RFID tag data processing in manufacturing for track-and-trace anti-counterfeiting

We address the issues in e-pedigree management for RFID-based track-and-trace anti-counterfeiting.We propose an algorithm for RFID tag data processing and synchronization (TDPS) to generate initial e-pedigree for apparel products during production.We identify and study tag EPC writing as a major bottleneck of e-pedigree generation.We incorporate an integrated method for EPC block writing and verification to optimise the TDPS algorithm for practical implementation in packaging lines. With advancement in radio frequency identification (RFID), RFID-based track-and-trace anti-counterfeiting has attracted considerable research interests. Track-and-trace anti-counterfeiting demands a trustworthy electronic pedigree (e-pedigree), which records the movements of product items from manufacturers to retailers, to ensure high supply chain visibility and to provide evidence for product authentication. Creation and synchronization of initial e-pedigrees in the manufacturing stage is particularly crucial to the accuracy and trustworthiness of subsequent processing of the e-pedigrees and authentication of product items. This is a critical yet challenging task, as it involves a number of practical issues, such as incomplete tag writing/locking, environment disturbances, and potential data falsification. This paper first presents an innovative track-and-trace anti-counterfeiting system, and then proposes a tag data processing and synchronization (TDPS) algorithm to generate initial e-pedigrees for general, tangible products during production. An RFID-enabled apparel packaging line is established to validate the performance of TDPS and identify the bottleneck of e-pedigree generation. Experiment results show that TDPS can create accurate and secure initial e-pedigrees for fast moving product items, and that tag EPC writing is a major bottleneck of e-pedigree generation. Thus, we optimise TDPS by incorporating a block writing method and an integrated verification step to remove the bottleneck. Further experiments demonstrate the optimised TDPS can be adapted to suit different practical requirements to achieve a good balance between tag writing/locking rate and the moving speed of product items in packaging lines without severing the throughput.