Intermec PM4I User manual

User’s Guide
RFID Kit
(Gen 2, 869/915
MHz)
for the EasyCoder®
PM4i Printer

ii RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide
Intermec Technologies Corporation
Corporate Headquarters
6001 36th Ave. W.
Everett, WA 98203
U.S.A.
www.intermec.com
e information contained herein is proprietary and is provided solely
for the purpose of allowing customers to operate and service Intermec-
manufactured equipment and is not to be released, reproduced, or used
for any other purpose without written permission of Intermec.
Information and specifications contained in this document are subject to
change without prior notice and do not represent a commitment on the
part of Intermec Technologies Corporation.
© 2005, 2006 by Intermec Technologies Corporation. All rights
reserved.
e word Intermec, the Intermec logo, Norand, ArciTech, Beverage
Routebook, CrossBar, dcBrowser, Duratherm, EasyADC, EasyCoder,
EasySet, Fingerprint, INCA (under license), i-gistics, Intellitag, Intellitag
Gen2, JANUS, LabelShop, MobileLAN, Picolink, Ready-to-Work,
RoutePower, Sabre, ScanPlus, ShopScan, Smart Mobile Computing,
SmartSystems, TE 2000, Trakker Antares, and Vista Powered are
either trademarks or registered trademarks of Intermec Technologies
Corporation.
roughout this manual, trademarked names may be used. Rather than
put a trademark (™ or ®) symbol in every occurrence of a trademarked
name, we state that we are using the names only in an editorial fashion,
and to the benefit of the trademark owner, with no intention of
infringement.
ere are U.S. and foreign patents pending.

RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User's Guide iii
Contents
Before You Begin............................................................................ v
Global Services and Support ............................................ v
Who Should Read is Manual?...................................... v
Related Documents ........................................................ vi
Patent Information ........................................................ vi
Installation.....................................................................................1
Introduction to RFID....................................................................1
Applications of Use ........................................................................3
Media Recommendations...............................................................3
RFID Operation in Fingerprint .....................................................4
Limitations ......................................................................4
Printing ...........................................................................4
RFID Setup.....................................................................5
Changing the Setup.........................................................7
Accessing RFID setup via TCP/IP ...................................7
RFID Operation in IPL .................................................................8
Limitations ......................................................................8
Printing ...........................................................................8
RFID Setup.....................................................................9
Changing the Setup.......................................................10
Accessing RFID Setup via TCP/IP.................................11
Troubleshooting...........................................................................12

iv RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide

RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User's Guide v
Before You Begin
is section provides you with technical support information, and
sources for additional product information.
Global Services and Support
Warranty Information
To understand the warranty for your Intermec product, visit the
Intermec web site at www.intermec.com and click Service & Support >
Warranty.
Disclaimer of warranties: e sample code included in this document
is presented for reference only. e code does not necessarily represent
complete, tested programs. e code is provided “as is with all faults.” All
warranties are expressly disclaimed, including the implied warranties of
merchantability and fitness for a particular purpose.
Web Support
Visit the Intermec web site at www.intermec.com to download our
current manuals (in PDF). To order printed versions of the Intermec
manuals, contact your local Intermec representative or distributor.
Visit the Intermec technical knowledge base (Knowledge Central) at
intermec.custhelp.com to review technical information or to request
technical support for your Intermec product.
Telephone Support
In the USA and Canada, call 1-800-755-5505. Outside the USA and
Canada, contact your local Intermec representative. To search for your
local representative, go to the Intermec web site and click Contact.
Who Should Read This Manual?
is document is for the person who is responsible for configuring and
operating the EasyCoder PM4i equipped with an RFID Kit (Gen 2,
869/915 Mhz).
is document provides you with information about the features of
the RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 Mhz) and how to configure, operate,
maintain, and troubleshoot it.

vi RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide
Related Documents
Document Title Part Number
EasyCoder PM4i User’s Guide 1-960583-xx
Fingerprint 8.70.0 Programmer’s Reference Manual 1-960582-07
IPL Programmer’s Reference Manual 006396-012
e Intermec web site at www.intermec.com contains our documents (as
PDF files) that you can download for free.
To download documents
1Visit the Intermec web site at www.intermec.com.
2Click Service & Support > Manuals.
3In the Select a Product field, choose the product whose
documentation you want to download.
To order printed versions of the Intermec manuals, contact your local
Intermec representative or distributor.
Patent Information
is product is covered by one or more of the following U.S. patents:
4,739,328; 4,786,907; 4,864,158; 4,888,591; 4,999,636; 5,030,807;
5,055,659; 5,280,159; 5,504,485; 5,521,601; 5,550,547; 5,673,037;
5,763,867; 5,777,561; 5,825,045; 5,828,318; 5,828,693; 5,850,181;
5,850,187; 5,942,987; 5,995,019; 6,078,251; 6,121,878; 6,122,329;
6,172,596; 6,195,053; 6,249,227; 6,280,544; 6,286,762; 6,286,763;
6,288,629; 6,360,208; 6,384,712; 6,404,325; 6,429,775; 6,486,769;
6,501,807; 6,525,648; 6,639,509; 6,645,327; 6,677,852; 6,768,414;
6,784,789; 6,816,063.
ere may be other U.S. and foreign patents pending.

RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User's Guide 1
Installation
e kit comes either factory installed or can be installed on-site by
an authorized service technician. Please acknowledge the following
important notice:
If you open the electronics cover, you will void the warranty
and may cause damage to the internal components.
Opening the electronics cover exposes the user to shock
hazards which may result in injury or death.
Introduction to RFID
e term RFID (Radio Frequency IDentification) describes the use of
radio frequency signals to provide automatic identification of items.
RFID is a flexible technology that combines advantages not available
with other identification technologies. It is convenient, easy to use, and
well suited for automatic operation. RFID does not require contact or
line-of-sight to operate, it can function under a variety of environmental
conditions and provides a high level of data integrity.
Radio waves transfer data between an RFID reader and an item to which
an RFID tag is attached. e tag can contain data about the item, such
as what the item is, what time the device traveled through a certain zone
and so on. RFID tags can be attached to virtually anything—from a
vehicle to a pallet of merchandise.
RFID is similar in concept to bar coding. Bar code systems use a reader
and coded labels that are attached to an item, whereas RFID uses a
reader and special RFID tags that are attached to an item. Bar coding
uses optical signals to transfer information from the label to the reader;
RFID uses radio frequency signals to transfer information from the
RFID tag to the reader. However, an RFID tag can hold significantly
larger amounts of data and can be rewritten many times which are
obvious advantages.

Reader with Transceiver
I
n
fo
r
mati
on
System & Application
Hardware & Software
Write to Tag
Read from Tag
Antenna
Label with
RFID Tag
2 RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide
RFID technology uses frequencies within the range of 50 kHz to 2.5 GHz .
As shown in the illustration, an RFID system typically includes the
following components:
• RFID tag or transponder that contains data about an item.
• Antenna used to transmit the RF signals between the reader and the
RFID tag.
• Reader with RF transceiver that generates radio frequency signals and
receives RF transmissions from an RFID tag.
In addition to this basic RFID equipment, an RFID system includes
application-specific software.

RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User's Guide 3
Applications of Use
e RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) is an optional device for the
EasyCoder PM4i that provides the printer with capacity to read and write to
RFID tags.
e internal RFID radio module operates on the UHF band at 869 or 915
MHz depending on region.
e RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869 MHz) uses an EPCglobal
Gen 2-certified IM5 Module (86X MHz RFID
frequency band).
e RFID Kit (Gen 2, 915 MHz) uses an EPCglobal
Gen 2-certified IM5 Module (915 MHz RFID
frequency band).
e RFID interface board occupies one of the slots for optional interfaces
at the back of the printer and features an extra RS-232 serial interface.
For printers running Fingerprint, this is referred to as "uart2:", "uart3:" or
"uart4:" depending on which slot is used and what other optional devices are
installed. Please note that the 9-pin connector is not functional when the
board is installed in an IPL printer.
Your printer should be fitted with either Intermec Fingerprint v8.70.0 (or
later) or IPL v2.70.0 (or later), or RFID functionality cannot be guaranteed.
Media Recommendations
To ensure complete functionality of the EasyCoder PM4i equipped
with an RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz), we strongly urge you to use
Intermec recommended RFID media only. Printers with factory-installed
RFID kits come with a sample roll of 4x6" RFID media.
General media recommendations and order information is provided
through an Intermec web page: go to www.intermec.com. Choose
Products > RFID, and then click Tags, Inserts and Smart Labels.

4 RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide
RFID Operation in Fingerprint
e information in this section concerns users running Fingerprint
firmware on their PM4i printer. Be sure to also keep the EasyCoder PM4i
User’s Guide and the Fingerprint 8.70.0 Programmer’s Reference Manual
handy, for additional information on procedures and RFID commands.
Limitations
Note: When calling the TAGFIELD command, the start
and length parameters must be set as even numbers.
Printing
General Recommendations
e RFID inlay (or tag), which consists of a chip and an antenna, is
glued to the back of the label (between the label and the liner).
Even though the inlay is very thin, the label will be slightly thicker
in the inlay area. is may affect the printout quality and therefore a
high-quality ink ribbon, such as the TMX 2304, is recommended to use
in conjuction with RFID media. e TMX 1500 would be a suitable
low-cost alternative to this product. If results are not satisfactory, avoid
printing on the inlay altogether (if the media allows it).
As a starting point, set the ribbon constant to 80 and the ribbon factor
to 25 when printing on RFID media (refer to the EasyCoder PM4i User’s
Guide for information on these procedures). Depending on the media
type, it may be necessary to change these values. is information can
also be found via the web link given in the “Media Recommendations”
section.
Note 1: In order to achieve faultless read/write operations,
some manual tweaking may be required to ensure that the
RFID labels are properly aligned with the antenna. is
involves modifying the Tagadjust variable in RFID Setup
mode. Refer to the RFID Setup section for further details.
Note 2: Each new RFID media type loaded in the printer
must be identified electronically. is can be done either by
restarting the printer, or by running a TESTFEED.

SETUP:
RFID
RFID:
MODE
RFID:
VOIDTEXT
RFID:
RETRIES
MODE:
ENABLE
These menus will only be displayed when an RFID module is installed.
VOIDTEXT:
[VOID]:
RETRIES:
[1]:
TAGADJUST:
[0]:
Read-Only
RFID:
TAGADJUST
MODE:
DISABLE
RFID:
FIELDSTRENGTH
FIELDSTRENGTH:
[100]:
RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User's Guide 5
Printing a Test Label
Once the printer has been loaded with RFID media, we recommend
that you print an RFID test label to verify that everything is working
correctly. When the command is issued, the printer will attempt to access
the next tag on the media roll, and if successful, it will print the tag type
name on the label.
ere are two ways to produce an RFID test label:
1On the printer console, press the Setup button. Navigate your way to
Print Defs > Testprint > RFID Test Label. Press Enter.
2Acquire the printer’s internal IP number (Setup > Network > IP
Address), open your web browser and enter the number into the
address field. is brings up the printer’s "home page". Click Printer
> Web shell and select RFID Test label from the drop-down menu.
RFID Setup
Once installed, the printer automatically recognizes the RFID module
and adds RFID options to the setup tree. e setup tree as viewed from
the console is shown in the illustration below.
RFID,MODE,ENABLE|DISABLE
Must be set to ENABLE to use RFID commands. is is the default
setting when an RFID module is installed.
RFID,RETRIES
Specifies the number of labels the printer will retry to access after a failed
read or write operation. e default is 1, and allowed values range from 0
to 10. Before moving the label roll to try accessing the next tag, the text
string specified by RFID,VOIDTEXT will be printed on the failed label.
If all retries fail, the printer will position the current label below the
antenna with STOPADJUST and signal error 1321.
RFID,VOIDTEXT
Specifies the text to print on labels with faulty tags. e length of the

6 RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide
string must be no more than 16 characters. Default text is VOID. e
text is centered on the label, written with the "Swiss 721 Bold BT" font,
and resized to cover 80% of the label width. You may enter an empty
string as "".
RFID,TAGADJUST
Specifies the distance (in number of dots) the label will be moved to align
the tag under the antenna to enable successful read and write operations.
e label is moved before the printer attempts to access the tag. A
negative value will retract the label, while a positive value will cause the
label to be moved forward prior to RFID operations. Default is zero,
and only absolute values equal to or smaller than the max label length
are allowed. To ensure the media is not retracted past the printhead, the
maximum backward motion is restricted electronically.
Note: For most types of RFID labels, you will not be required
to change the Tagadjust variable. 4x2-inch labels however
are the exception. In this case you should set Tagadjust
to -104 (printhead resolution 203 dots/inch) or -153
(printhead resolution 300 dots/inch). Be sure to check the
recommendations for your RFID media, as these values may
vary slightly between different types of media.
RFID,FIELDSTRENGTH
is parameter (a value between 0 and 100) indicates the level of
the field strength that the antenna applies in order to communicate
with the RFID tag. By default, this is set to the maximum value. You
should not change this parameter unless it is explicitly stated in the
recommendations for your RFID media.

RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User's Guide 7
Changing the Setup
All RFID setup values can be changed directly on the printer’s console
(except VOIDTEXT, which is a string and cannot be entered on the
numeric keypad). e following example sets TAGADJUST to 50 dots,
retries to 3 labels and VOIDTEXT to "Bad label".
Example 10 SETUP "RFID,TAGADJUST,50"
20 SETUP "RFID,RETRIES,3"
30 SETUP "RFID,VOIDTEXT,Bad label"
Accessing RFID setup via TCP/IP
e printer’s RFID setup parameters can also be changed via a TCP/
IP communication channel. Acquire the printer’s IP address from the
console (Setup > Network > IP Address), open your web browser and
enter the number into the address field. is opens up the printer’s home
page.
In the main menu, select Configuration. is brings up a list of folders
on the left-hand side of the window. Select Printer > RFID.

8 RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide
RFID Operation in IPL
e information in this section concerns users running IPL on their
PM4i printer. Be sure to also keep the EasyCoder PM4i User's Guide and
the IPL Programmer's Reference Manual handy, for additional information
on setup procedures and RFID commands.
Limitations
Note: When writing to the RFID tags, you must set the rst
byte and length parameters of the RFID tag field setup
command (a) as even numbers.
Printing
General recommendations
e RFID inlay (or tag), which consists of a chip and an antenna, is
glued to the back of the label (between the label and the liner).
Even though the inlay is very thin, the label will be slightly thicker
in the inlay area. is may affect the printout quality and therefore a
high-quality ink ribbon, such as the TMX 2304, is recommended to use
in conjuction with RFID media. e TMX 1500 would be a suitable
low-cost alternative to this product. If results are not satisfactory, avoid
printing on the inlay altogether (if the media allows it).
As a starting point, set the sensitivity number to 565 when printing on
RFID media (refer to the EasyCoder PM4i User’s Guide for information
on this procedure). Depending on the media type, it may be necessary
to change this value. is information can also be found via the web link
given in the “Media Recommendations” section.
Note: In order to achieve faultless read/write operations, some
manual tweaking may be required to ensure that the RFID
labels are properly aligned with the antenna. is involves
modifying the Tagadjust variable in RFID Setup mode. Refer
to the RFID Setup section for further details.
Printing a Test Label
Once the printer has been loaded with RFID media, we recommend
that you print an RFID test label to verify that everything is working
correctly. When the command is issued, the printer will attempt to access

SETUP:
RFID
RFID:
MODE
RFID:
VOIDTEXT
RFID:
RETRIES
MODE:
ENABLE
These menus will only be displayed when an RFID module is installed.
VOIDTEXT:
[VOID]:
RETRIES:
[1]:
TAGADJUST:
[0]:
Read-Only
RFID:
TAGADJUST
MODE:
DISABLE
RFID:
FIELDSTRENGTH
FIELDSTRENGTH:
[100]:
RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User's Guide 9
the next tag on the media roll, and if successful, it will print the tag
type name on the label. To print a test label, press Setup on the printer’s
console. Go to Test/Service > Testprint > Config > RFIDlabel.
RFID Setup
e printer automatically recognizes the RFID module, and adds RFID
options to the setup tree. e setup tree as viewed from the console is
shown in the illustration below.
RFID,MODE,ENABLE|DISABLE
Must be set to ENABLE to use RFID commands. is is the default
setting when an RFID module is installed.
RFID,RETRIES
Specifies the number of labels the printer will retry to access after a failed
read or write operation. e default is 1, and allowed values range from 0
to 10. Before moving the label roll to try accessing the next tag, the text
string specified by RFID,VOIDTEXT will be printed on the failed label.
If all retries fail, the printer will position the current label below the
antenna and signal error 61.
RFID,VOIDTEXT
Specifies the text to print on labels with faulty tags. e length of the
string must be no more than 16 characters. Default text is VOID. e
text is centered on the label, written with the "Swiss 721 Bold BT" font,
and resized to cover 80% of the label width. You may enter an empty
string as "".
RFID,TAGADJUST
Specifies the distance (in number of dots) the label will be moved to align
the tag under the antenna to enable successful read and write operations.
e label is moved before the printer attempts to access the tag. A
negative value will retract the label, while a positive value will cause the
label to be moved forward prior to RFID operations. Default is zero,
and only absolute values equal to or smaller than the max label length

10 RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide
are allowed. To ensure the media is not retracted past the printhead, the
maximum backward motion is restricted electronically.
Note: For 4x3" and 4x6" labels you will be required to change
the Tagadjust variable. Set Tagadjust to +112 (for printhead
resolution 203 dots/inch) or +166 (for printhead resolution
300 dots/inch). Be sure to check the recommendations for
your RFID media, as these values may vary slightly between
different types of media.
RFID,FIELDSTRENGTH
is parameter (a value between 0 and 100) indicates the level of
the field strength that the antenna applies in order to communicate
with the RFID tag. By default, this is set to the maximum value. You
should not change this parameter unless it is explicitly stated in the
recommendations for your RFID media.
Changing the Setup
RFID setup values are changed with the following commands:
<SI>Jn,m,p where n: is 1 for RFID,MODE,ENABLE and 0 for
RFID,MODE,DISABLE
m: TAGADJUST value in dots.
p: number of RETRIES.
<SI>Kn where n: is the VOIDTEXT string.

RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User's Guide 11
Accessing RFID Setup via TCP/IP
e printer’s RFID setup parameters can also be changed via a TCP/
IP communication channel. Acquire the printer’s IP address from the
console (Setup > Network > IP Address), open your web browser and
enter the number into the address field. is opens up the printer’s home
page.
In the main menu, select Configuration. is brings up a list of folders
on the left-hand side of the window. Select Printer > RFID.

12 RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide
Troubleshooting
Problem:
"No tag found" is displayed when a TESTFEED is attempted.
Possible Causes and Suggested Remedies:
• e inlay could be broken.
- Replace the label.
• You are not currently using RFID media.
- Load the printer with RFID media.
• e current TAGADJUST value is incorrect.
- Align the label with the edge of the tear bar (Fingerprint) or
press the Feed button to position the label at the start-of-print
point (IPL). Leave the lid open and measure the distance
between the middle of the inlay and a point orthogonally right
below the antenna. Convert the distance to dots.
TAGADJUST = Distance * TPHresolution(mm)
Enter the TAGADJUST value in the SETUP menu with the
command:
SETUP "RFID,TAGADJUST,<value>" (Fingerprint)
<SI>J1,<value> (IPL)
Example:
TPH (ermal Printhead) resolution 203 dpi
DISTANCE 15 mm
TAGADJUST = 15 * 203 / 25.4 = 120 dots
Problem:
An application writing to RFID tags produces a large number of VOID
labels.
Possible Causes and Suggested Remedies:
• Verify that the TAGADJUST value is set correctly.
- Follow the procedure as described above
• e printer has not yet identified the RFID media type.

RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User's Guide 13
- Fingerprint users: run a TESTFEED, either via the console
(Shift+Feed) or the printer's home page. On IPL printers, the
media is identified automatically when you lower the printhead
and press the FEED key.
• e output power to the antenna could need adjusting.
- Check the recommended field strength for your specific media
(see “Media Recommendations”). Adjust the parameter
accordingly.
Problem:
None of the RFID commands work. e message "RFID inactive" is
displayed.
Possible Causes and Suggested Remedies:
• RFID Mode has been disabled.
- Enable it with the following commands:
SETUP "RFID,MODE,ENABLE" (Fingerprint)
<SI>J1 (IPL)
Problem:
Printing on non-RFID media is slow and printing is halted in between
labels.
Possible Causes and Suggested Remedies:
• RFID mode is enabled.
- Disable it with the following commands:
SETUP "RFID,DISABLE" (Fingerprint)
<SI>J0 (IPL)
Problem:
After the printer has been loaded with a new roll of RFID media, it is
unable to write to the tags.
Possible Causes and Suggested Remedies:
• e printer has not yet identified the RFID media type.
- If RFID media is changed without the printer having been

14 RFID Kit (Gen 2, 869/915 MHz) User’s Guide
turned OFF, it resets the inlay type and waits for a TESTFEED
to identify the new RFID media. A TESTFEED should take
care of this problem.
Problem:
RFID operations yield "Not supported by tag type" error messages.
Possible Causes and Suggested Remedies:
• A command tries to access a tag data segment that is not available on
the current RFID media.
- Example: Performing TAGWRITE or TAGREAD operations on
the EPC segment of a tag that is not a Gen 2 tag.
• A command is referring to a tag format that is not available on the
current RFID media.
- Example: using TAGFORMAT "NUM" for Class 1 media, or
trying to write an EPC-96 format to a 64-bit tag.
• A command is used together with a "level" that is not allowed for a
particular tag type.
- Example: using TAGPROTECT "UNLOCKP" on Class 1
media or TAGPROTECT ”ON” for Gen 2 tags.
Problem:
Data can be written unlawfully to a write-protected ISO 18000-6B tag.
Possible Causes and Suggested Remedies:
• For some ISO 18000-6B tag chips, the functionality to protect the
tag memory from being rewritten has not been implemented.
- Switch to tags with a different chip that have this functionality
implemented.
Problem:
TAGWRITE commands yield “Tag format error” error messages.
Possible Causes and Suggested Remedies:
• e user is trying to store an excessively large amount of data in the
tag's memory.
• An invalid value has been entered, such as an uneven number of