Getac launches real-time RFID tracking system

RFID tags are increasingly used in retail, manufacturing and supply chain management

Ruggedised computing firm Getac has unveiled an RFID-based tracking system designed to help businesses keep a real-time eye on assets, equipment, goods or personnel.

The system can track items and provide a range of sensor information such as temperature and motion, and offers a management component to help streamline logistics processes and register alerts if an anomaly is detected, the firm said.

Data can also be actively pushed to large databases such as Oracle and Microsoft SQL servers.

The system is specifically aimed at bespoke vertical industries such as warehouse management, retail, manufacturing, supply chain management and healthcare and medical management.

Getac explained that the system is a hybrid of active and passive RFID technologies, and can operate at short and long ranges.

"Our goal is to offer customers complete and, if necessary, bespoke solutions that meet their requirements in full," said Peter Molyneux, business development director for Getac in the UK.

"The new RFID system has been developed to ensure a long-term tracking and management solution that promises to operate precisely in challenging and ever evolving environments.

"Our next step will be to draw on our R&D resources and experience in the rugged sector to combine rugged computing and RFID devices in order to improve their resistance to shock, vibration, water and extreme temperatures."

The company has also developed an RFID Middleware kit aimed at speeding up and reducing the cost of implementing an RFID tracking system. The kit is designed to be scalable and provides various customisable modules if required.

Getac has said that it plans to expand on its software development kit for the middleware to offer real-time location system functionality in the future.