Signal level performance variation of radio frequency identification tags used in cow body

Abstract

Ruminant diseases are strictly connected to pH and temperature values of the rumen. Therefore, the attenuation to dynamic measurement and tracking of both pH and temperature values through animal rumen has grown rapidly for decades. Reading performance of RFID tags depends on signal quality and signal level, and this can be understood by means of wave attenuation through tissue. In this article, attenuation through cow body is investigated for improving reading performance and battery life. Number of receiving antennas will be used in the system, their location and heights are critical for this aim. Signals from different points of animals' body are measured and compared with the signals spread just out of RFID tags. Equivalent dielectric constants of tissue between RFID tag and receiving antenna is modeled by using literature data, and finally simulation and analytical results are verified by measurement results. Measured value of attenuation through the cow body is varying between 25 dB and 87 dB for RFID tags operating at 434 MHz. Within the 30 m radius, the strongest signal is obtained at 50 cm height and taken from the left side of the animal body, which is offered as optimum communication position.

RFID Technology for Animal Tracking: A Survey

“…Insect Bee [67], [83], [105] Insect [50] Weevil [77] Bird Bird [32] Broiler chicken [53] Chicken [47], [73] Goose [69] Hen [68] Hummingbird [19] Laying hen [33], [71] Pigeon [49] Poultry [52] Wild bird [30], [99] Mammal Bison [107] Buffalo [95] Cattle [89], [36], [51], [94], [38], [3], [57], [43], [74], [91], [35], [76], [52], [90], [8], [18], [80], [7], [88], [42], [87], [85], [62], [58] Domestic animal [18], [61], [82] Elephant [63] Goat [57], …”

Mapping Welfare: Location Determining Techniques and Their Potential for Managing Cattle Welfare—A Review

“…An active RFID has a battery that enables higher signal strength and an extended communication range of up to 100 m, but is larger due to the presence of that battery and more electronic components [112,113]. The speed of travel of the animal [114,115] and body tissue near the transponders [116,117] have a strong influence on the reading performance of the system so the optimal position of the tag and reader should be considered [117]. Curran et al [112] experimented with RFID-Radar where the reader calculates the location of transponders while interfacing with the reader instead of just recording its presence.…”

Systemic Overview of Microstrip Patch Antenna’s for Different Biomedical Applications

“…When the propagation signals are sent through the bone implanted inserts inside the body to the external which is placed outside the body, and then more losses can be seen in the propagation signal because of the extra layers of bone. 75 Also, a reflection of the signals can be seen in the boundaries between the bone and muscles. 76 This means that the transmitter and the receiver placed under the same sink conditions (one inside the body and other outside the body) should be placed at a shorter distance.…”