SimplyRFiD Adds Support for 128-Bit RAIN RFID Tags
More than 28 billion RAIN RFID chips were deployed in 2021 and it's expected the RAIN RFID tag market will reach 35 billion in 2022. The majority of these chips are low-cost 3 cent 96-bit RFID "product ID tags" used in supply chain logistics for retailers. The RFID product tags perform a similar function as the barcode from the 1970's, but they can be read through through a cardboard box and at a speed of 1,000 items (tags) per second.
RAIN RFID tags have been produced in data sizes from 64-bit to kilo-bit sized. "96-Bit RFID was the only tag data size that worked with every vendor's hardware," says Carl Brown, President of SimplyRFiD. "Only in the last year has 128-bit also become something you can rely on to work in every RFID printer and reader. Implementing new processes is hard enough - we don't want to sell things that frustrate customers."
Last month SimplyRFiD launched an update to its popular Wave App. Wave is an iOS app that uses an RFID Handheld to count your inventory. "We feel confident we can deliver an exceptional experience with 128-bit RAIN RFID tags - 128-bit RFID is ready-now!" said James Martin, CTO of SimplyRFiD.
Why 128-bit RAIN RFID Tag Data Sizes?
"Business needs are changing. With 128-bits, you gain 30% storage capacity over a 96-bit tag," said Brown. "In pharmaceuticals or chemicals, we can store important point-of-use data as part of the tag data. For instance, expiration, poison indicators or hazards, manufacturing batch information. This allows a published standard to be used without an Internet connection when time is critical to solve a problem."
"In reality, pharmaceutical distribution companies like AmerisourceBergen have figured out how to fit all of that data into 96-bits using the latest RAIN CIN standard. But, we are seeing use cases today that benefit from 128-bits and now is the time to start preparing."
SimplyRFID products like the Wave handheld RFID reader, can inventory a retail store of 10,000 items in 20 minutes. A built-in feed called "In Stock" allows a retailer to quickly publish results by store location, allowing them to push SEO and other marketing information by geography to let customers know that products have been freshly restocked - by GPS coordinates. Quarterly inventories don't work anymore - weekly is the future and RFID is the only solution.
