THINGMAGIC NANO Q&A
Q. What is the manufacturing process for the Nano?
JADAK's manufacturing process allows us to maintain high quality standards at high volume levels. Every
module is individually tested and calibrated to ensure maximum performance and minimal variation from
module to module. This is critical for many applications. For example, in printing applications the sensitivity
variation between tag models is so great that establishing ideal transmit levels would be nearly impossible
if module-to-module variation was factored in as well.
Q. What is the DC voltage range for the Nano?
The permitted DC Voltage range is 3.3 to 5.5 V. If the DC input voltage drops below 3 V, protection circuitry
will shut it down completely to prevent memory corruption due to “brown-out” conditions. This makes it
especially good for battery-powered devices.
Q. What is the temperature range of the Nano?
The operating temperature range is -20 C to +60 C. The module firmware continuously monitors its internal
temperature and will not let it transmit if the temperature might damage the module.
Q. How is the tag read rate determined?
Our modules operate at speeds that are close to the limits of the Gen2 protocol. We create a test
environment that determines the limits of the module independent of the limits of the Gen2 protocol.
Testing read speed with large populations of tags does not test the limits of the module because, according
to the rules of the Gen2 protocol, the reader offers far more opportunities for tags to respond than tags
will actually take advantage of. Therefore, it is more efficient to induce a single tag to respond at every
opportunity rather than have a large population of tags contend for chances to respond. A single tag does
not normally respond at every opportunity – it responds then goes silent to give other tags a chance to
respond. However, we have created special settings in our modules that disable this delay mechanism and
cause one tag to respond as quickly as its circuitry allows. This is how we measure reading speeds at over
750 tags per second. As a comparison, the same module will read a population of hundreds of tags at
around 500 tags per second with Gen2 protocol constraints.
Q. What is the typical battery exchange cycle?
Battery consumption is 1.6 to 3.7 W when transmitting, and 0.02 W when ready to transmit.
To that, we can add 0.00025 W when shut down completely via a TTL control line.
Using the first two figures and an estimate of your duty cycle (active reading time vs. idle time), you can
calculate your average power consumption when the module is active. Average the time the module is
turned off and you can determine your average power consumption for the life of the battery.
THINGMAGIC NANO Q&A
Q. Do you have a Development Board for the Nano?
Yes, there is a DevKit for ThingMagic Nano.
Q. Do the readers work at full power in Japan and China regulatory regions?
Yes. We have installed special circuitry in the module to allow the modules to pass Chinese and Japanese
regulations at the maximum RF power output levels allowed.
Q. What is the largest/best PCB integrated antenna recommended for an all in one on board mounted
solution?
This depends on your application. If a linear omni-directional antenna will work for you, a simple folded
dipole antenna may provide the needed performance. This is similar to what was used in our USB-Plus
reader, which typically reads tags to 1 meter at +23 dBm output levels. Circularly-polarized antennas tend
to be a bit larger. If your application permits them to radiate both upwards and downwards, they can be
built into a PC board. If they can only radiate in one direction, you will need some thickness to the antenna.
The most common solution uses a ceramic material to raise the radiating element above the board.
Q. How about moving UHF RFID? Is there a speed limit for reading?
You can approximate the time the tag needs to be in the field by taking the inverse of the published read
speed. For example, a 200 tag-per-second reader would need at least 5 msec to read one tag. If you
conservatively use the beam-width of your antenna to estimate to the length of your read field, you can
calculate the distance that the tag will be in the read field while traveling through it. Dividing this length by
the read time will give you a good estimate of your maximum tag speed.
Q. What is typical battery life at maximum read rate and distance?
Use the method discussed above to determine your average long-term power consumption and convert
this to current at the typical output voltage for the battery. If you already have a battery in your system,
look at its “mA-h” rating. This tells you the trade-off between current consumption at its typical output
Voltage and hours of operation. This will allow you to calculate the battery life when it starts out fully
charged. If you are designing a system, determine the number of hours of operation you need, and
calculate in reverse to determine the battery capacity needed.
Q. Do you need a heat sink for Nano?
As with all UHF RFID modules, the Nano generates heat when transmitting. The Nano module transfers its
internal heat to its bottom surface and to the ground pads around its circumference, where it is then
transferred to the ground plane of the PC board it is soldered to. You may not need any more heat sinking
than this, but that depends on the RF transmit level, the average time spent transmitting, and the
maximum ambient temperature that the assembly will experience.