1. RF2ID: A Reliable Middleware Framework for RFID Deployment
Nova Ahmed Rajnish Kumar Umakishore Ramachandran College of Computing Georgia Institute of Technology

2. RFID Devices Opportunity Challenges Low cost sensor solution
No line of site problem
Industry interest in large scale deployment
Challenges
Error prone in nature
Vulnerable to physical environment
Large amounts of data

3. Application Scenario Item Tracking Item Location
Physical path for item flow
Tagged item
Destinations
Sources
RFID readers
Item Tracking
Tagged Items are moving
Readers are static
Ex: Warehouse Distribution , Airport Baggage Claim Scenario
Item Location
Tagged Items are static
Readers are moving
Ex: Disaster Scenario
A notion of Path in different scenarios

4. System Architecture A Path based System
Virtual Readers (VRs) – Distributed Computational Element
Physical RFID Readers (PRs) – Sensor Input Device
Path Server and Name Server – Decision Making Elements

5. Physical Route in a Warehouse System

6. Architectural Features meeting Design Goals
Reliability
A virtual reader for a number of physical readers
Path using virtual readers
Load shedding
VRs can drop data
Multiple flows
Paths are shared

7. Logical Connectivity of Virtual Readers
Data Management
Path Management
Query Management

8. Prototype implementation complete
Virtual Reader
Paths
Physical readers and simulated physical readers
Tunable parameters to change reader accuracy
tag distance
tag angular position
reader power level
VRs Implemented as nodes in a cluster communicating using MPI

9. Physical Reader Performance (1)
Distance Dependency
Angular Position Dependency
Angular Position: 90 Degree
Number of Reader Antenna : 2
Reader Power: 31.5 dB
Distance: 15 inches
Number of Reader Antenna : 2
Reader Power: 31.5 dB
ALR 9800 with 2 antennas from Alien Technologies

10. Physical Reader Performance (2)
Attenuation Dependency
Time Dependency
Angular Position: 90 Degree
Number of Reader Antenna : 2
Number of Tags: 6
Reader to Tag Distance: 15 inches
Number of Reader Antenna : 2
Reader Power: 31.5 dB
Number of Tags: 6

11. Improving Reliability using a Single VR
Reader1
Reader2
Number of Reader Antenna : 2
Reader to Route Distance: 10 inches
Reader Power: 31.5 dB

12. Improving Reliability using Multiple VRs (path)
Reader
Total Number of Tags : 10000
Simulation Iteration: 100

13. Conclusions Experiments showing unreliability of RFID devices
A middleware architecture for improving reliability
A prototype implementation
Performance results showing improvement in reliability

14. Future Work Implementing the full functionality of the architecture
Detailed performance analysis using more physical readers
GUI base User Interface for RF2ID deployment

15. Thanks to RF2ID group members
Robert Steven French
Echezona Ukah
Vladimir Urazov