RFID Machine Tracking - Case Study

The Problem

An Agricultural Machinery manufacturer required the location of all components be identifiable, throughout the entire cycle of a conveyor driven paint-shop process. At varying points within the process, temperatures can reach 180°C. Furthermore, excess overspray was a significant probability and would have rendered traditional, line-of-sight barcodes unreadable. Misreads could ultimately slow the process or at worst cause the system to stop, so a more advanced identification system was required. 

The Solution

Maxim deployed RFID read/write with High Temperature High Frequency (HF) RFID tags and holders, capable of working in temperatures up to 220°C. Utilising the sensors, the customer was able to encode unique identifiers in the tags for identification of the product whilst in the paint shop process. The RFID tags would not be affected by heat, cleaning processes, or paint overspray.