Powercast has joined the RAIN RFID Alliance’s Sustainability Working Group. This group aims to educate on how RAIN RFID technology, already extensively used for item tracking in inventory management, stock control, logistics, retail, and other applications, can also help companies meet their sustainability goals.
Radio Frequency Identification, or RAIN RFID, is a wireless technology using handheld and fixed ultra-high frequency (UHF) RFID readers prevalent in various industries to connect billions of everyday items to the internet. It enables businesses and consumers to identify, locate, authenticate, and interact with items bearing an RFID tag or label.
The Sustainability Working Group has published a report, “Bridging the Gap – Connecting Corporate Sustainability with RAIN RFID,” based on a survey of 20 companies across sectors such as apparel, automotive, and healthcare.
Key findings include:
- Data collected from existing RFID applications can inform sustainability strategies, although more education is needed to integrate RFID systems with sustainability efforts
- RFID technology can help address sustainability challenges by: improving inventory accuracy to reduce waste and keep excess goods out of landfills, predicting product lifespans to aid recycling and waste management, and collecting environmental data related to CO2 reduction
“Powercast is committed to initiatives furthering a brighter sustainable future for generations to come, so we’re excited to join like-minded companies in RAIN’s Sustainability Working Group,” said Charles Greene, Ph.D., COO and CTO of Powercast. “Since 2007, our wireless power technologies have enabled untethered devices that need no battery maintenance and reduce the e-waste – cables, cords and disposable batteries – that litters landfills.”
Charles Goetz, CEO of Powercast, will discuss the role of wireless power in sustainable RAIN RFID systems at the Connections Summit 2024 in Taichung, Taiwan, from 13-16 May.
“Combining RAIN’s identification and communication capabilities with Powercast’s radio frequency (RF) to direct current (DC) conversion technology can create smart, sustainable, maintenance-free device ecosystems able to both recharge and communicate over the air without wires or disposable batteries,” continued Greene.
Powercast’s Wireless RF Power Technology and RAIN RFID combine to add functionality as UHF RFID readers emit an RF signal similar to that of Powercast’s RF wireless power transmitters. These readers can reliably provide wireless power. Powercast’s Powerharvester PCC110 receiver chip, embedded in RFID tags or labels, can harvest RF and data sent over the air from any RFID reader and convert it to usable DC to power devices and communicate data. The range depends on power consumption levels, with most devices functioning up to 20 feet from a reader, and ultra-low-power devices up to 120 feet away. Devices can be either batteryless or rechargeable, eliminating the need for battery replacements and reducing waste.
Examples include a Powerharvester embedded in an electronic paper display (EPD) tag, such as a retail electronic shelf-edge label (ESL), or an environmental sensing or logistics tag, harvesting RF when within range of a UHF RFID reader.
Several EPD applications have been developed using partner E Ink’s bi-stable digital ePaper screen, which maintains an image without a constant power source until another wireless update is sent. These include a wireless electronic bag tag that refreshes the passenger’s itinerary on the screen using RF from airport RFID equipment, and Powercast’s batteryless ESL for over-the-air retail price updates.
Other applications of RFID wireless power include environmental monitoring, such as Powercast’s RFID Sensor Tags measuring temperature, light, and humidity; logistics and advanced location tracking devices; and sensing devices on products such as tyres.
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