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| Thought Paper |
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Integration in RFID |
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| Abstract |
Mandated use of Radio Frequency for automatic Identification (RFID) of goods at the pallet, case
and item level continues to churn the Consumer Product Goods (CPG), Logistics and Retail industry. The statement "Internet of things" is slowly becoming true; with concerted efforts from standard setting bodies such as EPC Global, ISO, FMCG consumer goods companies like Gillette, P&G and major retailers like Wal-Mart, TESCO, and the US DoD, to replace barcodes with RFID tags.
Barcodes are factual with the existing automatic identification systems. At the same time, RFID promises a smooth and accurate capture of data and organizations are looking forward to relieve the existing bottlenecks with systems which enable end-to-end tracking and monitoring of goods. The early acceptance of RFID realizes the need for a good "integration fabric'" that can seamlessly allow data to flow from the devices (tags) through the readers to the RFID middleware systems, and be utilized by the existing or new applications to trigger meaningful transactions. The vision is to combine the best of each into a smooth, tightly knit system, offering the end-user more information in less time.
The Integration landscape that will evolve needs to address issues such as device integration, data integration, presentation and management, ERP, Warehouse Management Systems integration, work flow integration (with partner systems) and concerns for security and privacy. The IT industry comes into the picture while making data available through the artifacts on integration - in turn providing data for better decisions and driving towards quantifiable benefits of the investments.
This white paper focuses on the Integration landscape that is emerging because of the RFID and
EPC network adoption and gives an insight into the importance of integration technologies in
realizing the dream of "Internet of all things".
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