June 5 – Orlando "Writing RFID Tags" Bob Brennan Technical Evangelist Integrated Manufacturing Systems, Inc.

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 2 Agenda Quick Definitions, Set Levels Tag Writing Issues Tag Writing Techniques Some Code Discussion

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 3 Software Direction Employ an open systems (non-proprietary) approach to software development providing developers with more choices Transition to a componentized, Service Oriented Architecture (SOA) development model SOA utilizes software components that can be used and re-used to quickly create applications and simplify integration

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 4 Business Components? Application Building Blocks Software component Each component addresses a well-defined set of business requirements Reusable Self contained (i.e. loosely coupled) Encapsulates “best practices”

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 5 Service Oriented Architecture Components assembled to form a complete application Combine with other developer components Combine with third party components Pick and choose components that fit the requirements at hand

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 6 Manufacturing Receiving Shipping WIP Replenishment Product Labeling & Tracking Inventory Management Work-in-Process Quality Assurance Labor Tracking Secure Access Time & Attendance Tool Crib Asset Tracking

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 7 Warehouse/Distribution Document Management Shipping Picking Cross-Docking Receiving Inventory Management Order Consolidation Forward Pick Replenishment Putaway

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 8 Complete Architecture R R R R RFID Middle -ware (ALE) Ship & Receive Warehouse Mgmt Factory PLCs EPC Info Services (EPCIS) Exchange with trading partners Management/Monitoring Infrastructure-centric Object Name Service (ONS)

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 9 EPC Global Goals 1. Uniquely identifying items (Electronic Product Code) 2. Detecting the presence and identity of items (RFID) 3. Passing the information across the network (EPC middleware) 4. EPC Backbone a. Finding information on the network (Object Name Service) b. Track item characteristics and movement (EPC Info. Service) c. Representing item characteristics and movements (PML)

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 10 RFID Event Processing Goals Insulate applications from high volume, “noisy” RFID event streams. Insulate applications from specifics of readers to allow reader replacement Process events on the edge to minimize load on back-end systems Automate generation of business events from low level events Store events to allow audit and analysis of performance of business processes

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 11 Simplified Approach R R Ship & Receive R R Warehouse Mgmt Exchange with trading partner’s corresponding app Application-centric - RFID data hard-wired to today’s apps - No insulation of app from infrastructure This is the focus of our talk today Simple Proof of concept that we can write a tag from OpenEdge™

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 12 Agenda Quick Definitions, Set Levels Tag Writing Issues Tag Writing Techniques Some Code Discussion

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 13 Write Issues What are the standards for writing? What are the tag level standards? How do I verify what I think I just wrote? How to communicate with hardware?

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 14 Standards for Writing/Interface At this time, there are no industry standards… There are common techniques and open proposals. Prediction: SOA point of view will win out.

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 15 EPC Tag Level Standards Globally unique object identifier = A License Plate Currently supports the following keys: GTIN Global Trade Item Number GIAI Global Individual Asset Identifier SSCC Serial Shipping Container Code GRAI Global Returnable Asset Identifier GLN Global Location Number NDC National Drug Code Designed to accommodate other keys such as: UID Unique Identifier) VIN Vehicle Identification Number

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 16 Verification Whole other topic…Quite Large. You must read what you just wrote Reactions at both the physical and logical level.

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 17 EPC Hdr. EPCMgr. ObjCls. Serial HEADER identifies the type of EPC number EPC MANAGER, is the company responsible for maintaining the Object Class and Serial Number The OBJECT CLASS is the class of the product, usually the stock- keeping unit or other object-grouping schema The SERIAL NUMBER is the unique object identifier

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 18 Pushing Past Compliance Practical Tag Memory G1 = bit bytes G2 = bit bytes

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 19 Agenda Quick Definitions, Set Levels Tag Writing Issues Tag Writing Techniques Some Code Discussion

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 20 Communicate with hardware? Generally Available Methods (As of April 05) 1. Serial Link & Equipment API 2. Web Service Based & Equipment API 3. Tag Writing Engine

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 21 Serial Connections Scaling Issues, One to One Connection Speed, distances, physics of the connection Communication Protocols Xon/Xoff Not Consistent with SOA Approach Hard from 4GL – but not impossible…

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 22 Web Services Approach The Web Service is responsible for talking to the interrogators. Scales pretty well Many to One Integration

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 23 Web Services Approach 4GL can communicate with a web service natively. SOA Compliant Architecture Look at some extension to the ALE as a logical place for writing standards to emerge.

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 24 Complete Architecture R R R R RFID Middle -ware (ALE) R&W Ship & Receive Warehouse Mgmt Factory PLCs EPC Info Services (EPCIS) Exchange with trading partners Management/Monitoring Infrastructure-centric Object Name Service (ONS)

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 25 Tag Writing Engines Extension of Label Making Services Complimentary technology to label printing Separation of data stream from the actual tag writing.

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 26 Tag Writing Engines GUI Design Tool to Generate Template 4GL code to collect the data. Generate a file with both the data and a few print server instructions Mail Merge type operation produces tag

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 27 Agenda Quick Definitions, Set Levels Tag Writing Issues Tag Writing Techniques Some Code Discussion

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 28 Demo

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 29 Agenda Quick Definitions, Set Levels Tag Writing Issues Tag Writing Techniques Some Code Discussion

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 30 Interesting Topics Standing Waves Cascading Tags Verification

June 5 – Orlando INNOV-07 – Writing RFID Tags 31 Questions/Comments/Discussion Thank You for Attending Bob Brennan Integrated Manufacturing Systems, Inc. (603)