Vilant: RFID tracking system for rail
Vilant RFID tracking and database system for railway vehicles
The demand for fast and flexible producti-
on while cutting production costs is gra-
dually increasing across the industry, re-
gardless of the specific sector a company
is involved in. RFID technology then helps
to ensure reliable tracking of all compo-
nents of production, storage, loading and
dispatch, not only within the production
area, but also in the area of heavy freight
transport, including rail.
RFID database system
Vilant's dedicated database server can
continuously receive data from various
RFID units and store it in a database. The
received data can be sorted by the preset
parameters based on location, time of re-
ading or code types. It then provides the
results to the parent system either for sta-
tistical evaluation for management purpo-
ses, ERP enterprise information systems,
MES manufacturing information systems
or WMS warehouse management, or for
direct automatic/robotic control of ware-
house or logistics operations via industrial
computers or PLCs. Supported communi-
cation: TCP/IP, HTTP/XML, OPC, SQL
and REST. One of the standard software
functions is Vilant Visibility Manager. This
allows continuous monitoring of the mo-
vement of materials and components
through the production process or control
of the receipt, dispatch and transport of
products or various returnable packaging
or parts, i.e. virtually any object. Of cour-
se, there is the possibility of remote mana-
gement and setting of RFID units and the
possibility of building in special functions
according to the wishes of each customer
and operation.
RFID sensing
The Vilant system does not only provide
the software area of tracking, but also the
complete supply of various types of RFID
reading and display devices, including
the service of expert selection of types for
a given specific design of a suitable locati-
on and subsequent installation. The range
includes not only mobile handheld rea-
ding devices with display for immediate
evaluation, but also units for fixed instal-
lation on traffic routes or complete
walk-through gates. This enables auto-
matic capture and reading of all passing
products in individual and bulk packa-
ging in boxes, crates, whether they are
moved or transported by hand, on pallet
trucks or transported by forklift trucks,
or even containers or wagons. It is also
possible to detect the direction of move-
ment and thus to distinguish between loa-
ding and balancing of products or materi-
als. The data is then transferred to the
central Vilant server via wired LAN or wi-
reless WiFi, GPRS, 4G/5G communication.
Tracking of carriages, cargo
and maintenance operations
Turck offers the Vilant RFID system to en-
sure more efficient management of rail
transport, wagons and their maintenance,
repair and to meet transport and safety
needs. The use can be divided into several
specific areas:
• real-time vehicle location tracking,
• monitoring of railway lines,
• vehicle lifecycle management,
• CARGO tracking.
Real-time RFID monitoring of rolling
stock also enables precise tracking and
identification of traffic (all wagons and lo-
comotives) through a network of RFID de-
tectors installed along the tracks on the li-
ne and in the depot. Many therefore use it
to automate fleet management, load trac-
king and control maintenance operations,
for example at marshalling yards. The da-
tabase and sharing of data with the ope-
rators who own the trains also enables
more efficient management and use of
the carriages or helps to assign various
maintenance and service tasks.
Vilant's solution also includes the supply
from individual RFID chips down to software
TT ++ TT
Technika a trh 5/2023
rail transport
16
Vilant – RFID tracking
and database system
Railways and RFID systems? Not a typical combination? The opposite is true. RFID
monitoring, along with the Turck Vilant software system, provides new approaches
and solutions to many applications in the rail transport sector.
Automated monitoring of the movement of rolling stock
Read and write gateway
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