One solution for all use cases

With our history as the world’s first system supplier of transparent prototypes and the expansion into series production, RCOM VDA 5509 software is the market leader for automotive suppliers in the area of RFID component tagging.

Right from the start, it was important for us to create a solution for all automotive suppliers, regardless of which vehicle manufacturer was interested. It is our philosophy that you should not require a new piece of software for every customer – you should be able to handle all use cases from pre-series and series production through to component design and automated end-of-line inspections at the belt with a single solution. Focus your energy on what you do best while we take care of coding schemes, barcode content and printer and reader control systems for you.

System architecture

Despite modest beginnings with just a few thousand RFID components per supplier in the prototype phase, the software was designed directly for a scalable server/client architecture. Data can be stored in a simple file format or on an MS SQL database. The system offers user and rights management, automatic updates, print queues, a parser for your own serial number generation and layout design. It also has automatable interfaces, component generation in accordance with OEM regulations and reader and printer support. The system is also multilingual and is delivered with both English and German texts which you can independently adapt and expand. This is relevant for corporations with multiple locations, particularly in light of the recent increase in series production with multi-user environments.

In short: with RCOM VDA 5509, you will receive the most powerful framework available for this application in the sector.

Pre-defined layouts

We want to lighten your workload as much as possible, so we have created layouts for each OEM in all commonly used standard formats which you can use right from the get-go. We have also pre-programmed the RFID writing parameters directly into the software for standard printers in order to save you the calibration. In total, there are now over 100 label layouts stored for your convenient use.

Support for mobile RFID handhelds

After the components have been tagged, there are often still many process steps where the reading of tags may be relevant. For example in quality control, component localisation (“dowsing rods”) or loading inspections. We have developed a mobile app for this purpose that can be used fully offline with no server connection to check tags – individually or as a group reading. With a wireless connection to a RCOM VDA 5509 server, you can also read component data for a tag from the database, transmit bulk read results directly to the server and write or overwrite individual tags.

Integrated end-of-line inspection

In series production, an end-of-line inspection is important to check the labelling and RFID tag. In most cases, the DMCs (DataMatrix Codes) created are checked for legibility with stationary camera systems prior to delivery, as the OEM expects guaranteed legibility and wishes to avoid quality defects upon delivery as far as possible. The same now applies to BMW suppliers, as the use of RFID is being promoted in series production at BMW in particular. With this in mind, we have developed a special standardised package which can carry out the following tasks for you:

• Automatic readouts with RFID readers/antennae on the belt, triggered by light barriers
• Checking the RFID tags for legibility and correctness of the data
• Validation can be compared with the print jobs created, providing that printing was also carried out by RCOM VDA 5509 – “missing” numbers can be detected via sequencing logic and reported
• Software can be controlled via the RCOM VDA 5509 server or, in a decentralised case for use at the machine, via an EOL box supplied by Data Elektronik (a Raspberry Pi)
• Previous print orders from a machine for BMW can be used directly for printing, coding and counter-checking via an EOL box with no additional programming in the PLC control system