Impinj RFID Learning Center

Using Monza 4QT Features

2012-02-15T17:18:00.000-08:00

In an earlier post, Pete showed how to configure Monza4QT features using the Impinj LTK.

This video demonstrates what you can achieve utilizing the Monza 4QT features.

Using the Speedway Revolution with Microsoft BizTalk RFID Server version 2010

2012-01-03T13:22:00.000-08:00

If you want to use the Impinj Speedway Revolution reader with Microsoft's BizTalk RFID Server, then this posting will help get you started. This video will cover the following important steps in the process:

Installing the Impinj Device Provider [0:31]
Adding an Impinj Speedway Revolution reader using RFID Manager [1:18]
Viewing tag reads from the Speedway Revolution [3:28]
Viewing the Speedway Revolution device properties [4:09]
Adding the Speedway Revolution to a new process [10:00]
Testing to ensure tag reads reach the new process [13:27]
Viewing tag data in the rfidsink database [14:02]

Note: To jump to a particular topic in the video, scroll to the start time indicated after each chapter title.

This video steps you through the process using Microsoft BizTalk RFID 2010.

Connecting to Speedway Revolution Reader

2011-12-30T10:08:00.000-08:00

The following video is a step-by-step demonstration of how to connect directly from a PC to the Impinj Speedway Revolution reader over the Ethernet port.

Reading & Changing Tag EPC Data using MultiReader

2011-12-21T11:06:00.000-08:00

The following video is a quick step by step demonstration that will show you how to easily set-up the MultiReader software program to test read tags using the default settings of various Speedway Reader products in just minutes!

It is important that you download the latest version of the MultiReader software from the www.impinj.com website. A direct link to the download has been provided below.

Download Impinj MultiReader Software

You will need the following items to perform these tasks:

1. An Impinj RFID reader product (Speedway R220, R420, or R640)

2. A UHF Gen 2 RFID antenna

3. Multiple UHF Gen 2 RFID tags

4. The ability to connect the reader to your PC or network

Upgrading the Speedway Revolution Octane Firmware using the Web Management UI

2011-12-16T13:39:00.001-08:00

The video below is a quick step by step tutorial that will show you how to upgrade the Octane firmware for the Speedway Revolution RFID reader and the Speedway xPortal integrated RFID portal.

Important Preparation Steps:

1. Make sure the reader has a secure power connection

2. Make sure the reader is connected to your PC or network

3. Make sure you know the reader's DNS host name so you can access it

4. Make sure you've downloaded the latest Octane firmware file from the Impinj Support Portal (login required)

Setting up Indy Software & Tools

2011-12-07T09:27:00.000-08:00

The following video is a short, step-by-step demonstration of setting up the Indy Reader Chip Platform software and tools so that you can easily read RFID tags.

Configuring Regional Settings on the Speedway Revolution Reader

2011-11-28T16:12:00.001-08:00

The GX1 model of the Speedway Revolution RFID reader supports several different regulatory regions. When shipped, the GX1's model default region is set to "None-RFID disabled". In order to configure your reader for your region, you will need to change the regional settings using the Web Management Interface. This process is easy and below is a quick video that will show you how to change the regional frequency settings for your GX1 reader.

Serial Output with Speedway Connect

2011-10-17T10:26:00.000-07:00

Do you need a simple way to capture product EPC (RFID) tag data? Then Speedway Connect software might be just what you're looking for.

Speedway Connect is software that runs on the Impinj Speedway Revolution Reader. Speedway Connect reads EPC data from RFID tags and will output the data directly to your computer without additional software middleware. For example, this is useful for applications that need RFID data over a serial connection. This video explains how to set up Speedway Connect to send EPC data via serial port to your computer. What you do with that data is now up to you!

For example, you might convert the RS232 serial output from the Speedway Revolution GPIO port to a different data format such as Wiegand, RS485 or CAN using a converter module.

Instead of having to write additional code in your existing application to handle RFID, let Speedway Connect simplify and streamline the process by giving you that data directly! For more information, please contact Impinj at www.impinj.com.

Speedway Connect uses the following serial settings:

115,200 baud
8 data bits
No parity
One stop bit

The serial cable should be wired in a null modem configuration (Rx->Tx and Tx->Rx).

Keyboard Wedge with Speedway Connect

2011-10-13T15:34:00.000-07:00

Do you currently use a barcode scanner to capture product UPC data? Do you want to capture EPC (RFID) tag data instead? Then Speedway Connect software might be just what you're looking for.

Speedway Connect is software that runs on the Impinj Speedway Revolution Reader. Speedway Connect reads EPC data from RFID tags and will output it to your computer as if it is being typed. For example, this is useful for applications that already rely on keyboard entry or "wedge" data entry such as barcode scanners. This video explains how to set up Speedway Connect to send EPC data via keyboard emulation (aka keyboard wedge) to your computer. What you do with that data is now up to you!

Instead of having to write additional code in your existing application to handle RFID, let Speedway Connect simplify and streamline the process by giving you that data directly! For more information, please contact Impinj at www.impinj.com.

Configuring Monza4 QT with the LTK

2011-10-03T12:17:00.000-07:00

The Monza® 4QT tag chip features Impinj's patent-pending QT® technology—a unique ability to maintain two data profiles to support protection of business-sensitive data and consumer privacy. With QT technology, tag owners can use a private data profile to store confidential data, while a public data profile holds less sensitive information. The ability to switch between these two profiles is protected by the tag's access password, physical distance from a reader antenna via a short range mode, or both.

The following code sample shows to configure an Impinj Monza4 QT tag using the LLRP Toolkit (LTK). The method below places an OpSpec on the reader that sets the access range (near / far), data profile (public / private) and persistence (permanent / temporary) properties of the tag.

public void Add_QT_AccessSpec(ENUM_ImpinjQTDataProfile dataProfile, 
                             ENUM_ImpinjQTAccessRange accessRange, 
                             ENUM_ImpinjQTPersistence persistence)
{
   MSG_ADD_ACCESSSPEC msg = new MSG_ADD_ACCESSSPEC();
   
   // AccessSpec
   msg.AccessSpec = new PARAM_AccessSpec();
   msg.AccessSpec.AccessSpecID = ACCESS_SPEC_ID;
   msg.AccessSpec.AntennaID = 0;
   msg.AccessSpec.ROSpecID = 0;
   msg.AccessSpec.ProtocolID = ENUM_AirProtocols.EPCGlobalClass1Gen2;
   msg.AccessSpec.CurrentState = ENUM_AccessSpecState.Disabled;
   
   // AccessSpecStopTrigger
   msg.AccessSpec.AccessSpecStopTrigger = new PARAM_AccessSpecStopTrigger();
   msg.AccessSpec.AccessSpecStopTrigger.AccessSpecStopTrigger =
       ENUM_AccessSpecStopTriggerType.Operation_Count;
   msg.AccessSpec.AccessSpecStopTrigger.OperationCountValue = 1;
   
   // AccessCommand
   msg.AccessSpec.AccessCommand = new PARAM_AccessCommand();
   msg.AccessSpec.AccessCommand.AirProtocolTagSpec = new UNION_AirProtocolTagSpec();
   
   // TagSpec
   PARAM_C1G2TagSpec tagSpec = new PARAM_C1G2TagSpec();
   tagSpec.C1G2TargetTag = new PARAM_C1G2TargetTag[1];
   tagSpec.C1G2TargetTag[0] = new PARAM_C1G2TargetTag();
   tagSpec.C1G2TargetTag[0].Match = true;
   tagSpec.C1G2TargetTag[0].MB = new TwoBits(1);
   tagSpec.C1G2TargetTag[0].Pointer = 16;
   tagSpec.C1G2TargetTag[0].TagData = LLRPBitArray.FromString("");
   tagSpec.C1G2TargetTag[0].TagMask = LLRPBitArray.FromString("");
   msg.AccessSpec.AccessCommand.AirProtocolTagSpec.Add(tagSpec);
   
   // AccessCommandOpSpec
   msg.AccessSpec.AccessCommand.AccessCommandOpSpec = new UNION_AccessCommandOpSpec();
   
   PARAM_ImpinjSetQTConfig qtConfig = new PARAM_ImpinjSetQTConfig();
   qtConfig.DataProfile = new ENUM_ImpinjQTDataProfile();
   qtConfig.OpSpecID = OP_SPEC_ID;
   qtConfig.AccessPassword = 0;
   qtConfig.Persistence = persistence;
   qtConfig.DataProfile = dataProfile;
   qtConfig.AccessRange = accessRange;
   
   msg.AccessSpec.AccessCommand.AccessCommandOpSpec.AddCustomParameter(qtConfig);
   
   MSG_ADD_ACCESSSPEC_RESPONSE rsp = 
      reader.ADD_ACCESSSPEC(msg, out msg_err, MSG_TIMEOUT_MSEC);
   CheckLlrpReply(rsp.LLRPStatus);
}

To configure the tag, you would call the method like this:

// Put the tag in public mode. A zero EPC will be backscattered.
reader.Add_QT_AccessSpec(  ENUM_ImpinjQTDataProfile.Public, 
                           ENUM_ImpinjQTAccessRange.Normal_Range, 
                           ENUM_ImpinjQTPersistence.Permanent);

Connecting to Speedway Revolution using Wireless Router

2011-09-26T15:34:00.000-07:00

You can connect to the Speedway Revolution reader wirelessly using a number of different approaches: USB WiFi adapter, cellular modem (using Sierra Wireless Raven XT or Pinpoint XT) or a wireless router/wireless bridge; this posting will review the wireless router option.

A wireless router/bridge product has integrated 802.11 radio that connects to Speedway reader via the Ethernet port. There are many products available with this capability.

A wireless bridge/router may be an attractive option when:
• Adding WiFi connectivity to a reader with PCBA pre-v4.0
• Additional functionality is needed, such as VPN or failover/failback to cellular wireless (connect cellular USB modem or air card to router/bridge)
• Speedway Revolution USB port is used for other purposes (eg firmware upgrades)
• Wireless 802.11n is required
• Space constraints can not accommodate the USB adapter

Impinj has tested with the Cradlepoint CTR35 wireless router and the instructions below are specifically for use with this device.

Using Speedway Revolution with the Cradlepoint CTR35:

1. Access the Cradlepoint WebUI and put the adaptor in WiFi as WAN mode and map it to the wireless network.
NOTE: For other wireless routers, use 'Client' or 'Station' mode (do not use WDS)
2. Set the reader to dynamic IP mode for the Ethernet connection.
3. Connect the two.

Here is a tutorial video on configuring the Cradlepoint CTR35:

Serial Connections to the Speedway Revolution Reader

2011-09-16T13:15:00.000-07:00

If you need to receive data from the Speedway Revolution reader via a serial connection (RS-232), then you have two options to do so. The reader's serial port is accessed through the GPIO port on the reader as illustrated here:

Option 1: create a serial cable that connects the GPIO port on the reader to a serial device (DB-9):

Option 2: create a serial cable that connects to the serial portion of the Impinj SpeedwayR GPIO Box:

HTTP POST with Speedway Connect

2011-09-16T12:14:00.000-07:00

Speedway Connect is an on-reader software application from Impinj. It allows users to graphically configure a Speedway Revolution reader and receive tag data over standard communication channels. One of the available output options is HTTP POST. When this is enabled, the reader will periodically send tag data to a web server. Here are the details of the POST format, along with a sample PHP script showing how to parse the data and put it into a MySQL database as well as a demonstration video of this feature.

These are the POST variables sent by Speedway Connect

reader_name : The name assigned to the reader in Speedway Connect
mac_address : The MAC address of the reader
line_ending : Line ending character specified in Speedway Connect
field_delim : Field delimiter character specified in Speedway Connect
field_names : A list of field names, separated by the specified delimiter
field_values : A list of field values, separated by the specified delimiter

<?php
   // Uncomment this block for debug.
   // It writes the raw POST data to a file.
   /*
   $fn = "log.txt";
   $fp = fopen($fn, "a");
   $rawPostData = file_get_contents('php://input');
   fwrite($fp, date("l F d, Y, h:i A") . "," . $rawPostData . "\n");    
   fclose($fp);
   */
   
   // Define the user name, password,
   // MySQL hostname and database name.
   define("DB_USER", "user");
   define("DB_PASS", "pass");
   define("DB_HOST", "mysql.myhost.com");
   define("DB_NAME", "dbname");
   
   // Store the POST variables.
   $readerName = $_POST[reader_name];
   $macAddress = $_POST[mac_address];
   $lineEnding = $_POST[line_ending];
   $fieldDelim = $_POST[field_delim];
   $fieldNames = $_POST[field_names];
   $fieldValues = $_POST[field_values];
   
   // Connect to the database.
   $con = mysql_connect(DB_HOST, DB_USER, DB_PASS);
   mysql_select_db(DB_NAME) or die( "Unable to select database");
   
   // Replace the field delimiter with a comma.
   str_replace($fieldDelim, ",", $fieldNames);
   
   // Break the field values up into rows.
   $rows = explode("\n", $fieldValues);
   
   // Remove the last row. It's always blank
   if (sizeof($rows)) array_pop($rows);
   
   $fieldNames = "reader_name,mac_address," . $fieldNames;                
   
   foreach ($rows as $row)
   {
      $row = $readerName . "," . $macAddress . "," .
      $row;
      $query = "INSERT INTO tags ($fieldNames) VALUES ($row)";
      echo $query . "\n";
      mysql_query($query);        
   }                
   
   mysql_close($con);
?>

Connecting to Speedway Revolution using WiFi USB Adapter

2011-09-14T14:46:00.000-07:00

The Impinj Speedway Revolution RFID reader supports use of a USB WiFi adapter to allow for wireless connection to a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN).

This posting describes the procedure to enable this feature and some guidance on which USB WiFi modules are supported.

1. Check the serial number of the Speedway Revolution Reader, and ensure that it is PCBA version 4.0 or later (serial #3701012XXXX or higher) as marked on the label on the side of the Reader.

2. Connect to Speedway Revolution reader via Console port.

3. Ensure reader has firmware version 4.8 or higher installed using Rshell command:
> show image summary

4. Attach an Impinj supported* USB WiFi modem to USB host port on the Reader.

5. Configure the WLAN network parameters in Rshell using the following the commands:

> config network wlan nettype infra
> config network wlan ssid “my network”
> config network wlan keymgmt wpa-psk
> config network wlan encrypt wpa2
> config network wlan psk "password"
> config network wlan commit

Fig 1 config network wlan parameters

The parameters are now saved to flash memory and will be applied the next time the Wi-Fi interface is activated.

6. After this is done, set the wifi as the primary using Rshell command:

> config network interface primary wlan

7. Reboot the reader and the wifi will discover the wireless network after about a minute or so.

You can check the status of the connection by looking at:

> show network summary
> show network wlan summary

The BSSID shown in network wlan summary is the MAC address of the Access Point (AP) that the reader is connected to.

*Impinj provides native support for USB WiFi adapters with the Realtek chipset RTL 8187 in Octane v4.8.0 or later.

The following adapters have been tested by Impinj:
• Alfa AWUS036H
• CCrane Versa Wifi USB Adapter II

Other known, but untested, adapters which might be supported include:
• Alfa AWUS036E and AWUS036EH(NOT the Alfa AWUS036S)
• Kasens G5000
• LevelOne WNC-0301USB
• LevelOne WNC-0305USB
• Netgear WG111 v2 (NOT version 3)

Adapters with other WiFi chipsets are not supported.

Here is a tutorial video on installing USB WiFi

Pinging a Reader with C#

2011-09-13T10:45:00.000-07:00

Here's a handy way to determine if a reader is connected to the network or not. It uses the .NET Ping and PingOptions classes, so make sure to add the following namespace to your project.

using System.Net.NetworkInformation;

Then, you can write a method like this, that returns true if the reader is connected and false if it is not.

private bool ReaderIsAvailable(string address)
{
    Ping pingSender = new Ping();
    PingOptions options = new PingOptions();
    options.DontFragment = true;
    string data = "aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa";
    byte[] buffer = Encoding.ASCII.GetBytes(data);
    int timeout = 120;
    PingReply reply = pingSender.Send(address, timeout, buffer, options);
    if (reply.Status == IPStatus.Success)
        return true;
    else
        return false;
}

Finally, this is how you would call the method

if (ReaderIsAvailable("SpeedwayR-10-25-32"))
{
    // Reader is connected to the network.
    // Start reading some tags!
}
else
{
    // Reader is not connected to the network.
    // Handle it here.
}

EPC Gen2 Tag Filtering

2011-08-25T14:17:00.000-07:00

UHF Gen2 filters allow you to specify which tags should respond in an inventory. This feature allows you to isolate specific tags in large population. Tags that do not match the specified filter will not transmit a response, which greatly reduces the amount of RF traffic. The following C# code sample shows how to filter tags based on EPC. In this example, only tags with EPCs that start with 78B5 will respond.

// Create the Inventory Command and RF Control parameters
PARAM_C1G2InventoryCommand c1g2Inv = new PARAM_C1G2InventoryCommand();
PARAM_C1G2RFControl c1g2RF = new PARAM_C1G2RFControl();

// Setup the tag filter
c1g2Inv.C1G2Filter = new PARAM_C1G2Filter[1];
c1g2Inv.C1G2Filter[0] = new PARAM_C1G2Filter();
c1g2Inv.C1G2Filter[0].C1G2TagInventoryMask = new PARAM_C1G2TagInventoryMask();
// Filter on EPC (memory bank #1)
c1g2Inv.C1G2Filter[0].C1G2TagInventoryMask.MB = new TwoBits(1);
// Start filtering at the address 0x20 (the start of the third word).
// The first two words of the EPC are the checksum and Protocol Control bits.
c1g2Inv.C1G2Filter[0].C1G2TagInventoryMask.Pointer = 0x20;
c1g2Inv.C1G2Filter[0].C1G2TagInventoryMask.TagMask = LLRPBitArray.FromHexString("78B5");

// Set the reader mode to one of these values.
// 0 = Max Throughput
// 1 = Hybrid
// 2 = Dense Reader M4
// 3 = Dense Reader M8
// 4 = Max Miller
// 1000 = Autoset Dense Reader
// 1001 = Autoset Single Reader
c1g2RF.ModeIndex = 1000;
c1g2RF.Tari = 0;
c1g2Inv.C1G2RFControl = c1g2RF;

// Set the session.
PARAM_C1G2SingulationControl c1g2Sing = new PARAM_C1G2SingulationControl();
c1g2Sing.Session = new TwoBits(1);
c1g2Sing.TagPopulation = 32;
c1g2Sing.TagTransitTime = 0;
c1g2Inv.C1G2SingulationControl = c1g2Sing;
c1g2Inv.TagInventoryStateAware = false;

// Set the search mode.
PARAM_ImpinjInventorySearchMode impISM = new PARAM_ImpinjInventorySearchMode();
impISM.InventorySearchMode = ENUM_ImpinjInventorySearchType.Single_Target;
c1g2Inv.Custom.Add(impISM);

// Build the AI spec.
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec = new PARAM_InventoryParameterSpec[1];
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0] = new PARAM_InventoryParameterSpec();
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].InventoryParameterSpecID = 1234;
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].ProtocolID = ENUM_AirProtocols.EPCGlobalClass1Gen2;
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration = new PARAM_AntennaConfiguration[1];
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration[0] = new PARAM_AntennaConfiguration();
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration[0].AntennaID = 0;
// Add the inventory command to the AI spec.
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration[0].AirProtocolInventoryCommandSettings.Add(c1g2Inv);
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration[0].RFTransmitter = new PARAM_RFTransmitter();
// Tx power.
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration[0].RFTransmitter.TransmitPower = 81;
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration[0].RFTransmitter.HopTableID = 1;
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration[0].RFTransmitter.ChannelIndex = 0;

aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration[0].RFReceiver = new PARAM_RFReceiver();
// Receive sensitivity.
aiSpec.InventoryParameterSpec[0].AntennaConfiguration[0].RFReceiver.ReceiverSensitivity = 20;
msg.ROSpec.SpecParameter.Add(aiSpec);

Connecting to the Speedway Revolution Console Port

2011-08-01T18:09:00.000-07:00

Here is a video tutorial on connecting to the Console (serial) port on the Speedway Revolution reader using PuTTY serial/ssh/telnet client.

You can download PuTTY for free by clicking here.

Additional RShell commands are avaialble here in the Impinj Support Portal (login required).

Note: Use the serial connection for configuration only, for tag inventory - connect using Ethernet port and using a tool such as MultiReader.

Octane SDK Debug Logging

2011-07-05T13:12:00.000-07:00

The Octane SDK supports various levels of logging. The data available ranges from informational items to very verbose debug logging. In this post, I'll show you how to enable the most detailed logging and write the data to file.

// Declare a stream writer. 
// We'll use this to write the debug data to file.
static StreamWriter debugLogStream;

static void Main(string[] args)
{
// Open a new file to hold the debug information.
debugLogStream = new StreamWriter("debug.log", false);

// Enable debug logging.
Reader.LogLevel = LogLevel.Debug;
// Specify a method to handle logging events.
Reader.Logging += OnDebugLogging;

/////////////////////////////////////////////
// Do your RFID stuff here
/////////////////////////////////////////////

// Close the debug log file.
debugLogStream.Close();
}

// This method gets called by the Octane SDK
// when there is debug information available.
static void OnDebugLogging(object sender, LoggingEventArgs args)
{
// Write the debug message to file.
debugLogStream.WriteLine(args.Entry.Message);
debugLogStream.Flush();
}

Telnet Scripting RShell Commands

2011-06-27T17:06:00.000-07:00

The Speedway Revolution reader’s Command Line Interface (CLI) is called RShell, it can be accessed after logging into the reader via a serial, Telnet, or an SSH connection. The CLI can be used to configure, maintain and query the status of the RFID reader.

It can be useful to write code which uses RShell commands to configure the reader, essentially Telnet scripting. Below is an example in C# which opens a socket connection to the Speedway Revolution RFID reader and utilizes the CLI.

using System;
using System.Collections.Generic;
using System.Linq;
using System.Text;
using System.Net.Sockets;
using System.Net;

namespace RshellScripting
{
class Program
{
static Socket socket;
static void Main(string[] args)
{
int count;
string str;
byte[] buffer = new byte[1024];
// Replace READER_HOSTNAME with your reader's host name or IP address 
const string READER_HOSTNAME = "SpeedwayR-10-27-DA.local";

try
{
// Create a new socket
socket = new Socket(AddressFamily.InterNetwork, SocketType.Stream, ProtocolType.IP);

// Get the IP address of the reader by hostname
IPAddress[] ip = Dns.GetHostAddresses(READER_HOSTNAME);

// Create an IP endpoint using the IP address
IPEndPoint ep = new IPEndPoint(ip[0], 23);

// Connect to the telnet socket on the reader
socket.Connect(ep);

// Wait for the login prompt
str = "";
while (!str.Contains("login:"))
{
count = socket.Receive(buffer);
str = System.Text.Encoding.ASCII.GetString(buffer);
}

// Send the user name
socket.Send(Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes("root\n"));

// Wait for the password prompt
str = "";
while (!str.Contains("Password:"))
{
count = socket.Receive(buffer);
str = System.Text.Encoding.ASCII.GetString(buffer);
}

// Send the password
socket.Send(Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes("impinj\n"));

// Wait for the RShell prompt
str = "";
while (!str.Contains(">"))
{
count = socket.Receive(buffer);
str = System.Text.Encoding.ASCII.GetString(buffer);
}

// Send an RShell command
socket.Send(Encoding.UTF8.GetBytes("show image summary\n"));

// Read the reply
// The first reply is just an echo of our command "show image summary"
// Ignore it
count = socket.Receive(buffer);
// The second reply is the data we want (the result of the command)
count = socket.Receive(buffer);
Console.WriteLine(System.Text.Encoding.ASCII.GetString(buffer,0,count));
}
catch (SocketException ex)
{
Console.WriteLine("A socket exception occurred : " + ex.Message);
}

Console.WriteLine("Press enter to exit");
Console.ReadLine();
}
}
}

Impinj partners can download the RShell Reference Manual from this support portal link (login required).

Tag Testing Using MultiReader

2011-06-11T12:21:00.000-07:00

Some users want to test the frequency response or tuning of a tag as shown in this recent question from an Impinj partner:

QUESTION

"The idea is to set the reader to a single frequency and increase the power level until a tag at a fixed distance begins to read. Then, move to the next frequency and increase the power until it reads. This shows the tuning of a tag. It does not look like I can use MultiReader to set the reader to a fixed frequency. Any ideas? Thanks"

This post will describe how to do this using MultiReader software and the Speedway Revolution reader.

ANSWER

YES, you can use MultiReader to achieve this, though it is a bit if a different approach. The FCC does not allow for disabling frequency hopping in order to set the reader at a fixed frequency. So, rather than set one fixed frequency and increase power, MultiReader allows for sitting at a given power while the reader hops all available frequencies/channels and reports which frequencies it was able to read the tag and the tag's RSSI (returned power).

To do this:

1. Ensure you are using latest version of MultiReader (6.6.1.240). If not, install and use this version.

2. Click on 'Configure Settings'

3. Select 'Modes, RF, Power' menu - ensure desired antenna is checked and that Rx Sensitivity Max is checked.

4. Select the 'Run Mode' menu

5. From the Run Mode drop-down box, select 'Margin Test'.

6. Ensure that the On Time is at least 10 seconds (10000 ms) for FCC - reader hops ~ every 200ms across 50 frequencies/channels so in 10 seconds it will cover all available, I recommend 12 seconds (12000 ms) just to be sure.

7. Set the Start, Stop and power steps to desired value. Minimum power is +10dBm and max can be up to 32.5dBm, dpending on region, model and power source. The power can be set to increment in as little as 0.25dB steps.

8. Click 'Data Capture' - ensure capture is set to 'On'.

9. Click 'Apply' - this will return you to the main screen.

10. Click 'Start Margin Test Run'.

Now MultiReader will start at the first power and sit there for 12 seconds hopping across all the frequencies before stepping to the next power and so on.

9. When finished, select 'File' from the menu at top left corner of MultiReader GUI and then 'Save Tag History'

10. Now you can choose a file name, notes and location for the test results spreadsheet.

11. If you use Excel to open the spreadsheet you can select the frequency column and select Data - Filter - Advanced Filter and select 'Unique records only'. This will filter out duplicate frequency reads and so you will see only the first time the tag was seen at any given frequency, the TX power and RSSI at that read.

For example, in the image below we see the data once the filter has been applied. The tag was read at +19dBm TX power at 37 frequencies/channels; the remaining 13 were read with a TX power of +20.

You can choose to not filter data and see the RSSI at various TX powers across all frequencies.

Issue with MultiReader in Windows 7

2011-05-18T09:22:00.000-07:00

There has been an issue identified in which the Windows 7 User Account Control (UAC) interferes with the correct operation of MultiReader. UAC is a feature in Windows that can help prevent unauthorized changes to your computer. UAC does this by asking you for permission or an administrator‌ password before performing actions that could potentially affect your computer's operation or that change settings that affect other users.

UAC often creates a conflict between your local administrator rights and your domain user rights. If you have an error in Windows 7 when trying to connect to a reader, this post is for you.

If this is a problem for your setup, then when attempting to connect to a reader, the following message may appear:

If this happens to you, then there are 2 ways of resolving it; by running the application as an administrator using the Windows "Run as Administrator" option, or by changing the application access permissions within Windows Explorer.

It is recommended that you try option 1 first as a test to ensure that your UAC settings allow you to run the application correctly. If option 1 does not work for you, then you will need to request the appropriate permissions from your IT department.

To run the application as an Administrator, simply close MultiReader, then hold the SHIFT key while right-clicking on the MultiReader shortcut. A menu like this will pop up:

Click on the "Run as Administrator" option and MultiReader will run as expected.
Changing the application access permissions within Windows Explorer. If you are able to successfully run MultiReader with option 1, then you should also be able to change the default execution permissions for the application. To do so, simply right click on the MultiReader shortcut, and from the resulting menu, select Properties:

From the resulting dialog, select the Compatibility tab and then check the "Run this program as an administrator" check box:

Click on the OK button to close the dialog box, and now when you run MultiReader it will be run with Administrator privileges simply by double-clicking on the icon.

Reader-Initiated Connections on Speedway Revolution

2011-05-04T14:27:00.001-07:00

Some RFID software applications support reader-initiated connections. In this configuration, the reader connects to a server rather than waiting for a client PC to connect. This setup can be useful when your reader and host computer and separated by a firewall. In that situation, the computer is outside the firewall, so it cannot initiate a network connection to the reader. However the reader, which is behind the firewall, can usually initiate outbound connections. Speedway Revolution supports reader-initiated connections in firmware. You can configure this feature through the RShell interface:

First, telnet or ssh into the reader (user name : root, password : impinj)

At the prompt (>) enter this command:

config rfid llrp outbound

Then enter a question mark and hit return. You will give you a list of commands pertaining to reader-initiated connections.

For example, you can add a server to the list like this:

You can get additional information about each command by typing help and then the command name.

Reboot the reader when you're done for the settings to take effect.

You can read more details on reader-initiated connections in the Config RFID LLRP Outbound Commands section of the RShell Refernce Manual.

Saving Reader Settings

2011-04-29T15:28:00.000-07:00

The Impinj custom command Save_Settings saves the entire reader state to persistent storage and applies these settings upon Speedway Revolution reader power-on or reset. This includes settings from SET_READER_CONFIG in addition to any configured ROSpecs and AccessSpecs. The current state of ROSpecs and AccessSpecs are preserved with the one exception that an ‘Active’ ROSpec is saved in the ‘Inactive’ (but enabled) state.

An ROSpec with an ‘Immediate’ start trigger will be saved in the ‘Inactive’ state but will then run immediately upon power-on or reset. Similarly, a ROSpec with a GPI start trigger will run upon the first GPI transition after power-on or reset.

For AccessSpecs, the countdown value (if any) upon receiving this custom message is saved. No automatic update of the persistent configuration during reader operation is supported.

Note: You must Enable_Impinj_Extensions prior to running IMPINJ_SAVE_SETTINGS

Here is some sample code which enables Save_Settings:

private int SaveSettings()
{
MSG_IMPINJ_SAVE_SETTINGS iss_msg = new MSG_IMPINJ_SAVE_SETTINGS();
MSG_ERROR_MESSAGE msg_err;

iss_msg.SaveConfiguration = true;

// Send the custom message and wait for 5 seconds
MSG_CUSTOM_MESSAGE cust_rsp = reader.CUSTOM_MESSAGE(iss_msg, out msg_err, 5000);
MSG_IMPINJ_SAVE_SETTINGS_RESPONSE msg_rsp =
cust_rsp as MSG_IMPINJ_SAVE_SETTINGS_RESPONSE;

if (msg_rsp != null)
{
if (msg_rsp.LLRPStatus.StatusCode != ENUM_StatusCode.M_Success)
{
Console.WriteLine(msg_rsp.LLRPStatus.StatusCode.ToString());
reader.Close();
return -1;
}
}
else if (msg_err != null)
{
Console.WriteLine(msg_err.ToString());
reader.Close();
return -1;
}
else
{
Console.WriteLine("Save Settings Command Timed out\n");
reader.Close();
return -1;
}

return 0;
}

private void Enable_Impinj_Extension()
{
MSG_IMPINJ_ENABLE_EXTENSIONS imp_msg = new MSG_IMPINJ_ENABLE_EXTENSIONS();
MSG_CUSTOM_MESSAGE cust_rsp = reader.CUSTOM_MESSAGE(imp_msg, out msg_err, 8000);
MSG_IMPINJ_ENABLE_EXTENSIONS_RESPONSE msg_rsp =
cust_rsp as MSG_IMPINJ_ENABLE_EXTENSIONS_RESPONSE;

if (msg_rsp != null)
{

Console.WriteLine(msg_rsp.ToString());
}
else if (msg_err != null)
{
Console.WriteLine(msg_err.ToString());
}
else
Console.WriteLine("Command timed out\n");
}

private void Form1_Load(object sender, EventArgs e)
{
bool[] sb = new bool[] { true, true, false, false };

bool[] db = new bool[200];

sb.CopyTo(db, 0);

}

Synchronize and Set Clock on Speedway Revolution Reader

2011-03-30T22:23:00.000-07:00

The Speedway Revolution reader has an internal clock to provide date and time stamp data. Like any clock, it has some drift and needs to be occasionally synchronized.

Automatic Synchronization Using Network Time Protocol (NTP)
If your reader is connected to the Internet via a router and is configured for the default of Dynamic Host Configuration Protocol (DHCP), rather than a static IP address, then the router will typically have a NTP server configured which will automatically synchronize the reader's date and time. You should confirm this using the router's manual or configuration tool.

Manually Configure NTP
If the router or switch that the Revolution is connected to does not provide NTP access, you can manually point the reader to an NTP server by executing “config network ntp add [ntp server name or address]” in RShell. To do this, first use a telnet client (i.e. Putty, HyperTerminal, etc.) to connect to the Revolution and login using username: root, password: impinj

Then input "show network config ntp" as shown below:

The default response is 'status =0,Success' which means that NTP is enabled but is not configured for a static NTP server location. The next thing to do is select an NTP server from this list and enter it as shown below (note that using pool.ntp.org will automatically pick a time server that is geographically close to you).

Manually Configure Date and Time
You can also manually set the time by executing the RShell command “config system time”.

A sample command that sets the system time is shown below: (Time is set to April, 27 1:11:00 p.m. 2010)

> config system time 042713112010

Note: In order to use this command to set the system time, you must remove any statically configured NTP server(s) and set the DHCP server configuration to NOT offer the NTP server option to the reader. Failure to do so will result in a “Permission-Denied” error.

Configuring Time and Date Stamp in Microsoft BizTalk
The Impinj Device Provider (IDP) for Microsoft BizTalk can be configured to use the timestamp on the reader or the timestamp coming from the host server. You can configure this by right clicking on the device and selecting properties. On the “Custom” pane under “General” there is a parameter called “Event Timestamp” which controls which one is used (not shown in image below, it is located just beneath "Clear Diagnostic Counters")

Indy R500 Emulation Mode

2011-03-14T11:20:00.000-07:00

In addition to fixed readers like the Speedway Revolution, Impinj offers RFID reader chips known as Indy. The Indy reader chip family consists of three products: R500, R1000 and R2000; you can compare the specifications using this chart.

As you can see from the comparison chart, the Indy R2000 and R500 reader chips use the same package and software architecture so the R500 is drop-in compatible with the R2000. What this means is that you can use your R2000 Development Platform to emulate the R500 for rapid prototyping and development.

To do so, you will need to follow these steps:

1. If not done already, install the IndyTool Program, version 2.3.0, on the PC which will be connecting to the R2000 evaluation board. This is available on the software and documentation CD which came with the R2000 Development Kit.

2. Download the R500 emulation script by clicking here.

3. Always perform a system OEM configuration backup by going to the Macros tab and selecting the Macros: Create_OEM_Batch. Save the output file to a saved backup_R2000 location.

You will see an error message on the display after the backup is complete, this is normal.

4. Go to the Script tab and select the Run button under Batch Script which will ask for you to point to the location of the R500 emulation script file.

5. After everything is complete, confirm success message and then click on the Reset button.

After reset, the MAC firmware will auto default to profile 4, which is the R500 emulation mode. For verification, you can go to the Profile tab and hit "Get Current" which will let you know that the current and active profile is 4. If you don’t see this, repeat from step 2.

After you are done evaluating using the R500 emulation mode and want to return to the R2000 mode, follow step 2 but choose the backup file you saved earlier in step 1. Then reboot and you are back to the R2000 mode (profile 1).