BITS & BYTES (RFID Alliance Lab)

(09-21-2004)

By David Hayes

Only the part of the column that discusses the RFID Alliance Lab has been included here.

KU studies RFID
The University of Kansas is teaming up with two private companies to create a nonprofit lab to study Radio Frequency Identification tags.

RFID tags are electronic microchips with built-in miniature antennas that can be used to track products from production to purchase.

The tags are a hot topic these days. Wal-Mart Stores Inc. last year mandated that its top 100 suppliers must implement RFID tags on every pallet and carton by next January.

KU's Information and Telecommunication Technology Center is teaming with Rush Tracking Systems of Lenexa and the RFID Journal of Hauppauge, N.Y., to determine how well RFID tags work in laboratory and real-life situations.

The RFID Alliance Lab will be the first nonprofit research lab focused on the topic, said Daniel Deavours, ITTC's principal investigator on the project.

"If you are a supplier trying to comply with these RFID mandates, you are wondering where you even start,"Deavours said. "You do not know where to go for reliable information. We would like to be the place people could turn to for accurate, unbiased RFID information."

Bits & Bytes appears on Tuesdays. To reach David Hayes, senior technology writer, call (816) 234-4904 or send e-mail to dhayes@kcstar.com.

For more information, contact ITTC.

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