Zebra Technologies R170XiTM - Manual (Page 80)

68 R110Xi/R170Xi User Guide 12/23/04 23063L-003 Rev. 2
RFID Guidelines
Getting Started with RFID
Getting Started with RFID
How you set up your printer for RFID applications is determined in part by the transponder
that you select. This section guides you through that selection and the settings that you may
need to change on your printer to make RFID reading and encoding possible. When you have
completed this section, you will be ready to program your RFID label formats.
Select a Transponder Type Before you purchase RFID labels, determine what type of
RFID transponder to use (
Table 10 ). Different transponder types can have different attributes.
Some transponders can only be read while others can be read and written to repeatedly.
Transponders also have different amounts of available memory, which corresponds to the
amount of data that can be encoded in it. Select the combination that best suits your needs.
Set Tag Type After you have selected a transponder type and purchased labels, set the
transponder (tag) type on the printer. Do this through the front panel menu (see
Specify RFID
Tag Type on page 63 ) or through the ^RS ZPL command (see ^RS on page 87 ).
Set Power Settings Each transponder has specific power setting requirements, which
define how much power the printer’s antenna will emit to “energize” the transponder in its
program field. The tag type that you are using must match the RFID power settings of the
printer. If necessary, you can change the power settings through the front panel (see
View or
Change RFID Read Power or View or Change RFID Write Power on page 63 ) or through the
^RW ZPL command (see ^RW on page 93 ).
Perform RFID Transponder Calibration If you are using RFID labels that were
designed to meet the specifications of this printer, you do not need to perform RFID
transponder calibration. The printer will automatically place the labels in the optimal
programming position.
However, if you are using RFID labels that were not designed to meet the specifications of this
printer, you may need to perform an RFID transponder calibration to determine the optimal
programming position for your media. If necessary, you can perform this calibration through
the front panel (see
Calibrate RFID Tag on page 63 ) or through the ^HR ZPL command (see
^HR on page 78 ).
Table 10 • Characteristics of Different Transponder Types
Transponder Type Read Write Size (in bits)
Class 0 X 96 bits
Class 0+ X X 96 bit (ID)
104 bit (USER)
Class 1 64 bits X X 64 bits
Class 1 96 bits X X 96 bits
ISO18000 X X Varies