Avery Dennison PCL - Manual (Page 92)

90 •••• APPENDIX F – RFID Operation PAXAR PCL
APPENDIX F – RFID Operation
Certain models in the SNAP printer line have the capability of reading and/or writing RFID transponders embedded in
labels. This section explains the details of designing the format for labels with RFID transponders.
Gen 0 (Read Only) Transponders
Class 1 Gen 0 transponders are read only. They contain a fixed 64-bit or 96-bit unique signature. The SNAP RFID printers
are capable of reading this signature and printing it on the label. This is accomplished by defining an alphanumeric field on
the tag of sufficient length to print the RFID transponder ID and adding the ~FTR command to the field definition (see the
Command Reference for details of this command). Note that a data field (~D…) corresponding to this field must be present
in the batch, but any data in the data field will be ignored.
In addition, the printer can create an association file that lists all RFID signatures that are associated with the SKU for the
batch. This is a special application that involves complex software systems beyond the scope of this manual and will not be
described here.
Gen 2 (Read/Write) Transponders
For printers having the capability of writing to Class 1 Gen 2 transponders, a special field type is used to provide the data to
write to the device. This field type is defined by the ~FK field type command. For this field type, only the ~FP (Field Pull
Position) command is active. This command defines the distance from the tag origin to the center of the transponder in the
pull direction. This value is used by the printer to determine when the transponder is at the antenna. If this command is not
included, the printer will assume that the transponder is centered in the tag. This may result in unreliable operation.
There is only a single attribute available for this field type. The ~KS command specifies that the EPC data is to be
incremented for each tag. The increment value is included in the command (see the Command Reference for details). Only
the EPC data can be incremented.
The data field for this field consists of several values, separated by the ASCII pipe character (|). These sub-fields are:
EPC Data
User Memory
Reserved – must be empty
Access Password
Kill Password
The format and data allowed in these fields may vary by transponder type.
In addition to writing the data to the transponder, it is possible to print the EPC value on the tag. To do this, either an
alphanumeric or barcode field should be defined and the ~FTRP9 command included in the field definition. The sub-
stringing command (~A199/~A299/~A399 or ~B199/~B299/~B399) may be used to select a portion of the EPC value to be
printed.
It is the format designer’s responsibility to ensure that the field is configured to properly print the EPC value. For example,
the field must be the correct size for the expected data and position so that the field resides completely on the tag. For a bar
code field, the data and bar code type must be compatible.
Following is a list of commands specific to RFID. Descriptions of the commands is contained in the Command Reference
section of this manual.
Format Header Commands
• ~XUR – RFID Read Power
• ~XUW – RFID Write Power
• ~XUA – RFID Signal Adjust