802
802.11 Standard
802.15.4 Standard

A
Active RFID Tag
Application

B
Badge

E
Excite

F
Form Factor

I
Infrared (IR)
Interrogate

L
LAN
Location Engine

M
Middleware

P
Passive RFID Tag
Pendant

R
Radio-frequency Identification (RFID)
Resolution
RFID Tag
RFID Tag Antenna
RFID Reader (RFID Interrogator)
RFID Receiver
RF-IR
RTLS (Real-Time Locating Solution)

T
Tag

U
Ultrasound
Ultra-wide Band (ultra wideband, UWB)

W
WAN
Wi-Fi
Wireless Sensor Network (WSN)

Z
ZigBee

802
802.11 Standard –  a standard carrying out wireless local area network (WLAN) computer communication in the 2.4, 3.6 and 5 GHz frequency bands. It is maintained by the IEEE LAN/MAN Standards Committee (IEEE 802). 802.11 Standard is the basis for Wi-Fi specification. This technology is used by some RTLS solutions to calculate location.

802.15.4 Standard – a standard which specifies the physical layer and media access control for low-rate wireless personal area networks (LR-WPANs). It is maintained by the IEEE 802.15 working group. 802.15.4 Standard is the basis for the ZigBee specification. This technology is used by some RTLS solutions to calculate location.

A
Active RFID Tag –  a type of RFID tag that contains a battery and can continuously transmit information to the external source (RFID Receiver).  

Application (aka end-user software, software application) – software that utilizes the location and condition sensing data coming from the middleware and directly interacts with the end-user. Examples of RTLS-enabled applications include: asset tracking and management, patient flow, temperature monitoring, infection control and hand hygiene, staff duress, inventory tracking and management, positive patient identification, business intelligence and reporting, wireless nurse call.

B
Badge (aka pendant, tag) – a  form of a tag which monitors people or objects when worn or attached.

E
Excite – a process of transmitting radio frequency energy from the RFID tag reader to stimulate a passive RFID tag to provide power to transmit its data back.

F
Form Factor – the physical characteristics of the RTLS tag, such as size and shape.

I
Infrared (IR) –  a technology that uses electromagnetic radiation with a wavelength that is longer than that of visible light but shorter than that of microwaves and terahertz radiations. The IR signal does not penetrate walls, ceilings, floors or large objects inside a room, but it does bounce off any object in its path. This technology is used to enable RTLS systems.

Interrogate – a process of reading (or exciting) passive RFID tags by causing the tags to transmit their tag ID and relevant info.

L
LAN – stands for Local Area Network. It is a relatively small network (compared to a WAN) covering small areas like a room, a department, a building, a campus etc.

Location Engine – software that communicates with tags and sensors to determine the location of the tags. The location engine reports this information to middleware and applications.

M
Middleware – a platform for collecting data from multiple systems, including RTLS and other sensory network data and for processing this data to ultimately drive the information out to applications and systems such as communication systems, building systems, monitoring systems, or security and access control systems.

P
Passive RFID Tag – a type of RFID tag that has no power source (does not contain a battery) and requires an external electromagnetic field to initiate a signal transmission. Passive RFID tags make use of an RFID tag antenna that can create a magnetic field using the energy provided by the RFID Reader. The tag draws power from it, energizing the circuits in the tag. The tag then sends the information encoded in the tag's memory.

Pendant (aka badge, tag) – a  form of a tag which monitors people or objects when worn or attached.

R
Radio-frequency Identification (RFID) (aka RFID Technology) –  a technology, commonly used in reference to passive locating technologies, that uses communication via electromagnetic waves (radio waves) to exchange data between an RFID Reader and an RFID Tag attached to an object, for the purpose of identification and tracking.

Resolution – determines how well a tagged person or item can be tracked to a specific location (e.g., resident room, ER bay).

RFID Tag (aka Radio-frequency Identification tag, radio-frequency id tag, RFID chip) – a type of a tag that consist of two major parts: an integrated circuit for storing and processing information, modulating and demodulating a radio-frequency (RF) signal, and an RFID Antenna for receiving and transmitting the signal to the RFID Reader.

RFID Tag Antenna –  a conductive element of the RFID Tag that permits the tag to exchange data with the RFID Reader.

RFID Reader (aka Radio-frequency Identification Reader, RFID Interrogator) –  a device that is used to interrogate a passive RFID Tag. The reader has an RFID Antenna that emits radio waves; the tag responds by sending back its data.

RFID Receiver – a device that listens for RF (radio-frequency) signals and converts it into data packets that are available for further processing. It is used with the active RFID tags, which continuously emit preprogrammed messages.

RF-IR – a technology that uses both radio waves and infrared for identification and tracking purposes. This technology is used to enable some RTLS systems.

RTLS (Real-Time Locating Solution) (aka Real-Time Location System) – refers to technology that is used to locate and track people and items (such as assets, equipment, inventory) by associating a tag with each person or item. This term is commonly used in reference to “active” locating technologies.

T
Tag (aka badge, pendant) – a mobile device that is enabled with location technology. A tag is usually small enough that it can be attached to assents or carried by people.

U
Ultrasound –  a technology that uses a cyclic sound pressure with a frequency greater than the upper limit of human hearing. The production of ultrasound is used in Real-Time Location Systems as it can provide room level location accuracy because the sound does not penetrate walls.

Ultra-wide Band (aka ultra wideband, UWB) – any radio technology having bandwidth exceeding the lesser of 500 MHz or 20% of the arithmetic center frequency. This technology is used to enable RTLS systems.

W
WAN – stands for Wide Area Network. As its name suggests, it is a computer network that covers a far wider area than a LAN. WANs cover cities, countries, continents and the whole world. A WAN is formed by linking LANs together.

Wi-Fi – refers to any system that uses the 802.11 Standard, which was developed by the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE). Wi-Fi networks operate in the 2.4 and 5 GHz radio bands, with some products that contain both bands (dual band). Wi-Fi is a very common wireless technology that is used to connect machines in a LAN. This technology is used by some RTLS systems for locating purposes.

Wireless Sensor Network (WSN) – a network of spatially distributed autonomous sensors to cooperatively monitor physical or environmental conditions, such as motion, temperature, pressure, sound, or vibration. In addition to one or more sensors, a sensor network is typically equipped with a radio transceiver or other wireless communications device, a small microcontroller, and an energy source, usually a battery.

Z
ZigBee – a specification for a suite of high level communication protocols using small, low-power digital radios based on the IEEE 802.15.4 Standard for Low-Rate Wireless Personal Area Networks (LR-WPANs). It’s simple but flexible protocol enables high throughput and low latency for low duty-cycle application and allows creating self-forming and self-healing mesh network. This technology is used by some RTLS systems for locating and data transfer purposes.