The market for temperature-controlled logistics in particular has been growing in volume over the past few years. Refrigerated and frozen foods, as well as medication logistics, rely on the benefits of RFID technology. The core functions in such operations are active and seamless temperature monitoring as well as localization of the transported pharmaceutical and food products.

This temperature monitoring takes place both during transport and during storage in specially designed containers. In addition to temperature-sensitive products, UV light-sensitive and moisture-sensitive products are also monitored using appropriate sensors. They are coupled with the RFID chip, which in turn is connected to a transmitter and receiver unit in the cockpit of the truck and to the one in the refrigerated container, respectively. The software solution used in each case acts as an instance for the transmission, visualization and further processing of order data as well as the temperature, UV light, humidity and location information mentioned. The transpondersused for this purpose, however, require specially programmed sensors and their own power source (active RFID transponders).

For more information on transponders, see comparison of different RFID transponders.

Image source: © Yuri Bizgaimer – Fotolia.com

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