Supply chain management and NFC picking demonstrations using the AspireRfid middleware platform

ABSTRACT

RFID middleware is a cornerstone of non-trivial RFID deployments in complex heterogeneous environments. In this demonstration, we introduce and present the AspireRfid middleware platform using demonstrators in the area of Supply Chain management and Near Field Communications. The AspireRfid platform provides support for non-trivial RFID applications in several fields including supply-chain management, logistics, access control, asset management and pharmaceuticals. In this demonstration we present a traceability application for logistics and supply chain management, as well as a pick and pack application. AspireRfid implements several building blocks of the EPCglobal architecture. However, it also extends the EPCglobal architecture with several middleware modules, which can greatly facilitate RFID application development and deployment. Hence, prior to presenting the demonstrations, we provide a brief discussion of the EPCglobal architecture and the extensions implemented by AspireRFid. We end-up with an illustration of the demonstrators.

REFERENCES

• 1: Christian Floerkemeier, Christof Roduner, and Matthias Lampe, 'RFID Application Development with the Accada Middleware Platform', IEEE Systems Journal, Vol. 1, Issue 2, pp. 82--94, December 2007.
• 2: NFC Forum, http://www.nfc-forum.org
• 3: Architecture Review Committee, "The EPCglobal Architecture Framework," EPCglobal, July 2005, available at: http://www.epcglobalinc.org.
• 4: EPCglobal standards, http://www.epcglobalinc.org/standards
• 5: The AspireRfid project, http://forge.objectweb.org/projects/aspire/ (forge), http://wiki.aspire.objectweb.org (wiki)
• 6: Nikos Zarokostas, Panagiotis Dimitropoulos and John Soldatos, "RFID Middleware Design for enhancing traceability in the Supply Chain Management", in the Proc. of the 18th IEEE Personal Indoor and Mobile Radio Communications, Athens, Greece, September 3--7, 2007.
• 7: Walter Rudametkin, Lionel Touseau, Maroula Perisanidi, Andrés Gömez, Didier Donsez, "NFCMuseum: an Open-Source Middleware for Augmenting Museum Exhibits", IEEE International Conference on Pervasive Services (ICPS 2008), Sorrento, Italy, July 6--10, 2008 (Public demonstration)

INDEX TERMS

Primary Classification:
  C. Computer Systems Organization
  C.2 COMPUTER-COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
      C.2.4 Distributed Systems
          Subjects: Distributed applications

Additional Classification:
  C. Computer Systems Organization
  C.2 COMPUTER-COMMUNICATION NETWORKS
      C.2.4 Distributed Systems
          Subjects: Distributed databases

General Terms:
Design, Management, Performance, Security, Standardization

Keywords:
EPCGlobal, NFCForum, RFID, architecture, middleware