Radio Frequency Identification Technology for Logistics, Tagging and EPC

RFID, Fahrvergnugen-style

Wednesday, March 25, 2009

Following a successful one-year pilot program, Volkswagen Group is preparing to introduce RFID-enabled tracking to its logistics system. IBM is supplying the system.

The RFID system provides visibility throughout the Volkswagen logistics system, beginning at the shipping departments of parts suppliers. From there, RFID-tagged containers of parts can be tracked throughout transportation to Volkswagen facilities, and during storage, collection, and assembly. Emptied shipping containers are also tracked on the way to suppliers, to make sure they all reach their destination.


For the pilot program, around 3000 containers were tagged with passive RFID tags designed to avoid interference from the metal containers. Readers were installed at the entrance to manufacturing lines, along with mobile handheld and forklift-mounted scanners. The pilot program proved to Volkswagen that the RFID solution could be adopted system-wide at a low cost and with positive effects on logistics efficiency.

Volkswagen is now preparing to introduce the system at its central logistics hall, located at its major plant in Germany, and suppliers will phase in use of the tagged containers.

The Volkswagen solution uses IBM Global Technology Services’ RFID container management solution together with the IBM WebSphere Premises Server, an application-neutral RFID middleware product. Intermec RFID tags were used in the pilot program. [end] 

viaForensics revealed some interesting information about Google Wallet. While the system is generally viewed as secure it still does leave some personal data unencrypted. Regarding ID’s Gina Jordan spoke with Andrew Hoog, chief investigative officer at viaForensics, about the analysis the company did on the system. While Google made some changes to the software after the report was released, Hoog says more needs to be done. “There was a lot of information left on the device,” he says. “If somebody was trying to take over an identity, they could use this information to either pose as you or call you and act like they’re the credit card company and try to get you to release the additional information,” he adds.

read more »

Proclaiming its entrance into the RFID space, Honeywell introduced part of a new product portfolio designed to bring efficiency to the retail industry, the Optimus 5900 RFID mobile computer.

read more »

West Midlands is getting set to introduce an Oyster-style bus ticketing system that would enable passengers to easily transfer between services run by different bus operators.

read more »

Visa made waves in August when it unveiled a road map to move the U.S. to EMV and then again in January when the company said that the country’s deployment wouldn’t be chip and PIN. Stephanie Ericksen, head of Authentication Product Integration at Visa USA, talks to Regarding ID’s Gina Jordan about the move and why the U.S. will have a different solution than what other typically associate with EMV. “One thing that we’re trying to clarify is there are many countries around the world that have adopted EMV chip technology, but it’s not chip and PIN,” Ericksen says.

read more »

Revel, an entertainment resort and casino operating in Atlantic City, New Jersey, has selected the GIMS ultra-high frequency RFID uniform tracking system to control thousands of valuable garments worn by more than 5,800 resort staff members.

read more »

Leo InnoTech (LIT) and UPM RFID have carried out a large-scale item-level RFID implementation for a Chinese apparel company focusing primarily on warehouse logistics optimization.

read more »