Keywords
Citation
(2002), "Ford adopts RF tagging solution for Europe wide prototype fleet efficiency", Sensor Review, Vol. 22 No. 2. https://doi.org/10.1108/sr.2002.08722bab.005
Publisher
:Emerald Group Publishing Limited
Copyright © 2002, MCB UP Limited
Ford adopts RF tagging solution for Europe wide prototype fleet efficiency
Keywords: Automotive, Ford
The Ford Motor Company has awarded an initial $1 million contract to UK based RFID technology solutions company Cedar Ridge for the supply of its Tri-Tag vehicle control system.
The system being supplied to Ford will enable vehicles to be located and monitored within various zones at Ford's development and testing sites as pert of an overall programme to improve the utilisation of high value prototype vehicles. In this specific Ford application the modular Tri-Tag system is based on very long life Pseudo Passive Tags operating in the 2.45 GHz range and employs solar powered interrogator beacons capable of reading the unique ID code and prototype data held in the memory programmable on- vehicle tags at ranges of up to 12 metres and at vehicle speeds up to 70 mph. Data collected from tag equipped vehicles is then transmitted via a secure radio link to a central control PC which in turn allows information to be accessed on the Companies Intranet by Ford sites worldwide.
Tri-Tag will be deployed at the main Ford European development and testing sites of Dunton in the UK, Lommel in Belgium and Merkenich in Germany and is central to the Company's move towards greater prototype fleet efficiency.
John Darlow of Ford Systems and Business Process Support at Dunton, said of the Cedar Ridge contract, "It is difficult to overstate the increased efflciencies that the Cedar Ridge system will deliver into our organisation. It gives us the ability to access, in real time, the location and status of our prototype and production fleets spread across these very big Ford sites. The savings we will make in terms of immediate access to data and wasted engineer's time are already becoming apparent. When you combine this with the higher levels of vehicle security that Tri-Tag gives us then you begin to realise the enormous potential across our operation for this system."