EUG Is presenting the below webinar and it looks really interesting, this is the promise we all saw with RFID, I wonder if Bluetooth LE can actually deliver?
Proximity and Positioning: Industrial Applications of BLE
Join Bezlio on August 18th for an Epicor User Group webinar on Proximity and Positioning–How industrial applications use Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) technology. BLE is quickly becoming a go-to solution to help you locate inventory more quickly, automate labor data collection, and track jobs and materials right from the shop floor. This webinar will explain what BLE is and how it enables more efficient shop floor processes to deliver less downtime and greater productivity.
Looks pretty interesting I’m wondering if there is the equivalent of disposable tags how do you track inventory with it if you don’t have disposable tags. I doubt its economical to tag your inventory with bluetooth chips that can’t possibly be the answer…
We have been struggling understanding the separation between what you are saying and RFID tech. BLE is a little different in use.
What I think would be cool would be to have systems (workstations/tablets) on our shop floor and have each employee tagged with BLE. Then all they do is walk up to a terminal and it pulls up exactly what they need without intervention. Then with a few taps on the screen, the employee walks way and the tablet goes back to default state.
Or, possibly track movement of employees, sort of a heat map if you will. I haven’t looked into it too much but I know our wifi AP’s already have this tech built in.
Me too! I want to know what they are promoting as a solution using BLE.
@Chris_Conn I think the difference might be the Passive or Active RFID chips. The active ones are nice, but expensive and can be read by almost any newer handheld device (with proper options). The passive ones need proximity readers - like on the forks of a forklift or ‘curtains’ along a conveyor belt. So it really depends on your application.
I explored this for a giant lumber mill back when it was all still new and really thought it was a good idea but the cost was still high back then. I’m really interested in the idea that BLE could be used at the same economical scale. And I’d like know if they have the ability for some level of two way communications and reprogramming/re-identifying the chip’s data (eg last scanned date, change in WIP/part# along a production line, etc.).