Research shows RFID tags work on metal

The industry's first scientific evaluation of passive RFID tags designed to work on metal objects has been released. It busts two well-circulated myths: that passive RFID does not work on metal, and that only one or two tags will actually work reliably on metal objects.

The research, Metal Mount RFID Tag Benchmark, was conducted by ODIN technologies, the leader in RFID deployments, research, and automation software. It compares 17 UHF (ultra-high frequency) RFID tags designed specifically for use on metal to track a large variety of items, such as pallet jacks, forklifts, and data center assets.

“While the metal mount tag performance has improved substantially over the past two years, the benchmark reveals some vendors clearly outperform their peers,” said Patrick J Sweeney II, founder of ODIN technologies. “RFID use is developing more rapidly than ever before with new use-cases coming of age in months rather than years.”

The benchmark study is the 11th installment of ODIN technologies' RFID Benchmark Series, which independently evaluates RFID equipment performance based on physics.

Through this series the company “hopes to make RFID buyers better consumers of vendor information and increase the likelihood of successful implementations,” Sweeney said.

A free redacted report on the Metal Mount RFID Tag Benchmark can be found on the company's website at www.odintechnologies.com. The complete report is available for purchase there as well.