RFID Tagging & Capture

Every asset carries a passive UHF RFID tag encoding a unique EPC (the tag's id). Readers capture these EPCs; AssetBase matches them to the register.

Tagging an Asset (Commissioning)

From an asset's record, click Print tag. AssetBase does the rest:

• Mints a unique EPC for the asset (you never type one) and saves it to the record.
• Encodes and prints the tag in one pass: the EPC is written into the tag's RFID chip and the label is printed with the asset's details and a QR code.
• You affix the printed tag. For metal machines and IT chassis, use on-metal / rugged tags. Plain paper tags read poorly on metal.

Each EPC is unique per organization, so a tag can't be commissioned to two assets. The asset's Tag status moves to Printed.

Printing & Encoding Tags

AssetBase drives the label printer directly: it generates the printer instructions (ZPL) that both encode the RFID chip and print the label face. You don't design the label per asset.

On the label face: the asset name, its asset tag (your ERP / business code), the serial number, the EPC, and a QR code of the asset tag, a camera fallback for when an RFID reader isn't handy.

Getting the label to the printer

• Browser Print: if the Zebra Browser Print agent is installed on the operator's machine, Print tag sends the label straight to the printer.
• Download: otherwise the label file (.zpl) downloads, ready to send to the printer.
• Reprint: printing again from a tagged asset reuses its existing EPC (it never re-mints), so a replacement label carries the same tag identity.

A copy of the tag that was affixed can be kept on the asset as an attachment, tagged RFID-tag or QR-tag so you can always see exactly what was printed.

Tag Generator: Label First, Fill In Later

The Tag Generator is the inverse of scanning: instead of scanning a tag to find an asset, you produce a tag for an asset, before or as you enroll it. It's available on both the web app (Tag generator in the menu) and the mobile app (Generate tag).

You:

• Choose QR or RFID.
• Enter the asset code (your ERP / business code) and a few basic fields (name, category, manufacturer, model, serial, location).
• Press Generate.

What happens next depends on whether the code already exists:

• New code: AssetBase creates the asset in the register with the fields you entered and mints its tag (a QR of the code, or a minted RFID EPC).
• Existing code: AssetBase reprints the same tag; the register fields are left untouched. For RFID, the existing EPC is preserved. Replacing it (encoding a brand-new tag over the old one) is a separate, explicitly confirmed action, so you never retire a live tag by accident.

The generated tag image is stored on the asset as a QR-tag / RFID-tag attachment, and you can Print it right away. Then affix it and scan it to confirm the loop is closed.

Why this helps at commissioning: for a large first-time roll-out you can label assets in bulk from just their codes (generate, print, and affix), then walk the floor scanning each tag to populate the remaining details, rather than typing full records up front.

Choosing a Capture Method: RFID or QR

AssetBase supports two ways to tag and capture assets. The software is identical: same register, custody, custom fields, audits and reports; only the tag and the capture device differ. You can even mix them (RFID on high-value or moving assets, QR on the rest).

Rule of thumb: if assets don't move and you count them once or twice a year on a budget, QR + a phone is the right fit. No RFID printer or reader needed. If you need fast repeat sweeps, hidden/stacked reads, or automatic movement detection, choose RFID.

Reader Hardware: and What Feeds the Server

RFID readers come in three families. What differs is what runs the software that sends reads to AssetBase; the reader radio itself never speaks to the server directly; something on or beside it does.

Is there a Zebra handheld that feeds the server directly? Yes. The Zebra MC3390R is an integrated Android RFID gun: it runs the AssetBase handheld app on the scanner itself and sends reads straight to the server, so it is a single device with no separate phone. (The RFD40 is a sled and always needs a host phone or computer.) For a reader that sends to the server with no app at all, use the fixed-reader family (FX9600 / Impinj R700), used at gates and portals rather than walk-around audits.

The capture app is optional: the API is the contract

AssetBase's ingestion boundary is its API endpoint (/scans/batch), not any one app. Any capture client that can read tags and reach the API works, so a tenant that does not deploy the mobile app still has real capture paths:

• the AssetBase handheld app (on a phone, or on an integrated Android handheld like the MC3390R);
• a fixed-reader gateway at a gate: headless, no app;
• a desktop capture agent: a reader plugged into a PC;
• direct vendor middleware posting to the endpoint.

The mobile app is one option, not a requirement. Fixed readers (the hardware behind the movement-detection at gates capability) inherently have no phone and post to the server on their own.

How Reads Reach AssetBase

Whatever the capture client, reads never touch the register directly. They land first in a staging area (scan_interface):

Any reader/client ─▶ POST /scans/batch ─▶ scan_interface (staging, append-only) ─▶ [sync job] ─▶ Register

A background sync job (runs on a schedule, and can be triggered manually) validates each staged read and promotes it: it updates the matching asset's last-seen time and location, applies condition changes (e.g. a "repair" event sets under repair), and (during an audit) records what was seen.

Staged reads are kept after processing: they are your evidence trail.

Reliability

• Duplicate reads (a tag is read many times per second) are collapsed to one per asset before syncing.
• Idempotent for any client: every read carries a stable id, and the server accepts each id once. A re-sent batch or a reconnect can never create duplicates or lose reads, whether the client is the handheld app, a gate gateway, or a desktop agent.
• Offline-durable capture: the handheld app records a sweep to on-device storage as it captures, so a sweep survives loss of signal and even an app restart, then uploads (in chunks) when the connection returns. Large sweeps are sent in batches rather than one huge upload.

A Note on Regions

UHF RFID is regulated by region: the US uses 902–928 MHz (FCC); Nigeria/EU use 865–868 MHz (ETSI). Readers and tags must match the deployment region. Development hardware bought in the US works for building the software, but production hardware must be the ETSI/EU-region variant.