RFID Support

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To configure an RFID integration profile, you must have the following role:

General System Administrator

You can use RFID readers for scanning item barcodes and for registering their check-out and check-in. After the RFID integration profile is added, a connection icon appears in the main menu bar as long as a location is selected from the Currently At drop-down.

The RFID icon appears only if an RFID integration profile is defined and set as active, and you have selected a location.

Supported RFID Devices

For a list of supported RFID devices, see https://developers.exlibrisgroup.com/alma/integrations/rfid.

For information for other vendors on how they can integrate with Alma (development may be needed on the vendor’s side), see https://developers.exlibrisgroup.com/alma/integrations/rfid/information_for_rfid_vendor/

Using RFID to Read an Item Barcode

If the RFID connection is not currently active, it appears as grayed out:

To use RFID to read an item barcode:

Select the connection icon to open an RFID communication pop-up window. This enables the communication with the reader and must be left open in order to read from or write to the reader.

The connection icon on the menu bar changes to activated to show that the connection has been made. The active connection is maintained for each user and desk/department. When switching to a new desk, you must activate the connection again by selecting the connection icon.
Select the Read RFID icon () next to the search bar to activate the RFID reader to read the barcode of the item that is currently at the counter, and display the item.
All input boxes that accept a barcode show this icon as long as the RFID connection is active. These boxes are found in the following locations: Scan In, Return Items, Patron Services, Repository Search, Receive New Material, Physical Item Editor, Quick Cataloging, and Persistent Search (throughout Alma).
Additionally, while on a screen that has the icon to read a barcode, the keyboard shortcut Alt+A, activates the reader to display the listing.

When searching for physical items, the search result will display the RFID Security Status.

When scanning a multi-part item using RFID, if some of the resources have not been scanned, a message will be displayed indicating that not all of the item resources were scanned.

Using the RFID reader to scan and loan an item disables the security bit on the RFID tag. Returning the item re-enables the security tag.

Configuring the RFID Integration Profile

To configure the RFID integration profile:

On the Integration Profiles List page (Configuration Menu > General > External Systems > Integration Profiles), select Add Integration Profile. The first page of the Integration Profile wizard opens.
Enter a Code and a Name for the profile.
From the Integration Type drop down list, select RFID.

Integration Profile – Step 1 with RFID Selected
From the System dropdown list, select the RFID system that you are using. Supported systems are (see RFID Support):
- Bibliotecha - Liber8Connect Link
- 3M - 896
- Seret
- Nedap
- Other
  If you select Other from the list of systems, the System Description field appears; add further system details there.
Optionally, under Description, add a description for the profile.
The Default field is not currently functional.
Select Next. The second page of the wizard opens.

Integration Profile – Step 2
Select the Active checkbox to make this an active RFID definition. Note: the profile is inactive by default.
Under Server URL, enter the URL for the RFID system to which your RFID device is attached, as follows:
- For 3M™ RFID Staff Workstation (Model 896): http://localhost:5000/TagService
- For Bibliotheca: http://localhost:5000/BibliothecaRFIDPadService.svc
- For Nedap and Seret: If NGINX isn’t needed, you can link directly to the RFID driver, e.g. http://localhost:1801
- For Nedap with NGINX: http://localhost:5000/NedapRfidWebService.asmx (and the NGINX on localhost should proxy to the main server)
- For MK Solutions: http://localhost:4039/mkStaffStation_Alma
- For other integrations that support one central server which then proxies the requests to the readers: https://server-address:port/path (must be https)
  For additional information, see Alma – RFID Integration in the Developers Network.
For 3M - 896 only, the Tag Format value field appears. Contact your RFID supplier for the relevant tag format for the device and enter it in this field.
Select Handle Multiple Items to accept multiple items on the RFID reader.
If the System (field on the previous page) is Other, the Item Information Update option appears. Select this option to enable Alma to update item information on RFID tags when they are updated in Alma.
Configure and/or review the following definitions:
- The Nedap system is used only for check in and check out and does not allow updating the tag itself. Therefore, the mapping definitions are unavailable for Nedap RFID profiles.
- When Other is selected in the System field on page 1 of the integration profile, the Item Information Update field appears. In this case, the definitions appear only after selecting the check box.
- If IPs need to be configured for the RFID readers, the reader IPs need to be configured on the circulation desk configuration as well, for example when working with Nedap, or with some RFID vendors that integrate with the Alma Other RFID Integration profile type. See Adding a Circulation Desk.
- RFID Material Type Definition (see the Configuring the RFID Material Type Definition section below)
- RFID Item Policy Definition (see the Configuring the RFID Item Policy Definition section below)
- Mapping of RFID Fields to Alma Fields (see the Mapping the RFID Fields to Alma Fields section below)
Select Save.

For more information on configuring RFID, see https://developers.exlibrisgroup.com/alma/integrations/rfid.

Configuring the RFID Material Type Definition

You can map the RFID material type codes used by your vendors to the alphabetic material type codes that you currently have defined in Alma in the RFID Material Type Code Table. The RFID Material Type Code Table uses the Physical Material Type Code Table definitions. See Configuring Physical Item Material Type Descriptions for more information.

To configure the RFID Material Type Code Table:

On the Integration Profiles List page (Configuration Menu > General > External Systems > Integration Profiles), open your RFID Integration Profile and select the RFID Material Type Definition link. The RFID Material Type code table page appears.
In a Network environment, the Manage Table in Network options appear.

RFID Material Type Code Table Configuration in the Network - Manage Table in Network Button

RFID Material Type Code Table Configuration in the Network - Save and Distribute/Stop Network Management
In the Create a New Code Table Row section, select one of the existing material type codes from the Code drop-down list, enter the vendor's RFID code for the Description (mandatory), and select Add Row. Continue adding rows for each Alma material type to which you want to assign a vendor value for the RFID reader.

RFID Material Type Rows Added

If you need to create a new material type in addition to what is provided in the drop-down list, use the Physical Material Type Code Table configuration options. See Configuring Physical Item Material Type Descriptions for more information.
Select Customize (or Save if you have previously edited this code table).

Configuring the RFID Item Policy Definition

You can map the RFID item policy codes used by your vendors to the alphabetic item policy codes that you currently have defined in Alma in the RFID Item Policy Code Table.

To configure the RFID Item Policy code table:

On the Integration Profiles List page (Configuration Menu > General > External Systems > Integration Profiles), open your RFID Integration Profile and select the RFID Item Policy Definition link. The RFID Item Policy code table page appears.
In a Network environment, the Manage Table in Network options appear.

RFID Item Policy Code Table Configuration in the Network - Manage Table in Network Button

RFID Item Policy Code Table Configuration in the Network - Save and Distribute/Stop Network Management
In the Create a New Code Table Row section, select one of the existing item policy codes from the Code drop-down list, enter the vendor's RFID code for the Description (mandatory), and select Add Row. Continue adding rows for each Alma item policy to which you want to assign a vendor value for the RFID reader.

RFID Item Policy Rows Added
Select Customize (or Save if you have previously edited this code table).

Mapping the RFID Fields to Alma Fields

The Mapping of RFID Fields to Alma Fields link displays the RFID Fields mapping table settings. The settings on this page determine what information is written to the RFID tag. From this page, you can see which fields are enabled to be written to the RFID tag. In addition, you can see one of the following Alma field settings that has been mapped to each of the RFID tag fields:

Alma Fields that can be Mapped

If you need to customize the field mapping or which fields are enabled to be written to the RFID tag, contact Support for assistance.

The fields Library and Location in the RFID Mapping Fields table cannot be disabled.
If you need to configure RFID Item Update so that the Library and Location are not sent, put value N/A.

Configuring Library Codes for RFID

You can map the RFID library codes used by your vendors to the alphabetic library codes that you currently have defined in Alma in the Alma library configuration (navigate to Configuration Menu > General > Libraries section > Add a Library or Edit Library Information, select the Library tab and then select the library to add the code for).

The Code for RFID field needs to be configured in order to write RFID content.
This field is only visible when the RFID connection is active as described in Using RFID to Read an Item Barcode.

RFID Library Code

For more information, see Adding/Editing Institution Libraries.

Configuring Location Codes for RFID

You can map the RFID location codes used by your vendors to the alphabetic location codes that you currently have defined in Alma in the Alma location configuration (Configuration Menu > Fulfillment > Locations > Physical Locations when configuring a specific library). The Location Code for RFID field needs to be configured in order to write RFID content. This field is only visible when the RFID connection is active.

Physical Location Code for RFID New UI.png

RFID Location Code

For more information, see Configuring Physical Locations.

Transaction Log

The RFID Communication window that opens when you select the connection icon can be expanded to display a list of request and response RFID transaction activity. Use this log to help resolve any failed transaction with your RFID communication. Include a copy of this log with any RFID Salesforce issue that you may submit.

RFID Communication Window Transaction Log

For more information, see https://developers.exlibrisgroup.com/alma/integrations/rfid.

Scanning Multiple Items

Once the "Handle Multiple Items" checkbox is selected in the integration profile, RFID can process scans, either as a single item, or with multiple item as follows:

When the RFID button is pressed, the items on the RFID pad will be processed. When processing is complete, a summary confirmation popup will appear, detailing how many items were handled successfully, and presenting any alerts that came up during the scan. If all items are successfully processed, a success message is displayed. If an item requires action, the process is paused until you select Confirm or Cancel. Selecting Cancel only stops processing for the specific item. When multi-scan processing is completed, a summary of the processing is provided. Items that require an action appear under Failed/Canceled Items. Items that do not need action appear under Items Requiring Attention.

RFID Multi-scan summary.png

Multi-scan Summary

You can use the RFID button on the following pages when there is either a single item or multiple items on the RFID pad:

Scan in items
Scan in items > change item information - On this tab, multiple items can be processed as stated above with the exception of the following circumstances;
- When a new barcode is created.
- When the RFID integration profile is configured to update items and Update RFID is selected on the tab.
Manage patron services > Loans tab
Manage patron services > Returns tab
Return Items

For Bibliotecha, this is only supported when using staffConnect Link (using the Other type in the integration profile) or D-Tech. For additional assistance with StaffConnect link, contact support-ch@bibliotheca.com.For a list of supported RFID vendors, see Alma - RFID Integration on the Developer Network.

The multi-scan function applies only to reading, not updating. Additionally, please note the circumstances on the Scan In Items Change Information tab where multi-scan is not supported.