EPC Virtual Lab: Experiments using an RFID Location Simulator

Abstract

Radio frequency identification (RFID) is an automatic data capture technology that has great potential to improve business. However, RFID projects have significant up-front costs: buying tags and readers, and installing them in business locations. Until now, a physical deployment was required to properly test RFID software and its integration with existing systems. This paper describes EPC Virtual Laboratory (EPC VLab), a physical world simulation engine, that can be used to feed standard RFID information systems with realistic data. The simulator has proved to be useful for preliminary and exploratory testing.