Application of RFID Technology for Quality Management in Production and Distribution of Frozen Food Products

ERGIN ERDEMNORTH DAKOTA STATE UNIVERSITY

RFID APPLICATIONS CENTEROCTOBER 17, 2006

Agenda

• Introduction– Frozen Food Industry– Sensors, wireless sensors and micro-sensors – Sensors and RFID Integration

• Objective of the Research• Research Direction at RFID Applications Center• Benefits • Main Issues and Challenges• Conclusion

Frozen Food Industry

• In US, total retail sales for frozen food reached 26.6 billion US dollars in 2001

• It indicates 6.1% growth compared to 2000• Frozen meat sales increased by 13% in 2001 compared

to 2000• 2/3 of frozen food sales are made to food service

operations• 1/3 of sales made to food service operations are frozen

food

Frozen Food Industry (Cont’d)Breakdown of US Frozen Food Industry (2003)

2% 4% 9%

17%

13%23%

17%

10%

3%2%

Bread Dough

Breakfast Foods

Novelties

Ice Cream

FrozenDessert/Fruit/ToppingsJuices/Drinks

Pizza/Snacks

Prepared Foods

Meat/Seafood

Vegetables

Distribution of US Frozen Food Sales in 2003 (AFFI, 2006)

Sensors

• Sensors are used to sense the changes in the property of surrounding environment

• Based on the obtained information, necessary action can be taken

• Generally consists of two units (receptor and transducer)• To qualify as a sensor, it should provide continuous

output of the signal

Wireless Sensors

• It removes the need for wiring• Wireless machine to machine sales are expected to

increase to 4 billion US Dollars in 2008• The cost of wireless sensor systems is expected to

decrease by 50% every 18 months• Once the market exceeds critical limit, it is expected to

grow by 200% every year• Wireless sensor networks

Micro-sensors

• Lower weight and lower manufacturing cost • Dates back to 1960’s• Required characteristics: Sensitive to measured

parameters, insensitive to other parameters, does not affect the measured property

• Little or no-maintenance, fault tolerant• Limitations

– Energy– Standardization– Demand for more powerful processor– Networking

Microsensors (Cont’d)

Heat Flux and Temperature Micro-

sensor (VatellCorporation)

Laser Cut Magneto-elastic Sensor Array for measuring Ph values (Smallest Sized array is

28 µm x 250µm x 3.5 mm (Ruan et al., 2003)

Integrated Cantilever Chemical Microsensor

(Hierlemann and Baltes, 2002)

Integration of RFID Tag and SensorsManufacturer Tag type Frequency Sensor type Size Instrumentel Ltd

Passive HF pH 20mm x 10mm

Gentag Inc. Passive/Active* UHF/HF* Temperature N/A Savi Technology

Active LF Temperature, Humidity

16cm x 5.4cm x 2.9cm

AeroScout Inc. Active LF with Wi-Fi

Temperature/Motion 62mm x 40mm x 17mm

KSW Microtec

Active HF Temperature 54mmx86mmx1.12mm

Intelligent Devices Inc.

Active HF Temperature 5mm x 5mm x 0.25mm

RF SAW Inc. Active Microwave Temperature N/A Evidencia LLP Active HF Temperature 54mm x 54mm x

3.5mm Microstrain Passive LF Temperature/Strain 36 mm diameter and 6

mm thickness * Gentag’s patented temperature sensor is claimed to work with passive or active UHF/HF RFID tags

Integration of RFID Tag and Microsensors

• Abad et al. (2005)

Objective

• Objective of the research is to provide a comprehensive approach for improving product quality and safety from production floor through the distribution chain for the frozen food industry.

Ongoing Research at RFID Applications Center

• A micro-sensor equipped with RFID tag would be attached to the frozen food product during the production stage

• Time-temperature profile would be created by recording the temperature of the product

• Micro-sensor will travel with the frozen food product until it is shipped to the retailer location.

• A secondary sensor would be utilized for measuring ambient air temperature

• The system will generate a warning message if the product temperature exceeds critical limits

Benefits

• Quality control• Tighter process control• Best set of parameters during the production runs can be

determined• Early warning system for temperature fluctuations that

may lead to product spoilage• Shelf life predictions• Better recall management• More efficient pricing strategy• Can be used towards creating a pedigree for frozen food

products

Time Temperature Profile

Time (hours)

Tem

pera

ture

(C)

24222018161412108642

-14

-15

-16

-17

-18

-19

-20

_X=-17.846

UCL=-15.730

LCL=-19.962

1

Time-Temperature Profile (Cont’d)

• Upon detection of the problem, a warning message is generated giving detailed information about the problem

• This message can be transmitted via e-mail, SMS message, etc.

• If the problem occurs during the production, immediate preventive and corrective action can be taken, and problem can be fixed at its source

• Problems encountered during distribution can also be handled similarly

Illustration

Process Steps for Bread from Frozen Dough

Cold Chain for Frozen Dough

Transportation Cold Store Transportation Holding Store

Transportation Distribution Center

Transportation Bakery & Restaurants &

Patisseries

Raw Material Mixing Resting PackagingDividing

Make-up

FreezingCold ChainThawingProofingBaking

MoldingDividing

RFID tag with micro-sensor is attached to the product

RFID tag is removed

Main Issues and Challenges

• Integration of RFID tag with Sensor• Item-level tagging• Water and metal content• Data Handling

– Data mining• Information system requirements • Mathematical models for heat transfer• Privacy Issues• Cost of the tag• Implementation Issues

Implementation Issues

• Operating frequency• Location of readers• Attachment of micro-sensor to frozen food products• Conformance to existing food standards • Number of RFID tags per batch• Frequency of recording the measurements• Choosing the right software and middleware

Conclusions

• Designing such a system is within a reach• Considerable research should be undertaken• Improvements in wireless sensing technology and

developing standards help• Measuring parameters other than temperature (e.g. pH,

bacterial load, chemicals etc.) might be considered• Can be extended to include the food security (creating

pedigree data for food products)

THANKSQ & A