In their quest to implement a low cost solution to build an electronic base toll plaza, the Indian authorities turned to RFID technology to help them solve the problem. Seen in Invest India, Union Minister for Road Transport will opening India’s first electronic toll collection plaza which uses RFID technology. The toll plaza which is located in Chandimandir, Punchkula in north India will be reducing traffic congestion in the area. Motorists going through the toll do not have to slow down to make payment and since the system is fully automatic, all they have to do is to stick the reader on the windscreen and the system will do the rest.

During the installation of the RFID system to the car, the details of the vehicle and its classification will be recorded. This is to avoid any abuse of the RFID tags. Should there be any attempt of fraudulent behavior, the system will capture an image of vehicle in question and the picture be sent to the relevant authorities. The system will be controlled by a centralized system called the Central Toll Clearing House where the revenue collection will be centralized.

Disney’s theme parks maybe the happiest place on earth but they still need to keep a close eye on their bottom line. One of the ways Disney ensures that they keep their operating cost to the minimum is through using RFID tags to keep track of the thousands of costumes that are being worn by their staff. Reported in RFID Journal, Disney has installed  RFID tags on all of their costumes in their inventory in all their theme parks all over the world. As one would expect, Disney has about US$100 million worth of costumes in their global inventory. Therefore by implementing an RFID solution, they can automate many logistical steps needed in keeping track of the costumes.

When the system was first implemented, they reaped returns almost immediately. The accuracy of their inventory check grew by almost 15% to reach a 100% accuracy rate. There were also able to move personnel to other responsibilities as there no longer any need for a huger number of staff in their inventory procedures. Originally, Disney had to assign 25 workers to scan the bar codes of every costume when they had to do inventory count. This process would take a total of 9 to 12 hours and would also require a shutdown of operations in a particular costumes department. With the new RFID solution, 2 workers and 2 man hours are all it takes to complete the job, at the 100% accuracy rate. Disney can now certainly focus on making more people smile!

I blogged a couple of weeks back about a prototype washing machine that will allows interaction with humans via the use of RFID. This time, Panasonic has gone a step further to come up with a rice cooker that can help you out when you need a fresh recipe to spice up your dinners. Reported in PC World, they are about to push into the market a cooker which uses an RFID reader to store recipes and rice cooking settings online via Sony’s FeliCA touch cards. Sony’s touch card is widely used in Japan for  train passes to payments at shops.

Now, Panasonic is using the FeliCA in their SR-SX2 rice cookers. This is in line with their goal of producing a range of smart appliances that will bring the future home to the present. Users of these nifty rice cookers will be able to download an Android base app where they will able to store their recipes and cooking settings. According to Panasonic, this rice cooker represents their intermediate step in their quest to digitize the home space. They have launched their own very own broadband service which their devices communicate on. Therefore in the future they will no longer have to tap onto mobile networks for their wireless communications.

Join us at the RFID World Asia conference next month to hear more stories on the amazing uses of this technology!

Seen in RFID Journal, the use of RFID to keep track of items in the logistics delivery network is well documented and proven. Capitalising on this use of RFID,  sports teams in Germany are taking advantage of this to up their game!

RFID is helping a football team in Nuremberg to track their players to improve their performance. The RFID based technology is helping teams in the Nuremberg region to track the movements of both the ball and the players. This allows for greater analysis to be made on the players during training and during an actual game. The system called RedFIR, provided by the Fraunhofer Institute for Integrated Circuit has already been put through smaller scale phases with a small Irish rugby team. This implementation at  German football clubs represent a scaling up of the technology.

RedFIR requires the players to wear a battery powered RFID tags which is both small and unobtrusive. The tags automatically transfer all the data to a PC which calculates the information and churns out the data via their custom built programme. In addition, the system is versatile in that it is the answer to viable technology to solve debates about dubious goals. Football’s governing body, FIFA, has been in search for such a technology for a long time. Should this RedFIR be approved, it will be a major boost for both the Institute and RFID based technology as its implementation will be globalised.

Remember those  mornings where you scramble around the house frantically searching for the car keys and your wallet? As seen in the Gulf News, researchers in Dubai have come up with an ingenious solution to one of life’s more annoying problems. They observed that RFID technology is widely used to keep track of things, but this use is mainly confined to the manufacturing or logistics sectors. By importing this technology and re-interpreting it for consumer use, RFID is now set to take off in daily lives of consumers.

Developed by a team from the University of Wollongong in Dubai (UOWD), the product merges both RFID technology and the up and coming NFC in the form of a handbag. Calling it the intelligent purse or iPurse, the users with this device will be able to track their misplaced items with their hand phones via a signal emitted from the RFID tag in their purse. Also they have developed a way to synched RFID tagged items with their email. This allows, for example, your umbrella to send you an email telling you to take it out based on a weather update form your local meteorology service. This innovative consumer-centric solution has attracted a major multinational company looking to do a product launch on a wide scale basis. For more innovative uses of RFID, join us at the 9th annual RFID World Asia conference from 25th to 27th of April!

The implementation of these RFID tags would allow for the corporation to be up to date in their record keeping of the waste collection services which the offer. Perhaps more importantly for the households, the tags allow the corporation to handle complaints in a more prompt manner. The tags which will be called Maxenna will be connected to a central server located at the corporation’s headquarters. The service is set to be an all Indian affair as they have awarded the contract to a Bangalore based IT company who will oversee the implementation and operations of the system.

At RFID World Asia 2012, be inspired by how this new technology is bringing more efficiency and convenience to businesses. Contact me if you’re interested in learning more about this new technology which is reinventing businesses around the region.

Newer retailers can leverage on Item-Level RFID to start their businesses. This  technology gives better tracking and item count to generate more sales. Elimination of errors is also another advantage brought about by RFID technology in retail stores and this generates more realistic revenue reports for managers to plan for future sales. A small investment can definitely bring rapid growth to the business.

Join Joe Andraski, President and CEO at VICS at RFID World Asia 2012! Talk and network with Joe and other RFID professionals to gain insights on how the cost of RFID drops as the implementation increases and faster replenishment rates and supply chain efficiency can bring in more sales.