To address this challenge, HARTING has developed UHF RFID (Radio Frequency Identification) transponders that are robust enough to ensure reliable service under these demanding conditions. Trains in transit can be accurately identified and located using HARfid LT 86 (HT) RFID transponders, enabling all stakeholders to track freight cars and their contents. This can provide a crucial advantage in the highly competitive rail freight logistics market.

Identification Even at High Speeds:
Now that the EPC Gen2 protocol has become an established standard in the RFID world, and various manufacturers offer long-range transponders for mounting on metallic surfaces, logistics companies and systems integrators worldwide are paying closer attention to rail freight applications. The data speed between transponders and read/write units is so high in EPC Gen2 that the identification numbers of passing trains traveling at speeds of 80 to 100 km/h (50–60 mph) can be read. Depending on the data volume, write operations take longer, but this isn't even an issue if sufficient time is available at terminals or loading areas.
Returning to identification in motion, robust, weather-resistant read/write units can be mounted on poles already installed along the tracks. Data can be read from and written to transponders on rolling stock from a distance of up to 2 meters. To reduce trackside installation costs, two transponders should be mounted on each freight car, so only one reader is needed to acquire information from trains traveling in both directions. To track shipments, it is sufficient to place the readers at strategic locations such as stations or junctions and network them using Industrial Ethernet.

The transponder undergoes rigorous testing under harsh conditions.
The first rail freight tracking systems incorporating RFID transponders are already operational. And the technology group HARTING has taken on a significant challenge: high-temperature transponders for a copper smelting furnace. Systems integrator Marie-Bentz mounts these transponders on freight cars transporting hot smelting slag (Figure 1). The transponders read the identification numbers generated during an automated weighing operation. These numbers provide information about the residual copper concentration in the slag. Based on this information, the plant operator has been able to significantly improve the copper recovery rate. The tracking system also helps optimize the utilization of freight cars and ensures that sufficient capacity is always available. The application of RFID technology is tailored to customer needs. The transponder's write capability is used as required.

Dynamic weighing system for freight cars with automatic data acquisition under extreme conditions.
In an area where others are reluctant to venture, HARTING's RFID transponders discreetly provide reliable service. Conditions are extremely harsh during slag removal at the copper blast furnace in Bulgaria (Figure 2). The passive HARfid LT 86 (HT) UHF transponders operate continuously and flawlessly even in this extremely demanding and dusty environment (Figure 3), withstanding high temperatures near the hot slag. A robust, hermetically sealed housing and the use of plastics with an extremely high melting point ensure that the transponders withstand these harsh conditions without fail (Figure 4), day after day, consistently.

Special considerations: Spills occur during loading, therefore the mounting location must be protected from above and the sides. The transponders were also coated with asbestos to protect them from uncontrolled slag splashes during unloading. The horizontal distance between the transponders and the readers is 5 meters, and the minimum distance between two transponders is 1 meter to ensure that the railcars can be correctly identified. The transponders mounted on the locomotives and slag railcars have continued to function without failure since they were put into operation.