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| Automatic Identification (Auto ID) Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) |
An Introduction to AIDC Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) is the worldwide industry term which describes the identification and/or direct collection of data into a computer system, programmable logic controller (PLC), or other microprocessor-controlled device without using a keyboard. At their core, all AIDC technologies support two common goals: to eliminate errors associated with identification and/or data collection and to accelerate the through-put process. As an industry family, AIDC covers six distinct groups of technologies and services. They are: Card Technologies, Data Communications Technologies, Bar Code Technologies, Radio Frequency Identification Technologies, Emerging Technologies, and the Support and Supplies which serve the industry. As an enabling family of business and manufacturing technologies, AIDC takes on another, more universal profile. And it is all about the customer. Automatic Identification and Data Capture is, at its best, a conduit for businesses to deliver more into the customer-value equation. If you have opened this page with the notion that AIDC is a background function and will not affect your customers directly, then either prepare to be outmoded, or read on and encounter the bold, new vision of the empowering technologies and strategies which are now making an indelible mark on the way business is being conducted here and around the globe. A Value-Added Heritage From its earliest introduction to the marketplace as simple bar code markings and optical readers, AIDC has endeavored to offer business a customer-value component. In checkout lines, scanning reduced waiting time, eliminated manual data entry errors, and aided in inventory management. At the manufacturing level, it accelerated the production line and supported the initial centralized control of Material Requirements Planning (MRP), resulting in reduced costs and more efficient product flow. It also established a core of data management advantages that went far beyond the simple automatic collection of information. And AIDC delivered unprecedented levels of accuracy, speed, and reliability . . . the cornerstones of a movement that would fundamentally change the business/manufacturing continuum. Technology has advanced exponentially since those early days. Distributed computing and real-time data transfer have taken information out of the company mainframe and placed it within immediate reach of everyone in the enterprise. Real-time data capture and keyless data entry can instantly and simultaneously ring up a retail purchase, accurately adjust in-store inventory, signal the warehouse for replenishment, place a reliable order with the manufacturer, speed the flow of raw goods from suppliers to manufacturers, and follow the manufacturing process through to the delivery of the new product to its destination. These interfaces between points in the retail/manufacturing supply chain have their counterparts in heavy industry, healthcare, the grocery industry, and many other environments where volumes of data must be managed efficiently and effectively. In each case, their synergistic effect upon the entire enterprise has become the prime motivating factor behind the full implementation of AIDC across the industry. In essence, AIDC technologies have now become AIDC business strategies. And these intelligent business strategies are well on the road to becoming the standard. |
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Automatic Identification and Data Capture Techniques - An Overview The technologies used in the world of Automatic Identification and Data Capture (AIDC) are varied and often used in combinations to provide a broader base of information flow. Below are some of the technologies in common use today. Perhaps the oldest of the AIDC technologies, bar code can be looked upon as the best known and probably most successful to date of the technologies. We are all familiar with the basic bar code on our box of cereal, or the jar of honey that we buy in the supermarket. This bar code is called UPC/EAN and is but one variation of over 250 bar codes that have been designed over time. Bar codes like this are referred to as linear bar codes as they are made up off a collection of bars and spaces side by side. Fortunately many of these bar codes have never gained broad acceptance and we usually only consider 10-12 linear bar codes. The most common examples in use today are: UPC/EAN, Code 128, Code 39, Code 93, and Interleaved 2 of 5. Typical data content capacity varies from 8 to 30 characters with some bar codes restricted to numerals only, and others using full alpha-numeric information. Standards for these bar codes are published by AIM and are currently in progress at ISO. Linear bar codes are used in many applications where the use of a simple numeric or alpha-numeric code can provide the key to a database of "products". The most obvious limitation is the amount of data that can be stored in a linear bar code, though other problems can exist with the substrate that the bar code is printed on providing insufficient contrast or poor ink receptivity which can cause the quality of the bar code to be less than ideal. |
 Linear Bar Code |
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2D Bar Codes A new growth area in the world of bar code is the two-dimensional versions. Several variations of 2D are available and as these do not all comprise bars and spaces the more accurate name of 2D symbologies is used. 2D symbologies provide a means of storing large amounts of data in a very small space. Whether you consider stacked symbologies (linear bar codes stacked on top of each other), matrix symbologies (comprising a matrix of light and dark elements, circles, squares, or hexagons), or packet symbologies (a collection of linear symbols "randomly" arranged on a page). Examples of the three types include PDF417, Code 49 Code 16K (stacked), Code One, MaxiCode, Data Matrix, Aztec Code, QR Code (matrix), and Super Code (packet). Standards for each of these symbologies are either available from AIM or are in progress. Several of these standards have also been submitted to ISO for standardization. 2D symbologies have a major advantage over linear bar codes, they can store vast amounts of data. Individual symbols can store as much as 7000 numeric only or 4200 alpha-numeric characters. Many of the symbologies also have the ability to use a device called structured append that allows messages to be split over multiple symbols, providing almost infinite storage space. The disadvantage of the 2D symbologies is that a special scanner is needed. Matrix symbologies need a vision based scanner to read the data, though some of the stacked symbologies can be read with a rastering laser scanner. Expect to see many new scanners with variations in technology in the next year or so. |
 2D Bar Code |
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Magnetic Stripe Cards The first magnetic stripe cards were used in the early 1960's on transit tickets and in the 1970's for bank cards. Since then the use of magnetic stripes continues to grow. Credit cards were first issued in 1951, but it wasn’t until the establishment of standards in 1970 that the magnetic stripe became a factor in the use of the cards. Whether the card is a credit card sized plastic card, a thin paper ticket or an airline boarding card, the uses for magnetic stripe technology have grown considerably. Today with an infra-structure that encompasses every store in the high street giving them an ability to read the information on the magnetic stripe, the technology is everywhere. Although some limitations exist in the amount of information that can be stored on the stripe and the security of the data, solutions to solve these problems exist from various vendors. With the advent of new technologies many people have predicted the demise of the magnetic stripe. However, with the investment in the current infrastructure this is not likely to be any time soon. Magnetic stripe technology provides the ideal solution to many aspects of our life. It is very inexpensive and readily adaptable to many functions. The standardization of high coercivity for the financial markets has provided the industry with a new lease on life. This coupled with the advent of the security techniques now available means that many applications can expect to be using magnetic stripe technology for the next ten to twenty years. Standards for magnetic stripe technologies are available from ISO, where the focus is on the interchange environment, other standards are available from AIM. |
 Magnetic swipe card and readers |
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Smart Cards Smart cards are not new, the first patent was filed in France in 1974 and the first cards were used in France in 1982. The technology was rapidly accepted in Europe because the high cost of telecommunications made on-line verification of transactions very expensive. The smart card provided the mechanism to move that verification off line, reducing the cost without sacrificing any of the security. Smart cards are credit card-sized plastic cards that contain relatively large amounts of information in an imbedded micro-chip. There are several terms used to identify cards with integrated circuits embedded in them. The terms "chip card," "integrated circuit card", and "smart card" really all refer to the same thing. There are two types of smart card. The first is really a "dumb" card in that it only contains memory. These cards are used to store information. Examples of this might include stored value cards where the memory stores a dollar value which the user can spend in a variety of transactions. Examples might be pay phone, retail, or vending machines. The second type of card is a true "smart" card where a microprocessor is embedded in the card along with memory. Now the card actually has the ability to make decisions about the data stored on the card. The card is not dependent on the unit to which it is attached to make the application work. A smart purse or multi-use card is possible with this technology. As there is a microprocessor on the card, various methods can be used to prevent access to the information on the card to provide a secure environment. This security has been touted as the main reason that smart cards will replace other card technologies. The microprocessor type smart card comes in two flavors - the contact version and the contactless version. Both types of card have the microprocessor embedded in the card however the contactless version does not have the gold plated contacts visible on the card. The contactless card uses a technology to pass data between the card and the reader without any physical contact being made. The advantage to this contactless system is there are no contacts to wear out, no chance of an electric shock coming through the contacts and destroying the integrated circuit, and the knowledge that the components are completely embedded in the plastic with no external connections. The disadvantage to this is that the card and reader are more sophisticated and hence are more expensive. The biggest disadvantage today with smart cards is the cost to create a smart card system. Individual card prices have fallen over the past few years but they are still high when compared with a magnetic stripe card. The biggest advantage is of course the amount of data that can be stored and the security that can be built into the card. Standards for the smart card technologies exist from ISO for both contact and contactless versions of the technology. |
 Smart Card Technology |
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Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) The hottest technology in the AIDC arena is RFID. Although it has been available for a long time, it has only been available in proprietary formats from a variety of vendors. Work is at last progressing to provide standardized forms of RFID, with standardization work being done at ISO and AIM. RFID provides a means of obtaining information on an item without making direct contact. Reading and writing distances can vary from a few millimetres to several meters depending on the technology variation used. The tags themselves come in a variety of form factors from credit card sized plastic cards, to tiny injectable glass transponders for tracking animals, to large "bricks" suitable for use on the side of containers on trains. The actual technology used to implement RFID varies depending on manufacturer and application, with frequencies used varying from 125kHz to 5.8GHz. There are many obstacles in the path of creating standards for RFID including the use of globally available frequencies. The work to remove some of these obstacles has started and the chance for global standards is now very real. Whether you are looking for a one-bit electronic article surveillance device or a multi-character inventory label, RFID has a solution that can provide a non-contact method for storing the information. The biggest advantage is the non-contact aspect of the technology, with read distances to tens of meters available. This can also be a disadvantage where the reading of multiple tags can take place simultaneously can occur and special steps have to be implemented to assist with this. |
 Equipment used in RFID |
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Contact Memory A contact memory device looks like a small button-style camera battery, but it’s really a stainless steel container with a memory chip sealed inside. The top of the button is bonded to one point in the memory circuit; the bottom and sides of the package provide a signal ground. Data is written to and from the button using a probe-like device that is touched to the two electrical points on the unit, thereby establishing a communication path. A button can act as a "license plate" identifier or as a portable database in which data can be read and modified. The buttons generally come with a unique preprogrammed identification number and are available in a variety of memory configurations. They can hold up to four million bytes of reprogrammable data, including text, pictures, and even voice messages. This data may be transferred to a computer via a button reader at speeds up to 16.6 Kbps. Buttons may be set with a password to protect the data from being read or rewritten. Some buttons are powered by small internal batteries that guarantee data retention for 10 years from date of manufacture. Other battery-free designs retain data up to 100 years, and each time the button is read, a small amount of additional power is transmitted to it, further extending its memory. Buttons are sealed to withstand moisture, radiation, and temperature extremes, and operate under a wide range of temperatures. Contact memory technology will continue to be employed in cutting edge applications ranging from electronic purses, research, and electronic product identification, to collecting oil production data in the field. Users (and manufacturers) will combine buttons with other technologies in creative ways to enhance their AIDC applications. For example, one type of button incorporates a digital thermometer that can measure temperatures from –55 ºC to +100 ºC, typically in one second. Users can place these sensors to obtain a temperature profile of a piece of equipment, a room, or a building. Touch/button memory is a relatively simple AIDC method whose use is limited only by a user’s inventiveness. Key Attributes and Limitations:
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 Button and Button Probe used in Contact Memory technology |
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