JAMA Publishes Report on RFID Interference in Hospitals

On Wednesday, a report was published by the Journal of the American Medical Association highlighting fears over harmful interference caused by RFID technologies in healthcare environments. The report cites some significant consequences of interference including IV pumps actually ceasing to work as a result. Naturally, this report has been widely reported in the media, a good example being this article in RFID Journal: http://www.rfidjournal.com/article/articleview/4166/1/1/.

This report tested only 125 kHz and 900 MHz devices, and did not include UWB RFID at 6.5 GHz. UWB operates at transmit power levels more than 10,000 times smaller than the devices tested, and poses no significant interference threat in healthcare, or any other environment.

Here are some facts to help you understand why UWB is not an interference concern:

Fact 1: The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) regulates RF emissions in an attempt to ensure that no such harmful interference occurs. The FCC makes a distinction between “intentional radiators” like cell phones and Wi-Fi access points, and “unintentional radiators” like computer monitors and electric motors. Intentional radiators are easy to manage by defining what frequency they can operate on. Unintentional radiators are different since they transmit RF “accidentally” and therefore do so potentially across a wide band of frequencies.

Fact 2: The FCC regulates unintentional radiators by setting a maximum power output level allowed. This is commonly referred to as the “Noise Floor” and sets the maximum level of “junk RF” that exists in any environment. The level is very low indeed – about 10,000 times less power than a cell phone transmits.

Fact 3: By law, an ultra wideband transmitter is not allowed to radiate power above this Noise Floor. In fact, the regulations ensure that UWB emissions are indistinguishable from unintentional radiation – UWB looks just like “junk RF.”

Fact 4: Healthcare environments are littered with unintentional radiators, from computer monitors to IV pump motors.

What does all that tell you?

Hospitals are filled with electronic devices, meaning that there is definitely a sea of junk RF at power levels below the Noise Floor. Manufacturers design equipment to operate in environments where such noise is expected – junk RF from electronic devices is ubiquitous just about everywhere. Unlike traditional RFID technologies which transmit significant power on narrow frequencies, potentially causing harmful interference with medical devices, UWB looks just like junk RF. Those same medical devices that are already designed to be unaffected by that “noise” are therefore implicitly designed to be immune to UWB.

How do I tell if my UWB devices are FCC certified?

A certified device will have an FCC ID clearly displayed, like this one shown on the underside of a Time Domain PLUS Tag.

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About Time Domain

Time Domain is the world leader in ultra wideband (UWB) product development and provides solutions that enable enterprises to maximize productivity of their people and assets using a real-time location system (RTLS).  Our products and professional services deliver "Precise Location for a World in Motion" to the healthcare, retail, and other vertical markets and are sold and supported through a network of certified channel partners.  Time Domain's new Precision Location UWB System (PLUS) products are powered by the innovative PulsON suite of UWB technologies, which are also available for strategic UWB OEM integration.

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