NopponChoosri1,2, Saisakul Chernbumroong1,2, Suttipong Intaya1, Apitchaka Singjai1, Anthony Atkins 2, and Hongnian Yu 2
1College of Arts Media and Technology, Chiang Mai University, Chiang Mai, Thailand
2Faculty of Computing, Engineering and Technology, Staffordshire University, Stafford, UK
Abstract—The research aims to build a technology system that improves service and operation for a zoo using RFID application. A problem investigation has been conducted with a case study at Chiang Mai Zoo, Thailand to propose and develop a prototype solution to overcome some practical issues. The proposed framework utilises RFID technology to store data and deal with other information technologies, there are two major subsystems: e-Ticket system and mobile tracking system. An implementation of the proposed system should provide significant benefits to the zoo as well as other similar businesses.
Index Terms- Chiang Mai zoo; RFID applications;
RFID Technology; Thailand zoo I.INTRODUCTION
Chiang Mai is one of Thailand most popular tourist destinations, located in the North of Thailand.
For years ithas been the tourist hub of the north having more than 5 million people visiting per year, bringing in around THB 38 million in revenue [1]. Chiang Mai is surrounded by a variety of famous tourist attractions including Chiang Mai Zoo, which is the first and only zoo in the North of Thailand, established in 1974 C.E. by My Young, an Americanmissionary, and latercontrolled by the Zoological Park Organization in 1977 [2]. Chiang Mai Zoo is a popular eco-tourism and wild life learning attraction for all kinds of tourists, ranking top three most visited tourist attractions in Chiang Mai Thailand [1].
In order to maximise the zoo’s assets, increase the number of tourists and customer satisfaction, an investigated into emerging Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) technology, which is an identification technology using radio waves to identify objects, has been undertaken. RFID has normally been used in manufacturing, logistic andsupply chainmanagement domain. Recognition and acknowledgement of the significant potential of using RFID in other areas inspired this investigation into employing this technology in thetourism sector in particular at Chiang Mai Zoo. RFID can be used to improve the zoo’s management, quality of services and customer satisfaction. Investigation has been carried out on the zoo’s current systems and services. Observations were made to assess whether RFID technology could enhance the existing framework and the problem justification is outlined in
Section II. The paper is structured as follows:
Section III provides a review of RFID technology and Section IV explains a proposed framework.
In Section V there is a discussion of the system architecture. Section VI projects the benefits of implementation and finally Section VII provides the conclusions.
II.PROCEDURE FOR PAPERSUBMISSION
Problem investigations were studied by reviews andobservation at the zoo. From the current system, thefollowing challenges were identified that could be improved by using RFID technology.
A. Handling a large management system
Chiang Mai zoo is one of the largest zoos in Thailand with an area of more than 200 acres.
Because of its large size, it is difficult for staffs to deliver the highest quality services, for example some of the tourists might encounter problems involving searching and locating different locations e.g. Panda’s enclosures, toilets, snack shops, in the zoo etc. The zoo accommodates more than 8,000 animals in which different species require different type of foods and habitats. Veterinarians and zoo staffs have challenges in remembering and identification of factual information for individual animals e.g. on specific illness and treatment, dietary, etc., as currently there are no online devices available to support staff. Recently due to the arrival of a new baby giant panda as there is one ofa few pandas born outside China, the zoo has received more attention from both locals and overseas tourists. The increase in the number of visitors have given further recognition to the case for a new management system being introduced in order to maintain visitors’
satisfactions and best care for the animals.
B. Improve Manual operation
Most of the zoo operations are done manually including key operations such as selling and checking tickets. For example, at the entrance, a staff member will check the visitor’s ticket. This is prone to human error as the staff visually inspects the ticket. Also, from the observation, only one staff member is allocated to this job which causes a bottle neck during rush hours. As the labour intensive process slow the flow of the overall process and is unproductive and inefficient. The
safety and security of such a process is low as there is no system to keep process and it is possible that unauthorized people could enter the zoo without valid tickets.
C. Improve guiding aids
The zoo is not just a place to visit for recreation, and many tourists may come with an expectation of also gaining some knowledge related to zoology and ecology. Observations indicated that the current services could be improved, for instance many current animal explanatory boards are not effective enough i.e. some are made fromflimsy materials (Figure 1) and some do not provide information in other languages for foreign tourists.
Figure 1.Ineffective animal information label.
In this research, RFID could be used to improve efficiency at the zoo or at least to overcome the issues mentioned previously. RFID e-ticket would be proposed to tackle the inefficiency problem of paper tickets and associated manual checking operations would offer a safe and secure system as money-related tasks are completed electronically over an automated machine system. The e-ticket would allow visitor information such as adults and/or children, nationality, etc. to be created automatically and used to create tailored services for improved visitors’ experience. For example, the animal information could be displayed in different languages according to visitors’ nationalities to support moretourist groups. Tourists can also use the e-Tickets for locating themselves within the zoo i.e. e-Ticket will display a map and surrounding locations when it is ‘present’at the informationpoint (RFID reader and linked network) at the animal enclosures. Also converting a manual system to a digital system as proposed would allow analysis to provide executive information, statistics and reports to answer ‘what if’ scenarios such as which service generates the most profit, which customer type visits the most etc. This information could be used to improve future systems and services.
III.RFIDTECHNOLOGY
A. Explanation of RFID Technology
Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) is a contact less data identification system using radio frequencies as a carrier andcanreplace barcode technology. The technology allows asmall radio device attached to an item to carry an identification of that item [3]. At least 3 components are required to integrate the system; that is, the reader, tag and middleware respectively [4]. The RFID concept is shown in Figure 2 and a brief explanation of each unit is given asfollows:-
Tag is an electronic chip containing storage memory and it communicates with a reader via an antenna. Tags are roughly divided into 3 types according to the source of power: activetag, passive tag, and semi-active tag. An active tag is a tag that supplies power to itself by using an onboard battery, a passive tag is supplied with power by a reader, while a semi-active is a hybrid of active and passive.
A tag also has on-board power supply for its operation, but for transmitting its data, a semi-active tag uses emitted power from reader like passive tag [5]. The tag can be classified into several types based on its radiofrequency usage, for example LowFrequency (LF), HighFrequency (HF), and Ultra High Frequency (UHF).
Figure 2. Component of RFID system
Reader or receiver is an RFID device that sends instructions to the tag, and it normally operates with a computer device. Although its primary operation, as its name suggests, is reading the tag, a write operation is possible on some types of tags and there are several types of readers. For example, a stationary reader can be used for desktop computers, while a handheld reader is used for mobile computers such as PDAs.
Middleware or reader interface layer is a unit that controls the reading process and handles the acquired databeforesending it to the backend database system such as SQL, MySQL, Oracle, Postgres, or a similar database for a specific vendor system.
e-Ticket system
Pocket PC Applications
Zoo Staff Tourist
Exhibition assisted devices Animal care
management RFID for Zoo Application
B. RFID in non-logistic applications
RFID is an alternative technology which is being used in several applications to replace traditional barcodes systems. Primarily RFID is used in logistics operation and this paper outlines a novel application of this technology to a zoo operation. In medical application, Nicholls and Young [6] proposed an ebed system to improve in-patient management which can identify bed vacancies in real time; it can also contribute a key identification role to support
‘life-or-death’ operations in health care. Jiang et al [7] proposed an RFID solution for blood transfusion services in hospitals to prevent misusing of donated blood by medical staff. In livestock, RFID is applied to track the movement of animals without interrupting normal activities [8]. In military’s operations, RFID tag can be attached to all weapons and equipments, so that at any time during a given mission, the exact equipment that each individual soldier holds can be known, so a unit leader of the troop can properly assign tasks to specific soldiers. In education, RFID technology can play a role as one of the key components in building the ubiquitous learning environments for school students by verifying current location and environment of a learner.
C. Emerging RFID Technology in Thailand
A 2005 survey found that the RFID market in Thailand was valued THB 857 m (Tag: 38%, Reader: 32%, System: 23%, and Software: 7%) [9]. Anecdotal evidence shows RFID technology has been adopted in several areas, for instance, in the airline industry where the international airport in Bangkok uses RFID tag technology to keep a record of all air freight (including internal luggage logistics) passing through its cargo terminals [10]. With this growing trend, its value is expected to reach $32 m in 2010 [11].
IV.PROPOSED FRAMEWORK
RFID technology applications other than logistics can drive improvements in efficiency for example at a zoo operation. The proposed system is composed of two platforms of application as depicted in Figure 3. An E-ticket is the core system and mobile tracking is a complementary system having potential to improve animal care and improve tourist satisfaction. Each system is described as follows:-
Figure 3. Conceptual framework of the two platform system
An E-ticket system is proposed to substitute the existing conventional paper based ticket system. An e- ticket is technically a RFID tag which acts as a pre-paid cash card. A credit amount is set to the card by a Write operation once a tourist buys a ticket. The card can also be used to attend special events or buy additional services in a zoo. The cardholder is required to operate a Read operation with a machine (RFID reader) at service points. The new system will not only improve the efficiency of ticket validation, but it will also improve tourist satisfaction when travelling though the zoo. With only one ticket, they can pursue any services provided in the zoo, accurately locate their current position at an animal enclosure (this helps to prevent tourists from getting lost) and use the new interactive system to provide a more enjoyable and informative experience. Figure 4 shows a scenario of the proposed system.
Figure 4.e-Ticket system
The flow of the proposed new system is shown in Figure 5. When tourists arrive at the zoo, they have to buy their electronic ticket and charge a credit for entrance. At the gate, they have to present their ticket to the system for verification. When they are in the zoo, tourists can use the card to access any service provided by the zoo. For particular services a charge may be required, and the system will deduct credit from the ticket. If the credit on the card
is too low the tourist can recharge the credit at a kiosk in the zoo. Finally, on leaving the tourist has to return their card to the ticket office, and then the card can be reused by a new visitor.
Figure 5. Flowchart of the proposed system
As well as re-engineering the core system using electronic ticket as outlined,mobile RFID system can also be developed for both zoo staff and tourist in the exhibition area. In the proposed system, animal carers will have a device which is Pocket PC associated with RFID mobile reader to help them give improved care to the animals. As each animal behaves differently and has different food requirements, when the device is presented to tag at an animal enclosure it will help by delivering feeding and other relevant information. The RFID mobile device can be used another way by tourist in an exhibition hall, where it can be used for listening to information.
V.SYSTEM ARCHITECTURE
The system operates by an integration of 4 technologies as shown in a Figure 6. There are:
RFID, Software application, Database, and Local Area Network (LAN). Users interact with an RFID
system using software applications which involve retrieval and storage of data with a database with communication among each component supported by the LAN. Functions of each component are described in Figure 6 and as follows: