Passive RFID Asset Monitoring System in Hospital Environments

Abstract

Passive Radio-Frequency Identification (RFID) technique is implemented in Hartford Hospital, Connecticut, for asset tracking. In particular, the technique is employed to monitor Telemetry Transmitters (TT) in order to prevent losing them. The work exploits the capabilities of passive RFID technology to determine the location of TTs as they pass through certain key spots in the hospital. The asset monitoring system is able to communicate with the hospital equipment management database, in order to get queries or send other necessary commands. An alarm feature is designed to alert the responsible staff members when one of the TTs passes through the common identifiable spots. Based on the proposed asset monitoring prototype, a Return on Investment (ROI) analysis and evaluation is conducted to justify the feasibility of installing a hospital-wide asset monitoring system with passive RFID solution.