A PRACTICAL GUIDE TO TAG WRITING

This part of the article discusses the actual tag writing. When initializing the writing procedure,
the tag in question is singulated against the desired memory bank contents, usually the EPC
bank. By singulating a specific tag, you can be sure that you are writing to the correct tag.
Without singulation, the write operation is performed in a randomly selected tag. In the writing
procedure there are several possible outcomes. The outcome desired of course, is that the
writing is successful. But things don't always go as planned. If a tag doesn't have enough power
to perform writing it may send back a message indicating that power is not sufficient or that
writing was only partially done. It is also possible that a specific tag has left from the reader's
field and doesn't reply at all. In such cases the writing must be tried again or for example tag
can be moved closer to the reader to improve the communication link.
One practical advice is to keep close only the tag that is being written. Because in that case the
user always knows which tag the writing operation is targeting. The output power of the reader
can also be limited so that the reader won't notice other tags around, for instance tags lying
several meters away from the reader.
A general rule suggests that the maximum writing distance is often only a half of the maximum
reading distance. This is because a tag needs more energy to perform a writing operation than
a reading operation. The maximum reading and writing distances are affected by the output
power, receiver sensitivity, antenna gain, the environment and also tag IC and antenna. We
have noticed that there has been some development of the writing sensitivity of the tag ICs, and
due to that tags equipped with newer ICs the writing reliability and maximum writing distance
have improved significantly.

The position and direction / orientation of the tag affect the result of the read and write process.
More specifically, the reader and tag antenna polarization matching affects the communication
link. If using a linear polarized antenna, the tags should be kept in right orientation to be able to
read and write the tags. Meaning that if the reader antenna is horizontally polarized the tag
should also be horizontally aligned.
The CrossDipole devices of Nordic ID have two separate linearly polarized antennas. When
switching between those antennas it is possible to read tags in every orientation and still gain
from the benefits provided by the linear polarized antennas.
If the polarization is circular, there is a partial mismatch of polarization. This mismatch causes
3dB (half of power) loss to transmitted energy. In this type of polarization the tag can be in
multiple angles and still be read, but the power is not optimally transferred. Typically fixed
readers use antennas with circular polarization, since for instance during goods in and at the
point of exit the tags can be in any position.
Besides the antenna polarization, also metals, liquids and people between the tag and reader
affect the reading performance. In practice they block the RF signals propagation. Furthermore
usually a physically larger tag is easier to be read and written from a longer distance compared
to a smaller one. That is because increase in antenna size usually improves the performance of

the antenna.
What comes to other equipment in the same area, other readers in use may disturb the
performance. In Europe the number of channels is less than in the U.S. for instance. Therefore
having multiple readers operating on exactly same channel is more probable in Europe as well.
Of course DRM (dense reader mode) helps this problem but it does not solve it completely. It
must also be remembered that frequencies that UHF RFID is using may also be used by other
radio systems.

INSTRUCTIONS FOR WRITING TAGS FROM A PROGRAMMERS' POINT OF VIEW

To perform tag writing successfully, it is extremely important to make sure that the passive tag is
located within a reading area strong enough. This is possible by utilizing the RSSI value
(received signal strength indicator) defined by the reader. The best way to make sure that the
distance between the reader and tag is sufficient is to call the tag with as low output power as
possible and then analyzing the RSSI value received. Reliable tag writing can be started when
an RSSI value high enough has been reached with a low output power. For the writing operation
itself, the output power should be maximized as high as possible in order to ensure that the
passive tag gains enough power.
The reliability of tag writing can be enhanced with RSSI filter in Nordic ID readers, and it can be
separately set for both writing and reading operations. RSSI filtering ensures that in reading
process tags with a too weak RSSI value will not be shown to the reader. In writing, RSSI
filtering has a role to ensure that the tag still is within an optimal distance when the writing
operation is started.