Aircraft Interiors Expo: Lufthansa Technik Presents On-board RFID Application

At Aircraft Interiors Expo, the world's largest trade exhibition for aircraft interior design and systems engineering, Lufthansa Technik has presented its qualified product innovation, the UHF RFID (ultra high frequency radio frequency identification) transponder for permanent installation on aircraft. The innovation makes Lufthansa Technik the first company to use RFID technology in aviation. RFID is a technique for the automatic, contactless identification of objects and living beings.

RFID has been in use for some time in other business sectors such as the clothing industry. The high technical demands encountered in aviation, however, call for significant modifications and engineering expertise. The devices have to survive radical, short-term temperature fluctuations without damage, and must withstand rapid changes in air pressure. The engineers of the Innovation business unit in Hamburg have now developed a system that can do just that.

The newly developed and qualified passive UHF RFID transponder receives and reflects ultra-high frequencies, enabling two-way communication even at a distance of 30 to 50 cm and without visual contact, including through cabin wall panels, for example. These transponders were also modified further to work when affixed to metal housings.

The use of this new technology radically simplifies all routine logistical processes, be it in the maintenance and repair of components or in everyday flight operations. With the help of the RFID transponder, it is possible to locate and identify any given object and verify its modification status at all times - without having to access a central database - via the simple transmission of radio waves.

Such systems always consist of at least two components: the transponder, or tag, which is located in or on the object that needs to be communicated with, and a reading device to identify it. The reading device can identify any nearby device bearing a transponder. The passive UHF tag delivers its information by backscattering the emitted carrier wave, and draws the energy required to do this from the incoming radio signal. This means that the tag does not need its own power source and can thus function entirely passively.