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Lead
BizTalk RFID
This technology enables software developers to rapidly create
RFID solutions for both fixed and mobile RFID readers. By Vinita Gupta
 BizTalk
RFID Mobile helps manage RFID hardware (a barcode scanner or an RFID reader),
saves the tag data on the device and sends it to Microsoft BizTalk RFID for
further processing. It can handle network connectivity issues, ensuring that
there is no loss of data during the transfer to the server. This makes it easy
for customers to build mobile
RFID solutions and in the process, enables RFID to be used in scenarios where
it probably would not have even been considered.
This technology was incubated, conceptualized and engineered as a product at
the Microsoft India Development Center (MSIDC) in Hyderabad. It was made broadly
available as a part of Microsoft BizTalk Server 2009. MSIDC is one of Microsoft's
largest product development centers outside its headquarters at Redmond.
Consider a situation wherein a retail store employee needs to find a specific
item in the store. Although all items are tagged, employees cannot use fixed
readers to find these items as these readers cannot pinpoint the location. In
such cases, employees can move around the store with a handheld Windows Mobile
Computer that has an RFID reader to locate items. BizTalk RFID Mobile enables
this process.
B Sriram, Partner Product Unit Manager, BizTalk at Microsoft India Development
Center, said, “RFID technology captures a real-time view of the physical
world of assets. It is a disruptive technology that will revolutionize the way
in which software interacts with the physical world. This will have far-reaching
implications beyond just back-of-store inventory and supply chain management.”
RFID Mobile technology can be used in a broad set of scenarios such as asset
tracking, supply chain management, Point Of Sale systems and even cattle tracking.
Mobility is typically required when people are involved in the process, say,
to take inventory, find missing cases in a warehouse or to pick out a few cases
from a warehouse.
Sriram added, “Globally we are seeing the rapid adoption of Microsoft BizTalk
RFID Mobile technology across several industry verticals, particularly in enterprises.
This technology is not specific to India. Customer feedback has been positive
with regard to how this technology has helped cut down the time taken to develop
solutions."
An RFID system usually has two components
- A hardware component which is the hardware
RFID reader that reads the RFID tag.
- A software component that controls the
reader (e.g., telling it when to read or how often), receives the RFID
data from the reader and acts on it, e.g., filtering some unimportant
tags, interpreting the data read or sending it for further processing
to the company's backend systems.
Classification
A typical way of classifying of RFID readers is
based on their mobility into fixed and mobile readers.
- Fixed RFID readers are stationary and
they read RFID tags that are in their vicinity. An example would be
RFID readers fixed around a conveyor belt or the dock door in a manufacturing
facility. Goods tagged with RFID tags move past the fixed readers which
read these tags and send that data to a processing server such as Microsoft
BizTalk RFID for further processing.
- Mobile RFID readers are handheld computers
with built-in RFID readers. As opposed to fixed readers, a mobile reader
usually has an UI that lets the user take charge. Mobile readers running
Windows Mobile are available and these have the ability to read barcodes
in addition to RFID tags
Fixed vs. mobile reader
Fixed RFID readers are useful for automation scenarios
where the readers are fixed in place and cases with RFID tags move close
to them on conveyor belts. They automatically read all the goods coming
in and going out of the store. They are, however, not particularly useful
in cases where human interaction is required or where the items are not
always in the same place.
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How it works
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 "Customer
feedback has been positive with regard to how this technology has helped
cut down the time taken to develop solutions"
- B Sriram
Partner Product Unit Manager, BizTalk at the Microsoft India Development
Center
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Sriram revealed that Microsoft BizTalk RFID enables customers
to rapidly develop RFID solutions on both fixed and mobile RFID readers. It
consists of a server component that interacts with and manages fixed and mobile
RFID readers and processes large volumes of RFID data. It handles communication
with the RFID hardware, freeing up customers to focus on developing .NET applications.
Broadly speaking it provides a set of Application Programmer
Interfaces (APIs) that lets a programmer control RFID hardware just as Windows’
APIs allow him to control, for instance, the interaction of a mouse with the
OS. The details of the specific mouse or its unique behavior/protocol are hidden
from the higher levels of the software in the latter case and BizTalk similarly
abstracts the behavior of hardware devices from a programmer developing a business
application that consumes RFID data.
Microsoft BizTalk Server 2009 includes support for mobile RFID technology. In
addition to the RFID components for the server, it includes the following components
for mobile devices:
- A standard interface to talk to RFID readers/barcode
scanners
- The Microsoft BizTalk RFID runtime that collects
and processes RFID or barcode information
RFID or barcode data collected on the device can be sent to BizTalk RFID Server.
This data is also stored locally to ensure that there is no loss of information
due to network connectivity issues.
| With 10 stores in India and plans to open more, RiteCare
Pharmacy (India) wanted to enhance the efficiency of its warehouse operations
before entering its next phase of growth. As part of that process, the company
wanted to reduce the time taken to fulfill orders in stores, increase order
accuracy, reduce warehouse space requirements, and make it easier for workers
to locate products.
To address these needs, the company chose the S3Edge
RTVS solution suite for Warehouse Visibility that includes BizTalk RFID
Mobile and BizTalk Server 2006 R2. This solution optimizes the placement,
retrieval, and flow of products throughout the warehouse and provides
real-time visibility of all warehouse operations. As a result, RiteCare
cut its order fulfillment time in half, reduced inventory by 60%, and
increased the accuracy of fulfilling store orders to 97%.
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Benefits of the technology
The benefits of BizTalk Mobile RFID Technology include:
- Microsoft BizTalk RFID technology enables the use
of RFID for a broader set of scenarios that require mobility. An example would
be a company that loans equipment could use BizTalk RFID Mobile to have a
salesperson read the RFID tags on its equipment at various locations for an
accurate inventory.
- It allows customers to interact and react to the
information gathered using RFID or barcodes in real-time. For instance, it
is easier to identify an item that has been placed on the wrong shelf in a
retail store and provide feedback to the store personnel.
- It enables RFID or barcode information to be processed
on the device. This helps users react to business conditions such as restocking
situations at runtime.
- n Small businesses that lack servers and backend
systems can do all of their processing on the mobile device itself.
Along with the above benefits, Windows Mobile-based RFID
readers are mobile computers and therefore the RFID data read using these devices
can be processed onboard.
vinita.gupta@expressindia.com
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