Atmel and SMARTRAC team up on animal ID applications

Couple months back, analysts at IDTechEx revealed that the total RFID market was worth $8.89 billion this year — up from $7.77 billion in 2013 and $6.96 billion in 2012 — and forecasted to rise to $27.31 billion over the next 10 years. In particular, animal tagging deployments have grown tremendously in recent years with 425 million tags being used for this sector in 2014 alone due to an increase in legal requirements across a number of regions.

To meet this growing demand, Atmel has teamed with global RFID tech leader SMARTRAC to market low-frequency (LF) transponders and inlays for animal identification worldwide.

Recent studies have even highlighted the lucrative potential of wearable tech for pets and livestock including ultrasound-delivering treatment patches, electronic saddle optimization for horses, as well as collars capable of tracking, identifying and diagnosing.

The selected Atmel ATA5575M2 RFID IC supports both ISO11784 and ISO11785 standards, using the FDX-A and FDX-B formats for animal ID. In fact, it is the only RFID solution available that supports FDX-A, the animal identification standard using full duplex 125 KHz technology with FSK modulation. This IC is a fully-programmable read/write (R/W) ASSP (read/write application specific standard product) that implements all important functions for identification systems in the animal tagging, industrial automation and consumer segments. The device allows the contactless reading and writing of data transmitted bi-directionally between both the read/write interrogator (reader) and the transponder.

SMARTRAC has chosen the Atmel ATA5575 as the unique IC supports both aforementioned technologies in a single, flexible integrated device.

Additionally, the solution is offered in several different delivery forms, ranging from the common sawn wafer on foil to taped in a blister package and bumped versions (which are required for direct bonding technology). The ATA5575 is a passive RFID device and no additional external power supply is necessary, while data is transmitted back to the reader by modulating the amplitude of the RF field giving the ASK and FSK options.

The on-chip 128-bit user memory EEPROM (16 blocks, 8 bits per block) can be read and written from the interrogator station, while an additional 8-bit register is used for the chip configuration and memory locking if desired. The on-chip 330pF LC-tank capacitor is trimmed to +/- 3 percent which is unique in the market, with no other external component required than the antenna coil. Coding schemes implemented are Manchester and Bi-Phase.

“We are excited to work with Atmel because of the impressive performance of their solutions,” explained Markus Spreng, Head of SMARTRAC’s Product Line Animal ID. “Our cooperation with Atmel is focused on their combined FDX-A and FDX-B capabilities, excellent read range and state-of-the-art local application support across all sales regions. With Atmel’s RFID chips and our fully automated glass tag manufacturing capabilities, customers can fully rely on RFID solutions with superior quality and performance to ensure one’s pet, for instance, will be easily identifiable.”

SMARTRAC’s LF transponders and inlays operate between 125 KHz and 134.2 KHz, offering high resistance against external interference and delivering excellent performance, even in the most rugged environments.

“Atmel’s collaboration with SMARTRAC will give consumers the confidence that their RFID solutions are high performing, meet industry ISO standards and can support the various modes required for animal identification but also for many other different applications,” said Roland Schropp, Atmel RFID Senior Marketing Manager. “We look forward to supporting SMARTRAC with integrated semiconductor technology solutions for a range of applications and environments.”

Interested in learning more? You can explore the latest animal ID solutions from SMARTRAC, as well as delve deeper into the wide-range of Atmel RFID offerings here.