Radio coverage and best practices
One Base Station typically reaches up to about 4,000 tags. Real coverage depends on layout, materials, and interference.
General principles
Section titled “General principles”- Place the base in a central point relative to the gondolas to cover, with a reasonable line of sight.
- Avoid hiding it behind thick metal sheets or in shielded storerooms.
- Plan coverage tests before full go-live.
- For mass updates, prefer remote; keep Bluetooth proximity as a fallback.
Pre-go-live checklist
Section titled “Pre-go-live checklist”- Base Station powered and online
- Associated with the correct store
- Map updated with tag positions
- Test on tags in a nearby zone (ok)
- Test on tags in a far / corner zone (ok)
- Test behind any critical obstacles (cold rooms, warehouse, mezzanines)
- Observed update time in line with typical 60–80 s
- Fallback plan: proximity update for weak zones
Symptoms of insufficient coverage
Section titled “Symptoms of insufficient coverage”- Some tags update, others do not (geographic pattern)
- Intermittent updates in one aisle
- Base Station online but frequent timeouts
Actions: Base Station offline / weak signal.
Operational best practices
Section titled “Operational best practices”| Practice | Why |
|---|---|
| Update in batches outside peak checkout | Reduces operational stress and calmer verification |
| Spot-check at the shelf | Catch price list ↔ display errors |
| Document shadow zones | Needed for a possible second base |
| Do not move the base without retesting | Coverage changes with position |