Wave RFID Technology
What is WaveRFID Technology?
Overview
WaveRFID combines several modern but proven technologies to make the handling of different kinds of inventory fast and easy. The WaveRFID application suite is based on the SAAS (Software as a Service) principle, eliminating the need for special servers, tech gurus, or long and invasive downtimes. RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) technology allows our clients to access information about their inventory in a no touch environment. While you still need to be close (between 2 and 6 feet), you no longer have to be perfectly positioned to get a read on an item. We use an Android tag reader to make updating your equipment easy. We use SBCs (single board computers) in our portals to give you a reasonably priced but effective security solution.
SAAS (Software as a Service)
SAAS means that the software that you access is delivered to you from the cloud. The classic techy joke is that “the cloud” just means “someone else’s server” and it is basically true. We provide the servers that host your software and your data. We use one of the larger server providers with over 100,000 development teams as their clients and 12 data centers. They provide us with variable sized server deployments and the ability to build clusters and add additional capability as we all grow together. And though we like this provider, our software is designed so that we can move it in the future if that should become necessary.
Serving multiple clients requires a data structure called the apartment model. Our data structure is set up so that your data is in its own database, separate from other clients. This means that other clients cannot get to your information, just as you can’t get to theirs. However, we have a master database where we share non-proprietary information and images through a CDN (content delivery network). So you have the best combination of the security and the sharing worlds.
In the SAAS world of WaveRFID we take care of the small details that you CARE about, but don’t want to have to do yourself. We regularly backup your data so that, should there be a problem with the internet, you will be able to be restored easily. And should the restoration be needed, we’ll do it, not you.
You don’t have to do the upgrade to the newest version because we make sure that everyone is always on the latest version. Whatever version is current, with all of the available features, is what you will see in your office. And, because everyone is on the same version, we can easily answer any questions you might have. You get current consistency to your application without having to put in any extra effort.
Tags and Equipment
RFID tags come in several different formats and sizes. Active tags can be read from a very long distance but have batteries and are moderately expensive. BLE (bluetooth low energy) tags can be read from a very long distance but have batteries and are moderately expensive. NFC (near field communication) tags can only be read from a very short distance, but have no batteries and are cheap. Passive tags using the UHF frequency range can be read from a moderate distance and are cheap. While WaveRFID software can adapt to use any of the types as future requirements for our clients change, we are currently solving the in-office/store/surgery center inventory problem, so we are using UHF passive tags.
These tags read from approximately 6 feet, depending on the environment, which means that you can do an inventory by “walking the store”. Our optical clients have done an inventory audit on more than 1000 frames, for instance, in less than 7 minutes. This is as opposed to the the ½ day that it would normally take to read each frame using a standard bar code reader. It is also a useful distance for reading for security purposes, since most exit doors can be “covered” by one or more portals. The tags read through most materials, so tags attached to items placed in pockets, purses and boxes will still respond.
Multiple tags can be read at the same time which is needed for doing inventory but also makes transferring stock between locations easy, quick, and controlled. Put all of the tagged items into a box, scan the box and ship them out. On the receiving end, the location scans the box and stocks the shelves. If there is any “shrinkage” in the middle of the transfer, the software notes it immediately.
Each tag has a unique identifier, so you can track each individual item and all of the information about it. While you might have several assets of the same type, laptops for example, because of the individual identification number for each laptop you can know who you’ve assigned it to and where it is, its serial number, its maintenance history, its individual cost. Being able to look at items by type is what “normal” inventory does. With WaveRFID you have that, but can drill down further when you need to.
SBCs like Arduino, BeagleBoard, Raspberry Pi, and others give the ability to do more with our stationary readers. We program our portals to only respond when our tags go through, so that you have fewer “false alarms” from, say, library books or fashion jeans (yes, RFID tags are being included in your pants). We are building a presentation shelf so that a customer can place an item on the platform and see on a screen the marketing information that you’ve created. And the SBC means that the cost is dramatically lower and more attractive than attaching even the smallest laptop to the reader.
Our Android reader is what allows you to do your fast inventory. Being an Android device, similar to your Android phone, means that updating your software as we add more capability is as easy as visiting a website. And it uses your wifi to securely pass information from wherever you are reading, into the cloud, and to all of your locations, updating your database and informing everyone who has a need to know of the current status of your items.
In addition to the chosen technologies, we’ve also built in the ability for clients to assist each other without giving away any of their information or trade secrets. This network effect gives everyone an advantage.
Overhead Doorway Portal
