Collaboration
Smart E-Thread™ RFID Technology A Disruptive Innovation Developed with Primo1D
E-Thread™ contains the world’s smallest RFID chip that can be woven into textile products.
RFID tags and labels are commonly used in retail inventory management. However, if tags are lost or removed, it can be difficult to track or log the items. Now with the collaboration between ITRI and the France-based UHF RFID manufacturer Primo1D on the E-Thread™ tag and precision packaging technology, RFID chips are assembled into a size so small that they can be woven into textile fibers, such as clothes and hats, and are durable enough to go through a washing machine.
E-Thread™ is a plastic-free, yarn-shaped RFID tag that can be easily integrated into textile products during the manufacturing process. It is a revolutionary solution for fabric product identification, verification, and tracking for users to manage the entire process from production to delivery and sales.
E-Thread™ contains the world’s smallest RFID chip that can be directly embedded into clothing or wearable devices, and it does not require additional power source. ITRI has run a trial production on its advanced packaging platform to achieve heterogeneous integration customized high-mix low-volume manufacturing. Moreover, the data collected by the RFID chips can be permanently stored, tracked, and managed on the cloud.
“For conventional RFID tags, the chip needs to be connected to the encasement to be further connected to external conductors. In contrast, E-Thread™ is based on micro-encapsulation, which allows direct and precise connection between the antenna and the chip. This makes it the first of its kind,” said Shih-Chieh Chang, General Director of ITRI’s Electronic and Optoelectronic System Research Laboratories. “The collaboration with Primo1D offers a robust, plastic-free RFID solution for textile product identification, authentication, and tracking,” he added.
Primo1D is currently the only RFID manufacturer on the market who obtained ISO medical certifications. Its Co-founder, Chairman of the Board, and CEO Emmanuel Arène pointed out that since 2004 ITRI has been developing UHF RFID technologies such as the UHF reader, tag antenna, and wide-band antenna. All products are rewritable, encryptable, have a wide data-reading range, and support long-distance communication. By providing digital identities, E-Thread™ makes manufacturing, inventory management, and buying smarter.
Moving forward, ITRI and Primo1D plan to leverage the IoT technology to expand E-Thread™’s applications. Data collected by the RFID chips can thus be stored, managed, and shared. This effort will also upgrade industries’ technological competence for smart production and speed up their entry into the global supply chain.