How Efficient is RFID+Drone Technology in Warehouse Management?

Who is using this new technology?

This technology has already shined in trials. Drone company Verity, sports shoe brand On, and logistics giant Maersk have done a pilot project together. They use a small tag called “RFID tag” that is attached to boxes or goods. Drones will fly between shelves and quickly scan these tags with “electronic eyes”.

These RFID tags are very special. They use the UHF high frequency band (860-960MHz) and support the ISO/IEC 18000-6C protocol. In short, they can be scanned from a long distance, quickly, and not prone to errors. The label material is also very strong, waterproof and weatherproof, and can be used even in a humid and hot warehouse.

How is it better than traditional methods?

In the past, warehouses used cameras to count goods, but sometimes they could not see clearly or were blocked by other things. Now with RFID tags, even if the goods are in boxes or hidden behind shelves, drones can scan them.

Verity’s drones can fly by themselves in the warehouse without remote control. It can process thousands of RFID tags per second with an accuracy rate of up to 99.9%. And there is no need to install a bunch of equipment, like the fixed RFID readers in the past, which are expensive and troublesome. Drones can fly to every corner and can be used in small and large warehouses. It is flexible and convenient.

What will happen in the future?

Maersk participated in the pilot this time because their warehouse is large and has a lot of goods, making it the best testing site. The results of the pilot also proved that this technology is not only “usable”, but “very useful”. In the future, more logistics companies, e-commerce warehouses and even factories may use this system.

To summarize

By attaching RFID tags (such as those with Alien H9 or Ucode 8/9 chips, the materials can be PVC or PET, and can be customized) to the goods, and then equipped with flying drones, the warehouse can count the goods by itself, without making mistakes, and quickly. It’s like giving the warehouse its own “eyes and brain”.

In the future, warehouse management will no longer rely on manpower, but on “flying technology”. This is no longer science fiction, but a real thing.