Delta to Test RFID Tags on Luggage
Radio-frequency trial follows Wal-Mart's embrace of technology in retail industry
Computerworld - Delta Air Lines Inc. last week said it plans to test the use of radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags on passenger luggage in the fall, making it the second major company to give the emerging technology a boost this month.
Delta will give RFID devices a trial run on selected flights from Jacksonville, Fla., to its headquarters hub in Atlanta. It said the 30-day test will involve the use of more than 40,000 disposable RFID tags that operate at 900 MHz and are being made by two vendors: Matrics Inc. in Columbia, Md., and SCS Corp. in San Diego.
Delta's announcement came just one week after Wal-Mart Stores Inc. said it plans to require its top 100 suppliers to use RFID tags on shipping pallets by January 2005 . Wal-Mart's stamp of approval is expected to spur broader adoption of RFID technology in the retail industry, and analysts said Delta's move could have a similar effect on other airlines.

![]()
Delta hopes smart tags will help it track baggage and cut costs.
Credit: The Associated Press![]()
Rob Maruster, director of airport customer service strategy, planning and development at Delta, said the airline's requirements differ markedly from those of Wal-Mart. "We operate in a very industrial environment," Maruster said, noting that the RFID tags will have to be readable while bags are being loaded and unloaded on airport tarmacs.
Airports also have other wireless systems that could cause interference with the passive tags Delta plans to test, Maruster said. A passive tag has no power connection or transmitter and is "read" by an RFID scanner equipped with a transmitter.
Maruster said Delta plans to use the test to determine RFID's ability to function at a range of up to 10 feet, which would let the airline track bags more precisely than it can with existing bar-code systems.
He added that although Delta delivers 99% of the 100 million or so bags it handles each year, it spends "a lot of money" trying to find missing bags. "This is a cost-reduction opportunity," Maruster said.
But Delta wants to pay 5 cents or less for each RFID bag tag before it puts the technology into widespread use -- the same price Wal-Mart is seeking from vendors. RFID tags currently sell



- Excel 2010 Cheat Sheet
- Register for this Computerworld Insider Cheat Sheet and gain access to hundreds of premium content articles, guides, product reviews and more.
- Digital Transformation: Creating New Business Models Where Digital Meets Physical
- Individuals and businesses alike are embracing the digital revolution. Social networks and digital devices are being used to engage government, businesses and civil...
- Empowering Your Mobile Worker
- Today's most productive employees are mobile, and your company's IT strategy must be ready to support them with 24/7 access to the business...
- An Interactive Guide: Bring Your Own Device
- BYOD presents significant security and management challenges to IT departments who want to take advantage of the trend, but still protect corporate assets....
- Calculating ROI for Mobile Client Acceleration
- As mobile devices continue to expand in business use, ensuring these devices have optimal performance is becoming an IT imperative. This EMA paper...
- Tablet Computing Without Compromise
- This paper provides an overview of how and why that migration-from any old tablet to Windows tablets-came to be. All Mobile and Wireless White Papers
- Live Webcast
North Pole to South Seas: Overcoming the Pitfalls of remote Performance - In today's always-on world, connectivity is a business requirement. You need the tools that allow you to operate as if you were on...
- Supporting Mobile Productivity With A Limited IT Budget
- Join us and hear from Kaseya mobile IT management experts as we discuss core strategies for supporting the mobile revolution on a shoestring...
- North Pole to South Seas: Overcoming the Pitfalls of remote Performance
- In today's always-on world, connectivity is a business requirement. You need the tools that allow you to operate as if you were on...
- Unified Communications 101
- What's the best way to implement a unified communications solution for your organization?
- QNX® and BlackBerry® PlayBook™ Tablet.
- RIM's multi-processor, multi-tasking BlackBerry PlayBook runs a new Tablet OS powered by QNX, a bullet-proof microkernel operating system. This track will take a...
- A Close Look at Tablets
- Learn More All Mobile and Wireless Webcasts