[LINK] Expert advise sought please...

[Geoffrey Ramadan]

Howard

Firstly my general approach to customers asking for RFID solutions is to 
try and talk them out of it! I now that RFID has a very narrow "fitness 
for purpose" and that many RFID inquiries we get asked about, are really 
suited to other forms of data capture technology, which is what I 
suspect here.

As you want to hold the database with the product and you want it human 
readable as well. My first option would be to use a 2D barcode printed 
via a thermal transfer label printer. This will allow you to print the 
barcode and any related text/image on the same label. The choice of 
thermal ribbon and label material will be important to ensure longevity. 
(typically a wax/resin ribbon and some plastic label like Polyester 
which is popular as an asset label)

If you are not familiar with 2D barcodes, check out: 
http://www.denso-wave.com/qrcode/index-e.html

There are different symbologies to choose from, but I prefer Datamatrix 
or QR code. You can encode more that 3000 characters with Datamatrix and 
7000 with QR Code. 2D barcodes also have inbuilt error detection. For 
example upto 30% of a QR barcode can be destroyed, yet still readable.

You might want to encode the data using XML tags. You then then use a 2D 
barcode scanner with say a keyboard wedge interface (which simply types 
the data via the keyboard buffer of your system).

Only if barcoding was deemed to be not suitable would I consider RFID 
technology.

If you need assistance in sourcing these technologies, please let me 
know and I can advise off list.

Reg
Geoffrey Ramadan B.E.(Elec)
Chairman, Automatic Data Capture Association (www.adca.com.au)
and
Managing Director, Unique Micro Design (www.umd.com.au)


Howard Lowndes wrote:
> ...esp from Geoff R.
>
> I'm thinking RFID here rather than barcodes, but their ID code would 
> also need to be human readable, just in case a reader is not available.
>
> This is for my Nepal project and I have doubts about the lifespan of 
> barcodes in the working environment.
>
> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject: From Alex another NEW Idea to investigate
> Date: Wed, 16 Jan 2008 17:08:02 +0530
>
> Dear Howard, Ken and friends
> Greetings. I have one more NEW idea for which I need your support and
> advise as it is again linked with communication, software and digital
> numbering etc. which is NOT my field at all.
> Here the idea and vision:
> I want that every battery of each solar PV system we will install over
> the next years (as well as the ones we have installed since we started
> work in Humla) to be registered and identified in regard to its size,
> capacity, technology, origin, brand, location installed (Lat. Long.
> Altitude), installation date, system installed with (SHS, cluster system
> etc...), owner name, maintenance done...etc
> I think of a bar code (http://www.barcodesinc.com/generator/) that can
> store all this information which can be printed with a printer on a
> label, such as e.g.: http://www.barcodesinc.com/zebra/mz220.htm . With a
> bar code scanner (http://www.barcodesinc.com/generator/) the information
> can be read, recorded, stored and downloaded into a data bank at any
> time, even after years. In this way we can keep a detailed track of each
> battery, and can monitor its life cycle. In particular I intend to find
> that when a battery is "dead" where it came from so that we can
> understand its conditions it has been working under.  This should in the
> long run also be the main tool for a battery recycling project I have in
> mind since quite some time.
> Thus my question is:
> 1) Is that something you think is generally possible and feasible...or
> is this just a crazy idea...?
> 2) What would be the initial equipment, hardware wise and software wise,
> we would need to consider. (see above web sites of possible hardware...)
> 3) What could be the difficult parts of such a project....What are the
> advantages and disadvantages...?
> 4) Do you have a better idea how it could be done...easier and cheaper
> and more reliable...?
> 5) What do you think how much information can be stored in a bar code...?
> 6) any other suggestions...?
>
> Hear from you
> Cheers
> Alex
>
>