Animal Tracking with RFID Raises Resource Management to a New Level

Inventory management is the driving force behind animal tracking with RFID technology. Being aware of the number and location of their stock at all times allows ranchers and other livestock producers to optimize the livestock's value.

Texas Instruments' RFID technology helps ranchers round up stock more efficiently, provide feed and water at optimal locations when necessary, and even handle some basic health monitoring such as the frequency with which animals visit feeding stations. A decrease in frequency can be an indication of illness.

When livestock is consistently well-fed and easy to locate, the value of each animal is maximized both in terms of market timing and the data that accompanies the carcass.

RFID technology is frequently deployed at automated feeding stations and in slaughterhouses so that the animal's carcass can be accounted for well down the segments of the retail chain. Import/export considerations can also be monitored to assure customs authorities that the animal did not suffer from a disease.

RFID technology is also a valuable wildlife conservation and tool that helps agencies track migration patterns, monitor population growth or decline, and evaluate breeding locations. Even domesticated pets can benefit from RFID tags that make the chances of a happy return to its family much greater when a pet is lost.

Animal tracking is one of the first applications Texas Instruments deployed for its RFID technology. As a result, TI has more than 16 years experience in the field. It has been a driving force behind RFID standards and practices relating to livestock tracking.

An early standard, for example, was read-only and depended on the unique number for each tag being stored in a database that contained additional information about each animal.

But as livestock producers wanted to do more with RFID technology, a more recent standard was codified that allows users to access tag information such as vaccination data without the need to reference the database.

Using this technology at an entry gate allows livestock to be identified automatically even in large groups. It is also compatible with the earlier standard so both types of tags can be used by the livestock producer.