RFID and ZigBee Based Manufacturing Monitoring System

Qiang Ruan, Wensheng Xu, Gaoxiang Wang

School of Mechanical, Electronic and Control Engineering Beijing Jiaotong University Beijing, China

(ruanqiang89@gmail.com, wshxu@bjtu.edu.cn, vipwgx@gmail.com)

Abstract- Traditional methods of monitoring production in enterprises by humans on site are unable to meet the expectations for efficiency, accuracy and cost as product lifecycles are shortened continuously. Setting up an RFID and ZigBee based manufacturing monitoring system is a good approach to improve monitoring efficiency so as to improve management efficiency in enterprises. Although there are still some problems to be solved for RFID and ZigBee technologies, their unique features still make the monitoring system based on them a promising system in manufacturing enterprises. The architecture of the RFID and ZigBee based monitoring system is presented in this paper. RFID; KeywordsManufacturing System ZigBee; Sensor; Monitoring;

of each product, processes, the products current locations, attendance of the workers, equipment and so on, so that the managers can make better analysis and optimization. Because it is a wireless system, the need for wiring and other issues can be got rid of. Of course, there is no universal technology, RFID and ZigBee based wireless sensor monitoring system has its own weaknesses when it is used in a large quantity. For example, the anti-jamming capability in complex or extreme environments and so on may cause problems. There are some successful cases by using RFID and ZigBee based wireless sensor monitoring systems. According to the retail analyst from the company of Sanford C. Bernstein, Wal-Mart can save 8.35 billion dollars per year owing to RFID [1]. Most of the money is saved because there is no need for workers to check the bar code any more. There is no doubt that RFID is helpful in solving the two difficulties in retail business: One is being out of stock due to supply chain disturbed, and the other is the loss of the products due to thefts. Just because of the theft, Wal-Mart has a loss about 2 billion dollars every year [2]. It is estimated by a research institution that the RFID technology will decrease the theft loss by 25 percent [2]. In this paper, we analyze the features and advantages of RFID and ZigBee, and propose the architecture of an RFID and ZigBee based manufacturing monitoring system. II. RFID AND ZIGBEE IN THE MANUFACTURING MONITORING SYSTEM

I.

INTRODUCTION

To improve the production efficiency of an enterprise, the most basic and important requirement is to obtain the real-time status and data of the various manufacturing systems in the enterprise. RFID monitoring devices can serve as the data collection system and the ZigBee wireless network can serve as the communication system to transmit the data to different levels of the enterprise management. From the perspective of system automatic control, the RFID and ZigBee monitoring system serves as the feedback link so as to achieve the closeloop control and management of the enterprise, as shown in Figure 1.

A. Requirements for Data Transmission The collection and transmission of information are equally important. The system as a whole can do a good job only if the sensors and the appropriate wireless information transmission network match each other well. In the traditional sensor monitoring system, the data are transmitted through the cable network. The cable network does have some advantages, such as a higher transfer rate, stronger anti-jamming capability, etc. However, for a monitoring system in some special or complex situations, the power lines or the communication lines could be a constraint and they may severely restrict the range that the wired sensors can reach. In some cases such as when there is a large quantity of sensors or the monitoring targets should always be moving

Figure 1. Close-loop Control Model of the Manufacturing System

RFID and ZigBee based wireless sensor monitoring system can provide enterprise managers with the real-time production status of the enterprise, which include the detailed information

Supported by Beijing Jiaotong University Student Innovation Program and Beijing Jiaotong University Basic Research Fund of the Chinese Education Ministry (2009JBM084)

978-1-4244-8039-5/11/$26.00 2011 IEEE

around (for instance various kinds of vehicles), wiring becomes very complex or even infeasible. The ZigBee technology, however, can easily solve this problem. B. RFID RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) is a non-contact automatic identification technology, whose basic principle is to use the space coupling (inductive or electromagnetic coupling) of the radio frequency signal or the reflective transmission characteristics to achieve the automatic identification of objects (tags) and the informations input or output.

Classified by the working principles: there are mainly inductive coupling readers and electromagnetic backscatter coupling readers [6] . Classified by the different sequences in time: some are full duplex, some are half duplex and some are controlled by special SEQ system[7] . Classified by the fixations: some are fixed on the ground, some are handheld and some are attached on the moving objects [8] .

C. ZigBee ZigBee is a technology of following IEEE 802.15.4 Protocol. Low complexity, low cost, low power consumption, low transmitting rate, high reliability, wireless short distance transmission (compared with global Internet), and being capable of ad-hoc networks are all its features. It is suitable for the fields of automatic control and remote control, and it can be embedded in many different devices. In short, ZigBee is a wireless ad-hoc networks capable communication technology which is cheap and low power consumption. The principle of ZigBee is not very complex. Devices using ZigBee technology can automatically connect to other devices around them, and those RFID devices form a lot of data paths, so different nodes can transfer their information to the end-users through the different paths. A simple ZigBee network is shown in Figure 3.

Figure 2. A Simple RFID System

An RFID system can be divided into at least two types of components the tag and the reader, as shown in Figure 2. The tag is the data carrier in the RFID system. It consists of an antenna and a chip specially designed for tags. There are many ways to classify the different kinds of tags: Classified by the power supply modes, there are active tags, passive tags and semi-passive tags. Active tags have batteries in them but the passive ones do not[3] . Classified by the working frequencies, there are low frequency tags (30kHz ~ 300kHz), high frequency tags (3MHz ~ 30MHz), ultra-high frequency tags (300MHz ~ 3GHz) and microwave frequency tags (>3GHz)[4]. Classified by the encapsulations, there are credit card tags, line tags, paper-like tags, special-purpose tags and so on[5] .

Figure 3. A Simple ZigBee Network

The reader is a device to read or write the data on the tags. Just like the radio, if a reader is to work, it has to be under the same frequency with the tags. There are also some different ways of classification for the readers:

D. Advantages of RFID and ZigBee RFID has many advantages. Compared with bar code and two-dimension code, its advantage lies in the way to read and store the data. RFID tags can contain more data, can be read or written in remote distance and the reader can read more than one tags at the same time, owing to the anti-collision technology. A traditional bar code can only store a few or a dozen English letters or Arabic numbers, and two-dimensional code can store dozens of letters, but it is unable to store Chinese characters, graphics or information in some other forms. Both bar code and two-dimension code are read-only. Meanwhile, an RFID tag can store more than 4MB so far, and there is no limit on the data type and data structure. [9] For the reader can read several tags at the same time without contact, the efficiency is obviously improved. The RFID technology can monitor the objects (tags) in real-time.

Using RFID tags can help us simplify the procedure of the testing processes, improve the efficiency and reduce the expenses both for workers and the equipment. As a new rising technology, ZigBee also has many advantages. One of the most attractive advantages is that it is very energy-saving. In the energy-saving mode, a pair of 5# batteries can support an RFID node for 6 to 24 months or even longer[10]. In comparison, a Bluetooth device in the same situation can only work for weeks, and the Wi-Fi device only a few hours. It is also easy for the controllers to operate on the RFID chips and the requirements for the controller are very low and it is free of patent fee. And also, the cost of the ZigBee chips are quite low. The price of each ZigBee chip is about 2 US dollars currently[11]. ZigBee can respond fast. Generally, it takes only 15 ms to switch from the sleeping mode to the working mode, and 30 ms to connect a node with the network. In comparison, the bluetooth needs 3 to 10 seconds to connect, and Wi-Fi needs about 3s[11]. ZigBee also has a high capacity and flexible scalability. The structure of the ZigBee network can be either star-like, mesh or hybrid. A master node can manage up to 254 child nodes, the master nodes can also be managed by the node in the upper level. There can be as many as 65 thousand nodes in a ZigBee network. ZigBee provides three levels of security, which include no security setting, Access Control List (ACL) and Advanced Encryption Standard(AES-128b) to prevent the data being illegally intercepted by others, and to determine the security attributes flexibly. Although the transmission rate of ZigBee is low, it is mostly enough for industrial production monitoring. Working at different frequencies, it can reach the communication rate of 250 kbps(2.4GHz),40kbps (915MHz) and 20kbps(868 MHz) [12]. The distance between adjacent nodes is between 10 to 100 meters. If we increase the power of Radio Frequency (RF), the distance can extend to 1 to 3 kilometers[13]. If the router and communication relay are used, the communication range can be even farther. For ordinary workshops, it is enough. III. ARCHITECTURE OF RFID AND ZIGBEE BASED MONITORING SYSTEM

Figure 4. Architecture of RFID and ZigBee Based Monitoring System

A complete manufacturing enterprise can be divided into different layers. Different layers do different kinds of jobs. The enterprise can function well and efficiently only if every layer can do a good job and different layers can match each other well. In the RFID and ZigBee based manufacturing monitoring system of an enterprise, all the software and hardware can be divided into four layers: manufacturing layer, monitoring layer, transmission layer and application layer, as shown in Figure 4. The connections between the components in the RFID and ZigBee based monitoring system is shown in Figure 5.

Figure 5. Functions of RFID and ZigBee in the Monitoring System

A. The manufacturing layer The manufacturing layer is at the bottom, and it includes the parts, products, machines, vehicles and workers, etc. The manufacturing layer is the monitoring targets of the monitoring system in the workshops. All useful information can be monitored in this layer, such as the manufacturing status, the production, the locations and other information of

the parts, products, machines, vehicles, and the workload of each worker. In the RFID and ZigBee based manufacturing monitoring system, every object to be monitored must have a RFID tag attached on it. Because each tag has a unique ID, the system can distinguish the different objects. So before we use the system, we need to input the mapping information between the objects and the tags into the system, and write some basic data into the tags. B. The monitoring layer The monitoring layer is the core of the RFID and ZigBee based manufacturing monitoring system. With the help of the readers placed in different locations, the information in the tags nearby will be collected. If gaining the permission, the readers can read the data on the tags and transfer the data to the end-user devices. Also, by detecting the signal attenuation of a tag, we can get the distance between the tag and the reader. Using the distance data from readers placed in different locations, we can even set up a group of equations and by an algorithm we can calculate the coordinate of the tag, just like GPS. The positioning accuracy will increase with the quantity of the readers increasing. By using the high-end RFID devices, the accuracy can reach a centimeters level [5]. The readers can not only read the tags, but also write to the tags. When the reader writes to the tags, information is recorded. So if after a certain process, there is a reader to add a record on the tags, it will be easy for us to know which of the processes are done and which are not with the help of RFID readers. C. The transmission layer This layer aims at transmitting the monitored data to enduser devices in order to have further processes. We choose the ZigBee technology to implement the transmission functions. It is used here as a transmitting media. Its features decide that ZigBee suits the environment in the workshop very well. There are mainly three ZigBee network topological structures, say, star-like structure, mesh structure and hybrid structure. Different structures are used according to different environments and requirements. Some of the ZigBee nodes can only receive the data from RFID devices and broadcast it to other devices around them, and some nodes with gateways can be also used as a repeater, which can make the communication relay to spread the information much farther.[14] D. The interface layer This layer is about the connections between end-user devices and the ZigBee devices, and the way the end-user devices read the monitored data. So-called end-user devices are monitoring computers for the workshop, or the automatic controlling and alarming devices. This is not complex because the RFID devices provide the universal series interfaces such as the most common Universal Series Bus (USB). As the

ZigBee protocol is open so we can read from the ZigBee chip directly in C++ or some other languages, and there are template codes available, so mastering the interface technology is not so difficult even for non-professional users. IV. CONCLUSION

The RFID and ZigBee based manufacturing monitoring system is promising in the manufacturing enterprises in general. We have developed a prototype system of the RFID and ZigBee based monitoring system, which shows good performance in the experimental environment. As a system, its advantages are very obvious compared with other technology. It can bring efficiency and more benefits for enterprises. REFERENCES
[1] R. van der Togt, et al., "Electromagnetic interference from radio frequency identification inducing potentially hazardous incidents in critical care medical equipment," Jama-Journal of the American Medical Association, vol. 299, pp. 2884-2890, Jun 2008. B. Hardgrave, et al., Making the business case for RFID, SPRINGERVERLAG BERLIN, HEIDELBERGER PLATZ 3, D-14197 BERLIN, GERMANY , 2008. Y. Yousuf, et al., A Survey of RFID Authentication Protocols, IEEE, 345 E 47TH ST, NEW YORK, NY 10017 USA , 2008. A. N. Nambiar, "RFID Technology: A Review of its Applications," in Wcecs 2009: World Congress on Engineering and Computer Science, Vol. I, S. I. Ao, et al., Eds., 2009, pp. 1253-1259. F. Gandino, et al., "On Improving Automation by Integrating RFID in the Traceability Management of the Agri-Food Sector," Ieee Transactions on Industrial Electronics, vol. 56, pp. 2357-2365, Jul 2009. L. Ricciardi, et al., "Investigation into the future of RFID in biomedical applications," in Bioengineered and Bioinspired Systems. vol. 5119, A. RodriguezVazquez, et al., Eds., 2003, pp. 199-209. G. Vellidis, et al., "A real-time wireless smart sensor array for scheduling irrigation," Computers and Electronics in Agriculture, vol. 61, pp. 44-50, Apr 2008. L. Yang, et al., "RFID tag and RF structures on a paper substrate using inkjet-printing technology," Ieee Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, vol. 55, pp. 2894-2901, Dec 2007. H. J. Yang, et al., Connectionless Indoor Inventory Tracking in Zigbee RFID Sensor Network, 2009. P. V. Nikitin, et al., "Power reflection coefficient analysis for complex impedances in RFID tag design," Ieee Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, vol. 53, pp. 2721-2725, Sep 2005. R. Glidden, et al., "Design of ultra-low-cost UHF RFID tags for supply chain applications," Ieee Communications Magazine, vol. 42, pp. 140151, Aug 2004. T. K. Nguyen, et al., A low-power CMOS direct conversion receiver with 3-dB NF and 30-kHz flicker-noise corner for 915-MHz band IEEE 802.15.4 ZigBee standard, Vol. 54, 2006 Gaoxiang Wang,Wensheng Xu,"The RFID Based Instrumented Manufacturing Monitoring Platform", Intelligent Information Technology Application 2010 (Proceedings of 2010 International Conference on Intelligent Information Technology Application, Qinhuangdao, China), Volume II,pp.193-195, IEEE,2010 November. Gaoxiang Wang,Wensheng Xu,Mei Wang,"The Grid-computing Based Instrumented Monitoring Platform For Cold Chain Logistics", Logistics Engineering and Intelligent Transportation Systems (Proceedings of 2010 International Conference on Logistics Engineering and Intelligent Transportation Systems, Wuhan,China), pp.402-404, IEEE, 2010 November.

[2]

[3] [4]

[5]

[6]

[7]

[8]

[9] [10]

[11]

[12]

[13]

[14]