Will allow an integrator to pick the most RF friendly read zone.
• Is easy to assemble, transport and light weight.
• Can test wide read zone using multi-pass test feature.
• Stores date for future reference of zone and equipment tested.

 

The successful incorporation of the Portal Reality Check solution within the business and installation process has numerous advantages for an integrator. Traditional approaches for assaying the site area to locate the ambient electromagnetic noise within an interrogation zone such as path loss contour mapping have four deficiencies.

• Long times required to perform thorough analyses.
• Test design and execution procedures that are markedly different from the design and operation of the production system.
• High degree of specialist knowledge to conduct the test.
• High cost of test equipment

 

The Portal Reality Check solution addresses each of these deficiencies. A typical portal antenna analysis can capture and graphically display thousands of signal strength correlated data points in the interrogation zone in less then one hour. The Portal Reality Check solution utilizes the installed portal equipment and commercially available tags to analyze the RF field. This ensures that the analysis results correlates to the actual performance of the portal. The Portal Reality Check solution can be operated by personnel with expertise comparable to that required to manage the operation of the portal. The Portal Reality Check solution was designed specifically for this purpose and is competitive in price to the cost of equipment required presently to conduct path loss contour map analysis, which includes a spectrum analyzer, an RF generator, an antenna to mimic the passive tag and a typical RF transmitting antenna such as those utilized in RFID portals.

With the nature of where RFID systems are being installed, the ambient electromagnetic noise is great. This is above the fact that when installing RFID in a logistical location numerous portals are installed side by side. This could potentially lead to a nightmare for the installer. Protocol and good business practice warrants field contouring prior to installation. Site survey and site assessment is the most critical part of a successful installation. The Portal Reality will take the guess work out of installation.