Atlas RFID launches UAV RFID system to realize automatic asset inventory
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Engineering, procurement and construction company Bechtel recently tried a new driverless active RFID reader provided by Atlas RFID to automatically read inventory in warehouses and construction areas. The system installs a 433 MHz RFID reader on the chassis of the industrial drone, and attaches active RFID tags to the goods (such as pipelines stored outdoors).
Atlas RFID’s Jovix Material Readiness software is used to read and manage data, which includes the unique ID number of each tag and the GPS-based location of the tag within 10 meters. According to the company, the system can work with most standard industrial drones, and the collected data can be paired with the drone software to allow users to program the flight mode and use the patrol mode to fly.
Atlas RFID’s Jovix Material Readiness software
Many customers who use Jovix active RFID solutions and standard card readers need to read tags in some harsh environments. Some industrial plants are very large and have some heavy equipment. In some cases, tagged items are stacked together or installed on racks, making them inaccessible. Highly metallic environments can also cause interference to radio frequency signals. These companies usually use handheld or vehicle-mounted readers, and employees read the tag IDs of inventory items through the aisles or through storage and construction areas.
Last year, Atlas RFID began to develop a solution using drones. Drones have been widely used in construction sites and other industrial sites, and many companies use them to capture images in order to track work in progress. The company installed a card reader produced by Omni-ID on the bottom of the drone. The user can then program the device to fly in a specific pattern around the paddock or construction site.
Atlas RFID uses Omni-ID P400 tags to transmit data to the reader, and the reader uses GPS to determine the location of the tag, and the read data is forwarded to a cloud-based server via Wi-Fi or cellular network, Jovix The software platform manages this data and provides users with location information of the marked items on the map of the area.
The card reader can be powered by its own power supply or the drone’s built-in battery. The company’s vice president of product management, Daniel Bennion, explained that when the drone flies over an area, the card reader will read the unique ID of the tag on the asset.
Currently, Bechtel has used the Jovix system to track the location of approximately 20,000 assets, mainly the pipelines of LNG facilities. In the past, workers used vehicles and handheld readers to capture tag IDs while the vehicles were driving.
Jeff Burns, Atlas’ RFID product manager, said that in fact, drone readers usually provide an additional layer of data instead of completely eliminating traditional reading methods. He pointed out that the coexistence of traditional methods and drone reading is very meaningful, and drones will read information that cannot be read by traditional methods.
According to Subbu Nambi, vice president of hardware engineering at Atlas RFID, it currently takes 25 minutes for drones to complete an inventory of the project. Since the marked large heavy objects do not move frequently, the drone does not need to perform daily tasks.
Nambi said: “Users can determine the frequency of drone inventory according to actual needs, depending on the frequency of item movement.” He added that in some areas with frequent hurricane activities, construction sites and material storage locations will often be damaged. . Using drone RFID solutions can quickly determine the location of items.
Bennion said that although Bechtel is undergoing initial deployment at industrial construction sites, this drone-based product is also suitable for customers in other scenarios. Atlas RFID said that this product may be the first RFID-based UAV card reader, which is particularly suitable for companies that already use UAVs in the workplace. Bennion said: “This is the most exciting idea in five years. Putting RFID readers on drones is a very natural use.”
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