The hottest packexpo fully demonstrates RFID Appli

Pack Expo fully demonstrates RFID application technology

at Pack Expo held in Las Vegas on September, visitors will be able to learn about the latest RFID market trends in the packaging industry

pack Expo is hosted by the American Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Association (PMMI), and an RFID exhibition hall will be added from this year to comprehensively demonstrate radio frequency identification (RFID) technology applied to pallets, packaging, etc; The audience can also learn about RFID solutions in the field of anti-counterfeiting and authentication, as well as how to add RFID equipment to the traditional packaging line. Before the exhibition, the organizer PMMI made a brief introduction to the RFID technology to be exhibited

tag system

to make full use of RFID technology, RFID tag system must be fully integrated with other systems. Therefore, many suppliers suggest users to add RFID tag system directly to the assembly line, rather than labeling or outsourcing the process after packaging. At present, RFID tags are mostly combined with pressure-sensitive label systems, and the number of relevant technology suppliers is countless. For example, the auto colt III label equipment provided by njm/clj company provides RFID identification solutions for Oxycontin painkillers of Purdue pharma company. In order to achieve the expected output rate, this identification device adopts the pre installed Class 0 read-only label, which can read and verify all labels in real time; Substandard products will be removed from the packaging line

loveshaw's ls-600 label device (using 0.5 "x3.5" class 1 label) provides Kellogg with an effective solution. It is reported that this equipment is equipped with a reader installed on the conveyor belt to ensure the good performance of the applied label; Substandard labels are expelled or covered by qualified labels. If the performance of the label is good, the data contained in it will be transmitted to the inkjet coder and printed out for human reading; If the label data cannot be read, the package will not be coded when passing through the inkjet coding station, but will be rerouted to label again

if users want to encode before the packaging process, they can consider using online "encoder/label head" or online "encoder/printer/label head". Examples of the former include paragon pls-430 from Paragon and 110sr RFID models from auto lab; The exhibitors of the latter product include datamax, Sato, zebra technologies, Vernon hills and other companies

rfid tag devices usually need 0 Seconds to read, write and verify labels, so the speed of "encoder/coder/label head" has become an important factor affecting production efficiency in some production lines. The 5200rfid smart tag printing device of Web marking systems just demonstrates this operation mode of reading, writing and verification. It is reported that when the label is printed with text, bar code or image, the electronic data will be encoded and coexisted on the UHF RFID tag. After the coding information is verified by the system, it will be immediately pasted on the packing box or pallet during the transportation process. If the label cannot be recognized, it will be pulled away from the conveyor by the automatic arm. The system is labeled (5 "x 6") by means of tamp blow. Theoretically, most RFID devices can be connected to the printing/coding system, and can complete the labeling through air stickers or other ways, and can also automatically distinguish and drive out defective products

users can also consider upgrading the existing printing equipment and adding RFID coding function. For example, the 400 type printing and labeling equipment of njm/cli company can encode, verify and affix RFID tags to the packaging for more than three years, with a speed of 30 boxes per minute; But the price is also much higher than ordinary ones, and the company's other series of auto colt III pressure-sensitive label equipment is applied to sticking bottles, with a speed of 250 bottles per minute

complete assembly

in order to simplify the automation process of RFID (radio frequency identification) tag application, many Pack Expo exhibitors are integrating all components required for RFID tag coding, printing and labeling into a "turnkey" system. The investment of this kind of system is not only relatively low, but also, generally speaking, the whole system can be started and operated in a few days

the fast tag RFID tag application system developed by Videojet integrates the labeling system produced by the company. The labeling machine adopts the reader produced by its sister company accu sort Systems Co., Ltd. to encode and label RFID tags. Such "fast (flexible automation solution tools) tag" system is equipped with a patent pending rejection identification and recycling system to verify the readability of tags or recycle "invalid" or unreadable tags. Ian Carver, RFID product manager of vidigit, said, "the rejection system of defective labels makes this solution a low-cost solution. The system can remove defective labels before they are affixed to products."

the system supports "level 0, level 0+ and level 1" labels, and can be upgraded to UHF generation 2 specification (Gen 2). The "fast tag" system allows flexible replacement of an RFID tag at the best location on a container or pallet to achieve the highest readout rate. In addition, the system can also communicate with the existing warehouse management system or enterprise resource planning system to minimize the implementation cost. The complete performance diagnosis and reporting function enables users to easily troubleshoot and reduce downtime. At the same time, it can also provide accurate performance data for process optimization

the RFID smartstart bundle system launched by Markem Co., Ltd. includes a cimjet RFID tag encoder/labeling machine equipped with a conveyor, a tag readability verification, a bad tag rejection unit and an independent printer (for printing human readable information), plus RFID software and several service programs. A 5000/5200 optional inkjet encoder is used for printing. According to the action plan for process optimization in the new material industry organized by the design organization, the system is of plug and play type, which is easy to set up. Once the ventilation and power supply are available, and the Ethernet connection is good, the label can be attached. Mike Putnam, product marketing manager of rfid/application intelligence department of Marken Co., Ltd., explained: "customers say that they like the robust design style of the labeling machine and the processing ability of accurately labeling on the container. These two points are crucial to ensure the correct reading of the label."

for applications where only some products on the production line need to be labeled, many suppliers can provide systems that only include the combination of printing and coding functions. For example, the cart technology-based solution launched by zebra technology company (zebra) can be equipped with an RFID tag printer/encoder, and if more than one type of tag needs to be printed, it can be equipped with a secondary printer workstation. After equipped with an optional wireless print server with 802.11b connectivity, when the powered cart is moved from one location to another, there is no need to remove the connection of the printer or reconnect it

tag prices are declining

since people began to talk about RFID, there has been a debate about whether such a tag costing five cents or less is needed. According to adverse news, the current optimal label price remains at $0.15 per piece, and this is the price when the order quantity is large. The good news is that various factors are slowly putting pressure together to push the label price to a happy level, that is, less than five cents per piece

the growth of label demand and the joining of new competitive forces help to promote large-scale production, but also play a role in boosting competition. In addition, the growth of label demand and the emergence of new competitive forces will also put pressure on the price of needle position encoder/printer/labeler that should be readjusted, and will also put pressure on the price of enterprise infrastructure such as readers, antennas and wireless centers

new label production methods will also drive down costs. For the antenna part of producing labels with printing process, a promising method is to replace the commonly used copper etching process with conductive ink, so that such labels can be directly used in cargo containers. Many companies are working on this project

moreover, with the increasing maturity of chip and antenna technology and the further reduction of power required by readers to collect data, the size of tags may be further reduced

on the other hand, the capacity of tags is increasing. Several label manufacturers are producing labels with a new 128 bit level 1 RFID tag, which has twice the capacity of its predecessor 64 bit tag, and provides 96 bit user programmable capacity. After the label capacity is increased, it can accommodate more information, including the starting point

pmmi, the organizer of Pack Expo, is an industry association with more than 500 members who manufacture packaging and other packaging related processing equipment in the United States and Canada. The vision of the association is to become a global leading provider of packaging resources, and its mission is to improve and improve the practical ability of its members to meet the needs of their customers

information source: vertical and horizontal packaging