RFID shielding & absorbing

RFID

The acronym RFID stands for Radio Frequency Identification, in French: Identification par Radiofréquence. This technology is used to store and retrieve data remotely using metal tags, “RFID Tags”. These beacons, which can be glued or incorporated into products, react to radio waves and transmit information at a distance. This technology is increasingly replacing barcodes in retail, industry and logistics thanks to its tremendous efficiency.

In its early days, RFID technology was used by the British during World War II for military applications, in particular for the recognition of friendly planes. It was not until the 2000s that it became popular and is used globally throughout the world.

In the logistics sector, it participates in the traceability of products from the warehouse to the store. Then, it is transformed into an anti-theft system and a means of identifying products at the checkout. Today, it allows the marketing of communicating objects.

Popular, it is found today in many daily uses.

How RFID technology works:

At the heart of this technology, RFID readers emit radio frequencies intended to activate RFID chips or tags located in the surroundings, and read from a few centimeters to several hundred meters for the most efficient, thus making it possible to exchange information with them. .

The tags, which may or may not be rewritable, consist of an antenna, a thin silicon chip and an encapsulation. The chips are passive and rely on the energy of the RFID reader to function.

Practical, discreet and easy to set up, RFID technology is increasingly used as an alternative to less precise barcodes.

Now widespread throughout the world, it is mainly used to trace and identify objects.

RFID for retail and warehouse logistics

RFID in action generates a continuous flow of raw data (movements or changes in the state of an item) that is immediately used to update the database and, if necessary, trigger a request for action. This flow can be refined to extract key merchant data: rapid identification of bests and flops, proactive detection of problematic items (fitting or pricing), identification of winning item associations, etc.

All in-store and cross-channel. This data is actionable and creates value for all network stores and their website.

RFID makes it possible to know in real time the effective availability “for sale” of each item in each store and to be able to offer more online while reducing stock buffers.

It provides all the tools to create a network of “hub” stores capable of handling online orders by delivering advanced services inaccessible to Pure Players: e-reservation, Click & collect, express delivery.

Cross-readings in RFID

Reflective material

Preamble: There are two materials that prevent RFID waves from passing by reflecting them, metal and water.

RFID readers can modulate their reading powers and create a kind of “virtual shield”, using an algorithm of random precision and only under certain conditions, in order to read tags more or less close to each other. others who will never be able to deliver completely accurate information, a vital condition for accurate reading.

In order to maximize the continuous flow of raw data and have ultra-fine information, it is imperative, using physical shielding solutions:

  • Isolate the reserve or storage area from the area intended for sale accessible to the public.
  • By reading only the products in reserve without reading the products on the shelf and vice versa, the information will be even finer and more precise allowing almost not to miss any sale, to minimize as much as possible the search time for a product, whether it is in reserve, in the fitting room or behind the cash register. Operators know instantly if the product is available for sale and exactly where it is located within the store.
  • Isolate each connected fitting room without reading products from the adjoining cabin or the rest of the store for maximum customer experience in this small area.
  • Insulate the transfer, reception and shipping boxes of goods
  • Physically isolate the web picking areas.

 

In the warehouse, the shielding is used to delimit the reading zones:

  • Read only the incoming or outgoing pallets without reading the other products in the warehouse
  • Isolate the web picking area
  • Maximize the flow of goods and restocking at the warehouse level
  • Intelligently and quickly dispatch the products according to their tops & flops and their geographical areas (an item can sell very well in Lyon and very poorly in Bordeaux and vice versa)

 

The accuracy of information by zone is a capital issue in warehouses because, from the simplified management of inventories to the sharing of key information for monitoring activities, RFID technologies allow new growth levers unimaginable only yesterday.

Absorbent material

The material is composed of magnetic metal powder as an absorbent, plastic polymer rubber or resin as the matrix material, thanks to a specific process and even with a high density of magnetic flux.

In industry it is mainly used for small areas close to each other, for example drawers for glasses, and where the reflective shield is totally ineffective because bounce reading is not suitable for this kind of product.

Mainly used in RFID technology, It can widely be used in other anti-electromagnetic interference fields such as WPC, cellphone, camera and other electronic equipment, with the advantages of high magnetic conductivity, good absorption effect, light weight, good flexibility, environmental protection halogen-free.

With the absorbent material, the waves emitted by the reader are literally sucked by the compound towards a precise place.