The term smart factory is on everyone's lips. Those who turn this future scenario into reality will make the leap into modular production and secure decisive competitive advantages - because the requirements in production and logistics are becoming more complex. RFID technology supports this by giving each part its own identity and thus enabling independent control in the production process and seamless recording across the entire supply chain.

RFID on metal
Conventional UHF RFID labels cannot be read on metal. Special labels optimized for metal, on the other hand, are optimized for one of the two frequencies commonly used worldwide - either ETSI in Europe or FCC in the NAFTA region and Asia. This means that the label can only be read in one of the two ranges. Objects that switch between continents cannot be read in the other frequency range.

Schreiner ProTech has therefore developed two new products for metal detection across all national borders: the ((rfid))-DistaFerr Global and the ((rfid))-DistaFerr Global LongRange. Both labels take into account the physical properties of metal. The integrated dual-band antenna enables reading in both frequency bands. This means they can be used in the most common frequencies worldwide and work reliably on metallic surfaces.

The ((rfid))-DistaFerr Global Label with dual-band antenna enables reading in both the ETSI and FCC frequency bands and can therefore be used worldwide. © Carpenter

The two products are identical in size and design, differing only in the chip used and the associated different reading range. This ranges from three to six meters depending on the version and frequency band in which the label is read. The labels are also extremely robust and can be used flexibly thanks to their small size and thickness.

RFID on ESD materials
For container marking on ESD materials, Schreiner LogiData has expanded its ESD RFID label family with the ((rfid))-DistaFerr ESD, which is also available in the LongRange version. This label is specially designed for ESD containers of all common variants and antistatic levels and has a read range of around seven meters.

In painting or drying processes and other heat applications in industry, RFID labels must be able to withstand high temperatures and at the same time be reliably readable over several meters without an optical line of sight. The ((rfid))-DistaFerr HighTemp 2 label can withstand temperatures of up to 230 degrees Celsius and can be used directly on metal. This makes it particularly suitable for painting and other high-temperature processes. as