RFID tags can be used in many industries. In addition, they come with some inherent advantages. For instance, RFID scanners can read RFID tags even when they are inside a carrying case or embedded in the tool, whereas bar codes must be visible to be detected. More data can be stored in an RFID tag than on a bar code.

All these information can help in optimising performance in assets like machine tools. They also serve to increase asset value and maximise asset utilisation. In terms of production, the usage of RFID technology helps in devising production steps and labour schedules. They result in reduced downtime and better managed schedules.

Keeping Track Of Tools

For example, CribMaster has developed a solution known as Live Tracking that combines the company’s existing passive RFID tracking technology for the industrial market with Wi-Fi-based active RFID tags and real-time location system software.

This solution allows machine operators, maintenance crew, administrative staff and anyone in the entire value chain to track small tools or other items fitted with smaller, less expensive EPC Gen 2 Ultrahigh-Frequency (UHF) passive tags. It also allows real-time location data to be obtained.

Better Manufacturing

RFID can eliminate the manual intervention of machine operations, thereby freeing up labour to perform other, more value-added tasks. Effective deployment of RFID also has the potential to quickly provide high levels of accurate and reliable data that other current technologies cannot provide. This can have major impacts, particularly in high-volume and high-speed manufacturing operations, where speed, accuracy, and timeliness are critical for throughput and performance.

Turck, a German manufacturer of industrial sensors and process automation, has a RFID-enabled system for managing and controlling machines running on the factory floor. BLident is a modular RFID system that can be used to control a variety of machines, from a stamping press in an automotive assembly line to a conveyor system or to a welding station.

The system employs high-frequency (13.56 MHz) RFID tags and interrogators supporting the ISO 15693 standard. The tags can be placed on either the products themselves, or on the tooling, depending on the applications.

For the system to work, the I/O slice containing the RFID interrogator reads the tag’s unique ID number, which it then searches for in a back-end database with the correct machine program. The system will only allow the machine to begin its operation when it discovers a match between the tag number and the tool or process.

Improving Metalworking

Automatic tool identification with industrial RFID systems provides a safer option over risky manual or bar code based tool ID and tracking methods. RFID based automatic tool identification system removes error prone manual steps from the tool selection and loading process and provides a complete record of tool offset and life information on the tool.

When data are entered erroneously, the consequence can be costly as tool crashes, broken tools or spindles are expensive to rectify. Even when there is no damage to tools, error in data entry can result in setup errors and bad quality parts.

As the demand for RFID on production lines increase, a natural trend would be to build RFID directly into the manufacturing tools and equipment. Machine-tool builders are catching on to this trend and have created innovative solutions to meet this demand.

Laser tools maker Trumpf has enhanced its LensLine sensor system for 2-D laser cutting machines by combining it with an RFID lens. The RFID lens is now a standard feature on all of the company’s TruLaser Series 3000 CO2 laser machines. Each chip is encoded with a unique ID number, as well as the time and date of the lens’ manufacture — information that could be used in the event of a lens recall.

The interrogator reads that data when the lens is installed in the cutting head. The machine also tracks how long the lens is being used, as well as the lens’ condition, and periodically writes that data to the chip. The RFID chip attached to the lens also records condition monitoring data and other information, such as when the lens has been cleaned.

The condition-monitoring test can now be carried out at predefined intervals automatically and the system is able to advise operators the optimum time to carry out cleaning operations on the lens. This allows operators to avoid carrying out time-consuming visual inspections or preventive maintenance.

When an operator needs to know a particular lens’ history, he or she can access the software on the machine and press a prompt requesting that data, which will then be read from the chip, translated and displayed on screen.

According to Trumpf, reliability of the cutting process has been improved using RFID technology because only lenses with the correct focal length are installed in the correct orientation in the machine.

This sensor system not only delivers objective, accurate measurements indicating the degree of lens contamination, but also provides additional protection in the event the lens is not cleaned.

Safety First

In addition to tool tracking, process history and product quality, plant safety can be taken to a higher level with RFID, with respect to tool use.

UK-based Reactec has a system that uses colour coded RFID tags to tools used in the workplace. These tags carry data about the tool, its make and model, a unique tool number, and an average tool vibration value.

Each day, workers collect an i-pod sized, portable device called the Hand Arm Vibration meter (HAVmeter) by signing it out with a personal swipe card that carries details of their allowed levels of vibration. The technology used is simple and robust enough to be deployed in factory environments or on construction sites.

The HAVmeter is attached magnetically to any tool used during the day. Tool tags are coded red, yellow or green to give a visual warning of the vibration caused by a particular tool and the device displays their total vibration dosage, giving workers enough information to manage their own exposure.

The device records the vibration exposure by collecting data from the tool tags, storing details of tools used and the time that the tool was operated for. It also detects the actual levels of vibration experienced with its on-board accelerometers.

The device is return at the end of the shift and recharged at its docking station while data from the device is uploaded to the system for further analysis. The data extracted are analysed to study the vibration pattern of specific tools and the vibrations levels that each operator was subjected to. By doing so, changes can be made in maintenance and work practice in order to prevent potential harm to operators.

Deploy RFID Wisely

In short, the durability and versatility of RFID can perform many tracking functions for metal fabricators. They keep a tight control of work-in-process and maximise the use of plant assets while tracking them, proactively manage product quality and reduce the cost of nonconformance while improving safety in manufacturing.

However, RFID may be unfeasible for some tools and materials. For example, many consumable items such as grinding discs and cans of paint usually have a printed manufacturer’s UPC bar code, which scanners can read. Their low value and small size of these items, which diminishes as they are being utilised, makes it impractical to use with RFID tags.

Going forward, the design of suitable antennas and the search for better nonvolatile memory will be major challenges. The need for continued process improvement in manufacturing, and mounting cost pressures mean that fabricators must continue to increase efficiency while lowering costs. The growing interest in telematics, article tracking, and mobile commerce will bring RFID even closer to the manufacturers in the near future.