RF Tags SA - NEWS

27 July 2010: RF Tags nearing completion of the next generation of OREtraK

The next generation of OREtraK is due for beta release within the next few weeks. One of the major obstacles in installing OREtraK at the mines has been the quality of the PC's in the mine's ore reserve offices. These PCs are often so degraded, old and slow that hardly any applications run on them. Often, these are the PCs which OREtraK needs to run on. Whilst we do a pretty good job of running under these conditions, its by no means ideal. Add to that that it is often difficult to install the database server due to various reasons. For this reason, the next generation of OREtraK will have an embedded PC running Linux built right into it. This will host the main application, as well as a web server which acts as the interface for the miner. This means that there is NO installation of software at the mines. Installation will literally involve taking OREtraK to the mine, plugging the unit into a power source and plugging in a LAN cable from their existing network. The mines now have access to the applications via their web browsers (eg, internet explorer or Firefox).

Over and above this the firmware (PC boards within the actual readers) have also undergone a major upgrade. We are now using a faster, more compact micro processor which allows further enhancements and monitoring, and which will lead to a more remotely accessible system. If you would like to keep up to date with the development and release of the next version of OREtraK, send a blank email to oretrak@rftags.co.za

9-April-2008: RF Tags commences installation of the first OREtraK system to a Platinum Mine.

RF Tags SA has until recently concentrated on the supply of its OREtraK ore tracking RFID systems to the Gold mining industry. This focus has allowed the system to be fine-tuned and optimised with reporting functions in particular benefiting from the dedicated approach.  This has been greatly assisted by the willingness of the users of the system to contribute based on their vast mining experience. The problems and requirements of the Platinum industry differ somewhat from those of the Gold mining industry and the decision was taken to delay marketing to the Platinum mining industry during this fine-tuning approach. Reporting software has now been optimised to suit the needs of the Platinum mining industry and rapid adoption in this industry is expected to follow the first Platinum installation at MODIKWA Platinum Mine near Steelpoort in the Limpopo province.

8-April-2008: Delivery of Corporate Blue QwikMount installation system commences.

Since the end of 2007 RF Tags SA has been including its bi-directional telescopic mounting system with rapid assembly (using only an electric drill as the required tool) for all OREtraK installations at no extra charge, as it was apparent that relying on the mine's boilermakers to produce mounting brackets was placing undue pressure on the boilermakers and resulting in unacceptable installation delays. From today (8th of April), the QwikMount brackets are being supplied powdercoated in the RF Tags corporate blue colour.  The use of our corporate colour allows the mounting brackets to be readily identified and we would encourage all interested parties, including those parties aspiring to compete with OREtraK , to view our new brackets which are very easy to locate from a distance as, after all, imitation is the sincerest form of flattery. The QwikMount installation system allows RF Tags SA to keep the cost of installation to a minimum without cross subsidization of installation.

4-April-2008: RF Tags SA successfully completes its first export order to a European installer.  

2-April-2008: RF Tags SA expands the Kapanong OREtraK RFID ore tracking system. 

The Kapanong OREtraK system has been successfully operating since mid 2007. The system is interesting due to the fact that the readers in the initial installation were installed underground as it was felt that this would allow corrective action, in the event of "cross tramming" or "foreign material on belt" events to be taken immediately. The underground industrial LAN connection was only available at one of the reader installation points and it is a tribute to OREtraK's flexibility that the LAN connected reader could be configured a Local Master and the distant reader configured as as Local Slave. In order to be able to detect "cross tramming" occurring after the underground readers the system has now been extended to allow monitoring of the Reef belt to the plant at a surface location. A further expansion to monitor the surface waste belt is currently being discussed. This system expansion with its mechanical mounting system, software, firmware and hardware was installed in a single day which is a tribute to the QwikMount installation system.

1-April-2008: RF Tags SA negotiating for the supply of systems in Canada and Tanzania.

31-March-2008: OREtraK System Effective During Power Load Shedding. 

The OREtraK ore tracking RFID system was designed to be able to stand up to the harsh mining environment including the complete loss of communications by the use of Store-And-Forward communications from the outset.  Monitoring of the performance of the installed base of OREtraK ore tracking RFID systems since the beginning of 2008 has proven the reliability of the systems in the event of power loss. The biggest problem with the power losses stems from the fact that a partial power loss could affect only one end of the system or the communications link with the reader still active. A system that does not have OREtraK's Store-And-Forward communications capability and large data storage at each system node would simply loose this data.