RFID Gazette

RFID For Predictive Maintenance

For the most part, many industries such as aerospace fix things when they need fixing (beyond any scheduled maintenance). That's mostly out of a lack of options. However, RFID's use in MRO (maintenance, repair and overhaul) is growing, and the technology can be used for predictive maintenance. This means that costly, even deadly, maintenance problems can be caught before they happen, simply by allowing easier data collection of maintenance checks and equipment status. Boeing is employing RFID in a similar fashion on their new 787 Dreamliners, each of which will have around 2,000 high-memory passive tags.

Fake e-Passports? What About Fake Boarding Passes?

Bruce Schneier of Wired News writes about Christopher Soghoian, whose home was visited by the FBI, his door smashed in and his computers and other items seized. Seems Christopher wanted to revisit a known flaw for Northwest Airlines - the ability to create fake boarding passes - by creating a website that lets people create and print their own. A bit extreme, and I'm not sure he got his point across. And here we are worrying about security flaws and cloned e-Passports. Schneier then continues on to explain how fake boarding passes can, unfortunately, be used for nefarious purposes. You'd think that someone would have plugged this problem by now. The printing of boarding passes from home computers has been available since 1999, was apparently halted after 9/11, and then brought back.

Hong Kong Airport Chooses Intermec

Hong Kong International Airport (HKIA) will be using Gen2 RFID tags from Intermec to tag baggage. The airport has already had an RFID baggage sorting system since last year - the first airport in the world to do so. The new tags will be used to enhance the system for the fifth busiest airport in the world. [via Businesswire]

A number of other airports and some airlines are already run baggage tagging trials, both to prevent baggage mishandling and loss, as well as airline disasters. HKIA's system will print out flight and baggage information as barcodes. The same data will be encoded into an Gen2 RFID chip.

Boeing Using Item-Level Tagging

What has 4,000,000 parts, has temperature conditions ranging from -40 F (Fahrenheit) to +1200 F, is subject to regular vibrations, and costs US$100M? The Boeing 787 Dreamliner airplane, which uses 2,000 special high-memory passive tags that run about $15-20 apiece, compared to the typical item-level tags of about forty cents. Boeing is using these tags to help in the documentation and maintanence cycle of each plane in this new line. Despite the four million parts, only 2,000 particularly critical parts are being tagged since they are known to be of "low reliability". This includes expensive items like landing gear and hydraulic pumps. [via Storefront Backtalk]

If you didn't notice the math, that's about $30-40,000 in tags alone. Interestingly, they have found that having that many tags on an airplane does not seem to cause any interference with flight equipment. Obviously a good thing to know. Boeing has previously jointly tested RFID with FedEx on MD-10 Freighter planes.

Chinese RFID Demand Driven By Security Sector?

According to a CCW Research report, China's demand for RFID will be driven by[China Tech News] public security applications. While this may be true, the sheer size of China has resulted in several RFID projects, some of massive scope, and with great potential for more radio frequency programs. Here are a few tidbits about Chinese-related projects:

• China recently announced a gigantic project for 125M contactless train tickets for their railway system - quite possibly the biggest project of it's kind in the world.
• NXP Semiconductors (formerly Philips Semiconductors) is finding demand [EET Asia] for it's UCODE EPC G2 UHF chips, which were apparently selected because they conform to Wal-Mart's RFID mandate. Not suprising, given the probably high ratio of Chinese manufacturers amongst the retail giant's suppliers.
• In fact, Chinese-made items make up half of the product sold by giant US retailers. China is also looking to implementing RFID in the healthcare and manufacturing sectors.
• An older article at this site says that manufacturing logistics and suply chain issues are a big driver of RFID implementation in China.
• China has also been tagging livestock and has been testing RF tags for luggage tracking for some airlines.

   

As you can see, it's not just public security apps driving demand for RFID in China. They have so many projects of such large scope that they had considered having a Chinese RFID standard, though that idea seems to have passed. The government's Ministry of Science and Technology did come up with a Chinese RFID policy white book.

RFID Security Issues A Feature Not A Flaw?

Spychips has an old Shockwave animated video demo of an RFID-enabled airport. [via Storefront Backtalk] (Note: use Internet Explorer; you made need a plug-in.)

What's interesting to note - besides some pretty stupid spelling errors - is that near the end of the video, a man is standing behind our hero with a flat panel device and checking his identity. So concerns about interception of data/ identity from smartcards or e-Passports may not be so far-fetched. In fact, this seems to be a design feature, not a flaw.

RFID Baggage Handling - Preventing Disasters

Twenty-one years ago last month, Air India flight 182 exploded off the coast of  Ireland. It had been the target of political extremists, who had checked in some baggage but not themselves. Human error allowed the baggage to go through on that flight and another to Narita Airport in Japan, where two baggage handlers were also victims. A family friend was on the first plane, a young woman of only 15. Needless to say, a lot of people felt the impact of that situation, whether or not they were of East Indian origin. To prevent such situations from happening again, RFID technology is being employed at a number of airports to track baggage.

Other solutions have been tried, but my own experience is that they were  sometimes insufficient and/or inefficient. A little over a year after the disaster, I was offered a programming job at a large Canadian airline, on a new software project designed to prevent similar disasters. But the existing software was too convoluted, and there were ridiculous restrictions on coding practices because, as one executive told me, the veteran programmers would not be able to understand newer code.

I only stayed on a year or so at the company, sick of the politics. I know that the software was eventually implemented, but I didn't envy the programmers that worked on the project.

RFID technology, on the other hand, is an ideal and efficient solution for tracking baggage. Current technology applications are so new that the question of coding differences between veteran and new programmers likely does not exist.

In addition to preventing similar disasters, baggage tracking would reduce the cliched loss of baggage that seems so common with airlines.

Because such an application of RFID requires that personal information be stored, it concerns a lot of people, especially those worried about the violation of civil liberties (myself included). However, as with any software-driven technology, numerous safeguards can be implemented that protect the privacy for the average passenger, but leave a way to check unattended baggage, should the situation arise.

It's not the technology itself that is the real threat, but the way it is applied. The real issue is, will those safeguards be implemented?

Finnair improving airport operations with RFID solution

Finnair claims that the use of IBM's RFID solutions has enabled the Finnair group to bring rapid improvement in the efficiency of its airport operations at Helsinki-Vantaa International Airport. IBM is taking the charge of the innovative solution for the allocation of employee tasks at Northport Ltd.  Northport Ltd is the major supplier of ground handling services. It is also a member of the Finnair Group. IBM has agreed to work on a three-year project for the leading operating airlines. Nokia provides wireless technology for the IBM RFID solution.

Jari Viitanen, Vice President Business Development at Northport explains,

Assigning personnel to all the tasks taking place at any given moment is a true challenge. The better information we have on all tasks, the better we can manage our workforce. Especially tough are the last minute changes of arrival schedules, which in turn result in changes in the allocation of tasks. The management needs data when and where staff is available. RFID provides us with this.

Via: [Boarding]

Boeing, FedEx to test RFID tech

Boeing and FedEx have come together to test active RFID tags on major airplane parts for a FedEx MD-10 Freighter.

Kenneth Porad, RFID program manager for Boeing Commercial Airplanes quoted, 'The RFID technology is designed to help airlines reduce ownership costs by managing repairs and tracking assets'.

He added that the use of active RFID technology is gaining momentum and setting the stage for wireless sensor networks in the future.

IDENTEC SOLUTIONS has produced the active tags. These tags are battery powered and contain a microchip and transmitter, which operate at 915 MHz.

Active tags function more quickly and have the capacity to store more data than passive tags. FedEx machines will read the data of active tags by using a portable data terminal. The company is expecting the RFID technology would improve parts visibility and parts lifecycle visibility.

Via: [Fly Away Simulation]

China adopts RFID Luggage Tracking System

China is gradually improving in the RFID fronts. It plans to exploit the latest technology steadily. The leading global super power China meanwhile tagged the country's pigs. Now it has adopted RFID technology in the country's air services. 

A delegation from Beijing Capital International Airport divulged that the first RFID luggage Tracking System has been adopted on Cathay Pacific Airway's Beijing-Hong Kong line. It also claimed that the Capital Airport spent more than RMB4 million for the introduction of RFID technology. It excepts to build the RFID Luggage Tracking System in two phases. The work is expected to complete by October this year.

Via: [RFID Blog]

Boeing and FedEx seek FAA's approval for Active RFID tags

Boeing and FedEx have sought Federal Aviation Administration FAA's approval to install active UHF RFID tags on their aircrafts. The two leading aviation companies have successfully completed the testing of passive RFID tags in the past. Now they are interested to install active RFID tags in their aircrafts.

The delegates of two companies have deployed high battery-powered UHF tags on various parts of an MD-10 cargo plane. That was a remarkable event for them. Because MD-10 was the first civil cargo, aircraft to install UHF RFID tags.

Ken Porad, the RFID program manger for Boeing Commercial Airplanes Group commented,

If we can use active tags on flights, that sets the stage to begin deploying wireless sensor networks, in which things like temperature sensors could be attached to the tags and used to monitor perishable goods in transit.

Via: [RFID Journal]

Printronix completes RFID trial with Virgin Atlantic Airways

Printronix Inc has successfully completed RFID trial with Virgin Atlantic Airways, Britain's second largest airline. The trial was carried out to assess the impact of RFID technology on accuracy, efficiency and accountability of the Air Service.

Having a fleet of 33 aircraft, Virgin Atlantic Airways covers 26 destinations around the globe. In the competitive air-travel market, accuracy, schedule maintenance and accountability are some of the major factors that determine effectiveness of air service. In order to fulfill these factors, Virgin Atlantic Airways used RFID technology in its operation. Printronix took the charge of trial and Virgin Atlantic Airways got expected results from the trial.   

Via: [AMT Online]

Lockheed Martin to acquire Savi technology

Lockheed Martin will acquire Savi Technology after it had made an agreement with the RFID solution provider.

The California based Savi provides various types of RFID solutions including tags, readers and enterprise software. Savi has the track record of maintaining long standing professional relation with Department of Defence. Savi will receive $207.9 billion for its recent contract with DoD.

So Lockheed Martin will get full advantage of the deal. 

Bob Stevens, Lockheed Martin's CEO said;

Savi's talented team of employees has successfully developed a complete line of active RFID solutions. The acquisition of this innovative company is consistent with our strategy of making investments that significantly enhance the capabilities we can offer our customers.

Via: [IndustryWeek]

Virgin Atlantic's pilot project for RFID

Virgin Atlantic has embarked on a pilot test where it will use RFID tags to track and locate high value aircraft parts that can be repaired.  Using RFID tags, the airline can track these valuable items 24 * 7.

Virgin Atlantic chose to use RFID solutions provided by Symbol Technologies, Inc. The pilot project will take place at Heathrow International Airport in London.

The airline's pilot project uses Symbol's MC9000-G RFID handheld mobile computers in conjunction with RFID readers and Symbol wireless LAN infrastructure. 

Via Sys.Con

RFID used on Boeing's 787 Dreamliner

One of World's top 2 commercial planes maker, Boeing will use Intelleflex Corp. as the exclusive provider of silicon chips which will enable radio frequency identification (RFID) "smart labels" on maintening important of the 787 Dreamliner.

The Dreamliner is an ambitious project for Boeing. It has wisely chosen RFID tags on the 787 Dreamliner because RFID tags help reduce maintenance and inventory costs by providing detailed, electronic part tracking information. Remember, the Dreamliner is a giant of a machine, an entity consisting of millions of different parts.

Moreover, Boeing has successfully evaluated passive RFID smart labels on a FedEx MD-10 Freighter.

Via RFidBlog

RFID tags: who will pay for the savior of lost bags?

According to a recent report by SITA, a Swiss-based airline-consulting firm, Airlines around the world loses 30 million bags daily. That is 1 percent of the 3 billion bags handled annually. Moreover, 61 percent of bags get lost when they change a plane that is when passengers change to another plane, making a connecting flight.

Many experts have called out for using RFID tags to track all travel items. The question arises, who will pay for the tags? Unlike a bar-scan tag that costs just a couple of cents, an RFID tag costs about 19 cents. Now who will pay for that? Will it be the airlines or the airports?

Via Twincities.com

Can RFID tags solve the Lost Luggage problem?

Did you know that U.S. airlines lose, misdirect, or misplace 10,000 bags each day on an average day? It amounts to over 3.5 million problem bags I a year. Worldwide, Lost luggage costs Airlines $1 billion annually.
Now RFID tags have come to the rescue. Airliens are going to replac ethe current bar-code based luggage tracking and sortation systems with RFID technology. Pilot tests, conducted at some major airports, show that RFID can successfully sort and route checked baggage with a 99+% accuracy rate.

Read More

Airlines turn to RFID to reduce luggage loss

For every 1,000 passengers, European Airlines lose 12 bags. KLM and BA are two airlines that are the worst hit by compensation costs for lost and damaged luggage. The airline industry is turning to RFID in an effort to curtail the instances of luggage getting misplaced. cheapflights.co.uk reports:

The new legislation means the maximum compensation claim for lost or damaged luggage has trebled to €1,200 (£814), costing the industry close to €1 billion (£678 billion) a year.

Read More: Airlines eye up RFID tagging

RFID-enabled passports may broadcast information

From October 2006, US citizens will be issued RFID-enabled passports that will carry information on the individual in an electronic form; the information will include name, date of birth, etc. The information will be encrypted and the passport will be protected from unauthorized readings by a thin metal shield.

However, according to Bruce Schneier, who is an electronics security expert, it is possible to read a unique unencrypted identification number from the passport. The number can be connected to the individual. usabroad.org.com reports:

To fix this, the State Department needs to require that the chips used in passports implement a collision-avoidance system not based on unique serial numbers.

Read More: New Passports Will Still Broadcast Identity

RFID-enabled passports at the San Francisco International Airport

According to the Department of Homeland Security, it will start testing RFID-enabled passports at the San Francisco International Airport by the middle of January. Countries such as Australia, Singapore, and New Zealand have already started issuing RFID-enabled passports.

According to regulations issued by the US State Department in October 2005, passports made available after October 2006 will carry an RFID tag that will contain the passport holder’s digital photo and personal data. The International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) developed the specifications for the passports. informationweek.com reports:

Through the US-Visit program, the DHS ran a three month test with RFID-embedded e-passports in fall 2005 at the Los Angeles International Airport. Other RFID projects have been in the works, too.

Read More: RFID Passport Tests To Begin At San Francisco Airport

TSA trial at the Newark Liberty International Airport

The results of an RFID trial conducted at the Newark Liberty International Airport have been made available by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration (TSA). On the basis of the results of the trial, TSA recommends that RFID be adopted to track the movements of baggage-loaders, fueling trucks, etc. TSA provided $ 4.1 million as funds for the program, which conducted similar tests at the JAXPORT, the Jacksonville, Fla., seaport. The hardware and software for the tracking systems was provided by I.D. Systems. rfidjournal.com reports:

During the two-year trial at Newark Liberty International Airport, he says, "the system performed as expected, in a nonintrusive way, and coexisted within a high-RF traffic environment."

Read More: TSA Endorses RFID for Airport Vehicles

RFID at McCarran Airport

McCarran Airport, Las Vegas, has been one of the early adopters of RFID in the aviation industry. It decided to implement RFID for tagging baggage in 2003. McCarran handles 25 million bags every year and all these bags are tagged. line56.com reports:

McCarran looked into using barcodes in place of RFID, but, according to Blue, achieved only an 80 percent read accuracy rate.

Read More:RFID Takes Off

Passive RFID locks for baggage

According to Dave Da Silva, VP, D&D Secure Tag, there is a very real possibility that air passengers may have their bags stolen or misused during journey. Bags that are locked using metal locks can also be opened by the U.S. Transportation Security Administration. A solution to this situation can be the use of passive RFID to lock the bag. rfidjournal.com reports:

To attach the tag to a piece of luggage, the free end of the strap is looped through holes in the zipper pulls, in the same way metal padlocks are used to prevent bags from being zipped open.

Read More: An RFID Cure for the Checked Bag Blues?

EASA to consider RFID

The European Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) is expected to take a decision soon regarding the implementation of RFID. ccmsectorinvest.com reports:

The card would offer a multiplicity of functions, from easily and quickly obtaining flight information, check in status, directions to the gate or other services.

Read More: RFID: From Chips to Dips to Trips

BearingPoint

BearingPoint has conducted a study to assess the financial factors involved in implementing RFID for baggage tracking. HapagFly airlines was also involved in the study that was carried out at the Hamburg and Hanover airports in Germany and the Palma de Mallorca airport in Spain.

BearingPoint developed an economic model that factored in things such as the average cost of a lost bag for an airline, number of misplaced bags every 1,000 passengers, the read rate with the existing system, annual passenger growth, etc. The economic benefits of deploying an RFID-enabled baggage tracking system vary with these factors. The study found that RFID-tagging is best suited for large airlines that have a hub-and-spoke network rather than airports that manage point-to-point traffic.

e-passports

Increased terrorist activity has led to the use of sophisticated personal identification methods such as e-passports, driving licenses, etc. This has offered smart-card vendors a new market; one that has low quantities and high margins. However, the move toward personal identification is facing opposition from privacy groups. The first country in the world to issue e-passports was Malaysia. It did so in 1998. Malaysia was followed by Myanmar and Nigeria. These countries, along with the other early adapters, now use the ICAO standard passports.

The US Visa Waiver program has given a boost to the programs for RFID-enabled identification systems. According to the US Visa Waiver program, the participating countries are expected to use e-passports that have biometric information by October 2006. This will require the establishment of interoperable systems worldwide in order to be able to encode and read the e-passports. Belgium was the first country to comply with the requirements of the visa waiver program. Sweden and Norway are in the process of deployment.

RFID-enabled passports

The new rules that will enable the use of RFID-equipped electronic passports have raised concerns regarding the privacy of individuals. According to the State Department, the passport program will be trialed on government officials with official or diplomatic passports and will be implemented in October 2006 for all US citizens.

The electronic passports will improve security at the borders and facilitate quick identification thereby making international travel more secure. To ensure data security, the RFID tag can be read only with its cover open and that too by a special reader that is no more that four inches away. The passports use a Basic Access Control technology for managing the access to the chip. The front cover has a special anti-skimming material incorporated onto it to ward off attempts at reading it illegally. Also, each RFID chip is provided with a distinctive identification number. The chips cannot be used to track individuals. They will contain information such as name, nationality, sex, etc. The chips will not contain information such as Social Security Numbers and residence addresses that can be used to compromise privacy. A secure digital signature is included in the chips and its objective is to prevent alteration and removal of digital data.

The ICAO has set standards so that passports from countries all over the world are interoperable. Specifications include a minimum storage capacity of 32 KB for the electronic passports; however, US passports will have twice as much as storage capacity to accommodate biometric information obtained from fingerprints and iris scans in future. The passports will be printed by private companies; the existing passports will be replaced as they are renewed. Of the 57 million passports in circulation, around 8 million are renewed annually. The passports will cost $ 97, with $ 55, $ 12, and $ 30 being the application fees, security surcharge, and processing fee, respectively.

RFIDentifying a Way To Make a Better Airplane

According to the report RFIDentifying a Way To Make a Better Airplane released by AMR Research last week, the initiative by Boeing to tag maintenance significant parts for the 787 Dreamliner aircraft could determine the policies of its suppliers and sub-suppliers toward RFID. The specifications for the tag that Boeing desires include a high-storage, metal-mountable passive tag that is sturdy and has been tested for changes in temperature and pressure. These specifications will provide an impetus for the chip manufacturers to develop a product that satisfies the preconditions set by Boeing. The initiative provides the suppliers an opportunity to build better and long-term relations with Boeing.

Boeing's mandates

Boeing, which under its 787 Dreamliner project, intends to introduce a new generation of aircrafts by 2008. The A&D giant has mandated the use of RFID by suppliers involved with this project.

That said, Boeing's mandate will have its own creative force. "...you tell the chip and inlay manufacturers what you want and expect them to figure out a way to respond....You tell your suppliers what you expect in terms of their compliance and you forge long-term partnerships with your valued suppliers," says AMR.

Read More: Boeing's RFID Mandate

RFID for air travel

A final decision is expected by autumn on the EASA’s consideration of allowing RFID technology in air travel. ccomsectorinvest.com reports:

Technology company Giesecke & Devrient (G&D), in conjunction with the software supplier Silverstroke, has developed a package solution for passenger processing on the basis of RFID and biometrics.

Read More: RFID Smart Card air tickets may soon be possible in Europe

IATA uses RFID

IATA is looking toward RFID for savings to the tune of $ 800 million as a part of its “Simplifying the Business” program. It also hopes to improve baggage service by implementing RFID. The IATA baggage working group has been involved with RFID since 1997. It was faced with the issues of cost and standards in deciding upon a frequency for the tags. 2.45 GHz tags were the first to be used but there were issues regarding the power level required to obtain a read range.

Baggage handling suffers due to reasons such as bags arriving early or late, processing delay, and a breakdown in the baggage handling system. The RFID interrogator is not as complex a machine as a bar-code reader and does not cost much. It increases the number of possible read points in a baggage system. rfidjournal.com reports:

A faster process also means bags on the cusp of missing their intended flight have a greater chance of making it to the plane on time, which translates to better service for passengers and savings for the airlines.

Read More: Helping Bags Make Their Flights

Virgin Pilots RFID for Aircraft Maintenance

Virgin is teaming up with Oracle and Tata Consultancy (TCS) to head out their RFID pilot project. Virgin hopes that the data and accountability offered by RFID technology will enable them to streamline their operations. The pilot will take place at London's Heathrow Airport. It will monitor aircraft repairs in conjunction with on-site warehouse inventory. The technology is to be integrated into Virgin's existing Oracle infrastructure. According to TechNewsWorld:

TS Rangarajan, Head TCS, RFID Solutions, said, "TCS recognizes the potential of RFID as a business transformational technology and continues to invest substantially in developing RFID-enabled business solutions."

Read more: Oracle, Tata Consultancy, Virgin Atlantic Team on RFID Project

British Airways to Adopt RFID

For over a year, airlines such as Delta have been implementing or at least experimenting with RFID systems in attempts to reduce their lost luggage bill. After facing a massive baggage loss of 11,000 last year due to employee strikes, British Airways has now joined the list of airlines supporting the introduction of RFID.  Rod Eddington, CEO of British Airways, also advocates a universal system among airlines to avoid interoperability problems between carriers. Currently, British Airways looses 18 out of every 1,000 pieces of luggage and reimburses customers an average of  £55 for each piece. According to Silicon.com:

The airline believes it could save £400m by introducing the radio frequency technology, as the new tech could reduce its read error rate to nearly zero. The chips will also be inserted into, rather than attached to, bags, meaning the tiny chips are less likely than barcode labels to be separated from the luggage.

Read more: No More Lost Luggage: Airlines Go for RFID

RFID In Airports Still A Ways Off

The use of RFID at the airport still is a technology waiting to happen. The reason for the absence is the costly investment required. While seen as an answer to the massive problem of lost luggage, the cost of implementation of RFID at airports at present is not worth the cost. Perhaps one solution to this price problem is tags that are being developed by Globalbagtag.com. This system uses tags that are traced though the internet. Supply Chain Review writes:

"The success of globalbagtag has, in most part, been due to the fact that it does not charge airlines or airports to use the system and the do not need any kind of costly equipment to read the globalbagtags, all that is needed is internet access," he says.

Read more: RFID tracking for luggage fails to take off

Airlines Tagging Luggage with RFID

Baggage handling technology is being revolutionized by RFID. Worrying at the baggage claim carrousel at the airport for bags that will never come may soon be a thing of the past as radio frequency identification technology should greatly increase the accuracy of baggage handling to near 100%, much better than today's barcode system which is accurate around 80% of the time in some cases. Delta Airlines has been the leader in RFID testing and plans to have their entire system online in 2007. Certainly, others will follow, as the technology should save airlines millions of dollars per year and save travellers hours of grief. According to the New Nation:

So important is this development that some industry officials are likening it to the introduction of radar. "You turned radar on and said: 'Oh, that's where the planes are.' It will be the same with bags," forecast one. Efficiency improvements of up to 60 per cent are predicted and, in an industry that loses a million bags every year, this would represent a huge step forward.

Read more: Lost luggage likely to be thing of the past

RFID for Airline Asset Tracking

ABI Research claims that airlines can save a lot of money and become more productive by using RFID to track assets such as large utility dollies that, believe it or not, are frequently lost by airlines due to carelessness, theft, or "borrowing" by other airlines. Much productivity is wasted by employees trying to locate the dollie and can add up to a not insignificant expense for the airlines. American, Delta, JetBlue, and others are beginning to employ RFID-GPS hybrid systems to keep track of these valuable assets. According to ABI Research's press release at Business Wire:

"In a sophisticated hybrid tracking system," says Lopez, "the GPS will find the location of the asset, and the RFID tag will transmit that information to its ground-based network, avoiding expensive satellite uplinks."

Baggage tracking is another obvious application for RFID in this market, and frequent travelers to Asia will be glad to learn that Hong Kong airport now tags every piece of luggage passing through it.

Read more: Hello, Dollies: ABI Research sees RFID Helping Airlines Track Assets

Delta Commits to RFID Luggage Tracking

Delta Airlines is prepared to spend $15 - $25 million rolling out a nationwide RFID luggage tracking system throughout the United States. They expect to save $100 million annually.

ZDNet reports:

"Delta ran a trial of the system earlier this year on flights from its base in Atlanta to Jacksonville, Fla., and the company says it can track bags 100 percent of the time. The airline has suggested that it may later give customers the opportunity to track their own bags.

"Tag readers will be located in several places: at check-in counters, along conveyer belts leading to the areas where baggage handlers work, and at the entrance to airplane cargo holds." Read more

FedEx and Delta to Run Additional RFID Tests Next Month

FedEx and Delta announced at the Global Aviation RFID Forum in Atlanta that they are currently planning to begin more RFID pilot tests next month. Boeing and Airbus also have indicated that they would be issuing requirements to their suppliers to begin tagging aircraft and engine parts with with passive 13.56 MHz tags.

According to Information Week:

"FedEx and Boeing recently completed a 90-day joint test in which 40 parts on a FedEx plane--parts ranging from wheel wells to hydraulic pumps to smoke detectors--were tagged with passive 13.56-MHz RFID chips and transmitters and then read at the conclusion of flights. "There was no deterioration in the tags, and the data collected was 100% accurate," Butch Ford, manager of engineering support for FedEx, told the airline and supplier execs gathered at the forum. Next month, the companies will begin an identical 90-day test, this time with passive 915-MHz RFID tags, which can be read from much further away." Read more

Matrics, Inc. to Deploy RFID Baggage Tracking Infrastructure at Hong Kong International Airport

Yahoo! Finance is reports:

"Matrics Inc., a global leader in the design and manufacture of EPC-compliant Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) systems, today announced that it has been selected by the Airport Authority Hong Kong. The deployment of passive UHF RFID technology will lead to improved customer satisfaction and increased security. Matrics' strategic partner, Marubeni Corporation, will be providing systems installation and support services." Read more

I.D. Systems, Inc.'s Wireless Asset Net Passes FAA Testing

According to Wireless IQ:

"I.D. Systems, Inc. , a leader in wireless asset tracking and management solutions, today announced that its Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) system for vehicle security and fleet management, the Wireless Asset Net, has passed a series of key tests conducted by the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) at Newark Liberty International Airport.

"In a parallel development, the company was awarded a $250,000 funding increase for its current program with the FAA and TSA.

"To meet the TSA's objectives for monitoring vehicles that operate 'airside' at commercial airports, I.D. Systems supplemented its core wireless vehicle management technology with advanced security capabilities to thwart potential threats." Read more

Boeing and Airbus Seek RFID Standardization in Airline Industry

SmartTravelNews.com is reporting that Boeing and Airbus are sponsoring forums on RFID tracking within the airline industry:

"Boeing and Airbus have agreed to require Air Transport Association (ATA) SPEC 2000 automated identification and data capture guidelines and to jointly host the sessions. The goal is to build consensus about standards for using global Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology on commercial airplanes. [...]

"'This technology offers the aviation industry many proven benefits, with the ultimate objective being continued safety, airworthiness and operational efficiencies for commercial airplanes,' said Kenneth Porad, RFID program leader for Boeing Commercial Airplanes." Read more

Delta Airlines Begins Second RFID Test to Track Luggage

In the final quarter of 2003, Delta Airlines began implementing RFID technology to track 40,000 pieces of passenger luggage. Typically, with bar code scanners, Delta's success rate was 80% - 85% accuracy. Last December, however, Delta announced that the RFID-tagged baggage received accuracy levels of anywhere between 96.7% - 99.9%.

Today, Delta, with cooperation from the TSA, began its second test of RFID-tagged luggage.

Computerworld reports:

"The tags operate at a frequency of 915 MHz, the same frequency that Wal-Mart Stores Inc. plans to use in its supply chain. ...

"RFID bag tracking offers a 'significant ROI' for Delta... [said Pat Rary, manager for baggage planning and development at Delta]. He declined to provide details, except to say the airline spends 'tens of millions of dollars' in locating 800,000 misdirected bags a year." Read more

TSA Considers RFID-tagged Boarding Passes

The Transportation Security Administration is considering using airline boarding passes that would carry RFID chips. Anthony Cerino, communications security technology lead at TSA, claims that the boarding passes with these RFID tags would enable a customer designated as a "registered traveller" to quickly pass through a special lane when boarding an aircraft. Privacy advocates, however, are concerned about the consequences of RFID-tagged boarding passes.

Computerworld reports:

"Under the registered traveler program, frequent fliers would provide the TSA with detailed personal information that would be correlated by a background check. Privacy advocates said they believe the RFID boarding pass would then serve as an automatic link to the registered traveler database. ...

"The RFID boarding passes would let security personnel 'know people's whereabouts,' Cerino said."